Healthy eating habits of BITOGers

Vil_Riker

Vil_Riker

Joined
Jun 22, 2022
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For the last couple of years I am seeing more and more BITOGers go on low carb diets, do OMAD-s and intermittent fasting.

It warms my heart...

The mainstream healthcare advice for healthy diet is not nearly enough, the federal and state policy is shaped by special business interests. It requires a lot of curiosity and courage to question advice we are told throughout our lives. But at some point you try to seek patterns of correlation to determine if it's really causation.

As a carb addict it was my wife, a medical specialist, that convinced me to ditch them. While working with so many unhealthy folk she had grown cynical and started to seek alternatives. I had to support her in her decisions and am glad I did. My blood analysis were not too bad but have improved greatly in the last year.

How did your journey of low carb, intermittent fasting and OMAD start?
 
So, this is inspiring for me.

I'm 54, a bit overweight and need to lose probably 50 pounds. Carb addict for sure. My blood work is also pretty good, but need to lose some weight. Blood pressure a little high, but other than that pretty good.

A friend of mine did the intermittent fasting and lost weight, but then had a heart attack! He's okay, but freaked us all out.

Not sure what OMAD is?

Anyway, I need to figure something out.
 
Urshurak776 said:
So, this is inspiring for me.

I'm 54, a bit overweight and need to lose probably 50 pounds. Carb addict for sure. My blood work is also pretty good, but need to lose some weight. Blood pressure a little high, but other than that pretty good.

A friend of mine did the intermittent fasting and lost weight, but then had a heart attack! He's okay, but freaked us all out.

Not sure what OMAD is?

Anyway, I need to figure something out.
Click to expand...
One Meal A Day

Like other kinds of intermittent fasting, eating one meal a day is a way of manipulating how your body finds and uses fuel. When you eat in a more traditional pattern, your energy comes from the food that you eat.

When you take in carbohydrates, your body breaks them down into sugars. If you have more sugar in your blood than you need, a chemical called insulin will carry the extra into your fat cells.

When you don’t eat for extended periods of time, your body produces less insulin. Your cells still need energy for fuel, so your fat cells release energy to compensate. For this to happen, however, you have to avoid eating for long enough that your insulin levels drop.
 
I had to Google "OMAD". The closest I've done to that is routinely having a big breakfast , skipping lunch and having a meager dinner.

1.5 years ago the doc told be to lay off carbs and I lost 29 pounds. At the next 'annual' , when I told him of my success, he was mind-blown.

Now I go around and tell every fat guy at every auto parts store to drop the carbs,
I haven't worked up the courage to tell fat gals yet.....could be wisdom.
 
Leo99 said:
One Meal A Day

Like other kinds of intermittent fasting, eating one meal a day is a way of manipulating how your body finds and uses fuel. When you eat in a more traditional pattern, your energy comes from the food that you eat.

When you take in carbohydrates, your body breaks them down into sugars. If you have more sugar in your blood than you need, a chemical called insulin will carry the extra into your fat cells.

When you don’t eat for extended periods of time, your body produces less insulin. Your cells still need energy for fuel, so your fat cells release energy to compensate. For this to happen, however, you have to avoid eating for long enough that your insulin levels drop.
Click to expand...
Oh, got it!

Thanks!
 
buster said:
I'm a eat everything in moderation person.
Click to expand...
Same here. Portion control is key.

I did try ditching breakfast a while back, but just wasn't feeling well without it. In general, I do typically have a 12-hour break from eating every day - from 7 pm to 7 am.

As for low-carb diet, I'm not totally convinced it's good for you long term as it may lead to some major cons. I don't think we have enough long term studies to make a fully educated decision there...

time.com

Low-Carb Diets May Not Be Healthy in the Long Run, Study Says

They're linked to a higher risk of death, compared to carb-rich diets
time.com time.com
 
I think a bit differently in regards to carbs; they get a bad rap due to the state of food in this country. Refined carbs, sugar, artificial stuff is a no go for me- those being the actual bad carbs. I actually lost 75 pounds by eating a clean plant based diet for two years, 200-350g of carbs per day! I actually believe they are essential to the human diet long-term, but whole foods are key.

I am a huge fan of OMAD and intermittent fasting and typically eat 1-2 meals/day within a 5 hour window. I like the idea of OMAD but my wife watches my weight like a hawk😂 I'm not fully plant based now but try to eat as cleanly as possible. And you're right, regardless of diet it is heart warming to see people waking up to healthier lifestyles.
 
