Calorie In/Calories Out is BS - Part 2

We know the reasons the calories in, calories out theory is flawed. We know most traditional methods of weight loss, such as counting calories or starting an exercise program don't work. (click here to read part 1 of this article detailing why traditional calorie counting methods don't work)

But what should we do if we need to lose weight? The best long term solutions for weight loss are those that reduce the amount of calories consumed without restricting caloric intake. In other words:

"We need to eat less while still allowing ourselves to eat as much as we'd like." 

I know this sounds stupid, I know it sounds illogical, but this is the key to long term weight loss. If we consume less calories without actually restricting them we avoid all the problems associated with diets. You won't feel hungry all the time, because you will eat whenever you are hungry. Your metabolism won't slow down and you will not have reduced energy levels, because your brain recognizes that you are eating whenever you'd like. No starvation response will ever be triggered. 

But how can we subconsciously eat less when we are consciously eating as much as we want? Several approaches have shown promise, both in research settings and in the real world.

1)  Exercise

I know, I know, I already said starting an exercise program isn't an effective fat loss strategy. But there are ways to tweak the approach that can help us loss weight without ever counting a calorie or skipping a dessert. While exercise doesn't cause weight loss directly through the calories burned, it does have a host of benefits that can have a positive impact on our body composition.

Exercise has a powerful, positive effect on mood, stress levels, and self-esteem and has been studied extensively as a treatment for depression and other mood disorders. Exercise makes us feel better, and when we feel better, we make better food choices.

But as we've already discussed, there are many pitfalls to exercise. Typically people compensate for the calorie burn of exercise by subconsciously eating more during the rest of the day.

"The key is to exercise enough to fell better without exercising so much that you work up an appetite."

When implementing a program start very small. If you currently don't exercise, begin with 15 to 20 minutes, two or three days per week. You shouldn't dread it either - remember, we are trying to make you feel better, not worse. Killing yourself will be counter productive.

After two weeks assess how you feel. Do you have more energy throughout the day? Do you sleep better on the days you exercise? Are you beginning to look forward to your workouts?

If you answer yes to any of these questions, you are on the right track. You can begin to increase the intensity and duration of your workouts, but do so cautiously.

If the answers are all "no" change what you are doing. It's not working. 

2) Sleep

Lack of adequate sleep negatively effects mood and energy levels. And if we feel like crap and have no energy, we are not likely to make good food choices. This is why poor sleep patterns are almost universally linked to weight gain. If you don't get enough sleep, fix the problem and you will likely lose weight without ever watching what you eat.

Go to bed at the same time every night. Wake up at the same time every morning. Make sure your room is very dark. Even the light from a LED alarm clock or cell phone charger can disrupt sleep. If all else fails see your doctor and schedule a sleep study. Your lack of sleep may be due to a medical condition such as sleep apnea.

3)  Intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting (IF for short) means alternating periods of fasting with periods of eating. For example, you might eat only between 5pm and 8pm each evening or alternate days of eating with days of fasting.

IF has shown great promise lately as an effective and healthy fat loss program. Animal studies have shown that alternate day feeding increases insulin sensitivity, improves blood lipid profiles, and causes greater fat loss that traditional calorie restriction. And in the real world, many people report amazing results using IF.

To avoid the pitfalls, start slow. For a week, skip breakfast and eat normally the rest of the day. When your get accustomed to that, try postponing your first meal until late afternoon. Eventually, try eating for only two hours each day. For most people eating your only meal at night works best. Many people find it hard to sleep when they are hungry. And late night snacking is the downfall of most people anyway. By eating your meal shortly before you retire you don't give yourself a chance to cheat.

While IF may sound extreme, it is definitely a program worth trying.

4)  The Paleolithic diet

The Paleo diet focuses on food quality. Meals include unprocessed, natural foods such as meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and tubers. This diet also minimizes unnatural and potentially unhealthy chemicals and hormones, forgoing factory farmed foods and instead choosing grass fed, hormone free beef, pastured poultry, and organically grown fruits and vegetables. The diet is free of grains, legumes, and dairy products (which can be irritating to the gut), effectively eliminating all processed foods from the diet.

"Research shows that people who follow this eating plan tend to reduce their caloric intake even though they are permitted to eat as much as they'd like." 

One potential downfall of this approach is the need for meal planning and preparation. Eating out, although possible, is difficult. Most common snacks foods, such as cheese sticks, crackers, chips, and low fat yogurt, as well as most convenience foods, are not allowed. But if you enjoy cooking and typically prepare your own meals already, this approach is for you.

