I had a relatively bad weekend.

On Saturday I did what I do on occasion - eat one "bad" thing (a little bag of chips) and it spiraled from there. If I had my way there wouldn't even be stuff like that in the house, but my boyfriend likes it for his bag lunch each day. I know it's ridiculous, but if I always just beat myself up if I eat bad stuff then eat more of it since the day is already "bad". Just a mental issue, obviously.

In any event, I'm now down 3 lbs from my start. Slow and steady does it, although I'd prefer to go a bit faster.

SGT...I used to fall into this same pattern. I'd eat 1 bad thing, then the whole day, then suddenly I'm "starting over on Monday". And the guilt just makes you feel worse and lapse even more. They talked alot about this on the cutthefatpodcast (not spamming, it just really helped me). It taught me to eat well 90% of the time, but to also enjoy my 'bad' food without any guilt and know that the very next meal I'm back to business. So, if I'm gonna go to a party, I'm gonna eat/drink whatever and just have a great time because I know that it is just a very small blemish on an awesome regular diet....Pizza tonight FWIW!!!!

I was just about to write almost the exact same thing. If you expect perfection, you're just setting yourself up to fail. You're not never going to have chips again. Guilt has no place in any of this - it's just food, and even if you ate an entire large bag of chips without adjusting any other part of your diet, its maybe half a pound's worth of calories. Not the end of the world by any means. Plan for it, adjust the rest of your diet or exercise if you can, and move on (kinda like bad beats imo). And, great job on the 3 pounds! Don't forget to remember the positives, we always tend harp on the negative Also, can the boyfriend maybe keep the bag of chips at work?

btw Skleice, I gave your podcast a listen and its really solid stuff imo. I'm not so sure how I feel about the insulin/carb thing though, I'd like to see some research backing that up. As a vegetarian it's virtually impossible to avoid carbs entirely in a meal

Yeah, I know all that mentally, I just have to correct the faulty underlying thoughts/assumptions so it doesn't derail me going forward.

It's hard to undo decades worth of bad thought processes. Possible, but hard.

Finally was disciplined enough to fire up Wii fit and hear it say: "That's obese!"

I'm down 14.8 pounds since starting on the 29th of January. Lost 1.8 over the last 2 weeks or so. A week or two until my first milestone (265) at which time I'll treat myself to a nice new iPad case.

The problem people, when the updated stats get posted, is that the north American vitamix simply won't run on Irish 220V power.

That will have to explain everything....

I'm happy to find this thread here. For the past few months I've been changing my eating habits to eat leaner/cleaner meals, In order to prepare for my first triathlon this year. I also have a full schedule of Obstacle Course races.

Adam, are you interested in running a race to keep yourself on track physically?


Have any of you watched "Food, Inc." documentary... you'll never eat fast food after watching.

Yes, I watched Food Inc, but it was quite a while ago, so it has worn off a bit.

Wouldnt go as far as saying that Im fat but I haven't really paid attention to eating healthy and exercising regularly. Now trying to get back to my weight from a year ago.

Height: 6'0'
Weight: 216
Weight Goal: 185

Will cut down on the snacks and just quit eating when I'm not really hungry anymore, goal is to exercise 3 times a week. I'm trying to accomplish that by only letting myself listen to the Pokercast while I'm exercising :-)

Gonna try and get in better shape too. My problem is food and especially alcohol. I am not able to cut down on those at all. I read that alcohol is the nut worst for dieting. I drink at least 5 nights a week, dont go crazy but at least 1/2 to 1 bottle of wine a night.

Go to the gym for 1-1.5hrs 4 nights a week. Been going for over a year now but unable to lose any weight at all. I know for a fact that it's due to my poor eating habits. Luckily, I have not gained any weight since going to the gym.

Very frustrating though, need to lose at least 30lbs.

First update:

- dropped 2lbs so far.
- have walked to and/or from work each day. My goal is to do both directions every day, which would be approximately 3 miles, but sometimes, if I'm running late in the morning, I hop the bus instead. On days that I take the bus, I do go for a short walk at lunchtime.
- have been preparing most of my own meals and have not eaten any fast food other than one night when an awesome concert + a few beers led to two slices of late night pizza. Not a good decision obviously, but I just tried to dust myself off and start with a clean slate the next day.
- Finally shipped the tax refund and ordered a starter set of free weights to add a little strength training to go with my walking routine.

@Adam - can't wait to hear the post Ireland trip report/status update!

Starting weight: 276.6 lbs (I'm 6'7", so while I don't appear obese, I'm not slim either.)
Goal: 235 lbs by Dec 31 (approx 1.2 lb/week)

9 years ago (24 years old) when I stopped running a restaurant, I weighed the exact same weight and got down to 230 in about 9 months after changing my eating habits and exercising regularly.

Looking to do the same thing now and will keep posting in this thread to help keep me accountable.

