Losing weight in 2004

“I placed myself on an intense exercise regimen at the beginning of last year, and have lost between 40 and 50 pounds. In an ideal day now, I run 4.5 miles, walk 4.5 miles, do 40 good crunches and 40 good pushups. As you can see, I need no gym or equipment to exercise. This aspect of my exercise regimen is very important to me. There are no excuses, since I can exercise whenever and wherever! Of course, I'm currently unemployed. I'll need to make serious adjustments when I began working.

As for my "diet," I avoid caffeine. Thats it. Actually, if anything, I try to eat more, e.g., more fruit, more vegetables, more protein, etc. I demand so much from my body, that I believe that it would be impossible to sustain my effort without loading up on calories and, yes, carbs.

Good luck everyone, hope this post helps. And remember to drink lots of water!”

“That stuff tastes nasty. The best diet I've seen or heard of, and have personal evidence that it works is the Body for Life. I guess it's kinda similar to the Atkins thing, focus on low carb, but it is a really low fat as well AND it requires regular daily exercise. It's almost the plain old fashioned "eat right, watch the fat and exercise" plan. It's pretty easy to follow though.”

“Treebeard, High insulin levels can be caused not by carbs per se but by high glycemic carbs (white potatoes,bananas) low glycemic carbs (lentils) release their "energy" at a slower rate allowing more body fat to be used as fuel.High glycemic foods (sugar) cause spikes due to a fast release time.

Atkins is a kook. Any cardiologist who okays a dinner of fried eggs,cheese and bacon as healthy and dismisses a reasonabale portion (recommended serving size) of potatoes,fish/chicken/lean beef and some veggies nad salad as bad from carbs is not a kook but an idiot.

WebMD.com had some great info on a slew of studies about the atkins plan and how its not healthy or effective long term.

Atkins is not gaining credibility, his heirs are gaining money through marketing. Peiple in the US spend 2+ billion dollars a year on diets and diet books. There is money to be made.

The dude on the dateline show mentioned earlier who lost 100lbs had hoorible eating habits. His dinner on the Atkins plan was 4 friggin quarter pounders or big macs. Thats just insane.

The atkins plan will allow you to lose weight but I would bet $100 per pound regained that it'll come back.

Losing weight isnt a bout a diet plan. Its about eating a sensible balanced diet in moderate portions. The FDA just didnt crap the data they based their recommendations on. Eat right and excercise.

IF carbs are the problem why is it that well over half of the worlds population has carbs as the primary source of food in their diets and they have none of the obesity issues we have. We are not talking just third world either.

Atkins is a gimmick.”

“Volumetrics author Barbara Rolls, PhD, who holds the Guthrie Chair in Nutrition at Penn State University, offers a very simple explanation as to why people lose weight doing Atkins: They're cutting calories, even if they don't realize it. "No one has shown, in any studies, that anything magical is going on with Atkins other than calorie restriction. The diet is very prescriptive, very restrictive, and limits half of the foods we normally eat," she says. "In the end it's not fat, it's not protein, it's not carbs -- it's calories. You can lose weight on anything that helps you to eat less, but that doesn't mean it's good for you."


To be fair, the Atkins diet has gotten a somewhat undeserved reputation as an "all cheeseburgers, no vegetables" plan. Although the early "induction" phase drastically reduces carbohydrate consumption, requiring no fruits and only a very few leafy greens, that's only the first two weeks. "Induction is very severe, but then you go up the carbohydrate ladder. You may end up eating a fair amount of carbohydrates again six months down the line, although the diet really advises you to avoid some things, like white breads, white potatoes, and white rice, forever," says Foster. "People will say that Atkins doesn't let you eat fruits and vegetables, and that's inaccurate. He advises you to add fruits and vegetables and whole grains early on in the process."


But the diet still isn't balanced, says the American Heart Association, troubled by implications that it's changed its position on Atkins since the November meeting. (It hasn't.) "A high intake of saturated fats over time raises great concern about increased cardiovascular risk; the study did not follow participants long enough to evaluate this," the AHA said in a release.


So why did "bad cholesterol" levels go down for Atkins dieters in the studies? "Any time people lose weight by any means, cholesterol goes down," says Neal Barnard, MD, president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and a leading Atkins critic. "But the idea that Atkins is a cholesterol-lowering diet -- the evidence on that is at best very mixed."


