micronutrition

[kelvin2017]

what micro nutrition should i be taking to lose weight faster or more healthy? right now all i take really is fish oils

[Daves_Not_Here · Accepted solution]

@kelvin2017 Some say cinnamon works as an appetite suppressant.  When I have yogurt, I dump lots of cinnamon on it.  Others advise adding unsweetened cocoa to your coffee.  

My opinion is that micro-nutrients are minor drivers of weight loss compared to the much larger sledgehammers available to you: water, knowledge of what you eat through logging (most important), elimination of high glycemic index carbs, increased sleep, increased activity, and elimination of late-night snacking.

[Dominique]

@kelvin2017: I’ll assume that by "micronutrition", you mean micronutrients, that is things like minerals, vitamins, phytochemicals etc. that are found in very small quantities in our diet. While they definitely play a role and are important for health, I agree with @Daves_Not_Here that they are not on top of the list of your priorities for weight loss (though we may not fully agree on what are the actual top priorities ). 

If you eat a balanced diet that includes all macronutrients from healthy sources, most of your micronutrient needs should be covered and you shouldn’t need supplementation for them. Personally, I supplement on vitamin D (because I live in a part of the world where I just can’t get enough sun exposure), fish oil like you (because there’s overwhelming evidence it has benefits) and a multivitamin (as an insurance policy).

The main driver of weight loss is a caloric deficit. You want to make it sustainable by eating plenty of satiating food rich in micronutrients and fiber. Veggies and fruits are your friends, so are lean protein and healthy fats.

How fast have you been dropping weight, and how much faster would you like to go? It’s often advised not to exceed 1% of your body weight per week, but it depends of course on your starting point. You said you were currently 181 lbs: 1% of that is 1.8 lb, so you’d be looking at a daily deficit of about 1000 calories.

[kelvin2017]

i have not been dropping weight last few months but ive just changed everything i do this last week, i do 1 more cardio when i wake up and i do 1 hour weights before i go to bed, im trying to stop mid night snacks, or when i cant stop my self i direct my self to greek yogurt in small portions.

[Daves_Not_Here]

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@kelvin2017 wrote:

i have not been dropping weight last few months but ive just changed everything i do this last week, i do 1 more cardio when i wake up and i do 1 hour weights before i go to bed, im trying to stop mid night snacks, or when i cant stop my self i direct my self to greek yogurt in small portions.

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@kelvin2017 - What is your situation - are you pretty close to your target weight, or do you need to lose a significant amount?  If you're close, then what you're doing is probably going to work.

I'm in a different situation -- I had gained a lot of weight in spite of consistent cardio and resistance exercise and a pretty active lifestyle (I'm the fittest fat guy in California).  I tried making sensible changes to my eating but these just proved to be ineffective half-measures -- my weight was going nowhere.  Once I started daily weighings and logging all my food, I was able to start to lose.  I knew all along that would work, but had been emotionally resistant for some neurotic reason.

[kelvin2017]

i need to lose about 15lbs, i was 265 lbs and now im 185lbs, im 5 ft 7 inch but im stocky as you can tell by my picture, im trying my very hardest now to lose this extra weight. my fitbit says i lose about 3200 calories a day so im goin to make sure i eat 2200 or less each day, only had my fitbit blaze for about 5 days.. great watch, im starting to eat more fruit as i basicly never eat it until i get this watch

[Dominique]

@kelvin2017: it’s great to hear your Blaze is so smart it’s telling you to eat more fruit. My Surge is slightly older-generation: it only displays numbers on a dull-looking black and white display . 

If you want to learn more about nutrition, I can recommend an e-book called Understanding Healthy Eating, mentioned in this other topic. You can pretty much get a good summary of the book for free by listening to the two podcasts with the main author listed here.