Haven't got a clue about diet, advice for a fat bloke?

[nrg710]

After a bit of a break from rowing (OK, like 15 years) I've decided that I'm the wrong side of 90kg (200lb) and my Concept 2 model C is going to be my saviour.

Age 36, 96kg (211lb), 178cm (5'11"), 37" round the waist. BMI puts me *just* into the obese category. I've always been a bigger guy- however when I was younger, you could have put that down to muscle and being generally of a larger build. My aim will be to get to 80kg and a 34" waist.

Whilst I'm no stranger to using the C2, I haven't got a clue about diet. I pick up bits and pieces here and there about, like, eating small and often and not having carbs after 6pm, but I need an "in a nutshell" guide to what to eat in order to sustain weight loss over the next year or so... and then on into my 40's not putting it back on.

I'm pretty unfit at the moment- my C2 has been on long term loan to a friend, who has recently given it back. At the moment, I'd be lucky to sustain a split of 2:12 for more than 5 mins... I'm aiming for 10K in 38 mins, that's my target. When I get to that level, I'll be happy to keep it there and any improvement will be a bonus!

So, advice on diet is much appreciated. The improvement in fitness and split times will come eventually- that's the easy bit!

[hjs]

Keep it simple, eat no processed food, that way you cut out all the crap.
Focus on whole foods, lots of green and good fats. Fish, olives. Meats are fine. Try to limit fat with lots of omega 6. Transfats are a real no go, very processed stuff.

You are not that overweight, your goal is certainly doable. Also getting fitter will help, it will help your metabolism.


There are no short cuts or miracle foods.

[Bob S.]

I am in complete agreement with the response from hjs with one strong exception, olives. Not only are they a highly processed food, but they have far too much sodium. Now olive oil is an entirely different matter. There is some processing done obviously, but not the drastic chemical treatment used to make olives edible.

Bob S.

[hjs]

I am in complete agreement with the response from hjs with one strong exception, olives. Not only are they a highly processed food, but they have far too much sodium. Now olive oil is an entirely different matter. There is some processing done obviously, but not the drastic chemical treatment used to make olives edible.

Bob S.

I ment the oil, what exactly goes on with olives I don,t know. The oil is omega 9, a healthy one.

The sodium I don,t worry to much about, in relation with bloodpressure its much mor sugar and carbs that cause the problems.
Olives are also more a snack proberly and a big portion of our diet.

[Edward4492]

This is one of my favorite topics. I used to be a high carb guy due to my endurance (bike racing) background. Bagels ruled the day! And I was reasonably fit (six foot, 175). When I started competitve erging I knew I wanted to get down to lightweight as I didn't think I could run with the big guys. To keep it short, I got down to 160.5 through mostly Paleo style of eating. Keep it simple (As already mentioned). Start with eliminating sugar, breads, and stuff you already know is junk. Chicken, fish, meat, eggs (yes, eggs) are definites. Followed by all the vegetables (preferably fresh, but frozen okay) you can eat. Nuts and unsweetened peanut butter, almond butter, etc. Blueberries, cherries, and strawberries are all good. Go easy on the bananas, oranges, etc. Watch things like yogurt (unsweetened Greek yogurt the best, mix in your own berries and nuts). A glass of wine or a beer at night won't hurt you, but when I'm trying to get down in weight fast I eliminate alchohol. I've found that I can easily keep my weight in the 165 range by following this simple approach. Read up on the paleo stuff and you can't go wrong. One last thought, most people grossly over-estimate what they burn when training. A solid hour of 200w (2:00 pace) erging burns about a 1000 cals. You can see the futility of the average gym member trying to "burn off" excess cals. Most of these folks are on the erg for 20 minutes, probably well under a 200w pace.
So they burn off 300- 400 cals at best. That's one sugar-free blueberry muffin. The oldest adage in training is " you can't out-work a bad diet". Unless your Michael Phelps or you're riding in the Tour de France.

[nrg710]

Thanks for all the replies, chaps

Here's question 2- what should someone like me be eating before a 20-40 min erg session? And afterwards?

I'm not ready to do 1h at 2:00 yet... today I did 5000m and worked on keeping my split in the 2:20-2:30 range, with the last 100m of every 1000 being around 2:05. It's a start

[Edward4492]

You're off to a great start! Please keep in mind, if you want to lose weight I don't think you need to "fuel" at all. Plenty of water for sure, excess water (with-in reason) can't hurt. But again, do the math. I just jumped on the erg and did 500m at a 2:20 pace and burned 28 cals. That's 280 cals for 5000m at 2:20. So at your pace you can see.....no need to eat anything to support the effort. I average about 12.000m a day, six days per week. The work-outs vary, but about 75 percent of those meters are in the 1:47 to 1:55 range. i don't even think about eating anything extra, I just tend to loosen up my diet a bit and have a little bit of junk during the day. The meters allow me to eat a donut (one!) if i want to.To lose weight....stay with the erg and keep your diet clean. I cringe when I here people say " I row (or bike, or run, or go to the gym) so I can eat whatever I want". Sorry.....it's not that easy. There are exceptions, people who are truly logging big time meters or miles.But reality always wins; if you're training daily and not losing weight it's gotta be diet!

[hjs]

Thanks for all the replies, chaps

Here's question 2- what should someone like me be eating before a 20-40 min erg session? And afterwards?

