Hello everyone,

I decided to start this thread as an addition to my regular thread in the donating members section. I figured that this was the best place for me to help others and to be helped by others. I've been a member here since summer 2006, but I've only had my new journal for a month, since I started my first job after graduating from my undergrad physics program. I am working for the next year before grad school, and this is prime time for me to start my work to get in shape.

I started at 274 lbs a month ago, and have been working out since. I have good workout technique already as I've done spent years learning and working out on and off. My problem has always (and continues to be) my eating habits, but I truly believe that you can fail 1000 times, but as long as you keep trying you've got an equal shot of succeeding in 1001.

please feel free to comment here, as I want to have input and questions/comments.

cheers to all who wish to get healthy!

Hello everyone,

I decided to start this thread as an addition to my regular thread in the donating members section. I figured that this was the best place for me to help others and to be helped by others. I've been a member here since summer 2006, but I've only had my new journal for a month, since I started my first job after graduating from my undergrad physics program. I am working for the next year before grad school, and this is prime time for me to start my work to get in shape.

I started at 274 lbs a month ago, and have been working out since. I have good workout technique already as I've done spent years learning and working out on and off. My problem has always (and continues to be) my eating habits, but I truly believe that you can fail 1000 times, but as long as you keep trying you've got an equal shot of succeeding in 1001.

please feel free to comment here, as I want to have input and questions/comments.

cheers to all who wish to get healthy!

hi marcinr :wave:

I'm in the same boat... diet is THE single hardest part of all of this.. :gl:

Yeah, good diet is really tough. I've found I can eat well for a week or so, and then I'll cheat for a bit, and back and forth. I really think diet is something that takes practice to get right, and only a few months ago did I finally learn that exercise alone can not lose the weight.

So last week I started rock climbing, as the new gym on my campus built one last year. Its both a great way to get a solid workout, and an even better way to over come a challenge and build confidence.

It requires several things that I don't have, such as great leg strength, flexibility, and a light torso. I'm ok with that, because it means that as I lose weight and gain the strength and flexibility, i'll make it higher up the wall.

So when I make it to the top, i'll know i'm making excellent progress. :tu:

So last week I started rock climbing, as the new gym on my campus built one last year. Its both a great way to get a solid workout, and an even better way to over come a challenge and build confidence.

It requires several things that I don't have, such as great leg strength, flexibility, and a light torso. I'm ok with that, because it means that as I lose weight and gain the strength and flexibility, i'll make it higher up the wall.

So when I make it to the top, i'll know i'm making excellent progress. :tu:

that's awesome! I've always wanted to do that... but neither of the gyms I go too have anything like that :( I'm looking forward to hearing how you're progressing up the wall :tucool:

Thanks Cham!

Right now I'm only about halfway up the 36 foot wall on whats called a rainbow climb (using all the available holds, any colour). It's a start I guess but a great way to measure progress in strength, weight loss, and flexibility.

Hey all! Had a great rock climbing session today. It's really a full body workout and great fun too. Finished off with some elliptical! tomorrow im on chest/triceps.

cheers!

After a rough weekend of no workouts and a delicious thanksgiving dinner courtesy of my mom, I'm back in style with an awesome workout today and an equally amazing day of rock climbing yesterday.

I needed some advice on how to avoid cheating, and got some great advice from forum veterans, so check it out:

http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=39479

It helped me ignore a cheat meal today, and it's a good start.

Cheers!

So this week has been a really good one! My workouts have really improved since I started Rock climbing, and I really miss the gym when I'm not there.

I didn't have my training partner for back and biceps this week, but I made it through all the same. The workouts go a lot faster when its just you, but I feel its better to have that workout partner there to push you to work harder and make every set count.

Last night I went out with some friends and had a few drinks and some pizza. But i'm actually ok with this as it was a planned cheat meal! I didn't go overboard, and I'm right back on the ball today. I did learn this week that cheating is fine as long as its in moderation, and it doesn't happen often. You can't deprive yourself of things you want, but you can limit them!

So Off I go to the gym for a soon-to-be-great legs workout!

cheers!

Hey gang,

This morning I took my bi-weekly pics and measurements. Weigh-in is tomorrow. Here are the changes:

Waist No change
Stomach -1"
Bicep +1"
Forearm +0.5"
Thigh +2"
Calf No change

Not too shabby, but does it seem realistic to people that I gained 2 inches on my thigh in 2 weeks? I know I have some gain because in the past 2 weeks I've started full blown leg workouts and rock climbing.

