My Unbuild Thread. Or, becoming less of a man.

This AM the scale stopped at 349.8. I'm pretty happy about that. I haven't weighed under 350 in probably a year or more. The loss has slowed down some as I expected. From here on out it will be the long slog to the 240s.  

My sons are trying to talk me into buying a home gym of some sort so we can all work out together in the afternoons. I'm probably going to let them. That will help to accelerate the loss and get be back in better shape than I currently am. 

I did some reading. Apparently at 6'2" I'm supposed to weigh between 148 and 193. That seems a little ridiculous. At 148 I'd look like a POW. I haven't weighed that since I was a freshman in high school. I haven't been under 200 since I was in my late teens. 

Nice start so far!

I definitely support mixing in some resistance training. It's the fastest, most efficient way to transform your body.

If you do end up putting together a home gym, I really like my Concept2 rower. We also have a Peloton bike which I enjoy quite a bit. Many(!) of both were purchased during the pandemic, so I imagine they are fairly plentiful on FB MP these days.

Should have added, I also just bought an underdesk treadmill. It's a bit of a pain to move into/out of position, but, when I raise my desk to standing height, I can put it in place and walk 1 mile in 30 minutes.

+1 to resistance training/bodybuilding/strength training/whatever.  Lean mass is what drives your BMR.

dyintorace said:

If you do end up putting together a home gym, I really like my Concept2 rower. We also have a Peloton bike which I enjoy quite a bit. Many(!) of both were purchased during the pandemic, so I imagine they are fairly plentiful on FB MP these days.

I love me a concept 2 (I have one also).  They hold their value really well.

A word of caution though for Toyman, weight limit may be an issue:

Maximum User Weight:  500 lbs / 227 kg as tested by Concept2. 300 lbs / 135 kg as tested per European Stationary Fitness Equipment Testing Standard EN 20957-7.

Toyman! said:

My sons are trying to talk me into buying a home gym of some sort so we can all work out together in the afternoons. I'm probably going to let them. That will help to accelerate the loss and get be back in better shape than I currently am. 

This is an EXCELLENT idea. Make getting in shape a hobby, not a chore.

You're not repairing an old beater because you have to keep it running to get to work, you're wrenching on a project car with your sons as something to bond over so that you can take it out to play with.

If you want advice on equipment, this is a great place to ask.

Don't worry about those numbers of what you're "supposed" to weigh. Lose a couple pounds over the next week. Eat well today. Get some exercise. Make progress.

nothing to add except: Toyman, keep up the good work!

I did some research today and after looking at stack machines, bow machines, and such, plus talking it over with my sons, I ordered a smith machine. It will be more versatile than a smaller machine and has the bonus of free weights as well. I may end up adding another bench and a barbell to the package.

It will probably get set up in the garage. I'm not sure the floor in the FROG will stand 1000 pounds in that small of a footprint. This, the treadmill, the kettlebells, and the elliptical should be more than enough to get the job done. 

I will say find something you enjoy doing to workout. It makes a workout less of a workout. I found biking to that to me but there are some many options.

That being said I have spent the last couple years trying to outrun the fork and it hasn't worked. Having a now 2.5 year old at home doesn't help. I am currently trying to get down from 228lbs to 200lbs. I suffered a knee injury playing ultimate frisbee last year and it was hard for me to recover from partly due to the excess poundage. I am down to 223.7lbs right now.

Keep it up. Progress is progress no matter the amount.

Awesome progress and just another agreement that I wouldn't pay attention to what you're "supposed to weigh". Keep it up!

Toyman! said:

I did some reading. Apparently at 6'2" I'm supposed to weigh between 148 and 193. That seems a little ridiculous. At 148 I'd look like a POW.

I'm 5'9" with a medium frame and the charts say my target weight is in the low 140's.

When I was in my early 20's and jogged 18 miles per week (4.5 > 4.5 > 9.0), I weighed 155 and looked / felt great.

Clinically, I believe statistically significant health issues start appearing when you're 12%< over weight so I use 170 as my target (155 minus 3 for having less muscle mass times 1.12).

I was at 177 when COVID broke out, now I'm at 186 so I've got some work to do too. 

In reply to Toyman! :

Can you cancel that order? I highly recommend AGAINST a Smith Machine.

They are less versatile, bad ergonomics, and NOT SAFE compared to free weights.

Smith machines *look* like they should be safer than a free bar, but they're not. With a free bar, if something bad happens, you have the ability to tip it off your back or bail it to the side. If you get stuck under the bar on a Smith Machine and can't get it up, you're *truly* stuck. This is *especially* dangerous with bench press.

Additionally, the range of motion will be better with free weights. For bench press, the bar doesn't go strait up and down.

