The Nourished Life: Weight Loss

Showing posts with label Weight Loss. Show all posts

Why Diet Rules Backfire (and How to Quiet Your Inner Rebel)

The rebellious teen is a cookie cutter stereotype if there ever was one, partly because it's based in reality. You know those in-between years when we battle between lingering immaturity and the desire to come into our own destiny. It's a time when sometimes rules are broken just because they are rules, even if they were meant only to serve us.

Most of us have matured beyond the flagrant defiance of our teenage years (well, hopefully), but most of us still have a little of that rebel left inside us, ready to strike out when rules become too rigid or when life separates us too much from who we want to be.

And when we diet. Always when we diet.

The story goes something like this: XYZ diet is the best diet for me because I should [lose weight, get healthy, detox my liver, purify my soul, etc.]. Therefore, X foods are good for me and I should eat a lot of those. And Y foods are okay for me but should mostly be avoided. And Z foods, well, they are just straight up poison and I should never touch them again.

The problem? Every "should" you just told yourself is nudging your inner rebel out of hibernation. At first, the inner rebel doesn't say much. It's being squelched by the rush of adrenaline and excitement that comes with starting the XYZ diet. This rush overpowers any rebelliousness (and possibly even common sense) for a few days or weeks.

Then comes the moment you swore would never come again. The moment where the low-carber inhales an entire loaf of fresh-baked bread. Or the low-fat dieter devours ten rice cakes slathered with peanut butter. Or the sugar-buster swallows massive spoonfuls of rocky road ice cream right out of the container.

How did we get here? We knew better. We knew all the rules, about the X foods and the Y foods and the Z foods. How did we know so much and then go running in the opposite direction?

Are the rules just flat out wrong? Sometimes, but not always. Occasionally they are even based on sound science. It's not really the rules themselves that are so wrong, but what you tell yourself about them.

You don't rebel against the rules and suggestions. You do rebel against the idea that you should, you must, you have to follow them.

How to Quiet Your Inner Rebel

To quiet the inner rebel, you first have to know what it wants:

Your inner rebel wants you to be safe and accepted. Sometimes your inner rebel exists to defend you. It rears its ugly head when you get the idea that somehow you aren't acceptable or worthy as a human being when you don't follow the XYZ rules. And this is a hidden agenda of many diets, to make you feel morally superior if you follow the rules, and horribly inferior if you don't. Well, I don't have to tell you that no one wants to feel like a worthless sack of manure. It's only natural to want to rebel against this feeling (and then eat a whole pan of brownies to prove it wrong).

Your inner rebel want you to be heard and recognized. Diets tell you one thing very clearly: you are unreliable and even dangerous. Listening to yourself is crazy. You are so messed up that the only way you can live a decent life is to ignore your own instincts completely and give yourself over to the XYZ diet rules. Your inner rebel hates this feeling, because it believes you are an intelligent, capable person who can make sound decisions (at least most of the time) with the right information and perspective.

When you look at it this way, you realize your inner rebel isn't really trying to hurt you. It's actually coming to your defense (though not always in productive ways). Its intentions are ultimately positive, though its execution often does more harm than good.

The key to erraticating patterns of rebellious behavior is not to suppress, coerce or threaten your inner rebel (that didn't work on you when you were a teenager, did it?). Instead, work to understand the underlying causes of your rebellion and then eliminate those. Here are some ways you can do this:

Accept yourself. It sounds trite and cliche, but don't underestimate it. Being okay with who you are is a vital part living a full life. It's okay to strive for improvement in your life, but in order to make truly positive and lasting changes, you have to accept yourself as you are right now. You can't hate yourself into having a good life.

Learn to listen to your body. Don't let anyone tell you that if you listen to your body, gluttony and degradation is the only possible outcome.Your body doesn't want to live on carrot sticks and rice cakes--but it also doesn't have any desire to be stuffed with cheesecake until it can't even walk. There is a healthy balance that can be found through learning what your body wants, needs, and thrives on.

Apply your knowledge about nutrition without setting up rigid rules and requirements. I'm a geek who thoroughly enjoys learning about nutrition and biology, but I've also learned that strict eating regimens always backfire. Make what you learn work for you, instead of becoming a slave to your knowledge.

The inner rebel does not want to take over your whole life--it doesn't really have the energy or capacity for that. Instead, it wants your life to come back into a beautiful balance where its presence becomes unnecessary. Rebellion becomes superfluous and simply disappears.

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Book Review: Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon

Health At Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight

There are a couple of things I really like about Linda Bacon. First of all, her name is Bacon. Somehow that is just cool. Secondly, she doesn't just think outside the box. She questions the entire box and all its assorted contents. In her book, Health at Every Size, Bacon turns current theories on obesity, health and weight loss upside down (or should I say right side up?).

It's the kind of book that gets folks in tizzy. People don't like it when their basic assumptions are questioned. But I say it's good for the soul. That's why I write posts like There is No Obesity Epidemic and Does Obesity Really Kill?. It's not because I like to stir up trouble. It's because we have to question our ideas from time to time. Otherwise ideas become dogma. And that's never a good thing.

