The Little Thing in Your Head That's Keeping You Fat

I have no doubt that a scientist somewhere just read the title of this article and said out loud, "YES! Venuto is right! That little thing in your head – the hypothalamus – it IS the thing that is keeping you fat! By George, that Venuto guy isn't a dumb bodybuilder after all – he's been doing his research!" At which moment, I will be shaking my head and thinking, "you need to get out of the laboratory and into the real world, with real people, buddy." Okay, okay, to be fair, Neuro-endocrine control of appetite and body fat really is quite fascinating. But today, I'm talking about PSYCH-ology, not PHYSI-ology. The little thing in your head that's keeping you fat is actually just a….

Limiting belief!

Self-limiting beliefs are among the biggest problems that people deal with in their struggles to achieve a healthy ideal weight. They're also one of the reasons that so many people start to falter or fall off the diet and exercise wagon as early as late January or early February in their New Year's goal pursuits.

If you're that science guy I spoke of and you're about to bail because you're thinking, "Here we go again… another psycho-babble, self help article," then think again. A belief is the force behind the placebo effect, which is well known by every scientist and medical professional. A respected doctor gives a patient a pill and is told it's a powerful drug. The patient gets well immediately, not knowing that the "miraculous" substance was a dummy pill. Inert. Sugar. The miracle was in the mind.

But beliefs are not only involved in the mind-body connection, they are unconscious programs that control your behavior. The most important factor in whether you achieve the body and the health you want is NOT what diet or training program you follow. It's what makes you follow your diet and training program. And guess what? What you believe controls your behavior - whether you will stick with your program or sabotage it with cheating, bingeing or inconsistency.

What to do about limiting beliefs

Ok, so now you agree that beliefs are psychological factors that affect you physically by controlling your behavior, including your eating, exercising and lifestyle. What now? 3 steps. 2 questions.

STEP 1: IDENTIFY LIMITING BELIEFS

You are fully aware of many of your beliefs. For example, beliefs about spirituality or politics are usually in the front of your conscious mind.

But the beliefs that hold back your health and physical development the most are usually the ones you don't even know you have. They are like unconscious "brain software," running silently in the background.

So the first step is to bring those unconscious and potentially damaging beliefs up to the surface so you are aware of them. You can't fix a problem if you don't know you have one.

2 Quick Questions That Will Help Draw Out Your Beliefs

Beliefs can go back to childhood, but don't worry, you don't have to go to a psychotherapist and be regressed back to kindergarten. It's simpler than that. But it does pay to do this questioning process as a formal "exercise" with serious quiet time, with pen and paper (instead of just thinking about it).

 

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Question #1: What causes me to be overweight (or unhealthy, or not having the body I want)?

Question #2: What's preventing me from getting leaner? (or healthier?)

Spend some time with it and see how big of a list you can create. Ask yourself whether each belief helps or hurts you. Does it move you forward or backward. Does it empower or disempower you? The ones that hurt you or hold you back will be obvious. You may come up with beliefs such as:

"I'm overweight and I can't get leaner because":

I have no time
I'm too old
I can't stop eating
I hate exercise
You just can't do it when you have 4 kids
It's impossible after having a hip replacement

But the million dollar question is: are these beliefs actually true?

Beliefs are not facts. You may hold your beliefs as absolute reality, but when you deconstruct them and challenge them, you may see that they don't hold any water.

Self limiting beliefs are false interpretations (negative thought patterns) that hold you back. And you keep holding on to them because making excuses and staying the same is a lot more convenient than changing, isn't it? Change requires hard work, effort and leaving your comfort zone.

Your mission now: weaken the limiting beliefs and get rid of them

STEP 2: CHALLENGE THOSE BELIEFS

How do you challenge a belief? 4 ways:

(A) Challenge it directly: Is the belief even valid at all? See if you can find a "counter example" that disproves your belief. For example; if you think that after you've had 3 or 4 kids, it's impossible to get a nice flat stomach, what will you say after I introduce you to a dozen of my clients and readers who had 3 or 4 kids and went from bulging belly to rock-hard flat stomach? If they did it, then how could your belief be valid? Answer: It WASN'T! You believed something false and inaccurate and it was holding you back!

(B) Challenge the source: Is it your belief, or have you been living what your parents, peers or culture handed down to you? Just the realization that a belief wasn't yours to begin with is enough to shatter it.

(C) Challenge the usefulness of the belief: Ok, so you believed something when you were younger. Does still believing it has any usefulness today? Does it help you move closer to what you want in your life today? If not, then wouldn't today be a good time to get rid of it?

(D) Challenging the belief by weighing the consequences: If you keep this belief, what is it going to cost you? What will the pain be like? What will you miss? And what will these consequences be if you don't change it NOW?

STEP 3: INSTALL A NEW BELIEF

Nature abhors a vacuum, as Spinoza once said. You don't simply get rid of a belief, you must also replace it. What things would you want and need to believe instead that would create positive behaviors that would move you toward your goal? Write them down, then massage them into an affirmation. For example, if you've hung your hat on the belief that you didn't have time to exercise, could you write a new affirmation of belief similar to this?

"I'm a very busy person, so that means I must set clear priorities and I must keep my health and body on the top of my priority list. I always schedule time for my most important priorities, I am efficient with my training, and I use every minute of my day wisely. And if Barack Obama, the busiest person in the world, can train for 45 minutes a day 6 days a week, there's no excuse for me. I can do it too."

Write down your new belief affirmations and read them, right along with your goals, every day.

Then "activate" this affirmation by doing what Olympic and professional athletes do: engaging in mental rehearsal. Visualize yourself carrying out the behaviors that this belief would generate. Think about and feel what it would be like to take those positive actions steps and play mental movies of how your life would change by doing so. Involve all your senses: see it, hear it, feel it.

Keep it up until you start to see your behavior change and your habitual actions come into alignment with your goals/intentions. If you're diligent, you'll see changes in attitude and behavior with 21-30 days. It may happen sooner. It may take longer if you've carried deep, lifelong limiting beliefs. But in less than a month, the roots of the new belief pattern will be formed.

Then you can update your goals and affirmations to reflect your current priorities and move on to the next goal you want to achieve or the next limiting belief you want to change. Keep THAT up, and pretty soon, you will be LIMIT-LESS!

BELIEVE ME, spending quality time understanding and working on your beliefs is a lot more productive than spending time in forums arguing about whether a low carb program is better than a high carb program… or even whether the cure for obesity is found in the arcuate nucleus of the lower hypothalamus. It's in your head all right… but most people have been looking in the wrong place.

 

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Instead of New Year's Resolutions, Set S.M.A.R.T.E.R. Goals

Why do new year's resolutions usually fail? Why do you start with guns blazing on January 1st, but by February, you're losing motivation, cheating on your diet, skipping workouts, and slipping back into old patterns? John LaValle, a master trainer of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) suggests that we should take a closer look at the meaning behind the word "Resolution." Being derived from the word "re-solve," it really means "to solve again." And isn't that exactly what happens? You solve the same problem again and again, year after year?

You know what I'm talking about… That 20 pounds you lost last year, and promptly gained it right back… you are now resolving to take it off again aren't you? The very nature of the word resolution implies gaining it back again.

Suggestion: don't make resolutions. Set SMARTER goals.

Resolutions aren't real goals. They're more like wishes, and wishes are wishy-washy. A wish becomes a goal the moment you put it in writing. When you write your goals in a certain way, following scientific principles of success psychology, you'll skyrocket your chances of getting what you want this year… and keeping it.

One of the most tried and true methods for goal achievement is the SMART goals formula. If you searched the net for SMART goals, you would probably find a dozen different variations on the SMART goal acronym. Here's my version of SMART goals, along with a little extra to make them even SMART-ER.

1. Specific. Set goals with clarity. Your mind does not respond well to vague generalities. If you say your goal is to lose weight and then you lose one pound, then you've reached your goal. Is that what you really wanted? Get clear. Be precise. Be specific.

2. Measurable. Set goals that can be quantified in measurable units such as pounds, body fat percentage, lean body mass, inches and clothing sizes. Performance goals can include strength (lbs or kilos lifted) and repetitions completed. Don't forget to include health goals as well, such as blood pressure and blood lipids.

3. Accountable. Set goals you can be held accountable to. First be accountable to yourself by using a weekly progress chart, a daily nutrition diary and a training journal. Then double your motivation with external accountability and submit your results and journals to someone else who will hold you to your commitments.

