What should I eat on Mounjaro? Thinking beyond calories

Most of us know the basics of a healthy diet. But did you know that calories are not the most useful way to measure what you eat: even when it comes to weight loss? 

The latest weight management science shows it’s actually far more helpful to consider the nutrient content of your food. It might even be that our bodies are craving those nutrients, which causes us to overeat in the first place. This actually makes healthy eating far easier, because you don’t need to track or count anything! 

When focusing on nutrition, it’s as simple as avoiding packaged and processed foods, and instead choosing fresh foods – things that you can recognise as coming from an animal or a plant. Eating fewer sugary foods is also a very good idea, including ‘empty carbohydrates’ like bread, pasta and flour products. This is because these break down into sugar in your digestive system, without giving you much in the way of other nutrients.

Meat, fish, eggs, vegetables and some fruit are the basics of a healthy diet. Nuts are also good, full fat dairy too (if you can tolerate dairy), and also natural fats like real butter (yes, really!) and olive oil. We often tell patients that if it needs a traffic light symbol on it, to explain whether it’s healthy… it probably isn’t!

Cooking and preparing food from scratch is also wonderful, if you can. But don’t worry – if cooking isn’t your thing, you can use our coaching sessions to discuss ways to eat more healthily without spending lots of time in the kitchen!

TOP TIPS

Prioritise protein (eg. meat, fish, eggs, tofu, some dairy) at every meal. We can’t store it in the body so we need to eat it every day. Eating enough protein can also maintain your muscle mass. This will protect not just your strength, but also your metabolism going forwards. 

Keep up your fresh veg. Vegetables give you lots of micronutrients: important nutrients that your body needs for health, in small amounts. They also offer fibre, which is good for your gut bacteria and for avoiding constipation.

Avoid alcohol. Sorry to be a party pooper! But alcohol can stop you from losing weight. Your body sees it as a fuel source, and a toxic one, so it will burn it out of your system first: before any other food, and before burning your stored fat. The simplest solution to this is to avoid alcohol while you’re trying to lose weight. 

Drink plenty of water. Headaches are common on these weight loss medications. Keeping an eye on water intake can help. Staying hydrated will also help with bowel movements. The good news? Tea and coffee do count towards your water goals!

Make the best choices when you’re eating out. Our food environment can have a huge impact on our health. So when you go out for a meal or enjoy a takeaway, try to make the best choices as often as possible, prioritising fresh protein and veg if you can.

But above all… be kind to yourself. This is a time in your life that you’re focusing on you. You’ve made a great commitment to yourself and to your health, but go easy. Research suggests that small changes to your health, embedded over time, add up to a big difference. If you’re interested, read Atomic Habits by James Clear to see the power of making small, consistent changes. It’s amazing!