EATING PROTEIN FOR FAT LOSS

Different foods in our diet affect our metabolism differently. The digestion of food also requires expending calories for breaking down the components in food via the action of enzymes. This is called postprandial thermogenesis (PT) which temporarily increases the basal metabolic rate (BMR) following a meal. The graph below shows the affect of various components in food and how they affect the BMR as a function of time after the meal.

So this means about 3 hrs following a high protein meal the BMR increases about 30%. Carbs and fat don't have the same dramatic effect on BMR. So within an hour or two of waking up eat a high protein breakfast to rev up your BMR so that you keep burning extra calories all morning. Also drinking a protein shake an hour or so before a run or workout will maximize the calorie burning during exercise. In the next article I'll discuss BMR and what constitutes the various components of BMR. This will help explain why building muscle is more effective for burning fat than cardio. Until next time....

NAGGING SPOUSES AND HEART DISEASE

Just read an interesting article on a study performed by dutch researchers on the effects of nagging on heart disease. It states that constantly nagging spouses can increase a persons risk for heart disease by a whopping 300%! Now that's more than any other risk factor I know of, like alcohol or smoking or saturated fats! 

http://blogs.menshealth.com/health-headlines/are-you-being-nagged-to-death/2011/01/01 

This shouldn't come as a surprise because the person being bombarded with constant nagging would develop a chronic stress situation. And the relation of chronic stress to cortisol production in the body is very well understood. Although cortisol is an important hormone for the regulation of various metabolic functions in the body like blood sugar regulation, immune function and inflammatory response, a constant high level of the same would cause blood sugar imbalances, impair immune response, promote belly fat deposition and inflammation and eventually heart disease. So my suggestion to all the naggers and nagees (is that even a word?) is to take it easy and enjoy life! :)

HOW TO SPOT A FAD DIET

It seems like new diets are cropping up everyday faster than you can say ‘she sells sea shells at the sea shore’. So with all these new diets and with millions of us pursuing our weight-loss goals it would be a daunting task to choose the right diet that fits our goals. Also people look for new diets for various reasons. Some do it for health reasons, say, to reduce ones cholesterol level or to control ones blood sugar while others do it for vanity. Whatever the reason might be there are diets that will get you the desired results and there are diets that won’t (at least in the long run). For example if you are trying to reduce your blood cholesterol level you wouldn’t benefit by going on the Atkins diet which consists primarily of a high protein diet from animal sources. On the other hand if your primary reason is just weight loss for the sole purpose of looking good, then Atkins will get you there. There is even a junk food diet that will get you there. So here are a few tips that will help you spot a fad diet. 

1)   Diets that denounce a particular food group: fat, carbs or proteins. All three food groups are essential to healthy living and avoiding one in favor of the others is not a balanced way to eat.

2)   Diets that don’t require you to change eating habits. Diets that claim you can eat whatever you want.

3)   Diets that claim no exercise is required. Any good weight loss plan should include some exercise: at least 3 days a week.

4)   Diets that require buying prepackaged supplements and food are just there to make money. They might work but don’t waste your money on them. There are easier more effective ways of losing weight than to drink meal in a shake.

5)    Diets that claim ridiculous amounts of weight loss in record time. Any weight loss over one lb per week is temporary and is bound to come back faster than it’s lost.

6)    Diets that aren’t tailored for the individual and that don’t consider your personal tastes and preferences.

7)    Lastly, any diet that gains popularity over a short period of time is more than likely a fad diet because of all the above reasons. It catches too many people’s attention in a short duration because of the ridiculous claims and too many people looking for short cuts fall victim to its claims.

Any healthy weight loss diet should consist of a balance of many nutritious and wholesome foods consumed in small portions over the whole day. Along with a healthy diet plan one should target exercising for at least 3-4 days a week. A combination of cardio (for endurance and cardiovascular conditioning) and resistance training (for strength and fat loss) would work best.

WHAT IS BEST FOR FAT LOSS: CARDIO OR HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU!

Before I begin I would like to mention to all the readers and my friends who love running marathons and do the century bike rides that they continue what they are doing because it is commendable and requires a lot of discipline to do what they do and is very healthy to do so. In this article I am only making an attempt at clarifying the purported benefits of cardio for fat loss.

So, what is best for fat loss? Long duration low intensity aerobic or short duration high intensity anaerobic training? Most of us think it has to be the former because that’s what we have been told by the ‘experts’ that low intensity high volume training is best for fat loss. The proponents of cardio (or aerobics) even say that the body doesn’t start ‘burning fat’ until after 20-30 min of the cardio workout. So the widely accepted prescription for fat loss is to do aerobics for 30 to 60 min, 3-5X a week. 

