Losing weight from Japanese food?

I know that Japanese food is one of the healthiest on the planet but is it true you can lose weight by just simply living there and eating it? Or is that only for certain foods.

I'm from the USA so food here is terrible filled with things that make you overweight. I know we have food that can also help lose weight and is healthy but it's never part of our main diet.

I also plan on doing a cleansing and a lot of exercising when I get there.

Has anyone else lost weight just from living there with or without exercising? How much weight if you don't mind me asking.

I know that Japanese food is one of the healthiest on the planet but is it true you can lose weight by just simply living there and eating it?

Certainly not me! I have been gaining many kilograms since coming to Japan. And this despite eating mostly healthy and well-balanced Japanese food. But often I am eating too much of it, sit in front of the PC most of the day on many days, and also enjoy the Japanese drinking culture a lot.

Or is that only for certain foods.

Indeed, Japanese food consists of a huge variety of dishes, including many that are not considered particularly healthy. I think it is traditional Japanese food that is considered healthy. More importantly, it depends on how much you eat, that you eat a good balance of foods and on your physical activities. If your lifestyle is not well balanced at home, it is unlikely to change in Japan - unless your new Japanese life forces you to adapt a more healthy lifestyle.

I think it depends on the person.

Every time I visit I always lose weight but I come from a background that's used to eating rice almost everyday and I walk A LOT more in Japan than I do in America. I'm a person that loves to walk everyday (even if I'm just in my homestay's neighborhood). I don't walk as much in America since I literally need a car to get anywhere in the area I live in.

Two of my friends however gained weight during their stays. They blamed a lot of it on the rice since both of them come from backgrounds where rice is hardly eaten unlike in Japan where it's eaten with every meal. Also one of them didn't walk around very much and spend a lot of time in-doors.

In the end I think it's just the same as anywhere else. If you eat in moderation and exercise then you can lose weight no matter where you live. It is true that Japanese food is much healthier but if you don't exercise on top of it then you can still easily gain weight in the country.

If Japan were the magic cure for obesity everybody would come here...
There's an increasing number of obese in Japan actually.
I also put on weight since I came here. The reason is that Japanese food is indeed very low-calories requiring you to eat a lot of it in order to feel sate.
I'm talking in Western standards of course... Japanese are fine with five plates of kaiten sushi while I need at least twenty plates to feel sate... it's tricky.
And rice is always round the corner.
Unless you're strong enough to stick to "Japanese portions" exercise remains the only option.

It doesn't matter what cuisine you eat; it's simply a matter of burning more calories than you consume. Get a calorie counter app (My Fitness Pal is popular here in Australia) and input all your food and exercise for the day (it will calculate a recommended calorie intake depending on your current weight, lifestyle and weight loss goals). As long as calories out is more than calories in, you'll lose weight.

And you could still eat healthy in America - try cooking for yourself. It's the easiest way to control your calorie intake, and if you use fresh ingredients you can avoid all that corn syrup. You could even cook Japanese food!

Yes, you can lose weight in Japan even you eat all you want.
What is the catch? By walking almost all day as a tourist.

I totally pigged out on my last trip to Tokyo. Eating almost anything that catches my eyes, including cream filled crepes, ice cream, mochi, parfaits in addition to my regular 3 meals...and lost weight. It's no magic though, I walked till my feet grew blisters and I'm pretty sure I've never walked so much in my life.

Exercise is the key. On normal days (if you live there as a resident), you might not walk as much as a tourist, so it's still important to exercise portion control.

Japanese food is pretty high in sugar. I tended to put on weight each trip but I think a lot of that was from having the big beers with lunch then a few more at night, also eating big three meals a day and snacks in between. My last few trips I've been a little more restrained and I havent put on weight at all. A lot of green tea icecream has gone uneaten...

I had ice cream every single day in my 3-week trip. I didn't gain anything but didn't lose anything either. Walked about 8-10 hours a day.

A Japanese friend and I had this conversation once about North American vs Japanese meals. She has been in the US and lived in Canada for a while. Part of the reason why North Americans are much heavier is because their food portions are out of control. In Japanese meals, at least according to her, they do have lots of side dishes but the portions are small. You don't ask to take leftover food home when you eat a restaurant in Japan because everything is consumed there and in adequate portions. In restaurants in North America, you do have the option to do that as not to waste anything. So sometimes it's not so much the type of cuisine but how much you're putting in your body.

Personally the best way is to eat until you are 70%-80% full regardless of cuisine.

It totally is like magic: I lost about 30 pounds between the time I moved here and bought a scale (maybe two months), and I wasn't particularly big to start with. I ate whatever I wanted, big katsu-dons, lots of fatty foods from the bread section, etc. and I actually think I walked less than I did in college before coming.

