Why we get fat and what to do about it

Joni said:all these fad diets are very individualistic, just looking at what some dude can do who has been fooled to buy some book or something.

Obesity is an epidemic, and a nation wide population wide issue so the policies should be similar, like education, school food schemes, excercise programmes and activities, walking paths, public transport and all that kind of stuff which would change the behaviour of large sections of population.

glen_danbury said:Streak imo your theories back to front- the governments pushed lowering fats especially saturates, the food companies jumped on this and brought out lots of low may versions of foods- problem is that reducing fat pulls mouth feel of food so the companies whack in more sugar (which also pushes down fat as a percentage). As such the original message is probably right but companies and general public distort it to fit their own needs and wants.

GI isn't great anyway for a few reasons such as ice cream is low GI but is not going to aid weightloss is it? Certain foods are low GI but are also highly insulinogenic due to other factors in it (milk and wheat being two that come to mind(. Also some foods are high GI (carrots) but have a low glycemic load (GL ) due to little amounts of carbs.

Insulin does not always shut off fat burning, i will try and find the study but glucose post exercise had no effect on fat oxidation despite rises in insulin levels.

Dan_Evans said:4 things that work for me:

- Intermittent fasting
- Carb cycling
- Doing more - mostly in the way of interval training.
- Eating the majority of my food after training.

streak said:
How do you cycle your carbs? Lots on training days, limited on off days?

Dan_Evans said:
That's right mate. These days, my "limited" is about 70 - 90 grams, and "lots" would anything between 200 - 300, depending on how hungry I am.

glen_danbury said:pete get precision nutritions gourmet meals book

it has meals classed as 'anytime' meals which are basically just protein and fat meals - with some clever know how you can make low carb pizza and some truly great low carb meals.

Objectives To compare the efficacy of a low-carbohydrate high-fat versus a moderate-carbohydrate low-fat diet for weight loss and cardiovascular risk reduction.

Methods In a prospective clinical trial, 137 participants (body mass index ≥25 kg/m2) were randomly assigned to Control (46 randomized, 44 completed), Low Carbohydrate (45 randomized, 42 completed), or Moderate Carbohydrate (46 randomized, 40 completed) groups. Outcomes included measures of body size and composition and blood chemistries.

Results Both the Low and Moderate Carbohydrate groups lost significantly more weight as well as inches from their waists and thighs than the Control group, while the Low Carbohydrate group lost a greater percentage of body fat. Although the Moderate Carbohydrate group showed significant reductions in serum cholesterol, the Low Carbohydrate group showed the greatest improvements in serum cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, and very-low-density lipoprotein.

Conclusions Moderate approaches to weight loss such as a moderate-carbohydrate low-fat diet may be prudent.

Steve said:The sort of science "fad" diets have to contend with.
From the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition. Look at the results and then the conclusion. I wonder who was funding this study?

Dan_Evans said:Going very low/zero carb is not they forward for a powerlifter, or any other athlete. I've tried it, and I soon went to s**t. And yes, I was doing it properly.

streak said:
I think I agree with this, based on my own 'experiments'. Did you get to the stage where you were eating enough to gain weight but still felt you were under performing in the gym?