Top 10 Health & Fitness Articles Of 2011

In 2011 over a quarter of a million people read our blog articles as it has become more and more popular over the past several months. In this posting we take a look at the top ten most popular health and fitness articles posted in 2011. To determine popularity we looked not only at the number of ‘Likes’ and ‘Tweets’ but also factored in the number of readers and reader response. Hopefully some of your favorites made it into the final top ten list and I am sure that you will find a few other gems that you may have missed! Thanks again for the continued support!

Top 10 Health & Fitness Articles of 2011

10. The Anti-Aging Properties Of Weight Training & Resistance Exercise

A detailed look at how our body ages on a cellular  level and how weight training and resistance exercise can play a significant role in maintaining quality of life as you get older. You can read the article in its entirety here.

9. Sweating Has Nothing to Do With Losing Fat

Getting a good sweat is thought of as the key to a good fat burning workout, however sweating has nothing to do with fat loss and is a poor indicator of how much fat you are burning while training or doing any physical activity. Read the article in its entirety here.

8. Tongol Tuna- A Safe Real Food Choice

I started writing about the benefits of tongol tuna several years ago and in this article we go over the problem of mercury in fish and the role of tongol tuna as a lower mercury alternative to traditional albacore tuna. You can read the article in its entirety here.

7. Six Pack Abs- It’s Not What You Do- It’s What & How You Eat

The quest of six pack abdominals has become the Holy Grail for many as the ultimate goal of their diet and exercise program. Unfortunately a surge of exercise products and services have sprung up over the years offering consumers much in the way of false hope by promoting various exercises as the way to a chiseled midsection. As lucrative as these products may be they not only don’t work, but distract us from the reality that a six pack comes from what and how you eat more than what type of exercises you do. You can read the article in its entirety here.

6. Multi-Vitamins & Vitamin Supplements Do More Harm Than Good

Multi-vitamins have long been thought of as a must have for anyone serious about their health. However hundreds of studies show that not only are multi-vitamins unnecessary for a population that is not clinically deficient in any major nutrient, but that they may actually increase the likelihood of certain diseases. If you take multi-vitamins or any vitamin supplement this is an article that you owe it to yourself to read.  You can read the article in its entirety here.

5. The Economics Of Obesity- Why The Food Industry Needs Us to Overeat

One of the biggest problems we face in the fight against obesity and growing diet related problems is the fact that the government plays a key role in supporting and promoting the food industries that make the very foods that we ought to avoid. In this in depth two part article we take a look at how the industry makes us eat more and how important overeating has become for the sustainability of the American economy as we know it. A must read for anyone interested in the behind the scenes machinery that allows corporations to wreak havoc with public health. You can read the article in its entirety here.

4. Can Bread Make You Gain Weight?

There is a common belief that bread will make you gain weight but the truth is that if you eat anything more than you should you’ll put some extra pounds on. In this article we take a look at the history of one of our oldest foods and debunk some of the myths about bread while showing the major differences between what we eat today and the bread that sustained our forefathers. You can read the article in its entirety here.

3. How Do Muscles Get Bigger And Stronger?

While many slave away at the gym in the quest for bigger and stronger muscles, few take the time to understand the mechanisms by which our muscles grow. In this comprehensive piece we take a look at our body’s response to stress, how it translates into improvements in our physiques and our performance and why training less is best. You can read the article in its entirety here.

2. Rethinking The Need For Cardio- Why Aerobics Don’t Work Well For Fat Loss

Aerobic type exercise is without question the most popular fitness activity for those bent on losing weight- however numerous studies and an understanding of the physiology of how our cardiovascular and muscular systems interact show that it isn’t the most effect form of exercise if weight loss is your ultimate goal. You can read the article in its entirety here.

1. Are Protein Shakes Bad For You?

The most popular article of the 2011 is about the now ubiquitous protein shake. While a staple in the dietary regime of almost all gym goers there is yet no real evidence that protein shakes actually help increase muscle mass or improve performance. In fact, evidence suggests that they might not necessarily be a good choice for someone interested in getting into peak shape. You can read the article in its entirety here.

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Celebrity NYC personal trainer Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss e-book here. You can contact Kevin at 1-800-798-8420.

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Do You Need Milk For Optimal Health & Strong Bones? Marketing Says Yes But Science Says No.

“Milk helps build strong bones and teeth!”

Like many, I first heard this mantra when I was a child in elementary school and it is a message that is firmly ingrained in the minds of most as one of the few universal truths in nutrition. The need for dairy products as an irreplaceable part of the human diet for building and maintaining strong bones and warding off the ravages of osteoporosis is considered common knowledge, an unshakable truth, and  a message repeated ad nauseum in the media. A message that few would find reason to question. It’s no secret that milk contains calcium- a key mineral for maintaining bone health. Thus there would appear to be little reason to question it’s importance as a protective shield against bone loss.  As popular and seemingly rational an idea as it may be, the scientific evidence doesn’t support it. Very early in my career I myself was quite surprised to learn that my early indoctrination to the health benefits of dairy consumption didn’t come from credible peer reviewed scientific research, but from a rather successful marketing campaign on the part of the dairy industry. A campaign influential enough to have the US government (and many others around the world) classify milk as a food group- a decision made based on profit and not sound nutritional science.

Contrary to popular belief billions of people on the planet do just fine without having milk as a part of their diet. Not hundreds of thousands or millions, but billions. Surprisingly enough, people in countries where milk consumption is minimal have some of the lowest incidences of osteoporosis and hip fractures on earth. A revealing statistic that somehow never seems to find its way to American audiences, nor does the fact that for hundreds of thousands of years milk most humans on the planet didn’t drink milk and that many enjoy rather robust health without it. There is a reason for our rather myopic understanding of milk and what it can and cannot do for us and it’s the dairy industry. The reach of the dairy industry’s influence is impressive to say the least, spreading information designed to help them sell more milk not just nationally but globally.