Probably part of it is that the portions are smaller though you don't really notice. But I think another part is that you eat a lot less corn syrup and things compared to the States even if you're eating relatively unhealthily here.

As others have said your mileage will vary. I've known Americans who have managed to put on weight after coming to Japan, but generally I find that they tend to be drinking quite heavily here.

yes and no, every time i visit for just 2-3 weeks i will lose a noticeable amount, but i put this down to 1.eating less 2. eating totally healthy 3. being active all day.

my last trip was one month hardcore travelling and hiking and i lost a lot of weight, but then had a month in tokyo and put it all back on.

well, for me... When I went to Japan in September for 6 weeks I lost 13 pounds while I was there. No unusual amount of walking but maybe more active than usual..

My diet consisted of Mr Donut every morning with ramen for lunch and home cooked Japanese for dinner almost every day.. Usually big pots of soupy stews with veges and a tiny bit of meat/fish..

When I came to Japan on holiday as a tourist I lost 3kg in a week from all the walking I was doing. Now I live here I have not lost anything, in fact I've gained a kilo or two. Living is much different to traveling, as you get into a daily routine and aren't walking as much. As a rule Japanese food has less fat in it than Western food, if you stay away from fast foods like okonomiyaki/tempura and packaged ramen, but there are a lot of temptations here in the form of sweets - delicious cheesecakes and crepes everywhere! Also junk food is cheaper here compared to my home country (Australia) so as a junk food lover it's always hard to resist buying chocolate at the supermarket because it's so cheap. The main difference between food in Japan and the West is the portion size, Japanese people eat much smaller portions and don't snack as much between meals. So if you eat small portions, resist sweets and do a lot of walking you will lose weight. Also calorie counting in Japan can be difficult as many products do not list the calories, and the ones that do list the calories per 100g so it can be difficult to calculate especially as some products don't list the total grams or ml on the packaging.

I gained 10 pounds while I was in Japan for 3 months and I barely ate out because I did a home stay.

If you commit to eating healthy and exercising in Japan as you say and you have weight to lose, it's very likely that you will lose weight however, a commitment to eating healthy and exercising will help you lose weight in the US, as well. If you're choosing a healthy lifestyle, it doesn't really matter what country you're in.

But I do find that Japan actually has a lot MORE sweets and fattening choices than the US. Japanese also really love fried food and mayonnaise, so you can eat Japanese food and gain a lot of weight depending on what foods you choose.

in elementary school time, Japanese children have been forced to eat many different kinds of foods as school lunch. "that was a duty". then, in final, Japanese eat wide varieties of foods. some are very greasy. but if you don't eat such greasy food everyday, you may not gain more weights. change foods everyday.
I think school lunch is everything. that has decided the current results.
also, there are athletic programs (at all grade of schools) and a few cooking programs. All Japanese have learned.

I lose weight when I am in Japan.
Reasons are probably
1. I eat the same portion as the next Japanese person
2. Somehow in Japan, I am too busy travelling to bother about snacking
3. I walk when I travel
4. I visit hot springs, and if my hotel has one I visit at least three times for every night stayed
5. I don't drink, eat Tempura, hamburger steak, etc

Extra, Wagyu beef fat is unsaturated, the good kind that Olive oil is said to have.

Thanks for all of the answers guys! I almost forgot that I posted this question and you guys responded so quickly. My apologies for the delayed response.

Yes, I know that it depends on how much you eat there and that of course a bit of weight management is involved. The reason why I asked this was because in America, there are so many additives and other things in all of our foods where as Japanese has far less and more naturals.

You're all right about America's food portions being outrageous. So hopefully in Japan if I eat the same amount that they eat along with some light exercise, I will lose some weight.

I'm a male, before leaving to Japan my weight was 160, after returning back to the State my weight was 140. beside their food being healthy and food portion smaller and juice served at the restaurants is smaller. I did a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot hourssss of walking.

lol yes Japanese food is a healthier than the U.S. But I think U.S. food tastes better. Foods are sweeter and saltier. Japanese dessert suck in my opinion and all the western foods in Japan have been adapted to meet the Japanese taste buds which is less sweeter and saltier than the U.S.

However, I don't think that's main factor in losing weight in Japan. I think "portions" is the main factor. A meal in the U.S. is probably double the size of that in Japan. So food is more expensive in Japan. I've actually been serious in getting fit lately. Like bodybuilding fit, not to the level of Arnold, but aesthetics. I think it's much easier to get fit in Japan than it is in the U.S. because of the smaller portions here.

If anything, count your calories and you'll be fine. Find out body's daily calorie intake. Eat less to lose weight, eat more to gain weight, eat the right amount to maintain. For example, my daily intake is around 2,500 calories. To maintain my weight, I eat 2,500, to gain, 3,000, to lose weight, 2,000. Of course no all calories are created equally, but you get the point.