Eat less fat. Eat more fat. Carbs are bad. Carbs are good.
Nutrition advice changes so often, no wonder so many people are
confused.
But when it comes it calories, the advice to consume fewer of
them seems set in stone. After all, "a calorie is a
calorie"-Right?
Wrong.
For years, we've been told that if we "eat less and exercise
more," we'll lose weight. That recommendation is based on the
belief that we need burn more calories than we take in. But
this doesn't tell the whole story.
As it turns out, it isn't the amount of calories you consume
that really affects your weight and your health. It's the type
of calorie.
It's true-the calories you eat are actually absorbed at
different rates. And the different amounts of fiber,
carbohydrates, protein, fat, and nutrients in these calories
can have very different effects on your metabolism. There's no
difference between a thousand calories of kidney beans and a
thousand calories of a low-fat muffin-until they're
metabolized.
As you can see, food isn't just a source of energy-it's a
source of operating instructions for your body.
Calories 101
So what is a calorie anyway? Simply put, a calorie is just a
unit of energy. When we eat food, chemical processes that make
up our metabolism break this food down and turn it into energy.
Burning this energy lets us do what we need and want to do-from
breathing to running a marathon.
It's like your car: You have to put fuel in it to make it run.
For people, food is our fuel. Calories are what help us "run."
The Dieting Myth
Just like high quality fuel is better for your car than the
cheap stuff, some calories are better for our metabolism than
others. That idea flies in the face of conventional diet
wisdom, but it's true-and science backs it up.
For example, recent studies show that high-carb diets can boost
insulin and blood sugar levels. The result? Weight gain (not to
mention high cholesterol and triglycerides). On the other hand,
people who eat a healthy low-carb diet that's rich in
vegetables, whole grains, beans, and lean animal protein-but
consume more calories than low-fat dieters-actually lose more
weight!
As you can see, the kinds of calories you consume can have a
big impact on weight gain, because different foods are
metabolized in different ways. Food "talks" to your genes,
giving your metabolism specific instructions-whether to lose
weight or gain weight, speed up or slow down the aging process,
increase or decrease your cholesterol level, and produce
molecules that increase or decrease your appetite.
No wonder you can feel like you're doing everything right and
still not lose weight!
The Whole Truth
If you want to lose weight and be healthy, you have to send
your body the right messages. That means living in harmony with
your genes.
This means different things for different people. Depending on
our genes, some of us may need more carbs, protein, or fat than
others.
But there's one basic principle that works of everyone: Base
your diet on whole, unprocessed foods. Foods that are in their
natural state talk to your genes the most effectively-and were
designed by nature to keep you at a healthy weight.
About The Author: Mark Hyman, M.D. is a NY Times bestselling
author, lecturer, and practicing physician. Discover how you
can program your body to automatically lose weight and regain
health by grabbing an exclusive sneak preview of
UltraMetabolism here – http://www.ultrametabolism.com
Nutrition advice changes so often, no wonder so many people are
confused.
But when it comes it calories, the advice to consume fewer of
them seems set in stone. After all, "a calorie is a
calorie"-Right?
Wrong.
For years, we've been told that if we "eat less and exercise
more," we'll lose weight. That recommendation is based on the
belief that we need burn more calories than we take in. But
this doesn't tell the whole story.
As it turns out, it isn't the amount of calories you consume
that really affects your weight and your health. It's the type
of calorie.
It's true-the calories you eat are actually absorbed at
different rates. And the different amounts of fiber,
carbohydrates, protein, fat, and nutrients in these calories
can have very different effects on your metabolism. There's no
difference between a thousand calories of kidney beans and a
thousand calories of a low-fat muffin-until they're
metabolized.
As you can see, food isn't just a source of energy-it's a
source of operating instructions for your body.
Calories 101
So what is a calorie anyway? Simply put, a calorie is just a
unit of energy. When we eat food, chemical processes that make
up our metabolism break this food down and turn it into energy.
Burning this energy lets us do what we need and want to do-from
breathing to running a marathon.
It's like your car: You have to put fuel in it to make it run.
For people, food is our fuel. Calories are what help us "run."
The Dieting Myth
Just like high quality fuel is better for your car than the
cheap stuff, some calories are better for our metabolism than
others. That idea flies in the face of conventional diet
wisdom, but it's true-and science backs it up.
For example, recent studies show that high-carb diets can boost
insulin and blood sugar levels. The result? Weight gain (not to
mention high cholesterol and triglycerides). On the other hand,
people who eat a healthy low-carb diet that's rich in
vegetables, whole grains, beans, and lean animal protein-but
consume more calories than low-fat dieters-actually lose more
weight!
As you can see, the kinds of calories you consume can have a
big impact on weight gain, because different foods are
metabolized in different ways. Food "talks" to your genes,
giving your metabolism specific instructions-whether to lose
weight or gain weight, speed up or slow down the aging process,
increase or decrease your cholesterol level, and produce
molecules that increase or decrease your appetite.
No wonder you can feel like you're doing everything right and
still not lose weight!
The Whole Truth
If you want to lose weight and be healthy, you have to send
your body the right messages. That means living in harmony with
your genes.
This means different things for different people. Depending on
our genes, some of us may need more carbs, protein, or fat than
others.
But there's one basic principle that works of everyone: Base
your diet on whole, unprocessed foods. Foods that are in their
natural state talk to your genes the most effectively-and were
designed by nature to keep you at a healthy weight.
About The Author: Mark Hyman, M.D. is a NY Times bestselling
author, lecturer, and practicing physician. Discover how you
can program your body to automatically lose weight and regain
health by grabbing an exclusive sneak preview of
UltraMetabolism here – http://www.ultrametabolism.com
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