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I find it helpful to hear success stories like yours. I'm obese, and I need to correct that. I believe sugar is one of the primary culprits. I'm going to attemp

I find it helpful to hear success stories like yours. I'm obese, and I need to correct that. I believe sugar is one of the primary culprits. I'm going to attempt again to remove sugar from my diet for a month. I removed sugar from my diet for a couple weeks, and the weight loss results were very satisfying. It is a hard diet to do though. I found that eating out was very tricky, and that shopping at the grocery store was also challenging. It required meal planning, and just thinking of most food in the grocery store as non-edible. There are good documentaries, books, etc. on why sugar is so bad for us. I really enjoyed the documentary ["Fed Up"](http://fedupmovie.com http://fedupmovie.com).

tomerico 10y ago
If you get motivate when reading success stories (I know I do), you should check out http://reddit.com/r/loseit http://reddit.com/r/loseit
EpicEng 10y ago
Sugar is definitely a culprit, but really, it's all about calories in v calories out. Eliminating large amounts of processed sugar will help as the calories can quickly add up and you'll experience a big insulin spike afterward, but if you just moderate, keep most of your food healthy, and stay at a caloric deficit, you'll lose weight. Extreme diets (i.e., 'eliminate X completely') tend to fail because they're hard to sustain.
- CharlesW 10y ago
  > …really, it's all about calories in v calories out. In the absolute sense, you're absolutely right. But in my experience sugar tends to stoke a desire for more, in which case the form calories take is a crucial factor for success. (Caveats: I know what works for me but couldn't tell you how much of the effects of eating sugar are physiological vs. emotional, etc.) [EDIT: Typo]
  - EpicEng 10y ago
    Yeah, same for me. If I currently out late night sweets completely I lose the desire for them pretty quickly. Whatever works for you is always best.
- mrinterweb 10y ago
  Watching calories is important, but not all calories are equal. I think "calories in Vs. calories out", is over simplifying the problem. I think modern science is proving that calories from sugar are especially bad because they trigger insulin production that signals the body to store fat.
Broken_Hippo 10y ago
One thing that might help is to look at it differently: Specific goals that make your eating healthier. Less sugar is vague and hard to do. When I looked at my diet, I realized I drank lots of sugar. First I quit sodas, and they wound up tasting bad when I tried them again. Next, I cut sugar out of my coffee gradually. This bonus meant that coffee was easier to order as well. The difference, for me, is that instead of prohibiting food - and thus, obsessing over what I can't have - I simply did specific goals and kept them up. You can do the same thing with vegetables: To eat enough, you generally have to cut out other things, so the end result is a bonus. Sometimes it is hard at first, since you don't "like" certain things. This can be overcome with exposure and familiarity for many things, and expanded upon later on, even on things that failed previously.
ruminasean 10y ago
Two immediately easy things to do are to never drink calories and never drink artificial sweeteners: black coffee, plain tea, water. The rest is mainly just keeping track of what I put in my mouth.
- philsnow 10y ago
  Totally agreed. It's disturbingly easy to drink several thousand calories in a very short amount of time.
- mrinterweb 10y ago
  Alcohol is the tough one for me. I love micro brews and wine. Beer and wine are a frequent enough part of my diet to know that alcohol is a significant amount of my calories. When I'm not drinking alcohol, I'm drinking water. I enjoy beer and wine too much to completely cut them out; but this month, I am going to try to abstain from alcohol.
