Why not take up cycling this year to help your fitness levels reach their peak.
It is no surprise that we are seeing a lot of people in the shop at the moment who are full of vim and vigour, keen to make 2020 the year that they get fitter. We want to be here to support everyone, and at this time of year we are especially focussed on those who have set themselves a new goal, be it regular cyclists who have an extreme challenge for the year ahead, or a returning or new cyclist who is simply looking to become more active.
Knowing where to start and which steps to take can be a challenge in itself, but the biggest challenge is usually maintaining momentum. Over the next few months we will be offering weekly advice and encouragement to try and help you stay focussed on your goal. We have enlisted the help of Peace of Mind Personal training and Sports massage based in Mochdre and Peak Physio & Fitness based next to our bike shop in Llandudno Junction.
Sleep, Hunger, Mood, Energy, Cravings: Is your S.H.M.E.C in check?
Dieting and Counting Calories
To start things off we asked John Clayton from Peace of Mind, to tell us a little about his approach to dieting and counting calories.
Firstly John pointed out that simply lowing the amount of calories you eat is probably not the solution. “It is true that in order to lose weight — and more specifically, fat — you do need to have a caloric deficit. But, a low-calorie diet does not lead to a balanced and stable metabolism. In fact, it leads to the reverse.”
John goes on to say, “Taking a calorie-first approach by following the “eat less, exercise more” dogma, which has a long-term success rate of 5 percent, changes hormonal chemistry in a way that leads to compensatory hunger, unrelenting cravings, and unstable energy. Sometimes, it also leads to weight loss, and if you are lucky, you will lose fat as well. But, using willpower to fight your natural physiological urges is like playing with a boomerang:
The more force you apply, the quicker and harder it flies back at you. When this happens to the metabolism, it means yo-yo weight regain.
“With such a low success rate it is clear that simply eating less and exercising more isn’t the best way forward. For sustainable results we need to put a bit more thought into it as John went on to explain “There is another way to achieve a caloric deficit. If you take a hormones-first approach, you can keep hunger at bay, diminish cravings, and stabilize energy. Doing things this way causes the body to eat less naturally, which allows for new changes to lifestyle without relying solely on willpower. So how in the world do you control hormones?”
“You don’t need fancy lab testing or machines. Sleep, hunger, mood, energy and cravings (SHMEC) are hormonal sensations.
“The main hormones that influence hunger are insulin, leptin and ghrelin. The hormones that impact cravings are ghrelin, cortisol, and the brain hormones dopamine, serotonin and GABA. Energy is managed by insulin, cortisol, thyroid hormones and the catecholamines. Sleep and mood are controlled by all of the above plus hormones like, melatonin. These sensations are biofeedback clues. I say “clues” because when dealing with hormones, you need to stop being a dieter and start being a detective. Your goal is to eat — and exercise — in a way that stabilizes SHMEC (say it like “shmeck). The right nutritional approach should keep your SHMEC in check.”
If you would like to learn more about using the 4 M’s to burn fat and build muscle then contact Peace of Mind at Williams House, Mochdre (above the vets) or call 07825 292972.
