How to lose weight

The question on everyone’s hips…. and belly. ” What is the best way to lose weight?” is asked of me so often that it has prompted me to write this article.

Summer is in full swing so the pool and beach are calling. Unfortunately, once we strip down to the bare essentials, all our little excesses show up in full glory. Fat thighs, belly and hips, and lately the “back boobs”. Oh dear!

Weight loss tips

Most people want to start with weight loss tips and skip all the stuff about the science behind weight loss.  So here goes

1. Drink filtered water 20 minutes before and after meals and also between meals

2. Plan your shopping trips, meals and snacks. Organise them before you are hungry.

3. Eat whole fresh food – an orange instead of orange juice, steamed potato instead of potato chips

4. Exercise briskly for 10 minutes per day – make sure you puff a bit!

5. Eat small meals before you get hungry.

6. Don’t skip meals – Skipping meals tricks your body into thinking it is starving and will halt fat burning

7. Read food labels – ‘Low fat’ often disguises High Carbohydrate/sugar content

8. Sleep well. Go to bed a little earlier.

9. Laugh and love regularly

10. Be consistent – 19/21 Rule – 19 great meal choices out of 21 meals

If you want to know “why this is so”, Read More

Low Fat verses Low Carb Diet

I am not a believer of Low fat diets or ‘low fat’ foods. Fat is not stored as fat unless you eat a lot of it.  Your body’s first choice is to use any excess carbohydrates to store as fat. So the biggest contributors to weight gain are excess carbs  and artificial sweeteners, not fat. Trans Fats are a different story. Most food on the shelves at the supermarket with a shelf-life and use-by-date is full of Trans Fats.

We need fat – ‘good fat’ -to make our hormone and nervous systems work properly. Did you know that your brain is mostly fat? So is the protective coating around all your nerves [myelin sheath]. Your nervous system is vital for not only mental health but also muscle health. Essential vitamins A, D, E and K are all fat soluble. I wonder how much of the latest vitamin D deficiency is related to all the “low fat” food we are now consuming. Trying to find full fat cottage cheese, yoghurt and cream on the shelves at the supermarket takes persistence.

Low Carb foods are fresh, whole fruit and vegetables. The 2:5 rule of 2 whole fruits and 5 serves of vegetable each day works well. Eat as much raw food as possible. Raw food is full of enzymes which help us stay health.

High carbohydrate foods [soft drinks, juices, flavoured milk, dried fruit] and refined carbohydrate foods [bread, white rice and pasta] cause a rush of insulin into your system. Any excess carbs are stored as fat. High fat storage leads to insulin resistance. Insulin resistance leads to high fat storage. High fat storage leads to insulin resistance. Oops, that sounds like a merry-go-round loop!

Insulin resistance in adult and child population contributes to the obesity epidemic and makes losing weight difficult. So generally, the people who need to lose weight the most, find it difficult and get discouraged through poor results, so tend to give up.

What can I eat?

Your body stays healthier for life when you eat foods as they come from nature.

• Full fat milk, unhomogenized if possible;

• Virgin Cold Pressed Oils and salad dressings – learn how to make your own dressings;

• Organic Free Range Eggs – back yard chickens are great pets!

• Raw and fresh fruit and vegetables in all colours of the rainbow

• Grass Fed meats – most of the meat at the supermarket is grain fed. Ask your butcher for beef, chicken and pork that has been grass fed. Change happens when we, ” the customer”, begin to request it.

• Nuts and seeds – natural and raw. Keep a bowl of nuts in their shells on the coffee table with a nut cracker. Loads of fun and they are mighty good for you.

• Cold water fish – Salmon, tuna, mackerel – Full of Essential Fatty Acids [EFA]. They are not called Essential for no reason.

• Loads of filtered water, herb teas, some green tea

• Whole grain breads and cereals – in moderation. Aim for only 2 serves per day.

How Can I Reverse Insulin Resistance?

1. Exercise for at least 10 minutes per day to the point of puffing with interval and resistance training
2. Limit Carbs to complex, whole carbohydrate foods. Reducing carbohydrates will “kick Start” your body into fat burning cycles.
3. Increase your protein intake with each meal and include some protein with all your snacks. Boiled egg, nuts, protein shakes -also kick starts Fat Burning
4. Eat good quality fat -EFA and Cold Pressed Virgin Oils, Avocado
5. AVOID fried foods – they are full of trans fats which produce free radicals and make it harder to lose weight.
6. Take high quality Essential Fatty Acids – EFA, plant based mineral and vitamin supplements to neutralise Free Radicals in our environment
7. Eat at home, eat fresh. Take lunch and snacks with you. Most take away food, even a sandwich or roll, is generally carbohydrate rich and protein poor  and often are loaded with Bad Fats -trans fats.
8. Drink heaps of filtered Water
9. Be consistant – 19/21 meals choices are GREAT choices

Best Exercise to Lose Weight?

By far the best exercise to lose weight is High Energy Aerobic Training – H.E.A.T or High Intensity Interval Training- H.I.I.T. Many people wonder why they run for 60 minutes at a moderate pace 3-4 days a week and platuae before they reach their goal weight. A fantastic resource is “The 10-Minute Total Body Breakthrough” by Sean Foy.

Your body is kicked into fat burning when it works hard [spurts of huff and puff] for a  minute, punctuated with intervals of recovery exercise at a moderate pace. What does that mean? For example, run for 30 seconds at your fastest pace then jog for 30 seconds to recover and repeat this cycle for 3-4 minutes then change to push ups, squats or skipping and repeat the cycles for about 10 minutes in total.

After you have finished exercising at  intense levels for 10 minutes, your body will continue to burn fat for up to 48 hours. In contrast to continued moderate exercise where your fat burning capabilities taper off quite quickly after completing your exercise routine.

The VibroGym offers a similar exercise style to H.I.I.T.  The vibration plate accelerates muscle contractions to 30-40 times per second. Each exercise is performed between 30-60 seconds, then rest for 1 minute while you change to another muscle group. The VibroGym also initiates postural and core muscles to improve posture and endurance.

I hope this has given you the answer to some of your questions. Please comment if you have questions or success stories.

Vicki Tate

Vicki Tate is keenly interested in many areas of postural alignment and well-being. She is owner and Principal Practitioner at Body and Spine Align, Norman Park, Brisbane, where she has a  private practice offering Ortho-Bionomy, EFT and VibroGym sessions. Vicki incorporates her training as a Registered Nurse, teacher and Ortho-Bionomy to offer highly targeted and effective treatment for muscular, skeletal and postural issues. She has a special interest in Scoliosis.

Call 0429030111 for further information or email info@bodyandspinealign.com.au

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