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Getting started (help)

New to fitness training and need help figuring out where and how to start.

DanEffler
DanEffler g Daniel Effler
8 Post(s)
8 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: September 9, 2018
Posted

Hello everyone!

So this is my first post on here and thus I guess I should give a little introduction for myself. My name is Daniel and I have not done any kind of training since I was a kid, and that was Taekwondo. I have had several setbacks and have decided that it is time to make a new life for for myself. But I am quite overwhelmed by the amount of info I am taking in and have no idea where to start .

 

Some basic info.

(Results PDF screenshot below)

I lost my colon due to Crohn's disease four years ago and wear an appliance (aka ostomy bag). The doctors asuras me that it should not interfere with exercise (though running can be an issue) and the lifting restrictions from the surgery has been lifted. My abdominal muscles was split from about 2" above my belly button all the way down for when the removed my colon. 

 

I also had a stroke earlier this year. It did not impede any major muscle function or mental ability, but it did reduce tactile feeling. The neurologist believes the stroke has only caused superficial nerve function damage. I have some numbness in my right side and feel some weakness in my right quadricep especially. I have no real loss of strength but the muscle feels fatigued easily. The neurologist believes exercise may improve some of these issues. 

 

As far as my diet goes due to my ostomy I have a few restrictions especially with raw fruits and vegetables. What it boils down to is if it can cause an impaction I supposed to avoid it. I have a list of foods to eat and not to eat from my nutritionist.

 

Anyway I hope all of this information helps and you all can point me in the right direction. 

Scott_Herman
Scott_Herman a Scott Herman
7.1K Post(s)
7.1K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
Posted By: DanEffler

Hello everyone!

So this is my first post on here and thus I guess I should give a little introduction for myself. My name is Daniel and I have not done any kind of training since I was a kid, and that was Taekwondo. I have had several setbacks and have decided that it is time to make a new life for for myself. But I am quite overwhelmed by the amount of info I am taking in and have no idea where to start .

 

Some basic info.

(Results PDF screenshot below)

I lost my colon due to Crohn's disease four years ago and wear an appliance (aka ostomy bag). The doctors asuras me that it should not interfere with exercise (though running can be an issue) and the lifting restrictions from the surgery has been lifted. My abdominal muscles was split from about 2" above my belly button all the way down for when the removed my colon. 

 

I also had a stroke earlier this year. It did not impede any major muscle function or mental ability, but it did reduce tactile feeling. The neurologist believes the stroke has only caused superficial nerve function damage. I have some numbness in my right side and feel some weakness in my right quadricep especially. I have no real loss of strength but the muscle feels fatigued easily. The neurologist believes exercise may improve some of these issues. 

 

As far as my diet goes due to my ostomy I have a few restrictions especially with raw fruits and vegetables. What it boils down to is if it can cause an impaction I supposed to avoid it. I have a list of foods to eat and not to eat from my nutritionist.

 

Anyway I hope all of this information helps and you all can point me in the right direction. 

@DanEffler Welcome to the site Daniel!

 

You've obviously been through the wars a bit, but it's good to see you working on living a healthy lifestyle!

 

So I see your goal is fat loss, which is great! Your intake goal looks right for that. However, will you want to build muscle at all? Because if you do, then you may as well start that now as well, while you're in the peak of your newbie stage of lifting (rather than cutting first, THEN bulking.. as a newbie you can hopefully do a little bit of both!).

 

The only thing I would change a little bit with your macros is the fat and carbs - take the fat up to around 80g for now, and just reduce the carbs to keep the calories the same. So if you did boost the fat to 80g, you would probably cut the carbs back to 190g - 210g to keep calories more or less the same.

 

If you decide you DO want to build muscle while losing fat, then try eating at maintenance (about 2600-2700 calories on workout days). In which case you would simply increase the fats and leave the carbs as they are.

 

Have you looked at any of the programs to see what might suit you the best?

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DanEffler
DanEffler g Daniel Effler
8 Post(s)
8 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: September 9, 2018
Posted

Yes I would like to put on some muscle too. Since I was also wanting to lose fat I was not sure which to pick. Thanks for the imput!

 

Well I will be working from home mainly. I can find a gym to go to on the weakends but I'm an hour away from any where I live. I have been looking on Craigslist for some cheep weights and stuff that people have decided they don't need.

 

I have also been looking at some of your at home programs and workouts. The one I have really been looking at is the one in the exclusive content section labeled "shred home edition" to get started with.

 

I'm not 100% sure how I structure it yet lol.

 

On a side note I went grocery shopping today and have updated my pantry to be a little healthier. I hate giving up chips and cookies but some sacrifices must be made. Lol

 

I work usually 6 days a week 10-12hr a day and I am sad to say that 75% of what I have been eating is fast food and junk.

 

I thought about picking up some supplements but after watching some of your videos I believe I will wait a little on that until I have my diet fixed and see that I need them.

Scott_Herman
Scott_Herman a Scott Herman
7.1K Post(s)
7.1K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
Posted By: DanEffler

Yes I would like to put on some muscle too. Since I was also wanting to lose fat I was not sure which to pick. Thanks for the imput!

 

Well I will be working from home mainly. I can find a gym to go to on the weakends but I'm an hour away from any where I live. I have been looking on Craigslist for some cheep weights and stuff that people have decided they don't need.

 

I have also been looking at some of your at home programs and workouts. The one I have really been looking at is the one in the exclusive content section labeled "shred home edition" to get started with.

 

I'm not 100% sure how I structure it yet lol.

 

On a side note I went grocery shopping today and have updated my pantry to be a little healthier. I hate giving up chips and cookies but some sacrifices must be made. Lol

 

I work usually 6 days a week 10-12hr a day and I am sad to say that 75% of what I have been eating is fast food and junk.

