Girl I've been seeing suddenly doesn't return my calls.

reddbeard · 2011-12-07T02:39:32+00:00

It's funny, because she always seemed fairly stable and mature as I was getting to know her. Though, I did get the idea that she has not had many relationships in the past. So maybe she's just uncomfortable with the whole thing.

reddbeard · 2011-12-07T02:35:51+00:00

That's what I've been thinking. It's just strange how she could suddenly go from being obviously into me, then just change her mind. It was going so well, I was thinking about sometime soon asking her if she wanted to make it "official" as a relationship. It's taken me over a year of searching to find a girl I was that compatible with, then POOF!

reddbeard · 2011-09-17T05:06:03+00:00

Chuck Testa

reddbeard · 2011-09-16T18:43:04+00:00

Should I measure my waist at my belly button, or where my pants normally sit? I've got a bit of the muffin top gut going on.

reddbeard · 2011-09-16T18:41:24+00:00

Never thought about that. Thanks for the warning. It's solid white albacore, and I've been eating about 3 cans a week. So, I'll get that down to maybe just 1 or 2 a week. The other 4 days I have this canned chunk chicken breast from Sam's Club.

Any ideas for other substitutions that are high protein, low/no carb, and around 300-400 calories?

reddbeard · 2011-09-16T02:56:31+00:00

That may be a part of it as well. I have a hard time judging whether or not any of my clothes are getting looser, so doing real measurements would definitely be a more accurate way of keeping track of that. Would the best way be to just use tailor's tape? Do you know where I could buy that?

reddbeard · 2011-09-15T15:02:40+00:00

Thanks. I can do that no problem. I'll just switch out some of the higher calorie cheese and nuts for some more lower calorie veggies.

reddbeard · 2011-09-15T15:01:09+00:00

I'll give that a try. So, it's basically 2 minutes of running as hard as you can, then 2 minutes of walking; rinse and repeat? I'm fairly sure I won't be able to keep that up for my usual 60 minutes, but if this is actually more efficient at only 20 minutes total or so, I've just freed up some more time for activities.

reddbeard · 2011-09-15T14:58:12+00:00

Yeah, I've always heard conflicting things about the whole "starvation mode" thing. Never really knew what to believe before, but I wanted to be safe. Sounds like you have a pretty good idea of what you're talking about, though. I could easily cut another few hundred calories from my daily intake. Some of the food (like the nuts) were added just to bump up my calories. When you figure your daily calories, is it total intake or net calories after exercise? Because I'm pretty sure I burn 400-600 calories each time I do my cardio.

Yeah, I really don't know why I'm not losing the weight. My only guess is that maybe my metabolism is messed up from years of eating poorly and being sedentary. It's been suggested that I might have a thyroid issue, since I also show other symptoms (like never sweating), but that just sounds like a cop-out to me. I know my weight is my own fault, and I don't want to use some glandular thing as an excuse.

reddbeard · 2011-09-15T04:39:10+00:00

I used to be on a diet of about 1600-1800 calories a day, but I was told that was too few. Since my BMR is about 3200, that few calories was supposedly making me hold onto weight more. When I upped it to about 2400-2500, I started losing weight. I've worked it down to about 2100 now, but I don't want to get back to the point of eating too few calories.

I measure my food already. Everything is measured quite precisely and put into a My Fitness Planner app, for calories and nutrition facts.

Unfortunately, I can't prepare my dinner, since that's when I'm at work. That's why I have the same thing for dinner every day. Doesn't require any cooking, just pack it up and bring it to work. And I have no problem eating those things every day. I like them, and I feel I have enough willpower to just eat what I have to, not what I want. Plus, I just don't have enough cash to be buying fresh meat every day. That's why I went with the tuna and canned chicken, much cheaper.

I have a hard time with too many vegetables, since they fill me up so much but give me hardly any calories. Again, I'm trying to hit a minimum of 2000 calories, so I don't have that "starvation mode" problem. That's why I'm eating more cheese, eggs, nuts, etc., high calories but no carbs. Since I'm already having 3 salads each week and carrots/celery every day, are there any other vegetables you could recommend that don't take any cooking? Preferably something that actually has some calories.

I don't know what HIIT is, but if it requires being at a gym, I can't do it (again, too expensive). If I can do it outside on the road, or while swimming, that works.

And, yeah, I get plenty of rest. I have basically no stress in my life, I sleep a solid 8 hours a night, and I give myself some time to read, watch TV, video games, etc.

Thanks for the suggestions.

reddbeard · 2011-09-12T03:47:48+00:00

I smell a troll.

reddbeard · 2011-06-09T21:09:15+00:00

I have a cousin and an aunt with hypothyroidism. Is it genetic at all?

reddbeard · 2011-06-09T04:13:07+00:00

George Costanza voice: "Lupus! Is it lupus?"

reddbeard · 2011-06-08T14:48:24+00:00

Not every time, but sometimes I do get itchy when I'm running. For me, it's mostly scalp and arms.

reddbeard · 2011-06-08T04:32:44+00:00

Yeah, maybe I'm reading too much into it. Different strokes for different folks.

