EngineeredTheology

If fat loss is more complex than a simple two variable equation, the interesting topic is what the key variables are. There currently is quite a lot of research going on regarding the effects of leptin and insulin on body metabolism and fat levels. While there may be some science to back up what I think, I have to admit that most of what I think I know is due to plain old trial and error. Due to this, some of the chemical responses in the body are much easier to describe in meta-form.

The point in the exercise is to understand what your body is trying to control, and provide the right inputs into the system to have it behave in the fashion you wish. It would be nice if we had control over our body composition as we do over our respiration (we can control it if we think about it, but otherwise it performs automatically), but unfortunately it is not so simple.

Supposing that protection against starvation is a fundamental principle, caloric intake must be sufficient if trying to loose weight. Any sort of calorie counters will be off base due to the dramatic differences between people. Fortunately there is a much easier method since you have a built in caloric counter. The bottom line is to eat when you are hungry and not to worry about how much. Specifically what to eat is another whole topic.

Once the body feels safe from starvation, it must be given a reason to change. It has no concept of what you want it to do, only on what it thinks you are going to expect from it. If all it expects you to do tomorrow is work at a computer for 9 hours, then watch TV for another 3 it will prepare you to do that. It is another thing to expect that you will need to run or lift something as if your life depended on it. If all you have ever done is led a sedentary lifestyle, it will take a lot to finally have your body believe that you are going to need it to perform again tomorrow. The most difficult part of working out is that in order to get your body to change from its current state, you must continue to push it. What worked this week or month, will not be sufficient next month. If you have been doing the same workout for the last 6 months and expecting things to continue to change, you are working from the (calories in) – (calories burned) = (fat loss) regimen. Forget about target heart rates and cardio zones. The point is to continually push your body (within its limits) to force it to change, and to feed yourself what you need to allow it to do so.