Time for a change after 15 years of Neglecting Health

ronan45

Where to start after neglecting my body for 15 years
Hi All. So Im just turned 35 and have finally copped on that Im on a very Slippery slope. I was doing some research in the long term effects of alcohol and eating crap and I am a candidate for major health problems.(thats IF i dont have something allready that i have not noticed I hope not) I have basically eaten fast food / Microwave meals and breakfast rolls since I was 18. It was a rare weekend I didnt binge drink at least twice and i Mean Binge 20 pints or 3/4 litre of Vodka plus 2 or 3 cans. Actually I cant believe I am not bigger considering my lifestyle. I have done no exercise either in this period.
Its taken its toll .... Im hitting on 17 stone and im only 5 f11. Im bloated, cheeks are red from drink.Bad skin. My hair aint the best. Can anyone point me in the direction for some sort of easy detox / diet. My only Problem is I have No clue in the kitchen . What would be an easy diet regime for someone who is not the best with Culinary Skills. Simple Yet effective, . My OH is gonna give me a hand with it. Any tips or advice would be welcome. Total Newbie to health and nutrition. I have totally CUT out the drink now and there are no more frozen pizzas or fast food passing my lips!

EileenG

Congrats on making the decision to get healthy.

Cutting out the drink is the biggest thing you can do. Cutting out that 20 pints is going to take close to 4000 calories out of your diet.

After that, concentrate on fresh food. The good news is that it's easier than you think. Keep half a dozen boiled eggs in the fridge for if you are hungry. Eggs are quality food, and no-one binges on them.

It's as easy to throw a piece of salmon or steak on the pan and a pile of broccoli or cauliflower or spinach in a pot as it is to microwave food, especially with all the partically cook, stand, recook, stir etc. Get a good non-stick frying pan with a glass lid, and you'll be amazed at how much of your food will cook in it with no trouble.

Don't worry about calories. Just eat fresh whole foods, cut out (or down) on sugar, and eat when you are hungry.

Have you never cooked, or can you do basic stuff like grill a steak or scramble eggs?

xgtdec

Hey There

A few weeks ago i did a great detox using epsom salts, olive oil and grapfruit juice, will clear you out 100%, would you be interested or is it something a little more gentle your after?

marathonic

Make sure to get your fruit and veg. Aim for 2 pieces of fruit per day (most fruit contains sugar so, unless you are very selective with what fruit you eat, you should limit it to two pieces). Eat as much veg as you like.

I find that, if I do a weekly shop and buy fresh veg, a lot of it ends up going off and the bin. For this reason, I can HIGHLY recommend those frozen bags of individually wrapped vegetables that you can steam in the microwave. They’ve kept me away from less nutritious foods more times than I care to remember. You can even take a bag out of the freezer in the morning and bring it to work if there’s a microwave there. They also allow you to have an assortment of veg with your dinner without the hassle of cleaning up any pots.

After that, it’s a matter of deciding what to have with them – tins of tuna are handy when you’re really stuck for time. Other options include any type of unbreaded fish (salmon, mackerel, etc) or lean meat (pork chops, lamb, steak, chicken, etc). Try to avoid fat-laden or salt-laden sauces and opt for herbs and spices instead.

Pixie Girl

Hi and welcome! Congrats on deciding to get healthy and cutting out the booze and fast food... thats definitely a good start!

Try to cut out processed foods such as white bread and pasta, crisps/chocolate, frozen meals and sugary breakfast cereals.

If you can't cook can I suggest you invest in a steamer.... its so easy to use and you can steam almost anything, chicken, fish, vegetables, etc. They are very handy!

HellFireClub

I'm the same age as you OP and am making the very same changes. My weight peaked at nearly 18 stone a few years ago, I'm down to 15 3/4 stone now or just a bit above that. The proper eating I'm finding is really about preparation. My lifestyle in the past meant that I completely missed breakfast, would grab a coffee on the road, a bag of crisps or something for lunch, then by the time I'd get home I'd be starving and I'd be ordering Domino's Pizza's or a curry or a Roma Lunchbox.

It was this destructive eating cycle that was stopping me getting into a proper exercise regime. I've disciplined myself now to go down to the supermarket every evening and make sure I have what I need for a healthy breakfast, lunch & dinner the next day. Breakfast could be grapefruit & a yogurt, a banana and some grapes, lunch could be a bowl of soup and a sandwich and dinner could be a shepards pie or a simple fish based dish.

