Monday, February 13, 2012

Lose the Love Handles while Watching TV?

Burn Calories Like Your Breastfeeding
just 30 minutes a day, no expensive contraptions
Okay, I have been weaning my son from the boob as we have had chronic PAINFUL thrush PLUS he'll be turning 2 in a couple of months so it's the right time for us.  But one of the benefits of breastfeeding I'm NOT excited about giving up is the extra calorie burning power!  I already exercise and so I either have to exercise even more or diet (I refuse to count calories).  Well, I came across this article in my inbox today that may be a viable solution to make up for not breastfeeding and keep burning those extra few hundred calories!!!  Here is the quick synopsis


Brown fat is a heat-generating type of fat that burns energy instead of storing it, acting more like muscle than fat
Research has shown that brown fat can be activated to burn more fat by cooling your body

Studies have also shown that animals convert white fat into brown fat simply by exercising. The conversion is triggered by an enzyme called irisin, which is released by the muscles during exercise. It’s still unclear whether this phenomenon is true for humans as well, but humans do have the same protein

According to Tim Ferriss, author of The Four-Hour Body, you may be able to increase your fat burning potential by as much as 300 percent simply by adding ice therapy to your dieting strategy. You can do this by placing an ice pack on your upper back and upper chest for 30 minutes a day; drinking about 500 ml of ice water each morning; taking ice cold showers; and/or immersing yourself in an ice bath three times a week

And while Ice baths are NOT in the cards for me, I think I could handle a cold pack while on the computer or watching a TV show or drinking more ice water!  Also as the article elaborates...

"A NASA scientist told ABC News that's no hyperbole. In studying the effects of temperature on astronauts, he saw people's metabolism boost by 20 percent in environments as mild as 60 degrees. A Joslin researcher told National Public Radio that 3 oz. of brown fat could burn 400 to 500 calories daily."

......well maybe it' sa good thing that we don't crank up the heat haha...save money and make our metabolism work harder.  Due to our frugalness we usually keep the thermostat around 63 this winter.  I turn it up for company.

Check out the full article while includes four more ways to boost your metabolism here.




2 comments:

Lisa Fliehman said...

Very interesting!!! I guess since I live in sunny FL that I can blame my chubbiness on the fact that my body is too warm. LOL I'm really just kidding, I just hate to exercise!! I think I could handle the icepack I may just have to try!!

Candace @ Candace Creations said...

lol, that is too funny Lisa! Let me know if you try it! I wonder how long you have to do it for before you start noticing? Knowing me, I'd probably eat extra salt and pepper kettle chips and nullify any benefits! haha....okay, no I don't diet or count calories but I DO try to control my chip fiendishness!