Weight Loss Isn’t Always Logical

Weight loss isn’t rocket science- it’s a process that can be intentionally set in motion by creating a negative energy balance. That’s simply where your body burns more calories than it takes in from your food sources. As long as you don’t drop your calories quickly and for extended periods of time, the caloric deficit will prompt your body to use stored reserves of fat (and in some cases muscle) as an energy source to make up for the missing calories needed to keep you going. Over time, it leads to a reduction in overall body mass. Pretty simple if you look at it that way.

Even easier to understand are the benefits. If you are overweight and lose weight, you decrease the likelihood of diabetes, heart disease, stroke and  osteoarthritis.[1] Weight loss also increases the survival rates of those already suffering from obesity related diseases.[2] It’s logical thus, that to combat the increasing rates of obesity here in developed countries, everyone should understand the simple formulas for weight loss. But it isn’t about logic, and as long as weight loss is seen as a problem that can be solved by applications of what some might see as simple science, it won’t work. In today’s world, just about everyone with a weight problem is acutely aware that weight loss comes from a combination of diet and exercise. It is everywhere- television, books, internet, you name it. Yet over the past 20 years here in the United States, in spite of the increased access to weight loss information, there has been an steadily increasing rate of obesity.[3] Losing weight shouldn’t be that hard- but it most certainly is!

Cold Facts As An Obstacle To Weight Loss

Aside from the noise created by fad diets, fad exercise trends and weight loss supplements that do little or nothing at all to help people lose weight, and media bombardment from profit driven pharmaceutical as well as fitness related industries that benefit from an overweight population, there are very real barriers to weight loss that are seldom addressed. A conscientious man or woman who does their homework and asks the right questions of the right people, can learn what is real and what isn’t. It’s hard, given the background noise, but not impossible and there are some great, proven sources out there. However, even those armed with the best information possible, in most cases still don’t achieve the weight loss results they are looking for. The problem stems not always from the cold, hard facts of thermodynamics, but from the very shifting and complex aspects of our emotions.

In Western societies, the way we acquire knowledge, think and solve problems can be broken down into two basic approaches- Apollonian or Dionysian. The Apollonian approach, named after the Greek god Apollo, who represented, among other things, truth and a sense of order- is one where we employ a very pragmatic and logical thought process. The Dionysian approach, named after the Greek god Dionysius- the god of wine, ecstasy and intoxification, focuses however on our emotions. Our feelings and how we relate to the world on a very personal level. In today’s world, we tend to give more validity to Apollonian ways of solving problems. Science and facts are seen as truth and a superior way of problem solving, relegating more emotional and subjective based methods to a more subordinate role, since feelings can’t be easily quantified as factual information can. But it wasn’t always like this.

Weight Loss Comes From An Understanding Of Our Emotions

From the beginning of our existence as human beings, we have needed to employ both approaches to solving our problems, and neither was considered to be superior to the other. The logic based   Apollonian process, has always been crucial to our survival. It allows us to function effectively in the world by controlling our environment, creating tools, organizing society and planning for the future. As important as this forward looking and logical approach may be, it does not answer or address all the conditions we experience as human beings. An Apollonian thought processes and ismeant for interaction with an external reality. It can’t help us cope with loss, express our love or find meaning in life itself. For these issues, we turned to the Dionysian approach. Myth, religion, philosophy and tradition, all spring from this way of looking at the world. Practices that help us find our way in an often overwhelmingly confusing world.

There will, therefore, always be problems unsolved by approaches completely reliant on hard scientific facts, especially those that are of a personal and intimate nature to begin with. Our global problem of obesity is a prime example. Seen by many administrators, governing officials and experts in the field, as a problem remedied by the logical application of diet and exercise, this way has obviously failed. And continues to fail.  If anything, this plan of attack has had the opposite effect, as obesity rates keep climbing over the years. It isn’t surprising if you consider what we eat and what we do, (diet and exercise), falls squarely into the realm of our emotions- not our analytical thought processes. In twenty years of working with people to help them lose weight, what I learned is that weight loss is all about self control. One of the hardest and most difficult mountains for any of us to climb. To accomplish this Herculean task, people don’t need facts- they need patience, inspiration, understanding and support. Weight loss is about intimately changing our lives and leaving behind the person that we once were to become someone new. Like any new life coming into the world, this rebirth is a delicate and very often painful process where you have to deal with many complex and emotional issues.

The Change Required To Lose Weight Is A Major Emotional Undertaking

As difficult as it sounds, this is still an oversimplification of the challenges each of us face with our own inner demons and obstacles to changing our lives. When I started as a personal trainer, I learned everything I could about the human body, diet and nutrition, and I firmly believed I had all the knowledge that I needed to help people lose weight and keep it off. I had no idea whatsoever, how much more it entailed! Helping my clients lose weight meant having a nonjudgmental and always listening ear. It meant being a constant source of support and it meant always doing your best to inspire and helping them go forward one day at a time. Early on, I thought one diet, with some slight modifications, would fit everyone and boy, was I wrong! I had no inkling that I would spend hours, days and months going back and forth with my clients to create new eating plans that not only would help them lose weight, but also that would fit into their lives.

