Wednesday 20 January 2010
Turn Your Metabolism into a Fat Burning Machine!
We’ve already established that your old habits will have to go before you can finally reach your goal of
losing weight. I know it’s a struggle. You’ve lived your whole life cementing this way of life and now
I’m asking you to kick it to the curb.
Chances are, the lifestyle that led you to gaining weight also gave you a sluggish metabolism. But
that’s okay. I’ve worked with thousands of people who have sluggish metabolisms and shown them
how to turn it around. They now have a metabolism that works for them, not against them. You can
have the same thing if you follow my steps.
Make sure you Eat Enough Healthy Foods
Yes, I know you’re trying to lose weight and most people eat too much food, which leads to that
weight gain. So it stands to reason that the first step in weight loss would be cutting back on your
food intake. But not so fast. Cutting back too much can be as detrimental to weight loss as eating too
much food. You don’t want to starve your body.
When you don’t eat enough food, your body will begin to take whatever it needs in the way of
nutrients from other parts of your body in order to survive. That means taking nutrients from your
bones, teeth, and vital organs, leaving your body depleted. Your metabolism will shut down in order
to reserve energy and your body will only use enough energy to stay alive. So while you may think
that by starving yourself you’ll drop weight quicker. What you’re actually doing is sabotaging your metabolism.
The operative word when thinking of food is “healthy”. It’s not enough to simply eat enough food
to keep your metabolism running at optimal performance. You need foods that will give your body
energy while allowing it to function with a minimal amount of effort.
It is true that there are no bad “foods” if you eat them in moderation and balance them with out with
healthy foods. No one wants to feel deprived of having their favorite dessert or a fast food burger
every so often. However, if you have that fast food burger every day of the week or eat that piece of
triple chocolate cake before you go to bed every evening without giving a thought to how your body
will react to it, you’ve established a bad eating habit.
The trick is to balance the amount of food you eat with whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruits,
along with lean meats. Choosing those foods will give you the most bang for the buck. We’ll talk
about those foods more in a later chapter.
Eat Regularly, Without Skipping Meals
People who are busy and trying to lose weight very often fall into the habit of skipping meals in order
to cut down on their overall calorie intake. They then eat more at a later meal thinking they can
“catch up”. The problem is that you may end up eating your daily requirement of calories by the end
of the day, but the balance of when your body receives those calories is lopsided.
For instance, if you start the day out great by having a healthy breakfast of yogurt, eggs and toast but
then skip lunch and eat a big dinner, you’ve thrown your body off balance by making the end of the
day top heavy with calories. Most people are more sedentary at the end of the day and like to relax.
That means that whatever it is you’re eating is sitting in you while you relax rather than being burned
off as you go about your day.
Furthermore, when you skip a meal, you’re famished by the time you finally do get to eat later in the
afternoon or early evening. You’re body is only going to use what it needs at that particular moment
and nothing more. By the end of the day, you’ve already burned most of the calories you are going to
burn during the day. Your body ends up storing those excess calories in your body fat and keeps them
in reserve for the next time you skip a meal.
This can become a vicious circle of you’re trying desperately to cut back calories by skipping meals and
your body is desperately trying to hold on to whatever nourishment it can get. Not only will you fail
in your quest to lose weight, you’ll become frustrated because all your efforts aren’t giving you the
results you desire.The best way to ensure that your body has the nutrients it needs to burn fat during the day when
you’re active and when your body needs it the most is to eat smaller portions more frequently. Instead
of eating 3 big meals a day, eat 5 or 6 smaller meals.
Start your day with proteins and any carbohydrates you might want to have during the course of the day. Your body will burn those carbohydrates when you’re most active. End the day with proteins and
fresh vegetables such as broccoli, spinach, kale, etc. Avoid having lots of carbohydrates later in the day
when you’re winding down and not able to burn those carbohydrates off.
Eat plenty of “good” fat
The first thing people tend to think about cutting from their diets when they decide to lose weight is
fat. It’s true that most Americans eat way too much fat for their bodies to handle. That fat contributes
not only to weight gain, but other health issues that are detrimental.
But not all fats are created equal. Think of a bicycle wheel. Too much heavy grease will gum up the
wheel and prevent it from turning. On the flip side, no grease at all will keep the wheel from spinning
properly as well.
Herein lies the issue of good fat and bad fat in your diet. Not all fats are bad for you or will prevent
you from losing weight. You just need to be able to identify which fats are good fats and which are
fats you need to avoid.
There are two types of fats that are good for you: monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.
Monounsaturated fats can be found in foods like almonds, walnuts, peanuts, avocados, and olive oil.
No only are they good for weight loss, as an added health benefit they help to lower your bad LDL
cholesterol.
Polyunsaturated fats also help lower LDL cholesterol levels as well as aid in weight loss. Foods rich in
polyunsaturated fat are salmon, cod, corn and sunflower oils, flaxseed and other fish oils. Foods that contain polyunsaturated fat also contain Omega 3 Fatty Acids, which help aid the body in weight loss.
You want to avoid saturated fats such as foods fried in vegetable oil or prepackaged foods that add fat
for flavoring. Whole dairy products also contain a high amount of saturated fat. But simply switching
to low-fat yogurts, skim milk and low-fat cheeses will go a long way toward reducing your saturated
fat intake.
You’re probably thinking, “All that is well and good. But what can I eat?” In a later chapter we’ll talk
about foods that will not only aid you in weight loss, but will actually jump start your metabolism and
turn it into a fat burning machine.
Breaking Old Habits…and Making New Ones
They say old habits die hard. That phrase was never more true than for a dieter trying to change
lifestyle habits. I say changing lifestyle habits instead of focusing on just the kind of food you eat and
when you eat it because losing weight, getting fit, and staying that way is not a short term gig. It
requires a whole change in the way you view your health and how to live your life.
