Good Fats are Essential for Health and Fat Loss

For decades, fat has been given a bad name. We were told that eating fat is unhealthy and contributes to disease and obesity.

While there may be some truth to the statement in very limited context, it is basically a lie designed to make money.

Good fats are essential for optimal health and fat loss!

There is a definite grouping of "good fats" and "bad fats" that you need to be aware of.

As a result of the industry marketing scheme, we were let to believe that trans fat and saturated fat are the enemies of health and weight loss.

Good fats such as monounsaturated (MUFA) and polyunsaturated fats (PUFA) are said to be the good guys. While this is true, the result of this misleading marketing trend by the industries, society and the government has led to a specific condition in the standard American diet.

This condition is caused by an unbalanced amount of omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. In the western diets, omega 6 fatty acids have become prevalent in the ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acid intake. This leads to inflammation and other conditions which actually put you at more risk than saturated and trans fat intake.

The bottom line is that most people eat too much Omega 6/PUFA and not enough Omega 3/MUFA.

This can be fixed by simply adjusting your fat intake to maximize omega 3 / MUFA intake and by limiting your omega 6 / PUFA intake. You want to have a Omega 3 to Omega 6 ratio of approximately 3 to 1 depending on who you talk to. The western or American diet can be so out of alignment as to have up to 16 to 1 Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio.

Also the long told myth about saturated fat intake is unfounded. Especially in the form of medium chain triglycerides (MCT) found in such foods as coconuts.

Most fat sources have all three forms of fat (saturated, MUFA and PUFA) but each source usually has a predominant amount of one form over the other two.

Some common sources of Omega 3 fatty acids / MUFA are:

Krill oil
Flaxseed oil
Flaxseed
Salmon
Chia seeds
Sardines
Cod liver oil
Mackerel

Anchovies

Tuna

Some common sources of Omega 6 fatty acids/PUFA are:

Walnuts

Sunflower seeds

Pine nuts

Pecans

Brazil nuts
Almonds
Avocado
Pistachios
Olive oil

The bottom line is that your fat intake is essential for health and body composition change. You should eat a variety of good fats from saturated, MUFA and PUFA sources. Try to eat more MUFA than PUFA. Avoid transfat and hydrogenated oils. Avoid vegetable oils and canola oil.And remember we are not talking about just cooking with oils but actually eating these foods.

A great page that breaks down the data is here:
http://paleozonenutrition.com/2011/05/10/omega-6-and-3-in-nuts-oils-meat-and-fish-tools-to-get-it-right/

If you are looking for high quality omega 3 supplements to help ensure that you can get the right ratio check these two out:

BioTrust Krill and Anchovy Oil

Prograde Krill Oil

These two are the ones that I recommend, use and sell.

Train Hard and Eat Right!

Eric Dempsey
Master Sergeant, U.S. Army Retired
Ranger qualified, Infantry
Afghanistan & Iraq veteran with the 101st Airborne Division
NASM Certified Personal Trainer and Weight Loss Specialist
Masters Degree in Exercise Science
Dempseys Resolution Fitness

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How much weight can you lose in 21 days? 

The Detox Challenge comes with a complete "done for you" program. 

It is a whole food, elimination based program that removes toxic and inflammatory foods from your meal plan. 

With this whole foods program, you will receive:

Program manual with 3 levels of the program to choose from.

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Check out the content included. http://youtu.be/jrmD4Ipge1A

Pickup your copy of the complete detox challenge program here- while it's on sale!

Eric Dempsey
Master Sergeant, U.S. Army Retired
NASM Certified Personal Trainer and Weight Loss Specialist
Masters Degree in Exercise Science from Cal U.
Dempseys Resolution Fitness
www.dempseysresolution.com

How Krill Oil Can Reduce Inflammation: Free Video Presentation

Learn about the potent effects of the omega-3 fatty acids found in Krill Oil on inflammation and overall health.
Watch the free video presentation.

And if you are interested in trying some high quality krill oil for your health, Prograde is having a huge 25% off sale on their EFA Icon. 

Just use EFA25 at checkout and you can immediately take 25% off your entire order.