 

I thought about picking up some supplements but after watching some of your videos I believe I will wait a little on that until I have my diet fixed and see that I need them.

@DanEffler Awesome man, I'd say definitely start with the home program then if you are training from home. You'll still build a foundation of muscle with that program as a beginner! All you need is a pair of 5lb or 10lb dumbbells. WIth the structure, just follow the calendar!

 

With your diet, keep in mind.. everything in moderation. I wouldn't suggest necessarilly aiming to make junk part of your diet.. just that if you happen to have some at some point, it's not bad if it's a little bit, and as long as you keep yourself in a calorie deficit with your macros on point.

 

Try aiming for 80% 'good' foods, and then if 20% of your diet is 'bad' food, that will be a big positive change from your current diet!

 

Definitely wait on the supplements. Get the overall @mealplan under control first!

Need 1 on 1 coaching? Send me a direct message to learn more!
DanEffler
DanEffler g Daniel Effler
8 Post(s)
8 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: September 9, 2018
Posted

@scott_herman this meal plan stuff is rough. Lol

 

I'm trying to learn how to hit my macros and I think I'm making progress but I'm afraid I'll falling short on protein.

This is an example of what I have/have planned to eat today and although I'm doing ok if not over on fat, I'm about 40 Cal. short on protein.

 

Do you have any suggestions to help improve this?

Scott_Herman
Scott_Herman a Scott Herman
7.1K Post(s)
7.1K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
Posted By: DanEffler

@scott_herman this meal plan stuff is rough. Lol

 

I'm trying to learn how to hit my macros and I think I'm making progress but I'm afraid I'll falling short on protein.

This is an example of what I have/have planned to eat today and although I'm doing ok if not over on fat, I'm about 40 Cal. short on protein.

 

Do you have any suggestions to help improve this?

@DanEffler This doesn't look too bad. Most of your nutrition is coming from good, wholesome sources. Honeslty I wouldn't worry too much about your protein being 40 calories off.. that's only 10g. Typically I would say you can give yourself 5 - 10g either side of your target number (so you can go a little higher or a little lower and it won't be a big deal).

 

If you are worried about it though, you can simply add another half scoop of protein powder, a bit more chicken, or a bit more Greek yoghurt to make up what you're missing.

 

As for fat, that's also not a bad thing that it's higher because your carbs are lower. That can be good for fat loss so if you're happy with that higher fat diet, go for it!!

Need 1 on 1 coaching? Send me a direct message to learn more!
DanEffler
DanEffler g Daniel Effler
8 Post(s)
8 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: September 9, 2018
Posted
Posted By: Scott_Herman

@DanEffler This doesn't look too bad. Most of your nutrition is coming from good, wholesome sources. Honeslty I wouldn't worry too much about your protein being 40 calories off.. that's only 10g. Typically I would say you can give yourself 5 - 10g either side of your target number (so you can go a little higher or a little lower and it won't be a big deal).

 

If you are worried about it though, you can simply add another half scoop of protein powder, a bit more chicken, or a bit more Greek yoghurt to make up what you're missing.

 

As for fat, that's also not a bad thing that it's higher because your carbs are lower. That can be good for fat loss so if you're happy with that higher fat diet, go for it!!

 Oops I meant 40 grams instead of 40 calories. My bad. But you think where I am at is ok? Sorry to sound repetitive I just know (from your videos) that nutrition is the most important thing and I don't want to mess it up.

DanEffler
DanEffler g Daniel Effler
8 Post(s)
8 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: September 9, 2018
Posted

Just saw this video of yours and it helped answer my question. So I thought I'd post the link here for anyone else following.

 

 

Still interested in any additional input on this though. ☺️

Scott_Herman
Scott_Herman a Scott Herman
7.1K Post(s)
7.1K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
Posted By: DanEffler

 Oops I meant 40 grams instead of 40 calories. My bad. But you think where I am at is ok? Sorry to sound repetitive I just know (from your videos) that nutrition is the most important thing and I don't want to mess it up.

@DanEffler Oh.. 40 grams is quite different to 40 calories haha. So if you are 40g away from where you need to be.. then yes you need to fix that. But the same suggestions I gave above can still apply, you can simply increase the amount of some of the foods you're already eating, and / or you can add in new foods. Like eggs for example. Then you can just reduce the amount of nuts you're having to keep the fat at about the level it needs to be.

 

And I edited your original post so the video was embedded, rather than just having a link 😁 If you don't know how to do that.. you just take the copied link, click on the little icon at the top of the text box that says 'Insert/edit video' (the camera roll with a play button in the middle of it), and post the link there.

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DanEffler
DanEffler g Daniel Effler
8 Post(s)
8 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: September 9, 2018
Posted

Awesome thanks! Unfortunately as you have probably gathered by now I am not the most computer savvy millennial lol.

Sounds like I may need to eat an actual breakfast to hit my goals. But that would give me an opportunity to try your protein pancake recipe. I'm usually just too lazy when I first get up to try to fix anything lol

Scott_Herman
Scott_Herman a Scott Herman
7.1K Post(s)
7.1K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: August 8, 2008
Posted
Posted By: DanEffler

Awesome thanks! Unfortunately as you have probably gathered by now I am not the most computer savvy millennial lol.

Sounds like I may need to eat an actual breakfast to hit my goals. But that would give me an opportunity to try your protein pancake recipe. I'm usually just too lazy when I first get up to try to fix anything lol

@DanEffler Haha it's OK man, not everyone knows how to embed the videos, you're not alone.

 

Breakfast can help for sure! It's not essential, but if some morning food is the only way you'll really hit your macros then definitely get on it! Got to have that @mealplan on point to see the best results!

Need 1 on 1 coaching? Send me a direct message to learn more!
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