I am fat

[madaozeki]

The first step is admitting you have a problem...

It's been so long since I last competed that I've really let my diet go, since there was never any reason to lose weight. Now I realize I'm just, well, fat. Not obese, not horribly overweight, but I had a life insurance medical exam this morning, and my height/weight was 5'5/165lbs, which seems rather skewed in a bad direction, especially considering that I have a fairly light upper-body frame.

So, as of today (yes, I'm starting on Hallowe'en), I'm going to clean things up, with a short-term goal of simply dropping down to 150 via mostly fat loss, so I'm at least a normal 69'er again.

In order to do this, I'm not going to do anything drastic; rather, I'm going to take the advice of Michael Pollan's "In Defense of Food", and simply: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. The "rules" are:

1. DON'T EAT ANYTHING YOUR GREAT-GRANDMOTHER WOULDN'T RECOGNIZE AS FOOD.
No Go-Gurt Portable Yogurt tubes. (She wouldn't be able to identify high-fructose corn syrup, modified corn starch, kosher gelatin, carrageenan, tricalcium phosphate, natural and artificial flavors, etc.) No "protein waters," "nondairy creamers" or foods that never grow stale.
2. AVOID FOOD PRODUCTS CONTAINING INGREDIENTS THAT ARE A) UNFAMILIAR, B) UNPRONOUNCABLE, C) MORE THAN FIVE IN NUMBER, OR THAT INCLUDE D) HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP.
Pollan's example: Sara Lee's Soft & Smooth Whole Grain White Bread, which fails every test proposed by this rule. "If not for the indulgence of the Food and Drug Administration, (it) could not even be labeled "bread," he wrote.
3. AVOID PRODUCTS THAT MAKE HEALTH CLAIMS.
If a food has a health claim, it probably has a package and that means it's very likely processed. Moreover, the FDA's "qualified" health claims" are all but meaningless.
4. SHOP THE PERIPHERIES OF THE SUPERMARKET AND STAY OUT OF THE MIDDLE.
"Processed foods products dominate the center aisles of the store while the cases of ostensibly fresh food--dairy, produce, meat and fish--line the walls," Pollan wrote. Be careful though, because high-fructose corn syrup lurks in the dairy case.
5. GET OUT OF THE SUPERMARKET WHENEVER POSSIBLE.
"You won't find any high-fructose corn syrup at the farmer's market. Also look into CSA (community supported agriculture), in which you can subscribe to a farm and receive a box of produce.)"

My diet will be based around all kinds of vegetables, a bit of fruit, fish, beef, eggs, and the occasional whole grain. I'm going to try getting in at least one decent-sized salad per day, and take in plenty of leafy greens. I'm going to go off of junk for the foreseeable future, and stay away from overly-processed foods of all sorts. I'm going to try to explore the local farmer's markets more, and join a CSA (Community-Supported Agriculture) group in the spring when they start up again (stupid starting a new eating plan as winter approaches!).

And since no-one else really cares about my diet (my real-life friends are mostly just jealous that I eat like an entire football team in the peak of off-season form but still look reasonably normal), I've decided to keep a food log here to keep me honest. I hang out here the most, hate visiting most of the other forums around here, and feel this is a good, down-to-earth group that will be supportive and provide good "feed"back. It'll also dovetail nicely with my training log, so we can all benefit from my experiences.

I'm not keeping track of calories, macro or micronutrients. Just going to follow the rules and let the chips fall where they may (not corn chips).

Also, I'll be taking a multivitamin and a fish oil supplement - nothing else.

And so my food log begins. I'll post whenever I'm around the computer after at least a single meal.

Today:

Breakfast
1/2 an onion, 1/2 a carrot, sauteed in olive oil, salt and pepper to taste
1/2 a filet of salmon, baked in the oven (pre-painted with olive oil)
2 large scallops, grilled in a hint of olive oil
Lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste

Lunch
Same as breakfast, the 2nd half of everything.

