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Fitness and diet myths that just won't go away

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  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,067 Member
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    GazelleLady wrote: »
    This might not be a myth for everyone, but I have heard experts say that you don't have to be hungry if you are in a deficit. If I am in a deficit, I go to bed hungry no matter how much fiber and protein I eat :(

    I understand and believe your experience, and know it's also true for others. I admit, I do hate to see new folks assume that hunger in a deficit *must necessarily* be true for everyone, universally . . . and not experiment, as a consequence. If a person can find relative satiation in a deficit, as some can, I have to believe it makes things easier, and easier is a good and useful thing. I'm sorry that that isn't in the realm of possibility for you and others.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    YellowD0gs wrote: »
    Here's a myth that apparently won't go away, that the choice between whole wheat or white breads is only about calories.

    IMO (and this *is* subjective), the nutritional difference is pretty underwhelming, if comparing similar bread white vs. whole wheat, unless a person eats a lot of bread. For example, just to pick a common brand, Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse White vs. Farmhouse Whole Wheat, per 49g slice, white numbers first:

    Calories: 130, 130
    Total Fat: 1g, 2.5g
    Sodium: 230mg, 180mg
    Total Carb: 26g, 23g
    Fiber: 1g, 4g
    Sugar: 4g, 4g (all added sugar in both cases)
    Calcium: 40mg, 40mg
    Iron: 1.7mg, 1.3mg
    Potassium: 50mg, 125mg
    Thiamin: 0.2mg, 0.1mg
    Riboflavin: 0.2mg, 0.1mg
    Niacin: 1.5mg, 2mg
    Folate: 95mcg DFE/0 folic acid, 10mcg DFE/50mcg folic acid

    That's not the best whole grain bread compared to the worst white, or vice-versa; it's an attempt at a fair comparison using a commonly available mainstream brand, and I didn't cherry pick a brand, it was just the first one that came to mind.

    I'd give a slight edge to the whole wheat nutritionally, but it doesn't have the advantage all the way through the nutrient profile, and the differences are pretty small. If I really preferred white bread for enjoyment reasons, it wouldn't be enough difference to sway me, personally. (NB: I prefer whole wheat for taste, if I eat either.)

    Source:
    https://www.pepperidgefarm.com/product/farmhouse-hearty-white-bread/
    https://www.pepperidgefarm.com/product/farmhouse-100-whole-wheat-bread/

    Fiber is one of the big reasons why whole grain/whole meal products are recommended. In this case, if you ate a sandwich you would get 2 grams of fiber with the white vs 8 grams of fiber with the wheat. Fiber is something that is typically lacking in the diets of most Americans in regards to even getting close to the RDA. 8 grams for a sandwich gets you a lot closer than 2 grams...and 8 grams is a pretty good fiber hit. Whole grain breads are typically higher in protein as well.

    If it was a one off, I probably wouldn't care, but I eat sandwiches fairly often. I eat Dave's Killer 21 whole grains and seeds. It's 110 calories per slice with 5 grams of fiber and 5 grams of protein. So I eat a sandwich and get 10 grams of fiber and 10 grams of protein just with the bread alone which seems significant to me relative to white bread.

    And I rarely eat bread and easily get plenty of fiber from other sources, so am not all that concerned about fiber from bread. If I decide to eat a burger on a bun for a cookout or some such, I'll usually go with the lowest cal buns before the whole wheat, although all else equal I usually get whole wheat. The bread I have at home is Ezekiel, but mainly because it's a freezer bread so it fits with my rare bread usage.
  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,158 Member
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    wunderkindking wrote: »
    Again with individuality. There are definitely some benefits to whole grain bread, but for me it's just what's encasing my sandwich ingredients (or avocado, or jam or whatever).

    As such the 35 cal slice of sadness is fine, though these days I usually eat the regular old white stuff rather than reduced calories because I over compensated on calorie cutting and it's a painless way to get it back.

    Because I *don't like bread*.

