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Still counting calories?

If you do, then you should think that eating an avocado equals eating a packet of chips.

For a long time, nutrition professionals explained that in order to lose weight it was only necessary to spend more calories than those that were ingested, there the energy balance would be deficient and we would be losing weight. Recent research has shown that this approach is reductive and not so simple, this thought does not take into account the quality of food, nor the interaction that food has with our body.

4 Reasons to Consider When Approaching Calorie Count:

1. The calorie count is often inaccurate

It is almost impossible to count all the calories we put in our mouths, since apart from most labels we do not provide 100% accurate information, it is extraordinarily inconvenient to weigh all foods and have a table with caloric values ​​before preparing each meal. And there are more, different types of culinary preparation (frying, baking, roasting, etc.) change the calorific value of foods in different proportions.

2. Asking people to be so precise creates a "Forbidden Fruit" mentality

Experts warn that undergoing the tedious calorie counting act can have an adverse effect because caloric foods become restrictive. When we feel restricted, we are more likely to evade impositions, and calorie counting can be exhausting, and may even disrupt their innate ability to understand hunger and satiety cues. For example, high-fat foods more effectively activate our satiety receptors than foods rich in carbohydrates, and the latter have fewer calories, yet they cause a hormonal response that generates fat accumulation.

3. More than focusing on numbers alone, we should know what portions of macronutrients are recommended for dietary purposes

People who want to control their weight, have a diet that promotes health, and helps prevent diabetes and heart disease should take into account that it is more relevant to know how to select macronutrients (eg, proteins and healthy fats), their origin, and your way of producing it, than to think that all calories are equal, in counterpoint you should reduce to the maximum foods with "empty" and non-nutritious calories, cut calories from sugar, refined carbohydrates and clear processed foods. Different macronutrients = different physiological and hormonal intercepts.

4. Thinking about food portions on the plate will simplify your daily life

Instead of the unrealistic task of counting calories you must learn strategies and tricks adapted to your day to day, and training the eyes to measure portions can be the key to success for a balanced diet. For example, and looking at a meal, the portion of protein should be about the palm size of your hand, a portion of healthy fats is equivalent to the size of your thumb, a portion of carbohydrates (unrefined and white) is roughly the size of his shell-shaped hand, and a portion of vegetables would be the size of the wrist.

As Personal Trainers have been mentioning, consistency is the key to success.

Having a regular good eating routine will definitely change your health and body image. But for this you must have knowledge, and know how to use all the tools at your disposal, both in the universe of nutrition and exercise there are many half-truths, outdated information, and myths that persist.

Trust your health in updated and critical professionals to explain what works best for you. For different people there are different ways to go, the diet of the moon, of the pineapple, and or the páleo, may be the solution for some people, but are they for you? It is still very much ingrained that to lose weight it is necessary to do hours of cardiovascular exercise (eg, run), or that to gain muscle it is necessary to go to a gym to raise heavier dumbbells, science has been demonstrating that there is magic recipes, and that the examples are totally outdated.

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It may now be your turn to start a custom path, only yours, and only result for you. Know how to get it!

Miguel Paiva text adapted from Pajer, N.