Is it the total calories or the foods that help with weight

botography

I lose sooooo slowly. I need to boast my metabolism. So here is the questiion. (yes I know age is a factor). I get stuck on a certain weight... like 150 pounds. IF I HAVE 1200 CALORIES... DOES IT MATTER IF I EAT 1200 CALORIES OF ICE CREAM or the good stuff? Is 1200 calories 1200 calories no matter what you eat.

No I am not eating ice cream, but I am simply asking, it you stay within your calorie goal does it matter what you eat?

And I am trying to figure out what would boost my metabolism, if anything. I am losing .5 a week. By the time I get to my weight goal... it will be over a year. I am in a hurry.

suzycreamcheese

with regards to weightloss, no, it doesnt matter, as long as you stay in your goal.

Healthwise it makes a big difference if thats a common occurance. and 1200 cals of icecream isnt going to be enough to keep you going all day most likely, whereas if you choose healthier foods, you get a lot more for your cals, so you feel more satisfied

AlexandraLove

You will be fuller if you eat "the good" foods, and have much more energy. You will also be healthier.

But you *can* lose weight only eating 1200 calories of junk, and it has been done before.

Newkell

It does matter. If you are trying to lose weight 1200 calories of ice cream or junk is full of carbs and fat. 1200 calories of healthy clean eating would inclued a balance between protein, carbs, and fat. Everyone has an opinion, this is just mine. Experiment to see what works for you

jacksamjack

Yeah - a calorie is a calorie, but some foods are supposed to boost weight loss - the ones I have come across are:

Mushy peas, fresh beetroot, strawberries, lemon slices in water (drink the water!)...

I also am a slow loser usually which is not always very motivational - however, half pounds add up to whole ones and weeks pass really quickly - so just keep working at it!! As the advert says - you're worth it!! JSJ xxx

run_momma_run

There are factors that will help you. High fibre, low sodium foods will help, as will drinking more than 100 oz of water per day. (I aim for about 120 oz per day). And the reason it's better to eat healthy food choices instead of just 1200 calories of ice cream is this

1200 calories of junk goes by very quickly. You don't get a lot of food, and suddenly you've reached your limit for the day. This will leave you hungry and likely lead to cheating. Not to mention that your sodium intake for the day will be through the roof, which will cause your body to retain water.

1200 calories of good, healthy food is actually quite a lot of food. You can be satiated if you space out your meals. In fact, planning 300 calories 4 x a day can keep you full until you're ready for bed - especially if you're drinking all your water.

Hope this helps!

Romba

try snacking on raw pecans/almonds/walnuts. look at the ingredients, it should say example: almonds. no salt, etc. eat part-skim string cheese and yogurt that isnt loaded down with sugar. carrots, grapes, blueberries, cantaloupe are great to keep you full. Green and orange fruits/veggies make you feel fuller. When you are eating bread look at the ingredients for 1st ingredient WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR....if it says 'wheat flour' you may as well buy white bread.

alexfaty

Here is a link to a guy who is a personal trainer in the UK.

http://www.londonpersonaltrainingstudio.com/

If you goto the the free elimination workout bit and sign up to that he has a very very different view, they don't ask for money or anything like that. I have been trying to copy and paste the link to the actual diet bit that I have but its not working.

What he is saying is that all the junk and chemicals do have a influence on the way your body processes food. I must say he is very extreme cutting out all junk to the point where I just cannot stick to it, BUT after reading what he has to say I do try and make 90% of my calories good ones - have better days than others and the weekend IS difficult...

botography

They assigned me 1200 calories. No idea why. Tried to change it so I will live with it. I am looking for the right combination of foods. I am a carb addict. My best diets have been to eliiminate most carbs. However that is hard to keep up. I eat balanced meals, am not hungry. I am looking for foods that might change or boost my metabolism. I am not an exercise person. I dance the evenings away.... square dance of course... ;-)

Romba

and by the way, it took me a year to lose 40lbs the right way...and I know I am not going to gain it back. I was 40lbs heavier June 28, 2010. There is no quick fix.

I lose sooooo slowly. I need to boast my metabolism. So here is the questiion. (yes I know age is a factor). I get stuck on a certain weight... like 150 pounds. IF I HAVE 1200 CALORIES... DOES IT MATTER IF I EAT 1200 CALORIES OF ICE CREAM or the good stuff? Is 1200 calories 1200 calories no matter what you eat.

No I am not eating ice cream, but I am simply asking, it you stay within your calorie goal does it matter what you eat?

And I am trying to figure out what would boost my metabolism, if anything. I am losing .5 a week. By the time I get to my weight goal... it will be over a year. I am in a hurry.

kacarter1017

Overall, no it doesn't matter what you eat from a weight loss standpoint. The one caveat to that would be things high in sodium- then you may slow down due to water retention. But, for your health, it's better to make healthy choices. If you took this to the extreme- and ate ice cream every day for your 1200 calories, eventually you won't be getting proper nutrients and that can also slow your weight loss.

flimflamfloz

I lose sooooo slowly. I need to boast my metabolism.
[...]
No I am not eating ice cream, but I am simply asking, it you stay within your calorie goal does it matter what you eat?
[...]
And I am trying to figure out what would boost my metabolism, if anything. I am losing .5 a week. By the time I get to my weight goal... it will be over a year. I am in a hurry.

