What "diet" is the right diet for life?
Replies
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I make sure to never follow a way of eating I wouldn't be happy to do indefinitely, since I can't see how you would permanently keep of weight by following a temporary diet.
As for what to eat, I tend to try and include plenty of fruit and veg, a bit of meat and fish and dairy, wholegrain where I can but I'm not going to lose sleep over a slice of white bread, and a little bit of whatever sweet thing I fancy. My gran ate that way most of her life and had 13 kids and lived to be 100 (and she was slim too!).
I guess the awkward part is working out portion control, which is why I've started using MFP.0 -
IMO: The right diet for a healthy life = whatever you will stick with.
I do IIFYM, it works for me, I feel good, I enjoy life even while in a deficit.
Some people love eating "clean" or being vegan or vegetarian (whether for dietary or ethical reasons, or both), some people are more sensitive to carbs than others, etc. etc.
There are endless possibilities, some trial and error, I basically just chose something that seemed to make the most sense to me and has been the most sustainable.0 -
FatFreeFrolicking wrote: »Look into IIFYM (flexible dieting). http://iifym.com
This is working for me now over a year. Its not hard. I fit in little things I want some days.0 -
The issue with those percentages is that 40% of protein would be excessive for someone like me. I need about 2200 calories to maintain my weight, and 40% of that would be 220 grams of protein. That's about 1.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight for me, which is definitely overkill.Always_Smiling_D wrote: »Your body needs carbs, proteins, and fats to function - too much or too little of one of the 3 is not going to be good for sustaining you -- opt for non processed foods and for lean proteins and seek out the good fats -- I think the 40% (carbs)/40% (protein)/20% (fat) balance in the diet works wonders.
In all reality at the end of the day what ever you do has to be what you want to do and what makes you happy, cuz if you are just following what someone else is saying or doing because they were successful with it but you are not enjoying it, you are not going to succeed accomplishing your goals.
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ForecasterJason wrote: »
The issue with those percentages is that 40% of protein would be excessive for someone like me. I need about 2200 calories to maintain my weight, and 40% of that would be 220 grams of protein. That's about 1.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight for me, which is definitely overkill.Always_Smiling_D wrote: »Your body needs carbs, proteins, and fats to function - too much or too little of one of the 3 is not going to be good for sustaining you -- opt for non processed foods and for lean proteins and seek out the good fats -- I think the 40% (carbs)/40% (protein)/20% (fat) balance in the diet works wonders.
In all reality at the end of the day what ever you do has to be what you want to do and what makes you happy, cuz if you are just following what someone else is saying or doing because they were successful with it but you are not enjoying it, you are not going to succeed accomplishing your goals.
based on your previous commenting history, your comments are not relevant.
I have no problem getting 200+grams of protein a day ..no issue..
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I'm sure we can find a better acronym in there somewhere. (CLAP?!)GiveMeCoffee wrote: »The Keep it Simple Diet:
Find a reasonable Calorie deficit
Log food accurately and honestly
Find an Activity you like to do
Learn moderation, Portion control and to have patience
Well that will never sell any books or inspire any fear mongering documentaries... Can you jazz that up any? Work on a better acronym? FLLF doesn't really roll off the tongue, unless you have a mouthful of cookies.
In all seriousness OP - listen to GiveMeCoffee. She's lost 120 lbs (maybe more, I lose track of her awesomeness) eating foods that she loves, heck, that everyone loves, in moderation.
This worked for me, too! 65 lbs down and maintained for over a year. I pretty much eat whatever I want only smaller portions. I exercise more so I can eat more (being short and older doesn't allow a huge amount of calories for maintenance!)
ETA: Bottom line- you have to find what works for you and do it!0 -
I don't know about you all but lately I have found myself overwhelmed and confused with all of the information out there. I decided to start my weight loss journey again for the upteenth time. But I thought to myself - there has to be a new approach I need to think long term how should I really be eating for the rest of my life. Sounds easier than it was. Some people are strong proponents of the Keto Diets -- VLCD -- where you are in a constant state of Ketosis. Others say -- this is not natural this is not healthy. Some say, just watch your calories but others say "not so because the TYPE of calories is what is important". Low Carb, High Protein not anymore, they say Low Carb, Medium Protein, High Fat. What will the studies show tomorrow? Doctors are no better. I have had some tell me that staying in a low carb ketosis type diet is dangerous, too much fat etc. Some tell me that fat is ok but its carbs that are evil. My most recent trip to the doctor I was told basically the best diet is Vegan. Oh and then juicing.... don't get me started on that.
I just want to be healthy, but at this point I don't even know what healthy is anymore.
I guess what I want to know is for those of you who have lost weight and maintained do you have any information on what is the right diet for a healthy life? What has worked for you and what if any research have you done on what to eat?
