Weight Loss

Rowing for weight loss or weight control? Start here.
Nick12884
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Weight Loss

Post by Nick12884 » April 15th, 2012, 8:48 am

Hi,

I'm 44 and am desperate to lose weight.

Currently 108 kgs.

I'm big build and have been semi regular on my Model D Concept2 for a number of years.

I try to row three times a week and if not rowing, some other form of exercise from the list below.

Times are

30 mins on average 2.07 per 500m 29 to 31 strokes and normally just over 7000m. Drag 10 (Best 7200 m) HR 160

2000m normally 8.25.00


Yet I can't seem to shift the weight.

At least three times a week I exercise in the form on one of the below

I run for 30 mins on a treadmill.

Jog 4, 5.5 or 7 kms.

Life Fitness stepper for 30 minutes.

All of the avbove will have me soaked in sweat.

Bench press, up right rowing, shoulder press, lat pull downs.


I know my diet is terrible, but is that really the cause or is there something else I should be doing?????


HELP!!!!!!!

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gregsmith01748
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by gregsmith01748 » April 15th, 2012, 10:03 am

30 minutes of rowing will burn about 400 calories. The other exercises you cite will probably burn the same or less.

Losing the weigh is simple, but not easy. You need to reduce how much you eat. To lose 1 kg, you need to create about an 8000 calorie deficit through more exercise and less food. Try logging what you eat for a week and honestly assess your calorie intake. From there you can make adjustments and really lose weight.

Exercise alone will not work.
Greg
Age: 55 H: 182cm W: 90Kg
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jamesg
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by jamesg » April 15th, 2012, 10:22 am

This is what C2 UK says as a weightloss programme, for the first three weeks:

Week 1: 2 x 12' UT2; 2 x 13' UT2; 2 x 14' UT2; 2 x 12' UT2; 2 x 13' UT2;
Week 2: 2 x 16' UT2; 1 x 35' UT2; 1 x 40' UT2; 2 x 16' UT2; 1 x 35' UT2;
Week 3: 2 x 25' UT2; 1 x 50' UT2; 2 x 30' UT2; 2 x 25' UT2; 50' UT2.

All plus warm-up and down.

I put in 6' tall, 30 kg to lose, Level 3, and there are another 31 weeks, all a bit tougher than the above.
It also suggests you'll need to change your diet; I'd guess permanently. If you drink, that's the first thing to cut out.
At 108 kg I'd cut out jogging too.

http://concept2.co.uk/weightloss/interactive

The definition there of UT2 is:
Light aerobic, low intensity work. Sustainable and fat burning.
55-70% of max HR (range)
18-20 rating
Purpose: General CV fitness.
Effects: relaxed; able to carry on a conversation.
08-1940, 183cm, 83kg.
2024: stroke 5.5W-min@20-21. ½k 190W, 1k 145W, 2k 120W. Using Wods 4-5days/week. Fading fast.

Nick12884
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by Nick12884 » April 16th, 2012, 8:15 am

Thanks,

interested as to why i should give up jogging?

This morning 2000m in 08.12.05, followed by a 30 min jog at 10 kms per hour on a tread mill.

jvincent
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by jvincent » April 16th, 2012, 9:24 am

Just to echo what has been said, it's a combination of diet and exercise.

I lost 16kg from Jan last year to Dec after starting rowing. When not travelling, I was on the rower 3 days on / one day rest for the most part. My routine was a mix of 30 min / intervals / 10K.

The important thing is that I kept my food intake pretty much the same (except for eliminating french fries at lunch :-( ) so that when all was said and done I had a net calorie deficit. I lost the weight at a pretty constant rate of 1.5Kg per month.

As to why give up running, it's terribly hard on the joints, especially for heavy people like you are now. I run when I travel and to get even close to the workout on the rower I find that I need to run at an 11.5 or 12 km/h pace. Even though I am not as physically tired after running for 30 minutes compared to rowing, it is very difficult to run on consecutive days for me because of the joint soreness.

By way of comparison, I'm 46 yrs old, 178cm tall and currently at 82kg.

Good luck!

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hjs
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by hjs » April 16th, 2012, 9:32 am

Diet is all, you simply can't get around fixing that.

Nick12884
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by Nick12884 » April 16th, 2012, 9:51 am

Thanks everyone.

Weetabix first thing, no added sugar.

Dinner is normally a traditional meal.

I don't smoke or drink.

Lunch is the killer.

Peanut butter and banana sandwich on a daily basis.

bepah
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by bepah » April 16th, 2012, 10:36 am

Nick12884 wrote:Thanks everyone.

Weetabix first thing, no added sugar.

Dinner is normally a traditional meal.

I don't smoke or drink.

Lunch is the killer.

Peanut butter and banana sandwich on a daily basis.
A GI doctor told me this.....Breakfast like a King, Lunch like a Prince, Dine like a pauper......

FWIW
Every time I save the world I am happy.
It is quite exciting!

BoB/335
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by BoB/335 » April 18th, 2012, 12:04 am

Nick12884 wrote:Hi,

I'm 44 and am desperate to lose weight.

Currently 108 kgs.

I'm big build and have been semi regular on my Model D Concept2 for a number of years.

I try to row three times a week and if not rowing, some other form of exercise from the list below.

Times are

30 mins on average 2.07 per 500m 29 to 31 strokes and normally just over 7000m. Drag 10 (Best 7200 m) HR 160

2000m normally 8.25.00


Yet I can't seem to shift the weight.

At least three times a week I exercise in the form on one of the below

I run for 30 mins on a treadmill.

Jog 4, 5.5 or 7 kms.

Life Fitness stepper for 30 minutes.