So I guess Linda Bacon likes to question ideas and assumptions, too. In fact, that's exactly what Health at Every Size is all about. One of the key points Bacon makes in her book is that weight does not determine our health in the way most of us believe. She argues that focusing on weight may actually be drawing attention to the wrong issue:

"Body weight might be a marker for an imprudent lifestyle in some people, but its role in determining health, particularly when compared to regular activity, is grossly exaggerated."

She goes on to say:

"It is well established that the relationship between activity and longevity is stronger than the relationship between weight and longevity."

It's simple: being sedentary is more harmful to your health than being overweight. (And remember that movement trumps exercise as well.)

Bacon also reminds us that weight is a multi-faceted issue not soley based on our current diet and exercise regimen. In fact, your weight may be influenced by how your mom ate while you were still in utero:

"You are not only what you eat, you may also be what your mother ate. Several studies find that if your mother dieted during her pregnancy, you're more likely to be heavier as an adult."

Makes me glad I didn't fall prey to worrying about my weight during pregnancy (though I dieted like a madwoman while nursing--I wonder if that has a similar effect?).

Diets Simply Don't Work

One concept that Bacon tears to pieces in Health at Every Size is the idea that we can diet all of our weight problems into oblivion. She points out that the facts simply don't point that way:

"It may be hard to believe that there just isn't any scientific evidence to support any theory of how to lose weight and keep it off. No matter how many times or how authoritatively the message is repeated that diet, exercise and discipline can get you what you want, it doesn't change the fact that it has not proven true for any but a tiny minority of people."

Stop. Go back. Read that again.

Hope it sunk in that time.

"Losing weight is not about finding the perfect proportions of carbohydrates, protein and fat or tricking yourself into feeling satisfied. Rather, maintaining the right weight for you is about respecting your hunger and trusting your body to guide you in doing what's best."

Skip the Section on Nutrition

To be honest, I can't call Bacon's nutrition advice (found in chapter 11, Change Your Tastes) terrible. Overall, she disagrees with bashing food groups and macronutrients. I can appreciate that.

But at the same time her recommendations lean too much toward the same old USDA food pyramid baloney you hear everywhere else. Don't get me wrong: Bacon includes some decent information about how certain foods create biochemical responses in the body and offers general recommendations that can be helpful. It just smacks of conventional diet advice a little too much for my taste.

My suggestion? Read the chapter and take it with a grain of salt. Or skip it altogether and just dig in to the juicier parts of the book.

Why So Many Weight Myths? Follow the Money...

So why are we barraged with these myths about weight and health? Well, according to Bacon, some of it is simply misinterpreted science... and some may be the result of far more sinister motives:

"Fearmongering about weight is worth billions to the health care system, government agencies, scientists and the media. And it ties in seamlessly with cultural values. The result is that weight myths have become unquestioned assumptions, so strongly a part of our cultural landscape that we regard them as self-evident."

Question Your Assumptions About Weight and Dieting

It's not the facts that get us into trouble: it's the "unquestioned assumptions" that do us in. We have to be willing to question our current theories on health and wellness if we want to move forward. The answers aren't half as important as being willing to look for them in the first place.

I'll sum this review up with one more quote from Health at Every Size:

"The only way to solve the weight problem is to stop making weight a problem--to stop judging ourselves and others by our size. Weight is not an effective measure of attractiveness, moral character or health. The real enemy is weight stigma, for it is the stigmatization and fear of fat that causes the damage and deflects attention from the true threats to our health and well-being."

Question about the book? Have some thoughts on all of this? I'd love to hear from you in the comments below!

Buy Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon here.

Want more book reviews? Check out my other reviews below:

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Book Review: Fat Politics by J. Eric Oliver

Fat Politics: The Real Story behind America's Obesity Epidemic

If you want to fire people up, try talking about fat. Not spicy enough for you? Throw in some commentary about politics, money, society, exercise, diet and health. Now you've got the perfect recipe for controversy. We're talking about Fat Politics by J. Eric Oliver. You're either going to love this book or hate it with a passion. But either way, it's sure to stir up some strong opinions.

Oliver questions the existence of an obesity epidemic and whether fat itself should be labeled as a dangerous disease. If read with an open mind, his research certainly gives you something to think about (whether or not you end up fully agreeing with him).

"Consider, for example, what an obesity epidemic means for the following groups. For scientists researching issues of weight, an obesity epidemic inflates their stature and allows them to get more research grants. For government health agencies, it is a powerful rationale for increasing their programs and budget allocations. For weight-loss companies and surgeons, it is a way to get their services covered by Medicare and health insurance providers. And, for pharmaceutical companies it can justify the release of new drugs, and help inflate their stock prices. The very same people who have proclaimed that obesity is a major health problem also stand the most to gain from it being classified as a disease. For America's public health establishment, an obesity epidemic is worth billions."

In chapter two, Oliver explains How Obesity Became an Epidemic Disease. He demonstrates how politics and the media skewed our ideas about fat and health, and why labeling obesity as a disease actually holds us back from finding real solutions for lasting health.

The Link Between Metabolic Health and Disease

Oliver rightly points to overall metabolic action as the cause not only of obesity but also degenerative disease. He questions the idea that weight itself is the cause behind our more troubling health problems, and suggests that perhaps there is a bigger picture.

