By: Dr. Jay P. Vanden Heuvel PhD, IMD & Jayna Van De Hey – Certified Health Coach and Wellness Specialist
Weight-loss. A simple concept, yet one of the most difficult things to achieve. Why? Because many of us were led to believe that calories in, must be less than calories out.
Basically, the consensus was if we exercise enough, we can eat whatever we want and lose weight (if the calories are less than we exerted). Well if this was true, and if it were that simple, wouldn’t we all be skinny?
According to the Food Research and Action Center (2017), over ⅔’s of the population is overweight or obese. Which has resulted in a weight loss industry that is roughly a $64 billion market.
With this many people overweight, and this large of expenditure of an industry, don’t you think the obesity rates should be decreasing instead of increasing?
Well did you know that new research is coming forward that: what you eat is more important in shedding pounds than how much you exercise! (Scientific American July 2017)
What? That is because when you reduce weight loss to a simple mathematical formula (burn more calories than you consume) you are not considering the complexities of human physiology and psychology.
This concept falls apart when put it to the test in the real world (real humans).
Thus, ask yourself the question, what is the purpose of food? The obvious is we need it for survival, it gives us energy, and we need it to nourish our bodies. Beyond these needs, any excess of food is considered a hindrance to our health. What the body does with food and how it is processed plays a much more important role than just energy expenditure. For example, think to yourself, if you ate 100 calories of broccoli and 100 calories of cookies, does common sense make you really believe a body will utilize these foods the same?
The most common advice we are given when we want to “lose weight” is to exercise. Now exercise has some major health benefits, but it is responsible for only about one third of energy expenditure. For further analysis, think metabolism.
This concept is familiar with most people. We tend to blame a lot of our weight gain on our metabolism or the easier choice: genetics. For example, have you ever heard things like “she’s so lucky, she has a high/fast metabolism?” or “No matter what I do I can’t lose weight because I have a slow metabolism”. Yes, it is true metabolic rate differs from person to person, but did you know you can help control and can increase this metabolic rate? Hopefully we got your attention.
Before we go any further, let’s take metabolism (energy) one step further and think mitochondria. A key to losing weight and keeping it off. What are mitochondria? Well, every single cell in the body holds many of them (and it is estimated we have around a 100 trillion cells). The Mitochondria are tiny generator factories housed within these cells. They are key energy sources in our bodies and responsible for our metabolic rate. Mitochondria are extremely sensitive and when they are run down and undernourished, they don’t properly function, if even at all. The main sources that slowdown or damage these power houses are things like too much processed and refined sugar, not enough nutrients, and toxins. This in turn causes long term fatigue and of course weight gain. So, what does all the new research now show us? That we CAN fix this and make our metabolism run more smoothly. How? By what we eat. Not calorie counting or even running a marathon every day (LOL).
A bit more on physiology. Our brain plays a vital role while in the presence of food. It creates sensations of hunger and temptation to make sure we replace what we lost. The role of hunger is an important one and is there to keep us alive, there is no point in fighting it. Thus, the key is to prevent hunger and temptations from happening in the first place. What suppresses hunger? Feedback from the gut (ghrelin) to the brain from meals that are high in quality protein and fibers. As opposed to those high in simple carbohydrates, which can lead to abnormal spikes in our blood sugar balance and overall increase hunger. When blood sugar spikes too high, it in turn crashes. What goes up must come down. Once the crash, hunger steps in again. You will not win that war. Studies are now confirming that is it is possible to reduce hunger during weight loss by simply choosing the right foods. Which keeps our blood sugar in balance and less of a feeling of “eat more”.
In choosing the right foods – let’s briefly discuss nutrition, specifically Essential Amino Acids. Essential means that we need it, and our bodies can’t produce it. We receive these essential amino acids through protein we consume. Therefore, we should be getting plenty of good quality protein every day. Yet, not all protein is created equal. Protein itself, is the building block for everything in our bodies; muscle tissue, hair, skin, and nails, blood and even hormones. Our also bodies don’t store protein so we need to consume it on a regular basis. For example, every time we break down muscle tissue it NEEDS to be rebuilt. In terms of weight-loss, lean muscle mass powers the body’s metabolism (rate at which body burns calories for energy). An increase in quality protein (vegan sources make the best sense) helps build lean muscle mass and thereby promotes increase in metabolic rate and in turn creates fat burning and fat loss. Read that again, because it IS the secret to weight management.
