Dining In – You ARE What You Eat!
You get to follow a protocol (eating plan) that you design for yourself. If you are not continuing to lose weight, you will be able to make changes. There are some guidelines that will be suggested, and following them is likely to make you successful in your weight loss journey. That said, we are all different, and one size does not fit all when it comes to successful weight loss.
Your suggested plan will exclude sugar and flour initially, and after adjusting to this no sugar, no flour plan (two to four weeks for most people), you will plan for treat eats and exception meals that can include these foods on a limited basis. This avoids feelings of deprivation which can cause lead to willpower fatigue.
One crucial component of your eating plan will include eating full fat (heavy whipping cream for your coffee/tea, full fat yogurt and cottage cheese, butter, creamy dressings and cheese). The premise that fat is bad for weight loss is simply not true.
Our body needs fat, and in fact is the source of fuel we use when losing weight. There are healthy fats, and they also contribute to our feelings of satiety. When you fast, your body is forced to “dine-in” – use the extra fat we have stored in our tissues for fuel. Insulin is a critically important hormone in weight loss. Insulin causes the fat we eat to be stored in fat cells. Low insulin levels cause less fat that we eat to be stored in our own tissues.
Eating foods that spike our levels of insulin (high calorie carbohydrates), cause the extra calories to be stored as fat in our bodies. When we avoid insulin spikes, our body must utilize the fat stores we already have for fuel. We call this “dining in”. The goal of a successful eating plan is to use our body’s stored fat preferentially for fuel. Initially, we exclude sugar and flour to minimize insulin levels and make our body use the fat stores we already have as fuel. This process is very effective for weight loss – and it is the easy part.
At the same time your body is ‘dining-in’ on your own fats stores, you will be doing the hard part – the mind work that will allow you to keep the weight off. This is the work that we can do together to assure you lose your weight for the last time!
