Proper nutrition for weight loss is not about strict abstinence, fasting and refusal from your favorite foods. First of all, it's self-care, the choice of food, and what makes you feel great and improves your quality of life.
The all or nothing principle doesn't work in this case. There is no need to try to change everything in one day and all at once - this usually leads to breakage and, as a result, to overeat. It is best to make small changes incrementally. This will help you achieve more results in the long run. When your little changes become habits, add healthier rules.
The main thing to remember is that striving for health is a journey of a lifetime. You have to enjoy it, not stress.
Why Eat Healthy Food?
Apart from helping you maintain a healthy weight, eating a healthy diet which includes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, milk and protein, there are other important benefits.
Poor nutrition is the most common cause of immune deficiency worldwide. Scientists associate the occurrence of many chronic diseases with poor diet. For example, 38, 5 thousand men and 67 thousand women attended one study. Over the course of 8-12 years of observation, it was found that junk food contributes to the breakdown of biomarkers, and can also cause heart disease, hypertension (high blood pressure), type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis and some cancers.
Evidence suggests that 30-35% of cancer deaths are diet-related, 25-30% are due to tobacco, 15-20% are due to infection, and the remaining percentage are due to other factors such as radiation, stress, physical inadequacy. . activities, environmental pollution, etc.
Poor nutrition affects not only physical but mental health as well. According to the Mental Health Foundation, two-thirds of people who eat fresh fruit and vegetables every day have no mental health problems.
So, the link between good nutrition and a healthy weight, reduced risk of chronic disease, and overall health is too important to ignore.
How long does it take to form eating habits?
Everyone is looking for a quick way to deal with weight loss these days, and changing the habits that encourage it and last for such a long time takes time. This has been confirmed by recent research.
For a long time, it was believed that in order to give rise to a stable habit, 21-28 days is enough. This statement is mainly related to the activities of a doctor named Maxwell Maltz. In the 1950s, he was a plastic surgeon and noticed that it took his patients at least 21 days to learn to see a mirror comfortably after surgery. In addition, he noticed that the person with the amputated leg or arm took the same amount of time to lose sensation of the limb.
As a result, he developed this idea in his book Psychocybernetics, which was published in 1960. Subsequently, the idea was taken up by many doctors, public figures, coaches. Over the years, the word "minimum" has disappeared, and a period of 21 days has practically become a "scientific" law.
What are the new studies talking about?
Philip Lally is a researcher in health psychology at University College London. In a paper published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, Lally and her analytical group figure out how long it takes to form a habit.
The study involved 96 people. Each of them chose one new habit for 12 weeks and reported daily whether they followed it or not.
Some people have adopted simple rules such as "drink a bottle of water at lunchtime. "Others choose a more challenging task, such as running 15 minutes before lunch. After 12 weeks, the researchers analyzed the data to determine how long it took each person to transition from initiating a new behavior to doing it automatically.
On average, it took more than 2 months, or more precisely 66 days. But the time it takes to form a new habit can vary widely depending on the behavior, the person, and the circumstances. Overall, the study took 18 to 254 days.
How to start eating right and what habits can help in the weight loss process?
1. Calorie deficit
The main idea is as old as the world -You need to spend more calories than you consume. . .
A negative calorie balance forces the body to use the accumulated reserves to provide the energy it needs. This energy comes mainly from stored carbohydrates and body fat.
During the weight loss phase, the daily calorie deficit should be between 300 and 500 kcal.
In addition, it is important to monitor the BJU indicators (protein, fat and carbohydrates).
2. Reduce the amount of fat in the diet
According to WHO (World Health Organization), preference should be given to unsaturated fats (found in fish, avocados, nuts, etc. ) and reduce consumption of saturated fats (fatty meat, butter, palm oil, coconut oil, etc. ), as well as industrial trans fats found in baked, smoked, fried foods, snack foods, pies, chips, crackers, etc.
Fat should not be more than 30% of the total food consumed during a weight loss diet, where less than 10% should be saturated, and no more than 1% trans fat.
There is no need to completely shed fat in the diet. They are necessary to provide the body with polyunsaturated fatty acids, namely linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid. They are not produced by the body and are mainly found in vegetable and fish oils.
3. Get enough protein
Protein is the body's most important building block and should meet about 40% of your total energy needs.