67 years old now, last year I signed up for "NOOM" to assist a lifestyle change. It is a psychological approach to changing ones habits (very tough) and requires one to somewhat enjoy "self-help" style mindfulness approach. It helped me change my eating habits and lose a just few pounds (my goal). It's a "things in moderation" approach and again, really emphasizes mindset changes. It fits me fine and I believe that drastic lifestyle change diets/exercise regimes are even harder to maintain lifelong. Less carbs, less sugar, less processed food, more exercise/activity - moderate changes that can be sustained lifelong. I still indulge in "bad" things sometimes.
 
I do one meal a day when i don't have to do too much work. On some days i have to eat in the morning. But I've been forcing my body to get accustomed to less. Pants fit a little better, It's only been 2 months though. I just drink tons of water to quench hunger and it works.
 
Ive never really felt like eating in the am, so kind of naturally was an intermittent fasting person, I guess, before it was a fad. Sometimes I’ll eat breakfast but often not.

I do tend to get cravings for food (indian food comes to mind) and that’s the harder thing for me. Same for a sweet tooth. Not food that’s excessively sweet, but a sweet tooth overall. That’s my harder thing to resolve. I don’t drink sodas and eat overly processed crap, but I will eat too many sweets when given the chance.
 
I'll preface this with I'm 65 and I am technically Type II diabetic. Not sure how long I have been this way, because I just wasn't tested over the years. I was seeming in control at some point, but don't know for sure and within the last little while it seemed - as soon as I got a bit more sedentary, not taking Vitamin D3, maybe cheating with bread, my blood glucose was spiking.

First thing is to know your HbA1c. If you don't know that, then sure you can lose weight and all, but you will be a bit directionless. If it's a bit high, then you should have your insulin checked to see just how insulin resistant you are - or at least monitor your BG (blood glucose) response - the little meters, strips and lancets are inexpensive and well worth it.

All this stuff needs to be tailored to you. I have no idea how different and how many types of people there are - but almost everyone is different. You need to find a doc who fits your needs and goals and directs you along that path.

Here's some thoughts from ME. I know vegan simple doesn't work for me, but the one principle is plenty of CLEAN food and plenty of leafy and stalky veggies. Meat and veggies are my savior. I can find substitutes for the junk. Clean nuts and almond flour for example.

I have a half beef on order for pick-up early Dec. Clean, grass fed.

Ordering an organic hog soon.

Clean meat is good.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I definitely have increased my healthy fat intake. Good unoxidized fresh oils (Olive mainly). But good avocado and grapeseed.
Good clean fats are essential for seniors
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Because of my age and "condition" I take a supplement regimen. I would never say one size fits all and in the past I have taken supplement and it seemed to make ZERO difference that I could detect.

Vitamin D3 liquid drops. Gel caps do zero for me. I definitely need D3 in the Oct-April months. And there is a very interesting BG-Vit D3 connection
Cod Liver oil. With D and A.
Salmon oil. Essential omegas.
Zinc. Health and helps with D3 absorption
Boron for D3 absorption
Mg citrate - powder in water, absolutely essential for for D3 uptake (more so than K2)
Vitamin K2 (also I eat natto)
Vit B multi
Benfotiamine (B1 production for insulin)
Berberine for BG reduction
Chromium for BG reduction
K citrate - potassium is excellent, keeps the Na in balance.

Side note when hiking, biking, pickleball, etc - both my water bottles Mg and K citrate. Better hydration. I can actually feel it.
*****************************************************************

Keto coffee-Bulletproof Coffee-Pirate coffee

If you can drink black and it keeps you full until first meal, then fine. NO worries as this is not for everyone. This certainly is not for someone on a strict calorie limited diet.

I just know it works for me. The first rule is ZERO SWEETENERS. None! None of the fake ones even. They just keep you addicted to SWEET and I think not great for your liver.

There are tons of ideas and recipes out there. Just search for "keto coffee" and have at it.

My Pirate coffee is like this:

Organic coconut fat (it's solid at indoor temps). About a teaspoon. One light teaspoon of organic cacao powder (not COCOA powder with sugar and crap) . Just make your coffee or espresso on top of this. Then a splash of real heavy cream or half-half (beware the less fat in milk, carbs go up on the macro scale)

Sometimes I will sub the fats. Butter, olive oil or just use heavy cream.

If you don't like cacao, then skip that but good clean cacao has good minerals and antioxidants.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

As for normal day clean up, or eat something not so healthy - DON'T STRESS - just use your knowledge. Get back to healthy ASAP.

What I do is:
One tall glass of pure water with a tablespoon or two of apple cider vinegar (ACV)
One tall glass of pure water with half a lemon.

