Feeling a lot more optimistic this week (sorry about the pessimism!). AFter last week's discoveries i became a bit of a skeptic, and proceeded to eat what i wanted - this week my clothes still fit, i'm no heavier, i don't feel like i've gained weight (i haven't!). So maybe, with time, if i can keep the 10kg off without trying too hard (just a bit of exercise, and no eating 10 blocks of chockie a day) for a while... then maybe i can retrain my body to be normal... i think so... because i know that with time you can reduce the number of fat cells that exist in your body with weight loss (not just the size). So hopefully my body will get the picture and reduce the number, so that even if i pack those fat cells full - i can't be as fat as before because there are fewer cells! Personally, i don't believe that the changes to the adipocytes are totally irreversible, that seems quite unlikely (i am NOT in denial!). I just think that there is so much we don't know...
So its no "eating restriction" again for me for a while.
I'm actually quite happy with my body as it is now. Of course some time in the future i would like to be slimmer... but i'm passing off that opportunity for the moment by telling myself if i go slow, then i'll only have to lose this ONCE.. and will never be 80kg again... So at the moment i'm concentrating on increasing my fitness and cardiovascular fitness - so that i'll live a nice long life with my happy, healthy bones 'n heart!
Had my last WI today at ww (can't afford it anymore). Lost 400g since last week, (apparently)... but i don't trust scales anymore. I bought a body fat % analyser (like a Tanita) off ebay the other day ($25), as i'm going to concentrate on building up lean muscle mass - i want to get near 25% body fat if i can (i'm at 31.8% now).
Fitness was okay at fitness assessment last week (VO2max). I'm in the average for my age group. I've got top core strength, which was nice (abdom muscles), okay posture - but my flexibility is absolutely awful. I have to work on loosening out my calves!!!!
Been doing LifeSprints since learning about them last week. AN easy 20 minutes every morning on the exercise bike (8 sec sprint, 12 sec slow - repeated for 20 min), before brekky. Then i rely on incidental exercise during the day to get me through. Of course Tues and Sun are Soccer days (1h 30min each)... I will run on thurs nights, do pilates on fridays - and rest day monday (i.e. no cycling!).
Haven't measured myself in a few weeks. Will do tomorrow morning. Who knows if i'm any different.
I love being at uni - there is so much more fascinating stuff to occupy my thoughts than obsessing about losing weight all the time (very much not healthy!). Absolutely loving the course this term, though its really tough.
My favourite jeans are fitting quite comfy now, btw. :)
Better get some sleep,
xox Nikki
Monday, March 31, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Newsflash! Remembering the science of weight loss...
Well i was back at uni today for my first day of lectures and tutorials. And my goodness, what a learning curve!
I confess that in the last 12 months my brain has become less and less science/logic oriented and started relying too heavily on the silliness of personal experience. But today was a big wakeup call that reminded me of how i got to this lower weight, and what i have to do to keep it this way.
We had a brush up lecture on maintaining health through diet and exercise. And the lecturers again reminded me of what i was fast forgetting - that dieting makes you put on weight. I confess i've been moving into diet-zone a lot recently (which always ends up back in fat-ville, every single time!)... so i need to slow it down.
But all that above was said by one lecture slide... pictures really do speak a thousand words.
I confess that in the last 12 months my brain has become less and less science/logic oriented and started relying too heavily on the silliness of personal experience. But today was a big wakeup call that reminded me of how i got to this lower weight, and what i have to do to keep it this way.
We had a brush up lecture on maintaining health through diet and exercise. And the lecturers again reminded me of what i was fast forgetting - that dieting makes you put on weight. I confess i've been moving into diet-zone a lot recently (which always ends up back in fat-ville, every single time!)... so i need to slow it down.
But all that above was said by one lecture slide... pictures really do speak a thousand words.
Goodness you really can't see it. But the one on the left: that shows what happens when you diet. ALL that black stuff is what you lose - but ALL that black stuff is water... WATER!!! and see that whitish stuff that drops a tiny bit at the beginning, but then forms a thick layer that never changes for the rest of the time - that is fat... and it DOESN'T CHANGE. Even worse, see the greyish stuff at the top, that shows a massive drop to a slow amount ---> bye bye Mr Muscle...
Looking at the picture on the right, look at the dark line. This is a rat that was fed a "typical" australian low-fibre, high-fat diet for a few weeks, and rapidly became obese... then, they made it eat a reduced-calorie diet, and made it lose a lot of weight in 11 days, so that it was almost back to where it started. But then, they put the rat back on the 'australian diet' again - and in 22 days, the rat had put the weight back on (plus even more!). And sure enough, they put the rat back on a reduced-calorie diet, and in 22 days (double the previous) the rat was back to its lower weight again... but when they then put the rat back on its fatty Aussie diet --> it only took 11 days for the rat to be even fatter than before --> and the weight just kept skyrocketing after that...
So that, my friends, is what "diet cycling" does to your metabolism...
So today i've gone off weight watchers and core and counting and trying to lose weight. Because i'm working my butt off to get fit and lean, and i don't want to see my poor body end up entirely fat and absolutely no muscle...! I'd rather be a size 10 with muscle and fat, than a wobbly and unhelathy size 8 who can't eat anything for fear of her weight ballloooning...
So i'm back to maintaining my weight, again, and for a long time. I think this next 10 kilograms is going to take about a year or two for me to lose. But if that be the case, so be it... At least i know at the moment i'm heavy and healthy, whereas another month of dieting and weight-loss obession could see me turn into light and flabby... I never want to go back to how i have been, and the current path of dieting that i'm following - is all too familiar... i've seen it in me before...
I'm back to trusting my instincts - core was on the right track. It was so close to being something wonderful, but i think it was still pushing too much focus on restriction... and restriction (for many, not all of us) tends to end up in us having the "on diet" "off diet" approach - which the graphs above show is not at all the best way to lose weight, but the best way to gain weight!
