Are you tired of dieting? Have you ever wonder why nothing is working?
If yes, you are not alone. Dieting usually does not work in the long term.
Let's face it, we have hundreds of different diets out there, and the weight and health problems are still growing.
The reason, we have failed to understand our body.
As our body regulates our pulse, our blood pressure, our temperature over a very narrow range, the same way it controls our weight over a defined range based on precise biofeedback mechanisms.
This is called a 'Set Point' for our weight.
Any attempt to lose weight without understanding this 'Set Point' backfires.
Let me explain, our set point weight is the weight that our body tries to defend, so if we go on a fad diet and lose few pounds, the body will do all it can to get back to its set point. Not only do we put the weight back on that we lost, but our body often redefines that set point at a higher starting point than when we started.
Let's say if you weighed 200 lbs and lost 20 pounds on a fad diet. Now when you go back to your old eating pattern not only you regain 20 lbs that you lost but also another 20 pounds as your set point is now gone up to 220 lbs. Eventually, you end up gaining more than what you lost.
"We are dieting our-self fatter and fatter."
And this is happening as we are trying to change our body weight without changing our body's set point for the weight.
Now the good news is that we can change our set point if we understand what biofeedback mechanisms are feeding it.
Four main factors that affect how our body maintains our weight are :
Nutrition- For our body to have an optimum and healthy weight it is vital to have a balanced nutrient rich diet. More than a calorie it is about the nutrient content of the food. Remember the quality of food is much important than the quantity of food. A calorie is not just a calorie.
The calorie that comes from pizza is very different than the one that comes from broccoli.
Hormones- Many hormones play a role in maintaining our weight. Thyroid hormone, insulin hormone, and stress hormones are the main ones that affect our weight, and any imbalance in these hormones can cause our set point to go high ending up in weight gain.
Stress- High amount of stress hormones makes us gain weight as mentioned above. Stress also affects our lifestyle choices. We are more likely to eat unhealthy foods, avoid exercise and have poor quality sleep when under a high amount of stress.
Sleep- Having a good quality 7-8 hrs of sleep is critical for our health as well as weight. Sleep balances our stress and hunger hormones, lowers insulin resistance and improves our energy. More energy means more physical activity and more calorie burning !
So to redefine your set point to a lower level:
Eat nutrient-rich foods
Balance your hormones ( Exercise is the best way to balance your insulin and stress hormones)
Manage stress with meditation and mindfulness
Get a good night sleep
Also, interval weight loss ( losing weight slowly, and maintaining that weight loss for a month at a time) is better than rapid weight loss in adjusting the set point.
