Losing Weight - What To Eat ?

[torrenova]

Now I'm trying to get rid of around 10kg or so but I cannot find what I should eat if I cut out rice, potatoes, bread, snacks, cheese etc.

I mean, what can I eat so that I am not constantly hungry ?

Also, can I have a diet where I can still drink beer ?

[ballbreaker]

Regular exercise program and cut down on the amount of food you eat not what you eat. You should still be able to drink beer. This was the plan that worked for me but everyone is different.

[Irene]

Regular exercise program and cut down on the amount of food you eat not what you eat. You should still be able to drink beer. This was the plan that worked for me but everyone is different.

I have reduced my weight from 72 to 67 kgs and has been maintaining the 67 kgs for a few years now. I attribute this to my half an hour daily exercise on the treading mill at home while watching the news or listening to light music. THE EXERCISE is a must to achieve the goal because it helps you not to crave for food too much. Second, I have changed my EATING HABIT from eating in full to fill in my stomache to eating just to cure hunger, i.e. to change the level of satisfaction from 100% to 60%-70%.

I have dinner with a glass of beer or a glass of wine. If I am at home for lunch, mostly weekends, wine or beer is also next to my meal. No restriction on types of meal I can take. I take anything, meat, fish, vegetable you name it. I am so glad that of these minimum disciplines I need to maintain my average weight. I had a balloon intervention in my heart (angioplasty) three or four years ago and was advised by the hospital nutritionist on lists of things not to take and not to do etc. etc. which I rigidly adhered to for a year, fish every day, daily exercise, heeding warnings of all sorts. That was the miserable year of my life until the fine doctor told me to enjoy life as well in looking after my health. On one of my quarterly visits, I even taught him how to take wine and since then give him two bottles on each visit. For a period of two years now, I find the habit least taxing. On the contrary, I would feel miserable if I have to miss my exercise on any day.

I share this experience just to help others not take measures so rigidly. I am on a half a tablet of Lipitor and half of Concor and touch wood on every quarterly health visit all my measurements on the blood test have been on the good sides.

[Simmo]

Focus on the other end of the equation - Exercise

[chokdeekrap]

regular exercise is a great start.

I mean, what can I eat so that I am not constantly hungry ?

i am not really sure what your eating habits are, but you should be eating six smaller meals per day. you should be eating a snack/meal consisting of about 250-400 quality calories every 2-3 hours. Depending on your activity level & size that should give you between 1500 & 2400 calories per day. 1500 being a bit low for the average male & 2400 being a little high for someone that doesn't do very much exercise (which you should be doing anyway!).

you don't need to cut out the carbs! just make smarter carb choices. switch to brown rice in place of white rice. whole what anything (breads, pastas) over their refined counterparts. don't forget to eat more than just meat & carbs tho. i try to eat 7 different coloured fruits & veggies a day mixed in with my meats & carbs.

you should cut out as much of the empty calories & high sugary foods as you can manage. if you consume soda pops (coke, sprite, 7up, etc) regularly (including drink mixers), i would recommend at least seriously cutting down if you can't cut them out of your diet all together. soda pop is pure evil!

GL

editted for grammer

Edited June 23, 2007 by chokdeekrap

[PeaceBlondie]

I'm preaching the following sermon to myself more than to the other posters, but here goes:

As for what to eat in order to lose weight, it could be overly simplistically summed up in one word:

LESS

Keeping it oversimplified: did you ever see a photo of an incredibly overweight/obese person and conclude that they got that way by eating less? Did you ever see a famine picture of skinny people and conclude that they got that way by eating too much? Nope.

Hunger. Are you sure your body really gets hungry? Mine never has. Maybe you can learn to deal with minor hunger pains; I don't know.

I'm overweight and just had a stroke. I have to lose weight. So far today, I walked for 30 minutes and swam for 38 minutes, and I haven't exercised too much. I need to eat less and less.

Beer, wine and alcohol are all calories. Chocolate is better!

[chokdeekrap]

As for what to eat in order to lose weight, it could be overly simplistically summed up in one word:

LESS

i guess it all depends on your current eating habits. however if your are eating enough calories for your body type & exercise level then eating LESS is not the way to go in my opinion. Rather eating smaller meals more often consisting of better quality fuel for your body is the key.

if you cut down on the calories & eat less calories than your body requires you certainly will lose weight. when you begin to reduced your recommended daily calorie intake your body starts to burn itself off. woohoo, weight loss! unfortunately when your body realizes it is being deprived of calories the first thing it will burn off is the body tissue that is hardest to maintain, which unfortuantely is muscle. sure you will eventually begin burning off fat (if you can stick with a diet long enough) but most the immediate weight losses due to conventional diets is the result of a loss of muscle mass & NOT body fat.

because you will have to start eating the right amount of calories sooner or later (your body will demand it) i think the better approach is to learn to eat smarter (alot smarter than most people eat!) in smaller quantities but more often, combined with regular exercise.

[PeaceBlondie]

My suggestion was admittedly oversimplified. I know that when I ate much less, and exercised four hours a day, I lost almost all of my body fat, and beefed up my muscles. I'm not suggesting that people only eat less. Of course, eat less food, eat smaller portions of good food, try eating none at all of certain worthless foods such as alcohol (except maybe one red wine per day, no more has been shown necessary), sweets, etc. And of course, exercise much more.

I don't know that for everybody, their body always reduces the muscles first; that's not conducive to survival. My fat disappeared, but then I was exercising a lot.

[TheWalkingMan]

Regular exercise program and cut down on the amount of food you eat not what you eat. You should still be able to drink beer. This was the plan that worked for me but everyone is different.

Bingo!

Eat less of whatever you are currently eating and exercise more.

Less Calories + Increase in activity = weight loss.

Cheers,

TheWalkingMan

[Tolley]

Ironically you may be able to eat more if you exercise more and still lose weight.

What you need to do is get your body fat measured and then start a regime of weights and aerobic exercise.

I would also cut the beer intake for the first month or so and see how you go.

[chokdeekrap]

Bingo!

Eat less of whatever you are currently eating and exercise more.

Less Calories + Increase in activity = weight loss.

probably eating less of whatever you are currently eating & exercising more is great advice!

less calories + increase in activity is NOT great advice! unless your current calorie intake is way beyond the daily recommended.

most people that need to lose weight need to learn to CUT out the bad calories regularly consumed & just start introducing good calories in their place.

an increase of physical activity (very recommended!) will require a steady intake of daily calories & NOT a decrease!

too many people get hung up on the idea that LESS calories means more wieght loss. this is a total mis-conception.

eat well, eat often & exercise regularly. don't deprive yourself or YOU will binge at some point, figuring you have failed at dieting & return to cold pizza breakfasts in no time flat! give yourself one day a week where you eat & drink anything your heart desires... rewarding yourself for keeping to a good steady diet for the previous 6 days.

try to maintain this plan & i assure you that anyone can lose excess body fat without crazy diet calorie depravation!