Hello and caffeine, nicotine, and red meat...

[SeeItThrough]

Hello everyone! This got to be a long-winded introduction. :redface:

Wow...over the years my weight has gone up and down. I've always focused on other things in life besides myself and the last year or so I have been doing well making myself the top priority in my life.

Two different times in my life I had lost over 60 lbs...both of them due to lots of exercise...about 1-2 hours of moderate to intense cardio 5-6 days a week but nothing as far as watching my food intake. Both times injuries put me 'out of business' and the weight packed back on super quick. I know somewhat the reason...I was lighter but didn't have much muscle. When I stopped exercising but ate the same, I didn't have any muscle to help me keep the weight off. I was surprised to look back at the pictures and think "I used to rollerblade that hard for that long and my legs were that skinny?"

2 years ago I was 273lbs, 36.5%BF acc'd to the book. I started lifting weights and stayed on the diet probably for only 2 months...but I continued lifting weights and that got me down to about 250 (BF not recorded...pant size had gone down though). Didn't pay attention to myself and kept on livin' my life for others and by the time I realized I needed to lose fat again, I was 265 but the same body fat. That's when I knew I needed to kick it into gear. I stayed on PP for about 3-4 months and had dropped to 220 and the smallest pant size I had been in about 5 years. I then had a rather unexpected surgery and during recovery I stopped cooking for myself and ate total junk. That leaves me here now at 237 and 32% BF.

My ultimate goal is for BF % to be in the high teens. Once I get there I might even lower it some. But this time around, my weight is coming off much more slowly. I have been on it two weeks again and my weight has dropped a pound and my waist has not changed. When I went through my previous diaries, I would generally lose about 8 lbs in the first week and then 3-4 the second and then slow down to about 2-3 lbs on PP. So here is the question:

It has been about 8 months since I read PP but I am going to go through it again so my answers may appear in the book but I just didn't remember.

After my surgery, I stopped smoking for the ultimate reason that nicotine cuts down on blood circulation and since I took out an artery that didn't get repaired, I wanted the remaining one in my extremity to do a good job. I had been a half-3/4 pack a day smoker (about 10-15 cigarettes too many but those are the facts). I know nicotine raises the metabolism but for some reason I honestly never picked up from reading that an increased metabolism is the main reason for success on PP...I thought reducing blood sugar and controlling insulin was.

And the second question/statement: I drink way too much diet soda and my work environment is super hot (usually about 85-95* indoors) so even though I am hydrating myself with plenty of water about 2 hours after I get there, I still manage to guzzle about 64oz of Dt Mt Dew before work. After that, it is about a gallon and a half of water. So caffine--even though I drank the same amt before my surgery--could be causing my problem as well?

Since I am more concerned with my BF than my weight, I wouldn't mind if my weight was staying the same and my waist was slimming down. I am just wondering if anyone is still reading this ;) and if you are, what are your ideas?

I will be adding my weightlifting again in two weeks which I am sure will help me out but the previous starts with rapid wt loss I had before did not involve lifting at all. I want to try to rule some other things out first (like I was primarily a fish and chicken proteiner before my surgery and now I am a red-meat fellow...lean cuts but still...) I guess I just made a third question about lean red meat vs fish and chicken. All other aspects of the food I am eating has stayed the same as before according to my previous journals besides the addition of a bunless, condimentless ground sirloin burger instead of a huge chicken breast or salmon steak 2 times a day.

Thanks much! I am glad to have found this support.

[Gaelen]

Welcome, SeeItThrough.
The primary reasons things are moving slowly for your right now are probably that this isn't your first time trying to lose the weight, and your activity level is reduced. Since I've been on restricted activity myself for about eight months, I know what that's like...but it does mean that you need to be vigilant about what you eat.

Way to go on quitting the smoking...whether your metabolism takes a temporary hit or not, it was one of the best things you could have done for yourself (IMO...others' mileage may vary...)

It doesn't really matter what source your protein comes from--I primarly eat fish, dairy and vegetable proteins. What matters is whether you get enough protein (at your weight, probably at lest 34g per meal, maybe even 40--I am not looking at my charts right now.) There is a protein calculator on this website (http://www1.wfubmc.edu/heart/Being+Heart+Healthy/Health+Calculators) that will give you a recommended protein level very close to the calculations in the original PP book. Scroll down until you get to "Protein Calculator."

The diet soda may not be helping...but I take in a bit of caffeine every day, too (about 10-12 oz. cup of coffee), and caffeine alone isn't going to prevent you from losing. Things like sodium and some of the chemicals in Diet Mt. Dew (how do you think they get it that lovely color? ;)) might be having more of an effect keeping you in the status-quo than the caffeine.

