So exercising and eating right to lose weight is a hoax?

You can eat only the healthiest foods and still eat too many calories. It isn't about cutting out all junk. It's about a calorie deficit. Unless there is something physically wrong with you (thyroid or something else), it will work.

Yes. This. And also, even people with thyroid issues can lose weight.

I opened my diary. If all these "processed and fast foods are super unhealthy and the reason you aren't losing weight" people looked at it, they'd think I was on the verge of death and couldn't possibly lose weight that way. That's obviously nonsense.

How practical. And such common sense. I think I love you.

When I become frustrated with my progress, I remind myself that it took me 5+ years to put on 100 pounds and I am not going to lose it in 5 weeks. "Healthy" weight loss is considered to be 2 lbs per week so it seems to me you are right on track.

I am practical and lazy beyond belief. I don't want to do anything I don't have to do, so I ignore all the dumb stuff that has no actual effect on health or body composition.

I think the problem with the "eat healthy" mythos lies in a misinterpretation.. the idea that if you eat 80-90% of your diet in foods that can be grown, killed, or made by you, you'll lose weight because it's "healthier". The benefit of eating a more natural diet isn't necessarily DIRECTLY related to weight loss, because as others have pointed out, you can eat "healthy" and still gain weight if you're overeating. The benefit of a healthier, balanced, more natural diet lies in the nutrients consumed.

Yes, you CAN lose weight netting a calorie deficit whether you eat it in salad, free range eggs and local meat or you eat it in ice cream and quarter-pounders with cheese.

But it's a lot a LOT harder to stick to those calorie and nutrient goals eating crap. I know for myself if I go much past 200 calories before about 11am, I WILL go over by the end of the day. I have to eat lightly in morning, because I eat heavy at night regardless of what I ate before noon. So if breakfast is healthy stuff (for example, this morning was a yoplait and a cheese stick with a big mug of hot tea), when I'm not super hungry, I have more calories to spend on lunch (when I am hungry) and dinner (when I'm really hungry). If lunch and dinner also consist of healthier options (salad is my very best friend), I get to eat more VOLUME of food, so I feel full and I'm not craving food again an hour after dinner.

Food is fuel. My body runs better when the fuel it gets is mostly healthy stuff. That doesn't mean it directly translates into weight loss. It means I feel better when I eat more salad and less processed crap.

I think the problem with the "eat healthy" mythos lies in a misinterpretation.. the idea that if you eat 80-90% of your diet in foods that can be grown, killed, or made by you, you'll lose weight because it's "healthier". The benefit of eating a more natural diet isn't necessarily DIRECTLY related to weight loss, because as others have pointed out, you can eat "healthy" and still gain weight if you're overeating. The benefit of a healthier, balanced, more natural diet lies in the nutrients consumed.

Yes, you CAN lose weight netting a calorie deficit whether you eat it in salad, free range eggs and local meat or you eat it in ice cream and quarter-pounders with cheese.

But it's a lot a LOT harder to stick to those calorie and nutrient goals eating crap. I know for myself if I go much past 200 calories before about 11am, I WILL go over by the end of the day. I have to eat lightly in morning, because I eat heavy at night regardless of what I ate before noon. So if breakfast is healthy stuff (for example, this morning was a yoplait and a cheese stick with a big mug of hot tea), when I'm not super hungry, I have more calories to spend on lunch (when I am hungry) and dinner (when I'm really hungry). If lunch and dinner also consist of healthier options (salad is my very best friend), I get to eat more VOLUME of food, so I feel full and I'm not craving food again an hour after dinner.

Food is fuel. My body runs better when the fuel it gets is mostly healthy stuff. That doesn't mean it directly translates into weight loss. It means I feel better when I eat more salad and less processed crap.

i think this is very well said, and i relate so much to the part about 200 cal. before 11am, being hungry at lunch, and really hungry at dinner. sounds just like me :-)

You've been posting about a plateau for a few days. You say your started your diet two months ago. Dropping from 205 to 194 is a lot of weight very quickly. Unless you are needing to lose 100+ pounds, that's not a healthy weight loss rate.

11 pounds in eight weeks sounds pretty reasonable to me ...

Hoax?

No. It's science, it's reality, and it works.

Your profile says you've lost 17 pounds so something is working.

Maybe you just haven't seen the scale move in a week or two and you're getting depressed about it? Your diary is closed so we can't say much more.

i lost 23 lbs since january 2nd by dieting (eating right) and exercising vigorously. if it was a hoax, i imagine i wouldn't have seen results. in contrast, i gained a bunch of weight last year by being lazy and not exercising topped off by eating crap.

no, it isn't a hoax. it isn't the absolutely only way to lose weight, but it isn't a hoax. it is the most tested, easiest method to drop pounds. it also increases your health. what is not to like about that?

Tell me what u r doing. I would love to know. Great job

Yes, it's all a giant hoax perpetrated by corporations out to make money off desperate people. And the government, it's a conspiracy too. They want us all hungry so fast food giants can take over the world. They put calories in the water to keep us all fat.

I've always been told that you need to eat right (ie, no junk) and exercise to lose weight and be healthy.

But the more I read about it, the more I realize it just really doesn't seem accurate. It's no wonder it's so hard to diet for some people. You take the right steps, cut all junk, start to exercise... and you still don't lose weight. 'Oh you don't eat enough calories' (I'm not hungry!). 'Oh you might be underestimating what you're eating' (possible but that's why I don't eat my exercise back and I try and stay 100 under my goal).

Sorta depressing.

There are a few reasons why you aren't able to lose the weight:
1. You have a food intolerence or other medical condition that is preventing you from losing (such as pcos or hypothyroidism).

2. You aren't exercising vigorously enough. Unless you spend some time really working it (intervals of 30-60 seconds going as hard as you can) the rest of the time spent walking on the treadmill is going to do nada.

3. You may not be aware of what "Junk Food" actually is. Subway is NOT healthy. Neither are most foods that come out of a package (cereal, bread, pasta, or anything pre-made) or a can or a jar or a drive-up window. If you can't hunt it, farm it or gather it yourself, you should probably not eat it. This takes some time to learn how to do, and if you can get yourself to eat 80% natural food, you should be well on your way to a healthy diet.

4. Portion control. Weigh and measure every morsel that goes into your mouth. This is the only way to know for sure if you are getting your macros correct. A tablespoon serving of peanut butter is a dollop about the size of your thumbnail. A teaspoon of sugar is what is in a single packet at restaurants. Serving sizes are small, ridiculously so. A typical dinner at the Olive Garden contains enough calories to sustain me for 2.5 days. At maintenance. (Maintenance for me is 1800-1900 kcal)

Your body doesn't care one whit whether the calorie you just consumed is considered "healthy." The term healthy and unhealthy has no meaning when it comes to weight loss.

Weight loss comes from calorie differential and nothing else. There is no one on earth who is running a proper calorie differential but failing to lose weight because the foods they eat are from Subway instead of the local coop.