24 Hr Fitness

Today it seems people are willing to go through almost anything to lose body fat. Fad diets, pills and magical exercise equipment are costly and most often simply ineffective. In order to lose those pounds you have to have a basic understanding of the food you are eating, and how to utilize various forms of exercise..

There are three things to consider when losing body fat.

Diet- watch your carbs in general and especially simple carbs. Avoid consuming lots of carbs in the evenings. Quite simply, to lose weight you must burn more calories than you consume.

Weight training - having more muscle mass is a huge aid to burning calories and getting lean. Each additional pound of muscle burns 30-50 calories per day at rest.

Cardio - to burn the most fat it helps to do it in a glycogen depleted state, such as immediately after waking (before consuming any carbs or fat) or right after lifting weights. HIIT - high intensity interval training has been shown to be exponentially more effective at fat burning than endurance type (level resistance) cardio.

All too often people are looking for the hidden secret when ti comes time to lose a few pounds, when in reality, it just takes a bit of work and some basic understanding of diet and exercise.

For an Online Personal Trainer and other Fitness information visit http://www.worldfitness.ca

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I am one of the fortunate few who get to work from a home-office most days of the year. Because of the nature of my work, my physical location is not important to the task at hand. As such, I also have the opportunity to better control my food choices and eating habits during the work day. If you are in this category, be thankful that you are because — for most people — it is much more difficult to eat well during the work day.

Sometimes, however, my work requires my physical presence in the office — often for many days at a time. This week was such a week. Yesterday, as lunch time came and went, the pangs of hunger began to gnaw at me and I finally decided to run over to the local McDonalds for some lunch. Since I was very hungry, I reminded myself to order thoughtfully.

When those of us fighting the Battle of the Bulge are visiting a fast food restaurant, there are some really obvious things that we must do to avoid overeating and/or choosing the wrong kinds of food. These “obvious” things include to not order anything that is “deep fat fried” and to not “super-size” any order. It struck me, though, as I sat there “inhaling” my cheeseburger, that there are many other things that we can do that will also help prevent over-consumption of the wrong kinds of foods.

The first thing to consider is what you drink. Most fast food companies will provide “ice water” at no charge when you are making a food purchase. Not only can you save some money, but you can drink more water (please see the www.weeklyweightlosstips.com archives to read more on drinking water), which is something that you already know to do. Many wise fast food restaurants are also selling your favorite brands of bottled water, which can typically be refilled at the beverage kiosk if you are still thirsty when you finish your meal.

Not only is this important when comparing beverage choices (e.g., soda vs. water), but also when you consider the fact that fast food contains much more salt than what we typically would use on our own food at home. If you have been reading these articles for some time now, you have likely read some compelling reasons why we need to limit our sodium intake. Sodium causes us to retain water (which weighs about seven pounds per gallon) and the only way to safely regulate this (sodium and water retention) is to drink more and more water.

The next thing to consider is the condiments. Many fast food restaurants are suggesting salads as a low-calorie option to their traditional offerings. These are a great way to avoid higher fat, lower fiber alternatives, but with salads the dressing must be scrutinized, or else you may end up not saving calories at all. Dieticians suggest choosing the dressing type wisely, as well they recommend using the smallest amount possible.

If you order items other than salads, the same thing is true. Mayonnaise if a very high-fat food that should be avoided. Most restaurants will allow you to “special order” a small amount of your condiments (”light on the mayo, please…”) or just those that are lower in fat and calories. Mustard is a low fat, low calorie condiment, though it may not be suited to everyone’s individual taste.

The last thing that I would recommend that you keep in mind when visiting a “fast food” restaurant is to not get wrapped up in the “speediness” of the environment. One of the worst dining habits is to eat your meals quickly. The very nature of the fast food shop makes it difficult to slow down and enjoy your meal. Make a conscious effort to sit down, relax, and savor every bite. Don’t allow yourself to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the surroundings. When you sit down at the table with your food, tell yourself that you are going to eat slowly, savoring your food, or you are likely to eat too quickly and too much.

