If calories in-calories out is immutable...

135678

Replies

  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    It seems most of us think highly of 'our way' but in fact there are many ways that work well for at least a few. :)
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    ^ +1
    mandy318 wrote: »
    You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!

    This is exactly what I'm following.

    Me, too. I don't log non-fast days. I think this diet is good for those of us who tend to be 'all or nothing' thinkers. We can diet hard for a day then not at all for a day. Whereas if we try to log all our food on all the days, and restrict on all the days, we can drive ourselves crazy. And then we flip back to the 'nothing' pattern (no logging, no dieting, no moderating).

    May as well know your weaknesses and use them to your benefit. :)
  • strong_curves
    strong_curves Posts: 2,229 Member
    mandy318 wrote: »
    You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!

    This is exactly what I'm following.

    Just sayin' this could be why you only seem to lose 6-8 lbs and then nothing.

  • tincanonastring
    tincanonastring Posts: 3,944 Member
    mandy318 wrote: »
    You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!

    This is exactly what I'm following.

    Just sayin' this could be why you only seem to lose 6-8 lbs and then nothing.

    65706968.jpg
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    The Krista Varady plan:

    But in the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll find only one rule: eat no more than 500 calories on Diet Day, eat anything you want and as much as you want on Feast Day, and alternate those two days. That’s it! No counting calories, carbs, fat or protein. No avoiding any particular food; all foods are allowed. There are no complex meal preparations and plans.

    In the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll unlock the secret to rapid and sustained weight loss and never endure every dieter’s nightmare: daily deprivation. Alternating between “Feast” days in which you eat whatever you want, and “Diet” day in which you eat 500 calories, you’ll lose: pounds, belly fat—and improve your health. Without giving up the foods you love.


    I don't understand how this diet would work. (?)
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    It works on the assumption that "as much as you want" is less than 2x TDEE - 500.
  • tincanonastring
    tincanonastring Posts: 3,944 Member
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    The Krista Varady plan:

    But in the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll find only one rule: eat no more than 500 calories on Diet Day, eat anything you want and as much as you want on Feast Day, and alternate those two days. That’s it! No counting calories, carbs, fat or protein. No avoiding any particular food; all foods are allowed. There are no complex meal preparations and plans.

    In the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll unlock the secret to rapid and sustained weight loss and never endure every dieter’s nightmare: daily deprivation. Alternating between “Feast” days in which you eat whatever you want, and “Diet” day in which you eat 500 calories, you’ll lose: pounds, belly fat—and improve your health. Without giving up the foods you love.


    I don't understand how this diet would work. (?)

    It doesn't.
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    The Krista Varady plan:

    But in the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll find only one rule: eat no more than 500 calories on Diet Day, eat anything you want and as much as you want on Feast Day, and alternate those two days. That’s it! No counting calories, carbs, fat or protein. No avoiding any particular food; all foods are allowed. There are no complex meal preparations and plans.

    In the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll unlock the secret to rapid and sustained weight loss and never endure every dieter’s nightmare: daily deprivation. Alternating between “Feast” days in which you eat whatever you want, and “Diet” day in which you eat 500 calories, you’ll lose: pounds, belly fat—and improve your health. Without giving up the foods you love.


    I don't understand how this diet would work. (?)

    It doesn't.

    Bingo.

  • TycoonBoo
    TycoonBoo Posts: 1 Member
  • tincanonastring
    tincanonastring Posts: 3,944 Member
    TycoonBoo wrote: »

    But...but...it says right in the intro that calories are directly tied to weight.
    "I don’t deny the importance of calories. Calories absolutely count. And if someone has lost weight, they have necessarily expended more calories than they consumed."

    The rest is just a list of complexities that make CICO difficult to nail down. None of it falls outside the CICO balance, though.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
  • mandy318
    mandy318 Posts: 25 Member
    ^ +1
    mandy318 wrote: »
    You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!

    This is exactly what I'm following.

    Me, too. I don't log non-fast days. I think this diet is good for those of us who tend to be 'all or nothing' thinkers. We can diet hard for a day then not at all for a day. Whereas if we try to log all our food on all the days, and restrict on all the days, we can drive ourselves crazy. And then we flip back to the 'nothing' pattern (no logging, no dieting, no moderating).

