Weight-Loss-Lose-Weight.com

We all have heard the “conventional wisdom” about the importance of exercise: if you engage in moderate exercise, like walking, for 30 minutes a day three or four times per week you can lose weight.  But is that true?

In a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine on July 28, 2008 (here’s the link: Effect of Exercise on 24-Month Weight Loss Maintenance in Overweight Women) it was discovered that the more you exercise, the more weight you can lose.

In the study, 201 overweight and obese women aged 21 to 45 years old were told to reduce their caloric intake to 1,200 to 1,500 calories per day, and they were split into four groups based on physical activity (from light activity up to vigorous intensity).

They discovered that individuals sustaining a weight loss of 10% or more of initial body weight at 24 months reported performing more physical activity (1835 kcal/wk or 275 min/wk) compared with those sustaining a weight loss of less than 10% of initial body weight.

The study concluded that the addition of about four and a half hours per week of vigorous physical activity, combined with a reduced calorie diet, is very important in allowing overweight women to sustain weight loss. The message is clear: if you want to lose weight, more exercise is better. Don’t just go for a leisurely walk three times a week, go for a brisk walk for 45 minutes to an hour six times a week, or add in other forms of physical activity to enhance weight loss.

People everywhere are constantly searching for the product that will help them to achieve their weight loss goals.  The recently released weight loss pill, alli, with the convenience of being available without a prescription and with the safety and comfort of FDA approval, seems like the answer to everyone’s weight loss dreams.  With the promise of increased weight-loss and the possibility of curing obesity-related diseases, the alli weight loss pill seems too good to be true.

Olistat, the active ingredient in alli has been available by prescription for years by the brand name Xenical.  Alli is a reduced-strength version of this same drug which when taken with meals prevents the body from breaking down and absorbing 25% of the fat in food.  With less fat available for energy, the body must tap into its fat reserves and use up the excesses resulting in weight loss.

Using alli along with a low-calorie, reduced-fat diet and increased exercise could help in losing up to 50% more weight than with traditional dieting alone.  Maximum weight loss is usually achieved within the first six months of using the product.  Unlike some other diet pills, alli acts only in the digestive tract and has no effect on the brain eliminating the addictive qualities that cause other diet pills to be susceptible to abuse.

This all sounds great, however there are some dangers to using alli to lose weight.  Some of the common side effects include increased flatulence and more frequent, difficult-to-control bowel movements.  The alli program suggests that meals include no more than 15 grams of fat to prevent these side effects from worsening; however some people may find it challenging to know exactly how much fat their meal contains.  A multi-vitamin may need to be taken as alli can interfere with the absorption of vitamins A, D, E and K.  Because alli is a relatively new drug, the long-term effects are unknown as of yet.  In clinical trials, when alli stopped being taken, many people gained back the weight they had lost and so the pill may need to be taken indefinitely.

Alli should only be used as a dieting aid for people who need to lose weight for reasons of health and not for already thin people to keep their weight off.   All aspects of the alli weight loss program need to be followed including the recommended dosage, the diet and the exercise.

It;s been a while since I’ve posted any thoughts on my weight loss program. I am making progress, down a few pounds, and thanks to the Turbulence Training program, I am losing weight.

Obviously exercise is good, because it helps burn calories and it makes you feel better. But simple exercise alone is not enough. You must exercise “smart”. As discussed in my article on the 3,500 calorie weight loss challenge, a pound of fat is the equivalent of about 3,500 calories, meaning you need to burn 3,500 calories to lose a pound of fat. You would need to walk for seven and a half hours to burn 3,500 calories. That’s not easy, and it’s not smart.

So what’s the smart way to lose weight through exercise?

Weight training, also known as Turbulence Training.

Weight training can be done in a relatively short period of time (30 minutes two or three times per week), and it’s effective because it helps you build muscle. We all know that muscle weighs more than fat, because it’s more dense, but muscle also needs more energy to grow and survive. Energy is another word for calories, and it’s a simple equation: the more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn, even when you are not exercising! And, it works equally well for men and women.