"And it is these other metabolic changes that are behind many of the diseases that are typically associated with being too fat. The reason that diabetes and some types of cancer are on the rise is not because Americans weight too much, it is because their metabolisms are out of whack. Fatness may result from metabolic processes that are behind these ailments, but it is the underlying metabolic processes, and not the weight, that cause us so much trouble."

Why We Hate Fat People

Have you ever thought about it? Why our society harbors such resentment and malice toward heavier people? We are afraid of fat. This has to do with numerous factors, according the Oliver, including our modern standards of beauty and propaganda from the medical community. But wherever it's coming from, the fear of fat is very real.

"For instance, more that a quarter of college students believe that becoming fat is the worst thing that could happen to a person."

Really? That sure says a lot about our priorities in life. Oliver suggests getting some perspective about fat in his chapter about genetics and obesity:

"Fatness is not a disease or a bodily dysfunction; it is a protective mechanism that evolved to survive fluctuations in our food supply. Judging someone's health by how much they weigh is like judging a camel by how much water it has in its hump--in conditions of privation, our extra weight, just like water, may be exactly what we need to survive. Our weight is merely an expression of this adaptive mechanism at work."

What We Eat and What We Weigh

Oliver challenges many beliefs about diet and weight. He's read the work of Gary Taubes (awesome, right?) but doesn't fall into the trap of blaming any particular macronutrient for our weight and health problems. His stance is that carbs are no more to blame than fat. Instead Oliver speculates that there are a number of dietary factors that could be contributing to obesity and disease. After all, a lot has changed in the last 40 years when it comes to what (and how) we eat. Oliver discusses everything from crop subsidies to the invention of the microwave, but in the end concludes that it's most likely the combination of all these things--rather than just one of them--that impacts our weight the most.

Being Thin Versus Being Healthy

This is always one of my favorite topics. In our pursuit of being thin, many of us have sacrificed our health. According to Oliver, it is the American way.

"Although most Americans value bodily fitness as a marker of social prestige, they value thinness more. And for good reason--in a culture in which obesity is so demonized, being fit yet heavy does little to remove the stigma of a large body size, particularly for women. For instance, if a woman is incredibly fit but still bulky or heavy, she is still likely to face size discrimination. The emphasis on female fitness is primarily concerned with being thin not necessarily being healthy. Because of our cultural obsession with thinness, any discussion of exercise inevitably becomes connected to issues of weight while concerns of health fly out the window."

I mean, think about it: how many people do you know that joined a gym to get healthy? Yeah, right. Most people exercise to achieve a particular physical appearance, not to achieve better health. Which is too bad, because research shows that exercise has a far more substantial impact on our health that it does on our waistlines.

But Are There Any Solutions?

My biggest beef with Oliver's book is that you aren't left with a solid idea of what we should be doing, perhaps because Oliver believes that his research doesn't point to there being a particular solution.

"In truth, the only way we are going to 'solve' the problem of obesity is to stop making fatness a scapegoat for all our ills. The means that public health officials and doctors need to stop making weight a barometer of health and issuing so many alarmist claims about the obesity epidemic. This also means that the rest of us need to stop judging others and ourselves by our size."

I personally couldn't agree more. There's far too much hate and melodrama surrounding our weight. But considering we're in a society that puts so much focus on being thin, at the end of the book you're sort of left standing with your hands up in the air thinking, "Well, what the heck am I supposed to do now?"

The answer: simply allow yourself to focus on more important things than weight. Whether or not you are at the weight you would like to be cannot be a determining factor in your happiness. If it is, then it's guaranteed you'll be miserable. Regard health as part of the bigger picture and not just in terms of your dress size. Live to be healthy and enjoy life, rather than living to be thin.

Buy Fat Politics by J. Eric Oliver today.

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Dangers of Dieting: Why You Shouldn't Diet in 2011

Did you know that nearly 40 percent of all New Year's resolutions are related to weight? So if you made a resolution to lose weight this year, you're certainly not alone. In fact, there's about 45 million people jumping on the diet bandwagon with you (along with their shiny new eating plan and exercise routine). You've made this resolution every year for decades. But of course this year is different. This year it's actually going to work.

Never mind that 95 percent of folks who go on a diet don't maintain their loss in the long-term (and nearly half of them gain back more than they lost). That doesn't matter, because most of us are convinced that somehow we'll be part of the 5 percent that succeeds in keeping off the weight after a restrictive diet. Every year we come back to the same resolution because we think we can finally beat those odds. It's almost as sad as watching someone invest their life's savings in a slot machine.

But the biggest problem isn't that dieting doesn't work. Unfortunately, regaining the weight you lose (and possibly even more) is the least of your concerns. The truth is that most people don't understand the dangers of dieting. The health risks you take when you diet are very real, but it's something health officials like to sweep under the rug while spouting off phrases like "obesity epidemic" and talking about how obesity kills.

The Dangers of Dieting

Research shows that weight fluctuations are more dangerous than carrying excess weight. A history of weight cycling via dieting is strongly associated with an increased risk for developing metabolic diseases like diabetes, hypertension and heart disease. This is independent of weight (so it applies whether you're a dieter who is skinny or one who's heavy). This evidence strongly suggests that dieting affects you on more than a body fat level: dieting affects you--and can harm you--on a metabolic level.

One study showed that obese women who diet are far more likely to have high blood pressure than obese women who do not have a history of dieting--more evidence that demonstrates the dangers of dieting on the entire metabolism.

