Help me lose (or gain) weight

[VikingBeard]

I'm lucky I don't like sweets at all. Salty food on the other hand....

I have good discipline though. Except when it comes to beer.

[Minaku]

I'm a little bit more "motivational". I chant to myself "Nothing tastes as good as looking good looks. Nothing tastes as good as looking good looks."* There are candy jars and baskets everywhere, as it is seemingly everyone's mission in life to get their co-workers fat. We also have the obligatory birthday celebration once a month, where 10 different kinds of cake are brought in from a local bakery (varies every month), and sometimes, we have competitions such as a chili cook-off.

Since I work at the corporate HQ of one of your favorite fast-food places, zt, we have a test kitchen downstairs. I'm sure it would drive you batty if you worked there :) They also serve test items on occasion, and I've counted four different BBQ or burger "celebrations" in the past year, an employee free-for-all. Fortunately, that aspect does nothing for me, as I'm vegetarian.

Occasionally, for corporate board meetings and other important functions, the Johnson & Wales-and-Culinary Institute of America-trained chefs who work in said test kitchen will roll out huge spreads of culinary artwork. And, of course, the employees get the leftovers after the meeting is done. Smoked salmon, pate, artfully arranged hummus in little bell peppers...(I had a hard time resisting the hummus, but I was full, so I didn't need it).

There is a bunch of food in my office setting - much more than your previous office environments would have had :)

I hear you, Chats. I used to work for Bloomberg and every single meal there is free thanks to the full-access kitchen. Along with that came the full snack/candy bar, and people used to line up in the mornings to dive into the fresh fruit and make their own smoothies (because La Creme yogurt, nuts, and honey were all complimentary as well). Where did I learn to make yummy smoothies? At Bloomberg, fighting the crowd every morning.

While it was nice to be able to put together a healthy snack for myself any time I wanted (oatmeal with some fresh berries or fruit, a small portion of chicken with veggies) it was also torture seeing everyone else come back with milkshakes, frozen yogurt, and gummi bears. They even had Heath bars, which was... tempting. I allowed myself one small mini-size and worked it off at the gym immediately after. Anyway, I understand temptation. The first week I started my clean diet and exercise regime, I came home to my husband and my brother in law chowing down on supreme pizza and mac'n'cheese, those bastards.

You have the willpower, ztem. You can do it.

[Stego]

Clearly you don't hate yourself enough. If you had the proper amount of self-loathing, you wouldn't touch it. I like to use motivational phrases like, "Hey fatass, gonna stuff your face with chocolate?" and "That thing probably has 1000 calories, all of them empty, which means you'll feel like shit after you eat it. You don't need that, lardbutt."

Win.

[kiko]

I'm glad that I like partners who don't hate themself as a rule. I don't mind what you do to yourself, but I really pity your mates. It is hard enough to be with a woman who can't eat a lot of things because of health reasons, I know that... How do your partners deal with it? I'm genuinely curious.

[Lany Freelove Cassandra]

I'm glad that I like partners who don't hate themself as a rule. I don't mind what you do to yourself, but I really pity your mates. It is hard enough to be with a woman who can't eat a lot of things because of health reasons, I know that... How do your partners deal with it? I'm genuinely curious.

For mine it is easy. I switched all our bread type products and pasta to whole grains; get ground turkey instread of beef; only buy lean cuts of meat, no pre-packaged foods or seasonings. Serve salad or fresh veggies with every dinner. I simply eat half (or less) than he does. Not even my son has complained about the changes*.

Really, I have just made things here a lot healthier without any major changes (I even found multigrain, low fat tortilla chips and made homemade salsa)

*I have given up baking until the late autumn. That does make me (and them) a little sad.

[Minaku]

I'm glad that I like partners who don't hate themself as a rule. I don't mind what you do to yourself, but I really pity your mates. It is hard enough to be with a woman who can't eat a lot of things because of health reasons, I know that... How do your partners deal with it? I'm genuinely curious.

My husband understands that he has his food and I have my food. He can eat what he feels like. I will eat what is going to benefit my body the most. I am not blessed with the metabolism of a hummingbird, as Schneeble is (and Chataya can attest to this, Schnee has just about no body fat) so what he eats is automatically off limits for me. Lasagna, pizza, macaroni and cheese, prepared foods from Publix, chicken nuggets and onion rings, all of that is a giant no for me. I can pick ONE of those foods to have once a week in moderation. He is able to knock them down one right after another.

