4 ms·

Don't let the fact that he was 24 deter you. Over at r/bodyweightfitness, there are hundreds of people who started above 45 and are in better shapes than 20 yea

Don't let the fact that he was 24 deter you. Over at r/bodyweightfitness, there are hundreds of people who started above 45 and are in better shapes than 20 year olds. Obesity is now a taboo topic in tech because you might unfortunately step on the toes of a few sensitive people and be labelled a fat shamer. This is not the case.Obesity in tech is a disease on it's own and it needs to be fought with a sharp edged pitchfork. We need to help our colleagues who have lost hope and given up on ever being fit again. It is never too late to get healthy again. If you're overweight and believe your work schedule cannot allow you to lose weight, give yourself a 6 - 8 month break. Step over to the r/bodyweightfitness Recommended beginner routine and make a big change in your life. You don't need an expensive gym membership. You can use the floor, parks, chairs, tables, doors, ledges, trees etc. Sustainable weight loss is achievable by everyone, whether you're 40 or 50 years or 400 pounds or 600 pounds. Consistency over time is the key!

dimgl 9y ago
Not everyone can afford to take a 6-8 month break......
- m00x 9y ago
  I lost 40lbs in 12 months while working. I did a bodyweight routine at home 4x a week for 30 minutes and calculated calories in and out. 4 months in, I eyeballed everything. I was a pretty experienced athlete in high school/college, so I knew the basics well and knew if I worked at it I'd lose it, so that helped a lot, but I didn't do anything magic.
  - chiefalchemist 9y ago
    Kudos. But the point is, you changed your lifestyle, and stuck with it. I think most who lose weight put it back on because they don't change anything. As if being thinner makes bad food less bad :)
forgotmysn 9y ago
a 6-8 month break from work? Who can afford that?
- elorm 9y ago
  If your health is really important to you, you'll take a 3 year break(Not realistic, I know) if you have to. I know people who quit jobs so they can focus on weight loss. Moved to cheap areas/countries and made their weight a priority. I'll rather go broke a few months than spend the rest of my life with mounting medical bills that pile up as a result of my weight.
  - IkmoIkmo 9y ago
    Know of any blogs/stories like that to read, particularly of people moving to a cheaper area while quitting?
JamesBarney 9y ago
"Sustainable weight loss is achievable by everyone, whether you're 40 or 50 years or 400 pounds or 600 pounds." While I applaud those individuals that have kept off weight long term, the science disagrees that is an achievable goal for everyone.(only about 5% of people who successfully lose large amounts of weight will keep it off long term) For example here is what happened to the contestants on the biggest loser. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/02/health/biggest-loser-weight-loss.html https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/02/health/biggest-loser-weig... The body will fight very hard to get back up the heavier level. It play nasty tricks such as increasing hunger, decreasing metabolism, and nastiest of all physiologically sabotage the part of the brain that is responsible for conscience regulation of food intake(it turns off willpower specifically for food).
- m00x 9y ago
  Do you have any sources for the 5%? More often than not, the cause of the weight gain is because they fall back to bad eating habits. If you can lose it, you can keep it off. Changing to long-term good habits is extremely difficult though.
  - JamesBarney 9y ago
    http://m.ajcn.nutrition.org/content/82/1/222S.full http://m.ajcn.nutrition.org/content/82/1/222S.full Here's one that mentions 20%. But that's at a year. The % changes depending on how long you follow up(drops all the way out to 5 years.). This is study uses keeping off 10% of body weight as the definition of success which is far less than the amount that it takes to move an individual from obese into the normal healthy range. If you can find a study where a majority of the individuals experienced significant and long term(3 yrs+) weight loss I would be happy to see it.
- sidlls 9y ago
  The "Biggest Loser" contestants undergo an extremely rapid weightloss regimen. It's not clear that similar slowdowns would impact more gradual weight loss regimens, or that it would affect people who start dieting at a lower (but still fat) weight.
sidlls 9y ago
Some obesity is a disease, and some (perhaps much) in the western world is brought on by the combination of available foods and the lifestyle driven by our culture as it relates to compensation and work "ethic." Quality, healthy nutrition is hard to come by in America, either because it's scarce in an area or else the basic mechanics of putting together healthy things isn't really taught or socialized. The whole concept of "fat shaming" is outrageous. It is quite hurtful and, if the object is to motivate change, unhelpful anyway. On the other hand, the concept of "fat but fit" is also not helpful. Being fat isn't healthy, period. As one gets fatter one gets even less healthy and it also starts to impact hygiene (which itself negatively impacts health).
- Blackthorn 9y ago
  > On the other hand, the concept of "fat but fit" is also not helpful. I don't know. One of my friends is fat, but she's also an incredibly competent rower (including doing it as a varsity sport in college). If that's not fit, I don't know what is.
  - cheald 9y ago
    Counterpoint: strongman competitors are often incredibly unhealthy. They are also literally the strongest humans on earth, who dedicate their lives to the singular pursuit of being able to pick up more weight than anyone else on the planet. Eddie Hall, this year's WSM, retired from the sport after achieving the win, because he has been destroying his health in pursuit of the title. Strongmen are famously at elevated cardiovascular risk, and they nearly universally require CPAP machines to sleep because their weight puts them at serious risk of death by obstructive sleep apnea. NFL defensive linemen tend to be in a similar position - very strong, very athletic, and at very elevated risk of fatal or debilitating health conditions. One can be extremely strong and extremely competent - world class, even - and still not be fit.
  - chiefalchemist 9y ago
    Of course there are always outliers. However, the older you get the less likely you are to be overweight. That is, you'll typically die sooner, not later. I'd say ("premature") death qualifies as unhealthy ;)
corpMaverick 9y ago
I discovered /r/bwf six months ago. I love it. Doing the recommended routine (RR). I am 49 and 1.72m; Went from 75kg to 76kg. Which means that I lost some fat and gained some muscle. It is very entertaining to figure out what is the next progression. I look better but not great. But I feel great.

