Help with diet from those in the know.
Discussion
I've had a few hints and tips from other threads in this forum but wanted to start a new topic to pull as much info together as I can. I've been on a fitness kick for sometime now but I've stopped losing weight, I've decided for a month initally to stop drinking and really look at my diet. So I'm going to go low carb, I'm a bit off a noob when it comes to diets/nutrition, but I like to think of myself as a reasonably intelligent bloke so I'm going to brush up on my understanding? Anyone suggest any reading materials be it books or web resources?
Would appreciate examples of daily diets of those who know what they're talking about, I enjoy cooking so preparing meals isn't a problem, more just what I should eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner. Until I've educated myself this week I have a load of veg in and will have that with turkey, chicken, and also some steak mince to make breadless burger sort of things. Cutting out white spuds altogether but I've heard sweet pots aren't too bad? The veg I have in is green beans, brocolli, carrots.
I'm now up to doing 3, 4 mile runs per week sometimes 4. Also one or 2 games of sqaush and one spinning session a week. I'm thinking of trying to cycle into work once or twice a week which is a 30 mile round trip.
Would appreciate examples of daily diets of those who know what they're talking about, I enjoy cooking so preparing meals isn't a problem, more just what I should eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner. Until I've educated myself this week I have a load of veg in and will have that with turkey, chicken, and also some steak mince to make breadless burger sort of things. Cutting out white spuds altogether but I've heard sweet pots aren't too bad? The veg I have in is green beans, brocolli, carrots.
I'm now up to doing 3, 4 mile runs per week sometimes 4. Also one or 2 games of sqaush and one spinning session a week. I'm thinking of trying to cycle into work once or twice a week which is a 30 mile round trip.
Diet is really key to weight loss and will account for about 80% of the end result.
There are millions of diets out there and some of your diet choice should depend on your preferences, I good diet is one you can maintain indefinitely not something to do for a while.
My diet is really quite simple and something I can maintain with no issues, lots of greens, lean meat, low carb and I take the approach the more unprocessed the food the better. I also avoid salt, sugar and any of their variants.
What is your key goal at the end of this? To simply get slim or something else?
There are millions of diets out there and some of your diet choice should depend on your preferences, I good diet is one you can maintain indefinitely not something to do for a while.
My diet is really quite simple and something I can maintain with no issues, lots of greens, lean meat, low carb and I take the approach the more unprocessed the food the better. I also avoid salt, sugar and any of their variants.
What is your key goal at the end of this? To simply get slim or something else?
I dont have advice on diets other than be sensible, but what worked for me was to mix up the cardio work with some strength training like bench press, squats etc. Do this before doing cardio if going for both in the same session. My weight ( or body fat ) dropped off when I tried this, before I was doing similar cardio to you and didnt seem to be getting anywhere...
Thanks for the replies chaps. The major goal is to be slim for my wedding next year. The ULTIMATE goal is to reamain slim and in good shape for the rest of my life-may as well be ambitious!! I'm at the point now where my fitness is allowing me to jog for 4 miles without feeling burnt out, this was acheived by doing the C25K which I stuck with up to week 7 where I felt I could run for longer than the plan said so went it alone.
First goal is to be anything with a 16st in front of it, this would be a big achievement for me. My thinking is once I reach a weight I'm happy with I can tinker with the diet while keeping the exercise up to maintain my weight. I'm at a stage now where I'm really enjoying my runs and can't imagine never doing them. I'm going to enter a 10k (possibly 2) to keep me motivated. Went up to Scotland at the weekend to visit the OH's family and did a 5.5 mile run (I had a few pints the night before) and it was really enjoyable, glorious sunshine and great scenery and no chore at all.
For me I think I'm doing allot of exercise at present, so I'm either doing the wrong type of exercise, poor diet, or a combination of both. I'm going to try so HIIT this week, I'm going to start out doing 10 sets of 30 sec sprints, and 90 sec of recovery and see how that goes.
I'm eating cereal for breakfast, plain shreddies or shredded wheat with semi-skimmed milk so have got some skimmed in-what would be a healthier alternative? I'm never hungry at breakfast but I make myself eat.
Today I had a bowl of sherdded wheat and milk-forgot to weigh.
Lunch Chicken breast green bean, brocolli.
Dinner 2x butterflied chicken breasts, marrinated in some herbs and spices, and grilled-lots of fresh veg.
