Weight / Fat loss

Am really pleased with the results over the past 2 months I've been on this diet but it takes a tonne of willpower. I don't mind though because once I'm off phase 1 I can start introducing more 'real' food.

In terms of calories I'm on about 600 a day and have been for nearly 2 months now. It's entirely doable (with medical advice - saw a doctor before starting and have had blood tests). On paper you'd look at 600 calories a day and laugh at it being impossible to function on such a small amount but I actually have more energy now than when I was almsot 3 stone heavier 2 months ago.

Basically in terms of calorie intake it's very similar to the diet that was in the press not so long ago that reversed type 2 diabetes in the majority of a test group up in Newcastle. No natural sugars (fruit is out unfortunately at least for phase 1), no starchy vegetables or carbs. The calorie and food type restrictions causing the pancreas and liver to expel / consume stored fat.

Hey could you give me a breakdown of what you eat on a normal day. Are you doing any further exercise?

£235 a month! Is that because he couldn't afford to eat!

hes a broker in canary wharf so hes earning quite abit of money but its cheaper than hiring a personal trainer for a month

but yes very expensive

Hey could you give me a breakdown of what you eat on a normal day. Are you doing any further exercise?

Space food, that's protein drinks hot and cold as meal replacements. Then in the evening I have a normalish meal of just vegetables but there are loads of veg I can't eat - carrots, spuds, parsnips, etc, etc. Anything with too much sugar or starch.

No fruit because it's too high in sugar. No meat, no fish, no booze, no dairy, no nothing. Vitamin and mineral supplements. 2 litres of water a day. Green salad leaves are allowed. It's hardcore.

Am doing more exercise but limited to cycling and walking, nothing major as to be honest while I have more energy generally I do get wiped out pretty fast due to not much fuel in the tank. Also still have a niggling left shoulder / elbow problem after physio and acupuncture! So weights are a bit dodge. Pity as I'd like to get back into boxing training, maybe more when I hit target weight than right now.

That's really extreme! Absolute respect for managing to stick with it. It's sounds a lot like the raw juice diets that people do.

Bloody hell thats extreme vanuden. Points for being hardcore. But what is the reasoning behind this venture?

The epic Ramadan weight cut approacheth.. in 50C it's not going to be pretty but I'm going to get with the program and hang out with my host nation brothers :D

QUADS LIKE GODS

Are you doing a job over there? And, as you've hinted; are you going to fast during ramadan?

Bloody hell thats extreme vanuden. Points for being hardcore. But what is the reasoning behind this venture?

My blood pressure had crept up as had my weight over a period of about 3 to 4 years. I was getting body 'warning signals' to do something about it. Nothing major but enough to make me have a good long think.

I started out trying to just be sensible and joined a gym. This worked a bit but I wasn't seeing the results I wanted to quickly enough. So I decided to go for it and do something radical.

The program will phase me back on to 'normal' food bit by bit. In about 3 to 4 weeks I expect to be able to start eating small quantities of chicken and white fish, the range of veg will broaden as well. This is so that the body gradually gets used to food again and doesn't go into compensation mode if I were to just start eating normally again straightaway.

When I started my metabolic rate was measured, I was burning around 3000 calories / day. By the time I'm down to my target weight it will be measured again, I expect it to be around 2600. As long as I continue to eat sensibly (not over this amount) and exercise there's no reason why I should put weight back on again.

I read somewhere that you need to consume an extra 3500 calories to put on a pound. This can be done in one hit or incrementally.

I was getting body 'warning signals' to do something about it.

AND

When I started my metabolic rate was measured, I was burning around 3000 calories / day.

What warnings did you get and how was your metabolic rate measured?

What warnings did you get and how was your metabolic rate measured?

Warnings were things like blood pressure being raised for example. Not high enough to require medication but high enough to not want to go down by itself and stay in the normal range. Since losing nearly 3 stone it's now back in the normal range.

Other signs were things like recurrent back pain, aching knees, body signs to say 'hey, you're carrying around too much weight'. Getting short of breath easily. Broken / poor quality sleep from snoring like a bastard (thankfully I've been reliably informed this has also subsided considerably). Lack of energy. Just stuff that all pointed to being too heavy.

Enough for me to think actually I don't want to have a check-up with the doc in 5 or 10 years time for him to tell me I have diabetes or heart problems or anything else that might be associated with being far too heavy for far too long. So I decided to do something about it before it was too late.

Metabolic rate was measured by a device I breathed into for about 10 minutes, name escapes me but it measured expired gas at rest and came to a reading from there. Not one of those online calculators, which supposedly measure it by height / weight / age these are wildly inaccurate.

