Looking for some help to lose weight

Frigga_92 · 03-02-2014 07:57PM

runawaybishop wrote: »

A gluten intolerance wont put weight on you. You said you hadn't lost "much weight" - but what exactly did you lose? If you are losing weight steadily then you are doing fine and should continue. How accurate would you say you are at tracking your calories - do you weigh everything, count oils, drinks etc?

Yes, I know a gluten intolerance won't make you gain weight but I understand it can prevent you from losing weight easily. My sister has this problem and when paired with PCOS it can be a bigger problem.

I lost 1kg in one month, not much at all.

I was very accurate, I accounted for everything and left out nothing.

runawaybishop · 03-02-2014 08:05PM

26sdrawkcab wrote: »

Yes, I know a gluten intolerance won't make you gain weight but I understand it can prevent you from losing weight easily. My sister has this problem and when paired with PCOS it can be a bigger problem.

I lost 1kg in one month, not much at all.

I was very accurate, I accounted for everything and left out nothing.

A gluten intolerance will not stop you losing weight, not sure where you heard that but its not based in fact. By all means cut out gluten and see if you feel better.

1kg a month is grand. Slow sustainable weight loss is what you are after. Cutting out the coke and the chocolate alone is really good progress. Keep doing what you are doing and let us know how you get on after another month.

Frigga_92 · 03-02-2014 08:33PM

runawaybishop wrote: »

A gluten intolerance will not stop you losing weight, not sure where you heard that but its not based in fact. By all means cut out gluten and see if you feel better.

1kg a month is grand. Slow sustainable weight loss is what you are after. Cutting out the coke and the chocolate alone is really good progress. Keep doing what you are doing and let us know how you get on after another month.

That's a bit puzzling as my sister has been told by her G.P. and a Nutritionist her G.P. sent her to that her gluten intolerance and PCOS are what are making it more difficult for her to lose weight. I must mention it to her that they've been giving her incorrect information.

Thanks for that.

runawaybishop · 04-02-2014 12:36AM

26sdrawkcab wrote: »

That's a bit puzzling as my sister has been told by her G.P. and a Nutritionist her G.P. sent her to that her gluten intolerance and PCOS are what are making it more difficult for her to lose weight. I must mention it to her that they've been giving her incorrect information.

Thanks for that.

Ask for their links to scientific studies that show this (request more reading material for example). Ones on humans, not on mice. Seriously. They should be able to let you straight away.. Just because someone is a GP doesn't mean they are experts on nutrition and diet and Nutritionist isn't a protected term. I could call myself one, as could you. We often see people posting here with bad advice from professionals that should know better.

Typer Monkey · 05-02-2014 09:23AM

A symptom of Coeliac disease (gluten intolerance) is that the villi in your intestine are not present. Villi are the protrusions from the wall of your intestine which increase the surface area of intestinal wall to aid absorbtion of nutrients from ingested food. The intestinal wall of a person with coeliac disease will be flat and so malabsorption is an issue. As a result being underweight is usual for those with unmanaged coeliac disease. I can't see how gluten intolerance could lead to an inability to loose weight?

Gluten free alternatives to bread, pasta, biscuits etc can be very calorific and high in saturated fat. I found this out the hard way when I was on a gluten free diet and blindly swapped 'like for like' gluten free products for normal bread etc. is that maybe what the doc was saying to your sister that managing coeliac disease with a gluten free diet may lead to weight gain and she misinterpreted? In your case then a possible unmanaged gluten intolerance wouldn't be responsible for an inability to loose weight, it would probably be causing the opposite problem really

Frigga_92 · 05-02-2014 08:39PM

Typer Monkey wrote: »

A symptom of Coeliac disease (gluten intolerance) is that the villi in your intestine are not present. Villi are the protrusions from the wall of your intestine which increase the surface area of intestinal wall to aid absorbtion of nutrients from ingested food. The intestinal wall of a person with coeliac disease will be flat and so malabsorption is an issue. As a result being underweight is usual for those with unmanaged coeliac disease. I can't see how gluten intolerance could lead to an inability to loose weight?

