It is reported that occasionally eating high-fat, high-calorie foods during the weight-loss period helps maintain metabolic stability
weight loss "cheating meal", who deceived in the end?
Our reporter Ma Aiping
With the advent of summer, many people have put on a fitness weight loss plan. In the process of weight loss, many people will add "deception meal" to the diet plan. In some Internet-based weight loss strategies, "deception meal" refers to eating high-energy, high-carbon water foods that you like from time to time in the process of fitness weight loss, but do not help the fitness weight loss. Some people say that a long-term low-calorie, low-fat diet will bring about a reduction in body fat rate, which will lead to a decrease in the level of leptin secreted by adipose tissue, and "cheating meals" can stabilize leptin levels. So, does "deception meal" really help our fitness weight loss program?
The relationship between obesity development and leptin is unclear
Hot pot, ice cream, beverages, rice, noodles...For fitness people, "deception meal" does not actually mean any specific food, as long as it is a food that you want to eat during fitness, but you cannot eat because you want to achieve your fitness goals. , Can be regarded as "cheating meal".
"If rice, noodles, seafood, yogurt, etc. appear in the above foods, it means that your own dietary arrangements are too strict. The real "deception meal" should be those foods with very high calories and low levels of micronutrients. , Such as: ice cream, fried chips, milk tea, desserts, etc." Song Qing, a professor at the School of Chemistry and Bioengineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, said that we all know that eating such foods is unhealthy, but we can’t help but want to eat these foods It is "cheating meals", if you can restrain the excessive intake of these foods, it is very helpful for fitness.
An article said that "cheating meals" can stabilize leptin levels. In this regard, Song Qing said that leptin is a protein hormone secreted by adipose tissue. Scientific research has confirmed that after it enters the brain through blood circulation, it will participate in the production and release of various hormones and signaling factors, participate in the regulation of energy metabolism such as sugar and fat, prompt the body to reduce food intake, increase energy release, and inhibit the synthesis of fat cells. In turn, weight loss.
"In addition to leptin, the hunger hormone secreted by the stomach also plays a major role in the human diet balance control system. However, the physiological roles of leptin and hunger hormone require corresponding cellular receptors to complete. Clinically found these receptors and downstream signals Conduction obstruction is the main cause of dietary imbalance. Clinical use of leptin has only achieved very limited effects." Song Qing said that it is still unclear the exact relationship between the development of obesity and leptin. Although there are a small amount of experimental data showing that normal people using "deception meals" can temporarily increase leptin levels, but due to individual differences in the population, the results cannot be generalized to all dieters. Therefore, the statement that "a cheating meal can stabilize leptin levels" has not been confirmed by scientific research. Eating "cheating meals" is more like an excuse for eating some unhealthy food.
"Cheating meal" can not guarantee metabolic stability
After many people have experienced dieting or weight loss for a period of time, their basal metabolism has decreased due to insufficient calorie intake. Some people believe that "deception meal" can increase the calorie intake, so that the body believes that there is no state of insufficient calorie intake. To maintain the original basic metabolism.
"Basic metabolic rate refers to the energy metabolic rate of the human body when it is awake and extremely quiet, and is not affected by factors such as muscle activity, ambient temperature, food and mental stress. That is, when it is in basic physiological activity, the body per hour The minimum calorie consumption of the surface area minus the standard calorie consumption, the difference between the difference and the standard calorie consumption is called the basal metabolic rate." Song Qing said.
Experts said that even if our diet is well controlled during fat reduction, it will inevitably lead to a more or less reduction in basal metabolism, because the most important factor affecting the basal metabolic rate of obese people is lean body mass (also known as lean body mass, For the weight of body components other than fat, muscle is the main part) and body surface area.
"After a period of weight loss and fat loss, the body surface area will be reduced. If there is no increase in lean body weight, this result will definitely occur. That is to say, even if the "deception meal" is effective, it is very very small, so use " The method of deceiving meal' to ensure metabolic stability is not feasible, we must believe that our body is very smart." Song Qing said.
"To achieve the goal of reducing fat by fitness, the best strategy is a reasonable diet and adequate exercise. Restricting diet, but not reducing the intake of micronutrients such as vitamins and antioxidants, is the beneficial weapon to ensure health." Song Qing stressed.