Why You Should Eat Fat to Lose Weight

HomeNutritionWhy You Should Eat Fat to Lose Weight Why You Should Eat Fat to Lose Weight You're trying to drop a few pounds, so you naturally skimp on fat and try to focus on lean eating. But taking such measures could actually be counterproductive, causing you to gain weight instead of losing it. The best diet for weight loss--and overall health--includes a balanced assortment of nutrients, and doesn't cut or drastically reduce fats, proteins or carbohydrates.

Fat in the American Diet

According to Harvard School of Public Health, Americans are collectively eating less fat now than in earlier decades. In the '60s, about 45 percent of our calories came from fat sources; these days, we get just 33 percent of our calories from fat. But in the days of higher fat consumption, only 13 percent of adults were obese--today, that number has nearly tripled. Diabetes is also about 10 times more prevalent now.



How Fat Helps Weight

Put simply, fat is satisfying. When we eat foods that contain oils and other fatty substances, food stays in our stomachs longer for lasting satiety. When we skip fat, we may never feel fully sated after meals, and are more likely to become hungry again soon after eating. We may wind up eating more calories to compensate for the empty feeling in our guts.

What's more, many low-fat and fat-free products are highly processed and contain added sugars to make up for the lost flavor. Just because a food has little fat does not mean that it's light in calories, and we may be tricked into eating more of these fat-free junk foods in the belief that they aren't fattening.

Healthy Fats
 
Not all fats are created equal. Trans fats, for example, are linked to visceral belly fat--the kind that sits beneath abdominal muscles and contributes to diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers. Trans fat is primarily found in margarines, snack foods, baked goods and meats. Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is trans fat in disguise, so check food labels for both terms. Cholesterol and saturated fat, usually found in animal products such as beef and butter, are also bad news, contributing to dangerous cholesterol levels in the blood.

The "good" fats are polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, which come from plant foods such as nuts, seeds, avocados and vegetable oils. These fats help maintain normal cholesterol levels and are linked to a reduced risk of heart disease. Omega-3 fatty acids, which are polyunsaturated "superfats" found in salmon and walnuts, have particularly heart-healthy properties.

Guidelines
 
While fats can aid your weight-loss plan, moderation is still key. At nine calories per gram, fat has more than double the energy of carbohydrates and protein, which contain just four calories per gram. Since weight loss ultimately boils down to calories in versus calories out, eating too many fatty foods can spell diet disaster.

The smart way to lose weight is to pay attention to calories while eating whole, natural foods. Most women lose weight on about 1,500 calories per day, while men will lose weight eating about 2,000 calories per day--and you probably won't feel hungry with those numbers. Get your fats from plant sources, and cut out saturated and trans fats as much as possible. Just don't feel guilty about using a splash of olive oil in your stir-fry or snacking on a handful of almonds.


MORE ON HEALTHY FATS: UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FATS

Nina Kate is a certified fitness nutrition specialist through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). She also studied journalism at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and has contributed to numerous major publications as a freelance writer. Nina thrives on sharing nutrition and fitness knowledge to help readers lead healthy, active lives. Visit her wellness blog at BodyFlourish.com.

What you should eat before your workout

HomeNutritionWhat you must be to eat before your workout should be eating if your training session will be less than 90 minutes before your workout, is better training for at least three hours after eating to ensure that carbohydrates has been metabolized. Carbohydrates become energy in ten minutes to two hours depending on the complexity that is carbohydrate. Fat and protein take more than four to five hours. When you do aerobic exercises, taps of your body fat stored energy, but if you have enough carbs in your stomach, your body cannot be used as much as fat that did not have any carbohydrate in the stomach. Your body usually has enough fat and carbohydrate is stored to make it through a training session of 90 minutes without the need for more fuel.



If you want to eat a snack before your workout, they have a single protein or you have a protein with a fat healthy. This may please your body fat stored energy during your workout and prevent muscle loss. The protein helps conserve, replenish and repair muscle damage during training. Healthy fats may slow digestion to prevent hunger during their training, lubricate joints and aid in the synthesis of muscle and repair, according to Angie Burke, M.P.H., R.D. and NPC Bikini competitor.

Examples of snack pre-workout for less than 90 minutes sessions:

• 1 oz lean chicken or Turkey Breast (protein)
• 23 almonds raw or 27 raw cashew nuts or 49 kernals raw pistachios (protein + fat healthy)
• ½ small avocado & 1 oz lean chicken or Turkey Breast (protein + fat healthy)
• 1.5 ounces salmon cooked & dry heat (protein + fat healthy)
• 2 hard boiled or scrambled egg whites from egg & ½ small avocado (protein + fat healthy)
• 1.5 ounces lean tuna (if using canned, use ¼ tuna canned in water) & ½ small avocado (protein + fat healthy)

If you plan to work out for 90 minutes or more, eat a carbohydrate with a protein and a fat healthy to prevent muscle break down. Stores of fat and carbohydrates usually exhausted after 90 minutes of exercise, so it needs extra carbohydrates for fuel to track and prevent muscle breakdown, exhaustion and decreased cognitive function.

