Why It Is Important To Take Time For Oneself

Most of us spend our days consumed with work and people who demand our concentration. We rarely afford ourselves the proper nurture and care that we so easily give out to others. Yet this “me time” is important for our own growth and development. More and more studies are proving that taking time for oneself is beneficial.

One Harvard study finds that alone time actually improves one’s memory, while another study on athletes found that they perform better with proper down time, ie. relaxation. An associate professor at Bucknell University found that not only is alone time important to collect one’s thoughts, but that not enough students are doing so. If students get into a pattern of not having down-time, this pattern is only likely to repeat post graduation. And I see so much of this happening all over the place. Too much work, too busy of social lives, too many obligations to really give the body time to rest from all of the mayhem.

So how do we learn to take time for ourselves? It takes some real mindfulness and ability to say “no” more often than you would like to as well as to put away digital devices more often than you would like to. Here are some tips to improve your success and ultimately your own happiness:

1. Schedule your ‘me’ time. In order to get into a routine, you have to make time for yourself and treat it just like any other appointment.
2. Say ‘no’ to group lunch outings more and spend some quality time decompressing. You may find you have more energy to complete your work day.
3. Schedule yourself stretching breaks at work. If you are living in San Diego, working full-time you get 2 ten minute breaks per day. Use these! Put your phone away and move your body more, you’ll maintain posture, increase digestion and keep the body happy for longer.
4. Learn to meditate. You start by closing your eyes and focusing solely on your breath and your body. Over time you find that you can focus for longer periods of time resulting in meditation.
5. Get that massage, pedicure, acupuncture or spa appointment! Treat the body well and it will treat you well!
6. Get your sleep. Yes sleep is also your alone time.
7. Get out and see nature. Take in the beauty of this world.
8. Sit down with a good book in an epsom salt bath.

I try to do all of the above to increase my productivity and lower my stress level. So relax and enjoy!

BEST Pre-Workout and Post-Workout Nutrition

I realize it has been well over a month since my last post, and I do apologize. I have been swamped with friends getting married (multiple weddings) and I started law school part-time. But I am finally back in action!

This post focuses on the fads behind pre and post workout nutrition. There is a lot of bad information out there in the world, and gyms love to promote certain brands for nutrition. I call these brands “crap.” Because most of them are just that.

I remember a time as a trainer, years ago, buying pounds of low-carb protein drink mixes to fuel my workouts. All the guys would keep their own favorite flavor in the break room and convinced me that it was all healthy. Now I know better. Those protein mixes have so many ingredients that the body is probably not even breaking it down in the correct manner. The low-carb part really means that some artificial sweetener is replacing what would be the sugar. Artificial sweeteners are poison to the body and lead to nerve cell damage and tumors. Unfortunately I was apart of a gym that did not educate its staff properly and personal trainers were telling clients to use these toxic protein mixes.

All that the companies claim on their labels is one giant lie and a scam. Much like those Take Shape For Life or Slim Fast meals. The prepackaged meals shipped to your home? Garbage.

Before You Workout

Our bodies really do not need anything extra before a workout. As long as you are eating by my Rules to Eat By you will be fine. All you need to survive are vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, essentials oils and some meats (if you eat it) every 3-4 hours you will survive your workout.

Most people have it all wrong when it comes to fueling before and after workouts.  What should you really eat before a workout? Nothing. Yes nothing. You have just been told by mostly advertising that you should always have something to eat. But what the companies making all the “pre-workout energy bars” are forgetting to mention is that your body does not digest these things. That is correct. When you eat that power bar 30 minutes before your workout you are doing your body more harm than good.

Ashtanga Yogi’s are the only athletic individuals who seem to not eat before practicing. This enables the body to actually use muscles in the abdominal region, and allows the energy to stop flowing down and out of the body, but rather work its way up and out of the crown. Any yogi will attest that when they eat or drink too much before a practice, they do not practice as well as they would have otherwise.

