'DIETING/GETTING IN SHAPE'

[Col city fan]

I didn't think there were any carbs in lager, just calories in the form of sugar, which if you don't burn off with exercise become fat, I thought carbs were a completely different thing.

There are simple sugars and complex ones and also simple carbs and complex carbs.

Whilst on the Atkins avoid the complex carbs and complex sugars.

Essentially, anything that the body finds hard to break down, whether it be carbs or sugars, avoid.

I think.... I'll have to get the book back out again...

[Col city fan]

Wrong, I'm afraid. Spirits are lower in general, but still fairly calorific.

http://www.weightlossforall.com/calories-alcohol.htm

Fair enough... I bow to your better info...

[Unabomber]

I didn't think there were any carbs in lager, just calories in the form of sugar, which if you don't burn off with exercise become fat, I thought carbs were a completely different thing.

Sugar is 100% carb. There are 3 main macronutrients: carbs, protein and fat. Then there is alcohol, lager and other sugary alcoholic drinks are made up of a combination of alcohol and carbs, the amount varies with the percentage of alcohol; meaning that the higher the alcohol content the lesser the carb. Carbs/sugar etc don't turn into fat, the only way to gain fat is by consuming more calories than your body burns off, be it in the form of protein,carbs, or fat.

?

I was always led to believe the dark spirits, like whiskey and dark rum were quite 'sugary' vis a vis the clear spirits like vodka and gin. I may be wrong. I also read if you were going to drink alcohol whilst on the Atkins you were better to go for more clear, watery drinks, like lager (rather than spirits) because you pissed it out quicker?

You may be right, but lager and vodka made no difference to my weight loss when on the Atkins.

Whiskey has no carbs and is made up entirely of alcohol, as is vodka etc. Therefore on atkins spirits would be ok in moderation, and could be mixed with sugar free drinks like diet coke, diet tonic etc.

Wrong, I'm afraid. Spirits are lower in general, but still fairly calorific.

http://www.weightlos...ies-alcohol.htm

I was talking about carb count, not calorie. The calories in spirits are made up of alcohol, there are 7 calories per gram of alcohol, which is the same as fat, there are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrate and protein.

[Haydos]

Sugar is carbohydrate, people. There are 7 calories per gram of pure alcohol, that's where the calories are in vodka et al. Hence the term 'empty calories'. Also, Unabomber, fat is 9kcal per gram, not 7.

[FoxesAreBlue]

Doesn't the very idea of being ON a diet suggest that at some point you will come OFF it?At which point, any progress that you have made is likely to be reversed?

My step brother followed the LighterLife diet for about 2 months - he paid £70 PER WEEK!! for a bunch of god-awful meal replacement shakes and his little book and counselling sessions. To be fair he did lose about 3 stone in that time but it was all muscle (bear in mind he is also a kick boxer) - his body had gone into ketosis and as a result he absolutely stank - I mean to a point where you couldn't be near him it was so bad.

Anyway, about 2 months after he came off the diet he was 2 stone heavier than when he started and back on his god awful diet of chippy, Chinese, Indian takeaways with a smattering of god awful microwave meals in between.

People ask me why, as a personal trainer do I not help him. The answer is simple, he doesn't want the help. He has his own ideas about training and diet and exercise and anything I tell him will go in one ear and out of the other. Especially as he isn't paying for the advice - there is no point wasting his, and more importantly, my time!

[Unabomber]

Sugar is carbohydrate, people. There are 7 calories per gram of pure alcohol, that's where the calories are in vodka et al. Hence the term 'empty calories'. Also, Unabomber, fat is 9kcal per gram, not 7.

Yeah my error. I should know as I have been counting calories for the last 3 years!

[Col city fan]

Doesn't the very idea of being ON a diet suggest that at some point you will come OFF it?At which point, any progress that you have made is likely to be reversed?

My step brother followed the LighterLife diet for about 2 months - he paid £70 PER WEEK!! for a bunch of god-awful meal replacement shakes and his little book and counselling sessions. To be fair he did lose about 3 stone in that time but it was all muscle (bear in mind he is also a kick boxer) - his body had gone into ketosis and as a result he absolutely stank - I mean to a point where you couldn't be near him it was so bad.

Anyway, about 2 months after he came off the diet he was 2 stone heavier than when he started and back on his god awful diet of chippy, Chinese, Indian takeaways with a smattering of god awful microwave meals in between.

