Losing 100 lbs With Phit-N-Phat Podcast Discussion

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  • mmdeveau
    mmdeveau Posts: 107 Member
    hlr1987 wrote: »
    I'm going to have a look for these podcasts today.

    Here is a link to her website: https://phit-n-phat.com/home/

    If you search for Phit-n-Phat in the iTunes podcast app it comes up easily. I'm not sure if her Podcasts are available in the Android app, but there's probably something on her website that would point you to it for Android users. You can also listen to the podcasts on your computer via the website.

    I always give a "fair warning" statement: Corinne swears a lot. I can tolerate a lot of "blue" language, so I don't mind it. Your tolerance may not be as high as mine! But if you can set aside the language, she really does have make some excellent points and she doesn't sugar-coat anything. Which is something I think I need.

    There are two types of programs you'll find in the podcast: her official podcast with her co-host Kathy, and her Facebook "live" sessions. The podcasts have a pretty narrow focus, while the FB "lives" start with her discussing a thought, then finish with her answering questions people post during the live session. She picks and chooses which questions she answers, and will answer questions that don't always relate to her original topic. I think the "live" sessions sometimes give you a bit of a window into what being a member of her tribe would be like.

    I think I'll only ever be a "groupie." Honestly, I agree with nearly everything that she says!
  • mmccloy12
    mmccloy12 Posts: 151 Member
    @aliciap0116 thank you! I am very excited to do something different. I knew better but was falling into the norm that you have to go the gym to workout. I thought with my commitment to a healthier lifestyle this time that my dislike of the gym would change too! It took me almost 6 months of the struggle and guilt to figure it out :D It just falls into Corinne's thought process of "what can we do that we can live with today that will help us reach our goals"! I think listening to her really helped me make the decision.

    About the kids and the habits/upbringing that we pass on to them. I totally set out to not let him follow in my foot steps and somehow I messed that up along the way. Life, schedules, and just my upbringing crept in. I am thankful that he does eat well in most cases. He likes salads, broccoli, avocados, salmon and some things most kids wouldn't like. But he also has an addiction to fast food and soda. I also struggle with the amount he eats...sometimes not a lot and sometimes he doesn't stop eating. I envy his ability to just stop when he is full! And I am glad to know he does that even with the fast food. Hard for me...because I have to force myself to throw it out :D Note: I haven't had fast food since August of last year! I am like you don't want to eat those last few fries? lol

    I have started limiting his soda and eventually hope to get him to stop drinking it. I hope it's not too late! I struggle to get him to drink water. No one did this for me as a child. But he still does not want to drink a lot of it. He says he drinks from the water fountain at school but I know it's not enough. I have tried everything...he is also a brand snob...I bought some cola flavoring for the soda stream and he's like it doesn't taste the same...ugh!

    I had an opportunity in January to make a deal with him on the fast food. I got him two expensive pairs of shoes...only if he would agree to no fast food for 3 months! My hope was to wean him off that...unfortunately, his dad (the little time he gets him) gets it for him...ugh! It's a work in progress.

    Sorry for the on and on about my child!

    @mmdeveau I look at the live facebook posts...I like hearing her answers to questions. I have an android phone and I just google phit n phat and it goes to the iTunes webpage and it lets me listen. I feel like I have come along way and don't necessarily need to join the tribe but be a groupie as well. Although if I had the money I would do it...just to really dig deep into why I do some of the things I do emotionally when it comes to food.
  • @aliciap0116: I am autistic and have definite neophobia and textural issues with food. And here I am in my forties, and the thing keeping me from fruits and vegetables are medical conditions. I eat curries and Middle Eastern food, adore good barbecue, and am always up to try a new cuisine. I still am a supertaster and can't do sushi (way too sour) and I was raised in the Midwest so I'm not good with heat. Alas. I didn't eat very much growing up, but I discovered new interesting ways of cooking as I grew up, and wanted to cook and eat what I cooked. So don't give up hope.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Thanks for starting this. I've been curious about the podcast (I love podcasts), but wondering if she would have a lot of "this is the right way to do it" advice that I would disagree with (I still think that might be the case, but this is motivation to start).
  • mmccloy12
    mmccloy12 Posts: 151 Member
    @lemurcat2 she does have some opinions on things but is really adamant that "you do you" and what will make you successful!
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Thanks!

    Just some quick thoughts:
    In one of the early podcasts, Corinne talks about only making changes which you are willing make for the rest of your life. For example, walking 15 minutes a day was the exercise she started with because she knew she could do/commit to that. On one hand, this ensures that you are making changes you can live with/stick with. On the other hand, it sounds awfully permanent! There are definitely sacrifices I am willing to make now that I can't say I will always be willing to do, but I think they are positive for me to do now anyway. I think that is okay. As I get further into the podcasts, it's clear to me that she evolved and expects others to, and that people will be willing to make more and more small changes that add up. And that you can chose every day what you eat. But I am curious if others had the same reaction.

