Sorry I'm Not Sorry - I gotta rant!

I recently posted on a thread about someone who is having a hard time losing weight - upon looking at their diary, it showed that they consume a decent amount of processed, convenience, and fast foods. My advice was that they should consider really eating more fruits/veggies etc. I used the term "clean eating". Lo and behold, the inevitable comment came in response to my suggestion; I believe the exact quote was "Seriously, stop it. This is not helpful. It's not what the food is, it's overall calories and macros. As long as a person eats in a calorie deficit, the pounds will come off, it doesn't matter what the food being consumed is."

I am going to lose my mind if I hear or see this comment again! I realize that for so many people the goal is to shed pounds, and I'm all for that! Obviously, losing the extra pounds is the first thing that is going to happen when converting to a healthy lifestyle, and it's mandatory in order to decrease the likelihood of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc. But that's not the point of all of this. Food can be the best, most powerful form of medicine, or the slowest form of poison. The point is to eat the foods that are going to keep you healthy for the rest of your life. YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT! Fresh produce, whole grains, unprocessed food, little or no refined sugar/ wite flours - THAT is how you lose weight, and get healthy.

It is dangerous and counterproductive to suggest that it doesn't matter what you put into your body. I expect backlash to this rant, and I welcome all you trolls to tell me that I'm wrong - but you ask any single expert, or even just a health conscious person out there and they will say the exact thing I've just said. No one can dispute this.

Didn't read the whole thread but .. losing weight and eating healthy are not the same. The latter may help you do the former (because of caloric density, feeling more energized thus able to exercise more, etc.) but they are different things. Burning more than you consume will cause weight loss, that's science.

http://www.healthylivingheavylifting.com/the-perils-of-clean-eating/

Thanks for this, great article.

Yeah...I get it. I agree with you. I have to pay attention to all the macros, not just calories. If I focus on strictly calories in/calories out, I won't lose.

if you burn more than you consume....you will.

If it were that easy, I would be skinny. If that works for you, then that is excellent. I must be the exception to the rule. I have tried to lose weight every way imaginable (with the exception of surgery). I'm not saying I eat clean. I still eat some processed foods. I am just saying, I personally need to pay attention to the whole picture in order to be successful. Counting calories alone will sabotage me every time. I have learned this by trial and error. I am sorry if you don't believe me, but it is true.

so then you're not arguing against the fact that if one burns more than they consume, they will lose weight.
your issue is that you cant seem to keep your cals below your burn.

fair enough.

i thought you were saying that you were eating at a deficit and not losing weight.

I am arguing that I have eaten at a deficit before and not lost weight. I am also saying that eating processed foods doesn't fill me up like healthier options do. I am also saying that I have previously gone over my calorie limit due to still being hungry an hour after eating processed foods. I am also saying that I have damn near starved myself, and still not lost weight.

My question is, why are you disagreeing with how my body works? It seems that you know nothing about me or my ability to lose weight...and people like YOU make me dislike this site. Not people like the OP.

You haven't eaten at a deficit then. It is physically impossible for your body to take in less calories than it expends and not lose weight. I am being literal here. It is physically impossible.
You weren't at a deficit, simple as that.

i feel like i should insert a special snowflake gif here, but i will refrain.

EDIT: nevermind....already been done. lol

as stated above, you were not eating at a deficit.

are you measuring and weighing EVERYTHING? if not, then how do you know?
people are notoriously bad estimators...i was SHOCKED when i saw what a true 1/2 cup of ice cream looked like.

im sorry that people like me make you dislike this site. that certainly wasnt my intention. i guess my hope is that those who struggle with trying to stay within restrictive guidelines and struggle are able to come to the realization that, hey....you can TOTALLY do this and still eat the things you love. hell, it may make it EASIER. it certainly does for me.

looks like youre on the newer side to MFP, so i would like to provide these links to you. read them if youd like, or skip them and focus on eating "healthy". your call.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1346163-change-your-mindset

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819925-the-basics-don-t-complicate-it

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here?hl=so+you're+new+here

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

Real mature guys...laugh it up at my weight loss struggle.

Am I new to this site? No. I started a new account recently when I decided to change my lifestyle/eating habits after I had my last child.

So that's cool. I'll just go ahead and eat nothing but pizza and honey buns and drink nothing but mountain dew...because you said I will lose weight doing so. Hah. Yeah I don't think so. I am not saying calories are not important. If I believed that I wouldn't count them religiously. But I am not going to sit here and say that they are the only thing that affects weight loss. You seriously don't believe carbs, sugar, sodium and fat have anything to do with weight loss? I am sorry, but I call BS. And I am not crying the blues about "what I've been through", so spare me your condescending crap. If you can eat complete garbage and lose weight then I applaud you. That is fantastic! And I envy you. Unfortunately, I can't do that. So basically I am done here. Thanks for your kind words. Really was the icing on top of a lovely day.

you have GOT to be kidding me.

was i mean? was i bullying?

i get the feeling you are one of those people who loves to play the victim.

if you think what i posted was condescending, please refrain from any other online forums. you need a thicker skin, sweetie.

if you want people to shower you in glitter and unicorn hugs and "way-to-go"s, you have come to the wrong place.

those links i posted are VERY helpful and written by people who have had great success here.

i wish you all the best on your weight loss journey and hope you find success in it, however that may be.