    Husband likes bread. He regularly eats Dave's Killer - whatever he got this week and it's well worth it for him.

    giphy.gif

    (jk, jk, jk - I can accept that there are breads that are merely conduits of toppings, and the breads that are the stars of the show)
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,365 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    ccrdragon wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    YellowD0gs wrote: »
    Here's a myth that apparently won't go away, that the choice between whole wheat or white breads is only about calories.

    IMO (and this *is* subjective), the nutritional difference is pretty underwhelming, if comparing similar bread white vs. whole wheat, unless a person eats a lot of bread. For example, just to pick a common brand, Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse White vs. Farmhouse Whole Wheat, per 49g slice, white numbers first:

    Calories: 130, 130
    Total Fat: 1g, 2.5g
    Sodium: 230mg, 180mg
    Total Carb: 26g, 23g
    Fiber: 1g, 4g
    Sugar: 4g, 4g (all added sugar in both cases)
    Calcium: 40mg, 40mg
    Iron: 1.7mg, 1.3mg
    Potassium: 50mg, 125mg
    Thiamin: 0.2mg, 0.1mg
    Riboflavin: 0.2mg, 0.1mg
    Niacin: 1.5mg, 2mg
    Folate: 95mcg DFE/0 folic acid, 10mcg DFE/50mcg folic acid

    That's not the best whole grain bread compared to the worst white, or vice-versa; it's an attempt at a fair comparison using a commonly available mainstream brand, and I didn't cherry pick a brand, it was just the first one that came to mind.

    I'd give a slight edge to the whole wheat nutritionally, but it doesn't have the advantage all the way through the nutrient profile, and the differences are pretty small. If I really preferred white bread for enjoyment reasons, it wouldn't be enough difference to sway me, personally. (NB: I prefer whole wheat for taste, if I eat either.)

    Source:
    https://www.pepperidgefarm.com/product/farmhouse-hearty-white-bread/
    https://www.pepperidgefarm.com/product/farmhouse-100-whole-wheat-bread/

    Fiber is one of the big reasons why whole grain/whole meal products are recommended. In this case, if you ate a sandwich you would get 2 grams of fiber with the white vs 8 grams of fiber with the wheat. Fiber is something that is typically lacking in the diets of most Americans in regards to even getting close to the RDA. 8 grams for a sandwich gets you a lot closer than 2 grams...and 8 grams is a pretty good fiber hit. Whole grain breads are typically higher in protein as well.

    If it was a one off, I probably wouldn't care, but I eat sandwiches fairly often. I eat Dave's Killer 21 whole grains and seeds. It's 110 calories per slice with 5 grams of fiber and 5 grams of protein. So I eat a sandwich and get 10 grams of fiber and 10 grams of protein just with the bread alone which seems significant to me relative to white bread.

    I don't eat white bread from the store because it is tasteless, texture-less squarish sadness... the fact the my 15 grain bread has better nutrition is simply an added bonus.

    Yeah, there's that as well. The only "white bread" I eat is sourdough.

    I never really had white bread growing up, so I've never had to make any kind of big dramatic switch or anything like that. I've always had whole grain. That's pretty much all my kids know as well...we went to a end of soccer season cookout a couple weekends ago and they had white bread hotdog buns and my kids ended up taking the hotdog out of the bun and just eating the hotdog, which they never do.

    Same. I grew up eating only whole grain and regular white bread is just so flavourless to me. Bread isn't just a vehicle for the fillings in my world, it's part of the whole sandwich taste gestalt.
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,493 Member
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    TwistedSassette wrote: »
    SuzySunshine99 wrote: »
    I definitely agree that different people have different hydration needs based on their physiology, not just their size or activity level.

    I think the "myth" part of it comes in when people tout a one-size-fits-all guide to drinking water. The most common recommendation is eight 8-oz glasses a day, but I've seen people post here recommending a gallon or more a day.

    I do kind of shake my head when I see a co-worker, who sits at a desk all day, constantly drinking water. And then getting up every 10 minutes to use the restroom. Yeah...that's a sign that you're over-hydrating.

    I'd have to disagree with this.

