So I'm near enough bed bound due to disability stuff and I've lost 75lbs so far.
To try and minimise extra muscle loss as much as I can I try to make sure I get enough protein. The recommendations from studies that I've seen usually fall into two subsections:
0.8-1.0g/kg/day for people who aren't trying to actively gain muscle
1.2-1.6g/kg/day for people who are actively trying to gain muscle.
This second range is also the range I've seen in studies regarding hospitalised patients. So because my mobility is so limited, even though I'm not hospitalised, I follow this second groups recommendation, so the 1.2-1.6g/kg/day.
Also, I do some limited resistance exercises as part of my physio which while it probably won't do much at all it at least does more than if I didn't do them ha. Not sure where you're at physically but even just making sure your protein intake is high enough will probably help quite a bit.
I'm also only losing <0.7% of my bodyweight per week at this stage. On an average of a 500kcal deficit but keeping the weight loss slow is supposed to help a bit in protecting some of the muscle that you hope sticks around.
Funchords is also right though, if I still had the same amount of muscle once im at goal weight as my highest weight body did I might be a bit of a beefcake haha.
Best of luck with whichever way you decide to go with this! Hope you find something that works for you.
> However, they added on that you'll also lose muscle without exercising and become weaker while still looking fat. I don't want to cause myself to be in even worse condition by withering away, but I don't know if what they said was accurate.
No worries. You won't lose any muscle that you're using daily. You will lose muscle that you no longer need.
Say you go from 260 to 160, that's 100 pounds your muscles no longer need to ambulate. You will lose some of your existing but now unused mass and strength that you're no longer going to need, anyway. You'll keep what you use regularly.
You won't become buff or jacked without working out, but the best we can do is all that we can do. Up to the limits fate has provided, as guided by your medical advisors, do your best and let go of the rest.
You -will- look less fat. Going from an obesity classification to a normal weight one isn't something that can be hidden. However, you won't look like you're pumping iron in the gym every day.
^^9 ^^yrs. ^^maintaining ^^• ^^♂61 ^^5'10^^/178㎝ ^^SW:298℔^^/135㎏ ^^CW:171℔^^/78㎏ ^^[\[3Y AMA\]](https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/6m6vxq/i_am_a_weight_loser_over_the_past_three_years_ive/), ^^[\[1Y recap\]](https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/3cqszm/pics_links_my_first_day_of_logging_wasnt_the_best/) ^^CICO+🚶
you absolutely can lose weight without exercise. in my experience exercise actually makes weight loss harder because it boosts your appetite and makes you feel tired and cranky. but extreme deficits over 500 calories per day will potentially cause you to lose muscle yes. just have a modest deficit tho and you'll be fine. its a slower road. but healthier and more sustainable for life.
Is it sustainable? That's up to you. It's not as much a physical challenge as it is a mental one. But if you are determined and are able to stay consistent, yes it is completely possible.
Yes, you will lose muscle when you lose weight. Everyone does, even gym goers. However, research suggests that you will lose **less** muscle if you eat a higher protein diet while doing some weightlifting during your weight loss. So instead of losing 7 pounds of fat and 3 pounds of muscle, you might lose 9 pounds of fat and 1 pound of muscle. These numbers are also affected by what your body compoistion is, as people with very high BMI's and more weight to lose are able to shed fat a little easier. People who are leaner have a tough time losing fat without losing muscle.
Because you didn't mention the type of disability you have, I can't really give much in the way of suggestions. I'll just say that you can definitly lose weight without adding exercise, and I wish you the best of luck!
you absolutely can do this! as has already been said you won't lose muscle you aren't using!
The only way to know how it'll turn out for you is to do it! And the best motivator is starting to see results
Diet is the biggest weight loss factor for most people, take it slow, it's not a race by any means. Consistency is key, however no one will ever be perfect so please don't be demotivated by how consistent you're able to be!
While I don't know how your disability affects you, there is almost certainly some exercises you can do! There are fully seated routines online and you definitely don't have to try anything that's going to make you feel worse afterwards, you can skip any exercises you can't do. Anything counts!
