3500 Calories To Lose A Pound

I was reading this intriguing article by Tom Venuto, Burn the Fat earlier. Maybe research is finally onto something here. Is it as easy as we previously thought - just create a calorie deficit of 3500, and you'll lose a pound of fat? Sounds great doesn't it. I've always wondered some things though: Like, does it make a difference what the calories you eat are made up of in terms of whether or not you lose FAT or LEAN BODY MASS (aka muscle)? And, does your body easily give up it's hard earned stores of fat? Something tells me it is not that simple. And the above article might shed some light on why it is not as simple as we were taught.

The summary written by Tom Venuto from the article published in the International Journal of Obesity is as follows:

* Calories required to lose a pound and fine-tuning your caloric deficit

* 3500 calories to lose a pound has always been the rule of thumb. However, this 3500 calories figure goes back to research which assumed that all the weight lost would be adipose tissue (which would be ideal, of course). But as we all know (unfortunately), lean body mass is lost along with body fat, which would indicate that the 3500 calorie figure could be an oversimplification.

* The amount of lean body mass lost is based on initial body fat level and size of the calorie deficit. Lean people tend to lose more lean body mass and retain more fat.

Fat people tend to lose more body fat and retain more lean tissue (revealing why obese people can tolerate extremely low calorie diets better than already lean people)

* Very aggressive low calorie diets tend to erode lean body mass to a greater degree than more conservative diets.

* Whether the weight loss is lean or fat gives you the real answer of what is the required energy deficit per unit of weight loss

* The metabolizable energy in fat is different than the metabolizable eneregy in muscle tissue. A pound of muscle is not 3500 calories. A pound of muscle yields about 600 calories.

* If you lose lean body mass then you lose more weight than if you lose fat

* If you create a 3500 calorie deficit in one week and you lose 100% body fat, you will lose one pound. But if you create a 3500 calorie weekly deficit and as a result of that deficit, lose 100% muscle, you would lose almost 6 pounds of body weight! (of course, if you mangage to lose 100% muscle, you will be forced to wear the Dieter’s Dunce cap)

* If you have a high initial body fat percentage, then you are going to lose more fat relative to lean, so you will need a larger deficit to lose the same amount of weight as compared to a lean person!

* Creating a calorie deficit once at the beginning of a diet and maintaining that same caloric intake for the duration of the diet and after major weight loss fails to account for how your body decreases energy expenditure with reduced body weight

* Weight loss typically slows down over time for a prescribed constant diet a the “plateau”). This is either due to the decreased metabolism mentioned above, or a relaxing of the diet compliance, or both (most people just can’t hack aggressive calorie reductions for long)

* Progressive resistance training and or high protein diets can modify the proportion of weight lost from body fat vs lean tissue (which is why weight training and sufficient protein while on calorie restricted diets are absolute musts!)

Tom goes on to add:

If you have very high body fat to begin with, the typical rule of thumb on calorie deficits may underestimate the deficit required to lose a pound. It may also be too conservative and you can also probably use a moderate to aggressive deficit more safely without as much worry about muscle loss, metabolic slowdown, etc. If you are extremely lean, like a bodybuilder trying to get even leaner for competition, you would want to be very cautious using aggressive calorie deficits. You’d be better off keeping the deficit conservative and starting your diet/cutting phase earlier to allow for a slow, but safe rate of fat loss, with maximum retention of muscle tissue. The long and short of it is that its not quite so simple as 3,500 calories being the deficit to lose a pound. Like lots of other things in nutrition that vary from person to person, the ideal amount of calories to cut “depends”…

Read the entire article at: http://www.burnthefatblog.com/archives/2007/09/3500_calories_to_lose_a_pound.php

Refuse Bitterness

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” (Ephesians 4:31 NIV).

Bitterness is an extremely destructive force. It seeps into the depths of your heart when you choose not to forgive someone. When you harbor unforgiveness, it closes the door to God’s working in your life. The Bible even tells us that if we choose not to forgive others, God cannot even hear our prayers. Thank God that He has empowered us to forgive and release bitterness! You have the choice to get rid of bitterness so you can live in freedom! You may have been through unfair situations, but it’s not over until God says it’s over. God always has the final say, and He is a God of justice. God sees every wrong that’s ever been done to you. He sees every unfair situation. If you will stay in faith and keep your hopes up, He will make your wrongs right. He’ll bring justice into your life. Your attitude should be, “It may have been unfair. They may have done me wrong. But I refuse to get bitter. I know my time is coming.” As you choose forgiveness and keep your thoughts focused on the Word of God, you will walk in complete freedom in every area of your life!

Heavenly Father, today I refuse bitterness. I refuse to allow the past to keep me stuck. Right now I forgive those who have hurt me. I pray blessing on them, that they would come to know Your Truth. Father, thank You for setting my heart free today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Angels On Earth

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
-Dalai Lama

At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning- disabled children, the father of one of the school's students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question. "Everything God does is done with perfection. Yet, my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is God's plan reflected in my son?" The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. "I believe," the father answered, "that when God brings a child like Shay into the world, an opportunity to realize the Divine Plan presents itself. And it comes in the way people treat that child."

