The TRUTH about sugars & fats on weight loss, and how to set yourself up for success
Coach Lindsay: Hi. Welcome to a Health Coach Answers. I'm Coach Lindsay, and today I will answer your Mighty Health members' top five questions of the week. We have some big questions today. And I'm excited to dive into many of these as we get started. Our first question, is big.
Are sugar substitutes really better than real sugar?
Coach Lindsay: I'm sure you guys have heard that artificial sweeteners have become really big over the past few years, especially in terms of weight loss and zero-calorie drinks trying to make things a little bit healthier. And I want to talk about whether they are really better than real sugar.
Coach Lindsay: First, let's talk about sugar and get that out of the way. Sugar is not necessarily bad for you if consumed in moderation. The RDA, which stands for the recommended daily allowance per the FDA, states that less than 10% of your total calories should come from sugars. When you're looking at sugar, it's not just added sugar from your packaged foods, it also includes sugar from your fruit, vegetables, tomatoes and stuff like that. The problem here is that most Americans, or most people in general, consume double, triple, or quadruple that. So it's not that sugar itself is the problem, it's the amount that we're consuming on a daily basis.
Coach Lindsay: When it comes to artificial sweeteners. Again, they've become really popular over the last few years. There are six artificial sweeteners that are approved for use in the US. These artificial sweeteners have been investigated by the FDA, and there are hundreds of studies on them. So these sweeteners are saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), sucralose, neotame, and advantame, and are deemed generally safe for us to consume in moderation. These are the six biggest artificial sweeteners, and I'm sure a lot of them sound really familiar to you. You'll see these in a lot of diet sodas, sugar free dessert options, and sugar free foods. So let's talk about the benefits of artificial sweeteners and why they are what they are.
Coach Lindsay: They provide a low to no energy for the body. So meaning they don't provide the body with calories, which is really nice for weight loss, right? If we're trying to decrease our calories, we're trying to decrease our blood sugar spikes, our sugar or carb intake, and that's where these come into play. They are two to 300 times more sweet than real sugar. So it takes less to provide the same amount of sweetness from an industrial standpoint, and they are cheaper for a lot of companies. While there may be some benefits, specially for weight loss, let's talk a little bit about the negatives of artificial sweeteners.
Coach Lindsay: Basically, when it comes to artificial sweeteners, they still provide the body with an insulin response. It's just they don't spike our blood sugar. With that insulin response, depending on how much you're eating, how often you're consuming it, that might increase your appetite, which could lead to to the weight gain or even cardiovascular disease. Depending on how you're utilizing artificial sweeteners, they can have the opposite result of what they were designed to do.
Coach Lindsay: Another thing to keep in mind is some sugar substitutes, like the aspartame and the Aysel, are synthetically made, or made in a lab. If that's something that you value as far as what goes into your body, it’s something to consider. You do have your sugar substitutes as far as like stevia, monk fruit, some of those things that are more natural. But when it comes to those synthetic artificial sweeteners, yes, they are approved by the FDA, and yes, they are generally safe, but they're still synthetic. So something to keep in mind.
Coach Lindsay: Another downside of artificial sweeteners is that there's not a lot of information on how it affects our body long term. Artificial sweeteners really became a big thing in the 70s and 80s. And so when you look at that, that's really not too long ago. We don't have a lot of research to show for that consumption or the insert or the impact of consumption over a long period of time. There are a lot of animal studies, just not a lot of human studies. So another thing to consider when you're looking at what's best for you.
Coach Lindsay: To summarize, the answer of the question is: Yes. For weight loss, 100%, sugar substitutes are better for weight loss. But if you fall into that category of somebody, who, maybe weight loss isn't your main priority, maybe you'd already fall into that category of people of who consumption less than 10% of your calories from sugar, then I don't think it's necessary for you to introduce artificial sweeteners, because it doesn't sound like sugar is a risk factor for you at that point. Think of artificial sweeteners as a middleman, or a lesser of the two evils.
Coach Lindsay: So if you're someone who really struggles with sugar, and you're trying to get off of that sugar addiction, coming to the artificial sweeteners is great. But that, again, it's a middleman. So we want to eventually get to the point where we're not having to sweeten foods, or not having to consume them on a regular basis. And eventually, as you start to adjust and gradually decrease your intake, your palate is going to adjust as well to where you're not craving sugar and not having to sweeten your foods as often. So they are way better for weight loss as far as not providing the body with calories. However, they still are mostly synthetic. And they are, again, the lesser of the two evils. So some things to consider when you're looking at those salt, sugar substitutes or artificial sweeteners.
