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Why is There Fat?
Believe it or not, fat is important. It is not nature ’s mistake, but rather, essential to life.
The ability to store energy in the form of fat is a critical survival mechanism for any living
o rganism subject to an uncertain and intermittently inadequate food supply. A normal human can
s u rvive up to two months with no food whatsoever - in total starvation, with only water - only
because of the presence of stored energy in the body, mostly as fat. And body fat also provides
shielding from cold.
To d a y, however, many of the survival advantages nature intended fat to provide are unneeded.
Food is typically not scarce, but abundant and in constant supply. Most people do not re q u i re an
“ e n e rgy re s e rvoir”, as they too often lead quite sedentary lives.
These days, most people’s biggest problem is how to avoid building an “energy re s e rvoir” that is
too large, i.e., how to avoid getting fat! This becomes more and more true as we grow older, since
our rate of calorie burning - also known as the metabolic rate - diminishes with age along with our
activity level, while our food consumption typically goes up, not down.
And so it is that 40% to 50% of the adult population needs to lose weight. But how? Should you
simply “go on a diet”? Will that work permanently? As you will see, the answer to that question is
quite definitely “NO”.
What Happens When You Diet?
S e v e rely restrictive diets, such as the “liquid protein” schemes, or some of the popular “crash”
diet programs — or any diet that recommends severe, temporary reduction of caloric intake — will
cause weight loss that is often due in large part to lean body weight loss, which is loss of import a n t
body muscle tissue. This kind of weight loss is the worst possible way to achieve your goals because
it leads to weakness, ill health, and a d e c reased metabolic rate , which in turn makes it ever hard e r
to lose fat. This sets up the never-ending cycle of defeat and futility so familiar to the chronic dieter.
Dieting will, in the long run, make you fatter!
Yo u ’ re reading this because what you want to lose is f a t. And you don’t want to suffer too much
in the process. The simple, powerful solution: Follow the system outlined below, and watch what
h a p p e n s !
Food and How to Control It
D o n ’t s
1 ) Avoid going on repeated diets, each of which usually sets you up to regain everything you
lose, and then some, just as soon as you “go off” your diet. Instead, follow the simple
guidelines below.
2 ) D o n ’t add any fat or oil to anything you eat... ever! This is by far the most important rule to
re m e m b e r, and it cannot be overemphasized. The words “added fats and oils” have a very
specific and special meaning here, re f e rring to all those unnatural fats and oils that humans
m a n u f a c t u re, process, and add to the food you eat. There are no such things as added fats
and oils in nature. They just don’t exist. N AT U R E makes corn... H U M A N S make corn oil,
m a rgarine and deep-fried food. N AT U R E c reates soybeans and peanuts... H U M A N S
m a n u f a c t u re soy oil, mayonnaise, and peanut oil.
It is very important to avoid ALL added fats and oils, not just because they’ll make you fat, but
because they’ll also make you s i c k, linked as they are to such disorders as breast and colon
cancers, heart disease, and other serious illnesses.
Eliminating added fats and oils means avoiding:
•
M a rgarine,
•
M a y o n n a i s e ,
•
Olive Oil,
•
B u t t e r,
•
Oily salad dressings,
•
Chips of all kinds (unless they’re baked),
•
Fried foods,
•
F rench fries,
•
C ream cheese,
•
Ice cream,
•
L a rd,
•
and any other m a n u f a c t u re d fat or oil.
Note that if you don’t like salads without dressing — try lemon juice and seasoning salt.
I t ’s delicious! Or... try any of the oil-free salad dressings now widely available.
All the above-listed items are h o rr i b l e for you. But the h y d ro g e n a t e d p roducts such as
m a rgarine, mayonnaise, and all h e a t e d fats and oils are the worst, as they are high in t r a n s fats,
substances that form when fat or oil is heated or heavily processed. Tr a n s fats are directly
implicated in the onset and/or exacerbation of obesity, cardiovascular disease and cancer. Av o i d
these “foods” at all costs.
Summary of Contents for Power Gym
Page 20: ...Notes...