Magically Delicious?

It's MAGIC! That's what some people would have you believe about certain foods. You've heard of them before I'm sure – food that actually MAKE you lose weight! Everything from grapefruit to celery have been grouped into this category and I suspect many a person have made a pretty penny (or thousands) telling us all about it.

Folks, I'm here to tell you there is no such thing as Negative Calorie Food! That's an oxymoron of the likes of “jumbo shrimp,” “Dodge Ram” and “Holy War.” It just doesn't make sense. Food, by its nature, has calories.

Admittedly, the essence of most of the arguments are somewhat true (if not quite a bit off base). Celery for instance. The argument is that you burn more calories chewing it than are actually in it. Guess what? IT'S TRUE (please keep reading before you go buy a cart load). The net “negative calories” from chewing a stalk of celery is about 10 calories. You can eat yourself skinny? Puh-leeaasse!

Given that there are about 3500 calories in a pound, you'd need to eat 350 stalks to lose 1 lb. But even that probably wouldn't work because of the kind of calories you'd be putting into your system (namely celery calories). We won't go into detail on this one, but your body is not going to thank you for it and it is likely to have an overall negative impact on losing weight (I guess, in that way, it is a “negative” calorie food).

The bottom line is that some of these foods might make good snacks, but quite frankly most fruits and vegetable make good, low calorie snacks. There is nothing magical about certain ones.

Don't look for magic beans (or celery or grapfruit or whatever). Weight loss takes really serious commitment, exercise, and a well planned and monitored diet...and there's nothing magical about that. It is hard work – but it is SO worth it!

Mid-week check in and I've lost another 3 lbs. That's a total of 30 lbs so far. I've gone down one shirt size and lost about 3 inches in my waist.

I'll be on hiatus for a few days. So, in the meantime. Keep at it and use the time to think about what other fitness related topics you want to know about...and then let me hear from you!

Crunch Time?

Crunches\Sit-ups will not help you lose weight around your tummy...at least not any more than push-ups or many other exercises.

There is a long standing myth that if you want to lose that belly, you need to do more sit-ups. I can not tell you how happy I would be if that were true, but the reality is: targeted weight loss (weight loss that focuses on one specific "problem area") is a scam.

The reason for this is pretty simple actually. When your muscles burn fat (that's a big part of their fuel) they don't just burn it from the fat closest to them. Your body is a fully integrated system. When muscles burn fat, it comes from all over.

Crunches\Sit-ups ARE a great exercise. When you exercise you want to get as many muscles as possible involved and there are a lot of muscles in your mid-section. And...that washboard abs look is achieved (in part) by doing crunches. The problem is, you can actually have washboard abs but they can be covered by fat if you aren't living a healthy lifestyle.

The trick to losing belly fat is the exact same trick to losing ANY fat. Exercise (build muscle, keep your resting metabolism up) and eat a healthy diet (very little bad fats, sugars and enough protein, vitamins and fiber).

For many of us, when we start a weight loss program some of our belly goes first (probably sub-cutaneous belly fat), but that last bit (probably visceral fat) seems to be the hardest to get rid of. The trick is, just like before when you hit plateaus (I still can't believe that's the way to spell that), trust your system.

Also, now that you are in better shape, it might be time to step up the interval training a bit. So, try short bursts of whatever exercise you are doing followed by a recovery period of exercise. In other words, if you are jogging in place (a great weight loss exercise), try doing a 45 second burst of energy every 5 minutes and then resume your normal jogging pace. This has lots of health benefits, but the one I like best is that it is a very good way of encouraging your body to burn visceral fat.

So, it's not that crunches are bad – they are actually good! They just might not be doing what you think they are!

Keep at it – you can do this! And let me know what fitness tip you'd like to know about!

What Do You Want?

My message at church today (don't worry I"m not going to give you a sermon here) was “Wisdom vs. Truthiness” and I looked at how God delights daily in wisdom. As I prepared for it, I came across a story that I didn't use, but thought it would be great for this blog.

It's a story about a proud young man who came to Socrates asking for knowledge. He walked up to the muscular philosopher and said, "O great Socrates, I come to you for knowledge."

Socrates recognized a pompous numbskull when he saw one. He led the young man through the streets, to the sea, and chest deep into water.

Then he asked, "What do you want?"

"Knowledge, O wise Socrates," said the young man with a smile.

Socrates put his strong hands on the man's shoulders and pushed him under. Thirty seconds later Socrates let him up. "What do you want?" he asked again.

"Wisdom," the young man sputtered, "O great and wise Socrates."

Socrates crunched him under again. Thirty seconds passed, thirty-five. Forty. Socrates let him up. The man was gasping. "What do you want, young man?"

Between heavy, heaving breaths the fellow wheezed, "Knowledge, O wise and wonderful..."

Socrates jammed him under again Forty seconds passed. Fifty. "What do you want?"

"Air!" the young man screeched. "I need air!"

"When you want knowledge as you have just wanted air, then you will have knowledge."

...The question is “what do you want?” The last time I lost a lot of weight my parents were talking to me about it. I told them that I had arrived at the conclusion that losing weight (particularly a LOT of weight) is only for those who really, REALY want it. Sort of like the guy in the story wants air. Otherwise, you set yourself up for mild success and ultimate failure, and let's face it, we overweight people tend to feel bad enough about our weight; we certainly don't need something else to feel bad about!

You have to need it. That's what's going to give you the determination to exercise diligently, put down foods with wasted calories (like cake, chips, and yes even salad dressing), and say a polite “no thank you” when offered an extra adult beverage or bowl of ice cream.

Wanting it is not quiet enough. Lot's of us fat people WANT to lose weight. Self-help guru Tony Robbins would say that if you want something you are ensuring exactly that – that you'll continue to want it. You have to be determined to get it. It's the mindset of needing it and determination to have it that will ultimately work.

I can't help but quote Yoda here as well. when it come to weight loss, "Do or do not. There is not try."

Lost one more pound! That's five for the week - 27 total!

Seriously, let me hear from you! What would you like to know more about?

Why You Stressin'?

You have probably heard it said that stress causes you to gain weight. Those of us who eat to deal with stress have no doubt that it is true, but those who can't eat when they are stressed probably think the whole idea sounds a bit nutty.

The reality is our bodies actually are wired to get fatter under stress (we'll talk about why in a minutes). For those of us trying to use our natural external response to stress (over or under eating) to argue for or against stress having a role in weight gain, I'd just ask you to pause for a minute and think about it. It is not the actual stress that is making you gain or lose weight – its the over or under eating!

What I'm talking about is much more diabolical than that. It relates to all kinds of stressors. It can be the stress of life, the bodily stress of an internal injury or even the stress put on your body from under-eating or fasting. (I know - it seems odd that that fasting can make you gain weight...that's because it can't).

The reality is the concept that stress cause you to gain weight is sort of true...but not really. What I mean is (while certain stress might make you gain weight) what stress really does is increase the amount of fat produced by the body, which deceases its ability to burn fat and increase its desire to make more fat.

It's a primative instinct of the body. A long, long time ago (in a land far, far away), stress was primarily an indication of threat (come to think of it, it really is sort of the same thing now) and in the face of threat the animalistic instinct is simply survival. One of the keys to survival is sustenance. So, when stressed our bodies start converting more of the food that we eat over to fat in order to have something stored up for the tough times in order to insure survival. So, while it is possible that you are still loosing weight while stressed out – it is very likely that you are also becoming less fit because you are increasing your Body Mass Index.