Gluten free alternatives to bread, pasta, biscuits etc can be very calorific and high in saturated fat. I found this out the hard way when I was on a gluten free diet and blindly swapped 'like for like' gluten free products for normal bread etc. is that maybe what the doc was saying to your sister that managing coeliac disease with a gluten free diet may lead to weight gain and she misinterpreted? In your case then a possible unmanaged gluten intolerance wouldn't be responsible for an inability to loose weight, it would probably be causing the opposite problem really

No, she was definitely told that her gluten intolerance paired with PCOS has been the cause of her struggle to lose weight. Since she has virtually eliminated gluten from her diet she has lost a significant amount of weight. She initially did this about 4 years ago. She had been hovering around 90kg for years and her weight dropped to 75kg once she eliminated gluten. Anytime when she has allowed gluten back into her diet (for one reason or another) she has instantly put weight back on and when she eliminates it again, she loses weight.

Anyway, this topic is side-tracking the thread.

Frigga_92 · 05-02-2014 08:57PM

oscar_mike wrote: »

Have you considered atkins or a low carb diet? The results are pretty spectacular and noticeable after a week or two. I was once in a similar rut and it seemed like no matter what i ate of how much exercise i did the the scales just only seem to go back and fourth by a miserable 1-2 pounds. Low fat, calorie counting, fasting, you name it i tried it. But with low carb the weight just seem to evaporate for me.

I've been doing a bit of reading on low carb eating. I suppose you only really need heavy carbs if you are doing proper exercise which I am not because I cannot, not right now anyway.
I'm going to cut out carbs for a few weeks and see what results I get from it. No harm I suppose.
I'm a bit stuck about breakfast because I always eat porridge and am allergic to eggs but I'm sure I'll think of something, grilled rashers and some veg?

oscar_mike · 05-02-2014 10:43PM

A typical breakfast for me would be;

2-3 diced strawberries/ or avacado/ or half apple
2 tablesspoons of blue berries
2 tablespoons of walnuts
3-4 tablespoons of full fat greek yog.

Very filling. But if your use to porridge, by all means keep going. Low carb is anywhere in between 50g and 150g of carbs a day so it easily fits in.

oscar_mike · 05-02-2014 10:50PM

Cured meats such as bacon chorizo, salami, pepperoni along cheese and fruits is also a nice breakfast the odd morning. It will take a few days to adjust your palate but its easy get in on.

Frigga_92 · 05-02-2014 10:52PM

oscar_mike wrote: »

A typical breakfast for me would be;

2-3 diced strawberries/ or avacado/ or half apple
2 tablesspoons of blue berries
2 tablespoons of walnuts
3-4 tablespoons of full fat greek yog.

Very filling. But if your use to porridge, by all means keep going. Low carb is anywhere in between 50g and 150g of carbs a day so it easily fits in.

Well I was going to try cut out the porridge and try and go as low carb as I can, even just for the first few weeks and see how I get on with that.
I was thinking of trying grilled rashers, mushrooms and avocado or yoghurt, berries and nuts on alternating mornings for breakfast.
Fingers crossed I'll see a difference in a few weeks.

Frigga_92 · 05-02-2014 11:01PM

oscar_mike wrote: »

Cured meats such as bacon chorizo, salami, pepperoni along cheese and fruits is also a nice breakfast the odd morning. It will take a few days to adjust your palate but its easy get in on.

I'm allergic to salami and pepperoni but the rest sounds good.
I think breakfast will take the most getting used to but hopefully not too long.

oscar_mike · 05-02-2014 11:27PM

Yeah bacon, mushrooms, spinach, peppers onions are all good when fried/grilled and topped with full fat cream cheese! Alternatively you can make smoothie out of the fruits and berries i mentioned earlier, sometimes that is easier in the morn.

The lowest carb diet i am aware of is 20g carbs per day (Atkins) Which can be tricky enough to get right, but anything under 50g carbs per day is still excellent and you should see a HUGE difference on the scales after a week!

