![]() This is called self-monitoring, and why writing down what I ate and weighed helped me. But a lot of research shows that when we keep track of intake, we eat less. It's hard to keep track of how much we eat. But I had sworn off sugars and flours, for the most part. I occasionally had whole grains like quinoa or farro, even rice or corn chips. Without realizing it, I followed Katz's advice: I ate mostly fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and dairy. The other key is minimizing processed foods, including sugars and flours. 1,2 Esteemed Yale physician and nutrition expert David Katz examined over 58 popular diets and found that the most successful in terms of both weight loss and nutrition consist of "real food." By that he means plants, whole grains, nuts and seeds, as well as meat (ideally, from animals that ate plants). Studies have shown that just about any diet will result in weight loss, if it's one that someone can follow. What does the science say about my approach? Let's take a look. ![]() In the three years since, I've maintained that weight loss within five pounds. It took over two years, but I lost 50 pounds.As my muscle tone increased, so did my metabolism, and the weight came off faster. As the months went on, I was able to rejoin my gym and add once or twice-weekly workout sessions. There were stops and starts, and the scale went up and down, but over time, the pounds slowly, slowly came off.I would just pick up where I left off and keep going. I forgave myself those indiscretions, as well as any "vacations" from my dieting, logging, and exercising. ![]() Yes, I had the occasional slice of cake, glass of wine, chunk of chocolate, piece of baklava (a major downfall), or other treats.Exercise in those early days consisted of only a few minutes of sit-ups, pushups, and other in-place calisthenics at nighttime, after the kids had gone to sleep (and before they woke up again overnight).Once a week, I weighed myself, and jotted that down as well. Each page represented a day's intake, and I counted calories, as best I could. I got a small pocket notebook, and started keeping track of everything that I ate.I never bought any of their prepared foods, and used their menu only as a guide, substituting what I liked or had in the pantry where necessary. It was a popular commercial diet, which I modified to suit my preferences (most of the diets out there are fairly similar). I chose a well-rounded, nutritious diet plan consisting of a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats (and also very low in carbohydrates).So I researched a bunch of popular diets and philosophies. As much as I knew about nutrition, I felt like I needed guidance. I resigned myself to the fact that, hey, it took me 18+ months to put on the weight, so it would probably take 18+ months to lose it.How on earth does one tackle weight loss when one is busy and distracted? What I did was fairly basic, and there is research to back up this approach: 1 As a matter of fact, I had gained even more weight since my daughter was born.Īt that point, I had a quandary many people can identify with: I was one of two working parents, with two kids under two. I was many months postpartum, and realized that the "baby weight" wasn't going anywhere. I had had two pregnancies back-to-back, and had gained considerable weight, to the point where my own body mass index was over 30 (obesity range). A real-life weight loss storyĪ few years ago, I embarked on a personal weight loss journey. Once we screen for (and treat) any contributing medical problems that could be causing weight gain (low thyroid function, polycystic ovarian syndrome, prediabetes, among others), or psychological issues (bulimia, binge-eating disorder, depression, anxiety), I encourage a diet-and-lifestyle approach for many reasons, among them my own personal experience. "I want to lose weight naturally," they say. In my experience, most patients consider weight loss drugs or surgery only as a last resort. Whether a patient is at risk for medical problems due to being overweight, or if it's a personal health goal, then it's my job to provide counseling. Patients may also worry about their appearance. As a doctor, I know that excess weight is associated with potentially serious health conditions - high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol - not to mention sleep apnea, fatty liver disease, and back and knee problems, among other things. Many people struggle with being overweight, or even obese.
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