You've done everything from 7 day cabbage soup, work outs every day, to starving yourself and you just can't seem to "take up less space"! Because DIETS DON'T WORK!
Change your focus :
Five Points of Focus for Healthy Weight Loss -
By Lydia Martinez N.C.P.T., F.N.S, C.N.S. (see her video below)
As a longtime Trainer and Director of TLS Weight Loss Solution, I’ve seen plenty of outstanding success stories, but I’ve also seen people who believe themselves unable to make progress, and who give up before giving themselves the chance they deserve. Most often, the real issue seems to be one of getting caught up in details about their program that are either too minor in importance or too many in number, getting confused, and quitting in frustration.
New information and ideas are great, but what’s most important is never losing sight of the fundamentals. Below are five points of focus that are sure to help anyone get started on—or keep succeeding with—their weight loss journey.
Food Quality
The idea of calories going in (food) and calories being used (activity) is the basis of energy balance and weight loss. In order to maintain our body weight, we must balance our calories in and out. In order to lose weight, we must “burn” more calories than we take in. So far, so good.
The idea of calories going in (food) and calories being used (activity) is the basis of energy balance and weight loss. In order to maintain our body weight, we must balance our calories in and out. In order to lose weight, we must “burn” more calories than we take in. So far, so good.
However, the fact is that not all calories are created equal. The body responds differently to a protein calorie than it does to a carbohydrate calorie or a fat calorie.
For example, protein calories require a lot of energy to digest. Therefore, when protein is eaten, metabolism is increased; the same does not happen with other food sources. What this means is that calories are a useful measurement for the weight loss journey, but they should not be used to draw the map!
Hormones are the main determinants of what happens with calories, and hormones respond primarily to the composition of food—for example, the hormone insulin responds much differently to carbs than it does to protein or fat. If you eat 200 calories of broccoli instead of 200 calories of ice cream, your body will react differently. The same goes for different fats: the trans fats from muffins, doughnuts, and cake elicit a much different response than the unsaturated or polyunsaturated fats in fish, nuts and avocado.
In other words, the body doesn’t care about numbers—it cares about quality. It is concerned about extracting vital nutrients, vitamins, and minerals from the food you eat. Low quality foods, junk foods, processed foods and alcohol all contain empty calories. They have nothing to offer the body (other than extra material for fat storage).
Quality, clean, whole, high fiber foods are nutrient-rich and filled with what your body needs. When you feed yourself properly, calories typically take care of themselves. Because quality food is naturally lower in calories, you automatically consume fewer calories while staying fuller, longer.
Breakfast
Eating breakfast is a daily habit for the “successful losers” who belong to The National Weight Control Registry. These people have all maintained a 30-pound (or more) weight loss for at least a year, and some for as long as six years.
Eating breakfast is a daily habit for the “successful losers” who belong to The National Weight Control Registry. These people have all maintained a 30-pound (or more) weight loss for at least a year, and some for as long as six years.
Of this very successful group, approximately 78 percent reported eating breakfast every day, and almost 90 percent reported eating breakfast at least five days a week. This is one indication that starting the day with breakfast is an important strategy to achieve and maintain weight loss.
When it comes to food cravings, eating early in the day can certainly help prevent “starvation eating” later on, and also works to jump-start metabolism. When you skip breakfast, you’re essentially fasting for nearly 15 hours; as a result, the body isn’t producing the enzymes needed to metabolize fat.
If breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it’s best to make wise food choices. Instead of focusing on fruits and cereals, your breakfast should be protein and fiber. Eaten in combination, these nutrients help to moderate blood sugar levels, further reducing cravings, preventing energy highs and lows and promoting fat burning instead of fat storing. Protein and fiber at every meal makes losing weight no big deal!
Meal Frequency
If you are regularly eating quality protein and fiber you should be able to avoid hunger pangs much more easily than when you make carbohydrates your staple. However, frequent eating throughout the day is still an important component of weight loss.
