The diet that was most successful with me yet, and it works!!

[friend_of_MAC]

For the longest, I've been battling with which type of diet is best and workout routine. I do a lot of research online and I've tried several diets such as low carb diet, low fat diet. That meant I had to cut a lot of my favorite foods that I absolutely would die for and the result was I was miserable eating like a rabbit and binged on what I liked after awhile. For the most part, COMPLETELY cutting out what your body loves will actually backfire, in my experience and hearing others as well. Well, I don't exactly like running and I've tried it and will quickly stop. 5lb weights for arms aren't a problem, but I hate ab workouts as well. So, at some point, I stopped the attempt. Anyways, after a lot of trial and error and figuring what best suits me, I've gathered recommendations from here and there and put them together for me. Here we go:


I'm 5'4" started in August weighing 143lbs. My goal weight was and is 120lbs. (NOTE: Since I'm pumping iron, I have to expect to gain some muscle mass therefore, my weight may remain a certain weight or more while I'm losing fat)



I weigh myself once or twice a week.


The plan:

Diet: NO sugar diet. That means no snack bars with sugars, no sodas, not tea sweetened, no fruit juices. I don't even drink juice. The only sugars I get is from fruits which are easier to break down that table sugars.

Workout plan: POWER walk for 30min everyday. That's it. If you don't lift weights, which I do to tone while I'm losing fat because of faster results, the walking is fine everyday or 1hour every other day. (I'd rather walk for 30 everyday)

Results so far as of October 16, 2008:

129 lbs.

I haven't been measuring myself constantly as I should, but noticed I've lost inches from trying on jeans and pants I couldn't fit in before. I've even noticed that my arms are getting more slim.

One reason the diet is working for me is because I don't really have a sweet tooth but rather a salt tooth. I love food high in sodium which isn't good either, but drink a large amount of water and try to cut the sodium intake a bit.

Girls, I'm telling you this NO sugar diet freakin' works man and it's free of charge!!! The fruits you have to stay away from that have higher sugar than other fruits are: Raisins, mango, bananas, etc. There are not many but those three are the main ones.


Honestly, I haven't worked out since October 9 Last Thursday, up until yesterday and weighed in between to see if the working out slowed me down and I weighed 134 and today I weighed in at 129lbs!!

What I'm saying is, even though I was not active those days due to studying for a test, no excuse I know, I was still losing weight because of the NO sugar diet. Trust me, it wasn't water weight I lost in that week because I've been working out for 2 months now, and I drink tons of water a day anyway.



Anybody tried this diet?

 

[aleksis210]

Congratulations on your weight loss! I don't eat sugar as well, I actually started to cut out sugar after watching what Jackie from 'Work out' on bravo had to say about it. The only sugar I get is from the occasional wine(normally I try to keep my alcoholic bev. sugar-free though) and fruit. No fruit juice for me either! Everything is sugar-free! Although I try to get things that are sweetened by Splenda, not aspartame.

 

[SoSoAmazin]

Congrats and keep up the good work! 120-125 is also my goal weight and I'm 5'4" 136lbs currently. I wanna try this now...sugar is my weakness tho! I have a bad sweet tooth, especially during my period

But we'll see! Thanks for sharing!

 

[TISH1124]

Good Job! Congrats on the weight loss!
This is a great diet for those who can give up sugar completely..I am just not one of them. I have cut out most of my high sugar foods and drinks but not all because I know this would not be a life long way of eating that I could live with. I love juices ...I lowered my fat, sugar and calorie intake and work out & ride my bike everyday....I wish I did have the motivation to completely cut out sugars...but I can't completely deprieve myself that way. Guess I have to do it the hard way.

 

[friend_of_MAC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoSoAmazin Congrats and keep up the good work! 120-125 is also my goal weight and I'm 5'4" 136lbs currently. I wanna try this now...sugar is my weakness tho! I have a bad sweet tooth, especially during my period But we'll see! Thanks for sharing!

We are the same height! 136lbs isn't bad though but we share the same notion that 120-125 is better!LOL...That is true...sometimes I can't completely cut out sugar, for example, those v8 vegetable mini can drinks have at least 4-6g of sugar but it's so healthy for you. So, I figure, there will be some foods with sugar but if I can help cutting out straight up sugar foods that is 80-95% sugar, forget it. I can't remember the last time I had a slice of cake!

