[QUOTE=Ceejaytee]
tdn: Do you do this at every meal, including breakfast?
[/QUOTE]
In theory I do. In practice, I’m a bit more… flexible. That’s pretty much it for dinners, though.
I rarely snack. If I do, it’s usually peanuts.
And I like it because there are no numbers involved. I can now pretty much eyeball a plate tell if it’s going to be healthy.
Thanks. I like the way it sounds. My nutritionist has me counting diabetic exchanges, which is basically counting grams, but I hate that. You’ve pretty much summarized what she wants me to do, but without the actual counting.
Now if only I could get off my ass and back into the gym . . .
[QUOTE=ivylass]
I read somewhere that a good key to eating is:
Eat breakfast like a king (in other words, a huge honking meal)
Eat lunch like a prince
Eat dinner like a pauper
[/QUOTE]
But if I do that, I’ll be snacking at 2AM like a burglar… I always get a huge craving for sweets in the middle of the night! And it’s going to be a quarter pound of chocolate too…
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck]
But if I do that, I’ll be snacking at 2AM like a burglar… I always get a huge craving for sweets in the middle of the night! And it’s going to be a quarter pound of chocolate too…
[/QUOTE]
This just gave me a mental image of a very confused Hamburglar. Robble robble…
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck]
Thanks, all. One more question -
What are people using to track their daily activity and food consumption? I am wondering if there is something that not only tracks the basic energy balance (food vs. exercise) but also adjusts the metabolic baseline for exercise. Like for example, if I input a lot of exercise, then it automatically multiplies my base metabolic rate by 1.3 (for example)
[/QUOTE]
Like I said, I can’t stand all the bookkeeping which is why WW Core suits me. I do not measure out portions, count anything or use a stopwatch when I exercise.
I eat when I’m hungry but I don’t stuff myself. I don’t let myself get really REALLY hungry either (which tends to lead to the “Hm, that pack of cookies is handy” syndrome as opposed to eating a healthy meal). During the week I walk or run every day at lunch; it’s about 3-3.5 miles and I know how long it takes me, but I’m not watching a clock while I do it (just making sure I’m back on time). After work I usually go for a short bike ride which is about 30-45 minutes. Again, I’m not timing myself, just making sure that I’m not going to be riding around after dark or having dinner at 9pm or something. On the weekends I do my long hauls - ride 15-35 miles on my mountain bike, get in a long run (10+ miles trail running). Again those are more about distance than any particular speed, I just pick a nice route and go do it, put my mind on hold and enjoy the exercise.
Does that help? It’s more a state of mind for me these days, rather than something I have to specifically pay attention to and track. I don’t go hungry, I don’t starve myself, I eat healthy foods and I stay active all the time. No GPS, no calorimeter, etc.
[QUOTE=Valgard]
Like I said, I can’t stand all the bookkeeping which is why WW Core suits me. I do not measure out portions, count anything or use a stopwatch when I exercise.
I eat when I’m hungry but I don’t stuff myself. I don’t let myself get really REALLY hungry either (which tends to lead to the “Hm, that pack of cookies is handy” syndrome as opposed to eating a healthy meal). During the week I walk or run every day at lunch; it’s about 3-3.5 miles and I know how long it takes me, but I’m not watching a clock while I do it (just making sure I’m back on time). After work I usually go for a short bike ride which is about 30-45 minutes. Again, I’m not timing myself, just making sure that I’m not going to be riding around after dark or having dinner at 9pm or something. On the weekends I do my long hauls - ride 15-35 miles on my mountain bike, get in a long run (10+ miles trail running). Again those are more about distance than any particular speed, I just pick a nice route and go do it, put my mind on hold and enjoy the exercise.
Does that help? It’s more a state of mind for me these days, rather than something I have to specifically pay attention to and track. I don’t go hungry, I don’t starve myself, I eat healthy foods and I stay active all the time. No GPS, no calorimeter, etc.
