crapshoot

I am about 6'3" and I weight over 300lbs. I have a big frame but I also have a lot of body fat. I have gained weight throughout college and now I want to work towards a healthy lifestyle. All of the figures I have read about a "ideal" BMI seem way out of left field. I want to eventually maintain about 250lbs.

Does anybody have any suggestions for a workout routine that would burn fat and increase muscle mass? I am not looking for a quick fix; I know that weight loss is gradual.

Rdr4evr

Before I say anything, let me just recommend these three sites, they were a great deal of help for me when I got started:

www.johnstonefitness.com
www.bodybuilding.com
www.intense-workout.com

If you want to lose weight, you must be aware that anymore than 1-2 lbs a week is not healthy (as you already are aware of). You must also understand it cannot be done without a strict cardio program and almost perfect nutrition. Below I have listed an example of what would be a good workout and nutrition plan, the sites I listed above have tons of useful information as well.

NUTRITION

7:00am - Six egg-white omelet, oatmeal
10:00am - Protein bar/shake
1:00pm - Grilled fresh tuna with broccoli and roasted new potatoes
4:00pm - Protein bar/shake
7:00pm - Pork tenderloin with asparagus and baked potato
10:00pm - Green salad with cottage cheese

WORKOUT

Monday - Chest/Triceps
Tuesday - cardio
Wednesday - Biceps/Back
Thursday - cardio
Friday - Shoulders/Legs
Saturday - cardio
Sunday - cardio

Chest
Flat Bench Press 4 sets
Incline Hammer Strength Machine 2 sets
Dumbell Flyes 2 sets

Back
Deadlift 3 sets
Lat Pull down 3 sets
Seated Cable Row 2 sets

Biceps
Standing Barbell Curls 3 sets
Preacher Curls (with dumbells) 1 set

Triceps
Tricep Press down 2 sets
Dips (weighted) 2 sets

Legs
Squats 4 sets
Leg Extension 2 sets
Leg Curl 2 sets
Seated/Standing Calve Raises 5 sets total (2 or 3 sets each way)

Shoulders
Seated Military Press (with dumbells) 4 sets
Lateral Raises 3 sets
Shrugs 3 sets

I copied the nutrition and workouts from a few different websites, one of which I listed above. Now you don't have to follow these exact workouts and nutrition plans, but I just wanted to give you an example of what would work.

Try and get a balanced nutrition of protein, carbs and fat. 40%/40%/20% would be a good balance. Meaning 40% carbs and protein and 20% fats. Keep in mind that this doesn't mean you can eat any source of fat or carb you want, you have to eat clean foods only. For example, a clean fat would be natural peanut butter; a clean carb would be sweet baked potato. Try and consume protein before and after workouts as well. Make sure you also drink at least a gallon of water a day.

The only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you consume....so keep track of your calorie consumption.

For your cardio I suggest you go jogging or running for at least 30-45 minutes a day on your cardio days, and if you could do more, even better.

I'm at work right now so this might just seem like a bunch of mixed up crap, and I'm sure I've left out a lot, but I had to rush, if you have any further questions, just let me know.

frogza

Weight loss is very easy to figure out. It's refreshing to see that someone actually realizes that fad diets don't work and that healthy weight loss takes some work. Any effective wight loss plan will boil down to a simple statement, burn more calories than you consume. Get a calorie counting book, or use one of the many on-line counters. Then for one week, keep a notebook where you list everything that you put in your mouth. At the end of each day add it up. You'll notice the first couple of days will be your lowest calorie intakes days (because you're keeping track you'll eat less) By day seven you'll be back to your normal diet. Then it's just a matter of burning more calories than you eat.
Weight lifting will increase muscle mass, which in turn will increase the calories you burn by doing aerobic excersize as well as raise your resting metabolism. Start with the basics, Bench press, curls, french curls, squats, crunches, heel raises military press etc. You'll find that at first these will be more than enough.

