By Chris Golv, NASM Certified Personal Trainer, Strongfirst L1 Kettlebell Instructor, A.S. Personal Training
These days we are constantly fed misleading information about the latest way to lose weight. “Fad diets” are coming and going more quickly than we can keep up, and while most are not dangerous or necessarily ineffective, they often take certain elements of healthy eating to the extremes, or are trying to sell you a product that is not sustainable for your long term success. Outlined below are three steps to create your own weight loss plan. If you use these three principles of healthy eating, you will be able to adapt it to your lifestyle and make long term, sustainable progress.
Be in a slight caloric deficit
It shouldn’t be a big shock that this is number one on the list. We need to be in a caloric deficit to access the fat stores in our body. There is a right way and a wrong way to do this, however. Less is not more here. It cannot be emphasized enough, tracking your calories to control this deficit, combined with tracking your weekly weight loss are both important in order to lose weight responsibly. Too much too fast can interfere with positive hormone production, sleep, energy levels, and a whole host of body processes. Aim to lose somewhere between .5 to 1lb per week. Losing more than that? Eat a little bit more next week. Not losing that even though you strictly adhered to your calorie goal? Back off a little more next week, or increase activity slightly, if you are able. Again, do not get greedy and think that cutting your daily calories in half will help you sustain long term weight loss.
Manage and track macronutrient breakdown
After calories, macronutrients (macros) are the next most important aspect of controlling your nutrition for weight loss. Carbohydrates, Fats, and Protein are the three nutrients all food is made up of. Without tracking your food intake, you will not have a reliable way to manipulate your macros. All three macros have a place in a healthy diet, and none of them need to be demonized or excluded. Different percentages of these macros work well for different people so I won’t give any hard percentage breakdowns, but understanding how these nutrients affect your body is important to maintaining long term sustainability with your diet.
Eat high quality, fresh foods
Eating fresh food with minimal processing can take you a long way towards a healthier lifestyle. Getting more fiber, micronutrients (like vitamins and minerals), and antioxidants, which are found in fresh foods can really help people feel better. This can actually be a great place to start, because often the two steps outlined above fall into place when switching to a healthier, fresher diet. Being in a caloric deficit and managing macronutrient breakdown are still more important though when it comes to weight loss. This can be hard to grasp, but we can still overeat healthy food, or not get the optimal marco breakdown from the freshest, healthiest food we can find if we aren’t tracking them.
If we apply these principles you may notice that this is probably what the current “fad diet” is trying to achieve but more dressed up with marketing. If you are ready to take control of your eating habits to improve your body composition long term, these techniques will help.