All fats are not created equal, which is why we hate to see them all swept into the corner, labeled “bad” and dismissed faster than it took Game of Thrones’ Catelyn Stark to shun her husband’s bastard son, Jon Snow. Let’s play nice and take a closer look.

Unsaturated fats—the watcher on the walls

Like the Knight’s watch, these fats are looking out for you. They serve you by helping to absorb fat-soluble vitamins. In addition, they provide essential fatty acids, and fend off heart attacks and strokes by reducing bad cholesterol levels.       

Examples of Unsaturated fat

Monounsaturated fats

• There’s less hype surrounding these unsaturated fats than their more complex counterpart (polyunsaturated fats), but they’re still important. Monounsaturated fats provide nutrients to help develop and maintain your body’s cells. Oils rich in monounsaturated fats also contribute vitamin E (functions as an antioxidant and promotes cell signaling). Find monounsaturated fats in olive oil, peanut oil, avocados, almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pumpkin and sesame seeds.

Polyunsaturated fats

• These fats provide nutrients that help develop and maintain the cells in your body. They have fats essential to you that your body can’t produce itself, such as omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.

Omega-3 fatty acids

• Your heart loves this type of polyunsaturated fat with all its … heart. Omega-3s are key in the production of hormones that relax artery walls and regulate inflammation and blood clotting. Omega-3s also help lower levels of lipoprotein (LDL, also known as “bad” cholesterol). LDL likes to join with fats and other substances to clog up arteries, which can lead to heart disease and stroke. Omega 3s are not down with that, and act accordingly, on behalf of your heart. Find omega-3s in bison and wild game that are range free and grass fed, salmon, tuna, trout, mackerel, sardines, herring, ground flaxseed, flaxseed oil, soybean oil, walnuts, butternuts and sunflower seeds.

  Omega-6 fatty acids

• Found in vegetable oils, nuts and seeds, these fats help with brain function (who needs coffee when you have Omega-6?) and cell growth. The American Heart Association recommends people eat 5-10% of their daily calories from omega-6 fatty acids. Find omega-6 in sunflower oil, soybean oil, avocado oil, walnuts, safflower seeds, brazil nuts, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, squash seeds and peanuts.

The University of Illinois Extension recommends an intake ratio of omega-6 fats to omega-3 fats of 2:1 to 4:1. Still, it’s important to know how much of each type of fat to eat daily. The Mayo Clinic provides this information in a user-friendly table.

Saturated fat and trans fat—White Walkers and wildlings that will mess you up

Commonly referred to as solid fats because they’re solid at room temperature, these frightening fats can wage war on your heart by infiltrating your bloodstream and clogging up your arteries.

• Saturated fats

Saturated fats raise blood cholesterol levels in your body, specifically LDL, which can increase your risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Harvard Medical School notes, “A handful of recent reports have muddied the link between saturated fat and heart disease.

More analysis on Saturated fats

One meta-analysis of 21 studies said that there was not enough evidence to conclude that saturated fat increases the risk of heart disease, but that replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat may indeed reduce risk of heart disease”. Additionally they mention, “Two other major studies narrowed the prescription slightly, concluding that replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fats like vegetable oils or high-fiber carbohydrates is the best bet for reducing the risk of heart disease, but replacing saturated fat with highly processed carbohydrates could do the opposite.” Beware, however, of processed vegetable oils and to not exceed the recommended ratios and daily intake of different types of fat.

More information to this regard are found in the sections that follow.

Saturated fats are in cows and poultry, full-fat dairy products, and many commercially prepared baked goods.

• Trans fats

Most of the trans fats we consume are a result of the food processing method called hydrogenation. All foods containing hydrogenated vegetable oils contain manufactured transaturated fats. According to the

Mayo Clinic

, partially hydrogenated trans fats can increase unhealthy LDL cholesterol and lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL, or “good” cholesterol).

Buyer beware:

In the United States food labels can state a food has 0 grams of trans fat if there is less than 0.5 grams of trans fat in a serving. So, take a quick look at the ingredients; and if “partially hydrogenated” is anywhere to be seen, put the bag down and slowly back away. Those trace amounts of artificial trans fats add up fast.