When I get the above right (as I think I have now), I'm not narky through sheer hunger or else lethargic after pigging out on take away in the evening, so I can go out for a 5K run every evening now before I do dinner. I've put all this in place in a week and I've managed to stick to it.

The last part of it (which I need to do to lose weight), is I'm completely off the drink for the last 2 weeks, which is no small achievement for a lad who would have been fond of a few cans during the week or a bottle of wine on a Wednesday to "break the week"!

Now that I've knocked that on the head, I don't miss it at all.

Fair play to you for realising that your health is your wealth, upwards and onwards OP!

HellFireClub

Pixie Girl wrote: »

Hi and welcome! Congrats on deciding to get healthy and cutting out the booze and fast food... thats definitely a good start!

Try to cut out processed foods such as white bread and pasta, crisps/chocolate, frozen meals and sugary breakfast cereals.

If you can't cook can I suggest you invest in a steamer.... its so easy to use and you can steam almost anything, chicken, fish, vegetables, etc. They are very handy!

Another tip OP, I recently moved house (I was sharing before so couldn't take the kitchen utensils with me!), and my new house didn't have a frying pan!

Previously, everything I cooked was fried in a frying pan. My mates wife suggested that I get a roll of tin foil, and you can wrap anything up in a sheet of it and stick it in the oven and bake it for 30 minutes, a portion of lean meat, fresh fish, and when you do this, you cut out all the fat that's needed for frying and also you don't have a frying pan that needs to be asked, just throw out the tin foil lol!

dahat

Hi, well done on taking a big step in your life!!..

Best tip around cooking is too buy a steamer,20-40 euro you could get a reasonable one for.
Just prepare your veg and potatoe if you are having them,bung them in and hey presto!!!
Meat can also be cooked here too but i tend to grill or oven cook mine,wrap in tin foil or put in a pyrex dish.Just don;t over complicate things starting out.

ronan45

EileenG wrote: »

Congrats on making the decision to get healthy.

Cutting out the drink is the biggest thing you can do. Cutting out that 20 pints is going to take close to 4000 calories out of your diet.

After that, concentrate on fresh food. The good news is that it's easier than you think. Keep half a dozen boiled eggs in the fridge for if you are hungry. Eggs are quality food, and no-one binges on them.

It's as easy to throw a piece of salmon or steak on the pan and a pile of broccoli or cauliflower or spinach in a pot as it is to microwave food, especially with all the partically cook, stand, recook, stir etc. Get a good non-stick frying pan with a glass lid, and you'll be amazed at how much of your food will cook in it with no trouble.

Don't worry about calories. Just eat fresh whole foods, cut out (or down) on sugar, and eat when you are hungry.

Have you never cooked, or can you do basic stuff like grill a steak or scramble eggs?

I cant cook at all allthough my OH is on hand and ready to help me in that aspect with packed lunches as well. I Have such a taste for PIzzas, I can eat 2 Goodfellows deep pan in an evening:o slurped down with a can of coke or 2. I also notice I just eat for the sheer hell of it. I find myself at night heading downstairs looking for biccys. then i stop to think and say "Jees Im ot even hungry! Ok Ill get some hard boiled eggs to the ready. I have a George Forman also would that be as good as the frying pan

ronan45

xgtdec wrote: »

Hey There

A few weeks ago i did a great detox using epsom salts, olive oil and grapfruit juice, will clear you out 100%, would you be interested or is it something a little more gentle your after?

Sounds good have you a link to the details

ronan45

marathonic wrote: »

Make sure to get your fruit and veg. Aim for 2 pieces of fruit per day (most fruit contains sugar so, unless you are very selective with what fruit you eat, you should limit it to two pieces). Eat as much veg as you like.

I find that, if I do a weekly shop and buy fresh veg, a lot of it ends up going off and the bin. For this reason, I can HIGHLY recommend those frozen bags of individually wrapped vegetables that you can steam in the microwave. They’ve kept me away from less nutritious foods more times than I care to remember. You can even take a bag out of the freezer in the morning and bring it to work if there’s a microwave there. They also allow you to have an assortment of veg with your dinner without the hassle of cleaning up any pots.

