Anyone want to shape up in 2018? A continuing journey.......

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

mcgruff10 said:

rgambs said:

ConorKavanagh said:

I wish that I was in a place where I could say, hey man you should eat some chocolate. Sadly this is not the case at the moment. I really packed on the kgs while I was in North America. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it could have been though because I had to walk most places there.

I read an article about Europeans moving to America and getting fat very quickly.  Hectic schedules due to our insatiable consumerism coupled with ridiculous amounts of junk food in your face all day, it's tough.

Plus our portion sizes are massive compared to Europe. 

Also our diet is often based on carbs while in Asia many meals are based on veggies and proteins. And many of the carbs we consume are empty coming from white flour and refined sugar...
That is what I am currently working on - changing my eating habits. 

Me too! I hate I have to bake myself now.

I love getting baked. Wait, that's not what you meant

markymark550 said:

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

mcgruff10 said:

rgambs said:

ConorKavanagh said:

I wish that I was in a place where I could say, hey man you should eat some chocolate. Sadly this is not the case at the moment. I really packed on the kgs while I was in North America. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it could have been though because I had to walk most places there.

I read an article about Europeans moving to America and getting fat very quickly.  Hectic schedules due to our insatiable consumerism coupled with ridiculous amounts of junk food in your face all day, it's tough.

Plus our portion sizes are massive compared to Europe. 

Also our diet is often based on carbs while in Asia many meals are based on veggies and proteins. And many of the carbs we consume are empty coming from white flour and refined sugar...
That is what I am currently working on - changing my eating habits. 

Me too! I hate I have to bake myself now.

I love getting baked. Wait, that's not what you meant

Miss.Snowdrop said:

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

mcgruff10 said:

rgambs said:

ConorKavanagh said:

I wish that I was in a place where I could say, hey man you should eat some chocolate. Sadly this is not the case at the moment. I really packed on the kgs while I was in North America. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it could have been though because I had to walk most places there.

I read an article about Europeans moving to America and getting fat very quickly.  Hectic schedules due to our insatiable consumerism coupled with ridiculous amounts of junk food in your face all day, it's tough.

Plus our portion sizes are massive compared to Europe. 

Also our diet is often based on carbs while in Asia many meals are based on veggies and proteins. And many of the carbs we consume are empty coming from white flour and refined sugar...
That is what I am currently working on - changing my eating habits. 

Me too! I hate I have to bake myself now.

On one hand yes, it is annoying not being able to just buy and eat whatever you want from the shop. And it takes time an effort to make it yourself but on the other hand whenever I see people with shopping baskets full of unhealthy stuff, I think "thank god, that's not me anymore. I don't want to do this to my body anymore". It is hard to say no, especially when you live with people who don't feel the same way or don't care that you are trying to take care of yourself. And it is okay to fall off the wagon, the important thing is to climb back on. Every day that you don't give in to all the bad stuff, is a win!

I agree, however, I'm so new to this lifestyle that I just hate some inconviences.

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

mcgruff10 said:

rgambs said:

ConorKavanagh said:

I wish that I was in a place where I could say, hey man you should eat some chocolate. Sadly this is not the case at the moment. I really packed on the kgs while I was in North America. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it could have been though because I had to walk most places there.

I read an article about Europeans moving to America and getting fat very quickly.  Hectic schedules due to our insatiable consumerism coupled with ridiculous amounts of junk food in your face all day, it's tough.

Plus our portion sizes are massive compared to Europe. 

Also our diet is often based on carbs while in Asia many meals are based on veggies and proteins. And many of the carbs we consume are empty coming from white flour and refined sugar...
That is what I am currently working on - changing my eating habits. 

Me too! I hate I have to bake myself now.

On one hand yes, it is annoying not being able to just buy and eat whatever you want from the shop. And it takes time an effort to make it yourself but on the other hand whenever I see people with shopping baskets full of unhealthy stuff, I think "thank god, that's not me anymore. I don't want to do this to my body anymore". It is hard to say no, especially when you live with people who don't feel the same way or don't care that you are trying to take care of yourself. And it is okay to fall off the wagon, the important thing is to climb back on. Every day that you don't give in to all the bad stuff, is a win!

I agree, however, I'm so new to this lifestyle that I just hate some inconviences.

