counting only fat grams per day - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

serabo · 01-19-2009, 04:04 PM

Hey all,

Is anyone just counting fat grams you eat in a day? If so how is that working for you?

BelovedImzadi · 01-19-2009, 04:37 PM

I'm not sure this can really work. There are a lot of high calorie low fat foods. For instance, a lot of candies are fat free--jelly beans, licorice, etc.

It's a myth that fat you consume turns to fat on your body. Excess fat consumption can cause arteries to block because of the way fat is carried through the blood and into the lymph system, but ultimately fat itself does not get stored as fat in your body. Your body takes calories that you don't burn and turns it into fat. You could eat 0 mg of fat everyday and still consume too many calories.

jessisaokay · 01-19-2009, 04:39 PM

You also need to watch the kinds of fat you are consuming. mono/poly=good. Saturated=bad. Also don't go too low on fat. Your body needs it.

kelly315 · 01-19-2009, 04:39 PM

I think it's kind of rare for people to have success by only counting fat grams. Usually, when people know that something is "low fat", they end up eating much more of it than they normally would, and they eat the same or more calories than they had in the first place.

If you only want to count fat grams, I guess you'll just have to be very aware of how much food you're putting into your body. I don't think it's the best way to go, though.

Counting calories is just as easy as counting fat grams, and people tend to have a lot of success with it.

Good luck with your diet!

JulieJ08 · 01-19-2009, 05:13 PM

I think it's good to eat healthy all around, but on a daily basis, I worry more about sugar and refined grains more than healthy fats. I restrict fats in the sense that I make sure the fats I use are doing something for me (for example, I may use 1T of olive oil to saute, but not the 3 or 4T recipes often call for), and I don't do deep fried or cheese or butter-smothered stuff, but other than that I don't worry about it too much. It keeps me fuller and for longer. And even if I do indulge, it doesn't seem to lead me to ongoing out of control eating the way sugar / refined carbs do.

Wolf Goddess · 01-19-2009, 08:20 PM

I actually started my weight loss by just keeping an eye on fats - by cutting out higher fat options, in general I ate less overall. For example, having a bone-in pork chop over a T-Bone steak cuts both fat and calories. Of course, that was just a starting point; I lost about 15 pounds, stalled, and then started to focus on calories as a whole.

RN BSN 2009 · 01-19-2009, 08:21 PM

Stay balanced

Fats are neccessary for hair, eyes and skin. Monounsaturated are best. You need protein to help build muscles and keep you full and carbs (whole grain) needed for quick energy.

cathyw · 01-19-2009, 10:19 PM

I'm glad you asked this, because I wanted to ask the same question, but was afraid of the responses

Years ago, I did the Low Fat No Fat diet, and lost a lot of weight. Never counted anything but fat grams. Now that I'm calorie counting, I was getting out some of my old cookbooks. Most of them were from my low fat days.
I was reading the front of the cookbooks, and it was telling you why "Low Fat" eating would help you to lose the weight. I remember my aunt going to a nutritionist years ago, and the only rule for her diet was that she could not have more than 20 grams of fat per day. She lost the most weight she has ever lost with any diet. She did not count calories, and she would eat healthy foods, but also have things like fat free candy (jelly beans).
How did this work?
Yes, I know we need the healthy fats, and I'm not saying I want to do this diet again, but I just want to know, how did we lose the weight just keeping our fat intake under 20, but our calories may have been a lot higher than we are keeping them at now?
Just wondering why it worked back then, and not now?
What if we ate really healthy foods that were naturally lower in fat, but did not count calories, would we still lose the weight? For example, I love my Ezekiel bread (all natural sprouted bread), but it has 170 calories for a hamburger bun, but only has 2 grams of fat. I would love to do a healthy version of a low fat diet, but scared of not being able to lose.
Any insight?
Thanks
Cathy

Glory87 · 01-20-2009, 01:01 AM

I did a low fat diet in college. Pretty much anything I wanted as long as it was no/low fat. I lost weight, and handfuls of my hair in the shower*. I ate way too many processed/diet frankenfood (Hello low fat Teddy Grahams) and too little nutritionally powerful foods (fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, healthy fat, complex carbohydrate). I think counting fat grams is a little one dimensional - your body needs a wide range of good nutrition to function optimally!

* I later gained all that weight back and more when I "stopped" dieting.

serabo · 01-20-2009, 10:05 AM

Hi all,

Well, I have experimented this past week with cutting way down on my fat intake. And Ive lost 3 pounds in that week.

I have cut out bread, as that is a big downfall for me. I do eat pasta, but not loads of it. Mostly, Im eating filling foods, legumes, grains, whole starches. So, yes, a person can lose weight and not count calories. If you eat filling foods, its impossible to overeat and take in too many calories. And I dont eat meat so much any more either.

And Cathy, with ones getting older, I know in my case, it is way harder to shed off that fat.

I know we are all different and what works for some will not for others. Its all what you can live with and in making changes in the foods you consume.

alinnell · 01-20-2009, 10:09 AM

I keep an eye on my fat intake but mostly I count total calories. If I have a choice of full fat, low fat or no fat, I generally get low fat (most no fat choices are tasteless IMO). Also, I do keep in mind the type of fat I'm eating--fewest grams from saturated fat.