I am trying to do a "John Stone" lifestyle and body make-over.
Started 30 days ago at 382.
Been walking 2.5 miles every day as fast as I can. (17 min miles)

The food intake is exactly the same every day, no change.
One quart of skim milk
One 3oz can of tuna in water.
Two "Lean Cuisines" , same one every meal, glazed chicken.
One multi vitamin.
Plenty of water.

My question is on the skim milk, 0% fat, but 12 grams of sugar for each serving, which would be 48 grams in a quart. Is this a bad thing?

When my weights get here this week, lifting will start.
I ordered 10 Lbs of All the Whey will include that once it arrives.

The 48 grams of sugar in the skim milk has me ready to dump it.
All along, it seemed it was an excellent source of protein with no fat.

Can anyone shed any light on this for me?

Thanks in advance,

If that doze of carbs is within your macronutrient intake boundaries, I don't see any reason why dumping the milk.
However, If you still feel concerned, you might wanna drink a little less milk and eat a little more chicken breasts.

Hope that helps! :gl:

Some people eliminate entirely because of all the sugar in it. I just use 1/2 a cup with my morning oatmeal and sometimes with my Shakes to give it better flavor. The glazed chicken sounds like it would have a nice amount of sugar in it too, whats that look like ?

How many calories are you getting in a day btw ?

I think they named it that to make one feel like they are cheating.
Really just skinless chicken in a little rice and a few green beans.
It is high in sodium like most frozen foods, but for now I think that is not a problem. It is something I can prepare and stick to eating without any desire to eat anything else.

Anyone's thoughts, suggestions or advice would be appreciated.
Total daily calories:
Skim milk 360
(2) Lean Cuisines 440
3 oz tuna 60
Total 860

"Glazed Chicken" is:
220 cal.
3.5 grams fat
20 grams protein
6 grams sugar
27 grams of Carbs

I am trying to do a "John Stone" lifestyle and body make-over.
Started 30 days ago at 382.
Been walking 2.5 miles every day as fast as I can. (17 min miles)

The food intake is exactly the same every day, no change.
One quart of skim milk
One 3oz can of tuna in water.
Two "Lean Cuisines" , same one every meal, glazed chicken.
One multi vitamin.
Plenty of water.

My question is on the skim milk, 0% fat, but 12 grams of sugar for each serving, which would be 48 grams in a quart. Is this a bad thing?

When my weights get here this week, lifting will start.
I ordered 10 Lbs of All the Whey will include that once it arrives.

The 48 grams of sugar in the skim milk has me ready to dump it.
All along, it seemed it was an excellent source of protein with no fat.

Can anyone shed any light on this for me?

Thanks in advance,

I would worry more about your current diet than I would skim milk. You needs some serious revamping. That can't be healthy.You're not getting nearly enough calories or nutrients for a guy your size.

I would worry more about your current diet than I would skim milk. You needs some serious revamping. That can't be healthy.You're not getting nearly enough calories or nutrients for a guy your size.

Agreed. 860!!!!!!!!! Read marcus' sticky on the fat loss board

The food intake is exactly the same every day, no change.
One quart of skim milk
One 3oz can of tuna in water.
Two "Lean Cuisines" , same one every meal, glazed chicken.
One multi vitamin.
Plenty of water.


Skim milk is not your problem.
You're missing several powerhouse vegetables and fruits in your diet. A multivitamin won't make up for what you're missing. You fibre intake is too low, and your calories are too. Add broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, and blueberries. Also add some fish, ground flax seed and some nuts.

I have been and will continue to read all the posts, I have learned a bunch. Can see that I am way under what my daily calorie intake should be,,but,,have so far to go and want to get there now. Guess because I am having no problem eating very little, I think it is too much and want to cut back even more. Kinda thought that since I had not started lifting yet, that minimal calories would be Ok to get me started.

Suppose I'd better take the advice from this site and just increase the number of my meals and thereby increase my intake.

It's just hard to stop this much weight moving once it gets going in one direction. Being hard headed doesn't help either.

thanks for your advice,

I love it and have been drinking it for more than a decade.

If you weigh 382 and you're eating that little it goes without saying that your calories are far, far too low. You should be eating a lot more. You will see weight fly off like this but it's not healthy (I don't mean that in the "yeah yeah, I know" way but in the true sense; it is not healhty), will crash your metabolism and lean mass, and also be all but impossible to stay on long term, regardless of how intent on weight loss you may be right now.

Doing a revision in what I've been eating based on the suggestions above.
Guess, one month on this insane kick is long enough and too long.

Heading to the store.
Buying vegetables, fruits, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, etc.

Going to ramp up the good stuff to the correct calorie intake.

