Problems with losing weight because of contradictory information out there

[Stede]

A lot of it is calories in and calories out. The best diet for you will likely balance high lean proteins rich in omegas with complex carbs. Fruits can be okay - especially the ones with low sugar content. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, etc. Keep in mind though, that, particularly while doing an exercise regimen, other fruits still have high nutritional value. Bananas and Oranges have potassium, which is key to lactic acid dispersion and muscle recovery.

To the point - I've never known anyone who got fat from eating too many raw fruits. Limit the soda and the fired shit and the pizza and stuff, and you'll be well on your way. It's easier if you stick to chicken, turkey, and fish or shrimp.

[Deleted]

About fruits - they contain sugar. They are good for you, but you shouldn't get carried away with them. Fruits are best eaten in the morning, because they will increase your blood sugar level and thus your energy. Best they are eaten in the morning, because your blood sugar is at it's lowest in the morning. During the day and in the evening, your body's already working full-time and is keeping blood sugar high, so eating fruits in the later parts of the day, it's easy to go over the limit, and then the excess sugar will be stored as fat.

Actually fruits are good because of how little they rank on the glycemic index. They're known for not raising your blood glucose quickly or as high as processed sugars. Also that's not how the body stores fat, it's dependant on where the sugar is processed and the specific caloric needs of said region. As far as sugars go, fruit is quite harmless to any healthy diet.

[Deleted]

I know for me, that a low carb high fat/ high Protien diet works very good for me, and the science as far as i can tell sounds reasonable. If you are male, why don`t you give it a try for 30 days, then try a high carb low fat diet for 30 days, and test what is best?

[Raunchy]

"Fats burn best in a carbohydrate flame"

[Souichirou]

Here is the most down right straight forward piece of information that has rock solid evidence and research for working ! (for normal individuals who have no medical problems or complications.) Calories in vs Calories out if you burn more then you consume in a healthy manor eg. a 500 caloric defect from your daily required intake.

Eating whole grans with lots of protein your meal keeps you full longer so you'll be less prone to binge snacking and fruits are a good snack which does contain sugar but its healthy.

So bottom line is if your body need 3000 calories as an example to maintain its weight then reducing your 3000 calories by 500 you would lose weight guaranteed, BUT you might feel hungry if you do that which is understandable but that's where exercise comes in the more you burn the more access you have for additional calories while still meeting your caloric defect.

[Deleted]

Cancel your gym membership and buy a home workout DVD. This way you don't have to go to the Gym, an automatic chore for people trying to lose weight. Yeah, you need self-motivation. You need discipline but let's make it as easy as possible. I recommend Insanity. It uses high intensity interval training and comes with a fitness guide / tracker which will keep you organised. It's SO important to be organised when losing weight. If you don't know what you're doing, you're going to lose motivation and desire. It's quite expensive at £100 but a typical gym membership is around £35, so you will make it back after three months AND you will achieve more.

This is a great idea imo. I do not recommend Insanity though unless you already have decent fitness levels, that program can be quite brutal at times. I myself am doing Jillian Michaels Body Revolution, it's a 3 month exercise program with a very nice diet plan on the side. The exercises ramp up every two weeks so it doesn't feel quite as manic right at the start. I'm doing very well on it myself despite not following the diet plan, but I do definitely recommend it. Feel free to PM me for progress pics and such. ^^

The other guys in this thread are giving you some really nice tips too. Water will be your best friend. Drink at least 2 litres a day, it gets rid of water weight in your body (as mad as it sounds!) and it's so much better than 90% of the stuff you could drink.

[Deleted]

This is a great idea imo. I do not recommend Insanity though unless you already have decent fitness levels, that program can be quite brutal at times. I myself am doing Jillian Michaels Body Revolution, it's a 3 month exercise program with a very nice diet plan on the side. The exercises ramp up every two weeks so it doesn't feel quite as manic right at the start. I'm doing very well on it myself despite not following the diet plan, but I do definitely recommend it. Feel free to PM me for progress pics and such. ^^

The other guys in this thread are giving you some really nice tips too. Water will be your best friend. Drink at least 2 litres a day, it gets rid of water weight in your body (as mad as it sounds!) and it's so much better than 90% of the stuff you could drink.

Indeed, it can be quite gruelling, but I think it's best to start at the deep end. You don't have to follow the 6 day workout plan. 3 on, 1 off, is a good alternative. Might take you longer to complete it, but you're still going to lose weight.

Any decent exercise DVD will do, I'm just saying Insanity because it worked wonders for me when I was lil overweight a while back.

[Roose]

Eat a lot of low-fat proteins, low-sugar fruits, and green veggies. Stay away from all processed foods. Nobody can logically argue with those.

[Eldar45]

Do not drink anything but water. Only eat enough to satisfy, and don't eat anything with ingredients that you can't even pronounce. NATURAL suger is ok in low quantities.

Basically, if you can harvest it from the soil, or kill it with a bow, its good to eat. Be sure to watch out for preservatives in food, not only will those help fatten you, they will also eventually kill you.

