Does being hungry slow weight loss?

[anc]

Hi

I have a query that I hope some people who have been on the program might be able to help with

I know that they tell us exercise makes us hungry BUT is there a problem with that?

What do other people find?

I dont want to jepordaise the program results by exercising but then I dont really want to stop either!

Thanks in anticipation
ANC

[shell]

Hi Anc,
Welcome to the forum.

If you are hungry, you are more likely to deviate and also too much exercise can slow your weight loss down- and from what I was explained, when you exercise it interferes with your body's ability to burn the fat away.
Hope that helps, I am sure there will be other opinions on this
Shell

[anc]

Hi Shell

Thanks for your response, sorry I should have been more specific -I am not talking a marathon - 15 mins on the treadmill at 4.5 km per hour.

Before I broke my ankle I was doing WAY more than that and had been doing the 15 mins most days prior to the program.

Deviate? I certainly dont intend to (but then who does?) anyway I hope not - I hope I am strong enough not to - I think I am determined enough at this time anyway, but time will tell!!

Thanks again!!

ANC

[Faithy]

Hey Anc

Does being hungry slow down weight loss? Depends what the hunger is caused from.. 'IF' it's caused from exercise, possibly..

I did the program for 12 months.. most months I was losing approx 7 kilos or more every 4 weeks.. over about a 2 week period around half way through my program I thought I'd give exercise a shot.. I exercised on the exercise bike most mornings for anywhere between 15 minutes & half an hour.. during that 2 weeks I was hungry & more tired than usual.. my weight loss for that 4 weeks had dropped to 6 kilos for that time frame.. still a lot of weight yes, but less than my norm.. the biggest thing was the discomfort of being hungry & tired.. so for me I realised that it wasn't the best idea & saved the exercise for when I reached goal..

Not everyone is the same that's for sure.. so it's up to you to judge how you're feeling..

[Kannadew]

Hi Anc... I think you find that every one differs in this particular area... There are people (e.g. SassyK) on the program who have kept up a huge exercise regime and it doesn't seem to have affected their losses or their hunger (for the most part). They have still lost consistently and don't feel like they have been more hungry than others report. I think some of it depends on what you were doing in the beginning. This is what our programs say...its ok if you are already doing some exercise before starting the program but don't add more in, just because you want to lose more weight cos its not about that.

I was doing about 3-4 hours of exercise a week before I started Cohens. When I started my program I found that I could not sustain it because I just got too tired, (not hungry). However, I did keep up a aquarobics class every week (sometimes 2) and I would often go for a 30min walk once or twice a week (and some weeks it was nothing but the aqua!)... and as I have kept really detailed records of everything on a daily basis I know that it hasn't affected me or slowed my losses down when I have.

But this is the point... as Faithy raises... she kept track also and found that for her it slowed things down... whereas for me there was no change... and even now I find that if I do some exercise it actually helps (but thats cos I'm at the end etc I think).... Its an individual thing that you probably have to work out for yourself and pay close attention to and see what effects its having on your body etc and then decide accordingly!

GEE.... that went on alot more than I planned! Hope it helps though!

Blessya
Kannadew

[Andy46]

I hate exercise as such .....I find it boring and a waste of time and energy in that it is wasted expended energy BUT I know that some exercise is important for good health as in bone structure and body joint lubrication.

As I was overweight I thought I was doing a lot but in real terms it was very little. As I lost I found that I got fitter and fitter - In my case I walked around with a 60 - 70 kg pack on my body - what better exercise - so as the weight came off my body was automatically fit from the extra weight anyway - but I started to do more - as in generally my life sped up in all I did - so no real need to exercise - as I also now just run out of hours in a day to do things.

At some stage I started riding horses a lot more like a couple of hours per day - suddenly I was hungry tiried and my weight loss slowed - my body was trying to store fuel and was not using the fat it had stored carefully away for so many years - I then went very close to deviating - I was mentally belted - and after speaking to ASY - who gave me some very good advise - direct from Dr COHEN - stop the horse riding slow down exercise less - which is what I did and - my weight loss shot up and I was not hungry nor anywhere near as tried - my mental life improved in that I was not cranky and thus nut as "Testy" and snappy with others - and the pattern goes on - so stick to the plan - its a no exercise plan for a reason - the lower your metabolic rate the better it works - your body stops storing for future use and instead uses - the days I sat on my bum reading the forum were the biggest weight loss days.

Don't be psyched out by slick marketing strategist that the big shoe company, sportswear clothing, the gym industry and food industry spend millions on to convince - you the buyer with the cash to spend - that you need to wear their products, go to their gyms and eat more of their highly processed (so value added) food - its a very big industry and lots of money for experts to say what the industry needs to focus on to make money - and I think that's the tip of the ice berg - if exercise was so good for weight loss the world would be very skinny now not getting fatter and fatter at alarming rates especially in Australia !!!

I will have a break for a drink of fresh pure water from my own tank - before I get back on the soap box .......... but its worth think about and looking at !!!!!!!!

So my advise to you and all others - do the plan and forget the exercise - other than enough to satisfy personal enjoyment - until you are at goal body weight ...... then look at what you need to do.

Andy

[anc]

Hi Everyone

Thanks so much for your comments, I have a busy week coming up with a course in the city which will be quite tiring (mentally)

It will also be a change of routine so I might give the treadmill a miss for the week and see what happens to me!!