Medical science also finds this to be true. It takes the body roughly 5 hours to digest the complexity of foods like protein bars prior to a workout. There are just too many ingredients to try to break down. In addition, as soon as the body starts to work out, the brain shuts down the bodily systems that aren’t as necessary as the muscular system. The heart has to pump more blood to your muscles, and pumps less to your digestive and excretory systems. That is usually why you don’t have to go to the bathroom during a workout. The body stops digesting your food and it just sits in your belly. Taking up valuable space and creating more strain to the body.

That is why most Ashtanga yogis practice yoga in the morning. Just after you go to the bathroom, you practice. You clear the bodies of excess waste and can have more control of your physical body and all your muscles. You also have great awareness for your body because you are just awake and have not cluttered the mind with too many worries. But that is for another blog. The point is to have a light body to do proper movements with.

So If you work out in the afternoon, try not to eat for about 3 hours prior to practice. Even though I always say eat every 3 hours, your metabolism will not slow down if you replace food with exercise and eat within 30 minutes after. That leaves your body only without food for maybe 4.5 hours which is still safe.

If you find yourself starving before your workout, you can eat a piece of fruit. It’s the easiest and quickest for the body to digest and will not leave you feeling too full to engage the abdominals during practice, or to breathe as deeply as you need to.

After You Workout

30 minutes after is key. Even if you workout far from where you have food waiting for you, have some fresh-squeezed organic juice to replenish you. This will allow your body to begin to recover quicker. Fruits are the easiest to digest and only take about an hour to process. Leaving you time to eat your healthy dinner of organic-local-chicken with kale-cauliflower ‘rice’ when you get home.

Enjoy your food. Allow the body to relax post workout and with that comes slow, mindful eating. Be aware of what you put into your body. If you are working out, you are trying to rid yourself of dangerous toxins, so try not to put them back in your body when you finish that workout. That means you have to eliminate the fried, processed and inhumane foods out in the world.

If you feel the need to add in some protein somewhere, try to get organic grass-fed whey protein powder (plain no additives) or pea protein powder.

In summary, try not to eat before you workout. Always drink something natural (ie. fresh-pressed juice) within 30 minutes post workout, and take your time eating your meal 1 hour after that. Be mindful about what you put into your body.

My First Yoga Journal Conference Experience

Yes you read that right, my FIRST Yoga Journal Conference! My knowledge of this conference is solely based on the advertising.  No one talks about it. No one in my yoga communities mentions it. This could be because Yoga Journal Magazine does have some questionable articles, not too many scientific articles, and way too much emphasis on Vinyasa over all the other forms of yoga. But regardless, as soon as I saw Maty Eztray on the list of Yogis presenting, I knew I had to go.

Maty Ezraty is one of what I like to call the “Original Six”. When you Google “Ashtanga Yoga”, the first video you see is “Primary Series Ashtanga With Sri K. Pattabhi Jois.” Eztray it one of the only 2 women demonstrating Primary Series alongside San Diego’s own Tim Miller of the Ashtanga Yoga Center in Carlsbad. Eztray has been around for years, and has achieved yoga fame on her own, outside of being known for that awesome purple full body leotard in the 1993 Yoga Works Productions video. Ezraty founded Yoga Works in 1987, when I was 2. Ezraty went on to study with Geeta Iyengar. Her exposure to both Ashtanga and Iyengar practices is why I really wanted to take a class with her.

Ezraty was amazing. I took a class on strengthening the low back, since I have a low back injury, and learned so much. Eztray is this tiny little woman with a dynamic and magnetic personality. She did not even need to mic herself in the giant room, where we all were against the walls. She was funny, enthusiastic, hands-on and deep. She really wanted every student to understand how to hold each posture.

Besides Ezraty, I was able to take a full day workshop with Shiva Rea, learned how to twist my entire spine with Aadil Palkhivala, and discover the pathway to enlightenment with Dharma Mittra. Rea was inspiring in how she taught Vinyasa. I really enjoyed her and her class, but wished she herself gave more hands on experience. She had 2 helpers who gave the great adjustments. Rea also gave good instruction and description for tradition teachings of Surya Namascar and Chandra Namascar. She taught interesting flows with Mandala Namascar and Chakra Namascar. I appreciated her views on movement and felt very uplifted, though rather exhausted, after class.

