Research on the causes of obesity, knowledge of weight loss, and various diets for weight loss are updated every year. However, with the updating of knowledge and the introduction of one slimming drug after another, the obesity rate continues to rise every year, with no sign of a decline.
I've tried the common boiled meals, eat less, move more, and so on, but it wasn't until I tried other diets that I managed to lose weight. After I lost weight, I began to study the essence and method of weight loss and wrote him in this weight loss tips article; I hope to help you.
A Few Key Mistakes in Weight Loss
Eat less and exercise more to lose weight.
The phrase “eat less, exercise more” is correct, but most people are carrying out the wrong. Many people think that everything has to be eaten less, so they limit their calories to a very low level. Then, regarding the part of moving more, the first thing that comes to mind are running, cycling, and another aerobic exercise, but these are not very long-term and easy to regain weight, mainly because eating too little is an easy reason to lose muscle mass, coupled with aerobic training for muscle growth does not help, resulting in the metabolism of the whole decline too much.
Maybe you can lose 5 kilograms this way, but with your metabolism dropping, you will easily gain back the weight. And backup up will be fat, not your loss of muscle, so you look fatter than before, this is what we call the yo-yo effect: lose weight, regain weight, become fatter than before, then lose weight, then regain weight, in becoming fatter than before.
Stop Taking Weight Loss Pills and Meal Replacements
At this point, you may start looking for other ways, such as eating weight-loss meal replacements, taking weight-loss pills, and other things. But believe me, most diet pills will inevitably hurt your body, especially the gastrointestinal tract. You may lose weight at the moment, but when the GI tract is damaged, you will become fatter than before.
All in all, I still recommend you to read this article on how to lose weight, which guarantees that you will learn how to eat healthily, lose weight happily, and stay in good shape forever.
The Key to Understanding How to Lose Weight
You must have wondered why some people can't gain weight no matter how they eat, while others gain a kilogram the next day after eating a little bread. What are the causes of obesity? This is not just a simple answer that can be solved!
As you can see below, this picture is mainly about the influence factor of obesity, which is very, very complicated.
In the center of this picture is the heat balance. So we can see that heat balance is very important. But this article doesn't keep advocating that calorie balance is the key to weight loss like other sites do!
If you don't know what caloric balance is, you can probably imagine that our body has to consume calories (exercise, heat production, basal metabolism) and caloric intake (eating).
When the calorie consumption is greater than the calorie intake, the weight will fall, so the truth of losing weight is to eat less and move more, very simple. Short-term really can rely on eating less and moving more to simply achieve the effect of weight loss, but simple is not simple because the body's operation is very complex. Many people think that they can control their calorie consumption, think that running all the time can achieve a very large amount of calorie expenditure, think that eating fairy meals (low-calorie meals) can reduce calorie intake and then easily lose weight.
However, according to research, 90% of people who use calorie control and eat less and move more to lose weight will fail or gain weight again.
This is because if you eat less and move more for too long, your metabolism will easily decline, your hormones will easily become imbalanced, and you will easily lose muscle mass, so even if you lose 10 kilograms of weight, you will still gain it back easily.
When you lose weight, your body is like a factory!
For me, the key to long-term weight loss and maintaining good health is the internal environment, such as hormones, the level of inflammation in the body, and the gastrointestinal system.
Think of your body as a factory.
- Your hormones are the factory manager and the workers.
- Inflammation is how well the factory machinery and hardware are working.
- Heat intake is the factory's payroll and fuel.
Hormones vs Weight Loss
This study examines the effect of sleep on weight loss:
Research Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20921542
Both groups were calorie-restricted, but one group slept 5.5 hours a night, and the other slept 8.5 hours. Both groups lost weight, but the group that slept less lost 55% less body fat and 65% more muscle mass than the group that slept more. This is equivalent to weight loss, but most of the weight loss is muscle mass, which makes the metabolism decline and makes it easier to regain weight later.
The main reason for such a big difference is that poor sleep harms growth hormones, insulin, leptin, and the degree of inflammation in the body, and these things are not secreted properly, which will make it easy to gain fat and lose muscle.
The next study addresses the effect of insulin sensitivity on body composition. Research Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19471290.
A lot of chronic metabolic diseases, obesity, and poor muscle-building results are very much related to insulin insensitivity. Insulin is an anti-catabolic hormone whose main function is to store nutrients in cells. For example, after retraining, our muscles will be more sensitive to insulin, and the nutrients we eat will be more easily absorbed into our muscles. When insulin sensitivity is low, the nutrients we eat are more likely to accumulate as fat and less likely to be absorbed into our muscles.
We can simplify this by saying that the nutrients from food eaten by insulin-insensitive people are more likely to accumulate as fat, and the relative amount of fat will be much higher than the amount of muscle.
Simply put, the key to weight loss is to improve hormones, improve inflammation in the body, and, at the same time, add an appropriate caloric deficit. A calorie deficit is not difficult to achieve, but the more difficult part is how to choose the right type of food for your body to improve your hormones and achieve a good body shape in the long run.