What helps me a lot is a little meal planning. 
I don't go so far and plan out every single day of the week but I often make bigger meals, so I don't have to cook the next day. It makes life so much easier. 

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

FoxyRedLa said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

mcgruff10 said:

rgambs said:

ConorKavanagh said:

I wish that I was in a place where I could say, hey man you should eat some chocolate. Sadly this is not the case at the moment. I really packed on the kgs while I was in North America. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it could have been though because I had to walk most places there.

I read an article about Europeans moving to America and getting fat very quickly.  Hectic schedules due to our insatiable consumerism coupled with ridiculous amounts of junk food in your face all day, it's tough.

Plus our portion sizes are massive compared to Europe. 

Also our diet is often based on carbs while in Asia many meals are based on veggies and proteins. And many of the carbs we consume are empty coming from white flour and refined sugar...
That is what I am currently working on - changing my eating habits. 

Me too! I hate I have to bake myself now.

On one hand yes, it is annoying not being able to just buy and eat whatever you want from the shop. And it takes time an effort to make it yourself but on the other hand whenever I see people with shopping baskets full of unhealthy stuff, I think "thank god, that's not me anymore. I don't want to do this to my body anymore". It is hard to say no, especially when you live with people who don't feel the same way or don't care that you are trying to take care of yourself. And it is okay to fall off the wagon, the important thing is to climb back on. Every day that you don't give in to all the bad stuff, is a win!

I agree, however, I'm so new to this lifestyle that I just hate some inconviences.

What helps me a lot is a little meal planning. 
I don't go so far and plan out every single day of the week but I often make bigger meals, so I don't have to cook the next day. It makes life so much easier. 

Me too! Same lunches all week but different dinners. No breakfast nor snacking so I don't have to worry about those. 

 All the "health experts" I've come across say that breakfast is actually pretty important. As far as I understand it your body tends to store fat more easily, if you have periods where you starve it, because it wants to make sure there is enough energy to burn during those times. 
Something small like a banana or oatmeal can do the trick. And you can easily prepare the oatmeal the night before. 

Breakfast can be a part of dieting for body composition but it really isn't necessary and is more likely to hurt than help.
Most of the information spread by health experts through the 80's and 90's is completely unrelated to actual research.  The biggest, most pervasive, and ridiculous myth that health experts have perpetuated is the "starvation mode myth".
It's total BS.  It makes some sense logically, but it isn't based on physiology and it isn't true.
Entire swaths of the internet are a wasteland of fat people telling other fat people they need to eat more to lose weight!  There are seriously people out there that will swear the less they eat the more weight they gain.  How in the hell is that possible?  It isn't.  Simple physics blows that apart.  Your metabolic rate does slow when you deprive your body of calories.  Adaptive thermogenesis is a real and documented effect of starvation, but it requires actual starvation and isn't engaged simply because you are 1200 calories for the day.
Your metabolic rate is effected by quite a few factors, but almost never to the degree that people believe.  We are talking about rate changes that equate to tens of calories in most cases, less than a full size candy bar in nearly all cases.
Long story short, when you deprive your body of calories, your body eats itself.  Period.

Quite a few studies have shown that people who eat breakfast tend to have more body fat than those that don't, the assumption is that it is due to a simple increase in caloric intake.  Most people who have even minor food addiction issues (aka, you enjoy junk food) will eat the same size lunch regardless of breakfast intake.
Intermittent fasting and the research behind it has blown the importance of breakfast right off the map.
I could link some studies and abstracts sometime, it's a fascinating subject that we are just beginning to really understand.

rgambs said:

Breakfast can be a part of dieting for body composition but it really isn't necessary and is more likely to hurt than help.
Most of the information spread by health experts through the 80's and 90's is completely unrelated to actual research.  The biggest, most pervasive, and ridiculous myth that health experts have perpetuated is the "starvation mode myth".
It's total BS.  It makes some sense logically, but it isn't based on physiology and it isn't true.
Entire swaths of the internet are a wasteland of fat people telling other fat people they need to eat more to lose weight!  There are seriously people out there that will swear the less they eat the more weight they gain.  How in the hell is that possible?  It isn't.  Simple physics blows that apart.  Your metabolic rate does slow when you deprive your body of calories.  Adaptive thermogenesis is a real and documented effect of starvation, but it requires actual starvation and isn't engaged simply because you are 1200 calories for the day.
Your metabolic rate is effected by quite a few factors, but almost never to the degree that people believe.  We are talking about rate changes that equate to tens of calories in most cases, less than a full size candy bar in nearly all cases.
Long story short, when you deprive your body of calories, your body eats itself.  Period.

