NationStates Jolt Archive

I've made up my mind about something. I've decided that, in four months, I am going on the diet to end all diets, at least for me. I am also starting an exercise regiment. I've seen my mother-in-law diagnosed as a diabetic and my fiancee worrying that she may be one too, and I don't want to go down that road. Therefore, I need to get right, but since I am also becoming a Catholic, I decided to be lazy for now and throw that in with Lent. Lent starts on 2/21/2007, or 21/2/2007 if you prefer. What I am asking here is this - is there anything I should really plan for that I wouldn't otherwise think about, or should I just make a list of forbidden foods and get a gym membership between now and then?

I've decided there will be a long list of things that will be forbidden - snack foods that aren't low fat, caffeine, regular soda, anything spicy, anything fried or deep-fried, and if I'm feeling brave enough, red meat. I already don't consume alcohol and am not a smoker.

Should I talk to a doctor or a dietician before doing anything crazy like this? I'm asking because I've never done anything like this before, and I don't want to do anything stupid. Or for that matter, any pointers I can get on this are for the best, even if those pointers are "it's four months away; don't worry about it right now."

-snip- anything spicy -snip-

I recall reading that chilli has been shown to be beneficial for weight loss. And cutting out spicy food would be the pits anyway, so even if it isn't true, you should believe it anyway. *nods*

I recall reading that chilli has been shown to be beneficial for weight loss. And cutting out spicy food would be the pits anyway, so even if it isn't true, you should believe it anyway. *nods*

I used to use a modified version of the Zone diet to cut weight back in the day. Two small Wendy's chilis are a pretty good zone meal. A little high in fat, but pretty well balanced carb and protein wise. You have to make up for the extra fat later in the day, but you can have fast food chili and still lose weight.

Moderate amounts of fat are okay. Don't go nuts. Your body needs fat. But yeah, cutting out deep-fried foods and other high-fat stuff is a great way to go. My gf wanted to lose weight this summer, and with me doing all the cooking, I was able to alter her diet (and, well, mine, too, by default) so that I kept the fat content down, while still making sure that all the other good stuff was still there -- carbs (yes, you fucking need them, despite what some loonies might say), protein, vitamins, minerals, etc. The key is making sure you eat a balanced diet (it really helps not to eat out a lot) and get plenty of exercise. She dropped close to 15 lbs. in a little over a month that way. Now, that may not sound like a lot, if you're going by silly diet adverts, but it's the healthy way to do it. Dropping 15 in a couple of weeks is definitely not a good idea.

Also, it helps to reward yourself once in a while. If you've managed to eat healthy for six days or so, it's not that bad to cheat on the seventh day a little. Have some fries (or chips, to my friends in the UK). It's not gonna kill you.

Moderation and exercise -- it's all you really need.

A really good thing you can do is try to get someone to diet along with you

My diet that lost me 30 pounds pretty quickly was splitting a Power Bar in half and eating one half in the morning and one half at night.

I know it is bad for you but I can maintain the weight I just cant lose it easy. I lost it after that crash diet and I've kept it off for 1.5 years.

Also pump yourself full of vitamins so you dont become aniemic (SP?).

But is sounds like you are going to right way. You forgot to mention you wont eat high sodium foods. Caffene is fine, it is just bad when it is mixed with cream/sugar and coffee. Spicy food is perfectly fine. If you are going to eat breads make sure they are whole wheat and nothing white.

Eat many small meals rather than 3 big ones. Keeps your metabolism going. Work out in the morning because it jump starts your metabo.

You are not really dieting crazy. You are just choosing to eat healthy now.

you know that your diet is going to get cheated on a lot right?

the key is not "cut out the bad stuff" it's add in good stuff and do the bad stuff in moderation.

I have been eating more fruit, more veggies, less fat, and exercising more, I have lost 100lbs since last August. I still eat 'junk food' but just not as often.

The key for me is to keep it simple, I eat 6 small meals a day and read the label of any snacks, if the calories from fat are more than half of the total calories then it's pretty much off limits.

