Why Most Diets Fail

Are you like most people and feel like you have no idea how to properly lose unwanted pounds? There are so many diet books out there that it can become overwhelming for you to choose the right one. Due to the over commercialization of all the so called weightloss gurus, people are more confused than ever about how to lose weight. I want to give you the facts about dieting and how you really should eat to lose weight safely and permanently.

Losing weight should be as easy as eating less, right? Well, it sounds like it should work. In fact, that is what most diet books will do. They reduce the amount of calories you consume. This approach will work for awhile, but then you will come to a point where you stop losing weight. What do you do now?

Some people will then reduce the amount of food they eat further and they will continue this cycle until they’re skipping meals, eating light snacks for meals and a few bites for dinner. Even when eating such small amounts of food, they find that they are still not losing weight and some may even find themselves gaining weight.

Additionally, while you were losing body fat, you were also losing muscle. Losing muscle is a big problem. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism, which basically means, you don’t have to work as hard to lose unwanted body fat. So, when you gain back the weight you lost you are actually gaining even more body fat than you had when you began the diet. This is what is called yo-yo dieting. Every time you
diet, you are setting yourself up for even more fat gain when you resume your normal eating patterns. Why does this happen?

Our bodies are geared toward survival. When we deny our bodies the nutrients and fuel it needs just for keeping us alive, it will enter the starvation mode and begin to hold onto everything it gets in the form of fat
storage. Your metabolism slows down and you may become tired and lethargic as your body attempts to conserve energy.

What tends to happen is the dieter goes back to their normal eating patterns because they are unable to maintain these types of eating restrictions. You begin to eat larger amounts of food, but your metabolism is still suppressed and you will begin putting on weight quickly until your metabolism readjusts itself.

So how do you lose weight without dieting? First, you must have some idea of what your normal daily caloric intake should be. After you have established your baseline, you must factor in your daily activity levels. This
will give you a general guideline to follow. Here is a formula you can use to establish an estimate of your daily caloric intake:
Activity Factor Chart

Generally Sendentary (Desk Job, very little exercise)
Age Under 30~ multiply by 30%
Age 30-40 ~ multiply by 25%
Age over 40 ~ multiply by 20%

Somewhat Active (Exercise 1 hour a day)
Under 30 ~ multiply by 40%
30-40 ~ multiply by 35%
Over 40 ~ multiply by 30%
Really Active (Lift weights 3-4 times a week, very muscular)
Under 30 ~ multiply by 50%
30-40 ~ multiply by 45%
Over 40 ~ multiply by 40%

Off the Charts(Elite, competitive athlete)
Under 30 ~ multiply by 75%
30-40 ~ multiply by 60%
Over 40 ~ multiply by 50%

1) Take your current weight and multiply it by 11.
2) Multiply this answer by your activity factor. Find your activity factor by using
the chart above.
3) Add answer to number 1 to your answer in number 2.

This is the amount of calories you should be eating each day. Of course every person is unique and there may be other factors to consider. This is where a fitness coach can really help you fine tune your fitness program. As your body composition changes, your dietary needs also change.

Let me point out though that while it is very important to eat the right amount of calories a day, it is equally important to have a strength and high intensity interval training program to build muscle and lose body fat. This factored in with eating the right types of foods will turn you into a fat burning machine.