Exercise/Diet Support Group

[Misspendragon]

Of course, if we're going to believe scientific papers, the biggest benefits of intermittent fasting, like tumor shrinkage, are shown in animal studies that are the equivalent of restricting one's eating to one week per month or so. I might try that if I get cancer, but it seems a fairly severe diet.

You might want to expand your search. Intermittent fasting (which isn't defined by a month-long starvation) is good for other things too, like reducing inflammation, increasing insulin sensitivity, promoting the growth of new neurons in the brain. And there are studies with humans.

But my original post wasn't about intermittent fasting in particular. I wanted to be nice and share my experience of losing 4 pounds in a week while still eating food that is (1) healthy and (2) tasty, because I figured some people on this forum might also want to lose some weight. I thought a post like that may be more helpful to dancers than my recap of a time when I ate an entire cherry pie (that did happen, but I had a good excuse. I was seven years old). It seems I was mistaken.

 

[raindance]

The typical recommendation for healthy weight loss is 1-2 pounds a week.

What you did may have been healthy for you (I hope so!) - you know your own body. But it's quicker weight loss than what is generally recommended by the medical community, so it may not apply broadly to others. Though I guess others could do something similar and up the calories as needed.

 

[ProgressNotPerfection]

The typical recommendation for healthy weight loss is 1-2 pounds a week.

Exactly. Around the same time I started dance lessons, I started Noom. It worked wonders for me. After 9 months, I had lost a total of 52 pounds (from 174 to 122), which works out to roughly 1.37 pounds per week. I never felt deprived or hungry; in fact, because I got in the habit of making healthier choices for snacks, sometimes I wasn’t even very hungry at meal times, so I ate smaller portions. And because I felt so much better physically, I was motivated to exercise more - and of course I was newly in love with dancing, so that also provided motivation to improve my health.

But 122 is actually quite underweight for my height & build. Over the next 18 months, I gained back 15 lbs, and have kept my weight steady between 137-142 since then. That seems to be my “natural” body weight*, since for the last 40 years, it is the weight my body settles at when I am neither dieting, pregnant, or nursing.

my recap of a time when I ate an entire cherry pie (that did happen, but I had a good excuse. I was seven years old).

Lol! I’ve done that a LOT more than once, and much more recently. Marie Callender’s cherry crunch pie is one of my absolute favorite indulgences, although I do try to spread it out over a two-day window, rather than eating the whole thing in one sitting (although I’d have no difficulty with the latter).

*that is, until now. I’m quickly realizing that as I grow older, my body stubbornly insists on following the laws of biology and gravity, much to my annoyance. But at least I’ve been fortunate so far to have developed arthritis only in a few toes and fingers.

 

[Misspendragon]

Exactly. Around the same time I started dance lessons, I started Noom. It worked wonders for me. After 9 months, I had lost a total of 52 pounds (from 174 to 122), which works out to roughly 1.37 pounds per week. I never felt deprived or hungry; in fact, because I got in the habit of making healthier choices for snacks, sometimes I wasn’t even very hungry at meal times, so I ate smaller portions. And because I felt so much better physically, I was motivated to exercise more - and of course I was newly in love with dancing, so that also provided motivation to improve my health.

But 122 is actually quite underweight for my height & build. Over the next 18 months, I gained back 15 lbs, and have kept my weight steady between 137-142 since then. That seems to be my “natural” body weight*, since for the last 40 years, it is the weight my body settles at when I am neither dieting, pregnant, or nursing.

Lol! I’ve done that a LOT more than once, and much more recently. Marie Callender’s cherry crunch pie is one of my absolute favorite indulgences, although I do try to spread it out over a two-day window, rather than eating the whole thing in one sitting (although I’d have no difficulty with the latter).

*that is, until now. I’m quickly realizing that as I grow older, my body stubbornly insists on following the laws of biology and gravity, much to my annoyance. But at least I’ve been fortunate so far to have developed arthritis only in a few toes and fingers.

