Expert: Linda Erwin, M.S. - 8/12/2004

Question
Thanks. I have a dietician. She was emphasizing too much on preparing meals. I told her I always ate fast foods because - I did not have TIME to prepare meals. She seems not to be able to handle quick and fast meals. My present diet is fast and easy. I do read the labels, as she told me to do so. And I have cut back SUBSTANTUALLY on the amount of food I eat. And I take a daily multivitamin with minerals. Always have, for years. Good news about my diet change, my food bill has been SUBSTANTUALLY cut, and I am NOT hungry all the time. Before, I could eat a whole medium pizza, and I was still hungry.

Something interesting about my stair climbing. I did it again today, in the same hot/humid weather. 5 times up and down. Same feeling of exhaustion, heavy breathing. But I did not sweat as much as I did the day before (?) and my pulse went from 22 beats per 10 seconds, to my resting pulse of 15 beats per 10 seconds, in LESS THAN 15 MINUTES! So an hour later I tried the stairs again, 5 times up and down, this time holding two 15 lb. weights. I was MORE out of breath, more hot, more sweaty. But, again, in less than 10 minutes, I was back to normal breathing, normal body temperature. Had several people watch me, in case I decided to faint, or fall down the stairs. They said that my steps got slower by the 4 time, but I still kept a steady pace up and down the stairs. How about that!

Tonight I have no stifness, no fatique anywhere, and I am very alert.

When I was very young, about age 7, I constantly amazed myself as to the SPEED of which I could run until absolute exhaustion, and less than a couple of minutes later, I would completely recover to run again. I thought when I got older (especially now, age 52), THOSE days were long over. I have NOT lost my ability to recover faster. This is really great!

Even my weightlifting is done faster, and with less fatique. And I sleep better at night, a LOT less tired in the day. I sleep from 10 PM to 3:30 AM. Off to work at 5:30 AM. Drive 1-1/2 hours to work. Leave work at 4 PM, drive 2 hours home (more traffic!), 4 hour evening of dinner, ect. I would drive to work sleepy every morning. Now I am awake most of the away, get slightly sleeply close to work. Much better and safer driving also!

This is very interesting... Aerobics is NOT fun, but the results are great!


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Followup To
Question -
Here is my daily diet;

Breakfast - bananna. Whylers sugar free lemonaid
When I get to work; nibble all day (no break or lunch meals)
   Saltine crackers, without the salt
   Natural almonds
   Lettuce
   Can of chicken noodle soup
   Can of french-style green beans
   I drink temperature-warm tap water all day.
Dinner - what ever my wife makes. Usually some meat with bread. Again, whylers sugar free lemonaid. Occasionally deserts such as popcorn, etc.

Once every two weeks; Dunkin Donuts plain crossant with bacon and egg.
This is my payday treat! NO MORE DONUTS!
Weekends: usually eggs in the morning. Sometimes toast with butter. Lunch and dinner is usually fast food restaurants. We are shopping and going to the movies, so meals are on-the-run. I get the kids meals to keep the size of food down. I tried the salads at Mcdonalds and burger king, but they now serve enough salad for 4 people!

Exercise update; I went up and down the stairs 5 times today. In 90F heat, 100% humidity, and full sun. My co-workers watched me do it. By the 4th time up, I wanted to throw up! 1-story building. I found that in less than 15 minutes afterwards, my pulse went back to normal and my breathing went back to normal. WHILE climbing, very unpleasant. I also lift weights daily, Mon-Fri, 270 lbs. total. And on sunday I lift heavy weights. I still do the step, 60 seconds and I am exhausted, so I do it 2-4 times a day.
I am loosing 1-2 pounds of weight a month.



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Followup To
Question -
Sure
I am a 52-year-odl male. 6'2". 293 lbs. I have 28% body fat. My goal is 15%. My weight loss goal is down to 225 lbs. Primarly hips and stomach. I have been weightlifting for 17 years. NEVER did aerobics, until now. I do the aerobics at work, during two 15 minute breaks, 9 and 1 PM, and 11-11:30 AM lunch. NO other time available. Sunday I do the weightlifting for about an hour. I added aerobics to my weightlifting.

