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What are your unpopular opinions about health / fitness?
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »Cancer is a roll of the dice. Sure there are things you can do environmentally to increase your chances of getting cancer but the basal rate isn't zero. No matter what you do there is a chance that you will get cancer because cancer isn't some disease that you catch, its a chance with every cell division that your cells will layer enough specific mutations into their genomes to go rogue and start dividing without regulation.
Things that are carcinogens either damage cells in a way that they have to be repaired or they need to be replaced (increasing the number of times the cells divide thus increasing the chances of error) or they are things that cause DNA damage or mutation (such as UV radiation or certain mutagens (thus increasing the chance that one of your cells will get those mutations).
There is a reason why most cancer happens in tissues that are constantly replicating to replenish themselves and there is a reason why chemotherapy selectively targets those tissues (things like intestinal lining, hair follicles etc) leading to nausea and hair loss.
Is it possible that certain diets increase your chances of specific types of cancer? Yeah its possible, but there isn't any concrete epidemiological studies that demonstrate that. And either way the chance will never be zero. No matter what your diet is, you can still get cancer.
As for breaking your hip because you eat meat that is just a weird thing to claim. Clearly the cause of a mother breaking bones is related to what cracks their children step on. Its actually a commonly held misconception that stepping on cracks only will break your mother's back, other bones are also at risk.
Omg it's Aaron!2 -
Hi @Aaron_K123 nice to see you back. h2
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »As for breaking your hip because you eat meat that is just a weird thing to claim. Clearly the cause of a mother breaking bones is related to what cracks their children step on. Its actually a commonly held misconception that stepping on cracks only will break your mother's back, other bones are also at risk.
I have missed you so much.
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I am not sold organic food is worth the cost.8
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scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Nutter Butters are my go-to road trip food (although I don't expect to live longer because of it).4 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Wait, what? I thought Swedish Fish contained gelatin?!!?
Signed,
Missing the point entirely
No gelatin!
(But they're still weirdly high in calories -- 150 for just *seven fish*!).4 -
5
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I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.29
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I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)15 -
annaskiski wrote: »I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Really, if you can't learn to listen to your body and intuitively eat just the amount of food you need to maintain there's something wrong with your relationship with food." types of comments in terms of trolling.
But, you're right, those comments annoy the hell out of me because ANY way of managing energy balance is inexact and relies on trial and error, so why post on a calorie counting site that because the CICO calculations can't be spot on the method isn't valid? Especially because it's usually in defense of some type of restrictive eating plan that that works for THEM, but wouldn't suit most people.6 -
annaskiski wrote: »I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Really, if you can't learn to listen to your body and intuitively eat just the amount of food you need to maintain there's something wrong with your relationship with food." types of comments in terms of trolling.
But, you're right, those comments annoy the hell out of me because ANY way of managing energy balance is inexact and relies on trial and error, so why post on a calorie counting site that because the CICO calculations can't be spot on the method isn't valid? Especially because it's usually in defense of some type of restrictive eating plan that that works for THEM, but wouldn't suit most people.
CICO works because it is a balance and balance often works best with averages. No, there is no way you can tell exactly how many calories are in that Granny Smith apple because different growing conditions (even apples from 2 trees growing side by side) will produce an apple that has a little more water or a little more sugar but the average calorie count per 100 grams for a granny smith will be good enough to figure a balance. Same thing for exercise. One day you may burn 200 calories for a 1 mile run and the next day you may burn 210.1 -
annaskiski wrote: »I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Really, if you can't learn to listen to your body and intuitively eat just the amount of food you need to maintain there's something wrong with your relationship with food." types of comments in terms of trolling.
But, you're right, those comments annoy the hell out of me because ANY way of managing energy balance is inexact and relies on trial and error, so why post on a calorie counting site that because the CICO calculations can't be spot on the method isn't valid? Especially because it's usually in defense of some type of restrictive eating plan that that works for THEM, but wouldn't suit most people.
Yup.
And I've also seen it occasionally from people whose secret subtext seemed to be "too inexact to work, which is why I can't lose weight, because it's not even worth trying, boo-hoo, whatever can I do?!?!"
