Weight loss and carbs

brucedelaney

If you can stick to your caloric restriction, quality of food isn't going to be a major factor in weight loss.

However, many people find that higher quality foods tend to help satiate hunger better.

Eating 100 calories worth of broccoli (About 1.5 Cups) is going to be much more filling then 100 calories of pixie sticks. It will also have a much smaller insulin response to your system. The pixie sticks will cause a rapid increase in glucose to which your system will flood you with insulin to lower the glucose in your bloodstream causing you to have a sugar crash, which will make you tired and then also make you crave more sugar as well. This often leads to people having another sugary snack and so on until next thing you know... You've busted your caloric allotment for the day.

This is just one of many examples of how quality of food does make a difference. Even though it's not as direct as some people state that it is.. it can be a big factor for some people.

Personally, I chose to stay away from any grains or added sugars when possible. I get the bulk of my carbs from fruits and veggies. Making this choice does a few things, forces me to eat more proteins and fats to meet my daily caloric needs, lowers my carbs to around 40-50 a day with a decent amount of fiber, allows me eat a large volume of food daily and keeps me on my plan. This is what works for me and works fairly well.

There is no one right mix of macros to lose weight, different people respond differently to carbs as was stated by others earlier. Find the mix that works for you. It's taken me nearly 2 years of up and down yo-yo dieting to figure out my "Magic Formula"

HappyStack

200g carbs * 4 calories per gram = 800 calories. I’ll subtract 100 calories assuming 25 of those 200 were fiber.
200g protein * 4 calories per gram = 800 calories.
40g fat * 9 calories per gram = 360 calories
Total=1860 calories. I’m going to assume that at 5’2” and 120 pounds, her calorie budget is a bit lower than 1860. But, I understand and appreciate what you’re saying. However, 175 net carbs per day IS considered lower carb, especially on a budget of 1860.

Close. I'm actually eating about 1650 at 5'4 and 160lbs (let's say). I make up my carb allowance from what I have left over in terms of calories once I get my protein in.

But I can make it up either way I choose. Tomorrow I might choose to eat more carbs than protein, the next I might choose high fat & high protein, low carb in the form of a box of non-breaded fried chicken. The bit that matters is the deficit.

However, I wouldn't suggest that someone at 5'2 at 120lbs needs a calorie deficit. I'd say go for a mild surplus, and lift weights. Being "pudgy" at those stats is most likely due to a poor LBM to bodyfat ratio (being "skinny fat" - which does NOT happen if you don't watch your macros, it happens if you lose too much weight too quickly and sacrifice too much lean mass, think Biggest Loser contestants vs. what this guy did - http://i.imgur.com/bedjVwj.jpg [BunkMoreland from BB.com, from 400lbs to <200lbs])

psuLemon

Yes because we live in a binary world, you either eat all "junk" or none at all

so then quality of food DOES matter??? which is it???

From a weight loss perspective, it doesn't matter. From a satiety or muscle retention, it does matter. Heck, have you ever heard of the twinkie diet or cookie diet? Both prove the type of calorie doesn't matter for weight loss. Heck, it's the reason you can still have fat loss weight all processed foods.

ACG is right though, the only thing that matters for fat loss is a calorie deficit and that applies to everyone (even those with medical conditions). The approach can be different though based on the variables caused by those conditions. Those with PCOS need a lower carb diet, Celiac can't have gluten and those with hypothyroidism have a lower metabolic rate to start with so they don't follow the standard formulas.