AdventureRacing
Member
You simply have to lose weight. Often times the stomach fat goes last so it can be quite difficult.
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Weight Loss Before/After Thread! (with pics)
- Thread starter lsslave
- Start date
You simply have to lose weight. Often times the stomach fat goes last so it can be quite difficult.
Voice of Reason
Banned
Yeah, moobs are the worst. I was embarrassed having shirtless sex with my ex because they suck so much. I'm glad she had big tits or else I'd be screwed.
I hate diets. I'm already starting to get discouraged and it's only been 3 weeks. In my first week I lost over 16 pounds, and then quickly gained back 4 pounds. I've now sat in this little window of 2 pounds for almost two weeks now, and it's really bringing me down. I've done this low carb diet before, and I've dropped a lot of weight fairly quickly before it started to taper off, and I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. I've had one cheat meal, and I played soccer 3 times last week. I just have no clue what's going wrong.
Wafflecakes
Member
3 Weeks simply isn't enough time. It is completely possible you lost a ton of waterweight to the point of dehydration your first week and now your body is gaining some of the water back as it adjusts to the diet.
One thing I will say is that I found that calorie counting really helped me during the early days of my diet just so I was very aware of how many calories you are eating. If you are eating below your BMR you WILL lose weight in my experience....you just have to give it time.
Check the model I linked a couple pages ago... at the beginning of any diet you'll lose a lot of weight and then it will drastically slow down before evening out (for science-y reasons, it's not just a psychological phenomenon). Early weight loss is not mostly fat, it's lean mass of one sort or another ("water weight"). Don't get discouraged by not seeing immediate results. Keep in mind that at any given time your weight can fluctuate quite dramatically, as much as 5 pounds in either direction in my experience. In other words, you could have been losing weight for two weeks and not seen the scale move at all, and then next week see the scale drop like 10 pounds. The important thing is to know that no matter what the scale says, if you are really burning more than your expenditure you will lose weight no matter what. You might lose faster, you might lose slower, you can know exactly how much it is if you want to be really strict about your diet and exercise regimen, but in the end progress on the scale should be measured over months, not days or weeks.
Evolved1
make sure the pudding isn't too soggy but that just ruins everything
You're banned... but maybe still reading... so...
You cannot target fat loss. Generally, you will lose fat in the reverse order you gained it. That is, if it gains on your stomach first, you will lose it there last. A lot of people gain on their face last, and that's why they can knock out the double chin in the first days/weeks of a program, because that was the last place it went on.
This is also why many women just cannot seem to lose weight around their midsection and hips. And the truth of it isn't that it's impossible to lose there, it's just that they couldn't maintain or stick with their program long enough to finally get rid of it. Because that is the first place they gain it, and it's the last place they lose it. And you have to be dedicated to your program (or the more healthy option) have undergone a real lifestyle change.
But you cannot target fat loss. It gains were it gains and goes where it goes, unfortunately.
Unless you ate 14000 calories over your maintanence you didn't gain back 4 pounds...that could be water weight. Don't give up!
Evolved1
make sure the pudding isn't too soggy but that just ruins everything
4 lbs is a lot of calories = 3500 * 4 beyond your maintenance intake.
Water weight is very tricky... just stick to your program. You'll get there.
Thanks for the replies everyone. I guess I'm just getting nervous. I'm currently in a weight loss bet with my dad, and while I thought it would be easy to win, he's informed me that he lost 80 pounds in 3 months last year, when in the same amount of time, I was only able to lose around 50, so I'm kind of paranoid and am afraid I'm going to lose. It helps that I now have something to focus on and it makes it easier to avoid cheating, but the thought of paying that smug jerk money makes me mad.
LOL, dads are the best.
Eighty pounds in three months? I hope he's being medically supervised, because if not that is not even close to healthy.
He always rubs it in my face that I've never beaten him in anything.
See, I can't help but wonder if he was lying or not. He's not really a person that lies about things, and that seems like an awful lot of weight to me, but it doesn't seem completely out of the realm of possibility considering how much weight he had to lose.
LyleLanley
Banned
80 pounds in three months? Is that healthy?
Edit:
Even 50 pounds seems like quite a lot for three months but I guess that's "only" 16.6 pounds per month.
Evolved1
make sure the pudding isn't too soggy but that just ruins everything
First of all... his weightloss doesn't sound healthy. He might have tapeworm lol.
