This is all you need to know to lose weight

macr0babe
macr0babe Posts: 61 Member
edited November 20 in Health and Weight Loss
[There's a TL;DR at the end]

I've been seeing so much misinformation with regards to weight loss: "cut out sugar/carbs/etc. and the weight will take care of itself", "try this detox", "doing this wrap makes dieting unnecessary".

All of this is complete crap. It comes down to calories in vs calories out. What YOU decide to do with the calories is your options.

Cutting out sugar without a medical reason is dangerous, and for those saying that refined sugar is the enemy but natural sugar is A-OK: Not true. There are several types of sugar and your body takes care of them generally the same way. Cutting out carbs completely is not a good idea (again, unless there is a medical reason).

Detoxes are pointless. You've got an entire organ system that takes care of what companies convince you to drop money on. A lot of people in the medical field have been getting annoyed with the companies selling such "detoxes", due to the bastardization of the word alone.

Wraps are dangerous and can seriously dehydrate you. SEVERAL professionals have stated this much. Please, please do your research before considering a wrap. These companies prey on people's insecurities.

Now I DO have some weight loss tips that I used in the past (and am not using). Before I got pregnant, I weighed about 135. During my pregnancy I got my ISSA certification. While I'm still learning things every day, here are things that have helped me thus far:

1. Filling up with fruits and veggies (especially leafy greens) doesn't make a huge dent in your caloric intake, so you have plenty leftover to use on your macros (Carbs, Fats, Proteins)
2. Prepping meals isn't required, but it makes counting your calories a lot easier when you plan and prep what you're going to eat for the week. It's especially helpful to plan/prep if you've got kids.
3. Post-workout meals ARE important. Your body needs the fuel.
4. Your calorie deficit has already been worked into your MFP, so making up the calories your burn on cardio/strength training is VITAL. Not making up these calories can result in serious injury - I've had to learn that lesson the hard way.
5. Give yourself a break - whether that's indulging in your favorite food once in awhile or taking a day to put your feet up, even drawing yourself the most soothing bath; all of these are important things to do for yourself.
6. Have patience. This ties into giving yourself a break. Excess stress about not losing enough weight (or not losing it fast enough) can actually backfire.
7. Your body is not the same as the first person who comments on your post, so what works for them might not work for you. It's all about what works for YOU; choosing exercises that YOU enjoy, eating the nutrient rich foods YOU like, working out as often as YOU see fit, etc.

I'd love if more people could add to the list (refraining woo and other nonsense).

TL;DR - Message/add me if you need help or just extra motivation. I don't charge for either.

Replies

  • ShinyFuture
    ShinyFuture Posts: 314 Member
    Ok, I'll bite -- cutting out sugar is dangerous!?! Upon what is such a statement based? (And no, I'm not a zealot - as my diary shows sugar and I are well acquainted).
  • raelynnsmama52512
    raelynnsmama52512 Posts: 1,184 Member
    8. Meal timing does NOT matter! I've seen countless "should I eat breakfast"/"breakfast is important for weight loss"/"so and so says you need to eat breakfast every morning" posts and it irritates me. Your body does not care when you eat, nor will it stop digesting and metabolizing food if you eat late at night. I personally don't eat until around 11am and usually eat my last meal around 6 or 7pm.

    Technically, whatever time you decide to eat your first meal is when you "break your fast" aka "breakfast".
  • macr0babe
    macr0babe Posts: 61 Member
    Ok, I'll bite -- cutting out sugar is dangerous!?! Upon what is such a statement based? (And no, I'm not a zealot - as my diary shows sugar and I are well acquainted).

    Sugar comes from a large number of sources - honey, HFCS, your usual table sugar (the grainy stuff), fruits, etc. While cutting out white sugar is fine, removing every source of sugar results in a diet made up of pretty much just meat and/or fat. Without sugars, like glucose and lactose (and several others), you'll struggle to find the energy to workout, let alone simply standing.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,603 Member
    What is ISSA certification?
  • raelynnsmama52512
    raelynnsmama52512 Posts: 1,184 Member
    macr0babe wrote: »
    Ok, I'll bite -- cutting out sugar is dangerous!?! Upon what is such a statement based? (And no, I'm not a zealot - as my diary shows sugar and I are well acquainted).

    Sugar comes from a large number of sources - honey, HFCS, your usual table sugar (the grainy stuff), fruits, etc. While cutting out white sugar is fine, removing every source of sugar results in a diet made up of pretty much just meat and/or fat. Without sugars, like glucose and lactose (and several others), you'll struggle to find the energy to workout, let alone simply standing.

    IIRC from biology, if the body runs low on glucose stores, it will synthesize new glucose molecules from proteins (and I believe fats but I think that's a different process) via glyconeogenesis. You are right that it will have negative effects, but I just wanted to add that tidbit in.
  • macr0babe
    macr0babe Posts: 61 Member
    Kalikel wrote: »
    What is ISSA certification?