People ask me why, as a personal trainer do I not help him. The answer is simple, he doesn't want the help. He has his own ideas about training and diet and exercise and anything I tell him will go in one ear and out of the other. Especially as he isn't paying for the advice - there is no point wasting his, and more importantly, my time!

As a personal trainer you will know more about this than me for sure.

However, I reckon that diets are good if you want to shed some timber pretty quick. I've also known people on lighter life.. Expensive yes but you do lose weight very quickly.

Once the weight is lost, then a balanced, sensible diet has to be the order of the day. The 'crash dieting' thing doesn't have to be long term, in fact you will most likely suffer if it is.

I think it's like everything... Willpower... If you really want to stop smoking, cut down drinking, lose some weight, you can and will.

My lad, 17, has not missed a single day either going to the gym, or out for a run in two years. He has made pals there and loves how it makes him feel. He's got more willpower than his old dad to be fair..

[Haydos]

Doesn't the very idea of being ON a diet suggest that at some point you will come OFF it?At which point, any progress that you have made is likely to be reversed?

My step brother followed the LighterLife diet for about 2 months - he paid £70 PER WEEK!! for a bunch of god-awful meal replacement shakes and his little book and counselling sessions. To be fair he did lose about 3 stone in that time but it was all muscle (bear in mind he is also a kick boxer) - his body had gone into ketosis and as a result he absolutely stank - I mean to a point where you couldn't be near him it was so bad.

Anyway, about 2 months after he came off the diet he was 2 stone heavier than when he started and back on his god awful diet of chippy, Chinese, Indian takeaways with a smattering of god awful microwave meals in between.

People ask me why, as a personal trainer do I not help him. The answer is simple, he doesn't want the help. He has his own ideas about training and diet and exercise and anything I tell him will go in one ear and out of the other. Especially as he isn't paying for the advice - there is no point wasting his, and more importantly, my time!

This is why I plan to adjust my diet when I reach my target. I want to eat a balanced diet and will do. I'm still not sure about carbs though. I have always found them addictive so I'll try and keep them low still when I'm eating more balanced again.

With regards to the first line; I don't believe so, no. My current diet is more extreme than just 'eating healthier' but when I'm done with it I plan to keep off the sugary drinks, the processed food, the white carbs and the high sat fats but I want a much more balance diet than I have now to maintain my weight, not gain or lose.

[Haydos]

One more thing. Summer was a terrible time to decided to do this. I'm gagging for a beer every evening with this nice weather in Sheffield. So many pub gardens crying out to be sat in. Saving a bit of cash though I guess.

[RonnieTodger]

I'm no experts with measurements of dieting or exercise, so I'm after a bit of advice. I'm 18 and of course able to exercise for lengthy periods of time. However, I'm looking to drop about a stone. I play Tennis about 4 days a week on average for 2 hours or so, but I'm struggling to maintain the right balance of food groups. Can anybody help me get the right diet and/or exercise routines? I weigh about 13:8 and I'm 6ft'2. I'm not fat, but I'm slightly overweight and it's irritating.

[Haydos]

I'm no experts with measurements of dieting or exercise, so I'm after a bit of advice. I'm 18 and of course able to exercise for lengthy periods of time. However, I'm looking to drop about a stone. I play Tennis about 4 days a week on average for 2 hours or so, but I'm struggling to maintain the right balance of food groups. Can anybody help me get the right diet and/or exercise routines? I weigh about 13:8 and I'm 6ft'2. I'm not fat, but I'm slightly overweight and it's irritating.

I'd recommend trying to cut a few hundred calories per day if you just want a bit of weight loss.

Do you tend to snack a lot? Do you eat/drink any particular foods loads? (Eg. loads of fizzy drinks or loads of pasta?) I'd suggest cutting out any excess carbs/sugar and processed foods. You could replace potatoes with veg for example.

What's your general diet like? That's the info you need to give. When I used to play rugby I trained twice a week and a game at the weekend and I never dropped weight and I started putting it on when I got injured. I suspect this was down to my not so great diet and drinking once or twice a week.

[OzFox]

There are simple sugars and complex ones and also simple carbs and complex carbs.

Whilst on the Atkins avoid the complex carbs and complex sugars.