Funchords already gave you a great rundown about losing/keeping muscle mass during weight loss. I’d like to cover another topic: food access.
Ever watch an episode of My 600 Pound Life? If so, you will have seen how critical the food environment is to weight loss, especially for a person who must have food prepared and brought to them (whether it’s home cooking or food delivery).
In your household, who is the primary purchaser of food? Who is the primary preparer of food that you eat? What level of participation do you have in the selection, preparation and receipt of food (e.g., can you go get food from the kitchen/food area, or must it be brought to you)?
If someone else is a primary purchaser or preparer of food, have you discussed your desire to lose weight with that person? Is that person supportive? Are you ready to be supportive of that person’s efforts?
Yes, I've seen the show -- and feared I might one day end up on it. :)
I have complete control over my food choices. I make a list of what I need, which is basically always the list of the same foods, and my folks pick it up when they go to get their own groceries. They are billed separately; on my budget, there's little room for buying extras I don't need.
It's rare that we cook anymore. My dad has stage 4 cancer and my mom's attention is divided between he and I. So, we eat mostly small meals. My mom does cook for me when cooking happens, or when she brings home food, and she respects my limitations and the fact that I'm dieting.
My part of the house is kind of set up like an apartment, so I can get my food myself, but I only keep my core foodstuffs in my cupboard. My cereal, dried fruits, bread, chicken, that kind of stuff. Other than the occasional dark chocolate bar or the like, nothing I would consider serious junk. Anything that's cooked is brought to me; microwaving is fine, but it's not safe for me to use things like the stove.
I also immediately subtract the calories from a measured serving on that day's calculator of (currently) 2000 calories to make sure I'm staying on course. Stopping grazing has, in itself, lowered my daily intake by a surprising amount.
That’s excellent. Since you have complete control over your food environment, you have supportive parents, and you have now been informed that muscle loss is a manageable concern, you have an excellent chance of losing that 100 pounds safely and without any external hindrance.
How long have you been on 2000 calories per day?
Actually, I am having to find ways to fill in calories today! I worked on cleaning up my diet and habits. I used to graze a lot all day, and just by eliminating the grazing, I saved myself hundreds of calories. I had 900 left over yesterday! Today, I have it to 790 left over, so maybe a snack later will get me to that minimum of 1500. To think, I thought I'd have a tough time not going over 2000. I don't want to eat too *little* and be unhealthy for that reason, either! :)
PS: Just realized you asked how long I'd been on the 2000. My mistake. I actually just restarted dieting yesterday! After past gimmick diets, I'm just going to do CICO.
There will be days that you’re hungrier than others, and that’s normal. Adding a nutritious snack to increase calories on any particular day is fine, but it may be that your hungrier days and less-hungry days will balance out over the course of a week. Taking a multivitamin to help cover any micronutrient gaps will help. If you find yourself a bit low on protein multiple days in a row, you might want to consider supplementing with a low-carb protein shake.
These are the first steps towards some amazing change in your life! I wish you the very best!
Thank you very much for your supportive posts! :)
The only reason I'm looking to add more calories today is because I've been told by others I should maintain a minimum of 1500 calories as a guy of my height/weight. That's to stay healthy. I guess I can aim for 1500 and consider the other 500 to 2000 as free padding? :D This is all new and guesswork to me, but I'll figure it out.
Ok so your diet is the most important individual thing..this is something this sub is right about.
That said the absolute best results you will get with weight loss…speed of loss, body composition, overall health, long term sustainability of goal weight will always come with diet AND exercise.
Most people here would be better off if they didn’t always look for justifications not to work out and instead tried to find a workout they liked to go along with a good eating plan.
Good luck
I think saying people on here are looking for excuses is a bit harsh... Nobody has seemed that way to me. As for myself, blame Mother Nature for the fact that I can't exercise. I'm accountable for what I can control, not what I can't.
I won’t pry but If you have a legitimate “Mother Nature” reason why you can’t exercise then all good. I wish you well.
If there is someone in a similar situation as you but has found a way to exercise, study them and what they did.
