Can you please stop it. I dont enjoy being mocked like you are mocking me right now, and if you continue ill have no issue reporting you for your ad hom attacks on me.
I'm not attacking you. I am asking quesitons. Questions, that if answered would provide valuable infomraiton to the OP and others following this thread.
You are providing advice on what the OP should eat and how he should lose weight. I am asking you to provide more details about your eating habits to weigh against the advice you are giving. If you choose to interpret that as some sort of "attack", that's on you.
I'm not attacking you. I am asking quesitons. Questions, that if answered would provide valuable infomraiton to the OP and others following this thread.
You are providing advice on what the OP should eat and how he should lose weight. I am asking you to provide more details about your eating habits to weigh against the advice you are giving. If you choose to interpret that as some sort of "attack", that's on you.
Dude, you just have a really childish outlook about what causes weight gain and weight loss.
I get that you want to push nutritious food. Healthy food will make you healthy. It will not make you skinny. Burning more calories than you eat makes you skinny. I can't believe how many times this has been said, and then I still see you making posts like, "but dude, cut the brown sugar on the oatmeal."
You seem to think that every heavy person is going "om nom nom ten cheeseburgers" every day. It's important to remember that not every heavy person is gaining all the time.
A lot of heavy people go through periods of emotional stress eating, and might overeat only a couple months out of the year. It could be holidays, or midterm-finals, or inventory season at someone's work... but that's how most people gain their weight, in short lapses. On the average day, many overweight and obese people eat completely normal diets.
Asking a fat person, "okay, but seriously, what are you REALLY eating" is a huge insult and also shows how ignorant you are. It's also unhealthy pressure, because it encourages crash dieting and gives heavy people the unrealistic expectation of turning into Brad Pitt on the third month of their diet.
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I'll be sad if people don't start calling The Chain Veil "Fleetwood Mac."
Dude, you just have a really childish outlook about what causes weight gain and weight loss.
I get that you want to push nutritious food. Healthy food will make you healthy. It will not make you skinny. Burning more calories than you eat makes you skinny. I can't believe how many times this has been said, and then I still see you making posts like, "but dude, cut the brown sugar on the oatmeal."
You seem to think that every heavy person is going "om nom nom ten cheeseburgers" every day. It's important to remember that not every heavy person is gaining all the time.
A lot of heavy people go through periods of emotional stress eating, and might overeat only a couple months out of the year. It could be holidays, or midterm-finals, or inventory season at someone's work... but that's how most people gain their weight, in short lapses. On the average day, many overweight and obese people eat completely normal diets.
Asking a fat person, "okay, but seriously, what are you REALLY eating" is a huge insult and also shows how ignorant you are. It's also unhealthy pressure, because it encourages crash dieting and gives heavy people the unrealistic expectation of turning into Brad Pitt on the third month of their diet.
thank you promatim. Ill explain why i weigh so much.
1. Sodas......as said before, this is partially responsible.
But the second reason is very telling.
2. I used to eat as coping. i have/had emotional issues that i solved by eating. I also was driven by my curiosity to taste food to the point where i was eating almost all the time.
I only eat about 300-400 calories, but i ate 7-10 times a day. Ive stopped now and cut out sodas almost completely (i still have them a little bit)
Dude, you just have a really childish outlook about what causes weight gain and weight loss.
I get that you want to push nutritious food. Healthy food will make you healthy. It will not make you skinny. Burning more calories than you eat makes you skinny. I can't believe how many times this has been said, and then I still see you making posts like, "but dude, cut the brown sugar on the oatmeal."
You seem to think that every heavy person is going "om nom nom ten cheeseburgers" every day. It's important to remember that not every heavy person is gaining all the time.
A lot of heavy people go through periods of emotional stress eating, and might overeat only a couple months out of the year. It could be holidays, or midterm-finals, or inventory season at someone's work... but that's how most people gain their weight, in short lapses. On the average day, many overweight and obese people eat completely normal diets.
Asking a fat person, "okay, but seriously, what are you REALLY eating" is a huge insult and also shows how ignorant you are. It's also unhealthy pressure, because it encourages crash dieting and gives heavy people the unrealistic expectation of turning into Brad Pitt on the third month of their diet.
It's not ignorant, or mean, or over simplifying.
A lot of overweight people I know honestly don't know how to sfeed themselves. They have no idea what healthy food is, they don't know how many calories they are taking in, they don't know how much fat, sodium, and carbs they are taking in, they just eat as they please.
I'm not saying ditch the McD's and you'll be Brad Pitt in 3 months. I never said that, ever. But if you are overwieght, and you hide behind excuses, you will never lose that weight.
My critisism with Macius was over him telling somone looking to lose weight that it was OK to eat Egg McMuffins for breakfast. It's not OK. It's not OK to put brown sugar on your oatmeal. If you don't realize what you are doing, you can't correct it.
And no, on your average day, people who weigh 300+ pounds are not eating a normal diet. The are taking in a toon of calories just to maintain, and those calories are usually loaded with fat and sodium. Anyone who thinks they can solve thier weight problem by eliminating sodas is fooling themselves. You solve your weight problem by learning how to feed yourself. Making little adjustements here and there only fools overweight people into thinking they don't need a drastic change in thier lifestyles. They do.
I only eat about 300-400 calories, but i ate 7-10 times a day. Ive stopped now and cut out sodas almost completely (i still have them a little bit)
And you're still at a massively increased risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart attack, and stroke. But sure, you got things under control and should totally be giving people advice on how to eat healthy. If you say Egg McMuffins are OK, then they must be OK.
I'm not being mean, I'm calling a spade a spade. Macius doesn't get it: He thinks at these morbidly obese levels, people can make small little tweaks to thier diet and still occasionally indulge in garbage food and be OK. That's NOT TRUE, and it is dangerous advice to give.
Weight loss is not rocket science. It's pretty simple to understand. It's hard to execute, which is why people make up these little lies to themselves to make it seem easier.
I've been around a lot of heavy people thay have tried to change thier lives, most failed, some succeeded, but the defining charateristic of those who suceeded was they finally dropped the BS, admitted they have a problem, and attacked that problem in it's entirety. That means a total overhaul of how one views food and feeds oneself. All the ones who tried fad diets or who said they were going to stop using the elevator at work or park farther away or only have McDonalds once a week instead of 5 or not eat after 8:00PM or whatever other gimmick they drempt up failed in thier goal to get healthy and lose weight.
If the OP is SERIOUS about losing weight, that'd the mindset he needs. He needs to re-examine his entire relaitonship with food, he needs serious educaiotn about how to feed himself, and he need to commit to 100% change, and do it. Not continue lying to himself and pretending he knows how to eat.
Most overweight people are addicted to food, and you don't cure an addicition by making small little tweaks that do nothing to address the underlying addiciton. ?You cure an addiciton by facing up to it, and stopping it dead in it's tracks. You don't get over cocaine addiciotn by going down to one 8 ball a weekend, you don't cure alcoholism by only drinking after 5, you don't cure a food addiction by eating Egg McMuffins and brown sugar. You cure an addiciton by treating the underlying problem, and ceasing the addicitve behavior.
