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While I completely agree with the gist of the article, Dr Davys counter-argument is terrible: "It is possible that the water displaced sugary drinks in the hyd

While I completely agree with the gist of the article, Dr Davys counter-argument is terrible: "It is possible that the water displaced sugary drinks in the hydrated group, but this does not explain the weight loss because the calories associated with any fizzy drinks consumed by the other group had to fall within the daily limits." There is such a thing as good calories and bad calories - obviously getting your calories from healthy fats such as olive oil and avacados is going to be a lot more beneficial to your weight in the long run than getting your calories from sugary fizzy drinks such as coca-cola. Still, nice article.

carbocation 16y ago
Her argument is actually more cautious than yours. Yours begs the question, "Are there such things as good calories and bad calories?"
WilliamLP 16y ago
> obviously getting your calories from healthy fats such as olive oil and avacados is going to be a lot more beneficial to your weight in the long run than getting your calories from sugary fizzy drinks such as coca-cola. It may be "obvious", but I'm not sure if that's true!
- tommizzle 16y ago
  I would say it's pretty common knowledge in the fitness world. I think this quote explains the concept nicely: "The second rule of fat loss is that healthy fat does not make you fat. Excess calories, in particular excess from the wrong calories makes you fat. This is a very hard concept to get across. People still believe that fat makes you fat and will argue without you to the grave while they eat a gallon of low fat ice cream that has the power to make you fat over night. ... Lets get back to fat. Low fat diets equal low testosterone and low progesterone production. Both are necessary for men and women for optimal fat loss and well-being. Without adequate levels of fat in your diet (30% of calories), you will not have adequate levels of testosterone. Without adequate levels of testosterone you will not be able to build muscle. Building muscle is the most effective way to get rid of fat and keep it off. " - Mike Mahler
  - WilliamLP 16y ago
    You're preaching to the choir here. What you're not going to be able to demonstrate is that, in laboratory controlled conditions where literally every calorie is counted by a scientist, and all variables are taken into account (e.g. hyrdation levels) that one kind of calorie leads to a "metabolic advantage" over another and lead to more or less fat loss or gain given adequate protein. This would be a kind of holy grail discovery. What is undeniable is that any study where people self-count their caloric intake has a ton of potential problems which have been demonstrated over and over again. People are notoriously terrible at counting calories in what they eat. It is true that sugars have certain metabolic effects, for example with insulin, that will make you hungrier and crave more. This makes it true that they should be avoided. Basically I think we're on the same page if you're willing to scratch the "obviously". Another point is that the amount that doing weight training raises your metabolism is extremely overrated. I don't have the hard data in front of me but I think if you look up how many more calories you burn by gaining a pound of muscle, you will be shocked that it isn't that much. This is one of those "everybody knows" facts about fitness that everyone believes but isn't really backed up very well.
    - tommizzle 16y ago
      Hah - "obviously" retracted. From what I've heard most people seem to think that 50 calories are burned per pound of muscle per day, but I think that it's closer to 8? I was under the impression that the repairing of the muscle after workouts is where you burn the majority.
    - count 16y ago
      This covers some of that very well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM
      - tommizzle 16y ago
        Cliff notes?
        16y ago
evanchen 16y ago
I can agree with healthy fats being good for you. But explain to me bad calories affecting weight gain more than "good" calories. That doesn't make sense to me at all. 3500 calories = 1 pound of fat, no matter the source. You can lose weight eating only McDonald's if you counted calories, but you would be: 1. Hungry all the time. 2. Look terrible.
- tommizzle 16y ago
  Agree that 3500 calories = 1 pound of fat, but the point I'm raising is about how those calories affect elements such as muscle growth, which will aid weight loss. Read http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1648841 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1648841

carbocation 16y ago

Her argument is actually more cautious than yours. Yours begs the question, "Are there such things as good calories and bad calories?"

WilliamLP 16y ago

> obviously getting your calories from healthy fats such as olive oil and avacados is going to be a lot more beneficial to your weight in the long run than getting your calories from sugary fizzy drinks such as coca-cola. It may be "obvious", but I'm not sure if that's true!

tommizzle 16y ago
I would say it's pretty common knowledge in the fitness world. I think this quote explains the concept nicely: "The second rule of fat loss is that healthy fat does not make you fat. Excess calories, in particular excess from the wrong calories makes you fat. This is a very hard concept to get across. People still believe that fat makes you fat and will argue without you to the grave while they eat a gallon of low fat ice cream that has the power to make you fat over night. ... Lets get back to fat. Low fat diets equal low testosterone and low progesterone production. Both are necessary for men and women for optimal fat loss and well-being. Without adequate levels of fat in your diet (30% of calories), you will not have adequate levels of testosterone. Without adequate levels of testosterone you will not be able to build muscle. Building muscle is the most effective way to get rid of fat and keep it off. " - Mike Mahler
- WilliamLP 16y ago
  You're preaching to the choir here. What you're not going to be able to demonstrate is that, in laboratory controlled conditions where literally every calorie is counted by a scientist, and all variables are taken into account (e.g. hyrdation levels) that one kind of calorie leads to a "metabolic advantage" over another and lead to more or less fat loss or gain given adequate protein. This would be a kind of holy grail discovery. What is undeniable is that any study where people self-count their caloric intake has a ton of potential problems which have been demonstrated over and over again. People are notoriously terrible at counting calories in what they eat. It is true that sugars have certain metabolic effects, for example with insulin, that will make you hungrier and crave more. This makes it true that they should be avoided. Basically I think we're on the same page if you're willing to scratch the "obviously". Another point is that the amount that doing weight training raises your metabolism is extremely overrated. I don't have the hard data in front of me but I think if you look up how many more calories you burn by gaining a pound of muscle, you will be shocked that it isn't that much. This is one of those "everybody knows" facts about fitness that everyone believes but isn't really backed up very well.
  - tommizzle 16y ago
    Hah - "obviously" retracted. From what I've heard most people seem to think that 50 calories are burned per pound of muscle per day, but I think that it's closer to 8? I was under the impression that the repairing of the muscle after workouts is where you burn the majority.
  - count 16y ago
    This covers some of that very well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM
    - tommizzle 16y ago
      Cliff notes?
      - 16y ago

evanchen 16y ago

I can agree with healthy fats being good for you. But explain to me bad calories affecting weight gain more than "good" calories. That doesn't make sense to me at all. 3500 calories = 1 pound of fat, no matter the source. You can lose weight eating only McDonald's if you counted calories, but you would be: 1. Hungry all the time. 2. Look terrible.

tommizzle 16y ago
Agree that 3500 calories = 1 pound of fat, but the point I'm raising is about how those calories affect elements such as muscle growth, which will aid weight loss. Read http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1648841 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1648841