By Buzz Wolfe

LET’S BLAME IT ON THE CARBS!

For twenty years of my life, I was a dancer/entertainer. I never worried about eating greasy chicken fingers, fries, burgers, chips, or desserts. I thought the word carb referred to a car part. I retired from show business in 1995 and became a computer geek. Thirty five pounds found their way to my frame seemingly overnight. For several years I tried to gain some self-discipline to get over this “fat-phase.” This would prove to become a monumental task, until I became educated. Then the self-discipline followed and the thirty five pounds were dropped like a psycho date-from-hell. Also, visiting your doctor for a blood cholesterol test can work wonders in the motivation department. Here is what worked for me.

Carbs are getting a bum rap these days. Many of us are following some of the popular no carb or low-carb diets, popularized in the media. If these diets are working for you, consistently, year after year, then by all means carry on. My only suggestion would be to pay that visit to your doctor and get a blood test to check your blood sugar levels, cholesterol, etc., to determine if any modifications are necessary in your diet and lifestyle.

If you are having difficulty losing or maintaining your fight weight, perhaps we can find the reason. Many popular diets judge carbs as the “demon food.” Just remember that if you are jogging, skating, lifting weights, dancing, singing on stage, or even mingling with the audience after the show, it is carbs that are used for fuel, not protein. The problem with weight control is not carbs, it is the type of carbs. The body makes great, efficient use of raw fruits and vegetables, pasta (with olive oil), baked potatoes, yams, broccoli, soy and the entire plethora of organic foods. The body does not efficiently use processed wheat and corn products, such as enriched bread, chips, crackers, cookies, muffins and cakes. The body loves dairy products, such as fat-free milk, soymilk, yogurt and cottage cheese. The body dislikes processed dairy such as most cheeses (except cottage cheese), ice cream, cheesecake and pudding.

For most people, it is a monumental task to cut out potato chips, pizza, ice cream, popcorn and all the delicious breads that are served at restaurants. If you can focus on all the good foods that you can eat, you will never go hungry. Eventually, the cravings will subside as your body becomes accustomed to the more pure, organic foods. Pasta, for instance, in most preparations, is a high-glycemic index food, which means that it elevates blood sugar quickly. Prepared with olive oil and garlic, however, it is lower on the glycemic index scale and is considered a low-fat, heart-healthy meal. You may consider replacing your canola and other vegetable oils with extra virgin olive oil, and if you don’t like fish, try to ingest a tablespoon of flaxseed oil every other day to get your omega-3’s.

If you are having trouble losing weight, you may need to eat more… THAT’S RIGHT! Your body will burn more calories and fat if you eat 5-6 small meals per day as opposed to 3 moderate to large sized ones. The body will quickly digest a small portion (the size of your fist), especially if it is an organic type food. Your metabolism will speed up, and the pounds will begin to drop. If these concepts become difficult, and you begin to question what is a good carb and what are the good fats, just remember the universal, undisputable truth… If you take in fewer calories than you burn consistently, you MUST loose weight. I’m not endorsing that you can “pig-out” on junk food up to 800 calories and then burn off 1000 while exercising. What I am suggesting is a lifestyle change where junk-food becomes passé and you adopt a more organic and healthy lifestyle. Which brings us to the next topic.

Exercise is of course, one of the most important ingredients in weight control. I am a fan of resistance (weight) training, because the body will continue to burn calories for several days as it is repairing the muscle tissues, which have been broken down during your weight session. Cardio by itself will only burn calories and fat during the time that the heart rate is elevated. Cardio would need to be performed more regularly than weight training for effective weight control. Three weight sessions per week could easily outperform six cardio sessions. To combine the two, however, would provide the most dramatic results.

Cardio should be performed after weight training. You will need all the energy available for the weight training, and when you are finished with the weights, your heart rate is already elevated, so the fat-burning effects of cardio will kick in quickly.

So first, see your doctor before you begin any weight-training, cardio or diet modifications. If all is well, begin immediately to eat frequent, small meals and combine resistance and cardio training and within 21 days of dedication, you will have formed two healthy habits that will allow you to take control of your body.