I learned that food forms a narrative in our lives, establishes order, influences our emotions, creates and sealing bonds and can’t just be changed to fit a one-size-fits-all mold. It calls for small steps, and a deep respect for the way people look at their foods, if there is any hope of helping them change. Meeting people where they are, walking with them along paths of self discovery has little to do with science, but without objective facts, we wouldn’t have all the tools we need to make weight loss a reality. One of the consequences of living in a logic dominated environment is the illusion that we, ourselves, are primarily logical beings. An overweight personal is a choice examples of how paradoxical our behavior can be. But even closer to home, each of us, at some point in our lives, has left logic far behind when we get involved in questionable relationships. Leaving us asking ourselves what in the world we were thinking in the first place! We are indeed emotional beings. So in the end, we need balanced approaches if we strive to do such difficult tasks like as losing weight and changing our lives. Apollonian roads have their uses, but what we also need today are sources of inspiration, compassion and understanding.

Get a copy of Kevin’s free weight loss ebook here

References

1. Pi-Sunyer, FX. Short-Term Medical Benefits and Adverse Effects of Weight Loss- American College Of Physicians

2. American Gastroenterological Association (2002). AGA technical review on obesity. Gastroenterology, 123(3): 882-932. [Erratum in Gastroenterology, 123(5): 1752.

3. US Obesity Trends 1985-2009. Center For Disease Control

Kevin Richardson- celebrity NYC Personal Trainer is the creator of Naturally Intense™ High Intensity Training, a lifetime natural bodybuilder and arguably one of the most sought out personal trainer in New York City. Custom online diet plans available.

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Sweating Has Nothing to Do With Losing Fat

His nickname was Stinky- so named, as one might rightly imagine, for the unmistakable musk that trailed behind him whenever he walked into the gym back home in Trinidad. He probably didn’t have a body odor problem under normal circumstances, but stinky was a true believer in the magical powers of sweating for burning fat and losing weight. Clad in two layers of gym attire, gracefully topped by a garbage bag, he would enter the gym already drenched (and ripe), and hop onto the treadmill for an hour or more of cardio. The average temperature back home was already 85-90 degrees Fahrenheit, and the air conditioning systems at the gym where I first trained didn’t do much save to reduce the humidity a bit. Needless to say, one day Stinky, soaked to the bone with sweat, collapsed during one of his aerobic perspiration marathons. When we got to him, he was severely feverish and a bit delirious, and we had to tear off his many layers of clothes and garbage bags and try to make him drink as much as possible while cooling him off. He ended up in the back of an ambulance bound for the general hospital. An extreme case- yes, but a useful example of how important many think sweating is for overall fat loss. A dangerous, and misguided idea that can do you more harm than good, not to mention, distract you from what you really need to be doing to lose fat.

Sweating Won’t Help You Burn Fat

Sweating has absolutely nothing to do with fat burning, and there is no relationship between how much you sweat and how much fat you burn. If sweating meant losing fat, we wouldn’t have a growing obesity problem here in the United States, as every summer everyone would just sweat off the extra pounds! There wouldn’t be anyone overweight living near the equator- I have lived there and trust me that really isn’t the case! Sweat- or perspiration if you want to be a bit more technical, occurs when our body excretes water and dissolved salts from our sweat glands along with a small amount of urea.[1] Sweating is the way in which our bodies regulate our body temperature so we don’t overheat as the evaporation of sweat from the skin’s surface has a significant cooling effect on the body.

During exercise, when your muscles heat up from exertion, you will tend to sweat more, however the amount of sweat has nothing to do with how much fat you burn, or how effective your workout was. The oft heard post workout expression, “I had a good sweat” only means that your body did what it was designed to do while you were exercising and not much more. Some people naturally seem to sweat less than others while training, but this is not always an indication of how hard they were training. A study conducted at Osaka International and Kobe Universities, in Japan, found that men being perspiring faster than women and tend to sweat twice as much as women do while exercising [2] but that has no bearing on fat loss or levels of exercise intensity.

Where Did The Myth Of Sweating To Burn Fat Come From?

Every myth has its origins, and the myth that sweating helps you burn fat is no different. The problem stems primarily from observations of athletes in sports with standardized weight classes. A boxer or wrestler, for example, knows that they will be most successful if they compete on the upper side of their weight class limit as opposed to the lower limit. For obvious reasons, you would rather be in a ring weighing as much as you could and the same logic applies to bodybuilding and physique contests as well. Thus, a major part of preparation for a fight, or contest is ‘making weight’ or “getting down to fighting weight’. The goal being to fall right on the upper limit of your weight class when you are weighed before the event. To get to their desired weight, athletes often spend hours in saunas and steam rooms or try to sweat out extra pounds by running or doing aerobic exercises while wearing layers upon layers of clothing. The human body is composed of almost 75% water, so it makes sense if you need to shed a few pounds to try and sweat as much as possible- but you are only losing fluids-not fat.

The downside is that very often athletes suffer hyperthermia- heat exhaustion or heat stroke; when the body produces more heat than it can dissipate and our heat regulating sweat mechanisms are overwhelmed by the amount of heat generated. [3] By exposing yourself to high temperatures for prolonged periods of time in steam rooms, you can suffer heat stroke. Also, by wearing too many layers while exercising, or wearing plastic type materials that interfere with the water evaporation process that cools us down, you run a real risk of ending up in an emergency room.

