Weight Gain May Not Be A Bad Thing

Vegancrossfit

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2020
Messages
170
But what if your appetite is above maintenance? Or what if your maintenance intake keeps you overweight?

Comes down to food selection. There’s a lot of empty calories out there, added fats (butters, oils) with zero nutritional value... same goes with added sugars, refined starch. Very low satiation effect. Quasi useless to eat, yet still better than nothing at all.

I think the abundance of foods is probably better than calorie restriction in our modern low nutrient density context. Like if you’re going to eat foods that are pointless like produce grown in depleted soils, chicken breasts, white rice... whatever people label ‘clean’... don’t combine the lack of micros with a lack of calories. That’s going to be ugly and I see that all the time: skinnies with destroyed hair and anemic looking faces, no strength low libido bad mood low energy etc. It’s terrible.

There are experiments on rats where their appetite drop once micros are way up.
 

Runenight201

Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2018
Messages
1,942
Comes down to food selection. There’s a lot of empty calories out there, added fats (butters, oils) with zero nutritional value... same goes with added sugars, refined starch. Very low satiation effect. Quasi useless to eat, yet still better than nothing at all.

I think the abundance of foods is probably better than calorie restriction in our modern low nutrient density context. Like if you’re going to eat foods that are pointless like produce grown in depleted soils, chicken breasts, white rice... whatever people label ‘clean’... don’t combine the lack of micros with a lack of calories. That’s going to be ugly and I see that all the time: skinnies with destroyed hair and anemic looking faces, no strength low libido bad mood low energy etc. It’s terrible.

There are experiments on rats where their appetite drop once micros are way up.

How do you like to consume your micros?
 

Fidelio

Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2020
Messages
89
But what if your appetite is above maintenance? Or what if your maintenance intake keeps you overweight?
Appetite is largely controlled by habit. Eat less and over time your appetite will match your current caloric intake.

Maintenance by definition means your weight will not change. If you want to lose weight you need to eat less than your maintenance calories. A modest 200 calorie deficit is enough to start, then slowly reduce calories as weight loss stalls. Periodically throw in a 3 day refeed every 4-6 weeks to keep metabolism firing.
 

Vegancrossfit

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2020
Messages
170
How do you like to consume your micros?

just eat 90/10 ground beef instead of 70/30 with extra tallow like the keto freaks, stuff like that... avoid added sugars and added fats since they don’t have more nutrients. If you overeat on those you end up with a massive surplus because of the poor satiation

It makes my diet largely animal based (lots of eggs) with a handful of frozen greens and fruit juices (without added sugars). Use Cronometer, variety is overrated humans don’t need a boatload of intricate foods to reach 100% RDA everywhere.
 

schultz

Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2014
Messages
2,653
I lost 60 pounds over 4 years so it was super slow but I also haven’t had any obvious negative issues from the weight loss. I think it was just my body gradually getting back to it’s set point after first getting back to a reasonable level of health.

That's awesome. Most people are not patient enough for that. They want 60lbs in 60 days and then they just end up not losing anything or going up and down constantly.

Appetite is largely controlled by habit. Eat less and over time your appetite will match your current caloric intake.

Maintenance by definition means your weight will not change. If you want to lose weight you need to eat less than your maintenance calories. A modest 200 calorie deficit is enough to start, then slowly reduce calories as weight loss stalls. Periodically throw in a 3 day refeed every 4-6 weeks to keep metabolism firing.

Sensible.
 

Runenight201

Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2018
Messages
1,942
Appetite is largely controlled by habit. Eat less and over time your appetite will match your current caloric intake.

Maintenance by definition means your weight will not change. If you want to lose weight you need to eat less than your maintenance calories. A modest 200 calorie deficit is enough to start, then slowly reduce calories as weight loss stalls. Periodically throw in a 3 day refeed every 4-6 weeks to keep metabolism firing.

I could adapt to a 1000 calorie a day diet no problem, but my activity level would drop significantly as I wouldn’t have as much energy to expend. I wouldn’t say this is a good thing.
 

Blossom

Moderator
Forum Supporter
Joined
Nov 23, 2013
Messages
11,032
Location
Indiana USA
That's awesome. Most people are not patient enough for that. They want 60lbs in 60 days and then they just end up not losing anything or going up and down constantly.
I just wasn’t willing to wreck my health in my late 40’s and into my 50’s for the sake of vanity.
 

GreekDemiGod

Member
Joined
Aug 9, 2019
Messages
3,325
Location
Romania
We are bipedal sapiens designed to walk long distances and sprint in short time intervals when we hunt our prey. To be lean and muscular. I doubt there is any evolutionary advantage to being over 15% body-fat as a man. Just like lions.
That's why the Carnivore diet made so much sense to me. Fast for 16hrs. Feast on 2 big meals a day like a king.
Not to be frailed-vegan grazers with 3 bowel movements / day.

Needing to eat many times in a day is a liability, from an evolutionary / survival perspective. It's only the modern world that allows us such luxury.
 
Last edited:

Blossom

Moderator
Forum Supporter
Joined
Nov 23, 2013
Messages
11,032
Location
Indiana USA
What changes do you notice? :)
I can't even run anymore (motorically)...not to mention sprint.
My measurements have changed by 1.5 inches in my bust, waist and hips while my weight is basically the same. I had been walking 40 minutes 3-6 days per week for many months before I added the sprints without any dramatic body composition changes. I also carry a weighted backpack when I walk and just take it off for the sprints. I sprinted every other day for the first week. My sprints are only 10-20 seconds long but I go as fast as I can for that short amount of time.
 

Ledo

Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2015
Messages
406
Your experience supports the set point hypothesis. Your set point is probably on the higher side and your body will fight you if you try to go below it.

