The first thing I gave up was fried foods, fast food and soda. I have not eaten a fast food cheeseburger or had a coke in a couple of years. I don't miss the soda's, but crave a cheeseburger every once in a while - and will grill one on occasion -but the convenience of a drive through double cheeseburger is out of the equation.

I did not give up grains completely - just refined grains. I will still eat whole grains on occasion - oatmeal, wild rice, quinoa...

However, the best thing I did for weight loss, was keeping a food log. I used the "lose-it" app as well, and liked it. It takes very little time, and gives you a budget of calories for the day and adjusts that with exercise. Just seeing the food on paper that have eaten throughout the day, helps keep you driven towards you goal, and helps keep you honest as well.

I believe there's more than a few recent articles stating that white rice is actually healthier than brown rice. I believe the husk contains anti-nutrients.

This is just the first thing I came across about it, I'm sure there's better:
http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.c...er-than-brown/

I cut out soda, fast food, and all the nice little treats that my coworkers love to bring into the office to share. These little changes and a ton of time in the saddle dropped the weight off.

Keep in mind there are carbs then there are carbs. WE all need carbs but stick with the complex carbs, especially on non riding days. If doing long or hard sessions some simple carbs will help. Other than that it's all portion control and the cheapest is drinking a big glass of water before a meal.

I also thought that I couldnt ride/train without Carbs. But I've been doing Paleo since May and am down 80 lbs (90 lbs in total since Feb). There is an entire book for Paleo for athletes that explains when & how to get the appropriate carbs prior/after big events. I rode 40 miles last saturday (19.3) average and almost 50 on sunday with a 20 - 22 mph group and the only carbs i consumed were from veggies & fruit (with the exception of one honey stinger at the mid point of both rides).

When you start a low carb diet your body goes through a process (for me it takes 2 weeks) where it adapts to burning more protien for energy. During those two weeks i do feel lathargic - but from my experience the outcome is worth the hard 2 weeks.

I currently ride 5 days a week training for a full century on March 3rd. My training rides are at a minimum of 23 miles and up to a metric century on weekends. I also swim 1 - 1.5 miles 3 days a week and lift weights for 1 hour 5 days a week. All on a low carb diet.

I personally feel like I have tried about every diet on the market - inclusive of spending 3 weeks at the Biggest Looser Resorts. One of the things I learned while at the resorts is that not all calories are equal. A 100 calorie twinkie will treat the body much worse than a 100 calorie pack of almonds.

No, we don't all need carbs. In fact, some of us function quite well without them.

I won't deny that carbs can be beneficial for high intensity efforts.

Biggest bang for the buck...water...plain old water, lots of it. Someone over 200 lbs trying to lose weight should drink a minimum of 80 ounces of plain water (nothing added for flavor) a day.

Beer (alcohol)
Soda

Looking through the thread it seems clear that I didn't get my message across.

So lets try again:

IMHO Specific Diet is not as important as knowing how much your are really eating and eating an amount that will let your lose weight. No matter what the diet is, atkins, low carb, low oil, Paleo, etc non will work unless you take in less calories than you expend.

No diet can let you lose weight if you eat more calories than you burn.


We are terrible at estimating what we are eating and tracking allows us to measure how much we have taken in and how much more can be eatien and still lose weight. And when you see how much a high calorie choice early in the day limits your range of choices later lets you modify behavior. and you can see your mix of protein, carbs, fat (salt, cholestrol in some cases) if you use a tool. it also lets you know if you are eating too little.

that is not to say the diet is not important. You could lose weight eating nothing but butter or sugar, but it clearly wouldn't be healthy. On the other hand not every "healthy" diet works for everyone. There was an outside article where the author had to get off the Okinawa diet as it spiked his cholesterol

The standard more whole grains, complex carbs, veggie, fruit and lean protein in limited amounts holds as a good base.

botton line is the mix has to be something that you like eating, makes you feel satified and still be at your calorie goal


YMMV but for me the "biggest diet change" is tracking so I know how many calories I am eating.

