It's TRUE more protein & more calories = HIGHER weight loss!

I was a pretty slow loser except the first 2 weeks when i lost 13 pounds not including the water weight i gained in hospital which was 12 pounds. After 2 weeks i have lost maybe 2-3 lbs week some weeks more & some weeks NOTHING. I hit the 3 week stall. I am now 9 weeks out and since 4/28 until now 9 days i have dropped about 6.5 pounds. I upped my calories anywhere from 600-900 and i also get in over 80g protein everyday. Not saying this will happen every week but heck it worked for me so it's worth a try get in those calories and proteins!!!!

I agree with you. I am not counting calories, but if I had to guess between meals and protein shakes I bet I am getting close to 1000 calories a day and have been since probably week 3 or 4. I have been at a steady 5-7 pounds per week other than last week when I stalled for about the whole week. I started dropping again sometime over the weekend. Since I knew I was on a stall I quit weighing until Monday. 

Okay, thanks!!  Might as well try it.  I've been fanatically following the rules, staying under 600 cal/day but getting in my 50 g protein and all my water and vitamins most days.  I have been STUCK with no weight loss since March 27th!  That is my entire 3rd month, and then some, since surgery with zero lb lost in 6 weeks!!!  :(  I work out regularly but I started running today and hope that will kick it.  But I'm going to up my protein which will up my calories.  Sure not working what I'm doing, which I do NOT understand.  I had surgery to lose weight but all I lose is hair!  Arrggghh!! 

 ;o)

are you guys counting fat grams?  I am trying to count everything more food gets eliminated than consumed. 

I only count grams of protein BUT I make sure that my protein comes from mainly lean sources. Sometimes when I eat out I don't have as much control over how they prepare it so I'm stuck but I wouldn't go eat a McDonald's cheeseburger either. When I eat out I mainly eat grilled chicken breast and make sure to order veggies or fruit and have them EXCLUDE white starches. It's not that I never eat them, it's just that when white starches taste as good as they do in restaurants, I know they've put the "good stuff" in there that we aren't suppose to have. If I am looking for a new protein source I will give it a once over to make sure it looks lean and doesn't contain too many carbs that aren't fiber and definitely not sugar. A couple grams of sugar in something I'm okay with. I don't know if I dump, but that's not why I look at the sugar. Sugar is empty calories, don't need 'em.

For eating out, you really have to be careful of what those guys use to cook their food with. For example, if you go to IHOP for breakfast, they put pancake batter in their eggs to make them fluffy. You can ask them not to put it in there and they are good with that. Also, ask them to put cheese in them to boost the protein. Unfortunately the cheese is usually higher fat cheese, but scrambled eggs packed with cheese is a protein powerhouse and it's delicious. They also have a good omelet: Fajita Chicken. They probably fry the chicken in an unhealthy way with butter or something, but the omelet makes at least 3 meals. I count it as protein and veggies because of the salsa, onions, and peppers in it and you can order it with a side of fruit instead of pancakes.

When I eat out I try to make sure the rest of my day is MUCH healthier than the meal I ate out to hopefully offset the negative effects. I also RARELY eat out.

You are correct.  You cannot eliminate all foods with high to moderate amounts of fat AND high to moderate carbs AND high to moderate sugar or you will end up with a very limited diet.  Your body needs some fat for your organs to function properly and for your skin and hair, so a reasonable amount of fat isn't a problem and most people don't count fat... we just avoid obviously high fat foods (e.g., fried foods) or eat them rarely/occasionally.

You want to shoot for a high protein diet with only "healthy" carbs (dairy, veggies, beans, whole grains) and a moderate amount of fat (many people eat regular, full fat cheese for example).  My surgeon told us that if we made healthy food choices (whi*****luded healthy food preparation methods (e.g., grilling or baking instead of frying)), the fat and carbs would take care of themselves.  In my experience, she was right.  I have never tracked anything but protein, lost 190 pounds, and have kept it off (and am coming up on 6 years post-op).

Lora

People frequently freak out, roll their eyes at, or just ignore the vets when we tell them that eating too little causes your body to drop your metabolism, which slows your weight loss down.  We would not lie, though.  I sometimes wonder if people think there is some secret conspiracy among the vets to convince people to eat too much so they won't lose weight or something crazy like that!

Eating too little for too long also apparently increases the chances of your metabolism staying lower permanently (which will make maintaining the weight loss more difficult), so that makes it extra important to eat enough (but not too much)!  Ironically, because of this, not eating enough is a double negative in those cases: slower weight loss now and more easily regained weight in the future! The permanently   lowered metabolism happens to some people even of they don't stay in "starvation mode" for an extended period of time, but who wants to increase the chances?!?  

Lora

I know a few vets IRL who practically starve themselves (replacing meals with protein shakes etc) and guess what?   They are all "never reached goalers" or "regainers" (50+lbs).   

Anyone watching me eat now would think I am someone who has always eaten healthily - I'm choosy about what I eat, but I eat good quality whole food (for the most part) with high protein, normal fat and lower carb - of course I occasionally eat pizza etc but it's not a mainstay of my diet ...   and I certainly don't pick at my food - I enjoy it!   I don't consider food an enemy ...   

I didn't eat breakfast until I was 41 - because I said it upset my stomach or made me feel sick and guess what?   I gained weight.  Now?  I can't imagine getting to 9am and NOT having eaten something - I NEVER miss a meal (unless I am fasting for bloods) and yes, I do have to watch that I don't overeat or stray from healthy choices too often, but I'm maintaining at this point, and I don't think my lifestyle choices are coincidental to my success.

Nobody is accusing anyone of lying; however, people often draw connections between events that are not connected.  Someone might stall for a few weeks then, in frustration or desperation, up their calories.  Lo and behold, they lost!  But did they lose because of the increase or did their stall just naturally break?

Everything scholarly I've read about extreme calorie deficits stated the same thing: severe calorie deficits can lower your metabolism but it never lowers enough to negate the weight loss.

If we assume a daily deficit of -500 calories results in about 1 pound lost per week, then -1000 calories might result in 2 pounds lost.  Then let's say your "starvation mode" kicks in somewhere between -1000 and -1500 per day.  In this case, -1500 calories per day might result in only 2.5 pounds lost instead of 3.  You get progressively less bang for your buck, so to speak, but it never reaches a point where it works against you.

I do agree that we often establish both correlation and causation where they are not warranted.  Someone once swore that every time she stalled she ate two pieces of deluxe pizza and she immediately started losing again (but would not lose if she increased her calories through protein or veggies)... and then suggested that someone else try the same thing. People frequently attribute breaking a stall to something particular when, as you said, it may very well have broken had they not done anything differently.  Sometimes you simply have to wait out a stall and nothing short of starving yourself will force it to break.

By eating less and losing less, though, the metabolic aspect does work against you (eat 500 fewer calories and lose half a pound less by your example).  If someone would only have lost 2 pounds but then the lowered metabolism kicks in (and for some of us who already have messed up metabolisms, the amount the body adjusts can be significantly higher than for someone who has never yo-yo dieted), that might be the difference between losing 2 pounds and losing less than a pound (which people usually translate to nothing, or can get swallowed up by water retention, etc.)

Lora