South Beach, Eat Clean, The Zone, WW???

pjlippert

pjlippert

Cathlete
Hi all,

I know I need to make some additional changes to my diet since the scale is STILL not budging. I even had my Cortisole and Thyroid levels tested again- all within very normal limits!!!! :confused:

I've begun amping up my workouts to hopefully help getting thing moving!

My question is out of the diets listed above, which one to chose. I had great success about 10 years ago with South Beach but am having a really hard time with the carb-restriction. I've never officially tried Eat Clean or The Zone. Ive done Weight Watchers in the past but find that I end up having too much fun with the "non-fat/low-fat/low-point" values. :eek::rolleyes::p

I just bought The Zone (only $1 at a book sale so what the heck). I've just started reading it- what are your thoughts out there, Cathletes?

Thanks!
Pam
 
Jenny Craig

Because I am not one to figure out the calories, carbs, proteins every day, I joined Jenny Craig about 5 years ago. My weight had hit an all time high and I quit smoking. I decided, I was going to go all in and pay for the advice and the food. I did F A N T A S T I C!!!! I dropped almost 30 pounds in just a few months. I gained back about 10 of those pounds and I'm basically just too lazy to count calories, try to figure out what works for me, nor do I want to pay Whole Foods' prices. Although I loooove Trader Joe's. I read a lot of posts here where people can' lose weight and it's like reading my own writing. I'm thinking of going again to Jenny Craig for their meals again. By the time I finished, I was saving 30% so my meals for a week cost me about $75.
 
I prefer something that doesn't require a lot of money on meals (Jenny Craig, etc.) or on weekly check ins (WW). I also don't believe in restricting any particular major food group (South Beach). I prefer clean eating. There's no counting, no special meals you have to buy, just common sense and staying away from processed foods. That's it. It has worked wonders for me!

I was originally counting calories when I first started until I found out about clean eating from many of the Cathletes here. If I have to check a book for what I need to do on a daily basis, that's a "diet" and not good lifestyle eating. Eventually with all of these so-called popular and successful diets, you have to go back to "normal" eating and then you gain the weight back. With clean eating or intuitive eating, you are still eating regular food, just with more knowledge and balanced food groups.

I've done WW and other fadish type diets and they all end up the same. Great for a while until you quit the "program," then it's all back.

Just MHO.
 
Have you tried "Eat Right for (4) Your Type" by Dr. Peter J. D'Adamo. I just started it and I am getting results immediately. Since this is the first time eating this way, I must say I'm enjoying it very much. There are even different exercises to do for your blood type.

I'm an O negative and find all of this very interesting. Cathe's workouts fit the bill, and I love eating as the book recommends. I also write down my calories I ingest and try to the best of my knowledge, track the calories I burn by math and exertion. It's working so far. I suppose every diet works for awhile until you hit the plateau. Then again, it says it's designed to conquer that. So, we'll see.

So far so very good.

Janie
 
Sorry to add a suggestion rather than help you narrow down your choices, but I really like Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. In fact, I eat this way (with bigger portions) when I'm not trying to lose weight, just because I feel great on it.

I did WW for several years, which I liked until I just needed a break from thinking in terms of points. I dabbled with The Zone and South Beach but neither of them really stuck with me (I can't remember exactly why, it was years ago.)

The super short description of Eat to Live is that it's about really clean, whole foods, nutrient-dense eating. One of my requirements for losing weight is that I DON'T want to be hungry, and I'm not hungry on this plan at all. Also, the only carb-restriction is "bad" carbs like refined flour, sugar etc. Carbs from beans, whole grains, fruits and vegetables are fine (but if I recall, grains might be restricted in the initial few weeks, I can't remember exactly.)
 
Hi,

I've been doing The Diet Solution Program since March and I think it's the solution to a sugar addicts problems, which I am. The basic concepts sound a lot harder than they are. No wheat, or white anything, the only flour I eat is spelt flour. No white foods, which includes dairy and white rice. I have done it 99% faithfully, and this is someone who drank a half gallon of FF milk a week. That's it, all other carbs, vegs, fruits, meats are ok. Of course no hot dogs or processed food. I have lost almost 14 pounds, and inchs all over. The best thing is that I have no sugar cravings at all.
 
