I'm So Excited!

The exercise bands that I use to train people in their homes proved to not be enough resistance for me when I switched my program to build muscle. I thought that I was going to have to pay mega bucks for a custom band that would be enough resistance for me, but guess what?!?!? They make a few more levels of resistance above the one I was using before the crazy expensive customized ones. It also turns out the customized bands are not really crazy expensive, I was just misinformed. But I was able to get a heavier band for a great price and I’m looking forward to being even more sore this coming week! Also, the switching back and forth between eating up and down has been really interesting. I’m liking the results, even if the scale is showing an increase. That’s ok, because I would rather look and feel amazing, than be focused on the number on the scale. And becoming harder means I am losing fat and either maintaining or gaining muscle…all good things.

Now, on to the fun stuff…
I was given an interesting suggestion over the weekend. A section I could add to my posts called “Fact or Fad?” where I discuss different things you’ve heard and either validate or dismiss them. So I will be taking your submissions for this section, as well as any questions you have, at SuccessLifestyle@gmail.com. Here’s one I love:

Fact or Fad? Will working out (specifically cardio) on an empty stomach help me to lose more weight? Fascinating question, but one that must be clarified before I can answer it. This is where I invite you all to be more specific. We all talk about gaining and losing weight, but that’s not as accurate as it can be. If you packed on 5, 10, or 15 pounds of muscle, you wouldn’t be upset because you’d look awesome! The same goes for losing 5, 10, or 15 pounds of fat; but what happens when you switch them? You don’t look so good anymore. Losing muscle and gaining fat makes you look worse because you begin to lose shape and tone. Think of muscle as the scaffolding that holds up your fat and gives it shape. We want to specifically focus on gaining muscle and losing fat. So back to the original question, now reworded: Will doing cardio on an empty stomach help me to lose fat? Nope, not even a little. It actually does the opposite. For several reasons: First, your body actually needs carbs in order to break down fat so it can be used as energy. Carbs are your body’s main source of energy and they fuel many reactions and functions in your body in addition to exercise. When they are used up, there are only two things left to burn: protein and fat. And protein is much easier to break down than fat. Which brings us to the next reason: when your body starts breaking down muscle (or internal organs for that matter) for protein to be used as energy, it is in a catabolic state. Another term for this is “starvation mode.” In this state, your body begins to lower your metabolism so that you need less calories to function, burns protein for energy, and fires up all the enzymes and pathways for fat storage because fat is long-term energy for your body and you must need some MORE long term energy (fat) if you’re in this state. This is what these signals do to your body! Not good. The answer to the original question is yes, you will lose weight, but it won’t be fat. You’ll lose muscle, gain fat, and slow your metabolism. Not things that will help you get healthier, lose fat, and keep it off. This whole concept became popularized by people who didn’t make the distinction between weight loss and fat loss. They went running on an empty stomach, saw a drop on the scale, got excited, and told everyone how well it was working. The problem is when they yo-yo back up to their original weight, they now have less muscle, a lower metabolism, and look worse because they have a higher body fat percentage, but they don’t attribute that to exercising on an empty stomach because 1) it worked so well for them, and more importantly 2) they don’t measure their body fat percentage so they don’t see what’s happening to their bodies beyond their scale weight. So not only is this a bad idea, it’s also a FAD.