[James Newman]

For an obese person such as myself, losing weight in larger amounts initially wasn't so difficult. I say this thinking in retrospect. But I remember FEELING like it was the toughest thing to do in the world. Consistency is ultimately the key with whatever you decide to do. As others have mentioned...start moving and keep moving. I like to tell people to do things they enjoy. If running is something you enjoy and you can do it without hurting yourself, do it!

For me I started walking more. Eventually I was jogging (running to me in that state) from telephone pole to telephone pole then walking the next. Intervals if you will. Then I learned about lifting weights, TAP, and proper nutrition. I have studied and utilized different training styles and nutritional strategies. Some methods, like TAP, EDT, TT, NROL, Adam's Diet, and Precision Nutrition are more effective than others. But they all work!! Each one works differently based on the person and their application. I am happy to have all of these methods and many others in my arsenal to help me achieve my goals. But I want to state this again for emphasis...you can have the greatest coach, the greatest training program, and the greatest nutrition plan in the world, but if you don't implement it...if you don't apply it, it will do NOTHING for you.

For the obese person, my prescription is simple. Find something you enjoy doing and do it. Get your nutrition under control. Let's face it, most of the time, it is a train wreck. You don't have to get everything right all at once, just start forming good habits. Form a plan and stick with it and then evaluate its results on a set schedule not ad lib. When you have consistently had clean nutrition and have been training consistenly for a year or so then we can talk more advanced stuff. But let's face it, how many people who have trained for less than 2 years or so on a consistent basis are what we'd call advanced. My hallucination is few. If you are one of these...great, just realize that most aren't. There are people who have been lifting for years who don't consider themselves advanced. In reality, I don't care whether a person is beginner, intermediate, or advanced lifter as long as they are doing something to better their health and physique and aren't hurting themselves.

Each person is different but in the end, it will almost always be a combination of diet and different types of training backed by passion and desire that will produce results.


Newman


P.S. edit as an aside to Dr. Mohr's comments on caloric intake. Dr. Mohr is more learned than I, but I can tell you what I have used with clients and what we have used with patients in the clinical setting. For weight loss in the obese class I, II, or III individual it is awfully hard to beat an 1800 calorie diet.