Eating "junk" and losing weight?
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I see SO many people on here who have their diaries open and eat more than half of their calories from what's considered "junk" food. What's the deal with this?! I realize I'm the one with 150 pounds left to lose, but wouldn't these people be losing more if they would eat fruits and vegetables at every meal? I'm striving for 75% fresh food. Is that maybe unrealistic? And there are people losing .5 pounds per week but eating candy, chips, etc. Would it not make a difference if they'd eat real food instead? Maybe I'm just confused!
I eat a variety of fresh, processed and restaurant meals (mostly the latter). My schedule and lifestyle are big factors in what choices I make each day. I may not be "eating clean" but I am losing weight consistently. I say, DO WHATEVER WORKS TO GET YOU TO GOAL. Losing excess weight can make a huge difference in your overall health...and it makes that difference if you eat clean, or if you eat processed or if you eat every single meal at a restaurant - if you are watching your calorie intake, exercising and striving for balanced meals, you'll be fine. That being said, is it better to eat fresh foods and avoid processed? Sure, ok! But it's not REALISTIC for everyone. The best advice is to worry about your own diet and leave the others to their success or failure. Who has the time to worry and compare other peoples food diaries when they're not asking for advice to begin with???0 -
You know that obesity, in itself, is the cause of illness? Or is it the same habits that cause obesity, causing illness? You do not know which one is true. You may think you do, but you do not.
Well played.
My hat is off to you, sir or madam.0 -
Maybe what you're not getting is that some people's goal is to lose weight, some to lose fat, and some to be healthy. It is about quality and eventual quantity of LIFE...it IS a LIFESTYLE CHOICE when people choose what to or NOT to eat and/or drink.0
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But the US isn't China. But China aside, Japan, Vietnam, Burma, Korea, Singapore, etc. ALL have forms of processed foods that aren't causing overweight/obesity issues there. Again, it's basically boiling down to over consumption.But the environment has a profound effect on the foods we eat and processed food is tainted with many chemicals---some deliberately, some inadvertently. How is it that melamine-laced dairy from China (remember the melamine tainted infant formula of a few years ago?) ended up in chocolate candy here? By the way, there is a major scandal brewing on Chinese food imports. Because they irrigate their crops with heavily polluted groundwater, Chinese foodstuffs are also heavily polluted with industrial waste.
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There seems to be a relationship that any country that starts increasing profit, also increases it's waistlines.Disagree. Processed foods have long been available in Asia. Their population seems to do just fine. What they are lacking is a population of 60% overweight and obese people.
No medical organization will dispute that WEIGHT is the number one predictor of health risk.
Obesity is rising in China alongside fast food market growth.
There does seem to be some relationship between processed foods and weight.
I mentioned other countries like Japan, Singapore, Vietnam, to name a few. These countries have stores with lots of processed foods on the shelves. And lots of MSG and sodium too.
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How much you lose has to do with your calorie deficit. How healthy you are has to do with what you eat.but wouldn't these people be losing more if they would eat fruits and vegetables at every meal?
Now it's slightly more complicated than that. A lot of processed food is designed to make you eat more, for example. But, if you track your food and you DON'T eat more, then all it does is make you unhealthy, not fat.
Btw, this is exactly why my diary isn't open. I don't want strangers looking at my diary and then concern trolling me.
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Indeed - we could say that there's an increase wrist watch ownership that correlates with the increase in obesity in china.
Therefore I declare that wrist watches=obesity.0 -
If people can eat fast food etc on a regular basis & still maintain good cholesterol levels, normal BGL, & great mental health then I say good on them! I would if I could!!!:drinker:0
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The average American is overweight/obese because of over consumption. There are millions of people in the US who eat moderately, exercise and get enough rest along with eating some cake, ice cream, chips etc. on occasions who aren't overweight/obese because they stay in control of their calories.
So just clean foods? Weight, exercise, rest, stress, sleep, environment, risk behavior and genetics don't have anything to do with health?:laugh:Here's the thing: losing weight is about calories in/calories out and balanced macros, but BEING HEALTHY is different. It's about clean foods, not eating processed garbage, etc. Your immune system, your arteries, etc. will thank you. I can guarantee that since I started eating more whole foods/fewer processed things that I get sick WAY less. I'm averaging one cold a year now, and getting over it much faster, whereas before, I'd get colds/flu at least three times a year and maybe more. You can't work out when you're sick. Not only that, I don't think it's good to develop a "junk food palate"...your mind/body will start to crave garbagey foods, and on days when you can't work out for whatever reason you're going to feel cruddy because you've been eating crud. The old adage that "you are what you eat" applies here.
