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Healthy eating is not oatmeal for breakfast, steamed breast and an eternal feeling of hunger. You can look good and feel great without giving up your favorite treats. The main thing is to build friendships with food by learning to eat mindfully. We found those who have already succeeded.
“Diets don’t work!” – so begins the book “Secrets of the Nutrition Lab” by Tracey Mann, Ph.D. at Stanford University. The statement is true for all types of diets. And this is not news to scientists. Back in 1991, they proved that the fact of a repeated increase in body weight after the removal of restrictions is beyond doubt. The question is how quickly the weight will return.
Today, various extreme diets are being promoted in social networks and the media: fasting for several days, consuming only liquids or juices, satisfying hunger with one product (grapefruit, cabbage soup or a fitness bar). Some food systems provide for public humiliation in the event of a breakdown or electric shock when trying to eat a prohibited product. In 2014, an American doctor began implanting chips into patients’ tongues to cause pain while eating. Of course, these sophistications give a result: body weight decreases, and in a short time. But there is a nuance – the weight always returns with an increase. There are several reasons.
First, you can’t starve forever, eat only cabbage or even chocolate. This is impossible with the modern rhythm of life, and it is harmful to health.
Secondly, the body, exhausted by deprivations, deposits fat with a vengeance. That’s how it is genetically. Due to circumstances (unsuccessful hunting, drought season, etc.), the caveman had to survive for months without food or its minimum amount. As a result, the body has learned to create a fat “airbag” in good periods.
Thirdly, forbidden fruit is always sweeter. And if you for a month refused bread or cakes, then then eat them more than you wanted. This will certainly create a feeling of guilt, which you will probably begin to seize on sweets. As a result, food will become your enemy, and this should not be allowed.
Starts with love
What to do? Even if you are not trying to squeeze into the notorious 90-60-90, you should still understand that extra pounds are bad for your health. Overeating, excessive consumption of fast food and sweets threatens diabetes, cardiovascular disease and joint problems. While a balanced diet prolongs youth, activity and good mood. By accepting this truth, mindful eating begins. It is necessary to stop treating the body as a stove into which it is necessary to throw any kind of fuel to generate energy. It is important to love the body and understand: it deserves the best.
Valeriya, creator of the healthy food delivery service No Secret By Valeriya
I have tried many things in an attempt to find the perfect diet. I need a diet that I can stick to for a long time. After all, I have a life on wheels – on tour, in traffic jams, on the set. As a result, you starve for half a day, in the evening you “sort out” in a restaurant, due to the fact that during the day it was not possible to eat normally. In general, I could not last longer than two weeks on any other diet. I had to come up with my own. So Emin Agalarov and I launched the healthy food delivery service No Secret By Valeriya. The menu was developed by chef Kirill Berger, nutritionist Yulia Pigareva verified the dishes by calories.
I have been testing food for a whole month, I have tried absolutely everything. Why, our whole family switched to this food. Each in his own mode, the most serious Arseniy, tests the diet for 3 thousand calories a day. The son is thin, long, he can. We have an incredible vegan menu, lactose-free, gluten-free and mass-drying on the way. It is important for me that food is not only healthy, but also tasty. We do not just want to satisfy our hunger, but also to have fun. We discuss all the nuances with partners, adjust them. For example, I tried an omelet with asparagus – and it is some kind of fibrous. I say: “I don’t like it! Asparagus must be juicy!” All right next time.
I enjoy what I get myself. I am no longer hungry, I feel good. I lost 2 kg, my relatives also lost 3-4 kg. We want to work for the result, not for a short effect. Mom, for example, successfully threw off 10 kg on one diet, then she gained them. Now I even go to restaurants with my food. They probably think I’m crazy. But let’s see who will have the last laugh.