So if I want to eat healthy, I should eat about double what I currently do, if some people I know are any judge?
yes. I meant that you should eat what a world champion ultra marathoner in training eats. Even if it's more than you currently eat. Amazing how you picked that up without me explicitly explaining it.
No. Instead of being a wise guy and pointing out the skinny triathlete/cardio fiend who eats more than you do, take the advice as it's meant, and try to recognize that the point is that you should eat some reasonable amount that a skinny person with comparable activity to you eats.
That's my story:
At the end of the high school I was overweight with my 230lbs (105kg) 5"1 tall (1,82m) if the converter doesn't fail.
I didn't like myself.
I've replaced every drink (cola, sodas and beers) with water (1 alcholic drink per week is allowed.. i love so much Pina Colada.. w/e). Stopped eating junk food, no fries/popcorns/chocolate/brioches/anything pre-made. Stopped eating outside breakfast,lunch and dinner. The first weeks were tough. After a month I was 220lbs. Each month I kept losing from 3 to 6lbs without doing any diet and sport. You'll reach your "normal" weight soon. Mine was around 175lbs. I took only 1 year.
Everyone should stop there.
Then, I started skipping breakfast. Then dinner (1 out of 2 days). When I have to go out with friends for evening, I skip the lunch next day.
After 2 years, I'm at 145lbs... it's addicting.
I'm glad it worked for you but skipping meals is a bad idea for most people.
That's my story:
At the end of the high school I was overweight with my 230lbs (105kg) 5"1 tall (1,82m) if the converter doesn't fail.
I didn't like myself.
I've replaced every drink (cola, sodas and beers) with water (1 alcholic drink per week is allowed.. i love so much Pina Colada.. w/e). Stopped eating junk food, no fries/popcorns/chocolate/brioches/anything pre-made. Stopped eating outside breakfast,lunch and dinner. The first weeks were tough. After a month I was 220lbs. Each month I kept losing from 3 to 6lbs without doing any diet and sport. You'll reach your "normal" weight soon. Mine was around 175lbs. I took only 1 year.
Everyone should stop there.
Then, I started skipping breakfast. Then dinner (1 out of 2 days). When I have to go out with friends for evening, I skip the lunch next day.
After 2 years, I'm at 145lbs... it's addicting.
Skipping meals is a terrible idea, you are starving yourself. You may like how it makes you look because you're thinner but I guarantee you 100% that you are not healthy.
My bad, I thought you were advocating not eating. You should eat breakfast though, even if it's something small. It basically wakes up your metabolism and gets your body running properly for the day. You actually lose weight easier and faster if you don't skip breakfast.
You should eat breakfast though, even if it's something small. It basically wakes up your metabolism and gets your body running properly for the day. You actually lose weight easier and faster if you don't skip breakfast.
This deserves a QFT. Especially if it's a complex / nutrient-dense breakfast that your body has to work to burn off. Whole grains (like steel-cut oats) and lean proteins (like egg white omelets with veggies) are wonderful.
I did not expect this amount of responses. I made this thread to get suggestions and tips from people who have possibly did it before. I know I have mental problems that I am working on.
That being said thank you all for the information. In response to one of the posters I dont really have friends cause im a shut in and for the most part my family wont talk to me because I wont give them money anymore since I moved out.
After the first week of eating healthier I have lost 2 pounds, its a slow start but im sure ill get there.
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Congratulations to that,
and remember, eating healthy is not everything,
doing fitness is the other part of the deal.
The problem is, or can be (everybody is different) that after some weeks my body noticed (I know that I don´t say it the way a scientist would say it) that "we" were losing weight. Then the body starts "protecting itself".
I don´t know what exactly happened but the weight loss rapidly declined or even stopped.
It took several weeks until the body realized that we wouldn´t starve and I started loosing weight again.
Maybe somebody like dcartist who seems to know a lot, can explain it better.
My problem was also that its easier for the body to take the energy from the muscles, than from fat, which means if somebody doesn´t do muscle training while loosing weight, he will also loose a huge amount of muscles.
From what I read its when you body flips in Stravation mode, it happens if you drop you calorie intake too fast your body freaks out and starts holding on to everything.
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I think the important thing is to look at it as a lifestyle change and not as a diet. If you are consuming 1500 calories a day in order to lose weight and you are looking forward to getting to your target weight so that you can switch from weight-loss mode to weight maintenance mode, you are going to find out that the struggle doesn't end there. While it is true that you will be able to start consuming 2000 calories per day, it is important that you remain vigilant and monitor your weight on a regular basis.
Congratulations to that,
and remember, eating healthy is not everything,
doing fitness is the other part of the deal.
The problem is, or can be (everybody is different) that after some weeks my body noticed (I know that I don´t say it the way a scientist would say it) that "we" were losing weight. Then the body starts "protecting itself".
I don´t know what exactly happened but the weight loss rapidly declined or even stopped.
It took several weeks until the body realized that we wouldn´t starve and I started loosing weight again.
Maybe somebody like dcartist who seems to know a lot, can explain it better.
My problem was also that its easier for the body to take the energy from the muscles, than from fat, which means if somebody doesn´t do muscle training while loosing weight, he will also loose a huge amount of muscles.
From what I read its when you body flips in Stravation mode, it happens if you drop you calorie intake too fast your body freaks out and starts holding on to everything.
Your body has this thing called a BMR, your Basal Metabolic Rate. Your BMR is how many calories you would burn in a day if you stayed in bed all day.
OP probably has a BMR of like 2600.
If you take your BMR and multiply it by one of the following...
1.2 - Sedentary
1.4 - Lightly Active
1.6 - Active Lifestyle
1.8 - Very Athletic (Triatholon runner)
...you'll get a rough idea of how many calories you burn in a day.
If a male drops below 1800 calories a day, their BMR may be reduced anywhere from 10-30%, temporarily. The only thing proven to reverse this is cardio. The little metabolism tricks (small frequent meals, ice water, etc) seem to have marginal effect on the metabolism or BMR.
So yeah, if you're dieting and losing 1-2 pounds a week, your BMR shouldn't change unless your BMI changes (aka you lose weight.) If you start losing more, say 3-5 pounds a week, then your metabolism will slow.
The good news is your metabolism will never "enter starvation mode" or grind to a halt as a lot of hearsay suggests. Losing 30% of your BMR from dieting is actually the extreme, and even that wouldn't cause you to stop losing weight, although it would slow weight loss considerably.
Basically, aim for 1-2 pounds a week, 1800 calories a day (unless your doctor put you on a VLCD with specific instructions), and don't worry about ruining your metabolism.
Also, congratulations on the weight loss thus far!
--
Another note: Losing ~2 pounds a week is a great way to ensure that 75% of what you lose is fat. If you lose more than that a week without exercise, your body will start dropping muscle.
--
Edit: Pumpkinking, if the following is true for you.
Height - 5'11"
Weight - 340
Age - 30
Then your BMR is 2880
And the calories you burn in a day, assuming normal metabolism, is...
3400 Sedentary
4000 If you're getting light exercise each day.
If I guessed your age wrong, up those numbers a bit if you're younger, lower them a bit if you're older.
Skipping meals is fine, especially if you aren't hungry. There is something called the warrior diet where you only eat at night, granted you snack during the day but we are talking meals.
