A lot of clients often ask me about diary and whether or not they should have it in their diet. Having dairy in a diet can have many benefits when trying to gain weight. However, if you are looking to lose or maintain weight then I highly recommend that you cut it out. There are a lot of faults with dairy from a biological and a nutritional standpoint.
The purpose of diary is not intended for human consumption. This may come off strange for some people who grow up drinking plenty of milk and eating plenty of cheese and ice cream as I did throughout my childhood. It’s for this reason that the idea of cutting out diary seems so foreign to some. Since we all grew up with it in our diets, and for many of us it still is, we have grown accustom to the fact that diary is a part of our diet. Furthermore, we are even lead to believe that dairy is good for us. The classic food pyramid which everyone learns in grade school shows dairy as a healthy source of food. Well I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but the food pyramid is scan if you already didn’t know that.
Dairy doesn’t belong in our diets. The sole purpose of cow’s milk is to take a baby cow and turn it into a big cow. It has no business being consumed by humans. Especially with all of the hormones and unethical feeding of our cows these days, cow’s milk shouldn’t be consumed by humans. But since it’s considered culturally normal, I don’t see this industry going anywhere. Biologically, we are meant to drink our mother’s milk when we are babies then eventually coming off it. After a human is done breastfeeding, that is the last milk they’re meant to have. That’s the way biology is. It’s not natural for a mammal to drink the milk of another mammal.
If that isn’t enough to convince you then the weight loss benefits of cutting out dairy should. Through personal trails and seeing multiple friend and family members benefiting from cutting out dairy, there is no doubt that dairy and weight loss do not go together. Besides that it’s fatty in whatever form it comes it, the hormones contained in dairy should be enough to throw anyone off. Also the fact that the cows it comes from are drastically out of shape, poorly fed, and unhealthy. I’m not sure I would want to that byproduct in my body.
Alternatives to dairy are becoming more and more popular these days. My go-to is unsweetened almond milk but also have enjoyed cashew milk at times as well if you really need a milk substitute. As for cheese, finding a substitute is difficult and not worth it in my opinion. I found that the non-dairy cheeses are not good and simply make me miss out on true dairy cheeses. For that reason I would just cut out cheese altogether.
If you are not as cut-throat with your goals, then I would say just practice moderation. If the idea of cutting out is too extreme, then try cutting back.
Dairy and weight loss do not blend together. It’s still possible to lose weight while on diary. However, if you aren’t seeing the results you want or want quicker results, try cutting out diary completely. You will reach your health goals quicker and feel healthier overall.
Dabbl 