Beef It Up!

If you want to lose weight without giving up food, add more protein to your diet.

According to a new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, people who add more protein to their diet unconsciously end up consuming less calories without feeling hungry.

High protein diets have always proven successful in helping people to lose weight but scientists
The study was conducted to figure out whether high protein diets were successful because people were eating less carbs or because they were eating more protein.

The researchers gave study participants various diets with protein making up different ratios of those diets. Those who were told they could eat as much as they wanted, providing the diet was 30% protein, 20% fat and 50% carbs ended up eating 441 calories less than they did before the study.

Eating 441 calories less per day is equal to losing 1 pound of fat every 8 days.
Swapping sugars from soft drinks with low-fat milk, and adding more lean meat and dairy to your diet rather than focusing on eating less may be the secret to the weight loss you've been looking for.

Iodine: The fountain of Health, Energy and Weight Loss

Iodine is a wonder mineral that is often overlooked, but can aid increase your energy levels, give you shiny, strong hair and even help you lose weight.

Several recent studies show that a shortage of iodine can lead to poor function of metabolism and immunity. It also promotes free radical damage and hinders brain development. But many people are iodine deficient because they are eating less salt and more organic foods (which have low iodine levels).

Symptoms of iodine deficiency include depression, weight gain, weak heartbeat, extreme dry hair and skin, swelling of the legs, decreased ability to concentrate, muscle cramps, puffiness or swelling of the eyes, and chronic aches and pains.

If you think you need more iodine in your diet, you can fight it in asparagus, garlic, lima beans, mushrooms, sesame seed, chard and summer squash

That's Bananas!

A new banana diet is taking over Japan, so much so, that bananas have become almost impossible to find in that country.

We at Regenesis Fitness don't condone fad diets but this does seem to have some merit. The new diet is based on eating nothing but raw bananas and room-temperature water for breakfast and then continuing the rest of the day eating a sensible diet.

The bananas and water are said to boost the body's metabolism so much that the rest of the day's calories are more easily burned off.

The diet was accidentally discovered by 31-year-old Hitoshi Watanabe and his girlfriend who is a pharmacist with training in Chinese herbal medicine. Watanabe lost 29 pounds over the next 6 months and posted his results on local blogs.

Since then, his diet has been so popular that it became the focus of a series of banana-diet books which have sold more than 600,000 copies.

Dieters are also expected to finish all their meals by 8 pm and to be in bed by midnight. Watanabe also says people should try to alleviate stress from their lives because health is adversely affected by stress and is a hindrance to weight loss.

Now we're not saying this diet is something you should pick up right away, but a diet of fruits and vegetables is always a good thing and as long as you are eating all your nutrients for the rest of the day, then there's no detriment to your health!

Bananas!

Get Nutty!

Adding fatty foods to your diet will help you lose weight, according to a recent study conducted in California.

Scientists say foods rich in unsaturated fat, including olive oil and nuts, send signals to your brain that decrease your appetite and make you feel full.

Speaking of Bones...

Last week, I wrote about increasing bone density through exercise, but while we're on the topic of bones, I just wanted to add an extra blog about preventing bone loss through your diet.
Higher protein foods such as lean meats ans low-fat dairy foods can help you lose weight without compromising your bone strength.
According to a study published in the Journal of Nutrition, dieters who follow government-promoted high carbohydrate diets see declining bone health over time, whereas dieters who chose to use high protein diets were able to keep their bone density fairly stable.
The high-protein diet is also helpful for your weight training since protein encourages muscle development.
Choosing the right diet and incorporating weight training to your work out will not only give you a better body aesthetically, but will make you healthier and help keep your bones and muscles strong in old age.

Get Cracking to Lose Weight!

Eggs may be your secret weight-loss weapon.

According to a new study, people who eat two eggs for breakfast lose a lot more weight and have more energy than those who choose bagel breakfasts with the same number of calories.

The two-month long study of 152 obese and overweight people was carried out at Louisiana State University and is published in this month’s International Journal of Obesity

It found the egg eaters lost 65% more weight and had a 6`1% greater reduction in their Body Mass Index than those who eat bagels. And despite fears that eggs would raise cholesterol levels, the study saw no change in cholesterol or triglyceride levels in either of the groups.

Study researchers speculated that protein-rich eggs filled up the participants more than a carb-loaded breakfast, leading them to eat fewer calories throughout the remainder of the day.

