Weight loss.

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ramenth

ramenth

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I haven't updated my mental health thread in a while, but one aspect of gaining some control over my life is losing weight. In the past year I've lost twenty pounds without trying. I say th boys have had something to do with this as keeping up with a three year old and a one year old is enough to keep anyone on his toes.

To this point I'm controlling my diet and working closely with my PCP. Breakfast. I've never been a breakfast eater, but have recently started doing so. Just a bowl of cereal in the morning. Cutting back on coffee. When I have coffee I've been using coconut oil instead of creamer. I've noticed my energy level has been through the roof in the mornings.

Cutting back on sugary drinks. I'm allowing myself one a day and that's usually just a glass of lemonade at lunch. No more soda unless it's a special occasion. Mostly water.

If I feel snackish at any point between meals I'm allowing myself an apple or yogurt. I've noticed that cutting back on coffee and allowing myself healthy snacks my GI has become mor regulated.

Portion size and more lean meats like chicken and pork with two or three red meat meals a week for iron and protien.

Popcorn without processed crap like butter seasoning has been a Godsend late in the day.

Exercise. Still haven't set myself on that track (the boys can make it hard getting on the floor for some things) but, with the PCP's advice I'm going on a basically calisthenics plan twice daily. Stretching first, with home physical therapy to deal with tendinitis in my right wrist and left shoulder and bursitis in my right hip.

Right now, I'm just a bit above 200#. My goal is 165 and then starting to tone with light weight lifting to bring it up to 175 or so.

So, what has worked for you folks?
 
hemiroid surgery ... dropped from 199 to 181 in 4 weeks .. also cut out carbs as much as possible ... and start eating smaller meals so you stomach can shrink and not demand as much food ..
 
If you stop eating carbs and sugar you will lose weight, with a little exercise you'll lose lots of weight. Any sugar you eat is converted to fat by the body, any carbs you eat get converted to sugar then into fat.

Treblig
 
I drink water with lemon 99% of the time, and like you....will occasionally drink a soft drink. The lemon neither helps nor hurts weight loss, but my doc says it goes a long ways in preventing kidney stones. If I want to lose weight, I try to only eat a salad for lunch. I'm not a breakfast eater either, and only have a few cups of coffee in the morning. The really hard part is getting it in my head that I'm going to do it. I told somebody the other day, that I don't drink, don't smoke, don't doo drugs, don't beat my wife or run around on her.....but I can eat the hell outta some food! LOL. Good luck to you in your weight loss plan. I need to drop 20 lbs. too. I don't want the Green Peace boats circling me trying to protect me when I get in the ocean this summer....lol.
 
Interesting-------five weeks ago I had total knee replacement on one knee. I quickly lost 15 pounds and am working on another five pounds as a goal.
Never drink soft drinks anyway but because of the pain meds I gave up alcohol which for me was a weekend only deal. I attribute my weight loss to
a combination of things, no appetite after surgery, daily rehab workouts gaining intensity daily at this point and no alcohol. I am getting my other knee
replaced in May which I anticipate well help me drop the coveted last five or six pounds. I currently am on a high protein nutrition program. The down side
for me is that I am cold all the time. I am having to wear an extra layer even to watch TV in the evening.
Just my experience---------------------------:)
 
I have always figured this. Eat a good breakfast. Bacon probably is not good!

Eat small portions of a balanced diet. Your body needs NO sugar. Veg is good, carbs are not, stay away from fried foods.

Eat your evening meal early.

Exercise.

Do NOT drink soda pop, not any kind. None.

Really want to loss some weight. Eat a salad at night, at 5 pm.

If you have to consume alcohol, try a small glass of dry wine at 5 or so.

Not working, exercise more!!!!
 
ramenth said:
So, what has worked for you folks?
Click to expand...

about 5 years ago i had enough of being fat and out of shape.

started going to a gym and doing group classes with a combo of weights and cardo work. can easily do this on your own but i found it was easier for me to stick with in a group.

i also started seeing a weight loss dietitian.. worked wonders..



biggest thing was portion control.. i lost 40 pounds eating all the same crap i always did only i ate the proper portions.. first few weeks it was hard as hell but the body adjusted and i went from 210 pounds to 175 from march to july that year went from a tight 34 waist jean to a 31/32 waist jeans..

since then the diet has gotten a lot healthier. the diet is nothing special but i have found out how to eat more for the same and many times less calories.. just balanced meals and proper portions.. lots of water too.. used to drink a ton of iced tea. now once in a while i'll share a glass of pepsi with jamie at dinner. just need that taste once in a blue moon.



breakfast is a must
small snack at 9am
lunch at noon
small snack at 3pm
dinner anywhere from 6pm-8:30pm for me.
i always leave room for my night cap ice cream:) only a 1/2 cup though.

