After months and months of pounding the pavement, pumping iron, and saying no to happy hour, youve finally lost that stubborn gut. Congrats! Were sure you feel more confident about your appearanceand just feel better period.

Dropping weight doesnt come easy (beer and wings on a Sunday afternoon just feels so right!) but it does have some serious benefits, many which you wont see coming.Better sex and brighter skin are just the beginning

Get rid of your fat pants for good, because once you get a hold of these bonus perks of weight loss, theres no going back.

Snoozing probably helped you lose more weight in the first place, but as a result of your weight loss youll actually get better quality sleep now. Research shows that losing 5% of your bodyweight can help you sleep better and longer throughout the night. Whats more, ridding your body of excess fat can also help alleviate sleep apnea and snoring.

When you think of hormones, your teenage years may spring to mind, but they play a role in more than just your burgeoning sex drive during puberty. Your thyroid gland makes and releases two very important hormones which regulate your metabolism and can also affect muscle strength among other things. When you rid your body of excess fat your hormones steady and as a result its easier for you to maintain or even further your weight loss, saysIsabel Smith, M.S., R.D., C.D.N., registered dietitian and founder of Isabel Smith Nutrition.

Too tired? Not anymore. Suddenly you dont have to think twice about getting in the mood, and you may find yourself consciously holding yourself back from going for round threehey, youve got to get some sleep. According to experts, weight loss has been linked to boosted testosterone levels and an increased libido, and dropping just 10lbs is enough to stimulate sex hormones. Whats more, fitting in your workout every morning also increases blood flow to the pelvic area, further boosting your drive.

Between the energy boost you get from losing weight and the uptick in stamina from hours spent at the gym, if you really wanted to go all night you could. Increased physical fitness has been associated with greater satisfaction in the bedroom, according to Smith. So not only do you want to get busy more often, but the actual act itself is more enjoyable for both you and your partner.

Committing to the gym may have pushed your body to the place it is now, but it also enhanced your mental fitness. Working out releases feel-good chemicals called endorphins. Endorphins are responsible for that high you feel post-workout. They interact with the receptors in your brain, reducing your perception of pain, and deliver a positive feeling in the body similar to that of morphine.

Your joints already take a beating from everyday wear and tearextra weight hanging around on your midsection only makes matters worse. Simply put, the less you weigh the less your skeletal frame and joints have to support, which translates into less joint pain.

You may have started your healthy routine with the sole intention of slimming down, but an added bonus of your weight-loss journey surfaces in the form of glowing skin. You can attribute your new complexion to the uptick in nutrients from all those fruits and veggies youre likely eating and also to all that sweat literally pushing the junk out of your pores, encouraging greater detoxification, per Smith. Just make sure to wash your face regularly after your cardio session to avoid unwanted acne and clogged pores.

If you checked off losing weight from your to-do list, youve already got one less thing to stress about. Really though, the things you do to lose weighteating a balanced diet, exercising consistently, and getting lots of sleepare also some of the greatest ways to alleviate stress and anxiety.

Who needs to spend $20 on delivery minimums and $10 a glass on drinks out at the bar? Not you. By cooking more and drinking less, not only are you inching closer and closer to your weight-loss goals, but youre saving money to boot. Its simple math, really. The less you eat, the less you spend on food.

With your pants size shrinking, you can also expect your social circle to grow in number. Youve already become more active by pursuing greater fitness, and in doing so you put yourself in more social situationshey, CrossFit. As a result of participating in more than just a Netflix marathon on your couch, you meet more people and your social calendar grows. Furthermore, the confidence you gain from losing weight also makes you want to be more social and gives you the push to do so.

Ever feel inspired (or guilty) by your partners incessant need to wake up at 5 a.m. to hit the gym and their refusal to grab chips or pasta when they run to the store? Well if you havent, then your partner may be the one feeling that push from you simply by bearing witness to your own transformation. If youve been successful at losing weight and continue to live a healthier lifestyle, chances are your significant other will follow suit, says Smith. If not, perhaps your parents, siblings, or close friends will feel motivated to whip their own butt into gear.

Forget the vitamin C packets, nothing strengthens your immune system better than leading a healthy lifestyle. Getting your eight hours every night, fueling your body with fresh produce andlean protein, and working up a sweat will pump your immunity up far better than sipping on an orange, fizzy drink could.

For once you might actually remember your sisters birthday! Weight-loss benefits go far beyond the physical. Losing weight and being more active boosts brainpower quite a bit. Research has shown that your memory gets sharper when total bodyweight has been reduced. So not only will you be happier all the timeremember, endorphins!youll also remember that thing you really needed to do today, tomorrow, and the next.

The ultimate perk of peeling off the pounds is that behind closed doors youre going to look pretty damn good. However, since we all cantor shouldntwalk around in our birthday suits all the time, its a good thing your wardrobe will reap the benefits of your weight loss, too. Losing weight often gives people the confidence to not only experiment more with style, but want to show off their weight loss with outfits that display the physique they worked so hard to get.

Did you really just say no to those Doritos? It might feel weird at first, but as a result of improving your dietary choices and flexing your willpower consistently, youll find that you dont even crave the junk any more (at least not as often).

