the most harmful misconception about weight loss, is that you can’t lose weight by eating less. You don’t gain weight when your cells have too many calories. You gain weight when your organs aren’t getting enough nutrients from your blood.
If your organs are low on nutrients, a calorie-restricted diet only makes the problem worse. It slows your metabolism and increases your appetite – so a simple weight-loss plan won’t get you very far.
Sweet, starchy foods increase the body’s insulin levels, which in turn makes you gain weight.
Most people assume that consuming fat is “fattening.” If that were the case, you could lose weight just by replacing your favorite foods with low-fat alternatives.
Such a diet would probably make you gain weight, however, because of the effects of insulin.
Insulin is a hormone that determines how your body processes calories, and it’s generated by your pancreas. Insulin levels rise when you eat food, causing your body’s tissues to absorb the nutrients in your bloodstream: glucose from carbohydrates, amino acids from proteins and fatty acids from fat.
Insulin levels decrease a few hours after you’ve finished eating, allowing some of the nutrients stored in your fat cells to re-enter your bloodstream, giving energy to your brain and other organs.
Consuming too many refined carbohydrates, such as sugar and processed starch, causes your body to produce a lot of insulin and this, ultimately, leads to weight gain.
Yet here’s the catch. When your body runs out of fuel after a spike like this, your brain gets nervous and makes you think you’re hungry again, so you’ll eat more. And if you don’t eat more, your brain thinks that the body’s low blood-sugar levels are a sign of starvation, triggering your metabolism to slow and conserve the calories you do have. You’ll feel cold and weak, and gain more weight.
If you want to lose weight, forget about low-fat or low-calorie diets, as they’re just unhealthy
The first thing you need to do is make sure your body gets the correct nutrients. Nutrients are essential! If you don’t eat enough of them, your body keeps telling you to eat until you do.
So if you’re consuming unhealthy foods, you’ll take in more calories than you need and gain weight. Aim to take in a high amount of nutrients from smaller portions, instead.
Be sure to eat your vegetables, too! Vegetables are a powerful source of protein and calcium. They help you shed pounds and improve the composition of your gut bacteria.