I Was Wrong, but…
I've been hearing on the radio for the past year or so about a diet, from a company touting a weight loss "secret", that leads to losing a pound of body fat daily. In a previous discussion, I refuted how this was impossible. But now I need to reframe my initial thoughts. A small study proved me wrong!
Here's how this small study laid out:
1. The researchers recruited 15 overweight men around the age of 40 years old.
2. They consumed 320 calories per day for four days (from whey protein)
3. Each of the four days they did 45 minutes of a hand-cranking exercise and then walked on a treadmill for 8 hours (approximately 22 miles per day).
And here's what happened:
Subjects lost an average of 11 pounds of total body weight with about 5 pounds being body fat. So yes, they were able to lose a pound of fat per day. The rest of the weight loss was primarily water. Surprisingly, they maintained they're skeletal muscle mass.
I don't mind admitting...I was wrong!. However, this was a crazy experiment that won't realistically be sustainable in real world settings.
We see these claims about miracle diets promoting such fat loss, but it's not going to happen unless very extreme actions take place. And, if there is a great amount of weight loss from following a promoted diet, we can count on it being primarily water loss.
Also, these findings may work for this group that was overweight, but if a lean person tries it, there's more of a chance for muscle loss.
Finally, rapid weight loss is appealing. And if it is done as a short-term kickstart with a game plan in place to sustain the initial weight loss, then more power to you. But remember that many of these rapid loss plans may lead to quick results while possibly sacrificing overall health.
Even though this small study (in a controlled setting) proved me wrong, I'm still leaning into building a long-term process of nutrition and training that can be followed even on your worst day. Unfortunately, and I actually love saying this though people don't like hearing it, but it's the boring, small actions in nutrition and training completed consistently that will drive success.
As always,
GIVE YOUR BODY WHAT IT NEEDS, WHEN IT NEEDS IT.
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