I welcome your discussions and also welcome you to add me as a friend and give me pointers you have learned along the way
There is not one diet out there that will suit everyone - sadly!
Find one that's sustainable long term and allows you to comfortably eat in a calorie deficit.
Which one is right for you? Only you will know that.
Try several different ones - give them all at least a month! You'll know when you find the right one because at the end of the month it will either feel comfortable and sustainable or it won't.
Give moderation and calorie counting a go first - if it works stick with it, if it doesn't move on to something else.
Aim for a diet that includes the foods you like to eat, not necessarily the foods you sometimes crave, but the foods you get enjoyment from both during and after you eat them.
Good luck OP.
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I'm sure we can find a better acronym in there somewhere. (CLAP?!)GiveMeCoffee wrote: »The Keep it Simple Diet:
Find a reasonable Calorie deficit
Log food accurately and honestly
Find an Activity you like to do
Learn moderation, Portion control and to have patience
Well that will never sell any books or inspire any fear mongering documentaries... Can you jazz that up any? Work on a better acronym? FLLF doesn't really roll off the tongue, unless you have a mouthful of cookies.
In all seriousness OP - listen to GiveMeCoffee. She's lost 120 lbs (maybe more, I lose track of her awesomeness) eating foods that she loves, heck, that everyone loves, in moderation.
This worked for me, too! 65 lbs down and maintained for over a year. I pretty much eat whatever I want only smaller portions. I exercise more so I can eat more (being short and older doesn't allow a huge amount of calories for maintenance!)
ETA: Bottom line- you have to find what works for you and do it!
Unfortunately I'm afraid the CLAP diet is going to bring up some undesired connotations...
But let's keep working on it! Back to the whiteboard people!
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Make "Balance" your Mantra, Imagine that at the centre of the teeter totter is what you think your ideal weight is, also at the centre is your ideal activity level, and what a balanced diet for you looks like. As you reduce your caloric intake and increase your activity levels your body is going to begin to demand some things from you in order to maintain it's current paradigm, it's Newton's law... a body at rest will stay at rest until a force is acted upon it. THAT force is YOUR will.. that you are here is evidence that your will is taking over.
Back to balance... currently your whole body is out of balance, your internal chemistry, your blood pressure, your blood sugar, cholesterols, all probably "need" something, and those somethings are for you to get your body functioning the way "God" or Natural Selection determined it ought to function. in plain English it needs to begin physical work, in whatever form or definition you determine that to be. THEN you need to begin nourishing the machinery, once you are up and moving you can begin listening to what your body wants... keep it simple... fats, carbs, and proteins in MFP suggested amounts and within your caloric goal guidelines, and take a quality multi vitamin with an emphasis on B's and D. As you begin to move toward the centre of that teeter totter your going to stress, you are going to doubt, and regress, new things can be frightening, and create anxiety, but I promise you... YOU will fight through all of that negativity YOU are that force moving that immovable object. So forget all the noise forget all the science, and opinion, and just do what you find works for you.
best of luck OP.0 -
I'm sure we can find a better acronym in there somewhere. (CLAP?!)GiveMeCoffee wrote: »The Keep it Simple Diet:
Find a reasonable Calorie deficit
Log food accurately and honestly
Find an Activity you like to do
Learn moderation, Portion control and to have patience
Well that will never sell any books or inspire any fear mongering documentaries... Can you jazz that up any? Work on a better acronym? FLLF doesn't really roll off the tongue, unless you have a mouthful of cookies.
In all seriousness OP - listen to GiveMeCoffee. She's lost 120 lbs (maybe more, I lose track of her awesomeness) eating foods that she loves, heck, that everyone loves, in moderation.
This worked for me, too! 65 lbs down and maintained for over a year. I pretty much eat whatever I want only smaller portions. I exercise more so I can eat more (being short and older doesn't allow a huge amount of calories for maintenance!)
ETA: Bottom line- you have to find what works for you and do it!
Unfortunately I'm afraid the CLAP diet is going to bring up some undesired connotations...
But let's keep working on it! Back to the whiteboard people!
Friend: How did you lose all that weight?
Me: The CLAP
Friend: .....
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elsie_fair wrote: »
I'm sure we can find a better acronym in there somewhere. (CLAP?!)GiveMeCoffee wrote: »The Keep it Simple Diet:
Find a reasonable Calorie deficit
Log food accurately and honestly
Find an Activity you like to do
Learn moderation, Portion control and to have patience
Well that will never sell any books or inspire any fear mongering documentaries... Can you jazz that up any? Work on a better acronym? FLLF doesn't really roll off the tongue, unless you have a mouthful of cookies.
In all seriousness OP - listen to GiveMeCoffee. She's lost 120 lbs (maybe more, I lose track of her awesomeness) eating foods that she loves, heck, that everyone loves, in moderation.