That may seem overwhelming when you think of it, but it’s really not. You just need to know which
steps to take and then take them. The simplest way to break a bad habit is to replace it with a new
habit that is healthy. When you think of it that way, it doesn’t feel like you’re giving up something
you like because you’re filling that void with something else.
Eating Late in the Evening
If you’re one of the many people who love to feast on a bowl of popcorn while watching a midnight
movie you need to seriously consider how that late-night snack is ruining your diet. Sure, popcorn
has a high amount of fiber, something that is good when you’re on a diet. It’s not the actual food
that is the problem, but the time of day. You should stop taking in calories no later than 7:00
PM and just continue to drink water to fill you up. By that time, most people have had their dinner
and are beginning to wind down from their day. That means that any calories you consume will not
be burned off. They’ll be stored in your body as excess nutrition for your body to use later. Stored
calories are held in fat cells.
Break this bad habit by replacing your sedentary lifestyle with exercise in the late afternoon or early
evening. When you exercise, your body will continue to burn calories and fat for a few hours.
Another reason why exercising later in the day is good is because not everyone has the time during the
morning before work or the day gets underway to do justice to a solid workout. Many times, when
you miss a workout because of scheduling conflicts, you won’t make up the time later on if you haven’t
planned for it.
Take this scenario. If you are a busy mom of two and need to get your kids off to school or to daycare
before you head off to work, where is their time to get to the gym to workout? There isn’t. More
times than not the workout gets bumped from the daily schedule and all the efforts at eating right
and trying to lose weight are reduced significantly.
Get around this by scheduling your exercise at a time you know you won’t have any conflicts that will
interrupt you. If your spouse is home in the evening, schedule your workout time then. If you have
little ones, wait for the kids to go to bed and then workout. One word of caution though. Don’t
exercise too late in the evening or it will prevent you from sleeping. Sleep deprivation can inhibit
weight loss as the body sheds it’s weight while you sleep.
Pay Attention to What You Eat
This might seem like common sense. But if you take the time to write down everything you put in
your mouth you’ll realize that you’re actually taking a bite of food, whether it’s a few M&Ms from a
coworkers candy dish or a few bites of food while you’re cutting a plate of food for your kids.
Everything you put in your mouth has calories. Most people make the mistake of only writing down
the foods they eat during a planned meal. They may also write down a small snack. But they forget
about the cream they put in their coffee, a spoonful of ice cream they snuck when doling out dessert,
a few crackers they popped in her mouth because they suddenly had a sugar craving.
Some people will find themselves disciplined enough to resist mindless eating. But if you’re just
starting out in your diet, or not sure how your willpower will hold out, the best thing you can do to
kick this habit is to keep a small notebook tucked away in your pocket or in your purse. Every time you
get the urge to bring food to your mouth pull out that notebook and write down what you are about
to eat. That one small move will snap you into the realization that you might be consuming calories
that will negatively affect your diet.
There are a whole lot of reasons why people eat mindlessly. Sometimes it because of depression. That
depression can range from life changes or even frustration over your current health and happiness. For
women, it could come at the time of the month when you’re menstruating. Some women have strong
cravings during that time and eat without even realizing it. Again, using the small notebook to break
that habit will significantly improve your chances of staying on track and not consuming more calories
than you want to in any given day.
Quit Making Excuses
You probably have a barrel full of excuses that you pull out every time you talk about why you haven’t
lost the weight you want to lose. It could be anything from a sluggish thyroid to faulty genetics to just
not having enough time to think about weight loss.
I’m here to tell you to knock it off! The only way you will lose weight and keep it off is stop making
excuses for why you’re not succeeding. I’m not saying that any of those excuses aren’t valid. Many are.
In fact, having a sluggish thyroid or other genetic problem may be an additional barrier to how fast
you can lose weight. But using that excuse as a crutch will only keep you from making any progress at
all.
People with “bad” genetics and even health problems do manage to lose weight when they put their
mind to it. The thing that keeps them from losing weight is falling back on the reason it is so difficult
for them.
To break this habit learn everything he possibly can about this “excuse” for not losing weight. For
instance, if you have a sluggish thyroid, talk to your doctor about being put on medication to regulate
it, if needed. Learn what foods interfere with thyroid hormone production.
Allowing yourself to use excuses for why you are unable to lose weight will only be self-defeating.
Why bother trying when you’ve already decided that you won’t succeed? Empower yourself to change
those excuses around and become proactive in your desire to lose weight.
You may not lose weight as fast as someone else who does not have the same issues you have. That’s a
fact of life. But that doesn’t mean you won’t lose weight. And I can guarantee that you won’t lose any
weight if you continue to use your excuses as a crutch.
Don’t Take the Easy Way Out
If you were really that easy to lose weight then everyone would do it. We wouldn’t be a society of
overweight people. We weight takes dedication and a conscious effort to eat healthy foods and
exercise regularly.
The temptation to fall for whatever promises the new craze FAD diet gurus are peddling can
sometimes be overwhelming. “Lose 10 pounds in three days eating nothing but bananas!” “Eat as
much cabbage soup as you want and lose 10 pounds!”
Most people see those outrageous claims and think, “Why not? I can eat cabbage soup for week.” The
problem is you won’t always be eating cabbage soup. You may lose 5 to 10 pounds in week on some
newfangled FAD diet. But those pounds will come bouncing right back on you like a boomerang out of
control. In fact, many times you end up with more weight because your body is trying to overreact to
the shock you gave them by following a FAD diet.
