Any diet plans for me?

[geordie90]

Hi all , im a 42 year old type 2 diabetic who leads and active life but cant seem to lose weight.
I play rugby, goto gym and cycle to work every day but my weight never seems to go down. Im a solid build but could afford to lose some weight as im 109 kilos(and no matter what i do cant seem to get below 109!!!) I was training for three peaks earlier this year spending an hour at a time on the xtrainer(every day) and also weight training and I never lost an ounce!!!! Did three peaks and still no loss, im starting to think i need a strict diet regime to stick to alongside my exercise routines. Do any of you fine people have such a plan, with daily meal plans etc.
Im on four metformin a day and readings are generally not bad with the odd daft spike here and there.
Any suggestions you have would be good

Thanks in anticipation

[noblehead]

Hi geordie and welcome!

As someone who is obviously as fit as a fiddle there's little point in saying try exercising more to shift a few pounds.......... so I won't go there!

My own experience is I lost just over 2 stone by reducing my daily calorie intake (it did take 2 years to achieve but is better losing weight slowly as your less likely to put it back on) after making a diet sheet of my weekly food intake I taking this along to show my dietitian who advised me on cutting back on the calories, quite simply if your body needs the recommended 2500 cals and you cause a deficit in this amount then your weight will gradually reduce over time.

It's certainly worth seeing a dietitian and ask for some advice, if what she/he says doesn't ring true then you could look at alternative ways to lose weight.

[borofergie]

I don't think the numbers really add up on the exercising to lose weight thing:

According to my Garmin, I burn about 185 kcal/mile on a steady run. There are 3500kcal in a pound of fat. That means that I'd have to run 19 miles to burn a single pound. To lose a stone I'd have to run 266 miles (about 18 weeks of running for me).

This ignores the fact that exercising unsuprisingly makes you hungry, so you'd have to suppress your body's natural desire not to refuel everytime you run.

From my own experience, exercising helps a bit, but what you eat makes the biggest difference.

[viviennem]

Hi Geordie!

You don't say how tall you are, or how much you think you should weigh. Those figures would help us to comment.

Also your diet - my first reaction (being a confirmed low-carber ) would be to reduce your carb intake and replace the calories with protein and natural fats. This may well go against your fitness and competition training ideas, but I'm pretty sure it would work - give it a try. No need to cut your carbs drastically - just shift the balance a bit.

Finally - don't forget that muscle weighs more than fat!

Viv

[borofergie]

This may well go against your fitness and competition training ideas

It would go against some out of date ideas on sports nutrition, but would be well in line with some of the more recent ideas.

That whole "carb-loading" thing has been largely discredited.

Fallenstar runs ultra marathons and low-carbs.

Stephen

[geordie90]

Thanks for all the comments, what i need i ssomething that takes the thinking out of meals for me lol, i was thinking of the newcastle universtiy diet, but maybe thats too extreme.

As far as my height goes im 5'7 1/2 apparently so that means im not fat im just undertall lol

Im hoping somone has the newcastle diet sheets that they may share with me, Id love to lose about three stone which would take me to around 14 stone which would be about right.

As far as muscle weighs more than fat I am aware of that but the BMI thing doesnt seem to take that into account. but i am carrying too much lard unfortunately. Of course losing weight means new wardrobe lol which means more money lol, cant win can you

Craig

[Grazer]

Hi Craig, the Newcastle diet is really extreme, and probably not necessary for you. It was (is) an experiment in trying to beat diabetes, not just lose weight. It's not a diet you can stay on long term, which is what you need. Personally, I've reduced my carbs to about 150 a day (half the norm for a man) and I've lost loads of weight unintentionally - I was just trying to get my blood sugars down! BMI is now 22 and I'm struggling to stop it going lower (i graze on nuts to help with that!) So perhaps you can go on a reduced carb diet, also avoiding the starchy carbs like white flour products (white bread, pastry etc) and only small amounts of pasta or rice (wholewheat pasta and basmati rice) Leave out "Old" potatos and eat a few new potatos (pre-bagged ones in supermarkets, available all year round) and remember that lots of things have carbs, so read the tins/packets to make sure you stick to your 150 or whatever you set your target at. If you start at 150, and nothing happens after about a month, you can reduce the carbs a bit more. At least you'll be on a diet you can stick with long term then.
Cheers and good luck!

[borofergie]

+1 Grazer.

It's all about the carbs dude. The great thing about T2 is that you get lose weight as a side effect of controlling your BG.

[geordie90]

i think a carb watch is order but prob after xmasn now to give my self a bit of a chance lol

here speaks me who is going out to night for a curry and a few beers with work colleagues doh!!

keep tips coming

[Grazer]

i think a carb watch is order but prob after xmasn now to give my self a bit of a chance lol

here speaks me who is going out to night for a curry and a few beers with work colleagues doh!!

keep tips coming

Curry is ok, and the beers, I have a small chapati instead of the Naan bread I used to have, and go easy on the rice. No problem then!

[reidpj]

Have a look here http://www.archevore.com/get-started/

I know it may seem daft, but could you be 'over training'? From http://www.livestrong.com/article/41773 ... eight-loss


Weight Loss Attempts Backfire

Weight loss is a common overtraining symptom, but some people who work out too much in attempt to shed pounds experience the opposite effect, according to Ann Louise Gitteman's "Fat Flush Fitness Plan," 2004. Elevated cortisol levels are common in people who overtrain. If the overtraining goes on long enough, the body can convert progesterone into cortisol. When cortisol levels are too high for too long, the body breaks down bone, muscle and nerve cells to convert them to energy. Prolonged levels of high cortisol also cause the body to ramp up fat storage. If cortisol is consistently elevated for long enough, the adrenal glands responsible for producing the hormone wear out and cortisol levels fall too low. Symptoms of falling cortisol include weight gain, depression, extreme cravings for sweets and a foggy mental state.

[viviennem]

Have a look at the diet I use, Viv's Modified Atkins Diet, which is a sticky thread at the top of the Low-carb Diet forum on the Board Index. I try to eat below 30g of carb mostly, but do go up to about 70g of carb per day in the winter.

You don't need to go so low, but the diet is a good basic to "bolt-on" additional carbs to the level you wish to eat at. Try to go for "brown" carbs not "white", as Grazer says, and there's no need to worry about natural. unprocessed fats, though you should eat less fat as you eat more carbs.

The diet is based on your body using your fat for fuel instead of carbohydrate (very simplistically!). Unfortunately our bodies can use alcohol for fuel as well, so you'll lose more slowly if you drink .

This accounts for me taking 18 months to lose 4 stone this time, instead of 5 stone in 18 months the last time

As Grazer said, losing weight is a side-effect of dieting for my blood glucose this time around, and I'm focused on my meter readings, not my weight, at the moment.

But I do agree - get Christmas over with first!

Viv

Edited for spelling