Myth No. 2 – Dropping Calorie Intake
As we discussed earlier in this blog series (but it’s so important that it deserves an encore near the end), trying to lose weight by drastically cutting down on your calories doesn’t work; in fact, it’s unhealthy.
The thing to remember is that the body’s ability to lose weight is not controlled by calories. Calories are the input. The real control mechanism is that famous concept that you’ve become very familiar with now: metabolism.
Calories are merely units of energy. It’s how your body deals with that energy that determines whether weight is gained or lost.
So with that being said, cutting down your caloric intake to, say, 1000 calories a day isn’t necessarily going to help you lose weight; because it doesn’t necessarily change your metabolism.
Indeed, as you know, if you slow down your caloric intake, your body – which is always trying to help you in the best way that it knows how – will slow down its metabolism.
Really, it makes sense: the body says that something has gone wrong; instead of the 2000 calories that it needs, it’s only getting 1000. The body doesn’t know why this is happening; it doesn’t know that you want to lose weight.
It just senses that something is wrong; perhaps you’re trapped in a cave or something, or stuck in a snowstorm. So the body, trying to help you, will slow down its metabolism; it will do its best to slow down the conversion rate, so that you have as much energy on hand as possible.
Now, if your body was able to read this book and you could say: look, please just do what you normally do, but do it with 1000 fewer calories a day for a while, then we might actually get somewhere.
But the body doesn’t work that way. It won’t help you lose weight if you dramatically cut down on calories.
It will not only slow down metabolism, but also (and here’s the worst part), if and when you ever increase calories again, your body will have to deal with that via a slower metabolic engine. So you can actually gain weight if, after cutting down your calories for a period of time, you consume extra calories (say while on a vacation for instance).
See you next time with Myth No. 3.
Take care and best wishes
Sandra
Showing posts with label easy weight loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label easy weight loss. Show all posts
Sunday, 31 October 2010
Saturday, 30 October 2010
Boosting Your Metabolism - Part 21 - Common Metabolism-Boosting Myths
Hi again, as we move towards the end of our ’Boosting Your Metabolism’ series, we thought it might be useful to talk about the 4 most prevalent myths concerning metabolism and metabolism-boosting.
Since this blog has been about reality and not myths, we didn’t cover any of them in the actual blog. Yet, considering how common these myths are, it is still useful for you to know them; and to know that they’re myths.
That way, if you come across them in a magazine, at a fitness club, or just from the well-intentioned but misguided advice of a friend, you can confidently say (or at least just think), sorry, but that’s a myth and I’m not going to fall for that one!
Myth No. 1: Diet Pills
The general consensus on diet pills are contained in two powerful words: BUYER BEWARE.
The problem here is that many makers of diet pills offer claims that simply aren’t realistic; and if you read the fine-print of most of these advertisements, you’ll see that they’re really too good to be true. Little notes like the claims made in this advertisement are not typical should be enough of a wake-up call to realize that there’s more to the story.
In some cases, diet pills can help boost metabolism temporarily. This, however, can be risky and generally shouldn’t be done without a doctor’s say-so. Unfortunately, people can become somewhat addicted to diet pills, which can lead to disaster.
Remember that some diet pills are water loss pills. That is, they are diuretics that promote water loss, usually through excess urination. The jury on water-loss diet pills is somewhat less open-minded than diet pills in general – three words this time …… THEY DON’T WORK!
Seriously: water loss diet pills are taken on the principle that you’ll lose weight through water. And, yes, that’s true: if you urinate 15 times a day, you’re physically going to weigh less.
But this is not actual weight loss! This is merely unhealthy temporary weight loss, and it will come roaring back the minute that water stores are replenished through diet.
Or, worse still, if a person taking these water pills fails to restore their body’s fluid needs, they can actually suffer dehydration; which can, and has, led to coma and death.
Now granted, that’s a pretty bleak picture, so it is wise to keep an open mind and a balanced view. That’s not to say there aren’t plenty of pills available on the market that can aid weight loss in healthier ways that water loss, it’s just that ‘BUYER BEWARE’ has been written in capital letters for good reason!
In the next blog we’ll look at Myth No. 2 – Drop Calorie Intake.