    I work in the office on a mine site, and we are subject to random hydration tests - where we pee in a cup and they use some dandy little machine to inspect the sample and tell us if we're hydrated enough to be on site today. Usually, these tests are done as we arrive to work in the morning, if our access tag is blocked at the gate then we head off for drug/alcohol/hydration testing - but sometimes they run random or blanket tests during the day or as we are leaving site.

    As such, I'm pretty aware of how much water I drink in an average day - partly because I need to make sure I'm hydrated enough to firstly provide a sample, and then to pass the test, but also because they ask how much you've drank in the preceding 24 hours when they do your test. I have failed these tests in the past because I wasn't drinking enough water, and that was drinking 2 litres (your eight 8-oz glasses) plus herbal tea, coffee, diet soda, soup etc. throughout the day. And I just sit at a desk. I don't do excessive exercise or anything high-intensity, so I'm not sweating a lot out.

    Now, I drink a litre of water before leaving the house for work at 6:30am. I drink another litre throughout my work day. And a third litre after work. Sometimes more, if I'm thirsty, plus coffee, herbal tea etc. Some days I am up and down to the bathroom "every 10 minutes" or so it seems; other days, I might go once or twice during the day which is usually before a meeting starts, just in case. I haven't been called up for testing for a while, but many days my pee is still quite yellow and I'm not sure I'd pass a test.

    So, all of that to say: I don't think that you can say absolutely that there is a direct correlation between hydration levels and frequency of urination! Especially when frequent urination can be a symptom of other issues like diabetes or a UTI, or maybe they're just using the bathroom as an excuse to get up from their desk for a moment and get a few steps in?! Or maybe I'm just a particularly dehydrated individual who needs more water than the average...

    Off topic, but I have to ask what area do you work in? I have never heard of a workplace doing a random "hydration test". So strange.
  • TwistedSassette
    TwistedSassette Posts: 8,590 Member
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    Noreenmarie1234 wrote: »
    TwistedSassette wrote: »
    SuzySunshine99 wrote: »
    I definitely agree that different people have different hydration needs based on their physiology, not just their size or activity level.

    I think the "myth" part of it comes in when people tout a one-size-fits-all guide to drinking water. The most common recommendation is eight 8-oz glasses a day, but I've seen people post here recommending a gallon or more a day.

    I do kind of shake my head when I see a co-worker, who sits at a desk all day, constantly drinking water. And then getting up every 10 minutes to use the restroom. Yeah...that's a sign that you're over-hydrating.

    I'd have to disagree with this.

    I work in the office on a mine site, and we are subject to random hydration tests - where we pee in a cup and they use some dandy little machine to inspect the sample and tell us if we're hydrated enough to be on site today. Usually, these tests are done as we arrive to work in the morning, if our access tag is blocked at the gate then we head off for drug/alcohol/hydration testing - but sometimes they run random or blanket tests during the day or as we are leaving site.

    As such, I'm pretty aware of how much water I drink in an average day - partly because I need to make sure I'm hydrated enough to firstly provide a sample, and then to pass the test, but also because they ask how much you've drank in the preceding 24 hours when they do your test. I have failed these tests in the past because I wasn't drinking enough water, and that was drinking 2 litres (your eight 8-oz glasses) plus herbal tea, coffee, diet soda, soup etc. throughout the day. And I just sit at a desk. I don't do excessive exercise or anything high-intensity, so I'm not sweating a lot out.

    Now, I drink a litre of water before leaving the house for work at 6:30am. I drink another litre throughout my work day. And a third litre after work. Sometimes more, if I'm thirsty, plus coffee, herbal tea etc. Some days I am up and down to the bathroom "every 10 minutes" or so it seems; other days, I might go once or twice during the day which is usually before a meeting starts, just in case. I haven't been called up for testing for a while, but many days my pee is still quite yellow and I'm not sure I'd pass a test.

