Real Fit or Fake Fit

Conforming to Your Image

Did you ever notice that you can't lie to or con the person in the mirror?

You can Ponzi your partner, scam your spouse, or maybe even do slim shady your live-in lover but you can't put on or bend the truth a smidgen with the reflexion that's glaring back at you from the aluminum-coated glass you shave in or put your morning makeup on in front of. The image returning your glance knows the real YOU.

And that brings us to the subject of today's post: "Are you Real Fit or Fake Fit?" Do you even really know anymore?

In so many areas of our lives, you and I have to augment our authentic selves to suit someone else or to be the most effective in the situation that we're in regardless of the ultimate cost. Today's social and business arenas oftentimes demands that we give 110% all the time and perform whether or not we're sick, tired, or just burnt out.

We feel constrained to jack ourselves up on quadruple espressos or artificial stimulants just to be that super charged, always positive leader, mentor, or salesperson that's always on the ball. The mega-dose of caffeine we ingest six days out of seven disguises our natural proclivity to get up slowly,  expands our normal attitude to larger than life in order to accomplish the goal that receives our achievement or captures the sale that must be penned, and amplifies our voice tones to a heightened crescendo above their usual evenness.

Might I offer a cautionary warning of "Buyer beware" to those who fake it on more days than they're living authentic self image?

My friend, there's a real danger in conforming to a portrayed or phony persona too often. While trying to please or achieve for ourselves for monetary reasons or for others in order to secure a career advancement, you and I lose our truth and compromise our future health. Our authentic self image blurs and well-being eventually vanishes.

In my area of expertise which is health and fitness, I find myself meeting one person at an initial consultation, hearing all about their personal life, work, dietary habits, exercise routine, and weekend hobbies only to become very well acquainted with someone entirely different after four to six weeks of diet monitoring under my watchful guise and an electronic scale who only tells it like it is.

The individual who originally contacted me for dietary guidance and assistance that described themselves as self disciplined and said that he or she only had one cheat day per week and ate clean on every other day really flip-flopped their real dietary intake. They ate clean just one day a week and filled their bellies with boxed, bagged, and wrapped food almost everyday.

And I don't just get the p.c. answer when it comes to eating, I get flimflammed in the area of exercise too. The man or woman who identified and likened themselves as an athlete, always making it to the gym to do at least 30-60 minutes of fasted cardio on five days out of seven and who rarely had one or at most two alcoholic drinks over the course of a weekend didn't have the cardiovascular capacity to walk up a flight of stairs carrying their daily mail but, strangely, was called by their first name at the neighborhood bar.

It's important to live who we really are most of the time in order to avoid losing ourselves and then, as a result, drown our self loathing in drugs and alcohol, permanently screwing up our metabolisms with weight-loss pills or steroids, and being diagnosed by our GP as having blocked arteries similar to the Hoover Dam, possessing skyscraper high blood pressure, or owning a total cholesterol number that looks more like the Power Ball Jackpot winnings than it does a serum blood fat amount.

So how do you and I stay authentic in the airbrushed, edited world that we find ourselves in?

What works for me and for many of the people I coach is to consistently address on a daily and weekly basis the five areas of our lives that we commonly lie to ourselves and other people about. The five spheres of life that make up who we are.

1.) Nutrition. We are what we consume each and every day. The food and drink that passes through our lips make up the cells, tissues, bones, and organs of our body which is ultimately you and me.  Eat as close to nature as possible at every meal.

2.) Mental Health. Learn to cope with the high stress of life, love, and work by putting yourself to a self-control test regularly, might I suggest weekly, where you can talk yourself down from off the ledge without chemicals. By doing this on a regular basis, you and I learn that in the hard times we can truly stand without bending or breaking. Hot yoga is one of the best ways to test ones mental strength. Putting yourself in a room that's heated to 105 degrees with mirrors reflecting back how unbalanced you are when a single droplet of sweat is about to drip off the tip of your nose while attempting to stand on one foot is a mental test like no other.

3.) Physical Fitness. I'm going to have to say it, "Leg Day." Sorry everybody. No one likes doing wall sits, weighted squats, cheek-to-cheek sprints, or walking lunges but almost everyone needs them and not one of us does enough of them on a regular basis (at least two days per week). Making yourself do the really hard stuff, the garbage you hate to do, defines you and having an awesome butt and set of legs can't hurt either when life goes on the skids.

