Why so many people lose the weight battle.

[aFighter]

This is my take on it.

 

I feel that why so many of us lose the weight battle is not because we can't or we have no will power, its the food itself. Ok I'll explane.

Have you ever thought about the food of today, I mean as you're wandering around the market & you think to yourself "What's in that?" or something similar. You read the lable and shrug it off, into the cart it goes. You'd be right to ask because there's a hidden danger in most packaged food & even fresh vegatbles - Sugar. That's right, there's sugar in most everything. You're body is a sugar to fat factory. Put it this way, you're body can turn a 1/2 cup of sugar into a table spoon of pure fat that's stored in your body, it's not expelled.

Excess sugar consumption is also linked to depression & impaired immune function. You'd think a nice raw carrot to chew on is really healthy right? Wrong!

17% of a carrots mass is stored sugar, beets, potatoes [starch sugars] and white bread are also hidden sugar mine fields. Baked potatoes quickly convert to sugar in your stomach & a glass of wine has less sugar than an ear of corn!

I bet you didn't know even red ketchup has sugar in it. It's everywhere.

So how DO you avoid the sugar trap?

 

Be educated is the 1st step.

Determine the glycemic levels of various foods

Discover which foods to eat at what time of day

Large meals should never be eaten before going to bed--because cholesterol is also manufactured at night.

Cutting calories in the diet only leads to temporary weight loss.

 

A good book I'd recommend is "Sugar Busters" there's a lot of good info in there.

[moimeme]

All you have to do is eat as many calories as you expend. There is no single thing that is bad or dangerous; everything is ok in moderation. But if you eat three cups of ice cream, you're taking in almost a couple days' calories at one sitting. If you have a half-cup of ice cream once a week, that's having a reasonable treat.

 

Cutting calories in the diet only leads to temporary weight loss.

 

No, that's how you diet. That is the only way to diet. But you have to make it a lifestyle to take in no more calories than you expend. And, until you're at your ideal weight, you have to take in fewer calories than you expend so you'll burn off some of the ones you have stored.

[Pocky]

Why so many people lose the weight battle.

 

Because we're lazy and we think that if we participate on all these absurd fad diets we'll magically lose weight when what we actually need to do is incorporate a combination of eating healthy and exercise.

[joseph]

Why so many people lose the weight battle?? here's my reason..

 

People have a predetermined genetic makeup of body size and body fat. When people go below this "set" or "fixed" level it will eventually be returned to it's original level... like say once you cease dieting or exercising, your body will return to a state of what it sees as balance.

Ive always thought this...Ive been lucky, my family has good genes, but I knew there was more to it than just people eating too much.

[Papillon]

People lose the battle because they don't count calories, or get tired of the constant management.

 

Counting calories is THE ONLY WAY to effective weight loss. There is no easy way to lose weight. If there were we'd all look great.

[Sundaymorning]

People lose the weight battle because of the obsession of weight in our society. anyone noticed ppl have gotten fatter in general since the atkins obsession recently? The more tv and media pushes weight loss, the fatter we will get. its that simple. You get on the scale say "im fat" which means "there is something WRONG WITH ME" and it all falls down from there. you just insulted yourself based on some other standard. Doing that to anyone is sabotage, let alone yourself.

 

"Counting calories is THE ONLY WAY to effective weight loss. There is no easy way to lose weight. If there were we'd all look great."FALSE

 

I could not disagree more on this- when you count calories, you start an obsession. The way to weight loss is to listen to your body. It is that simple. I have lost over 20 pounds by eating whatever the hell my body wants, when it wants it and stopping precisely when I am full. I just read an article in Self magazine that says the same thing. Trust me, it works. and oh- isnt this how we were meant to eat- when and how we needed and stop when full? isnt that what we teach our children and feed our babies this way? so why are we any different as adults?

riddle me that.

[Papillon]

FALSE? I have more than 60 pounds of weight loss (in three months, and sustained over a year) and a degree in biochemistry that sez different.

[HokeyReligions]

There is a different reason or explanation behind every single person's weight. What works for one, won't necessarily work for another. There are too many factors that don't include calories or sugar or starch or carbs, or even food, that go into a person's weight gain/loss/maintenance. I didn't change anything about my eating habits except to drink 2 liters of water a day. No added exercise, no counting anything, and I lost around 60 pounds and have kept it off.

 

I gain weight if I have more than 800-1000 calories a day. My mother will lose weight if she consistently eats 800 - 1000 calories a day. Her metabolism is different than mine. If I want to lose weight based on caloric intake alone, I would do damage to my body because I wouldn't get the fuel needed to sustain health, or to maintain a healthy exercise routine. A friend of mine can eat 5000 calories a day and not gain weight -- again, her body is different.

