Dietary Advice for Weight Loss
Low GI
Choose ’slow burn’ low GI carbohydrates for your daily carbohydrate requirement. Low GI carbohydrates help to increase the sense of fullness meaning you eat less at each meal and delay hunger in between meals. Low GI foods also cause lower rises in blood sugar, stimulating less release of insulin and less conversion of excess blood glucose into body fat stores.
High protein intake
Ensure you have an adequate intake of high quality protein; the suggested level is 1.6 g/kg/day. The body has no capacity to store excess protein so a high protein diet acts as a powerful switch in the brain to suppress hunger. A high protein intake also raises RMR and stimulates thermogenesis – the body’s way of producing heat – so more energy is burned off through this process. Lastly, a high protein intake together with resistance training described earlier prevents the loss of lean body mass with calorie restriction, instead favouring the loss of body fat.
Reduce unhealthy fats
Cut down on unhealthy saturated and hydrogenated fats. Excess saturated fat puts on more weight as body fat than any other nutrient. Fat intake also has no effect on metabolism in contrast to protein intake.
Increase healthy fats
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Consume your daily fat requirements as healthy fats. These should be the polyunsaturated fats found in nuts, seeds, oily fish and certain vegetable oils such as olive oil and rapeseed oil. Make sure you consume as much omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fats as possible; these are principally found in oily fish and also in supplements such as Vegepa. EPA, one of the most important omega-3 long-chain fatty acids, has been shown to increase the amount of fat burnt in the body’s energy powerhouses, the mitochondria. Some research has also shown that conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), another special type of polyunsaturated fat, promotes weight loss. Sources of CLA are safflower oil, eggs and grass-fed animals, especially kangaroo meat!
Plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables
Make sure your consumption of micronutrients – vitamins, minerals and antioxidants – are adequate by consuming sufficient portions of fresh fruit and vegetables; the suggested amount is at least 5 portions per day. Exercise uses more vitamins and minerals to support muscle growth and repair so these are an important part of the diet, especially for exercise-induced weight loss.
High fibre
Consume foods with high fibre content. High fibre slows down the emptying of food from your stomach so that you feel fuller quicker and eat less at each meal. Fibre also slows the absorption of fat and carbohydrate, smoothing blood glucose profiles ensuring that insulin levels and conversion of glucose into fat stores is kept to a minimum.
Meal frequency
Eat small amounts regularly rather than large amounts infrequently; it is suggested to eat 5-6 times a day. This eating pattern has a number of advantages with respect to weight loss including the following:
- Resting metabolic rate is higher.
- Reduced hunger and cravings.
- Absorption and metabolism of nutrients is more efficient, reducing the risk of deposition of excess fat into body fat stores, insulin surges and the conversion of surplus carbohydrate into body fat stores.
- Less activation of the parasympathetic nervous system after eating resulting in a subjective feeling of having more energy. The parasympathetic nervous system is what gets activated after a blowout meal – all you want to do is sleep! Being more active in your daily routine as a result of eating small amounts regularly burns more fat.
Give yourself a treat!
Finally allow yourself treats once a week. Research has shown that allowing an occasional high fat indulgence is associated with more successful long-term weight loss than attempting total bans. Total bans only serve to intensify cravings which people eventually succumb to, resulting in worse loss of control over eating than if they had allowed themselves the occasional indulgence in the first place!
