When it comes to living a long and healthy life, there are two essential ingredients: nutrition and fitness. Although some believe that they are one and the same, nothing could be further from the truth. You may have a completely healthy diet with sad habits of fitness. It is equally possible for you to be very healthy with bad eating habits.
There is a clever little line in Jimmy Buffet's song "Fruitcakes" when his 'lady' cries out:
“I treat my body like a temple
You treat your tent like a tent ”
I can't help but think of this line whenever I think of all the people around the world who go through this ordeal, abandoning diet plans in hopes of achieving the weight loss success of those who support these products.
To be completely honest, it is possible to lose weight with just food. It is difficult but possible. It is also possible to be healthy and have a few extra pounds hanging around. To a large extent we are what we eat. If we eat low fat diets our bodies will lack the fuel needed to burn fat. At the same time if we do not provide our bodies with the tools they need to build muscle no matter how many weights we lift.
When it comes to diet and fitness, the best results are achieved when they work together rather than in isolation. Use your fitness routine to burn excess calories and use your diet to give your body the nutrients and fuel it needs to build muscle. I have heard many times in my life that a pound of muscle weighs less than a pound of fat. While this is not true at all, pound pound regardless; a pound of muscle takes up less space in the body than a pound of fat. P per pound, I would rather have mine covered with fat than with fat. Eating alone does not build muscle and that is something you will do well to keep in mind in your efforts.
You should also be aware that as you build muscle you may shed inches while not showing much progress on the scale. It is very important that you keep this in mind throughout the weight loss process. Do not measure your progress by scales or you will get misleading results. The problem is that too many people do this and get frustrated and give up hope when they actually progress. Do not allow yourself to be a victim of scales. Look in the mirror, try on your tight pants, and measure your waistline. Measure your success in terms of how you feel after climbing stairs and not how many pounds fell on the scale this week.
By incorporating fitness into your diet you are allowing your body to burn any extra calories you may be eating during the day. This means that if you want to have a little 'cheating' during your day, you can fix it by burning fewer calories than usual in the evening. This is not something that should happen often but occasionally it will not make or break your diet.
You should also look at diet and fitness as a type of ball and the type of relationship glove. Although you can play football without a glove, it seems to work best if you have both. Diet and fitness combined can create positive effects on weight loss for those who consider it both important. The thing to remember is that nothing works alone and it will not work unless you are willing to do the work. You need to make this a priority in your life to get the best results.
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