IF without losing weight?

[Walking Girl]

its so darn hot this summer, I’ve been eating lunch late and skipping dinner. I feel better this way and sleep better. Even eating a cold meal when it’s hot just doesn’t feel good. The problem is, on two meals I’m losing weight. At a BMI of now 21.5, I can still lose a little without danger, but I really don’t want to - plus I like my wardrobe now and have no desire to replace it yet again because of weight loss, darn it!

So, anyone able to successfully skip meals and maintain weight? I’ve tried eating more for breakfast and lunch, but I get too full. Even adding in more high density foods like nuts, I’m still not able to eat enough to maintain my weight on two meals it seems.

Any tips?

 

[bulkbiker]

I maintained for 18 months eating only once or twice a day but that was with nutrient rich foods including meat.
Rather annoying as I was actively trying to lose at the time.

 

[wiflib]

its so darn hot this summer, I’ve been eating lunch late and skipping dinner. I feel better this way and sleep better. Even eating a cold meal when it’s hot just doesn’t feel good. The problem is, on two meals I’m losing weight. At a BMI of now 21.5, I can still lose a little without danger, but I really don’t want to - plus I like my wardrobe now and have no desire to replace it yet again because of weight loss, darn it!

So, anyone able to successfully skip meals and maintain weight? I’ve tried eating more for breakfast and lunch, but I get too full. Even adding in more high density foods like nuts, I’m still not able to eat enough to maintain my weight on two meals it seems.

Any tips?

What sort and what quantities of food do you eat? We are heading for colder weather so you may eat more then anyway.

 

[Walking Girl]

What sort and what quantities of food do you eat? We are heading for colder weather so you may eat more then anyway.

Breakfast today was a good example: Greek yogurt with strawberries and toasted almonds. Coffee with plenty of coconut cream or almond milk (it’s a full fat variety)
Lunch: often a big salad, with some form of beans, or less frequently tempeh or seitan. Plenty of avocado (usually 1 whole one) nuts (at least 1 oz), and olives. Usually no dressing because it’s not needed and I try to eat whole foods

So dinner, if I eat it, is a mixed bag from casseroles or stews, or more so in the summer a mix of veggies with hummus, nuts, more olives, etc.

Yeah, I may just decide just to lose a little now and hope I feel more like eating when the temperature changes.

Meat is off the table, but even so, I see people who eat it do so because they say it has a high satiety level, which is not an issue for me. I’m eating until I’m full and I stay so for hours after, so that’s not the problem.

 

[Member496333]

Worth keeping in mind that there are two factors to satiety. One is the stomach stretch receptors that sense when the stomach is becoming full. The other is hormonal/chemical. If eating a plant-based diet and skipping meals, it's possible that each meal you do eat will make your stomach feel full before your body is actually happy with the amount and composition of fuel you've taken onboard.

With a more meat heavy diet, one is more likely to feel satiated before the stretch response of the stomach becomes a factor, simply because the food that is ingested is more energy dense. It's probably quite difficult to get the day's energy needs from one meal of plant-based food without feeling overstuffed? All that said, I have no experience of fasting/OMAD on a vegetarian/vegan diet, so the above is really only theory. Though I have heard it mentioned elsewhere in nutrition circles.

 

[Walking Girl]

Worth keeping in mind that there are two factors to satiety. One is the stomach stretch receptors that sense when the stomach is becoming full. The other is hormonal/chemical. If eating a plant-based diet and skipping meals, it's possible that each meal you do eat will make your stomach feel full before your body is actually happy with the amount and composition of fuel you've taken onboard.

With a more meat heavy diet, one is more likely to feel satiated before the stretch response of the stomach becomes a factor, simply because the food that is ingested is more energy dense. It's probably quite difficult to get the day's energy needs from one meal of plant-based food without feeling overstuffed? All that said, I have no experience of fasting/OMAD on a vegetarian/vegan diet, so the above is really only theory. Though I have heard it mentioned elsewhere in nutrition circles.

Well, if that’s true, then my only option is to eat when I’m not hungry. Or deal with weight loss.

I’m thinking maybe I’ll try some version of bullet proof coffee (decaf) for “dinner”. I love my coconut cream/coffee mix in the morning. Maybe drinking my food I won’t notice it as much.

Suffice it to say that a queasy stomach from eating meat when I was young developed into full-blown violent bodily purging when I hit my early 20s. The allergist says “food sensitivities”, thank goodness not allergies. Regardless, Its pretty much a given that foods that make me violently ill, even if I was willing to eat them these days, will make me lose weight

 

[wiflib]

Breakfast today was a good example: Greek yogurt with strawberries and toasted almonds. Coffee with plenty of coconut cream or almond milk (it’s a full fat variety)
Lunch: often a big salad, with some form of beans, or less frequently tempeh or seitan. Plenty of avocado (usually 1 whole one) nuts (at least 1 oz), and olives. Usually no dressing because it’s not needed and I try to eat whole foods

So dinner, if I eat it, is a mixed bag from casseroles or stews, or more so in the summer a mix of veggies with hummus, nuts, more olives, etc.

