The Diet And Fitness Industry LIED To You (4 TRUTHS)

The Diet And Fitness Industry LIED To You (4 TRUTHS)

The diet and fitness industry has lied to you.

I’m not talking about the false magic pills and quick fixes when I’m saying you’ve been lied to when it comes to your diet and workouts.

Actually I see the problem as something else…

The disconnect between many trainers, coaches, dietitians and professionals and the people they want to help.

What keeps us stuck in this yo-yo dieting cycle is oddly the gap between what we “should” ideally be doing and what is realistic for our lifestyle.

Because food is not just truly fuel any longer.

It’s social. It’s celebration. It’s emotional. It’s enjoyment.

Yet instead of recognizing this and striking a balance, weighing the cost and rewards of everything for ourselves, we seek to be perfect and hit some arbitrary standards of clean eating only to create unsustainable habits which ultimately backfire.

These unsustainable habits keep us stuck losing the weight only to regain it and more as we fall back into old lifestyle patterns and try to do things we enjoy.

We never learn to create the healthiest version of our personal lifestyle.

That’s why I want to go over 4 common diet and exercise MYTHS I see pushed far too often in the health and wellness realm.

One size doesn’t fit all and we need to accept the opportunity in options to find our balance.

How we build our 80/20 balance will be unique!

Myth #1: X food is evil. 

Pick a food and you can probably find a video, blog, article…even study…about how it is bad for you.

According to a commenter on one of my videos even water is bad for you.

And honestly, almost every food DOES have a downside to even the upsides it may provide.

That doesn’t make a food evil. It doesn’t even mean the food may not be part of our lifestyle balance. 

But we just have to go in knowing how it will impact our health and overall wellbeing.

And sometimes the risk is worth the reward.

Sometimes something “unhealthy” we may choose to include because we ENJOY it.

It helps us relax. Enjoy social gatherings. 

Or even just serves as that treat on a stressful day while keeping us overall on track working toward our goals.

Because stress overall can have detrimental effects, it’s sometimes more important we include something that doesn’t add to our stress or even takes away from it over restricting a food because it isn’t as nutrient dense or beneficial as something else may be.

We have to remember that all stress goes in one bucket.

While we may see stressors in our lives as in separate categories…

Stress at work, stress to change habits, stress at home or stress on our body from lack of sleep….all impact our mind and body compounding together. 

So sometimes finding little ways to not add to our stress to overwhelm ourselves is key so we can actually make healthy changes to our lifestyle overall.

Sometimes it is that we need to pick the lesser of two evils to meet ourselves where we are at to make changes. 

So stop demonizing things and trying to force someone else’s standards of “healthy” and balance on yourself.

Because one size doesn’t fit all.

Even healthy foods can be unhealthy or not right for certain people.

For example, cruciferous vegetables (like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage..) have been linked with many health benefits, such as a reduced risk of cancer and heart disease. 

BUT…

These same nutritious vegetables we all believe to be AMAZING contain compounds called thiocyanates which can interfere with the body’s ability to absorb iodine. 

This may contribute to hypothyroidism and is why many with thyroid issues may be told not to eat too many of these supposedly super “healthy” food.

Same thing can be said for those with dairy intolerance, gluten intolerances, and issues with FODMAPs. 

Foods that may be healthy or right for one person may not work for someone else to address their health concerns.

But we don’t need to demonize something just because it isn’t right for someone else!

That may hold us back even from getting the nutrients or fuel WE need!

Stop seeing foods as just good or bad. Weigh the costs involved to find your balance!

Myth #2: Weight loss is just about calories in vs. calories out.

Yes. You need a calorie deficit to lose weight. I’m not saying calories don’t matter.

But this oversimplification is truly what so often keeps people stuck on this dieting roller coaster. 

They cut calories. Lose the weight. Can’t stay in a deficit forever…

So they go back to eating more and their old lifestyle habits only to regain the weight and even more. 

Before they again cut calories to try to lose.

However, it gets harder and harder each and every time due to this sole focus on calories in vs. calories out.

Why does it get harder?

Because often when we only focus on cutting calories, we slash them as low as possible to lose weight as fast as possible.

And in the process we throw our hormones out of whack, create cravings that lead to us overeating, leading to even extra weight gain and we’ve often also created metabolic adaptations in the process which means our body even runs more efficiently off of fewer calories than it did before. 