This worked for me, too! 65 lbs down and maintained for over a year. I pretty much eat whatever I want only smaller portions. I exercise more so I can eat more (being short and older doesn't allow a huge amount of calories for maintenance!)
ETA: Bottom line- you have to find what works for you and do it!
Unfortunately I'm afraid the CLAP diet is going to bring up some undesired connotations...
But let's keep working on it! Back to the whiteboard people!
Friend: How did you lose all that weight?
Me: The CLAP
Friend: .....
You. I like you. You get me.
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I'm sure we can find a better acronym in there somewhere. (CLAP?!)GiveMeCoffee wrote: »The Keep it Simple Diet:
Find a reasonable Calorie deficit
Log food accurately and honestly
Find an Activity you like to do
Learn moderation, Portion control and to have patience
Well that will never sell any books or inspire any fear mongering documentaries... Can you jazz that up any? Work on a better acronym? FLLF doesn't really roll off the tongue, unless you have a mouthful of cookies.
In all seriousness OP - listen to GiveMeCoffee. She's lost 120 lbs (maybe more, I lose track of her awesomeness) eating foods that she loves, heck, that everyone loves, in moderation.
This worked for me, too! 65 lbs down and maintained for over a year. I pretty much eat whatever I want only smaller portions. I exercise more so I can eat more (being short and older doesn't allow a huge amount of calories for maintenance!)
ETA: Bottom line- you have to find what works for you and do it!
Unfortunately I'm afraid the CLAP diet is going to bring up some undesired connotations...
But let's keep working on it! Back to the whiteboard people!
LOL!0 -
But does that mean I should be getting over 200 grams of protein? No, and neither do most people my size. I don't think you can make a valid point that I should be getting in that much protein.ForecasterJason wrote: »
The issue with those percentages is that 40% of protein would be excessive for someone like me. I need about 2200 calories to maintain my weight, and 40% of that would be 220 grams of protein. That's about 1.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight for me, which is definitely overkill.Always_Smiling_D wrote: »Your body needs carbs, proteins, and fats to function - too much or too little of one of the 3 is not going to be good for sustaining you -- opt for non processed foods and for lean proteins and seek out the good fats -- I think the 40% (carbs)/40% (protein)/20% (fat) balance in the diet works wonders.
In all reality at the end of the day what ever you do has to be what you want to do and what makes you happy, cuz if you are just following what someone else is saying or doing because they were successful with it but you are not enjoying it, you are not going to succeed accomplishing your goals.
based on your previous commenting history, your comments are not relevant.
I have no problem getting 200+grams of protein a day ..no issue..
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ForecasterJason wrote: »
But does that mean I should be getting over 200 grams of protein? No, and neither do most people my size. I don't think you can make a valid point that I should be getting in that much protein.ForecasterJason wrote: »
The issue with those percentages is that 40% of protein would be excessive for someone like me. I need about 2200 calories to maintain my weight, and 40% of that would be 220 grams of protein. That's about 1.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight for me, which is definitely overkill.Always_Smiling_D wrote: »Your body needs carbs, proteins, and fats to function - too much or too little of one of the 3 is not going to be good for sustaining you -- opt for non processed foods and for lean proteins and seek out the good fats -- I think the 40% (carbs)/40% (protein)/20% (fat) balance in the diet works wonders.
In all reality at the end of the day what ever you do has to be what you want to do and what makes you happy, cuz if you are just following what someone else is saying or doing because they were successful with it but you are not enjoying it, you are not going to succeed accomplishing your goals.
based on your previous commenting history, your comments are not relevant.
I have no problem getting 200+grams of protein a day ..no issue..
never said you should..
I said based on your commenting history you should not be giving anyone advice, period.0 -
Hi, I've lost over 87 pounds so far with a lot of professional support including a dietitian. My advice is going to be as simple as possible because more than anything I want you to cut through the confusion of advice and do what works for you.
If you asked us to describe the "perfect man" for you, would you expect a uniform reply that would help you find the man of your dreams? Probably not. Because we aren't you. It is about the same finding the "perfect diet". The perfect one is the one that works.
How do you find what works? Trial and error. A process of trying a change and measuring the results I learned from The Chronic Disease Self-Management Program sponsored by Stanford.
A girlfriend this weekend asked me how I managed such spectacular results. Besides gastric bypass surgery, my dietary changes are remarkably small. One less toast at breakfast. 100 calorie snacks instead of 200. The act of tracking what I eat here on MFP to keep me aware. A calorie goal per day that I keep sort of close to. That's it!
The good news is we are omnivores, which means we eat from a variety of sources and it is all good. And we have the teeth and the guts to prove it.0 -
I'm 5'2'' and 242 lbs. I had the VO2/OX test they have you do at those doctor's offices where you do medically supervised weight loss and they gave me my BMR. So I know my BMR is on the higher end of the spectrum. Either way - when i type in my stats in IIFYM it gives me like 1900 calories a day with a deficit.
