Been struggling with weight loss for years..

**kingfish** · 09-09-2014, 09:57 PM

Howdy all, I've been on this forum occasionally for the last few years and have gotten some good advice in the past, so now I'll have another go. I'm 46, 6' 260lb and last body comp showed 29% BF. Ideally I'd like to get down to 220 which I'd think would get me under 20% BF. I've been struggling to lose weight for years, and usually it comes down to maintaining a decent diet. But now I find there's a serious info overload where over the years I've read so much and tried different approaches that there's just a lot of confusion.

The nutrition basics I've got down; when I'm dieting I try to bias toward lean proteins and get most carbs from veg and fruit. In the past I've made the noob mistake of trying to lose weight too quickly by cutting calories too much. I've made good gains in the last few months with my upper body, and would like to shrink the gut and flanks while minimizing lean mass loss. I've been taking 100mg Test Cyp weekly for 3 years or so, which I'd think would be helpful with metabolism. The issues I have now are I have mild to moderate sleep apnea which I assume is making weight loss more difficult. Also, with 3 year old twins in the house there's a decent amount of stress, which might be raising hell with my cortisol levels (just a guess here). I'm trying Weight Watchers again with my wife; their point system makes sense and I did manage to lose some weight last time before I slipped. I think if I stick to the points system again but be strict about getting most cals from lean proteins and complex carbs it might work out well eventually. Thoughts on this?

I used to do cardio fairly religiously 3-4x week until I saw no results coming from it after two or so weeks. Is it even necessary with a small cal deficit and working out 3 days /week? I'm not sure what the missing piece of the puzzle is but know the frustration is real.

**Times Roman** · 09-09-2014, 10:43 PM

Atkins and start the cardio again.

I'm assuming no gym time. Atkins is a real quick way to drop weight without counting calories. In the past, I was able to drop a half a pound a day for the first 60 days, AND without doing any cardio, AND without counting any calories.

Lose the weight and give your heart a break. Then think about adding stress through resistance training.

But get the weight off first.

Others will tell you not necessary, but your stats suggest otherwise

Good luck!
---Roman

**rollingthunder** · 09-10-2014, 09:03 AM

Originally Posted by Times Roman

Atkins and start the cardio again.

I'm assuming no gym time. Atkins is a real quick way to drop weight without counting calories. In the past, I was able to drop a half a pound a day for the first 60 days, AND without doing any cardio, AND without counting any calories.

Lose the weight and give your heart a break. Then think about adding stress through resistance training.

But get the weight off first.

Others will tell you not necessary, but your stats suggest otherwise

Good luck!
---Roman

^^^this would be a good place to start. then "tweak" as necessary...

**kingfish** · 09-10-2014, 09:40 PM

Originally Posted by Times Roman

Atkins and start the cardio again.

I'm assuming no gym time. Atkins is a real quick way to drop weight without counting calories. In the past, I was able to drop a half a pound a day for the first 60 days, AND without doing any cardio, AND without counting any calories.

Lose the weight and give your heart a break. Then think about adding stress through resistance training.

But get the weight off first.

Others will tell you not necessary, but your stats suggest otherwise

Good luck!
---Roman

Thanks. The only thing about Atkins that concerns me is with so little carbs, where does the energy to work out come from? I'd be afraid of losing too much lean mass forgoing workouts for a long enough time to get significant weight off. I do agree the extra 40lb isn't doing my heart any good.

**Times Roman** · 09-10-2014, 09:57 PM

Originally Posted by kingfish

Thanks. The only thing about Atkins that concerns me is with so little carbs, where does the energy to work out come from? I'd be afraid of losing too much lean mass forgoing workouts for a long enough time to get significant weight off. I do agree the extra 40lb isn't doing my heart any good.

ketosis is the process of burning fat for energy. Atkins promotes no carbs for two weeks to get there, and then under 50 grams of carbs/day thereafter. If you do this correctly, you will lose weight pretty damn fast. The one time I was fat, I lost 30 pounds first two months easy. You should consider doing the same.

At your age/weight/bf%, I'm thinking if you exercise, keep it light/moderate in the cardio spectrum until you toughen up. Last thing you want is to do the dying cockroach because you over exerted before you were ready.

Good luck
---Roman

Just my opinion, but life is a battle of inches, and probably best

**tarmyg** · 09-11-2014, 12:18 AM

Science clearly shows keto diets are better at keeping LBM than anything else. Now, you might not want to do a keto diet or it might make you feel like crap then whatever works for you is what I would stick with. Of course, if this is a diet expect to be back in the same place you are now within 12-18 months as diets only have a 5% success rate at this time. If this is a life change do it in a sensible way that is maintainable. What TR suggest is, IMHO, the best way simply because it is not turning eating in to a math lesson and as soon as you stop counting you are off your diet which will discourage the most avid dieter.

**spacemon** · 09-11-2014, 06:31 AM

You should try the keto diet. It's amazing how fast the weight drops off. I have lost 13 lbs since July by eating bacon and eggs. Not sure if your familiar with the website reddit but go over there and check out r/keto and r/ketogains and r/ketoscience. Read the FAQ and you will get a better understanding how it all works. There are tons of progress pics and stories of success. Once you enter ketosis after a week or two it's a breeze. Be prepared to give up sugar and carbs. If you need links let me know and I will link those websites when I'm not on my phone.

**rollingthunder** · 09-11-2014, 12:56 PM

there is definitely an adjustment period when you drop the carbohydrates on adkins while your body adapts. it can last for anywhere from a few days to (apparently) 2 weeks in some people. everyone is different. for me, if i remember correctly, it took about 4 or 5 days to adjust and then i was fine. i dropped from 260 to 209 in about 7 months.