You don't have to deprive yourself to lose weight

[FitChick]

This British chef has a new cookbook with recipes she created while dieting. You don't have to buy the book but read the article which summarizes what she did. As she mentioned, being a chef she HAD to eat delicious food. It's her job! I know someone who lost 40 lbs. doing something similar.

 

As in clothing, one size doesn't fit all when it comes to diets.

[Mr Scorpio]

Totally agree. I can understand why people would fail to meet their weight-loss goals if they are loading up on rice-cakes and salad. IMO, the key is to find recipes that you actually enjoy which are also healthy. Simply swapping white rice and "normal" pasta with brown rice and whole-wheat pasta opens up a world of possibilities.

[suladas]

I have cut out nothing, I still eat absolutely anything I want like pizza, pop, candy, fast food, etc. And I eat things like salad and vegetables very rarely. I just changed how often I eat the bad stuff, and overall how much I ate. Works better for me, salad and that stuff sucks.

[Eternal Sunshine]

I have cut out nothing, I still eat absolutely anything I want like pizza, pop, candy, fast food, etc. And I eat things like salad and vegetables very rarely. I just changed how often I eat the bad stuff, and overall how much I ate. Works better for me, salad and that stuff sucks.

 

 

Just watch out that you get enough nutrients. Cutting down calories while still eating junk/sweets will make you lose weight but can also deplate your body of important vitamins/minerals over time.

[MsSmurf]

Food is meant to be enjoyed. The minute I have to settle for unpleasant food to be healthy is the minute I'm ready to just end it all completely. Over the last few years I lost a bunch of weight and did it while eating food that tasted great as well. Moderation really was the key.

[suladas]

Just watch out that you get enough nutrients. Cutting down calories while still eating junk/sweets will make you lose weight but can also deplate your body of important vitamins/minerals over time.

 

I track everything on myfitness pal so I can see what i'm getting, if anything i'm getting the same if not more of them now. I am eating less junk food overall, just not cutting it out completely. Although the rare day I will cheat and have junk food instead of real food for a meal but that is quite rare.

[amazingdrummer]

I have cut out nothing, I still eat absolutely anything I want like pizza, pop, candy, fast food, etc. And I eat things like salad and vegetables very rarely. I just changed how often I eat the bad stuff, and overall how much I ate. Works better for me, salad and that stuff sucks.

or maybe you are just lucky with a great mebolism. For me, I watched my foods and calculate my calories intake carefully, eat wholegrain, fruits, and veggetables. Sometime i eat meats (for protein) but i try to eliminate using oils and salt, and i still gain weight.

Edited April 1, 2013 by amazingdrummer

[tman666]

or maybe you are just lucky with a great mebolism. For me, I watched my foods and calculate my calories intake carefully, eat wholegrain, fruits, and veggetables. Sometime i eat meats (for protein) but i try to eliminate using oils and salt, and i still gain weight.

 

Based on this statement, I would guess that your diet is primarily carbohydrate based with little protein. If this is the case, it is unsurprising that you're having a hard time avoiding weight gain.

 

Keep in mind the effects of insulin and the thermic effect of food. Protein and fats take more energy to digest and utilize. They also cause less insulin (or none at all in the case of fats) to be released and therefore help improve insulin sensitivity.

 

Overdoing it on the carbs can cause insulin resistance over the long term, which will lead to weight gain and possibly other health issues if gone unchecked.

[tbf]

Anyone notice the dramatic effects of photoshop?

[amazingdrummer]

Based on this statement, I would guess that your diet is primarily carbohydrate based with little protein. If this is the case, it is unsurprising that you're having a hard time avoiding weight gain.

 

Keep in mind the effects of insulin and the thermic effect of food. Protein and fats take more energy to digest and utilize. They also cause less insulin (or none at all in the case of fats) to be released and therefore help improve insulin sensitivity.

 

Overdoing it on the carbs can cause insulin resistance over the long term, which will lead to weight gain and possibly other health issues if gone unchecked.

 

Actually im very careful with bad carbs, i used to follow Atkinson diet, so i was scared of bad cards (said no to white rice, white bread, fried foods, and esp no fast foods). The only kind of cards i could not give up is sugar coffee (my addiction). And I do see ppl who keep themselves slim while eating fast foods, it's kinda discourage when i have to spend time cooking healthy boring foods all the time. So it is all about mebolism, I guess.