Dieting doesn't work, what works is a lifestyle. First you have to know what is good for your individual body and mind. Soda and Milk makes me fat do I stay away. Some people can't eat pasta or cheese. It depends on your way of life. Calories in calories out is the worst thing to focus on, because calories from almonds and calories from hot dogs are two completely different things.
If you are weightlifting, your hunger will go up so don't worry about having a big appetite, just don't eqt cheeseburgers all day, and don't eat them at all if you are weightlifting for fat loss.
Also, starvation is natural and you should starve yourself because it is good for the body and mind. To starve shows that your body isn't spoiled, the american diet is ludicrous and very unhealthy. It also shows self control and treating yourself is very crucial to enjoying your food. If you eat what you want all day, you are not enjoying your food because you are so used to eating that it becomes more habit than satiation. Tribalism with Hunting and Gathering provides for undereating and then overeating once a kill emerges.
I follow this very, very, very powerful rule; I can't stress this too much: Either have a big Breakfast, a big Lunch, or a big Dinner, and never have them in succession- No big Dinner then big Breakfast, no big Lunch then big Dinner etc. Your body needs to know that it has to wait and forcing calories is terrible for keeping your appetite under control.
It is important to exercise in the morning or whenever you first get up, a 15 min routine to shed fat upon rising, is more effective than a 2 hour routine at the end of the day. You need to kick start your metabolism early, there is no point once you go to sleep.
I have been weightlifting and doing martial arts since I was young and all of my advice is backed by pure experience while my theories are saved for in depth conversations.
I have been weightlifting and doing martial arts since I was young and all of my advice is backed by pure experience while my theories are saved for in depth conversations.
Great theories. Until medical science figures out how the human body works, we'll have to go by your experience.
Calories in calories out = weight loss. You can't argue against that, because that's not my argument. That's combustion.
If you burn 2500 calories a day and eat 3000 calories of whole grains, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables, you will gain weight. Why do so many people want to say "no" to this. This is not my theory or my anecdote, this is science.
We've established that what you get your calories from is important for vitamins and energy level etc., but it's been said. A cheeseburger still won't make you fatter than the equivalent calories from apples.
The reason you think this is because most people with self control and concern about their health don't eat cheeseburgers.
Yes, the OP will have a healthier heart if he eats nutritious food, but it won't make him lose weight.
I'm not championing bad food, no one in this thread is, just refuting anecdote when we freaking know the science behind food. It's known. This should not be a point of contention.
As for the "the body should starve" weird anti-american rant... uh... that will crash your BMR. Congratulations, you're starving, now your body burns calories at a 60% efficiency rate.
I really wish people would stop posting "well it worked for me" destructive, false information.
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I'll be sad if people don't start calling The Chain Veil "Fleetwood Mac."
PREFACE: i lost 40 pounds one summer when i decided to change my diet.
Easiest way to loose weight, is to avoid grains as much as possible. IE no bread, no pasta, no pastries or cereal. Starches will spike your insulin forcing your body to convert the sugar to fat. Focus on eating meats, vegetables and fruits, and at all costs avoid sugars (fruit sugar is different and easy for your body to break down). DO NOT EAT CORN. Corn makes you fat straight up because it is essentially a sugar. IE dont eat anything with corn syrup, or popcorn even. Avoid juices. Most food these days have literal addictive qualities that have equal effects to heroine addictions, so its important to go cold turkey and not "have sugar now and again" until you are off the sugar for about 2 months.
It's important to take vitamins. Often time you become hungry because your body is craving the building blocks it needs to stay alive. Vitamins will reduce food cravings. Another good tip, whenever you get hungry, have peppermint tea instead. The peppermint will satisfy the sweetness you crave and the tea itself will fill your belly without causing you to get fat.
Learn to cook your own food from scratch.
Example food plan for a day:
Breakfast: Eggs and fruit/fruit smoothie
Lunch: Salad with chicken (avoid red meat which is hard for your body to breakdown)
Dinner: spend time making something from scratch. Stir-fry is an easy dish to make that tastes great. Stews are also really easy to cook (chickpeas, potatoes, celery, broccoli, green oinion, sage, thyme, basil, salt and pepper) Don't cook the vegetables too long though since it will strip them of their nutrients. A good tip is, you want them slightly soft and not mushy and you want them to retain their original colour. If your broccoli starts to go yellowish its over cooked. You still want it's rich green. Learn to cook with spices like basil, thyme, and curry.
anyway, hopefully those tips can help you on your journey to living a more healthy life
So once again, as long as you focus and eat really HEALTHY well rounded foods that give your body real nutrients (Organic foods tend to be better for nutrients IMHO as well as tasting better raw) you should be able to eat less, but feel fuller. Its when you eat McDonalds, get no real "food" from it, and then you are hungry again 30 minutes later that is the problem.
Great theories. Until medical science figures out how the human body works, we'll have to go by your experience.
Calories in calories out = weight loss. You can't argue against that, because that's not my argument. That's combustion.
If you burn 2500 calories a day and eat 3000 calories of whole grains, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables, you will gain weight. Why do so many people want to say "no" to this. This is not my theory or my anecdote, this is science.
We've established that what you get your calories from is important for vitamins and energy level etc., but it's been said. A cheeseburger still won't make you fatter than the equivalent calories from apples.
The reason you think this is because most people with self control and concern about their health don't eat cheeseburgers.
Yes, the OP will have a healthier heart if he eats nutritious food, but it won't make him lose weight.
I'm not championing bad food, no one in this thread is, just refuting anecdote when we freaking know the science behind food. It's known. This should not be a point of contention.
As for the "the body should starve" weird anti-american rant... uh... that will crash your BMR. Congratulations, you're starving, now your body burns calories at a 60% efficiency rate.
I really wish people would stop posting "well it worked for me" destructive, false information.
I'm not saying that calories in vs. calories out doesn't play a role, but in my opinion, I don't believe that it is a hard-fast rule because it exploits numbers and science. I said "it is the worst thing to focus on" which is an exaggeration, but my point is to use a more natural approach than crunching numbers or what have you. Using science to guide you is fine, but it is second hand data. YOU, yourself, and what you practice plays a much more richer role than data gathered by people who use arbitrary protocols to explain how ALL bodies function. Yes Science helps, but bodybuilders and warriors who are in great shape didn't have the Science.
There are other factors like metabolism, digestion, timing, frequency that ALL play a part in weight loss. The calories in, calories out is just one factor. It is also very time consuming and costly regarding time to count all of your calories. If you need to, then do it, but most people have better things to do unless dieting is your priority for the moment, or your life is like Ronnie Coleman's.
As far as "destructive" goes, it is up to the individual to find out for themselves. You won't die following my advice, and no I am not a physician, but I am a human putting forth my experience like others are here and naturally, it is up the person's discretion. As far as american rant, it's true that the average american diet is "ludicrous and unhealthy" and I will stick by that statement.
You are taking starvation too literally, I am talking about throughout the day you should either snack to put a hold on your hunger, or wait till you really need food because it shows discipline. This is my belief. You want to talk about BMR crashing and calorie burning efficiency? What about fasters, and who is to say that you shouldn't lower your calorie burning efficiency sometimes? Your explanations are rigid without application or genuineness.
