# Inquiry for weight, training and diet - Low income.



## Shaolth (26 Oct 2019)

Hi to all. As the subject says i'd like to ask for advice here regarding weight gain, training and diet all while on a tight and poor budget. Now I know I could look up on google some advice but figured this topic might be valuable here for myself and anyone else who may face similar issues possibly.

Little disclaimer; its Midnight as I finish typing this and a bit tired so my thoughts' are scattered from a long day and organizing my thoughts into this is a little raw and top of the mind.

So here's my current as of today information.

I am 24 years old, 5"9, weighing 118 lbs. I am slender-thin framed that I believe my ribs can be seen and more so stretching arms overhead. I for the longest time have had an extremely poor diet due to lack of supplies and funds and other circumstances. Some days i'd go barely eating a meal a day like soups or a bowl of cereal. I do not smoke. Do not drink or any drugs. I do consume energy drinks and coffee however.

As for income, I currently do not work. I was a graduate as a race horse groom but it's out of season and I personally hate the race track and poor salary so my only income is temporary on Alberta Income Support for me and a common-law partner. With that I have to pay rent, bills and car payment and insurance and left with little for spare.

I feel I need to change all of this and prepare myself better especially if in all hopes I could be a potential recruit for the CAF which is my dream to be part of.

October 24th I went to a recreational fitness center with both a pool and gym. With no further prep or training I just went out to evaluate myself and get out for once as I am determined to make it a habit going to this centre. 

So before swimming to mention and I regret doing it but I had a Mc Donalds quarter pounder with cheese, poutine and coffee. Didn't even finish all of it but I sure regretted it during my swimming below. (After that I decided to no longer get Mc Donalds. Gross to me oddly now...)

Swimming there was a 25 meter lane I swam and my results tracked via my Galaxy Watch recorded a time of 9 mins 28 seconds with a 300 m distance. I was going more casual/enduring than a race/speed workout for laps. My max speed was 7 KM/h. Avg heart rate was 160 bpm with max 179 bpm.

After swimming i cooled down, walked it out, relaxed then dried off and went to the gym to a treadmill. 

In my mind I was curious if I could try for the 2.4 km distance within 10 mins - 11:58. After 7 minutes I felt I couldn't and hit the cooldown button and lasted the full 5 minutes of that for a total distance of 1.7 km in a total of 13:06. Not bad I guess being out of shape?

My next thought was trying the pull up bar to do chin ups. I was able to do about 10 including curling my knees to my chest which I didn't find that bad. For pulling weights in the triceps I think?~ I was able to do 55 lbs for a set of 10 before my arms burned so i stopped.  A machine for spreading my thighs and using the rear muscles I believe was around a weight of 140(?) lbs.  Leg strength was a bit better though after maybe 10-15 it started to burn so I stopped.

This point I was getting exhausted so I stopped for the day and felt hungry. I went there at 4 PM. Left by 6 PM.

As for raw proper push ups I managed to get myself to do 23 however the next day I felt like i tore my front so I need to be careful but yet my capabilities seem to be decent? With proper training and diet and a routine idea I may have potential I hope.

So it leads me to ask for advice though as I cannot afford a fortune of foods, veggies, protein shakes, etc... How would and should I start eating and training to build cardio endurance and upper as well leg strength?

I do have in supply 10 cases of Ensure regular meal drinks in fact I have a supplied prescription for it due to needing more calories the doctor said so aside from a liquid diet... What would be the best, safest and effective way to train myself to endure and maintain operational fitness for BMQ and beyond?

I know it's more than likely that if I succeed becoming enlisted and off for BMQ the lack of access to food / fitness will no longer be an issue... But prior to BMQ... I would like to make my life active and more prepared. 

The option I also have is a fitness membership no-contract to the gym and pool I went to for $48 a month unlimited all access instead of $9.75 per visit. So with that in mind it would possibly be worth it perhaps if I made a routine ... 3 days? 5?~ a week just to swim, stretch and try something.

Any tips, advise and opinions are appreciated as I know I am not presently fully fit with an active life... i've been too much a book-worm office dweller for a long time and need to transition in a healthy safe way to prevent injury in and out of BMQ.

My biggest issue it seems also is needing to gain weight, not lose anymore and figure a proper routine to prepare myself for what active military lifestyle will be like.

Thanks again for the time.


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## mariomike (26 Oct 2019)

Shaolth said:
			
		

> My biggest issue it seems also is needing to gain weight, not lose anymore and figure a proper routine to prepare myself for what active military lifestyle will be like.



anyone else have to gain weight?
https://navy.ca/forums/threads/63383.0
3 pages.

