Is there any truth to this?

bsoxluvr
bsoxluvr Posts: 183 Member
edited September 22 in Health and Weight Loss
I'm sure we have all heard this before...you put on a few pounds around the holidays and people say, "don't stress over it, it will come right off!" Does new fat come off fast than the old stuff? Perhaps the new fat doesn't know us well enough to stick to us like the old pals we have carried around for so long? Or it's all just BS to make us feel better and it all comes off the same.....hmmmm.

Replies

  • RoadDog
    RoadDog Posts: 2,946 Member
    I'm pretty sure that some percent of the holiday pounds is in your stomach, because of low fiber high carb consumption. That should flush out, but the fat gained? I don't think there is a difference between old and new fat.
  • TateFTW
    TateFTW Posts: 658 Member
    Your error is in thinking that what you gained is all fat. I went on vacation for a week, and when I got back I had "gained" 10 lbs. In 3 days I've "lost" 8. While I was on vacation I let myself have plenty of alchohol and fried foods, although I was active and didn't eat that much more than usual. All those fluids and salty fried foods had my body holding on to tons of water weight, and it fell of quite easily once I went back to water and whole foods.
  • omid990
    omid990 Posts: 785 Member
    new fat definitely comes off faster than the old stuff. for example, if the first twenty pounds you put on went straight to your gut and the next went to your butt, your butt will shrink before your stomach does.

    how easily it comes off depends on the life style that led to you gaining those pounds compared to your current lifestyle.
  • jchecks
    jchecks Posts: 133
    I'm sure we have all heard this before...you put on a few pounds around the holidays and people say, "don't stress over it, it will come right off!" Does new fat come off fast than the old stuff? Perhaps the new fat doesn't know us well enough to stick to us like the old pals we have carried around for so long? Or it's all just BS to make us feel better and it all comes off the same.....hmmmm.

    OMG...that is hysterical! Love the way you put that and have to say I thought the same thing!!!
  • dancer77
    dancer77 Posts: 249 Member
    My hypothesis is that it comes off faster because it really isn't your actual fat, its all that food still in your system. Over the holidays I gained one pound and the next week it was gone. I like to think that pound felt VERY unwelcome ;) Hopefully someone who knows more about the scientific aspect can give you some feedback...I just have anecdotal evidence.
  • PokenStick
    PokenStick Posts: 204
    Your error is in thinking that what you gained is all fat. I went on vacation for a week, and when I got back I had "gained" 10 lbs. In 3 days I've "lost" 8. While I was on vacation I let myself have plenty of alchohol and fried foods, although I was active and didn't eat that much more than usual. All those fluids and salty fried foods had my body holding on to tons of water weight, and it fell of quite easily once I went back to water and whole foods.