Yep.
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No--all of those factors are very important, but is the weight the problem, or are the effects of the other elements causing the excessive adiposity? Why has obesity only been a significant problem in the West since the latter part of the last century? Could one of the answers be the quality of what we put in our mouths?
Here's a good example:
Some of the lowest quality food you can eat is in the prison system. Lots of low quality, processed foods. Somehow, the long term inmates aren't DYING off from it. They aren't getting obese from it either.
Now if it was just quality of food, then our prison population should be much smaller.:laugh:
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Btw, this is exactly why my diary isn't open. I don't want strangers looking at my diary and then concern trolling me.
^^^THIS^^^0 -
I don't eat "perfect" by any means. (My diary is open for friends) But I do eat far better than I ever have. More importantly, I eat far better portions than I ever have. You know those huge bags of chocolate candy on the grocery story candy aisles? The ones that are like $10 and come mixed up with Hershey Kisses, Miniatures, and Peanut Butter cups? Well, I could down a whole bag in one day, mostly in one sitting before. Now, I "might" have a sugar-free chocolate pudding occasionally. (or other "goodies" in moderation) No need in living on celery and lettuce. I find I will have better success if I learn how to eat the foods/food-types I love for the long haul. It's a compromise, but it's not me turning into a Green Giant.
(For the sake of argument, I do eat veggies too.)0 -
Well you might a couple of table spoons of ketchup. I doubt you'll have 12-16oz of it at one sitting.:laugh:Yep, and one of the main problems with processed foods is their sugar content. Ketchup, for example, has more sugar in it than soda pop does.
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I do. You won't find any medical organization that won't say that obesity isn't causing health risks.Easily accessible calorie dense food. "Processed food" (whatever that means) is not the what is causing obesity. Obesity is causing the health risks.
You "know" that, do you?
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How much exercise do you do?If people can eat fast food etc on a regular basis & still maintain good cholesterol levels, normal BGL, & great mental health then I say good on them! I would if I could!!!:drinker:
Anecdotally at least; that seems to be one of the big factors.0 -
We don't always pay for eating like an idiot now. Sometimes it takes a while to clog arteries, leach the calcium out of your bones, and destroy your kidneys. One thing is for sure. Nobody that has an education in nutrition brags about eating **** for their health. When what you love is nutritionally dead food it's because you lack other, more importent things, to love. Eating a good diet is healthy, and makes your life better. Some people can justify anything, and if you didn't notice yet, people lie. Some people can justify writing bad checks and running up the charge cards. It's perfecty fine until it suddenly isn't. Keep up the good work, and try not to let the BS affect your efforts to be healthy.0
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So people who eat "junk food" are idiots? And since "education" counts for you, let me quote it again since you may not have read it earlier:We don't always pay for eating like an idiot now. Sometimes it takes a while to clog arteries, leach the calcium out of your bones, and destroy your kidneys. One thing is for sure. Nobody that has an education in nutrition brags about eating **** for their health. When what you love is nutritionally dead food it's because you lack other, more importent things, to love. Eating a good diet is healthy, and makes your life better. Some people can justify anything, and if you didn't notice yet, people lie. Some people can justify writing bad checks and running up the charge cards. It's perfecty fine until it suddenly isn't. Keep up the good work, and try not to let the BS affect your efforts to be healthy.
Let's hear what the America College of Cardiology states:
Practice moderation. Don't have too much or too little of one thing. All foods, if eaten in moderation, can be part of healthy eating. Even sweets can be okay.
https://www.cardiosmart.org/healthwise/nutr/i/nutri
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Disagree. Processed foods have long been available in Asia. Their population seems to do just fine. What they are lacking is a population of 60% overweight and obese people.
No medical organization will dispute that WEIGHT is the number one predictor of health risk.
Obesity is rising in China alongside fast food market growth.
There does seem to be some relationship between processed foods and weight.
Easily accessible calorie dense food. "Processed food" (whatever that means) is not the what is causing obesity. Obesity is causing the health risks.
You "know" that, do you?
Well if you eat nothing but processed food and keep the calories down, you don't gain weight. So yeah we all know it.
