Gasman's Journey to Fitness

gasman

New member
So here's my story. I'm 27 years old - Turning 28 in August.

I am 6'5 and 314lbs (The heaviest I have ever been in my life). I am married and we have a 3 month old baby girl, and she is my inspiration and motivation, I want to get healthy to set an example for her.

I went for a jog today I jogged 2km in 13 minutes and was extremely winded, I walked 500m (5min) and ran another 2km in 17minutes. I am extremely disappointed with my shape. My fitness goal will be to run 5km in 30minutes when I achieve that I will set a new goal.

I won't bore you with details of my bad habits but they include:

  • Laziness - not exercising
  • Poor Portion Control - I eat healthy meals but I eat way too much.
  • No self control - I find it so hard to pass on that sour cream glazed donut in the lunch room.


My goal is to be 275lbs by the End of August - that is 19 weeks (about 2.1lbs/week) and 250lbs by Christmas (stretch)

My promise for the next three weeks:

  • I will exercise 4 times per week (mid intensity - 5km jog) + 5km walk on the off days
  • I will practise portion control, no more seconds, no more, entire bags of crispy minis.
  • I will update my diary daily, to keep me honest and motivated.
I will post before pics tomorrow.
 
Hey gasman,

I am glad that you are changing the quality of life. Many people do not ever make this decision. Weight loss is about paying attention to details. Itemizing everything you eat everyday and assessing the calories is critical. I take it that you are male. The emphasis has to be on what you do eat and not what you don't eat. It is not principally about exercise, but includes exercise.

You must eat no more than your calorie limit everyday.
 
Sounds like you have the right idea dude--Congrats on starting your journey. We'll all be around to support you.

Hana x
 
Day one

Yesterday went pretty good, my goal is to make gradual changes to my habits, and to be honest with myself.

I had a caloric intake of 2500kcal (using eatracker.ca). I jogged 35 minutes (4.5kms) and walked another 1.5kms.

What I ate:

Breakfast:

2 pieces of toast whole wheat with peanut butter
2 cups of coffee
1 - cup of skim milk.

Morning Snack:
2 Apples - Large Spartans

Lunch:
2 slices of homeade pizza. (homeade crust, homade sauce, lots of veggies, deer peperoni and mozza cheese)
1 - 100g 2.5%MF yogurt
1 cup of homade three bean salad.
1 -Litre of Water

Afternoon Snack
2 - oranges - medium
1 - wedge of laughing cow cheese (30kCal)
3- triscuit whole wheat crackers

Dinner

4 - cups of homeade soup - Chicken Vegetable with rice.
3 - Potatoe Rolls
1 - wedge of laughing cow cheese
1 - cup of milk
1 - litre of water

Evening snack

1 - bag of microwave popcorn.
 
Another Decent Day

Another Decent Day...

Breakfast:
2 Whole Wheat Toast with 1tbsp of Cheese Whiz
1 cup skim milk

Morning Snack
2 apples

Lunch
2 roast chicken (deli meat) sandwiches on Whole wheat (small amount of mayo and mustard)
1 yogurt - 100g

Afternoon Snack
1 - Orange
7 crispi minis (small flavoured rice cakes)
3 melba rounds with 1 wedge of laughing cow cheese.

Dinner
1 piece of Homeade meatloaf (made with extra lean Ground beef and Pork)
2 Dinner Rolls
1 wedge of laughing cow cheese
Carrot Sticks

Evening Snack
1 bag of popcorn
1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
100 g yogurt


Went for a 45minute Walk with my wife and my baby, walked close to 5kms
 
Feeling Better already

Well it's only been four days, but I think the jogging is really starting to help. I was mega sore on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, but I feel great today.

I jogged 4.5kms yesterday, I didn't time myself but I know I am getting faster. I also didn't have to walk at all which was a huge win. I'll walk tonight and jog again tomorrow.

Yesterdays Eating went like this:


Breakfast-

1 bowl quaker Instant "weight control" oatmeal
made with 1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup frozen blueberries

Morning Snack
2 apples

Lunch
2 chicken sandwiches (lean deli meat, small amount of mayo and mustard) Whole wheat bread.
2 laughing cow cheese wedges
1 - 100g yougurt (2.5%)

Afternoon Snack
1 orange

Dinner
Taco Salad...
Grean leaf salad w veggies (??)
left over homeade chili (200cal?)
1tbsp of catalina dressing (70cal)
1/8 cup of shredded chese (50cal)
20 taco chips (130cal)
Salsa (15cal)
1 cup skim milk

Evening Snack

1 - bag popcorn
1 glass chocolate milk (after run)

1 - Bag Popcorn


I also make an effort to drink at least 4litres of water, but I think I am consuming closer to 5-6 litres

I figure I'm running close to a 1000cal deficite everyday. I guess I'll find out on Sunday when I weigh in.
 
