March 9 — Stress can make you frazzled. Stress can make you sick. Stress can also make you fat. And keep you fat. It's a scientific fact.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Toxic Weight Busting Tips Take The Stress-Eating Quiz
How you cope with stress determines your appetite. If you're a woman, your life is especially frenzied (juggling aging parents, career, spouse, kids), and your hormones — including your stress hormones — are beginning to flood the body somewhat unpredictably. This can result in mood swings, muscle fatigue, loss of memory and intense food cravings.
These physical and emotional changes get worse when you harbor chronic, long-term stress that makes you feel hopeless, helpless and defeated. I call this Toxic Stress. It's the only kind of stress that adds weight inside the belly — the toxic kind. How does it do that?
Hormonal
When stress hits, different brain chemicals are released to help the body handle the physical response. One of the chemicals — cortisol, known as the stress hormone — is a powerful appetite stimulant. When you come under stress, cortisol levels in your bloodstream rise. The hormone makes fat cells release fuel for what it assumes will be your fight-or-flight reaction.
But we aren't gazelles in the Serengeti being hunted by lions. The stresses we face in the modern world aren't the kind you run away from. We usually just sit there and get upset and anxious. Meanwhile, our brain just assumes we've gotten really physical with such high levels of stress hormone circulating. So, the cortisol's next job is to refuel us, replenishing what it thinks were the fuels we used.
Toxic Stress
When you're under long-term Toxic Stress, your cortisol is constantly elevated. This leads to real problems. You end up with a big appetite for the special fuels of the stress response — fats and carbs. Ever notice it's not a can of tuna you reach for when you're getting the stress munchies? No, it's almost always cookies, candies, chips and starches. That's how you gain the weight.
Where does the fat go? It's deposited in a unique place in the body – deep inside the abdomen. Everyone's got some fat inside there, even skinny people. However, too much fat inside the tummy is very dangerous, which is why I call this extra stress-induced fat Toxic Weight. Poor lifestyle choices and fluctuating estrogen levels contribute to Toxic Weight as well.
Toxic Weight is the only fat associated with diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
How do you know you have Toxic Weight? Lie down flat on the floor and look down at your abdomen. Does it rise up above your pelvic bones like you swallowed a bowling ball? If so, Toxic Weight is on board. If you have high blood pressure or diabetes, the Toxic Weight is definitely contributing to your condition. So that expanding waistline is more than an eyesore. It can shorten your life.
Dr. Pamela Peeke is an assistant clinical professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Toxic Weight Busting Tips
What can you do about stress-induced Toxic Weight? You need to keep your stress hormone under better control all day long. The real goal is to learn to become more stress-resilient. Here's how:
Start with your MIND: Learn how to adapt and overcome whenever life's stresses occur. Learn the fine art of regrouping. Step back and realize your original Plan A approach may not work under stress. Quickly move to Plan B or C and adapt to the new challenge. Desperately holding onto Plan A creates Toxic Stress.
Move to your MOUTH: When you're feeling stressed, avoid processed sugars and starches. If you eat them, the resultant increased insulin levels give you a double whammy. The high levels of insulin induce a binge, and in the face of a high cortisol level, you'll binge on fats and carbs. Eat fruit, crunchy cereal or pretzels instead.
Finally, move your MUSCLE: By getting up and taking a walk, you can increase the secretion of stress hormone-busting chemicals called beta endorphins. Escape for a short walk, lift some weights or just stand up and do some stretches. Get back some of that fight-or-flight physical activity and you'll keep stress hormones under control.
About half of the adults in the United States are overweight. That's 97 million people who have too much fat. Many Americans exercise and go on diets to reduce their amount of body fat.
But have you ever wondered what fat is? When a person "gets fat" -- gains weight -- what is actually happening inside the person's body? What are "fat cells" and how do they work?
In this edition of HowStuffWorks Fitness, we will look at the world of the fat cell. We will examine where fat cells are located, how they store fat and how they get rid of it!
Where's the Fat?
Fat, or adipose tissue, is found in several places in your body. Generally, fat is found underneath your skin (subcutaneous fat). There's also some on top of each of your kidneys. Other locations depend upon whether you are a man or woman:
An adult man tends to carry body fat in his chest, abdomen and buttocks, producing an "apple" shape.
An adult woman tends to carry fat in her breasts, hips, waist and buttocks, creating a "pear" shape.
The difference in fat location comes from the sex hormones estrogen and testosterone.
Your body contains two types of fat tissue:
White fat - important in energy metabolism, heat insulation and mechanical cushioning.
Brown fat - found mostly in newborn babies, between the shoulders; important for thermogenesis (making heat).
Fat tissue is made up of fat cells. Fat cells are a unique type of cell. You can think of a fat cell as a tiny plastic bag that holds a drop of fat:
White fat cells are large cells that have very little cytoplasm, only 15 percent cell volume, a small nucleus and one large fat droplet that makes up 85 percent of cell volume.
Brown fat cells are somewhat smaller, are loaded with mitochondria and are composed of several smaller fat droplets. The mitochondria are able to generate heat.
Fat cells are formed in the developing fetus during the third trimester of pregnancy, and later at the onset of puberty, when the sex hormones "kick in." It is during puberty that the differences in fat distribution between men and women begin to take form. One amazing fact is that fat cells do not multiply after peuberty -- as your body stores more fat, the number of fat cells remains the same. Each fat cell simply gets bigger!
In addition to fat tissue, some fat is stored in the liver, and an even smaller amount in muscle.
How Fat Enters Your Body
When you eat food that contains fat, mostly triglycerides, it goes through your stomach and intestines. In the intestines, the following happens:
Large fat droplets get mixed with bile salts from the gall bladder in a process called emulsification. The mixture breaks up the large droplets into several smaller droplets called micelles, increasing the fat's surface area.
Emulsification in Your Kitchen
When you add water to a greasy skillet, the grease forms a layer on top of the water. If you squeeze one drop of dishwashing liquid into the center of the skillet, you'll see the large grease layer immediately break up into small droplets.
The pancreas secretes enzymes called lipases that attack the surface of each micelle and break the fats down into their parts, glycerol and fatty acids.
These parts get absorbed into the cells lining the intestine.
In the intestinal cell, the parts are reassembled into packages of fat molecules (triglycerides) with a protein coating called chylomicrons. The protein coating makes the fat dissolve more easily in water.