[dcamnc]

Sounds like one of the better diets. REAL food. I'm cutting too, to 169/77kg. My diet is much worse than this one though =)

[gbg]

Well good luck fatty

funny you started this I have also done the same, my diet needs to be revamped and I'm looking to loose around 10lbs mostly fat (hopefully)
I'll be doing the CKD it keeps me full and is easy to maintain the most muscle.
Unfortunately with little to no carbs during the week my lifting is much harder but screw it!

I know how much you like sweets and feel for you because I'm in the same boat
However I start tomorrow

I'll have a Hagen Dasz for you mezzie.


How was the beach?

[madaozeki]

Sounds like one of the better diets. REAL food. I'm cutting too, to 169/77kg. My diet is much worse than this one though =)

Thanks! I don't consider it a "diet" per se since it's really just the way I want to and should be eating regardless. I'll still have plenty of "cheat" days; just will cheat with "real" junk food instead of processed crap

Well good luck fatty

funny you started this I have also done the same, my diet needs to be revamped and I'm looking to loose around 10lbs mostly fat (hopefully)
I'll be doing the CKD it keeps me full and is easy to maintain the most muscle.
Unfortunately with little to no carbs during the week my lifting is much harder but screw it!

I know how much you like sweets and feel for you because I'm in the same boat
However I start tomorrow

I'll have a Hagen Dasz for you mezzie.

How was the beach?

Thanks ma'am -- I knew you'd show up in this thread soon enough! Our little chat about "snacks" in the other thread certainly got me thinking...

The beach was lots of fun, but I'd've liked to look a bit better in my bathing suit

[gbg]

Thanks! I don't consider it a "diet" per se since it's really just the way I want to and should be eating regardless. I'll still have plenty of "cheat" days; just will cheat with "real" junk food instead of processed crap




Thanks ma'am -- I knew you'd show up in this thread soon enough! Our little chat about "snacks" in the other thread certainly got me thinking...

The beach was lots of fun, but I'd've liked to look a bit better in my bathing suit

Everything happens for a reason

What's real junk food? on a need to know basis.

[madaozeki]

Everything happens for a reason

What's real junk food? on a need to know basis.

Ha! Anything made with ingredients I recognize (and I have zero chemistry training, so I don't recognize much).

Like a flavor from the Haagen Dazs "Five" (5 ingredients per flavor) series, say for example "Brown Sugar" (yum!):

Ingredients: Skim Milk, Cream, Brown Sugar (Molasses, sugar), Sugar, Egg Yolks

Compared with the ingredients on Haagen Dazs "Caramel Cone", which is a classic flavor (not part of the "Five" series):

CREAM, SKIM MILK, CHOCOLATY COATING WITH CONE PIECES (SUGAR, COCONUT OIL, COCOA PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, BUTTER OIL, VANILLA, CONE PIECES [SUGAR, WHEAT FLOUR, SOYBEAN OIL, SALT, SOY LECITHIN]), SUGAR, CARAMEL SAUCE (SWEETENED CONDENSED SKIM MILK [CONDENSED SKIM MILK, SUGAR], SUGAR, CORN SYRUP, WATER, BUTTER, SALT, PECTIN, VANILLA EXTRACT, BAKING SODA), SWEETENED CONDENSED SKIM MILK (CONDENSED SKIM MILK, SUGAR), CORN SYRUP, EGG YOLKS, BUTTER, NATURAL FLAVOR, SALT, PECTIN, VANILLA EXTRACT, BAKING SODA.

So yeah, Haagen Dazs isn't off-limits!

But sugar/flour/etc tend to be heavily processed and devoid of any nutrition whatsoever, so they're off the table for non-cheat meals/snacks...

[jcork06]

sounds like you would get quite the workout looking for things to fit this diet.

i really would like to see how this would turn out. keep posting.

