serve on a whole wheat sandwich thin...yummy!
We get it. We’re fat. Americans are fat. Europeans are fat. And the rest of the globe is quickly catching up. And, yes, excess weight is very, very bad. Gaining too much weight boosts your risk of cancer, heart disease and, well, 17 other terrible things that we’ve written about before.
So, do our chubby thighs and seems-like-we’ll-never-shed-it baby weight always spell disaster? Is there any silver lining at all? Maybe. Here are four surprising things you may not know about weight—and why a few extra pounds aren’t always as bad as you think.
FACT: Body mass index, or BMI, is a good starting to point to determine if you’re in shape because it is a simple number that takes into account both height and weight. (You can easily check your BMI using a calculator). But it isn’t perfect—far from it.
BMI does not take into account physical fitness or bone structure, and it doesn't differentiate between weight gained at a muscle-building camp or weight gained at McDonald’s.
So if you’re packing a lot of muscle—say, if you’re a bodybuilding male—you may end up with a BMI in the obese range. (For example, at the peak of his bodybuilding career, Arnold Schwarzenegger had a BMI of 33, which is considered obese.)
Keri Gans, a registered dietitian and American Dietetic Association spokesperson, measures her clients’ BMI during a consultation, but takes the number with a grain of salt. “The key is muscle,” she says. “A bodybuilder might have a BMI that’s almost obese, when he’s just really, really built with a lot of muscle.”
FACT: Yo-yo dieting can strain the heart, cause gallstones, and disturb your metabolism. It’s better to adopt a healthy diet and exercise program and lose weight steadily—experts generally recommend a pound a week—than to crash diet and shed tons of weight, only to rapidly gain it back.
Eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia are very different from crash and yo-yo dieting, but they pose many of the same health risks and also are potentially life-threatening. Anorexia and bulimia can lead to cardiac arrhythmias and other serious problems due to electrolyte imbalances. Purging, or repeated vomiting, can put a serious strain on the heart and damage teeth due to stomach acid exposure.
Gans says it is “much better and healthier” to be five or 10 pounds overweight than to constantly lose and gain weight.
FACT: Sure they look good, but those skinny people may not be any healthier than heavier people—particularly if they have a cigarette hanging from their lips.
People who are relatively thin can still carry unhealthy fat internally. This fat is called visceral fat, and it pads vital organs. Thin people who carry internal fat are still at risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer, says Gans.
“Just because you’re thin doesn’t mean you’re walking away scot-free from disease,” she says. Anyone, thin or not, could be at risk of heart disease or diabetes due to his or her genetic makeup. People often assume that type 2 diabetes is caused by eating too much and exercising too little, but, in reality, about 20% of people with diabetes are thin, and that’s generally due to genetics.
What’s more, smokers are particularly at risk for illness. Some people smoke to curb their appetite (thereby staying skinny), but cigarettes can cause lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and heart disease.
A 2008 study found that one in four normal-weight people had at least two metabolic factors (such as high triglycerides, high blood pressure, or high blood sugar) in the abnormal range.
FACT: Not all fat is created equal. New research suggests that even if two people are equally overweight, one may be much healthier than the other.
For one, people who carry fat around their midsection are at greater risk for illness than their pear-shaped counterparts, who carry weight in the hips, buttocks and thighs. Belly fat has been linked to a greater risk of erectile dysfunction, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and other conditions.
But it goes deeper. Some people with extra pounds tend to accumulate fat in their liver; others the same size do not. Researchers now think that obese people with fatty liver deposits are at much greater risk than those without them, particularly because they are prone to insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes. The problem? It’s hard to tell who’s who. In reality, extra weight is bad for anyone, but it’s clearly worse for some people than others.
Whether you can be “fit and fat” is still hotly debated, but physical activity and a healthy diet do tend to offset the risks of being overweight, says Gans. Of course, it depends on how overweight a person is; if you’re only slightly overweight but still active, you may be less likely to experience health problems like high cholesterol or heart disease.
Although the term fit tends to be subjective, much of a person’s fitness is based on how quickly his or her heart rate returns to normal; the quicker the heart can recover, the better shape it’s in. So if you’ve hit a stubborn weight plateau, keep working out anyway—you’re doing your heart and lungs a favor.
Gans agrees. “You don’t need to be thin to be fit,” she says.
You’ve mastered the cable cross-over and amped up your push-up. Now it’s time to perfect your form on a set of skills that often get overlooked at the gym: your manners.