The chylomicrons are released into the lymphatic system -- they do not go directly into the bloodstream because they are too big to pass through the wall of the capillary.
The lymphatic system eventually merges with the veins, at which point the chylomicrons pass into the bloodstream.
You might be wondering why fat molecules get broken down into glycerol and fatty acids if they're just going to be rebuilt. This is because fat molecules are too big to easily cross cell membranes. So when passing from the intestine through the intestinal cells into the lymph, or when crossing any cell barrier, the fats must be broken down. But, when fats are being transported in the lymph or blood, it is better to have a few, large fat molecules than many smaller fatty acids, because the larger fats do not "attract" as many excess water molecules by osmosis as many smaller molecules would.
How Fat is Stored in Your Body
Chylomicrons do not last long in the bloodstream -- only about eight minutes -- because enzymes called lipoprotein lipases break the fats into fatty acids. Lipoprotein lipases are found in the walls of blood vessels in fat tissue, muscle tissue and heart muscle. The activity of lipoprotein lipases depends upon the levels of insulin in the body. If insulin is high, then the lipases are highly active; if insulin is low, the lipases are inactive.
Insulin
When you eat a candy bar or a meal, the presence of glucose, amino acids or fatty acids in the intestine stimulates the pancreas to secrete a hormone called insulin. Insulin acts on many cells in your body, especially those in the liver, muscle and fat tissue. Insulin tells the cells to do the following:
Absorb glucose, fatty acids and amino acids
Stop breaking down:
glucose, fatty acids and amino acids
glycogen into glucose
fats into fatty acids and glycerol
proteins into amino acids
Start building:
glycogen from glucose
fats (triglycerides) from glycerol and fatty acids
proteins from amino acids
The fatty acids are then absorbed from the blood into fat cells, muscle cells and liver cells. In these cells, under stimulation by insulin, fatty acids are made into fat molecules and stored as fat droplets.
It is also possible for fat cells to take up glucose and amino acids, which have been absorbed into the bloodstream after a meal, and convert those into fat molecules. The conversion of carbohydrates or protein into fat is 10 times less efficient than simply storing fat in a fat cell, but the body can do it. If you have 100 extra calories in fat (about 11 grams) floating in your bloodstream, fat cells can store it using only 2.5 calories of energy. On the other hand, if you have 100 extra calories in glucose (about 25 grams) floating in your bloodstream, it takes 23 calories of energy to convert the glucose into fat and then store it. Given a choice, a fat cell will grab the fat and store it rather than the carbohydrates because fat is so much easier to store.
It is important to note that as your body stores more fat, the number of fat cells remains the same; each fat cell simply gets bigger.
Hormones That Act Opposite to Insulin
When you are not eating, your body is not absorbing food. If your body is not absorbing food, there is little insulin in the blood. However, your body is always using energy; and if you're not absorbing food, this energy must come from internal stores of complex carbohydrates, fats and proteins. Under these conditions, various organs in your body secrete hormones:
pancreas - glucagon
pituitary gland - growth hormone
pituitary gland - ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone)
adrenal gland - epinephrine (adrenaline)
thyroid gland - thyroid hormone
These hormones act on cells of the liver, muscle and fat tissue, and have the opposite effects of insulin.
How Your Body Breaks Down Fat
When you are not eating, or you are exercising, your body must draw on its internal energy stores of complex carbohydrates, fats and proteins. Your body's prime source of energy is glucose. In fact, some cells in your body, such as brain cells, can get energy only from glucose.
The first line of defense in maintaining energy is to break down carbohydrates, or glycogen, into simple glucose molecules -- this process is called glycogenolysis. Next, your body breaks down fats into glycerol and fatty acids in the process of lipolysis. The fatty acids can then be broken down directly to get energy, or can be used to make glucose through a multi-step process called gluconeogenesis. In gluconeogenesis, amino acids can also be used to make glucose.
In the fat cell, other types of lipases work to break down fats into fatty acids and glycerol. These lipases are activated by various hormones, such as glucagon, epinephrine and growth hormone. The resulting glycerol and fatty acids are released into the blood, and travel to the liver through the bloodstream. Once in the liver, the glycerol and fatty acids can be either further broken down or used to make glucose.
Brown Fat: Making Heat
When you are first born, your body does not have much white fat to help insulate and retain body heat; although there are white fat cells, there is not much fat stored in them. A newborn baby produces heat (thermogenesis) primarily by breaking down fat molecules into fatty acids in brown fat cells. Instead of those fatty acids leaving the brown fat cell, as happens in white fat cells, they get further broken down in the mitochondria and their energy is released directly as heat. This same process occurs in hibernating animals, which have more brown fat than humans. Once the newborn baby starts eating more, developing layers of white fat, the brown fat goes away. Adult humans have little or no brown fat.
Losing Weight and Losing Fat
Your weight is determined by the rate at which you store energy from the food that you eat, and the rate at which you use that energy. Most experts agree that the way to maintain a healthy weight is:
Eat a balanced diet - appropriate amounts glucose, fat and protein
Do not eat excessively - for most people, a diet of 1,500 to 2,000 calories a day is sufficient to maintain a healthy weight
Exercise regularly
Do you crave more sugars, starches or alcohol these days?
I was watching, "The View" on television, when I heard Joy (the Comedian) raving about the intensity of her carbohydrate cravings, since the attack on America on September 11, 2001. An hour earlier, I had heard the identical complaint on another talk show.
What about you? Have you been feeling a l i t t l e desperate ...anxious ...nervous ???
Perhaps, a bit m o o d y ?
Do you reach for sugars, starches, sweetened drinks or alcohol when feeling on edge? Craving carbohydrates is a symptom you need more serotonin, the "feel-good" brain hormone. Once serotonin levels rise, cravings for carbohydrates vanish.
So, now that you know feeling anxious, nervous, depressed or even angry is an indication to raise brain serotonin concentration, stay aware of your body's instincts. Notice your emotional state. When you feel anxious or sad, depressed or emotional, you may begin to notice a craving stirring within...a yen for something sweet...salty 'n crunchy...alcoholic... This is your body's instinct to raise serotonin.
