So you want to lose fat?

So you want to lose fat do ya? 

Who doesn't. 

But did you know that it's WAY harder than doctors, online influencers, or actors make it seem? That's because as soon as fat is "lost" through a calorie deficit, it kicks off a whole series of biological defense mechanisms in order to "get it back". 

Fat is a living biological organ. It can make hormones, grow new blood vessels, and influence things from our bones, to immune system, to appetite. 

Our fats deepest desire is to stay at it's happy current state. It actually isn't all that thrilled about putting more in storage- it actually stresses it out a bit and lead to inflammation- but it will gladly accommodate any excess calories we give it. But once that fat tissue has been created, it's much harder to shrink it. 

As soon as we do succeed at decreasing our fat stores, a whole host of biological mechanisms kick in, to increase our hunger, lower our satiety after eating, and in the end, promote us getting back to our previous highest weight. 

It's no wonder that a majority of people end up gaining the weight back after they lose it. And by the way- there's no judgement from this dietitian about this. It's not a moral failure on your part, just a natural biological override that is making weight loss hard to maintain.

And just in case you were frustrated enough about what you fat is doing behind the scenes to make you gain your weight back (or keep you from losing it in the first place), your metabolism ALSO works against you by slowing down, making it easier to gain weight on fewer calories.

It's sad but true that when you weight 180 lbs for the first time, your metabolism is much higher than when you weigh 180 lbs for the second time, after losing weight to return there.

And another fun fact, when you regain weight after losing it, it often settles in around your organs rather than under your skin, which is actually much more dangerous to our health.

WHAT THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO DO? you might be asking.

Well, weight loss is challenging, but there is one method of tackling excess weight and keeping it off that has worked for thousands of people

It's following a whole foods plant-based diet.

Crash diets, carnivore diets, keto diets, and other short-term weight loss solutions never address this underlying biological process that is going to make maintenance impossible.

In order to maintain weight loss you need these 4 factors:

1. A perspective that this weight loss lifestyle is not temporary.

2. A diet that is pretty much the same when you lose the weight and when you are in maintenance.

3. A diet that addresses HUNGER and SATIETY- aka it gives you enough food/ volume that you feel satisfied after ever meal and snack.

4. A diet that promotes optimal health of the GI tract and other body systems, and cuts down on inflammation.

A whole foods plant-based diet addresses all these factors.

#1 and #2 It is an entire lifestyle change. You make the shift when you want to start losing weight, but it's also a lifestyle choice you must continue to follow even after you've lost the weight- or the weight will come back .

#3 It's a diet RICH in carbohydrates, fiber, water, protein, healthy fats, and therefore is very satisfying. You can eat a large bowl of grains, vegetables, beans, and some nuts and stay under 500 calories, but walk away feeling like you've eaten like a king!

#4 It's a diet that doesn't underscore your health in other areas, just so you can see improvements in your weight. Carnivore and some keto diets destroy the gut microbiome, they often lead to more insulin resistance and heart disease due to excess saturated fat, and they often promote visceral fat development (the most dangerous kind of fat, as I mentioned).

Other crash diets like juice cleanses, shake diets, mono-food diets, or other quackery, often do similar things to our gut health, and again often lead to weight being mobilized from it's pretty safe subcutaneous location to our visceral area when we regain the weight after the crash.

In this blog, I'm not going to dive into HOW to lose weight using a whole foods plant-based diet. I have a couple other articles about that here and here.

And most importantly, I have an entire, very affordable, online course dedicated to teaching you how to lose weight with this diet approach.

In the dietetics world, it's very common for RD's to counsel people away from weight loss attempts. They often call it "shrinking" to underline the absurdity of the attempts.

However, the research shows over and over again, that those who utilize a whole foods plant-based lifestyle to achieve weight loss are much more likely to successfully lose weight and maintain it over the long run.

It's not a guarantee, of course. Every persons body has it's own genetics, and depending on how many times your weight has gone up and down the ladder, it might be physiologically challenging to see the scale drop.

But you can see visceral fat mobilized with diet and exercise, and you can see improvements in your lab work, your heart health, diabetes, bone health, muscle mass, and more, even when the number on the scale doesn't change.

And a whole foods plant-based diet gives you the best chance at seeing these results.

So, you want to lose fat?

There's nothing stopping you from giving this incredibly healthy, longevity producing, ethically consistent, satisfying lifestyle a try.

Lucy Luong is a registered dietitian with a Master's Degree in Public Health Nutrition.

Hello, many of you may be new to my blog, so I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Lucy, a registered dietitian with a Master's in Public Health. Because of my health degrees, I love to share my knowledge about optimal nutrition and lifestyle because I really believe nutrition information should be available to everyone. So I hope you help this blog very informative and helpful! If you are someone who wants to connect about how I can support and encourage you as you transition to a more plant-based diet, then I'd love to touch base about my 1:1 Coaching or Online Course.