Fat loss or Weight Loss?


So many people make New Year’s resolutions to lose weight.   Fairfax Hackley, a personal trainer, noted that losing weight is the number one resolution over the past 10 years.  Yet, only 65% of people making those resolutions have lost even one pound after a month into the New Year.  On a local radio show, Fairfax Hackley provided some tips on how to stay on track.  (You can listen to him using the source cited below.)
        Hackley’s Tips to Stay On Track:  

        1.        Focus on FAT LOSS, not WEIGHT LOSS – he notes too many people focus on losing weight, when they need to focus on losing fat.  Focusing on weight loss will lead to more success.
  •  Losing weight can be losing fat, muscle and water. 
  • Losing fat – focus on the unwanted fat, like unwanted belly fat       

         2.    “ Focus your diet and exercise program on losing body fat”
a.       The more muscle you have the more fat you can burn
b.      Hackley notes, “Your muscle is your fat burning machinery.”
c.       Focus on weight lifting to build muscle
d.      Focus on good nutrition by eating the right foods                                                      
        3.  Focus on cardio for fat loss
  4.  Get enough sleep
Getting help from a health provider or nutritionist is also helpful, especially to find a program that works for you.  He recommends keeping track of what you are doing, diet, and exercise, so your health care provider can provide more guidance
         5.   Patience – he recommends “exercise a little patience” – it will take time
         6.   Exercise with a buddy – go for a walk with a buddy, diet with a buddy.  One of my students who wanted to lose weight, joined a weight loss program with one of his buddies. When food became too tempting, when going off the program became too tempting, he called his buddy. 

Thanks Fairfax Hackley for some great tips to help us stay on track in 2015. 

Sources:  Listen to Fairfax Hackley at The difference between fat loss and weight loss.  Image Source:   weightlifting

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Stay Hydrated This Summer

Image
At long last, SUMMER!!    With the heat and humidity, we need to focus on staying hydrated.   Water is always a good choice for hydration.    MSN has an interesting article on  5 Easy Ways to Stay Hydrated This Summer .   Stay away from the sugar sweetened beverages loaded with sugar and calories.   Yes, enjoying some lemonade is fun but it is not a juice and it is loaded with added sugar.    What are some ways to stay hydrated?   How do you know you need hydration?   Thirst is the first sign of becoming dehydrated.   Your body is telling you to drink more fluids.   Eight cups is a good goal but you may need even more when exercising outside or being outside in the heat. Unsweetened Coffee – most people think coffee dehydrates you, but coffee is a fluid and can count towards your daily fluid intake.   And coffee can help you feel more alert and keep you energized.     Unsweetened Ice Tea – ice tea is a favorite in the South.    Skip the added sugar.   Or if you must have som
Read more

Get Ready for New Food Labels!

Image
This week the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced proposed changes in our food labels.    Major changes in the food labels appearing on everything from chips to soup haven’t changed much in 20 years.   So what are some of the proposed changes? Serving sizes – ever look at the serving size on ice cream.   It states one half cup is the serving size, yet who eats only one half cup?   In teaching my nutrition class, I show a video in which the dietitian notes the one half cup serving size on ice cream.   The students are always surprised it is so low.   When I told my husband, he insisted that one half cup was too low and went to the freezer to prove it.   Of course, the ice cream container verified that one half cup is the serving.   So one of the proposed food label changes is to increase the serving size on foods such as ice cream to reflect what people actually eat.   Thus, for ice cream the serving size will increase from one half cup to one cup.   FDA notes , By law,
Read more

Easy food habits to adopt for a healthier you in 2023.

Image
So many people develop New Year’s Resolutions focusing on giving up things or on losing weight.   Why not focus on adopting some healthier habits in 2023 and some healthier lifestyle changes?   Last year I discussed some recommendation by a   nutritionist in London, Kate Llewellyn-Waters, on how you can adopt a healthier lifestyle.   Below are some of her easy-to- adopt suggestions and I have added some suggestions of my own. Protein at every meal – Protein is filling and helps stave off those hunger pains between meals.   What are some high quality protein foods?   All animal foods provide high quality protein.   Focus on lean proteins like chicken breasts.   Chicken and other lean meats, provide not only high-quality protein but also many nutrients like iron, zinc, selenium and many B vitamins.   B vitamins are known as the energy vitamins as they help your body produce the energy needed for all your activities.   A top-rated protein is found in eggs.   Actually, eggs are rated
Read more