All of the avbove will have me soaked in sweat.

Bench press, up right rowing, shoulder press, lat pull downs.


I know my diet is terrible, but is that really the cause or is there something else I should be doing?????



HELP!!!!!!!



Diet IS important! I see this every day at the gym. People are working extremely hard like yourself. If they (and you) would only put in half the effort on your eating plan as you do on your exercising, you would really make so headway. If you put in all the same effort with your food as exercise there would be no stopping you.

You must cut all sugars and add "some" protein at EVERY meal and you will see improvements!

mhj555
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by mhj555 » April 19th, 2012, 11:46 am

You may also want to consider training with a heartrate monitor. If you train at or below 75% your max heartrate (MHR), for long periods at a time (60-90min, low stroke rate), you'll utilize fat as your primary fuel source (aerobic). As your heartrate goes up, you burn more and more carbs (glycolysis). When you've passed your Anaerobic Threshold (AT), you're burning almost only carbs and producing lactic acid. When you do that, you'll just be depleted of carbs and have the urge to eat a lot more to replenish your glycogen stores.

Working harder and breathing heavier does not mean you're burning more fat. You may be getting in better muscular and cardiovascular shape, but you won't be burning off your fat stores. If you're just starting out, you may hit 75% MHR very quickly and feel like you're not doing any work, but keep at it and be patient. It'll take months of doing that type of workout daily.

Also, be sure to determine your MHR properly. The formula, (MHR = 220 - Age) can be horribly wrong.

Bob S.
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by Bob S. » April 19th, 2012, 12:23 pm

mhj555 wrote: Also, be sure to determine your MHR properly. The formula, (MHR = 220 - Age) can be horribly wrong.
That's for sure! Based on that formula, just about all of my workouts are at 100% max and more. 205-1/2age comes out a lot closer, but it is still arbitrary and any formula needs to have a range of values to cover individual variations.

Bob S.

kenr
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by kenr » May 11th, 2012, 11:12 pm

i use a model C .... my son uses a model E... the concept 2 will help you lose weight and keep it off as well. i row about 30 minutes a day. my form is awful.... but it still gives great results. i will be 70 in july so i am not concerned with creating any records... for those who want to lose weight my advise is to eliminate sweets from your diet. exercise for at least 15 minutes daily. do not skip days. set the guide to 10. cover the electronic guide. use a regular clock. have fun. when you want to relax , listen to the radio or watch tv while rowing. remember, you are using the rower to tone and build muscles... as well as reducing your weight.

jeremycfr
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by jeremycfr » June 16th, 2012, 5:50 pm

Well since everyone has said it I will too. It take both, diet and exercise. In early April I weighed in at 261. The heaviest I have been in my entire life. He put me on a strict diet and I have increased my workouts from 10 minutes to 60 minutes (40 minutes in morning and 20 after work). After 8 weeks I weighed in at 223 and I expect it to be even less on Monday at week 9. I am not done yet, because I plan to loose another 40 (at a minimum). My big problem now is with 4.5 inches off my waist, nothing fits anymore.

Sorry, but I had to share the testimonial with someone going through the same thing.

Good luck!

carlb
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by carlb » June 22nd, 2012, 2:51 pm

Sadly exercise works best for maintaining your weight, not as well for losing.
Time mag "Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin"
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... 74,00.html

No amount of exercise can make up for what you eat. While you want to lose weight your ultimate goal should be a very healthly lifestyle. That means eating the most nutritous least processed food you can. Veggies, fruits, whole grains, nuts. And I'd suggest trying to get to 30 minutes x 5 days a week of any kind of cardio exercise. Plus to strength training sessions.

> Peanut butter and banana sandwich on a daily basis.

Nothing wrong with that. Peanuts have nutritous fats and protein, the banana is a nutritional powerhouse. You want natural Peanut butter, label should only list "Peanuts and Salt". (You will have to keep it in the fridge.) Put it on a whole grain bread, the label listing as few ingredients as possible. Add some veggies, not chips.

Bob S.
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Re: Weight Loss

Post by Bob S. » June 22nd, 2012, 3:53 pm

carlb wrote: Nothing wrong with that. Peanuts have nutritous fats and protein, the banana is a nutritional powerhouse. You want natural Peanut butter, label should only list "Peanuts and Salt". (You will have to keep it in the fridge.) Put it on a whole grain bread, the label listing as few ingredients as possible. Add some veggies, not chips.
!!! Why on earth get salted peanut butter when unsalted is available? We get inundated with salt from many sources and certainly don't need to get it from peanut butter. Admittedly, it is mostly the processed foods that have far too much salt, so if we keep the processed foods to a minimum it helps a lot. Incidentally, peanut butter certainly qualifies as a processed food. Of course, peanuts and peanut products have their own hazards, since some people have very bad allergic reactions to something in peanuts, but they are probably alerted to this at an early age.

My rule of thumb on salt is that the number of mg of Na in a product should not be much greater than the number of Calories, unless you are sweating a lot. The data for this are the FDA daily values: 2000 Calories and 2400 mg sodium. Many food products have mg Na/Cal ratios much greater than 1. Soups, especially, can be up around 9-10 and I have seen foods with ratios as high as 15.

I eat a lot of peanut butter myself. I would prefer to just eat plain, unprocessed peanuts, but have been warned to avoid them because of a diverticulitis problem. For that same reason, I have to avoid the crunchy style and stick to the smooth. With tree nuts, I always try to get the raw nuts rather than the roasted, thus skipping one processing step at least. But, in the days when I was still eating peanuts, I didn't like the taste of raw peanuts and stuck to the roasted, but unsalted.

Bob S.

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