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The Big Fat Mystery

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We know how fat gets into our body. We eat cakes laden with cream, samosas laden with oil and malai kulfi laden with malai. Food high in fat is a sure way for fat to eat its way into your body through our mouth, sit in places we do not want it to sit and stay stubbornly put until we do something about it. But do you know how fat leaves the body?
What happens when the extra jiggly bits on your arms, your thighs, your abs start looking slimmer because you have been working out or dieting, or both? What happened to the excess fat that you had accumulated? Where has it disappeared? Any guesses? Surprisingly, not many qualified doctors, nutritionists and fitness trainers know the correct answer. Welcome to The Big Fat Mystery.

Where dose the fat  disappear?

To understand where fat goes, we first need to understand what fat is.Fat tissue is composed of lipids ­ biological molecules made up of compounds of hydrogen, oxygen and carbon that store energy in their bonds. When we exercise or make successful attempts to burn fat, the molecules are broken apart, the energy stored in these l bonds is released.

But when this happens, where does the extraneous `padding’ that lines our bellies and bums go? Well, while the energy is released, the hydrogen, carbon and oxygen in those  molecules still remain in your body. What , becomes of them?
How do they get released?
The same way they came in. We exhale it. Biologists at the University of New South Wales (Australia) have now conducted in-depth research on where the mass of your fat goes after you burn it inside your body. For every kilo of fat you burn, 80 per cent of that mass is released as carbon dioxide when you exhale. The rest of the 20 per cent is released through water ­ urine, sweat or tears, if you really hate to exercise.

Fact of the ‘Matter’

Why this happens is quite simple really. Remember, matter cannot be destroyed ­ it can only change form. For example, ice and steam are just changed, altered states of water. In other words, if we accumulate fat in terms of actual physical visible fat, it needs to change its form to another if it has to be expelled during the burning process.

And why does this matter? It’s good to understand what happens to the fat that you are burning because when you are on that treadmill, huffing and puffing away, you will know that every breath you ex hale is a sign of fat leaving your body, and that you are inching closer to losing those inches.

When you are exercising at a pace that’s optimal for fat burning, know that the sweat you see on your clothes is not just sweat, and exhalation is not just exhalation.

It’s a sign that a particular mass of fat has truly been expelled from your body. And -depending on how disciplined you are -it’s not going to return soon.

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In Articles to munch on

THE BIG FAT MYSTERY

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We know how fat gets into our body. We eat cakes laden with cream, samosas laden with oil and malai kulfi laden with, well, malai. Food high in fat is a sure way for fat to eat its way into ou body through our mouth, sit in places we do not want it to sit and stay stubbornly put until we do something about it. But do you know how fat leaves the body?
What happens when the extra jiggly bits on your arms, your thighs, your abs start looking slimmer because you have been working out or dieting, or both? What happened to the excess fat that you had accumulated? Where has it disappeared? Any guesses? Surprisingly, not many qualified doctors, nutritionists and fitness trainers know the correct answer. Welcome to The Big Fat Mystery.

WHERE DOES THE FAT DISAPPEAR?

To understand where fat goes, we first need to understand what fat is.

Fat tissue is composed of lipids  biological molecules made up of compounds of hydrogen, oxygen and carbon that store energy in their bonds. When we exercise or make successful attempts to burn fat, the molecules are broken apart, the enerd gy stored in these l bonds is released.

But when this hap pens, where does the extraneous `padding’ that lines our bellies and bums go? r Well, while the energy is released, the hyg drogen, carbon and oxygen in those molecules still remain in your body.

What , becomes of them?
How do they get released?

The same way they came in. We exhale it. Biolo gists at the University of New South Wales (Australia) have now conducted in-depth research on where the mass of your fat goes after you burn it inside your body. For every kilo of fat you burn, 80 per cent of that mass is released as carbon dioxide when you exhale. The rest of the 20 per cent is released through wa ter  urine, sweat or tears, if you really hate to exercise.

