FAQ

Q: What is the best way to jump-start a weight loss program?

A: Start drinking more water. Not only will it help you feel full more often and help with portion control, but it goes down all the way to the cellular level where hydrated cells are able to better metabolize the fat burning process. In general, you’ll want to start by eating less and being more active.

Q: What is the fastest way to lose weight?

A: There is no quick fix to legitimate, lasting weight loss. The most important thing you can do is to start cutting back on bad calories from sugar, excessive carbs, soda, candy, high fructose corn syrup, fast food, baked goods, chips, etc. The other half of the same coin is to increase physical activity. This can be anything from taking the stairs or parking further away to get some extra walking in to jogging, weight lifting, swimming, cycling, or even the treadmill. The key is to burn more calories than you consume.

Q: Who loses weight faster, men or women?

A: Men, this is partially due to the fact that men have more muscle mass, which increases the body’s metabolism mechanisms that help to burn calories even while not active. This is because men have the testosterone hormone, which predisposes men to have a higher body muscle percentage versus body fat percentage.

Q: How would a breastfeeding mother lose the baby fat the fastest?

A: Nursing mothers need an additional 500 calories to provide the baby adequate breast milk, but you should realize that the best way is to take it slow if you want your milk supply to last at least 6 months.

Q: Will breast feeding help me to lose weight?

A: You will naturally burn calories daily just through milk production. With a balanced diet and moderate exercise, you and your baby’s health will not be compromised.

Q: Why do I carry my weight differently than other people, even when they are the same gender as me?

A: The way that you carry the weight (fat/adipose tissue) on your body is based on your genetics. Not only will you carry it differently than others, but you will lose it differently and it will be lost proportionally throughout your body in the weight loss process. Obviously, men and women carry weight differently and this is also due to sex determining genetics.

Q: How do I know if I am exercising too much/beyond a healthy limit?

A: It all depends on what you are doing. If you are doing an hour of cardio or weight lifting every day of the week, you are overdoing it. Your body needs at least one day a week of rest to repair itself. Excessive exercise can leaving you feeling the need to eat more just to keep up with your increase in calorie burning, which gives you the opposite effect by increasing the fat your body holds on to due to a lower of your metabolism, effectively doing the opposite of the desired change.

Q: After a consistent loss in weight, why am I plateauing months or years into my weight loss journey?

A: Weight loss is often accompanied by a gain in muscle mass from strength training. Since muscle mass weighs more than fat tissue, you may have reached an equilibrium point towards a healthy weight for your body and body fat percentage.

Q: I drink diet soda to assist me in avoiding the calories in regular soda. Are diet sodas harmful?

A: According to Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D. on MayoClinic.com, “Drinking a reasonable amount of diet soda a day, such as a can or two, isn’t likely to hurt you. The artificial sweeteners and other chemicals currently used in diet soda are safe for most people, and there’s no credible evidence that these ingredients cause cancer. Some types of diet soda are even fortified with vitamins and minerals. But diet soda isn’t a health drink or a silver bullet for weight loss. Although switching from regular soda to diet soda may save you calories, some studies suggest that drinking more than one soda a day — regular or diet — increases your risk of obesity and related health problems such as type 2 diabetes.”

Q: Are high-protein diets considered safe for weight loss?

A: I will again defer the answer to this particular question to an expert, Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D. on MayoClinic.com. She states: “High-protein diets are generally well tolerated by healthy adults.  Your body can’t store excess protein. During digestion and metabolism, protein is broken down into amino acids — the building blocks of protein. Your body uses these amino acids to make enzymes and other proteins. But any “extra” amino acids are stripped of nitrogen. The non-nitrogen parts of amino acids are used for energy or converted into fat, and the remaining nitrogen is eventually excreted by your kidneys and liver. These waste products have been shown to cause kidney injury, and in the presence of liver disease, excess nitrogen can cause further problems. High-protein diets may also increase the risk of kidney stones and osteoporosis. If you have kidney or liver disease or any chronic health condition, talk to your doctor before starting a new diet.

For most healthy people, a short-term high-protein diet generally isn’t harmful. However, if followed long term, high-protein diets may limit other healthy foods, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables. In addition, many high-protein foods — such as meat, milk, cheese and eggs — are also high in fat and cholesterol, which can increase your risk of heart disease, stroke and other health problems. So choose your protein sources wisely. Good choices include fish, beans, lentils and low-fat dairy products.”