The Write Stuff

I've written in previous blogs about the pros and cons of keeping a food diary, but it looks like a new study has tipped the scale.

Yes, food diaries can be time consuming and a hassle to maintain, but researchers have concluded that those who keep daily food records generally lose twice as much weight as those who don't keep records.

A study to be published next month in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that the more food records people kept, the more weight they lost.

In addition to keeping food diaries and turning them in at weekly support group meetings, the 1,700 study participants were asked to follow a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and low-fat or non-fat dairy and to exercise at moderately intensity levels for at least 30 minutes per day.

After six months, participants lost and average of 13 pounds. More than two-thirds lost at least nine pounds, which is enough to reduce health risks.

So, if you can stand to keep a food journal, you will really be doing yourself and your health a huge favour. Now get writing.

Weekends Are Dieters' Nightmare!

You always knew it but now it's been proven.

Weekends are a dieter's nightmare.

According to a study at Washington University School of Medicine, most dieters give up their strict eating regime once the weekend arrives and they eat more fat on Saturdays than any other day of the week.

Researchers further found that people will lose weight during the week and either stop losing or even gain back weight during the weekend. People in the study didn't always realize they were eating significantly more food on weekends.Make sure to keep a close eye on what you're eating and try to fit in at least one workout on weekends to avoid sabotaging your weight loss goals.

MacDonalds Diet - hype?

Chris Coleson lost 80 pounds in six months by eating only at McDonald's, according to several news reports, including CNN. But don't get too excited. Coleson, who was 281 pounds when he started his diet, did not even order one Big Mac, chocolate shakes or side of French fries.

Instead, Coleson dined on salad, grilled chicken wraps and apple dippers sans caramel (in other words, an apple).

Why would you order an apple from McDonald's?

Coleson basically decreased calories and increased exercise, which, of course, led to weight loss, as it always does. In fact, he was probably eating 1,200 - 1,400 calories per day, which, for someone of Coleson's size, amounts to almost a starvation plan according to an American Dietetic spokeswoman.

The key was not McDonald's food.

Now, having said that, I'm still glad Coleson came out with his story. After "Supersize Me" and Subway's highly successful Jared campaign, people were blinded into thinking some fast-food restaurants were bad while others were good. In fact, some subs at Subways are much more fattening than a big mac, but people were brainwashed into not thinking about their choices once they walked through the Subway doors.

Hopefully people will look at this story as proof that healthy food choices can be made anywhere, anytime. And yes, eating healthy and exercising works. Really, it does!

Fighting Your Body to Lose Weight

So you're wondering why it's so hard for you to lose that extra weight that is keeping you from looking amazing in that bathing suit? Well, it could be because your body is programmed to store calories that it can later use during periods when there is little or no food. Empty fat cells send out signals that lead to increased hunger and increased fat storage. So when you're dieting, your body just wants more food.

The body also works to conserve calories when it senses that it is at the beginning of a starvation period. When you don't eat enough or often enough, your metabolic rate slows and you in turn burn fewer calories. This body function helped our ancestors live through periods when food was scarce, but it works against us when we attempt to lose weight in today's world.

Ancel Keys studied the effects of food restriction on the human body and mind during World War II. He followed 32 healthy, active young men who ate an average of 3500 calories a day. For six months, he restricted their food to only 1600 calories a day. Cutting their calories in half had the following effects:
• 40 percent decrease in metabolic rate (calorie burning)
• Food obsession
• Food cravings and binges
• Depression, irritability and moodiness

To reduce calorie intake without sending starvation messages, work with your body instead of against it:
• Eat when hungry. Do not wait until you are feeling starved.
• Do not go more than 5 waking hours without food.
• Eat something first thing in the morning.
• Do not severely restrict calories (women generally need 1200 calories or more and men need 1600 calories or more). If you feel like you are starving with the amount of food you are eating, you are not eating enough!

Remember that severe food restriction leads to binging. Reducing portions, eating filling foods, limiting your access to foods that tempt you to overeat and allowing occasional exceptions will help prevent binges.

Breakfast Does a Body Good

Eating a big breakfast consisting of high carbohydrates and protein first thing in morning and then following a low-carb, low-calorie diet for the rest of the day helps maintain a healthy weight loss according to yet another study.