 

That's why these fad diets will work for a few people, but for many more people they "fail" because the diet is wrong for their metabolism/genetics/ and LIFESTYLE! Have you noticed that the healthiest foods are the most expensive? Fat-Free = More Cost.

 

Also, the sugars that occur naturally in foods are processed differently in the body, than foods which contain processed sugar, so the rules that apply to one, don't necessarily apply to the other.

[Sundaymorning]

Originally posted by Papillon

FALSE? I have more than 60 pounds of weight loss (in three months, and sustained over a year) and a degree in biochemistry that sez different.

 

while you have a degree in biochem, you might want to go get one in psych. logic and human feelings always prevail over degrees.

[Papillon]

No offence, but I find the fact that you equated logic and human feelings in an argument, decidedly funny

[irisfive]

Papillon -

Care to share any of your methods? 60 lbs. in 3months is quite impressive (if not a bit scary). I spend a bunch of time researching weight loss techniques on the web and I was wondering what you did to achieve this?

 

thanks

[Papillon]

'Ere's what I did...

 

http://www.loveshack.org/forums/t45166/

 

During the third month my calorie budget was as low as 750, and I was very healthy. No flatulence, no more oily skin or pimples, my nails had little ridges that went away, etc.

 

Edit: I have to add that the first ten or fifteen pounds fell away very quickly, I suspect it was simply body fluid...

[goodnbad]

Having lost 85 pounds over a year ago, I can say what caused my weight loss: not only consuming fewer calories but also adding daily exercise.

 

I think maybe the reason so many people regain their weight is that they think that calorie-control is ALL that is is about. And of course, once they start craving their old foods and go back to the old regimen of eating, there comes the weight....plus a few extra pounds more often than not. What most people have to do is change their eating habits (like others have said here) for LIFE. You can't live on cabbage diets or soup diets or no-carb diets forever. How much easier it is to just be able to eat whatever you want, in moderate portions.

 

And exercise, well, we're all busy and it's so hard to squeeze it in. But for most folk, I think if you are really intent on becoming healthy, it is way more than just being thin. It means being fit. Hey, and revving up your metabolism to burn more calories doesn't hurt exercise appeal either!

 

I am not what you would call thin. I am 138 pounds at 5'4". But I consider myself to be pretty fit. I run 5k five times a week, lift weights four times a week, and bike 2-3 times. I eat whatever I want, moderately of course. I consume approximately 1800 calories a day.

 

Hey, I suppose I could cut back more, but suffering from an eating disorder, I don't wish to push my luck. It would be too triggering to get 'competitive' with myself. I am at a happy state right now.

 

But to Papillon, I hope you don't take this negatively, but 750 calories a day is not, in my opinion, a healthy daily calorie intake for any adult. Please be careful.

 

Stay healthy!

goodnbad

[Papillon]

My 750 calories was mostly 70% proteien, the rest carbs. 50% of the whole lot came from a nutritional shake, and I took a very good multi-vitamin. I was VERY healthy, and the weight was peeling off. You have to remember that I had TONS of trialglycerols for my body to eat - my metabolism wasn't starved in any way. I could easily cycle 50km a day, without feeling washed out. And if I felt hungry, I'd make myself a huge green salad. In any event, the calorie restriction was for dieting, not for everyday living. I now eat aprox 1500-2000 calories a day.

[goodnbad]

Papillon, I'm glad you are not now keeping yourself limited at calorie amounts such as what you mentioned.

 

My own take on severe calorie restriction (which I---and most eating disorder experts---consider for adults to be anything under 1000/day) is that for most people, this puts your body into starvation mode---meaning that your body considers that it is starving, NOT that you will necessarily FEEL like you are starving. As a matter of fact, some anorexics don't feel 'alive and healthy' unless they are depriving themselves. Not that I am referring to your case personally! In response to starvation, your body slows it's metabolism down, since this is genetically a life-saving measure throughout humankind's history. This is to conserve energy.

 

Sadly, in our modern world, this lifesaver is also to our detriment. Eat too little, your body metabolism slows down, and your weight-loss also slows. Exercise can rev it somewhat but this may be counteracted to a point if a person eats too few calories.

 

I understand what you mean by the shake thing. Similar to a SlimFast deal. Most of your meals being shakes, vitamin/mineral supplements and the remainder as 'real' food. I could never get through that, I like to eat too much! So when the shake part was over, the weight would come back, since I would slowly revert to my old eating habits.