  - wlll 10y ago
    I suffer from this too. The one month where I cut out alcohol completely I lost significant weight. Admittedly I exercised more too, but then months where I've exercised but not cut out alcohol I've not seen nearly as many benefits. But alcohol, it's hard. I like a beer or few to relax after work, but I think for me it became a habit. Cutting out alcohol at home was a neat compromise (allowing myself to indulge the couple of times a month I go out for programming group meetups) felt a bit like what I imagine giving up smoking would be like. It took me a couple of weeks to get used to not having a drink in my hand in the evening, and I didn't like it at all. Compounded by the fact that I don't drink soda, and rarely fruit juice (mostly water, coffee or tea). However taking it a day at a time I did cut it out, and I became noticeably healthier. I started going to bed at a regular time, I felt more alert in the mornings. I think my work improved, I felt healthier in general, I lost weight and I felt like I had more energy. I've 100% relapsed over Christmas, but I'm going to pick it up again in the new year.
philsnow 10y ago
Did you figure out any rules of thumb or tricks for finding compatible menu items? My go-to for when I find myself eating out while on these diets (whole 30 and keto) is burgers with no bun, extra lettuce and other vegetables, and every sauce on the side. The only thing that makes these diets work for me personally is that I have one of those tech jobs with free lunch every day and there are decent options. If I had to pre-plan and pack a lunch every day, it would be a lot harder. To my knowledge, nearly nobody (outside of tech) gets free, good-quality lunch supplied at work.
- ruminasean 10y ago
  I'm in the same boat, but I work in TV. Free food and sodas everywhere. Saved my butt a ton. On days when catering is going to be bad for me being keto/vegetarian, I do a protein shake. Or two for two meals and just have a light day.
  - philsnow 10y ago
    Hadn't thought of that. I should keep some protein powder in the office for a change of pace. Thanks!
    - ruminasean 10y ago
      For keto isopure makes a zero carb shake. I use it with Almond Milk.
switch007 10y ago
/r/keto is a great community (and diet!) Go look at some of the success-story posts. I personally lost 11lb recently (in ~2 months) just by excluding carbs and setting a calorie limit. I found quitting sugar quite easy, as I felt so satiated from the fats and protein. However, I fell off due to emotional reasons. Personally, I have to be in a 100% sound frame of mind to stick to it - there's just so many carbs everywhere, it's easy to fall off.
umbrai_nation 10y ago
I did a month with significantly-reduced sugar last year, and for the first few days I caught of glimpse of how heroine addicts feel. I remember spending a full afternoon just thinking about the single cookie I was going to allow myself in the evening.
- coldtea 10y ago
  Simultaneously replace the sugar with fat and protein (steaks, eggs, etc) and you'll hardly think about the cookie at all.
stephengillie 10y ago
Instead of focusing on sugar being bad, and avoiding it - focus on protein being better, and seeing sugar (and other carbs) as merely filler. Most carbs and fats exist to extend the savory flavor of protein (umami), such as gravy, or fries. Or the carbs act as a scaffold to hold the protein and other elements, as in the case of a sandwich or sausage bun. Once you start looking at foods in this way - in terms of proteins, other nutrients (vegetables), and filler (carbs and fats) - it's easy to target foods high in protein and nutrients, and low in filler. This doesn't mean avoiding junk foods, but it gives you an excuse to not eat pizza crust, and means you'd target thin crust, or even opt for chicken strips.