Using a consumer creating model sanctioned by government entities, teaching material for young children in schools about the role of milk in building strong bones and teeth is graciously supplied by the American Dairy Council. Presented as educational material at an early age, such influence affects our perception of milk as a required part of our diets and it is hard, if not impossible for a child to question such authoritative information. An effective model that ensures that as adults the party line that milk is a requirement for optimal health is firmly rooted in our core set of beliefs. It’s a similar methodology used by fast food chains like McDonald’s to market to children, knowing fully well that it will guarantee another generation of customers.

Not only is milk taught at an early age to be an essential part of our diet, it is provided to us as well. As a food product produced far in excess of what we as a nation can consume thanks to heavy government subsidies secured by the dairy lobbies, it can be literally given away and dairy producers still make profits. With the early consumer marketing model in mind it thus makes sense that milk is distributed to young children in schools through government food programs. Good business as it helps to cement the thought process of milk being a necessity as an unquestioned view.

Milk & Calcium- Understanding The Science

As adults we are bombarded by messages and dairy lobby funded ‘studies’ reminding us about the calcium content of milk and dairy products. Most notably for women and the steadily aging American population, mill’s supposed prophylactic effects against bone loss are emphasized. But can the calcium in milk really make a difference in bone density? Looking internationally at the dairy-equals-calcium-which-equals-strong-bones idea, we see clearly that the countries with the highest rates of osteoporosis are the largest consumers of dairy products.

The dairy consumption of countries like the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, the UK and Northern Europe is enormous when compared to Asian countries such as China where dairy consumption is rare, yet those very countries where less dairy is consumed have they have the lowest rates of hip fracture and osteoporosis in the world.[1,2,3,4]

The Rate Of Osteoporosis & Hip Fracture Is Lower In Populations Who Do Not Consume Milk & Dairy Products.

To give an idea of the prevalence of osteoporosis, estimates are that 40% of American Caucasian women and 13% of Caucasian men aged 50 years will experience at least one bone loss related fracture in their lifetime. At age 50, a Caucasian woman has a 17% chance of sustaining a hip fracture, 15% chance of vertebral fracture and 16% chance for forearm fracture, with comparable figures of 6%, 5% and 2.5%, respectively, for fractures in white males.[2] Interestingly enough among the female African American population the age-adjusted prevalence of hip related osteoporosis is only 6%, compared to 17 % for postmenopausal White women- difference consistent with the much lower fracture rates observed in African Americans.[5] African Americans, by the way consume almost 40% less milk and dairy products as their Caucasian counterparts[6] which if by itself renders the milk/dairy-equals-strong-bones theory to be questionable.

Statistics from the observation of low dairy intake in Asian population contradict the milk/dairy-equals-strong-bones theory completely. Using China as an example, where cheese and other popular dairy products are not a part of their regular diet and where milk consumption is 10% of the American per capita consumption rate[7] age standardized incidences of hip fractures is far lower than their milk drinking American and European counterparts. Based on the 1990 China census figures hip fracture rates were only 87 per 100,000 for women and 97 per 100,000 for men. Contrast these numbers with 510-559 per 100,000 for white American women and 174-207 per 100,000 for American Caucasian men[8]. In fact, hip fractures in Beijing are reportedly among the lowest rates of occurrence in the world- and with a population where milk is by no means a staple.

Debunking The Need for Milk- It’s The Calcium Lost Not Calcium Consumed That Causes Osteoporosis

As much as the good (and well paid) folks at the American Dairy Association would like you to think that increasing your calcium intake by drinking milk would decrease your risk of osteoporosis, the science behind this premise simply doesn’t support it. From what we do know about bone loss, it happens not so much from not having a high enough calcium intake, but rather from having a high level of calcium loss due to dietary and lifestyle choices. [8] According to the findings of the 1994 National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference,  at least one third of calcium balance and bone density is dependent on the ratio of intake to loss and not solely on calcium intake alone as the marketing campaigns would have you believe. To be frank, meta analysis of literature meeting the provisions for unbiased scientific research found there were no significant relationships proved between milk consumption or any other dairy product to measures of bone health nor were there no correlations between calcium intake and bone loss.[9,10,11,12] Similarly, an 18 year analysis of 72 337 postmenopausal women published in the February 2003 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that an adequate vitamin D intake was associated with a lower risk of osteoporotic hip fractures in postmenopausal women. Neither milk nor a high-calcium diet in the study had any correlation with a reduction in risk of osteoporosis.

Milk Isn’t The Only Source Of Calcium

So we have established that bone loss has little to do with intake, but for those concerned nevertheless about their calcium intake, it should be noted that a 1990 report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that green leafy vegetables such as broccoli and kale have high levels of calcium and is absorbed at least as well as the calcium in milk. [12,13,14] Proper calcium balance on a non-dairy diet is easily attained because ALL vegetables and legumes contain calcium.[15] Thus within the context of a balanced diet it is more than adequate to prevent frank deficiencies which are rare to nonexistent in developed countries such as the United States.[16]

In terms of the ultimate source of calcium, however no other food source can compete with the bioavailability of calcium from bones. That’s right, bones. You don’t hear much about it since eating bones isn’t that popular here in the United States and given that both dairy producers and supplement manufacturers would be hard pressed to sell their wares if the general population was aware that eating small amounts of bone is how humans got most of their calcium for several hundred thousand years. The small and soft bones of fishes like sardines are a perfect source of calcium in a form our bodies can easily absorb, as is the use of bone meal that can be added to soups and broths. Since these sources are better absorbed (and it makes sense that bones would be the best source of building material for bones) our body retains more of it as opposed to being mostly excreted in urine as is often the case with dairy products and artificial supplements.

Osteoporosis is a very real concern for many women, as they make up 80% of those affected by this condition. Osteoporosis is a major public health threat for an estimated 44 million people here in the United States with almost 10 million individuals estimated to already have the disease and almost 34 million more are estimated to have low bone mass, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis. It is time we paid more attention to what has been proven to be real risk factors, such as soda consumption, high sodium diets, smoking, excessive caffeine consumption, alcohol and an inactive lifestyle , than simply falling for the marketing hype that somehow drinking  milk or eating yogurt and cheese will magically protect you from low bone density.