You may find yourself in the grips of an old habit; Overdosing on refined carbohydrates when your body truly needs nutrient-dense carbohydrates. Perhaps your old habit is to turn to sugars, starches, alcohol, or even a drug called "ecstasy", which floods the brain with serotonin for a deeply relaxing, euphoric feeling. The question is: how much serotonin do you really need? The brain only requires a slow drip, not a tidal wave! Too much serotonin floating in your brain makes you sleepy. You feel drugged and "out of it"...can't get anything done...too fuzzy-headed.
Here's a few strategies to manage serotonin...and carbohydrate cravings:
Select low-glycemic foods like apples, pears, organic red meat, fish, barley, soy foods, beans, lentils...
Select any carbohydrate-containing food or beverage, but be sure to limit the total grams of carbohydrates [per meal or snack] to under 100 grams. Overdosing on sugars, starches and alcohol in the afternoon will overproduce serotonin and zap your energy. Between the hours of noon to five -- or when you need to boost mental concentration, be sure to cut back on carbohydrates. Eating more protein produces "dopamine" -- a hormone which will help you stay mentally alert and focus on your work.
Balance glycemic (carbohydrate-rich) foods with protein-rich foods... to manage blood sugars for 4-5 hours.
Select tryptophan/B6-rich foods to raise serotonin.
Go for a brisk walk for a nice dose of dopamine [to think clearly about your daily challenges]. Serotonin is also released when moving your body in a rhythmic fashion, to help you relax you. If you work out long enough you can even release some endorphins for a euphoric feeling!
Sunshine stimulates serotonin production, so sit next to a window -- but don't overdo it! If serotonin rises too much, you may just fall asleep!
Start by selecting low-glycemic foods as often as you can.
Let's talk about "The Glycemic Index" and "Glycemic Load"
The Glycemic Index classifies hundreds of carbohydrate-containing foods with number values: 100 is considered high glycemic, which indicates the food will raise blood sugars rapidly. 10 is considered extremely low-glycemic, which indicates the food will raise blood sugars slowly. The Glycemic Index is listed on pages 41-46 of my book: Be Lean, Healthy, Energetic! Medical Health Planner for a Metabolic Makeover [ISBN: 0-9663748-6-X]
The Glycemic Index compares the relative speed at which various carbohydrate-containing foods raise blood sugars or "glucose". Low glycemic foods help manage blood sugars because they raise blood sugars slowly. Apples, pears, grapefruits, greens and organic red meat are examples of foods which raise blood sugars gradually. On the other hand, carrots, beets and potatoes have an index in the '90's.
"Glycemic Load" refers to the total grams of carbohydrate consumed, which increases the concentration of sugars in the bloodstream. Let's look at a couple examples.
Raw carrots are considered glycemic: they raise blood sugars rapidly, but have a low glycemic load because fiber-rich, water-dense carrots only provide 5 grams of carbohydrate per 7-inch carrot (1 1/4 " thick). I mean, seriously: how many raw carrots can you eat?
...as opposed to 15 grams of carbohydrate for only 1/3 cup of rice!!! I mean, really: who can eat just 1/3 cup of rice? Rice creates a huge glycemic load in the bloodstream because it truly is difficult to only eat 1/3 cup of rice at a time! Most folks will end up eating a few more servings than that! So the glycemic load will be much greater. Check out the grams of carbohydrates on the NUTRITION FACTS food label. Look at the grams of carbohydrate "per serving" to know the effect it will have on your bloodstream.
This article is posted on the 3FC'S website in the library. LINDAT posted it and I hope she doesn't mind if I repost it for all of you to read...
Got this article in an email from my medical group. I thought it had some good info.
by Sinatra, Stephen
Total Health
Jul/Aug 2002
Whether you want to shed 15 pounds or 215 pounds, if you want to be successful at long-term weight loss, you must examine your attitudes, beliefs and behaviors around food. Otherwise it is almost guaranteed that you will backslide into old eating patterns at the first sign of emotional stress.
Theoretically, losing weight is one of the easiest things to do -- you simply expend more energy (measured in calories) than you take in. But as you probably know from experience, the process is not that straightforward in practice. This was evident when I directed the Optifast program, an intensive, hospital-based regimen where patients dieted for 16 weeks on shakes prepared under strict medical supervision. What other medical personnel and I observed was that the leading root causes of weight gain are a lack of discipline and a lack of support.
No Support System
The combination of poor discipline and inadequate support is a disastrous one for weight loss. By support I mean that coworkers, friends and family help reinforce you in the process of weight loss or whatever personal goal you are trying to reach. Sadly, many overweight individuals lack support, often from the time they were children. They usually come from families where achieving was more important than being and where there was little acceptance of the children as they were. Their parents let them know in one way or another that they didn't measure up.
But the truth is that too much pressure, for adults or children, only tempts people to rebel or to loathe their shortcomings, and consequently themselves. What they need more than anything is acceptance and encouragement. The supportive atmosphere among the participants of the Optifast program, for example, was a big factor in their individual successes. The group met once a week but members would also call one another when in danger of "slipping" and get encouragement to make healthier choices. By contrast, if a woman cooks for a family and family members put their desires for unhealthy foods over her needs, then it is almost impossible for her to lose weight.
Of course we all need to support ourselves from within, too, and have the courage of our convictions in interactions with others. But some people back away from such confrontations, externally acquiescing to everyone else's wants and needs while padding themselves with fat rather than dealing with their anger at their own self-betrayal.
Stuffing Emotions
For people who are chronically overweight, food becomes a vehicle with which to block uncomfortable emotions -- usually anger, fear, shame, frustration, guilt, loneliness and sadness. In their book Overcoming Overeating (Random House, 1998), Jane Hirschmann and Carol Munter distinguish between "stomach hunger" (when you eat to fill your body because your stomach is empty) and "mouth hunger" (when you are reaching for something to put in your mouth because you are experiencing a difficult emotion).
People who eat from stomach hunger have a healthy relationship with food, whereas those eating from mouth hunger do not. Some of you may find yourself doing both at different times but it is an important detail to acknowledge. For many of us it is hard to take in love but easy to take in food. So in a cruel irony, we can be physically full, yet emotionally starved. The fact that obesity is rising in the United States means that we all must have something in common when it comes to abusing food . . . and yes, that is a strong statement but I believe many of us do abuse food.
Get a Handle on What's Eating You
To help understand what role emotions play in my patients eating patterns, I have them ask themselves some tough questions. Try it yourself. Any "yes" response indicates a situation where you are eating out of month hunger.
