Many of my clients want to lose weight.  That’s why they come to Human Machine to start a new fitness program. Heather is no different.  She has her eyes set on a particular swimsuit and she is determined to look good in it.  To help our clients lose weight and fit into the swimsuit of their dreams, we have them eat at regular intervals during the day, which means that they will have a couple snacks.  A few months ago, I discovered Greek-style yogurt at Whole Foods.  After reading one of the nutrition labels, I was excited to see that it contained a high amount of protein and not too much sugar.  This is the holy grail of snack food and I recommended it to all my clients, including Heather.

Just the other day, Heather sent me an e-mail that almost shook me off the Greek yogurt bandwagon.  She checked the nutrition label on her little cup of “Greek Gods” yogurt and discovered that it had 14 grams of fat and 23 grams of sugar!  This is dessert, not a healthy snack!  And it only had a meager 6 grams of protein-to add insult to injury.

I couldn’t believe it.  I had just assumed that all Greek-style yogurt was good for you. This yogurt had become a trojan horse of sorts for my clients and their diets.  We assumed that because it read “Greek yogurt,” it was healthy, but it was hiding a nasty, high fat, high calorie secret inside. I made the stupid mistake of thinking that they were all the same without actually reading each and every nutrition label.  So, to atone for my previous sin, I have compiled a list of the best and worst of the Greek yogurts that can be found in the Whole Foods dairy case.

This is dedicated to Heather and that special swimsuit!

Yesterday morning, I overheard Rana and Christine talking to each other while they were completing their treadmill workouts for the day.  The subject of conversation was the miracle weight loss remedy – HCG.  Each one of them knew a friend that had lost a significant (over 25 pounds) amount of weight using this substance.  They injected HCG and also severely reduced their calorie intake to achieve these results.

Not to rain on their parades – these individuals did achieve amazing results.  Unfortunately, they did nothing to address the circumstances that contributed to their weight gain in the first place.  No plans had been made to change their exercise habits or alter their eating plan once the injections stopped.  As easy as the weight came off, I have a strong suspicion that these women will manage to put it all back on again after their HCG injections stop.

In the article, “Weighing the Evidence on Exercise,” from the New York Times (April 12, 2010), Gretchen Reynolds explained that women already have the deck stacked against them when it comes to losing weight.  According to an American College of Sports medicine study that was cited in the article, women have a “biological need to maintain energy stores for reproduction and, therefore, fight hard to hold on to every ounce of fat.”  These women, by using HCG and a low calorie diet, found a way to force their bodies to release those stores of fat.

Unfortunately for these same women, if they do not immediately begin a comprehensive exercise routine (that means everyday), then they are very likely to gain the weight back.  According to Barry Braun, an associate professor of kinesiology at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, women that didn’t exercise after losing substantial amounts of weight “regained their weight and packed on these new pounds around their abdomens,” which is the worst place because of its link to heart disease.

It seems that with every new weight loss fad that gains popularity, the real issue remains the same.  If you’re overweight, the real solution is not the lap band, expensive liposuction or HCG injections.  The answer to obesity is to use the tools that God gave you – your two legs and just start moving.

I know that it’s hard to stay motivated and consistent when you start on a fitness program.  That’s why we are here to help you design a program that will help you achieve and follow through on your weight loss goals.  Every long journey starts will just one little step – make it on a treadmill!

If you remember back to my last post, Rana and Linda, two awesome clients of Human Machine Athletic Club, both achieved substantial weight loss after just four to six weeks of dieting and exercise.  On the surface, everything seemed great until we completed a body composition scan and discovered the ugly truth: they were both getting fatter!  They had lost weight, but also lost lean muscle tissue.  They were becoming “skinny-fat.”

Why was this happening? It appeared that both diet plans worked to reduce overall body weight in both women.  However, because these plans were composed primarily of carbohydrates, the number protein grams per meal were severely reduced.  This lack of protein coupled with severe calorie restriction may have been the primary cause for their muscle loss.

According to Jose Antonio of the National Strength and Conditioning Association in his article “Body Weight and Protein”, “it is evident that the mere addition of protein (30 to 50 grams per day) may be an effective strategy in limiting weight regain. Furthermore, any weight gain that may ensue is primarily fat-free mass (a.k.a. lean muscle tissue).”

