How to Effectively Create a Calorie Deficit.

In order to lose weight you have to have a calorie deficit, no if, ands, or buts about it. Like I said before it's all energy balance and our body gets energy in three main ways:

1. Calories from the foods we eat
2. Stored glycogen in our liver and muscles
3. body-fat

Our body prefers glycogen while we exercise and a mix of the food we eat and body-fat at other times.  While we rest our body uses the highest percentage of body-fat when we have a calorie deficit. 

This post is about being effective, and I think effective means long term results.  Yes, if you only ate 800 calories and exercised for several hours a day you would lose a lot of weight in the short-term, but it would haunt you in the end when your metabolism shuts down on you. It is best to do it gradually.

The math is very simple, 3,500 calories is equal to one pound of body-fat. So if you want to lose one pound a week you need a daily deficit average of 500, and for two pounds an average deficit of 1,000.

You can get this deficit by simply eating less or just by increasing exercise. The fact is our body just sees the net of our calories in versus our calories out so you can do it anyway you like, but yet again effective long-term results come from a combination of diet and exercise. 

If your goal is to lose two pounds a week, then daily in some sort of combination of diet and exercise you need to have a net of -1,000 calories. 

Calories burned calculator 

This again is why it is so important to log your calories.  If you simply guess how much you ate, you are setting yourself up for heartbreak and failure. 

The Sound of Music c'est fini

"Really?  Just in their underwear?"

Wow! What an amazingly great time I had working on this show. I had a blast performing in front of  large audiences and building friendships with my talented fellow cast members that I think will last a lifetime. I had no idea I would be so sad that it's over.



I have so many memorable moments; like when I was too nervous to look at the crowd opening night, until my dance partner told me they were all in their underwear, so of course I took a peak.

Sorry "Fro" I didn't mean the things I said.

Or when I had had to yell and look nasty at Frau Schmidt, who in real life was the kindest and sweetest lady I've ever met. I felt so bad being mean to her, but at the same time it also felt pretty good.

My Favorite scene was getting in the face of the Captain- I knew the Van Trapp's were up to something.  The actor playing Captain Von Trapp and I get a long great, he is a great guy, but for that scene we truly hated each other. We got nose to nose, our faces twitched and I really wanted to punch him. It felt amazing to act so nasty, but I'm not really nasty, or am I?

Just sing the darnn song!

It's safe to say that I caught the "theatre bug". While I deeply miss the Sound of Music I am already getting excited for my next show, and hopefully my next role will be one I can really sink my teeth in to.

Backstage working on my anger issues.

Me and the enchanting Elsa

I miss my tux

"Sister, I need to confess my sins"

Overeating is the #1 cause of obesity!

Not really a shocker, but with doctors and experts trying to find a fix for the next great epidemic the simple truth gets lost in all of the excuses.  The fact is if you consistently overeat you will gain weight.

It all comes down to energy and energy balance. Our bodies are machines, and calories are the energy our machines run on. We both output calories and input calories and when we have excess calories our body has a very nifty long term storage system called body-fat.  Body-fat has a purpose other than making our lives miserable, when we have times when calories are scarce like a famine, we have back-up energy to prolong our survival.

The only way to lose weight the right way is create a calorie deficit, and the only way to effectively do this is to know how many calories you need daily and as tedious as it may be, keep track of your daily calories. You can have the best intentions and be very motivated but we are prone to overeat when we do not know how much we can have.

How many calories do you need?


Harris and Benedict Formula for Basal Metabolic Rate

Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )
Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year )

• Find your BMR, this is very important. Your BMR is how many calories you need daily to maintain normal functions, this does not include exercise or activities.  BMR is your true metabolism, and it's key because when we have a deficit of calories your BMR will burn body-fat to make up the difference.

Harris Benedict Formula for daily calories needs:

(Note the formula below is daily needs, it will not create a deficit and therefor is not a formula for losing weight but a formula for maintenance.)


To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the activity multiplier:

• If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2
• If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.375
• If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55
• If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725
• If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9

Now you know how to determine your calorie needs, and knowing is half the battle. 

Check back tomorrow for my post on effectively creating a calorie deficit. 