These quick fix techniques, alone or combined with a restriction in water intake, can adversely affect your heart, nervous system, heat regulation, kidney function, electrolyte balance, body composition, and muscular endurance and strength. [4,5,6] Sadly,  many athletes- boxers, collegiate wrestlers and bodybuilders have died as a result. The general impression, however, from seeing these athletes, is that they are able to drop 10 pounds easily in a couple of days and look pretty darned good in the process. Thus began the erroneous idea that if you want to lose weight and get into shape, you should try to sweat as much as possible the way athletes do. Many miss the point that any weight loss is temporary- athletes regain the weight after drinking a few glasses of water, and that no extra fat is lost in the process.

Sweating Doesn’t Burn Fat- So What Does?

So we have firmly established that sweating is a localized phenomenon that doesn’t increase your metabolism or help you do anything but cool down and lose water, but what can you do to lose fat? There are no secrets. Consistency in diet and exercise, with a strong emphasis on diet. Aerobic exercise, while noted for being a great way to work up a sweat, does have its benefits, but it isn’t going to sculpt your body into a work of art. For that, you need weight training of sufficient intensity while eating the foods that you need and avoiding the ones that you don’t. How wet you are after training really isn’t part of the equation at all, so don’t sweat it!

Click here for a free copy of Kevin’s free weight loss ebook!

References:

1        Mosher HH (1933). “Simultaneous Study of Constituents of Urine and Perspiration”. The Journal of Biological Chemistry 99: 781–790.

2        “Women outshine men in sweat test”. Sydney Morning Hearld. 9 October 2010. http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/lifematters/women-outshine-men-in-sweat-test-20101008-16c0c.html. Retrieved 21 October 2010.

3        Elert, Glenn (2005). “Temperature of a Healthy Human (Body Temperature)”. The Physics Factbook. http://hypertextbook.com/facts/LenaWong.shtml. Retrieved 2007-08-22.

4        Horswill CA. Applied physiology of amateur wrestling. Sports Med 1992;14:114-43.

5        Scott JR, Horswill CA, Dick RW. Acute weight gain in collegiate wrestlers following a tournament weigh-in. Med Sci Sports Exerc 1994;26:1181-5.

6        Steen SN, Brownell KD. Patterns of weight loss and regain in wrestlers: has the tradition changed? Med Sci Sports Exerc 1990;22:762-8.

7        Sawka MN, Young AJ, Francesconi RP, Muza SR, Pandolf KB. Thermoregulatory and blood responses during exercise at graded hypohydration levels. J Appl Physiol 1985;59:1394-401.

Kevin Richardson- celebrity NYC Personal Trainer is the creator of Naturally Intense™ High Intensity Training, a lifetime natural bodybuilder and arguably one of the most sought out personal trainer in New York City.

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Liposuction Versus Diet And Exercise

It is no secret that we live today in a world where the majority of the people in developed countries are unhappy with their physical appearance. A survey done in the third quarter of 2010 found that adult Americans are more likely to be overweight than at a normal weight with 62.6% being either overweight or obese.[1] We also live in a microwave-minded society. Almost every aspect of modern life is dominated by a caffeinated desire for instant gratification and our technology has become a way for us to make everything faster. Often, many would argue at the expense of quality and in some cases, sanity. It is thus no surprise that in a world where most get restless if a website takes more than two seconds to load [2] -it’s not speculation, but the result of an actual study- it should be no surprise that liposuction rather than diet and exercise is becoming more and more of an acceptable way to lose the extra pounds. But is it really a practical alternative to diet and exercise?

Liposuction, (the correct term is actually lipoplasty) for the past twelve years has been the number one cosmetic surgical procedure in the United States before it was nudged out by breast augmentation in 2009 [3]. Nonetheless, in 2009 Americans spent well over five hundred million dollars on liposuction surgery. Most of those undergoing liposuction were female, with women making up almost 90% of total liposuction surgeries. While the number of men going under the knife has increased by 18% from 2008 to 2009, liposuction remains a procedure done mostly by women[3]. While it is very much an invasive surgical procedure, people talk of liposuction with the casualness one might use in referring to having your teeth cleaned- yet in spite of the its popularity, liposuction is still a potentially dangerous operation. In contrast, diet and exercise offers a much safer, more fulfilling and healthier approach to weight loss in general.

Liposuction Versus Diet & Exercise- Liposuction Does Not Offer A Faster And Safer Option

The most appealing aspect of liposuction is the speed in which the procedure can vacuum the fat deposits off your problem areas- while diet and exercise require not only a longer time frame, but also call for more work being done on your part. That being said, for someone that doesn’t wish to invest months (and very often years) of sweat and attention to what they eat- liposuction sounds like it trumps diet and exercise in every possible way. Walk into the clinic with fat hanging off your lower abs and walk out several hours later with all the excess fat left sitting in the surgeon’s office. The reality isn’t necessarily that simple. First of all it can take liposuction can be very painful after surgery, with some considerable swelling that takes one to two months to subside. Depending on the amount of fat removed and the location you may have to wear a compression garment for a few weeks and you will not be able to resume regular activity immediately after surgery. Most people that I know have a four to six week waiting period before they can resume any form of exercise and this all presupposes that all goes well.