4. Realistic. Set goals that are attainable and maintainable. If you lose two pounds of fat per week, you are doing awesome. 30 pounds in 30 days sounds great in the advertisements, but it is not typical, and rapid weight loss is likely to consist of muscle and water, not fat, and is nearly impossible to maintain.

 

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5. Time Bound. Set goals with deadlines. Time limits are highly motivating. With no time limit, there is no urgency for completion. Set goals for daily workouts and nutrition, weekly weight and body composition and 12 week changes in weight, body fat or measurements. Set long term goals as well for one year, five years and even beyond. For all time periods, be certain that your deadline is realistic.

Now we add some motivational ooompf for this year by making your goals even SMART-ER!

6. Emotional. Goals give you a direction, but strong emotions are the propulsion system that drives you in that direction. Build up a burning desire by focusing on the emotional reasons why you want to achieve your goal. Connect your goals to your values. What's most important to you about reaching your goal? If you reach 9% body fat, or whatever is your target, what will that do for you? What will your life look like then? How will it make you FEEL?

7. Reviewed often. Resolutions fail because they are casually set once at the beginning of the year and easily forgotten. Stay laser-focused by writing and reading your goals every day. Repetition is one of the keys to re-programming your mental computer for success. Use the goal card technique. Write your single most important body or fitness goal on a small card, then carry it with you every where you go, reading it several times a day.

S.M.A.R.T.E.R. GOALS is a simple, memorable formula for goal setting and goal getting. It may not be new, but then again, there are no new fundamentals. Methods and tactics may change, but scientific principles of success never change. And don't forget to make your goals even smarter this year. A goal that's not strongly desired and kept in front of you every day will be forgotten. Stay focused, eat right, train hard and expect success!

"A goal that is casually set and lightly taken will be freely abandoned at the first obstacle." - Zig Ziglar, Motivational Speaker

 

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Facebook and Social Media - The Next Marketing Opportunity

Marketing as an activity is all about reaching the right customers with the right products, and the result sought is delighted customers who are more than willing to open their purses wide enough to boost your revenues. For many years, marketers stalked their target customers through various means and by trying to get their message across to spread awareness about their wares.

Traditional Means of Communication

Traditionally, marketing communications were conducted via print, broadcast and such traditional media through disruptive advertising, where advertisements appear in between the content of interest for the customer.

Traditional media does give a large reach to a marketer with its programming of mass appeal. However, the wastage is equally high, since a large portion of the audience would belong to a different segment than the one that is to be targeted by the marketer.

Enter Social Media and the Internet

The revolution stirred by the internet as a medium took place because of the fact that it is highly personalized and provides more content on-demand than any other available medium. Social sites proliferated far and wide in their usage for a few simple reasons:

The power to create and distribute content is equally available to every user, irrespective of him/her being a customer or a marketer. In the earlier forms of media, that power rested with the editorial staff of the channel or the advertiser, but hardly ever with the user.
The medium is completely personalized, and a user can create or join groups and further create content based on what he/she likes.
Opinions are free and fair. This is one reason why social media is of utmost concern to marketers, since buying decisions are no more influenced as much by advertisements. The traditional word-of-mouth marketing approach has grown leaps and bounds on social networks.

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Facebook – At the Center of Social Media

With 500 million (and growing) unique users worldwide, Facebook is the number one social networking site in terms of activity and subscriptions. What started as a garage initiative by Mark Zuckerberg has now become the biggest phenomenon on the internet.

A user interface that allows for quick communication and the ability to create fan pages and groups at the click of a mouse button are what make Facebook extremely popular. Another important reason for its immense popularity is the wide variety of social applications that have been developed and made available within the Facebook environment.

These applications can allow users and friends to do joint activities like playing games that run endlessly, sharing photos, videos, and web links, and many more.


How does this help a marketer?

Traditionally, media plans were drawn to include television channels, publications, or any other media that can grab maximum eyeballs and effectively reach a selected target audience. The science of segmentation and targeting has become only more accurate in the case of social media.

Facebook provides a wide variety of avenues to communicate with the audience, which opens up an entirely different world of possibilities to have a fruitful dialogue with customers. Some of these methods used popularly by marketers are:

Advertising: The first opportunity, which is the most obvious one, is advertising on Facebook. The difference, however, is the fact that you can create your own advertisement in a matter of minutes and also specify the details of your target group in terms of demographics and types of discussions where you want your advertisement to appear.
Fan Pages: Facebook allows every brand, as well as individual users, to create fan pages for their favorite celebrities and their own homegrown businesses. Large brands have also created their official pages on Facebook that have a huge, immediate fan following around the world. The fan page has immense utility to convey first hand information about the brand and also to collect immediate and frank feedback from your customers.
Branded applications: One of the most effective ways to engage a user toward your brand is by creating an application; this could be a game or a contest, with your branding coming across subtly through it.

What makes Facebook even more exciting is the way it allows you to target your communication sharply just to the customer segment you want to attract. It also provides analytics and page insights that give good feedback and measurement on the activity done.

The options provided by Facebook can be creatively explored and used judiciously for bringing about maximum benefits to any brand.

However, while doing all this, you need to be aware of the fact that customers have an equal say and have the ability to respond immediately to any of your actions with a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Availing the service of a social media consultant to work out a social media strategy may be required so that your efforts will not be in vain.

 

 

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How to Stay on Your Diet and Stay in Shape Over the Holidays Without Turning into a Miserable Scrooge

My mom makes the most amazing Christmas cake in the world; it's been a tradition in our family for as long as I can remember. First, she mixes up a light, fluffy, vanilla cake mix, pours it into the pans and then pops it in the oven. After it's been baked, she stacks the cake in two layers with whipped cream spread generously between each layer. She then pours on red and green Jell-O, which gets soaked up inside the cake. Next, whipped cream is smothered all the way around for frosting. And finally, she garnishes it with red and green sprinkles. A few red and green-striped candy canes are stuck in the top as the finishing touch, and off it goes to the refrigerator so it can be served chilled later.

Now let me tell you, as a bodybuilder, I have a lot of discipline. But when that moist, delicious, red and green, Jell-O-filled, whipped-cream covered cake is sitting on the table in front of me on December 25th, it takes every ounce of my willpower to keep from calling it a "VERY high carb day" and devouring numerous very large slices.

Despite the temptation, I don't "pig out" nor do I deprive myself. Instead, I'm content with eating my single piece, savoring every mouthwatering bite, all the while repeating my mantra, "Nothing tastes as good as being lean feels."

The next day, on December 26th, I'm on the bike or Stairmaster at the crack of dawn, followed by six perfect meals of lean protein and complex carbohydrate - just like every other day of the year.

A week later, on December 31st, I usually go out for a nice dinner (very naughty food, I must admit), and then we toast champagne to the New Year at midnight. I'm in bed at a reasonable hour shortly thereafter.

Unless it's a scheduled day of rest on New Years day, I'm not groggy and hung over like many of my friends are. I'm in the gym squatting, bench pressing, curling, or "stairmastering" just like I usually am.

And here's the point: You can and should enjoy the holidays. You can enjoy being with family and going out with friends. You can go to holiday parties and have fun. You can enjoy a few "naughty" meals. You can have a piece of cake and a glass or two of champagne. There's no reason why you can't enjoy yourself AND stay healthy, lean and fit through the holidays. All it takes is some planning, some goal-setting and little dose of old-fashioned discipline.

I'd like to share with you 10 ways that you can follow your diet and stay in great shape over the holidays without turning into a "miserable Scrooge." If you follow this advice, then you'll be one of the proud few with a New Year's resolution to be the best you've ever been in the new year to come - instead of one of the guilt-ridden many who must resolve to reclaim what they lost over the year that's just passed them by.

 

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1. Expect to stay on your program over the holidays

"Fail to plan and you plan to fail" is a time worn and cliché statement, but it's still some of the best success advice you will ever hear.

Not only do most people fail to plan, they consciously plan to fail over the holidays. Most people expect to "blow" their diet and skip workouts over the holidays. They expect to eat more, to exercise less and to gain weight. As a result, they don't even make the effort.

Instead of taking control, they resign themselves to maintenance at best, or back-sliding at worst. This negative expectancy leads to a self-fulfilling prophecy. By the first week of January, they're in the worst shape they've been in for a year and they frantically make New Year's resolutions to shed the excess fat they've gained.

You can avoid this trap by planning to succeed during the holidays. Set up a positive expectation. Resolve now that you will not tolerate slipping backwards. Keep your standards up and don't settle! Not only can you plan to "stay in shape" over the holidays, you can plan to improve! All you have to do is make the decision and expect success.

