Best way to lose weight?

[MrM422]

1. Calorie controlled diet (make sure you're in a calorie deficit every day)
2. Eat foods you enjoy but that are high in nutrients (80% whole foods, 20% "bad foods")
3. Lifts weights
4. Add cardio gradually to increase the deficit.
5. Try keep everything you're doing consistent.
6. Assess progress every 1-2 weeks and make adjustments if needed.

If you have like 40lbs+ to lose id recommend taking a diet break every 3 months, maintain and acclimatize to your new weight, reset hormones and mentally.

Then repeat for however long necessary.

The most important factor being sustainability.. if it's too hard you will give up/rebound eventually.

[danielgmanm6]

Originally Posted by stbm5

if all thats accurate then you should be losing. if the scale isn't showing a difference you may be trading muscle for fat right now. the only advice i'd give on diet would be to stop the snacking. snacking keeps insulin being released. insulin is a biological signal to store energy. also, weight loss typically isn't fast so being two weeks in isn't very long. a calorie deficit of 500/d will typically only result in 1lb per week. be patient, there hopefully comes a time when your metabolism will shift and the fast burning will be more efficient - if your body isn't used to burning fat it takes a little while for it to get going. eating is deceiving you might be getting more calories than you think - nuts for instance, one serving size of almonds is almost 200 calories...

one other rec: focus more on building muscle and less on the treadmill. if you must do a lot of cardio then do HIIT

Great advice. Listen to this ^

[chassis]

Question about insulin as a signal to store energy.

If energy intake over a one month, or substantially long period, is equal to or slightly less than energy expended, does it matter what insulin is signaling?

If the body requests (demands) energy from the body, but insulin says, "Nein, it must be stored" then what happens?

Does the body not receive the energy which it needs, when in fact the energy is available in storage?

Does insulin override the body's need for energy?

[M5Rick]

Drink half litre of water before sleep.

[wtwo3]

I'm starting a high protein diet (for me) today. While I'm pretty consistent with strength training/weight lifting, I noticed that my protein intake was lacking, so I'm trying to up it to at least 150g per day.

Just some basic research tells me that'll help me feel satiated on less calories, so it'll be easier to be in a slight calorie deficit while also getting ample protein to help with muscle growth.



All this being said, 150g per day isn't going to be an easy task for me. Today for example - here's my plan for meals:

8am Breakfast - Fried egg with guac and toast, and a cup of strawberry yogurt. Total calories: 360. Protein intake: 22g

11am Snack - String Cheese stick. Total calories: 80. Protein intake: 7g

12pm Workout - Leg Day

1pm Lunch - Hot dog in a bun topped with mustard, relish, peppers - Protein Bar - Protein Shake. Total calories: 668. Protein intake: 66g

5pm Dinner - Slice of deep dish pizza, bowl of mixed fruit. Total calories: 556. Protein intake: 26g

Totals for the day:
Total Calories: 1,664
Total Protein: 121g

This obviously needs some work. I need more in there to increase calorie and protein intake but I'm starting with this to see how things go. It already seems like a lot of food to me. Also I obviously won't be eating pizza and hotdogs daily... this is just what I have planned for today. There'll be days with some grilled chicken and veggies, steak and potatoes, etc.

[JP10]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

I'm starting a high protein diet (for me) today. While I'm pretty consistent with strength training/weight lifting, I noticed that my protein intake was lacking, so I'm trying to up it to at least 150g per day.

Just some basic research tells me that'll help me feel satiated on less calories, so it'll be easier to be in a slight calorie deficit while also getting ample protein to help with muscle growth.



All this being said, 150g per day isn't going to be an easy task for me. Today for example - here's my plan for meals:

8am Breakfast - Fried egg with guac and toast, and a cup of strawberry yogurt. Total calories: 360. Protein intake: 22g

11am Snack - String Cheese stick. Total calories: 80. Protein intake: 7g

12pm Workout - Leg Day

1pm Lunch - Hot dog in a bun topped with mustard, relish, peppers - Protein Bar - Protein Shake. Total calories: 668. Protein intake: 66g

5pm Dinner - Slice of deep dish pizza, bowl of mixed fruit. Total calories: 556. Protein intake: 26g

Totals for the day:
Total Calories: 1,664
Total Protein: 121g

This obviously needs some work. I need more in there to increase calorie and protein intake but I'm starting with this to see how things go. It already seems like a lot of food to me. Also I obviously won't be eating pizza and hotdogs daily... this is just what I have planned for today. There'll be days with some grilled chicken and veggies, steak and potatoes, etc.

Eggs are your friend when trying to get more protein in while keep the calories on the lower side. Like you had mentioned, hot dogs and pizza are typically not the best items when "dieting" lol. Though you can't make your meal plan so stringent that it is miserable to follow.