Also its important to get in full fats as well for low carb to work, i.e. cream cheese, real butter, full fat cheese, peanut butter etc., There is plenty online anyhow

tusk · 05-02-2014 11:31PM

We all know that losing weight is about 60-80% down to nutrition, but one simple step can make that 60-80 much easier. Portion control. Most of us eat too much, cook too much and drink too much. Try to reduce your portion sizes a little and you're guaranteed to see some results.

oscar_mike · 05-02-2014 11:31PM

I would be curious to see if you get any results after a week, drop a reply here if you do get results, if you don't mind that is

tusk · 05-02-2014 11:38PM

From a results perspective, I think one of the most important things is to keep an accurate log. Your most important tool is a body composition scales or device. We tend to say lose "weight" when ideally what we want is to lose "fat". A body composition scale is great and handy for this, and while it may not be completely accurate, it will be consistent, and that's what you want. A consistent objective view of whether or not you're hitting your goals.

Try to take your measurements first thing in the morning after a pint of water. Same time, same day every week. Jot it down and keep an eye on the fluctuations.

It's normal for weight to go up and down a little here and there, so it's not recommended to weigh in more than once a week.

Frigga_92 · 06-02-2014 12:10AM

oscar_mike wrote: »

I would be curious to see if you get any results after a week, drop a reply here if you do get results, if you don't mind that is

Yep, hopefully it'll be good news

whirlpool · 12-02-2014 03:35PM

Interesting / helpful thread!

runawaybishop · 12-02-2014 03:42PM

By interesting do you mean full of incorrect information?

whirlpool · 12-02-2014 06:02PM

runawaybishop wrote: »

By interesting do you mean full of incorrect information?

No.

runawaybishop · 12-02-2014 06:09PM

whirlpool wrote: »

No.

You should, because its full of it. Gluten intolerances wont slow weight loss because that's not how weight loss works. What's far more likely is that a gluten intolerance lead to a change in eating habits which lead to X, it was not the gluten intolerance that lead to X but the change in eating habits.

The whole discussion around low carb is indicative of many peoples attitude to dieting. Low carb is grand, i am a fan of it. Its not a magic bullet though that will shoot weight off you. You can be overweight on a low carb diet just as you can on any other diet. The diet you always lose weight on is the calorie deficient diet, whether you achieve that via exercise, keto or whatever you must be on a deficient.

Losing 1kg in a month is fine. I don't get what the issue is. Sustainable weight loss isn't a quick fix. Looking for results after a week is daft.

tusk · 12-02-2014 06:33PM

runawaybishop wrote: »

You should, because its full of it. Gluten intolerances wont slow weight loss because that's not how weight loss works. What's far more likely is that a gluten intolerance lead to a change in eating habits which lead to X, it was not the gluten intolerance that lead to X but the change in eating habits.

The whole discussion around low carb is indicative of many peoples attitude to dieting. Low carb is grand, i am a fan of it. Its not a magic bullet though that will shoot weight off you. You can be overweight on a low carb diet just as you can on any other diet. The diet you always lose weight on is the calorie deficient diet, whether you achieve that via exercise, keto or whatever you must be on a deficient.

Losing 1kg in a month is fine. I don't get what the issue is. Sustainable weight loss isn't a quick fix. Looking for results after a week is daft.

You sir, are on the money.

Sustainable weight-loss needs to be born out of sustainable life changes. Crazy diets will last for a little while, but when they bomb out, so too will your weight loss. It's all about small changes that you can stick with.

whirlpool · 12-02-2014 06:36PM

runawaybishop wrote: »

You should, because its full of it. Gluten intolerances wont slow weight loss because that's not how weight loss works. What's far more likely is that a gluten intolerance lead to a change in eating habits which lead to X, it was not the gluten intolerance that lead to X but the change in eating habits.

The whole discussion around low carb is indicative of many peoples attitude to dieting. Low carb is grand, i am a fan of it. Its not a magic bullet though that will shoot weight off you. You can be overweight on a low carb diet just as you can on any other diet. The diet you always lose weight on is the calorie deficient diet, whether you achieve that via exercise, keto or whatever you must be on a deficient.

