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    Calories in/Calories out vs. low carb

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    Replies

    • Posts: 1,297 Member
      GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »
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      Three words. Concentration camp survivors.

      Three more words: Minnesota Starvation Experiment.

      These people continued to lose weight in the face of continuing caloric restriction.

      The body does not work in the way you believe it works, Deb. You were eating more than you thought. There were either times you were binging or sneaking bites of food here or there, or you were eating extra food.

      I'm sorry, you were not maintaining on 1200 calories.

      That is a caloric intake for a very short much older sedentary woman.

      No, I don't believe you. Not in the least. I've seen you flit from fad to fad on these boards, latching onto whatever you read to easily. Now you're into low carb. The last big thing you were into was recomp. What's going to be next?

      And I had no idea that recomp is a fad. You never cease to learn on these boards.

    • Posts: 2 Member
      I've found when you're down to the last 10 pounds or the scale is stuck, increase protein and decrease carbs and add 1 extra hour per week of walking or swimming or your favorite moderate cardio. All minor adjustments, but you'll feel fuller and less deprived. Major changes seem to always backfire!.There's food for nutrition and food for sanity. I'm 55 and i's getting harder and harder but this adjustment has helped me. Good luck.
    • Posts: 2,578 Member
      The highest I got was borderline overweight/normal BMI threshold. This gain started creeping up in my 40s. I find now that I am in my 50s it is harder for me to diet it down because I only have a couple hundred calories deficit.

      Protein definitely helps. I found that when I was high protein and low fat I was hungry, so I had to drop protein a little bit to add fat when I dropped carbs. But everyone seems to have their own satiety point.

      I find that now I need to rely on activity to create a deficit because I don't have a lot of extra calories to play with.
    • Posts: 30,886 Member
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
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      And I had no idea that recomp is a fad. You never cease to learn on these boards.

      Anything can be a fad; it's about why one does it and how one approaches it.
    • Posts: 7,722 Member
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
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      And I had no idea that recomp is a fad. You never cease to learn on these boards.

      It's in the attitude one takes when approaching things. My sister latches on to anything new she discovers, these things aren't necessarily new, but they're new to her. They're fads or phases for her.

    • Posts: 266 Member
      Newsflash - ALL diets work! And they work for same reason. Less Calories come in that you burn. Period. But its what works best for people. Yes if you are super active and run a ton or work out a ton and are in your 30s - then yes you can eat 3000 cals a day and lose weight. I got it. Some people find it easier to do low carbs. Some people are not addicted to Choc or cake or Ice cream or break and therefore - not a bit loss to eat those foods. I do love these debates its fun to see how people think especially the militant ones that say there is only ONE way!!! But the point is - all diets works - its what you can stay with in the long term.
    • Posts: 1,297 Member
      GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »
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      It's in the attitude one takes when approaching things. My sister latches on to anything new she discovers, these things aren't necessarily new, but they're new to her. They're fads or phases for her.

      I see, nothing new then. Ancient latins called it "levitas animi" and it was the reason why women were considered incompetent...Oh wait :smile:
    • Posts: 8,578 Member
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
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      I see, nothing new then. Ancient latins called it "levitas animi" and it was the reason why women were considered incompetent...Oh wait :smile:

      ???
    • Posts: 1,377 Member
      Doing low carb you have to eat less calories than you burn, that part never chagnes no matter what the diet is called. Just find the one that you think you can sustain on.
    • Posts: 12,942 Member
      courtneyfabulous wrote: »
      Skip low carb- counting calories is all you need. What you actually need to focus on is getting enough PROTEIN. Then fill in the rest of your calories with carbs or fats in whatever proportion you want. Eating low carb is actually counterproductive to weight loss in the long term because it causes a reduction in weight loss hormones and slows the metabolism. People just do it as a way to cut calories but if you track all your calories it's not necessary.

      I wouldn't go high carb though, because eating a lot of carbs increases appetite and will make sticking to your calories more difficult.

      Just eat what you want in correct portions & proportions and make sure you get enough protein (this is important for maintaining muscle and prioritizing fat loss)

      Also FYI calorie counting is the only diet that has ever really worked for me- and instead of having to give up foods I love I get to eat whatever I want. You may want to make some switches- like I gave up sweets and muffins & cookies but now I let myself have protein bars and protein cookies and chocolate protein shakes- I still get to satisfy my seeet tooth but I get to fulfill my protein needs at the same time and these types of treats generally have less sugar and sometimes more fiber & vitamins than my old treat foods.

      Courtney, the stuff above works for you, but it is not universally factual. There is nothing wrong with low carb, and many people love and do well on this particular dietary plan.

      Also, a sweet is a sweet whether or not it has less or more protein, but each to their own. ;)
    • Posts: 30,886 Member
      SLLRunner wrote: »
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      Courtney, the stuff above works for you, but it is not universally factual. There is nothing wrong with low carb, and many people love and do well on this particular dietary plan.

      Agree with this. And some even like and feel satiated on high carb. Increasing protein if it's low is definitely the first thing I'd recommend to someone struggling with hunger (maybe increasing the overall fiber in the diet too), but one can do that without protein bars and other protein snacks too (even when including some chocolate or ice cream in the diet, although if you don't want to no reason to -- for me rather than most protein bars I'd rather have some good cheese or some other extra I really love).

      The key point is that as long as the calories are right there's a huge variety of diets that will work and people will differ on what they enjoy/feel good on (and the best way to get the calories right).
    • Posts: 12,942 Member
      GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »
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      Well, I used to think those same things about myself -- that I had a slowed metabolism due to age and that I lost weight slowly.

      That's not true.