You are taking scientific studies and brandishing them as gospel. Maybe you should analyze yourself and what/why you are providing this information. There is no point to debate my experience, if it is flawed to some degree so be it and you can point something out. You did point something out, and we'll let the readers decide, but to lash out and state science to try to "put me in my place" is poor. I am trying to provide general guidelines and an approach, and I do not consider the readers here idiots; they can take it or leave it. I can send pics of my physique to those who want it, to show my progress if that means anything to anybody.
You don't have to believe everything I say, just take what you can from it. I don't think there is any point to post here because quibbling and the abuse of the written language is practiced by those who rather argue than build. PM me if you have anything to ask or provide for me if you are sincere.
Great theories. Until medical science figures out how the human body works, we'll have to go by your experience.
Calories in calories out = weight loss. You can't argue against that, because that's not my argument. That's combustion.
If you burn 2500 calories a day and eat 3000 calories of whole grains, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables, you will gain weight. Why do so many people want to say "no" to this. This is not my theory or my anecdote, this is science.
We've established that what you get your calories from is important for vitamins and energy level etc., but it's been said. A cheeseburger still won't make you fatter than the equivalent calories from apples.
The reason you think this is because most people with self control and concern about their health don't eat cheeseburgers.
Yes, the OP will have a healthier heart if he eats nutritious food, but it won't make him lose weight.
I'm not championing bad food, no one in this thread is, just refuting anecdote when we freaking know the science behind food. It's known. This should not be a point of contention.
As for the "the body should starve" weird anti-american rant... uh... that will crash your BMR. Congratulations, you're starving, now your body burns calories at a 60% efficiency rate.
I really wish people would stop posting "well it worked for me" destructive, false information.
Will you marry me?
You are the first person I've ever seen on this board who gets it, 100 calories of cheesburger=100 of apples=100 of syrup=100 of dirt, 100 calories is 100 calories, calories in need to equal calories out to maintain weight.
To most people in this thread, I don't care what worked for you, consider this a word from someone with an ACSM cert, eating "healthy" means nothing, and is usually counterproductive (hai2u 80-10-10 diet), I could post a big long rant on all of the things you need to do, but why are you even on a mtg forum looking for weight loss advice, there are way more helpful places to ask, where the people actually know what they're talking about.
When you get down to brass tacks, it's as simple as diet and exercise.
Eating a balanced diet is the way to go. Fruits, vegetables, grains, meats, dairy; make sure you're getting a few servings of these a day and your body will thank you for it.
The skipping meals approach is generally a bad idea; the data about this goes beyond a general statement and should be left to the discretion of a nutritionist who has come to understand your situation.
Having smaller, more frequent meals is generally a better approach, and helps you target certain food groups. Having snacks like carrots, an apple, a yogurt (avoid the high fructose corn syrup crap), or raw nuts (great for poly and monounsaturated fats, which are the good fats) helps you make sure you're getting proper nutrition. If you have healthy snacks like that between meals and have a light sandwich for lunch with two or three slices of turkey/ham/roast beef, a slice of cheese and some whole grain bread, you're keeping things fairly well balanced.
Try to avoid eating a lot of processed foods. This is probably a broad statement, but you're better off eating raw foods. If it is processed, take a look at the ingredients. If you can't pronounce half of them, it's probably a bad sign. One example of this: if you're going for oatmeal, get raw oatmeal and put a little brown sugar and cinnamon in it instead of getting the instant stuff that's full of other garbage.
Exercise is something you need to slowly get yourself acclimated to if you don't do it regularly. It also doesn't mean you need to frantically run on a treadmill and flail weights around right out of the gate.
Doing something as simple as walking 30 minutes a day is a good start. Walking after meals is an aid to digestion; if you take a five minute walk after breakfast and dinner you're a third of the way there. Don't stress your body by doing high impact exercises, and don't push yourself if you start using weights.
Getting resistance bands is a decent way of adding more exercise. They're available in different resistance levels and keep you doing fluid motions. You can use them for less strenuous calisthenics as well, but you should look up exercises to make sure you're doing them correctly. Here's an example product: http://www.amazon.com/SPRI-ES501R-Xertube-Resistance-Attachment/dp/B0000AJ050
Lastly, as others have pointed out, you need to burn more calories than you consume. I would recommend talking to a nutritionist about this though to find out a good diet plan and where you should be on caloric intake.
sorry i didn't read everything, its great that you are trying to lose weight.
Have you heard of this website: www.fit2fat2fit.com
its about a guy who purposely gain 60lbs and now is trying to lose it off. there can be some good pointers there.plus thousands around the world are following this guy and on their own path to losing weight.
You are the first person I've ever seen on this board who gets it, 100 calories of cheesburger=100 of apples=100 of syrup=100 of dirt, 100 calories is 100 calories, calories in need to equal calories out to maintain weight.
Nobody is arguing that, and Promatim is certainly not the only person saying that. In fact, I've said it twice:
The ultimate cause of weight gain is consuming more calories than burned, and the ultimate cause of weight loss is burning more calories than consumed. So total calories is the most important number.
Yes, the ultimate arbiter of weight is the caloric balance (calories consumed - calories expended): if it's negative, you lose weight; if it's positive, you gain weight.
Just one thing
the old calories X eaten - calories X+Y burned= weightloss is right
However, it is false to say that all foods are equal when it comes to losing weight, just as it is false to say that all foods are equal when it comes to human health. Different foods have different effects on appetite, which means different foods will make it harder or easier to eat less. 100 calories of apples, syrup, oatmeal, etc. all deliver 100 calories, but they don't all deliver the same feeling of satisfaction (satiety score) or the same change in insulin levels (insulin index). Some foods are more effective in helping a person lose weight not because of some magic voodoo with calories, but because some foods make it easier to reduce the total number of calories consumed. This is not a difficult concept.
However, it is false to say that all foods are equal when it comes to losing weight, just as it is false to say that all foods are equal when it comes to human health. Different foods have different effects on appetite, which means different foods will make it harder or easier to eat less. 100 calories of apples, syrup, oatmeal, etc. all deliver 100 calories, but they don't all deliver the same feeling of satisfaction (satiety score) or the same change in insulin levels (insulin index). Some foods are more effective in helping a person lose weight not because of some magic voodoo with calories, but because some foods make it easier to reduce the total number of calories consumed. This is not a difficult concept.
This is all technically true.
But you need to start with the BASIC TRUTH that the calories are the calories, and that there are no "magical properties" to one food or approach over another. No SHORTCUTS ( "Oh, all you have to eat is bacon and skip sugar" ), and no BULL****, which is really what most people are passing out.
The issues of perception of satiety for one food or another are all just distractions from the issue.
Its analogous to trying to balance a budget, and fools are getting up and pointing out how you can shop at Zales instead of Tiffany's and you'll spend LESS money. Maybe. Maybe NOT. The guy who's addicted to spending is still going to spend until he doesn't have money in his pocket or temptation around him, whichever comes first.
It's ****ing irritating to see that kind of fluffy, useless, self-delusional thinking, which is what all this EMPHASIS on specific properties of specific food does. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR YOUR CALORIES AND EXERCISE is first and primary... "glycemic index" and "satiety index" is tertiary stuff, and often just a tool people eventually use to rationalize to themselves they're NOT CHEATING. Save that advanced stuff, for people who have proven they've mastered the basics and are losing weight hand over fist already.
