Please tell me I am wrong!
I have now been with the VA’s MOVE program for about 4 months, and I am ready to quit! When I signed up for this, it sounded really good, and the name, MOVE, implies action, but, so far, all I have seen or heard, are discussions on portion size, and hearing questions and answers that are just so absolutely basic, I feel like I have stepped into an elementary school classroom! I am sorry, common sense will tell you, fried chicken is worse than boiled chicken, fresh green beans are better than canned, and steaming them in water, is better than sauteing them in butter, simple stuff, right?
When I signed up, I had some sort of fantasy that the group really wanted to MOVE and get results, that we could go to the gym, even a fitness center, something, but no, the big MOVE event for next month is a walk in the park, literally, well, ok, that is some sort of action, but, unfortunately for me, the ROI is not worth it. What I mean is, I can only walk a very short distance, like maybe 100 yards, before the pain is so intense I have to sit. However, if it is to walk into the gym, then sit on a bench, do an exercise that actually does something besides get your shoes dirty, it would be worth it. Walking or standing are the two things I have to limit, I only can walk so far, total in one day, or I am stuck on the sofa for a day or two! If we were going to the gym, the benefits of that type of exercise, would make up for the pain, I would be getting a Return On my Investment, just walking, all I get is the pain and zero benefit.
I know that most of the folks in my MOVE group are much older than I, but, weight training is good for everyone, walking is about the least valuable of all exercises, if the same amount of effort is applied to weight training, the benefits will far exceed what one gets from a walk, as far as I am concerned, walking is only good for getting from the car to the free weights in the gym. Yes, there is a bit of cardio involved with walking FAST, but your heart gets a workout with weights too.
What is the whole point? Gaining lean weight (muscle), will increase your body’s ability to burn fat, even when you sleep, walking is only good for burning a few calories at that given time, and the muscles used for walking, will get used to that stress very quickly, and unless you start carrying weight, while you walk, you will peek in just a couple of days. If that is all that the MOVE program is about, it is not worth the gas money to get there.
Weight Loss: What works?
February 25, 2010 by CarpetGuy · 4 Comments
When you look in the mirror, what do you see? Can you tell by looking, or stepping on a scale, whether you are too fat or just too heavy? No, you can’t, that is why a body fat measurement is vital to any weight or fat loss program, without this simple test, you don’t know whether your efforts are doing good, or bad. Most people assume that they are just too heavy, and all of the fad diets, and fancy pre packaged meals focus on this to make money from the unfortunate, fat, ill-advised consumer.
Yes, if you are active, work hard, and yet eat the wrong food, and drink too much, you can still be fat, and maybe one of those fad diets can do you some good, at least temporarily, the same goes for the fancy pre packaged meals, but, how do you know what is working? Measure your fat!
The graph above is for me, for about a month, with un-regular measurements, meaning, I did a couple of fat measurements only a couple of days apart, here and there, and it looks like the curve flattens out, when in reality, it doesn’t, so, let’s just use the results for my example.
Over this time period, I lost a total of about 18 lbs of body fat and gained about 11 lbs of lean body weight, for a net loss of 7 pounds. It is recommended that one should lose no more than about 2 pounds a week, but no one ever says anything about the details of fat vs lean weight.
No matter what diet you get on, all they ever talk about is weight, eat this, lose weight. The problem with that is that you can do more harm than good, by simply losing weight and not monitoring what type of weight, fat or lean, is being lost, and this is the most important detail, but all they care about is selling you a book, a membership, or some over-priced food!
So, what works? Yes, exercise, but, not just any exercise, because things like spending hours on a treadmill, will cause you to burn muscle, as well as fat, and that is not good, because muscle is your best friend when it comes to burning fat, so, what do you do? Resistance training, more specifically, weight training, is the answer, but, this too must be done properly, or, it is not much better than running, you must train heavy! No, you don’t have to become a power-lifter, but a man, doing a set of curls with a dumbbell that weighs about the same as a beer, just will not give you the desired results, the effort must hurt!
