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science nutrition blog

science nutrition <strong>blog</strong>

By Steve Blechman

 

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday; there's no pressure. It's just a great evening with family and friends to give thanks. I eat all the turkey, trimmings, stuffing, cranberry, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, and of course, my vino – I love my red wine!

What if I told you that you can feast on Thanksgiving, eat all you want and burn fat, lose weight and not have a negative effect on your metabolic health? Sounds too good to be true? Science says it can be done.

A study published in the British Journal of nutrition on August 28th, 2020 was entitled “Physiological Responses To The Maximal Eating In Men.” The study was also reported by Science Daily on July 24th, 2020.

“Researchers at The Center for Nutrition Exercise and Metabolism at the University of Bath compared the effect of normal eating (i.e., eat until you're comfortably full) with maximal eating (i.e., eating until you cannot manage another bite)” in young healthy men ages 22 to 37.

“In this study, the average calorie intake in the all-you-can-eat trial was over 3,000 kcal, roughly 1.5 large pizzas. However, this varied a lot, with some individuals able to consume up to two and a half large pizzas in one go.”

Remarkably, the “All You Can Eat Pizza Diet Group” did not have a negative effect on metabolic health in a single meal, such as blood sugar or blood lipids! “Blood sugar (glucose) levels were no higher than after a normal meal.”

The researchers acknowledged that “if an otherwise healthy person overindulges occasionally there are no immediate, negative consequences in terms of losing metabolic control.” However, they caution of the risks of prolonged overeating.

Aaron Hengist, the lead researcher in the study said, “We all know the long-term risks of overindulgence with food when it comes to obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease but we know much less about some of the immediate effects all you can eat places on the body. Our findings show that the body actually copes remarkably well when faced with a massive and sudden calorie excess.” This is good news for people on weight-loss diets who overindulge occasionally with a cheat meal.

BURN FAT ON THANKSGIVING WITH INTERMITTENT FASTING

Intermittent fasting has become the latest diet craze, not only for weight loss, but also for enhancing health and for a longer life. I have personally tried alternative-day, intermittent fasting for potential health and pro-longevity purposes and for its effect on my feeling of well-being and body composition.

Everyone from well-known celebrities to everyday, average people are trying it and claiming it is successful. Caloric restriction and intermittent fasting have been practiced for decades. It has gained popularity due to a growing body of research. Over the years, this research has shown that intermittent fasting and caloric restriction can enhance weight loss, cognitive function and help prevent heart disease, cancer and diabetes. It can also slow down the aging process and enhance longevity, but most of the research has been done on mice and rhesus monkeys, and not humans. A study in the October 2018 British Medical Journal suggests that a 24-hour, intermittent fasting regimen can lower the need for diabetic medication (BMJ Case Reports, 2018). Another most recent study that appeared in JAMA showed for the first time the benefit of intermittent fasting for people with diabetes (JAMA Network Open, 2018).

As mentioned above, I personally tried intermittent fasting during the holidays as well as cheat days when I go off my diet. I had tremendous success! It worked well! I only used it for the short term! Intermittent fasting lowers blood insulin levels. Insulin is the fat storage hormone. By inhibiting insulin, you inhibit fat storage and enhance lipolysis; oxidation of fat (fat burning) and promoting the metabolic formation of ketone bodies as an energy source. This has worked for me in the past extremely well. I tried it last Thanksgiving and is great for any holiday feast. I follow my 24-hour, alternative-day holiday intermittent fasting program like this:

- On Wednesday early evening, have an early dinner, 24 hours before your Thursday Thanksgiving feast. Don’t eat any food, but just drink water, coffee or tea, but without milk and sugar. Before bed, I’ll have my AML Thermo Heat Nighttime Fat Burner.®

- Thursday morning, I wake up before I head to the gym. I have my AML Thermo Heat Fat Burning Cocktail® an hour before I start my workout. I take AML Thermo Heat Fat Burning Cocktail® to enhance thermogenesis and fat burning during my workout. I then do an hour of cardio to deplete muscle and liver glycogen stores. Glycogen is a form of carbohydrate that is broken down in the body into glucose during fasting and exercise. As little as one hour of high-intensity-exercise can deplete your muscle glycogen stores. Fasting for 24 hours can also greatly reduce your muscle and liver glycogen stores. The body is dependent on fat as fuel source as well as ketones from the accelerated breakdown of fat. The approximate amount of glycogen stored by the liver is 100 grams and glycogen stored by the muscles is approximately 500 grams. By depleting muscle and liver glycogen from my workout and incorporating 24 hours of intermittent fasting, it allows me to consume more carbohydrates for my Thanksgiving dinner without gaining weight!

