IIFYM Not a diet?

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Replies

  • FredDoyle
    FredDoyle Posts: 2,273 Member
    The forums here are the so ****ing dumb.
    Welcome to MFP :flowerforyou:
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    I have a couple of legit question for the IIFYMers...

    Is there an "ideal" macro target for fat loss? At the end of each day, does it all have to be 100% on point, or is there some wiggle room?

    Fat loss is a combination of weight loss and lean mass preservation.

    Weight loss is about calorie deficit. Period.

    Lean mass preservation is about adequate protein intake, progressive resistance training, a calorie deficit that's not too high, and rest.

    So for optimal fat loss, you need a moderate calorie deficit, high protein intake (1-1.4 grams per lb of lean mass), and progressive resistance training. For fat loss the rest doesn't really matter. You want to get 4+ servings of fruits and veggies a day for general health, and you want adequate fat (for neurological and hormone function) and fiber (for vascular and digestive health) intake for your health's sake.
  • AlyRoseNYC
    AlyRoseNYC Posts: 1,075 Member
    I have a couple of legit question for the IIFYMers...

    Is there an "ideal" macro target for fat loss? At the end of each day, does it all have to be 100% on point, or is there some wiggle room?

    Fat loss is a combination of weight loss and lean mass preservation.

    Weight loss is about calorie deficit. Period.

    Lean mass preservation is about adequate protein intake, progressive resistance training, a calorie deficit that's not too high, and rest.

    So for optimal fat loss, you need a moderate calorie deficit, high protein intake (1-1.4 grams per lb of lean mass), and progressive resistance training. For fat loss the rest doesn't really matter. You want to get 4+ servings of fruits and veggies a day for general health, and you want adequate fat (for neurological and hormone function) and fiber (for vascular and digestive health) intake for your health's sake.

    THANKS for the detailed reply! I really don't want to lose any muscle, so I will definitely be paying attention to protein more than I have been.
  • DamePiglet
    DamePiglet Posts: 3,730 Member
    I have a couple of legit question for the IIFYMers...

    Is there an "ideal" macro target for fat loss? At the end of each day, does it all have to be 100% on point, or is there some wiggle room?

    Fat loss is a combination of weight loss and lean mass preservation.

    Weight loss is about calorie deficit. Period.

    Lean mass preservation is about adequate protein intake, progressive resistance training, a calorie deficit that's not too high, and rest.

    So for optimal fat loss, you need a moderate calorie deficit, high protein intake (1-1.4 grams per lb of lean mass), and progressive resistance training. For fat loss the rest doesn't really matter. You want to get 4+ servings of fruits and veggies a day for general health, and you want adequate fat (for neurological and hormone function) and fiber (for vascular and digestive health) intake for your health's sake.

    THANKS for the detailed reply! I really don't want to lose any muscle, so I will definitely be paying attention to protein more than I have been.

    I do believe that you two just saved this otherwise going up in flames thread (if only for a few minutes).
    Nice job!
  • mschicagocubs
    mschicagocubs Posts: 774 Member
    This forum .... :noway:
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    I'll watch the video after I'm done eating ice cream and snickers bars for dinner....oh wait...

    You're diary says you had chicken and brown rice for dinner. But this kind of post is what makes so many people think that the IIFYM diet is just eating whatever crap you want.

    The only people who believe that are people who choose to believe that. No one with a shred of intellectual honesty actually believes that. It's a phenomena among people who want to hate on IIFYM, end of story. It does not exist outside of those people.

    If you say so.

    I'm not going to say that that's ALWAYS the case, but it happens. There was one of these threads where one of the anti-IIFYM regulars admitted as much.
  • RhineDHP
    RhineDHP Posts: 1,025 Member
    Probably one of the most amazing but misunderstood concepts circulating among bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts in general, is IIFYM.

    What started as a phrase from a user named Erik Stevens on bodybuilding.com, quickly caught on and proceeded to cause an uproar of internet stupidity everywhere.


    IIFYM stands for "If It Fits Your Macros" and it was originally phrased on the bb.com forums as a fast way to respond to the overwhelming number of questions about whether or not someone could eat a particular food item without having to worry about getting fat, or not gaining muscle, or (insert other negative effect).

    Here are some examples of the questions that would come up: "Hey can I eat fruit on a cut?" "Hey is it okay for me to have oatmeal?" "Hey I had a cookie but I still stayed at my calorie and macro goals, is that okay or will that hurt my progress?" (The answer being "Yes, you can eat it if it fits your macros").

