Lost 23lbs in three months -

[muddy]

Since I'm still young I go to the doc for a check up yearly. Till he tells me otherwise the only time I watch what I eat, is as it goes on to my work or spoon.....

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[Lookin4_67GalaxieConv]

Since I'm still young I go to the doc for a check up yearly. Till he tells me otherwise the only time I watch what I eat, is as it goes on to my work or spoon.....

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You probably have a metabolism that burns everything off.  Mine has never been like that. 

[muddy]

Since I'm still young I go to the doc for a check up yearly. Till he tells me otherwise the only time I watch what I eat, is as it goes on to my work or spoon.....

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You probably have a metabolism that burns everything off.  Mine has never been like that. 

Yep, 230 is my average year round weight

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[eborcim]

Ray, I may have missed it in your thread...have you been able to stop taking your prescribed meds?

[goodfellow]

Ray, I may have missed it in your thread...have you been able to stop taking your prescribed meds?

That’s correct - no Type II diabetes drugs or blood pressure medicine needed. I still take the occasional reflux medicine - but only once, maybe twice per week; not every day as in previous years.

As far as cholesterol is concerned, I’m dropping LDL levels slowly, but not in the optimum range yet. I was told that this will take months - but I’m steadily dropping the numbers

Inflammation has been reduced to almost normal. For a guy my age there are almost no inflammation related joint issues to speak of.


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[skfarmer]

I agree Walrus -- the commercial packaged food industry and big PHARMA are highly complicit in making us unhealthy. I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I honestly believe that in an effort to increase crop yields, genetically modified foods have become highly toxic to a large segment of the population.

I only have one concrete data point to back this up. A good friend of mine who has a severe gluten allergy was transferred to Hungary for three years. In the US, if this guy went near a piece of bread or cereal he would suffer painful intestinal bouts. Yet he found out in Hungary that he could eat their locally baked dark bread without so much of a hiccup. He investigated and found that the grain (wheat and barley) was locally produced, and that it was a regional strain of wheat and barley that was never ever processed beyond being ground and packaged before being sent to local bakeries. Needless to say it was a revelation to my friend -- who thought that he would never be able to enjoy a basic sandwich.

i hate to bust up your concrete data but there is no commercially grown gmo wheat, barley or any small grain to the best of my knowledge. there has been some work done with wheat but none of it is commercially available and only once, back in 2014 has it ever been found in a sample for human or animal consumption

i will give you that your friend may  have issues with certain kinds of grain but it is not because they have been genetically modified. i even highly doubt it is the  grain and far more likely something that is added or been done to it in the processing. it may even be environmental but that is just my opinion.

[goodfellow]

Maybe I wasn’t clear - I wasn’t indicting the growers or the grain, but the processing. I have no data on what grain is or isn’t modified, but only indicate with one data point that in order to get yield, the food chain maybe tampered with. Naive? Maybe! — Speculative? Definitely!

My friend certainly had done the analysis while living in rural Hungary, and offered the explanation given above.
 
Whether it can be attributed to an environmental issue - that may also be true



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[highland512]

I for sure think it's something they add to this bread now. Growing up mom would bake bread often, I remember within a few days it was molding. Now you can buy a loaf that dosnt mold for weeks, Im sure thats good for your gut. I have been trying to get more and more of our food grown and preserved at home. We eat a lot of green beans, taters, and corn. With all the rain we had last year we had a huge bumper crop out of the garden so we wound up freezing and canning a lot by surprise. (I hate waste) I feel much more comfortable eating what I grow plus it taste much better. With in the next 5 years I am hoping to start raising some hogs, a friend at church already is raising beef so we might be able to do some swapping.  Im not a hippy or hipster by any means but some of the stuff they preach makes a lot of seance.   

[fatfillup]

I have to believe that natural products are better for you also.  We are about 70% organic but more importantly, we are getting away from processed foods and especially sugar.  Don't know that I feel better about 3 weeks in but we are switching gradually on some things just because we already have them or haven't found natural alternatives yet.  I am down about 8 lbs so I am happy. 

I have cut down on diet soda, about one a day now and drink lots of water.  Exercise is next on the list. 

[Heiny57]

I have to believe that natural products are better for you also.  We are about 70% organic but more importantly, we are getting away from processed foods and especially sugar.  Don't know that I feel better about 3 weeks in but we are switching gradually on some things just because we already have them or haven't found natural alternatives yet.  I am down about 8 lbs so I am happy. 

I have cut down on diet soda, about one a day now and drink lots of water.  Exercise is next on the list.

Darn Phil, I was all excited to jump in and join you in the new lifestyle until you threw out that cuss word “exercise”.         

[Lookin4_67GalaxieConv]

I have to believe that natural products are better for you also.  We are about 70% organic but more importantly, we are getting away from processed foods and especially sugar.  Don't know that I feel better about 3 weeks in but we are switching gradually on some things just because we already have them or haven't found natural alternatives yet.  I am down about 8 lbs so I am happy. 

