I just received this in the comment section and wanted to share it with all of you:

Jim, I read your book ” The Cardio Free Diet” and followed the plan. It has been three months and I have lost close to 20 lbs. and now have a body that I am becoming proud of. Muscles are popping up in places I didn’t know I have muscles. The kicker is that I am 58 years old and never thought this was possible. I am your biggest proponent and am preaching to my board members and others around the country to get the book and follow the plan!!

Okay, I spent all day yesterday at Knott’s Berry Farm with my kids.

It was truly SHOCKING to see the size of the majority of the people, especially the Hispanic community.

I know through research that the Black and Hispanic population is heavier than most, but I could not believe the site of the whole family so dangerously overweight and eating nonstop.

I feel it is accepted to be so heavy, as everyone was eating and drinking tons of soda….huge 30-40+ ounce glasses that can be refilled.

At Johnny Rockets, I had a grilled chicken sandwich (and had to send it back twice to have them make it without mayo) and my kids had hot dogs and fries. We ended up taking most of the fries home as the portion was HUGE and the waitress recommended that we order more before they arrived and I said, “Let’s just wait and see what the kids eat.”

It would have been obscene to order more food, but when I looked around, people were eating enormous quantities.

It made me sad. And don’t even get me started on all the people using the motorized cars to get around. They are so heavy that they can’t even walk. Scary.

Jim

Wish me luck. I will fill you in on the size of the average attendee………

I’m sure many of you have seen the report that shows that Americans are eating/drinking TONS of sugar every day.

We need to stop this trend by:

1. Totally eliminating all liquid calories, such as juice, soda and sports drinks. They should be banned.

2. Eating a sweet ONCE A WEEK. That’s it. Any more than that is just going to sabotage your weight loss goals.

3. Read labels. You will be horrified when you see, in black and white, what is in your food.

Good luck.

Jim

I am very happy to hear about the success of “Julie and Julia,” BUT, now Julia Child’s books on French cooking are flying off of the shelves.

I fear that people will make the recipes in the books and then, eat WAY MORE THAN JULIA ever expected people to eat.

Our portions are out of control. Why would we think that would change.

So, I say avoid the books or at the very least, get a better handle on how much French food you will eat.

Jim

This recently in ON Fitness Magazine:

When you have trouble sleeping it may b edue to the mountains of constant stimulation that affect all of us on a a daily basis.

One slows down our bodies and the other speeds it up. Using a fan (I DO EVERY NIGHT AND JUST LIKE IT) will provide constant stimulation to the tiny hairs on your face and eventually the feeling forces your brain to ignore the sensation.

The result is a sedation or calming to the “excitable” branch of your nervous system.

I say give it a try!

Jim

Very interesting comment from Elizabeth regard how fast she eats. She recently noticed that she is frequently the first person done at each meal.

I have had the same issue for many years. Here are some of the tricks that help me slow down:

1. NO eating standing up. I fight with myself as I am always multi-tasking, but I will not put anything in my mouth while standing.

2. Rip apart your sandwiches. I literally open it up, cut it in half, and then eat one quarter of the sandwich at a time. That way, it takes much longer to eat AND you have to be careful since the lettuce and tomato will fall all over the place if you aren’t careful.

3. I put my fork down. I literally put it down after every bite. That way, the fork doesn’t become a shovel.

These are just a few. Please comment if you have any more to add.

Jim

Take a look at this research:

At Tufts University, the subjects performed progressive resistance exercise three days a week for 12 weeks. Each training session consisted of four standard strength exercises, each of which was performed for three sets of eight to 12 repetitions.

After three months of training, the subjects, on average, added 3.1 pounds of lean (muscle) weight and lost 4.0 pounds of fat weight. As a result, their resting metabolic rate increased by 6.8 %, or approximately 105 calories per day. At face value, this finding would indicate that 1 pound of muscle uses about 35 calories per day at rest (105 calories per day ÷ 3 pounds of muscle = 35 calories per day per pound of muscle).

At the University of Maryland, the subjects performed progressive resistance exercise three days a week for 16 weeks. Each training session consisted of 14 standard strength exercises, most of which were performed for one set of 10 to 15 repetitions.

After four months of training, the subjects, on average, added 3.5 pounds of lean (muscle) weight and lost 4.2 pounds of fat weight. As a result, their resting metabolic rate increased by 7.7%, or approximately 120 calories per day. At face value, this finding would indicate that 1 pound of muscle uses about 34 calories per day at rest (120 calories per day ÷ 3.5 pounds of muscle = 34 calories per day per pound of muscle).

It is interesting to note that, in both of these studies, the same strength-training program that increased lean (muscle) weight by about 3 pounds, likewise increased resting metabolic rate by about 7%.

It is also interesting to note that, in both of these studies, the strength-training programs responsible for these impressive results were relatively basic and brief. The Tufts University subjects performed just 12 sets of exercise per session (three sets of four exercises), and the University of Maryland subjects completed 17 sets of exercise per session (one set of 11 exercises and two sets of three exercises).