Getting the recommended daily allowance of calcium at all ages is important, preferably from dietary sources. But bone nutrient requirements are wide and far more complex than simply drinking milk or taking a calcium supplement. A diverse diet of natural foods that includes meat, fish, fresh vegetables, fruits and nuts will always cover the diverse nutritional needs of our bones as long as we stay away from high fat, high sugar and high sodium processed foods. Limit high fat protein sources, keep your salt intake low, reduce your alcohol consumption and don’t smoke and you’ll be fine. Also important is the amount of time spent outdoors. Get sunlight on your skin at safe times of the day for vitamin D as it plays an integral role in helping our body use calcium efficiently. As much as commercials warn us of the dangers of sunlight, recent studies have suggested that avoidance of sunlight is associated with higher risks of certain cancers- which should not be surprising as we did in fact evolve outdoors and not in the confines of fluorescently lit cubicles.

Dairy Products and Weight Gain

As early as the 1950’s when bodybuilders wanted to decrease body fat and increase their muscular definition the first thing they would cut out of their diet was milk and dairy products. Among natural bodybuilders who don’t resort to the use of powerful and potentially dangerous drugs to get into shape, milk and dairy products are a big no-no when trying to reduce body fat- whey protein shakes as well (see my article on protein shakes here). A mixture of water, sugars, fats and salt, milk is in essence nature’s ultimate weight gain formula, helping infant mammals increase their body mass significantly in relatively short periods of time. Milk helps baby elephants and cows pack on hundreds of pounds and interestingly enough, no adult mammal living in a natural environment drinks milk past infancy. Only humans and the animals we train drink milk as adults and it bears mentioning that the very countries with the highest dairy consumption are also the ones with the highest rates of obesity.

Finally, it is important to stress the role of exercise and not diary intake as a way of increasing bone density. Weight training in particular plays a poignant role in maintaining and building healthy bone mass levels (Read my article here on weight training and osteoporosis). It’s a simple and scientifically proven way for prevention of low bone mass and in helping those with low bone mass levels build up their bones. So put down that glass of milk and start pumping some iron!

References:

1. Xu L, Lu A, Zhao X, Chen X, Cummings SR.Very low rates of hip fracture in Beijing, People’s Republic of China the Beijing Osteoporosis Project. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China. Am J Epidemiol. 1996

2. Cummings SR and Melton LJ (2002) Epidemiology and outcomes of osteoporotic fractures. Lancet 359:1761.

3. Kanis JA, Johnell O, De Laet C, et al. (2004) A meta-analysis of previous fracture and subsequent fracture risk. Bone 35:375.

4. Kanis JA and Johnell O (2005) Requirements for DXA for the management of osteoporosis in Europe. Osteoporos Int 16:229.

5. Melton LJ, Cooper C 2001 Magnitude and impact of osteoporosis and fractures. In: Marcus R, Feldman D, Kelsey J (eds.) Osteoporosis

6. Gender and ethnic differences in intakes of dairy foods and related nutrients, obesity, and metabolic outcomes: NHANES, 1999–2004

7. Per Capita Consumption of Milk and Milk Products in Various Countries, International Dairy Federation, Bulletin 423/2007.

8. Heaney, R.P., Evaluation of publicly available scientific evidence regarding certain nutrient-disease relationships

9. Wachman, A., et al. Diet and osteoporosis. Lancet May 4, 1968, p. 958.

10, Recker, R., The effect of milk supplements on calcium metabolism, bone metabolism, and calcium balance. American J Clin Nutr 1985; 41:254.

11. Nilas, L. Calcium supplementation and post menopausal bone loss. British Medical Journal 1984; 289: 1103.

12. Kolata, G. How important is dietary calcium in preventing osteoporosis? Science 1986; 233: 519-20.

13 Institute of Medicine. Dietary reference intakes for calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin D, and fluoride. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1997.

14. Alaimo K, McDowell MA, Briefel RR, et al. US Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary intake of vitamins, minerals, and fiber of persons ages 2 months and over in the United States: third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Phase 1, 1988–91. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics, 1994. (Advance data from vital and health statistics no. 258.)

15. Weaver CM, Plawecki KL. Dietary calcium: adequacy of a vegetarian diet. Am J Clin Nutr 1994;59(suppl):1238S–41S

16. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet. US Office of Dietary Supplements

Kevin Richardson is an award winning health and fitness writer, one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City and creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training™. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here. If you live in the New York metropolitan area and need help losing weight or taking your body to the next level give Kevin and his team a call at 1-800-798-8420 or click here to get started with 50% off your trial personal training session.

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Understanding Eating Disorders, Binge Eating & Night Eating Syndrome

Eating disorders have existed in one form or another since the beginning of civilization; however it is without question that its presence has increased significantly over the past thirty years. It’s hard to pin point one central causative reason for the increase, but it goes without saying that the social and societal pressures to be thin and in great shape while living in a developed nation where over a third of the population is overweight has been consistently implicated as a cause for the growing number of mostly women with eating disorders. The unstoppable deluge of advertising and marketing cues for women to be supermodel slim and trim doesn’t only affect us here in the United States and Europe but creates an environment ripe for eating disorders even in third world countries where food supplies are scare. In India where it is estimated that almost 60% of the female population is malnourished and where a well rounded body has traditionally been upheld as a nationally accepted ideal, the influx of Western television has brought with it an explosion in the number of young girls with anorexia nervosa- often with fatal consequences.[1]

Here in the United States over eight million people suffer from an eating disorder of some kind with a huge gender bias of seven million women versus one million men.[2] One in 200 American women suffer from anorexia nervosa- the so called slimming disease that can cause suffers to starve themselves to death. A study by the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa & Associated Disorders found that 5 – 10% of anorexics die within 10 years of contracting the disorder and that approximately one fifth of them will die within twenty years. Sadly the mortality rate for anorexia is 12 times higher than the death rates of all causes of death for young females within the ages of 15-24 years old[2], a sobering statistic, but one that does nothing to stop the presentation of being ultra thin to a fault as an ideal.

