Restrictive Diet on 6 Week Gym Challenge (Low carb/Low fat/No sugar)
dhk100
Posts: 13 Member
Age: 23
Height: 5'2
Sex: Female
Starting Weight at the Gym (Clothed): ~137
Starting BF%age at the Gym (Clothed): 28.2%
I joined a gym last week with my sister (who's much heavier than me) that runs a 6 week challenge. We go to classes 3x a week but the challenge focuses mostly on our diet and restricts...pretty much everything.
As for me, they want me to focus on body fat percentage instead of pounds and the goal is to lose 5% in six weeks. No oils or fats (healthy fats and cheese are out). According to the sample sheet, I'm mainly allowed to have lean protein, non-fat plain Greek yogurt, protein shakes, and veggies--with 1 choice of carbs a day (think 1 apple or 1 cup of rice or some sweet potatoes). No sugar except sweeteners. And I can really only use soy sauce/salt, hot sauce, lemon juice, dry spices, and vinegars for flavor.
Does a low carb/low fat diet do anything to lose more body fat somehow? If I'm not really doing anything special to increase muscle mass, it feels pointless because I would be losing muscle while losing pounds, and then my body fat percentage wouldn't change drastically in those six weeks. I think I'm also taking in more sodium because of this diet because I'm not allowed to use other traditional flavorings from my culture other than soy sauce (this diet is way too Western for me to begin with lol).
What has been most discouraging is that I used the BMI/fat machine at the gym (a black device you hold out straight in front of you with your hands) at the end of the first week and it only registered a change of -0.3%. Maybe I measured myself incorrectly on the weight scale before inputting the data into the device but that doesn't seem like it would change much. Yet apparently there are other older women who have lost 3-5% body fat percentage in several weeks. It all feels wrong just depending on this diet and those three classes a week to help me lose what would be around 1% body fat a week (based on the 5% goal they wanted).
I did lose several pounds since I'm taking in less calories than calories out but I was already doing that before this diet. Should I just do more exercises on the days I don't have class? I have the Insanity program from years ago but that'll be mainly cardio.
Apologies if this all sounded vent-y (though I honestly needed that lol).
Height: 5'2
Sex: Female
Starting Weight at the Gym (Clothed): ~137
Starting BF%age at the Gym (Clothed): 28.2%
I joined a gym last week with my sister (who's much heavier than me) that runs a 6 week challenge. We go to classes 3x a week but the challenge focuses mostly on our diet and restricts...pretty much everything.
As for me, they want me to focus on body fat percentage instead of pounds and the goal is to lose 5% in six weeks. No oils or fats (healthy fats and cheese are out). According to the sample sheet, I'm mainly allowed to have lean protein, non-fat plain Greek yogurt, protein shakes, and veggies--with 1 choice of carbs a day (think 1 apple or 1 cup of rice or some sweet potatoes). No sugar except sweeteners. And I can really only use soy sauce/salt, hot sauce, lemon juice, dry spices, and vinegars for flavor.
Does a low carb/low fat diet do anything to lose more body fat somehow? If I'm not really doing anything special to increase muscle mass, it feels pointless because I would be losing muscle while losing pounds, and then my body fat percentage wouldn't change drastically in those six weeks. I think I'm also taking in more sodium because of this diet because I'm not allowed to use other traditional flavorings from my culture other than soy sauce (this diet is way too Western for me to begin with lol).
What has been most discouraging is that I used the BMI/fat machine at the gym (a black device you hold out straight in front of you with your hands) at the end of the first week and it only registered a change of -0.3%. Maybe I measured myself incorrectly on the weight scale before inputting the data into the device but that doesn't seem like it would change much. Yet apparently there are other older women who have lost 3-5% body fat percentage in several weeks. It all feels wrong just depending on this diet and those three classes a week to help me lose what would be around 1% body fat a week (based on the 5% goal they wanted).
I did lose several pounds since I'm taking in less calories than calories out but I was already doing that before this diet. Should I just do more exercises on the days I don't have class? I have the Insanity program from years ago but that'll be mainly cardio.