Before you get crazy, and do something dangerous, by hurt, I mean it must be something beyond what you would normally do, like drinking a beer, we have all heard the term “12 ounce curls”, and personally, I have done sets of 20 or 30 in the past! What I am trying to say is that it requires a bit of “discomfort” to get results, the keyword being, Intensity. Intensity, is what determines whether any exercise does anything, and it must be adjusted to your own level of fitness or health, so, get informed, if you go to a gym, or fitness center, the trainers there should be able to help you, and if you let them know that you want to gain muscle as well as lose fat, by training with weights, they can get you started in the right direction.
Just remember the old K.I.S.S. acronym, which means, Keep It Simple Stupid. If you eat food, as close to the way God made it as possible, meaning, NOT PROCESSED, and without added sugar and so on, and start training with some good ole iron, you can do it!
What is the MOVE Program?
Today was my second meeting with the MOVE program, and somehow, I still feel a bit disappointed. The VA offers the MOVE Program to help us overweight Vets to lose weight, the name implies action, but, so far, it is a basic, and I mean very basic nutrition class. The first meeting, we read a story about a 600+ pound woman that lost weight by kicking a ball around her apartment, this meeting we played a “Jeopardy” like game, after our standard weigh in. Yep, that was it. Oh, by the way, I was the “biggest loser” this month, I lost 9lbs.
I never expected much from the program, after all, it is a government thing, but, at the weigh in, and they saw I had lost weight, I broke it down for them as to the fact that I had lost about 16lbs of fat and gained almost 6 lbs of muscle, something that one would think might make someone ask a question or two as to how, and yes, it was mentioned that I was going to the gym, but that was as far as it went, a wasted opportunity in my opinion.
I had told them the month before that I was going to get the software etc to keep track of fat loss, when I told them the numbers, the doctor for our group said something like “oh yeah, you mentioned that before”, why was there not more attention paid to this? From what I can see, as long as you do not gain weight, everybody is happy!
Somehow I feel that the name MOVE implies some sort of action, but, the highlight of the meeting was how many nuts make up a quarter cup? I have to be honest, the nutrition stuff doesn’t mean a hill of crap if you don’t have any exercise. The nutrition councilor even mentioned that briefly, while explaining an answer to one of the questions in the game we were playing. She told us that there was a lady in a wheelchair that started doing leglifts with a small weight and eventually got out of the chair because of it, but that was about it, again, a missed opportunity to actually teach the group or even maybe motivate someone, but no, it was all about somebody ringing a bell or blowing a whistle to answer the next question. The game itself is not where I have issues, it was actually an ok thing, you can find similar ones here, but, the meeting only lasts an hour, and so did the game, and everyone there participated, it was fun, but, was it productive?
I am usually way too critical about everything, and, in this case I am sure of that, but, as I see it, this MOVE Program is a waste of time. Here is the good news, we don’t have another one until April, something to do with Spring Break and somebody’s kids or something, to be honest, I don’t want to go back, but, I will, because somehow, I need to help. Being fat is not fun, being old and fat is even worse. I missed six years of training because I was in pain, and couldn’t breath, now that I have meds for this, and know that my pain is there forever, whether I train or not, I am sticking with it, the gym has been my life since I was a kid, I need to help others, it keeps me motivated. If you read this, and are a member of the MOVE Program, do as I am going to, Take Charge! Make the Move Program be more like the name implies!
Free Weights vs Machines, what works best?
Free Weights and Machines both have a purpose, and even though I am seriously biased, whatever works for you is a good thing.
Having this said, there is a difference, a factual one that cannot be denied, no matter what your opinion says, they are different. I am an IronHead, and for me, Free Weights will always make up the biggest part of my training, but, I do use machines for some things, but, what is the difference?
When you are doing a Bench Press with free weights, there are many tiny muscles that are used to stabilize the weight, with a machine, the machine does the stabilizing for you. If you want to throw those rubber-band gizmos into the mix, it is basically the same as any machine, but, it pulls in its own direction, not just that of gravity, which is straight down. That pretty much covers it, but I will get into more detail below.
Free Weights
Take a look at the picture of the Weight Rack, what is wrong with it? Notice how the different sized plates are all mixed up? That is just wrong! That rack is designed for three sizes, and should be so, because those little bitty things are of no use when you train, properly, something I will get into in detail in another article.
