Your Trainer Is In—

Body Fat Loss Part 1: The Confused vs The Behavioralist

By Cody Foss MS, LATC, CSCS, NASM

Editor’s note: Due to space constraints, this column which normally appears in this week’s Health Monitor insert is being run in the print edition of The Bee.

If we take a moment and observe what has taken place over the last 30 years in the world of health and nutrition in this country, we have one certainty; we as a society are failing. Interestingly enough, as obesity continues to skyrocket, the weight loss industry continually sells millions of dollars in books and supplemental products.

People still want information to change and seem to be willing to try anything. In my opinion, however, half of what I see on TV and online is absolute garbage. The information we have been provided with by trusted sources is confusing at best.

So what’s going on?

I consider myself to be on the front line regarding this issue. Having the opportunity to work with hundreds of people, I have informally developed my own unofficial data from listening and creating wellness strategies for people. One thing that I know for sure is that most overweight people are not unmotivated or unaware of their situation.

As someone who works with this population, I find it frustrating when I hear this implication because it is not always the case. If you are going to tell me that someone is obese because they are not motivated to change, then you are oversimplifying and making a person feel even worse about something they are well aware of; they are failing.

So let’s take another approach and take the label of lazy or not motivated off the table. Sometime when you are failing at something you need to step back and try a different approach. With more than 15 years of helping people reach their fitness goals, I have observed a lot. I recently concluded that there are two types of people that are unable to reach success, the confused, and the “behavioralist.”

The confused, I can help in this article alone. The behavioralist has to do something drastic to improve.

People fail at fitness because either they are confused about the right information or they are unable to break away from behaviors that have sabotaged them for a long period of time.

And there is also a population of people who have physical complications like hypothyroid, which is not the direct focus of this article.

The Confused

Let’s face it; a lot of good looking, confident people have been telling us with conviction what to eat over the last 30 years. However, the truth is we have not been provided with the right information and the sources that are giving the right information are not being listened to.

The confusing message we have been told started with our government in the 1980s with the USDA-provided food chart. This chart placed too high of an emphasis on carbohydrates. At the same point, most people were not being told that a processed carbohydrate on a molecular and nutritional level does not resemble a natural carbohydrate.

In other words, Wonder Bread and rice crackers are not great representatives of the four food groups. In case we had forgotten what the government was saying, the high carb, low fat marketing explosion of the 80s reinforced this hysteria even further. Remember “Stop the Insanity!” Eat as many potatoes as possible. Then came the 1990s and the craze became Atkins and the no carb diet. Bodybuilders preached nothing but protein and suddenly we were being told to do the exact opposite of what was recommended just a few years before.

So what is the right information? The truth is that nutritionists have been preaching accurate information this whole time. Except for most people it’s boring and they already know the right answer. Whole foods, fruits and vegetables, and eating in moderation just is not what people want to hear. It seems more appealing to spend $19.99 on someone telling us they have the new secret!

So here is the actual truth: eat sensibly and stay active! Diets don’t work. Depriving yourself of calories doesn’t work! Follow the guidelines below and try to replace your existing eating habits with these and see how you do.

 

Cody’s 8 Rules for Losing Body Fat

1. Eat multiple small meals. Try to eat every two to three hours. Each meal requires 10–15 percent of the consumed calories to be used to breakdown the nutrients.

2. Eat a fruit or vegetable with every meal. Increase antioxidants, nutrients, and fiber levels.

3. Not all fat is bad. Ensure that 25–35 percent of your energy intake comes from fat, with your fat intake coming primarily from monounsaturated (e.g., olive oil) and polyunsaturated (e.g., flax oil, salmon oil). Saturated fat is bad, but mono and polyunsaturated fats are extremely healthy and should be included in your diet.

4. Eat complete meals. Combine the three macro nutrients (carbs, lean protein, good fats) as much as possible, especially protein and carbohydrates. Decrease sugar absorption and insulin release. Also, the complexity of combining different macronutrients will increase the thermic effect of food, burning more calories.

5. If you have to break from these suggestions, don’t do it at night. Have the occasional sweet earlier in the day, but not right before bed.

6. Food preparation. Have at least two of your meals prepared a day in advance. Include a backup snack and have it available at all times. Pack a supply of nutritional bars or bring fruit to the office for those emergencies where you cannot eat what you want.

7. Drink more water and fewer sugar-based drinks. Water has no calories but requires calories to process it. It also has multiple health benefits that make this simple activity a must!