I won't post my measurements or bi-weekly pics here, but if you like, check my private journal "trials of marcinr" in the private journals section of the forum.

I did take a few pics for the sake of building confidence aside from my progress pics, so here's the first of a bicep flex shot:

Solid workouts so far this week, plus I'm gaining some definition where my biceps meet the front delts. Missed rock climbing this week due to a busy time at work, can't wait to do it next week.

cheers all!

Yes I've been out of the loop for awhile, but this week beat the crap out of me. I had two 14 hour work days on Wednesday and Thursday so I didn't get a chance to go to the gym. However i still got a workout moving lots of heavy equipment and running around both days. Friday I was very tired and went to visit a friend. So I didn't get any exercise Friday or Saturday and went out drinking both nights. Yes it was bad but I needed to be out with friends. Today I'll be getting back to the gym, at least for a refreshing cardio workout. Back to weights tomorrow.

cheers!

I had my best climbing session ever yesterday!

My technique has improved greatly over the past few weeks as has my leg strength and flexibility. Makes rock climbing a lot more fun for sure! In response to a 90 minute climbing session, my body feels sore this morning, the great feeling I crave the day after a really good workout.

This weekend I am heading up north for a 2 week work tour of mid-northern Ontario. Basically we go north until there aren't any more roads and we hit every place along the way. This said I am going to have to abandon my weight regiment with the exception of finding hotels that have gyms. I will post progress for my 2 week trip on a general thread so I can add all the fun stuff.

i'll post a few more before I leave this sunday! :D

Ok this will be my last real post before I head up north, so I won't post here that often. I'll still post my measurement changes tomorrow. As for my weigh in I'm down a pound after the last 2 weeks. The going is slow but I am constantly building muscle.

I think I need to choose bulking or cutting as opposed to both. It hasn't been bad per say, as I've lost only a total of 3 lbs in 2 months, yet lost inches off my waist and gained inches on my muscular areas. So without much in the way of scale results, it puts me down a bit. I want to lose the fat, but I also love working out and want the muscle building. Is it good to want to do both at the same time?

Well I have 2 weeks to see what I can do without my regular gym, so we'll see how it goes.

The only muscle gain this week was a half an inch on my forearm, most likely due to how much they are used during rock climbing. Other than that my pics reveal overall definition improvements, but thats about all.

Again if you'd like to see my pics, measurements, workout regiment, and a more general journal, see the trials of marcinr thread in the private journals section of the forums.

Off I go to the great white north!

So I haven't posted in a long while. It isn't due to neglect but because I was away for two weeks on a work trip. I will not be doing pictures this week as I haven't had any change in the last two, and I feel it doesn't really show any progress staying at the same weight. Either way the weeks leading up to christmas will be tough as far as workouts go, but I will do my best to keep it up, as I have a great desire to lift and to exercise in general.

I can honestly say the last few weeks have been tough. Being on the road all the time for work and having to study in between work makes working out and eating right a lower priority.

Lucky for me I am at home for the next two weeks and can have some form of routine in which I get back to the gym, so I am going to give it a shot.

My goal of 240lbs before christmas isn't possible right now but I'm going to keep the 240 a realistic goal right now. I am going to set the new time to hit 240 as being the end of February.

I still love to work out so the gym isn't a factor, but unless I have the time It's hard to prepare the right foods. With that said I'm going to start replacing those bad meals with decent meals before going to good natural healthy meals.

I am also going to weigh in and take measurements tomorrow to assess the 'damage' of the last 3 weeks.

I know what you're thinking, It's been nearly two months since I last posted, only bad things could have come from that lack of commitment. However, there is a good reason for it all.

Every so often I need to change things around in order to push forward, and sometimes it means I no longer feel like tracking progress or adding entries to my journals. It's not a bad thing really, because the changes keep my head in the game and keep it fresh.

Honestly if I tried and failed a million times, I'd be right back there for number 1 million and one, with more knowledge of what I need to do and a stronger urge to succeed. For me its only a matter of time.