    IIFYM literally means to hit your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day choosing foods that you enjoy eating. The concept is completely bastardized because idiots across the internet continually come up with scenarios that don't exist in real life, to try and blow a hole in the idea that IIFYM is a sound practice.

    Here are some examples of the strawmen arguments that show up in an attempt to discredit IIFYM: "You're telling me you can just eat straight table sugar for your carbs, and drink olive oil for your fat, and use whey protein and you'll have a good physique?". "Hey have fun eating pizza and donuts all day". "Brb just eating cake, IIFYM".

    Good luck with that. (You'll note that you typically can't hit your macros eating chips and donuts all day and if you CAN, your macros are probably horsesh*t to begin with and you've then got bigger problems. The point here is that IIFYM most certainly isn't a disregard for health or nutrient sufficiency, but people will often create and knock down that strawman).

    What IIFYM is not:

    1) It is not eating cake and chips all day.
    2) It is not disregarding micronutrients and fiber and general intelligence with regards to food choice.
    3) It is not a specific macro setting. There is a website out there that has the IIFYM label that includes a calorie calculation tool and unfortunately several people on MFP believe that doing "IIFYM" means eating those specific macros. This is false.


    IIFYM is a philosophy about food selection with the belief that body composition changes are primarily a function of nutrient intake and energy balance rather than a function of individual food sources.


    When practicing IIFYM, it is recommended that you choose mostly whole and nutrient dense foods to comprise the majority of your intake. Fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, etc, and at the same time, leaving some room for a discretionary intake. A common and very reasonable recommendation would be about 80/20. That is to say, that if you've got a calorie target of 2500, you'd eat approximately 2000 calories of whole and nutrient dense foods with a calorie bank of 500 to eat whatever you would like while still hitting your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day


    Source:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym


    facts.gif

    tumblr_mt80mvKYGn1rqfhi2o1_500.gif
  • Morgaath
    Morgaath Posts: 679 Member
    PS.

    "IF IT FITS IT FITS>>> AND IT FITS"



    POCKET MUFFIN!!!!!

    those of you who know- you know. ;)

    Fair enough - we've arrived at the same conclusion via different paths - IIFYM = diet.

    Also I was getting my definition from the Oxford dictionary - 'Restrict oneself to small amounts or special kinds of food in order to lose weight:' -sorry I know it can be a bit limiting

    http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/diet

    Definition of Diet
    Syllabification: di·et
    Pronunciation: /ˈdī-it /
    NOUN

    1 The kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats:
    ... a vegetarian diet
    ... a specialist in diet
    MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES
    ... The calming, sattvic temperament accruing from a vegetarian diet is reflected in animals.
    ... Some land was tilled, mainly for the cultivation of oats that formed a staple part of the diet of the settler community.
    ... And we get residues of the hormones in those foods, so if you are going to eat, I recommend reducing animal foods in the diet.
    SYNONYMS
    1.1 A regular occupation or series of activities in which one participates:
    ... a healthy diet of classical music
    MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES
    ... I confess that I've not made it part of my regular blog diet, but I think I may.
    ... Even the best-fed consumers have only four to five ‘kitchens’ dishing up their regular news diet.
    ... It seems that for many average internet users, blogs still merely provide an information supplement at some specific times, rather than a regular news diet.

    2 A special course of food to which one restricts oneself, either to lose weight or for medical reasons:
    ... I’m going on a diet
    MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES
    ... Handouts are available in English and Spanish on topics such as weight control, diets to lose weight, and exercise programs.
    ... Some people do lose weight on low-carb diets, but the weight loss probably isn't related to blood sugar and insulin levels.
    ... It may be more important to stick to a diet and lose weight than to worry about the moral implications of the food you eat.
  • trojan_bb
    trojan_bb Posts: 699 Member
    IIFYM is "eat whatever you want..... as long as it fits your nutrient goals."

    That's the point. It's not a diet. It's a nutrient partitioning strategy around which you create your own diet. The power of IIFYM is that it lets you hit those nutrient goals with any food you see fit. Almost any particular diet can be adapted to IIFYM or followed with IIFYM strategies.

    You are restricting your calorie in-take therefore it's a diet.

    A very good one that works for a lot of people - but don't delude yourself it's a diet.