 

2. Plan all your workouts in advance

You know your schedule is going to get hectic over the holidays. You'll be cooking, shopping, wrapping gifts, sending cards, going to parties, traveling, visiting family, and so on. To stay on your training and nutrition regimen is definitely going to take some sound time management skills.

Plan your schedule in advance. Anticipate what's coming up. Write it down. Put it on your calendar. By doing so, you won't be caught unprepared.

Use a schedule book or monthly calendar and "make appointments" for ALL your workouts for the entire holiday season. Then, post a copy where you will be forced to look at it every day. This is a powerful exercise that will keep you focused and force you to think about and prepare for each upcoming workout.

If you try to "wing it" and squeeze in your workouts and meals whenever you have time left over, you'll find that there never is any time left over! Somehow your daily activities always seem to "expand" to fill the hours in every day. So schedule your workouts and meal times in your calendar just like you would any other appointment or event. Once you've done that, stick to your schedule religiously.

 

3. Set some compelling training and fitness goals over the holiday period

Don't wait until January 1st to set your goals just because you think it will be harder to achieve them over the holidays. On the contrary, studies on personal achievement have shown that you'll usually reach 80% of the goals you put onto paper. The problem is that few people set any goals at all, and fewer still set them during the holidays.

Why wait? Why not do it now? Set some big goals that you can start working on during the holidays:

Set a goal to lose the 25 lbs you've always wanted to lose NOW Set the goal to gain 10 lbs of solid muscle NOW Been contemplating a competition in bodybuilding, fitness or the new ladies figure division? Pick an early spring show and GO FOR IT - START TRAINING NOW!

Goal setting should not be a once a year affair, it should be a continuous process. You should always have your goals in writing and your list should be regularly updated and rewritten. If you only set goals once a year, you're not going to accomplish much in your life.

 

4. Give yourself permission to have "free meals" - and schedule them in

A planned "free meal" or "re-feeding day" helps you to stay on your program better in the long run. If you're too strict all the time, you're setting yourself up for cravings and binge eating.

A few free meals per week will have very little effect on your physique. Also, if you've been on a strict, low carb and/or low calorie regimen for a long time, a full day of maintenance level calories might actually be good for you! It will boost your metabolic rate and give your body the signal that you're not starving and that it's ok to keep burning a lot of calories.

Over the holidays, schedule your dinners and parties so they become your "free meals." Then, for the rest of your meals, be steadfast! Just the fact that you know you have free meals coming up will relieve the pressure of staying on a strict diet for a long time.

Also, when you do have your free meal – ENJOY IT! If you're going to eat it and feel guilty, then don't have it at all. If you've stayed with the program all week long, then when your free meal rolls around, you deserve it!

 

5. If you fall off the wagon, get right back on it

So you had about a dozen too many of those Christmas cookies did you? Don't worry; because you have free meals built into your plan, you shouldn't let guilt immobilize you. Even if you fall completely off the wagon, don't beat yourself up. All you have to do is get right back on your program without missing another beat.

Too many people mess up once and then think their entire diet is ruined. They feel as if everything they've done prior to that day was wasted and there's no sense going on. Or even worse, they rationalize to themselves, "Well, I already cheated, so it doesn't matter now, I might as well keep pigging out."

That's nonsense. If you threw in the towel every time you didn't score 100% on your diet, most people would never get through more than a few days on any structured program. Just because you slip up once doesn't mean you should quit! You're only human. Don't let one small slip keep you derailed. Firmly plant your wheels back on the tracks and start rolling again.

 

6. Maintain your consistent eating schedule

If there's one thing that all people who successfully get lean and stay lean have in common, it's consistency. Without it, you never get any momentum going. It's like taking two steps forward, only to take three steps back.

Many people allow the busy holidays to throw them off their regular eating schedule. They completely veer off their usual meal frequency, or they start eating foods they would normally never eat (because "it's there").

Once you have a habit or pattern going, it's fairly easy to keep it going. But once you lose momentum, it's very difficult to get it going again because you must overcome inertia all over again. (An object at rest tends to stay at rest!)

On the major holidays, when there's a big dinner scheduled, many people think that skipping their morning and afternoon meals to "save room" for the big one later is a good idea. It's not. This is actually a good way to invite a binge that could set your back for days.

Don't lose your consistency or your momentum. Continue with your pattern of eating small, frequent meals all year round. All you have to do is count your holiday dinners as one of your regular meals and keep them small.

 

7. Control your portion sizes

You can have your cake and eat it too – you just can't eat the whole thing! One of the most important rules to remember this holiday season is the law of energy balance, which states: To lose body fat, you must consume fewer calories than you burn up each day.

There are two corollaries to the law of energy balance:

1. A caloric surplus gets stored as fat – even healthy food.
2. Small amounts of anything – even junk food – will NOT get stored as fat if you stay in a calorie deficit.

There's no reason to deprive yourself of things you enjoy. Just make sure you don't overindulge. As long as you enjoy your favorite foods in moderation, and you keep working out, it won't end up around your waistline.

 

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8. Don't buy into the low standards and expectations of others

Keep your standards high, but don't expect other people's standards to be as high as yours. Remember that most people have already planned in advance to fail at fitness over the holidays. You've decided to stay strong (haven't you?) Don't let their negative influence drag you down.

When you've reached your pre-ordained drink limit, say "When" and switch to water or a non alcoholic, non caloric beverage. When they offer you seconds on dessert, politely say, "No thank you, it was absolutely delicious, but I'm full, I can't eat another bite." And when the wee hours of the morning start to roll around, and your friends are egging you on to keep partying, politely tell them you need your sleep. Tomorrow is a work out day. If they're really your friends, they'll understand.

 

9. Make the best choices possible in every situation.

You know those tables you see at holiday parties that are covered with yards of chips, dips, pretzels, cookies, salami, candies, punch, liquor, and a seemingly endless assortment of other goodies? Well, did you also notice that there is usually a tray full of carrot sticks, cauliflower, celery and other healthy snacks too?

No matter where you are, you always have choices. Sometimes you have to choose between bad and worse. Other times you can choose between good and better. But always make the best choice possible based on whatever your options are. If nothing else, you can choose to eat a small portion of something "bad" rather than a huge portion, thereby obeying the law of calorie balance.

Chances are good that there's probably something healthy on the menu at every holiday gathering. As you know, lean proteins and fibrous carbs are a great for getting lean, so fill up on the turkey breast, try to get a vegetable in there, and go easy on the desserts.

 

10. If you drink, enjoy alcohol in moderation

If you enjoy having a few drinks on special occasions, then go ahead and have a drink or two. But if you're serious about your fitness goals, then drink infrequently and in moderation. Alcohol puts fat oxidation on hold while providing a large amount of calories. When there's alcohol in your bloodstream, you're not in fat burning mode.

I've never met anyone who was truly serious about fat loss or bodybuilding who was a heavy drinker. Alcohol and muscles just don't mix. The impact goes beyond added body fat; your energy levels and workouts can be affected for days after a night of heavy drinking. A glass of wine may have health benefits, but there's never any reason or excuse for binge drinking or getting drunk.

So go ahead and toast to the New Year, but know when to say when.

 

In conclusion, there's no reason to let your exercise and nutrition program spoil your holidays, but there's also no reason to let your holidays spoil your exercise and nutrition program! Put these 10 holiday tips into practice and you can start losing fat today, not next year.

 

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How To Lose 20 Pounds Really, Really Fast

Back "in the day" when I was a full time personal trainer and I met with weight loss clients in person at my New Jersey Health Club, the first thing I would always ask during the initial consultation was:

"Tell me what you want... and I'll show you how to get it."

Typical reply from client:

"I want to lose 20 pounds fast."

My reply:

"Are you SURE that's what you want? ...If I can show you how to lose 20 pounds REALLY fast, will that make you happy?"

They nodded their head affirmatively as their eyes lit up in anticipation of the rapid weight loss secrets I was about to reveal...

Their face went white when - with a totally straight face – I pulled out a hacksaw and started walking towards them.... menacingly.

Not sure whether to laugh or run in sheer terror, they said,

"What the heck are you doing?"

"You said you wanted to lose 20 pounds fast. This is the easiest, surest, most effective way I know to take 20 pounds off you FAST! In fact, I figure that right leg of yours might even weigh 25 pounds!"

I kept walking closer and started to get into sawing position, wielding my fast, effective and guaranteed weight loss tool...

"Bear with me because this IS quick, but sometimes it takes a few minutes for me to cut through the bone."

