Just making last attempt to lose weight!

[Chickenbrain2009]

I have tried diets before but have always given up when I make no progress. The only time I have ever lost weight, and it happened without even trying,was when I was in Hong Kong and lost 5 lbs in a week. Looking back on this I think its because a Chinese diet is low fat. So, I have today been prescribed Orlistat and I am going to try increasing my intake of Chinese, as opposed to western food.

[misditsy]

Don't eat the shitsoon chow mein otherwise you will be, I've got the same tablets, good luck

[Penel]

The Chinese diet can be healthy if you eat fresh veg and plain protein, it won't be healthy if you eat the sauces or the batters. If you cut out processed and junk food from a Western diet it will also be healthy.

If you want to cut anything out of your diet, try cutting out sugar.

[Chickenbrain2009 in reply to Penel]

Hi, Its has to be a real chinese diet, not the version we eat in the west! It just seems easier to eat tasty food thats low fat. It also has to be home cooked, not a rich restaurant diet.

[Penel in reply to Chickenbrain2009]

Please bear in mind that our bodies need some natural fats in our diet, to make hormones and absorb vitamins and minerals. If I need to use fat/oil in cooking I use ones traditional to Western cooking, like lard or olive oil, and not the modern manufactured oils or low fat spreads.

Good luck with your traditional Chinese food!

[callisto in reply to Penel]

Totally agree. Western diet can also be healthy if you use lots of vegetables, good protein and limit the carbs, particularly sugar. Mountains of rice and noodles will not do it!

[Zenette]

The key is still to reduce your calories to 'weight loss' level. I have managed to put on weight with very healthy food before — because I ate too many calories.

So regardless of the type of cuisine, you have to keep your food intake below a certain level.

[Chickenbrain2009 in reply to Zenette]

Hi Yes, Thanks for that. I am reducing portion size. I think the reason I lost weight in Hong Kong is that no only was I eating a healthier diet I was also walking a lot. I tried an aweful low fat diet years back for twelve weeks and didnt lose an ounce. So I will combine it with an increase in exercise. The Chinese, like a lot of emerging nations, are piling on the pounds and this is definitively linked to an increase in western diet. The point I am making is that their everyday home cooking is intrinsically low fat and low meat. At home they tend to eat soups, steamed food and less meat generally. My son was over a few years ago and he wanted to avoid fat and it is REALLY hard on a western diet, apart from anything else because of dairy foods. Dairy permeates our diet. The Chinese say that Westerners 'smell of diary' in the same way that we used to say Europeans 'reek of garlic' a few years ago. What I DO find is that I can feel a lot fuller on Chinese food than on salads! But of course, you can gain weight is you eat too much rich food anywhere.

[Chickenbrain2009 in reply to Chickenbrain2009]

PS I lost 5 lbs in a week and didn't even realise until I got home!

[Penel in reply to Chickenbrain2009]

I guess the Chinese must have a high level of lactose intolerance?

[returner]

Hi chickenbrain2009,

I suggest you give up going on "diets", then.

Instead, just take control of your eating habits. Stop eating 'junk' - i.e. high sugar or high fat foods with little other nutrition. Take control of your eating regime and portion sizes and learn more about the food you eat so that you avoid bad eating choices and can change your eating habits for the better.

If you eat good healthy nutritious food in sensible amounts, unless you have some other medical issue, your body will adapt to the new regime and reduce, over time, your body fat percentage and body weight.

There's lots of good and free advice on the NHS Choices live well lose weight pages - they're well worth a good read through.

I suspect that you lost weight in HK due to actually eating less overall and due to extra demands upon your body from travelling.

[Chickenbrain2009 in reply to returner]

Nope, I think it was because I ate proper Chinese food and because you walk everywhere in Hong Kong. I didnt eat any western food at all, so no dairy and no processed food. They have no milk in tea, eat less meat generally, more soups with noodles, more vegetables, more steamed food. Try as I might, eating a low fat Western diet is much harder, particularly if you eat out.

[returner in reply to Chickenbrain2009]

Hi Chickenbrain2009,

Exactly! You took in less calories due to a changed diet and used more calories due to walking everywhere.

Take control of your eating over here and up your exercise/activity levels and you will very probably do just the same.

[Zenette in reply to returner]

Excellent advice, returner. I love your good use of punctuation too (I have worked as an editor)!

[AzamAli]

Why the "last attempt"? never give up! just keep doing it.

Chinese food in England is not the same as China. There is no fats or salts in chinese foods there but here its full of starch, fat and salts.

I suggest something else, how about you eat only Porridge? just for 2 weeks and see how much weight you lose.

I think short quick weight loss start is a great motivator.

[returner in reply to AzamAli]

Hi AzamAli,

I'd recommend against eating any one particular food only for two weeks - your body needs a full range of nutrition and you won't get everything you need from porridge or indeed any other single food.

[Chickenbrain2009]

Ive lived among the Chinese for forty years, so I am pretty familiar with their diet.I will see how I get on. Chinese food over here is very different, full of sugar and salt.

[AzamAli]

ah ok, I am glad to hear from you. Good luck