So, stress is evil. It's that simple. Stress can kill a fitness program – and you may not even know it is happening. What can you do? Well...(your going to LOVE this), one of the VERY best ways of relieving stress is exercise! (I told you that exercise is more important than diet!).

Other things that will help: Support group; don't keep it inside, talk with family and friends. (First walk it out, then talk it out). Laugh: a lot, even at things that aren't that funny – maybe even the thing you are stressed about. Sleep more. Slow down; maybe yoga is for you (it's not for me...so maybe its for you...it's gotta' be for somebody). Take a few really deep breaths; you'll be surprised what a little extra oxygenated blood will do for you. Finally, learn to let go of the things you can not control; try using my mantra for such occasions which came from my Benedictine Monk Spirituality Professor, “It is what it is.”

Dropped another 2 lbs – that's 4 for the week so far! 26 total.

Let me hear from you. What do you want to know more about.

And keep at it – you can do this!

Die Diet, Die!

Diets don't work. Really. Sure you can lose weight with diets, but making your diet your primary focus (which is what diets do – hence the name), does not address the problem.

Look at it this way, if (before they were outlawed) your neighbor had tossed a Lawn Dart that inadvertently crossed your shared fence and landed directly in your noggin and you went to the doctor and his or her solution was simply to shoot your head full of Novocain and then send you home – well let's just say I am quite certain you'd never be going back to that quack again. Yet, we go back to diets over and over again, even though each time we only receive temporary fixes that don't address the real issues at hand.

Much like the doctor who treats the symptom (pain in the head) rather than the issue (there is a lawn dart sticking out of your head), we treat the symptom (weighing too much) rather than the real issue (unhealthy lifestyle and bodies that are bad fat burners) when we go to diets over and over again, only to never quite lose all the weight we needed to lose and frequently gaining much of it, if not all of it, back.

We don't need Novocain (diets) to mask the issue and when we make a particular “diet” the primary way we lose weight, that is actually what we are doing. We are probably losing some weight, but in the end we are not transforming our bodies into lean bodies – just lighter bodies.

You can not permanently become a skinny person on a diet. End of story. Diets do not produce muscle. Worse yet overweight people actually store up more fat from the calories they do eat than skinny people (I know, I know – life is very cruel). You need to change your body to that of a lean person not a lighter person. You need to be treating the real issue not the symptom.

There is only one way to do this. Exercise. Plenty of skinny people, while not over weight, are over fat...because they don't exercise. Even blessed with naturally high metabolism, they are very unhealthy because their Body Mas Index (indicator of body fatness) is high and it is always a big surprise to friends when they have heart problems. A diet will not fix that situation. Exercise will.

A diet will not fix my issue (or yours). Exercise will. And not just a walk around the block every day. While that is a good start, it is not what your body needs to build more muscles to convert yourself to a lean fat burning machine rather than the fat producing machines that we over-fat people are.

You need, at least 4 times a week, to exercise for more than 20 continuous minutes (no stopping and starting) at 65-80 percent of your maximum heart rate. Now, forget about that “65-80 percent of your maximum heart rate.” Don't forget about doing it, just don't worry about calculating it. We could learn to do it and to measure our heart rate while exercising – but where's the fun in that. Just use one of these two measures. After 12 minutes you should either be breathing deeply but not gasping for air or you should only be able to carry on limited conversations not tell stories. After you hit 20 minutes you are in the zone for turning fat marbleized muscle in to lean mean fat burning machines.

I do need to say, the RIGHT diet will help you get to your lean body faster, but it should not be your primary focus – that should be exercise.

Since my last post, I've dropped another 2 lbs. That's a total of 24 lbs in a little over 4 weeks. I had hoped for 25 in 4 weeks, but that's still pretty good!

Keep at it – you can do this! And, please, let me hear from you. What do you want to hear more about?

Lean Not Light or Weights not Weight

In my last post, Give Me Some Skin, I said I'd go into some more detail about what you can do to reduce your body fat percentage.

The good news is that you already know all of the answers...the bad new is that, really, you already know all of the answers. If you have been reading this blog from the beginning, you have the foundation for loosing body fat. Yes, this is a weight loss blog, but my approach to weight loss isn't to make the scales give you a lower reading. If it were, I wouldn't have allowed myself to go about 10 days with no weight loss what-so-ever. I could have easily lost weight during that time by encouraging the loss of muscle. Instead, I spent the middle of those 10 days, watching my weight increase by 4 pounds – and I continued to lift weights KNOWING that it might increase my weight for the short term. Why?

Because I trusted my system, a system that is actually more interested in a healthy body than a low weight body. A health body is one that has an appropriate body fat percentage. The interesting thing is that when you have the right body fat percentage – you tend to be an appropriate weight for your ages, sex and height.

Much like in my second article, Kick It Up A Notch (or 2 or 3), where I said the most important thing about losing weight isn't calories, or protein, or exercise but rather metabolism - the goal for losing weight isn't to get the scale to read the number for which you are looking; it's to get your body fat to an appropriate level – everything else you want (including no loose skin) comes with it.

So, my personal system isn't so much a “weight loss” system as it is a “fat loss” system. That's why, in post after post, I talk about what good fat burners muscles are. Changing your diet alone will not help you get rid of loose skin (fat loss); it may help you lose weight, but as we know now – the two are not the same.

For continued fat loss you have to build muscle. That also means that eating too low a calorie diet, while possibly helping you lose weight, is not going to help you lose loose skin (you have no IDEA how hard I worked to use those two words next to each other – English major in me I'm afraid...). When you deprive your body of the appropriate amount of calories it goes into starvation mode, saving up the long term energy sources (fat) and burning of the quick sources (muscle). So, the first thing is to eat enough.

The next thing to do is don't eat too much – because you want to build muscle, not fat.

Then, begin understanding your metabolism – that's your best tool for burning fat (as long as you are not eating too little). One of the keys of ramping up your metabolism is building muscle. And the best way to build muscle is exercise.

So, like with everything else in weight loss, there is no magic pill (and don't believe the marketers that try to tell you otherwise). It takes work and dedication. It takes exercise and just the right amount of calories …. and enough patience to trust that over time the system will work.

And that is a great lead into my latest news. Since my last check in where I had lost 3 lbs after going 10 days with no weight loss, I have lost another 4 lbs! W00t! That's 7 lbs so far this week!

Keep at it and let me hear from you!

Give Me Some Skin

If you have ever lost serious amounts of weight before (I've lost 60 lbs and 90 lbs), you know about one of the most difficult problems that comes along with it (the following may not be suitable for squeamish readers): loose skin. Uggh.

Some would have you believe that the only/best solution for this problem is surgery. I have good news. That is not true. I also have bad news – it does take time and patients. OK, AND perseverance. Even after hitting your target weight, if you have skin that doesn't quite fit your new body, you still have some work ahead of you. Of course, if you think about how good you feel about your new body size, how proud you are of yourself for doing it, well – you can only imagine what it will fill like when you are no long afraid to hide it at the pool or beach.

So here's what you need to know about “resizing” skin (I've “resized” from XXXL to L before so trust me it can be done). First know that skin is very elastic (every once-pregnant woman can tell you this). The other thing to understand is fat and its relationship with your skin. As long as there is a thin layer of fat under that skin, it will be difficult for it to contract. So, your body fat percentage is very important in getting your body to completely resize. What that means is even if you have hit your target weight, you may now have to start thinking about a target body fat (something around 16% for men and around 26% for women). Here's something I can promise you, you will not see someone with loose sin who has very low body fat. Except in extenuating circumstances, it just doesn't happen.

