Trade Secrets from your Narcissistic Nutritionist:

TGIF!! To Cheat or NOT to Cheat?

Cheat meals are a nice way to keep your sanity and that is about it.  The theory behind a cheat meal a week is to keep your metabolism from dropping due to consuming low calories all week.  Well that one meal isn’t going to change a thing in that regard.  It may not do a lot of harm either so what’s the concern?

The thing is that most people who have a cheat meal do one of two things.  They either eat an insanely massive dirty meal or they have a cheat day.  When you do this, you will generally have a negative effect, but if it is a clean(ish) meal that is off your diet you should be ok.  The cheat meal is exactly that, a cheat, and why are you cheating?  To reward yourself for sticking to your healthy diet? Hmmmmmmmmmm Good thing we don’t look at marriage this way isn’t it.  Guess what, we shouldn’t look at our diet this way either. That one cheat can ruin everything you accomplished over the last week, is it worth it? Not as far as I am concerned. Saying that…

People often assume that I have a will of steel when it comes to watching what I eat.  In order for me to maintain low body fat levels throughout the year, my diet is somewhat strict as a rule; HOWEVER, I am not an angel.  From time to time, I have to cheat on my diet, either for my sanity or because I can’t say no to the occasional dinner out.  Ok, you got me, I don’t HAVE to cheat, I CHOOSE to, but I do it as safely as possible.  When it becomes a choice & not a privilege you certainly gain more control of yourself don’t you think?

However here are MY little secrets for cheating and getting away with it (for the most part). Ideally you will not need this information, hmmmmmm, but it will at least help reduce the risk of falling too far off track if you “must” cheat.

Tips from Diet Diva REVEALED: The first part, and most difficult is to get your metabolism fired up.  You will need to be eating at least 6 small healthy meals a day for a month or two, ideally with no cheat meals for that period of time.  This will get your body accustom to processing your food in an efficient scheduled manner.  Once your body stops storing calories as fat from meal to meal and starts using them as energy and muscle repair, you are on your way to becoming a human furnace that burns through calories.

You need to train with weights at least 3 times a week, this will ensure you maintain and or build muscle while restricting calories.  Basically, you require calories for your bodily functions and to feed your working muscles.  The more muscle you have the more calories your body will burn, even when you sleep.  For every pound of muscle you gain you require up to 100 additional calories a day to maintain.

Now, let’s assume you have been resistance training 3 days a week and have been eating 6 small meals a day for the last couple months.  You have been losing fat and have gained a few new pounds of muscle.  You have now elevated your metabolism about as far as you are going to on your own.  It’s time to take it to the next level; here is where you look to supplements.  By adding a fat burning supplement, you can kick your metabolic rate even higher.  Choosing a fat burning supplement that addresses many areas such as thermogenisis, elevating thyroid output, shutting down fat receptors and increasing insulin sensitivity is the best approach.  And yes I have my recommendations on the ones that are safe, don’t stress out your adrenal glands or make you jittery.

Okay, so now you are dropping body fat even faster and maintaining your lean body mass. At this stage, you usually feel your bodytemperature rise shortly after eating as your internal furnace burns through the calories. You are now ready to approach cheating and get away with it, but we need a couple more tools first.  I have great faith in the new Fat Blockers, Insulin Mimickers and Carbohydrate Inhibitors on the market.  Trust me on that one, I study it all; remember I am a vitamin addict & well Aka Narcissistic Nutritionist! Her Trade Secret: My personal combat for all my meals to keep insulin managed & not spiked is ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar 500mg caps) I take 1-2 prior to eating. With the aid of these supplements, you can block up to 20 grams of fat, 500 grams of starch and shuttle the sugars into your muscles or burn them as energy more effectively.  Taking these supplements 15-60 minutes before your OCCASIONAL dirty meal will help you get away with diet murder and ease the conscience.

This is the “meat and potatoes” of it; however, there are a few more little rules to follow.  Make sure you eat your regularly scheduled meals before and after your cheat meal.  Don’t try to starve all day thinking you can use the calories when you cheat later in the day.  This will only make you store the calories more readily.  Also, don’t fast for the rest of the day because of the extra calories you just consumed.  Continue to eat every 3 hours after your cheat meal, but you might want to cut these meals down a little, especially if you are not that hungry.  The main thing is we want to keep your body in a fat burning zone by eating every 2.5 to 3 hours, going any longer will just cause you to store calories.

**Diet Diva Tip: Another way to ensure your cheat meal has the least impact on you is to work out before your cheat meal.  I suggest always a bigger muscle group such as legs or back training. After you work out with weights, your metabolic rate is very high, this will help you burn through the excess calories that you consume.

These rules if followed should help you cheat as safely as possible, however everyone is different.  People that are really lean are going to be able to get away with more than someone with a higher body fat level.  Obviously, if you have been able to get your body fat levels really low your metabolism is fast, if you are having a hard time getting your body fat levels lower than your metabolism still isn’t up to par so be careful. 

At the end of the day, the best way to stay on track and not let a cheat meal affect your diet or progress is to not have that cheat meal.  Sometimes one cheat meal leads to another and another until you are no longer eating the way you should.  For most people one cheat meal a week is fine, for others maybe more or less.

I hope this helps you and by the way try not to feel guilty after your cheat meal.  Make up your mind before you eat and justify it then, if you can live with possible negative outcome then dig in and enjoy.  If not, then don’t have it and regret it for days after, it’s not worth it.

