Personal experience

[TheProf]

Having been told to lose weight to reduce blood pressure I went on a diet that was low fat, higher protein and contained a reasonable level of carbs - and was pitched at around 1500 calories per day but without serious counting - just portion control with added veg and protein if necessary.

So I tried to write my experience down and came up with the following:-

The rules of dieting as worked out over many years and diets.

1.If you don’t buy it, you can’t eat it. Speaks for itself – Only buy what you need. It’s easier if the whole house is on a diet.

2.No snacking – Stick to three meals a day – It doesn’t matter when you eat them but as long as they come within the calorie range it will work. E.g. if you can lose weight on 1500 cals then you can do 300-300-900 or 400-400-700 during the day.

3.No finishing of others plates. Throw it away.

4.Beware of calorie creep. Stick to portion sizes – There is a tendency to add a bit here and there – It is easy to go from 1500 to 2000 with a few extra calories here and there

5.You will be hungry. Mostly at the beginning – it gets easier.

6.It all takes time. Aim for 0.5 kgs per week – don’t give up as you will reach plateaux occasionally – Look at the long term – If you need to lose 20 kgs it could take a year.

7.You can’t go to sleep when you’re hungry. Go for your largest meal in the evening. The day is easier to diet in– You have other things to do – Drink tea or water if you are hungry.

8.Everyone is different – We all have a different calorie intake that will work. Calculate your BMR with the Harris-benedict equation (Calculators are available online) and try to stay below that level .

Finally - do exercise but don't do too much - it makes you hungry.

Good luck.

[moreless Administrator 7 stone]

Hi and welcome, TheProf

So have you reached your goal weight now, or are you still on a weight loss journey? You may find this interesting dietdoctor.com/blood-pressure

All of the information you need about the forum can be found in Pinned Posts healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh... and I hope you'll be joining all the Events, Challenges and Clubs that we run, especially a weigh-in and the daily diary, or our Maintainers' Club.

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We've found active participation to be key to successful weight loss and, of course, it's a good way to get to know people, find inspiration and share support and encouragement.

Wishing you all the best

[TheAwfulToad Visitor]

But have you achieved your goal of a healthy weight and general good health? Have you managed to stay at that point without undue effort? Unfortunately, most people following those rules end up disappointed.

[TheProf Visitor in reply to TheAwfulToad]

I manged to stay at a reasonable weight for me 100kg for 9 years without effort - just the rules. Retirement ended that the change in lifestyle needed to be factored in.

[TheAwfulToad Visitor in reply to TheProf]

um ... unless you're over 6'6", and/or built like an MMA professional, 100kg would make you overweight. If you're under 6ft then you'd be obese. I'm 6'2" and I looked terrible at 85kg (a long time ago, before I discovered that "the rules" don't work).

I'd completely agree with 1 and 7, but the stuff about calories has been disproven by literally hundreds of well-designed experiments (and by your own experience).

[TheProf Visitor in reply to TheAwfulToad]

At 197cm - I'm pretty much what you describe - 100kg is my settled weight - I have only once in my adult life been below that and that was under special circumstances. I'm not quite sure what your objections are to this guide - but it works for me as long as I don't eat outside the zone.

[TheAwfulToad Visitor in reply to TheProf]

Fair enough, you're unusually tall

My main objection is that it works for almost nobody, basic biology explains why it doesn't work, and experimental evidence confirms that, yup, it doesn't work. Check out some of the horror stories in this forum.

If your diet works for you, I suspect it's not specifically because you're following those rules, but because you're just eating proper, healthy food.

[TheProf Visitor in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Both healthy food and following the rules is important - I try to do both. However, I have never found that ignoring the rules works as the first thing to go is portion control. So healthy food or not the calories still need some control.