4 pounds a week is perfectly fine if losing it doesn't involve losing water or important nutritions, and when it's not an ongoing plan. I have done it many times in my life and not counting diabetes, which in my case is partly genetic and partly cortisol related, I'm in excellent health. I don't lose weight often, in fact I have a very stable weight, the most I ever gained or lost was ten pounds. I wasn't even trying to lose weight last week, either. But I thought some people might want to. I doubt any nutritionist would call the recipe I have outlined unhealthy. If anyone actually followed it for a week, they would find it highly beneficial.

But I'm tired of trying to defend my desire to offer up something good. Like Purr, I'm starting to feel really turned off by how negatively people seem to take things on this forum lately. Me, I would be delighted if others posted super healthy recipes and their weight loss successes and their birthday resolutions, even if I didn't agree with the particulars of it.

And you might want to note that high sugar intake is correlated with arthritis. Sugar contributes to inflammation, and inflammation contributes to arthritis.

 

[Warren J. Dew]

You might want to expand your search. Intermittent fasting (which isn't defined by a month-long starvation) is good for other things too, like reducing inflammation, increasing insulin sensitivity, promoting the growth of new neurons in the brain. And there are studies with humans.

I'm familiar with the literature on daily cycle intermittent fasting for humans. I think the benefits can be chalked up to other aspects of eating a diet where one can avoid getting hungry enough to eat for most of the day. I feel best on an intermittent fasting cycle - but not because I'm doing intermittent fasting on purpose, but rather because I'm then eating a satisfying diet based on animal protein and fat, and I eat enough in a four or six hour window that I don't feel any need to eat for the rest of the day.

But I'm tired of trying to defend my desire to offer up something good. Like Purr, I'm starting to feel really turned off by how negatively people seem to take things on this forum lately. Me, I would be delighted if others posted super healthy recipes and their weight loss successes and their birthday resolutions, even if I didn't agree with the particulars of it.

And you might want to note that high sugar intake is correlated with arthritis. Sugar contributes to inflammation, and inflammation contributes to arthritis.

Good point.

For myself, when I started getting osteoarthritis in the distal joints of my fingers 15 years ago, I found that cutting out nightshade vegetables - potatoes, tomatoes, and continuing not to eat a few others like eggplant that I didn't eat anyway - entirely relieved the problem within a week. On couple of occasions since, having a tomato heavy salad has given me enough joint pain within a day or two to remind me to stick to not eating them. Interestingly, whole tomatoes seem to cause this problem more than tomato sauce, so the issue may be natural - and bioengineered - insecticides expressed in the skin of the tomatoes.

Cutting out potatoes likely reduced my blood sugar too, which has all sorts of benefits.

 

[joy]

But I'm tired of trying to defend my desire to offer up something good. Like Purr, I'm starting to feel really turned off by how negatively people seem to take things on this forum lately. Me, I would be delighted if others posted super healthy recipes and their weight loss successes and their birthday resolutions, even if I didn't agree with the particulars of it.

Things tend to get heated when people talk about weight and diet.

But yes, in general this forum has been rather negative and nit-picky lately.

 

[Misspendragon]

I found that cutting out nightshade vegetables - potatoes, tomatoes, and continuing not to eat a few others like eggplant that I didn't eat anyway - entirely relieved the problem within a week.

That's interesting. I don't eat regular potatoes because they raise my sugar level and they are too starchy, but I do eat sweet potatoes, eggplant, and tomatoes. I will look into this more, thank you for bringing it up. I know there is a guy, Dr. Gundry, who very much believes that nightshade veggies add to inflammation. I don't have arthritis (yet), but I have high markers for RA and my younger sister has very bad MS, so I'm acutely aware of the possibility of developing it. And while we all do so if we live long enough, I would rather not have a serious case of it for another 20 years at least.

