Fatty I am, help me you must (please!)

[Happy82]

Well not that fat, I'm fattish.... but want to lose the love handles and about a stone so I suffer less drag when skating

At present, my diet generally consists of the following

Breakfast

2 x slices of brioche & Nutella spread or Oats

Lunch

2 x Pitta breads (or baguette) with ham & cheese or ham omlette with 3x eggs & cheese

Dinner

Sausages / Chicken / Fish
with
pasta / mash / potato wedges

Throughout the day I drink about 2 litres of flavoured water.

As for exercise, I play ice hockey twice a week (hour each time) and do a couple of hour walks into town and back at a decent pace.
I do plan on running as well (about an hour per night when not getting splattered by ugly Canadians with no teeth) and doing a half hour session on the rower when I get back.


At present, I'm 5'8 and weigh 15st8, but would ideally like to get down to around 14stone and then alter my diet to build up.

Any suggestions on alterations to my diet that could help with this? I seem to be stuck at my present weight and not getting heavier or lighter! I've read about varying diets such as Keto and ckd but the blurb on the forums I read confused me quite a bit

At one time, I was extremely fit and playing at a high-level in sport, but suffered a serious injury to my knee that left me unable to walk, let alone exercise for several months, and during that time the weight piled on because I still had the athlete appetite but had the lifestyle of a Jeremy Kyle contestant So any advice would be much appreciated as I want to sort myself out now and get back on track, and I think it'd help with playing hockey too as well as my personal confidence

Thanks in advance

[The Char]

Looks like you are eating a lot of carbs to me. I would cut down on them- i.e. one brioche at breakfact (or swap to cereal or fruit) one pitta at lunch but more salad, and a smaller portion of pasta or mash etc at dinner.

[Cleckheatonlock]

Might be worth laying off the cheese too. It's nothing but fat really

Get rid of the starchy carbs and fill up with more veg rather than potatoes/rice/pasta/bread

[amare32]

I'm 5ft 8in too but just a shade under 10.5 stones.

I have been on and off weight training throughout this year due to a combination of boredom and focus on other sports mainly tennis and cycling.

Haven't been doing weights since Aug but have been playing tennis at least 3-4 times a week which equates to 8 hours with training and matches combined.

In the last 2 months, I altered my eating plan by not taking in carbs after 6pm. Here's typically what I eat during a day:

Breakfast:
Tomato omelette with 4 x eggs (2 yolks)
Bagel with honey
Tea (semi-skimmed milk, 1 sweetener)

Mid morning snack:
Banana

Lunch:
Home made stir fry-
Pork + broccoli + garlic & chilli
Boiled rice

Afternoon snack:
Orange

Late afternoon snack:
Cottage cheese & pineapple

Pre-game snack:
Bagel with honey

Post game meal:
Grilled chicken breast
Steamed broccoli
Side salad

Bedtime snack:
Cottage cheese & pineapple

The above probably seems a lot but I eat smaller meals and more often and combined with the tennis, I have leaned out and in the best shape of my life at 34. Sure, due to the lack of weight training I have lost some muscle but I'll address that over the winter by going back to the weight room.

FYI, I stay well away from supplements but have used the odd protein bars and drinks but that's normally during when I weight train.

Important thing to remember is to drink lots of water throughout the day and get 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep to aid muscle growth and recovery.

Last thing is that although a strict eating regime is essential in helping with your weight loss goals, give yourself some reward with the occasional treats of eating things you really like. Obviously don't go on a mega binge on kebabs and cakes galore.

I hope this as starters will help

Edited by amare32 on Thursday 1st December 08:24

[Happy82]

Cheers! I'll swap some of the carbs out then and introduce veg to replace it Will let you know how it goes

[HonestIago]

You should have no carbs at breakfast and preferably very little at lunch. "Back-loading" carbs ie eating them at night is far superior for fat loss/appetite control/sleep quality. This may not be what most people will tell you but most people don't know what they're talking about.

For example you could eat bacon and eggs at breakfast, perhaps a tuna/chicken salad at lunch and then your evening meal of meat/fish with a carb source and veg. An even better approach would be to forget breakfast altogether and have a 16hr+ period "fasted" each day.

Also: eating 5-6 small meals per day is pointless. It is inconvenient and will just make you feel hungry and unsatisfied. Earlier this year I lost 35lbs for the most part eating 1-2 large meals per day. Obviously there is a lot more to it than that but this is something I DO know about so if you have any q's feel free to message.

Edited by HonestIago on Thursday 8th December 13:35

[Soovy]

I lost 30lbs recently.


