calories and weight loss

jamesagnew717

Hi,

I would like to start this discussion on the topic of the word CALORIES and how it has become one of the most discussed terms of gauging our weight , we use the term calories to discuss our energy needs for our day, but why should we believe this word. i would like to know your thoughts below

3dogsrunning

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cwolfman13

I'm not sure what your question is. A calorie is a unit of energy measurement. Your body requires a certain amount of energy to function properly, even in a coma. The more you move, the more energy your body requires...thus more calories. The less you move, the less energy your body requires...thus less calories. If you consume more energy (calories) than necessary, you have a surplus of fuel and it is stored as fat by the body. When you have a deficit of calories your body must get it's energy and fuel from elsewhere...namely body fat and existing lean body mass.

tjl2329

Ok here it goes. Why does a girl who eats candy cookies sodas fast food weigh 130. And me I weigh 220. Ok yes I have some responsibility. I eat less watch calories Carbs and try to stay away from junk. But my friend who eats less than me hasn't lost any. So some of its each persons body. That being said lets stop using it as an exscuse. I was told not to count calories. I do count as kind of an accountability. To make sure I am doing it right. I feel better. I don't think calories are only one part of Wright loss or gain.

jamesagnew717

its not a question, I am asking you to give your opinion on this word calories, do you think we can even use this term to express what we mean by energy production in our body's ?

i have seen people who eat over 2000 calories of bananas a day and are not fat ?

so do we need to look at this word more carefully as i think we are being brainwashed by this terms calories,

i think that it needs to be looked at or even changed altogether give your opinions below

jacksonpt

Calorie is a unit of energy... what other word would you like to use?

Or maybe I don't understand the question.

You want to get rich? you need to earn more money than you spend, right? Is money not the right word? Are we brainwashed there too?

jamesagnew717

this is what i think about calories

i think a calorie is not actually a calorie,

confused ?

well lets take a look at this,

lets say we have a bagel for breakfast with a yogurt and some fruit, maybe a banana 9am

then for lunch we have a salad with salad dressing and chicken with a Vienna bread 1 pm

then for diner we have a burger and fries 5pm

say it comes to 2000 calories for this food a day,

then we look at someone who has oatmeal for breakfast, 9am

snacks on fruit 11 am

for lunch had sweet potato and lentil soup with a side of salad no dressing,

more fruit around 3 pm

dinner has 2 sweet potato salad with chicken breast 5pm

more fruit around 7 pm

say this comes to around 1500 calories

do we assume that the person who eat the first meal is eating more calories and will be overweight, and the person who is eating the second meal and less calories will lose weight

or is it just the fact that the first meal had more sugar content in it and was more likely to spike insulin levels ?

my personal opinion is that the second meal could have had more calories and the first meal less but the first meal would still make you fat due to the sugar

so what are we really talking about when it comes it weight loss ?

is it the sugar content or the calories, or is it trying to get both in balance ?

3dogsrunning

What about the twinkie diet?
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/index.html

chokeslam512

Calorie is a unit of energy... what other word would you like to use?

I prefer Joules myself.

jamesagnew717

Calorie is a unit of energy... what other word would you like to use?

Or maybe I don't understand the question.

You want to get rich? you need to earn more money than you spend, right? Is money not the right word? Are we brainwashed there too?

want to get fat, eat more sugar than you need lol

jacksonpt

this is what i think about calories

i think a calorie is not actually a calorie,

confused ?

well lets take a look at this,

lets say we have a bagel for breakfast with a yogurt and some fruit, maybe a banana 9am

then for lunch we have a salad with salad dressing and chicken with a Vienna bread 1 pm

then for diner we have a burger and fries 5pm

say it comes to 2000 calories for this food a day,

then we look at someone who has oatmeal for breakfast, 9am

snacks on fruit 11 am

for lunch had sweet potato and lentil soup with a side of salad no dressing,

more fruit around 3 pm

dinner has 2 sweet potato salad with chicken breast 5pm

more fruit around 7 pm

say this comes to around 1500 calories

do we assume that the person who eat the first meal is eating more calories and will be overweight, and the person who is eating the second meal and less calories will lose weight

or is it just the fact that the first meal had more sugar content in it and was more likely to spike insulin levels ?

my personal opinion is that the second meal could have had more calories and the first meal less but the first meal would still make you fat due to the sugar

so what are we really talking about when it comes it weight loss ?

is it the sugar content or the calories, or is it trying to get both in balance ?

