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Weight Loss Before/After Thread! (with pics)
- Thread starter lsslave
- Start date
Karak
Member
Just celebrated my 3rd year of low carb dieting. I have never felt so good in my life. lost 123lbs total energy has been through the roof since about 4 months into it. Just got my bloodwork back and doctor gave me a high five. top 10# percentile for almost everything for guys 10 years younger than me.
Bam! Gonna go have some steak.
Bam! Gonna go have some steak.
ItAintEasyBeinCheesy
it's 4th of July in my asshole
Shaneus said:
Chemist. Just walked in and said "you got ketostix" and she went "yurp"
Mine say Keto-Diastix though, google'd and they the same thing.
Karak said:
Internet hi-five!
Alright GAF; its time for 3.0 to begin.
Cutting down calories (again... I miss calories
) and finally entering a workout regime. My day-to-day exercise (re: work) is fine but work is far too exhausting and personally I think a 3 day a week cardio regime will make work less exhausting.
My goal is still not to "build" but to continue to lose, to be lean and fit. I've been doing pretty good, suffered depression for a long ass time and didn't work as hard as I could have but I am working on my physical and mental health again (when I felt my confidence was fairly low last night I realized I wasn't who I wanted to be right now) so I should have a new update (photo wise) in apx. 3 months at my third point.
Also; it is very touching to see a thread that I originally thought would die an early death is still going strong Sharing in the journey of weight loss (and the life long struggle, which it is) with people who share similar passions has been a wonderful thing. Every bump puts a smile on my face.
Keep going strong you beautiful men and women, I will continue to follow this thread until the day I eventually log on ripped out of my mind and accidentally get myself permabanned :lol
Cutting down calories (again... I miss calories
) and finally entering a workout regime. My day-to-day exercise (re: work) is fine but work is far too exhausting and personally I think a 3 day a week cardio regime will make work less exhausting.My goal is still not to "build" but to continue to lose, to be lean and fit. I've been doing pretty good, suffered depression for a long ass time and didn't work as hard as I could have but I am working on my physical and mental health again (when I felt my confidence was fairly low last night I realized I wasn't who I wanted to be right now) so I should have a new update (photo wise) in apx. 3 months at my third point.
Also; it is very touching to see a thread that I originally thought would die an early death is still going strong
Sharing in the journey of weight loss (and the life long struggle, which it is) with people who share similar passions has been a wonderful thing. Every bump puts a smile on my face.Keep going strong you beautiful men and women, I will continue to follow this thread until the day I eventually log on ripped out of my mind and accidentally get myself permabanned :lol
You only have to follow three simple rules:
- Workout 3 times a week with weights.
- Eat 1g protein / lb lean body mass.
- Reduce calories to lose 1-2 lbs / week.
Success is 100% guaranteed.
Wavelength Guide to Bodybuilding v3.0
The goal of bodybuilding is to improve body composition by losing fat and/or gaining muscle mass. If total body weight goes down in the process, the method is generally referred to as "cutting", if total body weight goes up, it's called "bulking", if body weight stays about the same, it's called "recomping".
1 Cutting
1.1 Essential Rules
- Workout with weights about 3 times a week.
- Eat at least 1g protein / lb of lean body mass a day.
- Eat some fruit, veggies/salad, and some essential fatty acids (EFAs) every day.
- Above that eat whatever you want, preferably a wide variety of foods.
- Adjust your food intake so that the desired rate of weight loss is maintained.
The recommended rate of weight loss depends on your current body fat level. Generally, the higher your bodyfat, the higher the rate of weight loss can potentially be. The best indication for the rate being too high is if you rapidly lose strength in the gym. In this case, increase your intake and go for a smaller rate of weight loss. In general, a rate of about 1-2lbs per week is recommended.
Any cutting method that follows the above rules is close to optimal, any further details will not have significant effect on body composition. If you already have a meal plan, just check if these rules are followed and adjust if not.
1.2 Measuring Progress and Adjusting Food Intake
- Weigh yourself once a week, always at the same time (e.g. right after waking up).
- Don't panic if your weight stays the same or even goes up for one or two weeks.
- If your weight does not go down for more than three weeks, slightly reduce calories.
- If your rate of weight loss is above the desired value, slightly increase calories.
- The change in daily calories from those adjustments should not exceed 500 cals.
- After adjustment, stay on the new value for at least three weeks before adjusting again.
If you have never done a cutting diet, it's always better to start with more calories and reduce slowly until the desired rate of weight loss is maintained. If you stay patient, you will not have to adjust very often. With more experience, you will not have to count calories anymore, but as a beginner it is probably a good idea.
1.3 Unessential Factors
Since many questions revolve around further details of cutting diets, here is a list of factors that I believe to be of insignificant effect for body composition:
- Cardio and fat burners,
- Meal timing and meal frequency,
- Protein / Carb / Fat distribution throughout the day,
- carb / fat ratio,
- Sodium intake,
- Moderate alcohol intake,
- Use of supplements resp. meal replacements,
- "Clean" food vs. Junk food (sugar and saturated fat).