It has also been shown MANY times over that health markers can improve with weight loss alone despite continued eating of so-called "unhealthy/bad/prcessed foods. So yeah I can say I know that.
There are MANY other elements involved in good health besides the results from a few blood tests. People who have terminal liver ailments can have extremely low levels of cholesterol in their blood. Does this mean that they are healthy? Others who have been pronounced healthy by their doctors, can leave the doctor's office and drop dead on the sidewalk outside. Weight loss alone is NOT a predictor of good health or longevity. Here's an article that cites new research showing that those who have had weight-loss surgery have an INCREASED need for medical care, even many years beyond their surgery: http://www.dietdoctor.com/does-weight-loss-surgery-make-you-healthier-maybe-not
One statement from the article: "Obese people who did not receive surgery [the control group] ultimately needed less medical care." So there goes your theory that weight loss alone improves health.0 -
So people who eat "junk food" are idiots? And since "education" counts for you, let me quote it again since you may not have read it earlier:We don't always pay for eating like an idiot now. Sometimes it takes a while to clog arteries, leach the calcium out of your bones, and destroy your kidneys. One thing is for sure. Nobody that has an education in nutrition brags about eating **** for their health. When what you love is nutritionally dead food it's because you lack other, more importent things, to love. Eating a good diet is healthy, and makes your life better. Some people can justify anything, and if you didn't notice yet, people lie. Some people can justify writing bad checks and running up the charge cards. It's perfecty fine until it suddenly isn't. Keep up the good work, and try not to let the BS affect your efforts to be healthy.
Let's hear what the America College of Cardiology states:
Practice moderation. Don't have too much or too little of one thing. All foods, if eaten in moderation, can be part of healthy eating. Even sweets can be okay.
https://www.cardiosmart.org/healthwise/nutr/i/nutri
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I already said that a long time ago. The problem for some people is that they can not eat in moderation considering the addictive properties of sugar. I have stated it before, I will state it again: Telling food addicts to eat sweets in moderation is like telling an alcoholic that a glass of wine is just fine and he/she should make sure that his/her alcohol intake is "moderate". We have been talking past each other, it seems.0 -
Well you might a couple of table spoons of ketchup. I doubt you'll have 12-16oz of it at one sitting.:laugh:Yep, and one of the main problems with processed foods is their sugar content. Ketchup, for example, has more sugar in it than soda pop does.
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True. But it all adds up. A little sugar here, a lot of sugar in a small amount of ketchup there....You know the statistics---150 pounds a year of consumption for the average individual must come from somewhere! Five hundred calories a day of added sugar and only 200 of it from frankly "sugary" foods.0 -
"...Some of the lowest quality food you can eat is in the prison system. Lots of low quality, processed foods. Somehow, the long term inmates aren't DYING off from it. They aren't getting obese from it either...."
Not yet. I doubt whether anyone is doing any long-term studies on it. The vast majority of inmates are young men who are incarcerated for relatively short periods of time. Not a good example.0 -
Sugar can be an issue for the unhealthy.
For the healthy, however...
http://www.simplyshredded.com/the-science-of-nutrition-is-a-carb-a-carb.htmlA study comparing weight loss diets with the same energy content and macronutrient composition but a different glycemic index (and therefore load) found no changes in muscle retention or fat loss between groups.
Moreover, the glycemic load of the diets didn’t affect appetite as measured by perceived hunger, fullness, compliance and ad libitum food intake. Even markers of health were unaffected, including blood pressure, heart rate, fecal patterns (yes, they measured this), glucose and insulin metabolism (!) and blood lipids.
The only indicator of the participants’ health that differed between the groups was a higher decrease in LDL cholesterol in the low-glycemic load group. If you’re worried that the above may not apply to bulking, these results were replicated in a study of weight gain instead of loss.
A meta-analysis and systematic review also supported these findings and concluded that the effects on health markers were dependent on their initial values. Low glycemic load diets are good for your health if you’re initially unhealthy (like obese or diabetic), but in healthy populations there was no effect. This is an example of a ceiling effect. You can’t fix what isn’t broken, so if you’re already healthy, eating ‘healthy’ foods at some point stops making you even healthier.0 -
There are lots of "old timers" in the California Corrections system since the death penalty takes FOREVER here. Inmates are more likely to die from a shanking or suicide than from the food.Not yet. I doubt whether anyone is doing any long-term studies on it. The vast majority of inmates are young men who are incarcerated for relatively short periods of time. Not a good example.
