If this is true, perhaps I've judged overweight people too harshly.


http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/02/...d-partner/index.html

The reason most “diets” don’t work is there is a beginning and end. People don’t make the lifestyle changes needed to make the weight loss actually stick. They eat great and exercise religiously for twelve weeks. They hit they’re weight loss goal. And then stop and slowly they gain back the weight lost. Genetics do play a role in it. In the end anyone can improve their body Composition. It just takes work. A lot of people dislike truly hard work.

quote:

Originally posted by pwrlftr:
The reason most “diets” don’t work is there is a beginning and end. People don’t make the lifestyle changes needed to make the weight loss actually stick. They eat great and exercise religiously for twelve weeks. They hit they’re weight loss goal. And then stop and slowly they gain back the weight lost. Genetics do play a role in it. In the end anyone can improve their body Composition. It just takes work. A lot of people dislike truly hard work.

+1

This is also the reason that it's impossible for alcoholics to simply not drink. You know that old New Year's resolution, "I won't drink for thirty (or X) days?" The very first thing that goes through the mind of such people is what they're going to do on day X + 1...

That article is a big cop-out. They take a number of true factors and blow them up so big as to make it seem impossible and out of one's control.

Follow "Nicki" around for a year, eat exactly what she eats, move when she moves etc. I bet you'll find it isn't all genetics.

All diets work. All diets fail. Long term weight loss is mental. If you are doing it for the wrong reasons, motivated by the wrong things (driven by low self-esteem, body image issues, trying to impress others, thinking you'll be "happy" if you were thin), then you will fail.

quote:

Originally posted by Strambo:Follow "Nicki" around for a year, eat exactly what she eats, move when she moves etc. I bet you'll find it isn't all genetics.

I don't think the author would dispute that. I think the psychological aspect of this study is asserting that it is much easier for Nicki to eat that way due to the way her brain responds to food/hunger.

The alcoholic example is probably a good one. I've never consumed alcoholic beverages. I have no desire to do so and it requires absolutely zero willpower for me to resist it. I don't think that is the case for everyone.

The article is somewhat of a cop out. Weight gain/loss is multifactorial. Certainly genetics plays a part, but it ain't the be all end all. It is genetic, psychological, and hormonal. Moreso, it is the ungodly amount of shit food and drink laced with chemicals that people are shoveling down their gullets as well as increasingly sedentary lifestyles.

Morbid obesity is at epidemic levels and it didn't get there because human genetics changed somehow in the past 30-40 years.

Sorry, won't click on any CNN links.

Methinks all of the author's findings are solidly based in science. The problem is, the author stops after describing all of the reasons us fattys are fat, and gives us a pass for remaining so. Just go exercise and be a fit fatty? Nope.

People who can tell you the problem are a dime a dozen. People who can tell you how to solve the problem are worth their weight in gold.

quote:

Originally posted by jimb888:
Sorry, won't click on any CNN links.

Thanks for contributing.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
Moreso, it is the ungodly amount of shit food and drink laced with chemicals that people are shoveling down their gullets as well as increasingly sedentary lifestyles.

No, that is just coincidence.

I sometimes wonder what other people think about me, do they think I'm genetically gifted or the fit, slim, whatever guy?

'cause I certainly know the effort I put into fitness and nutrition, the 19lbs of fat I lost over the summer and what I had to do, the 100 mile ultra marathon I'm considering for next year to check off my bucket list.

I don't know if I have good genes, I guess I do (dad is 6'1", former college footblall player). Then again, he wasn't genetically gifted enough to ever go pro, not even in the '70s. He also became an avid runner his whole life, so how much was genes and how much was the 20-50 miles per week? He is 65 now and has quite the pot belly because he isn't as active as he used to be and his diet isn't great...where are those genes now?

My younger brother looks pretty good, eats like crap (just not a lot of calories), but he is a physical wreck. Combo of injuries and lack of meaningful exercise (contributing to the chronic injuries, vicious cycle).

Mom has type II diabetes, shes a bit overweight but not too bad. She is a nurse and knows her stuff, how to monitor and control her diet, otherwise I'd worry.

So, maybe my genes aren't that great?

quote:

Originally posted by Strambo:So, maybe my genes aren't that great?

It sounds like they probably aren't that great. You put in a ton of work to overcome the bad genetics.

quote:

Originally posted by MNSIG:

quote:

Originally posted by Strambo:So, maybe my genes aren't that great?

It sounds like they probably aren't that great. You put in a ton of work to overcome the bad genetics.

Well...that can create the opposite cop-out excuse. "I don't have time for all that working out like he does."

Truth is, most people would be shocked how little I work out. 20-30 mins 1-3x per week has been my historic norm. I've done workouts as short as 1 minute (all out sprint up 10 flights of stairs) after reading an article on supra-maximal intensity cardio.

