Weight loss questions?

[Anonymous]

Hi,

OK so while I was on vacation I gained 10 pounds from the very delicious food I overindulged in but anyway, I've been dieting and exercising ever since I got back and I was wondering if it is a bad idea that after I've lost one pound, the next day I take a break from my diet and eat whatever I want and don't exercise that day (I think I consume 2000-2500 calories and when I diet I eat 1200 calories only).

My exercise routine everyday is cardio and my diet consists of mainly protein with mostly veggies and the only carb I get is from eating a cheese sandwich which I consume before my workouts.

I'm just wondering if my cheat day makes me gain weight or not or if I should limit a cheat day to maybe after I've lost 2 pounds.

Thank you

[nermalinda]

I'm just going to put in my 2cents. Obviously you can ignore it if you want.

But stop dieting! It's bad for your metabolism and only makes you fat in the long run. Stop counting calories, it raises your set point. You have to eat complex carbs. I've been on low carb diets and the aftermath is not pretty.

You're going to gain some weight in the short run, but if you stop dieting, you'll lose it when your metabolism speeds up again, and yes this takes several months, but it's healthier and way worth it.

Low cal diets only end up wasting muscle mass, even if you eat lots of protein. Yes we all need plenty of protein, but just cut out refined carbs like white flour and sugar. Whole grains and sweet potatos are good for you.

Looking at foods in terms of "cheats" only shows that your body needs more fuel. Fill up (and I mean FILL up) on healthy nutritious foods like real meals and frequent snacks, and after a couple weeks your cheat cravings will go away!

Cravings for cheats show that your body is trying to take in more calorie dense foods in response to what it perceives as a famine. And what does that mean? Your body's in starvation mode and primed to store fat.

If you really want, I can give you the endocrinological and other biological reasons for all this, but bottom line is, quick fix diets and fitting into a smaller size temporarily never last and are bad for your health.

ok rant over.

[Asker]

You know, I think you just gave me a perfect answer because I am literally fed up with exercising now. I was supposed to exercise just now but after 10min and having 50 calories burned I just stopped and walked away.

Do you know where I can find helpful information to diet, like how many servings of dairy should I have and now much calories should I burn everyday? Stuff like that?

Ive been on constant diets since I was 18 to help keep my figure. Meaning my typical day is 1200 calorie intake.

[nermalinda]

If you can find them, books by Jean Antonello are really good. Check Amazon.com or used book stores. Another book I recommend is The Gabriel Method. Check out this blog https://180degreehealth.blogspot.com/. And feel free to message me if you have any more questions :) As far as dairy and calories, I would suggest to eat dairy when you feel like it and stop counting calories. I know it sounds like a stretch, but it's a process and it works.

[Asker]

Thank you! And as for not counting calories/eating dairy when I feel like it....that was my old diet when I was 13-14 years old and it worked like a charm....but nowadays if I don't count calories I feel like I'm eating too much so I will have to get past that if I want to switch my diet plan to as you say.

[Vee72]

I think that's pretty useless what you're doing. Consuming 2500 calories + without exercising makes you gain that 1 pound back. So you tell me if it's worth losing a pound with all that hard work just to gain that pound back?

Your "cheat" day is to eat maybe a couple sweets, or a few handful of chips but still exercise to work it off. I don't think it's smart to over eat your calories if you're only allowing yourself 1200 calories for your diet even if it's just for that 1 cheat day.

[Asker]

Ahh OK thank you so much :)