Debunking The Myth Of Eating Less To Lose Weight

One of the biggest myths about losing weight is the idea that you need to eat less in order to shed pounds. New studies have shown that this is simply not the case.  As a matter of fact, it’s just the opposite. Let’s take a look at why you need to eat if you want to lose weight.

The Scientific Benefits of Breakfast

People who eat breakfast on a daily basis tend to lose weight easier. The National Weight Control Registry performed a study that showed people who eat breakfast have a better chance of maintaining a 30 pound, or more, weight loss for at least a year. Studies in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association showed similar results.

Another research group analyzed government data on over 4,000 adults and found those who ate a regular breakfast tended to take in fewer calories during the day and had a lower fat intake. They also noted that regular breakfast eaters were more likely to engage in routine exercise.

Eating breakfast also jump-starts your metabolism, says Elisabetta Politi, RD, MPH, nutrition manager for the Duke Diet and Fitness Center at Duke University Medical School.  She states; “When you don’t eat breakfast, you’re actually fasting for 15 to 20 hours, so you’re not producing the enzymes needed to metabolize fat to lose weight.” In fact, sumo wrestlers don’t eat until late in the day for the sole purpose of gaining weight.  If you don’t eat breakfast, you are actually following the sumo wrestler diet.  Now, that is a scary thought.

Keep Your Metabolism Going All Day

With the right mechanisms in place, your body will naturally burn fat.  But, what are the right mechanisms?  That’s your job;  to find your body’s balance between energy consumed and energy burned.  Metabolism is the name of the game.  When you eat healthy small meals, starting early in the morning, your metabolism is set in full swing, mobilizing and converting fat stores into energy.

When you eat breakfast along with regular snacks and small meals throughout the day, your body gets the nutrition it needs and goes to work, breaking down your food into energy.  If you wait until you’re starving before you eat anything, that gnawing feeling in your stomach is telling you something. Your body will start by robbing your muscle tissue of anything it needs first, like protein, then it will store fat because it thinks it’s in famine mode. By eating early and often, not only are you protecting the muscle that supports your frame and allows you to walk, sit, and stand, but you are also keeping your metabolism going so it works all day to give you energy.

Simple Weight Loss Tips to Get You Started

• Eat slowly. It takes twenty minutes for your stomach to tell your brain you are full.  Don’t eat and run.  You’ll be looking for your next meal way before you need it.
• Pick out foods you need to chew. Try apples, whole grain hearty breads, celery, and other raw vegetables. These foods will slow down your eating and satisfy your chewing instinct. Raw nuts are another option. Just be sure to monitor the serving sizes as you snack.
• Drink 6 to 8 glasses of cold water per day. This helps to feel full and as your body works to raise the temperature of the water, you are burning calories.  Keep bottles of water filled in the refrigerator and sip, sip, sip.
• Eating oranges is much more satisfying than just drinking the juice. Keep this thought when choosing other fruits and vegetables.  Whole is usually better.
• Have a healthy snack before you start cooking dinner. This will help with overeating while preparing the meal, and after.  Munching on celery is the perfect way to keep you satisfied while cooking.

If you need a sweet treat, just remember that frozen yogurt, angel food cake, and sherbet are all low fat.  Low carb diets are low sugar diets, which often forbid fruit.  In this case, one tiny piece of dark chocolate may be an option.  This may leave you satisfied without all the sugar or carbs.  You have to experiment to find the right treat for your sweet tooth that fits your diet.

The less you eat, the more your body protects itself and begins to go into starvation mode, holding on to more food, storing it as fat and robbing your muscles of nutrients. Make sure you eat a good breakfast to start your day right. Then, keep your metabolism working throughout the day with small meals and healthy snacks.

Stop starving yourself so your body can relax and start to lose that weight.  Adding foods instead of subtracting foods?  It’s so crazy it might just work.

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Struggling To Lose Weight? Buy A Belt

Are you struggling to lose weight? Have you tried every diet out there, purchased every book (including this one that’s been on the Amazon Top 100 list for 30 days — The 17 Day Diet) and still nothing.

Well I have a solution for you. Buy a belt.