Unless youre on a meal delivery plan, youre going to have to cook for yourself if you want to slim down. Ordering in and eating out just wont get you there, and you know that. Getting into the habit of buying groceries every week, planning and preparing healthy meals, and experimenting with different flavor and food combinations youre bound to up your kitchen skills. (Though it might take a while to reach Top Chef status.)

In the kitchen, in the bedroom, and in everyday life. One of the beautiful side effects of weight loss is that youll undoubtedly experience a boost in self-confidence. The funny thing about confidence is that it pushes you to do more and try more.

When you put a microscope to your diet, you really become more in tune to what youre eating over time. This mindfulness works not only to help you to lose the weight, but even after youve lost it you continue to pay more attention to the flavors and textures of your meals. Think to those times you spend mindlessly eating on the couchdoes the food actually taste that good? Do you even remember? When you take the time to plan and prepare fresh, home-cooked meals youre more aware and appreciative of the food on your plateyou literally savor the flavor.

If you kick those stubborn 10lbs, youre not the only one who will be rejoicing. Carrying around excess bodyweight can put you at greater risk for a number of health issues from diabetes to high blood pressure. As you would imagine, slimming down has the adverse effect, making your annual check-ups with your doc a lot less painful.

One can probably assume that the healthier you are, the less medicine you need. It actually works that way (in some cases). Not only does exercise and clean eating strengthen your immune system and support overall body functioning, but actually losing weight decreases your risk for health problems and may also get you to a place where you wont need to rely on certain prescription meds anymore. Of course, give your doc a call before you start self-prescribing (or un-presecribing).

Losing weight and getting fit takes planning. When you form a routine around preparing healthy meals and fitting in daily workouts, it tends to flow over into other areas of your life.

Dont laugh: a side effect of losing weightand doing what it takes to get thereis respecting your body more. It isnt easy for anyone to lose weight. It takes discipline and persistence. Once youve gone through it yourself, you come out the other end with a whole new outlook and respect for others trying to do the same. You also have a new appreciation for what your body endures day in and day out.

Even the fittest get winded walking up and down stairs to the subway. If you live in a big city, you know the struggle all too well. If youre lucky enough to avoid crowded subway trains, standing for an hour on the train or sitting in traffic forever isnt fun either, but youre body will feel better having to endure it when youve shed a few extra pounds. After youve kicked the weight, youll suddenly realize your trek to and from work is a tad more bearable.

For some, carrying excess weight can exacerbate allergy symptoms. Added weight can strain your respiratory system, so any trouble you experience breathing due to allergies will only aggravate your symptoms further. Lose the weight and you might actually be able to breath a bit more clearly when allergy season hits, says Smith.

Really. If you had to choose between a couch potato who chows down on chips and soda or an active, mindful eater, who would you guess might outlive the other? From the healthier lifestyle habits associated with weight loss to the actual physical benefits of carrying less weight, you put yourself in a position to live a healthier, longer life.

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25 Surprising Benefits of Weight Loss | Men's Journal

When youre ready to slim down, you want to make it happen now. But most health experts say rapid weight loss isnt the way to go. It can sabotage your long-term weight loss goals and may hurt your health, too.

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Why is it bad to lose weight quickly? Endocrinologist and obesity specialist Marcio Griebeler, MD, explains why slow and steady wins the weight-loss race and how to do it.

Theres no magic number that qualifies as rapid weight loss. Your weight, age and activity level determine what that term means for you.

Dont worry too much about the number of pounds you should (or shouldnt) lose. Instead, look at the diet plan youre following to lose weight. Extreme diets with lofty promises usually fall under the rapid weight loss category.

Avoid super restrictive diet plans because theyre difficult if not impossible to keep up over the long term, says Dr. Griebeler. If the diet plan isnt something you can stick to for months or years, its probably a fast weight loss plan. And those plans and gimmicks arent a healthy, sustainable way to lose weight.

A more moderate goal of losing 1 to 2 pounds per week tends to be more successful over the long haul.

Its hard to resist the lure of rapid weight loss. Be 10 pounds lighter by next week? Yes, please. But dont give in to the flashy ads. Most of the time, those diet plans are bad news for your health.

Your metabolism is your bodys calorie-burning process. And a metabolism thats out of whack can damage your bodys ability to keep the weight off.

When you lose weight too quickly, your body slows down its calorie-burning process, explains Dr. Griebeler. That is your bodys way of trying to ensure you dont starve. You might lose a good amount of weight right away, but your metabolism quickly goes into survival mode.

The change in your metabolism is a key reason why people regain weight after trying rapid weight loss plans. When you go back to eating a regular diet, your metabolism isnt used to that many calories and the pounds come back.

When you cut way back on calories, you might see that number on the scale drop like a rock. But its not just fat youre losing. Youre also losing muscle.

Sudden and severe calorie restriction will make you lose muscle mass as well as fat, says Dr. Griebeler. Its harder to lose weight when you dont have enough muscle mass because muscles burn lots of calories.

Slower weight loss combined with exercise, on the other hand, gives your body time to lose fat while keeping your muscle mass. And bonus: You keep your muscles calorie-burning power intact.

Your body needs a certain amount of fat, protein and carbs to function. It also needs a whole range of vitamins and minerals. When you slash calories or cut out entire food groups like carbs or dairy, you risk:

Theres nothing wrong with cutting calories if youre eating a variety of nutrient-rich foods, says Dr. Griebeler. Your diet should contain a wide variety of healthy, whole foods. Dont try to cut more than 500 calories a day.

