# About "renovating" yourself...



## TheSwede (Jul 10, 2018)

I am not only in the process of renovating my lawn. This in December (2021) I sat and watched old pictures from the year that had passed and seeing how unhealthy I looked I decided then and there that enough is enough and that TheSwede is in desperate need of a full renovation. I had thought this thought many times before but not acted on it but this time I just decided that something has to be done. Basically, 20+kg fat needs to go and never come back again and I also needed to start to work out to get reasonably fit again. I once was reasonably fit but I had not done any training to speak of the last 15+ years so in December 2021 I was completely out of shape, with blood sugar and blood pressure bordering to abnormal.

Now I am about 4 months in with my new lifestyle. I have made major changes in what I eat and when I eat, and I have also started to workout 3-4 times per week (resistance training, aka weight lifting) and it is working wonders for me. Blood sugar and blood pressure is now right where they should be and I feel fantastic. My body feels great and I have so much more energy now, with the way I eat and train, that even though I spend a lot of time working out, I still get a lot more done during a day than 6 months ago.

Any one else that is doing an overhaul of their lifestyle to get back in shape, or would want to do it but just don't know how to do it please share!


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## Phids (Sep 24, 2020)

Congratulations on making the life adjustments you needed. It's great to hear you made that choice to get healthier after 15 years.

I have been in and out of periods in my life when I have worked out a lot, then no regular activity, then back to working out, and so forth. I remember one period when I was not working out, and I could feel the weight adding on. My pants were getting tighter, and I thought that I should invest in new, larger pants. But then I realized, why not invest that money in a gym membership so I could continue to fit in the pants I already had, get stronger, and look and feel better? If I was going to spend money one way or the other, spending it to lose weight was, hands-down, the better option.

Think about it this way - it's _hard _work to engage in physical fitness. Not only is there a time commitment, but it's taxing on the body, and can even be painful. But you know what else is hard work? Being fat. Obviously, it's better to choose hard work that leads to health and energy over inactivity and weakness.


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

Congratulations on the changes. What are you doing for training and diet?

I exercise a lot (60-75 minutes 5-6 times per week of lifting and cardio - HIIT). I have found the best way to keep going is to find someone to work out with. My wife is my workout partner. The second factor is to find something you like to do. If working out is fun/challenging/interesting/etc. you will be more likely to stay with the workouts. The same goes for diet. I used to belong to a gym, but when COVID hit I built a home gym and now work out there 90% of the time. I still visit my old gym for the occasional workout, but most of the members are new and without the camaraderie it isn't the same.


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## TheSwede (Jul 10, 2018)

@Phids , @bernstem , Thanks!

For me there was no question I would make resistance training (weight lifting) my main workout. I am close to 50 now so I have done some changes from how I used to do it. I currently do a program of three different full body programs that alternate between during the week. I do a gym session every other day so between 3 and 4 times per week and it works fantastic for me. I am contemplating switching to a 2-split I can do 6 times/week but right now I get crazy gains on my current program so I am sticking with it for now.

When it comes to cardio I do it because it helps getting the most out of the resistance training. In my youth I used to be a pretty decent hockey player, and now that my son has started to play I decided to start as coach for the team. And with me finally being back in the hockey rink I felt the urge to not only coach but to start playing again so my main source of HIIT this winter is hockey, basically. But otherwise I do HIIT on a treadmill in the gym.

The diet was what I started with. First classic calorie restriction (counting calories in an app). That made me hungry very fast so I decided to eat more protein and less carbs to not get hungry so fast. After a month of reading up on the subject and testing different diet strategies I ended up doing a ketogenic diet, and for me it has been a complete game-changer.

I don't do "strict keto" but a variation of it that I think makes more sense, so I almost completely cut out carbs, but I eat much more protein and less fat than on a strict keto diet, but I make sure I am in a calorie deficit and that my body is in ketosis (using fat as primary energy source rather than carbs).

There are several weird things happening once you get your body into ketosis. For one thing, I do not have any cravings for sugar, sweets or carbs anymore. The body does not want carbs for fuel anymore, so all those cravings I had before are miraculously gone! It is just gone! And I do not get the blood sugar dips after a meal. My energy level is constant and high,

Secondly, feelings of hunger are almost completely supressed! I know, it sounds crazy, but It is because the body can only store a tiny amount of carbohydrates for later so you get hungry after a few hours because the body needs more carbs to burn. When in ketosis however, fat is the primary energy source so when the fat in the food you eat is consumed, the body just uses your own body fat as energy source instead.

And the last part of my diet is not really about the diet (what I eat) but when I eat. Since I do not have much of a hunger problem anymore I started intermittent fasting, I only eat twice a day now (lunch and dinner), and I eat my meals within a window of about 4-6 hours, which gives me 18-20 hours where I do not eat or drink anything that spike insulin. Going for prolonged periods of time without food is what humans are designed for. 10000 years ago a man sometimes ate three times per day, most of the time probably only once or twice, and if unlucky with the hunting and gathering, some days he did not eat at all. When in a fasted state for a prolonged time, the body goes into a cleaning- and maintenance mode called autophagy that is very beneficial for the body and brain, but has been severely supressed by the way we eat nowadays.