Weekly Tuesday update:

Triathlon progress:
We have had some weird weather this week, so I haven't been outside as much as I wanted. However, I have been doing more at the gym. This week, I did the 750m swim three times, 20K on the stationary bike twice, and ran 5K once (ran 3.5K another time but had to cut it short as I didn't have time to finish). In fact, on Saturday, I pushed off the wall in the pool at 6:45am, and did the swim+bike+run (all in the gym), finishing at 8:48 (so, 2:03 including the time taken to change between activities); the run this time was 80-20 run/walk (exactly since I was running on a track and kept track of how many laps I did of each). I didn't train on Friday or Sunday due to family committments around Easter.

I fully understand that going 20K on a stationary bike on a relatively mild setting is not the same as riding an actual bike 20K, and running 5K on an indoor flat track is not the same as a road run, but it still felt pretty good. Weather is supposed to be better this week so I hope to get back outside.

I joined up a triathlon forum and they have a mentoring program so that has been interesting; it's a wild mix of people training for Hawaii and people like me, and they've given me some good advice about training indoors and what to expect from an outdoor swim. Based on how things are going, I'm not that worried about the endurance part; I'm just damn slow, especially at running.

I don't think I've lost any weight per se, but I do feel like my shape is changing somewhat and I definitely feel more athletic.

Eating better progress:
Not a lot of real progress; definitely making an effort to cut down between meal snacking, but am having a few too many large meals at meal time (especially steak) in my opinion, and being lazy when going out about having pop instead of milk/water.

Drinking more water progress:
I really don't know why this continues to be such a problem for me. I work at home and can go get water any time I want, and yet I don't.

Keep a glass of water next to you at all times. I work in an office, and this helps me stay active as well. Every hour or so I need to get up to fill my water at the water cooler. Every hour and a half to two hours I need to get up to use the restroom.

I am always sipping on water while on my computer doing work*






*doing work is defined as browsing 2p2 which you can see by my post count.

I accept the challenge.

Weeks since start: 0
Starting BMI: n/a
Starting weight: 220
Current weight:220
Goal weight: 175 or lower (aiming for the 2+2 party on July 6th)

I am doing this to finally take the weight off and finally get down to a very healthy weight. I have listened to the show for awhile now. My wife and me listen to it on our drive home to Central Oregon from our weekly jobs in Portland, OR -- drive is about three hours, back and forth every week. Awesome poker cast, love it and we laugh quite a bit. Also, this is my first posting on 2+2 and I look forward to becoming more involved. I am making a deal with myself not to sit down at the poker table until my goal weight is reached. Basically, I look at it as a chance to re-tool not only my body but my game, my mind and my approach to the game. Sounds silly, but it forces me to push myself to get back to the felt with a better outlook on life and better endurance and a solid understanding of what truly is important....family and friends. Also, it motivates me to finally start utilizing this site and its resources. No more excuses or maybe next week sh*t!

Good luck to everyone....see you on the other side. Let me know your thoughts.

-M

All right, I'm in.

Current weight: 283
Intermediate goal weight: 250
Ultimate goal weight: 220

I'm down 7 pounds from my most recent high point, and about 20 from my highest point ever. I've been at this for 5 years off and on now, with varying levels of success. I've managed to break 270 once in that time, when I first started back in 2007. Every year I manage to get in good enough shape to run the National Capital Race Weekend 5k (well, mostly run) and then usually get off track for the rest of the year. I did complete a Try-a-Tri in 2009, and last year I also did the Army Run 5k. But, with a wife who's been battling depression and been in and out of hospitals for the last 6 years, stress inevitably kills my focus and I always seem to fall off the wagon. So, hopefully some additional accountability will help.

I'm not being really restrictive about what I eat...I subscribe to the theory that calories are calories, and that diets never work, so I'm just trying to reduce my caloric intake in general. I'm on week 5 of the Couch to 5k program, with the goal of once again running the Ottawa 5k, and maybe breaking 35 minutes. I'm going to start biking once the weather is good...I want to get back into the shape I was in at university, when I rode from Waterloo to Hamilton and back (approximately a century) one Sunday afternoon because I was bored.

A note about my goal weight: I inherited my dad's ridiculously large bone structure -- he was a fullback when he was younger -- so 220 is probably the lowest I can realistically accomplish at 6'3". My doctor has actually told me that 250 is a perfectly reasonable weight for me.

hi peeps gl to all, need some good workout music then checkout "the workout" album by stic man (just youtube it or whatever). You should also checkout rbgfitclub (google it).
Its a little gangsta maybe for some, but dont let that scare you away.
Good luck from a white guy

Yeah. Moobs or GTFO.

Seriously, though, getting fit is always a good idea. Someone said it already but you've gotta make a permanent change to your lifestyle or the cycle of blimping will just continue even after you reach your dieting goals.

Great idea ... I'm in too! My New Year's resolution didn't last very long, so looking forward to seeing if some degen support can help.

Like all kids, I could run forever, these days I get out of breath and sweat with the smallest of exercise. I started a new job 18 months ago and put on almost a kilo a month. Put it down to stress, entertaining and sedantry lifestyle. A couple of months ago I had the chance to step away from that job and have been having a sabattical. Sad news, I still put on a couple of extra kilos. So with my excuse gone and a community to support me, its time to shape up.