If you only pursue short-term weight loss and rely on a lot of calorie deficits to achieve the effect of weight loss, and then after the loss of hormones is still abnormal, then I guarantee you will find it very easy to regain weight.
There are so many diets on the internet, which one should I try?
Thirty years ago in Taiwan, when it came to weight loss, everyone wanted to use boiled meals; five years ago, when it came to weight loss, everyone might think of a low-carbohydrate diet, and in the last two to three years, when it comes to weight loss, everyone might directly associate it with a ketogenic diet; however, after a long time of my understanding of weight loss-related research, genetics, and observation of students, no diet is the most suitable for everyone! Although it is said that high-carbohydrate food will stimulate insulin secretion, which will promote the storage of nutrients into fat, some people are born with the ability to metabolize carbohydrates very well, so they eat a lifetime of high-carbohydrate can still be very healthy and strong.
This study compares the responses of people with high and low insulin sensitivity to a high-carb and low-carb diet. Research Source: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1038/oby.2005.79
Research concludes:
For people with high insulin sensitivity, eating a high-carb, low-fat diet is very helpful for weight loss
While insulin-insensitive people who use a high-carb, low-fat diet to lose weight do not lose weight as well.
However, on the contrary, studies have also shown that people with low insulin sensitivity can lose weight very well on a low-carb, high-fat diet, which shows that improving insulin is very important for weight loss and also shows that people with insulin insensitivity are more suitable for weight loss on a high carb diet.
So if you have been obese for a long time, know that you eat carbohydrates easily to gain weight, or know that your family tends to have diabetes and want to lose fat, then I would suggest that you start by reducing carbohydrates, that is, what we call a low-carbon diet!
Conclusion: There is no best diet for weight loss, only the one that suits you best!
Diets that help you lose weight without counting calories: Low Carb Diets
Low-carbon diets, reduced-carbon diets, ultra-low-carbon diets, ketogenic diets...these diets all have one thing in common, which is to reduce the intake of carbohydrates to quickly improve blood glucose and insulin sensitivity problems.
Research Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16476868
About 450 people participated in the program, half of whom were on a low-carbon diet that did not count calories, and the other half were on a low-fat diet that did count calories. The results showed that the low-carb diet with no calories lost more weight than the low-fat diet with calorie restriction, and there was a significant improvement in every aspect of the body. This is mainly because eating less carbohydrates can bring us a sense of satiety, so we naturally do not want to eat too much, and weight loss occurs naturally.
This paragraph does not mean that calorie counting is not important, nor does it mean that low-fat diets are bad, but it means that low-carbon diets are very simple to implement, as long as you pick the right foods, you can lose weight. Therefore, the main goal of low-carbon diets is to pick the right foods to eat, and you can wait until you can't lose any more fat and hit a bottleneck to start the counting of calories part again.
Here are the steps to a low-carb diet:
- Reduce the intake of high-carbohydrate food
At the same time, the intake of carbohydrates will stimulate the secretion of insulin, which will lead to fat can not be effectively broken down. High-carbohydrate foods include all starches, root vegetables, fruits, milk, rice flour, flour products, thickening, and so on. Radishes and onions are not low in carbohydrates, but people think they don't have carbohydrates, so they need to be careful. Sugar is often added to external food for flavor, which may not be noticeable, but it is added quite a lot.
- Increase the intake of vegetables.
The best ways to cook vegetables are steaming, roasting, eating raw, stir-frying at low temperature, stir-frying at medium temperature, blanching, boiling, and deep-frying. Boiling and deep-frying vegetables will lose too many nutrients, which is tantamount to eating them plain. If you are eating out, I would recommend eating blanched vegetables instead of fried ones because the oil used for eating out is bad, and eating too much of it is a big burden to the body.
- Increase protein intake
Good Protein Sources Eggs, various types of meat, and fish are the three foods with the best protein digestibility and protein quality. Most animal sources of protein are good sources of protein, with a slightly better plant-based egg protein being soybeans.
- Eat the right amount of good fats.
Many people used to think that eating fat would be directly stored as fat, so it was very popular to eat a low-fat diet in the past, that is, to cook everything in water. But in fact, eating less fat will make the secretion of important hormones abnormal, so that the body can not function normally, and more and more studies have pointed out that it is bad fats and too many carbohydrates that cause obesity.
Bad sources of fat include:
- Trans fats (stated on packages of processed foods)
- Fried foods
- Oils that are too high in Omega-6 fatty acids (most vegetable oils except olive oil and coconut oil)
Good source of fat:
- Meat (good fats in all meats, except chicken fat, which is too high in n6 fatty acids)
- Avocados (great source of monounsaturated fatty acids, lots of micronutrients)
- Olive oil
- Coconut oil
- Avocado oil
There are two adjustments we can make to our diet; the first is the content of food choices, the low-carbon diet mentioned above is a good approach to food choices, and the second adjustment is the timing of eating. In the past, when it comes to weight loss, we may think of small and frequent meals because eating food frequently can increase metabolism and enhance the sense of satiety. However, as research progresses, it has been found that eating small, frequent meals does not have these benefits but rather is detrimental to most people who are trying to lose weight.
