The One Truth
cedarghost
Posts: 621 Member
After answering a ton of posts today and and days previous to today, I have began to see a common thread in a lot of the posts. An underlying lack of confidence permeates the forums so much that we see the same questions over and over. Some people have even used the "Search" feature, found what they were looking for and still felt the need to post the same question out of either fear, lack of understand, unwillingness to accept or all of the above.
The bottom line is that this journey/process/lifestyle (whatever you want to call it, I'm not here to argue semantics) takes time. It takes a LOT of time. And let's face it, we as human beings are in a hurry. We want to have our cake and eat it too and we want to do it NOW!!!
Smart individuals will approach this as a learning process. You are going to learn a lot about nutrition and exercise and some of it is going to be true and some of it is going to be false. And there is always going to be someone there to argue with about the merit of all the things you will learn. There was a thread posted today about "Mythbusting". There are some great truths in there, but I bet that thread confuses the hell out of some people because there is an overload of information for someone who is new to this process.
Luckily, there is one truth that I think none of us will dispute and this is what we need to point our fellow miscreants to when they come to these forums searching and hoping for the magic answer they want to hear. This truth is calories in < calories out= weight loss....
Well "NO ****!" I can hear you clamoring.....but wait, I have more information that is going to help people who are struggling. This really is the one true key to weight loss, BUT.........(yes there had to be a but) you HAVE to find out how much you can eat without gaining weight BEFORE you can lose weight......and no one wants to do that because it means you are going to have to eat. You are going to have to eat for extended periods of time. A month is barely a minimum. You can use a calculator to figure what your TDEE is (google TDEE calculator) and use that as a starting point, but you are going to have to adjust the amount that you eat until you find that magic number of calories that, when consumed, will allow you to maintain your current weight..
OMG yes, I am telling you to STOP losing weight. Stop worrying about losing weight, stop worrying about gaining weight, stop worrying about if tea counts as water, stop worrying about if you should eat at night or if you should eat breakfast......
*takes a deep breath after that run-on sentence* and eat until you find your TDEE.
Here is an easy way to do that:
1. Use a calculator to find an estimate for your TDEE http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
2. Set your calories just a bit below your estimated TDEE and eat and log them consistently for AT LEAST a month, 6 weeks would be even better.
3. Look at how much weight you have lost or gained.
4. If you lose weight, up your calories and go another 4 to 6 weeks. If you gained, lower your calories and go another 4 to 6 weeks.
5. Look at how much weight you have lost or gained. When you get to where you have gained less than a pound or lost less than a pound, that is close enough (<----my opinion)
6. Multiply the weight you lost or gained for the 4 to 6 weeks by 3500. That is how many calories you were in a deficit or surplus.
7. If you lost weight, add the deficit calories to the total for the 4 to 6 weeks and divide by 30 or 44 (how many days you ate this amount for). This is YOUR TDEE. No one else's, not some calculators, not the amount some knucklehead on this forum is telling you to eat, it is YOURS. You own it. You KNOW it. Life is about to change.
8. If you gained weight, subtract the deficit calories from the total for the 4 to 6 weeks and divide by 30 or 44 and then read the rest of number 7, as I am too lazy to type it again.
Once you have done this, you have discovered the one truth. You will feel free and enlightened and have ownership of your weight loss journey and have tons of time on your hands to worry about other things like should you eat clean or dirty, should you actually have 8 glasses of water, should you avoid carbs.......
But those are other posts.....
The bottom line is that this journey/process/lifestyle (whatever you want to call it, I'm not here to argue semantics) takes time. It takes a LOT of time. And let's face it, we as human beings are in a hurry. We want to have our cake and eat it too and we want to do it NOW!!!
Smart individuals will approach this as a learning process. You are going to learn a lot about nutrition and exercise and some of it is going to be true and some of it is going to be false. And there is always going to be someone there to argue with about the merit of all the things you will learn. There was a thread posted today about "Mythbusting". There are some great truths in there, but I bet that thread confuses the hell out of some people because there is an overload of information for someone who is new to this process.
Luckily, there is one truth that I think none of us will dispute and this is what we need to point our fellow miscreants to when they come to these forums searching and hoping for the magic answer they want to hear. This truth is calories in < calories out= weight loss....
