Thread: The Confessions Of A Fatass

Woah, I am starting a fitness journal!

My short term goal is simple: I want to get into shape by summer, which means I have 12 weeks to take some action. I'd like to focus on melting off most of this disgusting fat that I've been needlessly carrying around with me on and off for years, that's been making me feel like shit. And more to the root of the problem, I'd like to force myself into good, consistent habits of eating clean food and working out. I.E., break myself out of the cycle of doing well for some weeks/months and then throwing it all away by being inconsistent, lazy and eating like a pig--and then being pissed about it. Ugh, the worst feeling in the world.

I'm not sure if anyone is even going to read this, but just in case, I'll give some background information on myself. I guess I envision this being mostly for my own benefit (my record of *success* hopefully) but I absolutely do welcome and appreciate any encouragement or suggestions from anyone who cares to share in this thread. Whether that be, "you're on the right track" or "you don't know what the hell you're doing". It's all good. LOL.

Anyway, I'm the average American male, mid-20's, not ridiculously overfat but definitely too much and definitely weaker than I should be (especially bi's and tri's but all muscle groups in general). And we've all heard the laugh about the obese computer programmer--I work in IT and get about as much exercise as 'Comic Book Guy' if I don't force myself to work out. As for my stats, I'm 6'3", about 187.5 pounds currently, and I estimate that my body fat percentage is currently 18% to 22%. ...And I don't even want to SAY what my max reps are. LOL.

Over the past year, I've been fluxuating around 183-188 pounds with no real improvement in health or body. I've been doing some sporadic weight training (inconsistently of course) of simple exercises (benching, curls, etc, all upper body stuff), and getting out for a 20-30 minute run once in awhile. And not eating well at ALL. But in an effort to change those habits, in the past month, I have been eating better and consistently getting 120-150 minutes of cardio per week. But, frankly, it hasn't been enough. My struggle to get into shape over the past year has been a source of great frustration (followed by guilt, followed by frustration, followed by guilt...) for me. So I've basically decided this week that enough is enough--I am going to meet my fitness goals in 2006 or die trying.

So having said all of that (sorry, I am longwinded), my long term goals are:

Phase One (this is the phase that I hope to complete before June--12 weeks)

• Eat a clean diet, consistently and with the correct calories/fat/carb/protein ratio for optimum fat loss (help?)
• Continue getting 120-180 minutes of cardio per week (right now I am usually running 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes after work Monday through Thursday)
• Start consistent, moderate lifting to help with fat loss but also to begin building muscle
• Basically loose as much fat as possible, move towards my ultimate goal of 10% or less body fat (I think I will need to loose about 10-15 pounds of fat in this phase in order to feel that I've 'succeeded'. I will then probably be around 172.5-175 pounds or around 15% body fat--I'm not sure yet.)

Phase Two (June through August/September 2006)

• Get my body fat percentage measured for the first time, start measuring my success in percentages rather than pounds (hopefully I'll have less than 10 pounds to loose at this point)
• Body fat percentage to 10% through a combination of fat loss and muscle gain
• Super clean, planned 6 meals per day, add supplements, finetuned F/C/P ratio to start building muscle as well as continue loosing the remaining fat, less 'cheat days' per month
• Consistent moderate lifting to finish off fat and start putting on muscle, focused on problem areas and muscle groups where I am weaker than I should be
• Continue cardio at some degree, whether it be at 120-180 minutes per week or dropped to 60-120 minutes per week

Phase Three (the rest of 2006, 2007 and into the future)

• Assuming I am finally happy with the way I look and feel at this point, staying consistent with proper diet and lifting
• Focus on heavy lifting and getting bigger, maybe drop cardio altogether
• Continue getting my body fat measured monthly
• Make time for all of the hundreds of chicks that will want my body--LOL

So that's my basic plan at this point. I'd like to continue to update this thread of my progress weekly. And once I begin to have some success, hopefully looking back at this will help motivate me. I might even post pictures every once in awhile so that I can see there's been some improvement, even if it doesn't feel like it. Haha.

Assuming that anyone actually reads this and has some thoughts for me, as I stated above, I am open to and welcome any comments that you have. Or feel free to send me a private message if you'd like. I've been reading this forum for over a year and I know that everyone is really nice but also knows much more about how to get into shape than I do. So consider this your open invitiation to chime in at any time.

Ok, I guess that's about it. Here's to a better me...

Sorry to hear about your GrandFather!!! Best wishes to you in keeping sight of your goals!!!