Why calorie density is the secret to sustainable weight management

Have you heard of the concept of calorie density?

It's a way of eating that allows you to eat till you're satisfied, rather than restricting food or going hungry !!

To start this post, we wanted to make it clear that we do NOT promote weight loss as a main health goal, as we take the approach that focusing on health instead of weight is best, as this is what the evidence supports.

Yet one of the most common questions people also ask us is how they can lose extra weight in a healthy sustainable way - so we'd far rather give reliable advice than have people be convinced they need to follow restrictive diet plans that don't work….

Weight loss is highly complex, and there really is no ‘magic bullet’ - things like genetics, medications, and environment can all play as much of a role as food and exercise. Anyone who promises to help you ‘lose weight fast’ is just selling a crash diet , which are one of the worst things you can do for your health - as these are highly restrictive, impossible to sustain longterm, and tend to end up causing more weight regain in the long run!

The evidence strongly shows that ‘diets’ do not work, and instead focusing on balanced enjoyable eating patterns is best. So we do not sell ‘diet plans’ or prescribe specific diets - instead we aim to teach you how to eat well, to promote health and wellbeing, and to find foods to support your nutrition that you actually like.

One of the biggest factors in maintaining a healthy eating pattern is making it enjoyable and sustainable - rather than restrictive and difficult - as this is what will help you maintain it in the long run.

Yet many diets use calorie counting as a way to lose weight, but it's complex, time consuming, and saps the enjoyment out of food - making food into numbers rather than an experience to savour.

So in lifestyle medicine we focus instead on positive eating - including as many tasty nutritious foods in our diet as we can!! And balancing this with what our body actually needs, to stay well.

We do need a certain amount of calories for energy, to keep us alive and fuel movement.

But on the flip side, eating more calories than what our body actually needs can potentially have negative health effects - as excess energy is stored as fat (including dangerous 'visceral fat' around our organs), and can also affect hormones, inflammation, metabolic health and more.

We tend to eat a similar volume of food each day and each meal as the stretch receptors in our stomach tell us when we are full.

Yet Western diets have become progressively more calorie dense over the last few decades, due to more ultraprocessed foods high in fat and sugar, and animal products. These foods tend to make us far more likely to overeat, as they do not trigger fullness cues and hormones effectively, and instead ‘trick’our minds into eating way too much.

Ultraprocessed foods are also deliberately designed to be addictive and make us want to eat more - making it incredibly difficult to not overconsume them 😯

In contrast plants tend to be very low in calories yet high in nutrients, meaning they contain less calories per gram of food and are nutrient rich- so eating more plants means you consume less calories, but still feel full and nourish your body!!

The concept of nutrient vs calorie density is aiming to eat foods that are highly nutritious, keep you full, help you feel well, but contain less calories per gram, to help make sure you only eat the calories your body actually needs. In essence this is actually the same as the healthy eating guidelines promoted worldwide - aiming to eat whole foods, mostly plants, and balancing your meals (with 50% of your meals being veges and fruit, 25% being protein, and 25% being whole grain carbohydrates).

Research also consistently supports this - people who follow a predominantly plant based whole food diet tend to carry less excess weight than people who eat a more calorie dense animal based diet, and also have lower rates of the chronic diseases related to excess weight (type 2 diabetes, heart disease, inflammation, dementia etc).

The science also shows that foods high in fibre result in a more effective hunger response - ie they make us feel full, while being lower overall in calories, so we are far less likely to overeat. For example one study provided research subjects with a plant based burger vs a beef one - both of them contained exactly the same calories and macronutrients. Both groups were told to eat until they felt full - and people who were given the plant based burger tended to eat far less calories while still feeling satisfied, due to the lower calorie density and higher fibre content of the plant burger.

Plants are also key for a healthy gut microbiome - another significant factor in weight maintenance!

So for sustainable weight management using the calorie density principle, here are some of our top tips:

✔️ pay attention to hunger cues - try to only eat when you're actually hungry, and stop when you feel full. This doesn't mean you can't eat for enjoyment and celebrations as well (as these are also important parts of nutrition) , but paying attention to your hunger cues at these times too can also help avoid overeating and feeling bloated and stuffed. Food is far more enjoyable if you feel good after eating it as well!

✔️order your meals - starting with a soup, salad, or veges fills you up, and helps avoid blood sugar spikes, due to their fibre content. Many traditional cultures serve veges or soups as an entree, it's also a great way to get those extra servings of veges in (hint - it can work for hungry kids too!)

✔️don't drink your calories - sweet drinks contain lots of calories, yet don't fill you up (this includes fruit juices). While they're OK as a treat from time to time, try to make water or unsweetened herbal teas your drink of choice for hydration.

✔️dilution is the solution - fill half your plate with non starchy veges and some fruit, 1/4 with legumes/whole grains /starches, and 1/4 with protein. This keeps you satisfied and healthy, but lowers the overall calorie density. Its also in line with recommended healthy eating guidelines, and helps you get enough veges, fruit, protein and healthy carbs.

✔️be aware of fats and oils, they are part of a balanced diet but are calorie dense, so eat in small amounts!

✔️limit calorie dense foods ie high fat foods, processed carbs, and have them as extras, not your main meal. If you aim to fill your plate with veges and high fibre foods (as above) then add calorie dense foods at the end it makes this easy!

✔️try not to food shop or cook while starving - food marketing is highly effective at triggering food cravings for ‘junk’foods (and these cravings can even affect our blood sugar!), so heading to the supermarket when hungry makes it very hard to resist reaching for those bags and chips. Similarly if you cook while very hungry you are more likely to serve yourself bigger food portions than you need. Instead try having a healthy snack prior, such as a handful of mixed nuts and a piece of fruit - it makes life much easier!

If you combine these principles with regular physical movement, getting enough sleep, keeping stress at a manageable level, and being aware of alcohol intake, you'll create the perfect environment to help you stay healthy and well 💙