You can buy an equivalent setup to that for cheaper in just free weights.

That said the rack pictured will let you put a free barbell on the front and has spotter arms. So you still have the option to just use it as a rack.

In any case - you should use a spotter when you bench press.

In reply to Beer Baron :

The sons want the cable system. They have used the at the gym a fair amount. 

I will probably add another bench, barbell and plates in the near future as well. That will give us 4 stations to rotate through. 

The wife here.... Toyman is doing a great job. Does that exercise machine have the leg lift part? I'd love that and the flat metal  sheet you push against with weights. He is asleep and I will not remember to ask.

He is right about my later dinners. The kids used to  be on add meds and we has dinner late so they would actually eat. I'm working to move that earlier.

I am proud to say I am at a lower weight since the last baby. The Knee replacement seemed to help and I am thrilled with losing 39 pounds. At 5ft they want me like 115. That's not happening. 140 would be terrific!

Keep up the good work, Toyman. Love you

Good on you, man. 
 

A few years back my dad dropped about 100 pounds. He does not refer to it as "losing weight" because, as he says, "I know where every single one of those pounds went; I worked hard to get rid of them!" 

FWIW he's a statistician by trade and kept track of everything very diligently and has charts and bar graphs and all that. Although he walks a couple thousand miles a year, that's specifically for his heart. He discovered pretty quickly that decreasing his caloric intake was what made the difference to drop the pounds. As always, YMMV, of course.

We're all just happy that we'll probably get to have him around longer, as I'm sure your family must be.  

In reply to Toymanswife :

outstanding!

Toymanswife said:

The wife here.... Toyman is doing a great job. Does that exercise machine have the leg lift part? I'd love that and the flat metal  sheet you push against with weights. He is asleep and I will not remember to ask.

Looks like it does not have a leg extension (sit and kick foot forward from knee) or hamstring curls (lie on stomach and bring heel back from knee). You can usually find cheap benches that allow you to add an arm to do those. They usually are made for weights with 1" holes though instead of the 2" holes of Olympic plates. You can get weights for that cheap, and you won't need many.

It does not appear to have a leg press option. That usually requires a dedicated piece of equipment. You can work the same muscles with just barbell squats, which this would give you options for. But if you're recovering from a knee replacement, I can understand if you want a leg press machine specifically.

Replacing a leg extension may actually be a legit use for the Smith machine. Do squats with that instead of a free bar, and not really have to worry about stability.

Beer baron:

Replacing a leg extension may actually be a legit use for the Smith machine. Do squats with that instead of a free bar, and not really have to worry about stability.

The problem with smith machine squats is getting your feet in the right place is critical.  The bar can't follow you down, it only goes straight.

Another way to do leg extensions and curls is a device called Monkey Feet. A friend who is a body builder uses them when away from his home gym and loves them.

ProDarwin said:

Beer baron:

Replacing a leg extension may actually be a legit use for the Smith machine. Do squats with that instead of a free bar, and not really have to worry about stability.

The problem with smith machine squats is getting your feet in the right place is critical.  The bar can't follow you down, it only goes straight.

+1. Not a fan of smith machines except for very specific exercises.

I went in for a PET scan Monday and found out that I've lost 13 pounds since November.  I'm attributing that to cutting out some snacks and reducing my alcohol intake.  I'm feeling kinda motivated to lose some weight, too.  If I can drop 30 I'm down to my high school weight...  As soon as the weather gets decent (~8 weeks) I'm going to start walking to work. 

I've hurt my back twice doing squats. Both were with a smith machine. I hate those things.

once you get to a point where you are happy with your fitness, stop using the scale or recommended numbers. I'm 5-8, 180lbs. By bmi standards I'm obese. By actual numbers, I lift weights often and have muscle. 

The only squats I'm going to be doing for a while are going to be with 300 plus pounds. I don't need a machine for that as I carry it around with me daily. 

Yeah, I wouldn't worry about what you're supposed to weigh.  I'm 5'11" and had something like a 4% fat index while weighing 173 lbs.  I'm 194lbs now, there's no way I can get back to 173 unless I just stop eating.  I think I could drop another 5-10lbs by being more careful about listening to my body and not eating snacks after dinner tho.

As far as working out, you have to find something that you enjoy, otherwise you simply won't do it.  I've got a Peloton bike in my basement, I bought it used September of 2019.  Wasn't sure I'd like it, which is why I bought a used one.  Turns out I really enjoy riding it and I ride it 2-3 times a week, although that number goes down when the weather's nice and I can ride my mtn bike outside instead.  You can buy used peloton's now for $7-900.  My doctors office always comments on my low heart rate when I go in for my physicals and ask me if I'm a runner/cyclist, so it's working...