I've put on 5 pounds in the past 2 weeks....

Mr_Knight

When you don't eat properly first up, in the morning, you'll be sluggish and moody until you do.

This is complete nonsense. I either run 10km or cycle 25-30km virtually every morning before ingesting a single calorie of food, and many others also do their morning workouts in a fasted state.

The morning meal is a modern invention, and the human body absolutely does not need it - the OP's problems have nothing at all to do with this.

Mr_Knight

Your body should only be burning one fuel at a time.

The human body *never* burns only "one fuel at a time".

Euroboss

When you don't eat properly first up, in the morning, you'll be sluggish and moody until you do.

This is complete nonsense. I either run 10km or cycle 25-30km virtually every morning before ingesting a single calorie of food, and many others also do their morning workouts in a fasted state.

The morning meal is a modern invention, and the human body absolutely does not need it - the OP's problems have nothing at all to do with this.

Do you go to work like that? What do you do for a job? Working out isn't something I find particularly mentally taxing and requiring all my faculties.

rml_16

When you don't eat properly first up, in the morning, you'll be sluggish and moody until you do.

This is complete nonsense. I either run 10km or cycle 25-30km virtually every morning before ingesting a single calorie of food, and many others also do their morning workouts in a fasted state.

The morning meal is a modern invention, and the human body absolutely does not need it - the OP's problems have nothing at all to do with this.

Do you go to work like that? What do you do for a job? Working out isn't something I find particularly mentally taxing and requiring all my faculties.

On weekends, I don't eat until noon, at least, even if I work out and do something mentally taxing (I write).

I get to work at 7 and never eat anything until at least 8 or 9, if even then.

Mr_Knight

Do you go to work like that? What do you do for a job? Working out isn't something I find particularly mentally taxing and requiring all my faculties.

I'm a high tech professional, and yes, I do normally go to work without breakfast.

FitCurves444

Oh darling..... I fluctuate so much that I gain 5 pounds overnight.... and then lose it in 2 days..... and then put them back on..... welcome to my world.

amymt10

too much pizza, ice cream, candy, pasta & rice...... need more veggies & fruit

Euroboss

*shrug* ok then non-breakfast people, I guess if you're happy and healthy and feel great then do what works for you.

Do you eat large dinners? How do you wake up not hungry? Are you overweight?

jofjltncb6

*shrug* ok then non-breakfast people, I guess if you're happy and healthy and feel great then do what works for you.

Do you eat large dinners? How do you wake up not hungry? Are you overweight?

Yes, and "large" lunches too. I just wake up...not hungry...or if I am, I just ignore it because lunch isn't *that* far away anyhow. No.

psuLemon

OP, I think the main issue is you are probably miscounting calories, which is very easy when you do not prepare foods. It's not uncommon for pizza restaurants to not follow the recipe and easily put on extra cheese or sauce for good flavor. I would recommend starting to eat more at home.

I don't blame sodium often because I eat 5000mg a day and still lose 1 lb per week. So i wouldn't stress that. Accuracy of logging is truly the key as you can easily miscalculate and lose your deficit.

I would suggest the processed food, even if being counted correctly, means a higher calorie count for less volume and long term energy for Ken. 100 grams of macaroni pasta is 371 calories according to Google, while 100 grams of white sugar is 387. So as posters in this thread have said, it's just calories in vs calories out, right? I could just eat 50 grams of sugar with sauce rather than pasta.. it's the same right?

It's not the same. The energy you'll get from the pasta will last a lot longer, which means your next meal can be lighter and you'll be more effective throughout the gap in-between. My suggestion to Ken (and anyone else) is that cake and pizza and whatever else is fine in moderation, but the vast majority of the calories you're consuming daily should be from long-term energy foods and vegetables. You get to eat more of them too, so you get to tuck into a huge plate of veg, tossed in a little olive oil and seasoned (tastes really good) rather than a small portion of something more calorie dense.

You basically suggest the same thing at the end of your post.