    A diet has nothing to do with calorie restriction or surplus. A diet is the sum of food consumed by a person. In the context of fitness, it's a predefined or 'guided' sum.


    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.
  • bc2ct
    bc2ct Posts: 222 Member
    Everything you need to know about IIFYM - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeOh18mWWzg
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.

    From FreeDictionary...

    Diet: a regulated selection of foods, as for medical reasons or cosmetic weight loss.

    alternately (Miriam Webster)...

    Diet: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason.

    or (Oxford)...

    Diet: A special course of food to which a person restricts themselves, either to lose weight or for medical reasons

    The act of setting macro limits is what makes IIFYM - however it is individually practiced - a diet.

    Food restriction is food restriction.
  • trojan_bb
    trojan_bb Posts: 699 Member
    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.

    Diet: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself.

    alternately

    Diet: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason.

    or

    Diet: A special course of food to which a person restricts themselves, either to lose weight or for medical reasons

    The act of setting macro limits is what makes IIFYM - however it is individually practiced - a diet.

    Food restriction is food restriction.

    Read those definitions more carefully. The diet is the sum of food consumed. The course, kind, and amount of food. IIFYM has none of that (except calorie amount, which does not make a diet according to the definitions). Merely a restriction. The restriction is not the diet. It's the purpose.
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.

    Diet: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself.

    alternately

    Diet: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason.

    The act of setting macro limits is what makes IIFYM - however it is individually practiced - a diet.

    Food restriction is food restriction.

    Except one can bulk on IIFYM. (Stating this again, for the nth time) and the calorie restriction itself isn't IIFYM.
    At 3400 cals during a bulk, following IIFYM I'm not restricting.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.

    Diet: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself.

    alternately

    Diet: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason.

    The act of setting macro limits is what makes IIFYM - however it is individually practiced - a diet.

    Food restriction is food restriction.

    Except one can bulk on IIFYM. (Stating this again, for the nth time) and the calorie restriction itself isn't IIFYM.
    At 3400 cals during a bulk, following IIFYM I'm not restricting.

    "Restriction" is ambivalent on direction - having to eat more than a number is as much a restriction as having to eat less than a number. Dieting to bulk is still dieting.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
    I may have missed it, but is IIFYM a diet?

    Just kidding.

    It's not a diet. It's a lifestyle.............. focused solely on .... diet.

    Aren't all foodways a lifestyle?
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
    Probably one of the most amazing but misunderstood concepts circulating among bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts in general, is IIFYM.

    What started as a phrase from a user named Erik Stevens on bodybuilding.com, quickly caught on and proceeded to cause an uproar of internet stupidity everywhere.


    IIFYM stands for "If It Fits Your Macros" and it was originally phrased on the bb.com forums as a fast way to respond to the overwhelming number of questions about whether or not someone could eat a particular food item without having to worry about getting fat, or not gaining muscle, or (insert other negative effect).

    Here are some examples of the questions that would come up: "Hey can I eat fruit on a cut?" "Hey is it okay for me to have oatmeal?" "Hey I had a cookie but I still stayed at my calorie and macro goals, is that okay or will that hurt my progress?" (The answer being "Yes, you can eat it if it fits your macros").

    IIFYM literally means to hit your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day choosing foods that you enjoy eating. The concept is completely bastardized because idiots across the internet continually come up with scenarios that don't exist in real life, to try and blow a hole in the idea that IIFYM is a sound practice.

    Here are some examples of the strawmen arguments that show up in an attempt to discredit IIFYM: "You're telling me you can just eat straight table sugar for your carbs, and drink olive oil for your fat, and use whey protein and you'll have a good physique?". "Hey have fun eating pizza and donuts all day". "Brb just eating cake, IIFYM".

    Good luck with that. (You'll note that you typically can't hit your macros eating chips and donuts all day and if you CAN, your macros are probably horsesh*t to begin with and you've then got bigger problems. The point here is that IIFYM most certainly isn't a disregard for health or nutrient sufficiency, but people will often create and knock down that strawman).

    What IIFYM is not:

    1) It is not eating cake and chips all day.
    2) It is not disregarding micronutrients and fiber and general intelligence with regards to food choice.
    3) It is not a specific macro setting. There is a website out there that has the IIFYM label that includes a calorie calculation tool and unfortunately several people on MFP believe that doing "IIFYM" means eating those specific macros. This is false.


