Are You a Skinny, Fat Person?

Are You a Skinny, Fat Person?
by author Natasha Turner, ND

Everyone admires the supermodel who “never works out” and “eats everything” yet still manages to look fabulous. Some of us even strive for her looks by following a diet of lattes and lettuce. What’s surprising is that this beautiful, slim woman may actually have high body fat and the foundation for chronic disease.

Don’t get caught up in appearances. There is a difference between being thin and being healthy, and it lies in body composition.

Maintain Lean Muscle

The ideal body composition–the ratio of lean muscle to fatty tissue in our bodies–is low in fat and high in lean muscle. We become unhealthy when our percentage of body fat is too high because of excess fat and because of muscle loss.

Muscle naturally declines with age unless we maintain it. Loss of muscle is linked to increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, and high blood pressure.

Unsafe Dieting Causes Muscle Loss

Beyond normal aging, unsafe dieting that involves excessive caloric restriction (below 1,000 to 1,200 calories per day) can cause loss of muscle as well as fat. Compounding insufficient calories with loads of cardiovascular exercise promotes muscle loss and possibly a drop in metabolic rate. Knowing this, it is crucial to avoid harmful diet programs that result in loss of muscle.

Muscle is more dense than fat, an important fact to consider when stepping on the scale. If your weight loss plan includes weight-lifting or resistance training (as it should), your best incentive is to judge your progress by the fit and feel of your clothes rather than your weight.
Realize it’s not weight but your body composition that is important in assessing health. It’s like the old adage–it’s what’s on the inside that counts.

Tips to Improve Body Composition

Incorporate cardiovascular exercise with weight training. Try weight training followed by a shorter cardio session. This offers the benefit of maximum strength for lifting and continued fat burning during the cardio.
Eat protein with every meal, eat every three hours, and skip the sugar. Protein is the building block of muscle and it is essential for tissue repair.
Complete your meals with low-glycemic (low-sugar) carbohydrates and always eat within 45 minutes after exercise.
Take conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) to increase loss of fat, especially abdominal, while maintaining muscle mass. You will need to consume it for at least three months before you see any effects. Take 1,500 mg twice daily.
Consider 7-Keto dehydroepiandrosterone, or DHEA. This hormonal steroid prevents metabolic decline that occurs naturally with caloric reduction or dieting. Take 100 mg twice daily.
Manage stress to reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which can increase abdominal fat and muscle breakdown. Proprietary blends of the herbal extracts Magnolia officinalis and Phellodendron amurense (Amur corktree) help to balance cortisol. A typical dose is 500 to 750 mg per day, best taken before bed and on rising.
Phosphatidylserine (PS) is also useful to protect the brain and muscles from the
negative effects of stress. Take 100 mg before bed to improve sleep and reduce stress.

Natasha Turner, ND, practises in Toronto with Tammy Hermant, MD. Natasha specializes in hormonal issues, weight loss, preventive health, and digestive complaints. www.truestarhealth.com.

Source: alive #279, January 2006

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Movement
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Building Your Exercise Routine
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Are You Exercise Obsessed?
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Get With The Program
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No Pain-Great Gain
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Spinning
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Rock Climbing
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Row Yourself Fit
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Built Like a Greek God
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Out of the Boathouse
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Give Your Walk Some WOW!
Bored with your walking regimen? Invigorate your step with Nordic walking poles, and you'll burn an average of 20 percent more calories than during a regular walk and get all the benefits of an upper body workout, with less stress on your knees. Walking with your poles as little as thirty minutes a day, three times a week, can help lower your blood pressure and reduce your cholesterol.

Three Phases of Fitness
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Exercise for a Positive Mind Set
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Sugar, Obesity, and Depression
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Beauty-Inside and Out
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Hard Bodies and Beautiful Bodies
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Maintaining Fine Fettle...for Fun and Festivities
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Skiing on the Slopes of Health
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Heavy Evidence on Getting Lean
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Meaningful Makeovers
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Healthy Weight Loss
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Ski Superstar Jennifer Heil
Jenn's natural approach to health has brought her body and her career to full bloom. Olympic gold medalist, Jennifer Heil discusses the secrets to her success.

