Weight loss - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 06:08:02 pm
content: Is anyone else here looking to lose weight? I have had an obsession over it ever since I noticed just how skinny some of my friends are.I'm currently going byhttp://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/. I find it very interesting to look at the weight loss problem as a linear control system.Any advice for weight loss? And any neat projects that can help?

author: scrat
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 06:42:56 pm
content: Glad to see that someone that takes this matter seriously.I think positive feedback is a strong issue affecting many people: as you start eating too much, or moving too less, you do it more and more, at least for a certain period, until the phase lag passes, and you find yourself old and fat.A good controller (derivative gain is needed) could solve the problem.One solution reported in literature is based on Girl-Friend controllers (which name I guess comes from the inventors), but I wait for someone more expert than me to explain.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 07:12:39 pm
content: Motivation, energy out (eg exercise), less, but balanced, energy in (eg fruit instead of chocolate), commitment.Motivation is the hardest. Try finding a partner to exercise or taking up a sport. Set realistic goals.

author: scrat
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 07:40:07 pm
content: Quote from: Alex on December 16, 2010, 07:12:39 pmLet me put it in a system view...Like in every controlled system, there are actuator limits. Setpoint must be kept accordingly, and maybe anti-windup has to be properly provided.

author: djsb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 08:32:17 pm
content: Find a job 5 to 10 miles away and cycle there and back every day. The motivation is getting paid, losing weight (I've lost 1 stone in 6 weeks) and feeling a lot healthier. It's fairly easy for me as I enjoy cycling and have ridden a bike for most of my life. I cycle in all weathers including the snow and rain. I recommend it.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 10:33:36 pm
content: Amazing it's possible to loose weight by eating nothing but junk food.http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/2010/11/09/2010-11-09_lose_weight_eating_junk_food_nutrition_professor_drops_27_pounds_on_twinkie_diet.htmlI've found the Atkins diet to be the best for me and no, it's not just about eating fry ups all the time, it should be called the meat and greens diet.

author: tyblu
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 16, 2010, 10:45:05 pm
content: you ask this weeks before Christmas? Sadist!!

author: Hypernova
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 01:46:36 am
content: Couldn't be bothered to exercise so just at less (but not none). I was on a food budget of 10AUD a week for two months and lost 20Kg.

author: TopherTheME
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 03:21:50 am
content: I lost about 70lbs a year or so after high school. Forget about magic diets or the "abinater" or what ever crap they are selling these days. If you won't to lose weight, healthy foods and exercise, and lots of it. There is no substitute.

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 03:46:53 am
content: Quote from: Hero999 on December 16, 2010, 10:33:36 pmQuotesorry to say, its just sounds like a marketing bullshit to me, there is nothing simple in weight loss! here is my rule:1) your metabolism has gone down, so you've been developing fat within all these years.2) in order to increase back you metabolism (control system) you have to exercise alot, sweat alot. and when you get hungry, you take non fatty and non carbohidrate food, ie fruits and veggies.3) you do it for months, until you reach you targetted weight.4) for women, watch out for "anorexia nervosa" which is the effect of trying not to eat anything.you are getting fat when... you take more "in" than you take "out"my 2cnts. i'm going into weight loss program soon. May God helps!

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 04:36:39 am
content: QuoteI put a picture of Tiffany Yep on my nook. Then I always get reminded to try to be skinny like her.Another motivation I have is environmentalism. Basically using exercise as a form of alternative energy. Here's what someone else did:http://ecorenovator.org/forum/appliances-gadgets/325-building-pedal-power-bicycle-12-volt-generator-ghetto-style.htmlQuoteSo this winter, I'll do without the heat and use my homemade pedal generator. Actually, that's what I'm doing and it seems that cold weather is good for weight loss. (http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1967625/experts_claim_cold_body_temperatures_key_to_weight_loss/)There's not much other use for the pedal generator for now since I don't have a grid tie inverter for it. (The grid tie inverter is something I'm working on right now. I plan to release the schematic once I have it working.)And as a college student, I'm looking in particular for exercise that goes well with multitasking or very time efficient. I already run to classes, which gives me extra time to walk a few laps in the hallways before class begins. In some cases, I have even done some simple exercises during class, such as lifting my (heavy) backpack or standing up as if to get a better view of the board. On the bus, I stay standing up even if it's not very crowded. I almost never use the elevator.Something interesting I found is that hot peppers helps with weight loss by boosting metabolism.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100427190934.htm

author: updatelee
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 04:49:10 am
content: Quote from: Hero999 on December 16, 2010, 10:33:36 pmSame here, I went to a high protein ultra low carb diet and lost 60lb (270-210lb) It wasnt overnight, but honestly any weight loss program that'll last wont be overnight either. Since loosing the weight I still maintain a high protein low carb diet, but its low carb not ultra low carb anymore. I allow myself healthy carbs like dairy, whole grains, fruit, etc. But still keep to a minimum my sugar and processed carbs, there is way to much of those unhealthy carbs out there.

author: DJPhil
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 07:09:06 am
content: I listen to the Amp Hour and walk on the go-nowhere machine.In my case I'm just trying to keep my activity level up as I'm a scrawny bastard to start with. All the exercise I get is yardwork, shoveling snow, and occasionally chasing around an adopted niece or nephew. Now I can count on breaking a sweat at least once a week.

author: PeterG
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 09:05:29 am
content: I gave up my 2Lt/Day Coke habit, now losing about 1 Kg per week.