Real world liposuction isn’t instant and is not without possible complications such as scarring, numbness and in very some cases death. While the mortality rate for liposuction isn’t high-the numbers seem to be a bit in dispute. The FDA cites “studies indicate that the risk of death due to liposuction is as low as 3 deaths for every 100,000 liposuction operations performed. However, other studies indicate that the risk of death is between 20 and 100 deaths per 100,000 liposuction procedures.” [4] Putting the figures in perspective the FDA citation quotes a study that puts those figures in perspective- noting that deaths from liposuction are higher than the mortality rate from car accidents which is 16 deaths per 100,000 accidents. The FDA also warns those considering it that “liposuction is a surgical procedure and that there may be serious complications, including death.” [4]

Liposuction Versus Diet & Exercise: Exercise Reduces Mortality Rates- Liposuction Does Not

While opting for liposuction can increase the likelihood of premature demise, hundreds of studies have shown that exercise DECREASES the risk of premature death. In one of the largest studies ever conducted to identify the link between exercise and mortality a study done by U.S. Veterans Affairs found that increased exercise capacity from something as simple as brisk walking reduced the risk of death in African-American and Caucasian men by 50 to as high as 70% depending on their fitness levels.[5] On the other hand, while liposuction may create a cosmetic illusion of health by removing visible fat stores, it offers no health benefits whatsoever. According to Dr. Amit Khera  head of  the preventative cardiology program at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center reducing fat by liposuction does not reduce the levels of C-reactive protein, which is used to measure inflammation and risk of heart disease. Since liposuction is only able to remove subcutaneous fat directly under the skin, it has no effect on visceral abdominal fat that clings to the internal organs and is directly linked to risks for cardiovascular disease.

Liposuction Versus Diet And Exercise- Liposuction Is Not A Permanent Fix

I have seen this myself over the years on numerous occasions. A young healthy individual with some pockets of fat, decides to undergo liposuction to get rid of the unwanted bulges. After a successful operation all seems to be well- but fast forward five to as little as two years and they are back again for more procedures. Why? Because there was no concurrent change in diet and lifestyle. Basically if you don’t eat well and exercise regularly, whatever fat that is removed from liposuction will come back over time as you are addressing only the symptoms and not the cause of your unwanted fat deposits. Repeat surgeries are fairly common and there is some concern among those in the psychology fields that liposuction does not improve obsessive preoccupation with one’s appearance and may indeed exacerbate such negative attitudes.

Contrasted with exercise which when done as part of a lifestyle change rather activity which tends to decrease feeling of depression [6,7,8,9] and is a long term pursuit that continues to reap benefits  as the years go by. The more you continue to exercise and eat well the better that you will look, the better your health will be and the better you will feel all without the risks of invasive surgery. There is also something to be said for the journey. Every pound lost comes with a new revelations, and an invaluable education in the most important of subjects- you. The process- slow though it may be is one that makes you inherently a better person. The lessons of self control, consistency and determination that you have to learn on the way to a slimmer, trimmer body stay with you forever and carry over to every other aspect of regular life. You can’t get that kind of life changing experience from a surgeon’s suction device.

Liposuction Versus Diet & Exercise- The Costs

The average liposuction procedure in 2009 cost approximately $3,000 in the United States.[10] That  figure represents an out of pocket expense as liposuction is not covered by health insurance as it is a cosmetic procedure. The average cost of a gym membership is between $40 and $60 per month which works out to under $1000 a year- which is one third the cost of a liposuction procedure.  Those figures are not too far off true even with higher end health clubs in urban areas like New York and Los Angeles where the rates can be a bit higher- either way you won’t spend $3,000 for a gym membership. Hiring a personal trainer might be a bit more costly as the rates can range anywhere from $500 to over $1,000 a month for an experienced trainer that can also help you with your diet- but it is worth it. The lessons that you will learn will stay with you for life- as will the results if you stick with the program.

But you need not hire a professional to exercise and eat well. Brisk walking costs nothing, nor does exercising on your own at home or in the park and eating healthy can often result in your spending less money on food. It isn’t the quick fix that liposuction offers but over time a simple program can not only take care of those love handles, but also decrease your risk of everything from heart disease to common forms of cancer, and that at the end of the day is priceless.

References

1. Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index survey July 1-Sept. 30, 2010

2. Akamai Technology Survey  conducted by Forrester Consulting:  2 Seconds as the New Threshold of Acceptability for eCommerce Web Page Response Times

3. The American Society For Aesthetic Plastic Surgery  (ASAPS)

4.What are the Risks or Complications Associated with Liposuction?- Food & Drug Administration

5.American Heart Association (2008, January 23). Daily Exercise Dramatically Lowers Men’s Death Rates. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 14,

6. McNeil K, LeBlanc E, Joyce M. The effect of exercise on depressive symptoms in the moderately depressed elderly. Psychology of Aging

7. Blumenthal JA, Babyak MA, Moore KA, et al. Effects of exercise training on older patients with major depression. Archives of Internal Medicine

8. Doyne EJ, Ossip-Klein DJ, Bowman ED, Osborn KM, McDougall-Wilson IB, Neimeyer IB. Running Versus Weight Lifting in the Treatment of Depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

9. Craft LL, Landers DM. The effect of exercise on clinical depression and depression resulting from mental illness: a meta analysis. J Sport Exerc Psychol 1998.