FAD diet are basically on par with starvation diets simply because to lose weight you need to shock
your system. When you shock your system it’s like a wake up call. Think of it in terms of money. When
the stock market crashed in the 1920s people ran to take what money they could get their hands on
out of the banks because the banks were suddenly collapsing. People then kept that money right by
their side in case they needed it. The old “money under the mattress” was safer than trying to earn interest and a bank that was unstable.
The same is true for your body when you suddenly are deprived of proper nutrition. Your body will
want to hold on to whatever fat reserves and nutrients it has been not give it up to weight loss.
To break this FAD diet habit, ignore all your friends, the television, and magazine ads that profess
miracle weight-loss. It will only hurt your body in the end and prevent you from your desired goal of
losing weight and getting fit. The only real way to lose weight safely, and continue to lose weight and
keep it off for life, is program that has steady progress. You may feel frustrated that you aren’t losing
weight as quickly as you would if you a cabbage soup for week. But you will keep what weight you
lose off longer. Your body will be healthier and more fit.
Make a Plan and Stick to It
The shortest path between two points is a straight line. The most important word in that phrase is
“path”. Without one, you’re aimlessly wandering.
Would you go on a road trip without mapping out a course? Maybe you would because it can be fun
to see where the road would take you. But if you’re trying to lose weight, aimlessly wandering will
only make the task harder unless you have a solid plan.
It is true that some people can lose weight simply by cutting the amount of food they eat. Not
everyone is like that. Most people need a more structured regime and change to their lifestyle in
general to be successful in their weight loss and fitness goal.
I want everyone to be successful at their weight-loss goal. When I work with a new client I worked
hard and I expect that they will follow the plan that I set out for them. When that plan is followed
my clients are gratified to see results. Nothing makes me more happy than seeing the success of my
clients.
The million-dollar question for most people is how to put together a plan. Your diet and fitness plan
will encompass several different things. The best way to keep track of a plan is to use a journal or log.
You can spend money on a fancy calendar or you can just get a simple notebook for under a dollar.
You’ll want to log how often you exercise and for how long. You want to write down how often you
eat and what you’re eating along with a total calorie count for each day. You’ll also want to include
periodic weigh-ins that will include what you weigh on a particular day and the change in your weight
since your last weigh-in and since you started your weight loss program.
Many people find that after they have diligently recorded all this information in their journal they no
longer need the journal after a month or two. It only takes 2 to 3 weeks to make a lifestyle change
permanent. By that time you most likely will have solidified new lifestyle habits that you can continue
without the aid of the journal.
If you feel yourself slipping back into old habits, continue using the journal and stay on course. As soon
as you start forgetting to exercise or stop paying attention to what you’re eating, you’ll begin to gain
weight again. That is the last thing you want to do after all your hard work.
Stop Lying to Yourself
“Me? Lie?” Yes. It may not be intentional but most people underestimate the amount of calories,
fat, the cop hydrates they eat in any given day. They also stretched truth a little as to how long that
exercised. If you’re supposed to exercise for 30 minutes and you only exercise for 20, you’re not giving
yourself your fault do. Anyone would argue that 20 minutes of exercise is still better than zero minutes
of exercise. But she’ll go further over the long haul and make more progress towards reaching your
goal if you are honest about exactly what it is you’re doing.
This goes for portion sizes, too. When you were preparing food at home no one is policing the size of
your portions. If you’re eating something healthy like fresh garden greens and lean meats it may not
make a difference. You might be able to have that extra piece of chicken to make you feel full.
But there will come a time when you’ve reached your weight loss goal where you’ll start introducing
higher calorie foods occasionally. When that happens, every calorie will count or you will end up
gaining weight back. It’s best to keep it honest right from the beginning.
losing weight. I know it’s a struggle. You’ve lived your whole life cementing this way of life and now
I’m asking you to kick it to the curb.
Chances are, the lifestyle that led you to gaining weight also gave you a sluggish metabolism. But
that’s okay. I’ve worked with thousands of people who have sluggish metabolisms and shown them
how to turn it around. They now have a metabolism that works for them, not against them. You can
have the same thing if you follow my steps.
Make sure you Eat Enough Healthy Foods
Yes, I know you’re trying to lose weight and most people eat too much food, which leads to that
weight gain. So it stands to reason that the first step in weight loss would be cutting back on your
food intake. But not so fast. Cutting back too much can be as detrimental to weight loss as eating too
much food. You don’t want to starve your body.
When you don’t eat enough food, your body will begin to take whatever it needs in the way of
nutrients from other parts of your body in order to survive. That means taking nutrients from your
bones, teeth, and vital organs, leaving your body depleted. Your metabolism will shut down in order
to reserve energy and your body will only use enough energy to stay alive. So while you may think
that by starving yourself you’ll drop weight quicker. What you’re actually doing is sabotaging your metabolism.
The operative word when thinking of food is “healthy”. It’s not enough to simply eat enough food
to keep your metabolism running at optimal performance. You need foods that will give your body
energy while allowing it to function with a minimal amount of effort.
It is true that there are no bad “foods” if you eat them in moderation and balance them with out with
healthy foods. No one wants to feel deprived of having their favorite dessert or a fast food burger
every so often. However, if you have that fast food burger every day of the week or eat that piece of
triple chocolate cake before you go to bed every evening without giving a thought to how your body
will react to it, you’ve established a bad eating habit.
The trick is to balance the amount of food you eat with whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruits,
along with lean meats. Choosing those foods will give you the most bang for the buck. We’ll talk
about those foods more in a later chapter.
Eat Regularly, Without Skipping Meals
People who are busy and trying to lose weight very often fall into the habit of skipping meals in order
to cut down on their overall calorie intake. They then eat more at a later meal thinking they can
“catch up”. The problem is that you may end up eating your daily requirement of calories by the end
of the day, but the balance of when your body receives those calories is lopsided.