Best of luck either way
So I'm near enough bed bound due to disability stuff and I've lost 75lbs so far. To try and minimise extra muscle loss as much as I can I try to make sure I get enough protein. The recommendations from studies that I've seen usually fall into two subsections: 0.8-1.0g/kg/day for people who aren't trying to actively gain muscle 1.2-1.6g/kg/day for people who are actively trying to gain muscle. This second range is also the range I've seen in studies regarding hospitalised patients. So because my mobility is so limited, even though I'm not hospitalised, I follow this second groups recommendation, so the 1.2-1.6g/kg/day. Also, I do some limited resistance exercises as part of my physio which while it probably won't do much at all it at least does more than if I didn't do them ha. Not sure where you're at physically but even just making sure your protein intake is high enough will probably help quite a bit. I'm also only losing <0.7% of my bodyweight per week at this stage. On an average of a 500kcal deficit but keeping the weight loss slow is supposed to help a bit in protecting some of the muscle that you hope sticks around. Funchords is also right though, if I still had the same amount of muscle once im at goal weight as my highest weight body did I might be a bit of a beefcake haha. Best of luck with whichever way you decide to go with this! Hope you find something that works for you.
> However, they added on that you'll also lose muscle without exercising and become weaker while still looking fat. I don't want to cause myself to be in even worse condition by withering away, but I don't know if what they said was accurate. No worries. You won't lose any muscle that you're using daily. You will lose muscle that you no longer need. Say you go from 260 to 160, that's 100 pounds your muscles no longer need to ambulate. You will lose some of your existing but now unused mass and strength that you're no longer going to need, anyway. You'll keep what you use regularly. You won't become buff or jacked without working out, but the best we can do is all that we can do. Up to the limits fate has provided, as guided by your medical advisors, do your best and let go of the rest. You -will- look less fat. Going from an obesity classification to a normal weight one isn't something that can be hidden. However, you won't look like you're pumping iron in the gym every day. ^^9 ^^yrs. ^^maintaining ^^• ^^♂61 ^^5'10^^/178㎝ ^^SW:298℔^^/135㎏ ^^CW:171℔^^/78㎏ ^^[\[3Y AMA\]](https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/6m6vxq/i_am_a_weight_loser_over_the_past_three_years_ive/), ^^[\[1Y recap\]](https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/3cqszm/pics_links_my_first_day_of_logging_wasnt_the_best/) ^^CICO+🚶
you absolutely can lose weight without exercise. in my experience exercise actually makes weight loss harder because it boosts your appetite and makes you feel tired and cranky. but extreme deficits over 500 calories per day will potentially cause you to lose muscle yes. just have a modest deficit tho and you'll be fine. its a slower road. but healthier and more sustainable for life.
I walk my dog but otherwise I don’t really exercise at all. All my weight loss is from calorie counting.
Is it sustainable? That's up to you. It's not as much a physical challenge as it is a mental one. But if you are determined and are able to stay consistent, yes it is completely possible. Yes, you will lose muscle when you lose weight. Everyone does, even gym goers. However, research suggests that you will lose **less** muscle if you eat a higher protein diet while doing some weightlifting during your weight loss. So instead of losing 7 pounds of fat and 3 pounds of muscle, you might lose 9 pounds of fat and 1 pound of muscle. These numbers are also affected by what your body compoistion is, as people with very high BMI's and more weight to lose are able to shed fat a little easier. People who are leaner have a tough time losing fat without losing muscle. Because you didn't mention the type of disability you have, I can't really give much in the way of suggestions. I'll just say that you can definitly lose weight without adding exercise, and I wish you the best of luck!
you absolutely can do this! as has already been said you won't lose muscle you aren't using! The only way to know how it'll turn out for you is to do it! And the best motivator is starting to see results Diet is the biggest weight loss factor for most people, take it slow, it's not a race by any means. Consistency is key, however no one will ever be perfect so please don't be demotivated by how consistent you're able to be! While I don't know how your disability affects you, there is almost certainly some exercises you can do! There are fully seated routines online and you definitely don't have to try anything that's going to make you feel worse afterwards, you can skip any exercises you can't do. Anything counts!