I am not sold on the healthy home economist, she is a follower of the Weston Price Fondation whose mission statement is contains:

http://www.westonaprice.orgThey are a big mover in the higher protein, lots of fat diet. While I do not necessarily disagree, its certainly far from mainstream. On the other hand, Dr Mary Enig in on the Price foundations board of directors, and she is one of the pioneers of the evils of trans fats.

I guess you eat what you like, and who can really know whats the "best".

Early on, I lost weight just by thinking about it. I shed pounds easily. I wasn't trying to crash diet, so I lost weight naturally over the course of 18-24mo. Then I hit a plateau about 18mo ago that I couldn't break -- more exercise, less exercise, triathlon training, yard work ... nothing. I could fight it, track every gram and eat perfectly for 2wks and maybe squeeze 1-2lb off my frame, or I could eat whatever I wanted and gain the same 1-2.

So biggest bang for the buck ... I need to allocate my calories throughout the day to keep my metabolism running. I'm doing 300-500 at breakfast, 500 at lunch, a few for snacks at 10 and 1 and the remainder at dinner. I feel better, and the scale is drifting down once again.

Moderation and discipline in eating. I joined Weight Watchers and the guidelines changed the way I feel about food over the year+

Very true.

Eliminate all sodas. if you must use a "ade" drink for rides, cut it by half with water. I even try to limit OJ with it's high sugar amounts. Try pink grapefruit. Drink low sodium tomato juice. I actually add an inch of water to bottom of the glass and make it really, really cold. It all takes some getting used to...but in a week or two you will adjust. A nice treat once in a while is nice, as is a beer or two. Just always ask yourself if this intake is going to worth carrying around with me on the next uphill climb?

Many have had good success by tracking what they eat, which makes a lot of sense.

On the other hand, I am part of the group that has had great success by eliminating - completely zeroing out - the bad actors in my diet. For me, it is simple and effective (and I was previously consuming enough garbage that I found I had a lot to 'cut'). Here is what I zeroed out on my way to 55 lbs weight loss:
- fast food
- fruit juice and sugared drinks
- beer
- chips and packaged snacky stuff
- sweets and desserts
- HFCS in anything

Zeroing out HFCS requires some effort in grocery shopping, but I am now a believer in it. For example, I make my own homemade granola (which has oats and almonds to help my cholesterol). I go out of my way to buy, among other things, 100% natural maple syrup for the recipe. The stuff is $18 a bottle, compared to $2 for Aunt Jemima, but I do it to stick to my commitment.

Eating when I travel was previously a problem area for me. Now, I take some of the granola with me in my bag. If I have to eat out on the road, I find a Subway or Jimmy Johns and get a sandwich with no liquids on it (ie. just turkey, lettuce, onions and cheese, no liquid anything). After almost a year off of fast food, I don't even like the smell of french fries any more.

This approach has worked wonders for me. I am getting the double-takes and comments on improved appearance from people who haven't seen me in a while.

For some folks though, the approach of tracking/counting and moderating, but not zeroing out, works best. Find what works for you and make it happen. Good luck!

Sugary drinks/beer. I used to drink a lot of soda, but I developed insomnia, so I started drinking sweet juices (to get away from the caffeine). I looked at the calorie content and it was 110 calories per 8 oz serving and I was drinking nearly 1.5 liters a day, so that was 660 calories. Now, I know it's not the healthiest option, but I started drinking Koolaide, but with only 1/4 cup of sugar per 64 oz (2 liter) which is 24 calories per 8oz serving. Now if I drink any soft drink or juice, it tastes like pure sugar. I did it in stages, the first few days were 1 cup of sugar, then 3/4, then 1/2 than 1/3 and now 1/4 and I plan on bringing that down to about 1/8th. Also, try to avoid (though it's REALLY hard) HFCS. It's MUCH worse than cane sugar and has an inability to tell your brain you are full.

Next is portion size. But don't do it in one day, gradually reduce your portion sizes. If you do it in one day, you will be starving and thinking about food constantly, it sets you up to fail. Especially stay away from fast food.


Chris.