Hi Pam,

Out of those choices I would personally pick Eat Clean (but I've never done WW). My favorite clean eating book is Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle by Tom Venuto. He just gives so much more detail on how to make it work for you and what to do if you hit a plateau. Although I do also have and like all of Tosca's books.

I am with you on the carb restriction thing. I have a lot of trouble with it. I tried the Zone probably 7 or 8 years ago and could only last two weeks because I was so hungry all the time. I don't even think I had the energy to work out. I'm not likely to part with my oatmeal anytime soon.

Good Luck, hope you find something that works for you.
Noelle
 
I've tried them all and they all work (for awhile). I recently read Intiative Eating in an effort to get off the dieting treadmill and it was a real eye opener, particularly why most diets fail. I'm one of those people who lose and regain the same five pounds. Trying to get away from that. Good luck.
 
Hi Pam,,,

Usually I have quite a few questions regarding diet as well, BUT I can tell you from experience what HAS worked for me and what has not.

What has not:

The Zone, Atkins, Vegan Diets and anything that you have to waste your time measuring, weighing, and counting. Also, forget about those diets that send you all your meals FROZEN. Talk about ''loaded with sodium''. I had never been more bloated in my life ( dig out my post about being bloated from hell,,,,THAT was why ! )

What HAS worked.

The Eat Clean Diet and also Eating Right For Your Type. I sort of combine both of those together. I eat clean and really follow Tosca Reno's book, but then I avoid the foods that the Eat Right For Your Type book says I should.

Let me also state as I have before. I am in the best shape I have ever been in my life. I have so much energy that it's crazy. Weeks ago I was told by my Dr. that I am one of her healthiest patients she has, and know what ?? I have NEVER, EVER counted ANY calories EVER. There is no need when you are eating clean cause you know that when you ARE eating clean, you're putting what's best in your body.
The only thing that I DON'T follow with the Eat Clean diet is eating every three hours. I ONLY eat when I am hungry and when I do,,it's Clean.
Really works !!! You'll see results right away like the previous poster said ! Stay away from those 'Carb only' , 'Protien only' diets, they are a disaster to your body and a total JOKE ! .

Hope that helps a little anyway !

Morgs
 
I am finally getting results after 3-4 years of struggle through a combination of WW (right now I just use it to keep me accountable for check-in and only count points online if I start to slip), clean eating with focus on plant-based foods, and increasing my cardio workout frequency and intensity.

I like Tom Venuto's writings too but in my experience, I found the Precision Nutrition (John Berardi) program and resources to be a little more complete and helpful. In that program you save your carbs (excluding fruits and vegetables, which you can eat any time) for the meal after you work out. It's nice because you are incented to work out and you get to enjoy your potatoes/rice etc. when you do work out.

I am short (5'2") and gain muscle very easily (mesomorph) and I saw elsewhere on these boards where someone read that it is key for that body type to do cardio if you want to lose weight. So after CLX I chose FitnessFreak's Get Ready for Summer rotation (3 days of dedicated cardio per week plus a total body lifting day, a legs day, and a circuit day -- I'm almost done with week 7), and have lost 7 pounds so far. I plan to take an active rest week and then do 1 month of Turbo Fire (to get better acquainted with those workouts) and then embark on STS, using a mix of Shock Cardio and Turbo Fire for the cardio element. I think what I have learned is that I really can't skimp on the cardio.
 
Hi Pam,

Just adding on, I looked into Tom Venuto's material a while back, and really haven't followed any plan, but I have been eating fairly clean for a few years, I don't count calories, well I keep a running total, guesstimation, daily.

The Venuto Holy Grail Transformation Program is the one I'm going to try, because I think I already sort of eat this way. It's about building muscle & losing fat within the same time period. Since I've dropped into the normal range, I know it's about composition, body fat, vs. lean mass.

The scale hasn't shown much in a few weeks, I think one week I was within the same 1/2 pound for the whole week. This particular program suits a patient approach to Protein, Fats, & carbs, with training. I chose it because I just spent the last year, at a weight loss rate of .5 pound average per week, for a total weight loss of 24 pounds. So the method here of measuring increments of body fat reduction I think is something I can do, and stick with.

Might not be for everyone, especially if you don't like keeping track of foods, quantities, or eating 5-6 times a day, or if you have a lot of body fat (weight) to lose, but as I said, some of these things I already kind of do to some extent, and there's only one place to trim for me, that's body fat, plus I really want to get stronger, I'm not really in a big hurry either. The sample plans look very easy to follow.