You cardio workout should last at least 25 minutes of continual excersize. Your body doesn't even start burning off fat stores until you've been at it for twenty minutes. Don't think that the first day you will be able to run for a full twenty five minutes, take it down to a walk when you need to, but don't just stop. Personally I like to run outside in the summer and hit a treadmill in the winter.

If possible get someone to do your workouts with. Together you'll keep motivated and on schedule. Good luck!

BTW there are several posts about weight loss in the forum that have good advice as well. Check them out.

godxzilla

THis is entirely unnecessary for someone of your build. Maybe after a year when you are at your ideal weight and want to really start toning your body but weight loss is SIMPLE.

Cardio. run a few miles a day. easy.

Calorie intake must be less than calories used. a person of your size probably needs 2500 calories to maintain your current size. You probably get more than that already. you dont want to do that. You should cut at least 500 calories per day from your diet, to lose 1 lb per week (3500 calories = 1lb). By some quick calculations if you got a diet of 1800-1900 calories / day and ran a few miles 3-4 times a week you will lose weight, and plenty of it in no time.

As for your diet, technically you can eat anything you want. as long as you dont go over 1800-1900 calories. that being said, you probably want to stay away from sweets and other high calorie items, as they dont give your body any more than a quick burst of energy. You should stick to higher protien foods like eggs, chicken, and tuna because protien provides sustained energy. You should also make sure and get plenty of fiber. Fresh fruits are a good source of that. Gotta stay regular, y'know

If you measure your foods...youll be surprised how little one serving actually is. 1/2 cup of ice cream is TINY. 1/2 cup of cereal for breakfast is a joke. You WILL be hungry for the first week. by the 2nd week, you will be used to it and it wont bother you at all. You will start feeling healthier and your energy level will rise from working out. also make sure you get plenty of sleep at night.

Be careful who you take advice from. I dont want to make folks mad but everyone who has seen some crap on tv or read anything in a magazine automatically thinks they are an expert. To give myself some credit, my wife is a registered dietitian and is standing over my shoulder as I type.

Good luck and have fun!

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Mike

Rdr4evr

He asked for a workout routine that would build/maintain muscle and burn fat, what I said is not unnecessary. No, I don't think I'm an expert as you implied, (I'm sure you and your wife are) but I know what worked for me. I'm not saying it will work for him too, but don't call it unnecessary when its not.

godxzilla

im not trying to knock what you said. your diet sounds much more like someone trying to build muscle/gain weight. That is an unnecessary amount of protein and no where near enough of everything else. I am just trying to help him, not here to discredit you.

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Mike

dman2

Cardio and tuna are your friends. I know several people who lost weight by running a lot (start out short distances,but don't stop.) Tuna is the ultimate for helping lose weight as long as you don't load it up with mayonnaise. There are several other good ideas out there. The bad thing about my suggested plan is that you can't do it forever. So, find an eating plan that works for you and whatever you do, keep exercising. You can do it!

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I have to exercise in the morning before my brain figures out what I'm doing. ~Marsha Doble

winsecure

You don't need to spend hours planning a complex workout plan to meet your goals. If you were already in good/great shape and wanted to get into killer shape, thats when you need to get fancy with exact meal plans and workout strategies.

But for the basics (which I think apply to what you're wanting) it boils down to 2 simple things:

1- Eat sensibly: Instead of 3 square (large) meals a day, have 5 smaller meals. Leave off the things like cheese, sour cream, etc if you do eat out once in awhile. When possible, avoid processed foods.

2- Lots of excercise: Do a mix of weight training and cardio workout. Being 300 lbs, running might be really tough on your joints to start... swimming is great for a zero-impact workout, elliptical machines are very low-impact as well. Most importantly, just find a cardio workout that you enjoy doing... if its not swimming or jogging, maybe racquetball or basketball... anything like that.. Having fun makes it a lot easier to do it consistently.

