Weight loss plans that actually work

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
21

Honestly? No, it doesn’t go away, heck, I’m hungry now as I type this, and I have my Christmas goodies sitting in front of me within arm’s reach, I’m just not touching them.

It’s going to sound strange, but I’ve always had the ability to “compartmentalize” my mind, there’s the emotional side, and the logical side (and the angry side :wink: ) and I keep them separate, I push the “lizard brain” ‘WANT FOOD NOW!!’ Side into the “emotional” side and just lock it down and ignore it, yes I’m hungry, I just ignore the hunger as it’s emotional eating and emotions are highly illogical (RIP Leonard Nimoy :frowning: )

Yes, there’s a reason for the Spock reference…

Growing up in high school, I was the typical nerdy kid, tormented by the knuckle-dragging, cranial-deficient “jocks” and initially I let them get to me, until I discovered Star Trek TOS and specifically Spock, I loved the Vulcan idea of total emotional suppression, I locked down my emotions, ignored the jocks (which irritated them to no end) and they eventually gave up and left me alone, by then I had essentially undergone the Kohlinar ritual in my mind…

I’ve been able to completely suppress emotions ever since, 50 years later, my mind is STILL cold, logical, and Vulcan …

So it was a simple thing for me to classify the Lizard Brain and emotional eating as Illogical, and just suppress them.

Yes I’m still hungry now, but I can ignore it, it’s an illogical emotional need, and easily ignored.

Live long, and prosper!

You can do this, it is logical, there’s no logical reason you can’t do it

Take your emotional “lizard brain” of emotional eating, shove it in a box, lock the box down, and shove it in a dumpster. Ignore it’s screams and protests, they’re illogical and must be ignored.

No, I’m not joking, I’m dead serious.

Good luck, you can do it, success is logical.

22

One other thing that helps, and it’s going to sound strange…

Normally I loathe and despise “reality” tv, it’s just lowest common denominator “look how much better I am than those losers” ego stroking, therefore, illogical, but one show actually helps me retain control…

“My 600 lb life”

I don’t watch it for any of the illogical emotional crap, rather for the issues caused by their ultra morbid obesity, the surgical procedures, and technical info, also to remind myself what could’ve happen if the “lizard brain” escaped from its logic prison. To be blunt, I was almost bad enough to have been featured on an episode!

Another sobering fact, I have a 1999 Yamaha Vstar 650 Classic motorcycle, which weighs nearly 600 pounds wet, at my worst, I almost weighed as much…

As my Frakkin’ motorcycle!

I’m not going back, Jim!

23

I’m glad you’re thinking of ways to address the motivation issue. That is typically the most important issue for a newbie to conquer. With that in mind, I would propose you spend the first few weeks doing relatively fun things in order to create the habit of going to the gym. Don’t worry so much about doing great workouts. Create the habit of going to the gym and having fun first, and then the workouts will naturally come later.

I would suggest you consider the following:

  • Week 1: Go the wet area. Go to the sauna, steam room, and hot tub. The high temperatures will raise your heartrate and give you a cardiovascular workout. Spend 10 minutes or so in each one, with a few minutes in between where you’re cooling off in the pool area. This will help make your heart stronger. Go to the gym at the times when they are doing water classes, like water aerobics and water Zumba, and watch what people are doing in the classes.

  • Week 2: Start taking classes in the pool. These classes are very easy and low-stress. And you’re in the pool splashing around, which is a lot of fun. Classes are generally an hour, but consider only doing the first half if they seem like too much. If you cut a class short, spend the rest of the time in the hot areas so your heart can continue to get a workout.

  • Week 3: Do the full hour of the class in the pool. Start to use some of the hand floats which provide resistance to give you a stronger workout.

  • Week 4 and on, continue with the pool workouts or try some of the classroom workouts

If you start with a routine like this, you may be more likely to stick with it since it will feel good to be at the gym. Being in the sauna feels good. Your body releases endorphins, which feel good. All of this will make it easy to keep going. And if at any time you don’t feel like doing a regular workout, do the hot areas to work your heart and feel good at the same time. Just make sure you keep your schedule of going to the gym.

Get a heart monitor so you can keep track of your heartrate . There are lots of different kinds. I have tried Fitbit and Garmin and like the Garmin better because of the app. It can provide motivation by prompting you to be more active and showing you graphs of your progress.

24

I love what **filmore **had to say! And others who suggested not working out to lose weight, and to make exercise as routine as brushing your teeth.

