Debunking the "Eat More" Myth

Philip Pape 0:01

Eat more to lose weight a common refrain by fitness influencers who claim your metabolism is damaged and you're in starvation mode . Sometimes people do lose weight with this advice , but not for the reasons claimed . Today , I'm revealing what science actually says about increasing your food intake during fat loss . There's a legitimate way to eat more while losing fat , but it's not what you've been told . This approach has helped my clients overcome plateaus and actually enjoy their fat loss journey instead of constantly battling hunger . If you're tired of all the confusing advice , this episode will give you the clarity you've been looking for .

Philip Pape 0:52

Welcome to Wits and Weights , the show that helps you build a strong , healthy physique using evidence , engineering and efficiency . I'm your host , philip Pape , and today we're addressing one of the most persistent myths in the fitness industry this idea that you need to eat more to lose weight . You've probably heard fitness influencers claim that your metabolism is damaged , you're in starvation mode or you need to eat more to rev up your metabolic rate . When people do lose weight following this advice , it's usually because they've improved their food quality . They've started tracking more accurately . They've gotten rid of those oops weekends . They've improved their food quality , they've started tracking more accurately . They've gotten rid of those oops weekends They've added in training , not because they've fixed their metabolism or reverse dieted by increasing calories . The fundamental truth still remains that you need a calorie deficit to lose fat . However , there is a legitimate way to increase your food volume while maintaining that deficit . It is not about magically increasing calories , but it's about strategically selecting and structuring your food choices . Those choices will help you maximize volume and satiety while supporting fat loss . So today I want to share five evidence-based approaches that I use with clients that will allow you to fill your plate and to feel satisfied while continuing to lose fat effectively . And still get allique University , where we provide you with lots of things , but basically we give you a system and support to reach whatever your goal is for your body composition , and that includes a custom nutrition plan tailored by me to your unique needs and preferences . Targeted workout programs every month , monthly challenges , a supportive community , lots of courses , trainings , workshops you name it all to keep you accountable and engaged . Just go to witsandweightscom , slash physique , or click the link in the show notes to learn more . You can have a two-week free trial , so there's absolutely no risk . Go check it out .

Philip Pape 2:57

All right , let's get into today's topic and I want to clarify what I mean when I say that you can eat more and lose weight . I am not suggesting that you can magically consume more calories and still lose fat . That is where I think the influencers mislead people with the marketing right Like you could just eat more calories , eat more food in general and you're going to lose weight somehow . What I'm talking about is increasing the physical volume of food on your plate while still maintaining the calorie deficit , the physical volume of food on your plate while still maintaining the calorie deficit . And this is an approach where you need some data-driven information , nutrition science , a systems thinking mindset to optimize your fat loss journey . It's a very creative , almost engineering type approach to structuring your meals and choosing what foods to eat . You don't just do it willy nilly . You don't just choose foods based on macros . This is not if it fits your macros . There is a little more nuance and there are a few more variables involved . So when we apply this thinking to nutrition , we are trying to do what we're trying to maximize satiety and satisfaction while keeping calories in check . So our constraint is the calories , but then this other lever is how full we feel . So I've got five approaches that I came up with for today's episode to increase your food volume but still maintain the calorie level that you need to support fat loss .

Philip Pape 4:17

All right , so approach number one is understanding the thermic effect of food . T-e-f . This is the slice of your metabolism Like , if you ever look at it on a pie chart , and I show you the four components of metabolism . This is the one that takes about say , 10 , 15% of calories a day to burn , and what I mean by burn is this is the energy your body uses to digest , absorb and process what you eat . Different macronutrients actually require different amounts of energy to process , and protein has the highest TEF or thermic effect of food , at approximately 20 to 30% of its calories being burned while you digest it . So you're really only quote unquote absorbing 70 to 80% of what's going in . Carbs burn about 5 to 10% and fats burn only about 0 to 3% . So what this means practically it's pretty cool .

