Get fit with Jorge Cruise: America's newest weight-loss guru tells you how to shed two pounds a week - related articles: Avoid the fat trap, Your sample 8-minute weight-loss week

Better Nutrition, August, 2002

As Amber Dunlap stood in her Memphis, Tennessee, backyard, holding her new baby girl, she knew she should be happy. But she wasn't. Such a moment is normally joyful, but when Dunlap saw her reflection in a glass door, her mood changed: She barely recognized the overweight woman she saw.

"With my schedule--working two jobs, going to school, going through a divorce and being a single mom-I had good excuses not to exercise or eat well," she told me. Yet for her daughter's future, Amber knew she had to lose weight.

She's not alone--some 80 percent of Americans are overweight. The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta reports that more than 300,000 Americans die each year from obesity-related illnesses--a number second only to tobacco. With 800 people dying daily because they're fat, obesity is becoming an epidemic.

Yet, I'm happy to say Dunlap had the strength to change. She lost 40 pounds by sticking to my simple weight-loss plan. So, there's good news: Losing weight doesn't have to be difficult or time-consuming. By following this simple plan, you can lose two pounds a week while exercising for only 8 minutes a day--without aerobics or starvation dieting.

muscle means metabolism

When I tell people the good news for the first time, they think I'm crazy. That is, until I explain that body fat isn't the source of the overweight problem. It's only the symptom. The real cause is a lack of lean muscle tissue.

Muscle mass controls metabolism. The more active your lean muscle is, the more fat you burn throughout the day--whether you're exercising or not. Although aerobic exercise is great for the heart and overall health, only strength training will turn your body into a fat-burning machine.

Consider the fact that muscle fiber usually begins to atrophy after about age 20. Aging isn't necessarily the cause, rather the problem stems from a lack of resistance-bearing exercise.

But strength training doesn't mean you need to go to a gym, nor does it mean you're going to look bulky--especially if you're female. It does mean you become firmer and stronger as you lose weight. And you can do it in your home for less than 10 minutes in the morning before work.

By training early in the morning, you fire up your system, dramatically speeding up your metabolism for the rest of the day. Plus, morning trainers have a greater tendency to stick to their exercise commitment.

A 500-person study conducted at the Mollen Clinic in Phoenix, for example, showed that only 25 percent of evening exercisers consistently do their exercise routines, compared to 75 percent of morning exercisers.

The bottom line is that when you commit to exercising in the morning, you bypass excuses and get the fat off faster. The clinic's founder, Art Mollen, DO, says that "as the day goes on, people hunt for excuses not to exercise--like having to work a bit later, run errands or go out with friends."

What's more, researchers at the University of Leeds in England found that women who worked out in the morning reported less tension and greater feelings of contentment than those who didn't. Physical activity sends a signal to your pituitary gland to release endorphins, your body's natural feel-good drug. When you exercise in the morning, chances are you'll have a better day.

change your oil

Once you start this plan, you'll never eat a fat-free meal again. Surprised? For years we've been told the best way to lose weight is to go fat-free--but nothing could be more wrong. Certain good fats actually help curb your appetite, thus speeding up weight loss.

My favorite good fat is flaxseed oil, which is also a good source of omega-3 fatty acids (see BN, June 2002, page 36, or write us for more detailed information).

Various studies conducted at the Pennsylvania State University in State College and Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia--along with anecdotal feedback from my 3 million online clients--report that no other nutrient does a better job of creating a feeling of fullness and satiety than flaxseed oil.

The reason is that this good fat is harder to break down than other foods, so it's held in the stomach longer. This helps stimulate the release of cholecystokinin (CCK), a hormone that signals the brain to stop eating. As a result, you require smaller meals to make you feel satisfied--and feel satisfied longer.

You can eat flaxseed oil on toast or put it in salads, yogurt, cottage cheese or shakes. I recommend that you take 1 teaspoonful with each meal. If you're extremely overweight, you may need more.

facts on flax

Flaxseed oil contains essential omega-3 fatty acids that help maintain the integrity and function of your body's 75 trillion cell membranes. Flaxseed oil also supports healthy joints, skin, hair and strong nails. For all of its benefits, you have little worry that flaxseed oil will be stored as body fat.

For information, books and videos on Jorge's weight-loss program, please visit jorgecruise.com.

RELATED ARTICLE: Avoid the fat trap.

Over the past decade, fat has earned a bad reputation. We once thought that if you cut fat out of your diet, you would lose weight. But throughout the no-fat craze, people continued to get fatter. To make fat-free foods taste good, manufacturers had to add more sugar. By the time manufacturers were done creating fat-free foods, products often had just as many calories as the higher-fat versions.