Bettering Fitness Standards while Waiting for BMQ  
https://navy.ca/forums/threads/17044.0
5 pages.


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## Humphrey Bogart (26 Oct 2019)

Shaolth said:
			
		

> Hi to all. As the subject says i'd like to ask for advice here regarding weight gain, training and diet all while on a tight and poor budget. Now I know I could look up on google some advice but figured this topic might be valuable here for myself and anyone else who may face similar issues possibly.
> 
> Little disclaimer; its Midnight as I finish typing this and a bit tired so my thoughts' are scattered from a long day and organizing my thoughts into this is a little raw and top of the mind.
> 
> ...



Gaining weight in your case?  Just eat food, three square a day.  Go for cheap stuff i.e. bags of rice, potatoes, cans of tuna, frozen vegetables, club packs of chicken, bags of milk, big jar of peanut butter and loaves of whole wheat bread.  

As for training, you could spend money on a fitness club membership which personally I wouldn't recommend as you probably won't get maximum benefit out if it and wouldn't follow a prescribed program.  You would also have less money for food which is more important.

Want value for money?  Buy an app on google store like ©Freeletics and follow one of the programs.  You can Tailor the program to the equipment you have and your skill level.  $39.99 for a three month freeletics coaching program.  Well worth the money.

All this being said, you need to fix your diet as you won't get any benefit from a fitness program if your diet isn't on point.  

On that point, don't have any delusions about your fitness, you did 23 pushups (which isn't a lot btw the old FORCE Test standard was 28 minimum for men) but you weigh 118lbs so that isn't very much, there are plenty of men in the military who are 200lbs+ that can do over 60 push ups and a few women as well so you need to get better.  You won't be formally tested on pushups in basic training but you will have to do a 275lb sandbag drag for 20 yards, can you drag something that's 2.5x your bodyweight right now?

First priority is get your diet right by eating more and trying to put on 20-30lbs.

Second priority is greatly increasing your strength.  Your endurance ain't that bad from what you indicated with your numbers but your strength will need to come way up.

After you do a strength workout, drink a glass of milk and eat a peanut butter sandwich.  These two things will help your muscles grow strong.


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## Jonezy76 (28 Oct 2019)

Shaolth,

I'm a 43 year old smoker, am 5'6" and my weight was exactly the same as you.... 118lbs. I work in a blue collar job and ate 2 meals per day. (meat/potatoes/rice etc) I also wanted to gain weight and strength but wasn't able to afford a gym membership or buy equipment. In July I applied to the CAF. I knew things had to change.

I added two meals, eating rolled oats for breakfast and a peanut butter sandwich before bed.
 I started running and doing pushups and crunches to get fit. My first run was 1400M. It almost killed me...ha-ha! Now I run 3x/week, even though I hate it. I now run 2.5k in 11 minutes and 5k in 23 min easily.
I do the 100 push-up challenge. My starting number was 36. I can now almost do 100 in a row. I've never been stronger in my life.
I've gained 13 lbs and lost 3" off my waist. I've never felt better.

 I did the FORCE in September. I weighed 127 lbs that day and did the sandbag drag in 37 seconds. It was a struggle, but I did it. I decided that day that I need to quit smoking, and am well on my way.
I recently found a weight bench and weights on Kijiji for $25. I've added a strength program and it's making a huge difference. I do the exercises I can with the equipment I have, and substitute similar exercises for the ones I don't have the equipment for.

My goal is 140lbs by the end of the year and it looks like I'll be heavier at the rate I'm going.

Just don't quit. If I can do it, you can.

Hope this helps.

Brad


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## Ahmedsaid50 (18 Nov 2019)

Shaolth,

First of all congratulations for the best discussion to join the Force. 

 I'm 43 6'2 and my process is taking quite some time. My budget is tight but I am managing myself as much as I can. I don't put myself under pressure to buy special foods to meet my goals. I buy what I can afford. 

The biggest advise I can start with is Don't burn yourself. Take it easy. You don't want to end up injured. 

From what I read you need two main things 1. to gain weight and 2. to gain strength. 

As for weight,  you don't need fancy expensive food or protein shakes to gain weight. You need to eat carbs and protein. This is what you need. Go for rice specially brown rice, pasta, potatoes, eggs  chicken breasts (try to avoid chicken legs), ground beef, chickpeas, lentils...etc. all of this is full of carbs and protein. Invest in Costco membership. Buy bulk. It will save you a lot.