10. Source: The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery for statistical data.

Kevin Richardson is one of New York City’s most sought after personal trainers and the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts. Get a copy of Kevin’s award winning free weight loss ebook here and visit his official website at www.naturallyintense.net.

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Eating Well & Losing Weight On A Budget- It Can Be Done

In spite of the daily pronouncements of slow economic recovery the majority of the population is still feeling the effects of the global recession. This is great news for cheap processed food manufacturers and fast food outlets as when budgets are tight many see no other alternative than to turn to inexpensive and unhealthy foods as a way of surviving. Unfortunately many believe that given the current economic difficulties the prospect of eating well and losing weight on a budget seems almost impossible as such endeavors are often equated with spending more money on food. But is it really impossible to eat healthy and lose weight while on a tight budget? It can be done, I have done it, so have many others that I have worked with over the years, but it does require a change in your way of thinking. Here are five well used tips to eat healthy and lose weight on a budget:

Eating Well & Losing Weight On A Budget – Tip 1

Eat Breakfast At Home.

There is a saying back were I come from in the islands that a rich man brings his food while the poor man buys his foods out and that is why the rich man stays rich and the poor man stays poor. It’s pretty accurate as it is always far cheaper and healthier to cook your own meals and carry them with you to work than it is to eat out. A consumer review group found that as many as 37% of Americans adults ate breakfast at a fast food chain within the past month.[1] Not surprisingly McDonald’s was the top restaurant (if you can really call it that) followed by Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks and Burger King rounding out the top four national fast food chains frequented for breakfast.[1]. (As an interesting aside, people who eat breakfast at fast food restaurants tend to have active lifestyles and are 14% more likely than the average adult to belong to a health club and engage in regular exercise- so much for the idea of active people eating healthy!) The general cost for breakfast at McDonalds- which is the cheapest of the lot comes in at about $1-$5 (not including tax) depending on where you are in the United States. For those prices you can get some really terrible foods that will go a long way towards helping you start your day the wrong way (there is nothing remotely healthy about things like Egg McMuffins, hash browns, sausages, breakfast burritos or bacon, eggs and cheese made with the lowest grade food products possible and processed meats) . Now while their dollar menu dominates the morning meal battle by offering a fast and cheap way to eat on the run, it is still cheaper to eat better. But it will take a bit longer.

Here’s why- a perfectly balanced and nutritionally sound breakfast of oatmeal (old fashioned oats- not the instant or sugar added varieties), two egg whites and a banana tallies up to a mere $1.49 using organic bananas and free range eggs! (Click here for a copy of Kevin’s free weight loss ebook on healthy breakfast choices.)A container of Quaker Old Fashioned Oatmeal costs $4.89 and yields just about 15 servings (they say 30 servings on the container- but no one would really eat that small of an amount in the real world) so figure about 32 cents a meal- a dozen organic free range large brown eggs cost $4.99 a dozen- which only sounds like a lot if you don’t factor in that two egg whites will cost you only 66 cents a meal. The bananas are organic and at 99 cents a pound would cost just about 49 cents for one. Of course you could go even lower if you didn’t choose organic fare and keep in mind that the prices quoted are all from Fresh Direct, which is for the most part a tad more expensive than what you can find if you shopped around. Either way you are still eating breakfast for less than what you would pay for at Starbucks and the regular menus at McDonald’s but you do have to watch your portions, which leads to the next tip on eating healthy on a budget:

Eating Well & Losing Weight On A Budget – Tip 2

Eat smaller portions.

One of the first things that I noticed when I came to the United States is just how large the portion sizes are. I remember well ordering at a restaurant and being amazed at how much food they piled on my plate, it was at least twice as much as I would have got at a restaurant back in the West Indies! In general few people realize that you really don’t need to eat as much food as they do and that eating less is not only healthy, but will save you money. Knowing how much is enough is not an easy task and studies have consistently shown that most people are unable to accurately estimate their food intake. It is so difficult that a study involving nutrition students that had been rigorously trained in food energy content found that even they had a low level of accuracy (18.5%) in figuring out the caloric value of several foods set in front of them. [3] Also you don’t want to go down the road of measuring your food and counting calories as it can become a bit obsessive and has little to do with a natural way of losing weight. So how do you know how much is enough? Simple, you use my rule of thirds for losing weight.

The rule of thirds- First when preparing your meals, always give yourself one third less than your regular serving. It isn’t that hard to do, but you are in one move cutting your calories, ensuring that you don’t overeat and reducing your food bill by 33%! The second part of my rule of thirds is to imagine your stomach as divided into three equal sections. Now whenever you eat you always leave one third of it empty.

As simple as this may seem, these two easy methods of self regulation have helped everyone from housewives to physique competitors that I have worked with over the years get into optimal shape and it is a simple way to accurately regulate your dietary intake without depriving yourself. It also helps you cut down on your food expenses by eating less. As a result, you will have a little more money to spend on better quality foods.

