Family Tips for Fat Loss = Terrible

[lmagrum2]

Essentially, I'm just saying "Thank You" to everyone on this forum who gives sound, logical advice that has helped me with my fat loss so far. My brother and I are both trying to lose fat and the topic came up this weekend with all my aunts, uncles, and cousins at the house. They all had their special fat burning secrets:

Uncle Ray:
1. Never eat after 7p.m., because it turns to fat.
2. Run at least 2 miles-a-day, because cardio is the best way to lose fat.
3. If you eat healthy food, it doesn't matter how much you eat. Even the leanest beef has too much fat - so I rarely eat any.

...this is when my other Aunt started:
1. Ray is right about eating "the right food". If all you eat are fruits, vegetables, and chicken it doesn't matter how much you have.
2. Stay away from Trans Fats. They make you fatter than normal fat (WTF?)
3. If you eat poorly 1 day, just get back on diet the next day. (Good advice, right?...She continued) One time, I ate half a large pizza on a bad day. So the next day, all I had were 2 small salads. (IFers might agree - but I'm pretty sure she should have just gone back to maintenence or a moderate deficit the following day)

...Another one of my Aunt's jumped in:
1. Don't eat any dairy. Even skim milk is about 10% fat - they just don't tell you (conspiracy theorist, apparently).
2. If you go for a run, be sure to eat 2 apples after - because you need the vitamins (that's what she said - I kid you not)
3. Eat a lot of fiber. When I was dieting, I would take 8 servings of Metamucil a day.

I finally started explaining my "diet". Keeping a calorie deficit, weighing foods, counting Fat, Carbs, and Protein. They all thought I was the crazy one.

"You mean... you weigh everything you eat, like meat or veggies and everything. Even ranch dressing" ....Ummm, yeah - I would weigh my ranch dressing, because its has more calories than the rest of the salad...

"You take protein shakes? Don't you know that protein has too much fat in it"... What? Even if she meant "protein shakes have too much fat", thats still not true.

Anyway. Using the Family Diet, I would:
1. Eat minimum 2 apples, 40g of Fiber supplements, and only vegetables, fruits, and chicken.
2. Not consume any red meat, Trans Fats, dairy, or anything after 7pm
3. Run everyday and never lift weights

Thanks to you, I:
1. Weigh my food, eat at a Calorie deficit and count my Fat, Carbs, Protein.
2. Eat anything I want within the general limitations of #1 and within my personal preference of healthiness / satiety.
3. Lift weights 3-5 days/week.
4. Do cardio if/when I want to, in order to increase my Calorie deficit.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has gotten terrible, even counter-productive, fat loss advice. What other gems have your freinds and family told you?

[yesthesunrose]

LOL. My cousin is a firm believer in the "ham n' cheese diet". This involves only eating ham and cheese sandwiches. Seriously. The pounds supposedly will surely come off.

Did not even try to argue...I don't any more. It's pointless. Just was like 'yeah' and later that day beat my head against a wall.

[d2761]

I tell people I lost 130 pounds on a kiwi diet!

I eat everything except kiwi.

You should see their faces. lol

[sylntsniper]

I tell people I lost 130 pounds on a kiwi diet!

I eat everything except kiwi.

You should see their faces. lol

lol, repped.

[frank112]

I tell people I lost 130 pounds on a kiwi diet!

I eat everything except kiwi.

You should see their faces. lol

Lol, I kind of do this too when people start giving me advice or tips. Nothing is more fun than making up brofacts that you know people will believe.

The other day my cousin asked me how I lost my weight I just said diet and exercise. Then he told me that you need to eat breakfast or your body will go into starvation mode. That's when I told him that he's totally right and i've found the biggest trick was to eat a stick of butter at exactly 6:59pm because after 7pm it all becomes fat but before then it turns into muscle/energy. He said that he heard that too............

[Randy1976]

I routinely take flak about my lunches at work. Comments like "That's not diet food" or "That's gonna make you fat".

This is in reference to a chicken fajita salad- 8oz chicken, 1 cup peppers, 1/2 cup guacamole, 2 TBS sour cream and 10 TBS salsa on lettuce. They say "all that sour cream and avocado is pure fat and bad for you."

