Nutritional question.

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zekerella
zekerella Posts: 58 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello!!!

This is my first time on this forum! But I am excited to become a part of this community!

Ive been logging for 3 weeks now - and have only lost 2 lbs...which is discouraging when you have 17 more to go and have been meeting your calorie goals. (I average between 1200-1500 a day...I eat my excerise calories back because I need to as I am an athlete who gets a lot of exercise in)

My question!!

Is the foods you eat REALLY paramount in your diet? I thought that a calorie was a calorie. So if you eat 500 calories of chocolate and 700 calories of begs, lean proteins, ect...that you will still lose weight? I understand that this may not be the healthiest way...but am I not correct?

Has anyone ever (with themselves) witnessed a quicker or more consistent weight loss when they've only eaten good food? Or cut out sweets ect...?

Im tyring to pin point why I am busting my *kitten* and not losing at least 1lb a week....

Replies

  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
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    To answer your question, in my experience, eating healthier, less processed and natural foods will assist you in your long term nutritional and weight loss/maintenance goals but aren't 100% necessary when it comes to cutting calories. As for short term, I know when I am preparing to go on vacation, I will do a 2-week "detox" I like to call it, where I cut out certain foods that are known to bloat me, such as broccoli, beans, highly processed and high sodium foods, etc. and stick with very healthy salads, lean meats, and veggies, and lay off the diet soda. Basically all that adds up to is water weight loss.

    I like to stick to the 80/20 rule much like others on this board, as long as you're eating good foods 80% of the time, 20% will be ok to indulge in the foods that aren't exactly on the food pyramid. :laugh:

    Hope this helps! Oh, and I keep calorie counting no matter what I eat!
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
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    first off, 2 lbs in 3 weeks is great, since you only had 19 to lose. That is a very healthy weight loss, so congrats.

    technically, your weight loss comes solely from your calorie deficit. Where those calories come from doesn't affect fat loss. You can google the "twinkie diet" and see an experiment about this.

    However, the food you eat does affect how healthy you are, how you feel, how hungry you are, and how much muscle you retain. Since you are an athlete, I'd say it is very important for you to be eating correctly. I'd probably shoot for a calorie distribution of around 40-50% carbs, 25-35% protein, and 25-35% fat.

    btw, you may have lost more than 2 lbs. 3 weeks isn't all that long and it is possible you could be retaining water or weighed at a different time of day or whatever. My weight can fluctuate by 1 lb day to day.
  • magerum
    magerum Posts: 12,589 Member
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    A calorie is a calorie. Caloric deficit will lead to weight loss, all health aside. You can eat nothing but twinkies if you're in deficit you will still loose weight.
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
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    I like to stick to the 80/20 rule much like others on this board, as long as you're eating good foods 80% of the time, 20% will be ok to indulge in the foods that aren't exactly on the food pyramid. :laugh:

    I've seen that "rule" around here before and always find it ironic that it is the exact opposite of the "real" 80-20 rule where 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle
  • FireBrand80
    FireBrand80 Posts: 378 Member
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    I've seen better results with a moderate amount of junk food in my diet, as opposed to depriving myself and living in misery.
  • magerum
    magerum Posts: 12,589 Member
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    I've seen better results with a moderate amount of junk food in my diet, as opposed to depriving myself and living in misery.

    Trust this guy^ He's got this crap down :)
  • jshort152
    jshort152 Posts: 80
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    Great question! The biggest thing with eating healthier is that it keeps you full for longer. Along with also getting in proper micro nutrients and vitamins in good foods that you would not find in other processed foods, it helps you stay healthy and not sick! It also builds good eating habits, what do you train yourself to do after lets say you do lose a certain amount of weight after eating chips and chocolate. You will gain it back once you go off your dieting. Hope this helps!

    Jesse Short
    ISSA Certified Personal Trainer
  • Akimajuktuq
    Akimajuktuq Posts: 3,037 Member
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    While some people say you can eat all Twinkies, as long as you are in a calorie deficit, you will lose. Well, that's not the case for me. I have to eat proper, natural, unprocessed, and grain-free foods to be healthy and lose weight. I'm not saying that's you or everyone, but for ME it is not just calories in and calories out. I only live in "misery" when I eat unhealthy foods and my body doesn't allow "moderate" amounts of junk food.
  • wolfpack77
    wolfpack77 Posts: 655
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    Yes and no.

    In the end, yes it comes down to calories in vs calories out. But as mentioned, the composition of those calories does matter when it comes to what kind of weight you're losing (fat or muscle or both). Also from a hormonal standpoint, sugary foods like chocolate isnt good for insulin stability, and will probably just make you hungrier more often. Once and a while is okay, but not all the time.

    Even if you are able to reach your goals on a junk food diet, its not sustainable and you'll end up gaining it all back eventually. Developing healthy eating habits as part of your lifestyle is the only surefire way to take it off and keep it off with the least amount of effort.
  • FireBrand80
    FireBrand80 Posts: 378 Member
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    Great question! The biggest thing with eating healthier is that it keeps you full for longer. Along with also getting in proper micro nutrients and vitamins in good foods that you would not find in other processed foods, it helps you stay healthy and not sick! It also builds good eating habits, what do you train yourself to do after lets say you do lose a certain amount of weight after eating chips and chocolate. You will gain it back once you go off your dieting. Hope this helps!

