Bread..looks suspiciously like fat cells…

Q: Is it true that I’m stuck with the fat cells I have? Or is there some way I can lose them?

A: No, you’re not stuck: You can shed fat cells, but you won’t find it to be a stroll in the park. When we gain weight as adults, we are mostly enlarging the fat cells we have instead of adding more. This process has a medical name: hypertrophic obesity. Reversing this type of weight gain requires shrinking the cells, but they don’t put up a huge fight when being shrunk from plus size back to normal.

While not exactly easy, this type of weight loss is more doable than reversing the other kind of obesity: hyperplastic.

When we quickly put on a lot of pounds in early childhood, at puberty, and sometimes even as adults, we can grow new fat cells. Known as hyperplastic obesity, it poses a daunting challenge. The only way to be thin if you have an excessive population of fat cells is to shrink them below normal size, which is where things get really tough.

The cells begin to produce less leptin, a hormone that signals the brain when you’re full. You’ll end up feeling ravenous all the time. If you find the will to lose more than 10 percent of your body weight (more than 20 pounds for someone who weighs 200), eventually you’ll induce a process called apoptosis—cell death. You could begin trimming your population of fat cells. Once you do, you’ll find that maintaining a lower weight gets easier. 

So you want know if you can do abs everyday, do you? No one ever asks if they can train back everyday or calves? Actually, I’d think they were crazy if they did. Okay, here’s my answer…

There are three primary types of core training:

1. stability; 2. strength; 3. power

Most of us will generally only train for stability and strength. My philosophy is that you can perform core stability exercises most days of the week. These are planks, bridges, balance exercises, and isometric holds.

You should not perform core strength exercises everyday, so no crunching, leg lifting, twist moves. We have to remember that muscle needs rest to grow, its recommended to get at least 24 hours of rest before training the same muscle group…this includes abs.

In an earlier poll, you guys said that abs were your least favorite to exercise, so how come you want to know if you can train them everyday? Don’t get it…

Oh!?…You wanted me to say you don’t have to, got it!

Q: Should I eat protein before or after my workout?

You should consume protein before AND after your workouts. Always eat a small pre-workout meal consisting of some low glycemic carbs and a quality protein. A good meal is a half cup of rolled oats and a scoop of whey protein. This provides you with a sustained carb source to provide energy through your workout and a quality protein source to support muscle repair and growth.

Post-workout meal should consist of a high quality protein and a high glycemic carbohydrate. After your workout is the ideal time to spike your insulin levels and re-supply your body with glycogen. Liquid meals are great after your workout because you don’t have to deal with the heavy digestion which real foods takes. I like Isagenix alot, it’s everything my body needs after a hard workout.The goal for post workout is to maintain a prompt digestion rate so nutrients can transport swiftly and efficiently to our muscles.

Q: We love your website. DomestiGal Jen has about 10 months until her wedding (shhh… she’s not officially engaged yet since her diamond-of-dreams has not yet been bought). Anyway, what’s the best way for her to get her arms in shape while in business school? Colossus, her studly personal trainer while in London, works out with her 3 days a week and she has to look hotter than hot for her strapless wedding gown.

Hey Domestigal Jen!

Every woman who writes to me seems to want toned arms, so let’s go through some of the basics of an arm-toning workout and then put it all together in a routine that you can take to the gym.

To tone a muscle you need to lose fat
This is the big essential tip that you need to learn! Arm toning is not possible without losing fat and it’s not possible to lose fat off of only your arms. This means that if you want to tone your arms you need to start a weight loss program that will help you lose weight from your whole body.

You need to work with heavy weights to build muscle

With a low body fat percentage your muscles will start to shine through as defined and firm. So, weight loss is just as important as muscle gain when it comes to arm toning.

Many women are concerned about getting bulky but really shouldn’t be as they do not have enough testosterone to get big. If a trainer or a gym instructor tells you to use light weights with high reps to tone your arms, tell them they’re dumb and leave. Working out with lighter weights and higher reps is a bad rumor that we should all ignore.

The reason is simple. When you weight train you break your muscles slightly and the rebuilding is what produces muscle growth. Heavy weights obviously stresses them more and will amount to more muscles being torn and rebuilt. Heavy weights will also speed up your metabolism which in turn will burn more fat thus helping you tone your arms.

The exercises
The exercises for your arm toning are simple weight lifting exercises that are done with free weights (bar bells and dumb bells).

1 – Bar bell curl
Standing with your feet shoulder width apart grab a bar bell about shoulder width apart. With your elbows locked firmly to a position by your side, lift the weight up using your biceps to the top of your chest. Lower it slowly down without moving your elbows and repeat.

2 – Alternate dumb bell curl
Standing with feet shoulder width apart grab two dumb bells and let them rest at your side. Tensing your bicep curl one dumb bell up and twist it so that when the dumb bell reaches it’s top position near your shoulder your palm is facing your shoulder. As you lower this dumb bell down to it’s starting position repeat with the opposite arm.