I've settled on being overweight and feeling good. Every single time I got thin, I got horribly sick, to the point at which it would have been better to be dead. Severe psychosis, memory loss, severe gastrointestinal damage, thyroid problems (officially diagnosed), inability to socialize, post-orgasmic illness.

I finally found a combination of things that prevent the post-orgasmic illness. Sugar, caffeine, and chocolate, and skim milk. If I get enough of that post-orgasm, I'm fully funcitonal the next day. If I go without these things, I can't get out of bed and have severe muscle and gastorintestinal issues.

I'm done losing weight.

Then don't. Lose fat build lean tissue
 

Dutchie

Member
Joined
Nov 21, 2012
Messages
1,413
My measurements have changed by 1.5 inches in my bust, waist and hips while my weight is basically the same. I had been walking 40 minutes 3-6 days per week for many months before I added the sprints without any dramatic body composition changes. I also carry a weighted backpack when I walk and just take it off for the sprints. I sprinted every other day for the first week. My sprints are only 10-20 seconds long but I go as fast as I can for that short amount of time.

That's awesome that you see such great results from it. :)
Mercola, Mark Sisson and others were all big on sprinting...doing it a couple of times for 10-20 seconds and then rest for about 20 - 30 seconds and repeat. I think Mercola called it Peak-8.
I try to walk a modest amount daily to the city or in the neighborhood,which isn't always possible mostly due to the weather. I don't do it out of a thougth that it'll change anything for me (I'm definitely not losing body fat from it), but just because I find it enjoyable to walk,especially when it's nice outside,while listening to music.
Motorically I can't even manage to run....I don't know what it is but for the last couple of years it feels like there's this break on my legs (and they feel stiff) that prohibits me from being able to run. There's this episode from Friends where Phoebe runs in the park all weird, that's how I feel when I try to run....it makes me feel so unbalanced and uncoordinated like I'm about to fall.
 

Blossom

Moderator
Forum Supporter
Joined
Nov 23, 2013
Messages
11,032
Location
Indiana USA
That's awesome that you see such great results from it. :)
Mercola, Mark Sisson and others were all big on sprinting...doing it a couple of times for 10-20 seconds and then rest for about 20 - 30 seconds and repeat. I think Mercola called it Peak-8.
I try to walk a modest amount daily to the city or in the neighborhood,which isn't always possible mostly due to the weather. I don't do it out of a thougth that it'll change anything for me (I'm definitely not losing body fat from it), but just because I find it enjoyable to walk,especially when it's nice outside,while listening to music.
Motorically I can't even manage to run....I don't know what it is but for the last couple of years it feels like there's this break on my legs (and they feel stiff) that prohibits me from being able to run. There's this episode from Friends where Phoebe runs in the park all weird, that's how I feel when I try to run....it makes me feel so unbalanced and uncoordinated like I'm about to fall.
Yes, I don’t like to do it in front of people! At first I felt like my leg was coming out of it’s socket but that only happened a couple of times early on. I do have osteoporosis in my femoral neck that I’m trying fix if possible. I’ve also been trying to build back muscle mass I lost when I was ill and sedentary. I’ve been walking more and more for the last year and a half with no particular goals in mind. I just figured it was time to push myself a little more and see what happened. One person I read said sprinting was the highest ROI exercise and that appealed to my lack of desire to do anything overly strenuous.
 

mipp

Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2017
Messages
98
We are bipedal sapiens designed to walk long distances and sprint in short time intervals when we hunt our prey. To be lean and muscular. I doubt there is any evolutionary advantage to being over 15% body-fat as a man. Just like lions.
That's why the Carnivore diet made so much sense to me. Fast for 16hrs. Feast on 2 big meals a day like a king.
Not to be frailed-vegan grazers with 3 bowel movements / day.

Needing to eat many times in a day is a liability, from an evolutionary / survival perspective. It's only the modern world that allows us such luxury.
Don't forget that lions, like other cats, spend 70% of their life sleeping/resting. They can eat their big protein meal and then rest for a long time while not doing much because they are apex predators with no natural enemies. Humans had to walk a lot looking for food, do some light work and hide from predators. That's what we are designed for. The image of human super-hunter, lean and musuclar with a six-pack is modern bs. We store and burn fat for slow endurance activity. We store carbs for our oversized brains and emergency fight or flight (mostly flight) situations. We were not kings. Through most of our history we were the prey. It was only after all those gigantic bears, tigers and wolves died out sometime in late pleistocene that frail humans had an opportunity to take advantage of their brains and become the dominant species.
 

Fidelio

Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2020
Messages
89
I could adapt to a 1000 calorie a day diet no problem, but my activity level would drop significantly as I wouldn’t have as much energy to expend. I wouldn’t say this is a good thing.
I never suggested or would suggest that? I specifically stated a modest 200 calorie deficit with small incremental drops. If your eating less than 2000kcal as a man to lose weight you need to add muscle instead.
 

Tash

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2019
Messages
47
I started sprinting 6 weeks ago and the body composition changes are remarkable.
This is enough to convince me to incorporate short sprints back in my life. I've been too concerned of raising stress but keeping them short could hopefully be a winning formula. Thanks @Blossom !
 

Blossom

Moderator
Forum Supporter
Joined
Nov 23, 2013
Messages
11,032
Location
Indiana USA
This is enough to convince me to incorporate short sprints back in my life. I've been too concerned of raising stress but keeping them short could hopefully be a winning formula. Thanks @Blossom !
You’re welcome. I don’t find them stressful at all. I’m also about to turn 51 and only wish I had started sooner.
 

Similar threads

Back
Top Bottom