After that, it’s a matter of deciding what to have with them – tins of tuna are handy when you’re really stuck for time. Other options include any type of unbreaded fish (salmon, mackerel, etc) or lean meat (pork chops, lamb, steak, chicken, etc). Try to avoid fat-laden or salt-laden sauces and opt for herbs and spices instead.

Yeah I got loads of fruit and I noticed myself eating like 5 mandarins then 2 oranges and an apple in one day i was totally negelcting the Veg which I will rectify with tonights shop. The Microwave veg bags is a great idea thanks. Nice info will defo take on board:):)

xgtdec

ronan45 wrote: »

Sounds good have you a link to the details

Fair warning on this one...when i say it clears you out....it really and truly does, it aint nice at all...but it does the job!!

Preparation day:
Perhaps a friday or Sat as you will need to remain indoors for the start of the following day.

Start with a fruit only breakfast, mixed berries or up to 3 pieces of fruit of your choice.

Lunch: Vegetables only no proteins or fats can be taken in. e.g. brocolli mixed greens or substantial salad.

You will not eat again for the rest of the day so do expect to be very hungry. It is important no matter how hungry you may feel not to eat anything. Its also a good idea not to train on the preparation day as this will only increase your appetite further.

About 6pm first dose of epsom salts, 2 tablespoons in a glass of warm water mixed thoroughly, just knock it back.
Some people have diarrhea within an hour after the first dose others dont but the chances are you wont feel great either way.

Just before bedtime is when you are to take the olive oil and grapefruit juice. If you have not made a bowel movement at this stage try to do so before this next step. It is important that you are prepared for bed as you should lie on your back immediately after drinking it. Mix 150ml extra virgin olive oil with the juice of 2 squeezed grapefruits. Make sure it is well mixed and drink it back then lie down in bed on your back, relax and fall asleep.

Upon waking immediately take the second dose of epsom salts again 2 tablespoons mixed in warm water. Depending on the person the cleansing process may take a couple of hours to start. During the day you may eat as you would normally and make sure to drink plenty of water as you may become dehydrated.

ronan45

Pixie Girl wrote: »

Hi and welcome! Congrats on deciding to get healthy and cutting out the booze and fast food... thats definitely a good start!

Try to cut out processed foods such as white bread and pasta, crisps/chocolate, frozen meals and sugary breakfast cereals.

If you can't cook can I suggest you invest in a steamer.... its so easy to use and you can steam almost anything, chicken, fish, vegetables, etc. They are very handy!

You know my mum got me a steamer 5 years ago which is put at the back of the press! Im dusting it off in a few hours its time it got some serious use.:)
I am a devil for proccessed foods. Typical day

Morning 2 x White Bread with Copious amounts of Dairy Gold REAL Butter
Mid Monring. Breckfast roll and 1 x coke followed by tea with kit kat
Dinner Good fellows pizza with some beans or chips another can of coke. Im cutting them all out maybe a treat on weekend maybe of a saturday

RedXIV

Hey OP, on the diet thing myself at the moment and I know your pain. Like yourself, I could easily stash away a double takeaway and then eat something an hour later.

Don't have much advice like the others, as I'm still learning too, but if it helps, I find knocking back a pint of water to help with any hunger cravings. if you're still hungry after it, then eat something, but for the first while, if you are like me, it'll be enough to keep you away from food for a while.

Best of luck with it mate!

ronan45

HellFireClub wrote: »

I'm the same age as you OP and am making the very same changes. My weight peaked at nearly 18 stone a few years ago, I'm down to 15 3/4 stone now or just a bit above that. The proper eating I'm finding is really about preparation. My lifestyle in the past meant that I completely missed breakfast, would grab a coffee on the road, a bag of crisps or something for lunch, then by the time I'd get home I'd be starving and I'd be ordering Domino's Pizza's or a curry or a Roma Lunchbox.

It was this destructive eating cycle that was stopping me getting into a proper exercise regime. I've disciplined myself now to go down to the supermarket every evening and make sure I have what I need for a healthy breakfast, lunch & dinner the next day. Breakfast could be grapefruit & a yogurt, a banana and some grapes, lunch could be a bowl of soup and a sandwich and dinner could be a shepards pie or a simple fish based dish.