 

[Misspendragon]

... I've just realized paprika is a spice belonging to the nightshade family. Telling to a Hungarian she cannot eat paprika is like telling a kid she cannot eat any sweets again, ever . I would do it if I had to, but it would be a major adjustment. Not counting salt and pepper, the most common spices I use are paprika, garlic, marjoram, onion, and thyme, in that order. My sister sends me a box of Hungarian paprika every six months from Hungary.

 

[Warren J. Dew]

That's interesting. I don't eat regular potatoes because they raise my sugar level and they are too starchy, but I do eat sweet potatoes, eggplant, and tomatoes. I will look into this more, thank you for bringing it up. I know there is a guy, Dr. Gundry, who very much believes that nightshade veggies add to inflammation. I don't have arthritis (yet), but I have high markers for RA and my younger sister has very bad MS, so I'm acutely aware of the possibility of developing it. And while we all do so if we live long enough, I would rather not have a serious case of it for another 20 years at least.

Aren't sweet potatoes nearly as starchy as white potatoes? If you give up eggplant and tomatoes, you might need to find replacements for the fat from eggplant and the vitamin C in tomatoes, though the latter can be had in pill form.

When I was apparently getting metabolic syndrome a couple decades ago, that included symptoms very like MS, getting up with my back, especially the spinal area, already incredibly tired every morning. That went away when I cut the potatoes and switched to a low carb diet, so I'm pretty sure it was related to blood sugar.

The osteoarthritis and cutting out more nightshades thing happened a couple years later. My experience with osteoarthritis going away by getting rid of nightshades that I'd been eating all my life up until then suggests they don't need to be given up preventatively - only when symptoms appear, such as in PnP's case.

 

[Misspendragon]

Aren't sweet potatoes nearly as starchy as white potatoes? If you give up eggplant and tomatoes, you might need to find replacements for the fat from eggplant and the vitamin C in tomatoes, though the latter can be had in pill form.

When I was apparently getting metabolic syndrome a couple decades ago, that included symptoms very like MS, getting up with my back, especially the spinal area, already incredibly tired every morning. That went away when I cut the potatoes and switched to a low carb diet, so I'm pretty sure it was related to blood sugar.

The osteoarthritis and cutting out more nightshades thing happened a couple years later. My experience with osteoarthritis going away by getting rid of nightshades that I'd been eating all my life up until then suggests they don't need to be given up preventatively - only when symptoms appear, such as in PnP's case.

Yes, all kinds of potatoes are starchy, but sweet potatoes have more antioxidants so I'm willing to overlook the starch, particularly because sweet potatoes have a lower glycemic index. A boiled potato has a high GI around 78, while a boiled sweet potato has an intermediate GI of 63. This means that potatoes break down more quickly into sugar in the digestive tract, causing my blood sugar to spike. Still, I can only eat sweet potatoes in moderation; I eat a little maybe once a week, combined with other vegetables.

And definitely, cutting out sugar will help regulate one's energy levels. As I diabetic, even a little carb - one slice of whole wheat bread, let's say - will make me very sleepy for about 45 minutes to an our, even if it doesn't raise my sugar level too much. A slice of whole wheat bread is nothing to a non-diabetic, but sweets and high carb items will do it even for a non-diabetic person.

Interesting little fact: my daughter has the exact same A1c level as I do (5.1), yet she can (yet) eat any amount of carbs with no issues, sweets included. I always tell her, watch out for your sugar intake because truly great A1c level is under 5, and she is only 16. But at that age, I cannot control her eating outside if what I cook (which is unfailingly healthy), and I know she eats all kinds of things outside of the house. She doesn't eat as mindlessly as most of her class and team mates because she was raised by me after all, but bad enough. Sigh.

 

[Warren J. Dew]

And definitely, cutting out sugar will help regulate one's energy levels. As I diabetic, even a little carb - one slice of whole wheat bread, let's say - will make me very sleepy for about 45 minutes to an our, even if it doesn't raise my sugar level too much. A slice of whole wheat bread is nothing to a non-diabetic, but sweets and high carb items will do it even for a non-diabetic person.