I can tell that you are getting into the act of counting calories. Keep itemizing your food and assessing the exact calories. I guarantee you will lose weight if you do this and keep your daily calories well below your body's calorie needs.

Nice work, man.

Frank
 
Day 4

Well, it was 27C on Wednesday and dropped to 4C and snow on Thursday, I love Alberta.

Pretty decent day yesterday. It was a walking day, 4.25km is our loop. Tonight it's back to a jog. My schedule looks like this:

Sunday - Jog (12 min/mile) 4.5km, Walk 1.8km
Monday - Jog (12 min/mile) 4.5km, Walk 1.8km
Tuesday - Walk 4.25km
Wednesday - Jog (12 min/mile) 4.5km, Walk 1.8km
Thursday - Walk 4.25km
Friday - Jog (12 min/mile) 4.5km, Walk 1.8km
Saturday - Walk 4.25km

If it is too cold or rainy to jog, I will go to the gym and spend 30minutes on a treadmill or eliptical followed by some weights.

Eating went as so:

Breakfast

Quaker Instant Oatmeal "weight control" made with 1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup blueberries
1 cup chocolate milk

Morning Snack

2 apples

Lunch
2 ham sandwiches whole wheat bread, 3slices of ham on each sandwich, small amount of mayo and mustard.
1 - 100g yogurt

Afternoon Snack

1- Orange
2 - small pieces of white cheddar with two melba rounds

Dinner:

1 cup of Tomatoe Soup (knorr 160cal)
1.5 grilled chese sandwiches (no butter, I used a carrot peeler to cut the cheese and put one layer of chese on the sandwich)
Garden Salad (with thai peanut sauce for dressing - 2 tbsp = 50cal )
1/2 cup blueberries and 100g yogurt for dessert

Evening Snack:

1 bag of popcorn.


Ive decided that an easy way to cut another 100 calories is to stop putting mayo on my sandwich, I won't really miss it, I can just up the mustard content as it doesn't have much for calories.

The weekend is looming, Little nervous on how I'll do. I work all week in the middle of nowhere (litterally it's a half hour drive to the nearest restauraunt). So I am fortunate enough to not have access to food (except what I bring) from Monday to Friday 6:30am to 5:30pm so temptation is not a problem. I know I have a habit of eating out of boredom so I'll have to keep my self aware of that, drink lots of water and keep myself occupied.

I'm taking a photography course so perhaps that will keep me busy.
 
Handy Websites

Just wanted to share the following resources that I am using:

1. This site - I've been a lurker for a couple of years off and on, but now I'm going to try and participate.

2. - Dieticians of Canada website for recipe analysis, food tracking, exersize logs, and progress reporting. It's a free website, pretty handy, although I know there are lots of these sites out there. My wife is a dietician so she recommended this one to me.

3. - I love this site, similar to the google maps interface (i suspect that they use the data from google maps as you can use the same views (street, satelite etc)). you just plot your route, be it walking, running, bicycling, etc and it will give you a distance, elevation profile, you can even load the app on your ipod and track your performance. You can also search for exisiting "routes" in your area that have been uploaded by others. This is also a free site.
 
It's Who gives a %$!# Friday

Feeling pretty good today.

Ran a FULL 5km today in 32:58 great improvement considering on Monday it took me 35 minutes to run 4.5km. Yay me!

Eating went pretty well today. Although I got off to a rocky start as I slept in and didn't have time to have a good breakfast.

Breakfast:

Large Tim Horton's coffee with 2 milk and 2 sweetener (diet double double for all you canadians out there).
0.5 Ham sandwich (stole it from my lunch)

Morning Snack:

1 - Orange

Lunch

1.5 Ham sandwiches (Ham, mustard, laughing cow cheese, whole weat bread... NO MAYO :hurray:)
1- 100 g yogurt

Afternoon snack

1 - serving of white cheddar
1 - serving of breton mini crackers
1 - apple

Dinner

3/4 to 1 cup of long grain rice
1 - Pork Chop - pan fried with salt and pepper (no butter or oil, I used cooking spray
7 spears of asparagus

Evening Snack

1 bag of Popcorn
diet pepsi
1 slice of turkey (0.3 servings)

And another small victory, I walked right by the fresh delicious tim hortons donuts twice today Once in the store, and once at the morning meeting)

Looking forward to my sunday weigh in I'm hoping for a decent loss.
 
