Tips on how you can avoid weight gain caused by your cafeteria
College weight gain is at an all-time high, and as students continue to pack on the pounds at an increasing rate, we naturally want to know where the blame lies for this growing epidemic. Since food consumption contributes significantly to weight gain, is it safe to assume that cafeterias are responsible for the expanding waistlines of our students? Read on for three reasons why the cafeteria food you eat is making you fat, and tips to help you stop the weight gain…
1. All You Can Eat
When was the last time you were given a tray and let loose in an all-you-can-eat buffet? Although most people only experience this phenomenon while either onboard a cruise ship or visiting Las Vegas, college students often have the buffet-going experience three times a day, seven days a week. That comes out to twenty-one opportunities to overeat each week. Students are handed the serving spoon, and the sky is the limit!
Let’s do some simple math together to help explain the damage done by the all-you-can-eat cafeteria. One must consume roughly 3,500 extra calories in order to gain a pound. This may seem like a large number, but when broken down between twenty-one meals, one pound can be gained each week by simply eating 170 extra calories at each meal. These 170 calories can take on the form of an extra helping of cheesy spaghetti, a salad drenched in a creamy dressing, or a small, innocent-looking dessert. College cafeterias are lurking with excess calories that are on a mission to end up on your unsuspecting tray.
Cafeteria Weight Loss Tip #1: Ditch your tray. Instead of loading up an entire tray with multiple plates of food, desserts, and beverages stick with just a simple plate. This will prevent you from overeating since more food than can fit on one plate is probably more food than you need.
2. Main Dish Mayhem
College cafeterias are notorious for serving main dishes that are less than nutritious. Cheese-covered pizzas, pasta, and casseroles often dominate the lunch menus while fried meats, potatoes, and fat-laden roasts turn up at dinner. Any direction that you turn to, in a cafeteria, will find you staring straight into the pot of something fattening.
Let’s consider the extra fat and calories that are found in the main dishes that are typically served in the cafeteria. An average serving of lasagna has 550 calories and 22 grams of fat. Two slices of pizza have 540 calories and 28 grams of fat. A serving of fried chicken has 480 calories and 26 grams of fat. When you consistently eat main dishes like these that are high in fat and extra calories the only possible result is weight gain.
Cafeteria Weight Loss Tip #2: Eat only a small serving of the main dish. This will prevent you from eating an extreme amount of excess calories since the main dishes are usually very rich in calories and fat. Fill the rest of your plate with fresh vegetables and whole grains.
3. Desserts Galore
What is a visit to the cafeteria without topping it off with a mouthwatering dessert? Cookies, brownies, cakes, pies, and ice cream are often just what you need to get your mind off of that exam that you need to study for. Women are especially prone to indulging at the dessert bar, due to their chocolate-loving, sweet teeth!
What most students do not realize is how quickly these extra calories add up, resulting in weight gain. A typical large cookie contains over 200 calories and 15 grams of fat. A typical brownie can pack over 400 calories and 25 grams of fat. These are often the calories that end up pushing you over your daily caloric needs, resulting in fat storage around your waist, hips, and thighs.
Cafeteria Weight Loss Tip #3: Limit the number of desserts you eat each week. Rather than grabbing a cookie or brownie every day, designate a day or two each week as your dessert day. This will prevent daily extra calories and will make the desserts you do eat more enjoyable.
The next time that you are in line at the cafeteria pay attention to what ends up on your plate. Remember that most college weight gain is a result of a mismanaged diet.
If you want any weight loss program to work you have to perform “Strength Training”. It’s absolutely imperative during the course of a lifetime not only for weight loss goals but also for general health and well-being.
For years we have been told to diet the excess fat from our bodies and throw in some fast walking to hasten the process. The trouble with this is that the low-calorie restricted diet would throw the body into starvation mode, with the body holding onto the fat and using precious lean muscle tissue for energy…
For years we have been told to diet the excess fat from our bodies and throw in some fast walking to hasten the process. The trouble with this is that the low-calorie restricted diet would throw the body into starvation mode, with the body holding onto the fat and using precious lean muscle tissue for energy.
This would “Lower Your Metabolism” causing greater muscle loss and once the diet was broken the original fat returned, and you would have a greater chance of gaining even more fat.
A Vicious Cycle
Eventually, your body would become used to the diet and then you will reach a point where nothing was happening.
So what do you do now?
Try weight loss supplements, creams, massage, toning tables, and drugs. You should know by now that these don’t work.
