Everything You Know About Fat Loss Is WRONG

Ever feel like you're doing everything right and the fat just isn't budging?

You cut carbs.

You do hours of cardio.

You eat "clean".

But the scale refuses to move.

It's probably because you're believing some long-standing myths about fat loss.

Let's dive into the science so you can finally start losing fat.

The Art And Science Of Fat Loss

Losing fat is both a science and an art.

Because nutrition involves people and people can be weird and wonderful and creatures of their own habits and preferences.

My videos are based on the body of research evidence in nutrition and exercise, but they also take into account my experiences in over 20 years I've spent coaching people just like you.

What I'm telling you is going to be true and helpful for about 90% of people watching.

But who shows up in the comments? The 10% who didn't get results. Funny, huh?

What Do We Actually KNOW About Nutrition?

There are no absolutes when it comes to nutrition!

The one thing that's not arguable (but people still will!) is a calorie deficit.

You need to expend more energy than you take in.

A calorie is just a unit of energy, the stored potential in foods that you take in and what your body uses to perform functions.

Eat More And Lose More Weight?

Have you heard that eating more helps you lose weight?

This could be true but probably not for the reason you think.

Weight loss is calories in, calories out right?

You need to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight. That's true.

So why do you keep seeing people commenting that they were eating like 1,000 calories a day and then they increased their calorie intake to something like 1,500 calories a day and then they finally started to lose weight.

You might even think it happened to you. Spoiler alert! It didn't.

That would mean that the law of thermodynamics didn't work for that particular person.

And I know we're all special little snowflakes but some things you can't get around.

If more calories are coming in, you should be gaining weight and not losing weight.

The Impact Of NEAT On Fat Loss

But let's not forget that there are two sides to our energy balance equation. And when you're on low calories for an extended period of time you naturally down-regulate your activity.

This reduction in NEAT, non-exercise activity thermogenesis, has been shown in studies of long-term dieters. You eat less, you feel tired, you move around less. You won't even notice.

Then there's the fact that when you eat more, particularly if you focus on protein and fiber there is some corresponding increase in the thermic effect of food, TEF.

That's part of your total daily energy expenditure, TDEE. This is what we casually mean by our metabolism, the amount of calories your body burns per day. This will increase your calories out.

What About Weight Loss Plateaus?

Many people also think that they've reached a weight loss plateau, which does happen but it's not as common as most people think.

Your body does adapt as you lose weight.

There's a slight decrease in your metabolic rate that occurs with dieting.

It's called metabolic adaptation. Also called adaptive thermogenesis. But these changes tend to be temporary and are unlikely to prevent weight loss if you maintain a calorie deficit through your physical activity and calorie intake.

Why You Burn Fewer Calories As You Lose Weight

What most people forget to account for is that as they lose weight they need fewer calories to maintain their body in its current state.

A body that's 180lbs needs more calories than a body that's 160lbs. So at a certain point what was your calorie deficit, is now your maintenance. And you'll need to go lower to continue to lose weight.

The most common reason for a weight loss plateau is described in research as "lack of dietary adherence".

In simple terms that means:

"I'm really good during the week I get my calories and macros perfect from Monday to Friday. Just on the weekend sometimes I'll have a couple of drinks. Sometimes I'll have some nachos when I'm out for dinner and maybe some fries."

Or it could be:

"I've been eating 1,200 calories every day for so long, except for that day when I was really tired and finished the whole bag of chips. Then I was craving ice cream so bad that I ate the whole tub of Ben & Jerry's."

You can definitely enjoy treat foods as part of a fat loss program. But you need to incorporate those calories in your calculations.

That may mean reducing your calories further during the week to account for your weekend calories. Or incorporating small treats throughout the week. If the reason you're overeating is because you're feeling deprived.

Does Eating Less ALWAYS Lead To Fat Loss?

But it's not true that eating less always leads to fat loss.

There's a limit and there's certainly a point at which it's not healthy to be eating less and less.

You need both the macro, the protein, carbs, and fat and micronutrients (the vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients) to function well on a daily basis.

As we've just discussed, our energy balance equation has a calories in and the calories out side, so you can eat less and reduce your physical activity and the result would be no change.

It might not even be intentional. You could be going to the gym the same amount of time each week but maybe you're more tired and expending less effort. So you're using fewer calories or you can't build as much muscle because you can't lift with the same intensity.

The Impact Of Weight Training And Protein

That's why many people who start eating with that fitness lifestyle of more protein and lifting weights tend to feel better compared to just drastically reducing calories.

Physique competitors and bodybuilders know the difference between how they feel doing their weight training workouts when they're dieting hard for a show compared to when they're in offseason and consuming more calories.

You feel stronger and everything just feels easier.

How Dieting Affects Your Metabolism

We do know that people who are on very calorie restrictive diets for months will tend to reduce their movement. Their NEAT.

Drastic calorie reduction for long periods of time can also put you at risk of losing muscle mass.

Muscle is a more active tissue than fat. It uses up more calories. So at the same weight a person who has a lower body fat percentage and higher relative muscle will be burning off more calories than someone who has more body fat.

You NEED To Cut Out Carbs To Lose Fat

Have you heard that you need to cut carbs to lose fat?

Despite what the carnivore diet proponents will tell you carbs are not the enemy.

In fact, most of the issue comes through what many people define as carbs.

What does someone mean by carbs?

Is it pizza, french fries, donuts?

The problem isn't the carbs as such. These ultra processed foods are calorie dense and easy to overeat. And they're not just carbs. They have a lot of fat. That's where all those extra calories come from.

The Truth About Carbs

Carbs are only 4 calories per gram but fat is 9 calories per gram.