Secondly, are you female? Because, if so, it is quite a bit more difficult to lose weight than a man, just because you have a lower BMR (all other things equal) and cannot cheat as much as a man in your exact position could.
And depending on where you each are in your journey... that affects it as well.
It's definitely possible, especially if you're very overweight, but generally losing that amount of weight in that short a timespan is something that you're going to want to be monitored by a physician.
I'd be offended if this wasn't the first time I'd been asked this. Going by the name, I guess it's easy to assume I was a girl haha
When we weighed, he weighed 1 pound less than me, but I'm 6'5 and he's 6'2.
spindashing
Banned
I wish that I could lose 80 lbs in three months. For me, I'd probably lose about 15 in that time.
Evolved1
make sure the pudding isn't too soggy but that just ruins everything
Apologies.
Haha it's cool.
I dunno...given some of the shit I've seen on this forum, you'd be surprised.
Evolved1
make sure the pudding isn't too soggy but that just ruins everything
Well you could research leptin and the like... my understanding of it starts to break down around the biochemistry. A couple college course have not made me an expert, unfortunately.
Anyway... carbs make you hungry. They do the opposite of suppressing appetite. To feel full (or full enough, I guess this is an important distinction) you want to eat protein and fiber and slowly reduce your portions. Your body will adjust.
But chasing the "full" feeling with carbs is a black hole.
When you eat sugar/refined carbs your brain releases dopamine, so naturally you're going to crave more. Too much carbs also mess with your hormones and throw your feeling of satiation out of whack, leptin and insulin mostly, so the 'full' signal doesn't get to the brain like it should. It's best to fill up on fat and protein.
Well, if you eat carbs as they are (mostly) found in nature, in plant matter with lots of fiber, you can go on a binge with few ill effects
Black beans have plenty of carbs and are some of the most filling foods out there. But if you get carbs from calorie-dense foods like pizza, junk food, or sugary soft drinks, you're not going to be very full, no. In general I don't find that to be materially different from getting a lot of calories from something like a really well-marbled steak though, even though that doesn't have a significant number of carbs--either way you're packing a ton of calories into a very small area and it's easy to overeat. People tend to demonize carbs and to some extent there is research showing that fructose (not really other variants of carbs, from what I recall) makes it harder to control your appetite, but what that means in practice varies very much from person to person. For me personally, when I really want to feel full, I don't look at protein vs. carbs at all--I look at water content, fiber, and calorie / mass ratio. Usually that ends up meaning a lot of vegetables, soup, beans, and the like on days when I'm feeling hunger pangs.Feel free to post.
I don't care about regular photos ... I meant I'd be embarrassed to do a P90x-style shirtless one lol
Wafflecakes
Member
I am getting back on the bandwagon. I took a week off and ate the standard poor college student diet (Top Ramen, Hot Dogs, and Frozen Pizza's) and I felt like shit all week.
Of all the thing though I suddenly had joint pain. Especially in my hands and fingers which is odd since that has never happened to me before. It could be unrelated but the start aligns too closely with my diet switch to write it off as pure coincidence.
Anyways. 20lbs from my goal weight of 210 (started 330). Hopefully I will get there by summer.
Of all the thing though I suddenly had joint pain. Especially in my hands and fingers which is odd since that has never happened to me before. It could be unrelated but the start aligns too closely with my diet switch to write it off as pure coincidence.
Anyways. 20lbs from my goal weight of 210 (started 330). Hopefully I will get there by summer.
I have those too.
Well, if you eat carbs as they are (mostly) found in nature, in plant matter with lots of fiber, you can go on a binge with few ill effects
Good post with a lot of good points. I've always found that the people that swear by the Paleo diet don't seem to consider that those people had a nomadic lifestyle and were expending a lot of calories just to survive. I think a lot of people see results when they cut out carbs because they are also cutting out anywhere from 150-300 calories or so a meal. For instance, the buns I used to buy to eat with a burger were 240 calories a bun.
Also, if anyone is having problems with feeling full try drinking a glass of water about 20 minutes before your meal. In many cases you can end up feeling less full than you really are because of the time it takes for you body to process food.
Thanks for the replies guys.
My problem is that I have days where I have an incredible urge to eat carbs, I'm craving them like an addict.
