How to Lose Weight

In the last few years, my weight started to swing up and down, but had never gone beyond 130 pounds until last year. For about six months last year, I ate whatever was available to me because I was with others mostly and didn't want to trouble others with my preferred diet. I also did some traveling. During my travel, I ate restaurant food most time. In November 2017, I weighted 142 pounds, and my blood work showed high cholesterol, high lipids and glucose for the first time in my life. It was such an educational lesson how important a proper diet is. When we are on a poor diet, it really doesn’t take long to damage our body. In my case, although I was on a healthy diet my whole life, but six months of poor diet caused these issues in my body already. Even my doctor was shocked with my lab findings. None of my winter clothes fitted. It felt very uncomfortable with those extra fats. I felt tired most of the time.
 
In January, 2018, I determined to get back to 130 pounds or below. But it still took me some time to put my thoughts into actions and be ready to implement them. In the beginning of February, I joined the gym and started daily morning exercise: running/walking for at least 30 minutes, followed with another half hour of weights and toning exercise focusing on the areas with extra fats. I had to admit it was tough in the beginning. Many mornings, I had to talk to myself or even kick myself out of the bed and dragged myself on the treadmill with hit-pop music on. Many of you know that I do prefer listening to classical or relaxing music mostly. Somehow, hit-pop has this magic energy that wakes me up and stimulates my body moving on the treadmill. I found it strange, but it worked. Once I am on the treadmill, I am always glad that I did. It felt great after the workout. I would go home, shower, and eat breakfast, and feel so ready to start my day.
 
In addition, I am on a low carbohydrate diet as well. My diet principles are:

• High in proteins, water fibers, a lot of vegetables, moderated fruits, only drinking water or tea. Drink a lot of water
• I also take 1000 mg of Algae Omega-3 (fish oil for vegetarians)
• Eat some mixed nuts as snacks
• I have a big and nutritional breakfast, moderate amount of lunch, and a small dinner with salad or soup (definitely no carbohydrate for dinner)
• Avoid fried or fatty food

 
I just have been mindful of what to eat, but still eat moderated amount of snacks (nuts, dehydrated vegetable chips) between my three meals in a day. I do eat out with friends probably once a while. 
By the end of March, I weighted only 132 pounds. I feel much better after losing those extra pounds, and be able to fit into my clothing again. Most importantly, I feel energetic and healthy. 
 
I hope my personal story could motivate some of you who are interested in weight lost to do something about it. The way I see is if we are not happy with anything in life, let’s do something about it. The most important thing in life is being happy and health in my opinion. If we don’t think we are happy or healthy, let’s look into why we are not happy or health. If we are not happy with our weight, let’s work on it. I do understand for some of us, it could also be genetic. It does not mean it is impossible, but you just have to work harder than others. The most important thing is that you have to believe you can do it.
 
I do suggest to get blood test done because the following could be possible lab findings:

• May have elevated lipids, glucose
• Rule out thyroid disease, adrenal disease with appropriate testing
• Hormonal assays if indicated
• Consider other testing for primary causes of the weight gain
• Food sensitivity or allergy test (we may be sensitive to certain food without knowing, but they could cause issues in our body or weight gain)

 
Dietary principles: low calories diet (1000 – 1500 kcal). I will provide a sample diet later.

• Avoid high calories from fat including
  • red meat, poultry skins and dark meat, fried food, butter, margarine, cheese, whole milk (substitute with skim milk)
  • barley, sugar, bacon, buckwheat, candy, honey, jelly and jam, chocolate, chewing gum, cakes, cookies, ice cream, soft drinks,
  • chips, other fried snack foods, fried foods, sweetened juices, dried fruits.
  • junk food, and processed food
• Avocado oil for cooking
• moderate intake of nuts, seeds, avocados (although these foods are healthy for people who have no weight problem. We do need to eat these good fat to help to breakdown stored fat. However, they have high calories and high lipid as well. So it is better to eat them once a while rather than on a regular basis if you try to lose weight). Although our body needs good fat to break down the bad fat. However, make sure you intake balanced amount of omega 3 and omega 6. Otherwise, too much of omega 6 could cause inflammation in our body. 
  • flex seeds - mostly omega 3
  • chia seeds - mostly omega 3 
  • Hemp Heart seeds - omega 3 and proteins
• Eat more vegetables, low sugar fruits, whole grains, and non-fat diary (and low-fat fish for non-vegetarians)
  • Spirulina, cucumber, watermelon, squash, pomegranate, parsley, zucchini squash
  • Fresh juices
    • Beet greens, parsley, and celery
    • Parsley, grape, and pineapple
    • Lemon
• Eat more proteins: chicken, quinoas, fish, mushrooms, or hemp heart

Recently, the most popular weight lost diet is the Ketogenic diet (high fat and high protein) and HCG (type of hormone) diet. With ketogenic diet, be careful of your fat intake. Make sure you eat balanced amount of omega 3 and omega 6 and equivalent amount of protein. For example, the ratio of how much good fat and protein should be 1 to 1. The ratio of the omega 3 and omega 6 within the good fat intake should also be 1 to 1.  Therefore, in your meal, you should have half protein and half good fat foods. Within the good fat foods, there should be half of omega 3 and half of omega 6. Otherwise too much omega 6 will cause inflammation in the body although it is supposed to be anti-inflammatory. I won't go in depth to explain the mechanism here. 

