General Weight Loss Advice Beyond Calories In and Calories Out

Helen71017

I see lots of posts debating the calories in versus calories out concept. Although it is an important fundamental principle for weight loss, it is also a gross oversimplification of the challenges one faces to achieve lasting weight loss. I am 5’4” and have maintained my current weight of 112-114 for about eight months after losing 15 pounds.

I have found a number of things that made this process easier:
1. Accurate calorie logging – weigh and measure everything (there are various posts that explain this further).
2. Foods that keep you full – I searched various websites for suggestions on healthy low calorie, high protein food suggestions.
3. Vegetables and fruit – I don’t need to eat as much of a high calorie main course if half my plate is filled with vegetables. Salads with low calorie dressings like balsamic vinaigrette are great easy side items.
4. Planned filling snacks – I generally stick to 200 to 400 calorie meals with 100-300 calories snacks between meals. Again I did some Google searches for ideas and personally I like pistachios, tangerines, quest chips, raspberries, Greek yogurt, carrots, fruit and quest bars.
5. Don’t go hungry. A high protein diet with fruit and vegetables generally keeps me full. But I sometimes increased my daily goal to 1500 or even 1700 (maintenance for me) as a break. I don’t like cheat days because it is easy to blow an entire week’s worth of work. It hurts sometimes, but I log all my “bad days”
6. Regular exercise helps. I have become a little addicted to exercise, but I was only working out three or four days a week when I was actively losing weight. When I work out too much (like I do sometimes now), controlling my diet is harder because I am hungrier. The only time that I watch television is at the gym, so I look forward to going.
7. Make goals and don’t use food as a reward. Personally I preferred shoes (because they still fit after I stopped losing weight).
8. Find a good support group. MFP is an excellent resource for this.
9. Avoid high calorie drinks. A tablespoon of hot chocolate in my morning coffee is an excellent treat, only 42 calories (including the coffee), and it does not involve fake sugar.
10. Learn to cook, cook in bulk and freeze meals for easy reheating. Calorie counting is hard with restaurants because very few of them publish nutritional data
11. Plan! I make a general plan for my weekly meals and snacks. Then each morning I make a plan for the day, which I modify throughout the day to reflect my actual intake.
12. Remember that your metabolism may slow down with prolonged dieting. I had to increase my total calories gradually after I reached my goal weight until my metabolism recovered.
13. Daily weight fluctuations are mostly due to salt intake. Weekly changes mean more, and it is best to weigh at the same time of the day with minimal confounding factors (i.e. clothing).
14. Don’t keep problem foods in the house. When I eat ice cream, I buy one single serve container from the grocery store and plan for it in my daily calories.
15. Eat slowly. It takes your body time to register that it has eaten enough. I like food that takes extra time to eat like salads, pistachios, crab legs and tangerines.

If you need additional assistance consider asking your doctor for a referral to a nutritionist.

MargaretSobers

Hey, thank for sharing these helpful tips about calorie intake. I think it is an important factor to keep an eye on calorie to stay fit.

furrina

I have close to the same success story (5' 4", lost 25 lbs, weigh about 112 and kept it off for more than 2 years). Was always thin before gaining the weight recently though. But I totally second/agree with every one of those things you mentioned, exactly, from my experience as well.

Two things I might add are: keep veggies prewashed and cut and ready to eat (broccoli, carrots, etc) because it's easier to snack on them if you don't have to prepare them. Also, re excercising, HIIT makes cardio time more efficient and shakes things up if you're in a rut. I especially agree on "cheat days" because in addition to sabotaging good progress, it sort of reinforces that you're "dieting" instead of just changing your habits and finding ways to treat yourself within that change.

Helen71017

herrspoons wrote: »

I see lots of posts debating the calories in versus calories out concept. Although it is an important fundamental principle for weight loss, it is also a gross oversimplification of the challenges one faces to achieve lasting weight loss.

No it isn't. Keep your calories lower than your requirements and don't make excuses.

What you're offering is a list of things that work for you. These may not be the case for everyone.

I completely agree. One has to create a calorie deficit to lose weight. Different people have different strategies to do this. The vast majority of people who try to diet are unfortunately unable to develop a sustainable weight loss plan. Current estimates are that 2/3 of Americans are obese or overweight. I doubt that most of these people prefer to be heavy, so one has to assume that weight loss is challenging. Studies on various diets have one common theme: a high failure rate.

gshifrin

Thanks Helen. Mucho bueno info!

ithrowconfetti

OP, it's good to hear that you've worked out something that you personally find sustainable in maintaining your ideal weight goals. However, CICO is not a gross oversimplification as you claim, because understanding and determining your personal calorie intake is the only thing that will make a difference in whatever challenge(s) you may face. Also, low-calorie, high-protein foods may be useful for some, but different people have differing macros. And things like "don't keep problem foods in the house" is not the best advice to give people who need to build healthy relationships with food. Anyhow, way to go for maintaining your weight thus far!

Helen71017

ithrowconfetti wrote: »

OP, it's good to hear that you've worked out something that you personally find sustainable in maintaining your ideal weight goals. However, CICO is not a gross oversimplification as you claim, because understanding and determining your personal calorie intake is the only thing that will make a difference in whatever challenge(s) you may face. Also, low-calorie, high-protein foods may be useful for some, but different people have differing macros. And things like "don't keep problem foods in the house" is not the best advice to give people who need to build healthy relationships with food. Anyhow, way to go for maintaining your weight thus far!