These represent essentially 30-minute workouts that are manageable both time-wise and energy-wise for most adults. It is nothing short of remarkable that such modest investments in strength exercise can produce such profound physical outcomes.

First I am going to post his comments and then my response:

This from him:

One very flawed, unsubstantiated article and you’re going to toss out your cardio and ignore almost every real health professionals advicel. I’m afraid Mr. Karas is a bit of snake oil salemsan with no real credentials looking to make a profit off of very bad advice. Keep up the cardio and just because you may become more hungry doesn’t mean everyone engages in irresponsible eating habits. As a cardiovascular surgeon I can tell you that cardio is extremely important for overall health. If you give up on cardio you are really giving up on a much higher quality of life.

This from me:

As usual, the person commenting on my position has not taken the time to even look (notice, not buy, just look) at the interval strength training outlined in the book.

You get even MORE heart health from intervals than you do from steady state aerobics.

Plus, West Point Military in the 1970s proved that strength training provided as much heart health as classic cardio.

BUT, interval strength training provides the increase in lean muscle tissue that will boost your metabolism.

So, please keep posting your comments, whether I like them or not, and i will respond.

Jim

By MELISSA NELSON, Associated Press Writer Melissa Nelson, Associated Press Writer – Thu Aug 13, 4:41 pm ET

PENSACOLA, Fla. – Dr. Jason Newsom railed against burgers, french fries, fried chicken and sweet tea in his campaign to promote better eating in a part of the country known as the Redneck Riviera. He might still be leading the charge if he had only left the doughnuts alone.

A 38-year-old former Army doctor who served in Iraq, Newsom returned home to Panama City a few years ago to run the Bay County Health Department and launched a one-man war on obesity by posting sardonic warnings on an electronic sign outside:

“Sweet Tea (equals) Liquid Sugar.”

“Hamburger (equals) Spare Tire.”

“French Fries (equals) Thunder Thighs.”

He also called out KFC by name to make people think twice about fried chicken.

Then he parodied “America Runs on Dunkin’,” the doughnut chain’s slogan, with: “America Dies on Dunkin’.”

Some power players in the Gulf Coast tourist town decided they had had their fill.

A county commissioner who owns a doughnut shop and two lawyers who own a new Dunkin’ Donuts on Panama City Beach turned against him, along with some of his own employees, Newsom says. After the lawyers threatened to sue, his bosses at the Florida Health Department made him remove the anti-fried dough rants and eventually forced him to resign, he says.

“I picked on doughnuts because those things are ubiquitous in this county. Everywhere I went, there were two dozen doughnuts on the back table. At church, there were always doughnuts on the back table at Sunday school. It is social expectation thing,” says Newsom, a lean 6-foot, 167-pounder in a county where 39 percent of all adults were overweight in 2007 and one in four was considered obese.

Newsom was hired by the state Health Department to direct the county agency. His $140,000-a-year salary is paid jointly by the state and the county. His job primarily involves educating the public about health issues — swine flu, AIDS and the like — but he also decided to address the dangers of glazed, sprinkled and jelly-filled treats.

He angered staff members by barring doughnuts from department meetings and announcing he would throw the fat-laden sweets away if he saw them in the break room. He also banned candy bars in the vending machines, putting in peanuts instead.

In May, lawyers Bo Rivard and Michael Duncan, co-owners of a new Dunkin’ Donuts, asked Newsom to take down the “America Dies on Dunkin’” message. Newsom already had run other anti-doughnut warnings, including “Doughnuts (equals) Diabetes,” and “Dunkin’ Donuts (equals) Death.”

The businessmen had the backing of County Commissioner Mike Thomas, who owns a diner and a doughnut shop. Thomas called for Newsom’s ouster, saying the doctor shouldn’t have named businesses on the message board.

“I think he was somewhat of a zealot,” Thomas says. “I don’t have a problem with him pushing an agenda, it’s the way he did it. People borrowed money to go into business and they are being attacked by the government.”

A short time after Newsom’s meeting with Rivard and Duncan, Newsom says, his bosses at the state Health Department told him that his leadership wasn’t wanted and that he could be fired or resign. He chose to resign May 8 but has reapplied for the job.

“I have never been known for my subtlety. I don’t have a knack for it. I speak the truth to people and just assume that that my data and purpose are so real and true that everyone will see the value of what I’m doing,” says Newsom, who now works at a prison, doing exams of inmates.

Rivard and Duncan did not return numerous calls to their offices.

“Dunkin’ Donuts is pleased that the signs have been removed,” Andrew Mastrangelo, a spokesman for Canton, Mass.-based Dunkin’ Donuts said in an e-mail.

The Florida Health Department has refused to talk about Newsom since he is considered a job applicant. “We will be happy to talk to you after the position has been filled,” department spokeswoman Susan Smith said in an e-mail.

Newsom is hoping to get his job back so that he can resume his campaign against overeating.

“My method was a little provocative and controversial,” he says, “but there wasn’t a person in Bay County who wasn’t talking about health and healthy eating.”