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I have already lost 30 pounds (at a fairly good pace), and it has been by following one rule and one rule only: stick within my calorie limits.
If I want to eat a Big Mac, I am "allowed." BUT .... the first time I do that, I see "Oh, geez. Now I have to starve myself or drink only herbal tea and water for the entire rest of the day because I used up all my calories at lunch." Then I ask if it was worth it. If it was, great. If it wasn't, I'll think twice before I have it the next time. Or maybe I'll just have a mini hamburger. Or maybe I'll exercise a whole bunch so I can "cancel" it out.
The bottom line is staying within my designated limits, so when I eat veggies and fruit I'm always excited at how many calories I have left so I don't have to starve myself at the end of the day.
I'm not on here to eat like Mother Teresa, I'm on here to lose weight ... but staying within my calories and logging EVERYTHING makes me see that some things are just too "expensive" in terms of calories and so I eat healthier despite myself.
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IMO - if you want to lose weight and be HEALTHY you need to eat more healthy, natural food. I personally feel that the lifestyle change that went along with losing weight was more important then just getting under my calories. Don't get me wrong, I still eat "junk" occasionally. I just know now that this type of eating does not effectively fuel my body... it doesn't keep me full... it doesn't keep me motivated and sharp. When I eat healthy I feel better. This is what works for me. I would not have survived on 1200 calories of McDonalds everyday. The way I eat now is something I feel like I can maintain for the rest of my life! 0
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I do. You won't find any medical organization that won't say that obesity isn't causing health risks.Easily accessible calorie dense food. "Processed food" (whatever that means) is not the what is causing obesity. Obesity is causing the health risks.
You "know" that, do you?
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They have also for a great many years been saying that eating cholesterol gives people high cholesterol levels. When this is instead, actually true:
"...In the early 1950's the Framingham study included dietary analyses. Almost one thousand individuals were questioned in detail about their eating habits. No connection was found between the composition of the food and the cholesterol level of the blood. Wrote Drs. William Kannel and Tavia Gordon, authors of the report: ”These findings suggest a cautionary note with respect to hypotheses relating diet to serum cholesterol levels. There is a considerable range of serum cholesterol levels within the Framingham Study Group. Something explains this inter-individual variation, BUT IT IS NOT DIET.” For unknown reasons, their results were never published. The manuscript is still lying in a basement in Washington..."
Yet, the medical establishment STILL insists that eating cholesterol gives you high blood levels of cholesterol.
I don't disagree that obesity is a marker for disease, but I remain unconvinced that it is a cause rather than itself, an effect.0 -
Sugar can be an issue for the unhealthy.
For the healthy, however...
http://www.simplyshredded.com/the-science-of-nutrition-is-a-carb-a-carb.htmlA study comparing weight loss diets with the same energy content and macronutrient composition but a different glycemic index (and therefore load) found no changes in muscle retention or fat loss between groups.
Moreover, the glycemic load of the diets didn’t affect appetite as measured by perceived hunger, fullness, compliance and ad libitum food intake. Even markers of health were unaffected, including blood pressure, heart rate, fecal patterns (yes, they measured this), glucose and insulin metabolism (!) and blood lipids.
The only indicator of the participants’ health that differed between the groups was a higher decrease in LDL cholesterol in the low-glycemic load group. If you’re worried that the above may not apply to bulking, these results were replicated in a study of weight gain instead of loss.
A meta-analysis and systematic review also supported these findings and concluded that the effects on health markers were dependent on their initial values. Low glycemic load diets are good for your health if you’re initially unhealthy (like obese or diabetic), but in healthy populations there was no effect. This is an example of a ceiling effect. You can’t fix what isn’t broken, so if you’re already healthy, eating ‘healthy’ foods at some point stops making you even healthier.
I totally agree--I said as much a while back. The slim healthy folk can probably get away with eating a bit of junk here and there. But the next question to ask is how long will they stay slim and healthy, as the years advance, without paying attention to the nutrient content of the foods they put in their mouth? But the obese folk are already at that point and since the majority of people on this website are here because they are obese (or were obese before they went on maintenance), it is somewhat irresponsible to tell them that they needn't be concerned about nutrition.0 -
IMO - if you want to lose weight and be HEALTHY you need to eat more healthy, natural food. I personally feel that the lifestyle change that went along with losing weight was more important then just getting under my calories. Don't get me wrong, I still eat "junk" occasionally. I just know now that this type of eating does not effectively fuel my body... it doesn't keep me full... it doesn't keep me motivated and sharp. When I eat healthy I feel better. This is what works for me. I would not have survived on 1200 calories of McDonalds everyday. The way I eat now is something I feel like I can maintain for the rest of my life!
