There are plenty of books written about all the different types of diets available. The Atkins, South Beach, Keto, Paleo, Vegan, Vegetarian, Low Carb etc. It’s difficult to understand which one is the right one for you. But, that is the most important part. Each individual is unique and each diet is unique as well. But, there is one catch. The word diet. Diet is meant to be temporary. The definition accordingly to google is “a special course of food to which one restricts oneself, either to lose weight or for medical reasons”. This means it is only temporary until the health goal is achieved. That’s why I like to focus on lifestyle in addition to diet. And the same principle applies. Each lifestyle is unique to each person as each person has their own genetic makeup, body size, habits, and lifestyle. It has to be catered to you.
BUT, one thing I do notice about all diets is the misconception that to lose weight you drop the calorie consumption. And, by that I mean drastically eat less in order to lose the weight. I see women barely eating in a day, in hopes they can lose weight as fast as possible.
STOP, please.
This is dangerous and detrimental to health. Your body requires calories to live. You need to consume a specific set number of calories each day just to function. Just to pump your heart, get oxygen to your brain, move your body, think clearly, and digest nutrients. This number of calories is unique to each person and is based on weight, age, height and gender. It is called your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and is used to determine how many calories you need to consume to maintain vital body functions at rest. Which includes brain function, breathing, heart rate, etc. Pretty important stuff, hence why you have difficulty concentrating and thinking clearly when you don’t eat enough. It is usually at least 1500 calories for adults.
Once you establish what this level is, you discover how active you are and then modify the total. BUT, you would never remove more than 15% of calories, so you would still ideally be consuming 1500 calories on a daily basis.
I think I should explain that if you consume less than 1500 calories per day, or less than your BMR, your body goes into starvation mode. It goes into fight or flight mode and survival mode. Your body literally thinks there is a crisis and will shut down bodily functions it does not think it needs. This includes digestion, immune and reproductive systems. Hence why people who don’t eat that much, no longer get hungry and they also not only have difficulty getting pregnant but can have a host of all kinds of different hormonal imbalances.
Shutting down the immune system means your body is more susceptible to illness and infections, hence why a lot of times you can be stressed and suddenly your body gets sick. It’s your body’s way of telling you to slow down. The other problem is that once the body receives food, it starts hoarding it for a later date. It starts storing all the food as fat to prepare for survival. So, most people think that if they eat less, they will lose the weight, but in reality, they often have difficulty losing any weight, even though they may be eating the healthiest, cleanest diet.
This is why you have to calculate how many calories your specific body needs to function, and then go from there. Then just for a few days, count your calories and track what you are eating to give you a rough estimate the amount you are consuming. Once you have a rough idea, you can ditch the calorie counting and eat freely. Focus on whole grains, healthy fats, high quality protein and ample amounts of fresh vegetables and fruits. If you stick to these types of foods and eating 3 meals a day plus 2 snacks, you will find yourself losing and shedding the weight that previously you were holding on to.
The overall goal here is to eat the right amount of food to meet what your body needs to function. Don’t overeat and don’t under eat, find that middle ground. A lot of the time these diets get results because you have reduced the refined sugar, processed carbohydrates and all that other junk food. This is where the majority of those empty calories come from. The reason these temporary diets fail is because they are focused on deprivation. When deprived, your body starts craving all the other foods leading to that late night bingeing. It’s not sustainable long term. Focus on increasing high quality protein and healthy fats, and make sure you are eating enough. Don’t forget to do all the other fun things that are important like drinking water, moving your body and then watch the weight fall off. Remember, you are beautiful just the way you are. Most of the time the symptoms of imbalance that comes from undereating and dieting can be resolved by just eating a little bit more of the RIGHT foods. <3
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Happy everyday！
Great content! Keep up the good work!