There is a better way, it’s simply…
Strength Training
Many studies are showing that Strength Training is a superior method for weight loss.
(Ladies, you won’t bulk up by using weights, you don’t have the testosterone to get big and muscular, so don’t worry).
If you don’t incorporate Strength Training into your weight loss program then look forward to “disappointing results”.
The days of strength training three to five days a week in the gym, an hour at a time are long gone. That just doesn’t work. One short strength-training workout a week done at home or in the gym will melt away more fat than you would have ever thought possible.
Fats, Figures, and Cardio Work
We’ve already found out that by increasing the functional muscle in your body, you increase your resting metabolic rate. Due to the HIGHER metabolic rate, you can now eat MORE calories, which means that you won’t need to starve anymore to lose weight.
In a sense, fewer calories have to be cut back from our daily intake of food and successful dieting (provided that you eat the right foods) will become more likely.
As far as Fats are concerned, they’re burned from the body when cells oxidize to release energy in the form of exercise. When exercise is done slowly to moderately for 20 to 30 minutes, then the majority of energy is TAKEN from the fat stores.
It’s important to understand that the loss of fat comes from fat cells ALL OVER the body, NOT just from one or more specific areas. Therefore, fat reduction in a certain area is not generally possible.
The best exercise for the purpose of fat loss is fast walking either indoors on the treadmill or outdoors. Walk until you are mildly puffing and hold that rate for the allotted time.
If your cardio activities leave you panting or breathless ~ you are going too hard. Your energy will then come from your carbohydrate reserves and not from your fat stores.
Nutrition For Weight Loss
Small frequent meals should be consumed during the day each containing a little protein to maintain muscle and energy levels. Foods with vital vitamin and mineral supplements should also be taken on a daily basis.
By decreasing the amount of calories you eat per day to the weight loss amount, you should start losing weight. Don’t go any lower and check the mirror regularly to judge your progress.
If you don’t have an accurate idea of how many calories your consuming a day, how will you know whether you’re overeating or not?
Another word about diets… They’ll send the body into starvation mode; a survival mechanism from long ago when humans faced periods of famine. Cutting back on your calories too low will cause the body to lower its metabolic rate, which reduces its ability to burn fat.
At the same time, hunger signals increase and we quickly start to crave high-energy foods loaded with fats and sugar. The same foods we are trying to do without.
Here are some great eating tips for you to consider:
· Reduce both obvious and hidden fats. · Record food intake to identify problem areas. · Be aware of times when you overeat. · Avoid severe food restrictions. · Monitor body fat levels, not weight. · Aim for moderate fat loss (one pound per week)
Gary is the author of several ebooks, including “Maximum Weight Loss in Ten Weeks” – the complete ebook and time-saving solution for burning away unwanted fat, and “Maximum Weight Gain in Ten Weeks” – easy-to-use and follow techniques that serve as a guide to muscle growth without having to “live in the gym”.
Every regime has its supply of useless folk lore and half-truths that get passed on down the line from person to person. But I’d put weight loss up against any of them for what has to be the most time-wasting and even the most dangerous myths out there.
There is a ton of free advice seen in the media these days and if it is taken seriously, can really set you back on your weight loss endeavours. This can lead to the kind of frustration that makes people think they are “destined to remain fat for life”…
This is not true, Have a look at the Weight loss myths below and draw your own conclusions.
Exercise on an empty stomach and burn more fat
Effective weight loss is the total amount of calories burned during the day, not how or why they were burned. It doesn’t matter if it is night or morning, so exercising early in the day has no advantage to exercise later in the day.
Studies show that increased metabolism induced by anaerobic exercise is actually less after a large meal. This probably means that more energy is being used for digestion than what is being used to repair muscle.
More exercise is better
Every exercise session is beneficial to each individual, however, more is not always better. It depends on what is trying to be achieved. There is a level and frequency required to achieve results.
After this level is reached, additional exercise can have the opposite effect, not allowing the body to recuperate and adapt to the stress induced by the exercise, which can be detrimental to your results.
After stopping exercise muscle will turn to fat
This is not possible, Muscle and fat are two different types of tissues in the body and you cannot convert one into the other. This is like trying to turn water into milk. If you stop training, the muscles will shrink in size – and not disappear. The more calories taken in that are not burned off will be deposited as fat.
If you’re not sweating, you’re not working hard enough
Sweating is the body’s way of cooling itself down. Many factors contribute to body temperature, including room temperature, types of exercise done, body-fat levels, clothing, and exercise intensity. The intensity of exercise can’t be judged by the amount you sweat.