Long story short, you had a good start! Drinks lots of water!

[No one]

Originally Posted by M5Rick

Drink half litre of water before sleep.

"I tried to train harder than anyone else. Everyone trained hard in the day. So just before I went to sleep, I would drink a lot of water. Then I would have to get up in the middle of the night to pee. I'd get up, pee, and then sneak another hour of training in by myself. That was very stupid. It could hurt your health." (Yu Hai)

[Oldgixxer]

Lol thats a hell of a "diet" plan ya got there

[///MPhatic]

I'm down 13.6 lbs this month, and it was pretty damn hard in the beginning, but it's getting easier. The withdrawals from sugar/caffeine lasted about 1.5 weeks, got hypoglycemic a few times (not fun), and just 2 days ago I wasn't counting down the minutes until I got to eat. It's a good place to be now.

My regimen:

-Less than a 5 hour eating window every day (usually about 3.5)
-Nothing to drink except water
-First meal is watermelon/cantaloupe/banana/nuts/peanut butter
-Second meal is any normal meal, I just can't have fast food
-No overt sweets at all (cookies/candy/cake/etc)
-I do a light work out 1 hour a day (35 minutes of weight training, 25 minutes of walking), and twice every other day (the second time is either half, 3/4 or full, depending on how I feel)

I wouldn't say I feel "better" all the time, just no highs and lows, and no afternoon sluggishness.

I'm 149 lbs at the moment (goal is 143), so 13 lbs is a LOT on me.

I figure I can get to my 20-lb loss goal in 40 days. We'll see.

[CoreyWebster]

Hot Dogs and Pizza! Sign me up!

But seriously,

Cardio everyday. Calories in\ Calories out. Drink water, plain tea or plain coffee.
No diet drinks, no diet food.
Your stomach should be the size of a fist. Eat that much at meals.
Learn to live with being hungry. You have plenty of fat on your body, you're not going to die.

[chassis]

Originally Posted by CoreyWebster

Hot Dogs and Pizza! Sign me up!

But seriously,

Cardio everyday. Calories in\ Calories out. Drink water, plain tea or plain coffee.
No diet drinks, no diet food.
Your stomach should be the size of a fist. Eat that much at meals.
Learn to live with being hungry. You have plenty of fat on your body, you're not going to die.

Awesome post, thanks for this.

[///MPhatic]

Originally Posted by ///MPhatic

I'm down 13.6 lbs this month, and it was pretty damn hard in the beginning, but it's getting easier. The withdrawals from sugar/caffeine lasted about 1.5 weeks, got hypoglycemic a few times (not fun), and just 2 days ago I wasn't counting down the minutes until I got to eat. It's a good place to be now.

My regimen:

-Less than a 5 hour eating window every day (usually about 3.5)
-Nothing to drink except water
-First meal is watermelon/cantaloupe/banana/nuts/peanut butter
-Second meal is any normal meal, I just can't have fast food
-No overt sweets at all (cookies/candy/cake/etc)
-I do a light work out 1 hour a day (35 minutes of weight training, 25 minutes of walking), and twice every other day (the second time is either half, 3/4 or full, depending on how I feel)

I wouldn't say I feel "better" all the time, just no highs and lows, and no afternoon sluggishness.

I'm 149 lbs at the moment (goal is 143), so 13 lbs is a LOT on me.

I figure I can get to my 20-lb loss goal in 40 days. We'll see.

Just a quick update on this.

I lost 19.6 lbs in 41 days and that was enough, so I stopped there.

I want to add that I did read a few things during my process that I tried out and they really helped a lot.

The first was about eating events, or times you eat. Every time you eat you spike insulin, which is a storage hormone. So if you eat 6 doughnuts in 2 hour increments you'll have a 12 hour eating window and 6 eating events.

If you eat the SAME 6 doughnuts in 2 increments 4 hours apart you'll necessarily gain less weight because your insulin spikes twice instead of 6 times.

In addition to that, if you take a 10 minute walk directly after eating your insulin doesn't spike at all.

So here is the combination:

Eat/walk
wait 2 hours/eat/walk
wait 2 hours/eat/walk
Done
Drink nothing but water until the next time you eat/walk

That's a 6 hour window with no insulin spikes, quite enough food, and a good walking base.

Which is the other thing I learned; walking.

You think that 20K steps a day isn't going to do anything, but it does. Not even brisk walking, just medium pace walking.

Anyway, I stopped my hardcore weight-loss program 2 months ago and I haven't gained an ounce back.

8-10 hour eating window
3-5 eating events max
walk 10 minutes after most meals
15K steps a day
20 minute medium weight workout every day (with the odd exception)
Eat whatever the hell I want

They say you can't outwork a bad diet, but they're wrong, it all depends on you what your starting fitness level is, how you maintain it, what you eat, when you eat it, how much of it you eat, etc. In short, it's different for every person. I outwork a bad diet every single day, feel, and look good.

