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Mesothelioma Community Resource NetworkSixWeekWorkoutProgram.com is pleased to work with the Mesothelioma Community Resource Network, a compilation of resources dedicated to spreading awareness around mesothelioma. For more information on a mesothelioma prognosis, visit the Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance.
*Note: I have researched all products I have chosen to advertise on my site and approve of them. I want to ensure that I always give quality information and recommendations. I do receive commission for some of the products and services I refer you to, but I would never refer you to something I didn't believe would help just to receive a commission.I know the title seems extreme… it is. It’s catchy. Seriously though, in this article at ironwarriortraining.com I outline 3 reasons that you are fat.
1) You pass your health off to someone else.
2) You eat mindlessly.
3) You eat processed pastries.
Reading this article may help you in your own life or how to help someone you know that is overweight. I hope you enjoy! “Top 3 Reasons You Are Fat!”
Overcoming Food Addiction for Effective Weight Loss
You may think that food addiction is an overrated term for those who love to eat. We have to admit, eating is a necessity to live a healthy and robust life. Some people consider it a pleasure, especially when tickling their taste buds for trying something new. However, there are individuals that crave for more than what they can chew, even when their body tells them that they had more than enough. It may happen to you or to anyone else. This needs to be avoided to become free from obesity, depression, and low self-esteem.
Food Addiction is Psychological
Being addicted to food has nothing to do with your tummy grumbling and succumbing to its demands. Your brain has the power to control it, and that is where everything starts. If you are eating at times, where you are not supposed to eat, like experiencing depression, sorrow, anger, guilt, and stress, that is where the bad habit forms. Your mind is giving you the impression that eating will make you feel better. However, you will notice that you are more inclined to take it repeatedly because your body is getting used to the joys of eating; just like taking prohibited drugs.
Symptoms of Food Addiction
Yes, there are signs that tell if you are already suffering food addiction or not. Take not that these symptoms are as less obvious as you think, so weigh it critically. Here are most of them:
You are already thinking of what you will eat for dinner while you are eating lunch
Your mind buys the food that you will eat, even though you have never actually taken a thought of buying something in a particular store
The shop owner or vendor already knows your favorite or usual order
When you plan on eating a light snack and already including your heavy meal after enjoying the small treat
When you cannot wait to eat the food you bought from the store, either munching it in the car or eating it in the street
When you keep going back to the kitchen or the fridge and emptying everything little by little
Breaking Food Addiction
Once you have noticed the signs, which can make you laugh and think it’s time for you to take some action and break it. Do not haste yourself in breaking the habit. Resolve it nice and slow. You can start at home by eating slower and munching your food well. Make sure that you swallow your food before taking in another bite. This advice may seem instructions for a five year old; you will be surprised at how it affects your mind towards food.
Brenda Lyttle is a health expert who began writing for publications in her community in 2005 and now commands an authority in writing on healthy living, fitness, HGH reviews, and anti-aging related topics. She is also a strong believer of the goodness of GenF20 Plus , a popular HGH supplement, but insists that exercising can never be replaced by any supplement whatsoever.
Weight loss is on many people’s minds. Many try to lose weight and don’t. Many lose weight, say “Hooray” and then gain it back again. There are lots of tactics, techniques, theories, diets, workout programs, pills, and supplements geared toward weight loss. I love “2 Things Necessary for Weight Loss… What are they?” because it has true facts about what is necessary for weight loss. It discusses the problems with studies about what is necessary for weight loss. This gives way to the fact that a caloric deficit and a need for weight loss are key to losing weight and maintaining that weight.
Get these fabulous gym workout routines for women today! You deserve it!
America is being consumed with an obesity epidemic! This is, at least, what the media and some researchers would have citizens believe. Newsweek published an article called “Culture of Corpulence” and calls childhood obesity an “epidemic and America “the world’s preeminent fat-making machine” (6). Words such as this would strike fear in anyone and make it seem a foregone conclusion that America is fat and dying because of it. The fact that the number of obese persons has gone up is not debatable. No one disputes that obesity has risen in the United States (2). How significant is the rise in obesity and its consequences is debatable.
Four questions need to be addressed. What are the different interpretations of the obesity data? Is obesity really causing increased mortality? Does the weight need to be changed or the lifestyle? Can long term weight loss be safely achieved and should it be achieved? These questions and their answers determine the severity of the problem in America and what can and needs to be done about it.