How long you've had your skin stretched out also plays a role in its ability to return to your new body size. After all a pregnant woman has stretched her skin for only nine months therefor it still retains some of its original elasticity. So, returning the skin to its original size will probably happen faster. If you've been overweight for years it may take much longer to get it back to size. But remember – IT IS WORTH IT!

As I mentioned in my last article, H20 plays a vital role in the body, particularly in the operations of your organs. Well, your skin is an organ and hydration also plays and important role in its elasticity. So, stay well hydrated!

There are a few other things that have been shown to be beneficial in trying to tighten skin back up. The best results I've read about are with copper. So make sure you have the Recommended Daily Allowance in your diet (or daily vitamins). Other supplements that can be helpful: Vitamin C and E.

Don't think for a minute that you will need to resort to surgery (besides that might just be masking the issue not fixing it). What you need to give it is a little time, perseverance and patients.

Hey! This was my first response to one of you. Thanks for the question! Keep them coming.

After a week and a half of no weight loss, I've lost 3 lbs in the past 2 days! W00t! Keep at it – you can do this!

Update: I will be posting about WHAT to do to reduce your body fat percentage tomorrow.

Kicking Your Coke Habit

There's a quiet little study out there with some really surprising results. The American Heart Association's publication Circulation published a study in 2007 that isn't getting the press it deserves and my guess is Pepsi and Coke are pretty happy about it.

The impact on the study for those who are trying to lose weight (and the most surprising part of the study) is that dark carbonated drinks cause weight GAIN – even the DIET DRINKS! (Go ahead, go clear you pantries of all those Diet Cokes, Diet Dr. Peppers, and what-have-you... I'll wait....)

Now don't go throwing away all your diet drinks. While there is still controversy over whether they help or hinder weight loss, the jury is still out on them. What is clear is that DARK carbonated drinks (whether regular or diet) have a negative effect on weight loss. The real culprit in all of this seems to be caramel coloring.

Various studies link caramel coloring with insulin resistance which leads to metabolic syndrome, both of which are related to weight gain – worse than that – they are specifically linked to weight gain around the midsection (boo to insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome). On top of that, insulin resistance also contributes to inability to focus, fatigue, sleepiness and depression. All of which can have negative effects on keeping that old metabolism running. Now there are a lot of really interesting science geek explanations for these that are related to blood and glucose, but how about you just trust me on this one? (That way we don't help induce sleepiness in any of the insulin resistant among us).

My personal experience is this. Early last year as I was trying to loose weight and was having some mild success. I had switched from Coke to Coke Zero as my primary beverage of choice. Reading the article from Circulation and another piece of research that I think came out of Canada, I switched to Sprite Zero. As I remember, that was about the time my weight loss gained new momentum. Was it because of the elimination of caramel coloring from my diet? I have no idea, but the research combined with the timing of cutting it out of my diet makes me think it was.

I now drink store brand diet lemon-lime or diet ginger ale (remember ginger helps seed up metabolism). If you want to go extreme, buy only the clearer Diet Rite products - there sweeteners are different than the ones used by the other companies and (as of yet) have not been link to weight gain in any major study.

As I've mentioned before, my personal weight loss plan is about the cumulative effect of lots of techniques that have small (sometimes questionable) effects on overall metabolism. This is just one of them – but in my mind it is one of the more important ones.

Keep at it – you can do this!

Get Wet

You, my friend, are a bunch of water. A bunch. As a matter of fact, your body is PRIMARILY water. That's right - humans, when born, are about 73% water. That changes as we grow up, but we still remain primarily comprised of good ol' H2O (Women about 55% and men 60%). Also, keep in mind that blood is mostly water which means it plays a big roll in transporting oxygen to your organs, which as we know, is very important in enzyme biosythesis which plays an important roll in weight loss because of it's roll in metabolism. Water also makes up 75% of your brain. (Insert your own dehydrated joke here).

One of the important things that that means, when it come to weight loss, is that (being made of water) our organs and various bodily systems need water to function well. Being well hydrated, much like a machine being well lubricated, means our bodies will be able to operate at their top efficiency (all other things help constant).

Why does that matter to weight loss? A couple of reasons actually, but one primary reason. People who have been with the blog from the beginning won't be surprised to hear that it is related to...(wait for it, wait for it) metabolism! It's actually very straight forward logic here (none of that science\weight loss\geek stuff needed). Part of our metabolism is defined by how much energy our bodies are using. The more systems that are working away, the more energy you use. If you are dehydrated your systems will start working at a lower efficiency in relation to how much water is available. So, being well hydrated all the time means you are giving your body one of it's most important tools in working at maximum efficiency and thus keeping you metabolism running well also!

How much? Well, between one and seven liters a day! It actually varies between people depending on physical activity, humidity, etc. The good news is a good 20% of that comes just from the foods you eat. The other good news is that it is perfectly fine to get the rest of it from sources other than straight up water...with two exceptions: non-diet sodas and alcohol. Both of them have a lot of sugars (and calories) which is just going to get in the way of getting the aqua that you need. As a matter of fact, when it come to alcohol, for every drink you have it should be matched by an equal amount of water (and that's over and above the amount you would normally need for a healthy and happy system). For that matter, my tip about keeping a little caffeine in your system also means you need a little more water because caffeine (as I mentioned) is a natural diuretic.

You can go a week without food (bad idea – yes even on a diet – ok, ok more on that later), but not water. As a matter of fact, even a small deficiency (say 2%) will leave you feeling tired. Which means less activity (probably less exercise) and that means lower metabolism...well, it's not a good idea.

There are lots of other reasons to drink enough water including: muscles require more water, digestion works better with it, it tends to mask the body's huger response, and the list could go on. The bottom line is – DRINK UP. Just don't way over do it. In general your kidneys (if they are in good working condition) are going to take care of the extra, but you can have too much which can lead to water intoxication and hyponatremia. Google it if you'd like – you don't want to go there.

One last related note - DO NOT drink from plastic bottles that contain BPA. How do you know if it does? If it is #7 plastic (most Nalgene type bottles) it probably has it. One other related note – so do most canned foods. Some scientist believe BPA present heath risks.

I'm looking for weight loss topics you'd like to know about. So, let me hear from you.

Oh - and I finally lost that 4 lbs I had put on last week (probably from the muscles gain) and started back down hill - another pound lost!

Keep at it – you can do this!

Just The Fats Ma'am

I have bad news (hey, whaddya' expect? It's a weight loss blog). You don't just have fat. You have two kinds of fat. (No that is not the fat version of the joke, “He's two kinds of stupid.”) . Our bodies are comprised of two kind of fat: subcutaneous and visceral. The question you should be asking yourself about now is, “why do I care?”

Well, have you ever noticed that when you loose weight belly fat is not only the hardest to get rid of but the last to go? That's probably because it is visceral fat and because visceral fat is so deeply embedded, it is twice as hard to loose. Subcutaneous fat is the fat the resides just under your skin (hence, subcutaneous – clever huh?). Diet alone will actually help to reduce subcutaneous fat. But visceral fat is a different story. It seems to be very stubborn.

Visceral fat is sometimes called organ fat, because it is the fat that not only makes beer bellies, but also wraps around your organs (very dangerous stuff this visceral fat). That is actually a bit of a misnomer because both fats are actually organs themselves. Yep – that's right. Fat isn't just a lifeless blob, it is an organ that produces hormones (we've mentioned that before) and even sends signals to a lot of other organs.