So until then,
Take care
Sandra
Since this blog has been about reality and not myths, we didn’t cover any of them in the actual blog. Yet, considering how common these myths are, it is still useful for you to know them; and to know that they’re myths.
That way, if you come across them in a magazine, at a fitness club, or just from the well-intentioned but misguided advice of a friend, you can confidently say (or at least just think), sorry, but that’s a myth and I’m not going to fall for that one!
Myth No. 1: Diet Pills
The general consensus on diet pills are contained in two powerful words: BUYER BEWARE.
The problem here is that many makers of diet pills offer claims that simply aren’t realistic; and if you read the fine-print of most of these advertisements, you’ll see that they’re really too good to be true. Little notes like the claims made in this advertisement are not typical should be enough of a wake-up call to realize that there’s more to the story.
In some cases, diet pills can help boost metabolism temporarily. This, however, can be risky and generally shouldn’t be done without a doctor’s say-so. Unfortunately, people can become somewhat addicted to diet pills, which can lead to disaster.
Remember that some diet pills are water loss pills. That is, they are diuretics that promote water loss, usually through excess urination. The jury on water-loss diet pills is somewhat less open-minded than diet pills in general – three words this time …… THEY DON’T WORK!
Seriously: water loss diet pills are taken on the principle that you’ll lose weight through water. And, yes, that’s true: if you urinate 15 times a day, you’re physically going to weigh less.
But this is not actual weight loss! This is merely unhealthy temporary weight loss, and it will come roaring back the minute that water stores are replenished through diet.
Or, worse still, if a person taking these water pills fails to restore their body’s fluid needs, they can actually suffer dehydration; which can, and has, led to coma and death.
Now granted, that’s a pretty bleak picture, so it is wise to keep an open mind and a balanced view. That’s not to say there aren’t plenty of pills available on the market that can aid weight loss in healthier ways that water loss, it’s just that ‘BUYER BEWARE’ has been written in capital letters for good reason!
In the next blog we’ll look at Myth No. 2 – Drop Calorie Intake.
So until then,
Take care
Sandra
Wednesday, 28 July 2010
Boosting Your Metabolism - Part 9 - Interval Training
Hi there,
Today we are going to cover interval training. Some of you it will appeal to and some of you it may not, but if you are one of the latter, don’t worry! The purpose of this ‘Boosting Your Metabolism’ series is to present as many different ways of doing so, in order to allow you to decide which is the best way for you to Boost Your Metabolism, or to perhaps give you some new ideas that you may like to try.
The basic weight loss nuts and bolts behind cardiovascular exercise (or any kind of exercise, really) is, as you know, a matter of catabolism.
Essentially, if you can engineer your body to require more energy, your body will comply by breaking cells down to deliver it; and that process (metabolism) burns calories. Simple, right?
So based on that logic, something called interval training neatly fits in with the overall plan. Interval training is simply adding a high-energy burning component to your exercise plan on an infrequent, or interval, basis.
For example, you may be at a stage where you can jog for 20 minutes every other day, therefore putting your heart into a cardiovascular zone during this time.
Obviously, this is going to help boost your metabolism and burn calories/energy, yet you can actually burn disproportionately more calories if, during that 20 minute jog, you add a 30 second or 1 minute sprint.
Why? Because during this 30 seconds or 1 minute, you give your body a bit of a jolt.
Not an unhealthy jolt - remember, we’re talking about quick bursts here, not suddenly racing around the track or through the park! By giving your body an interval jolt, it automatically and somewhat unexpectedly, has to turn things up a notch.
And to compensate for your extra energy requirements, your body will burn more calories.
It’s essential to always keep in mind that interval training only works when it’s at intervals. This may seem like a strange thing to say (and even difficult to understand), but it’s actually very straightforward.
The metabolism-boosting benefits that you enjoy as a result of interval training are primarily due to the fact that your body, suddenly, needs to find more energy. During cardiovascular exercise, if your body suddenly needs to grab some more energy in that period, it will boost your metabolism as if it were given a nice, healthy jolt.
Should you then decide to extend your 30 second or 1 minute sprint into a 20 minute sprint, you simply wouldn’t experience all of the benefits.
