Calories in vs. calories out?

swall13
swall13 Posts: 19 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am sure that this question has been asked before, but I have not been able to find a solid answer. So, will I still lose fat as long as I stay within my calorie goal, no matter what I eat? For example, yesterday I splurged and ate four oreos, however I burnt around 500 calories at the gym, so I stayed within my goal. Is it strictly calories in vs. calories out, or do things such as sugar content make a difference? I also want to make sure that I am not losing any muscle.
«1

Replies

  • Exill
    Exill Posts: 155 Member
    At the most basic level: yes. As long as you're not over eating you won't get fat. You could eat only Oreos every day and still lose weight, but you're not going to be very healthy, are you?
  • seena511
    seena511 Posts: 685 Member
    like exill said. i read once about a man who ate only junk food for two months, but still ate a deficit, and lost a ton of weight. you'll probably have a pretty bad bf% to LBM ration, but you can lose weight doing that.
  • jbruced
    jbruced Posts: 210 Member
    At the most basic level: yes. As long as you're not over eating you won't get fat. You could eat only Oreos every day and still lose weight, but you're not going to be very healthy, are you?
    And this would not be nutrittionally sustainable which would lead to all kinds of craving and overeating. As Exill indicates its not that simple.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    I am sure that this question has been asked before, but I have not been able to find a solid answer. So, will I still lose fat as long as I stay within my calorie goal, no matter what I eat? For example, yesterday I splurged and ate four oreos, however I burnt around 500 calories at the gym, so I stayed within my goal. Is it strictly calories in vs. calories out, or do things such as sugar content make a difference? I also want to make sure that I am not losing any muscle.

    calorie in/calorie out is purely about WEIGHT LOSS. if you're concerned about keeping muscle mass, it becomes more important to hit your specific macros.
  • cmcollins001
    cmcollins001 Posts: 3,472 Member
    Ok, now that we all understand that weight loss is calories in/calories out, let's discuss how 4 Oreos is not really splurging. When I splurge on Oreos, it's usually a whole sleeve with milk. Mmmm...Oreos.
  • poedunk65
    poedunk65 Posts: 1,336 Member
    every thing you eat and do caue you to gain or lose weight. eat smart and move more.
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    Well, assuming you're perfectly measuring how much you burn vs. how much you consume... I still believe there are qualities foods and non-quality foods.

    People have different sensitivities to food, so some people can lose weight eating twinkies and pizza, but some have to eat real food. I've seen from personal experience the type of food really matters for me and I've seen people verify this on bodybuilding channels. Body builders meticulously log their food and they know what their maintenance calories are. Some of those guys will just switch foods, hit the same macros, but instead of maintaining some how they're dropping lbs. Things like fiber, sugar, salt, micro-nutrition all play a part in how the body processes food.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    I am sure that this question has been asked before, but I have not been able to find a solid answer. So, will I still lose fat as long as I stay within my calorie goal, no matter what I eat? For example, yesterday I splurged and ate four oreos, however I burnt around 500 calories at the gym, so I stayed within my goal. Is it strictly calories in vs. calories out, or do things such as sugar content make a difference? I also want to make sure that I am not losing any muscle.

    To preserve muscle, you need high protein intake (1 gram per lb of lean body mass) and real strength training.

    As for anything else..... look through my diary. That should answer your questions.
  • swall13
    swall13 Posts: 19 Member
    Ok so what I am understanding is that weight loss is calories in vs. calories out, however, fat loss is not. This is what I had suspected before. I do log my food and exercise very carefully, so as long as I am getting enough protein I should be fine, right?
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    Ok so what I am understanding is that weight loss is calories in vs. calories out, however, fat loss is not. This is what I had suspected before. I do log my food and exercise very carefully, so as long as I am getting enough protein I should be fine, right?

    If you're getting enough protein and engaging in a heavy lifting program.

