Help! I'm gaining weight with diet and exercise!

135

Replies

  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    And I think I'm going to take 5 seconds out of my day to weigh my dinner now so I don't have to do an hour long jogging session later.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    And I think I'm going to take 5 seconds out of my day to weigh my dinner now so I don't have to do an hour long jogging session later.


    Word.
  • Maxematics
    Maxematics Posts: 2,287 Member
    LOL. Uh, yeah...

    Everyone else's comments have been real contributions to this thread except for one. OP, ignore all the power walking talk. Walking is great, of course, but that alone may not be enough to help you attain your goals. Keeping an accurate food log helps and food scales are useful but definitely not a necessity. There are a multitude of workouts to choose from that can help you create more of a calorie deficit. There is a reason why they say that abs are made in the kitchen. Working out is great but if you're overeating you're not going to see the progress you want. Period.

    Walking alone works for some people, especially those who were obese to begin with. It's much easier for someone with 100 pounds to lose to shed weight by walking and not calorie counting than someone with 10 pounds to lose. The smaller you get, the harder it is to lose weight with just walking and not calorie counting. It is absolutely not disordered to count calories or weigh food if you choose to do so. A certain level of fitness takes precision and most people are just not there physically or mentally. I weigh everything I eat unless I go out to eat. It takes me less than 30 seconds to do so and it's yielded me amazing results thus far. I don't have an eating disorder and happily consume between 1400 and 2100 calories per day depending on the exercise I've done that day and how active I've been. We all have different methods, but what's important is finding out what works for you.
  • mrsnazario1219
    mrsnazario1219 Posts: 173 Member
    arditarose wrote: »
    And I think I'm going to take 5 seconds out of my day to weigh my dinner now so I don't have to do an hour long jogging session later.


    Word.

    Double Word.

    Best comment today.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    arditarose wrote: »
    And I think I'm going to take 5 seconds out of my day to weigh my dinner now so I don't have to do an hour long jogging session later.


    Word.

    Double Word.

    Best comment today.

    lol I had to do cardio yesterday to even out some...issues I had on Friday. I told myself never again.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    Isn't ballparking calories how many of us got here anyway? I'd rather be sure I'm eating the amount I am.
  • This content has been removed.
  • BurnWithBarn2015
    BurnWithBarn2015 Posts: 1,026 Member
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.


    95069916.png
  • OldAssDude
    OldAssDude Posts: 1,436 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    Isn't ballparking calories how many of us got here anyway? I'd rather be sure I'm eating the amount I am.

    not how I got here.

    I got here by decreasing my activity level to near zero for about 20 years. Never really changed my eating habits.

    I am simply reversing it by increasing my activity and eating a little smarter (ball parking).
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."
  • OldAssDude
    OldAssDude Posts: 1,436 Member
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.

    I'm sorry but you need to stop. I'm glad you like power walking.
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.

    Yes, they could just do it the way you tell them... which reading the OP is pretty much what they've been doing. And gaining weight. Truly, your way is infallible.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.

    Dude, you really have this all wrong. Check out this amazing success story.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10164678/wheelchair-user-130lbs-healthier/p1
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Oh let's wait till he reaches goal and has some maintenance time in him
    He may need to get a little more accurate
    Hopefully his advice will become more helpful
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.

    So your way is the one true way???
  • OldAssDude
    OldAssDude Posts: 1,436 Member
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    Oh let's wait till he reaches goal and has some maintenance time in him
    He may need to get a little more accurate
    Hopefully his advice will become more helpful

    I am at my initial goal weight (170) that I set when I first joined MFP, but when I found out what my healthy weight ranges should be (128 - 168), I changed it to 150, which would put my right about in the middles, and give me almost 20 lbs. of wiggle room.

    My plan for maintenance is to still maintain my fitness level by walking 2 to 3 hours a week, and doing muscular 1 to 2 hours a week, and I will still ball park my calories and eat smart, so maintenance should not be a problem.

    Although I could see maintenance being a problem by dieting alone.
  • OldAssDude
    OldAssDude Posts: 1,436 Member
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.

    Dude, you really have this all wrong. Check out this amazing success story.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10164678/wheelchair-user-130lbs-healthier/p1

    I did say anyone who can walk.

    Right?

    Good story though.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Ummm..you think those of us who are commenting about food intake being most important don't exercise?

    Really?

    Ok then
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    I think I have wasted enough time on this thread. I'm going to go do my power walk now so I don't have to weigh and count every single gram of food that I put in my mouth for eternity...

    ~seeya~

    Do you really think exercising and weighing food are mutually exclusive?

    I ran for 50 minutes this morning, and then later on? I ran for another 20 minutes.

    I still like to weigh my food.

    Tomorrow, I'll "power walk" and lift weights.

    And weigh my food.

    Exercising has nothing to do with monitoring caloric intake.

    Both are choices someone can make to manage their weight. You choose not to weigh your food. Great. Don't turn it into it being something you don't "HAVE" to do because you exercise. One has nothing to do with the other.
  • OldAssDude
    OldAssDude Posts: 1,436 Member
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    Which is almost exactly what I said.

    Activity and "NOT EATING TOO MUCH"
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    edited November 2015
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.

    Good point!
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.

    Good point!

    It stems from an argument with a former friend who insists he doesn't eat much. Chocolate bars, chips, ice cream, and regular soda are not volume foods, but wow those calories add up when they are all consumed on a daily basis. He insists that he could lose weight if he would work out every day. He might, but it would be beneficial to balance the CI part of the equation.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.

    Agreed
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    edited November 2015
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.

    Good point!

    It stems from an argument with a former friend who insists he doesn't eat much. Chocolate bars, chips, ice cream, and regular soda are not volume foods, but wow those calories add up when they are all consumed on a daily basis. He insists that he could lose weight if he would work out every day. He might, but it would be beneficial to balance the CI part of the equation.