Weight loss that comes through dieting (especially extreme dieting) always risks losing lean body tissue in addition to fat. This robs your muscles, bones and organs of the material they need to function properly. While some diets increase this risk more than others, it is a risk with all diets that restrict calories.

Our eating habits are passed on to our children. Kids pick up on our obsessions about weight and our eating habits. Whether we realize it or not, we often project our own insecurities about our weight and our restrictive eating habits onto our kids. It's hard not to. But research shows that parents who impose restrictive eating habits only encourage further weight gain in their children. Stopping this vicious cycle in its tracks is reason enough to swear off dieting forever, in my opinion.

Dieting distorts our natural relationship with hunger and food. When food becomes "good" and "bad," eating becomes a moral issue rather than an issue of nourishment. When we deny our hunger, we forget how to eat for natural reasons and instead develop habits of emotional eating and experience guilt when we eat the "wrong" food. Basically, we forget how to eat. This can result in eating disorders, distorted body image and poor health in long run.

Suddenly dieting doesn't sound like the path to health and happiness, does it? The dangers of dieting are unfortunately all too real, but millions of people ignore these risks every day.

The best resolution you can make for 2011 is to stop dieting. It's time to end our unhealthy relationship with food, exercise, and our bodies. There's a better way to improve your health and the way you feel about yourself, and that's something I'll be talking a lot more about this year.

This post is part of Fight Back Friday.

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Does Obesity Really Kill?

The propaganda surrounding the obesity crisis is fueled by one belief: obesity kills. We are so frightened by fat weight because we are continually told that even ten extra pounds can put our life in danger. We are under the impression that fat weight causes disease. This, however, is a big fat myth.

But wait. Doesn't obesity cause hypertension, heart disease, diabetes and cancer? Doesn't obesity cause hundreds of thousands of deaths each year? The answer is no. Here is some interesting information regarding obesity, death and disease:

In 2005, researchers reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association that, despite having spent months analyzing countless records, they failed to show that even severe obesity increases mortality risk.

To quote Linda Bacon from Health at Every Size on a study of 1.7 million Norwegians: "In this, the largest epidemiological study ever conducted, the highest life expectancy is among individuals who are overweight by our current standards and the lowest life expectancy is among those defined as underweight. What's more, individuals who fit into what is deemed the ideal weight range had a lower life expectancy than some of those who were obese."

Research has demonstrated that obese people who are physically fit have mortality rates as low as people who are lean and fit. In fact, overweight and obese people who are fit will most likely live longer than someone who is lean but unfit.

Angiographic studies have shown that obesity has no relationship to the development or progression of heart disease. Some studies have indicated that being overweight or obese may actually decrease your risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke.

Some researchers claim there is a link between obesity and cancer. The truth is, most studies fail to find an association between weight and cancer mortality. In fact, for every study you can find that claims an association between obesity and cancer, you can find another one that shows obesity is actually protective against cancer.

Although we have been led to believe that obesity is a leading cause of diabetes, research indicates that insulin resistance appears before weight gain. Insulin resistance is causing weight gain and diabetes. Weight gain is not causing insulin resistance and diabetes.

Conditions such as hypertension, heart disease and diabetes can all be improved in overweight and obese individuals through dietary and lifestyle habits, regardless of whether weight is lost or not.

Clearly there are some discrepancies when it comes to the information fed to the masses about obesity and health. The biggest problem with propagating this misinformation is that it places the focus on weight alone rather than on diet and lifestyle habits.

Consider this: if fat weight was really the cause of health problems and even death, why aren't we all rushing out to get liposuction? Because we all know that's ridiculous! Then why do we think that losing fat will solve all of our health problems? The fact is that it won't.

Lifestyle trumps weight. Eat real food that nourishes your body. Be active because it energizes you. Give your body the rest it needs. Be a part of something that gives you joy and fulfillment. If these things lead you to weight loss, that's wonderful. If not, that doesn't mean you haven't greatly improved your health and quality of life in the meantime. The exaggerated focus on weight is an arbitrary distraction, so don't let it distract you from what's really important when it comes to your health and happiness.

Further Reading On This Subject:

Health At Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight by Linda Bacon

Rethinking Thin: The New Science of Weight Loss by Gina Kolata

The Diet Cure by Julia Ross

Fat Politics: The Real Story behind America's Obesity Epidemic by J. Eric Oliver

Big Fat Lies: The Truth about Your Weight and Your Health by Glenn A. Gaesser

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop.

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There is No Obesity Epidemic

In 1998, more than 30 million people became overweight. And guess what? It happened while they were sleeping.

That's right. In June of 1998, the number of overweight people in America increased by 50 percent--overnight! How did this happen? Did they all go on a massive potato chip binge? No. In fact, not one of them had gained a pound. Instead, a handful of researchers had decided to decrease the maximum healthy BMI (Body Mass Index) from 27 down to 25.

And instantly, millions of people were suddenly overweight. Their weight hadn't changed, but the reigning standards had. And suddenly we had an obesity epidemic on our hands.

Why Do We Call It an Epidemic?

