When it comes to It diets, no sooner is the Keto diet the new Paleo than someone else is talking about counting your macros as the holy grail of weight loss.
But the latest It regime – the CICO Diet, which has found fame in recent weeks via Reddit – is in fact a classic weight loss method in disguise.
Serving as an acronym for ‘calories in, calories out’, CICO has been touted as ‘the diet to follow’ by Redditors, but not everyone is convinced.
FEMAIL spoke to Sydney-based dietitian and nutritionist, Lyndi Cohen, to find out whether CICO is safe or sustainable.
The CICO diet (calories in, calories out) may be a classic weight loss method, but it has found fame again in recent weeks, after people on Reddit eulogised its benefits (stock image)
FEMAIL spoke to Sydney-based dietitian and nutritionist, Lyndi Cohen (pictured), to find out whether CICO is safe or sustainable – and what her advice is for would-be dieters
While advocates of the CICO regime argue that it doesn’t matter what you eat, provided you create a calorie deficit each day, Lyndi Cohen (pictured) said there is a huge margin for error
While advocates of the CICO regime argue that it doesn’t necessarily matter what you eat, provided you create a calorie or kilojoule deficit each day, Lyndi Cohen said there is a huge margin for error with such an approach:
‘With calorie counting, you can make many mistakes,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘When people calorie count, they often stop counting nutrients and instead just look at the numbers.
‘This can mean they end up eating junk food, provided it meets their calorie allowance for the day.’
Ms Cohen also said that when people ‘undercut’ their calories or eat less, their bodies go into ‘starvation mode where your body just starts to eat muscle’ (stock image)
‘CICO might be weight loss 101, but it’s not sustainable,’ Ms Cohen argued – adding that such an approach will have a ‘high rebound rate’
Ms Cohen also said that when people ‘undercut’ their calories or eat less, their bodies go into ‘starvation mode where your body just starts to eat muscle’:
‘It’s ironic, because a diet like the CICO diet tries to encourage balance, but it really doesn’t,’ she explained.
‘Instead you become obsessed with numbers – both the numbers of calories and foods and the numbers on the scales. You might feel guilty when you eat the wrong thing.
‘CICO might be weight loss 101, but it’s not sustainable. People who cut calories and lose weight think they’ll be able to eat normally again afterwards, when it actual fact cutting calories means it needs to keep happening.
‘Such an approach might work temporarily, but it’s got a pretty high rebound rate.’
For Lyndi Cohen, the most important thing to do when trying to shift weight is to fill up on ‘fruit and vegetables, and balance your meals with carbs, protein and fat’ (stock image)
So what should you do if you want to lose weight, but don’t want to fall into a calorie-counting trap?
For Lyndi Cohen, first of all, don’t think about calories first, but instead fill up on ‘fruit and vegetables, and balance your meals with carbs, protein and fat’:
‘Plan ahead and meal prep to ensure you don’t have to eat unhealthy things on the go,’ she added.
‘Take care of your hunger by having small, nutritious snacks on hand such as cut-up fruit and vegetables, nuts and things with you so you’re never caught out.’
Ms Cohen concluded by saying that you have to remember ‘all diets work, but many of them are not sustainable in the long term, which is why people always end up on another one’.
For more information about Lyndi Cohen and her Keep It Real programme, which aims to overhaul people’s attitudes to healthy eating once and for all, please click here.