3.5 mile walk with the dog, it's a pretty hilly route and took me just shy of 50 mins, pick his s
te up adds time I reckon!
60 mins of squash. Hard to say how many cals that burns, I play to a reasonable standard, and sweat like you wouldn't believe. I think squash maybe a sort of from of HIIT the more I read about it. You have a rally that lasts anything from 15-45 secs on average (sometimes longer) at the end of which your tired then get a bit of recovery while you collect the ball and serve.
I've obviosuly been getting the diet part wrong and it's starting to piss me off that I'm not seeing any results from my exercise.
First goal is to be anything with a 16st in front of it, this would be a big achievement for me. My thinking is once I reach a weight I'm happy with I can tinker with the diet while keeping the exercise up to maintain my weight. I'm at a stage now where I'm really enjoying my runs and can't imagine never doing them. I'm going to enter a 10k (possibly 2) to keep me motivated. Went up to Scotland at the weekend to visit the OH's family and did a 5.5 mile run (I had a few pints the night before) and it was really enjoyable, glorious sunshine and great scenery and no chore at all.
For me I think I'm doing allot of exercise at present, so I'm either doing the wrong type of exercise, poor diet, or a combination of both. I'm going to try so HIIT this week, I'm going to start out doing 10 sets of 30 sec sprints, and 90 sec of recovery and see how that goes.
I'm eating cereal for breakfast, plain shreddies or shredded wheat with semi-skimmed milk so have got some skimmed in-what would be a healthier alternative? I'm never hungry at breakfast but I make myself eat.
Today I had a bowl of sherdded wheat and milk-forgot to weigh.
Lunch Chicken breast green bean, brocolli.
Dinner 2x butterflied chicken breasts, marrinated in some herbs and spices, and grilled-lots of fresh veg.
3.5 mile walk with the dog, it's a pretty hilly route and took me just shy of 50 mins, pick his s
te up adds time I reckon!60 mins of squash. Hard to say how many cals that burns, I play to a reasonable standard, and sweat like you wouldn't believe. I think squash maybe a sort of from of HIIT the more I read about it. You have a rally that lasts anything from 15-45 secs on average (sometimes longer) at the end of which your tired then get a bit of recovery while you collect the ball and serve.
I've obviosuly been getting the diet part wrong and it's starting to piss me off that I'm not seeing any results from my exercise.
Edited by andrew311 on Monday 7th November 22:27
I use http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ to track my calories.
Measure inches as well as weight, there were weeks when my weight didn't change, but my measurements did, which kept me motivated.
Keep a track of what you are drinking.
Don't aim to lose more than 2lbs a week.
I also used the scales inBoots which measured my body fat once a month, this change has been the best one for me.
Measure inches as well as weight, there were weeks when my weight didn't change, but my measurements did, which kept me motivated.
Keep a track of what you are drinking.
Don't aim to lose more than 2lbs a week.
I also used the scales inBoots which measured my body fat once a month, this change has been the best one for me.
Andrew, serious question do you know how many calories you need a day? And also how many to drop to lose weight?
If not I'd do this;
Calculate here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
And then calculate using the result here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harri...
This is a good place to start. Also be careful how many calories you take off, too many and it will stall fat loss.
The only other thing I'd suggest is using measurements and/or the mirror to assess your condition and not weight alone because if you're exercising hard you're probably gaining a little muscle.
If not I'd do this;
Calculate here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
And then calculate using the result here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harri...
This is a good place to start. Also be careful how many calories you take off, too many and it will stall fat loss.
The only other thing I'd suggest is using measurements and/or the mirror to assess your condition and not weight alone because if you're exercising hard you're probably gaining a little muscle.
Ordinary_Chap said:
Andrew, serious question do you know how many calories you need a day? And also how many to drop to lose weight?
If not I'd do this;
Calculate here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
And then calculate using the result here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harri...
This is a good place to start. Also be careful how many calories you take off, too many and it will stall fat loss.
The only other thing I'd suggest is using measurements and/or the mirror to assess your condition and not weight alone because if you're exercising hard you're probably gaining a little muscle.
Yep I've done this but if I'm honest need to go back to cal counting.If not I'd do this;
Calculate here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
And then calculate using the result here;
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harri...
This is a good place to start. Also be careful how many calories you take off, too many and it will stall fat loss.