We spoke to author and etiquette expert Dan Post Senning (great-great-grandson of the original maven of manners, Emily Post!) and Ramona Braganza about what constitutes courteous—and crass—behavior at the gym.
Do: Towel It Up, Dude
Let’s just get right to the point. Not everyone is cool with nudity. Yes, the human form is a beautiful thing. And we get that you’re proud of the work you’ve done and the way your body looks. But given the semipublic nature of the gym locker room, save those hour-long looks in the mirror for your bedroom.
“You’re not there to be on display, or to preen and promenade about,” Senning says. “You have some liberties to be naked, to shower, to get dressed and undressed, but out of consideration for others, exercise a little bit of modesty.”
Don’t: Burn Through Your “Anytime” Minutes
This rule definitely applies to every area of the gym: Save the cell-phone conversations and marathon email sessions for outside the gym. Most people see the gym as a chance to tune out from telephones and email—so whether you’re running late to work after your early-morning workout or letting the kids know that you’re on your way home, keep your phone calls, text messages and emails short.
“The same rules apply as in a restaurant,” Senning says. “Out of respect for your fellow diners and the owners of the establishment, you wouldn’t carry on a conversation in the middle of the dining room floor, so don’t do so in the locker room.”
Do: Wash Your Hands
This might seem like a no-brainer for most folks, but a quick reminder never hurts: Clean hands are a must for anyone heading out to the gym floor to use cardio equipment or weight machines. (And just to be extra courteous and hygienic, wipe down those machines when you’re done using them.)
Don’t: Create a Slip-n-Slide
Most people go to the gym with the express purpose to sweat, but do a favor for everyone queued up behind you at the bench and wipe down the area when you’re done.
Do: Keep the Noises to a Minimum
A small expression of exertion—a sigh or long breath—are perfectly acceptable; grunting, groaning, weights slamming and other Olympic-lifting noises are better suited for, well, the Olympics. If you’re planning to bench some scream-inducing weight, schedule your workout for an off-peak time.
Don’t: Offer a Tutorial
“As a trainer, it bugs me when people try to correct my form,” Braganza admits. “Whether they’re using it as a pickup line or trying to show off how much they know, it’s just rude to offer unsolicited advice.”
Of course, if someone is clearly attempting an unsafe movement or is on a crash course with injury, definitely offer a helping hand or alert a member of the gym staff.
Do: Get Help
Never be afraid to ask for advice or for a spot. If you don’t feel comfortable asking a fellow gym member, then look for a Gold’s Gym trainer.
Don’t: Double-Dip
Repeat after us: I can only use one machine at one time. Don’t try to reserve the hip sled by throwing a towel on it while you finish that set of lat pull downs or take a 10-minute break to chat with a buddy. We understand you want to get the most muscle burn in the shortest time, but there are other people who want to use the hip sled and the lat pull down.
Do: Ask to Share
Instead of tapping your foot and checking your watch over and over while you wait for the chest press, ask your fellow gym member if you can switch out sets. That said, if you can see that two people are already sharing a machine then just keep moving. Two is company, but three is a crowd.
Do: Limit Your Screen Time
Sure, you get a little ego boost every time you whip out that iPad or Kindle, but be sure to watch the clock—or even set the alarm. When lines of members are waiting to use the machines, focus on your workout rather than on your epic Angry Birds battle.
“E-tablets have a tendency to draw people in so they lose awareness of the people and environment around them,” Senning says, meaning that those intense 20 minutes you planned to spend on the recumbent bike may stretch to a leisurely 45. Which brings up another point…
Don’t: Hog the Machines
Most gyms assign time limits to the machines, especially during peak hours. Pay attention to how long you’ve used a piece of equipment when other people are vying for a turn, and give someone else a chance when that time is up. “If you want to get in a 40-minute run at 6 p.m., switch cardio machines halfway through,” Braganza recommends.
Do: Share the Water Fountain
After a monster, water-bottle-emptying workout, you head to the fountain to refill your Nalgene when a parched yet water-bottle-less lad sidles up behind you. In this situation, Braganza offers this tip: Step aside and let the dude quickly quench his thirst before you spend five minutes commandeering the faucet. Hopefully, the next time you forget your water bottle at home, someone will return the favor.
Don’t: Forget the Deodorant
“The No. 1 rule of gym etiquette is to be clean,” Senning says. That means wearing deodorant and antiperspirant at all times, and putting on a fresh pair of clean clothes. The Emily Post Institute even recommends asking a person you trust to give you a quick sniff test every now and again. “Have them evaluate your breath, body odor and even hair—things you yourself may overlook sometimes,” Senning explains.