    How much protein do you get, and what kind of strength training do you do?
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    Yes
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Yes

    no.

    he's specifically talking about dropping body fat while retaining muscle. that's not ONLY cal in/cal out.

    it doesn't have to be a heavy lifting program - you just have to be active and do some sort of resistance work a couple times a week to preserve muscle. to build, you'd have to ramp that up a bit. otherwise, the protein part is about accurate, though the accepted range is between .7-1g/ pound of LBM, but that's splitting hairs. 1g works well enough
  • wikitbikit
    wikitbikit Posts: 518 Member
    Ok, now that we all understand that weight loss is calories in/calories out, let's discuss how 4 Oreos is not really splurging. When I splurge on Oreos, it's usually a whole sleeve with milk. Mmmm...Oreos.
    Aw, c'mon, splurge was perfectly acceptable here. In fact, I give props to the fact that it wasn't a 'binge.' I cringe every time I read the word binge here (from the lunatic fringe).
  • tomcornhole
    tomcornhole Posts: 1,084 Member
    At the most basic level: yes. As long as you're not over eating you won't get fat. You could eat only Oreos every day and still lose weight, but you're not going to be very healthy, are you?

    Wanna make a bet on that? I did an experiment to see what a very low calorie diet would do for me. My BMR is normally 2,900 cal / day. I went down to 1,400 cal / day for 2 weeks. And I gained weight. And my gut got bigger. My body decided it was starving and lowered my BMR. A lot. I felt dizzy, light headed and in a fog all day. So, there is a limit to this whole calories in < calories out = weight loss.

    I also FIRMLY believe that the type of calories matters. 1,800 cal / day of a balanced diet is MUCH better for weight loss than 1,500 calories of Snickers bars. I do think there are many combinations that meet the "healthy" criteria, but I prefer the lower carb, higher protein mix myself.

    Tom
  • cmcollins001
    cmcollins001 Posts: 3,472 Member
    Ok, now that we all understand that weight loss is calories in/calories out, let's discuss how 4 Oreos is not really splurging. When I splurge on Oreos, it's usually a whole sleeve with milk. Mmmm...Oreos.
    Aw, c'mon, splurge was perfectly acceptable here. In fact, I give props to the fact that it wasn't a 'binge.' I cringe every time I read the word binge here (from the lunatic fringe).

    4 Oreos is an acceptable amount for, let's say, lunch at work. Pack some soup or a sandwich (or both if you wish) a banana and a 4 Oreos...personally, That's no different than a few graham crackers really, but nobody would "splurge" on 4 graham crackers.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    Well protein does matter less when you use steroids.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    At the most basic level: yes. As long as you're not over eating you won't get fat. You could eat only Oreos every day and still lose weight, but you're not going to be very healthy, are you?

    Wanna make a bet on that? I did an experiment to see what a very low calorie diet would do for me. My BMR is normally 2,900 cal / day. I went down to 1,400 cal / day for 2 weeks. And I gained weight. And my gut got bigger. My body decided it was starving and lowered my BMR. A lot. I felt dizzy, light headed and in a fog all day. So, there is a limit to this whole calories in < calories out = weight loss.

    I also FIRMLY believe that the type of calories matters. 1,800 cal / day of a balanced diet is MUCH better for weight loss than 1,500 calories of Snickers bars. I do think there are many combinations that meet the "healthy" criteria, but I prefer the lower carb, higher protein mix myself.

    Tom

    your BMR is probably not 2,900 cal...
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Well protein does matter less when you use steroids.

    that dude does not look like a roider.

    and protein doesn't matter quite as much as many believe. it's only 20% of my diet
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    Well protein does matter less when you use steroids.

    that dude does not look like a roider.

    and protein doesn't matter quite as much as many believe. it's only 20% of my diet

    And this is why using percentages for macros is silly. Your goal is 150 grams of protein a day, which is probably pretty close to 1g per lb of lbm. I imagine you're also eating maintenance calories at 3000 a day, which actually decreases your protein needs.
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
    Ok so what I am understanding is that weight loss is calories in vs. calories out, however, fat loss is not. This is what I had suspected before. I do log my food and exercise very carefully, so as long as I am getting enough protein I should be fine, right?

