Fit Talk: Weight Loss: Facts & Myths

Myth #1: You don’t have to count calories.
Fact: Counting calories is important.
To lose weight, you definitely need to count your calories. Many people tend to underestimate their caloric intake (by up to 40%) and overestimate their calories burned through physical activity. Don’t rely on eyeballing your caloric intake or trying to estimate it. Instead, start writing down what you eat on a daily basis. Don’t just do this for the first day or two, do this everyday. For best results do this until your eating habits start becoming more refined, more nutritionally sound, and more regular. Better yet, do this until you have met your weight loss goals. By that time you should have a good idea of how many calories are in the foods you are eating and you should have an easier time measuring your food.
Myth #2: Eat three solid meals a day.
Fact: Eat 4-6 small meals daily (a snack counts as a meal).
How you take your calories in is just as important as how many you take in. To lose weight more effectively you want to eat 4-6 small meals a day. This way your body acts like a furnace and is constantly burning calories. Your body will be constantly burning calories because it will be constantly digesting the food you are taking in. So it’s not just how many calories you consume, but it’s also how you consume them.
Myth #3: Carbohydrates make you fat.
Fact: Carbs are necessary for a balanced diet.
Carbs don’t make you fat. Calories make you fat. Although I am in favor of lowering your carbohydrate intake and upping your protein intake – in order to lose weight – you should never cut out a whole food group. (You can up your protein intake to 50-55% and lower your carb intake to 30-35%, leaving your fat intake to about 10-20%.) Carbohydrates will help power you through your workouts, especially for aerobic activity (cardio) and for intense anaerobic activity (weight training). Proteins main purpose in the body is to supply amino acids to the body and repair damaged tissue.
What you should do is modify the carbohydrates you are eating. Stick with whole grain carbohydrates (oatmeal, whole grain pasta, whole wheat pita bread), they are less processed and will help you feel more satiated (full) even though they may have the same amount of calories as processed calories. Because they are less processed you will be geting more fiber in your diet – fiber is what will help you feel full longer. Also eat fruits and veggies: stick with color, the more color in your diet the better. Processed sugar is what usually makes you gain weight from carbohydrates.

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