Question about the QUALITY (not the QUANTITY) of calories

Mcgrawhaha

I don't know what other peoples bodies will do... I only know about mine...

I lost almost 100 pounds in 11 months eating whatever I wanted, within my calorie range. I had donuts, pizza, ice cream, burgers, fries... I had no problems losing, as long as I stayed within my calories!

that is all.

jwdieter

Changing the quality of calories impacts my health and happiness.

Changing the quantity of calories impacts my weight.

WendyTerry420

Would you buy a lamborgini and use the cheapest gas there is? Or would you cherish it and use the premium gas and get oil changes every 3000 miles? Sure, the cheap gas works, but the premium is SO much better and it helps the longevity of the car

No, I would never buy a Lamborghini. Who the hell wants to pay the property taxes on that?

ktsimons

There are a lot responses here so I might have missed someone else bringing up this point but if I ate only the higher calorie, "less healthy" food, I think I would just be so hungry all the time. Fast food etc. has so many calories that I could only eat one meal a day or so to stay within my 1,300 to 1,600 daily limit to lose about a pound a week. Of course there are a lot of high calorie extremely nutritious food that I try to eat very moderately in order to keep the calories down but this post seemed to be focusing on the fast food and sweet choices. I also believe it's calorie in, calorie out but common sense seems to say a diet rich in "empty" calories isn't giving your body much to work with. I guess I go with the philosophy of all things in moderation.

totally this...It is almost IMPOSSIBLE for me to eat enough volume if I choose higher calorie "junk" food. With only 1400 calories to work with a day (I am 5'4" and only have 5 more pounds to loose) one Wendy's single with cheese and a small fry is nearly HALF of my calorie allotment for a 24 hour period. I would be really very hungry if I ate that on a daily basis.

So here's the question: where does a grilled chicken sandwich and side salad fall on the spectrum of "healthy" vs "junk" if it comes from McDonald's?

I have a diagnosed allergy to wheat, so if I threw away the bun, made a decent salad dressing choice (or only ate half the packet, but had the regular stuff) and put the chicken on the salad, then it would be a fine choice. I try to keep my meals to 400 or less and my snacks to 250 or less and hit my calorie goals without going over...

rybo

From personal experience I can manipulate my weight by adjusting calories whether I am eating junk or "healthy" foods.

BUT also from personal experience I feel 100x better when eating real food. The bulk of which being whole fruit, veggies, rice, meats, fish etc.

jonnythan

I have a diagnosed allergy to wheat, so if I threw away the bun, made a decent salad dressing choice (or only ate half the packet, but had the regular stuff) and put the chicken on the salad, then it would be a fine choice. I try to keep my meals to 400 or less and my snacks to 250 or less and hit my calorie goals without going over...

This is what separates you from the crazy people.

paleojoe

Why do these questions always ignore macronutrients?

There is no such thing as calorie "quality."

The only things that matter are NUTRIENTS. There is no "healthy" food or "unhealthy" food. Nutrients are nutrients no matter what food they come from.

I think MICROnutrients are more commonly overlooked.

I think micronutrients are overemphasized, actually. Macronutrients are far more critical to pay attention to. Insufficient micronutrient intake is exceedingly rare and usually caused by a medical disorder.

I agree... a multi-vitamin and some variety with food takes care of micros IMO...

zyxst

Mostly in to find later tonight when I'm bored.

EMSchell2009

OK, here goes. The first time that I tried to lose weight, I tried the calories in calories out method. I ate pretty much whatever I wanted. It was a step for me. I learned about portion control. This time I made some drastic changes to the quality of my calories. The first major change was that I attempted to go vegan. While this is a brilliant idea for some and I really truly feel for the animals in cruel situations, it became almost impossible when I found out I have a gluten intolerance. Also extremely early on I declared war on two major ingredients in "gotta have it now" foods; high fructose corn syrup and monosodium glutamate. I do not have anything in my home that contains these two not-foods. As a result I make almost everything from scratch. This has caused an unexpected side effect, I am tons more aware of what goes in my mouth.

There are several physical things that I have noticed with the major overhaul to my eating. First off, I was told that I had arthritis at an extremely young age. I have hurt every day since I was six years old. In the last three months I can honestly say that I do not hurt anymore. This is probably a side effect of the gluten intolerance, but it is certainly noteworthy. Secondly, over the course of the last six years or so I have felt sick pretty much constantly. Right up until I made the changes to "clean" living. I feel good nearly every day. I felt better even BEFORE I went gluten free due to the gluten intolerance. Now I feel amazing every day. I also had thyroid problems that my doctor wanted to medicate. I asked my doctor to give me six months so I could see if some basic changes could keep me off drugs with nasty side effects. When I returned a few weeks ago there were no signs of thyroid issues at all.

Now for the weight loss. I have noticed that my weight loss has been far more consistent this time with fewer plateaus and other pitfalls when I eat as "clean" as possible. The difference in weight-loss despite this I must admit is negligible; with this one minor exception, when I eat clean, I am able to eat more before I reach my calorie goal and I feel full longer.