You are absolutely right that different systems are effective for different individuals. I had hoped to start this conversation so that other people in the MFP community could provide general advice for people who need additional help in their weight loss efforts.

One does not take an alcoholic and tell them that all they need to do is not drink alcohol. The failure rate for treatment would be abysmal. Useful financial advice must go beyond: save more than you spend. Calories in less than calories out, although simple in theory, is plagued by challenges in its execution.

nlsalvatore

Great tips! Thanks for sharing!

Helen71017

MrM27 wrote: »

Helen71017 wrote: »

ithrowconfetti wrote: »

OP, it's good to hear that you've worked out something that you personally find sustainable in maintaining your ideal weight goals. However, CICO is not a gross oversimplification as you claim, because understanding and determining your personal calorie intake is the only thing that will make a difference in whatever challenge(s) you may face. Also, low-calorie, high-protein foods may be useful for some, but different people have differing macros. And things like "don't keep problem foods in the house" is not the best advice to give people who need to build healthy relationships with food. Anyhow, way to go for maintaining your weight thus far!

You are absolutely right that different systems are effective for different individuals. I had hoped to start this conversation so that other people in the MFP community could provide general advice for people who need additional help in their weight loss efforts.

One does not take an alcoholic and tell them that all they need to do is not drink alcohol. The failure rate for treatment would be abysmal. Useful financial advice must go beyond: save more than you spend. Calories in less than calories out, although simple in theory, is plagued by challenges in its execution.

You're not the first nor the last person to try and compare alcoholism to weight loss, they are not the same.

Yes the execution of CICO many times is flawed but that doesn't mean the theory is flawed, the execution is.

You say many of us over simplify CICO, we say many people over complicate it.

Although alcohol addiction and weight loss related challenges have some interesting similarities, they certainly also have important differences. Various brain imaging studies (using CT scan and PET imaging technology) show similar findings in obese patients and drug addicts. This website provides a nice summary of this research (without the use of medical jargon):

http://foodaddiction.com/resources/science-of-food-addiction/

Although I have always been somewhat skeptical of this area of research, it is an interesting theory to consider.

randomtai

Yeah no... this won't work for me.

segacs

I find OP's list interesting and potentially helpful for people who are looking for tips and tricks to make it work. Yes, ultimately it does come down to CICO, but IMHO there's nothing on that list that's particularly controversial. And if someone is struggling to keep within their calorie goal, they might find some of that useful.

elphie754

Is it possible you get addicted to the feeling you have when you eat a certain food? Sure. However being addicted to food it's self is a ridiculous claim. When you detox from a substance you were addicted to, you get violently ill. I don't mean just GI symptoms. Addicts going through withdrawal can have seizures along with other issues. That is why really severe addicts go through detox in an in patient facility. Those substances they are addicted to are NOT required for a human to live. You can cut them out completely and live a healthy life (likely healthier than when abusing). You CAN survive without alcohol, heroin, meth, pcp, crack, cocaine, etc. You CANNOT survive without eating: it is impossible. You WILL die. See the difference?

ninerbuff

Don't diet. Don't become fearful of food.

Create a specific calorie deficit plan and be CONSISTENT. That's going to be half the battle.


A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

cwolfman13

People generally fail at maintaining a healthy weight because ultimately most people talk a good talk about "lifestyle change"...but in reality, those are just words and they have no idea how to actually implement a change of lifestyle.

I don't think CICO is a gross oversimplification...but I would agree that people need to adopt a more healthful lifestyle in general if they want to maintain a healthy weight and their health and well being in general. The problem is that people lose weight and they just go back to whatever they were doing before...eating the S.A.D...they stop exercising, etc. I mean look at how many threads there are in RE to "I'm in maintenance, can I stop exercising" or whatever.

Generally speaking, most people can't even conceptualize what a change of lifestyle really means or is, let alone actually implement such a change.

maxit

CICO may not be an oversimplication, but "just do it" is. Thanks for the list, OP

sheepotato

These are good tips for people who are new to this or struggling. I don't see anything in the list that is unreasonable. Thanks for sharing, I hope that it helps someone who is struggling.

RoxieDawn

My actual weight is around 108 to 111 lbs. I have been researching and researching and the basic thing is: CALORIES IN AND CALORIES OUT - PERIOD. The less you eat, and the more you move the "skinnier you will be".. Ha.. growing older (age) has her grasp on me like being tied up in chains head to toe. I have measured, weighed, exercised, cook, ... blah blah... and it comes back to this for me... All the online calculators are just wrong for my size, I need so few calories to live and breathe that I may as well just eat dirt on a daily basis.. And just for starters, I can gain two pounds just eating too much salt... yes if I have just eat a tsp of salt I blow up and gain weight as if I had eaten 8000 calories the night before..

It is just sickening to me.. because 10 years ago I weighed 102 lbs and never ever thought about counting anything.. Who knew a big mac had 980 calories? I did not know then but I know now...

segacs

MrM27 wrote: »

How is just do it over simplistic?

Caloric deficit to lose weight. Eat at a caloric deficit. Just do it.

Because most people on this board became overweight in the first place because they have had such a hard time "just doing it". Because finding the inner willpower, motivation and discipline to make the change is easier for some people than for others. And because everyone who is here wanting to make a positive, healthy change in their lifestyle deserves some support, regardless of whether it's as easy as it obviously is for you, or it's much tougher as it is for most people.