Do you want to drop ten pounds fast? What is the best diet for you?  Learn from Dr. Sandeep Grewal from the Ace Medical Group Weight Loss center and author of “Fat- Me Not: Weight Loss Diet of the Future” on the latest scientific discoveries on what works and doesn’t for healthy long-term weight loss.

What is the best diet for you?

If you want long-term weight loss, then co-author of “Fat- Me Not: Weight Loss Diet of the Future”, Dr.  Sandeep Grewal, recommends against any program that focuses on one trick (take a diet pill), a limited diet (no carb diet, no-fat diet), or involves starving yourself.  While you may get short-term weight loss, many dieters on these programs regain or gain more weight from their original starting weight since most of these diets are not sustainable long-term.

Instead, Dr. Grewal suggests a easy-to-follow lifestyle change that involves gradual weight loss (ten pounds over eight weeks), and one that involves a balanced diet grounded in an understanding of the biology of carbohydrates, fats, and protein.   Plus, according to Dr. Mark Liponis a healthy diet is one of the best anti-aging techniques out there due to the effects on our immunity system.

All quotes are pulled from a book co-authored by Dr, Sandeep Grewal and Dr. Myo M Nwe,, MD’s book, “Fat-Me-Not: Weight Loss Diet of The Future “published by ACE Innovation Group, LLC; November 1, 2014

How Carbohydrates/Sugars Work?

The authors explain that not all carbohydrates are the same.  The key difference among carbohydrates is the rate at which glucose increases in our blood stream, which impacts how calories from that glucose will be utilized. If glucose rises too quickly (like drinking a can of soda), in too-great amounts, it will stimulate a rapid insulin surge. The overwhelmed insulin stores excessive glucose as fat, essentially acting to accumulate fat in the body.

In contrast, a slow and steady rise of glucose (created by eating complex carbohydrates) stimulates a slower insulin rise. For example, when you eat broccoli, insulin is not overwhelmed and the excess glucose is used for several different things, including making glycogen, protein, and enzymes, as well as being used for other different bodily needs. A more detailed description from “Fat-Me-Not” is below:

 “Carbohydrates are structurally made up of multiple sugar molecules. It is broken down to the smallest possible molecule in the gut before getting absorbed into the bloodstream. If a potato (polysaccharide) is ingested, it will be broken down by our digestive system in several steps. First we swallow and chew the potato; at this point it mixes with multiple digestive juices that break it down further into smaller and smaller pieces. Eventually, what began as a potato breaks down into a simple glucose molecule (monosaccha-ride). Now it gets absorbed into the bloodstream as sugar, while the fiber that remains in the gut is eventually excreted. This is known as a slow-release sugar because of so many steps needed to absorb it.

This process is different when you drink a sugary drink.  A sugary drink contains two molecules of glucose; this means it gets absorbed easily and instantly, without needing to go through the multi-step digestive process like the potato does. This is known as fast-release sugar”. P230

Essentially, abnormal eating behaviors like binge eating, cravings, and addiction exist and are caused by an individual’s food choices. If you decide to eat that cookie, cake or pastry now, it won’t satisfy your craving. It will make it worse and you will be craving for rest of the day or more. P179

More on Sugar below….Video answers to how to eat sugar without spiking insulin
0:56 Why is it so hard to stop binge eating during the holidays?
3:06 Why does sugar and fat trigger our binge eating?
15:40 How can you eat sweets in a healthy weight?
22:14 Why a good starting point is learning what it feels like to be hungry?
22:51 How can we eat sugar so our insulin doesn’t spike?
24:18 Tips on how to eat less sugar during the holidays.
26:20 Why mindful slow eating is so important for getting maximum benefits of sugar?

