Weight Loss Diets: Myths, Fallacies and Getting Your Basics Right. By Veeraj Goyaram

Nutrition Megasection

Weight Loss Diet Myths and How to Get Your Basics Right

 Researched and composed by Veeraj Goyaram 

Does dieting mean starving yourself?

For most people, the mere mention of the word "diet" conjures up images of terrible sacrifices, intense food restriction or outright famine. There are many misconceptions and myths that underlie the failure of most "diets". To start I want to highlight a "diet" should not be some kind of crash course with the aim to achieve a certain target weight. The diet should rather be considered as a change of lifestyle. If you do it this way your results may be permanent and the whole process will be a lot more fun. This article attempts to shed light on some of the most common dieting mistakes while giving you clues on how to fix them.

"The diet should rather be considered as a change of lifestyle"

The most common mistakes

1. Significantly reducing food intake and skipping meals

Dieting does not mean stop eating. A diet simply means eating better. Of course, weight loss fat depends on a calorie deficit, forcing the body to dip into its reserves. The best way to create this deficit is to reduce your calories as sources of unhealthy calories and at the same time burning calories through exercise. Unfortunately, many people choose to create this deficit by drastically reducing the calories to avoid exercise. They are being plain lazy. In addition, many people tend to skip breakfast thinking that no food will force the body to rely on body fat for energy. This is the biggest mistake you can make. Your body has a survival mechanism. When it feels that less food calories is being taken in it switches to a "conservation mode" Your metabolism slows down and fat loss comes to a grinding halt.

You don't want to become like this, do you? 

2. Not eating balanced meals

I always mention that many diets are not balanced. They are often low in protein and can lead to a loss of muscle tissue. Similarly, many who engage in the plans are all wrong when it comes to calculating consumption of macro-nutrients.

A fruit salad is nice but it's not a complete meal

Even as a dieter, a balanced diet is necessary. A balanced diet means a diet that contains proteins, carbohydrates and fats in the right amounts. It is obvious that to achieve your goals of weight loss, the relative amounts of these nutrients will be different from those recommended for someone looking to gain weight. In the case of someone trying to lose weight and stay healthy, a diet rich in protein, moderate in fat and low in carbohydrates is what is often recommended. There is a big tug of war between proponents of low carbohydrate diets and those who recommend to not severely reduce carbohydrates but that's beyond the scope of this present article. My point here is that you need all three macro-nutrients, no matter what ratio you decide to adhere to. Eating a bowl of oats for breakfast, followed by a lunch of an apple and salad for supper simply won't cut it. You need a source of protein and fat too.

3. Eliminating fat is BULLSHIT!

Fats have received bad publicity and have been implicated as a cause of obesity and cardiovascular complications. This led to people avoiding fat like the plague. If you ask someone who is dieting what is the first thing he removes his diet, you will always get the response "fat." This is not always a good practice because the fact that fats are the main cause of obesity and heart problems is a lie. Are you surprised?

I will deal with the topic of fat in a future article, but for now suffice it to say that all fats are not the same. A good diet should consist of good sources of fatty acids such as almond oil, olive oil, flaxseed oil, nuts, salmon and avocado, among others. You will shoot yourself in the foot if you eliminate fat from your diet.

The mistaken belief about fat as I mentioned above has led to what people think they are better off eliminating fat from the diet. Therefore, one can think a bowl of breakfast cereal is excellent, because "zero fat" is indicated on the label. And this is what people will eat! Zero fat is a hoax marketing. What about carbohydrates in foods? Indeed, excessive carbohydrates, especially sugars may be responsible for weight gain, obesity and diabetes. But, you see, even people who follow a diet and feel that it does not matter as long as they eat less food and less fat. Your testosterone levels may also drop if you severely reduce fats, by the way. 

This is low fat and supposed to be healthy.WRONG. It is loaded with carbs and sugars.
Low fat is not always = healthy 

Here is an example of a typical poor diet (carbohydrate-based) that I've met too often

Breakfast: cereal mixture and instant fruit (if people eat breakfast today)

Snack (if any): Apple

Lunch: vegetable salad and bread

Dinner: vegetable soup and bread

Solutions and some recommendations:

A. Eat more often

Smaller meals that are evenly spread throughout the day are often recommended for weight loss because it helps keep the metabolism elevated. This means that you should eat regularly. Instead of three meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) or even one meal a day, you should eat six small meals of breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snacks and dinner. Obviously, your main meals are smaller to accommodate these snacks. Again, a fruit by itself is not an appropriate snack. A piece of fruit (carbohydrates) and a handful of almonds (protein and fat) is a much better solution. Another alternative is pro-vita biscuits with cottage cheese.

