Anybody surprised how well calorie counting works?

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  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    You can't build muscle at a deficit.

    However, you can lose weight over the course of a month and not be at a deficit the entire time. If you eat slightly over and then slightly under, while resistance training, you can build a little muscle and then lose a little fat alternately.

    It's not as efficient as bulking and cutting, but it can be effective as part of a long-term plan.

    This is not what she was saying though. She was saying that she's been in a deficit and is gaining muscle while losing fat (inches in waist). This is extremely rare phenomenon that happens with obese newbies. Even then, it's not that significant. What is the more likely explanation is that she lost some fat but is retaining water due to the increase in physical activity.

    Wait, wait, wait. I am trying to catch up. Newbie here. You can't gain muscle while at a deficit? Can you maintain it? I don't want to lose what I have.

    You can maintain it. You can gain strength. You just can't GROW it.

    In order to increase muscle, you need to have protein to store. If you're using all of the protein you take in for energy, you aren't going to have any left over to store.

    Thank you. That does make sense. Maintaining muscle and getting stronger and losing fat sounds good for now. :)

    And getting stronger will help you grow muscle when you move to maintenance, as well as increasing the effectiveness of your metabolism right now. Resistance training has a lot more benefit than simple calories burned.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    I wasn't surprised how well calorie counting worked, I was surprised how easy MFP made it to do it. Before discovering this site, I didn't know how many calories I was taking in on an average day, what an appropriate deficit was, and I had no idea how many calories I was burning in a day, so I had no way of actually solving the simple equation.

    I am also continually surprised that there are plenty of people here on MFP, who still don't believe that that simple calorie counting works. They still believe there HAS to be some food group restriction or other arbitrarily difficult mechanism applied in order to be successful. If people just used this tool the way it was intended, and were really diligent and honest about it, I truly believe the majority of people on this site would be successful with the most simple approach - counting calories.
  • meghan_lovely
    meghan_lovely Posts: 48 Member
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    Yes!! I was just thinking about this.... The investment I have made into thus weight loss compared to what others do is nothing! The fitbit has been worth every penny because of how well it works with the MFP app. So pleased with my progress so far.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    I am also continually surprised that there are plenty of people here on MFP, who still don't believe that that simple calorie counting works. They still believe there HAS to be some food group restriction or other arbitrarily difficult mechanism applied in order to be successful. If people just used this tool the way it was intended, and were really diligent and honest about it, I truly believe the majority of people on this site would be successful with the most simple approach - counting calories.

    Me too! Somehow I get a kind of of guilty pleasure reading about all those who haven't yet "seen the light"!
    Yes!! I was just thinking about this.... The investment I have made into thus weight loss compared to what others do is nothing! The fitbit has been worth every penny because of how well it works with the MFP app. So pleased with my progress so far.
    The ROI is sensational. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. I'm getting more and more cheesy. Oh, I love cheese...!
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
    Options
    I am also continually surprised that there are plenty of people here on MFP, who still don't believe that that simple calorie counting works. They still believe there HAS to be some food group restriction or other arbitrarily difficult mechanism applied in order to be successful. If people just used this tool the way it was intended, and were really diligent and honest about it, I truly believe the majority of people on this site would be successful with the most simple approach - counting calories.

    Me too! Somehow I get a kind of of guilty pleasure reading about all those who haven't yet "seen the light"!
    Yes!! I was just thinking about this.... The investment I have made into thus weight loss compared to what others do is nothing! The fitbit has been worth every penny because of how well it works with the MFP app. So pleased with my progress so far.
    The ROI is sensational. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. I'm getting more and more cheesy. Oh, I love cheese...!

    I dunno. Between the quality dark chocolate, the new wardrobe and the running shoes, I'm broke.

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