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endlesswaltz123 wrote:
When you are baking something that requires very very very specific measurements, or it goes completely off the charts messed up, cups are not useful.

I use cups in the UK, but I do it mainly for recipes, if I'm baking, the digital scale comes out. Just adding 'and extra 10ml' is not good enough if the recipe requires precision and accuracy, are you eyeballing that 10ml? Or are you bringing out another measuring device? If its the former you are asking for trouble, if it is the latter it is then inefficient as you are using an additional container.

Cups are great, but not for serious baking.

If you say so. I'll tell my wife she's been doing it all wrong despite the magnificent results she gets.


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 The Regulator wrote:
To change a bad diet you need to start cooking for yourself and learning how to cook, otherwise you'll be spending a fortune trying to get healthy options of things which usually aren't that healthy.

Edit: Changing a bad diet is literally like a drug addict coming off drugs. You need to rewire your brain and pick PURPOSE over pleasure. Good luck with it.

And when eating is the one pleasure you can afford, that makes things even more difficult.

I’m not sure it’s such a sacrifice of pleasure.

Sure Bacon etc isn’t especially healthy. But eating healthier just means making it a once a week, maybe once a fortnight treat. For sweet reads, B&J’s Moophoria offers a lighter option.

What I’ve been working on is my snacking. My work day is spent ploughing through various documents, including electronic banking records. That does tend to lead to snacking, more out of habit than peckishness.

To that end, gone are regular crisps and sweets etc. In come rice cakes (marmite ones are to die for) and seaweed thins (Itsu, Wasabi flavour).

That bit has been pretty easy. I’ve actually surprised myself at just how easy it was for me to change that habit.

Just need to work on my dinners a bit - ideally working first on portion control!

Portion control is absolutely key. I've actually had bacon in most of my meals over the last couple months, but most of those days it's basically half a slice crumbled into a salad, and a couple strips on a club sandwich or something on the weekend.

Snacking can definitely do one in, it's easy to accumulate hundreds of extra calories a day without realizing it, once I started tracking my intake and logging everything I put in my mouth, at the start I found there were some days I'd end up with with almost a thousand extra calories in snacks without even realizing it, and it's really hard to actually avoid that in many circumstances. The cupcake the office baking enthusiast brought in (~250), the small pack of chips (~300), a couple bite sized snickers or a small handful of M&M's from the communal office jar (~80-100), an extra banana (~100), and a can of sugared soda (~150) will net you ~900 extra cals right there, and until I started logging all of it, none of that would have registered at all, but over a 5 day work week that's 4,500 calories.

It's really hard to avoid those things a lot of the time, they're easy to partake in, easier to forget about and dismiss, and really hard to abstain from.

Working From Home is definitely an advantage during the re-learning stage, as there’s no temptation.

If I’ve not bought crisps/cake/sweets/snacks in general? Well, I ain’t gonna be eating them!

Also helps I’ve always been a fan of quite light salads. Freshly sliced iceberg lettuce provides bulk, onion, carrot, celery and rocket or water cress for taste, with a wee splash of Balsamic Vinegar will do me nicely as a lunch. And all for pretty cheap too, which is nice.

And if any of those start wilting or getting a bit iffy? Into a soup they go! Bit of water cress adds some tasty zing to a humble leek and potato.

I drink a lot of water. Hungry? Try drinking a glass of water. If you are still hungry after that, have a snack. Odds are you are just board a/o fidgety.

And we should all drink more water.

WFH means I don’t have candy dishes to raid. It also means I am not restricted to the snacks I packed in the morning. Bit of a two edged sword.

 Nevelon wrote:
It also means I am not restricted to the snacks I packed in the morning. Bit of a two edged sword.

On this particular point, I only pick up exactly what I plan to eat for the week at the store, and don't really keep anything else around. If I end up snacking on anything else, it means I'm out of a meal later in the week, my food willpower is *really* poor otherwise

One crutch I do rely on a lot is 0cal/diet sodas of various sorts. While probably not the greatest thing, they do scratch the itch for something sweet and with a little bit of texture without actually containing any calories, and most of the fears over them are grossly exaggerated clickbait. I tried to do Tea, but I've just never really gotten to like it. Thankfully I've never developed a coffee habit, it does...dark and terrible things to my guts.

 Vaktathi wrote:

 Nevelon wrote:
It also means I am not restricted to the snacks I packed in the morning. Bit of a two edged sword.

