I was an extremely active kid, wild doesn't begin to explain it.
I could eat anything and burn it off before the end of the day, injuries healed in no time.
My mother made me swallow a handfull of vitamins every morning from as long as I could remember untill I was a teenager.
I ate everything my parents told me would make me big and strong no matter how bad it tasted.
I've been climbing trees as high as they go since I could walk over to them.

When I got to be in my later teenage years I started slowing down, the area I moved into had a lot of slackers and the only exercise I really got was work.
Roughly 5 years ago I really started to slow down, spending pretty much all of my free time breaking computers from the comfort of my chair.

For years I was stuck right around 180lbs at 6'2" wondering how I could get to 200lbs so my ribs didn't stick out.
Now, comming up on 28 and still at 6'2" the grocery store scales I used over the weekend put me at 240lbs, way over the 200lbs I was thinking of.
Looking at that nifty BMI calculator you have here and finding out I'm officially "obese" now, which I never in a million years thought I'd be saying, I think it's time to get active again.

I got a bike before the end of last year and I was getting up and riding it every morning because I have an awesome park with about a mile long trail around it right down the street from me, but my sleeping schedule messed me up on that. Now I ride the bike about once a week or less and the thought of jury rigging it into a stationary exercise bike has crossed my mind. I'm probably better off just finding something on craigslist though.

I think giving up soda pop is going to help a lot too. I loved tap water as a kid, but now the tap water in my area is horrible, there's always something floating around in it so I don't drink it unless I absolutely have to, and I hate buying tea because I make it better.
I found a resturaunt supply store not too far from me and I've been getting bottled water for about a penny an ounce. I don't care what anyone says about buying bottled water, if you saw the crap floating around in the tap water here, or smelled how strong the chlorine in it is occasionally, you'ld gladly pay a penny an ounce too!

Anywho, I suppose that's enough for now.

Hi Joebert!

Welcome to Healthy Pals. Thanks for joining us! It sounds like you have quite the story. When you say you were active as a kid, were you playing sports too?

I know what you mean about the injuries healing in no time as a kid. Kids seem to be invincible to pain and when you get older, that definitely goes away! I miss being able to do things the way I would as a kid without the thought of an injury crossing my mind!

Soda is definitely a good thing to give up to start losing some weight right away! Soda is calorie and sugar packed! Water is so much better for you and in my opinion it is more refreshing! I'm curious... do Britta filters work at all with making the water from your tap more pure over there in Florida?

Hi Joebert,

Welcome to the site! I have a few questions for you if you don't mind...

Are you currently a member to a gym or doing any kind of workout routine?

What do you do for work? And what are your hours?

What are you eating habits like?

I completely agree about the water here being gross. We buy spring water by the gallon at Wal-mart or Publix or whatever, and just keep it in the fridge.

I was in Little League baseball for a few years.
Us neighborhood kids were constantly playing football behind the school.
Is "manhunt" a sport ?
Other than Little League, I wasn't in any organised sports, if that's what you mean. I knew every inch of everyones yard in the neighborhood though.


That's a good question.
I forgot about those things, probably because my moms boyfriend had one attached to a faucet years ago and I don't think he ever changed any filters inside of it.
I'll definately have to look into that now though, thanks!


No, and I wouldn't call it a routine. More like sporadic exercises.


Programming, Writing, selling various things online.
I don't have hours, I have loud event notification sounds on my computer and email notifications routed to my phone via SMS.
Sometimes I'm up all nite, sometimes I'm awake all day.


I eat maybe one balanced meal a day.
Spagetti with meatballs and green beans (not in the spagetti, on the side, you'ld be surprised how many times people have looked at me funny) is something I have probably once every week, sometimes twice in a row.
I eat a lot of chicken cooked every way it can be.

The rest of the day I eat parts of meals, in excess.

I have a habbit of eating parts of a sandwich, first I'll eat a some slices of turkey/salami/etc, 15 minutes or so later I'll eat slices of cheese, then maybe a slice or two of bread.

My neighbor has a habbit of getting sugar-free pies the day before they expire at Publix, I occasionally eat an entire 9 inch sugar-free peach or apple pie in the middle of the nite on the weekend.

Crackers don't last long around here, I have a hard time not eating whole sleeves of saltine crackers in one sitting.
Sometimes I'll eat celery with peanut butter.

I eat tacos probably at least twice a month.

I eat at least two salads a week, no specific style of salad really, but black olives are common.

When I go out to eat I always order last and always get the exact same thing someone before me ordered. I'll eat pretty much anything so doing that speeds things up.

I'm not one to pass up candy.

