Lose the sugar....lose the fat?

[ArnoldsProtege]

well im currently dieting and exercising on my journey to losing around 30-40 lbs.
A couple of guys at my work who have both lost a large amount of weight (one of them lost 40 lbs, the other lost almost 55) BOTH said to avoid sugar... the guy who lose 55 pounds said he didnt really even exercise. he just tried to cut sugar complely from his diet. he says its what a local doctor recomended for him (he was about 6'4 295 lbs) and he said it really helped. and my other co worker said to avoid juice and to try and drink water with every meal, and to avoid sugar in general. now, this goes COMPLETELY against what i have been doing (eating 5-6 times a day, with all of my snacks including at LEAST 1 fruit, and generally more, and in the morning i always have a small glass of orange juice with a multivitamin, and i have grapefruit juice later in the day most of the time... i basically eat alot of fruit and GOOD juice (not shitty, sunny D type stuff. quality orange juice, grapefuit juice, apple juice etc.) however, i am also only 18 AND i am exercising at least 5 times a week. they are both in their 30, and the one who lost 55 lbs didnt exercise at all. the one guy who lost 40 lbs ran every single day and lost the weight in under 3 months and kept it off for over 5 years so far. so my question is, should i not be eating so many fruits/juices if i want to lose 40 lbs by summer?(6 months). again, i dont over do it on juice. when i have a cup, i follow whatever is on the label so i know what im drinking. any of u guys have success cutting sugar/ eating sugar? what should i do?i realize this sounds stupid, because duh, fruits are good, healthy, and a part of a balanced and nutritious lifestyle. but those are some serious success stories, both involving no sugar.

 

[ABCs]

There is a HUGE difference between synthetic sugars and natural sugars produced by fruits. There is no need to cut out natural fruits. Should you be stuffing your face with them? No. It's all about balance my friend. Eat the fruits, the nuts, vegies, meats, some dairy, and your good carbs (whole weat, sprouts, etc etc). Don't listen to other's either. You know what makes your body tick and if you work hard and have a BALANCED and controlled diet, you will lose more then them, quicker then them, and keep it off longer then them.... but best of all, you will feel and LOOK alot healthier than a person who just changed their diet.

 

[assassin]

and to avoid sugar in general. now, this goes COMPLETELY against what i have been doing (eating 5-6 times a day, with all of my snacks including at LEAST 1 fruit, and generally more

who said that fruits are sugars ????sugars means processed sugars or high glycemic index foods...

if you are trying to cut carbs completely then you are going atkins style wich is unhealthy and won't work.. but cutting processed sugars is great for anybody and will help you to lose weight by lowering your insuling levels ...
insulin = (a hormone resonsible for storing fats and building muscles wich is released after you eat sugars and high GI foods)

 

[Freighter]

I just got through with a 14 week right before Thanksgiving. During the first 7 weeks or so, I was consuming a 40g dextrose/20g whey protein shake at the end of every weight training workout right before my next meal. I was doing cardio every morning before breakfast, except for a 20g whey protein drink, 6 days a week and weight training in the evening four days a week. I would do no serious exercise on Sunday. I carefully monitored my diet (2800 cal/day not including cheat meals, ~40% protein, ~30% fat, ~30% carbs) except for Friday where I would have 1-2 "cheat" meals.

The results were OK. I was losing about a pound a week. Then I decided to cut out the dextrose portion of my PWO drink and replace it with a small to medium sized banana (about 20-25g carbs). I began losing about 1.25 pounds/week, more than what would be accounted for in the pure caloric difference of banana versus the dextrose. During the last 4 weeks of the cut, I cycled my carbs into 1 high carb day every 3 days, consuming 2450 cals and 25% carbs 2 days in a row followed by 1 day of 3000 calories at 35%-40% carbs. My results with this change were about 1.5 pounds per week lost.

As for the rest of my diet, my proteins were obtained mostly from natural meat (meat not pumped full of preservatives), then eggs, and lastly, whey protein. For additional fats, I would eat mostly avocados, nuts, and fish oil supplements. My carbs came almost entirely through fruits and vegtables. I had oatmeal and sprouted bread once every 2 weeks or so. My friday "cheat" meals were eaten at whatever resaurant I felt like that day.

Therefore, I would definitely cut out all processed sugars (sugars tampered with by man). I would not cut out fruits as long as they are within your desired carbohydrate intake. It might help, however, to switch over to mostly vegtables as it gets closer to bedtime. Fruits were designed to be eaten, and you were designed to eat fruits. Fruit has fiber along vitamins and other nutrients that your body needs to repair itself. In general, glycemic index is relatively low, lower than most grains.