• 1 small Apple & 23 raw almonds
• 1 small banana & 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
• 1 slice whole wheat toast & 2 tablespoons natural almond butter
• ¾ cup cooked quinoa & 7 English walnut halves
Breast of Turkey or chicken • ½ sandwich: 1 slice of whole wheat bread, chicken breast of chicken or Turkey 1 oz & ½ small avocado. (optional: 2 sheets of 1 slice of tomato & lettuce)
• ½ Cup oatmeal with soy milk or almond ¼ Cup or water & 12 raw almonds

* Abnormal blood sugars and diabetes should consult their doctor and nutritionist before starting a training plan, always check the blood sugar before and after eating and carry a carbohydrate action quick snacks or glucose tablets.


HELP YOU OR MAKE YOU WITH WEIGHT LOSS FAT-FREE FOODS?

Jamie Yacoub, M.P.H., R.D. It is a clinical dietitian with a master's degree in public health nutrition, and (C.O.C.) expected Certified Diabetes Educator fall 2013. He obtained his Bachelor's degree in clinical nutrition from the UC Davis after four years, time during which participated in practices in several different nutrition environments including Kaiser Permanente and women, children & children (W.I.C.). After graduating from UC Davis, she went to study nutrition public health in the Loma Linda University where he earned his master's degree in public health nutrition. Jamie completed the portion of nutrition in the community of their dietary practices as an intern for a specialist certified in sports nutrition. He completed the clinical portions of their dietary practices in a hospital of 100 superior of the nation, where was hired as a clinical dietitian only shortly after and food service. Jamie now works as a clinical dietitian ambulatory and is an expert in medical nutrition therapy (M.N.T.) using the nutrition care process (NCP) including history and current laboratory values as a basis for the evaluation of nutrition.

Should You Be Afraid of High Fructose Corn Syrup?

HomeNutritionShould You Be Afraid of High Fructose Corn Syrup? Should You Be Afraid of High Fructose Corn Syrup? High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) sounds creepy if you are aware of the controversy concerning it but unaware of what it actually is. HFCS and sucrose (table sugar) are both added sugars containing the simple sugars fructose and glucose. Fructose has been scientifically proven to pose more metabolic and cardiovascular risk than glucose, giving HFCS a bad reputation.

Table sugar (sucrose) is made by extracting and crystallizing sugar cane or beet juice and is always half fructose and half glucose. HFCS is made by adding enzymes to corn syrup, which is just single and short chains of glucose molecules. The enzymes convert about 90 percent of the glucose to fructose. This 90 percent fructose syrup is combined with glucose corn syrup to produce HFCS. Thus HFCS can contain variable ratios of fructose to glucose depending on the amount of glucose corn syrup added. The creepy thing about HFCS is that food labels do not identify how much fructose is in the product.



Dr. Kimber Stanhope, a nutrition researcher and nutritional biologist at UC Davis, said she would like food labels to specify the type and amount of added sugars in the product. This is because just as different fats are used by the human body in different ways, so are different sugars. Fructose has been shown to increase risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes more than glucose. Fructose is used almost only by the liver while glucose can be used by all the cells in your body. Note that the liver is where sugar is converted into fat in your body.

Dr. Stanhope was recently featured on 60 Minutes for her groundbreaking study showing that HFCS increased risk factors for cardiovascular disease comparably to fructose and more than glucose in young men and women in just two weeks. This was the first and so far the only human study to compare the effect of HFCS (containing 55 percent fructose), pure fructose, or pure glucose on cardiovascular risk markers when consumed as 25 percent of total energy in the diet.

The amount of fructose contained in foods is a mystery to the general consumer. Supposedly the HFCS used to sweeten soda contains 55 percent fructose, however Stanhope notes that in a recent study published in the journal Obesity, Michael Goran "showed that the amounts of fructose in soda ranges from 47-65 percent, and it was two of the most popular brands that contained 65 percent fructose."

Many individuals against HFCS agree food labels should include fructose amount, but since there is yet no scientific evidence in humans that HFCS poses a greater risk than sucrose, this has not yet been approved by the FDA nutrition committee. Dr. Stanhope is currently studying the effect of HFCS compared with sucrose on cardiovascular risk markers and she states that she hopes the results will be available within a year. She also adds, "While this study will provide information about the effects of sucrose compared to HFCS when the HFCS contains 55 percent fructose, it will not tell us whether HFCS is more problematic than sucrose when the HFCS contains 65 percent fructose."



IT'S OKAY TO USE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER...SOMETIMES

Jamie Yacoub, M.P.H., R.D. is a clinical dietitian with a Master's of Public Health in Nutrition, and expected Certified Diabetes Educator (C.D.E.) fall 2013. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in clinical nutrition from UC Davis after four years, during which time she participated in internships in several different nutrition environments including Kaiser Permanente and Women, Infants, & Children (W.I.C.). After graduating from UC Davis, she went on to study public health nutrition at Loma Linda University where she obtained her Master's of Public Health in Nutrition. Jamie completed the community nutrition portion of her dietetic internship as an intern for a Certified Specialist in Sports Nutrition. She completed both the food service and clinical portions of her dietetic internship at a top 100 hospital in the nation, where she was hired as the only clinical dietitian shortly after. Jamie now works as an outpatient clinical dietitian and is an expert in Medical Nutrition Therapy (M.N.T.) using the Nutrition Care Process (N.C.P.) including past medical history and current laboratory values as a basis of nutrition assessment.