I’ve dieted and lost weight many times. I’ve lost over 30lbs since January and there is no way it’s coming back, I’ve made a lifelong change to watch what I eat. I’ve become obsessed with reading about fitness/diet research studies and success stories. And I’ve become obsessed with being healthy, losing weight, and gaining muscle. I’ve also learned a lot through trial and error and through helping my wife along — she’s lost over 25 pounds on the first diet she’s ever been on.
Also, maybe this is pathetic, but I often fantasize about helping obese people lose weight. I think about motivating them but most importantly teaching them about nutrients, the body, and how to lose weight. What would I tell them about losing weight? I’ve turned it into a three part post. This is my manifesto for losing weight, I’m sure some of the finer points will grow and change but these points I’ll never alter.
I think there are many facets of losing significant amounts of weight but only three stick out as being key for everyone. In this (long) article I’ll talk about each key in detail. I’m not claiming that I’ve discovered anything new or a magic bullet, just relaying what has worked best for me and what, based on research I’ve read, seems to be best. I apologize for the formatting of this article. I have been sitting on it a while and getting all the HTML correct is tedious and boring so I decided to just post up my rough draft that I’ve been piecing together for months.
The 3 keys to weightloss:
1. Maximize your metabolism
2. Count and limit calories
3. Banish white carbs
(more…)
 |
Torte di Chocolate - 232 calories and sugar free |
Health research regarding simple carbohydrates is just too convincing for me to ignore. As a result, I’ve been on many low or reduced carb diets in the past and still try to limit my simple sugar intake. Since eating low-carb is not always easy I’ve had a lot of processed low-carb foods and snacks.
One component common to the vast majority of processed low-carb snacks and desserts are something called sugar alcohols. Most low-carb snacks have a disclaimer about them like “sugar alcohols do not contribute to blood sugar levels” and then omit them from the total carbohydrate count along with fiber. “Hmm, what?!” Sugar alcohols are puzzling to me. What exactly are they? How do our bodies use them? And are they dangerous?
I did thirty minutes of research and this post will relay the essentials of what I learned.
(more…)
Before Lost on Thursday night I tried to make a somewhat-healthy protein no-bake cookie. It didn’t turn out that great but not too bad.
I made 12 and each have something like 120 calories, 8 grams of protein, 4 grams of fiber, and 5 grams of sugar. I can’t remember how much fat or remaining carbohydrates but it’s all from oatmeal, all-natural peanut butter, and Smart Balance butter so it’s at least of a good variety.
(more…)
“All men by nature desire knowledge. ”
- Aristotle
It wasn’t until recently that I really grasped what happens to each macronutrient inside the body. The main reason is that most articles that explain how metabolism work are biased toward a particular diet. Low-carb, low-fat, South Beach, even vegetarians put their own spin on how the body works. I didn’t know what to believe. After some selective Googling and piecing together bits of information from Wikipedia I think I’ve deduced what happens to my dinner.
Monday night we were in a hurry and I ate a Smart Ones Ravioli Florentine as I sat down to watch the new “Little People, Big World” — the one that Matt goes to court for a DUI. It has 250 calories, 5 grams of fat, 11 grams of protein, and 40 grams of carbohydrates — 12 of which were sugar. Some of these will be stored as fat and some will be used by the body but each in a different way.
(more…)
It was this thought, that I was literally addicted to food, that made me wake up and start eating to live instead of living to eat. And I can’t imagine turning back.
Addiction - “compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance”
One third of Americans are obese and another third are overweight. So only one third of adults in the United States are at a healthy weight. The mindless eating we exhibit, I believe, can only be attributed to food addiction.
(more…)
If you’re like me you’ve read about a lot of different healthy ways of eating. Some might recommend the opposite of others but the majority will hold some key ideas in common. I’ve found that the four most common elements of healthy diets that work for real people are:
- Limit white carbs
- Know your fats
- Get ample fiber
- Strive for variety
In this post I’ll discuss why each of these is important and some simple strategies to achieve them.
(more…)
Good grief, not another omega 3 article.
I’m in love with omega-3, there I said it, I’m not ashamed. Omega-3 fatty acids have a large number of proven cardiovascular benefits, they can reduce inflammation, help prevent some forms of cancer, help with anxiety and depression, and even make ladies curvier.
Omega-3 articles in the main media outlets, however, do not include information on the dosage used in the studies. Nor do they give amounts that can be found in normal foods. What I have found is that in some cases benefits were seen, and only seen, at levels much higher than what you can get eating the recommended “2 or 3 servings of fish per week”. People in general are not getting enough omega-3 and even the people that think they are probably aren’t either.
In this article, I’ll give a barebones lesson on omega-3, then provide some data on how much there is in typical sources, and how much research shows you need to see benefits.
(more…)
Eating everything you want is not that much fun. When you live a life with no boundaries, there’s less joy. If you can eat anything you want to, what’s the fun in eating anything you want to? - Tom Hanks
My wife, Stephanie, and I love good restaurants. At one time our favorite hobby was dining out and we did it three or four nights a week. But we’ve recently discovered that she is an excellent cook and that going out so much wastes time and money so we’ve cut back. We do dine out, however, every Friday and Saturday night to reward ourselves for a healthy week. And if we are visiting friends and family, or vice versa, we’ll splurge at a sit down place. People’s social lives just seem to gravitate toward restaurants.
There are a lot of alternatives to eating out if social interaction is the aim (game/movie nights, potluck dinner, etc) but sometimes it just makes sense to go to a restaurant. I’ve found that in the 9-5 environment that going out for lunch is a very important social construct and the best way to network. Inviting your boss to your apartment to play Parcheesi at lunch doesn’t go over so well.
Boundaries and limitations are needed, however, since in the U.S. portion sizes and unhealthy dishes are on the rise. Some restaurants have a section of healthy dishes along with calorie counts (like Chilli’s) but most do not. I’ve compiled 10 easy tips that will help you make sure you don’t overeat when you eat out.
(more…)
I found this very good article over at Lauren’s Fitness via Smarter Fitter, both excellent blogs that I can only hope to rival someday. The article gives some very good tips for boosting your metabolism. Which makes me think that maybe I really should eat more on my quest to get back to a healthier weight.
Link: 11 Hot Tips To Get Your Furnace Burning
(more…)
