by Molly Galbraith
1. You May Be Carb Intolerant!
Only about 25% of the world’s population is carbohydrate tolerant, and for Caucasians, that number is even lower! Why, you ask? Most Caucasian-Americans are descendants of European settlers whose ancestors have only been living off agriculture for the last couple hundred years.
Without agriculture, your diet would consist primarily of things that you can either hunt, or gather. Think red meat, fish, fowl, fruits, vegetables, seeds, and nuts.
If your ancestors have only recently begun eating carbohydrates in the form of grains, there’s a good chance that your body has not adapted to these types of foods, and that they will result in problems for you such as fat gain and inflammation.
Now, if you’re of Asian descent, your ancestors have had agriculture for a bazillion years (yes, that is a scientific term), which means you’ll be able to eat a diet high in carbohydrates from grains (such as rice) without any problems.
Can't lose fat? You may be carb intolerant!
How do you know if you are carbohydrate intolerant? Go eat a big stack of pancakes with syrup, staying away any other protein or fat with this meal. Then see if you feel like (A) taking a nap, or (B) cleaning your entire house, going for a run, doing a set of squats, or something else that requires a lot of energy.
If you went with choice A, you’re probably carbohydrate intolerant and should get most of your carbs from fruits and veggies, and that the majority of your carbohydrate intake should be centered around your weight training.
If you chose B, you’re probably carbohydrate tolerant, and you will fare better eating a diet higher in carbohydrates from sources like brown rice, oats, quinoa, sweet potatoes, and beans.
2. Know When to Stop Dieting
Do not stay in a caloric deficit for longer than 16 weeks without a structured re-feed. Even if you have a lot of weight to lose, it’s still vital that you take some time off and bump your calories back up to maintenance or a little above maintenance for 2-4 weeks.
Chronically staying a caloric deficit will depress your metabolism and screw up your hormone levels, not to mention the fact that it’s not very fun to stay in a deficit that long. Re-feeding will give you a much needed mental break, boost your metabolism, and hopefully get your hormones back up to optimal levels.
Now this is not a free for all; that will just cause you to gain back the fat you’ve lost (and maybe more!). This is a time to increase overall calories (and carbs, if you tolerate them well) slowly, by adding back a couple hundred a week for a few weeks until you reach maintenance levels or slightly above.
This is NOT the idea here!
Another way to know when it’s time for a re-feed, is to use this little trick I picked up from my friend Wesley. Here is his recommendation:
“Take your morning body temperate first thing in the morning for four days in a row before starting a fat loss diet. This means before eating, and before ANY activity. Morning temperature should be 97.5-98.1. If yours is a bit lower, that’s fine.
If it’s consistently 96.5 or below, you should postpone the diet until you get it back up by eating a bit more, and if at all possible, have your thyroid checked. Trying to start a diet with a severely slowed metabolism will make the diet a very difficult task. At 96.1, your metabolism is already slowed 15-25% for most people, and to get at a number well below maintenance with your metabolism THAT dampened already will require a very low caloric and nutritional profile for your body.
Trying to diet with an already crippled metabolism rarely works and the calories and nutrients end up having to be so low, that muscle is usually sacrificed.
Continue to monitor temperature while dieting. If your body temperature plummets, you can bet your metabolic rate has also plummeted. Careful measurement can tell an experienced person when to either drop calories, or discontinue the diet for a short time to get metabolism back up and running correctly.
Please take into mind that some people do have a naturally lower basal body temperature, so what will appear as low for a normal person will be the norm for a person with the low body temperature type metabolism. These people are not the rule, but the exception.”
3. You are What You Absorb
That’s right, it’s not about what you eat, but rather what you digest and absorb. With every passing year, we lose a small percentage of the stomach acid that helps us digest our food. This is one of the reasons that our parents and grandparents get heartburn and indigestion so easily. So, think you don’t have to worry about it until you’re their age? Think again!
Stomach acid levels are also adversely affected by stress levels and even carbonated drinks. With the high stress levels of today’s average American, it’s not uncommon to find some thirty year-olds with no stomach acid!
And if you have low or no stomach acid, then how can you expect to digest the food you’re eating sufficiently enough to get any benefits out of it? You can’t! You’re letting it go down the toilet (literally)!
A couple of good options are digestive enzymes taken with each meal (I like the NOW brand), and/or taking Betaine Hcl. You can find Betaine Hcl at most health food stores and many places online.
The cool thing about the Betaine Hcl is that it actually restores your natural stomach acid! Make sure it is taken with high protein meals (this should not be a problem since you eat protein with every meal, right?) Some coaches recommend around 1000-1500mg with each protein meal, but if you take this amount and feel a mild burn in your stomach, don’t be alarmed — just back off by about 250 mg each meal until you don’t feel a burn, and stick with that dose.
Hopefully, you’ll eventually feel a burn with any amount you take, and since this means that you’ve restored your stomach acid back up to appropriate levels, you can stop taking it for a while.
Follow these tips, and you'll be well on your way to permanent and healthy fat loss!
And that sums it up for now. More “must-knows” to come soon, so stay tuned!
About Molly
Molly Galbraith is co-owner of Red Point Fitness [1], an online nutrition and training company. She is also a natural figure and powerlifting competitor. She also trains clients online and in-person. You can contact her at molly@redpointfitness.com.
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