Weight loss options

[Puzzicato]

Maybe you don't actually eat as much as you think you do? Or maybe it is just a habit you have got into? But try eating more low GI foods - that should give you a more sustained energy release, and try drinking some warm water or herb tea when you feel hungry soon after a meal.

 

[Stray Cat]

and try drinking some warm water or herb tea when you feel hungry soon after a meal.

I did this.. I noticed that I'm.. bloated. Like Vinnie the Pooh.
It's spring here, so I'm eating more fruits and veggies.. they help (well, at least they are "calorie friendly")

 

[rue]

Question.... Has anyone given up diet pop and lost weight?
I haven't had any for two weeks and I haven't lost a thing. I thought I would at least shrink in size [huh]

 

[sheeplady]

I did this.. I noticed that I'm.. bloated. Like Vinnie the Pooh.
It's spring here, so I'm eating more fruits and veggies.. they help (well, at least they are "calorie friendly")

I don't want to get too personal here, but are you really really bloated? Like looking pregnant type of bloated? Are you retaining water? (How to tell if you are retaining water: weigh yourself in the morning (called morning naked weight- no clothes on before anything goes in your mouth- water, food, etc.) and at night (naked again).) If you are retaining water, your legs will also feel heavy, and your rings will not fit correctly. You can actually feel the excess fluid in your fingers if you knead them.

Sometimes we retain water when we eat too salty things, eat too many carbs, eat something we are senstive to (MSG is one for me), or there may be something else going on which is more serious. If your weight difference is extreme, you might be retaining a massive amount of fluid, especially if you are very hungry all the time (feeling like you need to eat), craving carbs, and having massive bloating.

I was actually quite sick for about two years, and my weight difference between morning and night would be 10-15-20 or more pounds (normal for me is under 5). It was getting to the point where I could not climb the stairs to my apartment. I can go more into the cause and what I did to get over it, but I really don't want to derail this thread.

 

[Puzzicato]

Question.... Has anyone given up diet pop and lost weight?
I haven't had any for two weeks and I haven't lost a thing. I thought I would at least shrink in size [huh]

What are you drinking instead? Isn't the point behind diet soda that it doesn't make you put on weight?

 

[rue]

What are you drinking instead? Isn't the point behind diet soda that it doesn't make you put on weight?

I'm drinking Crystal Light, but mostly water. I cut out all carbonated beverages, so that I wouldn't feel bloated. Ever since I had two cesareans, my stomach has been an issue no matter how skinny I am or how many sit-ups I do.

 

[Land-O-LakesGal]

I'm drinking Crystal Light, but mostly water. I cut out all carbonated beverages, so that I wouldn't feel bloated. Ever since I had two cesareans, my stomach has been an issue no matter how skinny I am or how many sit-ups I do.

Rue I think its just pregnancy in general I two natural child births and I don't think my stomach will ever be flat again.

 

[Land-O-LakesGal]

I did this.. I noticed that I'm.. bloated. Like Vinnie the Pooh.
It's spring here, so I'm eating more fruits and veggies.. they help (well, at least they are "calorie friendly")

I find protein helps me feel more ful than but ultuimately the fiber and protein combo is probably the best.

 

[rue]

Rue I think its just pregnancy in general I two natural child births and I don't think my stomach will ever be flat again.

Aww...... darn

My mom told me I should get surgery, but I hate going to something simple like the dentist, so I really don't think I'll be doing that

I swear my teenage daughter stole my body, but she won't give it back lol

 

[mrtman]

If it tastes good....spit it out!!!!

 

[Bluebird Marsha]

I prefer the opposite advice from Anton Ego:
I don't LIKE food. I LOVE it. If I don't love it, I don't SWALLOW.

 

[Stray Cat]

I find protein helps me feel more ful than but ultuimately the fiber and protein combo is probably the best.

Yeah, I read about that.
I try to opt for high fiber foods..