No, we don't. We can't make any assumptions when intake is the only known variable. 1500 cals could cause weight gain for some while 2000 cals could cause weight loss for thers.

What we are really talking about is the energy balance equation. Cals in vs cals out if you will.

a_mandolin_

Calorie is a unit of energy... what other word would you like to use?

Or maybe I don't understand the question.

You want to get rich? you need to earn more money than you spend, right? Is money not the right word? Are we brainwashed there too?

want to get fat, eat more sugar than you need lol

Or any other type of food.

Though I must question the validity of the statement that you have indeed seen somebody eat 20 bananas a day.

jacksonpt

Calorie is a unit of energy... what other word would you like to use?

Or maybe I don't understand the question.

You want to get rich? you need to earn more money than you spend, right? Is money not the right word? Are we brainwashed there too?

want to get fat, eat more sugar than you need lol

I do... I eat lots of sugar, but I still lose weight doing so when my daily cals are where they are supposed to be.

.

3dogsrunning

Calorie is a unit of energy... what other word would you like to use?

Or maybe I don't understand the question.

You want to get rich? you need to earn more money than you spend, right? Is money not the right word? Are we brainwashed there too?

want to get fat, eat more sugar than you need lol

Or any other type of food.

Though I must question the validity of the statement that you have indeed seen somebody eat 20 bananas a day.

That one had me scratching my head as well. I couldn't remember if too many bananas makes you go to the bathroom or makes you not.
Although ironic that the OP says the person eating 20 bananas a day doesn't gain weight but claims sugar makes you fat when bananas are high in sugar

lauren3101

this is what i think about calories

i think a calorie is not actually a calorie,

confused ?

well lets take a look at this,

lets say we have a bagel for breakfast with a yogurt and some fruit, maybe a banana 9am

then for lunch we have a salad with salad dressing and chicken with a Vienna bread 1 pm

then for diner we have a burger and fries 5pm

say it comes to 2000 calories for this food a day,

then we look at someone who has oatmeal for breakfast, 9am

snacks on fruit 11 am

for lunch had sweet potato and lentil soup with a side of salad no dressing,

more fruit around 3 pm

dinner has 2 sweet potato salad with chicken breast 5pm

more fruit around 7 pm

say this comes to around 1500 calories

do we assume that the person who eat the first meal is eating more calories and will be overweight, and the person who is eating the second meal and less calories will lose weight

or is it just the fact that the first meal had more sugar content in it and was more likely to spike insulin levels ?

my personal opinion is that the second meal could have had more calories and the first meal less but the first meal would still make you fat due to the sugar

so what are we really talking about when it comes it weight loss ?

is it the sugar content or the calories, or is it trying to get both in balance ?

It's the calories.

You can't 'assume' anything however - the first person that eats more may be a 6"4, 250lb male that exercises for 2 hours a day, and the second person that eats less may be a 5", 100lb woman that literally lies in bed all day. In which case the first would lose weight and the second wouldn't. The amount of calories needed depends on many factors, there is no set amount to lose weight.


Perhaps I am missing the point?

SideSteel

Getting fat is a cause of chronic energy surplus. It is not caused by sugar or carbs although sugary foods do make it awfully easy to create an energy surplus.

EDIT: Also, if you happen to be holding a Gary Taubes book I'd suggest putting it down.

cwolfman13

this is what i think about calories

i think a calorie is not actually a calorie,

confused ?

well lets take a look at this,

lets say we have a bagel for breakfast with a yogurt and some fruit, maybe a banana 9am

then for lunch we have a salad with salad dressing and chicken with a Vienna bread 1 pm

then for diner we have a burger and fries 5pm

say it comes to 2000 calories for this food a day,

then we look at someone who has oatmeal for breakfast, 9am

snacks on fruit 11 am

for lunch had sweet potato and lentil soup with a side of salad no dressing,

more fruit around 3 pm

dinner has 2 sweet potato salad with chicken breast 5pm

more fruit around 7 pm

say this comes to around 1500 calories

do we assume that the person who eat the first meal is eating more calories and will be overweight, and the person who is eating the second meal and less calories will lose weight

or is it just the fact that the first meal had more sugar content in it and was more likely to spike insulin levels ?

my personal opinion is that the second meal could have had more calories and the first meal less but the first meal would still make you fat due to the sugar

so what are we really talking about when it comes it weight loss ?

is it the sugar content or the calories, or is it trying to get both in balance ?

