Why We Eat (Too Much) thread 6

[TheLeadbetterLife]

Whoops, we let thread 5 get away from us a bit there...

I'm going to boringly copy-paste the previous thread opener, because it's too hot to be imaginative.

Welcome to thread 6 of discussion, encouragement and advice inspired by the book Why We Eat (Too Much), by Dr Andrew Jenkinson.

The basic principles of this "diet" (it's not one in the traditional sense, as it's meant to be a permanent set of changes), are as follows:

Cut out ultra-processed food

Massively reduce sugar, carbs, refined flours and wheat

Eat a wide variety of vegetables, whole grains and fruit

Eat full fat dairy and other healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil

Improve the ratio of omega 3 to 6 by eating greens, fish, eggs and grass-fed meat, and cutting out ultra-refined seed oils

Important lifestyle changes include getting plenty of rest, relaxation and sleep, as well as taking a moderate amount of exercise (or more, if you like that sort of thing).

You don't need to count calories (in fact, you shouldn't), though it may help to count carbs or glycemic load, at least to begin with, until you get the hang of it.

Some of us share recipes by following each other on Copy Me That - www.copymethat.com/recipebox/the-leadbetter-life/6661160/

As well as the book mentioned in the title, the principles are similar to those espoused by the likes of Rangan Chatterjee, Robert Lustig, Tim Spector and Michael Mosley.

There are many successes on this thread, and the main thing is that we are aiming to make permanent, sustainable changes to adjust our weight set-points downwards.

Join us!

@TheLeadbetterLife I'm so glad you tagged me I had no idea the old thread was full up, I thought everyone was on holiday 😂
@Jewel1968 I have read (or rather listened to) Burn: It was more about the energy consumption and how the body adjusts when we put stress on it (like lots of exercise) to burn fewer calories in other areas, so that statis is achieved: So basically doing a lot of exercise doesn't burn as many calories as you think: But the food side of it definitely follows this WOE, with the exception, yet again, of nuts and seeds! I liked it because it follows on from the Daniel Lieberman books (another anthropologist, the teacher of Pontzer) which goes into the physiology in detail:

My apologies @Jewel1968 ! ( and hi Sam!)

I just skim read a review that was somewhat negative about Burn, without reading it carefully.

I've found the exercise thing ( which I am familiar with ) to be broadly true, in that I can do many miles' walking over a week in the hills and lose some weight, but not as much as one would think.

In the gym, instructors always emphasise the importance of changing your routine regularly - first to prevent boredom and second to keep challenging the body in different ways; as it does adjust to the demands placed on it and progress can slow or stop.

So don't be daunted if you're new by all this exercise talk- I happen to enjoy it but masses of exercise is not part of the plan, and can be counter productive to weight loss.

Regarding exercise and weight loss did you see this study a couple of weeks back?

www.yourlifechoices.com.au/health/wellbeing/study-finds-naturally-slim-people-arent-more-active/amp/

Not a huge number of people but the thinner ones were overall less active but had a higher metabolic rate due to thyroid hormones in particular. I know when my thyroid went hyper I lost loads of weight very quickly but was too weak to do a lot of sport!

Well I seem to have shifted off my set point again. Another 2.7 pounds off this week, making six pounds in total this month, if it sticks.

I haven't seen that sort of thing since the early days and didn't think I would.

I've done nothing different, just same old thing. It's worth persisting if you're a bit stuck!

I’ve had a bad week, haven’t deviated from my rules, but a few more carbs and wine.

Sorry about your bad week billy. Things go a bit to pot for me when I am stressed too.

Interesting article, Sam. I lost very little during June- my high activity month. Now I am back to more moderate but consistent activity the weight seems to be coming off quite fast.

I definitely don't have a slim gene!

it's really interesting the way that works @Words - you must be so glad you stuck with it.

Oh our bodies work in odd ways, don't they @samthebordercollie - that's another interesting thing - the more we think we know about our bodies the more surprises there are.

Sorry to hear about your bad week @Billybagpuss - do you think you can dust off and keep going?

We have a moving day at least - this coming Tuesday. I have carried on eating the way I was, using up the occasional UPF but mainly whole or minimal processed foods. I know I am having too few calories, I have been pushing to have more but I do feel full. I have still been losing but the scales are packed now so I won't know for a while how it goes.

Hope all goes well on moving day Boots , and good plan to ease into this gradually.

Hope it's not too stressful, and that you are able to settle in quickly.

