diet advice

[Odinson]

Type 2.  Sticking to the eating plan and with regular moderate exercise my HBA1C stays around 5,4, for the last 2 years.    Before this my sugar was all over the show, and I was heading for insulin injections.  Now on two tablets a day, lightest dosage.  But then again, mine is the classic "life style" type .....  TOTALLY avoidable !!   Sadly the sins of the past cant be wiped away though ....

 

 

Spent the weekend with a young lady that is Type 1 .... WOW !!  Sugar is all over the show !!!  This is when you realise just how bad this can be.     

 

I'm actually listening to this podcast on the moment with two guys who both have Type 1: https://plantproof.com/truly-reversing-insulin-resistance-type-2-diabetes-with-robby-and-cyrus-from-mastering-diabetes/

 

I'm only about 30min in, but it's interesting. 

[JohanDiv]

I was completely dumb when it comes to diets and calories and kilojules and whatever they try and tell you, and of course thinking some foods are okay when they are not, I became fat...as in OBESE fat turning at 125.1kg. I met my wife a few years ago and she educated me in calorie counting and calorie deficit etc, and I'm sure if it wasn't for her I'd be clocking over 150kg by now. 

 

Today I'm counting calories everyday, weighing my food. tracking my exercise to get to the correct calorie deficit every day.

 

I use the S Health app..It has most of the South African brands on there, plus it also shows if you are on track eating the correct balance of food groups and takes into account the calories you burn during the day and exercising.

 

Almost two years to the day counting calories, I'm down over 38kg at 86.9kg and still going. I think for my length I should be around 76-80kg, and that's what I'm aiming for by the end of the year.

 

At this moment I'm trying to drop a few extra before Around the Pot and Karoo 2 Coast, so I'm aiming at around a -1000 calorie deficit per day that results in plus minus 1kg down per week. Not always doing it this strict, but always counting calories so I know where I break even or go over for the day.

 

Don't cut food out, just eat a bit less and do a bit more. 

Also, don't "eat what you want because you exercise", you can never just exercise yourself thin, you have to eat yourself thin. 20/80 split exercise/eating habits. 

[Wayne pudding Mol]

Cigarettes and water - Kate Moss diet, "nothing tastes as good as skinny looks"

 

Personally I'm on the seafood diet....baboom

[MORNE]

snip

used this exact approach to drop around 30kg a few years back and have kept it off. Also, as already mentioned by some....don't underestimate the importance of macronutrients. Not all calories are equal. But counting is the single biggest help to someone wanting to make a difference. You eat a lot more than you think....and once you start weighing your food, you will be shocked.  

I was around 80kg at my leanest back in university...then post-school life happened...the good/sedentary job life, and i maxed at a portly 110kg just before I got married and I decided that was enough. I'm back in the low 80's again.

 

If you count religiously for about a year it becomes second nature. I don't count that often anymore unless I want to cut a bit after holiday times etc....and I can easily drop a kg a week then. I use it as a tool now instead. 

It felt like it took about a year to almost re-program my body to burn energy more efficient, you know that almost "can eat anything and not gain weight story" after that it became much easier for me to maintain/lose....but probably also because I eat a lot better now and know what a proper portion of food looks like.

I'm a lot less emotional about food these days...though I still like eating good food. in SA, we eat way too much imo. we have an eating culture...and we make damn fine food all over which makes it difficult to be strict, as well as difficult for people around you to grasp when you say no to that extra choppie or braai broodjie at the braai.

And you can still have a beer or a glass of wine when you feel like it every now and then..it is not satan. (clean spirits and wine is a tad better though when it comes to carb count )

You just need to realize that it also counts as calories (empty ones)...which means you wont be able to have that snack later if you want to come in under your daily intake/deficit. 

[DieselnDust]

used this exact approach to drop around 30kg a few years back and have kept it off. Also, as already mentioned by some....don't underestimate the importance of macronutrients. Not all calories are equal. But counting is the single biggest help to someone wanting to make a difference. You eat a lot more than you think....and once you start weighing your food, you will be shocked.  

I was around 80kg at my leanest back in university...then post-school life happened...the good/sedentary job life, and i maxed at a portly 110kg just before I got married and I decided that was enough. I'm back in the low 80's again.

 

If you count religiously for about a year it becomes second nature. I don't count that often anymore unless I want to cut a bit after holiday times etc....and I can easily drop a kg a week then. I use it as a tool now instead. 

It felt like it took about a year to almost re-program my body to burn energy more efficient, you know that almost "can eat anything and not gain weight story" after that it became much easier for me to maintain/lose....but probably also because I eat a lot better now and know what a proper portion of food looks like.

I'm a lot less emotional about food these days...though I still like eating good food. in SA, we eat way too much imo. we have an eating culture...and we make damn fine food all over which makes it difficult to be strict, as well as difficult for people around you to grasp when you say no to that extra choppie or braai broodjie at the braai.

And you can still have a beer or a glass of wine when you feel like it every now and then..it is not satan. (clean spirits and wine is a tad better though when it comes to carb count )

You just need to realize that it also counts as calories (empty ones)...which means you wont be able to have that snack later if you want to come in under your daily intake/deficit. 

 

 

 

I gave up wine and beer a few years back now. Single malt is a nicer problem to have.