Back on topic – Visceral fat is deeply embedded, surrounds organs, and leads to all kinds of health issues including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and hypertension. So, while it takes longer to get rid of, you really want to get rid of this stuff. The question is how?

Exercise - and not light exercise. You need to get at it. At least 30 minutes a day of moderate exercise, 6 days a week. Don't fall into the trap that infomercials perpetuate – you can not spot reduce. In other words, sit-ups do not focus your fat burning in the stomach area. It will help tone those muscles so that eventually, once the visceral fat is gone, you'll be well toned, but nothing more.

If you want better, faster results, try interval training. It is the best way to loose visceral fat. Interval training basically means going at the exercise hard very briefly and the taking it a little easier for a bit, then repeating the process. You may recall me mentioning that as I get into shape I like to start each mile of my bike ride with a sprint. Well, as I continue to get into shape, I like to increase the interval at which I do a sprint but, at the same time, I shorten the length of the sprint.

Research shows that the quicker the intervals of intense work out, the greater the results in lowering visceral fat – even when the duration of each intense workout segment is shorter! So, as I ride my bike I sprint for say 10 sections of pavement then peddle at a moderate pace for 15 – sprint, peddle – sprint, peddle – sprint, peddle – sprint, peddle.

So, find the interval training that works best for you and get at it! We've got fat to burn!

I'm looking for weight loss topics you'd like to know about. So, let me hear from you.

Keep at it – you can do this!

Last Call For Alcohol

I've got good new and I've got bad news. Everybody has heard about the infamous “beer belly.” The basic idea is that alcohol calories get turned to fat and goes right to your gut! Well, here's the good news, that simply is not true, nor does it get turned to fat a deposited anywhere else (at least not in substantial quantities). Only a very small percentage of the calories from alcoholic drinks are actually converted into that kind of fat! Great news, right? Well...not exactly.

While the calories aren't converted to fat, adult beverages have a really devastating affect on your body's ability to burn fat. Here's the geek-lite of what happens. Your body converts a tiny bit of the calories into fat. It pushes the rest of it on to the liver (cheers!) and the liver, using alcohol dehydrogenase (a very useful little enzyme), converts it into acetate (specifically into acetic acid, then acetate). What's acetate? Well, it's basically a fat and it gets delivered directly to your bloodstream.

At this point you may be saying, I thought you said alcohol mostly was converted into fat? But that's not what I said. I said it wasn't converted to the kind of fat that gets deposited on your belly or other places. It does get converted into acetate (a kind of fat) and delivered directly to the bloodstream. The acetate in your blood stream then becomes your body's main source of fuel. Not needing the stored fat for fuel, your body shuts down most of the system that handles that function (research suggest that fat metabolism can drop as much as 73%). The problem then is, it's not like a light switch, once it is off it takes it a while to get fired back up.

So, double damage. You loose a few hours of fat reduction while the alcohol is in your system and then you loose the hours it takes to get the system fired back up! Worse yet, try a few drinks after dinner, then just as the alcohol is working it's way out of your system, go to bed and become as physically dormant as you ever get. You could lose almost half a day's worth of fat burning!

And it's worse than that. Alcohol makes you hungry. A number of studies have show that people consuming alcohol are much more likely to increase their calorie intake. Worse yet, remember those fantastic fat burners? Some people call them muscles. Alcohol actually contributes to breaking them down. It increases a hormone called cortisol which is particularly good at taking out muscles and it decreases the production of testosterone which, of course, helps build muscles. Another double whammy!

So, am I saying we should all be on the wagon? No. Not at all. There is some evidence suggesting that a small amount of alcohol (and I mean small – like 150 calories total), will slightly increase your ability to lose weight. How much is 150? 1 beer - 5ish oz. of wine - and mixed drinks are all over the board. Something simple like a gin and tonic or a diet coke and whiskey, you can pretty much just count on one.

I'm looking for weight loss topics you'd like to know about. So, let me hear from you.

Keep at it – you can do this!

Buzz! Buzz!

When I diet, I get my caffeine buzz on. All-the-while, the debate on whether I should be doing this rages on. There are those who believe that a lot of overweight people are insulin resistant and therefor shouldn't use caffeine because it causes you to gain weight (there's some real geeky biology stuff we could go into right here to explain it, but let's just skip it this time...you trust me, right)? The funny thing is most diet pills CONTAIN caffeine, so what's going on here?

Well, my thoughts are that there may be those who are overweight and insulin resistant (it would be unusual to be insulin resistant and not be at least a little overweight) and they shouldn't use caffeine, but there must be a lot more of us who aren't or those manufactures wouldn't be putting it in their products (it's one thing to put stuff in there that doesn't really work, but to use something that might make your clients GAIN weight...not happening. They want your money. Greed is a powerful motivator).

I personally think it is very beneficial to add caffeine to your diet when loosing weight, as long as you aren't ACTUALY insulin resistant. Think about it this way. When you cut calories out of your diet, you are essentially cutting back on the fuel you offer your body. Not only that, when you are doing it to loose weight, you are cutting your calories back below the fuel level your body needs on a daily bases. That's part of why it is so easy to get tired when you are dieting. Well, if there is one thing that can give you pretty instant energy – it's caffeine (three cheers!). On a side note: this also makes it a good choice just before a workout!

Not only that, studies show that it does increase your metabolism – more specifically there is some speculation that it increases thermogenesis, which is one of the ways your body burns up fuel (food). Add to it the fact that caffeine is a natural diuretic...so, well – let's just leave it at that – 'kay?

So, I try to start a little caffeine flowing in the morning and keep a little (not tons) in my system all day long. As a part of my larger plan, it seems to work really well. Plus...I really like caffeine, so it is a win-win!

One last thought - if you are a person who takes to stress easily, keep in mind that caffeine can heighten the experience of stress and anxiety. Study after study have shown that being stressed or anxious frequently are causes of weight gain. So, think about it carefully before you decide to get your caffeine buzz on!

I'm holding steady on the weight loss today. No gains, no losses.

Keep at it – you can do this! And let me hear from you.

Dude, You Threw Off My Grove

I've decided to go back through my previous post and clean them up a little. You may have noticed my annoying little habit of staying focused on the point at hand at the expense of other possibly useful information (usually, found in brackets like this with a promise to explain it latter). So, I'm going back over them and posting the other (possibly useful) information.

The first I want to cover comes from “Dumbells - Yeah, I'm Talking To You." We talked about the importance of both aerobic and anaerobic exercise. At some point, in my oh-so-charming-way, I offhandedly mentioned the importance of changing the types of exercise you do – not just switching back and forth from one type of aerobic exercise to one type of anaerobic exercise.

Well, besides the simple (and slightly obvious) reason of it helping you avoid getting bored of your exercise, there is also a very good physical reason for it. Plateaus (did I spell that right? Hmmm, just looks odd – weird word). That's right plateaus (seriously, looks odd doesn't it?). If you've ever dieted before or tried to achieve an exercise goal before, you know that that six letter word is really a four letter word (so to speak).

Nothing can suck the drive and focus right out of you like hitting a week long plateaus (does somebody wanna' look that up ? 'Cause it still looks wrong to me). Repeating the same exercises over and over, while probably giving you early success, is a sure fire way to hit plateaus (if for no other reason than getting bored). Really, though, it makes sense. Most of us who are overweight are also under-exercised. So, we work the same muscles over and over and produced pretty good (and sort of instant) results. However, there is a point at which those particular muscles become reasonably well worked and the improvements on them and our added weight loss due to new muscle begins to decline and eventually level off.

