Which is Better for Me -- Low Fat or Low Carb?
Last Friday night, after finally finishing the last leg of my journey and coming home to Long Island, I checked my email and found many emails with questions about low-fat, no-fat, and low-carb diets.
First of all, no fat diets are dangerous, and you really shouldn't even attempt anything like that except under strict medical supervision. Even then, I'm hard pressed to think of why it would be necessary.
Your body needs fat to flourish, and the only question still being debated is, how much? One thing we know for sure is that it is more than the medical community believed for almost four decades.
The same thing is true about carbohydrates. For decades, the prevailing wisdom was high carbs and low fat. You can see where that theory has gotten us.
If we were to choose just one word to summarize the most important factor in a successful diet, that word would be BALANCE.
When we speak of balance, we are speaking of the balance of fat, protein, and carbohydrates.
I have gone over this before, but it bears repeating: the best foods are those that are closest to their natural state. Essentially, that means choosing unprocessed food over processed food. A baked sweet potato is close to its natural state. Potato chips are not. Fresh fish with grilled vegetables would be classified as food that is close to its natural state, but breaded, fatty frozen fish sticks are not.
Simply put, packaged food is not a good option. It generally contains ingredients that are highly unhealthy, with trans fats and high fructose corn syrup being two of the biggest culprits.
Additionally, almost all low fat foods have an elevated sugar content. They are made to be overly sweet so that they appeal to the taste buds. This same process is used in no-fat foods. Take a look at the label and you will find high levels of either sugar or a sugar substitute.
Low-carb foods most often contain a sugar substitute as well, and they tend to taste just awful. In order to eat them, you really have to persuade yourself that they taste good. I'd rather not.
Generally, it's healthy for you to eat almost any food that is not packaged with other ingredients. Plain frozen vegetables are just fine, but frozen vegetables covered in sauce are not a good option. The sauce contains ingredients that keep the sauce in a stable state, and those ingredients will cause weight gain. Typically, the sauce contains more calories than the vegetables.
Although many people swear by vegetarianism, it is not a healthy way to live. Vegetarians are often quite undernourished and typically have many other health problems as well -- and this is all due to the fact that they do not eat a balanced diet.
The best way to gain control of your diet is to start slowly, one meal at a time. My friend Nate has some words of wisdom on the subject: "Practice push ups instead of doing sit downs." His message is that when you are full you should push up from the table, not sit down in order to eat more.
My recommendation is that you take a daily dose of pharamceutical-grade enteric coated fish oil which is manufactured to be free of contaminants. Taking this type of fish oil every day will insure that you are getting the omega 3 essential fatty acids that you need to keep you body performing at its very best.
Last week a friend of mine asked me to take a look at a website about bodybuilding. The bodybuilder who was responsible for the content of the site had written that he had cut back on his dose of fish oil because he believed that the fish oil was too fatty for his diet. Obviously, he has no idea at all why he was taking the fish oil to begin with. Perhaps all the muscle growth has adversely affected his brain power?
The truth is, because he is an athlete he needs MORE fish oil, not less. Athletes typically train for hours every day and should be increasing their dosage of fish oil, instead of being concerned about a few extra fat grams. What he doesn't know is that ingesting the proper amount of fat would most likely make him look better and perhaps contribute to his winning a competition. I'm not betting that he'll take this advice. - 17273
First of all, no fat diets are dangerous, and you really shouldn't even attempt anything like that except under strict medical supervision. Even then, I'm hard pressed to think of why it would be necessary.
Your body needs fat to flourish, and the only question still being debated is, how much? One thing we know for sure is that it is more than the medical community believed for almost four decades.
The same thing is true about carbohydrates. For decades, the prevailing wisdom was high carbs and low fat. You can see where that theory has gotten us.
If we were to choose just one word to summarize the most important factor in a successful diet, that word would be BALANCE.
When we speak of balance, we are speaking of the balance of fat, protein, and carbohydrates.
I have gone over this before, but it bears repeating: the best foods are those that are closest to their natural state. Essentially, that means choosing unprocessed food over processed food. A baked sweet potato is close to its natural state. Potato chips are not. Fresh fish with grilled vegetables would be classified as food that is close to its natural state, but breaded, fatty frozen fish sticks are not.
Simply put, packaged food is not a good option. It generally contains ingredients that are highly unhealthy, with trans fats and high fructose corn syrup being two of the biggest culprits.
Additionally, almost all low fat foods have an elevated sugar content. They are made to be overly sweet so that they appeal to the taste buds. This same process is used in no-fat foods. Take a look at the label and you will find high levels of either sugar or a sugar substitute.
Low-carb foods most often contain a sugar substitute as well, and they tend to taste just awful. In order to eat them, you really have to persuade yourself that they taste good. I'd rather not.
Generally, it's healthy for you to eat almost any food that is not packaged with other ingredients. Plain frozen vegetables are just fine, but frozen vegetables covered in sauce are not a good option. The sauce contains ingredients that keep the sauce in a stable state, and those ingredients will cause weight gain. Typically, the sauce contains more calories than the vegetables.
Although many people swear by vegetarianism, it is not a healthy way to live. Vegetarians are often quite undernourished and typically have many other health problems as well -- and this is all due to the fact that they do not eat a balanced diet.
The best way to gain control of your diet is to start slowly, one meal at a time. My friend Nate has some words of wisdom on the subject: "Practice push ups instead of doing sit downs." His message is that when you are full you should push up from the table, not sit down in order to eat more.
My recommendation is that you take a daily dose of pharamceutical-grade enteric coated fish oil which is manufactured to be free of contaminants. Taking this type of fish oil every day will insure that you are getting the omega 3 essential fatty acids that you need to keep you body performing at its very best.
Last week a friend of mine asked me to take a look at a website about bodybuilding. The bodybuilder who was responsible for the content of the site had written that he had cut back on his dose of fish oil because he believed that the fish oil was too fatty for his diet. Obviously, he has no idea at all why he was taking the fish oil to begin with. Perhaps all the muscle growth has adversely affected his brain power?
The truth is, because he is an athlete he needs MORE fish oil, not less. Athletes typically train for hours every day and should be increasing their dosage of fish oil, instead of being concerned about a few extra fat grams. What he doesn't know is that ingesting the proper amount of fat would most likely make him look better and perhaps contribute to his winning a competition. I'm not betting that he'll take this advice. - 17273
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If you're looking If you're ready for assistance with weight loss efforts, Dr. Bill recommends an enteric coated fish oil If you're looking If you're ready for longevity and fitness.
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