Dieting, Nutrition, Losing Weight and Myths Debunked

bcattoes

Yes! I said that in my first reply. A "good" unhealthy diet is an oxymoron. BUT, that doesn't mean you can't lose weight on a bad diet. Unhealthy food = bad food, what quantities are eaten doesn't change that.

Lots of people eat all the "right" or "good" foods and their diet is still unhealthy simply because they eat to much and get fat. The most important factor in a healthy diet is not what you eat, but how much you eat and it is healthier to eat an appropriate caloric intake of junk food than it is to eat an excessive caloric intake of nuts, flaxseed, vegetables, fresh fruits, complex carbohydrates and lean meats or anything else that is considered "good" or "healthy". A thin person eating Twinkies is healthier than an obese person eating only "healthy" foods.

The first priority should be to get the calories right.

Not necessarily. There are many factors to consider. Someone thin that lives on Twinkies could easily become insulin resistant or develop Diabetes. Likewise a person can be overweight, maybe even obese, but still exercise and eat healthy food and suffer no health problems other than the weight.

joejccva71

Likewise a person can be overweight, maybe even obese, but still exercise and eat healthy food and suffer no health problems other than the weight.

Being overweight IS a health problem Bcat. Not really sure where you're going with this.

bcattoes

Likewise a person can be overweight, maybe even obese, but still exercise and eat healthy food and suffer no health problems other than the weight.

Being overweight IS a health problem Bcat. Not really sure where you're going with this.

Yes, I said that ("other than the weight"). Where I was going, or rather what I was doing, is disputing the claim that simply because one person is thinner than another doesn't make them automatically healthier even if they eat an unhealthy diet.

Huskeryogi

8 glasses of water a day is a low end estimate for most people. We should roughly consume half our body weight in ounces of water daily Caffeine is a diuretic meaning it causes you to expel water. For hydration purposes it's not the best choice. Today i probably consumed 18 cups of water/drinks if not more. and i wasn't urinating real frequently. About once an hour which is optimum in high heat conditions. Properly hydrated your urine should be clear. My consumption changes depending on circumstances be it heat, exercise. 100 ounces of water on top of all other fluids is about normal for my daily intake.

Tea has many healthy benifits. Hydration doesn't top the list. Water of course helps with fat metabolism. So yes it does assist in fat loss which in turn equals weight loss.

Do you have any research that backs this up? I think an alarming amount of the confusion when trying to lose weight comes from something being said repeatedly with no scientific back up. I was trying to drink half my body weight in ounces of water for awhile and yes I had to pee all the time. I ended up trying to find research/studies that said how much water we should be drinking and was shocked that their really aren't any.

The closest there is to a study for the 8 ounces a day was a study done in the 1950s that gave an amount of water that should be consumed in reference to the calories eaten. When you did the math, a 2000 calorie diet came out ot about 64 ounces of water - BUT the same study said you get half of that in your food.

And this study looked at the hyrdrating effect of beverages other than water and found that the only one with a net water loss is alcohol. Everything else, including soda, is hydrating.
http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/19/5/591

The following study showed that the "by the time you are thirsty you are already dehydrated" thing is a myth.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6514825?dopt=Abstract

Since doing this research I have quit forcing water and I just drink when I'm thirsty. Most work days I drink about 48 ounces of water. On heavy exercise days or hot days I notice that I drink a little more. And when I do pee it's clear and odorless so I know I'm hydrated.

I will say I'm glad I forced the water for a little while (about a week) because I think it did kind of "reset" my thirst triggers. I had a really bad diet pepsi habit and I'm addicted to carbonation so I was drinking that for the fizz not the hydration.

joejccva71

Bump - it's hump day.

joejccva71

Friday bump

kennethmgreen

Lots of people eat all the "right" or "good" foods and their diet is still unhealthy simply because they eat to much and get fat. The most important factor in a healthy diet is not what you eat, but how much you eat and it is healthier to eat an appropriate caloric intake of junk food than it is to eat an excessive caloric intake of nuts, flaxseed, vegetables, fresh fruits, complex carbohydrates and lean meats or anything else that is considered "good" or "healthy". A thin person eating Twinkies is healthier than an obese person eating only "healthy" foods.

The first priority should be to get the calories right.

So true. I have eaten so-called "good" foods and healthy stuff for years, but simply ate too much of it and got fat. Very little fried foods, lots of fruit and vegetables, not much sugar/sweets.

Overall health/feeling good is definitely affected by the kinds of food we eat. But weight loss is pure math.

joejccva71

Awesome bump!

killagb

Great post, bumpin like the uglies. :bigsmile:

_gwen

I was even told by my nutrionist i saw, 85% diet and 15% exercise is the key to lose weight!

great post.

to paraphrase above:" weight loss starts in the kitchen, not the gym."

funghoney

bump for a super post!

bmacholiday

Bump, want to read more later.

saartje1982

Bump