A well-trained person will often sweat a lot because their body can more efficiently regulate heat.
Taking sugar before exercise to raise energy levels
Ingestion of sugar will lead to a rapid rise in blood sugar levels. This rapid rise stimulates a release of insulin, which quickly removes the excess sugar from the blood system, often causing your blood sugar levels to drop, sometimes below the level that it started at, leading to faster exhaustion.
Gaining weight is just a part of getting older
Getting older is not an excuse for gaining weight! As we age and begin a more sedentary lifestyle we start to lose muscle mass. The efficiency of your metabolism is directly linked to how much muscle you have on your body. The most efficient way of maintaining your body’s muscle mass and keeping your metabolism from dropping, is by doing a high intensity strength training workout once a week.
X is the best form of exercise
Claims like this are usually based on marketing strategy and personal bias. Even when claims are based on factual information, they have little practical value to the average exerciser. The most important thing is to choose an activity that you like, and perform it properly and consistently.
If it’s fat free I can have as much as I want
Unfortunately fat free doesn’t mean calorie free. The word fat free is misleading because if you overeat on anything, even fat free foods and you don’t burn off those calories, your body will store the excess as fat.
Don’t drink water when you exercise or you will get cramps
By drinking litres of icy cold water in one go while exercising you will probably suffer from cramps. This is why it is important to drink water continuously before, during and after exercising to replace the fluid you’ve lost and avoid any discomfort.
By not having a personal trainer I wont make gains
Hiring a personal trainer is one way you can use to reach your goals, but you are an adult capable of making decisions and setting your own goals once you have the knowledge of how to go about it. Following a good exercise program and eating plan does not require someone standing over you and telling you how to do it.
By exercising my abs I will lose my pot belly
Exercising your abdominals will help to tone and firm the abdominal region, but it will not reduce fat deposits that are responsible for a pot belly. Fat reduction comes from burning more calories than you take in. Fat is reduced uniformly throughout the body there is no such thing as spot reduction.
Gary is the author of several ebooks, including “Maximum Weight Loss in Ten Weeks” – the complete ebook and time-saving solution for burning away unwanted fat, and “Maximum Weight Gain in Ten Weeks” – easy-to-use and follow techniques that serve as a guide to muscle growth without having to “live in the gym”.
Just the other day, I received an email from someone that had seen information on my weight loss e-book “7 Days to Achieving Your Best Body Ever”.
In the email, she asked me if it was possible to really change your body in only 7 days…
After thinking for a few minutes, I started to wonder if I was mistakingly leading people into believing they can really lose a lot of weight in 7 days.
So I emailed her back and explained why I decided to name my book “7 Days to Achieving Your Best Body Ever”.
It’s true, you cannot and will not safely lose a lot of weight in 7 days.
If someone tells you that you can, run the other way.
But you can change your approach to weight loss, or any fitness goal, in 7 days.
After all, weight loss is 80% behavior and only 20% know-how.
To achieve any fitness goal, you have to work from the inside to the outside.
Meaning, you have to change your thinking first, then your physical approach.
And that you can change in 7 days or even 7 minutes.
In fact, I’ll go a step further and say that you can change your entire life in 7 seconds.
Just ask someone awaiting the death penalty if they would take that 7 seconds back and do something differently.
Or ask that person that decided to get behind the wheel of a car while drunk if they would choose to do something differently in that 7 seconds.
Truth is, you CAN change your body and your life in 7 days.
Achieving Your Best Body Ever
The path to achieving your fitness goals consists of:
1. Knowing what you want to achieve (fat loss, muscle gain, etc.)
2. Taking action to get those goals. (going to the gym)
3. Knowing the results you are getting (are you losing fat?)
4. Having the flexibility to change if something isn’t working.
But it all starts with making the decision to change….
To go after what you want to achieve.
To finally decide that you will not wait another day, or even another second, to start working towards the body you want.
I challenge you…
Right now, make the decision to go after anything that you want.
A new job.
A new house.
A new car.
A new relationship.
A new body.
Decide to go after it.
Decide that you are not going to give up until you achieve it.
Guess what, that decision to change can be done in 7 days.
In fact, that decision can be done in 7 seconds.
What have you decided?
About the Author Shawn LeBrun, Augusta, ME U.S.A. Shawn LeBrun is one of the internet’s most published fitness and weight loss coaches. Visit his site to see how he can make this the year you achieve your best body ever!