Breakfast - Espresso
Lunch - salmon brown bread sandwich + pint skimmed milk
Dinner - normal evening meal

One blow out curry per week
No more than 3 beers a day.


Simples.

[Gwagon111]

I was 6ft 1 and 16.5 stone, a mere 3 months ago. Now I'm still 6ft 1, but weigh in at 12 stone 2 ounces. My secret is moving into a third floor flat shortly before the lift broke, and not eating so much.

[EJH]

I have lost 36lbs in the last few months...and it's not so much a matter of diet but a change in lifestyle.

I have cut out the refined sugar crap I was eating and have adopted what I have been told to be a "balanced diet." Really not rocket science...but feel so much better (energy levels, etc) and am very rarely hungry...although only eating when I'm hungry is one of the more obvious cornerstones of the revised regime!

[HonestIago]

EJH said:

I have lost 36lbs in the last few months...and it's not so much a matter of diet but a change in lifestyle.

I have cut out the refined sugar crap I was eating and have adopted what I have been told to be a "balanced diet." Really not rocket science...but feel so much better (energy levels, etc) and am very rarely hungry...although only eating when I'm hungry is one of the more obvious cornerstones of the revised regime!

Hurray for your final point! For instance I'm sick and tired of hearing that breakfast is the "most important" meal of the day. Its absolute tosh and one of the best things I ever did was give it up. No point in eating first thing if not hungry. For most people its habit, they do not NEED breakfast.

[amare32]

HonestIago said:

You should have no carbs at breakfast and preferably very little at lunch. "Back-loading" carbs ie eating them at night is far superior for fat loss/appetite control/sleep quality. This may not be what most people will tell you but most people don't know what they're talking about.

For example you could eat bacon and eggs at breakfast, perhaps a tuna/chicken salad at lunch and then your evening meal of meat/fish with a carb source and veg. An even better approach would be to forget breakfast altogether and have a 16hr+ period "fasted" each day.

Also: eating 5-6 small meals per day is pointless. It is inconvenient and will just make you feel hungry and unsatisfied. Earlier this year I lost 35lbs for the most part eating 1-2 large meals per day. Obviously there is a lot more to it than that but this is something I DO know about so if you have any q's feel free to message.

Edited by HonestIago on Thursday 8th December 13:35

Utter rubbish. Eating 1-2 large meals a day? You are starving yourself for large part of the day. Yeah you may have lost 35lbs but at some point you will plateau and your body will go into starve mode which will make your body store fat rather than shed it.

I'm willing to bet if you are after very low bodyfat percentage, carb loading last thing at night before going to bed is the last thing you want to do. You're aiding fat storage.

Hey if it works for you keep doing it. This will result in nothing but a spare tyre which you will find great difficulty in shifting.

Fasting for 16+ hours first thing? What the hell were you doing when you were fasting in your sleep? To go another 16+ hours after fasting for 8 hours in your sleep is not going to be giving your body the nutrients and energy to function for your day ahead.

[Rickyy]

I'm by no means an expert, but since the beginning of October I've gone from 16 stone to 13.5 stone at 6ft4.

Diet:

Breakfast- Bowl of cornflakes with a banana and semi skimmed milk

Mid Morning Snack - Low fat drinking yoghurt + Apple

Lunch - Cous-Cous with a sliced chicken breast or Tuna (Barely any low fat mayo) in a 70 calorie wrap. Banana + Orange and a low fat yoghurt.

Dinner - Jacket potato with beans or Tomato/ Chicken Soup or some sort of rice and chicken dish.

Late snack - Hard boiled eggs or fruit.

I went from doing zero exerice to running over 3 miles 4-5 times a week on a treadmill. The weight has just fallen off me. I'm not doing so much running now and with the diet alone I'm still losing at least 2-3lbs a week.

[Ordinary_Chap]

Some interesting ideas here and whilst I don't prescribe to HonestIago's sentiments I get why he feels strongly about his ides given hes lost some weight with it.

Leangains has always interested me even though I've got no interest in doing it as I get hungry a lot and get grumpy when I need food!

I think when it comes to diet/lifting and the like there are so many ways to skin the cat folk often believe the way that works for them can work for everyone and in some cases that can hold true but it often does not. It also depends on many other variables to do with the person. I've found a very tried and tested way that I've never seen fail although nothing is infallible.

Edited by Ordinary_Chap on Saturday 10th December 10:34

[Gwagon111]

Use more calories than you take in, either by eating less, eating healthier, or more exercise, or any combination of the three. You will lose weight. Don't follow a fad diet, they give good results at first, but nearly always ending up with the participants more lardy than they were originally.

