The crude math of fat loss

I am going to willingly commit a cardinal sin here and simplify a nuanced subject down to basic math. I am doing this because, from a purely biological standpoint, it often is this simple.

Here it is;

• There are approximately 3500 calories per 1lb of body fat, so creating a 500 calorie deficit per day for 7 days would yield a loss of approximately 1lb.

That's it.

So if it is that simple, why is it so hard to achieve? Because from a psychological and environmental standpoint, there are countless* factors and contraindications to consider such as;

• Sleep and wake time

• Quality of sleep

• Daily stress level

• Length of work day

• Length of commute

• Child care

• Spousal/partner support

• Access to equipment

• Available/free time

• Meal frequency, size, and quality

• General chronic decision fatigue 

• Physical ailments/conditions

• Medications (and side effects)

  • And countless others*

The list goes on. Every single one of these factors has some sort of knock-on effect on the next. All of sudden, creating a seemingly manageable daily 500 calorie deficit begins to look more complicated. Because it is. So what do we do about it?

Many birds, fewer stones.

How mainstream diets work

Mainstream diets tend to paint with broad strokes to sell you a solution that ignores the personal nuance and that’s often why so many people struggle to maintain it. Ignoring the personal and environmental demands doesn't mean they don’t exist - we simply bury them for a while, then crash when they come back up. Instead, I want to help you address some of your biggest factors with a few high-impact behavior changes.

Let’s address the following factors with 1 behavior change sequence.

Factors;

1. Sleep and wake time

2. Quality of sleep

3. Length of work day

4. General chronic decision fatigue

Behavior change;

1. Set a consistent sleep and wake time (say 10:30 pm-6:30 am)

Outcome;

1. Improved recovery (from exercise and general daily stress)

2. Improved cognitive function (less decision fatigue)

3. Improved energy (restful sleep allows us to apply more energy to waking responsibilities).

4. Improved efficiency during waking hours (fewer midday lulls and need for naps/breaks).

5. Lower cognitive load per each decision made.

Of the 13 initial personal and environmental factors we have addressed 4 with 1 behavior change. Now we only have to deal with 1 task (consistent sleep and wake time). It will still be challenging, but it will invariably be far less of a struggle than trying to do 13 things at once or trying to stick to an arbitrary mainstream diet/guideline that doesn't consider any of these things.

You can go through this exercise for the rest of the list or consider your own demands and match as few high-impact behavior changes to address them as possible.

The outcome we are looking for is a manageable calorie deficit. The methods we use to get there need to consider the person lest they set us up for failure time and time again (a fundamental reason why mainstream dietary protocols don’t last).

If you found this helpful but would like more support in making it happen for you, drop me a message HERE or reply to this email and I would be happy to help you however I can.

Thanks!