Rob's Diary

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5-16-19 sleep: 7hr 19min (better!)

5-17-19 weight: 240.6 pounds

5-17-19 breakfast:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup yogurt with 1 serving pistachios and 2 tsp chia seeds
- 2 clementines
- 3 cups decaf coffee
Total calories: 473
 
Data on exercise/rest balance does exist but I don´t have the energy to dig for it. It depends in part on intensity, physical condition, and how you spread your training load over different muscle groups.
 
No worries, LaMaria. Hope you're doing well!

5-17-19 lunch:
- spring mix salad with 2 seasoned grilled chicken breasts and roasted red pepper dressing
- turkey burger on sprouted bread with Swiss cheese, red onion, and mustard
Total calories: 846

5-17-19 snacks:
- 1/2 chocolate sea salt protein bar (Rx Bar)
Total calories: 105

5-17-19 dinner:
- 2 Medjool dates
- 0.4 cup greek yogurt with 1 serving pistachios and 1 serving almonds
Total calories: 498

Total kcal consumed for 5-17-19: 1,921

5-17-19 exercise:
- 5 mile run (treadmill says 1,456 calories burned)
- 2 miles incline walking
Total steps: 22,095

5-17-19 Fitbit total kcal burned: 4385
5-17-19 MFP kcal burned: 3639
5-17-19 MFP kcal deficit: 1718

I feel good tonight. Happy with my plan so far and the struggles have not been too difficult compared to how I was losing weight before. Knock on wood it continues to go well.
 
5-17-19 sleep: 5hr 8min

5-18-19 weight: 240.6 pounds

5-18-19 breakfast:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup yogurt with 1 serving pistachios
- 2 clementines
- 2 cups decaf coffee
Total calories: 437

5-18-19 lunch:
- turkey bison burger on sprouted bread with Swiss cheese, mustard, and red onion
Total calories: 716

5-18-19 snacks:
- 1/2 chocolate sea salt protein bar (Rx Bar)
- trident gum
Total calories: 110

5-18-19 dinner:
- mediterranean salad trio bowl with chicken (Zoe's kitchen; chicken, pesto farro, quinoa, cauliflower rice, Greek tzatziki, Italian salsa verde, feta, cucumbers, dill)
- marinated slaw side (Zoe's kitchen; cabbage, feta, green onions)
Total calories: 860

Total kcal consumed for 5-18-19: 2,122

5-18-19 exercise:
- 5 mile run (treadmill says 1,455 calories burned)
- 2 miles incline walking
Total steps: 21,843

5-18-19 Fitbit total kcal burned: 4398
5-18-19 MFP kcal burned: 3581
5-18-19 MFP kcal deficit: 1459
 
5-18-19 sleep: 5hr 54min

5-19-19 weight: 240.4 pounds

5-19-19 breakfast:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup yogurt with 6 oz blueberries and 6 oz raspberries
- 2 cups decaf coffee
Total calories: 376

5-19-19 lunch:
- grilled salmon on sprouted bread with Swiss cheese, mustard, and red onion
- 2 grilled seasoned chicken breasts
Total calories: 756

5-19-19 snacks:
- none
Total calories: 0

5-19-19 dinner:
- sweet kale bowl (Coolgreens; quinoa, brown rice, sweet potatoes, kale, red onion, red pepper, avocado dressing)
- southwest spicy wrap (Coolgreens; spring mix, baby arugula, black beans, roasted poblano peppers, avocado, corn, corn tortilla chips, artisan blend cheese, southwest vinaigrette; wheat wrap)
Total calories: 1070

Total kcal consumed for 5-19-19: 2,201

5-19-19 exercise:
- 9 mile walk (MapMyWalk says 1,401 calories burned)
Total steps: 20,623

5-19-19 Fitbit total kcal burned: 3900
5-19-19 MFP kcal burned: 3371
5-19-19 MFP kcal deficit: 1170

Been thinking about the video LaMaria posted in her diary. Tonight I treated myself a little by getting the wrap instead of a salad. The wrap is wheat and has a lot of carbs. My attitude and appetite for food is changing now though. As I was eating the wrap, it was too big and bready and filled me up. Before I would just woof it down without thinking. Next time, I probably won't order the wrap and get a salad instead because it'll taste better and I won't feel too full. Mindful eating! Now that's good progress!