You, sir, are condescending. Calling me "sweetie" did nothing but justify that. Did I refer to you as a bully? No. Do I enjoy playing the victim? Not a chance. I don't need your links, so that was a waste of time on your part. I have done my own research, thank you. I am doing what works for me. You are doing what works for you. I never claimed to be a clean eater. I am also not interested in shoving my opinions down anyone's throat. To each their own.

The thickness of my skin is just fine, thank you.

I am not going to battle it out with some random stranger on a public forum any longer. I need to maintain a balanced diet in order to successfully lose weight. Do I sometimes splurge and eat a slice of pizza instead of a salad? Of course I do. But If I did that every day, I would fail. That is it. If you want to continue arguing with me over what works for my body then feel free. But I have other things to do. Like my workout, for example! Like you said, calories in/calories out, right? As for the glitter/rainbows/unicorn comment? hahaha....yeah....you have me figured out! Am I that transparent? hahahaha....Good day.

Skullshank is pretty helpful and I read his post twice. Nothing condescending or bullying about it at all. You say that the thickness of your skin is fine but it isn't.

I really suggest bookmarking all the links and maybe take a breather. Come back and read them and realize he really was just trying to help you.

Not all calories are created equal! people need to realize they are what they eat... and we should also count chemicals! not just calories!
I dont mean to sound harsh to the sensitive type people out there. Yes people need to start somewhere. Baby steps, slowly but surely making simple changes to their diets and taking some interest in education as to what it is they are eating will greatly help them in the journey to awesome health.
Just my 2 cents....

Not all calories are created equal! people need to realize they are what they eat... and we should also count chemicals! not just calories!
I dont mean to sound harsh to the sensitive type people out there. Yes people need to start somewhere. Baby steps, slowly but surely making simple changes to their diets and taking some interest in education as to what it is they are eating will greatly help them in the journey to awesome health.
Just my 2 cents....

Boy I love a rant, this post is gonna run and run. Woooohoooo!

I'm going to throw my 2 cents in here because, HEY, why not. It will give me something to read when I get back from the gym later.

I'm freaked out by all the chemicals and hormones in our food nowadays. Not in a tin-hatty kind of way, but in a very broad, very general, we eat all this chemical nonsense and we also have all these new diseases, kids these days have loads of allergies, no one knows where the high rates of autism are coming from, etc. I don't KNOW s*hit about what causes anything, and I don't claim to. But our environment is contaminated and I think a lot of our food is too. We use a lot of things in food now that haven't been around long enough to determine if they have adverse health affects. It doesn't make me wildly comfortable.

For that and other reasons I am trying to eat "cleaner." To me that means more fresh fruits and veg, and meat that isn't fed a lot of crap. Luckily, I can afford to that. Also, I tend to feel better and have more energy, have an easier time meeting macros and micros, and have an easier time losing weight.

But I'm also human. I would go insane eating like that all the time. I'm going to get take out maybe once a week. Usually greek or indian yummmmmm. I will buy myself a cupcake once a month. Every few months I cave and have a diet coke. I will eat a burger now and then. Most people are like me, and would go crazy if they had to focus on eating perfectly clean all the time, regardless of what clean meant to them. Restricting yourself to any diet entirely is really really hard and can lead to "unclean" binges.

The way you feed yourself and your family is personal, maybe as personal as religion or lifestyle. For me personally, if I get sick one day, I don't want to look back and wonder if healthier habits could have helped me. Instead, I want to work on my mental and physical health now while I'm young, which to me includes a moderated effort to eat as unprocessed and "clean" as I can, while acknowledging that exceptions are necessary to my mental well being.

OP, you can't force anyone to do anything, especially if you act like your way is the only way.

I'm going to throw my 2 cents in here because, HEY, why not. It will give me something to read when I get back from the gym later.

I'm freaked out by all the chemicals and hormones in our food nowadays. Not in a tin-hatty kind of way, but in a very broad, very general, we eat all this chemical nonsense and we also have all these new diseases, kids these days have loads of allergies, no one knows where the high rates of autism are coming from, etc. I don't KNOW s*hit about what causes anything, and I don't claim to. But our environment is contaminated and I think a lot of our food is too. We use a lot of things in food now that haven't been around long enough to determine if they have adverse health affects. It doesn't make me wildly comfortable.

For that and other reasons I am trying to eat "cleaner." To me that means more fresh fruits and veg, and meat that isn't fed a lot of crap. Luckily, I can afford to that. Also, I tend to feel better and have more energy, have an easier time meeting macros and micros, and have an easier time losing weight.

But I'm also human. I would go insane eating like that all the time. I'm going to get take out maybe once a week. Usually greek or indian yummmmmm. I will buy myself a cupcake once a month. Every few months I cave and have a diet coke. I will eat a burger now and then. Most people are like me, and would go crazy if they had to focus on eating perfectly clean all the time, regardless of what clean meant to them. Restricting yourself to any diet entirely is really really hard and can lead to "unclean" binges.

The way you feed yourself and your family is personal, maybe as personal as religion or lifestyle. For me personally, if I get sick one day, I don't want to look back and wonder if healthier habits could have helped me. Instead, I want to work on my mental and physical health now while I'm young, which to me includes a moderated effort to eat as unprocessed and "clean" as I can, while acknowledging that exceptions are necessary to my mental well being.

OP, you can't force anyone to do anything, especially if you act like your way is the only way.

Do you use air freshener in your house?

Hoping this isn't wiped before I finish reading.