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[GameAddict411]

Yeah, you're going way too low.

You should not feel dizzy. 500 calorie deficit should be fine. Take your TDEE--Total Daily Energy Expenditure --and subtract by 500.

You can find your TDEE by using online calculators. Stuff like MyFitnessPal has them built them.

Thank you! After looking into it, it recommended to eat about 2070 calories to "lose weight fast" with exercising. I am eating way below that.

edit: I guess I am killing my metabolism.

 

[ATF487]

Surely the answer to "Should I exercise?" is always yes unless you're injured or have heart trouble?

 

[Mimosa97]

I am actually in a similar situation too. I weigh a bit less but I am also a bit shorter. For the past 10 days, I have cut my calorie intake significantly. I eat about 1000-1200 calories daily(maybe even less). I also take 2-2.5 miles walk daily(not including me commuting for school or other activities) a third of the way is up hill. Do any of you guys recommend me doing anything to help me lose weight?

Don't eat less than 1000 calories. That's terrible for your health.

Use a calculator to know your prescribed daily intake (according to your gender, height, age etc...) and cut 500 calories a day. It will be enough. IF you're a dude it will be something around 2000 calories. I'm 6'0 and I was eating 1400-1500 calories a day when I was dieting. It worked great for me.

You need to know that walking doesn't consume a lot of calories. But it's great for your health. I think 1 hour of walking will net you like 300 calories so don't count on that for weight loss. I would keep walking 2-3 miles a day and start lifting weights to build ( or at least retain ) muscle mass.

 

[Miletius]

Lol I do feel like I'm sort of wasting the best years of my life, health wise. The choice to eat vegetables every day was an attempt to rectify that haha.

I think I need to reevaluate what I'm doing (while still eating vegetables). I can't wrap my head around this.

You should ask your dietician. That's what they are there for, to get you to eat healthy and presumably to help you lose weight. Exercise is important regardless, it keeps your body healthy and has benefits other than just weight loss. As others have suggested, start a walking program for low stress exercise and then progress from there. Keep it fun for yourself and you'll be in better shape soon.

Don't worry about other people -- everybody's body will be different. As long as you are making changes that make you feel better you are on the right track.

 

[speculawyer]

Of course you should exercise. Everyone should exercise.

But you are right to focus more on your diet. That is where you get the most bang for your buck. But it is also the hardest part.

 

[Afrocious]

Seriously just eat less, exercise more. I'll probably get some shit for this, but you don't even need the vegetables to lose weight especially at 25. I don't, except maybe french fries. Also cutting carbs isn't necessary either. Just find a calculator online to calculate your caloric intake needed to lose weight and track your calories. You could eat a box of donuts everyday and lose weight as long as you're in a deficit. If you don't cheat on yourself by binging, you WILL lose weight.

I don't feel like shit when I eat food anymore, so I'm going to avoid this advice. However, now I'm wondering about if my focus on weight loss needs to be reevaluated.

 

[clove]

Don't listen to people who say you're doing it wrong/going too slow. 5 pounds in 4 weeks is a 15000 calorie deficit (1lb fat = 3000 calories), which is >500 calorie deficit per day. That is fantastic work. If you keep it up for another year, you'll be down to 200 lbs, which is pretty damn reasonable for 6'2''

That said, absolutely exercise. But don't think about it as a way of burning calories! Think about it as strengthening your heart and muscles. Frankly I wouldn't even consider exercise as part of any calorie calculation, it'll just make you feel justified in overeating, or conveniently forgetting about that extra snack you had.

Exercise OP, but ease into it. At 25, if you start serious weightlifting you may go ravenous with hunger.

 

[matthieuC]

I don't feel like shit when I eat food anymore, so I'm going to avoid this advice. However, now I'm wondering about if my focus on weight loss needs to be reevaluated.

Yeah that's fair. Eat what makes you feel the best, it's just the key is deficit.

Good luck!

 

[entremet]

Thank you! After looking into it, it recommended to eat about 2070 calories to "lose weight fast" with exercising. I am eating way below that.

edit: I guess I am killing my metabolism.

Remember there are two calorie numbers--BMR--Basal Metabolic Rate. That's the amount of calories your body needs just to stay alive and do it's normal functions. Basically your rate of calorie burn at bedrest.

TDEE counts your activity, including exercise and daily activity.

If you're going below your BMR, which it sounds like it, you're doing things way wrong.

 

[TheOctodad]

Additionally, "eating vegetables" is good, but really not magic. Vegetables are good to eat and we (as Americans at least) generally over consume sugars and breads and under eat vegetables.

