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Too smart to lose weight?

13

Replies

  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,257 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    STLBADGIRL wrote: »
    It's simple, but not easy. People want easy.
    I agree, but overcomplicating isn't making things easier? Lots of people put in enormous effort to stay on the most hopeless diet and exercise regimens. I did too. Eating food I like, just a little less, and walking, is easy, not just simple!

    It's not easy when its not what you want to do or accustomed to doing. Just saying.

    But almost all high-payoff personal growth is like that. Yet after I make one uncomfortable major change for the better, future ones become easier. Life improvement accelerates, potentially.

    I suspect - based on personal stories I've read here - that for some, successful weight loss turns out to be a "gateway drug" leading to other significant life improvements.

    (It was not that for me. Become an athlete in my 40s kind of was, and one of the things it led to - 10+ years later - was weight loss).

    I typically use the financial analogy, but knowledge/degrees also fits well. The goal of academia is not a quest of degrees, but a system of intellectual development and improvement. Similar to weight management or any endeavor it eventually is distilled to a simple "Study more".

    It is absurd to believe that a person is educated after reading a book or completing a course. Why would anyone believe that weight is managed after competing a diet? The key is learning throughout the experience, developing habits that promote your end goal, and removing habits hurting your goals.

    I agree - success is contagious. It is inspiring to see what someone does after completing a difficult task and how this impacts other areas in their lives.

    I've been reading Jordan Peterson lately and he talks extensively about this - how the last thing you want to be looking back is "harmless". Harmless being someone who never dared to fail, never reaching beyond your borders.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    STLBADGIRL wrote: »
    It's simple, but not easy. People want easy.
    I agree, but overcomplicating isn't making things easier? Lots of people put in enormous effort to stay on the most hopeless diet and exercise regimens. I did too. Eating food I like, just a little less, and walking, is easy, not just simple!

    It's not easy when its not what you want to do or accustomed to doing. Just saying.

    But almost all high-payoff personal growth is like that. Yet after I make one uncomfortable major change for the better, future ones become easier. Life improvement accelerates, potentially.

    I suspect - based on personal stories I've read here - that for some, successful weight loss turns out to be a "gateway drug" leading to other significant life improvements.

    (It was not that for me. Become an athlete in my 40s kind of was, and one of the things it led to - 10+ years later - was weight loss).

    I typically use the financial analogy, but knowledge/degrees also fits well. The goal of academia is not a quest of degrees, but a system of intellectual development and improvement. Similar to weight management or any endeavor it eventually is distilled to a simple "Study more".

    It is absurd to believe that a person is educated after reading a book or completing a course. Why would anyone believe that weight is managed after competing a diet? The key is learning throughout the experience, developing habits that promote your end goal, and removing habits hurting your goals.

    I agree - success is contagious. It is inspiring to see what someone does after completing a difficult task and how this impacts other areas in their lives.

    I've been reading Jordan Peterson lately and he talks extensively about this - how the last thing you want to be looking back is "harmless". Harmless being someone who never dared to fail, never reaching beyond your borders.

    You're the second person I've seen reference Peterson today and I was intrigued so I looked him up. Are you reading his newest book ("12 Rules for Life") or is there something in particular you recommend?
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,257 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    STLBADGIRL wrote: »
    It's simple, but not easy. People want easy.
    I agree, but overcomplicating isn't making things easier? Lots of people put in enormous effort to stay on the most hopeless diet and exercise regimens. I did too. Eating food I like, just a little less, and walking, is easy, not just simple!

    It's not easy when its not what you want to do or accustomed to doing. Just saying.

    But almost all high-payoff personal growth is like that. Yet after I make one uncomfortable major change for the better, future ones become easier. Life improvement accelerates, potentially.

    I suspect - based on personal stories I've read here - that for some, successful weight loss turns out to be a "gateway drug" leading to other significant life improvements.

    (It was not that for me. Become an athlete in my 40s kind of was, and one of the things it led to - 10+ years later - was weight loss).