[HonestIago]

amare32 said:

HonestIago said:

You should have no carbs at breakfast and preferably very little at lunch. "Back-loading" carbs ie eating them at night is far superior for fat loss/appetite control/sleep quality. This may not be what most people will tell you but most people don't know what they're talking about.

For example you could eat bacon and eggs at breakfast, perhaps a tuna/chicken salad at lunch and then your evening meal of meat/fish with a carb source and veg. An even better approach would be to forget breakfast altogether and have a 16hr+ period "fasted" each day.

Also: eating 5-6 small meals per day is pointless. It is inconvenient and will just make you feel hungry and unsatisfied. Earlier this year I lost 35lbs for the most part eating 1-2 large meals per day. Obviously there is a lot more to it than that but this is something I DO know about so if you have any q's feel free to message.

Edited by HonestIago on Thursday 8th December 13:35

Utter rubbish. Eating 1-2 large meals a day? You are starving yourself for large part of the day. Yeah you may have lost 35lbs but at some point you will plateau and your body will go into starve mode which will make your body store fat rather than shed it.

I'm willing to bet if you are after very low bodyfat percentage, carb loading last thing at night before going to bed is the last thing you want to do. You're aiding fat storage.

Hey if it works for you keep doing it. This will result in nothing but a spare tyre which you will find great difficulty in shifting.

Fasting for 16+ hours first thing? What the hell were you doing when you were fasting in your sleep? To go another 16+ hours after fasting for 8 hours in your sleep is not going to be giving your body the nutrients and energy to function for your day ahead.

Just LOL. I'd love to see what you look like. I'm not even going to begin to explain the rationale behind what I do to you as you are clearly blinkered by conventional "wisdom". 16hrs includes 8hrs sleeping. ie eat 1pm-9pm. How hard is that to understand?? The health benefits of fasting are considerable and perhaps you should do some research before rubbishing what I say? The body does not go into "starve mode" if it goes a few hours without food, in fact short term fasting raises metabolic rate. While fasted, insulin levels are low and the body more effectively uses stored bodyfat for fuel.

I do not have a "spare tyre" by any means. At the end of my diet (where I lost 35lbs using methods you say are wrong) I was 10% body fat with visible abs (at roughly 170lbs/5'10" so not a runt) I eat an absolute ton of carbs in the evening when I get in from the gym (after fasting through the day) and am still very lean, getting stronger, bigger, sleep well and have loads of energy throughout the day.

BUT then again conventional wisdom says I should be fat and on the brink of metabolic collapse from not eating every 2 hours...oh well.

If anyone is interested in reading some TRUTHS about fasting/weight loss/nutrition check out Martin Berkhan's leangains website.

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 01:10

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 01:13

[ClintonB]

HonestIago said:

amare32 said:

HonestIago said:

You should have no carbs at breakfast and preferably very little at lunch. "Back-loading" carbs ie eating them at night is far superior for fat loss/appetite control/sleep quality. This may not be what most people will tell you but most people don't know what they're talking about.

For example you could eat bacon and eggs at breakfast, perhaps a tuna/chicken salad at lunch and then your evening meal of meat/fish with a carb source and veg. An even better approach would be to forget breakfast altogether and have a 16hr+ period "fasted" each day.

Also: eating 5-6 small meals per day is pointless. It is inconvenient and will just make you feel hungry and unsatisfied. Earlier this year I lost 35lbs for the most part eating 1-2 large meals per day. Obviously there is a lot more to it than that but this is something I DO know about so if you have any q's feel free to message.

Edited by HonestIago on Thursday 8th December 13:35

Utter rubbish. Eating 1-2 large meals a day? You are starving yourself for large part of the day. Yeah you may have lost 35lbs but at some point you will plateau and your body will go into starve mode which will make your body store fat rather than shed it.

I'm willing to bet if you are after very low bodyfat percentage, carb loading last thing at night before going to bed is the last thing you want to do. You're aiding fat storage.

Hey if it works for you keep doing it. This will result in nothing but a spare tyre which you will find great difficulty in shifting.

Fasting for 16+ hours first thing? What the hell were you doing when you were fasting in your sleep? To go another 16+ hours after fasting for 8 hours in your sleep is not going to be giving your body the nutrients and energy to function for your day ahead.

