Weight watchers 2022

[steveindenmark]

A thread for those trying to lose a bit of weight in 2022. Sensible hits, tips and recipies are very welcome. Its not easy losing weight regardless of what weight you are starting at and what goal you are trying to reach. These posts are also to encourage others.

Like many times in the past my New Years resolution was to lose some weight and firm up a bit. Usually I fail in the first month because changes to my diet and lifestyle is too drastic for me to handle.

This year, I have taken another approach. Its made up by reading many posts on many sites and working out an easy way to tackle this.

I realised that there were regular foodstuffs that I like and eat, even when I am not hungry. I call it "go to food". I did not want to cut them out completely. But it was obvious they needed reducing quite a bit.

My Goto foods were

Burger King....twice a week
Sugar
Cake
Milk
Biscuits
Cheese
Pringles
Breakfast cereal with lots of milk.
Coffee with sugar...at least 6 mugs before lunch

All of the above have been cut down. I have had one bowl of breakfast cereal, visited Burger King once. I restrict my coffee to 2 cups a day. My weekly milk intake has gone from four liters to 1 and half liters. I have had no cheese, Pringles or biscuits in January.

The changes in my diet have not been difficult.

The odd thing is that I have reduced my cycling significantly this month. It has been wet, cold, windy and miserable for most of January. Then my works gym closed due to Covid. So I put my weight loss down to diet rather than excercise.

The other thing I did was weigh myself first thing every morning and record it. That was a daily reminder to stop cheating or pat myself on the back. It is a suprise how your weight fluctuates from day to day. It is like one step forward, two steps back. But I can see I am reaching my goal, without a lot of effort.

My goal is to lose 5kg by the end of April. It may not seem a lot. But I wanted an achievable goal instead of something that would demoralise me. If I reach 5kg, it will give me the confidence to go a bit further

I have lost 2.4kg in January. That is just by cutting back on the go to food. I dont mind new recipies. But I do not want to get into fancy diet or protein drinks.

Here is a look at my journey for January.

 

[Julia9054]

Al has been doing Michael Mosley’s fast 800 diet. Very low carbs + calorie restriction. As is usual for him he has approached it like the chemist and chef that he is. Complete with spreadsheet. He has lost 15lbs since Christmas, 13cm off his middle and his blood pressure has dropped 20points. He has been making some delicious evening meals. We cycled up a massive hill near Hebden Bridge yesterday - he was up it like a rat up a drainpipe easily beating me. Normally he struggles with hills and I beat him so he was very pleased with himself.
I tried his diet for 6 days as an experiment. Lost 3lbs (which was my excess Christmas weight) and 2cm from my waist but Gawd it was hard. I love my carbs and craved sugar and bread. Going forward though it has taught me that I don’t need to have things like porridge, yoghurt and coffee quite so sweet so that is my change going forward.

 

[All uphill]

Like you, @steveindenmark I would like to lose about 5kg in a sustainable way. I'm currently 77kg.

We have started using smaller plates for our main meal, and not having second helpings. The other change, which is much more difficult, is no bed time comfort eating.

Good luck!

 

[steveindenmark]

Like you, @steveindenmark I would like to lose about 5kg in a sustainable way. I'm currently 77kg.

We have started using smaller plates for our main meal, and not having second helpings. The other change, which is much more difficult, is no bed time comfort eating.

Good luck!

Yes. I try not to eat after 6pm. But that is something that needs work. 😁 Having 2 plates of food for dinner is a Danish hobby. Again, I get a C- for that. But I want to make small changes, otherwise I will just give up.

 

[Once a Wheeler]

This works for me:

Click here for details. At its simplest, forget about food for two days a week and otherwise carry on as normal. No pain, good gain. Worth a try.

