aroundhky

And at 37/38%....I was in the gym pretty often.......but in the kitchen more often.

You can be strong again! Fiddle..........I was way over 25% a couple of years ago. I think at one point I was 37/38%.

Looking at the picture of the ladies..........I think the 25%-35% range women where pretty hot!! Just my 2 cents......

I would take it and puree that bacon! Mmmmmm......liquid bacon! Seriously, the smell of bacon nearly gives me "blood flow" to certain parts of my body! Love it!!! I would hate to have to smell that right after the sleeve and not be able to partake. I feel for ya GBFree!

Congrats...........looking great!!

That's good stuff "Hoosier"! Thank you!

That's a good question....my guess is not for long. Actually, I've never heard of anyone less than 4%. I'm sure it's happened, just haven't heard of that. I really don't think our bodies could function properly (if at all) that low.

Fiddle......just be careful with some of that and make sure to read up on the ingredients. If you can......can you save that energy stuff (caffeine, etc), for when you absolutely cannot get going? Sometimes half of the battle is getting to the gym and getting started, then once you're into it, the exercise and blood pumping will be enough of a stimulant to get you going and to focus. Just hoping you can at least cut back a little on the stimulants and only use them when you absolutely have to.....if at all. You're doing well bud and I'd hate to see you use stuff that may have some bad side effects or even lead to serious illness or consequences. Laura.......may I ask what happened to him? Heart attack? Overdose?

I agree that exercise can only do some much for weight loss and/or fat loss directly. To be honest, I wonder how much it actually raises ones metabolic rate. I think it does........some........but not as much as we think. Just a hunch and I have no science to back that up. However, indirectly, for me.....I think it helps a lot. When I exercise, I do feel physically tired afterwards......for a short time. But my mood, hormones, whatever are elevated and I feel great mentally the rest of the day! And when I feel that great, I do a much better job eating healthy. I could easily down 2000-2500 calories on a day that I don't exercise or days that I feel down in the dumps about something. Call it emotional eating or whatever, but for me, I can and often do, eat a lot more on days that I don't exercise, though I know I shouldn't. So while I'm not sure I get a lot of fat burn from my exercises, or even cardio for that matter, I think it does still help me (indirectly) to eat better the rest of the day, which in turn helps me to lose weight or improve my body composition. But maybe that's just me..........

Maybe.............. I am really thinking about it. But I'm getting close by strictly watching what I eat, just a couple of pounds now to go. I'm getting closer by eating less cals (hungry a lot) and not lifting quite as much and doing a little more cardio instead. Just want to hurry and get there so that I can settle in to my ideal (for muscle/strength) weight.

Congrats on the sleeve! How often and for how long are you fasting?

How's your blood pressure Fiddle? Or could it be some nerve issue in close proximity to the vein....?

And dangerously unhealthy

I certainly believe in good carbs.....especially on days I exercise. Here was a link I read today. #4 talks about carbs......very interesting reading I thought. On days I workout (which is almost every day), I'll still eat my Protein first, but I also make sure to get some good, complex carbs like oats, broccoli, most any kind of bean, quinoa, etc in with my protein. I do try to stay away from "white carbs" like flour, white bread, sugar, etc. I also like the point it makes with #6 as well....sorry...unrelated. http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/10-unbelievable-diet-rules-backed-science-154500466.html

I've been wanting to try fantasy football for years, but for whatever reasons haven't been able to. I'd like one where I don't have to spend a ton of time on it or if I forget for a week......it will not be catastrophic in regards to my standings. It's funny....I played football for years but haven't really gotten into the fantasy thing.

Love to eat bison (buffalo)!! And it's a good lean alternative to beef. Or the hybrid "beef-alo". Hard to find them where I live though.....only 2 places here within a 20 mile radius that has it.

Thanks for the Anit-Jared link "joatsaint"! I've never seen that before.....looks like some interesting reading!

I don't think it's too late to start. Building muscle is building muscle, so go for it....I think it can still help.

You look quite fetching! Great job and congrats "Bethxxx"!

Good luck to both of you and welcome to the board!

Great point Mark!

I lost mine............about 10 years before my sleeve. I went bald fairly early in life and just tried to beat nature to the punch and started shaving it about 10-11 years ago. I never really noticed losing hair on other parts of the body though....but my head was a non-factor.

Yeah.......what he said! You put that well "2Big".....some really good points made there!

Fiddle....you may have already read some of this, just a little info that you may find helpful. Have you tried increasing your GH naturally? http://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/naturally-boost-growth-hormone-testosterone

Fiddle.............is adding extra muscle or breaking through a few lifting plateaus worth the side effects? I'm not trying to talk you out of it, just wanting to make sure you think this through completely and know about all of the possible negative side affects vs possible benefits. Don't make any hasty decisions here........"Be cool man, be cool, everybody just be cool. Don't do anything crazy". I personally don't know much about HGH other than what I hear in regards to baseball and former athletes that used it and such. Just educate yourself as much as you can to make sure you'll not make a decision that you'll later regret. Also, I'm not saying that the guys you spoke with are wrong about people having a certain potential ceiling in regards to muscle. Again, just inform yourself and know that there are many varying opinions and studies out there in regards to fitness/strength. And at the very least, just make sure you've given yourself enough time and a chance to grow naturally before resorting to more drastic measures. I think you're doing great bud!