My New Position regarding meal frequency: I am always willing to change my position once new data become available. For instance, as you can see above, I used to believe that smaller and more frequent meals are better for fat burning. But in the light of available evidence I need to say that this may not be the case (Leidy et al., 2010; Cameron et al., 2011). Experiment and go by what works best for you and what fits your schedule. An article will soon follow on the effect of meal size and frequency on fat loss. 

2. Prepare your meals in advance

Food is one of our basic needs and we work hard to be able to feed ourselves properly. Why, then, people take shortcuts when it comes to their diet? Why do people work hard to eat badly and then go spend money on weight loss drugs? Not having time is a lame excuse. I wake up at 4 am every morning to make my meals for the day or I go to sleep an hour later that my meals are prepared for the next day. Yes, I eat because I'm an athlete, but you can also prepare a few meals for the day. A homemade meal is much healthier and cheaper than fast food. 

But here is the good news. One of my friends, Hans, has set up a nice ready-made meal distribution business in Mauritius. An avid lifter himself, Hans set up Food Designers to cater for bodybuilders and health conscious individuals in Mauritius. You can design your own healthy meals yourself. I respect such initiatives and I can say that Hans did this out of genuine concern and not to make a quick buck or rip you off. Visit his facebook page for more details. This is a personal recommendation, not advertising.

Food Designers allow you to design your own meals

People no longer pack meals to bring to work anymore.
They'll eat out or worse, starve thinking they'll lose weight. LOL

3. Again: eat balanced meals and make adjustments:

A meal should consist of a portion of protein, carbohydrates and lipids. Your rich food protein should be more or less the size of your fist. Vegetables can be quite abundant while starchy foods should be limited. You must include a fat source too. Vegetarians need some adjustments because their protein sources also come with quite a bit of carbohydrates. I'm not too knowledgeable about vegetarian diets and I welcome your input.

This is an example of a balanced meal

I hope this article has helped you to identify mistakes in your diet and provided basic information to better prepare a diet. My future articles will focus on selected topics of nutrition and exercises that help burn fat and tone the body. Until next time, goodbye and good health to all.

References
Cameron JD, Cyr MJ, Doucet E. Increased meal frequency does not promote greater weight loss in subjects who were prescribed an 8-week equi-energetic energy-restricted diet. Br J Nutr. 2010 Apr;103(8):1098-101.

Leidy HJ, Tang M, Armstrong CL, Martin CB, Campbell WW. The effects of consuming frequent, higher protein meals on appetite and satiety during weight loss in overweight/obese men. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2011 Apr;19(4):818-24.

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BODYBUILDING MAURITIUS

My Bio: I am a Mauritian originally from Roche Bois, Port Louis and now based in Cape Town, South Africa where I am busy with my postgraduate studies in molecular biology of exercise. My research, supervised by Prof. Edward Ojuka and Dr. Tertius Kohn, looks at the influence of nutrition and exercise in gene expression in muscle, research which is relevant and applicable to exercising individuals, sports persons and diabetic individuals. The knowledge that I share with you stems from my 18 years of experience in bodybuilding and 8 years (and counting) of university education in the field. I have also published work in the American Journal of Physiology: Endocrinology and Metabolism (2012, 2014), International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (2013) and co-authored two book chapters on exercise and diabetes. I also presented my research work at the 2012 International Sports and Exercise Nutrition Conference (UK). I am grateful to each and everyone at the UCT Research Unit for Exercise Science and Sports Medicine. "Knowledge without sharing is worth nothing"

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©,2013, Veeraj Goyaram, Bodybuilding Mauritius. Any reprinting in any type of media is prohibited.

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Without Mirrors (or Yoga Selfies)

by Nina

by Hokusai

For the sake of this blog—or maybe just because I can’t resist—I try to keep up with what’s happening in the yoga blog-o-sphere and on Facebook. Lately, there has been this whole backlash regarding “yoga selfies” - that trend many of us have been subjected to, of yoga practitioners sharing photographs of themselves in fancy yoga poses in a bid to to see who can outdo one another athletically or perhaps just get more publicity (see yoga selfies: tara stiles & NY post spark big ol’ convo). The event that set off the latest firestorm of criticism was yoga teacher Tara Stiles riding around New York City doing yoga poses in a glass box on a truck to promote her latest series of yoga videos.

I was starting to feel that I should weigh in, too. After all, if you’ve been reading our blog for any length of time, you’d know that we’re interested in the power of yoga to foster health and equanimity, not in its ability to make us look good in photographs (which seems rather, uh, counterproductive). And a long-time friend of mine suggested to me that while there are already plenty of younger women writing about yoga for curvy bodies (see Interview with Anna Guest-Jelley of Curvy Yoga), there was not much out there about older people and body image, and she thought that I should write something about it on the blog. I explained that I was reluctant to, not because I didn’t believe it was important, but because I didn’t feel I had much credibility on the topic. For much of my life, I was lithe and slender, and actively enjoyed the body I was born with. Maintaining that enjoyment is more of conscious struggle these days, as I’m in my early sixties and of course I don’t look the way I once did, especially—to be frank—with no clothes on. But, I explained to her, I still thought that someone who had struggled more with body image issues should be the one to take this topic on. 