For instance, if you start the day out great by having a healthy breakfast of yogurt, eggs and toast but
then skip lunch and eat a big dinner, you’ve thrown your body off balance by making the end of the
day top heavy with calories. Most people are more sedentary at the end of the day and like to relax.
That means that whatever it is you’re eating is sitting in you while you relax rather than being burned
off as you go about your day.
Furthermore, when you skip a meal, you’re famished by the time you finally do get to eat later in the
afternoon or early evening. You’re body is only going to use what it needs at that particular moment
and nothing more. By the end of the day, you’ve already burned most of the calories you are going to
burn during the day. Your body ends up storing those excess calories in your body fat and keeps them
in reserve for the next time you skip a meal.
This can become a vicious circle of you’re trying desperately to cut back calories by skipping meals and
your body is desperately trying to hold on to whatever nourishment it can get. Not only will you fail
in your quest to lose weight, you’ll become frustrated because all your efforts aren’t giving you the
results you desire.The best way to ensure that your body has the nutrients it needs to burn fat during the day when
you’re active and when your body needs it the most is to eat smaller portions more frequently. Instead
of eating 3 big meals a day, eat 5 or 6 smaller meals.
Start your day with proteins and any carbohydrates you might want to have during the course of the day. Your body will burn those carbohydrates when you’re most active. End the day with proteins and
fresh vegetables such as broccoli, spinach, kale, etc. Avoid having lots of carbohydrates later in the day
when you’re winding down and not able to burn those carbohydrates off.
Eat plenty of “good” fat
The first thing people tend to think about cutting from their diets when they decide to lose weight is
fat. It’s true that most Americans eat way too much fat for their bodies to handle. That fat contributes
not only to weight gain, but other health issues that are detrimental.
But not all fats are created equal. Think of a bicycle wheel. Too much heavy grease will gum up the
wheel and prevent it from turning. On the flip side, no grease at all will keep the wheel from spinning
properly as well.
Herein lies the issue of good fat and bad fat in your diet. Not all fats are bad for you or will prevent
you from losing weight. You just need to be able to identify which fats are good fats and which are
fats you need to avoid.
There are two types of fats that are good for you: monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.
Monounsaturated fats can be found in foods like almonds, walnuts, peanuts, avocados, and olive oil.
No only are they good for weight loss, as an added health benefit they help to lower your bad LDL
cholesterol.
Polyunsaturated fats also help lower LDL cholesterol levels as well as aid in weight loss. Foods rich in
polyunsaturated fat are salmon, cod, corn and sunflower oils, flaxseed and other fish oils. Foods that contain polyunsaturated fat also contain Omega 3 Fatty Acids, which help aid the body in weight loss.
You want to avoid saturated fats such as foods fried in vegetable oil or prepackaged foods that add fat
for flavoring. Whole dairy products also contain a high amount of saturated fat. But simply switching
to low-fat yogurts, skim milk and low-fat cheeses will go a long way toward reducing your saturated
fat intake.
You’re probably thinking, “All that is well and good. But what can I eat?” In a later chapter we’ll talk
about foods that will not only aid you in weight loss, but will actually jump start your metabolism and
turn it into a fat burning machine.
Breaking Old Habits…and Making New Ones
They say old habits die hard. That phrase was never more true than for a dieter trying to change
lifestyle habits. I say changing lifestyle habits instead of focusing on just the kind of food you eat and
when you eat it because losing weight, getting fit, and staying that way is not a short term gig. It
requires a whole change in the way you view your health and how to live your life.
That may seem overwhelming when you think of it, but it’s really not. You just need to know which
steps to take and then take them. The simplest way to break a bad habit is to replace it with a new
habit that is healthy. When you think of it that way, it doesn’t feel like you’re giving up something
you like because you’re filling that void with something else.
Eating Late in the Evening
If you’re one of the many people who love to feast on a bowl of popcorn while watching a midnight
movie you need to seriously consider how that late-night snack is ruining your diet. Sure, popcorn
has a high amount of fiber, something that is good when you’re on a diet. It’s not the actual food
that is the problem, but the time of day. You should stop taking in calories no later than 7:00
PM and just continue to drink water to fill you up. By that time, most people have had their dinner
and are beginning to wind down from their day. That means that any calories you consume will not
be burned off. They’ll be stored in your body as excess nutrition for your body to use later. Stored
calories are held in fat cells.
Break this bad habit by replacing your sedentary lifestyle with exercise in the late afternoon or early
evening. When you exercise, your body will continue to burn calories and fat for a few hours.
Another reason why exercising later in the day is good is because not everyone has the time during the
morning before work or the day gets underway to do justice to a solid workout. Many times, when
you miss a workout because of scheduling conflicts, you won’t make up the time later on if you haven’t
planned for it.
Take this scenario. If you are a busy mom of two and need to get your kids off to school or to daycare
before you head off to work, where is their time to get to the gym to workout? There isn’t. More
times than not the workout gets bumped from the daily schedule and all the efforts at eating right
and trying to lose weight are reduced significantly.
Get around this by scheduling your exercise at a time you know you won’t have any conflicts that will
interrupt you. If your spouse is home in the evening, schedule your workout time then. If you have
little ones, wait for the kids to go to bed and then workout. One word of caution though. Don’t
exercise too late in the evening or it will prevent you from sleeping. Sleep deprivation can inhibit
weight loss as the body sheds it’s weight while you sleep.
Pay Attention to What You Eat
This might seem like common sense. But if you take the time to write down everything you put in
your mouth you’ll realize that you’re actually taking a bite of food, whether it’s a few M&Ms from a
coworkers candy dish or a few bites of food while you’re cutting a plate of food for your kids.