FACT OF THE `MATTER’

Why this happens is quite simple really. Remember, matter cannot be destroyed it can only change form. For example, ice and steam are just changed, altered states of water. In other words, if we accumulate fat in terms of actual physical visible fat, it needs to change its form to another if it has to be expelled during the burning process.

And why does this matter? It’s good to understand what happens to the fat that you are burning because when you are on that treadmill, huffing and puffing away, you will know that every breath you exhale is a sign of fat leaving your body, and that you are inching closer to losing those inches.

When you are exercising at a pace that’s optimal for fat burning, know that the sweat you see on your clothes is not just sweat, and exhalation is not just exhalation.

It’s a sign that a particular mass of fat has truly been expelled from your body. And depending on how disciplined you are -it’s not going to return soon.

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In layer3

THE PAINLESS GUIDE TO NOT GAINING WEIGHT

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Traditionally, men’s fitness has always been associated with getting bigger and not smaller.From the days of Rocky Balboa and John McClane to Vin Diesel and John Statham, big beefy guys defeated the bad guys and got the girls. The notion of fitness with getting thinner -and not beefier -is a relatively newer phenomenon for men, who, like women, are putting on more weight because of a sedentary lifestyle.

While it’s important to spend more time in the gym, getting off the couch may not be the only way to banish your inner, and outer potato. Paying attention to nutrition becomes crucial to losing weight and keeping it off. While the schools of thought on weight loss are as diverse as the people who graduate from them, I’ve broken them down into Hard and Smart. The difference is replacing the old idea that you need to kill yourself to achieve anything in life (Hard) with the belief that you can have your cake, and eat it too (Smart).

Hard: Eat less, weigh less Smart: Eat to lose

If you’ve been drastically cutting calories when you want to lose weight, here’s why you shouldn’t. Cutting too many calories puts you body into starvation mode. When your body is in this mode, it can’t metabolise, or burn fat (because fat burning occurs only when your body is adequately nour ished). If your body can’t burn fat, it starts to burn the next best thing: muscle. The more muscle you lose, the more your fat cells start to increase: the lost muscle is replaced by fat. And the more fat cells you have, the greater your body’s tendency to store more fat when you get back to eating `normally’. Fat burning is at its optimum when your body is adequately nourished with a balanced and healthy diet. So many of my clients have to eat more than they ever did (healthier stuff like fruits, veggies, egg whites), and that too at frequent intervals.

Hard: No snacking Smart: Eating every 2 hours

Eating between meals was said to be the culprit behind weight gain, with the implication that you needed to eat only during your main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) to lose weight. However, studies have disproved this belief.You need to get away from the age-old habit of packing your day’s nutrients into three-four meals, and instead, spread them out in the form of smaller, more frequent meals.

Digestion itself is a calorie burning activity ­ just like walking, running or jumping. By eating smaller meals through the day, you allow your body to burn calories through the digestive process. Eating every two hours (not more or less), I find, is the best way to take advantage of this phenomenon.

Hard: Sweat more, eat more Smart: Sweat less, eat smart

So many of my clients come in with the idea that they can eat whatever they want, so long as they are working out. It’s such a hard way to lose weight. It’s really just about the math. If you eat a 1,000 calorie burg er, you will need to jog for approximate ly two hours to burn it off. Would n’t an easier option be to choose a less calorific version of the same dish? Restaurants all over the country can make low-fat versions of your fave foods. Eat smart. Spend less time in the gym. Exercise can only complement, and never replace food as a way to lose weight.

Hard: Fixed workouts Smart: Get moving to get losing

You don’t necessarily have to workout at a set time and at a set place to get your weight loss going. Increase your level of daily activity. Walk up the stairs instead of taking the elevator or escalator. Include more activities like hiking or cycling when you vacation. Walk over to your colleague’s desk instead of emailing them. Your body will take note of the cumulative increase in activity and will reward you by losing the weight. You’d be surprised at how effective, and motivating, this is.

