November N.Y.R. - Need To Lose Weight? Never Cut Calories!!

If you want to permanently loose weight don't follow a Calorie-restricted Diet!!
You've likely tried some sort of calorie-restricted diet plan since there are currently over 2,000 diet books to choose from. Do people simply eat too much? Nope. The reason obesity is becoming epidemic isn't how much we eat, it's what and when we eat. The great news is that you don't have to starve or punish yourself with hours in the gym to lose weight. HOWEVER, you do need to learn how to eat right in order to bring your body back into balance so that it will function at an optimal level.

Restricting Calories can over-stress your body
By restricting calories, important hormones and enzymes are disrupted. Skipping meals elevates stress hormones followed by releasing stored glycogen from the liver into the blood to raise your blood sugar. If this stress signal is repeated, (yo-yoing between high and low blood sugar) your body is not in an ideal state for losing weight. Eating too many carbs or not enough of the right foods keeps insulin levels high (the body thinks: famine! store energy!) and extra calories can get stored in fat cells. Inactive muscles adds to the problem and you become progressively insulin resistant. A red flag for insulin resistance is fat accumulating in the middle of your body. From there, muscles and fat cells become progressively less sensitive to insulin, blood sugar rises forcing the pancreas to overwork. Eventually, you'll become a Type II diabetic!

This whole process keeps you in a 'fight-or-flight' mode that will leave you tired. Inevitably, people use coffee, soda and sweets to compensate for the energy deficit. Then your adrenal glands get exhausted and chronic fatigue symptoms could result.

Counting Calories approach is seriously flawed
50-70% of all the calories you consume are used to generate the heat and life energy to keep your cells working! Another 5-15% is needed for digestion and elimination. Another variable is the X-Factor or your daily activities and individual body functions based on genetic, hormonal and environmental factors. If you follow fad diets or eat incorrectly for your metabolic type, your blood sugar balance is disrupted, energy production is inefficient and your cells must slow down because your meal is causing stress on your body instead of aiding in smooth operations.
Without the right mix and adequate fuel, you drastically increase your chances of slowing your metabolism and becoming fat.

The link between when you eat and your health
For most, particularly women wanting to restore or elevate their metabolic rate, breakfast should be the largest meal of the day, comprising as much as 25% of your daily calories. All breakfast meals must contain proteins, carbohydrates and fats in the correct ratio for your metabolic type. A proper breakfast provides staying power and energy. Snacks between meals that constantly reassure your body that energy and nutrition are on board often results in an elevated metabolism.

Constantly hungry?
If you are constantly hungry and have gained weight from eating too much you may really be thirsty. In his book, Your body's Many Cries For Water, Dr Batmanghelidj explains that hunger pangs are frequently a symptom of dehydration. Drinking water gives you energy and aids in digestion, enzymatic actions and energy production throughout the body. You are also less likely to consume soda and pick-me-up foods that throw off your blood sugar and cause stress on the body.

Here's what you need to do to lose weight:
1. Eat right for your metabolic type and never diet! (see my May NYR post for info)
2. Eat regularly to satisfy hunger. Consume slightly smaller main meals and include snacks to elevate your metabolic rate.
3. Eat high-quality food
4. Drink plenty of water. Half your body weight in ounces of water per day.
5. Move! Start and maintain an exercise program or take the stairs and walk often.
6. Go to sleep by 10:30pm. Disrupting your sleep/wake cycles puts more stress on your body and increases weight gain because of hormonal imbalances (see August NYR post for info)
7. Give away or recycle your diet books!!