    I have found that it's helpful for me to try things without being committed to doing them forever. What is important is that I understand how weight loss would work without them. When I first started (I lost 90 lb in 2014 and 2015), one thing I did was start ramping up my exercise, because I've always been successful more when I am engaged in fitness activities, and soon thereafter I had some setbacks -- I missed a week of planned exercise due to work stuff early on and then later I had a knee injury. In the past I would have decided everything was ruined and just decided it wasn't the right time, but for whatever reason I just continued logging and eating without exercise cals and kept losing.
    This month I am going to try coming up with a weekly plan for meals (I think I will waste few groceries and hopefully be less stressed about what to make). But things change all the time for me (a lunch work event, grabbing lunch with a friend, going to someone's house for dinner, etc) and I don't want to feel too rigid about breaking my "plan."

    I can't try to plan to a T or I feel trapped and don't want to eat anything planned (and I overreact to those things that come up). I do have a plan for breakfast and one for lunch (a few days ahead for lunch), but for dinner it's often more like a really loose plan in my head tied to what is in my refrigerator/what I bought over the weekend, and I will be flexible.
    Corinne advocates not counting calories; instead you keep a "food journal," where you write down what you ate and what you thought or felt about it, and only eating when you start to feel hungry and stopping when you are full.

    I think this can work, I've done it in the past, but when I was losing I really enjoyed logging and found the additional information to be added motivation (in part because I found it interesting). (I have recently started logging again because it helps me be more mindful, but so would just writing down what I ate, admittedly.)

    I am convinced that eating to a schedule works better for me than thinking about hunger and fullness. I eat at usual times and a pretty standard amount (whether I am eyeballing or logging) unless my activity is much more or less than usual. I'm typically a little hungry when I eat and not hungry (but not overly full unless I misjudge) when I am finished eating that way. I'm pretty skeptical about hunger signals since so much else affects them (and for me when I was first losing it was pretty easy to lose them).
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Is it best to go back to the beginning to start listening, or do you think there are any recent ones that would be good to start with?
  • CupcakeCrusoe
    CupcakeCrusoe Posts: 1,351 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Thanks!

    Just some quick thoughts:
    In one of the early podcasts, Corinne talks about only making changes which you are willing make for the rest of your life. For example, walking 15 minutes a day was the exercise she started with because she knew she could do/commit to that. On one hand, this ensures that you are making changes you can live with/stick with. On the other hand, it sounds awfully permanent! There are definitely sacrifices I am willing to make now that I can't say I will always be willing to do, but I think they are positive for me to do now anyway. I think that is okay. As I get further into the podcasts, it's clear to me that she evolved and expects others to, and that people will be willing to make more and more small changes that add up. And that you can chose every day what you eat. But I am curious if others had the same reaction.

    I have found that it's helpful for me to try things without being committed to doing them forever. What is important is that I understand how weight loss would work without them. When I first started (I lost 90 lb in 2014 and 2015), one thing I did was start ramping up my exercise, because I've always been successful more when I am engaged in fitness activities, and soon thereafter I had some setbacks -- I missed a week of planned exercise due to work stuff early on and then later I had a knee injury. In the past I would have decided everything was ruined and just decided it wasn't the right time, but for whatever reason I just continued logging and eating without exercise cals and kept losing.
    This month I am going to try coming up with a weekly plan for meals (I think I will waste few groceries and hopefully be less stressed about what to make). But things change all the time for me (a lunch work event, grabbing lunch with a friend, going to someone's house for dinner, etc) and I don't want to feel too rigid about breaking my "plan."

    I can't try to plan to a T or I feel trapped and don't want to eat anything planned (and I overreact to those things that come up). I do have a plan for breakfast and one for lunch (a few days ahead for lunch), but for dinner it's often more like a really loose plan in my head tied to what is in my refrigerator/what I bought over the weekend, and I will be flexible.
    Corinne advocates not counting calories; instead you keep a "food journal," where you write down what you ate and what you thought or felt about it, and only eating when you start to feel hungry and stopping when you are full.

    I think this can work, I've done it in the past, but when I was losing I really enjoyed logging and found the additional information to be added motivation (in part because I found it interesting). (I have recently started logging again because it helps me be more mindful, but so would just writing down what I ate, admittedly.)

