Change Your “Fat Thermostat” to a Healthy Level
July 31st, 2008 by Go Weblog
Have you ever watched someone who looks healthy and
slender eating a slice of chocolate cake and wondered how
they stay thin? Part of the story is that a set-point in
the brain keeps their body fat and weight level from
varying much that is, unless they do something that causes
their brain to change the set-point.
That’s what happened when I quit smoking. I had been thin
all my life. Then I stopped smoking and gained about 25
pounds! By quitting I had inadvertently triggered a process
that changed the body-weight regulator in my brain.
My body started making fat out of everything I ate, whereas
it formerly eliminated excess calories. Stopping smoking is
only one of many major changes that can cause your brain’s
body-weight controls to be altered.
Let’s call the weight regulator in your brain a *set-
point,* and a good image for the set-point is the
temperature you set on the thermostat for the heating and
cooling system of your house. If it is set at 71 degrees,
then the temperature doesn’t vary by more than a degree or
two before the thermostat tells the furnace to heat up (or
the air conditioner to cool down).
Your brain’s set-point functions much the same way. It
maintains a steady body-weight and body-fat level through a
complex interaction of hormones and metabolic processes.
The chemistry of how this works is beyond the scope of this
article. Suffice it to say that if you’ve gained weight or
lost weight, it is because your set-point has moved. And
if you want to lose or gain weight, you can take certain
actions to re-adjust your set-point to a level more
acceptable to you.
First, eat the right stuff. This is not hard if you
follow these simple guidelines:
a) minimize sugar and flour-based foods (refined carbs);
b) eat less animal fat, such as butter, cheese, marbled
meat, and eat less fat in general but don’t use low-fat
products like low-fat mayonnaise, because the chemicals
they have to use to make this stuff palatable is hard for
your body to process; just use real mayonnaise, only less
of it;
c) eat complex carbohydrates like vegetables, fruits and
whole grains, which your body recognizes as normal foods
and will process them as fuel, giving you long-term energy.
Second, drink the right stuff: water. It supports your
metabolism, helps your systems with eliminating toxins and
other excess. Coffee, tea, sweetened juices, diet or
regular soda, and alcohol do not contribute to your health
nor to your metabolism. Keep consumption of them to a
minimum.
Third, do the right kind of rhythmic large muscle exercise
daily, and sustain it for 30 to 60 minutes. If this sounds
like a lot of time, ask yourself, how important is it to
you to be healthy and/or lose weight?
You’re not going to re-set your brain’s weight regulator
(the set-point without exercise - it’s that simple. But the
exercise can be a pleasure once you understand which types
to do. Fortunately, your not faced here with push-ups or
lifting weights.
In terms of the exercise that will affect your set-point,
‘large muscle’ means especially using your legs. Walking
is the perfect place to start because you don’t need
special skills or equipment. You can also bike or swim or
jog. Whatever you enjoy.
‘Rhythmic’ means something you can do steadily,
repetitively. ‘Sustained’ means without stopping: continuous. 30 minutes is a minimum. Work up to an hour for best results.
Get your heart rate up to the level where you are exerting
yourself, but could still carry on a conversation. More
than that level, and you’re not into set-point changing
exercise anymore. Here, no pain no gain is an undesirable
approach.
If you make these three things a daily habit, (proper
eating, drinking, and exercise) your set-point will change,
and you’ll lose weight.
I lost the 25 pounds I’d gained when I stopped smoking, and
in the process I learned some pleasant habits that have
improved the quality of my life as well as my health.
Habitually, I eat delicious whole foods, enjoy a daily
walk, and drink mainly water.
I feel good now, and looking good is just a bonus. You’ll
feel good, too, and your body will thank you, blessing you
with good health.
Please note: This article is for information purposes
only. Always consult your doctor or health-care
professional.
S.J. Harstad, personal trainer and internet publisher, is
a contributing writer for All About Nutrition,
offering valuable free information to help you make healthy
choices. Articles by S.J Harstad can also be found at Z Cooking and A-Tec Exercise.
How to Lose One Pound Each Year
July 10th, 2008 by Go Weblog
I’ve gained one pound every year since I got back from Korea. I weighed 165 pounds when I got home. I was 20 years old when I got home and now I’m 74 years old. Take one pound per year and you add 54 pounds. That makes 219 pounds. That’s about what I weigh most of the time.
I’ve decided that it is better to gain one pound each year than to lose one pound each year. If I had lost one pound each year I would now weigh a mere 111 pounds. That couldn’t be good. I’d be all skin and bone like an injured lion that can no longer hunt. You know what happens to injured lions.
My lowest weight in the last five years was about 187 pounds. I can reduce to that weight if I follow the Big Fat John plan. The Big Fat John plan has changed with time. At first I printed up a sheet that I could post on the refrigerator door. There were columns to list the name of the food, the calories, and the fat content. I had a little table at the bottom with the properties of common foods so that I didn’t have to look them up in my calorie book.
I tried to stay below about 1350 calories a day until I had lost some weight. Then I would go as high as 1550 calories some days and not gain weight. I wouldn’t lose either. Not regaining weight was what I was after.
The plan became a little tedious. I tabulated my intake and then I would plot my weight and calorie intake on the computer. I would take these charts to my cardiologist and he would say, “Good Boy!” Those words made me want to keep at it.
However, I petered out and gained the weight back. The doctor told me that he could see a difference in my cardiac response when I lost weight. It was all for the good. He said, “Get back on the Big Fat John plan.”
Looking over my daily tabulations I learned that I didn’t have to record calories and fat content. I could just list each food item and forget the rest. I had to stop eating when I reached the end of the sheet. The larger my handwriting, the more weight I would lose. If I wrote tiny, I would turn into the Goodyear Blimp
Tags: Big Fat John plan, calories, diet, fat content, heart disease, lose weight, obesity, reduceModern Diets Increase Our Stress Level
June 14th, 2008 by Go Weblog
Stress is defined as a force exerted upon our bodies that tends to strain or deform us. This stress may impact on us mentally, emotionally or physically and thus contributes to the wear and tear of our bodies. The result is that we lose a significant amount of the joy of living and hasten our early demise.
Modern diets, whether conventional our alternative are a major contributor to our stress level. These diets require us to be consciously aware of our daily caloric intake to ensure that it does not exceed our daily metabolic output. This process requires vigilance twenty four hours per day, seven days per week indefinitely. It involves resisting the temptation for our favorite foods and the portion amount that we feel would give us full satisfaction. No wonder diets fail. You could consider the failure of diets as an attempt by our body to reduce stress. So which is worse, being obese or stressed. This may be the reason why fat is associated with jolly.
But we can be slim and jolly. What we need is a diet that shifts the burden of caloric balance from the domain of the conscious to the responsibility of the unconscious. This certainly will allow our minds to be relaxed at least in one area of our lives. The Sabbatical Diet only requires a single simple conscious decision daily to ensure complete caloric balance. By giving the unconscious mind the appropriate signal we are guaranteed a satisfactory regulation of our body fat while maximizing the body’s healing potential and thus slowing aging. This diet also prevents and controls diabetes, high cholesterol and other chronic non-communicable diseases.
So “why worry” and be stressed “be happy” and slim.
Dr. Robert Robinson MBBS. DM.(Int. Med.) is a specialist in Internal Medicine trained at the University of The West Indies. He has over ten (10) years experience in the management of patients with obesity and other chronic non-communicable diseases. He is the author of the book “The Sabbatical Diet.” http://www.sabbaticaldiet.com
Tags: anti aging, body fat, calories, diabetes, diet, high cholesterol, lose weight, stress, weight loss