Diet tips that don't work

135

Replies

  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I was more addressing the "muscle weighs more than fat" part, because that's untrue, a pound is a pound (like I said in the part you cut off), and the "IF you gain weight, it's JUST muscle" because that's untrue too. If you gain weight, it's not just muscle. It could be water retention, a small fluctuation, or a million things. This statement implies that I shouldn't ever worry if I gain weight while dieting because I'm just gaining muscle, although I could be gaining weight because of inaccurate measurements, bad logging, eating above my calorie goal, etc. Those all-or-nothing statements are just bad ideas.

    A pound is irrelevant in the discussion of whether muscle weighs more than fat, since we don't know what weight we have of each. Obviously we are talking same volume since the discussion would be how one can gain weight while getting smaller. Volume is the issue. The fact that muscle is heavier (i.e. weighs more per volume) is the answer. Saying one pound of X weighs the same as one pound of Y is just stating the obvious without providign an answer.

    It is possible to gain only muscle. That's how/why one's BF% decreases while their weight increases.
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
    If you're hungry just drink water, you're probably confusing hunger with thirst. Umm no. Then I just get sloshy and stabby.

    LMAO!
    Some of the worst advice I've gotten is to just eat three square meals a day. If I don't eat small meals and a LOT of snacks, I get really stabby! Then I hoover a ton of calories because I'm ravenously hungry and gain weight. :D

    Actually it is true that it's common to mistake thirst for hunger. if you dont' drink a enough water (like lots of people don't), you might in fact be thirsty, but think you are hungry. 1 glass or water before eating will not harm your appetite, if you are in fact hungry. Also. it's good for you and healthy to drink more water.. I drink a TON of water.. and still eat quite a bit. It's a fallacy that drinking water curbs your appetite. it's only if you are eating instead of drinking. If you feel hungry and you already drink enough water.. you're most likely hungry. like me.. if I feel hungry.. i'm hungry.. I drink over 10 glasses of water per day.. I know Im not thirsty. lol
  • Joreanasaurous
    Joreanasaurous Posts: 1,384 Member
    I have coworkers that believe they can eat whatever they want and lose weight without working out as long as they don't eat after 6 pm.
  • cjowell
    cjowell Posts: 41 Member
    Worst Advice: Staying at or below 1200 calories is best!
    Through this process I have learned that my calorie intake needs to change and right now for me that is at 1450.

    And I don't like the word diet because all it is die with a t and I feel like I am dying when on a diet. :) I feel healthy and happy learning to make better choices and enjoying my life.
  • Rawr1978
    Rawr1978 Posts: 245 Member
    The total calories isnt important, it's whether you're eating healthy. This came from a person who gorges on healthy food and is still 20lbs overweight.
    I've lost 50lbs and im skinny now, do what I did! (They were nowhere near thin, and the weightloss was 30lbs. That was awesome in itself, this person just saw a greater loss in the mirror, I suppose. Still didn't change the fact that no one we knew wanted to copy her)
    Starvation mode. Kudos if you believe in it and going over 1200 works for you....it does jack for me.
    You shouldn't let yourself go hungry. I only eat when my stomach growls, and I have more energy now.
  • Rawr1978
    Rawr1978 Posts: 245 Member
    Worst Advice: Staying at or below 1200 calories is best!
    Through this process I have learned that my calorie intake needs to change and right now for me that is at 1450.

    And I don't like the word diet because all it is die with a t and I feel like I am dying when on a diet. :) I feel healthy and happy learning to make better choices and enjoying my life.

    I believe in trial and error. I HATE when someone who obviously doesn't have your body tells you a certain caloric limit is best.
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
    Any tip about "boosting," "jump-starting," or "stoking" your metabolic fire. Blehhhhhhhh.

    Don't eat past 8, the food just sits there.

    ...and don't eat carbs, 'cause carbs are bad. Mmm kay?

