I came across something the other day that made my left eye start twitching uncontrollably – as it tends to do when I get extremely frustrated/annoyed.
I was glancing through some old fitness magazines, when I came across this little gem:
Don’t snack back the calories you burn?
As in… eat less and exercise more? As in… don’t refuel your body properly?
As in… set yourself up for complete failure in the long run?
It’s no wonder that so many women have disordered eating/exercising habits when they’re constantly being bombarded with garbage advice like this by all of the popular fitness magazines – the same fitness magazines that advocate adhering to a strenuous workout schedule and a 1400 calorie a day diet.
Fail, fail, fail.
Thankfully, there are actually some sources of good advice out there…
… they’re just not found in the popular media.
I know that I’ve been mentioning The New Rules of Lifting for Women a lot lately, but that’s because I honestly adore this book – especially the chapters about nutrition. The authors don’t promote any kind of “lose 7 lbs. in 7 days by eating 1200 calories a day” quick-fix garbage that only ends up screwing you over in the long run, but they offer advice that’s meant to increase your strength, your health, and your metabolism…
Mmm. Advice after my own heart…
I used to buy into the whole “eat less and exercise more” mentality, and while, sure, you may see results quickly, they’re probably not exactly the kind of results you want… especially in the long run…
Your body adjusts to starvation, which basically means that the more you restrict, the more you keep having to restrict in order to get the results that you’re essentially killing yourself for.
You also have the pleasure of experiencing the oh-so-pleasant side effects of starvation, including fatigue, depression, decreased performance, and hormonal imbalance.
Fun times… Except, not really.
So why are we still being sold that kind of advice? And why are we still buying into it?
Instant gratification.
We want to see results, and we want to see them yesterday – nevermind the consequences. And there are consequences… saying goodbye to delicious food being one of them…
Steel cut oats topped with banana slices, wild blueberries, and coconut butter.
Cookie and Muffin messes…
English muffin with cream cheese/jam & almond butter … Banana bread over yogurt
I eat, and I eat a lot, which consequently gets me a lot of funny looks. It used to make me self-conscious, and question if maybe I was eating too much, but any less and I feel like absolute garbage. I know what I need, and if other people want to be miserable on their starvation diets, that’s their prerogative. As for me, I’ll continue to eat like a horse and enjoy the metabolism of a cheetah, thank you very much.
. – . – . – .
I’d love to hear your thoughts on the whole “eat less, exercise more” mentality, as well as any experiences you have with properly fueling and exercising 😀
YEASSSS I loove that chapter of the book!! Just read it and it’s definitely made me feel so happy!! I think EVERYONE should read this book- there’s really nothing like it!! It does sadden me when I see that in mags, especially in ones I love like Runners World, which should definitely be encouraging eating RIGHT.
And personally since I started eating MORE I know that I look better, and I FEEL so much better too! Haha I could NEVER go back now to restricting myself!! Eating what I want is too awesome 🙂
I’ve written my thoughts on the book ready to post soon and I definitely highlighted that bit! And I can’t WAIT to start the plan yaaaay! 😀
I lovelovelove this post! I can so relate, and I still buy into these advices on a regulary. Even though I know they are so so wrong! Thank you for being a great role model, and telling the truth!
And, I’ll continue to eat like a horse and enjoy the metabolism of a cheetah, made me smile so much! That is really the way to go 😀
Love you!
youve got me intrigued by this book because i TOTALLY agree with what it says! i’ve also been pretty self-conscious about how much i eat in the past esp because sometimes my friends (And now even people at work) will comment on how much I eat (me being about 5’3″) – but yeah, i’ve tried to just laugh it off and not be sensitive to it anymore – every one is different and i gotta do what’s best for my body and my mind!
Gah that ‘move more, eat less’ makes me cringe! I think they need to add “processed foods” at the end of that piece of advice! Move more and eat less processed foods is a surefire, and healthy, way to lose weight! I blame mags like this for making me think it was normal to sustain a 1300-1500 cal/day lifestyle! Thank goodness I had these sense (and advice from blogs like yours) to break free! Food is fuel, not something trivial which we have to spend hours on end thinking about!
Girl you nailed it!!! I couldn’t agree more with you!!! That sort of mentality sets people up for FAILURE and if I ever have a day that I haven’t eaten enough I last 2 minutes with my workout therefore getting a crappy workout. Pretty sure everyone in the entire world should read this post of yours!