I'm just really efficient in what I do, which is why I started the thread on efficient fitness principles. Most people waste so much time doing stuff that has a minimal impact.

Genetics play a major part in weight. Eating habits passed on from parents also play a role in programming a brain. Everyones body is different. An eating habits that work for one are not always beneficial to others. You need to find what works best for you.

Years of bad decision making cannot be reprogrammed in 12 weeks of crash dieting.

Here's my oversimplified understanding, true or not?

I've heard that fat cells are like sponges. Dieting will remove material from them but not the cells themselves. They sit there waiting to fill up again.

If that's true, weight easily jumps up to the previous level and keeping it under is a real battle. But for cripes sake don't create new ones.

quote:

Originally posted by Ripley:I've heard that fat cells are like sponges. Dieting will remove material from them but not the cells themselves. They sit there waiting to fill up again.

It's been many years since my physiology courses, but that is what we were taught. It's also why gaining weight and becoming obese as a child/adolescent sets you up for a world of trouble later on. Once you have a "set point" established, it's very hard (not impossible) to maintain your weight at a level significantly different.

quote:

Originally posted by jimb888:
Sorry, won't click on any CNN links.

How your body fights back when you diet

By Traci Mann and A. Janet Tomiyama, The Conversation
Updated 4:33 AM ET, Tue January 2, 2018

Cutting calories simply doesn't lead to long-term weight loss or health gains
The only people who don't seem to appreciate this are people who have never dieted

The act of dieting causes physiological changes that make it hard to continue
Diets do not work.

The scientific evidence is clear as can be that cutting calories simply doesn't lead to long-term weight loss or health gains.

We suspect most dieters have realized this by now too. And yet, here they are again, setting the same weight loss goal this year that they set last year.
The only people who don't seem to appreciate this are people who have never dieted. It's particularly hard for them to believe because it doesn't square with their own eating experiences.

Take Nicky, for instance. She eats sensibly much of the time, with some junk food here and there, but it doesn't really seem to affect her weight. She's not a dieter. She is Naturally Thin Nicky, and it's not surprising that she believes what she sees with her own eyes and feels in her own body. Nevertheless, Nicky has it wrong.

We are researchers who have been studying why diets fail for a long time. We have seen that diet failure is the norm. We have also studied the stigma that heavy people face, and witnessed the blame game that happens when dieters can't keep the weight off. From a scientific perspective, we understand that dieting sets up an unfair fight. But many Nickys we've encountered -- on the street, in the audience when we give talks, and even fellow scientists -- get confused when we say dieting doesn't work, because it doesn't square with their own observations.

An unfair fight

Nicky thinks she's thin because of the way she eats, but actually, genetics play a huge role in making her thin. Nicky gets all the credit though, because people see the way she eats and they can't see her genes.

Many heavy people wouldn't be lean like Nicky even if they ate the same foods in the same quantities. Their bodies are able to run on fewer calories than Nicky's, which sounds like a good thing (and would be great if you found yourself in a famine).

However, it actually means that after eating the same foods and using that energy to run the systems of their body, they have more calories left over to store as fat than Nicky does. So to actually lose weight, they have to eat less food than Nicky. And then, once they've been dieting a while, their metabolism changes so that they need to eat even less than that to keep losing weight.

It's not just Nicky's genetically given metabolism that makes her think dieting must work. Nicky, as a non-dieter, finds it really easy to ignore that bowl of Hershey's Kisses on her co-worker's desk. But for dieters, it's like those Kisses are jumping up and down saying "Eat me!" Dieting causes neurological changes that make you more likely to notice food than before dieting, and once you notice it, these changes make it hard to stop thinking about it. Nicky might forget those chocolates are there, but dieters won't.

Why so many people regain weight after dieting

In fact, dieters like them even more than before. This is because other diet-induced neurological changes make food not only taste better, but also cause food to give a bigger rush of the reward hormone dopamine. That's the same hormone that is released when addicts use their drug of choice. Nicky doesn't get that kind of rush from food.

And besides, Nicky is full from lunch. Here again, dieters face an uphill battle because dieting has also changed their hormones. Their levels of the so-called satiety hormone leptin go down, which means that now it takes even more food than before to make them feel full. They felt hungry on their diets all along, but now feel even hungrier than before. Even Nicky's regular non-diet lunch wouldn't make dieters full at this point.

Where's your willpower?

People see Nicky and are impressed with her great self-control, or willpower. But should it really be considered self-control to avoid eating a food when you aren't hungry? Is it self-control when you avoid eating a food because you don't notice it, like it or receive a rush of reward from it?

Anyone could resist the food under those circumstances. And even though Nicky doesn't really need willpower in this situation, if she did need it, it would function quite well because she's not dieting. On top of everything else, dieting disrupts cognition, especially executive function, which is the process that helps with self-control. So dieters have less willpower right when they need more willpower. And non-dieters have plenty, even though they don't need any.