I'll have about 3 weeks of data this week and I'll check my weight loss against the exercise calories burned numbers to get an idea of their accuracy. I feel pretty good. Kind of settling in and thinking about what I need to do to maintain this activity and diet. I think it's just a matter of time and I'm in an otherwise pretty good position at almost 3 weeks out now. I wish my sleeping would improve but that may take a really long time. Odd thing is that I don't feel sleepy very much. So far so good.
 
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Hey Rob, just reading through your diary. Looks like you lost 80 lbs before getting here and if I am right about 14 lbs since starting this diary on May 1. That is great! It is good to see so much success here, I am hoping hearing from people like you will help me succeed, your wisdom is appreciated.

I really like the detailed way you are logging your food, since joining last week I have been trying to do the same. I started last week and have been on a very low cal kind of kick start diet of around 1200 calories a day. I know that's not sustainable but if I can do it I think it will be a good start. I have over 100 lbs to lose so seeing others who have done it helps. Can you share some of the details as to how you lost the 80 lbs before signing up here?
 
5-19-19 sleep: 5hr 54min

5-20-19 weight: 239.6 pounds

5-20-19 breakfast:
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup muesli with 0.9 cup kefir and 6 oz raspberries
- 2 cups decaf coffee
Total calories: 528

5-20-19 lunch:
- bison burger on sprouted bread with Swiss cheese, mustard, and red onion
- 2 grilled seasoned chicken breasts
- 2.5 servings steamed broccoli
Total calories: 788

5-20-19 snacks:
- 1 serving pistachios
Total calories: 150
 
5-20-19 dinner:
- mediterranean salad trio bowl with chicken (Zoe's kitchen; chicken, pesto farro, quinoa, cauliflower rice, Greek tzatziki, Italian salsa verde, feta, cucumbers, dill)
- marinated slaw side (Zoe's kitchen; cabbage, feta, green onions)
Total calories: 860

Total kcal consumed for 5-20-19: 2,331

5-20-19 exercise:
- 7 mile run (treadmill says 1,624 calories burned)
- 1.5 miles incline walking
Total steps: 22,107

5-19-19 Fitbit total kcal burned: 4247
5-19-19 MFP kcal burned: 3637
5-19-19 MFP kcal deficit: 1306

I ran pretty hard and far today. It felt great but afterwards I felt like I overdid it a little. I was a little hungry tonight but didn't eat anything. Sleepy now.
 
alligatorob said:
Hey Rob, just reading through your diary. Looks like you lost 80 lbs before getting here and if I am right about 14 lbs since starting this diary on May 1. That is great! It is good to see so much success here, I am hoping hearing from people like you will help me succeed, your wisdom is appreciated.

I really like the detailed way you are logging your food, since joining last week I have been trying to do the same. I started last week and have been on a very low cal kind of kick start diet of around 1200 calories a day. I know that's not sustainable but if I can do it I think it will be a good start. I have over 100 lbs to lose so seeing others who have done it helps. Can you share some of the details as to how you lost the 80 lbs before signing up here?
Click to expand...

Hi Rob, Thanks! Welcome to my food and fitness log and welcome to the board! I'm pretty new myself. Great to hear about your plans too. I lost the 80 pounds in a lot of different ways but there are three things that helped especially I think. I walked a lot starting a year and a half ago and that just helped steadily decrease my weight all the way up to today. 6-10 miles a day or so. Also I was on medication that really impacted my weight which I got off last summer/fall. And then in Jan and Feb I restricted my calories quite a bit because I wanted to go faster. I was at 1200-1400 per day or so but it only lasted about a month and a half but I lost maybe 25 of the pounds then. It wasn't healthy and I didn't have any energy and was miserable. I plateaued for about 2 months until I started this plan on May 1. During the plateau I switched to running from walking which helps me a lot now.

I understand about kickstarting. Have you lost a significant amount before?
 
Hey Rob, it looks like you're making great progress! How's the fatigue been lately? I saw that you were wondering about rest a week or so ago... There is definitely information about periodization when it comes to exercise... I can try to find some info if you'd like.

I took a closer look at your Week 2 summary (which is great and amazingly helpful, BTW) and I don't think you are eating enough calories! If you feel good, then you might be OK for a while, but a 6'1 guy who is exercising definitely needs more than ~2000 calories per day. Do you have a daily calorie intake estimate from somewhere?
 