I don't want to get too personal here, but are you really really bloated? Like looking pregnant type of bloated? Are you retaining water? (How to tell if you are retaining water: weigh yourself in the morning (called morning naked weight- no clothes on before anything goes in your mouth- water, food, etc.) and at night (naked again).) If you are retaining water, your legs will also feel heavy, and your rings will not fit correctly. You can actually feel the excess fluid in your fingers if you knead them.

Sometimes we retain water when we eat too salty things, eat too many carbs, eat something we are senstive to (MSG is one for me), or there may be something else going on which is more serious. If your weight difference is extreme, you might be retaining a massive amount of fluid, especially if you are very hungry all the time (feeling like you need to eat), craving carbs, and having massive bloating.

I was actually quite sick for about two years, and my weight difference between morning and night would be 10-15-20 or more pounds (normal for me is under 5). It was getting to the point where I could not climb the stairs to my apartment. I can go more into the cause and what I did to get over it, but I really don't want to derail this thread.

In the morning (now it's morning) my belly is flat. As the day goes on, I get more and more puffy. I'm thinking it might be the sugar.
I'm less Vinnie-looking when I retain myself from sweets. And carbonated drinks. I stopped having those. But, beer is the problem. (I'm a beer drinking girl, mostly because I have no idea what to substitute it with).
And...
(I know I'm bothering, but I have SO MUCH questions)
..how to keep away from sweets?
Not having them in the house, doesn't help much. I have a small market across the street, so it easy for me to pop in there and "Hey, give me some candy"..
Stupid belly, always craving!

 

[ThePowderKeg]

Have you tried replacing sweets with a healthier alternative? Or a smaller amount? 2 Hershey's kisses vs a whole candy bar, or a cup of hot chocolate or some pineapple chunks or a popsicle instead of something more calorie-laden? Sometimes it takes a while to find the right substitute, but it can help.

 

[sheeplady]

In the morning (now it's morning) my belly is flat. As the day goes on, I get more and more puffy. I'm thinking it might be the sugar.
I'm less Vinnie-looking when I retain myself from sweets. And carbonated drinks. I stopped having those. But, beer is the problem. (I'm a beer drinking girl, mostly because I have no idea what to substitute it with).
And...
(I know I'm bothering, but I have SO MUCH questions)
..how to keep away from sweets?
Not having them in the house, doesn't help much. I have a small market across the street, so it easy for me to pop in there and "Hey, give me some candy"..
Stupid belly, always craving!

I have a similar issue with sugar, although corn syrup and honey seems to be the worst. My problem was aggrevated by my use of fruit drinks and some food poisioning I got. I was drinking about 3-4 glasses a day of fruit juice which (unlike fruit which has fiber) is pure sugar, because I was raised that fruit juice is good for you and when faced with a decision between soda and fruit juice, I always drank fruit juice. Sugar is very addictive, and you can get into a cycle where your bloating will get worse, and essentially you are feeding the microorganisms in your gut. Yeast likes sugar too, so when you drink beer, that's basically adding carbonation, yeast, and sugar all at once.

I know you're in Europe, but here we have two products I can recommend: Stevia (which is a leaf extract) and very very sweet and xylitol (pours equal to sugar), which is made from birch trees. Both are very low glycemic. I don't know if you bake, but if you do, I'd try something made with these. You can buy them in a health food store here.

I don't really have a sweet tooth, but when I do get a craving, these are some of the things I do:
-Baby carrots are quite sweet, use a little dressing to dunk them in
-Pudding and gelatin can still be made the old fashioned way, using one of these substitutes (gelatin can also be made with fruit juice)
-Often I want fat rather than sugar. I'll make up a little whipped cream with stevia and vanilla extract, dole out a tablespoon over a little bit of fresh fruit (stawberries, cherries, blueberries, etc.) and eat that as a treat. Cream has a lot of calories, but it is very satisfying, and when it whips up it is three times the volume of the liquid. It is also very good with shaved unsweetened chocolate on top (available in the baking section).
-Unsweetened and unflavored yogurt is another option, try it with a little fresh fruit, xylitol, or stevia. A little vanilla extract also tastes good in yogurt.
-Here we have gum made with xylitol (sugar-free gum). Often when I want something sweet I'm not really hungry, I just want a sweet taste in my mouth. They have some wonderful flavors, buy a couple so you don't get bored. I always try a piece of gum first.

