newbie who wants to get lean

[nstrik]

The book is: Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes (Rodale, January 2007).

Interesting reading!

Thanks! I just went to Amazon.com and ordered it.

[Bob S.]

Concentrate on unrefined whole foods such as beans, whole grains, fruit, vegetables, pastas etc.

Pastas, as a general term, are very much out of place on that list. No pasta can be called an unrefined food and the vast majority of them are not whole grain.

Bob S.

[ferrous2]

Great string......thanks for keeping me motivated

[DavidA]

It is not for everybody and there are lots of people who will ask you stupid questions such as 'where do you get your protein?', but with a well-balanced vegan diet overall nutritional needs are more than adequately met. You just have to supplement for B-12, but it is a small inconvenience in 'exchange' for not ingesting a lot of unnecessary fat, cholesterol etc.

Why is it a stupid question? It might not be so obvious to many, since many people, I believe, think of sources of protein as those foods you mention not to eat.

David

[Liquid]

I just started rowing again on 4-2-7 at a weight of 203 lbs. Weight loss was slow at first and is speeding up now, I'm currently at 188 lbs.

- When I started I was doing 5K fast and 6K slow for a total of 11K per day, weight loss was not satisfactory. I switched to 20K a day at a slower pace and noticed the difference immediately, much more effective at burning fat.

- With respect to diet common sense applied, less snacks, more vegetables and fruits and always make sure to have a good breakfast. No eating just before going to sleep either. I did notice when I switched to 20k a day that I could eat a lot (including some snacks) and still lose weight rapidly so I must be needing the calories.

Goal is to be 148 by mid-August and I'm ahead of schedule. At .39 lbs per day this is slightly above the recommended high of .31 lbs. Increased muscle mass may throw me off my target slightly but that is fine.

[Flavio]

I'm very nterested in what tbartman said about rowing in the evening after his kids have gone to bed.

Previously I exercised either in the early morning or in the late afternoon but now that I have a hectic work schedule I can't do either.

I have thought about rowing a couple of hours after dinner and before going to bed. I do wonder if people get any desire to eat after they workout at such a late hour. If so, is it OK to eat anything before going to bed or do you just ignore it ??

Thanks

[Storm Petrel]

I'm very nterested in what tbartman said about rowing in the evening after his kids have gone to bed.

Previously I exercised either in the early morning or in the late afternoon but now that I have a hectic work schedule I can't do either.

I have thought about rowing a couple of hours after dinner and before going to bed. I do wonder if people get any desire to eat after they workout at such a late hour. If so, is it OK to eat anything before going to bed or do you just ignore it ??

Thanks

I don't like to work out after I eat. And am trying to erg early AM, but have had to do afternoon/evenings too. I drink water or water/electrolyte mix after. Sometimes that's enough. I'm an easy keeper, so late, I try to not eat or keep it light, like fresh fruit w/yogurt. If I didn't get lunch I might have my lunch salad or soup. If you need to loose weight, keep the portion of whatever you choose small. Your body needs fuel. How much did you already take in earlier in the day? How long ago? If you have health concerns be sure to discuss eating schedules with your doctor.

[SteveT]

I started erging last October, doing about 8k per day, usually first thing in the morning. My fitness and times improved steadily for about 3 months and I lost about 10 lbs. I began the IP plan and continued to improve my times but stopped losing weight. The higher intensity workouts were much shorter so less work overall. Then I got a bad chest cold and I stopped erging for about a week. When I resumed I had regressed and found myself struggling to match my former paces. Some travel kept me off the erg for days at a time. My workouts became erratic and I regained the weight I lost.

Yesterday, thanks to this thread, I began 2 sessions per day about 8k per session. The evening session, which replaces falling asleep on the couch after a bowl of popcorn, should jump start my weight loss. I'm pleased with my PB times for my age considering I'm about 60 pounds over my college crew weight, and I intend to get keep improving. But I'm tired of being the fat guy in the group photos. Wish me luck and same to you folks.

[DavidA]

I'm very nterested in what tbartman said about rowing in the evening after his kids have gone to bed.

Previously I exercised either in the early morning or in the late afternoon but now that I have a hectic work schedule I can't do either.

I have thought about rowing a couple of hours after dinner and before going to bed. I do wonder if people get any desire to eat after they workout at such a late hour. If so, is it OK to eat anything before going to bed or do you just ignore it ??

Thanks

Flavio,
Because of my schedule I usually don't get to row until late. It is not the best time for exercising, but it is the only time I have. I don't like to eat a lot before rowing - I like to wait at least an hour. After rowing I am never hungry, very thirsty , but not hungry at all.

David

[Storm Petrel]

Wish me luck and same to you folks.

Best of luck SteveT, you CAN do it!

[Flavio]

Thanks to all of you for your very encouraging replies.

I'm not at all used to exercising in the evenings so I guess it's just habit forming.

As with Storm Petrel, if I did have to eat something I was thinking the least I could do would be to have a little bit of fruit and yoghurt after an evening workout.

Does anyone know if this would be counter-productive?

Thanks,
Flavio.

[SteveT]

Wish me luck and same to you folks.

Best of luck SteveT, you CAN do it!

[BobD]

There are new studies that confirm that eating before bed time do not influence weight loss or gain except that calories are calories no matter when you ingest them.

On the other hand studies do confirm that for several hours after cardio exercise your metabolic rate stays up increasing your calories burn rate even though you are no longer exercising. Therefore I would expect nothing detrimental.

[Storm Petrel]

Ahhhh, it's true heavenly summer bliss....and the perfect post erg refresher.....cold WATERMELON!

[johnlvs2run]

I usually exercise in the mornings, but used to live in Los Angeles where the summers would get hot and smoggy so I ran at night for a few weeks in the summer. My hours were 1 to 9:20 p.m. At 9:30 on the button I'd start my watch either running around a dirt track or else a mile loop around the college where I worked. I ran for 2 hours and a couple of times 2 1/2 hours finishing at midnight. Then I'd shower, drive the 5.7 miles home, get a small snack of maybe 1 pre-baked potato, drink some water and sleep. I was around 137 pounds at that time.

This was also good because there wasn't much traffic at midnight.