We all know that losing weight and improving your overall fitness are things that don’t happen overnight. But, did you know in order to be truly successful that important steps need to be taken before you even start a diet or exercise program? The first thing you should do is identify where you fall on the behavioral change spectrum. There are five distinct stages of behavioral change. Do you know what stage you currently fall under?
Knowing what stage you are at will help you to create a road map to the subsequent stages and ultimately help you to be successful in your fitness goals. Below are the five major phases.
1. Precontemplation: This is the point where you don’t feel that any change in your lifestyle is necessary. You may be thinking that exercising just takes too much time or that fast food is just too convenient to even consider giving up. Starting a fitness or diet program during this stage would probably result in failure. The best thing you can do during this phase is educate yourself further about health, diseases, and risks.
2. Contemplation: During this stage, you may start thinking that a change is necessary. So, you think that maybe cutting back to eating fast food only three times a week is not so bad and you might be able to at least take a walk once in a while. This is a good time to learn more about the benefits of healthy eating and regular exercise.
3. Preparation: At this point, you are getting more serious about taking action. You’ve penciled in a walk with your friend for next week and are planning to go grocery shopping to cook a home meal. You may want to research exercise equipment, gyms, personal trainers, and diet programs to learn more about what you can do (with the help of professionals and/or equipment) to get in better shape.
4. Action: Here’s where you actually take the first step. The first step may be as simple as taking a daily walk, reducing your fast food visits to twice a month, or just cutting back on daily sodas. Or, you may go as far as hiring a personal trainer or joining a gym. During this stage, it is very important to learn coping mechanisms that will help you avoid re-lapse into your old ways. One way to avoid being a part of the high exercise dropout statistics is starting slowly into a new program and making permanent lifestyle changes versus temporary ones.
5. Maintenance: This is, of course, the phase that everyone should strive to be at. This means that you have been doing a regular fitness program consistently for quite some time and that you continue your new lifestyle. It’s important throughout this stage (which should last a lifetime) that you include a variety of workouts that change frequently. You should also seek social support from friends and family.
So, now can you identify what stage you are at? You may find that you are in the pre-contemplation stage for nutritional habits but that you are in the preparation stage for exercises. That’s okay. It’s not critical for you to force both areas into the same stage. You can work on changing your nutritional and exercise habits separately.
The key to success is first identifying your stage and then taking steps to advance to the next level (unless, of course, you are already at the Maintenance stage). Use the suggestions mentioned above in each stage to help you move to the next phase.
For example, if you are in the pre-contemplation stage, then research and read as much as you can on the subject of health risks and how they relate to an individual’s lifestyle. From there you will probably want to learn more about the consequences and benefits of specific lifestyles. Education is a powerful thing. The more you fully understand and can relate directly to the causes and effects of your action, the more inclined you will be to change.
It’s also important to tune in to your fears, past struggles, and expectations. Making nutritional and exercise changes is not easy and should be approached slowly. Remember to make small changes. Don’t try to go from a completely sedentary lifestyle to an hour of continual exercise in just one day. Build up slowly starting with even just 10 minutes. And lastly, be sure to inform your family and friends of your plans and enlist their support. Support is extremely important for your success.
Lynn Bode, author, and certified personal trainer offers her services online through WorkoutsForYou.com. Workouts For You provides affordable online exercise programs to help even the busiest of people lose weight, tone up, build muscles, increase stamina, and more via the Internet. Let us guide you one-on-one through your fitness journey with weekly customized workouts designed just for YOU!
If I were asked what is the most difficult thing many people find when they start a weight-loss program, I would have to say right near the top is this…drinking enough water!
Few people realize at first just how essential water is to the success of their weight-loss program. In fact, the essential place of water in our diet extends to everyone…whether they want to lose weight, gain weight or stay the same weight! We all know we cannot live without water, but just why is it so important? Well, there are many reasons. Read on and discover why water can help you lose weight and why it is your essential life force…
Apart from 60-70% of your body being composed of water, water has an extensive range of functions essential to life.
· Assists digestion, absorption, and assimilation of food. If you don’t drink enough water you can’t get the full benefit of nutrients in the food you eat.
· Assists excretion of waste from the bowel and kidneys. If you don’t drink enough water you get constipated and put your kidneys under stress.
· Regulates body temperature. If you don’t drink enough water you compromise the evaporation process your skin uses to keep you cool.