When you go for fast weight loss, you may find that it gets harder not easier to keep losing weight. A couple of weeks in, youll likely feel famished all the time. The temptation to crawl into bed with a box of cookies is real.

Dont blame a lack of willpower. Its your hormones, and theyre doing exactly what they were designed to do.

Cutting too many calories too quickly triggers hormonal changes that make you want to eat, says Dr. Griebeler. Even a very determined person will find it difficult to overpower those hunger hormones. These fast hormonal changes make you so hungry that they set you up for diet failure.

Theres no single diet that works for everyone. But these general guidelines can help you lose weight and keep it off in a healthy way.

Healthy weight loss isnt just about what you eat. You need physical activity if you want maximum results.

Cardiovascular exercise like walking burns calories, but strength training is just as important. When you lift weights or do resistance training, you increase muscle mass. And when you have more muscle mass, you:

Ever notice that when youre exhausted you want to eat more? When youre tired, your hunger hormones barge in and ruin your chances of bypassing that donut. If youre regularly missing out on sleep, even the best weight loss plan is going to feel impossible.

Aim for at least seven hours of quality sleep each night, says Dr. Griebeler. If you consistently have trouble sleeping, talk to your doctor. Many people who have sleep disorders dont know it and sleep disorders are treatable.

Think about your diet plan and whether you could do it for the rest of your life. Cutting a couple of hundred calories a day? Doable. Never having a bowl of ice cream again? Probably not.

The best diet is one you will stick to, says Dr. Griebeler. Changing our habits is hard, but it can be done. Choose a diet plan that allows you to have an occasional piece of chocolate or slice of pizza. Its much easier to keep doing these types of plans for months and even years.

Fast results are fun for a while, instant gratification isnt best when it comes to weight loss. Go slow with dropping pounds so you can be healthier today and stay that way for years to come.

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Is It Bad to Lose Weight Too Quickly? - Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic

Dr Michael Mosley, inventor of The Fast 800 weight loss plan, regularly advises slimmers to follow intermittent fasting. Although there are various different forms of the plan, it usually involves eating within a specific time period. The expert has shared why those following the plan should consume breakfast.

He said: If youre planning to try intermittent fasting, I would normally recommend that you do it gradually. So start by consuming your food in 12 hours, and fasting the rest of the time, then move on to an eight hour period of eating.

One thing I would say is there is mounting evidence that it is better if you finish your evening meal earlier, rather than having a late meal, skipping breakfast, and then going to lunchtime.

So however you do time restricted eating, I would recommend you try and stop eating by 8pm and then not eat anything again with calories before breakfast the next day.

If you are fasting for 12 hours, you can have breakfast at 8am.

READ MORE:Michael Mosley shares breakfast foods to help feel fuller for longer

For those following the plan who might work later or prefer to consume food in the evening, the expert recommends to stop eating at 8pm.

Dr Mosley explained: For many, a midday breakfast helps to extend the period of non-eating and so draws down the full benefits of fasting.

I encourage people to try and have their evening meal earlier, say 7pm, 7:30pm.

Try and stop eating by 8pm, and then not eat anything with calories after that. The temptation is to snack after dinner, which adds quite a lot of calories late at night.

We know the fat and sugar you eat later at night just hangs around in your system for much, much longer because your body is just closed down for the night.

Your digestive process will be closing down, and it will really not appreciate that late night snack.

Whether you eat breakfast at 8am or 10am, there are certain foods that can help you keep fuller for longer as well as provide the body with many benefits.

The expert recommends eating adequate protein in the morning.

This can not only suppress appetite, but also help to control pre-lunch food cravings.

Protein-rich breakfasts include Greek yoghurt, eggs, protein pancakes as well as lean meat.

Dr Mosley said: Eating protein at the first meal of the day helps you feel fuller for longer because after a protein meal, levels of a chemical called tyrosine rise inside the brain.

By increasing its own dopamine supply as the next meal approaches, the brain experiences a much weaker dopamine hit from high calorie food.

Although dependent on a variety of different factors, the expert recommends eating around 50-60g of protein each day.

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Weight loss: Michael Mosley shares best time to eat breakfast in the morning - Daily Express

Doctor Michael Mosley often shares his weight loss tips with slimmers online as well as on television. He is the creator of The Fast 800 a diet plan that helps people lose weight quickly.

According to doctor Mosley, following The Fast 800 diet is a great place to start if youre looking to lose weight.

He said: It provides you with all of the tools you will need to start changing your lifestyle for the better.

Once youve entered your goals, you will receive meal plans, recipes, shopping lists, exercises and mindful exercises to help you achieve your objective.

In terms of the types of foods you should be looking to add into your diet, doctor Mosley recommended a good balance of protein, fibre, and healthy fats.

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This is essentially the Mediterranean diet.

This diet consists of plenty of vegetables, cheese, full-fat yoghurt, fatty fish, lentils, nuts, wholegrains, and more.

Doctor Mosley continued: The good news is, whether you incorporate intermittent fasting or not, a low carb Mediterranean diet has unique power not just to restore your bodys ability to reach its ideal weight and stay there, but also to cut your risk of serious disease.

