Diets and Exercise Programs That Work!
 

I titled this thread “Diets and Exercise Programs That Work!” and I am not talking about Atkins, Zone, Hollywood or others. I am talking about your diet and what you eat and how you exercise to stay in shape.

If many will list their diet and exercise programs that work I believe it will help others and give everybody an idea what worked for you. I hope we can all do this without putting someone’s diet & exercise program down just because we might not agree with it.

Just like swing patterns, we must try different ones and find what works for us. I am a big believer in staying fit not only for a better golf game but for life. I did let myself slip and it was not easy getting back to where I wanted to be. I will not do it again. This change is for life!

Ok I will start this off:

I started my diet and exercise program when I weighed 247 on 9-24-08 and had 32% body fat. It will be 6 months in a few days and I now weigh 182 and have 14% body fat.

Here is what I did:

My daily diet for the first 4 months was ½ pound of Boars Head Deli Cajun turkey meat, 1/3 cup of Original Fiber One bran cereal dry (The No Sugar One), 1 gallon of alkaline water which I use some for making decaf coffee and decaf green tea. I also take a Pharmanex Lifepak Nano vitamin pack twice a day. For the sugar cravings I eat Memtos (Sugar Free) mixed berries candy when needed. As for the exercise program I trained with a X-iser 10 minutes a day and did old school weight lifting (dumb bells & bar bells) 3 times a week for 30 minutes a session.

Now my daily diet is ½ to 1 pound of Boars Head Deli Cajun turkey meat, 2 cups of Original Fiber One bran cereal dry (The No Sugar One), 1 cup of steamed broccoli, 5 bite size dried prunes. I drink 1 gallon of alkaline water which I use some for making decaf coffee and decaf green tea. I take a Pharmanex Lifepak Nano vitamin pack twice a day. For the sugar cravings I eat Memtos (Sugar Free) mixed berries candy when needed. As for the exercise program I train with a X-iser 10 minutes a day and do old school weight lifting (dumb bells & bar Bells) 3 times a week for 30 minutes a session.

Well that is how I did it.

Please post you “Diets and Exercise Programs That Work” and also let us know how much weight and body fat you lost. You’re before and after story.

To Better Golf,
John W Rohan-Weaver GSEM

My Mid-Life Crisis
 

John,

Good thread.

I'm turning 50 in a few months and over two years ago got serious about my fitness. I had ignored it for well over a decade and although I wasn't terribly out of shape, I was "skinny-fat", meaning I was carrying nearly 18% body fat without much muscle mass. At 5-9" my weight average was 175 and I was pretty weak overall.

I realized that from here on out, if I didn't do anything I was going to lose muscle mass each year and my hormonal system was going to produce less muscle building hormones as time went on. I won't go into all of the details of the of maintaining a healthy hormonal system, but it is extremely important for all men.

My weekly routine is one hour in the gym lifting weights four times a week, and I do some form of cardio/fat burning exercise 3 times a week for at least an hour. My weight lifting is heavy, intense, and includes many compound exercises. As a result I'm down to around 14% bodyfat and have gained 20 pounds. My 1RM bench press is currently 320, squats are 355, and deadlift is 380. I can do 25 bodyweight pullups and 10 tricep bar dips with a 65 lb dumbbell between my knees. My biggest issue right now is developing more core strength and flexibility to handle the higher weight loads, but I feel great and I'm building a base that will provide many benefits as I age.

I write this for two reasons; The first is that you are never too old to begin a fitness routine and see great results. The second is that anyone who tells you weight lifting is bad for your golf game is full of nonsense. They are using that myth as an excuse to avoid working out. My golfswing and game are better than ever.

I don't recommend my approach to everyone because I've made plenty of mistakes with it over the last couple of years including some minor injuries and bouts of overtraining, but if you want to maintain or even gain muscle mass as you age along with keeping your hormonal system at its peak, compound exercises are a must.

I don't worry about my diet other than trying to eat healthy food 5 times per day and consume about 1.5g of protein per lb of bodyweight. I take supplements and try to stay away from products made with flour and sugar (carbs) keeping good carbs down to about 1/4 of my daily intake. I welcome protein and healthy fats in my diet. I've increased my cardio recently to get below 10% body fat for the summer. Not looking to drop weight, just fat.