    International Sports Sciences Association - I have a personal training certification through them, though they have several different programs.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    "1. Filling up with fruits and veggies (especially leafy greens) doesn't make a huge dent in your caloric intake, so you have plenty leftover to use on your macros (Carbs, Fats, Proteins)"

    fruits and vegetables also contain macros, don't they ?

    Not everyone is a volume eater either.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    edited June 2015
    macr0babe wrote: »
    [There's a TL;DR at the end]

    I've been seeing so much misinformation with regards to weight loss: "cut out sugar/carbs/etc. and the weight will take care of itself", "try this detox", "doing this wrap makes dieting unnecessary".

    All of this is complete crap. It comes down to calories in vs calories out. What YOU decide to do with the calories is your options.
    So true

    Cutting out sugar without a medical reason is dangerous that's ridiculous
    , and for those saying that refined sugar is the enemy but natural sugar is A-OK: Not true. There are several types of sugar and your body takes care of them generally the same way. Cutting out carbs completely is not a good idea (again, unless there is a medical reason).
    I don't think you understand sugar (there's only one type really) or carbs, nobody cuts them out entirely .. and I am a definite carboholic so have no agenda here

    Detoxes are pointless. You've got an entire organ system that takes care of what companies convince you to drop money on. A lot of people in the medical field have been getting annoyed with the companies selling such "detoxes", due to the bastardization of the word alone.
    Completely agree
    Wraps are dangerous and can seriously dehydrate you. SEVERAL professionals have stated this much. Please, please do your research before considering a wrap. These companies prey on people's insecurities.
    I'm not sure they're dangerous but they are stupid

    Now I DO have some weight loss tips that I used in the past (and am not using). Before I got pregnant, I weighed about 135. During my pregnancy I got my ISSA certification. While I'm still learning things every day, here are things that have helped me thus far:

    1. Filling up with fruits and veggies (especially leafy greens) doesn't make a huge dent in your caloric intake, so you have plenty leftover to use on your macros (Carbs, Fats, Proteins)
    2. Prepping meals isn't required, but it makes counting your calories a lot easier when you plan and prep what you're going to eat for the week. It's especially helpful to plan/prep if you've got kids.
    3. Post-workout meals ARE important. Your body needs the fuel.
    nope .. doesn't matter when you eat really, also doesn't matter when you time your protein as long as you are hitting your calorie requirements
    5. Your calorie deficit has already been worked into your MFP, so making up the calories your burn on cardio/strength training is VITAL. Not making up these calories can result in serious injury - I've had to learn that lesson the hard way.
    what does this mean? That's not how MFP works .. MFP works so that even if you don't exercise you lose scale weight. Now cardio is great for cardiovascular health and strength training for decent body composition and preserving LBM in a defecit but it's not VITAL to weight loss .. it does increase the numbers of calories you can eat though

    5. Give yourself a break - whether that's indulging in your favorite food once in awhile or taking a day to put your feet up, even drawing yourself the most soothing bath; all of these are important things to do for yourself.
    8. Have patience. This ties into giving yourself a break. Excess stress about not losing enough weight (or not losing it fast enough) can actually backfire.
    9. Your body is not the same as the first person who comments on your post, so what works for them might not work for you. It's all about what works for YOU; choosing exercises that YOU enjoy, eating the nutrient rich foods YOU like, working out as often as YOU see fit, etc.

    I'd love if more people could add to the list (refraining woo and other nonsense).

    TL;DR - Message/add me if you need help or just extra motivation. I don't charge for either.
  • mirlredmann
    mirlredmann Posts: 28 Member
    "Cutting out carbs" I believe is often understood as cutting out grains, especially the ones processed into bread and pasta. Cutting out carbs entirely would be ridiculous, as we have already seen above with the sugar variety. However, as a volume eater myself and someone who is opposed to eating meat every day, I generally substitute my usual carb-suspects with pulses (containing carbs as well, naturally) boosting my protein intake along with the carbs eaten.
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
    edited June 2015
    Reasonable good set of rules - however I don't think it is all you need to know to lose weight.

    The 0th rules of weight loss

    - A ) you will need to eat less energy than you 'burn'. This can be achieved in a variety of ways. Among them, counting calories is a relatively good way to learn calorie content of food and approach a better energy balance.

    - B ) you will need to do this in a sustainable fashion. it is essential that you find a mental attitude and the tools to adhere to a new eating pattern. Both the period of weight loss and the more important period of maintenance can be most successful when consistency and adherence are achieved. This is no easy task, work on it.

    As to 3. It's superfluous to weight loss. First there is no specific need for specific post-work meals - one can fit nutrient/energy needs within a regular meal schedule - one does need to fuel the body but free circulating amino or fatty acids are generally sufficient for that 1/2 to hr workout for the average active person trying to lose weight (vs the lean athlete). Second, while I am a very strong supporter of active exercise - and recommend it during weight loss for various reasons (lbm retention, body comp, quality of life, etc...) it is not obligatory, especially in the sedentary, obese person - and if the type of exercise is light - there is absolutely no need for additional food.
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