PLB said:
Hey Rob, it looks like you're making great progress! How's the fatigue been lately? I saw that you were wondering about rest a week or so ago... There is definitely information about periodization when it comes to exercise... I can try to find some info if you'd like.

I took a closer look at your Week 2 summary (which is great and amazingly helpful, BTW) and I don't think you are eating enough calories! If you feel good, then you might be OK for a while, but a 6'1 guy who is exercising definitely needs more than ~2000 calories per day. Do you have a daily calorie intake estimate from somewhere?
Click to expand...

Hi PLB, I would really appreciate that. :) I've done a little searching but haven't been able to spend more time looking for good sources. Tonight I'm a little fatigued but really (and weirdly) I have not been too bad and my sleep is not the best either. I think I'm still affected by the medication I was on. I was on it for a long time.

I've lost about 14 pounds in 20 days which is 4-5 pounds per week but that includes the initial water weight amount. I usually slow down after about 3 weeks. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy or that I want slow down. What kind of trouble is common at this rate? This is the first time in my life really that I've eaten so healthy and exercised vigorously to help me lose weight and it seems to be working really well. I ran my numbers through this site Calorie Calculator. I'm in the extreme weight loss range with my calorie amounts. Am I headed for a crash or a binge?
 
5-20-19 sleep: 6hr 1min

5-21-19 weight: 240.2 pounds

5-21-19 breakfast:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup yogurt with 1.5 cup strawberries, 6 oz blackberries, 1 banana
- 3 cups decaf coffee
Total calories: 439
 
Hey Rob, I didn't mean to alarm you or anything with the calories per day or take away from your progress, because you've been doing awesome! By the look of your food logs, you're eating really quality foods and exercising regularly, so definitely don't change that. Just be aware of what your body is telling you if you are constantly fatigued, or sore, getting cravings, etc. All of these things are normal, you just don't want to hit a wall. But if you do, no big deal, you know how to get going again.

I do think you could afford to add a couple hundred extra calories per day and still see weight loss. If you are having trouble with cravings, adding a few more calories each day might help you stave off the cravings a bit better and you might not feel as worn out after exercise. BUT, do what works for you.

Thanks for the link to the calorie calculator that you used! I wasn't sure what exercise category to put you in, though. How often are you exercising?
 
PLB said:
Hey Rob, I didn't mean to alarm you or anything with the calories per day or take away from your progress, because you've been doing awesome! By the look of your food logs, you're eating really quality foods and exercising regularly, so definitely don't change that. Just be aware of what your body is telling you if you are constantly fatigued, or sore, getting cravings, etc. All of these things are normal, you just don't want to hit a wall. But if you do, no big deal, you know how to get going again.

I do think you could afford to add a couple hundred extra calories per day and still see weight loss. If you are having trouble with cravings, adding a few more calories each day might help you stave off the cravings a bit better and you might not feel as worn out after exercise. BUT, do what works for you.

Thanks for the link to the calorie calculator that you used! I wasn't sure what exercise category to put you in, though. How often are you exercising?
Click to expand...

Thanks, PLB. I'm proud of what I've accomplished so far. My numbers are going really well but seem too good to be true right now - 14 pounds in 21 days is a lot. I'll summarize week 3 tomorrow and take a look at my calories again. I've been working hard and have got some negative thinking like all or nothing thinking so I do get a little alarmed lol. Also it's a little bit my personality and lasting damage from that darn medication I was on too. Anyway, even if something goes wrong and I binge or hit a wall, you're right, I'll be able to work through it and get back to the plan.

I put in "daily exercise or intense 3-4 times per week". I've been going just about every day and sometimes go pretty far on runs and walks.
 
