This year, I will slim down!
Loosing weight is one of the most common New Year resolutions.
However, the year will not start very well for some companies that have tried to take advantage of consumers hoping to slim down painlessly with some magical powder or magical cream: The FTC ( Federal Trade Commission) says makers of Sensa have agreed to pay $26.5 million to settle charges they have been misleading consumers with their ads, and is also announcing similar actions against L’Occitane, which sells a “slimming” body cream.
Since insanity is defined as doing the same thing again and again while hoping for a different outcome, we need to start with a good understanding of what you are actually doing wrong. Unless we understand it, we will not be able to change it.
Food Journal
For that, keeping a food journal is key. But there is no point keeping up a journal if you are cheating while reporting what you are eating. Writing it down is all about being accountable to yourself; as much as possible, be exhaustive, accurate, complete, and consistent, and you will get a fair picture of what to change to get results.
Work out
Next, the best way to keep it off, still seems to be the old fashion one: we have to work for it. According to dieticians, if you burn 500 more calories than you eat every day, you should lose about 1-2 pounds a week. Focus on fruits, veggies, egg whites, seeds and legumes, skinless poultry breasts, fish, shellfish, nonfat dairy foods, and lean meat. Avoid processed foods, like white bread, crackers, pasta or deserts. Drink plenty of water and don’t skip meals.
Supplement your diet
Science can also come to the rescue, if you do not count on a magic pill to do all the work. According to recent research, several studies confirm a good balance of Calcium, along with Magnesium and Vitamin D are key to help you achieve the proper balance that your metabolism will need to properly burn fat. 1, 2, 3
Having enough Calcium is one of the most powerful things you can do to maintain proper pH levels and to reverse acidic conditions, but achieving a proper intake – and most importantly, proper absorption of Calcium is not that simple.
Be aware that our life style often throws us off: the consumption of excessive sugar, convenience, and pre-packaged foods containing harmful chemicals, additives, and hydrogenated oils cause the system to turn acidic.
Caffeine, sugar, alcohol, smoking, aspirin, sedatives and phosphoric acid (which can be found in most carbonated drinks) not only inhibit the absorption of daily Calcium, but can deplete precious reserves as well. Virtually all degenerative diseases (including cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis and arthritis) are associated with excess acidity in the body.
In addition, over acidity will decrease the body’s ability to absorb minerals and other nutrients, decrease energy production in cells and the ability to repair damaged cells, make tumor cells thrive, and make you more susceptible to fatigue and illness. And it will decrease the body’s ability to detoxify heavy metals. The good news is that Calcium has a natural alkalizing effect and will reduce acidity levels in the body.
Therefore I believe that best results will be achieved with a good food regimen, some exercise, and the help of some smart supplements.
However, when picking your supplements, keep in mind that all supplements are not made equal.
My choice:
– A chelated form of amino-acid Calcium and Magnesium (it is important to keep them together to avoid further imbalance, and a chelated form will be the most bio-available) and think of adding some quality Vitamin K to your Calcium intake, in order to avoid a hardening of the arteries
– A natural form of Vitamin D3 (there is a great deal of difference between natural vitamin and synthetic)
– A green juice every morning made easy thanks to a convenient little pack (like Recipe for HealthTM)
1. “Calcium and vitamin D supplementation is associated with decreased abdominal visceral adipose tissue in overweight and obese adults.” Rosenblum JL, Castro VM, Moore CE, Kaplan LM. Am J Clin Nutr. 2012; 95:101-8. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.019489
2.”Supplementation with calcium + vitamin D enhances the beneficial effect of weight loss on plasma lipid and lipoprotein concentrations.” American Society for Clinical Nutrition. 2007
3″.Calcium plus vitamin D3 supplementation facilitated Fat loss in overweight and obese college students with very-low calcium consumption: a randomized controlled trial.” Wei Zhu, Donglian Cai, , Ying Wang, Ning Lin, Qingqing Hu, Yang Qi , Shuangshuang Ma, and Sidath Amarasekara Nutrition Journal 2013, 12:8 doi:10.1186/1475-2891-12-8