Don't think the present intake would be enough to mantain consciousness once I start lifting in a day or so. Would have ended up hitting the deck, dizzy enough now.

thanks for all you help, sometimes one just needs to hear it.

I drink probably a glass of nonfat milk probably every other day for no other reasons than protein and calcium.

kronosmen, I gotta say I'm in the same camp as the suggestions... I can offer a couple quick & simple suggestions that have worked for me:

- Nonfat / lowfat yogurt - About 100 cal 'snack' when you feel so inclined (before 5pm since its such a high carb item)
- Ultra Lean Pockets - there's like 2 or 3 varieties. A great 200 cal jolt of 40/40/20 (carbs/protein/fats) in like 1:30 cook time.
- Bananas to counter balance your sodium intake
- Get a foreman grill & a bag of frozen chicken breast tenderloins. That way at any time you can enjoy a meal in under 15 mins (thaw & cook chicken + cook frozen veggies). I also recommend honey mustard, which you can put straight on the thawed chicken - lots of flavor, only 5-10 extra cals.

Hope some of that helps! Best of luck, and remember, this is a lifestyle change, not a diet. :D

Dave (digs the lean cuisines at work)

Also, it is very bad to eat the exact same thing everyday. Not only for your sanity, but because we as humans require a vareity of different amino acids, vitamins, phytochemicals, anti-oxidants, minerals, etc, etc that can only come from a VARIETY of food. A multi-vitamin doesn't "make up" for a lack of variety.

Try to try a new vegetable and a new fruit every week, if you can. Also, ditch the "want the results RIGHT NOW" mindset, it will only lead to you not getting the results you want EVER.

Slow and steady wins the race.

-Allen

Started at 382 on June 12th.

This morning I am at 279.

Have been increasing my walking distance and pace since June.
Averaging about 5 miles a day, jog about a third of that distance.

The last week have been walking about 9 miles a day split into two sessions, (on vacation this week and have more time)

Followed the advice from those above and, got a foreman grill & I buy frozen chicken breast tenderloins which I eat at each of four meals.

I know that I am in the "Starvation" mode and still too low on intake, and that I am losing muscle as well as fat, but I am beyond driven to get down to human size.

Also, eating 0% fat cottage cheeze and skim milk along with fresh vegs. and tons of water.

Have not started lifting. The Titan just sits there waiting for me.
I feel that I am still on too severe a diet to tackle lifting yet.

Waist size down from tight 54" to loose 44".

Problem is, that I take no pride in how far I have come, only focus is on
how far I want to go. People are amazed at my size change, but I have a hard time accepting any compliments, as all I see is the path forward.

Let you know if I survive this journey.

Thanks for you advice, even if I am too hard headed to heed all of it.

Have not started lifting. The Titan just sits there waiting for me.
I feel that I am still on too severe a diet to tackle lifting yet.You should remedy that. If some mild lifting is too difficult based on what you're eating now, your diet is insufficient.

IMO the longer it takes you to find a proper balance the more likely you will be to rebound, as you've no doubt done before (and as most people do) once you've "lost the weight". Don't fall for the all-or-nothing. It's a path that leads to disaster.

Well, this morning my weight is 258, that is 124 pounds less than it was on June 12th.
I guess the skim milk that I worried about having some ingredient that would hold back weight loss does not exist.

Every other day, I run 5 miles non stop and on the other days I walk 6.5
miles. The walking is more difficult since it takes so much more time out of a day. Started lifting on walking days two weeks ago.

If anyone had EVER told me that I could go out and run for 60 minutes non stop, I would have told them they were nuts.

Not even 30 years ago, in the Marines, could I have run for a hour.
We had to run 3 miles under 28 minutes every so often as fitness test, but almost died doing that.

I want to thank John Stone for this great site and his personal example of motivation. Also, thanks to all the folks that post their struggles and successes on this board.

Time to go run, 80 lbs to go.

At the moment I'm using skim milk with my Protein for my Pre-workout meal carbs..
Not sure if it's good or not.. But it is a plus with whey :)

I think they named it that to make one feel like they are cheating.
Really just skinless chicken in a little rice and a few green beans.
It is high in sodium like most frozen foods, but for now I think that is not a problem. It is something I can prepare and stick to eating without any desire to eat anything else.

Anyone's thoughts, suggestions or advice would be appreciated.
Total daily calories:
Skim milk 360
(2) Lean Cuisines 440
3 oz tuna 60
Total 860

"Glazed Chicken" is:
220 cal.
3.5 grams fat
20 grams protein
6 grams sugar
27 grams of Carbs

That "3 oz tuna" is not 60, but 250 calories, btw. Each serving is 60 calories but there are usually 2.5 servings in a can.

Well, this morning my weight is 258
Time to go run, 80 lbs to go.

