Success with CICO

theyoginurse

Have you had success with CICO (Calories in, calories out) approach? Has it also helped you eat a balanced diet of what you enjoy- with no food off limits as long as it fits in your calories?

PaulaWallaDingDong

I hate to toot my own horn, but *toot toot*

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10613050/clean-eating-calories#latest

And yes, my diet has changed quite a bit. I started off eating all my usual foods, but gradually made swaps as I paid attention to the nutrition tabs, and noticed how unsatisfied I felt with a lot of the high-calorie foods I was cramming i to my calorie goal.

livingleanlivingclean

... That's how everyone loses weight...

Lee_an

Its the only way to lose weight. Having your body burn more cal's then you consume. Even if you're "burning" by siting on the couch lifting the tv remote. The body burns a pretty large amount by just existing.

There is no success if you don't monitor your calorie intake/output.

middlehaitch

Yes, h.

cs2thecox

Absolutely yes.
As far as I can tell, it's the only way that involves really educating yourself about what works for you and your body, rather than relying on some kind of third-party plan that leaves you stranded when it's over.

Good logging is important and eye opening.
And having it all in black and white on a screen in front of you kind of makes it obvious that having 4 drinks at a work event basically cancels out dinner (yep, did that last night) and things like that.
Over time, looking at those numbers helps you see which foods are calorie-hogs but don't necessarily make you feel good, and which foods made you feel a way that made them worth the calories. You come to learn about the compromise between what a food is and how much of it you can have, and things like that. And you don't need an expensive plan or any fads, just the willingness to weigh and log everything you eat (and drink!), and the willingness to look at a screen of numbers and reconcile that to how you feel.

PaulaWallaDingDong

I read this as asking more about the method than the CICO itself. Any diet works so long as it tips the balance in the right direction. Personally, the best thing I ever did was cut out the middle man and just deal with the calories. I don't do well being told what to eat.

cs2thecox

PaulaWallaDingDong wrote: »

I don't do well being told what to eat.

I do too well with that! I can switch off my brain and just do what I'm told without thinking about why it works (or doesn't).
It took about 18 months since I came off my last organised "plan" to figure out what actually works for me and get to where I am now
BUT I finally feel like I have control over my own body. Should've just done MFP a loooong time ago.

Orphia

theyoginurse wrote: »

Have you had success with CICO (Calories in, calories out) approach? Has it also helped you eat a balanced diet of what you enjoy- with no food off limits as long as it fits in your calories?

Yes, that's me exactly. Lost 80 lbs in 12 months, maintaining my goal for 19 months since then.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10523947/11-months-weightloss-then-11-months-maintenance-recomp-with-pics/p1

SnazzIT

What this site is all about

NextPage

As others have said, it is always CICO. The other layers such as low carb, keto, whole food, etc, are just ways of eating that work for people in that, for them, it keeps them in a calorie deficit. For me having adequate protein with every meal is important for satiety while others find higher fat more important. Of course, some folks have health issues that dictate a certain approach. At the end of the day there is no "one true way" of getting there but CICO is simple science.

cwolfman13

theyoginurse wrote: »

Have you had success with CICO (Calories in, calories out) approach? Has it also helped you eat a balanced diet of what you enjoy- with no food off limits as long as it fits in your calories?

If you mean calorie counting...yes. CICO is always in play regardless of what program or diet you follow.

My diet improved quite a bit when I started calorie counting...but yes, I still ate/eat some "junk" here and there...it's just not a lot.

LiftHeavyThings27105

There is something called Flexible Dieting. It is something that I really like and something that I do indeed follow. Now, everyone here knows that I am a creature of habit and that I eat the same things, day in and day out. But, I eat those things because I truly enjoy eating those specific things.

I am not opposed to eating something "crazy" - as long as it fits my nutritional budget. Both, calorically speaking and macroly speaking (yes, just made up two more words....).

For example, the company for which I work will occasionally buy us here in the Winston-Salem, NC Office lunch. Depends on what the others are getting (read: from what restaurant they are ordering). If there is something from the restaurant where my colleague is ordering that I enjoy then I will order, too. If he, however, is ordering from a restaurant where I do not really enjoy eating anything then I pass and eat my stuff. The times that I do order....it is usually around 1,500 Calories so I just adjust that day and/or adjust other days (since I focus on the weekly numbers...as I have stated several times). That keeps my weekly numbers (Calories and Macros) in line with my goals.

thelettermegan

I'm going to to against the grain here and say that while counting calories is good, you might want to get those calories from leafy vegetables, protein and keep off sugar and sugar substitutes as much as possible. Sugar is converted to fat pretty quickly, whereas leafy vegetables and protein has to get processed gently so all the vitamins are absorbed.

Unknown

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Daveacpa2

JerSchmare wrote: »

thelettermegan wrote: »

I'm going to to against the grain here and say that while counting calories is good, you might want to get those calories from leafy vegetables, protein and keep off sugar and sugar substitutes as much as possible. Sugar is converted to fat pretty quickly, whereas leafy vegetables and protein has to get processed gently so all the vitamins are absorbed.

Doesn’t matter.

Does anyone know scientifically if it matters or not, there are a lot of opposing views on this site.

ccruz985

Absolutely. It's the ONLY thing that has worked for me and kept working, consistently.

ccruz985

thelettermegan wrote: »

I'm going to to against the grain here and say that while counting calories is good, you might want to get those calories from leafy vegetables, protein and keep off sugar and sugar substitutes as much as possible. Sugar is converted to fat pretty quickly, whereas leafy vegetables and protein has to get processed gently so all the vitamins are absorbed.

I think this is the greatest part of CICO tbh. You tend to learn what's healthier and start to look for it because if you play your cards right you can eat well, be full, and still have a slice of cake every day (if that's your thing).

IremiaRe

CICO is all there is... and as you lose weight, and your calorie allotment gets smaller, you learn what is really important to you... you figure out what you are willing to eat less of, so that you can have more of the other thing... you learn NOT to eat anything that isn't really great - cause you just don't have the calories to waste on mediocre, anymore.

It takes time, but, eventually you get it figured out. MFP is greatness for that.

sijomial

thelettermegan wrote: »

I'm going to to against the grain here and say that while counting calories is good, you might want to get those calories from leafy vegetables, protein and keep off sugar and sugar substitutes as much as possible. Sugar is converted to fat pretty quickly, whereas leafy vegetables and protein has to get processed gently so all the vitamins are absorbed.

Actually it isn't.
Carbs are rarely stored as fat as your body follows the most efficient pathways and preferentially uses carbs for energy and will sore fat - but of course there's only net storage in a surplus.

Sugar can be used for energy very quickly though - it's why sports nutrition is primarily glucose based.

Sugar substitutes are also a great way for people with a sweet tooth to reduce their calorie intake.

sijomial

theyoginurse wrote: »

Have you had success with CICO (Calories in, calories out) approach? Has it also helped you eat a balanced diet of what you enjoy- with no food off limits as long as it fits in your calories?

My diet didn't need fixing, I just needed to reduce the amount for a while.
Ate the same foods when I got fat, when I maintained at a fat weight, when I was losing weight, when I've been maintaining at the correct weight.

jenilla1

Yes. It works. I've been in maintenance at my goal weight for almost 6 years now...