Still struggling to lose weight?  Have you tried one diet after another with little or no results?  Or worse, have you gained back more that what you lost on your last diet?  Losing weight shouldn’t be this hard!

Well, in truth, it’s not.  Losing weight is pretty simple.  Here’s what I recently learned becoming certified as a Fitness Nutrition Coach.

I recently completed the material for the NESTA Fitness Nutrition Coach certification.  They did a really good job of explaining how the body uses various nutrients.  Here’s some of what I learned about losing weight.

First, your current weight is an indication of your body’s energy balance.  If you burn off (energy going out) the same number of calories that you consume via eating (energy coming in), then your weight won’t change because the number of calories going out is exactly the same as the number of calories coming in.

However, if you eat more calories than you burn off (energy coming in > energy going out), then you’ll gain weight because you’re putting more calories into your body than the body can use.  It will simply store the extra calories as fat.

Conversely, if you burn more calories than you consume (energy coming < energy going out), then you’ll lose weight.  In this case, the body needs more calories than you’re giving it through eating so it uses some of the calories stored in fat to make up the difference.

Pretty straightforward, I know.  But how exactly do you apply this in a way that you can stick with on a day-to-day basis?  How do you put that into easy-to-follow steps?  Here’s where I figured out what the A-B-C’s of weight loss actually were.

A – Reduce Your Total Calories

OK, you should have seen that one coming.  But the first question I had was, “What exactly does that mean in terms of my daily eating habits?”  Are we just talking about dieting?

Well, yes and no.  Dieting is part of the answer, but not all of it.  Here’s why dieting alone usually doesn’t work.  Most experts agree that for permanent weight loss, your goal should be to lose 1-2 pounds per week.  If you’re losing any more than that, it’s probably water weight, not fat loss – which means it will eventually come back.

So let’s do a little math and see exactly how many calories 1-2 pounds translates into.  One pound equals approximately 3500 calories.  Therefore, if you want to lose 2 pounds in a week, you would have to reduce your total caloric intake for the week by 7000 calories (2 lbs x 3500 cal/lb = 7000 cal).

So what’s that on a daily basis?  Well, we need a reduction of 7000 calories per week and there’s 7 days in a week so dividing one by the other gives 1000 calories per day.  You would have to eat 1000 fewer calories each and every day.

Holy Smokes!  One Thousand Less Calories!  That’s huge!  If you’re eating around 2000 calories per day, then eating 1000 fewer calories means cutting your meals in half! Could you do that?  I know I can’t – at least not for more than a day or two.  This is exactly why most people who try to lose weight by dieting alone rarely find success. It’s just too high a hurdle to clear each and every day.

So what’s a more balanced approach?  One approach that will increase your chances of success is to combine dieting (reducing the total number of calories you consume) with some type of exercise (increase the total number of calories you burn off).  That’s the next step.

B – Increase Your Activity Level

Instead of trying to reduce your daily calorie intake by 1000 calories through dieting alone, it makes much more sense to combine dieting with exercise.  Here’s how it would work.

Remember our energy balance equation?  Energy coming in (via food) must be less than energy going out (through activity level) in order for us to lose weight.  There are 3 ways to accomplish this:

1. Through Dieting Alone. In other words, reduce the amount of food coming in and keep your activity level the same.  However, we’ve already discussed how difficult this is to maintain over the long term so this is not really a good option.
2. Through Exercise Alone. You can keep the amount of food constant and increase your activity level.  But you still  have to create a deficit of 1000 calories per day and if you’re not going to do it through dieting, that means you’ll have to burn it off.  There’s just one problem.  Do you realize how much exercise you have to do in order to burn off 1000 calories?  That’s about a 90 minute, non-stop cardio session.  And remember, you have do this each and every day.  Again, not something most people can stick with on a daily basis.
3. Using Both Dieting and Exercise. This is the balanced choice.  Instead of trying to loose (or burn) 1000 calories using one method alone, try losing half that amount (500 calories) with each method.  Seek to reduce your caloric intake by 500 calories – that’s about a 20-25% reduction in meal size.  I can probably do that just by cutting out snacks and soft drinks.  Second, seek to burn off an additional 500 calories by increasing your activity level through exercise.  I can probably burn off 500 calories in a 30-45 min cardio class with no problem.  Now you’ve got a weight reduction plan that’s doable, and one you can stick to.

