A Montoise claims to have lost 60 kilos in a few years by changing her diet and practicing sports every day. A difficult but effective fight against the balance, according to this mother. We told his story to a dietitian nutritionist and a sports coach. Here are their reactions and their advice.
How to lose weight? In this spring period, this question may be ringing in the minds of some people. Some want to get rid of a few extra pounds. Others hope to drastically reduce their weight displayed on the scale. The purpose is to feel better about your body and sometimes to avoid health problems related to overweight.
Virginie (alias), a 31-year-old from Montoise, says she fought this complicated battle against the pounds in a few years. After a rather exceptional weight gain, she claims to have lost 60 kilos without resorting to gastric surgery. "With a lot of courage and willpower, while being patient, I got there. The fight is worth it", testifies the young woman via our orange Alert us button.
Following the pregnancy of my son, I gained a lot of weight, until I reached about 120 kilos
According to the Montoise, it was a particular event that triggered a huge jump on her balance. "In 2009, following my son's pregnancy, I gained a lot of weight, reaching around 120 kilos," says the mother. "I don't know why I gained so much weight, maybe because of the hormonal change. I had a lot of water retention. In any case, my gynecologist was not very happy. She told me to pay attention to my diet, but I didn't feel like it was necessarily due to what I ate," adds Virginie.
Pregnancy is indeed a good time to gain weight since the female body then tends to store more. "During this period, the woman gains weight much more easily because her body develops a greater capacity to make fat reserves in view of post-pregnancy, in view of breastfeeding which pumps her, consumes calories through the breast milk. So it doesn't always happen, but it's something that's pretty well known," says Nicolas Guggenbühl, dietitian nutritionist.
On average, a woman gains about ten kilos during her pregnancy
Virginie claims to have gained about 60 kilos. "Nothing is impossible. But it seems so huge to me. It's not uncommon to gain 20 kilos, but then it's already too much weight gain which represents a risk for both mother and baby. On average, a woman gains about ten kilos during her pregnancy", reacts Guillaume De Galan, gynecologist.
When the kilos multiplied, I had a very bad experience of it
The case of La Montoise, which we cannot confirm, therefore seems exceptional. But, in any case, for this young woman, the physical transformation is very disturbing. "When the pounds multiplied, I experienced it very badly. Seeing your body change is complicated. Especially since before my pregnancy, I never had any particular concern with food" , assures the thirty-year-old who was boxing.
Beyond this physical change, Virginie reveals that she has to endure criticism and comments. Psychological suffering. "I was told 'Stop eating, you're a big whale'. It was difficult to live," recalls the young woman.
A totally different second pregnancy
After the birth of her son, she manages to lose a few pounds by combining sport and diet. In 2013, she got pregnant again. The anxiety of getting fat overwhelms her and her behavior is totally different. "During this second pregnancy, I only gained 5 kilos. I didn't want to put on weight. In addition, I was sick, I couldn't stand the smells and I didn't want to eat. That was all quite the opposite than during my first pregnancy. I think it was a bit psychological too", says Virginie. After the birth of her daughter, she claims to weigh around 90 kilos.
A year later, she had an abdominoplasty to remove excess skin. "It was inevitable. After this operation, I felt better about my body, but I still wasn't satisfied. The surgeon told me that he didn't think I could lose any more weight on my own. J I bet with him and I won. I still lost 30 kilos", assures the mother of the family.
You have to hold on, then it becomes a habit
How did Virginia lose so much weight?
But how did she manage to lose those many pounds in just a few years? "Thanks to a long-term personalized diet, a lot of sport and a desire to achieve my goal. I didn't want to put on a gastric band to lose weight," says Virginie, who works as a cook.
The first major change is therefore linked to his food. After a few failed attempts, the Montoise manages to find a method that seems effective. "At the beginning, I tried several diets, but I cracked. The first weeks, it was very difficult. The stomach demands a lot and you have to hold on. Then it becomes a habit", confides-t -She.
