Posts by cosmographer

If you have a scale yourself, you can determine the weight of the corn by weighing it whole and then subtracting the weight of the cob after you eat the corn. 

Sorry, I can't be more helpful than that because I haven't had corn on the cob in a while!

Of course you can gain from eating vegetables, if you're eating more calories than you're burning off. If I read your post correctly, you're eating the soup along with your normal meals, correct? I'd suggest tracking your calories on this website for a while to get an idea of how much you're eating.

And sodium could be a major culprit with the weight gain. Just make sure you're drinking lots of water and you should flush the sodium out of your system in a few days. I wouldn't throw away the soup but perhaps you should not be eating tons and tons each day.

Um, 110? You look really slim and fit.

I don't count gum, but then again I chew maybe one stick a week.

If you're eating a pack of gum every day, you might want to count it. 

Your numbers and measurements sound completely healthy and normal for your age. 

No one can predict if you will be tall, but the best way to become tall is to eat a healthy and balanced diet now! Going on some silly crash diet could certainly stunt your growth.

And while it's completely normal for a teen girl to feel uncomfortable about her looks, if you think you have BDD please talk to your mom or some other adult about these feelings.

It's normal to lose more weight at the beginning of a diet, partly because you're losing some retained water. It sounds like your deficit isn't too big so I'd keep tracking your weight loss. If it doesn't slow down to a more reasonable rate of 1-2 pounds per week, you might need to up your calories a bit, but at this point I wouldn't worry about it. 

Original Post by stinkdog12:

uhhhhhh...something must be wrong with this BMI calculator!!!

I am 6 ft 3 inches and I weigh 225 to 230 lbs....it says I am overweight and I dont disagree with that.

BUT

I started entering in different weights to see what it would say and it shows being 6 ft 3 inches and 165 is "normal" 

LOL - if you have ever seen a 6 ft 3 inch 165 lbs 31 year old man...there is nothing "normal" about that!

That would be a BMI around 20, which would be quite light for a man. 

Also, BMI is less accurate for taller people.

This could indicate that you're not getting enough calories in your diet. Is your activity level set to "very active"? Adding an extra half banana or 1/4 cup of oats is really just a handful of extra calories; it might be that your body is telling you that you should be eating more on a consistent basis. How many calories are you eating daily?

Every doctor I've ever had has told me it's a good idea to take a multivitamin every day. So I do. 

You'll probably get a couple different answers.

Some people think that as long as your calorie intake is less than you burn, you'll lose weight. Others say that the composition of the food (fat, protein, carb ratio; whole grains vs. processed, refined vs. natural sugars) will affect your weight loss.

But here's the bottom line: If your 1500 calories is made up of ice cream, cookies, and McDonald's, you will be hungry all the time and malnourished. You will be very, very cranky and you probably won't stick to your "diet" for very long. With only 1500 calories you need to get enough fiber and vitamins to fuel your body, which is impossible if you're just eating junk food. That being said, I think it's important to work treats into your daily allotment. If you have enough calories for ice cream or cookies, as long as you don't overdo it and you're also getting a variety of other nutritious foods, go ahead!

OP, as you've probably seen from this post, there are some people who will get prickly if you describe yourself as a vegetarian but still eat meat now and then. But there IS a term for what you're suggesting: flexitarian. That's someone who mostly eats vegetarian but will occasionally eat meat.

And, yes, any decrease in meat eating is good for the environment and good for your health.

Original Post by melkor:

Original Post by cosmographer:

Original Post by floggingsully:

Original Post by cosmographer:

Well, you SHOULD get more carbs than protein in your diet.

Says who? based on what? 

Says the Institute of Medicine. Based on studies. I did say that if you're trying to build muscle you should aim for more protein, but for the average person it is completely normal and healthy to get more carbs than protein in your diet. I wanted the OP to know that it is fine to get more carbs than protein in her diet.

Well, the Journal of the American College of Nutrition  says otherwise. The 0.8g/kg is only valid for sedentary individuals who aren't dieting.

 Dieters need as much protein as strength trainees do, 1.8g/kg, or put another way the RDA is less than half your daily needs while dieting. If you're also exercising and you're only getting about 15% of your calories from protein you're getting somewhere between one-quarter and half of what you need for optimum health.

 You can probably get away with a somewhat lower intake, a lean-mass-based recommendation would be 2.0g/kg lean mass but that's only useful if you actually know your lean mass.

I generally don't like percentage-based recommendations 'cause you wind up either under- or over-consuming protein depending on your activity level - your protein needs are relatively fixed, your EFA needs are too, so you should really be varying carb and non-essential fats to achieve the requisite calorie intake.

 Underconsuming protein is harmful, over-consumption is unneccesary and wasteful but not a health risk - so it's generally better to be a tad on the high side. Which doesn't mean going full-blown Atkins; carb-phobia is counterproductive for anyone looking for fitness results.

I agree with you, but my original point that it is fine to get a larger percentage of your calories from carbs than from proteins still stands. 

From the second site you linked to: If you eat excessive protein, you’re probably not getting adequate carbohydrate.  Carbs are the muscles' only fuel source during high intensity anaerobic exercise (like weight training).  If your muscles are carbo-depleted because you loaded up so much on protein, you’re not going to be able to train as hard and you won’t be able to build as much muscle. 

If you stopped drinking, smoking weed and cigarettes, you'd probably have more money.

And your parents told you not to get a job? I'm sure they don't want you drinking and smoking, either, but that hasn't stopped you. Just get a job.

It's fine for the majority of your calories to come from carbs. Dietary guidelines for Americans say that you should aim for 20-35% calories from fat, 10-35% calories from protein, and 45-65% calories from carbs. Those are big ranges for a reason, and as long as you're roughly within those guidelines you should be fine.

You should NOT be trying to lose weight, especially not because you feel jealous of your sister.

Your BMI is very low, close to being underweight, and especially at your age undereating and being underweight can have very bad effects, such as losing your period, losing your muscle mass, losing bone density and losing your hair. 

You need to work on your self-esteem. When your sister makes comments about being skinny, just try to ignore her. Or tell her that you care more about being healthy than being a certain weight. (by the way, I'm assuming since your sister is 4'10" that she's a younger sister, so you will always look more mature than her. You will have hips and breasts and womanly curves before her. So don't compare yourself to her.)

You also shouldn't be worrying about a 110 calorie snack. You should eat a MINIMUM of 1500 calories a day, or you could be harming your body. Please talk to someone about your fears related to weight and eating.