    I typically use the financial analogy, but knowledge/degrees also fits well. The goal of academia is not a quest of degrees, but a system of intellectual development and improvement. Similar to weight management or any endeavor it eventually is distilled to a simple "Study more".

    It is absurd to believe that a person is educated after reading a book or completing a course. Why would anyone believe that weight is managed after competing a diet? The key is learning throughout the experience, developing habits that promote your end goal, and removing habits hurting your goals.

    I agree - success is contagious. It is inspiring to see what someone does after completing a difficult task and how this impacts other areas in their lives.

    I've been reading Jordan Peterson lately and he talks extensively about this - how the last thing you want to be looking back is "harmless". Harmless being someone who never dared to fail, never reaching beyond your borders.

    You're the second person I've seen reference Peterson today and I was intrigued so I looked him up. Are you reading his newest book ("12 Rules for Life") or is there something in particular you recommend?

    I really enjoy him as he frames all his views with multiple references as to why he believes what he believes.

    I bought his "12 Rules for Life" and reading through this very carefully - reading this along with my wife and kids and we discuss the bullet points in the book.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    CSARdiver wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    STLBADGIRL wrote: »
    It's simple, but not easy. People want easy.
    I agree, but overcomplicating isn't making things easier? Lots of people put in enormous effort to stay on the most hopeless diet and exercise regimens. I did too. Eating food I like, just a little less, and walking, is easy, not just simple!

    It's not easy when its not what you want to do or accustomed to doing. Just saying.

    But almost all high-payoff personal growth is like that. Yet after I make one uncomfortable major change for the better, future ones become easier. Life improvement accelerates, potentially.

    I suspect - based on personal stories I've read here - that for some, successful weight loss turns out to be a "gateway drug" leading to other significant life improvements.

    (It was not that for me. Become an athlete in my 40s kind of was, and one of the things it led to - 10+ years later - was weight loss).

    I typically use the financial analogy, but knowledge/degrees also fits well. The goal of academia is not a quest of degrees, but a system of intellectual development and improvement. Similar to weight management or any endeavor it eventually is distilled to a simple "Study more".

    It is absurd to believe that a person is educated after reading a book or completing a course. Why would anyone believe that weight is managed after competing a diet? The key is learning throughout the experience, developing habits that promote your end goal, and removing habits hurting your goals.

    I agree - success is contagious. It is inspiring to see what someone does after completing a difficult task and how this impacts other areas in their lives.

    I've been reading Jordan Peterson lately and he talks extensively about this - how the last thing you want to be looking back is "harmless". Harmless being someone who never dared to fail, never reaching beyond your borders.

    You're the second person I've seen reference Peterson today and I was intrigued so I looked him up. Are you reading his newest book ("12 Rules for Life") or is there something in particular you recommend?

    I really enjoy him as he frames all his views with multiple references as to why he believes what he believes.

    I bought his "12 Rules for Life" and reading through this very carefully - reading this along with my wife and kids and we discuss the bullet points in the book.

    Thanks, I think I'll check it out.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
    I think most people, smart or otherwise, want fitness to be really exciting and compelling. Counting calories is just too drab, so it is more interesting to go on some bizarre fad diet or cleanse ("I"m eating nothing but kale, maple syrup and apple cider vinegar for 2 weeks!") or crazy exercise program ("I ran my first 5k, now I'm training for an ultramarathon!"). Sensibly reducing calories consistently over a long period of time and trying to burn a few hundred calories several times a week to make it more manageable is just not very drastic or sexy and it isn't a quick fix, so it doesn't resonate with a lot of people.

    I think there is a lot of truth in this. It's the monotony of it. The day to day chore of it. The knowing it's going to take a long time to get there and even longer to stay there.
  • iamunicoon
    iamunicoon Posts: 839 Member
    I'm not sure if it's a matter of too smart but I definitely see a lot of too impatient out there.