Today's menu

Breakfast
apples and yogurt
handful of walnuts
cup of juice (carrots, beets, apples, and grape... I have a juicer)

snack
tortilla chips with salsa (homemade)
Ice water with lemon

lunch
corn tortilla with tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, lunchmeat and vinegar dressing
piece of chocolate (fun size Hershey bar)
Iced tea

snack
rice cake with peanut butter
Coke (not diet.... yeah... ;))

dinner
5oz chicken breast baked
green beans
brown rice with kidney beans
Iced tea

snack
carrots and celery
water

I am never hungry... I feel better and I am not tempted to cheat.

EDIT:

I forgot to add... you need to look up what serving sizes and amounts of foods that you need, so that you keep a balanced diet, according to my doctor I need 6 servings of fruit and veggies a day, and 3 of protien, 5 of grains etc... find out what you need and make a list of good healthy foods that you really like for each of them, eating healthy is all about planning, make a plan you can stick to.

I recall reading that chilli has been shown to be beneficial for weight loss. And cutting out spicy food would be the pits anyway, so even if it isn't true, you should believe it anyway. *nods*

Probably depends on what all goes into the chili. A lot of it is tomato based, and it has copious amounts of beans in it. (That said, I am eating chili for lunch...my MIL made it for dinner and I brought it in today. It has about 40% more beans than it should because my fiancee insisted on having hers made without beans. She's weird.)

As for getting someone to diet with me...that may be an exercise in futility. Getting my fiancee to go on a diet and eat healthy may be harder than it looks. She is one of the pickiest eaters I have ever met. She has to be tricked into eating vegetables, won't touch anything she suspects of containing beans, has decided she hates hamburger, and usually makes quite a few special orders in any meal she asks for. I may be at this on my own.

massive diet

Isn't that a bit of an oxymoron?

you know that your diet is going to get cheated on a lot right?

That's why I am doing it during Lent...this way, the guilt of cheating on a diet is twofold. That and part of the reason I am doing it is to prove to myself I can. Last year I gave up spicy food (which I absolutely love) for Lent. On Fat Tuesday, I had spicy Buffalo wings for dinner. The night before Easter, I had a spicy chicken sandwich chocked full of Frank's Red Hot. Between that? Nothing spicy. I know I can give up things I enjoy. This time, it will just be a matter of how much I give up.

the key is not "cut out the bad stuff" it's add in good stuff and do the bad stuff in moderation.

I have been eating more fruit, more veggies, less fat, and exercising more, I have lost 100lbs since last August. I still eat 'junk food' but just not as often.

Adding in a lot of good stuff may necessitate cutting bad stuff out, or at least minimizing it. Right now, most of what I eat is "bad stuff." My diet consists of Buffalo wings, Doritos, and Coke...and whatever my MIL fixes for dinner, which is usually balanced but heavy on the meat-and-potatoes.

The key for me is to keep it simple, I eat 6 small meals a day and read the label of any snacks, if the calories from fat are more than half of the total calories then it's pretty much off limits.

I'll have to remember that rule, and I know that eating small meals more often is usually better than eating large meals less often. It keeps your metabolism up.

I forgot to add... you need to look up what serving sizes and amounts of foods that you need, so that you keep a balanced diet, according to my doctor I need 6 servings of fruit and veggies a day, and 3 of protien, 5 of grains etc... find out what you need and make a list of good healthy foods that you really like for each of them, eating healthy is all about planning, make a plan you can stick to.

The food pyramid may be a good guideline...and of course I have to find food that I like that i can eat lots of, not just food that I like that I have to eliminate completely or cut back on. And it isn't like I hate all healthy food - I rather enjoy citrus fruit and fresh veggies.

What I think I will do is similar to what you did - create a daily itinerary that includes both what I intend to eat and what exercise I should be doing. I will start off easy on the exercise and work my way up. Creating a daily itinerary far enough in advance should help out with things like grocery shopping, so I don't realize, "Hey, I wanted to make chicken parmigiana tonight, but I don't have any chicken and I'm down to my last $4." Hearing about what other people do will definitely help give me ideas for what I should do.

Isn't that a bit of an oxymoron?

I never thought of it that way, but yes. You win this thread.