It depends on what an individuals BMR and TDEE is. My TDEE is around 2,550 calories (light active)....I lose weight in a safe and healthy way eating around 2,200 calories per day...roughly 1 Lb per week give or take a couple of points.

My wife on the other hand is female...she is smaller than me...weighs less than me, and is shorter than me...her TDEE is 1,861 (light active). For the same weight loss goals as me, she eats about 1,550 calories per day.

If she ate 2,220 calories per day, she would gain weight because she would be consuming 359 calories per day more than her body needs to maintain weight at a lightly active activity level. Conversely, if I were to eat 1,550 calories per day, I'd be about 313 calories below my RMR and would be effectively starving my body.

I don't really think it's the calories that are in question...it's that everybody has a different burn.

jacksonpt

Perhaps I am missing the point?

I think a lot of us are missing the point.

KatieLou6585

Though I must question the validity of the statement that you have indeed seen somebody eat 20 bananas a day.

Oh man...that made me laugh.

jacksonpt

Although ironic that the OP says the person eating 20 bananas a day doesn't gain weight but claims sugar makes you fat when bananas are high in sugar

I wondered about that as well.

GauchoMark

Getting fat is a cause of chronic energy surplus. It is not caused by sugar or carbs although sugary foods do make it awfully easy to create an energy surplus.

EDIT: Also, if you happen to be holding a Gary Taubes book I'd suggest putting it down.

SideSteel hit on a huge point here.

Portion estimation is a HUUUUGE source of error. Obviously, if you are eating a lot of donuts, you better be pretty accurate because any error you make results in a lof of calories. If you eat a lot of lettuce, well, you have to grossly underestimate your lettuce portions to have a calorie issue.

Still, though, its all about maintaining a calorie (energy) deficit.

jamesagnew717

100 grams of white sugar 500 calories

100 grams of black beans around 100 calories


the body will break down the white sugar very fast and send your insulin through the roof, will cause your body to store this sugar as fat

the body will break down the beans very slow and will fill you up with the fiber content, insulin levels remain normal , slow release of sugar keep you satisfied


so we can not say that all calories are equal,

metabolism is the word used to represent the action taken to convert food into energy, so whatever we eat can affect our metabolism , and i am sure that if we are consuming white breads, processed carbohydrates, sugars,
then we can say that this can have an affect in our weight loss efforts as it will spike insulin and store unwanted sugar in the blood as fat.

i think that we have to look at what foods are acidic and what foods are alkaline,

sugar is actually an acid in our body, so all these foods are actually causing so much acid build up, but our body is made to run in an alkaline state,

so i think that we can eat as many calories as we desire , as long as they are not acidic then they will not interrupt with the system,

GauchoMark

is brown sugar ok?

jacksonpt

100 grams of white sugar 500 calories

100 grams of black beans around 100 calories


the body will break down the white sugar very fast and send your insulin through the roof, will cause your body to store this sugar as fat

the body will break down the beans very slow and will fill you up with the fiber content, insulin levels remain normal , slow release of sugar keep you satisfied


so we can not say that all calories are equal,

metabolism is the word used to represent the action taken to convert food into energy, so whatever we eat can affect our metabolism , and i am sure that if we are consuming white breads, processed carbohydrates, sugars,
then we can say that this can have an affect in our weight loss efforts as it will spike insulin and store unwanted sugar in the blood as fat.

i think that we have to look at what foods are acidic and what foods are alkaline,

sugar is actually an acid in our body, so all these foods are actually causing so much acid build up, but our body is made to run in an alkaline state,

so i think that we can eat as many calories as we desire , as long as they are not acidic then they will not interrupt with the system,

ok... I vote troll.