Do: Leave the Front Row to the Pros
While everyone should try out new classes, nothing bursts Yoga Zen faster than a person who keeps falling out of a pose directly in your line of sight. Don’t ruin a Zumba routine for your fellow classmates by taking center stage on your first go-around.
“Stay near the instructor but to the far left or far right, so you’re not interrupting others’ concentration,” Braganza says.
Don’t: Make a Beeline for the Door
“What tends to happen is that people gather outside the door before the class begins, then when it’s time to enter, everyone bum-rushes the studio,” Braganza says. To avoid a stampede situation, hang back and let the pushy pushers go in first. It’s not like the class is going to start any earlier for them.
That said, if a certain fitness class is constantly overcrowded, talk to the gym staff about creating a sign-up sheet.
Photo: © Thinkstock.com
Dining out is one of the biggest challenges for dieters. Menus are designed to lure you in, and studies have shown that simply seeing or smelling food can erode the steeliest resolve (it’s hard to resist ordering that brownie after seeing it pass by on the dessert cart!). That’s why it’s important to have a game plan before you set foot in a restaurant.
Check Out the Menu in Advance. Access it online if possible, or call therestaurant and ask if they can fax a copy. When you get there, don’t even open the menu—simply tell the waiter what you decided on earlier in the day.
Start with greens. Salad helps fill you up without adding many calories… as long as you don’t drown it in dressing or smother it with fatty toppings like cheese and nuts. Vinegar contains negligible calories (plain vinegar, not vinaigrette), so feel free to douse your salad with as much as you want. Or ask for a dressing on the side and use no more than one to two tablespoons.
Watch portions. They are notoriously huge in restaurants. Even if you choose everything right, you can go wrong by cleaning your plate. You want to leave the table satisfied, not stuffed. One way to achieve this is to eat slowly and mindfully, paying attention to the company, not just the food. Try putting down your fork and taking a break every three bites or so. This gives your brain time to get the “I’m full” message from your stomach. On a similar note, don’t get so wrapped up in conversation that you forget what and how much you’re eating. To make sure you don’t overstuff yourself, when you’re about halfway through what’s on your plate, stop and assess your hunger on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being ravenous and 5 being stuffed. If you’re at a 3 or 4, stop eating.
Skip the bread basket. Most of the time, it’s a calorie bomb. If you must have something, a small slice of French bread or a small plain roll (no butter) is the way to go.
Don’t drink your calories. Stick with water, seltzer or a diet soda. If you enjoy alcohol, limit yourself to one drink—preferably a glass of wine, a wine spritzer, a light beer, or a shot of hard liquor mixed with club soda or another noncaloric beverage—all of which are around 100 calories. Avoid frou-frou drinks like frozen margaritas, which contain hundreds of calories.
Go lowfat. As a general rule of thumb, order foods that are broiled, grilled, roasted or steamed, and steer clear of those that are fried or sautéed. When entrées are pansautéed, the food soaks up more oil than during grilling or broiling.
Don’t be afraid to make special requests. You can save lots of calories by asking for sauce on the side, steamed vs. fried or sautéed vegetables, double orders of veggies instead of a starch, and half-portion entrées. Plate-sharing and doggie bags are also a great way to cut calories and cost. (A charge for a plateshare is less than another entrée.)
Order two appetizers instead of an entrée. Seafood appetizers like shrimp cocktail, oysters or grilled calamari are low enough in calories that you can order two (stick to the same guidelines about avoiding fried, sautéed, etc.) plus a salad as your entire meal.
Ditch dessert. If you need something sweet to end your meal, go for fruit or a few small bites of a shared dessert. Sometimes a cup of tea or a skim cappuccino is all it takes to make you feel like you’ve had a full dining experience.
When You’re Eating Ethnic Foods…
It can be hard to choose when you don’t completely understand the menu! You can always ask the waiter what’s in a dish and how it’s prepared, but here’s some help.
