Losing Weight At McDonalds

MyM0wM0w

2 Side Salads (20 calories each)
1 Packet Vinagarette (35 calories)
2 Snack Wraps w/o Cheese (420 calories)

5 Dollars, 495 Calories, 30 Protein, 13 Fat, 65 Carb


Don't even try to hate on that.

Except that one meal would have my entire daily allowance of sodium.... 1500mg

CoachReddy

we absolutely agree on this.
please look at jonnynathan's diary to see what you're defending. we're not talking about once every few weeks.

Yes, he does eat more processed food than I would. Yes, his sodium intake is higher than mine. Yes, he's eating processed and fast-food every day, albeit (and you must admit this) not the worst choices in processed or fast food. His diary would actually indicate he's getting recommended amounts of macronutrients, vitamins, minerals but seems a little light on antioxidants. Johnny - eat a little more berries, mmm, k?

... and there are literally hundreds of millions of people on this earth that do the same thing every day with no health issues. It's annoying (heck, I can't eat 1/2 a donut or a wrap or burger bun without my blood glucose skyrocketing to the moon) but true.

I'm not so much defending it as I am stating that there really is no science that contradicts his way of eating as unhealthy.

I don't know this man, and cannot judge his lifestyle (although I must admit I do enjoy his sense of humour). It may be that he doesn't have the time (or even facilities) to prepare meals in advance like I do, or like I'm guessing you do. It may well be this is currently the BEST way he can eat and still make time to exercise, rest and do his work/school/whatever he does. I don't know and refuse to judge.

What I can say is he appears fit - his profile picture shows him at a healthy bodyfat % and it's taken in a gym to boot - meaning that regardless of how little time he may take preparing whole foods - he at least makes the time to exercise.

We KNOW the incredible protective effects exercise has on our bodies and you can't deny that someone that eats a healthy caloric intake (even though their intake of processed food and sugar seems 'high' to a "clean" eater) with proper nutrients, AND regularly exercises is healthier than 95% of the population in the USA. OK, 95% is an estimated and possibly exaggerated statistic with no way to verify... but it wouldn't surprise me.

There actually is science to back it up, but it'll have to wait till I'm at a computer again.

albertabeefy

Antioxidants are everywhere these days, and there's little to no real evidence they do much of anything for us.

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/health-wellness/articles/2013/03/09/do-you-really-need-antioxidants?page=2

Quick FYI the article is based around studies on supplemental antioxidants, not antioxidants naturally occurring in our food.

It is accepted by medicine and science in general that antioxidants in fruit and vegetables do lower the incidence of cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. Unlike hypotheses such as the lipid hypothesis or closely-related diet-heart hypothesis, the role antioxidants play is not a theory, but substantiated in all scientific studies done.

There is, however, no consensus that SUPPLEMENTING with antioxidants has any beneficial effects - which is why the FDA doesn't allow any antioxidant supplements to be labeled with claims they prevent disease, etc.

So from one old science guy to you - eat yer berries. Your choice of course

jonnythan

Antioxidants are everywhere these days, and there's little to no real evidence they do much of anything for us.

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/health-wellness/articles/2013/03/09/do-you-really-need-antioxidants?page=2

Quick FYI the article is based around studies on supplemental antioxidants, not antioxidants naturally occurring in our food.

It is accepted by medicine and science in general that antioxidants in fruit and vegetables do lower the incidence of cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. Unlike hypotheses such as the lipid hypothesis or closely-related diet-heart hypothesis, the role antioxidants play is not a theory, but substantiated in all scientific studies done.

There is, however, no consensus that SUPPLEMENTING with antioxidants has any beneficial effects - which is why the FDA doesn't allow any antioxidant supplements to be labeled with claims they prevent disease, etc.

So from one old science guy to you - eat yer berries. Your choice of course

Meh. I hate berries

albertabeefy

There actually is science to back it up, but it'll have to wait till I'm at a computer again.

Message me when you find what you want to post. I'll be happy to tear it to shreds if I can. If I cannot I'll also happily tip my hat your general direction - but I'm fairly confident my research in this regard is solid.

albertabeefy

Meh. I hate berries

There was this old joke from when I was a kid who's punchline was...

