The Man Challenge

[wazkelly]

What started me on all this was a doctor telling me that I was technically obese and the secret to losing weight was to eat less and exercise more.

Man, she must have thought she was a frickin' genius to come up with that one liner!

Not so simple as it comes down to how you exercise and long cardio sessions such as running is not the answer to losing weight.

[Dedman]

I've been exercising by building guitars Which is not as crazy as it sounds as I have to cart all the tools and a table from the garage to the carport and every time I need another tool its another trip, so lots of walking, bending etc. Plus the leisurely bike rides and changed the way I eat. I used to always eat fresh fruit after my evening meal, then by 8pm I'd be looking for snacks. I've stopped buying snacks and eat the fruit later. Except for dinner I don't really eat meals. I just sort of have a bite here and there when I feel hungry. The whole "breakfast time, Lunch time " thing was invented during the industrial revolution so factory workers would all eat at the same time. I know I should eat breakfast and not have the main meal at night but when you care for a aged person who demands their meat and 2 veg at 6pm it makes it easier to just comply.

[DrNomis_44]

Hey Doc, that puts you a little bit on the light side and probably need a decent feed haha!

Underweight (BMI less than 18.5)

BMI Calculator-healthy weight results
Your BMI
18
Your suggested healthy weight range 59 - 79kg

So going by that, I'm actually within my suggested healthy range then?, I've had my blood-pressure checked and apparently it's fine.


@ Dingobass My dad used to nickname me "Hollow-Legs" when I was younger...hahahaha.

[Muzza]

G'day Muzza, good to hear from you again buddy and even better to hear you are almost in perfect shape.

I've been here all along, just not posting as my builds are all still on hold.

My wife got me onto the 5/2 diet. You eat what you want 5 days a week, and on 2 days (either consecutive or split) you limit your calorific intake to 600 calories for men, 500 calories for wimmin. We do our fast day on a Monday and a Thursday. There's a documentary called 'Eat Fast and Live Longer' that explains how it works - and it DOES!

Here's a poor quality YouTube video of the documentary, but try to find the original film on your favourite torrent site.
https://youtu.be/hl7TWm9lemw

She did it last year on her own, as I poo-pooed the idea and didn't want anything to do with it.

At at the beginning of the year, my bad cholesterol was bad, blood pressure through the roof, visceral fat around my vital organs was getting out of control, work stress levels too high and the anti-depressants weren't working. My psychologist advised me I needed to eat more healthily, exercise and get into a regular sleep pattern. (Two out of three... It's 12:30am, and here I am)

So my wife asked me to go on the 5/2 diet to support her, and help me regain my physical (and mental) health, and I reluctantly agreed.

Long story short, 5 months later, my blood pressure is perfect, LDL cholesterol is JUST above the ideal, but is still coming down, and as previously mentioned, my BMI is now within reach.

In October, it will be six months, so we're going to drop back to one day a week. It was easier than I'd anticipated. The hardest part is that time late at night when you get a craving for snax in front of the plug-in-drug.

In 5 months, I've only broken the fast on 3 Thursdays. Once when I was REALLY crook and bedridden, once when my depression took a turn for the worst and I sought comfort in a LOT of junk food. (It worked...) and the third time was when I went down to Wollongong for my mum's 85th birthday. (I'm not fasting at a birthday bash)

Im the healthiest I've been for years and even have the black dog under control. I could've made it even MORE effective had I not taken the 'eat what you want for 5 days' part so literally. If I'd eaten a little more thoughtfully on the eating days, I'd be BMI 17 and probably off the cholesterol and BP pills.

[wazkelly]

Great story Muzza and suspect there are many others out there with similar things going on in their lives too.

Even better to hear that you are on top of things and in a much better place. Well done mate and keep at it as the results clearly show it works.

[DrNomis_44]

@ Muzza I got diagnosed with Minor Depression a few years ago and got put on a course of 30 Sertraline GA tablets, I ended up completing the course and after that I've been pretty good ever since, and I developed a few strategies to help me cope, one of these strategies is to do anything related to music, since it's something that makes me feel good inside, building guitars is something that's helping me cope with day to day life, you're not alone mate.

[dingobass]

Great stuff Muzza!

[Emily]

Issue is I am not a man. haha.

I recommend MyFitnessPal to anyone wanting to lose weight. I have been using this for about 6 weeks and have dropped about 4 kgs. My doctor recommended going slow and dropping about 20kgs over 12 months so this is a plus. I have been tracking everything I eat on this and hitting the gym 4ish times a week. Tracking my calorie intake actually made me surprised about how much was in some of my favourite foods.

[wazkelly]

Good stuff Emily.

Whilst it is called The Man Challenge I suggest that any women wanting to have a go just sign up their man and tag along for free as the meals and exercises are suitable for either gender. He does make a specific female protein shake but cannot see any big deal as plenty of female athletes follow a similar HIIT and diet regime.

[Fretworn]