Has anyone been on a diet, one that worked?

[emmie]

i need to shed some pounds, nothing new about that, and i have taken on board the advice about eating a well balanced diet. But i confess i find most of the advice conflicting. One doctor will tell you one thing, whilst another has other ideas.
And seeing how much of our foods are processed, for example the thread about supermarket bread being bad for you, find im not sure which way to approach this.

[chokkie]

em10 - I broke my ankle last April (2010) and was determined not to put on weight, because I knew I would be sitting around for the following couple of months, not doing anything. I had lost my appetite anyway, for a good month ... so the weight started dropping off then. (I don't recommend breaking a limb to lose weight!). Anyway, since then I have been very careful about the amount of carbs that I eat. I try (and mostly succeed) to only have carbs - bread, pasta, potatoes etc - once a day, and it seems to work. Going out to eat isn't too much of a problem, e.g. don't have three courses and try and choose dishes that don't have carby things in them. Oh - and don't nibble at the bread-basket.

Plus, of course - keep away from the biscuits and cakes, crisps, etc.

Anyway, it worked for me - and I can get in to loads of clothes that I haven't been able to wear for years ....

Good luck ....

Chox.

[emmie]

chokkie thanks, the only way i dropped weight before was by being ill, so not a good thing. I find bread stodgy, i love pasta and rice, but not sure what's really right. I have a savoury tooth, not so much chocolate, but nibbly things, crisps, which i am trying to cut out. And have found certain foodstuffs i am allergic to, or ones that make me feel bloated. Its so hit and miss.

[fourteen85]

I managed to loose nearly 50LBs with W/Watchers in 1991 and for the most part it has stayed off, The key is to eat sensibly , a reasonable mixture of protein, carbs and vegetables & fruit. I drink water with my meals and that fills me up. its the crisps & m&S salted peanuts that can be my undoing

[emmie]

thanks, i try and drink water, but find i am going to loo every five minutes, or at night which is worse. I am going to see a dietican soon, so perhaps she can give me some advice, and i can tell her what i appear to have an intolerance to, so will have a go at least.

[VHG]

There are far too many complex and fancy diets around, that just confuse everyone.

Losing weigt is a simple matter of eating well, but eating less than your body actually needs.

Most adults need about 2000 (female) to 2500 (male) calories a day. Eat more than that and you put on weight, eat less than that and you lose weight.

Some foods are obviosuly bad for you such as - sausages, creamy curries, sweets, biscuits, pork pies, food cooked in fat, crisps, mayonaise and so on. Just dont eat ANY of them. Look at the fat content of everything you buy.

Most fruit and vegetables are good for you so eat plenty of them.

Avoid sauces on food, and try to avoid procesed food and "ready made meals" (usually full of fat and calories). Try to eat a breakfast, lunch and dinner each day.

Try to do more light exercise, walk round the block each day, that sort of thing. Dont go "mad" with exercise or you weill never keep it up.

Weight takes a long time to put on, so it can take a long time to take off. Dont go for "quick fix" diets but change your eating habits and look to lose the weight gradually over a number of months or even years.

There are to many people who want a "quick fix" with a diet but it should really be a long slow process.

[johnk]

VHG, that's the best recipe for losing weight I've ever seen on this site. You should paste that on all the ABers looking for quick fix, fad diets or pills to lose weight.

[emmie]

pixi, never heard of bulger wheat, but one thing fruit like oranges, apples, make my stomach go haywire, too much acid. I know the recipe for cutting down, its doing it, having the motivation but also there are very confusing so called facts out there. How many time do you read, one expert said this, and another said the opposite, its why many people get confused as to what to eat, and sensibly.

[Old_Geezer]

Many moons ago I successfully lost weight at WW.
Kept it off for quite a while, but then put it all back on during a family problem period.

[ganesh]

Sort of em10-the way to lose weight and KEEP IT OFF is basically not to 'go on a diet'.Stop all the in-between nibbles,they're usually calorific,eat smaller portions than you're used to.Don't avoid the yummy things you love-you'll just crave them eventually and give up the diet! In other words,have a couple of pieces of chocolate if you love it,just not the whole bar! Try and make your meals a little less carbohydrate and fat,i.e loads of sandwiches or mountains of pasta.Different foods react differently in people.I always put on a bit if I have cheesy meals.There are lots of 'filling' lunches like baked potatoes with cottage cheese and salad for instance,low-fat quorn meals instead of fatty meat, that will help lose weight and plenty of water/tea.Never leave the table feeling stuffed,One change I made was to dish out my plateful and never help myself to seconds,even if there was just a little to finish off.
This way you will lose very very slowly ,about 1 or 2 lbs a week even.but it means it will go and more likely it will stay off.

[emmie]

sounds good, thank you all

[crisgal]

i find paul mckenna's way very intriguing:

1. eat whenever you're hungry

2. eat whatever you want

3. stop eating as soon as you're full

he says on a 0-10 scale 0 is starving and 10 is going to explode, so eat when you are genuinly hungry (a 2 or 3) and stop when you are genuinly full (not uncomfortably so a 7 or 8)
Obviously there's a bit more to it than that - smaller plates, waiting until you really are good and hungry before you eat, and eating slower so that you get chance to recognise when you're full!

I've always thought it seemed to make sense and you wouldn't be denied anything. You can have it as long as you really are hungry.

One day I'll try it - erm... maybe tomorrow?

[dave50]

Cut right down on carbs, just eat lean meat, fish, veg and salad, you will then loose weight.

[carmalee]

never been on a diet in my life but for years and years have only eaten off a side plate

[pastafreak]

I agree with dave-cut the carbs. I can't explain the science,but carbs cause the production of insulin which in turn causes the body to hold on to fat. If you eat more protein and natural fats (what comes on your meat for instance),your body will then use fat for fuel not carbs. The carbs you do eat should be in the form of green leafy veg,berries,and dairy....and stay away from processed junk.

[lotsafun]

the only diet that has truly worked for me is the slimming world diet as you never go hungry, the classes were a excellent support system too

[silka]

I have lost stone on Weight Watchers, works for me, when no other has.

[silka]

Dont get it