I'm Trying to Get In Shape...Obviously.

[thefatman]

Hey peeps,

I need some advice on how to burn stomach, back, and ass fat in the most time efficient manner. I'm not looking for some "Get skinny quick" miracle but I am wondering what's the best approach. I am 6'5" and about 240-290 lbs. I actually look fairly fit with my clothes on, but I have a gut that is somehow hidden. I am a very self motivated person and am now working on getting into shape. Recently I started jogging two sets of one and a quarter miles (total of 2.5 miles) every other day as I've read that cardio workouts are the most efficient fat burning exercises. I have also been doing sit-ups and curling on the in between days.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Goldfish]

Directly speaking, I'd say moderate intensity cardio is generally the better fat-burning activity out of your various options. But that's only dealing with direct fat utilisation. It's certainly not the worst thing you can do, but it's only one piece of the pie.

The bigger picture is a calorie deficit, strength training and protein consumption.

The calorie deficit is what will make you lose weight. The combination of strength training and protein consumption (1g/lb bodyweight/day) is what will maintain muscle mass, thus maintaining metabolism and making sure that (as much as is possible) the weight lost will be fat. Cardio will then supplement your training to burn some extra calories, give you more energy/vitality, and improve health.

As far as strength training is concerned, curls and sit-ups are among the least important exercises. Look in the wieght training stickies for some better ideas of more serious training.

As far as nutrition is concerned, a food diary is probably your best asset. Eat as per normal for 3 days, but measure all your portions and write them down in a food diary. Calculate how many calories you're consuming on average each day, as well as your macronutrients (carbs, protein, fat, alcohol). Figure out if you need any more protein (if you want to weigh, say 200lb, then you should probably be eating 200g protein/day), and where you can cut calories elsewhere. Sometimes getting on a healthy eating plan means a radical change in eating habits. Sometimes it just means getting used to less additions to your food (eg not putting sauce/gravy/mayo on everything, less butter, less cream, less cheese, less soft drink) as these can easily add up to 200-1000 extra kcal/day.

 

[thefatman]

I know I'm a little late getting back to my own thread, but I would like to say thank you. I have actually begun keeping a calorie log to keep track of my eating and, to my surprise, I actually found myself cutting calories in creative ways. Sandwhich with two slices of turkey became one slice of bread with two pieces of turkey folded inside (cuts 70 calories). I also found out that I can cut so many calories out of my diet by substituting all of my beverages with water. I used to drink 2-5 high calorie beverages per day, down to zero. This, at the very least, cuts 400 calories from my diet. I have continued with the running and I feel great when I get done because I know I just did something for me and my health's benefit.

Once again, A thank you to Goldfish for responding.