[Zelphyr]

I started training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at 44. I was about 40-50lbs overweight and had never been athletic except for a few seasons of soccer and baseball as a young kid.

I was amazed at how my body responded. It helps that I immediately fell in love with the sport.

However, I found the most important change I made was in my nutrition, which I changed at the same time I started BJJ. Not only did my body really respond to that, I saw dramatic improvements in my mental and emotional health as well.

I'm 51 now and I've easily kept that 40lbs off the whole time.

[Jimpulse]

Can you elaborate on your diet changes?

[Zelphyr]

I did keto but people don't need to do that if they eat good quality nutrient-dense foods. Preferably organic and locally-grown, and prioritizing healthy fats, proteins, and complex carbs and avoiding at all costs processed food. I can't stress enough how much modern food manufacturers are poisoning us.

[xiande04]

What nutritional changes did you make?

[borroka]

I am not the op, but one should not complicate things. There are no secrets. People have been getting ripped since the dawn of time with chicken/tuna and rice and some vegetables.

Eating less (95 out of 100 people in the general population today are eating way too much)--in general, it means ingesting fewer calories, solid and liquid--and keeping protein intake between 100 and 150 g per day is an excellent starting point and likely a final one. What does it mean to eat less? Half of what you eat now is a good starting point. If you are losing weight, go on, if you are not, eat less.

Some disciplines, such as endurance sports, require special dietary modifications, but if you are fat (and most of us are), you already have bigger problems.

My main legacy, much more than my academic research and my work in tech, will be to have encouraged people to get in shape by telling them that they eat too much and are fat (without fat shaming of course, all to their advantage).

[Zelphyr]

Personally, I find telling people to eat less doesn't work. In part because the food manufacturers are such masters at making people addicted to their garbage.

Eating healthy fats and protein is so satiating that one doesn't need to try to eat less, they just naturally do. Yes, there are exceptions to that but, for most people that is true.

[borroka]

It is not my experience at all, and at this point, I have been asked for nutritional advice for 25 years. Any specific recommendations for the general population will be interpreted as that food + all the others that have been eaten before. And aside from extreme examples, such as people who eat only candy all day, any reduction in calories ingested will lead to some feelings of hunger. Yes, by eating protein and fiber at every meal, which by the way is included in my recommendations, you can reduce hunger by what, 5 or 10 percent? But hunger will kick in.

Should I be eating this food? Eat less. What about this supplement? Eat less. A cheat meal? Eat less. Charles Bronson was asked how he kept in excellent shape in his 50s. His answer? Small portions. Accept you need to eat less, food will be there tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after again (there is a reference there to the movie "The Eclipse" by Antonioni, with Alain Delon and Monica Vitti as protagonists). In a short time, a few weeks, you get used to ingesting fewer calories.

[Kirby64]

If you actually need to lose weight (which, statistically, most Americans do), in my experience you will be hungry at some point even with a pretty healthy diet. There’s just no way around the body’s response to a reasonable caloric deficit. The key is being able to actually have the willpower to ignore those pangs. Maybe you won’t be hungry immediately, but a 500cal deficit (which, is a pretty light deficit) is quite a lot.

Most folks are likely at a mild surplus of calories, so the swing to actually get you to lose weight is often as substantial as 700-1000cal to actually lose weight. Per day. It’s a lifestyle change, unfortunately.

[borroka]

"It’s a lifestyle change, unfortunately"

I would say that this is one of the wrong ways of approaching the problem, which makes it more difficult to lose weight. People who are (severely) overweight who gorge on food have an unhappy lifestyle: they don't look good or feel good, they are prone to energy swings that make them irritable and bad company, and they are obsessed with food. Fortunately, an all-too-simple lifestyle change would make their lives much better. The food not eaten today will be there tomorrow. No need to obsess over it.

[Kirby64]

What's your quibble here? The use of the word unfortunately?

My point is that it's not some quick fix, it requires dedication to unlearn bad habits and commit to changing for the better. It cannot be a one-and-done approach, as falling back to similar levels of consumption will just lead them right back to where they started.

[Zelphyr]

When I first started, I was rarely hungry in the classical sense. Instead, I knew I was hungry because I would suddenly get tired. When I ate, my energy almost immediately returned.

Also, sometimes when we think we're hungry, we're actually dehydrated.

So, I would argue that nobody needs to ignore hunger pangs. First, drink some water and wait a few minutes. Still hungry? Then eat something[1]. It's ok.

1: See my earlier post about what to eat. If you want to keep being hungry an hour after eating, eat food from the Standard American Diet.

[Kirby64]

It seems like you're taking a personal anecdote and generalizing it to everyone. Some people will need to ignore hunger pangs, because the alternative is eating too many calories. Also, it may be the compromise between eating the food you want (occasionally) and having less satiety. Expecting people to eat gruel (or, generally radically redefining their entire diet) is, in my opinion, less realistic than just admitting that if you eat that <insert unhealthy food here> then the downside is you might end up feeling hungry because you cannot eat more food and adhere to your caloric goal.

Also, we'll have to disagree on your opinion that food manufacturers are poisoning us, though. I don't subscribe to that hyperbole. Additionaly, organic and locally grown has essentially nothing to do with nutritional properties of the food we eat. It may be better for sustainability, but that has nothing to do with how healthy it is.

[ericmcer]

One caveat I would say is that dieting is a personal journey, so always pay attention your energy levels and weight as you try to different diets. Your ideal diet is going to be unique to you and it will change over time.

I tried restrictive diets a few times in my 20s and they always made me feel tired and messed with my stomach. Now in my late 30s reducing carbs and fats have been really helpful.

[borroka]

I think this is the attitude that makes it difficult to lose weight. Dieting is not a personal journey or a spiritual endeavor; you have to eat less and serve smaller portions. It should not be restrictive beyond what is reasonable (I assure you that no one has died in the past because Oreos were not available).

Interestingly, when a person gains weight they are not asked to do so under medical treatment, but when the same person wants to lose the fat and get down to a reasonable weight there are all these warnings, dangers and side effects. It's all autosuggestion. Eat less, and do that reasonably.