Follow these links for more information and sample meal plans.

5)  Exercise, part 2

Another counter intuitive but highly effective way to lose weight is to try and gain muscle. Adding muscle mass helps aid in fat loss through two primary mechanisms. First, it increases increases insulin sensitivity by increasing the amount of insulin receptors in your body. This essentially gives you more places to "deposit" any excess calories you consume, reducing the amount "deposited" in your fat cells. Second, muscle mass increase energy expenditure. Add a few pounds of muscle and you will burn more calories throughout the day, regardless of activity level.

To maximize increases in muscle mass perform weight training with moderate weights near the point of muscle failure. Take adequate rest between sets, typically two to five minutes. Stretch each muscle group you trained deeply when you are done.

"Even 30 minutes, three days a week can have a dramatic effect when implemented properly."

If at first your weight doesn't budge don't get discouraged. You can rest assured that you are losing fat and gaining muscle. Make sure to track the changes in your body with skin-fold testing, circumference measurements, and photos. Eventually you will start losing weight on the scale but in the meantime feel good about how good your arms look in that sleeveless shirt and much your waist measurement has dropped.

Follow this link for effective muscle building programs for both men and women.

6)  Cut carbohydrates

People on a low carbohydrate, Atkins type diet, are allowed (even encouraged) to eat as much as they want, as long as they avoid carbohydrate containing foods. But when compared to calorie restricted, low fat dieters they eat less daily calories.

In effect, low carb but calorie unlimited dieters actually reduce "calories in" more than those dieters who are consciously trying to do so!

"When it comes to fat loss, this spontaneous, subconscious calorie restriction is just what the doctor ordered."

If cutting all the bread, pasta, and sweets out of your diet seems impossible, start with only your first meal of the day. As you adapt eliminate carbohydrates from lunch and eventually from dinner. And contrary to popular belief, an occasion indulgence does not mean impending doom. Just get back on track as quickly as possible.

Alternately, you can "eat half". At every meal, eat only half of the bread, pasta, corn, potato, rice, or other grain. If you have dessert, make sure you share it with a friend or family member. Still hungry? Load up on meat and veggies. Even modest reductions in carbohydrate intake can have a positive effect on body weight.

Putting it all together

There they are - six ways to eat less without trying to eat less. Include one or more of them into your lifestyle for fat loss success. Please feel free to call or email me for help or to report your success stories.

In Good Health

John Kuzora

1976 S. Main St

Wake Forest, NC 27587

(919) 435-1960

john@kuzorafitness.com

Kuzora Fitness - innovate and effective fitness and nutrition solutions for a time pressed world

Calories In,Calories Out is BS: Three Reasons Counting Calories Doesn't Work

The Calories In, Calories Out Theory

The calories in/calories out theory of weight management is currently the most widely accepted approach to weight management. Many powerful and influential organizations support this theory. For example:

American Dietetics Association:  "Maintaining a healthy weight is all about balancing food intake with physical activity."
US Department of Agriculture:  "Calorie balance over time is the key to weight management."
World Health Organization:  "The fundamental cause of obesity and overweight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended."

Sounds logical enough. Eat a bit less everyday. Exercise a bit more. Even simple lifestyle changes like parking further away from the mall entrance or taking the stairs instead of the elevator should add up to dramatic results.

For example, change your morning latte from whole milk to skim milk and you should be 12 pounds lighter this time next year. Go up the stairs four or five extra times per day and weight loss should increase to 20 pounds. Sounds like an easy and effortless way to drop those last 20 pounds, doesn't it? But this doesn't work.

I am not implying that what we eat and how much we exercise has nothing to do with how fat or how lean we are. If you stuff yourself full of beer and pizza while doing little more than changing positions on the coach from time to time, you will assuredly gain weight.

The opposite is also true. Meal replacement diets and gastric bypass surgeries will both cause dramatic reductions in caloric intake and a related loss of body weight. But these situations are extreme scenarios. On a day in and day out basis, a difference of two, three, or even five hundred calories in either direction will not have a measurable effect on weight.

What Really Happens

So what is the problem with a calories in, calories out approach? Why doesn't it work? Here are three reasons we need to look beyond the eat less and exercise more paradigm.

3)  Some calories are wasted.

The calories in, calories out myth relies on many assumptions that are simply not true. One of these assumptions is that the calories we eat are not wasted. But many times they are.

