9 ms·

I'm 63 and a bit overweight. But I have lost 50 lbs in the last 2 years. Wife and I try to exercise for 50 to 70 minutes a day Monday-Friday. We are up at 4:

I'm 63 and a bit overweight. But I have lost 50 lbs in the last 2 years. Wife and I try to exercise for 50 to 70 minutes a day Monday-Friday. We are up at 4:30 am and at the gym at 5:10. We feel better doing this for ourselves. Some weekends we go to the gym and usually, when we do we stay longer. I'm a believer.

Banthum 9y ago
I'm with you but why so insanely early? 6:00am is early; at 4:30 you're waking up before the crack of dawn! Heck, I'm lucky if I can be asleep by 4:30am...
- z3t4 9y ago
  you should get some routines.
- epalmer 9y ago
  Wife and I work downtown and we take are time getting ready to leave. We drive separate because we don't work near each other. I go to bed anywhere from 8:30 to 10. I like 8 hours of sleep but most nights get 7 to 7 1/2.
- epalmer 9y ago
  The gym I go to is open 24x7 and there are people leaving when we arrive and I thought we were early.
  - xarope 9y ago
    I remember going to gold's gym in austin (this would have been in the 90's, no idea if gold's is still there) at 5am, and some of the people there were already well into their workouts, if not also leaving for the day(!).
    - lkbm 9y ago
      We still have a number of Gold's in Austin, but the one by my office is 5AM–10PM on weekdays, so no one is finishing up at 5am.
- mitchell_h 9y ago
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiHHOL3pH-I https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiHHOL3pH-I Mike Tyson was one of the best mental fighters ever.
bosie 9y ago
Well done you. 50 lbs is huge. Since you are up so early and only have 40mins from waking up to gym, mind sharing your diet too (what you eat when)?
- z3t4 9y ago
  if you exercise 5+ days/week you dont have to worry about diet. its often the other way around that many people strugle with eating enough to gain weight/muscles.
  - 3131s 9y ago
    Especially so if you combine weight training with something anaerobic like sprinting. I still follow a few basic dietary heuristics like not eating packaged foods, no sodas, and having the core of my diet be vegetables with lots of healthy oils, but past that I eat as much as possible and I am very, very lean at 82 kg.
  - CalRobert 9y ago
    This is pretty much completely untrue. Anecdata, but I thought if I exercised like crazy I could eat terribly and be fine. I was wrong, and remained massively obese. When I started actually tracking my intake and eating healthier I lost massive amounts of weight, without any change in the exercise routine. It's been 10 years and I still have to watch my calories like a hawk if I want to stay below obese (I've quit trying for not being overweight, though that would be nice). I swim 1250 meters a day. Previously I've cycled 24 miles a day, or run 30-45 minutes a day, depending on what worked best with my work/home situation. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/sep/19/exercise-dieting-public-health https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/sep/19/exercis...
    - pc86 9y ago
      > When I started actually tracking my intake This is the key point. Eating healthy is absolutely a good idea and helps you perform better but most people eat a lot more than they think they do. When I started exercising I lost 50 pounds over a year and a half or so without a single change to my (absolute garbage) diet. Saying you can work out 5x week and eat anything is idiotic, but the key to weight loss is to track your calories, not to eat healthier. You should eat healthier for other reasons.
epaga 9y ago
That's awesome - but may I ask, if you're up at 4:30am, when do you go to bed? Do you nap?
- epalmer 9y ago
  I go to bed between 8:30 and 10. Depends on what is going on. My kids are grown (19, 24) but they live with us right now. So I usually want to spend a little time with them if they are around. One is in graduate school and one works in the evening with disadvantaged kids in a stm enrichment program. I do nap. Hey I'm 63. I have an office with a door at work and I take a power nap 4 out of 5 days. I love a power nap. Usually 12 to 18 minutes or so. I've been up all night tonight testing 3 server replacements from home. So no exercise today. Drinking a glass of wine as I wind down from the testing.
cpursley 9y ago
> I have lost 50 lbs in the last 2 years That's awesome progress!
pc86 9y ago
My wife and I are on basically the same schedule. No kids which I'm sure makes it much easier but the alarm is 4:30, gym by 5:15, asleep between 9 and 10, usually closer to 9. We both do a lot of weights and HIIT so try to stick to 3 days on, 1 day off. It's also helpful to have that rotating schedule in case something comes up.