Naturally-occurring trans fats (produced in the gut of some animals and found in foods made from said animals) show up in small amounts in milk and meat products. According to the American Heart Association, “There have not been sufficient studies to determine whether these naturally occurring trans fats have the same bad effects on cholesterol levels as trans fats that have been industrially manufactured.” Proceed with caution when it comes to trans fats. They’re dangerous and there’s still much more to learn.

Manufactured trans fats can be found in packaged foods with “partially hydrogenated” on the nutrition label (chips, cookies, frozen dinners, packaged pudding, nondairy creamers, etc.).They also may be found in anything fried (french fries, onion rings, mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers, fried chicken, donuts, etc.), margarine, shortening, ice cream, microwave popcorn, and processed meat sticks (beef jerky), to name a few food sources.

           
How our bodies create and burn fat—the struggle is real in Westeros

You know the story. Winter is coming. Your body wants to keep warm and insulated. Depending on what and how much you’re eating, your body may produce and store fat. If how stuff works interest you, read this very detailed description of how the human body breaks down foods and stores fat. On the other hand, if your brain doesn’t feel like burning all those calories to read an entire article, just know that eating things the body has trouble breaking down (unnatural or highly processed items that somehow pass as “food”) and eating more than needed to keep your body functioning are two powerful opponents when it comes to maintaining a healthy body fat percentage.

Over winter and ready to shed an extra layer of fat? Burning fat requires not only keeping an eye on what you’re eating. But also making sure you’re exercising so your body uses up the energy stored in that unwanted fat. Again, for you information hungry hounds, here is a complete explanation of how we burn fat.

Tips to win the battle and achieve a healthy balance

According to Sports Nutrition, Second Edition, the recommendation for females is to maintain 16-30% body fat and males maintain 11-20%. And if you’re an athlete, depending on your sport of choice, recommended body fat percentages range from 5-20% for males and 10-28% for females. Take a look at this chart to see percentages broken down by sport.

Since fat plays a key role in keeping you energized and insulated (without it you’d have no core body temperature and your vital organs would be vulnerable to outside impact), it’s important to maintain enough of it to stay healthy. Dropping below the recommended range is dangerous for these reasons, as is exceeding the high end of the scale. If you’re hauling around too much body fat, your risk for type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, and certain cancers increases.

To keep your body balanced with the ideal amount of fat, take Michael Pollan’s advice:

• Eat food.
• Not too
• Mostly plants.

We’d add…and exercise regularly. Especially if you have some extra fat that you’d like to say goodbye to. Go ahead, send it north of the Wall!

Slap on a patch, take a pill or go under the knife. These days, people want an easy, instant fix to their weight gain. While gaining weight creates all sorts of health problems, what the snake oil people are willing to take to make the weight go away is outrageous. Along those lines are the bevy of weight loss programs being touted by everyone from self-professed weight loss gurus, such as Robert Atkins or Elizabeth Gibaud, to celebrities like Beyonce and the Master Cleanse and Madonna with the infamous “air diet,” reported by US News and World Report. But could it be possible that uber popular weight loss programs, like Jenny Craig or SlimFast, could actually work? Turns out, maybe. Then again, you could just eat clean and exercise for better results.

Study of the Efficacy of Commercial Weight-Loss Programs

According to a recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the John Hopkins University of School of Medicine was host to a study by Dr. Kimberly A. Gudzune that found the answer to this age-old question. Of more than 10 programs scrutinized in this study, only two showed scientific evidence that they do the trick. For those dieters prescribed to Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers, you stand the greatest chance of actually losing and maintaining long-term weight loss in comparison to other weight loss programs. Here’s the kicker, though. These results are only slightly better than what you would do if you were to follow your own diet.

Another concern of high-intensity weight loss programs including Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers and NutriSystem is the work involved in maintaining the program. You are set up with a consultant who works with you one-on-one, for a fee, to set ongoing goals. You have to monitor your food and nutritional intake, such as through the insane Weight Watchers’ point system. With Weight Watchers you have to go into a public place and weigh yourself periodically. While Jenny Craig requires you to eat packaged, processed meals that, you guessed it, cost a pretty penny. There has to be a better weigh, ahem, way to deal with excessive weight.