- On Thursday, Thanksgiving Dinner, you can eat all the foods you’d like. The following day I resume my intermittent fast! I won’t eat again until my dinner on Friday evening with my low-carb Mediterranean Diet.

A study published in the British Medical Journal (November 2018) reported that a low-carbohydrate randomized trial resulted in enhanced energy expenditure during weight-loss maintenance. By enhancing energy expenditure, it helps to maintain weight loss. The researchers found that you burn 250 more calories per day versus high-carb. A study published in Diabetes Care (November 5, 2018) showed participants maintained weight loss over a one-year period by staying on an energy restricted Mediterranean diet with daily exercise.

 

BURN FAT ON THANKSGIVING WITH FASTED CARDIO

A new study published November 15, 2022 in the International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism reported that 7-hour fasting before dinner burns 70% more fat!

An article published in The New York Times on December 3, 2019 reported that “cyclists who peddled on an empty stomach burned twice as much fat.” This study that was reported in the Times’ article was recently published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. The study found that exercising on an empty stomach before breakfast can lower muscle fat!

The study reported that the aim of the researchers was “to assess acute and chronic effects of exercise performed before versus after nutrient ingestion on whole-body and intramuscular lipid utilization, and postprandial glucose metabolism.”

In a six-week randomized crossover designed controlled trial, researchers at the University of Bath in England recruited 30 overweight, sedentary men. The researchers divided the men into three groups, one as a control and the other two groups riding a stationary bike, three times a week at a moderate pace tracking heart rates as well as the amount of fat that the subjects burn. One exercise group also downed a vanilla-flavored shake two hours before their ride (with no other breakfast) while the other group swallowed a similar-tasting placebo drink, containing water, flavoring and no calories. In other words, the placebo group rode on an empty stomach, but did not know it.

The riders who had pedaled on an empty stomach, however, had incinerated about twice as much fat during each ride as the men who consumed the shake first. The riders all had burned about the same number of calories while pedaling, but more of those calories came from fat when the men did not eat first.

According to Javier Gonzalez, lead researcher of the study, “The reasons for this extra metabolic boost are complex but most likely involve slimming of muscle fat. The fasted riders’ bodies had to turn to internal energy stores for fuel, including fat from their muscles. (Interestingly, the fasted riders did not feel as if their workouts were more draining than the other group, according to everyone’s subjective ratings of their exertions.)”

The results of this study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism further confirms the benefits on fasting cardio before breakfast for maximum fat loss! When you eat a meal or carbohydrate before workout, you increase levels of insulin, which enhances fat storage and inhibition of fat mobilization, oxidation and fat burning. You don’t want to release insulin before cardio if you want to burn more fat. By fasting on an empty stomach before cardio, your body can shift fuels from burning glucose to burning fat. The research shows that fasted cardio before breakfast will not result in loss of muscle tissue to a greater extent than cardio in the fed state.

There are only a few studies that looked at the long-term effects of fasted cardio on body composition. The British Journal of Nutrition compared a morning run and eating an early breakfast or while in a fasted state. Not having breakfast resulted in 20% more fat being burned!

Bottom line: the scientific research has shown that intermittent fasting and fasted cardio is an exciting and promising method for weight loss, fat loss, weight control and metabolic health. The latest research shows that for someone with stubborn body fat, as well as someone who is lean, and wants to get ripped, then fasted cardio can enhance more abdominal fat and intramuscular fat burning! Don’t think you can lose weight and enhance fat loss by taking just one fat-burning pill a day! That’s why I developed the AML® THERMO HEAT ADVANCED DIET, NUTRITION, SUPPLEMENTATION AND EXERCISE PROGRAM for maximizing brown fat, brown fat activity and 24-hour energy expenditure! Check out the AML® THERMO HEAT LOW-CARB MEDITERANEAN DIET and why I feel it’s the best overall diet for weight loss, fat loss and optimal health! It’s rich in healthy fats and not bad fats that activate brown fat thermogenesis.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Best,

Steve

© Published by Advanced Research Media, Inc., 2022 © Reprinted with permission from Advanced Research Media, Inc.

References:

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