    If you don't eat breakfast, everything you eat the rest of the day will turn directly into fat because your body is confused and has gone into starvation mode because it doesn't know if it will ever be fed again and has to preserve everything you give it.

    Having sex burns like 300 calories.

    My husband keeps trying to convince me sex is the best cardio exercise. Do you think he'll be offended if I wear my heart rate monitor and see how many calories I actually burn?

    Haha! Depends what you do, I guess. He might take it as a challenge, and he might have to work very hard to prove his assumptions correct.
  • tiggerhammon
    tiggerhammon Posts: 2,211 Member
    ... The problem is not that this and that illness runs in your family. The problem is that nobody runs in your family....

    Perfectly said! LOVE IT!
  • retiree2006
    retiree2006 Posts: 951 Member
    Um, I overheard something really stupid at the gym the other day, it went something like this: I eat really fast, I have a fast metabolism therefore. Those who eat slowly have slow metabolisms and tend to be fat.

    WTF?!

    That one really made me laugh. I've heard lots of crazy things, but that's a new one! Thanks. (and at a gym!)
  • manique45
    manique45 Posts: 99 Member
    I hate people talking about genetics and illnesses and excusing their obesity. The problem is not that this and that illness runs in your family. The problem is that nobody runs in your family.
    I am sure there are plenty of little factors which can make weight loss harder, including health problems, but you deal with the cards you've been given. Some people seem more interested in searching for excuses online than actually dealing with their body. We're responsible for our own lives.

    I LOL when I read the problem is that nobody runs in your family... LOL funny and true
  • TheDoctorDana
    TheDoctorDana Posts: 595 Member
    The ones that don't work for me:

    1. No processed foods.

    Define processed, because every food is processed in some form.

    2. Only shop from the edges of the grocery store.

    Does that include the dumpsters? There's plenty of "horrible" foods on the edge of the grocery store.

    3. Don't eat <insert food of the moment considered evil> (re: breads, pasta, rice, anything white)

    I'm already limited on what I can eat with a sodium restriction. Most of the "evil" foods are pretty damn low sodium (I'm looking at you pasta and rice). My life is crap enough now that I can't eat beef jerky anymore, so don't even try to take away my potatoes.

    4a. Eat slowly. Put down your fork/spoon after each bite.

    I can eat a slow as anything and still be hungry. Taking an hour to eat a meal isn't going to make my hunger go away.

    4b. Drink a big glass of water before you eat.

    I don't know about yours, but my stomach can tell the difference between water and food.




    ^^^^ I love you :)
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    The total calories isnt important, it's whether you're eating healthy. This came from a person who gorges on healthy food and is still 20lbs overweight.

    This really is the worst! It really is impossible to eat healthy and become obese or overly fat, because eating so many calories that one becomes obese or fat is not healthy. But it is absolutely possible to eat so much 'healthy food" that you become obese.

    "Healthy food" = foods that are generally beneficial for health (foods that are good for most people, rather than foods that are not bad for most people)
  • fatboy235
    fatboy235 Posts: 147 Member
    .
  • Cassea7
    Cassea7 Posts: 181 Member
    The worst advice i think is " Dont eat fruit, it makes you gain weight" I used to believe this stuff..


    I eat fruit everyday and i am losing weight. ha!
  • aliann30
    aliann30 Posts: 291 Member
    UGH...So hubby is trying to get healthy too. He works on a military base and has a buddy he's been working out with for a few weeks. He also has another buddy who is like apparently "Mr. Organic". I'm glad that he has motivation to workout and someone to workout with but the advice they are giving him is seriously pissing me off. Here are a few things they told him:

    1. Don't eat so much meat. (see #2)
    2. Eat a steak for dinner every night. (wait...what about ....NO just do it....)
    3. Eat a piece of toast with jelly on it for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch, and vegetables in between - that's all you need, no more than that.
    4. Stop eating so many "snacks". (Hubby's snacks so far have been something like 6 triscuit crackers, a piece of string cheese, and a cup of greek yogurt. They said "that's easily 500 calories, you're eating way too much")

    He's been drained and exhausted EVERY DAY and comes home extremely hungry. :frown:

    Oh and apparently Mr. Organic said he's going to give him a list to give to me of what he should be eating. I guess so I can pack his lunches and send him off to kindergart- I mean work. :huh:
  • Raybug0903
    Raybug0903 Posts: 86 Member
    Try those Kim Kardashian diet pills...