as far as exercise goes start with the light weights now. nothing crazy but its never too early to start building lean muscle.. the muscle will burn calories just siting there pretty much..

since the initial weight loss i still follow the same diet only i eat more calories a day.. to lose i was at 1800 now i'm at about 2200-2400 to maintain... i also jumped into a strength class at the gym thats a lot of fun.. i put 10 pounds on but put it on in the right places.. i look better (looked way too skinny at 175) and feel a ton stronger so i keep myself at about 185-188 now. its a lot easier to stay that weight too.,., it was tough to stay at 175.


that sweat shirt is a XXL
fatny1.jpg


that tee shirt is a Medium..
skinnyny1.jpg


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oh and unless some medical condition forces it don't go too crazy too fast with the diet and cutting things out. people tend not to stick with it doing it like that.. start by changing a meal at a time. also allow yourself some pleasure food from time to time.. you cut it completely and not reward yourself from time to time you have a better chance of not sticking to it..

when we do vacation i usually eat all kinds of **** i don't normally eat. i still practice portion control but you better believe i'm eating good and getting dessert when we are out..:) dietitian always asks how i eat when i get home from vacation.. i'm like its right back to normal because i can easily fall back into my routine and have all my normal foods here at home.. she fine with that.,. says if you don't splurge once in a while chances are you wont stick with it.. apparently its hard for a lot of people to splurge for a week then resume a normal diet when they get home. its easy for me because i don't want to be fat again..lol

we love a local diner. i used to always get their chicken parm.. i'd kill some rolls, the chicken parm and its sides then dessert... now that same chicken parm makes three meals for me.. portion control helps the diet and saves a bunch of money too.. :)
 
Cut carbs.. and for me that was/is difficult. I'm a bread eater, grew up in a Italian neighborhood with many bakeries and ALWAYS had fresh bread with dinner. I also found eating a bigger lunch and less at dinner works for me, with a 9:00pm apple or other fruit. I'm retired so home a lot, it's hard in the winter. I'm in the house too much. Good luck
 
44070dart said:
Cut carbs.. and for me that was/is difficult. I'm a bread eater, grew up in a Italian neighborhood with many bakeries and ALWAYS had fresh bread with dinner. I also found eating a bigger lunch and less at dinner works for me, with a 9:00pm apple or other fruit. I'm retired so home a lot, it's hard in the winter. I'm in the house too much. Good luck
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I love bread,hot rolls, fresh baked bread, biscuits with honey. I used live on them but not no more!! The most bread I eat now is 1/2 a low carb (2 carbs) tortilla with breakfast.

Treblig
 
I’ve lost 26 lbs in 28 weeks. My approach is very simple, consume 400 calories less than I burn each day. I haven’t changed what I eat or when I eat it, just pay attention to the total daily energy balance. If I do less, I eat less. If I do more, I eat more. I just always maintain a negative 400 calorie total balance.

This way my metabolism stays steady and I don’t screw it up with trying to lose too fast or doing the ups and downs in energy balance. When I hit my target weight, my energy balance will become equal and my body will settle into the new weight naturally.
 
While I ageee with quit the carbs, not all carbs are created equal.
Look at Tim Ferris 4hour work week. Incredibly effective.

Ditch all sugar!
 
Treblig said:
If you stop eating carbs and sugar you will lose weight, with a little exercise you'll lose lots of weight. Any sugar you eat is converted to fat by the body, any carbs you eat get converted to sugar then into fat.

Treblig
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Yes Sir, this is what has worked for me in the past. Some call it the Adkins diet. Sugar, in any form, is bad for your body. Have to watch as many things have a ton of sugar naturally. Sadly, for me a t least, eating a low carb diet is damn near impossible. One of the problems with having multiple mental health issues is I seek "comfort" in food. Most of my comfort foods are either high in carbs and/or sugar.
But one has to be realistic. Eating 0 carbs is very difficult, just restrict them. Same for sugar.
Don't even know if he is still around, when I lived in AZ I used to listen to a radio show, think the guys name was Lance Dreher. His "diet" was very similar to the Adkins plan, protein and fats. (Bacon was actually pushed, just not the store bought brand if I remember right). I followed his plan, went from a portly 301 pounds to a lean and trim 190 pounds of muscle. Ran & lifted 6-7 days a week. Often would do both.
One thing, if you change the way you eat saying you changed your diet is setting yourself up for failure. A diet is short term...just saying....
Best of luck to you.....
 
High protien, low carb, low sugar, small portions 5-7 times a day, plenty of water mixxed with some exercise.
Alcohol is the worst !
Coffee in moderation is actually good.
Salsa is very good to help with metabolism.
Breakfast is actually the most important meal .
You burn more calories in the am.
Vitamins and amino acids will help.
Self control is the kicker !!
 