I’m so glad you raised this point and posted it! I’m totally guilty of having done the whole eat less, exercise more thing. Boy was it a bad idea. We REALLY do need those wholesome calories in order to exercise well. If we don’t eat we have no energy and with no energy our workouts are actually kind of just a waste time and energy (which we don’t have since we didn’t eat). We need food to function!
I hate it how people consider it strange or even “unacceptable” when girls eat “a lot” (whatever “a lot” may entail), but they don’t consider it abnormal at all for guys. I’m skinny, but I can pack away HUGE amounts of food and not feel bloated or overly full whatsoever. I don’t “eat like a bird.” At Whole Foods, I fill those salad bowls or boxes to the brim–and if I get stares, well, I’m enjoying my meal too much to notice. It used to really bother me, though, and at one point, I only felt comfortable eating alone in the privacy of my dorm room at university instead of the cafeteria (whose food was pretty gross anyway, so ultimately, I wasn’t missing out, haha). People just need to mind their own business and their own metabolisms. We are all different!
I LUZ THIS! (LUZ = love…I’m a nut…)
When I used to follow that “rule” I would find that I would eat more on days when I didn’t exercise because on days when I did exercise, I’d feel as though I had to eat less…if that makes sense. DAMN THESE PEOPLE!!!! We need to make magazines that sit next to those “health” ones on the shelves that say “I’m with stupid” on the cover. Seriously!
Luz you 🙂
xxx
I hate seeing those kinds of tips floating around. Every time I see something like that it makes the little voice in my head go “am I doing something wrong? Should I be eating less? More? Exercising more?”. I really try not to question my habits. I do my best to make healthy decisions while maintaining what’s right for me and listening to my body. I hate that those little tidbits set off an alarm in my head that makes me question what works for me!
Couldn’t agree with you more! I have a semi-similar post set to publish tomorrow morning. I’m sick of judgement and people not listening to their own body cues. There’s too much crappy and WRONG info out there.
This is the best post EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AMEN!!!
You’re totally right about how magazines and sorts tell you that a 1500 kcalorie diet is the most optimal diet you can have – while exercising 5 days a week. I guess it makes sense if you “needed” to lose weight, meaning you are clinically overweight. The thing is, I thought these magazines were about being “fit,” not “weight-loss.” Just think about how teenagers (like I, myself was) would be influenced by these articles.
Same thing goes with the whole “Boost your Metabolism” thing. When I follow the tips they suggest, I get hungry more often end up eating more; thanks to my fired-metabolism. It’s hilarious how they expect you to lose weight by boosting your metabolism. With high metabolism, it’s normal that you eat more. If you refuse to, while your stomach is grumbling like crazy, then there’s a problem.
I definitely used to buy into the whole “eat-less-excercise-more” thing. It was the only way I knew to lose weight. I felt awful all the time, and I was not happy because I was hungry all the time. For a while, I was unable to find a middle ground between going all out and binge eating, and eating much less calories than I needed.
i’m finally figuring out what my body needs for fuel, and what I need to be satisfied. I may have to invest in this book…
wow that IS terrible advice! i was looking through self magainze the other day and it was so sad. almost the entire magazine was focused on how to lose weight! i saw meal plans in it and it was total restriction, i couldn’t even imagine adding exercise on top of what they were suggesting. in my experience, if i even tried to not snack around working out, i’d get physically ill. or not snacking to refuel (because a diet coke after a work out does NOT count) would lead to bingeing later on.
also, pumpkin hummus?! that sounds AMAZING! where did you find this?
and i totally feel you on the “eat like a horse” bit. if i get off my meal plan, i feel it! people always comment on how much i have and ask why i’m eating so much. but i know i’m just getting in what my body needs… and enjoying every bite of it 🙂
I actually just make the pumpkin hummus by combining a few spoonfuls of canned pumpkin with a few spoonfuls of hummus 🙂
For two whole years my whole life revolved around exercising as much as possible while eating as little as possible. And it was magazines like those that made me believe this was a healthy and normal lifestyle. It really wasn’t until I started reading blogs that I clued into how unhealthy it really was. I love how blogs can give people a glimpse into what REAL people eat in a day – unlike those totally restrictive 1200 calorie diets that magazines promote. UGH. Those kind of articles totally make my eye twitch too. 😛
Ahh that was my FAVE chapter/section of the entire book!! It dispels so many false rumors about women and exercise, I adore that book 🙂 I don’t think I could even fathom going back to 12-1400 calories a day, I’d die. It’s hard to believe I actually lived on so little during my ED, no wonder I was always so cranky haha
Haha I can totally relate to that. I look back at how little I used to eat and have no idea how I managed… There’s no way I’d be able to do that again.
