There you sit.
The scale is slowly grinding higher, and the mirror is steadily shifting from friend to foe.
Now, you actually wish you were only the 25 pounds away from your ideal weight that were last November.
Save for a 72 hour crash diet to prep for the 4th of July Men’s Health fitness challenge, and a last second effort to drop a dress size before your sister’s wedding in September, you’ve failed to move the needle lower.
It’s confusing, frustrating, and discouraging.
You’ve avoided sugar, boycotted barbecue sauce, and steered clear of salad dressing.
You’ve been told time and time again how dangerous these ‘hidden’ calories, so you’ve paid close attention.
And therein lies the problem.
You’ve lost sight of the forest for the trees, and you’re stuck inside of a classic case of majoring in the minors.
It’s no different than getting 5% off a $2,000, 7-piece sectional, feeling good that you made a ‘smart’ purchase.
All the while forgetting the simple fact that your monthly expenses have been 120% of your income the last 49 months.
There’s a bigger, underlying problem that a few dollars off simply isn’t going to solve.
So what’s the answer?
Rather than trim around the edges, trying to save a few calories here or a couple carbs there, you need a strategy that addresses your entire nutritional approach holistically.
The truth is this.
You can avoid all the honey in your oatmeal or butter on your bread that you want to, but it won’t make a lick of difference, if you’re in a caloric surplus.
And the fact that your body weight has been heading north indicates one thing with absolute certainty:
You are in a caloric surplus.
And your total energy intake will always be the base level in a ‘hierarchy of healthy eating’.
Before you concern yourself with condiments or agonize over the choice between sugar and Splenda (i.e. delicious, man-made, synthetic, faux sugar), respect the hierarchy and get your energy house in order.
Whether it be through clean eating, intermitttent fasting or keto (the obvious losers) or a flexible, macro-based approach (the clear winner), erasing that surplus is priority number one.
And while slathering your chicken with Open Pit does contribute to the excess, let’s be real.
It pales in comparison to your calorie consumption the other 23 hours and 57 minutes of the day.
So that solution? Simple.
1 - Create a modest, sustainable deficit today
2 - Remain in said deficit tomorrow, the next day, and the next day
3 - Enjoy seeing that scale slowly and steadily migrate south this season
4 - Repeat steps 1-3 until your friends don’t recognize you
Comments