This happened to me ten years ago. I weighed 372, then dropped successfully to 325, but over the course of the next three years gained back up to 350, then eventually to 372 again this January. THIS time, through micromanagement (which I'm going to have to do forever) and a reason to be healthy (my children), I'm sticking with it forever.
Personally, I swear by cutting out the carbs. I was doing keto diet, Mrs. Crane was doing WeightWatcher's. She started eating my food and gained a few pounds. It was noticeable, and it didn't take long. Low Carb/High Fat (LCHF) and WeightWatcher's (low fat, high carb) do not mix. High fat and high carbs is the formula for the fastest weight gain - it gets two metabolic pathways working at the same time. I mentioned to her that she could do a low-ish carb diet, count calories, and eat my food. She tried it and hasn't gone back to eating high carbs. She's eating 100g or less, which allows her to eat apples and bananas, so she's happy. She counted calories for about 2 weeks then stopped counting. She stuck with the diet and has lost over 30 lbs. I don't count calories either, just carbs. I've been maintaining my weight at 170lbs for quite a while now. It's not "all you can eat" by any stretch. More like "eat until you're not hungry anymore." Whatever you choose to do to lose weight, it's what you've got to do for life to keep it off. I am satisfied to eat steak and burgers and fish along with a few selected vegetables. I'm particularly happy to be able to eat bacon and use butter in cooking. I lost weight counting calories and eating low fat. This was back in 2000. By the time I started the keto diet, I was up 60lbs from my lowest weight in 2000.
Yes, the secret to healthy weight loss is to preserve your metabolism while cutting down on the food. It remains to be seen if you can eat 2000 kcal at 200lbs and continue losing weight... Exercise isn't good for much weight loss. You might burn ~100 kcal per mile you walk or run. That's about as many calories as cutting out a cheese stick. Exercise is good for you in other ways, so try to get as much as you can.
A few weeks ago, my wife finally checked her blood sugar for the first time in several years. It was...not good. Very not good. Doc prescribed diabetes meds, but she hates how they have made her feel in the past, so we've gone virtually no-carb in order to get the blood sugar down drug free. Took a few days, but she's now been in normal range for about the past two weeks. While her sugars have been going down, my weight has. I was 235 on my birthday (7/30), and was still in that neighborhood when we started. This morning, I was 217. Ultimately, I'd love to get back down to 185 (BMI of 22.5), but wherever I end up, it's going to be based solely on carb cutting and nothing else. Kind of annoying to my wife that I'm losing weight faster than she is, but I have no control over that.
Yep. Ketogenic diets control blood glucose levels. Amazing how fast it happens, too. It's mind boggling that doctors tell you to eat more sugar if you are diabetic or pre diabetic. Very low carb (VLC), and the body will make enough glucose to fit its needs. Carbs are turned to glucose and is preferred by the body over fat and protein. It is addicting and you tend to be hungry not too long after eating. If you have more to lose, you will lose it faster early on. Plus VLC causes you to dump a lot of water from your cells. People often see 6-10lbs loss the first week; mostly water. Use extra salt. If you don't, you'll have electrolyte issues. These can be headache, lethargy, etc. lack of sodium causes the body to use potassium instead, which isn't good. Since you are eating fat and protein instead of carbs, you should feel full and longer. Fat inhibits gastric emptying and protein metabolizes slowest of the macronutrients. Most people automatically cut calories on VLC because they feel full much of the time.
My weight hasn't budged in some time now which sucks a bit, but I'm in the middle of harvest and the work is so physical that I have been allowing myself to eat whatever I feel I need. Harvest will be over in a month, and then it will be back to dropping. On the other hand, I was just walking by a big metal bar that was just overhead, so grabbed it to do attempt a pull up. Did several, and that felt good. When I weighed 100+ more than I do now, the idea of a pull up was so foreign that it really surprised me that I could do that now.
Still going VLC (except for a few special occasions where I felt like splurging) without limiting consumption volume. Down to 203 as of this morning, basically down 25-30 pounds in two months (not sure exactly where I was when we started). My pants had gotten so baggy that my wife made me buy some new 34" waist jeans this weekend. First time this decade I've been there. I'm thinking this has to slow down soon, but I'm going to let my body make that call.
I've been going the wrong direction - a little bit. Been seriously dating a woman and we've been making large delicious meals every night. It's time to start paying more attention. Starting now.
Men often do lose weight faster, Platypus. Good that you are both working on it. Diabetes is funny; I have a friend WAY overweight, goes on phenomenal food binges, but no diabetes, then you see someone with maybe 15 extra pounds who get it. Biology is not destiny but definitely a factor. One thing I never had, BTW. Still on same weight. Got Thanksgiving coming up. Another challenge is ballet season, since we do lunch, performance (the dancers sweat, the audience just sits), cocktails, dinner. That begins late January. But I may be going on a lot of protest marches.
Diabetes is more a function of long term overeating of carbohydrates. It often goes along with obesity, but people who are only 15 lbs overweight can also overeat carbs over a long time. High carbs leads to insulin resistance which leads to the diabetes. It also leads to non alcoholic fatty liver disease, which is too much fat stored in the liver. It is also an effect of liver malfunction for other reasons. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-...ty-liver-disease/symptoms-causes/dxc-20211639
There is also a definite genetic component to diabetes; like most complex conditions, combines genetic and environmental.
Glad to see you survived the election; I was worried about you. Election night can't have been easy for you. Glad to see your feistiness is still thriving.
And in unrelated health news, this lady has an interesting idea for an immunity booster. Think I'll pass.
