People are over fat because their energy intake is too high. Significant efforts are being made in research, medicine, and counseling to battle the epidemic that obesity has become, but for the large majority of people, they’re just eating too much energy. I’m sure there are some folks who have some kind of metabolic illness that is creating the problem, but they’re in the minority.
Nutrition is a complex subject, but in terms of what to actually eat each day, it’s quite simple. Anyone can spend a bit of time studying which foods are protein foods, which are carbohydrates and which are fats, and never be confused about it again. What everyone needs to understand is that fat contains more than double the energy of protein or carbohydrates. If you consume a lot of fat, you will need to consume less of something else or you will quickly be consuming more energy than you need to live and the fat storage process begins. If you consume 3 ounces of ground beef, you ate a lot more energy than if you ate 3 ounces of skinless chicken breast.
One of the more common errors in food combinations people make is eating meals that are high in all three macronutrients. Consider these two examples when choosing a tasty lunch at McDonald’s:
Choice # 1
- Big Mac
- Large Fries
- Diet Coke
Choice # 2
- Artisan Grilled Chicken Sandwich
- Fruit and Yogurt Parfait
- Bottle of water
In meal #1, you ate 1050 total calories (energy), consisting of 52 grams of fat, 112 grams of carbohydrates, and 32 grams of protein.
In meal #2, you ate 530 total calories (energy), consisting of 9 grams of fat, 74 grams of carbohydrates, and 41 grams of protein.
It doesn’t take an advanced degree in nutrition to see which is the better choice. It doesn’t mean you can never eat a Big Mac, but if you do, forgo the fries. By eating just the Big Mac and Diet Coke, you’ll eat roughly the same number of calories that are in Meal #2.
If you find yourself very fat today, and want to be less so, I strongly suggest a very low carbohydrate diet. It isn’t magic: you still have to control total energy intake, but if you’re really carrying a lot of fat on your body, you are likely dealing with some degree of insulin resistance, which means your body can’t clear the glucose from your blood as well as it should and you’re on the path to type II diabetes if you aren’t already there. By eating very low carb, you get much smaller increases in blood sugar and less insulin secretion, allowing your body to become more sensitive to insulin again and putting you on the road to improved metabolic health. Eating low carb can be very satiating for some people. but others have a lot of difficulty keeping calories in check when they’re eating a lot of bacon, cheese and steak.
If you don’t want to go low carb, then you’re going to have to go low fat, otherwise your calories will stack up in a hurry. This is much harder to do because there’s fat in a lot of foods. But if you take the time to seek out low fat protein sources and stick to whole food carbohydrate choices, you can make tasty meal combos that won’t feel like you’re dieting at all.
Consider this scrumptious feast:
- A baked sweet potato (I actually slice mine up thin and microwave it for 3-4 minutes).
- A tilapia fillet cooked in a frying pan with no calorie cooking spray.
- Some steamed broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower or asparagus.
This meal is so low fat, it’s almost fat free. I eat it often, but when I do I take a handful of fish oils because it’s so low fat.
Getting your energy intake under control isn’t that complicated and you will lose the excess fat over time and will feel significantly better as a result. If you choose the low carb route, you can choose higher fat protein sources like beef, pepperoni, and cheese. If you prefer to eat carbohydrates, your protein sources will need to be low fat, like skinless chicken breast, turkey breast, tilapia, tuna, low fat protein powder, low fat greek yogurt, and fat free cottage cheese. If you want to step up your game, read up on insulin load and choose carbohydrate foods that have a low insulin load, like sweet potatoes, beans, most vegetables, couscous, quinoa, plain oatmeal, or my personal favorite, Fig Newtons.
- Low Carb = High Fat.
- High Carb = Low Fat.
- Always eat Protein.
- Total energy intake matters most.
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