Exercise and balancing your diet with protein, fat, and carbs from healthy sources is where it's at. Just "eating more veggies" is only one piece of the whole picture.

 

[Mechanized]

These are probably really dated or just false numbers but I recall that the healthy amount of weight to lose from just a diet change was 1-2 lbs per week. Dramatic weight loss usually isn't healthy or sustainable.

 

[GameAddict411]

Don't eat less than 1000 calories. That's terrible for your health.

Use a calculator to know your prescribed daily intake (according to your gender, height, age etc...) and cut 500 calories a day. It will be enough. IF you're a dude it will be something around 2000 calories. I'm 6'0 and I was eating 1400-1500 calories a day when I was dieting. It worked great for me.

You need to know that walking doesn't consume a lot of calories. But it's great for your health. I think 1 hour of walking will net you like 300 calories so don't count on that for weight loss. I would keep walking 2-3 miles a day and start lifting weights to build ( or at least retain ) muscle mass.

I am 6 feet tall too. But, how will lose weight if i don't burn some calories too? There is a gym close by, but I am not sure where to even start. I am afraid I might hurt myself if I am not guided correctly. The walk I take is up hill a third of way( and it freak-in kills me lol) and I am considerably over weight according to some websites(I should be close to 190 Ib).

 

[entremet]

I am 6 feet tall too. But, how will lose weight if i don't burn some calories too? There is a gym close by, but I am not sure where to even start. I am afraid I might hurt myself if I am not guided correctly. The walk I take is up hill a third of way( and it freak-in kills me lol) and I am considerably over weight according to some websites(I should be close to 190 Ib).

I'm your exact height and i was losing 2llbs per week on 1990 calories per day.

Somedays I'm able to eat 2800 calories due to calorie burn--I walk a lot.

Again, figure out your TDEE and subtract 500.

A 6 foot male should not be at around 1000 per day. That's nuts!

 

[GameAddict411]

Remember there are two calorie numbers--BMR--Basal Metabolic Rate. That's the amount of calories your body needs just to stay alive and do it's normal functions. Basically your rate of calorie burn at bedrest.

TDEE counts your activity, including exercise and daily activity.

If you're going below your BMR, which it sounds like it, you're doing things way wrong.

I guess, I will have to eat more then. But the guilt! I feel guilty when eating anything now a days.

 

[clove]

I am 6 feet tall too. But, how will lose weight if i don't burn some calories too?

Your fat stores depend on you eating a certain number of calories. If you eat less than that number, your fat stores can't sustain themselves anymore because the rest of your body is using them for energy instead of food.

Exercise is not necessary for weight loss, just recommended for health.

 

[oti]

You like gaming, right? Why not try one of those activity trackers for a start? Like a fitbit or a withings. Go for long walks, try to beat 10k steps every day, try to beat your friends. Listen to podcasts while walking or audio books.

I use the Withings Activité. It's a nice looking watch, it tracks steps, sleep and even swimming if that's something you're interested in. The FitBit Surge HR is also supposed to be a great device.

When it comes to changing something about my lifestyle I like to invest some €€€ in gear so I feel motivated to actually do that pesky health stuff.

 

[BlueTsunami]

These are probably really dated or just false numbers but I recall that the healthy amount of weight to lose from just a diet change was 1-2 lbs per week. Dramatic weight loss usually isn't healthy or sustainable.

It seems like 2lb is the safe amount for higher fat loss. If you drop weight at a faster rate you may be losing muscle mass too. This is different for obese people who can lose fat rapidly. This changes when approaching a healthy weight level.

 

[entremet]

I guess, I will have to eat more then. But the guilt! I feel guilty when eating anything now a days.

That's a strange relationship with food there.

Just cut the junk and measure the rest. Do you cook for yourself?

 

[Afrocious]

Don't listen to people who say you're doing it wrong/going too slow. 5 pounds in 4 weeks is a 15000 calorie deficit (1lb fat = 3000 calories), which is >500 calorie deficit per day. That is fantastic work. If you keep it up for another year, you'll be down to 200 lbs, which is pretty damn reasonable for 6'2''

That said, absolutely exercise. But don't think about it as a way of burning calories! Think about it as strengthening your heart and muscles. Frankly I wouldn't even consider exercise as part of any calorie calculation, it'll just make you feel justified in overeating, or conveniently forgetting about that extra snack you had.

Exercise OP, but ease into it. At 25, if you start serious weightlifting you may go ravenous with hunger.