By this time, my client (and I) are either completely cracking up, I have seriously scared the living you know what out of them, or they just think I'm a complete lunatic... (depends on whether I was able to keep a straight face or not)

Finally, the light bulb goes on, and my client would see where I was going with this:

"Okay, smart alec," I get it... I don't want to lose WEIGHT, I want to lose FAT."

Sometimes I would be having so much fun, I would just keep on playin'...

"But why not? This is easy, fast and guaranteed - just what everyone wants these days... it's even better than taking a pill! Come on... let me hack it off! You'll be my next testimonial: 'I lost 20 pounds in 5 minutes!' Imagine what that will do for my business!"

"Very funny. I told you, I get it! I want to lose FAT, not muscles and bones. I need my leg!"

Naturally, of course, I don't always have to pull out my trusty blade. Every once in a while... about as often as a total solar eclipse... a client answers my question like this:

"What do I want? Tom, I want to lose 20 pounds of body fat in the next 12 weeks. I want to do it slowly, safely and healthfully and then keep it off permanently. I want all the fat around my hips and thighs completely gone and I want a firm flat stomach. I want muscle all over my body while still looking feminine. I'd like to see myself at about 16% body fat and maintain all my muscle or gain a few pounds of lean mass if I can, especially in my arms. This is important to me because I want to set a good example for my kids, I want to be healthy and live to at least 90 and I want my husband to look at me and say, "I love your body," and I want to be able to *honestly* say back to him, "me too!"

It is on these rare occasions that I know there is still intelligent life on this planet.

If you could answer the question, "What do you want" with the lucidity, clarity and specificity that this woman did, I don't think you would ever have any difficulty reaching your health and fitness goals... or any other goal in your life, for that matter.

Her answer was what you call a very "well-formed" goal, backed up with lots of emotional motivation-inducing "reasons why."

"I want to lose weight" is a poorly-formed goal.

 

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"Weight" is not the same as "fat." Weight includes muscle, bone, internal organs as well as lots and lots of water.

If you only learn ONE thing from all my newsletters, articles and books, PLEASE learn this:

WHAT YOU REALLY WANT IS TO BURN THE FAT, WHILE KEEPING THE MUSCLE!!!!

FAT LOSS is what you want, not weight loss.

If your body were 100% rock-solid muscle, with absolutely nothing that jiggled (unless it was supposed to), would you care how much you weighed?

I bet you wouldn't! And if that's true, then…

STOP WORSHIPPING THE SCALE AND START MEASURING YOUR BODY COMPOSITION!

By measuring your body fat, you take the guesswork out of your health and fitness plan and you get an accurate picture of what's really happening in your body as a result of your diet and exercise program.

Instead of worrying about whether you are losing muscle, or wondering if you are losing fat, you can measure it and KNOW for sure. (I always get a good chuckle when someone tells me they're worried about losing muscle when they don't even measure how much muscle they have!)

Instead of being confused by all the "opinions" from weight loss and exercise "experts" who are all telling you something different, you can MEASURE your body composition and based on the results, you can KNOW for sure whether your program is working.

A very wise man once said,

"A single measurement is worth a thousand opinions."

So, how do you measure body fat?

Thanks to technology, there are some methods today that are so accurate, they can tell you whether your left pinky has more fat than your right pinky! Unfortunately, many of them are either too expensive or they are inaccessible, being found only in hospitals or research facilities

If you want to learn a LOT about various body fat testing methods, chapter 3 of my e-book, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle  goes into great detail about the pros and cons of all the various fat testing methods. Instead of re-hashing it all here, let me give you three quick and easy, practical suggestions:

Suggestion 1: Have a trainer or fitness professional measure you if this service is available at your local health club. Sometimes, there's a charge - usually $15 - $25, although some clubs offer the service for free to all their members.

Suggestion 2: Purchase an Accu-measure skinfold caliper. Do a google or yahoo search to find a reseller.

The Accu-measure was designed to allow you to measure your own body fat in the privacy of your own home (you don't need someone else to measure you)

Some people wonder if this is really accurate. Truth is, it's not quite as accurate as a multi site skinfold test from an experienced tester, but what's most important is not the "accuracy" per se, but the reliability and consistency of your measurements so you can track your progress. Skinfold calipers in general are not accurate or inaccurate, it's the person doing the test that is accurate or inaccurate.

Suggestion 3: If you have a spouse, roommate, or friend who can measure your body fat, you can purchase a Slim Guide body fat caliper (or just about any brand of caliper) from Creative Health Products: chponline.com

The Slimguide is the best inexpensive caliper available (about $20), but it wasn't designed for you to measure your own body fat like the Accu Measure. You'll need someone to measure you with this caliper. Other models of body fat calipers (if you want to splurge), range from $150 to $450. (At our health clubs, I use the electronic "SKYNDEX" caliper with the 4-site "Durnin formula.")

The calipers come with instructions, or you can use these formulas, which I have used and found to be very accurate:

4 Site formula for men (abdomen, suprailiac, thigh, tricep)

% fat = .29288(sum of 4 skinfolds) - 0.0005(sum of four skinfolds squared) + 0.15845(age) - 5.76377

4-Site Formula for women (abdomen, suprailiac, thigh, tricep)

% Fat = (.29669)(sum of 4 skinfolds) - (.00043)(Sum of four skinfolds squared) + .02963(age) + 1.4072

[Source: Jackson A S, Pollock, M (1985) Practical assessment of body composition. Physician Sport Med. 13: 76-90.]

Body fat percentages vary based on age and gender, but 20-25% body fat is average for women (15-19% is ideal), while 15-20% is average for men (10-14% is ideal). I have detailed charts for body fat charts in my e-book if you're interested.

Once you know your body fat percentage, then weigh yourself and record your weight and body fat on a progress chart such as the one found in my Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle Program (a fat loss program, not a weight loss program). This chart is how you will track your progress and "keep score."

You can calculate your lean body mass (muscle and other fat free tissue) very easily just by crunching some numbers:

For example, if you weigh 200 pounds and you have 10% body fat then you have 20 pounds of fat (10% of 200 = 20). That means you have a lean body mass (LBM) of 180 pounds.

Now we're talking! With this data, you can get a really clear picture of how your exercise and nutrition program are affecting your physique.

Losing weight is very easy. Losing fat - and keeping it off without losing muscle - is a much bigger challenge. If you simply wanted to lose weight, we could just chop off your leg.

Or, (slightly less painful), I could show you how to drop 10 - 15 pounds over the weekend just by dehydrating yourself and using natural herbal diuretics. Wrestlers do it all the time to make a weight class. But what good would that do if it's almost all water and you're just going to gain it all back within days?

You don't have to "throw away your scale" like many "experts" tell you to. By all means, keep using the scale, the tape measure and even photographs and the mirror - the more feedback the better - but body fat is where it's at.

By the way, I recently bought a chain saw and a shiny new axe from Home Depot, and I've been practicing my "American Psycho" and Jack Nicholson, "The Shining" impersonations... so if you want to come to my office any time soon for personal consultation, you'd better have the right answer to my question, "What do you want?"

 

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How an Entire Year Can Go By With No Results

If you've been doing the same nutrition, same calories, same cardio, same weight training and the same intensity for the entire past year with no changes, then you shouldn't be suprised if you've continued to get the SAME results (very little).

If you do more of the same, you usually get more of the same.

Caloric intake, for example is not something you calculate once and then never pay attention to again. Calories have to be calculated and customized for each individual in the beginning and then adjusted continuously in "real time" during the course of a fat loss program, based on actual results.

Just because you start at 1800, for example, doesn't mean your caloric intake should stay there. Calories may need to be increased or decreased depending on whether your goals, your body weight and your activity levels change and based on your weekly progress (or lack of).

Which brings me to another point. I am a huge fan of using progress charts. There is a saying in business management and sports coaching:

"What gets measured gets done."

When you start "keeping score" and tracking performance right down to the numbers, it's almost miraculous how this awareness of how you're doing translates into improved results.

When you track your body composition results every week, if a week or two goes by with no results, then you don't continue with more of what got you no results, you change some variable in your program immediately!

An old Turkish proverb that says,

"No matter how far you've traveled down the wrong road, always turn back!"

Of course, you don't have to throw out your entire program, you can simply "tweak" ONE or maybe two variables within the same program.

Also, when you measure, track and analyze muscle versus fat (body composition), instead of just scale weight, you might even discover you've gained some lean body mass and this offsets the drop on the scale (which means it's possible you made more progress than you thought).