Philip Pape 5:13

If you throw this in a spreadsheet and you play around with different compositions of macros , you'll see that the more protein you consume , the fewer calories you're probably going to actually take into your body , which will look like a higher energy expenditure , if that makes sense . So , because technically it is a higher energy expenditure . But what matters is that you could either eat more and not gain as much weight , or you can eat less and lose more weight . That makes sense . So if you consume 100

Legitimate Approaches to Maximizing Food Volume

Philip Pape 5:41

calories of protein , your body's going to use 20 to 30 of those just in the digestion process , leaving 70 to 80 net calories for your body to actually use . Compare that to fat , where the same 100 calories still means almost 100 net calories . So by increasing protein intake , by slightly reducing fat or carb intake , while keeping total calories the same , you effectively create a larger calorie deficit without changing your food quantity because you're bumping up your expenditure just a bit .

Philip Pape 6:12

So again , if I want to give you two examples so you can visualize this as you're listening , let's say we have two meals that are 500 calories . Meal one has 30 grams of protein , 30 fat and almost 30 grams of carbs . Meal two has 60 grams of protein , 15 grams of fat , so that's double the protein , half the fat and about the same amount of carbs . With meal one , after you account for this TEF , your body will net about 445 calories out of the 500 . With meal two , you might net only 415 calories out of the 500 , and that's a 30 calorie difference . And that's just from one meal . It's just a 30 gram difference in protein .

Philip Pape 6:56

Imagine if you go from a fairly low amount of daily protein to a much higher amount . Many of you listening the first time you've done this , or if you haven't done it yet , chances are you're gonna double , possibly triple , the amount of protein . So it starts to add up . This is also why sometimes I suggest , during fat loss , to jack the protein up even higher and take it predominantly from fats and not as much from carbs . Of course there's more to it than calories , right ? Protein is also more satiating , above and beyond this effect , and so it helps you feel full longer . So by strategically increasing protein intake , you're not just reducing the effect of calories , you're also reducing hunger .

Philip Pape 7:33

Two for one , one of my favorites , all right approach . Number two fiber . So fiber is the volume optimizer I'm gonna call it Okay and it is unique among the carbs , among the carbohydrates , because , unlike other carbs which provide four calories per gram , fiber provides fewer usable calories , between usually zero and two , maybe up to two and a half calories per gram , depending on the type of fiber . And what makes this interesting is that most food tracking apps , like if you're using macro factor , like I recommend link in the show notes try it for free with my code Wits and Weights you will and also nutrition labels as well . They actually count the fiber as grams of carbs , but then the calories will usually be altered to match the proper amount of calories , and that is why when you try to add it all up , sometimes it doesn't match . Like if you just take your carbs carb grams times four , it may be higher calories than what is actually shown on the nutrition label , because the nutrition label is based on the true calories that are in there . Same thing when you log the food , and so this creates an opportunity when you're tracking via macros , in that when you increase your fiber intake , you increase your food volume and you quote , unquote hit your carbs before you get to the same calorie level than if you had a lower amount of fiber . Does that make sense ? So even if you have the same , like , let's say , 100 grams of carbs a day , if more of those grams are fiber , you're actually gonna consume fewer calories and so that gap between the gram math and the calories will widen and you can take advantage of that . Now the even bigger benefit is that fiber adds bulk to food without adding the proportional calories . It absorbs water , it expands in your stomach , it slows digestion and all of those increase satiety . And so , again , I can give you a concrete example here .

