Millions of people are currently on a weight loss mission. Sadly, only a small fraction will lose weight, and half of those that do succeed will put it right back on in a matter of months.
The weight loss product industry makes billions of dollars yearly at the whim of desperate consumers looking for that quick fix, that magic pill, or the revolutionary machine that will make them lose weight.
Weight loss does not come in a bottle or a machine. It never has, and it never will. True weight loss takes proper nutrition, exercise, and rest. There are no short cuts, quick fixes, overnight miracles, or FDA approved drugs that will force the fat off your body, much less keep it off.
While you read this revealing article keep a few key points in mind. These are the truths that you may not want to hear, but need to. Here are the weight loss truths, un-sugar coated.
Weight Loss Truth #1 - You will not lose 5-10 pounds of body fat in a week
If you want to lose fat and keep it off, then it's going to take some time. I won't guarantee 5-10 pound weight loss in a week or two, but I will say you can realistically lose 1-2 pounds of body fat a week, and gain lean muscle at the same rate. You didn't put the weight on overnight, and therefore it's not going to magically disappear overnight.
True weight loss is fat loss…not muscle loss, not water or bone loss, but fat loss. Losing 5-10 pounds or more a week is a loss of bone, muscle, and water, which results in a destroyed metabolism.
Scale weight is obsolete, as the scale is only a measuring device, unable to distinguish between muscle, fat, bone, and water weight.
Weight Loss Truth #2 - There is no quick fix to fat loss, and fad diets are worthless
Lose 40 pounds in a week! Lose weight while you sleep! Rapid weight loss! Lose weight without diet or exercise! These are consumer hot buttons, causing you to buy products with your emotions. They are misleading and just plain lies, lies, and lies. Fad diets and “quick fix” products will drain your wallet and leave you feeling worse than when you started. The only weight you will lose on a fad diet or a quick fix is water, muscle, and bone. These are not desired results, as they lead to metabolic downgrade and increased fat storage.
Lotions, potions, and gadgets for fat loss should be tossed out the window. They are worthless. Taking fat off requires nutrients and exercise. It's that simple, yet rarely told to you because the weight loss product industry's job it to make an insane amount of money.
Weight Loss Truth #3 - You have to stop eating processed foods labeled "healthy," "low-fat," or "low-carb".
Food labels are misleading and can cause you to gain more fat in the long run. They are completely processed.
Prepackaged meals and “diet foods” contain chemicals that your body can't metabolize and therefore, it slows down your metabolism. Chemicals that don't leave your body become toxins and get lodged in your fat cells, making fat loss even more difficult.
Weight Loss Truth #4 - You will have to put forth the effort if you want to lose fat
The body is made to be nourished and to be physical. If you want to lose fat you have to eat right and get moving. It may not be glamorous or fun, but it's a must if you want to shed the fat.
There are a number of things you can do for exercise, such as walking, in-line skating, weight training, biking, hiking, swimming, etc. Whatever your choice is, just do it.
Weight Loss Truth #5 - You will not be a supermodel or swimsuit model
Well, I'm not saying this can't or won't happen, but my point is that many weight loss ads suggest that after you take their product you will look like the supermodel marketing the product.
Remember, models are models. They are spokespersons for the company. They are just doing their job. Just because a supermodel is holding a bottle of the latest cortisol blocker does not mean you will look like her by taking that product.
Weight Loss Truth #6 - Muscle does not weigh more than fat
There is a misconception linked with weight training, that muscle weighs more than fat. I've heard Dr. Phil say this (yes, the wonderful “dieting expert”), as well as Bob Greene, Oprah's personal trainer. These people are looked upon as icons, yet they are giving out false information.
Muscle does not weigh more than fat. Go do the experiment yourself right now. Grab two pounds of chicken fat and weigh it, and then weigh two pounds of chicken meat (muscle). Which weighs more? Neither. Two pounds of fat weighs the same as two pounds of muscle, two pounds.
Muscle is more dense than fat and it takes up less space. Therefore, it would be ideal to add muscle to your frame because it’s more dense, creates curves, and it increases your metabolism.
Weight Loss Truth #7 - You can't spot reduce
Doing a thousand leg lifts won't reduce your thighs any faster than doing a thousand crunches to tone your abs. Simply, and sadly put, you cannot spot reduce. Doing crunches upon crunches will only build the underlying abdominal muscle beneath your layer of tummy fat.
To trim down flabby areas you need to eat several small balanced meals that are unprocessed, and you need to exercise. When your body fat begins to reduce, your trouble spots will begin to shape up.
