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Can You Really Be Diet Resistant?

In 1992, a study was conducted on individuals who reported eating less than 1200 calories daily and had bodies that were resistant to losing weight. Researchers set out to explore this phenomenon by asking three key questions:

• Were their bodies kicking into starvation mode?
• Did their bodies process calories differently?
• Was something else going on?

To answer these questions, the researchers brought these individuals into a metabolic ward and used an energy tracking system that involved "doubly-labeled water." This allowed them to track everything exactly: how much energy was expelled via waste, sweat, or breath, and how many calories were consumed.

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The result? Not much! The study found that the subjects with diet resistance (Group 1) had total energy expenditure and resting metabolic rate within 5 percent of the predicted values for body composition, and there was no significant difference between Group 1 and the control group (Group 2) in the thermic effects of food and exercise.

However, the study did reveal something interesting. Subjects in Group 1 drastically underestimated how many calories they were eating by an average of 47%. This meant they thought they were eating 1200 calories, but actually consumed 1800 calories or more. Additionally, Group 1 overestimated how many calories they burned through exercise by 51%. This meant if they thought they had burned 300 calories exercising, they really only burned 200 calories.

Combine these two things and most of us have a massive discrepancy between how much we think we eat, and how much we actually eat.

We Humans Suck at All Sorts of Things!

Life is hard, and we humans aren’t cut out to thrive in a world of abundance. At the same time, we’re pretty bad at quite a few things. But what we’re really good at is crafting narratives.

Our brains will jump through hoops to craft a story that explains why our body doesn’t obey the same laws of thermodynamics as everybody else. It’s similar to the story we tell ourselves about getting older: "Of course I gained weight, my metabolism slowed down when I hit 20/30/40 years old," when science tells a different story.

Our brains are convinced by these narratives far more easily than accepting the uncomfortable reality: if we are trying to lose weight but the scale isn’t going down, we are eating more than we realize.

Self-compassionate Acceptance

If we’re telling ourselves a narrative that we’re broken and progress is hopeless, we can start with self-compassionate acceptance:

• Of course we suck at counting calories!
• Of course we don’t know how much we actually eat!
• We’re not cut out for this type of environment in which delicious, calorie-dense food is always available.

That doesn’t make us a bad person, nor does it mean we need to shame ourselves or beat ourselves up. Instead, we can accept that we’re bad at this (because everybody is), and then adjust our behavior accordingly:

• We can learn how to actually track calories, educate ourselves on actual serving sizes for our favorite foods or meals.
• We can work on eating more nutrient-rich, filling foods that have less calories. Lean protein, fruits and vegetables. It’s quite tough to "overeat" vegetables!
• We can cut back on easily consumed liquid calories and switch to zero-calorie beverages.
• We can use Ulysses Pacts to protect ourselves from…ourselves.

And even then, despite our best efforts, we should accept that we’ll still eat more than we think each day. Not because we’re broken, dumb, or stupid. But because we’re human.

Conclusion

In conclusion, diet resistance is not a myth, but it’s not a biological phenomenon either. It’s a narrative that we tell ourselves to explain why our bodies don’t respond to dieting the way we think they should. By accepting this reality and adjusting our behavior accordingly, we can make progress towards our weight loss goals.

FAQs

Q: What is diet resistance?
A: Diet resistance refers to the phenomenon where individuals report eating less than 1200 calories daily and yet their bodies are resistant to losing weight.

Q: What did the study find?
A: The study found that individuals with diet resistance (Group 1) had total energy expenditure and resting metabolic rate within 5 percent of the predicted values for body composition, and there was no significant difference between Group 1 and the control group (Group 2) in the thermic effects of food and exercise.

Q: Why do people overestimate how many calories they burn through exercise?
A: People overestimate how many calories they burn through exercise because they are not accurately tracking their energy expenditure.

Q: What can I do to make progress towards my weight loss goals?
A: You can make progress towards your weight loss goals by accepting that you’re bad at counting calories, educating yourself on actual serving sizes, eating more nutrient-rich foods, and using Ulysses Pacts to protect yourself from…ourselves.