When you stop eating crap and up the exercise how soon would you expect to see results?

[AtYourCervix]

I have virtually given up alcohol and have not eaten any bread or fat. Have I lost any weight? No! not one single pound.

Why? what is the point of giving up nice stuff if it has no benefit?

how long ago did you give it up ayc?

and also, are you calorie counting? and what kind of exercise are you doing?

only 8 days ago but I did the same for the whole of Lent without anything. Going to the gym 3 or 4 times a week. no cheese, no bread, no wine, no pasta, no potatoes, no butter, AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAh.

AYC, I've been "good" for weeks now, plodding along at 1lb a week but I have lost inches so make sure you measure yourself.

so bloody disheartning.

My mantra is "just keep plodding" I WILL get there....eventually!

Off to work now AYC. I recently joined MFP, don't log my diary much but find the community board interesting/inspiring.

hmmm it can take a while, don't give it up, i would imagine you would start seeing results soon.

also its great that you are exercising as that will start to turn fat into muscle so although you may not be losing lots of weight, this is because muscle weighs a bit more than fat so you may be smaller and more toned but not necessarily weigh any less. and the more you exercise the faster your metabolism will be which will burn more calories.

the thing that works for me most is calorie counting, i don't not eat certain foods, ie bread or fat, i eat anything but in moderation. calorie counting is a bit painstaking at first but you soon get used to it. i keep like a food diary on my blackberry and try not to go above about 1700 cals a day. and at the moment i am at my optimum weight so i have weekends "off" and just eat whatever i want. but i would say if you want to lose weight quite quickly go for 1500 calories a day until you have lost what you want to lose.

i tend to go for low GI stuff which basically means food that fills you up for longer so you're not going round starving all the time. a typical day for me would be (calories are approx btw) :

breakfast-wholemeal toast with peanut butter (2 slice) =400 calories

mid morning-apple =50 cals

lunch- 1 egg on wholemeal toast = 250 cals

mid afternoon-banana = 100 cals

evening meal-grilled chicken, savoury rice and veg with a bit of cheese mixed in the rice (feta is good) = 550 cals

then you'd have "enough" calories left for a snack like a small bar of chocolate or something, say a bag of maltesers which are about 200 cals so your total intake for the day would be like 1550 calories.

also remember that our bodies need some fat in our diets so don't cut it out entirely but try and go for "good" fats such as avocado, nuts, olive oil etc, google "good fats" for more ideas.

hope that helps, sorry its so long, but it really works for me :)

You should loose even the first week provided you have sensible portion control on the rest of your food, unless maybe its coming up to TOTM.

If you did that for the whole of lent without loosing then I think you need to rethink your diet plan it obviously doesn't work for you.

I do low fat and moderate carbs - so no bread, rice, potatoes, pasta etc etc, but have one small portion a day of wholegrains (pulses, brown rice, oats or quinoa) plus I have 2 pieces of (low sugar) fruit (ie apple/pear) and also fat free dairy. I have one portion of healthy fat each day - eg olive oil, nuts, avocado, oily fish.

In terms of treats if you can loose and have a treat each day then go for it, but I couldn't particularly when I got near goal - I can have a treat each day now that I am maintaining though. A treat would be up to 100 cals eg dark chocolate or a del monte fat free smoothie lolly.

If you are more than 2 stone over weight should be able to loose 2lbs a week, if you just have a stone to go then 1lb a week more realistic.

i am doomed to be fat forever. humph.

A week

I can lose up to 2lbs in a week by cutitng out the crap and not exercising

How is your portion size?

portion size in the last week has been abso-bloody-lutely minute.

i have eaten salad, vegetables, fruit and cottage chees (with the occasional slimfast shite lobbed in when i am at work to avoid the sandwiches).

adding it up about 1000cal a day (if not less). (am on pre-holiday despearate measures - not a permenant solution but to give a beginning boost type thing). surely you'd expect to see a bit of a drop?

I rarely eat crisps, biscuits or chocolate. I eat takeaways about once a year. I don't fry stuff. My normal diet is pretty bloody healthy. I do like wine and eat probably too much cheese and bread but haven't had these for a while either.

AND I AM STILL THE BLOODY SAME SIZE. honestly i loook like someone of supersize who eats a vat of chips and pizzas every day.

off

Less than 1,000 calories is not good. Even on a diet you should be aiming for a minimum of 1,200 and more if you are exercising regularly. If your body is switching into 'starvation mode' then you will not be burning off fat.

If you are turning muscle into fat your weight might not go down. I have been dieting and shredding for two months and have lost a whole 1kg. But I am a lot slimmer all over, I can even see my ribs.

don't feel smaller either though. wouldn't mind weighing the same as a medium sized elephant if i looked smaller.

No, you are not destined to be fat forever. But I find also that a plateau for several weeks and then loose several pounds at once. I am destined to be on a diet forever though if I want to maintain weight loss, but now (8 months in) feels less like diet and more like a thin person's way of eating.

Have you had thyroid checked by GP? How much do you weigh and how tall?

1. Do not touch the slimfast bars EVER. Better to have a sandwich (a low fat one on brown bread, eg from boots shapers range etc). My work lunch is a can of tuna and a 200g pot of natural yoghurt (as its easy) but I can see thats not for everyone!

2. 1200 should be a minimum amount of calories, esp when exercising, do not go lower.

3. If your weight really is not shifting try giving up fruit until your holiday. Have eggs for breakfast, tuna (or cottage cheese or other fish) salad for lunch, natural fat free yoghurts for snacks and grilled chicken breast etc (or white fish) with veggies for dinner. Small portions of pulses ok too if you need some carbs in diet, or occasional brown rice (ie 50g cooked). Make sure at least 1200 calories a day, and eat stacks of (non starchy) veggies.

4. Drink water and herbal and green tea ONLY (no alchohol, caffiene or artificial sweetners).

i have even given up diet coke

Try reading Tim Feriss's "4 Hour Body" - lots of really amazing tips on weight loss.

He claims that some people don't loose if eating fruit or if drinking diet coke.