We turn on the head
“Unlike dieting, mindful eating is a system that a person can follow for a lifetime. This diet should be adapted to certain goals, the state of the body and even the place of residence, ”explains the head physician of the Fifth Element clinic, Yulia Titel. Jean-Philippe Zermati, a nutritionist, was one of the first to promote mindful eating. He stopped dividing food into forbidden and allowed, did not urge his wards to constantly weigh himself, but taught him to listen to himself. A calm attitude towards food cannot be developed by a person who forbids himself to eat.
The essence of the Zermati technique is not the fight against excess weight and not strict restrictions, but reconciliation with the body and enjoying food. Weight loss is more of a side effect. “When you eat what you want, respecting the wishes of the body, you automatically become a supporter of a balanced diet, and 90% of your food will be light and nutritious, and 10% for pleasure,” writes Dr. Zermati. Therefore, it is important to learn how to eat calmly, not on the go, not at the computer or in front of the TV. You need to savor every bite and listen to yourself in order to stop when you feel full. It is necessary to note the emotions that prompt you to eat something extra. Am I eating because I’m hungry, or am I trying to drown out the excitement, fear, and sadness?
Dr. Zermati’s system has four hard and fast rules. First, eat when you’re hungry, not because it’s time for breakfast or dinner. Second: the body is not a trash can. Avoid convenience foods and fast food. Third: love your body. Fourth: losing weight is not a victory, because then gaining weight is a defeat. And you shouldn’t feel like a loser.
Irina Azarova, founder of the Fresh healthy food restaurant chain
There was no special day when I decided: I will eat in a special way. Everything happened naturally: I listened to myself and realized that I feel better without meat. I started experimenting with ingredients and cooking without meat and fish. Even meat-eaters liked the result: friends wrote down recipes and advised them to publish a book or open a restaurant. This is how Fresh was born. I deliberately do not call Fresh a vegetarian place. 90% of our guests do not refuse meat. These are active residents of the metropolis who choose balanced, and most importantly, delicious food.
An important point of mindful eating is self-talk. Ate a dish – ask yourself how you feel. The body itself can suggest all the answers. And don’t fool him. You won’t convince yourself to eat healthy food if it doesn’t suit you physically. Introduce new healthy foods into your diet, but if you feel discomfort from them, refuse and look for an alternative. I don’t forbid anything for myself or others, sometimes I eat fish myself. But only according to the needs of the body.
Find the root of evil
In fact, switching to a reasonable diet is not so difficult. This attitude is instilled in us from birth. The baby eats when he is hungry, and stops when he is barely full. But then the system breaks down. Think about what might be causing your eating behavior. Perhaps in the family it was impossible to leave a single piece on the plate? Grandma said that throwing away food is a sin? Or, on the contrary, did your mother teach you to limit yourself from an early age, and any candy caused a feeling of guilt? Were you accustomed to tasteless, but “healthy” food, were you forced to “not dress up and eat what they give”? These parenting strategies usually create problems in adulthood. Think about why you maniacally eat the entire portion, choke on a tasteless side dish, or hate vegetables. Perhaps the origins of the problem lie in childhood. But you have already grown up and, fortunately, you can decide for yourself what, where and when to eat. And most importantly – in what quantity.
I went on a diet once, in 8th grade. But my ideas about proper nutrition were vague then: eat 6 dumplings from a series, not 15. About ten years ago, I began to eat, as it seemed to me, consciously: brown rice instead of white, juice instead of lemonade, chicken breast without sauce. It didn’t make me healthier. And 5 years ago, I even reduced “healthy” carbohydrates, began to add fats to the menu and felt the difference. Once the puzzle came together – I came across information about the keto / LCHF diet. This is a high fat, low carb diet. It is based on meat, fish, poultry, eggs, butter, coconut, olive oils, herbs, vegetables, nuts, seeds. A lot of fat, few carbohydrates, that is, no cereals, fruits, sugars. This is a natural human diet.