    Right, like I would trust anything that comes from a Kardashian.
  • bevtyndall
    bevtyndall Posts: 72 Member
    Any tip about "boosting," "jump-starting," or "stoking" your metabolic fire. Blehhhhhhhh.

    Don't eat past 8, the food just sits there.

    ...and don't eat carbs, 'cause carbs are bad. Mmm kay?

    If you don't eat breakfast, everything you eat the rest of the day will turn directly into fat because your body is confused and has gone into starvation mode because it doesn't know if it will ever be fed again and has to preserve everything you give it.

    Having sex burns like 300 calories. HA HA!!

    My husband keeps trying to convince me sex is the best cardio exercise. Do you think he'll be offended if I wear my heart rate monitor and see how many calories I actually burn?
  • SailorSarah311
    SailorSarah311 Posts: 172 Member
    I can't really remember a time when someone gave me bad advice on dieting. I have been confused about a friend's choice in certain foods. She didn't make sense at all. She was trying to buy "healthier" foods at the grocery. We were planning a picnic that day. We were going to make pasta salad, and she wanted to get the veggie pasta because it was "healthier", but when I suggested using greek yogurt instead of mayo she was like no that isn't going to work. No one is going to eat that. Besides I've been putting extra mayo on everything. Then I was going for the fat free italian dressing to put in the pasta salad, and she decided she wanted the creamy because it would taste better. Hello, the creamy had more fat. You want to eat healthier, but you don't want to sacrifice what you're used to. Sheesh, it was like talking to a brick wall.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
    What I find funny is I've heard most of these before and some of them (negative calorie foods, muscle weighs more than fat) in my nutrition classes from professors who have a PhD in nutrition, on the road to get my Bachelors degree.

    I hate when people recommend diets that aliminate (can't spell today sorry), diets that cut out food groups completely (atkins, paleo). I refuse to cut something out of my diet especially if I want it. If it fits in my macros why not.

    Well, a cubic inch of muscle DOES weigh more than a cubic inch of fat.

    And there ARE calorie negative foods - except that the calories you burn get accounted for in your NEAT figure when MFP or you figure out your base calories. So you need to account for the calories you're putting in when you eat.

    http://www.snopes.com/food/ingredient/celery.asp
  • McGruber03
    McGruber03 Posts: 113 Member
    I read an article on some website called mindbodygreen.com. It was promoting a book called Wheat Belly. The author of the article said that a Mom told her that her kid was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and she took wheat out of his diet, and it cured him. It really ticked me off. I wanted to punch my computer in the face. Did I mention the author of the article has a degree in English?!


    http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-9484/why-wheat-is-ruining-your-life-the-author-of-wheat-belly-explains.html
  • operation_cute
    operation_cute Posts: 588 Member
    Hate it when people say "how did you do it" with regards to my weightloss..

    I did it the only possible way: calories out was less than calories in - via a combination of diet and exercise.

    Asking someone how they did it is what brought me here :) I'm thankful she didn't have the same view as you.
  • Monny287
    Monny287 Posts: 109
    I read an article on some website called mindbodygreen.com. It was promoting a book called Wheat Belly. The author of the article said that a Mom told her that her kid was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and she took wheat out of his diet, and it cured him. It really ticked me off. I wanted to punch my computer in the face. Did I mention the author of the article has a degree in English?!


    http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-9484/why-wheat-is-ruining-your-life-the-author-of-wheat-belly-explains.html