I did the scooby calculator and it tells me 1600 which sounds more reasonable so I adjusted my calories down to 1600 (I wasn't really eating my 1800 a day anyway because its hard to eat that many calories when you are eating lean meats and veggies). I also think that the deficit that MFP gives you is extreme. It had me at 1400. I think I can work my way down to that but most things I have read say to start at about 20% deficit and work your way down.
Now I'm trying to figure out the right amount of macros for me. @Always_Smiling_D where did you get the 40/40/20? Is that something you got from trial and error or is there anything you've read about that being a good setting?
I just have a hard time thinking I'm going to lose weight with that many carbs/day. But maybe I will.... I'm drinking a kale smoothie right now and its like 29 carbs but it appears to be a healthy drink....
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elsie_fair wrote: »IMO: The right diet for a healthy life = whatever you will stick with.
I do IIFYM, it works for me, I feel good, I enjoy life even while in a deficit.
Some people love eating "clean" or being vegan or vegetarian (whether for dietary or ethical reasons, or both), some people are more sensitive to carbs than others, etc. etc.
There are endless possibilities, some trial and error, I basically just chose something that seemed to make the most sense to me and has been the most sustainable.
maybe you mentioned this but I missed it - what macros do you do? Do you go by the IIFYM recommended?
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PORTION CONTROL.
CHANGE UP YOUR WORK OUTS... STRENGTH, CARDIO, MIXTURE
DRINK LOOOOOOOTS OF WATER AND GREEN TEA IS GOOD TOO
GET SLEEP AND EAT YOUR VEGGIES
There is a list of diets and ways to live but just keep consistent and stay away from the junk!
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Part of it is a mental game for me. I have to weigh/measure things otherwise I overeat. I love to eat.
So my advice is to pin point your lifestyle and find out how to make it work with you and not against you.
That being said, I am on a "potato break", lol. I am a bonafide potato junky.
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Yes, that's what I have set for my goals. I always try to get spot on for my protein, but I am pretty flexible with my fats and carbs. I often end up going a little over my fats and under my carbs, but I don't worry about it because generally fats are good for hormone regulation in women.elsie_fair wrote: »IMO: The right diet for a healthy life = whatever you will stick with.
I do IIFYM, it works for me, I feel good, I enjoy life even while in a deficit.
Some people love eating "clean" or being vegan or vegetarian (whether for dietary or ethical reasons, or both), some people are more sensitive to carbs than others, etc. etc.
There are endless possibilities, some trial and error, I basically just chose something that seemed to make the most sense to me and has been the most sustainable.
maybe you mentioned this but I missed it - what macros do you do? Do you go by the IIFYM recommended?
My diary is open if you want to take a look (don't mind the chocolate these last couple days lol ) or add me 0 -
Eat food but not too much, mostly plants. Water. Sleep. Walk. In other words, whole foods mostly fruits and veggies with some meat but avoid overeating (eat just enough to get rid of hunger). Get enough sleep and walk a lot for low impact exercise. That and surround yourself with a positive, strong support system, reduce stress and have a mostly optimistic outlook towards life.0
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erikajane88 wrote: »PORTION CONTROL.
CHANGE UP YOUR WORK OUTS... STRENGTH, CARDIO, MIXTURE
DRINK LOOOOOOOTS OF WATER AND GREEN TEA IS GOOD TOO
GET SLEEP AND EAT YOUR VEGGIES
There is a list of diets and ways to live but just keep consistent and stay away from the junk!
Or perhaps incorporate junk in small portions to keep things fun and prevent binges!
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Breast milk ketogenic?? Where do people find this stuff?
100ml of human breast milk contains 1.3g of protein, 4.2g of fat, and 7.4g of wait for it...carbs! And those carbs are lactose (i.e. that evil sugar that kills everybody and makes you do bad things)
Unless abused and neglected, infants are anything by ketogenic. That's one of the most absurd notions I've seen in this forum thus far0 -
I'm 5'2'' and 242 lbs. I had the VO2/OX test they have you do at those doctor's offices where you do medically supervised weight loss and they gave me my BMR. So I know my BMR is on the higher end of the spectrum.
Those tests are not accurate for obese individuals. The number you have is significantly too high.I did the scooby calculator and it tells me 1600...
IMO that is over by ~300 calories. You're carrying huge portion of fat mass, which contributes virtually nothing to BMR. If you use the standard calculators in the standard way, you will get numbers that are too high.
Good luck! :drinker:
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hmcbride68 wrote: »Unless abused and neglected, infants are anything by ketogenic. That's one of the most absurd notions I've seen in this forum thus far
I know. Patently ridiculous.0
This discussion has been closed.
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