I guess there are worse problems in the world

[Minkey Chief]

As I was saying to some friends, I haven't seen a 72 on a scale since I stepped on a big lit-up machine on Brigade Road with a little coloured disc that spun as the machine spat out a little cardboard rectangle with my weight stamped on one side, my fortune on the other.

I'm posting this because I realised that a lot of people still focus on fat as the thing to cut back on to lose weight. Cutting back on fat did nothing to my fat deposits, or caused only the slightest shift. I saw big changes only after targeting starchy carbs: rice, pasta and bread (I was never much of a potato eater). This includes whole wheat bread and brown rice.

I've largely replaced those calories with fruit and vegetable (don't forget, these are carbs as well). However, and this should be of interest to people who love food, I have no hard and fast rules. I haven't gone crazy here--just watchful. Every Friday, my wife and I eat deep-fried, oily, spicy Sichuan dishes with a ton of rice. Saturday is often another meal outside--maybe a good burger or more Chinese food (we live in an area with great Chinese food). I have no hesitation about eating good stuff like bacon or fatty braised pork or rib-eye steaks or deep-fried chicken.

I do, however, balance it. A heavy lunch will be followed by a light dinner; a bad weekend by a good week (with a cheat meal or two!). In fact my body now demands that--I just cannot eat the way I used to.

A few things:

1) It's hard in the beginning. Eating platefuls of rice or piles of rotis is, in the end, simply feeding your body sugar. You are addicted and you are driven to eat more than you need--that's just how we're set up. You WILL have some degree of withdrawal--irritability, extreme hunger, tiredness.

2) Good things happen quickly. Once the cold turkey goes away, it's replaced with a great feeling of lightness and energy. Meals actually energise, and don't make you feel over-full or bloated or sleepy.

3) Meals keep you full without seeming to fill you. If you are eating some meat and a lot of vegetables, or even, on some "good" days, just salad for lunch, you'll be amazed at how long it keeps you full, and how non-cravey your hunger is when it does appear. When the rice/bread/pasta is all processed, the crash makes you crave more starchy stuff and it's a true craving--you can't resist stuffing yourself silly again.

4) Making the rich food a treat actually makes it more enjoyable.

5) Sometimes I remind myself to look for pleasure in the hours, not the minutes. Fatty/deep-fried/starchy carb loaded meals are delightful to eat. One of the best of life's experiences--I truly love this kind of food. But once the eating is done, I can't deny they do not feel good. You feel sluggish, sleepy, fat. You have indigestion, can't sleep well and the next morning isn't a lot of fun either. So sometimes, I do play a slightly long game and say, "Yes, I'm denying myself this now, but guess what, I'll feel GREAT about it in 10 minutes". And I almost always do. If I don't, I eat it--I'm not here to make myself miserable.

6) Apart from treat meals, I still eat bread/rice just before, during or after a hard or long ride. Since my rice eating is on the weekend and my long rides are also on the weekend, I think it really helps.


How much cutting back? On average:
Rice: From every day or at least every other day to once or twice on the weekend
Pasta: From 3/4 times a week to never. (No rule, just don't miss it even though I LOVE spaghetti with pesto.)
Bread: From every day to once or twice a week, usually just before a ride

Of course, this will be a lot harder in Bangalore when there are lunch meets, family outings, dinner parties and weddings galore. Also, Indian food without rice or roti is like half the pleasure gone. At the same time out here in Cali, I'm very aware it's our last few months, so I tend to eat out a fair amount. So as I said, you don't need to go crazy to lose the weight.

Also, I've been doing strength exercises and eating protein, so I'm not losing muscle weight. I hope. Silk Smitha thighs on Keira Knightley's body seems to be the general model for cyclists who lose weight.

Oh almost forgot! What about performance on the bike? Better than ever. I feel that my energy is more predictable day to day, and less prone to fast drops in performance after a hour or two on the bike. I feel better on the bike than I ever have before. touch wood and all. Yes my training has changed, but I noticed the improvements from the eating before the big changes in my training.

Also, I haven't been ill since I started eating like this. A couple of colds threatened, but Zicam seemed to send them on their way.

Thanks for reading and I really hope this helps someone. I've noticed quite a few riders (even some "seniors") wondering why they aren't losing weight even though they are riding a lot. Usual disclaimers apply--I'm not a coach, I'm not a nutritionist, what works for me may not work for you etc.