Apologies if this all sounded vent-y (though I honestly needed that lol).
4
Replies
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Going low-carb triggers a large initial water weight loss. (And adding more carbs back in typically causes initial water retention). That's short-term. Long-term, weight loss levels out. It's my understanding that there's no difference to fat loss.7
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A low carb low fat diet sounds like a high protein low calorie diet. If this is the case, you’re right to worry about muscle loss. High protein is somewhat protective but has its limits. You didn’t mention a calorie goal. Are you logging your food? If it were me I’d be staying close to the goal that MFP gave me.
I wonder if the creators of this challenge just assumed people would cheat. It seems needlessly extreme.
Eta: I wouldn’t add in more cardio, but definitely yes to strength training.4 -
A diet without healthy fats is unhealthy and it’s not going to help with the body fat loss. No sugar is great, low carb is fine, but low fat is bad. Your body and brain need fat!
You’re also right you aren’t going to be making any significant gains without adding some weight training. This gym’s plan seems nonsense at best (because anything lost will be gained back the week the challenge is over) and dangerous at worst, since you NEED good fat in your life.4 -
I never see the need for banning certain food groups or being so restrictive, and I often wonder who can stick to those kinds of diets.
Also fats aren't bad. Its calories in > calories out that matters. All the best on losing bf.3 -
Does a low carb/low fat diet do anything to lose more body fat somehow?
No nothing special, it's calorie deficit that determines fat loss - but it might well fool a BIA scale the gym is using to (very roughly) estimate body fat that the water weight loss is fat.
If I'm not really doing anything special to increase muscle mass, it feels pointless because I would be losing muscle while losing pounds.
There's no reason you would be losing muscle mass if you remain active as long as your diet is reasonable.
What has been most discouraging is that I used the BMI/fat machine at the gym (a black device you hold out straight in front of you with your hands) at the end of the first week and it only registered a change of -0.3%.
Remember it doesn't measure fat - it measures electrical resistance. You (and possibly the gym as well) are putting far too much stock in that device.
Maybe I measured myself incorrectly on the weight scale before inputting the data into the device but that doesn't seem like it would change much. Yet apparently there are other older women who have lost 3-5% body fat percentage in several weeks. It all feels wrong just depending on this diet and those three classes a week to help me lose what would be around 1% body fat a week (based on the 5% goal they wanted).
I repeat myself (because I'm old!).
Remember it doesn't measure fat - it measures electrical resistance. You (and possibly the gym as well) are putting far too much stock in that device.
I did lose several pounds since I'm taking in less calories than calories out but I was already doing that before this diet. Should I just do more exercises on the days I don't have class? I have the Insanity program from years ago but that'll be mainly cardio.
You need to have a serious think about whether this program (diet & exercise) is actually a good idea for you. Sounds absolutely awful to me, why people choose to make weight loss even more unpleasant and restrictive than it has to be constantly amazes me.
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OP: Does this "Challenge" involve any monetary reward or penalty?
But even if it doesn't, your instincts are bang on. This is needlessly restrictive and potentially harmful.13 -
It is a gimmick diet designed to make you drop water weight. It is not sensible and it is unlikely to be sustainable or healthy in long term usage.
During a challenge like that they want to minimize how often the scale fluctuates back up because the results are not "sexy". I have lost a lot of weight eating all the food they have banned for you but my weight loss is not linear on the bathroom scale. Mine is a long term and sustainable plan though. I will always get to a new low weight in time as long as I am in an easy to accomplish calorie deficit and that is the part that matters.
Anyone can lose SOME weight. Most people FAIL to lose ALL the weight they want to lose. Gimmicks are stupid and I believe they feed the failure. People think that kind of restriction is required to lose weight and when they are miserable they rage quit. People need to find their easiest path forward and stick to it.6 -
When you go low carb, your body depletes your glycogen stores, which are stored with water. So it is very common to lose several pounds of water weight quickly. This is why low carb diets have a reputations as a way to "lose weight quick". But they don't actually burn fat any faster than any other diet that restricts your calories. That is why over the long term, weight loss evens out.
