I'm really beginning to think these "diets" are all bunk. It seems like just a few years ago everything was "fat free this" and "low fat that". Now it's "carb free this" and "low carb that". Well, the reason these diets recommend you avoid carbs and fat is not because these things make you gain weight, but because they are concentrated calories. You can eat 20 cups of lettuce (5 cal * 20 cups = 100 cals) for the calories you'd consume in one small baked potato (+/- 100 cals). The only way these diets "help" is that they let you eat more food, because the foods are lower in calories and higher in bulk.

This is also why diets like Slim Fast tend to fail. One shake does not fill the average person up. A large salad with fat free dressing does, and has fewer calories.

Am I right in this?? I'm getting tired of the constantly changing recommendations and I'd like to know that I'm doing this right. Burn more than I eat, and that's that.

To a degree, yes.

The beginnings of the Atkins and similar plans do actually affect your metabolism. After a few months, however, your body adjusts, and weight loss is much less rapid.

Another aspect is that if you cut out one food group, any food group, you'll likely end up eating less overall.

Personally, based on what I've read and what I know of physiology, I'd advise trying to stick to unrefined carbs (fruit, wheat breads & pasta, brown rice, etc. - much of the metabolism affects of cutting out all carbs can be achieved by the less drastic step of switching to these carbs), veggies, meat (with read only in moderation - even the Atkins plan has significantly cut their recommended consumption of red meat), and avoid fried and fatty foods. Whether or not I have the will power to do that is another thing

Along the lines of filling up on a salad (which would never fill me up , some people recommend drinking a good amount of water just before eating to decrease the amount you need to teat to get full.

Yes you are absolutely correct. Carbs and fats are high in calories per volume.

A tablespoon of fat contains about 100 calories, be it butter, oil or shortening. A can of corn carries 60 calories. A can of corn will fill you faster than a tablespoon of fat.

The Atkins diet also aims for a form of malnutrition - starvation, by stealing from it the slow sugars which come to us from carbs.

Carbs convert to sugars which are released into the blood stream slowly. Sugar is the body's source of energy. Take that out of the loop and the body has to find an alternative source of fuel (energy) and that is your own body fat. The down side is that this isn't explained in simple terms by the Atkins foundation who throw a new word (ketosis) and do not explain that what you are doing is STARVING your body.

ALL DIETS For weight loss promote a form of starvation. Starvation comes in many forms, malnutrition is a form of starvation. Malnutrition can be as simple as not getting enough calcium, or vitamin C.

Any diet that has you cut out any of the food groups is bad for you it promotes malnutrition.

A sensible diet is any that lowers Carbs and Fats and Sugars (mostly the added ones) and ups the foods with nutritional value. This means taking the food pyramid and slightly changing it. Trust me, when we start looking at our average diet and looking at labels we find that sugar, refined sugar is being fed to us without our being aware of it. Then we turn around and add sugar to our foods, and oil as part of the preparation process. Cutting out those added fats and oils will reduce the calorie intake a great deal.

The food pyramid reads like this:

Sweets
Milk & Meat
Vegetables and Fruits
Breads, Grains carbs

The problem with this one is that this set up is good for the wallet, not for the body. We have known for thousands of years that grain is far easier to grow, preserve and make into a filling food (bread) thus our FDA Food Guide is based on thousands of years of economics, not on millions of years of evolution.

The real Food pyramid, that is not really economically sound but stands up against the evolution of millions of years would read like so:

Sweets, Fats,
Dairy & Meat
Grains/Breads
Fruits and Vegetables.

If you start reading the literature on the matter you find that we get the most trace elements, vitamins and lower calories from fruit and vegetables. You find that Breads provide us with carbs and Fats, meat provides us with essential proteins, and milk products with essential fatty acids, proteins and with enrichment, certain vitamins which can not be found in any other form of food (Vitamin D). Calcium, long held as being found in milk, can be found in large amounts in some leafy vegetables. Something that is not common knowledge. Thus it makes more sense (especially when you consider all of the minerals and vitamins that are in produce that the body needs) to have a strong base of fruits and vegetables over breads and grains.

