TromboneChat

I was at a lesson a couple of weeks ago and my body just couldn't handle iy. My heart was racing and I was sweating as if I were in a sauna. So now it's been a week since I've eaten any fast food. Im at around 260 pounds.60 pounds to go! Any healthy yet tasty meals you recommend?

Not a meal, but a book - "Why We Get Fat" by Gary Taubes.  He's a longtime, award winning medical journalist.  He explores why conventional diet advice, such as relying on the laws of thermodynamics, don't work very well with the human body.  It's not one of those fad diet books.

Read the book "cooked" by Michael Pollan.

I recommend learning how to do a basic saute / stir fry, how to make chickpea curry, how to use a crock pot, a rice cooker, and how to make sourdough bread with a 50/50 ratio of white to whole wheat flour.

Only buy ingredients  (not boxed meals), and cook. You can cook anything you want. You can even bake a huge cake -- once you see how involved making a cake from scratch is, you probably won't make very many desserts. It's difficult to keep on weight if you only eat home cooked meals.

Going out should be a treat.

Stay away from soft drinks - even "diet" ones. The CO2 comes out in your stomach, expands it and then about 1/2 hour later, you feel hungry - even if you aren't.

...Geezer

For me what worked was to count calories.

It's a pain in the butt, but I found I didn't really know what I was eating until I wrote it down.

I did go to a wellness clinic and have my metabolism evaluated, so I knew what calorie count per day to aim for.  They were very specific - I should not eat more than my goal, obviously, but I should not eat less either, to prevent my metabolism from adjusting and slowing down. 

There's an interesting article in a recent Scientific American.  They evaluated the calorie output (what we burn off) for hunter gatherer tribes, by the process of getting them to drink doubly tagged water.  It turns out there is almost no difference in what we use between lifestyles.  The difference is in what we intake.

I presume you've had a physical recently.  The heart racing and sweating can be symptoms of numerous other things than being over weight.

Robert may have a point.  I'm 260 as well and even vigorous walking or rowing rarely cause me to break a sweat or have my heart race, and then only when the temperature is very high.  Never playing trombone.

You might want to see your doctor to get a baseline on your overall level of health and fitness first.  Rolling headlong into a serious diet might not be advisable under many conditions.  If your CV system is weak, it will only get weaker at the outset of such a diet.

I'm doing doing this under the presumption that at 190 pounds, I ate less of the crap that I eat now. I always also more active. But 2 years worth of eating fast food pretty much everyday plus no exercise really messed me up.

Nothing is more human than home cooking.   

there's this 30 day challenge starting on Monday that I'm going to sign up for

it costs $30 and the top 5 "winners" get $500
what you're also paying for is 30 videos online, one a day

winners not necessarily based on weight loss, but also maybe body change (for example)

must have facebook

let me know if you want details

Adding exercise, even moderate, can sure help.  Nothing crazy, just walking is good.  My brother-in-law lost 18 pounds recently just by avoiding fast foods and using an exercise bike while watching TV.

Maybe the heart racing and sweating was due to nerves? As others say, it's not typically considered "exercise" to have a lesson. Did you feel short of breath too? Echoing the suggestion to have a physical before starting any dietary changes.

No specific meals to recommend, just the following ideas for healthy gradual weight loss:

- Start paying attention to quantity. It helps to realize and understand how MUCH you are eating, even before you start trying to eat healthy. Oftentimes we eat because we're bored, or still feel hungry, and don't realize just how many calories we're consuming. If you normally eat six slices of pizza at a meal, try reducing it to four slices and replace the other two with two pieces of fruit or another food that is lower in calories than pizza slices. Take the time to look at the overall quantity of every meal (AND snacks!) and find ways to reduce some of the calories you're taking in.

- Don't try to change all at once. It is easier and safer to be patient with yourself and make gradual lifestyle changes. If you want to cut out soda for example, don't go cold turkey. Just reduce your intake gradually over time. If you're used to four cans per day, make every other day a three-can day. And when you get used to that, make every day a three can day. Then keep reducing little by little.

- Diet is more important than exercise when it comes to losing weight and being healthy, period. This has been proven in a variety of studies (here's one https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/08/150817142140.htm). If you are working out but still consuming junk food, you are not giving your body what it needs and creating potential health problems for the future. So first get your diet in order, and THEN once you've established a healthy pattern, work in the exercise. One thing at a time, gradually, healthily!

- Ultimately do what works for you. Just because so-and-so is on a paleo diet and that works for him doesn't mean that's what will work for you. I tried cutting out fats and eating more protein for my diet and it was awful, it just made me feel tired and sick all the time. You can't go with fads or what your buddy does. Go with what your body and mind need.

 

Dont buy junk food, don't let anyone in your house with junk food. The only way to bbreak an addiction is to remove it from your sight. Take a different route to work, eat home cooked meals. You don't have to eat super healthy, just don't eat junk with little nutrional value. You'll feel better and have more energy when you cut out the junk.

Yep! Did all that for a month! Now I'm less hungry and only eat fast food when I really have to, like on a busy concert day and even then I opt to spend a little extra on somewhere I know isn't so bad like a subway or chipotle. I lost about ten pounds doing that alone, but school keeps me busy. hopefully summer will give me time to hit the gym and eat even healthier.

Great job!  Keep it up.

The first habit change I always suggest to clients is to never drink calories. 

Beyond that, just eating minimally-processed foods in fist-sized portions is a great start.

If you want more detailed (free) advice, I'll gladly share it.  I've worked with a few trombone players now who are seeing great and lasting results.   

I'm down about 60 pounds as well, and have been for going on ten years now.  It has completely transformed every aspect of my life for the better.  Congrats on making this decision.  Good luck. 


Per your original question: when eating out, Chipotle salad with salsa instead of dressing, avoid the sour cream.  No chips-- water to drink.

And here's an infographic about veggie prep!  http://www.precisionnutrition.com/dont-like-vegetables-infographic

The first habit change I always suggest to clients is to never drink calories. 

Beyond that, just eating minimally-processed foods in fist-sized portions is a great start.

If you want more detailed (free) advice, I'll gladly share it.  I've worked with a few trombone players now who are seeing great and lasting results.   

I'm down about 60 pounds as well, and have been for going on ten years now.  It has completely transformed every aspect of my life for the better.  Congrats on making this decision.  Good luck. 


Per your original question: when eating out, Chipotle salad with salsa instead of dressing, avoid the sour cream.  No chips-- water to drink.

And here's an infographic about veggie prep!  http://www.precisionnutrition.com/dont-like-vegetables-infographic