How to Burn the Most Fat: Exercise in a Fasted State!

If you're looking to burn the most fat, try exercising first thing in the morning without eating.

In grad school I did a lot of research on exercise and energy metabolism, and learned that for the most fat burn, it is best to exercise on an empty stomach. Yet another recent study out of the UK confirms this school of thought (2). This study followed 12 physically active men and found that the men burned 20% more calories from fat in a fasted state compared to when they ate breakfast. Furthermore, they did not overcompensate by eating more calories later in the day nor had an increased appetite compared to when they ate prior to exercise. One of the researchers was quoted as saying: "Our results show that exercise does not increase your appetite, hunger or food consumption later in the day and to get the most out of your session it may be optimal to perform this after an overnight fast” (1).

My recommendations:  I am hesitant to recommend exercising without eating to people who have never tried for fear they might faint. If weight loss and fat burning is your main motivation for exercising, you may want to try working out first thing in the morning. However, I advise you to bring a glucose-containing drink or piece of fruit with you in case you start to feel light headed. Some people may also find that they have no energy when working out hungry which could negate the benefit of increased fat burning. If you have less energy, your workout will be weaker, so you will end up burning fewer calories than if you had eaten (and therefore, fewer calories from fat). 

Furthermore, I never recommend exercising without eating first for diabetics or those with blood-sugar issues. For those athletes who are most concerned about getting a good workout in- as opposed to just burning calories and fat- always eat or consume something with glucose before a workout to get the most out of it. Personally, I would rather have enough energy and a good workout than be feeling hungry and tired when I'm exercising. If I'm exercising early in the morning, I am always sure to eat at least a piece of fruit like a banana beforehand (see post below on the benefits of bananas!), but usually also coffee made with a protein-containing milk (soy or cow) and a hearty meal containing carbs and protein afterwards. 

Product Shout out!: This past weekend I gave out CLICK espresso protein drink samples at our open house. For most of my clients, I do not advocate the need for protein shakes and would rather have them make their own. However, this stuff is delicious and is a quick and convenient way to get in caffeine, some carbs, and protein before an early-morning workout when time to prepare food is limited. So, if you are looking for a good pre-workout protein drink, I recommend this product. I tried the vanilla latte flavor before I did kettlebell and spinning on two different days and had an amazing workouts both times- tons of energy and felt great! Another benefit is CLICK is a milk-based protein (casein) so it can actually be heated and not chunk up like whey protein based supplements.

Note: I do not receive any monetary compensation from CLICK, and this is an actual recommendation based on my experience with the product.

References:

1. Northumbria University. "Lose fat faster before breakfast." ScienceDaily, 24 Jan. 2013. Web. 28 Jan. 2013.

2. Javier T. Gonzalez, Rachel C. Veasey, Penny L. S. Rumbold, Emma J. Stevenson. Breakfast and exercise contingently affect postprandial metabolism and energy balance in physically active males. British Journal of Nutrition, 2013

Kelly's Kool & Kreamy Killer Smoothie

Last night I made the most delicious smoothie I just have to share! As many of you know I am a big fan of using cottage cheese in smoothies since they add a heavy dose of protein and make the smoothie more of a milkshake consistency, for far less calories. Here is what I did (approximations of measurements, since I tend to just throw stuff in):

Kelly's Kool & Kreamy Killer Smoothie
1/2 cup cottage cheese
4 orange sections/slices
1/2 cup Almond Breeze Almond Coconut Milk
Dash of cinnamon
4 ice cubes

(Nutrition- Makes ~ 12 oz: 160 calories, 3 g fat (if using 1% cottage cheese), 20 g carb (5 g fiber, 14 g sugar), 15.5 g protein, 522 mg sodium (try using a low-sodium cottage cheese instead), 64% DV Vit C, ~50% DV Vit D, 40% DV Vit E, 34% DV Calcium

Additions I made to increase the calories, nutritional value, and flavor: ~ 1 tbsp Trader Joe's Mango butter, 2 tsp Chia Seeds, 1/4 banana
*Nutrition info increases to: 275 cal, 6 g fat, 34 g carb (9 g fiber, 27 g sugar), 17 g protein

I blended all together and it made for a delicious and creamy shake. Definitely a much healthier substitution for ice cream, a milkshake, or another dessert in general. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Best and Worst Foods For You

A lot of people ask me one of two questions:
1. What is the worst food for you?
2. What is the best food for you?


I have a lot of trouble answering these types of questions for the mere fact that it is hard to label one food as being "the worst" or "the best". It's like asking who is the "best" person that ever lived, and who is the "worst." There are a lot of contenders, and you have to look at all aspects of their lives, not just what they did in the spotlight. Likewise, when people ask me what healthy foods are, I have trouble answering that too, simply because it depends what you are looking for when you want something "healthy." 


What is healthy to one person might not be considered healthy by another. For example, I think almonds are a "healthy" food. However, one on a diet might say they do not meet their definition of healthy because almonds are high in calories and fat. In my dietitian head, I feel like I go through complex logarithms and analyses to determine if a food is healthy. Last night I tried to explain to my clients how I look at a food label and determine if the food is "healthy"... but again, it's way too complicated for me to tell them simple steps: Look at: 1) calories 2) fat 3) fiber 4) sodium, etc. If you look at the nutrition label of a peach, one might think it is unhealthy because it will show up as 60 calories, all from carbohydrate (mostly sugars and maybe 1-2 g fiber), so no protein and no healthy fats.Thus It is much more complicated than simply looking at calories, fat, sugars, and protein on a food label. One must consider the quality of the calories you are receiving. 200 calories from raw almonds is different than 200 calories from cotton candy. With the almonds you are getting mono-unsaturated fats, some polyunsaturated fats (a little saturated too, but in this case I waive that- another exception), fiber, protein, Vitamin E, etc. With the cotton candy all you are getting refined sugars and all sorts of additives to make it those funky colors.


Anyway, I could spend hours trying to stress how difficult it is to determine if a food is healthy or unhealthy. It depends what you are looking for in a meal or snack. Is it protein you need? Do you need just a filler food (in which case I would look to fiber, protein, and some fat)? However, if I had to break it down to the top best and worst foods, my list would start off something like this (in no particular order):


BEST FOODS
Oat Bran (not oat bran muffins, the hot cereal in the oatmeal aisle)
Sweet Potatoes
Salmon
Tuna Steak
Chia Seeds
Beans (navy, kidney, garbanzo, black, etc.)
Leafy greens (spinach, kale, collards, swiss chard, etc.)


WORST FOODS
Sausages and other heavily processed high-fat meats (Brats, hot dogs, bologna, salami, bacon, etc)
Klondike Bars and Super-premium ice creams (Haagen-dazs, Ben & Jerry's, etc.)
Anything with cheese + high-fat meat in one (cheese-steak, stromboli)
Cream and cheese-based soups, pastas, meals (Alfredo, chowders, chicken pot pie etc.)
Cheesecake and other rich cakes


So, you see, I can barely list a single food that is the "worst" it has to do with all the ingredients that go into it.... I hope this post gets your mind thinking about how YOU evaluate foods, and determine what "healthy" means to YOU. I'm sure this post will also cause some controversy, as many people like to challenge me when it comes to processed meats and cheese. I welcome a challenge, and remember, this is MY opinion of what is healthy- I'm just trying to get you thinking and let you have a nutrition experts opinion ;-)