* Have I ever found myself looking for something to eat within an hour or two of eating?
* Do I sometimes overeat?
* Do I feel guilty or have thoughts of self recrimination after eating?
* Do I overeat to "treat" myself after a long, hard day?
* Do I feel less anxious after eating?
* Do I rush through meals, not even tasting the food?
* Do I need to have large helpings of food to feel full?
* When I done with loves ones, am I more concerned about the food than the company and surroundings?
* Is food replacing something that is missing in my life?
* Do I make excuses for being overweight?
* Do I think I will feel better (calmer, more relaxed, lathargic) after I eat?
If so, then you need to take an honest look at your relationship with food. To help uncover your own unconscious drives I suggest writing out answers to the following questions:
* Am I able to take in love from my partner? My children? Family? Friends? Or do I keep certain thoughts and feelings to myself to avoid possible rejection?
* When in pain, do I turn toward loved ones for support or do I push them away and isolate myself? Why do I react this way?
* Am I getting something out of being overweight? Does it get me off the hook for sexual intimacy? Is it an excuse not to be more active? Does it get me help and sympathy from others?
If you have identified that emotions are ruling your eating, then you can start to change the way you think. For example, are you a card-carrying member of the "Clean Plate Club"? Many of us are. It may have started in childhood, when you were pushed to clean your plate out of guilt for the "starving children." If you still feel that it is somehow wrong to leave food, even if your body signals that it is full, then this unconscious belief is probably part of what is driving you. Bring it to consciousness and you are then free to choose whether to clean your plate.
This is what needs to be done at every turn. Especially when you get the urge to dig into your favorite comfort food. Stop and ask yourself what is really going on. Writing about it for a minute or two is even better. If you keep a journal like this for a few weeks, patterns will start to emerge and I think you will be happily surprised at the insights you gain.
Nuts and Bolts of Losing Weight
Today we have more fad diets, diet pills and low-fat foods on the market than ever before and yet we also have more obesity and obesity related illnesses than in decades past.
The only way you can lose weight is to combine increased physical activity with healthy eating. The goal is to gradually and consistently lose because if you lose any more than one to two pounds a week, your body will be shedding lean muscle mass rather than fat and that is not good at all.
In fact, the more lean muscle mass you lose, the more your basal metabolic rate (BMR) drops, which means your body becomes better and better at existing on very little food. (BMR is a measure of the body's ability to burn calories at rest -- sleeping, reading a book, watching television, etc.) This is what happens to most dieters who achieve their goal weight very rapidly and it is why so many are unsuccessful at maintaining their weight loss.
Haul Your BMR Out of the Basement
Those of us over age 40 are also familiar with steep declines in BMR. Part of it is just the aging process but the vast majority of people in this culture also tend to be more sedentary as they age and all that uninterrupted sitting around really sends BMR into the basement. Hormonal imbalances can also play a role and they result from a variety of factors, from thyroid dysfunction to drug side effects to excess carbohydrate intake.
Therefore, if you are serious about weight loss, you need to look for every opportunity to increase BMR. Exercise is going to give you the biggest most noticeable payoff. There is just no getting around it, so you might as well find activities you like to do. As you probably know, I am a big advocate of walking, combined with a little weight lifting and regular stress-reducing activities such as yoga, t'ai chi or qigong. But that may not fit with your lifestyle. Maybe you would rather work out to an exercise tape and then garden when the weather permits. Or perhaps you like to take classes at a gym.
Whatever you prefer, schedule at least some of your sessions for the morning because research shows that individuals who exercise early in the day are much more apt to stick with it. That is not surprising. The later in the day your workout is, the greater the possibility that life's events will intervene.
Mountain Climbing as an analogy for weight loss
Which is more difficult -- ascending a mountain or descending it? If you have climbed mountains or read stories about people who have, you know that more climbers die on the descent than the climb. So often, in both mountaineering and life, we view reaching the summit as the victory but it really is not. It is only half the story. Experienced mountaineers know this and that is why they do not celebrate until they return to base camp.
Losing weight is similar in that attaining your goal weight is the mid-point. Maintaining this ideal weight is the part of the story we often do not hear about, partly because so few are successful at it. What I would like you to consider as you embark on your weight loss journey is the second half of the story.
Keeping your sights set on maintaining a certain weight and level of fitness, rather than on simply reaching a target weight, will change your perspective. So instead of focusing on how to get down to a certain clothing size as fast as possible, you will be more concerned with what enduring lifestyle changes you can make. It is the difference, for example, between telling yourself you will give up white bread with every meal just until you reach your goal and finally deciding to make more nutritious carbohydrate choices from here on out.
For most, starchy carbs make up a substantial portion of their evening meals. Pasta, rice, potatoes… these are nightly staples in the standard American diet. Steak and fries, spaghetti and meatballs- what would dinner be without them?
The trouble with starchy carbs is that they are readily transformed to fat when eaten before bedtime. The reason for this is simple: The primary function of carbohydrates is to supply short-term energy for your daily activities. If carbs are not used immediately for fuel, they have two possible fates; they either are stored as glycogen in your liver and muscles or are converted into fatty acids and stored in adipose tissue as bodyfat. Since activity levels usually are lowest during the evening hours, there is a diminished use of carbs for fuel and therefore an increased potential for bodyfat storage.
In general, the best time to consume carbs is early in the day, when your activity levels are at their peak. This will allow your body to utilize a maximal amount of carbs for energy and minimize the potential for fat deposition. Breakfast, in particular, is an excellent time to load up on complex carbs. A large bowl of rolled oats or bran cereal will set the stage for fueling your daily activities and keep you physically and mentally fit throughout the day.
On the other hand, it is best to limit your dinner fare to fibrous, vegetable-based food sources. Fibrous vegetables tend to be extremely low in total calories and, because of their bulk, are very filling. For supper, consider eating a meal consisting of lean poultry or fish combined with a large bowl of salad greens. Other vegetables (i.e. broccoli, string beans, cauliflower, zucchini, etc) also make fine nighttime carbohydrate choices, and will reduce the potential for unwanted bodyfat storage.
I wanted to post this little information that I read in the book I mentioned yesterday by Dr. Ian K. Smith, THE TAKE CONTROL DIET which really, so far in my reading, isn't really a so-called diet, but how to take control of your diet. I do recommend reading it, has lots of good info in it, including stuff about the GI, though I have to say, once again, the info he talks about having to do with SB has some stuff that's incorrect information.
