Webmasters And Obesity (Being A FAT ASS!)

[MWick]

Hello Guys,

One of the unfortunate hazards of being a webmaster is the lack of movement and activity while you actually work. This usually results in problems with your weight especially if you like eating and have a slow metabolism.

Unfortunately this has been the case for me for quite a while.

Since 2001, I have had huge weight swings going from 70 KG (155 LBS) to 120 KG (265 LBS) and then back to 80 KG (177 LBS) back in 2008 after 12 months of sports and fitness. Due to a few personal problems and lack of movement, I have gone back up to 105 KG (232 LBS) in May 2011 (loosing my fit body) however managed to drop back to 90 KG (198 LBS) in July after a strict diet.

Anyway, I added a section under my new webmaster blog called FAT TO FIT (or vice versa ) where I am going to share my experiences and pictures with my fellow webmasters in hopes that I can connect with my collegues who are having similar problems. Lets see if we can get some strength in numbers and manage to inspire webmasters around the world who are having weight problems.

Please feel free to share your experiences under this thread or under FAT TO FIT section of my blog.

Thanks in advance for all your comments.

Best Regards,

Note: I am aware that obesity does not mean being a fat ass and is actually a serious medical condition. I am just merely using a catchy line to attrack forumers attention. I do apologize in advance if it offends anyone.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I agree, I have problems controlling my weight (and my BP) due to inactivity. I am no longer young enough for hard physical exercise but I try to exercise by getting out for a long walk two or three times a week (I walked over eight miles yesterday). The problem is that this does not seem to make much difference.

(and the chicken wings when I was out last night didn't help either.) :(

[wheel]

: I am aware that obesity does not mean being a fat ass and is actually a serious medical condition.

Depends on how you got there. In pretty much every case if you're a big fat ass, it's because you shovel food into your pie-hole all day long. I'm pretty sure that's not a medical condition.

I've been exercising strenuously for three years now and have taken off a reasonable amount of weight. Gone from being a big fattie to just solid/big. The one thing I haven't done that would have stripped a huge amount of weight off was to stop eating so much. Haven't done that yet (my wife is a freakin' awesome cook, and I snack too much). One day I'll get motivated and watch what I eat, then I'll move from big to trim, probably in less than a year.

Weight is simply consuming more calories than you expend. It's way faster to lose weight by stopping the inflow than it is to exercise off the weight. Simply cutting out snacks for most of us would lose a lot.

[vivalasvegas]

I try to exercise by getting out for a long walk two or three times a week

I think that's not enough. I take walks twice a day and often I run about 2 miles in the morning before starting work. Jogging on a regular basis definitely helps lose weight, especially if you refrain from eating much immediately after.

[J_RaD]

i've never been fat but the older I get the more I have to work to keep it that way. I take each morning to ride my bike atleast 4 miles. Eatting less meat and more veggies.

It's way faster to lose weight by stopping the inflow than it is to exercise off the weight

most people simply don't have the will power, its a shame.

(I walked over eight miles yesterday). The problem is that this does not seem to make much difference.

heavy lifting[work up to it] is better and burning cals then cardio.... so do both :-)

[wheel]

I am no longer young enough for hard physical exercise but I try to exercise by getting out for a long walk two or three times a week (I walked over eight miles yesterday).

I'm not exercise expert, but you've got to get your heart rate way up to burn calories. Walking long distances won't do it so much. If you're not able to do high impact, find something low impact. The low impact stuff in p90X for example will kick your butt into next week :). It's not just exercise - it's got to be a challenge, you have to push it to see decent benefit.

I use a cycling coach myself and all the stuff he has me doing is related to my heart rate not how fast I cycle, i.e. it's so many minutes at this heart rate, then so many at this.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I think that's not enough. I take walks twice a day and often I run about 2 miles in the morning before starting work.

We have to be realistic about this. It's great if you can do exercise but the bottom line is that we have to earn a living.

[viggen]

I was a big ass, till i had enough. I went to a doctor and a with him and a personal trainer i managed to get within a year my ideal weight, its not a diet, its a change of lifestyle, and even though i loose every morning an hour to the gym, i gain several hours in the afternoon back because i dont feel tired, i am more energized than ever. Great body great mind...

[lucy24]

Do they still make those computer doodads that jump up in your face every {time interval set by you} and say OK, stop what you're doing, get some exercise and I'll let you back in after {some other time interval}? If I had one, my bathroom might get cleaned more often. Exercise doesn't have to be, well, Exercise labeled as such.

Or you could swipe an idea from those Heart Association TV ads and set up an exercise bike to face your computer monitor. Attach the keyboard and mouse to suitable locations on the handlebars and you're good to go.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

Yes, I have often thought about schemes like that. What about powering your PC from a pedal powered generator so that if you did not pedal for ten minutes every hour it shut down?

Any excess power generated could be sold back to the national grid. :)

[lucy24]

!
Isn't there a classic photo of an Indian tech support guy doing pretty much exactly that? It was in an article on outsourcing...

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

And he wasn't fat!

[rocknbil]

The term fat ass is self motivating, it works!

Yeah it takes it's toll. Wised up and hit the Wii Fit . .. 30 lbs in 2 months or so.

Then I moved to San Diego, started going to the gym every night.

Haven't been doing that for the last month or so . . . spend a lot more time in the water, boogie boarding (which will lead to surfing as soon as I can afford a stick.) This is serious aerobic exercise. Good enough. :-)

[wheel]

I think it helps if you like the exercise. Maybe the gym is social for some folks, maybe the time to think, whatever. I love taking strolls through the country with my thoughts to myself - so long bike rides work well for me.

