Weight Loss Facts

I think that it is fair to say that some people just do not ‘get’ weight loss. Weight loss is not as difficult, in principle, as it is sometimes made out to be. Some things that I have mentioned in previous blog entries will also be discussed here but it never hurts to refresh the memory.

Calories are the key – the really key to weight loss is calories. The simple science is that to lose weight we must use more calories than we consume and it really is as simple as this. To lose weight we need to create a calorie deficit (burn more calories than we need). To lose a pound we must burn off 3500 extra calories, so a 500 calorie deficit a day will see us lose 1 pound per week.

Fat does not make us fat – this is a common misconception that is still around today and ‘low-fat’ food products are being produced. The simple truth is that we need fat in our diet. It is true that not all fats are created equal (avoid trans fats for example) but we must not cut fat from our diet.

Fat contains the most amounts of calories – although we should not cut fat out of our diet, it is true that, per gram, fat contains more calories than protein and carbohydrates.

Excess energy is stored as fat – when we eat more calories than we need we store the excess as fat. So basically, do not overeat!

Crunches does not lose belly fat - we can do as many crunches as we want, but the calories we burn from this will simply not be enough to burn belly fat and/or lose significant weight. This rule applies to other abdominal exercises too. 

Reduced risk of diabetes – through weight/fat loss, we reduce the risk of developing diabetes and for men, it is suggested that weight loss reduces the risk of heart problems.

You should eat when you are hungry – this is such a key one for me. I have heard so many people say they skipped a meal or that they felt hungry but didn’t want to eat because they are trying to lose weight. This is so ridiculous to me. Our body is giving us a sign that we need to eat, so we should eat. A major problem of skipping meals is that we send a sign back to our body that food is not available when we need it. Starving ourselves leads to the body storing fat for other times when we do not eat.

Exercise Myths - Part 2

Today I will look at two more common exercise myths that people need to be aware of. As before these are widely accepted to be true and the facts and research suggests otherwise.

The first myth to destroy today is the idea that if you want to lose weight you should avoid strength training because it will lead to you bulking up. It is now widely accepted that you can combine both cardiovascular exercises with weight training in order to maintain a healthy weight. In fact, strength training helps to increase and preserve muscle mass and this can help decrease percentage body fat.

The next myth to dispel today is regarding the idea that home workouts are not as beneficial to you as going to the gym. First of all, some people find it easier to stick to their workout program when it is home-based, which is more beneficial to us than something we cannot stick to. Secondly, you can exercise any body part you wish at home and so you will not be losing out by exercising at home. 

Check out my short full body workout here.