My girlfriend wants to lose weight

[niveQ]

Wow guys, thanks for the replies.

Edited January 25, 2014 by niveQ

[Wells]

haha...hmm

 

I would recommend high carb, low fat ... no animal products, no processed food and no calorie restrictions. eat as much as you desire...of the good stuff, ideally.

 

Yeah, you can eat as much calories as you desire, as long as these are high carb, low fat, no animal products, no processed food, the "good stuff"!

The power of ABSURD BELIEF will keep you from getting fatter, transform the many surplus calories into light instead of storing them as body fat and even reduce your body fat!

 

And, most importantly, don't eat any animal protein as it promotes cancer (milk promotes cancer in the opinion of author XY, therefore it is logical that all animal protein is "casein" (one of several proteins in milk btw) and promotes cancer! The growth hormone in milk certainly is not the real cause...); the high insulin from the masses of carbs you consume certainly won't promote tumor growth at all!

Edited January 25, 2014 by Dorian Black

[Wells]

...and all the acid from the masses of fruits will turn miracolously into light (no, into bases!!!) as well!

Edited January 25, 2014 by Dorian Black

[SaiyaMan]

High intensity interval training my friend! She can use the concept to even the simplest exercise such as walking, or even hula hooping. After gentle warmup, walk/hula hoop for a minute, then rest for 30 seconds. Do this repeatedly for up to 20 minutes of exertion ( the 20 minutes does not include the rest times).

 

Find out the healthy stuff she does like, and eat those during the week. Make sure to have 1 cheat day throughout the week to look forward to. And try to avoid eating after 6pm.

 

Drink plenty of water, so that when peeing its clear, not yellow (apart from first waking up)

 

Will add more info later. Good luck to your girlfriend!

 

The only people that can/should count calories are bodybuilders who measure every single thing they eat every single day. It's not something regular people should do, because you'll end up getting tired of it and giving up. Use the portion size method, where you eat fist sized portion of each food group per meal (carbs, protein, vegetables), it's much easier than counting calories and it gets the job done. Experiment with food until she has found a handful of healthy dishes that she enjoys, and have those 6 days during the week, and have 1 day where she can eat anything she desires. The best thing about a cheatday is that it can be arranged on to days of social events with friends/whoever, she won't be the "uhhh... I'll just have a salad :(" of the group, but can have the steak + fries and cake.... CAKE!!!! It's a great motivator. Also try looking into Intermittent Fasting, its great for getting control over hunger, plus all the awesomeness it brings: www.leangains.com

 

Include resistance/strength training. If she was to only lose weight through calories restriction, she will become slim, but soft and frail. Pressups, situps and squats is all that's really needed. 15 - 30 reps (or to failure) every other day, before the H.I.I.T training. After that, if she's interested in training more, there are plenty of workouts on youtube she could follow along. Strong is the new skinny!

 

On cardio/rest days, swap the carb portion for vegetables. On the resistance training days, have the normal carb, vege and protein portions.

 

Drink A LOT more water than before. A LOT MORE!! Make sure it's cold too!

 

The best thing your girlfriend can do is add this things into her daily routine slowly. Do not suddenly stop eating animal products, sweets and chocolate, or whatever else she has been doing over the years and go into some diet where you're constantly saying to yourself "can't eat that" or completely eliminating foods from her life, no one can live life with such limitation. Gradually go towards the changes she decides to make. The worst thing is for her to suddenly go into all this fitness stuff intensely, only to stop a few months later and gain even more weight than before. Weight loss should be the byproduct of having healthy lifestyle, and the transition should be easy, comfortable and enjoyable.

 

Be sure to keep us updated with her progress!

 

All the best to you both!

[Wells]

Strong is the new skinny!

 

Well, the vegan girl in the video above surely has not much muscle mass or strength, lol!

Besides some genetical testosterone freaks, you won't find vegan guys/gals with high strength and muscle mass.

[bax44]

I'd recommend looking into a paleo type diet. Won't even really need to count calories as the elimination of pure shit from the diet will cause weight to come off in all the right places. Also the recommendation of hiit training is good, just not everyday or she will burn out. Maybe do some swimming(easy on the body and very good workout), and don't neglect strength training as well. Working with weights, hiit cardio will do the trick:) best of luck.

[Wells]

FACT (and not belief):

 

If you consume more calories as you burn, you will gain weight.

If you consume less calories as you burn, you will lose weight.