Weight Loss Truth #8 - Weight loss is a lifestyle
Losing weight properly, which is reducing body fat and building lean muscle tissue, should not be a one-shot approach; it should be a lifetime commitment. If you ever go back to your old destructive habits you will become out of shape again, and will have to work twice as hard to get back in shape.
Adopt a healthy eating and exercise lifestyle, and maintain it for the rest of your life. Doing so will keep you fit, energetic, slow down the aging process, keep you looking young, and it will prevent early degenerative diseases.
Being healthy and in shape is not genetic, it's by choice. Make the right choice today.
Weight Loss Truths Conclusion
Now that you have the weight loss truths, begin to work on them to improve your health and to get in shape. Your health and your body are yours, and you have to work daily to keep them functioning correctly and to give you the look you want. Once you get in the shape you want to be in, all you have to do from there is simple maintenance, which becomes something you do daily, such as brushing your teeth or shaving your legs.
Do your body right and it won't steer you wrong.
Copyright 2006 Karen Sessions
Karen Sessions has been in the fitness industry since 1988. She is a nationally qualified bodybuilder and holds two personal training certifications. She has written 6 ebooks on fitness and has helped hundreds of clients transform their bodies. http://www.theelitephysique.com
Showing posts with label lose fat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lose fat. Show all posts
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Is Your Goal Really Weight Loss?
Are you ashamed of your weight? Do you have a goal weight that you want to reach through weight loss? I’d say so, it’s been pushed into our brains many times over and over again that “weight loss” is what we want to accomplish. There are weight loss guides, weight loss supplements, and many other things that push “weight loss”. Many people even set their goals to be at a certain weight. Additionally, the medical community has developed an “ideal weight” chart, which can further add to the confusion about weight loss.
Now, let me ask you a question. Is your goal really weight loss? Unless you are trying to make a weight class for wrestling or some other sport with weight classes, you may think that your goal is weight loss, but it really isn’t. You are trying to lose that flubbery stuff attached to your body called FAT. Correct?
So then, why do we measure our progress by how much we weigh? Why do we step on the bathroom scale and hope that those numbers will be lower than before? You see, our weight is affected by more than just how much fat is on our body. Some other factors include water, muscle, glycogen, and obviously if we have eaten anything earlier or used the bathroom lately.
Our water weight fluctuates constantly. For instance, when we exhale water vapor comes out. When we sweat, we are sweating out water. There are also many more factors that can affect the amount of water in our body. Water is what usually causes those random gains or losses of a pound or two in weight that can make you happy or sad. It is almost physiologically impossible to lose a pound of fat in one day.
One reason the low-carb or no-carb (also called ketogenic) diets are so attractive is because of the large initial loss of weight. However, this weight is not necessarily fat. When carbohydrates are restricted the body has a backup store of them located in the liver and muscles in the form of something called glycogen. The human body can store approximately 400 grams of glycogen. In larger individuals this number can increase. In addition to this, for each gram of glycogen stored in the human body, 3 grams of water are also stored. If you figure it out, this would equate to about 1600 grams (3.5 pounds) of glycogen and water.
When you stop or limit your consumption of carbohydrates, your body starts using its glycogen stores. After a couple of days that 1600 grams (3.5 pounds) of glycogen and water are gone. Also, as an adaptation to the restriction of carbohydrates, your body produces these things called ketones. Ketones also appear to have a diuretic effect, which would mean an even greater loss of water.
In addition to water, if you have been working out lately to speed along your “weight loss” (you mean fat loss, right?) progress you probably have gained some muscle doing so. This gain in muscle can also affect the numbers you see on the scale. Muscle is also more dense than fat.
You may be wondering how you are going to measure your progress now that the scale doesn’t mean as much as it used to. Well, there are several methods to measure your body fat percentage. None of these methods are 100% accurate, but they will be much more useful than the use of a scale.
One of the simplest ways is to use a caliper. You can usually find these at your local sporting goods/fitness shop. If you can’t find them locally, you can order them off the internet. Calipers measure the thickness of a skin fold on your triceps. Then there are directions that come with the caliper that show you how to use the number you get to derive your body fat %.
If you don’t want to go out and buy some calipers, there is a body fat % calculator on my website. The calculator uses the circumference of several parts of your body and then plugs them into a formula developed by the U.S. Navy to derive an approximation of your body fat %.
You can find this calculator here: http://www.weight-loss-resources.com/calculators/bodyfat.html
There are also much more accurate ways to measure your body fat % like buoyancy testing or the use of special lasers.