^^^THIS^^^0 -
I can easily burn 1200 calories OVER my predicted TDEE in a day (ie, yesterday I did an hour's running followed by a few hour's rock climbing, as well as getting to said rocks).
So if I was going for my conservatively set 1450 calories for a non-workout day, I'd be at 2650 including exercise.
Do I really need to eat 2650 of greens and organic grass fed virgin-petted meat?
I ate all sorts of 'bad' food and still looked fairly trim in the mirror after.
I did feel a bit tired, to be fair - but I think my activity level and six and a bit hours sleep justified that just fine, to be honest!
So, I wonder what addiepray80 bases their opinion on. Fine if that's the case for them, but for others, eating unhealthy (sic) unnatural (sic) food works just fine.0 -
I can easily burn 1200 calories OVER my predicted TDEE in a day (ie, yesterday I did an hour's running followed by a few hour's rock climbing, as well as getting to said rocks).
So if I was going for my conservatively set 1450 calories for a non-workout day, I'd be at 2650 including exercise.
Do I really need to eat 2650 of greens and organic grass fed virgin-petted meat?
I ate all sorts of 'bad' food and still looked fairly trim in the mirror after.
I did feel a bit tired, to be fair - but I think my activity level and six and a bit hours sleep justified that just fine, to be honest!
So, I wonder what addiepray80 bases their opinion on. Fine if that's the case for them, but for others, eating unhealthy (sic) unnatural (sic) food works just fine.
*sigh* Why is it mostly men, who are burning calories like a freight train, who LOVE their junk food...who can not get it through their heads that not everyone is like them. No, we don't think you need to eat 2650 calories worth of "greens and organic, grass fed, virgin-petted meat" but you are building the body today which will stand you in good stead tomorrow or next year or next decade and you would be WISE to pay heed to the nutrient content of your food. Not every single morsel, but overall, your body will thank you with good performance, if you do. Elite athletes understand that a constant diet of junk will not make them champions. Why is it that you people have such a problem with this concept. Junk food doesn't taste THAT good. I just had a snack of cottage cheese and a half ruby grapefruit (and it was organic too). It was wonderful. Now that I am free of my addiction to sugar and wheat, I can actually say that food tastes much better and I don't inhale it anymore. I savor it. Mmmm, healthy food. 
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I can easily burn 1200 calories OVER my predicted TDEE in a day (ie, yesterday I did an hour's running followed by a few hour's rock climbing, as well as getting to said rocks).
So if I was going for my conservatively set 1450 calories for a non-workout day, I'd be at 2650 including exercise.
Do I really need to eat 2650 of greens and organic grass fed virgin-petted meat?
I ate all sorts of 'bad' food and still looked fairly trim in the mirror after.
I did feel a bit tired, to be fair - but I think my activity level and six and a bit hours sleep justified that just fine, to be honest!
So, I wonder what addiepray80 bases their opinion on. Fine if that's the case for them, but for others, eating unhealthy (sic) unnatural (sic) food works just fine.
*sigh* Why is it mostly men, who are burning calories like a freight train, who LOVE their junk food...who can not get it through their heads that not everyone is like them. No, we don't think you need to eat 2650 calories worth of "greens and organic, grass fed, virgin-petted meat" but you are building the body today which will stand you in good stead tomorrow or next year or next decade and you would be WISE to pay heed to the nutrient content of your food. Not every single morsel, but overall, your body will thank you with good performance, if you do. Elite athletes understand that a constant diet of junk will not make them champions. Why is it that you people have such a problem with this concept. Junk food doesn't taste THAT good. I just had a snack of cottage cheese and a half ruby grapefruit (and it was organic too). It was wonderful. Now that I am free of my addiction to sugar and wheat, I can actually say that food tastes much better and I don't inhale it anymore. I savor it. Mmmm, healthy food.
Elite athletes are notorious for eating a load of crap! Their bodies are like furnaces. Would you call Micheal Phelps unhealthy?0
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