Weight Loss Myths (Part 2): Drinking less water, skipping breakfast, and exercising will allow you to eat more? These ideas are dangerous.
**You can lose weight even if you drink less water.**
Water is second only to oxygen in its importance to the human body. It is an indispensable element in the body's structure; all tissues contain water, such as blood, which is up to 90% water. Water directly participates in oxidation-reduction reactions within the body; without water, various physiological activities such as blood circulation, respiration, digestion, absorption, secretion, and excretion cannot be maintained. Water acts as a natural lubricant for the body and regulates body temperature, keeping it constant regardless of temperature. A normal adult should drink at least 1500 ml of water daily. Insufficient water intake, or even not drinking water at all, not only fails to achieve weight loss goals but may also cause electrolyte imbalances, and even lead to circulatory failure, respiratory arrest, and death.
In conclusion, relying on reducing water intake to achieve weight loss is highly inadvisable. On the contrary, water is an essential element in the weight loss process. Waste products from fat breakdown and protein residue are excreted from the body through urine, and water is the carrier for these waste products. Furthermore, digestion and normal metabolism depend on water. Moreover, if you engage in daily exercise, you should replenish fluids even more, as sweating during exercise leads to significant fluid loss and can even cause dehydration. While this may result in a temporary decrease in weight, it is merely a manifestation of dehydration. Mistaking excessive sweating for actual weight loss is extremely harmful to the body. The human body needs sufficient water to maintain proper cellular function and maximize energy. Significant water loss without replenishment can lead to dehydration, which can increase the burden on the cardiovascular system and affect physical strength, and in severe cases, cause elevated body temperature, increased heart rate, circulatory failure, and even death. Therefore, when trying to lose weight, you should not reduce water intake; on the contrary, you should increase it.
**Start losing weight by skipping breakfast.**
Many people believe that if you don't eat breakfast, your body will not get any energy; in addition, the work and study tasks in the morning are relatively heavy, which can consume some of the body's energy, so you can achieve a better weight loss effect.
But this isn't the case. After a night's rest, the food from dinner has been completely digested and absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. At this point, the stomach is empty, and the digestive system is ready to receive new food. Because breakfast was skipped, when lunchtime arrives, the intense stimulation of the food's color, aroma, and taste will cause the body to experience a very strong feeling of hunger, leading to unknowingly consuming more food. Skipping breakfast also makes it easier to crave fried and deep-fried foods at lunchtime. Therefore, the consequences of skipping breakfast are actually more alarming than those of eating breakfast.
The digestion and absorption of food follows a regular pattern, which also corresponds to the optimal time for mealtimes. Generally speaking, mixed foods stay in the stomach for 4-6 hours. By following the dietary principle of "eat well in the morning, eat a full meal at noon, and eat less in the evening," and paying attention to controlling the amount consumed at each meal, weight loss can be effectively achieved. Moreover, breakfast plays a crucial role among the three meals. Our brain, in particular, relies solely on blood glucose (glucose) for energy, which is supplied by food and the breakdown of liver glycogen. The amount of glycogen stored in the liver is limited; once depleted, it becomes difficult to supply energy to the brain. Skipping breakfast or having insufficient energy and sugar in the breakfast will lower blood sugar levels. Brain cells will not receive enough glucose for energy, leading to decreased memory and reaction time, poor concentration, and directly impacting learning and work efficiency. Therefore, a breakfast that provides sufficient energy and nutrition is essential to ensure ample mental and physical energy and improve work and study efficiency.
You can eat more as long as you exercise.
Many people believe that it's okay to eat more after exercising, and some even eat a large meal after exercising to replenish their energy. However, high-intensity, short-duration exercises such as static training, weight training, sprinting, and short-distance swimming, while tiring, actually consume very little energy and burn almost no fat, thus failing to achieve weight loss. As for common park exercises like arm swinging, which don't cause sweating or increase heart rate, they also don't contribute to weight loss. Only aerobic exercise can lead to weight loss. Even then, aerobic exercise like swimming burns very limited calories, only about 10 calories per kilogram of body weight per hour. Comparatively, eating less fatty meat is more effective than exercising for an hour. Therefore, to effectively lose weight, a reasonable diet plan must be combined with exercise.
**Sleep less if you want to lose weight.**
For a long time, people have believed that obesity is caused by sleeping too much. However, scientific research has found that people who sleep less than 4 hours a night are 73% more likely to be obese than those who sleep 7-9 hours a night. The probability of obesity is 50% for those who sleep an average of 5 hours a night, while the probability is only 23% for those who sleep an average of 6 hours a night. Therefore, health experts recommend that people maintain 7-9 hours of sleep each day.
People believe that excessive sleep leads to obesity because less energy is burned during rest. Upon waking, however, people tend to eat more because sleep deprivation lowers levels of leptin, a blood protein that suppresses appetite. Leptin affects sensory cells in the brain when the body has consumed enough food. Furthermore, sleep deprivation also leads to the production of a hormone that stimulates appetite.
**Don't quit smoking if you want to lose weight.**
Observations have shown that many long-term smokers often experience varying degrees of weight gain after quitting. Therefore, some people believe that smoking helps burn calories quickly, thus achieving the goal of weight loss.
However, this is actually a misconception. Weight gain after quitting smoking occurs for two main reasons: first, quitting eliminates the harmful effects of nicotine and other substances in cigarettes; second, smokers are constantly surrounded by cigarettes, and once they quit, they often snack to suppress their cravings, leading to increased calorie intake. Combined with a lack of exercise to burn off these calories, weight gain is inevitable. Furthermore, prolonged smoking reduces the sensitivity of one's taste buds, diminishing interest in food and impacting appetite. After quitting, appetite and sense of smell return to normal, resulting in a renewed interest in food, improved appetite, and consequently, gradual weight gain.