Hi Girls...this article is written by Anthony Ellis, a fitness expert. Very interesting read
Hi,
They’re at it again. Spurred by a truly disturbing increase in the number of
overweight and obese Americans – and a parallel rise in type 2 diabetes –
doctors and federal health officials are building new food pyramids and issuing
new guidelines on what seems like an almost daily basis. Unfortunately, these
brand new strategies usually contradict the guidelines we’re used to. What’s
more, they often contradict each other.
So what’s the fuss about? A super-sized portion of excess pounds. According to a
March 2002 Harris Poll reported on CNN, 80% of people over 25 are overweight,
based on their body mass index. In 1995 the figure was 71%. In 1990 it was 64%
and in 1983, just 58%.
That’s a remarkable rise in so short a time and experts agree it constitutes an
“epidemic” of overweight. What they don’t agree on is why Americans are
expanding so much and so fast.
* Lack of exercise. Virtually everyone agrees that Americans don’t move as much
or as fast as they should. But there’s been concern about our sedentary
lifestyle since at least the 50s so it’s hard to see our couch potato status as
causing the sudden rise in overweight.
* Tasty, inexpensive fast food meals. There has already been one lawsuit based
on the idea that a fast food outlet caused two young people to become
overweight,
* Increasingly generous portion sizes both in restaurants and at home.
* A general failure on the part of Americans to do the right thing. This view
was summed up nicely by Dr. Louis Aronne of Cornell University’s Weill Medical
College who told CNN “If Americans were to make the effort to manage their
weight using a variety of options, including better nutrition, more exercise,
approved medications or even surgical approaches, we would be rewarded with
significantly better health.”
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Too good to be true
====================
The top suspect in many peoples’ opinion is the United States Department of
Agriculture’s food pyramid. Published in 1992, it replaced earlier charts that
simply grouped foods together and offered the common sense advice that everyone
should eat foods from each group – in moderation – every day.
The new pyramid, on the other hand, ranked foods -- with carbohydrates (up to 11
portions a day!) as its base and fats and oils at its “use sparingly” top. The
implication was clear: carbohydrates were “good” foods, fats were “bad” ones. It
was a very short step from there to the idea that it was fine to eat all the
safe and healthy carbohydrates you wanted as long as you avoided fats.
At the time, plenty of people wondered how this could be true. After all,
everyone knew that if you ate more calories than you used you’d gain weight –
whether those calories came from sirloin or spaghetti. But the idea was so
attractive it was hard not to at least give it a chance.
After all, if it were true, you could make mashed potatoes with skim milk and a
bit of diet margarine – and then eat the whole bowlful. Half a loaf of crusty
French bread was fine as long as you skipped the butter. And pasta – modestly
dressed in low-fat tomato sauce -- became the queen of the dinner table.
To make things worse, the food industry climbed on the bandwagon. Taking all or
most of the fat out of foods took most of the taste with it but food processors
soon discovered that if you replaced that fat with plenty of sugar, things
tasted good again. And with that Snackwell cookies – and all their competitors –
were born.
The results, as they say, are weight gain “epidemic” history.
======================
Reshaping the pyramid
======================
Today, the federal government is working on reshaping its pyramid – and so are a
number of other groups. A Newsweek cover story, enticingly titled “The Perfect
Diet” explored some of the alternatives, including one new pyramid devised by
scientists from the Harvard School of Public Health. This new chart breaks up
the old food groups (like meats, fruit, dairy and grains) and ranks foods solely
on whether they are healthy sources of nutrition. Whole grains and vegetable
oils rank best; red meat, white rice, pasta, potatoes and sweets rank worst.
There is some very good science behind this new pyramid including data from
large, carefully controlled studies. At the same time, it’s hard to accept the
idea that rice and pasta are bad for you when the Asian and Mediterranean diets
have consistently proven to be exceptionally healthy.
Just to make things even more confusing there’s no shortage of other diet plans
designed by experts.
* The Atkins diet scraps carbohydrates in favor of fats and protein.
* The Zone diet, favored my many athletes, includes all kinds of foods but
requires very specific percentages of fat, carbohydrate and protein.
* The Ornish diet, which is largely vegetarian, allows only 10% of calories from
fat.
All claim to help you lose weight and gain energy, good health and protection
from various diseases. And they do – for some people some of the time.