Even if I try to start the day with a protein/fat meal, even if I had <5g of carbs I just can't resist eating carbs and it doesn't even matter how I consume them, today there was nothing around so I just ate bread(lots of it) with ketchup...
Usually after a few days I finally manage to find the strength to resist my urge, however unfortunately my latest phase already lasts close to 10 days, so that I have gained at least 6-8 pounds and I don't feel like I can pull myself together.
By the way this has been going on for 2-3 years and typically I managed this problem by alternating between weeks of dieting with a caloric deficit and a few days of binge eating carbs when I can no longer resist my urges, but this time I'm getting pretty desperate.
My problem is that I have days where I have an incredible urge to eat carbs, I'm craving them like an addict.
Even if I try to start the day with a protein/fat meal, even if I had <5g of carbs I just can't resist eating carbs and it doesn't even matter how I consume them, today there was nothing around so I just ate bread(lots of it) with ketchup...
Usually after a few days I finally manage to find the strength to resist my urge, however unfortunately my latest phase already lasts close to 10 days, so that I have gained at least 6-8 pounds and I don't feel like I can pull myself together.
By the way this has been going on for 2-3 years and typically I managed this problem by alternating between weeks of dieting with a caloric deficit and a few days of binge eating carbs when I can no longer resist my urges, but this time I'm getting pretty desperate.
First of all, is the issue carbs specifically, or overeating in general? It's okay to binge on white bread once a week or so but unless you're not eating anything else (which isn't healthy) you're clearly overeating every time you do that. And you're saying it lasts ten days? A binge is an individual meal, and even the worst of those isn't going to net you more than maybe two pounds. What you described is a pattern.
If you can't handle a low-carb diet, that's okay--the point is to find something that works for you. Instead of looking for ways to cut out carbs completely, maybe you need to replace the non-filling carbs you have lying around (like white bread) with more filling ones (vegetables, beans, fruits that aren't too high in fructose, stuff like garlic) in different forms (soup instead of sandwiches). If you need to fill yourself on munchy snacks, consider something like popcorn which is relatively light. To illustrate my point, there are 70 calories in a cup of bean soup; the only people who could possibly binge on that are competitive eaters.
Secondly, if you do have a weakness for carbs and you just can't control yourself around them, there's a simple solution--get rid of them and see what happens. I am talking completely eliminating them from your apartment or house. This is obviously a drastic measure, and you can't completely eliminate carbs from your diet long-term, but for contests or photo shoots bodybuilders and models will completely empty their houses of anything but what they need for their cuts--rice cakes, broccoli, chicken, stuff like that. It might be painful, but it also might be a good experience psychologically (since that's what nearly all cravings are--there are only a few built-in cravings for specific food types, e.g. salt).
The second solution is not a permanent thing, but the first can be a lifestyle change, which is why I'd definitely try the first approach if I were you. From the way you've been talking, this has been a problem for years and will likely continue to be a problem. The solution can't be a cycle of diet-binge-diet-binge. It needs to be a long-term change that you can live with indefinitely, or else even if you do successfully reach your weight loss goal you will just gain it right back.
From the sound of your post, the way you look at changing what you eat is, "these are the foods I can't have" instead of "look what I can eat!"
The most successful I've been in changing what I eat isn't thinking, "I can't have pizza" (LC version notwithstanding), it's been "I get to have steak and broccoli!" (Which I prefer to pizza if that isn't clear)
You don't want to cut out anything permanently that you don't feel like you can live without. Approaching eating from the mindset of "I can't have my favorite food, because I have to eat X" is going to kill you at some point and usually results in binge eating stuff you normally never would. Just concentrate on eating well most of the time. If some of the time you end up with a slice of pizza or a piece of cake, you're not resetting back to zero, it's just living.
Voice of Reason
Banned
Finally down a few pounds, and I checked after eating. My confidence is regained.
Can't be stressed enough. I'm not having a cheat day or meal every week, but if I have (usually when hanging out with friends in the weekend - I'll be eating differently/more/more carbs then what I usually cook myself) I'll make sure to enjoy it - and get back on track in the week afterwards.
Hey, I'm overweight and I'm having trouble following a strict diet nowadays.
I'm a grad student so I don't get much time for cooking. I recently started having cereal for breakfast. For the most part of this month, I've been having a bowl of plain wheat flakes with lot fat milk, with sliced grapes and strawberries.
