This woman didn't need a gym to lose weight

[FitChick]

There are hundreds of stories like this. Just one I found on CNN.

[KatZee]

I think what people lack most, is the motivation.

 

It's not that one can't lose weight at home, it's absolutely doable with DVDs or even watching stuff on YouTube and getting some dumbbells and a jump rope.

 

The issue many people have (myself included) is that if I'm not in a gym, having someone push my a.ss, I get very lazy. I've tried at home DVDs. I own p90x, Insanity, Zumba and countless other "10-minute Ab" DVDs. I went into it with a great mentality but after a few days I got very bored, I slacked, I would skip days, then eventually it tapered off and now those DVDs are just sitting in a box in the closet collecting dust.

 

For me to get in shape and get results I want, I NEED to be in a gym.

 

I personally do CrossFit, so I have coaches who are constantly in my face, evaluating technique, helping, and pushing me to go further and do more. Whereas if I was home, I would have given up and just gone back to sitting on my couch.

[FitChick]

I've tried at home DVDs. I own p90x, Insanity, Zumba and countless other "10-minute Ab" DVDs. I went into it with a great mentality but after a few days I got very bored, I slacked, I would skip days, then eventually it tapered off and now those DVDs are just sitting in a box in the closet collecting dust.

Why not donate them to Goodwill or even your local library? Someone will use them.

[Robert Z]

I did it with nothing but one set of 20 LB dumb bells, about four square feet of space, and a major diet change. In about 18 months I went from a 44"+ waist to a 32. Now I have access to plenty of equipment and a pool and am well on my way to being a hard body.

 

 

In the beginning I assumed that I had a 50/50 chance of dropping dead from a heart attack or stroke, so I took an aspirin before working out to give me better odds of surviving.

Edited November 27, 2013 by Robert Z

[theothersully]

Nobody needs a gym to stay in shape or lose weight.

 

Losing weight = 1) Eat less calories in a day, 2) Get off your ass.

 

It's that simple. You barely even have to get off your ass at all if you ratchet the calories back a good bit.

[Robert Z]

Nobody needs a gym to stay in shape or lose weight.

 

Losing weight = 1) Eat less calories in a day, 2) Get off your ass.

 

It's that simple. You barely even have to get off your ass at all if you ratchet the calories back a good bit.

 

 

Fewer calories and the right kind of calories. I think it is also important to realize that the average person can't work off a bad diet. Exercise doesn't typically burn nearly as many calories as we get from bad "foods".

[Charlie Harper]

I wonder how her skin is doing, the worst part of losing so much weight, is the extra skin to get rid off, most people end up in surgery removing a lot of skin...

 

Great for her !!!

[melell]

Before And After Fat Loss

 

There are pictures added to this site daily, majority of these people have done it all alone. Anyone can do it if they want to. It's simple choices - pizza or salad. Watch tv or exercise etc.

 

I can understand people that are really overweight/obese, and haven't been healthy in a long time, being a bit bewildered with how to get going. They might need some help getting their confidence up about their ability to do it.

 

I have always been healthy and exercised a lot- I think it has heaps to do with how I was raised, because my parents were really mindful of nutrition and health. Perhaps people assume a gym is necessary because they don't already have that knowledge?

[theothersully]

Fewer calories and the right kind of calories. I think it is also important to realize that the average person can't work off a bad diet. Exercise doesn't typically burn nearly as many calories as we get from bad "foods".

 

The total number is all that matters for losing weight, but it is much better to eat the right kind, I would agree.

 

For example... make some pancakes or crepes with white flour. You are hungry by lunch. Make them with whole wheat flour and oat bran, you are hungry at 3pm.

 

Also, yes... i see this all the time. I see the poor average person out putting in the mile running, yet they are overweight. I always feel bad that they are working so hard, but not working smart. I wonder if they go to Starbucks every morning, eat white flour based foods, processed meals and snacks, etc....

[Robert Z]

The total number is all that matters for losing weight, but it is much better to eat the right kind, I would agree.

 

For example... make some pancakes or crepes with white flour. You are hungry by lunch. Make them with whole wheat flour and oat bran, you are hungry at 3pm.

 

 

It does matter because we metabolize different caloric sources differently. If you eat a lot of simple carbs, you don't have much time before the excess energy gets stored as fat via insulin, whereas complex carbs, fat and protein take longer to metabolize and can provide energy for many hours.

 

If you don't have the energy stores for exercise, you start burning muscle instead of fatty acids or glucose. Generally it is believed that you want complex carbs before exercising and protein afterwards. This maximizes the muscle production and minimizes fat storage.

 

 

Most of all, you want to maximize your nutrient-antioxidant to calorie ratio. That means eating good, nutrient-packed foods and ditching foods like pancakes that have virtually no nutritional value.

Edited November 28, 2013 by Robert Z

[theothersully]

It does matter because we metabolize different caloric sources differently. If you eat a lot of simple carbs, you don't have much time before the excess energy gets stored as fat via insulin, whereas complex carbs, fat and protein take longer to metabolize.

 

If you don't have the energy stores for exercise, you start burning muscle instead of fatty acids or glucose. Generally it is believed that you want complex carbs before exercising and protein afterwards. This maximizes the muscle production and minimizes fat storage.

 

 

Most of all, you want to maximize your nutrient-antioxidant to calorie ratio. That means eating good, nutrient-packed foods and ditching foods like pancakes that have virtually no nutritional value.

 

That's what I said without actually getting into it.

 

Except you contradicted yourself by saying you should have complex carbs, but ditch foods like whole wheat / oat bran pancakes with no nutritional value..?

Edited November 28, 2013 by theothersully

[Robert Z]

For anyone fighting the junk food addiction, I was a total sugar addict. But you really can change and lose the desire for bad food. I think it takes about two years to fundamentally change. But one day you wake up and realize that you really don't want those foods any more. Life is so much better without them that you wouldn't want to back for all the sugar in Costa Rica.

[Robert Z]

That's what I said without actually getting into it.

 

Except you contradicted yourself by saying you should have complex carbs, but ditch foods like whole wheat / oat bran pancakes with no nutritional value..?

 

 

 

Vegetables!

 

 

Well, if you only eat the whole wheat and ditch the butter and syrup... but that isn't how most people eat pancakes. Personally I never eat any pasta, bread, or any flour products; no taters, fries, oat products, or most any carbs except through raw or stir-fried vegetables, and milk, and I haven't for three years. I try to keep my total carb intake to under 100 grams per day.

[Outsider77]

I lost weight by doing nothing. When I tried to lose weight through discipline and exercise it didn't help much. Kind of ironic.

[theothersully]

Vegetables!

 

 

Well, if you only eat the whole wheat and ditch the butter and syrup... but that isn't how most people eat pancakes. Personally I never eat any pasta, bread, or any flour products; no taters, fries, oat products, or most any carbs except through raw or stir-fried vegetables, and milk, and I haven't for three years. I try to keep my total carb intake to under 100 grams per day.

 

Of course...100% correct.

 

I assumed we were discussing beginner diet changes. This is expert level.

 

Eating only items available to a foraging caveman is what our bodies evolved to do. This includes tons of vegetables, a little meat and a whole lot of running/exercise if you are catching meat dinners. ha ha ha

 

But I'm imagining we are talking about someone who has Fruit Loops, Wonder bread toast, Starbuck's, etc... for breakfast. They can't go straight to sobe diets... I still eat carbs because I enjoy them. I mean pizza is amazing. Life without making organic, whole wheat, broccoli pizza from scratch, for me, would barely be worth living. ha ha ha

[Emilia]

Of course...100% correct.

 

I assumed we were discussing beginner diet changes. This is expert level.

 

Eating only items available to a foraging caveman is what our bodies evolved to do. This includes tons of vegetables, a little meat and a whole lot of running/exercise if you are catching meat dinners. ha ha ha

Nonsense, we don't live to the age of 40 anymore.

 

Your diet should follow the lifestyle you lead. If it's intense, high intensity, you need good carbs to provide you with energy.

 

This fear of carbs is complete and utter nonsense.

[theothersully]

Nonsense, we don't live to the age of 40 anymore.

 

Your diet should follow the lifestyle you lead. If it's intense, high intensity, you need good carbs to provide you with energy.

 

This fear of carbs is complete and utter nonsense.

 

So you are saying our bodies have evolved, over the past few hundred to 1000 years to be able to process things other than what what we ate for millennia? Talk about nonsense.