Now, back to the calories. To break a plateau, you can take a reduction in calories, or an increase in activity, either of which will create a deficit if you are currently in energy balance, or increase your existing caloric deficit.

At the end of the day, fat loss boils down to calories in versus calories out, so if you plateau, you may need a simple calorie reduction, provided you don't restrict too low for too long (which tends to trigger your body's "starvation response.")

As for your cardio program, 3 days a week of cardio works for many people, but usually, I would consider three weekly cardio sesssions a maintenenance workout or at best a starting point for beginners, NOT a "maximum fat loss" program.

Example: this week, you could increase your cardio from 3 sessions to 4 sessions (or 4-5). If you combine the decrease in food intake with an increase in calories burned through activity, that will almost certainly get you burning fat again.

If it does, then stay with that cardio plan. If not, the next week go up to 5 days a week. Repeat this simple "feedback loop" process as many times and for as long as necessary.

Also remember that more (often) is not always better. You can also increase the intensity and get more calories burned in same amount of time. This feedback loop process can be used to make decisions about your training intensity, duration and type, as well as frequency.

Whichever strategy you choose to break the plateau, remember Albert Einstein's definition of insanity:

 

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"Insanity is to keep doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result."

Although this seems like common sense to some people, what happens is really quite common because it does appear that you're doing everything you're "supposed to be doing" with perfectly good intentions.

You may have all the key elements there: You're exercising (weights and cardio). You're watching your nutrition, and you've been disciplined and consistent in following it.

The trouble with many popular programs - even good ones - is that they are too dogmatic. Their entire program may revolve around "X" number of calories, "X" days per week of cardio and "X" days a week of weights….

And you're not allowed to "tamper" with that "holy grail" formula.

I can understand the rationale for a simple diet and exercise prescription for a beginner in order to not confuse them with too many choices, but what if it doesnt work after a month, three months, six months, A WHOLE YEAR? What if there are no options, what then?

In NLP, there's a principle, (borrowed from cybernetics), called The Law of Requisite Variety, which says,

"The person with the most flexibility is the person with the most power and the greatest chance for success."

You need to know what to do when you're not getting results… you need options and choices for breaking plateaus, and that's important because plateaus happen to everyone - including me.

Some people think that hitting a fat loss plateau means there's something wrong with them. But plateaus are natural and normal. In fact, you could look at it this way:

Hitting a plateau means your body is healthy and your body is functioning normally, because normal function of the body is to adapt effectively to stress, to protect you and to maintain homeostasis.

Exercise is a stress. Dieting is a stress. It's natural for your body to adapt to them. When you adapt, you must place a new "positive stress" on the body if you want continued improvement.

If you want to learn more details about how to change your program to break plateaus and make continuous progress as fast as safely possible, then I recommend you take a look at Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle (BFFM).

BFFM has flexibility, feedback and performance tracking built right into it. Chapter 4 in BFFM teaches the "BFFM feedback loop method", and shows you how to chart progress and adjust your diet and workouts on a weekly basis, to keep you making progress or get you back on track if your progress stalls out.

There is no reason to allow even a few weeks, let alone an entire year to go by without results. But you can't expect to get different results if you continue doing more of what's not working.

Keep after it! Be persistent… but also be flexible!

 

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Goal Setting For The New Decade: Beyond The New Year's Resolution

When you pause and reflect on the past decade as you look ahead to a new one, it makes you appreciate how short life is, how valuable time is and how quickly the time can pass you by - with nothing to show for it, if you don't plan otherwise.

That's why the passing of another decade can feel like a wakeup call as much as a fresh start: Looking at the technological wonders that surround us in 2010, I can't help thinking it feels like science fiction.

In fact, modern technology is one of the reasons why some people have succeeded at body transformation while others have failed.

I'm still in awe of the web. The satellite navigation system in my car amazes me every time I drive. I can store a library of books in a device that fits in my pocket. It blows my mind that we can speak to each other face to face through the internet live on video. That's straight from Star Trek! And those are just the everyday little things.

It's the greatest time to be alive in all of human history! Unfortunately, today's modern conveniences have brought a dark side upon us.

Rising obesity has paralleled the march of technology. The chair-bound, desk-job, computer, car, elevator, television based society of today is helping to make millions of people fat and lazy.

Our current way of life is less than a century old, yet our biology hasn't changed in tens of thousands of years. Our bodies were designed to move and work, not sit and click.

We've become spoiled. Complacent. Dependent. And we are paying a price for it. We are fatter than ever before in all of human history. More than two thirds of Americans are now overweight. One third are obese.

People are dying because they're too fat.

Ironically, none of our new technology can solve our body fat problems.  There's no easy way. No pill. No machine. No drug. More knowledge isn't going to help. We already have most of the answers. We know more about the human body than ever before. But it's all academic.

The problem lies in the doing. You have to do the work – in the gym and in the kitchen. Hard work.

We are a quick fix society. It's partly human nature, but technology is making us more impatient. We can have products delivered to us with one click and even do it from our cell phones. We have instant downloads, movies on demand, and drive through coffee shops. We get  our food made and delivered in just minutes while we are sitting in our cars, and it's still not quick enough. The internet is blazingly fast, but most people will abandon a web page in seconds if it hasn't loaded. It's no different with fat loss. We want six pack abs yesterday.

Simultaneously fighting the pull of human nature and the convenience of new technology is no easy task. But there is a solution: Future Orientation.

The most successful people in the world today are those who have a long term perspective. They plan 5-10 years in advance and beyond. They know how to enjoy and live in the present moment, but they take action and make decisions based on their future vision.

The passing of another decade makes you take stock of yourself and your achievements, or lack thereof. "What did I accomplish in the last 10 years? Am I a better person today than I was in 2000?"

If you don't like the answers, then it's time to finally get serious about your future because the next 10 years are going to fly by even faster than the last 10 as the pace of life and society gets even faster.

To succeed in the new decade, think beyond new year's resolutions. Think beyond the 12 week fitness goal. As you write your goals this year, don't stop with 3 month or even 1 year goals.

Project yourself into the future: 3, 5 and 10 years from now. For each point, dream, fantasize, visualize: if your body, your health your physical performance were perfect in every way, what would that look like? Describe it in vivid detail.

With our ingrained penchant for quick fixes, we often overestimate what we can achieve in the short term and set unrealistic deadlines on our short term goals. But the flipside is that we often underestimate what we can achieve in the long term, so we set our long term goals too low.  Do you realize that people have gone from broke to billionaire in 10 years? In this internet age, some have done it even faster.

 

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My challenge for you this year is to start thinking about your body and your life with the same type of creativity that has led to our greatest technological advances:

Not the same thoughts as yesterday. Not just positive thoughts. just bigger thoughts. NEW THOUGHTS! Creative thoughts! Inventive thoughts! From new thoughts will spring new goals, new actions and new achievements.

Fitness goals should not take over your life, they should enhance every other part of it. So take this opportunity to achieve balance by setting long term goals for every area of your life – health, fitness, finances, career, relationships, experiences, travel, possessions and spiritual growth.

Most people didn't set any goals 10 years ago. They're among the masses who are in the same place today as they were a decade ago.  

Some people only set short term goals, so they accomplished a few little things, but then stopped, as if a goal were a final destination rather than a stepping stone along a path. Other people set goals but didn't follow through on them. They forgot that goal setting and goal achieving are two different things.

Don't fall into these traps.

If you need coaching in the goal setting process – from the daily and weekly baby steps to the long term goals and dreams that span a decade – read chapter one of Burn The Fat, Feed the Muscle.  If you already have it. Now is the time to revisit it.

If you don't own a copy yet, you can get the program at:

 

Most people make resolutions. Some people set well-formed goals. But long term goals are the goals that almost everyone forgets to set.

If you didn't do this exercise 10 years ago, do it now. If you do, I guarantee that in 2013, 2015, 2020, you'll not only find yourself living at a whole new level, you'll find yourself living in another world - one of your own creation.

 

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The Glycemix Index (GI) - Key To Fat Loss Or Just Another Diet Gimmick

The glycemic index (GI) is a scale from 1 to 100 that measures how quickly carbohydrate foods are broken down into glucose. The original purpose for the glycemic index was to help diabetics keep their blood sugar under control. The glycemic index has recently attracted a lot of attention in the bodybuilding, fitness and weight loss world and has even become the central theme in numerous best-selling diet books as a method to choose the foods that are best for losing weight.

