Losing weight? NO! Losing fat? YES!

Scott Hetkowski · Post by **Scott Hetkowski** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 5:14 pm

I think there is a misconception that losing weight is a good thing. It isn't. Losing fat is a whole different story. Cutting calories will cause you to lose muscles mass and water weight. If you are serious about losing fat, then please do yourself a favor and adhere to a strict diet of low fat items such as lean meats, fruits, vegetables, and water. No ice cream, or other stuff like that. Some exercise will definitely speed up the process if you do it right. Don't spend an hour on the elliptical everyday. Spend 20 minutes doing interval training and you'll be set. The fat will melt off. I guarantee.

Lon · Post by **Lon** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 6:42 pm

Carbs are the culprit for many people that have trouble controlling their weight. Just read the labels on packaged food items and see the huge carb content, not to mention, pasta, rice, potatoes etc. We need carbs but not in abundance, plus not all carbs are alike.

Scott Hetkowski · Post by **Scott Hetkowski** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 7:16 pm

Lon;1361325 wrote: Carbs are the culprit for many people that have trouble controlling their weight. Just read the labels on packaged food items and see the huge carb content, not to mention, pasta, rice, potatoes etc. We need carbs but not in abundance, plus not all carbs are alike.

With all due respect, you are (mostly) wrong. Calories come from three places: proteins, carbohydrates, fats. If you decrease your carbohydrate intake then you must increase your proteins and fats to maintain a consistent caloric intake. That means loads more fat. Reduced calorie diets will cause you to lose muscle mass and water weight. The problem with those who have trouble controlling their weight is all the misinformation out there. However, in lieu of your post, I will say this: simple carbohydrates will not make you fat. You body will utilize them for energy. Complex carbohydrates will make you fat. Your body does not process them as well.

Lon · Post by **Lon** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 8:18 pm

Scott Hetkowski;1361327 wrote: With all due respect, you are (mostly) wrong. Calories come from three places: proteins, carbohydrates, fats. If you decrease your carbohydrate intake then you must increase your proteins and fats to maintain a consistent caloric intake. That means loads more fat. Reduced calorie diets will cause you to lose muscle mass and water weight. The problem with those who have trouble controlling their weight is all the misinformation out there. However, in lieu of your post, I will say this: simple carbohydrates will not make you fat. You body will utilize them for energy. Complex carbohydrates will make you fat. Your body does not process them as well.

Are you saying that cutting carbs will not cause a weight reduction? Try telling that to the many people (myself included) that have lost weight and kept it off by merely reducing (not eliminating) bad carbs.

Scott Hetkowski · Post by **Scott Hetkowski** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 8:46 pm

Lon;1361329 wrote: Are you saying that cutting carbs will not cause a weight reduction? Try telling that to the many people (myself included) that have lost weight and kept it off by merely reducing (not eliminating) bad carbs.

Not at all. Cutting carbohydrates from your diet will cause a reduction in weight. Any reduction in caloric intake will do that for you. But you are losing WEIGHT, not FAT (for the most part, I don't know your entire diet or excise regimen). There is a difference. But yes, by reducing BAD carbohydrates, you will see a change. You are correct in saying that. But in your previous post you had said carbohydrates in general without differentiating the two, which would be incorrect.

Post by **Bryn Mawr** » Sun Jun 12, 2011 3:36 pm

Lon;1361329 wrote: Are you saying that cutting carbs will not cause a weight reduction? Try telling that to the many people (myself included) that have lost weight and kept it off by merely reducing (not eliminating) bad carbs.

Remember the different types of carbohydrate - simple carbs are nothing but empty calories and should be cut from your diet completely, complex carbs are the prime source of energy and must be maintained.

If there is one food group that you should cut out it is the fats - essential where you are doing intensive workload / exercise but an anathema for the 99% of us that aren't.

Proteins divide into two groups the six high grade proteins and the other twenty. The six that you must make sure you get in your diet and the rest that your body can make for other foods as they are required.

It is a very simple equation - Mr. Micawber stated it in financial terms but I'll paraphrase it for weight loss :-

Intake 2,000 calories, output 1,950, result = weight loss. Intake 2,000 calories, output 2,050, result = fat.

Scott Hetkowski · Post by **Scott Hetkowski** » Sun Jun 12, 2011 6:15 pm

Bryn Mawr;1361486 wrote: Intake 2,000 calories, output 1,950, result = weight loss. Intake 2,000 calories, output 2,050, result = fat.

I think you have that backwards. If you consume 2,000 calories, and you expend 2,050, you're not going to gain weight. The easiest way to lose weight is to lower you caloric intake (i.e. slimfast). But the bad thing about those programs is you lose weight, not fat. The easiest way to lose fat is diet and exercise. Most people who can't lose weight will claim those things don't work for them, but if you do them incorrectly, then they won't.

Post by **Bryn Mawr** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 10:59 am

Scott Hetkowski;1361490 wrote: I think you have that backwards. If you consume 2,000 calories, and you expend 2,050, you're not going to gain weight. The easiest way to lose weight is to lower you caloric intake (i.e. slimfast). But the bad thing about those programs is you lose weight, not fat. The easiest way to lose fat is diet and exercise. Most people who can't lose weight will claim those things don't work for them, but if you do them incorrectly, then they won't.

Yes, of course I've typed the numbers backwards - I was thinking too much of the original quote.

As long as your calorific intake does not fall too far below your output level then your body will tend to supply the difference from fat reserves - it's when you force it into starvation mode by crash dieting that it attacks other body tissues for energy.