Everything you put in your mouth has calories. Most people make the mistake of only writing down
the foods they eat during a planned meal. They may also write down a small snack. But they forget
about the cream they put in their coffee, a spoonful of ice cream they snuck when doling out dessert,
a few crackers they popped in her mouth because they suddenly had a sugar craving.
Some people will find themselves disciplined enough to resist mindless eating. But if you’re just
starting out in your diet, or not sure how your willpower will hold out, the best thing you can do to
kick this habit is to keep a small notebook tucked away in your pocket or in your purse. Every time you
get the urge to bring food to your mouth pull out that notebook and write down what you are about
to eat. That one small move will snap you into the realization that you might be consuming calories
that will negatively affect your diet.
There are a whole lot of reasons why people eat mindlessly. Sometimes it because of depression. That
depression can range from life changes or even frustration over your current health and happiness. For
women, it could come at the time of the month when you’re menstruating. Some women have strong
cravings during that time and eat without even realizing it. Again, using the small notebook to break
that habit will significantly improve your chances of staying on track and not consuming more calories
than you want to in any given day.
Quit Making Excuses
You probably have a barrel full of excuses that you pull out every time you talk about why you haven’t
lost the weight you want to lose. It could be anything from a sluggish thyroid to faulty genetics to just
not having enough time to think about weight loss.
I’m here to tell you to knock it off! The only way you will lose weight and keep it off is stop making
excuses for why you’re not succeeding. I’m not saying that any of those excuses aren’t valid. Many are.
In fact, having a sluggish thyroid or other genetic problem may be an additional barrier to how fast
you can lose weight. But using that excuse as a crutch will only keep you from making any progress at
all.
People with “bad” genetics and even health problems do manage to lose weight when they put their
mind to it. The thing that keeps them from losing weight is falling back on the reason it is so difficult
for them.
To break this habit learn everything he possibly can about this “excuse” for not losing weight. For
instance, if you have a sluggish thyroid, talk to your doctor about being put on medication to regulate
it, if needed. Learn what foods interfere with thyroid hormone production.
Allowing yourself to use excuses for why you are unable to lose weight will only be self-defeating.
Why bother trying when you’ve already decided that you won’t succeed? Empower yourself to change
those excuses around and become proactive in your desire to lose weight.
You may not lose weight as fast as someone else who does not have the same issues you have. That’s a
fact of life. But that doesn’t mean you won’t lose weight. And I can guarantee that you won’t lose any
weight if you continue to use your excuses as a crutch.
Don’t Take the Easy Way Out
If you were really that easy to lose weight then everyone would do it. We wouldn’t be a society of
overweight people. We weight takes dedication and a conscious effort to eat healthy foods and
exercise regularly.
The temptation to fall for whatever promises the new craze FAD diet gurus are peddling can
sometimes be overwhelming. “Lose 10 pounds in three days eating nothing but bananas!” “Eat as
much cabbage soup as you want and lose 10 pounds!”
Most people see those outrageous claims and think, “Why not? I can eat cabbage soup for week.” The
problem is you won’t always be eating cabbage soup. You may lose 5 to 10 pounds in week on some
newfangled FAD diet. But those pounds will come bouncing right back on you like a boomerang out of
control. In fact, many times you end up with more weight because your body is trying to overreact to
the shock you gave them by following a FAD diet.
FAD diet are basically on par with starvation diets simply because to lose weight you need to shock
your system. When you shock your system it’s like a wake up call. Think of it in terms of money. When
the stock market crashed in the 1920s people ran to take what money they could get their hands on
out of the banks because the banks were suddenly collapsing. People then kept that money right by
their side in case they needed it. The old “money under the mattress” was safer than trying to earn interest and a bank that was unstable.
The same is true for your body when you suddenly are deprived of proper nutrition. Your body will
want to hold on to whatever fat reserves and nutrients it has been not give it up to weight loss.
To break this FAD diet habit, ignore all your friends, the television, and magazine ads that profess
miracle weight-loss. It will only hurt your body in the end and prevent you from your desired goal of
losing weight and getting fit. The only real way to lose weight safely, and continue to lose weight and
keep it off for life, is program that has steady progress. You may feel frustrated that you aren’t losing
weight as quickly as you would if you a cabbage soup for week. But you will keep what weight you
lose off longer. Your body will be healthier and more fit.
Make a Plan and Stick to It
The shortest path between two points is a straight line. The most important word in that phrase is
“path”. Without one, you’re aimlessly wandering.
Would you go on a road trip without mapping out a course? Maybe you would because it can be fun
to see where the road would take you. But if you’re trying to lose weight, aimlessly wandering will
only make the task harder unless you have a solid plan.
It is true that some people can lose weight simply by cutting the amount of food they eat. Not
everyone is like that. Most people need a more structured regime and change to their lifestyle in
general to be successful in their weight loss and fitness goal.
I want everyone to be successful at their weight-loss goal. When I work with a new client I worked
hard and I expect that they will follow the plan that I set out for them. When that plan is followed
my clients are gratified to see results. Nothing makes me more happy than seeing the success of my
clients.
The million-dollar question for most people is how to put together a plan. Your diet and fitness plan
will encompass several different things. The best way to keep track of a plan is to use a journal or log.
You can spend money on a fancy calendar or you can just get a simple notebook for under a dollar.
You’ll want to log how often you exercise and for how long. You want to write down how often you
eat and what you’re eating along with a total calorie count for each day. You’ll also want to include
periodic weigh-ins that will include what you weigh on a particular day and the change in your weight
since your last weigh-in and since you started your weight loss program.
Many people find that after they have diligently recorded all this information in their journal they no
longer need the journal after a month or two. It only takes 2 to 3 weeks to make a lifestyle change
permanent. By that time you most likely will have solidified new lifestyle habits that you can continue
without the aid of the journal.