    I am convinced that eating to a schedule works better for me than thinking about hunger and fullness. I eat at usual times and a pretty standard amount (whether I am eyeballing or logging) unless my activity is much more or less than usual. I'm typically a little hungry when I eat and not hungry (but not overly full unless I misjudge) when I am finished eating that way. I'm pretty skeptical about hunger signals since so much else affects them (and for me when I was first losing it was pretty easy to lose them).

    Bolded mine because THIS.

    What I'm doing now that I wasn't before is weighing everything I stick in my mouth to the gram, and now weight loss is so much more data-driven and clinical for me, it's wonderful.

    Like, I weigh all my food and log it, I weigh my body every day and log that (in Libra), and then I get to analyze the data to see how I'm doing and know that it's accurate. It's an absolute game changer that took all the mystery out of it, for me.

    Now I want to log everything to the gram, just to make sure my data's good.
  • mmccloy12
    mmccloy12 Posts: 151 Member
    edited February 2020
    @lemurcat2 I started out just scrolling through the episodes and picking the ones that caught my attention or I was just curious about. This week though I decided to go to the very beginning of her podcast and listen in order. Again, just out of curiosity as to how she started and progressed through the years. I have an Android so it's a little difficult to do that because you have to keep scrolling and hitting next episodes to get to the very beginning. But it is easier on a computer. Or if you have an iPhone I'm not sure if that may work better. So it's really up to you!
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Cool. I do have an iPhone and it's easy to go back to the beginning of what's listed, although not everything is always listed. I'll check it out and report back. Trying to motivate myself to go to the gym tonight so might get a chance to listen then.
  • mmdeveau
    mmdeveau Posts: 107 Member
    I started listening at the beginning of her podcast, all the way back in 2017, and I’m working my way through them. I’m at the beginning of 2018 now! I typically listen on the train ride home – 40-50 minutes – and when I get home and I’m settling in and making dinner. That means I can get through 2 or 3 a day. Sometimes I can listen while I’m at work.

    1. I interpret Corinne’s statement about only making changes you are willing to stick with the rest of your life in more general terms. In the past, I’ve relied on a steady diet of Lean Cuisine/Healthy Choice/Weight Watchers frozen meals, supplemented with fresh fruit, vegetables, and yogurt, as my diet plan. For me, that was not sustainable. I have always liked to cook for myself and would have eventually reverted to that “when I lost the weight.” I now know that if this had worked, I should not be surprised if I started gaining weight again. My plan really was a short-term fix is what I now realize. In terms of exercise, I also think of it in more general terms. I think she’s only speaking in terms of the commitment aspect. In later podcasts, she discusses how she prioritizes getting your eating on track first before committing to any exercise plan. And she also emphasizes that she wants her tribe to be exercising because they feel better about themselves and not for weight loss – in short advocating the “you can’t outrun your fork” philosophy regarding exercise.

    2. I think in terms of meal planning versus spontaneity I found the compromise that works for me. I make a lot of big batch recipes that freeze well, I pre-portion and bag them, and throw them in the fridge when I plan for them. Some dishes, like the chili recipes, are complete meals and just need some toppings – cheese, sour cream, scallions/onions. Others just need some rice or other grain and some side vegetable and they’re good. If I keep the meal prep cycle going, in a short period of time I end up with a good variety of meals to choose from. I try to make dinner meals fresh with a day or two of leftovers. I’ll buy a salmon filet and bake it. And I 100% understood what Corinne was talking about by having a salad bar in the fridge, because I do the same thing myself, and have done so for a long time! And those times I go out and have dinner, I try to make sensible choices and/or consume sensible portions. I also try to remember it’s just one meal and it’s OK to enjoy myself from time to time, easier said than done I know!

    4. Corinne’s views on calorie counting and weighing and measuring food are the one thing I disagree with. The calorie counting and food measuring is a cognitive process. I think it’s useful for some overeaters to measure their food in order to learn what a proper portion size looks like. For some people it’s not so easily learned or conditioned. I also think it’s useful for people who are having trouble recognizing their hunger cues. I do not have a work schedule that always supports waiting for that hunger cue to kick in. I have to eat lunch at a scheduled time many days because that’s the time the group I’m working with eats lunch. If I don’t eat at that time I won’t be able to eat until it’s about dinner time. So I pack lunches with weighed and measured portions because in that situation I can’t rely on hunger cues. Corinne’s approach is behavioral. It is certainly valid and works for many people. I think that her behavioral approach and calorie-counting are complementary, not at odds with one another. For many psychological issues cognitive-behavioral therapy is often used as a treatment modality, I don’t see why both methods can’t be used when getting your mind straight about food consumption.