Just LOL. I'd love to see what you look like. I'm not even going to begin to explain the rationale behind what I do to you as you are clearly blinkered by conventional "wisdom". 16hrs includes 8hrs sleeping. ie eat 1pm-9pm. How hard is that to understand?? The health benefits of fasting are considerable and perhaps you should do some research before rubbishing what I say? The body does not go into "starve mode" if it goes a few hours without food, in fact short term fasting raises metabolic rate. While fasted, insulin levels are low and the body more effectively uses stored bodyfat for fuel.

I do not have a "spare tyre" by any means. At the end of my diet (where I lost 35lbs using methods you say are wrong) I was 10% body fat with visible abs (at roughly 170lbs/5'10" so not a runt) I eat an absolute ton of carbs in the evening when I get in from the gym (after fasting through the day) and am still very lean, getting stronger, bigger, sleep well and have loads of energy throughout the day.

BUT then again conventional wisdom says I should be fat and on the brink of metabolic collapse from not eating every 2 hours...oh well.

If anyone is interested in reading some TRUTHS about fasting/weight loss/nutrition check out Martin Berkhan's leangains website.

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 01:10

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 01:13

Try thinking a bit harder & go and read the last paragraph of Ordinary Chap's post. It really is a very sensible viewpoint.

I'm sure you're approach has worked for you but I will absolutely guarantee that it won't work for everyone. Bar gym visits, my diet in the past was along the lines you're advocating - end result = a none too pretty 280lbs ( at a low six footer).

So, I finally realised that 3 smallish meals with as few carbs as reasonably possible was the way forward, along with reasonable (but not excessive) portion/calorie control. The end result is nigh on 60lbs lost over the last couple of years. Needs to be another 20 or so, but not bad for someone who still enjoys a few drinks every weekend and hasn't seen the inside of a gym for getting on a couple of decades.

The biggest (and often least used) muscle is the brain. However, having said all that, I have seen some support for the feast & famine approach, just across days rather than hours.

Edited by ClintonB on Saturday 10th December 02:13

[HonestIago]

ClintonB said:

Try thinking a bit harder & go and read the last paragraph of Ordinary Chap's post. It really is a very sensible viewpoint.

I'm sure you're approach has worked for you but I will absolutely guarantee that it won't work for everyone. Bar gym visits, my diet in the past was along the lines you're advocating - end result = a none too pretty 280lbs ( at a low six footer).

So, I finally realised that 3 smallish meals with as few carbs as reasonably possible was the way forward, along with reasonable (but not excessive) portion/calorie control. The end result is nigh on 60lbs lost over the last couple of years. Needs to be another 20 or so, but not bad for someone who still enjoys a few drinks every weekend and hasn't seen the inside of a gym for getting on a couple of decades.

The biggest (and often least used) muscle is the brain. However, having said all that, I have seen some support for the feast & famine approach, just across days rather than hours.

Edited by ClintonB on Saturday 10th December 02:13

Ordinary Chap's post was good, I just objected to another poster's totally ignorant offering. The fact of the matter is most people don't know anything about diet/nutrition and that's why we're a nation of fatties.

I'd also like to point out that I did count calories for my dieting purposes, so my assertion that one could eat 1-2 large meals and lose weight was a little vague I'll admit. However, within set calorie bounds, eating once or twice a day is by FAR the most satisfying way of losing weight and does not feel like a diet per say, because you can still eat a hearty dinner each evening. Eating creates appetite and learning not to eat through the morning and afternoon is surprisingly easy with a little effort. Tea and coffee are great appetite suppressants for this purpose. Besides that, there is strong evidence to suggest ritual fasting has anti-aging effects as well as decreasing the likelihood of degenerative disease.

Think about it like this: how on Earth would our cave-dwelling ancestors have survived if they "starved" every time they went without food? We evolved to feast and fast, it is the approach to eating most in tune with our genetics. I have experimented myself fasting up to 48hrs (After eating 5-6000calories) and noticed no ill effects at all. I regularly fast for 36hours as a way of offsetting overindulgence and it is very easy to do and very effective.

Now, I have got WAY too into this thread for my own good, so you can either do your own research regarding the benefits of fasting on health/fat loss or carry on with the "eat every 2-3 hours or your body will starve brigade". Either way, be my guest!

PS Well done ClintonB on your weight loss, sterling effort!

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 10:36

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 10:37

[Happy82]

Rickyy said:

I'm by no means an expert, but since the beginning of October I've gone from 16 stone to 13.5 stone at 6ft4.

Diet:

Breakfast- Bowl of cornflakes with a banana and semi skimmed milk

Mid Morning Snack - Low fat drinking yoghurt + Apple

Lunch - Cous-Cous with a sliced chicken breast or Tuna (Barely any low fat mayo) in a 70 calorie wrap. Banana + Orange and a low fat yoghurt.

