Adaptive
Thermogenisis:
Overcoming
Your Body's Set Point
Have you ever
started a new weight
loss program that went
fantastic for the first couple weeks and then nothing? These are called
weight
loss plateaus and can be frustrating enough for many people to just
quit,
blaming the weight loss program for their lack of progress. Actually,
it is
your own body that has set a new body set point for weight.
The human
body is a very efficient
machine and once it has
established a certain weight as the set point or standard operating
weight, it
will do all it can to keep it there. Your body makes adjustments in
metabolism
and fat storage (among others) in order to maintain its set point and
it seems
that no matter what you do, you just can’t lose any more.
This process is
referred to as adaptive thermogenesis.
To get past
these weight loss
plateaus you need to break the
body set point and essentially change it to a new body weight set
point. The
best place to start is to better understand the processes you are
attempting to
change, which is the process of adaptive thermogenesis. This is really
the way
the body will automatically reduce energy output when you lower intake
through
dieting in order to maintain the body weight set point.
Take a
dieting example to help
explain the process. You
decide that if you can cut at least 500 calories out of your diet, then
weight
loss should be a no-brainer, so you go ahead and make the 500 calorie
reduction
but nothing happens. Your body has adjusted its energy needs to a level
that is
now 500 calories less than it used to be, so your weight remains
stable. You
become desperate and drop another 500 calories from your normal intake,
thinking that 500 wasn’t enough, so 1000 calories should do
the trick, but
again, nothing happens. Adaptive thermogenesis has again adjusted the
body’s
energy need to accommodate the new level of caloric intake and weight
remains
stable, even though the calorie reduction was extreme.
Are you out
of luck battling against
yourself? No, of course
not, but it is going to take more than just dieting alone to prevent
adaptive
thermogenesis, keep losing weight and reach a new body weight set
point.
What is the
magical secret to all of
this? Ok, there is no
magical secret, but it does take both diet and exercise combined to do
the
trick, but not just any old diet and exercise program will always do
the trick.
Intense metabolic resistance training is the key to breaking adaptive
thermogenesis and reestablishing the body weight set point.
Metabolic
resistance training is a
series of compound
exercises with very short rest between sets that is designed to
literally shock
the system into compliance. Combined with a serious weight loss diet,
this
technique will usually push through the body’s adaptive
thermogenesis reaction
to bring your weight down to the next body weight set point.
What you want
to do now is to
continue your program in a
maintenance mode to reset your system into thinking that your new (and
lower)
weight is where it is supposed to be. Keep this new weight for at least
the
next 4 weeks before you try losing more weight. Now when you restart
your
weight loss efforts you are beginning at a new and lower normal body
weight
level. Use this step loss method when you have reached that plateau and
just
can’t seem to lose any more weight. This is very effective at
overcoming
adaptive thermogenesis and setting a new body weight set point.
About the
Author/More Info:
Natural
Weight Loss Reviews: http://www.diet.greenmanconsulting.com
Judson Greenman is a writer, webmaster, father and ex-Army special
demolitions
team leader (HU-RAH!) and has done extensive research in physical
fitness,
exercise and nutrition. Over 25 weight loss programs reviewed and the
top three
recommended Weight Loss Programs are presented for you here: http://www.diet.greenmanconsulting.com
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