    May as well know your weaknesses and use them to your benefit. :)

    Exactly why it appeals to me!
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    mandy318 wrote: »
    ^ +1
    mandy318 wrote: »
    You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!

    This is exactly what I'm following.

    Me, too. I don't log non-fast days. I think this diet is good for those of us who tend to be 'all or nothing' thinkers. We can diet hard for a day then not at all for a day. Whereas if we try to log all our food on all the days, and restrict on all the days, we can drive ourselves crazy. And then we flip back to the 'nothing' pattern (no logging, no dieting, no moderating).

    May as well know your weaknesses and use them to your benefit. :)

    Exactly why it appeals to me!

    And how's that working out?
  • starwhisperer6
    starwhisperer6 Posts: 402 Member
    Oh yeah, with a none fast, eat what I want day I could blow past maintenance in the first few hours of the day! French toast and a breve anyone?
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    If I ate 500 calories 4 days a week, that would net me about a 2800 cal deficit per day (assuming I could keep my activity level up which I highly doubt). That would give me over 10,000 calories of deficit that I would need to eat through on "feast days". Could I do it? Probably, but I do think that would make me lose weight. But someone with a TDEE of like 1700 or something would only rack up 4800 calories in deficit. That seems pretty easy to do in 3 feast days...

    Weird diet plan... weird.
  • daniwilford
    daniwilford Posts: 1,030 Member
    All or nothing thinking is a cognitive distortion that can fuel depression, anxiety and anger. I can not recommend it as a viable strategy.
  • tincanonastring
    tincanonastring Posts: 3,944 Member
    Hornsby wrote: »
    If I ate 500 calories 4 days a week, that would net me about a 2800 cal deficit per day (assuming I could keep my activity level up which I highly doubt). That would give me over 10,000 calories of deficit that I would need to eat through on "feast days". Could I do it? Probably, but I do think that would make me lose weight. But someone with a TDEE of like 1700 or something would only rack up 4800 calories in deficit. That seems pretty easy to do in 3 feast days...

    Weird diet plan... weird.

    Yeah, I think I could manage it, but my TDEE is about 2900 because of all my cardio. Trying to do that with a lower TDEE would be futile, I think.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    mandy318 wrote: »
    ^ +1
    mandy318 wrote: »
    You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!

    This is exactly what I'm following.

    Me, too. I don't log non-fast days. I think this diet is good for those of us who tend to be 'all or nothing' thinkers. We can diet hard for a day then not at all for a day. Whereas if we try to log all our food on all the days, and restrict on all the days, we can drive ourselves crazy. And then we flip back to the 'nothing' pattern (no logging, no dieting, no moderating).

    May as well know your weaknesses and use them to your benefit. :)

    Exactly why it appeals to me!

    Your current method of implementation does not seem to be working well. There have been several suggestions for how to control your diet a little better while following this plan. While you may not like the suggestions of weighing your food or logging more accurately, they could help you stay in line with your deficit better (regardless of how you choose to create that deficit).

    You know what they say about repeatedly doing the same thing and expecting different results...
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,343 Member
    edited January 2016
    It wouldn't work for me, the main reason being adherence. No way I'm eating 500 calories every other day. Not happening. The "feast days" wouldn't make the every-other-day misery and starvation worthwhile. It may work for somebody who feels full on 1200 calories per day, but I'm not that person. Even 1200 per day would have me eating the drywall off the kitchen walls.
  • mercuriopro
    mercuriopro Posts: 7 Member
    edited January 2016
    Counting calories is not always accurate. You could be eating bad food with low calories and not loose weight. It may have to do more with what you are eating. Also, at the beginning of any diet or workout the first 6 weeks you are just burning sugar.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF7pmUmyzTk

    This is what I am doing and it seems to work.

    1. No more than 5% of carbohydrates in any supermarket food is a good rule of thumb.
    3. Consume NO SUGAR!
    4. Fruits only before 12 pm. After is harder to burn.
    5. Eating fat while not consuming sugar does not make insulin.

    you can have some fatty foods on your cheat day:
    Avocado, Salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines and herring, etc.