Researchers from the Hospital de Clinicas in Caracas, Venezuela say eating a big breakfast packed with protein and carbohydrates helps cut cravings for sweet or starchy foods throughout the day. It also boosts the metabolism. But for those of you who are regular readers of this blog, this is nothing new. Breakfast has long been touted as the most important meal of the day, particularly for those who want to lose weight.

Scientists added that this way of eating also helps people lose weight in the long term as opposed to crash diets, which are effective in losing weight fast but when stopped, results in immediate weight gain.

Researchers looked at how breakfasting habits affected the weight of almost 100 obese young women by putting them on a low-calorie, low-carbohydrate diet. Half of the subjects had a big breakfast, taking in almost 1,240 calories in a single high-protein, high-carbohydrate meal for nearly eight months.

After nearly four months, the women eating small breakfasts had lost an average of around 5 pounds more than the women who ate high calorie breakfast. However, after eight months, the women who ate small breakfasts had regained an average of 18 pounds of weight.

The women who ate healthy, high calorie big breakfasts, on the other hand, continued to lose weight, shedding another 16.5 ponds on average. The researchers concluded that at the end of the study, the big breakfast eaters had lost more than 21 per cent of their body weight compared with just 4.5 per cent for the other women.

The big-breakfast diet also helps in losing weight in a healthy way than an extremely low-carbohydrate diet because it allows people to eat more fruit and therefore get enough fiber and vitamins, the researchers noted.

Spice Up Your Life

Sprinkling no-calorie seasonings and sweeteners on your food, will make you feel full faster, cut down on food consumption, and help you lose weight, according to a new study.

A study conducted by Dr. Alan Hirsch, a Chicago neurologist and psychiatrist, found that overweight people who used the zero-calorie flavorings lost an average of 30.5 pounds over the course of six months, while those who didn't use them lost only 2 pounds.

The 1,436 participants were not given dietary restrictions, although those in the study who were already dieting and or exercising were allowed to continue.

Those using the flavorings were given four small bottles each week and told they could use them liberally. They could choose savory or sweet, although they didn't know the exact flavor. The savory choices were salt-free and included cheddar cheese, onion, horseradish, ranch dressing, taco, and Parmesan. Sweet choices included cocoa, spearmint, banana, strawberry, raspberry, and malt.

Using the flavorings '"can actually cause a change in eating habits and behavior," says Hirsch, who is also the founder of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago. He added that sprinkling the calorie-free flavoring may make some healthy foods such as vegetables tastier, making it easier to eat more of them.

Exercise and Leptin: The Happy New Couple

Pairing exercise with the leptin enables the hormone to fight fat in overweight patients.

The leptin hormone sends the body chemical signals to stop eating and use stored energy. But researchers at the University of Florida College of Medicine said the hormone did not work in overweight people.

Once exercise is added to the equation, however, the leptin seems to regain its power.

The researchers studied overweight rats on a high-fat diet. Neither exercise nor leptin alone kept the rats from gaining weight but once the two methods were used together, the leptin began to work again and kept the rats from gaining extra weight.

Scientists will be testing the effects on humans next.

Smaller Meals Won't Help You Lose Weight

It's a diet staple. Every dietitian, fitness specialist, etc. has praised the merits of eating 5 or 6 small meals throughout the day instead of 3 large meals if you're trying to lose weight.
Well it looks like that advice is worthless.

A new study conducted at the University of Newcastle split a group of dieters into two. One group ate three times a day while the other added in three extra snacks to speed up fat burning but boosting metabolism.

Unfortunately, the group eating the extra snacks did not lose weight.

"We found it's not when you eat that matters, but what and how much you eat," said Dietician Michelle Palmer at the university. She added that dieters should be more focused on what they eat and not spend their time inventing creative eating plans.

Wow, and I was really enjoying my mid-afternoon cottage cheese.

10 Years of Diets!

A recent study has revealed that the average woman will spend 10 years of her life on a diet.

According to the study conducted by LIPObind, the manufacturer of a weight-loss supplement, women generally go on two healthy eating plans every year, with each one lasting an average of five weeks.

Do the math? That's 104 diets & 10 years of watching what they eat.

LIPObind polled 4,000 women for the study.

The findings also stated that each diet saw an average of 6.3 pounds of wight lost, however a quarter of the women surveyed said they saw no weight loss at all and those who did lose the weight often regained it.

Even more disturbing, 1 in 10 women surveyed spent 25 years or more on a diet.

