Practical gear

Keep up with the exercise, The longer you do it, the easier it will get. I know how you feel. I got fat, everything was harder . I got worn out just from hauling the extra weight around. That motivated me to lose thirty pounds, and keep it off. Set yourself a goal, and all the sacrifices will be worth the feeling you will have when you reach it. Hang in there, and good luck.
 
might some soft knee braces and orthodontics help keep you out and about for longer?
+on the walking sticks,
also something I've found that helps me in general is using water bottles for all of my water intake every day, so I can keep track and make sure I'm getting enough. when I forget to, my kidneys start to hate me.
if you are close to home, maybe switch out the cell for a GMRS radio with the other one at the house. that way if you are late, you have another method of contact. I dislike cell phones as a wilderness sirvival tool as they rely on many things to be working. YMMV

I'm just a skinny little bastid that can't gain weight no matter what I do, some days I wish I could pack a little more insulation with me. I have the R value of wet newspaper.
 
Good for you!

I could probably lose 8 or 10 lbs myself

I don't carry anything any longer. Pilots Survival Knife, compass, firestarter and a bottle of water for anything under 10 miles or so. Throw in GPS and Cell phone sometimes. Where legal, my Colt Combat Commander.

For overnight I add a sleeping bag and stainless steel cup, flashlight and maybe a couple power bars.

For multi day I add some food and a tarp. I keep gear in my truck that I take if I feel the need or have kids with me. First aid kit, woodmans pal, Spetsnaz shovel, handheld cb and GMRS radios, Surefire G2 LED and more water/food.

I have to add, I am not hiking in Grizzly country and usually do not go out overnight where the temp gets below freezing.
 
I like this thread :thumbup: . I second the suggestions already posted as far as the PSK goes. Just tailor the kit to your needs and you should be fine. This might sound a little technical, but I try to think and go through a FMEA (failure modes & effects analysis) before i set out to see what can go wrong during the hike and what I can bring as an aid in the event that it happens. For instance, you said you have bad knees. If you're not wearing a light knee brace, you should at least bring one along. Neoprene ones are light enough to not be noticeable and are definitely worth the extra weight. Concerning your weight, I dropped from 275lbs. to 235lbs. just by not eating late. It takes some getting used to if you habitually eat right before you go to sleep like I did, but I forced myself to not eat after 5:30p and the weight disappeared.
 
I've lost about 45-50# in the last two years by keeping myself better hydrated. Coffee times two in the am, then I just get busy and forget about food until about 2-3 in the afternoon. Maybe later then a light meal like a sandwich with a big cup of really cold water. I just did it, and it seemed to work slowly.

I heard a doctor explain it pretty well a few days ago. He said if you grew up drinking sugary sodas, a person's body "got used to" calories in liquid form. Now when someone gets thirsty, oddly enough, they often will eat instead. That might be a little messed up, but that was my take on his idea. He was pitching his new book or something. I wasn't looking for a reason, but I have to admit the facts fit the theory in my case. YMMV.

One more thing in the Ten Essential List is the eleventh essential. Toilet paper. Easy to forget but hard to do without. :)
 
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you need to go for a balance between the "better to have it and not need it" school and the carry the kitchen sink school.
A few, well choosen and high quality items are probably better than lots of junk (my opinion anyway).
A day hike might not only last a day -if something oes wrong and you only have a t-shirt, shorts and a water bottle you are going to get pretty cold, hoever going out for a couple of hours hike with a tent and sleeping bag is over kill.
 
Silent, are you a diabetic or have any other medical issues?

I'd say that the best thing you can do is walk in a regular spot, and let a friend know when you are going and when you get back (so someone knows to call for help if you hurt yourself and can't call for help yourself.)

If the primary goal is weight loss, many shorter walks are better than a few longer ones. You may even want to consider a short walk before work and a longer one after work. The first few weeks are the roughest. You body lies to you. It says things like I have a cough today, or maybe I'm getting the flu. Really, it's just the axhes and pains associatied with increased activity. Work through it. You feel better after almost every hike if you do. (Even if you are sore tomorrow.)