According to advocates of the glycemic index system, foods that are high on the GI scale such as rice cakes, carrots, potatoes, watermelon or grape juice are "unfavorable" and should be avoided because high GI foods are absorbed quickly, raise blood sugar rapidly and are therefore more likely to convert to fat or cause health problems.

Instead, we are urged to consume carbohydrates that are low on the GI scale such as black eye peas, barley, old fashioned oatmeal, peanuts, grapefruit, apples and beans because they do not raise blood sugar as rapidly.

While the GI does have some useful applications, such as the use of high GI foods or drinks for post workout nutrition and the strong emphasis on low GI foods for those with blood sugar regulation problems, there are flaws in strictly using the glycemic index as your only criteria to choose carbs on a weight loss program.

For example, the glycemic index is based on eating carbohydrates by themselves in a fasted state. If you are following effective principles of fat-burning and muscle building nutrition such as those outlined in my Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle (BFFM) e-book  you should be eating small, frequent meals to increase your energy, maintain lean body mass and optimize metabolism for fat loss.

However, since the glycemic index of various foods was developed based on eating each food in the fasted state, the glycemic index loses some of its significance. you should be eating small, frequent meals to increase your energy, maintain lean body mass and optimize metabolism for fat loss. However, since the glycemic index of various foods was developed based on eating each food in the fasted state, the glycemic index loses some of its significance.

 

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In addition, when you are on a diet program aimed at improving body composition (losing fat or gaining muscle), you will usually be combining carbs and protein together with each meal for the purposes of improving your fat to muscle ratio. When carbs are eaten in mixed meals that contain protein and some fat, the glycemic index loses even more of its significance because the protein and fat slows the absorption of the carbohydrates (as does fiber).

Mashed potatoes have a glycemic index near that of pure glucose, but combine the potatoes with a chicken breast and broccoli and the glycemic index of the entire meal is lower than the potatoes by itself.

Rice cakes have a very high glycemic index, but if you were to put a couple tablespoons of peanut butter on them, the fat would slow the absorption of the carbs, thereby lowering the glycemic index of the combination.

A far more important and relevant criteria for selecting carbs for weight loss - as well as all your other foods, proteins and fats included - is whether they are natural or processed. To say that a healthy person with no metabolic disorders should completely avoid natural, unprocessed foods like carrots or potatoes simply because they are high on the glycemic index is ridiculous.

I know many bodybuilders (myself included) who eat high glycemic index foods such as white potatoes every day right up until the day of a competition and they reach single digit body fat. How do they do it if high GI foods "make you fat?" It's simple – high GI foods DON'T necessarily make you fat – choosing natural foods and burning more calories than you consume are far more important factors. Although it's not correct to say that all calories are created equal, a calorie deficit is the most important factor of all when fat loss is your goal.

The glycemic index is clearly not a "gimmick" and should not be completely disregarded, as it is a definitely a legitimate nutritional tool. Is it a good idea to eat low GI foods in general? Sure. Is eating high GI foods after your workouts a good idea? Absolutely. But diet programs which hang their hats on glycemic index alone as the "miracle solution" are just another example of how one single aspect of nutrition can be used as a "hook" in marketing and said to be the "end all be all" of fat loss, when it's really only one small piece of the puzzle.

Eating Low glycemic index foods alone does NOT guarantee you will lose fat. You have to take in the bigger picture, which includes calories/energy balance, meal timing and frequency, macronutrient composition, choice of processed versus refined foods as well as how all these nutritional factors interact with your exercise program.

 

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Faith Based Diets: Does God Punish You For Being Fat?

Faith based diets have been around for decades. But is overeating really a sin? Does God punish you for being fat? A recent column in an issue of USA Today answers, "weight loss is hard enough without feeling that the almighty is on your back, too"…

Recently, I was sitting in a wonderful little breakfast "parlor" on Main Street in Santa Monica (California), enjoying a bowl of oatmeal, a mountain of fresh fruit and a "sexy omelette" (the bodybuilder's favorite). There was even a "Schwarzenegger omelette" on the menu - I kid you not! Although the usual dietary temptations are omnipresent everywhere, I noticed a lot more healthy eateries and healthy options on menus out here, which is okay by me! It seems like people are much more health conscious in Southern California compared to back home in the New Jersey/New York City area.

One thing is for sure - people are definitely in better shape. No doubt, it's partly due to the year-round beautiful weather. You can't hide under those winter coats in this weather! When I left Newark airport it was a blustery 37 degrees. It's 77 degrees and sunny as I sit here on my hotel balcony, laptop on my lap, overlooking the palm trees and Pacific ocean.

A friend of mine once said that "Palm trees are God's way of saying, LIVE HERE!"

Speaking of God, that brings me to the subject of this article. As I was finishing up the last few bites of my high protein omelette, I came across an article in USA Today that I simply HAD to pass on to you because it's related to some of the weight loss work I've been recently doing and it bears some important lessons.

The column, written by Christine Whelan, a professor of sociology, said that religious diet groups are growing in number and some of them say that "God might not approve of that second piece of pie." In fact, some of these groups, reported Whelan, warn that God will punish you for overeating and being fat. The Weigh Down Workshop, one of the most "hard-line" of such groups, tells their participants that God will "destroy you" if you abuse your body by overeating.

Well, we've certainly heard of gluttony referred to as a deadly sin, but is this going a little too far?"

I'm not sure what other people think, but I prefer to think of God as a loving God, who does not punish a person in the hereafter for being fat in this life. But then again, why would he have to? He has created a magnificent physical world based on immutable physical laws of cause and effect, reward and consequence, which mete out all the "punishment" needed, right here in this life: diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, osteoarthritis, gout, and even cancer. All of them are linked to obesity. Combined with the emotional pain of being overweight and the lower quality (and sometimes quantity) of life, I'd say that's punishment enough, wouldn't you?

 

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But enough of my theological viewpoint, I found some tremendously valuable practical lessons in the newspaper article.

I don't believe that instilling guilt or fear of eternal damnation is an uplifting way to change behavior. Perhaps it might be effective for some, as fear of consequences can be a powerful motivator. But aren't there more positive ways to achieve behavior modification than hellfire and brimstone?

For example, metaphors are also powerful motivators, especially because metaphors are language that your unconscious mind can understand. Didn't Jesus teach in parables and metaphors? What if you said your body was like a temple? Would you behave differently? Would you look after your "temple" with more care? Those with spiritual beliefs almost certainly would, if they kept that in mind and believed it on a deep level.

In my books, I delve into the emotional, psychological and social aspects of body fat loss.

Some of the chapters are devoted to teaching you how to build a fortress of positive, uplifting, inspiring energy around you in the form of positive, uplifting, and inspiring people. But many of my readers and clients tell me this is easier said than done in their world. "What am I supposed to do when peer pressure from my friends is pulling me down?" "What do I do if my own family won't support my new, healthier choices? What if they keep bringing potato chips, cookies and ice cream into the house?" "What if no one supports me?"

Enter spiritual diet support groups. Not all of these groups are so extreme as to pronounce that being fat is a sin. And as Whelan put it, "religion may be the ultimate trump card of many behavior modification programs."

No matter how independent we are, we all need support in our journeys toward personal improvement. It's the great paradox of succeeding in any endeavor in life - you have to do it by yourself, but you can't do it alone.

Spiritual communities and religious support groups can be the last refuge of support and encouragement for some people. For anyone with spiritual beliefs, these groups may be one of the best places of all to turn for social support. There's your church, synagogue, mosque or other place of worship. There are also organized weight loss support groups.

One such group mentioned in the USA Today article is BABES - Beautiful Accountable Babes Exercising Sensibly. The mission of babes is "connecting with others to lose weight and build friendships." Accountability. Exercising. Connecting with others. That all sounds pretty sensible to me! Moreover, according to BABES co-founder, Barb Swanson, "we are not into sin and judgement. God wants balance and it's more than the size that you are."

Indeed it is. As I have said before, body fat is not a person, it's a temporary physical condition. What we really are is far more than physical bodies.

There's enough guilt, fear and shame for people who are struggling with weight issues already. They don't need any more negativity from their spiritual leaders. Instead, if you are a person of faith, use your spiritual community as a source of social support and inspiration, and motivate yourself by focusing on the positive and uplifting side. It will pay you eternal dividends.

 

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Everything You Need To Know About Loose Skin And Weight Loss

I receive a lot of e-mail from people with loose skin or from overweight people who are concerned about having loose skin after they lose the weight. In fact, this is one of the biggest concerns and most frequently asked questions I receive from men and women who have a lot of weight to lose.

