Unveiling the Truth: Busting Common Myths about Weight Loss”

There is no shortage of weight loss advice. As wide and varied as the opinions are it is easy to feel overwhelmed and not know who to believe, or where to start.

 

Instead of fixating on individual opinions, let’s identify the most effective course of action for you. Because what gets lasting results is really all that matters, and what I’ll talk about here.

 

I’m not here to make empty promises or get you to buy into something that doesn’t work.

 

There is no shortage of misconceptions about the best way to lose weight. I’m going to address the ones that contine to crop up in my practice.

Facts vs Myths

 

Myth: Calories cause weight gain, so eating fewer calories is the key to shedding pounds

 

Fact: Your caloric  intake will affect your body composition.  If you consistantly eat more calories than your body can use you will end up storing them for future use. Calories do matter.

 

However, while important, weight loss is not solely dependent on how many calories you consume. Other factors play a role in why people eat more calorie than they need. Let’s look at some underlying reasons.

 

Hunger vs Appetite; Hunger is physical, that sometimes gnawing, rumbling stomach you can feel ( and hear) when you have gone too long without food. Appetite, though is different, it is more of an emotional desire to eat.

 

A person may have an appetite because they are bored, or feeling sad or alone.  Or they may be feeling stressed out or need a shot of energy. And don’t forget about happy occasions where celebrating,  (often around food), is the name of the game.  And all these emotions create hormonal responses that influence what, when and how much we consume.

 

Myth: A calorie is a calorie

 

 

Fact: No, it simply isn’t and the sooner we finally retire this false hope the better. Is there ANYONE who still believes that a 100-calorie serving of white bread has the same benefits as 100 calories of chicken breast?  Or, even that 100 calories from potato chips have the same effect on the body as 100 calories of a baked potato?

 

Several caloric components of food have been scientifically shown to differ from others. One example is the “thermic effect of food” (TEF), which is how much energy is required to digest and metabolize each nutrient.

 

For example, Proteins and carbohydrates both have 4 calories/gram; BUT, the process of digesting  protein uses more calories than digesting carbohydrates.  So, while the TEF for carbohydrates is only 5–10%, the TEF of protein is 15–30%;.

 

Here’s another example of not all calories being equal. Some fats are metabolized differently than others.  All fats have 9 calories per gram, but MCT’s or Medium chain triglycerides are  rapidly absorbed in the digestive system and transported to the liver, where they can be quickly metabolized for energy. This means that they are less likely to be stored as body fat compared to other forms of fat.

 

Myth: Carbs are the enemy of weight loss 

Fact: Certain carbs can sabotage your weight loss efforts especially if you consume too many of them. However,  carbs are still essential for good health. Fiber, a component found only in carbohydrates helps fill you up and keeps you full longer so you eat less, plus it helps with digestive health, immunity, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels, lowering blood pressure, and reducing inflammation. Not to mention many high-carb foods are considered superfoods due to their nutrient profiles.

 

Myth: Eating fat makes you fat

Fact: While fat is higher in calories than carbohydrates and protein, as long as your fat intake doesn’t exceed your physical needs it won’t cause weight gain. In fact, our body needs fat to function (called essential fats). And without dietary fat, we are unable to absorb certain vitamins such as A D E &K. In addition, healthy fats have a range of benefits including heart health, skin health, and brain function among others.

Myth: This supplement/tea/food/secret formula will melt the fat right off

Bottles of colorful elixers

 

Fact: There is no magic supplement or potion that actually works to shed the pounds

 

Yes, there certainly are a rash of products that come out every day that make these claims but they simply are playing on the desperation of their audience to make a quick buck. And next month there will be a brand new ”discovery”. Falling for their marketing will help you lose. Your money, absolutely, your confidence, your belief in yourself, quite possibly, but not the excess weight. So, please don’t fall for these marketing ploys.

The real magic is in adopting a healthy, everything-in-moderation approach to living your life. What you need are long-term lifestyle tweaks that are realistic and sustainable within the framework of your everyday life.

So don’t fall for the myths that say:

  • Fewer calories are always the path to weight loss.
  • All calories are created equal
  • Eating carbs makes you gain weight
  • Eating fat makes you gain weight
  • Buy this miraculous slimming elixer/ supplement/ tea to melt the melt the weight right off.

 

Call today and let’s talk about your life and identify tweaks you can make to get on the road to realistic and sustainable weight loss.

 

 

 

Please follow ,share and like us: