It's Not Your Fault That You're Struggling

"To reach and maintain your ideal weight, you need to get on top of the inherent battle between your 10,000-year-old biological predisposition and your desire to be health" -Dr. A.

How our 10,000 year-old programming makes us eat to live.

10,000 years ago there was no obesity, heart disease or type 2 diabetes. Getting enough to eat was a struggle and most of the day was spend foraging. When you found food, you ate it right away because you never knew when or if there would be more. If you were hunting and caught game, you and your clan would eat the whole thing then and there. Being overweight meant your were an extremely successful member of your tribe, maybe even the leader!

So when you hear someone say "I opened the bag of chips to just have a few and before I knew it, I had eaten the entire bag", of course they did because our body was designed that way.

Cravings win.

When food is in front of us, we are programmed to eat it all, especially when distracted by a conversation at a party or what is on TV. Cravings are fueled by some of the most addictive substances on earth!

Your next hunting trip to the fridge will be 100% successful as you find something full of fat, salt or sugar.

Energy machine.

Ancient humans used stored energy to stay alive, since they had to walk, run, climb or paddle their way across the land. They had to use energy to dig for foot and to hunt. Our bodies evolved to be very efficient at using energy. To this day, our bodies fight to hold onto every calorie of energy we take in as if our survival depends on it!

"Our bodies are programmed to hold onto calories for the sake of survival, so when you try to "diet", you are really fighting your own nature" - Dr. A

The Storage Factor.

Our bodies are designed to store and conserve fat and calories for those times when we can't find food. There are over 40 billion fat cells, which provide unlimited storage potential, to help keep us alive. We can store small amounts of carbohydrates in our liver and muscles, but energy stored as fat is our most critical survival mechanism.

All this stored energy and we are no longer hunting, digging, running to find food, expending energy in large amounts on a daily basis. Driving to the grocery story, filling the cart, having someone check out and bag your groceries and loading your car spends minimal calories to what our ancestors spent. Even less calories are spend driving up to a fast food restaurant drive through. You might spend about 12 calories ordering and receiving your food and about 5 minutes to consume the 1,500 calorie meal.

Supersized.

Restaurants are now serving portions that are 8x the standard serving size listed in the FDA's dietary guidelines! We are surrounded by food that is larger portioned and more calorie dense than 50 years ago. We are surrounded with labor-saving devices that help us conserve energy we used to exert.

More than 2/3rds of Americans take in more calories than they can every use...But it's NOT YOUR FAULT!

Not Your Fault.

Your body stores and conserves energy. You are surrounded by food that is plentiful and addictive. Day-to-day life is more sedentary than ever.

Old Body, 21st Century

All the motivation in the world won't help you. "Lose weight, go on a diet, exercise" are words you might hear from your doctor, which is sound advice, but not very useful without a roadmap to guide you for long term success.

Maybe you have the latest diet book, or have tried the most recent diet trend, falling into a yo-yo pattern. You might say to yourself "If I think I can, I can!", but what happens when you have a bad day and there's a pint of Ben and Jerry's staring at you? Your 10,000-year-old biological body says "Eat it all right now". You try to tell yourself that you are a positive, healthy person as the tub empties and you feel powerless to change your life.

You are NOT powerless. You are not lacking willpower. You aren't a negative thinker. You are dealing with a conflict between the desire to achieve your goals and the desire to satisfy your instincts.

MORE TO COME IN MY NEXT BLOG!