Fat Loss Nutrition - When Myths become Big Fat Lies

By: Natalie Beech

More people than ever are on a diet and yet obesity is now epidemic. Diet foods such as low-fat and low-carb products are a $7.6 billion-a-year business but if they worked, then fat loss would not be an issue. The simple fact is that the food industry keeps you fat with processed foods, so it can sell you more diet products. Avoidance of both is the path to weight loss.

Getting the basics of fat loss nutrition right, along with the right kind of exercise, will lead to weight loss. The problem with many diets is that they are not balanced. They cannot be maintained long-term. And when you stop dieting, the weight piles back on. Focus on fat loss nutrition, rather than actual weight loss. An approximate guide is that for every 3 grams of protein at a meal you need to have 4 grams of carbohydrate and 1.5 grams of fat. More important still is the type of fat, carbohydrate and protein you eat.

Good Fats and Bad Fats

Low-fat is the myth that has fuelled the diet industry, with complete disregard to the quality of fat you consume. The 'ugly fats' are the 'trans' fats or hydrogenated fats in fried and processed foods which are the toxic fats that are dumped in the body's fat tissues. These fats are difficult to shift, so fat loss nutrition has to increase the balance of good fats. Although omega-6 fat is a 'good fat', our diet contains too much of it in relation to the other 'good fat' omega-3. This imbalance contributes to insulin resistance (see Carbohydrates below for more information). So, not only do you need to reduce your omega-6 fat intake (vegetable oils, grain-fed beef and many processed foods), you need to increase your omega-3 fats (in fish, fish-oil capsules, or flaxseed oil). This will bring your essential fat intake (and yes, they are essential to health) to a more balanced one-to-one ratio.

Saturated fat has been demonised for so long that it is quite difficult to convince people otherwise. Coconut oil, which is a good saturated fat, has been shown to increase weight loss as it has the ability to help stimulate your metabolism and actually burn fat for energy. It also helps regulate blood sugar, an essential in weight loss - and it’s good for your heart too!

The fat loss nutrition advice is to keep your extra-virgin olive oil for salad dressings and use coconut oil for cooking.

Fat Loss Nutrition: Carbohydrates

Insulin resistance is the key to weight loss. Reverse it to burn the fat off. It is not so much the fat in the foods we eat but the excess carbohydrates from our starchy and sugary diet that is making us fat and unhealthy.

We consume far too much bread, cereal, pasta, corn, rice and potatoes, mostly as processed food. Good for the food industry, but not for fat loss nutrition and for you. These processed carbs stimulate the over-production of insulin, which leads to insulin-resistant cells. The sugar in your blood has no place else to go except to your fat cells, resulting in bulging stomachs and rolls of fat.

Increasing the fiber in your diet plays a powerful role in fat loss nutrition and weight loss. Eat brown rice rather than white rice or pasta. Grains should be limited to start but when you do eat them, make sure they are whole grains. Fill up on vegetables which are a great source of fiber.

Protein

Protein helps to stabilize blood sugar by slowing down the digestion of carbohydrates, which means that you do not get a sugar surge. This does not mean eating red meat at every meal, which is associated with higher risk of colon and possibly prostate cancer. There are plenty of other sources of protein to choose from such as lean white meat, fish, beans and lentils.

A little bit of protein at every meal is an important fat loss nutrition approach to blood sugar balance. Even a handful of pumpkin seeds eaten with an apple can slow digestion and even out your metabolism.

Is Fat Loss Nutrition Really This Simple?

Weight loss has little to do with willpower. Fat loss nutrition is all about the right balance and quality of foods, and the right exercise. This balance is easily obtained by avoiding all the low-fat, low-carb, high-protein, high-fat diet fads and avoiding processed foods as much as possible. If you get the fat loss nutrition right, you don't have to be overly concerned about how much you eat and you won’t go hungry.

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