Each New Year, thousands and thousands of people get on the resolution bandwagon and vow to lose weight. Some will hit the gym, some will go to join a dieting group, some will drink more water, some will eat more veggies, and almost all of them will eat less. Almost all of them will fail to reach their goal. Will this be you? If you change one thing about your weight loss goals, you need to eat more.
Yes, I said it; you need to eat more, not less. The old calories in, calories out mindset doesn’t work anymore. New research shows that it is more about when you put the calories in and the type of calories that you consume that will determine your weight loss success.
So let’s talk about more….you’re probably imagining a larger plate with more food on it. We’d all be thin as a rail if that was the case!! No, I’m talking about eating smaller meals more frequently. Some of our clients say they feel like they are grazing all day long. I know, I know, you’ve heard this before. What you haven’t heard is the why.
When you go long period between meals, more than 4 hours; you force your body into starvation mode. Your body isn’t receiving food (a.k.a. energy) regularly, so rather than use the energy (a.k.a. food) it is given, it stores all of those calories to be used in the future. The less you consume and the more infrequently you consume foods the more your body stores the extra calories. Any calorie that can’t be used is stored as fat.
Eating infrequently also puts you on the blood sugar roller coaster. When your blood sugar is low your body sends a chemical message to your brain that you need more sugar. So what do you crave? Sugar. Remember that bread, pasta, rice and other “bad” carbohydrates are packed full of sugar. Foods that are high on the glycemic index, that is, food that quickly spike your blood sugar are also stored as fat because your body can’t use all of the energy (a.k.a. sugar) that these foods deliver. Remember, any calorie that your body can’t use right away will be stored as fat for later use.
Good news, the solution is simple. Eating smaller meals every 2-3 hours can help you lose weight quickly. When you are eating regularly your metabolism is going to get the message that it needs to be working. There is food coming in regularly, your body is not given signals to store food and therefore will increase your metabolism to burn more calories. I know it sounds backwards…eat more food to lose more weight, but I promise it happens.
When you eat more regularly you are setting yourself up to make better food choices. Waiting until you are starved is setting yourself up for failure, you are bound to make bad food choices if you wait until you are hungry to eat. Eating before you are hungry allows you to make better choices when you open up the fridge.
Take some time to plan. This isn’t a free for all. You still need to be eating real, whole food. Snacking on Cheez-Its won’t help you lose weight. Fruits, veggies, nuts and dried fruit are a great place to start looking at snacks. Keep feeding your body good nutrition and your body will continue to feed you well.
Yes, I said it; you need to eat more, not less. The old calories in, calories out mindset doesn’t work anymore. New research shows that it is more about when you put the calories in and the type of calories that you consume that will determine your weight loss success.
So let’s talk about more….you’re probably imagining a larger plate with more food on it. We’d all be thin as a rail if that was the case!! No, I’m talking about eating smaller meals more frequently. Some of our clients say they feel like they are grazing all day long. I know, I know, you’ve heard this before. What you haven’t heard is the why.
When you go long period between meals, more than 4 hours; you force your body into starvation mode. Your body isn’t receiving food (a.k.a. energy) regularly, so rather than use the energy (a.k.a. food) it is given, it stores all of those calories to be used in the future. The less you consume and the more infrequently you consume foods the more your body stores the extra calories. Any calorie that can’t be used is stored as fat.
Eating infrequently also puts you on the blood sugar roller coaster. When your blood sugar is low your body sends a chemical message to your brain that you need more sugar. So what do you crave? Sugar. Remember that bread, pasta, rice and other “bad” carbohydrates are packed full of sugar. Foods that are high on the glycemic index, that is, food that quickly spike your blood sugar are also stored as fat because your body can’t use all of the energy (a.k.a. sugar) that these foods deliver. Remember, any calorie that your body can’t use right away will be stored as fat for later use.
Good news, the solution is simple. Eating smaller meals every 2-3 hours can help you lose weight quickly. When you are eating regularly your metabolism is going to get the message that it needs to be working. There is food coming in regularly, your body is not given signals to store food and therefore will increase your metabolism to burn more calories. I know it sounds backwards…eat more food to lose more weight, but I promise it happens.
When you eat more regularly you are setting yourself up to make better food choices. Waiting until you are starved is setting yourself up for failure, you are bound to make bad food choices if you wait until you are hungry to eat. Eating before you are hungry allows you to make better choices when you open up the fridge.
Take some time to plan. This isn’t a free for all. You still need to be eating real, whole food. Snacking on Cheez-Its won’t help you lose weight. Fruits, veggies, nuts and dried fruit are a great place to start looking at snacks. Keep feeding your body good nutrition and your body will continue to feed you well.