Personally, I believe that eating a diet of quality calories has a far reaching positive side that far outweighs any negative side. I feel that while the effect on weight loss itself may be small, it's effect on the overall health and well being of our families and ourselves is huge. I also feel that the far reaching social impact of buying products that are handled properly and do not have the nutrients processed out of them is important. If the consumer does not put their money where there mouth is, we will continue to be fed crap and not only our generation, but our children's will suffer.

SLLRunner

Would you buy a lamborgini and use the cheapest gas there is? Or would you cherish it and use the premium gas and get oil changes every 3000 miles? Sure, the cheap gas works, but the premium is SO much better and it helps the longevity of the car

Just a bad analogy. Who decides which calories are the premium gas, and which are the regular unleaded gas? Wouldn't you consider a pro level athlete more towards the Lambo end of cars, and they fuel themselves with much different food than the normal person? Wouldn't you use like a honda accord as an example, it runs the same off of all levels of gas, if you are putting the higher stuff in you are just wasting your money? Also a Lambo needs it's oil changed every 7500 miles.

I agree.

Mcgrawhaha

well, im more of a ford excursion v-10... I run just as good with the cheap stuff... whether its premium or not, im still only getting 8 miles to the gallon...

jonnythan

well, im more of a ford excursion v-10... I run just as good with the cheap stuff... whether its premium or not, im still only getting 8 miles to the gallon...

You actually get FEWER mpg with premium gasoline. Not a big difference, but it's measurable.

WendyTerry420

From personal experience I can manipulate my weight by adjusting calories whether I am eating junk or "healthy" foods.

BUT also from personal experience I feel 100x better when eating real food. The bulk of which being whole fruit, veggies, rice, meats, fish etc.

As a kid I used to eat pretend food from miniature Tupperware. It no longer satiates, and I forgot what it even tastes like. Real food FTW.

firstsip

Would you buy a lamborgini and use the cheapest gas there is? Or would you cherish it and use the premium gas and get oil changes every 3000 miles? Sure, the cheap gas works, but the premium is SO much better and it helps the longevity of the car

Just a bad analogy. Who decides which calories are the premium gas, and which are the regular unleaded gas? Wouldn't you consider a pro level athlete more towards the Lambo end of cars, and they fuel themselves with much different food than the normal person? Wouldn't you use like a honda accord as an example, it runs the same off of all levels of gas, if you are putting the higher stuff in you are just wasting your money? Also a Lambo needs it's oil changed every 7500 miles.

Chad Johnson/Ochocinco was, in his day, one of the elite NFL WRs. He ate McDonald's every day on his way to practice. The "cheap gas" seemed to work just fine for him.

I agree, this is not a good analogy. Your body is more like a Mr. Fusion and runs on pretty much anything as long as the constituents it needs are there. Evolution rewarded that ability handsomely.

Michael Phelps is an elite athlete, and this is what he eats:
Breakfast: Three fried-egg sandwiches loaded with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions and mayonnaise. Two cups of coffee. One five-egg omelet. One bowl of grits. Three slices of French toast topped with powdered sugar. Three chocolate-chip pancakes.

Lunch: One pound of enriched pasta. Two large ham and cheese sandwiches with mayo on white bread. Energy drinks packing 1,000 calories.

Dinner: One pound of pasta. An entire pizza. More energy drinks.

That *kitten*.

The_Enginerd

well, im more of a ford excursion v-10... I run just as good with the cheap stuff... whether its premium or not, im still only getting 8 miles to the gallon...

You actually get FEWER mpg with premium gasoline. Not a big difference, but it's measurable.

It does depend on the vehicle. Modern turbo vehicles that can run on regular unleaded get better mileage on premium. I'd imagine it's because the car has to run so rich to cool the charge and retard ignition timing to prevent detonation with the lower octane gas.

Quieau

There is still more we don't know about medical science than what we do know. I found out in my LATE 40S that fruits/veggies/nuts/whole grains are toxic to my body (hyperoxaluria) and that carbs/sugar are my medicine that make me feel great (porphyria) ... after decades of punishing my body and putting it through hell trying to conform to what the doctors said was best!

That said, micronutrients and macronutrients are food; MSG and other additives are NOT food and do not belong in our diet. While they may not affect the caloric burn, they do affect many of the other issues around eating and weight, and are best avoided entirely if not minimized severely. (MSGTruth.org)

There is no ONE formula for every body, for neither weight loss nor for "good health."

jonnythan

You should look up what MSG actually is. It is a food. Glutamate is an amino acid. MSG provides calories. Not a lot because there isn't that much in any food, but it is essentially protein.

mmapags

Same weight loss, but you will lose more muscle mass eating just the junk

Oh really? Do tell how this magical loss of muscle mass takes place if macros are held constant. Any how do you define "junk".