Weight Loss Tip

Assuming that's maintenence calories, then they'd lose a pound every 12 days. 1 pound of fat is like 3500 calories. And 3642 is too high, much too high, unless they're very active.

I made the switch two years ago and I can't even drink regular pop anymore.

I know it's no fun, but has anyone thought about drinking water?

I used to drink about 8-10 sodas PER DAY. Now I drink 2-3 per month. I made up the difference with water. After the first few weeks, I didn't really miss it. And no Nutra-Sweet.

I used to think a couple of soda a day didn't make much difference but my personal experiance changed that. When I switch to diet soda my craving for all things sugary decreased. You gave good advice.

-No thanks ma, no seconds on the creamy lard.-

You're quite right: switching to water would be even better than diet soda. Especially if you're exercising.

that's completely scientifically unfounded. indeed, the 'basic math' approach to weight loss is always a complete failure.

i should know, years ago i tried it myself. nutritionists, physicians, and generally scientifically competent people have mocked me ever since.

furthermore, diet soda is actually WORSE for your health than regular soda, though all soda is definitively bad for you.

however, the figure on american calorie consumption isn't actually so high. those who stop by starbucks for a frapp and a muffin hit about half that in one shot. our portion sizes are huge, and if we're ever careful about fat, we more than make up for it in calories. americans eat a lot more than we'd like to admit.

hence the obesity problem. it sounds high... but i'm related to people who will pound that many in a meal. however, your body also burns more in a given activity proportionally to your weight (for the most part, though that's by no means a direct transfer or 'basic math' equation either). so generally, even the people who eat 5000 calories a day and keep gaining and gaining are burning way more just walking to the store than little tiny people who don't eat.

anyway, maybe your heart's in the right place, michael, but you'd be way better off just recommending that people stave off soda AND artificial sugars. it does wonders for your abs.

I'm not sure what part of what I said you think is scientifically unfounded. The said in the original post that the "basic math" approach is overly simplified, but it is a good general guideline for weightloss.

Reality is, of course, much more complicated. Muscle requires much more energy to maintain itself than fat does, so more muscular people will burn more calories even when they're inactive. Fat and carbs are turned to energy before proteins are touched, and are processed more easily. &c.

However, diet soda is certainly not worse for you from a dietary standpoint than regular soda is. Diet soda has zero calories; that is indisputable. The simple sugars in regular soda are among the most easily processed forms of energy, and your body will turn them to fat almost instantly if you don't burn them while the sugar is in your bloodstream.

It's arguable that the sweeteners in diet soda are bad for your liver, but only in extreme quantities. The carbonation in all soda may be bad for your teeth, &c. But for someone who is overweight, one of the best things they can do for their health is to switch to diet soda (or water, as was mentioned above).

3600 calories a day is pretty high; maybe not too high to be real, but I'm skeptical. Our bodies will reach an equilibrium weight, and it should be possible to calculate how much an average person who consumes 3600 calories a day should weigh.

Michael - A measure of whether or not something is good for you is not simply the number of calories. You're totally misunderstanding the human body. A couple avocados, for example, may have more fat than that twinkie, but that doesn't make the twinkie better for you.

Every single doctor I've ever had, and every single biologist/nutritionist I've ever spoken to has insisted that you're way better off drinking regular soda - though nobody should be drinking it in these extreme amounts.

No offense, but they've got a lot more cred than you do.

Just to pile on, the healthiest I've ever been was when eating 6000 cals a day, but that was also matched with very serious weight lifting(and other guys who were in better shape were at 10K a day). Both regular and diet soda are really bad for you, I switched to iced tea(even putting 4 sugar packets in leaves you at 1/4 of a soda). My wife does the fancy bottled water thing and we're both much better off for it. Now I can tell the day after drinking just one soda, either diet or regular, something in there just drains my energy. I usually try to schedule my weekly soda for saturday night so I can recover on sunday (yes I still like soda very much, its really quite unfair that the nectar of the gods is so bad for me).

Well, your anecdotal evidence is bizarre, and in direct opposition to everything every doctor has ever told me. Plus, it's completely illogical.

If you can point me to a supporting resource, I'm very curious to see the explanation of how diet soda makes you fatter than regular soda.

If you're just talking about health in general, and not weight loss specifically, then sure, it's arguable that diet soda is worse for you. That depends on the current research into various artificial sweeteners and such, none of which is very conclusive at this point. Oh, 6000 pounds of nutrasweet gives a rat cancer? Surprise!

I don't think you can claim that I totally misunderstand the human body just because I wrote a simplified post about a single tip to help people lose weight. Thousands of books have been written about nutrition and the human body, and it would clearly be impossible for me to go into that sort of depth.

Michael,

I am completely unwilling to go to that effort for you. Why should I waste my time when you just want to argue, and are going to say I'm "illogical" just because the evidence doesn't fit your narrow worldview?

Of course anecdotal evidence (i.e., every obese person I've ever met has had an addiction to diet coke) isn't enough. And admittedly, because people tend to consume more diet soda (mistakenly believing that because it's calorie-free, it has no effect), that makes the problem worse.

But really, you expect me to go research the medical journals database? I don't think anyone really cares that much about your personal advice when it comes to weight loss... if they do, they'll get what's coming, I guess... just wanted to point you in the right direction. But if you insist on believing whatever, regardless of its reality, I'm not going to waste any more time trying to change your mind.

