The Diets That Really Work - The Truth...
If you want to get and stay in shape, you should know that all diets that really work in the long term have one thing in common: they develop new nutrition habits and a certain awareness about your food consumption.
I know that most diet authors try to portray an ideal world where calories don't matter if you follow their rules, but unfortunately the reality is different.
In fact, most diets that really work (but only a few months) are designed on the same principle: they tell you that calories don't matter, but at the end they trick you somehow to reduce them by changing the way you eat.
Whether you eat more fiber or more protein (which are more filling), or cut certain foods from your diet (which are usually packed with calories), or you don't combine certain foods at the same meal (usually fat with carbohydrates), or you eat at certain times, the result is always the same.
At the end of the day, there should be a calorie deficit or you won't lose any weight – unless you violate the basic low of thermodynamics.
It's important to note that your body composition may improve even if your calorie intake equals (or is slightly greater) your expenditure, but there will be no obvious change when you step on the scale.
And yet, most nutrition gurus simply prefer to understate this obvious fact, and emphasize instead other individual aspects of human physiology in order to explain the weight loss magic.
Low-fat diet books will bring up the fact that dietary fat is stored more easily in your adipose tissue, which is true but not relevant. In reality you lose weight because you restrict calorie dense foods such as lard or peanut butter, so there is no magic.
On the other hand, low-carb diet proponents usually focus on insulin, and portray this hormone as being the evil that makes you obese. And guess what happens when you restrict a nutrient that may represent around 50% of your total calories...
Personally, besides that this approach is intellectually disingenuous, I don't have any problem with it as long as it yields results. But unfortunately, it won't bear fruit indefinitely for two reasons:
As mentioned, all diets that really work have to create somehow a calorie deficit or otherwise no weight will be lost.
However, as this fact is not explicitly stated, there will be an initial weight loss followed by a plateau and weight regain because dieters will gradually compensate by eating more of the “healthy stuff”.
That is how our brain functions, and this is probably the main reason why most diets fail.
Secondly, as you lose weight, your calorie intake should decrease as well because your energy maintenance changes. But when you are told to eat as much as you want, do you think you will ever pay attention to this little detail?
So when you finally realize that your fad diet doesn't work anymore, maybe you should get serious and start measuring the variables.
I know, it's not fun to weight food or count calories. But hey, it's your choice... Do you want to stay fat or continue your weight loss journey?
If you really care about getting fit, logically, this should be your next step. Don't worry, it's not such a pain in the ass...
After a few weeks this process will become automatic, and you will be able to estimate your calorie consumption without measuring or weighting anything. Plus, you will have this skill for the rest of your life.
Having at least an idea about the main variables (overall calories and protein intake) will help you to have a better control over your nutrition plan, and therefore you will know what to expect in terms of results.
Bear in mind that macronutrient ratio should be chosen according to your body type or a particular context, and not to be in line with the latest nutrition trend.
Instead of nonsensical pseudo-science, the diets that really work in the long term should provide objective information, so you can implement permanent changes in your life.
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