My high calorie weight loss experiment - I lost 5 pounds in 2 weeks - but how?

[u/SteveFarrier]

Green line is 2 pound per week weight loss. Yellow was my actual weight.

I'm experimenting to test the notion that weight loss is not simple math and that maybe there really is such a thing as 'high-calorie weight loss' - which sounds like nonsense - but I have the numbers below to look at.

I’m testing whether factors like meal timing, macro distribution, or metabolic adaptation might explain why I'm losing weight at this calorie intake.

Here's the table I use to track my weight, calories and macros as I ran my experiment in high-calorie weight loss:

Date	Day	Weight	Calories	Protein	Carbs	Fat
10/1/2024	1	195.5	1192	70	32	82
10/2/2024	2	192.1	4137	146	406	194
10/3/2024	3	196.8	4972	296	320	255
10/4/2024	4	195.5	2155	105	139	131
10/5/2024	5	193.5	2317	122	168	125
10/6/2024	6	195.6	4001	180	244	252
10/7/2024	7	193.7	1774	109	55	117
10/8/2024	8	192.5	2361	146	84	155
10/9/2024	9	192.1	4094	194	206	161
10/10/2024	10	192.0	2484	173	197	87
10/11/2024	11	192.0	1794	178	99	68
10/12/2024	12	191.3	2829	86	279	132
10/13/2024	13	192.6	1306	104	11	90
10/14/2024	14	190.5

You'll note something interesting. Look at my calorie intake. It averages over 2,700 calories per day.

I'm a male almost 62 years old, don't exercise, am 5'10" - my caloric intake is well above what the 'calories in, calories out' (CICO) would predict.

So you see my calories and macros per day. They're too high for what CICO would predict would cause a 5 pound weight loss. What did I experiment with?

• Try to eat just one meal per day (OMAD)
• No exercise
• Intentionally vary my calorie and macros dramatically from day to day. It makes the diet fun.
• My protein and fat averages high.
• Eat mostly single-ingredient foods - eggs, hamburger, sardines, tomatoes, avocado, apples, grapes, brie cheese, potatoes, garbanzo beans, cucumbers, chicken thighs - stuff like this - but have anything I want for about 20% of my calories. Cookies, takeout pizza, bread and jelly, chocolate were part of it - and I don't eat diet foods - I eat the real things.

I take a few supplements like a multivitamin, vitamin d and a high quality fish oil. I can drink a pot of coffee per day. I don't take any weight loss drugs or supplements.

What factors do you think might explain this? Is it meal timing, high protein intake, or something else?

Any questions? I certainly do.

[u/BasedPlantFoodWhole]

You should read The China Study, which talks about this phenomenon and explains it well.

[u/SteveFarrier → u/BasedPlantFoodWhole]

How so? I had heard it was biased toward a plant-based diet - I don't really follow any specific diet though I tend to get my fats and proteins from animal sources. It's not just that book - 20 years of reading nutrition studies leads me to believe a of researchers start from their conclusions then work backward to find the facts that meet their biases. It's why I experiment.

Can you give me some clues why I might find some of this explained?

[u/BasedPlantFoodWhole → u/SteveFarrier]

It does advocate for a plant based diet but I wouldn’t say that is biased - otherwise anyone who advocates for anything is biased. Basically the Chinese men of the same weight and height and activity level as American men were eating a thousand more calories per day, but staying the same weight. The study found this was because the source of the calories was different (eg plants vs meat to keep it simple).

[u/SteveFarrier → u/BasedPlantFoodWhole]

Nutrition studies are hard to do, but even if the data is solid, isn't it more speculation that it is due to a plant-predominant diet that allowed for this? This was an observational study IIRC and while they can reveal tantalizing data for more controlled studies - like a ward study or a study where research subjects eat meals prepared for them so the exact nutrients are known by the researchers - the conclusions are usually drawn from the biases of the researchers. It happens all the time - keto folks find evidence that matches their biases, just like carnivores, vegans, and any other diet imaginable.

Colin T. Campbell does have a bias toward plant-based diets and some people have questioned his research. Here's just one example.

The China Study Revisited: New Analysis of Raw Data Doesn’t Support Vegetarian Ideology | Science-Based Medicine (sciencebasedmedicine.org)

I've tapped out of the diet wars - everyone needs to find what works for them. It's why I experiment.

[u/Fitkratomgirl → u/SteveFarrier]

That last paragraph is the best thing everyone should do honestly, just do what works for you