You may not always be able to avoid eating at a fast food restaurant, so when you must do so, prepare yourself before you get in line to order. Don’t let your hunger cause you to over-order, make wise food and beverage choices, and when you eat, take time to savor your food. Following this advice will keep you on track for a lighter, healthier you!

Michael Callen is the author of the Weekly Weightloss Tips Newsletter (http://www.weeklyweightlosstips.com) and the Chief Technology Officer for WellnessPartners.com (http://www.WellnessPartners.com), an online retailer of dozens of health and wellness products such as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), r+ alpha lipoic acid (R+ ALA), and green tea extract.

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As a registered dietitian, and someone who specializes in sports nutrition, I was appalled when the low carbohydrate fad came into popularity. However, I also predicted that in a couple of years people would become better educated and ready to really pay attention to how to eat for health.

Yes, people lost weight, but mostly because they eliminated many of the high fat, high calorie snack foods and meals they were previously eating. Unfortunately, the foods that promote health were also eliminated as all carbohydrates came under attack. Gone were the chips but also gone were the fruits and vegetables so high in health-promoting nutrients. Even worst of all was the increase in animal fats that are known to promote disease and inflammation.

Let’s first address why the low carb diets bothered me. Carbohydrates are one of the three major nutrients in our diet, known as macronutrients. Protein and fat are the other two. These three nutrients supply most of our calories, with alcohol being the fourth. All foods break down into glucose, which is our primary fuel and the only fuel for the brain. No matter what, the brain needs glucose to survive. Even some of fat breaks down into glucose. During the low carb diets, people were instructed to avoid all obvious carbohydrate foods, and in some diets were even encouraged to check their levels of ketones in their urine. Ketones are a byproduct of impartial fat metabolism for people who are not getting enough carbohydrate in their diets or, for medical reasons, are not utilizing the carbohydrates they are eating.

However, carbohydrates are the primary fuel for breaking down body fat during exercise. So, here we have people who want to lose weight trying to also exercise, but because they are not eating the primary fuel for that exercise, their exercise intensity suffers. As a consequence, they burn fewer calories during exercise and cannot burn as much body fat. Not only does science support this, but I would see this happen with my own clients. I also used myself to experiment on. One of my clients challenged me to try the Atkins diet. Never mind the effect of cutting out all my fiber in my diet (constipation), but by the third day I felt like I had lead feet when I tried to do my usual workout! I had no fuel in my body at all. By day #5, I felt I was doing my system more harm than good and went back to my fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Ahhh. Also, I had not consciously realized just how high my diet was in whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and how low it was in animal products, particularly animal fats.

This brings up the other problem I had with these diets. More research than I can mention has shown the advantages of a diet high in fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Because of the phytochemicals in these foods, it has been shown that people who eat high amounts of these foods not only weigh less but their health benefits from the high intake of antioxidants and vitamins. Studies looking at cancer and heart disease continually conclude that high intakes of these foods benefit health. My own experience with clients has also shown this. Most people already eat too few servings of fruits and vegetables. Once they increase them, however, they find themselves filling up on fewer total calories. Not only do they start to feel better but they start to lose weight!

Starches still have a bad rap, but once people realize the difference between one starch and another, we may actually see more people eating diets consisting of whole, unrefined foods. So, I guess the benefit of the high protein, low carb diets may be the new awareness that people have in the value of eating unprocessed, whole foods, and that all foods really DO fit into our diet.

Marjorie Geiser helps people overcome their confusion and distress they may feel when trying to add healthy eating and fitness into their busy lives. She offers a free, monthly newsletter on various topics of health. She is a Registered Dietitian, Personal Trainer and Life Coach. To learn more about her services, go to her website at http://www.megfit.com or email her at margie@megfit.com

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