Oh and i learnt one other thing today --> fructose inhibits leptin production, (leptin = the satiety hormone that acts on your hypothalamus)... so whilst fructose may have a better affect on insulin than glucose, it makes you hungry and promotes fat deposition.... just thought i should point that out... so it doesn't make a good substitute for sugar --> use sugar, or nothing at all!
Doing a practical tomorrow that assesses my fitness and measure's my body fat... lets see how badly all the dieting has affected my fat/muscles levels... wish me luck!
xox Nikki
Monday, March 24, 2008
Easter Monday
Well, i'm starting back at uni tomorrow! So i need to get all prepared and cleaned up, ready for the new year... I think i need a to do list...
Well i still haven't lost weight... (weigh in last thurs = -100g!) BUT! Saturday night i went out and fit in my favourite jeans! I fit in them a few weeks ago (just!) but there was massive overhang... but no overhang on Saturday! So i've definately been slimming up a bit, even if it hasn't been showing on the scales.
Easter exercise challenge went by smoothly - even though i didn't do any exercise on monday... but i got well past my 50 points:
Monday: nothing
Tuesday: 2hr fast walking, 45min soccer
Wednesday: 40min pilates, 1hr40 fast walking
Thursday: 35min running, 2hr fast walking, 1hr slow walking (shops)
Friday: 4h30m bushwalking
Saturday: 1h40min slow walking (shops and @city)
Sunday: 30min running, 60min fast walking, 3hr30min bushwalking
So that was fun! Just got to get back in the uni groove next week - it will be so strange no longer having time on my hands to walk, and not being able to sleep in anymore until 9! But i think i need the change, as sleeping in chronically until 9 is not a good habit to get into - i want to go back to having nice long days again...!
Moving on to week 4 of C25k now - i did a run on sunday morning, somewhere between week three and week 4:
3m - walk,
3m - run & 1.5m - walk, x 2
1.5m - run, 1.5m - walk x 2
3m - run, 3m - walk
1.5m - run, 5m - walk
Stretch
Just didn't feel ready to tackle week 4 yet, with the (3R,1.5W,5R,2.5Wx2)! I think maybe i'll do one more run of this before trying week 4:
3m walk
3m - run & 1.5m - walk x 6
3m walk
stretch
Ok better get to cleaning my room...
PS: WI is on wed this week. Will have to change WI to mondays after this wed, though...
Well i still haven't lost weight... (weigh in last thurs = -100g!) BUT! Saturday night i went out and fit in my favourite jeans! I fit in them a few weeks ago (just!) but there was massive overhang... but no overhang on Saturday! So i've definately been slimming up a bit, even if it hasn't been showing on the scales.
Easter exercise challenge went by smoothly - even though i didn't do any exercise on monday... but i got well past my 50 points:
Monday: nothing
Tuesday: 2hr fast walking, 45min soccer
Wednesday: 40min pilates, 1hr40 fast walking
Thursday: 35min running, 2hr fast walking, 1hr slow walking (shops)
Friday: 4h30m bushwalking
Saturday: 1h40min slow walking (shops and @city)
Sunday: 30min running, 60min fast walking, 3hr30min bushwalking
So that was fun! Just got to get back in the uni groove next week - it will be so strange no longer having time on my hands to walk, and not being able to sleep in anymore until 9! But i think i need the change, as sleeping in chronically until 9 is not a good habit to get into - i want to go back to having nice long days again...!
Moving on to week 4 of C25k now - i did a run on sunday morning, somewhere between week three and week 4:
3m - walk,
3m - run & 1.5m - walk, x 2
1.5m - run, 1.5m - walk x 2
3m - run, 3m - walk
1.5m - run, 5m - walk
Stretch
Just didn't feel ready to tackle week 4 yet, with the (3R,1.5W,5R,2.5Wx2)! I think maybe i'll do one more run of this before trying week 4:
3m walk
3m - run & 1.5m - walk x 6
3m walk
stretch
Ok better get to cleaning my room...
PS: WI is on wed this week. Will have to change WI to mondays after this wed, though...
Monday, March 17, 2008
Monday: holidays, finally!!!!
Well! the thesis report is done and submitted! I finally get the week of stress-free holiday that i've been dreaming about for a year!
Lol and i don't know what to do with myself...
On another note: 2nd WI last friday, -2.0kg! But, lol that's expected after the week i had before my first WI!
I think i may have got past the 70kg threshold...!!! But not sure, as the weighing scales are a bit tempermental - i think they were below the 70 this morning, but i'll check to see whether they stay under for the next few days or not (i should get digital scales...! much easier to read - especially when you've lost your glasses!)
Doing really well in most ways, though this week. I'm actually having to force myself to be strong and eat carbohydrates with every meal (yeah that sounds strange, but i have a past dieting history of avoiding carbohydrates like the plague when i'm trying to lose weight...!). But i'm making myself do it this time, and not bingeing on slice after slice of white bread has never been this easy!!! (i'm actually not craving bread at all, which is odd cos white bread and cheese are usually the two things i crave most wehn i'm losing weight... but i've been eating both, so that must be why!) lol... now i just have to wait for the weight loss...
Damn, just finished my coffee... I'm trying to wean down to only 1 cup a day (i absolutely adore my coffeee... so don't think its a caffeine addiction or anything!!!)... but i'm thinking that i should try and get it down to one.... oh stuff that, i want another one!!! lol... two isn't that bad, considering i don't drink black tea or coke or anything else with caffeine in it... But yeah, we just got a new coffee grinder (our old one was an electric dutch one my grandparents passed down to my dad - about 40 years old!!! but the size of the granules was getting a bit variable: like the difference between icing sugar (clogging up the espresso filter pores), and granular toffee sugar (makes filthy coffee)... but this new breville one is pretty good! I feel very sad having to say goodbye to our old one... but the time has come...