Mittra was a soft-spoken, happy man. He devoted half of the entire practice to discussion. I was looking forward to taking a class with him since I visited his studio when I was in New York a few years ago. I am not a Vegan, but do strive to attain a low meat, high vegetable diet using sustainable and humane meats. Mittra made it clear that one must be Vegan to attain enlightenment and that “eating animals is unevolved.” I did not disagree with him at all and he was very persuasive, stating that we look for things to give us happiness. One of those is food, and most of us eat meat. We don’t like to give up our meat because we equate it to our happiness. Profound yes, but can I really give up meat? I can’t process tofu well, or grains, so most of my caloric intake comes from oils, nuts and seeds and meat. I definitely understand the point of giving it up, and would love to see enlightenment.

But of all the presenters, Palkhilvala spoke to me the most. The enlightened disciple of B.K.S. Iyengar just had so much to share. We did not even have the time to delve into 0.005% of his knowledge. He knew everything. Ayurveda (was a holistic doctor), Iyengar (studied one-on-one with Iyengar for hours a day starting at the age of 7), his website says he is a lawyer, he was awarded Advanced Teacher Certificate at 22, and he founded Purna Yoga. So we all wanted to pick his brain. It was my smallest class and I was shocked.

This guy seemed to know everything. yoga, he says, is “your connection to your spirit.” He said we all need to bring more spirit into the world and be less connected to our ego. He reminded us that there are only 3 important relationships: our self; others and the world as a whole. Palkhilvala informed us that asana practice is not important. He said “it is necessary, but not important.” Compared it to brushing the teeth, and explained how we don’t compete with each other while brushing our teeth, so we shouldn’t during asana. He also said to look for the good in everything, because our perception is our reality. If we look for the good in everything, we get bliss. And then he quoted Sri Aurobindo, “Bliss is the secret stuff of all that lives, Even pain and grief are garbs of world-delight.”

I learned way too much for my brain to absorb in such a compact setting. I cannot wait to continue to learn more but I am ready for some time with my own thoughts to let it all just sink in.

Sustainable and Hypo-allergenic Clothing

It’s almost Earth Day! So what a perfect time to discuss how to better the earth (and your own body) by choosing what your wear. Yes there are even toxins in our clothing! I’ve touched on how to be aware of toxins in the home and in your food, but what about what you wear? We can wear clothing anywhere for several hours at a time, so it is probably a good idea to know about the fabric and dyes used to make it.

Greenpeace International did a study with several major clothing brands and found that 2/3 of the brands clothing testing positive for nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) in the manufacturing process. This chemical breaks down into toxic nonylphenol (NP), which has hormone-disrupting properties that can be hazardous even at low levels. Unfortunately, most of the clothing in the United States is manufactured in Asia where the laws on chemicals in manufacturing are more lax.

The manufacturing process is concerning. The amount of energy that goes into producing a single t-shirt is absurd. Anywhere from 700-2000 gallons of water are needed to produce the cotton for it. And what about the color of the shirt? That dye used is probably not made a vegetable. That yellow shirt is made with a dye that was recently found to contain PCB 11 and is hazardous to your health. PCB’s are known to toxic to your health. So look for clothing that is made with non-toxic dyes.

Dyes can be worrisome, but so can the material itself. Some clothing to watch out for in terms of toxicity would be anything labeled – ‘water resistant’, ‘easy care’, ‘flame retardant’, ‘anti-cling’, ‘wrinkle free’. These fabrics can release formadehyde and ‘antibacterial’ items are treated with triclosan.

Some materials to look for are – organic cotton, hemp, bamboo, flax, organic wool, silk. Keep in mind that one non-organic shirt uses 1/3 of a pound of fertilizer and pesticides. So what is good for your body is also better for the planet.  ‘Organic’ and ‘eco-friendly’ are also terms you want to look for. Even better are items that are fair-trade and provide a positive work environment for those who make your clothes. You can see some of the most common forms of disease in garment workers here.

So be mindful and start thinking about where you get your clothing and what you want on your skin. The skin is the largest organ and absorbs everything. So be smart and start today choosing better fabrics for better health and a better planet.