Christmas break is always a tough time, this time I decided to take it off from working out (with the exception of some squash games and weights for fun). This may be the worst time to do it, but while I was home at my parents' house, I did some soul searching and spent my time off learning more about nutrition and workout techniques.

As I progress I want to make sure my efforts result in a change of lifestyle. I want to be a different person, and this is why everything must change. The amount of activity I have, the way I eat, the perspective I have, and many other small factors. Weight loss and muscle gain are more than just physical. It's a mental battle and it can affect you in so many different ways.

Anyways I may decide to take some pics/measurements soon, and I may not. I'll make sure to at least report my weekly weigh in.

Good luck to all who desire to change!

Hey all, I'm totally not posting as much as usual, which is fine, I'm doing my own thing right now, but I felt that after the last month I have made exceptional progress.

I am down 20lbs in the last 6 weeks, which is more than I have lost in total since I joined this site a year and a half ago! For this reason I decided it would be good to write an inspirational post (I'll copy it to my public journal as well).

Although I have still got a long way to go, I have come up with a few truths:

1) No matter what happens do not give up. Every time you fail you learn what causes you to fail and you get stronger and learn more for the next time you try.

2) Weight loss, excuse me, fat loss is achievable by a simple formula, burn more calories than you eat on a daily basis.

3) low carb diets do not work. Your body needs the carbs to hold onto water and energy. Those fad diets that offer fast weight loss only help you lose water weight, which you will gain back as soon as you start eating carbs again.

4) exercise: but not for burning calories. Exercise for good health, good moods, more energy, and a positive outlook...tho burning calories is a plus.

5) if you fail you only can blame yourself...I don't care how good that pizza looks.;)

Anyways, thats what took me a long time to come up with, and I hope it doesn't take as long for you start on the right path.

Also, this weekend I am finally going to post progress pics and measurements, as well as my weigh-in on monday.

cheers!

So I'm back!

After about 9 months away, I'm back to JSF...I took a long break, chenged my life around a lot, and decided to get back to working on myself.

I'm now living in London, Ontario, doing my Masters degree in Astronomy at the University of Western Ontario. Its been a big change as I was accepted in March then started in May. It made sense for me to take some time off from focussing on my weight.

I used my time to get my life in order, relearn all the physics I forgot after a year off from school, and just get used to a new place. I spent the summer meeting people, learning to speak Polish, and picking up a few sports (basketball and squash) that I haven't played for years. In the last couple months I have gotten used to my new life, and am ready to get serious on my oldest limitation, my appearance.

I am in many ways the same as I used to be. I'm still inconsistent with my eating habits, I still love to exercise and play sports, I still have ankle problems (which now have turned into knee problems) and I'm still leading a busy life, just now I've got about 20 lbs less fat then I did about a year ago. I want to continue the fat loss and sports trends, and so I'm back here focussing on writing posts every week (or more often).

So with mention of knee problems before, let me explain the story. First off I've always had ankle troubles, easily injuring them, but I am going to buy an exercise band soon so I can do some ankle strengthening exercises so I don't injure them anymore. I started playing basketball in may, for the first time since 8th grade. I was playing about a month ago, and I heard a pop in my knee. since then both knees have been stiff and occasionally I have had trouble walking. I took some time off from sports, but still continue to play basketball once a week, and it hasn't been too bad. Based on an assessment, I pulled a tendon in my knee (ACL) and with some rest and strengthening I should be ok.

Once the school term ends (in a couple weeks) I'll have time to work on it a bit more, but until then I won't be doing much weight training that requires me to stand. I will continue to do cycling and some seated weight training, and hopefully in January I'll be back to 100% for a full weight training regiment and some sports. I probably won't play basketball for awhile still, as I think my weight and jumping a lot is what caused the initial weakness in my knees.

So there you have it, I am back and dedicated to success, wish me luck!

So its been a fun weekend, took the train home to visit my folks, had a big party with friends, got stuck on a train that was delayed for two hours, you know...the usual stuff. I didn't eat great over the weekend but got some good workouts too.

I discovered my little sister has been going to the gym a lot, and is getting to be in really good shape (she's 20). Its sparked my competitive nature, so now I feel like working out in order to best her (I'm stronger than her anyways but its a good psychological advantage).

If you're interested, check out my blog: It basically consists of problems that a lot of people encounter as they battle towards a healthy lifestyle.

http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/blog.php?u=17899

catch ya later!