One of the major disappointment that people encounter when losing weight is that what they expected to gain from the weight loss doesn't happen to the degree they had hoped. Some people who have been heavy all of their lives and have been chronically ostracized through social exclusion hope that losing weight will bring them social inclusion. It might be true that people will make less fun of a more normal-size person and behave in a more socially gracious manner, but better that a life of exclusion and embarrassment will be reversed by weight loss is a gamble not worth taking.
People who are mean and small-minded enough to exclude someone for his or her physical appearance are unlikely to change their petty and immature behavior because of that person's alteration in weight and appearance. In fact, when dieters reach that target weight yet don't collect the rewards they hoped it would bring, the spiritual and psychological disappointment only serves as a trigger to undo all that has been done. The disappointed no longer find value in their long sacrifice and hard work and thus return to the bad habits of overeating, consuming unhealthy foods, and finding themselves engaged in more sedentary behaviors.
Your first commitment must be to losing weight for you and only you. This sounds selfish, and it should be, because you're the one who must cuts back on those favorite between-meal snacks. You'll be the one taking more flights of steps and turning down car rides so that you can walk and kick-start your metabolism. The work will fall squarely on our shoulders, as should the satisfaction. Dieters who tie their own satisfaction to external approval often find themselves in a cycle of hope and disappointment.
Boy, did the above have my name written all over it!!!!!!!
Also, another interesting tidbit in the book was about yo-yo dieting:
The consequences of yo-yo dieting were first observed by a researcher at Yale. Using rats, he examined the effects of repeated cycles of weight loss and regain. He found that not only did it take the rats longer to lose the weight on subsequent cycles, but they also gained it back faster the more they cycled. First, the rats were put on a calorie-restricted diet. After a certain period of time, they were refed. During the second cycle of restriction, the rats needed a total of forty-six days to lose the weight that had taken them only twenty-one days previously. It was also easier for future weight gain. It took the rats only fourteen days on the second off-cycle to regain the same amount of weight that had taken them forty-six days to gain previously.
There are no completed studies yet in humans to confirm this yo-yo diet effect, but athletes will paint a similar picture if you ask them about their course of weight loss and weight gain between seasons.
Magnesium is a mineral that is required for the proper growth and formation of human bones, muscle tissues, and enzymes. It is used to convert carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into energy. It is involved in the transmission of nervous system impulses, assist in the uptake of calcium and potassium. Higher intake of magnesium has also been linked to lung function, according to a study published recently in England. Researchers found that adults consuming an average of 380 milligrams of magnesium per day exhibited increased lung function, and benefits were consistent regardless of whether or not the subjects smoked.
The body's relative balance of magnesium and calcium has a profound impact on health as these two minerals must work smoothly together to insure proper muscle control. Calcium is involved in stimulating muscle contraction, and magnesium is required to allow the muscles to relax. Both an excess intake of calcium or a magnesium deficiency can result in poor muscle coordination, irritability and nervousness. Magnesium also helps to prevent depression, muscle weakness and twitching, heart disorders, and high blood pressure.
In the U.S. the Recommended Daily Allowance for magnesium is 400 mg. per day. Foods high in magnesium include fish, dairy products, lean meat, whole grains, seeds, and vegetables. Consumption of large amounts of zinc and vitamin D increase the body's requirement for magnesium as does alcohol, fats, proteins, and diuretics. The body's uptake of magnesium can also be inhibited by consuming foods high in oxalic acid, such as spinach, cocoa and tea.
How does high fibre food assist in digestion and what are the benefits of a high fibre diet?
Dietary fibre is only found in plant foods. Fibre has several effects on digestion, some beneficial, and some detrimental. One beneficial effect is that fibre tends to slow down the rate of digestion of food, leading to a more gradual emptying of the food from the stomach into the small intestine. This means that there is less likelihood of large quantities of glucose (the major breakdown product of carbohydrate) being absorbed rapidly from the small intestine into the blood and therefore a lower chance of an 'insulin surge'. Insulin is the hormone that is released when glucose is absorbed from the small intestine. It is possible that by slowing stomach emptying, fibre helps avoid the situation where the body has to produce large quantities of insulin (as a result of repeated rapid release of glucose into the intestine). In turn this may help protect against diabetes in susceptible people.
However, fibre does interfere with the absorption of some nutrients. For example, up to 5% of the fat in a moderately high fibre diet is not absorbed because of this interference. This may even be a good thing in Australia, given that 63% of men and 47% of women were overweight in 1995 (with no sign that these levels of overweight and obesity will decrease in Australia). High fibre foods also interfere to some extent with the absorption of some essential minerals and trace elements, but a high fibre diet is also likely to provide you with extra minerals and trace elements, so the effect is not believed to be very significant for normal Western diets.
Despite these minor detrimental effects, a high fibre intake is believed to be significantly beneficial overall. Low intake of fibre (particularly of the insoluble forms of fibre such as those in bread and other wheat products) is one of the major causes of constipation. Low fibre intakes are also strongly associated with an increased risk of diverticulitis. Although the evidence is less compelling, lack of fibre in the diet may also contribute to the incidence of rectal cancer, haemorrhoids, obesity, appendicitis and ulcerative colitis. High intake of soluble fibres such as the pectins and gums (found in fruits, vegetables, rolled oats) and saponins (found in legumes) is associated with reduced blood cholesterol. High intake of foods of plant origin (all of which contain some fibre) is associated with a reduced risk of heart disease, cancer, and an increased life expectancy.
Another benefit, and one that may assist with weight control, is the feeling of satiety (that is, a feeling of fullness) that follows a meal rich in fibre. It is also true that high fibre foods are almost invariably low in fat, so a high-fibre diet will usually be a low-fat diet.
Of course, it may not always be the fibre as such that is helpful. Plant foods contain many vitamins, phytochemicals, trace elements, non-nutritional antioxidants and other substances that may be just as valuable as fibre, or even more valuable. But the fact remains - to get all these other potentially beneficial chemicals you have to eat plant foods.
The current daily intake of fibre is probably 20-25g on average for Australian adults. Increasing this average intake to 30-35 g would very likely lead to improved health outcome. This is achievable by simply eating more fruits, vegetables and cereal foods (preferably whole grain).