[/QUOTE]
Actually this is really helpful to me because I now notice that your starting age, weight, measurements, goals, even the cholesterol levels are uncannily similar to mine. Come to think of it, I did a sorta similar program about 3 years ago and lost 20 pounds, but foodwise I was just trying to “not eat crap - or too much of it, anyway”, and exercising frequently.
So you’re running 45 mins and cycling 45 mins each and every day except for the long hauls, is that correct? Were you doing that when you started? I wish I could, but my damned ankles and achilles are frustrating my efforts.
Oh also, work-wise, are you in an active occupation or a desk job? Part of my problem is I’m behind a desk 8 hours a day.
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck]
Thanks, all. One more question -
What are people using to track their daily activity and food consumption? I am wondering if there is something that not only tracks the basic energy balance (food vs. exercise) but also adjusts the metabolic baseline for exercise. Like for example, if I input a lot of exercise, then it automatically multiplies my base metabolic rate by 1.3 (for example)
[/QUOTE]
Weight Watchers has electronic tools on their website, which includes access to online tracking of food and activity. This also includes a Palm-Pilot-based tool (if you use a Palm; I go nowhere without mine). It tracks my food, and also allows for extra food consumption if I’m physically active. The activity adjustments vary based on the intensity of exercise (a leisurely stroll doesn’t burn off as much as pounding on the treadmill, for example), duration, and weight (if you weigh 250 pounds you burn off more calories in a 30 minute session than if you weigh 200).
Anyway - it’s a very useful tool for activity/consumption and if I use it religiously, it works. Trouble is, I rarely use it religiously and it’s showing 
There’s a monthly fee, of course, so it may not be right for you (but the fee is nominal - 12 bucks or something just for the etools).
My weight loss has been fairly slow (~15lbs over 6 months), but I’m not striving really hard to go any faster. The key thing is that I haven’t really changed my diet, I’ve just paid more attention to how much I eat. I avoid drinking soda when I could just drink water, I order a smaller meal when I’m going to restaurants, etc. I realized that I could eat a lot less and still not feel hungry, and I think that’s key to having a sustainable diet. I do rough estimations of the calories I’m consuming, but I don’t get completely nitpicky about it. As long as I am hitting around 2000 calories or under I’m happy, because my daily calorie usage is 2100-2300.
On the exercise front, I definitely recommend that people who aren’t inclined to do the daily gym routine look for activity clubs of some kind. Between tennis, hiking, and occasional running I get close to my ‘exercise quota’ without conscious work. Find an activity that’s fun for you to do, and then get involved with someone that does that activity. When you are doing it for something other than just exercise’s sake, it makes it a million times easier to be consistent.
As my finale, I have my “World’s Laziest Workout”, namely: fall out of bed in the morning and do a couple sets of pushups and/or crunches while waiting for the shower to warm up. Then I repeat that at night right before I crawl into bed. The number of them that I can do at a single shot has been slowly increasing and I actually have some upper body muscle. 
It only takes like 5 minutes or so, and it gets the blood pumping and prevents my muscles from completely atrophying from sitting at a desk 10 hours a day.
I’ve also stopped caring that much about what the raw weight is on the scale and started trying to calculate my body fat percentage. I’ve been meaning to pick up a set of calipers, as that method seems to be the most accurate one available to the layman.
5’10"/24yo/~180lbs./~16% body fat - goal of around 170 or 10% body fat, whichever comes first.
[QUOTE=tdn]
Next is carbs. Despite what some people think, the medical community says you need them. .
[/QUOTE]
In general I agree with your post, but do you have a cite for this? 
[QUOTE=DrDeth]
In general I agree with your post, but do you have a cite for this?
[/QUOTE]
Not online. I heard it in a weight loss class I took last year, based on this book.
I believe it’s that you need carbs for energy.
[QUOTE=tdn]
Not online. I heard it in a weight loss class I took last year, based on this book.
I believe it’s that you need carbs for energy.
[/QUOTE]
You also need them for your body, your brain specifically to function properly.
Cite from the Franklin Institute
There are lots of other cites, too, but they say pretty much the same thing.
