Making it easy.

jamesnewberrysr

Avoid Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol, Salt and Sugar. These substances affect no only your health but your state of mind. The substance with the most effect on dieting and appetite is sugar. Four days with no sugar starts to kill cravings and suppresses appetite. Even a small amount of sugar puts your appetite in high gear. Your body does not need any of these substances.

wunderkindking

...nah. For one thing avoiding salt made me faint a lot (low blood pressure). I like sugar (eat a brownie or candy bar or something every single day all the way from obese to a BMI of 22), never mind all the sugar that occurs naturally in things that that come with fiber and vitamins. I just like the very occasional alcoholic drink.

How about i make it easy by doing what I enjoy, that doesn't make me feel deprived, and keeping an eye on my calories and the scale?

Yeah. I think I'm going with that last one, there. I'm just not into suffering.

Other people should do them and whatever they ACTUALLY find easy.

wunderkindking

Also, seriously, you can die without salt. Don't cut out salt unless your actual specific doctor specifically tells YOU to cut sodium down. It's an essential mineral you NEED. Never mind the iodine in table salt being necessary, good grief.

TakeTheLongWayHome

You know what they say about opinions. I like coffee and beer. I have also drank both on my way to losing and maintaining an 80 lb weight loss. Tried to cut back on sugar and salt a bit on the way. Never really stressed about either too much tho.

goal06082021

Your body does actually need salt, you're just flat-out wrong about that one.

SuzySunshine99

Nah.

Except for nicotine, I consumed all of these substances while losing weight, improving my physical fitness, and lowering my cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure.

"Making it easy" is eating what you like in moderation, while paying attention to calories and general nutrition. What you're suggesting is the reason people fail at weight management. They make it too restrictive and too difficult. Miserable people won't stick to a plan.

And yeah, as other people said, you need salt. I actually have low blood pressure now, so have to make sure I consume enough sodium.

AnnPT77

jamesnewberrysr wrote: »

Avoid Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol, Salt and Sugar. These substances affect no only your health but your state of mind. The substance with the most effect on dieting and appetite is sugar. Four days with no sugar starts to kill cravings and suppresses appetite. Even a small amount of sugar puts your appetite in high gear. Your body does not need any of these substances.

Avoiding nicotine is probably a good idea, but fully omitting the rest of the list is pretty optional.

Many things are better moderated than consumed to excess, of course - most things, probably.

Perhaps sugar does put *your* appetite in high gear; you'd know, I guess. Though I don't eat huge amounts of it, I eat some, and it doesn't have that effect, for me. My appetite is fine, I lost weight successfully going on 6 years back, and have stayed at a healthy weight ever since, eating moderate amounts of sugar all the way.

Your body actually needs glucose (sugar) so much that if you don't eat some, it will manufacture some from other things you do eat.

Noreenmarie1234

Agree with nicotine but not the others. Caffeine in moderation has numerous health benefits. Salt is fine for you as long as you don't have kidney or heart issues.

springlering62

This would have been the last kind of mindset that would have made weight loss “easier” for me.

Counting calories while still allowing myself sweets or crunchy salty snacks is the only way I could have stayed on track.

My routine Sunday morning giant, sugar encrusted apple fritter is the pinnacle of my week. I’ll come in at or below calories even with it and a lovely hunk of steak and a big old baked potato for dinner.

I took up coffee drinking in the last few months. Never drank it before.

Life is too short to punish yourself. It’s also too short to be an obese health crisis waiting to happen.

Finding the middle, non-extreme ground is magical.

akm0615

Agree, other than nicotine, don't see a need to completely avoid anything on that list. We all want our achieved success so far to become the norm and for years to come. The whole point of life is to live, style is your interpretation and what works best for you. Balance definitely has been the key for me while I get closer and closer to celebrating my 1yr maintenance anniversary in September.

mjglantz

Everything in moderation works for me...although nicotine is really something that we can all do without.

PersonOfDisinterest

"Avoid Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol, Salt and Sugar. These substances affect no only your health but your state of mind."

iowalinda

jamesnewberrysr wrote: »

Avoid Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol, Salt and Sugar. These substances affect no only your health but your state of mind. The substance with the most effect on dieting and appetite is sugar. Four days with no sugar starts to kill cravings and suppresses appetite. Even a small amount of sugar puts your appetite in high gear. Your body does not need any of these substances.