'Doctor say you gonna die, Johnny!'

I love berries. It's 90%of my fruit intake...which admittedly, being high in sugar, isn't much.

fatolelatdy

YAY finally some junk food junkies like me

Breakfast sausage burrito 300 cal
Milk 100 cal

just over $2.00

newdaydawning79

Has anyone here actually educated themselves about nutrition at all? Honestly, myfitnesspal isn't about dieting, it is about making a lifestyle change. And a proper lifestyle change doesn't include vegetables imported from halfway around the globe that weren't allowed to ripen on the vine naturally, that are likely GMO, with flour in the "healthy" tortilla wraps and batter on the chicken that is processed beyond belief, covering antibiotic rich, steroid pumped chicken that has been processed and pummelled into oblivion.

You can go to McDonalds. But please understand that it does not matter if you only eat 1200 calories a day if you eat 1200 calories of ****. If you eat McDonalds five days a week, your insides will be a ****show no matter what you might think. Your body will be acidic instead of alkaline, and you may as well buy yourself a casket now because cancer cells love to grow in acidic environments. Cheers everyone.

Oh and p.s. - diet coke is one of the worst things you could possibly ingest - more than containing aspartame and a million other ingredients you wouldn't give to your worst enemy, it actually stimulates the hunger region in the brain, which could cause you to eat more than if you had just drank water. So it literally does you no good whatsoever.

I haven't laughed this hard in a long time. Thank you, Victoria.

(For the record, my fiancee drinks 1 diet coke every single day, it doesn't 'stimulate her hunger' or any of that other BS. Do I think artificial sweeteners are the world's best thing? Nope. But do I use them? Sweet 'N Low every time I have iced tea, baby. Have for my whole life. Still waiting for that cancer to show up.)

bcattoes

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

jonnythan

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

It provides legitimate data. They bought some ground beef, made a burger, and showed it dries up and doesn't mold just the same way as a plain McDonald's burger.

You are simply wrong in your statements. Period, end of story.

bcattoes

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

It provides legitimate data. They bought some ground beef, made a burger, and showed it dries up and doesn't mold just the same way as a plain McDonald's burger.

You are simply wrong in your statements. Period, end of story.

How did the beef dry up and look exactly the same?

jonnythan

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

It provides legitimate data. They bought some ground beef, made a burger, and showed it dries up and doesn't mold just the same way as a plain McDonald's burger.

You are simply wrong in your statements. Period, end of story.

How did the beef dry up and look exactly the same?

By drying up.

If you cook a plain piece of ground beef that's fairly thin like a McDonald's burger patty, and let it sit on the counter, it dries up before it can be taken over by mold. That's the long and the short of it.

Ever leave a piece of bread on the counter? It doesn't get moldy. It dries up and becomes a big crouton. Bread in the package gets moldy because the package maintains moisture.

CoachReddy

At Chipotle, about to get my clean eating on!

bcattoes

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

It provides legitimate data. They bought some ground beef, made a burger, and showed it dries up and doesn't mold just the same way as a plain McDonald's burger.

You are simply wrong in your statements. Period, end of story.

How did the beef dry up and look exactly the same?

By drying up.

If you cook a plain piece of ground beef that's fairly thin like a McDonald's burger patty, and let it sit on the counter, it dries up before it can be taken over by mold. That's the long and the short of it.

Ever leave a piece of bread on the counter? It doesn't get moldy. It dries up and becomes a big crouton. Bread in the package gets moldy because the package maintains moisture.

My bread gets moldy, but I do live in a humid area. But, how did they know the meat had dried up. Some sort of test to measure the water content?

albertabeefy

How did the beef dry up and look exactly the same?

By drying up.

If you cook a plain piece of ground beef that's fairly thin like a McDonald's burger patty, and let it sit on the counter, it dries up before it can be taken over by mold. That's the long and the short of it.

Ever leave a piece of bread on the counter? It doesn't get moldy. It dries up and becomes a big crouton. Bread in the package gets moldy because the package maintains moisture.