I'm going off plan today as having coffee and cake with a friend, before going whinberry picking ( if we can find any! )

Been sticking to the plan 90% of the time and only deviating slightly occasionally. I've definitely realised the truth in the adage that the best bite is the first one, so when I have eaten something off-plan I have been very definite about only taking a small amount and savouring the first taste of it. I used to just eat things 'because they were there' and take second helpings even if I wasn't hungry enough to enjoy them properly.

We have a birthday in the house this week, so I'll allow myself a small helping of cake, but one helping only.

I've been enjoying the good weather and getting outside for more walking and exercising recently. My period is due however, and I always find I am heavier at this time of the month, so I'm not going to weigh myself again until it is finished.

@Tiredandbored those are such wise words, and so true.

Also exactly what I needed to hear. My cake yesterday was delicious ( first bite the best as you say) but then we both bought a takeaway slice too. Much as I hate 'wasting' food I think I might ditch it.

Not least because I am two pounds up on Saturday today! ( thought it was too good to be true!)

It's all about balance isn't it. Having the odd slip up and treat - because that's life, isn't it- without it turning into a full on disaster. So elusive.

Hello all, just checking in to the new thread as I find you all so inspiring. I had a good few weeks back on it before my holiday and lost more weight than I have gained while away so I am pleased with that. Too jet lagged to get started again properly at the moment but I know what I need to do.

Welcome back @SerenadeOfTheSchoolRun and fabulous work, whilst away, well done!

Yesterday I discarded my take away cake. I felt all out of sorts for no reason I could fathom, as well as tired and bleary. Ate home made chocolate pot pudding in the evening from the freezer.

I think it was the sugar and flour from the previous day that triggered this - I am so not used to it, it seems to have a disproportionate effect on me these days.

Sugar calls to sugar. First bite always the best. I will try and remember those for next time....

Hello can i join. I've been following the principles broadly but I'm too scared to weigh myself! I need to be accountable to others!

Well done for throwing the cake away @Words. I would never have shown such fortitude.

Welcome back @SerenadeOfTheSchoolRun and hello @Crazykefir . I know what you mean about feeling reluctant to weigh. Why not just start the diet and after a couple of weeks if you're feeling good about it (and you might look or feel like you're losing weight by then), get on the scales? Or just measure instead of weighing.

One thing I've noticed over the past few months, since I've been focusing on building muscle and exercising more, is that although my measurements have stayed the same, my weight has gone up a bit. I look more toned and muscly, so can only assume that it is actually true that muscle weighs more than fat. I'd always half thought it was one of those things people say when they're kidding themselves... like, "ah, but rugby players have a high BMI!".

I realise in retrospect that last year, when I lost 10kg within two or three months, I was losing weight too quickly and not eating enough. I wasn't hungry, but I must have been low on protein because my B12 and ferritin levels ended up borderline and my hair thinned. I probably lost too much muscle as well as fat. I don't really care that I've gained a couple of kilos, because it's not showing on the tape measure and I'm much fitter than I was.

We are away this week but I am technically working so DH is doing the cooking... he listened to the last episode of the podcast with me on the drive up and is shocked at the meals he's planned to make 'from scratch' (genuinely a lot of proper cooking going on) still containing a lot of UPF.

I won't have access to my fancy scales until September so am doing what we've nicknamed the coat test. I can get the material to meet in the middle now even if it doesn't zip up yet 😆

TheLeadbetterLife thanks for the positivity. I'll use the tapemasure for now.

Hello@Crazykefir And welcome. I second the idea about leaving the weighing until you feel some positivity. That's what I always used to do. Totally understand the reluctance however. We understand on here!

I'm back to last week's low after what I am sure was an insulin induced change after some off plan cake eating and sugar at the weekend.

@TheLeadbetterLife - throwing the extra cake away felt both liberating and transgressive at the same time! Not wasting food is so deeply engrained in my psyche after my parents' wartime childhoods. And of course I very much wanted to eat it! That mantra about first bite being best has really resonated with me,

I've also noticed that I often get a false hunger sensation setting in two hours after I've eaten, especially if I have not been very strict. This is exactly when my 16:8 fasting app tells me my insulin is peaking. If I ignore it, it goes away, unlike real hunger.