Like I've mentioned before, that Darwin was on to something. Our bodies do adapt and remarkably quickly I might add. Our body's systems (muscular, cardio-vascular) adapt to training routines faster than you might think. So, don't let your routine be...well, so routine. Mix it up. Exercise different muscles and give them all a chance to perform (that means you'll be making even MORE fat burners!).

So, while many of us like routine, when it comes to loosing weight, it is not your friend. So get out of that groove and and rotate your exercises to maximize your results.

Oh, and two of those four pound I gained are already gone - nice!

Keep at it – you can do this! And let me hear from you.

Trust the Force...

Today's post is more of a reminder than anything. In reality, it's probably more of a pep-talk to myself.

When it comes to weight loss plans, there are a few things that are important to keep in mind. First of all – understand why the plan you are using works. (That's the reason I spend so much time on the slightly geeky/science side of weight loss). In part, that means understanding how it affects your body and what the likely outcomes are. Basically, I'm saying don't just follow a diet\exercise plan blindly.

That brings us to what might be one of the most important things to keep in mind. While, you should not follow a diet\exercise plan blindly (that is, follow it without understanding why it works), once you do understand why it works and how it is likely to affect your body, you should trust in it implicitly and stick to it.

What does that mean? Well, I had a major let down today. After loosing 15 lbs in 2 weeks, when I stepped on the scales this morning, I had gained 4 lbs. in about 24 hours! Egad! My calorie count for the previous 24 hours had been in the range of 1800 – basically on target for me - and my protein was around 120 grams – a little low for what I like, but more than enough.

After thinking back over the weekend, I realized that I had actually done relatively well. Admittedly, on my Cheat Day I probably added on the high end of what I allowed (say, 1000 calories), but 1000 calories does not a pound make (let alone 4!!). So, I thought through my exercising as well and realized, while I had not been riding my bike in over four days, I had worked out hard with free weights ALL FOUR DAYS! Well, knowing about how my diet and exercise affects my body, I quickly realized that I had probably put on a lot more muscle (those wonderful fat burning friends!) than I usually would in a four day period. Given that muscle is about 20% denser than fat...well, it's not completely surprising that I put on weight.

My gut (and I DO mean GUT) instinct was to freak out and go to an extreme to drop that weight back off, but I reminded myself that I am already wearing smaller clothes and just retired a belt I purchased only four weeks ago. The system is working and I need to trust in it. Understanding how and why my system works, just makes it all the easier to find that trust.

Keep at it – you can do this! As Yoda says, "Do or do not, there is no try."

Let me hear from you.

¡Muy Caliente!

Some like it hot. I like it hotter. That's right. Mo' hotta', mo' betta'. And it pays off when you are dieting too!

Various studies have arrived at different percentages of increase to your metabolic rate, but one thing is for certain – spicy foods do increase it! Foods/spices that have been tested include: red chili, black pepper, ginger, cumin, capsaicin, and turmeric. Capsaicin is the part of the chili pepper that makes it nice and hot and it seems to be able to play a significant role in weight loss. And while it is the biggest player in weight loss, keep in mind that some studies showed the best way to maximize the weight loss benefits of spicy food is to mix them.

After taking capsaicin, studies have shown increases in metabolism ranging from 8 percent to 50 percent, with the increase lasting anywhere from a short period of time to 3 hours. Even if it is only 8 percent, keep in mind that we are working on the perfect storm here. We aren't looking for the one magic weight loss bullet (it doesn't exist). What we are looking for is more of a buckshot approach – a whole bunch of little tweaks that add up to reaching our target weight!

Some of the research also indicated that people who lost weight by including spicy foods (particularly those with capsaicin in them), were more likely to maintain a healthy weight after reaching their target weight. So, even if you don't buy into the fact that hot foods make your metabolism burn hotter, it's worth adding them in to your diet just for the post-loss upside! If you need another reason, a study from Canada (lots of good food studies come out of Canada – seriously) showed that consuming hot food (in the study it was hot sauce) before the meal, reduced the amount of calories the participants chose to have during the meal.

The bottom line is spicy foods make it easier for your body to burn fat, they encourage you to eat less and they help you keep it off after you've lost it! What's not to like?

Two things to keep in mind though, spicy foods do not mix with ulcers or heartburn. So, if you suffer from either, stay away from them. Also, if you get hold of something that is just way too hot for you to handle, hit the milk to cool yourself down.

So, crank up the heat and tell your fat, “Burn baby, burn.”

Keep at it – you can do this! And let me hear from you.

Put The Fork Down And Back Away From The Plate

Cheat Day! Who Hoo! I've decided that on cheat day, Sunday (don't you just LOVE the fact that a minister made “Cheat day” Sunday?! I know I do!), I will also give myself a little break on the blog. There will still be a post, but it will be short and to the point – a lot less science\health geek stuff! (You may celebrate now). So, without further adieu todays post:

There is a hormone that scientists recently discovered that is produced in the stomach that tell your brain, “Stop eating, ya' big dummy – we're full!” The thing is, once you are full it takes 20 minutes for the stomach to start producing the hormone (ok, so a little science\health geeky stuff).

Ever watch an over-weight person eat? It certainly isn't true for all of us over-weight people (talking about me, not necessarily you), but frequently what you'll find is that we are fast eaters. Clearly, that is a problem when it takes 20 minutes for you brain to get the message you are full. We are high achievers in getting more calories into our bellies before our brain knows what's going on. Um, Congrats?

There is one simple trick that helps immensely with this issue: put your fork down. No, I'm not making an overly simplistic joke at your expense; I'm not suggesting you just need to stop eating if you don't want to gain weight. Just put your fork down...between every bite. Do not pick it up until you have completely finished the previous bite (and yes that goes for spoons too). I think over time, you will be very pleased with the results.

End of week two and after cheat day, I'm on an even keel – total of 15 lbs lost. That's 3 lbs for the week.

Simply Cin-ful!

It has a long and interesting history. At one point it was considered more valuable than gold – at another it was used to cure athlete's foot. Cinnamon has been thought to have a variety of health benefits throughout the ages. Modern scientist have actually confirmed many of them including: stopping bacterial and fungus growth, preventing ulcers, and improving memory.

For us, the real interest is in its relationship to glucose. We've already talked about a few supplements that help with fat and carb metabolism, cinnamon is (almost literally) the icing on the cake. In a recent study, researchers found that taking a daily dose of cinnamon reduced blood sugar, increased the body's production of insulin, and lowered cholesterol (the bad part, HDL levels remained the same).

Why is this good news? Love handles and beer belly. The fat cells in you mid-section are more sensitive to insulin levels than those elsewhere. Specifically, high levels tend to mean those fat cells will store more up. And with their shared network of blood vessels with your abdomen, they are the preferred warehouse for glucose related fat! Not only does cinnamon help with glucose metabolism, but it keeps your insuline levels in check so that you are less likely to be storing it in you mid-section! (Don't rush out to the store yet, at least finish this blog post and then go.)

So, cinnamon is my final supplement recommendation. Take about two table spoons a day. If, you aren't going to buy it as a supplement (that's what I do, sooo much easier – both to keep track of and to remember), then keep in mind these two things:

1) make sure you are buying real cinnamon not powder that taste like cinnamon

2) don't...and I mean DO NOT try to eat it by the spoonful. Why? Well, I'll let the video do the talking.