Soon enough he will reach an age when his metabolism slows and he starts getting a bit soggy around the middle. He knows this, and knows that there are tasty healthy foods, so when it's my turn to cook, he doesn't complain. He's come around on tofu, which is great because there's no way it's leaving my diet. Now, if I can get him to come around on jade veggies, broccolini, and basically any dark green that has a chewy stem, that'd be FANTASTIC.

Bottom line is, if I didn't have a healthy dose of whatever it is that keeps me motivated to stay in shape, my husband would be looking at an overweight, jiggly-assed, moon-faced Asian woman as his wife who wouldn't be able to keep up with him whenever he decides to go hiking or swimming. The same overweight, jiggly-assed, moon-faced Asian woman would have problems like hypertension, diabetes, joint issues, and bad skin. I think my loathing of my fat dimples results in a win-win situation.

[Stego]

[kiko]

Ah! Slight misunderstanding here. I didnt talk about cooking, more about how they deal with someone who uses self-loathing as a motivational factor. That is always a tricky situation and from experience, I know that one has to be always careful what one says or does. And definitely not something I would like to experience again.

[Stego]

Kiko, you are still incredibly hard to understand.

[Nous]

I've been on a paleo/low-carb diet since february, when I started a thread here on Gary Taubes' book Good Calories, Bad Calories. It is the first time in my life when I've made a conscious effort to lose weight, having put some on in previous year. I'd say it's worked pretty nicely, despite me not having been that strict about the diet; I'm some 8 kilos down.

I plan to continue eating this way. Eating right should not be a phase you're on until you've lost weight, as I'm sure you know. Besides, even though I'm at a pretty good bf% right now, I think my abs could use more definition. ;)

Inspired by some blog posts, I've started trying out intermittent fasting. Just this morning, I woke up, not feeling hungry, and broke my second, 34 hr, fast with some bacon and eggs. I rather like the idea of being able to, spontaneously, skip eating for extended periods if I want to. Avoiding all those sugary, fast-carby snacks (also known as appetizers) goes a long way to freeing you from being constantly bothered by hunger, but I think fasting gives a psychological edge on this, at the very least. Feeling hungry? So what? Not a big deal.

[Datepalm]

Inspired by some blog posts, I've started trying out intermittent fasting. Just this morning, I woke up, not feeling hungry, and broke my second, 34 hr, fast with some bacon and eggs. I rather like the idea of being able to, spontaneously, skip eating for extended periods if I want to. Avoiding all those sugary, fast-carby snacks (also known as appetizers) goes a long way to freeing you from being constantly bothered by hunger, but I think fasting gives a psychological edge on this, at the very least. Feeling hungry? So what? Not a big deal.

I can go about 48 hours or so without feeling hungry (or without noticing i'm hungry, maybe) if body and mind are both occupied enough, but i'm not sure its actually particularly healthy. Generally speaking, I rarely eat when I feel hungry, I eat becuase I want to eat or its dinner time or whatever, but going by purely eat-when-hungry really does put me at something like a meal every day and half, which seems a bit extreme.

It is sometimes nice to be totally aloof when everyone is hungry and grumbling and declaring they can't function unless they eat something now at the end of a long day though.

[Red Sun]

I can go about 48 hours or so without feeling hungry (or without noticing i'm hungry, maybe) if body and mind are both occupied enough, but i'm not sure its actually particularly healthy. Generally speaking, I rarely eat when I feel hungry, I eat becuase I want to eat or its dinner time or whatever, but going by purely eat-when-hungry really does put me at something like a meal every day and half, which seems a bit extreme.

I think this is really a difference of metabolism. While it happens occasionally that I forget a meal, my body always calls my attention at one moment, because I start getting cold shivers or feel dizzy. Especially, if I have to concentrate on something.

But if you are not very hungry, the better for you, I guess.

Yesterday was my cheat day, because I was invited and drank some beer. The food was a bit heavier than I do it as well, but since I hadn't eaten so much before evening and was relatively active over the day, neither beer or food did have a negative effect yet. This morning I was at 70,8 kg (aka 156 lb.) only 0,9 kg to go until I'm under 70 kg, and then I want to shed 5 kg more and settle at 65 kg. This is a longtime goal, though, because I focus more on just being more active and on reducing body fat which is still shamefully high (31 % according to my scales).