Plus, slashing carbs and gulping fat may be dangerous to more than just your heart health. Barnard points to research recently published in the American Journal of Kidney Disease, based on studies of 10 healthy people put on the Atkins diet. "Because their focus is kidney disease, they wanted to look at calcium loss. It was awful: On the induction diet, calcium losses were 65% above normal, and even on the more moderate maintenance diet, calcium losses averaged 55% above normal," Barnard says. "Osteoporosis is a bad enough problem as it is. If you do something that increases calcium losses, you're just asking for hip fractures."

Sign me up!”

“The Q weight loss program:


Get the phuck off the couch and hike for goodness sake!


Really, I don't profess to be a weight loss expert. Results may vary, check with your local brewery for details. No returns, limited time offer.”

“why the hell does weight loss appear like a link? Doesn't this seems metaphoric? Like, we're all like looking for that magic answer, but like, it ain't there, man.”

“what does everyone think of Dr.Weil???/”

“An hour ski in the moonlight! I believe I had the mountain to myself.

A Fat Tire Ale with chicken soup and bread. ;-P”

“My wife is in to that kind of stuff and checked him out. She thinks he is pretty good. Another good source if you are interested in a newsletter is

UC Berkeley Wellness”

“for example

Low-Carb Foods: Less Than Meets the Eye”

“Dr Weil's site is full of good healthy information. I think you could combine aspects of Dr Weil with Atkins and come up with a decent diet. Protein does not have to come from red or fatty meats.”

“I am back on my diet as of today.

Breakfast coffee and a pop tart.

Lunch a baked potato with pepper only, small bowl of Wendys chili

dinner, a bag of popcorn (no butter) and a diet coke

I will start back to the gym Thursday hopefully, if not Sat or Sun. I do have to move my son back to college this weekend so that may even delay that :(”

“I've been under the impression that carbs are an excellent source of energy. I've been told that athletes load up on carbs before they perform. So, if this is true, a low-carb diet seems absolutely fatal to any sensible exercise regiment. Can anyone explain to me why any active person, especially a hiker, would turn to an Atkins diet to lose weight? Is Atkins maybe only suitable for those who don't exercise?

With all the health and nutrition studies published in the last 20 years, I'm beginning to suspect that we, as a society, have not improved our understanding of personal fitness beyond the simple phrase "exercise and eat sensibly". At least, no one's come up with a study to contradict it.”

“I can no longer get my rings on and off my fingers. Its time to get serious.

I've been logging what I eat for the past 4 days and will continue that. I hate to see the paper fill up.

I find that I eat a lot at work when I'm bored. I have been extremely busy the last few days here, and have not had one snack.

My plan is to exercise 3-4 times a week, and just plain old eat less. I've also been watching the carb intake, and substituting chips and other such goodies for fruits and veggies. Went out for lunch yesterday and skipped the fries. Didn't even miss them.

Also picked up a "weight control" multivitamin that has green tea extract to boost metabolism. Will also drink one cup of green tea a day while at work.

Made a pact with a co-worker yesterday. We want to lose 20 lbs. each. 1lb a week. Gonna take a long, long time.

That's it. That's my plan. I hope it works!”

“I think we're all different in our bodies and lifestyles. What works well for one may be a gimmick to another.

What works for me:

http://www.classicx.com/html/1book.html

I read this book almost 4 years ago and still follow most of the guidelines. And, no, I don't have a flat stomach.”

“Birch, you are well read and use sources that are credible. But, I think you stretch certain points. I still believe that there is no single diet that is for everyone except, like you say:

Its about eating a sensible balanced diet in moderate portions.

That said, I think we are all on the same page here, whether you know it or not. The meal you described in the second paragraph of your post is exactly what I have been eating, minus the potatoes. So, right there, we are not talking about a huge difference in our thinking. The potatoes will ease back to my diet when I get off the few weeks of induction. As far as that guy eating four quarter pounders or Big Macs, let me say this. Forst off, I never ate a Big Mac in my life. Even off a diet, I haven't walked into McDonalds in years. So, that is not what I am advocating, nor do I think Atkins' diet should be interpreted that way. He doesn't say 'no carbs'. That simply isn't true. It's a restrictive first couple of weeks, granted. But, the amount of carbs that will be re-introduced into my diet shortly thereafter is well within the recommended daily amounts. I just won't pile them on as I used to. I am a carb addict, man! I love them. That is my problem. I was reared on New York pizza, knishes, Nathan's fries, etc. That stuff tastes awesome! But, back on track here:
I never stated that the obesity problem in the U.S. is due to carbs. I said that my problem is carbs. Reason # 1: my triglyceride level needs to come down. Otherwise, I am at risk of stroke or heart attack due to that. The carbs are the main enemy there. You didn't address that one, so I don't know if you have a rebuttal for it or not. But, that is the main reason for going on a low carb diet. I have a very good doc I trust that confirmed to me that, of all the food groups, carbs will be the one to cause those levels to rise. He didn't tell me to go on Atkins, BTW. He said it wouldn't be a bad idea though, given my situation.

