I found this article that disspells five weight loss rules we need to re-think in order to actually achieve our weight loss goals. They are actually seemingly obvious, if you ask me, but things we all seem to forget once we get wrapped up in all the weight loss trends and fads that we feed into on a daily basis.
Here are a few from the article, with the link for more below.
"Old rule: A calorie is a calorie.
New rule: All calories are not created equal.
It is true that if you take in more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. But it’s also true that the nutritional quality of those calories plays a big role in how many calories your body burns. So if you’re simply counting calories without looking at the nutritional value of what you’re eating, you’re asking for trouble.
Why? Because our bodies require a consistent balance of healthy macronutrients (complex carbs, high-quality proteins and healthy fats), as well as micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytochemicals), plus adequate enzymes, fiber, water, and so on in order to function optimally. When we don’t get these things, our energy levels drop, our hormones and neurotransmitters get imbalanced, and our metabolism stops working efficiently. We simply aren’t as healthy as we should be, and our bodies don’t regulate much of anything (including our weight and body composition) as well as they are designed to."
"Old rule: To lose weight, go on a diet.
New rule: To lose weight, choose to eat healthy.
Many weight-loss diets call for a dramatic reduction in daily caloric intake, which tends to deprive the body of the very nutrients it needs to effectively release and process unwanted fat. But eating too little or skipping meals has another extreme downside: It puts the body in a starvation-like “fat-conservation” mode.
When you take in fewer calories than are necessary to fuel your resting metabolic rate (the base amount of caloric energy your body requires while at rest), your body simply compensates by reducing your metabolic rate. Goodbye, caloric burn."
"Old rule: Eating fat will make you fat.
New rule: Good fats are your friend.
People have been holding forth on the evils of fat for so long now that many of us can’t indulge in something other than a low-fat yogurt or a couple of Snackwell’s cookies without feeling a Pavlovian sting of guilt. But avoiding fats is a mistake, according to biochemist and nutritionist Mary Enig, PhD, and nutrition researcher Sally Fallon, authors of Eat Fat, Lose Fat (Hudson Street Press, 2005). In fact, taking in an adequate supply of healthy fats is essential to proper body composition, whole-body health and long-term weight management.
One of the keys to losing weight, Enig and Fallon assert, is to understand the differences between bad fats (notably trans fats and rancid fats, found in most processed foods) and good fats (including monounsaturated fats, like those found in nuts, seeds and fish. They also advise eating small to moderate amounts of saturated fat, the kind found in real butter, cream, grass-fed meats and virgin coconut oil). Enig and Fallon recognize that it can seem counterintuitive that our bodies need fat in order to burn fat, but they say - and a great many other notable nutrition experts agree - that we must get over our fear of good fats if our bodies are to function properly."
What do you think? Can these new rules help you lose weight?
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/weight-loss-rules-to-rethink.html?&page=2
posted @ Monday, October 12, 2009 10:20 PM