 

There were carbs in the foraging diet as well. Complex carbs and potato type tuber/rhizome plants similar to potatoes.

 

What was not eaten was tons of salt, sugar, unhealthy and fat animals, preservatives, dairy (as much as i cannot do without it), etc.

[Robert Z]

I mean pizza is amazing. Life without making organic, whole wheat, broccoli pizza from scratch, for me, would barely be worth living. ha ha ha

 

 

You can make a good pizza crust using cauliflower. In fact you can make anything made with wheat flour, with cauliflower.

[Robert Z]

Nonsense, we don't live to the age of 40 anymore.

 

Your diet should follow the lifestyle you lead. If it's intense, high intensity, you need good carbs to provide you with energy.

 

This fear of carbs is complete and utter nonsense.

 

 

Really? You have heard of diabetes and metabolic syndrome, right? Did you know that almost all cancers need glucose for energy; that ketones are toxic to tumors, and insulin is required for cancers to spread?

 

 

Evidence is mounting that our high-carb diets are why cancer rates keep increasing.

 

 

The main reasons for our longevity is that the birth survival rate has increased dramatically and the use of antibiotics has eliminated many common causes of premature death. Also, grains are a great option to starvation. But that doesn't make them good for our long-term health.

Edited November 28, 2013 by Robert Z

[theothersully]

You can make a good pizza crust using cauliflower. In fact you can make anything made with wheat flour, with cauliflower.

 

Again, I cannot disagree.

 

But, I just like the nutty taste of whole wheat flour pizzas. Not willing to give my once a week treat up.

 

You can also make flour for things like this out of any number of other plants aside from cauliflower. Many foraged plants make excellent flours for baking.

[Robert Z]

Again, I cannot disagree.

 

But, I just like the nutty taste of whole wheat flour pizzas. Not willing to give my once a week treat up.

 

You can also make flour for things like this out of any number of other plants aside from cauliflower. Many foraged plants make excellent flours for baking.

 

 

 

One of the hardest things to give up for me was potatoes. I LOVE mashed potatoes and French fries. And I always loved having toast with milk in the morning.

 

 

I was making pizza using cauliflower but my salt intake is so low now that pizza is just too salty. On the flip side, my blood pressure dropped like a rock and is now 120/80 without the use of statins or other blood pressure medication. I strongly suspect that reducing my salt intake played a significant role in driving down my bp.

Edited November 28, 2013 by Robert Z

[theothersully]

One of the hardest things to give up for me was potatoes. I LOVE mashed potatoes and French fries. And I always loved having toast with milk in the morning.

 

 

I was making pizza using cauliflower but my salt intake is so low now that pizza is just too salty. On the flip side, my blood pressure dropped like a rock and is now 120/80 without the use of statins or other blood pressure medication. I strongly suspect that reducing my salt intake played a significant role in driving down my bp.

 

That's a fact. I had pre hypertension when i was in my late 20's. I eliminated sodium and increased potassium. Have had normal blood pressure (even a little low!) ever since.

[Robert Z]

One more thought. It seems that we have two normal modes of metabolism. One where we burn carbs as our primary source of energy, and one where we burn fatty acids - ketosis.

 

 

It appears that ketosis is our natural evolutionary state. We have only had access to high carb diets for the last 5000 years or so.

Is there a role for carbohydrate restriction in the treatment and prevention of cancer?

[Outsider77]

Actually the birth of agriculture was at least 10000 years ago in the middle east. And people had agriculture in other areas before 5000 years ago. So people have been consuming grains and carbs for quite a while. Europeans and others managed to develop lactose tolerance (lactase persistence) within that time period.

[Robert Z]

Actually the birth of agriculture was at least 10000 years ago in the middle east. And people had agriculture in other areas before 5000 years ago. So people have been consuming grains and carbs for quite a while. Europeans and others managed to develop lactose tolerance (lactase persistence) within that time period.

 

 

Lactase persistence is merely the persistence of an enzyme into adulthood that was already present.

 

 

5000 years, 10,000 years, some cultures were ahead of the curve compared to the rest of the world. But processed grains are a recent innovation in terms of evolution; far too recent for us to have evolved to the diet. There were no processed grains before that. It isn't like milk which all mammals are able to digest when young. Also, The majority of people around the world remain lactase non-persistent.