To summarize the smart way to cheat on your diet:

• Get your metabolism fired up by eating 6 or more small meals a day every 2-3 hours
• Start taking a fat burner on a regular basis to increase your metabolism even further
• One and a half hours prior to your cheat meal workout with weights to jack up your metabolism.  A one hour workout should leave you with a half hour before you eat.
• Thirty minutes before your cheat meal you will take your Fat Blocker and your Fat Burner of choice.
• 20-25 minutes prior to your cheat meal take your Carbohydrate Inhibitor and Insulin Mimicker, don’t forget the ACV as well.
• 2 – 3 hours later eat a small meal and you are back on track
• **Bonus Tip: IF you take ACV a minimum of 500-1000mg caps prior to bedtime this will guarantee to keep your insulin levels minimal, this is the key to all weight management.

 

I know, I observe it all in my profession... Walk into any health food store and you might be slapped in the face with names like Inferno, Up Your Gas, and Ripped Fuel! These are the battle cries of various supplement companies vying for your hard earned dollars. And it's convincing. Who wouldn't want to incinerate a little extra fat or get gassed up and ripped like a chiseled Greek god or dess!

Over the past decade, our culture's battle of the bulge has spawned a multi-billion dollar dietary supplement industry. Browse through a any muscle magazine these days and you can't help but get snagged on sharp names like Razor Ripped, Ripped to the Max, Ripped Force, Extreme Ripped Force, and Metacuts. Turn the page and the temperature rises as more hot products named Inferno, Thermicore, and Thermospeed entice you with glossy, colorful multi-page advertisements. But be careful, lest you find yourself in the burn unit getting stitches on scorched fingers!

But the true herbal heavy hitters are the big budget powerhouse multilevel marketing firms. Distributors push products on everything from internet websites to online chat rooms and message boards to colorful shopping mall kiosks to windshield fliers. Most have their own ma huang/guarana blends which, in simple English, are merely high charged ephedrine/caffeine mixes.

Herbal Uppers: Getting Ripped or Ripped Off? The popularity of herbal supplements is soaring. With the public's growing distrust of the medical establishment, people are shying away from prescription and over the counter weight loss drugs, instead opting for the "natural, help yourself" approach.

However, tip-toeing through a virtual herbal minefield can be confusing, if not downright intimidating without an earned doctorate in botany. Consumers should understand that while pharmaceutical weight loss aids like Dexatrim might be no more effective than their herbal relatives, from a safety standpoint, at least you know the exact quantity of active ingredient per dose. Herbal remedies do not afford you this luxury, so the actual amount of active ingredients you receive could vary.

Ma huang (also called ephedra, Chinese ephedra, or ephedrine) usually tops the ingredient list on most herbal weight loss products. The active chemical compounds found in this herb are called alkaloids, the most common of which is ephedrine. Alkaloids are amphetamine-like compounds that stimulate the cardiovascular and central nervous system. This is why taking ma huang elevates your heart rate and blood pressure, giving you that jolt of energy!

While these effects probably pose no immediate danger to the apparently healthy population, people with existing medical conditions might be well advised to steer clear. Heart and stroke patients, those with high blood pressure, thyroid problems, diabetes, or any other health condition adversely affected by high blood pressure should seek their physician's advice before trying ma huang.

With all the hype surrounding this herb, does it live up to it's reputation as a fat stripper?
It may mildly boost metabolism, but it could be the alkaloids' appetite suppressive effect that is really responsible for lost pounds. Either way, this is still desirable to most dieters and should not be discounted.

People might be tempted to use herbal stimulants as a motivational tool for hitting the gym. But using ephedrine to get ‘jacked up' for workouts can cause unpleasant side effects such as rapid heart rate, palpitations, nervousness, dizziness, and increased blood pressure, which could adversely affect performance and health.

Herbal Blends Herbs are often blended with other herbs, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, or any other nutrient du jour. The blends are sold under the guise that their combined fat burning potential is greater than each of the ingredients alone. Hydroxycut is a popular product marketed as a "highly effective fat burning supplement" that can "dramatically increase fat loss." It contains several herbs and nutrients, most notably ma huang and guarana. Guarana is an herbal source of caffeine which when combined with ephedra alkaloids, makes for a potent mix that can send you bouncing off the walls.
Intense marketing has lulled the public into believing that "natural" equals "safe and effective." Unfortunately, this is not always the case. For example, other "natural" herbs like chaparral and comfrey (not used for weight loss) have been associated with liver damage.
Remember, herbal supplements are just that, supplements, not a substitute for reduced-calorie eating and regular exercise. So get out there, gas up, and incinerate those extra pounds the way nature intended, with healthy lifestyle habits. You'll look like a chiseled Greek god or goddess in no time!

It's just that a magic pill we hope that it does us miracles with our beach body!?
I have heard it all, been asked daily what is the best fat burner on the shelf?

Answer: It depends, on what it is you want to address. Let's keep it real, knowing the formulas of the diet pill is half the battle in knowing what to achieve in figuring out your pill. For example, when I work with my clients I have several integral questions first before I could even suggest what fat burner or diet pill is best for them.
Some pills block fat, some burn fat, some suppress appetite, some address carbohydrates...endless really.
My suggestion, find out what is holding you back from getting to your desired goals, are you eating too much, not enough, do you have a slower metabolism, do you crave sugar, do not enough enough, do you avoid essential fats, do you retain water...your choice on your next purchase for that magic pill should be identified in its use.
Go ahead ask me, what would I suggest to you for your magic pill!!?!?