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5-21-19 lunch:
- turkey burger on sprouted bread with Swiss cheese, mustard, and red onion
- grilled chicken salad (chicken, spring mix, red onion, green garlic dressing [disgusting btw])
Total calories: 830

5-21-19 snacks:
- none
Total calories: 0

5-21-19 dinner:
- chicken kabobs (Zoe's kitchen; grilled chicken, peppers, onions, tomatoes, Italian salsa verde dressing)
- grilled vegetables (Zoe's kitchen; carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, red onion)
- marinated slaw (Zoe's kitchen; cabbage, feta, green onions)
Total calories: 660

Total kcal consumed for 5-21-19: 1,928

5-21-19 exercise:
- 12 mile walk (MapMyWalk says 1,850 calories burned)
Total steps: 24,141

5-21-19 Fitbit total kcal burned: 4131
5-21-19 MFP kcal burned: 3820
5-21-19 MFP kcal deficit: 1892

I did not feel good today. I was anxious and had some negative thinking when I tried to rest in the afternoon. I had kind of despair feelings too about this plan. Like I was a little trapped or something and not sure I could hang on. Couldn't calm my thinking down. Wired but tired feeling. I couldn't not exercise so I went on a really long walk and I feel great now but it will prob only last for tonight. 3 weeks is a difficult time for me based on previous weight loss attempts. It's always been a big hump but it does go away if I hold on a bit and do what makes me feel good. I keep thinking I should rest more but I don't want to and if I think about it more I'm not sure I actually need to. There are many who do far more exercise than what I'm doing and I'm in pretty good shape even with the weight. Will look for more information about how to rest and recover.
 
I´m sorry to hear you´re struggling and hope it helps to know it´ll go away if you only hang on a couple more days. I sometimes overdo it for a while with exercise and the worst that happens to me is a binge or reduced performance. A friend of mine gets bad herpes outbreaks and will be unable to do anything for three weeks if she doesn´t rest up in time - but then she has a habit of exercising hard for 4+ hours a day when she has the time. I´m sure you´ll find your own way in this.
 
5-21-19 sleep: 4hr 14min (sleep situation is brutal!)

5-21-19 weight: 239.2 pounds

5-22-19 breakfast:
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup muesli with 1 cup kefir and 0.9 cup strawberries
- multivitamin
- fiber supplement
- 3 cups decaf coffee
Total calories: 538

5-22-19 lunch:
- 2 grilled seasoned chicken breasts
- salmon burger on sprouted bread with Swiss cheese, red onion and mustard
Total calories: 756

5-22-19 snacks:
- 2 Medjool dates
- 1 serving pistachios
Total calories: 290

5-22-19 dinner:
- southwest spicy salad with chicken (Coolgreens; chicken, spring mix, baby arugula, black beans, roasted poblano peppers, avocado, corn, corn tortilla chips, artisan blend cheese, southwest vinaigrette)
Total calories: 710

Total kcal consumed for 5-22-19: 2,293

5-22-19 exercise:
- 5 mile run (treadmill says 1,265 calories burned)
- 1.5 miles incline walking
Total steps: 16,958

5-22-19 Fitbit total kcal burned: 3639
5-22-19 MFP kcal burned: 3235
5-22-19 MFP kcal deficit: 942

I felt better today even though I only got 4 hours of sleep. Don’t know what I’m running on tbh. Maybe my body’s thanking me for the healthy diet and exercise. Hope I can get better sleep tonight. Didn’t have time to get to the weekly summary but will try to get to that soon.
 
Hey Rob, glad you felt a bit better today, even on not much sleep. I haven't forgotten about the info on rest. Most of the info applies to either resistance training recovery or training for something like a race. Do you have a goal when you set out to exercise? Time, distance, steps? Rest and recovery doesn't always mean no exercise, it could mean going for a walk, a shorter, less intense run, or even focusing on flexibility. I think the main thing for you is to figure out a few different types of workouts (i.e. long slow distance runs, higher-paced but shorter runs, intervals, walks, etc) that you can do without feeling totally done afterwards. Try to balance out your week by varying the length and type of runs and/or walks that you do.

For example:
Sunday: med-distance, med-intensity run & extra stretching
Monday: long slow distance run
Tuesday: walk & stretch
Wednesday: "short" interval run
Thursday: long distance run (but shorter than the first one this week!)
Friday: walk & stretch

This is just an example! There could be many, many variations on this! I am also not a runner, so runners out there - feel free to correct me!

Here is a link to some information about training phases: Training Phases | Runner's World

This is an article on a trail running site, but it has good info: Rest Days and Recovery Runs: What You Need to Know | Trail Runner Magazine

The main goal is to reduce the risk of injury so that you can keep exercising long term. Don't burn yourself out!
 
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