With the New Year nearly upon us and the Mayan Apocalypse in our rear view, I have resolved to get more fit and lose a few pounds in the upcoming year.

This thread is intended to get some advice from my fellow ATS'ers and to allow others to publicly announce their intended resolutions.

First, the advice- I am thinking about following the diet outlined in "The 4-Hour Diet" by Tim Ferriss. It is basically a low carb diet that essentially eliminates all white starches and simple carbs. What do you guys think/suggest concerning this diet?

Also, several injuries in my 20"s have lead to osteoarthritis here in my 40's. So I would like suggestions of exercises that take severe joint pain into account.

Thanks to all for your input.

Don't forget to announce your resolutions as well.

Well, I think it is a good idea that you have decided to work on getting into shape.
I am sure you have already noticed that the older you get the harder it becomes.

I am a fan of the low carb diet, otherwise known as the caveman diet. I have found that I just naturally tend toward that way of eating.

Since you are getting up there, and you mention arthritis. I would recommend doing a very thorough warm-up/stretching period before really hitting it hard.

I just turned 30 and I'm in great shape, but it seems the better my warm-up is, the better off I am later on.

It’s more recommended to have six smaller meals throughout the day rather than the three, but with work and everything can be difficult to achieve. The paleo diet (caveman diet) is a ripper. Basically eliminate rice, bread, cereal and simple sugars and such. Some say get rid of potato, others say it’s okay. I’d say get rid of it all together because potato seems to be a filler in meals. It does have a fair bit of vitamin C, folate, vitamin B6, several minerals and fibre. Unfortunately it’s not too compatible with weight loss as it’s very high in starch and total carbs. The paleo diet is basically unprocessed, natural foods - plenty of meat, berries, nuts, veggies, fruit, eggs and water.

Exercise wise, swimming, rowing and cycling are low impact forms of exercise. Believe it or not, so is weight training. Run on pavement or whatever is incredibly harsh on the joints. Other things like boxing are insane too. My advice would be to get a gym membership and do some cycling, boxing and rowing - you need to cross train otherwise you’ll get a bit bored. Do say 15min on the bike, then 15min walking on the treadmill at a high incline and then 15min on the rowing machine, or whatever you can handle and build up gradually. You’ll notice huge gains in your first two or three months. Introduce weight training. Weights are probably the single greatest thing you can do.

The most important thing to remember is to keep your diet and exercise program at a long term sustainable level. Many people burn themselves out very quickly because they change their ways far to radically or exercise at a relatively very high level. Sustainable and healthy weight loss is all about tiny baby steps, one at a time and just build on each goal. Always have a short term goal, a medium and long term goal. Or each fortnight set yourself a new goal, each session aim to go an extra 30 seconds on the bike, or a level higher, do an extra set of weights. Small things like that will leave you feeling ecstatic when you achieve them, even though right now they may seem insignificant. Adding an extra 30 seconds a week on the bike is an extra two minutes a session after a month. That’s what fitness is all about, breaking personal bests and achieve personal goal. Too many people go out with the one goal of losing x amount of weight and that’s it and they get discouraged and bored because they feel they aren’t/can’t achieve that goal. Good luck.

Ohh, and don’t forget the power of the fit ball and kettlebells!! Forget the sit ups, they’re pretty useless - everyone has a six pack but it’s usually hidden. A six pack is not in any way a measure of one’s fitness levels. Plenty of MMA fighters do not have a six pack and they’re up there with the fittest athletes in the world. Core work on the fit ball is amazing, they’re so much you can do and build up from. I only do weighted sit ups, but the ball is much better for balance and core strength. Don’t ignore the ball! If I could only ever use one piece of fitness equipment I’d choose the ball in a heart beat.

Try making some bone soup. Bones are cheap to buy and there are chemicals in them that can help to lubricate the joints and also it can help you lose weight if made with a selection of veggies. I tried eating a high percentage of soups for a couple of weeks. I lost a lot of fat but gained muscle for some reason. I was plenty full and was eating about six hundred calories a day.

Google Bone soup. there are many articles on it with facts that check out. Look up some of the chemicals they say are created and the benefits. Remember, it is all right to do anything like this for a few weeks then start a moderate inclusion of homemade soups into the diet. Stay away from vegies and chemistry that lowers liver function or thyroid function. Google goitrogens, some veggies lower thyroid activity and so do some fluorides and bromides in foods. Bromides tie tighter than fluorides to cells. Bromides are in a lot of commercial breads.

I should mention interval training, the most effective weight loss tool you have beside diet. The simple premise of interval training on say a bike or treadmill is to start steady and warm up. Then vary your intensity on said exercise up and down. Go at 90% capacity for a minute then drop to 70% then to 85% then rest at 50% and so one. Twenty minutes of that is far more effective than 45min on the one intensity level.

As I'm not familiar with that specific diet there's not much I can add, except that diets based on low carbs are often the best way to go. I personally had the best lasting results with these, losing 8KG/17Lbs (I hope I converted that right... I'm Dutch ) in the first week, while feeling more fit and healthy. And no, despite the quick weight loss in the start, I haven't gained any of it over the past months.

I decided to reply because of the mentioning of severe joint pain. I have a severe chronic pain so I have some experience in that matter... Swimming is really one of the best things to do due to being weightless in the water. If your gym offers aqua fitness it's really recommendable. Do prepare for a bit of soreness at the start. As soon as you leave the water your body will feel really heavy and can feel sore, but it gets better quite quick if you do it regularly. Walking is also a good thing to do because you don't have to lift up your knees like you do on a bike or stairs, and knees can often be weak points in the beginning.

And check if your gym has a physical therapist! They can walk you through each and every exercise and see what works best for your body.

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Just concentrate on your diet and what are you eating plus do some physical workouts with it. Since you are getting up there, and you mention arthritis. I would recommend doing a very thorough warm-up/stretching period before really hitting it hard.

In the last 6 months, I've lost 10 inches from the waist, and about 20lbs.
In my eyes thats slow going (though the 10 inches is awesome).

My advice would be to not follow any 'diet' too closely. Don't follow any diet that completely denies any kind of 'bad food' - because you're more likely to have a pig out on those foods if you deny yourself. Diets focus too much on what you can't eat rather than what you can.
Cutting out white carbs - the bread, the pasta, the potato is cool. I've switched from white bread and rice to brown. I still eat potatoes though. It leaves me feeling fuller and more satisfied.
Try to go for lean meats wherever you can. If you get your meat from a butchers, ask them to trim any excess fat from your cuts.
Weights are really important for maintaining fat loss, and muscle mass is constantly consuming calories, even when you're not working out. Plus you don't want to be "skinny fat" - where you have lost weight but have no muscle definition, it makes a person look flabby even if they're not actually fat.

Don't forget to that there are many foods which will also help condition your muscles and keep them in good repair. Protein rich foods are fabulous for keeping muscles healthy, so be sure to include them in your daily in take. This can be anything from beans and pulses, nuts, eggs, turkey.