[Minkey Chief]

Just to stress, I haven't simply cut out the rice/bread/pasta, but that I'm replacing those calories with vegetables and fruit. It's a pain--it's a lot of washing and chopping and chewing. But day to day feels good enough to take the trouble.

Oh and the reason for the thread title--I'm entering the lower range of my recommended weight, so starting to get concerned that I might be losing too much. The rate of loss has slowed though, and I'm usually in the 73, low-74 range when well-hydrated.

[vkalia]

Good timing on this thread, as Sumit just pronounced me fat. I'll try some of those tips.

[Minkey Chief]

as Sumit just pronounced me fat.

You're going to have to publicly rend him limb from limb, you know that right? Otherwise you'll send out the message that it's okay to disrespect the Guads.





Fat Lizzie. Fat fatty fatfat lizzie.

[deepakvrao]

Very nice post MC. Thanks. Encouraging too, and congrats on the awesome results.

Have also cut down on grain and managed some weight loss. Just having only meat or salad 3-4 evenings a week.

[balu]

Thanks for the post MC.
I've been struggling with my weight for about a year now. I'm running quicker and longer and riding harder, but my wt. has become a monotonically increasing function of time.
Being a veggie doesn't help either I'm planning to replace one meal a day with only veggies and egg white. I hope that works for me.

Balu

[Anool]

well written with some nice advice. I seem to have the opposite problem - just don't put on any weight no matter how much or what I eat. It's been a constant 60 ever since I remember.

[krishnas]

AWESOME post, Minkey.
This one goes into the same league as the "Some mixed-up, contradictory thoughts at 10,000 kilometres ".

On topic, I have NOT been plagued by weight issues for a long while myself. So taking the liberty to add my own experience on this thread. (hope thats ok!!!)

Here are my own rules towards eating:
- I rarely eat rice. The only time I eat rice here in Hyderabad is in the form of Biryani which is the best thing about Hyderabad.
- I do eat Breads (brown sliced version as well as Rotis) but am not a big hogger. 3 rotis a good for me in a big meal.
- I eat a ton of veggies.
- Very Very less oil consumed.. in general. My average meal in the week is very boring and very low on oil.
- Fruits, well thats my area to work upon. Dont eat enough fruits.
- Cheat meals: very important, and they are what keep me on target towards not digressing from a healthy diet plan. I have 1 or 2 cheat meals a week.
- Alcohol: well, not a guzzler but, I need a drink or 2 once in a while. Avoid beer and prefer wine, but cant keep off the good thing for too long. 3-4 times a month, I would have a drink for sure.

Moderation is the key word with the occasional Cheat Meal to keep you sane

[abhirama]

Thanks for this post. Perfect timing. Just when I got really serious (and I must admit, a little anxious ) about weight loss. I'll keep in mind all these tips.

[kk27]

Good one Chief.

I've been on the same path for some time now, but my weight shot up with just a few Roadblocks. Just before France I had hit 68kgs, but post PBP I enjoyed France as much I could till I was there and then with friend coming over from the US my weight went upto 75kgs by end of Oct. Now I'm back at 73kg and again I'm striving for a 68. But My primary problem is not of weight rather of loosing the little fat on my body ( belly & love handles) , and still not able to find a solution.

[manmeet.sahni]

Very nice post and congrats on the effort. Agree with most of your points and have been following a routine myself, which helped me lose some 5kgs in the last 6 weeks or so. No diet, just basic stuff like more meals in the day, light dinner, good breakfast, more sleep etc. Not much workout, only over the weekend, which has 150km of cycling and 2 hours of badminton on both days.

I was just wondering - from your chart, how did you lose close to 3kgs from 25/7 to 08/08?? I mean, that's a lot for a 15day period, or am I seeing it wrong?

[vikramkc]

I seem to have the opposite problem - just don't put on any weight no matter how much or what I eat. It's been a constant 60 ever since I remember.

....Blessed.

[satyaprakash P. lele]

Well written and will be helpful to many.
But the ones who like to keep the tummy full all the times will go their own jolly way and add some more layers of fat.

[bblost]

By replacing rice/ pasta with veggies, what do you mean.

Are these eaten raw or cooked.

Coming from a completely non-veg background, I have limited knowledge of veg food.
In fact while I can cook most non-veg dishes all the way from slaughtering the animal till the final dish. I am LOST when it comes to veg.

Please share some recipes. I would really appreciate it.

Raw vegetables I like to consume are Carrots and Spinach.
In Boiled form: Beets and Potatoes.

I might as well replace my office cafeteria lunch(which I HATE) with such stuff.

Thanks a lot.

