I want to share some things that worked for me in case others need ideas...
My first big shock, which came probably about three years ago, was that reducing calories and fat and increasing veg was counterproductive for me. I was doing Atkins (for years!) because it was awesome for my blood sugar, but I never lost any weight. The problem was that I wasn't eating enough fat and every time I got frustrated w the lack of losses, I would go lower fat and add veg. It was not until I went near-zero carb (ie, NO veg at all!) and fairly high fat that I started losing, and once I did that I lost quite well.
Another shocker, which seemed to go against the conventional wisdom, was that my body apparently doesn't do the starvation mode thing. I was stuck at the same weight for about 9 or 10 months, in the mid-160's, but eating fairly low cal and feeling scared to go lower in case of the starvation mode issue. And then I skipped a meal (and since I only eat one meal a day, that was a substantial reduction in cals) and whammo, scale moved for the first time in ages. And then I repeated and weight went down each time. What I ended was just to eat less, even though I was hardly eating to begin with.
And third, exercise is awesome and has done me a lot of good in terms of how I look and how I feel physically and emotionally, but I really wish I had lost a little more weight before I started. I think I started when I had lost around 45 or 50 pounds and my post-exercise losses have been super slow compared to before and if I take a few days off exercising, I usually lose a bit.
Alright, that's all for now. I'm sure there's more I'm not thinking if. I'd love to hear secrets from others. I still have five pounds to go!
Congrats! It's great to hear you were able to get past that plateau, it can be a real bummer. Being aware of what our bodies need and finding the method that works in the way of making us wake up every morning happy and grateful is by far the best method for us.
I don't have any tips on weight loss, but I have found that relieving myself of feeling guilt after a meal to completely transform my attitude about food and myself. I don't like to judge or scrutinize myself anymore for what I put in my mouth and this has been liberating.
Wow... congratulations!!! I'm glad you found an apporach that worked for you!
The approach I've taken this time that has worked out better for me than calorie counting (less stressful, and hopefully maintenance-friendly) is also based on once-a-day feeding. Glad to meet another person with the same basic approach!
I was stuck at the same weight for about 9 or 10 months, in the mid-160's, but eating fairly low cal and feeling scared to go lower in case of the starvation mode issue.
The starvation mode myth (or more precisely, the misunderstanding of conservation mode) reminds me of a pervasive myth about income taxes: the idea that if you make more money, you get into a higher tax bracket and end up with a lower net income than if you made less money. In actual fact this never happens (because tax brackets are tiered), just as there is no caloric intake so low as to negate weight loss completely.
The less you eat, the more weight you'll lose. You may not lose as much as the equations predict, but lose you will.
F.
Last edited by freelancemomma; 06-02-2014 at 06:26 PM.
Thanks, y'all! I also remembered a couple more things...
I started at approx a size 18 and was still in a size 12 at 150 pounds and wondered, if I only went down three sizes in 65 pounds, how much more weight I was gonna have to lose to get down to a size six or so -- another 65??? But it turned out that I went from a 12 to a 6-ish (wearing some 6's and some 8's now and in small or medium tops) in about 12 pounds!
Also, in the same vein, when you're at a lower weight, each pound makes a lot bigger difference in your appearance. I have gotten many more comments from people during these last 15 pounds than in the first 65.
And I was really afraid that the last however many pounds was going to be much harder than the pounds at the beginning, but that hasn't seemed true. Although it did kinda suck to be at a standstill for so long in the middle. I have lost the last 15 just as fast as the first 15. I have five more till goal, but I'm currently losing at a good pace and if it stops or slows way down, that's ok, I'll just take that as a sign that I've hit my healthy weight.
And yoyoma, I am LOVING the once a day eating! It feels so natural to me now and I do think it'll be really maintenance friendly. I can't remember the last time that I ate something during the day. It doesn't even really cross my mind any more. Tonight I just broke a 48 hour fast and I didn't feel hungry at all today. And I did a hard workout just a couple of hours before ending the fast, felt totally energetic and ready to go.
Thank you for sharing your experience and congratulations on the nearly 80 lbs loss! I've always enjoyed reading about people and their one-meal-a-day experience. While the idea of snacking doesn't really appeal to me, I don't think I'm mentally prepared to go from what I'm doing now (mostly 2, sometimes 3 meals a day) to 1 meal a day just yet but that's the goal. Congrats again!