    IIFYM is a philosophy about food selection with the belief that body composition changes are primarily a function of nutrient intake and energy balance rather than a function of individual food sources.


    When practicing IIFYM, it is recommended that you choose mostly whole and nutrient dense foods to comprise the majority of your intake. Fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, etc, and at the same time, leaving some room for a discretionary intake. A common and very reasonable recommendation would be about 80/20. That is to say, that if you've got a calorie target of 2500, you'd eat approximately 2000 calories of whole and nutrient dense foods with a calorie bank of 500 to eat whatever you would like while still hitting your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day


    Source:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

    I'm reading that in my SideSteel voice. Love his edge.
  • mantium999
    mantium999 Posts: 1,490 Member
    Probably one of the most amazing but misunderstood concepts circulating among bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts in general, is IIFYM.

    What started as a phrase from a user named Erik Stevens on bodybuilding.com, quickly caught on and proceeded to cause an uproar of internet stupidity everywhere.


    IIFYM stands for "If It Fits Your Macros" and it was originally phrased on the bb.com forums as a fast way to respond to the overwhelming number of questions about whether or not someone could eat a particular food item without having to worry about getting fat, or not gaining muscle, or (insert other negative effect).

    Here are some examples of the questions that would come up: "Hey can I eat fruit on a cut?" "Hey is it okay for me to have oatmeal?" "Hey I had a cookie but I still stayed at my calorie and macro goals, is that okay or will that hurt my progress?" (The answer being "Yes, you can eat it if it fits your macros").

    IIFYM literally means to hit your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day choosing foods that you enjoy eating. The concept is completely bastardized because idiots across the internet continually come up with scenarios that don't exist in real life, to try and blow a hole in the idea that IIFYM is a sound practice.

    Here are some examples of the strawmen arguments that show up in an attempt to discredit IIFYM: "You're telling me you can just eat straight table sugar for your carbs, and drink olive oil for your fat, and use whey protein and you'll have a good physique?". "Hey have fun eating pizza and donuts all day". "Brb just eating cake, IIFYM".

    Good luck with that. (You'll note that you typically can't hit your macros eating chips and donuts all day and if you CAN, your macros are probably horsesh*t to begin with and you've then got bigger problems. The point here is that IIFYM most certainly isn't a disregard for health or nutrient sufficiency, but people will often create and knock down that strawman).

    What IIFYM is not:

    1) It is not eating cake and chips all day.
    2) It is not disregarding micronutrients and fiber and general intelligence with regards to food choice.
    3) It is not a specific macro setting. There is a website out there that has the IIFYM label that includes a calorie calculation tool and unfortunately several people on MFP believe that doing "IIFYM" means eating those specific macros. This is false.


    IIFYM is a philosophy about food selection with the belief that body composition changes are primarily a function of nutrient intake and energy balance rather than a function of individual food sources.


    When practicing IIFYM, it is recommended that you choose mostly whole and nutrient dense foods to comprise the majority of your intake. Fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, etc, and at the same time, leaving some room for a discretionary intake. A common and very reasonable recommendation would be about 80/20. That is to say, that if you've got a calorie target of 2500, you'd eat approximately 2000 calories of whole and nutrient dense foods with a calorie bank of 500 to eat whatever you would like while still hitting your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day


    Source:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

    I'm reading that in my SideSteel voice. Love his edge.

    12 pages and this, really, is all that is needed to be said. But internet arguing over symantics and negligible variables always supercedes logic and reason.
  • BrainyBurro
    BrainyBurro Posts: 6,129 Member
    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.

    Diet: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself.

    alternately

    Diet: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason.

    The act of setting macro limits is what makes IIFYM - however it is individually practiced - a diet.

    Food restriction is food restriction.

    Except one can bulk on IIFYM. (Stating this again, for the nth time) and the calorie restriction itself isn't IIFYM.
    At 3400 cals during a bulk, following IIFYM I'm not restricting.

    and this is why the obligatory 80%/20% advice always irks me a little bit. for certain people (i.e. bodybuilders), it's probably fine advice, but for somebody eating 3500 calories a day, you really don't have to eat 2800 calories of nothing but whole, "clean" foods in order to meet your nutritional needs. so i never quote this 80%/20% rule because it's more of a rule for people in certain scenarios, but not a rule that everyone must follow. i think it's sufficient to say "eat a varied diet".
  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
    and this is why the obligatory 80%/20% advice always irks me a little bit. for certain people (i.e. bodybuilders), it's probably fine advice, but for somebody eating 3500 calories a day, you really don't have to eat 2800 calories of nothing but whole, "clean" foods in order to meet your nutritional needs. so i never quote this 80%/20% rule because it's more of a rule for people in certain scenarios, but not a rule that everyone must follow. i think it's sufficient to say "eat a varied diet".

