Dieting



As with everything else, be very careful about the lies and easy fixes, "anyone can do it!" products, that are being sold to you for what is not easy and simple for everyone: weight loss. A wise man knows reliable information when he sees that it involves difficult (unprofitable) truths.

General guidelines for weight loss

 * Exercise more, don't overeat. That is the underlying scientific relationship to weight loss/gain, absent emotions.
 * Don't let your emotions control you. Understand that you can use other things than food to feel good about yourself. If half the world doesn't need it - you don't need it.

External resources
http://thedailyplate.com

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How to not be a fat bastard.

Okay, having lost 35 pounds, a few people have asked me how I did it. What you're going to get here is a very difficult plan that requires discipline. There is no easy way. I'd also like to give credit to Nigel, who helped develop the bare-bones plan that the doctor gave me into a more comprehensive and effective method.

First, cut out all of the following:

Fast food. No exceptions other than salads. Anything that went in a deep fryer. Period. Booze of any kind. No exceptions, no days off. Junk food (chips, ice cream, pastries, etc) Non-diet soda. This one is a killer.

You will notice that I have not mentioned carbs, etc. There is good reason for this. You NEED carbs.

Second, plan your calorie limit. Nigel pointed out a really good site, http://thedailyplate.com  Go there, and plug in your height, weight, age, etc, and tell it the following, no matter what the real case is:


 * 1) I wish to maintain my present weight.


 * 1) I do low/moderate exercise

When you do this, it will give you your "break even" calories. Subtract 500 from this number. This is your target goal, every day except Sunday. On Sunday, hit your break even number, but don't exceed it. You need to do this to be in decent condition for Monday at work, and to give yourself a rest.

Third, plan your diet, using the number generated above for your total daily intake. HOWEVER, no meal should be larger than the following example:


 * 1) Two slices of bread, low cal mayo, and either  a piece of cheese OR meat the size of the palm of your hand.


 * 1) A pile of veggies the size of your fist.

Calculate the calories involved (regging an account at the daily plate opens up all kinds of neat tools for doing this), and you can figure the number of meals per day. This is important...the idea is to shrink your stomach. Multiple small meals are better than 3 solid meals. Space these out evenly over the day. Plan 340 calories for 2 slimfasts or the like. This is important, and I'll cover it later. Also, plan 90 calories for bed time (also covered later)

If you aren't having a sammich, then substitute it with the food you are going to eat, but nothing larger than your fist in total volume.

Fourth,  Eat a piece of fruit within 20 minutes of waking up (or veggies, etc), to keep your body from going into conservation mode.

Fifth, Veggies should be about 80% of your diet. This has the added advantage of being CHEAP. ONE piece of fruit per day (loose fruit like berries, etc, should again be the size of your fist.)  Bear in mind that for these purposes, tomatoes are veggies, but corn and peas are fruit.

Sixth, DO NOT EAT WHILE ON THE COMPUTER OR WHILE WATCHING TV. If it's time to eat, get away from the comp or TV. Break the habit of eating while you do these things, they're killers.

Seventh, Diet soda has zero calories. Coffee has 4 calories per cup, tea has zero, and water has zero. No milk (if you need calcium, take Tums), no juice.

Eighth, LEAVE THE TABLE HUNGRY. Do NOT fill up with low/no cal food like pickles, etc. The idea here is to shrink your stomach, which will ease unnecessary hunger. When you get too fucking hungry, have one of your two slimfasts. They're nothing but Potassium, and will trick your hunger for a couple of hours.

Ninth, Eat a salad right before bed. Garden salad ONLY. No meat, no eggs, no anything. Lettuce and sliced veggies only. Use either balsamic vinagarette or low fat Italian dressing. DO NOT PUT THE DRESSING ON THE SALAD, leave it on the side, and dip into it. This salad will let you go to bed without an empty stomach, and will also have the added advantage of making you shit the whole world out of your guts in the morning, which will make you feel better than you'd think possible.

Tenth, NO CHEATING. NO "VACATIONS". Not even if you're at a fucking wedding. NO EXCEPTIONS. I cannot stress this enough.

Eleventh  Do cardio workouts. Do not lift weights. All the weights you need are already attached to your fat ass. Treadmill is best (eliptical if you have bad knees), go as fast as you can comfortably walk for one hour, then a 5 minute cool down. If you can't afford the gym, just go for a walk, but keep your pace up. Drive out a 2 mile route, and use it. When that becomes easy, and it will, add a mile. 4-6 miles is the most you want to do. IF YOU ARE OVERWEIGHT, DO NOT - I REPEAT DO NOT - RUN. Your knees won't like it. Calculate the calories (daily plate or elsewhere) burned AND ADD THEM TO YOUR DAILY ALLOWANCE. Replace those calories, you'll need them. The purpose of exercise is to stimulate your metabolism, not burn fat. It requires a marathon to lose one pound of real weight. Lastly, drink loads of water while doing this and DO NOT WEAR PLASTIC OR WHATEVER TO MAKE YOURSELF SWEAT. Water weight loss is an illusion, and will FUCK YOUR KIDNEYS UP. Work out for two days straight, then take a day off, then two more days, then a day off, etc.

Twelvth, NO FUCKING CHEATING. NO VACATIONS. NO EXCEPTIONS. EAT NOTHING YOU HAVEN'T PLANNED INTO YOUR DIET. This is NOT easy, for the first several weeks you are going to be in pain from hunger, feel weak, cranky, everything else. This is NORMAL. It is the price you pay for NOT BEING A FATASS. The Slimfasts are there to help you.