Week 6 - 2.8 Pounds Lost Plus a Couple of Surprises

Update for Week 6, ending 2013.02.13

OK, the competition is starting to get fierce! In week 6, my official weigh-in at work is 204.2 lb (starting weight of 235.0 so a loss of 13.11% and I'm still in the lead). As a group we've collectively lost 94.1% of the weight we started with. The new individual member milestone is with Jeff B, who has dropped from the obese category (BMI 30.0).

Now for a couple of surprises:

1. Carlos L is creeping up to my weight loss percentage at 12.72% to my 13.11% and could overtake me next week. He's lost an incredible 32.4 lb for an average of 5.4 lb per week - very impressive.
2. Second, seems Kevin Lu has been in stealth mode this entire time (he hasn't weighed in until this week). Kevin started out as the lightest in the group and the only member who was within the "normal" BMI at 24.9. Friday he shoots up from last to 5th place. His advantage is that he only needs to lose a few pounds to make significant gains. It's also his disadvantage, as he doesn't have much in excess to lose.

Name	Weigh In	Age	Height	BMI In	Current BMI	15-Feb	%
John Eaton (me)	235.0	50	70	33.7	29.7	204.2	13.11%
Carlos L	268.8	36	77	31.9	28.4	234.6	12.72%
Mike J	263.2	37	76	32.0	28.7	235.8	10.41%
Jeff B	282.2	45	70	40.5	36.6	253.4	10.21%
Kevin Lu	178.6	27	71	24.9	24.9	161.2	9.74%
Kevin Li	236.8	40	72	32.1	29.0	214.0	9.63%
Stephen M	223.8	56	70	32.1	29.6	203.8	8.94%
Verlin H	434.0	37	75	54.2	49.9	401.2	7.56%
Steven T	272.6		76	33.2	30.9	254.0	6.82%
Alex V	209.6	32	72	28.4	27.3	197.0	6.01%
Chris D	224.6	40	70	32.2	31.0	214.6	4.45%
Shane M	246.4	41	72	33.4	32.3	238.0	3.41%
Patrick M	237.4	40	73	31.3	30.5	231.4	2.53%
Stan Y	249.6	45	69	36.9	36.3	245.6	1.60%
Jeff M	271.2			N/A	N/A	271.2	0.00%
Mark F	269.6		72	36.6	36.6	269.6	0.00%
Carey A	258.4			N/A	N/A	258.4	0.00%
Mark M	243.0		73	32.1	32.1	243.0	0.00%
Total	100%					94.1%

At home, my weight comes in at 200.4 lb for a total loss of 26.2 lb (226.6-200.4). I'm fairly certain I'll hit my 195 lb target (I dropped to 198.8 on Saturday) so I may need to set a new goal target, perhaps of 190 lb (which will change my work target to 17.45%). The next couple of days will determine where I end up by the end of the competition.

My progress via graphs generated from MyFitnessPal:

I've been slowly increasing the intensity and time of my cardio workouts - I started on the treadmill at incline 5.0 and speed of 3.5. I'm currently starting at incline 7.0 and speed of 3.7. This week I go to 8.0 and 3.8. I also started to work in some stationary bike - I've committed to a bike ride the first week of April: The Brag Spring Tune-Up: http://www.brag.org/stu2.html
The ride occurs around the town of Madison, GA which has fairly level paths and gentle hills. Sounds like a lot of fun. The last ride I did (on the Silver Comet), I came away fairly saddle sore - this time I hope to build up a bit for the soreness. I'll also be riding as often as I can locally to prepare.

-- John