I love cake though, but I don't have a strong desire for it everyday.

Here is one suggestion:

A girl I know who is also dieting said every 2 weeks, it's alright to eat something you love for a treat but don't over do it that day! She said if I wanted cake once every 2 weeks then just cut the slice in half that I would normally eat and there! I don't know, maybe when my belly has some visual improvements of becoming flat, then we will see...but it doesn't sound like a bad idea..

What do you think?


Now for the sweet tooth people, the only thing is your right, if you cut out completely everything in sugar and not have at least one thing then the diet won't work. What I would suggest for sugar lovers is to at least cut out sodas, if not completely then try to save 1 day of the week where you think you would enjoy 1 can of soda the most! For us on our menstral cycle where we crave sweets, or mostly chocolate, hmmm, eat at least half of what you normally would eat, such as a little less than half a candy bar but that is cutting it close, that would mean you would have to workout extra hard whenever you get a chance after your period. Personally, I like dark chocolate before I get on my period so instead of milk chocolate of anything, I eat a small piece of dark chocolate. I know, I know some people hate dark chocolate due to the slightly bitter taste and not as sweet but it is better than milk chocolate.

The main point is you will have to sacrifice something. You may not have to sacrifice it completely but you have to limit yourself. If cutting sugar isn't much of a problem then this diet works! For sweet tooth lovers, you guys will need to discipline yourselves a little more.

Personally, for me, what I do to remind myself of where or what I want my body to look like, I look at toned (not barbie skinny) women and look at their pics and it motivates me and reminds me that moment if I screw up and binge, then I will just be further away from looking like that.


I hope some of that helps.

 

[islandblossom]

This is great news. I'll consider cutting my sugar intake as well. Majority of the sugar I consume is from the coffee I make in the morning and the energy drink I usually drink after lunch. Thanks for the inspiration!

 

[MACForME]

This sounds like something I can do!! I'm not a sugar person though.. I do have one sugar packet in my 32oz coffee in the AM (yeah, 32oz!!) and then maybe whatever is in my honey green tea at lunch..

The walking for 1/2 hour a day sounds so easy! I bet i could do that.. And i'm gonna try, starting tomorrow.. no, really! I could use to lose!

 

[friend_of_MAC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MACForME This sounds like something I can do!! I'm not a sugar person though.. I do have one sugar packet in my 32oz coffee in the AM (yeah, 32oz!!) and then maybe whatever is in my honey green tea at lunch.. The walking for 1/2 hour a day sounds so easy! I bet i could do that.. And i'm gonna try, starting tomorrow.. no, really! I could use to lose!

I totally agree with you on the coffee. I love my coffee with some sugar but really I can't drink it without the sugar so instead even though it's sugary, I tried a caramel syrup but then tried regular honey. It's works a little bit, but I'll cut the amount of sugar I'm used to putting in my coffee.

I'm sure you'll do great, that's not a lot of sugar. The walking is easier than running but you have to POWER walk, not stroll. I get a sweat out of it but it feels soooo good! I'm just not a running type and don't care to like it. This is great! trust me. I'm 27 years old and I've noticed my metabolism has slowed down and foods I ate caught up to me, but this is what I figured out that works for me efficiently and successfully.


Weight as of November 2, 2008 Sunday: 127lbs.
I haven't measured inches yet. I will this week though.

I've kinda slowed down due to not working out for another week, but not in a row. I hate when that happens but I haven't given up, this week is no joke! I still feel the urge to workout!!

Let me know if anyone has cut their sugar intake or trying to! I'd like to hear how it's working for those who can't completely cut it out, which is fine, just cut a chunk of it!!

 

[MzzRach]

Thanks for this thread! A lot of great information and I am glad this is working for you.

 

[ginger9]

Thanks for sharing. I am in very similar situation. I have a horrible sweet tooth and we're of the same height and I want to go from 137lbs to between 125 - 130lbs.

I have a few questions if you can help.

1. is drinking diet soda okay? I really like my diet coke/pepsi and will drink at least one a day.

2. also what kind of fruits do you recommend? I always eat bananas, I didn't know it was higher in sugar content!