But last night I bought honey nut cheerios, and they're so damn delicious. At first, I was happy since I read a GAF thread about them being good for the heart, high in fiber, etc. but doing further research I found out the high sugar content is actually pretty harmful.
The wheat flakes have 5g of sugar per serving vs the honey cheerios that have 9g of sugar.
Help me GAF. Can I stick to the cheerios and still have a chance of losing weight (I do about 40 mins of running everyday). Or should I switch to the flakes? Or do you have other cereal suggestions?
I'm a grad student so I don't get much time for cooking. I recently started having cereal for breakfast. For the most part of this month, I've been having a bowl of plain wheat flakes with lot fat milk, with sliced grapes and strawberries.
But last night I bought honey nut cheerios, and they're so damn delicious. At first, I was happy since I read a GAF thread about them being good for the heart, high in fiber, etc. but doing further research I found out the high sugar content is actually pretty harmful.
The wheat flakes have 5g of sugar per serving vs the honey cheerios that have 9g of sugar.
Help me GAF. Can I stick to the cheerios and still have a chance of losing weight (I do about 40 mins of running everyday). Or should I switch to the flakes? Or do you have other cereal suggestions?
Witchfinder General
punched Wheelchair Mike
Ditch the cereal entirely and embrace bacon & eggs. Better tasting, better for you and satiating.
Chittagong
Gold Member
Pretty much all cereal are horrible nutrition. Cheerios I believe have relatively little fibre, and honey makes sure you blood sugar shoots up like a rocket, prompting your body to store even more fat. Out of cereals, even Bran Flakes have more sugar than is good for weight loss. If you absolutely have to to get your morning bowl of cereal (and I understand as I love them too), get some organic granola with as little sugar as possible. Mix in some fresh berries and it's really tasty, pleasing and fairly healthy, with lots of fibre and little sugar. Wheat flakes sound like an improvement over Cheerios.
For cardio, it's great and accelerates your weightloss, running is fantastic because it burns tons of calories and you can do it pretty much anytime. However it's good to keep in mind that cardio can compensate for a bad diet. As an example, running an hour burns you through 600kcal. That's a single sub or a couple of bowls of cereal and milk. So primarily your cut will need to be via diet, supported by cardio.
Personally I have found Intermittent Fasting the most tolerable way to lose weight. I love good things and enjoy fruit, berries and whole wheat bread so I can't make a sustainable lifestyle out of low carb every day, I would be misersble. IF allows me to lose still every week, assuming I eat fairly healthy with only the occasional indulgement. There's a thread about it on gaf, look it up.
Witchfinder General
punched Wheelchair Mike
I second this. I've been doing IF and it's worked out great for me with no loss of energy.
Welp, an arm injury has put my weight lifting ambitions on hold for at least a few months so it's time to get back onto the low carb train (fortunately not a dramatic shift for me as I already eat low carb on non-workout days) and focus on losing the last twenty or so pounds I need to. Glad to see a lot of familiar and successful faces in this thread.
androidcandy
Neo Member
Like other gaffers have said, most cereals are bad for your diet, but if you really still want to eat cereal I would recommend the Kashi go lean cereals. That is what I ate like 50% of the time for breakfast while on my diet they have la good bit of protein. Just make sure to check the serving size because it does have a fair amount of carbs. Also Greek yogurts are good for a quick breakfast as they often also have a lot of protein and low in carbs and sugar.
Diatribe1974
Member
so far, Intermittetent Fasting has been a godsend for me. its helped me achieve over 100lbs weight loss so far. So I've lost a lot so far, have about 15lbs od excess skin that outside of plastic surgery will never go away, I'd wager I'm at an effective 186lbs weight right now (skin figured in).
I know we've talked about Quest bars in here before, but I finally found some to try and I was wondering what everyone's favorite ones are? I've so far tried Strawberry Cheesecake, Lemon Cream Pie and Apple Pie, with Apple Pie probably being my favorite. I also have a Peanut Butter and Jelly I have yet to eat.
They just released 2 new flavors, haven't tried those yet, but I've had all the others. My favorites are the chocolate brownie and strawberry. Least favorite is the mixed berry. I don't think any of them were bad. Their peanut butter cups are better than all the bars though, in taste and nutrition..more healthy, saturated fats, no IMO [the fiber/sweetener they use in the bar], nothing inherently wrong with IMO, I just prefer the fats in the PB Cups.