Why is gaining weight so easy
Chibukalu908
Posts: 212
for us who tend to put on weight? I know you have to eat 3500 calories above your maintanance calories to gain one pound of fat.3500 calories is allot of food so I was just wondering what type of foods that can make it easy to reach that number. Since I started using this program and eating at deficit, my appetite has decrease so I can't imagine when I get into mantainance which means I now won't likely gain the weight back even if I stop tracking my food?
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Replies
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Physiology. The body is VERY efficient at storing energy and sustaining energy for survival. Evolution hasn't caught up fast enough to compensate for the agricultural/industrialization of food.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Its really not difficult to gain weight specially if you eat out a lot or eat a lot of processed foods (I eat them all the time I'm not downing them.) The average American serving specially when dining out is 2-3 time bigger than the suggested serving size, and even at home is often 50 to 100% larger than the recommended serving size. Its all about portion control etc. and those liquid calories so many of us consume in soda and milk shakes and the like do not help in any way either.0
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Because being out of control is easy
and
practicing self control is hard.0 -
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Physiology. The body is VERY efficient at storing energy and sustaining energy for survival. Evolution hasn't caught up fast enough to compensate for the agricultural/industrialization of food.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Cookie points to the Paleo gang?!0 -
If you know anything about me, I'm FAR from being on that wagon. I eat fast food at least 2 times a week and eat ice cream almost every day.Physiology. The body is VERY efficient at storing energy and sustaining energy for survival. Evolution hasn't caught up fast enough to compensate for the agricultural/industrialization of food.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Cookie points to the Paleo gang?!
But I am honest when it comes to answering questions.
Oh and screw the points, just give me the cookie.:laugh:
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
The simple answer is because food tastes good and it's easy to skip workouts on the daily. Is it easier to eat a cookie or walk a mile and a half? Would you rather eat 3 slices of pizza or walk 10 miles?
This lol.its easier to create a calorie surplus than deficit0 -
for us who tend to put on weight? I know you have to eat 3500 calories above your maintanance calories to gain one pound of fat.3500 calories is allot of food so I was just wondering what type of foods that can make it easy to reach that number. Since I started using this program and eating at deficit, my appetite has decrease so I can't imagine when I get into mantainance which means I now won't likely gain the weight back even if I stop tracking my food?
3500 calories over the course of a week is just 500 calories per day...that's hardly a lot of food...it's a few handfuls of nuts. Also, if you're more or less sedentary, calorie requirements are pretty paltry and it's pretty damned easy to overeat. Without exercise I could only eat 2300ish calories to maintain...that's nothing...I can eat that in my sleep.0 -
If you know anything about me, I'm FAR from being on that wagon. I eat fast food at least 2 times a week and eat ice cream almost every day.Physiology. The body is VERY efficient at storing energy and sustaining energy for survival. Evolution hasn't caught up fast enough to compensate for the agricultural/industrialization of food.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Cookie points to the Paleo gang?!
But I am honest when it comes to answering questions.
Oh and screw the points, just give me the cookie.:laugh:
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology
You still track those calories right? which is the advantage of counting calories since we can have guilt free treats0 -
UMMMMMMmmmmmm Because food is delicious!0
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The simple answer is because food tastes good and it's easy to skip workouts on the daily. Is it easier to eat a cookie or walk a mile and a half? Would you rather eat 3 slices of pizza or walk 10 miles?
Cookies! Pizza! Did I get the right answers? Do I win a prize?
I'll go walk around the block a few times while I wait for the reply, just to cover all the bases.
* Edited to fix a typo.0 -
Paleo is a fad. Most people won't stick to it.
I've been on keto for almost 2.5 years now...I've moved to a more LCHF but I do restrict certain foods out of my diet due to trial and error. But what people don't realize is paleo and keto are LIFESTYLES which you cannot deviate from. It requires a lot more planning and attention than simply eating what you want. That "moderation" track never worked well for me because sugar, processed foods, and refined carbs from gluten send me into binge behavior.
I don't eat refined sugars from cane. I do have nuctresse which is from monk fruit but I eat sweets so rarely its not a big deal. Most of my diet is raw foods that I cook at home which are NOT processed. Veggies, meats, and some flours which I make myself. People claim all this takes time, yeah, it sorta takes 15-30 minutes to prep/cook a meal. I don't eat lunch. So that solves that problem.
I have cut out processed foods from about 90% of my diet and I've never felt better. I run 3x times a week and walk as much as I can. I've lost 90lbs (250 - 157). I'm still losing. I'm often so full I can't even finish or meet my calorie goals.
