Big Guy Ready !!!

satjat · Post by **satjat** » July 15th, 2009, 8:45 pm

241 lb, 5 feet 10 inches. Spent a free month at a local gym but all the cardio equipment was always occupied. Noticed a dusty contraption in the corner....a Concept 2. Used it, first time in a long time my joints weren't aching. Gym takes too long. Just bought a Model E for my home. My 43rd birthday is in 93 days. My goal is to lose 40 lbs by then. It is about 3 lbs a week. I know it is aggressive but shoot for the moon right? I will let everyone know how I am progressing.

Any tips for a new guy? No history of rowing.

djh · Post by **djh** » July 16th, 2009, 8:02 am

Enjoy your rower, and don't let it sit dusty in some corner of your house! I figured the significant cash outlay would prevent that from happening to me and, so far, it's worked out fine.

Spend a lot of time reading these forums. There's an huge collected wealth of information here, and in the Concept2.com website.

Start off easy. The last thing you need is an injury and forced lay-off from your erg.

Use the on-line log. Experiment with the rankings. That's been a great motivator for me.

I've rowed 692,381 meters which, you'll quickly find out, makes me still a beginner. But I'll have done a million meters before the end of the year.

Best of luck!

satjat · Post by **satjat** » July 16th, 2009, 9:20 am

Thanks for the reply djh. I did 2K this morning. I've told myself it has taken me a few years to get out of shape no sense in trying to make it all back in 2 weeks. Saw in your profile you are in Toronto. There all the time. I work for Magna.

Kevlar281 · Post by **Kevlar281** » July 17th, 2009, 5:24 pm

It took me 108 days to lose 41 lbs. In that time span I rowed 832,675 meters. Typically I row 10,000 meters five days a week. It took me two months to build up the stamina to row 50,000 meters each week. In that time frame I did not monitor my weight loss. Just wanted to post some numbers to give you a bit of insight on the work it will take to lose 40 lbs.

slwiser · Post by **slwiser** » July 17th, 2009, 6:37 pm

I think your goal is really aggressive. You are almost setting yourself up for failure which I hope not. It is much better to be realistic and real real goals instead of missing them and having a failure to think about. I have lost over 90 lbs over the last 18 months, from a little over 300 to today my weight was 206.1 lbs. Diet of proper portions and the right mix of nutrients with adequate exercise will get you to where you want to be. Two pounds a week would be a great success in my book over that period. So if you stay healthy and eat adequately with proper exercise you might just make it.

Just don't eat so little while exercising so hard that you get weak and can't build muscle instead of losing fat and muscle. Proper recovery time after hard exercise is as much a part of a good plan as everything else. Rowing is hard and if you take it there you will need recovery days. Recovery does not necessarily mean doing nothing but at least do less intensity. Fat is burned between 55-75% of calorie use. Above 75% you are into burning glycogen (essentially sugar) stored in the muscles.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m ... n13790098/

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&c ... Mcvs5iMG0w

damselfly · Post by **damselfly** » July 23rd, 2009, 12:42 pm

It does seem like an aggressive goal. I'd recommend using a food diary or log in order to control the calorie input side of the equation as well. Exercise helps weight loss, but you can very easily derail any progress if you don't know how many calories you're taking in. I lost 30 lbs in the last year by tracking calories in as well as exercise.

As another poster said as well, you want to make sure that you're eating enough too, and food logging makes sure of this as well.

Good luck!!

satjat · Post by **satjat** » July 24th, 2009, 11:14 am

Thanks for everyone's reply. With regards to the food log I am using DailyPlate.com/Livestrong...which is great since I can do it all from my iPhone.