Weight Loss
Hey, I was just wondering if anyone out there had any good weight loss tips?
Tags: weight loss
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Lynn on -
Hi Kira,
I have a done quite a bit of research in my Masters program on weight loss and weight management and here are my beliefs about the matter:
1. Do not try to lose too much weight at first; stick to a loss of about 5% of your body weight and maintain that for 6 months. This is the most success for sustained weight loss (and I am assuming you want to keep off the weight you lose). Eighty percent of people who lose weight gain it all back (and then some), so you need to go slow and listen to your body if you want to be with those 20% that keep it off.
2. It is not as simple as cutting your calories down to 1200...your body doesn't like losing weight. When you lose weight too quickly or if you lose too much of it, your fat cells shrink and they think you are in starvation mode. In this case, they crave more food and make you feel more hungry; while you may think you can fight the cravings, but our bodies are much stronger than our minds, and almost always win (eventually).
3. Intuitive eating is the way to go...this is re-establishing hunger and satiety cues. If we stop eating when we are full and only start when we are hungry, we will not over eat, allowing our bodies to settle in at the weight that is most ideal for our bodies. Not everyone is going to be a size 6, but if you listen to your body, it will settle where it functions the best. There is a book called Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch.
4. Eat high-fiber, high-protein meals with some fat in them. The fiber will fill you up quicker, the protein will keep you satisfied longer and the fat will help you feel satisfied sooner. Low-fat diets are not the way to go because they leave people feeling unsatisfied. A great lunch or dinner would be a big salad with spring mix or spinach, lots of vegetables, a olive oil based dressing (full-fat because olive oil has great, healthy fats in it), beans, nuts, and, if you aren't a vegetarian, some lean chicken. This will only have about 300 calories in it, but I can guarantee you will stay full from 12pm-5 or 6pm. Also try to eat some low-fat dairy for snacks; this again has high protein and a little fat to keep you satisfied and full.
5. Try to be active! Some people are very busy and it is nearly impossible to fit time at the gym in. If this is your situation, try being more active in every day activities, such as parking further away, talking the long way when you walk somewhere, doing little exercises during commercial breaks if you are watching tv to relax at the end of the day, if you had kids, play with your kids, clean your home more than usual, cook your own meals, walk around while you talk on the phone, etc... Moving is moving and it burns calories regardless of what you do. While it is ideal to get your heart rate up, that is for cardiovascular health, not specifically weight loss.
Good luck and let me know if you have any questions, comments, or concerns!
Lynn
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Permalink Reply by Janelle on -
from my experience, to achieve maximum weight loss, cut out everything preserved and artificial, all dairy, all meat including chicken, rice, pasta, basically everything that has been processed and start eating all natural foods such as veggies, sweet potatoes, beets, that kind of thing.
it sounds impossible but it is soooo worth it in the end.
technically in my opinion, a vegan lifestyle is the ideal way of living but one must do it for the right reasons.
i've gone to the double extreme cuz i've been vegan for a while but i eat ONLY raw and alkaline foods :) and i'm having a lot of fun doing it too!!!
good luck in losing weight!
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Permalink Reply by Sally Wise on -
I suggest going on a vegan diet--which is what most of these recommendations aim towards. The recommendations "less saturated fat" is hiding the fact that the saturated fat is in meat and dairy products. This produces so much confusion among consumers who don't connect the two ideas. Fat is stored immediately in your body if it is not used because it takes so much energy to break down for your body. This means that it is more efficient for the body to store the fat for some later time--an emergency. Don't eat the saturated fat, and you won't retain any. That means don't eat meat or dairy products and limit the vegetable source saturated fat as well. With that follows the fact that fiber--contained in fruits and vegetables--will help your system to detox, remove waste, and keep even the calorie dense foods from staying long enough in your system to cause damage. This is why saturated fats from plant sources are a bit better since they come prepackaged in fiber--they won't stay in your system for as long as a chunk of meat or cheese--being absorbed and reabsorbed into the bloodstream. Likewise, follow up with a lot of water to keep your fluids going and your body rehydrated. If you watch to make sure that most of your calories are from complex carbohydrates (veggies fruits grains) and not as much from fat--you will do well even without the exercise. A great resource is www.pcrm.org and www.cancerproject.org. Don't be turned off by the fact that it says it is for diabetes patients--this is great advice for everyone trying to be healthy and lose weight if they need to. This is a great project to start on because it actually gives fantastic results.
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Permalink Reply by Mike Peiman on -
All the reputable sources I've reviewed, and all the well-designed studies I've seen, support the following:
Dietary fat does not make you fat.
Insulin and glucagon (hormones) control the body's use of energy. These two hormones are opposed in function, and are controlled by carbs and protein, respectively. Insulin serves to take the free energy (glucose) and store it as fat. It also blocks the body from burning fatty acids for energy. Glucagon (stimulated by protein) has an opposing effect. These two hormones should be in balance. In overweight individuals, they are not. They are hyperinsulinemic.