So yes, this works FOR ME. If people don't want to give up ****ty fast foods that's their choice. But obesity has a correlation with ****ty food. Just sayin.0 -
for us who tend to put on weight? I know you have to eat 3500 calories above your maintanance calories to gain one pound of fat.3500 calories is allot of food so I was just wondering what type of foods that can make it easy to reach that number. Since I started using this program and eating at deficit, my appetite has decrease so I can't imagine when I get into mantainance which means I now won't likely gain the weight back even if I stop tracking my food?
3500 calories over the course of a week is just 500 calories per day...that's hardly a lot of food...it's a few handfuls of nuts. Also, if you're more or less sedentary, calorie requirements are pretty paltry and it's pretty damned easy to overeat. Without exercise I could only eat 2300ish calories to maintain...that's nothing...I can eat that in my sleep.
Oh I was thinking more like 3500 calories over your maintanance per day.2300 net calories to mantain would be allot of food for me btw0 -
Because being out of control is easy
and
practicing self control is hard.
Pretty much this.0 -
Correction here is that obesity has a correlation with HIGH CALORIE food. Food you consider pooh pooh, is fine for lots of people who understand about calorie control.But obesity has a correlation with ****ty food. Just sayin.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Because food is so delicious and a lot of us have no concept of how many calories are actually in things.
For example I'm making a Banoffie Pie for pudding tonight as its my husbands birthday. As this is the first time making it since starting to look at weight management I put the recipe in and oops! it's 790 calories a slice. That's more than any dinner I've had the last few weeks and in the past it wasn't unusual for me to make a pie then eat about half of it myself over the course of a couple of days. That's 3200 calories in grazing that I would have had as well as my usual meals.0 -
If you know anything about me, I'm FAR from being on that wagon. I eat fast food at least 2 times a week and eat ice cream almost every day.Physiology. The body is VERY efficient at storing energy and sustaining energy for survival. Evolution hasn't caught up fast enough to compensate for the agricultural/industrialization of food.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Cookie points to the Paleo gang?!
But I am honest when it comes to answering questions.
Oh and screw the points, just give me the cookie.:laugh:
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
^^^ Would have to agree with this. Tried paleo for awhile just to see if I would like it. Decided it wasn't for me. I eat fast food a couple times a week, have beer with friends. But if paleo is how you stay withing your calories goals, then good for you.
But in regards to OP, it's a lot easier for people to stick in a lifestyle once they have developed it. So if you are sedentary and like very tasty junk food and have no self control it's really easy to gain weight. It's also easy to put that weight back on once you've lost it if you've been overweight most of your life because that's what your body has adapted to on a cellular level.0 -
for us who tend to put on weight? I know you have to eat 3500 calories above your maintanance calories to gain one pound of fat.3500 calories is allot of food so I was just wondering what type of foods that can make it easy to reach that number. Since I started using this program and eating at deficit, my appetite has decrease so I can't imagine when I get into mantainance which means I now won't likely gain the weight back even if I stop tracking my food?
3500 calories over the course of a week is just 500 calories per day...that's hardly a lot of food...it's a few handfuls of nuts. Also, if you're more or less sedentary, calorie requirements are pretty paltry and it's pretty damned easy to overeat. Without exercise I could only eat 2300ish calories to maintain...that's nothing...I can eat that in my sleep.
Oh I was thinking more like 3500 calories over your maintanance per day.2300 net calories to mantain would be allot of food for me btw
3500 calories over per day would be putting on about 1 Lb per day of fat...most people don't do that...most people gain weight slowly over a long period of time just like weight loss is usually slow over a long period of time.
I was just using my numbers for reference...it's all relative. I'm a 5'10" male who has a decent amount of muscle mass to maintain and I weigh about 180 - 185 Lbs. so of course my calorie requirements would be more than a female, even if I was sedentary. With exercise I eat around 2800 - 3000.
It's all relative to the individual, but generally speaking, eating a bit more than is required to maintain is a pretty easy thin to do. Let's say a sedentary female maintains on roughly 1600 calories....It wouldn't be that hard to eat a few hundred more calories than that...one extra handful of nuts that weighs about an ounce? 160 calories. An apple...about 90 calories. Right there you're talking about gaining about 1/2 Lb per week if those two very healthful items are in excess of your maintenance calories. It's pretty easy to overeat is the point.