When I get the above right (as I think I have now), I'm not narky through sheer hunger or else lethargic after pigging out on take away in the evening, so I can go out for a 5K run every evening now before I do dinner. I've put all this in place in a week and I've managed to stick to it.

The last part of it (which I need to do to lose weight), is I'm completely off the drink for the last 2 weeks, which is no small achievement for a lad who would have been fond of a few cans during the week or a bottle of wine on a Wednesday to "break the week"!

Now that I've knocked that on the head, I don't miss it at all.

Fair play to you for realising that your health is your wealth, upwards and onwards OP!

Im quite like that you sound like my brother lol ! How have you felt the pangs of leaving the junk food was it hard. Im salvating thinking of a dominoes or a half pounder and curry chips from Romanos. Do you still give yourself the odd treat or have you gone cold turkey? I think I was mainly drinking to kill the monotony of the weekend so ill find myself something to do also. Wow 5 K run thats bloody great fair play. I dont really like running i tried it once and was in bits when i got to the top of the road literally. Have not ran since secondary school or any exercise for that matter

ronan45

RedXIV wrote: »

Hey OP, on the diet thing myself at the moment and I know your pain. Like yourself, I could easily stash away a double takeaway and then eat something an hour later.

Don't have much advice like the others, as I'm still learning too, but if it helps, I find knocking back a pint of water to help with any hunger cravings. if you're still hungry after it, then eat something, but for the first while, if you are like me, it'll be enough to keep you away from food for a while.

Best of luck with it mate!

Thanks Red:) Yeah I keep a bottle of water in the car and at my office desk and by my bed it does kill off the hunger allright i can say that

readyletsgo

ronan45 wrote: »

Im quite like that you sound like my brother lol ! How have you felt the pangs of leaving the junk food was it hard. Im salvating thinking of a dominoes or a half pounder and curry chips from Romanos. Do you still give yourself the odd treat or have you gone cold turkey? I think I was mainly drinking to kill the monotony of the weekend so ill find myself something to do also. Wow 5 K run thats bloody great fair play. I dont really like running i tried it once and was in bits when i got to the top of the road literally. Have not ran since secondary school or any exercise for that matter

I haven't run since like 5th year in school, like 13 years ago or so, but started this easy jogging/running program last week, starting week 2 tonight. I'm sure everyone on here has heard about it but no harm mentioning it again, it gets you out at a starters pase(sp?) and builds you up to run more over time. Worth a look into if your interested. Heres the link http://www.c25k.com/ have a look, see what you think.

Best of luck OP, but you seem to know what you want right now so stick with it!!!


EDIT:

Also some great advice for cooking different foods on here, not the best myself, just cook carrots and bit of fish in oven or pork chop on George Foreman. Can I cook liver in the oven in tin foil, same as fish or meat? Anyone any idea on how high a temperature and for how long? Just frying liver at the moment, prob not the best way, but its lovely!

Pixie Girl

ronan45 wrote: »

You know my mum got me a steamer 5 years ago which is put at the back of the press! Im dusting it off in a few hours its time it got some serious use.:)
I am a devil for proccessed foods. Typical day

Morning 2 x White Bread with Copious amounts of Dairy Gold REAL Butter
Mid Monring. Breckfast roll and 1 x coke followed by tea with kit kat
Dinner Good fellows pizza with some beans or chips another can of coke. Im cutting them all out maybe a treat on weekend maybe of a saturday

Wow that is some amount of food.... easily 3,000 calories a day made up of mostly carbs and fat (very little protein). Have you calculated how many calories you need now to lose weight (use the stickies on this forum)? What is your typical days diet now?

RyanTubs

Ronan obviously you're aware of how disastrous that diet is. You are not wrong that if you don't change it now it will almost definitely lead to heart disease or type 2 diabetes amongst other possibilities.

The good news is once you start taking your diet seriously that weight will fly off. Take inspiration from similar threads here.

As for the diet, the majority is covered already. I'll just go through what I think are the most important changes to make.

- Eggs need to become your new favourite food IMO there is no better breakfast. Put three/four in a bowl in the morning, whisk them and place in a microwave. 1000W for 2 minutes, 800 for 1:45 etc. I guarantee that if you start this you will have no hunger pangs for the subsequent 3-4 hours. If you find it too plain, add bacon or veg or both.