Set myself a goal this week... Since i'm on holidays i have plenty of time on my hands. SO, i'm aiming at 1-1.5hrs of exercise a day. SO here is the plan:
Monday: AM: walking / housework (30min), PM: c25k run (30m)
Tuesday: AM: walking (at home/uni/normo) (50 min), PM: soccer training (1hr)
Wednesday: AM: pilates (45min), PM: walking at city with parents to see Billy Elliot (30min)
Thursday: AM: C25k run (30min), PM: walk to tutoring (1h 30min)
Friday: AM: pilates (45min), PM: walking / housework (30 min)
Saturday: AM: C25k run (30min), PM: out to 21st at city, walking (45min)
Sunday: PM: beecroft walking loop (1h 30min)
I'll probably be late home on sat night/sun morning, hence that's why i'm leaving that nice long walk to clear my head in the afternoon. I've just found a secret to the hangover/late night seediness the day after you go out - lots and lots of fruit, and a long long walk! I felt pretty bad yesterday (i only had 3 standard drinks so not so much hangover, but i was really tired - not much sleep!) and that fruit and walk did absolute wonders! I felt like a new person! (something that lying on the couch for 5 hours before the couch didn't fix!).
Ps! managed to keep the uni stress-related eating at bay last week! Did this by staying in control: not of my eating, but of my assignment! By getting down and doing it, and telling myself i had plenty of time so it was all ok - i didn't give in, and still got to exercise too! So looks like my plan to attack stress eating worked!!!
Uni starts again next tuesday... eek! Haven't been in clinical surroundings for a year, so i'm pretty nervy about it!
Take care all,
Love Nikki
Lol and i don't know what to do with myself...
On another note: 2nd WI last friday, -2.0kg! But, lol that's expected after the week i had before my first WI!
I think i may have got past the 70kg threshold...!!! But not sure, as the weighing scales are a bit tempermental - i think they were below the 70 this morning, but i'll check to see whether they stay under for the next few days or not (i should get digital scales...! much easier to read - especially when you've lost your glasses!)
Doing really well in most ways, though this week. I'm actually having to force myself to be strong and eat carbohydrates with every meal (yeah that sounds strange, but i have a past dieting history of avoiding carbohydrates like the plague when i'm trying to lose weight...!). But i'm making myself do it this time, and not bingeing on slice after slice of white bread has never been this easy!!! (i'm actually not craving bread at all, which is odd cos white bread and cheese are usually the two things i crave most wehn i'm losing weight... but i've been eating both, so that must be why!) lol... now i just have to wait for the weight loss...
Damn, just finished my coffee... I'm trying to wean down to only 1 cup a day (i absolutely adore my coffeee... so don't think its a caffeine addiction or anything!!!)... but i'm thinking that i should try and get it down to one.... oh stuff that, i want another one!!! lol... two isn't that bad, considering i don't drink black tea or coke or anything else with caffeine in it... But yeah, we just got a new coffee grinder (our old one was an electric dutch one my grandparents passed down to my dad - about 40 years old!!! but the size of the granules was getting a bit variable: like the difference between icing sugar (clogging up the espresso filter pores), and granular toffee sugar (makes filthy coffee)... but this new breville one is pretty good! I feel very sad having to say goodbye to our old one... but the time has come...
Set myself a goal this week... Since i'm on holidays i have plenty of time on my hands. SO, i'm aiming at 1-1.5hrs of exercise a day. SO here is the plan:
Monday: AM: walking / housework (30min), PM: c25k run (30m)
Tuesday: AM: walking (at home/uni/normo) (50 min), PM: soccer training (1hr)
Wednesday: AM: pilates (45min), PM: walking at city with parents to see Billy Elliot (30min)
Thursday: AM: C25k run (30min), PM: walk to tutoring (1h 30min)
Friday: AM: pilates (45min), PM: walking / housework (30 min)
Saturday: AM: C25k run (30min), PM: out to 21st at city, walking (45min)
Sunday: PM: beecroft walking loop (1h 30min)
I'll probably be late home on sat night/sun morning, hence that's why i'm leaving that nice long walk to clear my head in the afternoon. I've just found a secret to the hangover/late night seediness the day after you go out - lots and lots of fruit, and a long long walk! I felt pretty bad yesterday (i only had 3 standard drinks so not so much hangover, but i was really tired - not much sleep!) and that fruit and walk did absolute wonders! I felt like a new person! (something that lying on the couch for 5 hours before the couch didn't fix!).
Ps! managed to keep the uni stress-related eating at bay last week! Did this by staying in control: not of my eating, but of my assignment! By getting down and doing it, and telling myself i had plenty of time so it was all ok - i didn't give in, and still got to exercise too! So looks like my plan to attack stress eating worked!!!
Uni starts again next tuesday... eek! Haven't been in clinical surroundings for a year, so i'm pretty nervy about it!
Take care all,
Love Nikki
Monday, March 10, 2008
Core: unedited and raw
Hi all!
Well, here's my week:
- last week i had my first big big test. and i failed. i've always struggled with uni-stress-related eating... and i confess i haven't been tested in the las 4 months, so here it came. I've got the emotional eating under control, and the hungry binge eating undercontrol - now its just the uni-stress related one that i have to deal with.
I think i've realised that i can't "walk and chew gum at the same time" - i.e. i can eat healthy until the uni stress comes, then i have to divert all my attention to getting that work done and can no longer even think about healthy eating. So i subconsciously go back and forth to the kitchen, because i'm so nervous about getting work done. I'll admit it wasn't a bad overeating session - if i took an average of my 'pre-4months-ago" binges, this would have been a lot lot less. But i still consider it a relapse.