im ALREADY in love with that book! im so glad u mentioned some of the things it says.. honestly that made my day.. for the first time. something RIGHT
I was just reading Jilian Micheals Making the Cut and she recommends eating by your daily cals by calculating your BMR and staying at the number. This is the number your body needs just to run itself while doing nothing. Mine is 1,400 cals. She says to try to stay at that BMR number!! I would be dead eating just 1,400 cals a day. I can understand eating that much if all you are doing is sitting down all day and don’t work out. She excepts you to eat at this level with her high intense workouts. I usto eat way below maintance. For the last year or so I have upped my cals. Yes I am not 110 pounds anymore, but at the same time I have more muscle and I am able to workout longer and stronger.
It’s no wonder that so many girls struggle with diets and weight loss. The way that fitness magazines want us to live is almost impossible. It’s a quick fix and an unrealistic lifestyle to live.
I’ve done the whole eat less, exercise more deal and I have never felt worse in my entire life. I was irritable, depressed, tired, and anxioulsy awaited my next meal because I was always STARVING. Yes I was skinny, toned, and lean…but absolutley miserable. Why did I think that I had to look like a chiseled statue with a flat stomach, sleek arms and not one dimple on my butt? Oh ya..because the Media says so.
NEWS FLASH!!! Most woman can’t look that way unless they devote their entire life to meal planning and exercise, which most of the time results in an Eating Disorder of some sort.
I have since learned to pay attention to my hunger cues and eat foods that both energize and satisfy. I allow myself to eat whatever I want in moderation, and fill my diet with nutrious meals and fresh ingriedients. I now have my cake and eat it too 🙂
That’s what I love to hear 😀
I agree, but I have a question too. In your experience, is it better to increase calories slowly, say but like a hundred calories a day or so, until you reach a higher level and stay there or to just go for it one day and increase all at once?
If you’re underweight and you’ve been eating a really low amount of calories for a really long time, I’d increase gradually to avoid any kind of symptoms of refeeding.
I used to restrict so much, and just as of a few weeks ago I broke off the weight watchers program and started just fueling my body. I stopped counting points and started eating more. If I was hungry I ate and if I want chocolate, I’ll eat it. Honestly, I need to give you and your blog a ton of credit for my life changes. Thanks lady! 🙂
I use to be one with more of the mentality “exercise to eat more” Haha!
I’m much more aware that anyone working out and really sweating it out, needs to fuel themselves A LOT. It’s a message that more people need to realize too!
I just want to show this post to the entire world!!!!! My friends wonder why they are always tired and I’m so energetic. They eat like once a day. Literally. And they all wonder how I eat all day long and don’t weigh 400 pounds. They don’t understand it’s because I eat all day long! And then I have so much energy I can exercise and actually enjoy myself. Gahhhhhh!!!!
LOVE LOVE LOVE this message! I actually just wrote up tonights blog post about why I don’t like those magazines anymore. I often slip into this mindset where I’m like “oh, I only eat when I’m hungry and my appetite is dead after my workout, so I guess I won’t eat so I can “save” my calories” which is always a bad idea. The only way to get stronger is to eat food! Otherwise the exercise is just killing you.
I am officially convinced I need to buy this book. I’m currently reading two other books but I’m going out to buy this. I think I need it.
Exactly!! When you exercise, your body needs food to build up a strong lean body 🙂
Women need to realize that caloric restriction does nothing for you other than leave you exhausted, dizzy, and unhealthy!
Seriously, health and fitness magazines make me so mad. I refuse to even buy them anymore because they give such horrible advice to women. What makes me even more mad is that so many millions of women read those magazines every day. I must get that book you are reading right now – it sounds right up my alley!
I have a copy that I want to sell. It is a GREAT read and has some awesome workouts in it.
I love this Amanda!! I seriously need to get that book NOW it sounds amazing! And magazines that preach stuff like that bother the crap out of me! UGH! It only makes sense to snack after to work out…..other wise we would all waste away to nothing!!!
