<a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/pampys-post-37-15-hunger-is-the-key-to-sustained-ideal-body-weight-so-it-seems-part-1/">Last week’s post</a> offered my assessment on the link between gaining and carrying excessive body fat and the bio-chemistry related to hunger and it’s response on behaviour.

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Here’s a super quick recap of the study: For 12 months I assessed and tracked (while being <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/gluc.png"><img class="alignright wp-image-2724 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/gluc-300x233.png" alt="gluc" width="218" height="169" /></a>guided by a number of experts) the response of 9 clients. All were genetically highly sensitive to insulin *, and ranged from a starting weight of 20-70kgs over their healthy (or natural) living weight.

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*Insulin is a hormone released by the pancreas to reduce the toxicity of elevated blood glucose. In about 40% of Australians (including my entire group), most glucose, or sugar, is transported to the liver where it is converted to stored body fat with efficient ease.

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This week’s post offers what I learnt after 2 x 20 week programs (2 groups). And, while most readers are not living at 20-70kgs over their intended weight, the principles and link of food type/lifestyle stress/ tiredness and behavioural choices seem to be reflective for all.

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<span style="color: #993366;"><strong>The Approach</strong></span>
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<span style="color: #008080;">By giving my groups a definitive list of food choices to AVOID, <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/bnbb.png"><img class="alignright wp-image-2725 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/bnbb-300x264.png" alt="bnbb" width="140" height="123" /></a>and, outline clearly how these ‘black-banned’ choices will likely react physically and emotionally given their inborn (and somewhat inefficient) bio-chemistry - I was certain they’d all, 1) lose a tonne of redundant fat, and 2) maintain that new body composition forever. While “I” was certain they ALL understood the message, early results suggested (to me), that maybe my message was not totally understood.</span></blockquote>
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My message; AVOID; preservative riddled choices, food additives – flavours &amp; colours, excessive processed carbohydrates (particularly from grain products), unnecessary alcohol, mainly in the form of beer or sweet liquors, and of course good old sugar. More so avoid the 105 products masquerading as sugar.

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<span style="color: #993366;">Do this and it’s likely your metabolism – free of all these blocking agents - will do its job just fine.</span></blockquote>
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It all worked a treat until the introduction of lifestyle stress, tiredness, persuasive <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/hhbhbhb.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-2728 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/hhbhbhb.jpg" alt="hhbhbhb" width="213" height="143" /></a>subliminal advertising, and, yes, slightly harder exercise. Enter - the sliding retention of my message.

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With this introduction, most increased their appetite and re-introduced the very foods that hijack the brain, warp the reward system, and of course flip the metabolism to sugar burning and fat storing.
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<span style="color: #993366;"><strong>Damn it, that didn’t work.</strong> </span></blockquote>
<em>So what I need is this.</em>
<span style="color: #993366;"><strong>Are there REAL FOODS that:</strong></span>
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<span style="color: #008080;">• Reduce, or balance the severity of the stress hormone cortisol. </span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Limit the hormone dopamine from cranking into overdrive “get me sugar now”!!!!!</span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Reduce the hormone melatonin from producing excessive tiredness and continue to allow focussed concentration over long periods of time.</span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Offer a steady stream of energy both during and post exercise <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/vhvhv.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-2727 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/vhvhv-300x225.jpg" alt="vhvhv" width="225" height="169" /></a>– because WE NEED to exercise. </span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Increase or promote the neurotransmitter serotonin so we can tolerate dickheads more easily.</span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Never leave the stomach too empty or full and thus limit the spike of the hormone grehlin (go eat!).</span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Limit insulin and thus promote the hormone glycogen to encourage stored fat metabolism.</span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Allow the hormone leptin to do its’ job – manage our optimum weight.</span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Encourage and lead us to our best food types without thinking. Or more so, lead us to these options even with immoral subliminal persuasion. </span>
<span style="color: #008080;">• Prevent me from consuming excessive alcohol - just because I’ve had a long, sh^t day.</span></blockquote>
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<p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: #993366;">After failing with Group 1, here are the 4 KEY differentiating POINTS I introduced to Group 2.</span> </strong></p>
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<span style="color: #008080;"><strong>1. While listing (with education) the AVOID choices, FAR MORE important was to list MUST consume choices.</strong> </span>

