please dont tear me a new one... just a question...

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24

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  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
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    I essentially ignore carbs/sugars and focus on the following 4:
    • Calories
    • Fat
    • Protein
    • Fiber
    The first 1 is a ceiling and the last 3 are floors.

    ^fixed.


    BTW to OP - YMMV = your mileage may vary.....you might not have the same results following the same plan.

    perfect! i think the 4 would be easiest to concentrate on at first. you know, baby steps!
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
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    how important is sugar intake? ive been over EVERY DAY as far back as i can remember... and i guess im wondering what harm that could do, if any?

    i might add that its not from candy bars or anything like that, more so my instant oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, and so on.

    reason i ask is, i have stubborn belly fat that i want to go away....

    am i all over the place and rambling?

    MFP setting is kind of low. I'm over all the time. A piece or two of fruit a day can put you over. As long as it sugar from a healthy source I would not worry about it too much.
  • JennKie1
    JennKie1 Posts: 200 Member
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    I have the same problem. I can come in way under my carbs, but way over on my sugars. It's frustrating, so I just ignore it. I will agree that South Beach has some great information about how carbs work, etc......I'm not crazy about the diet because I LOVE carbs, but it did help teach me how to make some better choices when it comes to eating them (and the "right" kind). There's a lot of helpful information in it and "phase 2" has some decent recipes whether you're following the diet or not.......phase 1 is way too restrictive for me.
  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
    Options
    I essentially ignore carbs/sugars and focus on the following 4:
    • Calories
    • Fat
    • Protein
    • Fiber
    The first 1 is a ceiling and the last 3 are floors.

    ^fixed.


    BTW to OP - YMMV = your mileage may vary.....you might not have the same results following the same plan.


    Jacwhite22,
    I meant it as I originally posted it; 3 ceilings and 3 floors.

    thanks coolraul! it seems i NEVER eat enough potassium! im not sure what to do about that... if i eat a ton of bananas ill be REALLY over in sugar! ;) LOL
  • lkbhagolum
    lkbhagolum Posts: 8 Member
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    Sugar makes your pancreas work harder. Then it raises your glucose. Then it wears of and your blood sugar crashes and you feel hypoglycemic or hungry and eat again....

    Avoid sugar, after a week you wont miss it. What worked for me was focusing on what I want, which is to be less fat, rather than obsessing over the sugar I am giving up.

    My hubby just lost 70lbs doing this. I decided to join him 2 days ago~
  • Jacwhite22
    Jacwhite22 Posts: 7,012 Member
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    I essentially ignore carbs/sugars and focus on the following 4:
    • Calories
    • Fat
    • Protein
    • Fiber
    The first 1 is a ceiling and the last 3 are floors.

    ^fixed.


    BTW to OP - YMMV = your mileage may vary.....you might not have the same results following the same plan.


    Jacwhite22,
    I meant it as I originally posted it; 3 ceilings and 3 floors.

    I get that.....but sodium has no effect on fat loss....only water retention. dietary fat doesn't make you fat........and potassium is no more special than any other micronutrients.
  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
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    I have the same problem. I can come in way under my carbs, but way over on my sugars. It's frustrating, so I just ignore it. I will agree that South Beach has some great information about how carbs work, etc......I'm not crazy about the diet because I LOVE carbs, but it did help teach me how to make some better choices when it comes to eating them (and the "right" kind). There's a lot of helpful information in it and "phase 2" has some decent recipes whether you're following the diet or not.......phase 1 is way too restrictive for me.

    i looked into the south beach diet a while back, and thought the same thing. i completed a test on line that told me to start in phase 2... but i never stuck with it. mostly because i love carbs too. but, if its hurting me, and my tummy, i have to do SOMETHING
  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
    Options
    Sugar makes your pancreas work harder. Then it raises your glucose. Then it wears of and your blood sugar crashes and you feel hypoglycemic or hungry and eat again....

    Avoid sugar, after a week you wont miss it. What worked for me was focusing on what I want, which is to be less fat, rather than obsessing over the sugar I am giving up.

    My hubby just lost 70lbs doing this. I decided to join him 2 days ago~

    hmmmmm.... sometimes i swear im hypoglycemic. and it seems im ALWAYS hungry. thanks for that input.
  • WestCoastPhoenix
    WestCoastPhoenix Posts: 802 Member
    Options
    I essentially ignore carbs/sugars and focus on the following 4:
    • Calories
    • Fat
    • Protein
    • Fiber
    The first 1 is a ceiling and the last 3 are floors.

    ^fixed.


    BTW to OP - YMMV = your mileage may vary.....you might not have the same results following the same plan.


    Jacwhite22,
    I meant it as I originally posted it; 3 ceilings and 3 floors.

    thanks coolraul! it seems i NEVER eat enough potassium! im not sure what to do about that... if i eat a ton of bananas ill be REALLY over in sugar! ;) LOL

    FYI - Most items that DO have potassium do not have it in the nutritionals, because it is not a requirement. You're more than likely getting enough, but it looks like you aren't, from a lack of data for the items. It's not something worth stressing over at all. Also...eating over in sugar won't matter as long as you concentrate on the more important items...calories, protein, fat and carbs, in that order of importance. I personally eat a ton of sugar, most days...and well you can see the terrible gut I have from it... :tongue:
  • jasonheyd
    jasonheyd Posts: 524 Member
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    thanks coolraul! it seems i NEVER eat enough potassium! im not sure what to do about that... if i eat a ton of bananas ill be REALLY over in sugar! ;) LOL

    It's quite likely that you're getting more potassium than MFP shows. A lot of foods in the database don't include the potassium count, and a lot of nutrition labels don't include it either.
  • WestCoastPhoenix
    WestCoastPhoenix Posts: 802 Member
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    Sugar makes your pancreas work harder. Then it raises your glucose. Then it wears of and your blood sugar crashes and you feel hypoglycemic or hungry and eat again....