The Data
Populations’ weight is classified according to Body Mass Index (BMI) data. BMI is determined by dividing a person’s mass in kilograms and dividing it by their height in meters squared. Overweight is defined as 25.0-29.9 BMI and obese is classified as greater than 30.0 BMI (1). It is a fact that the number of obese persons has increased. However, contrary to popular belief obesity is not rising frantically and out of control. What has happened is a simple, small shift over arbitrarily set thresholds of overweight and obesity classifications. Campos et al. made an analogy of obesity with IQs. If IQs were an average of 100 and then rose by 7 because of improved education, the correct analysis would be that IQs had risen slightly. A shift of 7 points in IQ level could put 10% of the population at genius level whereas previously only 5% of the population was in the genius category. The analysis could now say that the number of geniuses had doubled. This is similar to what has happened with obesity. A slight increase of weight of people near those thresholds has caused the percentage of people in the overweight and obese categories to rise astronomically (1).
Obesity Causing Mortality?
No matter how the data is interpreted and no matter if the actual numbers are relatively low if the weight gain is causing mortality then it is a concern. Studies are not conclusive on the answer of this question (8). Manson et al. did research with the Nurses’ Health Study data and determined that all-cause mortality is directly correlated with BMI. The lowest mortality rates were associated with BMI’s below 19.0. The risk rose steadily until 27.0 when the risk was 60% greater than the referent group that had BMI’s below 19.0 and was considered statistically significant. When the researchers controlled for the variables hypertension, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia they found that the relation between all-cause mortality and BMI was attenuated, but not completely erased. They chose not to control for these variables because the researchers believe that these variables are effects of obesity (8). This belief, however, is not universally held either. It is possible that these conditions cause obesity (1). It has also been found obese people can be fit and void of these conditions (2). It should be noted that the study by Manson et al. had a longer a lot of data over 16 years to draw conclusions from. This time frame can be very beneficial. A flaw may be that 98% of their women were white and all were nurses- not exactly a random sample.
Other research has shown a U- or J-shaped association between BMI and all-cause mortality. In one study, according to Campos et al., persons between 25.0 and 29.9 BMI had 86,000 fewer excess deaths than the referent group of 18.5-24.9 BMI. Another study showed that the lowest mortality rates occurred between BMIs of 23 and 29. While persons with a low BMI of 19.0-21.0 had the same risk for mortality as 29.0-31.0 BMI. It was also noted that a significant increase in mortality did not occur until BMI’s reached upper 30s or higher (1). Gasser showed a similar finding that low BMI’s had were associated with mortality rates greater than average or even above average BMIs (4).
A study conducted by Landi of hospitalized patients also found U-shaped association between BMI and mortality. The lowest rate of mortality occurred in patients with BMI’s between 25.0 and 27.4. Older patients, contrarily, showed highest mortality rates at the lowest BMI’s and only a slight elevation at the highest BMI’s (7). This study illustrates that BMI can be an important predictor of mortality among young and old patients.
Often people believe that BMI is just a quick and easy way to determine what body fat percentage likely is and that it is actually the body fat that determines health and mortality rate. However, research consistently shows BMI to be a more effective indicator for determining health and mortality rate than body fat percentage. This shows that build, not body fat percentage is the more important statistic to find out. Nonetheless, it has been proven that body fat around the hips and thighs is likely protective. The amount of fat in these areas has a negative correlation with cardiovascular disease (1). This finding concurs with the research done by Manson et al. where they found that waist-to-hip ratio was a better indicator for cardiovascular disease (8).
Weight or Lifestyle?
Some persons are in “dangerous weight” categories. These would be BMI’s at high 30s and beyond levels. These people will be healthier if they lose weight. Some people in the overweight and obese categories may not necessarily benefit from losing weight. Independent of weight loss, increasing aerobic fitness and increasing physical activity, has been shown by researchers to reduce mortality rates. The reduction of mortality rates from making this lifestyle change is greater than the reduction of mortality from intentional weight loss (4). In other data, as stated by Campos et al., low cardiovascular fitness was the reason for all of the “excess all-cause mortality among men.” Similar results of fitness and mortality were shown for women (1).
Weight Loss: Can and Should It Be Done?
Yes weight can be lost and kept off. McGuire et al. conducted a random phone survey. They found that 47-49% of people who had lost at least 10% of their maximal weight had been able to keep it off for a year and half of those people were able to maintain that for at least 5 years (9). This is encouraging for those who need and desire to lose weight. However, note that the data was self-reported and it makes no mention as to whether the weight the subjects maintained was a healthy weight. Jakicic et al. also found that weight can be lost and kept off. They found that subjects needed to exercise 275 minutes each week and reduce energy intake to 1200-1550 kilocalories per day (5). They did say that intervention was needed to sustain that type of energy output and intake. This would be very difficult for most people to do on their own. Finally, Franz et al. also found that weight loss and the maintenance of that is possible. They studied eight different interventions and found that an average of 3-6% was lost from baseline data 48 months later (3). This is encouraging, but again, it makes no mention of whether the subjects’ new weight was at a healthier level.
It is obvious that weight loss is possible, but no dose-response effect is shown in weight loss intervention studies (1). This means that the more weight a person loses the reduction in mortality risk does not continue to decrease. In studies where intervention was done there was decreased mortality in groups that lost a little weight, a lot of weight, and even gained a little weight (1). This shows that weight loss may not be necessary.