When using Free Weight, the first indicator should be the name itself, free weight, no, that is not the price, it simply means that weight is free to go where gravity pulls it. No matter which exercise, if it can be done with Free weights, you will get more out of it, because there are so many more muscles involved, free weights do not isolate a specific muscle, but an entire group of muscles. With free weights, you use different benches for different angles to hit the entire muscle group, not different machines. Do this test, if you are a regular machine lover, just try doing the same weight as the machine, with free weights, you will immediately notice the difference.
The downside to Free Weights is that when you get to the heavier weights, it is good to have a spotter, something not needed with a machine.
Weight Machines
The good side to weight machines, like the one in the picture, is that you can get a full body workout in no time, almost like circuit training, but take a peek at the weight stack, a beginner should be able to max out the machine in just a few months, then what?
Machines come in several types for different purposes, some for home use, which is another advantage over free weights, a machine takes up less space, but, in some cases cost more than a total set-up with Free weights. At the gym, you will see the machines set up in groups, and can be very beneficial for everyone, they do have a purpose. Many people get taught as a beginner on the machines only, and then tend to just stick with them, which is ok, if that is your thing, but, if you want to get strong, Free Weights are a must.
Now, I am going to talk about the biggest joke in the fitness world as far as I’m concerned, bu
t yes, they do have a purpose. The rubber-band gizmos, are fine for those that just want to do something to make them sweat. I don’t care who the “expert” is that they hire to do a commercial, they are useless if you want to gain any mass or strength. These gizmos, will give you a good workout if you have to skip the gym one day, but, even if you buy the expensive ones, that have up to 400lbs of resistance, the movement is unnatural, and does not give you the best bang for your buck, if you really want to train right, and get bigger or stronger, but, they are kinda cute.
Free Weights and Machines, even the rubber-band gizmos, can all give you a workout, it is up to you to decide which is best, For You, look at what your needs are, what your goals are, then decide. Either way, just move something, control your diet, and stay as active as you can. I know that many veterans have limits that prohibit using certain things, for those of you, use what works for you, just keep it fun, never let it become a chore that you dread, because if it is fun, you will stick with it!
Free Weights: The best exercises, the Squat!
This is the first article of many about exercises, I am going to cover the basics, something that is most often left out by anyone trying to sell you some sort of magic routine that will do something that no other training method can, if you buy their fancy gizmo and follow their secret plan. Do yourself a favor, ignore those gimmicky junk pedlers, the only one that can benefit from it is them, they get your cash!
In today’s fitness crazed world, where everything is bad for you and you can’t eat anything but rabbit food, always remember the basics, where did these new age gurus come from? How old are they and who taught them what they know?
This article is about the Squat, the most loved and hated exercise ever. Why is it hated? It hurts! Why is it loved? It works! In fact, if you only have 10 minutes, three days a week, you can get a full body workout, with just three exercises, the Squat, Bench-Press, and Dead-Lift, all the other exercises only add to what you can get from the basic three.
The squat is the best exercise, period, regardless of what your training goals are, because it uses every muscle in your body, yes, even your eye muscles are involved, when done properly. I found a great article about the squat, at NerdFitness, and that is where I found the image below.
The main Thing that I need to point out, is the eyes, see how the guy in this pic has them fixed on an invisible object, that only he can see? This is very important, once you learn the proper form, by fixing your eyes, you keep your posture and you body’s position straight, if you look around the room, or up and down, your body will do the same, and this can get you hurt.
The positioning and angle of the feet is also important, you can vary the angle of your feet to put more or less emphasis on different parts of your legs, but that is an issue for those that have a lot of experience, for the beginner, or the old and injured like me, keep the feet almost straight, but slightly pointed outward, you’ll see, find the most comfortable for you.
Keep your back straight, remember the eyes, find a point on the wall in front of you and keep your eyes on it, this helps.
What makes the Squat so special? When you have an injury, you tend to favor that, be it an ankle, hip, knee, whatever, and long after this injury is healed up, it still influences your posture, by doing squats, you re-train your body to be straight, and you work every muscle together, all at the same time, thus strengthening your entire body. When you do something that trains your various body parts to work together, even the little muscles that only help stabilize are put to use, this makes your overall conditioning and even your appearance more balanced.
I know, you are saying, “but I have a bad back”, I do too, I cannot stand for more than a few minutes. My problem is basically arthritis, and bone spurs, I have spikes growing out of my spine that start a chain reaction of problems, and walking, or standing make this worse, but, squats make it feel better! Of course, talk to your doctor before doing squats if you have a back problem, but, if they tell you exercise is ok, squats should be number one on your list, it can help you.