ETA: Xylitol is low calorie, Stevia is no calorie- I believe.

 

[Mae Croft]

I can't stand the taste of no and low cal sweeteners, so I just opted to cut what I was using. My big issue with drinks is that water where I live, even if you filter it, tastes awful (very metallic, makes you nauseated if you're not used to it, sometimes smells a little like sewage or chlorine right out of the tap). It may be because I'm not a native, as I've had friends from both coasts tell me it tastes gross. :/ I try to deal with it by drinking unsweetened tea but sweet tea is a downfall for me. I could take 100% of the excess sugar out of my diet then willingly reach for a pitcher of sweet tea and finish the whole thing myself in a day without really thinking. I don't eat a lot, I seem to unconsciously substitute food with beverage which can't be good for me.

I'm not a big sweets eater, once in awhile but it's still pretty rare, but that tea gets me every time.

 

[djd]

I find those 50/50 sweeteners good - half regular sugar and half sweetener. Like you Mae I can't stand the taste of sweetener but when it's mixed with a bit of real sugar you can't taste it that's what I put in my tea and coffee anyhow.

Green tea is one of the few legal supplements that actually has science behind it to show it does aid weight loss - also good for you in other ways. I'd recommend taking that if you're looking for a little extra boost.

 

[Katinka von K.]

I know you're in Europe, but here we have two products I can recommend: Stevia (which is a leaf extract) and very very sweet and xylitol (pours equal to sugar), which is made from birch trees. Both are very low glycemic. I don't know if you bake, but if you do, I'd try something made with these. You can buy them in a health food store here.

Stevia isn´t being sold as edible in the whole EU because there aren´t enough informations about how it influences health. But you can buy it as a cosmetic product for bathing. I know people that order it via internet and are totally satisfied.

 

[Blonde]

It's a matter of getting used to a sweetener, I used to not like it at all, but it was the only thing I kept in the house and made myself get used to it. That was about 5 years ago? Now I think sugar tastes weird, heh.

 

[sheeplady]

Stevia isn´t being sold as edible in the whole EU because there aren´t enough informations about how it influences health. But you can buy it as a cosmetic product for bathing. I know people that order it via internet and are totally satisfied.

That's interesting. Legally it couldn't be sold as a sweetner in the US until a year or two ago. (Now we have some brands of soda with it in it, because of the lifting of the labeling law). Before that it was sold as a "health supplement" and couldn't use the term "sweetner" on the label. I first tried in about 10 years ago, I just bought it from the vitamin aisle until the ban was lifted. You can also grow it in a pot and use the leaves.

I always found these restrictions interesting, since stevia is one of the most popular sweetners in Japan apparently.

Does the EU allow Splenda? (It's a sugar substitute made from cane sugar that has some of the molecules chemically rearranged. I really don't like it, and it now seems to be the new replacement for aspartame in everything.)

Mae- I understand about the water. My parents have water that smells like a swimming pool out of the tap. They have tried (with some success) to boil the water for 5-7 minutes and then make herbal tea, let it cool, and then chill it. They serve it unsweetened. The other thing they do is mixed cooled boiled water half and half with diet soda. You just can't smell the water as you drink it.

 

[Smumo]

My parents have water that smells like a swimming pool out of the tap. They have tried (with some success) to boil the water for 5-7 minutes and then make herbal tea, let it cool, and then chill it. They serve it unsweetened.

I do this as well. I mix black tea bags with mint tea bags and I never have to sweeten it at all.