Now take a look at the two athletes shown here. The one on the left is current world marathon record holder Samuel Wanjiru, an epitome of low intensity long duration cardio, and the one on the right is the current world record holder in 100m sprint, Usain Bolt, an epitome of short duration high intensity training. Which one do you think has the lower body fat percentage? In case it’s not obvious from the pictures that would be the sprinter! 

A closer look at the training regimen of Wanjiru shows that he alternates 30km at a moderate pace and 38km cross country at a low pace every 10 days. On top of that he runs 15km every morning before he eats breakfast. In his own words he never does any strength training. So do you think he gets enough cardio? I think he gets plenty! Now a closer look at Bolt’s training regimen shows that he trains with a combination of strength and plyometric training to build functional and explosive strength. The core of his workout program consists of weighted squats, lunges and explosive step-ups with weighted barbell and he likes to keep it heavy for a maximum of 10-12 reps. He also does a lot of high intensity interval training (HIIT) type sprint drills where he would sprint at full speed for 50 -100 yards and rest for a few minutes of stretching and flexibility followed by the full speed sprint. So do you think he gets enough cardio? It’s negligible to none! By the way both athletes are very healthy eaters as one would expect from any world class athlete. So the big question is why does Mr. Cardio have a higher body fat percentage than Mr. High Intensity? 

Let’s try to understand why this is so. Doing long duration cardio requires the body to be very efficient at spending energy. You see, nature is very frugal so it will always choose the lowest energy state. So going for hours of energy expenditure will require the body to lose weight (not just fat) in order to minimize the work done. And the body doesn’t discriminate between muscle and fat loss when it loses weight for the sake of being efficient. Moreover it’s more efficient to lose muscle (except the muscles involved in the activity) rather than fat as muscle is denser than fat. So in order to run a marathon the body has to lose muscle and fat from everywhere else except the legs. But we all know that losing muscle slows down your basal metabolism so while long duration cardio burns a lot of calories during the activity the body burns very little when the activity is not being performed. On the other hand the HIIT regimen develops a lot of explosive strength and power which in turn requires the body to build muscle. The body here is also trying to achieve efficiency but of a different kind, namely to perform the greatest amount of work in the shortest amount of time and in order to achieve this it has to only lose fat and preserve muscle or even build it. And we all know muscle is active tissue so it keeps burning calories even after the activity has ceased, thereby increasing the body’s basal metabolic rate.  

So, although cardio is a good way to keep healthy and build endurance it’s not the best way to lose fat. The most efficient way to lose fat is by doing quick bouts of strength training followed by short intervals of rest. Try doing quick sprints at full speed for 30 seconds followed by 30 seconds of slow jog or do circuit type training with free weights starting with squats, flowed by dead-lifts, followed by pull ups, followed by bench press and end with shoulder presses. Try to be in the 15 rep range with a minute rest between sets.  Any of these HIIT circuits shouldn’t go over 20-25 minutes. 

So if you are struggling in the gym with fat loss feeling like a hamster on the wheel give one of the HIIT circuits a try. It might be your ticket to jump start your slow metabolism, lose fat and build a firm toned physique!

WHAT IS HEALTH?

Saw this poster at a restroom wall today and couldn't help but take a snap with my blackberry:) 

A very good definition of health! The keyword being 'balance'. Its a state of dynamic balance between the body, mind and spirit! How many of us can say that we are truly healthy? Or, are we merely 'not sick'?

WACKY DIETS

So first we hear of the junk food diet and now we have this, the potato diet! Although not junk food, potatoes have a high GI (close to that of sugar) and were thought of being fattening. But this Washington state official went on a 60 day potato only diet as a means to protest and lost 20 lbs and cut his cholesterol by a third and lowered his blood sugar. The take away lesson from both these examples is that having a healthy weight is the most important factor in managing your blood sugar and improving your cholesterol profile more than any diet consideration, at least in the short run. I am sure in the long run such an unbalanced way of eating will have other harmful side-effects so I don’t promote any such drastic diet.

Speaking of diets, I found 7 of the wackiest diets in modern times. You will be amazed that people take such drastic measures to quickly lose weight. In my opinion, any weight loss should be a lifestyle change with healthy eating habits and moderate exercise. Before I delve into these diets and my version of these diets I would like to put in a disclaimer. I am in no way promoting these diets in their original form or in my versions of them. This is written for the sole purpose of humor so read on:

7 Wackiest Diets: 

The chewing diet: This method of dieting believed that if you chewed your food enough you would mix it with saliva which has many enzymes to pre-digest the food so it would get better assimilated in your body. The practice involved chewing a bite for more than 32 times and then tilting the head back and letting the food slide naturally through and any food that is not broken down by chewing is spit out and you move on to the next bite. The reason it could work is because one would lose patience with all the chewing and stop early. Plus all the food spitting would disgust others around the table which would limit their appetite so this could be a successful group weight loss diet.

