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I used to believe firmly in this too. Now, I'm a bit more open-minded, and I don't believe it's as simple as the "law of thermodynamics". True, noone can store
by avinium 8y ago
I used to believe firmly in this too. Now, I'm a bit more open-minded, and I don't believe it's as simple as the "law of thermodynamics".
True, noone can store more energy than you ingest.
But - as the article says - it's very difficult to know exactly how much you're ingesting. The calorimeter is a very blunt way of determining how much energy is "in" food - not only do food labels probably routinely understate how much energy something contains, it has no way of explaining how that energy is actually digested or metabolized by the human body.
Many people calculate their diet based on very slim (~500 kcal) margins. It's conceivable that these are obliterated by these small fluctuations in actual vs labelled calorific content.
That's without getting into issues like insulin sensitivity and so on.
My go-to recommendation for people trying to lose weight is eliminate all sugar and simple/starchy carbohydrates and start a fairly light exercise program. This will have a marked impact on appetite, and most people will naturally start losing weight. If weight loss stalls, start playing around with meal portions and feeding windows.
So far, I haven't heard of anyone who hasn't lose weight with this routine.
- aidenn0 8y ago> My go-to recommendation for people trying to lose weight is eliminate all sugar and simple/starchy carbohydrates and start a fairly light exercise program. This will have a marked impact on appetite, and most people will naturally start losing weight. If weight loss stalls, start playing around with meal portions and feeding windows. When I did something similar, it worked great for a while, but rather than the weight loss stalling, I started gaining weight. If I don't severely portion control basically everything except green vegetables, I gain weight. I should note that this was just once I reached my mid 30s that this became an issue; prior to that an so long as I exercised regularly, my appetite and my weight were better matched.
- avinium 8y agoOh, in terms of real world results, it's definitely an ongoing process of experimentation and adjustment. I have no background in the field so I can't claim much expertise, but it seems the profession is just starting to scratch the surface of the relationship between food, age, hormones and weight gain. For now, I think it's much more important to change your habits and mindset around eating, then see how your body responds.
- babyslothzoo 8y ago> I used to believe firmly in this too. Now, I'm a bit more open-minded, and I don't believe it's as simple as the "law of thermodynamics". The wonderful thing about physics and science is that it does not matter what you believe, fact is fact :)