Nutrition researchers are trying to determine what the best weight loss diet is, and in order to do this they must account for all the calories a person eats before they make any conclusions. This however is a bigger challenge than you might think. It has become apparent that people cannot accurately report how many calories they are eating on a regular basis. In fact chronic under-reporting of calories is one of the most common and pervasive issue in diet/health/fitness research.
Whether it is due to embarrassment or lack of memory, people will simply get it wrong when they are asked to report how much they’ve eaten. This makes studying diet and weight loss almost impossible as there is no solid conclusions that we can make about dieting other than the fact that people won’t admit what they’ve eaten.
In this audio training session we’ll discuss the issues with nutrition research and why the results are hard to measure. We’ll also talk about the permission to be light, to wear a size medium shirt and the difference between shirt on big and shirt off big.
(Download Transcription: “Problems Measuring Calories“) [pdf]
John
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
{ 23 comments }
“Ok so the way of looking at it is… We’re all going to die”
LMFAO
10/10
I heard one comment on the radio regarding the lifestyle of a super centenarian (she had a whisky a day) as ‘not very healthy’.
She was over a hundred years old! How ‘healthy’ do you want to be?
Oh, and trying to treat obesity with diet plans is like trying to cure malaria by rationing mosquito bites.
Adonis clothing line sounds legit. Do it.
Hmm… John, I remember you making a podcast that noted there’s a difference between weight loss…and fat loss. Yet you guys seem to say weight loss so much. Do you really mean fat loss?
Also, I notice that many podcasts and articles are geared towards weight loss(or fat loss I’m not sure). But I’m sure most of us, are also interested in musle gain. Could you do mroe podcasts on muscle gain? We have so much information on weight loss. As far as muscle gain goes, we have no idea what diet or training should be like or just a vague idea, or has that also been covered extensively?
What exactly do you want to know?
We’ll cover it in next weeks podcast.
maybe address the oft repeat myth that the body must be built proportionaly ( Ie you can develop huge arms but no legs)
Thank you for the quick reply. I’m listening to the podcast right now, and honestly I would’ve answered sooner.
It’s not so much that I want to know how to gain muscle, but also to gain muscle optimally(full belly and all that crap) and lose fat optimally(striation, definition, deep cuts on the abs, and all that crap).
Basically, I see that most us want maintainable fat loss and muscle gain. But what about the people who will do whatever it takes(aside from endanger health) to reach a ripped muscular propportionate body, something above the level of the AI, just…without the BS that other forums and sites spew all week long? All the while doing it completely natural, and if possible supplement free, and be able to display the awesome body unflexed and untanned?
That’s what I love this site for. A site for people who don’t care about stepping on stage or getting tanned and has no tolerance for BS. I’m just a person who wants to take his body to the furthest level and keep and maintain my gains. Let me know if I need to make anything more clear.
Brad,
Really interesting Podcast…
It’s easy to see how people can under report and underestimate how much they eat and the number of calories they take in.
Most people lie to themselves about what they’re really doing; how can we trust what they’re telling to researchers who they think are judging / reporting on what they eat!
~Chris
Another good podcast!! Again you guys were talking about the “rules of 7″. Where can I find out more on this?
Thanks,
I hope I’m doin anything bad. but here’s the link:
http://c0519252.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/ESE%20-%20How%20Many%20Calories_FINAL.2.7.pdf
Thanks jesse, but thats it? 1 inch= 7 lbs of LBM
I thought I was about to get some secret mathmatical formula, and the solution would answer all my questions. At least now I can sleep at night knowing about the rules of 7.
Glad to help.
Great podcast. Honestly, I have no problem eating less or fasting. What I’m afraid of is the people who will take eating less to heart, and beome anorexic. I still would love the story of how some celebrities get anorexic, lindsay lohan or such. For every thing we recommend there’s always someone who will take it out of control, and we have to make sure they don’t.
Damn, nice thing on health too. Really opened my eyes. Brad Pilon told me once that eating is a part of health but only a small part of health. And yes, people do underestimate calories. But for some people, and it’s for me, I find out I overestimate calories. What I’m most surprised in is how many people you say just can’t mentally eat less. But it is true, unfortunately.
As far as bulking paste goes, I would love LOVE to be on that diet. As long as it tastes good, I can add different flavors to it, it takes less than five min to prepare, it never makes me sick physically, it’s safe and healthy, and it costs less than $50 for a month supply, and I don’t need to eat anything else, I’d love to be on that diet. And to bring it home, if I could cheat once in a while or every week, this would be a diet I would ENJOY. And getting big and ripped on this diet? AWESOME. I’m not trying to be dumb. I hate to cook. Eating a paste everyday, that I hope I can change the texture of to a drink, a cake, or a soup, is my dream diet now, TBH.
Anorexia could be a problem if a person wasn’t using AI or VI as a guide.
These 2 metrics act as buffers, you get to your ideal waist, then you’re done.
The goal is achieved.
This is literally the only “system” I’ve ever seen or been a part of that has a definitive end goal… which makes ALL the difference.
Ah I actually want to go beyond AI as far as size is concerned. But I was serious about the bulking paste. Some people actually follow that diet? Well, I’d love to know what I need to follow it. Could you help me? Tthis is one diet I think I won’t need to consciously follow. Or guys could release a product like that(; With the good reputation you guys have, I’m sure some people would be all over it.
Question:Could you address weight loss for someone on prescription drugs ei SSRI’s that cause weight gain.I find it almost impossible to lose even with your system.My problem is high anxiety which seems to lead to excessive overeating
I like the talk at the end about our genetic program to at least eat to BMR and social programming to eat slightly over on some occassions. I think this should be the focus of nutrition for weight (fat) loss and would be a good topic in itself.
You were right on about the under-reporting of calories and portions and whatnot. And, like you said, it’s not that people deliberately do it. We just don’t know!
I was happy to hear you mention the other aspect with a lot of error, muscle mass. People love to think they have far more muscle and less fat than they actually do. With the use of MRI or DEXA in most training and many diet studies now-a-days, it’s firmly established that people have much more fat mass that they think they do. I can only laugh when I hear people claim they have X amount of muscle or Y amount of fat. They rarely have evidence other than their guess.
Hey Brad,
Great podcast!
I agree that most people have no idea how many calories they consume in a day. I know I was guilty of this too before I started measuring and weighing all of my food. At first, I was a little shocked to see how quickly the calories can add up and what portion sizes REALLY look like.
Plus, you throw in some calorie-dense/nutrient-week processed foods, sodas, fruit juices, etc. and you can really see how people pack on the pounds witout even realizing what they are doing.
It’s very easy to overeat. Period!
Keep the great info. coming brother!
Best wishes,
Pete
adonis clothing line designed to fit and flatter the proportions of an adonis body is actually a good idea. most mainstream clothing is really not designed for this body shape
Re: Calories.
Everybody lies…
I’m currently restricting my calories. I’m very much a non-muscular guy; my upper body strength is really rather pathetic, but I’m going to take care of that. I started at 187 pounds, and I’m down to 177, and going for 160 or 165.
While caloric restriction is doing wonders for helping me drop the weight, I feel like I’m having trouble with exercise. I’m running, and I perform a lot better when I have enough calories; otherwise, I feel kind of weak. Also, I’m sleeping more, and having some trouble concentrating. Do you guys have any of these problems?
Sam,
It’ depends on how low your calories are. When I was cutting down I never experienced any of what you’re talking about. Tiredness is more an issue of lack of sleep, same with lack of ‘energy’ for shorter workouts. But in general calories shouldn’t really be limiting for shorter duration strength training workouts.
JB
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