I know KETO works well for some people. I’ve researched that a lot too. We like a more balanced diet than just meat, eggs, butter, cream, etc.
I grow a HUGE garden, so eating FRESH is important. We are growing on a steer for beef. I know beef is higher in calories, but controlling portion sizes can help with that.
I just want to eat ‘normal’ foods and lose some weight and get ON with my life. :)
My hubby is a Type II diabetic.
Smartest thing he did after being diagnosed is see a dietician.
Smartest thing I did was agree to go with him when he asked.
We both learned a lot.
We didn’t do a diet.
We changed our lifestyle, me along with him. I’m not diabetic, or even pre, but the dietician said that if we both did it, it’s more likely to stick. And healthier is good for us both.
The lifestyle change has worked for him and its become permanent.
My recommendation, if you’re so inclined, get a referral to a dietician. :-)
As my Swiss budyy said “eat half”. But that’s hard to do, WW will help with the mental part. So will walking and enjoying nature. You know what to do,just don’t become a slave to the scale or a program. It took years to get here, it’ll take time to change habits and see results, but they will be sustainable.
My opinion is eliminating food you like and enjoy is not a long term plan for success. Up your walking. Get a device to track your steps and aim for the 10,000 steps a day. Try Pilates. Not online. Go to a studio with good instructors. Get a mini trampoline and bounce for 20 minutes. Great for the lymphatic system.
As for food just watch the carbs in the evening. I try to do that and it’s hard.
I’ll just say ‘this’ about ‘that’ ....
I lost 65 lbs on low carb, real food. Size 18/1X pants when I started ... down to size 6-8 (might be TMI, but underwear down from an 8 to a 5). For comparison, I was mostly a size 10-12 (occasional 8) in high school/college & had no real weight ‘problems’ when I was young - not a chubby kid. My weight gain happened when I gave up showing horses/barn work & started working a bank auditing job in my early/mid 20’s - lots of stress, poor eating habits (lunch with co-workers was especially ‘killer’). Over the years, I worked hard to lose some weight, as much as 25 lbs at a time (WW, Lean Cuisine, low fat/high carb, aerobics/cardio classes, etc), then gained it all back & then some multiple times, weight creeping up more each time ... not an uncommon pattern for most people.
Now, the weight is still off 4 years later and I know how to keep it off. I feel fantastic & I’m the “healthiest” I’ve ever been in my life. Doing low carb gets rid of inflammation - my knees are no longer painful/stressed, arthritis in hands has resolved. BTW, most folks lose their weight low carb with little or no exercise - it’s not ‘required’ to lose the weight. Towards the end of my weight loss, I added HITT (high intensity interval training) - takes about 15-20 minutes 3 times a week and sets your metabolism on fire ... you lean out, build muscle.
You can eat VERY well low carb AND you will NOT be hungry (or ‘hangry’ as most folks get on calorie restricted diets). You do not have to count calories low carb.
Check out the visual guidelines (keto/low carb) at the link:
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/visual-guides
I prefer saying I’m “low carb” - unfortunately, “keto” has been tagged as a ‘fad’ by the usual suspects because Big Ag & Big Pharma hate it. When people straighten out their metabolisms (obesity is a symptom), this cuts into their profits because, for example, overweight/obese lose weight, Type 2 diabetics reverse their condition & most come off insulin, autoimmune disease lessens or even resolves, high BP tends to comd down, etc. Just saying ... don’t let the term ‘keto’ put you off - it’s been misrepresented in the medical industrial complex with help from the media - it’s NOT a fad, but a powerful tool to reclaim good health.
I’ll quit now .... weight loss is individual and different things work for different people. If WW works for you, that’s fantastic! If you find WW is harder these day, you lose but gain it back (& maybe more) after a while .... there is “another way” and in general it works very well for most people. It’s not ‘one size fits all’ and adjustments are easily made.
FReegards & very best wishes for the pounds to drop!! ~Q
We discovered that as we age, we really do eat less.
Split a steak.
Split a potato.
Make large salads. Eat them first. Summer is full of salads and tomatoes &/or sweet corn as a main (or only) course. Burgers do not necessitate fries.
Stop eating after dinner (late for us, usually) and no breakfast until 10-11 the next day. For me, that is always a glass of kefir or some whole milk Greek yogurt (w/a bit of preserves added).
I designate some days as *graze* and skip lunch and dinner. Other days, we have a late lunch about 4 and skip dinner. Other days, we only do liquids. If we eat a high-carb meal, like spaghetti, we only add a salad, never garlic bread. And once we’re finished eating, we find that 20 minutes later we feel really full, so we never have dessert. Instead, we save it for a light day and eat 1/4-sized portions of a sweet carb as a meal in itself.
I stopped baking. If I make biscuits, we eat 1-2 each & I freeze them for another day. Going to try freezing the unbaked rounds separately on a cookie sheet so I can just take out 3-4 at a time. I do love gravy, but I end up freezing several portions of each batch for later.
Food stretching as an art form will also reduce individual intake. Dibs and dabs go into an omelette topped with one of a variety of oriental/other sauces and that is a main meal.
Often, you aren’t *hungry*, but just want something in your mouth to taste. Japanese call this *lonely mouth*. I will add some star anise (antiviral) to my coffee, squeeze 1/2 lime into some sparkling water (and eat the pulp that is left) Sometimes we will split a purchased portion of cake into 4 parts and each have 1/4. Save the rest for another day.
At 71 & 79, we also do not have anyone who will take care of us if needed. We also will never go to a *home*. God will take us when He’s ready and on His terms. Meanwhile, do what you can to stay active and engaged. We feed/watch birds, garden, do art projects/home maintenance projects, visit friends as we can. I also go on cooking binges and then freeze the extras, which cuts down on daily temptations.
The best weight loss is over time. I do not follow anything religiously. If I want pizza, we have pizza, but nothing else (maybe a salad)and we always have enough left over for a lunch. If we get a bucket of fried chicken, it is 2-3 meals.
Expanding our garden this year and do not want to take up freezer space with a lot of veggies (that space is for meat bought in whole muscle cuts and portioned at home & frozen batches of soup, etc), so my plan is to dehydrate and make powders. Good way to save space and have nutritious add-ins for soups/stews, rice dishes, etc. I no longer have the strength to handle a canner. I make/freeze Green Soup when I have an abundance of lettuce/greens, but I think I can reconstitute powdered, dehydrated greens and save space.