The survey highlights just how much women think about their weight during their lives.

Now if only a fraction of those women would instead make the life choice to eat healthy and stay fit, we could wipe out much of that dieting… but there I go preaching again.

Liquid Lunch!

A recent study has found that milkshake-like meals, bulked up with certain gasses or water actually makes people feel fuller longer and could result in weight loss.

As someone who likes to chew on food, I found this kind of odd, but it's not my place to judge, just to report on the world of health and fitness, so here it is.

A study presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Geneva compared 2 groups of people, one who at a full milkshake-like meal, and a half-sized version bulked up with a gas similar to that used in aerosol whipped cream.

According to the research, the gas-filled meal actually reduced appetite more than the standard one. Not only that, the satiety (feeling full) was maintained for 1-2 hours or even longer.

The results are expected to lead to new weight-loss products within the next few years.

Jolting Your Workout with Caffeine

Endurance athletes use caffeine to help increase energy and to keep them going longer.

Studies have shown that caffeine delays fatigue, slows the breakdown of muscle glycogen (so your body has more fuel to keep it going), enhances endurance, reduces muscle pain during exercise and may even lower your perceived exertion, so that your workouts feel more comfortable.

If you are a competitive athlete, you should bear in mind that caffeine is also a diuretic, which will affect your hydration levels and may mean more pesky trips to the washroom mid-competition.

And there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Only 3-6 mg per kilogram of body weight is enough to enhance endurance. (A cup of coffee has anywhere from 60 mg to 120 mg). Taking too much caffeine could upset your stomach, induce trembling or shaking, cause increased anxiety, headaches and/or nausea and can prevent you from getting a good night's sleep. You should also avoid caffeine if you’re are pregnant or are on medication or supplements that contain other stimulants.

Beware of Patio Season

Patio season is among us. Thank God!

But the good weather and the open patios probably means that most of us will have a beer or two to celebrate.

Well, if you're looking to lose weight, this extra indulgence will be a major roadblock in reaching your goals.

A pint of regular beer is 225 calories. Just one beer a day for 2 weeks is almost 1 pound of extra body fat.

Similarly, a glass of dry wine is 106 calories and a sweet wine is 226 calories.


Adding to the problem is that very few of us just have a beer or a glass of wine at a patio. The aperitif is usually accompanied by wings, nachos, fries or something equally bad for us. (Who has a beer with celery sticks).

I'm not saying give up alcohol, especially if you really enjoy it and love spending time with your friends at the patio. But you can always cut back. As with all things in life, moderation is the key.

And besides, what's better: that second beer, or the look of awe your friends will give you when you take of your winter sweater to reveal your new chiseled body?

Rethinking artificial sweeteners

A new study by the Journal of Behavioral Neuroscience has conclusively show that using artificial sweeteners not only does not prevent weight gain, but may actually help you gain weight.

Researchers fed one group of rats yogurt sweetened with sugar and another group of rats yogurt sweetened with saccharin. The total amount of food eaten dramatically increased in the artificial sweetener group. After 14 days, the saccharin rats gained weight, had increased body fat and a slowed metabolism.

The researchers believe that artificial sweetener increases your appetite. Yikes! They say any sweet taste will signal your body that calories are on the way and trigger hormonal and metabolic responses (i.e. hunger). When you consume non-nutritive or non-caloric sweeteners, like aspartame or saccharin, you are tricking your body and you will feel hungrier and eat more.

Being on a low-carb diet, I find this study pretty disturbing. I guess I'll have to re-think how to get my sweet fix.

Hollywood Diet Surprises

It's no surprise to read that a lot of A-list celebrities do some pretty unhealthy things to their bodies in their quest to fit into that coveted size 0, but recently I've read a couple of interesting (and fairly sane) tips that might work for you too.

Pass the Vinegar! Apparently a lot of supermodels eat greens doused in vinegar 20 minutes before dinner. Because Vinegar slows the glycemic effect of carbohydrates it makes you feel fuller, longer. If you're feeling full before you order a meal, you are less likely to order the 16-ounce steak with fries!

Pocket-size breath strips. The breath strips, or a mint-flavoured gum will keep you from eating dessert, even if you're hungry. Both the strips and the gum will numb your taste buds and alter the taste of food that you may eat afterwards. And if the food's not gonna taste good, what's the point of eating it?