Bulimia  & Binge Eating- Signs & Symptoms

While one in every 200 American women suffers from anorexia, two to three in 100 women suffers from bulimia

Binge related eating disorders are even more widespread throughout the American female population- while one in every 200 American women suffers from anorexia, two to three in 100 women suffers from bulimia. Bulimia is an insidious and often silent illness in which a person binges on food or has regular episodes of overeating while feeling a very tangible loss of self control over their eating. The affected person then uses various methods such as vomiting, diet pills or laxative abuse to prevent weight gain.[3] Similar to but not exactly the same as bulimia, binge eating disorder is even more common as people with binge eating disorder often consume large amounts of food while feeling a real loss of control over their eating, but without the recourse to purging methods.[4]While almost everyone overeats at one point or another (usually over the holiday season), some overeat with a regularity that qualifies it as a disorder. While not categorized as a psychiatric condition per se, as with all eating disorders, binge eating comes with the classic cycle of compulsive urges followed by extreme feelings of guilt and powerlessness to stop a reoccurrence. As it is largely undiagnosed, millions are affected but no one can give a precise number as the practice is often shrouded in secrecy and the shame and embarrassment over having so little control over your actions isolate many from ever revealing that they have a problem and getting help.

While bulimia nervosa appears to be of relatively recent origin, binge eating has been a problem for humankind for centuries. Simply eating large amounts of food or being over one’s ideal weight does not mean that someone has a binge eating disorder. Research over the past three decades has conclusively shown that most obese individuals eat relatively normally, (read my post on calories to understand a bit more of how easy it is for us to gain weight) and that the subgroup of obese people with episodic periods of extreme food consumption is relatively small with some sufferers being of normal weight.[5] My experience over the years has been that most people regarded as ideals within the fitness industry do have serious problems with their attitudes towards food, sadly to the point where is can indeed be classed as a disorder.

The criteria for binge eating disorder are:

· Frequent episodes of eating what others would consider an abnormally large amount of food.

· Frequent feelings of being unable to control what or how much is being eaten.

Several or all of these behaviors or feelings:

• Eating much more rapidly than usual.
• Eating until uncomfortably full.
• Eating large amounts of food, even when not physically hungry.
• Eating in isolation out of embarrassment at the quantity of food being eaten.
• Feelings of disgust, depression, or guilt after overeating.[6]

Bulimia & Binge Eating In The Fitness Industry

The extreme dietary habits of many bodybuilders, fitness and figure competitors could be seriously categorized as an eating disorder.

Both binge eating and bulimia nervosa affects many bodybuilders and fitness models in numbers higher than most would expect. Persons with bulimia regularly purge, fast, or engage in an unhealthy pattern of prolonged strenuous exercise after episodes of binge eating which is a textbook description of the cycle for most competitive physique athletes. The purging process within bulima is usually understood as vomiting but it can also include the use of diuretics (water pills) or laxatives doses to avoid gaining weight after eating- practices that many in the health and fitness circles regularly engage in to maintain ‘the look’.

Fasting is defined as not eating for at least twenty-four hours and many use it as a way of making up for what they see as over the top food consumption (see my article on fasting as a form of weight loss here). Strenuous exercise, in this case, is defined as exercising for more than an hour, but not as a means to better health or self improvement, but as a reactive practice to avoid gaining weight after a period of binging. Purging, fasting, and prolonged strenuous exercise are dangerous ways to attempt weight control and the excessive shape and weight concerns of most competitors in the physique arena are also characteristics of bulimia and or eating disorder of some kind. Issues that may appear benign in someone with rippling abdominals and an ultra tight body, but one that is inevitability self destructive and unsustainable.

The only difference between a physique competitor and someone diagnosed with an eating disorder per se is that the cycle of weight gain, weight loss, extreme dieting, nutrient deprivation and dehydration combined with thousands of hours of daily prolonged strenuous exercise has become almost socially acceptable. Unfortunately the extreme practices of those following this particular lifestyle are seen as ideals for many who aspire to have well muscled and toned bodies just like those of the individuals they see in the pages of the magazines. Unless there is a sense of balance where your overall health is prioritized over the attainment of a transient cosmetic ideal such as being big and muscular or having extremely low body fat levels, the practice falls squarely in the realm of an eating disorder and has no relation to health and fitness whatsoever even though it is portrayed as such in the media.

Night Eating Syndrome- The Other Eating Disorder

Almost uncontrollable eating at night is a serious problem for many.

There are other eating disorders that can also often go unrecognized as 1.1-1.5% of the U.S. population suffers from another as yet undiagnosed eating disorder called Night Eating Syndrome. Seen as a delay in the daily rhythm of food intake, Night Eating Syndrome is defined by two important points:

The first is hyperphagia- which is an ingestion of over 25% of daily calories after dinner and or waking up to eat at least three times a week.[7]

Usually triggered by feelings of stress, Night Eating Syndrome is a disorder that that many can relate to, albeit in a less extreme form. Characterized by a lack of appetite for breakfast and the consumption of considerable amounts of high calorie, and usually high-carbohydrate snacks and insomnia, the foods eaten during the night time binge are almost always unhealthy.[4,6] After the night binge, the person is usually not hungry in the morning, and breakfast, the most important meal of the day for both optimal performance and appetite regulation is skipped. (Read more about the importance of breakfast for weight loss and appetite regulation here)

The excessive food intake at night also creates a decrease in melatonin, a critical sleep related hormone. The decrease in melatonin contributes to the increased sleep disturbances and insomnia associated with night eating syndrome.[8] Evidence suggests that night eating may be a pathway to obesity as in three studies it preceded the onset of obesity and was a major factor in predicting continued weight gain in female night eaters who were already obese.[9] Not only is night eating a contributor to increased weight gain, but it is also a serious cause of distress for those who feel overpowered by food at night.

Again, it should be kept in mind that most may not have the characteristics of this particular syndrome to the extent that it becomes pathological, but the pattern of almost uncontrollable late night snacking on high carbohydrate and unhealthy foods is a very common issue for many individuals today. While the general population may not be diagnosed as having an eating disorder, most still find the task of controlling their eating habits to be a Sisyphean task. However there are practical and systematic approaches that make the likelihood of success much greater and none of them involve quick fixes. Nothing worth achieving comes quickly, and having control over your eating habits is no exception. It takes practice and patience as lasting achievements stem from a lifetime of dedication. Exercise can go a long way in helping relieve some of the symptoms of depression that eating disorders can bring about, but again balance is the key. That being said, if you have an eating disorder it is always recommended that you first seek professional help.