 

If it worked for you, terrific, but I doubt that most people could manage to keep the weight off. I'm calculating that if you had a 375 calorie shake, that would only leave another 375 of real food to eat. That would be equivalent to, say, 2 cups of rice, a moderate-sized piece of steak, or half of a BigMac. Whoa, severe. And cycling 50 kms a day (approx. 400 cals burned?). So your body might have 350 of calories to survive on per day? I have no doubt that your extra weight did, indeed, peel off.

 

I hope that you don't feel I am picking on you. That is not my intention. But your technique is very similar to ED behaviour (which includes not only calorie restricting but also intense exercise bouts). Again, not that I believe that you are necessarily suffering from an ED, only that it is one of the main identifying factors for it in many people.

 

So I would not recommend severe restriction like this for the average person, and definitely NOT for someone who might be teetering on the edge of an eating disorder. But then again, I am no diet/exercise guru either!

 

Take care and stay healthy!

goodnbad

[Papillon]

Hey...as a 330lb slob I DID have an ED! I loved food too much

 

The difference here was that I restricted my calorie intake to lose weight. When I reached my target weight, I started eating normally again (albeit slowly). Living on tuna and rice cakes isn't exactly pleasant.

[goodnbad]

Just curious, Papillon, how long have you kept the weight off? Have you been heavy most of your life before that weight loss?

 

Mine has been a pretty much lifelong battle (well, since my teens anyhow). At 39, I have finally gotten myself to a point where I feel healthy and fit. I only wished I could have gotten here sooner. I probably would have, too, if my doctor had recognized my eating disorder, rather than just telling me that I should 'use some willpower and put the fork down'. (My ED is compulsive/binge-eating disorder, not anorexia).

 

I cringe at your use of the word 'slob'---I admit that I have called myself this in the past (during my pity parties ) as well. But really, just because you are overweight and eat too much does not make you a slob. To me, a slob is someone who is messy and lazy.....something that way too many people erroneously associate with overweight people. I doubt that if you have achieved a decent weight loss that you are lazy; one has to work HARD to slim down! Congratulations!

 

So forgive me if I got a little overconcerned about your well-being in regards to restrictions. It's hard for me not to say anything when I see someone go the severe way of it; I have seen too many people that would love to get away from the starve/binge/starve mode. If you are now going it the healthy way, you have my best wishes.

 

Take care!

goodnbad

[Papillon]

Nope, I was always fit and healthy, my whole life. I used to cycle professionally, till I started a desk job. Slowly the pounds piled on, until one day I realised that I'd turned into a hippopotamus. It's a slow downward spiral, and your self-respect spirals down along with it, and you don't notice it. When you do, it's a massive shock.

 

I started my battle on February 22, last year, on my birthday, and I've maintainded the weight until now. I gained back about 10lbs, almost immediately when I started eating normally, but it stabilised and has been stable ever since.

 

Yeah, Taken_Angel has crapped on my head from a dizzy height because of my use of the word "slob". My POV is that if you stop taking care of your body, it's the same as not taking care of your surroundings. As always, if the shoe fits, one must wear it. A big motivating factor in losing weight was that my ex called me a fat slob, albeit jokingly. I realised that whatever her intentions, playful or hurtful, it was the truth.

[jesusfist]

hmmm 60 pounds in 3 months...thats pretty crazy, but hey i lost roughly 44 pounds in a month and 4.5 inches off my waist. really scary aye? and whats even more odd is i ate 5 healthy meals a day and didnt starve myself i swam/ran at the beach everyday for hours cause i was on holiday, by the end i wasnt boney or flabby. Although i lost alot of bodyfat i must have lost muscle somewhere in there, which i've recently replaced and added too currently 187 pounds 6ft 2" and i can do one arm pushups!

[goodnbad]

---"It's a slow downward spiral, and your self-respect spirals down along with it, and you don't notice it. When you do, it's a massive shock."---

 

Can't argue with ya there, Papillon! I feel like a totally different person at 138lbs than I did at 225lbs. Which is why, come to think of it, that I lost a few friends along with the weight. Funny how that happens.

 

---"my ex called me a fat slob, albeit jokingly"---

 

What can I say, but.....that is rude, rude, RUDE! And totally uncaring! You are best to avoid that type, for your self-esteem's sake. A person who would make a comment to their significant other like that, is really not doing so in 'fun'. (Now, my dh, on the other hand, who is REALLY a slob---in my definition of the word, not your own---is deserving of the term, but not because of his weight. Out of respect, however, I would never resort to calling him anything like that to his face, even if I were to think it).

 

Jesusfist, whoa, one-hand pushups. Impressive! Although I lift weights, I would never attempt that, not with carpal tunnel syndrome. My own weight loss wasn't what you would call quick, I lost about 3 pounds per week tops.

 

goodnbad