I am very overweight. What is a good weight loss program to aide in losing weight?
April 9, 2011 Categories: Question Answer
Question by Mary : I am about 50 pounds over weight. I am a female, weigh 185, and am only 5’4″. However, I am VERY active. I ran a marathon a year ago, work with children, go to school full time. Anyway, I take HORRIBLY. When I have a craving I always give in. Can someone please help me? Any tips would be great.
Answer by diplomatist :
The key for losing those extra pounds is easy – consume less food and workout more often – the issues arise when we really try to place that into practice! There are lots of opportunities to change in the real world don’t you think?! I uncovered some good advice by reading the site in the box below, they have lots of instruction, I melted away 6 pounds by taking their advice.
You have a good answer ?, please comment !
Losing 1-2lbs a week is the best way to go. This way, you are losing mostly fat, rather than water and muscle. Faster weight loss is not better, nor is it sustainable.
Diet should be what you look at first for weight loss- this is what will enable you to drop fat. Try a balanced diet made up of mostly natural whole foods, with high protein, moderate carbs and moderate fats.
You need to know how many calories you burn- you can use an online calculator for a rough estimate. Aim for 10-20% calories fewer than you burn daily (too large a deficit will be counterproductive in the longer term).
Don’t worry about complicated diets or cutting things out. You can enjoy anything in moderation, as long as the majority of your diet is healthy.
Base your meals around:
Lean protein (e.g. chicken, tuna, lean beef, fat-free cottage cheese, egg whites)
Wholegrains (e.g. wholewheat bread, oats, bran cereals, rice)
Healthy fats (e.g. nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocado, salmon, whole eggs, flaxseed)
Fruit and veg
And drink lots of water.
Second in importance to diet, is heavy resistance training- this is what will allow you to preserve muscle so you look ‘toned’ and defined once you’ve dropped the fat (rather than just a smaller version of how you look now, with the same bits you’re unhappy with). More muscle also means a higher metabolism, so you definitely want to hold on to, or increase the muscle base you have, for fat loss.
You need to work ALL your major muscle groups- you can’t spot reduce.
Then you can look at extras like cardio to help create a calorie deficit. But cardio is by far the least important of these three, and you can lose fat effectively without it. If you want to continue running marathons, do the necessary training but view it as training, rather than as key to fat loss.
Make sure you’re getting at least one rest day a week with no exercise at all.
You can lose more body fat eating protein & fat (don’t eat protein alone) than not eating AT ALL. To lose weight fast, eat all you want, but nothing but meat, eggs, healthy oils, mayo, butter & half an avocado a day (for added potassium). Keep the calories high & the fat percentage high, at least 65% of calories. Green vegetables & some cheese will continue weight loss but at a slower pace.
The first 2 weeks eat several cups a day of (mostly) lettuce & celery, cucumbers, radishes, mushrooms, peppers & more variety of vegetables thereafter – add 5 grams per day additional every week (20 grams day first 2 weeks, 25grams 3rd week, 30grams 4th week etc) til you gain weight, then subtract 10grams. That will be your personal carb level (everyone is different & depends on how active you are.)
Start with meat, fats & salads for 2 weeks and then slowly add in more green veg, wk4 fresh cheeses, wk5 nuts & seeds, wk6 berries, wk7 legumes, wk8 other fruits, wk9 starchy veg, wk10 whole grains. You will learn how your body reacts to different foods.
The first week is just water weight but fat is lost thereafter if you keep your calories high enough. Otherwise the body will strip it’s own lean tissue for nutrition. Although that may look great on a scale it will make it MUCH easier to accumulate fat in the future (since all that pesky lean tissue burning up calories will be gone). The body won’t release fat stores if you lower calories below what it needs. It will slow metabolism to compensate & store every spare ounce as fat. If you continue lowering calories, it will continue lowering the set point, til it can survive off nothing & store fat on anything. The body will only release it’s fat stores if it knows there is plenty of nutritious food.
Eating carbs while trying to lose body fat is terribly inefficient. When in glycolysis (burning glucose as fuel) you have to lower your calories (which slows your metabolism) & exercise heavily to deplete your glycogen stores before burning body fat.
The core of Atkins program is converting the body from glycolysis (burning glucose as fuel) to ketosis (burning fat as fuel). Dietary fat levels need to be at >65% of total calories, if not, the body will still remain in glycolysis by converting 58% of excess protein into glucose (via gluconeogenesis).
It takes minimum of 3 days to convert a body to ketosis, (but only one bite to convert back to glycolysis). People feel sluggish the first week but most feel better than ever thereafter.
Simple carbohydrates (sugar, flour, bread, cereal, pasta, potatoes, rice) trigger insulin (the ONLY fat storage hormone). The more protein the more the fat burning hormone glucagon is released.
Simple carbs are addictive & can be disastrous to health. The best way to break the addiction is NO carbs for 3 days. Make a huge batch of deviled eggs, eat one every time you want “something” – have huge omelets with bacon, sausage, peppers, mushrooms & cheese. Pork chops smothered with peppers, mushrooms & cheese – pork rinds & dip or tuna/chicken/turkey/egg salad – steaks – a huge sugar free cheese cake. Eat so much you won’t feel deprived of anything. By the 4th day, the addiction will be gone & you can start making healthy choices.
High insulin levels promote inflammation, weight gain, hunger & unbalance other hormones. Controlling insulin levels will balance out other hormones & allow human growth hormone (HGH) to be produced naturally so lean muscle will be gained even without exercise. Any exercise will greatly increase muscle mass with high HGH levels.
Ground flax seed (2-4 Tbsp) 1/4 cup water, artificial sweetener, mix in a raw egg – let sit 10 min. to absorb liquid, put cream cheese in the middle & nuke 2 min. for daily fiber needs.
As long as you have <9grams carbs per hour, you will maintain insulin control & shouldn’t gain weight, no matter the calories because insulin, the fat storage hormone is not activated. Many people gain weight on high carb, do low carb to lose weight & then are shocked when they return to high carb & gain weight.
Most overweight & obese people have blood sugar & insulin dysfunctions and can NEVER eat carbs as someone with a functioning body can. They make the mistake of going back to the way of eating that made them fat and that is not possible and yes they will gain all weight back if they eat what they ate that made them obese originally. Insanity is defined as doing the exact same thing, in the exact same way and expecting different results. Many people can return to moderate carb levels but very few can really eat all they want of sugar & maintain weight or health.
Hi Brittany,
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…”Anyway, I eat HORRIBLY. When I have a craving I always give in. Can someone please help me?…”
In order for any exercise or eating regime to be successful in assisting you to lose weight and get in shape, you must first make a COMMITMENT to lose the weight and get in shape.
Always giving in shows absolutely no commitment on your part to make a positive change. I deal with people trying to lose weight and get in shape on a daily basis in my boot camp business and the #1 issue is commitment to the goal.
As others have pointed out, losing weight is a simple formula (burn more calories than you consume). Joining an exercise program and following a healthy diet is the key to short AND long term wellness.
Work on your MINDSET and commit 100% to achieve your goals. Here are some tips for a healthy diet:
Tips for a Healthy diet:
•Eat every 2-3 hours upon waking
•Eat a diet low in saturated fat
•Keep starchy carbohydrates to a minimum
•Eat a low sodium diet
•Eat plenty of green leafy vegetables
•Drink at least 2-3 liters of water/day
•Avoid fruit juice
•Avoid sugary coffee drinks
•Drink green tea instead of coffee
•Eat at least 25 grams fiber/day
Good Luck