Well here's how it is for me.
I was overweight all my life. Eating out
a few nights a week was the norm, I work
full time and have two children, by the
time my husband and I get home, we were
usually too lazy to cook a proper meal.
I also quit smoking on jan 15th of this
year and as of july I weighed in a 240
lbs!! I am 5' 9" and was totally
depressed.
I cracked down and finally decided to
start eating right! I consider it a
low-fat lifestyle (cutting back on all the
bad fats and eating more good fats). I
eat whole wheat breads instead of white...
Made hamburgers at home instead of eating
out. Stuck to eating out once a week.
After a week of my own "diet" (believe me,
it was a diet when I first started
*imagine... I used to be able to eat a
whole foot long sub with double meat and
loaded with vegges, polish a chicken
sandwich from mcd's and a bag of chips
within 2 hours!). I cut back my "bad" fat
intake to 10 grams per day... I don't
count good fats (of course I also eat
those in moderation... Eg: a salmon
steak, or handful of peanuts).
I started using olive oil in my recipes
and started grilling more often instead of
baking. I cut down my portions to a more
healthy size. Traded my high fat/high
salt (chips) snacks to fruit or
pretzles.
We also started walking 20 minutes three
times a day (both husband and I walk 20
minutes before starting work, 20 minutes
after we eat lunch, and 20 minutes when we
get home with the kids). Within a week
my fat started melting off!!
The point of a "diet" is not to starve
yourself for a while, until you lose your
weight and start going back to eating the
way you did... But the "diet" is an
introduction to a new healthy lifestyle.
After having my new lifestyle for 2 months
I now weigh 25 lbs less and still losing
(now only about 1 - 1.5 lbs a week, which
is good enough for me). It took me years
to get fat... Why should it take just a
couple of days for me to lose it all?
Daily intake of food before lifestyle
change: breakfast: none!! (i never
touched anything for breakfast!!)...
Lunch: personal sized pizza, bag of
potatoe chips and bottle of pop... Snack:
chocolate bar and 2% milk supper: 4
pieces of kfc, large handful of fries
drenched in gravy, salad...Evening snack:
half a large bag of chips and ice cream
daily intake of food now: breakfast:
silouette yogurt drink or single sized fat
free yogurt...(still not a breakfast
person, but I eat something... Sometimes
will have a breakfast bar) lunch: cottage
cheese, tuna sandwich with low fat mayo
and water or skim milk. Snack: handful
of peanuts or soy-nuts. Dinner: 1 boca
burger with the works (veggies, ketchup
and mustard, fat free sliced cheese) and
bowl of soup.
You can see the difference in intake.
This is just an example of one of my daily
meals during the week.
So before you start any fad diets, just
try eating healthier. Substitute those
junky items for something a little more
sensible. Cut back on your serving sizes
(even if it's just a couple of mouthful's
at a time) and substitue that pop for
water, 100% juice or skim or low fat
milk.
And for exercise? If you can't find time
to get into the gym... Just walk. Go up
a set of stairs instead of the escalator,
park farther away from the doors at the
shopping mall. If you are not the type to
spend money on a whim... Go window
shopping. Play with your kids more
often. Just a tiny bit of exercise a day
will go a long way.