If you feel yourself slipping back into old habits, continue using the journal and stay on course. As soon
as you start forgetting to exercise or stop paying attention to what you’re eating, you’ll begin to gain
weight again. That is the last thing you want to do after all your hard work.
Stop Lying to Yourself
“Me? Lie?” Yes. It may not be intentional but most people underestimate the amount of calories,
fat, the cop hydrates they eat in any given day. They also stretched truth a little as to how long that
exercised. If you’re supposed to exercise for 30 minutes and you only exercise for 20, you’re not giving
yourself your fault do. Anyone would argue that 20 minutes of exercise is still better than zero minutes
of exercise. But she’ll go further over the long haul and make more progress towards reaching your
goal if you are honest about exactly what it is you’re doing.
This goes for portion sizes, too. When you were preparing food at home no one is policing the size of
your portions. If you’re eating something healthy like fresh garden greens and lean meats it may not
make a difference. You might be able to have that extra piece of chicken to make you feel full.
But there will come a time when you’ve reached your weight loss goal where you’ll start introducing
higher calorie foods occasionally. When that happens, every calorie will count or you will end up
gaining weight back. It’s best to keep it honest right from the beginning.
Why 95% of All Diets Fail
You may have heard this alarming statistic before.
95% of all diets fail.
This statistic has been published all over the Internet and used by health care professionals for years
because it’s true. I didn’t make it up. Let’s look at just a few numbers. Statistics show that about
40,000 people per year reach their weight loss goal. But when you consider programs like Weight
Watchers, Jenny Craig, NutriSystem and The Zone have millions of people who participate in their
programs, that number is mighty insignificant and downright discouraging. Only 40,000 people out of millions reach their weight loss goal!
If you’re the one who is standing on the springboard of a new diet program, seeing a statistic like this
can be deflating. It doesn’t motivate many people to even try to lose weight because a vast majority
of those who diet and lose even a little weight will eventually put all that weight (and many times
more) back on as soon as they stop dieting. Bingo!
Therein lies the problem. Diets are doomed to fail right from the start because most people view diets
as a short term solution, something they can follow for a set period of time to get the desired resultsand then just stop. Sure, anyone can be motivated to follow a diet plan for a few weeks or even a few
months. But unless it’s a diet plan they can follow for life, they’re doomed to fail.
It doesn’t really matter if you believe that statistic or not. Quite frankly, it could easily be that 99% of
all diets fail, or maybe even closer to 90%. But ask yourself this. Do you want to be in the percentage
that fail?
If you want to lose weight and keep that weight off, you need to stop thinking of a diet as a
temporary fix. Everyone follows some form of a diet whether they know it or not. Unfortunately,
most people follow an “unhealthy” diet which leads to weight gain, high blood sugar, and for some,
obesity, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Weight gain is the product of not paying attention to what you put in your body, how often you do
it and when. It’s a bad habit to get into, even if you’ve never struggled with your weight. Bad eating
habits don’t always just promote weight gain. They also produce long term health problems, such as
high blood pressure, high cholesterol, constipation, fatty liver, heart disease and more.
You may be feeling great because you’ve lost a few pounds on one of those Internet FAD diets you
tried. Well, good for you. It’s always good to celebrate your successes. But I guarantee you this. If
you stop following that diet, and go back to your old eating habits, very soon you’ll find yourself on
the wrong side of that diet failure statistic.
When you crash diet, you put your metabolism on a roller coaster ride. Instead of speeding up and
giving your body more energy, the lower calorie intake that normally goes with a crash diet puts your
body in “famine” mode. Your body will hold onto whatever “energy” it has. That energy is stored in
fat cells. That’s why it takes more calories to lose weight than gain weight. Your body doesn’t want to
let go of what it knows it needs to survive.
If you want to succeed in your diet, you have to stop thinking of FAD diets as the answer to your
problem. You need to think long term, healthy eating that will help promote a healthy metabolism,
not send it into shock. You also have to look at your lifestyle and learn how to incorporate fat burning
exercises into your daily life so you not only lose weight, but you maintain that weight loss for life.
In the next chapter, we’ll talk more about how to kick start your metabolism and turn it into a fat
burning furnace by eating the right foods and changing your eating habits.
95% of all diets fail.
This statistic has been published all over the Internet and used by health care professionals for years
because it’s true. I didn’t make it up. Let’s look at just a few numbers. Statistics show that about
40,000 people per year reach their weight loss goal. But when you consider programs like Weight
Watchers, Jenny Craig, NutriSystem and The Zone have millions of people who participate in their
programs, that number is mighty insignificant and downright discouraging. Only 40,000 people out of millions reach their weight loss goal!
If you’re the one who is standing on the springboard of a new diet program, seeing a statistic like this
can be deflating. It doesn’t motivate many people to even try to lose weight because a vast majority
of those who diet and lose even a little weight will eventually put all that weight (and many times
more) back on as soon as they stop dieting. Bingo!
Therein lies the problem. Diets are doomed to fail right from the start because most people view diets
as a short term solution, something they can follow for a set period of time to get the desired resultsand then just stop. Sure, anyone can be motivated to follow a diet plan for a few weeks or even a few
months. But unless it’s a diet plan they can follow for life, they’re doomed to fail.
It doesn’t really matter if you believe that statistic or not. Quite frankly, it could easily be that 99% of
all diets fail, or maybe even closer to 90%. But ask yourself this. Do you want to be in the percentage
that fail?