[SuicideGripMe]

Best of luck. Dont kill yourself though. Eggs and red meat all the way. To be honest, I lost a lot of fat by simply cutting out high calorie drinks, snacks, and boozing a lot. Before every meal just think, what would "your ideal body" eat?

[raffiki]

Good plan. That is pretty much exactly how I eat. I think you could benefit in the future from adding a low carb component, but that isn't important right now.

[madaozeki]

sounds like you would get quite the workout looking for things to fit this diet.

i really would like to see how this would turn out. keep posting.

The looking part'll hopefully be somewhat fun. I'll definitely learn a lot as I go along...

Best of luck. Dont kill yourself though. Eggs and red meat all the way. To be honest, I lost a lot of fat by simply cutting out high calorie drinks, snacks, and boozing a lot. Before every meal just think, what would "your ideal body" eat?

Yeah, I've had to cut for competitions before, and I've always just gone on a steamed vegetable and poached fish diet, which works fine short-term; now's the time to make it a long-term strategy!

Good plan. That is pretty much exactly how I eat. I think you could benefit in the future from adding a low carb component, but that isn't important right now.

Thanks! Most definitely low-carb isn't necessary right now, not even to "kick-start" anything. I'd rather just transition into it slowly and thoroughly, and feel my way around it as I get used to it.

So Hallowe'en wasn't the absolute best day to start this. Just got home from a Hallowe'en dinner at friends, who know of my sweet-toothed ways and tried to "accommodate" me. I certainly behaved myself WAY better than I normally would, so that's good:

Fried chicken
Mixed greens salad with raw ham
Sukiyaki (my friend bought 3 pounds of beef for this because her husband was supposed to bring 3 friends home. They didn't come, so it was just me... needless to say, I had a lot of sukiyaki tonight)
Chirashi sushi rice
2 small scoops of Rocky Road ice cream
Some jelly bellies
Hallowe'en candy still awaits, but I'll be pretty good...

Tomorrow morning off to the farmer's market to stock up on veggies for the week.

[J.L.C.]

Maybe this is the motivation I need to stop being such a chunko

[madaozeki]

Maybe this is the motivation I need to stop being such a chunko

Join in! The more the merrier!

[kthxbai]

Send all your processed snacks to me. I'm bulking for at least another year or two.

[AusLifter06]

Pretty much what I do whether bulking or cutting(just adjust calories) but with alot more fats than what is outlined.

[madaozeki]

Pretty much what I do whether bulking or cutting(just adjust calories) but with alot more fats than what is outlined.

Yeah, that's a good point. I do most of my cooking with olive oil, canola oil or butter, so I'll be getting most of my fats that way. Also balsamic vinegar and oil for salad dressing. And the occasional bit of cheese.

Breakfast
2-egg 3-cheese spinach omelet, salt and pepper to taste
Multivitamin
Fish oil

Would people be interested in seeing pictures of some of this stuff or not?

[gbg]

Pics of food? I say YES!

I feel myself weakening the willpower slowly fading from me.. my thoughts of a juicy burger envelope my thoughts, should I give in?

[madaozeki]

Pics of food? I say YES!

OK, will start taking pics with my next meal. Lunch is already done

Lunch
1/2 Roasted acorn squash
Mixed green salad with raw carrots and raw onions
Steamed cauliflower
- I'm roasting the squash seeds for a snack for later, and just put out some salmon to thaw for dinner

I feel myself weakening the willpower slowly fading from me.. my thoughts of a juicy burger envelope my thoughts, should I give in?

I think you should focus your thoughts on "other", more productive "things"...

Though if your willpower is weakening, perhaps I should drop by to take adv-- er, help motivate you and set you in the right direction.

[gbg]

OK, will start taking pics with my next meal. Lunch is already done

Lunch
1/2 Roasted acorn squash
Mixed green salad with raw carrots and raw onions
Steamed cauliflower
- I'm roasting the squash seeds for a snack for later, and just put out some salmon to thaw for dinner



I think you should focus your thoughts on "other", more productive "things"...