My motto - Just man-up and do it. I have to tell myself that once in a while because there are days when the gym is the last place I want to be, but I always feel great when the workout is finished.

13lbs per month
 

Thats a lot of weight in a very short period of time. Not an easy thing to accomplish, especially over the holidays.

Congratulations - you must feel a lot better.

Bagger, That is very impressive and you are correct it is never too late to start working out. I have disk degeneration in L4-L5 and have sciatic pain daily and have used that as an excuse for not working out for 5 years and just got fatter and fatter. Truth is I can work out no problem as long as I do not do core rotational exercises or swing golf club much. I thing I was more depressed about not being able to swing a golf club so I just quit all fitness activities. Well it did not take long to pile on the weight and then one day last September I got out of the shower and looked in the mirror and just could not believe how much weight I had put on. I have always been a little on the heavy side since 2003 but this was getting out of control and I just manned up like you said and got down to business.

I still and always will have some back problems but now I move and feel better than ever. The picture I posted in the thread was taken on my 51st birthday Jan 2009. I look and feel many years younger. My wife tells me I am going through a change of life and I say no, I am making a lifetime change. I won’t even mention my bench of squat weight as it is not much but I know the importance of those exercises and do them in my work out. Thanks for your post as I am sure it will inspire others to get back in the gym.

To Better Golf,
John W Rohan-Weaver GSEM

Gray Hair Disease
 

Ask any Orthopaedic Doctor or DC and they will tell you everybody our age has disk issues. Its called the gray hair disease.

As you strengthen your core, specifically your transverse abdominis, your L1 through L5 vertebra will get the support they need for weight bearing and even twisting exercises.

I workout with a Cardiologist who is stronger than I am, but he has 2 herniated disks. He turned me on to a very good Sports Medicine Doctor who encourages weight training even with disk issues. If you get a chance to work with a good Physical Therapist and/or DC and they understand the benefits of weight training, you might be able to regain most of your mobility without pain. Here's hoping anyway - best of luck.

Bfl
 

Well done, fellas! I have had good success following the principles found in "Body for Life" Two things in particular have made a very real difference. Water and sleep! I am a self-avowed night owl. Hitting the hay at a civil hour cut my caloric intake by 3000-3500 per week (approximately a pound!) In addition to that I "suddenly" had the energy to contend with 4 kids, time consuming vocation etc. There was a time that I thought I may be suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome...but it turned out to be a CSD (common sense deficiency) My point was to recommend BFL, but also to say that small changes make a big difference!

great thread and well done John.

I'd like to believe that in 6 months I will post on my own body transformation but I'm beginning to doubt that it will ever happen.

There is no questioning the effort I put in. Where I fail time after time is in my diet. I love my food and will generally go anywhere from a couple of days to a week avoiding those foods that are fattening before caving in and gorging.

John could you expand a little on what you ate each day for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Ideally you should post your food diary.

Balance is everything
 

Some great success shared on this thread! I loved Okie's reminder about the value of water (for lubrication of the joints) and sleep where the positive results of your exercise are actually manifest ( in REM you produce HGH, human growth hormone that builds and repairs body tissue). Please allow me to remind you that the core of the body includes the muscles that cross the hips and shoulders which is to say it includes the neck and thigh muscles and the pecs and back muslces. I have worked with many lumbar victims, it is how I was introduced to the golf world, and I can tell you that it does not have to be something you live with at the expense of your athletics. Yes the transvese and obliques and rectus abdominis (not to mention the serratus) are key and usually considered the core muscles. In fact they are the primary stabalizers for the front of the hip. But you must have a positive relationship to the back of the hip and that primary stabilizer is the latissimus dorsi.

There is an inherant relationship between the first cervical vertebrae (your head sits on it) and your sacrum. Once your head (the weight of a bowling ball) looses proper alignment to the hips you are carrying an exponential amount of weight that puts great strain on your lumbar vertebrae as the spine between adjusts out of sequence. Our goal is to return and maintain the natural 'S' curve in our spine that was established in the original blueprint, individual to every body. As I have said before, most of the aches and pains we equate with aging are nothing more than a deterioration or misapplication of our structure (skeleton) that we ALLOW to happen over time. It is akin to improper settling of a house, all is well until or unless the the foundation aquires an imbalance of stress and then the problems ensue.