The term obesity epidemic is in itself confusing. Typically when we speak of an epidemic we're referring to a literal epidemic of infectious disease (like the bubonic plague, for instance). But obesity isn't infectious. At least, I've never heard of anyone "catching" thirty pounds at the office.

Of course we also use the term epidemic to describe anything that is spreading rapidly through the masses. I might say we're having an epidemic of cell phones, for example, because since 1990 the number of cell phone users has increased by a staggering 37,000 percent! Now that's an epidemic of technology if I ever saw one.

When the media throws around the term "obesity epidemic," they appear to be attempting to describe a crisis of massive weight gain making its way through our society. This, however, may be an incredibly inaccurate picture of what's really happening with our weight.

How Much Weight Have We Really Gained?

We're constantly bombarded by the message that, as a society, we're fatter than ever. For the last several decades, we've been steadily gaining pound after pound and crossing the invisible line into obesity. Or have we?

In reality, the average weight gained is only a few pounds.

"When talking about the rise in our weights, many public health experts like to cite the dramatically increasing number of obese Americans. For instance, between 1980 and 1994, the number of obese Americans increased by 55 percent. While this seems like a large increase in obesity, it does not really reflect the amount of weight most Americans were gaining. Most Americans did not increase their weight by 55 percent; Americans gained, on average, only about seven to nine pounds, depending on their height."

- from Fat Politics: The Real Story behind America's Obesity Epidemic

Where Did the Epidemic Go?

Would it surprise you to learn the obesity "epidemic" has plateaued? It's true. We aren't becoming more and more obese, packing on endless pounds until every last one of us is clinically obese. Nope. The epidemic has apparently decided to take a break... for the last decade.

"No doubt Americans have gained weight over the last few decades. But if we are so concerned about an epidemic, why aren't we celebrating its apparent end? The incidence of obesity is no longer increasing. According to government statistics, obesity rates for women have leveled off and stayed steady since 1999, sufficient time to consider it a plateau. They have also leveled off for men, having been stable since 2003. Same is true for kids: The prevalance of obesity for children and teens is no different today than it was in 1999."

- from Health at Every Size

More to Come...

My intention is not to inarguably disprove the theory of an obesity epidemic, but to inspire questions regarding the accuracy of the information we've been told. Believe it or not, the debate over the presence of an obesity epidemic is just the tip of the iceberg. There are more discrepancies on the topic of weight to sift through, and this is a discussion I plan to continue right here on this blog.

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop and Fight Back Friday hosted by Food Renegade.

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The Candy Diet

They're happy. They're fit. And they're running down a beautiful tropical beach where I'd love to be right now. Who wouldn't want to be the couple in the picture above? Who wouldn't want to look like them? The majority of us see someone who is lean, fit and in shape, and we immediately wonder how we can look the same way. More than anything, we wonder: what do they eat that keeps them looking like that?

The entire diet industry is based on the answer to that question. The basic assumption is that if the xyz diet helps so-and-so become lean, then the xyz diet will help me get lean. The magic happens when you showcase someone who looks lean and fit on the xyz diet. Throw in a few simplistic scientific analogies, a catchy title, and you've got yourself a diet that millions of people will follow because they want to look like so-and-so.

This is a pretty effective formula. So I've decided to take advantage of it. I've already got my catchy title. And I've got someone to showcase. All I have to do is find a few research studies that appear to confirm my ideas (which shouldn't be that hard to do, diet gurus do it all the time). So here it is:

The Candy Diet!

The idea is to eat a boatload of candy, chocolate and baked goods pretty much every day. Don't worry about avoiding high fructose corn syrup, artificial dyes or trans fat. It's all good. Just shovel it down, as much as you like.

After all, this seems to work just fine for Lamar Odom:

I mean, Lamar's in pretty good shape. You can't argue about that. Granted, he does get in a lot of cardio running around the basketball court, but most diet programs include a cardio program so that's no surprise. I mean, this diet is really straightforward: eat tons of candy, work out and you'll be lean like Lamar!

But you don't believe me. Why not? Because it's just ridiculous, you say. Here is where I'm going to challenge you: why is this idea so ridiculous? I know what you're thinking: well, obviously because nobody can get lean on a candy diet!

But wait a minute. Not nobody. Lamar does it. And I'll bet you can find someone else who does it too. In fact, a good many of us know that person who eats junk food all day long and looks like the model on the cover of a fitness magazine (often whether they work out or not).

So why aren't we going around preaching the weight loss rewards of The Candy Diet? Because you know that if you sat down and ate that much candy every day, you wouldn't look anything like Lamar. Maybe some people can do it, but not you. In fact, there's probably quite a few of us who did sit down and eat like Lamar and ended up looking quite the opposite of lean.

Start Questioning Diets

Of course, you all know I wouldn't really advocate a candy diet. And I know that you're too smart to fall for that kind of baloney anyway. No, I didn't want you to rush to the local supermarket and load up your cart with candy (if you did that then I hope you kept the receipt!).

Here's what I want you to do today: question the next diet guru who promises you'll look as lean and fit as they do if you follow their diet plan. Even if their diet makes sense, sounds fairly healthy and they've rattled off a couple scientific studies to prove their point. What makes them lean won't necessarily make you lean. Remember Lamar Odom and The Candy Diet.

