I think we have mostly been arguing semantics here, but I do take exception to a few of your statements, including the one above. A good weight loss program should also be one based on balanced nutrition. Otherwise, while you may lose weight, you may also pay a price for it in your over all health that you don't want to pay.

The milk of mammals is produced to quickly grow baby animals. I imagine a diet based on rat's milk would not be condusive to weight loss, either. I agree.

As far as a lowered metabolism rate, you would be amazed at how many folks out there have lowered their caloric intake to the point that this occurs. I, myself, am one of them. This was not a deliberate action on my part. Due to stress, I have very little appetite these days and my over all caloric intake is pathetic. My metabolism has gone into famine mode and I am attempting to counter this by getting more exercise. It is very difficult to change your metabolic set point once this happens, as I can attest from personal experience.

Brianna - I promised myself that I would start living healthily on 1 October, and I genuinely believed it. I just seem to be on some sort of downward spiral though..... Had a healthy dinner last night then got up on auto pilot at about 22.00 and bought a pizza from one of the many take-aways on my road. If I don't put a stop to this soon I'll look like Catal Huyuk (following your fat god theme there).

I've lost weight before - sadly I'm a yo-yo dieter. I'm 5'8 and have been every weight from 120- 220lbs. Not sure how to break this cycle. I know I can LOSE weight, so its just a case of waiting til my mind-set is right & going for it again. Sadly I know I can also GAIN weight again. I'm not happy with my weight at present but I know I can resolve that. The trickier question is how I stop myself putting it back on again.

I have lost weight through purely cutting down my food intake before. It was the hardest way to stick to, but even with a dramatic decrease in calories I don't believe my body hit starvation mode. I found that weighing myself every fortnight showed a consistent weight loss. When I weighed myself every day the small losses & occasional gains could have lead me to believe it wasn't working.

Last time I combined healthy eating with rigorous exercise once I'd lost the first stone. Exercise alone would not have worked for me. I had over 50lbs to lose and was gorging on fast food and drinking far too much. I was lethargic, depressed, not sleeping, ashamed of my body etc etc. A healthy diet has to be the place to start, surely?

Would I consider surgery? If I had the money - yes.

End of me, me, me post - sorry.

Oh, Sundae Girl, you and I have all that in common! I have weighed anywhere from 120-220 before, too! I ALWAYS say, "OK, now I'm going to be healthy!" and blow it in 24 hours. I get sad, depressed and ashamed of my body, too, and then the downward spiral of self-loathing starts and drinking sounds like the cure, no? Wow. Thanks for sharing your story. It has helped me today. Thanks :) Feels so good to NOT be alone! :)

I took all my fat clothes to the charity shop last time, as I swore I'd never ever let things get that bad again. Am now faced with replacing them all - maybe if I go into the charity shop again they'll all still be there, freshly washed & pressed for me :)

Please tell me if you come up with any great solution! I tried diet pills once (no idea what they were called, but they came in an electric blue bottle & it was rumoured that Britney Spears used them). I got them from a friend who they disagreed with and they disagreed with me too..... They made me so nauseous I couldn't work or sleep, and I felt like I was living in a bad cartoon - twitching & jerking all over the place. Found out afterwards they were absolutely packed with caffiene (which I have always been sensitive to). Taught me to check what I was putting in my body in future!

Being in the same situation myself means I can't offer any words of wisdom, but you have my support for what its worth. And its good to know its not just me. Right, off to get a jacket potato with chilli, cheese & sour cream. Ahem.

Actually, rat milk (Malk) is much higher in fat and protein than cow or human milk. However it does not contain the same growth hormones (rBST or the naturally occurring ones - like IGF-1 (which is identical in humans and cows and "causes cancer").

Scroll down to compare milk composition by species.

I gain about 15 pounds every winter (seasonal depression?) and I've found the best way to lose it is to just get so involved with something else, I forget to eat.

Seriously! Like this July I adopted this little psycho chihuahua and I started researching all her health problems, I was walking her a few times every day, trying to train her, reading doggie articles online, etc. I lost too much weight and had to purposely try to eat more fattening foods so I didn't look too thin.

Get a new hobby that interests you and excites you so much that you stop thinking about what you want to eat and food can actually become a pain. "Damn it, I'm hungry but I don't want to stop and eat...I wish there was a little food pill that I could just pop so I wouldn't have to stop and eat and chew and swallow and all that BS, it just takes too long"

Maybe I'm just weird, but it works for me.
Going to the gym also works beautifully, but it's not as easy.
Oh wait, one more idea! Get a job involving physical labor! Then you'd get paid to be active!

The linked article doesn't say that. It says cells with the IGF-1 receptor, removed or blocked, can/will not become cancerous.
But it does not say that being exposed (or not) to IRS-1 protein has any bearing on turning cancerous, only body size. It also says other things dock with the IGF-1 receptor so I think your jumping to an unwarranted conclusion in blaming IRS-1. :eyebrow:

That's where "fast foods" sneak into your plans to be healthy. Eating right usually takes planning and preparation. :)

That's what I get for not checking my analogy. Thanks for the clarification, jinx.

Rat milk is also designed to quickly produce 800 punds of rat - just no all in the same animal.

You could install a gate.

Ah you can still fit Cadbury Chocolate Fingers through that......!

(If picture is not attached please bear with me - its the 1st time I've tried)

i'm kind of all over the place too... so I'm glad we can all commisurate together. My thing is that I don't ever weigh myself, I just go by how clothes feel. For instance, my hot jeans didn't fit me too well in the spring, but I manage to get them on yesterday with few problems - I did have a conversation with my jeans telling them that they need to get on my body or else - and they did. Maybe a bit tight in places, but I could get them on, I could move and quite frankly, I like my jeans to be tight in my butt and thighs... it's just more comfortable. Sure they could fit better, but I'm happy for now and I'll keep trying to make them fit.

How I do that - that's another story... and I'll fill you in as it goes along. In the mean time, good luck, Bri!

I am trying the outside motivating factor when it comes to getting more exercise. I don't know how many resolutions I've made and broken about getting out and just doing some more walking in the past 6 months. In December, the new Cardi Welsh Corgi pup is due to arrive. I know that he will FORCE me to go out and walk. Pups have so MUCH energy! Plus, Cardigans have an enthusiasm about things that you just can't help but share with them! :)

I got puppy baby pic's from the breeder today. Don't know yet which of these little cuties will be my new walking partner:

Get the first one, Mari. If his nose color has already filled in, he is either the first born or the strongest of the two pups. More developed internally, choose him.

As for the issue at hand, weight, I see the guys have gone off discussing chemistry while the gals are talking about UNHAPPY experiences of the past. Ladies, please realize what is the underlying problem: you are not HAPPY. It makes all the difference in whether you will be successful with anything you do and expecially where that applies to your health. The problem is not what you eat but why you eat it. Find somebody who can guide you to treat THAT and the rest will come without you even noticing. Trust me, I have been there.