Still, complex carbs are best - they pack more of a nutritional punch and stick around longer and are more effective in cleaning out your colon.
For free tracking, I like Sparkpeople. It’s free, you can follow their eating plan or not, they’ll give you an exercise plan or you can use your own. The only problem I have is that some of the nutritional info isn’t right, but as long as you double check it’s fine. You can track a lot of things, not just calories. It automatically does a few different things (calories, fat, carbs & protein, I think), but you can add a lot more - I like to track iron b/c I tend to be low in that area.
They also have a good recipe tool, you put in all the ingredients & the number of servings, & it will tell you how many calories per serving, as well as other nutritional info.
I’ve had success on Atkins, and I do strength training twice a week and cardio (elliptical machine and treadmill) five times a week for about 45 minutes to an hour. I eat around 50-60 grams of carbs a day mostly in fruits and veggies. I eat a ton of vegetables. I also avoid artificial sweetners because they give me food cravings, and I avoid processed foods because I noticed the fat dropping slightly faster without it. For example, when I ate low carb pasta, it stalled my weight loss. I don’t count calories or control portions. I eat enough food to be full but don’t overeat. Even though eating several small meals during the day is supposed to be good for one’s metabolism, I didn’t find it helpful, and I think it just made me eat more food.
I know a lot of people are critical of the low carb diets, but I find it a very easy way to lose weight without ever being hungry. I’m going to do it for the rest of my life. I also recently had my cholestrol level checked, and it’s very low. 113.
In my experience, I didn’t find the inductive stage helpful because I was too tired to do exercise so I actually only started to lose weight after I increased my carbs to at least 40 grams a day because then I could have the energy to exercise. But this may also be because I wasn’t overweight to start with.
The weight loss is slow because I wasn’t overweight even before I started. I justed wanted to lose 10 pounds to get into better shape and to look better. I just wanted to be the same size I was when I was in my undergrad.
I use a tape measure around my stomach, and I’ve lost about an inch and a half. The scale doesn’t give me a good record since I know I’m gaining muscle weight. I’m going to keep doing this until I lose 6 more pounds or I can fit into all the pants in my closet.
In my last post that was supposed to be “induction” and not “inductive”.
[QUOTE=poetwarlord]
I know a lot of people are critical of the low carb diets, but I find it a very easy way to lose weight without ever being hungry. I’m going to do it for the rest of my life. I also recently had my cholestrol level checked, and it’s very low. 113.
[/QUOTE]
I think people are more critical of the low-carb diets that tell you to stop eating all bread, pasta, rice and fruit and most dairy while eating unlimited amounts of meat and fatty foods like butter. You know, the traditional view of Atkins. Though it seems like, even though that was what Atkins originally was (at least the snapshot view), even that picture doesn’t thoroughly represent the actual diet today. Regardless, it sounds like you’re eating really well. I try to make veggies and fruits the basis of my diet (the bottom of my food pyramid), with grains next, then dairy & meat, then fat, but I’m certainly not perfect about it. It sounds like you’re very dedicated.
The not-eating-bread-pasta-rice-and-fruit-and-most-dairy part is only during induction which lasts 2 weeks. I also do eat brown rice and fruit. Though I only eat about half a cup of cooked brown rice per meal. I do eat meat, eggs, and cheese but only a little more than I used to before Atkins.
After I finish losing all the weight hopefully in a couple months, I will slowly up my carbs around 10 to 15 grams a day to see whether my weight comes back. I still plan to exercise afterwards to maintain my weight and because it’s good for one’s health.
[QUOTE=tdn]
Not online. I heard it in a weight loss class I took last year, based on this book.
I believe it’s that you need carbs for energy.
[/QUOTE]
It’s kind of a complicated relationship… your body does need carbs, there is absolutely no question about that. Your brain alone needs 100g of glucose per day to continue functioning. That being said, your body is capable of making glucose from excess protein, but that requires ingesting excess protein, and this can be hard on your kidneys. You can get by without dietary carbs for a little while, but it’s a bad idea for the long haul.