 

[bonzobanana]

I've lost just over 15kg in January but I have a lot to lose and have been using fasting and intermittant fasting as well as reducing sugar. I'm hoping to lose just over 10kg in February and another 10kg in March. I should add I was hit hard with covid and in hospital 4 times in total 3 of those needing oxygen and have had poor lung capacity for most of 2021 and only at the end of 2021 did my lung capacity start improving again and because of inactivity put on a lot of weight over already being overweight. Anyway I'm aiming to get to 95-100kg which I've found the best weight for me, I'm 6'2" rugby player type build. Hopefully by the summer I will be at my ideal weight. Each month I'm lowering the weight loss goal which should bring me to the final weight in about 5-6 months. Obviously the big issue is maintaining the weight loss. I'm planning to use what I call the Sturmey Archer diet. I.e. 3 speed diet, when I want to lose a lot of weight, 1 meal a day, lose slowly 2 meals a day and when I'm happy with my weight 3 meals a day.

 

[icowden]

I've been using this bad boy:
https://www.nhs.uk/better-health/lose-weight/

6lbs so far with a relapse mid Jan as it was the wife's birthday and my daughter made the world's most calorific sticky toffee pudding birthday cake.

I found it useful for the first two or three weeks just because it makes you think about the calories you are taking in and helps adjust your meal sizes so that you aren't gorging yourself. I haven't logged in a bit because I find it a little time consuming but I'm sticking to the meal sizes.

For example - I know that I can have a 45g bowl of frosties with 150ml of milk and then a slice of lightly buttered toast for my breakfast. I also now know which sandwich fillings tend to be lighter and which heavier (avoid italian meats 😂) etc. Then I just make sure my main meal isn't too heavy and it all seems to work. No cider except on special occasions or when I have been really good. Don't drink tea or coffee so no need to budget for milk etc.

I tend to prefer to buy a regular meal that's a bit lighter (e.g. M&S stuffed capelletti pasta) than diet meals. I also looked at foods that have a good satiety index so that I am less inclined to snack.

 

[Fat Lars]

This is not for everyone and anyone trying this should check it out with their doctor first. IMO if you limit your weight loss to no more than 8 lbs a month or so then you are less likely to suffer from a lower metabolic rate in the long term. I read this week that those participants in "The biggest loser" American TV show after 6 years have still not recovered their starting metabolic rate. Of course you should check with your doctor if this applies to you

 

[bonzobanana]

This is not for everyone and anyone trying this should check it out with their doctor first. IMO if you limit your weight loss to no more than 8 lbs a month or so then you are less likely to suffer from a lower metabolic rate in the long term. I read this week that those participants in "The biggest loser" American TV show after 6 years have still not recovered their starting metabolic rate. Of course you should check with your doctor if this applies to you

I personally think its critical to maintain exercise through weightloss, it tells the body you need your muscle mass and it has to take energy from fat. I lost 1.6kg last week. I was hoping to lose 2.5kg but have to accept the further in the diet you go the harder it gets to lose. However for the week my muscle mass has gone up 0.3kg over the week according to my smart scales. I know the smart scales uses an algorithm to assess your weight but from the data I've seen its broadly accurate. I did have a fasting period of 3.5 days but to be honest I found that too long and I'm going back to 2.5 days. I start fasting on Wednesday and have my first meal on Friday afternoon. I feel like I need to keep up the electrolytes though so will be looking to purchase some of those. I have informed my doctor and I guess when you have a lot of weight to lose they seem more accepting of more severe dieting methods as got approval. When I do eat typically at least 2 meals a week are incredibly nutritious salads with nutritional yeast, olive oil dressing and lots of very good fresh food items.

I'll admit I did do a very long difficult walk of about 3 miles when I had been fasting 3 days and was totally drained so over did it. Once I started eating again I soon recovered but still felt I pushed myself too far, its all a learning experience of what you can do.

 

[Fat Lars]

I always supplement with electrolytes and other stuff during a fast. And every other day the rest of the time. That's not to say that everyone should do so. This should not be taken as giving out medical advice. There may be some stupid people around who haven't got enough brains to work anything out with any degree of rationality.

 

[icowden]

I personally think its critical to maintain exercise through weightloss, it tells the body you need your muscle mass and it has to take energy from fat.

I read this fairly recently

View: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Presto-Pounds-Disappear-Other-Magical/dp/1501140183


Penn's friend Ray asserted the exact opposite - that during weight loss, no exercise was permitted. Admittedly this was a fairly extreme weight loss programme which was aimed at reprogramming the whole palette / diet, but it's a fun and interesting read.