Managing Weight Loss Effectively

If you are one of the millions of Americans who want to lose weight, feel better, look sexier and get healthier, there is a long-term solution. No, you won’t have to take a pill or stick on a weight loss patch. According to the Mayo Clinic the formula for weight loss is simple: eat fewer calories than you burn. It must be noted that there is, in fact, a Mayo Clinic Diet, which is an online diet subscription program that follows the high-intensity weight loss formulas of Jenny Craig and the other diet programs out there.

The problem is that this formula is much, much, much easier to read than implement. Thanks to food cravings, as noted by Active, you might be suffering from a magnesium deficiency, which makes you ready to kill for a nibble of chocolate, or an iron deficiency causing you to have red meat cravings of a lion. If you are a female, then you understand the monthly fluctuations of hormones including estrogen and serotonin that leave you lagging and with a lowered metabolism during your evolution phase. So what is the deal? How can you manage healthy weight loss?

Clean Eating Solution

One of the most effective methods for maintaining health while losing excess weight is via the clean eating method. As reported by Time Health, clean eating involves a set of principles:

• Only eat whole foods. No more processed, packaged junk. This means no processed sugar cane turned into white powder; processed wheat transformed into sandwich slices; fruits squished until nothing remains but the liquid; and semolina pressed into tubular noodles. These foods are already broken down before you even chew them, creating an influx of simple carbs that cause your blood sugar to spike. Whole foods equal real foods in their natural form. These force your body to do the work of digestion, which keeps your system in check. Eat a balance of whole foods in every color of the rainbow to get a variety of minerals and vitamins.
• Ingredients that don’t come directly from the ground or the earth’s waterways should be avoided like the plague. That means nothing scientifically concocted, no chemicals, no additives, no fillers, and certainly nothing artificial. If you can’t pronounce it, then you shouldn’t eat it. Makes sense, doesn’t it?
• Going organic whenever possible to ensure the quality of whole foods is prescribed by clean foodies. However, those on a budget should worry more about the types of foods they are putting in their grocery cart and less about the organic sticker. Don’t let not being able to afford all things organic to dissuade you from eating conventional whole foods. Use the Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen lists to help you make cost effective, whole food decisions.
• Do it yourself. That means making your own meals at home. Not only are you controlling the ingredients in your meals, but you are becoming more conscious of how you are treating your body.
• You can’t eat every single food you see just because it’s clean. If you eat more calories than you use in a day, then you are going to gain flubber, plain and simple. You still need to maintain a balance of fewer calories in and more calories spent.

Healthy eating has a three-fold effect. When you eat healthy foods, you feel better on the inside, your skin glows on the outside, and your mood is boost causing your personality to sparkle. If you want to make the most of your health, skip the costly consequences of depending on pop culture weight loss programs. Fad diets fade. Stick with something that will keep you healthy, happy and in peak performance. By choosing the clean eating method you are eating real foods, not worrying about counting calories, and fueling your body with what you should eat.

Exercising for a Cleaner You

In addition to eating clean, take on a regular exercise routine. You will boost your happy hormones, aka endorphins, while reducing cortisol, that hormone causing your midsection’s spare tire. Exercise will also help you lose weight naturally by amping up the amount of energy you are spending each day. With a well regimented exercise plan combined with clean eating you can withstand long-term weight loss without having to depend on someone named Jenny C. or counting points on packaged foods.

In today’s post I am going to share with you the ins and outs of the Paleo diet. Then you can decide if it is for you.

Okay to start off with there is a lot to be said about the Paleo diet. Truth is, the lives of our caveman and cavewoman ancestors were much simpler. There is still much we can learn from the way they lived. Just look at the way they ate.  Truly it was a much healthier way of eating than the diet of most Westerners today. The Paleo diet is a simple diet that provides benefits for those that adhere to it. Let’s check out what it’s all about:

The Paleo diet is not overly complex because it comes from a time when food had pretty simple ingredients. Foods on the Paleo diet do not contain starches, or wheat products, or any man-made additives. And it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to be able to pronounce any of them. The diet may be most known for its stance against processed foods, sugars, and food with gluten. This means no bread, or cake, or tortilla chips, or any products containing sugar or gluten found at grocery store.  Yep, and the difficulty is found in how good these foods taste. Many people love sandwiches with wheat bread and a side of tortilla chips, right?