I have no clue how to quickly explain IIFYM's and math isn't a strong point of Mississippi, so most of the time I just say "that's fine, I guess I'll get fat" (or if I'm in a bad mood I say "the day I take nutrition advice from a Mississippian is the day I need my head examined")

My boss is on a "cabbage soup diet" and it's failing him miserable. I'd like to offer some help, but I think it's a lost cause.

[Delgadido]

i hear 7pm all the time.

[pkallday]

oh yeah, my dad always tells me his "secret" tips for fat loss too. but for him it's don't eat after 6pm haha and to not lift at all, but run instead.

[Delgadido]

oh yeah. high reps tones the area.
if you want a 6 pack do more ab workouts.
we all agree building muscle there can make 6 pack come out faster but i am speaking in terms of spot reduction

**** psises me off.

[cyco85]

i've found the biggest trick was to eat a stick of butter at exactly 6:59pm because after 7pm it all becomes fat but before then it turns into muscle/energy. He said that he heard that too............

Did you follow it up with a bitch slap?

[DRtrainer]

"if you don't sweat while running, you are not losing weight" LOL

[Motaba]

My brother and his friend tried this thing called "weight lifting"....they lasted a couple of weeks. Apparently when "weight lifting" you have to eat alot of whey shakes, which gave them the "heavy sh*ts". I said "Yep, life is rough"...."and having to lift heavy weights too."

Oh, and gym stuff is "boring."

[nlite2000]

To be fair---if you followed all those tips and were obese you'd lose weight.

It would be tough to not be hypocaloric eating nothing but fruits, vegetables and chicken breast ad libitum. 2 apples after you jog isn't going to hurt you.

[Motaba]

To be fair---if you followed all those tips and were obese you'd lose weight.

It would be tough to not be hypocaloric eating nothing but fruits, vegetables and chicken breast ad libitum. 2 apples after you jog isn't going to hurt you.

I think he was trying to point out the resoning behind his families suggestions. Alot of people these days believe that anything that doesn't have fat can qualify as "healthy food".

[nlite2000]

I think he was trying to point out the resoning behind his families suggestions. Alot of people these days believe that anything that doesn't have fat can qualify as "healthy food".

Oh--I understand. I'm just making a point.

[LuisEnrikee]

my family said to not lift heavy because I was just going to add muscle to fat and i was going to look fatter
they say 5 egg whites will make me fat ;_;

[rjmwx81]

i hear 7pm all the time.

Whenever someone tells me not to eat after 7, I ask them how my body is supposed to adjust for Daylight Saving Time. Or what happens if I'm on a vacation and change time zones?

[bdrusse]

Oh--I understand. I'm just making a point.

I was kindof thinking the same thing. And more often than not, you can eat almost as much as you want and would get full before hitting your surplus. But I get it, no need for response. Kindof playing devils advocate.

To the post, one of if not THE most obese guys I know told me, (when I was in the military and 195 lean) running is terrible for you. It jars up your insides and your heart, causing health problems.

[igglesphan]

"when you feel like you want some ice cream, have an apple instead!"

Oh sure.... I ALWAYS confuse those two flavors

[johnnyj411]

Lol, I kind of do this too when people start giving me advice or tips. Nothing is more fun than making up brofacts that you know people will believe.

The other day my cousin asked me how I lost my weight I just said diet and exercise. Then he told me that you need to eat breakfast or your body will go into starvation mode. That's when I told him that he's totally right and i've found the biggest trick was to eat a stick of butter at exactly 6:59pm because after 7pm it all becomes fat but before then it turns into muscle/energy. He said that he heard that too............

lol

"if you don't sweat while running, you are not losing weight" LOL

umm thats called kidney failure to be honest

[lmagrum2]

To be fair---if you followed all those tips and were obese you'd lose weight.

It would be tough to not be hypocaloric eating nothing but fruits, vegetables and chicken breast ad libitum. 2 apples after you jog isn't going to hurt you.

I'm sure this is also true... but I'm just imagining how much I would $h!t myself everyday getting all that fiber. I'm more than "regular" from 30g, let alone if I supplemented that with ANOTHER 40g.