Excess and high-glycemic carbohydrates make you fat, not dietary fat. Excess dietary fat is mostly excreted rather than stored. Fat actually serves as a hormonal "buffer", helping to stabilize the hormonal teeter-totter. Fiber has a similar effect. Protein is required to balance out the carbs, ie. glucagon to balance insulin.
Every molecular interaction, every metabolic action in our body is governed by hormones. Read "The Zone". Research hyperinsulinism and "syndrome x". Treat food like a drug designed to govern your hormonal balance, as it is.
Then make healthy food choices for a balanced diet (roughly one-third of your calories each from wholesome cards, proteins, fats) and exercise in intense full-body complex movement that use a significant portion of your musculature and are stressful enough to stimulate adpatation, thereby stimulating positive hormonal responses (ie. human growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor).
The icing on the cake - perhaps a poor choice of metaphor - is a healthy, positive mindset, which gives healthy emotional balance.
Recipe for good health and happiness:
Balanced, wholesome diet (Check out Zone and Paleo)
Exercise (somewhere from general activity to intense exercise, depending on your needs and goals)
Positive mindset, life-view, self-view.
. Enjoy.
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Permalink Reply by Amy Orrell-Branco on -
Check out Psychology Today the cover will have the word Twisted across it. Their is an article about the latest findings dealing with Leptin to what happened at birth. It is a good article but there is no one thing that works for everyone. For myself, I have found that using a combination of the blood typing diet, ayurveda, and eating as close to natural as possible is best for myself. Excercise that is a combination of strength and cardiovascular as well as working at an appropriate heart rate range. You can check out Wiki, Joel Friel's book "The Heart Rate Training Bible.", and Polar Heart Rate Monitors Website. If you are not working at an appropriate heart rate range for yourself and not fueling your body every few hours with a nice balance of nutrients, you will actually keep fat on. Listen to what your body needs.
Make sure that you are getting close to 8 hours of sleep. Check in with your stress levels. Maybe you need to talk with someone that can give you an appropriate jump start. Feel free to post on my page with any questions that you might have and good luck!
Amy
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Permalink Reply by Jill B on -
Hi, Kira. The key is to remain balanced...not taking out any particular food group (carbs, fat, etc) and eating in a balanced way for your body type (you can find a survey to discover your body type at www.jillsleanforlife.com). If you eat low glycemic carbs (foods higher in fiber that don't raise your blood sugar) along with the proper balance of healthy fats and protein for your body type, you will find the weight coming off. It is also helpful to eat small (healthy) snacks throughout the day. The key is to keep your blood sugar stable. Elevated blood sugar = stored fat. Stable blood sugar = fat loss.
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Permalink Reply by Jane Ducey on -
Weight loss is 80% what you put in your mouth and 20 % exercise. Having worked in a running store for 15 years, and as an exercise physiologist, I've seen tons of people sign up to run marathons thinking they could lose vast amounts of weight, but usually don't because there is no correspnding change in diet or nutrition. If you stop eating highly processed convenience foods, especially carbs, eat lean proteins, good fats and fruits and vegetables (preferably organic), drink lots of purified water, limit alcohol, refined sugars and white flours and exercise 30-45 minutes 5 days a week, you will lose weight. I also highly recommend cleansing: www.janeducey.isagenix.com
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Permalink Reply by David Orman on -
It needs to be a combination and individualized approach. The latter can only be achieved in person or via phone, but the first can be addressed.
Firstly, there needs to be an emphasis on protein and a reduction of carbs. Please note that carbs, be it so called "slow" carbs or "fast" carbs are still carbs. There is only a 15 minute or so difference between a candy bar and veggies. Yes, that's it.
Secondly, there needs to be a reduction of calories to a degree. Usually 20% is a good number. Much more and you will cut into muscle. Less and you will not receive much benefit.
Thirdly, adding specific training to your protocol. This type of training goes by different names now but used to be called "stations;" that is, after a warm up, do a full out sprint for 30-60 second, followed by a slower jog. Repeat 5-12 times. Start with the lower numbers and work up to the higher ones. Do 3-5 times a week.
Finally, add weight training to your exercise regimen. 3/5 programs work best. Do 3-5 sets of 3-5 reps with 3-5 minutes of rest in between. Do this 3-5 days a week. Use heavy weight. (High reps are a waste).
(For more information, go to http://hghplus.net/5elementCD.html)
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Permalink Reply by David Orman on
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Quick follow up:
Jane is 100% correct -- it is 75-80% diet related. Exercise, though valuable for other reasons, is secondary to diet.
Personalize diet as much as possible. I cannot tell you how many patients have said to me "I though XYZ [ex/ spinach] was good." It is the wrong statement/question. The question should be "Is XYZ good. . .FOR ME?" Services like Doctor's Visit on CD (personalizedhealthcd.com) is excellent for this.
Also, starting off with a cleanse like Isogenix would be very good also, particularly in the Spring or Fall. Clearing your body of unwanted toxins is always recommended. In addition, it is a good feeling to start off with a 10-20 pound weight loss, which is not uncommon with a cleanse.
Be sure to measure body fat as it is more telling than overall weight.
Finally, be sure to take advise from healthy, fit, trim people.
© 2008 Created by Ben Kelly
