Don't Starve! The Eat More to Weigh Less Group

[ShirleyKnot]

Hello!

OK, stemming from this thread I promised to start a thread to explain a little bit more about eating well and still losing weight.

I'll start by telling you about me because I love to talk about me

About 5 years ago (when I was 34) I went back to work full time, this time locally, in a sedentiary desk job. I drive to work everyday and was often far too busy lazy to do any exercise at all. My weight remained fairly static (At about 11 stones, I'm 5ft 7.5 and fairly chunky) for a good couple of years and then it started creeping up.

For the past two years I have skipped on and off WW, SW and I have tried low calorie diets, the lot. My weight has gone up to 12 stone 11 lbs at it's highest and I'm carrying it pretty much all over. My gut though TERRIBLE - It hangs over my knickers and in January my size 16 clothes were starting to strain.

Miserable ain't the word. It has affected my confidence (yes, honestly) and I know that at my age (39) it is only going to get harder to lose.

So, in January I started back on WW. I watched everything I ate, I thought about food compulsively, I went for walks in my lunch hour, and every weekend I fell off the wagon and stuffed my face. WHY? It makes no sense! I gobbled bread and cakes and biscuits and sweets like mad.

In April, after having lost and gained the same 7lbs over and over again I joined BIWI's Low Carb Bootcamp, and started upping my exercise at the gym (Doing classes mainly and swimming and I also started the Couch 2 5K) this is where it got weird...I stuck to the diet, it was pretty easy! I loved the food and didn't feel hungry at all - my endurance during exercise was affected but I thought I'd break through that barrier sooner or later. I watched as people on the thread lost masses of weight and I was completely stalled out. What? WHY IS THIS HAPPENING? I believe that during this time I was eating a good couple of thousand calories per day, plus exercising almost every day.

I left the group as I felt so fed up with not losing and limped back to my fitness pal, but decided to stick with the no crap (no white bread/pasta/rice, easy on the white potatoes, easy on the fruit) WOE. MFP gave me a calorie limit of 1,200 cals per day and I did this for a a few days before starting to feel rotten. I started looking around the MFP community pages and found the Eat More To Weigh Less Group and read every link, and lots of the discussion boards.

It was a lightbulb moment - WHY was I expecting my body to cope on less calories than it needs just to exist? WHYYYYY?

I started EMTWL on 16th May and have lost 1 lb. That doesn't really mean very much though, as the scales are FILTHY liars - but I have eaten very well and am losing inches consistently. Since I started eating more calories (I include BIWI's brilliant Bootcamp in this calculation) I have lost 4.5 inches from my waist and a good couple of inches from my hips, arse and bust. I have dropped a dress size.

OK. I'm going to post this essay and then I'm going to talk a bit about metabolic rate calculations and the sciency bits.

I'm Frowsty on MFP, add me please?

I have got 1400 calories left to eat - WTF??

I've decided to SAFTS for this week, stick to my TDEE and see what happens.
Bad news is TDEE is 1800 cals - good news is I have 300 left today!

Not feeling hungry at all as I've just had a big portion of chicken pie, but I think I'll have a baked spud before bed.

I feel as if a lot of stuff is coming back to me - I also used to drink loads of water, never seen without a bottle for years, would drink it over tea or coffee when in people's houses . Was thin. I then had a bad stomach bug, couldn't face it swilling around inside me and never got back into the habit.

And what I've eaten today is just the same as when I was sugar free and thin, same time as the water thing.
I used to aim to eat a good dose of protein plus brown carbs and veg with every meal, no white carbs or sugar in any form (even honey or agave syrup), then a baked spud for supper. It was all about balancing your blood sugar to keep your mood level and avoid depression. For sugar addicts.
Fell off that wagon and gained 2 1/2 stone.

D'you reckon I could fit in a fitness sesh tonight? Like the look of Shirl's heavy lifting. Might try next time I'm in the gym.