Another problem with the Western Diet is that we have been fed a lot of added fats and added sugars. Research reveals that many obese people are not really eating more (volume wise) of food than what we were eating 100 years ago. What has changed is the amount of added sugar to processed foods and fats. Start reading labels and we find that things like a can of corn has sugar added "For Flavor".

If you go by calories alone, you end up eating much smaller portions. Trust me, our grand parents ate large quantities of food, but their's wasn't processed and enriched with calories so a can of corn would feed four. And this economic feed more from a single can is the number one reason why sugar and fats are added to foods.

At the same time we are eating all of these fattening foods we are being shown that the "perfect" weight is under weight and pretty much told that in order to be perfect we need to torture ourselves and try to attain a body which is actually a small fraction of the human normal shape. We are a species which does have extra padding NATURALLY.

So we are being mislead into believing that we have to drop all of the fat, all of the sugar, all of the carbs out of our diet in order to attain that perfection. When all we really need to do is lower those added fats, those added sugars and re-stack the food pyramid to where fruits and vegetables are the base. And Walk.

Exercise is the most misunderstood aspect to losing weight and health. We are lead to believe that we can use the Ab-Blaster to blast away our middles, when in fact all the ab blaster does is work the abdominal muscles, not burning much fat. Or we are lead to believe that we need to get a gym membership in order to exercise when in many cases just adding a few extra steps in our daily activities gives us a lot more exercise than we think. Trust me these nifty machines and gyms work and help you lose weight in one place and one place only: the Wallet.

It comes down to people making money off of basic ignorance on how the body works and ignorance of what we are actually buying when we go shopping. We are being programmed to attain the impossible "perfect" physique which in truth most of us will never, ever attain naturally, and to do so causes us long term health issues which are accumulated over the years. Yet at the same time we are programmed to think that our food is good for us but somehow we are not eating properly (all our fault) and so we start gaining weight. Thus many fat people are looking for an easy out firmly believing that its all their fault that this problem is solvable only if they turn to drastic measures.

Starvation diets (Which most weight loss diets are to one degree or another) set up the body for a yo-yo system. Starvation, malnutrition kicks the body into survival mode which is the true reason why we stop losing weight after a couple three weeks on any diet not because the dieter is cheating. The body starts a defensive shutting down of non-critical systems to conserve energy. And too it starts converting as much food into energy and into fat. So frustrated you go off, eat "normally" and swell up like a balloon because the body is defending and protecting itself from famine by converting as much food into the secondary fuel source - FAT. Most people gain the weight they lost quickly and find they are suddenly fatter then they were before simply because the body is preparing for the next famine. We are so trained that we feel that we have been eating more, thus we need to restrict ourselves again, thus leading to the starvation mode, which triggers survival tactics which lead to more fat.

We are told that we need to restrict ourselves in order to attain that perfect body. We are not told that restriction is a big fat lie. we are not told that our normal food we get is chock full of added fats and sugars, we are not told that body fat is normally high in the majority of our species (in fact all of those skinny models and 6 pack abs are abnormal and are really against the survival of our kind). So desperate do we get to fight the fat that we will accept the next starvation diet without a single question.

So when a new diet comes out and is accepted (Thus selling the books, videos, classes, charts, calculators, yada, yada, yada) the food processing companies and food servers want to cash in on it, thus they change labels and sometimes actually change the food. Say Low fat with more added sugar (I've read labels, these folks have no sense of morals at times). There are positive changes made too, much of the sugar free stuff has opened up a new world for diabetics, much of the fat free or low fat stuff will go a long way at improving over all health in many individuals.

Proper education is not given. The Basic highly worshiped Food Pyramid is based on Economics, not on biological needs. But its oked because there are many companies making a lot of money by selling us what they sell. Added fat and sugar is ok because it ups the calories and the USDA is all into selling the calories not taking into account that food processors are spreading the good food by upping its calories count with all of these high calorie, cheap additives.