Losing weight is not about how much you eat but what you eat, Doctor Mosley stressed.

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He said: It doesnt come from a place of restriction but rather its about eating more of the right foods.

Not only will these foods keep you feeling full, but they also offer important nutrients and health benefits, and taste delicious.

However, the doctor highlighted that intermittent fasting isnt for everyone, saying: How you start intermittent fasting very much depends on you and your sort of personality type.

I normally recommend that people start gradually, he added.

So, start by consuming your food in a 12 hour window, and fasting the rest of the time.

Once youve got used to that, move on to a 10-hour period of eating.

Doctor Mosley advised having the last meal of the day at 8pm and not eating anything after that.

He said: One thing I would say is there is mounting evidence that it is better if you finish your evening meal earlier, rather than having a late meal, skipping breakfast, and then fasting until lunchtime.

So, however you do time restricted eating, I would recommend you try and stop eating by 8pm and then not eat anything again with calories before breakfast the next day.

If you are fasting for 12 hours, you can have breakfast at 8am.

Then you might try moving it a little bit later, to 10am or breakfast.

In that case, you might want to have something like a meal replacement shake for breakfast, which might be more convenient if you're at work.

The doctor added: If youre really pushing it towards eating all your food in eight hours, which is trickier, then you'd probably aim for something like skipping breakfast altogether and having lunch around 12pm or 1pm.

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Michael Mosley: Eat more of the right foods to reach ideal weight & stay there - plan - Daily Express

Navratri, the festival of lights, dance, energy and fasting (upwas) is just around the corner. Devotees in this season fast for 9 days and consume limited food called UPWAS foods. The people who are fasting always feel that they will lose weight, but the fact is different. When you go on any kind of fasting for a long time the body goes into starvation mode and converts the food into fats, which for many people turns into weight gain as opposed to the expected weight loss.Also Read - Ayurveda Remedies For Eyes: Best Ayurvedic Home Remedies To Make Your Vision Stronger, Watch Video

We all think that consuming sugar-free or fat-free products will help us in weight loss, but every such product has its pros and cons, Shivani Bavalekar, Sr. Executive Nutritionist, Cloudnine Group of Hospitals, Navi Mumbai (Vashi) explains. Also Read - Diet And Fasting Tips For Diabetic Patients And Expecting Mothers During Navratri

When we say sugar-free, its means excluding sugar from the diet which technically is not possible hence, what people do they substitute sugar with artificial sugar or saccharine, but it would be to keep in mind that overeating sugar-free products is almost equivalent to eating sugar-filled products and not entirely healthier. Many sugar-free products contain artificial sugar along with hidden sugar, which gives you the same calories as present in normal sugar. Also sometimes the products have other additives added to enhance flavours. Also Read - 5 Reasons Why Crash Diet Should be Completely Avoided For Weight Loss

The main way to lose weight and stay healthy is to eat a well-balanced diet that consists of lean protein, fibre-rich carbohydrates, healthy fats and regular exercise. Hence its recommended to replace your white sugar with jaggery, date syrup etc. (but to consume in moderation i.e. just 4 to 5t tsp per day, only if weight is normal, and you dont have any comorbid condition) as this will give you more health benefits as compared to white sugar.

Cutting down sugar is nothing but cutting down empty calories. Hence doing this will help you in weight loss but you also have to observe on portion sizes of overall meals and foods that you are consuming.

At one point we crave sugars and then there might be chances you end up eating a lot of chocolates or sugary things and also at times it will be difficult for you to identify the difference between added sugar and artificial sugar, as many products have hidden sugar with different names.

Fat-free Products or Diet foods: There are many fat-free products available in the market, but these types of products are loaded with starches, extra sodium and added sugar, which will not help you to lose weight. When it comes to health, it is more important to focus on the type of fat and the quantity of fat you are consuming.

Example: In case you are consuming baked potato chips whole big packet, yes it sounds healthy as it is baked and not deep-fried, but still this might increase your weight as these products are added with sugar, starches and more salt to replace the missing flavors of fats.

If you make an effort to reduce fat intake, you might lose weight, but this shall include restricting carbohydrates too. However, the solution to keeping this weight off is to limit the consumption of visible fat in your diet. Try adding healthy fats as walnut, flaxseed, and safflower seeds instead.

Fat-free diets mostly eliminate fats drastically and this interferes with the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E, K in the body and might affect our bone health, eyes and skin health.

Hence fats are equally important as all other nutrients. And the recommended amount is about 4 to 5 tsp per day only if your BMI (body mass index) and other factors are normal. Hence whether its sugar-free or fat-free products, what matters more is portion size, the nutritive value of the particular foods and the healthy type selected.

Pregnancy and fasting: It is not recommended to fast during pregnancy for you and your babys health. As it is important to maintain a healthy weight gain in pregnancy for the baby and mother. Fasting will lead to a gap in the daily supply of nutrients that the baby needs for overall development and growth.

Women with pregnancy complications such as gestational diabetes, while fasting the sugar might fluctuate a lot; either there will be a low blood sugar level due to inadequate intake and long empty gaps or once you consume a heavy meal in the night after whole day of fasting, then the blood sugar level will spike up suddenly and might give trouble to the mother and the baby and it is not considered safe.