Then, he told the following story: Shay and I walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they will let me play?" Shay's father knew that most boys would not want him on their team. But the father understood that if his son were allowed to play it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging. Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance from his teammates. Getting none, he took matters into his own hands and said, "We are losing by six runs, and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him up to bat in the ninth inning." In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three.

At the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the outfield. Although no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base. Shay was scheduled to be the next at-bat. Would the team actually let Shay bat at this juncture and give away their chance to win the game?

Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher moved a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least be able to make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly toward Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball to the pitcher. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could easily have thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have ended the game.

Instead, the pitcher took the ball and threw it on a high arc to right field, far beyond reach of the first baseman. Everyone started yelling, "Shay, run to first. Run to first." Never in his life had Shay ever made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second!" By the time Shay was rounding first base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball to the second baseman for a tag. But the right fielder understood what the pitcher's intentions had been, so he threw the ball high and far over the third baseman's head.

Shay ran toward second base as the runners ahead of him deliriously circled the bases towards home. As Shay reached second base, the opposing shortstop ran to him, turned him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third!" As Shay rounded third, the boys from BOTH teams were screaming, "Shay! Run home!" Shay ran home, stepped on home plate and was cheered as the hero, for hitting a "grand slam" and winning the game for his team.

"That day," said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, "the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of the Divine Plan into this world."

And now, a footnote to the story. We all have thousands of opportunities a day to help realize God's plan. So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice: Do we pass along a spark of the Divine? Or do we pass up that opportunity, and leave the world a bit colder in the process?

Wasn't that incredible? The first time I read it, I missed something important. I don't want you to miss it. Shay had played baseball a number of times. Before that day, no one had gone out of their way to help him. He had never made it to first base before. Shay may never completely be able to appreciate what happened that day, even though it was probably the thrill of his life. The biggest thing that happened was that over 20 other kids got to experience what helping someone else can do for them. They got to feel the excitement that you can feel by putting yourself second, instead of first. The world was made better just then... from the ripple effect it had on them, and now that this story is getting out.

And I too feel privileged to be able to share this story with you so that you can get closer to what may be the meaning of life. I think it's to help ease the burden of it for others...and feel that joy.

by Mike Brescia

How Do You Eat An Elephant?

"The greatest things on earth have been done little by little."--Thomas Guthrie

It's terribly heartbreaking to talk to people and hear them say they just can't stop smoking, for example. They'll say it was a tough week and they needed to smoke or to do whatever their habit is. But success in anything - from quitting a bad habit to gaining a good one, from obtaining a singular accomplishment or a string of them - requires many decisions and actions. And they all come one-at-a-time.You don't have a bad week. You have a weak moment. And then another one. Your life is made up of moments, not weeks. Have you ever noticed how, let's say... a basketball game can change momentum in 30 seconds or less? One team is in control and BOOM... 3 quick baskets by other team and they're in control.

It's all in the mind.That's why it's SOOOOO important to make sure that your beliefs - your core-level beliefs - about yourself and about life are right. You've GOT to believe in your abilities. You CAN do whatever you want to do. You can. There can't be the slightest doubt. I don't doubt you and I don't even know you personally. But I know this... No matter who you are, where you came from, your physical limitations, your color, your age... it has nothing to do with what you want to do and your GOD-given ability to achieve it. It's true, you may have to work harder than others, but you can do much. You might not ever pole vault over 19 feet, but within your physical abilities you can achieve a lot. And I want you to get really clear about one thing. You need to keep your life in compartments of seconds and minutes, not days.

Taking things "one day at a time" is one of the biggest causes of failure there is. Emotions can change from one moment to the next. One minute your resolve seems firm, and the next, after a particularly stressful meeting - bam! All your resolve is out the window. When that cigarette, or whatever your habit is, is screaming for you, in that one moment you must do everything you can to block it out. Do something. Do anything... One thing you can do is pull out your Victory Log and read it. If you don't have one, make one. Mine has saved me on many occasions and led me to my greatest triumphs.

by Mike Brescia

The Right Attitude

Do you have what it takes to reach your weight-loss goals? If you think it's just about diet and exercise, you're wrong. Exercise and a proper diet are crucial to any weight-loss and fitness program, but reaching any long term goal — especially one that requires major lifestyle change — means improving your attitude, too. You can have all the external support in the world, but if your self esteem is shot, you'll never have long-term success. Having the right attitude is so important. We all know how easily negative thoughts can lead to a lack of confidence, hopelessness, and depression. You've heard about self-fulfilling prophecy, right? Well, if you tell yourself that you'll always be overweight or unhappy, you'll probably end up overweight and unhappy. It's a tough lesson to learn, but it's true. Okay, so let's turn that scenario around. Tell yourself that you can get fit and you will be happy. It's that simple, I swear. You can master your own fate with positive thinking!