All these factors should be used as tools to make the diet as convenient as possible. Many people e.g. have an easier time dieting with eating more calories and doing cardio or taking fat burners. Some people like myself have an easier time without cardio and fat burners. In my experience, the end result (body composition improvement) is not significantly influenced. Another example is protein supplements. I e.g. use whey powder to meet my daily protein intake out of convenience. I could just as well get all my protein from other sources. A third example is meal frequency and timing. This tool should be used to reduce hunger as much as possible throughout the day. For some people that means eating 6 times a day, for others it means eating only once or twice a day.
2 Bulking and Recomping
The only factor that changes for bulking or recomping is that the rate of weight change X is positive resp. zero. All other essential rules are exactly the same as for cutting (see sections above).
For bulking, the critical factor is the value of X. Everyone has a different ability to gain weight with a certain ratio of muscle vs. fat gain. This ability is dependent on things like genetics, age, training experience, etc. The ratio will decrease the higher X is, but not in a linear way. The trick is to find the optimal value for X, where the ratio is still close to optimum. Unfortunally, this is solely a matter of experience. My advise would be to increase calories by 500 over maintenance and check if weight goes up while fat gains are still tolerable. If no weight is gained, increase calories again. If fat gains are too high, decrease calories.
For recomping (staying at about the same total body weight), just weigh yourself from time to time and adjust food intake accordingly to maintain that weight. You can e.g. weigh yourself in the morning and just skip your last meal of the day if you're above target weight. You can determine your progress by how much strength you gain in the gym, by taking measurements (e.g. waist size), or simply by looking in the mirror.
3 Weight Training
Weight training refers to intense (anaerobic) strength training in this guide. This applies to all three variants of bodybuilding (cutting, bulking, and recomping). There are many methods of weight training, a typical 3 day split program is assembled here (the numbers refer to number of exercises):
Day1: 3 x Chest, 2 x Biceps, 1 x Abs
Day2: Rest
Day3: 4 x Legs, 2 x Shoulders
Day4: Rest
Day5: 2 x Back, 2 x Triceps, 1 x Traps, 1 x Abs
Day6: Rest
Day7: Rest
For each exercise, do one light warmup set, then go up with the weight on the next 2-3 sets, and do one or two heavy sets to failure or close to failure. For the smaller exercises (e.g. biceps), the number of sets can also only be 3-4 though. Repetition numbers should be in the range of 15-6. For the exercises one could e.g. do (in the above order):
3 x Chest: BB Presses, DB Incline Presses, Dips
2 x Biceps: DB Curls, Concentration/Cable Curls
1 x Abs: Situps
4 x Legs: Squats or Leg Presses, Leg Extensions, Leg Curls, Calf Raises
2 x Shoulders: DB presses, Seated Rear Lateral DB Raises
2 x Back: Pullups, Cable Pulldowns
2 x Triceps: Skull Crushers, Cable Pushdowns
1 x Traps: DB Shrugs
1 x Abs: Leg Raises
These are of course only examples, there are plenty of other exercises that can be used as replacements. There are also plenty of other workout plans such as HST, German Volume Training, etc. What's most important is that the training is intense and that all major muscle groups are involved throughout the week.
4 Psychological Tips and Tricks
- It is possible that you will not "see" changes in the mirror unless your bodyfat is rather low. Don't panic, as long as the rules are followed, everything is right on track.
- If at all, only assess your physique right after a workout. At other times it's too dependent on water retention, and the mind will play tricks on you (telling you your progress sucks, etc.).
- Have a cheat/pig-out day once in a while, where you eat what you want. I had one every week on my last diet. Don't feel guilty about it, as long as the rules are still followed (total intake still leads to the desired rate of weight change), everything is allright.
- Don't take the whole thing too serious. It's better to not care about it so much. See it more as being the coach of another person, rather than yourself.
5 Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do I determine how much calories I should consume?
A: You can just go by what you currently eat and reduce from there as described in the guide. Alternativiely, use a calorie calculator like the "Total Metabolism Forecaster", see link section.
Q: Is it important to get the same amount of calories resp. macros every day?
A: No, it's OK to eat a little less one day and more the next.
Q: How do I determine my lean body mass for calculating my protein intake?
A: You have to take your total body weight and subtract your fat weight. If you e.g. weigh 200lbs and your bodyfat is 20% (=40lbs), your lean body mass is 200lbs - 40lbs = 160lbs. If you don't know your bodyfat, just take a guess. When in doubt, just eat a little more. However, if for some reason, you can't eat as much protein, just eat a little less, most people will still do fine.
Q: Does it matter where I get my protein from and what are good protein sources?
A: Generally, it does not matter. You can get your protein from meat, fish, eggs, cheese, protein powder, etc. Although there are differences in quality (regarding muscle sparing effect), they can easily be made up for with just a little more quantity.
Q: I work out less/more than 3 times a week, is that OK?
A: Yes, as long as all other essential rules are followed. Some people get away with less, some do better on more.
Q: I lost a lot of weight in the first few weeks but weight loss has slowed down, why?