Dinner - Jacket potato with beans or Tomato/ Chicken Soup or some sort of rice and chicken dish.

Late snack - Hard boiled eggs or fruit.

I went from doing zero exerice to running over 3 miles 4-5 times a week on a treadmill. The weight has just fallen off me. I'm not doing so much running now and with the diet alone I'm still losing at least 2-3lbs a week.

Well done!

Thanks to everyone for their varying suggestions, will give them a shot and see what works

I actually lost 5lbs this week, although I think 3 x intense hockey sessions helped with that

[amare32]

HonestIago said:

Ordinary Chap's post was good, I just objected to another poster's totally ignorant offering. The fact of the matter is most people don't know anything about diet/nutrition and that's why we're a nation of fatties.

I'd also like to point out that I did count calories for my dieting purposes, so my assertion that one could eat 1-2 large meals and lose weight was a little vague I'll admit. However, within set calorie bounds, eating once or twice a day is by FAR the most satisfying way of losing weight and does not feel like a diet per say, because you can still eat a hearty dinner each evening. Eating creates appetite and learning not to eat through the morning and afternoon is surprisingly easy with a little effort. Tea and coffee are great appetite suppressants for this purpose. Besides that, there is strong evidence to suggest ritual fasting has anti-aging effects as well as decreasing the likelihood of degenerative disease.

Think about it like this: how on Earth would our cave-dwelling ancestors have survived if they "starved" every time they went without food? We evolved to feast and fast, it is the approach to eating most in tune with our genetics. I have experimented myself fasting up to 48hrs (After eating 5-6000calories) and noticed no ill effects at all. I regularly fast for 36hours as a way of offsetting overindulgence and it is very easy to do and very effective.

Now, I have got WAY too into this thread for my own good, so you can either do your own research regarding the benefits of fasting on health/fat loss or carry on with the "eat every 2-3 hours or your body will starve brigade". Either way, be my guest!

PS Well done ClintonB on your weight loss, sterling effort!

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 10:36

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 10:37

We'll just have to agree to disagree. I'm at 6% bodyfat and abs showing too. You must clearly be genetically gifted to attain your physique using your methods. You're just as blinkered believing that only your method works.

[R300will]

amare32 said:

HonestIago said:

Ordinary Chap's post was good, I just objected to another poster's totally ignorant offering. The fact of the matter is most people don't know anything about diet/nutrition and that's why we're a nation of fatties.

I'd also like to point out that I did count calories for my dieting purposes, so my assertion that one could eat 1-2 large meals and lose weight was a little vague I'll admit. However, within set calorie bounds, eating once or twice a day is by FAR the most satisfying way of losing weight and does not feel like a diet per say, because you can still eat a hearty dinner each evening. Eating creates appetite and learning not to eat through the morning and afternoon is surprisingly easy with a little effort. Tea and coffee are great appetite suppressants for this purpose. Besides that, there is strong evidence to suggest ritual fasting has anti-aging effects as well as decreasing the likelihood of degenerative disease.

Think about it like this: how on Earth would our cave-dwelling ancestors have survived if they "starved" every time they went without food? We evolved to feast and fast, it is the approach to eating most in tune with our genetics. I have experimented myself fasting up to 48hrs (After eating 5-6000calories) and noticed no ill effects at all. I regularly fast for 36hours as a way of offsetting overindulgence and it is very easy to do and very effective.

Now, I have got WAY too into this thread for my own good, so you can either do your own research regarding the benefits of fasting on health/fat loss or carry on with the "eat every 2-3 hours or your body will starve brigade". Either way, be my guest!

PS Well done ClintonB on your weight loss, sterling effort!

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 10:36

Edited by HonestIago on Saturday 10th December 10:37

We'll just have to agree to disagree. I'm at 6% bodyfat and abs showing too. You must clearly be genetically gifted to attain your physique using your methods. You're just as blinkered believing that only your method works.

I don't think cavemen did the whole feast and fast thing as we had the common sense to store food for leaner times. And given that we are omnivores we could eat anything we came across so there was no need to fast back in the day.

By binging on 5000-6000 calories you are stretching your stomach and putting a large strain on your digestive system and liver. Then by starving yourself for up to 48hours you are forcing your brain to work without glucose (body has 24 hours supply maximum before it has to start making its own) which it doesn't like. Your metabolism and blood sugars will have large peaks and troughs. I certainly wouldn't reccomend this method.

By eating little meals more frequently and excercising you are encouraging your matablic rate to stay at a high level which can help you to burn off more fat so i would take this approach personally.