 

dropped 17kg in just over a year with the help of a dietician. Headed a lot of health issues off at the pass. I don't have any craving for sweet things and eat them when I want or just look forward to that special day when one of the kids is having a birthday. Once you learn to live without all the crap we sometimes put into our bodies you realise that you're not missing out

[MORNE]

I gave up wine and beer a few years back now. Single malt is a nicer problem to have.

 

dropped 17kg in just over a year with the help of a dietician. Headed a lot of health issues off at the pass. I don't have any craving for sweet things and eat them when I want or just look forward to that special day when one of the kids is having a birthday. Once you learn to live without all the crap we sometimes put into our bodies you realise that you're not missing out

i also "got around" the drinking "quantity" problem by just buying expensive booze LoL. it naturally makes you drink less...though it not necessarily cheaper. instead of ordering a bottle of wine at the restaurant we will both rather get a R100-R150 a glass one  and appreciate it alot more...same with the whiskeys/cognacs lol

[ChrisF]

I was completely dumb when it comes to diets and calories and kilojules and whatever they try and tell you, and of course thinking some foods are okay when they are not, I became fat...as in OBESE fat turning at 125.1kg. .....

 

Today I'm counting calories everyday, weighing my food. tracking my exercise to get to the correct calorie deficit every day.

 

 

.....

 

Don't cut food out, just eat a bit less and do a bit more. 

 

Also, don't "eat what you want because you exercise", you can never just exercise yourself thin, you have to eat yourself thin. 20/80 split exercise/eating habits. 

 

Johan very glad you posted this !

 

 

I was heading obese to morbidly obese when I started "eating less" ... and could not understand why I was still gaining weight.  Turns out I that even though I was eating "less", the majority of my intake was carbs.  

 

I only understood the root cause after a few sessions with a dietitian, Berna.

 

 

 

Berna obviously do the carb count thing with many (most) of her clients.  But I wanted an easier, more natural way, to understand and plan my day.  So we do it "by hand" ...

 

- read meat - the size of the palm of your hand, and only as thick as your hand

- Fish - size of your hand

- fruit - size of a small ladies fist

- etc etc ....

 

Combine this with "plan-your-plate" and it is easy to go to a buffet function and eat correct, healthy, and just enough.

 

 

I mention this purely for those that think "carb counting" can be a pain.  There are other ways as well.

 

 

That said, my engineering brain is loving the concept of the carb counting apps .... may just give this a try one day ....

 

 

I dropped about 25kg, and then picked up about 5kg while further reducing my body fat.  I have been constant at this for more than 2 years already. 

 

 

 

as for eating vs exercise .....  I actually lost about 20 kg purely from eating correctly.  I then started exercising, and dropped 5kg more, before starting to build muscle mass while dropping my body fat percentage to lean.  I did go through a period where I would exercise "a bit" and then eat a lot ....very easy trap to fall in !!  This is clearly where the carb counting method would work so much better !

 

 

Johan thanks for sharing your story, and giving us more to think about

[Jewbacca]

Why does everyone hate on carbs? I love carbs, eat a lot of carbs.

 

CALORIES.... Count your calories.

 

Yes, not all calories are made equal, but carbs are rad if you have a balance.

[MORNE]

 

 

Combine this with "plan-your-plate" and it is easy to go to a buffet function and eat correct, healthy, and just enough.

 

snip

this reminded me, if you are eating off of those fashionable 40cm places...get smaller plates. I eat on a mid sized plate...it looks fuller. Your mind is a skelm if you put your controlled portion on that tray sized dish and it looks like an entreé instead of a main course...

[MORNE]

Why does everyone hate on carbs? I love carbs, eat a lot of carbs.

 

CALORIES.... Count your calories.

 

Yes, not all calories are made equal, but carbs are rad if you have a balance.

nothing wrong with them, Some body types just digest them better than others...if you are insulin resistant, carbs can be difficult.

 

PS: sorry about the edits...my fricken keyboard is acting up after a coffee spill.

[DieselnDust]

Why does everyone hate on carbs? I love carbs, eat a lot of carbs.

 

CALORIES.... Count your calories.

 

Yes, not all calories are made equal, but carbs are rad if you have a balance.

 

 

 

Right but what is the right balance? perhaps you have a naturally higher metabolism that copes with carbs better than someone else.

[ChrisF]

this reminded me, if you are eating off of those fashionable 40cm places...get smaller plates. I eat on a mid sized plate...it looks fuller. Your mind is a skelm if you put your controlled portion on that tray sized dish and it looks like an entry instead of a main course...

 

Hiehie .... Line ONE of "plan your plate" .... 9'' plate .... that's 9" not 29" ... 

[JohanDiv]

 

 

 

That said, my engineering brain is loving the concept of the carb counting apps .... may just give this a try one day ....

 

 

 

 

I'm the same. Totally became obsessed with tracking and over analyzing data from workouts, food, progress made, power, heart rate etc.  

 

If only I put this much effort into my dayjob as an engineer

[MORNE]

and Guy, with all those super endurance trail runs you do you could probably eat sand and still metabolise it properly  ...

[Odinson]

I feel like this thread is morphing into the weight loss thread. Perhaps everyone should've just directed OP there. 

[Jewbacca]

and Guy, with all those super endurance trail runs you do you could probably eat sand and still metabolise it properly  ...

On those races I eat everything and anything..... noodles at 6am. mmmmmmm