Euroboss, I would highly suggest you do some research on interim fasting. It's well known that timing of nutrition and meal frequency have nothing to do with weight loss (such results in the below NIH study). I understand from a psychological perspective that some people require increase meal frequency, but there have been thousand of MFP members that practice IF with great success. Additionally, the hormone Ghrelin can be suppressed when going longer periods without food. This is why the first week of IF is very difficult because you still are used to the timing of meals. But after the first week, you are used to it and can go long periods without food.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19943985

One more note. I will say the OP can make better food choices for satiety reason and increase protein to improve muscle retention (especially if he is strength training) but poor food choices do not prevent weight loss, mismeasuring does. I end each night with a Klondike bar and I hit all my macro and micronutrient goals

I read that abstract and I've heard of the concept a few times. As I asserted before, I'm not suggesting a correlation physiologically between regular meals and weight loss. No-one that I've been reading tries to do that anymore, it's about developing healthy habits.

Eating regularly means you maintain a blood sugar level that enables you to be more.. relaxed. If you work in a profession where your intellect is required, it's simply not an option to have your brain not working optimally during business hours, which I know for me requires sustenance.

In the study you linked to IF, the subjects are eating:

A period of at least 4 h but not more than 6 h between main meals during the day, i.e. breakfast, lunch and supper, was imposed for both low- and high-MF groups. Supper had to be consumed at least 3 h before bedtime (2 h for snacks in the high-MF group)

So the IF study people are eating breakfast!

However, whatever is happening in a controlled study is not real life. Weight loss and health is a long distance race, not a sprint. We need habits and methods that enable us to lead the lives we want, perform mentally and physically at the levels we can be the best we can be. From my experience, which is supported by many others, regular healthy eating (which means starting the day with food) is the best way to do this. If your calorie intake starts off in the morning, peaks with a big lunch to power you through your day and tapers off with a small dinner.. once you've gotten used to this over some time you'll start waking up hungry! It's a great day when you do, believe me.

Maybe you really don't need to do this, but I would suggest you're an outlier then. It's a bit like saying 'some people never had to attend University and went to get PhDs, so not going to Uni is a valid path'. Well I guess it is then, but for the VAST majority of people you just have do it like everyone else does.. entertaining you're an outlier without spending considerable effort confirming it (i.e. eating regularly for a few months or acing Uni exams without every going to class) is just using the alternate method as an excuse not to do the work down the beaten track.

I've only really learned this about my eating having the long vacation I'm currently on to actually focus on this. While I was working full-time no-one could convince me that I needed to eat in the mornings. The difference in my energy and mental clarity now is astonishing - a real 'why didn't I do this before' moment.

Anyways, sorry for the 'diary shaming' or whatever before, everyone. I'm new here and didn't understand that's something we don't do.

We all agree that there are better food choices that can be made to increase satiety but the law of theromdynamics is what applies. From a fat loss perspective, it takes 3500 calories less to lose 1 lb. That can be from any macro nutrient. Additionally, you assume that 2 slices of pizza doesn't keep you full because of insulin regulation and simple sugars burning fat. I can tell you, I can eat 2 large slices of pizza and a salad and stay full as long as a 12oz steak.


Also, I didn't link IF studies, that was on meal frequency. Go to www.leangains.com to learn more on IF. Also, you are under the assumption that if people go long periods of time without eating they will make poor decisions. I can assure you this is a fallacy. From my experience and from my weight loss journey, i make decisions based on my allowed caloric intake. If i know I am short protein, i try to increase my protein, but if I hit my protein and I want wings or pizza, I go for it. Diet adherence is 100% on the dieter. Some splurge when calories are too low, some have trigger foods but not everyone.

My results have been the same doing IF, 3 meals a day or 7-8 meals a day. Currently, I do 3 meals and 1 snack because it fits my work schedule. I eat when I want and how much but in the end, I eat 2400-2600 calories and about 40% carbs, 30% protein and fats.

firstsip

*shrug* ok then non-breakfast people, I guess if you're happy and healthy and feel great then do what works for you.

Do you eat large dinners? How do you wake up not hungry? Are you overweight?