    I have a few co-workers who are anti-carb. One read "Wheat Belly" and was really moved by it, but didn't force her opinions on us. I have another who thinks that those who eat carbs are no better than those who drink, smoke, swear, and skip church on Sundays. Which is funny, since she isn't low-carb in her diet at all. And she knows I'm not trying to lose weight, per se. I'd love to lose a few, but my goal is to live a healthier lifestyle. And I don't believe in cutting out whole food groups. And she still takes it upon herself to lecture me on the evils of carbs every time I pull out my sandwich for lunch or my crackers for a snack. I wouldn't be so annoyed with it if she didn't already know my feelings on the subject and didn't keep persisting in telling me how wrong I am all the time.
  • McGruber03
    McGruber03 Posts: 113 Member
    I read an article on some website called mindbodygreen.com. It was promoting a book called Wheat Belly. The author of the article said that a Mom told her that her kid was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and she took wheat out of his diet, and it cured him. It really ticked me off. I wanted to punch my computer in the face. Did I mention the author of the article has a degree in English?!


    http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-9484/why-wheat-is-ruining-your-life-the-author-of-wheat-belly-explains.html

    I have a few co-workers who are anti-carb. One read "Wheat Belly" and was really moved by it, but didn't force her opinions on us. I have another who thinks that those who eat carbs are no better than those who drink, smoke, swear, and skip church on Sundays. Which is funny, since she isn't low-carb in her diet at all. And she knows I'm not trying to lose weight, per se. I'd love to lose a few, but my goal is to live a healthier lifestyle. And I don't believe in cutting out whole food groups. And she still takes it upon herself to lecture me on the evils of carbs every time I pull out my sandwich for lunch or my crackers for a snack. I wouldn't be so annoyed with it if she didn't already know my feelings on the subject and didn't keep persisting in telling me how wrong I am all the time.

    Oh dear, how do you make it through lunch without smacking her?! (j/k). But really! I hate it when people force their opinions on me! I am a freaking dietitian for goodness sakes, and people love to ask my opinion, then tell me why I'm wrong. It happens all of the time. I just started telling co-workers "Well, if that works for you". Most of them are significantly overweight. When it comes to the fads, like avoiding all wheat...fine. Do it, get your fiber from fruits and vegetables. But to say that it CURES type 1 diabetes? I was so mad!
  • megstoo
    megstoo Posts: 47 Member
    >>>1) Muscle weighs more than fat so if you gain weight, it's just muscle (FALSE: a pound is a pound-- muscle just takes up less space) <<<<

    I actually am going to disagree with this statement... Muscle does weigh more than fat and it's not always the pounds on the scale that make the difference, it's also the body fat percentage.
  • jen_zz
    jen_zz Posts: 1,011 Member
    "White bread makes you lose weight because they take all the calories out of it and that's what makes it white."
    no joke.

    lolol
  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
    Fat free or low fat food is healthier for you. Meat is bad.
  • MandaPaigeSparkles88
    MandaPaigeSparkles88 Posts: 1,289 Member
    Anything that Dr.Oz says is a miracle diet does not and will not work!!! IMO
  • Brownsbacker4evr
    Brownsbacker4evr Posts: 365 Member
    3) Never eat carbs because they automatically become fat. The Adkin's diet is the only way to lose weight (FALSE: carb restriction is a personal choice. I restrict my carbs to under 145 a day because of insulin resistance, but I do not eat less than 80. Adkin's is not the ONLY way to lose weight)

    Are there any other "diet tips" you've heard that make you cringe?
    [/quote]

    Yeah, this is ridic. I know there are good and bad carbs..but i've heard that a lot of people on Atkins have gained the weight they've lost back and it only works as a part-time solution.

    And i've also heard the muscle weighs more than fat one too much too.
  • goodtimezzzz
    goodtimezzzz Posts: 640 Member
    You have to eat a lot of small meals to keep your metabolism burning.

    You have to eat breakfast to jumpstart your metabolism.

    You cant eat after a certain hour.
  • goodtimezzzz
    goodtimezzzz Posts: 640 Member
    nice!