[BrS96bVxXBLzf5B]

Any guide to diet and nutrition that is dozens and dozens of pages with heavy emphasis on calories, tracking, numbers and restriction without even a _single_ mention of disorder is frankly massively irresponsible and harm waiting to happen to another poor soul.

[crdrost]

With respect, this guide is somewhat better than most.

For instance it dedicates a section to the fact that the scale lies. A lot don't. It mentions that nutrition is more important than calorie counting before dismissing that as “but... we're only focusing on calories here.”

Haven't seen yet if it includes an understanding of “the wall,” the barrier impeding further weight loss... I suspect it doesn't but it has some suggestive headings that way.

[Karawebnetwork]

It's the Hacker's Diet. Move Fast and Break Things.

But more seriously, I agree with you. There are some red flags the content of the text.

For example this: "Why don't they notice? [...] You may be surprised and/or disappointed to discover that people you encounter every day don't remark on the dramatic change you perceive. [...] Don't worry, eventually they will notice." https://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/www/subsubsection1_3_3_0_4...

Or this: "Always bear in mind that dieting is the polite term for ``deliberate starvation.'' " https://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/www/subsubsection1_3_3_0_4...

And this: "Why am I doing this to myself? [...] This is the most fundamental reason to lose weight: to live longer. [...] Even if excess weight doesn't shorten your life, you're far more likely to suffer a variety of medical problems" https://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/www/subsubsection1_3_3_0_5...

[at_compile_time]

What bothers you about that last one?

[Karawebnetwork]

Several reasons. The page itself is very problematic in my opinion.

Weight loss is a valid and healthy goal if it is done for health reasons and/or to achieve personal goals. But here are the reasons the author mentions here:

1) Live longer - The author uses a quote from 400 BC as a source.

2) Better health - The author uses anectodic stories to justify this.

3) Accomplish more - The author puts the fear of exclusion in the reader's mind. Accomplishing more should be about achieving goals that you weren't able to achieve before, not about fearing that your weight will cause you to lose your job.

Everyone should have their own reasons for losing weight. I would say that emphasizing the fear of death in content that markets weight loss is borderline unethical. Especially since this page uses the "bait & switch" principle. It presents death as a fundamental reason to lose weight and ends with what amounts to saying (in my words) "even if what I said above is not true, you are more likely to get sick".

Even that is pseudoscience at best. While clinically obese people are at risk, there is no clear conclusion in the medical literature about the "perfect weight." You can even find studies that discuss the potential protective effect of a healthy level of fat that might be considered by some standards unattractive/unhealthy.

You can weigh a lot and be healthy and you can be light and unhealthy.

Physical activity, diet and avoiding a sedentary lifestyle are all lifestyle choices that matter far more than the number on your scale.

Throughout the content of the book, you can never tell if the author is addressing a medically obese person or someone who is a little overweight in the winter and wants to lose a few pounds.

The author seems to lack emotional detachment from the subject. This is a double-edged sword. It can mean that the author is giving excellent personal advice, but it can also mean that his fears, traumas, and problematic behaviors shine through.

Don't get me wrong, this is an excellent collection of tips & tricks. It is the justifications and thought processes surrounding these tips that I find problematic.

[aerojoe23]

I agree with you. I think the book is from January, 1991 so I don't think we can blame the author much as it wasn't as widely known. (I think)

I read the whole thing a while ago. To your point he wants you to weigh yourself every day and then take the weighted running average, while this works well for me when I want to diet, it would be a good way to get most people to have a disorder.

[syntaxfree]

I keep having to repeat this: in my experience, fasting and food quantity restriction is seriously prodromal for mania. And a good unrestricted euphoric mania can ruin your life.

[humansuit]

Let us not forget that mood stabilizers are notorious for making you put on and retain weight. (Mine makes my body use its muscles for energy before it taps into my fat - hooray!) But honestly, lots of people with mood disorders - like mine, which prior to medication inspired me to periodically drop out of school and quit lucrative jobs - do that math every day. In the grand scheme of things, there are worse ways to be than overweight.

[teknopaul]

I fast for five to seven days a year plus intermittent fasting. In my experience it causes something close to a high. Elevated energy levels. A long fast allows you to change your guts flora which has a lasting effect on me. YMMV but n.b most cultures and religions include yearly fasting, and the is a lot of medical evidence that it's a good thing.

Try not repeating it to yourself.

[tpoacher]

nonsense. you've got cause and effect the other way round.

this is akin to expecting programming tutorials to warn about autism.

[867-5309]

please explain

[867-5309]

or not then!

[kosasbest]

There are many people with un-diagnosed eating disorders, and they think that their eating habits are 'normal'. I regularly stop doing keto and overdose on carbs for a few weeks, in full knowledge I'm ruining my body, but I continue this habit to my detriment. The trick is consistent keto with a commitment to continue doing it until your last days.