    So, all of that to say: I don't think that you can say absolutely that there is a direct correlation between hydration levels and frequency of urination! Especially when frequent urination can be a symptom of other issues like diabetes or a UTI, or maybe they're just using the bathroom as an excuse to get up from their desk for a moment and get a few steps in?! Or maybe I'm just a particularly dehydrated individual who needs more water than the average...

    Off topic, but I have to ask what area do you work in? I have never heard of a workplace doing a random "hydration test". So strange.

    I'm in Australia, it's pretty industry-standard here, I guess due to the heat.
  • azuki
    azuki Posts: 38 Member
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    breakfast does not even mean morning, its literally breaking a fast. history engrained people with morning and breakfast.
  • 33gail33
    33gail33 Posts: 1,155 Member
    edited June 2021
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    nossmf wrote: »
    I second the preference for reallocating breakfast calories, but in my case it's usually so I can have a larger dinner.

    Which reminds me of the myth which says proper weight maintenance requires a person to consume the large majority of their calories before noon, with only a small dinner prior to bed.

    Yet I've maintained my current weight for almost a decade, and almost without exception I consume over half of my daily calories in the late afternoon and evening timeframe.

    It's not that you can't maintain your weight with a larger dinner, you can balance your calories on any eating schedule. But calories consumed at different times of the day are utilized differently, so theoretically you could eat more calories on a different schedule (example: larger breakfast) and still maintain the same weight. So meal timing does have implications for weight management.

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5969247/
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    33gail33 wrote: »
    nossmf wrote: »
    I second the preference for reallocating breakfast calories, but in my case it's usually so I can have a larger dinner.

    Which reminds me of the myth which says proper weight maintenance requires a person to consume the large majority of their calories before noon, with only a small dinner prior to bed.

    Yet I've maintained my current weight for almost a decade, and almost without exception I consume over half of my daily calories in the late afternoon and evening timeframe.

    It's not that you can't maintain your weight with a larger dinner, you can balance your calories on any eating schedule. But calories consumed at different times of the day are utilized differently, so theoretically you could eat more calories on a different schedule (example: larger breakfast) and still maintain the same weight. So meal timing does have implications for weight management.

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5969247/

    Even if this is true, I think for many people it's that finding a pattern with meal size and timing that works well for them makes hitting their calorie goals easier. If I prefer eating later in the day (which I do), saving calories for the evening reduces the opportunity that I'm going to go above my calorie goal.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 5,948 Member
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    nossmf wrote: »
    I second the preference for reallocating breakfast calories, but in my case it's usually so I can have a larger dinner.

    Which reminds me of the myth which says proper weight maintenance requires a person to consume the large majority of their calories before noon, with only a small dinner prior to bed.

    Yet I've maintained my current weight for almost a decade, and almost without exception I consume over half of my daily calories in the late afternoon and evening timeframe.

    For me it's big breakfast, big dinner and small lunch. Same concept, just redistribute the calories. Was a breakfast skipper for a long time then for whatever reason my preferences changed. Still love my big dinner so I went to a small lunch. #flexible
  • 33gail33
    33gail33 Posts: 1,155 Member
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    33gail33 wrote: »
    nossmf wrote: »
    I second the preference for reallocating breakfast calories, but in my case it's usually so I can have a larger dinner.

    Which reminds me of the myth which says proper weight maintenance requires a person to consume the large majority of their calories before noon, with only a small dinner prior to bed.

    Yet I've maintained my current weight for almost a decade, and almost without exception I consume over half of my daily calories in the late afternoon and evening timeframe.

    It's not that you can't maintain your weight with a larger dinner, you can balance your calories on any eating schedule. But calories consumed at different times of the day are utilized differently, so theoretically you could eat more calories on a different schedule (example: larger breakfast) and still maintain the same weight. So meal timing does have implications for weight management.

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5969247/

    Even if this is true, I think for many people it's that finding a pattern with meal size and timing that works well for them makes hitting their calorie goals easier. If I prefer eating later in the day (which I do), saving calories for the evening reduces the opportunity that I'm going to go above my calorie goal.

    Yeah for sure - even if it's true it's not the be all and end all of it.

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