A: The initial weight loss was probably mostly water loss. Stay at the current intake for at least another 3 weeks. If weight loss stalls, slightly reduce calories as described in the guide.
Q: What about keto diets?
A: Principally, keto diets (very low carb diets), as long as they follow all rules, would be fine. IMO, some people have a problem preserving muscle mass on a keto diet. For other people it works great. I don't think keto diets provide a significant advantage other than maybe being more convenient for some people.
Q: What about post workout nutrition?
A: I would not intentionally starve myself of protein after a workout. A meal containing some protein or a shake is perfectly fine.
Q: Apart from body composition, what about health?
A: First of all, it is important to distinguish between the goal of optimal body composition and the goal of optimal health. For the former, the guide provides all essential rules. For the latter, opinions vary a lot between experts and over time (see e.g. saturated fat, GI, food processing, cholesterol, etc.). Therefore, IMO the best way to go is to eat a wide variety of foods.
Q: How can I lose fat in certain areas of my body?
A: Although there are theories that spot reduction is possible to a certain degree, generally IMO it's not feasible. You can only reduce overall bodyfat and wait for the problem areas to come in.
Q: What exactly is your diet?
A: My cutting diet is somewhat extreme (see Links section). For bulking, I add a meal or two. That's just the most convenient way for me. However, every other diet that follows the essential rules is also perfectly OK.
Q: Should I eat differently on workout days than on off days?
A: That's not necessary, but if you're hungrier on workout days, you can eat a little more (out of convenience).
Q: Does this guide also work for girls?
A: Of course!
source: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=129247741
it's really jus that simple !
- Workout 3 times a week with weights.
- Eat 1g protein / lb lean body mass.
- Reduce calories to lose 1-2 lbs / week.
Success is 100% guaranteed.
Wavelength Guide to Bodybuilding v3.0
The goal of bodybuilding is to improve body composition by losing fat and/or gaining muscle mass. If total body weight goes down in the process, the method is generally referred to as "cutting", if total body weight goes up, it's called "bulking", if body weight stays about the same, it's called "recomping".
1 Cutting
1.1 Essential Rules
- Workout with weights about 3 times a week.
- Eat at least 1g protein / lb of lean body mass a day.
- Eat some fruit, veggies/salad, and some essential fatty acids (EFAs) every day.
- Above that eat whatever you want, preferably a wide variety of foods.
- Adjust your food intake so that the desired rate of weight loss is maintained.
The recommended rate of weight loss depends on your current body fat level. Generally, the higher your bodyfat, the higher the rate of weight loss can potentially be. The best indication for the rate being too high is if you rapidly lose strength in the gym. In this case, increase your intake and go for a smaller rate of weight loss. In general, a rate of about 1-2lbs per week is recommended.
Any cutting method that follows the above rules is close to optimal, any further details will not have significant effect on body composition. If you already have a meal plan, just check if these rules are followed and adjust if not.
1.2 Measuring Progress and Adjusting Food Intake
- Weigh yourself once a week, always at the same time (e.g. right after waking up).
- Don't panic if your weight stays the same or even goes up for one or two weeks.
- If your weight does not go down for more than three weeks, slightly reduce calories.
- If your rate of weight loss is above the desired value, slightly increase calories.
- The change in daily calories from those adjustments should not exceed 500 cals.
- After adjustment, stay on the new value for at least three weeks before adjusting again.
If you have never done a cutting diet, it's always better to start with more calories and reduce slowly until the desired rate of weight loss is maintained. If you stay patient, you will not have to adjust very often. With more experience, you will not have to count calories anymore, but as a beginner it is probably a good idea.
1.3 Unessential Factors
Since many questions revolve around further details of cutting diets, here is a list of factors that I believe to be of insignificant effect for body composition:
- Cardio and fat burners,
- Meal timing and meal frequency,
- Protein / Carb / Fat distribution throughout the day,
- carb / fat ratio,
- Sodium intake,
- Moderate alcohol intake,
- Use of supplements resp. meal replacements,
- "Clean" food vs. Junk food (sugar and saturated fat).
All these factors should be used as tools to make the diet as convenient as possible. Many people e.g. have an easier time dieting with eating more calories and doing cardio or taking fat burners. Some people like myself have an easier time without cardio and fat burners. In my experience, the end result (body composition improvement) is not significantly influenced. Another example is protein supplements. I e.g. use whey powder to meet my daily protein intake out of convenience. I could just as well get all my protein from other sources. A third example is meal frequency and timing. This tool should be used to reduce hunger as much as possible throughout the day. For some people that means eating 6 times a day, for others it means eating only once or twice a day.
2 Bulking and Recomping
The only factor that changes for bulking or recomping is that the rate of weight change X is positive resp. zero. All other essential rules are exactly the same as for cutting (see sections above).
For bulking, the critical factor is the value of X. Everyone has a different ability to gain weight with a certain ratio of muscle vs. fat gain. This ability is dependent on things like genetics, age, training experience, etc. The ratio will decrease the higher X is, but not in a linear way. The trick is to find the optimal value for X, where the ratio is still close to optimum. Unfortunally, this is solely a matter of experience. My advise would be to increase calories by 500 over maintenance and check if weight goes up while fat gains are still tolerable. If no weight is gained, increase calories again. If fat gains are too high, decrease calories.