Weight loss update – lost another pound. Down to 260 for a total of 15 lbs lost.

A Litle Bit of This, A Little Bit of That

At first, today's supplement suggestion won't seem like an aid for weight loss as much as just a good idea. After all, those of us trying to loose weight tend to modify our diet. Almost by definition, we intentionally under nourish our bodies in order to lose weight. So, taking a multi-vitamin just seems like a good idea, if for no other reason than to replace some of the vitamins and minerals we have cut out of our diet when we cut calories. And it is a good idea, but it actually has weight loss benefits as well.

A study conducted over the course of 10 years with more than 15,000 participants found that participants taking multivitamins overall had more weight lost than those not taking it. To me, this simply means a healthy body is more capable of losing weight than a less healthy one. Not really all that surprising is it?

Of course, I like supplements that have more than one advantage. Other benefits of multi-vitamins include: aid in digestion, give energy (burn more fat!), help brain function, increase immune resistance, and slows the signs of aging (if I didn't have your attention before, I bet I do now!).

Don't take a “megadose” you don't need it and too much can cause problems...like kidney stones. So read the label - you want 100% or less of most of the ingredients. Also keep in mind, if you are using other dietary aids like protein bars during the day, a lot of them have vitamins as well. On an average day, I probably approach 200-300% of daily recommended allowance and I've never had a bad side effect.

Also, if this is the only source of added vitamins in your diet (no other dietary aids with vitamins) don't take a tablet. They are harder for your body to break down. Take gel caps or liquids instead.

Now – I think my multivitamin is kicking in... I feel like a bike ride. Let's go!

Keep at it – you can do this! And let me hear from you.

This Ain't No Tea Party

Tea is great for weight loss. I'm not talking Tea Party tea here (that stuff is full of sugar and usually comes with a side of crispy, buttery, sugary, flaky tea biscuits). The tea we are talking about is Green Tea and while you can drink it if you want, I'd suggest taking it in pill form (without the side of cookies).

Much like some of my other favorite supplements, there are lots of benefits associated with taking green tea. You won't be surprised that my favorite is - it speeds up metabolism! (Score). That's right, a number of studies showed that people talking green tea had measurable increases in the body's themogenesis (their metabolic rate). It also seems to help regulate (slow down, reduce) the amount of body fat we store (Score, again!).

It has been associated with lots of different benefits. It contains caffeine and, while some will argue the point, caffeine gives you energy and is a pretty decent fat burner (and like so often, there will be more on that in a latter article...is anyone keeping a tally on all these “later article” subjects?). It also seems to reduce how many of the carbs you eat that are turned into fat (reducing fatty acid synthesis can lead to remarkable weight loss). And those are just the diet related benefits.

Other up sides include: helps prevent cardiovascular disease, lowers cholesterol (improving the good HDL), reduces the risk of esophageal cancer, may help reduce pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis, and it helps regulate insulin.

As far as I'm concerned, this is another of those maybe-might-kinda work supplements that has enough research backing it up that it is simply worth taking.

Good news for me - back on track. Today's weigh in : 261- lost two more pounds for a total of 14 so far.

Keep at it – you can do this! And let me hear from you.

Gaining to Lose

This one's for those who don't mind building a little muscle. It is also only for those who have a long range perspective on weight loss.

The next supplement I want to talk about is Creatine. Our kidneys, livers and pancreas naturally produce it. It's purpose is to help our bodies store up extra phosphates – and our bodies use those when we need energy (particularly in anaerobic exercise). So, having plenty of Creatine in your system will do a number of things for you.

As you exercise, your body will use up the naturally store Creatine. Having a little extra on board means getting to stay at those muscle building exercises longer...which means building more muscle (those FANTASTIC fat burners).

It also helps in the recovery period, so you can both grow muscle faster and regenerate those wonderful little enzymes that help breakdown fat, carbs and protein (yea, for increased metabolism!).

There are also other health benefits in taking Creatine. Research in two different Universities found that taking Creatine raised people's IQ scores – yes, seriously. It also has benefits in fighting cancer and slows the progression of Parkinson's.

If you are taking it for weight LOSS purposes, take it in pill form. Most of the powders out there, which are used to mix fruity drinks of Creatine, are packed full of sugars. You don't want that.

How much? Take 5-15 grams per day (depending on how hard you are working out). The one side effect that some people have is the feeling of bloating in the stomach. If you experience this side effect just reduce the amount you take until it goes away.

So, it is obvious why I started off saying this one was for those who don't mind building a little muscle, but why did I say it is for people with a long range perspective of weight loss? Well, because if you are working out, it really is good at helping grow your muscles fast. Muscle weighs more than fat. At first you are likely to GAIN weight – arrgh. But over the long term, every pound of muscle you gain will burn an extra 30 calories per hour AT REST. That's right, an extra 1 ½ pounds a week lost while you do nothing!

I started taking Creating about 5 days ago. I have lost no weight sense then, but I have lost about an inch around my waist and I can see a noticeable difference in my arm and chest. So, if you are willing to take a short term hit (in terms of weight loss), Creatine is the way to go for long term gains...um, loss!

You Could Eat Tons of Liver..Or...

Other than “they are things I really don't want to eat,” what do liver, kidneys, cauliflower and soy flour have in common? They are places where Biotin occurs naturally. Why should you care? I'm so glad you asked...

If you've been reading this blog from the beginning (what seems like a very long 7 days ago), you probably already have a very good guess at the fist benefit of Biotin – it plays a very important role in energy metabolism. Among other things it helps get rid of carbon dioxide, metabolizes amino acids, helps break down fat,carbs and protein, and helps produce certain enzymes (and again, if you've been keeping up with the blog, you know how important it is to rebuild enzymes).

But if the vanity of being thinner isn't enough motivation for you – how about the vanity of hair loss (or more precisely, preventing it). It turns out that one of the side effects of rapid weight loss is hair loss (yes, the universe can be wickedly cruel at times). The good news is, one of the main benefits of Biotin (which while sometimes called Vitamin H is actually part of the B-complex family) is the prevention of hair loss.

Other benefits of Biotin include: keeping nails in good condition, improved skin condition, aids in the growth and repair of muscle tissue (remember muscles are FANTASTIC fat burners), helps reduce cholesterol, helps maintain proper sugar levels and it has been shown to be beneficial to treating a number of diseases including Parkinsons, Rett syndrome, Crohn's desease and a number of others.

A reasonable question to ask is, “Don't I get enough Biotin in a typical diet?” The answer is a definitive – maybe...but probably not. Let's just start with the fact that you are on a diet. You are already staying below the amount of intake that is required to maintain heath. You are trying to breakdown unwanted parts and get rid of them. It is likely that in you reduced caloric intake you are also reducing a number of essential vitamins and minerals. Add to that the fact that freezing foods which naturally carry Biotin decreases their level of Biotin...and cooking them does the same. Now I'm just guessing here, but I'm betting that most of us are not on the Raw Food Diet.

Oh, and have you already forgotten?... Some of the main sources for it are liver, kidneys, cauliflower and soy flour - belckt!! Other things that negatively effect the level of Biotin in your system are egg whites (a good source of the much needed protein while on a diet), packaged foods, fast food...well, there's a lot of reasons why you probably aren't getting enough.

So, my second supplement that I strongly recommend is Biotin. 5 milligrams once a day should do the trick.

I'll be weighing in tomorrow and we will talk about another helpful supplement.

