Harvard 3-Phase Program for Permanent Weight Loss – Health and Wellness

Dr. David S. Ludwig based his research on how food affects hormones, metabolism, body weight, and well-being.

“Traditional diets don’t work, you have to forget about them.” That’s how Time magazine emphatically described “anti-obesity activist” David S. Ludwig, whose research focuses on how food affects metabolism, hormones, body weight, and well-being. Instead, he explains three phases that we must follow to lose weight and avoid disaster, which he developed in his book Why I’m Always Hungry, in which he also explains the reasons why traditional diets don’t work. In addition, on his website you can check out the weight loss process of some of the patients who follow his methods. “Overeating doesn’t make you fat, it’s that process that makes you overeat. Fat cells play a major role in determining how much weight you gain or lose. Low-fat diets work against you, because they make fat cells supply themselves with more fat.” calories, leaving very little for the rest of the body,” says Ludwig. “This hungry fat sets off a dangerous chain reaction that makes you feel hungry all the time, while your metabolism slows and you end up gaining weight, even if you’re eating less,” he explains.

Overcoming cravings

During this first phase, you should eat a lot of fat, at least 50 percent of your total caloric intake, about 25 percent from carbohydrates and 25 percent from protein. For two weeks all products derived from grains, potatoes and added sugars should be eliminated.

Low-fat diets work against you, because they make your cells provide you with more calories. And, as with all phases of this plan, high-quality proteins are essential. This phase is the strictest, but according to its creator, “it’s nowhere near as low-carb diets and intermittent fasting, whose priorities are to eliminate key nutrients almost completely. You can eat whole, natural carbohydrates such as fruit, legumes or non-starchy vegetables.” says the expert. It is designed to give you a weight loss boost. “There’s really more flexibility, versatility, and adaptation to each other’s preferences in the later phases,” says Ludwig.

Reprograms fat cells

It constitutes the basic diet, which you can return to whenever you want. In this second phase, you should reduce the amount of fat, though not excessively, less by only 10 percent, increase your carbohydrate intake to 35 percent and add brown rice, oats, quinoa or starchy vegetables (not potatoes) and continue with the same proportion of proteins as in The first stage. Overeating does not make you fat, this process makes you eat more” By doing this you will retrain your fat cells so that your weight will gradually decrease until it settles into its new sweet bottom spot. The process can take a few weeks or months (depends on each person) and its initial weight).

Lose weight forever

The goal of this last stage is to discover your body’s unique needs and come up with a plan to follow rather than relying on random dietary recommendations. You can include potatoes, white rice, and bread, though try to ensure that all grains are ground whole grains and that they maintain fiber or whole grains. Eat between 115 and 170 grams of protein in each meal and fill half of the plate with natural foods such as vegetables or non-starchy fruits (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, chard …) and include half a cup of grains or vegetables with starch (potatoes, garlic, green beans .. .) up to three times a day.

confidentiality. –