Dr Atkins was right in some respect Whenever I want to lose loads of weight in a hurry low carb is always my preferred option. I also do the 5:2 now, 5 days normal eating 2 days (not consecutive) no more than 400 calories. Easy to maintain, though the first few fast days are tough. Surprisingly on a non fast day you don’t over compensate either.
Most of losing weight is just finding something that works for you and you can stick to. Calorie counting is the easiest/obvious way and if you do it right it is pretty straight forward to stick to. Can be a bit annoying for the first week or so when you are learning how many calories are in stuff but once you have got the basics you are fine. Intermittent fasting is the best way I have been told, but again the bottom line is all these things are the same and can be broken down to simply "burn more than you consume" which, in its simplest form, is just calorie counting.
If you’ve got dodgy knees, Fats, (as I most certainly have) I can thoroughly recommend getting an electric bike. I know “real” cyclists laugh and say it’s cheating, but it takes the agony out of those steep hills and long ascents. You’ve still got to pedal, so it gets the joints moving and, after doing the north to south (and back again) in Cornwall a few weeks ago (probably around 25-30 miles apparently), I felt I’d done sone decent exercise, but, if I hadn’t had the assist, I doubt I’d have walked for a week. I also bought a larger saddle (for the more “statuesque” build) for comfort and, together with my twice weekly hack and slash around a golf course, am managing, just about, to stay at the sane weight. I reckon with RJs “reheated pasta” trick and avoidance of too much alcohol, I should be able to get down to a more reasonable weight ........
Cheers, RJ. I’ll give it a go. I’ve been trying to cut down on carbs as much as possible and this sounds like a great way to still have some without too many! I make toast straight from the freezer (though I bake my own bread and that can be a downfall) so that’s one I don’t have to worry about!
For all those carb reduction people... just be careful you don’t go too far. That’s how my gout started several years ago.
My knees are ok at the moment on the bike. They do creek a bit on some hills, but technique and not attacking hills like l am Geraint Thomas seems to be working.
Yep I’ve been on and off low carbing for over 10 years (more on than off) and whenever I went for a checkup, the doc was impressed by my weight loss, but warned me of gout. As an aside, intermittent fasting is really effective at reducing your visceral (or internal around the organs) fat. In May this year by body fat percentage was down to 19% from over 26% in the March.
Can I ask how? I am no expert on gout, but I always was told it was over doing the "rich" things that led to it? I don't know how lowering carbs would lead to it. I eat very minimal carbs (about 90-100g a day for anyone who counts macros) so am intrigued as to how it could lead to gout?
Found this. Gout and low carb diets The suggested correlation between a low-carb diet and an increased risk of gout seems obvious. Gout is caused by an excess of uric acid in the body. A diet comprised of foods rich in purines (i.e. meat, poultry, seafood, nuts, eggs, etc.) are later broken down into uric acid in the body. So basically, it isn't the low carbs...it is what you replace it with.
So I guess from that it is because you eat more of the foods listed in place of carbs as to why you would be more at risk of Gout. Makes sense. I will eat chicken probably 13 of my 14 meals a week so that probably isn't good
Humans are omnivores...we are designed to eat a mixed and varied diet. Probably not a problem to eat a limited diet for a short time, but not for a prolonged period. A high protein diet isn't good for your kidneys either. Some races eat high protein diets from lack of choice, but they have no doubt adapted over the millennia to do so. Eskimos traditionally eat a meat and fish only diet for instance.
When I really low carb, I sustain no more than 25g a day. Probably not too good for you, but gets rid of the dad bod
Gout occurs when you eat too much food that is high in purine, a protein. When people stop eating carbs, they often eat too much protein that has purine. The kidneys then struggle to remove this from your blood and you end up with the purine turning to iric acid. This then can fork crystals in a joint, typically your big toe joint, knees, wrists, elbows. The crystals are like have shards of glass just under your skin. The too much rich food comes from things like offal, but there are some surprising foods that are high in purine, such as anchovies, mackerel (other oily fish), shell fish, marmite, stocks such as oxo. The issue is having too much of them or an unbalanced diet. One of the worst types of food are the proteins used in products like quorn. My troubles started 14 years ago when I went on a high protein diet to lose weight and once your susceptible to gout, you are likely to always be. I was fairly fit back then too.