A balanced diet should contain the right amount of quality protein (examples such as yellow pea protein or clean ultra-filtered whey). However, in today’s hectic world it’s hard to get the best quality sources every day. Again, a great source is of vegetable variety.
One of the simplest most efficient ways is to try using a protein meal replacement powder. Make sure your source of this is from a reputable company that has quality control measures in place, to know, call them and ask. Then compare to what other companies offer. Remember, protein itself is not all created equal.
We need to make sure our protein sources also include the right amount of protein to fiber to sugar ratio. Fiber helps make proteins work better. It’s important that we consume these together, think vegetables, since meat and dairy choices don’t contain much if any fibers. A great source of fiber that should be a part of your protein meal protein replacement is Inulin. Secondly, look at the ingredients and make sure it contains vitamins, minerals, amino acids, essential fatty acids, and no artificial ingredients.
Another important consideration to understanding a “calorie is not a calorie” is the gut: or the microbiome. We all have tiny little microbes living in and on us which do more for our health than one would think. Trillions of these call our bodies home and outnumber our cells 10:1. Research has now exploded with studies and information linking our health back to our microbiomes or “guts”. Numerous studies are finding these organisms directly affect our metabolism! And what do these microbes love to eat? Plants and fiber. We are what our microbes eat. So much for a “calorie is a calorie” old school.
What disturbs a healthy microbiome? You guessed it, processed/refined sugar, toxins, low fiber, and not enough quality protein. Just a few examples. You can probably guess more.
When we incorrectly feed our microbes these types of food/chemicals, they in turn with their metabolism produce more toxins, which indirectly can lead to more weight gain. Bottom line, an unhealthy microbiome can add years to your metabolic age, meaning it can slow your metabolism significantly. Anyone interested in growing older faster?
A recent study at Washington University School of Medicine took gut microbes from 4 sets of human twins, one overweight and the other one slim, showing that the key difference was that they had a different balance in the biome of their GUT. Scientists then introduced the microbes of each twin into different groups of mice that had been raised in a previously germ-free environment with sterile intestines. They observed that the overweight humans’ microbes (fecal transplant) resulted in overweight mice. Another step further and we find that exchanging microbes of the of the skinny human twins had the same results but in the opposite direction. The skinny microbe mice stayed skinny compared to the overweight microbe mice. They were both fed the same number of calories. This was repeated many times over with the same results. The myth of a “calorie is a calorie” has been torn apart. One of the most important things you can do for weight loss/management is to improve your microbiome and it is about what we eat, not so much counting calories and extreme exercise! Wow, that is revolutionary.
In conclusion, we are all different individuals with different physiological factors affecting our lives. We know one diet does not fit all. The need is to help find one that works best for you but must include more quality protein, probiotics, herbs, and the focus on “what we eat”.
Statistically, when starting a new “weight-loss” regimen alone, odds are most will fail. Nine out of Ten people participating in a weight-loss program in fact do fail. Long after the attempt they tend to gain the weight back plus some. A type of a yo-yo effect. One more key factor that can help you achieve your goals is having someone with you keeping you accountable. We are talking about a lifestyle coach. Someone who understands the body and the above nutrition information. They truly can offer you a great deal of education when it comes to healthy lifestyle change. Most of us don’t understand why we are overweight or unhealthy to begin with. A certified lifestyle coach makes sense and is there to provide facts not misinformation. Much of what is discussed here has even been clinically studied. Find a coach who represent a “clinically studied lifestyle program” to help properly inform you.
The Institute for Integrative Nutrition, defines a health coach as “a wellness authority and supportive mentor who motivates individuals to cultivate positive health choices. Health coaches educate and support clients to achieve their health goals through lifestyle and behavior adjustments.” Were talking not only the actual food part but your surrounding environment, your emotions, your hormones and everything else that plays a role into our bad habits. Accountability, is one of the most important factors when changing any behavior. When you must report to someone else it gives you a sense of direction and you are more likely to stick to your new behavior.
With today’s typical diet, our nation and most first world countries quickly become overfed yet undernourished. The World Watch Institute reports that the number of people who are “overfed but undernourished” is at 1.2 billion, now equaling those starving from lack of food. Overfed, with wrong calories and literally starving at the cellular level. Bodies becoming depleted of essential nutrients, in turn, becoming resistant to weight-loss.
We need to spread the word there is such a thing as “a calorie is NOT a calorie”.