On this particular point, I only pick up exactly what I plan to eat for the week at the store, and don't really keep anything else around. If I end up snacking on anything else, it means I'm out of a meal later in the week, my food willpower is *really* poor otherwise

One crutch I do rely on a lot is 0cal/diet sodas of various sorts. While probably not the greatest thing, they do scratch the itch for something sweet and with a little bit of texture without actually containing any calories, and most of the fears over them are grossly exaggerated clickbait. I tried to do Tea, but I've just never really gotten to like it. Thankfully I've never developed a coffee habit, it does...dark and terrible things to my guts.

To minimize my exposure to the outside world, I’ve been doing 3 weeks of shopping in one go. It’s not a fixed period, but when I start running too low on too many things, I venture out. And push comes to shove, I’ve got enough food stashed away I could go a lot longer. But I try to keep a decent reserve in case I get sick.

But even before the current situation, I bought big bulk things of snacks and divvied them up. In the morning I packed a snack sized ziplock of goldfish crackers, another of pretzels, and at least one of fruit/veggies, depending what was on sale. Plus a sandwich. And that was all I could eat (unless I picked up candy from the dishes people have on their desks, which I tried to avoid) Now I’m just a quick, bored trip to the kitchen to grab something.

So my portion control is out of control. What I should do is go back to measuring out the day’s snacks again. Just in bowls. But I know if there is food in front of me, I’ll graze until it’s gone. At the office, I knew I was restricted. Now I’m not.

And I’m walking less.

Soba Noodles for lunch today. Yes, out of a plastic pot.

Very, very tasty, and inherently portion controlled. Got another seven of varying flavours for the coming days. Lovely.

Could even bulk them out a bit with cooked chicken etc.

Finally got my mitts on a breadmaker!

That’ll make life easier and a wee bit healthier!

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Finally got my mitts on a breadmaker!

That’ll make life easier and a wee bit healthier!

Fresh baked bread is a dangerous thing. Use caution.

Yeah I was going to say, surely bread is bread, and the idea is to eat less?

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Yeah I was going to say, surely bread is bread, and the idea is to eat less?

I know a lot of diets are unfriendly to carbs. Some work on cutting them out totally. I think they are being demonized as much as fat and sugar these days as “evil”

But I love them too much to give up. Plus they are cheep. Which helps a lot on the budget.

Like most things, they can be a part of a healthy diet, but in moderation. Recognize that bread is very calorie dense. One thing I’ve found is with homemade bread, I tend to cut it thicker then store bought. So portion control is a little deceptive. And there are few things as enticing as fresh baked bread, You are going to want to eat it all. Before it goes stale.

It’s OK to have. Just with caution.

With home baked bread I found it helps to cut it inn daily portions as soon as it gets cold and freeze them in zip bags.
Every night I place a portion from the freezer to the fridge and by morning it is now simply cold ready to be cut and toasted... I bake once a week and each morning i have portion of nearly fresh bread.
And yes the trouble with fresh still warm bread is not to break out the cheese and butter and eat a whole loaf while it is still hot.

Oh yeah I'm not demonising carbs in a diet, although I do think it is excess carbs that leads to most overweight people becoming that way. I know I put weight on when I was eating too much rice each day. Basically bulking without the strength training.

I try to eat fewer carbs in the evening. Keeping them to morning and lunchtimes.

To be honest there’s so many fad diets and outright quackery, I find it very difficult to know what’s what beyond the basics of Less Cake, More Exercise.

Does the exercise have to be high impact cross training insanity? Probably not, no. Unless you’re wanting to shift the weight rapidly.

Are lunchtime sandwiches going to cause an early death? Not on their own (unless you choke on them)

All I’m trying at the moment is cutting out excess. Excess sugar, fat, salt etc. Showing a bit of restraint, and make sure I’m going for a wander once I’m done with work for the day.

Hence the breadmaker. Get some multigrain type flour for a tastier loaf, without the preservatives.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
To be honest there’s so many fad diets and outright quackery, I find it very difficult to know what’s what beyond the basics of Less Cake, More Exercise.

The answer is "it kinda doesn't matter". All these fad diets (and I've got a list of 100 here) control for factors: the balance of the 3 macronutrients (carbs, protein, fat), timing (ie when to each which macronutrient), and source. And some of them are totally contradictory eg Vegan vs Paleo or Macrobiotic vs Zero Belly Fat, then there's Potatoes not Prozac or Seratonin Power Diet, both of which have you eating carbs at night..............

It's literally just a case of trial and error to find one your body responds to if you go down the fad diet route.

I know a guy who's lost a fantastic amount of weight over the last two years, he tried keto for two weeks after Xmas, first week had a real change, 2nd week his body didn't respond at all and he didn't lose any more.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Does the exercise have to be high impact cross training insanity? Probably not, no. Unless you’re wanting to shift the weight rapidly.

