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I wanted to share why long term weight loss is difficult. The reason is we, that is most people, have the wrong model of how things work.
The "common thinking" and "wrong model":
Body fat makes us fat, i.e. the body has a need for a certain number of calories to maintain homeostasis. Therefore IF we lose the weight and maintain a healthy weight, we will be less hungry and maintain that healthy weight. The process will become easier once we reach a healthy body weight.
The reality:
The body wants to maintain its WEIGHT. As it loses WEIGHT it stimulates hunger MORE and SLOWS metabolism. As one LOSES weight, you lose a mix of muscle mass and bone mass which makes it easier to become FATTER when the inevitable weight returns. In other words, eating a lower calorie diet at a set point weight is relatively easy compared to eating a lower calorie diet at a deficit.
So what is the answer? Unfortunately, I do not know that. However, for obese people, there is something slightly off with the body's weight scale that keeps it thinking it is underweight. Anyway, I suggest 6 ideas to help with the process:
1. Track everything. Track macros and calories. For diet, most studies show eating more vegetables improves overall health. As for losing weight, maximizing protein and fiber may help with satiety.
2. Do muscle building exercises. Try to spare as much muscle as possible.
3. Think about getting a weight vest and trying to build some bone mass. The weight vest might also be able to fool the body's scales.
4. Understand things will probably get more difficult vs less difficult.
5. Be prepared to change things up.
6. Consider seeing a medical doctor.
Can you help answer these questions from other members on NexusFi?
I'll outline what worked for me, and I appreciate one solution may not fit all.
Around 5 years back my BMI had reached 27.4 which classed me in the middle of the overweight category.
How did I get there? It was basically a combination of little or no exercise, a high-carb diet and work-related stress which triggered cravings.
When I went to a nutritionist, she said that my high-carb diet was the likely culprit for the cravings. She explained that, as I consumed a lot of food high in carbs (white pasta/white bread/pizza, cakes, desserts, etc.) these types of food caused sugar levels to spike in my blood. Because of that spike, insulin gets secreted in amounts that are above what's required, to bring the sugar level in my blood down. Since the insuline amount is greater, the sugar in the blood gets reduced more than it would be really needed. At this point the brain starts getting signals such as drowsiness, lethargy and the simple thought or the sight of more carbs triggers a primordial response in the brain that I need new sugars now (this primitive impulse is probably not too dissimilar from the imminent danger sensation we feel when we are in a trade going against us).
So the above becomes a vicious cycle that can get repeated multiple times a day. I was experiencing this at work and I had to take multiple breaks only to go down to the coffee shop for an extra cake and cup of coffee every 1-2 hours.
Eventually the cravings can get to a point where you don't have much control over them anymore. It's akin to being an addict, I think. Food industry does not help either, given they produce foods that have a high level of palatability (there's a good book on the subject, The End of Overeating).
Anyway, with this awareness I started - very gradually - to reduce the amount of white carbs I was eating, by replacing them with wholemeal grains, but also changing the overall percentage of carbs I was eating across the week, in favour of more protein-based food.
The reason wholemeal grain foods are generally recommended over more refined/white grain foods, among other things, is that they still increase sugar levels in the blood, but they do so in a much more 'steady' way. Instead of a spike, you get a gradient-type chart. This apparently causes the insuline to be released in more moderate amounts, and so you don't get the vicious cycle as per above (or, if you do, it is significantly reduced).
Portion size also mattered. I have a theory: our internal organs are not rigid, so when they are full they stretch. As the stomach is stretched because someone is eating more than they should, next time they eat, the stomach will send them signals that it is not full yet, which will cause the person to eat a similar amount or more. It's basically another vicious cycle.
So I made the conscious decision to eat smaller portions (they were not small, they were simply the size of the recommended portion that the NHS promotes).
Clearly the initial period is harder, as the first 1-2 weeks you are struggling with hunger sensation and cravings, but once that's over it becomes easier.
Since 2016 I have consistently reduced my weight, so that it is now in the 'healthy weight' category.
I also exercise moderately, which helps.
One thing I want to stress though is, I did make the concious choice to permanently eat less of something and more of something else. This does not mean I no longer eat pasta, or pizza, or cakes. It simply means I eat those in moderation, e.g. I will eat some carbs once or twice a week, as opposed to nearly every day.
The reason I wanted to share this is, I realize there may be others out there who struggle with various levels of weight issues. My own experience: this is something that can be overcome. As I said, it's not easy, but it can be done.
Sorry I didn't make it clear. I am not talking about what one eats. I am referring to, the body has a need for a certain amount of calories. So, "wrong model" is that once an obese person obtains a healthy weight that they will not be hungry and it will be easy to maintain the weight. This is based on the idea that okay if you only have a need for X calories then you won't be hungry provided you get X calories. But observed reality, the fact that 97% fail. But why? The observed reality, and multiple studies are starting to show this, is that once you lose weight then the body will always fight to regain the weight.
