Weight loss ideas

sue

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So we have the weight loss thread in which everyone is doing really well.

Was wondering about having a thread in which we can share meal ideas and the like. To try to stop the other thread getting congested with such things.

I am doing weight watchers, and so would be willing to help with points values and sharing recipe and meal ideas.
 
As of next week, I'm going to the gym twice a week (and if i can, 5) and riding 9 miles a day, in an attempt to look good in some clothes from Topman.
Not into the whole weight watchers thing, find myself moving away from the ugly food onto the nicer food, whereas if I eat meals I enjoy (pasta, chicken breast and potatoes etc) I find myself being satisfied and not straying onto crisps and chocolate.
But tell me how the weight watches go, as my mum is currently on a diet called the cambridge diet. She lost about 3 stone with it last year, so it might be worth looking into.
 
Diet alone won't get all the results you want.

A controlled diet with exercise is the way to go, expend more calories than you ingest and the body will look to it's reserves.

Once the fatty bits are getting smaller the exercise will tone up whats left. I'm currenty gyming it 3 times a week and getting rid of just over 1000 cals with cardio exercises :)

The results are starting to show now......I can almost see stomach muscles :D
 
I am not just planning on doing weight watchers, hopefully our treadmill will soon be working again and then I can start using that again daily, and once I have got slightly fitter I plan on starting to go belly dancing again, and fetching my bike over from my parents house.

I just thought for those people who want it, this might provide somewhere to share ideas and support along the way. If no one wants that kind of a thread then that is fine and this will slowly do away.
 
Good idea Sue! Variety is the key issue when it comes to eating healthily (don't like the 'D' word). I have a Weight Watchers cook book which has some lovely recipes in there. I'm following the 'core' plan as it suits me better and has all the foods I would normally eat anyway. There is a lovely carrot soup recipe in there, which if like me, you are doing the core plan, is free. On the points plan, I think it's something like 1 point. I'll put it on here tomorrow if anyone is interested.
Also, in the same book, there is a recipe for shepherds pie - and it's the nicest shepherds pie I've ever had!
 
Good idea :thumbs:

Diet does help, but its a combination of diet and exercise that does the trick.

I know I'm always looking for healthy meals to cook though, and always end up making some horrible brown rice mush that tastes pants...lol

So healthy recipes would be great :thumbs:
 
Eat more - try eating six meals a day, small ones. For some people it helps speed up metabolism and stops you feeling hungry.
 
I think I have the opposite problem of most people. I exercise 6 days a week for a minimum of 700 calories a day. But god do I binge once my son goes to bed. I want to set a good example for him so I sneak food so he doesn't see. But it isn't going to take long before he figures out that you don't get this fat by eating healthy!!

So I've decided on public accountability. I now have a blog which I will post my failures and victories on and at least post my weekly weigh in. That way people from around the country/world can help me stay on track.
 
I think I have the opposite problem of most people. I exercise 6 days a week for a minimum of 700 calories a day. But god do I binge once my son goes to bed. I want to set a good example for him so I sneak food so he doesn't see. But it isn't going to take long before he figures out that you don't get this fat by eating healthy!!

So I've decided on public accountability. I now have a blog which I will post my failures and victories on and at least post my weekly weigh in. That way people from around the country/world can help me stay on track.

thats much the same as me.
I exercise every day in some form or another.
I ride 9 miles to and back from college, and go to the gym at least twice a week.
But when everyones gone to bed, I find myself snacking uncontrollably. I asked my mum to stop buying 'goodies', but she won't because my brother likes them. So in the end, we've come to a resolution.
A lockbox with a key, which I think is a great idea.
Its pathetic that I can't control myself, but each to their own.
 
Recipes sound good, looking for some nice low point soup ideas, ones that I could freeze would be good as well, then I can just get one out of the freezer to take to work, nice and easy and healthy.
 