author: Balaur
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 10:22:45 am
content: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.I've packed a extra few pounds in my life, I shed a few too, so I pretend to know things about weight lossIn the following, please find a very short presentation about the basics of the approach that every reasonable people in the health industry recommends.Please note that wrt. fitness, there are two parameters that you would like to take in account:- Weight (obviously)- Body Fat Percentage - this is actually the one parameter you would like to optimize. There are a lot of ways to measure BF %, some that you can use it at home without any specific equipment. However, this is not easy to do correctly.So, the three axes of the weight loss are the following:Correct energy intakeThis is the paramount aspect. If you are not doing that correctly, then all hope is lost.The hacker diet that the NiHaoMike mentioned is addressing this stuff.Basically, you need to compute your energy requirements and eat less than what you require. In addition, you should follow a good proportion of macro-nutriments (lipids, proteins and carbohydrates).As an example, the attached file contains the computation of how much energy I'm eating and spending per week (you can find calculators online). I have prepared that for my last summer cut (15 Kgs weight loss - mostly fat).- The Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is 1900 Kcals: this is just the "living" energetic costs- The daily activity is around 400 Kcals - light office work- 4 times/week I'm running around - 440 Kcals/session- 2 times/week I go out for a 2-hour long session - 1500 Kcals/session- 3 times/week I'm doing some weight lifting stuff - 350/session(This is a very intense program, somewhat difficult to maintain long term)As for eating, I should have need 3130 Kcals/day (quite a lot) to just maintain my weight. I've planned to eat around 1800 Kcals/day which is a very low value, way bellow requirements, not recommended.Wrt. to energetic expenses and nutrition, the calorie deficit is 9310 Kcals, enough for a weight loss of 1.2 kgs/week.It's an unneededly tough program, but I did that for a competition and it worked nicely.You don't have to do that. If you are projecting a fat loss of around 1 pound/week you can go with a very nice and relaxed nutrition and sport scheduleAs for the actual eating, I have also build spreadsheets to help me count my calories (It sounds cumbersome, but it wasn't that tough in practice). The second attached file contains an example of how much I ate/day. You have 5-6 meals with a lot of proteins and a reasonable totalCardio activityThe cardio is a very nice way of spending energy and conditioning yourself for an active life. Without physical activity of some kind, your body will think that you are going through a starvation period and conserve energy, which is not good for weight lossWeight LiftingWL is required for maintaining muscle mass. You want to lose fat and not muscle.The universal problem when eating less than your energetic requirements consists in the fact that most of the time, the body will try to eat it's own muscle (there are lot of reasons to do that: easier to break down than fat, etc). This is especially true for high-deficit diets. Whenever you are aiming for a weight loss of more than 1 pound/week you need to thing of a way of minimizing muscle loss.That's why weight lifting is a required element of any weight-loss diet. You don't need to do tough, Rocky-ish stuff, just basic exercises.No, you will not bulk. You will be happy to maintain your muscle mass when dieting.Well, just my two cents.Edit: Oops, I forgot the most important stuff: Will power. No will power, no weight loss. But you have that, right?

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 17, 2010, 08:56:34 pm
content: Quote from: Balaur on December 17, 2010, 10:22:45 amThat makes sense in theory but in practise it doesn't account for how filling different foods are, for example if one eats a certain amount of energy as protein it will take longer for the body to process than the same amount of energy in starch meaning they'd feel less hungry for longer after eating meat than the vegetables.I've tried just cutting the amount of fat and meat I ate in the past and guess what? I actually put more weight on!QuoteYes all good in theory but for many people it's very difficult to stick to. I my experience it's more practical to stick to foods which are more filling rather than focussing on cutting calories alone which is unsustainable. Don't get me wrong, your figures can't be disputed, I agree that reducing energy intake and doing more exercise works but I know from experience it's very difficult and doing it over the long term (the rest of one's life) is not practical.I've come to the conclusion that different diets work best for different people: metabolism, lifestyle and food preference all have a part to play. I've found that a low carbohydrate diet is the only one which works well for me, I lost 22lb in a month without doing any more exercise than normal and I lost the weight much more quickly than I put it on, so even if the diet isn't good for me I only have to be on it for a few weeks a year to maintain a healthy weight for the rest of my life.Long term studies have found low carbohydrate diets to be at effect as the traditional low fat diet (often more so) and might be better for cholesterol.http://www.physorg.com/news199989243.htmlhttp://health.msn.com/health-topics/cholesterol/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100211098It's also been argued that humans evolved to be carnivorous and a high carbohydrate diet is not natural, although I don't know whether this is true or not, it's probably just as likely we ate mostly root vegetables and got protein from invertebrates, nuts and bird's eggs.http://www.springerlink.com/content/uwm36233556777q4/?p=1cb855bc36134f41a3d6d6ac300acf63&pi=0Now I know I may seem to be pro-low carb but I'm not, all I say is just use which is best for you and stick to it. if a low fat diet works for you stick to it, hell I wouldn't recommend low carb to a vegan!If you want low carb then my advice is don't start with the Atkins, just cut down on potato, pasta, bread, cake, sugar etc. and replace it with meat, dairy, green vegetables and low carb fruit i.e. apples, oranges, not high sugar fruit such as ineapples or bananas.If you go for low fat, it's probably still good to keep sugar and unprocessed grain low, so eat wholemeal bread, porridge and brown rice: I know from experience that foods which are higher in fibre tend to be more filling for their calorific value.The bottom line is the calorific value is not the be and end all: how full one feels after eating it and how much energy it takes for the body to process the food are also important.