[bonigv]

Very nice Minkey. Thanks for the reminder. I say so because this was an important lesson that I should not have forgotten ever - not after the great results it produced once. For a three month period, last year I replaced my usual dinner of rice accompanied by non-veg hungama with a great wokky stir fry of chicken and fresh veggies (Peppers, Onions, Mushrooms, carrots, Spinach or other greens, beans etc. picked a few for every day). Produced fantabulous results. I think I lost about 4kgs and felt greater than ever. I have been thinking about reintroducing that regimen for long enough. Now is the time. Once again thanks for the post and meal ideas.

[rpok]

Thanks MC. I need to focus on this time (when i'm not racing) on my diet. Because once races start again, i feel the need for carbs, after which its a compromise between weight and performance and i have to go with performance. Right now when i'm back to advanced base, i can cut down on all rice/pasta (which i'm trying to) and do a lot of gym - both of which are not possible in racing season.
The only time i lost a lot of weight (2 years back) was because i had cut down on starchy carbs like rice, potato, roti.
I do agree that its not the fat, but the carbs which are in way of losing weight. Because its easy to ignore the fatty foods (i rarely eat pizza, burger, fries, sweets, chocolates, etc), but its very difficult to not eat starchy carbs. Relying on proteins for dinner also helps.

[Swordfish]

Thanks for the Motivation Minkey.
Time for me to step up. I normally eat LOTS of rice, bread and non-veg too.

[Minkey Chief]

Thanks for great responses everyone!

Anool, I know a few people who have this problem--that they can't put on weight no matter how much they eat. But when I watch them, I've noticed that they actually eat very little. Their perception of eating “a lot” is very very different from most people's. And because they play with their food a lot, it seems like they're at the table for a long time (and they feel they've been “eating” for as long as everyone else), but the actual rate of something going from plate into mouth is very low. They'd eat one small helping (and waste from that) in the time everyone else has thulped two or three large ones.

They also forget to eat meals—something I cannot imagine ever doing! Or they'll eat some chips or something at tea, and then be too full to really eat at dinner. I'm not saying you're like this, but it maybe something to consider if you're out of your teens—probably the only time you can really eat a lot and never put on weight.

So taking the liberty to add my own experience on this thread. (hope thats ok!!!)

Of course! It's a discussion forum, not a place to pontificate. Haha, my reference to my weakness for mutton biriyani didn't make an edit. Basically, if you want to fatten me up really fast, leave a lot of mutton biriyani around the place. Cannot ever resist, often going into fourth and fifth helpings.

That reminds me—I have an automatic advantage. I'm not a big dessert person and I don't really like alcohol. I drink now and then, but it's very occasional. Plus I hate beer!

Kk, yeah those last layers of fat are really hard. But also, even guys are conditioned to think of flat bellies as being the goal, so even if there's a small layer of fat, we think “Oh I have a belly!” It's always relative--you lose a ton of weight and the belly might get smaller, but the rest of you has become smaller as well, so it sticks out the same amount!

Manmeet, regarding the sudden weight loss, I didn't always stick with weighing myself at the same time every day. I'm now checking morning weight, but always wake up slightly dehydrated as it's very dry here. That 72.3 morning weight can go up by a kilo or more later in the day. The downward trend is accurate though, because I often weigh myself but don't bother to note it.

Bblost, I completely identify with what you're saying. I'm still not totally comfortable with vegetables. We have recently developed a taste for salad, now that I make a nice garickly dressing myself, use good salad greens, and add interesting things like goat cheese and pecans. It's a big mindset change--”salad” used to be a bad word to me, but I realised that even in the West there's a lot of bad salad out there. Watery bland vegetables with processed dressing out of big plastic dubbas. It was only after leaving India that I realised how great our vegetables taste—I remember how intensely cauliflower tasted of itself. Here, even organic cauliflower is bland and watery.

Anyway, to get in veggies we eat more salad. Mixed greens (there's always a keere (palak) lady at the Indian markets), sometimes with other colours chopped in—red capsicum, carrots, etc. Olives, capers, anchovies, cheeses and roasted nuts add interest. A side of masala roasted fish adds even more interest!

Also, stir-fries like the ones Boni describes. The wok needs to get really hot so the veggies get what the Chinese call “wok hay”--actually let me write more on wok cooking later. But a good wok makes veggies so much easier to consume. I'm half-Bong and love “chorchori”, so I recently carried back the five-spice mix and use that for a range of vegetables, including stuff like pumpkin that I normally never eat. Spinach just gets cooked down with lots of garlic and some onion, sometimes in chicken stock, sometimes with spices—whatever's going.