Oh, and don't try to do this all at one time, or you'll never lose weight. Start with cutting out one thing a week until you are eating right. 90% of losing weight is eating right. I've lost so much weight since last Feb. and I have barely done any exercising at all.





And noone else will recommend this, but look into moderate fasting. Cut out one meal a day for a while and you'll watch the weight just fall off. But again, don't do it all at one time. The trick to fasting healthily is to ease yourself into it. Pick a meal, preferably lunch, and take a portion out of it every day for a few days then cut the meal completely for a while. Fasting not only helps you lose weight but it also helps purge the body of toxins.


EDIT: I should say that I don't exercise, but I do "exercise" by working out in the yard and with my dad a lot, so its not like I just sit on my butt playing WoW all day (Well, not everyday >.>)

[Deleted]

Do not drink anything but water. Only eat enough to satisfy, and don't eat anything with ingredients that you can't even pronounce. NATURAL suger is ok in low quantities.

Basically, if you can harvest it from the soil, or kill it with a bow, its good to eat. Be sure to watch out for preservatives in food, not only will those help fatten you, they will also eventually kill you.

Oh, and don't try to do this all at one time, or you'll never lose weight. Start with cutting out one thing a week until you are eating right. 90% of losing weight is eating right. I've lost so much weight since last Feb. and I have barely done any exercising at all.

Your information is based on what scientific data sets?

[Eldar45]

Your information is based on what scientific data sets?

Experience. Went from 300-310 last Feb to 219 this morning. I didn't really really start losing weight till I truly cut out all liquid calories around August last year. I was 265 last August. Since August that is about a pound and a half a week.

I got a lot of this advice from websites like NerdFitness.

If it worked for me, why would I give any other advice?

[Maruka]

You really dont even need to exercise to lose weight, if that is all you want. If you want tone then yeah its a must but just to lose pounds you dont need to do anything but eat well.

[Fortera]

Ignore all the hippie feel-goodery dowhateveryouwant new age diet advice. It's been the same since the dawn of time:

Stop eating junk, exercise. It's that simple and you don't need to pay for any diet plans or DVDs... I think that's absurd. Simply cut down on food that causes higher weight gain, foods that are bad for you. Greasy meats like hot dogs, cheeses, oil-cooked foods like french fries, soda (diet soda is worse for you that regular soda, by the way), salt, some sugar (you need some sugar in your diet to help your metabolism), all fast food, pizza and so forth. Eat leaner meats and put vegetables and fruits in your diet. Drink stuff like tea and water.

There are a lot of myths out there like drinking 8 glasses of water a day. That's nonsense and there has never been any real science behind it. You have thirst, your body's way of telling you when to drink. Drink when you're thirsty, replenish what you lose throughout your normal daily behavior and from working out and then no more. You don't need to fill up on water to lose weight, that's just stupid. Juice can also contribute to weight loss, make sure you're getting your daily dose of vitamin enriched juice. Do all this and work out regularly and you're golden.

[Deleted]

Juice can also contribute to weight loss, make sure you're getting your daily dose of vitamin enriched juice.

Yes and no. Most juices are packed with sugar which will not help in the slightest.

[Deezlar]

there is 1 golden rule.

Eat less calories than you expend in the course of a day.
It really is that simple.. (barring some glandular issue)

Everything else you read about diets is all based on fad diets, misinformation, myth and the multi billion dollar weight loss industry.

Find an eating plan that you can stick to. Weigh your food. Count calories religiously for a few weeks to get a real sense of how much you are eating.

Personally, when I am dropping weight, I eat a Ketogenic diet (Calorie breakdown : 5% carbs, 35% Protein, 60% Fat) and this is purely because I find it Very easy to overeat on a carb based diet, and nothing to do with any magical fat burning properties of the diet.

Everyone is different, and you need to experiment and find what works for you. Ignore EVERYTHING you hear about fad diets and listen to your body and your appetite.

Good luck!

[Deadraline]

I myself and overweight. Bear in mind, I am also a female so my "diet" might be SLIGHTLY different than yours (I know calorie intake and certain foods you eat might have a better benefit...) Thankfully I have a hubby who is also in the same boat as you and I can relay some of what he does...he too is losing weight (dropped around 20 lbs in the last 2 months). One thing is NEVER skip breakfast. My husband likes to eat a banana in the morning since he doesn't have a huge appetite. Bananas are VERY good for you, and yes, it is a fruit. The key to fruit is to make sure you don't eat too much of it. Fruit is high in sugar, and if you eat it constantly throughout the day, even though there are vitamins, the sugar content in it will make it just as bad as eating a bag of candy. Remember; even water can be bad for you if you drink too much of it. I suggest eating no more than 2-3 pieces of fruit per day. Fruit I would suggest eating would be things like Apples, Bananas, Berries (around a cup...blueberries are great for antioxidants).