3. is maple syrup or honey okay as sugar substitutes?

Thanks so much in advance!

 

[NutMeg]

Just some helpful ideas for your guys. If you find that you want to pig out when you've got your period, I've noticed that when I eat a lot of salty or sweet junk my cramps are unholy! Whereas they're much more bearable if I eat healthily. Give it a try, knowing that I'll pay for it in pain almost immediately is good motivation for not indulging.

Also for those of you ladies who take sugar in your coffee, there is hope. If you can get yourself to cut back or quit entirely, you will never be able to have sugar in your coffee again. I've done it, it tastes so disgusting to me now. Actually I think that's true in general, once you're used to eating healthily, junk isn't as appealing.

 

[kaliraksha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NutMeg Also for those of you ladies who take sugar in your coffee, there is hope. If you can get yourself to cut back or quit entirely, you will never be able to have sugar in your coffee again. I've done it, it tastes so disgusting to me now. Actually I think that's true in general, once you're used to eating healthily, junk isn't as appealing.

I totally agree. I went on a very healthy diet for a few months and I grew a tastes for foods I thought I disliked. I get exicted over veggies now and I appreciate my burgers with lots of veggies and no cheese because it takes away from the meat. Also, after coming off my diet after a few months and eating food on the go I started to have terrible stomach pains and acid reflux. I agree that we should eat food more towards the way nature intended it. Although juice is delicious, the 2-3 oranges it takes to make that glass of orange juice would be much more filling if eaten whole.

 

[friend_of_MAC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ginger9 Thanks for sharing. I am in very similar situation. I have a horrible sweet tooth and we're of the same height and I want to go from 137lbs to between 125 - 130lbs. I have a few questions if you can help. 1. is drinking diet soda okay? I really like my diet coke/pepsi and will drink at least one a day. 2. also what kind of fruits do you recommend? I always eat bananas, I didn't know it was higher in sugar content! 3. is maple syrup or honey okay as sugar substitutes? Thanks so much in advance!

Sorry for such a late reply. Your goal weight is very reasonable.

1. Diet soda still has sugar and carbs that have no nutritional value. Just remember not to completely cut it out but try to limit so much. Once a day can be modified to every other day to only 2 twice a week and so on. Remember the more sugar calories you intake, the harder it will be to reach your weight goal. Sugar is EASILY converted to fat because it is easy for the body to break sugar down, but if you are not using the sugar and burning it as fast as it is broken down, then it stores as fat.

2. Actually, I wanted to correct myself from the thread: Don't limit your fruits. All fruits are good. Your body still needs some form of sugar, so if people consider raisins and bananas higher sugar than other fruits, eat it earlier in the day. Bananas are fine, don't worry about it, it's still natural and has nutritional value to it.

3. It depends how much you use. If we are substituting for coffee sugar, then it depends, but it is still sugar. I'm not completely sure about that though.

I hope this didn't discourage you too much, but there are other ways around the no/low sugar diet. If you look at nutritional labels on food, almost everything just about has some grams of sugar. The lower the better and it depends if you have nutritional value(nutrients, vitamins)in the calories of the food that sugar contains.

 

[friend_of_MAC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NutMeg Just some helpful ideas for your guys. If you find that you want to pig out when you've got your period, I've noticed that when I eat a lot of salty or sweet junk my cramps are unholy! Whereas they're much more bearable if I eat healthily. Give it a try, knowing that I'll pay for it in pain almost immediately is good motivation for not indulging. Also for those of you ladies who take sugar in your coffee, there is hope. If you can get yourself to cut back or quit entirely, you will never be able to have sugar in your coffee again. I've done it, it tastes so disgusting to me now. Actually I think that's true in general, once you're used to eating healthily, junk isn't as appealing.

That is the same thing with hot tea or herbal tea/ ice tea. When I first started drinking hot tea with no honey, it was bitter, but over time, it actually taste good and honey ruins the taste of the other ingredients in tea for me now.

 

[christineeee_]

congrats on the weight loss!
i need to try this, but i love my sugar so i don't think i'd be able to cut it out completely. i'll just try by lowering my sugar intake and try to fit in 30 minutes of walking everyday.