Then by chance while I was cleaning out my attic (I’m still working on my Aparigraha) this weekend, I found something I’d written a number of years ago for a book on body image that never took off (my co-author, who was the one who had body image issues, lost interest). The piece I wrote was intended just for women, and doesn’t address the issue of aging, but you know what? I think it still speaks to the larger issue. And it reflects my gratitude for one of the profound gifts that my practice has given me: an appreciation for the beauty of my aliveness. Even now with gray in my hair and arthritis in my right hip, I still feel this way when I’m working in my garden, walking down the streets of my city, or practicing yoga alone on my mat.

Without Mirrors

What if you forgot entirely about how you looked and could just walk down the street feeling entirely comfortable in your own skin, relishing all the physical sensations of being alive? And what if the simple movements of putting one foot in front of the other, of swaying your hips, and moving your arms, would feel utterly delicious to you, as if you were savoring the taste of a perfectly ripe summer peach or taking in the exquisite fragrance of a field of lavender? Wouldn’t you stop obsessing about the size of your breasts, belly, or thighs, the texture of your hair, the shape of your nose, the smoothness of your skin? And wouldn’t you simply rejoice in the beauty of your own aliveness? And feel immense gratitude for the gift of your body, the way it is now, the way it is today?

Everyone talks about the “yoga body” these days as if it were some kind of a look, some kind of fashion statement. They even, God forbid, talk about the “yoga butt.” But honestly as we look around our yoga classes, we see women of every shape imaginable, some slim and lithe, some buff and muscular, and some soft and voluptuous. So what if the yoga body has nothing to do with a look and everything to do with a feeling? Because in yoga we practice without mirrors. We do not look at ourselves, but rather feel ourselves and listen to our bodies. Yes, our yoga teachers help us to improve the alignment of our bodies. However, this is not so we look better, but so we can do the poses with more ease and can breathe more freely when we are in them (a good test of whether you are doing a pose with good alignment is to check whether you can speak in a normal, relaxed tone of voice while you are in the posture).

So are you ready to give up the fantasy of looking perfect for the reality of feeling wonderful?

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Featured Sequence: Core Strength Practice

by Baxter

There is a lot of talk these days about developing core strength for benefits such as better posture, less back pain and better overall body strength. When I started doing yoga in the mid-90s, I never gave this much thought, perhaps because core strength was not all the rage then but also because I found that my well-balanced yoga classes were already cultivating strength in the areas that I consider “core” musculature.

So what are those areas? The most obvious ones are the focus of many exercise or Pilates mat classes. I’m referring to the four layers of the front abdominal muscles, from the most superficial and famous six-pack known as the Rectus Abdominis, the next two diagonally oriented layers, the External and internal Obliques, to the deepest corset-like layer, the Transversus Abdominis. And this is where a lot of the focus in other core strengthening sometimes stops. But I also think of the lower back muscles, such as the Erector Spinae and the Quadratus Lumborum (sometimes referred to as the QL), the deeper belly muscles, such as the Psoas and the Iliacus, and the pelvic floor muscles as all contributing to “core” strength. 

So, in addition to one or two obvious poses that will address the four layers of the abdominals, such as Boat pose, the other poses in my sequence address the other areas we should also be interested in if we truly want to focus on a strong core. As with our other strengthening sequences, working towards longer holds, somewhere around 90 seconds, is your longer-term goal. But always listen to the feedback of your body, and if you start to feel shaky, lose form and alignment, or feel weak, stop at that point and note the time and use that as your initial baseline hold. 

Core Strength Practice

1. Gentle Reclining Warm Ups: For a couple of minutes, lie down and do some simple movements to wake up your lower back and belly area, perhaps bringing your knees into your chest one at a time a few times, or from Constructive Rest pose, rocking your knees side to side. 

2. Upward Extended Feet Pose (Urdhva Prasarita Padasana): Lying on your back, stretch your legs out long on the floor and make them strong, as if you were standing on them. Find and maintain a slight natural lumbar curve in your lower back. Don’t let this space enlarge or diminish as you work. 

On an inhalation, take your arms overhead and down toward the floor and keep them there. On an exhalation, lift one leg (easier if you need to start off slowly) or both legs up about 30 degrees off the floor and try to maintain this spot for 20 seconds or so while breathing normally. Then, on another exhale, take your legs up another 30 degrees (now at 60 degrees off the floor) and repeat the hold. Finally, take your up to 90 degrees and hold there for about 20 seconds before lowering your legs slowly to the floor on an exhalation. Bring your arms back to your sides and rest for a few breaths, and see if your body seems up for trying it one or two more times. This pose activates the abdominal muscles, the Psoas and Iliacus, the pelvic floor and some of the lower back muscles.

