Dieting and BBQ....dare I ask

bosco0633

bosco0633

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I am in love with BBQ. I started cooking with lump from a gasser last summer and have fallen in love with it.

I tried the smoker with a WSM 22.5 but learned quickly that I am not a huge smoker type.

I have an OTG 22.5 now and have really been learning the basics. I can smoke when I need to, grill when I want and I have learned about direct and indirect.

I am planning on picking up a Kamado Joe big Joe in March and I can't wait, it is perfect for the kind of Q guy that I am.

I am into leaner cuts of meat, fish, chicken and enjoy good cuts of red meat. I am not a huge ribs and pork but type (I'm soooo sorry)

I have made a new years resolution this year to get back in shape. I am on a goal to lose 35lbs this year to get back to where I should be in weight.

I am following weight watchers and I am curious to see if anyone else follows this and what they do to fulfill the Q addiction while eating clean on a diet.

Sorry to use the 'diet' word here I didn't want to ruin anyones day

Thanks for the comments
 
Pork Loins, White meat chicken and Turkey, is the way to go.. My Family is on this health kick but if you brine your white meat and smoke it.. it taste really good..
 
I would think it depends on what kind of "diet" you follow. There are definitely ways to do what you want though and have good success.

As long as blood pressure/sodium isn't an issue, then brining is a great solution to get tasty lean white meats. If sodium is something you're concerned with, then brining needs to be limited. Adjust your rubs, etc - you can make good Q without the added sugars, etc (which is obviously more necessary if you're following a lower carb - atkins, southbeach, paleo/primal type of diet). If you're not necessarily limiting carbs, then a little bit of sugar in the rub may be OK for you -- it really all depends.

I'd add fish/seafood to the list of things to eat also. Salmon is great and a fantastic source of healthy fat - other white fish, etc are extremely lean. You will have lots of options, just keep an eye on what you're doing and what your overall goals and guidelines need to be.
 
Pepper and most spices have no calories/fat/fiber. Watch the sugars and have fun. Most guys around here say S&P on a brisket is about as good eatin' as there gets. You can do things like seasoned salt on a pork butt (I know not a pork guy but one of my favorites). Tri-tip (one of my favorites that is the smoke/grill lean meats) is salt pepper and gralic. Even my grilled chicken wings (Lemon Juice and cilantro and franks red hot) is almost zero added calories.

BBQ with out glazes and sauces is as bout as healthy as you can hope for with a ton of flavor.
 
I dropped 40# a couple years back while smoking and grilling all the way. I had good luck just with portion control, eating plenty of veggies and fruit, and basically cutting out the starchy stuff.

You might find some good threads here on the subject of watching what you eat.

Obviously physical activity is a necessary component to losing weight as well.

Good on ya for getting back on track! :clap2:
 
No flour-no sugar-no processed foods. Lost 80 lbs in two years.

So what did I eat?? Meat, seafood, greens, beans, vegetables, fresh fruit, nuts and seeds.
Nothing fried as that usually involves flour. Nothing that comes packaged in cellophane. Drank lite beer and dry red wine for adult beverages.

Eat To Live by Dr Joel Furhman
No Flour No Sugar Diet by Dr Gott

So cook you out a big ol porterhouse, a bowl of chopped blue cheese salad, Parmesan garlic roasted Brussels sprouts with a beer while you cook and a glass of Merlot while you eat. Your on a diet.

Usually I will have a spinach omelet and fruit for breakfast. Beans and salad for lunch and grilled meat with veggies for supper. If your hungry EAT. Just no flour no sugar no processed food.

I eased up on the intensity a tad by adding a small amount of bread during the holidays. Yep- weight started creeping up.
 
Grilled meats and vegitables. the key to dieting and using your equipment more
 
I lost 100 lbs over the course of 7 or 8 years, and have kept the majority of it off for over 2 years. Went from 285 down to 175. Right now, I'm probably 185-190.

My secret? Lots of exercise, almost zero fast or fried food, no processed meats or pre-cooked meals from the store. OK, I have an occasional frozen pizza maybe once every other month. I eat pretty much as much as I want, but I avoid anything that's been pumped full of salt or has no nutritional value.

All the rubs and sauces I make are low sodium and light on sugar. I do eat a lot of carbs, but I burn them off. I also eat an inordinate amount of hot peppers in the meals I prep. My blood pressure used to be beyond unhealthy, now it's in the good range. Basically, a complete lifestyle change from how I used to eat and take care of myself.

I enjoy food more now too. On the rare occasion I have to eat fast food, it tastes completely bland, not satisfying at all.
 
For me, I need to limit the Q to once a week and avoid the high carb sides with it. The other days of the week, I eat a more balanced diet (not a straight protein load).

P.S. Exercise is your friend.
 
I've had good luck with a no/low carb diet. BBQ - A.K.A. Protein (Minus the carb ladened sauce, rub and buns of course) . Here's a good website that I use to determine what's what... http://nutritiondata.self.com/ Good Luck!!!
 
gtr said:
I dropped 40# a couple years back while smoking and grilling all the way. I had good luck just with portion control, eating plenty of veggies and fruit, and basically cutting out the starchy stuff.

