Putting ON weight!

[moonwolf]

I seem to have the opposite issue to the majority of society in that I have trouble MAINTAINING my weight.
I have always been like this, but it does get me down.
In younger years, when I knew no better I filled myself up on chocolate bars, stout to drink and takeaways on top of my meals and guess what? I hardly put on a pound!

I had food allergy testing done and despite cutting out wheat, sugar and most dairy I maintained and even managed to put on a little weight.

I'd really like some advice on this.........

moonwolf

[ross]

Hi Moonwolf

Surprisingly enough - that is quite a common scenario - the thing is, most people just carry on shoving down choccy, crisps and cola because they do not get the aesthetic feedback that most people get (i.e. they don't get fat - so they must be healthy).

Personally, I am fairly similar. It is not as extreme as your case seems to be but I do have a lot of difficulty putting on weight (especially muscle weight which I REALLY have to work at).

What is your diet currently? If you give us an average good day and an average bad (unhealthy) day then it will be a lot easier to see what might help.

Cheers
Ross

[moonwolf]

Hi Ross,

Thanks for your reply.

My current diet goes something like this. I don't really have 'good' days and 'bad' days because I kicked the sugar thing 10 years ago and have never gone back. My diet is pretty consistent each day - you know how us humans like our familiarity!

But from an alkaline take it is very :oops:

Breakfast:
Porrage made with water, apple, apricots or raspberries and live natural yogurt

snack
fresh fruit and yogurt

lunch
jacket potato, lentils and stir fried vegetables or some kind of pulse and veg soup and rye crackers

snack
fresh fruit and yogurt or a couple of rye crackers with lentils

dinner
either the same as breakfast or rice and veggies

I am totally new to the alkaline ideas; is my diet really unbalanced on that front?
I'd love some suggestions, say 3 ideas for each meal to get me started if anyone fancies writing some up :)

I'm guessing some seeds and things like avocados might be good for me? And what is the take on soy products such as soya milk and tofu I bought some the other day but haven't tried them yet :?

best wishes
MoonWolf

[ross]

Hi Moonwolf

Good news is - you are probably 90% of the way there already! That you are not putting a great deal of weight on is a far better scenario than packing on pounds because of eating sugar, bad fats and lots of dairy.

What is your weight at the moment and what is your aim? Do you do any exercise?

Probably the single biggest thing I would do right now would be to add some 'good fats' to your diet. Get yourself some Udo's Choice and start taking this three times per day. I can see almost zero omega 3 in your diet which is a slight problem (but not an uncommon one).

I also have no idea if you are male or female - but you should work out your calorie intake over the course of a week and average it out.

I know Dr Young says 'forget counting calories' and all that la de da, but that is because his books are predominantly aimed at people trying to lose weight.

If you want to gain or maintain weight you have to consume more than you expend. It is as simple as that.

Regarding tofu and soy -- personally I use both, because I do a lot of weight training and they provide me with a decent source of protein. Always, always look for unsweetened, malt-free, sugar free soy milk and pure, unflavoured, untampered tofu.

You should be getting some ok amounts of protein from the lentils, porrige and pulses - especially if you are not doing much exercise at the moment. If you are then your intake might need to go up a little bit.

Does this make sense?

Sorry - I am asking for more information again :)

Ross

[moonwolf]

Hi Again Ross,

I surely appreciate your time!

Good to know I am 'probably 90% of the way there already' - thanks for the validation on that. Diet is such a minefield sometimes!

What is your weight at the moment and what is your aim? Do you do any exercise?

Ugh, I hate talking about my weight. Anyway, I am 98lbs and would like to put on at least 14lbs. I don't do ANY exercise. Atm, I am reupperating (from M.E.) and feel very unfit, so I need to begin a gentle regime, but I feel locked in a loop of no energy and feeling rubbishy. The shortest walk tires me out and my resting heart rate is high, so I really don't know where to start. I suffer from panic attacks too, so it's a double edged sword; if my heart starts to rise, say from doing some exercise, then I start to feel scared..............
I feel I need to build up muscle and strengthen my heart, so how would I begin that?

I understand what you are saying about the omegas in my diet. Apart from supplementation - what are beneficial foods for this?


