New Army dude

[armyofficer]

Hello!

I have been lurking for a while and reading the great advice on here. Your forum is by far the most professional around. I am an Army Officer who has developed a back injury, and I am on the tail end of healing it up and strengthening it. Over the course of being injured, I packed on too many pounds. My short term goal is to make it back to a 33 size waist ( I am a 36 now) and down to 174 pounds. (I am 190). My obstacles in the way are: My love of microbrewery beer and soda, stress at work, and a sedentary job at a desk. My plan is currently: 1 hour walking at very brisk pace in morning, 1 hour of weight training and cardio in the PM. I have improved my diet considerably by substituting lean white meat and salad along with protein shakes instead of microwaveable food or off the shelf "quick food". I have transitioned to drinking more propel water, but giving up beer and soda are a hard thing, but I am trying. What is the biggest obstacle I should work on overcoming?

I am honored to be a part of your forum and look forward to some great advice and guidance!

-W.S.

 

[R.Lewis]

Nice one.

Sorry to hear about ur back, that sucks.

I'd advise HITT training rather than brisk walking. If your unfit then you can try jogging for a few mins then walking for a while, then jogging again.

How old are u?

what country?

 

[Hawk]

Hello!

I have been lurking for a while and reading the great advice on here. Your forum is by far the most professional around.

Welcome!

My obstacles in the way are: My love of microbrewery beer and soda, stress at work, and a sedentary job at a desk.

What is the biggest obstacle I should work on overcoming?

Of course, as with all of us, we can find something to improve with all areas, but the thing I find that will sabotage ALL is the stress.

Most people are able to brush off stress and leave work at work. -That's great. I'm not one of 'em. If you are like me, relaxation (mental more than physical) is key. Stress will foul up your metabolism and drive your workout program into the ground.

If you do not stress too bad, then sure-- get into a serious, targeted program physically and then work on the diet to fuel the program. But I know for a fact that if stress overwhelms you, you need to get that under control first. For me, Tai-Chi was an excellent tool, as well as my quiet/alone time I have to schedule for myself.

Again, wecome aboard!

 

[armyofficer]

Thank you for the advice Hawk. Going from a lot of work stress directly to hitting the weights is a challenge, and I will try to "de-fuse" first. I don't have serious stress issues, just taking my job a little too serious I guess! That's why I love this forum..listening to you guys who know what you are talking about from experience, rather than me reading a Muscle and Fitness mag that seems to be geared to selling me supplements rathen than helping.

ManofKent, As far as the HIIT training, from searching and reading past posts, I see that is definitely the most widely encouraged and effective workout. I have integrated that into my bike cardio in the PM, but I am trying to build up my back strength to be able to run again. If I go to the nearby gym, I could get on a bike in the AM, which I may do to have access to a HIIT worth machine, and then do more biking in the PM, or maybe elliptical. The unfortunate part is that with the ruptured disk, runnning right now is pretty much off the menu.

Thank you again for the good advice. Thank you for welcoming me!

-Will

 

[R.Lewis]

Cool. I would advise that you use the eliptical trainer and not the bike.
The eliptical keeps you up right and you'll be using your spine erectors (lower back muscles) in a possitive way.
Many ppl tend to slump when they are tired on a bike, this put a lot of stress on the back which is not what you want in your situation.

by all means use the bike, but keep it short and fast, if you feel any pain, dont bother going near the bike for a good month or so.

 

[Lillian]

Hello!

I have been lurking for a while and reading the great advice on here. Your forum is by far the most professional around. I am an Army Officer who has developed a back injury, and I am on the tail end of healing it up and strengthening it. Over the course of being injured, I packed on too many pounds. My short term goal is to make it back to a 33 size waist ( I am a 36 now) and down to 174 pounds. (I am 190). My obstacles in the way are: My love of microbrewery beer and soda, stress at work, and a sedentary job at a desk. My plan is currently: 1 hour walking at very brisk pace in morning, 1 hour of weight training and cardio in the PM. I have improved my diet considerably by substituting lean white meat and salad along with protein shakes instead of microwaveable food or off the shelf "quick food". I have transitioned to drinking more propel water, but giving up beer and soda are a hard thing, but I am trying. What is the biggest obstacle I should work on overcoming?

I am honored to be a part of your forum and look forward to some great advice and guidance!

-W.S.

welcome army dude! lol! if u cut out soda, that should greatly help you as well. maybe try diet soda instead, i know it sucks, but maybe just give it a try. i also have a hard time w/giving up beer, but i try to keep it to a minimum. strengthening your back is a great idea, so that you don't reinjure it, but make sure to not over exert either while trying to do so. water is great, i drink a lot of it throughout the day. well sounds like u've got a good plan going, keep at it and welcome to the forum!