Big man here looking to get better

Hey friends,

I am a fairly big and fluffy guy (about 6'3 - 6'4" ~350 pounds) and I am looking to get in better shape (both for personal reasons and for my dreams of fighting crime).

I have been eating more healthy the last few weeks (well at least limiting my portion sizes, and junk food is limited to the weekends). I am an picky eater, but I have lost wait before just by limiting my intake, but this time I am focusing more on healthier stuff (like eating a salad and apple with my meals during the week as opposed to chips, etc.) along with portion sizes, I know in due time, this will help shrink my stomach size so I can eat less and still be full. Since I have started this psuedo-diet about 2 months back, I don't really think I've lost much weight, but I've notice I am easily a notch on my belt smaller, sometimes 2 depending on the day.

I don't mind working out, I just can't run much without my knees hurting (due in part to being big, but mostly back in high school when I'd play sports and often jam and twist my knees / ankles), and I am looking into a gym membership, if the price is right (limited budget).

I am wondering if there is anything else (like specific foods I can eat, or simple workouts I can do in my small apartment) that will help this process. I am a picky eater, as I said, but if there's some type of food that'll help that I eat daily, I can most certainly gut it down if I need to.

Thanks,
G.G.

Don't be a picky eater, the best foods are also probably the most likely to be avoided. Spinach and avacados are some of the best things you can eat. Foes your apartment have a pool?  Swimming is low impact on the joints and is a massive calorie burner. If your conplex doesn't have one, sign up for a gym that does.

Also, if you have an arcade in your area, I would suggest learning Dance dance Revolution. a lot of people have sworn by it. It's the only kind of cardio I enjoy immensely and usually will play until I can't actually play anymore.

Personally...

I'm in the big & tall category, too. At one point, I weighed 293 lbs., and I'm only 6' tall. My doctor recommended the Atkins diet, so I started it. At my last weigh-in, I was 267 lbs. That was around the 1st of this month. As for exercising... I've mainly been alternating between Jack LaLanne exercises and Army P.T. exercises (there are videos on YT that demonstrate how to do them), and running. Since you're having problems with your knees, swimming is a good alternative, like UA suggested.

A way of keeping it simple: Low GI is good, high GI is bad. Lower the better. It stabilize the blood sugar, that way normalizing the apetite. You'll not feel very comfortable at first, digestive system getting used to the diet and breaking the sugar addiction, but as the body get used to it, you'll feel better than evah.
http://www.the-gi-diet.org/lowgifoods/
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/low-gi
http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsweek/Glycemic_index_and_glycemic_load_for_100_foods.htm

What is this guy talking about?

Paleo, 5days a week, eat whatever you want at the weekends. Take fish oil supplements.
Then walk an hour a day, do press-ups and sit-ups in the morning.
Do that for a while, results will come.

I can't say I have advice on how to lose the weight, but I thought I should mention that though you may lose a lot in the first few weeks, don't expect to lose more than 2 or 3 pounds each week after that.  Otherwise it's unhealthy.

Walking and other low intensety training suck.

loosing weight is easy, just get yourself a gym membership or some dumbells and have fun, stare at yourself in the big ass mirrors they have . i lost 20lb a mo for the first 2 months i was at the gym, i didnt do heavy lifting, nor wore myself out, it was all light weight lifting hitting every excercise i could and when i felt slightly tired id do a 4mph or maybe 5.5mph jog on the treadmill. i did 3 hours a day at the gym in two sections, one around noon, another around 5.  for me, working out is fun tho, the idea of getting stronger and healthier motivates me.

my diet was eggs/chicken and veggies, pasta, lots of TEA! i had a bowl of ice cream every night too, and i even ate Bread!! you have too eat what your body is craving for too, because if u dont, it doesnt run properly. If u need carbs salt or sugar, have a little bit till the craving goes away. sometimes i would crave a bowl of cereal or a steak or something.

biking and hiking are great too, get yourself a backpack, fill it up with clothing and just go hiking, or biking. remember when u were a kid and wanted to discover every corner of everything, get that back and go at it. You can also think of it as training, because if u live in a big city your gonna need to know every road, alleyway, etc.

At 350 lbs, and with a long standing sugar addiction and lack of physical activity, I'm going to have to ask if you are diabetic. Even if you are not, I still suggest talking with your doctor to develop a specific plan for your weight loss. Decide what your long term goal is, and set incremental goals to strive for along the way. Don't expect to lose all the weight at once. It took time to add it, and it will take time to drop it. Drinking water and/or tomato juice will help your hunger. Remove two ounces of food from every meal, and increAse your physical activity by twenty minutes per day. You will see results. This is a gradual way to start. As you see weight coming off you will be capable of more activity and will have more energy. Use that energy to work harder and continue toward your goal.

