1. Eat Fat to Lose Fat
Eat Fat? What?
Yep, I know right?! That just does not make sense.
Well, bare with me for a sec while I explain.
Our bodies are the ultimate survival machine. It’s why we are still here after thousands of years of evolution. Survival of the fittest? Nah, it’s survival of the most adaptable.
Whatever we do to our bodies, we adapt to so we can survive. And since our bodies can run on carbohydrates and fats we adapt to those too. So if you primarily eat carbs, you will become better at burning carbs and if you primarily eat fats, you will become better at burning them.
There is a catch, however…
You must be in a calorie deficit to burn fat. So you must be burning more than you are eating.
Being “Fat Adapted” through various enzymic changes in your body now makes it easier to access body fat and consume body fat for fuel.
2. Fat is Insulin Neutral
Every time I think of insulin I can hear myself saying Insulin, Insulin, INSULIN! in the back of my mind like one of the Brady Bunch girls Jan Brady would scream Marcia Marcia MARCIA.
Although insulin is responsible for so many processes in muscle building and glucose transport it is annoying as hell when it comes to burning up body fat. Insulin is a growth hormone and when we are trying to shrink, the less the better.
You see excessive insulin shuts down the fat burning or fat emptying mechanisms on your fat cells and opens up the fat storing mechanisms. This is where eating dietary fats are a benefit.
Dietary fats are insulin neutral meaning that when you eat them they don’t raise your insulin levels at all. This is good when your main goal is fat loss. But again you must be in a calorie deficit to drop fat.
3. Vitamin Absorption
Another big benefit of eating healthy delicious fats is that they are responsible for the adoption of Vitamin A, D, E and K. These are the fat-soluble vitamins.
Vitamin A helps in the growth and repair of body tissues. Protect the membranes of the nose, eyelids, stomach, throat, mouth….. ok everything, it helps everything. Who doesn’t want healthier everything hey?
Vitamin D is valuable in maintaining a stable nervous system, normal heart action and is part of a group of nutrients that maintain bone growth and bone mineralization. In short, if you want strong bones, to be cool calm and relaxed and have a smooth pumping heart you’ll need this.
Vitamin E is composed of a group of compounds called tocopherols. It is a powerful antioxidant and has the ability to unite with oxygen and prevent it from being converted into toxic peroxides ( No, not the badly bleached hair types, I’ll talk about them in another article). This results in your red blood cells being more fully supplied with pure oxygen that gets delivered to your heart and organs. More oxygen in your body means more energy for you.
Vitamin K is the Band-Aid vitamin of the body. It plays a major role in blood clotting. It is also necessary for normal liver function.
Although vitamins aren’t the most fun thing to talk about, these Fat Soluble ones are usually found in the healthy fats themselves. So digging into an avocado with a spoon is now officially a guilt-free experience!
4. A Healthier Brain
Your brain is made up of fat and cholesterol. Having a good amount of healthy fats in your diet directly influences how healthy your brain tissue is which results in a faster transmission of information and neurological output. This is in effect making you smarter.
Also, the good cholesterol your body manufactures from dietary fats causes higher levels of serotonin to be produced. Serotonin makes you feel good.
Get smarter and feel good at the same time? Yeah, I’ll have some of that.
5. Fat Tastes Good!!!
That’s right, fatty foods taste good, they are satisfying and boost your mood. Our tongues have evolved over thousands of years to enjoy what is good for us and hate what isn’t. It is how we have survived on this incredible planet before all the wonders of science.
As humans, we trusted our senses. If it felt good we did it, if it looked good we looked at it and if it tasted good we ate it. Simple.
What was good was subjective to our brains responses to it. If something was good for us our brains said more please and changed the taste buds on our tongues to enjoy it.
