dieting and mexican food

Chiropteran

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Nov 14, 2003
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Say you eat a big meal at a Mexican restaurant, but for whatever reason that type of food "passes through" you pretty quickly. Doesn't that mean you are consuming less than the full calories, since some of the food never gets fully digested?

Why don't any diets take advantage of this? It would be the best of both worlds, you could eat a huge meal of good food and still lose weight, right?
 

Zysoclaplem

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Sep 26, 2003
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Fiberous portions of mexican food not being digested by your body that you can see in your waste is what you mean by your food never getting fully digested.
 

Chiropteran

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Nov 14, 2003
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Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
Why do you say your food never gets fully digested?

Because when you eat it, and it passes a couple hours later, you can still recognize bits of beans and corn and stuff. You asked, don't blame me.
 

HN

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Jan 19, 2001
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i wonder if thise was the idea behind olestra's anal leakage
 

Linflas

Lifer
Jan 30, 2001
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Originally posted by: Chiropteran
Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
Why do you say your food never gets fully digested?

Because when you eat it, and it passes a couple hours later, you can still recognize bits of beans and corn and stuff. You asked, don't blame me.

Sounds to me like you need to learn how to chew your food properly. ;)
 

Saulbadguy

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Jan 27, 2003
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Why don't any diets take advantage of this? It would be the best of both worlds, you could eat a huge meal of good food and still lose weight, right?

Probably because you'd have constant diarrhea.
 

Zysoclaplem

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Sep 26, 2003
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Originally posted by: Chiropteran
Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
Why do you say your food never gets fully digested?

Because when you eat it, and it passes a couple hours later, you can still recognize bits of beans and corn and stuff. You asked, don't blame me.

I don't blame you.
Certain fiberous parts of food are usually not digested. But the calories from everything else are. And not everything in your waste comes from that particular meal.
Large meals are not good for dieting, you end up storing a large portion of the meal as fat.
That is why smaller more frequent meals are suggested for dieting. You body uses the entire meal as energy, and stores very little as fat.

But you can have huge meals of certain types of foods when your body goes into ketosis, and most of it will pass as waste. But with Mexican food, you are sure never to go into a state of ketosis...lol.
 

vi edit

Elite Member
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Oct 28, 1999
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Many Mexican dishes are high in fiber - beans, corn, rice, tortillas. Most Americans consume a fraction of the fiber on a daily basis that they should be. A huge spike on a given day can cause some GI fireworks to occur.

Fiber is a great way to lose weight. It adds volume and satiating ability to foods without adding calories. It also helps us with digestion and regularity.

Consume 25-30 grams a day and it *will* help you lose weight since most foods high in fiber are typically much more "clean" sources of calories and will help you feel more full faster and for longer.

If your body is used to consuming that much on a daily basis, the one time explosions you are used to getting from eating these types of meals don't occur.
 

vi edit

Elite Member
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Originally posted by: HN
i wonder if thise was the idea behind olestra's anal leakage

Pretty much. The altered fats in Olestra aren't able to be absorbed by the body. It just slides on through.
 

Encryptic

Diamond Member
May 21, 2003
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Lessee....

Constant pants-shitting or being a fat-ass?

Pass me a Big Mac, hold the adult diapers.

:p
 

mrzed

Senior member
Jan 29, 2001
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Originally posted by: Encryptic
Lessee....

Constant pants-shitting or being a fat-ass?

Pass me a Big Mac, hold the adult diapers.

:p

American False Dichotomy FTW!
 

dullard

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May 21, 2001
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Your body digests a portion of the food and whatever is left is passed as waste. Of what is digested, some or all is used and some may be stored as fat.

All that matters here is conservation of mass (chemistry 101). Mass isn't created or destroyed to any significant amount for this discussion. If (Mass in) > (mass out), then you gain mass (ie you gain weight). If (Mass out) > (mass in), then you lose weight. One great way of affecting that mass balance is to eat food that you won't digest. You can keep that same "mass in" portion (ie eat a lot) and increase the "mass out" portion (ie the runs) and lose weight. Unfortunately, your body does eventually gets accustomed to that effect and compensates by not having the runs.

That is why high-fiber diets always win in the long-term for diet comparison studies. Not only can you stick to the diet (because you aren't starving yourself), but fiber isn't digested. Also, fiber tends to stick to things that you would normally digest and the fiber pulls it out before you get the chance to digest it.

Edit: doh, I should have kept reading this short thread. Vi_edit said it before me.
 

SWScorch

Diamond Member
May 13, 2001
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Originally posted by: vi_edit
Many Mexican dishes are high in fiber - beans, corn, rice, tortillas. Most Americans consume a fraction of the fiber on a daily basis that they should be. A huge spike on a given day can cause some GI fireworks to occur.

Fiber is a great way to lose weight. It adds volume and satiating ability to foods without adding calories. It also helps us with digestion and regularity.

Consume 25-30 grams a day and it *will* help you lose weight since most foods high in fiber are typically much more "clean" sources of calories and will help you feel more full faster and for longer.

If your body is used to consuming that much on a daily basis, the one time explosions you are used to getting from eating these types of meals don't occur.

So THAT'S why everyone gets Montezuma's Revenge from Taco Bell and it never affects me... I eat Mexican and high-fiber foods all the time so I'm just used to it!
 

daveshel

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 1999
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Originally posted by: vi_edit
Many Mexican dishes are high in fiber - beans, corn, rice, tortillas. Most Americans consume a fraction of the fiber on a daily basis that they should be. A huge spike on a given day can cause some GI fireworks to occur.

Fiber is a great way to lose weight. It adds volume and satiating ability to foods without adding calories. It also helps us with digestion and regularity.