    For those who were talking about helping their kids, she does have a podcast called “Overweight Kids” that sounds on target. She doesn’t only discuss overweight children; she also talks about the feelings that overweight parents have about not wanting their child to have the same problems they have.

    @aliciap0116, I don’t know if you mentioned it here but I also liked her Keep/Stop/Start idea. I realize that most of us who set goals probably already do this naturally, but thinking about them in the Keep/Start/Stop categories makes it easier somehow.

    Finally, a podcast I listened to last night, called Why “It’s Not Good Enough” Kills Your Weightloss really got to me. I think like this nearly all the time, not just about diet and exercise. I’d really like to be a person who thinks “OK that’s good enough!” but the level of frustration I can take before I get there is really high.

  • hlr1987
    hlr1987 Posts: 151 Member
    Thanks for the link I've been listening to them and feeling very inspired! Some of the bad habits she went into around social eating for politeness sake definitely resonated with me.
    I'm really enjoying just looking at the mental/emotion side of it- she's like free therepy!
  • aliciap0116
    aliciap0116 Posts: 231 Member
    @mmdeveau Haha, you are right to warn people about the language. But I actually find her swearing quite helpful to me! Sometimes you need a cuss word to really get a point across and highlight that some thoughts/actions are really quite ridiculous!! I find it really refreshing!!

    @lemurcat2 Highly recommend giving them a listen. I have been logging and participating on MFP since September but starting this podcast has added a whole new dimension into my weight loss effort. I started at the beginning because I thought there might be some foundational stuff there first. I'd also like to take her online course but that requires me to sit in front of a computer rather than listening in the car. Maybe this weekend! I also wish I had figured out some way to take notes on the earlier episodes...I may go back and listen to a few of them at double speed so I can jot some things down. (If anyone did take notes and can share them, please let me know!!)

    @lemurcat2 and @CupcakeCrusoe I love the data too. Sometimes I think I can get lost in my head and details but it makes this process a lot more fun and interesting.

    @mmdevaux The further into the podcast I get, I think you (and others) are correct in your interpretation about #1 (things you do for the rest of your life). I'm SO glad that I'm not relying on shakes or bars right now to get the weight off and learning to cook healthy recipes. And agree on being able to do the calorie counting and listen to your body's cues at the same time. It's something that I need to be mindful about because I was not truly doing it before, but it can be done. The Keep/Start/Stop is definitely something I want to incorporate more formally. I'm putting Why “It’s Not Good Enough” Kills Your Weightloss on my list - thank you!

    @mmccloy12 That's tough regarding your son. I am lucky; my son will only drink water. He won't touch soda, juice, lemonade, or a milkshake!! At first I felt like he was missing out but now I know I am lucky!! Maybe find some videos that talk about why soda is so bad for you, watch them together, then discuss it with him, and agree that it's a special treat item that you both don't want to keep in the house. Same thing for fast food (watch Supersize Me). I'm sure he will have access to both with school and his dad but at least you will be educating him and limiting it within the house.

    We are about to try this with TV and videos (so it's really ironic that I am recommending a video to help teach your son, but I do think they can take in information from sources other than parents better sometimes) because those can be addicting too. I swear my son was having a physical reaction/meltdown because he was not able to watch a video last night after they were taken away (until tomorrow) for an inability to follow directions on not watching one particular show.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    So I did get a chance to listen some last night. I checked out a more recent episode (146--how to stay committed), and now am about half through one of the early ones (the one about losing without counting). I'll probably start from the beginning after this one.

    I do understand the "don't do anything you can't imagine doing forever" thing now, and actually agree. Although I try things, I don't try things that I think would be awful or incredibly hard, but doable until the weight is off. I try things to see how they affect me and if I like them (or as a short-term experiment specifically for some reason other than weight loss). Her idea that we are trying to eat in a way that will work for life is pretty much my philosophy too. (When I was losing it was important to me that I wasn't eating like someone on a diet, but just normally, and how I would permanently, although cals would go up some at maintenance. No one could tell I was on a diet -- although I ate healthfully, as I do at maintenance too -- and that was somewhat important to me.)
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    @lemurcat2 and @CupcakeCrusoe I love the data too. Sometimes I think I can get lost in my head and details but it makes this process a lot more fun and interesting.

    I wonder if some of the anti calorie counting stuff is because of the mind-set that often goes along with it -- that it's necessarily burdensome and makes weight loss about restriction and not eating more than a certain number and always focusing on the lowest cal items or the like.

