How do you keep your weight under control?

[LoveAlways]

Give up Honey? Yea right!

http://www.slate.com/id/2196205/ THe great honey debate


Wow I am really shocked at the negative comments towards vegans. I live around a great many of them and they are the healthiest ppl I know!!

You have to know what to eat though. You cant just cut out all dairy and meat and not subsitute them with anything. There are LOTS of options out there. If you do some research and dedicate yourself I guarantee you will see the many rewards.


As for me, I TRY to maintain my weight but its really hard without a good support system. My boyfriend and our surrounding family all dont care a single bit what they eat--they'll eat anything as long as its fried and has heaps of mayonaise. My bf boasts that since he was bulimic and anorexic in HS he now has an "amazing" metabolism so he doesn't have to worry a bit about how he eats. Well isn't that just great for him?!?!?

In the meantime here I am, a petite female who has always had issues with weight. Put 5 lbs on a small frame and you notice it right away!!

I try to limit my portions as best I can without being rude. I eat a salad everyday and make sure it has as many veggies I can pack in, and no fatty dressings!! And I take my dog for a lengthy walk everyday...I'm not sure how well this is all working since I just found out I might be pregnant. At least now I know where that extra weight has come from!

 

[KStoner6tb]

>>Now I don't know how well they adhered to the 'correct' vegan diet, but I'm assuming they did. >>

Hmm, I assume they didn't eat a 'correct' diet because they weren't getting enough protein! ..which is very easy if you can eat enough beans, grains, and failing that pure protein shakes.

With that being said, the main reason I stopped being vegan after two years was an intense craving for meat and a general feeling of sickness/lethargy (I did however feel GREAT for a year and a half of being vegan). The first huge steak I ate caused zero intestinal distress and was delicious. I was getting enough protein before this for sure, it was something specifically about the meat that I needed.

My point being, a vegan is not necessarily healthy or unhealthy. It just depends on the person and their diet.

Beans are a mediocore source or protein, and grains are belove average. Why do you think you felt lethargic??? You're trying to say you didn't feel that way at the beginning of the vegan experience, so it could not have been the absence of meat?? I don't get it because what was it exactly that you "needed" from the meat? Obviously something good. Please explain

 

[euphoria]

I eat a shit load of food (healthy food mind you) and drink a lot of beer. My secret is to be as active as possible. I work out every day (except for the weekends). When I'm hanging out I am usually doing something active as well like hiking, swimming, dancing or something similar. I keep away from bad carbs as much as I can, and I know not to try and starve myself because it just ends up in some crazy chowing down later on... i know what my body is used to and I try and keep consistent every day. If I eat a ton of food one day, I'll just try to work out extra hard the next. It all evens out in the end.

 

[ebola?]

no offense but vegans are very unhealthy

No offense, but you will need to substantiate your claim with evidence.

I always find it funny when people promote veganism as the solution to all health problems. They're always just so damn sure too. There are diseases and health problems that come from only eating vegetables/fruits just like there are problems that come from eating lots of meat/cheese/animal products.

Which diseases are correlated with over-consumption of fruits and veggies (this would be excluding over-consumption of grains, refined and processed food, etc., which is common to most Americans)?

Fact is, vegans do miss out on certain foods that do aid in the acceleration of the metabolism

Which foods would these be?

Most vegans do not see enough protein from their diets, hence I don't believe it is one of the most effective ways of managing weight.

Please cite some evidence. I've crunched some numbers, and it is pretty easy to consume sufficient protein for a training athlete as a vegan, given that some protein centric food (legume, soy, or nut) is consumed at every meal (per the ADA standards).

Last time I checked, sunlight didn't provide a decent protein%.

Distracting farce aside. . .
...
Truth be told, getting the proper quantity of zinc and the proper ratio of omega-3 fatty acids are far greater issues for vegans than consuming adequate protein.
...
Being vegan is no magic solution...neither is eating an omnivorous diet (clearly). People may adopt healthy or unhealthy diets within either of these domains.

ebola

 

[KStoner6tb]

No offense, but you will need to substantiate your claim with evidence.



Which diseases are correlated with over-consumption of fruits and veggies (this would be excluding over-consumption of grains, refined and processed food, etc., which is common to most Americans)?

I didn't make this quote, someone else did

A lot of vegan testimonials that I have read about, state a general feeling of lethargicness, or just not a sense of general well-being. This certainly is not helpful in keeping with a athletic lifestyle(weight loss)

I'll admit, I am little biased, as I am more into the weight lifting aspect of exercise; where protein is of the upmost importance( and more like 1-1.5 grams per lb. of body weight, not the .37 gram stated in a vegan diet I researched)

There are benefits and downsides to every 'diet.' I guess one just has to try it out and see if it works for them. I know everyone's different, and hell, what works for you works for you. Tell you what though, how about we start a little contest now and see who can lose the highest body fat %, using our own ways. We'll then compare notes(and pictures ) in say...2 months? JK, but seriously maybe 3 months...That was the title of the thread; weight loss right?

 

[ebola?]

I didn't make this quote, someone else did

Whoops. My mistake.

A lot of vegan testimonials that I have read about, state a general feeling of lethargicness, or just not a sense of general well-being. This certainly is not helpful in keeping with a athletic lifestyle(weight loss)

To put it bluntly, if I were to have felt generalized lethargy or malaise upon going vegan, I would have changed my diet drastically, either retooling it while remaining vegan or simply reverting to what I was eating before. No healthy diet is supposed to make you feel bad, with the exception that people will feel hungry when they address prior overeating.