morf13

500 calories of Spinac,Brocolli,Lean chicken

is really not the same as

500 calories of Candy Bars, soda,ice cream

Sure, the units of energy are the same, but the content and what they do to your body is different. Sugar loaded foods turn to fat,and play havoc on your insulin levels

GauchoMark

100 grams of white sugar 500 calories

100 grams of black beans around 100 calories


the body will break down the white sugar very fast and send your insulin through the roof, will cause your body to store this sugar as fat

the body will break down the beans very slow and will fill you up with the fiber content, insulin levels remain normal , slow release of sugar keep you satisfied


so we can not say that all calories are equal,

metabolism is the word used to represent the action taken to convert food into energy, so whatever we eat can affect our metabolism , and i am sure that if we are consuming white breads, processed carbohydrates, sugars,
then we can say that this can have an affect in our weight loss efforts as it will spike insulin and store unwanted sugar in the blood as fat.

i think that we have to look at what foods are acidic and what foods are alkaline,

sugar is actually an acid in our body, so all these foods are actually causing so much acid build up, but our body is made to run in an alkaline state,

so i think that we can eat as many calories as we desire , as long as they are not acidic then they will not interrupt with the system,

ok... I vote troll.

I agree.

At this point, you aren't even comparing calories anymore, but different quantities.

Fatandfifty3

100 grams of white sugar 500 calories

100 grams of black beans around 100 calories


the body will break down the white sugar very fast and send your insulin through the roof, will cause your body to store this sugar as fat

the body will break down the beans very slow and will fill you up with the fiber content, insulin levels remain normal , slow release of sugar keep you satisfied


so we can not say that all calories are equal,

metabolism is the word used to represent the action taken to convert food into energy, so whatever we eat can affect our metabolism , and i am sure that if we are consuming white breads, processed carbohydrates, sugars,
then we can say that this can have an affect in our weight loss efforts as it will spike insulin and store unwanted sugar in the blood as fat.

i think that we have to look at what foods are acidic and what foods are alkaline,

sugar is actually an acid in our body, so all these foods are actually causing so much acid build up, but our body is made to run in an alkaline state,

so i think that we can eat as many calories as we desire , as long as they are not acidic then they will not interrupt with the system,

ok... I vote troll.

seconded

jamesagnew717

[/quote]

That one had me scratching my head as well. I couldn't remember if too many bananas makes you go to the bathroom or makes you not.
Although ironic that the OP says the person eating 20 bananas a day doesn't gain weight but claims sugar makes you fat when bananas are high in sugar
[/quote]

the sugar in a banana is a simple sugar that your body will recognize, it also has fiber in it to help the absorption remain slower, its slow release of sugars in the blood, this is why , and 20 bananas is 2000 calories , but the banana will keep you in an alkaline state,

SideSteel

100 grams of white sugar 500 calories

100 grams of black beans around 100 calories


the body will break down the white sugar very fast and send your insulin through the roof, will cause your body to store this sugar as fat

First if you're going to compare you would hold calories constant, not food grams. Next, you are completely ignoring what happens in large periods of time. Fat oxidation will exceed fat storage in an energy deficit. If you eat a bunch of sugar and acute fat storage increases, but you are in an energy deficit over time, then fat oxidation will exceed fat storage and you will lose fat.

Next, not many people sit down to a good hearty breakfast of 100g of table sugar so this example is somewhat silly.

Next, you should read this regarding insulin:
weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=319

so we can not say that all calories are equal,

They are equal in energy value. Macronutrients are utilized differently so comparing sugar to beans is silly unless you're strictly comparing the energy intake which you are not.

morf13

I work with a 37 year oldguy that is 6ft tall, 165 lbs,and eats nonstop,8 hours a day. Hoagies, chicken,snacks, sodas, energy drinks,etc
He does not gain an ounce. His metabolism is a rare one,most of us would eat the same stuff and keep gaining. Most of us cant get away with that

strikerjb007

Calories matter. No doubt. But what research has showed is that what truly matters is what the foods you eat do to your BLOOD.