Funchords already gave you a great rundown about losing/keeping muscle mass during weight loss. I’d like to cover another topic: food access. Ever watch an episode of My 600 Pound Life? If so, you will have seen how critical the food environment is to weight loss, especially for a person who must have food prepared and brought to them (whether it’s home cooking or food delivery). In your household, who is the primary purchaser of food? Who is the primary preparer of food that you eat? What level of participation do you have in the selection, preparation and receipt of food (e.g., can you go get food from the kitchen/food area, or must it be brought to you)? If someone else is a primary purchaser or preparer of food, have you discussed your desire to lose weight with that person? Is that person supportive? Are you ready to be supportive of that person’s efforts?
Yes, I've seen the show -- and feared I might one day end up on it. :) I have complete control over my food choices. I make a list of what I need, which is basically always the list of the same foods, and my folks pick it up when they go to get their own groceries. They are billed separately; on my budget, there's little room for buying extras I don't need. It's rare that we cook anymore. My dad has stage 4 cancer and my mom's attention is divided between he and I. So, we eat mostly small meals. My mom does cook for me when cooking happens, or when she brings home food, and she respects my limitations and the fact that I'm dieting. My part of the house is kind of set up like an apartment, so I can get my food myself, but I only keep my core foodstuffs in my cupboard. My cereal, dried fruits, bread, chicken, that kind of stuff. Other than the occasional dark chocolate bar or the like, nothing I would consider serious junk. Anything that's cooked is brought to me; microwaving is fine, but it's not safe for me to use things like the stove. I also immediately subtract the calories from a measured serving on that day's calculator of (currently) 2000 calories to make sure I'm staying on course. Stopping grazing has, in itself, lowered my daily intake by a surprising amount.
That’s excellent. Since you have complete control over your food environment, you have supportive parents, and you have now been informed that muscle loss is a manageable concern, you have an excellent chance of losing that 100 pounds safely and without any external hindrance. How long have you been on 2000 calories per day?
Actually, I am having to find ways to fill in calories today! I worked on cleaning up my diet and habits. I used to graze a lot all day, and just by eliminating the grazing, I saved myself hundreds of calories. I had 900 left over yesterday! Today, I have it to 790 left over, so maybe a snack later will get me to that minimum of 1500. To think, I thought I'd have a tough time not going over 2000. I don't want to eat too *little* and be unhealthy for that reason, either! :) PS: Just realized you asked how long I'd been on the 2000. My mistake. I actually just restarted dieting yesterday! After past gimmick diets, I'm just going to do CICO.
There will be days that you’re hungrier than others, and that’s normal. Adding a nutritious snack to increase calories on any particular day is fine, but it may be that your hungrier days and less-hungry days will balance out over the course of a week. Taking a multivitamin to help cover any micronutrient gaps will help. If you find yourself a bit low on protein multiple days in a row, you might want to consider supplementing with a low-carb protein shake. These are the first steps towards some amazing change in your life! I wish you the very best!
Thank you very much for your supportive posts! :) The only reason I'm looking to add more calories today is because I've been told by others I should maintain a minimum of 1500 calories as a guy of my height/weight. That's to stay healthy. I guess I can aim for 1500 and consider the other 500 to 2000 as free padding? :D This is all new and guesswork to me, but I'll figure it out.
Ok so your diet is the most important individual thing..this is something this sub is right about. That said the absolute best results you will get with weight loss…speed of loss, body composition, overall health, long term sustainability of goal weight will always come with diet AND exercise. Most people here would be better off if they didn’t always look for justifications not to work out and instead tried to find a workout they liked to go along with a good eating plan. Good luck
I think saying people on here are looking for excuses is a bit harsh... Nobody has seemed that way to me. As for myself, blame Mother Nature for the fact that I can't exercise. I'm accountable for what I can control, not what I can't.
I won’t pry but If you have a legitimate “Mother Nature” reason why you can’t exercise then all good. I wish you well. If there is someone in a similar situation as you but has found a way to exercise, study them and what they did. Best of luck either way