Generally, or "larger" lunches/dinners then if I split calories among "3 squares" or "5-7."
I don't wake up hungry.
No.

Also, marry me psulemon.

rml_16

*shrug* ok then non-breakfast people, I guess if you're happy and healthy and feel great then do what works for you.

Do you eat large dinners? How do you wake up not hungry? Are you overweight?

I eat about 600 calories at lunch and another 600 for dinner and I'm good. The only time in my life I was ever hungry in the morning, even if I ate nothing the day before, was while I was pregnant.

I am a bit overweight now, but for the vast majority of my life, I was very tiny.

jennijenn01

Try reducing your carb and sugar intake that is usually what helps me when I get stuck. Plus I know its hard, very hard to pass on the Halloween candy but grab a lite yogurt or a suger free fudge pop or pudding cup or jello if you want a snack. I buy a lot of sugar free and reduced carb foods and snacks. I had a set back this past 2 weeks also and gained 6lbs back (dang Halloween candy). But we just gotta keep on trucking! Best of luck to you!

Euroboss

Also, you are under the assumption that if people go long periods of time without eating they will make poor decisions. I can assure you this is a fallacy.

I agree with everything else you're saying, but you're going to maintain that there is no correlation between mental acuity and caloric intake?

peachcats

Not sure why people are dismissing sodium, many times I've stalled for a week or two then dropped ~5+lbs over a couple days when I lowered my sodium and increased my potassium.

Euroboss

This article compares the findings of three studies that explored the role of increased blood glucose in improving memory function for subjects who ate breakfast. An initial improvement in memory function for these subjects was found to correlate with blood glucose concentrations. In subsequent studies, morning fasting was found to adversely affect the ability to recall a word list and a story read aloud, as well as recall items while counting backwards. Failure to eat breakfast did not affect performance on an intelligence test. It was concluded that breakfast consumption preferentially influences tasks requiring aspects of memory. In the case of both word list recall and memory while counting backwards, the decline in performance associated with not eating breakfast was reversed by the consumption of a glucose-supplemented drink. Although a morning fast also affected the ability to recall a story read aloud, the glucose drink did not reverse this decline. It appears that breakfast consumption influences cognition via several mechanisms, including an increase in blood glucose.

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/67/4/772S.short

Other similar studies exploring other effects
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002822305001513
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/nsinf/fnb/2005/00000026/a00202s2/art00004

That's just scratching the surface of the research that has been done on this..

Siansonea

Not sure why people are dismissing sodium, many times I've stalled for a week or two then dropped ~5+lbs over a couple days when I lowered my sodium and increased my potassium.

Well, that's scientific enough for me. :indifferent:

Lleldiranne

Excessive sodium can cause a temporary gain or stall, but since its mechanism is usually water retention and you don't keep gaining more and more water (unless you're eating a TON of sodium, or have some other condition causing edema), it won't mask weight loss for more than a week or so. Also if you have a consistent sodium level, even if it's over the recommended, you've already got the water retained to balance it so it won't make a sudden difference. (There are other reasons to reduce your sodium intake, so I'm not saying it's not a concern, just not for the case of someone consistently gaining/not losing). The 5 pounds in two weeks COULD be sodium, but not if it continues, or if there aren't many changes to sodium intake.


To the OP - You mentioned the candy at work that has been a temptation. I don't know about you, but I can easily get into the munching and eat far more than I realize (and then end up logging only part, and think I'm in a deficit if I'm not). I would suggest moving the candy jar out of your office if you can, or if you share, to the other side of the office/someone else's desk.