- Cut out the takeways completely! Your treat at the weekend could be a pack of taytos and one slice of pizza but those microwave meals/pizzas are @500 kcals a pop so eating two even just once a week is going to hamper progress.

- You'll find cooking to be very easy. It's all about preperation and timing for the most part. Take grilled chicken/steak/pork/turkey etc. All of these meats can be cooked in 20 mins on grill - v high heat at start, turn them after 4 mins, after another 4 mins reduce heat and come back in ~12 mins and they should be done. With fish I use the oven - just a different switch on your conventional oven 20 mins at 200C in tin foil. There aren't too many easier and more delicious things to cook than baked fish imo.

Veg requires access to a pot and water Boil any veg you can get your hands on for ~5 mins and you're done. You now have 1 pot to clean post-dinner and a healthy and delicious meal. Veg I eat are brocolli and cauliflower (filling), peas in pod, corn, carrots, etc. For flavour buy ground spices (pepper, cajun, chillis, etc.) and lash them on the salmon. You can use soy sauce too or make your own sauce (packaged sauces are v high in carbs).

- Snacks are perfectly fine throughout the day, in fact they're recommended. You should eat roughly every 2/3 hours to avoid eating big meals in one sitting. Munch on nuts (unsalted cashews, peanuts, walnuts, pistachios), rice cakes, carrot sticks, fruit, etc.

- Drink loads of water throughout the day - at least 2 litres. This will keep you full and detox the body.

- Finally, find an activity you enjoy. Whether it be walking a beach, cycling, jogging it is worth doing some exercise to keep the brain healthy. Never listen to anyone who tells you to join a gym and the weight will drop. It is all about diet. It won't be easy for the first week I'll guarantee you that. But when you get past the initial cravings and start to wake up feeling more alive, energetic, healthier, etc. you won't look back.

Best of luck!

RyanTubs

Ronan obviously you're aware of how disastrous that diet is. You are not wrong that if you don't change it now it will almost definitely lead to heart disease or type 2 diabetes amongst other possibilities.

The good news is once you start taking your diet seriously that weight will fly off. Take inspiration from similar threads here.

As for the diet, the majority is covered already. I'll just go through what I think are the most important changes to make.

- Eggs need to become your new favourite food IMO there is no better breakfast. Put three/four in a bowl in the morning, whisk them and place in a microwave. 1000W for 2 minutes, 800 for 1:45 etc. I guarantee that if you start this you will have no hunger pangs for the subsequent 3-4 hours. If you find it too plain, add bacon or veg or both.

- Cut out the takeways completely! Your treat at the weekend could be a pack of taytos and one slice of pizza but those microwave meals/pizzas are @500 kcals a pop so eating two even just once a week is going to hamper progress.

- You'll find cooking to be very easy. It's all about preperation and timing for the most part. Take grilled chicken/steak/pork/turkey etc. All of these meats can be cooked in 20 mins on grill - v high heat at start, turn them after 4 mins, after another 4 mins reduce heat and come back in ~12 mins and they should be done. With fish I use the oven - just a different switch on your conventional oven 20 mins at 200C in tin foil. There aren't too many easier and more delicious things to cook than baked fish imo.

Veg requires access to a pot and water Boil any veg you can get your hands on for ~5 mins and you're done. You now have 1 pot to clean post-dinner and a healthy and delicious meal. Veg I eat are brocolli and cauliflower (filling), peas in pod, corn, carrots, etc. For flavour buy ground spices (pepper, cajun, chillis, etc.) and lash them on the salmon. You can use soy sauce too or make your own sauce (packaged sauces are v high in carbs).

- Snacks are perfectly fine throughout the day, in fact they're recommended. You should eat roughly every 2/3 hours to avoid eating big meals in one sitting. Munch on nuts (unsalted cashews, peanuts, walnuts, pistachios), rice cakes, carrot sticks, fruit, etc.

- Drink loads of water throughout the day - at least 2 litres. This will keep you full and detox the body.

- Finally, find an activity you enjoy. Whether it be walking a beach, cycling, jogging it is worth doing some exercise to keep the brain healthy. Never listen to anyone who tells you to join a gym and the weight will drop. It is all about diet. It won't be easy for the first week I'll guarantee you that. But when you get past the initial cravings and start to wake up feeling more alive, energetic, healthier, etc. you won't look back.