Mothers milk is very important for the new born baby as it has essential nutrients in it which helps to protect the baby from infection and helps in growth and immunity. So, women who are breastfeeding are not expected to fast, as the baby is completely dependent on mothers milk and if they choose to go ahead with fasting they must know that there will be lack of nutrient supply to baby, which might lead to an issue for baby in gaining weight and hampering proper growth.

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Do You Really Lose Weight by Eating Fat-Free And Sugar-Free Foods During Navratri? - India.com

Doctor Michael Mosley often shares his weight loss tips with slimmers online as well as on television. He is the creator of The Fast 800 a diet plan that helps people lose weight quickly.

He went on to explain: Banting, who was five foot five and 14st, wrote a booklet entitled Letter On Corpulence, which detailed his attempts to tackle his obesity by eating a low-carb diet, though he didnt call it that.

He gave up sugar, potatoes, beer and bread and instead stuck largely to meat, greens, fruits and dry wine.

He lost 3st in a year, and his book became a bestseller.

This is how the low-carb diet was born, leading to the Atkins Diet, as well as the Keto Diet.

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Like William Banting, food to avoid when following Keto are root vegetables including potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, and parsnips, as well as grains or starches.

These include wheat-based products like rice, pasta, and cereal.

Beer, wine, and liquor are also best avoided, according to Healthline.

Although doctor Mosley warned low-carb diets are not greeted with much enthusiasm by doctors or dieticians as you have to eat a lot of fat, he added that clinical trials consistently show that low-carb diets are effective for weight loss.

To start incorporating low-carb foods into your daily meals, doctor Mosley said: So, limit your intake of any food or drink containing more than five percent sugar to no more than twice a week.

This includes sweet fruits like mango and pineapple, and sugary smoothies and juices.

Likewise, replace processed carbs like white bread, chips and pasta with slow-release energy sources, such as brown rice or quinoa.

The doctor recommended looking for a healthy food plan on his The Fast 800 website, saying: You will find hundreds of nutritious and tasty recipes, that Clare, my wife has helped develop.

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Michael Mosley: Low-carb diet is effective for weight loss - what to eat and avoid - Express

Peter Markwick, 58, from East Sussex changed his life when he embarked on Dr Michael Mosleys Fast 800 programme. Feeling exhausted, tired and lethargic, Peter was frequently poorly with colds and chest infections. After struggling at work, he was prescribed blood pressure tablets and cholesterol medication in January this year. Having tried to lose weight before, Peter would get bored with the diet and after a serious conversation with a health professional about the state of his liver, Peter decided to turn his life around. In just 12 weeks, Peter lost 3.7 stone taking his weight from 17.7 stone to 14 stone and hasnt looked back since.

Peter toldExpress.co.ukabout his weight loss journey: I had been drinking far too much beer for 40 years, and consequently the GP prescribed cholesterol and blood pressure medication. I was also taking medication for psoriasis and arthritis.

What really hit home was a phone call with a hospital nurse, who was very concerned about my high liver count levels after a blood test. She said if I carried on drinking to that level, I would end up in hospital with serious liver issues.

Realising he needed to take his health seriously, Peter chose The Fast 800 online programme.

When I lost a stone, I started to get lovely comments from friends and customers, he explained. Interestingly, many of them said Youre looking well rather than commenting on my weight loss.

The most fantastic improvement apart from the weight loss is that my doctor has been able to take me off all medications, he added.

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My psoriasis has significantly improved and my arthritis causes me minimal pain now.

Peter initially followed The Very Fast 800, a short-term, intensive approach designed for those who need to lose a lot of weight quickly.

Followers eat 800 calories per day for up to 12 weeks, using the healthy, Mediterranean-style recipes rich in protein, fibre and healthy fats provided within the online programmes meal plans.

The Fast 800 has really opened my eyes as to how delicious Mediterranean-style food is, Peter said. Although I ate 800 calories for the first 12 weeks, my energy levels were high.

Now, having completed The Very Fast 800 approach, I can see just how much better I am feeling mentally and physically.

He has now moved onto on of The Fast 800s longer-term sustainable approaches, The Way of Life, eating a moderately low-carb, Mediterranean-style diet.

Peter occasionally incorporates an 800-calorie day along with time-restricted eating where he fasts daily for up to 16 hours, usually overnight.

This approach is intended for those looking to maintain their weight while further improving their fitness and metabolic health.

For people with only a small amount of weight to lose or those who want to lose weight more gradually, The Fast 800 online programme also offers The New 5:2 approach, which factors in two 800-calorie fasting days per week and five non-fasting days.

Peter continued: The great thing about The Very Fast 800 approach, along with the constant support and information available on the online programme, is that when youve completed 12 weeks of it, you feel confident and educated enough to move to the longer-term approaches.

When you move on to The New 5:2 or Way of Life, youre just eating even more of the lovely foods youve enjoyed for the past 12 weeks, with the know-how to make good choices in the real world.

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Looking back at how far he has come, Peter said: I am amazed at the amount of energy I now have. My brain has become much sharper, and I have an excitement about life.

I realised after about seven weeks into The Fast 800 that I could get used to this lifestyle.

The diet works because all youre doing is eating great food. And once youve reached your goal you just increase the volume of the lovely food youve been eating for 12 weeks.

