Читать книгу Body Blitz: 5 Simple Steps to Permanent Fat Loss - Joanna Hall - Страница 14

Unfortunately, if we are consuming more calories than we are expending our fat cells will get bigger and bigger. Although fat cells do not generally divide and increase in numbers, if we eat excessively and gain a significant amount of weight (40–50 pounds) then our fat cells will get bigger and divide and it is likely that the body fat gained at this time will pose more of a problem to shift. While this may seem depressing it helps explain why sometimes we look at friends and they appear to have dropped the weight effortlessly, while our own efforts seem to require a lot more persistence. Appreciating this will allow you to approach your Body Blitz Plan with a realistic picture of what you can achieve long-term.

The most effective way to decrease the size of your fat cells is to reduce your weekly intake of calories. This can be achieved through a combination of sensible nutrition and physical activity (see Steps One to Five for specific strategies). For fat cells to get smaller we need to create a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories per week. At first sight this figure can appear alarming, however the trick to effective body fat loss is to ensure that the calorie deficit is achieved slowly and consistently. Spreading the 3,500 over seven days means you are aiming for a decrease of 500 calories each day from your normal daily calorie range. If you split these 500 calories between accumulated physical activities, structured exercise and the nutritional strategies in the Body Blitz Plan, the figure becomes a lot more manageable. As we go through the book you will see how you can achieve this calorie deficit effectively, while continuing to live your life to the full. Different lifestyle constraints will mean that more emphasis will be placed on the different strategies at different times.

WAYS TO SAVE 500 CALORIES A DAY

Accumulated physical activity: Walk to post office rather than drive, take the stairs at work, walk up the escalators. Saves you: 100 calories

Structured exercise: Power walk for one mile. Saves you: 100 calories

Nutrition: Operate starch curfew in evening meal. Replace a portion of pasta with two portions of extra vegetables. Saves you: 200 calories

Replace mid-afternoon snack of 2 slices of bread and jam with an apple. Saves you: 100 calories.