Where are you and where are you going?
Where you are is only important as long as you let it be, just get off the couch and do something, only then will you will be able to see where you are going!
I have been much like the guy in this picture, proud of the past, feeling like I was still on top, while pushing myself further and further away from it, by guzzling beer and eating anything and everything. I threw my trophies away years ago, and I had boxes of them, I had been the best, and a great baseball player when I was a kid, all the way up to High School, but I quit, because I “grew up” , drinking and girls were more fun than baseball, and getting paid to play a game, never crossed my mind, baseball was for kids, and I was a man.
By the time reality caught up with me, I had stopped working out, and I had my first weight set when I was eleven, weight training was very important to me, baseball wasn’t, but, I had quit both of them! Since I wasn’t a baseball star anymore, the girls went away too, I was too busy working, and really needed a change, so, I joined the Army. Why? Because I knew I needed a good kick in the butt and felt that the Army could give it to me! History repeats itself, if you let it, and I did.
This time, it was not all my fault, I got hurt, to the point I couldn’t stand for more than about five minutes, the pain was and is incredible, I tried to train through it, I was not about to let myself get fat again, but, I did. Now, after signing up with the VA to get some help, and 4 years of CT scans, X-rays, and doctor visits, after being informed that my problem was permanent and would never go away, I had earned it, the neurologist told me. I had raced Mountain Bikes, downhill was my event, I had been a runner, trained at more than marathon distances, and now, I have the spikes growing out of my spine to prove it! The doctor told me that all the crashes, and pounding from running, not to mention the tonnage I had lifted in my life, had given me a spine that normally takes over seventy years to get, and that is a very active, almost crazy like Evil Knievel, kind of active, and had gotten fat on top of it all.
Once I knew my pain would never go away, I gave up hope that I would ever get back in the gym, or compete at anything ever again, I felt like the world had come to an end, all I had left was the glory days, pain pills, my computer, TV, beer and food. When I got hurt, it was stupid, I stubbed my toe, and in the jerking to keep my balance, I had done something, that still is with me, proof that you just never know. At that time, I was in pretty good shape, I am 5′ 7″ and then weighed 275 pounds with a 36″ waist, bench pressing up to 495 pounds, squatting up to 705 pounds, and doing dead-lifts of about 405 pounds, but, that was over, and I now weigh 282 pounds with a 50″ waist.
My biggest frustration, is now, my biggest motivation, every time someone tells me that if I lost weight, my back would feel better, I felt like punching them, because I was really trying, had cut my beer consumption down to almost nothing, a 12 pack a month, eating soup and vegetables and hardly ever any junk, but, I was totally inactive, pain was winning, and I knew that I needed more activity, but walking is my biggest enemy, so, what could I do?
I have decided to just suck it up, and get my fat self back in the gym, no matter how bad it hurts, and how many people look at me funny when I walk in the door! Walking, or even standing for more than a few minutes is out of the question, but, I can sit, and squats only take a couple of minutes per set, then I can sit and wait for the pain to subside before my next set. My doctor had used my anger, and embarrassment to motivate me, and I signed up for the MOVE program, I need to thank him. Now, I know where I am going! I don’t care about weight, I need to lose fat, and I know how to do that, get back to the iron!
Motivation: Where does it come from?
Motivation is one of those things that can come from different places, sometimes, it comes from others, but it is best when it comes from within. Motivation is an energy that is both positive and negative, sometimes at the same time.
Remember when the Drill Sargent got on your case? I do, and in the beginning, getting dropped for 20 push ups was like being told to pick up a car! Then, something happened, it got easier, and I was doing push ups in my spare time to get better!
What happened, was it simply that I was getting in better shape? No, I was motivated! I did not want to look weak in front of the rest of the platoon! I know, some people strive to be the best, some, just don’t want to be embarrassed. I was the latter.
What motivated me? Where did it come from? Initially, from the Drill Sargent, he forged the need to succeed, and the fear of failure within my mind, both were negative energies. Once I no longer was afraid of failing, I wanted to be the best! Now, the energy was coming from me, it was now positive and that is when it is the most powerful.