Consume 25-30 grams a day and it *will* help you lose weight since most foods high in fiber are typically much more "clean" sources of calories and will help you feel more full faster and for longer.

If your body is used to consuming that much on a daily basis, the one time explosions you are used to getting from eating these types of meals don't occur.

But 'authentic' Mexican often contains lard, which stays with you. I live in the Southwest and eat Mexican much of the time, and in general, I believe it is a good diet. But I avoid places that use lard.
 

vi edit

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Oct 28, 1999
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I never said that the entire meal was healthy, just that it typically contains more fiber than your average American is used to consuming.

Fat(lard) isn't bad when consumed in moderation. In fact it's actually has lower saturated fat than butter and is natural which IMHO makes it better than margarine.

It has fallen out of favor because of the low fat fad. In reality it's probably better than the alternatives assuming you eat otherwise healthy and exercise.
 

Zysoclaplem

Diamond Member
Sep 26, 2003
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Originally posted by: dullard
Don't listen to Zysoclaplem, he doesn't know what he is talking about here.

Your body digests a portion of the food and whatever is left is passed as waste. Of what is digested, some or all is used and some may be stored as fat.

All that matters here is conservation of mass (chemistry 101). Mass isn't created or destroyed to any significant amount for this discussion. If (Mass in) > (mass out), then you gain mass (ie you gain weight). If (Mass out) > (mass in), then you lose weight. One great way of affecting that mass balance is to eat food that you won't digest. You can keep that same "mass in" portion (ie eat a lot) and increase the "mass out" portion (ie the runs) and lose weight. Unfortunately, your body does eventually gets accustomed to that effect and compensates by not having the runs.

That is why high-fiber diets always win in the long-term for diet comparison studies. Not only can you stick to the diet (because you aren't starving yourself), but fiber isn't digested. Also, fiber tends to stick to things that you would normally digest and the fiber pulls it out before you get the chance to digest it.

Edit: doh, I should have kept reading this short thread. Vi_edit said it before me.

What did I say that was different from your post?
Fiberous parts pass undigested (corn, some parts of beans, etc..etc.), some is used as energy, and some is stored as fat. The rest is passed as waste.
Smaller more frequent meals are suggested for weight loss.
Perhaps you didn't read my post.

 

daveshel

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 1999
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Originally posted by: vi_edit
I never said that the entire meal was healthy, just that it typically contains more fiber than your average American is used to consuming.

Fat(lard) isn't bad when consumed in moderation. In fact it's actually has lower saturated fat than butter and is natural which IMHO makes it better than margarine.

It has fallen out of favor because of the low fat fad. In reality it's probably better than the alternatives assuming you eat otherwise healthy and exercise.

It is different from other fats in that the body retains more of it.
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
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Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
What did I say that was different from your post?
Fiberous parts pass undigested (corn, some parts of beans, etc..etc.), some is used as energy, and some is stored as fat. The rest is passed as waste.
Smaller more frequent meals are suggested for weight loss.
Perhaps you didn't read my post.
Errors and/or misleading statements/questions:

1st sentence) You implied that food is all digested. "Why do you say your food never gets fully digested?"

2nd sentence) You implied that ALL food is absorbed and then if your body doesn't use it later passes the food out as waste. (The order is wrong). It is Absorb/waste -> Use -> Store. Not Absorb -> Use -> Store -> Waste.

Perhaps you didn't read your first post.
 

Encryptic

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May 21, 2003
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Some things never change on ATOT, evidently. Anything can and will stir up a flamewar, including the reason why Mexican food gives you the shits. :p
 

Zysoclaplem

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Sep 26, 2003
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Originally posted by: dullard
Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
What did I say that was different from your post?
Fiberous parts pass undigested (corn, some parts of beans, etc..etc.), some is used as energy, and some is stored as fat. The rest is passed as waste.
Smaller more frequent meals are suggested for weight loss.
Perhaps you didn't read my post.
Errors and/or misleading statements/questions:

1) You implied that food is all digested. "Why do you say your food never gets fully digested?"

2) You implied that all food it absorbed and then if your body doesn't use it passes it out as waste.

Perhaps you didn't read your first post.

1) I didn't realize he was talking about getting the shits...lol.
2)
I don't blame you.
Certain fiberous parts of food are usually not digested. But the calories from everything else are. And not everything in your waste comes from that particular meal.

I never once said that everything is absorbed. In fact, I said that certain fiberous parts are not. But, your body uses the calories from anything that is not passed as waste. Whether is stored as fat, or used as energy. You misinterpreted what I typed that's all.
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
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Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
You misinterpreted what I typed that's all.
Then please edit your first post so that people like me can understand it better. You keep quoting your second post which I am not having problems with. You can keep quoting the second post until the cows come home, but that won't fix your first post.

 

Zysoclaplem

Diamond Member
Sep 26, 2003
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Originally posted by: dullard
Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
You misinterpreted what I typed that's all.
Then please edit your first post so that people like me can understand it better. You keep quoting your second post which I am not having problems with. You can keep quoting the second post until the cows come home, but that won't fix your first post.

There :p
 

Bryophyte

Lifer
Apr 25, 2001
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If you're having diarrhea, you don't necessarily digest everything the way you would normally. Your digestive tract can be irritated and flushing stuff through instead of using the nutrients and calories from the foods. So yes, it's possible to not use all the calories in what you eat, but it's a stupid way to diet because it'll leave you short on necessary vitamins and minerals and could leave you low on electrolytes. This is why laxitive abuse (the harsh kind, the old ex-lax formula) for weight loss is considered a form of bulemia.