Tried and tested diets!

[Campervanlife4me]

Which diets have you done that have actually been successful. Tried and tested diets that work?

@mrsjbaptiste that sounds tough. Fitting in 4 to 5 gym sessions let alone organising the food replacements for easy-to-reach carbs is time consuming. Good on you for your discipline!

Calorie counting and low (ish) carb. No rice, pasta, potato, grains or sugar. And Limited fruit.

I Lost 3 stone, but have now kept it off for around a year.

Diet combined with regular exercise (run 5 times a week and do weights/fitness classes/ home workouts)

It's quite hard work and if I take my eye off the ball I put weight back on.

Low carb. Low calorie. Low calorie is best.

Calorie counting.

Mini twisters are only 44 calories each. Winner

I'm gonna have to research some of these and try them then. The 5:2 seems to be coming up top at the minute.

Have lost three and a half stone through Slimming World - honestly if I can do it anyone can do it!

One week of slim fast to kick start and then 1200 calories a day except Saturdays which is a free for all until I'm slightly under target.
Plus yoga every day and couch to 5k three times a week.
I do it every other year, my weight seems to creep up gradually.

@IhaveALooBrush are you me? Everything you've said is me! Including the gradual weight gain and the every other year. Currently on week 3 of 1200 and it's giving results!

Low carb. It just becomes a way of life

Am tempted to try 5:2. Am I right in thinking you get 500kcals on a fast day? I get light-headed when I don't eat for long periods (not to mention crabby!!).

Has anyone tried Huel for on their fasting days?

How do people find exercising on 5:2? I’ve been interested in the health benefits of fasting but it’s hard to find a day when I’m not socialising, or exercising.

Not sure I could get through a 75 min spin session, or a long cycle, or a climbing session or a run with only 500/600 calories for the day.

Maybe I should look more into having a fasted period like 7pm through to midday the next day, rather than the calorie controlled days.

I've done the 5:2 before , and I'm not doing it again, it truly is amazing - for me its the holy grail of diets.

I exercise on fast days, when I did it previously I used to do two 1.5 hr runs every day (one morning, one evening) and rode my horses, was on my feet all day.

I've never suffered any ill effects, I always have so much more energy on fast days and my exercise routine seems easier on fast days vs non fast days.

I've just started the 5:2 again in the last few weeks, although I'm doing every other day fasting.
I don't run three hrs a day anymore, but I do 1.25 hrs of yoga, the 30 day shred and 3hrs of riding my horses per day, plus a lot of walking, mucking out etc.

I haven't had any I'll effects this time either, and I live in a pretty hot place too. Obviously YMMV, but fasting isn't the death knell for workouts

I should have added that when I used to do 3hrs per day running and fasting I used to have zero calories on fast days.
This time I stick to 500 calories on fast days, eaten in one meal at 5pm. I'm working up to zero calories on fast days again

Lower carb.

I do Intermittent Fasting (IF) where I fast for 16 hours per day and have an 8 hour eating window, where I just eat healthier choices. I cut back alcohol to just having a couple of drinks at weekends too.
I have PCOS and an underactive thyroid, so that causes weight loss to be a lot more difficult. The IF is supposed to be good for insulin resistance, which is common in women who have PCOS.

Blueskies, if you look up Maffetone training you can see how you can train your body to more efficiently utilise fat stores as an energy source during exercise. You start off running, for example, at a pretty low heart rate intensity however as your training progresses your speed gets faster at that same low heart rate as your body gets more efficient.

Calorie counting, reducing carbs, using mfp, drinking water, exercise, weighing myself at least weekly and exfoliating/massage.

The old 'eat less, move more' diet works like a dream for me.
I don't really count calories, apart from weighing things like pasta, rice, cheese, and measuring oil. I control my intake my using a smaller plate, eating at least 5 a day (of fruit and veg) and generally reducing or cutting out the crappy stuff. We all know what they are.
Exercise, do as much as possible, and walk as much as you can.

I’ve spent years (and too many £££ to mention) on various diets and slimming clubs but had a light bulb moment a few years ago when I realised that there is no special diet, or quick fix to weight loss - it’s all about calorie deficit and changing your way of life, forever!

I did 5:2 initially and although it worked initially, for me it wasn’t sustainable. I now use MFP and track everything I eat. I am 4 stone lighter than I was at my heaviest and have maintained this by sticking to around 1400 calories although there are days when I eat more or less. I also go to the gym.

My weight loss has been slow and steady at around 0.5lb-2lb per week but I feel this has helped me change my eating habits, hopefully for the long term.

I know from experience that weight loss isn’t as simple as my post sounds. I was an emotional eater and recognising that was important for me. Ive worked on changing my mindset by thinking more about what I’m eating and it’s effect on my body. For example, sugar and my blood sugar/risk of developing diabetes/heart disease etc

Start now OP and take things one day at a time - it’s a marathon not a sprint as they say.

I like MFP too, it is free and teaches you how much you need to eat, not overly restrict, but learn new habits so with time you instinctively know what portion sizes you need - it is good for those who binge / starve, as it is about moderation. NHS guide online is also good and around 1400 cals a day.

Most of these diets will work if you can stick to them. Hardly anyone can though, which is why pretty much everyone who diets eventually puts the weight back on (and often more).

Hardly anyone can though, which is why pretty much everyone who diets eventually puts the weight back on (and often more).

Sounds like sour grapes to me...

A healthy diet and enjoyable exercise regime is totally sustainable. If you've managed to re-educate yourself regarding portion sizes and what is a healthy balanced diet you won't feel hungry and you'll have more energy. If you find an exercise you enjoy what's not to like? You'll feel and look better.

It is partly sour grapes, but that doesn't mean it's not also largely true. It's not really about re-educating yourself imo. It's not rocket science that we eat too much and should cut down on refined carbs, sugar, unhealthier fats, eat more veg and do more exercise. It's not hard to understand, it's just hard to do (consistently), because people are busy, temptation is everywhere, and ingrained habits are very hard to break.

If it were as easy as you make it sound, then we wouldn't have an obesity crisis and weight loss wouldn't be a massive industry and an obsessive topic for millions of people.

I’ve been doing Noom recently
In essence it’s about calories counting, and caloric density (so low calories dense foods are good). I’ve lost 8 1/2 lbs in a month.
There’s also a lot of psychology about why we eat (and over eat) which I have found surprisingly helpful to date.
I’ve tried weight watchers in the past - I lost a good deal of weight and kept it off until I got pregnant then it all went to pot and I wound up much heavier

For me, what works is reducing (not removing) carbs and practising intermittent fasting.

I started off doing 5:2 but now, the more comfortable I get with fasting, I tend to do a couple of 24-hour fasts a week and the rest of the time eat in an 18:6ish window, although weekends can be more flexible I'm never giving up bacon sandwiches completely

Fundamentally I suppose it does boil down to just eating less (so, calorie deficit does matter) and better, but I'm far, far happier with a fasting lifestyle than simply counting calories which I think would make me hungry and fed-up all the time.

However, as always, YMMV.