Most people have no idea how much water they should be drinking, and most Americans live from day to day in a dehydrated state. They don't drink enough water. Without water, we would be poisoned to death by our own waste products and toxins resulting from metabolism.
Water is vital to digestion and metabolism, acting as a medium for various enzymatic and chemical reactions in the body. It carries nutrients and oxygen to the cells through the blood, regulates body temperature and lubricates our joints (which is particularly important if you're arthritic, have chronic muscular-skeletal problems or are athletically active).
We need water to breathe; we lose approximately one pint of liquid every day just by exhaling.
If you are not in "fluid balance" you can impair every aspect of your body's physiological functioning.
Dr. Howard Flaks, Beverly Hills:
"As a result of not drinking enough water, many people encounter such problems as excess body fat, poor muscle tone and size, decreased digestive efficiency and organ function, increased toxicity in the body, joint and muscle soreness (particularly after exercise) and water retention."
Proper water intake is the key to weight loss," says Dr. Donald Robertson, Scottsdale, Arizona. "If people who are trying to lose weight don't drink enough water, the body can't metabolize the fat, they retain fluid, which keeps their weight up, and the whole procedure we're trying to set up falls apart."
"I'd say the minimum amount of water a healthy person should drink is 10 eight-ounce glasses a day," he continues, "and you need to drink more if you are overweight, exercise a lot, or live in a hot climate. Overweight people should drink an extra eight ounces of water for each 25 pounds that exceeds their ideal weight."
Your water intake should be spread judiciously throughout the day, including the evening. Dr. Flaks cautions against drinking more than four glasses in any given hour. Always check with your physician before embarking on a water intake increase program.
You may ask, "If I drink this much water, won't I constantly be running to the bathroom?" Initially, yes, because of the hypersensitivity of the bladder to increased fluids. But after a few weeks, your bladder calms down, and you urinate less frequently, but in larger amounts.
There is a difference between pure water and other beverages that contain water.
Water is water. Obviously you can get it by consuming fruit juice, soft drinks, beer, coffee or tea. Unfortunately, while such drinks contain water, they also may contain substances that are not healthy and actually contradict some of the positive effects of the added water.
Dr. Jerzy Meduski, Los Angeles, California: "Beer contains water, but it also contains alcohol, which is a toxic substance. Beverages that contain caffeine, such as coffee, stimulate the adrenal glands; fruit juices contain a lot of sugar and stimulate the pancreas. Such drinks may tax the body more than cleanse it."
Another problem with these beverages is that you lose your taste for water.
The way to interpret all of this, therefore, is that the recommended daily water intake means just that--WATER!
I wish there were a pill you could take. I wish there were a machine that would just rub it all away. But if there were, I’d be out of a job because there would be no personal trainers. Still, I wish there were a miracle answer to losing weight the easy way. So many people would be so happy if they could just drop pounds with just the snap of their fingers. But unfortunately there is no easy way to shed pounds. In fact, it is very hard to lose weight and keep it off permanently.
The odds are against you from the start: 95% of all people who lose weight gain it back. Looking in the face of that mountain can be pretty intimidating! So maybe it’s just easier to stay overweight? That is up to you to decide. However, if you can know up front what losing weight is really like, you can better arm yourself for the roller coaster ride that is ahead.
Anything over a 2-pound weight loss per week (after the first week) is not fat loss. It is water, lean muscle, or both. If that disappoints you, then you will really be disappointed to find out that a 2-pound weight loss on any particular week is excellent! Throughout the journey you will find that there are some weeks you will beg for a half-pound loss, because if you are losing the healthy way it is a long slow process. If you can manage to lose 1-2 pounds per week you are on the right track!
You have to exercise. There is no way around it. You must make exercise a part of your life if you expect to lose weight and keep it off forever. Don’t think for one moment that you can exercise to lose weight and then stop. Get used to the idea now of incorporating exercise into your way of life forever. Not only will you lose weight and keep it off, but you will also live longer and fight off many life-threatening diseases!
You have to exercise a lot. Most people who successfully lose weight and keep it off exercise almost every single day. They make it a part of their daily routine just like brushing their teeth. I’m sure you know of skinny people who never exercise, and you don’t think it’s fair. Well, it’s not fair. But those people have a high metabolism, and they are not as healthy as those who do exercise on a regular basis are.
Take the amount of weight you want to lose, and divide it by 2. That is how many weeks it would take you to lose it, if you were lucky enough to lose 2 pounds per week EVERY week. Now take that number of weeks and triple it. It will take you about one and a half times the number of weeks that you think it will to reach your goal weight. Plateaus are inevitable, and you need to prepare for them. Weight loss plateaus can last anywhere from 2 weeks to several months. It takes every bit of patience you can muster up to stick with your way of life during a plateau. To break a plateau you will need to change things around in your fitness regimen and in your daily diet as well. This is when a certified personal trainer is handy!
These cold hard facts may sound harsh, but they are the truth. There is no easy way around it, even though I really wish there was! It is very possible to lose weight the healthy and permanent way. You have to be patient and diligent in your efforts, but you can shed those unwanted pounds and keep them off. The process is long, slow and daunting, but remember that when it comes to weight loss, slow and steady wins the race!
Unlike other carbohydrates, dietary fiber is unavailable as an energy source. This nutrient cannot be broken down by digestive enzymes and consequently passes through the intestine without being absorbed. Although fiber provides no caloric contribution to the diet, it affects digestion and health in important ways: Some types of fiber bind water, creating a softer stool that passes more rapidly through the colon, reducing the risk of a number of diseases affecting the digestive tract. Certain types of fib er may also lower serum cholesterol, although the mechanism for this function is not well understood. (See the section in this chapter on cholesterol lowering.)
Fiber can be found in abundance in a variety of foods. Unprocessed breads and cereals, fruits and vegetables, and legumes are some of the best sources. Some types of fiber, such as cellulose and hemicellulose, are made up of simple sugars and considere d carbohydrates. Others, such as lignin (a component of the woody parts of plants), cannot technically be considered carbohydrates but, because they are indigestible, are still classified as fiber.
Despite the image you may have of fiber, not all fiber is coarse and rough; fibers vary dramatically in their consistency. While cellulose is generally tough and fibrous, other forms like pectin (a form of hemicellulose) and agar are sticky or gummy.
