Do Little Changes Really Make a Big Difference?

Many health advocates claim that accumulating physical activity through small changes can make a big difference in your health. We are encouraged to take the stairs rather than the elevator, park at the back of the parking lot and trade our desk chairs in for Swiss balls. But do these little steps really make a difference in our overall heath? New research says "yes", in a big way!

A study led by Len Kravitz, Ph.D s at the University of New Mexico showed a dramatic difference in the daily total caloric expenditure in people who fell into the obesity category and non-obese self proclaimed "couch potatoes". It turns out, the thin self-proclaimed "coach potatoes" may not have been working out regularly but they were fidgeters. Activity monitors showed their inability to sit still resulted in a whopping 350 caloric expenditure per day. Their constant fidgeting burned as many calories as a 40 minute workout!

Similarly, a recent study examined the relationship between sitting time and mortality. They found that the more leisure time people spent sitting, the higher their mortality risk. This correlation was especially evident in women; those who spent 6 hours/day sitting were 37% more likely to die during the 13 year study than those who sat less than 3 hours/day. When combined with a lack of physical activity, women were an astonishing 94% more likely to die.

Clearly, by incorporating small changes into our day we are able to make a big difference in our overall health. If you have a desk job, set your alarm to get up and walk around at least once every hour. Rather than camping out on the couch during prime-time TV, do some of the body-weight exercises or plyo sequences from bootcamp while you watch your favorite show. Meeting a friend for coffee? Get your lattes to go and take a stroll around the mall or a park while you catch up.

Little changes really can make a big difference so get up and start fidgeting for your health!

Conquering Weight Gain - For Good!

We know how much hard work and dedication are required to lose weight. But what about after we reach our goals? Do we ever get a break? We constantly see celebrities and reality weight-loss contestants repeatedly gain and lose weight while others seem to be able to maintain their new healthy weight. While a 5-10 pound weight fluctuation is normal, 20-100+ pound fluctuations are not. Data from the National Weight Control Registry, a group of 5,000 subjects who successfully lost weight and kept it off, gives us clear insight into what works.

Maintain a low fat diet - subjects who added fat back into their diets after losing weight gained back significantly more weight than those who maintained a low-fat diet.

Monitor food intake - most people grossly underestimate the number of calories they consume. By re-logging calories every few months, subjects kept their daily eating patterns in check.

Weigh yourself regularly - By stepping on the scale weekly, subjects were able to monitor their progress. If they noticed their weight slowly inching up, they knew they had to take a better look at their eating patterns, cut back on calories, and increase their exercise.

Adopt a healthy eating frequency and pattern, do not skip breakfast - Successful participants ate 4-5 small meals a day and controlled their portion sizes. Subjects reported eating slowly and measuring their portions. None of them skipped breakfast.

Exercise, OFTEN - Almost all the participants who maintained their weight-loss participated in an average of 1 hour of moderate to high intensity physical activity daily.

Take ownership, it's not "in the genes" - Despite the fact that 3/4 of the participants were either overweight as children or had a family history of obesity, they were still able to maintain their weight loss.

Don't let all your hard work sizzle out once you accomplish your goals. By integrating the lessons above into your routine, you can be sure you are not simply "dieting" but making a permanent healthy lifestyle change. I assure you, the rewards for yourself and family are worth the upkeep.