Please answer this simple question

boomer420 said:

Hi, im new here and am a 21 year old 5 foot 10 inch male that weighs about 162lbs. Im tryin to get rid of a tiny little pudge on my stomach that when I sit end up rolling over my jeans, pants, etc... My question that I want to ask is if I can eat as many fat grams as I want and still lose weight as long as I cut my calorie intake? The reason I would want to do this is because I get more full eating more fat. For example, Im doing a 1500 calorie diet that involves 40 grams of fat. I can eat 5 reduced fat peanut butter sandwiches during the day that equal 1500 calories which is great and would keep me full the whole day, however it sends me over in fat grams...60 to the 40 thats recommended. Can I still lose weight this way or are fat grams just as important? Another example I will give is that I can have two whopper sandwiches a day at about 1500 calories which is enough for me to stay full all day, however those whoppers combine for 92 fat grams putting me way over my recommended fat gram intake. I have been hearing that I should eat only 30% of fat compared to calories or whatever for a healthy diet. However I think that the reason we are told to watch our fat intake is due to heart disease, stroke, and many other things that arent* involved with weight, correct? Please help me out

If you are trying to lose weight then cutting the calories will do it. Aim for a balanced diet, with about 30% of you calories coming from fat. Some fats are very good for you, olive oil and fish oils especially, and some are very bad: anything containing hydrogenated vegetable fat or oil should be excluded from your diet. Look at the ingredients the bloody stuff is everywhere.
Look for other items in your diet that you can cut out, that include drinks of course. Try drinking green tea, it contains no calories, can increase the rate that you burn fat, and also fills you up; liquid is bulky enough to make you feel full and therefore eat less.

The only thing is, if your diet was mostly fat then I'd suspect you would have less carbs for things like glycogen replacement and protein for muscle building.

I would think 1500 calories is too low. On days I ride, I can eat 3,000 calories and still be in calorie deficit. (2,000 calories for RMR, 1,000 calories for lifestyle, 1,000 calories for riding).

If your calorie deficit is too much, I think you will start burning protein, and your body will start to try and conserve fat.

Try this calculator to start off with. It tells you how many calories you are burning if you were to stay in bed all day and do nothing.
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/calrmr.htm

Also, try adding foods with more fiber. Fiber is considered bulk and will make feel more full. If I eat the sugary cereals, I can eat a couple bowls. If I eat the Kashi stuff with lots of fiber, I am full after 1.

-Matt

Also timing is important, you should eat your simple carbs (cereal, starchy vegetables, fruit, whole grain bread, pasta) in the morning and before/during/after workouts, then concentrate on your fats and fiborus vegitables in the evening (late afternoon snack, dinner, before bed). You should consume a little protein with each meal, and eat 5-6 small meals a day. Avoid fat/simple carb meals like dougnuts. Finally you should calculate your total calories burned during the day and only cut 350-500 cals a day. For a good source of diet information you should check out this series of artcles called temporal nutrition, it is geared towards bodybuilding, so it is high in protein (as an endurance athlete you dont need that much protein).

the link to the articles is here:
part 1
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=461927
part2
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=460539
q&a and summury
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do;jsessionid=210BBAE2EBBFBF2D7302A9ABD425DDBC.hydra?id=775026

[font=Times New Roman]mucked up my edit - please see below :-)[/font]

[font=Verdana]Boomer [/font]

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[font=Verdana]you really need some sound nutritional advice. As an athlete you need a lot of high quality complex carbohydrates (fruits, whole grains, veggies, etc), and some nice lean meats. Fats will take care of themselves.[/font]

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[font=Verdana]Even when I’m at 7% BF I have the same little mini roll and it pisses me off too, however in reality I’m as scrawny as I need and should be. So don’t let that be your only guiding light to fat/weight loss.[/font]

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[font=Verdana]If you are wanting to shed a little pork, do some light weights at the gym, high reps, and/or some interval training on your bike should also go a long way to shrinking up a few fat cells. The people in magazines that have psycho-abs have a procedure that I’ve learned is called “scraping” (slang) to physically remove the fat cells from the abdominal area. So those aren’t normal, natural people.[/font]