 

[Fat Lars]

I read this fairly recently

View: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Presto-Pounds-Disappear-Other-Magical/dp/1501140183


Penn's friend Ray asserted the exact opposite - that during weight loss, no exercise was permitted. Admittedly this was a fairly extreme weight loss programme which was aimed at reprogramming the whole palette / diet, but it's a fun and interesting read.

From what I've experienced and read is that exercise is very important to the whole health situation. It is a vital ingredient of the whole journey towards a healthy weight and metabolic condition. The paradox is that exercise can induce weight gain. You don't feel hungry while you are exercising or immediately afterwards but will gain an appetite later. IMO weight loss is best approached by doing what makes you healthy and depends very much on the individual. It's a long term thing. IMO if you lose too much too quickly then your metabolic rate will drop and that is not what you want.
2lbs a week is a good target to aim for and lift weights, walk, do HIIT, cycle regularly. Doing exercise with a keto diet and IF ticks all the boxes. Did I mention consult your doctor and it's not for everyone? No.
Please consult your doctor before embarking on any weight loss diet. Keto is not widely acclaimed and there are other diets available.

 

[icowden]

From what I've experienced and read is that exercise is very important to the whole health situation.

From Presto (CrayRay is Ray Cronise):

If I was losing almost a pound a day for three months without exercising, wouldn’t I have lost even more if I’d thrown in a jog or two? CrayRay says no, that weight loss and muscle building (that’s what exercise does, build muscles) are two very different things. CrayRay’s books and papers explain the no-exercise part of the plan in language like this: “Losing excess adipose tissue and gaining muscle are two completely different physiologies. Weight loss requires a restriction, or deficit. Muscle gain requires fuel and nutrients to support activity and the repair of tissue. Hypertrophy happens when one stresses the muscle, tearing down tissue. Through a process called hormesis, the tissue grows back stronger after the stress.” Exercise is for bodybuilding, and I had more than enough body—about a third more body than was good for me. What I needed was a building moratorium. I wouldn’t get out of exercise forever. Exercise is important for good health. But I wouldn’t do any until I hit target weight. Exercise wouldn’t help me with weight loss; I couldn’t outrun my mouth.

Or in other words if you exercise and diet at the same time, your body doesn't really know what it should be doing. In the CrayRay potato diet, no exercise, get cold, sleep a lot.

 

[bonzobanana]

From Presto (CrayRay is Ray Cronise):

Or in other words if you exercise and diet at the same time, your body doesn't really know what it should be doing. In the CrayRay potato diet, no exercise, get cold, sleep a lot.

One issue is if you exercise you gain muscle mass which is heavier than fat so can gain weight. We collect carbon from the air as we breathe with carbon dioxide and if your body thinks you need more muscle mass you can gain it without eating just like breathing on plants has been shown to accelerate their growth as you give them a rich source of carbon dioxide. However in the long term having more muscle mass has to be serviced by the body so you consume more calories and the body will only create so much muscle mass. I feel if you wish to reduce your fat levels then fasting and exercise is ideal. I know that if I stop the exercise I will lose muscle mass which has happened to me in the past while dieting alone. I think from the start of my diet to current my BMR has gone from about 1950 to 2070 so just resting doing nothing I now need 120 extra calories. Well 120x365 is about 44,000 calories over the year and there are 3,500 calories in a pound of human fat. So about 13-14 pounds of fat lost everything else being equal just by maintaining the same food and exercise over the year but having higher BMR assuming that food and exercise maintained your weight at the same level. The body becomes less efficient with more muscle mass which is why the body will try to lose muscle mass especially if not a lot of food is being eaten.

Besides the body needs glucose to operate and exercise consumes more glucose so more fat will be converted to glucose.

I personally think the issue is that there are many variables in the human body that can give a confusing picture and show strange weight gains when you are not expecting it but ultimately if you intermittantly fast or just fast and exercise you will have weight loss long term. That has certainly been my experience.

 

[Julia9054]

We collect carbon from the air as we breathe with carbon dioxide

We really don’t. Unless you’ve worked out how to photosynthesise