Cutting fat with a gimped leg

UPSLynxUPSLynx :KAPPA:Redwood City, CA Icrontian
Hey guys,

Need some advice - primarily, diet instruction. I want to cut the last bit of fat that I've got, and I need the fitness hivemind of Icrontic to assist.

When I got laid off a year ago, I lost access to my gym, and I became quite depressed. I stopped running and lifting because I couldn't get motivated to do it. Since starting my new job, I've started slowly getting back into running, but my diet hasn't been the best (game studios do not lend much to healthy lifestyles) and I managed to gain a little weight over the last 8 months.

Three weeks ago, I began what I was calling Operation Bring It. The idea was simple - smarter diet, proper protein and nutrients, and running 4-5 times a week. 2 miles up and over a significant incline two-ways. It was similar to how I used to run in Indiana and lost all the initial weight, just with smarter diet.

Then the car accident in Detroit. My right ankle is badly sprained and bruised, and my left heel is bruised beyond the point of being able to put pressure on it without excruciating pain. My right leg is still sore from being tensed up on impact. Basically, I'm done running for awhile. Doctor has advised me to stay away from most walk/run based activities, and I probably won't be physically able to run for at least a month.

So what would you guys recommend for me to do to cut weight without being able to do heavy cardio? I'm not able to hit bikes just yet, I might be able to in a couple weeks, but I'm not going to push my luck. I also don't have access to a gym at the moment, but I can fix that. I'm mostly looking to diet - while I'm mostly stuck in a chair, what can I be doing to improve my health and lose some of this fat?

I've had some thoughts on a low carb diet, perhaps even try keto considering the success others have found with it. If I have diet instruction, I will stick to it no problem. I just need to know where to start.

halp plz.

Comments

  • TeramonaTeramona Consulting Tea Specialist Best Coast! Icrontian
    edited November 2012
    I can't offer any advise on the diet as I am apparently retarded when it comes to food, but I think that swimming laps would be perfect for you. I dated a triathlete for a few years, and he always said that swimming is what really made the difference in his body.

    EDIT: Since the conversation has moved pretty well past this comment, I feel comfortable coming back and editing this information in to it since I don't think anyone will ever notice... That guy was also a major douche bag. Moral? Don't date douche bags.
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    For the short-term while you're recuperating, I highly recommend keto as a way to lose fat while sedentary.
  • mertesnmertesn I am Bobby Miller Yukon, OK Icrontian
    The absolute best diet advice I can give is to make your lunch and bring it to work. It's one of the only ways to control the things that go in your body. It's difficult to track exactly what a restaurant puts in their food and nearly impossible to control it. I would also recommend an app (or if you want to be retro/classic/hipster, paper and pen) to track what you're eating as far as calories and nutrients go.

    Of course, I could stand to heed my own advice :D
    MomOfRoseardichoke
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited November 2012
    Just eat 2000 calories a day and maintain your weight until you can move. Cutting to lose fat with no physical activity is bad for your organs and muscles.

    But that's my key point: at your bodyfat, the only solution is calorie counting. You will not succeed any other way.
    Chooch
  • BuddyJBuddyJ Dept. of Propaganda OKC Icrontian
    Do you have access to a pool? Swimming is pretty rad and you'll be able to take some weight off your hurt feet.
  • JBoogalooJBoogaloo This too shall pass... Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    My two cents;

    Keep with low-fat/high protein foods (lean meats like chicken and fish, minor beef, egg-whites with hot sauce, etc...), fruits and veggies and steer away from the refined sugars (white rice, white bread, high sugar drinks, etc...) Eat your whole-grains in the morning (oats, natural/organic peanut butter on whole-grain toast, etc...) snack on fruits and salt-free nuts in-between meals (an apple for the fiber and a glass of water) and finish up the day with a light dinner (see above) and have a cup of raw veggies or a pear and glass of juice and water in the evening. Drink a ton of water (1/2 to 1 gallon) throughout the day.
    You want to keep your metabolism going by eating constantly through the day (5-6 times a day while still maintaining a 2000/2200 cal diet is quite possible and easy) or you'll go into starvation mode where your body will start losing your muscle and retaining fat. I follow this throughout the year even when I physically wind down a bit and recover over the winter (light maintenance period). I still maitain a good bodyweight of 150-154 at about 12-15% bf. The more junk (processed food and refined sugars) you decide to remove from your everyday diet the better you'll be and feel.