8. Increase activity: in this order, with the priority being strength training and high intensity training as the basis for the program:

a. Strength training: The only way to increase your resting metabolic rate is to increase lean body mass.

b. Increase high intensity training. For various reasons this is the most effective way to target body fat and have lasting metabolic effects.

c. Maintain low intensity cardiovascular training. This should be used as a complement to the other activity choices. Ultimately, it is your tool to improve general health, allow your body to recover, and continue to contribute to the caloric deficit.

Remember that only strength training will increase your metabolism; every other form of exercise will merely burn calories.

If up to this point you find this information boring, repetitive and simple, but still are not in the shape you want to be in, keep reading.

The Behavioralist

Understand that my position here is not insensitive. I have listened and heard heartbreaking stories of complete frustration and despair by countless people just like you. So if I truly care and truly want to help you, then I need to be able to communicate a very clear message: the chances of you succeeding on your own are low unless you are really ready to change.

Behavioralists represent a large group of people who are armed with the necessary information but have been unsuccessful at changing their behavior patterns that sabotage their health. The urge they have to satisfy pleasure will dominate their ability to implement a rational decision. Whether it is choosing to not eat the right food or not exercise, they are opting for what feels good vs what is good for them. The psychology and emotion of eating goes way past the scope of this article, and to be honest, my expertise. I don’t want to minimalize how in-depth this can be, but I do want to focus on the action response phase. The first step is assessing your situation. If you know it’s behavioral, we need to provide you with some paths that will pull you from the cycle.

So how do we shock your system?

1. Fire yourself as your personal health coach. You aren’t good at it!

2. Replace yourself with a person or support group, but not a book or DVD. We need a human connection and we need you to be accountable.

3. Hire your wellness team! Here are your three options, each with suboptions:

a. Physical Activity Coordinator.

i. Hire a personal trainer. This is the easiest and most effective, but is also the most expensive. A good personal trainer will assess your weight, body fat and physical capabilities and create short-, mid- and long-term goals. A trainer will create a plan and then reevaluate on a consistent basis. You will be accountable to your trainer. In my experience, either results will take place or you and your trainer will uncover why they are not happening.

ii. Join a gym with a friend and set goals with each other, including a minimum of three days per week of attendance together. A good strategy is to take classes so you have one more level of accountability as people will begin to expect to see you.

iii. Organize a walking group. Not a social group, a walking group. Set up progressional goals and ensure a consistent attendance policy.

b. Nutritional Coordinator.

i. Hire a nutritionist. Remove the guessing and just like working with a personal trainer, a nutritional coordinator will provide you with the necessary structure and information.

ii. Join a weight loss group support system like Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig. I personally have reservations about these programs, but the accountability is imperative and this will help.

iii. Commit with someone that consistently shares meals with you either at home or work. Commit to implementing the nutritional guidelines provided above together.

c. Results Coordinator

i. This will be covered if you hire a personal trainer and or nutritionist.

ii. For all other options you need to start with a base weight and body fat level. You have to commit to at least one person to share this information with. If you can’t get your body fat level, at least get a starting weight level. Then create a realistic weight loss goal over a fixed period of time. Don’t be too aggressive, one to two pounds per week is a fair number based on your starting levels. What is important is choosing a number that you can realistically achieve safely and effectively.

You need a:

1. Weekly goal

2. Monthly goal

3. Three-month goal

4. Six-month goal (continue for one year).

Share your results with your partner on a weekly basis. It is not acceptable for you not to succeed. If you find that you are unsuccessful after a few weeks, then hire a professional and put the pressure on that person to ensure that you get results. Don’t quit; change the plan!

4. Don’t get defensive. Remember, your way hasn’t worked! Trust in others and begin your program with the understanding that you can do anything you want! It might be harder, and others might not think you can. It is at this very moment that you have the power to change yourself if you really want to. Stop watching other people succeed, stop telling yourself you can’t, stop finding ways to not allow yourself to not succeed and make a change right now. In other words, “Make It Happen.” This has to become a priority!

5. Plug in Cody’s 8 Rules for losing body fat!

6. Read your goals every day at least once.

In conclusion, I am putting together a support team that will be available to respond to any questions regarding this article or other health related topics. Please visit my website, www.thefitnessloft.org under support. I wish you well and if this article helps you, please share the information with someone else.

The next column will discuss the secret to losing body fat.

Cody Foss is the owner of The Fitness Loft of Newtown.