Banthum 9y ago

I'm with you but why so insanely early? 6:00am is early; at 4:30 you're waking up before the crack of dawn! Heck, I'm lucky if I can be asleep by 4:30am...

z3t4 9y ago
you should get some routines.
epalmer 9y ago
Wife and I work downtown and we take are time getting ready to leave. We drive separate because we don't work near each other. I go to bed anywhere from 8:30 to 10. I like 8 hours of sleep but most nights get 7 to 7 1/2.
epalmer 9y ago
The gym I go to is open 24x7 and there are people leaving when we arrive and I thought we were early.
- xarope 9y ago
  I remember going to gold's gym in austin (this would have been in the 90's, no idea if gold's is still there) at 5am, and some of the people there were already well into their workouts, if not also leaving for the day(!).
  - lkbm 9y ago
    We still have a number of Gold's in Austin, but the one by my office is 5AM–10PM on weekdays, so no one is finishing up at 5am.
mitchell_h 9y ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiHHOL3pH-I https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiHHOL3pH-I Mike Tyson was one of the best mental fighters ever.

bosie 9y ago

Well done you. 50 lbs is huge. Since you are up so early and only have 40mins from waking up to gym, mind sharing your diet too (what you eat when)?

z3t4 9y ago
if you exercise 5+ days/week you dont have to worry about diet. its often the other way around that many people strugle with eating enough to gain weight/muscles.
- 3131s 9y ago
  Especially so if you combine weight training with something anaerobic like sprinting. I still follow a few basic dietary heuristics like not eating packaged foods, no sodas, and having the core of my diet be vegetables with lots of healthy oils, but past that I eat as much as possible and I am very, very lean at 82 kg.
- CalRobert 9y ago
  This is pretty much completely untrue. Anecdata, but I thought if I exercised like crazy I could eat terribly and be fine. I was wrong, and remained massively obese. When I started actually tracking my intake and eating healthier I lost massive amounts of weight, without any change in the exercise routine. It's been 10 years and I still have to watch my calories like a hawk if I want to stay below obese (I've quit trying for not being overweight, though that would be nice). I swim 1250 meters a day. Previously I've cycled 24 miles a day, or run 30-45 minutes a day, depending on what worked best with my work/home situation. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/sep/19/exercise-dieting-public-health https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/sep/19/exercis...
  - pc86 9y ago
    > When I started actually tracking my intake This is the key point. Eating healthy is absolutely a good idea and helps you perform better but most people eat a lot more than they think they do. When I started exercising I lost 50 pounds over a year and a half or so without a single change to my (absolute garbage) diet. Saying you can work out 5x week and eat anything is idiotic, but the key to weight loss is to track your calories, not to eat healthier. You should eat healthier for other reasons.

epaga 9y ago

That's awesome - but may I ask, if you're up at 4:30am, when do you go to bed? Do you nap?

epalmer 9y ago
I go to bed between 8:30 and 10. Depends on what is going on. My kids are grown (19, 24) but they live with us right now. So I usually want to spend a little time with them if they are around. One is in graduate school and one works in the evening with disadvantaged kids in a stm enrichment program. I do nap. Hey I'm 63. I have an office with a door at work and I take a power nap 4 out of 5 days. I love a power nap. Usually 12 to 18 minutes or so. I've been up all night tonight testing 3 server replacements from home. So no exercise today. Drinking a glass of wine as I wind down from the testing.

cpursley 9y ago

> I have lost 50 lbs in the last 2 years That's awesome progress!

pc86 9y ago

My wife and I are on basically the same schedule. No kids which I'm sure makes it much easier but the alarm is 4:30, gym by 5:15, asleep between 9 and 10, usually closer to 9. We both do a lot of weights and HIIT so try to stick to 3 days on, 1 day off. It's also helpful to have that rotating schedule in case something comes up.