Well, when it comes to having healthy digestion and overall physical performance and appearance, eliminating processed foods and gluten is the optimal way to eat. We will get into the specific health benefits shortly, as well as some gluten free alternatives you can enjoy.

Despite some no-nos, foods that can be eaten on the Paleo diet are voluminous and quite good in taste. Specifically, meat and seafood are staples of the paleo diet. From beef and chicken to salmon and crab, protein is essential when it comes to maintaining a healthy body and those of the Paleolithic era knew this. Which is why they made these foods such an integral part of their diet. After all, they weren’t call hunter gatherers for nothing.

Another staple in the paleo diet is healthy fats. Sources of these foods include some types of meat and seafood. But also nuts like almonds or cashews and other sources like coconut oil or avocado. These fats are crucial for sustainable energy for the body to use throughout the day. We will also get into that in more detail shortly.

And we couldn’t forget the nutrient super foods like vegetables and fruit. They are also vital parts of the paleo diet. To tie all of the various parts of the diet together let’s take a look at some of the health benefits.

Yes there are many health benefits to be had from eating food consistent with the paleo diet. And despite what some people say there is plenty of research to back up the claims.

For instance, one study published in Diabetologia in 2007, showed that people adhering to a paleo diet had better glucose tolerance than people eating a more Mediterranean type diet. Specifically, those on the diet had their blood glucose drop by 36% opposed to the other group who only saw a 7% reduction. Cool, eh?  Yep, but the health benefits didn’t stop there.

The study also found that the paleo participants also had substantial weight loss benefits from adhering to the diet. People on the paleo diet on average lost 11 pounds over the 12 week study. In addition, they saw an average of 2 inches in waist circumference reduction.

In another study from 2009 published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, participants using a hunter gatherer type diet saw even more improvements in their health. Specifically, they saw a 16 percent drop in total cholesterol and their diastolic blood pressure was reduced by 3.4 mmHg.

As seen in these studies, eating a paleo diet has a number of health benefits usually pertaining to blood pressure, blood sugar, weight loss, and cholesterol. But it is important to keep in mind that there are still more studies to be performed in order to examine and be conclusive about all of the health benefits of the paleo diet. For instance, one health benefit not specifically mentioned in the aforementioned studies is athletic performance.

Beyond the health benefits for the average non-exerciser, there are many health benefits for athletes and exercisers eating a paleo diet. Fact is, there are a growing number of these individuals who are experiencing increases in their athletic performance because of the way they eat. A number of athletes find that eliminating gluten from their diet allows their body to recover faster and perform better. This is likely because when gluten is digested it tends to set off an immune response within the body that can cause inflammation in muscles and joints that are used heavily in exercise and sports.

In this way some athletes and exercisers find that their body feels and performs better during physical activity. When it is given a paleo diet without gluten or other inflammation causing foods such as sugars and corn-based products.

Oh yeah sticking to the paleo diet is not for everyone. Some people prefer to have bread and other gluten containing products as a consistent part of their diet simply because they enjoy the taste. However, for those on the paleo diet that miss these types of foods; there are many alternatives such as gluten free bread, and even rice pasta. Many of these alternatives substitute foods like coconut flour and rice flour can be used in place of wheat flour. But even as is, there are a large number of people that the paleo diet works for. These people find that there are not only added health benefits from it. But they tend to also find that it allows their body to perform better during physical activity and feel better while doing so.

Before signing off, it is good to note that just because you decide to get on or stay on the paleo diet does not mean you have to use every ounce of your will power to do so. There are many paleo alternatives that can satisfy the same taste buds that a food not consistent with the diet normally would. And also, there is nothing wrong with “cheating” on the diet now and then. Just so long as you don’t go overboard and let it ruin the diet all together.  Yep like I tell all my Clients, “just get back up on the horse that brought you and ride again and you’ll be just fine.”

If you live or work in SW Houston then give me a call. I’ll hook you up with 4 free sessions to get you started on the path to longer healthier life: 832.500.5459.