If you insist on knowing your progress by weight loss and want to use a scale, try to weigh yourself at the same time everyday. Probably the best time would be right when you wake up in the morning and before you do anything.
So, your new goal should be to shoot for fat loss and not weight loss. Don’t necessarily trust the scale all the time as it can be deceiving - your weight is affected by more than just how much fat you have gained or lost. In addition, it is almost physiologically impossible to gain or lose a pound of fat in one day.
Nathan Latvaitis runs a website at http://www.weight-loss-resources.com where you can find even more fitness/weight loss articles, product reviews, book reviews, calculators, a message board, and more.
Now, let me ask you a question. Is your goal really weight loss? Unless you are trying to make a weight class for wrestling or some other sport with weight classes, you may think that your goal is weight loss, but it really isn’t. You are trying to lose that flubbery stuff attached to your body called FAT. Correct?
So then, why do we measure our progress by how much we weigh? Why do we step on the bathroom scale and hope that those numbers will be lower than before? You see, our weight is affected by more than just how much fat is on our body. Some other factors include water, muscle, glycogen, and obviously if we have eaten anything earlier or used the bathroom lately.
Our water weight fluctuates constantly. For instance, when we exhale water vapor comes out. When we sweat, we are sweating out water. There are also many more factors that can affect the amount of water in our body. Water is what usually causes those random gains or losses of a pound or two in weight that can make you happy or sad. It is almost physiologically impossible to lose a pound of fat in one day.
One reason the low-carb or no-carb (also called ketogenic) diets are so attractive is because of the large initial loss of weight. However, this weight is not necessarily fat. When carbohydrates are restricted the body has a backup store of them located in the liver and muscles in the form of something called glycogen. The human body can store approximately 400 grams of glycogen. In larger individuals this number can increase. In addition to this, for each gram of glycogen stored in the human body, 3 grams of water are also stored. If you figure it out, this would equate to about 1600 grams (3.5 pounds) of glycogen and water.
When you stop or limit your consumption of carbohydrates, your body starts using its glycogen stores. After a couple of days that 1600 grams (3.5 pounds) of glycogen and water are gone. Also, as an adaptation to the restriction of carbohydrates, your body produces these things called ketones. Ketones also appear to have a diuretic effect, which would mean an even greater loss of water.
In addition to water, if you have been working out lately to speed along your “weight loss” (you mean fat loss, right?) progress you probably have gained some muscle doing so. This gain in muscle can also affect the numbers you see on the scale. Muscle is also more dense than fat.
You may be wondering how you are going to measure your progress now that the scale doesn’t mean as much as it used to. Well, there are several methods to measure your body fat percentage. None of these methods are 100% accurate, but they will be much more useful than the use of a scale.
One of the simplest ways is to use a caliper. You can usually find these at your local sporting goods/fitness shop. If you can’t find them locally, you can order them off the internet. Calipers measure the thickness of a skin fold on your triceps. Then there are directions that come with the caliper that show you how to use the number you get to derive your body fat %.
If you don’t want to go out and buy some calipers, there is a body fat % calculator on my website. The calculator uses the circumference of several parts of your body and then plugs them into a formula developed by the U.S. Navy to derive an approximation of your body fat %.
You can find this calculator here: http://www.weight-loss-resources.com/calculators/bodyfat.html
There are also much more accurate ways to measure your body fat % like buoyancy testing or the use of special lasers.
If you insist on knowing your progress by weight loss and want to use a scale, try to weigh yourself at the same time everyday. Probably the best time would be right when you wake up in the morning and before you do anything.
So, your new goal should be to shoot for fat loss and not weight loss. Don’t necessarily trust the scale all the time as it can be deceiving - your weight is affected by more than just how much fat you have gained or lost. In addition, it is almost physiologically impossible to gain or lose a pound of fat in one day.
Nathan Latvaitis runs a website at http://www.weight-loss-resources.com where you can find even more fitness/weight loss articles, product reviews, book reviews, calculators, a message board, and more.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Health and Fitness Help That Gives You Consistent Weight Loss That is Easy to Achieve
Health and Fitness Help That Gives You Consistent Weight Loss That is Easy to AchieveBy [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=H_Woolston]H Woolston
If you were to tell me that you wanted to drop a few pounds over a few weeks to look good for a special occasion then I'd be able to tell you that this is not that hard to achieve. But, if you want to lose weight more consistently over time I'd have to say that you might find this harder. So would I.