One example is the physiological state of ketosis, which the body enters when you have severely restricted carbohydrates or calories. When blood glucose drops low enough, the body will begin to turn fat and protein into ketone bodies as an alternative source for cellular energy. Excess ketone bodies are excreted in urine and lost through respiration. This represents wasted calories that are not used as fuel or stored as body fat. And if you are overweight, wasted energy is exactly what you want.

Although the body readily excretes ketone bodies, it very efficiently re-absorbs glucose. Even small amounts in the urine are cause for concern.

2)  Calories are used for purposes other that fuel or storage.

The calories we eat are often used for other purposes. Fat and protein are used by the body for many other purposes. Protein can be used to make cell membranes, digestive enzymes, and hormones. Fat insulates neurons and is used for cellular growth and repair, among other things. Carbohydrates, however, are primarily  burned or stored.

1)  Basal metabolic rate does not remain constant.

Our BMR increases when we eat more and it decreases when we eat less. This adaptation happens very quickly in response to fluctuations in energy intake. There are many examples of this in the scientific literature. Here is one example:

In 1964 researchers at the Vermont College of Medicine overfed prisoners. Inmates involved in the study were fed 8000-10,000 calories per day for ten weeks. This represented a calorie excess of 6500 or more calorie per day over the standard 2500 calories prison diet. Using the calories in, calories out model, the prisoners should have gained 130 or more pounds! Yet the average weight gain was 36 pounds. Similar starvation studies also support this idea. But when they were done in the 1940's, a 1560 calorie per day diet was considered starvation. Now, a 40 year old 200 pound male on the weight watchers points program would be expected to eat only 1460 calories.

Speaking of Weight Watchers, the typical person who  follows this program for two years loses six pounds. Dedicated participants who attend at least three meetings per month lose eleven pounds. Eleven pounds in two years on a diet low enough in calories that 70 years ago it would have been considered a starvation diet.

Four Exercises to Stop "Teacher Arms" Forever

According to www.urbandictionary.com, teacher arms are defined as "Upper arms that have loose, freely swinging flab in the triceps area that hangs from the elbow to shoulder, so-called because female schoolteachers often flash said flabbiness when they wear short sleeved or sleeveless tops and then stretch out across the blackboard." Every woman dreads them, but what can we do to fix the problem?
More cardio is the solution most woman try first. But excess aerobic activity is counter productive, and will only make the problem worse. Cardio will increase cortisol levels in the body, resulting in increased bodyfat accumulation in the long term. In addition, cardio will actually burn muscle. Amino acids from muscle tissue are a very underestimated fuel source during steady state aerobic work. At best you'll end up "skinny fat".

So what should we do? Build muscle with weight training and let your diet burn excess body-fat without raising cortisol levels or breaking down your hard earned muscle tissue.
Work out three days per week, alternating between upper and lower body workouts. Interval training can be done after upper body workouts to increase fat loss. Unless you are a competitive runner or triathlete, limit steady state aerobics to one very easy 30-60 minutes session per week, preferably outdoors. 

Perform two of the following exercises every upper body workout. Make sure to deeply stretch your triceps after each exercise. 

1)  Paused Rope Push-downs - Pause each rep for five seconds in the contracted position. Begin your first upper body workout with three sets of as many repetitions as possible, resting only 20 seconds between sets. Shoot for a total of 15-20 reps. Increase the weight when you get 20 or more reps combined on all three sets.

2)  Paused Overhead DB Triceps Extension - Use a full range of motion to achieve maximum stretch at the bottom of every rep. Pause for two seconds in the stretched position on every rep. Do two sets of 20-30 repetitions at the end of your first upper body workout, resting 60 seconds between sets. Shoot for 20-30 reps and increase the weight if you get 30 reps on both sets.

3)  Slow Eccentric Supine E-Z Bar Triceps Extension - lower the bar in eight seconds to aspot just behind your forehead, making sure your elbows stay pointed at the ceiling.  Begin your second upper body workout with three sets of as many repetitions as possible, resting only 20 seconds between sets. Shoot for a total of 15-20 reps. Increase the weight when you get 20 or more reps combined on all three sets.

4)  Paused Assisted Dips - Pause for two seconds in the stretched position. Perform two sets of 20-30 reps at the end of your second upper body workout, resting 60 seconds between sets. Decrease the assistance if you get 30 reps on both sets.

