The Truth about Dieting and Your Health

It’s fitting that the first three letters of "diet" spell "die." That is exactly what happens to your metabolism as you yo-yo on and off an eating plan. Here’s why, in a nutshell:

When you drastically cut calories, your body goes into starvation mode. Your metabolism slows to a snail's pace because it thinks that there is a period of famine and it is trying to conserve, conserve, conserve! This makes it hard to lose the fat you intend to because your body is trying to store it. To compound this problem, your body then dumps the most energetically expensive tissue, which is muscle. So you end up losing muscle and storing fat, the complete opposite of what you really need to do to lose weight and what causes you to repeatedly pound your head against a wall and fall off the band wagon. So why should you care whether you lose muscle?

Truth #1: Muscles are your body's metabolic engines. The more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism. The less muscle you have, the faster you gain weight. Ouch...it just doesn’t seem fair, does it?

This is where cardio and strength training come in. On almost a daily basis, I hear the word “genetics” associated with fat and muscle. Here’s another truth you need to know: You are not fat because of your genes! Want proof? Ever watch the show “The Biggest Loser?” Those contestants have everything stacked against them, but with the proper training they literally transform their bodies and their lives without drugs or surgery. After watching that show, genetics clearly have nothing to do with losing weight. Their focus is to lose weight, and they put action and energy into that focus, and you’ve seen the end result. In my opinion, general statements in the media that genetics keep people from looking the way they want are simply tools to shift responsibility from the individual so that the popular marketplace can sell them more drugs, supplements, gimmicks, processed meal plans, etc.

Genes are like nature's light switches - something has to turn them on and turn them off. That something is the environment. If you eat chocolate and Twinkies all day, what type of environment are you creating inside your body? into your everyday routine, just like brushing your teeth.

Truth #2: We are hardwired to gain weight. Annoyingly enough, our bodies have more systems that allow us to gain weight than they do for us to lose weight. Take this into account, for example: our ancestors survived by gaining and storing weight to survive periodic famines. These corrupted systems have left our bodies prone to store fat and gain weight. Thank you, Mother Nature. We have poisoned the systems that help us lose weight by not exercising, having a poor mindset and eating foods that are not exactly compatible with our genetics, such as high fructose corn sugar, processed foods, too much salt, the list goes on. This has turned our bodies into fat-storing machines.

Our ancestors were literally built like Olympic athletes - not because they wanted to be, but because they had to survive and in the wild, survival of the fittest prevails. In early times, our diets consisted of fruits, nuts, vegetables, potatoes, and wild meat. These particular foods were lower in calories. Their occasional snack might have been honey if some was found, but it was a rare and naturally sweet treat, unlike our current fare.

Don’t get me wrong – I certainly enjoy my Skinny Cow calorie-controlled ice cream bars and I'm not in the business of trying to make you eat and live like cavemen! I certainly acknowledge that cavemen and women did not have deadlines, bosses breathing down their necks, and financial stress. The fact that these forces can overcome our biological drive to lose weight, stress us out, and cause us to give into temptation has shifted many of our dietary choices from biological necessities to psychological reactions. My whole point is that to enhance our fat loss potential and overcome our genetics, we need to take a lesson from those resourceful ancestors of ours and act similarly.

The Bottom Line: It is true that people come in a variety of different shapes and sizes, so your height and bone structure will play a small role in your overall size. While good genetics may give some people an edge and place others at a disadvantage, know that you are not destined to be fat just because your parents are fat. If you lead the same lifestyle as your overweight parents, chances are good that you may look like them. However, if you decide to make a change, you can certainly have the body that you desire!

Meet the Trainer

Crystal is a certified personal trainer through the National Sports and Conditioning Association (NSCA). She has a passion for helping others live a healthy lifestyle and coaching them to push their limits beyond what they think they are capable of.