Sodium content also plays a factor here in addition to moisture. Sodium has been used as a meat preservative for thousands of years.

The two reasons McDonald's fries don't mold (like the earlier picture of McDonald's fries vs. diner fries) is the sodium content is huge whilst the moisture content is lower. Thin cut fries are crisper because they contain less moisture as more of it escapes in the cooking process.

jonnythan

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

It provides legitimate data. They bought some ground beef, made a burger, and showed it dries up and doesn't mold just the same way as a plain McDonald's burger.

You are simply wrong in your statements. Period, end of story.

How did the beef dry up and look exactly the same?

By drying up.

If you cook a plain piece of ground beef that's fairly thin like a McDonald's burger patty, and let it sit on the counter, it dries up before it can be taken over by mold. That's the long and the short of it.

Ever leave a piece of bread on the counter? It doesn't get moldy. It dries up and becomes a big crouton. Bread in the package gets moldy because the package maintains moisture.

My bread gets moldy, but I do live in a humid area. But, how did they know the meat had dried up. Some sort of test to measure the water content?

Yes, that's exactly what they did. They recorded the weight of the burger every day:

"We can prove this by examining the weight charts between the regular burger and the Quarter Pounder. Take a look:
This chart represents the amount of weight lost from the burgers through evaporation every day (both starting weights have been normalized to 1). As you can see, by the end of 2 weeks, both the regular burgers and the Quarter Pounders ended up losing about 31% of their total weight and are pretty much stable. They are essentially burger-jerky."

Here are the samples they used:

Sample 1: A plain McDonald's hamburger stored on a plate in the open air outside of its wrapper.
Sample 2: A plain burger made from home-ground fresh all-natural chuck of the exact dimensions as the McDonald's burger, on a standard store-bought toasted bun.
Sample 3: A plain burger with a home-ground patty, but a McDonald's bun.
Sample 4: A plain burger with a McDonald's patty on a store-bought bun.*
Sample 5: A plain McDonald's burger stored in its original packaging.
Sample 6: A plain McDonald's burger made without any salt, stored in the open air.
Sample 7: A plain McDonald's Quarter Pounder, stored in the open air.
Sample 8: A homemade burger the exact dimension of a McDonald's Quarter Pounder.
Sample 9:A plain McDonald's Angus Third Pounder, stored in the open air

Here are some snippets of results:

"Turns out that not only did the regular McDonald's burgers not rot, but the home-ground burgers did not rot either. Samples one through five had shrunk a bit (especially the beef patties), but they showed no signs of decomposition"

"The final two burgers I tested were a McDonald's burger and a regular homemade burger of the same dimensions placed in plastic zipper-lock bags side by side. Hopefully the bag would trap in enough moisture. The question: Would they rot? Indeed they do. Within a week, both burgers were nearly covered in little white spots of mold, eventually turning into the green and black spotted beast you see above."

"The burger doesn't rot because it's small size and relatively large surface area help it to lose moisture very fast. Without moisture, there's no mold or bacterial growth. Of course, that the meat is pretty much sterile to begin with due to the high cooking temperature helps things along as well. It's not really surprising. Humans have known about this phenomenon for thousands of years. After all, how do you think beef jerky is made?"

Amanda0877

No no no!!! Its not just calories that matter, its whats in those calories. Any food from fast food places is loaded with fillers and preservatives and straight up chemicals. You might as well just eat another thousand calories a day. Make your own burger, it tastes better and is way healthier. Even if you are getting a salad, try recognizing half the ingredients in the dressing. Not to mention the chemicals sprayed on the veggies to keep them "fresh." Come on guys.

spngbob

Pancakes with little to NO syrup and half a pat of butter. STAY away from those sausages!!!!! I still get to go out for breakfast and a walk will burn those few calories off in little time!

toya316

Cool story bro but burger king is still better

PREACH....

bcattoes

Like I said, I don't trust any food that looks the same after 3 months in my body. If I want fast food there are better places to go with better ingredients.

You'd better never make a hamburger at home, or eat bread, then.