I'll admit, I am little biased, as I am more into the weight lifting aspect of exercise; where protein is of the upmost importance( and more like 1-1.5 grams per lb. of body weight, not the .37 gram stated in a vegan diet I researched)

I will concede that it would be rather difficult to maintain 1.5 g/lb protein/body weight on a vegan diet, but this is the upper limit of what a competitive body-builder would need. Most of us aren't training at that level. I found it quite easy to get .5 g/lb as a vegan, which would be fine for a training endurance athlete.

Tell you what though, how about we start a little contest now and see who can lose the highest body fat %, using our own ways. We'll then compare notes(and pictures ) in say...2 months? JK, but seriously maybe 3 months...That was the title of the thread; weight loss right?

This sounds good, but I have a couple qualms:

1. I'm not currently eating a vegan diet. No, I didn't revert to lacto-ovo vegetarian for health reasons (it just got too annoying at restaurants).
2. I have not tailored my diet and lifestyle to minimize body-fat percentage. Rather, I have struck my own balance between maximizing performance as an endurance athlete and outright hedonism. I let myself do some enjoyable things that are less than healthy.
3. I would imagine that those who begin with high body fat percentages will have the easiest time losing a large body fat percentage.
...
I'd be happy to challenge you to a bike race though.

ebola

 

[PoOkIeHeAd]

okay i am surprised no one has mentioned this so far but if it has been forgive me.

good rule:
dont eat within at least 3 hours of bedtime but preferrably make it 5 hours from bedtime. follow this rule and you are pretty much guaranteed great results i have found. but when i say dont eat, i mean absolutely nothing!

 

[Perpetual Indulgence]

Not eating excessively and keeping your choices healthy will help maintain your weight. It doesn't matter what time you eat. It is the total calories consumed in a day.

 

[Mehm]

Beans are a mediocore source or protein, and grains are belove average. Why do you think you felt lethargic??? You're trying to say you didn't feel that way at the beginning of the vegan experience, so it could not have been the absence of meat?? I don't get it because what was it exactly that you "needed" from the meat? Obviously something good. Please explain

please quantify this. are you saying that the protein from beans and grain is somehow not absorbed?

Before I became vegan, my diet was based on fast food and candy. Becoming vegan forced me to cook for myself, learn a bunch about nutrition, drink protein shakes (making "getting enough protein absurdly easy), and have a bigger focus on health. Obviously I felt better than I did before. When I then added delicious meat, cheese, and eggs back into what was already healthy, I did even better. Not a very good explanation but I have to go to work :D

Sorry about the thread hijacking!

 

[ebola?]

Not eating excessively and keeping your choices healthy will help maintain your weight. It doesn't matter what time you eat. It is the total calories consumed in a day.

I concur. limiting eating prior to bed "works" because it decreased total caloric intake.

Before I became vegan, my diet was based on fast food and candy. Becoming vegan forced me to cook for myself, learn a bunch about nutrition, drink protein shakes (making "getting enough protein absurdly easy), and have a bigger focus on health.

Same here.

ebola

 

[KStoner6tb]

3. I would imagine that those who begin with high body fat percentages will have the easiest time losing a large body fat percentage.
...

ebola

I agree with you there. But I believe the hardest is to go anywhere beneath around 12-15% body fat. That's where you can really tell who's serious about ANY diet. You can reach 12-15% with a sensible diet and exercise. Anything under that is a son of a bitch. Getting into the single digits has always been a goal of mine, but Mr. Coors dosen't necessarliy agree ..Other than my alcohol consumption, my diet is pretty lean!! Damn depression. Oh well, I'm going to get serious here pretty soon and ditch the code blue

 

[KStoner6tb]

Not eating excessively and keeping your choices healthy will help maintain your weight. It doesn't matter what time you eat. It is the total calories consumed in a day.

It does help to eat your last meal a while before you go to bed because you will always burn more calories awake.

 

[ebola?]

>>I agree with you there. But I believe the hardest is to go anywhere beneath around 12-15% body fat. That's where you can really tell who's serious about ANY diet. You can reach 12-15% with a sensible diet and exercise. Anything under that is a son of a bitch. Getting into the single digits has always been a goal of mine, but Mr. Coors dosen't necessarliy agree ..Other than my alcohol consumption, my diet is pretty lean!! Damn depression. Oh well, I'm going to get serious here pretty soon and ditch the code blue>>

Yup. I'm right at like 15. Fairly happy with it though.

 

[MynameisnotDeja]

no offense but vegans are very unhealthy
i was one for a long time, i was in the worst shape ever and i was chunky as can be

when i put meat and PROTEIN back into my diet i lost the weight i put on from being a vegan


the way to lose weight and keep it off is to eat healthy portions
5 small meals a day, start your day with a hearty breakfast and DONT SNACK!!
working out is good too

No offense, but this is crap. I'm sorry, I guess some of you guys didn't have the proper education about how to eat, just the fact that you said you had to put protein back into your diet after being vegan demonstrates this. Of course you were sick if you were not eating protein! Just because you weren't eating meat how does that translate into not eating protein!?

Education..education..education. There are OTHER forms of protein besides meat.

Sorry I don't mean to get all harsh about this but the whole vegetarian/veganism is unhealthy thing ALL stems from a lack of education about HOW TO EAT properly. And it gives veggies a bad name when people go into it without learning what they need to learn, FAIL, and then blame the lifestyle not their choices.

Sorry Lady, I'm not directing this rant at you personally its just something I've seen a LOT and it drives me crazy. I'm three years vegetarian and I eat vegan some of the time too and I'm perfectly healthy.

In fact the only dietary thing that was harming my health was GLUTEN. Take that out and I'm glowing.