If you are really having trouble with it, ice and anti-inflammatories (ibubrofen or similar) will help.
 
go to tesh.com sometime. The guy has a ton of odd facts about ways to lose weight. I am 6'1" and about 280#. According to anyone in the medical profession that is severly obese. I have set myself to trim back down to my high school days of 200# max. Starts by waking up every morning and drinking 8 oz of ice-cold water, followed by my bowl of Cheerios with 2% and an 8 oz. glass of cranberry juice. Lunch is usually something from the school cafeteria with a large salad. Dinner is usually leftovers that made it thru the weekend, including venison which is much better for ya than beef and is dang good.
 
Sounds good. However I hate carrying stuff so my view for easy walks is minimalist unless I am really out of the way

- Phone - means real help is an hour away unless outside cell range/flat
- Knife - beacuse - entertainmetn and use
-Compass - simply having a bearing gets out of so much trouble - I even carry a button compass wehn I travel to help oreint in foriegn cities. Map
- Bandanna - sling but emergency bandage, blood flow reducer for snakebite etc
- Light - Innova microlight II - stronger than an old pen torch many hours of light and the size of a couple of coins. Amazing how often get caught out by failing light particularly if coming from open fields to forrested area.
- Wrist watch - try hiking without a watch and notice the difference. An amusing story of my friend making himslef breakfast at what we think was 3 am -was fooled into thinking moon rise was the false dawn. particularly important in hilly areas where fading light may catch by surprise
- Bic lighter - just because
- Water

Next is a plastic garbage bag - waterproof seat, emergency jacket/ raincoat shelter


All the above except water fits in pockets easily. It the minimalist end but covers off key needs

Then on weight and size comes things like
Whistle
Pen paper
Book
Cord
Pain killers - espcially asprin rapid dissovle in case someone has a heart attack. And panadol/patacetemol helps break a fever. Neurophen can be layered on top for more effect as works differently
Antihistamines - I get hay fever
Piece of car or bike inner tube to start a fire with. Usually as ranger rings (cut in cirles so act as rubber bands) around cigarette lighte
needle and thread (hotel giveaway)
and so on
 
I`ve been reading this thread with a lot of interest. I`m a pretty big guy too
(6' 2", 230 lbs) and I`m 55 years old, so I`ve learned not to overdo it. On "local" woods hikes and walks, I carry my keychain that has three capsules on it, 1 for aspirin, 1 for Aleve, and the third just carries an eyeglass repair kit. Also have a mini flashlight, whistle, and Vic Classic on it. In my wallet I have some bandaids, a bit of duct tape, and a moleskin patch. I always have a lighter, spare shoelace, and bandana in my pockets, and since I have a "trick" knee from a long ago motorcycle accident, I put an Ace elastic wrap in my pocket. I also carry a cell phone. I probably even have a knife or two in my pockets. ;) For the walks I take, this seems to cover all of my needs.
 
FLIX said:
SHS,

Kudos to you for doing something about this! I've let myself get way out of shape and put on a lot of weight. Like HD, my major ultralight gear for 2009 is to lose a bunch of weight. (Maybe we should have a WSS weight loss challenge. . . )

+1 on hiking poles and the Heat Sheet. I also think it would be a good idea for you to carry more water - and make sure you are drinking frequently. A 2 liter hydration pack that holds a little gear is small and carries easily.

Get in the habit of letting somebody know where you are going and when you'll be back. Right now since you are hiking solo and the risk of injury is multiplied by your health/weight this is even more important.

If you move on from well used trails to wandering around in remote areas, consider the SPOT satellite tracker.

-- FLIX
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I was about to write my suggestions but FLIX beat me to most of them. I am hearing that you are on local trails and have a cell phone and have told someone where you are going and when you expect to be back. This means that you will probably be able to call for help or that someone will come looking for you before too long.