Yes, it is that simple. Buy yourself a good quality belt, and wear it. Keep it tight, so that when you sit down you feel as if you will burst if you don’t loosen it up a bit.

How does “The Belt” work? Simple, because the belt is tight and you feel like you will burst at the seams you will end up eating less. In fact if you start your meal with a couple of glasses of water you will even feel full!

Any belt will do. It can be the latest haut couture belt, or a plain-jane leather belt. If you are the PETA type, forgo leather and use something man made like rope (though rope is a little more difficult to work with). You could even try synthetic materials!

Basically the belt works by tightening your pants (or whatever you are wearing) and compressing your waist but because your stomach then bulges over top of the pants when you sit you don’t feel like eating because you feel as if you’ll explode.

Also when people see you can’t get into the chair, or if you can get it you can’t move because your stomach is pressed against the table so you can’t even reach your food it will embarrass you sufficiently enough to high-tail it right out of wherever you are.

The Belt. It could work, just try it. You’ve probably already spent a fortune on other diet programs, and books – so why not give The Belt a try?

You can get belts at most major clothing retailers, you might even be able to find some awesome belts on Amazon.

PS: The Belt is not only a great weight loss technique, but it could also count as a weight loss equipment.

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Forget Anti-Aging Creams – Buy A Treadmill

Most anti-aging creams cost a small fortune, so why bother with them? In an article that I read recently, the proverbial “fountain of youth” is the lowly treadmill.

In an article on The Vancouver Sun (click here to read it), researchers have found that the humble, lowly treadmill can actually reverse aging. In mice at least.

Here are some excerpts from that article:

In what could stand as the most powerful evidence yet that exercise prolongs life, a study by McMaster University researchers in Hamilton found that signs of premature aging were halted -and even reversed -in virtually every tissue and organ in the bodies of exercised mice.

The finding, which could be a turning point in anti-aging medicine, suggests the proverbial fountain of youth won’t come from a pill or from an exotic berry from the Amazon, but rather plain old exercise.

Mice genetically altered to age faster were forced to run on treadmills for 45 minutes, three times a week.

Five months later, the mice looked as young, healthy and active as wild-type mice -mice that didn’t have the genetic mutation -while their sedentary and same-aged siblings were balding, greying and shrinking.

Technorati Tags: anti-aging creams, lose weight with a treadmill, treadmills for weight loss, Weight Loss

Diet and Indulge

I am working through my own weight loss, but do respond to e-mails from readers when I can. Around October I got several e-mails asking for strategies to keep away from junk food, and I shared them. But the strategies were only pRt of the solution, the other part is how to put it to practice.

So I developed a way to put some of these strategies to better use and asked those that I was talking with to try them to see if they made any difference. Of course you want to be able to measure success, but when it comes to weight loss you need to take a lot into account. Cutting down food doesn’t mean you’ve cut down calories, you need to exercise (or do something to burn calories) as well.

Back to indulgence. So I proposed this to the small group I was “coaching”:

Eat your snacks, keeping mind of the label. So if one serving is 1/4 cup – stick to it BUT only indulge if you are having your snack (typically it’s junk food, like chips) if you are also having a healthy meal with it.

That was the only rule.

This meant that if you were watching tv and wanted ice cream, cake cookies, chips or any other junk food you could not. You could have chips if you were having a healthy lunch (I did not define what a healthy lunch is, that’s something each individual had to do for themselves), or a good balanced supper you could add something to indulge yourself. Of course the way to lose weight is to eat less food, eat more often, make healthy choices and exercise – so unless you are doing that this strategy that I am sharing will not help you.

So they tried, and they lost weight – but then, I can’t take credit for that because they are already losing weight and all I did was give them one more strategy to use.

What they did say was this:

“Mohamed, your strategy really helped. I had to make a conscious choice every time I went near the pantry for a snack even if it was for crackers or popcorn. I found that I looked forward to a healthy lunch and dinner because the rules said I could indulge myself during those times.”