I know the stress will hit again late this week: - my final version of my report is due (last week it was just the draft). So as long as i 1) don't leave it till last minute, 2) make sure if fit in 30min of exercise a day to get the endorphins flowing, 3) eat enough healthy and filling food (pre-prepared, so i don't have to worry abotu it - i'll make some meals todya and freeze them) then i should be ok.... lets hope it works!
---
Meanwhile, after my thursday 'binge' decided to start officially back at WW, though i was curious about Core - and core is awesome! It's almost exactly the same as to what i was doing before (i havent really made any changes!) but it just gives me some accountability that will hopefully motivate me to break the '70' mark, and hopefully eventually hit/break the '60'.
Well, i have actually made a few changes. Even though some of it works against my uni studies a bit (i.e. not principles, but some of the methods - i.e. 1 tsp oil vs 1 tsp sunflower seeds... why is the former core, and the latter isn't, when i'm within my daily 2 tsp allowance?). and if core is all abotu eating when you are hungry, stopping when you are full - then why should it matter if i drink 'non-core' low fat milk, as opposed to 'core' skim milk?
Anyway... here's to next week...
weighed in last friday at ww at 74kg (different scales, after binge, and with clothes... is the only explanation i can offer... but my scales say i'm at 70.5)... but both will show a decline if there has been one!
Love Nikki
Well, here's my week:
- last week i had my first big big test. and i failed. i've always struggled with uni-stress-related eating... and i confess i haven't been tested in the las 4 months, so here it came. I've got the emotional eating under control, and the hungry binge eating undercontrol - now its just the uni-stress related one that i have to deal with.
I think i've realised that i can't "walk and chew gum at the same time" - i.e. i can eat healthy until the uni stress comes, then i have to divert all my attention to getting that work done and can no longer even think about healthy eating. So i subconsciously go back and forth to the kitchen, because i'm so nervous about getting work done. I'll admit it wasn't a bad overeating session - if i took an average of my 'pre-4months-ago" binges, this would have been a lot lot less. But i still consider it a relapse.
I know the stress will hit again late this week: - my final version of my report is due (last week it was just the draft). So as long as i 1) don't leave it till last minute, 2) make sure if fit in 30min of exercise a day to get the endorphins flowing, 3) eat enough healthy and filling food (pre-prepared, so i don't have to worry abotu it - i'll make some meals todya and freeze them) then i should be ok.... lets hope it works!
---
Meanwhile, after my thursday 'binge' decided to start officially back at WW, though i was curious about Core - and core is awesome! It's almost exactly the same as to what i was doing before (i havent really made any changes!) but it just gives me some accountability that will hopefully motivate me to break the '70' mark, and hopefully eventually hit/break the '60'.
Well, i have actually made a few changes. Even though some of it works against my uni studies a bit (i.e. not principles, but some of the methods - i.e. 1 tsp oil vs 1 tsp sunflower seeds... why is the former core, and the latter isn't, when i'm within my daily 2 tsp allowance?). and if core is all abotu eating when you are hungry, stopping when you are full - then why should it matter if i drink 'non-core' low fat milk, as opposed to 'core' skim milk?
Anyway... here's to next week...
weighed in last friday at ww at 74kg (different scales, after binge, and with clothes... is the only explanation i can offer... but my scales say i'm at 70.5)... but both will show a decline if there has been one!
Love Nikki
Monday, March 3, 2008
Monday: cycles of weight loss
Well guys, it's monday. I've been trying to lose weight again since saturday - and the 'weight gain' i had throughout the maintenance period of 1.5kg, is gone and i'm back to 70kg - so that just proves that all i was gaining was mostly a lot of fluid (especially since my tape measurements didn't change!). Pity, cos i'm worried that now that i don't have the fluid - i'm not going to have as much energy. But never mind!
So today is weight loss day 3! Weight loss day three has a big importance to me, actually, in my weight loss history. Because those days all so long ago (4 months!) when i used to serial diet and binge eat, day three was always the day when the diet would break! Sometimes it would be before day three, but it would never be after day three - so lets see, shall we? Lets see how long i go before the nagging hunger and dizziness sets in again...
Put up a post on the WW forum today, that i thought was a good representation of some of the stages I have noticed you go through when you are losing weight. Just thought maybe i should post it here. These stages are based on the current medical knowledge as to how the brain reacts to changes in weight, and since i know from personal experience, this is how it feels - i think this may be very much true... (does that sound terribly egocentric? i hope not!)
STAGES OF WEIGHT LOSS
When you first try to lose weight, it is mostly because you are overweight, which is mostly because you have been eating a bit more than you should be (sounds simple, and basic, but that part has to be clear!). When you do that, it actually makes your body try and prevent weight gain without you even having to do anything (though this can be easily overloaded, and that is when you DO put on weight). So when you first start restricting your intake & exercising more, you’re almost doing double weight loss - i.e. the amount of work you are doing, plus what your body is helping you achieve by increasing your metabolism. Gradually that would slow down, & your lossess will be largely from your efforts, until you almost start working against your body in losing weight. i.e. think of it in these stages:
Stage 1.
Body trying to lose weight (+energy,+metab,-hunger,++motivation)
+ weight loss efforts (-food,+exercise)
= ++Loss
Stage 2.
Body stops trying to lose weight (normal nergy,Metab,Hunger,+motivation)
+ weight loss efforts (-Food,+Exer)
= + loss
(here is often where lose 'fluid', though may have happened in Stage 1)
Stage 3.
Body starts worrying about losing weight (-Energy,-Metab,+Hunger,-motivation)
+ weight loss efforts (-Food,+Exercise)
= no or little change (plateau!)
Stage 4. [Danger! Danger!]