For recomping (staying at about the same total body weight), just weigh yourself from time to time and adjust food intake accordingly to maintain that weight. You can e.g. weigh yourself in the morning and just skip your last meal of the day if you're above target weight. You can determine your progress by how much strength you gain in the gym, by taking measurements (e.g. waist size), or simply by looking in the mirror.
3 Weight Training
Weight training refers to intense (anaerobic) strength training in this guide. This applies to all three variants of bodybuilding (cutting, bulking, and recomping). There are many methods of weight training, a typical 3 day split program is assembled here (the numbers refer to number of exercises):
Day1: 3 x Chest, 2 x Biceps, 1 x Abs
Day2: Rest
Day3: 4 x Legs, 2 x Shoulders
Day4: Rest
Day5: 2 x Back, 2 x Triceps, 1 x Traps, 1 x Abs
Day6: Rest
Day7: Rest
For each exercise, do one light warmup set, then go up with the weight on the next 2-3 sets, and do one or two heavy sets to failure or close to failure. For the smaller exercises (e.g. biceps), the number of sets can also only be 3-4 though. Repetition numbers should be in the range of 15-6. For the exercises one could e.g. do (in the above order):
3 x Chest: BB Presses, DB Incline Presses, Dips
2 x Biceps: DB Curls, Concentration/Cable Curls
1 x Abs: Situps
4 x Legs: Squats or Leg Presses, Leg Extensions, Leg Curls, Calf Raises
2 x Shoulders: DB presses, Seated Rear Lateral DB Raises
2 x Back: Pullups, Cable Pulldowns
2 x Triceps: Skull Crushers, Cable Pushdowns
1 x Traps: DB Shrugs
1 x Abs: Leg Raises
These are of course only examples, there are plenty of other exercises that can be used as replacements. There are also plenty of other workout plans such as HST, German Volume Training, etc. What's most important is that the training is intense and that all major muscle groups are involved throughout the week.
4 Psychological Tips and Tricks
- It is possible that you will not "see" changes in the mirror unless your bodyfat is rather low. Don't panic, as long as the rules are followed, everything is right on track.
- If at all, only assess your physique right after a workout. At other times it's too dependent on water retention, and the mind will play tricks on you (telling you your progress sucks, etc.).
- Have a cheat/pig-out day once in a while, where you eat what you want. I had one every week on my last diet. Don't feel guilty about it, as long as the rules are still followed (total intake still leads to the desired rate of weight change), everything is allright.
- Don't take the whole thing too serious. It's better to not care about it so much. See it more as being the coach of another person, rather than yourself.
5 Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do I determine how much calories I should consume?
A: You can just go by what you currently eat and reduce from there as described in the guide. Alternativiely, use a calorie calculator like the "Total Metabolism Forecaster", see link section.
Q: Is it important to get the same amount of calories resp. macros every day?
A: No, it's OK to eat a little less one day and more the next.
Q: How do I determine my lean body mass for calculating my protein intake?
A: You have to take your total body weight and subtract your fat weight. If you e.g. weigh 200lbs and your bodyfat is 20% (=40lbs), your lean body mass is 200lbs - 40lbs = 160lbs. If you don't know your bodyfat, just take a guess. When in doubt, just eat a little more. However, if for some reason, you can't eat as much protein, just eat a little less, most people will still do fine.
Q: Does it matter where I get my protein from and what are good protein sources?
A: Generally, it does not matter. You can get your protein from meat, fish, eggs, cheese, protein powder, etc. Although there are differences in quality (regarding muscle sparing effect), they can easily be made up for with just a little more quantity.
Q: I work out less/more than 3 times a week, is that OK?
A: Yes, as long as all other essential rules are followed. Some people get away with less, some do better on more.
Q: I lost a lot of weight in the first few weeks but weight loss has slowed down, why?
A: The initial weight loss was probably mostly water loss. Stay at the current intake for at least another 3 weeks. If weight loss stalls, slightly reduce calories as described in the guide.
Q: What about keto diets?
A: Principally, keto diets (very low carb diets), as long as they follow all rules, would be fine. IMO, some people have a problem preserving muscle mass on a keto diet. For other people it works great. I don't think keto diets provide a significant advantage other than maybe being more convenient for some people.
Q: What about post workout nutrition?
A: I would not intentionally starve myself of protein after a workout. A meal containing some protein or a shake is perfectly fine.
Q: Apart from body composition, what about health?
A: First of all, it is important to distinguish between the goal of optimal body composition and the goal of optimal health. For the former, the guide provides all essential rules. For the latter, opinions vary a lot between experts and over time (see e.g. saturated fat, GI, food processing, cholesterol, etc.). Therefore, IMO the best way to go is to eat a wide variety of foods.
Q: How can I lose fat in certain areas of my body?
A: Although there are theories that spot reduction is possible to a certain degree, generally IMO it's not feasible. You can only reduce overall bodyfat and wait for the problem areas to come in.