I know how you can loose 20 lbs of ugly fat...

Cut off your head... LOL! :poke: :lol:
 
Unlike most people think, you can workout a few days a week ,with fantastic results !!
Especially as we age !
Rest is very important !
Consistency is key in anything !
 
inkjunkie said:
Yes Sir, this is what has worked for me in the past. Some call it the Adkins diet. Sugar, in any form, is bad for your body. Have to watch as many things have a ton of sugar naturally. Sadly, for me a t least, eating a low carb diet is damn near impossible. One of the problems with having multiple mental health issues is I seek "comfort" in food. Most of my comfort foods are either high in carbs and/or sugar.
But one has to be realistic. Eating 0 carbs is very difficult, just restrict them. Same for sugar.
Don't even know if he is still around, when I lived in AZ I used to listen to a radio show, think the guys name was Lance Dreher. His "diet" was very similar to the Adkins plan, protein and fats. (Bacon was actually pushed, just not the store bought brand if I remember right). I followed his plan, went from a portly 301 pounds to a lean and trim 190 pounds of muscle. Ran & lifted 6-7 days a week. Often would do both.
One thing, if you change the way you eat saying you changed your diet is setting yourself up for failure. A diet is short term...just saying....
Best of luck to you.....
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I totally agree...it is hard to completely cut out all carbs and sugar. I usually (daily) eat maybe 20-30 carbs/sugar each day. If you keep it below 30 you'll lose weight. But, like you said, you have to be careful. When I started on this journey I started reading all the ingredients on every container at the grocery store. Turns out that 95 percent of everything at the grocery store is full of carbs and sugar. My shopping cart would be almost empty when I checked out. Mostly meat (grass fed), green beans (very low carb), bacon, sausage, grapefruit, bananas, salads, low carb tortillas. I take numerous vitamins to compensate for not eating the sugary fruits (vitamins and minerals). I also take Citrucel to compensate for not eating enough fiber. The funny thing is that I also have Diverticulitis (inflammation of the lower intestine). Ever since I drastically cut back on sugar and carbs my Diverticulitis has completely gone away!!! I haven't been back to see my Gastroenterologist in years...and he told that there was nothing I could do about my condition (BULL!!!!). If you restrict your carbs and sugar your body will go into what's called "Ketosis". This a natural state that your body reverts to in order to survive when there's no food. Your body can actually survive on protein and fat "forever" once the body switches to Ketosis. Ketosis also allows the body to produce its' own anti-inflamatory substances (Ketones). This will help with arthritis, Diverticulosis, inflammation in the arteries or any other inflammation. If you research Ketosis you can read all about it....in the process you'll lose weight and actually get healthier. Did you know that Cancer cells thrive on sugar!! Did you also know that cancer cells can not grow in the presence of Ketones!!
Ketosis is not recommended for people who have Diabetes.

treblig
 
Its tough no doubt .. I have two bad knees, a bad shoulder, and sciatica that send a pain down my right butt muscle like crazy, and my Doc asks me how much exercise I get. I told him I go to the gym and work out my left arm like crazy. Can't swim anymore with my shoulder problem so that's out. I have cut out the bad (bread, chips, pizza, etc.) since the beginning of the year and lost 28 lbs. Stopped the diet drinks and stick with just water, and very little salt when cooking. It's going to be a long haul at my age with a slower metabolism and lack of meaningful exercise, but I'm determined this time to lose 40 more. Have my first grandchild, that I adore, and I'm going to be around for awhile to see her grow. Here are my incentives. ( she says that's a Mopar)

DSCN1456.JPG
 
44070dart said:
Its tough no doubt .. I have two bad knees, a bad shoulder, and sciatica that send a pain down my right butt muscle like crazy, and my Doc asks me how much exercise I get. I told him I go to the gym and work out my left arm like crazy. Can't swim anymore with my shoulder problem so that's out. I have cut out the bad (bread, chips, pizza, etc.) since the beginning of the year and lost 28 lbs. Stopped the diet drinks and stick with just water, and very little salt when cooking. It's going to be a long haul at my age with a slower metabolism and lack of meaningful exercise, but I'm determined this time to lose 40 more. Have my first grandchild, that I adore, and I'm going to be around for awhile to see her grow. Here are my incentives. ( she says that's a Mopar)

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acupuncture fixed sciatica permenantly, and mine was really, really bad!! treblig
 
Seeing the Doc next week, will talk to him about it , thanks .... don't know if they could get thru my thick hide with a needle .. this is a horrible thing, never had it before, comes out of nowhere, and then can't go another step..
 
i couldn't walk either but after 3 sessions of acupuncture i could do summersaltz!! i did have a very good acupuncturist though.