Good job creating a balance in your body composition and now just focus on creating the most excellent alignment of your skeletal system by creating a balance of muscle tension. Don't forget that flexibility and strength are opposite sides of the same coin and to cash in functional currency they both must be present in your offering. I hope I am stating the obvious when I assume you aren't squatting with a bar on your back.

So glad to see nutrition approached from a natural, holistic, approach.

Good job guys!

Vik

Talking Back
 

Not so obvious for most of us, Vik. That's why you've taught me to use the 'Smith Machine' with the bar located on the front of the shoulders, right?

:salut:

Geometry Again
 

Yes Lynn,

Positioning of the bar, whether you are using a Smith Machine or a Free Bar, is dependent upon your alignment of the shoulder girdle. Since the magnificent loading posture of the golf form assertion creates an anterior rotation, I find that there exists a loss of flexibility in the shoulder family that creates havoc if you force the relationship in a compound movement as profound as a squat. [Take a breath.] As always, this is individual to every 'body'. While I have no shoulder symptoms (even though you would be amazed at my X-rays since I was born with some level of scoliosis) I determine my weight distribution (position of the resistance, i.e. weight) according to the activities of the seasonal activity.

It can be as easy or as complicated as you desire, based on your commitment to your objective. Ahh Shucks, I do go on . . .

Vik

Caught Me
 

Do go on Vickie

I do front squats and back squats with free weights and I've never thought about any potential damage to the shoulder girdle from back squats. Can you elaborate on the potential for problems?

Thanks,

i have been taking a serious risk . . . I actually started working out 5 days a week for the past 3 months. I had to augment the decore in the basement methlab . . . i was using the treadmill as a conveyor belt. I didn't know you could actually run on the thing.

I have been doing 40 minutes on the treadmill (hocked up a bunch of loogeez for the first month and came close to a dirt nap when I fell off of it). But I'm getting better at it. Plus I'm doing push up and sit ups and some lil' dumbell stuff.

BUT . . . . I GAINED WEIGHT . . . what's up with that????

Hey goofball . . . what in the world is going on in your avatar? Did you drop acid or something?

I'd also like to hear more about this when you have a chance, Vickie.

To my uneducated fitness brain, it seems similar to doing a bench press with the elbows tucked vs. wide.

Nice to have you back Donkey Breath.

Let me introduce you to "TGM Man" by Nick Taggart.

How could you of all people not recognize him? You been locked up in a trunk for a while, but please tell me you have the March 2001 Golf Tips Magazine article about TGM written by Andy Brumer and Illustrated by Nick Taggart.

Don't worry about weight gain, worry about fat gain.

Exercise increases your appetite and muscle weighs more than fat.
Has your diet changed for the better?

Carbs and Sugar are your fat builders. Proteins will help build muscle but can also get turned into Glucose and later converted to fat if not used for energy. To lose fat you gotta burn more calories than you consume - simple as that.

Lay off the deep fried twinkies and switch to PB-Lite. You can eat as much Pig as you want as long as you keep throwing weights around the basement.

As Bagger says, don't worry about the weight gain, are your clothes looser? If yes, then you have gained lean muscle which is very welcome.

If you're clothes are still tight, try it again with the treadmill turned on.

Squats and Shoulders
 

Ok, this is a little complicated because of the uniqueness of everyone's alignment. I will make a gross generalization but in my experience I have never worked with an avid golfer that didn't experience some shoulder displacement; i.e. misalignment. The ever prevalent anteriorly positioned gleno-humeral joint brings the shoulder blades (scapula) out of position and the upper thorasic vertebrae adapt with an exagerrated curve. Since the lumbar vertebrae are part of a chain of joint that correspond to the rest of the 27 joints comprising the spine, it, too, will adapt to the changes in the mechanical agreements; the cervicals adapt as well, we're just not focused on that at this moment.

Disclaimer: There will be people to whom this will not apply. There are also exceptions to everything so even if you can . . . it might not be a good idea for different reasons.

The best test to see if you are a candidate for back bar squats are as follows. If you can stand with an empty bar on your back (no weight plates), your hands around the bar about 6-12 inches from your shoulder, your elbows pointing down, directly toward the floor (not in the least pointed to the wall behind you), your head is lifted with no forward tilt, and you are relaxed completely in your body . . . you've passed the first test for the toughest exercise in fitness. You should be able to stand up straight with the bar across the trapezoid muscle above the shoulder blades not up on your neck not clipping the bones of the spine.