In the coming weeks I'll be exploring this topic even further. Our assessment of diets and weight loss is completely skewed by the diet industry and even the medical community. I believe the truth about these subjects will prove to be quite fascinating (and perhaps even mind-bending!).

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop and Fight Back Friday hosted by Food Renegade.

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Day 23 on RRARF: Life Without the Scale

Julia Ross told me to do it. Linda Bacon told me to do it. Kat James and Jon Gabriel told me to do it. But I had my doubts about not weighing myself. I didn't think I had the willpower. You see, I was just sure I needed the scale. Its feedback is invaluable... right?

I used to think so. Daily weigh-ins were my gauge. I just had to know how much I weighed. Otherwise, how would I know what to eat? Could I indulge or did I need to restrict? Did I need to put more oomph into my workout or could I go with something more low-key? The scale held the answer to all these burning questions. All it took was a little hop on board.

But as it turns out, giving up the scale was one of the best decisions I've made to date.

The Distraction of Weight

I've placed my priorities on health over weight for two years now. I traded my skinny bod for one with a little more cushion and a whole lot more health. And yet I've continued to weight myself nearly every single day. I felt like this was no big deal. Being healthy was still more important to me than losing weight. Or so I thought.

Weighing myself every day was a distraction. Although I'd like to think I'm above making lifestyle choices based on what the scale says on a given morning, I'm really not. Sometimes it was subtle, other times more blatant. But sure enough, when I was thinking of what I wanted for lunch, I'd be thinking more in terms of how it would affect my weight rather than my health. And I'd try to exercise based on what I felt would be most effective for weight loss, not what would make me feel great and what would be enjoyable for me. I wasn't listening to my internal cues. I was relying on external feedback to make my decisions.

The result? Life was just a little more miserable. I was always aware of my weight. It was part of how I measured who I was. It not only affected many of my daily decisions, it also affected my perception of myself. It continually brought to my attention that my weight didn't line up with what society would deem good enough (never mind that our society's standard for thinness is lower than ever before). I wound up thinking things like, "Everything will be so much better when I'm ten pounds thinner..." I knew better, of course. But with that darn number staring up at me every morning, it was hard to think otherwise.

Life Without the Scale

I haven't weighed myself in... well, gosh, I guess it's been about a month now. I was planning on weighing myself at the end of RRARF just to see the results. But right now I have no plans to hop back on a scale. This experience has been so liberating for me, and I've become aware of all the negative feelings the scale was bringing into my life every day. It's just not worth it to know that arbitrary number.

Not weighing myself has had a tremendous impact on the way I feel in my body. Of course, I think this has a lot to do with the reasons I ditched the scale in the first place. If you stop using the scale but continue to measure your self worth in numbers I imagine that would put a damper on the benefits. But for me this was a giant leap in the right direction, and because of it I've been able to see myself and my life in a whole new light.

Now, I've heard for years that giving up the scale can be beneficial. I fought the advice because I was afraid of letting that number go. All of the testimonials in the world could not convince me otherwise. But as I go along this journey to a nourished life, I find it helps to examine previous choices and see if they are adding or detracting from my life. The scale was definitely detracting. But of course I didn't realize that until I finally let it go.

Other RRARF Posts:

Day 1 on RRARF: What is RRARF?
Day 2 on RRARF: Why I'm Doing It
Day 3 on RRARF: Rest and Relaxation
Day 7 on RRARF: Benefits Already!
Day 8 on RRARF: Eat the Food!
Day 9 on RRARF: Adieu, Le Sucre!
Day 21 on RRARF: Deprivation is Dieting
Day 23 on RRARF: Life Without the Scale
RRARF vs. The Milk Diet
This post is part of Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade.

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Podcast with Matt Stone: The Body Weight Set Point and Metabolism

Yesterday I had the opportunity to interview one of my favorite bloggers and health researchers, Matt Stone from 180 Degree Health, about the body weight set point. After listening to his new audio seminar, I knew this was something people needed to hear about.

What Matt and I discuss in this podcast goes against everything we're told about diet, weight and exercise. And yet I know anyone who's ever been on a diet is going to be nodding their head when they hear what Matt has to say.

Ever feel like your body is fighting against fat loss?
Wonder why it's so hard to stick to a diet?
Does restrictive dieting lead you to cravings and binging on "bad" foods?
Are you cold, tired or irritable when you're trying to lose weight?
Are you "check" dieting?

Learn why Matt (and many other leading researchers) believe the focus should be on the weight set point, and not on weight. I personally believe this could be secret to finding a healthy, permanent weight without being chained to a life of deprivation and misery.

Listen to the podcast now to learn about the body weight set point and metabolism:

Listen to internet radio with The Nourished Life on Blog Talk Radio

You can also click here if you want to listen to an additional in-depth presentation from Matt about the weight set point, dieting, metabolism and health, or to find out more about his free e-book or the new audio seminar. You might also want to check out his blog to hear the latest on achieving true metabolic health.

This post is a part of Fight Back Friday hosted by Food Renegade.

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Is Emotional Overeating Really Emotional?

A lot of diet books claim that emotional overeating is the chief saboteur of weight loss. The idea is that if you followed their diet and exercise plan, you would lose weight, but your darn emotions keep leading you to binges on chocolate cake or cheese pizza. So, basically, you're doomed to be overweight until you see a therapist and finally unravel the emotional web that's obviously keeping you from looking fit and fabulous.