    Avoid sugar, after a week you wont miss it. What worked for me was focusing on what I want, which is to be less fat, rather than obsessing over the sugar I am giving up.

    My hubby just lost 70lbs doing this. I decided to join him 2 days ago~

    hmmmmm.... sometimes i swear im hypoglycemic. and it seems im ALWAYS hungry. thanks for that input.

    Eat high in protein....try to get 1g per pound of lean body weight, you will notice the hunger issues being less, most likely(protein takes longer to digest).
  • twinketta
    twinketta Posts: 2,130 Member
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    IMO sugar is something you should avoid. I can give you answers to this if you like?

    Too much sugar is as bad as too much sodium, this will probably start a flame war with some of the bodybuilder types on here, but as a female and you are wanting to lose weight, then it is an important part of your diet!
  • jasonheyd
    jasonheyd Posts: 524 Member
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    Copied from my reply on another thread asking about sugar:
    Personally, I think the sugar metric is all but useless, unless you're working with a special diet where total sugar intake is critical to your health goals. Just my opinion, but I think what you generally want to worry about relative to sugar intake is (a) whether you've got a generally balanced diet and (b) added sugar, as opposed to naturally occurring sugars.

    See http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/added-sugar/my00845 for some related info.

    With that in mind, I generally focus on my carb/fat/protein ratios and totals, and I try to limit "added sugars" as much as possible (something that can be seriously difficult with packaged, processed, dine-out foods).
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    I essentially ignore carbs/sugars and focus on the following 4:
    • Calories
    • Fat
    • Protein
    • Fiber
    The first 1 is a ceiling and the last 3 are floors.

    ^fixed.


    BTW to OP - YMMV = your mileage may vary.....you might not have the same results following the same plan.


    Jacwhite22,
    I meant it as I originally posted it; 3 ceilings and 3 floors.

    And I'm guessing he was making a point that it doesn't need to be that complicated. I agree with him if so.
  • graysmom2005
    graysmom2005 Posts: 1,882 Member
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    I think it depends on the person. I used to be over on sugar every single day. Now that I've started paying attention to my carbs/sugars I've lost 13 lbs. 8 of which I had plateaued at for over 2 1/2 years......just saying!:wink:
  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
    Options
    Sugar makes your pancreas work harder. Then it raises your glucose. Then it wears of and your blood sugar crashes and you feel hypoglycemic or hungry and eat again....

    Avoid sugar, after a week you wont miss it. What worked for me was focusing on what I want, which is to be less fat, rather than obsessing over the sugar I am giving up.

    My hubby just lost 70lbs doing this. I decided to join him 2 days ago~

    hmmmmm.... sometimes i swear im hypoglycemic. and it seems im ALWAYS hungry. thanks for that input.

    Eat high in protein....try to get 1g per pound of lean body weight, you will notice the hunger issues being less, most likely(protein takes longer to digest).

    PERFECT! and whatever my body doesnt use in protein it will just "get rid of." right? ;)
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    Options
    I essentially ignore carbs/sugars and focus on the following 4:
    • Calories
    • Fat
    • Protein
    • Fiber
    The first 1 is a ceiling and the last 3 are floors.

    ^fixed.


    BTW to OP - YMMV = your mileage may vary.....you might not have the same results following the same plan.


    Jacwhite22,
    I meant it as I originally posted it; 3 ceilings and 3 floors.

    I get that.....but sodium has no effect on fat loss....only water retention. dietary fat doesn't make you fat........and potassium is no more special than any other micronutrients.

    Like I said...... (shoulda kept reading before I posted)
  • fitQueenbeast
    fitQueenbeast Posts: 298
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    [/quote]
    I get that.....but sodium has no effect on fat loss....only water retention. dietary fat doesn't make you fat........and potassium is no more special than any other micronutrients.[/quote]


    ***The sodium statement is true. The potassium statement is not.

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/444817-does-potassium-aid-in-weight-loss/

    Potassium is VERY important and I try to get in as much as I can, although it CAN be a struggle.
  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
    Options
    IMO sugar is something you should avoid. I can give you answers to this if you like?

    Too much sugar is as bad as too much sodium, this will probably start a flame war with some of the bodybuilder types on here, but as a female and you are wanting to lose weight, then it is an important part of your diet!

    i always wondered if men and women varied in that regard...

    i know i crave the HECK out of it a certain week out of the month! LOL
  • iFeelBrandNew
    iFeelBrandNew Posts: 263 Member
    Options
    I think it depends on the person. I used to be over on sugar every single day. Now that I've started paying attention to my carbs/sugars I've lost 13 lbs. 8 of which I had plateaued at for over 2 1/2 years......just saying!:wink:

    this is promising! thanks!

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