Ahso! · Post by **Ahso!** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 11:03 am

Bryn Mawr;1361557 wrote: Yes, of course I've typed the numbers backwards - I was thinking too much of the original quote.

As long as your calorific intake does not fall too far below your output level then your body will tend to supply the difference from fat reserves - it's when you force it into starvation mode by crash dieting that it attacks other body tissues for energy.So, if famine were to strike tomorrow heavy people would stand no better chance of survival than thin individuals?

Post by **Bryn Mawr** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 11:42 am

Ahso!;1361558 wrote: So, if famine were to strike tomorrow heavy people would stand no better chance of survival than thin individuals?

A Sumo wrestler would last longer than an anorexic because he has more stores to call upon but would Mr Clinically Obese last longer than Mr. Slim? All other factors being equal, I don't think so but I've never studied the latter stages of starvation so cannot say for certain.

Once the body has used its glycogen reserves it will start to metabolise fat. Once it moves into starvation mode it will metabolise both fat and muscle protein and start to shut down non-essential processes to conserve its reserves. As a body adapts to periods of famine it moves into starvation mode more rapidly and switches to binge mode as soon as food becomes available which is why repeated crash diets are counter productive.

Ahso! · Post by **Ahso!** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 11:46 am

Lon;1361325 wrote: Carbs are the culprit for many people that have trouble controlling their weight. Just read the labels on packaged food items and see the huge carb content, not to mention, pasta, rice, potatoes etc. We need carbs but not in abundance, plus not all carbs are alike.We need carbs, that's for sure, but carbohydrate-sensitive people need to stay clear of "simple" carbohydrates such as the ones Lon mentions. Complex carbohydrates, OTOH are fine to consume because they digest slow enough to not alert insulin release which causes the hunger sensation. ALL fruits and vegetables are carbohydrates, just about all fruits are of the "simple" variety as are many vegetables like potatoes, corn, broccoli, peas, most beans and others.

Post by **Bryn Mawr** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 11:54 am

Ahso!;1361566 wrote: We need carbs, that's for sure, but carbohydrate-sensitive people need to stay clear of "simple" carbohydrates such as the ones Lon mentions. Complex carbohydrates, OTOH are fine to consume because they digest slow enough to not alert insulin release which causes the hunger sensation. ALL fruits and vegetables are carbohydrates, just about all fruits are of the "simple" variety as are many vegetables like potatoes, corn, broccoli, peas, most beans and others.

I've always known potatos to be basically starch, not sugar, and therefore complex carbohydrates.

Ahso! · Post by **Ahso!** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 12:11 pm

Bryn Mawr;1361567 wrote: I've always known potatos to be basically starch, not sugar, and therefore complex carbohydrates.As I understand it, the body converts it into sugar...quickly.

Saint_ · Post by **Saint_** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 12:39 pm

I've lost 28 pounds since January. I call it the "Gall Bladder Surgery"diet.

Seriously, though, they told me I'd be able to eat anything after the surgery. Before the surgery I was feeling bad when ever I ate and I'd get a pain under my sternum. After the surgery...guess what? Nothing changed! So I got around to doing what I should have done first, changing my eating habits. fist I did away with my four Dr. Peppers a day at school, I switched to apple juice instead. then I got away from hamburgers and steaks and began eating more fish and chicken. I cut out junk food completely, got a pass to the aquacenter and began swimming two or three times a week. Results? I'm down to 220 lbs and fit as a fiddle! I sleep better, have more energy, and my back is even fixing itself.

If you want to get healthy... get sick!

Post by **Bryn Mawr** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 12:43 pm

Ahso!;1361569 wrote: As I understand it, the body converts it into sugar...quickly.

No, the body converts it into glycogen for storage.

If the body converted starch into sugar quickly then there would be no difference between simple and complex carbohydrates as far as the metabolism was concerned.

Post by **Bryn Mawr** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 12:46 pm

Saint_;1361571 wrote: I've lost 28 pounds since January. I call it the "Gall Bladder Surgery"diet.

Seriously, though, they told me I'd be able to eat anything after the surgery. Before the surgery I was feeling bad when ever I ate and I'd get a pain under my sternum. After the surgery...guess what? Nothing changed! So I got around to doing what I should have done first, changing my eating habits. fist I did away with my four Dr. Peppers a day at school, I switched to apple juice instead. then I got away from hamburgers and steaks and began eating more fish and chicken. I cut out junk food completely, got a pass to the aquacenter and began swimming two or three times a week. Results? I'm down to 220 lbs and fit as a fiddle! I sleep better, have more energy, and my back is even fixing itself.

If you want to get healthy... get sick!

Definitely the answer - sort out the diet, increase the exercise and reap the benefits.

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 3:42 pm

Saint_;1361571 wrote: I've lost 28 pounds since January. I call it the "Gall Bladder Surgery"diet.

Seriously, though, they told me I'd be able to eat anything after the surgery. Before the surgery I was feeling bad when ever I ate and I'd get a pain under my sternum. After the surgery...guess what? Nothing changed! So I got around to doing what I should have done first, changing my eating habits. fist I did away with my four Dr. Peppers a day at school, I switched to apple juice instead. then I got away from hamburgers and steaks and began eating more fish and chicken. I cut out junk food completely, got a pass to the aquacenter and began swimming two or three times a week. Results? I'm down to 220 lbs and fit as a fiddle! I sleep better, have more energy, and my back is even fixing itself.

If you want to get healthy... get sick!

definitely the answer, change your eating habits.

congrats!