Well "NO ****!" I can hear you clamoring.....but wait, I have more information that is going to help people who are struggling. This really is the one true key to weight loss, BUT.........(yes there had to be a but) you HAVE to find out how much you can eat without gaining weight BEFORE you can lose weight......and no one wants to do that because it means you are going to have to eat. You are going to have to eat for extended periods of time. A month is barely a minimum. You can use a calculator to figure what your TDEE is (google TDEE calculator) and use that as a starting point, but you are going to have to adjust the amount that you eat until you find that magic number of calories that, when consumed, will allow you to maintain your current weight..
OMG yes, I am telling you to STOP losing weight. Stop worrying about losing weight, stop worrying about gaining weight, stop worrying about if tea counts as water, stop worrying about if you should eat at night or if you should eat breakfast......
*takes a deep breath after that run-on sentence* and eat until you find your TDEE.
Here is an easy way to do that:
1. Use a calculator to find an estimate for your TDEE http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
2. Set your calories just a bit below your estimated TDEE and eat and log them consistently for AT LEAST a month, 6 weeks would be even better.
3. Look at how much weight you have lost or gained.
4. If you lose weight, up your calories and go another 4 to 6 weeks. If you gained, lower your calories and go another 4 to 6 weeks.
5. Look at how much weight you have lost or gained. When you get to where you have gained less than a pound or lost less than a pound, that is close enough (<----my opinion)
6. Multiply the weight you lost or gained for the 4 to 6 weeks by 3500. That is how many calories you were in a deficit or surplus.
7. If you lost weight, add the deficit calories to the total for the 4 to 6 weeks and divide by 30 or 44 (how many days you ate this amount for). This is YOUR TDEE. No one else's, not some calculators, not the amount some knucklehead on this forum is telling you to eat, it is YOURS. You own it. You KNOW it. Life is about to change.
8. If you gained weight, subtract the deficit calories from the total for the 4 to 6 weeks and divide by 30 or 44 and then read the rest of number 7, as I am too lazy to type it again.
Once you have done this, you have discovered the one truth. You will feel free and enlightened and have ownership of your weight loss journey and have tons of time on your hands to worry about other things like should you eat clean or dirty, should you actually have 8 glasses of water, should you avoid carbs.......
But those are other posts.....
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Replies
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*bump* for the new guys0
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bump..makes sense0
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You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss0
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No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss0 -
No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss
We're both correct. ANY question can be answered by bacon0 -
lol
No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss
We're both correct. ANY question can be answered by bacon
:drinker:0 -
Makes sense.
I've gotten estimates on my TDEE but I've never tested it out . I'm kind of afraid to waste 6 weeks maintaining my weight when I could be losing -- but by calculating how many lbs I lose... would basically be telling me how much my deficit was so I could know what my TDEE is ... if that makes sense. lol. If not, nevermind!0 -
Aww... and here I thought the ultimate answer was 42
No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss
We're both correct. ANY question can be answered by bacon0 -
Makes sense.
I've gotten estimates on my TDEE but I've never tested it out . I'm kind of afraid to waste 6 weeks maintaining my weight when I could be losing -- but by calculating how many lbs I lose... would basically be telling me how much my deficit was so I could know what my TDEE is ... if that makes sense. lol. If not, nevermind!
Makes a lot of sense! I am also afraid of jumping on the 6 weeks before I know what is happening train...but I figure...if I gain,,,,which according to all the threads I have been pouring over...I shouldn't...but IF I do...then it'll be January and I can just jumpstart with something new.0 -
Yep. Fear is a ***** and that's what holds people back. What is 6 weeks in the long run? A small price to pay for removing all that doubt and guesswork.0
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Aww... and here I thought the ultimate answer was 42
No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss
We're both correct. ANY question can be answered by bacon
42 pieces of bacon. that's the answer.0 -
Makes sense.
I've gotten estimates on my TDEE but I've never tested it out . I'm kind of afraid to waste 6 weeks maintaining my weight when I could be losing -- but by calculating how many lbs I lose... would basically be telling me how much my deficit was so I could know what my TDEE is ... if that makes sense. lol. If not, nevermind!
That works too. Math! (That's how I figured mine out. Turns out it's within like 10 calories of what the Katch-Mcardle calculation says, which is basically a rounding error, so I could have saved myself a lot of effort if I had just gone with that, but that's not going to be true for everyone so you might as well do it both ways.)0 -
Aww... and here I thought the ultimate answer was 42
No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss
We're both correct. ANY question can be answered by bacon
42 pieces of bacon. that's the answer.
:drinker:0 -
bump0
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hear, hear!0
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I've been curious as to where I stand when it comes to maintaining my current weight. I fell off-plan for a few months and seemed to maintain, but I also did not track my eating at all and didn't exercise, so I have no clue if I was consuming my calculated TDEE of 2300.