Losing 1kg in a month is fine. I don't get what the issue is. Sustainable weight loss isn't a quick fix. Looking for results after a week is daft.

Didn't you already give your knowledge on the gluten issue? Were you just waiting for someone to comment so that you could take their comment and use it as an excuse to keep talking?

whirlpool · 12-02-2014 06:38PM

By the way, I don't know what "discussion" around low carb diets being a magic bullet you're talking about. One person said that they went low carb and the weight fell off them. That's hardly a discussion about it being a magic solution.

runawaybishop · 12-02-2014 08:34PM

whirlpool wrote: »

Didn't you already give your knowledge on the gluten issue? Were you just waiting for someone to comment so that you could take their comment and use it as an excuse to keep talking?

Its none of your business when I choose to post and when I do not.

whirlpool wrote: »

By the way, I don't know what "discussion" around low carb diets being a magic bullet you're talking about. One person said that they went low carb and the weight fell off them. That's hardly a discussion about it being a magic solution.

Yes, its exactly that.

oscar_mike · 12-02-2014 11:14PM

For gods sake runawaybishop, where are you going with this??? Whirlpool said he found the thread interesting, not ask for a lecture off you. If you don't like his opinion its tough sh!t for you isn't it?

Secondly, the only reference to "magic bullet" is in your post from earlier. If you don't like anything in this thread free to ignore it. I promise you, other posters will get by with out your constant nit picking.

runawaybishop · 13-02-2014 10:36AM

oscar_mike wrote: »

For gods sake runawaybishop, where are you going with this??? Whirlpool said he found the thread interesting, not ask for a lecture off you. If you don't like his opinion its tough sh!t for you isn't it?

Secondly, the only reference to "magic bullet" is in your post from earlier. If you don't like anything in this thread free to ignore it. I promise you, other posters will get by with out your constant nit picking.

If you don't like my posts feel free to ignore them. I'll post where I choose.

Frigga_92 · 13-02-2014 10:14PM

On the recommendation of a poster here I looked into low carb ways of eating.
On Friday of last week I downloaded a book, The Idiot-proof diet, on a recommendation from one of my friends. The book appears to have been written by 2 women who had a very similar upbringing to mine, food used as a reward both by others and myself, poor diet at school etc. etc. Aside from the weight loss side of things, the book is very interesting and is probably very relateable for a lot of people, particularly in Ireland with the potato based diet that so many of us were brought up on.
I also downloaded their recipe book which has been a big help to me.

The book essentially promotes a low carb, high protein, high fat way of eating. In the past week alone I have eaten foods that I have never eaten before and loved them.

Just to give an example of what I have been eating over the past week:

Breakfast: 3 grilled rashers, 4 closed cup mushrooms chopped up and fried in butter with some paprika, half an avocado, about 10 thick slices of cucumber and a chopped scallion with salt and pepper on top and green tea

11a.m. break: 3 slices of ham, a matchbox size piece of cheese, 4 2" long celery sticks with organic peanut butter and 20 pistachios/cashew nuts

Lunch: tomato and basil soup with a dollop of cream

Dinner: prawns, green beans, asparagus and spinach pan fried and cauliflower mash

If I am hungry before I go to bed, which I have been on 2 nights as I think my body is trying to adjust to the lack of carbs I will have some meat, a handful of nuts, some cheese, just something small.

I am drinking a 2 litre bottle of water when I'm in work and drink 2-3 pint glasses of water in the evening. I also drink green tea with my breakfast and a herbal tea in the evening, I have always drank herbal tea anyway so this hasn't been a difficult adjustment.
The hardest thing to give up was my morning coffee but I think I'm finally getting over that now.
I was a little bit headachy on Monday evening/Tuesday morning & afternoon but that has passed.
I haven't had massive cravings for carbs. I was a little tetchy on Tuesday evening/Wednesday morning but I do work for quite a difficult employer so it was probably 50% no carbs and 50% wanting to murder her

I have been fortunate enough that I have already been able to put my new way of eating to the social event test. The book suggests trying not to start into things if you have any social events coming up but with the demands of my job, there would be no "right" time to start this so I just went straight into it.
On Monday and Tuesday I had a meeting where lovely frothy cappucinos were produced and chocolate kimberleys but I just had a sparkling water. I didn't even feel like I was really depriving myself of the coffee/chocolate, more so that I was really doing my body a favour.
Then on Wednesday afternoon there was a work lunch, the only options were pre-made sandwiches, ciabattas, paninis, that sort of thing, so I grabbed a few different sandwiches, tipped the contents onto a plate and discarded the bread.