[zollo]

Kiko, you are still incredibly hard to understand.

Seems quite clear to me. Self loathing as main motivation in life? Hardly a healthy starting point for just about anything - the kind of motivation that usually collides head on with quality of life* for the person involved and those close to them.

*sweeping, yet not untrue.

[Stego]

Fasting is foolish. It is the height of stupidity and ignorance, really, as to how the body works.

There is no faster way to shut down your metabolism and gain fat than intermittent fasting. It should not be talked about in a weight loss thread.

Again, as I eschew all religious, spiritual, astrological, furrie, or any other nonsensical belief system, I am not commentating on that part of fasting. But if the modern man or woman needs anything, it's to eat more often, not less often.

[Stego]

Seems quite clear to me. Self loathing as main motivation in life? Hardly a healthy starting point for just about anything - the kind of motivation that usually collides head on with quality of life* for the person involved and those close to them.

*sweeping, yet not untrue.

I understand now what Kiko meant, as it was explained to em in a PM, but I did not see what was being said as self-loathing at all. It may be cultural. I really don't know. I do not think Minaku hates herself, she was simply steeling herself to brave through a self-denial.

I know I'm the walking, talking personification of everything good, great, and even divine in the human animal. That does not mean I will not call myself a fucking moron when it's deserved, and I will chastise the little devil on my shoulder asking for more goddamn pie, as well. With mean language. Mean, I say.

Self loathing does not equate to self discipline in my book.

[Datepalm]

Fasting is foolish. It is the height of stupidity and ignorance, really, as to how the body works.

There is no faster way to shut down your metabolism and gain fat than intermittent fasting. It should not be talked about in a weight loss thread.

Again, as I eschew all religious, spiritual, astrological, furrie, or any other nonsensical belief system, I am not commentating on that part of fasting. But if the modern man or woman needs anything, it's to eat more often, not less often.

Stego, I think i'm going to espouse you as a belief system. You have more conviction about you than most of the regular ones. :thumbsup:

Is it still fasting if I don't deliberately not eat, but rather just don't feel hungry?

[Stego]

It means you ate too much last night. :P

6 meals a day! 6 meals a day! Make them as small as you want to, but do not go 6 waking hours without food. Keep your body burning. Keep pumping water into it.

This is how you avoid any and all binge eating. Also, remember when the Saturday Morning cartoons said that Breakfast was the most important meal of the day? They were right. Break that long ass fast! Have some carbs! Eat that protein. Shovel that coal into the engine.

[Datepalm]

It means you ate too much last night. :P

6 meals a day! 6 meals a day! Make them as small as you want to, but do not go 6 waking hours without food. Keep your body burning. Keep pumping water into it.

Just so you know, I got that annoying little spine twitch I used to get during bootcamp when the sargeant would show up in the tent for a surprise inspection. Even if everything was ok, It was tempting to sit up straighter. Not sure how you managed that purely in writing.

Er, I guess i'm off to nibble lettuce or something.

Does tea count?

[Stego]

Just so you know, I got that annoying little spine twitch I used to get during bootcamp when the sargeant would show up in the tent for a surprise inspection. Even if everything was ok, It was tempting to sit up straighter. Not sure how you managed that purely in writing.

Er, I guess i'm off to nibble lettuce or something.

Does tea count?

Nope.

Seriously, folks....eat a serving size of oatmeal for breakfast and that will burn the whole day long. You may have to choke it down, but it's SO freaking good for you. The weight control from Quaker with the aded whey protein is just bloody amazing. And it tastes wonderful.

[Stego]

Sorry folks. I don't mean to be a jerk here, really. I think these threads are some of the best things to come out of this board since marriages and babies and STD's. *coughYagathaicough*

I'm just....excited and motivated and... I got up at 4am today to go lifting with a strength coach. I bench pressed a weight 8 times when I'd never done it more than 3 times before. I had an amazing breakthrough workout on about 5 of my regular lifts, and then he killed me in some new ones. It's not even 10am where I am and my day is already absolutely wonderful. I'm motivated and excited by everyones progress here. I'm a weight loss hippie or some shit.