Q: What exactly is your diet?
A: My cutting diet is somewhat extreme (see Links section). For bulking, I add a meal or two. That's just the most convenient way for me. However, every other diet that follows the essential rules is also perfectly OK.
Q: Should I eat differently on workout days than on off days?
A: That's not necessary, but if you're hungrier on workout days, you can eat a little more (out of convenience).
Q: Does this guide also work for girls?
A: Of course!
source: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=129247741
it's really jus that simple !
Domino Theory
Crystal Dynamics
Eh, it's all relative, really.
Cutting calories for you may be easy, but for me it's so painful. It worked at first, but I was pretty much starving myself and my cravings were through the roof towards the end of it which is why I switched to low carb dieting because I can eat everything except foods with wheat/flour.
Now I do IF w/ low carb although I slightly lay off the carb restriction since IF gives me some breathing room. I'm where I want to be with my eating lifestyle, but I totally understand how low carb dieting can having that same starving/craving effect on them that calorie cutting had on me.
Cutting calories for you may be easy, but for me it's so painful. It worked at first, but I was pretty much starving myself and my cravings were through the roof towards the end of it which is why I switched to low carb dieting because I can eat everything except foods with wheat/flour.
Now I do IF w/ low carb although I slightly lay off the carb restriction since IF gives me some breathing room. I'm where I want to be with my eating lifestyle, but I totally understand how low carb dieting can having that same starving/craving effect on them that calorie cutting had on me.
Masta_Killah
Member
It can be tough trying to get into a caloric deficit, especially if you're trying the healthy route. For me, going the healthy route only had me craving even more food, and since the food was mostly all healthy stuff, I didn't really enjoy eating it.
Right now I'm going on a high protein, low calorie diet. I eat around 6 oz of chicken(chicken leg meat) with 3 oz of sweet potato. So far the diet is working and I'm enjoying it more than when I did the healthy route. It may seem boring, but I prefer this since the meat is nice and juicy(compared to the dry, bland taste of chicken breast or fish fillets) since there is a nice amount of fat. I just make sure I control my total calorie intake for the day and I'm good to go.
Right now I'm going on a high protein, low calorie diet. I eat around 6 oz of chicken(chicken leg meat) with 3 oz of sweet potato. So far the diet is working and I'm enjoying it more than when I did the healthy route. It may seem boring, but I prefer this since the meat is nice and juicy(compared to the dry, bland taste of chicken breast or fish fillets) since there is a nice amount of fat. I just make sure I control my total calorie intake for the day and I'm good to go.
Domino Theory
Crystal Dynamics
Messi said:
Lower meal frequency is better because higher meal frequency keeps your blood sugar and insulin levels up throughout the day since you're constantly eating.
And skipping a meal is considered one way of intermittent fasting and intermittent fasting is excellent for you.
Try www.leangains.com and this for more information.
I don't agree that cutting calories is a simple task that can be applied to every person. If someone has leptin resistance and you simply cut calories, that person will become extremely fatigued, depressed, and very hungry. It will persist until the setpoint is corrected (either by fat regain to increase leptin, or improved leptin sensitivity), and so if you don't do anything to fix that problem, that person would have to feel like shit for life. Not a good strategy for everyone. If it worked, then these January new years gym rats wouldn't keep failing every year.
Cutting calories using willpower and exercising may work for some people if their setpoint isn't far off and the effect of their exercise is improved leptin sensitivity.
There are many causes of fat accumulation, and so I think we should be cautious of defining a one size fits all approach. I was guilty of this long ago when I thought insulin was the answer to everything. I doubt it's a calorie equation as people didn't count calories until after the obesity epidemic started. But hell I could be wrong.
Cutting calories using willpower and exercising may work for some people if their setpoint isn't far off and the effect of their exercise is improved leptin sensitivity.
There are many causes of fat accumulation, and so I think we should be cautious of defining a one size fits all approach. I was guilty of this long ago when I thought insulin was the answer to everything. I doubt it's a calorie equation as people didn't count calories until after the obesity epidemic started. But hell I could be wrong.
BronzeWolf
Banned
Masta_Killah said:
I resent your use of the "healthy" label (healthy route, healthy food)
Meat and sweet potatoes are very healthy foods, as is milk, eggs and fish. Don't be fooled by the notion that just because something is vegetarian or bland, it's automatically healthy or the implied notion that if something ISN'T vegetarian or bland, it's not healthy. Healthy is what your body has been designed to eat, and that includes meat
Controlling calorie intake is much easier if you control what you are really eating, instead of just cutting it down.
teh_pwn said:
I don't think you're wrong, but I don't think you're right either. The issue is multifactorial.
On the one hand, you do have some people who develop issues with cravings, and that those cravings can be exacerbated by junk food and excess carbs. This is probably partly physiological, and you've gone over some of the ideas why.
On the other hand, you have a lot of psychological problems here. First off is that food tastes good, and some people develop a love for it more than others. This isn't purely physical, either; I know many people who enjoy food and struggle with reducing intake who have personalities or a cultural background that encourages that lifestyle of culinary gratification and excess. Sometimes it's habit, boredom, depression, or an oral fixation.
