Fat Advisors - Physically Strong

[Tampa Turtle]

Kudu, Eammon --weigh the same as 16? I hate you.

[Gunny2862]

If I weighed what I weighed at 16, My seventeen year old son would outweigh me by close to 45 lbs(he's a Varsity Wrestler, Varsity Track and Varsity Cross-country runner). My Doctor would be after me to gain at least 25 lbs to get INTO the normal range. I couldn't move half the stuff I currently can. My Philmont backpack of two years ago would be closer to 1/2 than a 1/4 of my body weight, I don't know If I could have managed it.

[Kudu]

 

Brewmeister writes:

 

"How do you encourage patrol hikes in general?"

 

A worthwhile destination and good food!

 

Backpacking is a good place to start unsupervised Patrol Hikes (and Scout-led electronics policies) because it filters out the indoor Scouts and indoor adults.

 

Back when Scouting was popular, Patrol Leader Training was six (6) months of position-specific training on how to plan and lead Patrol Hikes without adult supervision:

 

http://inquiry.net/patrol/green_bar/index.htm

 

 

 

 

[AZMike]

Some of the best scouters I know struggle with a weight problem. I generally work hard to stay in decent shape, as my job demands it and gives me the time and resources to do it, but the combination of advancing years and a slowing metabolism, the time demands of work, family, and avocation (such as scouting), and cumulative injuries (especially knee and ankle injuries) can make it hard to stay in shape as we get older. Many scouters, I've found, are excellent cooks (probably more so than the adult male population as a whole) and tend to enjoy eating their own meals.

 

But as someone else on this thread said, a scout leader with a weight problem is more useful than the gym rat who doesn't volunteer.

 

When my weight got a little more than I wanted it to be last winter, I started getting up an hour early to put on my hiking boots and some sweats and hike in my neighborhood before the sun rose, and before I ate. I would hike down the street for 30 minutes at a good pace, then turn around and go back. I'd usually bring a thermos mug of coffee with me. I'd fill the time by listening to podcasts and music on my iPod. I lost a fair amount of weight this way before I started hitting the gym again, and got to enjoy the time alone, walking through the dark streets. As pace and distance increased, I added a daypack and started adding some weight plates. It was good training for the hikes with my troop.

 

Another thing that helped me was looking at my caloric load from a weekly rather than a daily perspective, as I found trying to count calories essentially unmanageable. What worked very well for me was Intermittent Fasting, where you stop eating from after dinner one night until the dinner the next day, for a (roughly) 24 hour period. Coffee, diet soft drinks, black coffee, and sugarless gum are allowed during the fast. Do this on two non-consecutive days during the week, and you reduce a substantial amount of your total caloric load. It was hard the first few times I did it, then the body adjusted and I actually appreciated the added time on the job when I didn't have to break away to eat lunch. And then, I always got to eat dinner with the family. The fasts aren't hard, as much of it is at night while you sleep and you skip breakfast and a lunch. Vey importantly, you don't gorge yourself at the end of the fast, you just eat an normal-size meal.

 

Doing this over several months, and combined with hiking and some short weight workouts to preserve muscle mass, and I lost 1 to 2 pounds of fat a week. It's a very doable workout, and can be maintained for the long-term by switching to just 1 fast a week if weight starts to creep up. It's flexible, as you can switch to a different day if a business lunch or family function comes up.

 

All the dire predictions that my muscle would all waste away from catabolism if I didn't eat 6 meals a day failed to materialize. Instead, I lost about 30 pounds over the course since November and have maintained that weight. My weight lifts have continued to slowly increase, so I haven't lost any muscle mass (my wife says I look a lot better). And my LDL cholesterol and triglycerides have dropped enormously.

 

It's not for everyone - diabetics, especially, should NOT do it - but it's increasingly popular with people who would like a slow, steady, decrease in body fat. Google "intermittent fasting" to find more information on it, but essentially what I outlined is all that is necessary. Scouters who are looking for an achievable method to get in better shape may wish to consider it.

 

 

 

 

[Tampa Turtle]

Whatever works for you. I find I must track EVERYTHING and I weigh everyday on a digital scale. And I put it on a spreadsheet and look at trends. Whenever I don't sure enough it starts creeping up.

 

Many years of yo-yo-ing means that my metabolism starts hoarding calories even at 1300 calories a day. It is easy to blow that budget.

 

My motivation was much as Cito, I want to get in shape to do some real backpacking with my sons. Now we have three of four Scouters in our Troop all who have lost 30 pounds or more and so we do have that friendly competition and sharing tips.

[Stosh]

Then there's the problem of being 175# 6' even and 61 years old. I can't hold my own as much as I could when I was a lot younger. I can still get out but it takes me a lot longer to get from point A to point B. Philmont at age 50 was a real challenge. Training for that got me down to 165#.

 

Maybe we ought to add old people to the list of those needing to get out of scouting.

 

Stosh

[Tampa Turtle]

My goal is to get from point A to point B without a massive coronary at a serene and stately pace. I am the Turtle but I do finish.

[SR540Beaver]

I kind of alluded to this about a week ago in this thread. I've found it easier to lose weight now that my son is aged out of scouts and gone to college. I'm still active in scouts, but I'm more picky about the roles I take and how many I take on. When I was an ASM in the troop, a Campmaster, on WB staff, A Jamboree ASM and a Chapter Adviser all at the same time, I lived in my uniform. There were weeks where I had some sort of meeting or obligation every evening of the week. Trying to stick to a schedule of getting any kind of physical activity beyond mowing the lawn or watching what I was eating was darn near impossible. I'm not blaming scouting for making me fat, but the deeper I got in, the harder it was to maintain a healthy weight. It was much easier to grab a burger and eat it while driving across town than it was to make a salad, sit down at the table and eat it slowly. Right now, I'm on the Jamboree committee, a Chapter Adviser and the NYLT Course Director for our fall course. I only have to get myself around to the occasional meeting now instead of getting my son here and there for all of his scouting activities and the slow down has helped. I'm now home more than I'm gone scouting and I can more easily control what I eat and what kind of activity I engage in. Scouting didn't make me fat, but it sure didn't make me skinny either. I'm doing that on my own.

[Kudu]

 

AZMike writes:

 

"I would hike down the street for 30 minutes at a good pace, then turn around and go back. I lost a fair amount of weight this way before I started hitting the gym again. "

 

That hour of walking is probably more than enough to maintain your ideal weight without fasting.

 

The "Walking: About.Com" Website is very helpful:

 

"For weight loss and general health, the US Surgeon General recommends: "Be physically active for at least 30 minutes (adults) or 60 minutes (children) on most days of the week." This level of activity burns approximately 150 calories, which would burn 5 pounds in 6 months. This level of exercise reduces disease risks and should be considered the minimum daily requirement, regardless of weight.

 

http://walking.about.com/

 

Yours at 300 feet,

 

Kudu

 

 

[Cito]

We had a pack meeting last night and I let all 44 boys step up to the mic and tell the audience what their favorite activity was of their year of scouting.

 

I'd say it was a tie between the pinewood derby and getting outside to go-see-it, hike, bike or play sports. Nobody said crafts.

 

In any case, I think regardless of the age group one of the great things about scouting is an excuse to get out of the meeting room and disguise some exercise with fun activities. I cancelled the indoor session for tonight and we're going to take the den to explore a new trail.

 

I lost the weight for woodbadge at Philmont, but I'll also say that its a lot easier to lead fun pack meetings full of song and movement when you're a bit lighter.