I have a copy that I am wanting to sell. Interested? 🙂
amanda, hi.
i am just popping in to say thank you once again. you always seem to post the most helpful posts right when i need them! i struggle with overexercise, restriction, etc with my eating disorder and today in particular i have been struggling with refueling. in addition to walking around in the sun all day, i was up at 4 am and i ran 4 miles! that means i need fuel. and lots of it, considering i am a growing 16 year old with a pretty fast metabolism.
thank you, you are amazing. keep eating like a horse! i used to be horrified by such a prospect, but i’d much rather be an athlete who eats a ton than a wimpy anorexic any longer. i need to eat to get there. thank you!
xoxo
alexandra
oh and for the record, i am currently having a healthy snack. you inspired me to do the right thing, as always.
Awwr that’s so great to hear, love. Thank you <3 Enjoy your snack 😀 I just finished up some nightly noshing, too.
I LOVE THIS POST! I eat so much food…my friends during undergrad used to make fun of me. I’m always hungry and I cannot deprive myself! I think part of the problem with the whole eat less, exercise more thing is that people who are obese do need to do those things- but when you use those rules for people that are of a normal size it screws us up. Stupid! I seriously love your blog, your posts are awesome and thought provoking :).
This is such a great post. I love that you included information from your book. I am actually going to go get that book from the library/bookstore sometime tomorrow because I keep hearing about how great it is and I want in on the information!
Thanks for being NORMAL and eating a lot and exercising a lot 🙂 That’s the way it should be.
ok and if that was a hot mess i’m sorry. paul is playing with my first ever big girl camera and firing off the flash in my eyes. so i’m all cah-razy town =) luff yew!
I’m really hoping they didn’t mean it like that. Some girls i’ve worked with do think that b/c they are working out they can have a ginormous dessert daily or eat lots of extra goodies that they wouldn’t touch if they werent working out. So in that respect, the extra sugar they’re woofing down is not going to help them stay healthy. but in total agreement with you, extra snacks or heathly components added to meals (calorie dense or not) are things we should not restrict ourselves of if our body is asking for it! so while I want to give the mag the benefit of the doubt.. its hard too b/c they didnt take the time to explain themselves enough to actually help the girls they are “reaching” and i’m gonna team up with you and say “grrr! magazine! poor form!” =)
keep stimulating that metabolism girl! your body knows what it needs =) mwah!!!!!!
Calorie Restriction Society? Is that for real or some sort of joke? I suppose I could google that and answer for myself…and google says: it’s real. *facepalm*
I love all the advice in that book. It really does look awesome! I’ll have to check it out. That and Born to Run are on my list.
My favorite diet advice? “Drink water when you’re hungry!”
Right. Because water has a lot to offer when you need food…
amen sista!
definitely used to believe that I could workout for 2 hours and eat a salad for dinner – YEA RIGHT!? I think back at that and I wonder why I was so crabby/hard to be around! ha!
random – do you make your own jam? It looks wonderful!
Hehe no I buy it. I like Crofter’s, and my favorite are their Superfruit North America blend, or just the wild blueberry.
People are idiots and don’t know how to eat. LOL.
I hate when I come across an article with the whole eat less, exercise more mentality! It drives me insane and makes me feel like a real hippopotamus since I thankfully inherited my fathers speedy metabolism. I love that you brought up this issue, I love to know that I’m not the only one who find them extremely annoying!
Excellent post! I totally used to think that was the way to go… It got to the stage where I was eating a crazy low amount of calories, and only just maintaining my weight..it was scary how slow my metabolism was! It’s no wonder people gain weight back so quick after being on silly diets.
Now I eat so much that I get comments too! I need alot of food to fill me up, but it’s the right amount cos now my metabolism is functioning as it should be!
BTW, your pictures never fail to make my belly rumble 😛
Gosh exactly! These magazines and articles make me feel like i should be eating WAY less no matter that four mile run I did this morning. Ugh it’s so hard. Not to count calories and ect. Do you have any tips to stop? I can’t even tell if I am hungry anymore. I don’t know what hunger feels like. It stinks. Do you have any times/ideas to help with recovery? Because I am trying to “listen to my body” but what if my body is not audible right now? Should I stick to a meal plan? Thanks so much!
It’s not too easy to give advice when I don’t know anything about your current situation, but if you have a hard time feeling hungry and you need to gain weight, then I’d suggest sticking to a meal plan until your hunger starts kicking in. Intuitive eating is the goal, but a big part of recovery means you have to go against intuition.
Thanks so much for your input. I tried just to quit calorie restriction and go to inituitive eating. I was actually given a meal plan a few weeks back and told to gain weight but i heard that intuitive eating was best so I threw it out the window.. Today I am sticking to the meal plan and NOT counting calories. Thanks. Your blog = total lifesaver!