I've added Toby, foosty and frowsty as friends. My MFP name is the same as my username here. Too long to type. Though not as long as this explanation.

Am doing fairly well, though perhaps concentrating a bit too much on the numbers rather than the macros - cheesecake yesterday, ice cream today - though Shirley did say numbers first, macros later!

This is such a revelation - off to download the ebook recommendation. Thanks to whoever posted the link (Knitknack I think).

Shite. I'm over by 31 calories. Today is a rest day, to be fair. But still, it's a bit annoying.

Ah well. Tomorrow's another day.

DO THE FITNESS SESH!

I went and did body combat after work. My hair is still wet with sweat.

I tried quinoa tonight. I've never cooked it before but it's not complicated and I had it with some chorizo and sun dried tomatoes. It was delicious and quite high in protein. [yay face]

31 calories is NOTHING at all!

Please don't feel bad, I often go over by up to 100 - it's really not a big deal.

Oh cheers Shirl I wont shoot the messenger though and will try and only eat a couple of choccie digestives at a time and only as a special treat.

ARF!

Im still struggling to eat enough which seems weird for a fat bird I must admit i do like the diet drinks at night as it stops me drinking wine.

Thanks Maryz and shirl for the concise explainations. so basically its eat more cals but mostly made up of healthy/wholesome choices.I can manage that i think.

I do lots of low weight reps but might try the higher ones next time.

I am very nervous of over eating after years of diets but it makes sense of all the times ive tried sw and ww and lost about half a pound (a good shit really) when i knew id hardly eaten a thing

Yeah, but I wanted a gin and tonic tonight I know. Tomorrow is gym day again, and I will go at it bastard hard to allow me booze tomorrow night make up for today :o

Right, am getting my Shred DVD back from my mum tomorrow. Can't really use the C section as an excuse 11.5 weeks on. Maybe this time I'll make it further than Level 2 Day 2.

I have 200 calories left today but no fat grammes. I think I'll eat canned peaches.

What can I put on toast that's not as fatty as Anchor Lighter Spreadable? Butter derivatives are looking to be my downfall.

Oooh, that's a point, Maryz. I hoovered and mopped the kitchen floor - that's exercise too!

I'm 3 days in and doing well and feeling full. Just measured myself rather than weighing and marked it on calendar.

Oooh I also discovered lidl 70% chocolate! Cheaper than branded choc and just and nice. In my lidl they have plain, nutty, or with orange or raspberry!
Lidl is my favourite place right now!

I'm still 200 cals below my BMR, and I'm so full! :(

It's weird eating so much!! But at the same time I'm craving sugar like a mad thing (sugar addict, trying to break it) so I'm stuffed, have eaten loads, but am dying for a sweet cup of tea or something! Feel very 'clean' though, and much happier :)

I'm off to find something more to eat. I have 500 cals left, but have walked loads today. Mum of 2 with buggy, by the time I drop one at school and another at pre-school I have walked for about 45mins quite fast (we are often running late ).

I'm a big fan of weights, I originally read Strong Women Stay Young: there's a website too, which was originally a study with women using highest weight possible 2 x 8-12 reps but slowly.

The other thing about weights is in Arthur de Vaney's book on paleo diet, quite extreme low carb but bear with me... his weights are supposed to use both fast twitch and slow twitch muscles. Start with low weight and do 15reps slowly, counting to 5 for each one. Then up to a middle weight and do 9-10 reps fast, counting to 2 for each one. Lastly, choose higher weight and do 4-5 reps fast, but build up to this gradually.

Sorry no links I'm on my phone.

Why isn't the sexing in the MFP exercise database? :o

How many calories does it take to pull your nightie down when he's finished?

Shotgun - have you read Potatoes not Prozac? It is an interesting book if you are a sugar addict!

I'm just tucking into some greek yoghurt with nuts and apricots and a bit of honey. Yum yum. Still going to be about 500 calories under for the day...