Virginie develops her own diet, mainly based on vegetables, fresh produce and white meat. "I eliminated sugar, fats and starches," she says.
The opinion of a dietitian nutritionist
What does Nicolas Guggenbühl think? For this nutritionist dietician, this abundant loss of pounds described by Virginie is first of all plausible. "Weight is the reflection of the balance between what we ingest as calories and what we expend as calories. From the moment when whatever form the diet takes but where we arrive at a caloric restriction, it 'that is to say, ultimately to spend more than what we ingest, inevitably there is a loss of weight which can be significant", indicates the specialist.
"And apparently this is the case here since there has been a combination of a reduction in calorie intake with a reduction in starchy foods, sugars, fats, which are the most concentrated form of energy since a gram of fat provides 9 kilo calories, so more than double a gram of sugar or starch found in starchy foods, for example," he adds.
Avoiding diets that are too restrictive: "You can't live on fruits and vegetables alone"
Nicolas Guggenbühl stresses, however, that you should avoid removing essential nutrients from your diet when you want to reduce your calorie intake. "If we remove all the fats, for example, the risk is to lack certain essential fatty acids. However, we need to consume them whether through certain vegetable oils, certain nuts or nuts, seeds It's important to keep the overall food quality as high as possible so as not to harm your health," he insists.
The dietician also advises against diets that are too restrictive: "We can't live on fruits and vegetables alone. A cow can live by eating grass, but we need more than that".
Banning starchy foods, a good idea?
Regarding starch deprivation, this nutrition expert believes that this is not in itself a problem. "But in the long term, it's good to maintain a little whole grain which has beneficial effects on health. The fact of depriving oneself completely, that questions the researchers. It is likely that in the long term this is not desirable", reveals the nutritionist. "In addition, whole grains are useful when you want to lose weight because there is a greater satiating effect because there is more fibre. The simple fact of replacing refined cereals with whole grains without changing the quantity leads to weight loss. It is an element favorable to weight loss without feeling deprivation", he underlines.
Losing a kilo a month is great for cruising speed
According to him, it is also better not to be too impatient when starting a diet. Virginie's fight against her pounds lasted several years. And this progressive loss is a good thing for our specialist. "Losing a kilo a month is very good for cruising speed because it allows you to lose slowly, while adapting to this new way of eating", explains Nicolas Guggenbühl.
According to him, restrictive diets that allow you to melt away in a short time are generally counterproductive. After one or two years, they are a failure in 80% of cases. “We therefore prefer a slightly less severe restriction with slightly slower results. The main danger in weight loss is to regain weight afterwards. It is the yoyo effect. little time, then you break down, you start to crunch again, you regain weight. ultimately leads to a slow but sure increase in weight without also mentioning possible eating disorders that may be associated", explains the dietitian.
He strongly advises against all diets that are too monotonous. "Monocures, soup diets, lemon detox cures, pineapple diets, etc. Diets based only on fruits and vegetables are dangerous. We must maintain sources of protein".
Virginie did not eat after 5 p.m.: is intermittent fasting advisable?
In addition to favoring a healthy diet, Virginie confides that she has gotten into the habit of no longer filling her stomach in the evening. "From 5 p.m., I didn't eat until the next morning".
This is called intermittent fasting. A fairly trendy method. It consists in reducing the period during which one eats. Usually, we have breakfast, then we eat lunch and dinner. We may agree to one or the other snack in the morning and/or afternoon. We therefore eat during a window which is of the order of 12 hours. If we reduce this window to 8-10h, this means that we are extending the period of fasting, the period during which we do not eat on a 24-hour cycle.
But is it a good idea? "For the moment, this kind of protocol in the studies that are carried out seems to give results on weight loss which is easier since in the end we simply eat less, without paying attention, without counting the calories. We just pay attention on the clock. It has a very simple side", reacts Nicolas Guggenbühl.
Concretely, this consists of skipping a meal, breakfast or the evening meal. "Over 24 hours, the body will live longer on its reserves and therefore it will pump more into its reserves than if it is fed more regularly", explains the dietician who advises rather to maintain breakfast and to make the deadlock on the evening meal. "Physiologically it doesn't make much sense to supply bulk calories before a period of inactivity, which is sleep."