Hard: No junk food… ever Smart: Everyone’s invited

Your life is made up of all sorts of buddies: the nerd, the shopaholic, the one you can call at 4 am to bail you out of jail or the one who has seen you through drunken binges and toxic relationships. You’ve got to use the same logic with food. Food exists in all kinds of shapes, sizes and forms. Some you need to be acquaintances with, some you can be good friends with, and some you can be best friends with. But the good news is, you can be friends with all kinds of food.

Best friends (What you can eat daily): Rice, roti, bread, upma, kurmura, dalia, cornflakes, popcorn, noodles, poha, bhel, spaghetti, whole wheat pasta, vegetables, chicken, fish, turkey, dal, grapes, mangoes, bananas, paneer, skimmed milk, curd, egg white, quinoa, khus khus, sweet potato, rava, sooji, bajra, jowar.
Good friends (Once or twice a week): Cheese, fried food, pizza, prawns, cake, ice-cream, samosa, batata vada, pakoda, fried wantons, jalebi.
Acquaintances (Once a month): Lard, bacon, beef, mutton, pork, shellfish, smoothies, fruit juice, aerated beverages.
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In layer1

DIET PLAN FOR WEIGHT LOSS

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Celebrity nutritionist and founder of www.nourishgenie.com, nudges weight loss in the right direction.

Food is meant to be a good, beautiful, nourishing thing. It gives us strength to do things we love. So why is it that when it comes to losing weight, food becomes bad, like the enemy? Like it’s wrong somehow or that dieters don’t ‘deserve’ to eat? I see so many cases where instead of using nurturing foods, people punish the body with little, tasteless or no food at all in a bid to undo years of unhealthy eating in a matter of weeks or months.

But it cannot be done.

You cannot undo habits overnight that have lead you to gain weight over years. Starvation/fad diets or what I like to call weight loss by punishment, is usually not sustainable and restrictive diets are oftentimes the quickest to see their results negated as the body limps back to pre-diet weight. All that hullabaloo for nothing.

Or is it nothing? Starvation tricks the body into thinking that it is not getting any food. Your body begins to desperately hang on to the first meal you eat, and stores it as fat. Starvation – or low-calorie/fad diets – also make your body lose muscle, and the only thing that muscle loss is accompanied by is fat storage. In other words, even if you starve yourself, the only thing you eventually gain from the attempt is weight. So all that hullabaloo is not for nothing, it’s for something.

No matter how shiny the package or tempting the ad, there is no reason to subscribe to diet food or foods because all foods are essentially diet food, barring a few like red meat. The fat content of food greatly depends on how it is made. If eaten in moderation and cooked with little oil, potatoes are brilliantly healthy. French fries, not so much. As long as you control for sugar and oil, there are very few foods that are off the table.

Second, fat is good. In fact, it’s very good. In fact, it’s so good for you that it is one of the five nutrients – the other four being protein, carbs, vitamins and minerals – your body needs for its daily survival. Fats compose of about 10% of your total calorie intake. Daily. And while a low-fat diet plan is good for you, no-fat diet plans are bad. Fats are needed for the brain, for the body’s daily functioning, for the skin, among other vital functions. A good low-fat diet plan consists of healthy fats like nuts, seeds, healthy oils like olive oil. If you’re confused about where to get good fat-moderated diets, you could ask a nutritionist, or go online (where there are scores of free diets available) or even find one on customized online diet portals like www.nourishgenie.com.

The point, of course, of any good diet plan is that it should make you feel good, both physiologically and psychologically, and leave you energized and happy.

A good diet plan enables you to healthily indulge in all kinds of foods like rice, mangoes, pasta, noodles, popcorn and more, and won’t make you wistfully stare at your family as they eat ‘normal’ food, because you should always eat together. Eating meals together with friends and family not only gets you closer to them, it takes you closer to your better self too. And that’s really the whole point, isn’t it?

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