I tried the acupuncture after a year of visiting Neurologists, Surgeons, regular doctors, MRIs, Xrays, etc. They said they could only help me if they operated. They don't know JACK!!!! Been over 20 years with no pain or any kind of discomfort...and I abuse my body!!!
 
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I've been the same weight for about 25 years now, and I have always run full blast! I don't drink soda, I don't drink beer, or alcohol, eat what I want because I like food, but my job is a high exercise type of job. I regularly carry things up and down ladders and scaffolding every day, bending, reaching, doing...it's all exercise to me! And, I go from early morning till about 10 at night, sometimes later! If I start to gain any weight, I cut out milk products, eat veggies and chicken, and no ice cream before bed!! That one is a killer!!
 
I drive truck for a LTL company and have to go through a DOT physical every other year, except for me its yearly because of my blood pressure. I just went at the end of October and hit the scale at 301lbs. I about crapped myself. I decided then that i really need to do something. I used to eat 2 El Monterey Chimichangs for breakfast, lunch I would maybe get a 6" from subway, or Mcdonalds 1/4 ponder meal. Snacks throughut the day would be 2 granola bars and maybe 2 peanut butter nut bars. Then for dinner, depending on what was going on, maybe 2 more Chimichangas. Then I started to track my food. The Chimis are 38g carbs each. Crap! The wife and I food prep on Sundays for the week. So, now I have an Omelette bake (an omlette thats cooked in the oven) for breakfast. We make a 9"x9" pyrex of this and each portion is about 2 eggs. It has musrooms, onion, bell peppers and bacon (Yes, bacon is good for you). For Lunch I have a salad. It has some onion, bell peppers, Mushrooms and bacon. For dressing I use Ceaser. We now also make our own beef jerky which is what I snack on and I take salted peanuts. For dinner we have chicken, or steak or even a hamburger patty, no bread. I also use My Fitness Pal to track what I eat. When I first started following what I ate before the change, I was taking in 200+ grams of carbs daily. Now, 30 or less. In 3 months I have dropped 40lbs with no change in exercise. Staying away from breads and fast food. Basically following a Keto diet and it seems to be working for me. I still drink my Cherry Coke zero and Budweiser Platinum. If I was to cut those out, who knows, but lets not get crazy now. Just sharing what I have done and what my experiences are.

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FItness pal progress.png
 
None2Slow said:
I drive truck for a LTL company and have to go through a DOT physical every other year, except for me its yearly because of my blood pressure. I just went at the end of October and hit the scale at 301lbs. I about crapped myself. I decided then that i really need to do something. I used to eat 2 El Monterey Chimichangs for breakfast, lunch I would maybe get a 6" from subway, or Mcdonalds 1/4 ponder meal. Snacks throughut the day would be 2 granola bars and maybe 2 peanut butter nut bars. Then for dinner, depending on what was going on, maybe 2 more Chimichangas. Then I started to track my food. The Chimis are 38g carbs each. Crap! The wife and I food prep on Sundays for the week. So, now I have an Omelette bake (an omlette thats cooked in the oven) for breakfast. We make a 9"x9" pyrex of this and each portion is about 2 eggs. It has musrooms, onion, bell peppers and bacon (Yes, bacon is good for you). For Lunch I have a salad. It has some onion, bell peppers, Mushrooms and bacon. For dressing I use Ceaser. We now also make our own beef jerky which is what I snack on and I take salted peanuts. For dinner we have chicken, or steak or even a hamburger patty, no bread. I also use My Fitness Pal to track what I eat. When I first started following what I ate before the change, I was taking in 200+ grams of carbs daily. Now, 30 or less. In 3 months I have dropped 40lbs with no change in exercise. Staying away from breads and fast food. Basically following a Keto diet and it seems to be working for me. I still drink my Cherry Coke zero and Budweiser Platinum. If I was to cut those out, who knows, but lets not get crazy now. Just sharing what I have done and what my experiences are.

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AMAZING!!! Looks like you got it figured out.....and you're right, bacon IS good for you on a Keto diet as long as you don't go overboard on the portions!! But the Cherry Coke zero will mess with your A1C (sugar levels).

treblig
 
Less stress, Less food (especially junk), more exercise... Was up to 260 about 10 years ago. Reallized that was gonna kill me if I continued. Made some big diet changes and a lot more exercise. Had it down to 195 till job stress got me out of whack. Back up to 240.. After 'losing' that job was back down to 220 . Slight yo-yo for a while.
Beginning of this year was back up to 235.:eek:​
Now in a much better job situation and very little stress I am focusing on my health more. Now I am on track with lots of salads, reasonable portions of meats, little bread, no beer during the week.... More exercise. Just keep adding changes for the better...Lost 10lb since Feb. :thumbsup:
 
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