Its money vs health, and I fear health lost.

David

Thank you guys for answering, David also with your usual precision and helpfulness You're so thorough!

I've decided that I don't care if I'm not perfect, I just want to be healthy. I'm terrified of diabetes, and since I'm overweight and have hypoglycemia you can see why this is a concern.

I've taken to riding to a bicycle (FUN!!) a lot and I'm going to cut down on the crap. I've never been a big junk food eater anyway, but I am going to make more of an effort to avoid the processed garbage. Thankfully I could never stnad the taste and texture of canned vegetables (sweet corn isn't meant to be THAT sweet!) and I use only fresh and frozen, so that won't be too much of an adjustment.

Sigh...but no more cheese and crackers for lunch, I guess

Thank you again and I hope I can get on the right path here!

You know diet is a big subject.

Your looking to drop those cheese and crackers when you most likely don't need too. one day (I promise) I will write my book on diet and exercise.

To hit (hopefully in brief) on things:

1. No added fat and no added sugar does not mean dropping cheese and crackers. It means examining how you prepare and serve foods.

If you fry with a 1/4 cup of oil, you are getting extra calories when all you really need is a good non-stick surface and a few drops of oil spread out over the whole surface with a paper towel. I serve fried chicken, egged and coated with flour. I fry it in a clean pan, no oil, butter, shortening. The natural juices of the bird is more than enough to get a tasty, crisp fired chicken. I fry eggs, I fry vegetables, I fry a lot of food. My secret is that I use non-stick pans and I couple of drops of oil and a paper towel to coat the bottom with a very thin layer of oil.

Potatoes are the exception to this rule. But then I use about a tablespoon of oil to 5 medium potatoes.

If you use whole milk, margarine and other fatty things, you could go light, 1%, low fat or non-fat on many of these in food preparation and not notice a difference in texture, taste and quality. Thus in Mac and cheese which can have up to 410 calories per serving prepared, you cut out the margarine and use non fat milk, you get the same taste but only 200 calories per serving. Instead of plopping in a 1/4 cup of margarine use butter Buds (for flavor) and a splash of water (to moisten). Danny is unaware that this is how I fix Mac and Cheese. He never noticed a difference (We have a Cholesterol Problem in his family, I have had to be sneaky to reduce his levels to healthy numbers) and thinks that I fix it the way the box says.

If you bake and you find that the recipe calls for a cup of sugar, you can cut it in half, still get the flavor without all of the calories. Calls for a cup of oil? Reduce to half or cut it all out and use Apple sauce in place of oil. Still get the moisture and in many cases you get added flavor. Experiment, many baked goods can be made better and healthier.

2. Eat 6 meals a day. No, not 6 big meals, eating 6 smaller meals a day instead of 3 big meals. This means nosh, or graze through out the day. Especially if you have blood sugar issues. I bet you will have less issues with your hypoglycemia if you supply your body with a steady supply of food.

3. Eat 6 servings of fruit and vegetables a day. Sounds like a lot, but in reality it is far less than you think. An apple, a banana, an orange is a serving. If you cut up an apple in your oats, cut back on the amount of oats to fill one bowl you are eating the same volume, but less calories - still full yet eating less calories. having a piece of fruit between breakfast and lunch - gives you a boost in the morning filling you up a little so when lunch comes around you are not as hungry, thus when you eat a serving of vegetable or fruit with those cheese and crackers you are eating less cheese and crackers. Still eating what you want and like, but adding to it something more which fills you up. Then a serving of fruit or veggies between lunch and dinner (Call it tea time) then your veggies with dinner and a snack before bed (Actually eating 20 minutes before bed time will not convert to fat, your body continues to burn calories all the time so that is a myth. Besides which your going 8 hours with out food, need something to burn even when you sleep).

6 servings of produce through the day becomes a small amount per meal.