How to Manage Cravings!

Even when most of us like to avoid admitting that we have them, we all get cravings from time to time. Managing cravings is an enormous part of a healthy lifestyle that every personal trainer needs to address with his or her clients. If your personal trainer is not giving you helpful techniques for managing certain cravings, I suggest seeing a nutritionist or holistic practitioner. Though each person is unique and requires a personalized approach, the following can help give you a general idea of how to manage cravings and keep the body on healthy road to success.

Sugar Cravings

If you are like me and find yourself craving sugar there are several techniques that help manage your blood sugar. Because sugar is in EVERYTHING, our bodies get used to having a certain amount in our system. It is important to correct this and limit the amount of sugar. If none of these benefit you, I highly suggest you getting a blood panel to check your thyroid.

1. Gymnema Sylvestre – I discuss taking this supplement in my post about the Whole 30 and how taking this herb helped my sugar cravings. Give it a try, you can find it with the herbal supplements at your nearest nutrition market.
2. Get your sugar from raw, organic fruits and vegetables (yes some veggies do have sugar ie. carrots).
3. Try limiting sugar in baked goods by using fruit and by switching your white sugar for raw honey and coconut sugar and use it sparingly.
4. Don’t skip meals and always eat breakfast! I often get the excuse, “I don’t have time” or “I don’t like eating breakfast”, to these I always say “drink your calories!” It’s super quick and easy to make a protein smoothie at home with fresh fruits, veggies and nut butter and gulp that down instead of chewing something. But you have to continue to stimulate your metabolism by eating or drinking your calories every 3-4 hours.
5. Drink water. Lots of times when you crave sugar, you just need to drink water. Be sure to get enough pure water in your system daily.

Alcohol

glasses of alcohols

 

The majority of Americans overdo it on the alcohol and I find that lots of clients who want to cleanse their system have the hardest time letting go of their alcohol. The Center for Disease Control says that about 38 million Americans drink too much and only 1 in 6 adults talk to a health professional about it. People are considered at risk when they drink more than 14 drinks per week for men, or 7 per week for women. So when you make the choice to cut back, your body is going to have trouble with the change. So here are some ways to minimize the impact:

1. Avoid things that trigger you to drink. For many of us it is stress, so try introducing exercise, yoga, meditation or sport into your life to take our the stress with instead of relying on alcohol.
2. Realize that alcohol turns into sugar in the body so don’t replace it with sugar. If you feel the desire come on, drink some herbal tea or alkaline water and concentrate on feeling calm.
3. Avoid situations where you feel the pressure to drink. Avoid bars and clubs and find healthier ways to socialize.

Salt

Salt is everywhere in the conventional and processed food market, so there is no wonder why some individuals crave salt. So when you start to change your lifestyle and eat less processed, you will inevitably be eating less salt. Here are some ways to balance your salt intake and make sure you still get adequate amounts of salt in your daily diet:

1. On the days you workout and sweat a lot, you will lose salt along with water, so it is important to replenish that with good salts. Celtic and Himalayan are the best types of salt to incorporate into your life.
2. Season the food you cook. When you start to eat more whole, natural foods and cook your own meals, you will notice that you don’t get all the salt in the typical American diet. Too little salt can be a problem and I notice that it leads to headaches and lack of energy. So long as you season with above mentioned types of salt, you will be good to go.

Fatty Foods

For those who crave fatty foods, it is important to switch up the type of foods eaten and replace animal fats with plant-based ones. Unfortunately there is a huge stigma on fatty foods being bad for you, but this is just not entirely the case.

1. Replace most of your butters and margarines with coconut oil and olive oil. Coconut oil is super healing, and I’ve heard of nutritionists giving it to Alzheimer’s patients and it curing them, so something that powerful cannot be terrible. In addition, I never see clients with health issues who have coconut oil in their systems. Butter and other high fat dairy items can have high levels of dioxins which are not good for us.
2. Don’t be afraid of the amount of oil you use. Oils from plants and nuts keep you fuller for longer! Therefore, you will be less likely to crave more fats when you eat enough of the good fats.