I would also cut out fruit juice. All fruit juice you buy in the store has been pasturized, destroyin the enzymes and the more fragile nutrients like vitamin C. The vitamin C contained in the juice is manufactured ascorbic acid that has been added after pasturization. It is not nearly as useable by your body. Also, fruit juice has no fiber. It does not make you feel full, and the sugars have a more direct route to your bloodstream. It is far better just to eat the fruit.

As far as your weight loss goal, you want the weight lost to be purely from fat. Not fat and muscle. The guy who lost 50 pouds without much exercise probably lost a good portion of his weight in muscle mass. I would guess that the person who only ran probably lost some muscle as well due to the lack of weight training. Your goal of 40 pounds in 6 months is going to be tough, but not unreachable. It will take a lot of exercise of both weights and cardio and careful dieting.

Also be careful not to cut calories too low. During the first cut cycle I ever attempted, I would eat about 1900 calories per day in order to get faster results. I did get good results, but I also lost some LBM, and I barely had enough energy to work out once per day. Also, my cheat days tended to go overboard into glutton days since I was practically starving myself the rest of the week. Since I upped my daily caloric intake, I had enough energy to exercise as stated above with significantly more intensity, and the results have been much better.

Therefore, don't be tempted by dramatic weight loss acheived by others unless you know it is all from fat and not fat and muscle.

 

[assassin]

^^ that's some good advice

 

[milod]

Also, remember that you are 18 while your co-workers are in their 30's. You are active, while your co-workers are (presumably) sedentary. Their metabolism and insulin-sensitivity is not the same as yours, so they are more likely to get fat from high-glycemic carbs than you are.

While you are trying to lose fat, you may want to skip the morning glass of orange juice and eat half an orange instead. For your normal maintenance diet, it's probably just fine. The fat gain potential from a daily cup of orange juice is pretty minimal in the grand scheme of things. You need to look at the big picture of your diet - the overall calories / carbs / protein / fats / water you consume each day.

 

[musclepump]

I'd avoid all that pot you smoke.

 

[ArnoldsProtege]

well thanks for all the useful tips... im going to not eat as much fruit near bed time, because lately my bedtime snack as been a banana and a few clementines and maybe a glass of grapefruit juice or something like that. i had my FIRST cheat day yesterday, altho i feel that maybe since i was deprived of delicious foods all week, i kinda went over board...but i also exercised ALOT yesterday (3 hours of football with friends, 20 minutes of cardio on the eliptical) but im definitely going to substitute some late night fruits with something like a yogurt and a slice of whole wheat bread or a few whole wheat crackers. and btw, i dont even smoke weed anymore, i made this accuont like, 3 years ago when i smoked like a fiend and ALSO didnt care about fitness really. i should probly change that lol. and musclepump, id avoid all those roids u take i felt i had to get that in.

 

[ABCs]

well thanks for all the useful tips... im going to not eat as much fruit near bed time, because lately my bedtime snack as been a banana and a few clementines and maybe a glass of grapefruit juice or something like that. i had my FIRST cheat day yesterday, altho i feel that maybe since i was deprived of delicious foods all week, i kinda went over board...but i also exercised ALOT yesterday (3 hours of football with friends, 20 minutes of cardio on the eliptical) but im definitely going to substitute some late night fruits with something like a yogurt and a slice of whole wheat bread or a few whole wheat crackers. and btw, i dont even smoke weed anymore, i made this accuont like, 3 years ago when i smoked like a fiend and ALSO didnt care about fitness really. i should probly change that lol. and musclepump, id avoid all those roids u take i felt i had to get that in.

 

[KikoSanchez]

Replace your fruit juices with the fruits themselves. Cut out all other sugars, absolutely no sodas, no junk, all water all day long. Eat 4-6 meals and get on a regular cardio diet, HIIT preferrably(run/bike in 90 second intervals at a dull pace, then 30 seconds at 85% heart rate, repeat this for about 20 minutes). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_interval_training

 

[dontsurfonmytur]

well thanks for all the useful tips... im going to not eat as much fruit near bed time, because lately my bedtime snack as been a banana and a few clementines and maybe a glass of grapefruit juice or something like that. i had my FIRST cheat day yesterday, altho i feel that maybe since i was deprived of delicious foods all week, i kinda went over board...but i also exercised ALOT yesterday (3 hours of football with friends, 20 minutes of cardio on the eliptical) but im definitely going to substitute some late night fruits with something like a yogurt and a slice of whole wheat bread or a few whole wheat crackers. and btw, i dont even smoke weed anymore, i made this accuont like, 3 years ago when i smoked like a fiend and ALSO didnt care about fitness really. i should probly change that lol. and musclepump, id avoid all those roids u take i felt i had to get that in.

a man, how do u think u benefit from smokikng weed. Ijust do it once in a while cuz its good lol. but do people benefit from weed.