Losing a stone

Hattigol

The good and bad news is that you could gain 1,000 pounds very easily.
Just meet me with that Les Paul of yours on your trip north! :-)

MattBanshee

I have lost 5kg since my last post in this thread.

I've been super careful over what I eat; no rice, no bread, no potatoes. Dinner is some variation of baked tofu with lentils or sweet potato, and plenty of green veg. Snacks are exclusively fruit, especially things like Kiwis. I've also been getting to the gym 3 nights a week and spending 45 mins doing cardio, burning 400-500 calories a go.

RMJ

MattBanshee said:

I have lost 5kg since my last post in this thread.

I've been super careful over what I eat; no rice, no bread, no potatoes. Dinner is some variation of baked tofu with lentils or sweet potato, and plenty of green veg. Snacks are exclusively fruit, especially things like Kiwis. I've also been getting to the gym 3 nights a week and spending 45 mins doing cardio, burning 400-500 calories a go.

Wow that's impressive! Well done!

scrumhalf

I lost two stones last week.

Cystolithopaxy.

MattBanshee

I highly recommend using the MyFitnessPal free app to log your food intake - it just makes it easy to see exactly what you're eating daily, in terms of calories but also macros.

Also, even though my calorie intake has dropped, I'm feeling less hungry than I did previously, probably because the quality of the meals has improved, and fewer calories are being converted into fat straight away.

nick79

This thread prompted me to start looking at my diet, and i've lost 4kgs in the space of 5 weeks. Still a way to go (i'm not huge, just carrying a bit extra round the midriff...) and i'm feeling better for it. 
Basically cut out biscuits/choc/cake etc and made an effort to cook healthier meals.
I did find i was ravenous for the first week but now i can quite happily eat 3 healthy meals a day and not want anything more. 

The annoying thing is a few years ago i did the insanity workout, along with going to the gym and martial arts and i went from 15 stone to 13 stone, and was the fittest ive ever been. Then i stupidly stopped exercising and eating wisely and now 3 years later i'm over 15 stone.... Oh well live and learn!

Dopesick

@RMJ

How are you getting on with the 16:8 thing?
I was informed by a couple of mates over the weekend that they have been doing fasting of this type over the last month or so (they didn't say specifically it was 16:8 but their 'version' is that they don't eat anything before 3pm - so pretty similar but more extreme times) and they have dropped the pounds quite substantially.
I might give it a go myself as I'm prone to snacking on shit in the morning and evenings (McMuffins in some mornings before work are my weakness).

RMJ

Dopesick said:

@RMJ

How are you getting on with the 16:8 thing?
I was informed by a couple of mates over the weekend that they have been doing fasting of this type over the last month or so (they didn't say specifically it was 16:8 but their 'version' is that they don't eat anything before 3pm - so pretty similar but more extreme times) and they have dropped the pounds quite substantially.
I might give it a go myself as I'm prone to snacking on shit in the morning and evenings (McMuffins in some mornings before work are my weakness).

I managed it for about a week. It was difficult to consistently accommodate an 8 hour window for eating due to differing daily routines with childcare/drop offs/pick ups etc. What I will day is that I didn't find it particularly challenging to eat only within an 8 hour window.  I was doing 10 until 6. I was hungry going to bed but in the morning felt fine. I was drinking plenty of water too. Interestingly during the 8 hours I didn't feel compelled to stuff my face. I actually ate really sensibly. And having a defined cut off in the evening helped too.  

Ultimately I don't think I can sustain it as a diet. It it really helped me to understand how much food I was consuming that I actually didn't need. 

Dopesick

Ah yes that's understandable. During the week I could very easily keep it up (I actually started on Monday with no problems so far) but the weekend will be the first big test.

grungebob

I’ve lost 10lbs in the past two months, I use MyFitnessPal to track my food and make informed choices on what to eat, I exercise 3 times a week for 25 minutes and started going to Brazilian jui jitsu twice a week. 
Feel great, have made some friends and genuinely don’t miss the crap I was eating before. 

Find an an activity you enjoy and it really does motivate you. 

Tone71

I bit the bullet and joined weight watchers, chose the online option rather than meetings.

So far have lost 6kg and can wholeheartedly recommend it, its an app on the phone and daily points, no carb/fat/sugar free faddy stuff that I have done for the last 10 years, its a long term plan and is all about moderation and healthy weight loss.

I do however save my points up for beers at the weekend, seems to work ok!

viz

RMJ said:

Thanks everyone for the advice. Of all of the comments posted here I think diet is the thing I can change most easily within my daily routine.

What is good to snack on between meals if needed? Raw veg?

Carrots. 

I’ve been on the 5:2 since 17 July and use carrots to stave off the hunger:

http://i.imgur.com/UVTE1dj.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/Yr25upn.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/MotYAmH.jpg

Bygone_Tones

Fwiw carrots are  one of the few veg that give out more nutrients when cooked, rather than raw. Not that eating them raw is bad.