Scientists divide dietary fiber into two general categories: soluble and insoluble. Soluble fibers dissolve in water and include pectin, guar, carrageenan, gums, mucilage, and oat bran. Soluble fibers are of considerable current interest to researchers because of their apparent role in helping to lower blood cholesterol. Insoluble fibers do not seem to affect serum cholesterol levels, but they do help prevent constipation. Insoluble fibers include cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin.
GASTROINTESTINAL EFFECTS OF FIBER
High fiber diets have been advocated to prevent or relieve a wide variety of gastrointestinal problems, from constipation to colon cancer. Apparently, many of these disorders benefit from a softer, bulkier stool that passes more easily and more rapidly th rough the colon. Insoluble fibers such as hemicellulose absorb large amounts of water as they pass through the intestinal tract and thereby facilitate the stool's passage through the colon. That is why a number of laxatives used to treat constipation are little more than concentrated sources of fiber.
Other common gastrointestinal diseases alleviated with fiber rich diets include hemorrhoids, diverticulosis, and spastic colon.
COLON CANCER AND FIBER
There has been considerable speculation that a highfiber diet can help reduce the risk of colon cancer by cutting down the amount of time it takes for the stool to pass through the colon and thereby limiting colon exposure to potential carcinogens harbore d in the stool. Unfortunately, scientific studies have not provided conclusive proof that dietary fiber reduces the risk of colon cancer.
WEIGHT CONTROL
Fiber would appear to be a dieter's best friend: Not only is fiber noncaloric (since it is not digested or absorbed by the body) but some forms of fiber can actually cause you to eat less by promoting a feeling of fullness. From a nutritional perspective, however, fiber is relatively lacking since it contains no vitamins or minerals, and substituting fiber for other foods can reduce the nutritional quality of the diet. In addition, fiber may slightly hinder the absorption of essential nutrients such as ir on and zinc.
FIBER AND DISEASE PREVENTION
Fiber's beneficial effect on heart disease is mediated by the cholesterol lowering effect of some types of fiber. Soluble forms of fibers such as oat bran and the fiber in dried beans and other legumes are capable of reducing cholesterol, although the ins oluble fibers apparently have no effect whatsoever.
The mechanism by which fiber lowers cholesterol is still not completely understood. It has been proposed that soluble fiber may reduce the amount of cholesterol produced by the liver. Another theory suggests that fiber binds to bile acids, removing the m from the body and accelerating the clearance of LDL cholesterol from the body. Research is under way to understand its effects.
Fiber also benefits people with diabetes. Several studies have found that a diet rich in soluble fiber can improve blood sugar control in diabetics and sometimes even help lower insulin requirements.
ADDING FIBER TO YOUR DIET
Abruptly adding large amounts of fiber to your diet can instigate digestive problems, causing bloating and gastrointestinal discomfort with diarrhea and severe cramping. Consequently, you should add fiber to your diet gradually, eating small amounts of fi ber rich foods, or taking small amounts of fiber supplements until your body grows accustomed to its new diet. Additional fiber can then be added slowly until you are consuming a healthy amount.
For most people, fiber supplements may be unnecessary. It is healthier to try first to get fiber from natural food sources by including ample amounts of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains in your diet.
EATING SUFFICIENT FIBER
How much fiber is enough? The question is a difficult one since no RDA exists for fiber and there is disagreement among the experts about how much fiber is adequate for optimal health. But despite the lack of a clear consensus, it is generally agreed that U. S. citizens eat too little: A national diet survey reported that the intake of fiber is quite low, averaging only about 7 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories of food eaten (about 14 grams per day for a typical 2,000 calorie diet).
Calculating the amount of fiber in your diet can be difficult. Food labels can often be helpful, but sometimes they report only the "crude" fiber content of foods rather than total "dietary" fiber. (Dietary fiber is a more accurate measure, showing the fiber that actually passes undigested through the intestine. Crude fiber is an oldfashioned, inaccurate measurement that measures the fiber that withstands chemical dissolution in laboratory tests.) (Table 5.1 lists total dietary fiber and soluble and in soluble components of common foods.)
For most individuals, a diet including a variety of fiberrich foods, such as whole grain breads and cereals, fresh fruits and vegetables, and legumes should provide ample amounts of soluble and insoluble fiber.
Give Me a Break!! (A Guide to Breaking the Weight Loss Plateau)
by Joanne Bednar
It’s inevitable. Anyone who has lost a large amount of weight (more than 10-15 pounds) has hit one or more weight loss plateaus. The weight loss plateau is a very annoying period of body adjustment, where your body "catches up with itself" so to speak. I hit 2 or 3 of them when I lost my 38 pounds, and I learned a lot from each one of them. I mostly learned patience!
There are two types of plateaus that occur. The first plateau is the short plateau, lasting 2 weeks to 4 weeks. The short plateau is the kind that all active "dieters" run into throughout their weight loss efforts. It is not necessary to make adjustments for this type of plateau, because your body is simply re-adjusting to your new weight. Over time (2-4 weeks) you will naturally start losing weight again, as long as you continue your healthy diet and exercise program. Patience is all you need to get past a short plateau.
The second type is the long-term plateau, which lasts for longer than 4 weeks. If you go for more than 4 weeks without losing weight, AND you are continually following a nutritious diet and exercise program (in short, you are doing everything perfectly), then you need to make some changes. A plateau lasting for longer than 4 weeks is because you are no longer asking your body to go beyond it’s point of comfort.
Let me explain this further: When you first start a new way of eating and a new exercise program, everything is a total shock to your body. All of a sudden you are filling the body with good healthy food full of nutrients, and you are pushing your body so that it responds to physical activity. You burn a high number of calories because it requires a ton of effort just to do simple exercise. Over time, you adjust and become more efficient at exercise, and it no longer requires the same amount of calories that it once did. If you do not change your activity, and continue to eat the same amount of food, you will eventually stop losing weight. The same principle applies to food. If you cut your calories down to 1500 per day, and lost 15 pounds that way, your new weight may use that 1500 calories for maintenance now, rather than weight loss. It’s as simple as calories in = calories out.
So how do you break out of this long-term plateau? There are several things you can try, but the most important thing to remember is CHANGE. Any change is worth a try to shake things up a bit.