[enderwiggin65]

Whenever someone tells me not to eat after 7, I ask them how my body is supposed to adjust for Daylight Saving Time. Or what happens if I'm on a vacation and change time zones?

LMAO. I'll have to remember that next I hear that question.

[pobski]

i've been having some fun when people ask me how i dropped weight. My favorite is telling people i used "the secret" and made a diorama of myself skinnier lifting weights, and it just started happening.

Another good one is saying that you switched to scientology, and you're losing weight as you cleanse the thetans from your body.

I also like just saying "bulemia" followed by long eye stare.

It's kind of an ******* thing to lie all the time, but it gets so annoying saying "well lift often and eat below your maintenance and focus on eating protein", especially when the person you're talking to immediately glazes over because they don't REALLY care, and was just trying to give you a compliment.

[Motaba]

[QUOTE=pobski;721544681]i've been having some fun when people ask me how i dropped weight. My favorite is telling people i used "the secret" and made a diorama of myself skinnier lifting weights, and it just started happening.

QUOTE]

Yeah, my brother tried to get me on "The Secret" movement...when I downloaded the DVD, I thought he must be joking.
Imagine all that you could accomplish without getting off the couch.

[mikeyb79]

My in-laws seem to think that you can eat all the fruits you want because "fruit sugar is GOOD sugar" and they don't believe me that "fruit sugar" is a carbohydrate, just like all other sugars.

They also have a thing for spot reduction myths.

They're all fat. One is a type 2 diabetic, another is borderline.

They also buy/take thermogenics with the impression that they can eat way more without getting fat because of it.

They never make any progress at all, despite dieting for like 3 whole days.

Then they ask me what I've done to lose weight. Eat below maintenance, lift heavy, watch protein intake, patience and perseverance, done.

All of a sudden they have a million reasons why I'm "doing it wrong", yet I shed pounds like mad when on a cut while staying strong and healthy, and they just end up making themselves sick and getting bloated a few days later when they give up in frustration.

[Nick1971]

A lot of what I hear is garbled terminology or just a rehashing of incorrect information (IE, bro-science). A close friend and heavily obese guy who played a lot of foot ball in high school would do things like point to his bicep and call it a tricep, advise me to get "ripped" which in his terms meant getting much heavier and putting on a lot of muscle, among other things. Not that I am adverse to doing so, but being told the wrong thing by someone who knows less than me on the issue, irritates me.

Another friend the other day told me to eat 6 times daily so my metabolism won't slow down. He doesn't count calories, eat healthy, or plans out his meals or meal timing, and is overweight now and by his own admission, gaining a pound every couple weeks.

I'm successfully losing a pound a week, and is only 3lbs away from reaching my ultimate goal weight, so perhaps I'll just keep doing what I'm doing, and ignore the advice from my friends.

[HeavyMetalLover]

Most of the people in my life believes that spot reduction, especially crunches for stomach fat loss really works.

My family just complains on my diet restriction/plan. Meh, I still got control over it anyway.

[bdrusse]

i've been having some fun when people ask me how i dropped weight. My favorite is telling people i used "the secret" and made a diorama of myself skinnier lifting weights, and it just started happening.

Another good one is saying that you switched to scientology, and you're losing weight as you cleanse the thetans from your body.

I also like just saying "bulemia" followed by long eye stare.

It's kind of an ******* thing to lie all the time, but it gets so annoying saying "well lift often and eat below your maintenance and focus on eating protein", especially when the person you're talking to immediately glazes over because they don't REALLY care, and was just trying to give you a compliment.

Wow, the Scientology and bulimia are hilarious. Especially the staredown afterward. Repped for those high quality lines. I'm gonna have to remember those.

[Hiexec]

They also take offense to not eating offered food. My mom takes it personal if i don't eat her dinners, so i told her to cook my chicken breast plain. She made a huge deal about it, then she buttered and bbq sauced it despite what i asked for. I told her, i can't eat that I'll just make my own, and she started yelling at me as if i was in the wrong.

Overall, I just wish they were more supportive and respectful to what I'm passionate about.

So recognizable! My mom is like that too, but i dont love her less for it. I just ignore her comments and fix something myself. She already made a huge turnaround from how she was before. Not arguing anymore about it with her, my results speak for themselves.