Weight loss doesn't happen in the gym

It's all about what you eat.

You may have heard somewhere that the secret to weight loss success is to just exercise more.

If you’re not losing weight, you’re not exercising enough. You’re not cardio-ing hard enough. You’re lazy. You’re not disciplined, it’s your fault if you’re not losing weight.

Bulls%&t.

Don’t get me wrong, weight loss and metabolic health take work, for sure. Getting a good mix of vigorous exercise, resistance training and everyday movement is important, too.

But no matter how many hours you spend in the gym, no matter how many miles you run or cycle, no matter how many burpees you can do, you can’t out-exercise a bad diet.

Weight loss starts in the kitchen

If you’ve taken my Relight Your Metabolic Fire Masterclass, you know that how many calories you eat is important, but it’s not the only thing that matters.

Making sure to eat enough calories to fuel your metabolic fire is critical, but what’s in those calories is even more important.

If all you worry about is calories, you could eat 2,000 calories of fat and sugar every day & be in a “calorie deficit”, but eventually, that’s going to catch up to you.

You’d be getting no protein for muscle building and repair, enzyme and hormone production, heart and nerve health.

You’d be missing out on micronutrients for fluid and energy balance, strong bones, eyes, hair and nails.

There would be no fiber from whole fruits and veggies to feed the bacteria in your gut that make up 80% of your immune system and help produce important hormones like serotonin.

Eventually, you’d find yourself insulin resistant and risking heart disease, having a hard time maintaining muscle mass, stubborn weight gain, testosterone levels in the basement, with no energy, no drive, and no libido.

Fueling your body with calories from whole foods like eggs, beef, fish, leafy green vegetables, fruits, nuts and legumes gives you the macro and micronutrients you need for all-day energy, muscle and tissue repair, healthy testosterone levels, immune health, brain function, heart health and yes, a healthy weight.

What you eat determines how much energy you burn and how much you store as fat. What you eat determines what hormones get produced and what processes, like building muscle, get prioritized. What you eat determines how much you eat.

What should I eat to lose weight?

First things first, we prioritize protein. Protein is an essential building block of most everything in your body and is essential for a healthy metabolism.

Bonus: When you eat more protein, you get full faster, meaning you eat less food overall.

Our bodies are driven to consume a minimum amount of protein every day. What this means is that the blueberry muffin and venti oat milk latte you're eating doesn’t contain sufficient protein, so you’ll continue to eat until you have met your body’s protein needs.

Next, get plenty of fiber. Fiber comes from whole, unprocessed fruits, veggies and grains. Unfortunately, most of the grains we eat (in the form of bread or rice) have had the fiber stripped away.

Try to add in some roasted sweet potato or cauliflower, some sauteed greens, steamed broccoli or grilled squash to your meal.

Fiber slows down digestion, which helps us break down and absorb all those amazing nutrients in our food. It holds onto water keeping our stool easy to pass, and most importantly feeds our gut microbiome, the colony of bacteria that do so many amazing things for us.

Finally, don’t be afraid of healthy fats. Fats from whole food sources like olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, even tallow or lard are great options. Lipids (fats) make up the wall of every single cell in our body - so eating a good variety of saturated and monounsaturated fats help keep cells flexible but not too flexible.

Eating fatty fish is great for inflammation and brain health, while foods like olives, nuts and avocados provide a balance of saturated and unsaturated fats.

Your body needs fat. Avoiding fat in food means more sugar in food, which is how we got in this mess in the first place.

What you eat and how you balance those things are going to be up to you, and maybe your awesome nutrition coach… (hint, hint.)

Guys, this is what my 1-on-1 nutrition coaching program is all about. Finding the right combo of food swaps, lifestyle habits and more to get you feeling and looking great. The best way to learn more is to set up a quick 15 minute consult with me to chat about how we can work together.