Does anyone know of a diet or weight-loss method where you can lose weight but actually still enjoy your life without your diet getting you down? I managed to lose weight in the past but it was down to willpower and nothing else which was extremely difficult as most of you will probably know and it doesn't seem like a long term solution either as I can only last so long at my target weight without giving in to temptation and piling it all back on again.
I've tried the eating method where you chew your food properly and wait 20 minutes until the stomach sends the 'full' signal to the brain - I find this works only when I drink a large glass of water with my meal but then I've also been told not to do that as it supposedly dilutes your digestion process in the stomach making it harder to digest or absorb fats?! I'm no biologist so someone will have to explain that one better than me but basically my point is I can't win because unless I drink water with my meals, I don't feel full and just eat mass portions of food instead.
I would be grateful if anyone could advise me on what to do or even if people just shared any similar experiences. My ideal solution would be to find a way to control hunger pangs between meals and feel full after a meal without gulping down a ridiculous amount of water just to make my stomach feel full.
It takes a while for the body to adjust, but I have found it a very effective way of losing weight without feeling hungry or having to drink a huge amount of water.
Ok now this might sound crazy but i was also a large portion eater and I am doing it and it's working well.
I'm doing the 5:2 diet (or in my case 4:3). If you're not familiar with it then it's very simple. On 2 days of the week you have a calorie restricted 'fast'.(500 women and 600 men) You're probably thinking that I'm nuts as you can't feel full on a 'normal' diet and I won't lie, at first it's tough. On the 5 days though there is no calorie counting or deprivation, you eat 'normally'
Of course at first you're tempted to 'gorge' on the 5 days to make up for it but common sense eventually kicks in. Why spoil it after all your hard work the day before.
I've noticed my appetite has really decreased though. I can't eat huge quantities anymore which is brilliant as eating piles of food was why I was 5 stone overweight.
On the fast days you are hungry. Live with it. Hunger pains go away you know. Very quickly in fact if you don't respond to them.
On a typical fast day I have nothing until about 2pm when I have soup or porridge with berries. Later I have rice and veg. I drink tea all day to keep it at bay. You could eat raw veg sticks all day (you get a lot for 500 cals) but it's easier to not kick start your metabolism early in the day.
If this sounds like hell then it's just a suggestion. If you'd like to change your bad habits for life, improve your health, get in control of your over eating forever then this is it.
I've only been doing it since July have lost 2 stone easily, it's mostly come off my stomach and midrift (danger area), my borderline blood pressure and cholesterol problems are gone and I enjoy my fast days (I do Monday Wednesday and Friday). I feel in control of my eating.
There's a lot of books out there - I was recommended one by a lady called Kate and I got it for a couple of ££ off Amazon.
It really works for those of us who sabotage our own efforts by overeating
I think for me, I have to come to terms that it is OK not to always have a full stomach. So, if after a meal, I don't feel 'fully full', I know I have had good nutrition nevertheless and I am not starving. The next meal will follow later that day/the next morning!
I suspect that after a while your body resigns itself to the new conditions and accepts them: a bit like a naughty child who sees it does not get the desired attention when it always cries, and stops the crying habit!
I definitely recommend the 5:2 Diet. The book Deekay refers to is The 5:2 Diet by Kate Harrison. I lost three stone in six months and have kept it off nearly two years by just 'fasting' one day a week. Watch the original programme that started it off bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b... and this little video which explains the basics youtu.be/W9Aj6hRYg4A
Hunger goes in waves, it doesn't get worse, so having a drink of water and keeping busy works really well.
I used to have that problem, I used to have to eat large portions just to feel like I would last to the next meal. My advice would be to try making small changes, get used to them and then make some more. It's a lifestyle change rather than a diet and if you can accept that it's going to be long term and may be very slow at times then you'll be in a much better position to see it through.
You can also exercise to work back some calories, many people advise against eating exercise calories but I do and i'm losing weight, just probably not as fast as they are. I still get to enjoy Chinese I just don't have the prawn crackers very often, that's one of the small changes I've made and my next change is to cut them out completely.
Try filling your plate with veg so your plate looks full and that might help, as long as you don't fill it with potato . I used to fill my plate with potato as it's the most filling veg then I realised it was too high in carbs to be eating that much of it.
