Good vs. bad calories?

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AshleyVeronica
AshleyVeronica Posts: 69 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am wondering how much it matters where you are getting your calories from so long as you stay under your goal. Clearly you can't just eat cookies all day, but I wonder how important it is what you eat if the goal is weight loss, so long as you stay under.

Replies

  • lyd21
    lyd21 Posts: 2
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    I wonder the same thing! Google...haha
    I was actually really hoping someone had replied to you.
  • amberchristi
    amberchristi Posts: 54
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    From what I remember from WW classes a few years ago, "bad" calories will effect your mood, energy level, hormones and all that not-so-fun stuff. Good calories will fuel your body through the day, promote good skin and better overall health... But I don't know how it effects weight loss itself...

    I'd love to hear a more educated response to that as well!
  • megsta21
    megsta21 Posts: 506 Member
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    Apparently not... altho i wouldnt want to try it out tooo much.... everything is ok in moderation... =)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/132987-twinkie-diet?hl=twinkie+diet#posts-1806298
  • jalovec
    jalovec Posts: 62
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    Check out the Twinkie diet (google, or even check this site- it's been a popular topic the last couple of days). Apparently, at least for some people, it doesn't matter at all!
  • kthom
    kthom Posts: 175
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    As far as weight loss is concerned, a calorie is a calorie. They all count the same towards pounds gained or lost. The reason I would be more concerned with good vs bad is that you are trying to make a lifestyle so you don't gain all the weight back. The best way to do this is to choose healthy, low calorie foods that you enjoy eating. If you are doing something you hate in order to lose weight you are going to risk gaining it all back when you reach your goal(or sooner). My advice would be to learn how to make healthier choices over time to learn how to eat in a healthy way that you will enjoy enough to continue through your lifetime. The reason most people spend many years dieting again and again is that they don't learn how to make healthy eating a lifestyle.
  • BrentGetsFit
    BrentGetsFit Posts: 878 Member
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    There was an article on CNN yesterday about a college professor who lost 27 pounds and was eating twinkies every day. I didn't get the specifics but that shows that it can be done. That being said, I believe we should focus on getting our calories from whole, nutrient dense foods. What good are calories if we don't get anything else with them? Since starting my weight loss journey in September I've really gotten on board with "clean eating" where I try to eat food as minimally processed as I can find it. Doing this I've found that I don't have cravings, I don't feel like I'm starving or depriving myself even though I'm running a large calorie deficit.

    As I was typing I had the thought that you might not be talking about junk food. Another way to answer the question is that many experts recommend getting 40% of your calories from carbs, 30% from protein and 30% from fats. In that aspect you probably want to try and get as close to the distribution as possible since your body needs each of those things and reacts differently to how much or how little we get of any given one. I hope this is sort of what you were looking for :)
  • rnroadrunner
    rnroadrunner Posts: 402 Member
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    if all you want to do is lose weight , then a calorie is a calorie. Now if you want to have energy and health there is a world of difference. Highly processed foods provide empty calories. the closer to the natural state of a food the more nutrient packed the food is. If you were to eat say just cookies and stayed under your goal calories you would lose weight. However you would feel like crap. and be very hungry all the time. without good protein and healthy fats you feeling of being satiated - definition of satiated by the Free Online Dictionary ...tr.v. sa·ti·at·ed, sa·ti·at·ing, sa·ti·ates. 1. To satisfy (an appetite or desire) fully. 2. To satisfy to excess. adj. (- t). Filled to satisfaction. ..., would be non existant. there are thousands of good nutrition resources out there. read up and take control of your life and you will not only lose weight but will gain health . {At the time of the creation of the World Health Organization (WHO), in 1948, health was defined as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity".[1][2]}

    good luck in your journey
  • Papucho
    Papucho Posts: 138
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    Search "twinkie diet." Matter of fact there was post earlier on it. A researcher of some sort more or less went on a twinkie diet. He limited the amount of calories he took in while eating snack cakes and sweets for a month. He also took a multi-vitamin and did eat some vegetables at least once daily. He lost over twenty pounds because although he was mostly eating junk food, he burned more calories than he ate. I think he was on a 1000 calorie deficit. He lost weight and his cholesterol improved. I don't think it's a good idea, but it does stress the importance of monitoring your calories.
  • kimjoan
    kimjoan Posts: 192 Member
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    I gotta disagree with the folks that are saying a calorie is a calorie. It seems that that theory would make sense but our bodies process different things in different ways. For example: Our muscles need protein to build properly, more muscle means our body is using more oxygen which means that our metabolism is working more efficiently. So, a 250 calorie chicken breast is going to be more helpful than a 250 calorie twinkie - which is nothing but fat and, while our body needs some fat, will not contribute to the optium function of your body.
  • AshleyVeronica
    AshleyVeronica Posts: 69 Member
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    Thanks everyone. Great answers. I think my post may have been a bit misunderstood lol I was simply asking because today I had a bit of my son's Halloween candy and still came in under my calorie goal. I know that it would be no good to only eat the empty calories, but I was just curious how much it mattered...whether or not eating a few Halloween treats would actually make me NOT lose weight even if I was under my goal for the day. I love my veggies and fruits and what not so eating the good stuff isn't so much an issue for me lol
    But thank you everyone, because I do get the idea now I think :)
  • kimjoan
    kimjoan Posts: 192 Member
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    Ah... Nope, it should be fine. My weight loss mantra is, "This is a lifestyle change, not a diet". If you don't do something that you can keep up for the rest of your life you are not going to be successful. I know that I have a bag of Reese's cup from Halloween out in the freezer and from time-to-time I have one. : )

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