    AVOID like the plague!

    Soft drinks, candy, juice, sports drinks, chocolate, cakes, buns, pastries, ice cream, breakfast cereals. Preferably avoid sweeteners as well.
    Starch: Bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, French fries, potato chips, porridge, muesli and so on.
    Wholegrain products are just less bad.
    Legumes, such as beans and lentils, are high in carbs. So only consume them when you are going to work out.
    Moderate amounts of root vegetables may be OK (unless you’re eating extremely low carb).
    Margarine: Industrially imitated butter with unnaturally high content of omega-6 fat. Has no health benefits, tastes bad. Statistically linked to asthma, allergies and other inflammatory diseases.
    Beer: Liquid bread. Full of rapidly absorbed carbs, unfortunately.
    Fruit: Very sweet, lots of sugar. Eat once in awhile. Treat fruit as a natural form of candy.

    Check out ddpyoga.com :)
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
    counting calories is not always accurate since having a bunch of fatty foods could give the same amount as eating a different amount of "good food".

    This is so wrong I don't even know where to start.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,343 Member
    edited January 2016
    counting calories is not always accurate since having a bunch of fatty foods could give the same amount as eating a different amount of "good food".

    Speaking purely in terms of weight loss, it doesn't matter. If you eat 1500 calories of "fatty foods" or 1500 calories of "good foods" and are in a deficit, you'll lose weight. If you eat 2500 calories of "fatty foods" or 2500 calories of "good foods" and are in a surplus, you'll gain weight. Do a Google search for "Twinkie Diet".
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,316 Member
    Counting calories is not always accurate. You could be eating bad food with low calories and not loose weight. It may have to do more with what you are eating. Also, at the beginning of any diet or workout the first 6 weeks you are just burning sugar.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF7pmUmyzTk

    This is what I am doing and it seems to work.

    1. No more than 5% of carbohydrates in any supermarket food is a good rule of thumb.
    3. Consume NO SUGAR!
    4. Fruits only before 12 pm. After is harder to burn.
    5. Eating fat while not consuming sugar does not make insulin.

    you can have some fatty foods on your cheat day:
    Avocado, Salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines and herring, etc.

    AVOID like the plague!

    Soft drinks, candy, juice, sports drinks, chocolate, cakes, buns, pastries, ice cream, breakfast cereals. Preferably avoid sweeteners as well.
    Starch: Bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, French fries, potato chips, porridge, muesli and so on.
    Wholegrain products are just less bad.
    Legumes, such as beans and lentils, are high in carbs. So only consume them when you are going to work out.
    Moderate amounts of root vegetables may be OK (unless you’re eating extremely low carb).
    Margarine: Industrially imitated butter with unnaturally high content of omega-6 fat. Has no health benefits, tastes bad. Statistically linked to asthma, allergies and other inflammatory diseases.
    Beer: Liquid bread. Full of rapidly absorbed carbs, unfortunately.
    Fruit: Very sweet, lots of sugar. Eat once in awhile. Treat fruit as a natural form of candy.

    Check out ddpyoga.com :)

    All unnecessary rules that simply complicate the whole process.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,343 Member
    counting calories is not always accurate since having a bunch of fatty foods could give the same amount as eating a different amount of "good food".

    This is so wrong I don't even know where to start.

    Ditto. So much woo that it boggles the mind. I can't find a single thing in that list I agree with, or that is supported by science.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    The Krista Varady plan:

    But in the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll find only one rule: eat no more than 500 calories on Diet Day, eat anything you want and as much as you want on Feast Day, and alternate those two days. That’s it! No counting calories, carbs, fat or protein. No avoiding any particular food; all foods are allowed. There are no complex meal preparations and plans.

    In the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll unlock the secret to rapid and sustained weight loss and never endure every dieter’s nightmare: daily deprivation. Alternating between “Feast” days in which you eat whatever you want, and “Diet” day in which you eat 500 calories, you’ll lose: pounds, belly fat—and improve your health. Without giving up the foods you love.


    I don't understand how this diet would work. (?)

    It doesn't.

    Many books have been written on it, and many more scholarly articles. But what people don't understand they fear and deride. Diets, especially.