The Sound of Music

One of the coolest benefits of losing a lot of weight is the opportunity to re-define yourself.  In life we seem to act the way we believe other people think we should act. We misplace who we are because of fear and conformity. When I was overweight as child, and as an adult, I was extremely quiet and shy.  I really didn’t want anyone to notice me and, God forbid, the anxiety I felt when I was the center of attention.  In public I really wasn’t me- my personality was lost in my fat. When the weight started coming off I started to open up to people.  When the disgusted looks were replaced with smiles I stopped feeling insecure.  I literally became a new person inside and out.

The talented cast

When I was over 300lbs there was no way I would ever be on stage in a play, but the fit me loves acting.  My   8 year old son is the true actor in the family and his love for it has drawn me into theatre.  

Me as Herr Zeller yelling at poor Max
Photo courtesy of Bruce Strand at the Star News

I am the nasty Nazi, Herr Zeller, in the Elk River Community Theatre Production of The Sound of Music. This is my second show after I had my debut as the huntsman in Snow White this past spring.  This is the true meaning of re-defining one’s self; from shy to outgoing I have done a full 180.

 Today I don’t feel bound to what other people think of me, after losing 120lbs I know I can do anything I put my mind to, and I also understand that all things are possible with faith and patience.

I am not sad about the years of my life that were sort of lost being overweight because I am too thankful for the life I have now.  

Going out to eat?

My new favorite diet friendly dinner is at TGIFriday's.

I believe going out for dinner is one of the most stressful situations that we go through when we are dieting and trying to lose weight.   The food at restaurants, while delicious, is extremely high in the wrong kinds of calories. The Spike Diet gives us a solution to this problem by giving us one day a week where we can chose whatever we want on the menu. But what about the other 6 days when we need to restrict our calories in order to create a deficit so our body will be forced to burn fat for energy? What do you do when you are going to a restaurant and it's not your Spike Day?
The answer is not to give up or just give in. Many restaurants today are offering us lower calorie, lower fat options, we just need to look for them.  They usually post a little heart or a "low fat" tag next to the item on the menu.  Also, if you know where you are going to eat at , look up their menu online and check the calories so you know what you can order before you even get there.  This may help the impulse choice of barbecue ribs and french fries.

But what if they don't mark their menu with their healthier options and you have not had time to check out their nutritional menu?
My back-up plan is always grilled chicken, and I check their side dish menu for veggies and fruit.

Today my family and I went to TGIFriday's and, while getting a bacon cheeseburger and fries was very tempting, it just was not my Spike Day. Today I have a calorie limit and that one meal would have ruined my daily goal. They had one low fat option on their menu but it sounded too spicy so I went with the Jack Daniel's Grilled Chicken  and from the sides I chose the broccoli and mashed potatoes.  I checked out the calories on my fatsecret app on my phone and I was thrilled to see that it fit perfectly into my daily plan. Only 500 calories, with the mashed potatoes, and only 10 grams of fat. Overall  42% of the calories were from protein, 40% were from carbohyrdates and 18% were from fat. On the Spike Diet my goal is 40-40-20...PERFECT FIT!

Jack Daniels Grilled Chicken Dinner

The taste was awesome! I love grilled chicken and this was one of my all-time favorite chicken meals. The broccoli was great, the potatoes were great, and I didn't feel like I was missing my cheeseburger and fries.  It's nice having a "safe meal" at a restaurant that I know I both love and fits with my eating goals.

Metabolism is NOT the same as Energy

One huge common misconception is that metabolism and energy are the same.  Metabolism in layman's terms is really just the process of how our body breaks down matter or in a dieter's case food, and also the process it builds cells like muscle tissue.

One way to really see the difference between energy and metabolism is sleep.  If I had a scale of 1-100 noting my energy level I'd say while sleeping I'd be a 1, but my metabolism is still going, processing and building all night long. If I were to drink a few cups of coffee I may be a 100 on the energy scale but it's increase in my metabolism would be very minimal. Just to be clear caffeine does have an effect on metabolism, but it's small and not at the same level it has on my energy.