Hope this helps...there is a lot of information on this site, so check it out and join in where it feels right.

[Bogie]

Screw it. Stay away from gratuitous carbage, and you're good. Eat some salad-type stuff, and otherwise just try to keep it together. I mean, what are you, a mouth in search of a brain? Or are you a brain in search of a support system?

Ain't no thang.

[Bogie]

Oh yeah - take comfort in the fact that it takes calories to heat the cold stuff you drink. Use lots of ice!

Sincerely,

Bogie
(a pot of darn fine hawaiian to start the day, and diet coke through the rest...)

[Reverie]

Hi there:

I had a problem with not losing weight earlier this year -- went 5 weeks without losing. So I got serious 6 weeks ago and got out PPLP. I used the chart to figure my protein and I tried to limit myself to the minimum (or else I can easily eat almost a pound of rib steak).

Under the heading of How much fat to eat, it says if you aren't losing, cut back on the fat. So I try not to use more than necessary. I also moved closer to a purist level and only eat about 3 cups of vegetables along with my protein for the day. No dairy or cheese, nuts or fruit or artificially sweetened things. I often eat the grass-fed beef. I do not snack, other than a little protein powder after a workout because my energy felt low. But I do no recreational eating.

Happy to say I've been losing about 2 pounds a week for 6 weeks!:D

I love weight training too and I do it twice a week. But I don't think it magically burns fat -- you have to cut back on calories for that, doggone it. Congrats on quitting smoking.

[Gabriel Guzman]

I love weight training too and I do it twice a week. But I don't think it magically burns fat -- you have to cut back on calories for that, doggone it. Congrats on quitting smoking.

Not, there is no magic involved. But to burn fat, cutting calories is not the only way to go, especially if you train and if weight loss is to be achieved in a healthy way (i.e. without jeopardizing other systems). What matters is the way you train. What people call 'cardio' doesn't do much for that compared to weight training. Is not a good idea to just cut calories without knowing from which foods. Certainly, cutting calories just by eating less of everything won't work in the long run, especially if you train. Cutting carbohydrates, on the other hand, whether you train or not, is perhaps the most clever way to cut calories for those who just can't stop thinking about the calorie rule.

Resarch on the effect of carbohydrate restriction shows precisely that when carbohydrates are reduced, even if people don't restrict food intake (total food intake), they reduced the amount of food they eat. No magic at all, but pure and simple physiology; just the way the body reacts with more protein coming in the diet. Calories (from carbohydrate) were reduced not because they had to, but because a higher protein intake comes with higher satiety so they didn't feel hungry between meals, thus food intake was also reduced voluntarily, not forcefully as opposed to other 'low-calorie' approaches. Even poorly designed studies show that people tend to eat less when they modestly reduce carbohydates and without any training.

Training the right way when carbohydrates are controlled only makes things work better and it's even more important not to neglect the amount of protein, which has to be adjusted according to the level of phisical activity.

[Reverie]

Thanks Gabe. Yes, I hate using the calorie word and I would never eat a low-fat product. But for those of us who are watching the carbs and still don't lose weight then what should we do? I think one has to reduce intake somewhere. That's where the PPLP protein guide comes in handy. And no more than 3-4Tbs of fat per day should be plenty cooking and salad dressings. I think I was used to overeating, so having some guidelines was helpful.

[Bogie]

Exercise is where you find it...

Climb stairs instead of taking the elevator that one flight... Each stair is a semi-equivalent of short-squatting twice your body weight.

One ounce/day is about 2 pounds/month.

[laughingW]

short-squatting twice your body weight.

Ugh.

In this area I like what Stephen Phinney says at the end of that audio interview, about the need for exercise for the morbidly obese... and the downside from exercise and increasing inflammation. Not that a trip up the stairs will inflame me.. but I'd rather pick the movements I actually like, and that ain't it.

[Bogie]

If you don't move it, you lose it. It gets HARDER to move it. Until while a flight a stairs used to seem hard, now a single stair is too much.

Don't park at the door. Park at the other end of the lot. It all adds up.

Also, too many of the morbidly obese folks have other people caring for 'em. I really don't understand how some folks get to weighing over 500 pounds, etc... Three words:

Don't Feed 'Em!

Bubba can't leave his bedroom, much less his bed, but the blurb says that he has two dozen eggs for breakfast... C'mon... There's someone in that kitchen...

If someone offers you a cookie, they may mean well. It's up to you to say no. And it's up to you to train the people around you toward the concept that "food does not equal caring."

