More diet myths soon! In the meantime, READ THE REAL SCIENCE.

The truth may be hard to swallow at first…
But it won’t ever go to your hips (or thighs or waist)!

Part of the Diet Directives philosophy is uncovering the truth behind the myths that have misled you into mistreating yourself in the name of “health.” Once you have the facts, we trust that you’ll feel the way we do – real science should make real sense!

Our guidelines are grounded in the original methods – before dieting became a multi-billion dollar business. If you want proof, click on “Real Science” to see the studies that helped us to debunk all the big diet myths (along with a few little known ones, too!) and develop Diet Directives.

Myth #1: Eat More, Lose More!
A fairly recent addition to the diet myth scene, the belief that we should eat more food to lose more weight is now espoused by almost everyone in the weight loss industry – even “portion control” giants Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig! Indeed, both of them have embraced VOLUMETRICS, either by direct licensing (JC) or by imitation (WW’s Momentum plan). However, not only is their science skewed, their timing is off!

The economic bust has led Americans to the realization that we’ve been over-consuming everything, as is evidenced by our bigger debts and bigger waistlines! Downsizing is the trend – and for once what’s hot is also the right call! Still, eat more to lose more is what a hungry people want to hear… the diet giants have spent millions researching to come to that conclusion. Telling people what they want to hear, however, doesn’t make it true!

Eating more food more frequently doesn’t curb your hunger or improve your metabolism. It simply increases your appetite so that you’re always wanting more – and your digestive system is constantly in overdrive!

Of course, as with most myths, there is some truth in the eat more, lose more idea. By cutting your calories significantly in one step (say from 3,000/day to 1,000/day), your metabolism may slow temporarily from the shock. However, you will still lose weight – just more slowly. Rather than going to extremes on either side (eating more to lose more or suddenly decreasing your intake drastically), gradual caloric decrease to the appropriate individual levels for your optimal health and digestion is the best way to lose weight – without shocking the metabolism into its own recession. It’s also the best way to beat hunger for good!

Myth #2: Grazing (NOT three meals/day) is the way to go!
Grazing (in case you don’t know) is a nice way of saying eating a little bit all day long, and the myth surrounding it (that lots of “little meals” are better than three substantial ones) has been around for three decades. The catch is, it didn’t spring out of the desire to help people live optimally – or science! It started as a way for the food companies to deal with what they called “the fixed stomach.”

Yes, our stomachs used to limit capacity (they still can, if you begin eating regular amounts at regular intervals), which was really bad if you were in the business of selling food to a population that wasn’t growing fast enough to increase profits. This was the situation in the 1980s, when snacking was renamed grazing. And profits soared.

Not only did grazing sound less childish and more nutritious than snacking, the geniuses behind it (whose goal was to increase consumer food consumption) knew that everyone would just add mini-meals to the existing three squares. And boy, were they right! Today, we eat all day long. As a result, we have s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d our stomachs, so that we actually feel hungrier more often! That’s because, the more you eat, the hungrier you are. In addition to boosting the bottom line of food corporations who benefit to the tune of billions from our increased consumption, grazing actually trains your body to want food all the time – because it’s in a constant state of digestion. It works and works and never rests. No wonder it gets tired and becomes less efficient in processing your food!

Eating three meals a day at regular intervals (and one snack, if you want it) is the best way to curb hunger for good.

Diet Myth #3: Carbs make you fat!
While no/low carb is no longer the craze it was ten years ago, it remains firmly entrenched in our cultural consciousness. These days, people looking to cut out calories may not cross off carbs altogether, but they will choose salads over sandwiches or chicken with vegetables over pasta. The guiding principle at work is that carbohydrates are our energy foods – and unless we burn them off, they turn to fat. If you eliminate carb-rich foods, or at least minimize them (so the theory goes), then you’ll lose weight….

Now there is some truth in the idea. But it’s less about what you eat and more about how you feel after eating it. Here’s the skinny: carbs attract water. You don’t become fat from that water – but you may feel fat… for a few hours anyway. Likewise, a carbohydrate heavy diet may lead to retaining more water more often, so you feel fatter more consistently.

That all said, it’s calories that make you fat, not the type of food they come from. Protein and carbs both have 4 calories/gram while fat has 9. If the quantities you eat are appropriate, you will satisfy your hunger and maintain a healthy weight, no matter what foods you consume. If your stomach is stretched by constant consumption or increased quantity, you will crave and consume more calories and thereby, carry more weight.

And that’s not to mention the fact that if you cut out any food group, odds are you’ll only wind up craving exactly what you’ve eliminated, while overeating everything you haven’t! Once again, it comes down to quantity – as long as we overeat (no matter what it is we’re overeating) we’ll always be hungry for more!

You must be a client to see exclusive content. Already a client? Login Here