Turbulence Training

There are lots of weight training books out there; I’ve been using the strategy developed by Craig Ballantyne in his revolutionary Turbulence Training System, where you can lose fat while gaining muscle with just three short (but intense) workouts each week. Mr. Ballantyne is a world-renowned Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), and author articles in magazines such as Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Oxygen, Maximum Fitness, and Muscle and Fitness Hers, so he knows what he’s talking about.

The Turbulence Training System is designed to burn fat in the least amount of time. And guess what: it works. I can tell you from personal experience that weight training is fun, quick, and effective.

After being on the Turbulence Training program for two months, I have lost some pounds, but more importantly I have lost “inches”, and I feel better. If you want an effective weight loss program, read more about Turbulence Training.

Well, I have now finished the first week of My Weight Loss Plan. How did I do?

Quite well, actually, thanks for asking.

I started the week at 198 pounds, and today I weighed in at 194.5 pounds, for a loss of 3.5 pounds on the week. I of course realize that some of that loss is water weight, but I’m happy; I wanted to lose weight, and that’s what I did.

How did I do it?

First, I gave up carbs for breakfast. Every morning I ate eggs (you can read my egg post for more details). For lunch and dinner I ate a lot of vegetables and chicken and salads. There are lots of things you can do with those foods, so it wasn’t boring at all.

Second, I did a moderate amount of exercise. During the week I went for one 30 minute walk, I did one cardio session (30 minutes of walking and jogging on my Precor 9.33 treadmill). I also did two twenty minute weight training sessions.

Why only 20 minutes each? Because I knew, since I’m just getting back into it, my muscles would be tired and would need time to recover, so I didn’t want to over do it.

Also, one problem with exercise is that it makes you hungry, so I wanted to exercise enough to get the benefit of exercise, but not so much I just had to eat more to satisfy my hunger. (I’m using the Turbulence Training concepts discussed here earlier).

Week one was a success, let’s see how we do in Week #2.

I’m now on day #3 of my weight loss plan, and today I want to talk about exercise. We all agree that exercise is good, because it helps burn calories and it makes you feel better.

However, I have found that it’s not easy to use exercise to lose weight. As discussed in my article on the 3,500 calorie weight loss challenge, a pound of fat is the equivalent of about 3,500 calories, meaning you need to burn 3,500 calories to lose a pound of fat. That may sound easy, but it isn’t. You would need to walk for seven and a half hours to burn 3,500 calories. That’s not easy.

My point: you cannot rely on exercise alone to lose weight. It is far easier to cut 3,500 calories out of your diet than it is to walk for seven plus hours!

The other problem with exercise is that it makes you hungry! Your body burns calories, which makes you hungry, so you want to eat more. If your eating increases by the same amount of calories you just burned, you won’t lose any weight! It’s simple math.

That doesn’t mean exercise is bad. With exercise your heart gets stronger, you sleep better, and you feel better. But you don’t necessarily lose weight.

So, what’s my plan? I plan to do limited exercise. I want the maximum “bang for the buck”, so I’m not going to walk for seven hours. I am going to do resistance training, also known as weight training.

Weight training can be done in a relatively short period of time (30 minutes two or three times per week), and it’s effective because it helps you build muscle. We all know that muscle weighs more than fat, because it’s more dense, but muscle also needs more energy to grow and survive. Energy is another word for calories, and it’s a simple equation: the more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn, even when you are not exercising!

Research Turbulence Training.

I plan to use the strategy developed by Craig Ballantyne in his revolutionary Turbulence Training System, where you can lose fat while gaining muscle with just three short (but intense) workouts each week. Mr. Ballantyne is a world-renowned Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), and author articles in magazines such as Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Oxygen, Maximum Fitness, and Muscle and Fitness Hers.

The Turbulence Training System is designed to burn fat in the least amount of time. It takes some work, but I believe the results will be worth it. (For more information, click here to read more about Turbulence Training.)

My plan is to do 30 minutes of high intensity weight training two or three times per week to build muscle mass, burn calories, but not work out so much that I just increase my hunger levels. Check back to see how it works.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted any comments about My Weight Loss Plan, so here’s the update: I was doing well for a while, but I’ve slipped back into bad habits. As of today I weigh 198 pounds; I’m a 43 year old male, 5 feet 11 inches tall, so a more appropriate weight for me would be around 178 pounds, which means I need to lose 15 or 20 pounds.

