No BS weight loss

13. April 2009 William Davis (18)
If there's something out there on the market for weight loss, we've tried it. By we, I mean myself along with many people and patients around me willing to try various new strategies.

Maybe you say: "Well that's not a clinical trial. How can we know that there aren't small effects?"

Who cares about small effects? If a weight loss strategy causes you to lose 1.2 lbs over 3 months--who cares? Sure, it may count towards a slight measure of health in a 230 lb 5 ft 3 inch woman. But it is insufficient to engage that person's interest and keep them on track. That little result, in fact, will discourage interest in weight loss and cause someone to return to previous behaviors.

What I'm talking about is BIG weight loss--20 lbs the first month, 40 lbs over 4 months, 50-60 lbs over 6 months.

Right now, there are only three things that I know of that yield such enormous effects:

1) Elimination of wheat, cornstarch, and sugars

2) Thyroid normalization (I don't mean following what the laboratory says is "normal")

3) Intermittent fasting


Combine all three in various ways and the results are accelerated even more.
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Comments (18) -

  • TedHutchinson

    4/13/2009 11:48:00 AM |

    January last year I eliminated wheat,cornstarch and sugars.
    I started Dr Dalhqvist's way of eating
    Jan 28th at 205lbs Target weight 160lbs was achieved July 2008 and since maintained.
    Height: 69inches
    before after photos on Jimmy Moore's forum
    I think we all know what the waistline in the before  photo predicts.
    2.25lbs lost each week over 20 weeks. I lost a bit more after but then restarted drinking red wine and that seems to have stopped further weight loss.
    Because I suffer from late effects of polio I am unable to exercise much so all this weight loss was through changing the TYPE not amount of food I was eating NOT by increasing the exercise I do. Those who can exercise will obtain extra health benefits but extra calorie burning is IMO the least of those advantages.
    I found eliminating wheat stopped my food cravings. I didn't snack between meals. Reduced hunger also meant it was easy to Intermittent fast when I thought weight loss may be slowing.

    I didn't calorie or carb count at all.

    I did start using Coconut oil.

    I had previously corrected Vitamin D, Omega 3 status I think reducing Omega-6 Linoleic Acid vegetable oils also improved matters
    Stephan WholeHealthSource "Omega-6 Linoleic Acid Suppresses Thyroid Signaling"

    Looking back I really don't know why I resisted eliminating wheat for so long. I had been reading this blog for long enough so I can't say I didn't know.

  • Dr. David Robinson

    4/13/2009 1:48:00 PM |

    Your three points for greater weight loss are commendable.    Having been a D.C. and cert. personal trainer for over 15 years, I only wish there were more of a push to educate the public, i.e. "weight loss" vs. "body contouring" and "deiting" vs. "proper nutrition", in order to inform them about the realities of mere weight loss and dieting vs. proper exercise and proper nutrition.  This is something I go into in my book (StrategicBookPublsihing.com/TransformingBodyMindAndSpirit.html) and have always educated clients on. Thank You, Dr. David Robnson

  • dogscapes

    4/13/2009 3:10:00 PM |

    I would like clarification on the thyroid levels mentioned in some of your posts, as well as the Hunt Study.  Should the tsh level be at 1.5 or below?  Is the higher the level the higher the risk of heart attack? I'm on thyroid rx(armour90mgs)and my test shows levels in the normal range, not sure the exact level but I will check.  If I am higher than 1.5 tsh should I lower my dose to bring that down?

    Thanks.

  • David Govett

    4/13/2009 7:51:00 PM |

    The essential first step to permanent weight loss is to have a doctor scare you to your core. Without that crucial step, diets are foredoomed because of the magic of denial. As long as you believe that somehow, despite all your bad habits, you might prove the exception and not have to pay for your foolishness, you will not change permanently.

  • Kismet

    4/13/2009 7:59:00 PM |

    Isn't slower weight-loss healthier? I believe that if someone's morbidly obese and/or obese and suffers from CVD (-risk factors), losing weight ASAP is the way to go.
    But if someone's rather healthy and only a little on the chubby side? I'd rather go with slow weight-loss whenever possible. When CRd animals lose weight too quickly, many if not all benefits of CR are lost. Maybe strict CR as a life extension diet is not comparable to a simple obesity avoidance diet, but I believe caution won't hurt.

  • xenolith_pm

    4/14/2009 1:04:00 AM |

    Notice that Dr. Davis did not say anything about calorie restriction.