And of course, even if Nicky were to eat those tempting foods, her metabolism would burn up more of those calories than a dieter's metabolism.

Sex and other myths about weight loss

So Nicky is mistakenly being given credit for succeeding at a job that is not only easy for her, but easier than the job dieters face.

The cruel irony is that after someone has been dieting for some time, changes happen that make it hard to succeed at dieting in the long run. It is physically possible, and a small minority of dieters do manage to keep weight off for several years. But not without a demoralizing and all-encompassing battle with their physiology the entire time.

It's easy to see why dieters usually regain the weight they lose on their New Year's resolution diet, and we have the following suggestions for when that happens: If you are a Nicky, remember the self-denial these dieters have subjected themselves to and how little they were eating while you treated yourself to decadent desserts. Be impressed with their efforts, and grateful that you don't have to attempt it.

If you are a dieter, remind yourself that you aren't weak, but that you were in an unfair fight that very few win. Change your focus to improving your health with exercise (which doesn't require weight loss), and resolve to choose a different New Year's resolution next year.

Traci Mann is a professor of psychology at the University of Minnesota and author of "Secrets from the Eating Lab." She has received grants from the National Institutes of Health, NASA and the USDA. A. Janet Tomiyama is an associate professor of psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles. She receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

I’ve had a problem with weight since high school. When I starved myself while wrestling for weeks at a time.

I can only imagine that real dope must be hell, because I get the dopamine dump when I eat. It’s very difficult. That’s the only way I can explain it.

I have no real vices. No addictions. I rarely drink, and I quit fornicating with loose women years ago. But food. Imagine trying to abstain from the very thing that keeps you alive.

My wife and I did a plant based diet for 3 month before the holidays. That was the first time in memory that I could eat until my brain told me to stop and lose weight. Things like pasta and red meat are my greatest weaknesses. I could eat two servings of the thickest prime rib and be physically ready to pop but still wanting more.

I’m built stocky, which doesn’t help. I’d be happy to get down to 180 from my current 215. Certainly doable, but it’s got to be on that plant based diet.

It's not really their fault.. they've been lied to..
Dr Attia TED
https://youtu.be/UMhLBPPtlrY

quote:

Originally posted by chongosuerte:
I’ve had a problem with weight since high school. When I starved myself while wrestling for weeks at a time.

I can only imagine that real dope must be hell, because I get the dopamine dump when I eat. It’s very difficult. That’s the only way I can explain it.

I have no real vices. No addictions. I rarely drink, and I quit fornicating with loose women years ago. But food. Imagine trying to abstain from the very thing that keeps you alive.

My wife and I did a plant based diet for 3 month before the holidays. That was the first time in memory that I could eat until my brain told me to stop and lose weight. Things like pasta and red meat are my greatest weaknesses. I could eat two servings of the thickest prime rib and be physically ready to pop but still wanting more.

I’m built stocky, which doesn’t help. I’d be happy to get down to 180 from my current 215. Certainly doable, but it’s got to be on that plant based diet.

How committed are you to bread and pasta? I feel the healthiest choice is meat+veggies, no grains. All the vital nutrients your body needs, none of the excess carbs and gluten to process.

I don't miss it (the grains), I thought I would, but I don't. Last night was grilled pork tenderloin, brussel sprouts pan-roasted in olive oil and a salad. Really good!

There isn't a shortage of reasons or excuses to be overweight but there usually isn't a good reason to be obese, barring of course a medical condition.
As you lose weight your metabolism slows and it gets harder to lose weight. Yeah, right. It's not an overly appreciable amount of slowdown and it's countered by getting a little exercise.

I don't have time to exercise. Ok. Most of America has time to sit in front of the tv so it's more about how people choose to spend their time.

As you get older it gets harder to lose weight. My doctor even told me that once. He was wrong when it comes to me.

As an ex fat guy that loves to eat just for the sake of eating I can be a little opinionated. I love pasta, bread, cookies, cake, bread, bread but I can be a pretty stubborn guy. I was overweight since high school and hung out around 230 for years. When I fluffed up to 275 I decided it was time to change. My dad had a major heart attack and had to eat healthy so I figured I'd clean myself up before heredity got me. I thought maybe I could stave off the heart attack and that if it did come eventually, I have less of a change to make in my diet. I was around 45 when I started and in less than a year dropped over a hundred pounds. I've added 20 or so at different times since then but I can still shake it off fast.
Diets only work until you reach your goal and the diet ends. It's very easy for me to fall back into old habits and pound a handfull of cookies but I've finally learned to stop when it's time to stop.

Nothing in the world tastes as good as looking good feels and nothing tastes good enough to compensate for how crappy I feel when I put on weight. I never really noticed feeling better when I lost the weight but I notice how crappy I feel if I add 20 pounds of junk food.