tomerico 10y ago

If you get motivate when reading success stories (I know I do), you should check out http://reddit.com/r/loseit http://reddit.com/r/loseit

EpicEng 10y ago

Sugar is definitely a culprit, but really, it's all about calories in v calories out. Eliminating large amounts of processed sugar will help as the calories can quickly add up and you'll experience a big insulin spike afterward, but if you just moderate, keep most of your food healthy, and stay at a caloric deficit, you'll lose weight. Extreme diets (i.e., 'eliminate X completely') tend to fail because they're hard to sustain.

CharlesW 10y ago
> …really, it's all about calories in v calories out. In the absolute sense, you're absolutely right. But in my experience sugar tends to stoke a desire for more, in which case the form calories take is a crucial factor for success. (Caveats: I know what works for me but couldn't tell you how much of the effects of eating sugar are physiological vs. emotional, etc.) [EDIT: Typo]
- EpicEng 10y ago
  Yeah, same for me. If I currently out late night sweets completely I lose the desire for them pretty quickly. Whatever works for you is always best.
mrinterweb 10y ago
Watching calories is important, but not all calories are equal. I think "calories in Vs. calories out", is over simplifying the problem. I think modern science is proving that calories from sugar are especially bad because they trigger insulin production that signals the body to store fat.

Broken_Hippo 10y ago

One thing that might help is to look at it differently: Specific goals that make your eating healthier. Less sugar is vague and hard to do. When I looked at my diet, I realized I drank lots of sugar. First I quit sodas, and they wound up tasting bad when I tried them again. Next, I cut sugar out of my coffee gradually. This bonus meant that coffee was easier to order as well. The difference, for me, is that instead of prohibiting food - and thus, obsessing over what I can't have - I simply did specific goals and kept them up. You can do the same thing with vegetables: To eat enough, you generally have to cut out other things, so the end result is a bonus. Sometimes it is hard at first, since you don't "like" certain things. This can be overcome with exposure and familiarity for many things, and expanded upon later on, even on things that failed previously.

ruminasean 10y ago

Two immediately easy things to do are to never drink calories and never drink artificial sweeteners: black coffee, plain tea, water. The rest is mainly just keeping track of what I put in my mouth.

philsnow 10y ago
Totally agreed. It's disturbingly easy to drink several thousand calories in a very short amount of time.
mrinterweb 10y ago
Alcohol is the tough one for me. I love micro brews and wine. Beer and wine are a frequent enough part of my diet to know that alcohol is a significant amount of my calories. When I'm not drinking alcohol, I'm drinking water. I enjoy beer and wine too much to completely cut them out; but this month, I am going to try to abstain from alcohol.
- wlll 10y ago
  I suffer from this too. The one month where I cut out alcohol completely I lost significant weight. Admittedly I exercised more too, but then months where I've exercised but not cut out alcohol I've not seen nearly as many benefits. But alcohol, it's hard. I like a beer or few to relax after work, but I think for me it became a habit. Cutting out alcohol at home was a neat compromise (allowing myself to indulge the couple of times a month I go out for programming group meetups) felt a bit like what I imagine giving up smoking would be like. It took me a couple of weeks to get used to not having a drink in my hand in the evening, and I didn't like it at all. Compounded by the fact that I don't drink soda, and rarely fruit juice (mostly water, coffee or tea). However taking it a day at a time I did cut it out, and I became noticeably healthier. I started going to bed at a regular time, I felt more alert in the mornings. I think my work improved, I felt healthier in general, I lost weight and I felt like I had more energy. I've 100% relapsed over Christmas, but I'm going to pick it up again in the new year.

philsnow 10y ago

Did you figure out any rules of thumb or tricks for finding compatible menu items? My go-to for when I find myself eating out while on these diets (whole 30 and keto) is burgers with no bun, extra lettuce and other vegetables, and every sauce on the side. The only thing that makes these diets work for me personally is that I have one of those tech jobs with free lunch every day and there are decent options. If I had to pre-plan and pack a lunch every day, it would be a lot harder. To my knowledge, nearly nobody (outside of tech) gets free, good-quality lunch supplied at work.

ruminasean 10y ago
I'm in the same boat, but I work in TV. Free food and sodas everywhere. Saved my butt a ton. On days when catering is going to be bad for me being keto/vegetarian, I do a protein shake. Or two for two meals and just have a light day.
- philsnow 10y ago
  Hadn't thought of that. I should keep some protein powder in the office for a change of pace. Thanks!
  - ruminasean 10y ago
    For keto isopure makes a zero carb shake. I use it with Almond Milk.

switch007 10y ago

/r/keto is a great community (and diet!) Go look at some of the success-story posts. I personally lost 11lb recently (in ~2 months) just by excluding carbs and setting a calorie limit. I found quitting sugar quite easy, as I felt so satiated from the fats and protein. However, I fell off due to emotional reasons. Personally, I have to be in a 100% sound frame of mind to stick to it - there's just so many carbs everywhere, it's easy to fall off.

umbrai_nation 10y ago

I did a month with significantly-reduced sugar last year, and for the first few days I caught of glimpse of how heroine addicts feel. I remember spending a full afternoon just thinking about the single cookie I was going to allow myself in the evening.

coldtea 10y ago
Simultaneously replace the sugar with fat and protein (steaks, eggs, etc) and you'll hardly think about the cookie at all.

stephengillie 10y ago

Instead of focusing on sugar being bad, and avoiding it - focus on protein being better, and seeing sugar (and other carbs) as merely filler. Most carbs and fats exist to extend the savory flavor of protein (umami), such as gravy, or fries. Or the carbs act as a scaffold to hold the protein and other elements, as in the case of a sandwich or sausage bun. Once you start looking at foods in this way - in terms of proteins, other nutrients (vegetables), and filler (carbs and fats) - it's easy to target foods high in protein and nutrients, and low in filler. This doesn't mean avoiding junk foods, but it gives you an excuse to not eat pizza crust, and means you'd target thin crust, or even opt for chicken strips.