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## bernstem (Jan 16, 2018)

Sounds great. The best diet and exercise program is one you can be consistent on. If I feel like I need to reduce body fat, I'll do a high protein, low carb, intermittent fasting program with lunch and dinner only as well. I almost certaily stay at a higher carb level than you, but it all helps.

I have done a number of different weight programs from starting strength, 5/3/1, and a more Olympic oriented program. I have never done anything Bodybuilding in style. I agree with you that strength is important as you get older. The longer you can stay strong, the longer it will be before someone needs to help you stand up from a chair. That is in adition to bone mass and overall health benefits. Even with that, you can't neglect cardio as that is what will reduce stroke and hear attack risk.


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## Phids (Sep 24, 2020)

@TheSwede Funny you say that, as I have just been educating myself on the ketogenic diet within the last month or so. I have been watching a lot of Youtube videos by a Dr. Berg, who advocates the keto diet and describes much of what you stated in your post. Although I have not started on the diet, I have realized the importance of keeping insulin spikes low, and I have also started taking apple cider vinegar before/after meals to help with this.


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## MasterMech (Sep 24, 2017)

Becoming a bit more "calorie aware" has stopped the positive scale creep where I too was considering new, larger pants. Alarming considering the ones I prefer are already generously elastic to allow for IWB carry. This winter, I replaced all the lawn mowing with brisk daily walks (about 35-45 mins worth usually) that were enough to knock down about 10lbs (and dropped my BMI down to 30 again) but even that has been difficult to keep up as a regular activity, unless I start doing it again after the rest of the family is in bed.

I despise skipping meals but that's because I recognize the impact it has on my mood and energy. No doubt due to a palette trained to prefer carbs. I successfully kicked a soda habit and have switched my sweet tea to half/half, and while it hasn't made a significant impact on my weight, it did level out my energy levels noticeably. Since I fixed some sleep apnea-type issues (ended up doing a minor surgery for that one) and kicked the caffeine/sugar addiction, I can get "started" much earlier in the day.

I hear two weight-loss programs advertised locally all the time and wonder what is is that they are actually selling. Both seem centered around nutrition/behavior and I've wondered if it's Keto wrapped in marketing with a side of coaching.

https://www.healthdare.net/
https://myphdweightloss.com/


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## JayGo (Jun 13, 2019)

@TheSwede, this is a cool post. Stick with your new outlook.

I've tried to be consistent myself. I have to remind myself it's about permanent changes. My weight yo-yo's quite a bit. I've lost as much as 63 lbs at one point, only to put it all back on over 2 years or so. Then I'll do it again, and I'll gain it all back.

A few months ago, I made the decision to put forth my strongest effort at getting healthier AND STAYING THAT WAY. I was feeling pretty great over November through February and even lost about 12 pounds. Then I decided to quietly start a low-key YouTube channel where I share my lawn adventures. Man!!! When I saw myself on the screen, it knocked the wind out of my sails. I was disappointed that I looked as "unflattering" as I did. I knew I had a long way to go, but I didn't think I looked THAT bad. HA HA HA HA

But after the shock left me, I took what I was seeing on the screen as a motivator. I have a choice, right? Stay where I'm at, or I could take baby steps to get healthier. The first choice is easy, but instead I'm choosing to "fix" myself one day at a time.

Always great to read that someone else is on a similar journey. It's sort of motivating. Best of luck to you, man.


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## TheSwede (Jul 10, 2018)

@MasterMech , @JayGo, thanks for sharing! I think everyone is unique and different and there is not one method that works for everyone. The key I think is to find something that you can sustain for the rest of your life both in terms of how you eat and how you exercise. I don't see my new eating habits or training regime as something temporary. I view them as permanent changes to my lifestyle.

@Phids, Berg has a lot of good information on keto and intermittent fasting. Another favourite YouTuber is Dr Sten Ekberg, you should check him out too. If you consider building muscles on a ketogenic-diet, you should also check out Luis Villasenor (ketoGains). He has a lot of good advice on how to tailor a the ketogenic diet so it works for people that train more than the average joe or even for top athletes.

@bernstem , I actually started on a 3-split two times per week (3 days workout 1 day rest, rinse and repeat), but after a few weeks when I had read up on the matter a bit I decided to try a 1-split 3 times per week, since that seemed more optimal. This time around I go mostly for just muscle growth, even if one of my passes are more geared towards pure strength.


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## MasterMech (Sep 24, 2017)

@JayGo There's a silver lining to being on-camera regularly, you're documenting your journey and will have a time-lapse of progress.

I bought a Withings Body+ smart scale, and the engineer in me loves seeing how my weight trends during certain periods of life. Add a routine, can I see a change in the trend? Is the time spent doing whatever worthwhile? I can honestly say I think it has saved me time/frustration by letting me visualize trends in my weight, and understand what my normal fluctuations are.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

MasterMech said:


> I bought a Withings Body+ smart scale, and the engineer in me loves…


+1

Great investment. They are $79 on Amazon right now.


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