The Worst Advice You Could Ever Get About Developing A Nutrition Plan!
Written By Lisa Pearson
Over many years I've come across many so called 'experts' voicing their opinion on THE best diet. Generally, advice about a 'diet' (we can't even call most of them a nutrition plan) is based around fast ways to lose fat because that is where the market is for selling ebooks, meal replacement shakes, recipe books, slimming clubs and the latest amazing diet pill. Now, don't get me wrong, I have produced an ebook in the past that sold very well but it was not based around weight loss, it was created to explain exactly how to find out the best nutrition for the client and how to make life long changes to ensure great health for years to come. This is the interesting point to me, because it did not promise fast, easy weight loss, the market was limited and I find that very sad. The media today, especially online, has promoted 'get thin quick' schemes almost as much as 'get rich quick' seminars and more and more people are buying into the fast and often unhealthy ways to 'drop 10lbs in a week' kind of deals. If someone says they have the answer to your weight loss goals and it comes in a handy shake with a pretty picture on the front of a slim, toned model and all for only £49.99 a month you have got to ask yourself; 1. If it really worked it would be on every news programme and website in the world. 2. It would be more like £4,999 as opposed to £49! 3. Because everyone is individual how can it work for everyone? Many people are in a desperate place when it comes to losing weight, they have tried time and time again to reduce calories, increase exercise, not eat carbs, only drink shakes and take the latest diet pill promising results like never before. Many times these approaches leave the client miserable, more desperate, unhealthy and with a metabolism so damaged that not only do they put the weight back on but find it even harder to lose it the next time. So what is the worst advice you could ever get about developing a nutrition plan? Firstly, above all else, do not begin a nutritional plan focused on weight loss. The results will be catastrophic to your body, even if you reach your goal weight and can fit back into those jeans again, the likelihood is that you will have done your health some serious damage along the way. The major motivator for people is usually weight loss and that is all well and good. If it creates that drive you need to overhaul your diet and get onto a healthier lifestyle then I'm all for it BUT do not focus it all on the weight loss and here is why... The internet and media is full of promises like, 'lost 10lbs in a week' or 'drop 2 dress sizes in 5 days'. Here is the first problem: the media are influencing your expectations to believe that both the above are possible and that you will get results in the promised time. To achieve the results in this short time means creating a large calorie deficit and increasing your energy output to unusually high levels. Less calories in more exercise. It is a tried and tested way to ensure rapid weight loss and lower numbers on the scales, but at what cost? By dieting this way you will not lose much fat but mainly water and muscle fibre/tone so if your goal is to be squidgy and look like a deflated balloon just so the scales show a lower figure then be my guest. On the way you will also effectively slow down your metabolism and down regulate most of your bodies everyday functions as it feels that it is in a starvation mode and will want to conserve energy. This is the reason that people look and feel so bad when they crash diet. The body will do all it can to preserve energy stores (that's fat by the way) and it will dispose of anything that it does not need that uses energy (muscle fibre). It will also try to adapt to the low calorie intake by slowing down its metabolic rate and burning less energy. This then creates the next problem, once a client decides enough is enough and begins to eat again (and they will) they are then putting excess calories into a reduced metabolic rate. Even if they just go back to eating the same as they were before they started the diet, they will put on weight as their metabolism is no longer running at that rate. So, not only do they put all the weight back on but they add a few extra pounds too, sound familiar? So, in my mind the worst advice you could ever get about developing a nutrition plan is to focus on weight loss! What is the alternative? Well, I'm glad you asked! The most effective way to look at designing a real nutrition plan starts with nothing to do with nutrition (yes, yes I know but hear me out). The first thing to think about is the environment that the food will be going into. If the gut is not working properly then you can have the best nutritional plan in the world, using the finest ingredients, but it will all be to no avail. Making sure that the digestion is firing on all cylinders and allowing you to absorb the nutrients properly is the key which leads onto improvements in any inflammatory issues like bloating or joint stiffness, better energy throughout the day, elevated moods, better quality of sleep and more efficient recovery from exercise. Quite a good list of improvements if you ask me, oh and one that I forgot to mention was weight loss! (who would have thought!) Focus on a nutrient dense, anti inflammatory nutrition plan and and all of a sudden you are able to think better, be more productive, lose weight and eat more all a the same time! Still want to crash diet and lose those 10lbs just so that you can feel dreadful and put on 13lbs in a few weeks? Paul Burgess SAC dip. (cn) SAC Dip. (pt) SAC Dip. (AnAg) Have you ever felt as though your health is just not where it should be? Feel tired all the time? Had health issues that just do not go away? Suffer from IBS or any kind of digestive complaint? Need to lose some weight? Whatever your needs why not speak to Paul Burgess. He is the Clinical Nutritionist who writes all our Bloggs. Not only is he a highly respected nutritionist in his field but also an ambassador for nutritional supplement companies and was awarded ‘Over 40’s Bodybuilder’ by the prestigious Bodybuilding.com website so he really knows his stuff! His mission in the industry is, ‘To help as many people as possible realise the full potential of a healthy body using real food and applying the latest knowledge available’ If you are looking for the best advice in the industry, contact Paul at athletic.fitness@icloud.com or check out his website www.athletic-fitness.co.uk