Body starts panicking (--Energy,--Metab,+++Hunger,---motivation)
+ weight loss efforts almost impossible because of body panicking (++Food,--Exercise)
= gain!
How to use these stages to your advantage...
The key is to avoid that stage 4. Unless you stop it, stage 4 will come eventually, no matter what speed you lose weight at, and stage 4 is 'binge mode': you eat everything and as hard as you try to analyse it, you can't work out why. However, the faster you lose, generally the faster you cycle through these 4 stages (and the sooner stage 4 will come), so you don't get the maximum benefit of actually working with your body to lose weight.
Hence: I think its vitally important to recognise stage 3, and the very very early onset of stage 4 (i wake up feeling odd on that 'day three') & not let it get to Stage 4 - do this by upping your caloric intake with wholesome foods (yes, carrots are wholesome - but they won't tell your body its not starving when all its craving is eggs, bread and cheese!), & keeping exercising (but not pushing yourself!) to maintain a stable weight for a week or two (i.e. make sure you aren't actively still trying to lose weight, but try not to gain either. This will actually boost your metabolism and energy levels so that you shouldn’t gain!) - then you will cycle back to s2 (though if you go a little bit overboard, fortunately you do tend to cycle through 1 as well! :p), & end up at s3 again.
These ideas are based on the principles of weight regulation in the human body. It's a "negative feedback system", similar to how your body controls your temperature (i.e. body temp increases --> body works to decrease it, and visa versa) - except here it's controlling (and also controlled BY) the amount of fat in your fat stores, the amount you are exercising (energy expenditure) and the amount you are eating (energy intake).
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU KNOW YOU'RE AT STAGE 4
Just in case some more clarity is needed about how to cycle from a stage 4 to a stage 2 (or, if your lucky, maybe even a stage 1!) - here's some advice.
1) don't push harder. If you push harder, then you will only continue oscillating between a stage 3 and 4 - very minimal weight losses, probably between binges that will put havoc on your metabolism and that WILL lead to weight gain. This is how rebound weight gain happens!!!! So don't restart the unhealthy cycle of decreasing metabolisms and increasing weight gains! So this means, don't eat even less, don't exercise even more to punish yourself or to compensate for a binge you may have had, or to try and 'jump' over a plateau. your body is smart, and you cannot trick it! Think about the basic weight loss principles: losing weight = calories out > calories in. BUT calories out is unfortunately determined by your body, and it can get mighty good at being very calorie-efficient and minimalising your weight loss, despite huge restrictions or exercise-efforts. So, what i'm saying here is aiming to get much more 'bang for your buck': i.e. more weight loss with less effort... you like the sound of that??? hehe, me too!
2. relax back, but don't go crazy. For me, this involved still trying to keep up some exercise (30-45 mins a day should do it, even if its just incidental exercise or housework!), but relax back a bit and eat exactly WHAT you are craving, WHEN you are craving it, and STOP when you feel honestly and comfortably satisfied (under is just as bad as oversatisfied in this case!) - though try and make what you eat as wholesome and least processed as possible (i.e. Consider healthier alternatives to what you are craving, since your cravings are the BEST indication of what your body needs and what will shut your body's hunger and slowing metabolism up! e.g. full-fat banana milkshake vs chocolate, muesli with fruit and yoghurt vs icecream, coconut-milk-based-curry/rice or cheese/wholewheat-cracker vs hot chips, hot cross buns or raisin toast vs cake. - Though sometimes i need to do half and half: i.e. half milkshake, with half amt of chocolate! and that worked for me fine!). Remember that hunger is more than feeling full: your body is smart, and makes you feel hungry in other ways (dizziness, lethargy, constant thoughts of foods, cravings) if it is lacking in fats or proteins or vitamins or minerals (that is why it is so important to work out exactly what you are craving!!!). You may find you need to relax back for a week or two, but don't panic - as you will notice with each day that goes by you feel less hungry less often, and crave less and less of those foods with higher caloric content.
Most people (including me) get paranoid about doing this because they don't trust themselves not to go crazy. That is why it is important that you grab this in the very early stages of stage 4, because that will make it a whole lot easier! Breathe. Take breaks between snacks, whilst being honest with yourself as to how much you NEED (again, less can be as dangerous as more). Don't go for the thing with the lowest point/caloric value, when you are craving something else, as that will only make it worse! Don't trick your body, or it will trick you! Respect for your body's wishes will show your body respecting your wishes for weight loss. BUT if this is impossible, you don't have to go the whole 9 yards - At least try and increase your intake: If you are on points, that may mean eating ALL your point values for weight loss plus exercise points, or eating the amount for your height/weight by pretending you are on weight maintenance points. Because effectively, that is what we are aiming to do: tell your body you aren't starving, and tell it to halt gaining weight and halt losing weight for a bit.
If you aren't sure if you are really and honestly hungry, or really and honestly full. Then stop - and try the distraction technique (though be wary, as if you do the distraction technique when you are hungry, you may be even more (and dangerously) hungry when you come back. I usually get around that by getting something along the lines of what i think i need: cracker/cheese, apple, even cuppa tea etc. Then try distraction). This involves you leaving the kitchen, and doing something else entirely different - something which you do not associate with food at all (i find the www.youplay.com site works a treat, esp. when i think its boredom-related hunger) - for about 15-20 minutes. If, at the 20 minute mark, you find that you still have nagging hunger or cravings, or constant thoughts of food - then yes, you are probably hungry. Go get something to eat, and repeat the distraction technique if necessary until you can happily get on with your work without thinking about food.