Eating Well & Losing Weight On A Budget – Tip 3

Cook Your Meals And Bring Them With You.

We already covered how much cheaper it is to eat in than eat out when it comes to breakfast, but keep in mind that the healthiest of restaurants for lunch or dinner can never be as healthy or cost effective as the food you make at home. The convenience of being able to grab something on the go is appealing, but to get a really good meal, you will pay more buying from a health focused restaurant- and you don’t really know if the food is as healthy as they claim it to be. Chains like subway create the illusion that somehow their foods are healthy- but for the most part, they are not. As for fast foods- they might be easy to get and inexpensive, but keep in mind that you are paying for food- not nutrition and that your body will always want more as it isn’t getting what it needs. Also the price you will pay in medical costs resulting from obesity and the slew of metabolic related diseases that come with it such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension is a hidden cost in every cheap meal. So what do you do when you don’t have that much to spend on food- cook and carry!

The best way to afford good quality food is to cook all of you meals for the week on the weekend and portion your meals out (using the weight loss rule of thirds) into Tupperware containers that you refrigerate and take with you when you need it. A simple meal consisting of organic chicken, brown rice and lentils can cost as little as $4.05 [2]- which is even less than what it would cost in some fast food chains! An organic chicken costs about $14.00 (I know it sounds like a lot, but trust me it is worth it as all chicken isn’t exactly chicken!) which would yield let’s say four servings (even less if you are under 180 lbs or not very active), which works out to $3.49 per serving. Basmati brown rice costs about $4.29 for a 2 lb bag, which is about ten servings (the label says a ¼ cup per serving which would yield 19 servings, but ½ cup is a bit more realistic) which comes to 42 cents a serving. Add lentils to give everything some flavor and it adds only 14 cents to the total.

You can make these prices go even lower by following these rules:

• Buy in bulk whenever you can- you’ll spend less per serving.
• Avoid uselessly pricey meats like skinless boneless chicken breasts- a whole organic chicken usually costs as much as two or three tiny cutlets and who said you only had to eat chicken breasts to lose weight? Eat the whole chicken!
• Don’t shop hungry- you’ll buy stuff you don’t need.
• If there are farms near where you live- go straight to the source to buy. Farmers are people and you can always strike up a relationship with some of them and not have to pay extra for the transportation and middlemen that it takes to get their produce to the markets!
• Grow something. A small home garden is a good idea for anyone trying to stay on the straight and narrow path of eating well on a budget- the bigger the better, but a small plot on your windowsill is good enough.

Eating Well & Losing Weight On A Budget- Tip 4

Drink Only Water.

That’s right- stop the coffee, stop the juice and for your own good stop the vitamin water and sports drinks. (Don’t worry about not getting your vitamins by avoiding juices- as you can get more than enough from fruits and vegetables, but with healthy fiber and without the excess calories.) Drinking alcohol is a great way to spend a lot of money on something that will make you gain weight and pretty much negate most of your diet and exercise endeavors and cutting it out will not only help your wallet but your waistline.  The only fluid your body needs is water and if you live in most parts of the United States tap water is fine- most of the bottled water you drink isn’t that better than what comes out of your faucet- it just has millions of dollars in advertising behind it designed to make you think it is. I am always astonished by the number of people that say that they can’t afford to eat healthy and yet ‘treat’ themselves to a Starbucks coffee once or twice a week. At about $5 a week that is $260 a year or two months worth of healthy lunches! Take into consideration how much we spend on juices and the dental fees that accrue as a result of tooth decay and you can clearly see that there are hidden costs involved. Drinking only water will also reduce your caloric intake significantly and you will see a major and permanent reduction in your body weight and body fat if you make the switch and follow the aforementioned guidelines.

To make it work always carry a bottle (not plastic if you can avoid it- we do also have an environment to keep healthy) with you. Don’t spend money on vending machine drinks (or water) and keep refilling it from the tap or water fountain if you have one. Don’t fall into the bottled water trap. Americans spent 15 billion dollars on bottled water in 2006, that’s more money than we spent on iPods or even movie tickets![4] All for something that you can get for free! No study has ever found bottled water to be healthier or better for you than tap water- so put the money you save towards better quality food.

Eating Well & Losing Weight On A Budget- Tip 5

Slow Down And Change The Way You See Time.

You might wonder what time perception has to do with eating healthy on a budget, but it has everything to do with it. We live in fast paced society where every second is supposed to count and convenience has long triumphed over quality. It is the way we see the world that enslaves us as most of us make food choices with the idea that we don’t have enough time to cook, or enough time to find a healthy food alternative or even enough time to leave our desks to sit and have a proper meal. The average American over the age of 15 spends only 67 minutes just eating and drinking and 16 minutes a day eating while working, watching TV or doing some other activity [5, 6] figures far removed from that of our European counterparts who place more importance on the idea of sitting down and enjoying a meal. Four percent of us reported never spending any time just eating or drinking but doing so only while engaged in work or some other activity. It is this very mentality that creates our unnatural perception that our food needs to be something quick. Studies have found that the faster you eat, the more likely you are to overeat[6,7], so don’t make eating a race. Everything comes with a price and fast and convenient food comes with a price that no budget can handle- the price of your health. The price you pay in taking the time to plan and cook your own meals not only saves you money, but will go a long way towards helping you achieve the type of body that you can be proud of, and how priceless is that?

