Simple message to new people

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masterofktulu
masterofktulu Posts: 151 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Take EVERYTHING you hear on this site with a massive grain of salt. It's great to hear people's opinions and what they have to say, what has and has not worked out for them. This forum is a great rough guideline. But do NOT listen to the people who directly tell you what to do and claim they know is best. Everyone is different. Good luck!

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  • Cold_Steel
    Cold_Steel Posts: 897 Member
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    Take EVERYTHING you hear on this site with a massive grain of salt. It's great to hear people's opinions and what they have to say, what has and has not worked out for them. This forum is a great rough guideline. But do NOT listen to the people who directly tell you what to do and claim they know is best. Everyone is different. Good luck!

    Good advice I try not to offer it unless someone asks for it and the only thing I can give advice for is whatever has worked for me.
  • Trail_Addict
    Trail_Addict Posts: 1,350 Member
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    Take EVERYTHING you hear on this site with a massive grain of salt. It's great to hear people's opinions and what they have to say, what has and has not worked out for them. This forum is a great rough guideline. But do NOT listen to the people who directly tell you what to do and claim they know is best. Everyone is different. Good luck!

    Should they start with this post? :laugh: (just kidding) :flowerforyou:

    Seriously, that's good advice for the newer folks to follow. People are different, and find results through different means. Find something that works for you, and go with it until it no longer works for you.
  • zafferFL
    zafferFL Posts: 402
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    I disagree with all of you, so far. :)
  • Trail_Addict
    Trail_Addict Posts: 1,350 Member
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    I disagree with all of you, so far. :)

    I would hope so. LOL
  • masterofktulu
    masterofktulu Posts: 151 Member
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    I disagree with all of you, so far. :)

    I am just specifically talking about the people who don't voice a friendly opinion. I am talking about the people who outright tell you whatever they do is EXACTLY what you should do because if it worked for them it has to work for you. I've seen this to be completely untrue. This is my opinion, and almost all opinions, especially on here are based on personal experience, or people who googled it and pretend to be experts.
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
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    Physiology 101 lied!!!!!

    To be honest I think you should listen to the winners and help out those who need help the most.
    I wouldn't have gotten this far on your advice if I was reading this as a new member.
    In fact I see it as negative and discouraging.

    One of the things I like about this forum is the amount of new people asking for guidance.
    Pay it forward!
    Help someone if you can!

    Then...someday youll get these on your wall:

    "Hey I know you are a busy guy, I did not want to fill up your inbox! Just wanted to let you know I am officially down about 11 lbs, (7 since you ran my numbers) and down about 3 inches off my waist/hips. I can't wait to see where I will be in a few months, I still have a lot to work on but THANK YOUUUU!!!"

    "Good morning Dan! Today marks 1 month since I started eating a higher calorie diet! First may I say, THANK YOU! I honestly wouldn't have beleived it if I hadn't have tried it! Below are my currant stats! I will go to our group and post my sucess there as well! I'm not exactly sure how to figure my bf% because I'm not sure it went down! :( Starting Now Neck 13 13 Bust 37 37 Waist 28.5 27.5 -1 Hips 41 38 -3 Thigh 25 23 -2 Calf 14 14 Upper arm 11 11 Weight 153 146.8 -6.2# Actually only 4.2# because I weighed the day I started with you and had finally lost 2# after dieting for 2 months! 6" lost and 4# lost! Let me know if I should change anything! Kathy"

    "Hi Dan! Just wanted to update you on my progress! Since January (after changing macros and started strength training) I have lost 3.2% body fat, increased my LBM by 2 pounds and went from 162 to 156 always eating between 1500-2k in calories. The past month has been hard with my leg and spine injury, especially going from moderately active down to almost no exercise. But I am recovering now to kick *kitten* later! Just wanted to say THANK YOU!"


    "BF down 3% Dan. :)"

    "Hey Dan, you may not remember me, but you advised me to eat 2000 calories per day some weeks ago. I didn't quite make 2000 but I tried to make 1700-1900 most of the time. I just wanted to say thank you so much! I may have only lost 2lbs on the scale this month but I lost 6 inches off my waist and hips! Thank you!"

    "Hi there, I asked your advice on calorie intake a week or so ago and your advice was to up to 2000...I have been doing about 1700 net for the past 6 months and happy with that, but I'm really close to my goal and I wanted to tweak things a bit... So I increased my calories to 1800 for the past week and...I dropped a pound. I am going to up to 1850 for the next week and see how that works...I haven't gotten back into my pre-hibernation work out habits just yet, so I'm excited to see how my body responds when I am back in full-on "bad *kitten*" mode :) I am getting my body fat percentage re-tested in about 2 months for this bootcamp challenge, so will see if I've made improvements there as well... Anyway, just wanted to say thanks for taking the time to do the calculations...I've been checking out that Fat2FitRadio site as well...good stuff... Take care, E"




    This is winning.
    If I see someone who is struggling and needing enlightenment, well, it sure makes me feel better helping them make their lives better.