When you are trying to lose weight, a protein-rich diet can keep you feeling full for a long time by affecting the hunger hormone ghrelin. Protein also fights muscle loss during diet. The more muscle mass, the more energy is consumed and the higher the calorie requirements.
Proteins of animal origin have a higher biological value than plant proteins. However, they also tend to contain extra fat and cholesterol, so consume them in moderation.
According to research, a high-protein breakfast can reduce food cravings and calorie intake throughout the day.
4. Avoid simple carbohydrates
In total, the carbohydrates in the diet should be around 30%. They are usually divided into simple and complex. It takes more time to process the latter and produces less insulin, which helps make you feel full and avoid overeating.
Simple carbohydrate foods include sugar, white flour bread, jams, sodas, juices, and more. For simple carbohydrates, it's best to choose the first half of the day, when blood sugar levels are low after sleep, glycogen stores are depleted and the body's energy needs to be restored.
For foods high in carbohydrates, whole grains are ideal because in addition to their high mineral and fiber content, they also saturate the body and improve digestion.
As a guide, you can useHarvard's Pyramid of Healthy Eating. . .
5. If you can't, but you really want to
As you know, "the forbidden fruit is sweet. " The more you forbid yourself from doing something, the more you want it. And guilt, which goes away if you give in to temptation, leads some people to give up and give up on what they started.
Therefore, the first step may not be complete rejection of harmful products, but a reduction in their portion sizes and a reduction in their frequency of consumption. Over time, you will begin to crave less of these foods.
6. Avoid drinks that make fat
Avoid sodas and fruit juices.According to one study, this drink is low in nutrients, and excessive consumption caused Americans to gain 20% in weight between 1977 and 2007.
A 0. 5 liter bottle of cola contains 240 calories and 65 grams of sugar. Evidently, people who mostly drink water consume an average of 200 calories per day less than those who drink other drinks.
Drink water before eating. One study found that drinking water half an hour before meals reduced appetite and increased weight loss by 44% in just 3 months.
If you're not ready to stop drinking unhealthy drinks right away, use a simple trick that can trick your brain.
Look at the image below. Which of the lines is larger: horizontal or vertical?
In fact, both lines are the same length, but our brains tend to exaggerate vertical lines. In other words, transferring this knowledge to the topic at hand, to us taller glasses and mugs appear larger and wider than round and wide ones.
This way, you can drink about 20% less from a tall and thin glass than from a small, wide glass without feeling dissatisfied.
7. Eliminate alcohol
When switching to a proper diet, it is advisable to stop consuming alcohol. Why is this necessary?
- Alcohol triggers an increase in appetite by acting on neurons, and it also increases the likelihood of damage, unhealthy food choices, and overeating.
- It has a negative impact on digestion, changes the secretion of gastric acid and its motility, leading to metabolic disorders.
- Alcohol makes water in the body linger, which is why in the morning there is a lot of swelling and excess weight found on the scale.
- Drinking alcohol can interfere with the body's ability to recover from exercise, thereby reducing the ability to burn excess calories through exercise.
- Alcohol consumption leads to shorter and lower quality sleep, which significantly affects hunger and forces people to switch from carbohydrates to eating fat. According to research, every 30 minutes of sleep deprivation equals 83 additional calories throughout the day.
But it is worth clarifying that low alcohol drinks in moderate doses do not cause significant harm to the body. 100 ml of dry red wine contains 80 kcal, 100 ml of beer contains 45 kcal. For comparison, in vodka - 230 kcal per 100 g. Therefore, a glass of dry wine or a glass of beer can be drunk once a week without losing weight.
8. Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables
Fruits and vegetables provide the body with fiber, minerals, vitamins and phytochemicals. They serve a number of important functions in the body and are essential for healthy metabolic processes.
You are advised to eat at least two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables a day (one serving is about 150 g). It should be noted that excessive fruit consumption is not recommended, because it contains a lot of fructose, in contrast to low-calorie and nutritious vegetables.
9. Pay attention to the speed of food intake
The speed at which you eat affects your portion size as well as your likelihood of gaining weight. Our brains and gut are constantly communicating, so if your brain is distracted while eating, you may not receive a signal whether you are hungry or full.
Keep in mind that it takes about 20 minutes on average for this information, so eating slowly can prevent overeating.
In addition, eating slowly is associated with more thorough chewing, which also contributes to weight maintenance. Studies comparing different eating rates show that those who eat fast are 115% more likely to be obese than those who eat slowly.
