Calorie Deficit is King – A simple guide to cutting fat

Yeah, I know this is a lot of fun. And the twinkie diet guy who just ate packaged junk food, vegetables and a vitamin supplement, didnt count his macros got great results, dropped plenty of bodyfat, improved blood lipids, etc, ...as a matter of fact, he avoided meat to curb calories, so there's no way he was getting 1.263947% of his lean body mass in grams of protein eating that way....so, so much for IIFYM. You could have reduced your opening post to "eat less". Or "Weight Watchers", the calculations are easier.

And ultimate diet 2.0 being a difficult regimen doesnt answer the question of why McDonald saw cycling carbs, and not fat for instance, as effective. If a calorie is a calorie, it doesnt matter. So that question remains open in my mind.

 

I am not confused. Realize that you have framed this thread from the perspective of LOSING FAT, not body recomp. So the open question in my mind is whether or not IIFYM is the best/simplest/efficient method for fat loss.

And BTW, I have several years of real world experience. I realize this is the Internet age, and people would rather get info than derive it, but I experimenting on my own body to know what works best for body recomp before the Internet was as ubiquitous as it is now. That, in my opinion is the best way to find what works, particularly for your own body.

I agree with a lot of what youare saying, particularly the value of protein. The very best results I have ever gotten FOR PURE FAT LOSS, however, are using something very similar to Lyle McDonald's Rapid Fat Loss (focusing on essential amino acids and fattty acids with refeeds). I used more than a simple scale to know just how much of the weight I was losing was actually fat. McDonald's approach for body recomp using CKD works well for preserving muscle mass as well, and for any bodyfat level even in the 20% range (measured by strength training results, as you will get weaker with muscular atrophy, stronger with hypertrophy). Lyle McDonald is a terrific resource for this stuff. He was not the pioneer on those approaches however, so its been around for a while.

My point: in reference to IIFYM, there are "better" ways to lose fat (RFL) or recomp (CKD). (Although one could argue that RFL and CKD ARE restricted versions of IIFYM) These are my opinions based on real-life experience. There are also simpler ways (WW). There are also easier ways (TD). This is based on my observation, although I have tried WW.

That is all I am trying to add. Don't take it as though I am challenging your IIFYM assertions. It all works. IIFYM is a generalization of several nutritional approaches that work. However, IMO IIFYM is complicated for someone not used to doing all those calculations, finding good food choices limiting what they eat. The paradox of choice. The fella in the other thread is having trouble eating 150g of protein. It is harder to meet that goal making certain food choices compared to others, eh?

Just trying to add to the discussion, not subtract.

The last word is yours....

 

It's amazing how you can have a completely satisfying day's worth of food and still have a calorie deficit. Just tracking the calories makes all the difference in the world. So easy to stick to. And so easy to ignore for a weekend here and there, or a vacation, without completely destroying the progress made. I started tracking calories in mid April and have already lost 20 lbs. And I'm not really missing too many foods. Just cutting out a lot of extras that I never really needed that much anyway. Cheese on a sandwich, extra snacks throughout the day, candy and other junk. But even that stuff you can fit in here and there if you budget for it.