Fun Stuff > CHATTER

The 'I Feel Like Being Healthier' Thread!

<< < (6/64) > >>

Scandanavian War Machine:
sorry, if this has already been mentioned, but i didn't see it and it needs to be said.


after you work out, drink chocolate milk! unless you are lactose intolerant or something (obviously).

there were several studies done recently that showed chocolate milk to be the best thing for muscle recovery after a work out. better than water, sports drinks, and whatever else people might be trying to sell you.

plus it's delicious.

Fenriswolf:
Chocolate milk is good for recovery why? Not disagreeing, just would like some clarification. :)

OK I think it's pretty generally accepted that eating every 2 hours is the way to go (ideally of course, it's not the only way). Obviously just because it's generally accepted doesn't mean it's guaranteed to be right but I'm pretty confident it is. Apparently:


--- Quote ---So then are frequent meals important?

The answer to this is a big YES. But it requires a bit of extra effort on your part. Research has shown that people who eat five to six meals per day are able to lose more fat and stay leaner than those people who only consume three meals a day.

The absence of food causes the stomach to secrete a hormone called ghrelin. Ghrelin is referred to as the “hunger hormone”. It exerts its effects by slowing down fat utilization and increasing appetite. Without consistent food consumption, ghrelin levels remain elevated for extended periods of time, increasing the urge to eat. Frequent meals counteract these negative effects Blood sugar is better regulated and because there is an almost constant flow of food into the stomach the hunger-inducing effects of ghrelin are suppressed, reducing the urge to binge-out
--- End quote ---

and


--- Quote ---When we eat small frequent meals, we derive the following benefits:

* Increased metabolism.
* Increased energy level via regulated blood sugar and insulin levels.
* Because we're not hungry when we eat frequently throughout the day, we have increased ability to avoid binge eating.

Let's look a bit more closely at the "increased metabolism" effect of frequent meals.

When we eat, we experience "diet-induced thermogenesis", or "DIT".  Thermogenesis is the process by which our bodies produce heat.  The energy required to produce this heat comes from the food we eat.

DIT comes from two components.  One is the energy our bodies require to digest the food we consume.  This component is called "obligatory thermogenesis".  The second component of DIT -- called "facultative thermogenesis -- is due to the activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the stimulating effect it has on the body's metabolic rate.

The magnitude of thermogenesis is generally between 10 and 30% of the calories we eat, depending on the amount and type of food we eat.  Protein, carbohydrates, and fat each have different thermic effects.  That of protein is the highest.  For example, about 25% of the calories in a skinned chicken breast would be consumed in the resulting thermic effect.
--- End quote ---

And agree 110% re: finding exercise you like. I strongly believe everyone enjoys something, but have this image in their head that exercise = weights/running for miles/something else they can't stand.

jmrz:
There is a lot of good points mentioned in this thread.

Lately, I've been rather sick, and it is pretty much been figured out that I am intolerant to some types of foods, but we are yet to figure out exactly what those foods are. So, to help the dietitian figure this out, I have to keep a food diary. I have to write down everything I eat, for every meal and every snack and anything I drink (that isn't water) throughout the day and write down how I felt that day in regards to being sick and stuff.

What I have noticed by doing this is it makes me want to eat healthier. Because oh god I just ate an entire packet of tim tams and I must look like a huge fatty if I write that down and OMG. It doesn't mean you should starve yourself, but I've found it's encouraged me to reach for an afternoon snack of fruit rather than stuffing my face with chips or cookies.

Perhaps if you guys have troubles with making yourself eat healthy, maybe writing it all down will help? Looking back on two weeks worth of things I have eaten and realised I had KFC and junk food more often then I should was a bit of a wake up call

Ladybug:
Yeah, the food diary thing can be a brilliant tool. I've been doing it (trying to, at least, so nearly every day and nearly everything, but not quite) for a few months now, and it sort of works, when I put my mind to it. I use MacJournal for keeping a sort of diary (which means I only see titles of older entries, and not the food diary content), but I've been thinking of actually just using an Excel spreadsheet or something, so that I couldn't "hide" previous days so easily, but even just writing everything down sort of brings perspective and makes me want to eat healthier, even if I am the only one who will potentially read it.

tania:
admittedly i don't know too much about the blood sugar thing aside from those mental images i was given, so thank you peet for clearing it up. mostly it is meant to be an illustration of why eating one massive meal a day or going really long periods of time without food is not very likely to help most people lose weight. if you go long enough, it actually makes your body think it is starving and the next meal you eat gets stored in a much higher proportion as fat instead of being used as energy like it normally would.

i also realized the fat/fiber thing i posted was overly generalizing and incorrect too. you are right, ruyi, fat is important. what i meant, i now realize, is that it's the proportion of fat/fiber that is important, not just eating one and eliminating the other. basically it's good to keep an eye on the amount of fiber in what you eat and make sure you get a good amount of it every day. this doesn't necessarily have to be all bran cereal, vegetables are pretty good.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page