Thank you! It was something else when I realized I ate a whole plate of broccoli when I went out one day. A year ago, you couldn't get me to do that, much less ten or twenty years ago lol. I'm not on some drastic life-changing track for others, but the changes I've made in what I eat have made eating a lot better. I can taste all sorts of stuff. I'm less picky and I try new things. I question what I eat and what I don't and ask why. Also, the choices have given me a bit more control over my own actions. I don't feel bound to a regiment of numbers and statistics, but instead, I have freedom and I'm willingly choosing to eat these vegetables with my meals and choosing not to eat out or get fried foods.

I also like the notion of not thinking of exercising as a way to burn calories. That goes against what I've always thought, but considering how important it is that people consume healthy foods, I can see that reasoning. I would like to have a better heart and better muscles, though the original idea of me eating healthier is so I don't end up with diabetes like my mom and dad.

 

[GameAddict411]

I'm your exact height and i was losing 2llbs per week on 1990 calories per day.

Somedays I'm able to eat 2800 calories due to calorie burn--I walk a lot.

Again, figure out your TDEE and subtract 500.

A 6 foot male should not be at around 1000 per day. That's nuts!

Well, this is really weird. Before cutting down my diet, Used to eat about the same. I was about to maintain my weight just fine(260 Ib). No weight lose! I might have a really fucked up metabolism. I don't have any other health issues. No diabetes or anything(I am 22 by the way).

 

[entremet]

Well, this is really weird. Before cutting down my diet, Used to eat about the same. I was about to maintain my weight just fine(260 Ib). No weight lose! I might have a really fucked up metabolism. I don't have any other health issues. No diabetes or anything(I am 22 by the way).

There could be many factors at play.

I wouldn't jump to conclusions just yet.

I've also been training for 6 plus years, so my metabolism is pretty fast. I'm just losing weight from a 1 year mass building phase.

But make sure to measure your food accurately. Use a scale. This is a must.

Keep tracking and making adjustments.

You can easily fix your metabolism as well. Just stop dieting for a while and come back on. Eat based on hunger. It's imperative that you cut out sugary drinks and foods. Save them for treats.

But it does look like you went way too low.

It happens. Trial and error.

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

Running/cardio is a must if you want to lose weight. Even walking for an hour in your neighborhood does wonders. Run once you're comfortable to do so. Don't start with heavy weight lifting unless you are ready to break a little sweat.

Meat doesn't harm at all if you're eating it right, like Chicken or Turkey. Also, no matter what you eat, learn to listen to your stomach and know when you're full. When you feel halfway full, take a 5-10 minute break from eating so you KNOW how full you are.

Remember, some weight loss stories aren't true as its mostly water they're shedding. I lost 15 pounds since May without any workout, but I also am dehydrated cause I don't drink lots of water. I've actually lost muscle and water weight, but I can still see that beer belly popping half the time.

Good luck!

 

[Anth0ny]

"Should I exercise?"

A question that should never be asked.

 

[Fancy Clown]

Everyone needs to exercise lol

 

[Escape Goat]

Everyone needs to exercise lol

 

[entremet]

Running/cardio is a must if you want to lose weight. Even walking for an hour in your neighborhood does wonders. Run once you're comfortable to do so. Don't start with heavy weight lifting unless you are ready to break a little sweat.

Meat doesn't harm at all if you're eating it right, like Chicken or Turkey. Also, no matter what you eat, learn to listen to your stomach and know when you're full. When you feel halfway full, take a 5-10 minute break from eating so you KNOW how full you are.

Remember, some weight loss stories aren't true as its mostly water they're shedding. I lost 15 pounds since May without any workout, but I also am dehydrated cause I don't drink lots of water. I've actually lost muscle and water weight, but I can still see that beer belly popping half the time.

Good luck!

Classic cardio is not a must actually.

Activity is.

Even stuff like walking 10k steps per day consistently will do wonders. That's 5 miles.

"Cardio" is a relative new thing in terms of human activity. We are more long distance walkers than anything else.

However, cars and office jobs have destroyed our opportunities to walk.

Walking + weightlifting + and eating real foods and you'll be losing weight effortlessly.

I do cardio because it's fun, not for body composition goals, although it certainly can help, but it may be too much too soon for a guy like the OP.

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

Classic cardio is not a must actually.

Activity is.

Even stuff like walking 10k steps per day consistently will do wonders. That's 5 miles.

"Cardio" is a relative new thing in terms of human activity. We are more long distance walkers than anything else.

However, cars and office jobs have destroyed our opportunities to walk.

Walking + weightlifting + and eating real foods and you'll be losing weight effortlessly.

I do cardio because it's fun, not for body composition goals, although it certainly can help, but it may be too much too soon for a guy like the OP.