Discussion
Obesity is a topic of great interest; thus, the reason for so many studies done on the subject. It is possible to lose weight (albeit, not easy), but it seems to be the lifestyle- not weight- that is the most important aspect of mortality rates. It was not shown that the people that were able to lose weight were healthier, just that they were able to lose weight. In all studies reviewed, it seemed that BMI did correlate with mortality rates, but they did not all agree. Only one showed a positive correlation between mortality rates and BMI. The others showed a hyperbolic relation. Age likely plays a role in how important BMI is. Older adults do not seem to be affected by a high BMI, but high BMI’s in younger populations likely indicates an unhealthy lifestyle. Nevertheless, not every American is gaining weight and the ones that do gain weight are generally not rising dramatically. They have just crossed arbitrary thresholds and the percentage of people in overweight and obese categories has risen by large percentages.
Obesity issues will continue to be researched, discussed, and written about. The four questions concerning data, mortality causation, weight versus lifestyle, and plausibility/necessity should be the basis of the literature. The fact that obesity is rising is not questioned, but an “epidemic” is extreme and obesity should not be looked at in such terms.
References
1. Campos P, Saguy A, Ernsberge P, Oliver E, Gasesser G. The epidemiology of overweight and obesity: public health crisis or moral panic? International Journal of Epidemiology. 2006; 35: 55-60.
2. Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Kuczmarski RJ, Johnson CL. Overweight and obesity in the United States: prevalence and trends, 1960-1994. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBESITY. 1998; 22: 39-47.
3. Franz MJ, VanWormer JJ, Crain AL, Boucher JL, Histon T, Caplan W, Bowman JD, Pronk NP. Weight-Loss Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Weight-Loss Clinical Trials with a Minimum 1-Year Follow-Up. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2007; 107: 1755-1767.
4. Gaesser GA. Thinness and Weight Loss: Beneficial or Detrimental to Longevity? Official Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. 1998; 1118-28.
5. Jakicic JM, Marcus BH, Lang W, Janney C. Effect of Exercise on 24-Month Weight Loss Maintenance in Overweight Women. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2008;168:1550-1559.
6. Kalb C. Culture of Corpulence. Newsweek. 2010. http://www.newsweek.com/2010/03/13/culture-of-corpulence.html
7. Landi F, Onder G, Gambassi G, Pedone C, Carbonin P, Bernabei R. Body Mass Index and Mortality Among Hospitalized Patients. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2005; 160: 2641-44.
8. Manson JE, Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, Colditz GA, Hunter DJ, Hankinson SE, Hennekens CH, Speizer FE. Body weight and mortality among women. N Engl J Med. 1995; 333: 677-685.
9. McGuire MT, Wing RR, Hill JO. The prevalence of weight loss maintenance among American adults. International journal of obesity and metabolic disorders: journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity. 1999; 12:1314-9.
While weight loss is an important goal for many, but it should not be THE GOAL! Going on a diet and having a healthy diet are two separate things. You cannot lose weight on one diet and then return to your previous diet and stick at the weight that you ended up on when on your diet. It is fine to change the things you eat and experiment with different diets, but all diets should be geared to find healthy eating patterns that you can have for your entire life. I watch what I eat pretty carefully, but I do not stress about eating something “bad” every once in a while and I decide where I am willing to sacrifice and where I am not willing to sacrifice. This is a paradigm that everyone should have. Different opinions on food and diet is a must if people are going to be secure with their food and send the obesity trend in the opposite direction than it is currently going!
For more on healthy weight: “Finding Your Ideal or Magic Weight”
Creating healthy children is critical because children become adults and repentance is always harder than acting right the first time. There are a number of reasons that we know and also reasons that we surely do not know that obesity in children has risen so much recently. In the past more children were allowed to play outside freely. There was less risk of getting hit by a car, child abduction, and other dangers. Video games (yes, the root of all evil) now exist and are very prevalent. Even if children do have the option of playing outside they often choose playing video games. If they didn’t have this option they would likely be more active. This is now a common bonding activity for parent and child- opposed to the traditional playing catch out in the yard. It is also much easier to eat less healthy. In the past people actually had to prepare meals. This is not the case anymore and often meals that are not prepared are more fattening and are not as easily digested. There are many initiatives to remedy childhood obesity and inactivity, but it largely rests with parents deciding to make changes in their home.
“What is Detoxification?” is a follow up to my previous article “Detoxification: My Experience”.
Detoxification is the process by which the human body rids itself of toxins. Our body has a natural ability to do this via three main organs: liver, kidney, and skin. The theory behind using supplements or a diet similar to the one I did is that we are exposed to too many toxins and our bodies cannot rid itself of all of them.