[chassis]

Originally Posted by ///MPhatic

Just a quick update on this.

I lost 19.6 lbs in 41 days and that was enough, so I stopped there.

I want to add that I did read a few things during my process that I tried out and they really helped a lot.

The first was about eating events, or times you eat. Every time you eat you spike insulin, which is a storage hormone. So if you eat 6 doughnuts in 2 hour increments you'll have a 12 hour eating window and 6 eating events.

If you eat the SAME 6 doughnuts in 2 increments 4 hours apart you'll necessarily gain less weight because your insulin spikes twice instead of 6 times.

In addition to that, if you take a 10 minute walk directly after eating your insulin doesn't spike at all.

So here is the combination:

Eat/walk
wait 2 hours/eat/walk
wait 2 hours/eat/walk
Done
Drink nothing but water until the next time you eat/walk

That's a 6 hour window with no insulin spikes, quite enough food, and a good walking base.

Which is the other thing I learned; walking.

You think that 20K steps a day isn't going to do anything, but it does. Not even brisk walking, just medium pace walking.

Anyway, I stopped my hardcore weight-loss program 2 months ago and I haven't gained an ounce back.

8-10 hour eating window
3-5 eating events max
walk 10 minutes after most meals
15K steps a day
20 minute medium weight workout every day (with the odd exception)
Eat whatever the hell I want

They say you can't outwork a bad diet, but they're wrong, it all depends on you what your starting fitness level is, how you maintain it, what you eat, when you eat it, how much of it you eat, etc. In short, it's different for every person. I outwork a bad diet every single day, feel, and look good.

Congrats on the success! Is there more to read (links) on the ideas noted above?

[DocL]

I've always yo-yo'd with my weight. I recently gained 9lbs back and I feel like shit. I think the next diet option for me is going to be smoking meth or crack.

[///MPhatic]

Originally Posted by chassis

Congrats on the success! Is there more to read (links) on the ideas noted above?

A lot of what I do comes from Peter Attia, and David Sinclair. You can search them on YouTube. They're longevity specialists that are interested in body hacks. My workout routine/idea comes mostly from Firas Zahabi, who trains MMA fighters like Georges St-Pierre. I like Dr. Rhonda Patrick as well, so I listen to her a lot.

It's really just basic things that we all already know, we just have to put them into practice better, and learn how to hack our body. Listening to a lot of these podcasts you'll be like "wow, that makes sense."

[Oldgixxer]

I normally eat proteins and complex carbs that are low on the glycemic index and don't spike your insulin levels,I've found that works best for me over the years.
Unless I'm enjoying a cheat meal or two then all bests are off

[///MPhatic]

Originally Posted by Oldgixxer

I normally eat proteins and complex carbs that are low on the glycemic index and don't spike your insulin levels,

Your insulin will still rise, and you'll still store fat at that time, even if you're in a deficit. The only way to keep it from happening is to take a 10 minute walk after you eat.

[Oldgixxer]

Originally Posted by ///MPhatic

Your insulin will still rise, and you'll still store fat at that time, even if you're in a deficit. The only way to keep it from happening is to take a 10 minute walk after you eat.

Of course insulin levels will still rise,but foods w a lower GI suit my purposes much better than those with a high GI that spike levels dramatically. It's an old-school bodybuilding mentality, but it's been working for me for 30+ yrs so I stick w what I know

[///MPhatic]

Originally Posted by Oldgixxer

Of course insulin levels will still rise,but foods w a lower GI suit my purposes much better than those with a high GI that spike levels dramatically. It's an old-school bodybuilding mentality, but it's been working for me for 30+ yrs so I stick w what I know

Absolutely. I do it this way so I don't have to change what I eat. I always find that to be the hardest part because food is pleasure, and associated with memory as well. Whatever works!

[chassis]

Originally Posted by Claradaisy12

I have tried diet, green tea, and exercise, but I have not been successful in losing weight. Why am I Not Losing Weight And the thing that I must do.

What is your guess/feeling about this? What did you eat yesterday to give an idea of a typical day for you?

[floridaorange]

One of the biggest issues is not eating fresh organic food. If you eat nutrient dense foods and take vitamins, you will get fuller eating less which will lead to a flat stomach. 20 mins a day of working out is standard too.

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by No one

"I tried to train harder than anyone else. Everyone trained hard in the day. So just before I went to sleep, I would drink a lot of water. Then I would have to get up in the middle of the night to pee. I'd get up, pee, and then sneak another hour of training in by myself. That was very stupid. It could hurt your health." (Yu Hai)

Doc says to drink 2.5 litres a day but with me a sip every half hour or so, and if not half litre before bed then try a quarter if it's a problem then a quarter when you get up.