The same reasons affect new years' people; they don't really want to get in shape, they just want to be in shape. Everybody wants to look like a god, but few people are willing to put in the time and effort. Once people realize how hard it is to get in shape, they usually find reasons to give up. This is a psychological thing, in my opinion. The requisite sacrifice and discipline doesn't sit well with many westerners.
So there are many ways to approach the issue here. All of them involve a commitment; you have to want it badly enough to push and not stop pushing. If you exercise regularly and don't stop exercising, working hard to be doing more today in the gym than you were yesterday, you'll get in better shape.
Likewise, if you moderately reduce calories and increase activity levels and STICK WITH IT, you'll get leaner. Hunger strikers always lose weight. If those calories come from carbs, then that's great. If you stick with wholesome food, then that's great too. People are different, and you need to experiment to find out what works for you.
Personally, I've gotten lean while eating not much but steak, whole milk and bran. I know people who have dropped to single digits while eating ice cream every day. I also know people who have decided to cut carbs out of their diet and have lost lots of weight doing that too; I once compared calorie trackers with a low-carber and we were both tracking similar deficits.
It is my opinion that low carb diets are also almost always reduced calorie diets, simply by eliminating a major convenient source of calories and replacing them with a smaller amount of satiating protein and some extra fat. For some it's easy, for some it's hard. Depends on the person. Does what kind of food you eat make a difference? Maybe, but in my opinion (aside from protein intake) it's overshadowed by how much of it you eat. If low-carb makes dieting easy for you, then great.
The one thing I've seen from all of the success stories here and everywhere else is that they committed to a path and stuck with it, despite any temporary bumps on the road. THAT is what defines success not only in fat loss and fitness but in almost everything in life.
ON that note, I'm inspired to study. Off to hit the CFA books.
I'm hardly an expert, but what I've noticed so far is that if I have one or two chicken breasts for dinner and a helping of some vegetable with a greek yogurt or cottage cheese after... I'm full. No desire to eat anything else until my stomach is grumbling at me again.
Put a box of cookies in front of me and I will devour the entire box until there's nothing in it and still be unsatisfied.
So, yeah, what you eat definitely makes a difference.
Put a box of cookies in front of me and I will devour the entire box until there's nothing in it and still be unsatisfied.
So, yeah, what you eat definitely makes a difference.
The amount of times that's happened to me is ridiculous. Over the Christmas break (which was about two weeks over here in Australia, not sure about the US) when I ate well I'd be fine but when Mum put out the Christmas usuals (lollies, cakes, biscuits/cookies) along with dinner I'd just devour them because they were "just there". That's why I put on about 7kg over December/start of Jan.1stStrike said:
Living by yourself, it's easy to low-carb (or even just "eat well")... once there are other people it's fucking difficult.
Shaneus said:
Other people are the DEVIL. Especially skinny people :lol its like telling a smoker to just quit smoking... its fucking difficult and if your not a smoker you could not possibly understand that addiction. Same for food, atleast in my eyes. Thankfully ive kicked most of that.
It's not so much that they influence you, but if you say something like "I'll pass on the bread... carbs!" they give you a weird look until you eat it.Messi said:
Christmas day I ate so much white bread it wasn't funny. But fuck me that shit tasted AMAZING.
Edit: It wasn't so much them convincing me to eat stuff, but it's so much harder to stick to a strict regimen of low-carbs when 80% of your meal is loaded with them. Leaving a plate full of food would've offended my mum (that's my excuse, anyway :lol).
Honestly, splurging now and then isn't bad for you. It shocks your system and speeds it up, really. I used to work with this guy who had been really fat in the past. He started going to the gym and eating healthy and dropped all that weight, but once a week he's just eat whatever he wanted. Hamburgers, french fries, pizza, ice cream, whatever and then the next day it was back to normal. Was fit as a fiddle and never gained any weight so long as I knew him after that.
1stStrike said:After week one I've lost about 5 pounds so far. Really feeling a lot less bloated so far too. Good call on this diet. I love not feeling guilty about having a yogurt or an extra helping of cottage cheese
Yay, go for it man
How long will be your phases in the second part ?
_Alkaline_
Member
So I'm now part of Diet GAF. Well, kind of.
I'm 21 years old and basically I'm unfortunately/fortunately blessed with a naturally large body. Not so much fat but muscular. Just genetics. I don't have to do any weights to have a good muscle composition, but at the same time, no matter how much I work out I'm always going to have the big quads and bulky chest. And I work out a fair but - run for 30mins (at a pretty brisk pace) at least 6 times a week, on hilly as shit tracks, not to mention sporting commitments.
That said, though I'm likely never going to be able to change my entire body shape, I'm still determined to lean up a bit more. I'm pretty good with my diet but there's still a lot room to cut down, particularly on carbs (love this shit out of my toast), coffee (have about 2 cups a day which I have to stop), soft drink and just little snacks like chocolates which I don't have all the time but still a bit too much. Basically I feel that I've got the exercise thing completely under control, it's the diet where I will make up my ground.
It's always good to have a target, but I have to take into consideration my genetic makeup and not go overboard with what I want. At the moment I'm dead on 90kg, so I think 85 should be the aim here. I'm 6 ft 1 by the way. I've started to take control of my diet over the past few weeks. Last week I went pretty gung-ho, which towards the end I started to doubt whether I could keep it up and had a couple of days off (and pigged out a bit). I'm not too worried about this though because I can't phase everything out instantly and 'treat' days are still important in any diet, and I'm sure they will become less and less frequent as the months go on.
Pretty excited about this just for the extra confidence boost. I fell into depression last year and though a lot of that had to do with a general lack of self-esteem (more related to what I was doing with myself and how other perceived me) and brought on primarily by the loss of my grandmother, I definitely think an improved image is an important part of getting back on track.
My question to Diet GAF - when should I look to get into the weights work? I'm completely cardio right now. And when/if I get into the weights, should it be LME work?
I'm 21 years old and basically I'm unfortunately/fortunately blessed with a naturally large body. Not so much fat but muscular. Just genetics. I don't have to do any weights to have a good muscle composition, but at the same time, no matter how much I work out I'm always going to have the big quads and bulky chest. And I work out a fair but - run for 30mins (at a pretty brisk pace) at least 6 times a week, on hilly as shit tracks, not to mention sporting commitments.
That said, though I'm likely never going to be able to change my entire body shape, I'm still determined to lean up a bit more. I'm pretty good with my diet but there's still a lot room to cut down, particularly on carbs (love this shit out of my toast), coffee (have about 2 cups a day which I have to stop), soft drink and just little snacks like chocolates which I don't have all the time but still a bit too much. Basically I feel that I've got the exercise thing completely under control, it's the diet where I will make up my ground.
It's always good to have a target, but I have to take into consideration my genetic makeup and not go overboard with what I want. At the moment I'm dead on 90kg, so I think 85 should be the aim here. I'm 6 ft 1 by the way. I've started to take control of my diet over the past few weeks. Last week I went pretty gung-ho, which towards the end I started to doubt whether I could keep it up and had a couple of days off (and pigged out a bit). I'm not too worried about this though because I can't phase everything out instantly and 'treat' days are still important in any diet, and I'm sure they will become less and less frequent as the months go on.
Pretty excited about this just for the extra confidence boost. I fell into depression last year and though a lot of that had to do with a general lack of self-esteem (more related to what I was doing with myself and how other perceived me) and brought on primarily by the loss of my grandmother, I definitely think an improved image is an important part of getting back on track.
My question to Diet GAF - when should I look to get into the weights work? I'm completely cardio right now. And when/if I get into the weights, should it be LME work?
betweenthewheels
Member
Shaneus said:
Absolutely. I find it incredibly difficult to stay on track when I visit my parents, the house is stocked and I feel like an douche turning down food that was cooked for me.
BertramCooper
Banned
This is so true.Shaneus said:
When I have complete control over the food that is kept in my apartment, it makes sticking to my diet so much easier.
adamsappel
Member
Re: Ketostix. Take scissors and cut them in half lengthwise, doubling the number of sticks. It's even possible to cut them in thirds, but my hand was never that steady. Maybe with a paper cutter? They're too expensive to just, uh, piss away.
Domino Theory
Crystal Dynamics
For those who know more about IF, is it okay to binge during the eating window (having >2,000 calories, lots of carbs, etc.) every day? Not that I would really do those, I'm just curious as to the limits of IF or if there isn't a limit.
Fox1304 said:I meant the length of your alterning periods between full protein and protein + vegetables
Oh, I don't know off hand. To be honest, I find the diet pretty easy to follow, but I find the website boring and annoying to keep going to every day to update. I do have this nasty habit of not eating dinner though, so I'll only end up having breakfast and lunch. It's usually only like one or two days a week though (i work 12 hour shifts and then don't feel like cooking at 1:30 in the morning)
FYI, having been on Dukan attack for almost seven whole days, I've lost the vast majority of my Christmas holidays chub, going from 86.5 to 81.5. Not being able to do the 20-minute walk everyday due to the weather has impacted that a little... could've dropped maybe a little more. Still going to give it a shot for the other 3 days (as they suggest 10 as a maximum in a row) to see if I can hit 80, but I can definitely say that (at least the initial phase of) this diet is the shit.
Feeling far better about myself than at the start of the year when I felt like a complete lardo, too.
Feeling far better about myself than at the start of the year when I felt like a complete lardo, too.
infiniteloop
Member
too little fat!
I keep binge eating. I get out of control following my eight hours of manual labor at work everyday. I then exercise for about three hours rather than purge, but of course I'm seeing no loss or increased definition. I don't eat any carbs until after work, could that be what I need? I develop a huge sugar craving after my meal that I literally can't stop thinking about. Any suggestions as I can't believe I'm falling down this path after I hadn't eaten dessert for a whole year.
cryptic said:
You should eat some fiber heavy carbs in the morning. I usually eat a carbmaster bagel in the morning along with three whole eggs. The bagel is 150 calories, 19g of fiber, 14g of protein and 1g of sugar. Since making the bagel/3 eggs my daily morning routine, along with balancing out my omega 3 to omega 6 ratio, my appetite has been kept in check every waking moment whereas before I would get the carb cravings followed by the binges that you describe.