Putting it All Together

Your weekly schedule will look like this:

Monday, week one:

1)  Paused Rope Push-downs - 3 x AMRAP, 20 second rest intervals

2)  Upper body strength training circuit

3)  Paused Overhead DB Triceps Extension - 2 x 20-30, 60 second rest intervals

4)  Optional interval training

Wednesday, week one:

1)  Lower body and core strength training circuit

Friday, week one:

1)  Slow Eccentric Supine E-Z Bar Triceps Extension - 3 x AMRAP, 20 second rest intervals

2)  Upper body strength training circuit using different exercise than Monday

3)  Paused Assisted Dips - 2 x 20-30, 60 second rest intervals

4)  Optional interval training

Saturday, week one

1)  Optional steady state cardio workout, preferably outdoors

Monday, week two:

1)  Lower body and core strength training circuit, using different exercises than last Wednesday

Wednesday, week two:

Repeat last Monday's workout

Friday, week two: 

Repeat last Wednesdays workout

Saturday, week two:

Optional steady state cardio workout, preferably outdoors

Continue this rotation until you have completed the four different workouts six times. After eight weeks say goodbye to teacher arms forever!

What is the "Best" Workout Plan

People often ask me what the “best” workout plan is. How much cardio should I do? How many days a week should I lift weights? What exercises should I do? While these are all great questions, there is no single answer. Exercise plans should be developed with your specific goals in mind.

That being said, many people do have very similar goals. They would like to drop a few pounds, look lean and defined, and improve their overall health and wellness. Women typically would like to focus on their hips and thighs while men want to decrease their waist measurement and add some muscle to their upper body. They may also want to improve their 5k time or their golf or tennis game, but these are secondary to physique and health improvements.

For these people with general fitness goals, I suggest resistance training three days per week with two added sessions of cardiovascular training, one long and slow and one interval style. A sample workout plan might look like this:

Monday - Gym workout consisting of joint mobility work, resistance training with an upper body focus, metabolic conditioning, and a cool down of static stretching

Joint Mobility

A1) Shoulder Rotations with Mini-band – 2 x 16, 5-0-5 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A2) Lying External Rotation, Arm Adducted – 2 x 15, 2-0-2 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A3) Lying Side Abduction – 2 x 15, 2-0-2 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A4) Semi-supinated Standing DB Overhead Press – 2 x 20, 2-0-2 tempo, 60 seconds rest

Resistance Training, Upper Body Focus

Female

A1) Negative Only Chin-ups – 3 x 3, 10 -0-0 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A2) Underhand Grip Pull-down – 3 x 8-10, 5-0-5 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A3) 30 Degree Semi-supinated DB Press – 3 x 8, 5-0-1 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A4) Rope Push-downs – 3 x 12, 3-3-1 tempo, 90 seconds rest

B1) Incline DB Curl – 2 x 20, 2-0-2 tempo, 10 seconds rest

B2) Standing Barbell French Press – 2 x 20, 2-0-2, 90 seconds rest

Male

A) Parallel Grip Pull-ups – 3 x AMRAP, 3-0-1 tempo, 30 seconds rest

B) Lat Stretch – 1 x 30 seconds each arm, 3 minutes rest

C) Incline DB Press – 3 x AMRAP, 5-0-1 tempo, 30 seconds rest

D) Pec Stretch – 1 x 30 seconds, 3 minutes rest

E) Wide, Pronated Chest Supported Rows – 3 x AMRAP, 3-2-1 tempo, 30 seconds rest

F) Shoulder Stretch – 1 x 30 seconds, 3 minutes rest

Metabolic Conditioning

A1) Push-up Position Ladder Walks – 3 x 3 trips, 10 seconds rest

A2) Plank Push-ups – 3 x 10 each side, 10 seconds rest

A3) Sprinter Sit-ups – 3 x 20 each side, 10 seconds rest

A4) Jump Rope – 3 x 120 seconds, 60 seconds rest

Cool down with five to ten minutes of static stretching, focusing on chest, lats, and triceps.

Tuesday - Interval cardiovascular training for 10-30 minutes, preferably outdoors

Hill Sprints - Run the infamous "Kuzora Hill" near the Jelly Beans on Common Oaks Drive. If you live close by, walk to the hill as a warm-up, then run from fire hydrant to fire hydrant at 60% of maximum effort. Walk back down and repeat at 80% of maximum effort. Walk down again and do one to eight more hill sprints at 90% - 100% of maximum effort, depending on your fitness level.

