To salt or not to salt?

humblejetsetter
humblejetsetter Posts: 4 Member
in Food and Nutrition
How bad is sodium? Let’s say I stay consistently under my calorie goal of 1500, but add a significant amount of cholula hot sauce. Does it affect actual weight loss or just adds to water retention? I noticed I am much more satisfies me with adding hot sauce to my meals. Probably eat about 4,0000 MG of salt a day. I feel much more satisfied. Staying under my carbs and fat. What is your experience with salt?

Replies

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,384 Member
    edited April 2023
    4000 is fine, especially if it helps you stay motivated and reach your goals, unless of course you have health reasons that say otherwise. imo.

  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 2,303 Member
    Cholula?
    Free pass….
  • humblejetsetter
    humblejetsetter Posts: 4 Member
    Good point. That's what I was thinking. The satisfaction is so much greater when adding salt. Back in 2015 when I lost 100 lbs I utilized salt to my advantage. Doing it again makes sense, as I'm down 25 lbs now.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,384 Member
    tomcustombuilder wrote: »
    Cholula?
    Free pass….

    I hear that.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,148 Member
    Calories are the direct factor for fat loss. Sodium may increase water retention. Both fat and water are part of body weight, but mostly it's the fat we care about when we say we want to lose weight, right?

    There are some health conditions that may make it a bad plan to eat large amounts of sodium/salt. There are also some health risks correlated with high salt/sodium intake. If you don't have the relevant health conditions, and aren't worried about the health risk increases, then don't worry about your salt/sodium intake.

    I don't log all my added salt, but do add it; and I eat quite a few high-sodium foods (things like salsa, hot sauce, miso, sauerkraut, chili sauce, black vinegar, pickles, . . . etc.). I don't know how much sodium I consume, but I'm sure it's well over the recommended levels most days. I lost weight fine, I maintain a healthy weight since loss just fine, my blood pressure is in the normal range, etc.

    But it's an individual decision from a health risk standpoint. It won't affect your fat loss.
  • humblejetsetter
    humblejetsetter Posts: 4 Member
    Thanks for the replies. Definitely better hot sauces than cholula. Haha! Adding salt adds satisfaction to my meals. Good to know it shouldn’t affect my weight loss.
  • SafariGalNYC
    SafariGalNYC Posts: 1,702 Member
    edited May 2023
    I love sea salt and hot sauce! However….

    I try to limit sodium though as much as possible.. some salt here and there I don’t worry about but I do worry about long term cumulative effects of too much sodium. When I can use herbs or Dulse instead of salt I do. I don’t have a problem with salt.. but I don’t want one either 20 years from now.

    Ps- check out Lola’s Trinidad 🦂 Scorpion hot sauce… .. 1/10th the sodium of cholula and tastes amazing! (IMHO)

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