In terms of finding the time, you just make the time. I asked a buddy of mine about this once, he's even busier than I am. I asked him how I'm supposed to prioritize this over work, family, and so on. He said if you've been away and are spending some time with your family or whatever, that's the priority. But maybe after a day, then the exercise has to become a priority. In other words, you just put it in as an everyday task and if you have to skip a day, fine - but only once in a while. Other than that, it's a priority.

When my wife took up jogging, she just got up earlier. Now she cherishes the time in the morning to watch TV for half an hour or so before the demands of the day start for her. She's up and done before any of us are even out of bed.

We have set up a little gym in the house, an entire room dedicated completely to exercise and nothing else. Good quality treadmill and exercise bike (no cheap stuff). Simple set of weights. And a big screen TV. So we can watch a movie while biking (or watch a bike race) or p90x or the news, or whatever. And now are kids are slowly getting into it as well, which is great.

I also find that setting challenging goals helps for me. My first goal was a double century (100 miles day one, another 100 miles day 2) a few months after I started cycling. Almost made it, got medical advice that made me stop 75miles into the second day. Then I set a goal for the century that was billed as 'the toughest', with the intention of doing that the second year. So I tried it in the first year just to get a sense of it, and finished it. They staff were pulling up the pit stops and passing me at the end, but I finished :). Anyway, that helps me a lot - I keep up with the intervening exercise because I know on a certain day I'm going to have to perform.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I walked ten miles this afternoon in our beautiful Scottish scenery. I ended up in a village where I could catch a bus back (using my free bus pass of course). Only problem is that there is a pub there that does good real ales and I had three pints. Probably undid all the good that was done by the walk but enjoyable anyway. :)

[Visit Thailand]

I walked ten miles this afternoon in our beautiful Scottish scenery. I ended up in a village where I could catch a bus back (using my free bus pass of course). Only problem is that there is a pub there that does good real ales and I had three pints. Probably undid all the good that was done by the walk but enjoyable anyway.

Ha ha, good one! You will just have to find an even better pub 20 miles away now!

It is a problem, but really I think it stems down to what has already been said, eating right (no crisps, snacks etc) and trying to excersise as much as possible. Perhaps put a running machine in front of your TV for when you watch it or a rowning machine etc.

Good luck!

[dibbern2]

My biggest accomplishment along these lines this year was when I found a margarita mix with no cals, no carbs.

I enjoyed the research.

[tangor]

Hand up!, er... I was 321 lbs then got off butt and ended at 161 over 2 years, ie, lost another me. We can do this! Just gotta want to do it. That was eight years back, averaging 5500 miles on the bike (what the heck is that in kilometers?) per year and am now 135 lbs (what is that in stone/kilos?). And balding at 62, looking leather and lean and generally ugly these days.

Exercise is grand. Great fun. It was also a nice way to get back into life when my wife died. There are some pretty girls out there who also like to bike... This is foo, of course, but not that much foo!

[smallcompany]

Get white stuff out! White flour in any meaning, any sugar, don't forget hidden sugars, learn to read ingredients (too many rows means out from your cart), forget ordered food, cook yourself...

And certainly, try doing some physical activity.

[Leosghost]

Nothing wrong with rice..some of which is white ..

Buy fresh food as much as possible..avoid "packeted" anything as much as you can..

Cook ( daily if possible.. unless you are making salads..or eating cold..which is good for you once a day anyway )..Move..Breath correctly ( most people breath waaay too shallowly )..Exercise..and don't think "fat old thoughts"..;-)

[J_RaD]

^^^ like he said

just avoid the pre-packed food and you don't have to worry about reading any ingredients :-)

[LifeinAsia]

As someone who has exercised a lot (100+ mile bike rides, 10+ mile hikes, etc.) AND still been classified as obese, I can telly ou that exercise is only 1 part of the equation. You can exercise all you want, but if you still shovel in more calories than you burn, you aren't going to lose weight.

Portion control is critical. What you eat is also as important as how much you eat. Dump the processed foods, trans fats, and all he junk with high fructose corn syrup. Eat more veggies, fruits, fish, and high-fiber foods. Forget about going on a "diet"- you have to consider it as a permanent lifestyle change. Otherwise, you're just going to gain the weight back once you stop your diet.

Also, cardio is good (essential, actually), but if you want to lose weight, lift weights. Lean muscle continues to burn calories all day long, long after you stopped exercising. You don't have to push so much weight you give yourself a hernia- focus on form.

And when you do cardio, mix it up. Otherwise, your muscles get used to doing the same repetions and you plateau pretty easily. In the last 11 months since I joined a gym again, I took up running again (used to do 10Ks in junior high school, but haven't run anything over 3 miles since- did a half marathon this spring) and started swimming. Next month I'm going to do my first triathlon.

For the past 20 years I've been yo-yoing with my weight: lose 10-15 pounds in the summer when my riding goes way up, gain 10-15 pounds in the winter when the mileage comes down. And I had a lot of years when the losses were closer to 10, while the gain was closer to 15... I've dropped over 30 pounds in 11 months, and continue to go down.

[piatkow]

It's great if you can do exercise but the bottom line is that we have to earn a living.

You also need to be alive to earn a living.

[wheel]

You only need to find the time to exercise for a few months. After that the return benefits exceed the time cost. i.e. you should find that the exercise lets you get more things done than less.

it's the first little while of hauling butt out of bed to do something you don't really want to do, that's so tough. Get over that hump and on the other side it becomes something to look forward to. Kind of like running a new adwords campaign - takes some pain to get going but on the other side, profit.

[henry0]

I am 5'10" 148lb
daily by 6Am 1 hour cardio, free weight etc...
good food is a plus, being reasonable a must!
on the top of that whenever I may, golf the real way, walking and carrying the bag.
Due to the above I can drink my red wine that I will never cross out of my "Do List" :)

Sitting sessions: At least 6 hours 7 days a week.