Regained again! Diet products in the bin! New philosophy at work...

Scanbran

Stupid Member
Warning! Rambling musings ahead!


I haven't posted on here for ages, although I've lurked on and off for a bit.

My dieting story is long and pathetic, and for over 20 years I've been yoyo-ing up and down, with the majority of that time UP :D

- In 1995 I lost 5st with Slimming World and over the next few years put nearly 9st back on :eek:

- In 2010, again mainly using Slimming World I lost around 6st, but put 3st back on.

- In 2011, this time using Exante, I lost 3st, but since then I have put on another 4st again
.


I have just recently bought six weeks supply of Exante products in an attempt to 'try again', but I have come to the long overdue realisation that without changing my lifestyle completely (in terms of food at least), none of this will ever be sustainable.


When I joined this forum a few years ago, I noticed someone (my apologies if I cannot recall their name) mentioning a good book by Gary Taubes (Why We Get Fat...). I bought it and read it and found something of a relevation. Cutting down on carbohydrates was the theory, thereby reducing glucose in the bloodstream, limiting the necessary insulin response, and therefore maintaining a steady blood sugar level throughout the day without storing excess glucose as fat.


It seemed plausible, and actually a perfect way for me to approach things as I had been having difficulty controlling my blood sugar levels (type 2). Still, I couldn't work out how to live without past, rice, potatoes or bread. That's why I never bothered with the Atkins diet, although I knew people who had tremendous success with it.


I looked into things further and bought a couple of books by Barry Groves, who preached a similar theory, but was a little more into eating high fat animal products, cutting out almost all refined carbohydrates with a small amount of complex carbs coming from vegetables, and moderate protein.
Again, I appreciated the reasons he gave, but I just couldn't picture myself eating like that forever, so left it behind. I did incorporate some of it when doing the Exante plan, supplementing my shakes with low carb foods, but that was the extent of it.


So, after struggling to get started with Exante again this time, I noticed Mr Groves' book lying on the shelf, and picked it up out of curiosity. I read the entire thing again, and thought I might give it a go. He is careful to point out that what he recommends is not a diet in terms of 'temporary eating regime to lose weight quickly'. It is a permanent philosophy about eating which does not restrict calories at all, and which promises weight loss (if you are over-weight) at a slow and steady rate, plus extra health benefits. And it is for life.


I would point out at this time that I appreciate lots of people lose weight and maintain weight just fine using more conventional eating plans, and I am no evangelist for the high-fat, low-carb mantra in this book, but what I will say is that so far it is really working for me, and it is controlling my blood sugar very well indeed.


Only time will tell if this is just the latest in a long line of hare-brained ideas, but I really 'feel' good about this one. Not hungry. Reduced cravings for chips, pizza, bread, pasta and even sweets! The benefits so far are very good. Oh, and 'so far' means around three weeks.


In that time I have lost around a stone without really trying, although I know this will level off to around 8-9 lbs per month very soon, which I am totally comfortable with.

So, the Exante is in the bin and a new style of shopping list has been drawn up.

Don't know if this is a diary or a mini-rant/blog, but if anyone is interested at all, I will try to keep updating it as I go along.

:wave_cry:
 
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Good luck with it all- a stone so far is amazing! I too am a low-carb convert as it makes me feel great eating like that (although my love affair with cake and pizza interrupts my happy low-carb marriage from time to time- hence my slow weight loss). Keep on rambling/diarising and best of luck :)
 
P.s 'Escape the diet trap' by Dr John Briffa is also a stonking low-carb read!
 
Well, I got Dr Briffa's book (Kindle), and have started reading it. It's a bit heavier going than Groves, but says some very similar things with good reasoning so that's reassuring.

The thing that strikes me is that I always focused on targets before. Must lose weight before the holiday, or three months until a (relative/friend's) wedding, or Christmas or whatever.
Doing it this way is certainly good for focus and motivation, but it also reinforces that what I am doing is a 'temporary diet'. Makes me subconsciously think that when I 'get there', I can relax, the pressure's off and I invariably regress to eating the way I did before. It's happened so many times now it's gone beyond depressing and is actually laughable.

My latest reason was to 'be slim for 40'.

Well that passed me by last year, and so now I've no major events coming up that will haunt me should I even consider being fat for them.
I'm happy to try this different way of living (eating I suppose) with the view that it is forever, and see where I go with the weight-loss.
My only concession to this being like a conventional diet is that I'm trying to eliminate sugar as far as possible (with the exception of very dark chocolate).

Oh, and no exercise will be getting done unless I want to do it. Certainly no pounding the treadmill or aerobic stuff.

It will be interesting...
 
I think you're right with that approach- think that's what I liked about Briffa- he takes a slow and steady, moderate approach to low-carbing. I'm guilty of not doing that and am still wondering how low a weight I can get to before a trip to London so I can eat pizza and garlic bread without guilt. Doh!
 
Garlic......bread??? :)


We went to an Italian restaurant a few days ago for my father-in-law's birthday, and I tried to go low carb. My pâté starter arrived with TWO slices of glistening, fragrant garlic bread. Once I'd mopped up the drool from my chin I couldn't give them away quickly enough to remove the temptation!

Reducing a craving is one thing, but having them right there in front of you......
 
Things have been going reasonably well - lost another 5lbs, don't generally feel hungry, and I'm eating either once or twice per day.

Meals usually consist of cold meat, bacon, sausage, eggs, salad with oil dressing, fruit with cream and occasionally chicken/lamb kebab meat :eek: (without the naan/pitta bread). Also eating more cheese as a rule ;)

Carvery meals are really great on this plan - lots of meat, unlimited veggies - just avoid the potatoes and gravy/sauces!!

What do I miss? Well, not really any of the main carbs. I was never a huge fan of pasta or rice anyway. Potatoes I preferred in chip form, and then not that much and bread....well I only need it for sandwiches, which I now avoid, so really avoiding the main carbs is easy.

The harder part is avoiding the actual foods that got me into this mess in the first place (and second, third etc). Chocolates. Chocolate biscuits. Cakes and pastries. Bakery goods (ok, everything from Greggs!!) :D

That's the stuff I always pigged out on. A sausage roll and a doughnut from Greggs at lunch. Ooooh, there's a box of four there and I'm saving 20p - must get that! Eat the lot on the way home :mad:


Anyway, will update again if there is any more progress or startling revelations...
 
Good luck with your new way of life :D Sounds like you are doing fantastic
You dont need Greggs as you can make plenty of lovely low carb foods instead ;)

I have been eating paleo/primal for 11 weeks now and loving it!

I can honestly say that I will never go back to "normal" eating again this WOE really is the best thing in the world.
 
Thanks for that FT, and it's good to know you're managing just fine on this low-carb kick after such an extended time!
 
Well, more off again this week, although it's been a bit harder. I unconsciouly slipped and had a few crisps and some (normal) chocolate (oops!) while watching telly, and only afterwards did I chastise myself.

I suppose it's because I don't really feel as if I am on a diet that I managed to slip up - that's a good thing, right? :D

Last night I had chicken, pork belly and a sausage from a BBQ, and it was great. No worries other than no bread/rolls allowed.

So far in the five weeks or so that I've been doing this, I've managed to lose around 19 lbs, which is just great (the latest this week was 3lbs).

I've inadvertently also been 'intermittent fasting' it seems by only having one proper meal a day, and doing all of my munching between 5pm and 11pm each day, so perhaps that's having an extra effect...
 
Been slipping quite a bit since last weekend. Just snacking on the odd chocs or crisps that are lying around. Predictably, I only lost 1lb last week, and I don't see much improvement this week. I'm still sticking to only eating between 6pm and around 10pm or thereabouts, and staying away from carb-heavy foods, but it's the 'sweet treats', and chocolate in particular that is tripping me up.

Nevertheless, I'll keep it going and try to avoid as much of the sugary-garbage as possible in the next week or two and see if I can get back into it.
 
So, that went well... :( *Exante sheepishly fished out of bin* :eek:

Lol! What happened between 2013 and now? ;-)

Sugar is my nemesis. If it wasn't for that I would have had the dream body long ago
 
Lol! What happened between 2013 and now? ;-)

Sugar is my nemesis. If it wasn't for that I would have had the dream body long ago


Gradually slipped back into old (very bad) habits, gained weight rather than lost it! :D No willpower, see ;)

You're right about sugar - it's evil and I love it :eek:
 
Gradually slipped back into old (very bad) habits, gained weight rather than lost it! :D No willpower, see ;) You're right about sugar - it's evil and I love it :eek:

You've just described the sort of man I always seem to be attracted to *rolls eyes*

Well welcome back and you're following exante?
 
just logged on to the pc and can see your stats - assuming they're up to date, you're 4stone lighter than where you started so that's a very good thing!
 
You've just described the sort of man I always seem to be attracted to *rolls eyes*

Well welcome back and you're following exante?


Thanks, and yes Exante is back on the menu. Just shakes, and only for six weeks to see what happens.

just logged on to the pc and can see your stats - assuming they're up to date, you're 4stone lighter than where you started so that's a very good thing!


Thanks for that, yes at least it didn't all go back on (would've needed an extension on the house if it had). Still a fair bit to go, but no huge hurry :D

Are you doing the intermittent fasting thing? Is that you at target now? If so, then :happy096:
 
Not bad progress this time on Exante - four weeks in, a bit of cheating here and there, but a respectable 14lbs off.

I'll try to concentrate on sticking more strictly to the VLCD for the next four weeks, and go for another 14lbs - maybe it's not achievable, but there's nothing to lose (except the weight) :D
 
The last two weeks I've been pretty strictly only having meal replacement packs, and it's worked wonders.

It's also easier as it temporarily removes the source of my addiction, i.e. food :D

I know it's not a sustainable programme, and real food will have to be introduced at a later stage, and that's when the real work will need to begin.

Anyway, after some initial blips where I couldn't stop snacking, I've now dropped 18lbs in 5 weeks, and am on course to reach target by October or thereabouts ;)


EDIT: I've decided to carry on beyond six weeks since I'm finding it easier than I thought I would - I'll do it until around mid-June, go on holiday, then see where I am at the beginning of July...
 
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