Diet.. a bit confused

K

katia7

Cathlete
I'm a bit confused as to how clean we have to eat to lose body fat. Some say that whole grain bread and whole grain cereal are fine, others say to avoid them because they are processed.
Some say that as long as you burn more calories then you take in you'll lose fat. Others say that you must count macronutrients (protein, carbs, fats) too.
Some say to limit fruit and carbs (except veggies) in the 2nd half of the day, others say it doesn't really matter as long as you'e not overeating.

So what exactly is the truth?

Thanks :)
 
Everyone has a different opinon, so I think it really just comes down to what works for you. All of the types of diets you mentioned have worked for some people. I think it's a matter of whatever you can stick with.
 
The truth is, the best way for one may be the worst way for another!

I say write it down. Write down your workouts and your diet everyday. If you do not see results after a week, start shifting and tweaking. I am reading about this now in Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle. If you are working out regularly, start tweaking your diet first. Try to clean it up a little making sure to never drop calories too low. Eat less processed stuff then play with the macronutrient ratios. Decrease carbs while jacking up protein.

You really need to play around with it to see what works for you! I, personally, try to eat foods found along the periphery of the grocery store, whole foods as much as possible and lots of water! My skin is thanks enough!
 
The attitude is all wrong.

I never eat to lose fat or lose weight. I trust my high activity level and dislike of slothdom to do that for me.

I prefer to eat for health in order to ward off major diseases and to eat to fuel my workouts and replenish my body after working out. So, this means not avoiding carbs at all. You have to separate out nutrionally dense foods from the high fat, high sugar poor options. So, whole grains, cereals are fab, cake and Macdonalds white buns are not.

Fruit and veggies are fab and your 5-9 servings a day will help keep you safe from cancers, as are lean sources of protein, all pulses and legumes to help repair the body's tissues, including those muscles you want to build. I like dairy and include it because life without cheese is, for me, no life at all. So, regardless of what specialist diets say, you must inlcude in your daily diet foods that give you pleasure.

Rather than think in terms of "restriction", which is what all diets do, think: "what does my body need?" and "what do I like as a treat?" The former question if restriction leads to fads, bodily chemical imbalances and unhappiness when fave foods become forbidden. You have to find a common sense way of eating that you can maintain for life, this will help avoid ups and downs of weight gain and loss, which is not good for you.

I could never cut out fruit, veggies and grains, I am a vegetarian: what would I eat?!!! I would never cut out cheddar, manchego cheese, cambozola cheese because I like them and that's important. I am not concerned about the fat content of every food I eat. A girl I used to know was very concerned: her lunch consisted every day of a bowl of cold pasta with nothing on it, and one granny smith apple. Low fat, yes: but I am not sure it fueled her body well for her strenuous weight lifting sessions in the afternoons, and just think, how dull is that?!?!?!?!

Find a healthy way to eat for life. Life is too short to count calories and macro-nutrients 24/7.

Clare :)
 
"Find a healthy way to eat for life. Life is too short to count calories and macro-nutrients 24/7."---Amen to that, Clare!:)

I initially lost 15 pounds on a low fat diet but it was pretty much torture b/c I was restricting myself from eating so many things that I LOVE!

I recently changed the way I eat to just trying to eat healthy. I try to make sure that my diet contains proteins, carbs, fats and lots of vitamins and minerals every day. And yes...I STILL eat the bad stuff }( but I keep it under control.

I also eat several smaller meals/snacks each day instead of 3 big meals. Eating like this keeps the metabolism much more efficient and I NEVER NEVER NEVER skip breakfast! Most important meal of the day!:)

I find that this style of eating is good for me mentally as well as physically. It makes me feel good about myself because I know I am doing something good for my body IN ADDITION to the exercise. Nutrition goes hand in hand with exercise after all....:)

But, still, to each his own...what works for me, or Clare of Sarah may not work for you...You have to find the right plan that will not only give you the results you want and make you healthier but that is also something that you are comfortable doing FOR LIFE.

~Wendy~

I smoked my last cigarette on March 17, 2004 at 10:00 pm!

http://lilypie.com/days/050519/1/0/1/-5/.png[/img]
EDD: 05/19/05
 
In my experience, limiting the calories and increasing your exercising is what works. Period. I eat 100% whole wheat bread that I make in my breadmaker, so that takes care of worrying about processing. I am concerned about over-processed foods, but more for the overall health of it than for the weight loss. I didn't really pay attention to it WHILE I was losing my weight. And I admit, for a couple months there, I was strictly making white bread in my breadmaker because it seemed it got eaten faster by my family and none went out to the bird feeder because it was too stale to taste good.

I do pay close attention to protein and fiber content to make sure I get enough. Fats...I only pay attention to trans fat and saturated fat.

