False Marketing Fuels Weight Gain and Frustration

The other morning while flipping on the television so my little girls could watch their early morning cartoons, an infomercial for the latest "Ab blasting sauna belt" was being aired. Anyone that knows me for more than 10 minutes knows my opinion on infomercials and especially ones promising a six pack with little to no change in your daily routine. In my humble (yet correct) opinion, infomercials play a key roll in keeping America in a downward spiral of both being out of shape and unhealthy. A recent study published by the CDC stated that by the year 2050 1 in 3 Americans will be diabetic. With 95% of diabetics being Type 2 and the leading cause of Type 2 diabetes being over weight and obese, this number is in no way a sentence but a forecast. The first step in making this study become yet another waste of taxpayers money is properly educating ourselves on the correct way of becoming health and fit.

• Spot Reduction is a myth. There is no way to shrink one part of your body any faster than another. If you want to lose weigh in your arms, be prepared to lose it in your face, stomach, butt, feet and hands too.
  
• Most people head to the gym and hire a trainer to help them lose weight. Problem is that most trainers ignore one of the most important tools in the gym. The treadmill coupled with proper nutrition is your most powerful tool for fighting fat. Keep your heart rate up and your nutrition in check and the results can be amazing
• Your genetics are not to blame for the size of your body. Truth be told, if we were still living in the era of hunting and gathering we would all be lean and healthy. The convenience of living in today's world and the abundance of food we enjoy lead to expanding waist sizes. Genetics may load the gun but environment pulls the trigger.
• Carbohydrates are not the villain they have been portrayed to be. Thanks to Dr. Atkins, one of the most popular diets right now has people running in terror from carbohydrates. While carbohydrates are completely essential to live a healthy and happy life, they should be monitored and consumed more carefully than they typically are. Carbohydrates are the bodies preferred energy source. Converting directly into glucose and ready to be used by our muscles they are also essential for proper brain function and healthy organs. The problem with carbohydrates are that if the body is flooded with blood sugar or excess energy, it will be stored as excess energy. Most people call stored energy fat. With carbs just remember to eat for your energy requirements. As you approach the end of your day make sure your carb intake tapers off.
  
• There are no super foods that will make you lose weight. Remember that fat is a collections of excess calories and calorie is a unit of energy. Energy cannot just disappear. Let me take you back to high school science class. Energy can be changed but never destroyed. Changes in energy happen in only 3 ways. Heat, Light and sound. Until the weight loss supplement industry figures out a way to make us glow in the dark the only one we are stuck with is heat. The higher our heart rate and activity level, the higher our core temperature will climb. This is what causes us to sweat. All of the successful weight loss drugs (all of which are illegal now) caused rapid heart rate and elevated core temperature to achieve their result. The next time you pick up a bottle of Acai Berry please ask yourself, "where is the weight going?"

For most people these are things that you already know. Don't be distracted by the flashy ads that throw out unrealistic numbers to drain your wallet of your hard earned cash. It's consistency and endurance that will ultimately deliver the result you are looking for. Whole foods and intense workouts are the answer.

Adam Funke
Program Director
Real Life Fitness and Health