Day 3 Of Week 10 How To Manipulate Your Metabolism

Weight today: same

Total lost:18 pound in 9 weeks

1/2 cup of oatmeal:150

1 tsp of sugar:15

1 tbl of powder creamer with coffee:30

with sweet-n-low:0

total:195

vanilla protein shake:110
-------------
running total:305

1 large egg:70
1 large egg white:10
1 lefse:30
1/2 cup of fat free cottage cheese:80
4 oz strawberries:36
1 tsp of sugar:15
1 tbl of powder creamer with coffee:30
with sweet-n-low:0
total:271
------------------------
running total:576

vanilla protein shake:110
3 1/2 oz banana: 87
total: 197
------------------
running total: 773

3 1/2 oz banana:87
------------------
running total: 860

3 1/2 oz chicken breast: 123
4 oz potato:88
1 tsp of Smart Balance light butter: 15
total: 226
---------------------
running total: 1086

Today's challenge: Performing work-outs while being on a reduced calorie diet

Planned fitness: 5-mile run, 60 minute bicep and back workout, My abdominal routine twice

Note on picture: This is toasted Arnold Select Multi Grain Sandwhich thins:100 with 1 large egg:70 and 1 large egg white:10 with 1 tsp of Smart Balance light butter:15 for a caloric total of 195. I give these sandwhich thins a thumbs up for my first time tasting them.

How To Manipulate Your Metabolism

Let me guess...this is the post you've all been waiting for.

I have actually touched on this topic in other articles, but since I'm in the final days of my ten weeks on this diet, now seems like a good time to bring this up again.

What I am doing this week involves me manipulating my metabolism in such a way as to make it think that I'm not starving myself so that I don't gain weight. This is a technique that body builders will use to drop the fat and to bring out more definition in their bodies. If my body thinks it's being starved, it will slow down its metabolism and start conserving fuel, which is the exact opposite of what I want it to do.

Actually I have been manipulating my metabolism all nine weeks, but this week it's especially important that I follow the plan because I'm dropping my calories by 20 percent.

Basically what I am doing is eating five to six small meals a day so that I'm asking my body to digest something every few hours throughout the day. Every time I have a small meal, my body sends a little signal to my brain that says everything is hunky dory...don't conserve fuel, in fact rev it up some more.

The trick is, of course, is that I've included a smaller amount of calories in each meal. Another important trick in this whole metabolism game, is I'm including quality food in each small meal. I'm including lean protein and good carbohydrates. I'm actually giving it the core energy it needs to function.

During the week, when I am weight lifting and working out, I make a special point to consume two protein shakes a day and also a decent level of protein during two of my meals. My body needs every gram of the protein I consume to build the muscle that I'm trying to build.

That leads me to the second plank of manipulating my metabolism. The more muscle mass that I can build, the higher I drive up my metabolism. So, for example, instead of burning 50 calories per hour of just sitting around, I burn 75 calories per hour of sitting around.

This increase of muscle mass leads me to the next wonderful truth. When I finally do reach my goal weight, I can consume more calories because my body needs more energy to support that greater muscle mass.

This is why younger children have such high metabolisms, their bodies are growing and they're building muscle. After we stop growing, unless we do something to keep that muscle, we start to lose it. And lost muscle means you have to eat fewer calories to stay at the same weight.

The final key to manipulating your metabolism, is to make sure you're drinking 8-10 glasses of water a day. Because your body is working on a reduced number of calories, you really need to give it all the edge it can have and that is plenty of water to support your major systems. We're made up of 75% water. Any small dent in your water table will impair your body's ability to function. Then, it will do the same thing it does with starvation. If it doesn't have enough water, it will send a signal to your brain to start retaining water. Water retention equals weight gain or no weight loss.

Besides, you feel better when you're well-hydrated. Would it help if I said you probably even look better being well-hydrated with all that extra moisture in your skin?

But folks, I'll have to be honest with you. I've never actually dropped down to 1,100 calories before. So, I'm making sure that I space out my meals throughout the day, and plan my work-outs inbetween my snacks and meals.

So, what do you think? Do you think you can handle eating food every few hours throughout the day?

Geeze, who would have thought you can actually lose weight eating all the time.