Tag: weight loss

Does a High Fat Breakfast Burn More Fat?

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

Hold the skim latte and bring on the butter? High-fat breakfasts are enjoying a comeback in some circles, after a study published in the International Journal of Obesity found that rats who ate a high fat breakfast burned more fat throughout the day than rats who ate a high carbohydrate breakfast.

But the reality on the ground looks a little different. Multiple studies have found that people who eat high fat breakfasts end up eating more calories over the course of the day–almost certainly trumping any increase in the fat-burning metabolism observed in the mouse study.

That’s not to say that a breakfast high in refined carbohydrates (corn flakes, toast, jelly, juice, etc.) is the way to go.  The ideal breakfast for appetite and weight control appears to be one that’s high in both protein and fiber. So bring on the eggs, tofu, cottage cheese, yogurt, oatmeal and other whole grain cereals.

As a bonus, research suggests that this type of low-glycemic breakfast may help you burn more fat during your lunch-time workout.

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Special Live Event!

Join me tomorrow night, March 8th, at 9pm Eastern for a forum on breakfast, fitness, and weight management. Joining me for this live webcast are Ben Greenfield of BenGreenfieldFitness.com, Darya Pino, PhD of  SummerTomato.com, and Gloria Tsang, MS, RD of Healthcastle.com.  Your questions and comments are welcome.  The event will be broadcast right here on NutritionOverEasy.com.  Click here to RSVP.

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The Studies:

Time-of-day-dependent dietary fat consumption influences multiple cardiometabolic syndrome parameters in mice.

Energy and macronutrient composition of breakfast affect gastric emptying of lunch and subsequent food intake, satiety and satiation.

The effects of high-carbohydrate vs high-fat breakfasts on feelings of fullness and alertness, and subsequent food intake

Fat oxidation during exercise and satiety during recovery are increased following a low-glycemic index breakfast in sedentary women.

 

This Week’s Podcast: How to Eat Less Without Feeling Hungry

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

Quick and Dirty Tips for Eating Well and Feeling FabulousAs you may have noticed, whether I’m talking about reducing your risk of heart disease, preventing Type 2 diabetes, or slowing the aging process, one piece of advice keeps coming up over and over again: Maintain a healthy weight. Of course I realize that this is a lot easier said than done.  In order to lose weight, you have to eat less and when you eat less you usually feel hungry, which most of us find unpleasant. So this week, I have some tips for you on how to eat fewer calories without feeling hungry.

Resolution Rescue: What Are You Craving?

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

If losing weight is one of your New Year’s resolutions, sooner or later you’ll probably find your resolve tested by an overwhelming desire for something really naughty.  Hopefully, you’ll reach for a diet-friendly snack instead. But your chances of heading off dietary disaster will be higher if you choose an alternative that is a good match for your particular craving.

if you’re craving chocolate, for example, another stick of celery is probably not going to do the trick. (Then again, if you’re craving something salty, it just might.)

Here are some foods to help satisfy various cravings without ruining your diet:

Continue reading “Resolution Rescue: What Are You Craving?” >

What if we call it calorie cycling instead?

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

In previous posts,  I’ve looked at the merits of something they’re calling Alternate Day Modified Fasting (ADMF) as a way to lose weight.  But the word “fasting” appears to have a lot of baggage–to many, it implies extreme, dangerous, or even disordered eating.

ADMF is not really fasting at all.  A more accurate term, Calorie Cycling, is now gaining traction and this rebranding may allow people to get  beyond their assumptions and preconceived notions for long enough to evaluate this approach on its merits.

There seems to be a deeply entrenched–but completely arbitrary–notion that we should eat the same number of calories every day. Fans of the evolutionary nutrition movement would point out that primitive man certainly did not have the luxury of constant, consistent access to food. We now suffer from an epidemic of over-nourishment. Maybe it’s time to think outside the box a little?

The Logic Behind Calorie Cycling

If you were to cut your normal daily caloric intake by a third, you would lose weight–and fairly quickly. But there are problems with this approach to weight loss:

1. You will probably experience hunger.

2. Staying on the regimen requires constant vigilance, monitoring, and self-control.

3. After about 72 hours of sustained caloric restriction, your body will adjust by slowing its metabolism (slightly).

So, let’s say we take the same reduced number of calories. But instead of spreading them evenly throughout the week, we alternate very low calorie days and normal or slightly above normal days.

Instead of this:

Typical

you have this:

Cycled

Over the course of the week, you’d consume the same number of calories on either regimen and experience comparable weight loss.  And, for the sake of argument, let’s assume that in both scenarios, you are eating a well-balanced array of nutritious foods.

Does calorie cycling offer any advantages?

Well, for one thing, because there is no sustained calorie restriction, your body does not adjust its metabolism or start catabolizing lean muscle tissue as it would on a sustained low-calorie diet.  Additionally, some people report that calorie cycling requires less will-power than constant restriction. Although you may feel hunger on your low-intake day, you can eat to satisfaction on your high-intake day. Contrary to assumptions, research shows that most people will eat only slightly more calories than normal following a skipped meal or fast.

As a bonus, some studies suggest that calorie-cycling may have benefits unrelated to weight loss, such as reducing oxidative damage, improving insulin resistance, and slowing mitochondrial aging.

Calorie cycling clearly isn’t for everyone, and I’d strongly encourage anyone considering it to check in with their doctor or nutrition professional first. Those suffering from hypoglycemia, pregnant, or with a history or risk of eating disorders are not good candidates, for example. Aside from health issues, some people may simply prefer or be more successful on a more traditional approach.

But for some, it may be a helpful alternative strategy. At the very least, I think it’s worthy of further investigation and study.