Just recently, I received this email from a reader of my syndicated "Ask Tom" fat loss column:

"Tom, I began a fat loss program using your Burn The Fat system and it worked so well I got down to 15 1/2 stones (from 19). However, this has caused me a problem: Excess abdominal skin. I didn't crash lose this weight, it came off at the rate of about 2 lbs. per week just like you recommended. Now I'm unsure of whether to carry on, as my abdomen has quite a lot of excess skin - I feel like I've turned into a bloody Shar-Pei! Does everyone go through this? Will the skin tighten up? I was overweight for more than 12 years. Am I going to end up needing surgical skin removal? Can you offer me any advice? I'm a medical student in the UK and my colleagues seem determined to proffer surgery as the only option."

There are 14 things you should know about loose skin after very large weight losses:

1. Skin is incredibly elastic. Your skin can stretch and expand or tighten and retract to a great degree. Look at what women go through during pregnancy. Some women do experience stretch marks after pregnancy, but obviously skin is remarkably elastic.

2. Elasticity of skin depends on both genetics and environment/lifestyle. Wrinkling and loss of elasticity is partly the consequence of aging (genetic factors) and also a result of environmental factors such as oxidative stress, excessive sun exposure, and nutritional deficiency. The environmental parts you can fix, the genetics and age part, you cannot. Advice: Get moving and change the things you have control over... Be realistic and don't worry about those things you don't have control over.

3. How much your skin returns to its former tautness depends partly on age. The older you get, the more an extremely large weight loss can leave loose skin that will not return to normal.

4. How long you carry extra weight may influence how much the skin will become taut after the weight loss: For example, compare a 9 month pregnancy with 9 years carrying 100 excess pounds.

5. How much weight was carried has a lot to do with how much the skin will resume a tight appearance. Your skin can only be stretched so much and be expected to "snap back" one hundred percent. With extreme obesity, the probability of there still being loose skin after weight loss is higher.

6. How fast the weight was gained also has a lot to do with how much the skin will resume a tight appearance. Your skin can only be stretched so quickly and be expected to "snap back."

7. How fast weight is lost also has a lot to do with how much the skin will tighten up. Rapid weight loss doesn't allow the skin time to slowly resume to normal. (This is yet another reason to lose fat slowly; 1-2 pounds per week, 3 pounds at the most if you have a lot of weight to lose, and even then, only if you are measuring body fat and you're certain it's fat you're losing, not lean tissue).

8. There are exceptions to all of the above; For example, people who gained and then lost incredible amounts of weight quickly at age 50 or 60, and their skin returned 100% to normal.

9. Creams probably don't work. There are many creams advertised as having the ability to restore the tightness of your skin. the late bodybuilding guru Dan duchaine used to recommend topical creams made with pycnogenol, which contain the antioxidant bioflavanoids called proanthocyanidins. But to the best of my knowledge, none of the topical creams are scientifically validated. I haven't even heard much anecdotal evidence that they work -- at least not permanently and measurably -- and especially if you have a lot of loose skin. There are definitely some topicals that will pull water from under your skin, but remeber, that is temporary. Buyer should beware with topical products. (as an aside, Ive also heard anectodal reports that skin brushing was helpful, but again, I am not aware of any scientific evidence proving this is effective).

 

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10. Nutrition has a lot to do with the health of your skin. Essential fatty acids in particular are very valuable for many reasons, and one of them is for the health of your skin. It would be worth taking an EFA supplement such as fish oil, flax oil or an oil blend like Udo's choice. Antioxidants are also very important, so be sure to consume copious amounts of a variety of vegetables and fruits. Also pay very close attention to hydration. Drink approximately a gallon of water a day or a minimum of half your body weight in ounces. (By the way, whey protein is high in a powerful antioxidant called glutathione).

11. Exercise has a lot to do with how your skin appears after you lose body fat. If you use very low calorie diets, you are likely to lose lean body mass, and this is going to exacerbate the loose, hanging skin appearance. On the other hand, if you are exercising regularly and increasing lean body mass with weight training, you will be more likely to minimize the appearance of loose skin.

12. Get second opinions if you are considering surgery.If you're considering surgical skin removal, consult a physician for advice because this is not a minor operation, but keep in mind that your plastic surgeon may be making his BMW payments with your abdominoplasty money. (Surgery might be recommended in situations where it's not 100% necessary). Surgery should be left as the absolute final option in extreme cases.

13. Give your skin time. Your skin will definitely get tighter as your body fat gets lower. I've seen and heard of many cases where the skin gradually tightened up, at least partially, after a one or two year period where the weight loss was maintained and exercise continued.

14. Know your body fat percentage before even thinking about surgery. Loose skin is one thing, but still having a lot of body fat is another. Be honest with yourself and do that by taking your body fat measurement. This can be done with skinfold calipers or a variety of other devices (calipers might not be the best method if you have large folds of loose skin. Look into impedance analysis, underwater weighing, DEXA or Bod Pod).

Suppose for example, a man drops from 35% body fat all the way down to 20%. He should be congratulated, but I would tell him, "Don't complain about loose skin yet, your body fat is still high. Press onward and keep getting leaner and be sure to focus on strength training to increase lean body mass as well."

Average body fat for men is in the mid teens (16% or so). Average body fat for women is in the 20-25% range. Good body fat for men is 10-12%, and single digits is extremely lean. Men shouldn't expect to look "ripped" with 100% tight skin on the abs unless they have single digit body fat. Women shouldn't expect to have tight abdominal skin unless they are in the low to mid teens in body fat.

Except in extreme cases, you are actually unlikely to see someone with loose skin who has very low body fat and especially someone who has not just "lost weight" but has altered body composition by adding lean muscle as well. It's quite remarkable how much your skin can tighten up once your body fat goes from "average" to "excellent" and even more so when lean body mass increase. Someone with legitimate single digit body fat and a ton of loose skin is a rare sight.

So the key to getting tighter skin is to improve your body composition (muscle to fat ratio), and lose more body fat, slowly and sensibly, up to the point where your body composition rating is BETTER than average (in the "good" to "great" category, not just "okay"). Only AFTER you reach your long term body fat percentage goal should you give thought to "excess skin removal." At that point, admittedly, there are bound to be a few isolated cases where surgery is necessary if you can't live with the amount of loose skin remaining.

However, unless you are really, really lean, it's difficult to get a clear picture of what is loose skin, what is just remaining body fat and how much further the skin will tighten up when the rest of the fat is lost.

 

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Don't Catch These Two Diseases

One of my favorite motivational speakers is a guy by the name of Brian Tracy, who is one of the world's top experts on success psychology and personal achievement. In case you haven't heard of Brian, he is sort of like a calmer, more "laid back" version of infomercial guru, Tony Robbins.

Not long ago, I had the chance to attend a seminar Brian held at the Jacob Javitz center here in New York City. One part of his talk really grabbed my attention, and I'd like to share it with you...

Brian said that that there are two diseases running rampant across America and much of the industrialized world today. If you had to hazard a guess, which two do you think they are? Cancer? Diabetes? Heart Disease? Osteoporosis? Obesity?

Guess what? They're NONE of the above. In fact, they're not even physical diseases – they are mental diseases.

The first mental disease, according to Tracy, is called something-for nothing disease. Something for nothing disease is contracted by people who believe they can take more out than what they put in. These are the people who want all the rewards without paying full price, or as Brian put it, "They want to go through the revolving door of life on someone else's push."

Quick fix disease is the second of the mental diseases. According to Brian, this disease is contracted by people who always want a quick way to reach their goals. They search for instant cures to solve problems that may have taken months or even years to develop. They seek short cuts to acquire key skills that actually take many months and years of hard work to master.

These diseases are not to be confused with the desire to constantly get better and search for more efficient ways to reach your goals (which is a positive trait). The "diseased" people are those trying to reach their goals faster than nature intended without any effort (which is a negative trait). As a friend of mine once said, "There's a big difference between seeking efficiency and being lazy."

Brian's New York City seminar was mostly filled with businesspeople, sales professionals and entrepreneurs, so he referred to financial examples, such as: wanting to work fewer hours and earn more money, investing in get rich quick schemes, or buying lottery tickets.

However, I personally feel that quick fix and something for nothing disease are more rampant and insidious among people with fitness goals than they are among any other group.

Health and fitness seekers with something for nothing disease they think they can get twice the results in half the time. They want weight loss without dieting, fitness without exercise, and perfect health while eating, drinking and smoking whatever they want.

 

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Those with quick fix disease want to take a pill, go to sleep, and wake up skinny. They are forever on a quest to find short cuts to fitness goals that that normally take months or years to attain.

