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Flexible Dieting: What Is IIFYM Diet?

Acronyms play a large role in our lives.

As a matter of fact, most people use acronyms like – ASAP, ETC and LOL – on a daily basis. If you know anything about the fitness world, then you’re aware that in the last couple of years, a certain acronym has taken the industry by storm.

Of course, we are talking about the IIFYM diet.

Now, if you’re wondering what the acronym actually means, here’s your answer – If It Fits Your Macros.  But even if you already knew what the acronym stands for, you’re probably wondering what this diet’s all about anyway?

What IIFYM Actually Is?

In order to break the diet down, you have to know what macro nutrients are. In short, macro nutrients represent the three main food groups:

·         Carbs

·         Proteins

·         Fats

Each of these nutrients plays a specific role in your fitness goals, and your body needs different quantities of each, depending on your metabolism, condition and many, many other factors.

You already know that while conventional dieting will certainly help you lose a few addition pounds, there are some shortcuts you can take. In fact there are some so called “fatty foods” that even fight stomach fat.

The IIFYM diet flies in the face of the notion that someone who wants get in shape; lose some weight and define his or her muscles needs to eat only “clean foods” at precise times throughout the day pre and post workout.

The very idea of this diet is quite simple – you can eat whatever you like, you just need to fill your allotment of carbs, fats and proteins.

The Common Misconceptions

Now, we have to one thing clear – despite what many people would like you to believe, you simply cannot eat whatever you like and get in shape in just a quick few weeks. This is not how IIFYM works.

Logically, if you spend all day eating junk food, you won’t get in shape, no matter how much time you spend in the gym. The biggest problem with sugary threats and fast foods is that they are dramatically deficient in micro-nutrients.

That means that you need to make a balance, because if you indulge in processed foods too much, you can easily develop mineral and vitamin deficiencies, which in turn, can lead to many health problems down the line.

How Does It Really Work?

Finally, we come down to the most important question – how does this diet work? The basic principle of IIFYM is this – you should get somewhere around 80 percent of your daily calorie intake from healthy foods you actually like to eat.

When it comes to dieting, possibly the biggest problem people run into is that point where they can’t stand dry chicken and vegetables anymore. And when you reach that stage, one bite of junk food can lead to an all-out binge.

But IIFYM allows you to avoid this. For example, if you prefer steaks over chicken, just balance your carb intake to allow it. In if you’re worried about the price of healthy food – don’t sweat it – there are many services that allow you to eat healthy on a budget.

Meal-Timing Doesn’t Matter as Much as You Think It Does

Most foods we like to eat tend to be more calories dense, but don’t worry, because you can work them into your diet by reducing your meal frequency. And even though this seems counter-intuitive to some people, reducing the frequency of your meals allows you to increase the size of your meals.

Despite what many nutritionist will tell you, you don’t have to eat a healthy portion of proteins in order to avoid the catabolic state. The truth is, you metabolism won’t slow down a bit if you start eating three meals every day instead of five or seven.

With that in mind, you also need to realize that there is nothing wrong with eating smaller meals – you just need to hit your macro numbers. So if you do it in four meals instead of eight, or even vice versa, it won’t stop your fat reducing process by any means.

The Bottom Line

Once you try the IIFYM, after a quick few days. You’ll definitely see that this approach to dieting is quite liberating. Simply put, it’s far more enjoyable to eat the food you love than try overly-restrictive diets that come with confusing lists of prescriptions.

However, you also cannot abuse your freedom and replace all of your healthy nutrients with junk counterparts, just because your diet allows it. Just keep this in mind – your long-term health hinges on more than your macro nutrient intake. By Monica Nichols

Monica Nichols is one of the most promising writers at www.diet.st and apart from writing her main passion in life is designing clothes. In her free time, she likes listening to jazz and spending time with her boyfriend in their hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.

 

 

 

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