If you want to lose weight and keep that weight off, you need to stop thinking of a diet as a
temporary fix. Everyone follows some form of a diet whether they know it or not. Unfortunately,
most people follow an “unhealthy” diet which leads to weight gain, high blood sugar, and for some,
obesity, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Weight gain is the product of not paying attention to what you put in your body, how often you do
it and when. It’s a bad habit to get into, even if you’ve never struggled with your weight. Bad eating
habits don’t always just promote weight gain. They also produce long term health problems, such as
high blood pressure, high cholesterol, constipation, fatty liver, heart disease and more.
You may be feeling great because you’ve lost a few pounds on one of those Internet FAD diets you
tried. Well, good for you. It’s always good to celebrate your successes. But I guarantee you this. If
you stop following that diet, and go back to your old eating habits, very soon you’ll find yourself on
the wrong side of that diet failure statistic.
When you crash diet, you put your metabolism on a roller coaster ride. Instead of speeding up and
giving your body more energy, the lower calorie intake that normally goes with a crash diet puts your
body in “famine” mode. Your body will hold onto whatever “energy” it has. That energy is stored in
fat cells. That’s why it takes more calories to lose weight than gain weight. Your body doesn’t want to
let go of what it knows it needs to survive.
If you want to succeed in your diet, you have to stop thinking of FAD diets as the answer to your
problem. You need to think long term, healthy eating that will help promote a healthy metabolism,
not send it into shock. You also have to look at your lifestyle and learn how to incorporate fat burning
exercises into your daily life so you not only lose weight, but you maintain that weight loss for life.
In the next chapter, we’ll talk more about how to kick start your metabolism and turn it into a fat
burning furnace by eating the right foods and changing your eating habits.
Is Your Weight Loss Diet Weighing You Down?
There is no simple answer to this question. There is so much confusing research and so many conflicting studies that people don't know where to turn. Every book that comes out claims to contain the latest and greatest weight loss diet. Every guru you see on TV says they have the secret. But it seems that every time you try something new, you end up disappointed.
So, when you need a weight loss diet, what should you look for? There are a few basic principles that everyone should keep in mind when searching for a weight loss diet. Let's mention them briefly.
First, many experts would probably agree that the solution to America's weight problem can be summed up in one phrase: calories in, calories out. Speaking strictly about weight loss (not necessarily about health), in order to lose weight you must burn off more calories than you consume. Every pound equates to 3500 calories. So even if you consume 2000 calories every day, if you don't burn off 2000 or more, you'll gain weight. If you consume 1500 calories and burn off 2000, you'll lose weight. It sounds simple, but as anyone who's ever tried (and failed) to lose weight can tell you, it isn't that easy! People have varying opinions on how your weight loss diet should go about achieving the proper calories in / calories out ratio, but calories certainly do matter when you're on a weight loss diet.
Second, look for something that makes good nutritional sense to you. A weight loss diet that promises a 10-pound loss in a weekend might sound great, but if you achieve that loss by consuming only some special juice or lemon water for three days, you're probably smart to give that program the heave-ho. A good weight loss diet will allow you to consume fewer calories without losing vital nutrients or risking your health. And any weight loss diet that works that quickly and requires such drastic measures will likely result in weight GAIN over the long haul.
Third, any weight loss diet or program you go on should encourage exercise. If they tell you that exercise is not required, they're not looking out for your health. Even when you're not on a weight loss diet or trying to get into shape, exercise is good for you and beneficial in too many ways to count. Some exercise, even a little, is better than none at all. Any weight loss diet that encourages or promises substantial, "healthy" weight loss without exercise is better left alone.
Basically, look for a program that isn't too extreme. You need a weight loss diet that you can stick with--at least most of the time. Beware those lofty promises of miraculous losses, all while eating ice cream and sitting on the couch. A weight loss diet that's worth trying will require some work. It will ask you to make some modifications to your current lifestyle, but without sacrificing your health.
Copyright Troy Francis. Please, feel free to republished this article. We only ask that you leave the resource box and link. You can see more great articles on Weight Loss, Diet, Exercise, Health and much more by going to: http://www.Exercise-Diet.com/
Learn the Secrets the Weight Loss Industry Doesn't Want You To Know About Weight Loss Diets
All weight loss diets make you Fat
That’s right, because on all weight loss diets, you always gain it back, and usually with a few extra pounds as a bonus, so why diet?
What’s the point in losing 20 Lbs, and gaining back 25?
Are you fed up with being overweight, and sick and tired of going on diets?
Why go through all the struggles of dieting, the starvation, the cravings, and the ultimate struggle with willpower, only to gain it all back?
When you consider the damage this does to your health, it's simply not worth it, however...
There is an easy answer, but first...
You must understand the Biggest Problem
Definitely, one of the biggest problems in weight control is the weight loss Industry!
Surprise!!!
hey want you to “Fail”; otherwise they would have no more business, think about it.
If everybody lost the weight for good, the weight loss Industry would die overnight, so they want you to gain it all back, then they lay a “Guilt Trip” on you for not sticking to your diet or maintenance diet.
Sound familiar? But...
Why should you feel guilty about not being able to stick to some totally unnatural starvation diet? That doesn’t make any sense, but that’s what happens.
However most people never look at it that way, because they are so emotionally tied up with their own weight problem that they never look at it from the other side, from the Business point of view.
It’s Critical that you understand this.
So let me give you a simple example...
Suppose that you lived in a small Town which had no weight loss clinic but was big enough to support one, so you decided to go into the Business of Weight Loss. You do some Serious Research, and here’s what you find...
You have Two Options:
1. You can put together a good weight loss diet plan which loses the weight pretty quickly, and since everybody loses the weight by dieting, they are Guaranteed to gain it all back, so... You’ll have a very profitable Business for life, or...
2. You can teach everyone how to lose the weight permanently, and go out of Business within one to two years (because everyone’s Slim now).
Which would you choose?