The only other thing I'd suggest is using measurements and/or the mirror to assess your condition and not weight alone because if you're exercising hard you're probably gaining a little muscle.
My BMR is 2378.56
•If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55
I'll go with the above statement so 2378.56 X 1.55=3686 cals that seems allot?
Thanks Tumbler I had a similar app on my Iphone but really need to force myself to do this. It was taking like 1100 cals off for 45mins of squash which seemed far too many.
In all honesty the only way to find out how many calories your body uses is to put the time in and keep track, one weeks food diary would be a good starting point, but realistically I think you need around 6 weeks of recording everything to understand what works for you.
Small tweaks can make a big difference, you've got to get yourself in to a calorie deficit, which frankly is not a natural place for the body to be, but I've found that once you are consistent with this it becomes much easier.
If you are not losing 2lbs a week, then you are consuming too many calories, so you need to find out where, you may just need to adjust your portion size, so a period of weighing everything, tedious I know, but it will help.
Small tweaks can make a big difference, you've got to get yourself in to a calorie deficit, which frankly is not a natural place for the body to be, but I've found that once you are consistent with this it becomes much easier.
If you are not losing 2lbs a week, then you are consuming too many calories, so you need to find out where, you may just need to adjust your portion size, so a period of weighing everything, tedious I know, but it will help.
Tumbler said:
In all honesty the only way to find out how many calories your body uses is to put the time in and keep track, one weeks food diary would be a good starting point, but realistically I think you need around 6 weeks of recording everything to understand what works for you.
Small tweaks can make a big difference, you've got to get yourself in to a calorie deficit, which frankly is not a natural place for the body to be, but I've found that once you are consistent with this it becomes much easier.
If you are not losing 2lbs a week, then you are consuming too many calories, so you need to find out where, you may just need to adjust your portion size, so a period of weighing everything, tedious I know, but it will help.
I put my Fitness Pal on my Iphone last night and it says to loose 2lbs a week I need 1700 cals, that doesn't account for any exercise though but still seems low to me. Using the BMR and other equation factoring in a medium amount of exercise that suggested nearly twice that figure.Small tweaks can make a big difference, you've got to get yourself in to a calorie deficit, which frankly is not a natural place for the body to be, but I've found that once you are consistent with this it becomes much easier.
If you are not losing 2lbs a week, then you are consuming too many calories, so you need to find out where, you may just need to adjust your portion size, so a period of weighing everything, tedious I know, but it will help.
andrew311 said:
I put my Fitness Pal on my Iphone last night and it says to loose 2lbs a week I need 1700 cals, that doesn't account for any exercise though but still seems low to me. Using the BMR and other equation factoring in a medium amount of exercise that suggested nearly twice that figure.
To be honest that sounds about right to me as base calories, most people have fairly sedentary lives these day, and around 2000-2100 would see most men stable.
anonymous said:
[redacted]
That's very high in sugar, and not enough leafy green veg for my liking.....the thing with even natural sugar, if you don't burn it straight away, which most people doing an office job won't, then it gets stored as fat, plus you can end up with sugar highs and lows.You really have to keep track on what your eating, and the relative content of each item consumed.
As mentioned - food diary is essential - I had (still have) a shocking diet and its only when its in black and white do you realise how much you are eating..
'The last few pounds' if that is what you are looking to shift may need a bit more effort to loose - a cardio sport like swimming would help in addition to weights so you don't move into atrophy area - this is where the content of food stuffs play into effect.
But sounds like you are on the right track - assuming you want to go for a more defined look then swapping some of the early morning carbs for a protein shake instead (which has the benefit of holding off hunger pangs) is useful.
As mentioned - food diary is essential - I had (still have) a shocking diet and its only when its in black and white do you realise how much you are eating..
'The last few pounds' if that is what you are looking to shift may need a bit more effort to loose - a cardio sport like swimming would help in addition to weights so you don't move into atrophy area - this is where the content of food stuffs play into effect.
But sounds like you are on the right track - assuming you want to go for a more defined look then swapping some of the early morning carbs for a protein shake instead (which has the benefit of holding off hunger pangs) is useful.
Thanks for the additional replies. So here is todays food diary.
Breakfast-Shreddies with Semi skimmed milk 209cal
Dinner-1xChicken Breast Fillets (Grilled)
Thin Cut Beed Steak
Brocoli - Boiled 100g
Green Beans, 100g
Cals 387
Dinner
200g Roast Chicken
Parsnips 100g
100g baby carrots
Brocoli-100g
Grean beans 100g
Cals 665
Total for today 1261. Exercise I did 45 mins walk with the dog and going to do 20 min HIIT training (running) later.
