Where do you recommend old fat folks start?

[Jovan Dragisic]

Jovan, I went on another break 3mos ago and my numbers then were:

Here is your first problem. The second thing is, you are not "fat", you just don't have enough muscle because you don't put enough weight onto the bar. I'm as 5'8'' and I weigh 112 kg, but my squat is at 170 for a 5RM and my deadlift at 192,5 kg for the same. I have a belly and fat on my boobs, but my pecs are big enough to lead the belly, because I bench 120 kg for three sets of five. I can also chin my 112 kg 16 times and I do my three sets of five chin ups with 23,75 kg. The thing is, because of my big five, my traps, biceps, pecs and forearms are so big that you don't notice the fat when I am in clothes. I got there by not taking breaks. Women are always trying to feel up my traps specifically. My weight is also coming down because I wasn't a pussy and ran my LP with a lot of food until I could deadlift four plates for a set of five - the most I weighed was 120 kg. Your problem isn't your food, but the fact that you don't wanna put enough weight onto the bar. The belly gives you some kind of better leverage with the squat, and losing it makes getting into the starting position for the deadlift somewhat easier, but this is minor unless you are a professional strength athlete, moving their kinds of weights. Stay where you are, eat your carbs in the form of potatoes and bell peppers, the rest meat, eggs and cheese and get your numbers up to grown man levels and we can discontinue this conversation. Do not eat bread or pasta until you can pull 210 kg for a single.

[Chiaki Nitya]

I don't either.

I've heard something similar before from people, 100% of the time it's someone who doesn't want to get stronger, and who is indignant toward those who do.

"You didn't get stronger, you just _________" and they usually fill in the blank with

-got bigger
-improved your technique
-started using drugs
-used a belt/knee sleeves/wrist wraps/straps
-starting following a "dangerous" program
Etc...

Imagine someone saying "Your car didn't go faster, it just got a more powerful engine, better tires, became more aerodynamic, etc..."

Also, every single person who has ever said "You didn't get stronger, just bigger" is a twink and wants everyone else to be a twink as well. For what reason? I won't speculate on that one...

[Jason Donaldson]

I've heard something similar before from people, 100% of the time it's someone who doesn't want to get stronger, and who is indignant toward those who do.

"You didn't get stronger, you just _________" and they usually fill in the blank with

-got bigger
-improved your technique
-started using drugs
-used a belt/knee sleeves/wrist wraps/straps
-starting following a "dangerous" program
Etc...

Imagine someone saying "Your car didn't go faster, it just got a more powerful engine, better tires, became more aerodynamic, etc..."

Also, every single person who has ever said "You didn't get stronger, just bigger" is a twink and wants everyone else to be a twink as well. For what reason? I won't speculate on that one...

Excellent analogy, Ryan. This all reminds me of the stupid martial arts BS that starts with, "Yeah, but in a REAL fight..." See also shooting discussions. And who would win in a showdown, Batman or Spiderman?

One of the best parts of the SS insistence on the definition of strength as the ability to exert force against an external resistance. It's objective. Did the weight move, or didn't it?

I absolutely love the fact that I can compare my 51 yr old self to my own history through absolutely objective means. Half a lifetime ago, the most I'd ever benched was 190 lbs once for a single. Two days ago, I PRed it at 355 for a double. No hypotheticals, no speculation, no contrafactuals - I am stronger than I have ever been.

And yeah, I was fat, weak, and busted six years ago when I started doing this for real. My body still has a belly, but this body is far more USEFUL. And the warnings I got (from people who couldn't exert much force against external resistances, of course) about "mobility", "muscle imbalances", and "If you keep doing the same few exercises over and over, it'll wear damage into your connective tissues!" are REALLY funny to look back on.

Good stuff.

[jmsyd]

From a 55 year old fat guy who started lifting at 50: building strength will change everything. Even though I'm still fat (down to 290 from 310 at 5'9), I have so much more muscle, and bone density which is in the top few percent for males of any age. My bloodwork is always in normal range, and the arthritis in my knee, which was always painful 5 years ago, is something I rarely notice now. You can change habits in small steps. e.g. always have eggs for breakfast, start doing meal prep just for weekday lunches etc. you don't need to change everything at once. I'm obviously nowhere near perfect with the diet, but I have made significant sustainable improvements and kept at those over several years so far. Small steps...

[mkm5]

Any prescriptions?

Before I quit doctors and prescriptions, I had a variety of issues that resolved themselves once I realized I was getting worse, not better.

One prescription in particular, Seroquel to "help" with sleep, I believe was very problematic.

I found it gave me an unhealthy craving for carbs; bread, pasta, etc. I've never been much for sugary snacks, but I went from 205 to 235 in around 6 months, and although my lifts were progressing, the weight gain was out of control.

Further research appears to confirm my adverse experience with Seroquel. It took a long time to lose those carb pounds afterwards.

[JFord]

I'm male and 43 years old. I'm 6'6" and weigh 550 lbs. I'm weak and out of shape. I played sports through jr high but never did any strength training.

1) you’re not old and you owe it to yourself to face that fact.

2) I agree with Mark in that if you’ve been unsuccessful with conventional weight loss through dieting, bariatric surgery is a possibly viable (partial) solution for you.

Some thoughts on point 2):

You DEFINITELY should consult with a surgeon. The problem is finding the right surgeon. Most of the surgeries are straightforward enough, any general surgeon can do them. The problem is that very few of them have taken the time to learn about a true multidisciplinary approach.

You need to find someone whose office is set up to do this. Mark will rake me over the coals for saying this but this may mean finding a university-affiliated program. I shudder to think of Mark’s BP if he reads this!

One of your options may be a VLCD (Very Low Calorie Diet). This can be a bridge to surgery or it may get you to a point where serious strength training will be feasible for you.

VLCDs are generally outpatient-based, medically-supervised liquid diets and are NOT without risks. This needs to be carefully explained to you. They can involve daily calorie intakes in the 300 to 500 range.

Mark is absolutely right that your problem will NOT go away with cardio. Diet and conversion of fat to lean mass (through strength training) will be key for you.

You will absolutely require a strength coach on this journey and I would cough up the money and hire an SS coach even if you have to rob a bank.

As far as point 1) is concerned, I don’t know what your family situation is but for the love of God if you have a wife and/or kids you HAVE to get your shit together. The world will be a better place with than without you.

You might want to post on the “Nutrition and Recovery” forum and have Robert Santana who’s smarter than me clear up any misinformation I may have provided.

Prayers your way.