10. Redefine the way you prepare food
The way you prepare food directly affects your health.
Baking, smoking, frying, frying are popular methods of preparing meat and fish. However, using this method, several potentially toxic compounds (polycyclic and heterocyclic) are produced in food, which are associated with various chronic diseases, including cancer and heart disease.
Healthier methods include baking, boiling, steaming, etc. They do not contribute to the formation of these harmful compounds and thus make your diet healthier.
11. Eat from small plates
It has been shown that the size of cookware can affect how much you eat. On large plates people put portions that are, on average, 30% more than on standard plates.
The brain perceives the same amount of food on a large and small plate differently, this is called the Delbeuf illusion.
Agree, it looks like the portion on the left is quite small. We're sure you'll want a supplement. At the same time, the portion on the plate on the right, filled to the brim, is felt to be more and, accordingly, there is a feeling that it will be more satisfying.
12. Reduce seasonings and flavor enhancers
Salt, seasonings, store sauce and ketchup should be consumed to a minimum. Many of these contain sugar, colorants, preservatives, flavor enhancers, and stabilizers. They have a negative effect on the function of the digestive tract.
WHO recommends consuming no more than 5 grams of iodized salt per day (approximately 1 tsp). WHO Member States have set a goal of reducing global consumption by 30% by 2025, which will help prevent hypertension and reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke among adults.
13. Control emotional eating.
Our relationship with food is closely related to emotional health. We don't always take food to satisfy our hunger. Many turn to food to relieve stress or deal with unpleasant emotions such as anxiety, sadness, loneliness, or boredom. But learning healthier ways to deal with it can help you regain control. Serotonin levels play a key role here.
It is a neurotransmitter that helps regulate sleep and appetite, regulates mood, and suppresses pain. Since about 95% of serotonin is produced in the digestive tract, and the digestive tract is lined with hundreds of millions of nerve cells, it makes sense that the inner workings of the digestive system not only help digest food, but also regulate emotions. country.
14. Choose healthy snacks
Snacking is one of the main factors in maintaining a healthy diet and nutrition. If you choose healthy foods that are high in protein and nutrients, snacks can be an integral part of your weight loss. Some of them can even help you stay full throughout the day and limit your cravings for unhealthy foods.
Avoid cookies and candy, sandwiches and layered cheeses for dry fruit, nuts, vegetable sticks with hummus, natural yogurt, fruit, etc.
15. Be selective at the supermarket
In supermarkets, there is an unwritten rule called the "Outer Ring". Usually, the healthiest products are located along the perimeter - fruits, vegetables, meat, eggs, dairy products, cereals, etc. Most of the packaged and processed food is placed between rows.
Why are processed foods dangerous? Scientists are increasingly coming to the conclusion that processed foods, with all their additives, lacking sugar and fiber, can negatively impact the gut microbiota and the various bacteria that line its walls. As a result, the risk of chronic disease increases and creates fertile ground for overeating.
In one study, consumption of processed foods was associated with increased cardiovascular disease, in another - with an increased risk of death from any cause.
In addition, special attention should be paid to the label on the product, which indicates the storage conditions and composition. Remember that the ingredients are listed in descending order, from highest to lowest. The less the better. Make sure the product does not contain sweeteners such as sugar alcohols, monosodium glutamate (E621), formaldehyde (E240), trans fats, dyes (E102, E104, E110, E122, E124, E129), etc.
16. Don't be distracted while eating
A new study claims that the sound perception of food intake affects eating habits. The study involved two groups of people who ate a crunchy diet, one with white noise headphones and the other without headphones. As a result, participants who were distracted by white noise heard less of the sound of food, which made them eat more than those who heard the crunch.
Another interesting experiment, whose results were published in 2016, claims that browsing social networks where you follow the culinary public or various grocery stores can lead to what is called a "visual hunger. "In other words, even though you don't physically need food, your body sends signals to your brain using the hunger hormones that you want to eat.
The main thing to remember for a healthy relationship with food is: "Food is not the enemy. " Instead of focusing on what you shouldn't eat, think about healthy, new, and delicious things you can add to your diet. to diversify your diet. Don't try to change everything at once, form new healthy habits gradually and without stress.
As you know, a balanced diet of at least 50% results in the weight loss process! Without it, even the most competent training will not produce the desired results.