Advice about losing weight on treadmill please.
Discussion
Hi everyone.
I was wondering if anyone where might be able to help. I am trying to lose weight, I need to lose quite a lot. I am 6 foot tall and quite stocky, but currently weigh 262 pounds, and really need to get that down to 220. I work on a cruise ship and have free access to a gym. I am currently using the treadmill around 5 times per week, and doing a 25 minute program which is intervals, there is some light jogging up to 6MPH and also some walking. I feel good after I have finished and I am burning off 340 calories at my current weight, according to the machine.
To lose weight, could I be doing something more effective, or should I stick with what I am doing?
Thanks in advance.
I was wondering if anyone where might be able to help. I am trying to lose weight, I need to lose quite a lot. I am 6 foot tall and quite stocky, but currently weigh 262 pounds, and really need to get that down to 220. I work on a cruise ship and have free access to a gym. I am currently using the treadmill around 5 times per week, and doing a 25 minute program which is intervals, there is some light jogging up to 6MPH and also some walking. I feel good after I have finished and I am burning off 340 calories at my current weight, according to the machine.
To lose weight, could I be doing something more effective, or should I stick with what I am doing?
Thanks in advance.
paulguitar said:
To lose weight, could I be doing something more effective, or should I stick with what I am doing?
Yes. And no. You can lose more than 340 calories more easily by not eating them. And running on a treadmill at your weight is going to f
k up your knees long before it works off the weight.Diet to lose weight. If you want exercise straight away, swimming is better. Walking on the treadmill is fine.
I should have added, I am indeed making an effort with my diet as well, and am fully aware this is super important in order to lose weight.
To simplify, I am asking whether what I am currently doing on the treadmill is the best use of my time, or should I be doing something else on it, or using, for example, an elliptical machine?
What about the 'zone' training I hear about? Currently my heart rate peaks around 170, but is lower than that for most of the workout. Would I lose more weight or burn more fat in a lower heart rate zone?
Thanks for the responses so far.
To simplify, I am asking whether what I am currently doing on the treadmill is the best use of my time, or should I be doing something else on it, or using, for example, an elliptical machine?
What about the 'zone' training I hear about? Currently my heart rate peaks around 170, but is lower than that for most of the workout. Would I lose more weight or burn more fat in a lower heart rate zone?
Thanks for the responses so far.
Seriously, in your condition you are not capable of doing enough exercise to make a significant difference. I'm not being mean - do the maths! A 10km run would be max 1200 calories for you, which isn't that much and you probably couldn't do it.
Minimise the damage while the diet does it's thing - try the elliptical, swim if you can, walk on the treadmill. Build those up as the weight comes down.
Minimise the damage while the diet does it's thing - try the elliptical, swim if you can, walk on the treadmill. Build those up as the weight comes down.
I would also suggest a variety of training, rather than just the treadmill.
The gym possibly has other equipment - bikes, rowing machines, crosstrainers - those are relatively low impact and won't hurt your joints anything like as bad as running/jogging on a treadmill. Also, you can get a pretty good burn from weight training too.
But as others have said, the main thing is diet - the amount of training required to overcome a bad diet is seriously unpleasant (and probably not good for you if you're out of shape).
The gym possibly has other equipment - bikes, rowing machines, crosstrainers - those are relatively low impact and won't hurt your joints anything like as bad as running/jogging on a treadmill. Also, you can get a pretty good burn from weight training too.
But as others have said, the main thing is diet - the amount of training required to overcome a bad diet is seriously unpleasant (and probably not good for you if you're out of shape).
There are no secrets.
A pound of fat represents around 3500 calories, so if you you eat at around a 500 calorie deficit you'll lose around a pound a week (might not all be fat though). Burning a few calories on the treadmill might get you another 0.5 - 1 pound a week.
Your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) will be about 3300, given your current size, so eat around 2800 calories a day and you'll lose about a pound a week. So that's around 40-45 weeks of dieting to get to your target weight. Maybe a bit quicker (30 weeks) with your treadmill work, i.e you'll be close to 220lbs in around 6 months.
Given your current weight you could probably cut more calories to begin with and you'd speed up the process i.e. 1000 calories deficit (I wouldn't go any more than that otherwise you'll have no energy).