Related Articles:

Changing Your Diet Forever- Why Change Is So Hard

Exercise and Depression

Fasting Is Not An Effective Form of  Weight Loss

References:

1. McGivering J. Anorexia takes hold in India. BBC News- 2003

2. Eating Disorder Statistics- South Carolina Dept. of Mental Health

3. Bulimia nervosa; Binge-purge behavior; Eating disorder – bulimia. A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia.

4.Marcus MD. “Binge Eating in Obesity.” In: Fairburn CG, Wilson GT (eds). Binge eating: nature, assessment, and treatment

5. Gordon, Richard A. 2000. Eating Disorders: Anatomy of a Social Epidemic. 2nd ed. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers, Ltd.

6. Stunkard AJ. “Eating Patterns and Obesity.” Psychiatric Quarterly, 1959, Vol. 33, pp. 284-295.

7. Stunkard A, Allison K., Lundgren J. Issues for DSM-V: Night Eating Syndrome- Am J Psychiatry 165:424, April 2008

8. Lundgren JD, Newberg A, Allison KC, Wintering N, Ploessl K, Stunkard AJ: 123I-ADAM SPECT imaging of serotonin transporter binding in patients with night eating syndrome: a pilot study. Psychiatry Res

 9. Andersen GS, Stunkard AJ, Sørensen TI, Petersen L, Heitmann BL: Night eating and weight change in middle-aged men and women. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 2004; 28:1338–1343

Kevin Richardson is an award winning fitness writer, one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City and the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training^TM. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here. If you live in the New York City metropolitan area and need help losing weight or getting into cover model shape, give Kevin and his team a call at 1-800-798-8420.

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Nominate Kevin Richardson for a social media award in the Shorty Awards

Preface:

I grew up in Trinidad, an island in the West Indies were there was a significant number of homeless individuals living on the streets. So much so that they were a constant presence in the more urban areas of the island. As varied as they were in age and in circumstances which lead them to a life on the street, there was one striking physical aspect that they all shared- namely that almost every one of them had a remarkably defined six pack. They weren’t the only group of people who seemed somehow blessed with rippling midsections as those who chose to live off the land in the hills as a rule were similarly blessed with deeply etched abdominals. These people had never done a sit up, didn’t know what a crunch was, never used an Abdominizer or any other newfangled ab machine nor did they even know what a fat burner was. Perhaps, like the native people of everywhere from Papua, New Guinea to the Amazon Basin they didn’t realize that these things were a prerequisite to having a six pack. Or perhaps most of what you read about getting a six pack has little to do with actually achieving it.  In this updated article, I do my best to discount the myths surrounding getting a six pack- most of which revolve on making you buy a product or service of some sort or promote unhealthy eating practices that create temporary solutions at best. I will preface the article with a caveat that what it takes to get a six pack isn’t impossible nor does it have to cost you anything- but it does require commitment, dedication and time. Thanks as always for reading.

Six Pack Abs-Why What You Eat & How Much You Eat Is More Important Than The Exercises

Over the past two decades of my career as both a personal trainer and a natural bodybuilder the most common question that I have been asked is how do you go about getting a six pack. You can get many different answers from many different people but I have always found it interesting that many of the self appointed fitness gurus giving the advice don’t sport a six pack themselves. Some may have a picture or two of what they looked like when they did have a six pack, but the photos are usually pretty dated or document the way they looked for a very brief period of time when preparing for a bodybuilding contest or photo shoot. As great an accomplishment as this may be, it in no way reflects what they look like all year round and few members of the general public are interested in only having a six pack for two or three weeks out of the year. The popular ninety day extreme exercise and diet video series promise a six pack within a very short time period, but as those who have done such programs can attest- you’ll regain the weight and lose whatever semblance of a six pack you gained within an equally short period of time.

The widespread use of steroids, thyroid medications, insulin, human growth hormone and other such drugs also makes it hard to find credible role models. Non natural bodybuilders, fitness models, figure competitors, bikini competitors, celebrities and many personal trainers rely on drugs for their coveted washboard midsections and it is disturbing to note the number of recreational users who risk their health with these drugs simply to look good for the summer. It is a sad blow to the fitness industry as it creates a culture of trainers who have no experience getting into shape without using drugs and thus are unable to help anyone else do the same. Add to this the babel of infomercials hawking the latest ‘scientifically proven’ ab machines and exercises and you can easily find yourself lost, confused and someone lighter in the wallet in your quest to see your abdominal muscles. That being said, it is very possible to have a six pack and keep it all year round, regardless of body type but it does take work and it won’t happen overnight.

Six Pack Abs As An Effective Marketing Tool

The allure of six pack abs is a powerful tool for getting you to buy everything from supplements to exercise machinesstuff

You turn on the television and something in you wants to believe them. The well sculpted models using some new fangled invention that they swear will get you a six pack within a matter of weeks. Perhaps summer is coming or you are just tired of not seeing what you want in the mirror and so you buy the machine, using it faithfully just as they did on the infomercials- and yet nothing happens. Your belly remains just that- a belly. It doesn’t transform into a chiseled work of art and you can’t understand why. Undaunted, but a bit lighter in the purse, you go to the gym. You just want to get your abdominals looking sharp and all the gym advertisements are filled with beautifully built people with the midsections of a Greek gods. Given how great they look, it should only be a matter of time until that membership pays off and you’ll look just like them. You do everything you read about- thousands of crunches, sit ups and leg raises. You hit every ab machine in the gym every day you are there, take every ab class and put in your time doing cardio to burn off the fat. At first you fell that you are making progress, you feel the burn when you train and are confident that the six pack of your dreams are just around the bend. But nothing happens. All that has happened is that you have spent good money on machines you don’t use and a gym membership that is becoming more and more of a reminder of how hopeless your quest has become.