Best Italian picks:
• Mixed green salad with vinaigrette dressing on the side (no cheese)
• Mussels marinara
• Grilled calamari (squid)
• Grilled, broiled or roasted chicken or seafood (plain or served with a tomato-based sauce)
• Cioppino (tomato-based fish stew)
• 1/2 portion of pasta with frutti di mare (tomato and seafood) sauce
Avoid dishes with these words: Alfredo, parmigiana, scampi, carbonara
Best Mexican picks:
• Gazpacho
• Ceviche (raw fish “cooked” in lime or lemon juice)
• Chicken or shrimp fajitas (have only one soft tortilla, and limit the cheese, sour cream and guacamole)
• Camarones de hacha (shrimp in a tomato-coriander sauce)
• Snapper Vera Cruz
Avoid dishes with these words: Frito (fried), con crema (cream), con queso (cheese)
Best Chinese picks:
• Tofu and vegetable soup
• 1/2 order steamed vegetable dumplings
• Steamed chicken or seafood and vegetables (order garlic, ginger or black bean sauce on the side, and have 2 tablespoons)
• Moo Shu chicken (limit yourself to two pancakes and skip side rice)
Avoid dishes with these words: Crispy, chow (stir-fried in oil), sweet and sour
Best Japanese picks:
• Miso soup
• Edamame (soybeans)
• Oshitashi (spinach)
• Sashimi (fish without rice)
• Chicken or seafood yakitori (skewers)
• Chicken or salmon teriyaki
Avoid dishes with these words: Tempura, katsu (fried)
Joy's Bottom Line
1. Know before you go. Coming to the table armed with info is key to eating out without blowing your diet.
2. Order strategically. Don't be afraid to ask servers questions or ask them to make substitutions
3. Savor your dining experience. Eat slowly and pay attention to when you feel full so you don't walk away stuffed.
So, as if the challenge hasn’t been difficult enough, I had to go and throw a girls' weekend to Vegas smack in the middle of it. Changing routine can be tough when you are so focused on your goal, especially when you must rely solely on restaurants for your food and be in a completely different environment. The ladies at the gym assured me that it would be fine: they encouraged me to pack my workout clothes and said if I had one “cheat” it wouldn't be the end of the world.
I started the trip with protein bars, my running shoes, and a plan.
And yes, I turned into one of “those” girls, constantly asking how many calories are in that, how far do you think we just walked, etc. Luckily, my girlfriends all knew my goal and were all super supportive; and armed with a plan and the support of my friends, I actually was able to stick to my diet and break a sweat every day. Yes, while they were downing cheeseburgers and fries, I was having chicken and rice with vegetables; and while they were ordering biscuits and gravy, I was ordering an egg white omelet with whole wheat toast.
I walked away feeling so empowered and in control, and never felt like I was missing out on something.
It occurred to me that these are truly lifestyle changes I am practicing. My main goal of the challenge is ingrain in myself a healthy lifestyle that will inevitably lead to a healthy body; it is not to miraculously starve myself and then struggle with keeping the weight off once the challenge is over. And you know what? It's working: I was able to wear dresses out dancing that I haven’t worn in years. Even better? I didn’t miss a beat, my first day back home I was back in the gym. That’s my idea of success.
I got arrested by the fashion police. A couple of years ago I was training for a triathlon, and I was in the habit of leaving the house at an ungodly-early hour to get my workout in. Since I was trying to be polite and let my wife sleep, I would grab clothes out of my dresser and get dressed in the dark. It showed.
One morning, my 17 year-old daughter saw me and spewed her orange juice across the kitchen. Then she asked in a horrified, high-pitched voice,
“you aren’t planning on leaving the house wearing THAT are you?!?!”
I didn’t get it. I wasn’t wearing plaid with polka-dots. It wasn’t a polyester leisure suit. How bad could a blue/green & white patterned shirt with old WSU shorts, tube socks with green stripes, and blue running shoes be?
What followed was 3 months of her trying to educate me about the nuances of color and pattern matching.
One of the great things about clothing choices, is that everything can be changed in 5 minutes (or in my daughter’s case; 45 minutes). Unfortunately, the results of exercise selection take longer to change. It can take years of rehab and corrective exercise specialists to undo the results of unbalanced exercise habits.
Still, a lot of people approach their workouts the same way I had been choosing my outfits; kind of a “whatever’s convenient” methodology. We have an idea that we need to get the whole body, but how? How do we decide which exercise to do next? To answer these questions, I offer 4 basic guidelines for determining exercise order.
Begin Big- Start with the biggest muscles, the most complex exercises, and the most demanding technique first. We never, EVER, use only one muscle for an exercise. During every lift, muscles are doing 1 of 4 things; moving the weight (called prime movers), assisting (called synergists), stabilizing some other part of your body still so that the prime movers can pull on it, or relaxing (because you really don’t need your big toe flexed while you do curls) By starting with the biggest muscles, you make sure that the limiting factor in the workout is that prime mover, and not a stabilizer. The upside to using this order is that you will see significant strength gains. The downside is that it is easy to fall into a routine and get stuck in a rut.
