Starving Yourself Isn’t the Solution—Eating for Lasting Health and Weight Loss
Starving yourself isn’t the solution, ladies—it’s the problem! Please. Freaking. Eat.
With the new year in full swing, I've had so many conversations about goal-setting, diets, workout focus, habit change, etc. I love geeking out on all of it and get really excited when someone engages me in a conversation about these topics.
What I've found very common in my clients and women especially, is that they're just not eating enough to meet the goals they're trying to achieve. The loop keeps repeating, they feel like they're trying so hard, yet nothing changes.
A couple weeks ago, I was sitting in the sauna with a woman who'd just finished working out with her trainer. She's been working with him for about a year and she definitely feels better and stronger--which is amazing--but shared that she hasn't been able to lose any weight, which was one of her primary goals. I asked her to walk me through her daily food intake because I was curious to know how she was fueling herself, only to find out that she definitely wasn't eating nearly enough to see the results she was yearning for, especially at dinner. She said she’d felt unsatisfied and bloated every night so we brainstormed options in the week ahead to experiment on what she could change. After seeing her again a week later, and adding more substantive protein and fiber to her dinner, she reported feeling better, sleeping better and relieving herself from bloat. Your body always tells you what you need to know, you just have to listen!
What Not Eating Enough Does
Bottom line is that undereating—just like overeating—stalls your progress.
It slows metabolism.
It increases stress hormones like cortisol.
It leads to loss of lean muscle instead of fat.
Your body goes into survival mode, holding on to fat stores because it thinks you're in a famine. On top of that, you're more likely to feel tired, cranky and stuck if your body isn’t getting the fuel it needs. This is all the opposite of what you're aiming for. Working out properly and eating efficiently should be giving you MORE energy not depleting it.
Diet culture has brainwashed us into thinking that starving ourselves to lose weight or following some fad or extreme diet is the way to go, which clearly hasn't been working because so many more people are struggling now with obesity and chronic disease.
As a side note: if you think you have been doing everything right and still not feeling right or seeing the results you want, make sure you see your physician to get the proper bloodwork done to check that your levels are on point.
What’s the Answer Then?
The key isn't always cutting out food but rather adding better quality, nutritious foods—the 'right' foods—into your diet. It's not fat free, sugar free, low calorie foods that’s going to get you to your goal, it's food that gives you more bang for your buck on a consistent basis that’ll move the needle.
If you also work out regularly and are trying to lose weight and/or gain lean muscle, eating sufficiently before and after a workout, as well as throughout the day will ensure you see consistent progress.
Think balancing sufficient protein, fiber, carbs and healthy fats at every meal you eat during the day. This will guarantee you’ll stay fuller longer, power your day with enough energy and provide your mind and body the nutrients it needs to function optimally.
Eating Smarter > Eating Less. Do not fear food. Food is fuel, not your enemy.
Seek out the nutrients that will love your body so your body can flourish the way you want and need it to, and love you back!
If you need help figuring out what this might mean for you, reach out and ask!