The only meal i've found which really keeps me feeling full is broth. Everything else I feel like i've eaten but don't keep the full feeling for long, unless it's broth. I still feel like i've eaten a meal. My breakfast is now 2 scrambled eggs on 2 slices of toast, that gets me through to lunch time quite comfortably even though I don't feel full after it.
I think you need to try different things until you find one that works, there's nothing wrong with trying something and it not working for you. My cousin swears by the cambridge diet, I'm not even willing to try that as I like meals to much to replace them with shakes. Just learn why it didn't work for you so your next choice can be better informed.
Yes. I agree about the 5:2 regime. I've just started it and It was tough to get started but I've found after a couple of weeks of fast days, I no longer want loads of food on any days. Also, as with Zanette, I've found its good to educated your stomach about wanting food all the time. 5:2 is also great for this.
You're probably not going to like this answer a whole lot, but nonetheless, here goes.
A HUGE reason why changing your current eating habits and regimes "gets you down" is for no other reason than those ARE your habits and what you are used to and changing those (or indeed, most other of your habits) is challenging.
If you are significantly overweight, it is because of a combination of three factors:
1) you're eating the wrong types of food, usually high-calorie foods (i.e. high sugar or high fat) instead of foods that would deliver less calories and more overall nutrition.
2) you're eating too much food when you have a meal. And hell that is really easy. One of my first steps on my weight loss journey was to go from super-size portions to human-size portions. And wow, was that a learning curve! Yes, I used to have a bowl (full to overflowing) of cereal in the morning - now I weigh out a portion of 40/45g. How do I know that's a portion, well read the nutrition stuff on the back of the pack and it usually gives the details per 100g and then per portion and states what weight a portion is.
3) you're eating too often, so your meals might be o.k. but between meals you grazing on whatever, mine used to be chocolate and chocolate-covered bars and biscuits, etc., etc. And that might be driven by boredom-eating, comfort-eating, or just the routines you've gotten into.
But once you take control of your eating habits, and you give that a few weeks, say three months, to settle in, you'll find the "misery" will be in the thought of going back to the way you used to eat.
I truly could not now even face some of the things I used to shovel down my gullet.
I now eat a lot more healthily and a lot more nutritiously than I used to, I'm a lot slimmer and lighter, and thank heavens that I finally learnt to control my eating, because I recently had to have surgery and there is no way the surgeon would have operated on me at my weight of a couple of years ago.
My advice is to just set about losing your weight in a sensible and healthy way - there's lots of good and free information on the NHS Choices live well lose weight pages - plus a 12 week plan and a BMI calculator and information about eating healthily and stuff about hydration too.
Taking the bull by the horns and reducing your excess weight has a lot of benefits for your health and, indeed, other aspects of your wellbeing.
Hi! I believe it depends on how your body would react to the changes. Every one got a different way to be on a fit body and feel good inside out. As long as your body is healthy and can manage to adapt to these changes and not the other way around like stressing you out.
Sugar!!! Stop eating sugar. You will find the hunger just goes. Fruit is sugar too. Cut the carbs too. I hope this will help I have just dropped 24 lbs. no hunger and eating great foods, all the best for a sugar free life
I stuck to 1200 calories by dividing them in to 6 mini meals a day. I also made pots of homemade veggie soups that kept me satieted. I got to goal weight in 4 mths and still losing but I'm currently working on a maintenance plan. I don't want to lose too much and endup looking a scrawny old bird, lol
Goodluck, you will find the best way forward for you.
My wife has put me on a slimming world type diet. She makes loads of pasta bakes, casseroles, risotto 's and you can eat as large a portions as you want. I have to be sensible between main meal times and usually have either a bowl of bran or a couple of slices of hot buttered toast for breakie and a tin of soup(but no bread) for lunch. I can eat as much fresh fruit and salad as I like(but not the salad dressings). I haven't felt hungry and my weight has dropped from 17s13lb down to 16s 12lb as of last Monday and that's taken around 3 weeks. Recommend giving it a try. My wife uses all her own sauces so she knows exactly what's going into them and we eat a lot of Quorn instead of meat which saves on the fat content. Just a idea but if your like me and love big portions it seems to work, though I am not sure how!
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