Like you said, pack your own stuff, or it sounds like you need to skip the caf and venture out of your office if you didn't pack. Get a lean turkey on w/w from a deli, grilled chicken breast from one of the fast food outlets, or a grocery store salad - with your OWN dressing! lol But yes, it is hard, I constantly marvel at the crap being served at dd's school lunchroom. blech!

The options where I work are down right depressing as well and we have very limited delivery options. So unless someone is willing to go pick-up.... I am packing it....... I do a certain amount of preparation on the weekends and for the most part I pre-pack the night before so I have no option but to take my lunch the next day. But, it can get boring if you don't make an effort to keep a variety in the "brown bag special menu options".

When they have the bagels and donuts in - honestly - unless I have no option - I don't even walk in that section of the building.... way too much temptation.....:devil:

Good luck!

New--Opinion Please
 

Hi,

It looks like someone here does Dr. Peeke's BFL book. I've decided to give it a whirl for 12 weeks and see how it goes. So I got the equipment I seem to need [it's been sitting around in boxes for months after we moved], blew up the Body Ball thingey, assembled the weight bench [major pain in the heinie], and went at it. Using the book without changing anything.

Took "Before Pix", hung out my "Clothes-O-Meter'', recorded my measurements.

I did 30 min. on my exercise bike and the upper body sequence. I'm also going by her eating plan and am on track so far.

I can't believe I started today--I feel sickish and whiney and FAT---but I have the gift of desperation going for me.

Question for you--is it realistic to hope for a 12 pound loss in 12 weeks of this at age 49 do ya think???

spanky

Way to go on your enthusiasm Spanky (love your avatar, makes me smile) ... I know you probably don't want to hear this but here goes: Everyone is different and will lose weight at different rates... You may lose 12# :shrug: you may lose inches... It all depends how active you were before and how good or bad you were with you food choices. But something will happen if you stick with the 12 week program :yes:... So keep up with the great attitude!!

Yeah, i think so, definitely. And as your strength and energy picks up after about 2 weeks, add in some extra cardio. I think the book only calls for 1/2 hr 3 times a week, but most of us plan on doing 6 days/wk. To quote Bob Harper (the biggest loser trainer) who was on Ellen yesterday, "cardio is the bread & butter of weight loss." Not sure I like the non-dieting analogy, but I get it. And I agree wholeheartedly!

Bread and butter, LOL.

I have a question for all you great LWL. I have read the BFL for Women book, and I would very much like to start the program, but I mainly workout on machines. I usually do two full body workouts per week. It is just a schedule I have found that works for me. I do cardio (30 - 45 mins) Mon, Wed, Thurs (and sometimes Sat) and do my weight routine on Tues and Fri (after warming up on the TM for 20 mins). Would it be more effective to follow the BFL three day split? And what about the machines? Is it better to use the free weights? I am a little bit scared of them just because I haven't used them much. I would probably have to get started with a trainer to get the proper form, etc.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Also, about the BFL style of eating, is there a website that has sample menus and recipes?

Thanks!

Hey Jude, I was where you are about this time last year and asked similar questions. All I can say is that I switched to free weights from machines in September and HAVE NEVER LOOKED BACK. You can't imagine the difference until you are doing it. Supporting your full body weigh while you work out and using all your muscles to do the free weights instead of having a machine do the balancing for you cannot be understated. I do the exercises in the book, a 3/wk split, and I didn't need a trainer to get started. The pix are pretty easy to follow (I copied them and put the pix in a notebook that I look at while I workout and also write down the weight poundage that I use for each set). But there are also live action websites around that will show you live-time the full movement of all the different exercises, just google whatever you're unsure about. But hey, if you belong to a gym and have access, def. get a trainer to start you off. I just didn't want you to be put off by that in case it wasn't available to you. Good luck - you are on the brink of a great move by considering the switch!

I don't have B4L for Women with me, but how would you say the diet differs from the website?

http://www.bodyforlife.com/nutrition/week1meals.asp
I'm gaining on the above...and not even eating it all.

And how can you tweak to reduce your calories?