I am not diabetic, but I know the company physical is coming up, so I'll talk to the doctor then. Right now I am just counting calories, which I know isn't the best, but I mean it gives me a good view on what I eat in conjunction to how much I eat. I wouldn't say I have a lack of physical activity of sugar addiction, I've really cut down on sugar a lot, I can't even drink normal Powerade because it's too sweet. I take fish oil and Vitamin B Super Complex daily. When I eat bread, I go with Whole Wheat. I don't drink coffee with cream at all, as if I need a pick-me-up, I have been going for black or green tea. Other than that (aside from the weekends) I drink mostly water, sometimes a Powerade Zero, and diet soda (yeah I know, not much better), every now and then. I like chicken and brown rice, if that's any help. Sometimes I eat ground turkey in a pasta recipe.

If walking around will really help me that much, I will definitely include that, just got to find a good route. I just tend to eat an early dinner because I find the later I eat - the harder it is for me to fall asleep at night, in addition with some anxiety issues I have.

My diet now is way better than what it was months ago, and I understand it will take time, and as I said, over the last 2 months, I have noticed I can easily go another notch deeper on my belt, even 2 on some days.

Chicken and brown rice is good.

But DROP the diet soda. It is worse for you than regular soda.

@ G.G.,

Sounds like you're making some progress, which is good.

Diet soda really is bad for you, mainly because of the artificial sweeteners.

When you talk to the doctor, ask about hypothyroidism.

I'll take the diet soda thing into effect immediately. I'll just sub in more black tea (one of the tea pouches as work is a Chai blend with black tea and some cinnamon which I like) when I feel a little drowsy. Otherwise I only really drink soda when I drink alcohol, which is only weekends as well. I know that's a killer, so I can cut back on that. It doesn't mean I'll rule diet soda out completely, but I'll heavily reduce it to at most once a week, probably less, as when in a restaurant I order water (partially because it's free).

When it comes to me being a picky eater, it's not something I can really drop. I am picky in the sense of mixing foods. Like I hate lettuce on a sandwich, but I will enjoy it in a salad, just lettuce and spinach though for me with a splash of fat free dressing. I dislike onions, peppers, and the like, but if eating a certain amount a day will help, I have an iron gut from drinking, so I would just down it when needed as long as I got a lot of water nearby. 

As for fish, I've never been a huge fan outside of the few and far between times at Long John Silvers. Seeing the fish with the head kind of kills my appetite, but I am open to the idea of fish, as long as I get some recommendations. I can iron gut it, but if I can use a little ketchup (yeah I am one of those guys), it'll help. I just don't know how to really cook fish (even worse what kind). I have a stove and a foreman grill. When I cook chicken and brown rice, usually 3 chicken breasts and 2 pounds brown rice will make me dinner for at least a week, and I will most definitely drop bread and "I can't believe it's not butter" as a side dish.

My main complication comes from lunch at the office. Currently I eat a sandwich with whole-wheat bread and smoked ham and turkey and thin cheese - about 200 calories per sandwich) and a salad. There's microwaves and toasters at work, so my brain is open to suggestions. For breakfast I either eat a bagel and cream cheese (another easy drop if it really matters) or I eat the suggested serving of Honey Nut Cheerios with skim milk. I also have oatmeal, which always goes better with some brown sugar, but that's also up for dropping (though I thought a little brown sugar is better than white cane sugar).

In a nutshell, a new diet is open for discussion, and I can most likely gut my way through it, even if I hate the specifics, I just gotta eat them individually to make it work, otherwise I'll gag over and over.

I see a lot of carbs in what you mentioned, bagels.. cherrios.. nothing is really wrong with that stuff per se, but I would swap out that stuff and replace it with protien (eggs, turkey sausage/bacon and juice or a smoothie in the morning. 

As for fish... try oni.. I thibk that's it.. I had sone for lunch today ob top of a salad I made from stuff at the farmers market. Bomb diggity.

Of course. . I am one of the least pickiest eaters I know.

Thing is with eggs, I really just like 'em scrambled, though I am not opposed to buying a carton of egg whites (if it helps, let me know). I am not opposed to eating a lettuce and spinach salad in the morning if that will help.

As for fish, as I have said, I have no idea how to cook it. I imagine a skillet will work, but timing and whatnot is my issue, as well as portion sizes. I know shrinking my stomach down is a major key to weight loss, so portion is key.

As for fruits / veggies, I like apples, bananas, corn, green beans, carrots, watermelon, and celery. Once again those are things I prefer to eat standalone, as mixing them is what really bothers my picky eating habits.

I usually only eat my eggs scrambled toi, unless it's on some kind of breakfast sandwich. 

As far as fish arr concerned,  just maje sure they aren't frozen. I usually cook them on my foreman until they have blackish brown stripes from the grill. Add seasoning. 

Celery is great because it burns more calories eating it than ut actually contains.  Try ants on a log. Peanut Butter and raisins.

I haven't had peanut butter in forever, I figure that is one thing I would want to avoid in a diet.

As for fish, what kind do you recommend and what seasoning? Currently I just have salt, pepper, chili powder, ketchup, and low sodium soy sauce.

It's got protien. Just don't eat a lot all the time. You might want to experiment with other seasonings, like tyme, paprika, oregano. Just google stuff.

