Fixing my diet

[sourceninja]

I started a new healthy initiative after my last physical. My doctor informed me that I was developing fatty liver due to weight gain. He also said I had moderately high blood pressure, high liver enzymes (probably due to the fatty liver) and high cholesterol. I realized I just couldn't go on living the way I was (eating out all the time time, drinks daily with friends, tons of salt and high calorie foods (steak and bbq were standard weekly items). I got inspired by Penn's book and did a 2 week potato fast. I ate nothing but potatoes for 2 weeks and lost about 10lbs. This part was really to me about getting over my processed food addiction. I then moved into a 'vegan' diet with no added fats or salts. I mostly eat fruit, potatoes for lunch (with beans on top sometimes), and a vegan dinner. I only drink coffee, water, and sparkling water (and booze on the weekends). The only added salt I use is tobacco sauce (It's magically good). Total calorie count is around 1500-1700 a day on average, but some days much less as I only eat when hungry. I'm down to 188lb from 219lb in about 3 months.

I haven't had any cravings. I'm never not full when I eat. I also don't limit my diet on the weekends and go to breweries and wineries. I also go out to eat with friends on weekends where I eat basically anything I feel like (although it's getting harder to eat out as all food tastes like nothing but salt). I've also fallen in love with nutritional yeast in a lot of my food.

What I'm concerned with is two fold:

1) How to keep my wife happy when she hates my diet. Maybe I need better recipes.
2) How do I increase my calorie intake so I stop losing when I hit my target weight? I'm never really hungry anymore.

Once I hit 180lb I plan to get a gym membership and a personal trainer. I want to put on some muscle mass and see if I can get a better looking physique.

I tried keto in the past and spent most of my time hungry or with heart burn. The diet wasn't something I could do forever. I had cravings and eventually relapsed and the weight I did lose was almost immediately back. I really feel like I could do this diet forever, but I have to find a way to make it 'healthy'. Any advice?

 

[deadlyapp]

You need to sub out the starchy vegetables and fruit for more leafy or other substantial vegetables. Is there a reason why you've gone vegan rather than just having lean meats (chicken, lean beef, lean turkey, etc)?

Your body will self regulate your weight loss eventually, since your body will need less calories the more weight you lose, and if you start working out (which should have been the first thing you started) then you'll convert more of your fat to muscle.

If you genuinely need more calories, then just add in healthy fats to your diet. They're calorie dense and in moderation are perfectly fine. This would be avocado, nuts, grass fed butter, olive oil, etc.

And to keep your wife happy - you should probably come up with something better than just a potato and fruit diet. Use better starchy carbs, use more vegetables, mix in some meats, come up with good spice mixes that are low in salt or have no salt. Very easy.

 

[sourceninja]

Thank you for the advice.

The reason I have gone vegan (it's not 100% vegan for sure, but vegan in spirit) is that salt is the main culprit in my blood pressure. I've been able to remove the water pill portion of my medication now that I'm 'salt free'. What I've learned is that while I love veggies without salt, I can not stand meat without salt. It tastes terrible. I've tried MS dash, tons of spices, etc. No matter what I've tried it just tastes totally bland. Maybe I can get over that, but because of it I limit my meat eating to just the 1-2 times a week we go out with friends (I usually get chicken or fish). The problem there is the food is starting to taste like a block of salt, especially if I get steak.

I don't want it to seem like all I eat is potatoes and fruit. There is a lot of variety, but my wife just doesn't seem to enjoy the diet. Last night I finally made something she liked, but that is pretty rare. I made a 'taco soup'. It is basically water, quinoa, pinto and black beans, tomatoes, chili peppers (a few types), cumin, cayenne, bell peppers, onions, garlic, and vinegar. We put some sliced avocado on top. A night before that I made a wild rice dish with kale, peppers, and chickpeas. Tonight I'm making black bean 'burgers' for dinner (I'm skipping the bun, she's not). I'll probably pair it with a side of baked sweet potato 'fries' (tiny bit of oil, cayenne pepper, no salt).

I'll look into more ideas on how to get meat back into the diet. I don't miss it, but I'm doing this to be healthy.

 

[purbeast0]

Just to clarify something that @deadlyapp said that is just completely false is you don't "convert" fat to muscle. That is simply not a thing and not how it works. You will have to lose fat and gain muscle, not convert fat into muscle as he says.

More info at the link below.

https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/the-myth-of-turning-fat-into-muscle.html

 

[sourceninja]

I just thought of it as a turn of phrase.