It always comes down to the inescapable fact that your mouth is bigger than your ahole so the more you eat the bigger you'll get 
A pound of fat represents around 3500 calories, so if you you eat at around a 500 calorie deficit you'll lose around a pound a week (might not all be fat though). Burning a few calories on the treadmill might get you another 0.5 - 1 pound a week.
Your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) will be about 3300, given your current size, so eat around 2800 calories a day and you'll lose about a pound a week. So that's around 40-45 weeks of dieting to get to your target weight. Maybe a bit quicker (30 weeks) with your treadmill work, i.e you'll be close to 220lbs in around 6 months.
Given your current weight you could probably cut more calories to begin with and you'd speed up the process i.e. 1000 calories deficit (I wouldn't go any more than that otherwise you'll have no energy).
It always comes down to the inescapable fact that your mouth is bigger than your a
hole so the more you eat the bigger you'll get I think a treadmill is the worst possible way for you to lose weight. As others have said, diet is critical, you need to be looking at not just how much you eat but what and when, there is a wealth of information out there for you. Absolute honesty with yourself is required, that one little doughnut or couple of glasses of wine a day can make the difference between success and failure.
As for exercise I would strongly recommend you start lifting weights, it burns a lot of calories but more importantly it builds muscle mass which increases your BMR, accelerating weight loss and ensuring that it won't all go straight back on again when you stop starving yourself. If you want to do cardio I would suggest swimming and cycling as they are much lower impact on your joints (knees in particular).
As for exercise I would strongly recommend you start lifting weights, it burns a lot of calories but more importantly it builds muscle mass which increases your BMR, accelerating weight loss and ensuring that it won't all go straight back on again when you stop starving yourself. If you want to do cardio I would suggest swimming and cycling as they are much lower impact on your joints (knees in particular).
I used to like the treadmill, but I would set the incline high and walk hard, not running much at all. I was also on a ship, but not a big one, so running on a rolling platform was not advisable for safety.
In 45 minutes it would show about 800 calories burned, whether that was a fairy tale figure or genuinely relevant to anything I'm not sure, but it was a good workout. You need to be working hard, puffing and panting, or you are doing next to nothing.
I'd suggest also lifting some weights, and definitely watch your diet like a hawk. I used an online system where I had to enter the calories of everything I ate during the day and calculate my intake, limit it to 1800 calories a day. It worked, and I lost 7 kg the first five week trip I did offshore on the program. Can't remember the name of it now, something pretty odd though.
Over a six month period I went from 107 kg down to 82kg, but over the next couple of years I slowly lost interest and enthuse, and most of it came back on again.
Word of wisdom: You don't go on a diet, you change your diet, forever.
In 45 minutes it would show about 800 calories burned, whether that was a fairy tale figure or genuinely relevant to anything I'm not sure, but it was a good workout. You need to be working hard, puffing and panting, or you are doing next to nothing.
I'd suggest also lifting some weights, and definitely watch your diet like a hawk. I used an online system where I had to enter the calories of everything I ate during the day and calculate my intake, limit it to 1800 calories a day. It worked, and I lost 7 kg the first five week trip I did offshore on the program. Can't remember the name of it now, something pretty odd though.
Over a six month period I went from 107 kg down to 82kg, but over the next couple of years I slowly lost interest and enthuse, and most of it came back on again.
Word of wisdom: You don't go on a diet, you change your diet, forever.
You're getting some good advice on this thread, but I feel I want to chip in a little.
What people are saying about your diet is right, it will be the most effective way to make the biggest impact. However, whatever cardio workout you do will all help, regardless of what it is. Rowing and cross country skiing are some of the best exercises in a calories burnt per unit of time measurement, but both can be quite technique dependent.
For heart rates, have a look at what the latest advice is for the fat burning zone. It used to be 65-75% of your max heart rate. And you need to spend a good bit of time in the zone to help. As others have said, running is hard on the joints, especially for big chaps like you or I. Swimming, if you have the technique to do it for a long period of time, or cycling might be your best bet.
When it comes to losing weight, everything you do will make a difference, in and out of the gym. Make all the changes you can. Never take the elevator if you can use the stairs, that sort of thing.
With your food, apply the same logic to everything you eat or drink. For example, orange juice with your breakfast is good for vitamin C, but it has a good bit of sugar. Iced water actually has negative calories, as your body has to warm it up to body temperature. (You do need to make sure you're getting a balanced healthy diet though, so I don't recommend a celery and iced water diet!) Similarly tea made with skimmed milk is a lot less calorific than a smoothie, (although again, much less vitamins in it too.)