Quite a few studies have shown that people who eat breakfast tend to have more body fat than those that don't, the assumption is that it is due to a simple increase in caloric intake.  Most people who have even minor food addiction issues (aka, you enjoy junk food) will eat the same size lunch regardless of breakfast intake.
Intermittent fasting and the research behind it has blown the importance of breakfast right off the map.
I could link some studies and abstracts sometime, it's a fascinating subject that we are just beginning to really understand.

I would love to read more about this. I am not sure I would be able to understand a study (English is not my first language and I am not a very scientific person) but, if you know of any articles based on the science, that'd be great. Because I force myself to eat breakfast in the first hour after getting up before I do anything else everyday

rgambs said:

Miss.Snowdrop said:

rgambs said:

Breakfast can be a part of dieting for body composition but it really isn't necessary and is more likely to hurt than help.
Most of the information spread by health experts through the 80's and 90's is completely unrelated to actual research.  The biggest, most pervasive, and ridiculous myth that health experts have perpetuated is the "starvation mode myth".
It's total BS.  It makes some sense logically, but it isn't based on physiology and it isn't true.
Entire swaths of the internet are a wasteland of fat people telling other fat people they need to eat more to lose weight!  There are seriously people out there that will swear the less they eat the more weight they gain.  How in the hell is that possible?  It isn't.  Simple physics blows that apart.  Your metabolic rate does slow when you deprive your body of calories.  Adaptive thermogenesis is a real and documented effect of starvation, but it requires actual starvation and isn't engaged simply because you are 1200 calories for the day.
Your metabolic rate is effected by quite a few factors, but almost never to the degree that people believe.  We are talking about rate changes that equate to tens of calories in most cases, less than a full size candy bar in nearly all cases.
Long story short, when you deprive your body of calories, your body eats itself.  Period.

Quite a few studies have shown that people who eat breakfast tend to have more body fat than those that don't, the assumption is that it is due to a simple increase in caloric intake.  Most people who have even minor food addiction issues (aka, you enjoy junk food) will eat the same size lunch regardless of breakfast intake.
Intermittent fasting and the research behind it has blown the importance of breakfast right off the map.
I could link some studies and abstracts sometime, it's a fascinating subject that we are just beginning to really understand.

I would love to read more about this. I am not sure I would be able to understand a study (English is not my first language and I am not a very scientific person) but, if you know of any articles based on the science, that'd be great. Because I force myself to eat breakfast in the first hour after getting up before I do anything else everyday

If you aren't a breakfast person I wouldn't force it.
The studies are a bit conflicting on breakfast at this point.  The finer details of nutrition, dieting, and metabolism are incredibly difficult to hammer out because there are so so many variables, including individual anatomy and physiology.

Essentially, breakfast can be an integral part of a diet/body composition strategy, and so can skipping it.  There are many ways to achieve the same results, but what studies have really shown is that neither skipping nor partaking in breakfast is bad for you.  The old adages about the importance of breakfast seem to be more about cultural tradition than anything else.

Personally, breakfast doesn't work for me, it opens the gate/breaks the seal on eating for the day and will actually cause me to eat a bigger lunch and sooner in many cases.  There is very often an "appetizer" effect for me.
Instead of having breakfast, I eat a Greek yogurt or a protein drink.  I avoid carbs and focus on protein alone to try to prevent muscle catabolism and also avoid a large insulin response which directs the growth of fat storage.  Lower insulin levels equal higher fat loss and lower muscle loss, which is why people use fasting to lose fat, as fasting is the best way to keep insulin levels low.

I don't do a big breakfast anymore either.  I do a hard boiled egg and some juice.  A few hours later I'll do a banana or a tuna packet then lunch.

Anything consumed more than 30 calories some say 40 some say 50 calories will break a fast. Protein anything for sure will break a fast. He may be referring to what he does before he works out.

Yeah, I'm not fasting I'm just on a calorie reduction plan that emphasizes preservation of lean mass.