how to stick to a low fat diet

Hi ,I am also overweight but by 5stone, the nurse at my doctors surgery told me to get an exercise bike & use for 30 mins a day! I am now attending Luton hospital waiting for weight loss surgery where the bariatric nurse said half hour a day was a bit much for my age 66yrs and not to worry that I can only do 10mins a day, to try to increase to 12 mins a day.x

Hi Marilyn,

First of all congratulations on taking the first, and sometimes the hardest step, realizing the problem and deciding to do something about it. Three stones seems a lot to lose but with a little determination and a lot of common sense it will come off in a few months. I lost just under two stones in four months in 1992 without effort. I joined a new local gym a few years later and my body fat was measured at 16.2%

My philosophy, at the time, was to eat sensibly but normally, not to go hungry and to just cut out the cakes and biscuits. The only thing I did was to substitute fruit of all types for the sweet treats. I've got to add that I already had a decent, healthy diet.... lots of chicken, fish, rice and pasta and none of the items normally referred to as junk food. I think you're right to keep your fat intake down to a sensible level, muscles don't burn fat, they burn sugars, from carbohydrates.

Keep in the back of your mind, "calories in = calories out". If “in” is greater than “out” then you will gain weight, so for the next few months you will have to burn more than you eat to lose weight. From my experience, fresh fruit calories just do not matter and you can eat your fill without any problem. 

When I had 16.2% body fat I was four years into marathon training and I was fifty eight years old. The meals I had were enormous for a ten stones person and no matter what I ate I couldn't put on weight. You don't of course have to go to that extreme with exercise as any activity is good. You don't say what your history of exercise is but don't let your age dictate what you do. I changed from running to cycling when I was almost seventy, joined my old club (from when I was sixteen to twenty), and turned out for the weekly ten mile time trials. The best thing about a static bike is that you can make it as easy or as hard as you like and when you decide you've had enough you can stop. The calories you burn will be somewhere in the range of 200 - 350 in thirty minutes. I know this is a wide range but a bike can be a pleasant potter to an instrument of self torture. No gain without pain... an old adage but I believe there's some truth in it. 

Best wishes for your operation. You might find that afterwards fatty foods don't agree with you and you’ll automatically settle down to a good, healthy diet.

Regards….

Good for you. I still use my exercise bike to hang my change of clothes. Have you spoken to your Doctor or your surgeon about your weight? It gets more difficult to lose weight as we get older. It's just a fact of life. A low calorie diet is usually 1000kcal a day. That is a difficult target. Don't be mislead by calorie counting because you need to get a balance of calorific foods. Treats should be banned from your diet. Even "healthy" nuts should go. 200g of nuts is about 1200 kcals! Sorry, no chocolate. 100 g of choc contains about 20g of saturated fat. Please get some medical advice.Insist. After all, we are all shareholders in the NHS.

Hi Maz ,yes that is what I get called too,i did a weight management course for about a year in Northampton where I did loose a stone, but I had hit a wall & could'nt shift any more, so I asked my GP about a gastric band & she refered me to Luton where I see the bariatric team. The beginning of June my op is, I saw the surgeon last Monday, he has said they are veering away from the band as they are high maintenance & often fail so I'm getting a sleeve I am a little nervous but also exited, ask your GP if there is a weight management course in your area. Mx

HI MARILYN ,I have ask about help but i was just given a piece of paper with what type of things you can eat ant what are high in fats , my GP surrgested a slimming club but they can become expensive and my husband has retired so money isn't never ending , I am beginning to think when you get to 61 they don't bother about you as much as if you were 30 but that's because their funding is cut as much as it can be , I don't blame the doctors but i do think when the government are saying how obesity is causing problems in this country they should some way help in getting the help people need before it gets out of hand , I know 3 stone is alot to loose but surely getting some help now would be better than waiting until i am 13 stone overweight , anyway that's my rant over , all i want is to stick to my diet and i think i am getting more support from the people on this site than i have had from my GP. I am so pleased you are getting the help you need and i hope it's a great success , I dont know what the difference is between a gastric band and a gastric sleeve but i surpose there is one , is one safer than the other or is one easier to do and mantain , I hope everything goes well and you get to your goal , MAZxx