Re: feast/fast diet --

[Guest guest]

>>> whenever i've fasted in the past i always gained wt. afterwards.

thanks, laura >>>

I agree with and that's the one thing I don't understand about the

Warrior Diet.

The only times my appetite becomes unnatural is when I screw around with it.

For example, I *must* eat three or four equally-weighted equally-spaced

meals a day or I gain weight. Flat out. If I ever have to go 6 hours or more

between meals, once I finally sit down, I eat about twice or three times as

much as I normally would in a day. I just go crazy. It happens every time.

I'm 53 years old and am the same weight and shape I've been since high

school. Experience tells me that I would quickly gain weight on the Warrior

Diet. I would also, I think, be constantly thinking of food! For me, waiting

a long time between meals is about the worst thing I can think of to do. The

second worse thing for me is to eat a lot of starch at a meal. I haven't

done that in a long time but I remember it used to make me want to eat about

twice as much when I was ready for another meal (which was often soon

after.) The third thing that screws me up is to eat within 2 hours of going

to bed. I wake up with an " off " sense of hunger the next morning and it

throws me the whole rest of the day. I don't sleep as well that night

either. My routine has always been to finish dinner by seven-ish and go to

bed by ten or eleven. I try to have a small starchy carb snack before --

usually it's a banana. I wake up with a clean strong fresh hunger. I eat

within an hour of rising. Oh, and there's a fourth smaller thing: munching

mindlessly between meals -- that always throws things off --I agree with The

Warrior on that point!

As I've aged and my body metabolism has slowed down (also illness changed

things for a time) it's been a little trickier. I've found that through the

years I get used to putting a certain volume of food on my plate. Every five

or ten years I realize that I've started to tune out what I *need* to eat.

I'm not *aware* as I prepare the food and so I fix the same size portions

regardless of hunger. Gradually, too late, I find I've eaten too much for

awhile and my clothes are (suddenly :-) too tight. So I regroup and, for a

couple weeks, I make a point of being *aware* while I'm cooking -- I eat the

same meals, just smaller portions. At first it's really hard because my

stomach doesn't feel full after eating -- I'm missing those last few bites!

Starvation! But the " ordeal " is only 20 minutes long. So my " diet " is only

20 minutes a few times a day that way. My willpower only has to work until

the food I've eaten starts doing its magic and making me feel sated and by

that time I'm distracted and onto another project. Once I go through that

new process for a week or two it just starts becoming my new routine and I

don't have to think so much about it anymore. I also try not to ever think

of it as trying to lose weight or *needing* to lose weight (otherwise I'm

sunk.) I think of it as my new (forever!) eating program. I also try to add

an event like herbal tea after dinner to help hide the " loss " . My inner

screaming child eventually gets bored with the " tantrum " and eventually I

don't even have that after-meal-wanting-more thing.. (To help the process

during those changing times I try to remember to have a spoonful of coconut

oil (or other fat) about 20 minutes before I eat. It really takes that

survival *edge* off the meal. I think it's an enormous help!)

So yes, I think to lose weight requires willpower no matter what your weight

is to begin with -- people who are thin often work a bit harder than you

might think. I hope others will write in with their routines. As people age

we all require fewer calories to function and so even a thinish person, to

stay the same weight, has to " diet " . It's all relative. That's why, whether

it's evenly-spaced, evenly-caloried meals or the Warrior Diet, I think a

regular routine is so important: You don't want to have to think about your

daily intake of food too much -- thinking too much about cutting back

amounts of food in a day probably taps into some ancient caveman urge to

stock up on food for survival or something -- and you don't want to mess

around with your inner caveman!