Carb Cravings

This was my biggest problem for years and it took a while to really get it right. I remember being younger and dying to have a Pop Tart. Now the thought of it is so unappealing to me. It’s all about changing the way the brain works. If you are super active throughout the day then you need good carbs in the mix.

1. Eat enough good fats (see above) and proteins to keep the body full. If you workout a lot, you need to replenish your sugar levels too, so fruits and veggies are key and do contain carbohydrates that your body needs.
2. Eat every 3-4 hours and get nutrition to your body within 40 minutes following a workout. This is key to get the body to understand it does not need a giant pizza or sandwich with all that bread. The nutrition is in the plants and sustainable animal proteins.

You can battle your cravings and win effectively by following these tips. Many of them overlap so use everything you can to take the energy away from what you can’t or shouldn’t eat, and see all the amazing possibilities with what you CAN or SHOULD eat!

My First Week on the Whole 30 Program

It’s no big secret to anyone that I like sweets. And after this past holiday season, I felt horribly uncomfortable after eating far too many sweets. No, I didn’t eat an entire cake, but I did enjoy donuts and bagels on Friday’s at the Law Offices of Philip M. Cohen. This is the same place where I manage everyone else on their eating habits and contradict my own statements by allowing myself a slice of that donut and half that bagel. And I only do it because they are there and are the first thing I see every Friday morning when I arrive to work. I resist the temptation at first. But somewhere around the second or third water bottle refill, I cave in and indulge.

So I needed a change. A giant cleanse. I started the Whole 30 on a Thursday, however, and thought I was in the clear. But upon entering the break room I saw, not donuts, but cupcakes. Yes, delicious cupcakes staring at me with brightly colored frosting as if to say “look at me! I’m so yummy!”. Needless to say the first day was hard. I was already planning out my 31st day sweet treat. I was watching Cake Boss on Netflix and fantasizing about a giant cake with all different flavors being delivered to my door on day 31. Yes it was bad. I could feel my sugar addiction taking over and I had no idea how I was going to last 30 days without a donut. Or piece of cake. Or ice cream.

“Why am I doing this to myself?”

And that is what the first few days are like. Since I started on Thursday, that meant I walked into the office to see, yes that’s right, donuts and bagels on Friday. By day 2 I was just angry. I was angry at the rest of the world for allowing these actually rather toxic and clearly addictive processed foods into our everyday lives. Why doesn’t someone bake paleo cookies or paleo banana bread and bring that in to share with the office? But even if someone did, for the next 30 days I am not allowed to even eat those!

The Whole 30 is a way to cleanse your body. You basically eat organic and grass-fed meats, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds only. No grains, no dairy, no sugars (even coconut sugar), no processed flours, no white potatoes, no legumes, no sulfites, carrageenan and MSG. And carrageenan is in everything and super toxic! So you basically eat nothing that everyone else in America is eating. This makes eating out extremely limiting and you can feel stressed trying to find balance between a healthy food relationship and the time you have in the day.

To make things easier, my girlfriend and I ordered organic veggies to be delivered to our door through Farm Fresh To You and the best quality meats through Topline Foods. Ok to be honest, my girlfriend really did all the ordering and I filled the house up with extra nuts, nut butters and fruits and veggies we run out of. But it does help make things easier. You don’t have to go to the grocery store which is filled with temptations and you get it delivered right to your door. Super easy.

Gymnema sylvestre

But the diet is still difficult. By Monday, I was starting to feel better. A lot better. My chiropractor gave me the supplement Gymnema, which is a natural herb used to help with sugar cravings. I think it really helped. And my chronic back pain was not as bad. Probably because my body is in less of an anti-inflammatory response due to the processed foods I had ingested.  My yoga boss called me to sub 3 back to back clients for her and her yoga class on Tuesday and I had work at the law office. I was nervous my back could not handle it. Surprisingly, I was actually ok. Just a bit of pain at night but the way I was able to move around in the morning with my clients and the movement I was able to do at night with the yoga class actually balanced my body out between all the sitting and stress at the office.