Absolutely. Walking/running is the best thing you can do for your body. It's not intense on your joints like some workouts are especially without any proper form/training, and you actually feel real good about yourself, and you improve your stamina. Office jobs be damned!

 

[Fancy Clown]

Especially the god damn sloths

 

[brandonh83]

That said, absolutely exercise. But don't think about it as a way of burning calories! Think about it as strengthening your heart and muscles. Frankly I wouldn't even consider exercise as part of any calorie calculation, it'll just make you feel justified in overeating, or conveniently forgetting about that extra snack you had.

This is the best thing I've ever read. I'm not terribly overweight but I've gotten a bad beer belly and flab elsewhere that needs to go. I have no interest in being ripped or whatever, just lean and healthy. I don't mind exercise, but it's like anything else that you do because you feel like you have to. Exercise only works if you want to do it, and I think looking at exercise in the words you put it in makes it feel less mandatory, therefore it feels less like "work."

Good advice, and I think it's opened my mind a little bit. I need to focus on calories, but I'll exercise for that added bonus of feeling better and being even more healthy.

 

[Afrocious]

This is the best thing I've ever read. I'm not terribly overweight but I've gotten a bad beer belly and flab elsewhere that needs to go. I have no interest in being ripped or whatever, just lean and healthy. I don't mind exercise, but it's like anything else that you do because you feel like you have to. Exercise only works if you want to do it, and I think looking at exercise in the words you put it in makes it feel less mandatory, therefore it feels less like "work."

Good advice, and I think it's opened my mind a little bit. I need to focus on calories, but I'll exercise for that added bonus of feeling better and being even more healthy.

Agreed. Personally, that mindset matches with my idea of emphasizing choice.

Honestly, for the past two months for me, it's been a psychological and philosophical battle instead of a physical one. Do I choose to eat this or eat that? Do I choose to be meticulous with calories, or do I focus on eating healthier foods? Is it appropriate for me to eat these cookies right now? Why do I want these sugars? Why do I want to eat vegetables? Do I want to do what works for others, or do I want to do what is working for myself?

I gotta say I haven't done anything like this before, and it's simply brought on by me eating vegetables throughout the day. Hell, I'm amazed at how I'm cooking vegetables and actually eating them.

Well, this is really weird. Before cutting down my diet, Used to eat about the same. I was about to maintain my weight just fine(260 Ib). No weight lose! I might have a really fucked up metabolism. I don't have any other health issues. No diabetes or anything(I am 22 by the way).

Might I recommend seeing a professional? Dunno about your insurance, but seeing a dietician has been the best thing I've ever done regarding getting healthier so far.

 

[entremet]

This is the best thing I've ever read. I'm not terribly overweight but I've gotten a bad beer belly and flab elsewhere that needs to go. I have no interest in being ripped or whatever, just lean and healthy. I don't mind exercise, but it's like anything else that you do because you feel like you have to. Exercise only works if you want to do it, and I think looking at exercise in the words you put it in makes it feel less mandatory, therefore it feels less like "work."

Good advice, and I think it's opened my mind a little bit. I need to focus on calories, but I'll exercise for that added bonus of feeling better and being even more healthy.

The thing is that exercise has tons of benefits outside of calorie burn.

But it should not be the main calorie deficit tool.

A 30 minute run burns around 350 calories.

Eat 2 Twinkies and that's 270 calories.

Eat an orange and that's 45 calories.

It's much more efficient to change your diet first.

 

[brandonh83]

The thing is that exercise has tons of benefits outside of calorie burn.

And the rest of your post, exactly. I tend to think exercise is mainly a turnoff for people trying to lose weight, again, because they see it as work, almost like a job. Having a different mindset about exercise changes everything.

 

[ElTorro]

It shouldn't be or, you should exercise and continue to eat healthy if you want to live a healthy lifestyle.

Yep.

Your regular meals should be healthy. A lot of fruits and vegetables, nuts, legumes, generally enough protein, enough water/tee, but little to no meat. Occasional cheat meals are allowed. Do cardio and weight lifting exercises as often as your schedule and motivation allows it. The most important thing is to make it a sustainable routine in your life.

 

[entremet]

And the rest of your post, exactly. I tend to think exercise is mainly a turnoff for people trying to lose weight, again, because they see it as work, almost like a job. Having a different mindset about exercise changes everything.

Honestly, me too.

That's why I recommend walking. Just start at 30 minutes per day and go up.

Walking is seriously underrated and it's easy on your joints and almost everyone can do it.

And if you can afford it in time and money, get a dog. You'll be walking twice a day.

Many new dog owners lose weight just on that alone.