3. Revolved Abdomen Pose (Ardha Jathara Parivartanasana): Lying on your back, bend your knees and place your feet on the floor. Take your arms out to your sides, in line with your shoulders. Then, lift your shins up and bring them parallel with the floor, keeping your knees positioned right over your hips. Keep your legs snuggled against each other as you work. 

On an inhalation, slowly drop your knees and turn your hips to the right, hovering a few inches off the floor while keeping the backs of your shoulder blades on the floor. Then on your exhalation, slowly swing your legs and hips back to center. Repeat this process on the left, slowing your breath down a bit as you work. Do this side-to-side about six times, then bring your feet down, stretch your legs out on the floor and take a brief rest. This pose strengthens the Oblique layers of the abdominals, and if you can maintain a slight arch in the lower back, also gets the Transversus in the mix, too. 

4. Locust Pose (Shalabhasana): Roll onto your belly and chest, and bring your arms along side your body, hands by the hips. I think doing a few rounds of one-legged or two-legged dynamic Locust is a good preparation for the full pose so wee Dynamic Locust Pose for instructions for the dynamic version of this pose.  After you are warmed up, on an inhalation, lift your chest and head and one or both legs up a few inches off the floor. Keep your head and neck in line with the rest of you spine (which is coming into a small backbend). Stay in the pose for 10-20 seconds, breathing normally. Lower down on an exhalation and release all effort for a few breaths. Depending on how you are feeling, repeat one to two more times. This pose strengthens the back core muscles such as the QL and the Erector Spinae.

5. Hunting Dog Pose: Come up to hands and knees and do Hunting Dog pose once on each side, keeping close attention to maintaining the natural curve in the lower back. See Hunting Dog Pose for instructions. In addition to the back core muscles, this also works the Transversus and the pelvic floor muscles if you can maintain your back arch without wobbling! And feel free to release your wrists by giving them a quick shake out before proceeding to the next pose. 

6. Plank/Forearm Plank Pose: From all fours, come into Downward-Facing Dog pose, and then shift your shoulders forward until your shoulder joints are directly over your wrist joints. Keep your ribcage lifting up towards your shoulder blades and your elbows strong and straight. The rest of your body should be in a Mountain pose-like shape, so you need to keep your core and legs engaged, while maintaining a natural curve in your lower back. To come out of the pose, swing back to Downward-Facing Dog, then to hands and knees. Afterward, give your wrists a good shake out and brief rest. Similar to Hunting Dog, the core muscles are strongly engaged, but much more so in Plank and Forearm Plank.

To get a whole different experience and give your wrists a nice break, you can also do Forearm Downward-Facing Dog and swing into Plank pose with your forearms on the floor.  

7. Arms Overhead Pose (Urdhva Hastasana): In our Opening Tight Shoulders Sequence, we showed you several variations of this pose, but the one I want you to try today is different. From Mountain pose, on an inhalation, take your arms overhead alongside your ears. 

While firming your leg muscles and simultaneously pressing your fingertips as high as they will go, notice what happens in your lower belly and pelvic floor. If you get the up-down action of your arms and legs going, your lower belly often hollows a bit towards the spine without flattening the spinal arch, and your pelvic floor muscles will firm and may even slightly lift. I call this a natural belly and pelvic floor “lock,” known in Sanskrit as Uddiyana and Mula Bandha.  It is “natural” because it arises as a result of the physical effort of the reach of Arms Overhead pose, and strengthens the Transversus and pelvic floor muscles nicely. You can also make those locks happen for your pranayama practice separately, but we won’t get into that today. (Shelly Prosko has some information in her post Treatment of Incontinence if you want to learn more about locks.)

8. Triangle Pose (Utthita Trikonasana): As I had you do in our Lower Body Strength Sequence, you may want to start by coming in and out Triangle pose dynamically a few times to warm up for full Triangle pose. Then hold full Triangle for 10-20 seconds while breathing normally. To engage your side core muscles, such as the Obliques, more fully, try this variation: Bring your palms together in front of your heart in prayer position, and keep your arms and hand like this as you side-bend into Triangle pose. Notice how much more your leg, hip and side waist muscles have to work when your bottom hand is not supporting you. Repeat on second side.

9. Half-Downward-Facing Dog Pose at the Wall (Ardha Adho Muka Svanasana): This is a great counter-pose for the asymmetric standing poses like Triangle pose you just did. See Half Dog Pose at the Wall for basic instructions.   While you are in the pose for 20-30 seconds, draw you lower abdomen up towards the spine without changing the arch of your lower back.