A thirty minute walk, ideally midafternoon, would be sufficient because of how it gels with the body's circadian rhythms.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
All I’m trying at the moment is cutting out excess. Excess sugar, fat, salt etc.

You have to be careful cutting fat. Cutting trans-fats yes. Cutting other fats may be counter-productive because if your body doesn't get enough it will demand more food, then you end up snacking, binging or over-eating further down the line. Fats are the main driver of your body telling your brain that you're full.

I can’t remember whether it was a BBC article or a Food Unwrapped episode, but I saw something a few months ago about a study that had looked at a whole range of the so called “fad” diets; ultimately they all reduced your calorie intake by about 25%, which was why they worked, not particularly which calories you cut.

Yup, weight loss is all about reducing intake. You can lose weight eating nothing but bacon grease slathered french fries and milkshakes, as long as your portions are correct (and likely very small on such a diet).

Now, your health is likely to suffer due to poor nutrition, but you can in fact lose weight that way

 Vaktathi wrote:
Yup, weight loss is all about reducing intake. You can lose weight eating nothing but bacon grease slathered french fries and milkshakes, as long as your portions are correct (and likely very small on such a diet).

Now, your health is likely to suffer due to poor nutrition, but you can in fact lose weight that way

There's a lot more to weight loss than just the physical aspect of "eat less", not addressing that is why these diets have ended up in the "fad" bucket.

But yeah, which calories you cut will potentially have significant impact on your health and energy levels. My ex-wife had a horrible second pregnancy because she'd switched to a vegan diet (a fair while earlier, not during or as a result of being pregnant), and although she accounted for the need to get protein from other sources, she didn't account for the loss of iron, and subsequently ended up in a lot of trouble.

 Baragash wrote:

 Vaktathi wrote:
Yup, weight loss is all about reducing intake. You can lose weight eating nothing but bacon grease slathered french fries and milkshakes, as long as your portions are correct (and likely very small on such a diet).

Now, your health is likely to suffer due to poor nutrition, but you can in fact lose weight that way

There's a lot more to weight loss than just the physical aspect of "eat less", not addressing that is why these diets have ended up in the "fad" bucket.

But yeah, which calories you cut will potentially have significant impact on your health and energy levels. My ex-wife had a horrible second pregnancy because she'd switched to a vegan diet (a fair while earlier, not during or as a result of being pregnant), and although she accounted for the need to get protein from other sources, she didn't account for the loss of iron, and subsequently ended up in a lot of trouble.

It's probably the protein as well to be honest. Just because a food says it has x amounts of protein, does not mean it is a complete protein. Vegans and vegetarians miss out on certain EEA's (essential amino acids) in sufficient quantity (or completely) some days due to the food choices they make. There is not an extensive list of foods outside of animal products that are a complete protein, so mixing foods is essential to have all (Rice and Beans are a prime example).

Interestingly, there has been a study released recently that links a meat free diet with certain mental health issues (anxiety, depression mainly), noting a correlation with those on meat free diets having a higher prevalence of such mental health issues. However, I must stress that correlation is not causality and it will take further studies to truly understand and decipher whether the correlation is caused by a meat/animal product free diet (and then the optimisation of the diet which would be most likely the specific issue). However other studies, have found links between a lack of vitamin B12 and mental health issues also (nearly exclusively found in animal products naturally, foods can be fortified with B12 though) so they are probably onto something.

The specific interesting part about B12 is its function with amino acids, specifically as it is necessary to metabolise them. Meaning Vegans and Vegetarians can be at risk of a double whammy of not eating all of or enough of the EEA's, and then not having enough B12 to metabolise correctly what they do have.

In 10 years time we will know so much more about topics, and just to be clear I am not bashing vegetarian or vegan diets, but if you are going to be either, you must be clued up on your foods, and the absolute worse advice to take is from other vegans/vegetarians usually. Spend a bit of money on a nutritionist who can ensure you are maintaining a healthy diet and stick to their rules.

On the topic of carbs, there really is no need to eat a high carb diet unless you are very physically active, you need some carbs (30-35% of calorie intake) but pushing into the 60% as the NHS recommends will genuinely make you feel like crap most of the time unless you have the activity levels required for it (which ironically, if you are highly active and low carbs you will also feel like crap).

Balance is key, and again, if you want to lose weight you must have a calorie deficit, no matter the diet. Additionally, Food Unwrapped and the BBC version are usually full of crap, it's mainly because they dumb down and generalise the content so much for the layman it just isn't accurate or beneficial advice that you can genuinely follow for long term results. It will work in the short term, but not long. Their little experimental studies are genuinely horrendous.