    Going into this, everyone does the simple thing of logging and staying under their cals. And it works great for a week, two weeks, maybe a month. We've all had that initial quick drop. And then it slows down, there are weeks without any change on the scale or even some when our weight goes up.

    And that's when people start making things complicated. I think every single one of us has at least at one point in their journey thought "But what if I am the person for whom it doesn't work?" And that's stupid because there's not a single person in the world for whom it works the way we think it should work (aka consistently dropping pound after pound). And yet we think we're that special snowflake who doesn't use weight with CICO, who needs to watch this and that macro, who needs to follow a certain diet, who needs this and that gadget to help them.

    However, I'm not sure that's always a bad thing because it makes us feel like we're actively doing something to improve ourselves and keeps us motivated. It can be too much and that can become discouraging but often it also just helps us to get through weeks of frustration.
  • lois1231
    lois1231 Posts: 331 Member
    I agree. Most people complicate things because they want easy and fast including me during certain times in my life.
  • psychod787
    psychod787 Posts: 4,088 Member
    I have to say a thing or two about over thinking. First off, I did fall for the BS of certain guru's selling non scientific ideas when I was losing weight. CARBS ARE EVIL such things. Made me afraid to eat bread for a year! It wasn't until I started having some medical issues ,due to massive weight loss and starving myself, that I started reading studies with metabolism and weight. Reading some really depressing studies on long term weight maintenance actually helped (hopefully) get me ready for a lifetime of living differently. It started me reading blogs and post about people who are trying to maintain weight loss. I had no clue about the need to weigh and measure food. That the body slows down with Weight loss. Thanks to the studies by Libel, I now understand why many of the people I saw lose a lot, well weight in general tended to put it back on. Sometimes very rapidly. I am one of the people who came late to the game as far as preparing for maintenance. I also now question most new studies until they have been replicated. I hope to keep learning from professional researchers and private ones like people on these forums. I await the woo's lol.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    STLBADGIRL wrote: »
    It's simple, but not easy. People want easy.
    I agree, but overcomplicating isn't making things easier? Lots of people put in enormous effort to stay on the most hopeless diet and exercise regimens. I did too. Eating food I like, just a little less, and walking, is easy, not just simple!

    It's not easy when its not what you want to do or accustomed to doing. Just saying.

    It's all about priorities.
  • JaydedMiss
    JaydedMiss Posts: 4,286 Member
    I think people sometimes want it to be hard because it gives them an excuse not to do it.

    100%
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    edited April 2018
    lizzyfit2 wrote: »
    It's not just counting calories and recording them. Its dividing up the calories into the best proportions, ie: carbs, fats, proteins, etc.
    A 1500 calorie a day diet wont do squat if its mainly carbs and fats.
    You don't have to find a "best" macro split. MFP's default has 20% protein, and that works for lots of people.

    What do you mean by "A 1500 calorie a day diet wont do squat [...]"?
    Moderation, and proportions. It really does work..
    Yes, it does.
  • kristen8000
    kristen8000 Posts: 747 Member
    People want promises that if they do "A", they will lose ungodly amounts quick and it will stay off.

    CICO isn't sexy. It requires work. It requires sacrifice. It requires a great amount of time. "Magic" requires money and beliefs that it will work for them. People think that spending money on something will work better something that's free. They have something else to blame if it doesn't work. If CICO doesn't work, it usually means you are eating more than you think. And you are are blame.

    A friend of my Mom's who had success on MFP for a short period of time (I think she lost 20lbs then went on vacation). She quit it, the weight came back. It was about 3 years ago. She started Nutrisystem this week because she feels if she pays for something and eats prepackaged food, it will be less work (easy) and not require sacrifice. But her one main love is socializing. Eating out. So, instead of eating food she likes, just less of it, she's willing to give up her "fun". So, I see it crashing and burning and her gaining more in the process. I want it to work for her, because she needs it. But she's the #1 example of why "magic" doesn't work.