The art of medicine is quite peculiar. Sometimes, medical treatments get established without adequate proof of effectiveness. These are then handed over from one generation of doctors to the next. The medical treatment of obesity is one such example, an area that requires a lot of research and needs to be constantly updated.

Medically, if your Body Mass Index or BMI is greater than 30, you are deemed ‘obese’. [BMI = kg/m2 where a person’s weight in kilograms is divided by square of their height in metres.]

For over four decades, doctors have recommended low fat, low-calorie diets as a treatment for obesity. Despite this, obesity is now an epidemic, having tripled over these past decades.

We all know, one needs to eat (intake) fewer calories and burn more (output) calories to lose weight. The approach advises you to eat low-calorie foods that will fill you up, eliminate highly processed foods, reduce fats, stop sugar and maintain proper nutrition. I’m sure a lot of us have already tried this in the past with fewer modifications.

It sounds easy to do, right? But if it’s so easy to do, why do we struggle so much with weight loss? Many blame it on our mighty willpower. I often hear statements like…

… I cannot control my hunger

… I don’t have the will power to do it

… I don’t think I can do this

Sure – willpower is one aspect, but did you know that the key aspect about weight loss, is most times, mainly related to your hormones? Insulin is the hormone which plays a crucial in obesity.

Another aspect we must understand about diets is while we were busy counting calories and reducing fats, we do not realise that our diet ends up going heavy on carbohydrates. Let me make it easier for you:

High carbohydrates, Frequent meals ——> Elevated Insulin levels ——–> Higher Fat Storage

Low carbohydrates, Less frequent meals ——> Lower Insulin levels ——–> Lower Fat Storage

Did you realise that “Calories” is not mentioned here at all? When we talk about calories without understanding insulin, we completely lose the plot and that’s where the real issue lies.

You don’t need to focus only on ‘low calorie diet’, you need to shift your focus on ‘low carb diet’ to achieve your healthy weight loss.

Here are Top 10 Weight Loss tips that can bring you out of the zone of ‘low calorie’ and help you achieve your goals:

• Avoid having foods rich in carbohydrates and fats together like cookies, pizza, chips which can increase your overall cravings.
• Focus on eating minimum 15-20 grams of proteins in each meal, as per your daily requirement, which will keep you satiated for a longer period of time
• Start focusing on reducing your carbohydrates by 10% of the current daily quantity and focus on getting to as low-carb as possible. Research shows that keeping your carbohydrates less than 100 grams per day has shown positive results in helping people lose weight and sustaining it for longer periods of time.
• Along with proteins, focus on keeping your plates full of fibrous vegetables, which will keep you full for extended time periods and also reduce your cravings.
• Add healthy fats to your meals as per your taste, but remember not to overdo it.
• If you’re feeling very hungry, always begin your meal with proteins first, followed by some veggies and leave the carbohydrates for the end.
• Find foods that you enjoy eating and that fit in the above criteria. Don’t make it boring, do it in a way which will sustain you for the rest of your life.
• Keep yourself physically active. This doesn’t mean that you need to spend hours in gym to shed the weight. FACT CHECK: Workouts don’t help you lose as much weight. Staying active along with a healthy diet will help you prevent muscle loss, which is extremely crucial.
• Good quality sleep is the direct key to weight loss. If you’re doing everything right, eating well, staying active and not sleeping well, unfortunately the body won’t be able to function well and not show desired results.
• Start cooking your own meals. You are responsible for what goes inside your body, so take charge now!

We will discuss more about obesity and ways to deal with the same in our upcoming articles. Stay tuned!