Pharmacy diets. Anyone tried them?

[Riverman]

I've seen a few of these things over the years, some of them involving what I'd call fasting not slimming and wondered if anyone here has ever been on one, or knows which is the best one to try.

Lloyds are trying to push one called optislim, which looks alright but seems abit pricey.

I'd lose all my weight through cycling but I find it difficult to fit 'fitness cycling' into my daily routine. Added to this I'm prone to the occasional spell where I don't cycle. I lost two stone through cycling in about 3/4 of a year but have increased weight slightly in the last quarter. I need to lose another two stone. I'll admit I could probably do it through cycling but I think it's more important I sort my diet out, if not in the long term at least temporarily. I'd be cycling through any diet that I'd be on so I imagine I'd lose weight faster than average.

 

[screenman]

Many on here have done extremely well logging onto My Plate and sticking to it, and it is free. Just eat less calories than you use up, simple as that.

Good luck, you will feel a lot better when you get rid of the fat, I know I do.

 

[jimboalee]

There's no need to go onto a website every day to tot up your calorie intake and usage.

Once you have found the calorific content of the foods you regularly eat, put them in a new row on a Spreadsheet.

You can also put an estimated calorific value of the exercise you do in another column.

You will soon have a list of Favourites with their relevant kCals values.
Simply copy and paste into an adjacent column what you have scoffed and do a =SUM() at the bottom of that column.


On my spreadsheet:-

Fried egg - 90 4 off = 360
Sausage - 160 2 off = 320
Black Pudding - 150 2 off = 300
25g crisps = 135
Milk in coffee = 75
40g All bran = 175
Milk in All bran = 35

Wow, thats 1400 before I ride home from work.

Day's cycling is 2700 and BMR is 1700. 4400 total outlay.

1300 ( eg. Chilli mince followed by ice cream ) for evening meal.

Input 1700 LESS than outlay, which is half a pound's worth.

 

[screenman]

Is that not the same amount of work as going on a website, Myplate also helps with motivational idea,s. Also Myplate does the looking up for you on calorie content, fat content etc. it also works out your calories used when exercising.

In the end though I guess it is whatever works for you the individual, sometimes it take a bit of experimenting to find the correct motivation to get rid of the lard. I only post from my own experience and not from any scientific background, the reason I suggest MyPlate is I know it works form me.

Also for a computor illiterate like me spread sheets are like trying to knit fog.

 

[Riverman]

I appreciate your help and I agree using a spreadsheet and avoiding meal replacement diets would be the best way to lose weight, however, part of the problem is I'm terribly disorganised and can't see myself sticking to something like that.

Basically I think once I take weight off, I generally can keep it off but it's getting the weight to come off that's the hard part and I think the meal replacement things might just work.

I'm gonna give those slimfast shakes a go for a while. I have a lot of work to do over the next month so will probably not do it for abit as it's during these bouts of intense work that I tend to find it hardest to eat heathily.

Will let you know how I get on.

 

[screenman]

Is dieting not about eating healthily, I think the consensus is that these liquid type diets are fad diets and tend not too work as well as some more healthy options, in the long term.

Stop making excuses and go for it, you will feel better and live longer, best of luck.

 

[rsvdaz]

is that a total food replacement diet? or is it combined low calorie food and shakes?
I did the Cambridge Diet about 18months ago for 3 months...lost 3 stone..came off it and put the weight back on..im now a firm beleiver of slowly but surely and total life change to maintain the weight loss

 

[Riverman]

is that a total food replacement diet? or is it combined low calorie food and shakes?
I did the Cambridge Diet about 18months ago for 3 months...lost 3 stone..came off it and put the weight back on..im now a firm beleiver of slowly but surely and total life change to maintain the weight loss

Oh trust me, I've had one total life change already- regular cycling. I'm convinced as long as I keep cycling everyday and don't eat too much I'll keep the weight off and the same will be true if I lose a load of weight through one of these diets, although time will tell.

Taking weight off through cycling whilst not paying much attention to your diet, takes a lot of exercise imo.

 

[rsvdaz]

Agreed, your not going to do it by excercise alone. I meant a total life change with regards to what you eat as well. It's all very well going on a diet but once you come off it's a slippery slope back to the old ways believe me I know!

 

[Riverman]

Agreed, your not going to do it by excercise alone. I meant a total life change with regards to what you eat as well. It's all very well going on a diet but once you come off it's a slippery slope back to the old ways believe me I know!