Focus on heart health, muscle and bone health, and mental health. All of that can be achieved through regular exercise. If you’re going towards diabetes, exercise is KEY to keeping that bloodsugar in check.

Everyone I know that has ever “gone hard” on working out at the beginning of the year ends up stopping pretty quickly. People who just get moving in some way stick with it. I used to go pretty hard but I didn’t stick with it too long, but I did keep up the routine of going to the gym to do exercise and I found what worked for me on a regular basis. “What works” has changed over the year but I’ve managed to keep it regular for a very long time!

My extra tip is to spend some money on your workout. I always have the right shoes for walking. I have clothes that are comfortable and suitable for my workouts (and enough items that I can’t use “I have nothing to wear” as an excuse). For swimming I have suitable suits, good goggles, a swim cap and a good swim bag. I also have an expensive waterproof iPod Shuffle. Having the right gear makes exercise easy, and having spent money on it makes me motivated to use it.

One other thing - don’t forget to drink water, and to GET SLEEP. Those two things are key to health.

You got this!

25

I have done 3 diet things this year and I have lost approx 40lbs and maintained. When I was around 18 years old I was in the best shape of my life at 185. Shortly after that the weight crept over 200 and except for a couple short dips around 25 and 30, I’ve been 205-235ish. Until this year. Got back down to 185 (at 40 years old) using a combination of 3 diet techniques. I have less muscle mass than I did when I was 18 so I’m not as well-built but my clothing sizes are about the same. I have a little more flab especially on the back of my body and my arms are maybe an inch smaller.

  1. Intermittent fasting - I started 16/8 (only eat in an 8 year window) around feb 1.
  2. Low carb/keto - Probably more lowish carb than strict keto after a few weeks, but I added this in around April 1. By summer I dropped 40lbs
  3. OMAD (one meal a day version of IF) - From August -Nov I added about 10lbs as I added back carbs and was a lot more liberal with my eating windows (had a few pizzas before bed and such). I was working a lot and busy, so didn’t add more. Dec I added in OMAD, which I find fairly easy and I don’t really food or calorie restrict other than not eating more than I can over a half hour or so.

Exercise - sporadic for most of the year. In October I started walking, sometimes going to the park for 5-10 miles per day but not very regularly. I have lifted lights weights here and there, more regularly the last couple months. Just have a basic barbell and dumbbell set at home and do basic movements 2-3 days per week. I plan on sticking with this, walking, and OMAD for the time being.

26

While I agree with the suggestions upthread about focusing on health and exercise, if you want a diet that is relatively painless and works for a lot of people, I recommend “The Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet.” Get the book by that title, and the accompanying recipe book(the recipes are easy and good) too if you don’t intuitively get how to plan meals.

It’s not a hard diet to understand or follow - basically, it’s a modified Atkins. You eat low-carb two meals a day and have one “reward meal” with up to 1/3 carbs, no counting calories or trying to restrict yourself, just don’t defy common sense and gobble an entire chocolate cake at the reward meal.

I’m a little surprised the diet isn’t more popular, given that it accommodates a wide range of food preferences and eating philosophies, manages hunger pangs pretty well, and seems to work for most people. My best guess is that the book itself is extremely sloppy, lacking in scientific rigor, and appears to be targeted at people who think People Magazine is the height of literacy. The husband and wife team behind the diet come across as kind of whackos - I kind of wonder if their personal approach has been a barrier to being taken seriously/getting funding for proper studies to test the diet’s effectiveness.

27

100% agree with this. I go to the gym after work and just treat it like part of my job. I haven’t missed a day in years*

While I would never discourage anyone from joining a gym at any time, Jan 1 is when EVERYONE’S New Year’s Resolutions kick off so the gym will be extra, extra crowded for the next month or so. You can pretty easily see how many resolutions fail by mid-February :stuck_out_tongue:
*except when I’m out of town, although I try to find a local gym if possible

28

Having a workout buddy does increase motivation. Doing an hour of movement you enjoy three times a week will be a big help. I like weightlifting, but everything counts.

Diet is also important, but you need to make changes you can live with. Eating vegetables fills you up, gives you fibre, and fights cancer. Pick the five you like the most and eat them every day. Don’t try to eat vegetables you dislike.

Eat less sugar and breads/pastry. Replacing some of them with artificial sugar is fine, but better to pick healthier snacks: popcorn, almonds, jerky, fruit, 1 oz of cheese, eggs are good choices. Drink less alcohol. Don’t get too hung up on changes that don’t matter like milk. If you like some healthy foods, eat them more often. If you like fish or shellfish eat these much more often.