Fighting Fire With Fire (or Fat with Fat)

Now we venture into the dark side of weight loss. No, not weight loss pills – this is a respectable blog, don't go dragging the modern version of snake oil salesmen into this. Please.

The dark side of which I speak is slightly more respectable than that – natural supplements. Why do I call them the dark side? Well, because they may or may not actually do you any good. I put a lot of study into this a little over a year ago and came up with a list of the ones that I thought had the most potential to help with weight loss – not cause weight loss but help. The way I see it, they may help the littlest bit by themselves (um, probably), but as a part of a larger system and understanding of weight loss they combine to make a perfect storm.

So, for the next several post, I'll be taking the supplements one at a time and briefly talking about the benefits they might have (did I mention that whether the whole supplement thing works is a bit controversial?).

But first, lest you think I used a dartboard in picking the ones I use, let's very briefly look at my criteria for eliminating or picking supplements. It is very simple actually. First, I only read studies from universities with respectable medical programs (this included universities from around the world). Second, I then only considered studies that either included a double blind, a placebo, or a control – or some combination thereof. Finally, if the study was funded by, supported by, or requested by an outside organization or company, I threw it out.

So, let's get on with this. My single favorite supplement (the one I most believe probably has some outside chance of maybe working – was I non-committal enough there?) is CLA or Conjugulated Linoleic Acid (sounds yummy, doesn't it?). Well, it gets better – it's a fat! Yep, taking fat to lose fat. Go figure.

It is a fatty acid the occurs naturally in dairy products and red meats. Unfortunately, as we Americans have reduced our intake of beef and dairy (a good thing), we have also reduce our intake of CLA (a bad thing, because it has a number of weight loss advantages). Also, because of the way we now raise cattle, the CLA levels in what we buy have been lowered by 65%.

A number of very good studies have found that CLA helps you burn more body fat (particularly tummy or visceral fat – more on types of fat in a latter post) and it increases lean body mass. Here's the cool thing – it even worked for people who led fairly sedentary life styles! (OK, it didn't help them a lot – but it WAS measurable!). That means if you are exercising (both aerobic and anaerobic) CLA seems to increase the benefits of doing so.

Other benefits include, enhancing the immune system, helping maintain blood glucose and insulin levels (related to both weight loss and energy levels), helping lower cholesterol, may help fight off cancer, increasing metabolic rate (SCORE!), and it can even reduce food allergies (seriously, I can now eat raw celery).

So, I say take it. How much? Most studies showed no – and I mean NO – benefits until you reached about 3.5 grams per day. Most pills come in 1000 milligrams, so I recommend taking 4 a day (2 in the morning 2 in the afternoon), which is actually what is recommended on the side of most bottles as well.

Week one - 12lbs. lost. I wish I could keep that pace up! But that just isn't realistc - still, each pound (even a week at a time) is worth! Let me hear from you!

Seriously, The Preacher TOLD Me To Cheat!

“Cheaters never win. Cheaters never wii-iiin.” Remember that oh-so annoying, holier-than-thou chant from childhood? Well, when it comes to weight loss – it's a bunch of hooey. I say cheat! Bring bread back into your diet – enjoy an adult beverage, if that's your thing – have your cake and eat it too! Just don't go nuts on me.

That's right, the preacher is telling you to cheat! Will the miracles never cease?

And believe it or not, we are still talking about metabolism (see, I told you weight loss is all about metabolism). We've talked about carbohydrates, fats, protein, enzyme biosynthesis, and even aerobic and anaerobic exercise – today we add to our list of weight-loss-geeky terms as we talk about leptin. And this one is really important when it comes to metabolism.

The word leptin comes form the Greek term leptos which actually means “thin” (do I have your attention now?). It's a hormone with a number of jobs, of which, one of the main ones is to tell your brain how fat you are. In doing so, it is one of the main regulators of METABOLISM! It causes fat loss and decreased appetite. (At this point, I feel like I should apologize to my leptinfor giving them so much work to do). The interesting thing is where leptin comes from – fat cells!

When we diet, we reduce fat and calorie intake, which has a tendency to lower our energy and metabolism (less to burn and less to give you energy). Leptin can help fight this tendency. So, how, on a diet designed to reduce fat, do we produce enough leptin (which comes from fat cells), to keep the whole weigh loss thing going? The simple answer is CHEAT!

When we reduce our intake of calories over long periods of time, our bodies try to self-regulate by trying to do the same amount of work using less energy. (Biologically this means reduced thyroid output, reduced metabolic rate and a number of other things that will require you to eat even fewer calories to produce the results you were getting at your originally lowered caloric intake). I don't know about you but, at 1800ish calories a day....I am NOT eating much less on a regular bases.

The answer to this problem is to cheat – yes cheat on your diet. Our bodies want to adapt to their current environment – it's their natural state (just ask Darwin). You see, when we diet, we are fluctuating the typical nutrients in our system. We actually have a system that monitors our nutrient flux (seriously, that's the technical name – nutrient flux – inventive, huh?). When dieting, the system tells our bodies that we are in “negative flux,” because of the reduced calories, and it reduces the production of leptin (we are not eating as much, so we won't be producing as much fat, so we don't need as much leptin...but my question is where does that leave me with the fat I ALREADY have?!). The inverse of this is, of course, when you overeat you go into a “positive flux,” when you will over produce leptin. Clearly, if you want to loose weight, you want to produce leptin. Being that our bodies want to adapt to their current environment, don't let it set a typical baseline for caloric intake. That way you can encourage it to keep producing leptin at higher levels.

So, cheat. Now don't go NUTS. I'm saying pick a day every week when you will consume 500-1000 calories more than you regularly would on your diet. For me that means going from 1800 to somewhere between 2300 and 2800. Considering that it takes 3500 calories for an extra pound and the average person (depending on their Body Mass Index or BMI) burn something in the range of 2000 calories a day, it will not even come close to wrecking your diet...if anything the science suggest it will temporarily boost your leptin production and hence help your diet!

I should say at this point, it you have already been cheating on your diet (extra carbs, sugar, calories) throughout the week, this is NOT the plan for you - it will only make matters worse - don't do it. Seriously.

Check in time, after a couple of workouts with weights and a physical workout in the yard cutting down a 25 foot tree, in sections, with a hand saw – it looks like I am in the muscle building stage. While the pants are a little looser – I have lost no weight in the last 2 days. No problem with me though. Increased muscles will, in the long term, increase the rate of weight loss!

I have to go now – Sunday is my cheat day and I have some...um “work” to do!! There is no calorie counting on Sundays!!!!!

Dumbells - Yeah, I'm Talking To You

Today it is time to start thinking about exercise. (Did you hear that, I think it was a collective groan). For most of us the thought of exercise is not appealing – at all - in any form – what-so-ever. So, for me at least, it makes sense to understand why you are doing it and to understand what kinds are the most effective. I don't know about you, but if I'm going to exercise, I want to be sure I'm getting everything out of it that I can. I'd be less than pleased to find out I was having no, negative or very little impact on my weight loss because of how I was exercising.

As I mentioned yesterday, we are going to consider two basic types of exercise: aerobic and anaerobic. The difference between the two has to do with the amount of oxygen being delivered to your muscles (of particular concern are the enzymes we talked about yesterday). Just as their name's suggest, aerobic means enough air and anaerobic mean not enough.

Now, right off the top, thinking about yesterday's post, you may say, “OK, great, just tell me what exercises are anaerobic and I'll avoid them like the plague.” After all, who wants the pain that can sometimes go with it and, as we learned yesterday, who wants to be breaking down all those wonderful enzymes that eat carbohydrate, fat, and protein without also building the enzymes back up? Seems counter productive.

