maillemaker Member

I like the infographic but I find there's an even simpler metric for "I'm not losing weight". If I'm not hungry most of the time, I'm not losing weight.

Yup. I think the only reason why "processed" (?) food seems bad is because it tends to be very tasty (compelling to eat) and calorie dense. Which means if you eat it to satiety you will be consuming a butt-load of calories. But when you eat "natural" (?) foods they are often much less calorie dense so you can eat them to…

How do you get a weekly calorie view using the computer?

Focus on diet more than exercise. Much more bang for the buck.

You can eat back your calories. Just beware that MFP tends to be *very* optimistic for the number of calories it assigns to some exercises. 30 minutes of leisurely swimming does not burn 300 calories, for example.

If you are talking about a single day, I don't know how badly you could screw up, really. I assume you are already eating a deficit to lose weight. So eat to maintenance for a day. Not to mention that Disney involves a crap-ton of walking.

Don't put too much stock in "eating nutritious". In the end, weight loss is about calories in, calories out. You can eat Twinkies and lose weight as long as you maintain a calorie deficit. The only reason to avoid certain foods is if you can't control yourself eating them. Otherwise, eat a balanced diet and watch your…

All I have to do is look at food and I gain weight. Milkshakes. Ice cream. Cookies. BBQ ribs. Go to town!

Yes, you can lose weight without exercise. Weight loss is about burning more calories than you consume - Calories in - Calories out (CICO). Most of your weight loss is going to come from eating less, not exercise. An hour on the treadmill or exercise bike will only burn about 200 calories. That's about a slice of pizza.…

Two words as to why not just say "you look nice": "Sexual Harassment".

There are very few effective appetite suppressants on the market today. Most of them involve phentermine and/or topiramate. These require doctor supervision and a prescription. I took it from mid-February until June 1st. I found it reasonably effective but I lost more weight without drugs last year. Last year I lost 30…

In the end, it's calories in, calories out. But eating healthy food usually means you can eat more volume of food for a given amount of calories. Sometimes, this can be more satisfying. 1200 calories of candy won't fill you up nearly as much as 1200 calories of meat. And 1200 calories of protein may keep you from feeling…

So don't exercise. Weight loss is mostly about eating less.

I love spinach. Especially the canned cooked stuff. Yummy slimy goodness!

There's an old saying: "Women marry men thinking they can change them and they can't, and men marry women thinking they will never change and they do."

One thing that has been suggested before that I like is to cook dishes "buffet" style. Make little dishes of different things. Cucumbers on this plate. Meat on this plate. Rice on this plate. Grilled vegies on this plate. Then you can pick and choose what you want. It's like your own buffet.

OP: Everyone is going to give you *kitten* about, "Why can't you just eat fast food with him?!? Just eat less!!!" I know what you are talking about. It's very hard to go into Burger King and drink a glass of water and eat your grilled chicken sandwich for 400 calories while your partner chows down to a Whopper, a large…

Calories in, calories out. You can do it on donuts if you have the willpower.

I'm guessing OP has difficulty eating them in moderation.

The reality is that most people - between 80% and 95% - who attempt weight loss fail long term. If we are going to fix this, we have to understand why. Again, if this were an issue of "habits", then habits should be relearned within about 3-10 weeks. If you are on phentermine or similar appetite suppressant for 6 months…

BMI is a pretty good indicator of fat levels for most people.

This is exactly my point. It's not the habits that matter - they are formed within 6 weeks. You'd have the habits down cold on a course of diet pills for 6 months. It's the hunger that comes back that does you in. So the whole argument of "pills don't work because you haven't learned how to eat properly" is probably bogus.…

Ha ha. By that definition your lifestyle is never changed until you are dead. What I mean is, how long do you have to eat before the new eating habits are formed? The common contention here is that diet pills won't help you learn to eat properly. But if you don't use diet pills, how long does it take to learn to eat…

I don't forbid myself food groups anymore, I work hard to try and fit things in my allowance. But I'm always hungry. I sometimes go to bed early to avoid being hungry. I exercise also but I think all that does is make me *more* hungry by increasing my caloric deficit. You get to eat some of it back but at the end of the…

See to me, counting calories is a restrictive diet. MFP has me at 1570 calories a day. I find it horribly restrictive and I am always hungry. But that is the way it always is when I'm losing weight. If I'm not hungry the scale isn't moving.

Exactly. Though I have read some doctors coming to this exact conclusion. It may well be that weight gain causes permanent damage that is almost no one can willpower their way though long-term. It may be a chronic condition that requires constant medication to control, like diabetes. The evidence is quite plain - the…

Question: How long do you have to eat properly to "change your lifestyle"?

What it sounds like you are saying is that it's not the eating habits that matter, then, it's learning how to have the willpower to deal with hunger. That doesn't have anything to do with habits, it's learning how not to eat when you are hungry. That's called "willpower". Most people can't endure discomfort long term, and…

Not to me. What I want to eat is a Cracker Barrel Country Boy breakfast, Five Guys little bacon cheeseburger and fries for lunch, and a rack of baby back ribs and then ice cream for dessert. Not gonna happen on a 1570 daily calorie allotment. You see, for me, what I want to eat is to eat to satiety. This is at direct odds…

Here's the thing I don't get about the "habit" argument. Habits take about 3-6 weeks to form. If you are taking phentermine, as I did, then you will probably be on it for longer than 6 weeks. More like 6 months. At the end of 6 months, you should have formed new eating habits by virtue of not being hungry. So why do people…