I have cut down on diet soda, about one a day now and drink lots of water.  Exercise is next on the list.

You're gonna have to change your screen name!   

[goodfellow]

One of the more interesting (maybe unwanted) side effects of this radical dietary change is the rapid loss of body fat. Most people will be overjoyed with that aspect, but the reality is that such a drastic weight change means that some of us (especially older people who have carried a lot of weight for decades) will be left with very large amounts of saggy skin.

One of my dear old friends (who's in his 70s) was clinically obese for decades, and without getting into personal details, he decided to follow my lead and go on this diet. He's lost nearly 45lbs -- most of it around his belly and groin area. The result is a huge amount of loose skin that just hangs off in folds around his waist. Older people don't have very elastic skin anymore. Whereas a young person's skin could easily recover from such a severe weight loss, us older folks are stuck with the loose skin.

You can elect to have it surgically removed, but there are always risks to such radical procedures -- especially at an advanced age. The best way to address the loose skin problem is to include medium to heavy weight lifting in the diet plan. The idea is to replace the empty void with increased muscle size and better muscle tone. I had a bit of loose skin around my stomach and simple weight lifting and situps have increase the muscle mass in my abs and legs which stretched the skin back to almost normal levels. Obviously in severe loose skin cases that remedy only goes so far, but keeping very hydrated and growing muscle mass will alleviate a good portion of the loose skin issue. 

For myself, I'm down 25lbs and maintaining -- I don't need to loose any more weight, but am enjoying the benefits of decreased blood pressure, cholesterol, and sugar in my system. Joints are better than ever -- I can't recall exactly at what age I started to have inflammation problems (mid-late 30s most likely), but my inflammation today is almost nil -- AND my acid reflux has been reduced to almost nothing.

This latter issue is the best possible news for me. In the mid-1990s I was diagnosed with Barrett's esophagus -- an early indicator of possible esophageal cancer if the issue wasn't treated. I was put on massive doses of Nexium and have been on this medication for a very long time. Last month I went for an esophageal endoscopy, and my Barret's is in remission -- the cell tissue is returning to normal. Best news for me during this whole process.

This entire (almost a year long process) has been a very positive experience and made a HUGE difference in my life. Hope some of you guys are benefiting as well.

[Lookin4_67GalaxieConv]

This latter issue is the best possible news for me. In the mid-1990s I was diagnosed with Barrett's esophagus -- an early indicator of possible esophageal cancer if the issue wasn't treated. I was put on massive doses of Nexium and have been on this medication for a very long time. Last month I went for an esophageal endoscopy, and my Barret's is in remission -- the cell tissue is returning to normal. Best news for me during this whole process.

My gastroenterologist told me I was at risk for Barretts as well in 2015.  Last December he did another endoscopy and he said it looked much better than three years before.  Not sure why, because I haven't really changed much, but I'll take it.

[goodfellow]

This latter issue is the best possible news for me. In the mid-1990s I was diagnosed with Barrett's esophagus -- an early indicator of possible esophageal cancer if the issue wasn't treated. I was put on massive doses of Nexium and have been on this medication for a very long time. Last month I went for an esophageal endoscopy, and my Barret's is in remission -- the cell tissue is returning to normal. Best news for me during this whole process.

My gastroenterologist told me I was at risk for Barretts as well in 2015.  Last December he did another endoscopy and he said it looked much better than three years before.  Not sure why, because I haven't really changed much, but I'll take it.

Interesting! -- If you've been on a regular proton pump inhibitor regimen (with meds like Nexium), then that may have contributed to the good diagnosis. Mine was caught early, but the meds only kept it stable -- i.e., no reversal. The downside is that these proton pump meds can have a significant negative impact on your kidneys. Better to get off of them as soon as possible. I still use Nexium (once/twice a month) when we go out to dinner when I know I'll have a glass of red wine or other acid reflux trigger beverage or food. But that's it - normal day-to-day eating and living is without Nexium.

[fatfillup]

Have to tell you, Ray is looking quite fit.  He was at my get together and was looking slim, trim and a little pumped

This morning I was just under 209.  (Muddy, I'll take them Aussie shorts back )

One benefit of getting away from sugar and processed foods is my hand pain is greatly diminished.  My hands don't fall asleep any where near as much and I don't wake up with hand pain at night.  My knees rarely hurt also.  My energy level is up, though could be better. 

This past weekend with the get together and my Mom's passing, I ate "dirty" for 3 days and the hand pain starting coming back.  Fortunately, after a day of eating better, I could feel the difference and after a few days, things are back to my new normal. 

Gentlemen, from my personal experience and the experiences of many I know and respect, I urge you to cut back on the sugar and carbs for your health.  You won't regret it.