It's easy to over consume.

Some people think they need to eliminate bread and pasta, but those are actually relatively low calorie foods.

The issue you usually comes with what you put on bread. Lots of butter, for instance. Or olive oil or creamy sauces on pasta, that add a lot of calories.

The bread I generally eat, for instance, has protein and fiber. Whole grains are better because they have fiber, but when I eat out I don't always pass on delicious sour dough bread or other white breads either.

I just don't go too crazy with the butter or olive oil.

Let's also remember that vegetables and fruit are carbs. And they should form the basis of a healthy fat loss plan, along with lean protein.

Fiber has consistently been shown to have health and fat loss benefits.

Is Rice Really BAD?

Now let's talk about one carb in particular.

I get a bit wound up about rice when people are saying bad things about rice.

Over 3.5 billion people in the world, particularly in Asia, are eating rice. If carbs themselves were such a problem all those people eating rice would be overweight.

People are not getting fat because of rice and potatoes.

How Food Preparation Matters

Think about the difference between french fries and a baked.

Potato and fries (or chips for my UK friends) are higher in fat and calories.

Whole potatoes have been shown to be one of the most filling foods. This keeps you from eating more calories later on. It very much depends on how the food is served.

Oils and sauces, and sugars that are added, that's where a lot of the extra calories come from.

Dry rice, vegetables, and fish which is common in Japan for instance is unlikely to be a problem.

Many bodybuilders eat these kind of meals and get very lean.

The Role Of Lower Carb Diets For Reducing Cravings

The one thing that is important to note is that lower carb diets (and that doesn't mean keto) just lower carb may be useful for reducing cravings in people who are susceptible to them.

Switching to a slightly lower carb diet initially helped me manage my weight years ago.

But now I'm able to eat more carbs, because a lot of that was also psychological you.

You Must Eat Small, Frequent Meals To Lose Weight

It doesn't matter very much how many meals you eat per day you have.

The total calories, and to a lesser extent, the macro composition of your nutrition is what matters.

So you can do that in one meal or you can do that in six meals.

A few times I've seen people comment: "I lost weight with one meal a day."

And certainly if someone is overweight by 40 or 50 lbs, restricting themselves to one meal is probably going to get them to lose weight. There's only so many calories that most of us can take in at one time, but that also means that there's only so much protein and fiber you can take in at one time.

Skipping Meals And Calorie Reduction

For the sake of your health you want at least 25g of fiber per day.

The actual guideline is about 14g per 1,000 calories that you're consumin.

It's tough to achieve that in one meal. And very uncomfortable.

Intermittent fasting helps some people lose that weight too. If you're skipping breakfast or skipping dinner or whatever form of intermittent fasting you prefer. If it helps you reduce your calories then it will help you lose fat.

Meal Frequency And Muscle Building

For building muscle, it does seem to be a bit better to spread your protein intake out over the course of the day.

Muscle growth seems to be maximized by a target intake of about 0.4g per kilo of body weight per meal, across a minimum of 4 meals.

So someone who's 80 kilos about 176lbs would need about 32 g of protein per meal. That would be a minimum daily intake of 128g per day or 1.6g per kilo per day.

That works out to about 0.73g per pound of body weight per day. This is generally the minimum that I recommend for most people who are active and looking for fat loss.

All Calories Are Equal For Fat Loss

A calorie, as I've already mentioned, is just a unit of energy. So all calories are the same but how different kinds of calories affect your body is different.

Whole foods have a higher TEF, thermic effect of food. Your body expends more energy digesting them than highly processed foods.

That's more calories out.

Fat, as I said before, provides 9 calories per gram and its TEF is 0 to 3%.

Carbohydrates are 4 calories per gram and the TEF is 5 to 10%.

Protein is 4 calories per gram and has the highest TEF at 20 to 30%.

So a diet that includes more protein is going to give you more calories out.

What About "Junk Food"?

Ultra processed foods also don't fill you up very much which means it's harder to keep your calories under control.

Some treat foods can definitely be part of a fat loss diet and I would argue that adding them in small quantities each day or moderate quantities once in a while can actually help maintain your motivation to stick with your nutrition plan.

In the past the main thing that kept me from being being able to get to the level of leanness that I wanted was the cycle of deprivation and binging, when I was trying to force myself to eat "clean".

You Need To Increase Your Protein Intake To Lose Fat

Not necessarily!

We talk about protein so much that we forget that some people are getting enough protein.

If someone is eating burgers, steaks, and hot dogs regularly, a lack of protein is probably NOT their problem.

In order for them to lose fat, they'll likely have to reduce their intake of high calorie density protein sources and replace them with with more lower calorie density foods like vegetables and fruit and lean sources of protein.

Fatty sources of protein can be part of a healthy, balanced, calorie-controlled nutrition plan, but the serving size and frequency probably has to be reduced so that you can get into a calorie deficit.

if someone is already consuming about 0.7g per pound of body weight per day of protein and they're not losing fat, then I would look elsewhere to help them achieve fat loss.

Would REDUCING Protein Help With Fat Loss?

I did a video about protein and someone left a comment saying, "I lost weight by lowering my protein intake."

That's cool and I believe you.

But if that's the case it's unlikely that your protein sources were lean, low calorie density foods like chicken breast, egg whites, and white fish.

Maybe you eliminated Big Macs and steak from your diet and dropped a lot of calories and fat from your calorie intake. A McDonald's Big Mac, by the way, has about 550 calories and 30g of fat.

Some people DO need more protein to reach their fat loss goals.

To find out if that's you, and how you can do it properly, watch THIS VIDEO HERE.

Ivana Chapman