Related Resources:

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Sources

1.      Scarborough Research, Scarborough USA+ Study, Release 2 2009

2.      Fresh Direct

3.      Japur CC, Diez-Garcia RW. Food energy content influences food portion size estimation by nutrition students. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2010

4.      Fast Company Magazine- Message I a bottle- Charles Fishman

5.      Bureau  of Labor Statistics 2006 American Time Use Survey and ERS 2006 Eating & Health

6.      Kokkinos A, Roux CW, Alexiadou K, Tentolouris N, Vincent R, Kyriaki D, Perrea D, Ghatei MA, Bloom S,Katsilambros N. Eating slowly increases the postprandial response of the anorexigenic gut hormones, peptide YY and glucagon-like peptide-1. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010

7.      Maruyama K, Sato S, Ohira T, Maeda K, Noda H, Kubota Y, Nishimura S, Kitamura A, Kiyama M, Okada T, Imano H, Nakamura M, Ishikawa Y, Kurokawa M, Sasaki S, Iso H.The joint impact on being overweight of self reported behaviours of eating quickly and eating until full: cross sectional survey. BMJ. 2008

Kevin Richardson is one of the most respected and sought after personal trainers in New York City and his Naturally Intense High Intensity Training system has helped thousands get into better shape in less time over the past 19 years! Follow Kevin on twitter here!

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Keeping Us Fat- Why Not Losing Weight Is Profitable

Diets don’t work and weight loss supplements don’t work- most people are aware of this on some level and yet it doesn’t stop Americans from spending 46 to as much as 100 billion dollars a year on diet products and self help diet books. Studies, (and the personal experience of about anyone you know), have shown that two thirds of Americans that went on a diet regained all the weight they had lost within one year. A whopping 97% gained it all back within a period of five years! [1] The question thus becomes why isn’t the success rate higher at a time when there is more weight loss information out there than ever before? Studies have proven that  lifestyle and not genetics are to blame for our current weight crisis so achieving a healthy body weight is possible for the majority of the population, and yet for all the information, products and medical knowledge at our disposal there are still 1 billion overweight adults on the planet and that number continues to rise.(2) Could it be that on some level it is more profitable to have an overweight population rather than a healthy one?

There is an unavoidable cacophony of contradictory information and weight loss propaganda that exists in our society. It acts as background noise that drowns out the basic (and mostly hard to profit from) tenets that have helped millions of people stay in shape. Namely, a lifestyle change where you avoid high calorie processed foods and incorporate a regular routine of exercise. This approach has been validated by numerous studies and millions of people around the world are able to sustain a healthy weight and fitness level by following these guidelines, so why are we bombarded by so many other ways to lose weight? Given the stakes it seems almost a crime to lead the public on a wild goose chase when so much is at stake in terms of health and when a crime is committed the first step towards identifying the perpetrator is to ask the question ‘Cui bono?’- literally ‘who stands to gain?’ In this case you can’t help but notice that our overweight population is worth billions to the not only the diet, fitness and weight loss industry, but also to the food industry, medical and pharmaceutical industries and interestingly enough the media at large.

How The Diet Industry Profits From Keeping Us Fat

Diets like Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem, Weight Watchers, The Zone Diet, NutriSystem, The Atkins Diet, Weight Watchers, The Ornish Diet, The South Beach Diet, Slim-Fast and the always popular Subway diet all have two major things in common:

1.      Their abysmal long term success rate.

2.      The fact that you have to spend money to follow them.

According to figures from a Forbes report, the above mentioned weight loss diet costs an average of $85.79 a week! That’s more than $30 more than the $54.44 that the average single American spends on food![3] Not only is it expensive but each weight loss plan banks on your failure- that way you will remain a long term customer. It puzzles me that our society allows for an industry that keeps growing in spite of the fact that most of their customers fail. It is equally bewildering that so many different diet systems thrive on the market today. Logically the very existence of so many different systems actually highlights their inherent ineffectiveness. If only one diet system, self help book or workout dvd could provide a safe and effective way for everyone to lose weight and keep it off, then all the others would be out of business.  Instead it makes perfect sense that noise from the diet and weight loss industry should serve to confuse the public in an attempt to keep us fat and their coffers overflowing.

While the economy wallows in the doldrums, the food industry continues to profit by appealing to the nation’s desire for ‘health food products.’

How The Medical Industry Profits From Keeping Us Fat

Surgical procedures are the ultimate quick fix for weight loss and not surprisingly the number of active surgeons performing bariatric weight reduction operations like gastric banding, gastric bypass and variants of these stomach surgeries jumped nearly 500 percent

from 168 in 1993 to 860 in 2003 as the number of gastric bypass surgeries climbed more than 600% during the same period. [4] At an average cost of $30,000 per procedure [4], fees paid mainly by health insurance providers or government health benefit programs with your taxpayer money, it is easy to see how profitable it is for the medical industry. Liposuction is the most popular form of plastic surgery for men and women combined with more than half a million women having the procedure each year.[5] At an average cost of $2500 per procedure it doesn’t take much to realize that it is a huge cash cow for the plastic surgery field.