Yes, your body would use more energy if you extend yourself to the higher range of your aerobic training zone. But your body won’t necessarily get that jolt that only comes from interval training.
So remember: your goal with interval training is to give your body a healthy jolt where it suddenly says to itself:
“Whoa! We need more energy here FAST, this person has increased their heart rate from 180 beats per minute to 190 beats per minute! Let’s go to any available cell, like those fat cells down at the waist, and break them down via catabolism so that this person can get the energy that they need!”
Interval training can last longer than 30 seconds or a minute, indeed some experts suggest that you can use interval training for 30-40 minutes, depending on your state of health and what your overall exercise regimen looks like. But the reason we’re focusing on 30 seconds to 1 minute is simply to give you a clear understanding that interval training is a kind of mini training within a training program.
And, as always, don’t overdo it with your interval training. Your goal here is to become healthier and stronger, and lose weight in the process.
That’s all for now, but if you are interested in a seriously powerful programme to boost your metabolism by giving yourelf that healthy jolt, just take a look at this by Clicking Here, and it's amazing value!
See you next time in Blog 10.
Sandra
Today we are going to cover interval training. Some of you it will appeal to and some of you it may not, but if you are one of the latter, don’t worry! The purpose of this ‘Boosting Your Metabolism’ series is to present as many different ways of doing so, in order to allow you to decide which is the best way for you to Boost Your Metabolism, or to perhaps give you some new ideas that you may like to try.
The basic weight loss nuts and bolts behind cardiovascular exercise (or any kind of exercise, really) is, as you know, a matter of catabolism.
Essentially, if you can engineer your body to require more energy, your body will comply by breaking cells down to deliver it; and that process (metabolism) burns calories. Simple, right?
So based on that logic, something called interval training neatly fits in with the overall plan. Interval training is simply adding a high-energy burning component to your exercise plan on an infrequent, or interval, basis.
For example, you may be at a stage where you can jog for 20 minutes every other day, therefore putting your heart into a cardiovascular zone during this time.
Obviously, this is going to help boost your metabolism and burn calories/energy, yet you can actually burn disproportionately more calories if, during that 20 minute jog, you add a 30 second or 1 minute sprint.
Why? Because during this 30 seconds or 1 minute, you give your body a bit of a jolt.
Not an unhealthy jolt - remember, we’re talking about quick bursts here, not suddenly racing around the track or through the park! By giving your body an interval jolt, it automatically and somewhat unexpectedly, has to turn things up a notch.
And to compensate for your extra energy requirements, your body will burn more calories.
It’s essential to always keep in mind that interval training only works when it’s at intervals. This may seem like a strange thing to say (and even difficult to understand), but it’s actually very straightforward.
The metabolism-boosting benefits that you enjoy as a result of interval training are primarily due to the fact that your body, suddenly, needs to find more energy. During cardiovascular exercise, if your body suddenly needs to grab some more energy in that period, it will boost your metabolism as if it were given a nice, healthy jolt.
Should you then decide to extend your 30 second or 1 minute sprint into a 20 minute sprint, you simply wouldn’t experience all of the benefits.
Yes, your body would use more energy if you extend yourself to the higher range of your aerobic training zone. But your body won’t necessarily get that jolt that only comes from interval training.
So remember: your goal with interval training is to give your body a healthy jolt where it suddenly says to itself:
“Whoa! We need more energy here FAST, this person has increased their heart rate from 180 beats per minute to 190 beats per minute! Let’s go to any available cell, like those fat cells down at the waist, and break them down via catabolism so that this person can get the energy that they need!”
Interval training can last longer than 30 seconds or a minute, indeed some experts suggest that you can use interval training for 30-40 minutes, depending on your state of health and what your overall exercise regimen looks like. But the reason we’re focusing on 30 seconds to 1 minute is simply to give you a clear understanding that interval training is a kind of mini training within a training program.
And, as always, don’t overdo it with your interval training. Your goal here is to become healthier and stronger, and lose weight in the process.
That’s all for now, but if you are interested in a seriously powerful programme to boost your metabolism by giving yourelf that healthy jolt, just take a look at this by Clicking Here, and it's amazing value!
See you next time in Blog 10.
Sandra
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