Introduction

  • Through years of trends, endless marketing, and the next big thing nutrition has become a creation of foundational truth, with a whole lot of fluff on top. Why? Fluff sells. People don't want to know that small, gritty changes to their lifestyle is all the need to change. They want to be told that Keto, Zone, Paleo, and intermittent fasting are the secrets. That HIIT interval training is how you really lost weight. That not doing fasted cardio is what has really been holding you back. We've all seen the clickbait headlines.

"One simple trick that will keep the weight off FOR GOOD"

"Fitness experts discover they've been wrong for YEARS"

"Personal trainers HATE him"

It's all dogmatic horse shit, and we've been eating it for years.

The Truth Lies in Simplicity

  • Weight loss is caused by a calorie deficit. Again, weight loss is caused by a calorie deficit. You do not need to avoid carbs to lose weight. You do not need to avoid gluten to lose weight. You can eat a healthy amount of simple sugar and still lose weight.

http://wannabebig.com/diet-and-nutrition/the-dirt-on-clean-eating/

Alan Aragon puts it well here "First up, Surwit and colleagues compared the 6-week effects of 2 hypocaloric diets – one with 43% of the total calories as sucrose (table sugar), and one with 4% of the total calories as sucrose [15]. No significant differences were seen in the loss of bodyweight or bodyfat between the high and low-sucrose groups. Strengthening these results was the use of dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to measure body composition. Furthermore, no differences in blood lipids or metabolism were seen between the groups. It looks like a more sugary intake still cannot override a calorie deficit."

43% of the calories coming from table sugar? Yes. Here at TRP we pride ourselves in our ability to see through the nonsense that is thrown at us on the daily by society. To see the truth for what it really is.

A Truth and Solution

The three critical factors i've found in weight loss are as follows.

  • Meal timing
  • Macronutrient intake and total calorie intake
  • Fiber and micronutrient intake

Meal timing is quite simple. You must spread your meals throughout the day in a way that works FOR YOU. You do not need to feed in an 8 hour window and you don't need to eat every three hours. For the average, everyday athlete meal timing does not matter. Do what will get you to your goal.

Now, a macronutrient is a protein, carbohydrate, and a fat. The most optimal method of tracking them is to use Macronutrient Minimums In the simplest terms, this means to aim for a minimum of .8g protein per lb of LEAN BODY MASS .4g fat per lb of TOTAL BODY MASS and to fill the rest with carbs, and more proteins and fats. For myself, that would be 140g protein daily, and 80g fat. I would fill the rest with whatever I wanted once those minimums were met.

To calculate total daily calorie intake http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/ this site will do. Simply punch your stats in and reduce the number you receive by 10% for weight loss. To optimally retain muscle, which would be an entirely different post in itself, aim to lose 1-1.5 lbs a week. This way you can see strength gains while losing an optimal amount of bodyfat.

Now fiber and micronutrient intake are important as well. To meet both these needs as easily as possible, simply eat a good mix of seasonal vegetables and get a decent amount of whole food in your diet.

Summary

  • The answer to weight loss lies in simplicity. Burn more than you consume, meet your micro and macro minimums, and eat food you enjoy. No diet is the magic bullet. Hard work, counting your calories, and lifting heavy weights are the way to an awesome, functional, and aesthetic body