Dear editor,Many people believe that calories are the “enemy” since the consumption of excess calories leads to weight gain. That is why most people believe that the fastest way to lose weight is to cut back on calories eaten each day. After all, if a dieter was eating 2,500 calories per day and they decide to cut back to 1,500 calories per day - then obviously not having those extra 1,000 calories has to result in weight loss. Well, actually this is not exactly true. In fact, if you try to cut your calories too much (via starving yourself and skipping meals) then you will quickly reach a dieting “plateau” (a point where the scale refuses to budge any lower no matter how little you are eating). One day you look in the mirror and see that your clothes are not fitting well, and you look more overweight than normal. In addition, on this day you get “angry” with yourself, you are angry at what you see in the mirror - and you decide that you are going to lose weight no matter what it takes. You are filled with lots of motivation on this day, and you feel determined to do whatever it takes to get slimmer. So what’s the first thing you do? You begin skipping meals and cutting way back on calories in an attempt to starve yourself thinner, since you’re convinced that calories are the enemy. This is how you begin your “starvation diet’. Sound familiar! BUTARE