The weeks turn into months and the months turn into years, and still those blocks in your stomach remain elusive. So you decide to do more. You train longer and you do more exercises for your abdominal muscles, perhaps training them every day. Maybe even twice a day, yet your midsection still looks more like a spare tire rather than a carved piece of granite. What could be the problem? Why can’t you get the same abdominal definition as the people in the magazines? Why is there still a layer of fat where rippling muscles should be after all of your hard work? The answer has nothing to do with six packs and everything to do with economics.

Unless you were one of the fortunate few who had an accomplished mentor to steer you in the right direction from day one, you probably got most of your information on getting a six pack from television, books, magazines, or the Internet. However it is important to reflect on what these sources have to gain by your heeding their advice. From the eye catching before and after pictures to the authoritative pitches by celebrities and fitness gurus there is usually one common denominator behind it all and that is profit.

6 Pack Abs Are A Multi-Million Dollar Industry

The quest for six pack abs make people throw away significant sums of money on things that don't work or provide only fleeting results.

There is a very useful Latin phrase, ‘cui bono?’ which translates as ‘who stands to gain?’ – and this is precisely the question you should be asking when confronted by any information on how to get your abs to show. There are always new and improved machines and new and improved exercise programs, all sold by well muscled trainers, athletes and celebrities and there will always be new ones coming out of the woodwork. The math is pretty simple- these programs, routines, exercises, extreme diets and classes aren’t going to produce an army of six pack sporting citizens, but rather a slew of frustrated individuals. Individuals who are not going to lay the blame on the machine/diet/DVD or trainer for failing, but who instead will place the blame squarely on themselves. Disheartened and filled with a sense of failure, they thus become the perfect consumers for another round of products and services- in the hope that this one will finally help them break through and get them a six pack. It is a cyclic system that sells you hope but not much of anything else and it works as long as the general public remains confused and unsure about what they need to do to get into shape.

Today in our society people want results and they want it now- a microwave mentality that applies not only to how people approach matters of health and fitness, but also just about every facet of modern life. If people want something, they want it now and you are willing to pay for it, a weakness that the fitness industry and media use to their advantage. People will always buy that fitness magazine because they are certain that if you do the same ‘secret exercises’ that the celebrity/athlete/model/bodybuilder is doing, you will eventually look like them.

People will always tune in to that special report on the new way to lose inches off of your midsection. News programs have devolved mostly into thinly disguised forms of entertainment, where ratings take precedence over the reporting of credible information, ratings that help them sell advertisement time at higher prices, which thus net the networks higher profits. In the final analysis, most of the information you come across about getting a six pack comes with a vested interest in making a profit and not some altruistic and compassionate desire to help you realize your goal. Unfortunately you can’t make much in the way of profit with the principles that are really needed to get a six pack. There is no instant gratification and it doesn’t come with a need for fancy machines, DVDs, supplements, books or magazines. Most importantly, you can do it without spending the better part of your life doing abdominal exercises.

The Reality Of  Six Pack Abs- Proper Diet & Exercise

Everyone already has a six pack, it's simply a matter of reducing bodyfat to a point where it can be seen.

So how do you get abs? Well, for starters you already have them. Like the story of the fish that spends it’s life searching for water, most of us fail to realize that every human being already has a six pack- whether you can see them prominently or not. There are four main abdominal muscles, the transversus abdominus – which is the deepest muscle layer and it works to help stabilize the trunk and maintain internal abdominal pressure. The rectus abdominus – slung between the ribs and the pubic bone at the front of the pelvis. This muscle has the characteristic bumps and bulges that are commonly referred to as ‘the six pack’ and everyone has them. There is also the external oblique muscles which flank the rectus abdominus and allow the trunk to twist and then there are the internal oblique muscles which also flank the rectus abdominus and operate in the opposite way to the external oblique muscles.

So if everyone has these abdominal muscles, one might ask why some have a six pack that you can see and others do not- the answer is simply a matter of body fat. Most men have a body fat percentage of around 15% to 18% and most women have an average body fat level of about 22% to 25%. Now even at these levels (which are  quite low for most of the general population) most people would have a layer of fat around their midsection that would hide their abdominal muscles. The muscles are always there, and all you really need to do is to reduce your body fat to levels where you can see them. Athletes typically have lower body fat percentages due to their increased activity levels.

Where your fat stores are and how high your body fat percentage is will determine how long it will take you to have a six pack. Some people with relatively high body fat percentages but with naturally low fat deposits in the stomach area can have a fairly visible six packs, while others need to reduce their body fat percentages to the single digits before they can see theirs. So how do you go about reducing your body fat in a way that doesn’t yield only fleeting results? The natural way to do it is simply a combination of:
PROPER DIET, HIGH INTENSITY WEIGHT TRAINING AND TIME.

This six pack wasn't built overnight and it took serious weight training to acheive it.

That’s one tried and true way of doing it and one that I have seen work without fail. No magic machines, no magic pills, no DVD’s and most certainly no special exercises or even cardio. I can say so with some authority since for the past 23 years I haven’t done that much in the way of  crunches, sit ups and the like after my tenth year and I never did any cardio- nor did any of my clients. When I did train my abs in the early years of my career it was never more than two exercises for a total of six sets, which took no more than three to five minutes to complete. As a natural bodybuilder I was told very early on that you rely on diet only to get into shape and not cardio- as too much in the way of muscle mass is always lost in the process and because it doesn’t really work. (Read more about cardio as an ineffective method for fat loss here.) In fact during the height of my bodybuilding career I didn’t do anything for my abs and still won shows and almost every photograph of me in circulation is what I look like having not done any direct ab work for over a decade. I’m not a genetic freak by any stretch, I never used drugs, nor am I possessed of a special body type that allows me to get away with doing so little as I have been able to replicate the same results with my clients who competed successfully in fitness, figure and bodybuilding competitions- regardless of their initial body type- and without doing any cardio or hours of ab exercises. It’s not what the fitness industry wants you to hear, but it’s the truth and isn’t thanks to anything but a consistently clean diet and intense weight training.

