In This Episode…

Chris and I are back for episode 3 on The Road To Ripped Podcast!

One of the main reasons we’re so passionate about debunking these common nutrition myths is because they are literally heard everywhere.

Even huge fitness influencers are feeding horrible advice to hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people!

And in this episode, we want to finally shed some light on what you really need to do with your diet for fat loss and muscle growth.

0:01 – Nutrition myths are riddled everywhere!

1:49 – Do calories even matter?

5:01 – The most effective dieting strategy.

8:59 – What fat loss really comes down to.

9:31 – Do carbs make you fat?

12:40 – Are there good and bad sources of carbs?

16:47 – All about good foods and bad foods.

Do Calories Even Matter?

First on the list of nutrition myths is calories – do they even matter? Do you have to track them? What about macronutrients?

The short answer is, yes – you should track your calories.

The reality is, you cannot escape the law of thermodynamics.

It’s truly a matter of calories in vs. calories out.

If you eat more calories than your body expends that day, your body will store any excess as fat. Period.

Now, also keep in mind, if you diet too hard, your metabolism will start to slow down. Your body becomes too stressed out and will start to hold onto weight as a survival mechanism.

It’s about striking that balance of a healthy calorie deficit for optimal fat loss. We like stetting up what we like to call an aggressive calorie deficit that allows about 2 lbs of fat loss per week.

Overall, there’s a bigger issue many people are facing that’s causing them to gain weight.

It’s being honest with yourself.

Most people are not good at estimating calorie intake.

That’s why it’s beneficial to track calories in the early stages.

It’s so easy to forget if you grabbed something out of the fridge really quick or if you ate an appetizer before your main course at a restaurant.

So when you THINK you’re eating 1800-1900 calories, you could very likely be eating upwards of 2800-3000!

That’s one of the main problems we see when people come to us asking about how to lose weight. Even some of our close friends and family members!

Remember, put in the work, it’s not rocket science – and be honest with yourself.

Do Carbs Make You Fat?

I’ll say it again until it sinks in – eating too many calories makes you fat.

It makes no sense to demonize or exclude a macronutrient that’s very much needed for your body to function properly.

Your hormonal health is actually directly impacted by your carb intake. Chris researched this a lot when he was at Duke University for neuroscience.

We recommend getting carbs from good sources, such as real cane sugar, starches, and fruit.

Here’s another thing to keep in mind – don’t equate carbs with garbage foods like cake for example. Cake is filled with a bunch of polyunsaturated fats (“PUFAs” which are horrible for metabolic health), artificial sweeteners, preservatives, bad emulsifiers, etc.

Stick to whole foods with no added fillers or bad ingredients and your body will thank you.

All About Good Foods And Bad Foods

Based on what we just talked about in the last paragraph, I think we can agree that there are more nutritious food options that you should strive for to make up the majority of your diet with.

Focus on whole foods (protein, carbs, and fats included) and do your best to stay away from foods with:

• Canola Oil
• Vegetable Oil
• Corn Oil
• Seed Oil
• Soy Lecithin
• Fortified Iron
• Soy
• Carrageenan
• Gum additives
• Artificial Sweeteners

But here’s something to not get tripped up mentally
with…

Try not to label a food as good or bad. That actually tends to do more harm than good and can even lead you into binging on that so called “bad” food.

Have structure to your diet, follow the guidelines above, and track your calories/macros, this will allow you to fit in the foods you enjoy without feeling like your “cheating” on your diet.

We hope you enjoyed this episode of The Road To Ripped Podcast!