I might try this out next time my weight loss starts to slow...0 -
I think if most people just followed step 1 of your guidelines.....and were brutally accurate and honest with their calorie intake and calories burned....they'd be all set.0
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I agree.I think if most people just followed step 1 of your guidelines.....and were brutally accurate and honest with their calorie intake and calories burned....they'd be all set.0 -
Yep. Fear is a ***** and that's what holds people back. What is 6 weeks in the long run? A small price to pay for removing all that doubt and guesswork.
I agree. That's why I am just doing it! If worse comes to worse and it doesn't work for me, I can always try something else.
Now....just gotta get used to eating more..... haha0 -
This is smart and well reasoned advice that I hope others heed. Everytime I read a thread where someone thinks the answer is to eat too little and exercise too much, it saddens me. People want an easy fix but don't take the time to figure out sensible numbers for themselves. To maintain weight for a lifetime wouldn't it be easiest to figure out how you can eat as much as possible while exercising a moderately reasonable amount? Why do people think that weight loss/maintenance must mean "suffering"?0
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Well said. We, as a society are in far too much of a hurry, and want our results now. We miss seeing the forest, for the trees, so to speak.To maintain weight for a lifetime wouldn't it be easiest to figure out how you can eat as much as possible while exercising a reasonable amount? Why do people think that weight loss/maintenance must mean "suffering"?0 -
Common sense.
I have been doing this since I started. I run a 3 month average though instead of 6 weeks before re-evaluating. My current TDEE (sedentary) is just around ~1700. I've been losing .84 pounds a week for the last three months rolling average.
I use this website to help me with the trends:
https://www.fourmilab.ch/cgi-bin/HackDiet?s=41W779F6WQG2K58G569W286F0W238Q00Q63020Q3&q=histreq&HDiet_tzoffset=2400 -
No, no.....Bacon is the key to bliss.....You're wrong. The one truth is that Bacon is the key to weight loss
We're both correct. ANY question can be answered by bacon
and cheese!!0 -
3 months is even better! Thanks for the website link. I am checking that out now.Common sense.
I have been doing this since I started. I run a 3 month average though instead of 6 weeks before re-evaluating. My current TDEE (sedentary) is just around ~1700. I've been losing .84 pounds a week for the last three months rolling average.
I use this website to help me with the trends:
https://www.fourmilab.ch/cgi-bin/HackDiet?s=41W779F6WQG2K58G569W286F0W238Q00Q63020Q3&q=histreq&HDiet_tzoffset=2400 -
3 months is even better! Thanks for the website link. I am checking that out now.Common sense.
I have been doing this since I started. I run a 3 month average though instead of 6 weeks before re-evaluating. My current TDEE (sedentary) is just around ~1700. I've been losing .84 pounds a week for the last three months rolling average.
I use this website to help me with the trends:
https://www.fourmilab.ch/cgi-bin/HackDiet?s=41W779F6WQG2K58G569W286F0W238Q00Q63020Q3&q=histreq&HDiet_tzoffset=240
It gives you a good rolling average of how much weight you've lost. Of course the more often you weigh the more accurate it is. It also takes into account fluctuations for water weight etc. I compare what I lost there to what I should have lost from my current caloric deficit on MFP and adjust my TDEE accordingly.0 -
bump0
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Yes please wait a long time trying to exactly figure out your TDEE.... IT is a complete waste of time. The calculator is a starting point. You take that number reduce the total by 500 calories and see what happens. If you don't loose weight after 2 weeks adjust the number. Trying to figure it out exactly is a big waste of time. The number changes as you increase/decrease your activity level and as you lose or gain weight. On top of you will never know exactly what you are eating. You can get close but it isn't perfect. How perfect do you think your food scale is? 6 oz could be 6.04 or 5.96. Don't worry about it. Get motivated to get started. Don't waste your time.
Figuring out the number takes a few minutes. You could get started losing weight tomorrow.
You think waiting weeks to figure out a number that changes anyway is a good plan?0 -
Yes please wait a long time trying to exactly figure out your TDEE.... IT is a complete waste of time. The calculator is a starting point. You take that number reduce the total by 500 calories and see what happens. If you don't loose weight after 2 weeks adjust the number. Trying to figure it out exactly is a big waste of time. The number changes as you increase/decrease your activity level and as you lose or gain weight. On top of you will never know exactly what you are eating. You can get close but it isn't perfect. How perfect do you think your food scale is? 6 oz could be 6.04 or 5.96. Don't worry about it. Get motivated to get started. Don't waste your time.