So, as I sit here on day 8 feeling slim to no pain and I type, I am confident. I am confident this cleanse is doing its job, confident I can continue to succeed at it and confident I can continue living passed the 30 days in this same healthy diet. After all, I am feeling more aware, more energized, more in tune with my emotions, and happier.

But it’s only day 8, and I still have 22 more days without sugar…

New Years Resolutions!

It’s that time of year again, lots of New Years Resolutions being made. Most people try to better themselves, but only for a little while. Most people fall off the wagon around March or April. So how can you keep your health goals this year and make it really count? Follow these simple steps to ensure a successful resolution and a better, healthier you.

1. Give yourself a pat on the back for even the littlest effort. So what if you drank or ate something that is not good for you, that does not mean the rest of your day has to be just as bad. Give yourself credit for what you do right and don’t sweat the small stuff. If you criticize yourself too much or hold yourself to unrealistic goals, you will never be able to feel healthy and happy. And worse, you won’t be able to keep your goals.

2. Don’t get overwhelmed with what you CAN’T do or what you CAN’T put in your body. Focus on the positive, what you CAN do! You can eat lots of delicious foods, there are lots of tasty new recipes you can try, all you have to do in explore the possibilities.  There are lots of different  yoga, aerobic and dance classes you can take and plenty sports to participate in that can all be enjoyable in your progress toward a healthier being.

3. Consult an expert. An expert will factor in your body chemistry, injury restrictions and/or limitations. Only a personal trainer, lifestyle coach and or nutritionist can give you the proper advice that is geared just for you. Since everyone has a little bit different of a body, it is important to find someone skilled enough how to work with your body and figure out exactly how to get your to your goals the most efficient way possible. Remember, it’s alright to put a little investment toward your own well-being.

4. Don’t give up. Even when you want to, take a breather and get back to it. You can’t fail if you are constantly trying. So try!

5. Keep drinking lots of water. Ignore the fads and stick to real organic and local foods. Eat several times a day to keep your metabolism going and flush out your toxins with lots of water.

Follow these simple steps to ensure a healthy and happy New Year.  Your resolution can last the entire year and on into the next years.

How Often Should You Really “Exercise”?

First lets replace that word “exercise” with “movement”. Because Ultimately that is the goal of exercise. To move the body. But when we hear that word “exercise” we commit ourselves to thinking of it in a negative manner. But really you don’t need to attend a spin class every single day. In fact, I do not recommend that. Instead think of moving the body in different ways every day.

If you must ride, spin, run or jog, then combine it with hatha yoga everyday. But say you are like me and enjoy various forms of movement. Dance, tennis, softball, archery, whatever. It is all really movement and therefore exercise.

The point is not to push your body to the breaking point, and not sitting on your butt everyday. There is a happy medium. You have to listen to your body to feel what that is because for each person it is different. Hatha yoga, moving the muscles isometrically, stretching the muscles long, moving the joints and synovial fluid, aiding the digestive system by moving it, can be done daily and should be done daily. I see very few yogi’s with injuries in their older years versus runners with injuries in their older years. The body needs to move gently, for lengthy periods of time (at least 45 seconds per stretch) and the breathe needs to accompany movement in any form.

Losing Weight, Keeping It Off!

I talk to individuals all the time who yo-yo diet and bounce up and down in weight. I tell everyone the same thing: there is no secret. Every fit person you see walking around eats mostly well. We all leave room for a cheat here and there but the main thing is to eat clean and get some physical movement in everyday.

To make this even easier for you, I have created all the posts right here you can link to, and find out more.

I discuss solid pointers for how to work out in a gym environment in Tips On Working Out and I share ideas on alignment in Proper Posture.

I have talked about how to understand what body type you are in Realistic Expectations For Your Ideal Body Image and How To Be Comfortable With Your Body.

I share how to eat well in Making Healthy Choices AND Shopping For Food.

And one of the best posts that can help you visualize the difference between crash dieting and bad weight loss programs is Skinny vs. Healthy.

Learn all about yoga with Why Yoga and Why Every Athlete Should Practice Yoga and get moving!

Changing your body takes work! No one says it is easy, but it is worth it! Lifestyle coaches, yoga instructors and personal trainers can help, but you have to want to get fit.

