+1 People are full of it. They make all of these claims with absolute certainty, but it's still all based on very unproven theory. If it was simply a hormonal formula that went into play, then someone would profit off of selling hormonal supplements/injections to get it right. If it was just regulating sugar, then doctors would try insulin on people trying to lose weight. Some of the skinniest people I know eat plenty of sugar and carbs. They're also very active and eat a moderate amount of total food. What I will say is that a lot of people probably do lose weight when they cut out sugar and carbs, likely because it gives them an easy way of reducing the total calories they eat. Most of the readily available food around is carbs/sugar. So if you cut all of that out, there isn't as much available to cheat with in between meals. but whatever. One thing I have noticed is that in middle age, it seems to me that men get more results with cardio and women tend to get more results if they do some sort of strength training regime. |
+1 Variety is best for me with plenty of cardio and strength mixed. Mostly strength training would not work for me. I am a female who builds muscle easily, so I gain muscle weight and I put on fat (not enough calories burnt). I agree that clean eating and limited carbs and calories is key. |
| Yes. I also weighed 270 lbs so it flew of. I got all the way down to 230 without changing my diet at all. Then I added a veggie smoothie and got down to 190. Dropped another 20 when I finally made some serious dietary changes. At this point though I work out 6 days a week doing a lot of cardio and weight lifting. You can lose weight with only cardio but you may still look flabby without muscle. Everyone is different. |
This is me. Diet food, low carb, and no sugar didn't work for me. Caused me to binge eat. I kept my eye on the number of calories I ate per day (not the amount of carbs/sugar I ate), but weight didn't come off until I started doing cardio. 45 mins - 1 hr per day. I eat ice cream once a week as a treat. My regular carbs include a pasta dish once a week, whole wheat bread with sandwiches, dressing with salad (though that's more fat than carbs), full fat milk and yogurt, lots of fruit, white sugar in my coffee, and sweet tea. I'm 5'4 115 lbs. |
+1 |
Maybe the previous low carb diet was too extreme? http://www.marksdailyapple.com/does-eating-low-carb-cause-insulin-resistance/#axzz2xeYtWQY0 Your current diet seems carb controlled compared to the average diet |
AGree. Increasing your muscle mass jacks up your metabolism. I used to run a lot and it didn't do much for weight loss. Switched to heavy lifting and circuit training to keep my heart rate up. My body fat plummeted (40% to 25%), and still ate 2200 + calories a day, often more. (I am tall though) It was awesome. |
Same here, but I gave up on cardio and started lifting instead. The elliptical is used for warm up only now. |
To be honest, I don't think much about what I eat anymore, just how many calories it has. I get horrible sugar and carb cravings when I'm premenstrual and I have no problem eating a candy bar for dinner. I understand that this may not work for everyone since some people are dealing with pre-diabetes or insulin resistance. For me, if calories eaten = calories burned, I don't gain weight. I'm not "naturally thin" either. I lost almost 50 lbs after my last pregnancy (also didn't lose weight after 1st pregnancy) and I HAVE to exercise. Everyone's different though. For some, eating clean (no sugar/carbs) and not exercising much might work better. It just didn't work for me. |
| I didn't really start losing until I cut carbs and began weight training. |
| In my personal experience, exercise helped me feel better but dieting helped me look better. So I guess, I need both. On problem I had when running a lot is that I was so hungry all the time and ate more. |
| For the folks that cut carbs and sugar, what was your target (maximum) carb and sugar intake per day? |
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-carbohydrate-continuum/#axzz2xeYtWQY0 I didn't have a target, but now that I avoid starches and eat lots of vegetables, my carb intake (including fiber) has been remarkably consistent -- 120 g/day. (I use myfitnesspal.) |
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Lost 50+ pounds in a year by only working out. No cutting sugar, carbs, bread, gluten, or whatever the hell the latest trend is. Eating all things in moderation, but exercise 5-6x a week.
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14:10 here again. I recently increased my exercise (mixed cardio with moderate weights for strength) to 5 days a week. I have gradually lost 5 lb (1 lb/week) without being hungry. I am using myfitnesspal to take in 1200 cal/day plus whatever I burn with exercise. If I am hungry but have eaten enough calories, I eat non-starchy vegetables. Starting weight was 136. Goal weight is 125. (I'm 5'2") |