I would also add that when you go to maintenance you should up calories slowly...as you do, hormonal changes take place and your appetite actually increases. People fret about not being able to eat to a maintenance level of calories all of the time, and it's usually an unfounded fear.0 -
The simple answer is because food tastes good and it's easy to skip workouts on the daily. Is it easier to eat a cookie or walk a mile and a half? Would you rather eat 3 slices of pizza or walk 10 miles?
Pretty much.0 -
Because sometimes I swear, I have to but "look" at a piece of cheesecake and its added to my *kitten*!0
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you beat me to it!UMMMMMMmmmmmm Because food is delicious!0 -
Actually for some it is very hard to gain weight. It is actually easier to lose weight. Do you think it's easier to eat in 1000 calorie surplus than to eat in 1000 calorie deficit? The latter is easier.0
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White breads
Butter
Pillsbury butter crescent rolls, lol
Pasta
Cream sauces
Gravies
Red meat
Anything fried
Peanut butter (ought to be it's own, unique, food group, lol - just all kinds of bad there.)
Chips
Cakes
Cookies (Ah, the Oreo)
Ice cream
Cold cereal!
All the hidden stuff, like calories in margarine or that coating you rolled the chicken in, glazes on veggies
Restaurants, fast food
Pretty much everything except water, lettuce, berries, lol.
And EDWARD'S CREAM PIES. They could feed a small country for a day on the calories there. (But oh, so good, esp Oreo.)0 -
Because weight is an energy balance. Anytime the calories in exceed the calories out, weight gain occurs. For most people, it's a combination of food intake and activity and tends to creep up on them. They get busy and start eating out more instead of cooking at home. They get a promotion at work and spend more time behind a desk, or move into a position where dining with clients is expected. They skip workouts. They get older and don't pay attention to the changes in their metabolism that accompany aging. They get tired and stressed out, and start getting back into habits like mindlessly snacking while watching TV. They start delegating tasks that they once used to do (housework, yard work) to save time but forget that delegating those tasks means losing that calorie burn in their daily activity level. Then one day they see a picture of themselves and can't believe how much weight they've gained.0
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Because I can eat all the food I want, when I want, in the amounts I want, plus I can go back to sitting at my computer watching Netflix and/or playing games for 18 hours a day.0
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Actually for some it is very hard to gain weight. It is actually easier to lose weight. Do you think it's easier to eat in 1000 calorie surplus than to eat in 1000 calorie deficit? The latter is easier.
That hasn't been my experience. Lol..the former is easier!
So to take it a step further (and answer the original question), I could eat 2500 calories over maintenance in a day, but not 2500 under. That's why you can gain faster than you can lose. There's a limit on deficits, but not so much on surpluses.0 -
for us who tend to put on weight? I know you have to eat 3500 calories above your maintanance calories to gain one pound of fat.3500 calories is allot of food so I was just wondering what type of foods that can make it easy to reach that number. Since I started using this program and eating at deficit, my appetite has decrease so I can't imagine when I get into mantainance which means I now won't likely gain the weight back even if I stop tracking my food?
Because there are a ton of calorie dense foods out there that can fill you up and blow your macros for the day.
Couple that with "I can skip my workout today", and splurging days, and it's quite easy to eat over maintenance.0 -
It's so true that those who have trouble gaining are poo-poo'd while those who have trouble losing are recognized.Actually for some it is very hard to gain weight. It is actually easier to lose weight. Do you think it's easier to eat in 1000 calorie surplus than to eat in 1000 calorie deficit? The latter is easier.
I hope people who need to gain are not hurt or offended by anything said here.0 -
It's so true that those who have trouble gaining are poo-poo'd while those who have trouble losing are recognized.Actually for some it is very hard to gain weight. It is actually easier to lose weight. Do you think it's easier to eat in 1000 calorie surplus than to eat in 1000 calorie deficit? The latter is easier.
I hope people who need to gain are not hurt or offended by anything said here.
This thread is in the diet and weight loss section, the OP starts with "for those of us who tend to put on weight".0 -
It's so true that those who have trouble gaining are poo-poo'd while those who have trouble losing are recognized.Actually for some it is very hard to gain weight. It is actually easier to lose weight. Do you think it's easier to eat in 1000 calorie surplus than to eat in 1000 calorie deficit? The latter is easier.
I hope people who need to gain are not hurt or offended by anything said here.
This thread is in the diet and weight loss section, the OP starts with "for those of us who tend to put on weight".
Yeppp.
Plus...a 1,000 calorie deficit is just as easy to get as a 1,000 calorie surplus. Calorie dense foods, anyone?
This thread is not a competition for who has it worse.0
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