My peak weight was 205 pounds, and I managed to lose about 25 pounds on the Atkins Diet, but I didn’t stick with it, so obviously now some of the weight has returned. I also need to spend more effort on exercise.

So, here’s my plan:

I am going to focus on slow carbs, not no carbs. During the week I’ll skip the cereal and eat eggs instead (tomorrow I’ll post what I mean by that). I’ll eat lots of vegetables and proteins, and avoid anything white (white bread, pasta, etc.). I will avoid all deserts, and drink lots of water.

Also, I’m going to start exercising; I’ll post my thoughts on that in two days time, so check back for more details, and wish me luck.

As we all know, to lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. The number of calories you need can be determined by calculating your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), as shown on our Basal Metabolic Rate Calculator.

Research Turbulence Training.

The editors of Weight-Loss-Lose-Weight.com are always looking for ways to combine science, like the Basal metabolic rate (BMR), with ways to lose weight, and we believe we have found it with Craig Ballantyne’s revolutionary Turbulence Training System, where you can lose fat while gaining muscle with just three short (but intense) workouts each week.     Say good-bye to boring cardio: say hello to lean muscle and weight loss!

Here’s the scoop, directly from the source:

Dear Friend:

If you are interested in fat loss as quickly as possible in the comfort of your own home, using simple workout routines that can easily be done first thing in the morning or after your children go to bed, without endless hours of cardio exercise, fancy equipment or expensive supplements, then this will be the most important letter you ever read in your entire life.

Here’s why: My name is Craig Ballantyne. I’m a world-renowned Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), and author of too many articles to count in magazines such as Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Oxygen, Maximum Fitness, and Muscle and Fitness Hers.

I’ve developed a revolutionary new fat loss system called Turbulence Training, which was designed specifically to help busy men and women such as students, executives and parents with young children to get the most results in the least amount of time.

Turbulence Training is Scientifically Proven, it is endorsed by elite trainers and top fitness magazines, and has been used by thousands of men and women for fat burning as well as strength training muscle and improving your health and energy levels at the same time.

Put science to work for you. Imagine losing weight without spending 7 hours a week in the gym!

For more information, click here to read more about Turbulence Training.

Many diet gurus tell you not to weight yourself regularly, because they are afraid it will set back your weight loss program. To a certain degree this thinking is correct, because our weight can fluctuate by a few pounds on any given day. You may be retaining more or less water than usual which will skew your weight.

However, if your goal is to lose weight, the only way you can be sure you are succeeding is to weight yourself, and weigh yourself regularly. Dropping a few pounds proves that your weight loss program is working. If you find yourself gaining weight, you can start making adjustments to your diet or exercise program immediately to stay on track. Don’t be afraid of the scale.

Weigh yourself at the same time each day, and make your daily weigh in an essential part of your weight loss program.

It is almost impossible to lose weight through exercise alone, but your weight loss program will have a greater chance of success if you include exercise in your daily routine. Here’s why:

First, you burn more calories exercising than sitting watching TV, so you lose weight faster. Even better, as your body works hard to repair itself after exercise, you burn calories even when you are not exercising.

Second, exercise makes you feel good, it’s invigorating, and a positive mental attitude is an essential element in any weight loss program.

Third, exercise makes you healthier, benefiting your heart, blood circulation, and muscles. Resistance exercises build strong muscles and strong bones, and the more lean muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn (read more about your Basal Metabolic Rate).

Finally, exercise helps you sleep, and sound sleep is an essential element in any weight loss program. Read more in our article about the Importance of Exercise in your Weight Loss Program.

Pretzels taste great, and are even better after a workout when your body craves sodium (salt) to replace the sodium you just sweated out. And one ounce of pretzels has just 110 calories, so it seems like a snack that will promote weight loss.

However, pretzels have one of the highest glycemic indexes of any food, even higher than ice cream and jelly beans. When we think glycemic index we think sugar, and that can raise your blood sugar, which just makes you crave more sugar when you come down from your sugar high.

As good as they taste, go for fresh fruits or vegetables as a snack instead.

Tomorrow: granola bars