Gary Taubes Question (Brittone?)

[Kindra178]

For those that have read Taubes, what do you think of his general position that gaining weight has little to do with calories in, calories out and more to do with what you eat?

[Green_Tea]

For those that have read Taubes, what do you think of his general position that gaining weight has little to do with calories in, calories out and more to do with what you eat?

I am not an expert on Taubes but I am aware of his philosophies, and can say from personal experience that for me it's not at all about calories in/out, and all about what I am eating. Counterintuitive, perhaps, but I don't think all calories are created equal.

[brittone2]

On my way out the door (to chipotle, yum!), but yes, I agree w/ him.

I think calories have *some* bearing for *some* people, but I think trying to oversimplify the human body to a furnace in terms of calories burned really does a disservice to our complex biochemistry. I'm a huge believer in insulin driving weight gain for many people. The calories thing has resulted in a LOT of blame IMO. I think the implication is often that overweight people would just lose weight if they were disciplined enough to count calories. But it is so much more complex. Oversimplifying here, but by regulating insulin levels, I think that "willpower" is much easier to have (not riding the blood sugar rollercoaster). It is easier to feel satisfied with normal portions and not hungry every hour. I am saddened for overweight folks who have had to hear calories in/calories out for years. I don't think it helps many of them really gain control over their biochemistry, fat storage, and hunger.

I do think being mindful of calories helps some people lose weight, but I think many people can lose weight while eating the same # of calories or more if they keep their insulin in check. IMO that's likely a much more pleasant experience ;)

I also think we don't focus enough on how keeping insulin in check helps regulate hunger. Once some people stop riding the blood sugar rollercoaster, it becomes much easier to feel satisfied with meals and less hunger between meals. I have never been overweight, but as a woman w/ pcos and insulin resistance, I can say that I always wondered why eating a bagel or cereal left me feeling absolutely famished an hour later. Only in retrospect did all of that make sense to me.

I :heartbeat: Taubes.

[essnce629]

I've never counted calories in my life and was able to lose the 7lbs I had gained by switching to low carb. I now eat 3 pieces of bacon every morning and make my own low carb cereal that I eat with half and half. Lots of full fat yogurt and dairy products too. I'm still surprised all the time when I step on the scale and haven't gained anything back. I did gain over Thanksgiving when I ate a bunch of carbs at my grandma's, but lost it all as soon as I went back home and started eating low carb again. By eating full fat and lots of protein I stay full for a long time.

[m448]

I'm so proud of my DH. He's lost 60+ lbs since July on the HCG diet. Aside from the homeopathic pellets it's very much a low carb diet on the phase three portion (the phase 2 is the very low calorie when the pellets are taken to force fat stores to burn). He's amazed at what he can eat and much more informed on hefty protein/good fat consumption and how it affects his blood sugar levels. He had been put on metformin to bring down some prediabetic numbers for several months and his doc just took him off because his sugars had gone lower than she expected.

[daisymommy]

I can tell you that for the most part, it holds true for me, and absolutely for me mother. She is overweight, but eats like a bird. It just makes no sense by common wisdom. But she is deathly afraid of fat, and hence protein as well, and eats mostly grains, fruit, and veggies. It's been like this forever. She eats so little, it's sad. But she is overweight.

When I ate according to the food pyramid & counted my calories, I was overweight by a bit too. I went to Weight Watchers, cut back even more on calories, and only lost about 5 lbs. that's it.

Then I started eating a "traditional foods diet", switched to real butter, whole dairy, cream in my coffee, no low fat anything, replaced alot of my carbs with more protein...and the pounds melted off without any effort, and my cholesterol levels came down considerably. Same goes for my DH. So basically, I increased my calorie count, and lost weight.

Times when I go hog wild and eat too much for a week, like if I'm stressed out, on vacation, etc., then I do gain a a few pounds. But just eating normally like I described above, I don't.

[StantonHyde]

Well I have done the WW core diet which is low fat, hi protein & hi in veggies, whole grains etc. I actually gained weight because I need to control portions. Butt bloodwork was great! So now I am very happy on points plus. Which is basically the same as core but counting calories. It's great because I eat healthy food and I watch portions. The key for me is exercise. If I don't run etc, I don't lose weight. I could never do a low/no carb diet--I loooooove carbs. Too much animal fats makes my tummy sick. If I don't eat tons of fiber, I am stopped for ages. So the bottom line is I do really well with a traditional "diet".