A calorie is a calorie......until you eat it......

[Mayday]

What is the consensus here currently on this? A decade ago there were a few hardcore thinkers saying a calorie is a calorie when eating

Just wondering if those people have come around and realize how many issues eating fat causes.

[MuscleBuff]

I thought saturated fat was actually good for you and seed oils, sugar and grains are actually the devil. It's all very confusing, but my blood work is excellent in terms of LDL and HDL. I eat a lot of saturated fat and avoid margarine, seed oils, sugar. I am not sure if any if it adds up. As I said it's very confusing

[IroNat]

I thought saturated fat was actually good for you and seed oils, sugar and grains are actually the devil. It's all very confusing, but my blood work is excellent in terms of LDL and HDL. I eat a lot of saturated fat and avoid margarine, seed oils, sugar. I am not sure if any if it adds up. As I said it's very confusing

This is true.
It's not confusing at all.

[IroNat]

What is the consensus here currently on this? A decade ago there were a few hardcore thinkers saying a calorie is a calorie when eating

Just wondering if those people have come around and realize how many issues eating fat causes.

From an energy standpoint, a calorie is a calorie.
From a nutritional and health standpoint all food is not equal.

[MuscleBuff]

This is true.
It's not confusing at all.

Great, I've been on the fence about grains though.

[Grape Ape]

I thought saturated fat was actually good for you and seed oils, sugar and grains are actually the devil. It's all very confusing, but my blood work is excellent in terms of LDL and HDL. I eat a lot of saturated fat and avoid margarine, seed oils, sugar. I am not sure if any if it adds up. As I said it's very confusing

Who the fuck uses margarine?

[Royalty]

Who the fuck uses margarine?

LOL 😂

[Humble Narcissist]

From an energy standpoint, a calorie is a calorie.
From a nutritional and health standpoint all food is not equal.

Of course, as foods have different vitamins and minerals in them. Eating a low cal diet will always result in weight loss though. Eating a diet with various types of foods will eliminate vitamin deficiencies. No need to count cards, fat or protein.

[MajorDomo]

"According to the National Data Lab (NDL), most of the calorie values in the USDA and industry food tables are based on an indirect calorie estimation made using the so-called Atwater system. In this system, calories are not determined directly by burning the foods. Instead, the total caloric value is calculated by adding up the calories provided by the energy-containing nutrients: protein, carbohydrate, fat and alcohol. Because carbohydrates contain some fiber that is not digested and utilized by the body, the fiber component is usually subtracted from the total carbohydrate before calculating the calories."

Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-food-manufacturers/

Translation- the calorie content you see on a label is a best guess scenario as to how much energy it provides your body. It doesn't take into account how your body breaks down that particular nutrient. I guarantee you that if you consume 100gms of raw cane sugar (100% carb and a total  of 400 calories) vs 44 grams of olive oil (100% fat and also 400 calories) you will absolutely have a different metabolic response. Over time, the high fat diet would make you lean, the low fat, high carb diet would make you fat, assuming you weren't burning tons of calories a day.

So, regarding foods- a calorie is definitely not just a calorie.

[Van_Bilderass]

I think the "a calorie is a calorie" thing was used by some to irritate the stupid who couldn't understand the extended argument where you will lose weight if you eat below what you burn and certain foods don't magically make you fat regardless of calorie amounts. "CICO" and so on It's of course more complicated than that when it comes to body composition.

[Grape Ape]

I think the "a calorie is a calorie" thing was used by some to irritate the stupid who couldn't understand the extended argument where you will lose weight if you eat below what you burn and certain foods don't magically make you fat regardless of calorie amounts. "CICO" and so on It's of course more complicated than that when it comes to body composition.

I believe it was used to justify a poster's diet of vodka and cardboard.

[joswift]

"According to the National Data Lab (NDL), most of the calorie values in the USDA and industry food tables are based on an indirect calorie estimation made using the so-called Atwater system. In this system, calories are not determined directly by burning the foods. Instead, the total caloric value is calculated by adding up the calories provided by the energy-containing nutrients: protein, carbohydrate, fat and alcohol. Because carbohydrates contain some fiber that is not digested and utilized by the body, the fiber component is usually subtracted from the total carbohydrate before calculating the calories."

Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-food-manufacturers/

Translation- the calorie content you see on a label is a best guess scenario as to how much energy it provides your body. It doesn't take into account how your body breaks down that particular nutrient. I guarantee you that if you consume 100gms of raw cane sugar (100% carb and a total  of 400 calories) vs 44 grams of olive oil (100% fat and also 400 calories) you will absolutely have a different metabolic response. Over time, the high fat diet would make you lean, the low fat, high carb diet would make you fat, assuming you weren't burning tons of calories a day.

So, regarding foods- a calorie is definitely not just a calorie.

pretty sure the diet of 400 cals in total would make you lean regardless.

[MuscleBuff]

Who the fuck uses margarine?

Tons of people

[MuscleBuff]

Layne "liar" Norton used to go really big on "a calorie is a calorie"

[beakdoctor]

This is true.
It's not confusing at all.

This.


A calorie is a measurement of energy.
 The ammount of energy required to raise 1 kilogram of water 1°C. So if your goal is to raise the temperature of water then yes. A calorie is a calorie, doesn't matter what the source of the calorie is.

But the debate about "a calorie is just a calorie" in bodybuilding has nothing to do with raising the temperature of kilogram of water. Because you feed your body 3 kinds of calories; fat, protein and carbohydrates. Consuming carbohydrates triggers a hormone- insulin- release which makes it harder for your body to burn other calories, mostly fat calories. Carbs compete with fat as a fuel source causing your body to burn carbs for energy and store fat. Then the ensuing insulin resistance that comes with eating too many carbs makes it harder for your body to use carbs efficiently.

Your body requires fat and protein for health, maintain bodily functions including building muscle, repairing injuries, healthy joints and nervous system. On the other hand you can go the rest of your life without eating a single carbphydrate and not suffer any ill effects.

If a calorie were a calorie then drinking 3000 calories of Coca-Cola would get you the same results as eating 3000 calories of orange roughy and we know thats not the case.

[joswift]

everything we eat is made up of nitrogen carbon oxygen hydrogen
Of body is 96% those 4 elements

Thats pretty much it