Philip Pape 9:26

If we talk about white rice versus brown rice , right and nothing's good or bad . This is just a difference in choices for what you're going for here . We take 100 calories of white rice compared to 100 calories of brown rice . The brown rice contains more fiber , not a huge amount more , but it contains a little bit more , and that means it will physically take up more space in your stomach and digest more slowly . Then you'll likely feel fuller from the brown rice , even though the calorie count is identical , which means you might actually choose to eat less brown rice and have fewer calories and be just as full , or eat the same amount and be even fuller . You get what I'm saying . You have a lot of levers to play with . Now imagine applying this to your entire diet . If you're always selecting higher fiber alternatives for carb sources , you will dramatically increase the volume of food while maintaining the same calorie intake . That is amazing . And , by the way , the other , the other way to think about this is even once you've hit your carbs and your protein in your food logging app and you notice the calories are short because you eat a lot of fiber . You now you have a choice . Maybe you're getting full enough where you don't need those extra calories and you'll be in an even bigger deficit , as long as it's not too big , right . Or you can now eat a little bit more food in case you're having a little bit of hunger , and this can actually offset it where you have less hunger . You see how this all makes sense , all right .

Philip Pape 10:41

The third approach out of the five I wanted to talk about today of how to eat more and still lose fat is related to water content and food density . And if you think about , say , spinach a pound of spinach versus a pound of oil Just imagine a pound of spinach in a giant bowl versus a pound of oil in a little tiny bowl they're going to contain vastly different amounts of calories . Now , this is an extreme , I get it . You might substitute the oil for peanut butter . Same concept the spinach has like 100 calories in a pound . The oil has about 4,000 calories in a pound . So that is a 40 fold difference in nutrient density or calorie density . Right

The Thermic Effect of Food Explained

Philip Pape 11:23

, because foods with higher water content will have lower calorie density , because the water adds weight and volume without adding calories . Take an apple , go , put an apple in macro factor or whatever your food logging app is , and see how many grams of that apple is water . It's a huge percent . It's like 80 or 90% of it is water . It's surprising . Almost You're like wow , that's actually mostly water .

Philip Pape 11:45

And we can use this principle to again increase the volume of food on our plate . For example , adding vegetables to a pasta dish might double the volume , but only add calories by increased by like 10 to 15% . And so I'm going to give you another specific example . You take a cup of cooked pasta with 200 calories . You take a cup of zucchini noodles . That's 20 calories . So I'm not telling you to replace one with the other , although that's a great thing you could try . But you can do half and half Get half the pasta , half the noodles . You'll have the same volume that goes in your stomach , but you're going to reduce the calories by 40% . That's a nice little hack where you still have the delicious taste of the pasta and then maybe a little bit crunchiness of the zucchini , and yet it's all this giant bowl of noodles . It's great .

Philip Pape 12:33

Consider soups , right ? Studies have shown that having soup before a meal can reduce total calorie intake by up to 20% because the water content increases your stomach volume . It also triggers satiety signals . There's something to be said for having actual calories in the soup versus just , say , drinking water before the meal . And I'm a big fan of vegetable soups as well during fat loss , largely for that reason and this isn't just a theoretical approach , right , this is like a data-driven thing that you can easily measure and figure out as you are planning , as you're doing your meal plans , and you think about okay , what does the thing weigh versus how many calories it has ? Simple math , right ? I'll give you another cool example . You look at popcorn in the store , grocery store , and notice the back . You'll see 28 grams of popcorn is a serving . Well , 28 grams is the weight . But now look how many cups are in that 28 grams . A regular salted , simple air pop popcorn is going to have like four cups for that 28 grams . The dense sugary kettle corn might only have like one and a half . And it's kind of tricky because you're looking at it and saying , well , they're both 28 grams , yeah , but the amount you get for the 28 grams is vastly different .

Philip Pape 13:42

Okay , approach number four here involves the food structure in the physical form of food and manipulating it . Okay , so listen up here . This is another hack for you . All , right , air . How many calories are in air Zero ? Okay , air is calorie free . So if you can incorporate air into foods , it increases their volume without adding calories . In fact , this is how ice cream makers make cheap ice cream they add air to it and it gets , takes up more space for fewer calories . They can then say it's this low calorie ice cream and it's just not as good as the really rich dense stuff , right , but it has fewer calories because there's more air . This is also why a cup of air-popped popcorn has fewer calories than a cup of kettle corn , because there's more air and there's less dense material .