If you are uneasy about doing the above (i can understand!) at least heed my advice of NOT further restricting yourself today or exercising like absolute mad in response to either weight gains or 'binges' --- as that will only make it worse, and you will reach stage 4 again very very soon.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: --- When i hit the stage 4 resistance a few weeks ago, i saw it coming and the red lights were flashing. That day, i actually ate ONE ENTIRE MEAL more than usual, which was definately more than my daily caloric allowance (i.e. for my height and weight) should allow. The next day, whilst i probably still ate more than my DCA (or BMR as they call it for Basal metabolic rate), it was less than the day before... and within a few days it was all back to normal, and i was eating the correct amount for someone who wants to maintain their weight, and craving lots of healthy and lower fat/sugar foods again - until saturday, when i woke up with lots of energy and motivation, and something told me i was ready for a new weight loss challenge.
Don't be frightened about a weight gain during this period (you may gain, you may not!). As i said above, I put on 1.5 kg during this maintenance period, but DID NOT GAIN A SINGLE CM. this 1.5kg will probably actually come on within 24 hours of starting maintenance, but don't be frightened by it - unless you drank 2 litres of pure olive oil, you could NOT have put that much weight on. 3/4 of it will be fluid, and the remainder 1/4 is likely to be a combi of gained muscle (yay!) and gained fat - and the longer you maintain, the more likely that that extra 1/4 will be all muscle! (that's one fabulous thing about the maintenance phase. Research indicates it is almost impossible to build muscle mass whilst losing weight. Think about it: your body is doing everything it can to prevent you losing weight, it would just be plain stupid to take energy from your fat and use it to build muscle! The maintenance period is a FANTASTIC opportunity to build up muscle mass, that will show your metabolism and fitness levels sky rocket! And provided your weight loss periods aren't massively drastic, then that muscle mass will stay there and boost your metabolism the whole time you are losing weight! Just make sure if you do do extra exercise during maintenance, that you eat plenty to compensate - otherwise you will technically still be in weight loss mode!).
WHY THIS WAY?
Why restriction/maintenance/restriction/maintenance???
This is the best way to lose weight, as new research is increasingly proving:
1) You will be many times more likely to keep the weight off for good,
2) it is easier and requires less motivation, as you are working WITH your body, rather than against it.
3) this method is just as fast as conventional methods: continually and slowly reducing your intake and increasing your exercise (i.e. for those lucky people who have the motivation to lose weight by not allowing your body to adapt to your weight loss, but by continually decreasing your food intake and exercising more - they are unfortunately rewarded with a slow weight loss, slower metabolism, and even less energy). This happens because despite being on maintenance for a while and not losing any weight - when you try to lose weight, it is the fast weight loss of someone who has just started a new diet for the first time!
MY RULES OF THUMB FOR COMBATTING STAGE 4
- Avoid artificial sweetners or MSG like the plague (actually make your stage 4 even stronger!),
- Use plenty of sunflower, olive and sesame oils (avoid transfats and oils such as canola, which damage your satiety centre in the brain that makes you feel full),
- white bread and pasta won't do as much as things like oats (natures wonderfood!!!), chickpeas (natures wonderfood #2), barley, brown and arborio rice, wholemeal pastas, rye/wholegrain bread. But in all honesty, if you don't like wholegrain breads (i ADORE them) then just eat the white ones! I don't eat plain white bread (can;t stand it), except for turkish or lebanese bread.
- Never ever ever EVER dismiss cheese, full-fat milk, coconut (research has proven that there is a chemical in coconut that is extremely effective at increasing satiety and turning off the starvation response), nuts, eggs, or oils as unhealthy - trying to include these as much as you can (i.e. without going overboard) in your everyday diet, especially whilst trying to lose weight, will keep that stage 4 away for as long as possible.
- Biggie: try and let at least 40% if your diet be vegetables and fruit. I do the 2 serves fruit, 5+ serves veg a day recommended by the govt.
Stage 4 is best combatted by you trying to find out what your individual feelings are when you are hungry, and when you are full (they can vary a lot from person to person!)
Hunger may be: thought of food, tiredness, waning motivation, depression, anxiety, lethargy, dizziness (I hallucinate!), that feeling that you need 'something more', physical rumbling stomach, bad breath (this one is a bad sign, as it is an indication that you are mostly burning muscle mass and protein, rather than fat!).
I find that i get quite a few of these - and i find each of them indicates something different about what i need:
When i hallucinate/feel dizzy, it's because i'm hypoglycaemic (low blood sugar) --> carbohydrates will fix this up. So a carrot or apple (their sugar hits your blood stream quick) is good, then have something with a more sustained sugar release (i.e. lower GI) e.g. oats, wholegrain cracker. When i'm craving 'something more' or having constant thoughts of food it's usually because i need to be eating more fat. When i'm have a rumbly stomach, that indicates gut emptiness - so i go for protein and veg. Of course, most meals you should be aiming to cover all of these four groups, so that most of the time you are feeling a combination of all of them or just gut emptiness.
And above all, use what you FEEL like eating as a guide over what to eat. If you want cheese, a carrot won't help!
So today is weight loss day 3! Weight loss day three has a big importance to me, actually, in my weight loss history. Because those days all so long ago (4 months!) when i used to serial diet and binge eat, day three was always the day when the diet would break! Sometimes it would be before day three, but it would never be after day three - so lets see, shall we? Lets see how long i go before the nagging hunger and dizziness sets in again...
Put up a post on the WW forum today, that i thought was a good representation of some of the stages I have noticed you go through when you are losing weight. Just thought maybe i should post it here. These stages are based on the current medical knowledge as to how the brain reacts to changes in weight, and since i know from personal experience, this is how it feels - i think this may be very much true... (does that sound terribly egocentric? i hope not!)