My story? 6'8'' tall and 125kgs -> 97kgs in about 18 months, by reducing portion sizes, and starting to commute by cycling 25-35mins each way, every day.
Good luck on your journey, don't try to do it too quickly, but stick at it.
What people are saying about your diet is right, it will be the most effective way to make the biggest impact. However, whatever cardio workout you do will all help, regardless of what it is. Rowing and cross country skiing are some of the best exercises in a calories burnt per unit of time measurement, but both can be quite technique dependent.
For heart rates, have a look at what the latest advice is for the fat burning zone. It used to be 65-75% of your max heart rate. And you need to spend a good bit of time in the zone to help. As others have said, running is hard on the joints, especially for big chaps like you or I. Swimming, if you have the technique to do it for a long period of time, or cycling might be your best bet.
When it comes to losing weight, everything you do will make a difference, in and out of the gym. Make all the changes you can. Never take the elevator if you can use the stairs, that sort of thing.
With your food, apply the same logic to everything you eat or drink. For example, orange juice with your breakfast is good for vitamin C, but it has a good bit of sugar. Iced water actually has negative calories, as your body has to warm it up to body temperature. (You do need to make sure you're getting a balanced healthy diet though, so I don't recommend a celery and iced water diet!) Similarly tea made with skimmed milk is a lot less calorific than a smoothie, (although again, much less vitamins in it too.)
My story? 6'8'' tall and 125kgs -> 97kgs in about 18 months, by reducing portion sizes, and starting to commute by cycling 25-35mins each way, every day.
Good luck on your journey, don't try to do it too quickly, but stick at it.
A guy I worked with on my ship ballooned to 150kg in a year or so, same height as me. He took professional advice and his 'health care professional' told him to use any excuse for exercise, even going as far as throwing away the remote for the TV. He was told that everything helps, even getting up and switching TV channels. I guess moving 150kg of lard across the room takes considerable energy.
Working on a ship you'll have about ten decks, so make a point of always using the stairs, not the loft.
I liked to walk on the helideck for an hour every morning, fresh air, sunshine.....
Working on a ship you'll have about ten decks, so make a point of always using the stairs, not the loft.
I liked to walk on the helideck for an hour every morning, fresh air, sunshine.....
I only lose weight when I'm using the gym - but it's more about mindset.
If I'm not going to the gym, it's too easy to eat bad food and snack. However, if I trying to lose weight (and I really do need to start doing that again) - then once I've started the gym regularly, I become very conscious of the fact that if I eat <X> then I will have to work harder / stay at the gym longer to burn it off. And since I don't particularly like having to go to the gym, things suddenly become much less tempting.
If I'm not going to the gym, it's too easy to eat bad food and snack. However, if I trying to lose weight (and I really do need to start doing that again) - then once I've started the gym regularly, I become very conscious of the fact that if I eat <X> then I will have to work harder / stay at the gym longer to burn it off. And since I don't particularly like having to go to the gym, things suddenly become much less tempting.
1) Get yourself over to the PH Phat fighter thread
2) Download an app called myfitnesspal.
3) Identify your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) i.e. how many calories you should be taking in just to maintain your current weight using this tool: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
4) Set your daily calorie intake in myfitnesspal lower than your calculated BMR (500 calories lower per day to lose 1lb of fat p/week)
5) Log EVERYTHING you eat - be honest!
6) Log ALL of your workouts
7) Be aware of the nutritional content of your food, e.g. you may be under calories eating crap but this does not mean you are getting sufficient vitamins and nutrients
8) Try to avoid unnecessary sugar in your diet and reduce the amount of bread, pasta and potatoes (these are quite calorie dense and a lot of people tend to lose weight by reducing/cutting them out)
9) Weigh yourself atleast once a week and enter it into myfitnesspal
10) As others have said, avoid the impact type exercises until you're a little lighter. Cross trainer, bike etc are all good but I'd definitely recommend introducing a weight routine as well
Hope this helps
2) Download an app called myfitnesspal.
3) Identify your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) i.e. how many calories you should be taking in just to maintain your current weight using this tool: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
4) Set your daily calorie intake in myfitnesspal lower than your calculated BMR (500 calories lower per day to lose 1lb of fat p/week)
5) Log EVERYTHING you eat - be honest!