You will appear to be eating all the time, but still will lose weight.

4. You are adding exercise with your bike. That may be all you need to do. Trust me adding exercise is going to do a lot of calorie burning, if you are already careful about the types of food you eat, then exercise may be the only thing you need to do to lower weight. Before modifying your diet see how exercise works for you. Give it a month, perhaps too. Sensible weight loss should take a while to take place.

5. Don't aim to lose 50 pounds in short order. Instead aim to lose about 10 pounds top for the first month, 5 pounds tops for each month thereafter. Don't be upset if you don't lose all of that. Even expect a few gains. The body will find its own level over time. You may find an increase in weight at the start. DON'T PANIC - you are adding exercise which means you are working muscles which means you may be gaining muscle mass (weight) Thus the scales (those incredibly horrible little liars about health) may say you are fatter, but in fact you are just stronger.

6. Consult a doctor, get a body fat measurement (can't be done at home) Throw out the Scales, the weight to height Charts, BMI Calculator and rely upon the Body Fat measurement and most importantly your clothing. Your cloths will report accurately if you are losing fat. Remember you are taking on an exercise program which means you will be adding muscle which is mass/weight. Thus it could be that your weight doesn't change, but the way you are carrying that weight (fat to muscle) is far healthier and better.

7. Find methods to add exercise to your daily routine. EXAMPLE> Park away from the doors. I find that there is usually a lot of empty space out near the street in parking lots. I may have to walk a few extra steps, but that's just added exercise which is perfectly fine with me. More exercise in day to day life is far more important than an exercise program. Trust me on that. Besides, I no longer have the stress of finding a parking spot, waiting for a person to pull out of that cherished next to the door parking spot.

Take a day of Mall Shopping - We do this, we "shop" at the mall, which means we walk up and down seeing whats for sale, rarely, if ever, do we buy anything at the mall (please, I can get the same stuff elsewhere for far less) But it gives us exercise and a fun way to do it.

Pop in a rocking CD when you clean house. 1. It makes house cleaning funner, 2 it causes you to bounce and swing and jump about while swiffing the floor. 3. I find that if I play fast music house cleaning goes faster. Added exercise in a mundane, chore.

Slowly add exercise to your routine. You don't have to go out and run a mile the first time. The first time you may only be able to walk to the corner and back. Over time you will find yourself adding a little more exercise with no problem, because your body is slowly changing, building up endurance, strength and finds that that walk to the corner is no problem any more.

8. Hunger is the first symptom of starvation. Thirst is the first symptom of dehydration. Ideally we should never, ever feel hunger or thirst. This means you should eat something before you feel hunger. It means you should stay hydrated (drinking water) before you get thirsty. A little known fact is that many people out there have confused thirst with hunger, they will eat when in fact they need liquids. Why is that? Because most often they are drinking sodas, juices, coffee and other things which boost energy (sugars, caffeines) so their body becomes confused and doesn't sent out the right signal. Reducing Sugars and caffeines in what you drink will, in time, help your body send out the right signal for its need. Drinking 6 to 8 glasses of water a day is the best. No, you don't have to drink that upon waking, and you don't need to drink just plain water. I add two herbal tea bags to a gallon of water. This flavors the water without adding caffeine or sugar. Thus I am actually drinking weak iced tea through the day. I will drink a gallon of this per day, plus glasses of milk, cups of coffee, a couple of sodas (caffeine sugar free) and glasses of water. During the summer when I am working I will drink up to two gallons of weak tea water, plus other things. Yes, I do spend a lot of time urinating - but what comes out is very, nearly clear as water. This is a good thing.

9. If you like certain foods and know you would just die if you had to cut them out of your diet, then something is going to bother you and end up costing you your whole diet.

We still eat fast food once a week and are still healthier than we were 7 years ago. It is moderation and knowing that though we are eating Pizza Da hut, we are not killing ourselves, or doing something bad which we need feel guilty about.

