Myth 1: Low fat diets are good for you.
Fact: A diet too high in fat will lead to weight gain, but a diet too low in fat won’t help you lose weight either. People tend to think they need a low-fat diet to lose weight, but fail to understand that to lose weight they need a balance of carbohydrates, proteins and fats in their diets. Our bodies need fat for energy, tissue repair, digestion and to transport and metabolise essential weight loss boosting nutrients.
If you’ve got weight to lose a fat free diet isn’t a good idea but cutting down on unhealthy saturated and trans fatty acids, found in cakes, sugar, sweets, pastries, fried food, red meat and refined, processed foods and replacing them with healthy unsaturated fats, found in things like nuts, seeds, oily fish, olive oil and avocados, will help. Full fat organic dairy products are also fine as long as they are eaten in moderation. And bear in mind that if a product is labelled low fat or fat free this does NOT always mean low calorie or calorie-free. Although the fat is taken out calorie rich sugars and thickeners are often added to boost flavour and texture.
Myth 2: Crash dieting or fasting for long periods can help you lose weight.
Fact: In the short term this may be true but in the longer term it can prevent you losing weight. This is because crash dieting or fasting causes a loss of muscle which in turn causes a fall in your basal metabolic rate – the amount of calories your body burns on a daily basis. This means your body will need fewer calories than it did previously, making weight gain more likely once you stop dieting.
As a rule of thumb calorie restriction diets or diets that cut out certain food groups will not help you lose weight and keep it off. Not only are these diets boring and unsatisfying they don’t provide all of the nutrients your body needs for you to feel healthy and energetic. Also, losing weight at a very rapid rate (more than 3 pounds a week after the first couple of weeks) may increase your risk for developing gallstones (clusters of solid material in the gallbladder that can be painful). And diets that provide less than 800 calories per day could result in heart rhythm abnormalities, which can be fatal. It simply isn’t worth the risk.
Research suggests that losing between 1 and 2 pounds a week by making healthy food choices, eating moderate portions, and building physical activity into your daily life is the best way to lose weight and keep it off. And as an added bonus by adopting healthy eating and physical activity habits, you also lower your risk for developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.
Myth 3: Fattening foods equal rapid weight gain.
Fact: This may seem hard to believe, especially if you think you are one of those people who only need to look at a chocolate cake to gain weight, but weight gain is a slow and gradual process. You need to eat an extra 3500 calories to gain one pound of body fat (and vice versa for losing it). If you think you’ve gained several pounds after a meal out this is due to fluid which will resolve itself as long as you go back to eating normally and don’t make the classic dieting mistake of feeling guilty, thinking you’re blown it so you may as well keep overeating.
Myth 4: Cholesterol is bad for your health.
Fact: Cholesterol is a fatty substance that is made mostly by the liver – and there is both good and bad cholesterol. Bad cholesterol can clog your arteries and increase your risk of heart disease but we also need good cholesterol to build cells and produce hormones.
Saturated fats found in foods like meat, cheese, cream, butter and processed pastries tend to raise low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, known as ‘bad’ cholesterol, which delivers cholesterol to the arteries. High density lipoprotein (HDL), or ‘good’ cholesterol, transports cholesterol away from the arteries, back to the liver. So choose unsaturated fats such as eggs, vegetable oils, nuts and seeds.
Myth 5: Vegetarians can’t be as muscular as meat eaters
Fact: Because vegetarians don’t eat meat – a major source of muscle building protein – many people think that this will lead to weakness and muscle loss but by getting their protein from vegetable sources such as cheese, nuts, and pulses like soya, chickpeas etc. can build muscle as effectively as meat eaters. The Department of Health recommends that 50 per cent of energy should come from carbohydrates, 35 per cent from fat and the remaining 15 per cent from protein.
Myth 6: You gain weight when you stop smoking.
Fact: While nicotine does increase the body’s metabolism, its effect is small. Where people tend to fall down is when they replace a cigarette with sweets and comfort food. Bear in mind that 48 hours is all it takes for nicotine to be removed from your blood stream; after that so called nicotine cravings are really just habits that you associate with smoking, such as lighting up every time you have a cuppa or smoking when you feel nervous. If you can find healthy habits to replace the habit of smoking, such as snacking on fruit or going for a brisk walk, you will not gain weight when you quit. And remember, it’s far healthier to be an overweight non-smoker than not bother giving up because you think you’ll put on weight.
Myth 7: High-protein/low-carbohydrate diets are an effective and healthy way to lose weight.
Fact: Even though you may experience short term weight loss, getting most of your daily calories from high-protein foods like meat, chicken and cheese is not a balanced eating plan. You may be eating too much fat and cholesterol, which may raise heart disease risk. You may be eating too few fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, which can lead to constipation due to lack of dietary fibre.
Following a high-protein/low-carbohydrate diet may also make you feel nauseous, tired, and weak and lead to a build-up of partially broken-down fats in your blood which can increase your risk of gout (a painful swelling of the joints) and kidney stones. The safe and effective way to lose weight is to follow a healthy eating plan that includes a healthy balance of weight loss nutrients from carbohydrate, protein, and fat.
Myth 8: Certain foods can help you lose weight off the hip and thighs
Fact: Contrary to what some diet magazines may declare certain foods cannot magically melt away the fat off these parts of the body. If you eat healthily for at least two months you will eventually lose weight all over your body — including personal problem areas like your hips and thighs. And if you combine healthy eating with regular exercise, you’ll burn even more calories and tone, tighten and strengthen the muscles underneath the fat so that you look leaner and fitter. You can, however, lose fat around the middle because the reason it settles there may not just be down to your diet and is connected to the stress hormones. For more information on this see my book ‘Fat around the Middle’. (See the Resources Page).
Myth 9: Skipping breakfast is a good way to lose weight.
Fact: Studies show that people who skip breakfast tend to be heavier than people who eat a healthy breakfast. This may be because people who skip breakfast tend to feel hungrier later on and eat more than they normally would and usually go for more unhealthily options because there blood sugar is low and by then they need a quick fix.
In addition to always eating a healthy breakfast it is also important to eat little and often during the day if you are trying to lose weight. This is because eating approximately five small meals and snacks throughout the day balances your blood sugar levels and helps beat food cravings
Myth 10: Losing weight is harder if you’ve got big bones
Fact: Bodies vary hugely in build from solid to sylph-like; and in shape from apple to pear but that doesn’t mean someone with big bones can’t take control of your weight. This is because you don’t lose weight from your bones. You lose weight by losing fat, regardless of whether you have a big frame or not. By following a healthy balanced diet and watching your portion size you can be a healthy weight even if you have a big frame.
Set yourself small targets. Start by aiming to lose a small amount, say 1 to 2 pounds a week. Even with this small weight loss you’ll see significant benefits to your health. Your cholesterol levels will fall and your blood pressure may drop. And to achieve this you don’t have to stop doing all the things you like doing; just do them in moderation. Have one biscuit rather than two, with your afternoon tea, have one glass of wine rather than two, with your evening meal. Make small changes in your everyday life and notice the difference to your health, well being and waist line.
