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wintersmith

Start Weight:	(18 Mar 09) 235.0 lb
Current Weight:	(21 May 12) 227.4 lb
Goal Weight:	200.0 lb

following: Limited Caloric Intake
performance: gaining 1.0 lb a week

31 year old software engineer who has recently decided to change his lifestyle. I've always been fairly active, but I've never really checked my diet and this has come to be a problem. So, I've started going to the gym more, have started martial arts again, and am now sticking to a diet plan.

Of everything I've decided to do, the most fun is the martial arts and the hardest is, no surprise, the diet. I've discovered the hard way that sweets such as ice cream need to be reigned in sharply. Fresh fruit, on the other hand, is delicious and fits within my diet plan.

Update: I've lost ~45 pounds since joining and ~50 pounds since December. The support of friends and well wishers here contributed quite a bit to keeping my motivation strong. Thank you all!

FatSecret member since: 26 Mar 09

wintersmith's Weight History

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wintersmith's latest member challenges

Excercise Every Day for One Full Week

status:	Completed
ended:	05 Jul 09
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159

25lb Challenge

status:	Completed
ended:	29 May 09
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wintersmith's buddies

	jdeese on diet jdeese's own diet
	last weighin: losing 1.2 lb a week

	NinaV on diet Nina's
	not sharing weight

	cindyshine on diet cindyshine's own diet
	buddies only

	Nikitawells on diet No more dieting
	last weighin: losing 5.6 lb a week

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wintersmith's latest photos

Arrow nocked, it is time to let fly.

in group
Martial Arts
2 comments

An over-the-shoulder view of me with the longbow drawn.

in group
Martial Arts
no comments

Me at the archery range. I'm using a 40lb/draw longbow.

in group
Martial Arts
1 comment

4 published recipes

wintersmith's cookbook

cals: 183kcal | fat: 8.76g | carbs: 7.95g | prot: 15.48g

Mapo Tofu (Mabo Dofu)

Tofu and ground turkey rice dish with spices.

cals: 121kcal | fat: 0.65g | carbs: 30.05g | prot: 2.05g

Cherry Berry Fruit Salad

Fruit salad with cherries, strawberries and apricots as well as some honey and fruit juice.

cals: 115kcal | fat: 0.76g | carbs: 28.60g | prot: 1.62g

Berry Fruit Salad

Fruit salad with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and honey.

cals: 246kcal | fat: 3.46g | carbs: 41.54g | prot: 12.28g

Basil Tofu

Basil tofu with green onions and pepper sauce over brown rice.

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wintersmith's latest posts

Keeping it Off - life after weight loss
My advice, from earlier this year before I decided to try to get to 175 lbs, is to keep counting calories. Honestly, it is such a habit at this point you won't be messing with your routine. You'll have absolute control over what you eat and how much, and if you do start to see a change in your weight you'll have a record to review exactly what might be causing it. Also, it will help to keep from backsliding into the bad habits that led to weight gain in the first place.

To be absolutely frank, I plan on counting calories for the rest of my life, and teaching my kid(s) to do the same. Looking back I wish my parents had gotten me to do something like that, I'd have realized so much earlier what I should and should not be eating!

posted 24 May 2010, 03:16

Calories and weight lifting
This is actually a rather tricky question. I'll tell you what works for me but ultimately you'll have to engage in a little trial and error to see what works best for you.

Usually I try to keep my simple carbohydrates low (sugars, refined wheat products) and keep protein high. This means a lot of lean meat and very little in the way of sugary products (though I've been slipping recently on that, as my wife is pregnant and has been craving sweets so they've once again gained a foothold in the house).

However, right after a workout is the time to eat carbs! When you engage in any exercise that strains your muscles you will be using up glycogen reserves. Glycogen is effectively sugar and water stored in the muscles for quick energy. To replenish that you'll need carbohydrates, preferably complex carbohydrates, to satisfy your glycogen needs. Depending on your gender and muscles mass you'll need somewhere between 150 and 250 grams of carbohydrates to replenish your glycogen but how much you actually need depends on the severity of your workout. I generally just plan 250 for the day and make sure I eat about 100 grams after a workout.

So that works for me. I keep my calorie intake steady, 2200 kcals/day, but my exercise level varies throughout the week. My biggest exercise days are about 3800 kcals burned, while my off day(s) I burn barely over my BMR (~2000 kcals).

