.png)
Let's talk about something all of us will be doing and some us, no doubt, won't even realise we're doing it!
Pickin' and lickin'
We're talking about all those unknown calories that you either forget or genuinely don't think will make a difference to your results.
Not just the oil you use to cook your food in. What about the coconut oil you lather it in because a friend said "it's fine, it's good fat". The sneaky handful of blueberries you grab on the way out the door that’s OK because it's fruit.
Then there’s the magical world of the avocado. It's a superfood, right? I’m not saying they’re not but they do contain calories… Mainly from FAT, so a lot of them!
What about the couple of bits of ham you sneak out the packet whilst cooking dinner. Don’t pretend you haven’t (we all have).
The sugar you have in your tea. The milk you have in your tea.
The coffee you have that’s so far from coffee it’s pretty much a dessert.
Don’t even get me started on nuts. That "handy 600 calorie on the go snack".
Or how about the leftover food off the kid’s plates because you can’t possibly throw it away.
All of these things contain calories!
THEY. ARE. NOT. CALORIE. FREE.
Whilst I’m not saying you need to start putting your cuppa on the food scales and calculating the calories as if it was some sort of science experiment, I am saying you need to be aware of them.
How can you expect to manage fat loss, weight loss, muscle gain if you're not measuring?
Here's a daily pickin' and lickin' example for you…
Milk in your cereal – 100 Calories
Milk in your 4 cups of tea – 96 Calories
Large latte – 160 Calories
2 (probably more if you're like me) biscuits at work – 134 Calories
Extra spoonful of spagbol (to finish it off) – 190 Calories
Can of coke – 140 Calories
Kids leftover fish fingers x 2 – 122 Calories
Total – 942 extra unknown calories.
Now tell me why you’re struggling to see the scales budge… This isn’t uncommon and can easily put us back to a maintenance calorie level, or worse into a surplus! Especially when you consider that most of us struggle to maintain just a 500 calorie deficit. Over time this is where weight gain will happen.
These are not free foods. They all count towards your overall goals. Like I said above I’m not saying you need to track all of these things. But in order to get a grip on your weight, you must have some (calorie) understanding of what’s going in your mouth.
In the past, I’ve definitely been guilty of this and to be honest I don’t weigh out absolutely everything. But when I get to the point fat loss stalls (if I'm going through a fat loss phase) I will revisit and look at everything.
Being honest with yourself is one of the biggest areas for success!
Give this a try sometime...
Don't track your main meals, just make a note of your picks and licks and a rough estimate of the calories involved (overestimate!). Add it all up and ask yourself if this could be contributing to your lack of results?
Remember, if the goal is fat loss, you're looking for a 500 calorie deficit per day via moving more and consuming less. If your picks and licks are around 500 calories you'll just yo-yo. Make a massive concerted effort for ONE time in your life, get to where you want to be and you'll then be able to live the rest of your life without worrying about it. Make a half arsed effort for one month, fall off for a month and continue like that then I'm afraid you'll continue to yo-yo for the rest of your life.
Thanks for reading!
Dan Bryan
I specialise in sustainable weight loss for beginners and frustrated yo-yo dieters with bespoke 121 health coaching. I'm based in Amersham but cover all the surrounding areas including Little Chalfont, Chesham, Berkhamsted, Tring, Aylesbury, Watford, High Wycombe, Beaconsfield, Rickmansworth and Chorleywood.
Comments