 

Fat can only be stored as fat.

 

Carbohydrates can be stored as glycogen IF the stores in muscles & liver are NOT filled. If the stores are filled, it will be stored as FAT.

 

Protein is the material to construct muscle tissue, connective tissue, etc. If you don't consume enough protein, not only your muscle mass but also your connective tissue will break down "and give way to gravity". That's the reason why many women look worse AFTER a (vegan or other low-protein) diet than before!

Edited January 25, 2014 by Dorian Black

[bax44]

Your post says fat can only be stored as fat- not true. Once a person has dropped most unhealthy carbs from their diet and body has switched to fat burning mode it is desirable to switch to a higher protein/fat type structure. There are healthy fats that actually burn fat. Coconut oil, fatty seafood, ghee, nuts,organic butter, fish oils, etc. Also these are very nourishing and filling when someones trying to cut calories. Trying to go no fat while also go low carb at the same time is not very healthy. Hence why I recommended the paleo diet, which offers healthy low carbs like sweet potatoes, etc.. Its easy to follow, can be quite tasty, and can take someone to great health if they r motivated enough.

Edited January 25, 2014 by bax44

[Wells]

Your post says fat can only be stored as fat- not true

 

Sometimes I'd really like to see the people behind their screens with which I'm talking here....

 

 

Certainly it's true! Fat can only be stored as fat, not as glycogen (carbs) and not as protein.

 

The calories of carbs can be stored as carbs (glycogen) OR as fat.

 

The calories of protein can be stored as protein OR as fat.

[BaguaKicksAss]

I should probably mention to warn her that it might not seem (to the scale) as though she is losing weight if she takes up activities which build muscles or increase bone density. However she will notice her jeans are looser. Muscle weighs more than fat.

[Songtsan]

Meal timing is important too - exercise about 3-4 hours after eating a meal. This will increase the likelihood that fat will be mobilized from where its stored at, vs. your body using what is available in the blood stream if you had just eaten.

[bax44]

 

Sometimes I'd really like to see the people behind their screens with which I'm talking here....

 

 

Certainly it's true! Fat can only be stored as fat, not as glycogen (carbs) and not as protein.

 

The calories of carbs can be stored as carbs (glycogen) OR as fat.

 

The calories of protein can be stored as protein OR as fat.

 

Lol. relax mr alpha, I shoulve explained a bit better.. I was attempting to inform the op that fat is NOT bad, as that seemed to be what you were implying in your post. Yes, fat is stored as fat as long as the energy expenditure is kept below the threshold at which you are consuming it. In other words, if you sit on your ass and just consume fat and protien you will probably be just as bad off if you eat a ton of carbs. But if you are working out hard, Fat(good kind) can be eaten along with protien and a low, no carb diet to great effect and is actually very very healthy. Fats are needed for hormone production, etc..So I was just trying to get the point across that fats are Not bad at all and someone reading your other post whos not knowledgable could easily have taken it that way, and think all fat results in body fat. so yea, you are right in a sense fat does get stored as fat, but its much more complex than that. IE fat can be stored, but this doesnt mean it results in body fat at all.. I shouldve clarified:) Cheers.

Edited January 25, 2014 by bax44

[thelerner]

I find it interesting that where Vegan and Paleo agree with each other is to avoid the whites- sugar, Tshirts starches and processed food. If you don't eat those (and its not easy) you don't need to diet much.

 

I agree with people who say strong is the new sexy. Got me a kettlebell and hoping consistently swings a day will help.

Edited January 29, 2014 by thelerner

[rex]

"K-bells deliver: strength, explosiveness, flexibility, endurance, and fat loss without the dishonor of dieting and aerobics, all in one tight package". Pavel Tsatsouline

 

 

 

Edit: tpoys

Edited January 25, 2014 by rex

[soaring crane]

So have we come to a consensus yet?

 

I think she's beautiful just the way she is.

[Wells]

I think she's beautiful just the way she is.

 

There is always room for improvement.

Edited January 25, 2014 by Dorian Black

[soaring crane]

 

There is always room for improvement.

On the scale of superficiality?

[Harmonious Emptiness]

Edited January 28, 2014 by Harmonious Emptiness

[Aeran]

On the scale of superficiality?

