New Lifestyle

Aurther Hugh

I've been on the Atkins diet or using it to control my weight for a couple of years now and life is no longer worth the living. Previously I've been mainly eating protein and not a lot of it either, and then breaking it for the odd sliceo of toast at the weekend. I'm very slim and am not heavy by nature. I've decided to free myself from the shackles of nocarbs but am really worried that even by eating healthy the weight will pile on. I don't exercise at all regularly, I've been pretty lethargic for a while now as a result of a bad diet.

Any suggestions on how I could kick-start my metabolism, diet and exercise wise? How frequently should I be exercising? I really want to eat slad, fruit and veg...gonna steer clear of bread and potatoes as best I can too, how many calories should I be aiming for?

I'm pretty terrified of failing and ending up eating eggs for therest of my life

Sangre

Well some simple rules are too avoid all white food, like white bread/pasta/rice and substitute them for their brown counterparts.

Try to have six medium meals a day rather than 3 large ones, it will slightly increase metabolism but will also tend to reduce snacking.

Don't try to starve yourself as it may slow down your metabolism.

Drink lots of water, it can be an appetite supressant and just great for you overall.

We can't suggest calories for you without height or weight but I think the general guideline for woman is roughly 2000.

Start jogging or cycyling or swimming 3 times a week, nothing extreme but just enough to raise the heart level. It will stop you feeling lethargic during the day, will help you sleep better and will burn off calories.

Magic Monkey

This article on Carbohydrate Cycling has good advice. Not strictly ketogenic like Atkins, as it includes low Glycemic Index carbs, so that gives you some flexibility. And an odd slice of toast at the weekend won't turn you into the Michelin man anytime soon.

You said you were lethargic - was this from after eating carbs while on Atkins?

Aurther Hugh

Magic Monkey wrote:

This article on Carbohydrate Cycling has good advice. Not strictly ketogenic like Atkins, as it includes low Glycemic Index carbs, so that gives you some flexibility. And an odd slice of toast at the weekend won't turn you into the Michelin man anytime soon.

You said you were lethargic - was this from after eating carbs while on Atkins?

Yeah to be honest, I've been tired/headachy/depressed most of the time, but too afraid to eat normally for fear of not being able to control it properly. I'm quite fearful of putting on any weight.

Sangre

Then I think the problem isn't your diet or weight but your low self esteem and also you're too image conscious (this is evident from more than this thread)

Aurther Hugh

I'm not sure I follow...

aoa321

why don't you try Weight Watchers? It's a great way of controlling your food intake, every food gets allocated a certain number of points and you try to keep below a target every day.

eg most blokes could get away with about 28 points per day, and there is 1 point in a jaffa cake, so you could eat 28 jaffa cakes in a day.

The thing is you can "save" up your points, so if you have only used 18 points per day during the week (difficult) you could use the extra 10 points per day to have a fish and chips and a couple of beers on Saturday night - there are no foods out of bounds as long as you have made enough points available.

You don't have to attand meetings, you can get information on-line and in the post, and you sound like you have good self-discipline (and a bit pissed off about what you can and cannot eat) so I think it might really work for you.

By the way I have nothing to do with Weight Watchers, I have never attanded a meeting and I have learned everything I know about this stuff through a pack that WW posted to me and from my wife (who does attand meetings).

When I am self-disciplined, it's a great way of measuring my food intake and controlling my weight without living like a monk - and when I'm not self-disciplined nothing works very well and I just get fatter !!!

Magic Monkey

Aurther Hugh wrote:

Yeah to be honest, I've been tired/headachy/depressed most of the time, but too afraid to eat normally for fear of not being able to control it properly. I'm quite fearful of putting on any weight.

And you've been doing this for a few years? You've got great determination, but if it's having such a bad effect on you, it would be wise to stop. It's not worth the knock-on effects it can cause to the other more important facets of your life, like family, relationships, friends, etc.
The best thing to do would be to book an appointment with a good nutritionist, explain your situation, and get professional advice about diet, exercise, and what lifestyle changes you need to make. Best of luck.

Mendosa

Have you ever tried using fat burners? They can speed up the metabolism as well as giving you plenty of energy.

Ajnag

Kinda proves what I suspected about atkin's all along ie very unhealthy.

My experiance comes from the other end, where instead of going to an extreme, a few alterations made a world of difference. First up, being vegitarian most of the time cuts out a lot of fats and oils( Id be intrested in others views on this). Second being able to cook in a way that is both healthy and tasty. The reason diets suck, is that on most food becomes a nasty experiance doing nothing to encourage you to stay at it. Learn how to cook - if you gain an understanding of food then youll know how to combine good taste's and nutrition. Third Minimalise Oils/fats and avoid all processed foods when trying to lose weight.

Heres a favourite: http://www.recipezaar.com/23027 Use fresh ginger instead and add some spinach at the end. Serve with a dollop of greek yougert and a bit of lime pickle.


On top of that if what sangre suggests is true, then stop worrying about weight and prioritise your general health above all else. No point in lookin well if ya feel like shíte all the time. On that note, Vitimins/minerals and other supplements to suit your needs help. If anything its worth it just to build your immune system and avoid the smaller illness's like colds and flu.

poobum

seriously Aurther Hugh, if you have the self control to go on atkins and stay on it you do realise its easier to just eat normal and exercise! taks less self controll to just eat right and do the bit of cardio!
and staying on atkins iv been told isnt good to do for prolonged periods!(not to sure how true this is!)

windowgazer

Arthur, you sound like you have issues with food. Most people who do are quite controlling in general and always believe the end (being skinny) justifies the means (being tired, depressed, unhappy).
I did an atkins-type diet for a year and I became so depressed and unhappy that I lost friends and put my long-term relationship in jeopardy. Things had to change.
So now I eat healithily (still shying away from bad carbs) and excercise three times a week. I've buckets of energy and have only had one cold in over 18 months. I still like to control things, but not obsessively and I've used my self-discipline to get fitter, not skinnier. I'm only a little bigger (few pounds) now than I was then.. but I'm soooooo much healthier. You need to break the circle and get happy again. Try it.

BaZmO*

windowgazer wrote:

So now I eat healithily (still shying away from bad carbs) and excercise three times a week

You are not going to get a better bit of advice when it comes to either loosing weight or maintaining a specific weight.

There is no big secret or a quick fix to loosing weight, eating healthily and excercising is the only way to do it safely and effectivly, everything else is just a gimmick.

B.

varians

I've tried it and lost 2.5 stone.
Which was great until i went back to normal eating.

I piled it all back on and more aswell because the atkins diet wasted a huge lot of muscle.

I am now following the abs diet.
I'm eating a lot of food, exercising 3 times a week and losing a pile of weight doing it.

As far as i'm concerned Atkins is not the way to go and i'm speaking from experience

cheers

poobum

atkins realy only works while you keep on it the sam as a muscle building plan you do the exact opposite of what you tried so hard to gain much so fast compared to what it took to maintain it! once you have the figure you want you can just do enough to maintain you needent go ovr board anymore!