What would it be like to eat a burger, chocolate, wine or ice cream from time to time and still not lose weight? Does it sound like a beautiful dream or a wish of people who want to lose weight? Now try to imagine that this dream can come true and that you can eat whatever you want. Of course, there is a little trick. Namely, you have to include everything in the macronutrient set and think about what specific foods you can eat. So, if you are willing to get over this minor discomfort, we can start by introducing the IIFYM eating style, the same method as our sexy escort girls use!
What does IIFYM mean?
To best understand the principles of this food style, we need to start with the basics and introduce you to the basics. Let’s start with what lies behind the mysterious acronym IIFYM. It comes from “If It Fits Your Macros “. Therefore, it expresses that a person can eat any food he wants, only if it falls within the intake of macro-nutrients.
Later in the article, you will find out more about the possible disadvantages of this style. IIFYM was not created as a new type of diet. Escort girls working with our Escort Agency first used this acronym on their discussion forums when they wanted to indulge in something “forbidden”. This name was then passed on to the general public.
What are macronutrients?
To give you an overview, we’ll talk about macronutrients. In general, we distinguish three essential macronutrients, namely proteins, carbohydrates and fats.
1. Proteins
Proteins are macronutrients that support bone health, build muscle mass, and protect muscles during dieting. Therefore, it is not surprising that this is vital for athletes. Higher protein intake is often recommended during weight loss because of the benefits mentioned above and the higher saturation and high heat effect, which refers to the energy the body needs to process nutrients. Depending on their type, the thermal effect is between 20-30% for proteins. This means that out of 100 calories, only about 70-80 kcal are absorbed into the body. Energy value of one gram of protein: 4 kcal.
Protein sources:
• meat, fish
• eggs
• quark, yoghurt, cheese, and other dietary products
• vegan meat substitutes (tofu, tempeh, seitan)
• pseudo-cereals (buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa )
• legumes (lentils, beans)
• nuts and seeds
• protein powder ( whey, herbal )
• protein bars, protein cookies, etc
2. Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are another primary macronutrient. They are generally known as a source of energy for the body. Most carbohydrates break down into glucose before entering the bloodstream, which the body uses to produce an energy-carrying molecule called ATP (adenosine triphosphate). It is then used for various metabolic tasks, such as regular daily activities or athletic performance. Although the body can also use fats to produce the energy needed to perform, such as ATP synthesis, most cells prefer carbohydrates as their primary energy source.
As for the thermal effect of carbohydrates, it is somewhere between 5-10%.
Energy value of one gram of carbohydrates: 4 kcal.
Carbohydrate sources:
• whole grains (oatmeal and spelt flour, flour, rice, pasta, pastries)
• pseudo-cereals (buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa)
• white or sweet potatoes
• legumes (lentils, chickpeas, beans)
• fruits and vegetables
3. Fats
The last essential macronutrient is fat. Like carbohydrates, they are essential energy sources and help support cell growth. In addition, fats protect the organs, help maintain body heat, and are needed to synthesise hormones, including testosterone—even vitamins – A, D, E, K, which are fat-soluble. In case of insufficient intake of fats, you may have a problem with their absorption. Energy value of one gram of fat: 9 kcal.
Fat sources:
• seeds, nuts and peanut butter
• butter, ghee and oils (sunflower, olive, pumpkin)
• olives
• avocado
• fat, which is a natural component of animal protein (for example, beef fat)
5 advantages of IIFYM
1. You will get an overview of the composition of food macronutrients
If you decide to follow IIFYM, you will need to write down the calories in specific applications, such as MyFitnessPal. It already contains the list of default foods you need to add. On the other hand, you can write your energy value for the foods you enter. In this way, you should try to eat a predetermined amount of macronutrients and thus get 100% protein, carbohydrates and fats. You have to be more discriminating with the help you render toward other people.
These things may be fun; for others, they may not be the same. After a while, you will appreciate the size of the portions, and the process will become faster and more automatic. Maybe because of the food notation, you will discover some hidden calories that you had no idea about until now.
2. You have the freedom to choose your food
” I can’t have dinner with you tomorrow, I’m trying to lose weight, and I have to follow my diet.” You will never have to say that phrase again. It will undoubtedly be flexible if we characterize IIFYM in one word. This is a crucial aspect that many people appreciate. It would help if you did not avoid social events. You can eat any food you want, but all you have to do is include it in your intake, write it down and adjust other meals about it during the day. The advantage is that most of the dishes of some famous restaurant chains have nutrition information available to the public.
For example, suppose you serve a double Burger King Whopper, weighing about 900 kcal, 50 g of carbs, 56 g of fat, and 35 g of protein. In that case, you’ll probably realize that you need to cut back on fat when you have other daily meals.