6) Log ALL of your workouts
7) Be aware of the nutritional content of your food, e.g. you may be under calories eating crap but this does not mean you are getting sufficient vitamins and nutrients
8) Try to avoid unnecessary sugar in your diet and reduce the amount of bread, pasta and potatoes (these are quite calorie dense and a lot of people tend to lose weight by reducing/cutting them out)
9) Weigh yourself atleast once a week and enter it into myfitnesspal
10) As others have said, avoid the impact type exercises until you're a little lighter. Cross trainer, bike etc are all good but I'd definitely recommend introducing a weight routine as well
Hope this helps
Pete102 said:
1) Get yourself over to the PH Phat fighter thread
2) Download an app called myfitnesspal.
3) Identify your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) i.e. how many calories you should be taking in just to maintain your current weight using this tool: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
4) Set your daily calorie intake in myfitnesspal lower than your calculated BMR (500 calories lower per day to lose 1lb of fat p/week)
5) Log EVERYTHING you eat - be honest!
6) Log ALL of your workouts
7) Be aware of the nutritional content of your food, e.g. you may be under calories eating crap but this does not mean you are getting sufficient vitamins and nutrients
8) Try to avoid unnecessary sugar in your diet and reduce the amount of bread, pasta and potatoes (these are quite calorie dense and a lot of people tend to lose weight by reducing/cutting them out)
9) Weigh yourself atleast once a week and enter it into myfitnesspal
10) As others have said, avoid the impact type exercises until you're a little lighter. Cross trainer, bike etc are all good but I'd definitely recommend introducing a weight routine as well
Hope this helps
Best post so far among a thread saying the same thing throughout!2) Download an app called myfitnesspal.
3) Identify your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) i.e. how many calories you should be taking in just to maintain your current weight using this tool: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
4) Set your daily calorie intake in myfitnesspal lower than your calculated BMR (500 calories lower per day to lose 1lb of fat p/week)
5) Log EVERYTHING you eat - be honest!
6) Log ALL of your workouts
7) Be aware of the nutritional content of your food, e.g. you may be under calories eating crap but this does not mean you are getting sufficient vitamins and nutrients
8) Try to avoid unnecessary sugar in your diet and reduce the amount of bread, pasta and potatoes (these are quite calorie dense and a lot of people tend to lose weight by reducing/cutting them out)
9) Weigh yourself atleast once a week and enter it into myfitnesspal
10) As others have said, avoid the impact type exercises until you're a little lighter. Cross trainer, bike etc are all good but I'd definitely recommend introducing a weight routine as well
Hope this helps
johnwilliams77 said:
Best post so far among a thread saying the same thing throughout!
AgreeI'd favour strength training over cardio. Some evidence people eat back calories burned in aerobic sessions
Don't drink anything with calorie content - Alcohol is a triple whammy
- The calories in the alcohol
- The calories in the the extra food you eat when pissed
- The calories in the the extra food you eat when hungover
oddman said:
Agree
I'd favour strength training over cardio. Some evidence people eat back calories burned in aerobic sessions
Don't drink anything with calorie content - Alcohol is a triple whammy
Lets not complicate things...I'd favour strength training over cardio. Some evidence people eat back calories burned in aerobic sessions
Don't drink anything with calorie content - Alcohol is a triple whammy
- The calories in the alcohol
- The calories in the the extra food you eat when pissed
- The calories in the the extra food you eat when hungover
I'd favour both: HIIT sessions, long walks + strength work with a 90% good diet.
TurboHatchback said:
I think a treadmill is the worst possible way for you to lose weight. As others have said, diet is critical, you need to be looking at not just how much you eat but what and when, there is a wealth of information out there for you. Absolute honesty with yourself is required, that one little doughnut or couple of glasses of wine a day can make the difference between success and failure.
As for exercise I would strongly recommend you start lifting weights, it burns a lot of calories but more importantly it builds muscle mass which increases your BMR, accelerating weight loss and ensuring that it won't all go straight back on again when you stop starving yourself. If you want to do cardio I would suggest swimming and cycling as they are much lower impact on your joints (knees in particular).