    You need to look at your other nutrients, not just protein. A balanced approach is best.
  • wikitbikit
    wikitbikit Posts: 518 Member
    4 Oreos is an acceptable amount for, let's say, lunch at work. Pack some soup or a sandwich (or both if you wish) a banana and a 4 Oreos...personally, That's no different than a few graham crackers really, but nobody would "splurge" on 4 graham crackers.
    It's unlikely someone would choose to splurge on graham crackers, I agree, but a splurge is relative. Maybe swall severely limits her sugar intake. Four Oreos could be a very big splurge.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Well protein does matter less when you use steroids.

    that dude does not look like a roider.

    and protein doesn't matter quite as much as many believe. it's only 20% of my diet

    And this is why using percentages for macros is silly. Your goal is 150 grams of protein a day, which is probably pretty close to 1g per lb of lbm. I imagine you're also eating maintenance calories at 3000 a day, which actually decreases your protein needs.

    totally true and a valid point. total grams ARE more important than ratios, but many people do base their intake on ratios - whether generally meaningless or not.

    point is, some people eat 300g of protein a day. I used to myself. in no world is that necessary - even if you are bulking.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    totally true and a valid point. total grams ARE more important than ratios, but many people do base their intake on ratios - whether generally meaningless or not.

    point is, some people eat 300g of protein a day. I used to myself. in no world is that necessary - even if you are bulking.

    I can't imagine that being necessary for anyone, except maybe a pro where every half-ounce of muscle really matters and they have a ton of lbm.
  • baptiste565
    baptiste565 Posts: 590 Member
    I am sure that this question has been asked before, but I have not been able to find a solid answer. So, will I still lose fat as long as I stay within my calorie goal, no matter what I eat? For example, yesterday I splurged and ate four oreos, however I burnt around 500 calories at the gym, so I stayed within my goal. Is it strictly calories in vs. calories out, or do things such as sugar content make a difference? I also want to make sure that I am not losing any muscle.
    it is mostly cals in vs cals out BUT carb sensitivity can be a factor, the thermogenic effect of some foods can be a factor,
  • swall13
    swall13 Posts: 19 Member
    I currently weigh around 140, and so I try to eat at least 90 grams of protein but that is sometimes hard. I currently am running around 5 miles every day without any resistance training, but it seems like I need to add some in or else I will lose muscle. Oh and I am woman btw haha.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    I currently weigh around 140, and so I try to eat at least 90 grams of protein but that is sometimes hard. I currently am running around 5 miles every day without any resistance training, but it seems like I need to add some in or else I will lose muscle. Oh and I am woman btw haha.

    one of the biggest myths out there is that women shouldn't do resistance work for fear of getting "bulky"

    women can't get bulky like men unless they're specifically TRYING to. so yes, start lifting some weights!! :smile:
  • swall13
    swall13 Posts: 19 Member
    I just recently started trying to get fit and the hardest part for me has been my sugar cravings. I just cant seem to get past the sweets so that's part of why I posted this. But it seems like as long as I have a balanced diet, I should be able to have sweets in moderation as long as I don't go over my calorie limit....Right?
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    I just recently started trying to get fit and the hardest part for me has been my sugar cravings. I just cant seem to get past the sweets so that's part of why I posted this. But it seems like as long as I have a balanced diet, I should be able to have sweets in moderation as long as I don't go over my calorie limit....Right?

    Yup. Don't deny yourself stuff you're craving; that's a recipe for giving up. Just plan ahead to allow yourself to have the stuff you crave in moderate amounts that you can fit into your plan.
  • baptiste565
    baptiste565 Posts: 590 Member
    I currently weigh around 140, and so I try to eat at least 90 grams of protein but that is sometimes hard. I currently am running around 5 miles every day without any resistance training, but it seems like I need to add some in or else I will lose muscle. Oh and I am woman btw haha.
    i guess it depends on the kind of body you want and the kind of body thats best for your sport.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    I currently weigh around 140, and so I try to eat at least 90 grams of protein but that is sometimes hard. I currently am running around 5 miles every day without any resistance training, but it seems like I need to add some in or else I will lose muscle. Oh and I am woman btw haha.

    Yeah, definitely devote time to strength training. That's where that firm, toned look comes from. Muscle is what creates perky butts, flat abs, and shapely thighs. Look at this pic: the girl on the right weighs MORE but is thinner and shapelier. That's a result of the muscle she built.

    images.jpg

Categories