In other words, statistically and scientifically significant long term weight loss is difficult. It may be easier to change body composition. But, if you try it then you certainly want to increase muscle mass. Also, it might be possible using weight vests or other weights to fool the body into thinking it hasn't lost weight. This would work through an appetite suppressant mechanism but even if it doesn't work, you still get the muscle and bone mass improvements.
there is many scientific studies as well as success-stories that support the notion that too much simple carbs (white grains and especially sugar) are a major factor. So working in this area is mandatory in my opinion. I am at a very healthy weight, do plenty of sports. Still - when I cut out sugar for 12 weeks last year, just to see what it does to mee, I lost almost 3kg of bódy weight, whereof some 90% where fat.
This meant that my BMI went from 22.2 to 21.3 (I was then down to an estimated bodyfat percentage of 8-9% based on weekly caliper measurement.)
I didn't eat less, or less often. I just avoided all white sugar and artificial sweeteners. I even continued with my usual high-carb habits (pasta, mostly) and didn't bother cutting down on alcohol either. Also, to put the results into perspective - at home we never eat any sweets or ready-meals & don't add white sugar to our meals. So the biggest changes in routine were:
a) bring my own lunch, as everything in our cantine contains white sugar. Really everything.
b) no sweets & desserts (mostly at work, birthday parties etc)
c) no sugary drinks, no sugar into coffee or tea.
d) read the ingredients of what you want to buy in the shop. All sausages, salami etc. contain sugar these days.
Now, about 7 months after stopping the "experiment", I am back at 72kg. Same sports, same everything.
If I come to the point where the weight continues to slowly creep up, sugar is where I will make changes.
I think this thread will likely have insights that help a lot of people, thanks for starting it.
I recently lost 20 pounds over the last year, and it was the easiest weight loss of my life. All I did was a few simple things that I think anyone can do.
1. Never spike your blood sugar by eating too much at one time. I never restricted my total calorie intake per day, but I did restrict how much I could eat in one sitting. Spiking your blood sugar is the key event that triggers fat storage.
2. Give your body a break: I played with different intermittent fasting ideas. I noticed having a light day (< 500 calories) once every couple of weeks made my blood sugar baseline awesome for the next day... But I was too lazy to commit to this, so instead what I figured out was I could get the same effect by eating no later than 7 or 8 at night and no sooner than 12 for lunch each day. So I would get a 15 to 17 hour window to do a mini-fast. This knocked my blood sugar down to a perfect level.
3. Time your exercise: I found out that all exercise is not =. In my case, I don't eat before 12 every day. When you exercise on an empty stomach you are burning fat. When you exercise on a full stomach you are burning sugar. Every morning I hit the treadmill for 5 to 10 minutes before lunch. It takes no time and after 10 days I end up burning around 1,000 extra calories that are all stored fat, not just excess sugar.
4. Watch what you eat when you eat out. This is the easiest one. When you eat out, most things are insanely bad for you. If you are not being careful you will end up with > 1,000 calories in one meal. Go for the light menu if possible, avoid obvious things that are bad for you like fried food, sugary carbs, etc. You may not be as healthy as eating at home, but just try to not eat an entire day's worth of calories in one sitting.
So overall I never really cut my calorie intake which is the best part. I am down to around 5% body fat these days.
Hope some of this helps.
Ian
In the analytical world there is no such thing as art, there is only the science you know and the science you don't know. Characterizing the science you don't know as "art" is a fools game.
5% is incredible, that takes ultra discipline. A pro body builder that goes to my gym, gets down to 6% before physique competition, but his gym workout and diet is a full time job. NFL wide recievers are around 10%
Volatility is good for the market and trading.
Preservation of capital is the most important concept for those who want to stay in the trading game for the long haul. - Van Tharp
Great suggestions. Yes, I think limiting carbs is very sensible. Protein and fiber have higher thermic value. I think the key is to track everything so you can see how it impacts your hunger levels, and be prepared to change/adapt. Most things will work for a while. For myself, I found that eating bread by itself stimulated my appetite but when combined with protein and other foods, it seemed to suppress it. I also use ziplocks for portion control.
For exercise, if you get in something like this mix you will ensure potential for optimal benefits:
1. Do something that gets out of breath every day. High intensity. I use rowing for this.
2. Do something that builds muscle. The wall presses or calisthenstics are really easy/quick way to get in this but weight lifting is of course super effective too.
3. Do something at a moderate intensity that is moderate 20-45 minutes each day. I like walking with the weight vest or you could do rowing.