[laughingW]

Oh true enough! move it or lose it! I choose more fun movement is all.

I guess I was just making the case for picking movement I actually like instead of stupid make-work things like the far end of the parking lot - oh if it's a beautiful fall day that would be one thing.

I put that in the same category of behavior-mod as putting things on a smaller plate. There are some things not gonna be in my lifestyle, fat or thin.

[Bogie]

Well, one thing I noticed parking at the end of the lot... I tend to be through the door faster than the geniuses who are trying to poach a close-in parking spot...

[SeeItThrough]

Thanks for the warm welcome here! I am a FT student and FT employee so I can't sign on as often as I would like...but I have kept my eating plan under control :)

Exercise was mentioned and right now I walk about 3 miles a day while I am at work for those 8 hours and do some vigorous lifting during the day. Unfortunately I love to read in my spare time so maybe I need to get a stationary bike...not a bad idea.

My protein target by estimating my %BF is right at 100g...and I have been failing miserably in this regard! Over the past week, I wrote everything down and when I went back to put it in my tracker, I am eating roughly 150-175g of protein a day. That seems like a lot of excess but in reality it is coming from the addition of the can of chicken I use on my salads at lunchtime (350cal, 60g P, 6.5g F). Why didn't I calculate the values beforehand? This kind of helps me zone in on what my possible problems could be and after a week of staying at the same weight, I have a more refined goal. My avg carb intake for each day was 28...one day I got up to 42 and one day I was as low as 13.

The diet soda may not be helping...but I take in a bit of caffeine every day, too (about 10-12 oz. cup of coffee), and caffeine alone isn't going to prevent you from losing. Things like sodium and some of the chemicals in Diet Mt. Dew (how do you think they get it that lovely color? ;)) might be having more of an effect keeping you in the status-quo than the caffeine.

My waist and thighs have slimmed down a bit so that is obviously great. I have also been cutting back on my caffeine and limiting it to about 40oz diet Mt Dew a day...still pretty high but I have managed to keep headaches away from too much decrease right away. My target in 2 weeks will be just one 12-oz can of diet Mt Dew a day.

Resarch on the effect of carbohydrate restriction shows precisely that when carbohydrates are reduced, even if people don't restrict food intake (total food intake), they reduced the amount of food they eat.

I have been noticing that. My appetite is slowly reducing so that should help me lower the fat a bit this week. I feel most energetic throughout the day when I have a large breakfast, a regular lunch, a snack, and then dinner. Those are all spaced out about 4 hours apart.

This plan is convenient for me so I'll definitely keep track of my intake again this week (I might run the numbers sooner than the end of the week though to make sure my targets are inline) and come up with some more results.

Thanks for the great advice...I'm going to definitely see it through!

[SeeItThrough]

Well, no more progress to note really. My measurements have stayed rock solid and the scale has done the same thing. I do have more energy though than I used to have which is a plus with a full-time job and full-time school.

I started reducing my fat intake and cut out most of the butter in my skillet and mayo with my tuna and chicken salads. I've been keeping my water intake up and generally try to space my eating throughout the day.

I think this week I'll reintroduce some apples and low-carb peanut butter for my snacks instead of the string cheese. Not much of a change but I like to keep things relatively consistent so I can see what affects me the most.

[Reverie]

That's great you're hanging in there. Sounds like you are eating healthy stuff. I sure wish I could eat peanut butter with celery. But I could not limit myself. So I am doing without it for now.

When you snack, are you really hungry? Just curious. I cut out all snacks except for sugar free jello after dinner.

Maybe a whoosh is right around the corner for you.

[SeeItThrough]

Well, the apple and peanut butter might have to go because I realized that that is the one thing I totally missed...as long as it doesn't turn into half a jar I should be okay :)

I would say I am only moderately hungry when I eat. I've been drinking a lot of water especially at work because of the indoor temps and sweating and that seems to confuse me as to whether I feel full only because of the water or because I am really not as hungry on this diet.

Staying on this plan has reduced the amount of food I used to eat...a rough estimate would be by a third but I never tracked my calories when I was just eating whatever I wanted.

[Nean]

Okay, I approach the LC/PP thing a little differently. Protein first, colorful vegies (no yams:p ), berries, and consciously add natural fats. I was born, weaned and raise on the low fat/high carb experiment & feel I was protein/fat malnourished most of my life. Using fitday, I find I loose weight and feel better eating at least 65% fat (butter, olive oil, coconut oil, avocados, etc).

Good luck! Glad it's working for you. Sounds like you are plenty active.