10. Extended Side Angle Pose (Utthita Parsva Konasana): From Mountain pose, step your feet wide apart, turn your right foot and leg out 90 degrees and kick out your back heel an inch or so. Bring your arms up parallel with the floor and bend your front knee. Then side-bend your hips and torso over your front leg and put your right hand on a block on its highest height, placed snug up against the outside of your front shin. Swing your top arm up and overhead, completing the side angle from your back leg through your torso and into your top arm. Push down firmly into the block with your bottom hand and feel your right shoulder blade firm into your chest and slightly down toward your waist. Reach your top arm and shoulder blade strongly forward towards your fingers. Inhale as you come up, relax your arms at your side and repeat on the second side.

Doing the pose this way can start to work the side core muscles, but for this practice, I’d like you to try Extended Side Angle pose with your hands in prayer position as you did with Triangle. After side-bending into the pose with your hands in prayer position, line up your spine with your back leg so you create one long angle. Your side core muscles will have to work quite a bit harder to keep you in position then when you use your bottom hand for support, so you may have to shorten your time in the pose initially. Repeat on the second side.

11. Repeat Half Downward-Facing Dog at the Wall here if you like.

12. Boat Pose (Paripurna Navasana): Come to a seated position, with your knees bent and your feet on the floor in front of you. Tip your torso back a bit, keeping some good length in the spine, but not overly back bending it. Hold onto the back of your knees and rock back to balance on your buttocks with your feet just off the floor. See how long you can stay before your front thighs begin to tire. If Version 1 is easy, try Version 2, which involves bringing your shins parallel to the floor and holding there. If Version 2 is easy, try Version 3, letting go of your knees and stretching your arms forward. Finally, if Version 3 isn’t challenging enough, try Version 4, straightening your knees so your upper and lower body forms a “V” shape. Start with six breaths and work up from there

13. Marichi’s pose 3 (Marichyasana 3): Start by sitting in Staff pose (Dandasana) with your legs extending forward. Feel free to place a folded blanket or other lift under your hips if your hamstrings or lower back are tight and stiff. Then, keeping your left leg straight, bend your right leg so your knee is upright and the toes of your right foot are facing forward. Then, move your right foot close to your right sitting bone. Place your right hand on the floor to your right and a bit behind you and support your torso with that arm. Turn your upper belly and chest towards your right knee and wrap the crook of your left elbow around your right knee. Maintain a nice vertical lift up through your spine, and, using your arms simply to keep you in position, focus on your abdominal muscles firming and contracting to take you a bit deeper into the twist. This pose focuses mostly on the diagonal Obliques. Stay for 20-30 seconds to start, then release and repeat on the second side.

14. Reclined Cobbler’s Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana): As a treat for your core and all the hard work it has done, this restorative pose is a great way to release tension from your abdomen and all the muscles around it. It’s the first pose in our Mini Restorative Sequence  and you can watch me teach it on YouTube here:

Stay for a minimum of 10 minutes, if your schedule permits, and focus on softening the core area of your body as you feel your natural breath enter and exit. 

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Farewell, Timothy McCall. And Thank You So Much!

by Nina

We recently had some wonderful news from Timothy McCall: he and his girlfriend are getting married soon, and he’ll be moving to New Jersey to live there with her. Congratulations, Timothy! We’re all so happy for you.

Of course, we’ll miss having Timothy nearby in the Bay Area and seeing him on Fridays at our regular yoga class (not to mention the occasional lunch). And we’ll also miss his almost monthly posts on our blog because, unfortunately, all these major life changes means that Timothy has to step down from being a regular contributor. 

But we’re very grateful for all the posts he has written since he originally joined us (see Dr. Timothy McCall Joins Yoga for Healthy Aging! to find out more about Timothy in general). To honor him and everything he has done for us, I thought I would take you on a little tour of his posts, which are all as relevant now as when they were originally written. 

Safety. One of the important topics that Timothy tackled on our blog was the issue of safety. William Broad’s articles in the New York Times claiming that yoga was dangerous (suspiciously timed with the release of the hardcover and then the softcover versions of his book) prompted strong reactions in the yoga community. Could what Broad was claiming be actually true? Timothy, who is both a medical doctor and a certified yoga teacher (Broad is neither), was happy to take him on! Two of his posts, Is Yoga Really Dangerous for Men?  and Will Yoga Cause a Stroke? Could it Prevent One?, were in direct response to claims that Broad made. 

And while he was on the topic of safety, Timothy also tackled a couple of other issues that yoga practitioners and teachers are typically concerned about in his posts Keeping Yoga Safe for People with High Blood Pressure  and Many Right Ways to Do a Pose and a Few Wrong Ones.