…and…

“This trick really helped me out! By the time I am done dinner, because I have forged myself on a soup or salad, I don’t want my side snack or indulgence! Instead I ended up snacking smart, like apples, pears, oranges or other fruits or vegetables. I think that with this strategy I will finally be able to kick my junk food habit for good!”

Will this work for you? I don’t know, but what can you lose (besides weight) if you try?

Technorati Tags: lose weight fast, smart snacking, Weight Loss

Eat More Often and Lose Weight – Smart Snacking

As I continue with my weight loss and maintenance goals – yes, you CAN do both there are certain revelations that are made.  They’ve been there all along, and you read about them, hear about them and are told about them but until you can experience it you don’t pay much heed to them.  Human nature.

The one thing that has helped me maintain my weight loss (just over 100 lbs over the last 7 years) is snacking.  I eat a lot.  All the time.  Morning, afternoon and evening.  But not just anything, I eat nutritious food that keeps my hands and mouth moving.  I have a light breakfast, followed by snacks between breakfast and lunch – usually things like carrots, or some cauliflower or even broccoli.  If I’m not in the mood for veggies, it will be fruit or even snack crackers with cheese, or pickles on the side.  I always try and choose snacks that are not high fat and calorie.  Some items will be so I really need to watch how much of that I eat.  For example, I love cheese and crackers.  When I look for these items at the grocery store I frequently look for low-fat cheese and low-fat/salt crackers.  Salt is bad because you retain water, and it can raise your blood pressure.

I also try and keep to a light lunch because I sit all day.  Lunch might be a turkey salad (processed turkey slices because cooking a whole turkey is out of the question as nobody will eat it at home), or just a plain garden salad or any other type of salad.  One of my favourites is something a friend showed me that has some basic greens, some crumbled goat cheese and a home made dressing of olive oil with vinegar.  Delicious!

There are other things you can toss into a salad, such as cut-up and toasted pita slices.  If you want to spice it up you can add some light butter/margarine and sprinkle spices on top or just have it plain.  If you would rather not have crunchy in the salad, just add pita sliced length-wise.  You get your fresh greens, plus some carbs.

Also look at adding something like smoked salmon to your salad.

With a salad, soup always goes best.  Stick to soups which are “watery” like a vegetable soup as it won’t have a lot of fat in it – but keep in mind that most if not all store bought products will be high in salt; that said some companies like Campbells are moving to low-salt soups.  A friend did teach me that adding potatoes to your soup will lessen the salt – I’ve never tried it, so am not sure how well it works.

Between lunch and the end of the day, I’ll do more snacking.  In the afternoon I’ll avoid any type of carbs only because you’ve got longer to go and if you can’t burn it you’ll get groggy.  I’ll usually stick to fruit and vegetables, or a pudding (again looking for low-fat/calorie options), yoghurt or other snacks along those lines.

Something I had a few weeks ago at a restaurant was smoked salmon on baguette with light butter.  You can skip the butter, and use something like melba toast or another crunchy bread – but this was great!  I’ve never had smoked salmon before, and while I couldn’t have this “all the time” once a week or thereabout gives you some variety.

Other snacks to consider are:

• Nuts – very healthy for you, just don’t go overboard!
• Pretzels
• Popcorn

Some other grab ‘n go snack ideas:

• Fresh fruit or individually packed containers of cut-up fruit.
• Raw vegetables including carrots, peppers, zucchini, cherry or grape tomatoes.
• Baby carrots and whole wheat pita triangles with hummus.
• Pumpernickel bagel with peanut butter and banana.
• Fresh, frozen or canned fruit with low fat yogurt or in a smoothie.
• Sweet red, yellow or green peppers and bread sticks with salad dressing or low fat dip.
• Whole wheat tortilla wrap made with salmon or tuna and salad dressing, onions, celery and green peppers.
• English muffin with melted cheese and apple slices.
• Dry mixed cereal and a container of milk.
• Dark green leafy salad with orange sections and almonds.
• Nuts, pumpkin or sunflower seeds.
• Plain popcorn.
• Popsicles made with 100% fruit juice or yogurt (we do this at home – IT’S GREAT even our 7-year old loves it)
• Water, milk, fortified soy beverage or 100% fruit juice.

