banana diet

[Ack]

Martial arts for me. I've slowly been forcing myself to a healthier diet, though crap food is generally cheaper so it's not always easy. I gave up drinking soda nearly two years ago, and I hardly drink coffee, but I do need to start laying off the sweet tea. I study martial arts, and it's definitely helping to build more muscle and improve my coordination. I'm also stretching a lot more, as well as doing some general PT and conditioning. I feel better than I did just six months ago, that's for sure.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

Honestly I agree. Fad diets never work in the long term, are generally bad for you, and I can't think of a single person that would recommend it. I do cross country and practice is every day so I get about 5 miles total of cardio a day + about an hour of weight lifting (jump cleans, leg curls, and rear squats). I would recommend for a decent diet walking 3 miles a day along with having a very healthy diet. As it has been said once you get your motabolism going, as well as start doing more exercise, you can loosen up a bit. Fact is though, you need both exercise and a VERY* healthy balanced diet to get anywhere in terms of muscle building, weight loss, and overall great health and posture. Not to mention it generally makes people more confident and happy, which is a plus.

[General Chaos]

I'm a bit of a fitness enthusiast and from all the research/advice I've consulted it seems like the "experts" agree that the soundest way to control weight is to simply manipulate calorie consumption and expenditure. Of course you want to make sure that those calories aren't empty as well, nor too many of them from sugar and fat sources.

Basically aim for a well rounded diet and find a decent calorie calculator to find out how much you should be consuming to sustain your desired weight. Bananas are a great source of energy though, granted they are relatively high in sugar.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

Bananas are a great source of energy though, granted they are relatively high in sugar.

As are many fruits.

[ubelaffe]

The main thing I saw in this was the water. If you're drinking nothing but water and you're used to drinking any amount of soda, kool-aid, beer, liquor, wine, juice, etc... the difference in that alone over a week or two will be tremendous. Also, the body becomes used to the amount of water it expels. If you were to drink a few gallons of water a day and then stop one day, you'd still be pissing out the same amount you'd been doing. That's why body builders have such transparent skin that shows off their veins at competitions. It's cleansing in a way, and the water in this "diet" seems to be doing that. Plus, a banana instead of bojangles or hardees biscuits would be a great way to start off with good calories instead of saturated fats...

[Mod_Man_Extreme]

Quotes unknown Japanese game show host: "Food Is POWER!"

[vash23n]

it was always my understanding that coffee is not bad for you (calorie-wise) as long as it is black. It's when you start adding the milk, creamer, sugar, liquor that it gets calorie-heavy. I love black coffee, but it was hard to get used to. Spend a little extra and get the good stuff to start out. Soon you will be drinking multiple day old sludge like me!

The above, of course, does not take into consideration the negative effects caffeine has on the body, but sounds like that is not the main concern.

[vash23n]

I meant to add an opinion about these fad diets. I agree with everyone about the best way to lose weight. Calorie control and portion control. The best way to lose weight is Weight Watchers, which basically teaches you how to do that and supports you a long the way. Some people need that support, but others can do it alone. You can pick up Weight Watcher books online, I am sure, and just count your points - which relate to calories and fiber content as well as portion size making it easier to keep track of by assigning foods one number instead of a bunch. Eating before bed is bad too, that's my weakness... and potatoes, anything made of potatoes

[Ack]

I mentioned coffee because of the caffeine, which is something I've been struggling to cut out, but as I said, tea is a weakness of mine, especially sweet tea. Hey, I'm Southern, got it?

I do purchase caffeine-free tea to drink at home, and I don't load it with sugar whatsoever when I drink that, but that's unfortunately not sold in too many restaurants down here.

[Mod_Man_Extreme]

Sorry but sweet tea makes me puke (Too much sugar). After moving to NC from Jersey in '06 they served it to me without asking at Applebees & I did a spit take.

It does taste good though just without all the sugar. In the end I guess it's all in that invisible regional/cultural divide between the north & south.