Meditation. Timothy has a very strong home practice, including a long session of asana. However, an essential part of his home practice is his daily meditation session. His feeling is that meditation is the crown jewel of the yoga practice, and he explains why in his post Is Meditation an Essential Part of Practicing Yoga? And to help you get started with your meditation practice, he provided some simple instructions in Starting a Meditation Practice.

Pranayama. In his travels worldwide, Timothy was surprised to find how few yoga practitioners practiced pranayama (breath awareness and breath control). So he made it his mission to introduce our readers to some simple, powerful practices. Because he believe that the Bhramari (buzzing bee) Practice is a safe, accessible practice, he did two separate posts on it: Pranayama for Everyone: Bhramari Breath Practice  and Bhramari Pranayama with Mudras. He also recommended Alternate Nostril Breathing in this post Balancing Your Nervous System with Alternate Nostril Breathing.

Home Practice. Like me, Timothy is a great believer in home practice. He says, “If you are taking yoga classes but not practicing at home, you may be missing the best—and potentially most therapeutic—part of yoga. Your personal practice is where the deepest work happens, when you go inward and go at your own pace." He explains why—and cites a scientific study—in his post Home Practice: The Best Way to Improve Your Health and Well-Being. And he also wrote two posts with recommendations for home practitioners Wondering to What to Practice at Home? Consider a Private Lesson  and Cultivating Healthy Posture with a Simple Restorative Pose. 

Other Passions.  The other three posts Timothy wrote might not appear to you to fit neatly into a single category, but if you knew Timothy as well as I know him, you’d realize that they’re all on issues that he feels strongly about. I’d have to say I was strongly influenced in my ideas about the importance of stress management by Timothy (we met many years ago when he was co-teaching a workshop on Yoga for Depression with Patricia Walden) and you can see why in his post Stress, Your Health, and Yoga. Timothy is also passionate on the subject of Ayurveda, which he has studied extensively in India. So even though we typically don’t have articles on that topic, I did let him share his some of his thoughts about the value of the Ayurvedic approach in his post Autumn, Healthy Aging and the Ayurvedic Dosha Vata. And, finally, most of us know about Timothy’s strong beliefs in the value of yoga therapy; after all, he wrote an entire book on the topic, Yoga As Medicine. In his final post for us, he reported on a symposium at which he spoke Medical Yoga Symposium at the Smithsonian, reporting that he witnessed there a growing acceptance of yoga as a therapeutic modality, saying that while it didn’t mean that yoga is already fully integrated with modern medicine, that we are getting there much faster than he would have predicted 10 or 15 years ago.

Timothy is not only a very knowledgeable person, with wide-ranging interests; he’s also an excellent writer. So if you’re new to the blog and unfamiliar with his work, I hope you’ll check out some of these posts. And if you’re a long-time reader, it’s worth checking to see if you missed any of his great writing. For information about Timothy's upcoming workshops, see our Timothy's Workshops page.

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Confusion About Nutrition Confusion: More Answers and Questions

by Nina and Brad

Peaches by Edouard Manet

I guess we should have known that even a post about nutrition confusion would cause further confusion. After all, the question of what you eat can literally be a life or death one, as you’ll see below. A few days after the post Nutrition Confusion!, we received an email from a friend of ours who is a regular reader. This led to a little email conversation between Brad and our reader, which I thought would be worth sharing with you, in case you had some of the same concerns our reader did. —Nina

READER EMAIL:

Hummmmm...
Well this hits home with my husband and I. It's been 3 weeks since his near, fatal heart attack and almost 2 weeks since we have gone Vegan--cardiologist's orders. 

I forwarded you blog to my husband. Here are a couple more books that might add to the confusion, or clear it up. I can say this in taking out dairy and meat to date-- we both feel really great. Even my menopause symptoms have subsided. 

My husband’s question of who funded her research is one to look into. Did the dairy or meat industry fund her work? Have you guys watched or read, Forks over Knives? 

BRAD’S RESPONSE:

Yes, this is all very confusing. I don't think there is a field of scientific inquiry that's as screwed up and contradictory as the nutrition sciences, especially when it comes to recommendations for dealing with being overweight, or for people with “bad” blood chemistry (high cholesterol, etc.).

In regards to the author, one should always be suspicious about motives. I suspect it has nothing to do with her funding (if she has any) but rather with making her claims more sensational than is justified. You know, “sell more books and be on more talk shows.” Never underestimate self-promotion as an explanation. That said, I've been following the real data behind this story for some time, and there is scientific merit to it. The long held conventional wisdom of avoiding saturated fats and high-cholesterol foods combined with the multi-billion dollar (cholesterol lowering) statin drugs industry, is a big problem. More confusion than good data.