    I used to think I could eat whatever I want and lose but I never could. Those last 20 pounds never went away. I was a fitness instructor for many years. I was fit but overweight. Until I understood how essential accurate calorie counting was I never lost. Along comes MFP which made it crazy easy to count, I finally lost those pounds. You cannot out exercise over eating.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.

    Good point!

    It stems from an argument with a former friend who insists he doesn't eat much. Chocolate bars, chips, ice cream, and regular soda are not volume foods, but wow those calories add up when they are all consumed on a daily basis. He insists that he could lose weight if he would work out every day. He might, but it would be beneficial to balance the CI part of the equation.

    I used to think I could eat whatever I want and lose but I never could. Those last 20 pounds never went away. I was a fitness instructor for many years. I was fit but overweight. Until I understood how essential accurate calorie counting was I never lost. Along comes MFP which made it crazy easy to count, I finally lost those pounds. You cannot out exercise over eating.

    I had a similar thing going on, but I was using MFP. I had myself convinced that I was getting enough exercise in (cause FitBit told me, plus MFP was giving me those crazy exercise cals), and then was consuming while guessing at the entries I used in the database. While I think the FitBit might have been close (I have a different FitBit now, that gives me a bit less and I track exercise through FitBit only, and intake through here only), my calorie in side of the equation was way off. Now that I am no longer lying to myself, my results are much better.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    They are equally true when edited as such:

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    Exercise can increase the deficit, but you still have to be in a deficit to lose weight. People who can't/don't want to exercise are certainly losing out on other benefits, but they're still perfectly capable of losing weight. Exercise isn't the determining factor in weight loss; calorie deficit is. How that deficit is created is up to the individual.

    It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth.

    Do you even realize that you crossed out parts of what I said, and then said pretty much the exact same thing but in different words?

    Don't you realise that the editing is the point ...the activity means little, the food intake lots

    That's the point everyone is making
    " It's an important distinction because there are people who think they can eat as much as they want as long as they're exercising, which is far from the truth."

    On the flip side there are people who think that if they don't exercise, they will never be able to lose weight, because they don't think they consume that many calories. Without weighing and counting calories this side of the equation is unbalanced.

    Good point!

    It stems from an argument with a former friend who insists he doesn't eat much. Chocolate bars, chips, ice cream, and regular soda are not volume foods, but wow those calories add up when they are all consumed on a daily basis. He insists that he could lose weight if he would work out every day. He might, but it would be beneficial to balance the CI part of the equation.

    I used to think I could eat whatever I want and lose but I never could. Those last 20 pounds never went away. I was a fitness instructor for many years. I was fit but overweight. Until I understood how essential accurate calorie counting was I never lost. Along comes MFP which made it crazy easy to count, I finally lost those pounds. You cannot out exercise over eating.

    I had a similar thing going on, but I was using MFP. I had myself convinced that I was getting enough exercise in (cause FitBit told me, plus MFP was giving me those crazy exercise cals), and then was consuming while guessing at the entries I used in the database. While I think the FitBit might have been close (I have a different FitBit now, that gives me a bit less and I track exercise through FitBit only, and intake through here only), my calorie in side of the equation was way off. Now that I am no longer lying to myself, my results are much better.

    <3
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    If that is not how it generally works, then maybe that is why most people fail, and it worked for me because I put the work in to get the result.

    I think many people make it much more complicated than it needs to be. I also think many people just don't want to put the work in. Lets face it. Its very strenuous and uncomfortable to exercise, and many people do not want to do it. But once you make it a habit, and once you reach a healthy weight and good fitness level, its not that hard to maintain it. The hardest part is getting to that level.

    It's really pretty simple.

    if you are not active enough and eat too much you will be over weight.

    if you are active enough and don't eat too much you will not be over weight.


    But many people who are already over weight do not want to go through the discomfort of activity. So what do they do? They turn to weighing food, counting calories, and starving themselves. IMO, that is just replacing one bad habit with another.

    What I have bolded above are not untrue statements.

    actually if you just eat too much you will gain weight, being active has nothing to do with it. So yea, that is not true.
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    OP just way all your food, count and log it.
    And by weighing i mean....weighing! Not measuring anything even serving sizes, cups and spoons forget them.

    create a deficit and you will lose weight ( eyeballing food works only for some people )

    Than exercise helps a lot to get fit But is not necessary needed for weight loss. Of course it is better for overall health

    But start weighing your food you eat more calories than you think...you are gaining

    that is all there is to it.

    Yes. Follow this advice and replace one bad habit with another.

    Just sit on the couch and weigh your food. Make sure you get an accurate scale too cause you're going to need every gram of food. Then when you starve yourself long enough you will start binging, and most likely put more weight on than you started with.

    But don't worry, you can always start over.

    and over... and over... and over...

    Or... You can follow my advice, and do it the right way.

    You will feel better, look better, and be better. And you will most likely never have to worry about your weight, because you will be healthy as a whole, and not just a half.

    Why is weighing and logging your food a bad habit? (I don't weigh, by the way, so it's not like I have a dog in that fight). Seriously. Why?

    Weighing your food =/= starving yourself! It just means that you know with a much greater degree of precision how much you are taking in.

    Who said just sit on the couch? I mean, a few people have said exercise isn't necessary to lose weight, and it's true. Most people are saying exercise alone isn't sufficient to lose weight. You're saying it is. (And, just to be clear, I exercise regularly, even if it isn't always "power walking.")

    Why is your way The right way? And if it is, why couldn't I lose weight when I was hitting the gym for a couple hours a day and "not eating too much"? And I'm not the only one.