Burn the Fat! Keep the Muscle!
Do you know what the Fastest Fat-Loss diet on record is? A diet that actually generated close to one lb a day in fat-loss?
You might be as surprised as I was when I first learned that the fastest fat-loss diet on record is a diet that is almost all fat! Of course, You’ve all heard of “The Atkins Diet” and many similar low-carb and other high-fat ketogenic diets but you may have never heard of the “fat-fast” which is basically what it sounds like- eating 1000 calories and close to 100% fat for a short time to spur the most the most metabolically challenged individual straight into lipolysis– which basically forces your body to using your fat-stores for energy instead of your carbs.
The studies that exploded interest in the whole high-fat- low-carb eating model for producing superior fat-loss results can be tied back to two researchers in the 1950’s. Professor Alan Kekwick and Dr. Gaston Pawan were struck by the many studies of differing rates of weight-loss experienced by altering the compositions of food. Their subsequent studies involved putting obese patients on 1000 calorie diets with either 90% fat, 90% protein, or 90% carb. The 90% fat diet resulted in .09 lbs a day! The 90% protein diet resulted in .06% lbs a day! But the 90% carb diet resulted in no weight loss, but in fact gained a little.
Critics claimed that the impressive fat-loss results on the high- fat low-carb diet were a result of water-loss. However, water studies showed water loss to be a very small part of the total weight loss.
Another study was conducted by Frederick Benoit with the Oakland Naval Hospital. Benoit compared obese patients put on a 1000 calorie 90% fat diet with obese patients placed on a total fast. The obese patients on the total fast lost lost 21 lbs after 10 days- but only 7.5lbs was actual body-fat. The patients on the 90% fat 1000 calorie diet lost 14.5 lbs of weight in 10 days, but 14 lbs of it was body-fat. So the high-fat 1000 calorie diet resulted in 7lbs greater fat-loss in 10 days than the group eating nothing at all and none of the considerable muscle loss!
Another study by Charlotte Young of Cornell- compared the results of overweight individuals placed on three diets each providing 1800 calories with varying restriction of carbohydrates. The regimen included either 30, 60 or 104 grams of carbohydrates. The group who had 104 gram of carbs lost 2lbs of total fat out of a total 2.73lbs lost per week. The 60grams of carbs resulted in 2.5lbs of total fat lost out of a total of 3lbs lost per week. The 30gram carb diet is the only one that produced lipolysis and lost a total of 3.73 lbs of total fat per week which was 100% of the total fat-loss.
Pretty interesting, huh? The high fat diet low carb consistently resulted in the most fat loss even with a much higher calorie allowance.
So, you may wonder if I’m advocating the 1000 calorie “fat fast“.
I’m not. I bring up “the fat-fast” because there are valuable lessons to draw on to help achieving your own weight-loss goals. I personally couldn’ t stomach a “fat-fast”. If you can, then why not, give it a try for the short-term only. I’m all for trying new things. But I would puke if I tried to eat all fat diet. Unless it was all nuts. I could do that. But- I could never get filled up on only 1000 calories of nuts. That’s like 5 handfuls. That’s no where near to the “volume” of food I require to feel full. On top of that, the diet is just not practical or desirable to most people and is lacking many nutrients, vitamins and anti-oxitants. The long term health consequences of this type of diet is unknown. Besides that, 1000 calories is extremely low and I would never recommend anyone go that low in calories ever especially if they are active.
But what can we learn from “the fat-fast”? Plenty. I bring up the “fat-fast” for the lessons that can help you lose weight faster and easier.
Lesson 1.) Limit carbohydrates to increase fat-loss.
There’s no reason to eliminate all carbs– We need them for energy and normal brain and metabolism functions. What you should do though is cut back on the proportion of carbohydrates in relation to the proportion of protein and fats you consume with the same number of calories. This will allow you will lose faster.
Why not try to cut carbs by 10%-20% while increasing protein and fat each by 10%. That’s easy and doable. Some ideas include: Exchange your low fat yogurt for a protein shake or Greek yogurt. Cut out the whole wheat bread and add a couple slices of turkey bacon instead. Eat a bigger serving of chicken and smaller serving of brown rice. Cut the croutons and add sliced turkey and olives to your salad. Pretty easy huh?
Lesson 2.) Fat will not make you fat. Too many calories will get you fat.
Adding fat to your meals not only improves the taste of food but helps fill you up longer. In a reduced carbohydrate environment, it is proven to accelerate your fat loss. So add a handful of almonds to your salad. Add some olive oil dressing to your salad. Saute your vegetables in coconut oil. Pop a couple olives. Just stay away from the hydrogenated fats. Stay away from fried foods, margarine and processed foods. But keep your portions small. Fat calories are dense- and total calories still count.
Lesson 3.) Don’t starve yourself or go on a “total fast”.
You can see how quickly the research participants “lost muscle” as well as fat on the total fast. 7lbs of water and muscle was lost in 10 days along with the 7lbs of fat. Losing muscle is the last thing we want because maintaining muscle is crucial for a healthy metabolism. The more muscle you lose- the less calories that are required to maintain your lean body mass. You would be decreasing the amount of food you could eat without gaining weight. So what happens? Yes, you gain it all back and then some! Additionally, You are only becoming “a skinnier version” of the same body. You’re not truly transforming. You’re doing more damage than good for yourself.
I’m currently following what I feel is the most practical, efficient, and doable program which the masses can succeed on and accomplish their fat-loss transformations. For more info on 7 day carb-cycling plan created by Heidi Powell endorsed by Chris Powell of Extreme Make-over Weight Loss – go here- Click on the Bode link. Then click on Bode Plan. It will outline the entire 7 DayCarb-Cycling Diet plan for you. Hope it helps!