When it comes to vegetables, you can probably eat a vegetable with any meal and it won't hurt you. So you really don't need to worry about that (at the very least!). But when it comes to other "side" dishes you might want to have, I suggest rice or beans being the main side. (Potatoes are fine as well, but you just want to make sure you aren't loading them up with butter, salt, and gravy...potatoes themselves are a vegetable and you can still eat them and lose weight so long as you don't load em up with all the extra, plus they are great for your skin!). Beans are probably the best side dish you can have, since they are high in fiber, low in calories. Black beans with rice is always good, just like I said, always watch your calorie intake. At the end of the day, if you are putting in good calories (high in vitamins/fiber/proteins) you will lose weight. I have actually tested on my own diet a few times where I just meet calorie limits with food that could be considered "junk" and food that is considered "healthy" and I can exercise all I want and just keep my weight steady with the "junk" food, vs with the "healthy" food I lose a few pounds a week.

That being said, when it comes to meat you are a man and if you are weight training you need protein. Eating a steak isn't going to kill you. My husband has lost 20 lbs and he eats a roast beef sandwich with a slice of low sodium cheese on wheat bread every single day for lunch. But like I said, he also lifts weights. So his body uses what he is putting into it. A lot of people will say just eat chicken or turkey etc. and when my husband first started that's what he did. He told me as soon as he switched to roast beef he felt like his muscles were repairing quicker. So that's a choice you can make on your own obviously, but just because you read it is bad doesn't make it true. Fish, chicken, turkey, and even pasta are all great meals when you pair and prepare them right you can lose a lot of weight.

When it comes to the battle of egg w/ yolk or egg whites only...I use a simple rule of thumb. If I am making a meal (eggs, turkey bacon, wheat toast) then I just use the egg whites (I also just use egg whites whenever I make steak and eggs for my hubby). If I am just making a quick meal (say an egg and spinach omelette) I leave the yolk in. It all depends on what I am getting out of the meal. The most important thing you can do to eat healthy is look at calories first, then look at the vitamins and minerals you get out of the food. When you make meals, always remember to prepare them according to what gives you the best calories full of vitamins and minerals, vs what just gives you empty calories. Always try to cut out as many empty calories as you can.

At the end of the day, it's all about what you put into your body. Wheat bread might be healthy for you, but if it's all you eat it IS bad for you. Limit yourself and make sure you are only eating it because it is a part of your meal, not because you think wheat bread is healthy so I should eat it! Wheat bread is a healthier alternative to a sandwich, and nothing more. And that's what eating right is all about. You need to make sure when you want to eat a sandwich you make the healthiest choice you can, while still giving your body what it needs.

Trust me, I have gone round about on the internet for months trying to find "how to eat healthy" and every site contradicts the other. I decided I am just going to take the best foods I can and make them as healthy as possible and ensure I am giving my body what it needs, and trust me, start doing that and the pounds will shed off with a good balance of eating right and exercise you can be down to where you wanna be (or very close!) in about a year and a half!

Good luck and I hope this helped :P

[Deleted]

Experience. Went from 300-310 last Feb to 219 this morning. I didn't really really start losing weight till I truly cut out all liquid calories around August last year. I was 265 last August. Since August that is about a pound and a half a week.

I got a lot of this advice from websites like NerdFitness.

If it worked for me, why would I give any other advice?

So no evidence? You make claims that additives in foods will kill you, because of your experience of weight loss....

[yogapeeth]

The issue, to me, resembles you're searching for mystery shot diets. Provided that you accompany some fundamental thermodynamics, you're ensured to get more fit. It's literally physically difficult to administer your weight in the event that you smolder a bigger number of calories than you devour.

[Greed001]

Eat less calories than your body burns every day. Do more, eat less.

It's not complex.

[hythos]

An important fact I would like to add, is to cut out Partially Hydrogenated Oils (ALL kinds), and High Fructose Corn Syrup. Either of these are in MANY common foods like hot-dogs/sausages/deli-meats, snack-foods, and "natural" fruit-juices, just about everything... but NOT everything.
Also, avoid MSG (SO LONG, WONDERFULLY, DELIGHTFUL DORITOS! ). MSG is bad - I don't know how it's allowed in US foods again.

It sounds like you're still gonna be at a "what to do" stand-point, even after all of these comments I can add more of my own, but please, ignore the rest of what I say - because this worked for me, and may not for someone else.

for the past 367 days, I have been on a modified Paleo-diet of meats, proteins (supplements), fruit and vegetables, and some dairy - milk, cheese, and butter. I've strictly had absolutely no grains, starches, sugars, honey, or agave - or any foods containing them. I lost 15lb over the first two months, which tapered off when I stopped working out aggressively. I went from ~198 @ 9%bodyfat, dropped down to ~183 @ ~5% bodyfat. My ABO blood-type can support this type of diet, which might not be recommended for someone else.
The downside to no grains, is the strength-sapping due to low blood-glucose: I'd usually rep 315lb+ on bench, but I've had to drop back down to reps of 245-275. I might go back on carbs for 1 meal a day, or one day a week... haven't yet decided.