    Plus there's something in the human mind that convinces people that their diet is the one and only good diet. I think whoever named the tv show "My Diet is Better Than Your Diet" knew that.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    counting calories is not always accurate since having a bunch of fatty foods could give the same amount as eating a different amount of "good food".

    This is so wrong I don't even know where to start.

    Try this thread then!!

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10316157/what-am-i-doing-wrong#latest
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
    those who said "weight loss isn't linear" are right. Maybe fat loss is linear, but somedays you will have more water, or you built some muscle. What I like to do (yes I'm giving advice) is I get out a calendar, I write my weight today and every week for about four or five months I write my estimated weight for that week at my weightloss rate. So I weighed 150 lbs. I'm at 1 lb a week. Next week 149, then the next week 148. On the day I weigh myself and compare it to what it was estimated at.

    When I do this, my weight goes up and down. Sometimes above sometimes below what the estimate was. But after four months my weight is fluctuating 132-139 vs. 147-152. Don't let it throw you off when in the beginning the weight isnt' moving fast enough or in the right direction. You have to watch the pattern over time.

    Trust the process.
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    edited January 2016
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    The Krista Varady plan:

    But in the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll find only one rule: eat no more than 500 calories on Diet Day, eat anything you want and as much as you want on Feast Day, and alternate those two days. That’s it! No counting calories, carbs, fat or protein. No avoiding any particular food; all foods are allowed. There are no complex meal preparations and plans.

    In the Every-Other-Day Diet, you’ll unlock the secret to rapid and sustained weight loss and never endure every dieter’s nightmare: daily deprivation. Alternating between “Feast” days in which you eat whatever you want, and “Diet” day in which you eat 500 calories, you’ll lose: pounds, belly fat—and improve your health. Without giving up the foods you love.


    I don't understand how this diet would work. (?)

    It doesn't.

    Many books have been written on it, and many more scholarly articles. But what people don't understand they fear and deride. Diets, especially.

    Plus there's something in the human mind that convinces people that their diet is the one and only good diet. I think whoever named the tv show "My Diet is Better Than Your Diet" knew that.

    This diet can only work if your feast days are less than 2x TDEE - 500 on average. Since you don't count there's no way of knowing. And especially if your TDEE is on the lower side, this is so easily overeaten it's not even funny. Doubly especially if you go by the thought of being able to eat as much as you want without restriction.
  • strong_curves
    strong_curves Posts: 2,229 Member
    Counting calories is not always accurate. You could be eating bad food with low calories and not loose weight. It may have to do more with what you are eating. Also, at the beginning of any diet or workout the first 6 weeks you are just burning sugar.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF7pmUmyzTk

    This is what I am doing and it seems to work.

    1. No more than 5% of carbohydrates in any supermarket food is a good rule of thumb.
    3. Consume NO SUGAR!
    4. Fruits only before 12 pm. After is harder to burn.
    5. Eating fat while not consuming sugar does not make insulin.

    you can have some fatty foods on your cheat day:
    Avocado, Salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines and herring, etc.

    AVOID like the plague!

    Soft drinks, candy, juice, sports drinks, chocolate, cakes, buns, pastries, ice cream, breakfast cereals. Preferably avoid sweeteners as well.
    Starch: Bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, French fries, potato chips, porridge, muesli and so on.
    Wholegrain products are just less bad.
    Legumes, such as beans and lentils, are high in carbs. So only consume them when you are going to work out.
    Moderate amounts of root vegetables may be OK (unless you’re eating extremely low carb).
    Margarine: Industrially imitated butter with unnaturally high content of omega-6 fat. Has no health benefits, tastes bad. Statistically linked to asthma, allergies and other inflammatory diseases.
    Beer: Liquid bread. Full of rapidly absorbed carbs, unfortunately.
    Fruit: Very sweet, lots of sugar. Eat once in awhile. Treat fruit as a natural form of candy.

    Check out ddpyoga.com :)

    It's stuff like this that keep people on that yo-yo dieting trip. :|
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
    another thought, if your goal is to lose 1 lb a week, and you lost 6 lbs in week one, and nothing in week two, instead of giving up, remember you are 4 lbs ahead of schedule. Stick to the plan.