Or maybe I'm just bad at reading secret subtexts.12 -
janejellyroll wrote: »scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Wait, what? I thought Swedish Fish contained gelatin?!!?
Signed,
Missing the point entirely
No gelatin!
(But they're still weirdly high in calories -- 150 for just *seven fish*!).
7? that should be a crime.2 -
annaskiski wrote: »I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Really, if you can't learn to listen to your body and intuitively eat just the amount of food you need to maintain there's something wrong with your relationship with food." types of comments in terms of trolling.
But, you're right, those comments annoy the hell out of me because ANY way of managing energy balance is inexact and relies on trial and error, so why post on a calorie counting site that because the CICO calculations can't be spot on the method isn't valid? Especially because it's usually in defense of some type of restrictive eating plan that that works for THEM, but wouldn't suit most people.
Yup.
And I've also seen it occasionally from people whose secret subtext seemed to be "too inexact to work, which is why I can't lose weight, because it's not even worth trying, boo-hoo, whatever can I do?!?!"
Or maybe I'm just bad at reading secret subtexts.
Agreed. I have to think many who come to these boards who tend to major in the minors, looking for reasons why a simple yet effective energy balance equation is invalidated because they can't measure one side or the other precisely to the tenth of a calorie - is likely looking for a reason to explain why they've not been successful at weight loss, or why it's not worth trying.
And just to be clear - CICO is simple. That doesn't mean to imply that weight loss is easy. But finally realizing that it is just a math equation, and a simple one at that, is liberating for so many people who were convinced that they had to do something special or super restrictive in order to be successful and therefore didn't think it was worth trying in the first place.15 -
WinoGelato wrote: »annaskiski wrote: »I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Really, if you can't learn to listen to your body and intuitively eat just the amount of food you need to maintain there's something wrong with your relationship with food." types of comments in terms of trolling.
But, you're right, those comments annoy the hell out of me because ANY way of managing energy balance is inexact and relies on trial and error, so why post on a calorie counting site that because the CICO calculations can't be spot on the method isn't valid? Especially because it's usually in defense of some type of restrictive eating plan that that works for THEM, but wouldn't suit most people.
Yup.
And I've also seen it occasionally from people whose secret subtext seemed to be "too inexact to work, which is why I can't lose weight, because it's not even worth trying, boo-hoo, whatever can I do?!?!"
Or maybe I'm just bad at reading secret subtexts.
Agreed. I have to think many who come to these boards who tend to major in the minors, looking for reasons why a simple yet effective energy balance equation is invalidated because they can't measure one side or the other precisely to the tenth of a calorie - is likely looking for a reason to explain why they've not been successful at weight loss, or why it's not worth trying.
And just to be clear - CICO is simple. That doesn't mean to imply that weight loss is easy. But finally realizing that it is just a math equation, and a simple one at that, is liberating for so many people who were convinced that they had to do something special or super restrictive in order to be successful and therefore didn't think it was worth trying in the first place.
There are those posters who really are not looking for an answer, they simply want to find a kindred spirit to listen to them and not resolve the underlying issue.
I always hold hope that I'll find a post months later with them realizing that they were in a constant cycle of excuse building and shifted towards personal responsibility.
Principles are fundamentally easy. It's the application of these principles that are hard.17 -
I feel so accomplished reading all 202pgs! I don't even have an unpopular opinion to add, so now what to read? Are we planning on starting another chaptered thread soon...perhaps a sequel?...I must know how cake culture and chili wars end
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Peace occurs when we all dive into a chilli chocolate cheesecake accompanied by a delicious red wine or amber ale. (Non alcoholic drinks always available)
That is my dream. Oh and whipped cream.
Cheers, h.13 -
But... but culture! Could there be a symphony playing in the background while someone recites a poem on the virtues of yogurt? That should be enough!6
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Well yogurt certainly has culture so we have that covered.
We could also add an artist doing an on site mural of the festivities. Everyone at goal weight of course.
Cheers, h.4 -
This discussion has been closed.
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