What you shouldn't do, and I harped on this earlier, is eat any really sugary items. My calories have not changed but since we've had some recent changes in my household I've been eating more sugars. I can entirely attribute 5 pounds of weight gain to that dietary change. Starting tomorrow I'll be reducing my sugar intake to 20 grams or less per day. I expect to see a drop. It was an interesting experiment but not one I'd like to repeat any time soon. Smile

posted 24 May 2010, 03:11

Which type of excercise WON'T you do at the gym?

Divided By Zero wrote:

Squats

I don't know why, but I can't keep my balance. I'm going to have to get over it soon though because I'm almost working out on the leg press' max setting.
Doubt

You should. Squats are the best complex lower body exercise you can do. Seriously, they are that good.

For me, the exercise at the gym I will never do is any circuit training. Not as effective as free weights for the time invested.

posted 14 May 2010, 12:48

Why you should never call a woman fat
Well, I'd have said don't do it since it is generally rude and uncouth, but I suppose the threat of having your ear torn off would also be a detractor...

posted 29 Apr 2010, 17:08

I don't like to exercise
Heya Sooki,

I hear what you're saying. I have always needed a motivator to go and work out just for the sake of working out. What used to get me into the gym was football and wrestling. I wanted to be stronger and faster with better endurance for my sport.

Since I can't join a high school team anymore, I've changed sports. These days I am training in traditional martial arts and that is my motivator to hit the gym, run, and practice cardio kick boxing for plyometrics and endurance. If I weren't trying to improve my performance in martial arts I'd be pretty hard pressed to do any of that.

Now, to actually answer your question:
1) Dancing. Fun and burns a lot of calories
2) Frisbee. You need a friend but you'd be surprised how much fun adults can have playing Frisbee.
3) Belly dance. Not for me, but my wife is trying to learn this. You can take lessons or you can learn from DVDs.
4) Jog the dog. Walk him for a 5 minutes, jog with him for one minute. Repeat until the end of the walk. The dog will be thrilled and you'll get more exercise.

You get the idea. To actually burn calories you need to move around, get the heart rate going, the blood pumping, the muscles engaged. However, to lose weight the best thing you can do is reduce your calorie intake to about 500 kcals to 1000 kcals below your base metabolic rate.

Good luck!

posted 28 Apr 2010, 10:55

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wintersmith's journal

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15 November 2011

So it has been a few months. Adjusting to life with the new born has been fun and then we bought a new house so exciting does begin to cover it. At any ...

on diet Limited Caloric Intake

(1 comment)

31 May 2011

OK, so today is the day to start this up again. Enough of blaming lost sleep and sudden new responsibilities to keep me from it. On a somewhat related ...

on diet Limited Caloric Intake

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wintersmith's Recent Food & Exercise

	1 piece Lasagna
	2 servings Quaker Maple Instant Oatmeal
	2 oz Almonds
	Bicycling (moderate) - 13/mph
	Driving
	Conditioning exercise (health club)

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wintersmith's Groups

Martial Arts
Engaged in martial arts and looking to also lose a few pounds? Share your experiences and advice with this group.

Bicycles are for Riding
Bikes: Ride them.

Fat Secret Graduation Cruise
After all this hard work and success let's celebrate together on Fat Secret Graduation Cruise!

Google G1 Calorie Counter APP users
If you use the T-Mobile Google G1 Android phone, and you track your calories with the Calorie Counter App, then join us!

Gamers: The Gathering
Jolt and Twinkies are the stereotypical staples for pen & paper, video and trading card gamers but we can do better.

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wintersmith's Recent Activity

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wintersmith's Buddies

	jdeese recorded a weigh in at 167.0 lb.
	cindyshine commented on glen's journal.

Other Member Diet Recent Activity

	K-0ne1 updated their Exercise Diary.
	SergeantS recorded a weigh in at 150.8 lb.
	Fishkin recorded a weigh in at 123.5 lb.
	Jalvin updated their Exercise Diary.
	Greymist updated their Exercise Diary.
	Nhi recorded a weigh in at 119.0 lb.
	Shawnll joined Challenge Ten Pounds in a Month.
	karnat recorded a weigh in at 167.3 lb.