I am not familiar with HCG diet. So I don't want to comment it much. 
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Eating more fiber can be an important component to weight maintenance as well. Fiber fills us up, so we eat less. Soluble fibers may work better. They can be found in beans and fruit, or from supplement. Some studies show the following supplements contain soluble fibers and are helpful for weight loss efforts. Some researchers add 10 or more grams per day to the diet.

• Glucomannan
• Psyllium

 
Try to eat meals after your exercise before your body cools off.
 
A sample diet: 1000 kcal, 70g protein, 625 mg Ca, 18 mg Fe, 400 mg Ascorbic Acid
Breakfast

• Option 1) Vegetable salad with ginger dressing:
  • Tomato, cucumber, pepper, lettuce, green onion, radishes, cabbage, etc
  • One table spoon of olive oil,
  • ¼ cup of quinoa or 1 slice whole wheat bread or ¼ cup of cereal
  • 1 cup plain yogurt

 
10:00 am: have a cup of herbal tea with few nuts
 
Lunch:

• vegetable salad with ginger dressing, 1 tsp. olive oil or 1 tbsp. avocado or 1tbsp. tahini;
• 1 slice whole wheat or ¼ quinoa mixed with the salad, or ½ cup brown rice or whole grain (cooked)
• 1 boiled egg
• 1 cup of tuna

 
4:00 pm: 1 serving fruit: 1 apple, 1 orange, ½ grapefruit, 2 mandarine, ½ banana, 1 peach, 2 apricots or 2 plums.
 
Dinner (before 7pm):

• mixed vegetable soup
• 120 g (4 oz) chicken, fish or turkey (not fried)
• or 90 g (3 oz) beef
• 2 types of steamed vegetables: carrots, zucchini squash, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, celery, onion, eggplant, beet, cabbage, green or yellow beans, pumpkin;

 
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), people who suffer weight issues often have weak digestive system such as depleted spleen function. Spleen helps to transform whatever breakdown food into nutrients and supply them to our body. Therefore, it is essential to strengthen our spleen. How to take care of our spleen:

• eat regularly
• don’t over-think or worry of things in life
• eat cooked and warm food (therefore, salad isn’t the best. Steamed vegetables with ginger dressing is a better option)
• combination of acupuncture and herbal treatments could help to strengthen your spleen

 
Please do avoid yo-yo dieting. If we are not ready to commit to a diet change and stick to it, it is better not to do it for now. What happens is our digestive system prefers regular routine. If we eat one heavy meal, but skip meals for the rest of our day, our body becomes stingier in using the nutrient or energy from that meal and store them as fat for a later use. This means it becomes easier to gain weight and harder to lose it the next time. Although we have been on a healthy diet, somehow we are not losing weight.
 
Nutritional supplements that may be helpful:
When we are on diet, our caloric intake drops sharply. It is difficult to eat the recommended amount of many vitamins and minerals. Therefore, it may be better for weight loss people to take multi-vitamin/mineral supplement.

• Spirulina or blue-green algae – is a rich source of protein, vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids. A study showed 2.8 grams of spirulina taken 3 times a day for a four week period resulted in a small, but statistically significant weight loss. (reference 1) There are no side effects reported with spirulina. However, spirulina can accumulate heavy metals from contaminated water. So consuming spirulina from such area can increase the body’s load of lead, mercury, and cadmium. (reference 24). I will say NJ is one of the areas does not have a good water filtering system. I personally always filter water and boil them at home before I drink them.

 
Psychospiritual approaches of weight issue: (For reference only. It may not apply to everyone)
Weight gain metaphors and correlates to the sense of (Hay, 1988, p. 54)

• Fear
• Need for protection
• Running away from feelings
• Insecurity, self-rejection
• Seeking fulfillment, nurturing
• Cover for hidden anger and resistance to forgive

 
Therapeutic suggestions:

• Imagine
  • being healthy and energetic, and only keeping the needed food
  • Surrounded by warmth of love
• Affirmation
  • My body only keeps the food I need. I am getting thinner and skinner.
  • I am at peace with my own feelings. I am safe wherever I am. I create my own security. I love and approve of myself. (Hay, 1988, p. 54)
• Process paradigm:
  • What is the symptoms preventing me from doing?
  • What is the symptoms making me do?

 
 
Reference:

1. Becher EW, Jakober B, Luft D, et al. Clinical and biochemical evaluations of the alga spirulina with regard to its application in the treatment of obesity. A double-blind cross-over study. Nutr Rep Intl 1986;33(4):565-573.
2. Johnson PE,  Shubert LE. Accumulation of mercury and other elements by spirulina (cyanophyceae). Nutr Rep Intl 1986;34(6):1063-1071.
3. book "You Can Heal Your Life" by Louise L. Hay - a book I highly recommend every one of us should keep it by our night stand. I love it personally and find it very helpful for self-healing.