    Jesse Short
    ISSA Certified Personal Trainer

    The OP didn't say she was going to eat entirely "chips and chocolate." She explicitly asked about including a moderate amount of junk food in an overall healthy diet. Nothing about what she said suggests that her approach would cause her to "gain it back."
  • jshort152
    jshort152 Posts: 80
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    I never said she ate only those foods, that was a generalization with if you eat a larger amount of junk foods? Feel free to put in a different type of junk food into that rather than just chips or chocolate.
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,229 Member
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    You're really not that far from your goal. The lower your body fat percentage, the harder it is to actually burn fat. If you have a low body fat already, your body uses food more efficiently as a fuel source because it doesn't have much else to use.

    Nutrition impacts how your body behaves. A calorie is a calorie, but how your body uses that calorie is dependent upon what that energy is made up of.

    Eating cleaner might help, but you can't really be sure. If you have a low body fat percentage now, then your body is going to fight to hold on to it. All I can suggest is to get your protein in and make certain you have some unsaturated fats in your diet. Not sure what you have your macros set at, but to my understanding, 40 carbs/30 protein/30 fat is considered a well-rounded ratio for a balanced diet.

    Good luck.
  • MB_Positif
    MB_Positif Posts: 8,897 Member
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    I am with FireBrand :) Avoiding deprivation was key in my weight loss. Are my days perfect, no? Have I lost weight, yes.
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
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    Actually 2lbs is great!! You're off to a wonderful start! A calorie may be a calorie and there maybe all sorts of scientific studies to say yay or nay.....but for me - Eating healthy just plain makes me feel better!! I have more energy, my skin and hair looks great and I get very few colds. And you need good food and nutrition to fuel your workouts!!!! At least I do. I sure someone will chime in on here that they are on the twinkie diet and run marathons.

    Good healthy food is just commonsense. You wouldn't put water in your gas tank and expect your car to run. Treat your body well :flowerforyou:
  • FireBrand80
    FireBrand80 Posts: 378 Member
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    I never said she ate only those foods, that was a generalization with if you eat a larger amount of junk foods? Feel free to put in a different type of junk food into that rather than just chips or chocolate.

    So was your point to actually answer the OP's question or to simply speak in general terms?
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    Yes, what you eat matters. Depending on whether you're eating thing that raise your blood sugar a lot or things that keep it fairly stable, your body metabolizes food differently. Long term, you can also set yourself up for insulin resistance, diabetes, and weight gain if you eat too many unprocessed carbs (like sugar, white flour and rice, etc.).

    IMO, from what I've been reading from the NIH and National Diabetes Association, low calories and HEALTHY calories are bset for long term weight loss. Exercise is what you need for overall health, looking fantastic, and weight maintenance.

    And two pounds in 3 weeks is just fine! It adds up.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    I like to stick to the 80/20 rule much like others on this board, as long as you're eating good foods 80% of the time, 20% will be ok to indulge in the foods that aren't exactly on the food pyramid. :laugh:

    I've seen that "rule" around here before and always find it ironic that it is the exact opposite of the "real" 80-20 rule where 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle
    [/quote

    That is cute.
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,229 Member
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    Yes, what you eat matters. Depending on whether you're eating thing that raise your blood sugar a lot or things that keep it fairly stable, your body metabolizes food differently. Long term, you can also set yourself up for insulin resistance, diabetes, and weight gain if you eat too many unprocessed carbs (like sugar, white flour and rice, etc.).

    IMO, from what I've been reading from the NIH and National Diabetes Association, low calories and HEALTHY calories are bset for long term weight loss. Exercise is what you need for overall health, looking fantastic, and weight maintenance.

    And two pounds in 3 weeks is just fine! It adds up.

    Nothing 'stabilizes' insulin. When you eat food, your insulin spikes. When you don't, it drops. If you actually have diabetes, then the cleanest diet possible is ideal. But if your body doesn't have issues releasing insulin at the appropriate time, sugars aren't a major factor.
  • zekerella
    zekerella Posts: 58 Member
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    THANK YOU EVERYONE!

    Im glad I could open quite a debate! And its reassuring to hear that albs in 3 weeks is actually an ok place to be!

    Just to be clear, I eat really well (whole grains, fresh unsalted veggies, lean proteins...fruit with some dairy ect...) most of the time. but because I work in the entertainment industry, temptations are literally on every table in my workplace (craft service) that means a bowl full of M&M's...fresh baked cookies, fun sized candy bars....and not many healthy options (although I got them to provide baby carrots). So for example - like today - I ended up eating some fun sized candy bars and M&M's (totaling 400 calories!)

    BUT since I am VERY determined - I won't go over 1500 calories for my day...

    this isn't an everyday thing...but it happens about 2 times a week and never on weekends when Im away from the temptations. Im just wondering if its sabotaging my diet....

    My goal for next week will be to try and be more disciplined with the craft service? So HARD!

    much love to all of you!
    -lindsay

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