    I agree. I hit can hit my micros and fiber goal at under the 1,000 calorie mark.
  • knra_grl
    knra_grl Posts: 1,566 Member
    Probably one of the most amazing but misunderstood concepts circulating among bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts in general, is IIFYM.

    What started as a phrase from a user named Erik Stevens on bodybuilding.com, quickly caught on and proceeded to cause an uproar of internet stupidity everywhere.


    IIFYM stands for "If It Fits Your Macros" and it was originally phrased on the bb.com forums as a fast way to respond to the overwhelming number of questions about whether or not someone could eat a particular food item without having to worry about getting fat, or not gaining muscle, or (insert other negative effect).

    Here are some examples of the questions that would come up: "Hey can I eat fruit on a cut?" "Hey is it okay for me to have oatmeal?" "Hey I had a cookie but I still stayed at my calorie and macro goals, is that okay or will that hurt my progress?" (The answer being "Yes, you can eat it if it fits your macros").

    IIFYM literally means to hit your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day choosing foods that you enjoy eating. The concept is completely bastardized because idiots across the internet continually come up with scenarios that don't exist in real life, to try and blow a hole in the idea that IIFYM is a sound practice.

    Here are some examples of the strawmen arguments that show up in an attempt to discredit IIFYM: "You're telling me you can just eat straight table sugar for your carbs, and drink olive oil for your fat, and use whey protein and you'll have a good physique?". "Hey have fun eating pizza and donuts all day". "Brb just eating cake, IIFYM".

    Good luck with that. (You'll note that you typically can't hit your macros eating chips and donuts all day and if you CAN, your macros are probably horsesh*t to begin with and you've then got bigger problems. The point here is that IIFYM most certainly isn't a disregard for health or nutrient sufficiency, but people will often create and knock down that strawman).

    What IIFYM is not:

    1) It is not eating cake and chips all day.
    2) It is not disregarding micronutrients and fiber and general intelligence with regards to food choice.
    3) It is not a specific macro setting. There is a website out there that has the IIFYM label that includes a calorie calculation tool and unfortunately several people on MFP believe that doing "IIFYM" means eating those specific macros. This is false.


    IIFYM is a philosophy about food selection with the belief that body composition changes are primarily a function of nutrient intake and energy balance rather than a function of individual food sources.


    When practicing IIFYM, it is recommended that you choose mostly whole and nutrient dense foods to comprise the majority of your intake. Fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, etc, and at the same time, leaving some room for a discretionary intake. A common and very reasonable recommendation would be about 80/20. That is to say, that if you've got a calorie target of 2500, you'd eat approximately 2000 calories of whole and nutrient dense foods with a calorie bank of 500 to eat whatever you would like while still hitting your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day


    Source:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

    I'm reading that in my SideSteel voice. Love his edge.

    12 pages and this, really, is all that is needed to be said. But internet arguing over symantics and negligible variables always supercedes logic and reason.

    Pretty much sums it up for me :flowerforyou:
  • DamePiglet
    DamePiglet Posts: 3,730 Member
    IIFYM is not a diet. It's a way to structure a diet. Just like Intermittent Fasting.

    Diet: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself.

    alternately

    Diet: the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason.

    The act of setting macro limits is what makes IIFYM - however it is individually practiced - a diet.

    Food restriction is food restriction.

    Except one can bulk on IIFYM. (Stating this again, for the nth time) and the calorie restriction itself isn't IIFYM.
    At 3400 cals during a bulk, following IIFYM I'm not restricting.

    and this is why the obligatory 80%/20% advice always irks me a little bit. for certain people (i.e. bodybuilders), it's probably fine advice, but for somebody eating 3500 calories a day, you really don't have to eat 2800 calories of nothing but whole, "clean" foods in order to meet your nutritional needs. so i never quote this 80%/20% rule because it's more of a rule for people in certain scenarios, but not a rule that everyone must follow. i think it's sufficient to say "eat a varied diet".