Let’s start with food intake: have you been taking in the same number of calories or fat grams since the beginning of your lifestyle change? If so, then you need to throw your body off, and there are a couple of ways to do this.
You can cut your calories or fat grams by a bit more (not a lot) to adjust for your new weight.
You can try going off your healthy eating plan completely for 3-4 days.
You can actually try increasing your calories or fat grams a bit per day.
You can switch from eating 3 square meals per day to 6 smaller meals throughout the day.
You can eat your largest meal in the morning and smaller meals at lunch and dinner.
You can increase your water intake.
In the exercise department, you need to find ways to further challenge your body. You can try many different strategies:
You can completely switch your exercise method. If you only walked before, you can switch to cycling.
You can introduce cross-training into your program. If you only walked before, alternate it with cycling or aerobics
You can exercise for 5-10 minutes longer each day.
You can exercise harder during your normal session time.
You can introduce interval training, where you alternate intensity levels throughout your workout.
You can add another day of exercise to your week.
You can switch the time of day you exercise.
You can start lifting weights.
You can vary which activity you do first: lifting weights or cardiovascular activity
You can change the time of day that you exercise.
As you can see, there are many different ways to TRY and break a plateau. I recommend that you start by trying 2 or 3 all at the same time. If they don’t work, then next week try some others. It takes some experimenting to find out what will work for you, at this particular time in your weight loss journey. The steps I took to break my first plateau didn’t work to break my second, so be prepared to pull out something else from your arsenal.
You can expect that your new method will become effective within 2 weeks. If you are not seeing any other results, then you need to change your method again. If you are close to your goal weight (or ideal weight within reason) and none of these methods work, then you need to look at 2 factors:
Have your body fat tested. It is very possible that you are already at your ideal body fat level, and your body is not going to allow any further losses.
Accept your new weight, and congratulate yourself for the long, hard road you just traveled!
It’s not all a bed of roses. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great to hit your goal weight and celebrate, but just because you can finally fit into your dream size doesn’t mean that it’s smooth sailing from now on. I certainly don’t want to discourage anyone from taking the journey to your goal weight, but I do want to let you know before you get there what it is like, at least what it has been like for myself.
During your weight loss journey you will encounter many emotional ups and downs as you glow with pride that you are accomplishing something, or as you continue to endlessly compare yourself those who still have better bodies than you. It’s a long road, and one that comes with many celebrations. Those around you will comment that you’ve lost weight, or how healthy you look. The best compliment I ever received was when a friend of my husbands told me how "athletic" I was looking. Always wishing I could be an athlete, I was thrilled!
When you hit your goal weight, the compliments stop and the watching eyes look closer. They wait for you to screw up and start gaining weight again. They don’t do it maliciously; it’s just human nature. The pressure to stay at your goal weight mounts unbelievably, and the fear that you can’t stay there sets in. Unfortunately, for many that have hit goal, this can lead to an obsession with the scale, and eating disorders. I did get a bit obsessive when I hit goal, but after much self-talk I have learned to accept my new healthy (but not perfect) body, and have avoided going to extremes.
There is no such thing as "ending your diet" once you get to your goal weight. I want to make this very clear because I was also under the delusion that I would be able to start eating more, and fatty foods again. Don’t get me wrong, I knew I couldn’t start eating the way I was before my lifestyle change, but I had hoped that I could eat healthy for 2 meals a day, and eat whatever I wanted for the third meal. When I started to do this I immediately began to gain a few pounds back, and I had to put a stop to this behavior, much to my dismay.
What I have learned is that the more time goes by, the easier it is to stay at goal as far as food is concerned. I truly believe that it takes your body a while to adjust to the new you, and eventually you can start introducing some foods back into your life, like real butter and real mayo (in smaller quantities, of course) without gaining weight. Rather than eat whatever I want for the third meal, I have found that I do maintain by eating whatever I want only 3 times a week. It is better than the once a week I limited myself to as I was losing, so hopefully that offers you some comfort!
You WILL have to exercise for life to maintain your new weight. There is no way around it, so you might as well accept now that you will need to find a way to make exercise a part of your daily life forever. About halfway to my goal weight, I decided that I would cut down my 6 days a week routine to 3 days a week once I hit goal. As I neared my goal, I also realized that not only did I have to continue my 6-day per week routine, but also I had to exercise longer and harder to take off those last few pounds. For a short period of time I even exercised twice a day, determined to hit my goal weight. After about three weeks of torture, I began to loathe exercise and my knees and ankles were suffering. I realized that there was no way I could continue this, and I also realized that it wasn’t normal, or something I could continue long term. So I went back to my normal routine, and increased the intensity of my workouts, and the duration by about 10 minutes a day.
I did finally take of those few pounds, and while the intensity of my workouts has remained high, the duration went back to a normal 30 minutes. Unfortunately that meant gaining back about 2 pounds. After weeks of agonizing over it, I finally came to the conclusion that I had to learn to accept my new weight. After all, I was at 20% body fat, in a size 4-6, and the healthiest I had ever been in my entire life. Over the last year as I have fought to maintain my weight, I have been able to cut back to 5 days per week instead of 6. Maybe someday I can even cut another day out, but I’m not worried about it. Fitness has become an intrinsic part of my life, and I believe that I will not feel as good mentally and physically if I cut down further.
I can tell you why I am able to cut down. It’s because I lift weights more often, and I lift heavier weights than before. This, in turn, is allowing me to take in more calories (or burn off less by exercising only 5 days instead of 6). That also explains why you cannot cut back on exercise just because you hit goal. You are taking in a certain number of calories from food each day, but you are also burning off a portion of them. If you cut back to a 3 day per week routine, you will not burn off those calories you once did, and you will gain weight. There will be some flexibility with your exercise schedule once you switch to maintenance, you just have to find what works for you.
The purpose of this article is not to frustrate you or disappoint you, but rather it is to encourage you to make a lifestyle change that is a permanent one, rather than opting for the fad diet. Those who do maintain their weight loss have the same traits in common: they are physically active, and they have permanently changed their eating habits, they watch portions, and many even continue to write down what they eat. Sounds simple enough, but as you have learned from my experience, it is not always easy. If you are not willing to do what is required to hit your personal goal weight, then you may just need to settle on a higher goal weight, and there is certainly nothing wrong with that. But for those of you who are determined to hit your dream weight and stay there forever, you should know that it is going to take some continued effort, long after you hit goal.
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