Eric Dempsey
Master Sergeant, U.S. Army Retired
NASM Certified Personal Trainer & Weight Loss Specialist
Graduate Student In Exercise Science At Cal U.
Dempseys Resolution Fitness 

www.dempseysresolution.com

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Would you ignore it?

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Of course you’d want to put it out. And you’d want to do so in a way that was safe, natural, and didn’t leave any additional damage in its wake.
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Read more here

Eric
Dempsey's Resolution Fitness

Why Should You Include Fasting In Your Lifestyle?

By Brad Pilon, MS

There are many reasons why you should include fasting as a part of your everyday lifestyle, many of which have nothing to do with diet. Fasting as a concept has been around as long as the hills, though it has been taken to extremes at times and made to look like a less than viable part of a normal and sensible health and weight control plan.  

Fasts have been undertaken through the years for reasons as diverse as political causes (Bobby Sands comes to mind) and religious fasts. The Bible and many other religions promote fasting as a way to get closer to God, and to achieve enlightenment. There is also some physical evidence that deprivation can lead to a heightened state of awareness, no doubt some of which comes from the lack of additional food the system must process.  

Fasts can also be used as a prelude to medical procedures. For instance, most doctors recommend a 12-hour fast before taking a lipid profile. This is also standard procedure before surgery. Complications from the combination of food and anesthesia have been known to occur. There is also at least empirical evidence that fasting can have a beneficial effect on other aspects of your health. There are those who believe that water fasting can not only work to detoxify cells and rejuvenate organs, but also can help and possibly aid in curing such diseases and conditions as cardiovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, lupus and many more autoimmune disorders.    

A newer trend in terms of using fasting as an aid in a sensible weight loss plan is the concept of intermittent fasts. These are short-term fasts lasting 24-36 hours in length, which help contribute to a total caloric deficit, thus bringing about faster weight loss. This type of fasting is simple to implement, and can be adapted to most individual needs.  

One danger to be aware of is the practice of extreme fasting among teens. This can lead to other types of food disorders, such as bulimia and anorexia. Few teens need to go on extreme fasts for purposes of weight loss, and if one is considered, it should be under the supervision of their physician. If the reasons for going on a fast have anything to do with pressure to be thin, or feelings of low self-esteem, then it would be wise to offer counsel. Extreme fasts tend to appear when a period of binge eating has occurred, with the intent being to purge the body of all the excess food. 

Fasting can be a viable and important piece of a well thought out weight loss plan. The use of short-term fasts used in conjunction with a sound diet can offer great weight loss results, as well as some of the ancillary benefits of fasting. This combined with all the spiritual and beneficial effects fasting can have on a person's psyche make fasting something you should definitely consider when determining your course.  

****
Brad Pilon is a nutrition professional with over eight years experience working in the nutritional supplement industry specializing in clinical research management and new product development. Brad has completed graduate studies in nutritional sciences specializing in the use of short term fasting for weight loss.

His trademarked book Eat Stop Eat has been featured on national television and helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat without sacrificing the foods they love. For more information on Eat Stop Eat, visit www.eatstopeat.com

Eric

Dempsey's Resolution Fitness

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Read more about inflammation and why you need to be concerned:
http://dempseysresolution.getprograde.com/inflammation-new-silent-killer.html

Ways To Stop The Silent Killer From Striking
http://dempseysresolution.getprograde.com/fighting-inflammation.html

Eric
Dempsey's Resolution Fitness

Inflammation: The Silent Killer and Obesity

Inflammation is part of the complex biological response of vascular tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. Inflammation is a protective attempt by the organism to remove the injurious stimuli and to initiate the healing process.

Acute inflammation is characterized by the redness, heat, swelling, and pain that is the immune system’s normal response to infection or injury. Immune cells congregate at the site so that they can overwhelm and dispose of infectious organisms or debris from injury. Thus healing takes place. But there is another kind of inflammation which is chronic and "systemic." It’s been the topic of many studies and discussion lately. This is the kind that you can't see but it is there lurking and destroying from within.