La Montoise combines her diet with sport: a morning jog and a fitness session
Another important element: Virginie has combined her diet with a daily dose of sport. A crucial alliance for weight loss. "In all weight loss programs, it is advisable to combine the two. Moreover, practicing sport during a diet is identified as a success factor", underlines the nutritionist.
"Adapting your diet, if you have a completely sedentary lifestyle, this may be enough but it will require a much greater restriction and therefore a more difficult diet to follow. And sport alone is not enough because it opens appetite,” he says.
An opinion confirmed by Nicolas Pascucci, sports coach for many years. "For me, the priority is food. It's changing bad habits. If you play sports while eating badly, it's useless. Being active is obviously part of a healthy lifestyle. in general. It's very important. Alongside that, there are other factors that come into play, such as stress and good sleep," he points out.
To fight against her pounds, Virginie has set up a fairly intense schedule. "Every morning, I left at 5 a.m. to run for 45 minutes before going to work. And every day, I went to the gym for 1.5 hours. I did a lot of cardio but also weight training to strengthen my body", details the thirty-something.
Reaction of a sports coach: "Two sessions a day is huge"
Nicolas Pascucci, however, advises against such a program for people who are starting a physical activity, who have not done sport for a long time, or who are even really overweight. "Two sessions a day is huge. And it can harm your health by causing injuries. For me, progress is very important. The ideal is 3 to 4 sessions a week, combining cardiovascular work and muscular", indicates the sports coach.
According to him, recovery phases must be put in place. "When you play sports, there is damage to all the structures, whether muscular, tendon, etc. So you have to give the body time to reconstitute all that. We often recommend taking a day off between sessions, but it depends on the training method, the activity. Two sessions a day every day, so it's surprising that she didn't have any physical problems", comments Nicolas Pascucci. "If the intensity of the effort is moderate, if she did her exercises calmly, without forcing too much, it is possible that she has no problem," he adds.
I recommend rather soft exercises and activities such as swimming and cycling
In any case, the sports coach does not recommend jogging as a sporting activity for overweight people. "I recommend rather soft exercises and activities such as swimming, cycling. Why not running, but then going gradually, alternating running and walking. If I have, for example, in front of I am a lady who is 60 kilos overweight, who is resuming physical activity, I will rather tell her to run for 30 seconds then to walk for 2-3 minutes and then gradually reduce the walking time by increasing the running time. muscle strengthening is also necessary. At this level, there are no real contraindications in terms of weight".
And for Nicolas Pascucci, it is better to lose weight gradually. "We advise not to lose more than 2-3 kilos per month".
Both the sports coach and the nutritionist also insist that one person is not the other. We are not equal when it comes to calories. Some organisms store more than others and some eliminate more easily than others. Our food and sporting past play a role. There is a kind of body memory. "What I'm noticing more and more with my experience is that it's really case by case. Just because this young woman has lost so much weight doesn't mean another is going to be successful doing the same thing. Each person is different, each follow-up is different. There are a lot of factors that come into play. You really have to know that", insists Nicolas Pascucci.
It’s obsessive, it leaves traces. I always weigh myself morning and night. But my weight is stabilized
Today, Virginie remains very vigilant. "I eat normally, I go to the restaurant, while being careful. I avoid crisps, fries, sweets. Anything fatty and sweet. In the evening, I also continue to jog. But I don't I no longer need to play sports with the same intensity", says the mother of the family.
Despite a recent new operation to remove excess skin from her breasts, she admits that she still does not feel completely good about herself. And psychologically, she remains marked by her weight gain. "It's obsessive, it leaves traces. I have a latent fear of gaining weight, that's why I continue to weigh myself morning and evening. And if I gain a kilo, I'm on a diet the next day. But it's rare because I don't yo-yo. My weight has stabilized at 58 kilos", she rejoices, proud to have won her fight against the scales.