I just had a phone conversation with a colleague at Harvard who runs the Joslin Diabetes Center. They're looking into fructose as a serious driver of not only diabetes, but possible cardiovascular problems as well. It turns out not all sugars are the same in how they are metabolized and absorbed by the body (insulin production etc.) , and we should probably all severely limit our consumption of drinks (and other foods) containing added sugars, especially those high in fructose*. And there are a lot of them out there—and not just in soft drinks. A study just came a few days ago (Hochuli  et al., 2014. J Clin Endocrinol Metab) that showed that just one 12oz sugar-containing soft drink a day for one week led to negative changes in liver function in young healthy male volunteers. The researchers concluded that drinks supplemented with fructose, sucrose or glucose all showed signs of impaired beta-oxidation pathways (not a good thing), but fructose drinks showed the largest increase in fatty acid synthesis (an even worse thing for the liver).  I’ve only mention the liver here—this is what this particular study focused on—but there are well-documented effects on muscle tissues and the cardiovascular system a well. 

Also, fried foods, vegan or otherwise, should also be avoided. Too many inflammatory effects from oxidized fats. This has been known for some time.

Personally, I'm sticking to my diet = vegan + poultry/fish, with the (very) occasional eggs/cheese. However, I probably will try to further reduce my overall carbohydrate intake (bread, pasta, rice)—at least a little—and shift more to vegetables. I may still eat an occasional hamburger or steak, but probably not more than once a month.

A vegan diet for you guys sounds like a good idea, as I know you're eating lots of fresh/real foods. It will help make some choices much easier and more clearly defined. But I've seen some people who eat a vegan diet that made me cringe. Yes, no meat and dairy, but way too much carbohydrates and junk foods.

Sorry for the rambling email...

*One clarification: High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS, a mixture of fructose and glucose, typically higher in fructose) is made from corn versus fructose, the naturally occurring sugar found in fruits. Fructose, while chemically and metabolically different than the common table sugar sucrose (a disaccharide obtained from cane or beet sugar that is metabolized into equal parts fructose and glucose after ingestion), has some of the same problems as HFCS. But if it is consumed as whole fruit this is probably not an issue as most fruits don’t contain that much fructose  and their digestion and absorption is very different than that in drinks. But too much fruit juice or fruit-juice sweetened beverages that you often find in health stores could lead to some of the same problems—or possibly worse—than those seen with drinks containing high-fructose corn syrups. There is some very reasonable data on this, although still a highly contentious debate. 

READER EMAIL: 

Good, level headed comments.
This all makes such interesting conversation. I love it.

BRAD’S EMAIL:

With so much misinformation out there, false (or at least poorly supported) claims, hundreds of diet books with conflicting advice, and badly designed scientific studies, nutrition a topic that Nina, Baxter and I have been reluctant to go into in the blog. But it’s also one of the most important issues of healthy aging, and something that affects everybody—every day—in the choices we make. We'll see where we take all this....

But I too enjoyed our conversation.

Reference: “Sugar-Sweetened Beverages With Moderate Amounts of Fructose, but Not Sucrose, Induce Fatty Acid Synthesis in Healthy Young Men: A Randomized Crossover Study.” Michel Hochuli,* Isabelle Aeberli,* Adrienne Weiss, Martin Hersberger, Heinz Troxler, Philipp A. Gerber, Giatgen A. Spinas, and Kaspar Berneis. J Clin Endocrinol Metab, in press.

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Myth: Lifting weights ruins your body. By Veeraj Goyaram

Opinion

myth: 

lifting weights ruins your body

by veeraj goyaram

Barbell pas bon sa. Kan to areter to vine gros et gate to lecorps

"Lifting weights is bad. When you stop it will turn into fat. It ruins your body"

We have all been told the above at some point by people in our entourage who happen to be experts in weight training despite never having picked up a weight in their life. As a side note, it is encouraging to note the amazing level of knowledge that the layperson has in weight training. Everyone has expertise in training and the safety of supplements. Every pot-bellied uncle has been a bodybuilder in the past but will give you 1001 reasons not to lift weights. HELL NO. Lifting weights, be it for bodybuilding or just as a mode of exercise, doesn't ruin the body. In my opinion, it is the best thing you can do for your body for reasons that I will explain in this article. If you are here on this website most likely you lift weights and do not buy this myth. I want you to show this article to your friends, parents, doctor and whoever else discourages you from lifting weights.

 "Lifting weights doesn't ruin the body. In my opinion, it is the best thing you can do for your body"

Muscle turns into fat

This is rubbish. Muscle cannot literally turn into fat. I am even not too sure if stem cell scientists have been able to convert a muscle cell into a fat cell in the laboratory. Maybe what people may also mean by this is that a muscular body can turn into a fat body. But then, even a slim average body can turn into a fat body and the finger needn't be pointed at bodybuilding. We see so many fat people around with distorted bodies. So, are they all former bodybuilders? It is cupcakes, beer, fast food, soft drinks, excessive eating and lack of exercise that will distort your body. Not bodybuilding. But indeed, a muscular body can turn into a fat one when a person stops working out and doesn't adjust his diet accordingly. What happens to the muscle is that it will atrophy, meaning that it will lose size and strength because it is not being used. There are many pro bodybuilders who reverted back to a slim or athletic build once their competitive career came to an end. Google pictures of Lee Haney, Bob Paris, Shawn Ray or Kevin Levrone.