Elevating Natural Health
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Winning at Losing
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Just for the Sport of It!
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A little means a lot

Mirror, mirror on the wall

Team work for your muscles

A little regret goes a long way

Moderate exercise pays off

Hydration for digestion

Breathe your way to better abs

Don't Blame the Season

Walking in a Winter Water-Land

Relieve PMS with a Vegetarian Diet

Eat Early; Eat Less

High Fibre for Healthy Colons

How Do You Get to Work?

Change is Good

Know Your Snow

Breaking the Ice

Do It Yourself

Man's-and Woman's-Best Friend

Move Your Mood

Active Healing

An Apper for All

Imagine You're a Pretzel

Training Intensity for Older Males

Maximizing Growth Hormone Release

Active Living

Exercise Smarter-Not Harder-for Weight Loss

Why Do You Exercise?

Healthy Valentine's Day
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A Hard Road Well-Travelled
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Become a Spiritual Warrior
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alive's Meaningful Makeovers
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From Pole Dancing to Gliding
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303, January 2008

Take It Off
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Workout Clothes For Everywoman
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Add Some to Lose Some
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BC's Plan for the Olympics
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Family Album
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Hunger Free Forever: The New Science of Appetite Control
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Start Fresh
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Jully Black's Revival
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Climbing the Walls
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Taiko Fit
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Work Those Hips
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The Last 15
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Silken Laumann's Active Kids Movement
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Thrills on Horseback
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Eat, Drink, and Be Merry
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Four Regular Guys (in Tuxedos)
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Let the Happy Times Roll
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Falls and Fun
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Goodbye Treadmill, Hello Waves
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The Spectrum
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Cheap Winter Thrills
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Losing Weight
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Build a New You
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New Year's Workout
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Weight-loss Aids
If you're like the majority of Canadians whose Day-Timers include notations such as "exercise every day, "drink more water, and "eat more salads, don't forget to add "research health supplements, because there are some great products that may help in shedding those extra post-holiday pounds.

This Might Save Your Life
"I'm going to call an ambulance, I told my patient, a woman in her early 50s. She knew that something was wrong, but I knew she wasn't convinced that her symptoms were serious. Most women, and many men, aren't aware of the more subtle signs of a heart attack.

Squeeze some sunshine
Have you ever wondered why an apple turns brown after you cut it in half? But cut any citrus fruit in half and it remains virtually unchanged. The difference is the high level of ascorbic acid and other antioxidants in the citrus; they protect it from oxidation-like natural rustproofing.

Varicose Veins
I was sitting and chatting with my friend Tania, when she suddenly interrupted me. "You shouldn't sit like that you know, she said, pointing at my crossed legs. "You're going to give yourself varicose veins.

Let’s Talk About SEX...
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Change It Up!
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Roll Safely
The sun is shining and the kids run outside to play. They joyfully grab their bikes, scooters, skateboards, or in-line skates without a care in the world, and they’re off. Kids are so excited about moving that they don’t think about staying safe.

Get Active!
Here is a simple guide to help you get and stay on the exercise track so that you can reap the many benefits of physical activity.

Vacation Without the Spread
Vacations are often a time to kick back, soak up the rays, and unfortunately, sometimes gain weight. When you’re on a tropical cruise or frolicking between cafés in Provence, it’s much too easy to forget about your commitment to a healthy lifestyle and just give in to your new surroundings.

Overcoming common barriers to getting active
Sometimes the reasons people cite for being inactive are just excuses, but research also tells us that there are barriers to physical activity that many of us face across the country.

It’s Not Too Late to Keep Your Resolutions
Every January the population in fitness classes double as people flock to the gym to live up to all those New Year’s resolutions generated over a glass of bubbly late December 31st. By Groundhog Day the population of newcomers drops by 50 percent.