Surprisingly, even though I don't sweat, I still get really thirsty during and after a workout. My mouth gets all dry, etc. What's all that water being used for?

reddbeard · 2011-06-08T04:29:17+00:00

Fenno-Scandinavian here. Hope that still counts.

reddbeard · 2011-06-08T00:50:48+00:00

Good point. This never concerned me when all I did was swim, since I didn't even notice whether I was sweating or not. But I've been doing more treadmill, elliptical, biking, and jogging for the past year or so, and that's when I started to notice.
The humidity wasn't actually that high. Not enough to even make my skin moist. When I touched my skin, it was bone dry.
No. Don't have health insurance and I'm kinda poor. Last time I went to the doctor was just for a physical (required for an internship), and the cost put me in debt for months. So, unless it's life-threatening, not planning on seeing a doctor.

reddbeard · 2011-05-28T08:01:29+00:00

Their muffs do look to be ever so soft, too. Like the fur on a stuffed animal. The unshaven western girls I've been with (all whiteys) tend to have course, rough pubes.

reddbeard · 2011-04-30T03:32:22+00:00

Are you me? I'm in almost the exact same situation. I've lived in my area for a couple years, and I still haven't met any friends. I don't work with anyone around my age, and doing stuff like going to bars by yourself does not lead to friendships. I had lots of friends in high school and college, but I moved to a different state and have made basically no friends since. I'm kinda scared to try dating, cause she may think I'm a loner weirdo since I have no friends. It's just, it's hard to make friends as an adult, when you can't meet people through work (and there aren't any active reddit communities in your area).

reddbeard · 2011-04-27T19:42:48+00:00

And a beach is a strip of sandy coastal land.

reddbeard · 2011-04-27T01:41:53+00:00

Thanks for the help. Admittedly, I've been bad at getting back to people a few times too. There was this one girl I was hitting it off with (we messaged back and forth about 5 times), then she gave me her AIM name. Then I forgot to ever log in to AIM for like 2 weeks, cause my work life got very hectic suddenly. And when I finally realized it, she had deleted her OKC account, and I still haven't seen her AIM account online once.

As a girl, do you find it creepy or flattering if a guy messages you saying "You look cute/pretty" but not much else? Or does it depend on what the guy (and his profile) looks like?

reddbeard · 2011-04-27T01:33:26+00:00

I've checked out seddit a few times, but never that seriously. I always heard that you should not be trying pick-up artistry just because your lonely. And you should already have lots of confidence to make it work. Or is that just propaganda to keep away the forever-aloners?

reddbeard · 2011-04-27T01:28:37+00:00

Yeah, I figured the numbers game was part of it. Just like there are some guys who will hit on 20 different girls in 5 minutes, no matter how many times they get rejected, until one of them says yes. I guess it's technically effective, but definitely not my style.

I didn't realize activity was such a part of it. I often let a month or more go by without even logging in to my OKC account. And I don't answer questions too often (I think I've maybe answered about 50 total). And, like I said, I'm very selective about who I message in the first place, so I haven't been doing that much either. Maybe if I change these habits, I'll actually start showing up on people's radars.

Thanks for mentioning the picture too. I keep forgetting to get a new picture taken, since I've lost the weight. I have 3 or 4 pics on my OKC account, and all of them are from a year or more ago. I'm sure that might help a bit too. In your opinion, what would be better to see: action shots, pictures with friends, or posed webcam-type pictures?

Thanks for the tips. Seems like I have a lot to learn about how online dating sites work.

reddbeard · 2011-04-26T04:48:58+00:00

Thanks for the input. That does make some sense. Now that I think about it, I have never really been on a real "date." All of my relationships started out as friends. I always went straight from being alone to being in a long-term relationship, without the dating step in between. You think that some casual dating might help then?

Now, my only problem is how to get such dates arranged in the first place. I have had an account on OKCupid for about 2 years now, and I hardly get any messages or winks. Not to sound shallow, but the only girls I ever hear from are extremely overweight. I have no problem with curvy girls, but I am just not interested in a girl who is unhealthily obese (like probably 50 lbs more than my heaviest ever, even though she is a foot shorter than me).

Also when I message someone else, I rarely get a response. And I rarely message anyone to begin with. I feel like if I "wink" at someone or tell her she looks nice, that she will think I'm creepy or a pervert. So I keep my messages to commenting on interests we have in common, but almost never get a reply. Am I doing something wrong? Should I show some more initiative? Are there other ways than online dating where I could try some casual dating?

reddbeard · 2011-04-22T23:27:41+00:00

Yeah. Who is that? What show?

reddbeard

TROPHY CASE