Good question isn’t it? You see the problem!
The reality is that the weight loss industry, just in the USA & Canada alone, is worth over $44 Billion per Year, and the failure rate is over 98%.
I Rest My Case!
One of the main reasons for that, is that all weight loss clinics give you a diet to follow, no exceptions. It doesn’t matter if the weight loss diet is a meal plan, meal replacements, fasting drinks, diet pills, or whatever, the reality is...
The faster you lose the weight by following any kind of weight loss diet...
The faster you will regain all the weight
That’s reality!
Until you can accept that, you are only playing games with your own mind. The reason is quite simple, because...
Every single weight loss diet, “slows down your metabolism”, NO EXCEPTIONS!
Every weight loss Clinic would have you believe that it’s only a matter of finding the right weight loss diet for you (theirs of course).
Here’s The Secret
If depriving yourself of food (weight loss diets), causes long term weight gain, then...
Adding food to your diet will cause long term weight loss!!! THAT’S RIGHT!
It works every time, however...
It has to be the right food. In our free weight loss program, our students keep on eating what they like and we actually add (real) food to their diet, and we help them to easily change...
Not so much what they eat, but how they eat, and...
It works “every time”
Actually, we only have one Major Rule:
NO DIETING WHATSOEVER!
Instead of putting the “Focus” on destroying the metabolism with weight loss diets, we focus on...
Rebuilding the metabolism and the fat begins to melt away. That’s the only answer you know. It’s quite easy once you know the Secrets.
I realize that’s hard to believe, but how many people do you know who went on a weight loss diet, and “Kept it off”, again...
I rest my case!
The most important thing here is for you to inform yourself, and please realize that over 98% of everything that you think you know about weight loss, was taught to you either directly or indirectly by “The weight loss diet Industry”...
And now we both know what their Motivation is: “To Keep You Fat”, so that you keep coming back year after year, and giving them your hard earned money.
Make up your Mind to not get Scammed anymore.
I hope that I’ve helped in some small way, to guide you on the right path to slimming down for Life.
Have a Great Life!
That’s right, because on all weight loss diets, you always gain it back, and usually with a few extra pounds as a bonus, so why diet?
What’s the point in losing 20 Lbs, and gaining back 25?
Are you fed up with being overweight, and sick and tired of going on diets?
Why go through all the struggles of dieting, the starvation, the cravings, and the ultimate struggle with willpower, only to gain it all back?
When you consider the damage this does to your health, it's simply not worth it, however...
There is an easy answer, but first...
You must understand the Biggest Problem
Definitely, one of the biggest problems in weight control is the weight loss Industry!
Surprise!!!
hey want you to “Fail”; otherwise they would have no more business, think about it.
If everybody lost the weight for good, the weight loss Industry would die overnight, so they want you to gain it all back, then they lay a “Guilt Trip” on you for not sticking to your diet or maintenance diet.
Sound familiar? But...
Why should you feel guilty about not being able to stick to some totally unnatural starvation diet? That doesn’t make any sense, but that’s what happens.
However most people never look at it that way, because they are so emotionally tied up with their own weight problem that they never look at it from the other side, from the Business point of view.
It’s Critical that you understand this.
So let me give you a simple example...
Suppose that you lived in a small Town which had no weight loss clinic but was big enough to support one, so you decided to go into the Business of Weight Loss. You do some Serious Research, and here’s what you find...
You have Two Options:
1. You can put together a good weight loss diet plan which loses the weight pretty quickly, and since everybody loses the weight by dieting, they are Guaranteed to gain it all back, so... You’ll have a very profitable Business for life, or...
2. You can teach everyone how to lose the weight permanently, and go out of Business within one to two years (because everyone’s Slim now).
Which would you choose?
Good question isn’t it? You see the problem!
The reality is that the weight loss industry, just in the USA & Canada alone, is worth over $44 Billion per Year, and the failure rate is over 98%.
I Rest My Case!
One of the main reasons for that, is that all weight loss clinics give you a diet to follow, no exceptions. It doesn’t matter if the weight loss diet is a meal plan, meal replacements, fasting drinks, diet pills, or whatever, the reality is...
The faster you lose the weight by following any kind of weight loss diet...
The faster you will regain all the weight
That’s reality!
Until you can accept that, you are only playing games with your own mind. The reason is quite simple, because...
Every single weight loss diet, “slows down your metabolism”, NO EXCEPTIONS!
Every weight loss Clinic would have you believe that it’s only a matter of finding the right weight loss diet for you (theirs of course).
Here’s The Secret
If depriving yourself of food (weight loss diets), causes long term weight gain, then...
Adding food to your diet will cause long term weight loss!!! THAT’S RIGHT!
It works every time, however...
It has to be the right food. In our free weight loss program, our students keep on eating what they like and we actually add (real) food to their diet, and we help them to easily change...
Not so much what they eat, but how they eat, and...
It works “every time”
Actually, we only have one Major Rule:
NO DIETING WHATSOEVER!
Instead of putting the “Focus” on destroying the metabolism with weight loss diets, we focus on...
Rebuilding the metabolism and the fat begins to melt away. That’s the only answer you know. It’s quite easy once you know the Secrets.
I realize that’s hard to believe, but how many people do you know who went on a weight loss diet, and “Kept it off”, again...
I rest my case!
The most important thing here is for you to inform yourself, and please realize that over 98% of everything that you think you know about weight loss, was taught to you either directly or indirectly by “The weight loss diet Industry”...
And now we both know what their Motivation is: “To Keep You Fat”, so that you keep coming back year after year, and giving them your hard earned money.
Make up your Mind to not get Scammed anymore.
I hope that I’ve helped in some small way, to guide you on the right path to slimming down for Life.
Have a Great Life!
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