As for his social life: I dont struggle to go out with my friends for a drink. I still have the occasional beer, but Im in total control now, unlike before.

My weight loss has inspired my wife to change her lifestyle too. She was very supportive of me, and has recently started her journey now.

Peters final piece of advice is: Start by committing to weeks of your life, because it can completely change your life.

The Fast 800 online programme offers a sustainable plan for the growing number of people. who struggle with weight loss and want to continue eating satisfying, real-food meals.

The platform guides them to eat a Mediterranean-style diet, scientifically proven to be one of the best ways of eating for long-term health, so the results they achieve are sustained long-term, and their health is improved to support an active lifestyle well into the future.

But this is only one part of the programme.

The online programme hosts a member-only community of peers sharing their own journeys,

with professionally-qualified Health Coaches offering guidance and support.

Along with meal plans and recipes, users are provided with weekly exercise plans and mindfulness resources for a holistic solution.

A 12-week programme on http://www.thefast800.com costs 99 and includes:

- Meal plans for The Very Fast 800, The New 5:2 and Med-style diets, with vegetarian options

- Three calorie-counted meals per day based on healthy, gut-friendlyMediterranean-style food

- Over 400 tasty and easy-to-make recipes unique to the online programme

- Shopping lists just print and go, or use the list to help with your online grocery shop

- Guided exercise plans all suited to the home, no equipment necessary

- Lots of tips and support on how to adapt your routine

- Health Coaches on hand for advice, support and motivation

- A lively and inspirational cohort of members, united by a common goal to improve health

- Weekly motivational articles and videos, so you can make these changes for life!

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Weight loss: Man drops 4 stone in 12 weeks by cutting down on one thing 'Changed my life!' - Express

Healthy diet and exercise not working? There might be a simple solution (Picture: Getty)

Weight loss is meant to be a simple process: eat less and move more.

However, if youre regularly hitting the gym and eating healthily, but not seeing the desired results, youre probably wondering where youre going wrong.

So, weve called on womens health platform The Well to give us some tips.

Founded by three experts former Team GB rower Baz Moffat is The Coach, Dr Bella Smith is The GP and Dr Emma Ross is The Sports Scientist it aims to break the taboos in womens health and fitness and support women on their fitness journeys.

Heres what they had to say

Not all calories are equal when it comes to weight loss and the macro and micronutrient balance of food is as important as the energy balance, says Dr Emma.

Chicken nuggets and a Coke have about the same calories as some mixed nuts and dried fruit with a smoothie so, energy is the same, but the nut and fruit snack has an abundance of micronutrients, which help our overall health, whereas the calories from fast food are empty.

Calories should not be the only focus in a healthy eating regime. Also, if you remove the ritual of eating (sitting down at a table and having a meal), its really hard to know how much youve eaten and food brands make tracking a lot harder as they supersize everything.

We snack and eat on the go more and this doesnt give our brains the time to register what weve eaten, which can be why we overeat. Try using a tracking app like MyFitnessPal.

Women shouldnt train hungry and this includes after an overnight fast, says Dr Emma. Our hormones work in a way that relies on having a constant supply of blood sugar (carbohydrate).

If we exercise in a depleted state, it triggers our stress response and this leads us to store fat around our middle, as opposed to losing it. If youre trying to lose weight dont cut your intake of carbs around your workouts.

And dont be fooled by healthy/sports foods a protein bar can have the same amount of protein and sugar as a wholegrain slice of bread with jam and be ten times the price. Milk or chocolate milk is the perfect post-workout drink and doesnt cost the earth, like branded recovery shakes.

If you are working out hard your body will need more time to recover from that workout, says Dr Bella.

Research shows that if we dont get a good nights sleep we produce more ghrelin, the hunger hormone, and less leptin, the hormone that tells us we are full. This is a bad combo for our appetite and eating habits as well tend to feel hungrier and are more likely to eat more before we feel full.

Lack of sleep has also been shown to activate parts of the brain that are important in feeling good when weve eaten food. When were tired, we might increase our snacking, as our body craves high-energy foods, which stimulate these reward centres in our brain. If youve had a bad nights sleep, make sure you eat every two or three hours to keep blood sugar stable and combat the rise of your hunger hormone. High-protein snacks keep you feeling full.

We can often misinterpret thirst as hunger, particularly when tired, so stay hydrated, too.

Many women love the burn of an HIIT session, but too much is not recommended, says Baz. High-intensity sessions activate the stress hormone cortisol and excess cortisol gets stored as fat around your abdomen.

Every other day for a hard session is fine but you must fuel your workout. You cant not eat, which tends to happen when restricting calories. Your body needs time to repair and recover or the workout wont be effective. If you must train every day then have at least two active recovery days where you do something completely different to restore your mind, body and soul.

Monitoring your workout and aligning where you are in your menstrual cycle will give you information about how your hormones are affecting your mood, motivation, energy levels and appetite, says Baz. Were not machines there will be plenty of peaks and troughs so dont worry if youre not improving day to day.

You should, however, see some changes by weeks six to eight. If youve been going to the same class for months with no change, then its time to mix things up. It doesnt have to be anything too drastic, it just needs to be different. That creates resilience, reduces injury risk and gets results over time.