People afflicted by quick fix disease are suckers for the latest "exercise in a bottle," "fat burning cream," "diet pill," or "steroid replacement" scams. They impulsively buy miracle solutions on a whim, which they haven't researched and know nothing about.

Saddest of all, they often waste YEARS of their lives on a misguided quest for the holy grail of weight loss or muscle growth, when they could have reached their goals with a better work ethic and a little bit of persistence.

People with these diseases are violating some of the most basic laws of the universe: Cause and effect, sowing and reaping, action and reaction. This is just as ridiculous as attempting to violate other natural laws such as the law of gravity. Jump off a cliff, and you're going to plummet to the Earth below – 100% of the time.

But there's more: Not only are you going to FAIL and hit bottom if you catch one or both of these diseases - the very act of seeking a quick fix or wanting something for nothing makes you a weaker person.

On the other hand, the act of setting a worthy goal for something you want and reaching it through diligence, determination, discipline and hard work changes the very fiber of your being. You literally change on a cellular level; you become a stronger person.

The purpose of having a worthy goal then, is not to possess the goal, it is to become a better person as result of pursuing and achieving the goal. If you get something for nothing, you may have that thing, but you have not become anything. Pity the person who wins a million dollars who has not become a millionaire in spirit and character.

It's been said you don't get what you want in life, you get what you deserve. If you want to achieve your perfect weight and improve your health… if you want success and achievement… if you want to win the championship title… then set the goal and go for it!

But whatever you do, don't catch these two diseases. SHUN THE QUICK FIX, AVOID THE FREE RIDE and deserve it. You can have, do or be anything you want - just pay the price and it's yours!

 

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Don't Be A Big Loser - Why You Should Say No To Quick Weight Loss

Patience. It's the one thing you never seem to have when you've got a body fat problem. You want the fat gone and you want it gone now! And why not? It seems so do-able. Everywhere you look, you read and hear promises of quick weight loss and you even see people losing weight quickly. We have reality TV shows that actually encourage people to attempt "extreme" body makeovers or see who can lose weight the fastest, and the winners (or shall we say, the losers), are rewarded generously with fortune, fame and congratulations.

Let's face it. Everyone wants to get the fat off as quickly as possible - and having that desire is not wrong – it's simply human nature. However, you must become aware of some serious problems that can occur if you try to force it and lose weight too quickly. The faster you lose weight, the more muscle you will lose with the fat, and that can really mess up your metabolism. An even bigger problem with fast weight loss is that the loss just won't last. The faster you lose, the more likely you are to gain it back. Think about it: We don't have a weight loss problem today, we have a "keeping the weight off" problem.

Weight loss will be the healthiest, safest and most likely to be permanent if you set your goal for about two pounds per week (and even if you lose only a single pound each week, that is healthy progress). This is the recommendation of almost every legitimate and respected dietician, nutritionist, exercise physiologist and personal trainer, as well as exercise organizations such as the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Dietetic Association.

Are there any exceptions to this rule? Is it ever okay to lose more than two pounds per week? The answer is yes. It may be ok to lose slightly more than two pounds per week if you have a lot of weight to lose because the rate of weight loss tends to be relative to your total starting body weight. Generally the rule is that it's safe to lose up to 1% of your total body weight per week, so if you weigh 300 lbs to start, then 3 lbs a week is a reasonable goal.

But there IS a catch.

What really matters is not how much weight you lose, but how much FAT you lose. Where did your weight loss come from? Did you lose body fat or lean body mass?

"Weight" is not the same as "fat." Weight includes muscle, bone, internal organs as well as lots and lots of water. What you really want is fat loss, not weight loss. If you only wanted weight loss, I could show you an easy way to lose 20 or 25 pounds in about 5 minutes. Just come over to my house. I have a really sharp hacksaw in my garage, and we'll just slice off one of your legs, after all it's just extra "weight" right?

Let's look at an example with some numbers so you can really grasp this concept of weight versus fat and then you can see, clearly illustrated, what will happen when you lose weight too quickly (because I know you probably don't believe me and you STILL want to lose weight as fast as possible… read on and it will all become clear to you).

As an example, let's take a 260 pound man who has a lot of body fat to lose - let's call it 32%. With 32% fat, a 260 pounder has 83.2 pounds of body fat and 176.8 pounds of lean mass. Using this example, let's look at a few possible scenarios with losses ranging from two to four pounds per week.

Weight Loss Scenario 1:

Suppose our 260 pound subject loses four full pounds instead of the recommended two pounds per week. Is this bad? Well, let's see:

 

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If he loses a half a percent of body fat, here are his body composition results:

256 lbs
31.5% body fat
80.6 lbs fat
175.4 lbs lean body mass

Out of the four pounds lost, 2.8 pounds were fat and 1.2 were lean mass. Not a disaster, but not good either. Thirty percent of the weight lost was lean tissue.

Weight Loss Scenario 2:

If he loses a half a percent of body fat and only three pounds, here are his results:

257 lbs
31.5% body fat
80.9 lbs fat
176.1 lbs lean body mass

These results are better. Although he lost less body weight than scenario one, in this instance, 2.3 pounds of fat and only 0.7 lbs of lean mass were lost.

Weight Loss Scenario 3:

What if he only lost two pounds? Here are the results:

258 lbs
31.5% body fat
81.2 lbs fat
176.8 lbs lean body mass

These results are perfect. Even though our subject has only lost two pounds, which seems slow, 100% of the two pound weight loss came from fat.

Weight Loss Scenario 4:

Now let's suppose he loses three pounds but he loses more body fat: .8%

257 lbs
31.2% body fat
80.2 lbs fat
176.8 lbs lean body mass

These are the best results of all. When the weekly fat loss is .8%, 100% of the three pounds lost is fat.

So the answer to the question is yes - it's safe to lose more than two pounds per week… but only if the weight is all fat or at least mostly fat with minimal lean mass losses.

If you take example one – with thirty percent lean tissue loss and compound that over a few months, you're talking about a massive muscle tissue loss which can dramatically slow down your metabolism and turn you into nothing more than a "skinny fat person" (a person with low body weight because they lost so much muscle, but still holding stubborn body fat because they shut down their metabolism).

One thing you should know is that water weight losses sometimes distort the numbers, especially when you first begin a new nutrition and training program. It's very common to lose 3 - 5 pounds in the first week on nearly any diet and exercise program and often even more on low carb diets. Just remember, its NOT all fat - WATER LOSS IS NOT FAT LOSS!

The best advice I can give you is to focus on losing fat, not losing weight. If you lose three to five pounds per week, and you know it's all fat, and not lean tissue, then more power to you!

Of course the only way to know this is with body composition testing. For home body fat self-testing, I recommend the Accu-Measure skinfold caliper as first choice. Even better, get a multi site skinfold caliper test from an experienced tester at a health club, or even a water (hydrostatic) or air (bod pod) displacement test.

From literally hundreds of client case studies, I can confirm that it's rare to lose more than 1.5 - 2.0 lbs of weight per week without losing some muscle along with it. If you exceed 2.0 to 3.0 pounds per week, the probability of losing muscle is extremely high. If you lose muscle, you are damaging your metabolism and this will lead to a plateau and ultimately to relapse.

Lack of patience is one of the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to losing body fat. If you want to lose FAT, not muscle and you want to keep the fat off for good, then you have to take off the pounds slowly.

This is one of the toughest lessons that overweight men and women have to learn - and they can be very hard learners. They fight kicking and screaming, insisting that they CAN and they MUST lose it faster.

Then you have these TV shows that encourage the masses that rapid, crash weight loss is okay. To the producers of these shows, I say SHAME ON YOU! To the personal trainers, registered dieticians and medical doctors who are associated with these programs, I say DOUBLE SHAME ON YOU, because you of all people should know better.

The rapid weight loss being promoted today by the media for the sake of ratings and by the weight loss companies for the sake of profits makes it even harder for those of us who are legitimate fitness and nutrition professionals because our clients say, "But look at so and so on TV - he lost 26 pounds in a week!"

Sure, but 26 pounds of WHAT - and do you have any idea what the long term consequences are?

Short term thinking, folks… foolish. There are hundreds of ways to lose weight quickly, but only one way to lose fat and keep it off in the long term.

Do it the right way. Take off the pounds slowly, steadily and sensibly with an intelligent nutrition and exercise program, measure your body fat, not just your body weight, and make this a new lifestyle, not a race, and you will never have to take the pounds off again because they will be gone forever the first time. No more yo-yoing.

 

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