I hit the gym 7 times a week for 1/2 hour sessions or their abouts. That's 5 sessions pumping weights, different body part each day Monday to Friday, two of those days I also do a seperate 1/2 hour session doing cardio.
For diet I have protien shakes, porridge with nuts and dried fruit, I only eat chicken, turkey or fish as far as meat is concerned. I don't eat bread, this is mainly because it makes my psoriasis worse but I also find I don't get bloated anymore and carry less body fat. Try to eat 5 small meals a day at equal intervals if possible, one of these may be a protien shake if I feel full. Eat fresh fruit instead of crisps,sweets bicuits etc. Don't eat past 8:00 in the evening, your metabolism will be slowing down ready for sleep and won't be able to put the energy from the food to good use.
True my exercise and diet regime is for weight gain , but it's for muscle not fat, but altering the weights to lighter and more reps will change that to those that want to burn off more fat.
 
I love the idea of eating 5-6 smaller meals a day, and when I am home this wouldnt be a problem, however I work shifts, a mixture of days and nights. When at work sometimes I can be lucky if I get chance to eat anything let along 4 meals, I dont get home till 9pm and if not eaten since morning, then sorry I need to eat. As for nights, well I constantly seem to be hungry the first night, then its not too bad, but still busy and some nights no chance for a break. As for ww I tend to do points midnight to midnight when I work nights.
 
I train (swimming, cycling and running) for between 10-14 hours a week - my only real downfall is I get the 3pm munchies and if anything sweet is in the house it gets eaten - in its entirity. Luckily there is an easy solution - I don't buy anything bad. No crisps, no sweets, no chocolate. 3pm munchies have to be satisfied with fruit and a bowl of mixed nuts.

Weight watchers is good - my wife does it and it does make you realise what is in half the stuff you eat. I am lucky as I dont have a lot of weight to lose these days, I did the hard work a couple of years ago after seeing a photo of myself and I was massive. These days it is just working off the weight I put on when I have a couple of months of minimal training in the autumn.
 
Weight Watchers Carrot Soup (1.5 weight watchers points per recipe)
Serves 2. Calories per serving: 155 Freezable.

350g (12oz) carrots, diced
150g (5.5oz) potatoes, peeled and diced
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tablespoon tomato puree
600ml (20 fl oz) vegetable stock
salt and pepper

Place carrots, potatoes, onion, garlic, tomato puree and stock into a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 mins.

Transfer the cooked soup into a food processor in batches and blend until smooth - if you don't have a food processor, push the soup through a sieve. If you prefer a chunkier soup, roughly mash it with a potato masher instead of blending.

Return soup to a pan, season to taste, stir well and heat through.

*I usually add about 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder to give it some zing.
 
If I am feeling hungry between meals I munch on a carrot:)
 
If I am feeling hungry between meals I munch on a carrot:)

I've been eating lots of carrots too! :D
Does anyone know of any foods that can help in speeding up your metabolism? i think i heard that pineapple juice can help a bit...
 
I've been eating lots of carrots too! :D
Does anyone know of any foods that can help in speeding up your metabolism? i think i heard that pineapple juice can help a bit...
Beware of eating too many carrots people have been known to start turning orange.
I've only heard of one use for pineapple juice but it has nothing to do with dieting.
 
Does anyone know of any foods that can help in speeding up your metabolism?
I've heard charlie is quite effective....... and you don't even have to chew. ;)

Being severely overweight could be more healthy though.

This is an interesting thread though. I can really see the point in swapping ideas of stuff to make/eat that tastes good and is healthy at the same time.

As for how to lose weight, we ALL know the answer to that one. Eat less fatty junk AND get up off your backside and do some excercise. I'm not saying it's easy and it's a battle I have myself but the simple fact is that if you don't stuff it in your face, it wont make you fat.

It's not about dieting, it's about a setting up a healthy way of living and accepting that's how it is from now on. The beginning is tough but as soon as you start to feel better every day, as soon as you start to like the look of that naked person in the mirror a little more......

Well it becomes a self sustaining part of your life. :)
 
People can turn orange from eating carrots?!
 
Would you care to elaborate a little?

