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Lose a stone in 21 days with Michael Mosley - opinions!
RockAndSausageRoll
Posts: 8 Member
So ... thoughts?
It's TV show on Channel 4, it's not long started. As far as I can tell, he's recommended 800 cals & a keto approach. I've yet to watch it so l might be wrong!! I think it sounds hopelessly unrealistic and I'm not quite sure that anyone should follow such an extreme diet without consulting their GP.
However, my (usually thoughtful, sensible) partner thinks that it's perfectly reasonable, which has left me feeling 💩 💩 He's making weight loss sound so easy & he definitely doesn't mean to but he's completely dismissing my 1500 cal / 3x exercise routine because he's excited by the idea of this. My partner is 1000% supportive of everything I do but this has really rubbed me up the wrong way.
So, am I being too dismissive of the show? Have to admit, I've read about it and not watched it yet, though I intend to. What are your thoughts on Michael Mosley and this method? Would love to hear from someone who has actually watched it!
It's TV show on Channel 4, it's not long started. As far as I can tell, he's recommended 800 cals & a keto approach. I've yet to watch it so l might be wrong!! I think it sounds hopelessly unrealistic and I'm not quite sure that anyone should follow such an extreme diet without consulting their GP.
However, my (usually thoughtful, sensible) partner thinks that it's perfectly reasonable, which has left me feeling 💩 💩 He's making weight loss sound so easy & he definitely doesn't mean to but he's completely dismissing my 1500 cal / 3x exercise routine because he's excited by the idea of this. My partner is 1000% supportive of everything I do but this has really rubbed me up the wrong way.
So, am I being too dismissive of the show? Have to admit, I've read about it and not watched it yet, though I intend to. What are your thoughts on Michael Mosley and this method? Would love to hear from someone who has actually watched it!
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Replies
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Sounds like a lot of ridiculous nonsense. Weight loss is caused by being in a calorie deficit. The minimum a sedentary female should be eating is 1200 calories a day. The minimum a sedentary male should be eating is 1500 calories a day. 14 lbs in 21 days is going to be a lot of water weight, which will return along with any weight loss once the person returns to normal eating. Keep up with your healthy way of doing things.11
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I passed a stone in 8 hrs before. PAINFUL!8
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That stone of weight loss will be mostly water weight and not fat. I would not pay any attention to the hype.
I passed not a stone but a kiddo who was almost 9 pounds, somewhat PAINFUL!10 -
I think you will find the participants in this programme are people with a significant amount of weight to loose. I remember this low calorie "diet" being advised in chronic circumstances so its far from being designed for those with the odd lb or even couple of stone to loose. In the first part, towards the end time wise, which was a few days in the participants had been tested daily to see if they were at the point of being in "ketosis" the state where a person is using fat as their fuel rather than carbohydrates, some participants were saying they had dizziness and other reactions so it is not for the faint hearted. Possibly it will be interesting to see the outcome, tomorrow.
Mosley does take part in some "interesting" science/medical programs. He qualified as a doctor some years ago thought he has spend most of the recent years making and producing various health related programs. I have no idea if he has kept up his medical accreditation.2 -
(usually thoughtful, sensible)
Nobody knows everythoing.
Keto is famous for that water weight drop in weight. Half of that 14 pounds will be that.
Don't do a VLCD. It's painful and dangerous.
~Signed, Sometimes But Not Always Thoughtful NOR Sensible, CMR9 -
I watched the programme and from what I understand the vlcd is going to be for a three week period and under regular medical attention, so not someone just deciding to do so without the added medical support that would be needed.
I can’t say I’m a fan of keto diets so as to how that pans out after the programme finishes and they go back (if they do) to a typical carb heavier diet is anyone’s guess. The fact that the ingredients for the meals are currently being given/delivered to them means there’s the positive that they are cooking for themselves and learning what’s going in and more appropriate portion sizes, but the negative would be they’re not actually shopping for it themselves so whether they’d buy similar once the programme ends is a thought.4 -
Thanks for the comments! Glad it's not just me who thought this sounded a little too good to be true. I'll definitely be watching though to see what I think.
Haha, cmriverside - I liked your sign off 😂😂 I've perked up a bit now!2 -
Kerrie, would it be possible for people to follow along at home? That's the vibe my partner got. Like a 'here's an easy way to lose the weight you gained during lockdown - do it along with us' vibe. Is that the case or are there things in place to encourage/discourage people from following along at home?1
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Sort of, you essentially had someone cooking the odd meal but there was no measurement next to it, so for some mushroom pizzas they were making you could tell the base was a portobello, the woman spoke about 4 tablespoons of tomato purée (this was to serve 4 with one mushroom as a serving), but then she added oil and garlic to the mixture. There was grated mozzarella and fresh cherry tomatoes used but no amounts for each shown. Put it in the oven on high for about 10 mins (quite literally what was said).