 "A muscular body can turn into a fat one when a person stops working out and doesn't adjust his diet accordingly"

Doug Brignole at 18 and 52. An Iron Warrior for life

"When you stop"?

That's a very commonly heard sentence. That's applicable for the average person, not the hardcore-to-the-bone Iron Warrior. A true bodybuilder never stops. Sure, we can encounter many hurdles in life but as we say, "once a bodybuilder, always a bodybuilder". I know people who have lost arms or legs in accidents but still managed to not leave bodybuilding. Others faced tragedies in their lives, tragically lost dear ones and important businesses but yet somehow got back to bodybuilding. In most cases it is bodybuilding that gave them the courage to face hardships. Life gave them lemons, so they made lemonade. Somehow bodybuilding doesn't only build the body.

"once a bodybuilder, always a bodybuilder"

One of the very famous pictures on the internet, showing that Doug Brignole
IMPROVED ON his fabulous physique after 20 years

Common example: Look what became of Arnold
Nothing bad became of Arnold. He still looks great. Why would someone expect him to maintain his Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia physique well after his competitive prime? Of course that's not possible because of "the reality of flesh" and because he left competitive bodybuilding to pursue acting and politics. So uncle, please no lectures! 

There are others who were wearing posing trunks in the 1970s and are still training today. For instance, two of our greatest contributors, namely Doug Brignole and John Bubb are still training. Doug just won the Muscle Beach Classic over 50 division in very amazing shape.  Grandpa John just turned 79 and has biceps that can rival men a third his age.

Grandpa John Bubb still looks amazing at the age of 79, more than 40 years after he was holding his own against Arnold, Oliva, Pearl and Zane.

The amazing benefits of lifting weights for young and the old

Results that you carry everywhere you go

We all know about the numerous benefits of weight training. It helps you look good, feel good and stay healthy. Clothes fit well on you. You are unlike the average person, you are something else. You are what others would want to be or claim to have been. Suddenly everyone starts wearing their jealousy hat and knows someone who looks like you or is bigger than you. The kids look up to you. They don't care if your cousin is a Division 1 soccer player. They are interested in your muscles because, as someone who lifts, you carry the results of your hard work wherever you go. Concerning how the girls steal glances, don't get me started. And if you are a girl, believe me you look great if you lift weights. Don't let anyone tell you weights is only for men. I will deal with female weight training myths in another article. 

Lifting weights is medicine

Progressive resistance (weight) training is well known to improve blood glucose control and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic patients. It does so by increasing muscle mass and reducing body fat levels. Therefore, resistance training is increasingly being prescribed for type 2 diabetes treatment (Mavros et al., 2013). 

Studies showed positive effects weight training in elderly people. Twenty to 30 minutes of strength (resistance) training, 2 to 3 times per week, has positive effects on risk factors for cardiovascular disorders, cancer, diabetes, and osteoporosis (Mayer et al., 2011).

Even Barack Obama lifts weights

References

Mavros Y et al., Changes in insulin resistance and HbA1c are related to exercise-mediated changes in body composition in older adults with type 2 diabetes: interim outcomes from the GREAT2DO trial. Diabetes Care 36: 2372-2379, 2013.

Mayer F et al. The intensity and effects of strength training in the elderly. Dtsch Arztebl Int 108: 359-364, 2011.

That's all for today. Have a great week ahead.

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My Bio: I am a Mauritian originally from Roche Bois, Port Louis and now based in Cape Town, South Africa where I am busy with my postgraduate studies in molecular biology of exercise. My research, supervised by Prof. Edward Ojuka and Dr. Tertius Kohn, looks at the influence of nutrition and exercise in gene expression in muscle, research which is relevant and applicable to exercising individuals, sports persons and diabetic individuals. The knowledge that I share with you stems from my 18 years of experience in bodybuilding and 8 years (and counting) of university education in the field. I have also published work in the American Journal of Physiology: Endocrinology and Metabolism (2012, 2014), International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (2013) and co-authored two book chapters on exercise and diabetes. I also presented my research work at the 2012 International Sports and Exercise Nutrition Conference (UK). I am grateful to each and everyone at the UCT Research Unit for Exercise Science and Sports Medicine. "Knowledge without sharing is worth nothing"

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©,2013, Veeraj Goyaram, Bodybuilding Mauritius. Any reprinting in any type of media is prohibited.

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