These are really two separate questions:

* How to boost your metabolism?

- To boost their metabolism, most people will chose to build muscle. So, you need to exercise, run, do weight lifting, etc.
Your muscle will burn more energy, thus you will burn more energy.

- Living in a very cold country also boosts your metabolism (your body would be forced to produce more heat).

- If you eat too much food (abundance), then your body will learn to burn more food and you will actually boost your metabolism as well. This is why people try to avoid "starvation mode" which will "lower" your metabolism (rarity of food), as your body becomes "conservative".
Etc.
So basically, whenever your body is "struggling" (physically), you are boosting your metabolism.


* What do you need to eat within your daily limit of 1200 calories?

- You can eat what you want (almost) and still lose weight if you stay within your allowance.
However you would probably die if you were only eating ice cream, as your body would probably lack a critical nutrient at some point (e.g. protein or whatever).

- If you eat only "junk" however, you will seriously hinder your muscle building (because it takes proteins to build muscles, and plenty of other things). Thus, you would actually fail to boost your metabolism enough.

- As others have said, you would feel really tired, you would feel depressed, you would probably not even be able to actually lose weight because of that (yes, your mind plays its part too)

- Finally, you can speed up your weight loss by eating a "balanced" meal. If you were only eating junk food, then your body would probably get enough fat and carbs from food, and would probably end up burning your fat slower than someone who eats a balanced meal.

HeatherrSue

I was stuck in 150's for a long time and soon as I started taking magnesium, suber B complex, Ginseng, Fish oil, and Cayenne pills daily, it's really helped my metabolism and I'm down to 144.8 now. Lost 3 pounds this week. I walk 60 minutes a day, do a little strength training 3 times a week and I've really started watching my sugar intake. Also drink 70 to 80 ounces of water a day and 3 cups of Lipton green tea daily (honey or mixed berry flavor). The healthier the food you eat, the better your body is going to respond but I still eat bread, red meat, and found a "slim a bear" ice cream sandwich that is only 140 calories and 4 grams sugar...I have 1/2 of one at night.
I wish you the very best of luck!

dexters_dexterity

there r foods to rev the metabolism, but eating more frequent but smaller portions is the natural way of keeping ur body in action, the process of digesting food requires energy(calories).

u can divide 1200cals to 3 meals of 400, or 6 meals of 200, 3 meals/day causes major spikes up and down in ur metabolism. It takes about 3 hrs to digest a meal. This means if u only eat 3 meals a day, there are several hours between each meal where ur body is not digesting food. When ur body is finished digesting food, ur metabolism drops off. In contrast, 6 meal after every 3 hrs, ur constantly reving up ur metabolism. Small portions of healthy food not just a 100 cal cookie or a scoop of icecream, u will not feel full and starve urself and later outta frustation of not losing weight ull end up with eating really unhealthy.

Small meals =>No sugar surges, which is the whole science around which GI diet is based. and when u give sudden spikes to sugar when it gets low u crave for food more

Rideau

Congratulations on your weight loss! I find that if I drink lots of water and watch my carb intake that I lose a little faster.

seansquared

I lose sooooo slowly. I need to boast my metabolism. So here is the questiion. (yes I know age is a factor). I get stuck on a certain weight... like 150 pounds. IF I HAVE 1200 CALORIES... DOES IT MATTER IF I EAT 1200 CALORIES OF ICE CREAM or the good stuff? Is 1200 calories 1200 calories no matter what you eat.

No I am not eating ice cream, but I am simply asking, it you stay within your calorie goal does it matter what you eat?

And I am trying to figure out what would boost my metabolism, if anything. I am losing .5 a week. By the time I get to my weight goal... it will be over a year. I am in a hurry.

At 150lbs, 30% bodyfat, 1200 cals/day, you should be losing 1lb a week.

Food intake does matter, yes. If you are eating all carbohydrates (like 1200 calories of ice cream, i.e. all sugar, candy, grains, etc) well those are generally used for long-term storage and so that's what they get used for.

If you want that 1lb a week mark with little to no exercise, I'd shoot for 1200 cals on an Atkins/Paleo diet. Your body doesn't really need carbohydrates in the amounts most people eat them in, especially if you aren't a runner or other form of athlete (even lifters don't need much in the way of carbs, though more than sedentary folk).

Eat lots of GREEN leafy veggies (broccoli, spinach, etc) and lean meats. Nuts and legumes are also great. I am not anti-carb, but I am smart about carbs, and people who aren't exercising on a regular basis frankly don't need carbohydrates outside of the ones they get from veggies.

milaxx

with regards to weightloss, no, it doesnt matter, as long as you stay in your goal.

Healthwise it makes a big difference if thats a common occurance. and 1200 cals of icecream isnt going to be enough to keep you going all day most likely, whereas if you choose healthier foods, you get a lot more for your cals, so you feel more satisfied

This. there is a difference between what will help you lose weight and what is a healthy way of eating. I have a friend who works out daily, never cook and only eats lean cuisines. She is losing weight, but nutrition is questionable at best. Now some people can eat like this and survive quite well.I have no doubt I would have problems with sodium and be quite ill. You know your body best and will have to decide what works best for you. For me it's eating as clean as possible.