All 5 people seemed to be following the exact same meal plan, I did notice some would put a side salad or some fresh spinach with it but it’s all stuff that if you were wanting to lose weight you could more than likely find recipes easily enough.
The second episode that’s upcoming spoke about how they’d be incorporating exercise in as well, episode one finished at the end of week one so I’m quite concerned that it’s going to promote following a vlcd then adding exercise and not eating those cals (or even a proportion of them) back.1 -
I think there was some Channel 4 programme link to some supporting information possibly meal plans but if someone only has a few lbs to loose its probably taking a sledge hammer to crack a nut. Needless to say one should probably talk to one's doctor before embarking on something like this because there are health implications from being very low calorie..0
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It's just Michael Mosely's diet "this year." He comes up with some new twist (usually recycled ideas) to sell books. He's a publicist making a ton of money. I wouldn't count on this being anything life changing.9
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I didn't do it with that guy but i have lost 14lb within 21 days a few years back. Strict diet (high protein for sure, less than 25g of sugar), vigorous exercise and plenty of sleep did it for me. I was able to keep it off. Ended up losing 37lb in 3 months and kept it off. I restarted my journey but not so much to lower my weight but to gain more strength. I figure the scale will land where it is supposed to this time..4
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L1zardQueen wrote: »That stone of weight loss will be mostly water weight and not fat. I would not pay any attention to the hype.
I passed not a stone but a kiddo who was almost 9 pounds, somewhat PAINFUL!
Oh... I dont have the "parts" to do that... you win. Lol3 -
I watched the start of the first show and then turned it off in a huff as for real people, in real life situations, who want to lose some weight what this show is promoting for most folks is completely and utter stupid.
This is just another entertainment show in a long string of entertainment shows that have people exercising with a trainer for 8 hours a day or are having meals cooked using unrealistic ingredients by Mitchlin star chefs.
There was even a show last year that put groups of people on paid-for fad diets and compared the weekly cost with the amount of weight lost to decide "value for money".
Bah!
And this one is eating 800 calories for 3 weeks under supervision which the audience will not have.
Bah!
Why not just a programme about calories? Why not just a show about losing 1 or 2 pounds a week through a sustainable calorie deficit and straightforward exercise that needs no trainer or equipment like walking?
But I guess that would not be "entertaining".
Bah!5 -
There was a weight loss show a while ago called Thintervention. This was different from the usual weight loss show because the participants lived at their own homes (so it wasn't a Biggest Loser style) and they didn't seem to have jobs. So they could exercise a lot. I would consider this to give the best results from any "normal" weight loss situation (yes, I know some of us have jobs but not everyone has a job all the time).
I ran the numbers and came up with a model that gave the best fit. The weekly loss could be calculated the following way: take their weight (kg) and divide by 60. That's their percentage weight loss. So a 90 kg person could expect to lose 1.5% or 1.35 kg a week. Obviously the next week they'd lose a bit less.
I have trouble believing any system could beat those numbers that wasn't a starvation diet. The show had 7 participants and the length of weight loss was 13 weeks.
The graph I have uploaded shows body weight (kg) vs weekly percentage loss. The line is the best fit line as provided by a spreadsheet.0 -
Just watched ep 1....... I think the program is ok..... I can easily do 800 calories with a good ratio of carbs to protein to fat.
However, as I am 68 yo female, 5 ft 2in, and already weigh 115 pounds, I dont have much to lose. I have lost 15 pounds since start of March, when our (Melbourne, Australia) started.
I will weigh myself every couple of days, and if my weigh starts to creep up, I do a couple of 800 cal days..... simple for me!
If you feel you need to lose weight.... try different things to see what works for your life situation.2 -
I actually really like Michael. It takes a lot of bottle to stand up to what people perceive is weightloss gospel that they have held onto for years. There is a lot of peer reviewed literature out there that would back up the thesis that restricting calories has health benefits. Im sure these participants will have further support once the TV stuff is done. Worth watching I'd say.6
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forensicanthropology wrote: »I actually really like Michael. It takes a lot of bottle to stand up to what people perceive is weightloss gospel that they have held onto for years. There is a lot of peer reviewed literature out there that would back up the thesis that restricting calories has health benefits. Im sure these participants will have further support once the TV stuff is done. Worth watching I'd say.
Not saying that it is not an entertaining and interesting programme, I just have huge doubts it is helpful for an audience that wishes to lose weight.3 -
OK, What is it that is causing your doubts? The sustainability? I know the participants were struggling at one point.1
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I would be more interested in a program that successfully helps people keep weight off for a long period of time.