    I'm glad to read this. I wondered if if was the only one who felt this way. Many nutrient-dense foods (micros & protein, for example) really aren't that calorie dense.
    This is one reason that I don't describe myself as truly "IIFYM"
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    Interesting interview arguing that IIFYM was spun out of control and doesnt actually mean IIFYM eat whatever you want. Thoughts?

    For sedentary folks, it pretty much is "eat anything that fits".

    The more active you are, the more attention needs to be paid to the actual content of the food.

    Huh??
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    daaaamn you beat me to it. yes. if chocolate cake is your vice, and you desperately need to have it every day, and if having it every day will help you eat whole foods and stay on track, then by all means chow down.

    for the average person looking to lose weight it's about sustainability to reach a healthier place than they're currently at.

    my philosophy has always been that. I just ALSO feel that once you reach a certain point, your health/weight/body fat % will stall unless you get more meticulous. Most people aren't interested in moving beyond that plateau, and they don't need to be. I'm talking about athletic, extremely active people looking to perform at an (dare I say it) elite level.

    I'm not there yet, and I want to be.

    I want chocolate everyday and add it to my diary when I prelog before I log my lunch and dinner....

    I have yet to stall...ever...5lbs from maintenance...potentially 11lbs from BF% goals...

    Not sure I follow your logic...

    right. I'm talking about BEYOND those goals. are you an athlete? would you consider your athletic performance "elite"?

    Sara's performance is absolutely elite.

    I know a few elite athletes, and you would consider their diets extremely unclean. Fast food, cake and cookies, etc., pretty much every day.

    I would assume that some NFL lineman and linebackers are not eating all too clean and I would qualify them as "elite" athletes....

    who die at 45. yeah... not a great argument.

    Ok - you try being 250 pounds and run a 40 in 4.8 seconds flat…if that is not elite then I do not know what is..

    and deacon jones lived to be mid 50s to early 60's …dan diedorf (SP) was an offensive lineman and he is still alive..

    so yea, not believing that one...
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member


    As it was specified earlier, you can not make indulgent foods fit your macros if you do not eat at 80% of your diet in whole foods. That is going to be at least 4 servings a fruit and veggie a day.

    Do you really need it all spelled out for you what you can and cannot eat? Can't you use your own best judgment about your own nutrition?

    I certainly can. Most on this board CAN'T... which is why they're here.

    But they learn to over time... and they don't learn that by being afraid of food. They learn how to use good judgment about their diet by educating themselves about nutrition, and practicing moderation.

    Your "clean-eating" mantra generates fear and causes people to distance themselves from food rather than learning about it.

    I think it has been established time and time again, on the forums, and particularly with you, that "clean-eaters" and IIFYM'ers are essentially eating by a similar method (80% whole foods/20% processed or "dirty"). IIFYM'ers just simply take a different approach with consideration to the psychological component, or the relationship with food.

    We don't fear eating food... we just make certain it doesn't get out of line!

    Time and time again you guys paint me with your own brush - not mine. I repeatedly state that you shouldn't cut out foods you enjoy. I don't advocate strict clean eating. You're manipulating just as much as you think I am.

    no kidding.
    You surely DO NOT eat clean, huh? :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    nope. i dont.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    daaaamn you beat me to it. yes. if chocolate cake is your vice, and you desperately need to have it every day, and if having it every day will help you eat whole foods and stay on track, then by all means chow down.

    for the average person looking to lose weight it's about sustainability to reach a healthier place than they're currently at.

    my philosophy has always been that. I just ALSO feel that once you reach a certain point, your health/weight/body fat % will stall unless you get more meticulous. Most people aren't interested in moving beyond that plateau, and they don't need to be. I'm talking about athletic, extremely active people looking to perform at an (dare I say it) elite level.

    I'm not there yet, and I want to be.

    Yes, I do find that to be absolutely true. I'm not there yet myself either.

    My point is that the two different approaches to nutrition and diet are exactly the same, but are called different things for different reasons.

    What's your timeframe on becoming elite?

    Yes, I am quite impatient. I am starting from morbidly obese, and I should point out that my goals aren't to be "elite" as that term has been used in this thread.

    But I'm also having hormone issues that are outside the norm of the general public. So, obtaining my goals are going to require more rigidity on my part, a practice I'm not very good at.

    So you're not there, ever

    You're making a point about something you're not actually aiming for using personal experience, which makes it invalid.

    For an *IIFYM* or a *Clean Eating* style diet to be successful, certain basic criteria must be met in either case. That does not make them the same.