    I was lucky enough to go into weight loss without a dieting history or baggage. I was a healthy weight (if not as slim as I would have liked) until my late 20s, when I started gaining due to more work-related stress and food, less activity. In my early 30s I saw a photo of myself from a friend's wedding and realized I had gotten heavier than I'd realized and decided to learn how to lose, after never having dieted before. What I did then is kind of like what Corinne recommends -- I wrote down what I had been eating, realized where I could easily cut cals, and then I did so, and wrote down what I ate (I actually had a spreadsheet), as well as just starting to cook more (I learned to cook for real then) and increasing my activity as I had always felt better when more active anyway.

    I kept that weight off for a while and then regained in my late 30s, early 40s related to some life changes and struggles, and knew what I needed to do to lose but didn't have the will to do it until 44. Then I started, soon discovered MFP, and found that adding in logging and data was fun (I'd been using data for running for a while so it was something I associated with fun, with making nutrition a hobby, and not with past painful efforts or associated with extreme or burdensome diet attempts).

    Now when I'm struggling with maintenance (which I have been off and on the past two years), turning back to logging is usually something that feels fun and helpful.

    I'm enjoying her discussion of how she did it.
  • mmccloy12
    mmccloy12 Posts: 151 Member
    Hi there guys! I wanted to tell you about something that happened to me the other day at work. I may put it over on our other thread too. It relates to one of the podcasts I listened to awhile back. She also answered a question about this kind of thing on her live one where she was at her 6 day conference in TN.

    I was at work the other day and the weather was harsh, raining,lightening and windy. A co worker who sits net to me said she was going to order in from Hungry Howies because of the weather. Keep in mind this co worker and I have a love hate relationship. She asks everyone who wants to order. She came to me and asked, and I said no thank you (#1). She starts placing her order online at her desk and I guess she didn't have enough for delivery. So she asks me again (#2). I again say no thank you. "Oh come on, I don't want to have to order extra food, you sure you don't want a salad or something?" (3#). I told her no again and that I brought my lunch. A few minutes later, " you sure you don't want a sandwich, they are only 500 calories" (#4). I again said no thank you. She then said you are never going to be successful if you don't allow yourself to have a cheat day. I guess I could count that as #5. I then told her politely that I realize what she was saying and that I have been working on a sustainable plan that I can live the rest of my life. I have found out that when I eat things like hungry howies it triggers me to eat more of that type of food and I am choosing not to eat that right now. One day when I want to,I will order with you okay? And she finally backed off. The kicker is when her food came, she brought it over and showed me hers...and said " see what you're missing?" Boy, I wanted to say I see what is going to be on your *kitten* in a few hours like Corinne from pnp would say but I didn't.

    The point of my long story is we are going to have our supporters and our haters in this journey. This supportive thread and our monthly check in one have been life savers!

    I cant remember which podcast it was but she talks about asking ourselves "Do I want that _insert whatever food here - in my case Hungry Howie sandwich more than I want to lose weight?" If it is a yes, then eat it and it will be ok or no and that is it. And right now I want to lose weight more! On the live podcast a poor women was made to feel like she wasn't supporting her company by not taking a donut...I mean really people(haters), why would you do that but they are out there...She recommended the lady take the donut and go to rest room and throw it out or tell them to "you know what" lol

    Anyway, I wish there weren't the haters out there...but this is about me and not them!

    Have a great week ya'll!
  • aliciap0116
    aliciap0116 Posts: 231 Member
    @mmccloy12 I’m so proud of you!! What an awesome response. Sounds like she is envious that you are exerting self control and was really hoping to break yours to make herself feel better. What a huge win for you but I fear she will be back!!
  • hlr1987
    hlr1987 Posts: 151 Member
    That episode made me think as well! It's so conditioned into me that not finishing a plate of food is rude, particularly with food that someone has brought or made particularly for an occasion, that I felt really bad the other day not having pudding at my mums when it was offered over and over.
    I also have issues when I'm eating out, because when we've paid for it, I feel like I need to finish it even if I'm full. My husband cooked dinner yesterday, enough for 6 people and then gets offended that I won't eat seconds. It's embedded in my life and trying to set boundaries is really difficult.
  • @mmccloy12: I'm really impressed by your ability to deal with that with grace and tranquility. I do that too: Is this something you want more than showing up to Christmas thin? So far the answer has never been yes. (wry grin) Some people get very very threatened by other people showing self-restraint around them. I've seen it with people who drink as well; they're not willing to let up until everyone's drunk, and it's the same sort of thing as what you went through.

    @hlr1987: It's hard to unpick that conditioning, but it's so worth it to do so. One reason I had to leave my husband in '16 was because he would not let me lose weight. Because it made him aware that he ought to be losing weight. It will take both of you learning new ways to do things. I often make more than the three of us will eat and put it in the freezer for another day. Can you get him to think about things that way?