STAGES OF WEIGHT LOSS
When you first try to lose weight, it is mostly because you are overweight, which is mostly because you have been eating a bit more than you should be (sounds simple, and basic, but that part has to be clear!). When you do that, it actually makes your body try and prevent weight gain without you even having to do anything (though this can be easily overloaded, and that is when you DO put on weight). So when you first start restricting your intake & exercising more, you’re almost doing double weight loss - i.e. the amount of work you are doing, plus what your body is helping you achieve by increasing your metabolism. Gradually that would slow down, & your lossess will be largely from your efforts, until you almost start working against your body in losing weight. i.e. think of it in these stages:
Stage 1.
Body trying to lose weight (+energy,+metab,-hunger,++motivation)
+ weight loss efforts (-food,+exercise)
= ++Loss
Stage 2.
Body stops trying to lose weight (normal nergy,Metab,Hunger,+motivation)
+ weight loss efforts (-Food,+Exer)
= + loss
(here is often where lose 'fluid', though may have happened in Stage 1)
Stage 3.
Body starts worrying about losing weight (-Energy,-Metab,+Hunger,-motivation)
+ weight loss efforts (-Food,+Exercise)
= no or little change (plateau!)
Stage 4. [Danger! Danger!]
Body starts panicking (--Energy,--Metab,+++Hunger,---motivation)
+ weight loss efforts almost impossible because of body panicking (++Food,--Exercise)
= gain!
How to use these stages to your advantage...
The key is to avoid that stage 4. Unless you stop it, stage 4 will come eventually, no matter what speed you lose weight at, and stage 4 is 'binge mode': you eat everything and as hard as you try to analyse it, you can't work out why. However, the faster you lose, generally the faster you cycle through these 4 stages (and the sooner stage 4 will come), so you don't get the maximum benefit of actually working with your body to lose weight.
Hence: I think its vitally important to recognise stage 3, and the very very early onset of stage 4 (i wake up feeling odd on that 'day three') & not let it get to Stage 4 - do this by upping your caloric intake with wholesome foods (yes, carrots are wholesome - but they won't tell your body its not starving when all its craving is eggs, bread and cheese!), & keeping exercising (but not pushing yourself!) to maintain a stable weight for a week or two (i.e. make sure you aren't actively still trying to lose weight, but try not to gain either. This will actually boost your metabolism and energy levels so that you shouldn’t gain!) - then you will cycle back to s2 (though if you go a little bit overboard, fortunately you do tend to cycle through 1 as well! :p), & end up at s3 again.
These ideas are based on the principles of weight regulation in the human body. It's a "negative feedback system", similar to how your body controls your temperature (i.e. body temp increases --> body works to decrease it, and visa versa) - except here it's controlling (and also controlled BY) the amount of fat in your fat stores, the amount you are exercising (energy expenditure) and the amount you are eating (energy intake).
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU KNOW YOU'RE AT STAGE 4
Just in case some more clarity is needed about how to cycle from a stage 4 to a stage 2 (or, if your lucky, maybe even a stage 1!) - here's some advice.
1) don't push harder. If you push harder, then you will only continue oscillating between a stage 3 and 4 - very minimal weight losses, probably between binges that will put havoc on your metabolism and that WILL lead to weight gain. This is how rebound weight gain happens!!!! So don't restart the unhealthy cycle of decreasing metabolisms and increasing weight gains! So this means, don't eat even less, don't exercise even more to punish yourself or to compensate for a binge you may have had, or to try and 'jump' over a plateau. your body is smart, and you cannot trick it! Think about the basic weight loss principles: losing weight = calories out > calories in. BUT calories out is unfortunately determined by your body, and it can get mighty good at being very calorie-efficient and minimalising your weight loss, despite huge restrictions or exercise-efforts. So, what i'm saying here is aiming to get much more 'bang for your buck': i.e. more weight loss with less effort... you like the sound of that??? hehe, me too!
2. relax back, but don't go crazy. For me, this involved still trying to keep up some exercise (30-45 mins a day should do it, even if its just incidental exercise or housework!), but relax back a bit and eat exactly WHAT you are craving, WHEN you are craving it, and STOP when you feel honestly and comfortably satisfied (under is just as bad as oversatisfied in this case!) - though try and make what you eat as wholesome and least processed as possible (i.e. Consider healthier alternatives to what you are craving, since your cravings are the BEST indication of what your body needs and what will shut your body's hunger and slowing metabolism up! e.g. full-fat banana milkshake vs chocolate, muesli with fruit and yoghurt vs icecream, coconut-milk-based-curry/rice or cheese/wholewheat-cracker vs hot chips, hot cross buns or raisin toast vs cake. - Though sometimes i need to do half and half: i.e. half milkshake, with half amt of chocolate! and that worked for me fine!). Remember that hunger is more than feeling full: your body is smart, and makes you feel hungry in other ways (dizziness, lethargy, constant thoughts of foods, cravings) if it is lacking in fats or proteins or vitamins or minerals (that is why it is so important to work out exactly what you are craving!!!). You may find you need to relax back for a week or two, but don't panic - as you will notice with each day that goes by you feel less hungry less often, and crave less and less of those foods with higher caloric content.
Most people (including me) get paranoid about doing this because they don't trust themselves not to go crazy. That is why it is important that you grab this in the very early stages of stage 4, because that will make it a whole lot easier! Breathe. Take breaks between snacks, whilst being honest with yourself as to how much you NEED (again, less can be as dangerous as more). Don't go for the thing with the lowest point/caloric value, when you are craving something else, as that will only make it worse! Don't trick your body, or it will trick you! Respect for your body's wishes will show your body respecting your wishes for weight loss. BUT if this is impossible, you don't have to go the whole 9 yards - At least try and increase your intake: If you are on points, that may mean eating ALL your point values for weight loss plus exercise points, or eating the amount for your height/weight by pretending you are on weight maintenance points. Because effectively, that is what we are aiming to do: tell your body you aren't starving, and tell it to halt gaining weight and halt losing weight for a bit.