    This. You're not gaining all fat.
  • DancingDreamer
    DancingDreamer Posts: 520
    the thing is, most "holiday weight" is going to be water weight, not fat. and if you drink lots of water and stop eating lots of crap salty and carb-y, starchy foods (which is most people's reason for weight gain over the holidays) than yes you should see those 5-10 lbs come off faster than most other weight. (unless, like me, you dont realize that its TOM and you GAIN a few lbs and freak out because you know you're doing better than you were during the holidays only to find out that the only problem is that you happen to be a woman :grumble: )
  • ObviousIndigo
    ObviousIndigo Posts: 382 Member
    I agree with RoadDog. It would be REALLY difficult to put on more than 4lbs in 1 week. Alot of it is sitting in your bowels, a lot of it is water retention from high carb/sodium foods. Thats why it is easier to come off. Also if you are back on track then you are gonna lose anyways.
  • mandyreadsbooks88
    mandyreadsbooks88 Posts: 66
    i think most people have a "natural weight" My body likes to be 165 if I don't push it to be something else. I have to eat and exercise a LOT differently if I ever want to lose weight or if I was ever to be over 170 I think there are a lot of people like that out there and while they may gain six pounds from EXCESSIVE eating over the holidays, their bodies just kind of naturally reset once the holidays are over and they go back to eating and doing their normal routines. Hence how some people are super thin and eat anything, and others are fatter and don't eat super unhealthy but don't push their body out of the norm. I may be full of it though idk
  • obifatkanobi
    obifatkanobi Posts: 190
    from what I understand, yes, new fat comes off faster than old fat. New fat is easy for our bodies to access and burn, while older fat is marbled into the muscles. This is why the closer you get to your goal weight, the harder it becomes to lose.
  • runningneo122
    runningneo122 Posts: 6,962 Member
    WOW!! I have read a few misconceptions here!! Dancer77: gaining ONE pound is natural up and down. Don't weigh yourself any more than once a week at the same time of day, preferably in the morning. Can't gain more than 4 pounds in a week? Watch "Supersize Me" movie. The guy ate McD's three meals a day (and only SS'd it if they asked him) for a month and put on almost 100 pounds. Fat loss begins in the extremities and finishes in the belly area. Just the way it works unless you take supplements to accelerate fat loss like yohimbine. My earliest weight loss made my shoes loser and I started to see the metatarsals in my feet and then I started to see the veins in my feet and my wrists. Thanks to my running regimen my thighs don't rub anymore. My belt size has decreased two notches but I still have a big gut. Anytime I did a bowel cleanser, and I eat a lot of red meat, no weight loss was seen it just made me more "regular" so that is the only reason I've found for doing that is when I'm not regular.
  • bsoxluvr
    bsoxluvr Posts: 183 Member
    Thanks everyone! I feel much better now. I have seen 3 of the 8 pounds I went up go down, so hopefully the number keeps dropping as the week goes on. I'm all for new friends, just not the kind that like to hang on to my belly ;)
  • AdamATGATT
    AdamATGATT Posts: 573 Member
    Am I the only person that lost a considerable amount of weight over the holidays? I've almost lost more during them than not.
  • countjackula
    countjackula Posts: 99
    new fat definitely comes off faster than the old stuff. for example, if the first twenty pounds you put on went straight to your gut and the next went to your butt, your butt will shrink before your stomach does.

    how easily it comes off depends on the life style that led to you gaining those pounds compared to your current lifestyle.

    ...what?
  • PokenStick
    PokenStick Posts: 204
    Can't gain more than 4 pounds in a week? Watch "Supersize Me" movie. The guy ate McD's three meals a day (and only SS'd it if they asked him) for a month and put on almost 100 pounds.

    He also didn't exercise at all and ate 5,000+ calories every day, of which 1/3 was straight sugar. Yes it's possible if you're trying to gain weight but he said it's difficult to do it not impossible. It's not realistic!

    (sorry, I freaking hate that movie and it's misinformation)
  • countjackula
    countjackula Posts: 99
    I'm sure we have all heard this before...you put on a few pounds around the holidays and people say, "don't stress over it, it will come right off!" Does new fat come off fast than the old stuff? Perhaps the new fat doesn't know us well enough to stick to us like the old pals we have carried around for so long? Or it's all just BS to make us feel better and it all comes off the same.....hmmmm.

    1. Yes, for the most people are just saying that. What they REALLY mean when they say "don't stress over it, it will come right off!" is "enjoy yourself during the holidays -- you can worry about your diet and routine the other 51 weeks of the year."

    To some extent that is correct. Obviously we are all here to improve our health and appearance... but at the same time, we shouldn't let our dedication to that goal take away from things like spending time with family and friends and enjoying a lovingly-prepared holiday dinner.

    2. If the weight is just water + food (and not fat), then yes, it will come right off since it's not permanent. Most holiday weight gain (as measured during holidays) is just that: water + food. Post-holiday weight gain won't show up on your scale for a week or so.

    3. It's absolutely possible to gain 4 lbs (either in muscle or fat) in a week. It's not easily done, however, as that would require a surplus of 12,000 or so calories in the week.
  • ObviousIndigo
    ObviousIndigo Posts: 382 Member
    I said it would be REALLY difficult, not impossible.... Try that lady that ate a 30000 calorie meal at Christmas dinner.... I am assuming that anyone WANTING to lose weight and dedicated to their lifestyle the way MFPer's are would not consume 12000 calories extra in 1 week!
This discussion has been closed.

Categories