My version: I suggest putting your food in a grinder and pushing the liquefy button for 32 seconds. This way you save your jaws all the work and your food wouldn’t be appetizing enough to eat in the first place. Liquefied pizza anyone!

The Tape worm diet: This diet involved eating capsules that contained strains of tape worm so the worms would eat all the food and you would lose weight this way. This does carry the risk of infection and diarrhea and so it’s possible it might have worked for a few.

My version: I suggest eating some salmonella infested spinach (locally grown of course) or eating a powerful laxative every night. This way the bouts of diarrhea will ensure you keep losing weight. Only one suggestion is that you drink plenty of fluids throughout the day because you don’t want to get dehydrated.

The sleeping beauty diet: This diet believed that if you slept most of the time you wouldn’t eat and lose weight as a result. This involved taking sedatives and sleeping as much as possible.

My version: Become an alcoholic! Drink all week and sleep and then stay awake for a day and eat and then repeat for the next whole week.

The Vision diet: this diet principle believed that if your food looked disgusting you would eat less of it. The promoters of this diet wore special glasses that gave their food a weird color so it wouldn’t look as appetizing and you would end up eating less.

My version: I suggest watching bug and insect eating episodes of The Fear Factor just before or during your meals. Do I need to say more?

Washing away the pounds: This method used a seaweed containing soap that was used for bathing. It was believed that seaweed could penetrate the skin and dissolve the fat.

My version: I suggest keeping some poison ivy handy, so you rub it all over your body before a meal. This way your hands will be busy itching your body. Every once in a while you will grab a bite but I am pretty sure your hands will get back to itching thereafter. Plus the constant itching action will burn additional calories.

Ear stapling: It was believed that stapling the cartilage of your inner ear suppressed your appetite. Many people claim its effectiveness but no one quite understands why.

My version: I suggest stapling your nose instead because most of our appetite is intensified through our olfactory nerves and when you can’t smell the appetizing aroma of your food you are less likely to eat it.

The cotton ball diet: In this diet you eat cotton balls either dry or coated with gelatin. The theory behind this is that cotton balls are very filling and have zero calories so obviously you will lose weight on this diet.

My version:  Instead of coating cotton balls with gelatin I suggest breading them and frying them in butter and then putting them in a tomato/onion soup. This way they will taste great (crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside) minimize carb calories and give you plenty of fiber. Organic Cotton Koftas anyone?

THE OBSOLETE FOOD PYRAMID

How many of us go by the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) food pyramid when planning our diets? The figure above shows the food pyramid and I think people pay too much attention to the top and bottom of the pyramid without much consideration to the middle. Too much importance is placed on carbohydrates (up to 11 servings) without regard to the type of carbohydrate consumed. On the other hand fats have been lumped with sugars and banned, without regard to the type of fat. Due to this the food pyramid is to blame for most of today's obesity problems. Just as all carbohydrates are not created equal, so is the case with fat. There are good carbohydrates and bad carbohydrates and by the same token there are good and bad fats. This low fat/high carbohydrate  dictum  has spawned a whole industry of low-fat foods. So we now consume low fat cookies, low fat ice-cream etc without regard to the calorie content, thinking that its healthy to do so. In one of my previous articles, I talked about how fat slows the absorption of sugars in your blood stream. Also good fats (MUFA) and omega 3 fats are healthy for your heart and mind. Fats are also necessary to transport important fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K).

A comparative study lasting 31 years (starting 1960) and spanning 7 countries (Italy, Greece, former Yugoslavia, the Netherlands, Finland, United States, and Japan) looked at dietary habits of these populations and the incidence of deaths from heart disease and various cancers. 13,000 people between the ages of 40-59 years participated in this study. At the conclusion of this study 50% of the participants from Crete (island of Greece) were still alive while there were no survivors from the participants of the other 6 countries. In the Cretan diet, olive oil accounted for 33% of caloric needs apart from the fat from fish, eggs and some cheese. Their diet consisted of as much as 40% of total calorie intake from fat (29 percent monounsaturated fat, 8 percent saturated fat, and 3 percent polyunsaturated fat). The rest came from vegetables, fruits, whole grains and moderate amounts of cheese, fish and occasional red meat. Based on these findings researchers suggest rebuilding the food pyramid from the ground up with fat, vegetables and fruits occupying the bottom of the pyramid, with whole grains, fish, milk and cheese in the middle and sugars and simple carbohydrates on top. 

It is now argued that the USDA was the wrong organization to be building the food pyramid in the first place. The USDA is affiliated to the department of agriculture that is responsible for the productivity of grains for the most part and so has a vested interest in promoting grain consumption. On top of that the USDA is not a research organization with any ability to perform dietary research so it should have no role in the formulation of the food pyramid. I am just thankful that the American Sugar Alliance didn't have a role in formulating the food pyramid, otherwise we all would be looking like the Thanksgiving turkey!