Everyone Has Six Pack Abs- Somewhere

In my workout DVD which was filmed to document my training philosophy and show what you could do without having to resort to drugs or supplements, there are no shots of me training my abdominals. I was asked on many occasions why I didn’t include a segment on abdominal training and the reason that I didn’t is because I did not in any way want to mislead the public.  Throughout my career I have strived to be as honest and upfront as possible (sometimes to my detriment one might add) and the last thing that I wanted was for people to think that if they trained their abs the way I did that they would get similar results as nothing could be further from the truth. It’s a combination of my years of careful attention to what and how much I eat, the fat burning effect of the brief high intensity training routine that I have followed religiously for the past 21 years and the metabolically active muscle mass that I have gained over my 23 years of training. That’s what keeps me in shape all year round and nothing else.

If It Won’t Give Me Six Pack Abs Do You Need To Do Ab Exercises?

Do you need abdominal exercises for a six pack? Not exactly, but you should do them anyway.

Now make no mistake- there is indeed a need to train your abdominal muscles- as it helps stabilize your entire body and such exercises are indeed recommended for everyone starting a training routine. However, your abdominal muscles get a serious workout during almost any weight training exercise and very much so if you train as hard and as heavy as I do at this point in my career using primarily compound movements. Thus I don’t need to do much in the way of direct ab exercises as they are hit pretty hard as a result of my high intensity training routine. That being said, your abdominals are muscles like anything else and training them every day with hundreds of repetitions won’t do much in terms of getting them to be as strong as possible and can result in overdevelopment. Take a look at the bodybuilders who have blocky abdominal muscles as a result of years of weighted abdominal exercises and or drug use. It might look impressive when they flex them, but otherwise those muscles protrude and give a rather pot bellied appearance. Big and thick abs don’t look too great in a T-shirt, and doesn’t present much in the way of a balanced and aesthetically pleasing physique.
The problem is that once you over develop your abdominal muscles by doing too much, it isn’t that easy- if at all possible to reverse it and you are stuck with a thick waist- which I doubt is the goal of those who train their abs day in and day out. Now the muscle tension created by training your abs several times a week makes you FEEL like your abs are tighter- but like any muscle the more you train them won’t necessarily make them any stronger or better developed. If anything it can actually hinder your overall progress (read more about how muscles get stronger here). As for ‘core strength’- time spent on an exercise ball will never give you the strength you can gain from a high intensity training program. High intensity weight training can make your core muscles strong enough to enable you to lift a car- which is a far cry from what you could do on your best day if you relied only on the modern incarnation of ‘core exercises.’ It won’t give you a six pack either.

Six Pack Abs Comes From Diet & Exercise

Now training your abdominal muscles can help make them bigger- but it can’t burn off the layer of fat that obscures them. That comes from a clean diet and ensuring that you don’t overeat. Any exercise claiming that it can spot reduce the fat around your stomach is as credible as killing chickens and painting yourself blue under a full moon to make it rain the next day. Muscle and fat are two completely different types of tissue thus an abdominal exercise will do nothing to reduce your waistline.

One or no more than two abdominal exercises done once a week at reasonable intensity is more than enough for 99% of the general population. Nevertheless, you can do ab  exercises until the cows come home but  it won’t do anything if your diet isn’t on point. I would honestly say that diet is 80% of the equation if your goal of a six pack. How you train creates the potential for your body to change but it’s what you eat that will determine how much you will change.

The Importance Of Diet For Six Pack Abs

What type of diet do you need to follow if a six pack is your ultimate goal? It’s a diet consisting exclusively of foods that have been part of the human diet for the past 150,000 years and one where you don’t overeat. That means no processed foods, (and that includes protein shakes- which you should avoid if you seriously want a six pack- read my article here) no added salt or sugars, no alcohol, juices or junk food of any kind. It isn’t as Spartan as one might think as it is absurd to believe that you need processed foods and alcohol to enjoy life. Humans have done it for millennia and back then most of them had that same six pack that today so many struggle to attain. Your great-great grandparents enjoyed their food, and most likely ate far less than you do today. It didn’t kill them, but on the contrary probably allowed them a better quality of life in terms of robust health.

In terms of exercise- you need to also incorporate weight training of a sufficient intensity to both increase your muscle mass which will also help you burn off the excess body fat in a manner that leads to sustainable and lasting results. So forget about doing high reps in the hopes of doing anything but wasting your time. For your body to change their must be some degree of overload and you can learn more about how this mechanism works in my article here.

Now paying attention to your diet over a long period of time in combination with a sensible exercise regiment isn’t going to give you any instant gratification. Attention to diet requires a lifetime of consideration, patience and discipline. Traits that don’t lend themselves to today’s microwave mentality but are nonetheless very much what it takes to get in shape and stay in shape. After all, it’s only logical that if it took you years to put on that layer of fat that obscures your stomach, it wouldn’t be realistic to expect it to go away in a couple of weeks. There are legitimate reasons to work your abdominal muscles directly, and that is to strengthen the muscles that support the trunk and allow for movement. These muscles also help support your lower back, so training them is not just a cosmetic undertaking. I hope this article help clear up some of the misconceptions around abdominal training, and I wish you all the best in your quest for six pack abs!

Related Articles

Should Women Weight Train Like Men

Does Aerobics Work- Rethinking The Need For Cardio

How Muscles Get Bigger & Stronger

How To Build Your Lower Abs

High Intensity Workouts & Fat Loss

Kevin Richardson is an award winning fitness writer, one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City and the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training^TM. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here. If you live in the New York City metropolitan area and need help losing weight or getting into cover model shape, give Kevin and his team a call at 1-800-798-8420.

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How much do you know about health and fitness?

Take our quiz based on our blog articles, daily Twitter & Facebook health tips and see where you stand. Good luck!

Quizzes by Quibblo.com | SnapApp Quiz Apps

How Did You Do?
90 to 100%- You are a tried and true expert in all things related to health and fitness.
70 to 89%- You know your stuff, but could do with a little brushing up on your diet and exercise knowledge.
50% to 69%- You passed, but just barely. Lot’s of catching up to do.
49% or less- You didn’t pass, but don’t despair, keep reading our blogs and articles and be sure to follow Kevin on Twitter for daily fitness updates and you’ll be up to scratch in no time!

