They just showed a segment with two former female athletes and they recommended 20 minutes of cardio each day and 20 minutes of strength training.

I totally disagree.

Who has 40 minutes a day to exercise? I don’t, and you don’t need the cardio if you do the strength training the right way.

Just hit the strength hard, with heavy weights, and you will achieve the best results.

Jim

I know it is a holiday week, but more than ever, you should all be on the scale.

Ideally, you will be on every day as that will keep you on track.

It’s also very gray in many parts of the country (not here in Southern California). If that’s the case, please turn the lights on and when it is sunny, even if for just a few minutes, then make sure your drapes are open and if you can, actually get out in the sun. It will help your mood and help you sleep at night.

Jim

Make sure to exercise each and every day. Use the time off wisely and not to just sit around the house and eat.

You will wake up New Year’s Day lighter and firmer than you are right now if you are smart.

Take a look at this research from Yale:

Menu Calorie Labels Increase Awareness, But May Not Alter Food Choices
Posted on: October 6, 2009

New Haven, Conn., October 6, 2009 – Calorie labels on restaurant menus increase consumers’ awareness of calorie content, but the information may not influence them to purchase foods with fewer calories, according to researchers at the Yale School of Management and New York University. Their study “Calorie Labeling and Food Choices: A First Look at the Effects on Low-Income People in New York City” is published today on the website of the journal Health Affairs. The research is the first to evaluate the effect of calorie labeling on fast food choices since the policy was mandated in New York City restaurants in July 2008 as the first major obesity intervention in the United States.

The authors analyzed food purchase receipts and survey responses collected from 1,156 adults at four of the largest fast food chains — McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, and KFC — in New York City both before and after calorie labeling was implemented, as well as in Newark, New Jersey, a comparison location that had not introduced menu labels. They focused on restaurants in low-income, minority neighborhoods whose populations have an increased risk of obesity and related health problems.

Prior to calorie labeling, the study found no difference in the percentage of people who saw calorie information available through food wrappers, posters, and pamphlets in New York City and Newark. After calorie labeling was instituted, there was a sharp increase in the percentage of New York City respondents — 54% — who reported noticing calorie information, while there was no change in Newark.

In New York City, 27.7% of respondents who saw the calorie labels reported that the information influenced their food choices, and of those, approximately 88% indicated that they purchased fewer calories. However, when the researchers examined their food receipts, they found that these consumers did not actually purchase fewer calories. Respondents in New York City purchased an average of 825 calories before calorie labeling was introduced and 846 calories after.

“The take-away isn’t that menu labeling doesn’t work, it’s that it might not be effective in isolation,” says study co-author Victoria Brescoll, assistant professor of organizational behavior at the Yale School of Management. “There needs to be other concurrent interventions, such as educating people about daily caloric intake.”

The study’s co-authors are Brian Elbel, Rogan Kersh, and L. Beth Dixon of New York University.

I agree that there is a big problem with people truly understanding how many calories they should be eating. For most women, it’s 1600-2000 and for most men, approximately 400-500 calories more. We Americans eat WAY more than that!

Jim

This blog, my email and our phone lines in Chicago have been busy with many viewers asking, “What did Jim Think About The Other Diet Strategies On The View?”

Well, I have to be honest. I was pretty shocked, in a nutshell, they promoted:

NOT counting calories, when we know that the American Dietetic Association says whenever a weight loss book tells you to stop counting calories, RUN!

Eat fries, bacon, butter and whole milk

Eat cookies

You can cleanse yourself thin

I have to say, I strongly disagree, and the research agrees, with all these theories. I realize that book sales increase with provocative promises (come on, I know that from having written “The Cardio-Free Diet”), but that book was totally based on research.

And I was SHOCKED to hear no one promote strength training and we know that your metabolism will plummet when you diet without it.

So, interesting show and I am sure the debate will go on as we enter the New Year.

Let me know your thoughts and I hope you are all exercising and watching your eating.

Jim

Here is the link where you can watch it online.

http://abc.go.com/watch/the-view/167365/244815/the-view-1218

Enjoy and careful this weekend with the eating!

Jim

Okay, I’m on again, This time it’s “The Diet Wars,” which really aren’t wars, but are just 5 of us doing our 2 minute thing (some people got more than two minutes and you can tell who did by how fast I have to talk) so check it out and enjoy.

And stop eating, if you are out of control. Exercise, drink water, get to bed and don’t make these next two weeks a disaster….

Jim

PLEASE stop the frenzy if it has already started. You don’t have to eat all the crap that is out in your office, store, friends home, etc. Just stop it. No one forces you to eat. You make that decision.

Plus, move. Make sure you have scheduled your exercise for this week AND the next three weeks. With more time off, increase your exercise as it will help you manage both stress and weight.

Jim

I’ve said this before but need to again:

More and more research continue to come out that supports my theory that you should NEVER diet without strength training, as your metabolism will be severely diminished as a result of the diet. That’s why the vast majority of diets fail.

Plus. More research continues to come out that supports the theory that aerobic exercise provides virtually NO benefit to weight loss. All you end up doing is burning up your time and injuring your joints.

ONLY interval strength training gets the job done with regard to:

Weight loss
Fat loss
Inches lost

And it helps the weight STAY off.

Plus, after 31 minutes of strength training, you get 38 HOURS of after burn, or an accelerated metabolism.That’s HUGE!

Spread the word!

Great article in today’s “Wall Street Journal” about baseball players getting more health conscious as they move away from classic crap food to higher quality fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein.

I hope they pass along this info to kids, who really need to hear it. Most adults are unfortunately a lost cause.

Jim