This is often due to us slashing our calories super low, or trying to train longer and harder to create the deficit because we’re only focused on calories in vs calories out. This extreme deficit to lose faster on the scale results in more muscle being lost over us controlling as much as possible to lose fat while maintaining our muscle.

So as much as yes, the simple answer is create a calorie deficit and you’ll lose, this oversimplification keeps us stuck and is why we often struggle more and more to lose weight as we get older, and especially once the hormonal changes of perimenopause hit.

If we want to set ourselves up for success, we need to embrace the learning process and focus on the macronutrients in our foods – the portions of proteins, carbs and fats that we are consuming. 

Because through adjusting these portions, we can help ourselves feel more fueled, retain lean muscle to keep our metabolic rate higher and we can help ourselves be prepared to transition to MAINTAINING our new results. 

You can’t do one thing to lose the weight then go back to what you were doing. And you can’t stay in a deficit forever.

Through a focus on tracking macros, you can help yourself retrain your body to return to a new maintenance level calorie intake so that all of your hard work to lose doesn’t go to waste!

Myth #3: HIIT is the best form of training for fat loss. 

HIIT or high intensity interval training is an efficient and intense form of training. It is definitely a great option when we are short on time.

And as the term is used these days, it can refer to a variety of different interval breakdowns and include a diversity of exercises. 

BUT as much as I even love HIIT personally and do use it with clients, I think it is key we recognize that there are downsides to every technique or tool.

The more we recognize both the good and the bad instead of just seeing things as either or, the more we can adjust our training and fueling to match our needs and goals as they even evolve over time.

Too often we also “fall in love” with a technique then start to see our results slow or issues pop up, yet we eliminate some other change we’ve made assuming causation when there was none. 

We can throw out something we should keep doing instead of adjusting something we’ve always done prior just because we like it or it FEELS like it is working.

And HIIT is often one of those things.

While definitely an option to consider when you’re short on time, too often we do MORE HIIT style training while also trying to increase our calorie deficit to lose fat. 

As a result, we not only can see our energy levels tank so we aren’t able to push as hard and get as much out of our training, but we can also start to see more muscle mass being lost and cravings increase.

By trying to do more intense training sessions while in a calorie deficit already, we can make it harder on ourselves to maintain the nutritional changes we are trying to make. 

So we always need to consider the systems and how they are working together.

We may need to change up a HIIT cardio session for a slower strength workout with longer rest periods. 

We may need to adjust the intervals of work to rest in the interval workout we are doing.

Or even knowing how depleting HIIT can be and the fact that for some it can make them FEEL even hungrier while increasing cravings for carbs, you can plan for those downsides in your fueling.

HIIT isn’t something you have to do to lose fat. It isn’t also something you shouldn’t do. The point is learning more about the techniques and workout designs we include so we can plan all of our systems to work together.

While it can feel satisfying to have sweated and worked hard in our workouts, we also want that hard work to be moving us forward instead of being wasted effort!

Myth #4: Workouts are about burning more calories. 

There isn’t anything wrong with tracking your calorie burn from your activity to watch your trends and hold yourself accountable. 

But too often we just seek to get that number higher over truly training with purpose and intention.

This often leads to us turning even our strength workouts into more cardio sessions.

Less rest, feeling more out of breath often leads to a higher heart rate on our trackers, which then results in more calories being burned.

And always focusing on doing more and making our training more intense can cause some to suffer increased cravings and a harder time sticking with the dietary changes they need. 

Not to mention, it can work against any muscle gaining efforts we may have.

It can also lead to us unknowingly eating in a surplus over a deficit. 

It’s key we realize that these trackers are NOT ACCURATE! The calorie burn is going to be off especially as we adapt to our training.

And while it may not seem like a big deal to only be 50-100 calories off in some cases, that can really lead to us eating over our deficit especially if we are trying to create a smaller one to help achieve better fat loss results!

Not to mention we make it harder to truly track what is and isn’t working if our intake is fluctuating all over based on what our trackers says day to day.

STOP seeing the purpose of your workouts as just a way to burn more calories. 

Remember, you can’t out exercise your diet.

Trying to create more of a calorie deficit through your training will lead you to either overtraining or ultimately overeating.