The cycling seems to have improved my diet too though. When I wasn't a cyclist, I ate all kinds of crap quite regularly and never ate any fruit or vegetables. These days it's rare if I don't eat either fruit or vegetables or both on a day.

Generally speaking I've never been a crisp.chocolate eater. I just used to survive on pasta n. sauce, pizza, chips and other stuff you could take out of the freezer and chuck in the oven.

The way I put on weight was through mega consumption of fruit juice and energy drinks. At one point is was almost like I'd replaced water with fruit juice. At 19 I was 9.5 stone. I'm 13ish stone now. Was 15 stone a year ago. I'd like to get down to 11 stone at least. I'm 29 years old.

 

[jimboalee]

The cycling seems to have improved my diet too though. When I wasn't a cyclist, I ate all kinds of crap quite regularly and never ate any fruit or vegetables. These days it's rare if I don't eat either fruit or vegetables or both on a day.

Generally speaking I've never been a crisp.chocolate eater. I just used to survive on pasta n. sauce, pizza, chips and other stuff you could take out of the freezer and chuck in the oven.

The way I put on weight was through mega consumption of fruit juice and energy drinks. At one point is was almost like I'd replaced water with fruit juice. At 19 I was 9.5 stone. I'm 13ish stone now. Was 15 stone a year ago. I'd like to get down to 11 stone at least. I'm 29 years old.

Take another look at the diet ( the foodstuffs in particular ) I posted earlier.
Many dieticians would call that "all kinds of crap".

It is calories balanced in favour of a reducing regime.
It is biased toward protien, which is needed to build muscles to power a bicycle.
It contains fibre and some carbs.

My result is I can shed 2 lb a week if I decide to. I currently maintain at about 18% bodyfat.

I commute ride 100 miles per week and can ride an Audax 100 at the drop of a hat whenever the weather forecast is favourable.

Repeat ; Calorie balanced with lots of protien.

 

[screenman]

I was just wondering how far you ride each day to burn off 2,700 calories, have a I got my calculations wrong as I work out about 750 per hour, or do you work a long way from home. I can only think you are lucky enough to get 3 hours per day on the bike. Brilliant breakfast though, makes me feel hungry just thinking about it.

 

[jimboalee]

I was just wondering how far you ride each day to burn off 2,700 calories, have a I got my calculations wrong as I work out about 750 per hour, or do you work a long way from home. I can only think you are lucky enough to get 3 hours per day on the bike. Brilliant breakfast though, makes me feel hungry just thinking about it.

2700 calories is two rides of 23 miles each.
The morning ride is wearing shorts and shortsleeve jersey when the ambient air temperature is a lot lower than 20 deg C.
The afternoon ride ( until yesterday ) is still below 20 Deg C.

Garmin and others do their Calories calcs based on a rider in racing apparel riding in 20 deg C calm air.
Garmin reckon my outlay is close to 1350 kCals for the 23 miles ( 85 minutes ) each way.
Garmin add on for uphills and tickle the thing along at a 'guestimate' BMR when the device is reducing in Elevation ( downhill ).

My own calcs are not a million miles away from Garmin. 1445 kCals morning and 1235 kCals afternoon. This is when I wear racing attire. My aim for riding to work is not only to save money, but to control my weight too.

For info, If I wear long trousers, thermal vest and long sleeve jersey, the Cals come down to 1200 morning and 1100 afternoon.

But of course I don't eat these calories. 450 at the most to provide a carb flame for the fat to burn in.

 

[guitarpete247]

I'm in a similar position to Riverman. Though a little older 54 in Sept. I try to cycle as often as I can and have noted the KCal used on the bike computer (Aldi cheapie) it also shows about 750 an hour. My weakness is the beer and wine.
My GF and I are going weekly to a diet consultant (£10 a visit) who gives us advice on meal planning and the motivation to stay focused on the eating. Last Saturdays footie put on 5lb though. Day out in the pubdidn't help.
Since November I've gone from 16st 2lb to 14st 10lb and still got just under 2st to go to ge to my target. I'm 5' 10" but feel 13st is where I should be at.
If you just plan what you are going to do and eat (as far as you can) at 29 you shouldn't have any problem getting the weight off and kepping it off.

 

[montage]

Thing is, as soon as you want to be human again and stray off this fad diet, all the weight will go back on. Look at what you are already eating and simply cut that down.
Eat like a king for breakfast, a prince for lunch and a peasant for dinner with appropriate calorie defecit and voila