As I see it, he wants to lose weightAs for exercise I would strongly recommend you start lifting weights, it burns a lot of calories but more importantly it builds muscle mass which increases your BMR, accelerating weight loss and ensuring that it won't all go straight back on again when you stop starving yourself. If you want to do cardio I would suggest swimming and cycling as they are much lower impact on your joints (knees in particular).
But I thought muscle weighed more than fat.
So by turning some fat into muscle, isn't really going to help him lose weight.
So again it comes down to eating much less, and doing moderate work on the tread mill
Try this,
Perhaps when you first go in the gym, go to the tread mill.
Set it at 5,5km/h and 11% incline
That will burn you 200 cals in 20 minutes.
Then go on the machine, not sure what its called, but you sit on a seat, and with your arms and stomach muscles, pull down on these two bars, which are about head height (as you are sitting)
givw it perhaps 15 minutes on there, so your legs have time to recover, you might want to try an "arm curling" machine, and a reverse arm curling machine, try them for 10 minutes each.
By then, your legs should have rested enough for another session of what you did earlier,
So after say just over an hour in the gym, you could have burnt off about 500 cals.
Aim for the gym minimum 3 times a week.
I did it from 107kg (235lbs) down to 90 kg, (198lbs) I am also 1.83M (6 foot)
But try cut down the bread, chips, potatoes, the carbs stuff, and most of all, cut out the sugar, go Sweetex or similar.
It has took me 4 months to get to 90kg, my target is 87kg., and it does get harder to lose, as you lose.
you want to lose 42lbs, I have lost 37lbs
r1
Edited by Register1 on Friday 3rd February 20:31
Edited by Register1 on Friday 3rd February 21:08
I have gone from 250 ish to 213 as of today, makes a big difference, it isnt all that hard as long as you stick to it, loads of good advice above.
It is a different mindset, once you get into it it becomes self sustaining, the first days and weeks will seem pointless until you notice benefits, dont lose hope, it happens, aim for 2000 cals a day, track it, do some exercise and it will fall off, until 15 stone 3 then you will stick for weeks, but hey, thats not a bad problem to have is it ?
Will take a while, but not that long in the scheme of things, you can have a night off, it isnt a race, it is a permanent change but overall you need to be in deficit most of the time.
The rewards come faster than you think once you knuckle down and dont think too much about it.
I am not there yet but feel so much better, and some of the benefits I didnt expect, thought it was age but it was just being overweight, stranegly, the experts and govenrment do know what they are on about.
Dont get downhearted, it is a problem that you can personally sort out and soon, you will be buying the next size down in trousers.
It is a different mindset, once you get into it it becomes self sustaining, the first days and weeks will seem pointless until you notice benefits, dont lose hope, it happens, aim for 2000 cals a day, track it, do some exercise and it will fall off, until 15 stone 3 then you will stick for weeks, but hey, thats not a bad problem to have is it ?
Will take a while, but not that long in the scheme of things, you can have a night off, it isnt a race, it is a permanent change but overall you need to be in deficit most of the time.
The rewards come faster than you think once you knuckle down and dont think too much about it.
I am not there yet but feel so much better, and some of the benefits I didnt expect, thought it was age but it was just being overweight, stranegly, the experts and govenrment do know what they are on about.
Dont get downhearted, it is a problem that you can personally sort out and soon, you will be buying the next size down in trousers.
paulguitar said:
I was wondering if anyone where might be able to help. I am trying to lose weight, I need to lose quite a lot. I am 6 foot tall and quite stocky, but currently weigh 262 pounds, and really need to get that down to 220. I work on a cruise ship and have free access to a gym. I am currently using the treadmill around 5 times per week, and doing a 25 minute program which is intervals, there is some light jogging up to 6MPH and also some walking. I feel good after I have finished and I am burning off 340 calories at my current weight, according to the machine.
To lose weight, could I be doing something more effective, or should I stick with what I am doing?
Thanks in advance.
I've been a heavyweight jogger/runner for a long time, at times I've been 280lbs +. We can really burn cals like mad here. I'm only 235 now, but a nice parkrun gets rid of around 600 cals. 58 minute 10k at 287lbs.To lose weight, could I be doing something more effective, or should I stick with what I am doing?
Thanks in advance.
Some simple rules to adhere to, make increases in pace, elevation, distance very small over decent periods. This is the only thing that will f
k you up, doing too much. If you feel a niggle, allow sufficient time to recoup, always err on the side of caution.Gassing Station | Health Matters | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff