What to do AFTER the weight loss....The Science Bit...

All I'm doing so far is cutting out bread, pasta and pots but being sensible with everything else.

This is a new situation for me as I have put the weight on gradually over 5 years since stopping work. I never had probs before but having all day access to the fridge is hard!!

I am going to eat as I used to when I reach target then hopefully will stay down.
 
Im going to try and stay low carb... but man do I love carbs! Breakfast is my main concern... toast or cereal is the norm, easy to grab breakfast (and I am always up late!) and I hate egg.. I cant eat a cooked breakfast first thing... wouldnt have the time and couldnt really stomach cooked breakfast, anyone got any ideas for breakfasts?
 
SammyE said:
Im going to try and stay low carb... but man do I love carbs! Breakfast is my main concern... toast or cereal is the norm, easy to grab breakfast (and I am always up late!) and I hate egg.. I cant eat a cooked breakfast first thing... wouldnt have the time and couldnt really stomach cooked breakfast, anyone got any ideas for breakfasts?
Click to expand...

muesli is a really good one, with plenty of nuts/fruit in it. team with some full fat natural yoghurt and berries and youre in.

or, cold meats, cheeses, cucumber etc in summer is good.

porridge with fruit/honey is fine when your maintaining, provided its whole unrefined oats, none of this powdered ready break crud!

easiest way to think is the natural food is always the best.
 
when youre at maintenance weight, the oats are a pure and natural form of carbohydrate that actually contain alot of protein to.

its refined stuff you want to stay away from.
 
So Paula, As you are our resident self confessed expert...any insights on WHEN to eat. This might sound like a really stupid question but as you have said regarding 'professional bodies healthy foods etc' which are wrong what about the when to eat bit?

You always get told to never skip breakfast. Have 3 meals a day. Never skip a meal. But then you also get told to only eat when you are hungry. Then to never allow yourself to get hungry as thats when you binge. CONFUSED!! lol :)

I have never really been one for breakfast and typically I am a night time eater. On exante its great as you can have your packs whenever you like. Although I have half a pack for breakfast, if I was eating I wouldnt do this.

Sorry for the ramble, but just wondered if anyone has any thoughts on this?..xxx
 
oooh good question Miss Mac!!

there is an old saying

breakfast like a king
lunch like a lord
dinner like a pauper

essentially eat most early on, breakfast is so important to get your system going again as when you are asleep our metabolic rate slows to a crawl, minimal use of calories like hibernation for animals. Eating a protein and fats rich meal early on is the best way.

There is also ZERO evidence for 5 a day. Try and find a study that supports it. There really isnt one. Not a single one, plenty to show its complete tosh mind you!
 
I also like looking into the science of healthy eating and obesity. Paula, I'm confused when you say "healthy eating is a load of crock" :confused:because what you described as your maintenance plan is a great example of a healthy diet. :)

I don't think the 5-a-day campaign is completely a load of rubbish, just misunderstood. I believe the '5-a-day' promotion is to encourage people to replace junk food with healthy alternatives (note, not 5-fruit/veg a day on top of the junk food they already eat!). I don't believe the primary message the NHS is trying to send is that it will help to lose weight, however weight loss may be a side effect if people chose to replace junk with fruits and veg.

You must have your carbs, but it's all about moderation. So I'm not saying one can't have a piece of wholemeal toast in the morning. :p Too many of us not only eat excessive carbs but the wrong type of carbs such as those processed in pizzas etc hence removing all the nutritional benefits.

In my opinion, maintainance is all about calories in and calories out. Excessive calorie intake will lead to weight gain, end of. Even more importantly, I strongly believe exercise is the key to maintenance and keeping the weight down.
 
hey lozza, i urge you to read any books by Dr Barry Groves over the summer, being a med student you will find it very interesting indeed... i whole heartedly believe that a diet as close to that of our cavemen ancestors is the best.

bread is the root of all evil imo! as are grains like wheat etc themselves.
 
Would something like bran flakes be a better option or is that refined carbs still?
 
For me I know that some of the unrefined carbs, like the oats also don't really agree with me, so I think I will be steering clear of them. I may do an elimination diet approach to introducing foods back when I get to refeeding, just to find out, food by food, which ones really work for me. I know my asthma is much better at the moment staying away from them all, and oats in particular is one of the things that has triggered it in the past. I think for me, that generally high carb foods in any form are not particularly good for my system. I think for each person it's finding their own way.
 
Well Im with pizzle on this. Im not going to say Im not going to eat X Y or Z

But then Im not going to follow ANY diet, Im going to be sensible about eating, like 'normal' people do. Sensible choices but if there are days when I want to go out for a pizza or chinese, then I will, if I want toast for breakfast then I will.

Ill keep having regular weigh ins, maybe not weekly but certainly at least monthly and if I see any lbs pop on Ill nip it in the bud.
 
I've been reading Neris and India's idiot proof diet. The book is a great read and really addresses a lot of the mental stuff associated with food and oveteating.

Anyway they out line a diet which in the early days is similar to the Atkins diet. As the book goes on it explains about introducing other foods and to a point here you can enjoy chocolate, alcohol and carbs. Of course all in moderation. I plan on using a eating plan similar to theirs and will most probably use it for referring as the first two weeks has virtually no carbs.
 
i know someone who did this diet, she said it was very good and she did lose weight but she didn't stick to it.
 
Essentially weight maintenance comes down to energy in equaling energy out (in this case the energy is in the form of calories). No getting around thermodynamics unfortunately. Whichever way makes it easiest for you to stay in energy balance (low carb, low fat, etc) is the best way to go.
 
well said above!! you guys might try to stay low carb... but i did that years ago as a plan to maintain and its still so so restrictive to live that sort of life style forever! so this time im going to try moderate ((not high)) grams of carbs and calorie count... think it would suit me as a person better x
 
Good post!

I plan on keeping my carbs low long term, not necessarily staying to a ketogenic level but also will try to eat a more 'natural' diet avoiding processed crap as much as possible.

You are so true when you say about following what our ancestors did. It's all about eating the foods that were put on this planet for us to eat. If you think about cave men going out and about hunting for their food, they were esentially eating a low carb diet most of the time and did not eat a set number of meals per day etc.

I plan on hitting the 12st mark (ish) and then going back into a new 'normal' way of eating. I will have treats and meals with carbs but will also increase the amount of exercise I do. Then, if I find I put any weight back on above my 12st I'll go ketogenic again for a period of time to control it.

My biggest problem in the past is too much chocolate, biscuits, bread, crackers, crisps etc. I guess by the time I've done three months on this low carb plan my habits will have been reversed (21 days to form/break a habit apparently) so it will be quite easy to not revert back to my old ways.

Slowly re-introducing food will make it feel better than sticking to protein shakes/bars as I do miss the social aspect of sitting and eating with my family, but in the future I will make the correct choices.

At the end of the day, having lost 17lbs in 3 weeks feels fantastic so when I have lost a couple more stone it will really be life changing. I've been in a 'rut' for far too long and think I will enjoy being on the other side of this again and won't be coming back to it again for definite.

Being 4+ stone overweight has had a bigger impact on my life than I would have imagined really and I can't wait to get to 12st again. It truly can be life changing for everybody who follows through on this diet plan and I don't see how anyone would want to risk going back just for the sake of bad food choices over a period of time.

Definitely not for me again!
 
But... at around week 11 for me I have a weeks all inclusive holiday booked so am a little unsure of the best way to approach this.

I would like to stay in ketosis ideally and know this would be possible by eating the right things (any volume for one week only:)) but am not sure whether to take a weeks break and indulge in some carbs without going completely mad.

I should be within maybe 10lbs of my 12st goal by then I hope so I may relax things a bit and then get back into ketosis when I get home and get stuck into exercise more.

Any thoughts on how other people would approach the all inclusive week???

Phil
 
Ooh, I love an all-inclusive! Well, the old face-stuffing me did anyway :eek:

Will it be buffet-style do you know? If so should be pretty easy to go for the cheese/meat options for breakfast, and salads and meats for lunch and dinner. But I'm sure even if you add a few carbs in it won't make too much difference (except the water weigh/ getting back into ketosis fun when you get home!)

If it was me I think I'd need to have a plan that I felt happy with/ still felt like I could enjoy the holiday, or I'd end up rebelling on day 2 and bingeing all week long.
Good luck!
 
Great thread, I reckon lots of people are confused about carbs - I know I am!

I have found it too hard to cut out carbs completely. Firstly, I love them, but secondly it also makes my exercise plan too hard. For example, if I have been "good" for a few days (protein shakes, healthy low-carb dinners), then I find it super hard to go for a run: it feels like I have to wade through a marsh. If I had a cheat meal the night before (big pasta, curry etc), then I can run 6 miles no problem, and I am losing weight fairly quickly despite cheating "severely" once a week.

According to the Abs Diet, carbs are only bad if they are refined, and if you don't use them up - if you don't do any exercise then your body will convert it to fat. So presumably some carbs are ok, preferably as natural as possible?

I am also a bit confused about this though, what are everybody else's experiences?

S x
 
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