Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

johneg857 — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 08:05:51 GMT

I have always been obese though very athletic. As a child, I had my major growth spurt at age 10 going from 5'4" 152 lbs to 5'11" 238 lbs by the time I was 11. I have always been a major foodie growing up in an Italian family and learning how to cook for everyone since the age of 8. I played high school football and baseball, college football, and a brief stint in the NFL. Currently, I weigh 487 having lost 31 lbs recently from an all-time high of 518 on a 6'5" frame! I had a drug-free American record in the bench press at 606 lbs and have been a strength coach at four major universities as well as a private trainer when I weighed 340. You see, I love to go to the gym...working out is my favorite pastime. I eat a very healthy mediterranean diet rich in whole foods, olive oil, and red wine and drink predominantly water as a beverage usually 1-2 gals/day. The problem I have is I feel like my attempts to diet have been out-of-control for several years...DUH! REALLY?...you see I workout 3-4X per week starting with 30 mins cardio on an eliptical machine followed by 30-45 mins weight training...unfortunately when I am done my appetite goes haywire the rest of the day making it very difficult to limit my intake. I feel my leptin resistance and/or insulin resistance is way out of whack and I don't know how to reel it in! I came back to this website because I find a tremendous amount of value and truth to Dr. Mercola's insights. I hope somebody out there can steer me in the right direction. PLEASE HELP!! John

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

levans28 — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 10:53:23 GMT

Thanks for taking such a bold stand in defense of an organic and "life-filled" life! and against the every growing big industry of drug-pushers. I pass on this thinking to everyone I know who has the believing to receive it (which is quite a few people) and some have changed their eating habits and life practices. I so appreciate your honesty.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

Wisegal23 — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:13:08 GMT

The irony about those 'in charge' of making all these horrible health decisions for the masses in order to make money is ....they becomne a victim of their own greed. Take Ted Kennedy for instance. He now has brain cancer. I am sure he has made or voted on issues that were not so good for us. He is now a product of his own work. Please don't misunderstand my intentions here. I am sympathetic to anyone who is ill. I wish him a speedy recovery, but we all know what will probably happen. Sorry if this comment isn't exactly about FAT but rather what is in food that makes us ill. I have been reading Dr. M for quite some time but this is my first post. It is a great website and thanks for all of your posts, you make it real.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

Certified Organic Biologist — Tue, 27 May 2008 22:15:06 GMT

I work as a Health coach to some of the teachers and administrators at our community college district. A client of mine is a volunteer for Jenny Craig's meal replacement program, where she received FREE meals for 2 years. These meals obviously are Jenny Craig meals. She is very disciplined and journals all her intake. As her health coach though I am helping her slowly understand, that even with her increased activity, and the supposed "healthy" nature of these Jenny Craig foods, she's still gaining weight. And its not muscle. using Fitday.com we are finding out that the amount of preservatives and sodium in these pre packaged food are hindering her health goals, and I'm scared to assume what other long term health effects this awful experiment may cause. Just like everyone else is stating on this forum, stick with what mother nature has made!!

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

webwitch6 — Sun, 25 May 2008 16:50:08 GMT

Know why I am fat? I am in constant pain so exercising is torture. I have eaten bad food for one third of my life, (even though I am a vegetarian and do not eat meat I eat other animal based products--like CHEESECAKE!) and I have emotional issues from childhood. I have cut down on cheesecake, (no, really) I make a point of walking around my green 3/4 acre property and going up the 18 stairs to the top of my barn twice a day, and I am coming to terms with my early life, which annoys the hell out of me that it still is bothering me. I am a work in progress and one day soon I hope to turn my potato shaped body into something it has never been-a lighter weight health machine with curves instead of love handles and muffin tops.

(Mom is obese, with dementia, grand moms on both sides died of cancer and dementia, grandads on both sides long gone from heart attack and seizures, dad gone from diabetes and heart failure, great aunt from a heart attack, and six cousins gone from cancer. I dont want to add to that dismal line up)

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

Nitpicker — Sun, 25 May 2008 03:03:13 GMT

First, I think the quoted article is misleading in that fat cells ingest glucose and make fat. Perhaps I misunderstand that process.

Second, calorie restriction dieting makes the stomach produce ghrelin (starvation alert!) which gets into the brain and makes fat cells greedy, increases appetite, and reduces metabolic rate. It seems to be a major part of causing yoyo dieting. Gastric clamps or staples or surgical reduction appears to reduce ghrelin levels even in the face of calorie restriction. Other scientists have made a vaccine which produces antibodies to the active form of ghrelin. This does no damage to the ghrelin but the joined compound it too big to crosss the blood brain barrier and cause those three effects.