Though if your willpower is weakening, perhaps I should drop by to take adv-- er, help motivate you and set you in the right direction.

Sounds delicious! good idea to roast the squash seeds pumpkin seed are pretty good roasted as well.

As long as that direction is "UP"

[madaozeki]

As long as that direction is "UP"

It most definitely is

[madaozeki]

Dinner
1 small slice of whole wheat bread with sunflower and flax seeds
Rest of the salad from lunch with a sliced hard-boiled egg
1/2 baked salmon filet, salt and pepper to taste
A few slices of Japanese sweet potato
A bowl of Japanese sweet potato potage (whole milk, consomme, paprika)
A few slices of baked apple with a touch of honey for dessert

[hazard52003]

Mezzie you sound like a fancy restaurant menu the way you describe your food.. i think we have a possible career change for you here

[madaozeki]

Mezzie you sound like a fancy restaurant menu the way you describe your food.. i think we have a possible career change for you here

Ha! Well hopefully I'll get my act together and start taking photos. Then if anyone wants any recipes, I can throw those together quickly, since I'm not really "cooking", just kind of heating stuff up and putting it together.

FWIW my brother was a chef (he passed away when he was 34) but he seems to have gotten all the cooking genes in our family!

[sheepyd]

**** mez, I wish I could eat like that... droolz.

Frickn hostel food.


Pictures naow!

[madaozeki]

**** mez, I wish I could eat like that... droolz.

Frickn hostel food.


Pictures naow!

Ha! Well I literally am just buying stuff and heating it up. Still tasty though...

Snack
A few small Hallowe'en "leftovers". Will throw away the rest of them tomorrow unless kthxbai sends me his address to mail them to...

[ChadWilliam1]

I have no good input to add to this. My diet has been crap the last week but I usally fall off for about a week then I straghten up. I think it started when I bought all the candy. Even though I do not care for candy it made me want ice cream.

[je1ani]

Good advice, but I get a fuzzy feeling buying a nice green head of lettuce or fruit at the supermarket rather than a dingy place like a farmers market with a dirt floor.. Can you explain why it would be better besides just eliminating the middle man?

[madaozeki]

Good advice, but I get a fuzzy feeling buying a nice green head of lettuce or fruit at the supermarket rather than a dingy place like a farmers market with a dirt floor.. Can you explain why it would be better besides just eliminating the middle man?

Depends on the specific produce you're buying, but mass-produced fruits and veggies tend to be monocultures grown in nutrient-poor soil. They tend to be bred for visual appeal, such as rich colors and shininess, rather than taste. Also, supermarket produce tends to be very limited in terms of variety - the best-looking and easiest-to-grow varieties of fruits and veggies dominate, and other breeds are left to die out. Then of course there's the issue of pesticides and other potentially-harmful chemicals... Finally, there's the issue of carbon footprint. If you're buying from a farmer's market, you know exactly where the food comes from and how far it travelled to get to you (usually less than 100 miles). Supermarket produce can be shipped from all corners of the globe. You also are getting things which are definitely in-season and ripest, rather than something which is forced to be grown off-season to feed demand. Plus supporting local farmers is generally a good thing, so they don't lose their livelihood, and continue to provide all the benefits described in this paragraph.

Again, it really depends on the specific farmer's market and the specific supermarket. The above are just generalizations.

[madaozeki]

Breakfast
1 slice of freshly-baked whole wheat bread with sunflower and flax seeds
1 hard-boiled egg (sliced, open-face on the bread)
Supps

Have to go back to work today, so didn't have any time to prepare anything more fancy... such is life!

[madaozeki]

Snack
banana

- Actually feeling kind of queasy today, just over the past hour. Not sure if it was the bread, or something random...

[gbg]

Snack
banana

- Actually feeling kind of queasy today, just over the past hour. Not sure if it was the bread, or something random...

if I could I would rub your tummy.