· Your blood is 92% water. This is your body’s transport system distributing nutrients around the body.
· Body secretions and digestive juices are almost entirely water.
Why should you drink water when you want to lose weight?
Water is a natural appetite suppressant. Do NOT underestimate the power of this statement. Lack of water can lead to overeating. Your brain does not differentiate between hunger and thirst. So, when you think you are feeling hungry, your body may in fact be signaling to you that you are thirsty! If you are not consuming enough water each day and you feel hunger pains, chances are, your body really is crying out for water. In many instances, people will find what they thought were hunger pangs were in fact, satisfied by water. Try it! You have nothing to lose, except some weight.
How do you know whether you are drinking enough water each day? Well, the answer is not difficult. The average person needs around 6-8 large glasses every day.
Well then, how should you drink 6-8 liters per day? The aim is to drink water consistently. If you drink too much all at once or too fast, it will simply pass through you, with little or no benefit to your body.
If you are someone who enjoys the taste of water, then perhaps you could fill a one-liter empty soft drink container with water the drink through it twice during the day. Room temperature or cold water, even warm as some people like…whatever you prefer. Place it on the desk at work in front of you as a constant reminder to sip continuously throughout the day.
Other people find they need a water diet to help them keep on track. So for you, here is a program easily followed to ensure you are well-hydrated every single day.
· When you wake up you will often be thirsty because your body loses water while you are sleeping through breathing and perspiration. Drink a large glass of water with a slice of lemon for zing.
· Drink another glass of water with breakfast or a cup of herbal tea before setting off the day.
· Mid-morning: snack on a piece of juicy fruit such as orange, rockmelon, watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew. Have a glass of water and perhaps try a dash of herbal aloe juice, which is wonderfully soothing to the digestive system.
· Lunch: think of soup or have a glass of water before your meal, or perhaps herbal tea.
· Mid-afternoon: while you are preparing your evening meal, drink a glass of water and snack on some crunchy fresh vegetables.
· Evening: Sip a glass of water before your meal with a dash of your favorite fruit juice for flavor.
· After dinner: before bedtime drink your final glass of water and sleep well!
A few changes will happen when you start out with your water program. Obviously, you may find that you need to spend a penny more often. Why? Because your body isn’t used to being well-hydrated.
There is absolutely no doubt about it. When you start drinking enough water regularly, there are great benefits. You may notice your skin significantly improve and even tired muscles will thank you. Many people find their energy is increased and constipation and headaches are reduced, as well as hunger pains.
Now here is the really exciting part…many people notice a reduction in weight and centimeters, as their body’s water stores become redundant and so decrease. If your diet has been one that did not provide you with adequate water, your body will have developed a pattern of storing water. This is part of the body’s in-built survival mechanism, storing up the essential nutrients in short supply, just in case they aren’t available in the future. So if you dont drink enough water, you are conditioning your body to store water. And water is bulk and unwanted centimeters.
It’s so simple…drink water! 6-8 large glasses a day.
How do you know if you are not getting enough water each day? This is a really important question because so many of us have deprived ourselves of water for years that we have become accustomed to doing without the full amount of water our body requires and we don’t recognize the symptoms of thirst.
· The most common symptom is headaches. A major function of water is to flush toxins from the body. Your brain is 75% water, so even being slightly dehydrated can cause headaches.
· Poor concentration and fatigue. If your body cannot get rid of the toxins it will struggle and you will feel less energetic as your body diverts energy to deal with the toxins.
· Constipation. Your body will divert water to more essential functions and as a result, your stools will be harder and more difficult to expel.
· Reduced urine output or dark urine. Did you know that up to 200 liters of water is passed through your kidneys daily? Without a fresh supply of water for the kidneys to filter waste products out of the blood, your urine will become darker.
· Furry tongue or bad breath. If you don’t have enough water passing through the mouth to wash away food particles, bacteria can proliferate and result in that furry feeling or bad breath.
· Skin. Your skin should feel elastic. When you pinch the skin on the back of your hand it should snap back instantly.
Final thoughts. Caffeinated drinks cause the body to lose water. They are what are known as diuretics as they cause your body to dehydrate. You will do your body an enormous favor by cutting back. For every cup of coffee you drink you will need to drink another TWO glasses of water to counter the diuretic effect. Explore the world of herbal teas instead, you may be pleasantly surprised!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kim Beardsmore is a successful wellness consultant. She helps men and women lose weight safely ensuring their energy levels stay high.