You will either keep having to do more as you adapt to burn the same amount calories you once did.

Or if you let your watch dictate how many calories you get, you’ll start overeating because often our watches won’t fully recognize we’ve become more efficient at the training routines. 

And our workouts should be about building lean muscle while training our body to move well. 

We want our workouts to help us stay strong for LIFE so we can remain independent and capable.

Not to mention, a focus on strength work helps us build that muscle mass which helps us burn more calories at rest since our metabolic rate and energy demands will be higher. 

So while you want to do forms of training you enjoy to stay consistent and active, you also want your workouts to have long-term benefits so you can tackle any challenge you want in every day life!

Too often we view things as solely good or bad instead of looking at the cost and benefit of each thing we include.

When we don’t view the opportunity in each option, we don’t allow ourselves to truly create something sustainable. 

And this, while good for the diet and fitness industry, is not helpful for us to see the results we want.

Seek to learn about what you need and be open to new perspectives so you can adjust your fueling and training to match your needs and goals even as they evolve over time!

Ready to dial in your workouts and your diet to acheive the best results as fast as possible?

Schedule a coaching consultation to learn more about how we can help you create the systems you need to succeed!

–> Schedule A Call

Why You’re Not Losing Weight (3 Mistakes You Might Be Making)

Why You’re Not Losing Weight (3 Mistakes You Might Be Making)

“I’m eating so clean and training hard every day. Why am I not losing weight?”

There is nothing more frustrating than feeling like you’re working super hard and doing all of the “right” things but not getting the results you deserve.

It can make you feel like something is wrong with you.

But often it is very SIMPLE habit changes, those boring basics, that make the difference.

Too often we overcomplicate things in our search for a quick fix, instead of dialing in the fundamentals first.

We get focused on doing more and working HARDER over simply working smarter.

That’s why I want to share the 3 most common reasons people don’t see the weight loss results they want and how to correct them.

But first, I also want to discuss why you don’t want to let the scale dictate how you view your results.

The scale doesn’t tell us the full story.

It tells us how much we weigh on any given day at any given time.

But our weight isn’t just muscle and fat.

It’s glycogen and water storage.

It’s impacted by inflammation and food still left to be processed and disposed of.

The scale will fluctuate daily, not to mention even hourly.

While I know we can often want to see a specific number on the scale, we have to remember that the scale doesn’t really show us the full picture.

And often striving for faster weight loss on the scale will backfire.

The scale is a very poor indicator of body recomposition.

Your weight could stay the same while amazing body recomposition results are happening.

If you lose a pound of fat, but even gain 2lbs of muscle?

Guess what?

You could end up looking leaner BUT actually even see your weight increase.

Because as much as we say “I want to lose weight” what we really want is to lose fat.

And the scale as a data source for fat loss is very limited

So even if you are trying to lose weight, consider another form of measurement to help you truly track your body recomposition – whether it is a form of body fat testing, progress picture or even body measurements.

Now…What Are The 3 Most Common Reasons We Aren’t Seeing Results?

Often we need to focus on those BASICS and dial in those fundamentals first.

While they aren’t sexy or fun, they are often the reasons we succeed or fail!

Supplements, fancy moves may be the things we want to focus on, but we have to remember that what we measure, can be MANAGED!

If you don’t have a clear picture of what you’re doing, a clear plan in place? You can’t make accurate changes to your routine.

Reason #1: You’re Not Tracking And Measuring

I know I know…tracking sucks.

It’s boring and tedious and no one likes doing it.

But it gives us an unbiased picture of what we are truly doing so that we can adjust.

It’s a great learning tool to truly understand how to best fuel your body so your calories and macros are dialed in specifically to YOUR needs.

Because….

1. We are often very bad at estimating our own portion sizes, no matter how good we think we are at it.

And 2. You can still overeat healthy foods. It’s why you may be eating clean and NOT seeing results.

It’s easy when you’re hungry or simply even WANT the food to end up letting that portion size get a bit bigger.

I don’t know about you, but a tbsp of peanut butter gets exponentially bigger depending on how much I want it that day or even what I’m putting it on.

And with calorically dense foods like that, it’s easy for those calories to add up each day, not to mention over the week and throw us out of the deficit we need to see for results.