Well, don't jump so fast. While those somewhat negative qualities of anaerobic exercise are true, anaerobic exercise (weight lifting, sprinting) also has some big (and I mean BIG) up sides. For starters, it burns more calories than aerobic exercise (at least short-term). It also builds muscles and like I said yesterday, muscles are FANTASTIC fat burners. More muscles will also help you do aerobic exercise for longer periods of time thus enable you to burn more calories for even longer periods of time. It also gets the old metabolism cranking and it stays running at elevated levels for longer than anything else will do for you.

Aerobic exercise (running, swimming, biking, tennis) allows you to burn calories constantly over a longer period of time and if you are doing it at the right level your body will be breaking down fat, carbs and proteins and at the same time rebuilding enzymes (enzyme biosynthesis), so you can keep burning them away!

What does all this mean? Well, do them both. Early in my weight loss, I like to alternate the two. One day building muscles and getting that metabolism to ramp-up for longer periods. The next day I ride my bike or some other aerobic exercise (need to keep changing what you do, more on that in another post) in order to burn more calories over time (it also makes more red blood cells, which care more oxygen, which we know is used in burning carbs, fat and protein as well as helps in enzyme biosynthesis – so we can exercise longer over time and born more calories – sweet!).

Once I am in a little better shape, I like to combine the two. Sometimes this means speed walking with weights and every 10 minutes or so I do as many curls as I can. Or when riding my bike I start every mile with a sprint. You get the picture.

So, get out there and exercise – mix it up – and before you know it, the old metabolism will be working with you, not against you.

I'm taking a day off on the weigh in. But numbers will be posted tomorrow.

Keep at it and let me hear from you!

Break It Down or It's All Geek To Me

Metabolism. It is still just as important in today's post as it was in yesterday's. But today we are adding the consideration of two big .50 cent words, which (when put together) are a key to weight loss as well as a key to staying fit. They are enzyme and biosynthesis. Together they make enzyme biosynthesis.

The great news is that as speciously science-geeky as it sounds, we've already talked about some of the key parts of enzyme biosynthesis. (See now, it gets less scary every time we say it! Say it with me again, “enzyme biosythesis”).

I went out on my first bike ride in 6 months yesterday. I was moving along at about 12 mph (not blazing fast, but probably not the best speed for an overweight guy who hadn't been on a bike for 6 months). About 20 minutes in, my right calf cramped like mad. I stretch and repositioned it over and over trying to get it to stop...but, being determined, I continued to petal away. Then my left calf followed suit. They were awful by the time I made it home, but in minutes after stopping they were completely normal.

Was it lack of muscle fitness that caused my pain? Well, if it were, it probably wouldn't have stop when I stopped. My pain was caused by pushing my body too far too fast.

Back to the science-geek stuff. Metabolism is ramped up by enzyme biosynthesis. In order to make energy (a direct benefit of metabolism) your body has to breaking down molecules (carbs, fats and protiens). In order to do it, it uses enzymes (delicate little tools made by DNA from protein). That process of making enzymes is called.... (you guessed it) enzyme biosynthesis.

Why is it so important? Well, you need enzymes to break down carbs, fats and proteins. But, as I said, enzymes are both PROTIEN and DELICATE! So, it turns out that not only do they break down (as proteins), but they breakdown faster than the others (they are delicate). So, in order to build a body that burns calories well (if you weren't gifted with genes that do it for you), you have to constantly encourage your body to be in the process of enzyme biosynthesis. It is KEY to raising you metabolism.

How do you do it? Eating right and exercise (more importantly the right kinds and amounts of exercise). Which brings us back to my bike ride. My pain was caused by the build up of acid in my muscles. There's a long nerdy explanation that is really needed here which involves pyruvic acid, lactic acid, conversion of oxygen and a few other very uninteresting biological concepts, but it is sufficient to say – I over did it - and while my muscles could keep up, my lungs and heart could not, so I didn't get enough oxygen to my muscle cells. Enzymes need oxygen to do their work. Too little exercise and you don't encourage them enough to do their work – they will let you know about this by not breaking down the fat in your body and you'll find yourself buying bigger and bigger pants. Too intense of exercise and you won't be able to give them enough oxygen to do their work – they will let you know about this by sharp pain and probably a reduced ability to lose weight.

For me, my over doing it (even though I was on target with my calories and protein yesterday) meant that I seriously impeded my body's ability to burn carbs, fat and protein – all the while I was building muscle as I exercised which of course is heavier than fat. Net result, weigh in today – 263. I lost 1 lb. (of course that's the equivalent of 3500 calories, so nothing to complain about).

Tomorrow, more on the exercise\oxygen relationship – aerobic vs. anaerobic exercise. And...let me hear from you! It's easier when we are all in this together!

Feed Me...

Metabolism. As I said in my last post, for me, the key to loosing weight is understanding your metabolism. If there were some magic pill that could ramp up your metabolic rate (there is not, no matter what the advertisers tell you), weight loss would be easy.

Being that there is not a pill called the Metabolizer or the Meta-loss or whatever cute name the marketers would come up with, we have to work at getting our metabolism to run faster. The good news is not ALL of the work is physical activity (a good deal of it is, more on that tomorrow). Some of it is understanding your metabolism and then applying a little discipline. And the good news is, part of that means...eating! And most of us are where we are, in part, because eating is something at which we are good.

One of the easiest ways to keep your metabolism burning away is to give it a reason to be working. Every 3 hours or so, without the proper encouragement, it decides to take a wee nap. Now, there are two downsides to that:

1. Metabolism both breaks down molecules and builds them. One of the most abundant molecules in the human body is carbohydrates (these little buggers are great at making fat – they are also great fuel for all sorts of biological functions). If you let your metabolic rate slough off for a bit, you are not gaining the benefits of it breaking down molecules – things like carbs...and fat. You also are not giving it as many chances to build molecules - and one of the molecules metabolism is particularly fond of building is protein, which helps build muscles...which are FANTASTIC fat burners.
2. The second downside is that it takes longer for your metabolism to get back up to speed once it slows down significantly. Which means you are giving your body less chance to shed weight over the course of a day if you let it nap a bit.

One simple trick to keep your metabolism running (one that you've heard over and over again if you've ever tried to loose weight) is to eat more frequently. Do it every 3 hours or so – which means we are talking about 6 times a day. Once again, it has two big advantages:

1. Your metabolism is hungry. “Feed me!” So feed it. If you do, it will have a reason to stay awake and active. If you don't – it won't. Keep in mind you still have to consider your total calories for the day, but eating every 3 hours will help encourage it to keep ticking away. For me it works out this way: 350 calories for breakfast, a 200 calorie snack at 9am, 400ish calories at lunch, a 200 calorie afternoon snack and then (depending on the actual calorie counts of the day), I have about 700 calories left for dinner.
2. Protein fills me up. And as we mentioned earlier it also builds more muscle which are great fat burners! (If you don't want to bulk up, don't worry – not all muscle has to be big and bulky. You can also have long lean muscles). So, eating six times a day and making sure there's plenty of protein each time, keeps me from getting hungry and keeps building muscle for burning all that fat! (of course, I have to help the protein along with exercise, but more on that tomorrow).

I've been following these suggestions for 48 hours now. At weigh in today, I was at 264. Yep, 11 pounds in 2 days. Less than typical results and not sustainable over the long term, but a great kick start to the weight loss program!