Yeah, I may just decide just to lose a little now and hope I feel more like eating when the temperature changes.

Meat is off the table, but even so, I see people who eat it do so because they say it has a high satiety level, which is not an issue for me. I’m eating until I’m full and I stay so for hours after, so that’s not the problem.

Thanks.

It looks like a very low fat diet and if you’re not eating as much as you usually do, it’s no wonder you’re losing weight. How do your blood sugars hold up with the amount of carbs you’re eating? Could you increase the nuts, avocado, olives, oil etc and reduce the beans and vegetable matter?

 

[Member496333]

I made-up a quick and dirty recipe for the most calorie-dense keto chocolates you can imagine. Raw cacao butter melted in the microwave and then mixed with heaps of raw cocoa powder. Left to set in moulds and then refrigerated. Should be vegan/vegetarian compatible? They work out at something like 900 calories per 100g and will almost certainly help you gain weight if eaten as a dessert. That's if you like 100% chocolate of course, which most don't. I don't make it anymore as I'm now animal based only, but if those choccos don't make you gain weight then nothing will

 

[Walking Girl]

@Jim Lahey

Thanks! Sounds delicious. I kind of forget about chocolate, but you are right, adding that in would be high density/low volume, and tasty!

 

[Walking Girl]

Thanks.

It looks like a very low fat diet and if you’re not eating as much as you usually do, it’s no wonder you’re losing weight. How do your blood sugars hold up with the amount of carbs you’re eating? Could you increase the nuts, avocado, olives, oil etc and reduce the beans and vegetable matter?

Very low fat? LOL, talk to the the nutritionist I was referred to. She just about passed out when she realized I was eating 100-120g of fat per day. But I get that it’s all in the perspective - if someone eats 80% fats, the 40-50% looks very low.

I could reduce beans and veggies, but I love them so given the choice, I would just eat dinner. But thank you for the feedback.

My latest A1c was 4.8%, with very low daily variability per the Freestyle Libre I pop in on occasion to make sure I’m in track.

 

[Member496333]

@Jim Lahey

Thanks! Sounds delicious. I kind of forget about chocolate, but you are right, adding that in would be high density/low volume, and tasty!

It's very bitter chocolate though. But it will make you gain weight with virtually no insulin response. Keep in mind that it's basically 98% saturated fat. I would think that some people may not tolerate it too well. But if you can, and you like dark choc, then you'll struggle to beat the crunch of this stuff cold from the fridge.

 

[Walking Girl]

Keep in mind that it's basically 98% saturated fat.

So is coconut cream. Which is what makes it so delicious

 

[ianf0ster]

I don't eat much meat because my wife doesn't like to eat it much, but I do load up on Cheese. That is fairly high fat if you like it. It is 35% fat 25% protein for the mature Cheddar I eat. Though I still lost weight initially when eating about 400gms of that (in addition to my other 3 low Carb meals per day).

 

[Rylando88]

How about cold protein shakes? Buy a pouch and make a couple of shakes in the morning, put in the fridge and have some when you feel like! They’re cold and refreshing and depending on brand/type can contain anywhere between 90-600 calories each!! Xx

P.s. it probably goes without saying but obviously buy a shake that has little or no sugar in, there are plenty around!

 

[moori]

Wow! I'm the opposite. I try loosing weight but even on low carb its pretty slow...
I mainly eat fish, cheese, nuts and veggies.

 

[AloeSvea]

My latest A1c was 4.8%, with very low daily variability per the Freestyle Libre I pop in on occasion to make sure I’m in track.

You have a very healthy HBA1c, Walking Girl. You don't seem to have type two diabetes. (This after all - is a good thing!) Were you diagnosed? And got a lot better with your too much weight loss problem? You clicked on the wrong type of diabetes on your profile?

When weight loss happens with type two diabetes, weight loss is usually not a problem, quite the opposite, as there is a theory, that seems very likely to me, that at the bottom of insulin resistance based diabetes, is sick fat cells. The shrinking of the fat cells we have usually makes us a lot better, with the insulin resistance and therefore the type two diabetes.

The violent body purging after eating - that is indeed a big problem. And one that can cause very very bad health issues ( like eventual organ failure! No small matter.)

I have an aunt with weight loss problems, who fasts regularly too. I say to her, and my uncle who loves her, that both she and I have health/life threatening issues with food and what we eat, but it comes from opposite physical processes (can't think of a better phrase than 'physical processes'). I believe it comes down to essentially a relationship between hormones and energy. Hers is her body had a tipping point with too little energy from food, mine with a tipping point from too much energy from food. The tipping point thing is the thing, if I can say that. But we have lots to share about with our lives and food. Fasting is a big part of her life, as it is with mine. As with foods she is and isn't sensitive to. As is the issue of willpower. Sharing is good. I relate more to her around food in the practical sense in my face to face life than I do to anyone else. But we have different diseases. This might be the case with you?