Circuit Training- The idea behind setting up a circuit, is to let the upper body rest while you are working on the lower body. The advantage is that there is never any down time; you are always working something. The drawback is that it often requires a decent amount of space to set up the circuit, and unless you are part of a class others can ace you out of the Lat Pull machine while you are doing Calf Raises.
Push and pull- The concept of push and pull exercises is similar to circuit training. The difference is to rest from pushing motions (push-ups, overhead press, tricep extensions, etc) happens while you are working the pulling motions (pull-ups, rows, hamstring curls, etc). Again, there is never any down time. A major advantage is that this can keep the body balanced. A disadvantage is that you can overload mutual stabilizers (the muscles that stabilize your shoulder blade in a bench press also hold your shoulder blade still
during a seated row), so it is important to vary the body area as well as push-pull motions.
Super-sets- Sometimes called a compound-set is when you perform 2 exercises without a rest in between, often with the same motion or piece of equipment. One of my favorites on this is to do leg presses on a machine where I can really load up heavier weight than I can stabilize on my own, then jump immediately to body-weight squats on a bosu. I have a friend who loves to do power-cleans, front squats, and dead-lift all as a single super-set; all done with the same barbell. Advantages include time and equipment efficiency. Disadvantages include limited options for which exercises to pair together.
These are just rules of thumb. Nothing is set in stone. You can use these strategies individually, or combine them in a mix-and-match. You are not going to get pulled over by the exercise police if you don’t, but if you DO follow them, you WILL look better when you leave the house.
All you need is love! If only the Beatles were right.
As M&M put it, "If it were easy you wouldn't need me." It takes time, sweat, and in my case some tears from the frustrations that come along with the challenges of losing weight. I have been on a roller coaster that is out of control these past few weeks. Most would agree the primary goal of this challenge is to LOSE weight. Unfortunately, I have been more successful at the yo-yo part of losing weight.
But back to the love.
Without the love and support of everyone through this process I can honestly say I would not be where I am right now.
Chili (no beans)
3 ½ oz lean ground beef ( 7%fat)
1 cup chopped tomatoes
½ cup water
1 Tablespoon minced onion
2 cloves garlic crushed and minced
pinch of garlic powder
pinch of onion powder
¼ teaspoon chili powder
pinch of oregano
Cayenne pepper to taste (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Brown ground beef in small frying pan, add onions and garlic .Stir in tomatoes and water. Add spices and simmer slowly until liquid is reduced. The longer it cooks the more tender and flavorful.. Add a little water as needed to prevent burning. Serve with chopped green onion or tomato garnish and salt and pepper to taste.
For a more hearty meal add a cup of black beans. (optional)
Wenatchee Fitness Blog is following a local Wenatchee blogger named Shelley. Her blog, named "Fat, Interrupted." is filled with Shelley's 'random thoughts and experiences while trying to become less woman.'
I first called this entry Things I Would Do if I Wasn't so Fat, but I decided to change it to something better.
So...
Being fat sucks. It keeps me from doing all kinds of things, either because of self-consciousness or just because I can't physically do it. Why on earth would someone put themselves in a position of not being able to do stuff??? It's dumb. So I'm going to work hard so I can do stuff. Stuff that non-fat folks can do all the time with no problem. Here are some of the little things I will do when I'm not so fat:
And here are some bigger things I will do when I'm not so fat:
Most importantly, I will be a better servant to God and to my neighbors. My fatness truly limits my ability to serve. I will have the energy to spend more time doing the love-one-another thing. I will load furniture for the furniture ministry, I will lug boxes of food around, I will help with clean-up and landscaping projects and all those other loving things that my expansive girth keeps me from fully engaging, and fully enjoying.
I'm sure there's lots more things I'll do when I'm not so fat. But I've been fat for so long, I don't know what all those things are. I'll keep you posted!
We are excited to announce we will soon be following a local blogger named Shelley. Her blog, named "Fat, Interrupted." is filled with Shelley's 'random thoughts and experiences while trying to become less woman.'
You won't want to miss it. Subscribe now to the Wenatchee Fitness Blog RSS feed to receive all blog updates 😉
Monday - Friday
5:00am-10:00pm
Saturday - Sunday
7:00am-7:00pm