Last point referencing baking and being accurate above, souffle's is why you must be accurate, or well, anything you require to be light or not too dense.

Her iron levels were tested and came back as "holy cow, you need a blood transfusion right now and we have to keep monitoring them in case you can't raise them enough, because the baby will have to be taken out at the earliest opportunity otherwise". (She made it to full term naturally and the little one is fine, but that was a pretty bad experience). I'm not saying protein played no part. but definitely iron was the issue.

The protein/depression thing is very interesting, I've definitely had a very strong correlation between the two, but there's a lot of background noise that means I'd need science to confirm it independently for me. Will have to look out for more on that.

Ahhh Keto diet - on another site that's a regular spambot topic that gets removed!




I agree when it comes to diet fads, every few years someone pens a new book, gets on morning TV and suddenly its all the crazy to be on their diet. I still swing back to what I said earlier - diets aren't the solution (excepting extreme situations). The real solution is shifting lifestyle.

A shift in your diet can be part of that, but many of the "fad" diets are more aimed at being short term "eat less" approaches that, far as I can tell, aren't designed and aren't always healthy to consider long term. They are often pitched and aimed at those looking to lose weight for the summer or a wedding or other event. They aren't out to change their lifestyle, just lose some fat in the short term.



Your body is lazy and adapts to its situation as lazily as it can. Gradual weight loss through shifts intended to be long term and maintained is healthier for you and also easier. Because once you make the changes you've more chance that they stay and that, as a result, you keep the weight off.





Mental wellbeing and food are certainly linked; though I agree that its never going to be a simple relationship. Especially as some links won't be direct to the brain but will be influencing other areas of the body that then have a knock on effect.

 Baragash wrote:
Her iron levels were tested and came back as "holy cow, you need a blood transfusion right now and we have to keep monitoring them in case you can't raise them enough, because the baby will have to be taken out at the earliest opportunity otherwise". (She made it to full term naturally and the little one is fine, but that was a pretty bad experience). I'm not saying protein played no part. but definitely iron was the issue.

The protein/depression thing is very interesting, I've definitely had a very strong correlation between the two, but there's a lot of background noise that means I'd need science to confirm it independently for me. Will have to look out for more on that.

I'm not discounting that iron was a huge issue at the time, I was speaking generally about plant based diets.

A lot of the time (in terms of non extreme cases like your partners evidently was) the issue is placed firmly at the doorstep of lack of iron, and an increase in iron is required.

It just so happens that lots of iron rich foods are also loaded with B12 and protein... The treatment works, but is the causality for the specific issues the person is having correct?

Like I said, in 10 years time we are going to know so much more.

 Overread wrote:
I agree when it comes to diet fads, every few years someone pens a new book, gets on morning TV and suddenly its all the crazy to be on their diet. I still swing back to what I said earlier - diets aren't the solution (excepting extreme situations). The real solution is shifting lifestyle.

A shift in your diet can be part of that, but many of the "fad" diets are more aimed at being short term "eat less" approaches that, far as I can tell, aren't designed and aren't always healthy to consider long term. They are often pitched and aimed at those looking to lose weight for the summer or a wedding or other event. They aren't out to change their lifestyle, just lose some fat in the short term.

Your body is lazy and adapts to its situation as lazily as it can. Gradual weight loss through shifts intended to be long term and maintained is healthier for you and also easier. Because once you make the changes you've more chance that they stay and that, as a result, you keep the weight off.

You're right, the key issue is that many of them are based on deprivation, which is a battle most people lose (98% of people, according to studies).

I've just announed to the world (ie everyone on my social networks) that I've changed career out of being a management accountant/financial analyst into being a health and life coach, so this is a subject close to my heart.


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endlesswaltz123 wrote:

 Baragash wrote:
Her iron levels were tested and came back as "holy cow, you need a blood transfusion right now and we have to keep monitoring them in case you can't raise them enough, because the baby will have to be taken out at the earliest opportunity otherwise". (She made it to full term naturally and the little one is fine, but that was a pretty bad experience). I'm not saying protein played no part. but definitely iron was the issue.

The protein/depression thing is very interesting, I've definitely had a very strong correlation between the two, but there's a lot of background noise that means I'd need science to confirm it independently for me. Will have to look out for more on that.

I'm not discounting that iron was a huge issue at the time, I was speaking generally about plant based diets.