Fats

According to Web MD, the fats that we should eat sparingly are saturated and trans fatty acids, since both raise cholesterol levels, clog arteries, and increase the risk for heart disease.  Saturated fats are found in animal products (meat, poultry skin, high-fat dairy, and eggs) and in vegetable fats that are liquid at room temperature, such as coconut and palm oils. The healthier fats to eat are monosaturated fats. Even though fat is high in calories, fat is important for making hormones, storing energy, and building individual cell walls.

The authors of “Fat-Me-Not” explain that fatty foods make us eat more even when we aren’t hungry, while leaner foods make us eat less.   Fatty foods create abnormal addictive eating behaviors that we can reverse when we start eating the right fats in the right proportions.

“Usually dietary fat transforms into ‘Acetyl CoA’ in our body before turning into three different kinds of fat:

1.  Cholesterol: This in turn makes hormones, which are a good thing. But if there is too much cholesterol, it may get deposited in your arteries and block blood flow.

2.  Triglycerides: Triglycerides store energy for future use. If there is too much in storage, it becomes visible as lumpy spots on the body. Often if we find high triglycerides in our patients, we advise them to avoid sugars and carbohydrates, as the too-much too-fast rise in sugar maybe what’s causing them to store fat in this form.

3.  Phospholipids: This is a kind of structural fat that aids in building individual cell walls.” Pg 27

Protein

The authors stress the importance of eating real protein versus doing meal replacement through protein drinks and bars due to the biology of protein, which is described below:

“ Protein is a good nutrient; it is helpful for weight loss and is also useful for body building.

Protein is broken down into the smallest amino acid molecule before it is absorbed. Amino acids (protein) serve various purposes in our body. They build up the body and make enzymes, muscle, and other building blocks in the body. Our bodies have a protein storage pool; when you need the protein, it’s taken from this pool.  When the pool is diminished, it can be refilled for future use.  Body has systematic control of supply and demand of protein and is stored as the protein pool. Pg 29

When you eat a piece of steak, you enjoy the taste and feel satisfied as you eat a good meal.  You also give the stomach system a workout by chewing (movement of the face muscles), swallowing(movement of the esophagus), mixing and churning of digestive juices  in  the  stomach  (movement  of  the  stomach  muscles),  and secretion of bile acid and pancreatic juice (movement of the gall-bladder and pancreatic duct). The enzymes from the various digestive juices then break down the meat into the smallest molecule pieces called amino acids; those pieces are then absorbed into the bloodstream. By the time your meat is processed and absorbed, your stomach system has received a complete workout. In contrast, when you drink a protein drink, you skip most of the stomach system workout. It is already in the form of an amino acid, so there’s nothing to digest. Instead, the ready-made amino acids are directly absorbed into blood and there is no workout for the gut. It is obviously not the same to eat a piece of meat or drink a protein shake, even though they have the same number of calories.”. Page30

Ever wonder why some people crave protein and others carbs? Find out why here.

Best Diet for you: Tips to losing weight

After many trials with different weight loss programs at the Ace Medical Weight Loss center,  the authors launched an online weight-loss program focused on the goals: 1) How to reset the metabolism,  2)How to maximize fat burning, 3) How to eat in the correct  portions for every food, and 4) How  to ward off food craving, binging, and addiction.  A quick summary of the diet tips that are part of the weight-loss program are listed below:

Diet trumps exercise.  Focus on your gut.

The key to weight control is changing the bacteria in your gut.

*** Click on time stamps to jump to video answer****
40:51 What is more important exercise or diet?
43:56 What does latest scientific research on our guts?

“Scientific data suggests that we can change our gut bacteria composition with diet and therefore influence what these bacteria do to us. Eating properly for a few days or weeks will not help; you need to eat correctly forever. Only then will your gut bacteria be a healthy microbiome of bacteria and provide you with beneficial results. This is the primary reason why people who eat healthy for a few weeks lose weight, only to gain the weight back once they stop. A short-term, quick fix diet will never work. Neither will a low-fat or low-carb diet. Balance is really important, as you have seen in all the research we discussed.”