 

[Bubble Metropolis]

Jesus Christ

 

[Deleted member 17706]

5 pounds in 4 weeks is a 15000 calorie deficit (1lb fat = 3000 calories), which is >500 calorie deficit per day.

Please stop this complete and utter nonsense.

Not that I disagree that losing 5 lbs. in a month isn't something to be happy about.

Anyway, to the OP, yes you should exercise, but since you're still really heavy, you should stick with slow and steady movements. Walking, swimming, weights, body weight resistance stuff.

 

[oneils]

cardio, pushups and ab crunches. avoid lifting unless you want to be bulky and square-shaped.

Lol man you're good

 

[darkside31337]

Exercising is very important to feeling healthy and actually being healthy, but it won't help a huge amount with weight loss. It's going to take a lot of cardio to burn off a significant amount of calories, and you often risk working up an appetite and overeating when you do.

If your main goal is to lose weight, you should focus on further adjustments to your diet. Possibly cut out more grains (high calorie, low satiation vs. meat or veggies) and continue to cut back and make smarter choices.

Getting into an exercise routine is a good idea for everyone in general but don't make the mistake of thinking this will make it much easier to lose weight. It may actually make it harder, depending on your self control when it comes time to eat a meal after you finish working out.

This NY Times article goes into a bit more about the argument.

I know a lot of folks are laughing at the OP in here and to be honest its pretty crazy but I've done something similar. Totally agree that if you want to lose weight you should start with your diet. If you don't change your diet - both in terms of portions and what you're eating - it doesn't matter how much you work out, you're already done for.

I read this same article a couple months ago and gave it a shot. I didn't exercise a ton before but I came to the realization that I honestly eat more after a workout than the amount of calories I'm burning off.

So I stopped jogging as much. Changed my diet and ate less calories. Way less. And now I'm starting to work out again and don't lose control because my diet is pretty established and I don't have the urge to cheat. It's helped me lose about 15 pounds in 2 months.

 

[Tenck]

Ok I swear to god I'm done with diet threads. Every few days there's these same threads and people have to prove that this is not the case and people sprout up again in the next thread. Done.

And you won't do it why?

Maybe it's time to exercise your own fingers and educate us a bit.

 

[Afrocious]

I know a lot of folks are laughing at the OP in here and to be honest its pretty crazy but I've done something similar. Totally agree that if you want to lose weight you should start with your diet. If you don't change your diet - both in terms of portions and what you're eating - it doesn't matter how much you work out, you're already done for.

I read this same article a couple months ago and gave it a shot. I didn't exercise a ton before but I came to the realization that I honestly eat more after a workout than the amount of calories I'm burning off.

So I stopped jogging as much. Changed my diet and ate less calories. Way less. And now I'm starting to work out again and don't lose control because my diet is pretty established and I don't have the urge to cheat. It's helped me lose about 15 pounds in 2 months.

I believe the same thing was happening to me as well. It even got to a point where I knew it would happen, and be okay with gorging after working out. Like you said, not changing one's diet means one's already done for.

Stopping exercising out of frustration countless times, I'm just glad I was rational enough to conclude there was a problem and that I'm now addressing it. Exercising didn't fix it. Counting calories didn't fix it (in fact, my rebound was pretty awful).

So folks can laugh I guess. I do know I'm mentally stronger about this than I was a year ago.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I believe the same thing was happening to me as well. It even got to a point where I knew it would happen, and be okay with gorging after working out. Like you said, not changing one's diet means one's already done for.

Stopping exercising out of frustration countless times, I'm just glad I was rational enough to conclude there was a problem and that I'm now addressing it. Exercising didn't fix it. Counting calories didn't fix it (in fact, my rebound was pretty awful).

So folks can laugh I guess. I do know I'm mentally stronger about this than I was a year ago.

Exercise makes you hungry, obviously. That's why the "eat less, move more" diet fails miserably for, well just about everyone. It's a bad idea, but people society seems to love it because it allows them to put the blame on the individual and sweep the whole obesity issue under the rug. Blaming it on your own mental fortitude is just playing into that. It doesn't make sense to expect that you can succeed where over 99% of the population fails.

It's important to find foods that are satiating. This is a big part of why low-carb/high-fat/moderate-protein diets are so effective for many people. You're getting the nutrients that your body actually needs, able to feel satiated all the time, and you're dramatically limiting an energy source (glucose), which forces and encourages your body to mobilize fat for energy needs.

 

[Calabi]

It doesnt have to be complicated just go for a walk every day. Make it a habit.

 

[PlayALLtheGames]

I don't know, do you want to be at a normal weight but with a flabby, soft body, weak muscles; getting fatigued and struggling every time you go up a flight of stairs?