Snacks should be high in fibre and protein as this will help you feel fuller, for longer.  I enjoy saltines (minus the salt) with some peanut butter on them as well.

Because dinner tends to be heavier than breakfast and lunch, it’s easy to lose control so by snacking throughout the day I’m pretty full by the time I get home so the temptation to binge (ever so delicately) is just not there.

I find that by snacking, having enough water during the day you keep yourself satisfied so dinner doesn’t become like walking through a land mine.

I welcome you to share your stories, and experiences with your weight loss.  I do moderate all comments, to ensure spam doesn’t get through.

Here are a few more tips for you:

• Keep healthy snacks with you. Make it a habit to stash some fruit, whole-grain crackers, or baby carrots in your backpack or workout bag so you always have some healthy food nearby. Half a cheese sandwich also makes a great snack to have on standby.
• Make it interesting. Healthy snacking doesn’t have to be boring as long as you give yourself a variety of choices. Whole-wheat pretzels with spicy mustard, rice cakes with peanut butter and raisins, or low-fat fruit yogurt are healthy, tasty, and easy.
• Satisfy cravings with healthier approaches. If you’re crazy for chocolate, try a hot chocolate drink instead of a chocolate bar. An 8-ounce mug of hot chocolate has only 140 calories and 3 grams of fat. A chocolate bar, on the other hand, has 230 calories and 13 grams of fat. Substitute nonfat frozen yogurt or sorbet for ice cream. If you’re craving savory munchies, snack on baked tortilla chips instead of regular corn chips and pair them with salsa instead of sour cream. Or satisfy salt cravings with pretzels instead of chips.
• Read serving size information. What looks like a small package of cookies can contain 2 or more servings — which means double or even triple the amounts of fat, calories, and sugar shown on the label.

Some resources I found:

• http://epicself.com/nourish/snacking-rules-if-you-do-it-right/
• http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/healthy_snacks.html
• http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-diet/HQ01396
• http://articles.cnn.com/2007-08-03/health/cl.snacking_1_extra-calories-snacks-mini-meals?_s=PM:HEALTH
• http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/using-utiliser/snacks-collations-eng.php

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Side Effects of Weight Loss

For some of us, losing weight is a challenge and once we’ve lost the weight it is a challenge to maintain that weight loss. This happens to the best of them – if you have ever watched The Biggest Loser on television you will know that several former contestants and winners gained back their weight (and they had a team of professionals helping them).

Don’t feel guilty if you gain some weight back, instead use what you have learned to fine tune your diet and get back on track.

But this post isn’t about how to maintain your weight loss, or how to fine tune your eating it is about the side effects of losing weight.

Your clothes fit, right.

Yes that is a benefit of losing weight, your clothes fit. You do not bulge over or hang out. You begin to have a shape, other than round or square.

Clothes are less expensive.

Another great benefit of weight loss. Over the last few months I have lost another 10 – 15 lbs so went from a 58 waist (and pants in the $100.00+ range) down to a 52. Cost of pants, shirts and other items also fell (in addition to the clothes). Yes I have more to go, but if I can trim my professional clothes budget by 10% every few months it adds up to significant savings over the course of a year.

Health improves, and you have more energy.

At one time, when my 7-year old (slim, fit and healthy) son would want me to race him up the stairs, my mind would think about the huffing and puffing, sweating and my weak and sore joints.

Only 3% of weight loss has allowed me to race him to the top of the stairs. I am still huffing, but no weak or sore joints.

Also I wake up fresh every morning. I am not as tired by 8:00pm and can function at 110% at work even on regular 10 hour days (I am a workaholic).

The only side effect of weight loss that I don’t like? I feel cold more often, but then that has to do with not having to lug around extra weight (and insulation).

As I work towards the last 100lbs, I do not mind feeling cold and quite enjoy wearing the latest styles and designs of clothes, suits and sports jackets. Working in a senior management position where I meet with other senior managers, you need to look good – being overweight just does not cut it. That is not to say there are not overweight executives, but they are much fewer.