I believe you mean to reduce "added salt". We get plenty of salt through our regular diet. For myself, I completely agree with your comments about sugar. I also try to limit flour products, as I find sugar and flour tend to pack on the pounds Of course, each individual has to find what works for them

durhammfp

As a runner and (TMI!) a heavy salty sweater, I absolutely need salt when I come in from a run. For me, the best thing I can drink after a long run is my own homemade "gatorade" and it's nothing but ice water with some maple syrup, table salt, and freshly squeezed lemon juice. That and a banana and I'm ready to go again.

Also I LOVE coffee and it has never impeded my weight loss or hurt my health in any way.

sgt1372

Sorry, can't avoid caffeine. Besides, there are "studies" that suggest that caffeine in moderation provides certain benefits. Love my coffee and tea.

No real benefits from nicotine but I still smoke an occasional cigar nonetheless; no direct inhalation but obviously some side smoke is inhaled.

Geo Burns (the comedian) smoked cigars daily and lived to 100. So, smoking doesn't kill everyone.

There are reportedly some benefits from drinking alcohol in moderation too. I still drink wine, beer and liquor; often more than just occasionally.

Life is too short and it's one of those things that I refuse to give up, regardles of it's effects, good or bad.

Salt is an essential mineral and you have to have some in your diet. The problem is if you consume "too much" which is mainly a problem if you eat a lot of "processed" foods.

If you cook/eat most of your own food from raw/basic food sources, as I do, this is very easy to regulate. Haven't eaten at a "fast food" joint in over 5 years and don't miss it one bit.

Sugar is also only a problem if you eat too of the stuff.

You also have to distinguish between natural sugars (found in fruit) vs added sugars that are found in abundance in processed foods, sweetened sodas/fruit drinks and baked goods.

Sugar is one of the things that I've largely been able to eliminate from my diet, starting w/sodas that I do not drink at all anymore, such that most of my sugar intake comes only from fruit.

So, 2 out of 5 in the list is the best that I can do. LOL!

KickassAmazon76

With the exception of the nicotine... This would make it unbearably hard for me, and I would never last. Every time I've tried to restrict myself too heavily, I've started falling into an eating disorder whereby I overeat, then punish myself by trying to make up for the extra calories by not eating... and then repeat.

Congrats if it works for you, but for many many people, it'd be a bland recipe for disaster.

callsitlikeiseeit

that doesnt sound easy at all.

or an enjoyable life at all.

how about everything in moderation?

sounds much better.

elisa123gal

It is all so personal. I totally disagree with giving up caffeine, unless it makes you wired and weird.. then of course .give it up. I find it is miserable and I hate my life when I can't have my lovely cup of coffee. And.. it isn't bad for you. As for sugar and salt? yes, for me.. giving those up or limiting them greatly aids in my weight loss. But, maybe it isn't for everyone.
Figure out what works for you.

brenn24179

i tried to do without the flour and sugar thing people talk about like OA but I agree, life is too short. I do limit these things though. But I am maintaining, I probably could have done that trying to lose the weight easier.

westrich20940

Only thing on that list that I 'avoid' is nicotine.

cwolfman13

jamesnewberrysr wrote: »

Avoid Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol, Salt and Sugar. These substances affect no only your health but your state of mind. The substance with the most effect on dieting and appetite is sugar. Four days with no sugar starts to kill cravings and suppresses appetite. Even a small amount of sugar puts your appetite in high gear. Your body does not need any of these substances.

Salt (sodium) is an essential electrolyte.

None of this stuff is necessarily bad in moderation. I enjoy my 2-3 cups of coffee in the morning. Watching the sunset with a fine cigar and a bourbon on the rocks is heavenly. I also really enjoy my fruits and vegetables...which are predominately sugar...and a nice home brew sarsaparilla in the fall is golden.

HabitRabbit

I can abstain much more easily than I can moderate. So OP's advice is bang on for me. I've given up coffee and tea (other than herbal), sweets and treats (including the salty kind), and alcohol. Never smoked. It's now easy to maintain a very slow very steady weight loss. I'm incredibly happy with this approach.

Yesterday I started considering the idea of allowing occasional indulgences in starting in April 2022 (one year after the beginning of my abstinences), but to be honest, it seems like the risk isn't worth the reward.

I suspect that I'm not typical, and that the advice I read here and elsewhere fits most people (ie moderate rather than abstain), but I strongly believe it's not a fit for me.

cmriverside

HabitRabbit wrote: »

I can abstain much more easily than I can moderate. So OP's advice is bang on for me. I've given up coffee and tea (other than herbal), sweets and treats (including the salty kind), and alcohol. Never smoked. It's now easy to maintain a very slow very steady weight loss. I'm incredibly happy with this approach.