Body fat % is a number that is very hard to measure accurately. Even methods such as BodPod and DexaScan, which are considered the gold standards, have a margin of error. Your gym scale has a huge one. It can be affected by a lot of other factors besides your body fat, including hydration levels. I would really not out much stock in its readings.
People in general worry too much about body fat % as a number. Unless you are trying to compete in some sort of body building competition, things like your weight, how your clothes are fitting, how you feel like your body is looking, etc, are just as good to measure your progress with.
If this diet is low fat and low carb, there is a pretty good chance that it is low calorie as well, as I am skeptical you would be eating super high amounts of protein. While you may be able to sustain on that fine for a few weeks, it's clearly not a diet you would have any interest sustaining long term, so it seems kind of pointless to me. The contest keeps you from doing the most important thing you can do for your weight loss, which is learning how to make choices and regulate your food intake at a moderate level that is sustainable for health and weight loss.7 -
This sounds a lot like a particular diet we are not allowed to discuss here because it is very low calorie and therefore inadvisable to do without proper supervision. I would not consider generic gym dude to be that proper supervision. Is the owner of the gym aware of this being promoted? Most trainers have zero nutrition training and if they do it is usually short study certificates. I could become nutritionist over a weekend. I wouldn't follow this diet, you would be putting your health at risk, particularly because I don't see anything in there about supplementing for nutritional deficiencies (which will most definitely occur with a nearly all protein diet). Additionally, adding in any level of strenuous exercise on a very low calorie diet is asking for trouble.
Tell the trainers you will do your own diet but will be happy to hear from them on matters related to exercise. Their dietary info is not appropriate and I highly suspect it is outside of their professional knowledge. A registered dietitian would be a great source of information for you.9 -
@goldthistime Yes. I weigh and log everything, ending around 1000 calories, due to feeling a little fuller with all this protein. I am also not active at all these days (other than the 3x classes) so that amount has been sustainable.
@sijomial Yes, it is awful
I didn't expect it to be this bad going into the challenge. My sister is morbidly obese and I also needed to lose weight after stress binging myself back to an even higher weight than I am now. Everything seemed like it would be okay with the way they sold it and all the success stories and how passionate they were about their job.
@snickerscharlie It does. It's one of those money back if goal reached, and then that money goes into a continued subscription to the gym. I'm not being encouraged by getting the money back though, other than my dad annoyingly joking around that I'll lose $600 every time I mention wanting to eat something that's not in the diet (not that I have) because it sucks. I suppose I more or less wanted a gym program that would help me get more active and lose weight, with eventual toning, and glossed over all the uneasiness I had about this challenge because of how conveniently it was introduced to me. In retrospect, any class orientated gym would have worked. This one just happened to be the one that caught my mom's eye since she heard that a coworker's daughter lost 80+ (?) pounds.
@NovusDies Yep, I want to ragequit but my parents know next to nothing about health and fitness and would chalk it up to my being unmotivated/always giving up early/etc. My dad especially.
Example:
My sister had eaten more than three meals throughout the day (protein shakes are separate meals) consisting of a lot of veggies and lean protein, and my dad saw this. He literally said "she's not gonna lose weight since she's eating so much." ...
@MikePTY Yeah, I've been getting more comfortable in my clothes since I started dieting again (before the gym). I was fine with seeing a downward trend each time I went on the scale instead of working with a hard number goal. It sucks that I've gotten myself into this mess, as my family would simply assume it's all my fault if I start cheating macros now.
@nutmegoreo I think they're somewhat known. The gym owner is always there but his wife and another coach work with the nutrition aspect. They have raving reviews, continuing members who love the gym and have been getting progress...success stories... Makes me feel like I'm the only one doing something wrong.
I would like to but telling them that would likely mean I give up on the challenge. Which might be better for my health but then I'd have to deal with everyone around me thinking it's all my fault and that the gym is right while I'm wrong.4 -
Thank you to everyone who has replied so far and given information/support. I really appreciate it.2
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For me, my health and well being would take priority over what others think of me. I have no doubt they get rave reviews because people are focused on the weight loss, not the potential health problems that go along with it.
