Best diets? Carb free/Slimming World/Calorie Counting

NooNoo59

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Hi all opinions please!
Must lose some weight as my riding wont improve until I do and for the sake of my health and my horse. I need to be able to have some alcohol (gin is fine!) and it needs to fit into a busy lifestyle around work and horse.
Thanks in advance
 

Evie91

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I’ve done slimming world before, with really good results. Liked it as I like to eat and don’t like to feel really hungry and have no time to weigh stuff- so felt it worked well and I lost the weight I wanted to.
 

NooNoo59

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I’ve done slimming world before, with really good results. Liked it as I like to eat and don’t like to feel really hungry and have no time to weigh stuff- so felt it worked well and I lost the weight I wanted to.
Did you keep it off?
 

clairefeekerry1

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I permanently do keto/low carb and personally found it brilliant. It really suits me as I’m not a massive fruit fan and happy eating a wide range of meat/fish and veg. I find it really easy. Every Saturday I have a day off and eat whatever I like. I lost 2st in 10 months (was only just over weight bmi wise) and I still lose the odd lb here and there!
 

clairefeekerry1

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You don’t count calories, carbs etc. So dead easy to follow and no faffing. Just aim for foods naturally lower in carbs. Basically cut out bread, pasta, potatoes etc.
 

honetpot

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I would agree with low carb. I allows you never to be hungrey, the only low carb food that is processed food I buy is Morrisons ice cream. You get to eat chocolate. I didn't realise how addicted I was to grapes, I could not have one. My husband is smug, he has never liked fruit.
Its not a diet, its about changing what you eat.
 

clairefeekerry1

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I would agree with low carb. I allows you never to be hungrey, the only low carb food that is processed food I buy is Morrisons ice cream. You get to eat chocolate. I didn't realise how addicted I was to grapes, I could not have one. My husband is smug, he has never liked fruit.
Its not a diet, its about changing what you eat.

absolutely. I still eat dark chocolate and drink dry wine. Weight just fell off actually. Love how you don’t need to use apps or calorie count or anything like that
 

limestonelil

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Low carb is a good way to go, basically sensible eating and no processed stuff. Some of my friends do keto which is no carb but for me that's too extreme. The protein means you don't feel hungry and energy levels seem to rise, rise dramatically in some cases. Good luck.
 

Upthecreek

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I think calorie counting is the way to go because it’s easy to do and you ‘learn’ the calorific value of everything so it becomes a way of life. I eat whatever I want, nothing is on the naughty list, but I have learnt to adjust accordingly and my good habits have stayed with me 5 years after losing 3 stone. For example, it was a colleague’s birthday at work today so I had a slice of cake. This was ‘extra’ to what I was planning to eat today so I reduced the size of my evening meal to compensate. You will be amazed how much weight you can lose by still eating the foods you enjoy but adjusting your portion sizes. Personally I don’t think diets or cutting out certain food groups is sustainable - everything in moderation is the key to keeping the weight off long term.
 

conniegirl

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I’m doing slimming world, 4lb off this week.

did it in the past and lost 3stone in about 1 year. And kept it off for 6years untill i had a horrific year and a half where i fell into comfort food and put a lot back on
 

Sasana Skye

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A keen fitness freak here:

High protein diet 100%. As many eggs as you can shovel down, lean meat, fish, broccoli, beans, chicken breast, Greek yogurt and small amounts of nuts. I have a protein shake every morning with 2 boiled egg whites about 7:30 and it keeps me full enough that I'm quite happy to not eat again until 2/3pm, I actually have to force feed myself most days to get my calories in. Also cut out/down on sugar and salt.

My mum has gone from 12st to 8.5st in the last year with Slimming World, although she had been very committed to it!

I think with any 'diet' calorie counting is inevitable as the difference between weight gain, weight maintenance and weight loss is as simple as your calories in : calories out ratio.
 

AmyMay

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Keep it simple. Cut out rubbish and eat as well as you can with plenty of fresh veg and fruit. I‘m cutting as much processed sugar as I can from my diet (so no chocolate, biscuits or cakes). Also cutting down on tea and coffee, and replacing with boiled water instead. I already drink plenty of water generally, but obviously no fizzy drinks.

Whilst I’m not on a diet perse, I have needed to look at my diet and make some changes for health reasons and I’ve lost nearly half a stone since Christmas. I also do a lot of walking, so that helps.

‘Diets’ are one thing, but in reality its a lifestyle choice that has to be made and can be done very simply by just eating healthily.
 

NooNoo59

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Keep it simple. Cut out rubbish and eat as well as you can with plenty of fresh veg and fruit. I‘m cutting as much processed sugar as I can from my diet (so no chocolate, biscuits or cakes). Also cutting down on tea and coffee, and replacing with boiled water instead. I already drink plenty of water generally, but obviously no fizzy drinks.

Whilst I’m not on a diet perse, I have needed to look at my diet and make some changes for health reasons and I’ve lost nearly half a stone since Christmas. I also do a lot of walking, so that helps.

‘Diets’ are one thing, but in reality its a lifestyle choice that has to be made and can be done very simply by just eating healthily.
Well I tried cutting out all sugar for a month so no biscuits cakes wine etc bread only at weekends and plenty of salad and veg. Lost absolutely nothing not even one pound ! So disheartening
 

AmyMay

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Well I tried cutting out all sugar for a month so no biscuits cakes wine etc bread only at weekends and plenty of salad and veg. Lost absolutely nothing not even one pound ! So disheartening

But if you’d continued for six weeks, then you’d have started to notice a difference.
 