Sorry to hear about your bad week @Billybagpuss - do you think you can dust off and keep going

the thing about this woe is as Even on a bad week I’m not eating sweets, cake or biscuits I’m not getting drawn back in. My bad week was more wine (I do need to be careful a bit with that) and binging peanuts and plain crisps neither of which I find long term addictive, so although I’m 2lb up at the mo, that’s just normal fluctuations and I know I’ll be ok.

This is so fascinating! I bought the book probably last year and have started it but put it down as found it a bit dry/heavy. Then yesterday I was reading a UPF thread which led me to the doctor twins' podcast and I was shocked. I feel completely naive and I'm not a naive person. I didn't realise the food industry is so bad and is allowed to get away with basically killing us too strong?

My current diet is probably 100% UPFs and actually always has been. I'm from a family that doesn't cook and I lack the skills and knowledge too.

I'm consistently 2 stone overweight and am addicted to diet fizzy drinks.

I'm fuming. I have 3 weeks off work to get this sorted!

One question for now: what about the effects of butter, cheese etc on cholesterol?

Thank you! 😊

I really need to get back on this. Have been away for the weekend and ate loads of crap. I've also not been eating meat but had some last night (home made burger) and now feel really sick, don't know if it's that or the heat!!

Don't worry about cholesterol unless you have family / genetic issues with it. It's things like trans fats and seed oils (the stuff in UPFs) that have the bad type of cholesterol.

If you eat plenty of fibre in the form of a wide variety of vegetables (especially greens) and good protein, you won't have much room left for heaps of butter and cheese. Fats like extra virgin olive oil and fish oil are extremely good for you, they can lower triglycerides and raise HDL cholesterol levels, which protect the heart.

If you're eating a lot of UPF and fizzy drinks, just focus on cutting them out for now and once you're used to it you can get into the finer details of stuff like the omega ratios and what not.

As Robert Lustig says, "eat real food, protect the liver, feed the gut".

This means whole, unprocessed ("real") food. Cut out most sugar, especially fructose ("protect the liver"), eat a wide variety of fibre in the form of vegetables, pulses etc., as well as full fat live yoghurt ("feed the gut").

You don't need to cook that much on this diet, I don't. I have raw vegetables with homemade mayonnaise every day for lunch. Raw oats and nuts with yoghurt, celery with peanut butter, hard boiled eggs etc. Raw vegetables have the most fibre anyway, though cooked ones can release more nutrients so it's good to have a mix.

For dinner most evenings we have something very simple and quick like omelette, Thai curries, mackerel/sardine salad. At weekends we make a batch of bolognese or roast a chicken and use the leftovers for a couple of days. We have bolognese sauce with vegetables (green beans last night, with some parmesan grated over) and find we don't miss the pasta.

Start by learning a few easy recipes (we can help on this thread) and build up your repertoire. Cooking is a form of processing, so actually the less faff and complication involved the better, if you look at it that way.

Good afternoon. I am secret reader of this thread (and previous one) as this woe really resonates with me. I didn't read the book yet (it's on my list though), but I just wanted to let you know that you have peepers here 😆

Can you tell me please which seed oils are bad and make our cholesterol high? I guess sunflower oil, but anything else apart from it?

Well I probably simplified it a bit (and I don't claim to understand it all properly either - I find Jenkinson's laboured metaphor for cholesterol in the book harder to understand than if he just used the scientific terms).

I think broadly the issue is that the seed oils that are widely used in all processed food (not just UPFs) put a lot of oxidative stress on the body, and have way too much omega 6. These are things like sunflower oil. So they interact with other functions and between them they raise the bad type of LDL.

It's all very complicated, so I try to simplify it by only using extra virgin olive oil, butter or lard at home. Occasionally coconut oil. This means these are the only fats I have 95% of the time (except for the fats naturally in the food I eat). I tend to use the lard for cooking, as olive oil and butter aren't great at high temperatures.

I think there's a very strong genetic element to cholesterol anyway, and there are different types of LDL, so it's not as simple as LDL=bad either.

My husband and I had our fasting cholesterol tested a few months ago. Our triglycerides were really, really low and our HDL above 60, which is great. But my LDL was about 100 and his was 175 I think. Who knows why? We eat the same things. Robert Lustig says if your HDL is above 60 and your triglycerides are low that it almost doesn't matter what the LDL is, because the ratio between them all means you're protected. Something like that, anyway!

Thank you for such a comprehensive reply!

I won't keep asking questions until I've done some more reading, but can I eat pasta and rice? Just thinking of family meals. I'm a vegetarian so struggle a bit.