Wanna lose a little

[thebaboun]

Hi,

I am looking to lose like 10 pounds for the moment. I lost five already since the beginning of the semester. What kinds of advice would you have for me. I know by experience that it is mostly what YOU EAT that will result in a weight loss. The exercise can only help a little bit. I love to eat, but I do not know what  Ishould be eating MORE.
by the way, what kinds of food would you avoid at ALL COST in order to lose weight.

[Mikekoz13]

Hi,

I am looking to lose like 10 pounds for the moment. I lost five already since the beginning of the semester. What kinds of advice would you have for me. I know by experience that it is mostly what YOU EAT that will result in a weight loss. The exercise can only help a little bit. I love to eat, but I do not know what  Ishould be eating MORE.
by the way, what kinds of food would you avoid at ALL COST in order to lose weight.

Dump soft drinks and limit carbs.............

[D.A.L.U.I.]

Processed food, anything that has "high fructose corn syrup" in the list of ingredients.  Eat fresh food, not fried.  Complex carbs, otherwise known as low gylcemic index foods.
BUT--calories are calories, so since the median calories to maintain weight are between 1500 & 1850 a day, cut back to 1250 to 1400--count & keep a diary.
No soft drinks that aren't diet--and not too many of those.  And beer, wine & other alcohol--none until you reach the weight you want to achieve.  
No desserts, chips, snacks other than fresh celery.  Salads, yes, but olive oil--a tablespoon or so and vinegar--nothing else.
You'll lose weight, particularly when young.  
PLUS  walk at least 1-3 miles a day.  
Final rule=this all adds up to more calories in effort, less calories in mouth will yield weight loss.  Oh, drink water, it fills you up and helps keep hunger under control.

[geoguy]

Thanx for asking.  I also need to loose a few.  Yes.  In south africa we joke saying soft drinks especially Coca cola is "boepens sap"  (pronounced: boo - pens - sub ).  Now, for the non-afrikaans speaking folks,  "boepens sap"  translates to something like 'beer belly juice'.  It is true, softdrinks is renound to be the fat accumilating around the stomach. 

And thanx for the good advice...

[Dome of Steele]

Processed food, anything that has "high fructose corn syrup" in the list of ingredients.  Eat fresh food, not fried.  Complex carbs, otherwise known as low gylcemic index foods.
BUT--calories are calories, so since the median calories to maintain weight are between 1500 & 1850 a day, cut back to 1250 to 1400--count & keep a diary.
No soft drinks that aren't diet--and not too many of those.  And beer, wine & other alcohol--none until you reach the weight you want to achieve.  
No desserts, chips, snacks other than fresh celery.  Salads, yes, but olive oil--a tablespoon or so and vinegar--nothing else.
You'll lose weight, particularly when young.  
PLUS  walk at least 1-3 miles a day.  
Final rule=this all adds up to more calories in effort, less calories in mouth will yield weight loss.  Oh, drink water, it fills you up and helps keep hunger under control.

SaintC gives great rules of thumb.  Like he said, less processed, more fresh food.  No soft drinks.  Less sugar in your coffee (or milk instead of cream). 
You want to eat plenty of veggies, and don't eat excessive cheese and fats.  Over time this will be less of a struggle and you will crave eating clean and despise fast food full of sugar and fried fats.  And exercise as much as possible.  Cardio as well as weights.  Join a gym if that's an option, if it isn't then start doing pushups at home until you can do many.  You can also buy a pull up bar that you can put on most doorways. 

[D.A.L.U.I.]

In south africa we joke saying soft drinks especially Coca cola is "boepens sap"  (pronounced: boo - pens - sub ).  Now, for the non-afrikaans speaking folks,  "boepens sap"  translates to something like 'beer belly juice'. 

So true, but so funny beer belly juice

[Robmeister]

Read "The pH Miracle for Weight Loss" by Dr. Robert Young

I've been on the weight roller coaster for DECADES and have learned a lot over the years (now a type II diabetic).

This is the most revolutionary book I've read, not just for weight loss but for overall health and disease prevention.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_3_6?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=ph+miracle+for+weight+loss&sprefix=ph+mir

[thebbqguy]

I swithced to Coke Zero and started watching carbs strictly. I've lost 13 lbs since Jan 1st.

If I have a choice between high carb food and low carb food - I simply choose low carb food.