The way to spend LESS MONEY, is you keep a budget and spend LESS MONEY.
Trying to lose weight without realizing this, is like trying to save money WITHOUT KEEPING A BUDGET. ( "Yeah, if I just shop at Walmart & thrift stores, instead of Target, look how much I'll save! No sense looking at prices or monthly income or depressing stuff like that..." )
But you need to start with the BASIC TRUTH that the calories are the calories, and that there are no "magical properties" to one food or approach over another. No SHORTCUTS ( "Oh, all you have to eat is bacon and skip sugar" ), and no BULL****, which is really what most people are passing out.
Nobody is arguing with that, or at least nobody reasonable is arguing with that. I'm certainly not. At this point I've said it three times:
The ultimate cause of weight gain is consuming more calories than burned, and the ultimate cause of weight loss is burning more calories than consumed. So total calories is the most important number.
Yes, the ultimate arbiter of weight is the caloric balance (calories consumed - calories expended): if it's negative, you lose weight; if it's positive, you gain weight.
Its analogous to trying to balance a budget, and fools are getting up and pointing out how you can shop at Zales instead of Tiffany's and you'll spend LESS money. Maybe. Maybe NOT. The guy who's addicted to spending is still going to spend until he doesn't have money in his pocket or temptation around him, whichever comes first.
It's ****ing irritating to see that kind of fluffy, useless, self-delusional thinking, which is what all this EMPHASIS on specific properties of specific food does. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR YOUR CALORIES AND EXERCISE is first and primary... "glycemic index" and "satiety index" is tertiary stuff, and often just a tool people eventually use to rationalize to themselves they're NOT CHEATING. Save that advanced stuff, for people who have proven they've mastered the basics and are losing weight hand over fist already.
The way to spend LESS MONEY, is you keep a budget and spend LESS MONEY.
Trying to lose weight without realizing this, is like trying to save money WITHOUT KEEPING A BUDGET. ( "Yeah, if I just shop at Walmart & thrift stores, instead of Target, look how much I'll save! No sense looking at prices or monthly income or depressing stuff like that..." )
I really like the budget analogy. Let's carry it out fully and lay out all of the assumptions.
So that's the basic structure for our analogy. The ground rule that I have never disagreed with, and have restated on three occasions is:
In order to spend less money, you have to budget how you spend your money.
Beyond that, you have claimed that it doesn't matter what kind of food you eat, as long as you consume fewer calories than you burn. This is fact. In the terms of our budget analogy, this is equivalent to saying:
It doesn't matter where you shop for goods, as long as you spend less money than you bring in.
However, some stores will have a better selection of goods, and some stores will have them at a lower price. If the person trying to balance his/her budget needs to buy three shirts and has $100 to spend, that person cannot do so at Brooks Brothers. It's simply not possible. The clothes cost too much money, and he cannot buy everything he needs for the amount of money he has to spend.
In other words, while it's possible to spend less money regardless of where you shop, it's easier to do so at some places than others.
This is my central argument, and I truly can't fathom how anyone can disagree with it.
So that's the basic structure for our analogy. The ground rule that I have never disagreed with, and have restated on three occasions is:
In order to spend less money, you have to budget how you spend your money.
Beyond that, you have claimed that it doesn't matter what kind of food you eat, as long as you consume fewer calories than you burn. This is fact. In the terms of our budget analogy, this is equivalent to saying:
It doesn't matter where you shop for goods, as long as you spend less money than you bring in.
However, some stores will have a better selection of goods, and some stores will have them at a lower price. If the person trying to balance his/her budget needs to buy three shirts and has $100 to spend, that person cannot do so at Brooks Brothers. It's simply not possible. The clothes cost too much money, and he cannot buy everything he needs for the amount of money he has to spend.
Your argument is based on the assumption that the person is an idiot, who, when faced with a budget of $100 and a $110 shirt, will say "Gee, I guess no shirts for me this year."
If you keep a budget, normal adult humans will realize that in this country there are stores, and in some of those stores sell clothing, and in some of those stores that sell clothing, they also sell shirts that cost DON'T COST $110.
In fact, most normal adult humans, when faced with the crippling reality of a $100 budget for shirts, will recognize that they can spend ONE $96 shirt, or THREE $32 shirts. Or even buy ONE cheap shirt, and save the rest of the shirt budget for a nice tie (desert).
In other words, while it's possible to spend less money regardless of where you shop, it's easier to do so at some places than others.
This is my central argument, and I truly can't fathom how anyone can disagree with it.
Nobody wishes to CONTRADICT your central argument.
The problem with your central argument is that people who are having weight control or money issues, end up using your principles as a SUBSTITUTE for having an actual budget. It's just a psychological loophole, where you can go to costco and buy $100 worth of TP to last you the year, for just$50... then when you have money left over, blow it on the 46" Vizio TV (because you've been enduring the agony of a 32" TV for so long). Ultimately, without a budget, you can eventually spend anything you have in your pocket or on that credit card limit. And the consumer electronics and other spending opportunities are SOOOO tempting, and there EVERYWHERE.
Your argument that buying "bargain items" is the KEY to saving money only gives people ANOTHER EXCUSE TO AVOID THE DISTASTEFUL REALITY OF KEEPING A BUDGET.
Money burns a hole in people's pockets. Its true. People spend what they have on hand. And they splurge whenever they think they've been "good" about their spending. Even if you shop in discount stores for most of your stuff, PEOPLE WHO DON'T ADHERE TO A BUDGET will still say "Wow, I just got paid, and I got $1500 in my account... I'm gonna buy the iphone 4s, and still have enough left for rent! Wooot!"
4 words that say so much about human weakness and money: "I JUST GOT PAID..."
Living paycheck to paycheck. Hand. to. mouth. People live way above their means in this country just as they are overweight in this country. The analogy holds. Getting paid is a thrill, but people get way too excited about it and go out and spend too much of it... You should have already budgeted for each paycheck, and know what you're going to save on it, put aside for a rainy dayand how much is discretionary spending.
Keep. A. Damn. Budget. Protein, fat, carbs, calories.
All the rest of it (bargain shopping opportunities, good carbs, trans fats, low fat, high protein, low carb, insulin, shopper's club, extreme couponing, mumbo jumbo) is tier 2, AFTER you've mastered to concept of BUDGET and the CALORIES.
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I'm not attacking you. I am asking quesitons. Questions, that if answered would provide valuable infomraiton to the OP and others following this thread.
You are providing advice on what the OP should eat and how he should lose weight. I am asking you to provide more details about your eating habits to weigh against the advice you are giving. If you choose to interpret that as some sort of "attack", that's on you.
Dude, you just have a really childish outlook about what causes weight gain and weight loss.
I get that you want to push nutritious food. Healthy food will make you healthy. It will not make you skinny. Burning more calories than you eat makes you skinny. I can't believe how many times this has been said, and then I still see you making posts like, "but dude, cut the brown sugar on the oatmeal."
You seem to think that every heavy person is going "om nom nom ten cheeseburgers" every day. It's important to remember that not every heavy person is gaining all the time.