Sometimes I purposely make the veggies on the bland side, and eat them alongside a spicy meat curry, or spicy chicken wings or something like that—almost like rice. This isn't actually correct thinking: but I use it as an excuse to gobble more meat! I'm eating more meat again after a long period (during my fat cutting phase) of eating very little. Maybe my blood work won't be quite as good, but I'm a lot happier.

Huge respect on being able to cook meat from slaughter onwards. Bad things happen in societies that forget that animals die to provide us with food--wastage and industrial feedlots being the worst of these.

Watch out for potatoes though. Good for you, but full of starch again.

As Roopak said, it's actually easier to cut fat. It's really hard to cut back on the starchy staples, especially when eating out. Not just the mental bit, but also logistics. It helps that the less you eat them, the more you notice the bad effects of eating them. Especially the post-prandial sluggishness!

[deepakvrao]

Plus I hate beer!

[bblost]

Thanks Chief. Loved reading your post.

[Anool]

.....

Anool, I know a few people who have this problem--that they can't put on weight no matter how much they eat. But when I watch them, I've noticed that they actually eat very little. Their perception of eating “a lot” is very very different from most people's. And because they play with their food a lot, it seems like they're at the table for a long time (and they feel they've been “eating” for as long as everyone else), but the actual rate of something going from plate into mouth is very low. They'd eat one small helping (and waste from that) in the time everyone else has thulped two or three large ones.

They also forget to eat meals—something I cannot imagine ever doing! Or they'll eat some chips or something at tea, and then be too full to really eat at dinner. I'm not saying you're like this, but it maybe something to consider if you're out of your teens—probably the only time you can really eat a lot and never put on weight.

......

describes me to the t - specially skipping meals sometimes. Need to make a conscious effort to change that. Out of my teens - heck , I'm touching half a century in a couple of years !

[Ripper]

@minkeychief- I always wanted to thank you for the following exchange on the "burning fat without losing muscle" thread
I would have never found out about the Paleo Diet if it wasnt for you. It has changed my life, and I will always be thankful for that.
I guess, this thread would be the perfect place to say thanks for pointing me in the right direction.
Down to 70kgs from 82 in January 2011. the last 6kgs went away effortlessly while on the Paleo diet inspite of dropping my weekly mileage from 200kms to 40kms.
Stronger and faster than I have ever been in my entire life. Everything changed. Thanks to you. Again.

After finding out about it on this thread,I had a go at the paleo diet for 2 days and almost died of hunger post ride. How is it possible to ride as hard as you can for an hour, and then not have any carbs after? I finally lost it, and had a cup of oats this morning.

I know when you said "carbs" you meant starchy carbs, but don't forget you're supposed to be eating a ton of carbs in the form of fruit and veg. Also, what Friel says in 'The Paleo Diet for Athletes' is that just after a ride you drink down a fruit juice+fruit+protein powder smoothie to get carbs back into the system quickly. The book's worth a read for sure, whether you adopt the diet or its principles or not. The basic assumptions have been peer-reviewed, unlike a lot of other diet books out there.

[deepakvrao]

Hokey. Now I have to read about this Paleo diet.

[bblost]

Chief:

I been doing some serious looks at my diet. I don't eat a lot of roti or rice. But I love breads. This is something I gotcha work on.

btw what is your take on Dairy.

I used to have a heavy Dairy intake. Especially when my daughter was just born. Easiest meal in the world being oats or museli. I have started slowing down on milk and yogurts..but would like to know your take on them.

[Puneet Rai]

Minkey, this article is brilliant. Great inputs for a mamil like me on the wrong side of 40 but whose legs think differently. Deal is I'm not much of a cook, cant do stuff beyond eggs, upma, anything with bread, and chai or coffee. To change the family diet plan would be tantamount to upsetting the applecart, what with the wife being the only one with the skills. And Junior has his own take on strange dietary requests from his dad. But, I guess I need to work on it slowly and surely. Is a long haul, from what I see, but rather try and fail than not try at all:)

Anool, this no-weight-loss-or-gain that you refer to got me thinking. How about checking your thyroid numbers? I may sound alarmist, but when I went for my annual checkup last year, the doctor concluded I suffer from hypothyroidism, and need medicine. And he attributed my weight loss to hypothyroidism. But I'm no medical man, so I may be way off the mark. Point is it may just pay to do a test.
Regards,
Puneet