This is a cop out. It's an excuse that diet gurus hand out when their diets fail. It gives them a reason to blame you and not the inadequacies of their plan.

Am I saying that emotional overeating is a myth? Not exactly. There's no doubt that feelings of loneliness, depression, hopelessness or frustration can lead to overeating. I'm just saying we're approaching this from the wrong direction.

We're all going to face situations that bring up negative emotions. It's one of those facts of life we just can't get away from. And this is nothing new. It's unfortunately something that's been common to basically anyone who's taken a breath on this planet since the beginning of time. So why is emotional overeating suddenly a problem now?

Here's what we need to be asking: "Why are my emotions driving me to overeat? Why can't I handle stress without turning to food?" And today I want to explore this from a physiological point of view.

When you have deficiencies in certain brain chemicals like dopamine or serotonin, your body will be driven to replenish these neurotransmitters in the most immediately effective way possible. If you're short on dopamine, you likely have trouble dealing with emotional situations and find yourself crushed by everyday problems. And your body might drive you to things like chocolate or wine (or even romance novels!) to get a dopamine fix. Similarly, if you're short on serotonin you might feel depressed, angry or hopeless and will be attracted to comfort foods like bread, pasta, and cookies, all of which temporarily drive serotonin levels through the roof. This is why after a stressful day or a fight with your spouse you might feel compelled to stuff your face with rocky road ice cream.

The interesting part comes in here: if we have healthy levels of neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, we are actually more capable of handling stressful situations. That means that while you may not feel exactly giddy after listening to your boss rail on you about a deadline, you'll still be able to walk past the vending machine without stopping for a candy bar to mellow you out. When we have healthy neurotransmitter levels, we won't need our standby comfort foods because our bodies have plenty of brain chemicals to "comfort" us with.

So, it makes you wonder: are you overeating because you're emotional? Or are you emotional because your brain chemicals are out of whack?

Julia Ross, author of The Diet Cure and The Mood Cure, knows a great deal about the connection between our cravings and our brains. Check out the video below:

How to Naturally Boost Neurotransmitter Levels

There are two ways to make sure you have plenty of the neurotransmitters that provide a sense of well-being and energy:

1) Give your body what it needs to produce these vital brain chemicals.

2) Don't use your brain chemicals up faster than your body can produce them.

So, it's important to:

Eat plenty of high quality protein. Julia Ross recommends a minimum of 20-30 grams per day, which is a good starting place for most people.

Eat the right fats. Saturated fats like butter and coconut oil feed your brain.

Eat enough. (I say this a lot, don't I?) A constant state of calorie deprivation is a surefire way to cause deficiencies in neurotransmitters.

Sleep! Give your body some rest so it can catch up and rebuild. Plus, sleep is directly related to weight.

Avoid over-exercising. Being active is great, don't get me wrong. But training for a marathon is a good way to use up brain chemicals real fast. It's not a good idea if you're trying to boost your neurotransmitters.

Instead, exercise the smart way.

Enjoy some downtime. I know, this isn't easy in our fast-paced society, but taking a breather every day does help restore your body's ability to cope with stress.

Believe me, when your neurotransmitters are in good shape, your perspective on life totally changes. No, it's not perfect (serotonin doesn't make you superhuman). But you're able to cope when things aren't going so well--and without turning to cheescake for help.

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop.

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Weight Loss Wednesday: The REAL Causes Behind Weight Problems

Today I'm excited to feature a guest post by Raine Saunders and her site Agriculture Society, where she tackles important real food topics like sustainable living, holistic healing, nutritional therapy, food politics and much more. If you haven't checked out her posts on food recalls, the liver/gallbladder cleanse or the hidden costs of industrial food, I highly recommend checking out her blog!

Do you struggle to lose weight? Do you have trouble gaining weight? Both of these problems are actually related to one another, as they can be a sign of toxicity in the body and an inability of the digestive tract to properly absorb the food you eat. Inability to absorb nutrients from food is actually caused by poor diet. When you eat processed foods, over time your digestive tract becomes irritated and those chemicals in the foods you eat begin to penetrate the lining of your intestines, causing inflammation, weight gain (or inability to maintain proper weight), and disease.

Many people undergo fad diets and plan to lose weight, only to fail and gain the weight back. Most diets promise that you will be able to lose weight and aren't able to deliver. Why? Because most diets work from the premise that you'll have to avoid certain foods that are high in saturated fats, cholesterol, and calories. Whether you are overweight or not, your body needs saturated fats, cholesterol, and calories to obtain enough fuel and nutrients. If you are counting calories, you can count on still being overweight. The key is what types of foods you are eating which contain cholesterol and saturated fats. These ingredients are not the same in all foods. If you are eating whole foods, these substances are not only safe to eat but are necessary to health.

When you eat unhealthy foods, the calories are irrelevant because most, if not all of those calories, are unhealthy. A diet soda is no healthier than a regular soda because it contains less or no calories. Sodas -- diet in particular -- are full of chemicals your body doesn't recognize. You are better off to discontinue drinking sodas (and juice) altogether due to the high sugar content as well as other ingredients that won't do your body any good.