You might find some good threads here on the subject of watching what you eat.

Obviously physical activity is a necessary component to losing weight as well.

Good on ya for getting back on track! :clap2:
Click to expand...

Portion control was key for me so I definitely agree here :thumb:. Took my body a while to realize I didn't need 3 helpings of things. I was never a super huge guy, but lost 40lbs by eating leaner meats with veggies and changing out processed carbs for fruits. Exercising was key as well. Also when I eat a bunch of bbq my sides are normally slaw or a veggie. Cutting back on the carbs helps.

You can definitely eat bbq on a diet, but it is all about the portion control. Good luck. You can do it! :clap2:
 
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Reactions: gtr
Good luck with your diet man! Don't overlook veggies in your grilling plans. I think if you eat more veggies and less meat it will help to keep the weight off. And I'm thinking veggies like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, zucchini and so on. Spuds are OK if you don't eat too many. I do big salads for dinner often. And cut out the late night snacks. That's one of the hardest parts for me. :cry:

The other side of the equation is exercise. SWMBO and I have achieved pretty decent weight loss by running marathons. She brought her blood sugar under control and avoided having to go on medications. I look even more buff than I did before. :heh: :laugh: :roll: Running marathons takes a huge commitment and few will do that, but you get a significant benefit just from walking. If you want to magnify the results from walking, walk briskly. I'm sure you can think of other ways to exercise too. I think that cardio provides the most benefit but strength training helps too because muscle burns more calories than fat.
 
As long as I keep running and cycling regularly I can pretty much eat everything and anything within reason. You've gotta increase your rate of metabolism by going aerobic. Dieting alone will not cut it. You'll eventually regain all your weight back, plus some more...
 
I lost 300lbs, than found my love for cooking que, I limit my portions and usually only eat que once a week. Occasionally I got ape **** and eat to much, I gain a pound or two and know I have to work that much harder to get it back off, the holidays kill me. I exercise everyday usually 2 times a day and have kept the weight off for almost 2 years, the lowest I achieved was 179, I am currently 195 from the holiday explosion but I will knock it back to 185-190 and I am happy there. The wife is an excellent cook and that does not help me at ALL. My biggest fight is portion control, my fat brain still sees food and thinks someone has to eat it all so it may as well be me so I have to try and override those thoughts with my skinny brain, easier said than done. Fought my weight my whole life until I said enough was enough. You can do it if you put your mind to it, cheat days are your friend to keep you on track.
 
Portion control and exercise are the key. Worked for me lost 30 in 8 years with no gain back. I didn't put it on all at once so I took it off gradually and never quit eating what I liked.

Incentive to watch portion control and exercise......NO heart attack, but had triple bypass surgery!!

Paul B
SS UDS
 
I gained almost sixty pounds in twenty four years of marriage. No ones fault except for my own. I clearly had fallen into that futile cycle of dieting followed again by weight gain. Add to this my DW suffers from MS. Working with a nutritionist, she found that she was able to minimize her issues by following a Paleo-type diet. So several years ago, we made the commitment to significantly change to a Paleo type diet. As stated in previous posts, no fast foods, processed foods or white starch type foods. A diet that heavily emphasized fresh vegetables and protein. And most of that protein was prepared on my pellet grill using salt-free, low sugar rubs and seasonings. The result? I'm down fifty-five pounds in four years and do not think I have gone hungry one day. Properly prepared, smoked or grilled food can be an integral and successful part of your diet. Exercise is a must!
 
I lost 65lbs last year, all with weight watchers and excerise. I've kept it all off the last 5 months. All about portion control and developing new eating habits. I cut back big time on drinking and quantity of BBQ but still ate some. I grilled way more chicken/fish/turkey burgers, used lower sugar/salt rubs, etc. I made some good fatties but used turkey meat instead of sausage, etc. Just gotta be creative

Good luck!
 
I lost around 35 pounds a couple of years ago, still BBQing once or twice a month. I did the same as most have mentioned here - lean meats, veggies, the occasional treat (maybe fried chicken a few times a year, a piece of cake once in a while at work - moderation is key here) and exercise. I gave up beer during the week, and try to keep it reasonable on the weekends. I quit smoking, and that was hard, too. I also knew I had to include exercise in my plan if I wanted to give up the smokes for good while not ballooning up. So, I started running. At first, it was almost impossible to run a mile in under 20 minutes - I was miserable. Now, I run 5Ks in under 28 minutes - not going to win any like that, but it helps me keep the weight off. Plus, I like the quiet time that running by myself for a half an hour a few times a week gives me. Following this has allowed me to keep my weight between 160 and 165 (I'm 6 feet tall) while not feeling hungry or deprived of anything.

Also, one of the smartest things I've read was mentioned on here - nothing out of a cellophane wrapper! Man, that's smart.

Find what works for you and stick to it! Good luck!
 
I lost 23 pounds in 2 months by eating low carb...aka firing up the smoker while watching carb intake. didn't eat anything white
 
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