      You said you were using Nutri-System to lose weight. Were you logging and tracking at the time? Were you using a food scale? If you weren't you don't truly know your caloric intake.

      At the time I thought I was having a hard time losing weight, I was estimating my food intake by eyeballing portions. When I starting actually logging and weighing everything, it was a real eye opener. I also started losing weight at pretty much the expected rate.

      The truth is that age accounts for a very small decrease in metabolic rate, about 100 calories per decade.

      I've said before that the way you speak about metabolism indicates that you misunderstand it. I stand by that.

      I had this same type of experience as well. I blamed my weight gain, and my inability to lose weight, on hormones, peri-menopause, everything else but my intake.

      I lost my weight during menopause, and it was darned easy when I figured out my food scale works much better than my eyeballs, which are completely broken to identifying portion control. Really, they are.

      I am 99.99999% percent sure that anybody who professes that they lost weight due to a certain diet rather than a calorie deficit did not weight and log all their food prior to the diet, or during the diet.

      When it comes to weight loss, everything outside of CICO is preference only.

      The only magic in any diet is the magic we give it.
    • Posts: 1,907 Member
      Everyone is different but I did low Carb and never maintained the losses. I got so I would kill for a potato, lol. I have lost 65 pounds eating healthy. I still use sour cream sparingly and other favorites. I have been dieting for almost a year and I do not feel deprived. I could eat this way for life and probably will with a slight elevation in calories. I'm 60 years old so my loss has not been fast but has been about 1.4 pounds a week. I am mostly sedentary but I walk daily to get my metabolism working. Don't buy in to the low carb nonsense. You certainly don't want a diet of nothing but carb but your body needs a balance. I still have 32 pounds to go and expect my losses to slow down but I feel so much better I can wait a bit longer to reach goal. Good luck kiddo.
    • Posts: 7,722 Member
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
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      I see, nothing new then. Ancient latins called it "levitas animi" and it was the reason why women were considered incompetent...Oh wait :smile:

      Misogynistic stereotyping coming from you. Quelle surprise.
    • Posts: 1,358 Member
      psulemon wrote: »
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      I would literally die if I tried that. Anaerobic + low carb = painful death, lol.

      Honest question - I do HIIT 3x per week and I also eat LCHF (not super low, 50-80g per day, been eating that way for three years ago). Am I supposed to be dead? I don't do super long sessions (15-20 min). I've never tried eating a high carb meal before hand.... Is there a problem with HIIT and LC? I find it challenging, but not impossible... Genuinely curious here!

    • Posts: 38,439 MFP Moderator
      tlflag1620 wrote: »
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      Honest question - I do HIIT 3x per week and I also eat LCHF (not super low, 50-80g per day, been eating that way for three years ago). Am I supposed to be dead? I don't do super long sessions (15-20 min). I've never tried eating a high carb meal before hand.... Is there a problem with HIIT and LC? I find it challenging, but not impossible... Genuinely curious here!

      I was meaning referring to myself, but generally highly anaerobic exercises and lack of glycogen generally do not mix well (at least from what I have seen). But timing of nutrients and other factors can come into play.
    • Posts: 1,358 Member
      Ah okay... I was wondering if I was doing something wrong, lol... Not new to weight loss through diet, but I'm kind of an exercise newbie, lol.
    • Posts: 18 Member
      To answer the OP's question...35 pounds down so far with calorie counting and running every other day.
    • Posts: 1,297 Member
      GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »
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      Misogynistic stereotyping coming from you. Quelle surprise.

      I can't take you seriously, sorry.
    • Posts: 5,468 Member
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
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      I can't take you seriously, sorry.

      You should.
      Mirrors are a-plenty, use one.
    • Posts: 7,722 Member
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
      show previous quotes

      I can't take you seriously, sorry.
      Gianfranco_R wrote: »
      show previous quotes

      I can't take you seriously, sorry.

      At least the feeling is mutual.
    • Posts: 16 Member
      gwenmf wrote: »
      I'm doing Low Carb, Medium Protein, High Fat - which is basically Keto Clarity if you want to read the book. I've been following this about a month and am down 12 lbs (weigh in is tomorrow). I no longer get hungry and rarely get food cravings. I've found ways to substitute things like bread, pasta, etc. My carb count is 20g per day. Protein recommendation is 2.2g per kg of weight. Fat needs to be higher than your protein. Fat is what keeps you from being hungry.

      It changes your body from sugar burning to fat burning once you get into ketosis, which only takes a few days. NUTRITIONAL Ketosis. You have to monitor your protein as well. Too much protein can lead to gains as it releases hormones that will kick you back into sugar burning rather than fat burning.

      Everyone has their own plan that works for them. The trick is finding that whether it's vegan, paleo, low carb, etc. Calories matter for all of them I think. More calories in than needed and you gain.

      Agree with everything you said.. congratulations on your loss so far..I have also been doing something similar 40protein 40fat 20carbs and I'm never hungry ..I used to get hungry all the time in the evenings but now I very rarely think about food in between meals
    • Posts: 34 Member
      007Aggie wrote: »
      I've lost 40 lbs while consuming at least one can of Dr Pepper a day. In the beginning, it was 2-3. I've recently weaned down to a half can because my focus is now on health, not scale weight.

      Dr. Pepper is my downfall. If I could wean to one a day, it would be a miracle. Good for you for taking one foot off the DP wagon.

    • Posts: 4,372 Member
      A diet has to be feasable (works) and sustainable. About any diet can be feasible if you limit the calories. A low carb diet might be sustainable for some but is very hard for a lot of people (like me). I like fruits, legumes, whole grains, milk, and treats, etc. and I think most of that is good for us. A keto diet is a life saver for some with Type II diabetes or other sensitivities to certain carb-foods.
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