Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Any weird tips for weight loss?

news.ycombinator.com

171–180 of 1001 posts

Re: Ask HN: Any weird tips for weight loss?

#171
Weight loss is simple math: calories_in - calories_out. It's usually much more efficient to reduce calories_in than to increase calories_out. I've lost 20kg in 5 months by:

1. Visiting a nutritionist. She helped me choose better foods and understand the process. The visit also validated that the process would have a high chance of succeeding (as opposed to praying that some weird trick on the internet works) and it won't have negative effects on my body.

2. No more oil fried food.

3. Significantly reduce sugar.

4. Eat only the calories I need. Snacks usually have the calories of a whole meal. Whenever you say no to a snack, the calories on the label are reduced from calories_in, giving you some dopamine.

5. Drink more water. The stomach gauges hunger by how large or small it is. By filling it with water, you reduce the sensation of hunger.

6. Some exercise (I managed 400 - 500 calories / day from small hikes). I could do hikes each day, because the view at the top of the hill is gorgeous, and it made the entire hike (which had some steep portions) bearable. But I started with an in-house stepper (5 minutes / day, then 8, then 15, then 20)

Consistency is key. If your basal metabolic rate is 1800 calories and you manage to have 1200 calories at the end of the day, that's 600 calories weight loss. A kilogram of weight is somewhere around 7500 calories. That means you'll lose 2kg / month. But if you skip 50% of days, you'll only lose 1kg / month. Also, consistency is key, because once you stop eating healthy, you'll gain the weight back.

Also, following hard diets can have many negative impacts:

1. You might only lose water

2. You might deprive your body of various nutrients, leading to health problems

3. When you stop, you gain all the weight back

I'd advise you find a method of counting your calories, and finding a solution of being below your BMR each day that works for you without feeling like a chore, that covers all macronutrients and that you can keep for as long as possible. Counting calories also gives you a measurable progress and a source of dopamine.

Re: Ask HN: Any weird tips for weight loss?

#176
post #130
post #64

Weird tips like that? No, no definitely not. Just eat less man. It's pretty straight forward. Just eat one meal a day (lunch) and you'll see the weight fly off. It's what I did for a bit and lost the weight quickly. You'll lose 5lbs/month easily even for people who have a relatively lean body mass already. (Easier to lose a lot of weight when you're heavier because your BMR is high to begin with) I've done it as some…

I've done this before switching from bulking season, to leaning season. I found the hardest part being stomach growling. I'd be talking to people and my stomach would start complaining to everyone. I've been told to drink a glass of water when the happens but I didn't find it helped a bunch. I usually went for a light plain peanut butter sandwich once a day at very "tactical" times to cut the growling. Yes peanut but…

I've found that laying off carbs (Atkins, keto, etc.) gets rid of the growling and hunger pains entirely. On a carb-restricted diet you eat because you want to, not because your stomach is craving for food.

Re: Ask HN: Any weird tips for weight loss?

#177
Nothing weird, just no snacking and avoid sugar.

I retired a year ago and decided to try and get into shape. And I wanted it to be a permanent life style change that I hopefully can stick to for a decade or two and also it shouldn't feel like I am depriving myself anything:

- Run for 30 minutes every second day.

- Eat fruit for breakfast. A banana and some berries.

- Lunch and dinner what ever I want. I often eat white bread, pasta, meat or fastfood. Just be mindful of portion sizes and if fastfood, skip any fries and icecream.

- No snacks in the evening. This was probably where I used to get most excess calories.

One year in I have lost 20kg and I am pretty much in the shape I was when I was a teenager. I can definitely keep this going, I don't really think about it anymore.

Re: Ask HN: Any weird tips for weight loss?

#178

Weight loss is simple math: calories_in - calories_out. It's usually much more efficient to reduce calories_in than to increase calories_out. I've lost 20kg in 5 months by: 1. Visiting a nutritionist. She helped me choose better foods and understand the process. The visit also validated that the process would have a high chance of succeeding (as opposed to praying that some weird trick on the internet works) and it w…

A lot of hay gets made about The Obesity Code wherein the author claims that "calories in calories out" doesn't work.

Obviously he's trying to sell books but the nugget of truth is that if you operate at a significant caloric deficit your body goes into "starvation mode" for lack of a better term.

The result is that eventually your base metabolic rate also decreases which means you need to cut calories even further.

For people who are significantly obese to begin with this can be unsustainable, and the author of The Obesity Code talks at length about how glucose levels respond to diet and eating patterns and play a significant role in fat metabolism.

Re: Ask HN: Any weird tips for weight loss?

#179
Not really weird tips, but these two "meta" dieting tips worked for me.

(1) fast. Doesn't have to be harsh (I do the 500 calories method) or often. However, I found that it helps reset my gut. If I'm in a phase where my stomachs churns, farts and I'm constantly trying to calm it with food (especially carbs), a short fast resets me somewhat. It also breaks up habits.

The side effect of fasting has been better body understanding and food related psyche. I can tell the difference between actual hunger and belly messages. I instinctively know that certain hunger feelings will pass in an hour or too. That I don't actually have to eat every few hours.

(2) is basic calorie, glycemic and macro awareness. Counting is (imo) too much and unsustainable. But, some counting sometimes helps you pick up an intuitive understanding of your diet and hunger. Where are you getting your calories. Why are you hungry? Did you eat a 250 calorie, carb based lunch?

For example, I've seen a lot of weight conscious friends plate <200 calorie meals. It's true that these are healthy, but unless your on a pretty strict short term diet... your going to make those calories up elsewhere. People unknowingly fall into patterns where most of their calories come from snacks, because meals are calorie poor.

Post reply on HN