In her book, Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook, Nancy Clark states that dieters who consume too few calories have the highest protein needs.  Any available protein is converted into glucose and burned for energy instead of being used to build and repair muscles. This would explain the loss of muscle in both Rana and Linda.

Finally, I bring you to the first sure-fire way to avoid becoming “skinny-fat:” increase the amount of protein you consume each day. Most active individuals need about .8 grams of protein per pound of body weight. If you are losing lean muscle tissue on your current diet, then add at least an additional 30 grams of protein to your daily diet. After two weeks, make sure to take another body composition measurement. You should have been able to increase lean muscle tissue and reverse the trend toward becoming “skinny-fat.”

Weight loss is a tricky thing. The reason that I think that it’s “tricky” is because the aggressive pursuit of weight loss can actually leave someone in worse physical shape than when they weighed more.

Here’s a real case in point. Over the past four to six weeks, I have had the pleasure of working with Rana and Linda, two great women that are trying to lose weight. They are both extremely dedicated to this goal and, after just four weeks, they both lost a respectable amount of weight, eight and sixteen pounds respectively.

Success! At first glance, it appeared that both severe calorie restriction (Linda’s choice) and the portion-control method of the Nutrisystem plan (Rana’s choice) worked as an effective weight loss method. Of course, both women also worked out at Human Machine Athletic Club at least three to four times a week to guarantee a calorie deficit at the end of the day.

But wait! Here’s the dirty little secret about weight loss. According to Nancy Clark in her book “Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook, “the scale provides a meaningless number because it doesn’t indicate the composition of the pounds. Although some pounds are desirable muscles weight, others are less desirable fat weight.” Instead of just proclaiming victory in our battle to lose weight and continuing on the same course of action, we decided to go one step further and check out their body fat percentages and total amount of lean muscle.

Body fat was up. Lean muscle was down. They were losing weight, but getting fatter. What the heck happened?

You can actually lose weight and get fatter at the same time. Say hello to the “skinny fat” generation. If you simply rely on the bathroom scale for the information to make decisions about your weight, you may end up making the wrong ones. As you can clearly see in Linda and Rana’s cases, it was a good thing that at Human Machine Athletic Club, we also check their body composition using a standard body composition monitor.

After learning this shocking information, we have made adjustments to their diet to prevent further loss of muscle and still promote weight loss. So that must leave you asking yourself, “How do I prevent this from happening to me?” Don’t worry, I’ll give you five sure-fire ways to avoid this from happening to you in my next post.

Gloria just called me to take advantage of Human Machine’s Risk Free Trial offer. Gloria had wanted to get into shape two years ago, but she just had a baby girl and decided that she didn’t have the time. “Maybe next year,” she said to herself.

Last year, she was promoted at work. With the responsibilities of a new position and just coming back from maternity leave a few months earlier, Gloria again postponed her dreams of a healthier life by simply sighing to herself, “maybe next year.”

Luckily, this year, Gloria stopped waiting until next year and finally picked up the phone. Together, we start “next year” tomorrow morning at 7 AM at Human Machine Athletic Club.

After 5 years, I’ve worked with dozens and dozens of clients in the gym. And in that time, I’ve heard all the excuses in the world why it’s just not possible to do the work. Here’s the honest truth: if someone doesn’t want to do the hard work that is required to make a positive change in their life, then I imagine that they’re also smart enough and creative enough to come up with just the perfect excuse to get out of it. Unfortunately, there’s another little secret: nobody ever believes those excuses and, deep down, not even them.

During the first few months of this year, we’re going to pull out all the stops to help you get in better shape and stay on track. We’ll post the top 10 “bang-for-your-buck” exercises that no workout plan should be without. For our business travelers, we’ll show you the 5 secret tips to help you eat healthy while out on the road. We’ll even tell you the 10 biggest pitfalls to avoid so that you can make sure that 2010 is a huge success for you.

We may even post some stuff we haven’t even thought of yet. Let us know if you have specific questions or a fitness story of your own to share. We’ll do our very best to address them ASAP.