Apparently pineapple juice is used as a hoemeopathic cure for impotence. Saw it on telly!
 
A diet alone will not get the results you require. Statistics show that 70% of people who lose weight on a diet put that weight back on plus more within 1 year. Its a lifestyle change thats needed. The mental goals are as important as the physical goals. Do not set yourself too big a target. Small goals to get to a collective target are easier to achieve.

As for eating, there is a bundle of conflicting information out there. But one thing that is a must - EAT BREAKFAST. Your body has gone 8 hours without food during sleep. Get some fuel in your system or your body will go into 'fasting mode' and actually store fat.
 
It also apparently improves the taste of sperm. :naughty:

:puke: I've just eaten, thanks for that! Pineapple juice will now be banned in our house. Don't want him to be getting any ideas into his head :lol:
 
Don't want him to be getting any ideas into his head

Sorry.......But... :lol::lol::lol::lol:
 
I have a weight watchers bar in the morning, weight watchers bar in the lunch time and a meal at dinner time, YUMMY i know
 
I have been dieting for two weeks now, I have in effect become Vegan ( only for the diet) I replaced meat with quorn, and scrapped all dairy, I have lost 13 pounds and now at target weight. I am still going to leave out meat from my diet on a permanant basis, but will re introduce dairy as of tommorrow. I can recommend this diet, you feel good after it, almost cleansed, my skin looks better, the downside was, it was expensive, I dont know how these Vegans can afford to do it on a permanant basis. I would recommend if you do this diet for longer than a week, you take appropriate vitamins to supplement the meat and dairy you no longer have , ie fats and carbs.

Good luck
 
It's not about dieting, it's about a setting up a healthy way of living and accepting that's how it is from now on. The beginning is tough but as soon as you start to feel better every day, as soon as you start to like the look of that naked person in the mirror a little more......

Well it becomes a self sustaining part of your life. :)

Absolutely!

Same goes for eating breakfast - but breakfast is just a part of the new lifestyle.

A diet alone will not get the results you require. Statistics show that 70% of people who lose weight on a diet put that weight back on plus more within 1 year. Its a lifestyle change thats needed. The mental goals are as important as the physical goals. Do not set yourself too big a target. Small goals to get to a collective target are easier to achieve.

As for eating, there is a bundle of conflicting information out there. But one thing that is a must - EAT BREAKFAST. Your body has gone 8 hours without food during sleep. Get some fuel in your system or your body will go into 'fasting mode' and actually store fat.

Hell yeah! Make this man Prime minister!!

I have been dieting for two weeks now, I have in effect become Vegan ( only for the diet) I replaced meat with quorn, and scrapped all dairy, I have lost 13 pounds and now at target weight. I am still going to leave out meat from my diet on a permanant basis, but will re introduce dairy as of tommorrow. I can recommend this diet, you feel good after it, almost cleansed, my skin looks better, the downside was, it was expensive, I dont know how these Vegans can afford to do it on a permanant basis. I would recommend if you do this diet for longer than a week, you take appropriate vitamins to supplement the meat and dairy you no longer have , ie fats and carbs.

Good luck

The sad thing is that there are people who believe all the B/S going around!

Just because somebody lost so many pounds/ dress sizes in so many weeks sure as hell does not mean it is good for you.

Any crash diet is mostly a loss of water and lots of this water is from the brain - medical fact, I kid you not.

It has been said already - apply common sense and live healthy.

This means 3 things: exercise, rest and proper nutrition.

Exercise does not have to mean gym for 3 hours a day. Take the stairs in stead of the escalators/lifts.

Rest - 8 hrs sleep per night - subject to proper nutrition.
If your nutrition is poor you will not sleep well, period.

Proper nutrition means supplementing.

Our modern diets do not cut it and they are getting worse by the day.

Will go and scratch out some recipes and get back later.
 
Eat more - try eating six meals a day, small ones. For some people it helps speed up metabolism and stops you feeling hungry.