If you are unable to comply with all the criteria above you now have vertebrae that are no longer perfectly aligned to the vertebrae adjacent and the risk of disk compression and nerve impingement are unmeasurable present. The alignment issues that are represented by limited shoulder articulation should be addressed before you put put pressure on your spine. Front squats will actually address these issues and help to correct them. When you are standing under the bar (weightless) as above, cross your arms at shoulder level and grip the bar in front of your shoulders, your palms will face the shoulders. Now lift your elbows even with the shoulders and make three wishes. No really, let the bar sit on the meaty part of your shoulder at the top of the arm; not on your collar bone (clavicle). Since we are all different, your exact hand placement will be established when you are able to stand in this position with your chest to it's full breadth and your back is lifted and not rounded. Really, get an image of a genie granting a wish; just not the genie in the animated 'Aladdin' voiced over by Robin Williams, even 'I Dream of Jeannie' would be a better example just don't get too distracted.

If you qualify for back squats until you put weights on the bar then the muscles of your core just may not be strong enough to support that level of work. Reduce the weight to a level of challenge that doesn't also challenge the safety of your spine. Once you can do 12 reps with proper alignment at one weight level you can look at increasing the resistance. At the new weight you may find that you can only perform as few as six repetitions with perfect form and then on the seventh you begin to loose form, you are done with that set. Over the next workouts, as the rest of the muscles catche up to the work they have to provide you will see your repetitions come up and once you get to twelve it's time for more chllenge . . . that is if you want to keep increasing your fitness. If you compromise your form for emotional satisfaction of higher reps or manly weights you not only risk your spine but you strengthen the misappropriation of tensions and limit your progress. This is one of the primary reasons for plateaus; moving up in resistance so much that the stabilizers and secondary muscles cannot perform so you can never access the power of the muscle you are trying to develop.

Now there are a lot of ways the trainers, myself included, would manipulate this information based on the individual, their fitness level, training schedule, broader objectives, sport focus, and recovery capability (always driven by rest and nutrition). I use virtually the same exercises, at some point, with all of my clients but orchestration. application and delivery varies enough to make you wonder if, sometimes, it is true.

Hope that helps. Vik

Excellent post Vickie and very good advise.

I really don't have anything to add other than "good posture" means keeping the chest out, chin up and arms down throughout the movement. At the bottom of the movement you should be slightly past parallel. There are some who argue that this is not good for the knees but most of the material I've read counters that. At the bottom of the movement the back should retain its flat to arched position. Rounding is defined as anything less than flat. Weight should stay on the middle of the feet to the heels, never forward to the toes. Finally, remember to breath.

Squats are the king of weight bearing exercises and it could also be argued that deadlifts are equally, if not more beneficial.

My Orthopeadic Doctor just turned me loose last week and counciled me to continue doing heavy squats and deadlifts. Like your advise above, he said to make sure you limit the weight to a controllable amount and never lose good form. If necessary reduce the weight to 65% of max and do 20 reps. :shock: as this is nearly as beneficial as higher weight and lower reps.

Squats are difficult, but if you want to lose weight and build a some muscle, these are great exercises as long as you are ready and build up slowly. Its best to have some coaching up front from someone like Vickie to avoid any potential injuries.

Thanks for the great post, Vickie!

My time in the weight room has been pretty well limited to whatever I had to do as part of various team sports training. As I'm getting older, I'm finding it much easier to get injured, and my desk job keeps me in much worse shape than when I playing basketball 6 or 7 days a week!

I wasn't in terrible shape and have worked out sporadically over the past several years, but with Bagger's help and encouragement, plus your great posts here, I've been working out regularly for a few months now and am enjoying it. Being somewhat of a noob, I'd not heard of the front squat. After a couple tries (with a bout of the stomach flu in between), I don't think I like that exercise...which probably means it's really good for me :) Even though I passed the back squat test, it'll be a regular part of my routine from now on. Thanks!

Squat Machines
 

There are a few machines for a vertical squat as well. Most top fitness facilities will have one. You won’t get the balance training with a free weight bar squat but for some it offers an alternative if you do not have the range of motion in the shoulder joint for the behind the neck bar squat.