Is calorie tracking important in order to lose weight?
Coach Lindsay: I know a lot of you have had this question, especially as you're coming to take a peek at our food blog, and you're like, What the heck, there's no place to put calories? What do we do? And as coaches, we get this question a lot. And it's a very valid question. When it comes to tracking calories, science has taught us that, yes, in order to lose weight, you have to be in a calorie deficit, there's no question about that. That's biologically how we work. And so getting into how to achieve that is generally to go about the rule that is there is 3500 calories in one pound. So by eating 250 calories less and expending 250 calories more through exercise throughout your day, that's going to result in 500 calorie deficit per day, resulting in a one pound weight loss per week. That's a lot of numbers.
Coach Lindsay: Don't worry too much about that. But that's kind of how it's been really designed for us. So, yes, the body has to be in a calorie deficit. However, it is not the only way to lose weight, and it's not the only way to achieve weight loss, it's not the only way to achieve success.
Coach Lindsay: When we're looking at calories, not all calories are created equal. So the amount of calories you eat in a day doesn't really determine whether your diet is good or not. Foods that have the same quantity of calories can have completely different nutritional values; your body is going to get to metabolize them differently at different rates. So a lot of things to consider there. So when it comes to our focus, it really comes down to calorie tracking, in general, we choose not to focus on calorie counting, because it's not always sustainable long term. And your calorie requirements can change. So if you're active, and you're working out Monday, Wednesday, Friday, maybe you're gonna need more more calories on those days than the days that you're not as active or you're more sedentary. And that can be a lot to figure out.
Coach Lindsay: It's overwhelming, and it can be confusing. And so we want to focus on sustainable change, and what's going to allow you to reach your goal, maybe a little bit slower, but until you don't have to do it again, right?
Coach Lindsay: When it comes to calorie tracking, too, there is a downside for those who have eating disorders, which, at Mighty Health, we don't really deal with a lot of eating disorders on a clinical level. But if you're somebody out there who has been diagnosed with an eating disorder, or maybe you're concerned about an eating disorder, calorie tracking might not be the best option for you. Because it can become very obsessive, and it can create a bad relationship with food. There are benefits, of course, and then some downsides as well, just like with anything out there. So, the bottom line, the answer to this question is yes, you have to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight, but you don't have to track every single calorie to achieve that calorie deficit.
Coach Lindsay: You can achieve a calorie calorie deficit by eating smaller portions, focusing on fueling your body with nutrient-dense foods that are satiating, like healthy fats, proteins, and complex carbs, and then intuitively eating and listening to your hunger cues. A lot of times that overeating or overconsumption of food comes from not allowing our stomach to catch up with our brain that we're full. So if you slow down, or eat smaller portions focusing on nutrient-dense foods, you're going to achieve the same result without having to just sit there and obsessively track calories.
Coach Lindsay: It's not really necessary for weight loss, but it is an option. And I say that too, because if you're somebody who has tracked calories for a long time, and it's worked for you, that's amazing. That's what we want. That's ultimately, what we want to achieve: something that works for you. But if you're somebody who's maybe tracked calories before, you start to gain your weight back once you stop. If you're not successful, maybe it's time to start something a little bit different, and just really focus on that quality of food versus the quantity of food.
Is low fat dairy products better than full fat when it comes to weight loss?
Coach Lindsay: Another really, really common question that we get as coaches, especially when it comes to the food blog, logging your low fat, no fat, yogurts, cottage cheese, sour cream, and stuff like that. So when it comes to FAT, FAT doesn't make us fat. It's the sugar and the carbs and the overconsumption of food that we're eating that that leads to that weight gain. So fat is necessary for our bodies, it's a satiating nutrient. There are nine calories per gram of fat, so it is a higher calorie food, but it's going to provide us our bodies with fullness and energy a lot longer.
Coach Lindsay: Our body needs 20 to 35% of your total calories per day coming from fat. So a third of your calories should be coming from that. But not unhealthy fats like the trans fat or the synthetic fats that are in a lot of packaged foods. Animal fats are best, which includes the dairy products. Nuts too, there is a lot of healthy fats from nuts.
Coach Lindsay: So not all fats are created equal. And when it comes to the low and no fat foods, they tend to be more processed, because they're manufactured to remove the naturally occurring fat. So with that, you're taking away the fat, but then maybe they're adding more sugar or more carbs to the food, and that's something to be mindful of too.