What a waste of effort!

Look Candace, I'm sorry to be getting into an argument about this, but diet soda can absolutely help you lose weight. Just puruse various health related sites on the net -- they all recommend diet soda.

http://weightloss.about.com/library/weekly/aa061300a.htm
http://weightloss.about.com/library/weekly/aa021301a.htm
http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/hl/nutr/food/alert06302001.html
http://www.netsweat.com/LunchTimeTips.html
http://kidshealth.org/teen/question/dieting/lose_weight_safely.html

Diet soda may have other problems, and you're still getting caffeine, but switching to diet from regular will certainly help you lose weight.

Michael, just stumbled on your blog and I do have the time and inclination to go to the medical journals. Here's some fun cites for those with Candace's mistaken belief:

Public Health Nutrition. 6(1):65-72, 2003 Feb.
-Study from Denmark discussing how increases in portion size correlated to increases in non-diet soda consumption. Double whammy.
L. Harnack, J. Stang and M. Story, Soft drink consumption among US children and adolescents: nutritional consequences. J Am Diet Assoc 99 (1999), pp. 436–441.
-This study compares non-diet soda to other drinks (i.e. milk, water, and fruit juices), but the underlying conclusion is that the non-diet soda is the villian.
Relation between consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks and childhood obesity: a prospective, observational analysis, Pages 505-508
David S. Ludwig, Karen E. Peterson and Steven L. Gortmaker (Lancet, 357:9255, pp. 489-568).
-Study noted increases in frequency of obesity and increases in BMI among those who drank non-diet soda, after adjusting for societal factors.

Spiffy, thanks Ric! I'm sure Candace will be thrilled when I send her this information ;)

Wow. This turned into quite a discussion. I'm glad I checked back.

"Good" calories vs. "bad" calories, "healthy" food vs. basic weight loss, and artificial sweeteners aside, wasn't this about a relatively painless way to just cut some calories?

If more calories go out (exercise, living in general) than come in (food and drink) you will lose weight.

Some people drastically increase output through exercise. Some people drastically cut calories through crash diets. The best approach for most is somewhere in between. Exercise moderately on a regular basis and cut back your calories some.

The "easiest" place to cut back calories is the junk food group. (Haven't heard of that one?) Two scoops of ice cream instead of three. One doughnut instead of two. Diet soda instead of regular. Less sugar in your coffee. Don't eliminate it, because that's Just Not Right. It makes it too hard to stick to. Moderation is the key. And no snacks right before bed.

Doing a lot of relatively painless things can cut a fair chunk out of your calorie intake. Add a little regular aerobic exercise and you're on your way.

The best tip is to eat less calories than you eat

Substituting diet soda for regular soda is ridiculous. Getting healthy and losing weight is not rocket science. You don’t need special diets or other ridiculous fads to lose weight. It is simple: exercise, eat less, and what you do eat should be healthy. What is healthy??? Come on now; let’s be real! Diet soda or any other commercial drinks are not healthy. Water is healthy. Substitute the soda for water. In time, your body will get used to water and will not want soda. When you get thirsty, you want water. That doesn’t mean you never can have one, but don’t be a fool by drinking diet and thinking you are dieting or eating healthy. I mean come on; do I really need to say this???

I know finding the time to exercise is not easy but eating right isn’t that hard. Most of the time, eat right. Then live a little from time to time and have a soda or other treat. Eating right, again; come on! The body needs some protein to sustain itself. That doesn’t mean do an Atkins and gorge yourself on hamburgers and steaks. You do need meat in your diet but not a lot. Fruits, vegetable, and other natural foods are what you need. Not donuts, coffee, candy, lattes, cake and such. Again, come on, this is not rocket science!

People just want to take an easy way out by these fad diets and other ridiculous ideas such as substituting diet soda for regular soda. I know it is hard to give up all the treats and such and exercise, but if you really want to get healthy, again: exercise, eat less, and what you do eat should be healthy.

from a diet dew junkie: 36-24-33 diet pop does not make you fat...I am a personal trainer...almost 40 and a mother..water is of course much better (as long as it is filtered!!!!! free of the stuff that causes kidney stones ect....) I think everyone needs to remember moderation is the key in ALL things and if you are fat it is because the intake of calories is more than the output of calories...

My Dr said switching from regular to diet soda was the best thing i ever did, how anyone can say regular pop is good for you is crazy? why do you think obesity is at an all time high? i was drinking over 4 cans a day-thats over 700 calories wasted in soda

Tufts researchers recently reported that while the leading source of calories in the average American diet used to be from white bread, that may have changed. Now, according to preliminary research conducted by scientists at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, Americans are drinking these calories instead. The research was presented in abstract form at the Experimental Biology Conference in April of this year and a more comprehensive paper is being developed.

DIET POP CAN ACTUALLY MAKE YOU FATTER THAN REGULAR POP!! IT'S A PROVEN FACT ... dont believe me? look it up!!

I don't see how diet pop can make you fat, I mean it has no fat or sugar to convert to fat so am I missing something here?!? To be fair to the other side though, I did read a study once that said diet pop triggers the mind to crave more sweet foods just as normal pop does so often drinkers of diet pop or any pop just plain overeat. Drinking water wouldn't bring on the cravings. I say, drink diet pop but just be a little more aware of what else you're eating.

How the hell is diet soda make you gain weight??? it has no calories!!!!! and no fat! that is a bunch of shit!