 

Nothing wrong with someone wanting to be more attractive and gain the benefits of that attraction, up to a point, and you can deny it all you want, but the more attractive you are and the more optimal your weight is (that is to say, minimal excessive fat), the better your life will be in a whole multitude of ways. Even putting aside the question of attraction and the way society treats people based on their appearance, being overweight comes with a multitude of health problems and just generally makes you feel like crap. It's awkward, uncomfortable, sweaty and tiring. There are no benefits to being overweight, and a lot of downsides.

[Songtsan]

Plus, you live longer if you eat less. See 'caloric restriction diets.'

[dawei]

A few thoughts but some of them may just be re-hash of others:

 

1. First principle is simple: There is no substitute for exercise... the beauty in exercise is that it can cover a multitude of sins (of eating)... and smart exercise combined with smart eating is 100 fold better than just good eating. Those who just reduce calories to lose weight simply look smaller but they still look like they have never gotten out of a chair to walk.

 

In terms of self-confidence, a little shape (muscle) goes an incredible way for most. It's effect on metabolism is another reason why eating less is simply less sense. Find the level of exercise which matches their best chances.

 

Meet the person where they are, and that includes their mental and physical abilities... if she doesn't really like exercise it is going to be a stretch to expect intense workouts, stairs, etc... and for someone who does not have muscles from even the most mundane sports or exercise then avoid too challenging exercise. Stairs is to be avoided for someone without decent leg strength from basic sports/exercise. JMO.

 

2. Here is the part that dieters do not want to hear: It is not a diet, it is a life change... We live in an age of quick fixes, and I am going to give one guaranteed one at the end, but without the life change, nothing changes. Metabolism will only slow down with age and age catches up with all of us. Any exercise routine is better than nothing.

 

3. Choose 5 items to completely give up for life. If one is truly disciplined then raise that to 10 items. A few suggestions:

Butter, sour cream, whole milk (go skim), pasta (ah... yes, I know she is part Italian), cheese, pork, chicken, any oil other than oil olive, salad dressings (but keep eating salads), pizza (please stop this!), etc.

 

While this is meant 'for life', one can bring some back when there is a few years of stable, good eating but by then they usually don't want them or they all taste too 'fatty'. Yes, stop going to the junk food places but I am talking about a decision to stop what you buy on a routine basis and put in the frig.

 

4. Add in 5 items which you research and consider beneficial for you. A positive experience is enhanced by participating in the decision making of what you eat... simply being told what to eat may not be as effective as participating in the decisions...

 

5. The quick-fix... HCG. If the quality is good, then it is guaranteed to take 10-20 lbs off her. About 1/2 pound a day for 21 day minimum. It can be done up to 40 days but based on her current weight I don't see the need as the 3 weeks after the drops one continues to lose weight. The really interesting effect of HCG is on resetting the hypothalamus. This helps to stop the past signals prodding us to eat certain foods and stick to the routine we are creating anew.

[Stosh]

4. Add in 5 items which you research and consider beneficial for you. A positive experience is enhanced by participating in the decision making of what you eat... simply being told what to eat may not be as effective as participating in the decisions...

 

Thats a really sound thingie you just said there.

Edited January 28, 2014 by Stosh

[Songtsan]

A few thoughts but some of them may just be re-hash of others:

 

1. First principle is simple: There is no substitute for exercise... the beauty in exercise is that it can cover a multitude of sins (of eating)... and smart exercise combined with smart eating is 100 fold better than just good eating. Those who just reduce calories to lose weight simply look smaller but they still look like they have never gotten out of a chair to walk.

 

In terms of self-confidence, a little shape (muscle) goes an incredible way for most. It's effect on metabolism is another reason why eating less is simply less sense. Find the level of exercise which matches their best chances.

 

Well, it takes a while for muscle mass gain to be effective in increasing basal metabolic rate. It's about 50 calories per pound. Eating less, while still exercising and consuming enough protein, is the most effective way to lose weight, hands down. They conducted meta-analyses on research studies which compared exercise alone, diet alone, and diet + exercise, and it goes without saying that being in whats called a caloric deficit, while exercising is the tops. This was an analysis of hundreds of studies rolled into one.

 

The science of it is this:

 

1 lb of fat is equal to 3500 calories

 

to lose about 1 pound of fat per week, be in a caloric deficit of 3500 calories a week below your daily caloric needs, which are based on BMR + calories expended through all activities.

 

The standard way, to combine diet + exercise to lose one pound a week is to burn off an extra 250 calories a day through exercise, which should be about 30-40 minutes of moderate intensity work, and eat 250 calories less.

