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Weight Loss Isn’t Just About The Calories

The trouble with science is that it has no soul.

It says if you do this and this and this, then that will always happen.

That’s what happens when science gets involved with weight loss – it says if you eat this many calories and burn this many calories then what’s left turns into this much fat.

I’m not suggesting that this isn’t true, but it isn’t as true as it seems because what you burn isn’t just about physical activity. A supremely fit athlete burns many more calories just sitting watching TV than someone who is overweight and covered in flabby muscles and fat.

It does seem a little unfair though, doesn’t it? Imagine two people sitting on the couch next to each other watching TV. One is covered in muscle, the other is covered in fat. The muscley one is getting thinner just sitting there, while the fat one is getting fatter just sitting there.

Why is this?

Muscle tissues needs energy just to live and breathe. Muscle burns calories just by existing. Fat just sits there. Of course in order to maintain that muscle, physical exercise needs to take place. The more exercise you engage in, the more muscle you build, the higher your metabolic rate, and the more calories you burn.

Of course science likes to deal with numbers, and you want to know how many calories going to the kitchen for a snack is going to burn.

1lb of fat converts to 3500 Calories (that’s big C Kilocalories for the scientists). This is great news because all you have to do in order to lose 1lb a week consistently is burn 500Cals a day more than you eat.

So how easily can you do that?

Moderate walking (3mph) burns about 250 Calories an hour; birdwatching 140; dusting 180; golf 350;  Cycling (easy, less than 10mph) 300; yoga 300; gentle skipping with rope 600; cross country walking 470; swimming breaststroke 800; weight lifting/body building 470; and housework 250.

You don’t need to join a gym to burn calories. You just need to move. But you need to move daily and consistently and for at least an hour. Remember, that Mars bar is going to take two hours walking to pretend it never happened.

But that’s just the sums that scientists like to do. You see when you do that hour of yoga, hour of housework, or hour of walking every day, you build muscle tissue. When you build muscle tissue your metabolic rate goes up and your resting heart rate lowers. So over time, you burn more calories during the day and so your weight loss increases rather than drops – for the same effort. You also get fitter, your body shape moves in the direction that you desire, and your endorphin levels increase. This means you feel happier, more alive, and more interested in enjoying life rather than spending it watching mind numbingly boring TV shows. When your body feels fit and well, you are quite naturally and effortlessly attracted to healthier foods, and the fats and sugars that used to fill your plate gradually drift away. No resistance, no battle, no struggle, just a gentle natural movement towards foods that you enjoy.

It isn’t just about Calories. It’s about you feeling good. You achieve that by making a conscious choice now to move a little more today than you did yesterday and to make that same choice tomorrow, and the next day, and…

 

 

If you’d like to find out more then check out my book How to Lose Weight and Free Yourself from Diets Forever

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Weight Loss – How Much Easier Can It Get?

There is an obesity epidemic. It is at its worst in the US, but Western Europe is close behind. The overweight epidemic is even worse. Obesity is the top end of the overweight scale. The massive quantity of excess weight, along with the social pressure to be slim, is spawning a rash of ‘celebrity’ diets, ‘fat clubs’, surgery, magic herbal – and magic pharmaceutical – tablets. However, there is an easy and often overlooked solution to the weight loss problem.

But the biggest part of the problem is the lack of willingness to take personal responsibility for how we treat our bodies. This is evidenced by the fact that we want ‘magical’ solutions in much the same way that we turn on the tv and are provided with instant mind-numbing ‘entertainment’.

Working towards a goal and experiencing a wonderful sense of achievement for having accomplished something quite challenging no longer seems important.

I’m not suggesting for a minute that it is easy to take personal responsibility. I’m not suggesting for a minute that life hasn’t conspired to train you into bad habits with food. Neither am I suggesting that you shouldn’t watch tv if you enjoy it. What I am suggesting is that taking responsibility doesn’t mean that losing weight has to be difficult. It does mean getting real and stopping looking for magical solutions that do you more harm than the excess food you eat.

Losing weight is simple. Eat less… exercise more…

That’s all you have to do.

Notice that I’m not suggesting you eat very little and spend all day on the treadmill.

You eat a little less and you exercise a little more and you weigh yourself once a week.

At some point you’ll notice that your weight stabilises. When that happens you’ve found the balance between the fuel you eat and the energy you use up during the day. From this point if you eat a little less and exercise a little more you will start to lose weight. When you cut down food intake and increase exercise a little bit at a time it’s no big deal and you quickly get used to eating less and being more active. Once you’re used to that you can eat a little less and exercise a little more again and it will be no more difficult than the first time.