I weighed myself last Sunday and I weighed 106.9kg, I just weighed myself this evening and I am already down to 102.5kg.
I am obviously delighted about such a big loss in less than a week but I know this level of weight loss is unlikely to continue and it will slow down, I am prepared for that.
I know a lot of this weight that has dropped off is retained water but I also know that a small portion of it is genuine weight loss and that thrills me.
I am surprised at how easy it has been to adjust.

I have been very surprised and a little bit annoyed at the reaction I have gotten from my friends and work colleagues. Every single one of them thinks that high fat content = getting fat and they do not support this way of eating.
2 of the women I work with have done slimming world on and off and on and off and on and off and when they are on the wagon the other women in work are totally supportive of them whereas, at the lunch on Wednesday for example, they thought it would be funny to wave pieces of bread at me, as if taunting me or something, all grown women in their 30s

So, aside from posting in this thread, I am pretty much keeping the new habits to myself and just hoping that the results will speak for themselves.
The book suggests staying strictly low carb until you are a stone away from your goal weight so I have a way to go yet.

I know it has only been a week and I'm sure some of the people who have already posted in this thread will read this and think, or quite possibly post, "yeah, lets see how you're getting on in a month's time" but please, don't berate me, I am just trying to find something that works for me and so far this seems to be working for me and I am happy to keep eating this way.

runawaybishop · 13-02-2014 10:24PM

Very good work, ignore the taunting - that's just jealousy. People have been equating dietary fat with fat deposits in the body for ages, despite it being nonsense. Its just something you'll have to ignore from them.

Lyle McDonald has a great book about keto, if you are interested in it you should take a look. You might also consider the book New rules of lifting for women, it explains nicely how strength work benfits women. The fat loss will help you lose weight, strength work will help you greatly in getting a body shape you desire. You may be able to preview those books using Google Books service.

Make sure you get enough protein into you, you dont want to lose muscle when you drop weight.

Congrats on your achievements so far.

SamforMayo · 13-02-2014 10:25PM

26sdrawkcab wrote: »

On the recommendation of a poster here I looked into low carb ways of eating.
On Friday of last week I downloaded a book, The Idiot-proof diet, on a recommendation from one of my friends. The book appears to have been written by 2 women who had a very similar upbringing to mine, food used as a reward both by others and myself, poor diet at school etc. etc. Aside from the weight loss side of things, the book is very interesting and is probably very relateable for a lot of people, particularly in Ireland with the potato based diet that so many of us were brought up on.
I also downloaded their recipe book which has been a big help to me.

The book essentially promotes a low carb, high protein, high fat way of eating. In the past week alone I have eaten foods that I have never eaten before and loved them.

Just to give an example of what I have been eating over the past week:

Breakfast: 3 grilled rashers, 4 closed cup mushrooms chopped up and fried in butter with some paprika, half an avocado, about 10 thick slices of cucumber and a chopped scallion with salt and pepper on top and green tea

11a.m. break: 3 slices of ham, a matchbox size piece of cheese, 4 2" long celery sticks with organic peanut butter and 20 pistachios/cashew nuts

Lunch: tomato and basil soup with a dollop of cream

Dinner: prawns, green beans, asparagus and spinach pan fried and cauliflower mash

If I am hungry before I go to bed, which I have been on 2 nights as I think my body is trying to adjust to the lack of carbs I will have some meat, a handful of nuts, some cheese, just something small.

