Countdown to Fitness

Do you want to lose weight or understand the causes of obesity?  Are you interested in knowing which calories are good and which are bad?  Do you want to know why the mainstream thinking on nutrition may be causing more obesity and other illnesses?  Are dietary fat and cholesterol really causing obesity, heart disease, and other problems?  What is the contradictory evidence, and why is it omitted?  You might be surprised by the history, politics, personalities, and science (or lack-thereof) behind the current nutritional recommendations and by the possibility that the current “wisdom” on nutrition is wrong.  This book is one of the most important books I’ve read in my life, and I couldn’t put it down. (more…)

If you’ve read my article “Why Fitness Hopeful is Eating a High-Protein, High-Fiber, Moderate-Carb, Moderate-Fat Eating Plan,” you know that the food pyramid has been influenced by various parts of the food industry because certain businesses didn’t like the values the government was going to use.  Even worse, the pyramid is becoming more suspect as a source of contributing to health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. (more…)

In my continuing series “Boost Your Metabolism,” I’m going to post multiple articles on food, not just the types to avoid and the types to eat, but also how to time your exercise with your eating to maximize your efforts.

Too Much Added Sugar
If you are like most Americans, according to the 2001–04 NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey), you will consume 22 teaspoons (355 calories) of added sugar today.  Most of that comes from soft drinks, sweetened beverages, and other processed foods. (more…)

Research suggests the answer is, YES, when talking about processed foods!

Just by cutting out many of the products with refined corn, switching to a healthier brand, or making the product myself, my husband and I started to lose weight.  We weren’t watching calories or anything else at the time.

My husband, who has been running for 3 years, was stuck at a plateau on his weight for most of those 3 years, even though he was running 30 miles per week.  Without changing anything else except getting rid of the worst of the processed products (especially those with high-fructose corn syrup — HFCS), he lost more than 10 pounds. (more…)