4.) Environmental.  You and I are exposed to air toxins that can cause cancer as well as other serious health effects like reproductive and birth defects. We're exposed to toxic chemicals overtime with the air we breathe along with the toxic substances found in our water and soil, therefore, it's important for us to detox as much of these toxins as possible through the largest organ that we have -- our skin. Sweating is one of the best ways in my opinion to accomplish this so get outdoors and burn baby burn.

Hate the heat, then how about getting in subzero temperatures in a cryotherapy chamber. Cryo businesses are opening up in many major cities and their research speaks of reducing systemic inflammation, relieving muscle and arthritic pain, and improving nerve conduction velocity.

5.) Financial. You can't live very long without realizing that money matters. You can't be healthy mentally or physically without a balanced checkbook, credit cards that are max'ed out, or a mortgage payment that's late again. Being in the financial red is taxing on the mind and the body, eventually affecting the health of your brain, organ systems, and heart. Learn to live within your means and you'll feel better I promise.

At the end of our life, you and I wind up leaving this world solo so we might as well start getting familiar and really comfort with who that person truly is since we'll be spending the rest of eternity with them.

Thank you for reading and inspiring me to be genuine.

Bell Gia
Nutrition and Fitness Expert

Do Thermogenic Fat Burners Really Work?

Should I Buy a Fat Burner If I'm Dieting?

I know a lot about thermogenic agents because I'm in the weight-loss business. I have been dieting women and men down the scale for twenty-five years. Over one thousand women and six hundred men of varying ages, shapes, and sizes have come to me to help them shed their excess fat and bring out their svelte physiques. 

Some of my clients were athletes that let themselves go in the off-season, others were moms or dads that became chubby and out of shape when the babies started coming, and others were couch potatoes who ate potato chips with one hand and controlled the remote with the other. So, yes, I can state with confidence and knowledge that I can tell you everything you want to know about over-the-counter thermogenics commonly sold as "fat burners".

Thermogenic agents like Hydroxycut, Ripped Fuel Extreme, and Xenadrine do not burn your body's fat stores no matter how many or for how long you take them. Thermogenic agents like those popular brands mentioned above, speed up the body's metabolism (the breaking down of the foods we eat in order to re-create the substances our bodies need for growth, repair, and energy) by stimulating the body's nervous system usually by using caffeine (a xanthine alkaloid which is a central nervous system stimulant) as the chemical stimulant of choice or something similar to it's C8H10N4O2 chemical structure. 

In order to burn your body's stored fat, your body must release a peptide hormone called glucagon. Glucagon is released from the liver only when your body's concentration of blood glucose is too low.  Then and only then does the liver convert stored glycogen into glucose to be used as energy for normal body processes, for thought, and for movement like exercise. Your body uses its glycogen stores before it will use its fat stores as its fuel.

The average human body stores 100 grams of glycogen in the liver and between 300-400 grams of glycogen in its muscles. Your body must use up those stored carbs before it will burn the body's stored fats through a process called lipolysis. I'm sorry to break that to you but it's true and the sooner you know how your body gets its energy, the sooner you will be able to lose your unwanted weight.

Your over-the-counter thermogenic agents or fat burners don't and can't make your body burn fat, but they can speed up your heart's contractions and cause it to beat faster and circulate your blood quicker which requires more calories be used as energy than would a resting heart. The caffeine in these fat burners will also stimulate gastrin release (a hormone made by the stomach) and gastric acid secretions which will aid in gastric motility or the movements of the digestive system and the transit of its contents more quickly. This means the food you eat may get out of your stomach quicker, go through the small and large intestine faster, and then cause you to run to the bathroom for a bowel movement. 

Basically the caffeine or similar stimulant in your store-bought fat burners will get your body's nervous system stimulated where your organs will be working faster and requiring more calories as energy to keep up this quickened pace. The caffeine can also mask hunger, coverup fatigue, and improve athletic performance due to its ergogenic effect and the sparing of muscle glycogen.  

So, to answer the question posed by this blog post: "Do Thermogenic Fat Burners Really Work?" my response is "Yes, Hydroxycut, Ripped Fuel, and Xenadrine can work for some people because thermogenic agents like these cause central nervous system stimulation which CAN burn additional calories for the person who is taking them IF that person's body hasn't adapted to high caffeine or stimulant consumption." 

Please be aware that not everyone should take or can take a thermogenic agent. Those with nervous system disorders, heart conditions, digestive disorders, or anyone who has struggled with an eating disorder may want to talk to their general practitioner before even considering taking these types of drugs. 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to read my blog. I appreciate your continued support. 

References: 

Scand J Gastroenterol Suppl. 1999;230:35-9.

-Bell Gia

Nutrition and Fitness Expert