How and why I gained back the 30 pounds I worked so hard to lose
Cardiovascular exercise improves heart and lung health, aids in weight loss and gives you more energy. Lifting weights gives your muscles tone and definition, increases metabolism, increases overall strength and helps reduce body fat. Of course, none of that matters unless your eating habits align with your goals. These are pretty simple concepts that nearly every diet and exercise program in history has utilized. Move more and eat less to lose weight, eat more (of the right stuff) and pick up heavy weights to gain weight and muscle.
Here’s why I went from eating 1,300–1,700 calories a day and doing cardio six days a week to eating 2,500–3,000 calories a day and replacing four of those cardio days with lifting heavy things.
Food deprivation sucks
I never want to go back to typing every single calorie I eat into a smartphone app again. Don’t get me wrong, the practice has its place. It taught me portion control and was a definite aid in weight loss. But I became a slave to MyFitnessPal. In many ways, it made food the enemy, constantly encouraging me to eat less. Food is not the enemy. Too much of the wrong food is.
When I switched from weight-loss to weigh-gain mode, I made the decision not to write down everything I ate. I researched the calorie intake as well as percentage of protein, fat and carbs I needed each day to reach my goals, and eyeballed it from there. It’s not perfect; no diet is. I can eat all things in moderation (except protein, I eat a buttload of that) without worrying about tracking everything. Unless you really struggle with self-control, don’t be a slave to writing down every calorie. Use moderation. You know when you’ve overeaten or binged on sugar. Your relationship with food will be all the better for it, and you certainly won’t miss being deprived and hungry.
Also, I learned how to make a mean peanut butter chocolate banana protein shake that tastes amazing. It’s 50 grams of protein, 8 grams of fat, 15 carbs and pretty much eliminated my cravings for giant Oreo Blizzards at Dairy Queen.
Weight training is no sweat
Literally. As in you can crank it out on your lunch hour without getting soaked in sweat. Most weight training exercises take anywhere from 35–50 minutes, so there’s no excuse not to get it in three or four days a week.
The weight room at your local gym can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. Those giant jocks throwing barbells around have been at it awhile and love sharing their knowledge, so strike up a conversation about proper form on those deadlifts. Don’t worry about how much weight is on your bar. No one cares but you.
You may not sweat as much as a cardio exercise, but don’t mistake it for a walk in the park. You’ll be challenged. The feeling you get week-to-week when you are able to add more weight or more reps to an exercise is great motivation to keep at it.
Thin isn’t in
Most Americans need to lose weight, and you can and should still mix in strength training with cardio. But when do you go from weight loss to weight maintenance? Or, as was my case, when have you gone too far? Your body will usually let you know.
I went from 195 pounds on a 6' frame to 165 pounds. It was a ton of work. I deprived myself of food I really wanted and did enough cardio to make me dizzy (literally) most days. By any measure, I was in excellent shape. I hated it. I looked like a marathon runner even though I’d never run more than 6 miles in my life. Couldn’t fill out a t-shirt unless I picked it up in the kids section. This is pure vanity, but it was a lot of time and effort to look like a wimp.
Functional fitness is king. Most of us want to be able to pick up and play with our kids, go for long hikes, help our friends move furniture, the list goes on. Unless you’re a single-sport athlete training for something specific, it’s important not to neglect strength training.
Hopefully I’ve convinced you to give it a try. Looking for a weight lifting routine to get you started? I like this one. See you at the gym.