You want to know a secret about losing weight that most diet companies and fitness experts won't tell you? It's boring.
Sure, the buzz you get when you start is fantastic. There's no better feeling in the world than when you get motivated to lose weight and can actually feel and see the pounds disappearing.
This isn't just about your own mental motivation, you understand. You're also motivating your body to lose weight for itself by giving it healthier stuff to eat and/or making it work out. Problem is, after that first few weeks, both you and your body will be bored with what you're doing.
Your body will start to compensate for the efforts you're making and it probably won't have to work as hard after a few weeks as it did when you gave it that initial weight loss shock. You may maintain the new weight you've achieved but your body won't be able to burn off any more fat in such a spectacular way.
And maybe you'll start to get a bit down about it all. After all it's fine eating nothing but cabbage soup or driving yourself close to dying at the gym every day when your body rewards you by dropping a pound or two on a regular basis. How many weeks or even days do you think you can keep it up when your body settles into your new routine and refuses to lose any more weight?
If you are like many people in this situation then you'll just give up. Hard work that is not rewarded turns us off and it is easy to just think that your campaign to lose weight is not working any more because it is too hard to stick with over time. So, you'll probably drop the gym visits and start eating badly again. The pounds will come back on and you'll be right back where you started.
But, you can get round this hurdle. If you can find a health and fitness program that keeps you and your body motivated then you won't notice this dip after a few weeks. What you need is a health and fitness solution that prods your body out of complacency every time it gets used to something you're doing. That way you'll see both great short term results and better long term ones.
If you want some helpful suggestions then take a look at some of the solutions suggested at http://www.YouCanLoseWeightToday.com The ideas presented there might just help get your body working to lose weight fast for you and lessen your cravings during the process!
In addition you'll be able to sign up for our short email course - The Four Hidden Mysteries Of Successful Weight Loss where you can learn why some people CAN easily lose weight, and some people can't - and how you can become one of the CAN-LOSE-WEIGHT people!
H Woolston
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=H_Woolston http://EzineArticles.com/?Health-and-Fitness-Help-That-Gives-You-Consistent-Weight-Loss-That-is-Easy-to-Achieve&id=2976060
If you were to tell me that you wanted to drop a few pounds over a few weeks to look good for a special occasion then I'd be able to tell you that this is not that hard to achieve. But, if you want to lose weight more consistently over time I'd have to say that you might find this harder. So would I.
You want to know a secret about losing weight that most diet companies and fitness experts won't tell you? It's boring.
Sure, the buzz you get when you start is fantastic. There's no better feeling in the world than when you get motivated to lose weight and can actually feel and see the pounds disappearing.
This isn't just about your own mental motivation, you understand. You're also motivating your body to lose weight for itself by giving it healthier stuff to eat and/or making it work out. Problem is, after that first few weeks, both you and your body will be bored with what you're doing.
Your body will start to compensate for the efforts you're making and it probably won't have to work as hard after a few weeks as it did when you gave it that initial weight loss shock. You may maintain the new weight you've achieved but your body won't be able to burn off any more fat in such a spectacular way.
And maybe you'll start to get a bit down about it all. After all it's fine eating nothing but cabbage soup or driving yourself close to dying at the gym every day when your body rewards you by dropping a pound or two on a regular basis. How many weeks or even days do you think you can keep it up when your body settles into your new routine and refuses to lose any more weight?
If you are like many people in this situation then you'll just give up. Hard work that is not rewarded turns us off and it is easy to just think that your campaign to lose weight is not working any more because it is too hard to stick with over time. So, you'll probably drop the gym visits and start eating badly again. The pounds will come back on and you'll be right back where you started.
But, you can get round this hurdle. If you can find a health and fitness program that keeps you and your body motivated then you won't notice this dip after a few weeks. What you need is a health and fitness solution that prods your body out of complacency every time it gets used to something you're doing. That way you'll see both great short term results and better long term ones.
If you want some helpful suggestions then take a look at some of the solutions suggested at http://www.YouCanLoseWeightToday.com The ideas presented there might just help get your body working to lose weight fast for you and lessen your cravings during the process!
In addition you'll be able to sign up for our short email course - The Four Hidden Mysteries Of Successful Weight Loss where you can learn why some people CAN easily lose weight, and some people can't - and how you can become one of the CAN-LOSE-WEIGHT people!
