The biggest factor that makes the body resistant to change when it comes to weight loss is the pH levels of how much acid is being dumped into it. The Standard America Diet is 90 percent acidic, consisting of primarily sugar and grains. “No matter what your age, you need to train your body to burn fat as your fuel source, not sugar,” Dr. Daryl Gioffre, Founder of Alkamind and celebrity nutritionist, says.
A lot of people focus on caloric need and start counting calories religiously, but this is a mistake. It’s all about the quality, not the quantity, Dr. Gioffre says. “Each meal should focus on my 80/20 rule of health, where 80 percent or more of the foods you eat are alkaline, and no more than 20 percent acid.” When you look at your plate, it should be primarily made up of dark green leafy vegetables and healthy fats, moderate protein, and little vegetable carbohydrates.
Metabolism is usually the focus of weight loss as people get older. “Anticipation is the key to maintain a healthy metabolism as we age,” Dr. Gioffre says. “If you know your metabolism will slow, but lifestyle choices can have an influence on that, start making changes now. Eat better, move better, and think better, and your metabolism will be better.”
The crucial process slows by 5 percent each decade, and the lack of mobility and the effect it has in the lymphatic system isn’t helping. “At age 35, you’ll burn 100 fewer calories a day than at 25, and 200 fewer at 45.” That could translate to 8-12 extra pounds each year. “This is why as we get older, you need to make better decisions about what you eat and how you move.”
Eating less would be the quickest way to sabotage your health. “Being healthy is not about deprivation, it’s about moderation,” Dr. Gioffre says. “When you deprive your body by eating less, it goes into starvation mode. What does our metabolism want more of when it thinks we are starving? It stores energy. A great source of stored energy is body fat.”
So when you cut back on your diet, your metabolism never knows when it’s going to get its next meal, Dr. Gioffre says. “Because of this, it holds onto body fat, and slows down its metabolism. “Age should not have any bearing on what you need to eat.”
“Gaining weight is an acid problem,” Dr. Gioffre says. You need minerals – the calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium bicarbonate will neutralize the acid, preventing the fat from taking over.
And if you think dairy is OK, think again. Cottage cheese is out of the question, too, according to him. “The milk to make cottage cheese is first pasteurized, not only killing off bad bacteria, but also any possible beneficial components that may have been in the milk, Dr. Gioffre says. Once the cheese milk is prepared, a starter culture is added to generate lactic acid from lactose. “The pH is dropped to about 4.5, which is highly acidic, to allow the casein in the milk cheese to begin to precipitate.”