Philip Pape 14:29

Segueing from the example I just gave you earlier . Now it's more than just air . The physical form of food impacts how A typical medium apple has like 95 calories , 100 calories . If you juice the apple , you're going to consume way more than one apple's worth of juice to feel satisfied , right ? That's just intuitive . And then you're going to double , triple your calorie intake . Of course , it's all sugar . You're not going to get fiber , yada , yada .

Philip Pape 14:58

On the other hand , foods that require more chewing , for example , lead to greater satiety with fewer calories , and that's partly due to the additional time that it takes to eat them . There's also some , I believe , some hormonal triggers from your saliva as well , but even the additional time that allows your body satiety signals to kick in in your stomach and your gut and so on , and so we can use this principle by choosing foods that have more complex structures , that take up more space and require more chewing . So we're thinking harder

Fiber: The Volume Optimizer

Philip Pape 15:26

foods that have more complex structures , that take up more space and require more chewing . So we're thinking harder foods that require more chewing . I actually first heard this from Dr Eric Trexler probably a couple of years ago , and I continue to use this as a phenomenal tool .

Philip Pape 15:38

An example would be always choosing whole fruits . You know you're not gonna drink . I hope you're not drinking fruit juice during fat loss anyway . I mean , you can and you can plan for it and put it in your macros and all that , but the whole fruits are going to take you much farther . Or even fresh fruits versus dried fruits , of course .

Philip Pape 15:54

Um , opting for popcorn instead of chips . I think popcorn is a great hack during fat loss . It really is , because it has a lot of the characteristics of , you know , salty , crunchy snack foods , but it's significantly less calorie impact . And again , you could get light kettle corn . You don't have to go all out with just plain popcorn . If that's not your jam , you could still have something flavorful . There's so many things . You could put really nice seasoning on it , some spices and so on , making it home , whatever .

Philip Pape 16:21

And then also picking foods that require chewing over those that don't . And one thing that comes to mind here is meat . You know , when you think of like chicken breast , it does require a lot of chewing . You know lean pork , and it has a lot of other benefits too , not least of which is all the protein . So if you can include more structurally complex foods in your diet , you can increase the volume and the satisfaction of your meals and reduce calorie intake . All right , there's a pattern here . That's why I'm doing this episode .

Philip Pape 16:48

And then the last approach , number five is meal timing and frequency . So optimizing timing and frequency , which , during fat loss , can be really important for a number of reasons . So let's talk about what the research says . Eating the same amount of calories spread across . More frequent , smaller meals can increase satiety compared to fewer , larger meals , and that is simply related to blood sugar . That's because more frequent meals are going to maintain more stable blood sugar and again , I'm not , you know , blood sugar is not a boogeyman . Blood sugar spikes aren't the problem . None of that is what I'm talking about . I'm just talking about your hunger signals , because you have stable blood sugar and more opportunities for the body to signal fullness when you have frequent meals .

Philip Pape 17:31

Now , these aren't always universal . Some people do a little bit better with fewer meals , space more tightly together where they have a fasting window . Right , you could say you could call it intermittent fasting , but it may not . It may just be a you know , a little bit later breakfast , a little bit earlier dinner type of deal , especially when there are lower calories . So it really depends , your body will adapt . But in general , more frequent meals that are like a modest size and not too tiny are going to give you stable blood sugar if they're balanced , you know protein , carbs , fats , and then they're going to signal fullness . So if you have like a 2000 calorie daily budget for fat loss this is just an example , I know you might have less you could eat 2000 calorie meals , or you can eat four 500 calorie meals , you know , and four or 500 calories is around the point where I would call it a meal . Less than that could get a little bit tricky here , because it might not be enough to make you feel full . Of course it depends on what . It is right . The total calories are going to be the same , but the four-meal approach keeps you in a fed state longer and reduces the extreme hunger between meals again , in general .