The definition of intermittent fasting is to shorten the time of eating every day.
The average person has about 12 hours a day to eat (8 am to 8 pm), and intermittent fasting usually reduces the eating time to less than eight hours, which is equivalent to 16 hours of fasting (16/8 fasting).
Through extended dieting, the body will:
- Increase growth hormone
- Lower fasting insulin
- Increase insulin sensitivity
- Increase adrenaline
- Increase autophagy
- Reduces inflammation
Daily Intermittent Fasting:
16/8 Fasting: 16 hours of fasting a day, 8 hours of eating.
18/6 Fasting: 18 hours of fasting a day, 6 hours of eating time.
These two types of fasting are the simplest, which is the concept of eating breakfast later and dinner earlier.
In the beginning, we will only ask you to do 16/8, and then we will gradually extend the fasting time.
Frequently asked questions about fasting:
What should I eat during eating/fasting?
While a diet is usually paired with a diet to stabilize the weight loss process, fasting can be paired with every other diet.
So, if you're already on a low-carb diet, this week is low-carb plus 18/6 fasting. You're eating whatever you want, and you're trying to choose as many prototypes as you can in the beginning, so you're eating prototypes during the fast and less processed foods.
During the fasting period, I just drank water and ate salt. Anything with calories is not allowed, so high protein and soy milk are not recommended during fasting. It is also not recommended to drink anything with very few calories, such as BCAAs and sugar-substituting beverages, and it is better not to use them during fasting. If you want to drink something with flavor, you can drink tea, a moderate amount of coffee, or lemonade squeezed by yourself.
Nutritional supplements such as vitamins can be taken as long as the enablers are OK, but it is better not to take them.
What should I do if I feel uncomfortable during fasting?
90% of the discomfort is due to low salt intake, so you can improve it by taking salt bars.
Instead of refined salt, rose salt, rock salt, and iodized salt are best. If you still feel uncomfortable, please ask your trainer.
Can I eat directly when I am too hungry during fasting?
You need to distinguish between hunger and cravings first. Hunger is when you want to eat, usually when you see food, smell food, or think about food. If you are hungry, you should drink some water first, and you will feel better after 30 minutes. If you are still hungry after 30 minutes, you can eat.
Another way to survive hunger is to keep yourself busy. Watch a movie, play some video games, or something like that.
What should I do if I need to take medicine during fasting?
If it is a medicine that must not be taken on an empty stomach, you can eat some vegetables fried in oil before taking the medicine.
What will happen if I cannot eat the basal metabolic rate of calories?
Fasting for 22 hours or more with one meal a day is fine because the body can effectively utilize the energy stored in the body during the long period of fasting.
If you are still 16/8 or 18/6, it is recommended that you eat until you reach basal metabolism.
Do I need to fast at a regular time every day?
No, as long as it's convenient for you.
Do I need to take supplements before and after exercise?
If your body fat is very low, it is recommended that you supplement with BCAA or protein powder after exercise. If your body fat is very high, it's fine if you don't need to supplement. If you just feel weak after training on an empty stomach, don't worry about it; you will get used to it, and you will become stronger in the future.
What should I do if I get hungry easily?
- Supplement with high nutritional values, such as dark green vegetables, animal organs (liver), sea vegetables, and big bone soup.
- Eat enough protein and fat.
- Sleep well
- Manage stress
- Chew slowly
Conclusion
A carbohydrate-reducing diet combined with intermittent fasting is the two diets that can improve hormone secretion, and it is also the combination that our nutritionist would recommend to more people to use. 90% of the people who use this combination can have a good effect on weight loss, and it is very comfortable to implement. However, if you have been on the program for two weeks or one month and find that you are not getting any results, then you may need to do some serious math on the key nutrients or reduce your food intake.
If you don't like the low-carb diet, then I suggest you try the following other diets, which are a bit tricky to calculate the key nutrients, but they can be successful.
Major Nutrient Allocation and Calorie Calculation
If you know how to calculate major nutrients, the following is a very rough suggestion, first of all, you have to find out your own TDEE, but the TDEE is not very accurate, so you can only take it as a simple reference, and then the calorie intake target is first set at TDEE*0.8, and the following % is converted to the calorie intake target.
Low Carb Diet:
- 20% Carbohydrate, 40% Fat, 40% Protein
Extremely Low-Carb Diet:
- 5% Carbohydrate, 55% Fat, 40% Protein
Initial Ketogenic Diet (can be changed to Extremely Low Carb after ketogenic adaptation):
- 5% Carbohydrate, 75% Fat, 20% Protein
Mixed Diet
- 50% Carb, 10% Fat, 40% Protein
Carb Cycle Diet:
- High Carb Days: 50% Carb, 10% Fat, 40% Protein
- Low Carb Days: 5% Carb, 55% Fat, 40% Protein