Instead, if you opt for a McDonald’s wrap with grilled chicken, you will provide the body with 350 kcal, 41 g of carbohydrates, 10 g of fat and 26 g of protein, which could be a reasonably balanced meal. This will make it easier for you to estimate your intake and know if you need to limit yourself to other meals you have during the day. And in addition, you can choose something else or share the meal with someone to make sure it fits your macro-nutrients.
3. You’ll get rid of the “all or nothing” mentality
Have you ever tried to lose weight, but your efforts were wasted by a party where you served a piece of cake and then gave up the plan and ate everything on the table? This will not happen again now. With IIFYM, there are no more prohibited foods that could violate your eating plan. All you have to do is keep track of their amount so that you have enough macro-nutrients for the rest of the day. From now on, you can enjoy any food.
Thanks to IIFYM, you no longer have to be afraid of social events with a lot of irresistible food that would not fit into your eating plan. As we all know, the forbidden fruit is always the sweetest, so such cravings may no longer haunt you. In addition, the results of the studies show that you will enjoy food more if you do not regret it.
4. It can help you fight eating disorders
We are not trying to claim that IIFYM is the exact solution to eating disorders. People who suffer from eating disorders are usually characterized by an unhealthy relationship with food, such as the fear that they will gain weight even after a small number of unhealthy foods. In case of such a disease, the affected person should discuss it with the specialist about the health condition. However, IIFYM can help a person realize that nothing will happen if they eat other foods than usual.
5. The approach will be sustainable in the long run
Were the various diets tried in the past sustainable for you in the long run? Probably not, since you’re not following them now and you’re looking for another way to lose weight permanently. A diet that prevents you from eating your favorite foods is not a long-term solution. And abstinence from your favorite products doesn’t work until you start shedding the unwanted pounds.
You certainly won’t last long with such an approach, and if you reach your dream weight, you may experience the yo-yo effect that comes right after you return to your previous eating habits. And the result? You may gain not only weight but also gain a few extra pounds. With IIFYM, you don’t have to look forward to eating a slice of cake in a few months, but you can incorporate it into your diet from the first week. Your loved ones may never know that you have started a new eating style, so you should avoid any comments that might discourage you from eating.
3 disadvantages of IIFYM
1. You can become a slave to calories
Of course, it is not a bad thing to know what the food contains. If you are a perfectionist, you may quickly start overthinking about every calorie and every gram of a certain macro-nutrient. But is it essential to eat precisely 83 grams of apple and throw away the rest? In time, you will know how much each food contains. Some may find these values informative, but if you feel that you may be enslaved to numbers, IIFYM may not be suitable for you.
It will probably take you a long time to get started, you may not like counting your macro-nutrients, and you may even find it annoying. Of course, it’s good to know that protein is found in meat, but you don’t have to worry about the exact number. If you don’t like counting calories, there are many other ways to lose weight effectively without stress about numbers.
2. There is a risk of developing an eating disorder
This point is quite closely related to the previous one. As already mentioned, each coin has two parts. For some, IIFYM may teach them to eat the food they previously feared; for others, counting macronutrients and calories may be a new obsession that will lead to an unhealthy relationship with food. The link between food scoring in fitness applications and the development of eating disorders has been scientifically confirmed. Another study found that 73% of women surveyed with an eating disorder found that counting macronutrients in food contributed to the development of the disease.
3. Estimating the weight of food can ruin your progress
If you eat mostly at home, prepare your food and use IIFYM, it should be easy to weigh everything. However, problems may arise if you start using IIFYM but do not want to give up, for example, daily lunches in restaurants. Of course, it is possible to lose weight even if you eat in the city. Let’s be honest, though, do you dare to estimate how many grams of rice, meat and sauce the dish ordered in a restaurant at the beginning of the road with IFFYM contains?
Try a home test
Ask someone to give you a food serving and estimate how many macronutrients it contains. You may be surprised that your values will differ by a few hundred grams from the actual ones, which will be detrimental to your daily caloric intake.
Of course, you can take a scale in the restaurant to weigh the dishes, but certainly, this approach will not lead to a healthy relationship with food, so there is no need to overdo it. This is important only for athletes just before the competition, but they probably will not eat in restaurants at that time, where they would not have 100% control over food.
So, if you want to eat in the city right from the beginning of your experience with IIFYM, try to choose a restaurant that indicates the weight of the food on the menu, which will help you estimate the portion easier. Another option is to order food at home, where you can use the scale without looking weird, leaving for another family member the rest of the portion that would significantly exceed the macro-nutrients. Unfortunately, the energy balance is relentless. Just because you didn’t write down food information in your app doesn’t mean you haven’t eaten it. Think about it and try to be as accurate as possible.