This website is an instrument to create this positive energy within me, it too is starting as a negative, I am afraid of failing, I do not want to stop my training and stay fat! By writing, and sharing with others, I will get beyond this fear, and be once again motivated by success. I love my workouts, I always have, and during these last 6 years of pain, I wanted more than anything to be the old me again, and I will! Not only will I get stronger and leaner, but I will do everything I can to help others do the same, both here, and within my new group of friends at the VA MOVE program. I look forward to others joining the cause and helping, together, we can do it!
What can MyFitVet do for you?
What do you want this site to do for you?
First and foremost, we can bring like-minded veterans together, for a common cause, getting in better shape, and staying that way. Together, we can share our experiences, our stories, the good, the bad, and the ugly, which can possibly help another veteran learn something from another.
By sharing, we can motivate each other, we can help each other get past those sticking points and plateaus in our training. It does not matter what you are doing to get in shape, from a five-minute walk, to a 500 pound bench press, it all involves training, and not just physical, but mental as well. It doesn’t matter how long you have tried or how many times you have failed, you can achieve your goals, one step at a time, one rep at a time, one less bite at a time.
MyFitVet.com What is it? Who is it” Why is it?
January 20, 2010 by CarpetGuy · Leave a Comment
MyFitVet.com is a site dedicated to helping my fellow veterans to either get in shape, or avoid getting out of shape. It is so much easier to just stay fit, than to get soft and flabby, and try to get healthy again.
Just so you know, I am a loudmouth class clown type. I am not a combat veteran, I served during peacetime, but, things happen and luckily the VA was there for me. I have the utmost respect for the doctors, nurses, and other people who work there, but, just as anything having to do with Government, it is too big to do, what all veterans wish it could do. In some cases, there is nothing anybody could do, except for us vets.
I served in the 80′s, Ronald Reagan was President, and at that time in my life, I had no plans on relying on the VA for anything, I just knew I would be indestructible and young forever. I was wrong. Now at 47, with over three decades of weight training experience, I find myself having to start all over again, and have joined the MOVE Weight Management Program for Veterans. After the initial questionnaire, a brief orientation, and my first monthly meeting, I found out just how limited the staff is by the rules of Government. The sad part is that it is understandable.
I was expecting some sort of fitness program, fitness evaluation, bodyweight analysis, or something, in fact, anything, but, I was again wrong. Here is what we did.
- We took turns reading a cute story about the holidays and all the food we couldn’t eat.
- We took turns reading a story about a woman who weighed 680 pounds and lost weight.
- The nutritionist asked us a few questions about the stories we had read.
- We asked a few questions, about various medications and their interactions with certain foods, and discussed it.
- Us newbies were given a pedometer.
- We left.
I think I was expecting it to at least be a bit like an AA meeting where we newbies had to stand up and say, “Hi, I am David and I am a Fat-Ass!”, or something, and then the others would comfort us saying that they were fat too, but nope, nothing. Before the group broke up and left, I couldn’t hold back, I had to ask! “Why is all the emphasis on weight, and not body fat?” “What about measuring us?” I mean after all, just because we are heavy, doesn’t mean we are solid fat, right? If we had a body fat measurement, we would know if our various excercise programs, which are up to us to come up with, were actually reducing fat, or burning muscle instead!
I was basically told that an electronic body fat measuring device had previously been requested, but, that was as far as it went, none was ever received. To this, I was almost ready to explode, and said, “Hey, a caliper is cheap, just a few bucks, I’ll buy one if it will help!” I was then informed that a caliper test was inaccurate. I said, “This is true, but, something is better than nothing, right?” To this, the nutritionist said, “The VA does not have software to track this information” Again, I said, “I’ll buy it and bring in my laptop, if someone here will do the measuring, I will record it and print it out”, by now, our MOVE class doctor had already left, and the group was gone. Was it that no one in the class had an interest? I don’t think so, they just saw that my line of questions went nowhere and that the point was obviously mute! Again, I do not blame the staff, their hands tied, kept in check by the big bureaucracy of the Federal Government. You remember the $700 hammer?
With this, you can bet, by the next meeting, not only will I bring the caliper, software and laptop, but, my camera, tape measure and the instructions on how to do it as well! In fact, I have already found the ideal application, complete with instructions, it will cost me like 40 bucks!
Now you know what MyFitVet.com is, who it is, and why it is!