:tu:

This morning, (Dec 12th), I was 237, quite a ways from the 382 that I was six months ago on June the 12th. Still 47 pounds from my goal of 190.

We have had snow on the ground for a couple of weeks, which makes running difficult. Still running three days a week, but have taught myself to cross country ski and having been doing that twice a night.

Not getting the workout from it that one should, since the small muscles in my legs that provide balance get weary after an hour. I stop at that point because my form gets bad and an injury seems more likely when the ability of the legs to control of the skis is lost. Main leg muscles don't get tired, just whatever muscles stabilize the balance?

Watched a show on PBS and the Doctor was advocating the following supplements.

Does anyone have any advice or infomation on them, good or bad?
The only thing that I've been taking for six months is a vitamin.

--Glutamine
--Carnitine acetyl-L carnitine
--Coenzyme Q-10
--CLA conjugated Linoleic Acid
--Chromium
--Allpha Lipoic Acid 50ml a day
--Gamma Linoleic Acid
--Maitake SX Fraction
--Green tea

Thanks in advance,

This morning, (Jan 2nd), I was 224, quite a ways from the 382 that I was on June the 12th. Still 34 pounds from my goal of 190. Still drinking skim milk, guess it's OK afterall, and I was worried about its sugar content.

I am sorry now that I didn't take pictures from June 12th until now.
Everyone on this site told me, "Take pictures, they will help motivate you and you'll be sorry if you don't".

Well, when one doesn't listen, they suffer.

Really enjoy reading this site. Great motivation on down days, and just interesting reading at all times.


Anyway, went cross country skiing last week in Killington, great workouts twice a day. Wouldn’t have believed how soaked you get even when the weather is cold.

Picking up the pace since yesterday. Combined running and biking in every workout, twice a day. Also will lift every day, upper one day, lower the next. Doing AB work until I'm ready to hurl.

Only 63 days remaining until I get back in the race car for practice day.
It has been twenty five years since I last drove and not at this level, (speed).

Plan on playing handball once a week, must do something to improve hand eye coordination and reaction time.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Can't do anything about age, all I can do is get light and in shape.

When I started, I was 40 pounds heavier than the car's engine which is 342 pounds. All aluminum and magnesium Chevy V-8.

OK, down to the bike.

Your progress is really impressive! I'm sure everyone here shares my admiration for your ability to stick to your program and come so far.

That being said, I think you may be overtraining. While I'm sure all the activity you're doing may be very beneficial to your cardiovascular health and endurance, it's not necessarily ideal for fat loss or muscle retention.

I'm personally a very large advocate of LISS (Low Intensity Steady State) cardio done fasted in the morning. Many others on this board are as well, including SwoleCat if I'm correct. Just run (or bike, or whatever) at a steady pace for 45 minutes that keeps your heart rate at about 60-70% of your max. You should feel like you had a workout, but not be totally exhausted and panting and so forth. If you do something too exerting you end up with a greater chance of losing muscle. For me, what I've found works best is just running on the treadmill at about 6 mph., so in 45 minutes I do a little over 4 miles with a couple of minutes of walking afterward as a cool-down.

Doing this fasted (before you eat) promotes liberation of fat stores, and abstaining from carbohydrates for an hour or two afterward is believed to assist in this process. I normally have a protein/fat shake after cardio and eat some fruit a couple of hours later. I've had great results with this program in that I've lost a lot of fat but have maintained my muscle.

As for lifting, every day may be a bit much, especially if you're still trying to lose fat as opposed to bulking. I used to train every day on a two-day split like you described, but I got much better results once I allowed my body more time for recuperation.

I'm currently cutting and only hit the weights 4 nights a week, each time hitting a different set of muscles. I do fasted cardio every morning. This approach has had me losing very little scale weight but dropping fat% consistently, which is exactly what I want. If you lift too often, especially when you're on a caloric deficit like you should be for cutting, you'll just exhaust your body and hamper your own progress. Your determination is commendable, but sometimes moderation is really the best thing for your progress.

As for supplements, I take a ridiculous amount of them, but I still share the commonly-held view here that they run a distant second to good diet and exercise. You'll get better results from simply refining and optimizing your workouts and nutrition than you will from a supplement.

That being said, there are several very effective things out there.

Acetyl-l-carnitine, commonly called ALCAR, is available as a liquid, capsules, or as a powder (which is from what I've seen the best value by far). Research suggests that it has a host of benefits in terms of preventing or undoing neurological and optical damage due to aging or disorders like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, increases alertness, coordination, and dexterity, and helps prevent depletion of testosterone (amongst other things). It's a really great supplement. I recommend either getting capsules from Kent Nutrition or in a powdered form (even cheaper but less convenient) from bulknutrition.com. I normally take 4 500mg doses a day for a total of 2 grams.