So what are you waiting for? Get off the couch, clean the crap out of your fridge and learn about changing your life.

What is more amazing is you will feel better, you will look better and you will help the environment along with yourself, because eating local, organic and healthy means less carbon footprints!

Skinny vs. Healthy

I love that I found this before and after image to demonstrate the difference between skinny and healthy. The girl is clearly not someone you would see on the street and think “wow that girl needs to get to a gym”. But she is a girl who many overweight women idolize.

There is so much crap out there that the diet industry shoves in your face. There is no quick fix program for anyone. That girl in the above picture ate well and worked out. End of story. I see a lot of women (and men) who lose massive amounts of weight only to look like a skinny-fat person. So what does it mean to be a skinny-fat person?

This term has been used in medical journals and health professionals over the last few years and it identifies an individual who visibly looks thin but has a high body fat percentage. Mark Hyman, MD, discusses this in his article “Are You a Skinny Fat Person? Ten Steps to Cure the Skinny Fat Syndrome”. The scientific term for this is “metabolically obese normal weight” or “MONW”. And it is just as dangerous as being obese. In fact 1 in 4 skinny people are skinny fat.

What is even more startling is that if you are diagnosed with diabetes as a skinny fat person, you have TWICE the risk of death than an overweight obese person. Hyman hypothesizes that this may be due to the fact that obese individuals have more muscle to carry around all that fat.  However the New York Times did an article in 2012 that discussed one researcher who showed that being fat and fit is better than being skinny and not fit because normal aerobic exercise helps clear the liver of fat build-up, where it may do the most damage.

This is all very disturbing but why is this happening? I would venture a guess that the reason is twofold.

1.Most people are getting the wrong information and are not eating. With all those dieting products out there, more people are being fed CRAP and fewer people are eating FOOD. See the image to the left.  It is also difficult for people to shop correctly with advertising on packages selling you on foods they claim will help you lose weight. With titles like “Special K” and “South Beach Diet” trying to sell you their laboratory created, GMO-ridden foods that are lower in calories than the Big Mac you really want. And these systems have not been around long enough to demonstrate the long-term health effects. And those that have been around probably already have lawsuits against them for false advertising (if you know me you know I have done enough research to know the products that are still on the market and have had cases ruled against their companies for being fraudulent).   Most Americans also don’t drink enough water, or eat enough fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. And if your diet was filled with mostly fresh organic fruits, veggies nuts and seeds, you would see that there is little room for the all the CRAP and that fat would fall off your body quicker.

2. Most people are generally lazy. Because they eat poorly and work long hours, most people do not HAVE the energy they would have if they ate well to exercise and work off the calories necessary to maintain a healthy metabolic weight. And people who are already skinny do not feel the need to workout and have those nice genetics that allow them to maintain a low weight on the scale. However, as they age, they will increase their risk for illness to a higher degree than obese individuals.

Another problem is when you lose too much weight too quickly (ie. more than 5 pounds a week), by using one of those fad diets or exercising too much. Unless you are literally 400 pounds, it is physically impossible for your body to let go of that much fat that quickly unless you are literally running all day and night and eating very little. But even then you are burning through muscle too. Keep in mind that an obese individual burns a lot more calories by walking a block than a skinny person does. The reason? It takes more effort to move a large object than a small object. Basic physics for you.

Solution? Read my blog on real shopping for food. Do your own research when you see a company selling something promising to make you lose weight. Understand that companies do not care about the consumer, only the bottom line and there are LOTS of companies out there like this. That local, organic spinach farmer on the other hand, DOES actually care about you. That yoga instructor teaching you how to move your body correctly DOES care about you. That blogger putting up all her paleo recipes online for you to use DOES care about you. And I care too.

So let us try to eliminate skinny fat from the modern world and work toward healthy bodies full of muscle  with organs that work properly. Keep a realistic ideal image of how you want to look in your mind and try to attain it by eating well, being active and keeping stress to a minimum. Remember you have to be comfortable in your own body too. And That skinny fat girl you may envy who eats whatever she wants will likely get diabetes and be no more. 🙂

Eat Your Fruits and Veggies!