I think in most cases, the people who think you don’t need carbs are unaware of the difference between simple and complex carbs. Simple carbs are easier to overdo than complex carbs. You can eliminate simple carbs (sugars) from your diet forever, and you’d probably be better off by doing so, but you’ll still need complex carb intake.
Also, carbs are favored fuel for fast, powerful movements, whereas fat is favored for slow, steady movement. People with low activity levels don’t need nearly as much carbohydrate, and I think maybe this is the group who benefits most from low-carb diets.
[QUOTE=tdn]
Excellent post, Glory.
It underscores the whole notion that diets are evil. What do I mean by a diet? It’s where you suffer for a period, and lose weight. Then you stop suffering and the weight comes back on and brings its friends.
[/QUOTE]
I dunno. I do a bit of both - I’ve changed my diet somewhat on a daily basis, and yet I diet when I get over my ‘trigger amount’.
I never could stand all that calorie-counting stuff. Too much like work. So I’ve adopted the following diet to lose weight on:
Breakfast: - an apple, two melba toasts, a bowl of no-fat yogurt
Lunch: really big salad, a serving of protien (often three slices of lean turkey), two melba toasts
Dinner: loads of vegitables, a serving of protien (often chicken or fish)
Before bread: a small bowl of strawberries
When I reach my goal weight - in my case, 188 pounds (I’m a 6’ fellow) - I cease dieting and eat more “normally”. No fast food, and still healthy, but inevitably my weight creeps up. When it hits 195, I diet again.
I estimate I diet around 2 weeks out of every 3 months. But I can eat the occasional cupcake and have a glass or three of wine … and no calorie-counting.
[QUOTE=tdn]
Not online. I heard it in a weight loss class I took last year, based on this book.
I believe it’s that you need carbs for energy.
[/QUOTE]
You can get energy from both fats and protien.
wiki :Carbohydrates are not essential nutrients: the body can obtain all its energy from protein and fats [3] [4]. The brain cannot burn fat and needs glucose for energy, but the body can make this glucose from protein. Carbohydrates and proteins, contain 4 kilocalories per gram while fats contain 9 kilocalories and alcohol contains 7 kilocalories per gram.[
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck]
Actually this is really helpful to me because I now notice that your starting age, weight, measurements, goals, even the cholesterol levels are uncannily similar to mine. Come to think of it, I did a sorta similar program about 3 years ago and lost 20 pounds, but foodwise I was just trying to “not eat crap - or too much of it, anyway”, and exercising frequently.
So you’re running 45 mins and cycling 45 mins each and every day except for the long hauls, is that correct? Were you doing that when you started? I wish I could, but my damned ankles and achilles are frustrating my efforts.
Oh also, work-wise, are you in an active occupation or a desk job? Part of my problem is I’m behind a desk 8 hours a day.
[/QUOTE]
OK, to get specific, an average week’s activity for me is about like this:
Walk to and from carpool morning/evening. That’s just a nice 10-minute walk.
Walk or run 3-3.5 miles during my lunch. I generally run every other day and lately I’ve been doing it Tu/Th because I’m in downtown SF and it means running on cement which is a lot harder on me than I’d like. I used to run M/W/F, sometimes I still do that depending on how my joints are feeling 
Walk on days when I don’t run. This has another benefit, namely that I don’t have time to sit down and eat a big lunch, so I hit the salad bar on my way back and eat at my desk.
Go home and most days I’ll go for that 30-40 minute bike ride (this gets a bit harder as the days get shorter, riding in the dark is a good way to get run over). Rolling terrain, some decent hills and stuff.
Work out - I’m pretty flexible on this, there are months where I’m doing it every other night (I’ll often skip my bike ride that night) and other times when I won’t do much for weeks. All home stuff, no gym - pushups, crunches, bar dips, various upper body strength training. I was up to about 400 pushups but I managed to tweak something in my shoulder so I’ve cut back on the strength training while I let that heal.