If you are regularly eating quality protein and fiber you should be able to avoid hunger pangs much more easily than when you make carbohydrates your staple. However, frequent eating throughout the day is still an important component of weight loss.
Not eating throws your metabolic hormones off and puts the body in a stressed state. Two hormones—adrenaline and cortisol—are secreted in response to a stressful situation, such as perceived famine.
This response is intended to provide quick and easy energy for that situation, but as this relates to metabolism, adrenaline and cortisol both work to elevate blood sugar and free fatty acids, while also reducing the ability of insulin to manage these factors. As a result, your body is pushed away from fat-burning mode and back towards fat storage mode.
Moving, Exercising, Working Out, Training…
I don’t care what you call it—you’ve just got to do it! Eating right accounts for the majority of weight loss, but increasing metabolism is also mandatory for successful, sustainable weight loss.
I don’t care what you call it—you’ve just got to do it! Eating right accounts for the majority of weight loss, but increasing metabolism is also mandatory for successful, sustainable weight loss.
This means you have to increase your body’s need for energy at all times. One time you do this is during exercise, but it’s difficult to exercise all the time—especially if you’re stuck at a desk all day.
Luckily, your body requires extra energy at other times too, and one of these times can be the 24 – 38 hours after a workout, if that workout was intense enough. This is called the “afterburn effect”, and it is one of the most effective tools in the world of weight loss.
Taking advantage of this effect requires a specific type of training known as HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training – alternating between more-intense and less-intense activities during one workout). Although this might sound intimidating, it can be incorporated at any fitness level, and typically results in a shorter workout with faster results.
HIIT can be done in many different ways. One of my favorite things to do is pick five different exercises which cover the entire body and rotate between them. While moving between exercises, perform a one-minute interval of jump-rope, high knee leg lifts, kettlebell swings or some other dynamic activity. 30 minutes of this adds up to a workout you won’t forget, and neither will your metabolism.
If this seems too complex, or too great of a challenge, start off more simply with a couple of minutes of easy walking alternated with one minute of brisk power walking or jogging. This will still work to boost metabolism, but more importantly, it will start you on the right path to fat loss.
Sleep
Sleep and lose weight. It sounds like something you’d hear on a late night infomercial – just around the time you are reaching for that bag of cookies because, well, you can’t sleep. As strange as the idea sounds, substantial medical evidence suggests strong links between sleep and weight.
Sleep and lose weight. It sounds like something you’d hear on a late night infomercial – just around the time you are reaching for that bag of cookies because, well, you can’t sleep. As strange as the idea sounds, substantial medical evidence suggests strong links between sleep and weight.
A 2011 study published in the International Journal of Obesity found that people trying to shed at least 10 pounds were more likely to achieve their goal if they slept between 6 to 8 hours a night and had lower stress levels. By contrast, when you don’t get enough sleep, it decreases levels of leptin (the hormone that tells you when you are full), while also causing an elevation in levels of ghrelin (the hormone that tells you when you are hungry).
Needless to say, this is not a good combination. Under these circumstances, cravings can truly run wild, and the desire for high carbohydrate, calorie-dense foods can increase a whopping 45%. We’re not talking about broccoli.
How much you sleep and the quality of your sleep silently orchestrates a symphony of hormonal activity tied to your appetite. Don’t make the mistake of taking it for granted.
So there you have it—five key points that should be a priority to anyone who’s serious about losing weight and gaining good health. These factors are also the first ones to revisit if you’ve started on your weight loss journey and have found yourself struggling. If your weight loss plan isn’t getting you the results you want, take a look at one of these basic five—I’m willing to bet that making minor changes in one or two of them will be all it takes to get you back on track!
Here's a short video overview of the TLS Solution - the only weight loss system that targets body composition.
Remember: Muscle dictates metabolism! Learn to lose inches not pounds! It's all about keeping blood sugar stable, to have sustained energy.
Click here for TLS Solutions, it's like having a personal trainer & nutritionist, customized to you & your needs for less than $10 a month.
Finally learn how take up less space permanently!
Helping you to Select The Best Health,
Sherry
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