Saturday evening we have fast food and Rent movies. God, how couch potato can you get? Add to that popcorn, potato chips, ice cream, or milk shakes - Sheesh you'd think that we would both be over 300 pounds and both have cholesterol counts of 400+ and about ready to keel over with a heart attack. But that is Saturday, the rest of the week we eat well, not perfect, but well.

A splurge day does not wreck your diet. It may if you are Atkins eating, but if you are eating sensible 5-6 days out of seven, then you have the accumulated effects of the rest of the week which far outweigh the one day of junk food, couch potato gluttony. You get to eat those no-no foods without the guilt, it makes healthy eating through the rest of the week not so much a chore.

10. Take a break from the computer.

Gee David, you obviously spend a lot of time on the computer, look at how much you type!

Yeah, but you see in the course of typing out this one post, I have:

done 1/2 the dishes.

Switched water around outside.

potted an Ivy. Pulled a couple of weeds (coming back from moving the hose)

I don't sit at the computer non stop. I'm up and about and thinking about my next paragraph most of the time. And I edit and change a lot of what I wrote. Indeed this is actually the second do over on this particular post. I can't sit and watch a full TV program without getting up and doing something. Even if its walking about the house, or checking the dog water, or well something. The act of getting up and taking a step and returning to sit down burns more calories than just sitting.

That is the Secret to my long posts. They are rarely, if ever, written in a single sitting non stop with out a break. Shh! don't tell.

There is more, far more than just these basics. However the far more is made up of these basics, these are details and little things which all add up to a greater summation of the equation.

Cheers

David

All of that was a great deal of help. Some of it I already know or do (only skim milk, etc... .) I also do not sit on the computer for hours, I go on, post once or twice, get off, do something...I have 2 small children, I NEVER sit for more than 5 minutes a shot!

I'm going to bike and see how that works for a month or so, if there is an improvement. (even if I dont lose weight I'll be thrilled if my butt just gets smaller! ) I already eat 6 small meals a day (elsewise I pass out around 1 pm, literally) and I'm trying to work that a little better.

Thank you again

David, I love your posts, I agree with EVERYTHING you said, I just wanted to say that even a splurge day on the Atkins Diet will not ruin it....My brothers friend DID folloe EXACTLY the Atkins way for the first 2 weeks (induction phase) then pretty much did what you and your partner do...follow the plan all week and relax it on Saturday...that way he didn't cheat during the week because he knew Staurday morning he could make coffee and cinnamon buns...and maybe have pizza or pasta at dinner..popcorn at night...and get back on the next day...he managed to lose all he wanted to doing that.

One of the big reasons that a splurge will make a diet fail is because most people myself included will feel so guilty that you figure "why bother, I'm such a loser" and then you eat the next day and the next, etc... By setting up a regular day to treat yourself you eliminate the guilt factor because it's planned.

What you all are talking about sounds a lot like the basis for the Rotation Diet of the '80's. Here is one modern version of it.
That was where you dieted for 2-3 weeks, then ate "normally" for a couple of weeks, and back and forth. Made sense somewhat.

David - about all you said: You're right - absolutely!

I believe the best plan is probably to just eat sensibly, and enjoy a treat now and then. But I can't think of a cute catch phrase for it so it can't be a diet

quote:

---

Originally posted by MommyTimesTwo:
I believe the best plan is probably to just eat sensibly, and enjoy a treat now and then. But I can't think of a cute catch phrase for it so it can't be a diet

---

Nope, it can't be that easy. To Prove that your diet doesn't work, try marketing that notion, write a book and sell supporting products. Those are the true hallmarks of a diet, that and a diet must be hard and you must feel hungry. Failure to do so means you only have a normal food plan.

It will also fail because there is no little symbol they can put on all the new foods that will come out. People can't "diet" unless the boxes of prepared food tell them they can eat it. Legions will fail because they'll have to read the content lable on food packages (or worse, look it up, because veggies don't have lables!) rather than just reach for the box with the Atkins symbol on the front.