Just my two pesos in case some people are having trouble with the Warrior

Diet,

~Robin

[Guest guest]

Robin, very interesting post...

how you eat, is how i was told to eat at www.radiantrecovery,com and

i DID lose a little wt. but i got sick of planning and preparing 3

meals per day...i'd rather drink raw milk all day. which is what i do

some days.

about those 20 minutes after eating...i usually eat as much as i want

til i'm satified...then i often feel too full later.

if i unintentionally undereat, let's say i'm interupted by an

important phone call before i'm done eating, it's like torture for

those 20 min. and all i can think about is finishing my meal, while

trying to concentrate on the phone conversation, and i'm DYING. then

the 20 min. pass and i'm full and i wonder why i wanted the rest of

that food...

they say it takes 20 min. for the meal to register and to feel full

and they are right. BUT WHY????? why does it have to be that way!!!

it's as if mother nature programmed us to want more food than we

really need, and thus to be fat.

how frustrating is that!!!!!!!!!

laura

>

> As I've aged and my body metabolism has slowed down (also illness

changed

> things for a time) it's been a little trickier. I've found that

through the

> years I get used to putting a certain volume of food on my plate.

Every five

> or ten years I realize that I've started to tune out what I *need*

to eat.

> I'm not *aware* as I prepare the food and so I fix the same size

portions

> regardless of hunger. Gradually, too late, I find I've eaten too

much for

> awhile and my clothes are (suddenly :-) too tight. So I regroup

and, for a

> couple weeks, I make a point of being *aware* while I'm cooking --

I eat the

> same meals, just smaller portions. At first it's really hard

because my

> stomach doesn't feel full after eating -- I'm missing those last

few bites!

> Starvation! But the " ordeal " is only 20 minutes long. So my " diet "

is only

> 20 minutes a few times a day that way. My willpower only has to

work until

> the food I've eaten starts doing its magic and making me feel sated

and by

> that time I'm distracted and onto another project. Once I go

through that

> new process for a week or two it just starts becoming my new

routine and I

> don't have to think so much about it anymore. I also try not to

ever think

> of it as trying to lose weight or *needing* to lose weight

(otherwise I'm

> sunk.) I think of it as my new (forever!) eating program. I also

try to add

> an event like herbal tea after dinner to help hide the " loss " . My

inner

> screaming child eventually gets bored with the " tantrum " and

eventually I

> don't even have that after-meal-wanting-more thing.. (To help the

process

> during those changing times I try to remember to have a spoonful of

coconut

> oil (or other fat) about 20 minutes before I eat. It really takes

that

> survival *edge* off the meal. I think it's an enormous help!)

>

> So yes, I think to lose weight requires willpower no matter what

your weight

> is to begin with -- people who are thin often work a bit harder

than you

> might think. I hope others will write in with their routines. As

people age

> we all require fewer calories to function and so even a thinish

person, to

> stay the same weight, has to " diet " . It's all relative.

[Guest guest]

>At first it's really hard because my

> stomach doesn't feel full after eating -- I'm missing those last few bites!

> Starvation! But the " ordeal " is only 20 minutes long. So my " diet " is only

> 20 minutes a few times a day that way. My willpower only has to work until

> the food I've eaten starts doing its magic and making me feel sated and by

> that time I'm distracted and onto another project....My inner

> screaming child eventually gets bored with the " tantrum " and eventually I

> don't even have that after-meal-wanting-more thing.. (To help the process

> during those changing times I try to remember to have a spoonful of coconut

> oil (or other fat) about 20 minutes before I eat. It really takes that

> survival *edge* off the meal. I think it's an enormous help!)

>

> So yes, I think to lose weight requires willpower no matter what your weight

> is to begin with -- people who are thin often work a bit harder than you

> might think. -- and you don't want to mess

> around with your inner caveman!

Some great nuggets there, Robin, thanks! I love the idea that the 'diet' is

only for 20 minutes three times a day, and the tantruming inner child and

not to mess with your inner cavewoman, LOL. I too am forever struggling to

lose 20 or 30 pounds since my second was born two years ago. It is dawning

on me that naturally thin people still 'watch' what they eat. I wonder if

they weren't trained to do that in childhood? I never was and was an

overweight kid too (ice cream for breakfast, no problem!)

Elaine