Jillian Michaels

Reality Check from Someone who's Lost 110lbs! (and keeping it off)

Look people. Losing fat ain’t easy. Let me say this again. Losing fat AIN’T easy. I routinely have people ask me what my secret is, how did I lose over 110lbs., and other various spins on the same questions. When I tell them I did it the old school way they lose all interest. Nobody wants to hear they might have to sweat and not be able to eat Skinny Cows twice a day. It suprised all of us to find how many people are looking for a magic bullet or they are looking for someone to tell them how simple it is. For 95% of us, losing fat is hard. It takes lots of work, saying no, making sacrifices, and learning a whole new way to live. That stuff is hard and never let anyone fool you.

[In order ] to lose the fat. You have to:

1. Eat healthy foods forever; not just when you are losing weight. Sure you’ll get a little wiggle room when you reach goal, but we eat just as healthy now as we did when we were losing. Personally, I only eat more of the good stuff and have an occassional splurge.

2. Exercise HARD. Sorry, but if you want to look good you have to work out like you mean it. Sure, beginners don’t go gung-ho and walking is a great way to get STARTED. In the end, though, you are making a committment to moving for the rest of your life. You gotta strength train and you gotta get off the couch. As we all say, leave it all in the gym.

3. Quit using your stress, family, friends, co-workers, the melting ice caps, and that kid from fourth grade who called you fat give you reason to continue in self-destructive behaviors. Get over yourself so you can start living the life you want. You’ll always have stress and struggle so just learn right now that eating a cheeseburger doesn’t pay your bills or make your kids behave.

Abundance

If you just look at all that already exists in your life, all that you already have: unlimited air to breathe, ample lighting to see, music to hear, books to read, stars to dream by, trees to gaze at, floors to dance on, friends to cavort with, enemies to befriend, strangers to meet, woods to walk through, beaches to comb, rocks to scale, rains to cleanse you, rivers to float you, animals to comfort you, you do have to admit there's more of it than you could ever, ever, ever spend. But try anyway.

Compliments

When someone pays you a compliment you look them in the eye and say, “Thank you! I’ve been working very hard.”

I don’t care if you are just beginning or you are at the end of the fat loss journey, start taking compliments and quit dismissing them. It wears on your psyche to deny that you work hard, eat right, and look good. You deserve to hear those things and people really mean it. Even if you don’t believe it just fake it til you make it. You know why? The last thing you want to do is finally reach your fat loss goal and feel miserable about your looks. You gotta start NOW changing how you think. It’s a long process so use your whole journey to learn how to believe in yourself.

I want everyone to repeat after me: I promise that for the next week I will say…
“Thank you. I have been working very hard!!!”

Be proud of yourself and allow all the great things you deserve into your life. You owe it to yourself.

Keeping a Journal

Think about the tapes you play that tell you that you don't have what it takes to lose weight. Imagine you are at goal. How does it feel? Are you afraid, happy, confused? What are your emotions? Keep a journal of the journey. See if there are any patterns that trigger certain behaviors. Make a plan! What are you going to do the next time the old tapes tell you that you are going to eat off plan.

I think I will buy myself a pretty notebook and start writing down my thoughts. For me personally, in the real world I hide behind my weight as far as my self confidence is concerned. Once I am at goal I am scared that I will stand out more and people will expect me to be more outgoing than I am comfortable with. Seeing that in writing made me smile because - its ridiculous to think that I don't stand out now as an obese woman! Talk about head games in my own mind .... !!!

Thoughts on Staying Motivated

"People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily."- Zig Ziglar (www.ziglar.com)

Motivation is a feeling found in the moment -- often we're either motivated to take on a given task or endeavor, or we're not. And like it or not, even the most highly motivated individuals experience this at times. It's not a destination in the sense that we wake up one day and no longer need to re-charge our internal batteries. In other words, we shouldn't expect not to experience certain times where we need to re-fuel our level of motivation -- just as we understand that we need to take a bath in order to keep the stink off ourselves So with that said, don't beat yourself up if you have times where you're not at your peak level. It happens to everyone. The difference of course is your willingness to do the little things that will change your level of inspiration at the moment.

Fortunately, for you and I -- regaining that feeling of inspired action is often as easy as reading a book or listening to a tape that carries with it a positive message. It could also be as simple as doing (even the smallest actions) the very thing you happen to be resisting doing. Think of the saying, success begets success. What that means is that each new feeling of accomplishment gives us just the boost we need to move forward -- very much like the snowball effect. We start out resisting the thing and by "forcing" ourselves to take action on it, before we know it we end up getting involved in it and at the same time feeling the sense of accomplishment that goes along with making progress in our given endeavor. In summary, do the thing you're resisting and the very action you're taking will renew your inner motivation. It sounds simple, because it is. Yet, don't make the mistake of thinking its simplicity makes it any less effective. The reality is that you have inside you all you need to un tap your potential at any given moment.

It's your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds