Knowledge is power. And, applied knowledge is empowering! I want to help you to become an informed consumer. I also want you to understand that the nutritional information in this article is based solely on proven principles of the way the human body works—not based on opinions, diet fads, or unsubstantiated claims.
How the Body Processes Food
As with exercise, there are some general principles for how the body processes food. Let’s take a look.
Metabolism
Metabolism is the speed at which your
body burns through the food you consume. Although we are stuck with our
genetic makeup,
we do have some control over the speed of our
metabolism. Along with your age and gender, here are three factors that
regulate
metabolic rate:
- Activity Level—This is how much and how often you perform physical activity.
- Thyroid function—A calorie is a measure of heat, the body is a heat machine, and the thyroid regulates body temperature. Thus, it’s obvious that thyroid function influences the speed of your metabolism. So those diagnosed with hypothyroidism can experience a slower metabolic function. The good news is this issue can be resolved through doctor-prescribed medication that works to normalize thyroid function.
- Body composition—This is what your body weight is composed of, including muscle, fat, water, and so on. You obviously want a muscular physique, because, as we’ve established in the previous chapter, the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn over a 24-hour period, even while you sleep!
As you can see, two out of the three
factors just described are things we have direct control over. If we
follow an effective
metabolic strength training program, such as those
provided in this book, to increase activities levels and improve body
composition—along
with the nutritional strategies provided next—we can
take control of our metabolism and accelerate it as fast as our genetic
potential will allow.
Individuality
In addition to the three metabolism factors listed in the previous section, there are specific characteristics that can affect
minor variables within your training program and eating choices. I’m referring to this as your individuality: It's what makes you different from the next person. Some of these variables include the following:
- Metabolism
- Genetics
- Lifestyle
- Stress levels
- Profession (active versus sedentary)
- Food preferences (what you like to eat)
- Workout preferences
Even though we all are slightly
different, we are made of the same raw materials, our bodies operate in
much the same way,
and thus the concepts in this book can work for
everyone. Some of the minor specifics explained here as aspects of your
individuality
get worked out as you go along and discover more about
yourself. Remember, you are the world’s foremost expert on your body!
The Truth About Diets
When it comes to fat loss, most folks go on some sort of diet. Although it may seem like there is an endless variety of diets,
the predominant amount can be classified in one of the following 4 types of diets:
- Diets that cut calories
- Diets that cut fat
- Diets that cut carbohydrate
- Diets that cut out certain types of foods
For the most part, I don't recommend any of them. Let me explain why.
Calorie-Restrictive Diets
Everyone knows the word calorie. Many people even know how many calories they are consuming per day. You may be one of them!
First, let’s start with what a calorie
is. Do you know? I’m always shocked at the number of people who talk
about how many
calories they eat, yet they don’t actually know what a
calorie is. A calorie is a unit of energy equal to the amount of heat
needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1
°C. In short, a calorie is a unit of heat, and the body is essentially
a heat machine—hence the phrase, burn calories. The main reason I’m not big on counting calories is the simple fact that not all calories are created equal. Some calories
are more nutrient dense than others; we’ve all heard the term empty calories before.
Carbohydrate-Restrictive Diets
To better understand why just cutting
carbs is not the answer to fat loss, you must understand some basic
facts about carbohydrates:
- The human body is fueled by glucose. All food must be converted into glucose before it can be used as fuel.
- Carbohydrate is more easily converted into glucose than protein or fat and is the body's preferred source of energy and the
brain's essential source of energy.
- Glucose is stored in the blood, muscles, and liver as glycogen
- One gram of glycogen holds approximately 3 grams of water.
It's no wonder why people who cut carbs
lose so much weight so fast—glycogen holds more than double its weight
in water. It's
therefore likely that they lost mostly water weight.
This is why only using the scale to gauge your progress is a bad idea:
The scale doesn’t know the difference between muscle
weight, water weight, and so on. In other words, there’s weight loss
and there’s fat loss. When people say they want to
lose weight, they mean they want to lose fat.
What Is Complementary Eating?
A complementary meal consists of four components:
- Protein (eggs, chicken, fish, bison, beef, and so on)
- Fibrous carbohydrate (fruits and vegetables)
- Starchy carbohydrate (sweet potatoes, rice, oatmeal, and so on)
- Fat (avocado, nuts, olive oil, and so on)
We call this strategy complementary eating because each component of the meal complements the others to maximize nutritional benefits.
- Protein is the building block of muscle.
- Starchy carbs are a great energy source.
- Fibrous carbs move it all through the body and provide energy.
- Fat decreases inflammation, improves joint and heart health, and aids in disease prevention and cognitive function.
List of recommended foods based on the idea of complementary eating. It is not an exhaustive list but just a few food
choices to emphasize.
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