Saturday:

Walk 4km

Breakfast:

Apple Pancake Casserole (about 400kcal)
2 cups Coffee ( with flavoured coffee creamer)

Morning Snack:
Nothing

Lunch:

1/2-3/4 cup fried rice (leftover rice, veg, pork, soya sauce)
1 turkey sandwich (turkey, mustard whole wheat bread)
raw veg (carrots, celery, cucumber, red pepper)
2 tbsp low cal ranch dressing
Homemade Salsa - 10 chips

Afternoon Snack:
1 serving of white cheddar
20 mini bretons crackers

Dinner:

Homemade burger (Bison/Pork, onion, Thinful bun (about 430cal)
Salad with 2 tbsp of dressing (100cal)
Beer (140cal)

Evening Snack:

Yougurt mixed with berries and mangoe.
 
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Weigh in Day

Breakfast:

1 - Scrambled Egg (with mushroom, onion, 1/3 stick of deer peperoni)
1 - Piece of whole wheat toast, with margarine
1 - Orange

Lunch:

Hamburger (homemade with lettuce and tomatoe, and a thinfull bun)
Salad - (with 2 tbsp of dressing)
Carrots - Pickled

Afternoon Snack:
Cheese - 1 serving
20 - mini breton crackers
Orange

Dinner:
Chicken and Artichoke Salad (Spinach, Onion, Feta, Chicken, walnuts, with a balsamic vinegrette - also homemade) (800cal?)
2 slices of garlic toast (200 cal)

Probably not the best day as far as calories go, but it's a running day so I should still be running a deficit,

Drum roll Please......

Starting Weight Sunday April 18: 314lbs
Current weight Sunday April 25th: 308.5lbs
Last weeks Loss: 5.5lbs
Total Loss: 5.5lbs
 
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Not the Best not the Worst

Not super happy about today but I think I still ran a deficit so I guess not all is lost.

Breakfast:

Two pieces of Toast with Cheese Whiz

Morning Snack:
2 oranges

Lunch:

Carrot sticks
4 dill pickles
2 turkey sandwiches
1 yogurt

Afternoon Snack

1- Baby Bell Cheese

Dinner

Homemade mac and cheese with ground turkey. (1000cal est.!)

Evening Snack

2 apples


Am going for a 5km run tonight as per my schedule.
 
I'm still here

Nothing new to report, I haven't posted my menu the past few days, but I have been keeping a pretty steady diet, I eat the same thing pretty much every day.

Breakfast

Toast or Oatmeal

Morning Snack
1-2 Apples

Lunch
2 sandwiches
Yougurt

Afternoon Snack
1-2 oranges
1 babybel cheese

Dinner
Varies - usually 5-800cal

evening snack

yogurt and blueberries or popcorn.

I went for run yesterday, It was wet and I changed up my route, ran for 31minutes about 4.8kms + walk about 1.5kms. I already feel better, and I'm excited for the weigh in on Sunday. I would love to be at 305 ( I was at 308.5 last sunday)

3.5lbs is above my targeted weekly loss but I imagine it's still doable.
 
Good job. What is the total on the calories of this day of food?

I am averaging 2300 to 2500 calories/day

My BMR is somewhere between 3800 and 4200 depending on whether I am Jogging or Walking.

So theroretically I could be running a deficit of between 1300 and 1900 calories/day which should translate to 2.5 - 3.7lbs per week.
 
Victory is mine

I scored what I considered to be a hue win.

Tonight one of my clients had a "night out with the boys" 12-15 guys beer, whiskey, chicken wings and mucho CALORIES.

I had to go, as they are my client, and I wanted to pick up the cheque as a thank you for their business.

I showed up at 6pm and they had already been through more than a couple of pitchers of beer. I had 1 spiced rum and gingerale and then had a pitcher of water, followed by 4 club sodas (no alcohol, no calories). at 8pm the wings showed up... 15 dozen, they smelled so good, but I decided if I had one I would have a dozen so I didn't even touch one. It was hard sitting there with everyone eating around me, but I feel better about myself for being able to fend off temptation.

two more days until weigh in.
 
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