Americans have an insatiable appetite for diet information. Bookstores are filled with all the latest and “greatest” diet programs. Reality television could have a network devoted solely to programs about weight loss. The word “diet” has become almost exclusively tied to weight loss. In reality, diet is simply the foods we habitually eat. So, I see two challenges here: 1) the emphasis is on “weight”, and 2) the emphasis is on short-term fixes.
When I hear someone say, “I need to lose weight”, the questions that come to mind are “Why? What is wrong with your weight?” Weight is, after all, just a number. What people are usually saying when they make a statement about losing weight is that they want to lose body fat. No problem with this (within reason, of course), but the scale can be deceiving. Water and muscle have mass (i.e., weight), as well. So the question remains, “Do you want to simply change numbers on a scale or change your body?”
Too often, we have an arbitrary scale number in our head. When I was in my Master’s degree program, we had a statistics assignment in which we had to report such demographics as age, height, and weight. Quite a few of the women in my cohort reported their body weight as “135 pounds.” Possible, but looking around the class, it was obvious that there was some variability among body weights. I have since questioned: what is it about the magic number? Apparently, there was some message received by the women that this is an “ideal” weight. Pure nonsense! Body weight is only an issue among sports in which athletes compete in specific weight categories. Otherwise, what is “ideal” pertains only to one’s body type and activity level.
Over recent years, my body weight has had a tendency to fluctuate around 220 pounds. I like this number because, as an exercise physiology professor, it is an easy number to convert into kilograms (it is also the wrestling weight class I wish they had had when I was in high school). In reality, this is just a number. My actual ratio of lean mass to fat mass has varied considerably around this number. I have had a tendency recently to creep above this 220 lb target. I have used a variety of approaches to get back down to this magic weight. When focused solely on the number, I have found that, while I lose fat through diet and exercise (especially when the emphasis is on “fat burning” aerobic –AKA “cardio” exercise), I also tend to lose lean tissue (muscle). In a more recent effort at recomp (the term used for the attempt to “shift” body weight from fat to muscle without a significant change on the scale), I emphasized weightlifting and took a more conscious approach toward gaining muscle. As a result, I tipped the scale at about 223.5 lb (gaining about 5.5 lb of muscle and losing less than 0.4 lb of fat in 24 weeks). My overall percentage of fat, however, decreased. I realized that I could get leaner by simply getting heavier (i.e., gaining more muscle). So, the choice becomes work hard and eat less to attain an arbitrary weight target or work hard and eat more to attain a more physiologically sound target (i.e., a lower body fat percentage). More likely than not the increased activity level and added muscle mass with ultimately lead to a greater fat loss (provided my eating remains controlled).
So, with the emphasis (somewhat) off of the scale, we can focus on what we eat and on creating a habitual diet that will allow us to effectively exercise lose body fat. The easiest way to develop a habit is through conscious effort. Dieting is no different. When it comes to food, most of us are creatures of habit. So, the goal is to habitually perform healthy behaviors. The best way the change behavior is through “baby steps.” (If this doesn’t stir up images of Bill Murray and Richard Dreyfuss in What About Bob?, then you haven’t seen the movie and need to watch it!) Look for the small things that have the biggest impact.
While not perfectly accurate from a physiological standpoint, it is safe to say that the most important variables in weight management are calories in and calories out. When calories in equal calories out (a eucaloric diet) one will maintain weight. When calories in are greater than calories out (a hypercaloric diet) one will gain weight. When calories in are less than calories out (a hypocaloric diet) one will lose weight. To lose fat while maintaining muscle tissue, one must be slightly hypocaloric—one must restrict slightly calories in and increase slightly calories out. Ideally, one will lose between 1 and 2 pounds per week until the fat loss goal is attained. Any more than a 2 lb weight loss per week is unsustainable and will likely result in a corresponding loss of muscle tissue. Paradoxically, an elevated activity level (particularly including weight training) and a slightly hypercaloric diet is more effective for sustained fat loss, though maybe less effective in simply moving the numbers down on the scale. In fact, on several occasions, I have told clients who had plateaued in their “weight” loss to eat more and seen this result in a renewed downward trend on the scale.
The specifics of diet for performance and body composition are beyond the scope of this post, but some general guidelines:
- determine what are your caloric needs
- watch your macros (carbohydrates, proteins, and fats)
- increase your physical activity
- add weight training to your exercise regiment
- plan (and record) your meals
- identify the small changes you can make today
- be patient
Determining your caloric needs is a rough guess at best. There are a number of online calculators that you can find to get your started (just Google “calorie calculator”). Start with this number and adjust according to the rate of fat loss—if you are losing at a rate greater than 2 lb per week, increase your calories; if you are gaining, decrease your calories a little more.
The role of protein, carbohydrate, and fat in the diet are a bit complicated, but, simply put, they need to be in proper balance. How much we need depends mostly on activity. Protein needs are safely in the range of 0.85-1 gram per pound of body weight. Carbohydrates are a necessary fuel for performance. Dr. Mike Israetel (The Renaissance Diet) suggests the following rough targets:
- 0.5 g/lb for non-training days (and, by extension, I would say for sedentary individuals
- 1.0 g/lb on light training days (for people with sedentary jobs and who exercise more moderately)
- 1.5 g/lb on moderate training days
- ≥2.0 g/lb on heavy training days
Fats can round out more of your remaining calories. I like to start at 0.3 g/lb of body weight and to allow a little wiggle room for fats and carbohydrates. Quality of fats (ideally, from nuts and quality oils) and carbohydrates (e.g., high fiber, complex carbohydrates) are important—more so the less you are fueling your body for competition and intensive exercise.
Look for ways to increase physical activity. Of course, exercise more, if you can; but, more importantly, look for way to make small changes that add up to a greater total energy expenditure. Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator. Park farther from the store or office. Walk rather than drive short distances. Bike. Take every opportunity to move. A few calories here or there can add up over time. (Remember: one pound of bodyweight is equivalent to approximately 3500 kcal.)
Muscle uses energy. The more you have the more calories you require. In addition, it has been demonstrated that more calories are expended for a longer time following a weight training session than a bout of aerobic exercise. Lifting weights can actually help speed your fat loss and help keep the fat off.
Meal planning and meal preparation is the life of a bodybuilder. Careful planning and packaging the food you will eat for the day will minimize impulsive eating. We are more likely to overeat and eat junk foods when we don’t prepare ahead. As well, recording our food consumption helps keep us on track. There are a lot of great apps for this. Recording allows one to track when and what they are eating and keep calories and macros in order. If, by the end of the day, your calorie limits are met, you have a choice: stop eating or go over. Either way, the outcome is conscious.
Planning also allows one to control for hunger. If, for example, you work an office job, you can eat light in the morning and be controlled throughout the day because you are to busy too eat (assuming you can avert sabotage from your coworkers bringing junk to the office—which you can!). You can plan your snacks and time them to get you through the day. Lunch is measured and prepared, and, assuming you make it safely through the day, you have your greatest calorie reserve in the evening when you might be more likely to binge. This will also help carry you into the morning, again. Keep healthy snacks handy, so you are not likely to reach for junk food.
Most important to long-term weight management is creating a lifestyle of healthy habits. The best way to do this is with small changes that take little effort and add up over the long-term. Eradicate the hidden unnecessary calories from your diet. Stop drinking pop/soda, but, if you do drink pop, avoid sugar. Cutting a 160 kcal sugary drink a day amounts to a…drum roll, please…16.7 lb weight loss in a year!!! Living in the northwest and liking beer, cutting calories from social drinking was a matter of just monitoring my selections. Many IPAs and craft beers can be 7-8% ABV. Researching low calorie (and good-tasting) beers, I learned that for every percentage point ABV there are 30 kcal in a 12-ounce serving. So, selecting a beer that is but 1% ABV lower than an alternative saves 30 kcal (assuming a beer a day, that is 10,950 kcal per year or 3.13 lb!). Shave this down to 4-5% ABV (and there are a lot of new session style IPAs that taste great), the calories add up. There are countless other places in our diet to shave calories—cutting fats, switching from sugar to Stevia, skim v. 2% fat milk (I recently switched to almond or cashew milks for my whey shakes and oatmeal where the taste difference is negligible—1 cup skim milk = 90 kcal; 1 cup unsweetened cashew milk is 25 kcal), etc. The point here is: you can make changes that aren’t going to adversely affect your life. You can enjoy food. You just have to eliminate the choices that interfere with the opportunities to have more enjoyable foods—e.g., save calories for dessert!
Lastly, be patient. Weight management is not a short-term goal. It involves lifestyle changes that become habit—i.e., your diet. Habits take time. Building muscle takes time (expect only 1-1.5 lb per month with proper training and diet). Permanent fat loss takes time (remember: the goal for sustainable fat loss is no more than 2 lb per week). Create for yourself a diet that you can enjoy. After all, diet is not “Die with a ‘T’.”