C – Make better food choices

The last step is to make better food choices on the calories you do consume.  Choose foods that are nutrient rich, instead of energy rich.  For example, a Twinkie® and a large apple both have approximately the same number of calories (about 120).  Although the Twinkie provides a short-term “energy-rush,” the apple provides a number of nutrients (like fiber) that are missing from the Twinkie.  So make sure that the calories you do consume are from whole foods instead of processed ones.

So that’s the “secret” to weight loss:  reduce your total calories, increase your activity level, and make better food choices.  What turned on the lights for me was realizing that if you utilize all three steps in your weight loss plan, your chances of success go way up!

Give it shot.  I think you’ll not only find this kind of weight loss program easier to stick with, but you’ll also begin to get the permanent results you’re looking for.

Hiram
The Balanced Health Guy

Technorati Tags: Body Balance, calories, diet, Dieting, Eating Habits, Energy Balance, Fitness Nutrition, Gain Weight, Lose Weight, Losing Weight, Nutrients, Nutrition Coach, weight loss

Related posts:

1. Weight Loss: Diet or Exercise?
2. New Study Reveals “Secret” to Weight Loss
3. What Prevents Women from Losing Weight

Snoring can not only disrupt your sleep and keep you from getting enough rest, it can lead to more serious health problems including sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and heart problems.  So if you snore, how do you reduce its frequency or stop it altogether?   Here’s what’s worked for me.

First of all, a warning.  Snoring can be an indicator of a serious medical condition so if your snoring problem is severe (waking you, or your partner, more than twice a night or so), you should check with your doctor.   The Mayo Clinic website has some good information on what to expect when you see your doctor as well as the various treatments available.

What Causes Snoring.

What causes snoring in the majority of cases is that the soft tissue of the upper palette (at the back of the mouth) relax during sleep and sag to the point that they begin to vibrate loudly as you breathe.  Like the guy in the picture above, most people who snore tend to sleep on their back for most of the night.   Many also tend to use a soft pillow that allows their head to tilt slightly back.  This allows the mouth to naturally open during sleep.   As a result, they then begin to breathe through their mouth resulting in snoring.  Although I didn’t pick this picture specifically for this reason, it does a really good job of showing you what the main problem is.

(Please note that I purposely excluded snoring caused by any type of obstruction or sinus condition.  These are more serious conditions and require professional treatment.   The suggestions that follow will not be effective for these types of conditions.)

The Fastest Way to Stop Snoring.

OK, so far you know that what causes snoring is the soft tissue at the back of the mouth and throat that tends to sag when we sleep.  Sleeping on our back tends to promote mouth breathing which causes the soft tissue to vibrate loudly resulting in snoring.   So what’s the fastest way to stop snoring?  Easy.   Don’t sleep on your back!

Once I got comfortable spending most of the night sleeping on my side, my snoring essentially stopped completely.  Why?   For two reasons.  First, the soft tissue at the back of my mouth doesn’t block my airway since I’m not laying on my back, and second, my mouth doesn’t fall open so I don’t breathe through my mouth most of the night.

So how do you learn to get comfortable sleeping on your side?  Here are a few tips:

1.   Check your mattress. Make sure your mattress is pliable enough to make sleeping on your side comfortable.   I know a lot of people prefer a firm mattress because a soft one makes their back hurt.  However, their back usually hurts because, you guessed it, they mostly sleep on their back.  I didn’t say you needed a soft mattress, just one that’s pliable or soft enough so that you can sleep on your side without feeling sore or stiff in the morning.   The “memory foam” mattresses are good as are the “sleep number” beds, which is what I use.

2.  Get the right sized pillow. Many people are sleeping on a pillow that’s too high for them.   Why?   Again, because they usually sleep on their back and they want to have their heads tilted slightly forward so that they don’t wake up with a sore neck.   If you try to sleep on your side using a pillow that’s too high, you’ll definitely be uncomfortable and will naturally want to roll back onto your back during the night.  I use one of those contoured “memory foam” pillows that are designed to support your neck as well as keep your head level when you’re laying on your side.