Thanks again for your time and support
ANC

[Ange]

hi there

i contacted my consultant to ask about whether stopping exercise (as i was doing 70 minutes of fast walking 5 times a week) would slow my weight loss down. the main reason for this was that i wasn't sure if my program included something 'extra' as i was asked to include exercise on my startup questionnaire. (yes i know it's a silly question NOW!) anyway, my consultant advised me that if i stopped exercising i should see an increase in my weight loss (then mentioned something about insulin and metabolism etc).

i've been on the program 5 weeks tomorrow and in my first week lost 3.6kgs, then 1.3kgs, then stopped exercise and lost 1.1kgs for the next two weeks after that. i am due to weigh in tomorrow but have already lost 1.1kgs again this week. seems like my magic number.

so not sure if no exercise worked for me to increase weight loss. however i must admit i feel less tired.

i AM however feeling more hungry and my consultant said that it was probably for two reasons. the first being that i stopped exercising and the program was kicking in properly as it was meant to work. the second reason is because i'm about 3kgs off the top end of my cohen-suggested weight range. she also said that if i'm hungry it means that i am losing weight. not the first time i have heard this either...

it makes feeling hungry in the middle of the night more bearable if i know it's because i might be losing grams!

ange.

[anc]

Hello everyone

Thanks for your responses to this. For me the outcome so far has been to not go with the exercise.

Not really planned that way rather that life has been very busy and I am finding I need more sleep on the program than before!!

I am now just 4 weeks into the program and have lost just over 8Kg so I am pretty happy with that (even though of course I would have lost more!!)

I do need to go back to the ankle specialist today so will be interesting to see what he has to say

Thanks for your support

[tommi]

Hey guys,

I know people say don't exercise, program works better but I joined a hockey team start of the year and play once a week and train once a week. I have just come back from a hockey game and feel pretty whacked, mainly though I've had the flu since Tuesday.

What I am more interested in is for those that do exercise, what do you eat/do to help with the energy required? Can you schedule your meals so you eat slightly before you play to help with not feeling dizzy? Also are you allowed to combine your cracker allowance in one sitting for the carbs to burn off?

[Andy46]

I know lots of people will jump in here and give you advice as what to do ......but ...you really need to talk this through with your clinic who may talk to Dr Cohen for you !!!!!

You can not combine all your crackers for one big hit - but talk to your clinic and be guide by what they have to say.

Andy

[sundaymorningstaple]

Don't build yourself up for a big letdown. The reason the diet works is because of the carbs (lack of) that is designed to give you just enough energy to get from day to day while the protein & vegs provide the chemical tuning to keep you from getting hungry while your body burns of fat. While you might carb up to burn it off, you will also cause imbalances in doing so, which will cause hunger/cravings thereby short-circuiting the delicate balance that the whole program operates under. You need to make sacrifices to achieve the ends you desire. Otherwise, I'm afraid the money may be ill spent. If it doesn't completely derail the program, it may slow you down to a point that each time you deviate (overload of carbs) it will take as week to recreate the delicate balance to allow you to burn fat freely again. Would be akin to spinning your wheels I think.

I can't see where you situation is unique so it's doubtful whether Dr. Cohen will allow or modify it (if in fact it can be modified) otherwise I think there would be something on the sites regarding heavy exercise. (There is, it says cut way, way back or don't exercise at all).

[Annabelle Joy]

Tommi, one of the reasons we are told not to exercise more than usual is that unaccustomed exercise causes us to release adrenalin, and that plus other hormones cause our bodies to hold onto the fat and try to lay down more. Even though you are doing this twice a week, it's probably a shock to the body after several days of not doing it. Can you give it up for the duration of your diet?

AJ

[tommi]

Hey AJ,

By unaccustomed do you mean exercise we weren't doing previously? I have actually cut down all other exercise, before I started the program i was doing strength training, dance and gym aerobic classes.

Unfortunately I have already paid $$ and made a commitment to my hockey team, but I think once I get over this flu I might feel a bit better as well.
xoxo

[Annabelle Joy]

Yes, Tommi, anything that your body is not used to that might cause stress.

You will undoubtedly feel better after the flu. Watch your daily weights then (are you weighing daily?) and see if the days you are playing has an effect on your weight loss the following day. I work at something out of my regular routine on a Tuesday, and always have my weight go up on Wednesday.

AJ

[tommi]

Hey AJ,

I don't weigh myself everyday unfortunately, I am scared in case I get let down by a bad number...
I won't weigh until week 4 to see how my first month went.

[KitKat]

Hi everyone

I'm only into my first week and so far it is going ok. I do have a question for those of you who have lost most of your weight around the tone of your skin as you drop the kilos. In weightloss literature it says that weightloss should be combined with exercise to hopefully avoid loose and excess skin? For myself I have started stretching exercises with my husband and am also considering a low impact Yoga class for strengthening. Your experiences would be appreciated.

[Annabelle Joy]

With this diet, the body tones as you go, KitKat. We are advised not to exercise more than previously as it slows down weight loss. This is because unaccustomed exercise stresses the body, and stress causes our bodies to hold onto fat. Therefore, avoid anything that will provide unaccustomed stress.

AJ