One of our beloved athletes in his seventies had wanted to lose some fat around his stomach for medical reasons for a very long time. He came in for a consultation and we went through a typical week’s eating. He was confused as to why he had so much trouble losing fat when he ate in his words, “very nutritiously.” Lots of fruits, veggies, and protein. Some nuts for snacks, sometimes granola on the greek yogurt, and a little juice with an english muffin with marmalade as part of his breakfast each morning. Desserts and fried food were infrequent. Alcohol was only a drink or two a few times a week. He felt stumped and frustrated.
When I asked about who prepares and shops for the meals in his household, he said his wife did most of the grocery shopping and cooking. He was uncertain that he’d be able to make any changes to his nutrition because he didn’t think his wife would be willing to change what or how they ate. I told him that a lot of people feel exactly as he felt. Like they’re spinning their wheels and getting nowhere no matter how hard they try again and again. It’s especially frustrating for people who really care about the quality of their nutrition, which benefits them for many reasons, but may not get them the results they want in the fat loss department.
Almost a year after that he gleefully told me that he’d almost reached his fat loss goal in about 8-weeks time. “How’d you do it?” I asked. Temporarily for that time period, his wife was unable to shop or cook. All of a sudden he was in charge of those responsibilities. Did he totally change what he ate? Nope. They ate mostly the same foods, but he cut back on the english muffin and marmalade to once a week instead of everyday. He bumped up his protein a bit because canned fish was easier for him to prepare. He ate a little bit less at most meals because he was in charge of serving himself. He paid attention more to how much he ate and how he felt in return.
What did he not have to do? Make any huge sweeping or excessively restrictive changes, eliminate entire food groups, or limit his eating window to only a few hours a day. Yes, the brightly packaged, shiny new rule heavy diets are *sexy*. Just do *this*, and you’ll look like *that*. But they often cause more problems than they fix, especially in the long run, and they’re not necessary when it comes to fat loss. Small decisions and changes do add up to big results over time.