    PS: everyone I run numbers for are unique but the physiology is the same.
    Saying "We are all different." to me is an excuse to fail.
    You coudnt do it because you thought "I'm different! it wont work."
    To this I say BS!
    Open your mind.
    Pay it forward and reap the rewards.

    Oh!
    And good luck to you!
    =D
  • RunDottyRun
    RunDottyRun Posts: 95
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    ^^^^
    LISTEN TO DAN!!
  • zafferFL
    zafferFL Posts: 402
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    I disagree with all of you, so far. :)

    I am just specifically talking about the people who don't voice a friendly opinion. I am talking about the people who outright tell you whatever they do is EXACTLY what you should do because if it worked for them it has to work for you. I've seen this to be completely untrue. This is my opinion, and almost all opinions, especially on here are based on personal experience, or people who googled it and pretend to be experts.

    Lol says the guy who posts that night eating is bad because your body is "resting "

    Agree with previous post. Tons of info on here. Some posts come across as negative or rude because they are the 10th time being corrected.
  • Trail_Addict
    Trail_Addict Posts: 1,350 Member
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    The point of the OPs post is to remain open-minded. In this place YOU are no more of an expert than the new person. In the year I've been here, I've seen a multitude of poor advice being dished out. You can't expect the new people to be able to fish out the experts amongst the thousands of so-called "experts" on here.

    Congrats to you that so many people sing your praises. I'm sure there are many more who followed someone else's poor advice. I see nothing wrong with telling the new members to enter with caution, and not believe everything they hear.

    Hell, one need only enter a "should I eat my exercise calories back" thread to see just how confusing things can get around here.

    Sorry you found his warning "negative and discouraging".
  • SteveTries
    SteveTries Posts: 723 Member
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    I broadly agree. Scour all of the information then research for yourself anything that sounds interesting and applicable to you. The one trap not to fall into is to follow advice just because 100 people advocate it - at times (not always) they are parrotting something misunderstood.

    All of the people who have succeeded or are well on the way have either figured out what works for them or been lucky enough to stumble upon it - their approach may not work for you.

    The one thing I would advocate strongly is to understand the effects of carbohydrate intake, workouts and to a lesser degree sodium have on you water levels - this will take much of the mystique and frustration out of weight variance and let you focus on underlying fat loss instead.

    To reiterate - do your own research and apply what makes sense. If that doesn't work don't be afraid to change.
  • purplerain011
    purplerain011 Posts: 53
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    Yes I was new here, was eating 1200 and struggling! found Dan on the forums, followed his advice and I've never felt better!!! people should definitely not do whatever they want, it can have some damaging results!
  • chrishgt4
    chrishgt4 Posts: 1,222 Member
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    It's a good place to get some starting info that you can then research yourself.

    also - I tend to look at the profile pics of the people giving the advice - helps to give me a good insight into whether they really do know what they are talking about or if they are just passing on hearsay.

    Also don't just accept the advice given - challenge it (by which I don't mean argue with the person providing it, but think about if it makes sense to you given what you already know, or what is dictated by logic). Ask the person posting for further clarification and the reasoning behind the information they have provided.
  • nacs246
    nacs246 Posts: 93 Member
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    Listen to the winners.

    But definitely listen to people who have a vast knowledge of doing it the correct way i.e. just one great example of this is DAN or Helloitsdan.

    The correct way is by eating healthy and exercising.
  • Captain_Tightpants
    Captain_Tightpants Posts: 2,215 Member
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    Those folks who have 1500-2000+ posts under their avatars and a bunch of weight lost in their tickers... those are the ones to listen to.
  • cuatromommy
    cuatromommy Posts: 120 Member
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    I agree that there is a lot of bad info out there, but there is also a lot of great info that I would have never learned about had it not been for the boards. So, sometimes you just have to try what makes sense to you and find what works for you.

    Best of luck to all the folks on MFP!
  • Kiris2
    Kiris2 Posts: 87 Member
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    I know what I've heard or experienced about all the stuff on expending calories, Then I actually wondered if I should eat more??!! Nope. Doesn't and isn't gonna work for me, and I realized what you and some of the others have said...do what works for you, and there's no magic answer for anyone. Kindly given info is appreciated by most of us, then we decide our next step just like every other part of our lives.
    Best of luck to all. As for me, I have found more help and support than I ever thought I might on MFP, and I'm enjoying it more now than at the beginning. So, hang in there, just not too tight!! :)
  • SilentRenegade
    SilentRenegade Posts: 245 Member
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    I partially agree. Yes, you should take the advice from people who have had success, but honestly there are a lot of nasty posts that pop up on here that completely bash what has worked for others. I think the point is to listen to your body and don't take everything (anything) you see on the internet as pure fact.

    If I did, I'd think I was dying of some terminal illness for a sore shoulder. :sick:
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
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    I took the wrong advice in the beginning.
    Ate 1200 cals and wanted to strangle everything!

    Then I started researching the different opinions and found one that worked for 90% of the dieting public.

    If something doesnt sound right, research it.

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