The last time I followed a plan it was based on weight only, total weight, and it did not take into account any fitness level.

This one does, I'm not selling it, it's just what I'm going to try; enjoyed reading all the other posts :)

Linda
 
Thank you all soo much for your feedback! Hmmmm- sounds like I need to do some research on a few of these plans!

Happy Monday!
Pam
 
I'm back to doing WW after three years of being away from it, in which I struggled to lose the 8-10 pounds I gained from marathon training. I tried counting calories rather than points, eating clean, eating intuitively, etc., etc., but at the end of the day, the only thing that has ever worked for me was WW (through which I lost 30 pounds five years ago).

Since I've been doing it, I'm down 5 pounds and don't find myself struggling anymore with hunger, cravings, etc. Yes, there are times I still have the cravings, but I'm able to manage them much better this time around! I think it's because this time, I'm eating real foods (so I'm still incorporating the basic principles of eating clean), as opposed to the packaged/processed foods I was eating the first time I did WW (I still lost the weight, but I can't say I was eating all that healthy LOL).

I'm hoping to lose 5 more pounds to get to my "fighting weight"--i.e. the weight I was when I got my WW lifetime membership. I've hit a plateau here and there, but so far, I'm enjoying this process way more than the several different methods I tried in the last three years.

I forgot to say that like morgs, I am also going by my hunger cues rather than eating on a schedule. I feel as though this has made the biggest difference for me!! For the last three years I've been doing the 5-6 meals a day thing and while I enjoyed eating all the time, it wasn't making the scale budge (well, it was, but not in the direction I wanted it to go :p). When I switched back to WW, I spent the first few days really, truly paying attention to my hunger cues and got a little better at understanding them. Don't get me wrong, there are still times that I want to eat just to eat (because I want to taste whatever it is my taste buds are screaming for), but I'm able to now distinguish between true hunger and non-hunger cravings.
 
Last edited:
I truly believe it is less about whatever plan you follow and more about your mindset. If you start to think of food as fuel, rather than as a reward or a treat or something bad for you, you just naturally start to make better choices about what to put in your body. If you start to make the connection between what you eat and do with your body and how your body feels, everything becomes clearer and easier. I lost 125lbs a few years ago and have kept 115lbs of them off for 3 years now and it really was easy - I started to look at crap food as just that, crap, that would make me feel bad.

All that being said, the scale may not be budging, but how are your clothes fitting? If you are gaining muscle and losing fat, your clothes will be looser, but the scale may stay the same, as muscle weighs more than fat. And isn't that what we want? We don't want to lose weight, we want to lose fat.
 
morningstar said:
I truly believe it is less about whatever plan you follow and more about your mindset. If you start to think of food as fuel, rather than as a reward or a treat or something bad for you, you just naturally start to make better choices about what to put in your body. If you start to make the connection between what you eat and do with your body and how your body feels, everything becomes clearer and easier. I lost 125lbs a few years ago and have kept 115lbs of them off for 3 years now and it really was easy - I started to look at crap food as just that, crap, that would make me feel bad.

All that being said, the scale may not be budging, but how are your clothes fitting? If you are gaining muscle and losing fat, your clothes will be looser, but the scale may stay the same, as muscle weighs more than fat. And isn't that what we want? We don't want to lose weight, we want to lose fat.
Click to expand...

Wow, 115 is a HUGE amount of weight to keep off! You rock!!! Congrats :)

ITA with your post; I was actually going to post something similar but you beat me to it ;)

This is why I love the ideas behind Eat Clean and Intuitive Eating. Both stress the important of fueling your body with good food and to eat when you're hungry, not when you're bored, sad, happy, etc. I've slowly adopted both of these plans together and I have never felt better or looked better in my life! I never count calories and I always listen to my body; when it's hungry, I feed it regardless of when I ate last or thinking "well, it's only 11AM so I shouldn't eat anything..." I've tried WW & calorie counting and neither worked. I think it's because the rebel in me doesn't like being told how much I need to eat so it backfires after a few days.
 
However, that whole "eat only when you're hungry" thing never worked for me- I have to eat before I'm hungry - every 2-4 hours - or I get starved and eat everything in sight, making poor food choices. I can only make intelligent choices if I'm not really hungry. That's what works for me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top