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What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

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Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#131

Post by darekkay »

aabajian wrote: post #52

Amphetamines were popularly used to suppress appetite in the mid-20th century, but addiction and abuse proved disastrous. He glosses over amphetamines. They are highly effective at weight loss. So much so that ADHD patients have the stereotypical "Adderall skinniness" after 1-2 years of use. Addiction is a problem with stimulants, but psychiatrist routinely assess for addiction in the ADHD population. Why not prescri…

> Which is better? A BMI of 40+ or a BMI of 25 and taking a daily stimulant?

That's a false dilemma. You would have to be certain that "A BMI of 25 without taking a daily stimulant" cannot be achieved. Otherwise, that's the third option to consider.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#132

Post by bluecalm »

hvidgaard wrote: post #119
legohead wrote: post #90

I have a friend who I watched try a bunch of diet systems. Pills from amazon that she researched. Trying to not eat as much. Calorie counting. More expensive pills. Doing one of those "we send you all your meals" programs. Nothing worked or was even close. Maybe she'd lose 5 pounds and then immediately gain it back. Finally she went to a clinic. The Dr. gave her a prescription to phentermine and she had to show up ev…

That isn't addressing the underlying problem of eating too much. There was quite a study at Odense University Hospital where they enrolled women that had tried everything to lose weight. They was asked to meticulously write down everything single thing they ate. They they was admitted to the hospital and they was fed exactly what they had written for the past month. Every single woman lost a significant amount of wei…

Maybe it does. People eat too much because they have cravings, low pleasure response to food (so they need to more to feel the same as healthy people) and maybe low dopamine levels (that's my hypothesis based on my problems and some experiments).

I think eating too much is a symptom of an underlying problem and drugs may help with it. This is also why I think regular exercise is very important for weightloss. Not because calories burnt but because neurotransmitters levels and their impact on mood and impulse control.

>>So if your friend have counted calorie counting without losing weight she didn't count correctly or truthfully.

She very likely knew she is eating too much. It's not rocket science and calorie counting won't help unless you are in very deep denial. The problem is controlling yourself and constant cravings you have to fight. It's just way more difficult for some people than others the same way some get easily addicted to drugs and some use them recreationally for years without problems or sign of addiction.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#133

Post by andygates »

a-saleh wrote: post #105

While we are discussing diets, anybody has a good replacement for snacks? Few years ago I realized I am really prone to stress-eating. If I am not stressed, I can go about my day, eating 2 big meals a day (and a small breakfast), and even slowly loose wight. But if I am under pressure I can eat another large meal worth of snacks. And I really don't like it, because then I am gaining weight really fast :-/ Anybody in…

Fizzy water here.

Got a sodastream, keep a couple of bottles in the fridge at all times.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#134

Post by andygates »

taneq wrote: post #86
kranner wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everybody who's trying to lose weight knows it is about sustaining a calorie deficit. The problem is how.

Decide that you want to not be fat more than you want to over-eat. Then choose to sustain that decision by re-affirming it daily.

Oh honey, if it was that easy I'd have abs instead of angst.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#135

Post by rdm_blackhole »

Onewildgamer wrote: post #78
rdm_blackhole wrote: post #64

A couple of years ago I found myself weighing 250lbs. Basically morbidly obese. I decided to change that. I went through all the food I bought during the week and decided to do some culling. I removed anything with sugar and replaced it with Stevia. Removed the soft drinks, alcohol, and carbs. I follow this diet 6 days a week. One day a week, I indulge myself: a pizza or burrito or have a few beers. I also go to the…

Removing soft drinks and alcohol came easy, but removing carbs in a daily diet became extremely difficult for me and hence I plateaued. I am curious to know what you replaced it with?

Sweet potatoes and broccoli. Lately, I have been eating a lot of cauliflower rice. It looks like rice but its cauliflower.