In the end, if you are eating at a deficit, you will lose. If you aren't losing, you aren't at a deficit. The most likely culprit is usually inaccurate logging (miscalculating calories in) I noticed 2 cups, 1 each of different brands of skim milk one morning; another meal showed bread and tuna, but not mayonnaise (hey, I often eat canned tuna without mayo, too, but most people don't, so I'm just pointing it out). These could indicate that maybe your logging isn't quite as accurate as you think. Or, maybe you actually are eating like that and you can just laugh at me :laugh:

If you are completely sure you are logging right and still aren't seeing changes, then something is wrong in your calories out calculation. It could be overestimating exercise burn, using too high of an activity setting (so you think you have more base calories than you do) or, rarely a metabolic issue. If you have ruled everything else out, it might be worth it to get your thyroid tested, but I wouldn't do that first. You've gotten some good suggestions about verifying your calories out, so that may be a starting point.

As far as nutrition, I don't think ANYBODY is actually saying it's healthy to eat junk all the time. But it has minimal effect on weight, if all the calorie calculations are accurate. It's more likely inaccurate logging of the calorie dense food (one extra handful of M&Ms could easily be 100 calories, the pizza may not be exact, etc) than the food itself. Eat well for health. Eat at a deficit for loss. The two aren't synonymous, but they also aren't mutually exclusive.

Amberlynnek

I looked at your diary briefly and I'm sure all of these have already been mentioned but you are eating a lot of "crap" food. No fresh veggies, fresh fruits, whole grains, etc. I'm not a follower of clean eating but putting that many processed chemicals into your body on a regular basis is not good. Also fresh veggies and fruits help you naturally flush out your body if you salt is too high. Indulge every once in awhile but add some balance.

MattUFCP90X

I would guess stress

ken_hogan

Thanks again everyone for the advice...I will be cutting back on the sugary junk and eating better and see how it goes...

psuLemon

This article compares the findings of three studies that explored the role of increased blood glucose in improving memory function for subjects who ate breakfast. An initial improvement in memory function for these subjects was found to correlate with blood glucose concentrations. In subsequent studies, morning fasting was found to adversely affect the ability to recall a word list and a story read aloud, as well as recall items while counting backwards. Failure to eat breakfast did not affect performance on an intelligence test. It was concluded that breakfast consumption preferentially influences tasks requiring aspects of memory. In the case of both word list recall and memory while counting backwards, the decline in performance associated with not eating breakfast was reversed by the consumption of a glucose-supplemented drink. Although a morning fast also affected the ability to recall a story read aloud, the glucose drink did not reverse this decline. It appears that breakfast consumption influences cognition via several mechanisms, including an increase in blood glucose.

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/67/4/772S.short

Other similar studies exploring other effects
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002822305001513
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/nsinf/fnb/2005/00000026/a00202s2/art00004

That's just scratching the surface of the research that has been done on this..

I am fully aware of cognitive processing and research on breakfast (which 90% of the research has involved children, not adults). . But we aren't talking about the OP's work ethic. We are mainly discussing why he isn't losing weight. From a weight loss process, breakfast will not improve his weight loss. If the OP feels breakfast will benefit his work, then he should go ahead and eat a better breakfast.

Also, keep one more thing in mind. A lot of these studies don't matter or coincide with the members of these types of forums. For a large part of the forums, we worked under controlled caloric conditions. So while you might have a craving - while the average person might splurge - we can make a better decision based on our food diaries. If I want pizza and can fit it in my diary, I will go ahead and eat pizza or I will do a cost benefit of pizza vs weight loss (pizza usually wins) or I will do an extra workout so I can eat more.

psuLemon

*shrug* ok then non-breakfast people, I guess if you're happy and healthy and feel great then do what works for you.

Do you eat large dinners? How do you wake up not hungry? Are you overweight?

Generally, or "larger" lunches/dinners then if I split calories among "3 squares" or "5-7."
I don't wake up hungry.
No.

Also, marry me psulemon.

:flowerforyou:

jofjltncb6

*shrug* ok then non-breakfast people, I guess if you're happy and healthy and feel great then do what works for you.

Do you eat large dinners? How do you wake up not hungry? Are you overweight?

Generally, or "larger" lunches/dinners then if I split calories among "3 squares" or "5-7."
I don't wake up hungry.
No.

Also, marry me psulemon.

:flowerforyou:

Hey!



It's myfitnesspal, not mydatingpal.

Geesh.

C'mon, people.





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