I also have no idea if you are male or female - but you should work out your calorie intake over the course of a week and average it out.

I am female and my average daily intake is around 2300 calories. A weird old thing, metabolism, isn't it?!
I cannot imagine for one minute that I expend that many calories, but I am a worrier, so perhaps I worry it away LOL!

I have found a great source of tofu that is demeter and has nothing added to it. Likewise I have found an organic, unsweetened soya milk - just soy beans and water. I was thinking of getting some soya beans to snack on too............

Thanks for your time and dedication to this forum

MoonWolf

[ross]

Hi again Moonwolf

I will have to be quick now as I am about to go to sleep - but I just wanted to post this so that you had something to go and research while I am having a kip.

For exercise - I highly, highly, highly recommend rebounding. It is basically just jumping up and down on a mini trampoline - but it is an amazing aerobic workout. It is also completely controllable in terms of effort and is almost zero impact.

I have written briefly about it here:

http://www.energiseforlife.com/rebounding_benefits.php

But I also recommend you do some further research because I have barely scratched the surface in that article.

Also - look into getting a heart rate monitor. This will be invaluable to you as you start exercising because it will allow you to make sure you stay in the correct heart rate zone and do not get your heart rate up too high.

Anyway, z time for me now - let me know how you get on!

Cheers
Ross

p.s. I just remembered these resources I wrote a short while ago too, there might be some useful stuff in there too

http://www.energiseforlife.com/tony_robbins_ten_day_challenge.php

[moonwolf]

Hi Ross,

Thanks so much for your response. It was fascinating about your suggestion for rebounding, as I have felt really drawn to getting one of those little gadgets and bouncing away. :D

When I look through a catalogue here, I can see a rebounder for #17 and others are over 100. Is a cheap on ok to start with? I think what I want to know is, what do you get for your money? At 98lbs I'm not going to put much strain on the thing I guess LOL!
But if it would be detrimental or a waste of money to get a cheaper one, I'd like to be empowered with that information.

Can you explain to me in early stages of beginning exercise, and recupperating stages where I would ideally have my heart rate when working out and for how long I would maintain that?
I honestly think I could manage about 2-3 minutes at the most at the moment :oops:

However, as we move into the end of this year and the beginning of next, this (sorting out my diet and fitness levels) is my goal, so I'm feeling optimistic.
I love music and can't help moving to it, so does dancing around the kitchen count??!!

Have a wonderful day; we've had perfect autumn weather here - bright sun, blue skies and frost on the ground - you can't beat that :wink:

MoonWolf

[ross]

Hi MoonWolf

For your heart rate zone I posted some info here: http://www.energiseforlife.com/tony_robbins_aerobic_power.php

But here it is for convenience:

Calculating your Heart Rate Zones

The method for calculating your heart-rate zones according to Stu is to subtract your age from 180. This defines your uppermost limit before you start burning sugar instead of fat. Have you ever finished a run and felt dizzy and queasy? This is because you were burning sugar instead of fat! When exercising at this level, the exercise actually becomes anaerobic instead of aerobic and serves more to increase muscle strength/capacity. Indeed, while training above this zone has many benefits and uses as part of a wider training regime - it is far too intense while detoxing.

The fat burning zones are broken down into three stages, at the lowest level of intensity is the warm-up zone, followed by the mostly aerobic pace (MAP) and then the most efficient pace (MEP). MAP is the zone where the most fat burning takes place and it is within this zone that you should concentrate your efforts whilst detoxing in order to give yourself a work-out and to help flush your lymphatic system.

Using myself as an example:

180 - my age (25) = 155

MEP Upper Limit = 155
- 10 = 145
MEP Lower Limit = 145

MAP Upper Limit = 145
- 10 = 135
MAP Lower Limit = 135

-10 = 125
Warm-up Zone = 125-135

Unless you run frequently, it will probably be fairly difficult to keep within the warm-up and MAP zones whilst running and therefore you may need to intersperse your running with walking, perhaps for 200 meters every kilometer in order to keep your heart-rate down.

