Food glorious food!

[SarahB1965]

Over the last few months I have lost 2,5 stone following slimming world. Since starting the c25k my weight loss fluctuates from lose 0,5 lb to gain 0.5 lbs week by week, it is so frustrating as I thought with exercise it would boost my weight loss. Today I got back from finishing wk 5 and had 40g porridge with a large handful of bluberries and a pint of water, an hour later I am so HUNGRY I could chew a leg off a donkey! I still have over 2 stone to lose and need some advice as I do not want to give up either!

[Jayparr Graduate]

Hi

I've started having small breakfast before I run

Might be porridge or egg on toast or if pushing for time i have Bannana.

So body burning fat rather than muscle

Also have protein drink after and that helps me from feeling hungry.

I always try and eat before I run or go gym but Make sure have time before you exercise if not just grab a bannana or something light.

Jay x

[pinkaardvark Graduate]

I have lost 3.5st on SW and started running at around 2.5st loss. I found initially the weight loss plateaued and it took a good few weeks for it to be noticeable. Now don't be offended by this, but on c25k you don't really do much exercise. It is max 30 mins and that really is around 300 calories depending on weight so you really won't lose much unless you start to support the running with other exercise like gym trips in between running days.

On the basis that you aren't really burning much, you shouldn't really need to fuel much extra if anything at all. There is a well know exercise weight loss trap where people do a small bit of exercise and then believe they can eat like a horse. Sadly it just doesn't work that way.

On SW though you can eat as much fruit and veg as you wish so there's no reason not to support a run with a nice fruit salad, or a muller light with some winter berries thrown in etc. A banana pre run is great fuel and I find a bowl of porridge(made with water) is a great way to fuel me through to lunchtime.

I run in the evening so I just get back and have my normal dinner, so it doesn't matter if I feel hungry from the run, i'm eating the same anyways. You could do the same with a pre breakfast run.

[SarahB1965 in reply to pinkaardvark]

I am doing workouts on my rest days, and this is the first time I have been really hungry so perhaps it's just a coincidence being after a run. I'm trying to cut down on the fruit as I thought the sugar content wasn't helping the weight plateau. Perhaps I just need to drop my syns a little and keep going a while longer before worrying.

[pinkaardvark Graduate in reply to SarahB1965]

I guess your not following SW then. If you kinda follow it. It kinda works 😃

I understand wanting to reduce the fruit. Other tips are have protein handy like cooked chicken in the fridge. A warm bacon and chicken salad is lovely. Fruit does have sugar but it is harder to digest than processed sugar if you eat fresh fruit. You really shouldn't have to worry over it. I think as you progress in your weight loss and fitness journey you will start to care less about the weight and more about the fitness. Don't fret about the scales learn to watch the tape measure 😃

[Rignold in reply to pinkaardvark]

That's not really true. Fruit sugar is largely fructose which has to be converted to glucose by the liver before it can be utilised by the muscles. Sucrose is roughly half and half glucose and frcutose and the glucose is immediately available for use in the body.

SW kinda works as long as you stay on SW. Once you stop, the recidivism rate is 70 percent in 1 year and 92 percent in 2 years.

[pinkaardvark Graduate in reply to Rignold]

I imagine that's true of any diet. I like SW because it encourages you to eat healthily without fad ideas and without a requirement to count calories. It encourages the increased consumption of fruit and veg, complex carbs and a reduction in fats. That's common sense to most people and isn't incredibly difficult to follow like high fat diets or low carb etc. What you take away from anything varies person to person I guess, I never looked at it as a "diet" just a way of promoting healthier habits. I have kept the weight off over a year and have run and gone to the gym for the last 6mths, but I never fully bought into the SW stuff and now I tend to make a lot of Joe wicks recipes, lots of carbs on workout days and leaner when not and i'm not scared to cook with a bit of coconut oil

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Exercise can change our metabolism, it seems. You have to look beyond short term effects. Weight loss for most people is purely a matter of being in calorie deficit. As long as you are not increasing your calorie intake to compensate for doing exercise and remain in calorie deficit, then, long term, you would normally see a weight loss.

C25K is not a weight loss plan and the amount of calories burnt during a workout are not going to impact significantly on weight loss. This is covered in a bit more detail in the guide to the plan healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

Stick with it and you will almost definitely see a toning up and maybe loss of inches. You are also laying the base for running longer distances, which certainly will help with the burning body fat.

[Lordi Graduate]

I'm not a strict dieter but do try to watch what I eat and to me most calorie controlled convenience food portions look Lilliputian! When I'm ravenous I go for low energy density stuff in bulk to fill me up. You can eat a whole lettuce, half a cucumber and 4 medium tomatoes plus 50g sliced ham and a great dollop of salad cream (tablespoon) for less than 300 Cals, and that's a hell of a big salad! You'd be hard pushed to finish it I'd imagine, you'd be full to bursting anyway, and all good stuff!

Other low energy density stuff is cabbage, red green peppers, mushrooms, carrots, courgettes etc.

Drinking plenty of water also works for me. No snacks.

My Achilles is the vino though, so I can undo a good days running and good low cal food buy knocking back a couple too many glasses of red.

[SarahB1965 in reply to Lordi]

I always cook from scratch and do eat plenty of salad and vegies that you mention. Maybe it's just because I am cold, it's lunchtime now, so I can have some homemade vegetable soup to fill me up😊

[Lordi Graduate in reply to SarahB1965]

Cooking everything yourself is also good. No hidden indredients. Soup is a goody too, chicken noodle is almost calorie "free"

[runningnearbeirut Graduate]

Given the weather, I would imagine you were cold. Hot drinks will help warm you up and help you feel fuller.