Now, in summing up the rest of your second post, it appears that the intake of fats is the point of dispute between Atkins and the opinion you expressed. You can do Atkins and also keep a lid of the fat content too. Not all the high protein foods are necessarily high fat.

Now, there are several routes I could have gone. I chose this one because of the all-important reason stated above and for a few others. From my own experience, I have notices that I am most sluggish when I get on high carb binges. Also, the hunger factor. I can eat a huge, heaping bowl of spaghetti (and man, do I love that) and one hour later, I am ready to do another. Carbs seem to perpetuate hunger in me. When I eat low carbs, my hunger seems under control. I don't think this is my imagination either. This is another important part of it for me. Let me level with you. I have contemplated attending an 'overeaters anonymous' meeting at times. I love my food that much. And man, I can pack it away. So, hunger urges are rough for me. The only way I can seem to diet is by lowering my carb intake. Again, this is me I am talking about. Not anybody else. And I don't believe my body is lying to me either. Like I said before, I have done a low carb diet in the past. It was not as severe as Atkins, but I lost weight over a reasonable period of time and felt great on a daily basis. There has to be something to be said for that.

Lastly, exercise. Atkins does stress that exercise is essential. So, all in all, I don't see the huge gaps in thinking between you and I. We both believe in moderation being the key, exercise and such. It's a few sticking points of difference here...”

“Q's weight loss program part deux:


Go to the deepest part of the inner city, yell rasist remarks and run like hell. That'll burn some calories faster than anything I can think of.”

“I haven't walked into McDonalds in years.

Treebeard
08:32:54 AM
01/07/04


does it have to due with the 2 foot Rat you saw there?”

“Partly! That would constitute about 10 quarter pounders!”

“Anyone here trying the South Beach diet? I just started it and it seems to be working - 5lbs. It is basically a modified atkins diet that allows vegtables lunch yesterday was a burger patty with 2cups of brocolli, dinner was chicken breast with green beans.
It seems to me that it is a healthier low carb diet. They don't tell you to go eat a pound of bacon.”

“I heard about that recently from my boss, who is also on the Atkins. It sounded very good and plausible. I just haven't had a chance to research it yet, Lt.”

“i know that people with diabeties(sp) can not go on Atkins, but SB diet is good for them.”

“I have been thinking about the South Beach diet too. If things don't go well for me in the first few weeks of my plan, I may switch.”

“Q's weight loss program part three:

In order to lose 30 lbs of ugly fat, cut off yer head!


j/k!!”

“I'd rather cut off my butt...can ya do that??!!”

“"I find that I eat a lot at work when I'm bored. "
smiley girl
07:54:49 AM
01/07/04

Yes, smiley, this is a common problem among us civil engineers. It is actually a good thing when you have leftovers at home that you don't want to eat or throw out: just bring them to the office!

Two comments.

1. I have heard that a lot of times, thirst is often mistaken for hunger. So next time you feel a little hungry, have a glass of water or a cup of tea.

2. I started bringing some fruit to the office (pears, usually). So when I get my usual longing for an afternoon snack, at least I eat something healthy.

Day 3 of my program and still holding steady at the same weight....”

“I've been drinking lots of water, B-man. Kinda floating through the day... lol”

“I have heard that a lot of times, thirst is often mistaken for hunger. So next time you feel a little hungry, have a glass of water or a cup of tea.


I have peed me a river don't ya know.....


BRB got to pee”

“Treebeard, I think that you will be fine on an Atkins style diet as long as you make room for some foods that give you vitamins that you aren't getting much of, like Vitamin C. Add lime to your water. Atkins does say that you "can" eat bacon, cheese or sausage, but also says that you "can" eat fish, chicken, etc. Just use common sense to choose the healthier menu items and you will be fine. For your small servings of carbs, remember to choose the unrefined carbs like whole cooked buckwheat, wheat berries, brown basmati rice, etc. and you will get a host of fiber, vitamins and minerals that most people don't get even on other diets.”

“Yes, dieters are supposed to drink a lot of water. Not sure the reason why. Weight Watchers has you track the amount of water you drink each day. In general most people are chronically dehydrated, and yes, I should drink more water.”

“I have a cracked tooth, and it actually hurts to drink anything right now. Makes it even harder to drink enough water. I hate going to the dentist.”