 

[purbeast0]

I was just clarifying if not, because a lot of people think that is how it works. Look at all the fatties at the gym doing hundreds of crunches thinking they will have a six pack in a month.

 

[deadlyapp]

Just to clarify something that @deadlyapp said that is just completely false is you don't "convert" fat to muscle. That is simply not a thing and not how it works. You will have to lose fat and gain muscle, not convert fat into muscle as he says.

More info at the link below.

https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/the-myth-of-turning-fat-into-muscle.html

Sorry - you're absolutely correct, I simply mean the transition of losing fat and gaining muscle as a conversion.

 

[balloonshark]

Keep doing what you're doing and congrats on your weight loss and new lifestyle. I started eating a plant based diet in January and real success stories like yours lets me know I'm doing the right thing. I'm convinced that sticking to a whole food plant based diet as much as possible is the way to go.

If she likes pasta you could always make pasta and some sort of sauce. It's one of my go to meals when I'm lazy. I use whole wheat or veggie pasta with a canned sauce but I'm sure they may have some salt and the sauce may have oil so you might be better off making your own. I also always throw in some veggies to the sauce and beans might be a nice addition. Of course it's always tasty to add nutritional yeast on top and she could use Parmesan if she likes.

 

[sourceninja]

I've basically hit a wall at 185lbs. I workout, I eat a bit more than I did when I started, but not much more, and I've moved to 8/16 intermittent fasting. I just can't get to that 180lb goal. In fact I've started drifting up to 186lb. I guess I need to regroup and figure out what's causing the weight gain. It doesn't appear to be muscle mass. Anyways, just a update.

 

[mike8675309]

What's your calorie intake, what's your exercise output per week? Gotta figure that out to see what's going on.

 

[sourceninja]

I need to do a real count, but I eat 2 times a day, Probably 800-1000 calories a meal. I work out 2-3 times a week for 30 minutes. Mostly body weight exercises. I also walk while I'm working (apple watch says 3-5 miles a day). It's probably exercise related. I should work out harder.

 

[CalebRockeT]

I'll second mike's suggestion. If you're not already weighing and tracking your food intake, I'd recommend doing that for a couple weeks to get an accurate sense of how many calories you're actually eating. From there, you should be able to make adjustments to your diet and/or physical activity to progress toward your goals. Good luck.

 

[whm1974]

I need to do a real count, but I eat 2 times a day, Probably 800-1000 calories a meal. I work out 2-3 times a week for 30 minutes. Mostly body weight exercises. I also walk while I'm working (apple watch says 3-5 miles a day). It's probably exercise related. I should work out harder.

You may be better off in eating the same amount of calories per day in in three or four meals instead of two. What snacks do you consume between meals?

 

[sourceninja]

I don't snack. I eat two meals a day one at noon and one before 8pm. I drink coffee, tea, and water (no added sweetener except maybe a lemon in the tea and water). So far today I've eaten 590 calories for lunch. Dinner will be out tonight, so probably 1100-1300. I will be having 2 drinks with friends (we meet up on tuesday for two drinks) usually neat whiskey so 180 calories. This is fairly consistent in my diet with the exception of the drinks. I normally only drink on tuesday and friday most weeks. I'm still thinking exercise is the solution here.

 

[whm1974]

I don't snack. I eat two meals a day one at noon and one before 8pm. I drink coffee, tea, and water (no added sweetener except maybe a lemon in the tea and water). So far today I've eaten 590 calories for lunch. Dinner will be out tonight, so probably 1100-1300. I will be having 2 drinks with friends (we meet up on tuesday for two drinks) usually neat whiskey so 180 calories. This is fairly consistent in my diet with the exception of the drinks. I normally only drink on tuesday and friday most weeks. I'm still thinking exercise is the solution here.

Exercise would help, but as long as you consume less calories then you need to maintain your current weight, you will slowly loss it. However keep in mind that it also depends on your genetic makeup as well.

 

[sourceninja]

Final total for today 1590 calories.

 

[balloonshark]

I saw this recipe the other day and I really want to give it a try since it looks hearty. It might be even better with some sort of beans added or on the side. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppDw-elvrjw

 

[sourceninja]

Today I'm at 1610. I'm using Lose It! on the iPhone. So I feel pretty good about my intake. I guess I just need to work harder.

 

[whm1974]

If you are only eating 1610 calories a day then you should be able to lose weight, just don't over do it.