Let go of the calories!

To lose weight just introduce fewer calories than you consume. How many times have we heard this sentence? This concept is as simple to understand as it is difficult to implement. In reality there are several aspects for which too strict diets do not always represent the most effective way to weight loss, let us examine the causes.

DROP OF BASAL METABOLISM

An excessive caloric restriction involves the reduction of the basal metabolism and the body gets used to survive with fewer calories, lowering its functions. This phenomenon involves: less energy to devote to daily activities, chronic fatigue, decreased sexual desire, decreased muscle mass. An example? We hypothesize that our daily calorie consumption is 2000 Kcal and we plan our diet so as to make 1800 Kcal per day. The results do not take long and we begin to lose the first Kg; after about 30-40 days, however, we note that progress has stopped and we reduce our caloric intake even further until it reaches 1600 Kcal. And even in this case, after the first positive results, we see a halt in progress. Do we further reduce our caloric intake? It is possible, but the diet will become increasingly restrictive and difficult to follow. Our basal metabolic rate will decrease more and more, the muscles will always present more flaccid and our body will tend more and more to optimize the caloric intake provided by the diet. A few occasional binges will suffice to cancel any further drop in body weight.

PRECISE CALCULATION OF DAILY ENERGY REQUIREMENT

It is not so easy to calculate exactly the daily energy requirement, especially for those who lead an intense and disorderly life. The continuous changes in lifestyle (sleep, nutrition, work and sport) have a great impact on total caloric needs. Furthermore, basal metabolism is often calculated on the basis of predetermined values ​​without taking into account the body composition, dietary habits, sex and age of the subject.

DOES ALL CALORIES GREASE IN EGUAL SIZE?

The TID (specific dynamic action of foods) represents the energy expended by the body to digest, absorb and use the food introduced with the diet. The TID varies according to the type and quantity of macronutrients as shown in the following table.

An individual who consumes mainly protein in his diet therefore needs about 20-30% more energy than a person who consumes mainly fat (assuming that the two subjects have the same body composition, the same lifestyle, age, sex, etc.).

Furthermore, the calories coming from some food sources favor more the accumulation of body fat than others (see: We keep blood sugar constant). For example, the calories from sweets and simple sugars determine a greater gain of fat than the calories from other food sources such as fruit, vegetables, meat and fish.

Among other things, a meal rich in proteins and fats increases the duodenal release of cholecystokinin (CCK) a substance able to stimulate the sense of satiety.

USE OF THE SCALE TO WEIGHT THE QUANTITIES OF EVERY SINGLE FOOD.

Having to use the precise weight of food to comply with caloric introduction is one of the biggest obstacles to weight loss. Although this aspect is very important, it is difficult and tedious to implement as it forces the individual to adapt his power to the scale. Furthermore, there are variations in the composition of individual foods (for example an apple can be more or less mature, a beef fillet can be more or less fat) which frustrates any attempt to accurately respect the caloric regime imposed by the diet.

CALORIES AND WEIGHT LOSS, IN CONCLUSION

although the caloric constraint is fundamental for the success of any diet program, it must not become the most important food aspect. Caloric restriction must be just a feature of the diet that must take into account many other, sometimes more important, aspects of simple calorie control.