Essentially, anything that the body finds hard to break down, whether it be carbs or sugars, avoid.

I think.... I'll have to get the book back out again...

I've been on a candida diet for weeks. That's avoiding sugars, refined carbs, most fruits, dairy, processed meats, coffee, booze...basically anything with taste.

Feel much better for it but I haven't lost an ounce

[Captain...]

I've just downloaded a calorie counter app for my phone, it is quite good, you can enter all the food you eat plus exercise, and it will give you an optimum calorie intake to reach our desired weight, the best bit is scanning the bar codes on what you eat and it tells you how many calories it is,

The app is called my fitness pal, I will probably get bored of it after a while but at the moment it is quite good fun.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Im 5' 8" and 16st (just over 100kg), i exercise 3 times a week (1 hour and 10 minutes at least each gym session) and eat quite healthy meals, only have a takeaway perhaps once a month but i dont lose a jot. A year ago i was bench pressing 100-120kg every gym session but ive just been doing manly cardio now (for the last year or so) with a few resistence machines and still havent lost any weight!!! i do a job where i eat somedays at 3am so i guess that doesnt really help but wtf???? It gets harder as you get older to maintain the balance as i want to stay reasonably strong and fit for my job but oviously need to trim a few pounds as technically i am clinically obese!!!!!!

[Captain...]

Im 5' 8" and 16st (just over 100kg), i exercise 3 times a week (1 hour and 10 minutes at least each gym session) and eat quite healthy meals, only have a takeaway perhaps once a month but i dont lose a jot. A year ago i was bench pressing 100-120kg every gym session but ive just been doing manly cardio now (for the last year or so) with a few resistence machines and still havent lost any weight!!! i do a job where i eat somedays at 3am so i guess that doesnt really help but wtf???? It gets harder as you get older to maintain the balance as i want to stay reasonably strong and fit for my job but oviously need to trim a few pounds as technically i am clinically obese!!!!!!

Freudian slip?

Don't forget muscle weighs more than fat, so weight is not always a good indicator, it is very easy to over eat, and drink, and it sometimes when you actually tot up what you have eaten and drunk you realise you are over consuming. I have read things that disprove this eating at night is bad for you theory, but tiredness can cause you to over eat to compensate.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Freudian slip?

Don't forget muscle weighs more than fat, so weight is not always a good indicator, it is very easy to over eat, and drink, and it sometimes when you actually tot up what you have eaten and drunk you realise you are over consuming. I have read things that disprove this eating at night is bad for you theory, but tiredness can cause you to over eat to compensate.

yes Manly Cardio

yes tiredness is really bad as i do a 24/7 shift pattern and you are right it does lead sometimes to a spot of eating slightly too much. On a positive note when i am on nights and wake up the following afternoon i am usually feeling too sick to eat too much . A year aso i was more muscular in my arms and chest but now i am slightly more so in my legs so maybe the muscle weighing more than fat thing is true to a degree

[FoxesAreBlue]

Muscle is more dense than fat - that Captain is right. And working shifts will make it hard to get a bit of regularity to your regime.

I also agree with Shrap that there is nothing wrong with eating late at night so long as it isn't a huge meal, and if its just before you go to ben then try and keep it protein based with only a few carbs (protein can only be used by the muscles in the presence of carbs). Natural Greek Yoghurt and slices of peach is a choice of mine if i'm late in.

The whole "No Carbs After 8pm" rule that you see plastered in magazines, really only applies if you are a body-builder in his competition phase - yes, what they are saying is correct. But for the average man in the street who is not training and eating professionally (and i'm talking eating strictly measured amounts of food when the alarm clock goes off every few hours here) - this difference is going to be minimal.

Having said that - you diet - and by that I mean 'what you eat' not weather you are following LighterLife or Atkins or whatever - does play a big role in what you eat. Often, pre-prepared foods such as breakfast cereals, cooking sauces, sandwich fillings, processed/frozen foods etc do contain high levels of salt/sugar and I don't need to tell you just how great they are for you.

By far the best way of eating is as naturally as you can and by genuinely cooking as much as you can (cooing constitutes more than just puting it in the oven and warming it up). I will be the first to admit - my cooking is absolutely dog-shit. I really am awful at it and I dont like doing it - to be honest its a complete ballache after working 15 hour days 6 days a week. But, by planning ahead I can save cash when shoppng, prepare meals in advance and save time. I know what I am eating is good for me and I RARELY eat any junk at all.