I'm pretty sure I would be diabetic if I weren't already low carb. My mother was diabetic from well before my current age.

I haven't had bread for over a decade, though. Well, okay, at a recently discovered steak restaurant, I do have a square inch or so of cracker when the bread comes, but only as a substrate to slather on about a 10mm layer of butter onto the 3mm thick sesame cracker. The cracker is technically bread, but with the butter the bite is not very high carb.

 

[Misspendragon]

I'm pretty sure I would be diabetic if I weren't already low carb. My mother was diabetic from well before my current age.

I haven't had bread for over a decade, though. Well, okay, at a recently discovered steak restaurant, I do have a square inch or so of cracker when the bread comes, but only as a substrate to slather on about a 10mm layer of butter onto the 3mm thick sesame cracker. The cracker is technically bread, but with the butter the bite is not very high carb.

I would bet that at least half the population over 45 in the US has prediabetes. Official guidelines establish a healthy A1c level at 5.6, but every serious medical paper I have read (and I have read MANY on that particular subject because I'm diabetic), states that truly healthy A1c level is under 5.0, many suggesting 4.8. and even 4.6. As I have said above, my 16-year-old competitive swimmer, healthy daughter who already eats better than most (she eats carbs and everything, but she eats healthier at home at least) has an A1c level of 5.2. I doubt most adults in the US, probably in Europe as well, would score an A1c level under 5.00. I sometimes talk to people who are so happy about bringing their A1c level down from over 7 and above to 6.5, and I cringe inside. Because of course, working on getting their A1c level lower is a great thing, but they shouldn't stop at 6.5. It's still far too high. But people don't want to hear that because they don't want to give up their this or that, they rather accept their "fate" or deny the existence of that fate altogether. There are medical issues one cannot help, or not much. But type 2 diabetes isn't one of them for most people (there are exceptions, of course. But they really are exceptions). I cannot get rid of my diabetes altogether - if I eat a slice of bread my sugar level will be still over 160, which isn't normal - but I can control whether I eat that slice of bread or not, and therefore whether I elevate my sugar level or not. And diabetes in return impact one's heart and brain health, among other things, so the issue isn't merely diabetes, either. Anyway, I feel really strongly about this because I see diabetic people getting worse and worse every time I go and see my doc, and it breaks my heart.

 

[ChaCha1]

But I'm tired of trying to defend my desire to offer up something good.

That assumes it is actually good. Like I said, you do you, but don't assume that it is good for all since you are not an RD

And you might want to note that high sugar intake is correlated with arthritis. Sugar contributes to inflammation, and inflammation contributes to arthritis.

What kind of arthritis? Sugar contributes to inflammation, but arthritis???? NOT. Sugar is terrible for one's health in many aspects, but your information is not correct. My mom has had juvenile RA since before I was born and it has NOTHING to do with sugar. It is an autoimmune disease. If you have joint issues any inflammation in the body will make joint issues worse.

There are so many aspects of health that are genetic. So many people are predisposed to various health issues, so offering advice here probably isn't the best course of action.

If someone wants help with their nutrition and how it relates to medical issues, they may want to seek out a registered dietitian for help. (not a nutritionist, RDs have way more education and training)

 

[IndyLady]

But I'm tired of trying to defend my desire to offer up something good. Like Purr, I'm starting to feel really turned off by how negatively people seem to take things on this forum lately. Me, I would be delighted if others posted super healthy recipes and their weight loss successes and their birthday resolutions, even if I didn't agree with the particulars of it.

I think one thing that would help your cause would be to stick to promoting/sharing your own positive thinking and success, and resisting the urge to toss in a side of disdain for "all these other people" who you don't perceive as trying hard enough or achieving what you do. Whether it's weight loss, blood sugar biometrics, level of determination to fight natural aging, etc. Just a thought.

 

[ProgressNotPerfection]

Things tend to get heated when people talk about weight and diet.

Yep. And also aging.