Grease By Eating Little: Why Does It Happen?
We all know people who eat a lot and are thin, just as we know people who happen to get fat by eating little. The latter group includes people who have difficulty losing weight and who have often experienced the feeling of failure and guilt because they are unable to lose weight.
The formula for weight loss is virtually universal: s s based on the first law of thermodynamics and is very simple . We lose weight if we spend more calories than we ingest. This rule has a proven scientific basis and many people shed extra pounds thanks to it.
However, reducing everything to this mathematical equation has its problems, as body weight is determined by various genetic, environmental, dietary, psychological factors, and so on. In light of the above, when you continue to gain weight by eating little , all these aspects must be taken into consideration.
The energy balance
The energy balance is based on two key concepts. The first is the calories we take in through food and which are our daily fuel. The second relates to the calories we spend, or metabolic rate. In this case, several factors come into play:
- Basal metabolism . Minimum energy needed for the body to perform its most basic functions. It is estimated to account for between 70% and 80% of total daily calorie consumption.
- Exercise and physical activity . These are the calories we burn by doing more intense daily activities or exercise.
- Thermal effect of food . It is the energy we produce for food intake and digestion.
If you take in more calories than you burn, you get fat. Conversely, if you burn more calories than ingested, you lose weight. Based on this statement, one of the most popular ways to lose weight is to apply a calorie restriction , or put simply, eat less.
So where is the miscalculation in people who continue to gain weight by eating little? What are they doing wrong? Read on to answer these questions.
Why is it possible to gain weight by eating little?
The role of metabolism
Our body is a lover of balance , in every sense. It has its own mechanisms for balancing the body’s pH, temperature, blood pressure and, of course, body weight.
When he detects a significant calorie restriction and subsequent weight loss, he is put on alert. The priority of our body, in fact, is not to lose weight, even if it is our will. Automatically, a series of hormonal reactions are activated to save energy.
Among the first consequences of this, the basal metabolic rate is reduced and the feeling of satiety decreases. In turn, the hormones associated with the feeling of hunger increase.
As we have already seen, the basal metabolic rate is of great importance in the balance of the total calories we consume during the day. So even if we eat less, we also burn less and the weight remains the same. Indeed, in some cases, it can even increase.
Get fat by eating little: the secret is to burn more
Eating less is a way to lose weight because we ingest fewer calories. But, as we have seen, if the metabolism becomes slower, we cannot reduce the calories ingested in an uncontrolled way.
In addition to being counterproductive at the metabolic level, diets that are too low in calories cause a deficit of nutrients and a lack of energy. Following this, they can lead us to a state of apathy, malaise and even a bad mood.
It is therefore important to burn more and not just reduce the calories ingested. Exercise and daily activity are essential for maintaining a healthy metabolism, positively modulating hormonal balance, increasing muscle mass and reducing fat mass.
The importance of muscle mass
Our muscles are among the systems in the body that consume the most energy, even when we are at rest. A person with a higher percentage of muscle mass will have a higher basal metabolic rate .
Our muscle mass is generally affected by the time we start the diet. When the body lacks the glucose provided by food, it looks for other sources to get it from.
The main reserves available to us are body fat and muscle mass. And it is precisely the latter that we use in the presence of a calorie restriction. The result is a loss of muscle mass which further reduces energy expenditure.
At this point, it would be necessary to reduce more and more the amount of food we eat, with the negative consequences that we have seen. This is why some people tend to gain weight by eating little, because their calorie expenditure has become so low that it is difficult to eat even less to balance it.
Paradoxically, sometimes eating less or little is not synonymous with weight loss . The ideal, therefore, is to rely on a professional and adopt healthy lifestyle habits that allow us to lose weight on a regular and lasting basis.