[DannyMason]

Let's face it, if you want to lose weight, you're either going to have to exercise like hell (depriving yourself of relaxation) eat less (depriving yourself of food) or eat healthier (depriving yourself of taste). There's going to be deprivation. If you had healthy tastes and habits where a healthy lifestyle wouldn't feel like deprivation, you wouldn't be overweight in the first place. And I speak from experience.

 

On New Years 2011 I was 80 lbs overweight, exactly. In less than 2 years I lost 102.5 lbs. My method for the weight loss was as follows:

 

Eat ~500 calories a day for the first several days. I ate oatmeal mixed with protein powder and took a multivitamin.

 

Eat ~1000 calories a day for a week or two. More prot-meal and a small normal meal everyday.

 

Afterwards I transitioned from ~1500 calories a day with a normal diet, but in February 2012 I started trying to eat about that many calories, but with an actual healthy diet. By that May I was at a healthy body mass index and by fall I had lost over a hundred pounds!

 

I won't say my approach will work for everyone, but I managed to pull it off.

[Mr Scorpio]

Let's face it, if you want to lose weight, you're either going to have to exercise like hell (depriving yourself of relaxation) eat less (depriving yourself of food) or eat healthier (depriving yourself of taste). There's going to be deprivation. If you had healthy tastes and habits where a healthy lifestyle wouldn't feel like deprivation, you wouldn't be overweight in the first place. And I speak from experience.

 

Congrats on your weight loss. I must take exception with your assertion. There are plenty of things one can cook that taste good and are healthy. My current rotation consists of spaghetti, bean soup, shrimp saag, pita and hummus, chilli, oatmeal, veggie stir-fry, and lobster-pasta salad. All tasty. All healthy. All cheap. Between that and exercising 4 days a week for 2 months, I'm down 12 pounds so far.

[DannyMason]

Congrats on your weight loss. I must take exception with your assertion. There are plenty of things one can cook that taste good and are healthy. My current rotation consists of spaghetti, bean soup, shrimp saag, pita and hummus, chilli, oatmeal, veggie stir-fry, and lobster-pasta salad. All tasty. All healthy. All cheap. Between that and exercising 4 days a week for 2 months, I'm down 12 pounds so far.

 

Most significantly overweight people would probably still consider your diet a bit deprived, though, and a lot of us need to lose a lot more than 12 pounds. I'm intrigued by your ability to obtain "cheap" lobster, too. Are you from Maine by any chance?

[Mr Scorpio]

Most significantly overweight people would probably still consider your diet a bit deprived, though, and a lot of us need to lose a lot more than 12 pounds. I'm intrigued by your ability to obtain "cheap" lobster, too. Are you from Maine by any chance?

 

Nope. Western Michigan. The local supermarket had a sale on packs of imitation lobster, $1.99 per pack! I bought ten of them. One pack, one small onion, two tablespoons of garlic, olive-oil, lemon juice, low-fat mayo, mustard, and delicious. Five meals under 1$ each.

 

And yeah, the twelve-pounds was just the start. I'm shooting for 160 by Summer. Twelve down, fourteen to go. Time for a fun-run!

[Lillyfree]

not rocket surgery really.

 

simple maths - burn more than you take in. portion control and exercise alone will see you losing weight.

[thefooloftheyear]

Frankly I am quite surprised that the other poster lost weight.

 

1500 calories a day for a grown man isnt enough..Most people actually wont lose weight when consuming that small.

 

As a 200 lb man,I eat 6,000 calories a day yet maintain 10-12 % bodyfat levels. Its WHAT you eat that matters, not how much. All "clean" foods. Heck even my cholesterol level, just tested a month ago, was at 140. I eat tons of red meat. The key is have a good base of MUSCLE. Man or woman. That will keep the fat away. I consume most of my carbs in the morning and slowly wean off as the day goes. 6-7 meals a day. Heavy workouts 5-6 times a week. 48 years old and best shape of my life.

 

Forget fad diets and starvation. Eat, train hard and you WILL achieve your goals.

 

Good Luck

 

TFOY