I'm not ready to do 1h at 2:00 yet... today I did 5000m and worked on keeping my split in the 2:20-2:30 range, with the last 100m of every 1000 being around 2:05. It's a start

Nothing, for a 5k like you do now you need roughly 300/400 calories, depending on how fast you go maybe half will be fat, half glocogeen (carbs). The faster (relative) you go the more carbs you use.
So maybe 200 cal is carbs, you have plenty of those in your muscle.

After a training, drink enough and eat some good protein, no protein drinks, eat some protein, after a training is also a good moment to eat fruits. Again no juice, eat the fruit itself.

Also don,t worry about eating fats, as long as you keep the carbs low and thus your bloodinsuline low they are fine and will help you.

[heroesfitness]

I would book a visit to see a local nutrionist or well known personal trainer to give you some advice on your dietary needs, you will always get good and bad advice on boards, though some on here are very good

[stewstar73]

I have a huge appetite for everything. I haven't curbed it but have been feeding it the right way. I bought a nutribullet blender thing. Huge amounts of kale, spinach and spring greens with a bit of anything else pineapple, apples etc. Full 750ml shake can be no more than 250KCal. I have either one for breakfast or lunch or both. Even if you have something else you will be significantly reducing your intake in a super healthy way. Quite expensive but Rymans have them in for 80 quid and it will be a huge positive for you.

[Lobo]

At 66, I was pushing 100 kg, and on about 6 different meds for blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, others to mitigate the side effects of the first group. My doc diagnosed hypothyroidism, and after a few months of that med, quit drinking, improved diet, I dropped to 80 kg. Even at 100 kg, I was an "athlete in a fat guys body," working out daily in the pool (3 days/wk, 2000-3000 meters). I just added a Concept 2 about a month ago, and ratcheted down my diet with "if man made it, don't eat it," and "if there are more than two ingredients that you don't know what they are, don't eat it," I have dropped another 5 kg and counting. My ultimate target is 70 kg.

I now do six days on the Concept2, three days in the pool, and three days on a home gym.

By the way, doc has weaned me off all the old meds (except thyroid), because my labs are all "100% normal."

Set your goals and stick to them. Enjoy each day. Smile a lot. Find a younger woman.

[Nimrod Troyte]

Hello Folks……….just to add my penny's worth.

At the age of 48-49 I have found myself in the worst shape of my life………5'9" - 238lbs - 40" pants - high BP………but thankfully nothing more serious, probably due to being very fit and active from 16yrs to 40yrs (when I bust my Achilles, and put weight on).

The last 8yrs have been a struggle to keep the right side of 210lbs never mind 200lbs. Problem is, 2 months on the erg, and I think I'm super fit again.

At this age though I realize that (consistent) regular exercise is not enough……..diet has to be factored in. I have chosen to eat and drink what I like on a weekend, but follow a strict 'paleo diet' on week-days……..with 8k of erg every day, and circuit training (with another fat bloke) 2-3 evenings.

So far so good - but this is still only day 18. Feel stronger and fitter and clothes fitting better already - almost dropped a belt notch, and would like to be in 38" pants by X'mas.

My week-day nutrition…….

Breakfast: skimmed milk-blueberry-banana-flax seed smoothie and a boiled egg

Lunch: Nuts-dried apricots-apple

Supper: Meat patty / salmon steak-stir-fried veggies

Treat: Two squares dark chocolate

Liquids: Coffee-5 pints water-1 pint herb tea

Going OK so far.

[DanielJ]

I've lost about 55 pounds in the last 12 months. I wasn't even all that obese before; just stocky with a little bit of the man boobs going on.

What's worked for me, besides rowing 212 times so far this year, is making an effort to eat the food the body really benefits from. By the time I've eaten my fish and chicken, my veggies, FIBRE etc. etc., I simply don't want to eat the crap anymore because I've already eaten.

And then eating better makes me feel better on the erg and, I suppose as a psychological thing, feeling better on the erg makes me like the better foods more. I'm enjoying my greens now almost as much as my dog enjoyed my greens when I was a kid.

Mind you, when I have wanted something sweet, I've had it. I've never refused myself anything - even cakes and biscuits. I just don't want it so much because most of the time I'm already properly nourished.

Nourish yourself properly, put the honest work in on the erg, and the weight comes off.

[hjs]

I've lost about 55 pounds in the last 12 months.

Congrats well done, but if you can loose that much weight, your perpective on obese is wrong. Obese is above bmi 30, morbitly obese is above bmi 35. Real heavy people are way beyond that even.

For someone now weighing 100kg/225 lbs, having 15% bodyfat, 55lbs on top of that would 40% bodyfat. If you weigh less even more.
Denial does not help in general.

[DanielJ]

I've lost about 55 pounds in the last 12 months.

Congrats well done, but if you can loose that much weight, your perpective on obese is wrong. Obese is above bmi 30, morbitly obese is above bmi 35. Real heavy people are way beyond that even.

For someone now weighing 100kg/225 lbs, having 15% bodyfat, 55lbs on top of that would 40% bodyfat. If you weigh less even more.
Denial does not help in general.

Indeed!

I'm 6'2. I was about 228-230 lb a year ago (BMI of 29.3), and about low-170s now (BMI in the low 22s).