“That's how I am approaching it, Lyndy. I'm not looking to eat a lot of bacon or greasy cheeseburgers. I eat a lot of salmon, tuna, salads and the like...”

“I didn't bring my usual Sunchips with my sandwich today. Brought broccoli and carrots instead. It was a bit disappointing, but I have to say I didn't walk away from the lunch room hungry. I even said no to offers of Asiago Cheese Bread and Fritos. I'm such a good girl....

OK, tea in about 45 minutes....”

“i, too, think this atkins rage is ridiculous. after long term studies start coming out, people are going to see just how unhealthy this diet is. it's little more than a typical yo yo diet.
i'll explain the yo yo diet. you have a person who weighs 200 pounds at 30% body fat. that's 140 pounds of lean mass, and 60 pounds of body fat. this person goes on this diet, and loses 50 pounds. he's so happy, fitting into clothes he hasn't worn in years. the problem is, he's probably still very close to 30% body fat. he only weighs 150 now, but he's lost 25-30 pounds of lean mass along with his 20 pounds of fat. now he's 150 with 110 pounds of lean mass and 40 pounds of body fat. this person has essentially gone from being a big fat person to a little fat person, who incidentally is now less able to fight off diseases such as the common cold or flu, and who is more likely to sustain injury from something simple like a fall off of a curb.
this guy's feeling great for now. but 9 out of 10 times if you check back in a year, he's gonna be 200 pounds again. except now instead of 200 with 140 pounds of lean mass, he's gonna be 200 pounds with 120 pounds of lean mass, giving him 80 pounds of body fat. that's 40% body fat, 10% more than he was before he started.
the way to avoid this is through balanced meals, weight training, and cardio exercise. i don't mean walking around the block. i'm talking 30 minutes of hard cardio a few times a week. it's something you have to work up to and it's not that much fun, unless you're sadistic. but, for my clients, it's the only acceptable way to lose weight. i would consider myself a failure if i allowed a client to lose weight by losing lean mass. muscle is your furnace. bigger muscles mean more calories burned all day long, even while you're sleeping. you want to keep that furnace going.
losing weight at a rate of 1 pound per week is time proven to be the best way to keep the weight off. that's about a 500 calorie deficit per day. all you have to do is burn 500 more calories per day than you take in.
treebeard, im not fighting you on this. if your doctor says this is what he thinks you should do, then by all means, listen to him. my point is that the adkins diet is not for the masses.”

“I am on the good food diet--I made a list of things I love that are passibly low fat. I don't care what they cost--I just went shopping. I keep my meals balanced. I skip the butter and dressings--no fried stuff and I reduce my intake of milk--I drink way too much of the stuff. I quit eating when I am full. This results in about 1500 calories a day which is one pound a week--that is faster than I put it on.”

“I understand, DT. Again, I feel that anyone who stops doing what got them down to the desired weight will fatten up, whether they stop exercising or start eating like there's no tomorrow. That's a sure ticket to Sherman Klumpsville. Also, like I said, my choice of diet is more based on straightening out my triglyceride situation and dealing with those damn hunger cravings than belief that Atkins is almighty...”

“Ductape - what if I've got limited time at the gym - what's the best bang for my buck? I figure the 2-25 minutes of cardio plus some abs is better than the normal sitting in my car or at home. Some nights, like tonight, I'll be able to do the full 30 minutes of cardio plus weights, but most of the time I don't have time for the weights. I've managed to do a few lunges, abs, and I guess I should pull out the few weights I have at home and do some upper body. But, is 25 minutes of cardio (runnning - I'm going to run a 5K in the spring and I suck a lot of wind right now) better than nothing?”

“if I get fired today, that will leave me more time to go to the gym....”

“anything is better than nothing”

“"Yes, dieters are supposed to drink a lot of water. Not sure the reason why. Weight Watchers has you track the amount of water you drink each day. In general most people are chronically dehydrated, and yes, I should drink more water."
smiley girl

I grew up on WWs, my mom took me to my first meeting when I was still in junior high. WWs for the most part was a complete failure for me, just not well-suited to me. However, I did pick up the habit of drinking alotta water from WW. I dont remember exactly why ur supposed to drink alotta water, but currently I put down between 2 and 3 1L nalgene bottles of water a day.

I remember one time when I was on WWs, I hadn't drunk a single glass of water all day. I tried to make it all up by drinking 8 full glasses of water before I went to bed. I seriously think I nearly drowned myself. Needless to say, I was pissing all night.”

“I always forget to drink water even when hiking. I make it up in coffee and tea which is bad for you.”