    There are still exercises you can do even though you can't run. Bodyweight exercises are great and if you're able to I would highly suggest doing a plethora of them to help retain/build muscle. Swimming was a great suggeston, I would also throw in there pushups (variations), situps (variations), pullups/chinups and dips. The muscle burning that you get from bodyweight exercises will help you to continue to burn calories and fat while still recovering.

    Good luck man and here's to a speedy ass recovery!
  • NomadNomad A Small Piece of Hell Icrontian
    Swimming / biking are your best bets for exercise.

    Eat your BMR + 200 calories. High protein (1g per pound lean bodyweight), medium carbs, low fats.
  • LincLinc Owner Detroit Icrontian
    edited November 2012
    Check out Tai Chi. It's low/no impact, will get you moving, and get you in the habit of leaving the house again. If you're lucky you might even find a good teacher and discover the rest of the benefits. Personally, I'd be less worried about short-term weight control than on setting yourself up for good habits once you're healed.

    My teacher told me the story of an older woman who came to him after having repeated falls over several years that caused her multiple serious injuries, to the point where she was afraid to walk. As a result, she walked with such trepidation it caused her to fall even more often. Over the course of months/years, she used Tai Chi to relearn how to walk confidently and properly (full weight shifts, centered balance, correct posture). I particularly like that story because it's both an important literal story about how the art can help physically and a parable on changing habit.

    Maybe it's not Tai Chi you're looking for (seriously tho, recommended), but it's still an opportunity to try something new that fits your situation and moves you in the direction you want to go.
    primesuspectUPSLynx
  • BlueTattooBlueTattoo Boatbuilder Houston, TX Icrontian
    @UPSLynx, if you have access to a pool, swimming is great, but if you want to run, try Water Running. I know somone who continued marathon training only 10 days after his second hip replacement. You wear a float that keeps you verticle and breathing air and you run in place. That way, you continue to work the same muscles without the impact. http://www.pfitzinger.com/labreports/water.shtml
  • UPSLynxUPSLynx :KAPPA: Redwood City, CA Icrontian
    Cool, thanks a ton for all the recommendations guys.

    I should clarify that part of Operation Bring It was bringing my lunch to work, and not doing the regular craziness that we used to do for lunch every day with my coworkers.

    @lincoln, I've heard quite a bit about Tai Chi actually, I used to do freelance web dev for a Tai Chi instructor. Always sounded interesting, I may look into it.

    I'm going to look into swimming, I don't know if there are any gyms with an indoor pool around where I live. I've got a bike out here, so I'm going to start testing on it to see if my ankles are privy to it.

    So there's definitely options, it's just proper diet I want to focus on the most. I'll likely hit up a good deal of chicken breast, egg whites and such. (I effing LOVE eggs). I'm going shopping for full groceries tonight after work, so I'll take the recommendations into account.

    Still open to advice/suggestions/foods. Really appreciate all the input so far.

  • No advice on physical activity, but as far as tracking, I've used (and just resumed using) My Fitness Pal for tracking my food. I put in all my personal stats, goal and then just log my foods daily. It has a HUMONGOUS library of foods from various companies and restaurants. You can download their app and even scan UPC codes with your phone to log your intake. Plus, you can link it with your Endomondo account and it'll pull in any exercise you log there to show you your net caloric intake. AND it shows you various nutritional intake amounts, not just calories, so you know if you're getting enough protein, calcium (MILK! ;) ) and whatnot.
    WagsFTW
  • WagsFTWWagsFTW Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    I agree on My Fitness Pal. I have used it a little (need to be better about it), and it works great for counting calories, fat, carbs, protein. I prefer the web interface over the mobile app, but it still works great. It is really tedious to add homemade food, though, since you have to add all of the individual ingredients. I'll often get lazy and sometimes just find a meal already inputted by someone else that similarly matches what I ate.
  • JBoogalooJBoogaloo This too shall pass... Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    My favorite egg-white recipe All-Whites egg whites, sea-salt, pepper, Texas Pete, chopped white onions with green and red peppers (sonetimes sub salt/pepper with Soujouk). I usually have this all by itself (1 cup worth) or with a side of sea-salt/pepper chicken breast lightly seasoned with Soujouk Spice (if you're into middle-eastern spices). VERY low fat, light, and high protein. Great post-workout meal :) a small suggestion for ya.
  • IlriyasIlriyas The Syrupy Canadian Toronto, Ontario Icrontian
    edited November 2012
    DRINK RAW EGGS! ALL OF IT.