That’s during the week. On the weekends I’ve got time during the day to do more stuff. My typical Saturday morning ride is a few miles to my WW meeting (I still go and weigh in, it keeps me honest), then go get some breakfast (disgustingly healthy as my friends put it, I’m chowing down on oatmeal and fresh fruit while they have waffles and bacon) and then off for longer distance. My regular ride from my house to WW to the EC marina and back is right about 17 miles. If I’m feeling perky sometimes I’ll keep going on city streets and the Berkeley hills, I’ve stretched it out to about 35 miles. Other times I’ll bring my running shoes and stop at the track on my way back and do 5-6 miles, then back on the bike and home. Since I’ve started to increase my running distances and a circular track is mind-numbingly boring, I now generally just ride home, rest for a bit and then change to my running stuff and do a 10+ mile trail run in the afternoon.
If I run Saturday I won’t run on Sunday but I usually still go for a morning ride (at least) for some breakfast. If I’m feeling like another workout I’ll take my mountain bike up to the hills again, Tilden Park has tons of great trails.
So call it about 60 minutes of running/walking every day, plus 30-40 minutes on my bike most days, and an hour or two of strength training every other day (at most). That’s M-F.
Saturday and Sunday I will typically get 1-4 hours of vigorous aerobic exercise each day (biking and running).
And there’s always opportunities for more - if I’ve got a bunch of yardwork to do, that’s certainly physical labor!
My job is also deskbound, I do IT work at a law firm. There’s some running about to various floors but I fly a chair most of the time.
As far as what I could do when I started - certainly the walking (I’ve always been an avid hiker and walker). I got the bike about a year before I started WW, just felt like getting more exercise in my life. I wasn’t riding quite so much, and I remember that some of the hills I now do in middle gears I had to do in the “granny gears”. The first time I did that 17 mile ride it kicked my butt, now it’s easy. It took me a while to build up my running, the first few times I tried my regular lunchtime route I was able to run a few blocks, then had to walk and rest, but I would keep increasing the runs and shortening the walks (“OK, I made it to that corner last time, so just make it across the street this time”) and now it’s pretty simple. The long runs also worked up the same way, I’d just add a half mile or a mile on the weekend beyond what I did the time before and it just kind of built up. Finally I went out to a trail that I happen to know is 8.4 miles round trip and I just decided to see if I could run it, figuring I’d have some walking back to do (previous farthest run was about 6 miles), lo and behold I ran the whole thing. Pushups and stuff have increased dramatically - a few years ago I could crank out sets of pushups but it’d be more like 60-20-15-5 and I’d be done, now I’ve hit 100 nonstop and then followed it up with multiple sets of 60-90 each. Crunches have always been my weak spot, previously being able to do 30 was my limit, a while back I was up to multiple sets of 100 plus sets with variations (cross body and so on). It’s a positive spiral with weight loss - the more fat I worked off, the easier the exercise became.
Looking back on where I was compared to where I am now it’s a pretty dramatic difference but it took some doing - not in the sense of “Wake up every day at 5am and do a thousand situps” but just sticking with it, staying active all the time and just always raising my personal bar a little bit. There were certainly days when I felt under the weather and so I’d rest. I’ve also really taken my doctor’s advice about exercise, which is that he encourages me to get a lot of it but to also pay attention to how my body feels - if something hurts, STOP. In my 20s I could beat myself up and come back in a day but it doesn’t work that way anymore. Strained muscles and similar injuries can sideline me for a while and it’s just not worth it - trying to “gut it out” and work through real pain means I’ll be doing little to no exercise for a week or two after while something heals. That’s a couple weeks of kicking my own butt for being an idiot and wishing that I could go run around.
Definitely talk to your doctor if you’re going to start exercising more, and see what she recommends to avoid aggravating existing problems. You might find that swimming works better for you than running, for example. Swimming is actually my next goal (I’m horrible at it and will basically need to learn how to swim all over again, last time I swam a lap was high school) since I’ve started to think about triathlons.
The key for me has been to keep my eye on the long-term goal (“Get healthy”) and make slow, steady progress - I started by just walking a lot more and gradually added in the other stuff.
Sorry, that’s a pretty long-winded answer to your questions 
Hope it helps!