Let me say right off the bat that calories DO matter when it comes to fat loss. If you’re taking in more fuel (food) than your body needs, the excess will be stored and your body won’t go looking for additional energy to burn (from your stored body fat). However, calories are just ONE part of the equation, and they aren’t the most important part. What matters more? HORMONES.
Seriously. Hormones are chemical messengers. They’re constantly assessing the conditions inside and outside your body and firing off signals and instructions based on what’s going on. Your hormones determine what your body does with the fuel you’re consuming. Your hormones are responsible for instructing your body to either burn fat or store fat. They’re determining if you’re tapping into muscle for fuel. They trigger mood swings, hunger and cravings. They are responsible for your energy, your ability to think clearly (or not), your libido and your metabolic rate. Hormones run the show.
Sure, you can cut calories without regard to hormone balance. Traditional crash diets or extreme exercise routines can wreak total havoc on your hormones. They’ll drain your energy, make you hungry and send your cravings through the roof. Over time, they’ll slow your metabolism – one of the main reasons people tend to regain the weight they lose on such programs. Not only that, any weight you do LOSE is just as likely to be muscle or water as it is fat. Specific hormonal signals are what allow you to burn fat in the first place. Not some arbitrary calorie deficit.
Your body is designed to ensure your survival. When you focus on creating the largest calorie deficit possible by eating less and exercising more, your hormones create a survival-first scenario in your body. It perceives that fuel is scarce and responds by increasing your hunger, increasing your cravings, slowing your metabolism, releasing stress hormones and holding on tighter than ever to your stored fat in case it is needed for survival.
On the other hand, there are basic nutritional and lifestyle principles that balance these hormones. They encourage fat loss. They decrease hunger. They reduce cravings. They improve your mood, outlook and mental focus. They increase your metabolism, quench inflammation and help you sleep better at night.
Want to know more about how you can balance your hormones naturally? Without doctor appointments, without expensive prescription medications? Without turning your life upset down? I am ALWAYS talking about this with the folks on my Primal Potential VIP email list. Click here to get on it now and get a free download that will help get you started!!