The food pyramid may be a good guideline...and of course I have to find food that I like that i can eat lots of, not just food that I like that I have to eliminate completely or cut back on. And it isn't like I hate all healthy food - I rather enjoy citrus fruit and fresh veggies.
http://www.mypyramid.gov/
is a great start, you put in your age, gender and activity level, and they make recomendations. It's a good idea to remember by their guidelines almost everyone is "low activity"

Sedentary means a lifestyle that includes only the light physical activity associated with typical day-to-day life.

Active means a lifestyle that includes physical activity equivalent to walking more than 3 miles per day at 3 to 4 miles per hour, in addition to the light physical activity associated with typical day-to-day life.

see? my walking 2 miles a day at a brisk pace (30 minutes a mile) still is sedentary for them..... :(

What I think I will do is similar to what you did - create a daily itinerary that includes both what I intend to eat and what exercise I should be doing. I will start off easy on the exercise and work my way up. Creating a daily itinerary far enough in advance should help out with things like grocery shopping, so I don't realize, "Hey, I wanted to make chicken parmigiana tonight, but I don't have any chicken and I'm down to my last $4." Hearing about what other people do will definitely help give me ideas for what I should do.
http://www.savingdinner.com/
has a sample menu for dieters that has a shopping list and everything, it could be a good place to start to figure out just what type of substitutions you should make.

The thing that keeps me out of the fast food places is to remember that my dietician says I need about 25-30 grams of fat a day, and a Big Mac (even without the bread that I can't have) is about 40.... that will wake you up quick.

I've decided there will be a long list of things that will be forbidden - snack foods that aren't low fat, caffeine, regular soda, anything spicy, anything fried or deep-fried, and if I'm feeling brave enough, red meat. I already don't consume alcohol and am not a smoker.
Speaking as someone who has worked in the field of weight loss in the past a couple times - albeit not a dietician or doctor, I worked on the exercise end of things - I'm going to recommend a few things to do. Do talk to a doctor or dietician to ask for specific advice. That said, I can give you a few cues.

Spicy foods aren't a bad thing for you. So far as I know, they improve circulation in moderation, and the habits that lead to avoiding spicy foods tend - coincidentally or not - to be the same habits that result in eating all "bland" foods mostly devoid of nutritional value, e.g., french fries. Try to add fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet - make it a goal for at least one of those to show up in each meal.

It's probably a good idea to moderate fried foods and fats - but be careful that you don't cut fat out altogether. Low-fat is OK; an entirely fat-free diet will tend to lead to problems (as well as cravings). To lose weight in a healthy fashion, you'll want to balance your protein, carbohydrate, and fat intakes relative to each other.

Don't skip breakfast. It's ok that it's perhaps a light breakfast, rather than something massive, but eating shortly after your nightly sleep will jumpstart your metabolism, and you'll get better results in the long term. Try to eat all your regular meals - and try to avoid eating outside of whatever your regular mealtime setting is. Eating while watching the TV or posting on NationStates forums will help you lose track of what you eat and how much, so that sort of thing should be avoided.

Exercise regimens.

First and foremost, I recommend incorporating more walking, jogging, skating, running, and/or bicycling in your life as a means of transportation. If your daily routine involves a moderate level of physical activity outside of workouts, it will help a lot with any formal exercise program you start.

Second, don't overdo any particular kind of exercise. You want at least one day a week that you take it easy, if not more; some specific types of activities, like weightlifting, are best done only a couple times a week. You'll want to find at least one thing that's fun and physical that you would do even if you didn't want to lose weight, whether it's dancing, fencing, climbing walls, or something else.

I'll point out one more thing: Swimming is a great thing to take up.

Not only is it something that exercises practically your entire body, it is easy on your joints, which may not adjust well or quickly to running; water is also a friendly (bouyant) environment for overweight individuals, and you burn a dramatic amount of energy not just moving around in the water, but replacing the lost heat conducted away swiftly by the water. If you aren't very good at swimming yet, walking back and forth in a pool works too.

Isn't that a bit of an oxymoron?

No because a diet does not mean less. A diet is simply your eating routine. A 600lb fatty has a MASSIVE diet.

No because a diet does not mean less. A diet is simply your eating routine. A 600lb fatty has a MASSIVE diet.

Diets tend to imply moderation, though, and a "massive diet" tends to imply a massive amount of moderation. That's why I awarded the thread to the one who pointed that out.