    No I misunderstood "elite" as it was initially described.

    And no, I never said the two were the same. I said that they were similar, but the approach to it was different. And Coach agreed with me.

    I'm not sure why you chose to jump in this conversation... but I agreed with Reddy and completely misinterpretted what I was agreeing with (which happens often with him).

    So, since you needed to call out my particular post. Please allow me to retract the previous statement in this quote.

    don't worry, we really did agree. you're just disagreeing with their manipulations of what I said. lol. also happens often with me. :tongue:
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    Probably one of the most amazing but misunderstood concepts circulating among bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts in general, is IIFYM.

    What started as a phrase from a user named Erik Stevens on bodybuilding.com, quickly caught on and proceeded to cause an uproar of internet stupidity everywhere.


    IIFYM stands for "If It Fits Your Macros" and it was originally phrased on the bb.com forums as a fast way to respond to the overwhelming number of questions about whether or not someone could eat a particular food item without having to worry about getting fat, or not gaining muscle, or (insert other negative effect).

    Here are some examples of the questions that would come up: "Hey can I eat fruit on a cut?" "Hey is it okay for me to have oatmeal?" "Hey I had a cookie but I still stayed at my calorie and macro goals, is that okay or will that hurt my progress?" (The answer being "Yes, you can eat it if it fits your macros").

    IIFYM literally means to hit your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day choosing foods that you enjoy eating. The concept is completely bastardized because idiots across the internet continually come up with scenarios that don't exist in real life, to try and blow a hole in the idea that IIFYM is a sound practice.

    Here are some examples of the strawmen arguments that show up in an attempt to discredit IIFYM: "You're telling me you can just eat straight table sugar for your carbs, and drink olive oil for your fat, and use whey protein and you'll have a good physique?". "Hey have fun eating pizza and donuts all day". "Brb just eating cake, IIFYM".

    Good luck with that. (You'll note that you typically can't hit your macros eating chips and donuts all day and if you CAN, your macros are probably horsesh*t to begin with and you've then got bigger problems. The point here is that IIFYM most certainly isn't a disregard for health or nutrient sufficiency, but people will often create and knock down that strawman).

    What IIFYM is not:

    1) It is not eating cake and chips all day.
    2) It is not disregarding micronutrients and fiber and general intelligence with regards to food choice.
    3) It is not a specific macro setting. There is a website out there that has the IIFYM label that includes a calorie calculation tool and unfortunately several people on MFP believe that doing "IIFYM" means eating those specific macros. This is false.


    IIFYM is a philosophy about food selection with the belief that body composition changes are primarily a function of nutrient intake and energy balance rather than a function of individual food sources.


    When practicing IIFYM, it is recommended that you choose mostly whole and nutrient dense foods to comprise the majority of your intake. Fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, etc, and at the same time, leaving some room for a discretionary intake. A common and very reasonable recommendation would be about 80/20. That is to say, that if you've got a calorie target of 2500, you'd eat approximately 2000 calories of whole and nutrient dense foods with a calorie bank of 500 to eat whatever you would like while still hitting your calorie and macronutrient targets by end of day


    Source:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

    I'm reading that in my SideSteel voice. Love his edge.

    100% on board with all of that. Great post.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    most of us in the western world are heavily Vitamin D deficient for one.

    My precursory Google search indicates that a few glasses of whole milk is enough Vitamin D. Maybe people should drink their milk like mom told them to do.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    . i think it's sufficient to say "eat a varied diet".

    QFT
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    I may have missed it, but is IIFYM a diet?

    Just kidding.

    It's not a diet. It's a lifestyle.............. focused solely on .... diet.

    But only if you are an elitist who hates football and science...
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I'll watch the video after I'm done eating ice cream and snickers bars for dinner....oh wait...

    You're diary says you had chicken and brown rice for dinner. But this kind of post is what makes so many people think that the IIFYM diet is just eating whatever crap you want.

    The only people who believe that are people who choose to believe that. No one with a shred of intellectual honesty actually believes that. It's a phenomena among people who want to hate on IIFYM, end of story. It does not exist outside of those people.

    If you say so.

    I'm not going to say that that's ALWAYS the case, but it happens. There was one of these threads where one of the anti-IIFYM regulars admitted as much.

    Someone said "I choose to believe IIFYM means you can eat crap all day because I want to hate on IIFYM"?