Cholesterol

by Craig Ballantyne

Many readers are interested in more information on how to control their cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood sugar.

So let's start with cholesterol first...

Now all these years people have been worried about high cholesterol levels. But in addition to lowering bad cholesterol, a new study shows that high levels of GOOD cholesterol should also be the focus of our efforts.

In fact, your levels of HDL could be the most important determinant of your risk for heart disease.

First, some definitions...

LDL (low-density lipoprotein): LDL is also known as the "bad" cholesterol. It is the cholesterol that builds up in your arteries, increasing your risk of heart disease.

HDL (high-density lipoprotein): HDL is also known as the "good" cholesterol. It helps clean out LDL from your arteries, and can decrease your risk of heart disease. If your HDL is not above 40 mg/dL, then you need to improve it and have it checked every year.

TC (total cholesterol): This is the total amount of cholesterol in the blood, including LDL, HDL, and VLDL. If your total cholesterol is 240 mg/dL or greater, you have a greater risk of coronary heart disease and stroke.

TC:HDL-C ratio: This is called the "total cholesterol to HDL ratio." It is used to give doctors an idea of how much total cholesterol a person has relative to the HDL level. The ratio is calculated by dividing the total cholesterol by the HDL. It is a good measure of heart disease risk.

Okay, now onto the latest findings...this recent study published in the American Heart Journal found that patients that had higher HDL levels had a lower risk of heart attacks. More specifically, people with higher HDL (by 10 mg/dL) had an 11% decrease in heart disease risk.

Okay...so what does that mean? Do everything you can to increase your HDL!

First, you need to get your HDL levels checked...so visit your doctor. And always check with your doctor before making big changes to your nutrition and exercise plan...especially if you are overweight, or otherwise at risk for lifestyle diseases.

Second, a good place to start improving your cholesterol levels is to simply lose weight and to start an exercise program (both aerobic exercise and resistance training will improve cholesterol levels).

And when it comes to achieving healthy cholesterol levels, here are many more specific actions that you should take:

- Eat 6 small meals per day rather than 2-3 large meals.

- Eat a handful of almonds per day (make sure they are not roasted in hydrogenated oils!)

- Eat more fiber by eating almonds, fruits, vegetables, oatmeal, and perhaps even supplement with glucomannan - Get a minimum of 35g of fiber per day

- Reduce your intake of saturated fats

- Eliminate all trans fats from your diet

- Build muscle mass. There's some evidence that strength-training exercises that build muscle mass can also improve HDL.

- Do intervals - these might be even more effective than regular cardio for increasing HDL

- Both Green Tea and fish oils might help improve cholesterol levels (by both increasing HDL and lowering LDL), but research is not conclusive.

Get Busy

"Get busy living or get busy dying!"

Morgan Freeman in "The Shawshank Redemtion"

3 Biggest Factors in Fat Loss

by Craig Ballantyne

Whenever a client buys a manual, I introduce them to the 3 biggest factors in fat loss.

First up, is social support. A study from Stanford University showed that social support is the #1 factor for success in female fitness programs. I'd bet that its also important in male fitness programs - no matter how much guys would be unwilling to admit it.

And this should come as no surprise...just look at the popularity of Internet message boards dedicated to fitness and fat loss.

And while the social support can come from your spouse, family members, friends, or co-workers, the Stanford study showed that individuals have a greater chance of sticking to an exercise program when they have to be accountable to an authority figure - such as a doctor, lifestyle coach, or trainer.

Regardless, don't feel that you need to do this on your own. Get some social support and watch your success rate soar. (I also encourage everyone to do a lifestyle review with his or her physician, especially if you are over 30 years of age and previously sedentary. Better safe than sorry. And it's also great to get your doctor into your social support group).

Good communication and professional instruction will significantly increase your chances of success.

The second most important factor is nutrition. That's right, what you eat is more important than how you exercise.

It's always tough for me to admit this, but its true. No matter how great a TT workout can be, it's no match for eating a large pizza or scarfing down a huge piece of chocolate cake. Nutrition will always have the final word on your fat loss success.

So make sure you know how many calories you are eating and have an expert check to make sure that you aren't eating something that you think is healthy, but in reality is actually an obstacle to your success.

And finally, the 3rd most important factor in fitness is exercise. And the more customized your program is for you, the better your results will be. When you combine a great workout program with proper nutrition and accountability, you can make incredible changes...you can even feel like you are reversing the aging process. (www.turbulancetraining.com)

Understand what Reasonable Progress is.

by John Berardi

Every day people come to me having lost 3% fat in 3 months or 3kg's in 7 weeks wondering why things aren't working.

WHAT?!?! What exactly are these people expecting? Perhaps they need to do the math.

If you're a woman at 30% fat and you're losing 1% fat a month, by the end of a year you'll be 18%. That's defined as "athletic". You'll have gone from obese to athletic in one year.

If you're losing 0.5kg every 2 weeks, you can expect around a 13kg weight loss over 1 year.

What seemed like crappy progress to you doesn't seem so crappy now, does it?

Seriously, perspective people!