Yesterday I started considering the idea of allowing occasional indulgences in starting in April 2022 (one year after the beginning of my abstinences), but to be honest, it seems like the risk isn't worth the reward.

I suspect that I'm not typical, and that the advice I read here and elsewhere fits most people (ie moderate rather than abstain), but I strongly believe it's not a fit for me.

There are definitely some people who need this approach, whether for a short time or forever. That's why programs like OA and Bright Line Eating exist.

I hope you find what works for you. I personally found that complete abstinence helped to re-focus myself on different foods but that in time I was able to add them back in. Keep playing with it and thinking.

wunderkindking

I know I already replied to this but I lost weight to improve my quality of life. Giving up everything on that list would not -for me - improve my life. No, not even if offset by how much losing weight has improved my life. In fact the fear of having to give those up is what kept me from even trying to lose weight for so long.

Now that I've lost they're LESS important to me by a lot but if the alternative was 'go back to obese and die early' or 'stay thin and never have sugar, salt, or coffee' again, ever, I uh. Would go back to obese.

Fortunately that's not how it works or a decision I needed to make.

HabitRabbit

cmriverside wrote: »

HabitRabbit wrote: »

I can abstain much more easily than I can moderate. So OP's advice is bang on for me. I've given up coffee and tea (other than herbal), sweets and treats (including the salty kind), and alcohol. Never smoked. It's now easy to maintain a very slow very steady weight loss. I'm incredibly happy with this approach.

Yesterday I started considering the idea of allowing occasional indulgences in starting in April 2022 (one year after the beginning of my abstinences), but to be honest, it seems like the risk isn't worth the reward.

I suspect that I'm not typical, and that the advice I read here and elsewhere fits most people (ie moderate rather than abstain), but I strongly believe it's not a fit for me.

There are definitely some people who need this approach, whether for a short time or forever. That's why programs like OA and Bright Line Eating exist.

I hope you find what works for you. I personally found that complete abstinence helped to re-focus myself on different foods but that in time I was able to add them back in. Keep playing with it and thinking.

Thank you. I'm aware that OA exists, but haven't really looked into them. Bright Line Eating is new to me. I'll look at both of them. I'm feeling quite in control right now, but more information could prevent future problems.

cmriverside

HabitRabbit wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

HabitRabbit wrote: »

I can abstain much more easily than I can moderate. So OP's advice is bang on for me. I've given up coffee and tea (other than herbal), sweets and treats (including the salty kind), and alcohol. Never smoked. It's now easy to maintain a very slow very steady weight loss. I'm incredibly happy with this approach.

Yesterday I started considering the idea of allowing occasional indulgences in starting in April 2022 (one year after the beginning of my abstinences), but to be honest, it seems like the risk isn't worth the reward.

I suspect that I'm not typical, and that the advice I read here and elsewhere fits most people (ie moderate rather than abstain), but I strongly believe it's not a fit for me.

There are definitely some people who need this approach, whether for a short time or forever. That's why programs like OA and Bright Line Eating exist.

I hope you find what works for you. I personally found that complete abstinence helped to re-focus myself on different foods but that in time I was able to add them back in. Keep playing with it and thinking.

Thank you. I'm aware that OA exists, but haven't really looked into them. Bright Line Eating is new to me. I'll look at both of them. I'm feeling quite in control right now, but more information could prevent future problems.

Well, both those methodologies prescribe complete abstinence from your triggering foods, and Bright Line goes so far as to tell you what those foods are.

I mean, like I said it can be helpful to some people to abstain from some things. I know one lady who has a "sobriety date" for sugar and flour. (She believes in Overeaters Anonymous)

I know certain foods can trigger over-eating for me, but it's not nearly as bad for me as it was in the beginning of weight loss because I've changed how I look at all food.

Good luck.

mirianyusm

I never smoked but I like coffee, an alcoholic drink here and there and definitely like sweets. I do aerobic activities and I need to replenish the salt I lose by sweating. I've been doing this for 7 months and it's working. I am not hungry and I enjoy the food I eat. Best of all I don't feel deprived so I don't need cheat days or meals that used to send me spiraling downwards until I hit bottom. I want to do be healthy but being healthy doesn't mean that you can't enjoy food and drinks. Everything in moderation is key for me. It might work for somebody else, but I've never met that successful person yet.