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[font=Verdana]Below are some books that can get you on the straight and narrow, help you lean out, stay healthy, and take in the type, quality, and quantity of calories you will need to remain a strong and powerful athlete![/font]

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[font=Verdana]Also limiting your calorie intake to such a low level with a high level of activity, will cause your body to do all kinds of nasty things in order to preserve itself. Shutting down some key processes and using muscle tissue for an energy source is among some of the things that happen, because our bodies think of fat as gold, our bodies evolved over millions of years, and having a fat store for the long term is what made our survival a success – 1500 is too low for you.[/font]

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[font=Verdana]The Navy SEAL Nutrition Guide[/font]

[font=Times New Roman]amazon.com103 8264023 2306244Open ↗[/font]

[font=Times New Roman]Sports Nutrition Guidebook, Nancy Clark[/font]

[font=Times New Roman]Food for Fitness, Chris Carmichael[/font]

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[font=Times New Roman]HR[/font]

I appoligize for not stating this in my first thread but... I dont ride. I hardly even exercise, I work for a living on my pc. People that know me say im just fine as in regards to my weight, I just wanna get rid of this pudge that is most noticable when I sit down. I simply thought you guys would know wether or not I can eat as many fat grams as I want and still lose weight as long as I cut my calorie intake. Anyhow, I think that I got that the answer was yes from the first reply I got in this thread. Thanks for everyones help and knowledge

boomer,

short answer is no you cannot eat a shamelss amount of fat grams and loose weight. Fat that is not burned is stored, 9calories per gram makes fat ver potent, protien and carbs 4 calories per gram, and [font=Arial]alcohol [/font] has 7 per gram. Fat also lacks a lot of the nutrients you body needs to be healthy - although you cannot not eat fat, since there are things you need that are only soluable in fat...

the principle is the same, and if you have very limited physical activity, making the chage you want will be even more difficult the if you had an elivated level of activity. Basically you have to move it to loose it.

I'm 5'11" and weigh in at 175 at 9%, for me to maintian weight in need to take in right around 4700 calories a day. I'm going to think 1500 is still too little for you, as that is the absolute minimum daily intake for an average adult male.

the books I mentioned will still have use for you, since all they describe is a good and healthy diet. included in the books are calculators to help you zero in on what you really need to stay healthy for you.

good luck

boomer,

Hookyrider has some good advise, you should not limit yourself on any macronutrient (fat, protein, carbs) but consume a little from every group. You should also weigh yourself every week if you are loosing more than a pound or two you could be seriously messing with you bodies endocrine system (hormones) that could lead to more fat storage and loss of any muscle mass and definition you may have. My advise is to follow what Hookyrider has already stated, eat plenty of fruits, veggies, lean protein and no trans fats (hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oil). Just drasticly cutting calories and eating a signifigant number of calories only from fat will not serve you well in the long run.

I just thought of something too that could help you cut a lot of calories and take a step towards feeling better drink plenty of water, when you are thirsty drink water, cut out soda and juice, if you must have them limit them to have with one meal a day. Losing weight is hard because you have to make changes to your behavoir, but once you get the hang of it, it is very rewarding to see your goals fulfilled.

boomer420 said:

I appoligize for not stating this in my first thread but... I dont ride. I hardly even exercise, I work for a living on my pc. People that know me say im just fine as in regards to my weight, I just wanna get rid of this pudge that is most noticable when I sit down. I simply thought you guys would know wether or not I can eat as many fat grams as I want and still lose weight as long as I cut my calorie intake. Anyhow, I think that I got that the answer was yes from the first reply I got in this thread. Thanks for everyones help and knowledge

Do some exercise.
You don't need a bike, or a gym, or a lot of time. A simple routine lasting a few minutes done every other day will make a difference; press-ups and sit-ups can be enough to boost your metabolism and even pack on muscle (instead of fat).
Do as many push-ups as you can.
How long did that take you?
Do this three times a week and you will see the difference.