When you make small changes and wait until you get used to that change – that is the change becomes normal for you, then no change you make is ever harder than the first small change you make. It is only when you contemplate the total shift you need to make (all those small changes added together) that it becomes overwhelming and self-sabotage sets in because the task seems too big.

Now pretty much all the exercise I get is walking at a pace that’s comfortable for me and gets my heart rate up a little. I manage to walk between 5 and 10 miles a week, sometimes a little more. When I keep up the exercise my weight drops slowly, and my fitness increases. When I allow life, or the weather, get in the way of my exercise routine my weight increases and my fitness drops.

Loretta Moore dropped 69lbs in 24 months by walking and making some changes to her eating patterns. She also no longer has a blood pressure problem for which she was receiving medication.

Jodi Davies lost 162lbs in 16 months. She walked for exercise and made some changes to her eating habits.

I know that the bigger the weight problem the harder it is to exercise. But exercising is something that gets a little easier every time you do it. The biggest problem is overcoming the resistance to getting up out of the chair. This is why it’s really important to get into a routine. When you do something at the same time each day, even walking the same route, it becomes a habit and once it becomes a habit it’s easier to do than not do.

So make that commitment to yourself now that you will eat a little less and exercise a little more. In fact why not get up now and take a few steps.

It’s a start.

My thanks to:

The Detroit Free Press for the examples.

MIchael

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Seven Reasons Why Diets Don’t Work

Diets don’t work because they are based on a false premise.

The false premise is that body weight is purely a consequence of the calories you eat and expend. If you eat more than you use the excess is stored as fat. If you eat less than you use, the body burns excess fat to make up the shortfall.This is a mistaken idea.

We have all seen really skinny people who eat like horses and don’t seem any more active than we are. We have all seen overweight people who say they don’t eat very much (we tend not to believe those people). We also tend to believe what we are told. Nothing we are told by the media helps us to lose weight by severely cutting down on calories. Here is why…

The 7 reasons diets don’t work

  1. They are too much effort.
  2. They cause ‘famine’ mode.
  3. They affect mood – and not in a good way.
  4. Thoughts of food predominate.
  5. Diets lose weight not fat.
  6. Exercise is not included.
  7. Unreasonable expectations

1. Too much effort.

21% of people give up on their diet within two months. 45% of people don’t last the year. All that calorie, or syn or point, counting just gets to be too much work and it’s so much easier just to eat what you like.

2.’Famine’ mode.

The body is an intelligent system. It’s intelligence is primarily geared toward survival. When food is scarce it thinks ‘famine’ and lays down supplies of fat; slows down metabolism to conserve energy; and burns lean muscle for its energy needs, because, when resting, lean muscle tissues burn calories. To the body’s intelligence, a diet looks just like a famine.

3. Mood.

The majority of so-called experts regard excess weight as a calorie problem. It isn’t. But it is an emotional problem. Eating is often an attempt to improve mood. Dieting itself can cause social isolation – hence the popularity of slimming clubs. This can lead to low moods, rebellion against the diet, or even depression.

4. Diets keep you thinking about food.

Meals are no longer spontaneous. They have to be meticulously planned. Recipes have to be followed. Specific items need to be purchased – sometimes even specific product brands. Life is no longer about fun and enjoyment. Life is about food.

5. Diets lose weight, not fat.

Weight loss in diets is almost entirely down to muscle loss. This makes it more and more difficult to lose weight each time you diet because bodies are reluctant to release fat – especially quickly, which is the way most people want it. The only way to release fat instead of muscle is to do it slowly.

6. Exercise.

Exercise is essential. Exercise builds muscle. Muscle burns calories – even while resting. Exercise boosts metabolism. Exercise increases fitness, vitality and lifts mood.

7. Unreasonable Expectations

People have surprising expectations of the amount of weight that can sensibly be reduced. If you are 16 stone (224lbs) an initial weight loss goal of 14 stone (196lbs) would be good to aim for. A 2 stone (28lb) success is easily achievable and when maintained for a while will be the place to decide to shift a little more.

Diets just don’t work.
If you want to discover how to lose weight without the rigid discipline of a diet and still be allowed to eat what you want then check out my website here.

Author: Michael J. Hadfield

Source: Hypnosisiseasy