I you make and cook a hamburger patty at home and then toss it on a plate, it'll look the same in a year. Same with bread: put a slice on the counter, and if the cat doesn't run off with it it'll look the same in about a year.

What?? Unless the temperature of this counter is below freezing, this is nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. Read this:
http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html

Besides, why would a burger from McDonald's age differently from one you cook at home? There are no special ingredients. The only thing in a plain McD's hamburger is a regular bun, ground beef, and some salt and pepper. Period, end of story, that's it. There are no magic preservatives that make the McD's ground beef different from supermarket ground beef.

Bottom line: if you prepare a hamburger at home, and don't put condiments on it, and let it sit on a counter: it will simply dry out.

And grow mold and bacteria and eventually decay like everything organic does. That link you provided is blocked at my office for "social networking" so I'm guessing it provides no legitimate data. Unless your food is pumped full of some pretty hefty preservatives, it's going to change in a year. In fact, it will look significantly different in just a few days.

IDK what McD puts in their beef or how it differs from the various types of beef available in a supermarket , but I'm sure it would look different in a year also. It sure tastes a lot crappier than the ground beef I use at home, though.

It provides legitimate data. They bought some ground beef, made a burger, and showed it dries up and doesn't mold just the same way as a plain McDonald's burger.

You are simply wrong in your statements. Period, end of story.

How did the beef dry up and look exactly the same?

By drying up.

If you cook a plain piece of ground beef that's fairly thin like a McDonald's burger patty, and let it sit on the counter, it dries up before it can be taken over by mold. That's the long and the short of it.

Ever leave a piece of bread on the counter? It doesn't get moldy. It dries up and becomes a big crouton. Bread in the package gets moldy because the package maintains moisture.

My bread gets moldy, but I do live in a humid area. But, how did they know the meat had dried up. Some sort of test to measure the water content?

Yes, that's exactly what they did. They recorded the weight of the burger every day:

"We can prove this by examining the weight charts between the regular burger and the Quarter Pounder. Take a look:
This chart represents the amount of weight lost from the burgers through evaporation every day (both starting weights have been normalized to 1). As you can see, by the end of 2 weeks, both the regular burgers and the Quarter Pounders ended up losing about 31% of their total weight and are pretty much stable. They are essentially burger-jerky."

Here are the samples they used:

Sample 1: A plain McDonald's hamburger stored on a plate in the open air outside of its wrapper.
Sample 2: A plain burger made from home-ground fresh all-natural chuck of the exact dimensions as the McDonald's burger, on a standard store-bought toasted bun.
Sample 3: A plain burger with a home-ground patty, but a McDonald's bun.
Sample 4: A plain burger with a McDonald's patty on a store-bought bun.*
Sample 5: A plain McDonald's burger stored in its original packaging.
Sample 6: A plain McDonald's burger made without any salt, stored in the open air.
Sample 7: A plain McDonald's Quarter Pounder, stored in the open air.
Sample 8: A homemade burger the exact dimension of a McDonald's Quarter Pounder.
Sample 9:A plain McDonald's Angus Third Pounder, stored in the open air

Here are some snippets of results:

"Turns out that not only did the regular McDonald's burgers not rot, but the home-ground burgers did not rot either. Samples one through five had shrunk a bit (especially the beef patties), but they showed no signs of decomposition"

"The final two burgers I tested were a McDonald's burger and a regular homemade burger of the same dimensions placed in plastic zipper-lock bags side by side. Hopefully the bag would trap in enough moisture. The question: Would they rot? Indeed they do. Within a week, both burgers were nearly covered in little white spots of mold, eventually turning into the green and black spotted beast you see above."

"The burger doesn't rot because it's small size and relatively large surface area help it to lose moisture very fast. Without moisture, there's no mold or bacterial growth. Of course, that the meat is pretty much sterile to begin with due to the high cooking temperature helps things along as well. It's not really surprising. Humans have known about this phenomenon for thousands of years. After all, how do you think beef jerky is made?"

And yet they looked the same. Wow, that is a truly amazing story. What did it taste like when they ate it? I mean, if it's unchanged after a year surely they didn't waste a perfectly good burger.