Equally profitable are prescription diet drugs. Doctor prescribed appetite suppressants and fat absorption inhibitors net millions for the drug companies that make them. Research has shown that while over the short term prescription dietary drugs can help reduce weight and potentially reduce temporarily reduce health risks in obese individuals it is only a short lived benefit as there is no concurrent change in lifestyle. Interestingly enough there are currently no studies to determine the effect of these medications over the long term. Not that we really need them as these drugs can only be administered for a period of weeks and if they were truly effective a single pill would have stopped the obesity epidemic a long time ago!

How The Pharmaceutical Industry Profits By Keeping Us Fat

Unfortunately it is not only the diet and weight loss branches of the pharmaceutical community that profit from you being overweight and staying that way. We know being overweight or obese increases the risk of coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia (high cholesterol or triglyceride levels) and stroke [6]. Thus it should be no surprise that Lipitor- a statin drug designed to reduce cholesterol was the number one best selling drug not only in the United States in 2006 but in the entire world with an impressive 14 billion dollars in US sales alone for the pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer![7] To put things in perspective, in the United States, Lipitor made more than twice as much as the nearest other drug, the asthma medication Advair. Not surprisingly several other drugs in the top ten were also used to treat obesity linked diseases such as Plavix by Bristol-Meyer Squib, Norvasc, (another Pfizer drug) and Diovan altogether netting 60 billion dollars in the United States alone in 2006.[7,8] What is cause for concern is that the biggest pharmaceutical companies all profit mainly from diseases related to obesity, companies that have a major role in shaping public health policy- which has failed painfully to curb our growing obesity problem. With literally thousands of lobbyists in Washington, DC and an estimated $855 million spent on lobby activities from 1998 to 2006, pharmaceutical companies spend more than any other industry to ensure that their interests are protected. [9] Interests that focus on increasing profits for their shareholders and not on improving overall public health. Many have criticized the pharmaceutical industry on focusing solely on making drugs that profit from current health problems and not ones that solve them.

How The Media Profits From Keeping Us Fat

It isn’t only the muscle and fitness magazines packed with weight loss product propaganda that profit from an overweight population eager to learn how to be slim and trim, it’s every part of American media- from the news to talk shows. Ask any publicist in how to get on TV and they will tell you that the key stories are weight loss, sex and aging. These issues have always captivated large audiences and the obesity epidemic has given birth to a slew of weight loss reality shows in addition to the bombardment of diet and weight loss tips that flood the airwaves. By making weight loss information a form of entertainment the media does more to confuse people actively seeking credible information on how to improve their health. Unfortunately, the message of healthy lifestyle, exercise and balance isn’t sensational enough and won’t do to entertain the masses so a new and exciting new diet, breakthrough, study, , exercise or system has to be introduced all the time. The result- a confused pubic that stays fat but tunes in to see what they can try next to get into shape.

This impacts women more than any other segment of society and they use this to their advantage. Every women’s magazine faces the challenge of what to print to keep their readers in thrall and so every month they have a new way to lose weight. Research has shown that women’s magazines have over ten times more ads and articles promoting weight loss than men’s magazines do. Not surprisingly over 75% of women’s magazine covers include at least one message about how to change bodily appearance by diet, exercise or cosmetic surgery.  Women’s magazines also have over ten times more ads and articles promoting weight loss than men’s magazines adding to the almost incessant racket of useless weight loss noise.

How The Food Industry Profits By Keeping Us Fat

The list of industries that make billions from our weight problems is a long one and include as well the food industry which has shifted towards the manufacturing of ‘low fat’, ‘reduced sugar’ or ‘organic’ products to benefit from our collective increases in girth. The problem is that those foods are the problem. In 2010 there are more foods labeled ‘natural’, low fat’, ‘diet’ and ‘organic’ than ever before in our history and yet we aren’t getting any healthier. The obesity epidemic continues to increase while studies on cultures that do not consume these so called ‘healthy foods’ universally find that such populations do not suffer the weight problems of developed countries.

Over the past twenty years I have realized that half of the work required to help people lose weight comes teaching them that our very culture is part of the problem. Try to live a healthy lifestyle where you eschew processed foods, exercise and limit or eliminate alcohol from your diet and you immediately become a social pariah. This in itself is a tremendous barrier to overcome when your peers are influenced by many conflicting messages but it is one that must be crossed if you don’t want to help enrich the lives of those that stand to profit from our current health burdens.

Sources

1.       The diet business: Banking on failure. (BBC News World Edition, Feb 5 2003).

2.       World Health Organization

3.       Forbes.com

4.       The American Bariatric Society

5.       Facts On Platsic Surgery- Dustyinfo.com

6.       NIH, NHLBI Obesity Education Initiative. Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults.

7.       Source: MedAdNews 200 – World’s Best-Selling Medicines, MedAdNews, July 2007

8.       Herper, Matthew and Kang, Peter (2006-03-22). “The World’s Ten Best-Selling Drugs”. Forbes.

9.       Center for Public Integrity

10.   The Canadian Women’s Health Network (Body Image and the Media).

Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts™ and one of the most sought after personal trainers in Manhattan. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook on how to start a sensible weight loss plan with a healthy breakfast here.

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