12 Biggest Myths About Weight Loss Busted (2 of 3)

Tackling obesity is all about your willpower

People often like saying that obesity is just about willpower and it has nothing to do with biology. This is totally incorrect.

Obesity is quite a complex disorder that has thousands of contributing factors associated with it.

A lot of genetic variables can cause obesity, and even various health conditions such as PCOS, depression, and hypothyroidism can spike a weight gain.

Further, our bodies have various biological pathways and hormones that are meant to regulate our body weight. These are usually dysfunctional in obese people, which makes it harder for them to lose weight compared to people who don’t have obesity.

For instance, people whose bodies are resistant to the leptin hormone have a high chance of being obese. The leptin signals to your mind that your body has sufficient quantities of fat stored. However, if your body is resistant to leptin hormone, it makes your brain into believing that you are actually starving.

This is why simply exerting your willpower and trying to eat less in cases of leptin led starvation signal can be extremely difficult.

Of course, it doesn’t mean people should stop trying and accept it as their fate. Remember, losing weight is very much possible – it is just a tad harder for a percentage of the world’s population.

SUMMARY

Obesity is a really complex health disorder. There are thousands of underlying factors that can trigger it, which include genetic, environmental, and biological factors. This is why losing weight isn’t just about your willpower.

Fat will make you fat

A lot of people believe that eating fats will make them fat, which is completely untrue.

Fat contains usually around 9 calories per gram, while a gram of carbs or protein has only 4 grams. This is what makes people into believing that eating fat will end up making them fat.

Fat is quite dense in calories and is often found in junk foods. However, eating fats isn’t a cause of concern as long as you stay within a healthy range.

In addition to that, diets having high-fat content but low on carbs tend to help get rid of weight faster, numerous studies have shown. Having unhealthy and high-calorie junk foods will make you fat, but it isn’t the fat that is the culprit in this case. It is the unhealthy fats that trigger weight gain. The key here is eating healthy fats.

In fact, you do need to eat a sufficient quantity of healthy fats daily in order to function properly.

SUMMARY

Fats have been blamed for causing weight gain since forever. While it does add up in your total caloric intake, it isn’t the main contributor to your weight gain.

Carbs will cause weight gain

This is another misconception most people have. Carbs, instead of causing weight gain, can actually help you get rid of it. The key here is having low card diets.

As long as you are ready to keep your carb intake to healthy limits and your protein intake high, you will find it easy to shed weight.

Carbs do not cause weight gain in any scenario. People have been eating carbs forever, while the obesity disorder only started somewhere around the 1980s. In fact, whole foods that have carbs are considered super healthy.

However, refined carbs such as sugar and refined grains are the real culprits and cause obesity.

SUMMARY

Having a low-carb diet is very healthy, and helps in getting rid of weight fast. Carbs are not unhealthy at all. Eating whole foods rich in carbs will help you stay healthy.

Fast food always makes you fat

A lot of people believe that eating any kind of fast food is going to make them fat.

And seeing this health-conscious behavior, a lot of fast food joints now offer healthier options on their menu. A lot of them, like Chipotle, have only healthy foods on their menu.

So, it is totally fine and possible to eat at almost all restaurants without compromising on your health. Most of the fast-food places out there have healthier options that you can go for, instead of the regular offerings.

While these snacks may not entirely taste the same as the regular foods, they are more than a good choice if you are not in the mood to cook something healthy for yourself.

SUMMARY

Fast foods are bad for you, but they don’t always have to be unhealthy. Most fast-food restaurants these days offer healthier versions of their main food items.