    Nine months ago I stopped eating anything with any amount of grains, sugar, starch, or HFCS.  I even abstained from eating any of the very sweet fruits like bananas, mangoes, or oranges.

    I'm a 5'9" 47 y.o. male and I had started at 192 lbs., had 15% body-fat (skin fold method), and had a 34 inch waist.  I'm now at 167 lbs., have 6% body-fat, and have a 29 inch waist.

    The volume and intensity of my exercise routines remained about the same. I believe I have gained a small amount of muscle while losing a significant amount of abdominal fat.  I used no kind of fat burning supplement.  I can actually see my abdominal muscles for the first time since I was 16 years old.

    And the biggest irony is... my total daily fat and calorie intake over this period of time went up!

  • CosmicRainbowColours

    4/14/2009 11:01:00 AM |

    I only wish I had known about the connection between unexplained fluctuating weight and the thyroid, instead it took many years and in turn much weight gain before my official diagnosis of hypothyroidism. No wonder none of the diets I had tried had worked!!

  • RichE95

    4/14/2009 1:51:00 PM |

    After my heart scan it was obvious I needed to lose weight - that was about a year ago.  Along with your recommended supplements I did change my eating habits to significantly reduce fat consumption, especially saturated.  That seemed to carry a calorie reduction along with it and. The weight loss was a painless and respectable 20 pounds (210 to 190) along with the amazing reduction in cholesteral, tryglicerides, etc.  I can't wait to see heart scan results in June.

  • Megan Bagwell

    4/16/2009 7:18:00 PM |

    Have you personally tried Fat Fasting?  The 90% fat diet.  I use that to jump start some seriously fast weight loss (like after having babies, in my case.)  When I do this I go for a few days of "Fat Fasting" followed by a few days of normal low carbing (40 grams or below/day)  I've also thrown IFing in the mix, too.  Needless to say, those 3 things took the baby weight off nice and quickly and I kept muscle, too!  I'm now pregnant with my 3rd and I'll be returning to these shortly after giving birth to get to my desired weight/size, now that I know what works...it won't take as much work, though, as I'm keeping a much lower carb, whole foods diet while pregnant than before.

  • David

    4/18/2009 3:51:00 AM |

    @Megan--

    Dr. Atkins promoted the "fat fast" for those who had trouble getting into noticeable ketosis. It works really well, but is usually recommended as a pretty short-term endeavor.

    Interestingly, Dr. Eades talks about an "all meat" diet (along with Intermittent Fasting, which I believe is a revolutionary concept-- especially when combined with Paleo/low-carb) for times when weight loss has hit a plateau. This appears to be safe and effective, even for extended periods (see Stefansson, 1929).

    Dr. Jan Kwasniewski (the Optimal Diet) promotes fat intake of 70% or above-- with spectacular results.

  • D

    4/29/2009 8:05:00 PM |

    great blog. I’m on a diet right now, so this really helps

    http://f07928-c3omazme8bd-bkbnh0u.hop.clickbank.net/

  • Jamie Krause

    6/1/2009 1:07:10 AM |

    Thank you for the useful information. Nice blog!

  • Lose Weight Quick

    6/18/2009 8:36:46 AM |

    Hi Dr,

    great read i agree people wanting to lose weight ideally want to see results early on in the program,
    if it takes a person over 3 months to lose 1.2lbs it is highly unlikely they will continue to give 100%

  • Auto 1

    6/20/2009 11:36:22 AM |

    Hello Dr

    interesting read there... i agree with what Ted said it's certainly not how much you eat it's what you eat i'm all for a snack so long as it's an apple or something like that

  • Nissan 4x4

    6/23/2009 7:32:25 AM |

    Great information here, i have just started a diet.. and i agree coconut oil is better for you.. thanks for the tips this will help me..

  • Rx Pharmacy

    7/1/2009 10:50:21 AM |

    Your post is really great. Its will be help for those person who wants to lose weight. Thank you

  • Nicole M., MS, RD, LD

    7/29/2009 11:00:45 PM |

    Sorry, I completely disagree with your recommended weight-loss. Twenty pounds in 30 days for an average, overweight/obese American is not optimal. And 90% fat in the diet, especially saturated fat (coconut oil!?), is NOT heart-healthy!

  • Megaera

    2/23/2011 9:09:00 PM |

    Um, I call BS on this whole post.  Don't believe a word of it.  The people who lose weight on it are people who will lose weight on any diet.  But there are people like me and others who post on your website -- who you ignore because they don't fit your pattern -- who don't lose weight on this diet.  Sucks to be us, right?

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