Modern ideas about the dangers of fats and the benefits of whole grains are the result of misconceptions from the middle of the 8th century. Today there are many studies that prove that fats are not dangerous for the heart, blood vessels, liver and waist. On keto, I easily lost XNUMX kg, and I always have more than enough energy, I don’t complain about my health. Although if my grandmother were alive now, she would eat her belyash. These are gluten and trans fats fried in sunflower oil. In a word, horror. But my goal is to feel good both physically and mentally. And if the diet makes life hell and upsets the grandmother, then it is no good.
How much do you need to be happy
Mindful eating has its pitfalls. A reasonable approach and attention to the signals of the body are often confused with permissiveness. “My stomach is asking for cakes and chips. I ate what I wanted and recovered by 10 kg ”- Internet forums are full of such reviews. Where is the mistake? Conscious eating implies not only the right to choose, but also responsibility, as well as the ability to eat until you feel full and not solve emotional problems with food.
“Scientists have proven that the amount of food from the palm of your hand is enough to saturate in one meal,” says Yulia Titel. – If you eat more, ask yourself: why? Have you tracked the feeling of satiety? Are you eating the wrong food? Are you eating too fast? Do you forget to chew quietly and pause between portions? If you tend to “emotion-eating,” get used to the internal dialogue: “I allowed myself a cake because I was sad. Did I get better? Did it solve my problems? If so, then you don’t have to feel guilty about it. If not, then it was not a shortage of cake in the body.
Elena Smirnova, fitness expert, co-founder of Ageless Club
Белковая, растительная, щелочная — в моей жизни было много диет. А вот осознанного рациона не было до декабря 2016 года. Тогда я узнала о коучинге по питанию FoodyFit. Благодаря ему похудела на 8 кг. Оказалось, моей проблемой был профицит калорий. Выход — соблюдать размер порции. Тогда не придется сидеть на низкокалорийной пище. Если я скажу, что сейчас ем все, что хочу, это будет правдой наполовину. Я регулирую количество углеводов. Пасту и пиццу ем не каждый день. После глютена чувствую тяжесть. Но от вкусных спагетти в Италии не откажусь. К сладкому тяги у меня нет. Спасибо ровному гормональному фону. Радость приходит просто так, за конфетой рука не тянется.
Of course, there are meetings with girlfriends: champagne, first, second and french fries for dessert. I don’t beat myself up for it. I just eat less the next day. I also changed the eating habits of the whole family. Now, on holidays, we don’t have smoked sausage and Mimosa salad, but lobio, pkhali, squid salad and grilled fish. For me, the main goal of proper nutrition is not the ideal weight, but the preservation of youth. A healthy diet and lifestyle will help you look 60 at 45. Katya Odintsova and I are promoting this idea in our Ageless Club project. On Instagram, on the website and on the Youtube channel, we tell you how to look as good as Hollywood stars at minimal cost.
Is everything useful?
Adherents of intuitive nutrition do not divide foods into permitted and prohibited. And yet, in order to eat intelligently, it is important to know what processes this or that food causes. When you realize that trans fats from fast food and industrial baked goods lead to cardiovascular disease, and refined sugar does not energize, instead causing a quick feeling of hunger and provoking depression, then you don’t really want another hot dog or a piece of cake. A balanced, sugar- and trans-fat-free alternative may be more satisfying. Just think about whether a minute high from a donut is worth many years of active life.
By listening to yourself and eating a variety of foods, you will quickly understand which foods energize you, help you maintain optimal weight and feel great, and which foods give nothing but heaviness in the stomach, fatigue and micro-inflammation on the skin. Someone crosses out dairy products from the menu, because he does not digest lactose, others, on the contrary, eat them for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Some lean on cereals, others “do not digest” gluten. Someone cannot imagine life without meat, but there are those who feel terrible after a steak. And it’s not about ethical considerations.
Proper nutrition is not a list of restrictions, but a purely individual matter. Your personal dietary rules should not cause you stress and desire to break them. Choose food that makes you beautiful, happy and healthy.