Oh and if you find that your food is a bit boring for some reason, you can add some spicy sauce(without sugar) on your meal.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#136

Post by CogitoCogito »

rdm_blackhole wrote: post #64

A couple of years ago I found myself weighing 250lbs. Basically morbidly obese. I decided to change that. I went through all the food I bought during the week and decided to do some culling. I removed anything with sugar and replaced it with Stevia. Removed the soft drinks, alcohol, and carbs. I follow this diet 6 days a week. One day a week, I indulge myself: a pizza or burrito or have a few beers. I also go to the…

> In the end, it takes time and will to achieve results but once you get into a routine, if very easy to keep going.

I think for perspective it's good to consider how long it took you to gain the weight in the first place. Say if you slowly went up 80 pounds over the course of 5 years, then remember that time frame. Expecting it to be gone in a month is crazy. Even losing it in a year is 5 times faster than you gained it.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#137

Post by pluma »

thepete2 wrote: post #28
taneq wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The biggest scam the weight loss industry ever pulled on society was to redefine "diet" from "a description of what you eat" to "a temporary modification to what you're eating". You don't "go on a diet", you HAVE a diet. And if your diet is what is making you fat, then to not be fat, you have to change your diet, permanently.

In German, they're still separate words, I think "diet" made its way into German and became "Diät".

Ironically, the wages of government representatives are also called "diets" in German. I'd say "diet" for "Ernährung" just fell out of use at some point and was reintroduced when diet fads became a thing.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#138

Post by bluecalm »

taneq wrote: post #86
kranner wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everybody who's trying to lose weight knows it is about sustaining a calorie deficit. The problem is how.

Decide that you want to not be fat more than you want to over-eat. Then choose to sustain that decision by re-affirming it daily.

Yeah, the same way you tell heroin addict or an alcoholic to quit today. Many of those people know they want to quit and they "re-affirm" daily but it's just constant struggle for them which is very difficult or impossible to win every hour, day and week. When people ask for help with weight-loss most of the time they need something that makes the struggle manageable.

I drink alcohol recreationally. I can't imagine being addicted to it. I don't even know how alcohol cravings feel like. I can stop at any moment without wanting more and I can and often go months without a drink. Still I wouldn't ever tell an alcoholic to just decide and re-affirm it daily to stop drinking. I know the problem is deeper than that for alcoholics. It's high time we start treating people who overeat and can't stop similarly.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#139

Post by pluma »

john61 wrote: post #76
Negitivefrags wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> None of these things are true. With a good diet and exercise, you will feel better and be happier, with way more energy. That makes your life better, not worse. I never said your life won’t be better overall. I said it will be worse in real ways. Eating pizza, Soda and so on are awesome. There is a reason these foods are popular. No amount of pretending is going to make that not true, and a life where you could eat…

> Eating pizza, Soda and so on are awesome It depends what you are used to eat. A few years ago I would have agreed that pizza and Soda is great. But today after changing my live style I cook for myself fresh vegetables from CSA and small bio farms I do not like pizza and all the crap any more. That goes so far that I can not go to restaurants anymore, because 95% of them serve crap for my todays taste.

> That goes so far that I can not go to restaurants anymore

I would call that a direct impact to quality of life (if only because you're missing out on the social experience), which is the exact point the GP made.

Re: What I learned from reading over 100 weight loss studies

#140

Post by bluecalm »

dr_ick wrote: post #44

ALL DIETS WORK IN THE SHORT TERM... The problem is keeping it off. Please, please, please read the Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung: https://www.amazon.com/Obesity-Code-Unlocking-Secrets-Weight... He provides all the science behind the current obesity epidemic, backed up with studies done on humans. Obesity is a hormonal problem... Insulin makes us fat. Current fads suggest eating ALL THE TIME. This puts people in a st…

You are probably downvoted because there isn't enough convincing evidence for insulin hypothesis. I like Jason Fung and I love the idea of fasting for health and weight-loss. I think though that advocates of both fasting and low-carb make a mistake getting too attached to insulin. They may die on this hill while being right all along but for different reasons.

My understanding is that we don't know if it's insulin or something else that makes many people wanting to eat less once they are accustomed to regular fasting or low-carb diet. It would be better to focus on a proven fact that it does work for many people and trying to understand the mechanism instead of picking just one possible one (insulin) and staking everything on that being full explanation.

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