H Woolston
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=H_Woolston http://EzineArticles.com/?Health-and-Fitness-Help-That-Gives-You-Consistent-Weight-Loss-That-is-Easy-to-Achieve&id=2976060
Lose Weight Easily and Permanently With Help That Makes Things Crystal Clear
Lose Weight Easily and Permanently With Help That Makes Things Crystal ClearBy [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=H_Woolston]H Woolston
Finding clear and specific advice on how to lose weight is probably just as hard (if not harder) than actually losing the weight in the first place! Sometimes it seems like nobody agrees and everyone has a different opinion on what you should or shouldn't do. How do you know who is right?
Problem here is that the health, fitness and weight loss industry is a huge money making machine with extremely well oiled wheels (oiled by the money dieters pay usually!). So, diet companies know that this sector is worth a lot of money to them and they are constantly striving to produce the diet, fitness program or weight loss plan that is the next big solution that everyone will want.
That gives rise to a huge amount of competition. There are hundreds of different diet companies out there competing to get you to buy into their products and services. They find it extremely hard to differentiate themselves - after all, they all promise the same end result, that you will lose weight with their help.
In order to make themselves look better than the competition a diet or health and fitness company will often simply take the approach of telling people why their competitor's products or solutions are not as good as their own. This works well for them when they can't say anything positively different about their own products or services.
But, what does this mean to you if you're trying to find a diet to go on or a fitness program to try out? In basic terms it can mean a lot of confusion. You can't tell which option is the best here as they all promise to deliver the same stuff and the only thing you have to go on a lot of the time is the fact that they all try and put down the competitive options.
To be honest things will go a lot easier for you and you'll find it simpler to lose weight easily and permanently if you stop looking at what the major companies have to say and take advice from an expert. If you can find somebody who has helped other people in your situation to achieve their fitness goals then you'll know that you are on to a winner. This is the easiest way to lose weight easily and permanently.
If you want some helpful suggestions then take a look at some of the solutions suggested at http://www.YouCanLoseWeightToday.com The ideas presented there might just help get your body working to lose weight fast for you and lessen your cravings during the process!
In addition you'll be able to sign up for our short email course - The Four Hidden Mysteries Of Successful Weight Loss where you can learn why some people CAN easily lose weight, and some people can't - and how you can become one of the CAN-LOSE-WEIGHT people!
H Woolston
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=H_Woolston http://EzineArticles.com/?Lose-Weight-Easily-and-Permanently-With-Help-That-Makes-Things-Crystal-Clear&id=2976144
Finding clear and specific advice on how to lose weight is probably just as hard (if not harder) than actually losing the weight in the first place! Sometimes it seems like nobody agrees and everyone has a different opinion on what you should or shouldn't do. How do you know who is right?
Problem here is that the health, fitness and weight loss industry is a huge money making machine with extremely well oiled wheels (oiled by the money dieters pay usually!). So, diet companies know that this sector is worth a lot of money to them and they are constantly striving to produce the diet, fitness program or weight loss plan that is the next big solution that everyone will want.
That gives rise to a huge amount of competition. There are hundreds of different diet companies out there competing to get you to buy into their products and services. They find it extremely hard to differentiate themselves - after all, they all promise the same end result, that you will lose weight with their help.
In order to make themselves look better than the competition a diet or health and fitness company will often simply take the approach of telling people why their competitor's products or solutions are not as good as their own. This works well for them when they can't say anything positively different about their own products or services.
But, what does this mean to you if you're trying to find a diet to go on or a fitness program to try out? In basic terms it can mean a lot of confusion. You can't tell which option is the best here as they all promise to deliver the same stuff and the only thing you have to go on a lot of the time is the fact that they all try and put down the competitive options.
To be honest things will go a lot easier for you and you'll find it simpler to lose weight easily and permanently if you stop looking at what the major companies have to say and take advice from an expert. If you can find somebody who has helped other people in your situation to achieve their fitness goals then you'll know that you are on to a winner. This is the easiest way to lose weight easily and permanently.
If you want some helpful suggestions then take a look at some of the solutions suggested at http://www.YouCanLoseWeightToday.com The ideas presented there might just help get your body working to lose weight fast for you and lessen your cravings during the process!
In addition you'll be able to sign up for our short email course - The Four Hidden Mysteries Of Successful Weight Loss where you can learn why some people CAN easily lose weight, and some people can't - and how you can become one of the CAN-LOSE-WEIGHT people!
H Woolston
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=H_Woolston http://EzineArticles.com/?Lose-Weight-Easily-and-Permanently-With-Help-That-Makes-Things-Crystal-Clear&id=2976144
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