Breakfast-Shreddies with Semi skimmed milk 209cal
Dinner-1xChicken Breast Fillets (Grilled)
Thin Cut Beed Steak
Brocoli - Boiled 100g
Green Beans, 100g
Cals 387
Dinner
200g Roast Chicken
Parsnips 100g
100g baby carrots
Brocoli-100g
Grean beans 100g
Cals 665
Total for today 1261. Exercise I did 45 mins walk with the dog and going to do 20 min HIIT training (running) later.
Can I suggest you're not eating nearly enough! If you need around 3.5k a day I'd not be below 2k just making sure of course the food is good!
Also if you're interested in a complete education in a book on nutrition I'd recommend this book;
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/ultimate-diet-20
I promise if you read it and absorb the information on how fat works and why folk get fat other than the bleeding obvious you'll be set to choose how you diet, what you eat and have the flexibility to do it.
You can find plenty of copies in pdf format on the internet but given the quality of the work I'd encourage you to buy a copy as a nod to Lyle.
He's known as one of the nutritional guru's and I find his material very readable although in the book above he goes deep into the science so it took a few readings of the book to absorb fully.
Essentially his work reveals the truths about weight loss and he goes as far as talking about substances some folk use to lose weight so what you're getting is the most brutally honest discussion around the science and its application as opposed to the far more PC diet books. I've never done the workouts he suggested but I have learn't about the science of how and why the body stores fat and how to manipulate it very easily. I applied it in my original thread; http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
When I look back I cringe as I understand so much more now although the principles still stand firm and nothing changes in that sense.
Lee
Also if you're interested in a complete education in a book on nutrition I'd recommend this book;
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/ultimate-diet-20
I promise if you read it and absorb the information on how fat works and why folk get fat other than the bleeding obvious you'll be set to choose how you diet, what you eat and have the flexibility to do it.
You can find plenty of copies in pdf format on the internet but given the quality of the work I'd encourage you to buy a copy as a nod to Lyle.
He's known as one of the nutritional guru's and I find his material very readable although in the book above he goes deep into the science so it took a few readings of the book to absorb fully.
Essentially his work reveals the truths about weight loss and he goes as far as talking about substances some folk use to lose weight so what you're getting is the most brutally honest discussion around the science and its application as opposed to the far more PC diet books. I've never done the workouts he suggested but I have learn't about the science of how and why the body stores fat and how to manipulate it very easily. I applied it in my original thread; http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
When I look back I cringe as I understand so much more now although the principles still stand firm and nothing changes in that sense.
Lee
Edited by Ordinary_Chap on Tuesday 8th November 19:30
andrew311 said:
Thanks for the additional replies. So here is todays food diary.
Breakfast-Shreddies with Semi skimmed milk 209cal
Dinner-1xChicken Breast Fillets (Grilled)
Thin Cut Beed Steak
Brocoli - Boiled 100g
Green Beans, 100g
Cals 387
Dinner
200g Roast Chicken
Parsnips 100g
100g baby carrots
Brocoli-100g
Grean beans 100g
Cals 665
Total for today 1261. Exercise I did 45 mins walk with the dog and going to do 20 min HIIT training (running) later.
All good calories, but 1261 is too low, can you have more at breakfast? I'd be looking at 500 calories for breakfast and lunch if you don't snack. What have you drunk today?Breakfast-Shreddies with Semi skimmed milk 209cal
Dinner-1xChicken Breast Fillets (Grilled)
Thin Cut Beed Steak
Brocoli - Boiled 100g
Green Beans, 100g
Cals 387
Dinner
200g Roast Chicken
Parsnips 100g
100g baby carrots
Brocoli-100g
Grean beans 100g
Cals 665
Total for today 1261. Exercise I did 45 mins walk with the dog and going to do 20 min HIIT training (running) later.
Ordinary_Chap said:
Lots of useful info
I'll def look into getting the book you suggest. I'm going to stick with a lean meat and low carb diet for the week and see how I go-maybe look into getting some shakes to up the cals.Tumbler said:
All good calories, but 1261 is too low, can you have more at breakfast? I'd be looking at 500 calories for breakfast and lunch if you don't snack. What have you drunk today?