The answers:

1. Someone who is overweight has a slower metabolism than someone with a healthy body weight.

False- The heavier you are the faster your metabolism will be- read more here

2. An apple really has 70,000 calories.

True. Strictly speaking an apple has 70,000 calories- since the energy content of food is measured in kilocalories which is one thousand calories. Confused? Read my article on understanding calories here.

3. If you follow a proper diet you can lose 10 lbs of fat in 1 week.

False- it’s mathematically  impossible if you are eating any food at all to lose that much fat in a week given the fact that you need to expend 36000 kcals for every 1 pound of fat. Read more here.

4. As little as 40 kilocalories over your daily energy requirements can lead to a weight gain of over 40 lbs in ten years.

Sad but true. A small intake over what your body really needs creates the silent, cumulative weight gain that seems to sneak up on you over the years – read more here.

5. Regular Snapple juices have less sugar than Coca Cola

False. Regular Snapple drinks have more sugar than an equal amount of Coca Cola even though it is marketed as a healthier alternative to sodas. Check out Kevin’s Twitter and Facebook updates for daily health tips!

6. When eating at a restaurant anything labeled ‘Crispy’ is fine to eat as a healthier choice.

False. The word ‘crispy’ is code for fried. Read more in our guide to healthy restaurant eating here.

7. Oats contain gluten.

False, pure oats do not contain gluten proteins. Read more on oats and gluten here.

8. Cane sugar is healthier than corn syrup.

False, several notable health organizations have affirmed that there is no distinction that should be made between the two in terms of health risk when consumption is immoderate. Read more here.

9. Weight training can’t protect you from bone loss over time.

False. It does and you can read more about the mechanisms of increasing bone density through resistance exercise here.

10. Feeling guilty after eating junk food can help you not eat it again.

False. The more you think about a food you ate the more likely you are to continue eating it. Read more about how guilt can sabotage your diet here.

11. Multi-vitamins have been conclusively proven to make you healthier.

False. Every study on the matter has found no health benefit to those without significant vitamin deficiencies (which contrary to popular belief if almost non-existent in developed countries). Read more about it here.

12. Soil today has 50% less of the nutrients it had 50 years ago and so do the fruits and vegetables grown in them.

False. While there is some reduction in soil nutrients over time, the amounts found in produce isn’t significantly lower, nor does it justify the use of vitamin supplementation. Read more here.

13. When you buy fruits and vegetables the growers get get as much as 50-60% of the profits.

False. Farmers get as little as 4% of the profit at times for produce- a figure that is far higher for those who raise animal stocks. That’s one of the reasons fruits and vegetables aren’t promoted as much as meat and high profit junk foods- the profit margins are simply too low. Read more about the economics behind the food that you eat here.

14. It is the interest of the US economy for you to eat more of the foods that aren’t good for you.

True. The food industry not only generates over 8% of the U.S. GDP with a trillion dollars in annual sales, but it also employs 12% of working Americans. Given these figures it isn’t surprising that government programs are in place to support their marketing  strategies to get you to eat more. Read more here.

15. Eating foods with added Omega 3 fats can improve your health.

False. Studies have shown this to not all be the case. Read more on how adding omega 3 fats to products do little to help anything but profit margins here.

16. Fasting is a great way to detoxify your body.

False and the only way to give your body a break from foods you believe to be toxic is to not eat those foods in the first place. Read more here on fasting and what it can and cannot do.

17. Aerobic exercise is essential for building endurance, losing body fat and working your heart.

False. It’s not the only way as studies have shown that you can increase endurance, lose body fat and get a significant improvement in cardiovascular efficiency from high intensity resistance training alone. Read how you can get fit in less time here.

18. Early man did not eat bread during the Paleolithic era and thus it is not a natural part of our diet.

False. Recent archeological digs in Italy, Russia and the Czech Republic have revealed the use of flat breads dating back as far as 30,000 years ago into what is commonly called the Paleolithic era. Read more about bread and its role in weight gain here.

19. Protein shakes are just as good as solid foods for your protein needs.

False. Contrary to marketing that masquerades as science, protein shakes are not only unnatural and highly processed products, but they can actually make you gain body fat. Read more here.

20. Tongol tuna is a better choice because it has lower mercury levels than regular tuna.

True. It’s a smaller fish and thus is lower in methyl-mercury. Read more about tongol tuna here.

21. The longer and more often you train the bigger and stronger your muscles will become.

False. Without continued overload to the point that stimulates an adaptive response, after becoming accustomed to the stimulus your muscles will have no reason to get bigger or stronger. It’s not always how much you do, it’s how you do it. Read more about how muscles get bigger and stronger here.

22. Eating for  your blood type is a proven way to ensure that you eat what is best for your body.

False. There is no science behind the idea that blood type has anything to do with food intake. Read more about the misinformation behind blood type diet theory here.

23. A drink or two a week won’t make a difference in your weight loss efforts.

False. Alcohol goes a long way in stopping your efforts to lose body fat. Read more about drinking and weight loss here.

24. Carbohydrates can make some people gain weight faster than anything else.

False. Any food, be it a protein, carbohydrate or fat consumed in quantities exceeding the caloric requirements of your body will make you gain weight. Fats, with a caloric value of 9 kcals per gram are actually more likely to make you gain weight as they have more calories than carbohydrates which have 7 calories per gram, but all things being equal eating anything more than you should will make you gain weight. Regardless of genetics. Read more about calories here and read more about the lack of evidence supporting a genetic link to modern obesity here.

25. The simplest way to eat well is to eat foods in as natural a form as possible with some degree of moderation.

True. The more unnatural a product is, the more likely it may not be the best decision for you to eat it. Read more by following updates on my Twitter account here.

Thanks for taking the test!

Kevin Richardson is an award winning fitness writer, one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City and the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training^TM. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here. If you live in the New York metropolitan area and need help losing weight or toning up and taking your body to the next level with a time saving and practical system of diet and exercise, give Kevin and his team a call at 1-800-798-8420 or click here to get started with 50% off your trial personal training session.

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