that there is a very good reason why we get fat!  I realize that we think we know the answer to this, but do we?  Fad diets and charlatans' promises that weight can be lost from specific areas drive me crazy because they are nothing more than shameless lies told to the desperate among us. Even if you get suckered in and actually lose some weight, you will have a very hard time maintaining the loss once you go back to your normal way of living.

Yet we persist in fighting the good fight, losing and gaining, again and again, following the advice of the "experts." Why do we cling to the idea that this is so difficult, impossible, even? Perhaps we have just been listening to the wrong people. Most of those telling us how to lose weight are in business to sell something. If you buy their product and temporarily lose some weight, you will tell others, and then everyone you know will buy whatever they sold you. And on and on it goes.

The problem is not that losing the weight is so difficult. The real struggle is in keeping it off forever. Why is it so hard?  What can we do to stop this madness and Just Lose It, and keep it off? Why must we lose it and worry about getting sick, weak, and fat again?  How can we enjoy our food and stay healthy and happy with our bodies?  Let me break it down into a few very simple facts that just might change the way you think about what food is doing to your body and mind.

What is one of the main culprits of weight gain? A very easy answer: sugars and white flour. (Again, I am making this simple.)

As I have stated before, we did not all become overweight because we were very hungry for a long time and ate to alleviate that hunger.  That is just not the case for the majority of us. In an article I read recently, Gary Taubes told a group of medical professionals that being overweight and being overly hungry are side effects of carbohydrate-driven hormones. What does this means to us?

Basically, glucose and insulin (both products of carbohydrate metabolism) play an enormous role in fat accumulation.  Some, particularly diabetics, already know this, but how about the non-diabetics among us? Simply put, there is a chemical compound resulting from glucose that turns the good omega- 3 fatty acids, like flax and fish oils, into triglycerides, the type of fats our body stores.  Thus, anything that transports glucose into fat cells also works to deposit fat.  And that "anything" is insulin. 

When insulin is secreted, or when it is elevated fat then accumulates in the fat tissue! When insulin levels drop, fat is able to escape from fat tissue and we lose weight! So simple! Why didn't I think of it!  It's science, boys and girls, not magic!

Now then, since carbohydrates elevate insulin levels and a boost in insulin is what makes fat storage possible, carbohydrates account for fat deposits! Even worse than regular carbs are refined carbs. These create insulin surges and insulin dips that make us crazy with hunger. Not many have the strength to fend off this type of hunger!

What does all of this mean to us? Well, we need to eat fewer carbohydrates and eat more whole foods like meats (save red), fish (loaded with good omega-3's), eggs and non-starchy vegetables!  We should also remove bread, baked goods, potatoes, yams, rice, pasta, cereal grains, corn, sugar, ice cream (some things should be obvious!), soft drinks, fruit juices, bananas, other tropical fruits, and beer.  A long list, I know, but most of you have already eliminated many of these. The good news is that there are plenty of other really good foods to eat! I have an extensive list of recipes that include many delicious whole foods that you might just come to love. Click on Justloseit.com/blog to begin experimenting.

Taubes says that removing these carbohydrates from your diet will derail the insulin peak/dip roller coaster, and you will never again be voraciously hungry. This will make weight loss, and the more important maintenance, much easier.  I find that when eating this way, the fat just melts off; however, if you can't quite  live the  "No Carb!" lifestyle, at least choose carbs that are low on the glycemic load scale.  Eliminating carbs is as important as getting your animal protein from mostly cold-water fatty fish a few times a week. This is the way to provide the body with the omega-3 fatty acids necessary for optimal health.
 

Last year, we were focused on fighting our way uphill. This year we are going to make an important shift: we're going to give ourselves a break and put weight loss in our past! We're going to begin working on maintenance and getting our health back. Just imagine the possibilities...