Annnnd, that's all I can think of at the moment.


I've been getting cases of 35 17oz bottles, it's been nice not having another gallon jug in the fridge, I put a few of the small bottles in the fridge door when I get a case, then I always put one in when I take one out after that.

By the way, thanks for the warm welcome everyone.

Yeah, I'd look into the Britta filter thing. The key to them though is to change the filters every two months. If you wait longer than that, they definitely stop working! I'm curious to see how powerful they are and if it works on your Floriday water. The tap water here in Washington isn't that bad, but I'd still rather have my water filtered.

Do you have any plans to get a gym membership or to exercising. What are your short term goals and what do you want to accomplish?

Thanks for your answers!

Have you ever thought about getting a regular schedule? Getting up at a certain time each day and going to bed around the same time each night? I think getting a regular schedule could help you get a regular eating routine too. What do you think?

Why do you think you eat the entire pie at once? Having occasional treats isn't a bad thing, but in excess isn't good. Making the pie last throughout the next week would give you a little treat each night and save you from eating too much of it at once.

I have a YMCA within walking distance and I think it's mostly used by the old folks. I forgot it was there until just now, I'll have to take a bike ride over there and check it out.

My main goal is to get rid of this gut and what are turning into man-boobies.
I've not bought a fat mans wardrobe yet, with the exception of a few pairs of 36 inch pants, which are actually starting to fit a little tight. I'd like to get back to a 33-34.


Because it's supposed to expire the next day and I don't like to let things go to waste.
I'm starting to realize that it's better that the pie go to waste than me though.

The YMCA is a great place to workout! That is where I workout. I guess it depends, on the Y, but the one I go to has a ton of young adult type people that go there. They also have a ton of classes that you could take all included in your membership.

The YMCA is a great place. I volunteer there and get a free membership out of it. And Marie is right, they have a ton of different types of group classes that you can take. Circuit classes, spin classes, weight lifting classes, etc.

Especially if you got the pie for free from your neighbor, it is okay to let it go to waste (I'm assuming you get them for free?)

Free pie. Sometimes he gets too many because of how far they're marked down.
He's also a sugar-free eater, but occasionally he gets something with sugar in it and brings it over to me when he finds out it's way too sweet for him.

Well Howdy Joebert.

My name is Ken and I can relate to a lot stuff you are going through, except the being skinny as a kid... I was always the thicker kid... 6'2" but solid. My biggest weight was reached a few years ago at 272 lbs. Getting connected to healthy, active friends at the Y helped me change my life. I had not seen a 34 waist since junior high school; but guess who had to throw away his big boy pants?!? Yup, I'm in 34's again and it feels good. I can tell you that the cardio alone is good, but when you start to mix in a strength training routine in with it... the pounds will come off... and the Moobs a.k.a. man-boobies will go to pecks! It isn't easy by any means, but when you start making yourself a priority it becomes doable... and after about 3 weeks of doable it becomes enjoyable... The first month sucks though! If there is any suggestions I can make to help you just let me know. Keep us posted on how you are doing! The giving up coke will definitely help... I did it and eventually the cravings went away and I don't miss it... Once in a blue moon I'll drink it with a couple other choice liquids... but I really missed it in the beginning... had the caffeine headaches and everything... Mountain Dew was in my veins... stay strong... and Good Luck!

One other thing... with your schedule the way it is... do you control it or does it control you? Just curious, because all you need to start out with is 15 minutes of cardio a day... do it in the morning, middle of the day or night... doesn't matter in the beginning... try all of them find out which on you like the best... you might be surprised... I was... I'd always been a night person but I love working out during the middle of the day! The most important thing to remember is that it is important when trying to loose weight to do something everyday... if it is 15 minutes or 1 hour... 200lbs is doable... I started 272 and am around 190 now!

That's all for now... any questions?

Yeah I tend to be the same way. I usually try to eat something up before it goes to waste, but then realize its probably better off being waste.

Nice to see you found my sister's website (I am Bigwebmaster, btw).

I'd like to say I control my schedule, but when I actually stop and think about it, it's my schedule, or lack thereof, that controls me. I'm almost an on-call prisoner in my own home I suppose.

With spring comming up I will have yard work I can do around the appartment complex, it's a small complex and everyone who lives here chips in.
I finally picked up a pole saw last week so I can give the trees here a proper pruning this year, even though I'm too big to climb them.

Hey Bigweb! I think I could see you packing away a pie so it didn't go to waste. I'm guessing you hate waste as much as I do.
You uh, didn't tell her what I said about prank bug reports while you were away getting married did you ?