A supplement has the benefit of supporting organs that detoxify our body. Our organs obviously draw upon nutrients to function. A supplement may provide extra nutrients to help the organ function at full capacity. A supplement may also provide nutrients that chemically help the body quickly rid itself of waste- similar to the effect of fiber. One example of this is milk thistle.
A diet geared for detoxification does a similar thing as supplements: provide nutrients to support the organs and provide a lot of fiber. Diets geared towards detoxification contain a lot of fiber and antioxidants. Fiber helps your digestive tract clear out unneeded stuff. The antioxidants and phytochemicals support the organs in our body. These help our organs function in the capacity for that which is was created.
The belief that our bodies need help with detoxing is an alternative medicine belief. Generally Western medicine believes that our bodies have the ability to detoxify without the use of any help. Alternative medicine generally believes that in our era our bodies are exposed to too many toxins and that our organs do not have the capacity to detoxify itself naturally. Toxins come from many sources: non-organic food, unfiltered water, make-up, lotion, air pollution, and some materials that we either store or cook food in. Toxicologists specialize in the ability of the human body to detoxify.
Please share your experiences with detoxification or your thoughts on its necessity below.
If you are interested in a detox diet I recommend Total Wellness Cleanse because they advocate using a natural diet to cleanse. They do not try to up-sell you with other products. They show you how God-given food can cleanse and detoxify you. Their program is very detailed and educational (and I always love more education).
I did a 3 day diet geared to detoxify my body. In this post I’ll describe why I did it, what I did, what I felt during it, what I felt after it, and what I now feel about detox diets. (In a few days I will post a more in depth article on what a detox diet is and the theories behind it.)
I have been interested in doing some kind of a detox diet or supplement for over a year now. I’ve been to presentations, read articles, and recently a book- Total Body Detox Plan by Sarah Brewer. I was fascinated by the benefits that detoxification claims to provide for two reasons: my health and my knowledge as a health and fitness professional. Detox proponents often claim that we have too many toxins in our body. This decreases our energy level, reduces our ability to burn fat, and cause digestion problems.
I decided to detoxify by eating select foods for 3 days. I did not use any supplements (except for chlorophyl in my water a few times). The first day I only ate fruits and vegetables. Some were organic, some were not. The second day I mostly only ate fruits and vegetables, but in the evening I also ate red and green lentils that I soaked and boiled (it barely reached a boil) till they were soft enough to eat. I also ate two tsps of chia seeds throughout the day. The third day I again ate mostly fruits and vegetables, a tsp of chia seeds, and I ate some black and brown quinoa. I did not exercise during this time, but walked around and performed my normal daily activities.
The first day was by far the most difficult! Twice that day I felt pretty sick, but it passed within a half hour or so. I wasn’t as miserable as I thought though. (In high school I tried to do an all green diet for 2 or 3 days and by dinner the first day I ended that. I allowed myself to eat a larger variety of food this time, but still expected it to be extremely difficult.) The second day was the easiest for me. I was hungry and weak, but didn’t feel sick like I did the first day. I did, however, have more energy than I did the third day. The third day was difficult because it had been so long since I had consumed substantial food.
The day following my detox program was great! I now don’t feel a whole lot different than I did before. I may feel slightly better, but that could be a placebo effect. It doesn’t seem that I’ve lost any strength. I performed the bench press before my diet and after; I was just as strong after.
As a health and fitness professional I am often asked what I feel about certain topics. I can now say I feel that a detox diet can be beneficial, but likely not the answer that will solve all problems. Depending on the the toxic state that the person is in could change the effects of detoxification for the individual. It could provide more benefits for someone who has taken a lot of Western medicine recently or whose diet is very poor. It could also play a larger role for someone older and that has been exposed to toxins for more years. I do not believe that it will make your body run perfectly and that you will now be able to melt fat off easily. This is obviously not a clinical trial, but this is a personal experience that I can draw upon and that can hopefully provide guidance to others thinking about undergoing a detox diet.
Check back in a few days for a more in depth article on what a detox diet is and the theories behind it.
You like almost all people have probably wondered what you should weigh. The key is to understand that everyone has a body weight that is perfect for them- your “magic weight”. You should keep this information in mind when you engage in your workout program and diet.
Read the full article: Finding Your Ideal Weight.
Veganism: Living a Healthier, Happier, Chronic Disease- Free Life (part I) dealt mainly with what veganism is and the benefits of it. Veganism: Living a Healthier, Happier, Chronic Disease- Free Life (part II) addresses peoples’ concerns with changing to a vegan diet. Like I said in the first part I, I try to be more of a flexitarian, but always remember improving your nutrition improves your health and should be incorporated with your workout program.
This Vegetarian Cookbook has many great recipes that will help you eat foods of the earth!
If you would like some fabulous vegan recipes then “Are You Sure That’s Vegan?” is for you!