Aside from the blood pressure, things like "short of breathness" "feeling heavy" and poor sleep can all be drastically improved by improving general fitness/conditioning.

You can both be very fat and extremely fit.

Blood pressure and heart longevity is a more complicated matter though. Some of the fittest people in the world drop dead from heart attacks when in their prime.

Also diabetes isn't as simple as "become thin = no diabetes". I had two uncles both frighteningly skinny, whom both died due to Type II diabetes. A lot of it is genetics, some of it is fatness, but fitness, muscle mass, hormonal balance and insulin sensitivity are all very important factors to consider.

Aside from the blood pressure, things like "short of breathness" "feeling heavy" and poor sleep can all be drastically improved by improving general fitness/conditioning.

You can both be very fat and extremely fit.

Blood pressure and heart longevity is a more complicated matter though. Some of the fittest people in the world drop dead from heart attacks when in their prime.

Also diabetes isn't as simple as "become thin = no diabetes". I had two uncles both frighteningly skinny, whom both died due to Type II diabetes. A lot of it is genetics, some of it is fatness, but fitness, muscle mass, hormonal balance and insulin sensitivity are all very important factors to consider.

This is all true. However it's also true that being in the obese BMI range (and not being physically fit or active) carries more serious health risks than being in a healthy weight range.

We've all heard stories about 'Uncle Dave' who smoked 40 a day until he was 90 but these people are the exception and not the norm. It's about putting percentages in your favour.

Another example of how my body is currently breathing a sigh of relief for having shed so much weight is the fact that I had been suffering from patches of psoriasis on my elbows and in my scalp. There is a documented correlation between psoriasis and obesity:

http://www.laboratoriosilesia.com/upfiles/sibi/D1007842.pdf

The patches of psoriasis on my elbows and in my hairline that previously would not budge despite all sorts of persuasion and treatments have now almost completely gone.

Excellent news all round VU. Keep at it, and keep us updated.

Thats wicked J. Awesome work man.

Thanks both!

2.5 to 3 stone to go and I've hit my target, am going to see how I feel at 15 and a half, if it's good I'll work on maintenance if I feel there's a bit more to go I'll get down to 15 and keep it there :)

was down to 15st .5lb on thursday+friday but bounced back up to 15st 2.5lb today after 3 days off the bike mostly eating junk.

13st 12 this morning (mrs_com changed the settings on the scales, I are confused)

Tmw\s the big day for me.
Will find out what % fat I still have.
Its still way more than I would like to have, but there is literally nothing I can do now.

Kenya for 6 weeks should sort the remaining fat...

Whey protien fans.

Cookies and cream flavour on musli for breakfast is minging. It would be really stupid to have 4KG of cookies and cream flavour.

Feck....

Myprotein.com's Latte flavour is yum.

Whey protien fans.

Cookies and cream flavour on musli for breakfast is minging. It would be really stupid to have 4KG of cookies and cream flavour.

Feck....

Hah

I have finally finished my 5kg pack of vanilla, every bloody glass made me gag.

Unflavoured next time, it's just not worth it

I'm going to NYC for two weeks. Will be without bike but my aunt (who I'm staying with) has a 24 hour gym in her building.

I know some of you people go to the gym, any suggestions for a good 1-hour morning workout? Should I just do 1 hour on the bike machine to replace my usual commute or is doing 15 minutes on four different machines better?

Despite the cost all myprotein stuff makes me gag. I just can't deal with it. Have been off it for a while but the last thing I used was PHD strawberries and cream and it was delicious, with water. Which I've never found with any powder before.

If you want to maintain your fitness, just do whatever gets your heart rate up the most and gets you out of breath. Personally id just go for a run outdoors.

But i'll give you an example of something to try in the gym;

20xAir squats (just squat up and down with your bodyweight)

Swing your arms and legs around to loosen them up. Possibly do some cossack stretches.

Put treadmill on max incline (usually 15) do 3 x 2 minutes as fast as you can. drop to walking pace for rest periods.

Get onto concept rower; use as moderate-high pace for 1 minute, then 3 sprints as fast as you can. Just like the treadmill, cruising speed for rest periods.

Finish with something strength based. Your choice, whatever you feel comfortable with but try not to use a machine. Step ups on a small box with a dumb bell in each hand is a good example for lower body. For upper try some pull ups even if all you can manage is 1 rep. And some traditional push ups.

Aim to progress at rower/treadmill by faster times and shorter rest periods.

Aim to progress as strength work by adding reps or adding weight.

Despite the cost all myprotein stuff makes me gag. I just can't deal with it. Have been off it for a while but the last thing I used was PHD strawberries and cream and it was delicious, with water. Which I've never found with any powder before.

Even the unflavoured stuff? If people usually hate the flavoured stuff they're fine with that.