BigBearKris

Since March/April I have decided to change my habits when it comes to eating, drinking and exercise. Nothing dramatic, and I have seen SO many people going on programs, diets, shakes, camps... and failing in the end. Been there, done that...

Me? I always liked the sports ... I also adore pizza and beer...

I know a fair bit about food, nutrition and exercising due to being fascinated with bodybuilding in my youth (we're talking 20years ago). So theory is there, moving ass and committing to eating healthier is a different cup of tea...

Over those 3+ months period I have lost about 2 stone ( I started with 19) so it's been pretty good so far. I know that losing weight can be easy - maintaining and changing habits - that's where it's at.

What I've done in order to achieve it:


-I try to avoid ANY SUGAR. I don't have a sweet tooth - which helps - so no sweets at all. Then I look and check for carbs, then sugar content in food I eat and I choose the one with the least sugar in it. Fat is preferable.

-Drink plenty of water. I always did. I love taste of water and I drank loads all my life. I believe it's crucial but greatly missed item in our diets which would make 50% of the people I know so much healthier. People just don't drink enough. If they do - it's teas (milk, sugar), coffees (same +caffeine which dehydrates you), juice (sugar!) etc. Down that flipping extra bottle of water a day and be surprised how much better it supports your diet, skin, hair...

-Walking. As I messed up my knees by playing basketball and being a big guy I cannot run as I then suffer with injuries. Walking though is great cardio and doing 45+ mins of power walk does it for me. I pretty much do 10k steps (I use fitbit for it) a day for last 3 months with no exceptions. My work keeps me active on some days, then on others I spend hours sitting on my arse or behind the wheel - so I force myself to power walk for at least 40mins 5 days a week. Weather contributed to that massively, as I just enjoy that a lot! Hope winter will be just as good, but I will switch to treadmill on the gym should cold+wet discourage me effectively.

-Eating between 12ish - 7ish. This is suggested by the 16/8 you guys mentioned above. It makes sense for me, as I was never a breakfast guy (don't get me wrong - I love a good breakfast but just can easily miss it and then carry on actively until lunch time). My problem was always eating late/at night - this is when I struggle, as I can start eating at lunch time, then try to hold 3 hour windows - eating well but not necessarily little, but then stop at 6/7ish. Craving starts to kick in afterwards, but this is the bit when I try to stay tough and don't let the hard work to go in the shitter. I had days when I helped myself to popcorn, odd bag of snacks etc, but rarely and with guilt. I still drink beer so it's naughty anyway, as the intake of carbs does happen, but is limited. 

-Cook from scratch + portion the meals for work - then I eat healthier, less and motivate myself not to spoil it with big bag of crisps at 10pm. 

-I cut out takeaways almost completely - I've had Chinese few times, but no pizza, no chicken, no greasy kebabs...

-I do like my alcohol, so I know that cutting it out will be only temporary (I have done it several times for few weeks/months and it was great but I missed it) so decided to just go for less caloric options. I drink Coors light as a beer, also white wine, no spirits or other beers (can have two Coors instead of one San Miguel). Not healthy at all, and actually vodka+ice would do it better for you, but I can drink what I like that way and suffer less caloric damage. There's compromise...

All that plus some weights.

I must say that I have noticed a positive change in my overall attitude, I am more motivated, happier, more optimistic, work more effective and by losing weight, getting some tan on and being able to wear all the clothes I purchased 3+ years ago (never worn before) feels well. 
I have it stuck in my mind though, that I have not succeed yet and that it is a process - winter will tell...

Good luck everyone, c'mon @RMJ - you can do it boi
 

Emp_Fab

How big is the stone ?  Have you tried looking down the back of the sofa ?

meltedbuzzbox

MattBanshee said:

I have lost 5kg since my last post in this thread.

I've been super careful over what I eat; no rice, no bread, no potatoes. Dinner is some variation of baked tofu with lentils or sweet potato, and plenty of green veg. Snacks are exclusively fruit, especially things like Kiwis. I've also been getting to the gym 3 nights a week and spending 45 mins doing cardio, burning 400-500 calories a go.

Try switching to weights and you will see an even better return

Travisthedog

Yeah, update from me - 1.5 stone off in about 6/7 weeks.

5:2 and trying to cycle 150km min per week, plus odd trips to the gym to do weights - faltered a bit over the last few weeks as work has been crazy busy and I've been travelling all over the Ruddy place, plus now I'm in holiday mood for tomorrow s trip to Majorca with the Travis tribe, so back to it in a week coz basically I have a date with a pool and a shit ton of Estrella

viz

I had 3 pints of Peroni and a carrot yesterday as one of my 2-days 

pintspiller

Jackobean said:

Two words - colon cleanse.

that's full of shit

thomasross20

I have real trouble keeping weight on. It'll go to my thighs, if I do get any. But I'm a 32 waist and think I need to go down one or put a new notch in my belt! I'm going to be thin forever..