Knockout mice whose RIP140 has been knocked out stay thin regardless of diet since that hormone is required for fat cells to make and store fat. The knockout mice also live 20 percent longer like those on a calorie restricted diet. Big pharma will surely be trying to make a knockout drug for human RIP140 in the next few years. When they succeed, it'll be the first diet pill that won't just suppress appetite. Some have noted that the current diet pills are like a birth control pill that just makes you uninterested in sex.

Meanwhile, we have hypnosis, Al Sears' P.A.C.E. exercise program and Dean Ornish's healthy low fat diet with meditation. Unless you are actually being hunted by tigers in the harmlessness of meditation than of medication.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

westerncoloradogirl — Sun, 25 May 2008 02:48:16 GMT

Fat cells don't have just fat in them. They are full of the toxins, such as artificial colors and flavors, MSG, agricultural and other chemicals and such that we consume and are exposed to, particularly for those who don't eat real, organic foods. Fast food diets are rich in toxins. In short, overweight people are toxic. If they eat less to lose weight, the body still stores the toxins.You're still eating crud and your body can't deal with it so it sticks it in the fat cells. It's a losing battle. Only when you give the body the nutrition, water and detoxifying it needs to rid itself of the toxins will the body lose weight. It's good to keep giving the body nutrition throughout the day. Go without food and the body goes into starvation mode and starts storing what you eat because it thinks food is running low. It's fattening up for the slim times ahead. That's why people who skip breakfast are more likely to be heavy. It's all so simple. I am a 6'1" female and weigh 135 (and am almost 50) and I eat a lot. I used to starve myself and topped out at about 215. We are living in bodies still accustomed to diets we were on centuries ago. Doesn't matter if you have a low or high fat cell count. That point is totally moot.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

KelleyEidem — Sat, 24 May 2008 23:13:45 GMT

"If you eat a diet that is high in sugar and grains, the sugar gets metabolized to fat (and is stored as fat in your fat cells), which in turn releases surges in leptin. Over time, if your body is exposed to too much leptin, it will become resistant to it (just as your body can become resistant to insulin).

"And when you become leptin-resistant, your body can no longer hear the messages telling it to stop eating and burn fat -- so it remains hungry and stores more fat."

- Dr. Joseph Mercola

I truly believe that this cycle is what has made obesity so commonplace. There is so much great information in Dr. Mercola's article. Awesome!

The question is why do some people overeat sugar and carbs in the first place, while others are able to resist.?

For instance, I used to eat huge amounts of ice cream on a regular basis. I'd think about it, long for it, etc. But today, if you held a bowl of ice cream in front of me, I wouldn't want it. I no longer DESIRE ice cream, and rarely eat it.

Here is my low tech way that let me become free of my addiction:

hubpages.com/.../How-to-Flatten-Your-Tummy-and-End-Food-Cravings-EFFORTLESSLY

Sometimes this is the missing bit in the mystery of our expanding waistlines.

The best to you.

Kelley Eidem

PS. I feel for Dr. Mercola's mental exhaustion that can come from suffering the slings and arrows of critics while trying to help so many people reduce their suffering.

Also, I for one am grateful that the good doctor selling stuff. By offering his wares it enables him to continue to bring us all this wonderful information. Sustaining a site like this takes money to operate. So the money is the fuel that keeps the show on the road.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

AnnieInfinite — Sat, 24 May 2008 22:37:25 GMT

It's about time that someone understood that our genes do not influence our lives as much as people think that they do. This is yet another way to shift responsibility away from ourselves and back into the hands of the drug companies. Just look at the work of Bruce Lipton and others... It's about time we understood we are animals and we were built to move and we have a brain so we can use it to change our thinking, our beliefs and our way of living and create health. I must say I have a problem with the words "FAT LOSS" and "WEIGHT LOSS" as it implies to our mind that we are losing something and we have been programmed since we were little that to lose is bad. So I encourage my clients to say things like: "I'm slimming down into the body I always had." "I am putting this heavy baggage down and moving on free of it." or something similar, these are just a few of the lines that clients have come up with themselves, which I encourage so that they can 'own' the phrase and it feels true for them.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