3.  Use “props.” Push pillows or a rolled up quilt or blanket up against your back in order to “prop” yourself on your side.  This will make it more difficult for you to roll over on to your back during the night.  You can also find “knee pillows” or “body pillows” that might help you be more comfortable sleeping on your side.

4.  Use a tennis ball. I don’t remember where I read about this but it works great.  Take a tennis ball and put it into a sock.  Then pin the sock to the back of your pajama top (or tee shirt) so that the ball is positioned around the small of your back.   Then go to sleep lying on your side.  Believe me, if you try to roll over on to your back during the night, the tennis ball will make it so uncomfortable that you’ll immediately switch back to your side.  This is more of a “last resort” technique but it works great!

What Worked for Me.

I accidentally “trained” myself to sleep on my side while I was using the PureSleep anti-snore device (see the Reviews section or use the Search box).  Using the device kept my mouth partially open and made me drool all night long (see “The Pros and Cons of PureSleep”).   I wasn’t snoring anymore but I was still waking up several times during the night with drool running down my cheek.  The only way I could keep my mouth clear was to sleep on my side which allowed the drool to flow freely.  Now all I had to worry about was waking up on a wet pillow!

I know it sounds gross (and it was) but the point is that I eventually trained my body to sleep on it’s side.  After a while, I found I didn’t need the PureSleep device at all anymore.  Now I have the best of both worlds – I don’t snore anymore because I sleep on my side, and since I don’t need the PureSleep device anymore, I don’t have the drooling problem either.

Other Helpful Techniques.

Here are a couple of other things that will help support your anti-snoring efforts:

1.  Lose some weight. It’s a fact that the more overweight we are, the more likely we are to sleep on our backs.  The more weight you’re carrying around, the harder it’s going to be to learn to sleep on your side.   Being overweight is related to so many health issues, including snoring, that losing a few pounds should be a priority anyway.

2.  Don’t drink alcohol close to bedtime. Drinking alcohol makes your muscles relax even more than they would normally.   This makes your snoring problem even worse — which might drive your partner to drink!

3.  Try nasal strips. I didn’t have good luck with these but they may work for you.   They do in fact work.  The nasal strip gently pulls up on the sides of your nose and opens the nasal passages a little wider allowing more air in.   My problem was that my skin became irritated by the adhesive on the strips. It got to where pulling off the nasal strip in the morning also meant pulling off a good portion of skin so I quit using them.  However, they’re relatively inexpensive and definitely worth a try.

4.   Try an “anti-snore” pillow. Whether your pillow is advertised as  ”anti-snore” or not, get a good pillow that keeps your head positioned correctly when you’re on your side.   If your head and neck isn’t positioned correctly, you’ll never sleep comfortably on your side.  You can find a wide variety of pillows including those that are contoured, which is what I use.   I don’t recommend one over another, just that you find one that keeps your neck and head aligned properly and that’s comfortable for you.

5.  Exercise regularly. Regular exercise will help keep your air passages clear, tone your muscles, and help you shed a couple of extra pounds.   You’ll also tend to sleep deeper and better.

Snoring is not something that you, or your partner, have to put up with.  There are things that you can try that can make a big difference.  The thing I found that made the biggest difference for me was learning how to spend the majority of the night sleeping on my side.  Give it try and see if it works for you too.

Certified Fitness Nutrition Coach andPersonal Fitness Trainer (NESTA)

P.S.  Be sure to get my latest Fitness Blueprint called “Little Things That Improve Your Health.”  This ebook is packed with loads of helpful information on how to build a better body and you can get it FREE – no email, no cookies, no catch.  Download and enjoy!

Technorati Tags: sleep, snore, snoring, anti-snore, PureSleep, pillow, sleeping, apnea, rest, health

Related posts:

1. Review of PureSleep Antisnore Device
2. The Pros and Cons of PureSleep
3. Does PureSleep Really Work?