Who wants to lose weight only to gain that weight back and possibly even more? And yes, that's what many people do, simply because they don't understand how diets affect the body and how to truly achieve lasting body change.
It has been shown that between 80% and 95% of dieters regain their lost weight. Why is this? It has a lot to do with your metabolism. The metabolism is the rate in which your body burns off and utilizes calories (energy). To lose weight you must have a calorie deficit. You have to take in less calories than your body requires so that it is forced to use its energy reserves to make up the difference. Many people assume that this means fat is lost in the process, but this is the most overlooked issue with calorie counters. Sure, fat will be lost, but your precious muscle will also be lost in the process. When you look at the research on diets you will find that anywhere between 20% to 50% of the weight you lose will be something other than fat. This has dramatic consequences for your metabolism. When you begin dieting, your metabolism will begin to compensate for itself. God placed this protective mechanism in our bodies for survival reasons. You eat less and your body compensates by making you more hungry. Your energy begins to suffer and your feel cravings for sweet, salty, and fatty foods. Does any of this sound familiar? These relentless cravings makes following your diet very difficult! But even worse than this, your metabolism has now put on its brakes. It is all but done! Your daily calorie burn rate has slowed down to a crawl. Dieting can even lead to metabolic damage, but that will be another blog.
There is also a hormonal issue involved with dieting. When you diet your hormone insulin is affected. Basically, insulin is a substance produced in the pancreas that helps the body use sugars, but insulin can also act as a hunger hormone. Other hormones are affected as well and they respond by increasing your hunger and cravings and slowing down your metabolism as well. What a mess you have made!
What can you do? I'm glad you ask. When you are trying to lose weight you must eat your protein. Studies have shown that a higher protein diet helps offset the decline in your metabolic rate that occurs with dieting. Try to make sure you're getting protein with each of your meals. Also, eat foods with a lower glycemic amount. This means getting most of your carbohydrates from non-starchy vegetables, low sugar fruits, oats and beans.
Increase your physical activity! Specifically resistance training. Muscle increases your metabolism. The more muscle you have the higher your resting metabolic rate. This means that when you're sitting down to watch television, you are actually burning calories thanks to your muscles. A little muscle fact: one pound of muscle uses about six calories a day just to sustain itself. Muscles eat up calories, so don't be afraid to pick up those dumbbells!
You want to exercise smart though. Exercise in a way that doesn't stimulate your appetite. I like to use H.I.I.T (high intensity interval training) with most of my clients because it maintains muscle and focuses on fat loss. It also helps balance hormones so that you're not hungry as much, your energy is raised, cravings are reduced, and fat is lost. This is the proper and safe way to lose weight without hurting your metabolism and losing precious muscle.
Stroud Fitness
Leslie