If you aren't sure if you are really and honestly hungry, or really and honestly full. Then stop - and try the distraction technique (though be wary, as if you do the distraction technique when you are hungry, you may be even more (and dangerously) hungry when you come back. I usually get around that by getting something along the lines of what i think i need: cracker/cheese, apple, even cuppa tea etc. Then try distraction). This involves you leaving the kitchen, and doing something else entirely different - something which you do not associate with food at all (i find the www.youplay.com site works a treat, esp. when i think its boredom-related hunger) - for about 15-20 minutes. If, at the 20 minute mark, you find that you still have nagging hunger or cravings, or constant thoughts of food - then yes, you are probably hungry. Go get something to eat, and repeat the distraction technique if necessary until you can happily get on with your work without thinking about food.
If you are uneasy about doing the above (i can understand!) at least heed my advice of NOT further restricting yourself today or exercising like absolute mad in response to either weight gains or 'binges' --- as that will only make it worse, and you will reach stage 4 again very very soon.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: --- When i hit the stage 4 resistance a few weeks ago, i saw it coming and the red lights were flashing. That day, i actually ate ONE ENTIRE MEAL more than usual, which was definately more than my daily caloric allowance (i.e. for my height and weight) should allow. The next day, whilst i probably still ate more than my DCA (or BMR as they call it for Basal metabolic rate), it was less than the day before... and within a few days it was all back to normal, and i was eating the correct amount for someone who wants to maintain their weight, and craving lots of healthy and lower fat/sugar foods again - until saturday, when i woke up with lots of energy and motivation, and something told me i was ready for a new weight loss challenge.
Don't be frightened about a weight gain during this period (you may gain, you may not!). As i said above, I put on 1.5 kg during this maintenance period, but DID NOT GAIN A SINGLE CM. this 1.5kg will probably actually come on within 24 hours of starting maintenance, but don't be frightened by it - unless you drank 2 litres of pure olive oil, you could NOT have put that much weight on. 3/4 of it will be fluid, and the remainder 1/4 is likely to be a combi of gained muscle (yay!) and gained fat - and the longer you maintain, the more likely that that extra 1/4 will be all muscle! (that's one fabulous thing about the maintenance phase. Research indicates it is almost impossible to build muscle mass whilst losing weight. Think about it: your body is doing everything it can to prevent you losing weight, it would just be plain stupid to take energy from your fat and use it to build muscle! The maintenance period is a FANTASTIC opportunity to build up muscle mass, that will show your metabolism and fitness levels sky rocket! And provided your weight loss periods aren't massively drastic, then that muscle mass will stay there and boost your metabolism the whole time you are losing weight! Just make sure if you do do extra exercise during maintenance, that you eat plenty to compensate - otherwise you will technically still be in weight loss mode!).
WHY THIS WAY?
Why restriction/maintenance/restriction/maintenance???
This is the best way to lose weight, as new research is increasingly proving:
1) You will be many times more likely to keep the weight off for good,
2) it is easier and requires less motivation, as you are working WITH your body, rather than against it.
3) this method is just as fast as conventional methods: continually and slowly reducing your intake and increasing your exercise (i.e. for those lucky people who have the motivation to lose weight by not allowing your body to adapt to your weight loss, but by continually decreasing your food intake and exercising more - they are unfortunately rewarded with a slow weight loss, slower metabolism, and even less energy). This happens because despite being on maintenance for a while and not losing any weight - when you try to lose weight, it is the fast weight loss of someone who has just started a new diet for the first time!
MY RULES OF THUMB FOR COMBATTING STAGE 4
- Avoid artificial sweetners or MSG like the plague (actually make your stage 4 even stronger!),
- Use plenty of sunflower, olive and sesame oils (avoid transfats and oils such as canola, which damage your satiety centre in the brain that makes you feel full),
- white bread and pasta won't do as much as things like oats (natures wonderfood!!!), chickpeas (natures wonderfood #2), barley, brown and arborio rice, wholemeal pastas, rye/wholegrain bread. But in all honesty, if you don't like wholegrain breads (i ADORE them) then just eat the white ones! I don't eat plain white bread (can;t stand it), except for turkish or lebanese bread.
- Never ever ever EVER dismiss cheese, full-fat milk, coconut (research has proven that there is a chemical in coconut that is extremely effective at increasing satiety and turning off the starvation response), nuts, eggs, or oils as unhealthy - trying to include these as much as you can (i.e. without going overboard) in your everyday diet, especially whilst trying to lose weight, will keep that stage 4 away for as long as possible.
- Biggie: try and let at least 40% if your diet be vegetables and fruit. I do the 2 serves fruit, 5+ serves veg a day recommended by the govt.
Stage 4 is best combatted by you trying to find out what your individual feelings are when you are hungry, and when you are full (they can vary a lot from person to person!)
Hunger may be: thought of food, tiredness, waning motivation, depression, anxiety, lethargy, dizziness (I hallucinate!), that feeling that you need 'something more', physical rumbling stomach, bad breath (this one is a bad sign, as it is an indication that you are mostly burning muscle mass and protein, rather than fat!).
I find that i get quite a few of these - and i find each of them indicates something different about what i need:
When i hallucinate/feel dizzy, it's because i'm hypoglycaemic (low blood sugar) --> carbohydrates will fix this up. So a carrot or apple (their sugar hits your blood stream quick) is good, then have something with a more sustained sugar release (i.e. lower GI) e.g. oats, wholegrain cracker. When i'm craving 'something more' or having constant thoughts of food it's usually because i need to be eating more fat. When i'm have a rumbly stomach, that indicates gut emptiness - so i go for protein and veg. Of course, most meals you should be aiming to cover all of these four groups, so that most of the time you are feeling a combination of all of them or just gut emptiness.
And above all, use what you FEEL like eating as a guide over what to eat. If you want cheese, a carrot won't help!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