Wednesday - OFF

Thursday - Gym workout consisting of joint mobility work, resistance training with a lower body focus, metabolic conditioning, and a cool down of static stretching

Joint Mobility

A1) Reverse Hyper Extensions - 2 x 30, 10 seconds rest

A2) Hip Circles - 2 x 20 each leg each direction, 10 seconds rest

A3) Turkish Get-ups - 2 x 1 each side, 10 seconds rest

A4) Overhead Squats - 2 x 10, 90 seconds rest

Resistance Training, Lower Body and Torso

A1) Trap Bar Deadlift – 3 x 5, 3-0-1, 10 seconds rest

A2) Ball Crunch – 3 x 10, 1-0-10 tempo, 90 seconds rest

B1) Twelve Inch Step-up – 3 x 15 each leg, 10 seconds rest

B2) Blast Strap Ab Fall-outs – 3 x 6, 3-3-1 tempo, 90 seconds rest

C) Six Inch Box Squat Jumps – 3 x AMRAP, x-x-x tempo, 30 seconds rest

Metabolic Conditioning

A) Prowler Shuttle Runs - 2 x 120 yards, alternating high and low handles every 10 yards, 5 minutes rest. Choose a weight that allows you to complete the 120 yards in about three minutes.

Cool down with five to ten minutes of static stretching, focusing on hip flexors, hamstrings, and glutes.

Friday - Easy, long duration cardiovascular work for 60 minutes or more, preferably outdoors

Walk, bike, jog, roller blade, or hike outside for at least 60 minutes at a slow enough pace that you could do it forever.

Saturday - Gym workout consisting of joint mobility work, resistance training with a whole body focus, and a cool down of static stretching

Joint Mobility

A1) Shoulder Rotations with Mini-band - 2 x 10, 10 seconds rest

A2) Push-ups - 2 x 15, 10 seconds rest

A3) Side to Side Leg Swings - 2 x 10 each leg, 10 seconds rest

A4) Javorek Special Good Mornings - 2 x 6, 60 seconds rest

Resistance Training, Whole Body

A1) Dips - 5 x 10, 3-2-1 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A2) Alternating Front Lunge - 5 x 6 each leg, 3-0-1 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A3) Parallel Grip Pull-ups - 5 x 12, 5-0-1 tempo, 10 seconds rest

A4) Double Kettlebell Front Squat - 5 x 10, 3-2-1 tempo, 2 minutes rest

Use assistance or added resistance on the dips and pull-ups as needed. Cool down with five to ten minutes of static stretching.

Sunday - OFF

NOTE: EVERYTHING SHOULD BE VARIED! Exercises, repetition tempo and number, and rest intervals should be changed every three to eight weeks.

Beef and Sausage Coconut Curry

INGREDIENTS

1 lb pastured pork hot breakfast sausage

1 lb grass fed ground beef

1 bag frozen mixed vegetables

1 can coconut milk

2 teaspoons green curry

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon garlic chili hot sauce

1 teaspoon sea salt or organic tamari

I used beef and sausage from Ray Family Farms in Bunn and a bag of asparagus stir fry mix from archer farms.

All of the seasonings were purchased at Target or Lowe's foods and all are gluten free. Small amounts of naturally fermented soy are acceptable for most people, but if you are involved in the Paleo detox substitute sea salt for the tamari.

DIRECTIONS

1) Add coconut milk, curry, and hot sauce to a large sauce pan over medium-low heat. Stir to incorporate ingredients.

2) While the coconut milk mixture simmers brown the beef and sausage.

3) Strain out excess fat and add garlic and tamari or sea salt. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes.

4) Add meat to the coconut milk mixture. Cook for 5-10 minutes until thickened, stirring occasionally.

5) Lower heat and add the bag of frozen vegetables. DO NOT STIR!

6) Cook uncovered over low heat for 10 minutes.

7) Increase heat to medium and stir, bringing mixture to a simmer.

8) Remove from heat and serve.

More Meals

Cauliflower with sliced garlic and olive oil and BBQ chicken (cooked with the skin on - YUM!!!)

Carol's dinner

Kid Friendly Paleo Lunch

Sophia loves Paleo too!

Nothing beats a diet of fruit, veggies, and natural meats, for adults and kids alike. Today we had pork shoulder, mixed root vegetables chips (yuca, malanga, and boniatillos) fried in coconut oil and lightly dusted with sea salt, steamed broccoli with lemon juice and olive oil, and fresh strawberries.