Calluna

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I actually think you need to find a diet that chimes in with your hormones and where your metabolism is. When I was a lot younger (20’s) going low fat would easily sort out any weight niggles. Post baby a WW Group approach worked well. When I was peri-menopausal the low carb diet was absolutely great. Now coming out the other side of menopause non of these quite cut it at the moment, l just know that when I need to make adjustments these have to tie in with how my body is working at the time.
 

NooNoo59

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I actually think you need to find a diet that chimes in with your hormones and where your metabolism is. When I was a lot younger (20’s) going low fat would easily sort out any weight niggles. Post baby a WW Group approach worked well. When I was peri-menopausal the low carb diet was absolutely great. Now coming out the other side of menopause non of these quite cut it at the moment, l just know that when I need to make adjustments these have to tie in with how my body is working at the time.
Yes but how do you find that out?!
 

CorriegarthJ

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Slimming world all the way. It’s a lifestyle choice and it’s about how you cook/prepare your foods as opposed to not eating certain things. I started 2 weeks ago and have lost 6lb already. You can essentially eat whatever you want on slimming world just in moderation, that’s why it’s a sustainable way to loose weight as it’s not depriving you of anything
 

yhanni

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Have a look at The Fast 800 devised by Michael Moseley. It's quite tough but perfectly doable. The recipes are all delicious and not too time consuming. My family have all lost loads of weight. We now do it Monday - Friday and eat what we want at the weekend. Time Restricted Eating is also worth considering in conjunction with an eating plan but you need to have enough fat/protein during your 'eating' hours to keep you going during the 'fasting' period.
 

McFluff

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I’ve lost 5% using OurPath. It’s been a slow loss, but a lifestyle change, so it feels sustainable .
It’s all about eating less refined carbs and food being prepared from fresh ingredients
The programme looks at the emotional aspects of eating too
I’ve been impressed at how I’ve kept weight off during bereavement (including the loss of my horse), special events and holidays
Another 5% to go, but it feels doable
 

Shay

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Best will in the world - this is a forum about horses. There are copiuous forums about how to loose weight. You will get better informed advice on how to loose weight on a forum about weight loss than a forum about how to care for your horse.
 

NooNoo59

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Best will in the world - this is a forum about horses. There are copiuous forums about how to loose weight. You will get better informed advice on how to loose weight on a forum about weight loss than a forum about how to care for your horse.
Yes it is but you are also people who understand life with horses and how that works with lifestyle changes. If the post does not interest you don’t comment
 

scats

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I don’t do diets, but I managed to lose 2 stone by simply sticking to 3 sensible meals a day and cutting out snacks. I am very disciplined now, but I also don’t deprive myself. I’ve also learnt to listen to my body and recognise when I’m genuinely hungry. It’s amazing how your body fools you into thinking you’re hungry when in fact it’s a craving. I can now differentiate. If I feel hungry, I eat something, even if it’s a biscuit.
 

Leo Walker

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Slimming world all the way. It’s a lifestyle choice and it’s about how you cook/prepare your foods as opposed to not eating certain things. I started 2 weeks ago and have lost 6lb already. You can essentially eat whatever you want on slimming world just in moderation, that’s why it’s a sustainable way to loose weight as it’s not depriving you of anything

Northamptonshire NHS is doing free slimming world or weight watchers membership for 12 weeks at the minute, so I've just signed up to SW.
 

AShetlandBitMeOnce

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All diets are the same thing, a calorie deficit (expending more calories worth of energy than you consume) but they arrive at this in different ways. Intermittent fasting is just skipping breakfast, Keto is just cutting out carbs etc. Different ways to create the deficit work for different people, low carb is quite popular as for every 1g of carb you consume, you can hold up to 3g water in your body, so the results of both weight and water loss when cutting down this food group initially exceed that of cutting down on fats for example; plus it tends to be the biggest food group and therefore the easiest to reduce - but I like carbs, so I just cut down the quantity of general food I eat instead.

The fitness guy that I follow has a free calculator online which will bring up how many calories you could be eating to maintain/lose weight if you are interested: https://www.jamessmithacademy.com/macro-calculator/

I am not overwhelmed with the idea of slimming world and weight watchers, albeit good for accountability with the meetings, I think that they complicate the process of creating a calorie deficit and therefore people aren't equipped with the knowledge of how to keep the weight off by the time they leave (although, the cynic in me says that this is to ensure repeat custom) - but of course, it is each to their own!

Good luck with whatever it is that you choose. :)
 
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Shavings

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I do weight watchers, there is no where on island that does slimming world.

took me a little getting used to but they have an app so i can scan the bar code of any thing and know if i want to eat it or not then!
 

conniegirl

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I am not overwhelmed with the idea of slimming world and weight watchers, albeit good for accountability with the meetings, I think that they complicate the process of creating a calorie deficit and therefore people aren't equipped with the knowledge of how to keep the weight off by the time they leave (although, the cynic in me says that this is to ensure repeat custom) - but of course, it is each to their own!

Slimmingworld provides you with that knowledge and once you reach your target weight (set by you not the consultant) then you get free membership for life if you stay within +/-3lbs of that target. I kept my weight off for 6years without attending a single meeting after reaching my target, then I went through hell and comfort food was one of the few things that kept me going. I'm now back on slimming world and loosing 4lb a week on average. Should be back at target within 6 months (i'm expecting the weight loss to slow down towards the end) and then won't need to go back though probably will as some of the recipes you pick up from group are excellent and it is nice to help others with thier weight loss.
One lady in our group has lost 6 stone in 6 months! she has another 5 Stone to go but my god she looks good for it.
 
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