A lot of heavy people go through periods of emotional stress eating, and might overeat only a couple months out of the year. It could be holidays, or midterm-finals, or inventory season at someone's work... but that's how most people gain their weight, in short lapses. On the average day, many overweight and obese people eat completely normal diets.
Asking a fat person, "okay, but seriously, what are you REALLY eating" is a huge insult and also shows how ignorant you are. It's also unhealthy pressure, because it encourages crash dieting and gives heavy people the unrealistic expectation of turning into Brad Pitt on the third month of their diet.
thank you promatim. Ill explain why i weigh so much.
1. Sodas......as said before, this is partially responsible.
But the second reason is very telling.
2. I used to eat as coping. i have/had emotional issues that i solved by eating. I also was driven by my curiosity to taste food to the point where i was eating almost all the time.
I only eat about 300-400 calories, but i ate 7-10 times a day. Ive stopped now and cut out sodas almost completely (i still have them a little bit)
540 Peasant cube- Gold EditionSomething SpicyIt's not ignorant, or mean, or over simplifying.
A lot of overweight people I know honestly don't know how to sfeed themselves. They have no idea what healthy food is, they don't know how many calories they are taking in, they don't know how much fat, sodium, and carbs they are taking in, they just eat as they please.
I'm not saying ditch the McD's and you'll be Brad Pitt in 3 months. I never said that, ever. But if you are overwieght, and you hide behind excuses, you will never lose that weight.
My critisism with Macius was over him telling somone looking to lose weight that it was OK to eat Egg McMuffins for breakfast. It's not OK. It's not OK to put brown sugar on your oatmeal. If you don't realize what you are doing, you can't correct it.
And no, on your average day, people who weigh 300+ pounds are not eating a normal diet. The are taking in a toon of calories just to maintain, and those calories are usually loaded with fat and sodium. Anyone who thinks they can solve thier weight problem by eliminating sodas is fooling themselves. You solve your weight problem by learning how to feed yourself. Making little adjustements here and there only fools overweight people into thinking they don't need a drastic change in thier lifestyles. They do.
And you're still at a massively increased risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart attack, and stroke. But sure, you got things under control and should totally be giving people advice on how to eat healthy. If you say Egg McMuffins are OK, then they must be OK.
I'm not being mean, I'm calling a spade a spade. Macius doesn't get it: He thinks at these morbidly obese levels, people can make small little tweaks to thier diet and still occasionally indulge in garbage food and be OK. That's NOT TRUE, and it is dangerous advice to give.
Weight loss is not rocket science. It's pretty simple to understand. It's hard to execute, which is why people make up these little lies to themselves to make it seem easier.
I've been around a lot of heavy people thay have tried to change thier lives, most failed, some succeeded, but the defining charateristic of those who suceeded was they finally dropped the BS, admitted they have a problem, and attacked that problem in it's entirety. That means a total overhaul of how one views food and feeds oneself. All the ones who tried fad diets or who said they were going to stop using the elevator at work or park farther away or only have McDonalds once a week instead of 5 or not eat after 8:00PM or whatever other gimmick they drempt up failed in thier goal to get healthy and lose weight.
If the OP is SERIOUS about losing weight, that'd the mindset he needs. He needs to re-examine his entire relaitonship with food, he needs serious educaiotn about how to feed himself, and he need to commit to 100% change, and do it. Not continue lying to himself and pretending he knows how to eat.
Most overweight people are addicted to food, and you don't cure an addicition by making small little tweaks that do nothing to address the underlying addiciton. ?You cure an addiciton by facing up to it, and stopping it dead in it's tracks. You don't get over cocaine addiciotn by going down to one 8 ball a weekend, you don't cure alcoholism by only drinking after 5, you don't cure a food addiction by eating Egg McMuffins and brown sugar. You cure an addiciton by treating the underlying problem, and ceasing the addicitve behavior.
Though I'll put it in a small font.
Please stop hijacking my reply box.
No. Instead of being a wise guy and pointing out the skinny triathlete/cardio fiend who eats more than you do, take the advice as it's meant, and try to recognize that the point is that you should eat some reasonable amount that a skinny person with comparable activity to you eats.
I'm glad it worked for you but skipping meals is a bad idea for most people.
Skipping meals is a terrible idea, you are starving yourself. You may like how it makes you look because you're thinner but I guarantee you 100% that you are not healthy.
Oh I see. I missed the part where you said...
My bad, I thought you were advocating not eating. You should eat breakfast though, even if it's something small. It basically wakes up your metabolism and gets your body running properly for the day. You actually lose weight easier and faster if you don't skip breakfast.
This deserves a QFT. Especially if it's a complex / nutrient-dense breakfast that your body has to work to burn off. Whole grains (like steel-cut oats) and lean proteins (like egg white omelets with veggies) are wonderful.
That being said thank you all for the information. In response to one of the posters I dont really have friends cause im a shut in and for the most part my family wont talk to me because I wont give them money anymore since I moved out.
After the first week of eating healthier I have lost 2 pounds, its a slow start but im sure ill get there.
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From what I read its when you body flips in Stravation mode, it happens if you drop you calorie intake too fast your body freaks out and starts holding on to everything.
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Your body has this thing called a BMR, your Basal Metabolic Rate. Your BMR is how many calories you would burn in a day if you stayed in bed all day.
OP probably has a BMR of like
2600.If you take your BMR and multiply it by one of the following...
1.2 - Sedentary
1.4 - Lightly Active
1.6 - Active Lifestyle
1.8 - Very Athletic (Triatholon runner)
...you'll get a rough idea of how many calories you burn in a day.
If a male drops below 1800 calories a day, their BMR may be reduced anywhere from 10-30%, temporarily. The only thing proven to reverse this is cardio. The little metabolism tricks (small frequent meals, ice water, etc) seem to have marginal effect on the metabolism or BMR.
So yeah, if you're dieting and losing 1-2 pounds a week, your BMR shouldn't change unless your BMI changes (aka you lose weight.) If you start losing more, say 3-5 pounds a week, then your metabolism will slow.
The good news is your metabolism will never "enter starvation mode" or grind to a halt as a lot of hearsay suggests. Losing 30% of your BMR from dieting is actually the extreme, and even that wouldn't cause you to stop losing weight, although it would slow weight loss considerably.
Basically, aim for 1-2 pounds a week, 1800 calories a day (unless your doctor put you on a VLCD with specific instructions), and don't worry about ruining your metabolism.
Also, congratulations on the weight loss thus far!
--
Another note: Losing ~2 pounds a week is a great way to ensure that 75% of what you lose is fat. If you lose more than that a week without exercise, your body will start dropping muscle.
--
Edit: Pumpkinking, if the following is true for you.
Height - 5'11"
Weight - 340
Age - 30
Then your BMR is 2880
And the calories you burn in a day, assuming normal metabolism, is...
3400 Sedentary
4000 If you're getting light exercise each day.
If I guessed your age wrong, up those numbers a bit if you're younger, lower them a bit if you're older.
Dieting doesn't work, what works is a lifestyle. First you have to know what is good for your individual body and mind. Soda and Milk makes me fat do I stay away. Some people can't eat pasta or cheese. It depends on your way of life. Calories in calories out is the worst thing to focus on, because calories from almonds and calories from hot dogs are two completely different things.