Best of luck!

ronan45

xgtdec wrote: »

Fair warning on this one...when i say it clears you out....it really and truly does, it aint nice at all...but it does the job!!

Preparation day:
Perhaps a friday or Sat as you will need to remain indoors for the start of the following day.

Start with a fruit only breakfast, mixed berries or up to 3 pieces of fruit of your choice.

Lunch: Vegetables only no proteins or fats can be taken in. e.g. brocolli mixed greens or substantial salad.

You will not eat again for the rest of the day so do expect to be very hungry. It is important no matter how hungry you may feel not to eat anything. Its also a good idea not to train on the preparation day as this will only increase your appetite further.

About 6pm first dose of epsom salts, 2 tablespoons in a glass of warm water mixed thoroughly, just knock it back.
Some people have diarrhea within an hour after the first dose others dont but the chances are you wont feel great either way.

Just before bedtime is when you are to take the olive oil and grapefruit juice. If you have not made a bowel movement at this stage try to do so before this next step. It is important that you are prepared for bed as you should lie on your back immediately after drinking it. Mix 150ml extra virgin olive oil with the juice of 2 squeezed grapefruits. Make sure it is well mixed and drink it back then lie down in bed on your back, relax and fall asleep.

Upon waking immediately take the second dose of epsom salts again 2 tablespoons mixed in warm water. Depending on the person the cleansing process may take a couple of hours to start. During the day you may eat as you would normally and make sure to drink plenty of water as you may become dehydrated.

This should be fun lol Ill give it a whirl tommorow. Is it like this (see below)

http://www.livestrong.com/article/127974-epsom-salt-olive-oil/

UnknownSpecies

That whole epsom salts thing doesn't sound right at all! Surely giving yourself diarrhea can't be good? Any weight that you'd lose would just be water weight, which you will gain again when you rehydrate yourself. Open to correction though...

Newaglish

There's actually some decent advice in this thread but sadly the OP appears to have latched on to a faddy diarrhea diet.

Healthy eating is about eating fresh, natural foods that come from farms, not factories and laboratories. Eat those, count your calories and do some exercise. You don't need to give yourself an enema.

metamorphosis

Diarrhea is stool, and water - which will be replaced once you stop having the poohs.

Weight loss is all down to common sense. Use your common sense and you will get on grand

Westernman

ronan45 wrote: »

Where to start after neglecting my body for 15 years
Hi All. So Im just turned 35 and have finally copped on that Im on a very Slippery slope. I was doing some research in the long term effects of alcohol and eating crap and I am a candidate for major health problems.(thats IF i dont have something allready that i have not noticed I hope not) I have basically eaten fast food / Microwave meals and breakfast rolls since I was 18. It was a rare weekend I didnt binge drink at least twice and i Mean Binge 20 pints or 3/4 litre of Vodka plus 2 or 3 cans. Actually I cant believe I am not bigger considering my lifestyle. I have done no exercise either in this period.
Its taken its toll .... Im hitting on 17 stone and im only 5 f11. Im bloated, cheeks are red from drink.Bad skin. My hair aint the best. Can anyone point me in the direction for some sort of easy detox / diet. My only Problem is I have No clue in the kitchen . What would be an easy diet regime for someone who is not the best with Culinary Skills. Simple Yet effective, . My OH is gonna give me a hand with it. Any tips or advice would be welcome. Total Newbie to health and nutrition. I have totally CUT out the drink now and there are no more frozen pizzas or fast food passing my lips!

Fair play to yea its never too late to cop on that you are what you eat. My advice would to do it gradually don't give up everything at once you will be very unwell and it might put you totally off the idea.

Start by cutting out the big offenders like all drinks including soft drinks diet drinks and stuff like that. Then move onto say white bread and try eliminate it totally and once happy with that include something else and eventually you will get there. Most of all if you relapse don't be hard on yourself as most of these foods are addictive.

Many believe for good health we should not eat any processed foods at all and eat only green foods. Look into sprouting where you could have a small jar with some mung beans or other seed sprouting which could be eaten with a homemade dressing which may be used to ease late nite munchies and also very good for you.