 At Costco they are selling Delicious rotisserie chicken for $7.99  . If you're lucky you can get this chicken for $5.99 if you found it in the cold storage case. It's huge. Try it. I divide this chicken on 5 meals. Also they have 2 packs of eggs (24 eggs or 18 eggs) for 6 dollars I think. Buy it. Costco is my best friend  make it your too.

You mentioned you have prescribed Ensure, consume it. Consider this as your protein shake. Take it before hitting the gym for energy. Eat something before training. Not a heavy meal. Leave heavy meals after the gym. Control your coffee and caffeine intake.

Just be careful not to gain fat. Try to eat healthy. 

For training, you need to gain strength.  And again you need food to be able to train and become stronger.

Here you have to take it easy. Endurance will come but you have to be patient. When I started to run, it took me 25 min. to finish the 2.4 KM. After 2 month I can finish it in around 12 min. which within the time frame for my age (I train twice a week). What you can do, and this is exactly what I did, start with a low speed like 5 or 5.5 miles/hour on the treadmill. Your goal is to finish the 2.4 KM not to meet the target time frame for now. When you finish the 2.4 KM check how long it took you to finish it. Your goal after that is to cut this time down. Continue on this for a couple of days then increase your speed a little bit. Within a couple of weeks your find that you added a lot of speed and your time is coming down. Be patient. Building endurance doesn't come in one night. 

Swimming, I don't know why you time yourself. I didn't find any instructions that says we have to finish swimming in specific time. Please share where did you find it. All what I know about swimming is that you have to know how to swim and how to tread water for 2 min then swim 60-70 meters after that. 

I have a video for a recruiting center in Alberta and the personnel said that. For this, still focus on endurance not on timing or speed I think. Try to swim for a 100 meters. If you do that you will be ok. 

In my case I can swim now a 100 meters. 50 meters front crawl and 50 meters back crawl. If I can do it you can too. 

There is another free fitness app called bodyspace from bodybuilding.com. Download it. It's  free. There are a lot of free workouts. Choose one that suites you. I was using their workouts until I designed my own workout. I still use the app for my own workout to track my progress. 

I don't have a solution for low income, but I have an advice if you may allow me. Instead of depending on Alberta income support, you can work at Tim Horton's  or McDonald's. I know the work is not the best but you will get more money and you will have one free meal for your lunch. I was working for Tim's before and we were eating any meals or sandwiches in our lunch breaks. At least this is one meal you don't have to worry about.

Don't forget to rest.  Your body needs the rest to grow. You can train 4 days a week. Train every other day. Also if you trying to gain weight don't do too much cardio. I know you have to train for the running and the swimming but you have to find a balance. It's the same situation that I am facing now. 

You mentioned something about leg strength,  running and swimming will be enough for now as you still need to train the rest of your body. Believe me, I was hitting the gym for 5 years and didn't get enough muscle mass to satisfy me, once I started to train for the Forces and started to do a lot of running,  swimming and body weight trainings , I gained a lot of muscles including leg muscles from the run and swimming. 

If you wish, we can find a way to text, email or even call to exchange experiences. We need all the help we can find. Let me know.

Good luck. 
Ahmed


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## Jarnhamar (18 Nov 2019)

I'd recommend a whey protien isolate right after a work out and hybrid (6 or 8 protien) blend for meal replacement or suppliment if you're looking at protien. Costco has some good prices.


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## daftandbarmy (18 Nov 2019)

Jarnhamar said:
			
		

> I'd recommend a whey protien isolate right after a work out and hybrid (6 or 8 protien) blend for meal replacement or suppliment if you're looking at protien. Costco has some good prices.



It may sound a bit obvious but, when I was a permanently hungry, poor and gangly kid, I worked in restaurants... alot. 

I never went hungry, made money, and got huge workouts through lifting and shifting stock, garbage, etc. So, kind of like farm work, but mostly indoors and you can take a bus to and from - or run/bike - each day.  

It may not have been the only reason I passed the Airborne Course as a 20 year old reservist, but it sure helped.


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## 306FL306 (15 Feb 2020)

I have a Bachelor's Degree in Exercise Physiology with minors in Nutrition and Psychology + a Master's Degree in Neuromuscular Physiology + a PhD in Toxicology. I am a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the NSCA. I owned a strength and conditioning business for quite a few years in the US (where I used to live). Prior to all that, I was in a military academy (officer-in-training).

If you think there is anything i can do to help you, message me privately.


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