dimgl 9y ago

Not everyone can afford to take a 6-8 month break......

m00x 9y ago
I lost 40lbs in 12 months while working. I did a bodyweight routine at home 4x a week for 30 minutes and calculated calories in and out. 4 months in, I eyeballed everything. I was a pretty experienced athlete in high school/college, so I knew the basics well and knew if I worked at it I'd lose it, so that helped a lot, but I didn't do anything magic.
- chiefalchemist 9y ago
  Kudos. But the point is, you changed your lifestyle, and stuck with it. I think most who lose weight put it back on because they don't change anything. As if being thinner makes bad food less bad :)

forgotmysn 9y ago

a 6-8 month break from work? Who can afford that?

elorm 9y ago
If your health is really important to you, you'll take a 3 year break(Not realistic, I know) if you have to. I know people who quit jobs so they can focus on weight loss. Moved to cheap areas/countries and made their weight a priority. I'll rather go broke a few months than spend the rest of my life with mounting medical bills that pile up as a result of my weight.
- IkmoIkmo 9y ago
  Know of any blogs/stories like that to read, particularly of people moving to a cheaper area while quitting?

JamesBarney 9y ago

"Sustainable weight loss is achievable by everyone, whether you're 40 or 50 years or 400 pounds or 600 pounds." While I applaud those individuals that have kept off weight long term, the science disagrees that is an achievable goal for everyone.(only about 5% of people who successfully lose large amounts of weight will keep it off long term) For example here is what happened to the contestants on the biggest loser. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/02/health/biggest-loser-weight-loss.html https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/02/health/biggest-loser-weig... The body will fight very hard to get back up the heavier level. It play nasty tricks such as increasing hunger, decreasing metabolism, and nastiest of all physiologically sabotage the part of the brain that is responsible for conscience regulation of food intake(it turns off willpower specifically for food).

m00x 9y ago
Do you have any sources for the 5%? More often than not, the cause of the weight gain is because they fall back to bad eating habits. If you can lose it, you can keep it off. Changing to long-term good habits is extremely difficult though.
- JamesBarney 9y ago
  http://m.ajcn.nutrition.org/content/82/1/222S.full http://m.ajcn.nutrition.org/content/82/1/222S.full Here's one that mentions 20%. But that's at a year. The % changes depending on how long you follow up(drops all the way out to 5 years.). This is study uses keeping off 10% of body weight as the definition of success which is far less than the amount that it takes to move an individual from obese into the normal healthy range. If you can find a study where a majority of the individuals experienced significant and long term(3 yrs+) weight loss I would be happy to see it.
sidlls 9y ago
The "Biggest Loser" contestants undergo an extremely rapid weightloss regimen. It's not clear that similar slowdowns would impact more gradual weight loss regimens, or that it would affect people who start dieting at a lower (but still fat) weight.

sidlls 9y ago

Some obesity is a disease, and some (perhaps much) in the western world is brought on by the combination of available foods and the lifestyle driven by our culture as it relates to compensation and work "ethic." Quality, healthy nutrition is hard to come by in America, either because it's scarce in an area or else the basic mechanics of putting together healthy things isn't really taught or socialized. The whole concept of "fat shaming" is outrageous. It is quite hurtful and, if the object is to motivate change, unhelpful anyway. On the other hand, the concept of "fat but fit" is also not helpful. Being fat isn't healthy, period. As one gets fatter one gets even less healthy and it also starts to impact hygiene (which itself negatively impacts health).

Blackthorn 9y ago
> On the other hand, the concept of "fat but fit" is also not helpful. I don't know. One of my friends is fat, but she's also an incredibly competent rower (including doing it as a varsity sport in college). If that's not fit, I don't know what is.
- cheald 9y ago
  Counterpoint: strongman competitors are often incredibly unhealthy. They are also literally the strongest humans on earth, who dedicate their lives to the singular pursuit of being able to pick up more weight than anyone else on the planet. Eddie Hall, this year's WSM, retired from the sport after achieving the win, because he has been destroying his health in pursuit of the title. Strongmen are famously at elevated cardiovascular risk, and they nearly universally require CPAP machines to sleep because their weight puts them at serious risk of death by obstructive sleep apnea. NFL defensive linemen tend to be in a similar position - very strong, very athletic, and at very elevated risk of fatal or debilitating health conditions. One can be extremely strong and extremely competent - world class, even - and still not be fit.
- chiefalchemist 9y ago
  Of course there are always outliers. However, the older you get the less likely you are to be overweight. That is, you'll typically die sooner, not later. I'd say ("premature") death qualifies as unhealthy ;)

corpMaverick 9y ago

I discovered /r/bwf six months ago. I love it. Doing the recommended routine (RR). I am 49 and 1.72m; Went from 75kg to 76kg. Which means that I lost some fat and gained some muscle. It is very entertaining to figure out what is the next progression. I look better but not great. But I feel great.