Triceps
1 – Close grip bench press

Laying on a bench take a medium heavy bar bell a bit narrower than shoulder width grip and bring it down to your lower ribs. Push the weight up using your triceps and lower it to the same position. Just before it reaches your chest fire it up in the pushing direction again before it gets a chance to rest on your body. This prevents your chest from taking over with the weight lifting.

2 – Tricep kickbacks
Take a light dumb bell in your right hand. Place your left hand and left knee on a low flat bench. Keeping your back straight lift your elbow so that your upper arm is in line with your torso. Slowly tense your tricep and lift the dumb bell to a position where you arm is almost locked out straight. Lower and repeat.

The arm toning workout

These are the basic four exercises that you will use to build your foundation of strength and technique. Remember, without perfect technique you will not make any progress so exert yourself in making sure that your posture and lifting method is perfect.

1. Warm up with some cardio, stretching and light weights.
2. Bar bell curls – 4 sets of 10-15 reps
3. Narrow grip bench press – 4 sets of 8-10 reps
4. Alternate dumb bell curls – 4 sets of 8-10 reps
5. Tricep kickbacks – 4 sets of 10-15 reps

Remember, when a rep number says 8-10 it means that you should pick a weight that causes you to ‘fail’ in that rep range. It does not mean that you pick a light weight and only do 8 reps. It means you should be struggling to get to 8. Perform each exercise with care and slowly. Do not be tempted to pump out the reps quickly.

Q: My hair is dull; I’d like to try a gloss or a glaze. What’s the difference?

Such an innocent question. It seems so simple: Gloss, glaze, which is which? Well, start here: a gloss is a bit more permanent than a glaze. It adds shine and adjusts the tone (say, if your highlights are too bright or brassy, a gloss will subdue them). A gloss penetrates the hair’s cuticle, so it lasts two to four weeks. A glaze, on the other hand, simply coats the shaft with shine and semipermanent color; it’s like putting a top coat of polish on your hair, and it lasts a week or two. But here’s the problem: Haircare companies use “gloss” and “glaze” interchangeably. A glaze added shine and deposited semipermanent color, and a gloss added only shine, but the word “gloss” was added to dye products because it’s appealing to people who are coloring their hair.

Bottom line: If you want just shine, look for a “clear” gloss or glaze (like Frédéric Fekkai Salon Glaze Clear Shine Rinse, $28). If you’re looking to boost your color or bump up your highlights, choose a gloss or glaze with “semipermanent” color (like John Frieda Luminous Color Glaze, $10).

And every once in a while, I sit here in my NYC apartment and wonder whether I could be more useful to you if I had a better idea of what your most pressing issues are, fitness and health wise.

Are you struggling more with the changes in your body as you get older? Do you have a problem gaining weight or have you gained way too damn much? Are you confused and overwhelmed by all the diet products or supplements you hear about? Do you feel informed by this page? What else would you like to see?

To respond, send an email right now to sherika@justeatsmart.com. I probably should go exercise, but I’ll sit and wait for the emails to come in.

Q: Why do I seem to gain weight as I get older?

As you age, you lose muscle mass, and muscle is a much more effective user of sugar than any other part of you. As you approach menopause, some of your hormones peter out and that can impact muscle growth. The new hormone environment in our body tends to send fat to the area around your internal organs, which helps explain why the waistline expands. All this is happening at an age when most of us begin to exercise less. In preparation for the onset of menopause women should exercise more and eat smaller, frequent portions.

The easiest way to control weight is to avoid gaining too much weight in the first place. When you put on a lot of weight, you start adding new fat cells, which, once acquired, never go away. You can empty them, but they hang around just waiting to be filled up again and that happens a lot more quickly and easily than a cell that has to build itself from scratch.

Yes & no.  Well, depends.

What determines how fat your get isn’t when you eat, but the number of calories you’ve eaten. What tends to happen is that when you opt for a late dinner, you’re so hungry that you down a mega portion, underestimating the number of calories you’re eating.

Experts also believe that late night feasting disrupts your body’s normal metabolic process and affects the hormones that regulate blood sugars and fats. Remember, sleeping is a time to rebuild and rejuvenate, not to process your 22 oz steak. Aim for equal distributions of snacks and meals during the day to keep yourself from gorging at nights.

Q: What’s the Difference Between Natural and Organic?

Natural typically refers to ingredients derived from plants or minerals. Organic describes substances grown without synthetic pesticides, fertilizers and processed without man made chemicals.

For products to bear the U.S. Department of Agriculture Seal, 95 to 100 percent of its ingredients must meet the agency’s organic standards. Products that contain 70 percent can use “made with organic ingredients”, but they will not receive the seal. These rules also apply to cosmetics.