When you eat healthy foods, those calories are all healthy to consume because they come from nature and give your body everything it needs to absorb and utilize nutrients for health. When doctors tell you to avoid red meat, they are saying this because the typical red meat most people consume is from factory farms -- laden with chemicals, antibiotics, hormones, and the animals whose meat you are eating have been fed the wrong types of food -- corn, soy, and grain (much of it genetically modified and herbicide resistant).

Cattle are meant to consume grass as they are ruminants -- an animal equipped with a stomach specifically designed to digest grasses. When ruminants are fed other types of feed such as grain, soy, and corn, they become ill and farmers administer antibiotics. Farmers in factory farm environments are also concerned with profit and give their animals growth hormones and stabilizers -- all of this translates into unhealthy meat that causes many health problems - including heart disease, cancer, and Diabetes. Factory farm meat is obese meat. Grass fed meat contains the correct ratios of healthy nutrients -- low calorie, high protein, and with higher levels of omega 3s (plus CLA or conjugated linoleic acid). These factors have been found to have favorable effects on health such as helping to maintain proper weight and correct cholesterol levels.

Overweight individuals usually have detoxification issues and digestive disorders. If you have eaten poorly throughout your life, chances are you will have both. Digestive issues are caused by poor eating, leading to the storing of toxins which causes weight gain. When you get control of your toxification issues, you will then be able to lose pounds and arrive at the appropriate weight for your body size and type.

Any diet which encourages an individual to lose more than 5 pounds a month and recommends eating less calories and low-fat foods should raise a red flag. Overweight does not mean starvation nor elimination of important, nutrient-dense foods -- but that's exactly what many diets propose for the person trying to lose weight. Your body still needs fuel, even when you are overweight. And what you are probably lacking in most of all is nutrients that keep your body at normal weight levels and maintain a sense of well-being. An alteration in the way you eat should not be a diet but a lifestyle change. Until you understand this difference, you will likely continue to have weight issues.

If you are underweight, what you eat is still of crucial importance. Some people believe that if they are thin, they can eat poorly and it won't matter because eating that way won't cause weight gain. Even if you are fortunate enough that you don't easily gain weight, you can still damage your health from maintaining such a philosophy. Don't eat junk food to gain weight; if you truly need to gain some pounds, make your diet as healthy as possible. Eat plenty of organic fruits and vegetables, grass-fed, organic meats (both domestic and wild), safe fish, moderate amounts of sprouted, whole grains (avoid products made of flour), sprouted nuts and seeds, healthy oils such as butter, tallow and lard from healthy animals on pasture, extra virgin olive oil, raw, organic dairy products, and moderate amounts of legumes and rice.

Exercise, proper sleep, and stress reduction is also critical in the overall picture of health and maintaining proper weight. Employ a moderate exercise program that you engage in 3-4 times weekly and is appropriate for your fitness level. It is especially important to find something you enjoy and look forward to that is a source of stress release as well as exercise. If you are in doubt, consult with your health care practitioner or a personal trainer.

Excessive, unaddressed stress, anxiety, or depression can also cause an individual to harbor excess weight or cause the inability to gain weight. If you need stress reduction, consider yoga, pilates, prayer, meditation, or counseling which focuses on varying forms of cognitive therapy (as opposed to pharmaceutical intervention which can often make problems worse or only be a band-aid).

Getting 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night is important, and making sure you retire around 10 p.m. is also critical toward helping maintain proper weight.

If you are unable to lose or gain weight after eating a truly healthy diet, you may need to address toxification and digestive issues. In many cases, these problems can be easily solved naturally without drugs or surgery. Consult with a knowledgeable health care practitioner about the correct type of detox and/or digestive remedy for your individual needs. Good individuals to inquire with include a naturopathic doctor, a certified nutritional therapist, a chiropractor, or a nutritional counselor who can refer you to another qualified professional.

Let's do a comparison of several different types of foods. Decide which are healthier to eat:

Packaged bread or grain product or real, whole, sprouted grains that have been soaked or fermented
Pasteurized, homogenized, 2 percent milk or whole, raw milk
Lean, "low-fat" ground turkey which has been fed grains, corn and soy (possibly with growth hormones and antibiotics ) or natural, organic grass-fed ground beef with no chemicals, growth hormones, or antibiotics
Tofu or pasture-raised, natural eggs (no antibiotics, chemicals)
Conventional produce or sustainable produce grown without chemicals

In all cases, any foods which are processed and contain chemicals will contribute to weight issues and health disorders. Natural, healthy foods with saturated fats and cholesterol are necessary for health. Proper cholesterol cannot be maintained without these foods, and weight trouble and health issues will arise from eating processed low-fat foods such as soy, dairy, and meats which are "engineered" by technology through administration of chemicals/hormones/antibiotics and the feeding of unnatural types of feeds such as soy, grains, and corn.

As these foods represent the bulk of what is available in mainstream grocery stores and markets, these foods are eaten by the majority of people. These are also the main kinds of foods recommended by many conventional health professionals to be consumed. This is the reason why America has such an obesity and health epidemic. When we can finally make the distinction between real, whole foods for tools of healing and health, our chronic diseases and illnesses will finally be an exception rather than a rule.

This post is part of Pennywise Platter Thursday hosted by The Nourishing Gourmet and Simple Lives Thursday hosted by Gnowfglins.

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