Fuddle here.

[Fuddle]

Hi. I'm 46 and live in Ireland and my weight's become an issue. I was always a skinny kid. Only in the last few years have I grown a belly, and it's just exactly like the one my grandpop had when I was a boy. In fact it's in honour of him that I chose my user name here; they used to call him Fuddle. No one seems to know why.

Grandpop ended up with diabetes (the insulin injection kind) and now my mother's got the non-injection kind. She says she's given up "white foods" mostly (flour, pasta, potatoes I think) and she's lost a lot of weight. She lives in the US (I emigrated to Ireland 19 years ago).

Some years ago I started Atkins. The science makes sense. I like the food too. But I guess I always cheated. Not sugar or candy or anything. Beer and wine I think. (I know, just another kind of sugar.) Anyway I'm back, getting ready to start again. I've got at least 30 lbs of dense tummy fat that has to go. It feels so uncomfortable. Like it's attached to me. But it's not me.

I just ate an entire bowl of popcorn while watching QI. And I thought, well why? Because it was there? For the butter and salt? Maybe I'd better think about Atkins again.

So here I am.

I'll weigh and estimate my goals tomorrow I guess. It's a bit late and I need some shut-eye.

[Fuddle]

Good morning everyone. I've edited my signature. Weighed myself this morning and since my scales give weight in kilogrammes and in stone, I figured I should put in some translation. I rounded though.

So I'm at 220 lbs, 100 kilos, or 15 stone 10 lbs (a stone is 14 lbs). I'm sure that's as heavy as I've ever been. I know that others have "bigger" challenges but each of us is unique. And I find mine hard enough! :-(

I remember when I was 18, I weighed 140 lbs (63.5kg, 10 stone) and I wanted to be 160 lbs (72.5kg, 11 stone 6). I think going for 175 might be more realistic for me at this stage—but that's losing 45 lbs (20kg, 3 stone 2).

Today. I will start TODAY. It's 09:15 and I haven't had anything to eat today. I've just poured a (very) large cup of tea, 1 teaspoon splenda, whitened with real Irish cream.

Between 10:30 and 11:00 I'll have two eggs fried in butter with some serrano peppers.

After that... hm, how can I best make use of this forum? I know I'm going to need encouragement—my partner doesn't believe in Atkins though he'll put up with me doing it, he wants his rice and his potatoes.

[neutronnorman]

What's your body fat%?

[Fuddle]

Hey Norman. How do I work that out?

[Fuddle]

Body Fat Calculator gave me "You have a Body Fat Percentage of 31.88%."

Body Fat! Calculate Yours and Get Reduction Ideas. gave me "Using your measurements of a 39 inches waist and weight of 220 pounds your body fat percentage is estimated to be 30.20 % using the U.S. Navy body fat formula, or 30.06 % using the formula developed by the YMCA."

Lean Body Mass Calculator - Calculate your lean weight in just a few seconds! gave me "According to your measurements - weight of 220 pounds and height of 5' 11", your lean body mass is estimated to be 155.52 . Since the ideal body fat percentage for men is 15%, your ideal lean body weight is 140.98 pounds." My stars—that takes me back to when I was 18!

[sham]

Hi Fuddle I must say you have made a wise choice to start this diet and hopefully you will do really well.If you stick to the plan,drink lots of pure water,add some sort of exercise then im sure you will lose the weight really fast.Good luck with the diet.If you need any sort of help then were all here for you,all the best.

[neutronnorman]

Got it buddy. Fist off, welcome to the board. There is a wealth of information here. Use Fit Day to track your carbohydrate / fat macro nutrient ratios if you don't do so already.

Your body fat is a bit high, but luckily you are not morbidly obese. At first, the Atkins diet will do tremendous body compositional changes if coupled with exercise.

My suggestion is to focus on strength training and do cardio maybe 3-4 times per week, sustained at a moderate pace for 45-60 minutes each session.

The minute you start building muscle, the body fat % will drop down. By the time you reach about 20% body fat you'll look great. I measure my body fat using calipers and two different equations, the Jackson Pollock methods 3 and 4.
Ideally, the dunk tank works best, but is rather expensive.

So, good luck...well, luck has nothing to do with it...hard work is the key to success.

[Fuddle]

Thanks, Sham, it means a lot to have even a little encouragement!

I enjoyed the eggs this morning. I am starting my first glass of water today. It's hand-blown Jerpoint glass... holds 350ml (about 12 fl. oz) of water. Our water rains down on Croagh Patrick and is filtered through a nice new Brita.

I need to drink 6 of these glasses per day, right? 2 litres?

[sham]

2 litres a day is a must but if you can drink more than that thats a bonus.Your water sounds really fresh and nice lucky you!I drink bottled spring water or mineral water dont like the taste to tap water.

[Fuddle]

Norman, I'll readily confess I'm not much of an exerciser and never have been. My work (and I work at home and live rurally) keeps me in front of the computer most of the time. I know... that's an excuse. There' a gym in town, though with weights (never lifted before and can't say I fancy it), and with treadmills and bikes. I expect the reality is I'll have to get over my "not being an exerciser" and make an effort.

Starting my third glass of water, after a bowl of yesterday's leftover lamb stew (lamb, onion, garlic, seasonings, tabasco, dollop of sour cream).

Friday night. The weekend usually brings with it DVDs and beer or wine. Perhaps I'll choose water.