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Weight Loss Drug Pulled From The Market

I know we are all searching for the magic pill which will help us lose weight, without having to do any exercise, cut back on what we eat or make any lifestyle change.  The fact is that there is no such drug, and it seems that everytime a new drug comes on to the market to do just that – several years later, it’s pulled because of side effects.  The latest drug to hit the roadblock is developed by Abbott Laboratories and the drug that is being pulled is called Meridia or sibutramine.  It’s also marketed under other generic names.

Here is part of the story from Yahoo:

The recalls come almost a year after studies showed the drug increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes in patients with a history of heart disease.

European regulators banned all anti-obesity drugs containing sibutramine in January.

The drug, authorized for sale in 2000, has not been recommended for use in patients with existing heart disease and Health Canada has also warned of the risks associated with the drug, Health Canada said.

“Despite these previous risk mitigation measures, there continues to be concern of an increased risk of heart-related adverse events, particularly as people at risk of cardiovascular disease may not have symptoms,” it said in a statement.

“In light of this concern, and the accumulating scientific evidence on the safety and efficacy of Meridia, it has been determined that the benefits no longer outweigh the risks for this drug.”

A U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel of 16 experts was split Wednesday on whether to enhance labelling and risk management activities or to withdraw the drug completely over the studies’ findings.

The studies behind the recall involved almost 11,000 older, overweight or obese adults with type 2 diabetes or heart disease or both who were randomly chosen to take either Meridia or a placebo and followed for about 3.4 years.

In the group taking Meridia, 11.4 per cent had a heart attack, stroke or died as the result of a heart problem, versus 10 per cent in the control group, a 16 per cent increase.

People taking Meridia also had a 28 per cent higher risk for non-fatal heart attack and a 36 per cent raised risk for non-fatal stroke, compared with those taking a placebo, the researchers found.

What this goes to show that the best way to lose weight fast and safely is through lifestlyle changes, which includes cutting out the junk food and any empty calories (like those found in soda pop or chocolate), opt for healthier foods and choose more fruits and vegetables in your diet.  You will need to exercise - that’s one of the quickest ways to burn fat.  Lifestyle changes mean complete changes – not just one or two, but having to rethink everything that you do.

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Top 7 Fat Busters Revealed

If you have being f-a-t and are anxious for the magic pill to make you thin – I have bad news.  There isn’t one.  But there is something that will help you shed the pounds, and it starts and ends with an “e” – its called exercise.  Best of all – it’s FREE!

Read a great post on CNN the other day and am sharing it here – the Top 7 Fat Busters Revealed…

1. Inline skating – if you can balance on wheels, and enjoy skating then this is the sport for you.  A 30-minute session burns about 425 calories, so if you’re feeling guilty scarfing down the chocolate bar, strap on your skates and head outdoors to burn it off.  The key is then not to go back and scarf down another.
2. Running – ok, for the heavier folks this might be tough – you don’t want to run around with fat jiggling all over the place and you may be in a situation where you have joint problems or back problems.  But if you’re in the condition that you can run – this is something else that is good for you.  30 minutes of running will burn 374 calories.
3. Jumping rope – while I don’t get a thrill from this, and most likely you won’t either, this simple exercise can actually burn 340 calories in 30 minutes!
4. Hula hoops – the only hula hoops I’m doing are the virtual ones, on my Wii Fit.  But still, 30 minutes of this gets rid of 300 calories.  Just like that.
5. Tennis – I really enjoy tennis, and play outdoors when I can or against a wall.  30 minutes knocks off another 272 calories – less than I expected, but every calorie burned is a move in the right direction.
6. Dancing – shake those booties!  Go out there and do the moves and lose 221 calories.  Of course if you’re not willing to do it in public, there are dozens of great games for the Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit that will help you burn the calories.
7. Vigorous walking – my favorite.  Only burns 170 calories in 30 minutes, but its something that I enjoy doing.  You can do it indoors if you have a treadmill, or if you’re a Nintendo Wii fan they actually have a “game” called Walk It Out.  It’s fun, and easy and will not punish your knees.

As with any exercise, you should always check with your doctor since the level of an individuals fitness (even if you are overweight) will vary.

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