As far as training is concerned then you should make sure that you are following a PROGRESSIVE programme. Spot the important word here... PROGRESSIVE.

If I take Resistance Training (weights) for example - there are a few ways to mix up what you are doing every week to make this week SLIGHTLY harder than last week. Even if you are doing the same exercise. You can:

Increase the weight (obviously)

Allow yourself less rest time between sets

Add on an extra set at the end

Slow down the speed of each rep

Actually do the exercise with correct technique (this one is by far the most important, even if it means dropping down the weight)

Using a different approach to the training (single sets/supersets/pyramid sets/drop sets/matrix sets)

Altering the angle at which you do the exercise (push up too easy? do them off a bench - harder still? put a plate on your back)

I promise you, when you get your training right - you fvcking know it and you feel like a million dollars and as you start to see ou goals coming through - be it losing weight, gaining strength, building muscle - whatever you wont WANT to eat the crap you've been livig off all this time and you wont need to go on a diet or start calorie counting because you will need to calories anyway.

Obviously, health and fitness is a HUGE area and literally everybody is different so its hard to say do this - do that over an internet form - some of you may disagree with my opinions - that's fine, there are probably PTs out there who disagree too, there's often more than one way to find the solution to the goal.

[RonnieTodger]

I'd recommend trying to cut a few hundred calories per day if you just want a bit of weight loss.

Do you tend to snack a lot? Do you eat/drink any particular foods loads? (Eg. loads of fizzy drinks or loads of pasta?) I'd suggest cutting out any excess carbs/sugar and processed foods. You could replace potatoes with veg for example.

What's your general diet like? That's the info you need to give. When I used to play rugby I trained twice a week and a game at the weekend and I never dropped weight and I started putting it on when I got injured. I suspect this was down to my not so great diet and drinking once or twice a week.

I do tend to snack, due to late dinners which is the prime suspect, really. I've certainly cut down on fizzy drinks in the last year, for example: instead of having a bottle of Tango with lunch, it's Oasis (any other juice). I know there's a lot of sugar in Oasis, but it can't be as bad as Tango, Coke etc. I do have fizzy drinks sometimes, depending on what's in the house. My diet consists of a lot of pasta, now I come to think of it. I have started eating salads a lot more than I used to. Due to being 18, I'm still living at home and as I have two siblings, whoever cooks tries to make it easier on themselves by cooking something that all younger people like (perfectly understandable). I will cut down but I was just wondering what should be the general figures of calories & exercise and getting the right balance.

Despite being slightly overweight now, I'm nowhere near as bad as I used to be as a kid, which is a relief more than anything. Pretty much all I ate was what my parents used to call "brown dinners" (oven cooked crap). I'm a lot more open now and will start cooking my own stuff if I'm to be serious about this, as my sister doesn't like salad, for example (she's not fat).

All in all, what are the best foods to have and replacements to make during a diet? Thanks for any advice

[ADK]

I wonder if it is better to lose weight or to do exercise and get fit.

[Haydos]

I do tend to snack, due to late dinners which is the prime suspect, really. I've certainly cut down on fizzy drinks in the last year, for example: instead of having a bottle of Tango with lunch, it's Oasis (any other juice). I know there's a lot of sugar in Oasis, but it can't be as bad as Tango, Coke etc. I do have fizzy drinks sometimes, depending on what's in the house. My diet consists of a lot of pasta, now I come to think of it. I have started eating salads a lot more than I used to. Due to being 18, I'm still living at home and as I have two siblings, whoever cooks tries to make it easier on themselves by cooking something that all younger people like (perfectly understandable). I will cut down but I was just wondering what should be the general figures of calories & exercise and getting the right balance.

Despite being slightly overweight now, I'm nowhere near as bad as I used to be as a kid, which is a relief more than anything. Pretty much all I ate was what my parents used to call "brown dinners" (oven cooked crap). I'm a lot more open now and will start cooking my own stuff if I'm to be serious about this, as my sister doesn't like salad, for example (she's not fat).

All in all, what are the best foods to have and replacements to make during a diet? Thanks for any advice

Just a few things to suggest (i study sport and exercise science so a bit of nutrition knowledge but I'm not a professional ).