Not to mention, those calories can distort the macros we are actually hitting that day, which can dramatically impact our results.

And if you’re a snacker?

It’s easy to end up letting a snack or two here or there become 3 or 4 and add up to more calories throughout the day than we realize.

It’s why tracking not only holds us accountable, but measuring gives us an accurate picture of what is going on so we know what to change.

You may not do it long term. But why not set yourself up to truly understand your diet by having a clear picture of what you’re consuming so you CAN get better results without having to do more?

Reason #2: You’re Focused On Doing More

When we do more, we feel more in control of our progress.

We feel like we can speed up our results.

But doing more can often backfire.

It can lead to burn out.

Extra frustration because we are pushing so hard yet NOT seeing the results we want.

The simple fact is we simply can’t out exercise or out diet time.

And the more we try to? The more we often create habits that aren’t sustainable that we can’t be consistent with.

Too often we overestimate how much we can accomplish short term while underestimating what we can accomplish long term.

Not to mention, those fast fad results we sometimes do see happening?

Well those seemingly amazing results are often why we get caught in the same annoying weight loss cycle…losing and regaining the same weight over and over again.

We slash our calories ridiculously low as we add in extra cardio and spend hours in the gym.

We may then see a huge initial drop of 5lbs in those first few days or even the first week.

But guess what? That isn’t all fat that we lost.

It’s water weight. Glycogen depletion. Maybe a pound of fat.

BUT also a pound of muscle.

So while it may feel satisfying, it won’t keep up. Or we have to keep doing more and more in an attempt to keep the results rolling in as quickly.

And in our attempt to see those faster drops on the scale, we end up sacrificing muscle not to mention create metabolic adaptations and hormonal imbalances that hold us back.

We create issues that end up backfiring and we’ve built habits that are unsustainable.

So what happens?

All that doing more leads to us regaining the weight we worked so hard to lose. And often, we end up worse off because, when we regain the weight?

We aren’t regaining muscle.

So the next time we attempt to lose weight? The process may feel even more hopeless.

This is why we need to stop doing more and instead create a plan that is truly realistic for our lifestyle.

There is no perfect workout schedule. No one perfect diet.

The key is making small changes and doing something that truly fits the time we have.

If you only have 3 days a week to workout? Start with that schedule and design workouts that fit that routine.

If you’ve never tracked your food before? Just start by logging without other changes.

These small swaps allow you to build momentum and truly make lasting changes.

Reason #3: You’re Not Focusing On Strength Training

Yes, for weight loss diet is key.

I don’t think there is anyone at this time who hasn’t heard the phrase “Abs are made in the kitchen.”

But so often we don’t dial in our workouts in a way that truly complements our nutritional plan and works toward lasting results.

Most of the time when someone says they want to lose weight, they also say they plan to add in more cardio.

And this association between cardio and weight loss arose because often cardio workouts do burn more calories per session than strength workouts.

But thinking of our workouts only as a chance to burn more calories is really not utilizing them to maximize our results.

We also have to remember our body adapts.

It’s why we get stronger. Why we can run faster and ride further.

But because of these adaptions, we don’t continue to burn as many calories from our steady state cardio training sessions as we did to start.

It’s why we can feel like we just need to keep doing more.

It can also lead to us trying to out exercise our diet to create a great calorie deficit.

Instead we need to see our workouts as not only a chance to burn more calories but as an opportunity to keep our overall body healthy and avoid metabolic adaptations.

If you want to look leaner? You want to build muscle.

That’s why strength workouts are so key.

If you want to avoid more metabolic adaptations and burn more calories at rest?

You want to include strength workouts to build muscle.

So while you can and should include cardio training if you enjoy it, and for your overall wellness, we need to stop turning to cardio for weight loss.

Focus on lifting heavy and challenging your body through heavier loads and more advanced movements! Make more out of less time so you can even create a routine that is sustainable long term!

SUMMARY:

If we want to see amazing weight loss results, you can’t ignore the basics.

Stop spinning your wheels just trying to do more.

Instead think of how you can do less and get better results.

Start tracking and logging as you focus on creating a sustainable routine that includes strength training.

The BEST results happen when our diet and our workouts WORK TOGETHER!

Learn to eat and train according to YOUR needs and goals:

–> Macro Hacks