In addition, consider a cheap disposable poncho once it is warm enough to rain.
Also some Advil or aspirin to releve pain while waiting for help to arrive.(don't use asprin or advil if there is significant bleeding or bruising. They are blood thinners.)
You will want a whistle, a signal mirror and a flashlight.
Some nuts or trail mix (if it is not too tempting) can be a comfort while you are waiting for help.
In the cold, I carry some of those self heating glove and boot warmers. Not much weight and they can releve a lot of misery.

Congrats on getting more exercise and planing to loose weight and improve your health.

FLIX- A WSS weight loss chalenge sounds like fun.
 
You'll never get in good shape if you're constantly eating at Subway. What you're consuming is mostly carbs and its way high in calories. Walking to subway might burn 40 or 50 calories if you're lucky, but then you're then consuming 700 or 800 calories worth of sandwhiches. Its a losing proposition any way you look at it.

Start eating properly healthy food (lots of vegetables but not potato or sweet potato, salad, tuna and other fish, lean meat such as chicken breast, some low fat dairy), keep up the exercise and you'll definitely lose weight.
 
Thanks everyone. My goal weight is 250, I am around 350 right now (no pun intended, around, eh, never mind). For the past few weeks, I haven't been able to eat anything past 9pm, and if I did, I would have the dry heaves after I got out of the shower. Every single day, whether I got up at 4am or 6am. Not fun. Thanks for the tips.

Developing the PSK is more for hiking in spring, summer and fall, I don't mind walking at work or at home in this cold weather though. I have a handwritten list I will post for my psk.

I am setting smaller goals. I type this as a smoked turkey sandwich from Wawa sits ready for lunch, I am going out now to take a walk.
 
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silenthunterstudios said:
Thanks everyone. My goal weight is 250, I am around 350 right now (no pun intended, around, eh, never mind). For the past few weeks, I haven't been able to eat anything past 9pm, and if I did, I would have the dry heaves after I got out of the shower. Every single day, whether I got up at 4am or 6am. Not fun. Thanks for the tips.

Developing the PSK is more for hiking in spring, summer and fall, I don't mind walking at work or at home in this cold weather though. I have a handwritten list I will post for my psk.

I am setting smaller goals. I type this as a smoked turkey sandwich from Wawa sits ready for lunch, I am going out now to take a walk.
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Good luck, of course.

Make mornings your official weigh-in time. :)

For whatever reason, that's when your body is lightest for the day. Maybe, sleeping is work !!!


Kis
 
As far as weight lose goes, just set the short term, small goals and the long term, large goals will follow.

Good luck! I need to do this myself.
 
jh205 said:
You'll never get in good shape if you're constantly eating at Subway. What you're consuming is mostly carbs and its way high in calories. Walking to subway might burn 40 or 50 calories if you're lucky, but then you're then consuming 700 or 800 calories worth of sandwhiches. Its a losing proposition any way you look at it.

Start eating properly healthy food (lots of vegetables but not potato or sweet potato, salad, tuna and other fish, lean meat such as chicken breast, some low fat dairy), keep up the exercise and you'll definitely lose weight.
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Subway beats fast food burger joints any day. And he mentioned he was getting wraps at subway which do cut down on carbs. I know they can make their sandwiches into salads too, which would be great. Also if there's a Jimmy John's around they can make their subs into lettuce wraps, nearly eliminating all the carbs from the sandwich.
 
Of course its better than a massive greasy hamburger with loads of fries, but its still not a healthy food choice for a person who is severely overweight. Losing weight requires a person to make serious lifestyle changes, including preparing their own food from healthy ingredients rather than buying pre-prepared takeaway meals on a regular basis. I'm not saying you can't buy a sandwhich once in a while but it can't be an everday or even every two days thing. It is psychologically difficult to make this change, but its absolutely necessary and once you get into the groove of it its dead easy.
 
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