 

[Walking Girl]

You have a very healthy HBA1c, Walking Girl. You don't seem to have type two diabetes. (This after all - is a good thing!) Were you diagnosed? And got a lot better with your too much weight loss problem? You clicked on the wrong type of diabetes on your profile?

When weight loss happens with type two diabetes, weight loss is usually not a problem, quite the opposite, as there is a theory, that seems very likely to me, that at the bottom of insulin resistance based diabetes, is sick fat cells. The shrinking of the fat cells we have usually makes us a lot better, with the insulin resistance and therefore the type two diabetes.

The violent body purging after eating - that is indeed a big problem. And one that can cause very very bad health issues ( like eventual organ failure! No small matter.)

I have an aunt with weight loss problems, who fasts regularly too. I say to her, and my uncle who loves her, that both she and I have health/life threatening issues with food and what we eat, but it comes from opposite physical processes (can't think of a better phrase than 'physical processes'). I believe it comes down to essentially a relationship between hormones and energy. Hers is her body had a tipping point with too little energy from food, mine with a tipping point from too much energy from food. The tipping point thing is the thing, if I can say that. But we have lots to share about with our lives and food. Fasting is a big part of her life, as it is with mine. As with foods she is and isn't sensitive to. As is the issue of willpower. Sharing is good. I relate more to her around food in the practical sense in my face to face life than I do to anyone else. But we have different diseases. This might be the case with you?

With an A1c of 11.8% upon diagnosis, I can assure you I am indeed a T2 :***: I’m only ill after eating meat, so easy fix I stopped that 25 years ago. With the exception of a restaurant mixup on soup and a “joke” someone played on me at a BBQ, I’ve never had an issue since. No organ failure on the horizon AFAIK...

I’ve been weight stable for about 1 year ( after a large weight loss before and after diagnosis), the recent weight loss was skipping meals without a clear plan to increase food intake at the meals I did eat. And when I tried to increase my 2 meals a day, I got too full. But, I actually went with @Rylando88 advice and started making a shake for breakfast on the days I skip dinner. Ricotta cheese, coconut cream, nut butter plus whatever other add ins I’ve tried works great. Dense, higher calorie, but leaves me not overly full. So far, the scale hasn’t moved more, so it’s working.

 

[AloeSvea]

Yes, that 11.8%/106 at diagnosis certainly is type two @Walking Girl! And well done with getting to non-diabetic levels, and a healthy one at that.

So you were big at diagnosis? Me too.

Yeah, nut products are a good way to get nutrient-rich, good-fat rich food. Especially nut butters made into yummy bliss balls and rolled in cocoa and coconut - you pop a few of those a day you should keep your weight steady!

But maybe you don't need to worry about being thin? That might be your natural body type? Lean, is a nicer word for it. There are a few women in my family (not the aunt) who are naturally lean, with BMIs of 18-19. And they are pretty healthy. Two I am thinking of, my mother, and my sister, have to watch their carbs, otherwise they become prediabetic, but otherwise they are fine with it.

I knew a wrestler and martial arts champion that needed to lose, and bulk up, because of competition weight classes, but he always used dairy products - yes those milkshakes you have been talking about, and dairy products - lots of cheese seems to do it for many folks. As in adding and subtracting dairy for his weight class needs. But being Vegan, and carb intolerant/diabetic you can't use the potatoes, pasta, bread, rice that are great weight-increasing foods. It is a quandary indeed.

Worth going for lean then? And keeping a close eye on your usual health parameters, and supplement, and get Vitamin B12 levels checked fairly regularly? Iron? And vitamin D? (These are the three that my docs check regularly.)

The vege casseroles sound wonderful, btw.

 

[Rylando88]

With an A1c of 11.8% upon diagnosis, I can assure you I am indeed a T2 :***: I’m only ill after eating meat, so easy fix I stopped that 25 years ago. With the exception of a restaurant mixup on soup and a “joke” someone played on me at a BBQ, I’ve never had an issue since. No organ failure on the horizon AFAIK...

I’ve been weight stable for about 1 year ( after a large weight loss before and after diagnosis), the recent weight loss was skipping meals without a clear plan to increase food intake at the meals I did eat. And when I tried to increase my 2 meals a day, I got too full. But, I actually went with @Rylando88 advice and started making a shake for breakfast on the days I skip dinner. Ricotta cheese, coconut cream, nut butter plus whatever other add ins I’ve tried works great. Dense, higher calorie, but leaves me not overly full. So far, the scale hasn’t moved more, so it’s working.

So glad you’ve found my tip useful! I hope it helps in some way!! If you have any queries about flavours/add ins/options/variations to prevent boredom etc feel free to ask!! Xxx