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Five common mistakes that might be stopping you from losing weight - Metro.co.uk

In a small, preliminary study, researchers have found that people with type 2 diabetes who also have a BMI that falls within a moderate range can reverse their diabetes by losing weight.

The researchers reported their findings at the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes, accounting for around 91.2% of diabetes cases in the United States.

The condition occurs when a persons body does not produce enough insulin or if the insulin no longer works effectively. Insulin normally helps glucose enter the cells of the body. In the absence of insulin, glucose stays in the blood, where it can damage organs and tissues.

This means that a person with type 2 diabetes has an increased risk of several health issues, including stroke, heart disease, issues with their feet, kidney disease, dental issues, and bladder problems.

According to researchers writing in the journal Nutrients, scientists for a long time believed that type 2 diabetes was incurable, so they primarily focused on how people should manage symptoms of the condition.

However, evidence now suggests that if individuals who are overweight or have obesity achieve and maintain weight loss, they can reverse type 2 diabetes.

In the present small, preliminary study, researchers have gone one step further and examined whether weight loss might reverse type 2 diabetes even in those whose weight falls within the moderate BMI range.

Medical News Today spoke with the studys first author, Dr. Ahmad Al-Mrabeh, a Transitional Research Fellow at the Centre for Cardiovascular Science at Queens Medical Research Institute at the University of Edinburgh in the United Kingdom.

He explained that they decided to explore whether weight loss could be effective at reversing type 2 diabetes for people with moderate BMI after looking at the results of their previous research.

We observed that the metabolic profile changed markedly after following a low calorie diet even when the change in body weight was [] minor. We, therefore, wanted to test whether inducing modest weight loss could achieve remission in those who are non-obese, said Dr. Al-Mrabeh.

According to the principal investigator of the study, Prof. Roy Taylor, Director of the Newcastle Magnetic Resonance Centre at Newcastle University, U.K., [o]ur previous research has shown that weight loss of 1015% can achieve remission in people with type 2 diabetes who are overweight or obese.

Doctors tend to assume, however, that type 2 diabetes has a different cause in those who arent overweight. This means that, unlike those who are overweight, those who are of [moderate] weight arent usually advised to lose weight before being given diabetes drugs and insulin.

Instead, theres a tendency to start them on insulin and other medication at a much earlier stage.

What weve shown is that if those of [moderate] weight lose 10-15% of their weight, they have a very good chance of getting rid of their diabetes.

This should be a wake-up call to doctors, and, with 1 in 10 of the 4.5 million people with type 2 diabetes in the U.K. of [moderate] weight at diagnosis, there is no time to be lost in getting the message across.

Prof. Taylor

The study involved just 23 people. Of these, 12 individuals had a type 2 diabetes diagnosis with an average age of 58.3 years and an average BMI of 24.5. The remaining 11 did not have diabetes and were of similar age and BMI. This group acted as the control.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) classify BMI scores of 18.524.9 as healthy.

All participants followed a low calorie diet for 2 weeks, consuming no more than 800 calories each day. The researchers then supported them to maintain their new weight for 46 weeks.

They completed this cycle two or three times until all participants had reduced their body weight by 1015%.

The researchers measured each participants visceral fat and insulin sensitivity before, during, and after the study.

At the end of the study, the researchers matched the people with diabetes with control participants of the same age, sex, and BMI. The scientists found that the individuals with diabetes lost more than twice as much fat in their liver compared with the controls.

In the diabetes group, fat in the pancreas reduced from 5.1% to 4.5%. Also, their average triglyceride levels fell from 1.6 millimoles per liter to 1.0 millimoles per liter a significant reduction similar to the control group.

Most significantly, two-thirds of the participants found that their type 2 diabetes went into remission and could stop taking their medication.

Prof. Taylor says that [t]hese results, while preliminary, demonstrate very clearly that diabetes is not caused by obesity but by [carrying too much weight] for your own body. Its due to having too much fat in your liver and pancreas, whatever your BMI.

In the liver, this excess fat prevents insulin from working normally. In the pancreas, it causes the beta cells to stop producing insulin.

Dr. Al-Mrabeh said to MNT that the results may be reproducible in larger studies, however, it is important to understand the mechanisms of excess fat buildup within these vital metabolic organs (liver and pancreas) in non-obese people.

Speaking with MNT, Prof. Pl R. Njlstad, Leader of the Center for Diabetes Research at the University of Bergen, Norway, said that [t]he findings are interesting and indicate that weight loss is also important in non-obese individuals with type 2 diabetes.

Prof. Njlstad added that [m]ore studies are needed with an increased number of study participants and increased time of follow up, in addition to investigating the effect of other factors, such as age, sex, and ethnicity.

Dr. Al-Mrabeh said to MNT that he will continue developing the initial findings.

I have recently moved to the University of Edinburgh to establish an independent research program looking into the mechanisms of how excess fat causes damage to the pancreas in type 2 diabetes. My aim is to dissect these mechanisms using both human and animal studies.

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Diabetes: Losing visceral fat more important than overall weight - Medical News Today

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day or is it? While it may have been something your mom told you as she tried to give you a bag of cereal as you walked out the door to school, its become a trend to intentionally skip a morning meal for health promotion in some cases, such as with intermittent fasting.