    I honestly don't know what to say that others haven't already hope your leg heals quickly Lynx

    I'll pick up running double time while you're healing up eh!
  • WagsFTWWagsFTW Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    Eggs cooked with spinach and a bunch of spices and maybe some feta cheese. Om nom.
  • UPSLynxUPSLynx :KAPPA: Redwood City, CA Icrontian
    Thrax said:

    Eat the yolk like a man.

    Real talk, we had this discussion years ago: http://icrontic.com/discussion/74947/an-eggsellent-question
  • UPSLynxUPSLynx :KAPPA: Redwood City, CA Icrontian
    edited November 2012
    But seriously, thanks for the meal recommendation @jboogaloo. That sounds frigging delicious.

    In regards to peanut butter - is there a specific type/brand I should be eating? I've always just done Jif or whatever name brand.

    Also, definitely gonna check out my fitness pal. Sounds pretty rad.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    All-natural peanut butter is theoretically better for you, but I always get jif creamy peanut butter because it actually fucking spreads, is practically non-perishable, and isn't that much worse for you than 100% peanut butter.
  • IlriyasIlriyas The Syrupy Canadian Toronto, Ontario Icrontian
    edited November 2012
    I took a picture of the healthiest things in my room to show you. Peanut butter is included and I think Jiff is pretty much the same thing as kraft.
    image

    I'd think milk is okay to have but eh, though cheese is likely not a good thing. (Don't know why I threw it in there maybe a scale thing.)

    I've found sandwiches are pretty good, have a homemade lunch meat sandwich with lettuce, onions, pickles and the like (Possibly roast beef or ham, preferably non processed) although this is the experience of a Uni student where sandwiches are the only healthy thing on the menu that actually have meat in them. That said I also only have time to eat once or twice a day and with the constant running back and forth to class plus the whole 'hey I started exercising thing' I probably have no idea what I'm talking about in terms of healthy diet...and you should probably ignore what I'm saying...sorry.

  • NiGHTSNiGHTS San Diego Icrontian
    Disclosure, I work for a company with a swim division:

    Swim. Swim, swim, swim.

    Low impact, great cardio. Only trouble I see you bumping into is the flex of a fin on your ankle if you try to work specific muscle groups with fins/hand paddles, etc.

    If you're that interested, I could perhaps send you a care package. Perhaps.

    Also surfing. Go surf...though I think you'd have to use a longboard as a shortboard at your height, and even then I don't know if they make longboards long enough.
  • JBoogalooJBoogaloo This too shall pass... Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    No worries man, here to help. I have a pretty limited diet lifestyle and have learned some great recipes from other people and experimentation. I can definitely give you a bunch if you'd like later on.
  • d3k0yd3k0y Loveland, OH Icrontian
    Shadow Boxing if done in a warm room can burn quite a bit of calories and increase your punching power quite a bit. Try holding light weights while doing it, will burn up your shoulders like crazy.
  • TushonTushon I'm scared, Coach Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    Lincoln said:

    Every time I see this discussion title I picture Lynx cutting thru a block of lard with his gimped leg.

    Like a gimp leg through congealed animal fat?
  • WagsFTWWagsFTW Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    UPSLynx said:

    But seriously, thanks for the meal recommendation @jboogaloo. That sounds frigging delicious.

    In regards to peanut butter - is there a specific type/brand I should be eating? I've always just done Jif or whatever name brand.

    Also, definitely gonna check out my fitness pal. Sounds pretty rad.

    I'd recommend almond butter. Or read the labels. Or make your own peanut butter or almond butter (it's surprisingly easy, and all you need is nuts, oil, and honey - blend in food processor or blender). I have heard that almonds are paleo-friendly, while peanuts are not (peanuts are actually legumes).
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