There's nothing magic about losing weight. Eat better and excercise lots. With all the books out there and different approaches, people tend to lose sight that it boils down to those 2 simple things.

Oh, and willpower. That's probably the most important (and overlooked) component necessary.

Good luck

hannukah harry

protein does not provide sustained energy. protein, in a healthy diet without excessive exercise like marathon running, is not be used in providing more than 1-2% or your energy at most. it is generally used to repair/rebuild tissue, can be converted to glucose.

i don't know which you are thinking of, either fat or complex carbs. complex carbs will give a semi-sustained energy source (burn quickly once broken down into glucose, but breaking down takes time, like a slow release pill). fat will also give a sustained energy source. every gram of it gives about 5 more calories than a gram of carbs or protein. and it takes longer in the krebs cycle to burn than it does for the body to turn glucose into energy.

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shabbat shalom, mother fucker! - the hebrew hammer

braisler

I am a bit surprised to see that no one here has addressed the fat-burning vs. cardio issue here. I am not an expert in sports nutrition or weight-loss, but I do know what has worked for me. I have read that you will actually burn more FAT when you are working out at a lower aerobic level than you would burn at a higher aerobic level. That is, if you are walking at a good clip with some hills for 30-60 minutes per day, you are burning more fat than you would by running. I remember reading that your target heart rate should be somewhere in the range of 60% of maximum to increase fat burning. Is my information out-of-date?

Crapshoot, best of luck with your weight loss. I have been there, man. I am 6'4" myself. A few years back I was pushing up towards 300 lbs as well. That number is what really scared me into buckling into some serious weight loss. I just couldn't see myself as a 300 pound guy. I set 230 as my goal weight. It took me the better part of a year, but I did eventually get there. I have slipped a bit since then and my lifestyle has changed too. I am currently at 245 and I have readjusted my goal weight to 220 to reflect my less competitive lifestyle.

I will end by sharing what really made the difference for me. Competition. Find something that you are reasonably good at and/or have a lot of fun doing. Whether it is martial arts, soccer, basketball, whatever. For me, it was cycling. Find a rec league or some event nearby to where you live and get involved. The drive of competing is a fantastic motivator to workout and get better, faster, and healthier. Plus you are likely to meet some people who will be a positive influence to your new healthier lifestyle.

Let us know your progress. Sharing your results with a partner (this board) can also be a great motivator.

hannukah harry

it's a bit out of date... basically, it is correct that at lower intensities you will burn more fat than carbohydrate for energy use where at higher intensities you will burn more carbs than fat. but... those are only percentages, ratios.

lets use for an example someone who burns 75% fat when walking and only 45% when jogging. i think i heard somewhere that a good estimate is 100 calories burned per mile whether walking or running. so we'll use that number for this. so lets assume he walks 3.5 miles in an hour or runs 6 miles in an hour.

3.5 miles * 100 calories = 350 calories * 75% fat = 262.5 calories burned from fat.

6 miles * 100 calories = 600 calories * 45% fat = 270 calories burned from fat

so the higher intensity will burn more calories total, more fat calories (although it's a lesser percentage of the total) and will be better exercise for the heart.

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shabbat shalom, mother fucker! - the hebrew hammer

sailor

Precisely.

The name of the game is cardio. Start three days a week for as long as you can go, then four days, then five. Very hard days should be followed by days off (in the beginning) or slow days (once your body has acclimated to it). It doesnt really matter what the cardio is--running, biking, swimming, elliptical machines, as long as you do it and stick to it.

Once you lose some of the weight, you can get on the weight benches, but to start with I would concentrate on the cardio. The cardio is what is going to be most effective and when you are starting there is no need to waste time or energy on weight training.

Oh, and diet. Of course.

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"Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws."
--Plato

pinkie

I was trained that cardio (at least a half hour) + low weight reps or nautilus equipment (12 x 3) was the most efficient way to burn fat/lose weight.