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While I have sent a fully defined list to my clients, the following choices produced an optimum balance of hormones and neuro-transmitters – and hence influenced a more positive behaviour. Without question, (quality) olive oil, avocados, salmon, eggs, butter, <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/HUNGER.png"><img class="alignright wp-image-2717 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/HUNGER-300x115.png" alt="HUNGER" width="235" height="90" /></a>heavy cream and very much coconut all had the greatest positive influence on long-term behaviour. These options in various combinations made up 50% of their total caloric intake.
OK here’s the thing. The “hunger”” hormone Ghrelin (made in the stomach &amp; pancreas), rips into over drive, encouraging “go eat”, when 1) the stomach is empty (which makes sense), and 2) when it’s bursting at the seams.

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Certainly if the stomach (in fact the entire GIT) was empty, given the sugar burning nature of the group, blood glucose would drop dramatically. The brain would detect low blood sugar - release Ghrelin = get me carbohydrate (or alcohol) now (brain sent into <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/butter.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-2730 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/butter-300x225.jpg" alt="butter" width="127" height="95" /></a>meltdown – and my message of avoiding whole insulin spike thing goes out the door). So, one would naturally eat up deluxe, fill to the brim, which, would then encourage more Ghrelin again and of course interest in eating about 45 minutes later.

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As for alcohol.....if the stomach had a slow, satiating release of energy, the inclination for a 2nd, 3rd, &amp; fk it the bottle, would be minimised.

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So it became clear the answer was to only half full the stomach with foods that were broken down super slowly. Foods that leak energy over a long period of time, and lessen (quieten) the activity of the lateral hypothalamus – go eat signal in the brain. So when ghrelin is low, the hormone leptin is released from fat tissue. The brain is then instructed to release more stored fat as a fuel source – and in doing so, maintain a steady stream of energy to the brain (think happy) and of course muscles and other organs etc. Foods that encourage a continual leakage of energy also encourage a continual supply of “feel good” hormones like dopamine, serotonin, and even endorphins. So his way, we avoided, 1) over-eating, 2) interest for carbs &amp; and excessive alcohol, and 3) improved management of lifestyle stress.
The challenge now – convincing them real fats are NOT going to hurt them.

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<span style="color: #008080;"><strong>2. Regular purposeful exercise MUST play a role. A mix of stress-free rhythmic movement and structural resistance training provided best results. </strong></span>

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Purposeful means committing towards an event that meant something to the indi<a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/IMG_68241.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-2139 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/IMG_68241-168x300.jpg" alt="IMG_6824[1]" width="119" height="213" /></a>vidual. We found controlled pressure seemed to boost commitment.
If they exercised outside this conservative model, ultimately, long-term success was unlikely.

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<span style="color: #008080;"><strong>3. If they cheated, ie consuming a banned listed choice within the first 6-10 weeks, the effect, or addictive result if you like from these choices, was typically so great they spiralled back to the start and worse still, beyond.</strong> </span>
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<span style="color: #993366;">Yep, it sucks! but a drug addict can’t have just tinsey bit of ice, an alcoholic can’t just have 3 sips, it’s just the way it is when you’re attempting to break down bio-chemistry set in stone. But, eventually, with patience, and the positive brain effect of the selected foods, the battle softened, and was won.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #008080;"><strong>4. I’m NOT the optimum messenger – with this group anyway.</strong> </span>

Yep, while I may understand the science, I suspect I’m not believable. Courtesy of years of training (at times very committed), a clear understanding of exactly what food groups will <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5429.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-1556 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5429-300x300.jpg" alt="IMG_5429" width="206" height="206" /></a>serve me best, and I suppose genetics, I suspect the individual living at 70kgs overweight would know I am not challenged by the brain when it comes to hunger and metabolism.

So I had my mate and former 150kger Gus Worland deliver my diluted message. Gus, now living at a comfortable and healthy weight of around 108kgs, clearly outlined his journey to the entire group. He outlined how it worked, his challenges, his absolute no go’s, and therefore what they can also expect.
They bought his delivery over mine. Whatever it takes I guess.

<span style="color: #008080;"><strong>5. Patience – Axl was right.</strong></span>

Gus made it very clear that establishing life-long hormonal balance would take time – like 12mths to 3 years.
While this post offered the metabolic challenges of a specific group, I believe the principles (of long term success) are appropriate for 90% of Australians.

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BP