That said, Michael Mosley's books and cookbooks have helped me quite a lot.0 -
It seems to be based largely from his Fast 800 book (which to be fair, does have some evidence behind it, although I think that was mostly with meal replacement products). Losing a stone in 21 days is ambitious but I think that for all of these diet programmes, they tend to choose obese participants who have been eating a lot beforehand, so they have a more dramatic deficit. It's maybe possible for that particular group of people (although not all of that would be fat loss)?
The book suggests a combo of Mediteranean style eating, 800 calories, and 5:2 eating (for after the initial fast weight loss period). I'm hoping the final programme will give participants (and people following at home) advice on how to go forward after the first month.
He did qualify as a doctor many years ago, but I feel it's a bit misleading that he's promoted as a medical doctor as I don't believe he has practiced since then. I can't see him on the GMC register (although he might be under a different name). He picks up the latest bits of research and writes very successful books about it. He's previously done books on intermittent fasting and HIIT, and a "blood sugar diet" (basically the 800 calorie one) and has a current book out on Covid-19.
I think the participants from the studies he bases it on were followed up for a year, but on his website the testimonials seem to be mainly from people who have lost small amounts of weight over a short period of time.1 -
I read one of his books once (the blood sugar diet one), that recommended the 800 VLCD, but from what I remember in the book, it highly stressed that it was to be done for a very restricted time frame under medical supervision - definitely not long term.
The danger I'm seeing in the books and the tv shows is how many people won't consult their doctor but will just decide to try that kind of diet on their own, especially based upon the results from the TV show, and how many people will pick up terrible ideas on food and exercise in the process.3 -
forensicanthropology wrote: »OK, What is it that is causing your doubts? The sustainability? I know the participants were struggling at one point.
Back up a few posts as I have already said there why I have my opinions on this show.1 -
BEAT (the eating disorders charity) have been extending their phone line hours on the nights that this programme airs.
It doesn't exactly encourage a sustainable lifestyle, but The Biggest Loser was allowed to run for many, many seasons, and if anything, that show encourages even worse habits.6 -
I really like Michael Mosly, raging I missed this programme, hopefully I can find it online somewhere.
That said, I've no intention in starving myself on 800 cals!2 -
I've watched the last episode. They did manage to lose about a stone on average in three weeks and all improved in other measures of health. They did actually talk quite a lot about the long-term. I think part of the point of the rapid weight loss was that people (in the study they mentioned) tended to keep more off for longer than people who lost slowly. The participants did seem motivated towards the end and they talked to somebody who had done it a couple of years ago and was maintaining. I think they were planning to form a support group and were going to check in. It would be good to do a few follow-ups to see how they are doing.
It wasn't perfect - they oddly put somebody's better Vitamin D levels down to eating "greens", rather than supplements and sunlight. And obviously made to make good TV - as I mentioned, choosing participants who were already eating and drinking a lot and would have more dramatic results. The book suggests 12 weeks, and I bet for most people the big losses are in the first three weeks, so if the programme had been longer it wouldn't have been so exciting!0 -
Lose 14 lbs in 21 days and eat it all back in 10. Days.
The skin's elasticity can handle only so much dropping it like it's hot until it begins to hang like a shar-pei dog. There's only choices and consequences.
It doesn't matter which brutally strict diet you choose, if they worked you would conduct the crash diet one time and it would fix everything for you. It doesn't. It's a temporary bandaid.
It's the Shock and Awe Approach to food. Eat all the things and then eat mostly nothin'. It's overcompensation and it will not offer you lasting stability with your weight. Wild swings UP and down and back and forth. Starting over and over and over. This is what a lifetime of crash dieting will give you.2 -
I too saw the last programme. In my view it gave a reasonable round up of the events in the previous weeks. Each participant had health issues which they wanted to leave behind to give them more time with family and other inspirations this will set them up well for the future. Family members gave short resumé too.
Vitamin D deficiency did come up and it was mentioned the person involved was taking vit d supplements. I've no found any support for the suggestion of green veg being part of it. The sun, dairy and "some" mushrooms come well up the list.
The way I heard it was, those who lost more were more likely to keep it off. The key is knowing how hard it was to get to the weight they needed for health and not returning to how they used to eat, ever on a permanent basis. Loosing weight quickly achieving ones goals can be more effective than, in my words, "*kitten* footing" it about cutting only a tiny few calories for a very long time.
From personal experience I know, ok, for me the example of one. I've had help to resolved the causes and consequences of my autoimmunity and though I've gained some weight in the last 6 months, I'm still not far off healthy. I've kept most of my loss off for 6 years, gosh, realising that, Its quite an achievement. Need to get back to what I was doing and stop feeling intimidated by the rising numbers of international COVID Deaths. My motivation, being here for my family.3
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