Alpha-Lipoic-Acid, or ALA, is a ridiculously useful supplement. It mimics insulin, thus helping to maintain consistent blood sugar levels. It also helps to cram more glucose into muscle cells as opposed to fat cells, thus helping you to lose fat and gain muscle. You can either take it before your larger carbohydrate meals for optimal fat loss, or around your lifting to optimize "pump" and muscle growth. It's also an incredibly powerful antioxidant. The R-isomer of ALA is what really does things for you, and regular ALA that you purchase is half r-ala and half s-ala. Therefore only half the dose is really effective, arguably less because there is evidence that the s-ala actually counteracts some of the effectiveness of the r-ala. You can buy R-ala buy itself but it is inherently unstable, making it somewhat less viable. Another option is K-R-ALA, which is r-ala bound to potassium to create a more stable salt form. It removes much of the negatives of r-ala, but is much more expensive. Dollar for dollar regular ALA is probably your best bet, and I would suggest going with Kent for the best price. I take 4 400mg capsules a day with meals.

That "3 oz tuna" is not 60, but 250 calories, btw. Each serving is 60 calories but there are usually 2.5 servings in a can.

OK, that had me shocked for a min, as I rely on tuna a lot.

Looking at the back of Solid White StarKist Albacore Tuna in Water:

Serv. Size: 1 can drained (2.8oz)
Calories: 100
Servings Per Container: 3 (so 300 for all three in a thee pack)

So, not 60 and not 250, but 100...

That "3 oz tuna" is not 60, but 250 calories, btw. Each serving is 60 calories but there are usually 2.5 servings in a can.

Hmm...all of our tuna seems different.

This is mine:
75 cals per serving
2.5 servings per can
6 oz. per can

75 cals x 2.5 servings = 187.5 calories
= 94 calories per 3 oz.

If I calculate if by ounces per serving, I get slightly different numbers because of rounding on the label. 180 and 90 vs. 187.5 and 94.

Either way, 3 oz. of tuna is definitely NOT 250 calories.

Edit: I just saw ward's post. Comparing ours...I'm almost 100% sure that it's 90-100 cal.

Glaive,

Thanks for your advice.


My constant concern is that I'm not training hard enough.
Although my little bit of common sense, hints that I am overdoing it.

I have been running outside, 3 to 6 miles, unless it is below 30 degrees.
Running like a truck, slow buy steady.

Been doing low intensity, and tried doing it fasted, but felt REALLY bad.
Believe maybe that my diet is still below common sense level of intake and if I skip a meal, I get almost dizzy. Get the same feeling if I don't time my workouts to a couple of hours after I eat.


On the treadmill I have been going for 60 minutes at 5.0 mph.
Then on the bike for 45 minutes at 70 pedals per minute.

The proof that I'm not running very fast is that no matter how long I run or bike, I'm never out of breath. Soaking wet but don't feel exhausted.

The lifting that I have been doing is just for the exercise, not to build muscle.
I realize that I am losing lean muscle as well as fat, but what is most important to me right now is to get my body weight down to fit into the car. Once I get to 190 or less, then I'll cut back on the cardio and hit the weights hard and heavy with a change in diet.


Two weeks ago I started taking the following items in addition to my standard multi vitamin.
--Glutamine
--Carnitine acetyl-L carnitine
--Coenzyme Q-10
--CLA conjugated Linoleic Acid
--Chromium
--Allpha Lipoic Acid 50ml a day
--Gamma Linoleic Acid
--Maitake SX Fraction
--Green tea

I admit that I'm making many mistakes, but the clock is ticking and the only items that fit me now are the nomex gloves, shoes and helmet.

Planning on going on SwoleCat's program once I get close to my goal to build muscle back.

Planning on going on SwoleCat's program once I get close to my goal to build muscle back.

Have you considered hiring him as a trainer while you lose weight? I'm sure he'd be able to help preserve a lot of muscle during the process, and make it a lot easier, and you wouldn't have to worry so much about whether what you're doing is optimal. At least talk to him about it..

Thank you Andrew for your suggestion about going with Swolecat's SGX program.
Following my own program, I was down to 212 pounds several days ago, from 382 pounds when I started on June 12th.

However, as everyone on this site told me would happen, I lost lean muscle as well as fat. (At least it looks that way, but how could one tell what was really under that much fat?, maybe it was just more fat?)

The goal now is not to lose any more muscle towards the goal of approx. 190 pounds.

Now that I am in "the normal human size", my objective is like most folks here, is to lower my body fat percentage and then build muscle.
Also to get some muscle tone back, (the recent photo's are ugly, glad I didn't take any when I started in June or I would have been so discouraged that I would have probably quit)

It has been a long journey since June, but it seems there is a longer and steeper trail ahead