 

Here is an example:

 

Daily caloric needs -> 1750 (BMR + activity levels), minus 250 from calories burned from exercise (not included in activity calories in this example) - 250 calories for caloric deficit.

 

Actual calories eaten -> 1500

 

approximate fat weight lost per week - > 1 pound of fat

 

as has been mentioned, often times when people start exercising, they might seemingly gain weight - but this is usually due to other factors, such as increased fluid volume in muscles which is a result from increased muscle tone. People generally don't gain any muscle mass in the first 4-8 weeks of resistance exercise, as all gains are due pretty much to neuromuscular adaptations.

 

The increase in BMR through muscle gain is minimal at first, whereas the reduction in % body fat through diet + exercise is immediate if the correct procedures are followed.

 

Honestly, and I have been researching this for years, the 40:30:30 macronutrient ratio I mentioned above is one of the best and healthiest diets to stay on permanently for many people. Unless you are an endurance athlete or whatnot. Americans eat way too many carbs, and this is causing all sorts of health issues.

 

The detailed version of this is as follows:

 

40% carbs by total calorie amount, of which only 10% of this amount (not 10% out of 40%, but 10% of the 40%) should be simple sugars (avoid bad sugars like dextrose, corn syrup, etc.)

 

the other carb calories should be complex carbs of the low glycemic index type

 

The protein should be complete protein...try to avoid too many red meats

 

The fat should be mostly PUFAs and MUFAs - polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Fish oil is also important. Try to find the perfect balance between omega-3 and omega-6 fats.

 

Meal frequency is also important - too many meals causes the body to have insulin in the bloodstream more often, which interferes with fat oxidation. Less meals are better - especially considering that the meals will be high in protein/fat. These will make you feel satiated for a long time afterwards - you shouldn't really want to graze all day. Avoid alcohol as well as this also interferes with fat oxidation.

 

I usually eat two meals a day when I am doing my healthy thing.

 

As I mentioned before, plan your meals based around activity levels.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 28, 2014 by Songtsan

[soaring crane]

 

 

The science of it is this:

 

I'm sorry but, I feel that diet and nutrition comes closer to religion than science these days. Just read through the whole thread (and any thread, on any website, on this subject) and it should be obvious why I say that.

[Songtsan]

I'm sorry but, I feel that diet and nutrition comes closer to religion than science these days. Just read through the whole thread (and any thread, on any website, on this subject) and it should be obvious why I say that.

 

To me food is medicine and science is religion..Science is the study of reality as religion and spirituality seem to be also. I foresee the eventual merging of all sciences and religions. Searching for truth is the same search regardless of the label.

 

Here are some neat quotes by Einstein:

 

• "I want to know God's thoughts; the rest are details."
• "Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one."
• "I am convinced that He (God) does not play dice."
• "The eternal mystery of the world is its comprehensibility."
• "Science without religion is lame. Religion without science is blind."
• "God does not care about our mathematical difficulties. He integrates empirically."
• "The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking."
• "Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods."
• "My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind."
• "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed."
• "The further the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path to genuine religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind faith, but through striving after rational knowledge."
• "Now he has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me. That means nothing. People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion."
• "A human being is a part of a whole, called by us _universe_, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest... a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."
• Every one who is seriously involved in the pursuit of science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe-a spirit vastly superior to that of man, and one in the face of which we with our modest powers must feel humble.
• The scientists’ religious feeling takes the form of a rapturous amazement at the harmony of natural law, which reveals an intelligence of such superiority that, compared with it, all the systematic thinking and acting of human beings is an utterly insignificant reflection.
• We should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality.

 

Science is defined as:

"..the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment."

 

Taoism is very much a science in my view...it observes the natural world...science is basically about observation.

 

Tantra is defined as:

"Because it elaborates (tan) copious and profound matters, especially relating to the principles of reality (tattva) and sacred mantras, and because it provides liberation (tra), it is called a tantra.^[4]"

 

^"A person who, irrespective of caste, creed or religion, aspires for spiritual expansion or does something concrete, is a Tantric. Tantra in itself is neither a religion nor an 'ism'. Tantra is a fundamental spiritual science. So wherever there is any spiritual practice it should be taken for granted that it stands on the Tantric cult."^[6]"

 

Tantra originally meant 'the science of life'