Weeks since start: 0
Starting weight: 85kg
Current weight:85kg
Goal weight: 74kg (Dec 2011 weight by 2+2 party)

As others said, the real goal is to get healthier, so I will take a couple of benchmark running (and hopefully swimming) times to checkpoint the real improvement.

Thanks to everyone that posted little apps to help. In terms of competition, Ugerhard seems to be on a similar path so with my 4kg start that's who I am not going to let pass me for more than 1 week. Good luck pushing me to success Uger.

Gtg, this fat ass is outta here for a brisk evening walk in balmy Sydney.

Finished the week strong with a workout (#4 of the week) at a local CrossFit gym. Ate OK for the week, heading to the beach this weekend (Clearwater Beach ftw) and will get in a few beach walks in the morning.

Was afraid to get on scale after much kebabs/guiness/cider/bacon. Reno nailed it with the comment about the Vitamix. Can't survive without it.

I mean the hotel had a huge, free breakfast buffet with the best sausages you've ever had and ****load of my lovely mistress, bacon.

I'm just a man.

Been back home a few days and back on the smoothies. Feel much better. Got on scale today and was 204. Same as before I left!

Going to mix in some gym time next week with my personal trainer James J Bunner Esq.

So glad to see this thread pick up steam. Every update is inspiring people!

Just saw this thread. Think it's a great idea.

I'm 5'10 and weight 195 right now. About 6 years ago I weighed 210 and got myself down to 180 five years ago. In the last five years I went between 180-190. I can put on pounds just by looking at a cheeseburger. Or thinking about one.

There, I just put on two pounds.

Weeks since start: 0
Starting BMI: 28
Starting weight: 195
Current weight:195
Goal weight: 170 (would put me in regular BMI)

While my BMI has me in overweight, it's mostly in my gut (and a little in my moobs). Here I am doing stand-up about how I'm fat.



I currently think of myself as being in ok shape. I'm obviously now, but I have run a number of half-marathons and plan on doing another one in a month.

I should probably get training. I took this approach last time and dry-heaved crossing the finish line.

So, like I was saying, I think I am in ok shape endurance and cardio-wise. All I really need to do is make good decisions regularly. My wife and I recently had our first child (Grace. She's beautiful) and I'm not making it to the gym as often, but it's getting nice out and I think I just gotta man up and work out, especially since I can do so outside.




I'd like to hit 170 by Labour Day.

So, as I said earlier in the thread I lost 60lbs from Feb - Dec 2011. In December I had shoulder surgery from a snowboard accident (ouch) and have not been able to work out at all. I also have not eaten that well while recovering...though amazingly I have not gained any weight back. Anyway, on to the point. Now that I'm more able-bodied I plan on really pumping up the exercise and tightening up the diet to what it was. I plan on doing P90x beginning in June, but to get ready starting tomorrow I will be doing the Power Half Hour (p90x for whimps?). It follows the 6 day a week plan like p90x, but for only 30 minutes and is less intense (which is good for my shoulder). SO tomorrow will be day one of my official challenge to myself...

Height 6'3"
Current weight - 245lb
Immediate goal weight - 225lb
final weight - dunno...maybe 2-210is? We'll see how I feel/look when I hit 225lb.

*just started things off right by roasting a ton of vegetables and cooking some lean chicken breast that I will pack for lunch each morning.

Holy **** what a wake up call I just got! When lifting weights and/or doing the bike for an hour I consider myself to be in decent shape. I can put up some heavy weight and push my muscles pretty hard. But, damn I suck at this jumping/kicking/crunching/twisting/spinning/etc. That was terrible! I'm sweating like a pig and my abs/legs are exhausted. I was able to hang in...tho my form was most likely pretty entertaining Day 2 tomorrow....

Thank you both! I actually think that the same skill set that enables us to be good poker players also enables us to be good at fitness, nutrition, and weight loss. For example:

With the same work ethic I used to play daily and put in over 1 million hands/year, I now work out daily and ensure a consistent weight loss over the year.

With the same discipline I used to understand why certain plays are profitable and how to improve my win rate, I now develop workout routines and nutrition plans.

With the same tilt control I used to push through downswings and not let myself play emotionally, I now push through weight loss plateaus and not let myself eat emotionally.

Just my $0.02, but I really think there are a lot of parallels between poker and weight loss. There's no question that variance is involved in both, but that with consistently good decisions, you'll get results in the long-term (even if the short-term can be a bit unpredictable).

Just by way of update:

Weeks since start: 29
Starting BMI: 37.4
Starting weight: 246.0
Current BMI: 28.7
Current weight:188.7
Goal weight: 164.1 (BMI = 24.9 / "normal")
Target date: 9/25/2012 (one year from when I started)

I've lost 57.3 pounds in the first 29 weeks; I still have 24.6 pounds to lose in the next 23. It's definitely getting more difficult the more I lose; I used to reliably lose two pounds/week, but now it's more like one pound/week.