I am drinking a 2 litre bottle of water when I'm in work and drink 2-3 pint glasses of water in the evening. I also drink green tea with my breakfast and a herbal tea in the evening, I have always drank herbal tea anyway so this hasn't been a difficult adjustment.
The hardest thing to give up was my morning coffee but I think I'm finally getting over that now.
I was a little bit headachy on Monday evening/Tuesday morning & afternoon but that has passed.
I haven't had massive cravings for carbs. I was a little tetchy on Tuesday evening/Wednesday morning but I do work for quite a difficult employer so it was probably 50% no carbs and 50% wanting to murder her

I have been fortunate enough that I have already been able to put my new way of eating to the social event test. The book suggests trying not to start into things if you have any social events coming up but with the demands of my job, there would be no "right" time to start this so I just went straight into it.
On Monday and Tuesday I had a meeting where lovely frothy cappucinos were produced and chocolate kimberleys but I just had a sparkling water. I didn't even feel like I was really depriving myself of the coffee/chocolate, more so that I was really doing my body a favour.
Then on Wednesday afternoon there was a work lunch, the only options were pre-made sandwiches, ciabattas, paninis, that sort of thing, so I grabbed a few different sandwiches, tipped the contents onto a plate and discarded the bread.

I weighed myself last Sunday and I weighed 106.9kg, I just weighed myself this evening and I am already down to 102.5kg.
I am obviously delighted about such a big loss in less than a week but I know this level of weight loss is unlikely to continue and it will slow down, I am prepared for that.
I know a lot of this weight that has dropped off is retained water but I also know that a small portion of it is genuine weight loss and that thrills me.
I am surprised at how easy it has been to adjust.

I have been very surprised and a little bit annoyed at the reaction I have gotten from my friends and work colleagues. Every single one of them thinks that high fat content = getting fat and they do not support this way of eating.
2 of the women I work with have done slimming world on and off and on and off and on and off and when they are on the wagon the other women in work are totally supportive of them whereas, at the lunch on Wednesday for example, they thought it would be funny to wave pieces of bread at me, as if taunting me or something, all grown women in their 30s
So, aside from posting in this thread, I am pretty much keeping the new habits to myself and just hoping that the results will speak for themselves.
The book suggests staying strictly low carb until you are a stone away from your goal weight so I have a way to go yet.

I know it has only been a week and I'm sure some of the people who have already posted in this thread will read this and think, or quite possibly post, "yeah, lets see how you're getting on in a month's time" but please, don't berate me, I am just trying to find something that works for me and so far this seems to be working for me and I am happy to keep eating this way.

Good girl, you are really determined to get that weight off and you are off to a great start, im sure carrying less weight will aid your recovery from your leg injury too. Don't mind the gang at work if it works for you that's what matters.

Frigga_92 · 13-02-2014 10:37PM

runawaybishop wrote: »

Very good work, ignore the taunting - that's just jealousy. People have been equating dietary fat with fat deposits in the body for ages, despite it being nonsense. Its just something you'll have to ignore from them.

Lyle McDonald has a great book about keto, if you are interested in it you should take a look. You might also consider the book New rules of lifting for women, it explains nicely how strength work benfits women. The fat loss will help you lose weight, strength work will help you greatly in getting a body shape you desire. You may be able to preview those books using Google Books service.

Make sure you get enough protein into you, you dont want to lose muscle when you drop weight.

Congrats on your achievements so far.

Thanks.

I will find that book by Lyle McDonald, thanks.
Before the crash I was actually working my way through the new rules of lifting for women programme and I was doing quite well, had started to move up in the weights, up to 10kg dumbbells but unfortunately for the time being that has to take a back seat as I am having ongoing treatment on my shoulders and neck, as well as my leg.

Yeah, I'm trying to play around with the food to find the best balance. I do eat lots of fish, particularly tuna so I'm still playing around with my usual menus and tweaking them and adding in new things.

SamforMayo wrote: »

Good girl, you are really determined to get that weight off and you are off to a great start, im sure carrying less weight will aid your recovery from your leg injury too. Don't mind the gang at work if it works for you that's what matters.

Thanks.
Yeah, well that's the hope anyway. Obviously I want to lose weight but it'll hopefully make things easier on my leg (both legs really).

Looking for some help to lose weight

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