“Just doing some internet research on the subject. The fitness reasons I found are:

1. Water speeds the metabolism and helps a person burn more calories. Or, to put it in the negative, dehydration slows down the metabolism, and generally has a negative effect on physical performance.

2. Water makes you feel full faster. As a poster above noted, thirst is often confused for hunger.

3. Water will flush the system and keep things moving and help eliminate the toxins. Your mom wass right 'bout drinking 'em fluids when you're feeling sick.

One thing I came upon was the notion that you shouldn't wait until you're thirsty to drink water. Apparently the body's thirst mechanism doesn't work well during exercise, you need to be sure to drink more than required simply to quench your thirst.

I think that this is a major reason why to stay away from snack-drinks, such as coffee and pop. Besides the fact that caffeine is bad for ya, and causes your body to store more fact, these drinks give you the illusion of quenching thirst, without providing the hydration your body needs. Bring a nalgene bottle full of water with ya wherever you go.”

“

I ain't going on any program that makes me go to a gym! yech!

I forgot to weigh in on 1/5/04. I weighed this am at 219#.

Did I tell you I had a great hour long ski in the moonlight last night? I believe I was the only person on the mountain using the trails. Great aerobic, legs, triceps, traps, abs workout, need to find way to work biceps
and lats.”

“Morbidly Obese Man Enjoys Disabled Privileges With Motorized Cart

MESA, AZ—Former fat lump of crap Joseph Woodring joined the ranks of the disabled Monday with the purchase of a Rascal™-brand motorized cart. "I am pleased to make the move from morbidly obese to differently abled," said the 410-pound Woodring, as he careened through EastTowne Mall on his electrically powered whale transporter. "My newfound handicapped status has truly given me a new lease on convenience." Woodring then motored off to the mall's food court for a McRib Deluxe Extra Value Meal.”

“Besides the fact that caffeine is bad for ya, and causes your body to store more fact,

I thought caffiene increased your metabolism also? I thought that's why some diet pills contained caffiene. I still stick to my one diet coke a day, that's something I'm not willing to give up.”

“Hmmm, did some research on it. Dont know where I got the bit 'bout caffeine causing you to store more fat, since its appears that I'm wrong. Read from several sources that the opposite is true. According to one site:

"Caffeine speeds up our metabolism (it can be found as a main ingredient in most weight-loss products). It also increases the breakdown of fat, freeing fatty acids, which are used in energy production during exercise. Conversion of fat to energy is about 30% more efficient when caffeine is consumed prior to exercise."

Maybe its just the way most of us get our caffeine that is unhealthy, e.g., thru coke and mochas (with whipped cream, of course!). Caffeine, like nicotine, tends to have on me the opposite effect that one would expect from a stimulant: it makes me feel sluggish and lazy. It could just be psychological tho.”

“most of the bad effects of caffeine are from when you quit using it.”

“it's harmful effects are almost nil on an average person who drinks a couple cups of coffee a day. more than that and you could start having problems.”

“Caffeine affects me strangely too, Chips. Sometimes, it takes me up and sometimes it makes my system feel sluggish. Never could explain that...”

“Treebeard, let me apologize for coming across as I have. Obviously you have spoken to your doc and are under his guidance and are doing what he is advising for your health. I certainly would not anyone to take my word over their physicians. My beef (no pun intended) isnt with those who follow atkins. Its a general frustration at those who complicate matters by making health sound complicated so they do the thinking for us and we just buy the book and follow along without studying ourselves. Its like going to church but not readin your bible.

I get frustrated when people like atkins and others whose goal is profit draw people into "their" plan (which means buying books and other stuff like special foods at weight watchers) when its isnt that complicated. I am NOT saying weightloss is easy by any stretch. I have struggled with my weight my entire life and assume I will forever. I just hate to see people try to cash in especially when the claims that are made are not supported by pretty much anyone who doesnt stand to gain a buck.

I would agree to an extent that these choices are individual and we all need to find what we are willing to do in terms of food and excercise. BUT no matter how different we are our bodies operate very very very similary. That is how the AMA,AHA,FDA come up with guidelines for cholesterol,weight and food intake amounts. We all process calories essentially the same. Obviously with varying degrees of efficiency but not so different that eating carbs is "bad" for me and a high fat diet is "good" for you.

An easy way to see why one gains weight is to do as smiley has. Write down every bite. Then you can see where the uneeded calories come from. Then a healthy balanced menu can be constructed.

I certainly hope Atkins works for those using it. The research has just shown more proven and safer methods to get healthy.”