Does Getting a Good Nights Sleep Really Fight Flab? Part 2

Begin each day with cardiovascular activity. If your fitness goals include getting leaner, then start each day with some aerobic activity. Aerobic activity in the morning jump-starts your day. It burns calories, starts your metabolic rate revving, and provides energy. Participate in an activity that keeps your breathing rate elevated for 30 minutes. Walk, jog, bike ride, run, roller blade, or hike; do any activity you like. If you cannot start by completing a continuous 30-minute period, no problem, do what you can. If you can only walk for 5 minutes, good. Five minutes is better than nothing. Next time shoot for 6 minutes. The time after that, go for 7 minutes. Continually increase your duration until you do achieve 30 minutes. Begin by doing 3 times per weeks and grow to 5-7 days per week. It will get easier and easier, I promise. If aerobic activity is new for you DO NOT GET DISCOURAGED. Remember you are starting something new and your body will have to get used to this new activity. The amazing human body is designed to adapt and grow. At first you may find that 5 minutes is hard. Stick with it, do what you can each day. In no time, you will find that it gets easier and easier. I find that without aerobic activity in the morning, I never get hungry for breakfast. But with my aerobic activity, LOOK OUT, I am hungry and my body is ready for the fuel.

Meals early in the day should be of greater caloric count than those later in the day. Scientific studies show that our metabolic rate tends to decrease as the day goes on. In other words, you burn more calories early in the day then you do late in the day. This is due in part because many people eat their largest meal of the day in the evening and then go to bed. The body is not given an opportunity to burn off the calories consumed before sleep, so the excess calories are converted into fat storage. I would like to see you switch this pattern if this is your current habit now. Shake up your life. Live a little. Reverse the pattern. Start you day, after your aerobic activity by eating a nutritionally balanced breakfast. End your day with a meal moderate in protein, high in fibrous carbohydrates, low in starchy carbohydrates, and low in fat.

Eat breakfast; do not skip it. Your body has fasted all night during sleep. Your body is craving fuel, so feed it. If you do not provide fuel soon after waking, your body’s metabolic rate will drop. When the body feels hungry and craves missing fuel, it can begin starvation mode. In starvation mode the
metabolic rate is reduced to conserve energy. The body still must carry on basic functions, like breathing and pumping blood to maintain life, so it will slow down the rate at which fuel is used. Since the body needs fuel, but does not know when it is going to receive it will slow down in response to starvation. In other words, the body will burn less calories at rest then it would have, had it eaten.

Eat complete meals. An efficient body needs proper proportion of nutrients to function. Avoid extreme diets, like no carbohydrates, or all protein, or no fat. A healthy and fit body does require a certain amount of each macronutrient. In other words, you need fat, you need carbohydrates and you need protein.

Fats are a highly concentrated energy source. They are needed to maintain metabolic functions in the body. Did you know; a body needs to ingest fat to burn fat? This is true. Strive for total daily fat consumption of 30% and less. Carbohydrates are the major fuel source for the body. Carbohydrates provide energy and maintain brain function. If you have ever tried a zero or very low carbohydrate diet, did you find it hard to think or concentrate? If so, this was because you were literally depriving your brain of fuel. It was starving. The brain requires typically 50 grams of carbohydrates per day to maintain brain function. Many who ingest less than 70 carbohydrates per day report difficulty in concentration and reduced ability to think. Many scientific studies have verified the validity of this claim. Strive for daily consumption of 40-60% carbohydrates. Protein is needed to maintain growth and repair functions. If a body is deprived of proper protein it will have a difficult time growing or repairing itself after injury or illness. Strive for daily consumption of 20-40% protein.

Reduce high fat and high carbohydrate snacks. Replace your high fat and high carbohydrate snacks with a balanced meal. If you must snack, eat snacks that are high in protein, low in sugar, and low in starch.

Increase your water consumption. Water is our most basic and most important nutrient. It ensures efficient metabolic functions. It is involved in carrying away waste products and bringing nutrients to our cells.

Increase your lean muscle mass by introducing a weight resistance activity, like weight lifting, into your lifestyle. Begin by doing 3 times per week.

Keep fat loss goals realistic by setting a goal of 1 to 1.5 lbs. per week.

The key to fitness and staying lean is consistency. Introduce one or two new habits at a time and stick with it. As always, consult your physician before beginning any new diet or exercise plan.

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