Studies show that the bacteria in our gut can hack our nervous system. The type of bacteria in your gut also decides your response to stress.  And how and what you eat decides the type of bacteria you have.(P204).

 

Can you build better gut flora through supplements?

Here is what the authors of “Fat-Me-Not” say about gut flora:

Probiotics are microorganisms (synthetic gut flora) that are commonly used and may alter the gut flora. Many researchers work in this area, specifically looking at the kinds of probiotic microorganisms that will help with specific diseases.

Probiotics can be used for many therapeutic uses for various diseases, including antibiotic-induced diarrhea, vaginosis(vaginal infection), helicobacter pylori infection, lactose intolerance, inflammatory bowel disease, and a few others. Composition can vary, especially with human diet and overall health. Currently there is no definite use of probiotics for obesity.

Prebiotics are non-digestible fibers that come from food; they pass through the stomach to the large intestine and make changes in the microbiome in favor of human well being and health. High-fiber diets are beneficial for the wellbeing and health of humans; and can be found in beans, raw wheat, raw oats, barley, garlic, leeks, onions, asparagus, Jerusalem artichokes, and chicory root.

Drink eight glasses of water a day.

Try to drink eight cups one with each meal and then one with each snack.  If you drink one cup after each meal you’ll be at eight in no time.

*** Click on time stamps to jump to video answer****
40:51 What is more important exercise or diet?
43:56 What does latest scientific research on our guts?
47:42 Why is water important? Why do a detox programs really not work?

Why detox programs don’t work?

Eat breakfast within 30 minutes of waking up

As we wake up, the body is ready to start; growth hormones, thyroid hormones, cortisol, and other hormones are ready to jump-start our powerhouse. We want to fuel it right to make maximum use of it.

*** Click on time stamps to jump to video answer****

9:59 Why is breakfast so important to eat?

Eat frequently, approximately every four hours. Or five times a day.

Dr. Sandeep Grewal explains why it’s so important to eat frequently throughout the day due to increasing our metabolism and why starving our selves is not conducive to weight loss. The book explains that in starvation mode, you don’t burn the calories; instead the body saves energy as fat. The end result of starving ourselves is that you gain weight by accumulating fat when you don’t eat regularly.

*** Click on time stamps to jump to video answer****

5:20 Why is it important to eat 3 meals and 2 snacks during the day?

You don’t want your brain to think that there is scarcity of food and access to food is unpredictable for the body. Because then the brain will tell your body to start storing fat instead of consuming it and you won’t lose inches from your waist.p249

Snacks can be eaten between lunch and dinner or between dinner and bedtime, depending on when you wake up and when you eat dinner. Our brain will recognize us to be in starvation mode if we don’t eat for  6-8  hours  while  awake.  P 322

In our body, it isn’t the heart, the brain, or the skin that spends the most calories, but rather the gut system — it spends 30-35% of the total calories spent by the body. So make it work for you five times a day.p251

 

Limit your sugar to 18 grams or less at a time

Sugar (glucose) is easily absorbed and instantly rises up in the blood. Then it stimulates sharp rise in insulin secretion. Insulin then turns the sugar in the blood into fat. This is why it is undesirable to eat a large portion of sugar at one time. Instead,  Dr. Grewal  suggests if we do eat sugar that we spread our consumption out overtime.  For example, it is okay to eat one cookie for each snack, but you don’t want to eat two large cookies for one snack. It will make your sugar rise and your body will start saving fat rather than burning it.