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Followup To
Question -
I have trouble with aerobics. I get tired quickly when I do it. I am trying different aerobics to see which one I can do. Goal: weight loss. I am now trying The Step. It seems to be OK, not so tiring. I find that I have to step 10 times with my left foot, then step 10 times with my right foot. Doing 1 foot continuously causes pain.

Is The Step a good aerobics choice? My heartbeat is 17 beats per 10 seconds. With jumprope it was 20 beats per 10 seconds. BOTH The Step and jumprope I have to quit after 60 jumps or steps, pause, jump or step again, pause, then jump or step again. I am exhausted at that point. But about an hour later, I can repeat everything again. How many times, or minutes should my goal be, per day?

Thanks for the help.
Answer -
Hi David,
It takes time to get your endurance and strength to a point where you can complete a whole class without feeling exhausted.  If you are doing step, do it without risers so you can last longer.  The instuctor should not be doing repetitive movements on 1 foot for very long.  10 steps on the same foot/same move might be too much.  Try a different beginning instructor.  Jumping rope is tough for all of us to sustain.  How about finding a walking group, low impact aerobics, aqua aerobics, etc. that can start you off at a comfortable pace.  We all want fitness abilities yesterday but it does take time, consistency, and effort.  Try to do it 4-6 times per week.  If you get exhausted after 10 minutes, slow down and walk around and then continue.  Before long, you will see a major improvement in your stamina.
I don't know your age, history, weight, etc. so I am making a general statement.  Always check with your physician to make sure there isn't anything medically wrong with you.  It could be a physical problem you aren't aware of.
Good luck and hang in there.  You will love the results--just be safe and don't push yourself to the point of injury.
Linda
Answer -
Hi David,
Thanks for following up with me.  It sounds as though you are doing your best to lose that weight.  You didn't tell me about your food plan which is critical to losing that fat weight.  The most important way to lose fat is to take in less calories that you put out.  Aerobic exercise will help you burn those calories and rev up your metabolism.  Try walking for 30 minutes...the key is to do something aerobic...cycling, walking, step, swimming, for as long as possible.  You don't really get into fat burning until 25 minutes into your aerobic exercise.  The key is to keep up your workouts until you build the endurance to go for 45 minutes to an hour.  That doesn't happen overnight.  It didn't take you 1 week to gain that weight so give it some time.  The best fat weight loss is 2-3 lbs per week.  It can be frustrating but be consistent.  In six weeks, you will notice a huge difference in your strength and endurance.  You won't be out of breath and going up stairs will be a lot easier.  Keep a food diary and see what you can cut out that is high calorie and not nutritious.  We all need to watch our health--keep our cholesterol lowered and our sugar intake low to prevent diabetes.  
Good luck and write me back in a few weeks to let me know how you are progressing.
Linda
Answer -
Hi David,
Your diet sounds interesting...kidding.  Actually you could improve on your nutrition.  I would recommend getting a consult with a registered dietician who could put you on a better food plan that would get you all your fiber, vitamins/minerals, etc.  Are you taking a multivitamin?  Walking up and down stairs in that heat sounds scary.  I hope you didn't get dehydrated.  I would suggest that you cut back on weight training and do more aerobic activity but at a slower pace so you can get more time in without exhaustion.  

Don't give up.  I admire your committment.
Linda

Answer
David,
I'm curious as to where you live.  The commute sounds horrible every day and it doesn't sound like you get enough sleep.  You are amazing in that you keep plowing through no matter what.  There are plenty of dieticians out there and some that can help you vary your diet of fast food.  I am your age and love aerobics.  Been teaching aerobics for 20 yrs.  I currently teach spin classes and step/muscle.  The spin classes are great for burning fat and calories.  Try one...it might take 3 classes to get used to the bike seat but you will like the results.
Good luck to you and be careful!
Linda