Knowing your Heart Rate

Obviously, the best way to know your heart-rate is to wear a heart-rate monitor. However, if you do not own one of these, you can still roughly estimate which zone you are in using the following guidelines:

Signs of being in MAP or MEP:

- you can still talk normally without being short of breath
- your vision is clear and you have heightened senses of smell and sight
- you are in a steady, comfortable rhythm
- you would rate your level of intensity somewhere between 4 and 7 (at the very most)

Signs of being out of the fat-burning/aerobic zone:

- you are short of breath, especially when talking
- you may feel dizzy or nausea
- you do not feel comfortable
- you are looking forward to finishing!
- you would rate your level of intensity as above 7

With regards to quality - I guess it is up to you as to how much you want to spend. My advice would be to go for the best that you can afford - the cheapest ones will not offer you the best support and are likely to wear out pretty quickly.

We heartily recommend:
http://www.energiseforlife.com/item--Pro-Bounce-Folding-Trampoline--JBP0016.html

In fact, we donated one of those to Priscilla at Bouncing for Breast Cancer:
http://www.bouncingforbreastcancer.org/

...and she has bounced well over a million bounces and carted that rebounder all over the world and it is still in one piece! I even saw it with my own eyes when she brought it out to Sydney and it was fine! I even had a bounce myself (http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1702/2464/1600/Ross%20Sydney.jpg heh)

If that one is too expensive for you - try the Reebok one which is a bit cheaper but still ok. The only downside of the reebok one is that it does not fold away so storage can be problematic!

Let me know how you get on and if you have any questions just holler!!!

Ross

[moonwolf]

fabuloso! Thanks so much - Folding for storage is an issue for me and it's something I hadn't thought about, so thanks........... :)
Good info on the heart rate too.

Have a lovely day
MoonWolf

[ross]

Hi mooonwolf

No problem! When I first started exercising I thought there was no way I would be able to exercise for any more than 15 minutes at a time - but when you regularly work out in your aerobic zone you find that your fitness levels and aerobic capacity improve dramatically.

What I also found was that before when I used to go running I would instantly put myself above my heart rate zone and wonder why I was knackered! When you slow down and take things at a steady pace it becomes much more enjoyable, beneficial and cleansing.

Oh, and addctive :D

Let us know how you get on!
Ross

[sunflower]

Ross I have a silly question to ask but as I am thinking of purchasing a rebounder I need to know :roll:

Is it safe to use indoors?
Is it possible to reach the ceiling?

Also lots of good wishes to you Moonwolf!

[ross]

Hi Sunflower

Heh - the only silly question is the one that wasnt asked....(or something to that effect)

Rebounders are good for indoor and outdoor use - I have only ever used mine indoor ('cos I would be scared of bouncing off my balcony) - but I have bounced on Priscillas and others rebounders outdoors!

In fact, I think Callum always bounces outdoors.

Ross

[sunflower]

Thanks Ross!

You did make me smile when you said you would be frightened of falling off your balcony :wink:

I think a rebounder will be going on my Christmas list this year!

[ross]

Thanks Ross!

You did make me smile when you said you would be frightened of falling off your balcony :wink:

I think a rebounder will be going on my Christmas list this year!

seriously - i bounce really high!

[moonwolf]

Well, I've got a rebounder! Dd was going to ask santa for a trampoline, so it's in her room and we share it!

I'm LOVING it! I'm a gal who loathes exercise and I turn it into a fun thing - when I settle dd for the night, I bounce on the rebounder while she plays 'teacher' and I am doing my PE lesson.
I'm doing about 3 minutes :oops: but you wouldn't believe how good I feel about that - I used to feel exhausted just walking up the stairs.

I feel so much happier in myself from this simple daily achievement. I've found a great liking for sprouted alfalfa too. I've been buying it ready sprouted, but have now sorted out a jar and seed and am about to grow my first batch tonight :D

Thanks so much for all your help, Ross. I'm well on my way to my 2007 goal of personal fitness and feeling better about myself - Yay!

I hope you get a rebounder for Christmas, Sunflower. I shall keep my fingers crossed for you!

moonWolf

[ross]

Hey Moonwolf

That is great news! You sound extremely energised and happy! Superb!

No problem on the help - it's what I'm here for!

I hope you have a great time bouncing!

Ross