Philip Pape 18:32

Also another trick front-loading calories earlier in the day . Right , you've always heard like having breakfast is a good thing to do . It aligns better with your circadian rhythm and that tends to result in better hormonal responses . You know we think of cortisol , for example , and less nighttime hunger . Believe it or not , eating earlier in the day , even though I've often recommended sometimes reserving some calories for later in the day because of late night hunger . Sometimes it's because you're not front-loading the protein and the calories earlier in the day .

Philip Pape 19:02

So it's worth trying these things out . It's worth trying them out at the very least and see what works for you . So , from a systems perspective , we are optimizing the distribution of energy across time to maximize satiety and minimize hunger . It's kind of like if you can track when you're having your meals and then compare that to your hunger , you can then experiment and find the optimal point right . It's this intelligent personal structure for your meal timing and frequency that works with however your body's natural naturally works . However your body naturally works , okay , so I want to tie all of this together . I just gave you five really cool approaches . I hope at least one of them is going to help , be helpful to you and um the .

Philip Pape 19:43

The real power here is is really combining them systematically . So , again , you don't have to do them all , but my most successful clients are generally doing all of these at some point and you build it up as a set of skills . So imagine combining higher protein intake , which you should be doing anyway before you even hit fat loss . Fat loss . Increased fiber same thing . Lower food density right , we're talking about calorie density . More complex foods that require chewing , optimizing your meal timing and frequency . The compounding effect of all of these will create a calorie deficit that does not feel anything like a typical diet that you've experienced in the past , where you were just slashing and burning and cutting and just feeling miserable . So definitely give it a shot .

Philip Pape 20:28

Start with one , proceed to the next and the next and see how it helps with your hunger signals and your fullness , so that you can eat more quote unquote more food and in some cases , literally it is more in terms of volume and still maintain the calories

Water Content and Food Density Strategies

Philip Pape 20:41

or maintain the fat loss without as much hunger . And again , this is being smart and efficient . This is it . It's not trying to be a disciplined , will-powered , white-knuckling your way through dieting . No , it's understanding the physical and the biochemical properties of food and then using that knowledge to your advantage .

Philip Pape 20:58

And then , when you approach the diet from that perspective , you realize that both eat less to lose weight and eat more to lose weight are actually oversimplifications . I think the more accurate statement would be maintain a calorie deficit to lose fat , but optimize your food choices so you can eat more volume while doing so . I know it's not short , punchy and sexy , but it's the truth and it's based on science and reality . And this not only makes fat loss more effective , but also the S word more sustainable . And sustainability is the key to long-term success . Because , after all , the best diet I'll say it over and over again to the cows come home the best diet is the one you can stick to .

Philip Pape 21:39

By applying these evidence-based principles to your nutrition , you then transform what is a white-knuckled crash diet weight loss journey to a systematic approach that aligns with their body's natural process , and that's super important . That is an important shift . We don't want to be battling hunger . You're going to have a little bit of it , but you don't want to feel like you're constantly fighting it , especially if you have a history of a higher appetite than someone else .

Philip Pape 22:06

If you want to learn more about how to do all of this , how to optimize your nutrition without the struggle , check out Whitson Weights Physique University . In there , we provide you everything you need the tools , the methods , the onboarding , the support , custom nutrition plans , workshops , courses all of that . We don't make it overwhelming . We guide you step by step from the beginning and have myself , my team , supporting you . We incorporate the principles we discussed today , tailored to your needs . We tell you how to tailor them as well . Personalized support . You get access to workout programs , challenges , a community check-ins , all of it . Go to witsandweightscom slash physique or click the link in the show notes to learn more . All right , until next time , keep using your wits lifting those weights and remember smart nutrition is not about restricting yourself . It's about getting more from less . This is Philip Pape , and you've been listening to the Wits and Weights podcast .