==========================
Time to think for yourself
==========================
You wouldn’t buy a car that was perfect for cross-country trips if you lived and
drove in Chicago. And you wouldn’t buy a makeup that was perfect for Nordic
blondes if your coloring was Mediterranean. So why put your faith in any diet
plan that doesn’t respect who you are and how you live?
To lose weight – and keep it off – you’re going to need to think for yourself,
gather the information you need, consult experts if necessary and take a
realistic approach. The following steps are a good start.
1. Consider your health. If you have problems like diabetes, high blood pressure
or heart disease talk to your doctor before you begin any diet.
2. Consider your ancestors. Did your grandmother have diabetes? Did your aunt
fall and break her hip? Does your dad have a heart condition? Having a relative
with a particular condition doesn’t mean you are sure to have the same problem
but it does mean you should try to eat in ways that help prevent that problem.
You can learn more about the relationship between various conditions and diet
from your doctor or a nutritionist. You can also find information at the library
or on line.
3. Consider WHY you eat. If you’re doing it to calm down or cheer up you may
need to make some stress-reducing changes in your life before you can lose
weight successfully. A talk with your doctor or a counselor might make a real
difference.
4. Consider family demands. If you leave work, pick up your children at the
sitter, stop at the market and arrive home at six with two cranky, hungry kids,
a meal that requires an hour of preparation and cooking is a really bad idea. So
is a meal that neither child will touch.
5. Consider your lifestyle. If your job and commute take nine or ten hours a day
and you also have to clean house, tend the yard, run the errands and spend time
with your spouse and kids, you‘re probably not going to get much out of a health
club membership.
6. Consider your tastes. A diet that forbids all the foods you like or insists
on foods you can’t stand might work for a week or two but certainly isn’t going
to become a lifelong way of eating. Yes, you may have to cut down on some foods
you enjoy – even save them for very special occasions. But eating is too
important a part of life to turn it into an unpleasant experience.
7. Consider your budget. Fresh fruits and vegetables can be expensive,
especially in winter. So, unfortunately, can fish. Look for ways to save money
on other food purchases – for example by not buying snack foods, soda, sweets
and other low-nutrition foods. And do try using canned and frozen fruit and
vegetables in your recipes. They are actually often higher in nutrients than
fresh and are usually substantially less expensive.
=======================
Find what works for you
=======================
Once you’ve thought all those issues through, it’s time to come up with
realistic weight loss strategies that will actually work for you.
If your budget allows, a nutritionist can be a real help in doing this because
he or she can design meals that will appeal to you (and your family), provide
good nutrition, and keep you from being hungry all the time. If you’re designing
a diet program on your own, be prepared to try new strategies, evaluate them,
then keep what works and scrap the rest. Strategies you might try include:
* Simply not buying low-nutrition foods like cookies and candy. If they aren’t
in the house, you probably won’t get up and drive to the store to get them when
you’re in the mood for a diet-busting sweet. (If you want to keep some sweets
for the children, choose ones you don’t like.)
* Make it a point to snatch small bits of exercise during the day. Take the
stairs, offer to be the one who walks to the corner store for lunch. Park as far
away from the entrance as possible.
* If you’re dining out and the portions are huge, set half aside to take home –
then focus on how nice it’s going to be not to have to cook dinner tomorrow.
* Be creative. You’ll probably come up with some entirely new strategies
tailored especially for you.
Finally, be patient with yourself. If something doesn’t work consider it a
learning experience rather than a failure. And remember that finding a way of
eating that helps you lose weight and keep it off is worth however much time and
effort it takes.
====================
Where to get started
====================
For those wanting to learn more about how to diet and weight train to help lose
fat and build muscle I highly recommend Tom Venuto's ebook, Burn the Fat, Feed
the Muscle. To read more, just go to
http://www.fatlosstips.com/burnfat
It's great for those wanting to incorporate weight training and dieting for
maximum fat loss.
Sincerely,
Anthony Ellis
http://www.fatlosstips.com/burnfat
Hey Ladies
I am always wanting to sushi...although Newie...not all sushi is raw and not all sushi is fish...there is tons of stuff to choose from...delicious
I hope I have an encore tonight and cycle some more..although I am aiming to use my exercise ball!
Healthy lunch huh?
Had a hamburger and Baked Lays chips last nite. Today was better but I really need to work more on eating right. My eating sometimes defeats the whole purpose of all my exercise I think.
I just dont understand exactly what you lose and where it goes.
Enoy it everyone.
Great Article