I'm sure you have heard of negative calorie foods, things like broccoli and grapefruit.  I hate to be the bearer of bad news but they are not "negative calories" and the only thing that could be truly called a negative calorie food is water, which is another advantage to getting your 8-12 glasses a day. All foods have a Thermic Effect, or TEF for short. The thermic effect is related to the amount of energy needed to metabolize food. Protein is the ultimate burner and dietary fat will have very little effect on your metabolism. The TEF of protein is around 30-33%, so to metabolize a calorie of protein it takes 1/3 calorie of energy. Or for every 100 calories from protein it takes 33 calories to process it.  Dietary fat is only 2-3%, and carbohydrates only about 7%, making Protein the undisputed Metabolism Booster of the World!

So protein is one way to increase your metabolism, another huge way to increase metabolism is lifting weights.  Lifting weights helps metabolism 2 very important ways.

1. When we lift we are tearing muscle tissue that will need to be rebuilt later, causing an increase in metabolism.
2. After the muscle are rebuilt and now stronger it takes more calories daily for them to function and maintain thus increasing our resting metabolism.

Metabolism is extremely important to weight loss, when we are dieting our stored body-fat really can be the main source of energy to run our metabolism.  When our metabolism slows down our weight-loss will slow down too.

In general eating increases metabolism and dieting decreases it, making the Spike Day so very important to long-term weight loss.  This is how I named my diet plan, I have one day a week to eat a surplus of calories to rev up and SPIKE my metabolism so that I will be a fat burning machine for another 6 days before I Spike again.

PROTEIN! PROTEIN! PROTEIN!

When I was younger and first started working out I busted my butt 4-5 days a week and while I was getting stronger, I seamed to plateau often, and it took several months to get any good results.

Now I workout about 30 minutes, 2-3 times a week and I progress weekly.

So what's the difference? PROTEIN!

Yes my overall diet is much better but my main missing ingredient was recovery. Without adequate protein our gains in strength and lean muscle will be minimal. The day I bought the Arnold Schwarzenegger Guide to Modern Day Bodybuilding my whole mentality on fitness changed.  No longer was a eating salad after salad, or drinking V8, I began eating more lean meat and I was introduced to the world of protein shakes.  Which I must say  protein shakes have come a long way in the past 15 years. The first drinks I had were comparable to mixing clumps of chalk with water, but I drank them anyway.  Today there are several protein mixes that are not only full of the best amino acids available but they also taste great.

The three most important types of protein are:

1. Whey Protein- It's the fasting absorbing protein making it perfect post workout and when you wake up.
2. Casein Protein- Both Whey and Casein come from milk but Casein is slower digesting and naturally time released making it a great meal replacement and pre-bed snack.
3. Egg Albumin- Before Whey Protein was introduced Eggs were the benchmark for all proteins.  It had the best bio-availability meaning it had the best rate for absorption so it was given a score of 100 on the BV scale.  In comparison Whey Protein is anywhere from a 102-150 on the BV Scale depending on if it's isolate the best, or a concentrate. Albumin is also great as a meal replacement.   

The Most Important times to have protein are:

1. Post Workout, there is a window where your muscles are craving amino acids, so I choose to have 40 grams of Whey Isolate as soon as I finish lifting.
2. Before Bed, You are about to be fasting for several hours so it's good to have a blend or time released protein like a glass of milk so your body will not turn catabolic(literally your body eats muscles for their amino acids).
3. As soon as you wake-up, Same as above, break your fasting state with some quick absorbing amino acids.  It kicks starts your metabolism and feeds your muscles.

As far as how much protein you need, check out these calculators from bodybuilding.com. The amount we need definitely varies by our body types and activities.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/how-much-protein-is-it-safe-for-me-to-take.htm

I am a protein drink connoisseur and I have tried just about everything out there. My favorites not only provide top notch nutrition but they are delicious.

You can purchase these from bodybuilding.com ,or nutrition stores like Vitamin Shoppe or GNC.

My Favorites:

1. Myofusion from Gaspari, both the Strawberry and their Milk Chocolate-Blended protein
2. Syntrax Matrix Cookies and Cream-Blended Protein, good for meal replacements.
3. Syntrax Nectar-Fruit Flavored Whey Isolate,  mixes and tastes great with water. This is the perfect protein post workout and in the morning.