Good luck!

29

A couple of years ago I cut out carbohydrates as much as possible. No breads (except for low-carb Sara Lee Delightful low-carb bread, and Mission Carb Balance low-carb tortillas), no pasta, no rice, no sugar, no fruit, and limited root vegetables. OK, I do occasionally have a little bit of bread, rice, and pasta; but portions are strictly controlled.

In addition to cutting out carbohydrates, I have cut portion sizes to ⅓ or even ¼ of what I used to eat, and I have taken up walking. My usual route is just over 2.1 miles. In recent months, life has intervened and I haven’t been walking as much as I’d like to. I’m going to make more of an effort. I’ve also joined a gym (my health insurance provider has a discount), and I’ll be alternating walking and going there.

I’ve lost about 70 pounds.

30

Get a giant full year wall calendar that you can write on and a nice digital scale.

January first is your baseline. Write your early morning weight in the January first square. Do the same each and every day afterwards. Everyday there must be a decrease in your weight, even if its just .05 pounds. If your weight is the same or higher the next day, seriously reduce the serving size on the next day’s food portions or better yet, cut out a meal. Continue this routine until your reach your goal or 5 pounds under.

Consume fewer calories by eating less food, especially junk food. Stop eating bread and bread-like products. Big salads with chicken breast for lunch or dinner. No candy, cookies, cake or cheese.

Drink water. No sugar drinks or Diet drinks.

Negotiate with yourself. Come up with a diet plan you can truly follow. Slow and steady wins the race.

Good luck!

31

I’ll re-post what I said in this thread:

I want to add: my goal of eating is no longer pleasure. I eat scientifically now; my goal is nutrition and subsidence. It took a long time to get rid of the pleasure component of eating, but it has been well worth it.

32

The low carb/keto/Atkins DOES work…to a point. It changes your metabolism, so the body burns fat for fuel. No voodoo or hype, that’s the way it works. Before insulin was discovered, the essentially-zero carb diet was the way Type 1 Diabetics were kept alive.

The good thing about this diet is the quick, initial weight loss. Low carb is diuretic, so your body purges itself of excess water. Secondly, after the first week, the ketosis creates a type of euphoria. That goes a long way in motivation.

The bad things are many: the human body was not designed for ketosis. The waste products of the incomplete metabolism are toxic to the kidneys. You’ll find the major caveat in all low carb diets is to drink an ocean of water. That is to protect your kidneys.

The brain functions ONLY on glucose. The body CAN manufacture glucose from ketosis, but it is an inefficient process. Some people feel brain-fogged. At the very least, you’ll have a constant headache.

Finally, there is nearly zero fiber in a keto diet. Human guts do not function well without fiber. You will be constantly constipated, possibly suffer from hemorrhoids, and IMHO, put yourself at a possible future risk for colon cancer.

BUT! Low-carb diets work. That’s why they will always be marketed under one name or another.

One diet few people mention is Veganism. It is certainly more compatible with the design and function of the human body. Your kidneys will be happy, your colon will be happy, everybody will be happy!

All the suggestions above about cutting out junk food and most processed foods fit nicely with Veganism. If you are tempted with some high calorie goodie, ask yourself, “Does it have eggs? Does it have milk?”

Veganism has to be followed intelligently. You can follow the rules and live on green salads, bread, and French fries, but it sure won’t be healthy. Eat a wide variety of foods. Explore different cultures, different cuisines. And enjoy whatever is fresh and seasonal. It truly isn’t necessary to do complex “protein-combining” to achieve complete proteins. Your body is intelligent enough to put the correct amino acids together to build and repair itself. Beans at one meal and grains the next day will work itself out.

If you include a lot of fresh, raw stuff in your diet, you’ll get tired of chewing before you’ll feel full.

Good luck!
~VOW

33

What? What keto diet doesn’t include leafy greens, nuts and berries? I never once had problems with regularity when I was doing Atkins.

Just because you can’t eat a bowl of Shredded Wheat doesn’t mean you don’t get fiber. If you’re eliminating fiber completely, you’re doing it wrong.

34

I had to read this twice! :slight_smile:

35

If you go back to the Stillman Quick Weight Loss Diet and the original Atkins diet from the Seventies, you will find no fiber.

It’s my opinion that greens (more than “one cup, loosely packed”), nuts and the rare raspberry were gradually added through the years because of the problems I mentioned.

In a healthy diet, whole grains contribute vital complex carbs, two different types of fiber, and critical nutrients.
~VOW