You will urinate after this, fairly soon and your liver and kidney clean out will begin. Repeat as necessary. BG WILL drop!!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

With a keto diet my blood lipids where awesome, lost weight, the whole bit................this was 23 years ago.

Then back to 20 years of sedentary working, stress, not the best diet, etc sorta caught up to me. One thing for sure, exercise, even moderate or walking a lot works for me. It's my best bet at getting my muscle and other cells to burn the sugar, then allow my BG to drop naturally, or really for the insulin to do it's job. Hell in Italy, didn't eat any pasta, yes some gnocchi and lots of pizzas, I lost weight and BG was pretty low. Because I was so active and all the other food was so whole and natural.

BUT, I have very strong Dawn Phenomenon which basically means I wake up with really high BG (130-160). And then it drops through the day unless I eat something stupid, or don't get off my ass. That said, woke an BG was 112!

To get to the point, I have modified my diet, hard the last few weeks - 2MAD, between 10AM and 4PM, and I feel great, lost some weight but when your blood sugar is 120-130-140, your body simply will not go keto.

Side note: I saw a ND on Friday. Quite informative. I am making some further changes.

To be continued, my numbers look good over the weekend.

FTR (hahahaha For The Record) . I started this new journey pushing 180 pounds. (I'm around 5'8") Now at 168. Goal is 165.

Stress kills, I need to let some stuff go. Stress drives up BG (blood glucose) and a bunch of other nasty stuff. Low level stress over long periods can lead to dementia. Some dementia is now being called Type 3 Diabetes.

Lifestyle. The number one killer are quick carbohydrates. Sugar sure. Honey and fructose worse! Easy starches, really bad. I find some interesting stuff spikes my blood sugar, sweet potatoes and sweet squash. I can't eat those things. Oddly I have little urge to snack.

I do have my pirate coffee (yes there is another name for keto coffee)

Sucks sometimes, but I roll with it. Stay active.

Exercise IS absolutely critical. Move and keep moving.
 
I'm doing the carnivore diet to help calm Autoimmune disease. It helps a bit. I'm glad that some people can find remission doing this.

As always, diet and exercise are not cure-alls, and won't fix genetic mutations. Which may in fact be the cause of various impossible to cure diseases. Of note, men are much more likely to succumb than women, as women have backup genetic data, X X chromosomes. Put in simple terms, it is said that X Y (men) have shorter lives due to being genetically inferior.

My own struggles lead me to believe that is true. A few years back, my concierge doc had me do all the genetic testing that was commonly available (at my expense) and we learned a lot. Epstein Barr virus really damaged me, and there is no fixing it.

The good news is that much of it is treatable.
 
Food science is all over the place. It's one of the reasons I'm a eat everything in moderation person. I read recently from a highly regarded source that bananas in smoothies deactivate anti-oxidants of the other fruit within the smoothie. Who knew? It's chemistry and it's complex.

As @Quattro Pete said portion control is HUGE. That's a main factor in why so many are obese today. American appetizers are larger than most regular meals in most countries.

If I absolutely had to pick one diet though it would likely be the Mediterranean diet.

 
buster said:
Food science is all over the place. It's one of the reasons I'm a eat everything in moderation person. I read recently from a highly regarded source that bananas in smoothies deactivate anti-oxidants of the other fruit within the smoothie. Who knew? It's chemistry and it's complex.

As @Quattro Pete said portion control is HUGE. That's a main factor in why so many are obese today. American appetizers are larger than most regular meals in most countries.

If I absolutely had to pick one diet though it would likely be the Mediterranean diet.
Click to expand...
If you start with banana not being BEST way for to get potassium (relative to the hype and yes they do have a lot of K) and they are just a huge carb and sugar load, then you are already avoiding them and looking at healthy alternatives.

Nothing wrong with the Med diet really but those people who live a long healthy life on the med diet are super active. They walk hills and stairs for a couple hours at least every day.

But yes my weakness I just eat TOO MUCH in one sitting. Working on that.
 
Portion control is a factor. No question. However when I travel overseas to remote locations, I generally eat way too much, as the food is delicious, and, every single time, I lose weight.

There is something about American food that causes weight gain. Hormones, drugs, genetic modification etc.

When it takes a 800 calorie diet to maintain a healthy weight, albeit with zero energy, something is very wrong.
 
I don't follow any special diet, I just try not to stuff my face and avoid (most) fast food. The biggest thing I've done recently to improve my health was to give up my booze habit for good in 2022. Every part of my health has improved since.
 
I've decided that I am only going to get 6 McRib's during the current selling season. 3 down 3 to go. For some reason they are very tasty this year. I think they tweaked the BBQ sauce. IMO YMMV
 
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