A lot of the time (in terms of non extreme cases like your partners evidently was) the issue is placed firmly at the doorstep of lack of iron, and an increase in iron is required.

It just so happens that lots of iron rich foods are also loaded with B12 and protein... The treatment works, but is the causality for the specific issues the person is having correct?

Like I said, in 10 years time we are going to know so much more.

Sorry, when you quote someone it's sometimes hard to tell the point when you move from the specific to the general

Anecdotelly for me I'm inclined to think it was more a protein issue because I was already eating eggs most days, and I brought in fish much more often, but not the type of fish that's high in iron. (I'm not vegetarian or vegan, I just found that only eating meat a couple of times a week improved how I felt physically).

I think a lot of the fad diets work because they give people an easy target to concentrate on: don't eat carbs, for example, is a simple instruction and gives people an "enemy" to avoid. The fact they usually work just by reducing your calorie intake then goes pretty much unnoticed. I'd always be wary of any diet that tells you to cut out any particular food group or nutrient though. It may be easier to do but it's almost always more effective long-term to alter your diet in a more balanced way.

Slipspace wrote:
I think a lot of the fad diets work because they give people an easy target to concentrate on: don't eat carbs, for example, is a simple instruction and gives people an "enemy" to avoid. The fact they usually work just by reducing your calorie intake then goes pretty much unnoticed. I'd always be wary of any diet that tells you to cut out any particular food group or nutrient though. It may be easier to do but it's almost always more effective long-term to alter your diet in a more balanced way.

Cutting out carbs also depletes your glycogen stores and water retention. I think that initial weight loss (it's been anywhere from 5-20 lbs for me in the first 1-2 weeks when I've done it) is very effective at motivating people to stick to it even though the loss will slow down dramatically and you will regain that water weight after a couple of days of eating carbohydrates. Also, many people consume high quantities of carbohydrates that they don't digest well and bloating isn't something I'd wish on anyone. That going away also leads to a feeling of being slimmer, which in turn, is another great motivator. Lastly, people, especially in America, consume a massive amount of simple carbohydrates and little fiber, which may provide a lot of energy and isn't remotely filling. Now, cutting at all carbs is naturally insane for most people, but in terms of simplicity and effectiveness just reducing carbs without making any other dietary changes has got to be the best 'fad' diet. Particularly in comparison to some other things, like liquid diets.

Starting the third week of healthier eating, with the goal of feeling better.

Proud to say that I've ditched the fizzy drinks and chocolate for more fruit & veg. Three mornings a week I'm out the door and won't come back for an hour, walking, jogging, running - its all in there.

Organic Blueberries are what made this happen as they provide just as much pleasure as if eating dark chocolate. If I hadn't picked up the "wrong" blueberries that morning I'd still be eating crap. Thank you universe for divine intervention!

Blueberries are pretty damned tasty!

Burst of sweetness, and a certain pleasant mustiness.

I severely injured my back 4 and a half weeks ago and was not able to do my usual 55km running per week (I am aiming at 20-25 this week)and put on 2kg in the first week after the injury

So I removed 12-16 biscuits per day, ice-cream cone per day, 3-4 chocolate bars per week, museli bar per day, pack 200g lollies each weekend plus whatever else was around the house.

Now my diet is Banana in a shake breakfast, 2 oranges, 2 mandarines through the day and a regular dinner, no desert. I have 1 museli bar and a dessert on Sunday.

I have lost 7kg since starting and last 3 weeks have been grinding out a kg per week.

Very happy with progress.

Amazing what happens when you stop eating high calorie/low nutrition food.

 Waaagh_Gonads wrote:
I severely injured my back 4 and a half weeks ago and was not able to do my usual 55km running per week (I am aiming at 20-25 this week)and put on 2kg in the first week after the injury

So I removed 12-16 biscuits per day, ice-cream cone per day, 3-4 chocolate bars per week, museli bar per day, pack 200g lollies each weekend plus whatever else was around the house.

Now my diet is Banana in a shake breakfast, 2 oranges, 2 mandarines through the day and a regular dinner, no desert. I have 1 museli bar and a dessert on Sunday.

I have lost 7kg since starting and last 3 weeks have been grinding out a kg per week.

Very happy with progress.

Amazing what happens when you stop eating high calorie/low nutrition food.

That's great progress. Hope the back injury is on the way to recovery. Probably also worth pointing out that I think people would also be amazed to see what they eat in a given week. The above looks like quite a lot of bad food (it did to me at first) but sitting down and honestly writing out everything you eat, including all those little snacks you conveniently forget about, can add up the calories very quickly. That honest calculation of what you're eating is the first step to getting control of your diet.