I believe that should have been eat less but more often, not eat more.
If you can, replace sweets of all kinds (including cakes) with fruits. If you must have a bit of chocolate, have a dark, strong one, with 70% of cocoa (more stronger chocolates than that tend to taste too strong).

Try to lower your fat income - when baking, try using less / no oil, use aluminium foil as a separating layer so your food won't burn (no, it's not supposed to be black, golden brown is usually what you want), try cooked meat instead of fried meat. It can be surprisingly good that way, tender as hell too. If it tastes bland, try adding a bit of grated cheese (not a fatty one, if possible, but enough so that it would taste at least OK).

Avoid adding too much salt (try not adding salt to your dishes at all for four days, then try to go back and you'll be surprised how salty your dishes were).

Also, when you lack time for, say, a full hour or half an hour exercise, but have about 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes in the evening, do your exercises at those times.

I might start practising this starting tomorrow, as a 30 minute workout exhausts me too much (need energy for studying, brain's a *****), shorter workouts might energise me even.

If you don't want to go to the gym or you want to save the money, you can do fairly efficient exercises at home.

I should be doing my workout 4 times a week, only 2 days consecutively, though.
My 15 minute workout should looks like this:

- wider stance deep squats (slow when down to keep knees safe)
- reverse back extensions (heels and shoulders on the floor, hands on chest or on the belly)
- crunches followed by reverse crunches or crunches with feet in the air instead of the combo (hands on chest, pharaoh style)
- side crunches, both sides
- isometric upper back exercise - trying to pull legs together agains arms trying to pull them apart (sound like porn, doesn't it ;))
- forearm exercises (squeezing a tennis ball or a rubber ring)

No pauses during or between these unless necessary (it shouldn't be).
Repeat 3 times, first and last time are warm up and calm down series, half of the repetitions of the main, second series.
If I'll be too comfortable with this, I'll switch to supersets in a series, then I'll increase the amount of repetitions.

It's worked well before, but I usually had to stop after a few weeks because of flu or some other crap.
 
I dont consider the diet I embarked upon as BS, thats if you were referring to my post that is. For me, BS diets are YO YO diets that make people fat thin fat thin, they use every diet plan available to man, lose the weight by shocking their systems then re gain it and so on and so forth. The diet I did involved taking out meat and dairy, I ate buckets of vegetables, fruit, pulses, soya, drank plenty of water eliminated caffeine as Ii cant drink coffee without milk, the only sugar I took was whatcame in a piece of fruit naturally. I lost the weight I needed to, and also learned a few things along the way about healthy eating.
 
I dont consider the diet I embarked upon as BS, thats if you were referring to my post that is. For me, BS diets are YO YO diets that make people fat thin fat thin, they use every diet plan available to man, lose the weight by shocking their systems then re gain it and so on and so forth. The diet I did involved taking out meat and dairy, I ate buckets of vegetables, fruit, pulses, soya, drank plenty of water eliminated caffeine as Ii cant drink coffee without milk, the only sugar I took was whatcame in a piece of fruit naturally. I lost the weight I needed to, and also learned a few things along the way about healthy eating.

Thing is, if you got back to your previous eating habits, the weight is very likely to come back sooner or later.
Changing lifestyle permanently is still the way to go, I think.
 
I have actually Slapo, I have decided after doing this diet that I wont be eating meat again, Ive not had coffee for a fortnight and dont miss it, so have eradicated caffeine from my diet, and instead got into the habit of drinking lots of water, I enjoyed this diet, apart from the expense, maybe I should learn to shop a little more frugally. Dont knock things until they are tried, especially when it can be part of a healthy eating plan ,it was just a 'tip' that I wanted to share, didnt realise it would cause a problem.
 
It's no problem at all. I just thought you reverted back to your old habits completely after the diet.

I have never been a coffee drinker myself, I prefer mint tea, fruit tea, water, milk, fruit juices.

I'm curious, how do you replace meat? Tofu?
Got any good tofu recipes if you use it? I can't find anything that would beat its waxy taste. Then again, with a bit of salt, it tastes like a certain sort of cheese...
 
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