I should also mention that you should stay hydrated throughout the day. People often mistake dehydration for hunger.
infiniteloop
Member
Made some burgers tonight, grass-feed beef 85/15 cooked in lovely coconut oil. Whole30 day 11!
I've had to go with conventional beef the past couple of weeks. Whole foods hasn't had any for a while. Must be seasonal in Austin.
So how much fat are you getting per day? Do realize that too little will cause lots of health issues.
1stStrike said:I'm making some burgers up tonight (98% fat free grounded up meat)
So how much fat are you getting per day? Do realize that too little will cause lots of health issues.
teh_pwn said:
Not sure. I had an oat bran pancake for breakfast (1 egg / half a cup of fat free milk / 2 tbs of oatbran / 1 1/2 tbs of 0% fat feta cheese) with a blueberry yogurt, and for lunch I had about 1/4 pound of the 98% fat free beef with a yogurt (I love the greek yogurts).
For dinner I'll probably have some tuna and 0% fat cottage cheese.
Srsly said:
The problem I have is finding these low carb friendly foods. I would prefer to not have to buy food online but this sunday I have the opportunity to visit whole foods and I hope they have some low carb section.
Oddly enough I was doing fine when I first started dieting eating practically nothing but sweet potatoes, plaintains, peanut butter, and big bowls of shredded wheat with bananas and berries plus tons of nuts like flax and pistachios. I would hardly if ever eat meat back then.
I also keep on my hydration.
A little background...
I started running and free wight lifting over the past year with my fathe partially to improve his health but more-so mine. At first it was fine and the results were enough plus I felt very good about eating healthy while not worrying about carbs or the glycemic index.
After a while I started cpounting calories, limiting portions, and finding myself struggling to exercise;it became a chore. I no longer had fun jogging to the top of the mountain or running the six or seven miles around the block. Still, I kept on, changing up my diet until I reached a very lean 127 lbs. at 5 ft. 6 and a 1/2. I was also still keeping up with my weights fine. Still curling the 25 lb. dumbbell, still doing the compound weightlifting all within an hour. I always had these lingering fears that maybe I wouldn't be able to do it this time and I sort of fought with that fear while doing anything.Anyway, so the holidays rolled around, I tried some richer foods that I used to love growing up. It spiraled from there and nowI'm gaining weight left and right. I just ate a huge belgian waffle loaded with hot fudge and maple ice cream, walnuts, and some doughy clam friitters in addition to some trout, multiple bowls of cereal loaded with raisins and cranberries, spinach salad, and three whole wheat rolls loaded with maple butter. I just worked out for an hour with free weights doing no rest between exercises like usual and basically wracked my body. I usually would follow up with an hour of abs, followed by an hour of running but I'm just so discouraged knowing I'm not going to even make a dent in what I just ate. On top of that, I haven't been getting any sleep because I'll either a.)wake up thinking of food and binge after eating healthy or b.)sleep after a binge and then wake up hot and unable to sleep. Point is this seriously fucks with my work which is already something that pushes my limits as it is.
I'm hoping I have a deficiency in here somewhere that can be easily fixed and it's not some depression stemming from my dead end job and my family being all I have but still not enough to keep me happy plus piling household bills. Any help is appreciated because I have sought help and haven't found it, so I need a second opinion and some general support as life is hard to live sometimes.
Never thought I would post pics on GAF, haha.
I came to this thread about a year ago, read like 30 pages of it and then decided I was going to lose some weight. I'd like to think that because of GAF I lost nearly 50 lbs.
I hope these pictures show the difference. The one on the left is from the summer 2009 (I actually gained about another 10 lbs from that leading up to Jan 2010) and dropped from ~260 to ~215 now. The pic on the right is from New Year.
For food I used the Lose It! app to track my protein/fat/carbs ratio (40:40:20) each day and for exercise I went to the gym three times a week where I did about 50 min of weights and 25 mins of cardio (usually running intervals).
I'm nervous as all hell of putting it back on. Any suggestions? I guess just keep doing what I've been doing, yeah?
I came to this thread about a year ago, read like 30 pages of it and then decided I was going to lose some weight. I'd like to think that because of GAF I lost nearly 50 lbs.
I hope these pictures show the difference. The one on the left is from the summer 2009 (I actually gained about another 10 lbs from that leading up to Jan 2010) and dropped from ~260 to ~215 now. The pic on the right is from New Year.
For food I used the Lose It! app to track my protein/fat/carbs ratio (40:40:20) each day and for exercise I went to the gym three times a week where I did about 50 min of weights and 25 mins of cardio (usually running intervals).
I'm nervous as all hell of putting it back on. Any suggestions? I guess just keep doing what I've been doing, yeah?