If you are weightlifting, your hunger will go up so don't worry about having a big appetite, just don't eqt cheeseburgers all day, and don't eat them at all if you are weightlifting for fat loss.
Also, starvation is natural and you should starve yourself because it is good for the body and mind. To starve shows that your body isn't spoiled, the american diet is ludicrous and very unhealthy. It also shows self control and treating yourself is very crucial to enjoying your food. If you eat what you want all day, you are not enjoying your food because you are so used to eating that it becomes more habit than satiation. Tribalism with Hunting and Gathering provides for undereating and then overeating once a kill emerges.
I follow this very, very, very powerful rule; I can't stress this too much: Either have a big Breakfast, a big Lunch, or a big Dinner, and never have them in succession- No big Dinner then big Breakfast, no big Lunch then big Dinner etc. Your body needs to know that it has to wait and forcing calories is terrible for keeping your appetite under control.
It is important to exercise in the morning or whenever you first get up, a 15 min routine to shed fat upon rising, is more effective than a 2 hour routine at the end of the day. You need to kick start your metabolism early, there is no point once you go to sleep.
I have been weightlifting and doing martial arts since I was young and all of my advice is backed by pure experience while my theories are saved for in depth conversations.
Great theories. Until medical science figures out how the human body works, we'll have to go by your experience.
Calories in calories out = weight loss. You can't argue against that, because that's not my argument. That's combustion.
If you burn 2500 calories a day and eat 3000 calories of whole grains, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables, you will gain weight. Why do so many people want to say "no" to this. This is not my theory or my anecdote, this is science.
We've established that what you get your calories from is important for vitamins and energy level etc., but it's been said. A cheeseburger still won't make you fatter than the equivalent calories from apples.
The reason you think this is because most people with self control and concern about their health don't eat cheeseburgers.
Yes, the OP will have a healthier heart if he eats nutritious food, but it won't make him lose weight.
I'm not championing bad food, no one in this thread is, just refuting anecdote when we freaking know the science behind food. It's known. This should not be a point of contention.
As for the "the body should starve" weird anti-american rant... uh... that will crash your BMR. Congratulations, you're starving, now your body burns calories at a 60% efficiency rate.
I really wish people would stop posting "well it worked for me" destructive, false information.
Easiest way to loose weight, is to avoid grains as much as possible. IE no bread, no pasta, no pastries or cereal. Starches will spike your insulin forcing your body to convert the sugar to fat. Focus on eating meats, vegetables and fruits, and at all costs avoid sugars (fruit sugar is different and easy for your body to break down). DO NOT EAT CORN. Corn makes you fat straight up because it is essentially a sugar. IE dont eat anything with corn syrup, or popcorn even. Avoid juices. Most food these days have literal addictive qualities that have equal effects to heroine addictions, so its important to go cold turkey and not "have sugar now and again" until you are off the sugar for about 2 months.
It's important to take vitamins. Often time you become hungry because your body is craving the building blocks it needs to stay alive. Vitamins will reduce food cravings. Another good tip, whenever you get hungry, have peppermint tea instead. The peppermint will satisfy the sweetness you crave and the tea itself will fill your belly without causing you to get fat.
Learn to cook your own food from scratch.
Example food plan for a day:
Breakfast: Eggs and fruit/fruit smoothie
Lunch: Salad with chicken (avoid red meat which is hard for your body to breakdown)
Dinner: spend time making something from scratch. Stir-fry is an easy dish to make that tastes great. Stews are also really easy to cook (chickpeas, potatoes, celery, broccoli, green oinion, sage, thyme, basil, salt and pepper) Don't cook the vegetables too long though since it will strip them of their nutrients. A good tip is, you want them slightly soft and not mushy and you want them to retain their original colour. If your broccoli starts to go yellowish its over cooked. You still want it's rich green. Learn to cook with spices like basil, thyme, and curry.
anyway, hopefully those tips can help you on your journey to living a more healthy life
So once again, as long as you focus and eat really HEALTHY well rounded foods that give your body real nutrients (Organic foods tend to be better for nutrients IMHO as well as tasting better raw) you should be able to eat less, but feel fuller. Its when you eat McDonalds, get no real "food" from it, and then you are hungry again 30 minutes later that is the problem.
I'm not saying that calories in vs. calories out doesn't play a role, but in my opinion, I don't believe that it is a hard-fast rule because it exploits numbers and science. I said "it is the worst thing to focus on" which is an exaggeration, but my point is to use a more natural approach than crunching numbers or what have you. Using science to guide you is fine, but it is second hand data. YOU, yourself, and what you practice plays a much more richer role than data gathered by people who use arbitrary protocols to explain how ALL bodies function. Yes Science helps, but bodybuilders and warriors who are in great shape didn't have the Science.
There are other factors like metabolism, digestion, timing, frequency that ALL play a part in weight loss. The calories in, calories out is just one factor. It is also very time consuming and costly regarding time to count all of your calories. If you need to, then do it, but most people have better things to do unless dieting is your priority for the moment, or your life is like Ronnie Coleman's.
As far as "destructive" goes, it is up to the individual to find out for themselves. You won't die following my advice, and no I am not a physician, but I am a human putting forth my experience like others are here and naturally, it is up the person's discretion. As far as american rant, it's true that the average american diet is "ludicrous and unhealthy" and I will stick by that statement.
You are taking starvation too literally, I am talking about throughout the day you should either snack to put a hold on your hunger, or wait till you really need food because it shows discipline. This is my belief. You want to talk about BMR crashing and calorie burning efficiency? What about fasters, and who is to say that you shouldn't lower your calorie burning efficiency sometimes? Your explanations are rigid without application or genuineness.
You are taking scientific studies and brandishing them as gospel. Maybe you should analyze yourself and what/why you are providing this information. There is no point to debate my experience, if it is flawed to some degree so be it and you can point something out. You did point something out, and we'll let the readers decide, but to lash out and state science to try to "put me in my place" is poor. I am trying to provide general guidelines and an approach, and I do not consider the readers here idiots; they can take it or leave it. I can send pics of my physique to those who want it, to show my progress if that means anything to anybody.
You don't have to believe everything I say, just take what you can from it. I don't think there is any point to post here because quibbling and the abuse of the written language is practiced by those who rather argue than build. PM me if you have anything to ask or provide for me if you are sincere.
Will you marry me?
You are the first person I've ever seen on this board who gets it, 100 calories of cheesburger=100 of apples=100 of syrup=100 of dirt, 100 calories is 100 calories, calories in need to equal calories out to maintain weight.
To most people in this thread, I don't care what worked for you, consider this a word from someone with an ACSM cert, eating "healthy" means nothing, and is usually counterproductive (hai2u 80-10-10 diet), I could post a big long rant on all of the things you need to do, but why are you even on a mtg forum looking for weight loss advice, there are way more helpful places to ask, where the people actually know what they're talking about.
Eating a balanced diet is the way to go. Fruits, vegetables, grains, meats, dairy; make sure you're getting a few servings of these a day and your body will thank you for it.
The skipping meals approach is generally a bad idea; the data about this goes beyond a general statement and should be left to the discretion of a nutritionist who has come to understand your situation.