 

What’s so magical about the Mediterranean Diet?

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

Forget the mouse studies. After a couple weeks of controversial and much-contested rat studies on the effects of carbohydrates on various aspects of metabolism and disease, here’s a study involving 200 newly-diagnosed, diabetic humans.  Half were told to follow a Mediterranean-style diet, rich in vegetables, whole grains, and monounsaturated fats from poultry, fish, and olive oil and limiting carbohydrates to 50% or less of total calories.

The other half were assigned to a “low-fat” diet, which also emphasized whole grains and discouraged sweets and high fat snacks. Fat was limited to 30% or less of calories and saturated fat to 10% or less of calories.

After four years, the Mediterranean group had lost more weight and was only half as likely to need anti-diabetic medications.

What’s the real difference here?

Notice that the macronutrient distributions between the two diets are not all that different. The Mediterranean diet was not terribly low in carbohydrates (although it’s being described in media reports as a “low-carb” diet). The low-fat diet isn’t really all that low in fat. The two percentages certainly aren’t mutually exclusive. In fact, it’s entirely possible that the distribution of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates between the two groups was very similar.  Nor can we necessarily chalk it up to refined versus complex carbohydrates.  Both groups were instructed to favor whole grains.

Perhaps it was just a matter of what the dieters were told to focus on.  The Mediterranean group was told what to eat: vegetables, fish, grains, olive oil. The low-fat group were told what to avoid: sugary snacks and high-fat foods.  Could it be as simple as casting dietary recommendations in terms of positives instead of negatives?

Is Fasting a Good Way to Lose Weight?

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

People fast for many reasons: as a religious observance or spiritual ritual, as a political protest, in preparation for medical procedures, or as an occasional health practice.   And studies have confirmed that short-term fasting can have a number of health benefits. Yet fasting for the purposes of losing weight is not generally seen as a good idea.

Fasting Doesn’t Teach You How to Eat Better

One argument is that you need to learn healthy eating habits in order to achieve long-term weight control. Fasting is by necessity a short-term strategy. Sooner or later, you have to begin eating again. And skills such as exercising portion control, choosing more nutritious foods and fewer empty calories, eating more vegetables and whole grains are not developed by fasting.

And we’ve all heard the argument that people who skip meals (whether one or a whole day’s worth) tend to eat more calories later to compensate. (More on that in a moment.) But a series of new studies, summarized in the U.S. News and World Report, suggest that there may be a legitimate role for modified fasting as a weight loss tool.

Fasting as a Dieting Strategy

A group of researchers in Louisiana conducted a small study in which overweight subjects ate just 20% of their normal caloric intake every other day. On the days in between, they ate as much as they wanted. On average, they lost about 8% of their body weight over the next two months.

Inspired by these results, Kenneth Webb decided to try his own version of the program. Webb calculated his daily calorie requirements (you can calculate yours with this Daily Needs Calculator) and ate just 30% that many calories every other day. On the alternate days, he ate 130%.  Over the course of about seven months, he lost 30 pounds. Not surprising, because he reduced his overall calorie intake by about 20%. But Webb says his one-day-on, one-day-off routine has a psychological advantage: He claims that it’s easy to be disciplined for a single day, knowing that the next day he’ll be eating as much as he wants–with no guilt.

Health and Anti-Aging Benefits of Fasting

There appear to be health benefits to fasting as well. Short-term fasting has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, improve insulin sensitivity, and slow the cellular aging process.   Some research suggests that fasting every other day may be almost as effective (and far less difficult) than the practice of calorie restriction.

Still, fasting isn’t for everyone.  For some, going an entire day on just a few hundred calories is simply too uncomfortable. For others–especially anyone who has struggled with eating disorders–the alternating sequence of fasting and feasting may lead to out-of-control binging.  You’ll have to be the judge of whether this strategy is a good fit for your lifestyle, disposition, and relationship to food.

And if you do decide to try it, remember that when calories are limited, the quality of them matters even more.  On your fasting days, be sure to concentrate on nutritious foods like fruits, vegetables, and lean protein.

A final thought: We’ve all been led to believe that skipping meals is an ineffective way to lose weight. But research from Cornell University suggests that restricting calories for one meal per day may be an effective weight loss strategy.

In a small, 2-week study, one group was given a 200 calorie (kcal) lunch (such as a cup of yogurt or bowl of soup) and another was given a 600 calorie (kcal) buffet lunch.  Both groups were allowed to eat as much as they wanted the rest of the day.  Surprisingly, those who ate only 200 calories for lunch didn’t seem to compensate by eating more the rest of the day. In fact, their daily calorie intake was, on average, precisely 400 calories less than those who ate the larger lunch, leading to weight loss.

Time for you to weigh in (so to speak!) on this interesting topic:

Have you ever tried modified fasting as a weight control strategy? How did it work for you?

Do you think every other day fasting would be a workable lifestyle? Easier than dieting every day?  Or do you think its just a gimmick?

Would the possible health benefits of fasting, aside from weight control, motivate you to try this approach?

I look forward to your comments and discussion!

Living Well to 100

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

What would it take to live to 100—in good health? An international consortium of researchers recently gathered at Tufts University in Boston to debate the answer. This meeting brought together heavy-hitters from every corner of medical research—cardiovascular medicine, endocrinology, nutrition, obesity management, experimental genetics, sleep research, and more.

After two days of research presentations on every aspect of the aging process, the panelists were asked to consider:

What are the top five things we should do if we want to live well to 100?

You might be surprised at the answers. It’s not about expensive medical interventions, drugs, or futuristic technology. According to the best available research, it all comes down to a few simple habits—things we all can do.

Continue reading “Living Well to 100” >