You don't sound like you're getting too many processed foods any more which is good but it does sound like there's a lot of carbs there. Fruit drinks (inc fresh juice) have a tonne of sugar in so I wouldn't recommend more than a glass a day. Although I wouldn't suggest having more than a couple a week try swapping sugary drinks like coke/oasis etc for diet variations which are sugar free. When it comes to snacking, I've found that sugar can be quite addictive and it isn't very filling so grabbing a quick chocolate bar or pack of crisps won't do much for you in terms of hunger. I'd suggest a bag of nuts or some cooked meat, something a bit more balanced that isn't mainly sugar based.

With regards to main meals, you say you're having a lot of pasta, how about rice, potatoes and bread? They're all carb heavy so if you're eating a portion of each every day plus sugary drinks you're going to be taking on a lot of carbs. Substituting salad is a good start, I'd also add green veg to that as a replacement. It can be awkward trying to find easy meal bases which aren't carb bases but personally I think the balance needs to be right; have one or two carb-based servings a day max. I enjoy meals like white fish/salmon with veg, chicken stew, steak and veg.

There are lots of lower carb and calorie recipes online that you can find if you search for them. So yeah, that's the first thing i'd do: Trim a few hundred calories a day, cut the carbs and replace with veg/salad (this might also encourage you to eat healthier meals as a whole as you'll be wanting things that go together).

[RonnieTodger]

Just a few things to suggest (i study sport and exercise science so a bit of nutrition knowledge but I'm not a professional ).

You don't sound like you're getting too many processed foods any more which is good but it does sound like there's a lot of carbs there. Fruit drinks (inc fresh juice) have a tonne of sugar in so I wouldn't recommend more than a glass a day. Although I wouldn't suggest having more than a couple a week try swapping sugary drinks like coke/oasis etc for diet variations which are sugar free. When it comes to snacking, I've found that sugar can be quite addictive and it isn't very filling so grabbing a quick chocolate bar or pack of crisps won't do much for you in terms of hunger. I'd suggest a bag of nuts or some cooked meat, something a bit more balanced that isn't mainly sugar based.

With regards to main meals, you say you're having a lot of pasta, how about rice, potatoes and bread? They're all carb heavy so if you're eating a portion of each every day plus sugary drinks you're going to be taking on a lot of carbs. Substituting salad is a good start, I'd also add green veg to that as a replacement. It can be awkward trying to find easy meal bases which aren't carb bases but personally I think the balance needs to be right; have one or two carb-based servings a day max. I enjoy meals like white fish/salmon with veg, chicken stew, steak and veg.

Yes, yes and yes. I haven't put weight on a while as I've took on more exercise but I'm losing it very slowly, if not - not at all. I have started substituting crisps/chocolate with apples/bananas. I asked my mum what she was planning on doing for dinner and she said steak & chips! Needless to say I reluctantly turned it down . Awful timing, but it's my fault for not mentioning it until now.

Thanks for the advice though mate. I've always had vague ideas but never knew the specifics of good/bad food groups apart from the obvious ones.

[Haydos]

Yes, yes and yes. I haven't put weight on a while as I've took on more exercise but I'm losing it very slowly, if not - not at all. I have started substituting crisps/chocolate with apples/bananas. I asked my mum what she was planning on doing for dinner and she said steak & chips! Needless to say I reluctantly turned it down . Awful timing, but it's my fault for not mentioning it until now.

Thanks for the advice though mate. I've always had vague ideas but never knew the specifics of good/bad food groups apart from the obvious ones.

Nowt wrong with a bit of steak, coulda suggested a bit of veg instead of chips.

No worries, give it a try, if nothing else at least you'll be eating healthier.

[Haydos]

Just a link to a study on low carb ketogenic diet vs low fat diet with calorie reduction...Interesting read for those that think what you eat doesn't matter and it's all about cutting calories.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15148063

[ADK]

I tried the low carb diet thing again but it dosn't work for me.

It makes me feel tired and unable/unwilling to exercise. I reckon i'm losing out on more calories of activity than if i just stuck with the normal diet

[Haydos]

Down from 235lbs to 220lbs in about 26 days. Happy with that so far, i'd be delighted with 210lbs by the end of September. Final target is 14 stone/196lbs.

Seriously, if you're going on holiday and want to shed a bit i'd recommend it.