Having smaller, more frequent meals is generally a better approach, and helps you target certain food groups. Having snacks like carrots, an apple, a yogurt (avoid the high fructose corn syrup crap), or raw nuts (great for poly and monounsaturated fats, which are the good fats) helps you make sure you're getting proper nutrition. If you have healthy snacks like that between meals and have a light sandwich for lunch with two or three slices of turkey/ham/roast beef, a slice of cheese and some whole grain bread, you're keeping things fairly well balanced.
Try to avoid eating a lot of processed foods. This is probably a broad statement, but you're better off eating raw foods. If it is processed, take a look at the ingredients. If you can't pronounce half of them, it's probably a bad sign. One example of this: if you're going for oatmeal, get raw oatmeal and put a little brown sugar and cinnamon in it instead of getting the instant stuff that's full of other garbage.
Exercise is something you need to slowly get yourself acclimated to if you don't do it regularly. It also doesn't mean you need to frantically run on a treadmill and flail weights around right out of the gate.
Doing something as simple as walking 30 minutes a day is a good start. Walking after meals is an aid to digestion; if you take a five minute walk after breakfast and dinner you're a third of the way there. Don't stress your body by doing high impact exercises, and don't push yourself if you start using weights.
Getting resistance bands is a decent way of adding more exercise. They're available in different resistance levels and keep you doing fluid motions. You can use them for less strenuous calisthenics as well, but you should look up exercises to make sure you're doing them correctly. Here's an example product: http://www.amazon.com/SPRI-ES501R-Xertube-Resistance-Attachment/dp/B0000AJ050
Lastly, as others have pointed out, you need to burn more calories than you consume. I would recommend talking to a nutritionist about this though to find out a good diet plan and where you should be on caloric intake.
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Have you heard of this website:
www.fit2fat2fit.com
its about a guy who purposely gain 60lbs and now is trying to lose it off. there can be some good pointers there.plus thousands around the world are following this guy and on their own path to losing weight.
Nobody is arguing that, and Promatim is certainly not the only person saying that. In fact, I've said it twice:
So has Eberbacher:
However, it is false to say that all foods are equal when it comes to losing weight, just as it is false to say that all foods are equal when it comes to human health. Different foods have different effects on appetite, which means different foods will make it harder or easier to eat less. 100 calories of apples, syrup, oatmeal, etc. all deliver 100 calories, but they don't all deliver the same feeling of satisfaction (satiety score) or the same change in insulin levels (insulin index). Some foods are more effective in helping a person lose weight not because of some magic voodoo with calories, but because some foods make it easier to reduce the total number of calories consumed. This is not a difficult concept.
But you need to start with the BASIC TRUTH that the calories are the calories, and that there are no "magical properties" to one food or approach over another. No SHORTCUTS ( "Oh, all you have to eat is bacon and skip sugar" ), and no BULL****, which is really what most people are passing out.
The issues of perception of satiety for one food or another are all just distractions from the issue.
Its analogous to trying to balance a budget, and fools are getting up and pointing out how you can shop at Zales instead of Tiffany's and you'll spend LESS money. Maybe. Maybe NOT. The guy who's addicted to spending is still going to spend until he doesn't have money in his pocket or temptation around him, whichever comes first.
It's ****ing irritating to see that kind of fluffy, useless, self-delusional thinking, which is what all this EMPHASIS on specific properties of specific food does. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR YOUR CALORIES AND EXERCISE is first and primary... "glycemic index" and "satiety index" is tertiary stuff, and often just a tool people eventually use to rationalize to themselves they're NOT CHEATING. Save that advanced stuff, for people who have proven they've mastered the basics and are losing weight hand over fist already.
The way to spend LESS MONEY, is you keep a budget and spend LESS MONEY.
Trying to lose weight without realizing this, is like trying to save money WITHOUT KEEPING A BUDGET. ( "Yeah, if I just shop at Walmart & thrift stores, instead of Target, look how much I'll save! No sense looking at prices or monthly income or depressing stuff like that..." )
Nobody is arguing with that, or at least nobody reasonable is arguing with that. I'm certainly not. At this point I've said it three times:
I really like the budget analogy. Let's carry it out fully and lay out all of the assumptions.
In order to spend less money, you have to budget how you spend your money.
Beyond that, you have claimed that it doesn't matter what kind of food you eat, as long as you consume fewer calories than you burn. This is fact. In the terms of our budget analogy, this is equivalent to saying:
It doesn't matter where you shop for goods, as long as you spend less money than you bring in.
However, some stores will have a better selection of goods, and some stores will have them at a lower price. If the person trying to balance his/her budget needs to buy three shirts and has $100 to spend, that person cannot do so at Brooks Brothers. It's simply not possible. The clothes cost too much money, and he cannot buy everything he needs for the amount of money he has to spend.
In other words, while it's possible to spend less money regardless of where you shop, it's easier to do so at some places than others.
This is my central argument, and I truly can't fathom how anyone can disagree with it.
If you keep a budget, normal adult humans will realize that in this country there are stores, and in some of those stores sell clothing, and in some of those stores that sell clothing, they also sell shirts that cost DON'T COST $110.
In fact, most normal adult humans, when faced with the crippling reality of a $100 budget for shirts, will recognize that they can spend ONE $96 shirt, or THREE $32 shirts. Or even buy ONE cheap shirt, and save the rest of the shirt budget for a nice tie (desert).
Nobody wishes to CONTRADICT your central argument.
The problem with your central argument is that people who are having weight control or money issues, end up using your principles as a SUBSTITUTE for having an actual budget. It's just a psychological loophole, where you can go to costco and buy $100 worth of TP to last you the year, for just$50... then when you have money left over, blow it on the 46" Vizio TV (because you've been enduring the agony of a 32" TV for so long). Ultimately, without a budget, you can eventually spend anything you have in your pocket or on that credit card limit. And the consumer electronics and other spending opportunities are SOOOO tempting, and there EVERYWHERE.
Your argument that buying "bargain items" is the KEY to saving money only gives people ANOTHER EXCUSE TO AVOID THE DISTASTEFUL REALITY OF KEEPING A BUDGET.
Money burns a hole in people's pockets. Its true. People spend what they have on hand. And they splurge whenever they think they've been "good" about their spending. Even if you shop in discount stores for most of your stuff, PEOPLE WHO DON'T ADHERE TO A BUDGET will still say "Wow, I just got paid, and I got $1500 in my account... I'm gonna buy the iphone 4s, and still have enough left for rent! Wooot!"
4 words that say so much about human weakness and money: "I JUST GOT PAID..."
Living paycheck to paycheck. Hand. to. mouth. People live way above their means in this country just as they are overweight in this country. The analogy holds. Getting paid is a thrill, but people get way too excited about it and go out and spend too much of it... You should have already budgeted for each paycheck, and know what you're going to save on it, put aside for a rainy dayand how much is discretionary spending.
Keep. A. Damn. Budget. Protein, fat, carbs, calories.
All the rest of it (bargain shopping opportunities, good carbs, trans fats, low fat, high protein, low carb, insulin, shopper's club, extreme couponing, mumbo jumbo) is tier 2, AFTER you've mastered to concept of BUDGET and the CALORIES.