A compliment is something people say to make you feel good. That guy just probably said the truth how he perceived you. It's not a compliment per se but still you should feel good about it because your hard work is visible to others.



But to be honest, I already get annoyed when people say how much weight I lost. What annoys me is how they say it:

a. hinting that they could never do it. And I'm tempted to ask them to pull the string of my little Obama doll: "Yes, we can!"

b. hinting that the only reason I'm getting slim, fit and healthy is vanity. It is one reason.... but not THE reason.

Wowie, good job. If keep on progressing like this you'll need a whole set of clothes for the next month. No wonder you spend so much time at the mall

Dinner: 2 salmon nigiri + 2 hana maki

Dessert: 2 Ferrero Prestige

.... I can see a pattern here.

To break the cycle you should eat breakfast and not try to hold out until dinner. You are actually not eating when you need calories the most.

According to StrongLifts.com sleeping gets you in a catabolic state. Eating breakfast stops the muscle breakdown.



He also states that eating breakfast also helps fat loss by increasing the amount of calories you burn at rest. That does make sense when you think of body fat as emergency storage. Your body holds on to fat when you don’t eat enough calories or don’t eat enough fat.

I've got it all planned already:



Breakfast: Greek yoghurt with apple-banana sauce ... all organic and 120 cal

Lunch: Pasta + garlic merlot tomato sauce (400 cal)

Snack: 1 Banana (90 cal)

Dinner: Lots of sushi from Sen-ryo (unknow variable)

Had dinner few hours ago:

Starters: Shitake Strudel

Main: Trout fillet with sides (1 small potato, brocolli flower and 2 cherry tomatoes) + 1 Glass Chardonnay



I feel a little bit stuffed now... but work was tough today, so I deserve it.

Gee, you are missing out on the good stuff. But so do I according to all those meat-eaters.

Same here.

I like to cook but I just do not have the time. Luckily there are lot of restaurants and eateries around my area which offer small portions. I'm basically snacking throughout the day (mainly fruits) and have a daily calorie intake of 900-1150. My job is physically so not challenging (deskjob) so I'm doing fine. I try to workout around 3x week.



As a pesto-vegetarian I get all my protein from seafood and milkproducts. Luckily sushi is easier to portion than teriyaki and you do not need to cook it. Har Har.

Have you lost weight rapidly? Maybe it's just loose skin?

www.lef.org/magazine/mag2004/oct2004_itn_01.htm



Dr. Walford applied his theory to his own life; for the last 30 years of his life, he consumed only 1,600 calories a day, far below the recommended calorie intake for a man of his age.



Dr. Walford died at the age of 79.

Hmm, not exactly the Methuselean lifespan.



My current daily intake is around 900-1100. But I'm a vegetarian as well.

I have observed the same phenomenon with many women in HK. One reason could be that they seldom stuff themselves and are so picky with food. Especially Japanese pay a lot of attention to detail, quality and freshness. After all, you are what you eat.

If I manage to drop from my plateau... then I'll get myself I new pair of jeans. It's necessary anyway, as some of my jeans are sagging at the butt already.

Only? I think 5 sessions per week is a lot already.

Greek yoghurt and spicy Japanese rice crackers.

Me don't need lipo. Running is for free and looks less disgusting.

Clifford, could recommend any links or books on reducing body fat and building up muscle tissue?

I guess the best thing to do is to resort to stretchy fabric like knits or woven fabric with some decent percentage of spandex so that you'll have some leeway and do not have to buy new clothes that often.



I am mourning some of my 100% cotton jeans as they make me look like sans butt. Very disturbing.

Asics and Mizuno. They make all the difference.

I belong to those sort of people who only need to lift weights for 5 minutes and then I have a more defined muscle for the whole day.



My sister who is a physical therapist told me that some people do bulk up faster then others.



I therefore use lighter weights and more reps.

Hehe I so agree. I weigh myself every morning and then rush to the computer to log it.



I need this daily control otherwise I would start slacking.

Cool. Thanks! Works just fine. The other traineo app I've added previously didn't. I've changed the settings though so that I'm the only person who can see the button on my profile. I don't need all my friends to know that I'm actually making an effort getting fit, healthy and slimmer.

What also worked for me was to develop an elitist taste for food. I imagine my stomach to be a small nice flat in New York. So the rent is high and space is very precious. Therefore you cannot let all the cheap junk inside.



So whenever possible spoil yourself with good quality food. Because it's more expensive you will tend to buy less, eat less and savour it more.... I mean $ 1.60 for two organic pomegranate... they better be good.

Hehe, that reminds me how I came back from my Asia trip in 2003 with a tinsy cough and some people tried to keep their distance in case I might have contracted SARS.



Anyway, I am such a whimp I think I could not even work-out with a full-blown cold like Rob, Rachel and Jessipoo. But if some sensible excercise helps some of you to recover faster it might even help to avoid me becoming a virus mothership.



The 10-15 minutes test suggested by Neesha I will try but I'm not sure about Sarah's full-heat-car treatment.

So even for a quasi invalid like me cardio would be a no go?

I can feel the signs: My joints feel mushy, I feel cold all the time and my throat feels a little tiny bit swollen. My body might be the battle field of a viral invasion right now.



Well, I might still turn the corner before I develop all the icky oozy symptoms... but to do so shall I give up any kind of excercise for a few days? Or can I still do some light workout? How much can I expect my disintegrating body to handle without pushing it into a phlegmy existence?

I do not know if anybody has mentioned this yet but it also might be a good idea to get the right running shoes for heavier runners such as models from asics or mizuno. It is important to find shoes which cushion the impact from running. Your joints will thank you for that.

I'm living in Hong Kong and what bugs me are



- those old Chinese gramps who use the treadmill beside yours. They run at a constant medium speed, then accelerate and keep on going like duracel bunnies while one suffers an asthma attack trying to keep up with them.



- the vamped up girl in stilletos and fake LV bag sitting on the bench press bank and watching her boyfriend lifting weights. And when she gets bored she's doing her make-up... again!!!



- the middle-aged housewife who switches the Gym-TV to some cooking channel. Thanks, I still need to run 40 minutes and I'm getting hungry already.

Also, do not starve yourself. It can throw you back a light-year if you have been resisting real hunger and suddenly give in. You will tend not to only give in to the hunger itself but to all the cravings for bad food that can supply you with fast calories.



Aside from eating on a regular basis you can trick your body by eating a little healthy snack like a tea spoon of yoghurt should you get hungry late at night. In that way you assure your body that there is no famine and it will not go on calory-save-mode.