Although it is not proven that inflammation causes cardiovascular disease, inflammation is common for heart disease and stroke patients and is thought to be a sign or atherogenic response. It’s important to know what inflammation is and what it can do to your heart.
One inflammation-blood pressure study indicates that a person’s current level of C-reactive protein (CRP) – a key player in inflammation – can indicate future high blood pressure development. In fact, the study’s researchers suggest high blood pressure may be an inflammatory disorder.
The worldwide prevalence of obesity and related metabolic disorders is rising rapidly, increasing the burden on our healthcare system. Obesity is often accompanied by excess fat storage in tissues other than adipose tissue, including liver and skeletal muscle, which may lead to local insulin resistance and may stimulate inflammation. In addition, obesity changes the composition of adipose tissue, leading to changes in protein production and secretion. Some of these secreted proteins, including several proinflammatory mediators, may be produced by macrophages resident in the adipose tissue. The changes in inflammatory status of adipose tissue and liver with obesity feed a growing recognition that obesity represents a state of chronic low-level inflammation.

Obesity is closely linked to fat storage in liver and is nowadays considered as a major risk factor for the development of fatty liver diseases. The incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disorders (NAFLDs) and obesity are therefore intimately linked. It has been estimated that about 75% of obese subjects have NAFLD while 20% develop fatty liver disease with inflammation.

The amount of fat stored in liver is determined by the balance between fatty acid uptake, endogenous fatty acid synthesis, triglyceride synthesis, fatty acid oxidation, and triglyceride export. Changes in any of these parameters can affect the amount of fat stored in liver.

The excessive fat accumulation in adipose tissue, liver, and other organs strongly predisposes to the development of metabolic changes that increase overall morbidity risk. The metabolic abnormalities that often accompany obesity include hypertension, impaired glucose tolerance, insulin resistance leading to hyperinsulinemia, and dyslipidemia. Collectively, these abnormalities have been clustered into the metabolic syndrome.

Individuals that are diagnosed with metabolic syndrome have a significantly increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type II diabetes. Observations have led to the view that obesity is a state of chronic low-grade inflammation that is initiated by morphological changes in the adipose tissue.

Obesity represents a major health threat. By targeting the inflammatory component, the progression of obesity towards insulin resistance and CVD might be slowed down.

So what can you do to fight inflammation and obesity? Big key items are a healthy lifestyle, regular fitness plan and good nutrition. You can also make sure that you take in good doses of anti-oxidants as part of your nutrition plan.

Antioxidants neutralize free radicals. In the last decade, scientists have proven that some antioxidants have anti-inflammatory properties. In addition to scavenging free radicals, there are antioxidants that actually block inflammation. The antioxidant effect (the blocking of certain oxidizing proteins) lowers the activation of inflammatory signals. Scientists have also found that combinations of certain antioxidants have greater effect than single antioxidants on certain types of inflammation.

Some key anti-oxidants and helpers are vitamin E, coenzyme Q10, lipoic acid, L-Carnitine, zinc, and magnesium amongst many others.

The best sources of antioxidants are vegetables, fruits, tea and wine. It is a good idea to get your antioxidants from a variety of sources. The more colorful your natural foods the better - yellow, orange, green, red, brown and blue-purple plant foods provide a variety of antioxidants, and the more brightly colored, the richer the food is in anti-oxidants. Foods are considered to be the preferred way of boosting antioxidant levels because they're thought to contain a wide array of antioxidant substances. Many of the them are also high in vitamins, minerals and fiber.

Some rich sources of antioxidants include (USDA Top 20): 

Small red bean (dried)
Wild blueberry
Red kidney bean (dried)
Pinto bean
Blueberry (cultivated)
Cranberry
Artichoke (cooked hearts)
Blackberry
Prune
Raspberry
Strawberry
Red delicious apple
Granny Smith apple
Pecan
Sweet cherry
Black plum
Russet potato
Black bean (dried)
Plum
Gala apple

So if your worried about where you stand with inflammation, consult your doctor for appropriate testing. Otherwise, work on your lifestyle, bad habits, fitness and nutrition and you'll be on your way to a much healthier day!

References:

http://dempseysresolution.getprograde.com/fighting-inflammation.html?advert_id=CN

http://www.arthritistoday.org/symptoms/inflammation/inflammation-heart-disease.php

http://www.wellnessletter.com/html/wl/2008/wlFeatured0108.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1783744/

http://www.osteoarthritisremedy.com/herbal-remedies/inflammationremedy/antioxidants-for-inflammation

Eric
Dempsey's Resolution Fitness