Figuring out the number takes a few minutes. You could get started loosing weight tomorrow.
You think waiting weeks to figure out a number that changes anyway is a good plan?
Use the calculators to estimate TDEE. Do a cut. Check in 6 weeks to compare your weight loss with what your weight loss should have been according to the estimated deficit from TDEE, arrive at real TDEE. It's not rocket science.0 -
I tend to agree with truushot -- why spend six weeks trying to figure out exactly what the number is when my goal is to change it anyway? -- but I also agree with the OP that the one thing new people need to know is that calories in < calories out = weight loss.
It's important to understand the meaning behind the TDEE. It is equally important to understand that calculators are a best estimate and that once you get to maintenance phase you'll have to do the work described to keep yourself where you want to be. Ultimately, it's that knowledge that makes this a life change rather than a journey to be completed.
That said, I think everyone needs to have a non-weight loss goal in order to really see the big picture. If it's all a numbers game, then there is nothing to prevent someone from playing at the extreme until they reach that goal -- but then what? I'll be the first to admit that I'm delighted every time I see a smaller number on the scale, but there are also other things that I'd like to change about my health, things that I'll probably still be working on after I lose all the weight.
So maybe I don't quite agree with OP after all: the calorie equation may be the one truth of altering body mass, but it certainly isn't the One Truth of arriving at a healthier you (and based on other comments I'd wager the original poster would agree with me, so please take this as my reflection on this thread so far, not criticism of the original post).0 -
Yes, I think one thing you are suggesting is that the scale isn't the only thing you should be kooking at. I will not only agree with that, I will go so far to say it is one of the LAST things you should look at. Much more important is how you feel, inches lost, etc. The scale is not going to always tell the true story. That is why you have to allow a longer period of time before doing something drastic based on scale weight.I tend to agree with truushot -- why spend six weeks trying to figure out exactly what the number is when my goal is to change it anyway? -- but I also agree with the OP that the one thing new people need to know is that calories in < calories out = weight loss.
It's important to understand the meaning behind the TDEE. It is equally important to understand that calculators are a best estimate and that once you get to maintenance phase you'll have to do the work described to keep yourself where you want to be. Ultimately, it's that knowledge that makes this a life change rather than a journey to be completed.
That said, I think everyone needs to have a non-weight loss goal in order to really see the big picture. If it's all a numbers game, then there is nothing to prevent someone from playing at the extreme until they reach that goal -- but then what? I'll be the first to admit that I'm delighted every time I see a smaller number on the scale, but there are also other things that I'd like to change about my health, things that I'll probably still be working on after I lose all the weight.
So maybe I don't quite agree with OP after all: the calorie equation may be the one truth of altering body mass, but it certainly isn't the One Truth of arriving at a healthier you (and based on other comments I'd wager the original poster would agree with me, so please take this as my reflection on this thread so far, not criticism of the original post).
Another reason why we should wait 4 to 6 weeks before adjusting?
1. Because I have read 1,000,001 posts where people think their weight loss is stuck and they start soliciting advice and playing around with everything that has been working for them, when in reality it often takes at least a month to see the effects of changes made to diet or exercise. Their weight doesn't go down for a week and what do they do?
They post "Help!!!" on the forum and everyone starts making suggestions. Change this. Change that. When nothing needed to be changed.
2. To answer truushot's question of why wait 4 to 6 weeks. He suggests adjusting the number of calories after 2 weeks. We all know weight loss can do some wacky things over short periods of time. By waiting 4 to 6 weeks, we will see a true picture. My own personal weight loss journey has shown me that I may not lose anything for a month, then lose two pounds overnight. What would happen if I lowered my calories at two weeks of no loss? For one thing I may possibly now be eating under my RMR and since my goal is to retain as much lbm as possible while losing, hat would be detrimental to my progress.
To tuushot, I am not saying don't do anything for 4 to 6 weeks. By all means you should get started as soon as possible, but you should give your body time to adjust. Weight loss is not linear. Do a search on the "Whoosh effect", read some posts then tell me it would be better to make changes after a couple of weeks rather than 4 to 6 weeks.
"It's important to understand the meaning behind the TDEE. It is equally important to understand that calculators are a best estimate and that once you get to maintenance phase you'll have to do the work described to keep yourself where you want to be. Ultimately, it's that knowledge that makes this a life change rather than a journey to be completed."
^^^This is key to the point I was making. But it takes time to get to the point where people truly understand their body. Definitely more than two weeks.0
This discussion has been closed.
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