I've been thinking to start dieting lately. I started doing research on how you can lose weight. There are so many blogs, ebooks and books sold at book stores.

I found some information were contradictory. For example, some weight loss experts say counting calories are an important part to lose weigh while others say it's a minor issue to consider. Another example is high protein diet works well; on the other hand, scientific data tells you too much protein is bad for your kidney.

The big problem of the weight loss is 'confusion.' There are too much information. Even if I read a book about nutrition, I still cannot understand how nutrients work for you and cannot take action of diet. Those knowledge are separated to me and I cannot make connections.

How would each of you guys deal with the information overload? How can you learn only the essence fast and start dieting?

Thank you.

Yeah there is a LOT of info out there. Some of the things I thought to be true, I've found to be BS. Just trust your gut and go for it. Eat less, weigh less. Move more, lose more. See? Simple. You already know that a banana is a better choice than a stack of candy. That's the same thing as what an expert would tell you, without all the big words and fluff. It's all up to you. Good luck!

It's about research and logical, rational critical thinking.

Yes, there's a lot of contradictory information out there and you have to be able to read it, consider it, and sift through whats real and what's not. Too many people think that just because they "hear" something or read something online that it's true and they just believe it w/out bothering to do any research.

One thing I do is check my sources. If I read or hear something from a source like the American Sports Medicine Institute, the Mayo Clinic, WebMD, etc. I'm going to give it more value than something I read from a site that's trying to sell me something. I look at multiple sources when I'm researching and I don't stop at the first source that supports the point of view I want to find.

The other thing you have to do is make reasoned decisions for YOURSELF. For example, there is a lot of contradictory information out there about artificial sweeteners. Some people say drinking Diet Coke is evil and will kill you. Some people say there's nothing wrong with it. Since all the studies I've read are ultimately inconclusive, I personally make the decision that it's ok to have a Diet Coke 2x-3x a week. I don't drink a case a day. I don't consume aspertame in crazy quantities. I just choose to have a diet soda once in a while. That's my personal choice based on my research and my acceptable level of risk. Others may choose to not ever drink Diet Coke again and that is *their* choice.

I also find resources that I trust to refer back to when I need to. For example, Steve (who is a member on this board) shares my philosophy about research and critical thinking, so I know when he says something, he's put the same level of research into it that I would have (if not more). He has referred me many times to Lyle McDonalds who runs a nutrition, fitness, and bodybuilding blog and who publishes papers, articles, and books based on extremely detailed, sound medical research. So I know that if I ready something by Lyle or Steve, I can pretty much believe what they have to say - but even so, both of them can give me references and sources for their information.

So ... it really is about being able to think critically and make reasoned decisions. A lot of people don't do that - they believe the first thing they read and that's it.

Mylee and Karakcooks,

Thank you for the kindness to take time to write to me back. Your insights cleared my cloudy thinking about the issue.

I got a lot of help after reading this..It cleared a lot of my doubts.

LINK REMOVED

thanks for the post...

it does helps to clear a lot of doubts...
for sure it helps a great deal to me, n hope to others as well..

Here, here. Funny thing is so many people subscribe to the theory of 'super diet' and actually eat no carbs at all, or no fat at all, or only purple. Fad diets come and go and we're left were we left off.
I believe in simple calorie counting, small portions plus a bit of cardio and it seems to be what most of the respected sources preach. It's nice to read up on metabolism to know what's exactly happening when you have that soda and drink responsibly, but this isn't usually covered by the shady sources anyway.
Remember that even professional, educated and practicing nutritionists vary in their opinions and the generally accepted recommendations change in time. Once butter was good for you, then bad, then good again (is it steel good? I lost track). Fortunately the law of conservation of energy still stands and if you eat less than you burn (just not to little), you're fine.

yeah counting on calories is good, alongside keeping a good check on wat u eat must be nutritious and comprise of all the basic nutrients required for the body growth...

keep changing ur diet chart and noticing what is that ur body requires and u must provide it with..

Very few people eat food and eat "no carbs at all". There are carbs in virtually everything other than meat. All the fruit and veg contain carbs for instance. Almost all people who claim to eat "no carbs" do not understand what a carb is and have never used something like FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal to understand what nutrients they do eat.

Far too many people believe that they eat "no carbs" when they mean that they have no starchy carbs - i.e. bread, potatoes, rice, pasta, cereal.