Granted, I don't have the physique of Cathe and her crew in the new workouts. I think I look more like Cathe in Pure Strength. But that's good enough for me. I'm not going to be competing in any sort of contests. I'm healthy and happy and don't obsess. And I eat hamburgers and fries occassionally too!

Oh - and what Wendy says is very important. Eat frequent small "meals". I have 5 small ones - 1 every 2-3 hours. I usually don't eat after 7:30 p.m.
 
Donna,

I never buy bread at the store. I always make it. I was wondering what your whole wheat recipe is?

Thanks,

Elaine:)
 
I don't own a bread maker--would love to get one but quite frankly, I just don't have the room for it...but I have eaten fresh made bread from one and oh my goodness it is AWESOME! Especially when it's still warm! YUMMMMM!:9

~Wendy~

I smoked my last cigarette on March 17, 2004 at 10:00 pm!

http://lilypie.com/days/050519/1/0/1/-5/.png[/img]
EDD: 05/19/05
 
I was watching a show last night on FitTV (I can't remember the name of the show), and a nutritionist was working with a woman on teaching her how to eat to lose weight. He made a statement that I've been saying for years: He said that people think that if they eat less and create a deficit, they'll lose weight. He then said, "That's one way to do it, if you can keep your blood sugar levels under control." He then said that people simply just need to eat a balanced diet; a diet that incorporates a balance of whole grains and protein. This will naturally cause the body to "even itself out" and drop unnecessary weight. So, there's no need to create a "deficit" of calories that will only screw up your blood sugar levels.

I did some extensive research years ago about dieting for a presentation. My topic was "Dieting Makes You Fat." It's true, because your body can't differentiate between dieting and starvation, so it thinks you're starving and hangs on to it's fat stores. If you "diet" enough over time, your body starts to condition itself to hang on to its fat stores for the next "starvation" (diet).

Later on in that show last night, the nutritionist was re-evaluating this woman's body fat and nutrition needs, and he calculated that she'd gained 2 pounds of muscle. He said to the girl that this is great, because just by gaining that extra muscle, her metabolism has increased, and she's burning an extra 100 calories a day. So, the "size of her engine" had increased, which explains the increase in her appetite. The more muscle you have, the more you need to eat. The more exercise you do, the more you need to eat. So many people just don't get that concept.

With all that said, I have recently lost 2 pounds in 4 days, all by changing the way I eat (and more specifically, the way I snack). I have used a book called "The Abs Diet" to make this change, and I eat Grape Nuts cereal, almonds, and Figure 8 protein shakes (whey protein and I don't get along digestively, so I use the recipes in the book and substitute Figure 8 for whey protein) for snacks. I also will eat small servings of homemade turkey chili or black bean and pork chili as snacks. I have been astounded by how "full" I feel all the time now. I used to be starving by lunchtime, but now I can actually go an hour longer before lunch, and eat a smaller lunch, because I just feel so satisfied. Long story short, since this past Saturday morning, I've lost 2 pounds. In the past week and a half, I think I've lost between 4-5 pounds. And, I just tightened my belt another notch that two weeks ago would've cut off circulation to my abdomen, but today it's quite comfortable. The only thing I've really changed is the way I snack, and I've included more "power foods" (like spinach, unsweetened oats, beans, etc.) in my other meals. Oh, I've also cut my soda intake down to about 1-2 per week.

Sorry for the long post, but I hope it helped you all.
 
katia7 - To me, the best diet is the one you're actually going to do! Knowing all kinds of facts/myths about what's good for you and what's not good for you is great, but if you're not going to follow them, why waste your time?!?

For me, I try to choose natural, minimally processed foods most of the time. For breakfast, I might have a Vitamuffin or fruit. For lunch, a pita pizza on whole wheat pita bread or one of the new spa cuisines from Lean Cuisine. My current favorite snack is sliced cucumbers and baby carrots with low fat ranch dip or a piece of fruit. For dinner, I'll usually have a salad with lean protein.

I find that I am more successful if I give myself a limited number of choices for each meal. I usually have at least 1 cheat day per week (some weeks every day seems like a cheat day...) but I try not to beat myself up over it.

You can find someone to argue for every position as far as diets go but one thing no one can argue with is: whole fruits and vegetables are healthy, low calorie, vitamin packed foods. That's why I try to stick to them as much as possible.

Hope that helps. :)
 
Thanks everyone. :) This helps A LOT!
After reading all this I came to the realisation that there's no point of me torturing myself and following the diets that fitness models follow, because I am NOT a fitness model and am not looking for a sixpack. All I want to is to achieve a healthy body that looks good in a bikini.
I know that in the past simply counting calories and eatig healthy with a dessert here and there has worked and unlike the more strict diets kept me sane. Why I keep searching for other answers, I have no idea.

Thanks everyone :D
 
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