What of the most debated topics today is that of weight loss. It’s also an extremely controversial subject among the medical community, the exercise and fitness industry, and of course, journalists and media sources. There’s literally an endless amount of opinions for and against losing weight methods that it’s simply become overwhelming, confusing, and often tiresome.
Many diets recommend low-calorie or maybe low-carb as the best way to lose weight, and others suggest the keto diet of consuming more fat. It just seems that many of the rules of eating offers nothing but inconsistent weight loss advice.
Tons of people recommend intermittent fasting and some even believe that one meal a day (OMAD) is the way to go. At the other end of the spectrum are fitness trainers who recommend that you eat six small meals a day to boost your metabolism and shed the stubborn fat.
Knowing that, which path is the best choice?
They all seem credible and there are people who still get positive results from all the different methods/tips despite the conflict in opinions/advice.
The answer is staring right in front of you – in the mirror.
You need to do what is right for you. This makes weight loss a tricky issue. It has to be customized according your body type and how your body reacts… and there are so many factors involved that you’ll need to be extra vigilant.
If you’re carb sensitive, eating carbohydrates will pile on the pounds. In your case, avoiding carbs as much as possible will have the most desirable effect and you’ll shed the pounds rapidly. You may not even need to consume more fat.
Others may not be carb sensitive but just need the body to become fat-adapted so that it turns to the fat stores for fuel rather than using glucose for energy.
When should you eat your meals and how often?
The principles of weight loss will ALWAYS be the same. You need to consume fewer calories than you expend. This will put your body in a caloric deficit and you’ll inevitably lose weight.
Too often, people overcomplicate things by trying to speed up the weight loss process. Your focus should be on how much food you’re eating.
Millions of people swear by intermittent fasting where they only eat during a 6 to 8 hour eating window, and for the rest of the day, they’re in a fasted state. They believe that the body will go into ketosis and burn more fat. This is true and it works for many.
However, the truth of the matter is that it has to feel right for you. If you hate the process and feel ravenously hungry during the 16 hours, you may tend to binge eat once you’re eating window begins.
The point to note here is that despite the efficacy of any weight loss advice, there will always be some people it’s not right for. In this case, you may follow the conventional fitness advice of spacing out your meals evenly every 2 or 3 hours and eating small meals instead of a large one.
The idea is to graze rather than gorge… and it works too.
Let’s chat for a minute about exercise
Here too there’s tons of debate. Some people prefer to just go walking while others swear by high intensity interval training (HIIT) as the best way to burn fat.
Once again, the advice is subjective. To a 30-year old man who is 50 pounds overweight, HIIT might be an efficient way to get the body in fat burning mode.
But what happens if it’s a 55-year old man who would rather go slower because he’s tired.
In this case, brisk walking would do the job too. The goal is to elevate one’s heart rate and burn calories. Both types of exercise get the job done. HIIT is just faster, but it’s a lot more taxing too.
Movement and activity are meant to boost your metabolism and stamina. Your diet will be responsible for most of your fat loss. This is another principle to bear in mind.
As long as you’re eating right and moving while on a caloric deficit, you will lose weight.
There are tons of weight loss tips that can be praised and denounced at the same time. The truth is that it all depends on the person using the advice given.
You need to look at your needs and preferences and tailor the advice to suit them. The key to successful weight loss is to abide by the basic principles of eating clean, maintaining a caloric deficit and getting some exercise daily.
Remember, it’s up to you to start and implement a routine for yourself. The important thing is finding a way to stay in control and maintain a consistent path. Seek to continually develop and improve yourself at all times and drop the idea of being perfect
If you can follow through with that, you’ll start noticing some weight loss within a month, and if you continue for several months, you’ll finally begin a transformation. Get in there and do what’s right for you.