But whats the real story? And how do registered dietitians advise their clients especially those who say they just arent hungry in the morning? Heres the scoop.

RELATED: How to Eat Eggs for Every Meal

The origin of the original claim that breakfast is the most important meal of the day is based on a marketing campaign by a cereal manufacturer in the 1940s, as The Atlantic reported in 2016. The goal? To sell you more Grape Nuts, not to improve public health.

Since then, however, there has been a lot of research on how eating breakfast affects health and weight, as well as learning and cognitive performance in adults and children, says Ginger Hultin, RDN, owner ofChampagneNutritionin Seattle and author ofAnti-Inflammatory Diet Meal PrepandHow to Eat to Beat Disease Cookbook.

So while the origin of this claim wasnt rooted in scientific evidence, there is now research to support the recommendation.

RELATED: 20 Popular Food and Nutrition Myths You Shouldnt Believe

While you can find studies supporting both sides of the debate, its important to focus on meta-analyses, which look at many studies on the same subject to find a conclusion, says Hultin. The evidence seems to be most conclusive that skipping breakfast creates worse health outcomes for many people, says Hultin.

For example, in a meta-analysis of 45 observational studies published in the JanuaryFebruary 2020 issue ofObesity Research & Clinical Practice, researchers concluded that skipping breakfast is associated with being overweight or having obesity. One reason? Skipping breakfast, or not eating for extended periods of time, may increase overeating at other times of the day, says Hultin. This is extremely common and actually a pattern thats tied to worse outcomes for weight management, not better, she explains.

The choice to eat breakfast doesnt only affect weight metabolic health is also involved. A systematic review and meta-analysis published in November 2015 in Public Health Nutrition concluded that skipping breakfast correlated to a 21 percent increased risk of type 2 diabetes, and that eating breakfast could be protective against developing the disease.

And then theres mental health. Theres research that ties breakfast skipping to a higher odds of being depressed and stressed, says Samantha Cassetty, RD, nutrition and wellness expert based in New York City and coauthor ofSugar Shock. She points to a systematic review and meta-analysis published in Nutritional Neuroscience in December 2020 that involved nearly 400,000 people. The data linked skipping breakfast a 55 percent higher likelihood of having psychological distress compared with people who ate breakfast.

That said, studies are conflicting. Take a meta-analysis published in January 2019 in BMJ, which looked at 13 randomized controlled trials. Participants who were instructed to eat breakfast consumed about 260 more calories compared with those who were in a breakfast-skipping group. (That said, as the authors point out, the quality of these studies were low for one, they were conducted over an average of seven weeks so more studies are needed.) Another meta-analysis, published in Obesity in June 2020, also looked at randomized controlled trials, finding that breakfast skipping was associated with about a pound of weight loss over two months compared with eating the meal, but skipping is also associated with an increase in bad LDL cholesterol. Longer-term studies are certainly warranted.

You could say that skipping breakfast is really the modern-day intermittent fasting. A popular eating pattern is called 16:8, in which people fast for 16 hours and eat for 8 hours per day. Often, they will start eating at noon. This type of eating may offer health benefits, including improving metabolic health for those who have obesity or diabetes, decreasing risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer, notes a review published in December 2019 in The New England Journal of Medicine. The authors hypothesize that this may be because fasting may switch the body into a ketogenic state, encouraging it to burn fat for fuel, and improving blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and decreasing visceral fat. But more studies are needed, and whats clear is intermittent fasting isnt for everyone. Whats more, health experts warn the eating plan may be unsustainable and may set some people up for overeating later in the day.

Nutritionally speaking, skipping breakfast may not be wise, Cassetty points out. One study, published in Proceedings of the Nutrition Society in April 2021, noted that breakfast skippers consume fewer nutrients, like calcium, vitamin D, folate, and iron. Even when snacking more, breakfast skippers dont make up the nutrients from the missed meal, she says. As it is, many people dont have balanced enough diets According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), when it comes to eating a wide variety of healthful foods, Americans received an average score of 59 out of 100 on the Healthy Eating Index, which assesses diet quality. If you choose to skip your morning meal, youll really need to make sure that lunch, dinner, and snacks are on point.

It's also important to put this question into context. There are many other factors that play a role in ones risk of developing certain chronic conditions, aside from whether or not a person eats or does not eat breakfast, so its difficult to find conclusive evidence of one specific habit without looking at the bigger picture, says Elizabeth Adrian, RD, founder of City to Sea Nutrition, an in-person and virtual nutrition counseling in New York City. Still, she recommends her clients eat breakfast to regulate hunger, prevent overeating, and get in a quality meal at the beginning of the day.

RELATED: 10 Satisfying High-Protein Breakfasts

All three registered dietitians we interviewed recommend breakfast to their clients. But what you eat matters more than the specific timing. Its okay to wait until youre hungry, even if that comes later in the morning. Focus on whole, plant-based, fiber-filled foods and limit added sugars, refined grains, and excess sodium, says Cassetty. Scrambled eggs with veggies and whole-grain toast or a smoothie made with fruit, veggies (like spinach), nut butter, almond milk, and protein powder or Greek yogurt are two examples of power breakfasts that fit the bill.

Excerpt from:
The Last Word: Do You Really Need to Eat Breakfast? - Everyday Health