Sir2You — Sat, 24 May 2008 20:16:13 GMT

I am 47, weigh 135, and am 5'11". I eat a sound diet 2/3rds of the time, but my other third is canned dinners. I emphatically avoid HFCS, and it now appears everywhere. I am surprised that only one commentator mentioned HFCS, as it appears to be the main causative effect of the fattening of America. I will now avoid the MSG, but it has done me no visible harm. I went to my reunion, and was rather shocked at how many now look very old and very fat. People, this is uncommon knowledge, and I commend you for figuring it out. Thanx, too, to Dr Mercola for his incredible spunk.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

thefarmersdaughter — Sat, 24 May 2008 20:04:43 GMT

Truckerone,I know it can be difficult when family gathers& traditions involve certain foods,but really it comes down to "choice!" And perhaps you could be a catalyst in your family,bring a healthier version or a"new" dish? Plan ahead so you are mentally prepared,maybey allow yourself one forbiden/rarely eaten food? Appreciate your honesty,carry on...

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

Dee D. — Sat, 24 May 2008 19:52:01 GMT

"Remember my favorite quote from Arthur Schopenhauer:

All truth goes through three phases

First, it is ridiculed.

Second, it is violently opposed.

Third, it is widely accepted as being self evident."

Hmmm..... Are you or anyone at Mercola.com interested in this article: trevormarshall.com/BioEssays-Feb08-Marshall-Preprint.pdf

or checking out these websites:

http://curemyth1.org/

www.marshallprotocol.com

trevormarshall.com/BioEssays-Feb08-Marshall-Preprint.pdf

http://bacteriality.com/

It's an unfortunate truth, but the practice of medicine will ALWAYS lag behind scientific discoveries. If you are a progressive, move forward to heal yourself based on the science, not what is in vogue in medicine at the moment.

A word of caution to those individuals who are currently supplementing with the secosteroid, "Vitamin D", based on your 25-D lab results that you physician ordered...DO NOT EVER SUPPLEMENT WITH "VITAMIN D" UNLESS YOUR PHYSICIAN TESTS YOUR 1,25-D LEVELS FIRST.... you may end up making your health worse! Take if from someone with first hand experience!

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

curious7 — Sat, 24 May 2008 16:36:03 GMT

Some years back I read a book, the title of which escapes me, where a doctor explained that we can loose excess pounds very easily if we are willing to first get off the process food habit. Next increase our intake of raw whole foods, but eating breakfast was a must. Further this doctor went on to say we must exercise along with the change in diet, and that said exercise must be ever changing and consistant. He remarked that what he was doing for his patients was trying to gt them to replace fat with lean muscle. Some of his patients complained, they were gaining weight. His reply was that muscle weighs more than fat, and that the body would soon level things out as the body adjusted the need for fat cells.

In America, we eat too much processed food. Ideally we would do ourselves well if we ate no processed foods, but for many that is a tall order. Processed food is said to be addicting, and it has been charged that the addictive nature of processed food is a deliberate act to keep sales up. I can believe that. But processed food only fills the space, and does nothng for the biological, thus overeating.

Good health, and good eating habits go hand in hand, and we cannot have one without the other. Look around in your area inspect and join an organic food co-op. Aquire as many organic fruits and vegetables as possible, and if at all possible stay away from imported food period.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

truckerone — Sat, 24 May 2008 15:43:58 GMT

It seems like a no-brainer to me that most of us are products of BOTH genetics and environment. I have always tended towards a 'rubinesque' figure. I am much more active than my aunts and mother ever thought about being yet, here I am a size 14. ( I guess i get to look forward to a size 22) I've been up...I've been down (brother, that wasn't easy) and yet all those comfort foods and holidays and special occasions that I grew up with, that mean so much and give richness to my and my familys lives are so wrapped around food and the preparation of food that they are almost a prison. When I was younger, it was no big deal but now, beyond 40....Wow! that sounds like I'm throwing in the towel. I"m not but, my hiney's getting so big I feel like someone is following me.

re: Is This the Reason It's Hard to Lose Weight?

WGR — Sat, 24 May 2008 15:27:04 GMT

This article is “vintage” Mercola – exposing fuzzy thinking and clearly articulating the simple truths that help our body overcome the weakness of our minds. This is why I keep reading this newsletter.

It seems that many of our health problems are the result of poor information and our predisposition to taking the easy road.

What we really need is to find a way to get discipline, get the facts, and staying on that road.

Does anyone know of an easy way to get discipline?