Tips for eating sugar

A diet that is sustainable for the long-term will likely involve sweets.  It’s important not to deprive yourself of sweets your entire life.  The authors offer the following tips for eating sweets during special holidays and occasions:

• Savor each bite: Eat mindfully.  Think about the first bite of chocolate truffle for taste, the second bite to really savor the taste, creaminess, etc, and the third bite for satisfaction. If you eat a chocolate truffle in one bit, you’ll have to eat three pieces to make you feel satisfied.  The longer it stays in our mouth, the faster we get satisfied. Find out more about mindful eating and why how, when, and what we eat is important.
• Out of sight, out of mind: Next time you bake a batch of fresh-baked cookies take one or two at the most out from the batch and place them on a small plate. Keep the rest in storage.
• Limit 18 grams of sugar every two hours: If you eat prepared or prepackaged foods, check the total grams of sugar, where you can find on the nutrition label. Portion your foot out so that you don’t eat more than 18 grams of sugar every two hours. Say you want to eat chocolate chip cookies. Each cookie contains 30 grams of sugar, so eat half of the cookie now and finish the other half in two hours to level load sugar in your body.
• Make your body work for it: A sweet or dessert can be mixed with a different macronutrient or complex food group which can slow down sugar absorption thus decreasing its GI (Glycemic index).  For example, add nuts (a good kind of fat), and berries to your ice cream (protein). The purpose of mixing is to prevent the fast increase of glucose in the circulation to prevent increase in body fat due to this rapid rise of sugar.  Plus, we will likely eat less ice cream overall when mixed with berries and nuts.

*** Click on time stamps to jump to video answer****
0:56 Why is it so hard to stop binge eating during the holidays?
3:06 Why does sugar and fat trigger our binge eating?
15:40 How can you eat sweets in a healthy weight?
22:14 Why a good starting point is learning what it feels like to be hungry?
22:51 How can we eat sugar so our insulin doesn’t spike?
24:18 Tips on how to eat less sugar during the holidays.
26:20 Why mindful slow eating is so important for getting maximum benefits of sugar?

28:35 Why is it so important to eat a balance of foods and not just one thing (one piece of cake for a meal)?
31:16 How to best mix the evil of sugar, fat, and carbs?
38:33 Is alcohol good or bad for you?

Limit your drinks calories

Avoid all diet drinks. Artificial  sweeteners,  including  natural  sweeteners,  are  to  be avoided, as they are known to cause rebound craving of sweets and calories.  Diet sugar can make your metabolism do the opposite of what you want.

If you drink regular soda, make sure to portion regular drinks by taking no more than 8oz at a time no more than once a day.  When you drink soda think about mixing it  with some snacks like  wholegrain crackers, nuts, cheese, etc which result in taking sips of soda like a fine Scotch versus taking a big gulp, and creating something that is more complex for your stomach to metabolize.

Eat real food (rather than egg beaters, protein bar or shakes)

Don’t eat protein bars, or shakes as meal replacements. These are artificial foods and may be lower in calories than your real food; but do not give your gut a work out so the net result is that you get more calories from them than from the real food.

Portioning automates the weight-loss process for a lifetime

If you crave junk food all the time, if you feel stressed, or if you gain weight without eat too much you are likely trapped in a Fat-Me-Yes cycle. You have to break free from the Fat-Me-Yes cycle and correct your diet to get into the Fat-Me-Not cycle. The only way to get out of vicious Fat-Me-Yes cycle is to switch your diet to healthy well-balanced and well portioned diet. But the good news is that once you are out of the Fat-Me-Yes cycle and well in to the Fat-Me-Not cycle maintaining your weight will be a lot easier, your cravings will go down, you will automatically be looking for healthier food and you will feel less stressed. P208

Key in all diets is portion control.  During a recent interview with Dr. Mark Liponis from the Canyon Ranch he suggests that if he was to offer only one eating tip it would be portion control.

The Slim Plate System helps dieters work on systematic portion control  and helps dieters focus on a balanced diet by offering plates that help dieters control the amount of carbs, protein and vegetables (fiber) they eat, which over time helps create a healthy gut.  By offering plates that show portion control, dieters eat in the same portions every time you eat, teaching your stomach to communicate with your brain. After a few weeks, your stomach gut system gets used to your portion intake and can make the desired changes to lose weight. To order plates and find out more about this program go to: http://www.slimplatesystem.com/register.