Animals don't diet
This is not medical advice
I never should have said the last article would be the last one about animals. Just this morning I was inspired to write this article. Over the weekend I had a conversation with a friend about weight loss, and I read about a new weight loss study. The study claimed that obesity is increasing because our metabolic rate has been decreasing the last 30 years. The bigger concern is why.
Our basal metabolic rate is the rate at which we burn calories just sitting around doing nothing. It is the rate of calorie burn for vital organ function, breathing, brain power, feeding muscles. That is part of the reason some trainers will say to lift weights, add more muscle to lose body fat. That is true to some degree, however there can be issues with that I will discuss near the end.
The biggest reason that we struggle with body fat is that we are hard wired in evolution to retain extra calories for survival. Most of us no longer live in a survival situation, so the pounds keep coming. Some of the theories on why the basal rate has decreased is exposure to toxins in our environment, and increased sitting time on electronic devices.
I hate lecturing for fat loss for several reasons, partially because it largely doesn’t work. Partially because I prefer Renaissance women. I would rather people understand the science behind our metabolism and eating habits.
Eating habits can be immensely cultural. That friend was telling me about his weight loss goals for hunting, because hiking up these mountains with heavy gear is extremely difficult. I asked him how many tortillas he eats a day (racist!), and he said, “down to two with every meal…”
That amount of carbs is gonna be tough to burn off. When he is in the act of hiking and hunting, he will need those calories and will easily “burn” them off. But that’s an act of survival. He is hard wired to retain extra calories for survival. “He is not gordo, he is a survivor!” When the shit hits the fan, gringo flacco (yours truly), is going to be freezing out in nature, and starving.
My friend at work told me that when the next ice age hits, she might allow me into Mexico in a reverse migration to warmer climates. That will be a survival situation, and we will all be eating as much as possible, and probably losing weight at the same time.
Culturally we want to look better with less body fat, but is that best for survival? Yes, unfortunately, survival in our current culture means less calorie storage.
Animals don’t diet. They are hard wired to overeat for survival. That’s why the vets measure out portions of food, so that our pets don’t become obese. Isn’t it interesting what we consider “humane” for animals, but not for us? It’s inhumane to make a pet fat, and to allow them to suffer in life for too long. Your dog is looking at you right now, stuffing your face, and he’s thinking what a hypocrite you are…
I addressed weight loss with stressful activities like running and weight lifting in this article,
The people I have seen lose the most weight have been outdoor destination walkers. These people did not walk indoors on a treadmill. Treadmill motors push the Earth for you. There might also be some more calorie burn associated with being outside in the elements. You’re going to burn more calories in the cold. Pick a route, and just walk. Or if you are unable to walk, biking and swimming elicit the same calories burn with less stress on the body.
You don’t need to time it, although ideally it would be a minimum of 45 minutes, 5x/week. There was a study done in 2016 where people who wore calorie and fitness tracking watches, actually had less weight loss than those who didn’t wear one.
Maybe those people are spending more time and energy fiddling with technology instead of just going out and doing it.
Oh, that would be a great title for another article, “Animals don’t have Fitbits…”