I don't have much of an appetite in the morning getting up at 0530hrs usually and don't feel the need to eat again until lunch time around 11am. I just drank water yesterday, basically take my bike bottle into work and fill it up at the water cooler. Today I've had a coffee, I avoided coffee yesterday as I'm tempted out of habit to have a biscuit if I have a coffee so need to break that habit!I've had a bit of good news today that I won't be working shifts in Jan-March next year. I was concerned once I went to working 4x13 hour shifts on a 4 on 4 off cycle was going to be a big challenge as when working them I feel I'm either at work or too knackered to do anything, so this is really good news as try as I might previously I end up eating junk when I've been on shifts.
andrew311 said:
I don't have much of an appetite in the morning getting up at 0530hrs usually and don't feel the need to eat again until lunch time around 11am. I just drank water yesterday, basically take my bike bottle into work and fill it up at the water cooler. Today I've had a coffee, I avoided coffee yesterday as I'm tempted out of habit to have a biscuit if I have a coffee so need to break that habit!
I've had a bit of good news today that I won't be working shifts in Jan-March next year. I was concerned once I went to working 4x13 hour shifts on a 4 on 4 off cycle was going to be a big challenge as when working them I feel I'm either at work or too knackered to do anything, so this is really good news as try as I might previously I end up eating junk when I've been on shifts.
I can sympathise with that, as an avid non breakfast eater for many years, the introduction of breakfast has definitely had a positive impact on my weight loss, it really does help kick start your metabolism, currently my concern is your body is being starved for too long, making your metabolic rate slow down, when you really want it to be faster.I've had a bit of good news today that I won't be working shifts in Jan-March next year. I was concerned once I went to working 4x13 hour shifts on a 4 on 4 off cycle was going to be a big challenge as when working them I feel I'm either at work or too knackered to do anything, so this is really good news as try as I might previously I end up eating junk when I've been on shifts.
I'm not a fan of protein shakes...I like eating, but I wonder if they may have a place for you first thing in the morning. I would avoid fruit smoothies even home made as this with spike your sugar levels, especially as you are restricting your carbs.
You could try Total 0 Greek yoghurt, with a small amount of seeds, nuts some thing like flax seed and a very small amount of fruit, I think you could probably blend that into a drink, but again I'm not a fan, as I rate fibre very highly and blending destroys this.
Tumbler said:
I can sympathise with that, as an avid non breakfast eater for many years, the introduction of breakfast has definitely had a positive impact on my weight loss, it really does help kick start your metabolism, currently my concern is your body is being starved for too long, making your metabolic rate slow down, when you really want it to be faster.
I'm not a fan of protein shakes...I like eating, but I wonder if they may have a place for you first thing in the morning. I would avoid fruit smoothies even home made as this with spike your sugar levels, especially as you are restricting your carbs.
You could try Total 0 Greek yoghurt, with a small amount of seeds, nuts some thing like flax seed and a very small amount of fruit, I think you could probably blend that into a drink, but again I'm not a fan, as I rate fibre very highly and blending destroys this.
Cheers. It is difficult to make myself eatat that time of day-what do you normally have at breakfast time? I could always have a double bowl of cereal?!I'm not a fan of protein shakes...I like eating, but I wonder if they may have a place for you first thing in the morning. I would avoid fruit smoothies even home made as this with spike your sugar levels, especially as you are restricting your carbs.
You could try Total 0 Greek yoghurt, with a small amount of seeds, nuts some thing like flax seed and a very small amount of fruit, I think you could probably blend that into a drink, but again I'm not a fan, as I rate fibre very highly and blending destroys this.
At the moment I'm pretty much experiementing, I'm going to keep away from the scales for atleast a week, take measurements and not re-check those for at least a month.
Tumbler said:
I tend to walk to work,then have breakfast at my desk, either porridge, or muesli which I make up with extra seeds and Greek yoghurt.
At the weekends I will opt for an omlette, or poached egg and salmon.
I try to mix things up, so boredom doesn't set in.
Omlette is a good shout, I'll go and look up the cals on Fitness pal, maybe a weekend treat at breakfast. I'm at a different site until after Christmas so I'm going to start cycling in when the weather is fine-i.e. not raining.At the weekends I will opt for an omlette, or poached egg and salmon.
I try to mix things up, so boredom doesn't set in.
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