by jstalin 17 Replies latest social physical
He said the primary determinant of fatness was the amount of activity a person engages in during the day.
When I hit a plateau on my low carb diet, I thought more activity would be the cure. For six months, I doubled the amount of exercise I did every week - from 3 hours to 6 hours, and stayed on the diet. Net effect on my weight - zilch.
I gained a lot of weight last year and started suffering from chest pains. Got checked out and found out everything was fine but I needed to lose weight. I started eating smaller portion more frequently, ate mostly good lean meats and
vegetables, multigrain foods etc. Also started a cardio/weight training routine.
Well I lost like 20 pounds of fat in 3 months, gained about 5 pounds of muscle, had to update my entire wardrobe (all my suits had to be athletic cut) and I felt like a million bucks.
I let myself go after that, and gained about 5 lbs since last year... I just started my routine again this year and already lost 3 pounds.
You might want to check out this link
(he has books as well)
here are some samples of different people who tried Body for Life and some excepts from the book
Myth: Aerobics is better for shaping up than weigh training.
Fact: To transform your physique, you must train with weights.
Walking around the block or simply climbing a flight of stairs is better than just sitting there doing nothing. But the best form of exercise, for reshaping your body, is weight training.
Through resistance training, you can also significantly increase your metabolic rate-the rate at which your body burns fat. As you may already know, when you gain muscle, your body requires more energy to maintain that new muscle. Fat weight doesn't require any energy at all to maintain- it just sits there. That's why weight training is even superior to aerobic exercise for people who want to lose fat: It addresses the core of the problem- the rate at which your body uses energy.
If you do nothing but aerobic exercise, even if you eat less, your results will not be optimal. Yes, you may lose weight. But your overall shape will stay the same. If you start an aerobic exercise program shaped like a pear, the most likely result is you will wind up looking like a smaller pear- which is fine, if that's what you want. But that's not what I call a transformation.
With weight training, you not only burn fat but you can also change the shape of your body- you can build wider shoulders, so your waist looks more narrow. You can build muscular arms; lean defined abdominal muscles; strong legs; and you become empowered, confident, and strong.
So even though aerobic exercise does help burn fat, when it comes to transforming your body, proper weight training can't be beat.
the before and after pictures are over a 12 week period..... that's right only 12 weeks
There is no one answer for all people. I'm sure the causes aren't always the same. I know I eat less now than I did was younger and thinner. If you're natually slim, count your blessings. A lot of famous thin people it turns out are bulimic or anorexic or a combination of both. I just saw a show about the lady who founded Gymboree. She was bulimic and ended up in a treatment center for year while her marriage unraveled. Jane Fonda admits she was bulimic. Princess Diana was bulimic. The list goes on and on.
I want to also say that my sister and I both went on low fat diets and exercise programs a few years back. Both of us ended up with gallstones and surgery. I nearly died with pancreatitis at the time. My health has never been the same. I lost weight at the time. I was doing it to lower my blood pressure, not to become pencil thin. Excercise and healthy foods and portion sizes are the best you can do. This doesn't mean you'll end up the size you were when you were your thinnest though.
Also, I know more than one person who had surgery to make their stomachs smaller. They exercise. One of them lost weight, but not as much as she would have liked. She was still overweight. Now after four years she is gaining back the weight. She still eats tiny amounts and she is on her feet constantly with her job. She's never been a lazy person. The others aren't what you'd call skinny either. Don't be naive enough to watch one show with one idea and think you understand metabolism and weight gain and loss. If anyone is tempted to preach to a "fat person", trust me, he or she would rather you keep your opinions to yourself. If the key to losing weight and keeping it off was so simple, everyone would be his/her ideal weight or smaller.
Excercise and healthy foods and portion sizes are the best you can do. This doesn't mean you'll end up the size you were when you were your thinnest though
This really is the bottom line. Dieting in itself may work short term but most people put the weight right back on after a while (plus, there are some unhealthy diets out there). It also doesn't change your body shape to a more toned and athletic look. Most people find a combination of healthy eating with controlled portions combined with exercise is what works best. This has to become a way of life if the weight loss is to last. My experience with my routine worked well for me, packed on the muscle in conjunction with cardio exercises 3 times a week and cheating on my diet only once a week helped me to raise my metabolism rate, elevate my mood and transform the shape of my body. I was surprised at the results.
The only thing that I found to be difficult was staying on my exercise routine. Family and work obligations have a way of interfering with a careful planned schedule. I know of some people who also tried the Body for Life program but quit after a month or two because it was kind of intense. I quit after 4 months and gained a little bit of the weight back (5 lbs) but I started again this year and hope to stick with it for most of the year (perhaps take a few weeks off every couple of months). One thing that really helped me and has become a way of life was cutting out the soda and sweets... so many empty calories. I now use only equal or splenda w/ 2% milk in my coffee. (I know there is a very slight risk but I think it is a good risk)
I agree that the more you move the more weight you'll lose. But for inactive people, it can be too difficult to just get up and start an exercise routine. I think it's alot easier to start with minimizing your protion size, and start eating healthy first, then start an exercise routine.
Walking 20 minutes a day or every other day is a good way to start. 5 or 10 minutes if it's all you can do.