I don't have the book with me right now either, and I kind of do my own food and not the BFL eating plan, so I'll leave that question to someone else. I think what I would try tweaking is your cardio. How much of your 20 minutes is running? I know it's internal training from your sig. Here's why I ask: I do 30 min cardio interval walking each day up to 4.0 and incline up to 6.0 It's a set program where the machine does it's own program. But if you are running at 4.8, which isn't that much higher than 4 at which I'm walking, and your incline is flat, I'm going to venture you're getting less calorie burn in your 20 minutes than my 30, even tho you are running for part of it. I would either, increase your time to 30 minutes, add in some incline, even if it means you are fast walking and not running :); OR: add in another 20 min cardio session like 3x/wk whenver you have time - twice on weekends and one evening in the week when you have time. Either a tape of something cardio or another piece of equipment. I would see what that does for you in a week. It looks like you are doing great cardio, but you might need just a smidge more of a longer session to set you to losing again.

I run for at least half. For me, a run begins at 3.5 and I can get to 4.5, but that's on the "oh my God this will kill me" level. I have a short stride and a lot of mass to move (keep that in mind).

I do the 20m daily, sometimes sneak in a second one.

I've read that interval is better for fat burning than straight, constant, high intensity. Machine says I'm only burning 170 calories.


Used to do incline (up to 12% grade) and sure, I burned up to 800 calories for an hour, but I still never lost weight.

Yeah, I was checking out your ticker and realized you weren't going to be able to fly at 5.0 on a run and I can't either. Heck, I can't even run yet at all bc it kills my knees at this weight. Your question is perplexing - that you still didn't lose at even the incline. All I can think of is portion size. Making sure you're really eating 1700kc by making sure a serving of meat is the size of a deck of cards, a serving of pasta the size of your palm, etc. You can eat more than that (I do), but then it's more than one serving and you have to account for that in the cals. But if you've been around this site, you know all that and I'm not telling you anything you don't know. I sure don't mean to insult, but that's the only thing I can think of.

If that's not the issue, I would post on the LWL thread so Mel & Meg can respond to this. I think you need a trainer's response, or someone who's lost more than I have.

I'm a bit of a perfectionist and quite "anal", so I know not to screw with a) numbers and b) measurements. 1700c is after measuring all food. Nothing I eat goes unaccounted. I don't eyeball, I weigh or measure everything. And with exercise, if the machine notes my burned calories, it goes into my Fitday software, if not, I let Fitday summarize it. I know this can be somewhat inaccurate, but it should be the ballpark.

Given what I weigh, I should lose on 2100 calories, and definitely on 1700 calories...and i don't. Add in my exercise and the scale should move. It doesn't. Actually is very much going the wrong way right now. Was 301 this morning and am near tears.

When I did 45-60 minutes on heavy incline, I would burn 600-800 calories and eat the same calories and nothing would happen.

Yet I go to the doctors and they tell me eat less, move more. If they test me, they say you're 100% normal. I can't stand this cycle.

I'm really thinking after the wieghts arrive and I start heavier strength training this week that if there's no right-direction movement, I'm going to do Medifast.

I feel so betrayed by my body.

Well, again, I'm no personal trainer, but I'll tell ya straight up not to expect a weight loss at the same time you go to a heavier lifting routine. Your muscles definintely hold more water after a heavy workout and for a week or even 2, you may hold steady, even though you are losing fat. But bc you are gaining muscle, the scale doesn't move. You really need to look into body composition. Read 2 threads on here: Scale up after leg day, and my thread about What % bodyfat do you strive for? I think you will find some encouragement in those threads, if you haven't already read them. W/O knowing where you started off on body fat, you won't know how great you really are doing now, but it would be an interesting measurement to take note of going forward. Do you have or can you get a bf scale, like a tanita? You can find them at target.com, drugstore.com, and alot of other places. That must be the indicator where things are happening for you.

Fran, thanks for your encouragement! I am going to get myself organized this week, and start next Monday. I did do biceps and triceps with free weights today, using the three set, descending rep & ascending weight plan, and I think I am going to feel it tomorrow. :carrot: