Fat Talk: Fat DOESN’T Make You Fat! Stop the Fat Phobia!

Hello February! This post was inspired by me experiences as a nutrition counselor. I just had to get this off my chest.

99% percent of the people I meet with for nutrition counseling are women. Most of those women are busy, busy moms. Before I actually started nutrition counseling I envisioned my ideal client to be moms because I want to show them that living a healthy living DOESN’T have to take hours and hours of time. It can be easy and do-able and I LOVE to show them how.

I LOVE working with families. I literally love helping husbands and kids eat better and get rid of misconceptions about “healthy” foods like kale, broccoli, whole grains, etc. It makes my heart sing. 

I can pretty easily get people to try different grains, eat breakfast in the morning, incorporate different recipes into their life, but time and time again I work with women who have a phobia that is HARD to break. It’s a FAT phobia. They cannot wrap their heads around eating fat. They’re afraid it will make or keep fat on their bodies.

I, on the other hand, love fat. I live for almond butter in the morning and a serving of avocado throughout the day. I saute in healthy oil and use olive oil in my salad dressings.

There WAS a time in college when I was on the lowfat/ no fat craze, from fat free cheese to Dannon Light n’Fit. I avoided foods like peanut butter and cooked in non-fat spray.  I mean less calories = better for me right?  Wrong. I don’t really remember when I started eating fats again, but I certainly did NOT gain pounds of fat when I started incorporating it into my diet.

The one thing I can tell you: life with fats >life with no fats.  

1.  First of all, meals with healthy fats taste better! Having a little bit of olive oil or a small amount of full fat cheese rocks. Your taste buds will be happy AND you will eat less because you will be more satisfied with the taste.

2. Good fats support your heart and overall health. I’m NOT talking trans fats, I’m talking monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, they help lower cholesterol and reduce your risk of heart disease.

3. A “fat-free” label doesn’t mean you can eat all you want . Many fat-free foods are high in sugar, refined carbohydrates, and calories.

4.  Fats slow down your food absorbtion. You will be more satisfied and stay fuller longer.

5. Healthy fats provide optimal hormone production and balance within the body and are essential for the muscle building and fat burning processes. (AKA…you WANT THIS!)

6. Fat has MANY benefits. It keeps our skin healthy, enhances our immune system, stabilizes blood sugar and prevents diabetes. Good fats benefit our heart, normalize our blood fats and cholesterol, and prevents cancer.

Try extra virgin olive oil, raw nuts, avocado, nut butters, olives, salmon, coconut oil, tuna, chia seeds, hemp seeds and ground flax for some healthy fats. Fat ISN’T going to make you fat OR keep your unwanted weight on!  (source)

Some reading material: Is Dietary Fat a Major Determinant of Body Fat?

Nourished Magazine: Take the Fear Our of Eating Fat

What’s your take on this? Do you eat healthy fats? Do you avoid them like the plague?

Tagged as: eating, fat, fitfluential, health, healthy fats, nutrition counseling, phobia