Congratulations! I found pretty much the same things out in my journey. No/low carb, high fat (I live on Coconut anything) My trainer tells me to eat beans and I just shake my head. The scale is just super glued for me right now. I found as I get closer to my goal, it's so much harder to lose even a pound. Within the last month, I kept my same weight but lost another dress size so I think the composition of my body is changing. That may be what you are experiencing with the exercise issue...muscle weighs a lot more than fat. I don't know about you, but I am so excited to get to my goal, I just really do want to see that magic number on the scale anyway....
Congrats on your weight loss for sure. I don't mean anything mean or bad by this but just concern. There can just be a very thin line between healthy weight loss and eating disorder territory. I think there are many paths to weight loss & we all have to find what works for us. And perhaps I misunderstood something It just concerns me is all.
Quote:
And then I skipped a meal (and since I only eat one meal a day, that was a substantial reduction in cals) and whammo, scale moved for the first time in ages. And then I repeated and weight went down each time. What I ended was just to eat less, even though I was hardly eating to begin with.
Ofcourse not eating will cause weight loss, or we would not have those skin & bones starvation people. But is it healthy? You do not eat any vegetables either? Have you talked with your doctor about your weight loss and plan?
And again I hope I do not offend. The other day on another forum someone made some comments about my plan that just was very inappropriate & hurtful so I am not trying to do that at all.
There are a lot if wonderful benefits of intermittent fasting. One is that I feel GREAT. I am not in any way malnourished and for the most part I'm not going hungry. I have been doing 48 hour fasts only when it feels good for me to do it. So, Sunday evening I went salsa dancing, which started just around the time of my normal dinner, so I was planning on eating a little early to get my meal in, but I just didn't really feel like it. I was thinking I'd eat when I got home, but it was 1 a.m. when I got home and I just didn't feel that hungry so I decided it was a good night to just skip. If I'm hungry any time during the evening, I always go ahead and eat. If I'm not hungry, I go with it. I don't think that is disordered eating. I think it may be that eating on some sort of set schedule is disordered. Many people eat at the same times every day like clockwork but is that really bc their bodies need that schedule? Or is it that they think they're hungry just bc they've taught their bodies to expect food at those times?
As for the nutrition issue, I feel that my diet is extremely nourishing, but I understand that most people would be horrified by what I eat. I eat no grains at all, very little fruit (a few berries maybe once a week when in season) other than avocado and olives which I eat often, little veg (maybe 2 or 3 times a week, not in large portions), limited meat (shoot for 50 G protein/day). I eat a fair amount of full fat dairy -- cheese and heavy whipping cream mostly -- and eggs and some nuts.
Last night's dinner was substantial, yummy, and nourishing. I had yellow squash and red onions sautéed in bacon grease with chunks of bacon tossed in, 1/2 large avocado, and homemade cinnamon sweet bread made w a almond butter and eggs and truvia and mascarpone cheese on top.
ETA: I also wanted to mention that it was never my goal to be extreme about my eating. I may be particularly metabolically f****d-up. I had been told by several different docs that they'd never seen a type I lose weight and that I should be trying my best not to gain bc it was impossible for me to lose. I came to do the once a day eating fairly naturally because it felt right to me, but it took me ten months to accept the idea that I'd have to go beyond that to lose more, and I was still quite heavy at that point. I have only done what is necessary to get to (or near) a healthy weight. It's not like I've been struggling to reach a BMI of 16 or something. I am currently still in the "overweight" category, though, truthfully, I suspect that I am a lot more muscular than the BMI charts factor in, so I would not be surprised if my current weight is a completely optimal healthy weight for me. I would like to lose just a few more pounds, but I am not willing to feel horribly deprived to do it. If it doesn't fall off w/o too much angst, I will assume that my body has found its sweet spot.
now that I'm close to goal...
It feels so natural to me now and I do think it'll be really maintenance friendly. I can't remember the last time that I ate something during the day. It doesn't even really cross my mind any more. Tonight I just broke a 48 hour fast and I didn't feel hungry at all today. And I did a hard workout just a couple of hours before ending the fast, felt totally energetic and ready to go. 