You could modify the diet. You mentioned having about 1000 calories/day. That's higher than I would have guessed. Bump it up to 1200 with some healthy fats. They don't need to know. If they start using shaming techniques, tell them to take a long walk off a short pier.8 -
@NovusDies Yep, I want to ragequit but my parents know next to nothing about health and fitness and would chalk it up to my being unmotivated/always giving up early/etc. My dad especially.
Example:
My sister had eaten more than three meals throughout the day (protein shakes are separate meals) consisting of a lot of veggies and lean protein, and my dad saw this. He literally said "she's not gonna lose weight since she's eating so much." ...
I am sorry but that is a terrible reason to keep doing something you don't want to be doing. I assume you are at an adult age because you are posting here so you have to do you. If your parents have some gaps in their nutritional/calorie knowledge then you have to ignore the comments.
Your body requires energy to be function and move. If you supply less food energy (calories) then it needs it absolutely must use stored energy (usually fat stores) to meet the energy demand or you die. So if you are in calorie deficit after eating pizza as your only source of food for the day you will use stored energy to make up the difference.4 -
@nutmegoreo Thanks. I'll make a few changes starting today and do that.
@NovusDies Yeah, I know. I'm just tired of adding onto their disappointments or having them think things like "ofc she couldn't do it again this time." I'll make some healthy adjustments though. Thank you.3 -
Unless $600 for six weeks for three classes a week is a reasonable rate in your market (it would be overpriced in my market for group classes of more than two or three people, which I take these to be), I would say you are getting a bad deal, because the nutritional advice is worse than worthless. Without seeing the marketing material they roped you in with, I can't express an opinion as to whether it's bad enough to be reported to your state attorney general or whatever sort of consumer protection agency you have if you don't live in the U.S.5
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I'm almost 53 and still trying to recover from the food myths my mother and aunt inflicted on me.
For example, I've preferred white rice over brown for some time now and used to feel guilty about it until someone from these forums posted the link to https://www.aworkoutroutine.com/brown-rice-vs-white-rice/
In your parents case, perhaps providing the calories of your sister's meals and this article would be helpful: https://www.aworkoutroutine.com/1200-calorie-diet/4 -
@nutmegoreo Thanks. I'll make a few changes starting today and do that.
@NovusDies Yeah, I know. I'm just tired of adding onto their disappointments or having them think things like "ofc she couldn't do it again this time." I'll make some healthy adjustments though. Thank you.
I'm sorry that you feel like you disappoint your parents. That may or may not be the message they are trying to send you overall, but it can leave a long standing impression on your confidence. At the end of the day, you need to realize that how they feel isn't a reflection on your abilities. Just like your weight doesn't have an influence on your value or worth as a person.
My mom demeaned and disparaged me for years. I struggled a lot through most of my adult years to get to where I am now. Now, I am fairly successful in my career, but it took a long time and a lot of determination for me to get here, because her voice in my head kept telling me I wasn't good enough. My relationship with her is still strained, but I don't let her in my head anymore. You can do it, and it will get better. You may need to work on building some more boundaries between you.5 -
@nutmegoreo Thanks. I'll make a few changes starting today and do that.
@NovusDies Yeah, I know. I'm just tired of adding onto their disappointments or having them think things like "ofc she couldn't do it again this time." I'll make some healthy adjustments though. Thank you.
Parents are not perfect and sometimes they have their own issues that spills out on their kids. My father was impossible to please because his parents were impossible to please.2 -
goldthistime wrote: »A low carb low fat diet sounds like a high protein low calorie diet. If this is the case, you’re right to worry about muscle loss. High protein is somewhat protective but has its limits. You didn’t mention a calorie goal. Are you logging your food? If it were me I’d be staying close to the goal that MFP gave me.
I wonder if the creators of this challenge just assumed people would cheat. It seems needlessly extreme.
Eta: I wouldn’t add in more cardio, but definitely yes to strength training.
What I bolded.2 -
Hey, this MFP bloggie thing today is right up your alley on what I think you need to hear right now: https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/why-one-size-fits-all-diets-dont-always-work/1
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