Coach Lindsay: It really kind of comes down to to what your main goal is. If you had had bloodwork done, and you've seen your physician and they say: hey, your cholesterol is up a little bit. You need to watch your fat intake, then that is where the decision to have low or no fat dairy products might be best for you. But in terms of weight loss as a whole, it's not going to make as big of an impact. And eating more full fat foods are going to promote satiety, keep you full for longer and reduce your appetite, and cravings as well. So things to keep in mind when you're choosing those lower no-fat dairy products. Plus, they taste better. I mean, I prefer full fat yogurt over no fat yogurt. And that's just me, I think it tastes better. And that's what we're here for.
How do I monitor portions when it's not tracked on the food log?
Coach Lindsay: Similar question to our calorie tracking question as far as some ways to monitor portions when you're not really tracking them. And so the easiest thing to do when it comes to controlling your portions is pay attention to suggested serving sizes on labels. Typically any food that you grab, unless it's like a fresh veggie, your protein is going to have a nutrition label that's going to have a suggested serving size on it. So things like rice, for example, this suggested certain sizes: half a cup. So stick with that, make sure you're not just spoonfuling and keeping portions of rice on your plates or not paying attention to that. So always go by the suggested serving size on labels. Then I'm going to sound like a broken record here with plate division but I talk about it a lot.
Coach Lindsay: Divide your plate up when you eat. So having half of your plate come from veggies, a quarter protein, and then a quarter whole grains, that's gonna be a really, really good way to monitor your portions, and making sure you're getting the lower calorie, and more nutrient-dense foods like veggies, and then controlling your portions with like your protein and your carbs.
Coach Lindsay: The second thing or the third thing, I guess, is listening to your hunger cues. So again, if you're taking time to slow down, check in with yourself every few bites to see if you are full. Take a sip of water in between a few bites to control your portions to where you're not overeating stay closer to what is recommended.
Coach Lindsay: If you're someone who's out there who does not know what to eat for each meal, or how much of something to eat, reach out to your coaches because we have some really, really great resources, we use the myplate.gov website a lot for you guys, to really get a good idea of like how many servings per food you're supposed to eat per day. So please utilize us as a resource. But if you're not physically tracking portions, really just pay attention to suggested serving size, divide your plate, and listen to your hunger cues.
How do I set realistic goals?
Coach Lindsay: A lot of us have come into a weight loss journey or a fitness journey and have these big broad goals. But we don't know where to start. How do I achieve this? How do I even know my goal is realistic or achievable or sustainable? The best thing to do is turn your goals into smart goals. So if you guys aren't sure what a SMART goal is, we have an amazing resource that we can send you. But it's really taking a more broad goal and making it really specific by following these steps.
Coach Lindsay: Taking a goal, like "I want to exercise more," and turning that into "what does that look like per week?" "How many minutes per week?" "What activity are you going to do?" "What time of day?" "Are you going to do it?" Really get specific with that goal so that you are setting yourself up for success to achieve it.
Coach Lindsay: The "M" How will I measure success is one of the biggest things to is set up a "measure" of progress. How do you know you achieve that goal? Is it getting your exercise three days a week? Is it getting it in three days a month? What does that look like for you? Is it getting in a certain amount of minutes? So make sure you're setting up your measure of progress.
Coach Lindsay: Another thing is to use a reward system. We are all here to reward ourselves and making sure that you're not using food or award. But an example could be if you meet your exercise goal for four weeks, you know, in a row, go get yourself a new piece of clothing, a pedicure, do something nice for yourself, make it a challenge for yourself, make exciting and fun.
Coach Lindsay: The last thing is to use external cues and your support system. So tell your friends and family about a goal that you have. Include your coach and your goal so we can help you hold you accountable. Use your spouse, your kids, whatever that looks like. So that you are doing everything you can to make sure you're achieving that goal.
Coach Lindsay: If you guys want this smart goal image, reach out to your coach, we'll send it to you. But it's a really, really good way to set goals for yourself for the week.
Coach Lindsay: I know there was a ton of information that I put out there today. So you're probably just taking some time today to digest it, which is fine. So as always, if you guys have any follow up questions to anything that I talked about today, please let us know. Otherwise, continue to pop in your questions to the events when they pop up in your app so I can continue to provide you guys with this information. Thank you guys for coming. I really appreciate it. And I hope you guys have an amazing day.