Dont eat anything artificial, NOTHING, i think that powerade zero has some nasty stuff in it too. Just drink plain old tea. if u cant handle plain ol tea, put some honey in there, honey is very good for you and the ancient egyptians used it as an antiseptic on wounds, so im sure its good for you.

changing your diet will make u healthier no doubt, but your not gonna lose weight at an exponential rate. you really gotta have some kind of physical activity, unless u have a physically active job.

And i hate to clash with other peopels advice, but bread isnt horrible. Real bread is good, fake bread is bad. To test if its good or bad bread, through a loaf at someone, if it hurts, its good. har har! But seriously, if you like bread, find a little bakery and buy it there. any kind of bread youd find in your supermarket, even if its wheat or multi grained, is crap.

I see u mentioned salt, try to avoid that.  NO CANNED FOODS, they are packed with salt, and they have no where near as much healthy minerals and such as raw food.  Salt causes high blood pressure.

Try to keep in mind just because something has alot of fat in it does not mean its bad. there are two different types of fats, saturated and unsaturated, saturated fats are bad for you, unsaturated fats are good. Eating unsaturated fats actually lower your bad cholesterol and raise your good cholesterol, so by using unsaturated fats your actually doing good.

Would bicycling work for you and your knees?
-Rook

@Rook,

Bicycling was a possibility that came to mind, but the mechanics made the use of the bicycle unsure with his knees. If it's easier on the knees, yeah, he should go for it. Biking is great exercise.

I noted that because my wife has problems with her legs, feet, knees, etc, and running isn't an option for her, either.

While she loves swimming, we don't have a pool anymore and it's a bit less convenient to get to the local public pool (besides, she's a bit self-conscious).  However, we have bikes, which bothers her a lot less (granted, there's a limit, but it's doable).  

The more limiting factor for her in that regard is that it's often 100+ degrees out here and we dust the things off during the Fall/Winter.

-Rook

Don't get me wrong, it's not like my knees cripple me. They just get sore and sometimes stiff, nothing much outside of that. I just have a history of twisting and jamming my ankles and knees when playing sports back in high school (I am kind of clumsy). Bicycling is definitely an option, I enjoy it, just got to find a reasonably priced bike that suits my size and all without breaking the bank. I don't mind getting a workout in and coming home to relax and having sore knees, it's kind of a good feeling because I know I did some good work. I always feel weird as a big man, because I see people my size or sometimes even smaller, and they are limited in their mobility and whatnot, but I don't really have any of that going on, as I move around fine and my movement isn't really hindered at all.

As for foods. When it comes to bread, I only really eat 100% Whole Wheat, not from a bakery or anything, but I mean I read the ingredients on it and it's not "enriched" or whatever the fake whole grains say.

When it comes to Powerade Zero, that's really just my soft drink of choice, and I think it is a lot better than soda or coffee. I pretty much cut out soda (with the exception if I eat pizza on the weekends or if I drink, which is just usually Saturday night). After cutting off soda like that, I probably drink about 3-5 cups of tea a day at work, switching between different types of black tea like "Early Morning Breakfast", "Chai" and "Earl Grey". Other than that I pretty much just drink water, and milk only really with my cereal if I have cereal. I have taken a liking to those Crystal Light drink packets, where I pour one in about 24oz of water, then water it down a little more, shake it up. 

I do take a lot of small substitutes (some people say it doesn't matter, but it's how I was raised). Just simple switches like instead of mayonnaise I use miracle whip, skim milk, fat free salad dressings, "I can't believe it's not butter" as opposed to butter / margarine (like if I have toast or need it for cooking).

I do eat a ham and turkey sandwich for lunch at work everyday, which I am looking into possibly switching some of that out for maybe a grilled chicken breast sandwich, just gotta figure out how to really manipulate the shape of a chicken breast to fit on bread.

I do enjoy corn and green beans, but those are canned, which someone said is bad, I reckon, but I figure it's still better than chips or fries or the like.  I do have some chips here and there sometimes, but I do aim for baked chips if I do, but always in moderation.

My job does have a workout facility for free, it's just at the office on the other side of town than the one I work in, so I will be looking into that, even if it's just to go for 30 mins or so on the bike and maybe some weight lifting.

I am looking into getting into the habit of eating fish, just have no idea what to get, how to cook it, or recipes. I did find a recipe for panko coat tilapia with roasted sweet potatoes that looks pretty good, and from the nutrional facts, it looks pretty healthy.

I don't expect this to be a rapid change or anything, just looking to get on track. I know once I change eating habits and get portion control down, it's a much easier road. As I said before, since I started like 2-3 months ago, I have noticed I am easily able to go one notch further on my belt, sometimes 2, which I assumes is due to bloating and whatnot.

According to U.S. Army Field Manual 21-76, a poultice of garlic is a good way to treat aches and pains on a minor to moderate level. Basically, you'd be looking at crushing it into a kind of paste, and applying it to the affected areas. If you can't get a prescription for your joints, that may help somewhat.