Eat Fat to Burn Fat

by Jesse Cannone CFT, CPRS, CSPN

For about 50 years now, Americans have been eating
low fat (some no fat) diets and the funny thing is
we have gotten progressively fatter and less
healthy. Who ever said low fat diets were healthy,
and more importantly, why does eating less fat mean
you'll be less fat?

In attempt to keep this easy to understand, as most
of what you read and hear is complicated, confusing,
and contradictory, I'm going to be direct, to the
point, and explain things in a way that most people
can understand.

Where to start??? Well, I've done some research on
this and have found very little science to back up
the claims that eating less fat will keep you trim.
I have also found many examples that totally dismiss
this idea. For example, the French eat significantly
more fat than we do here in the US while there
obesity AND disease and illness rates are quite a
bit lower.

Another example is the Alaskan Eskimos. They consume
as much as 70% of their calories from fat (whale
blubber and fish) and they have one of the lowest
rates of heart disease in the world - until they
come to the US and eat like us!

Before I cover other examples I'd like to talk about
some the reasons why the "low fat diet" is not only
making us fatter, but also killing people faster
than you can imagine!

Does that shock you? If so, do I have news for you!

Ok. here are just a few reasons:

Eating less fat means you have to eat more protein
or carbs and most people end up eating more carbs
(and the wrong type!).
Dietary fat is very slow burning in the body so when
you replace the fat with faster burning carbs you
tend to feel less energetic, risk burning muscle
tissue, and wreak havoc on your metabolism and
hormones because your energy levels (blood sugar)
are like a roller coaster.

Dietary fats supply some of the best, and most
stable sources of energy. So if you want to feel
good all day long, you need to make sure you are
getting enough fats, and the right types. I'll touch
on which types to avoid and which to include in your
diet later in this article.

The human body needs fat just to function properly,
let alone optimal health.
Certain amounts of fat are necessary for proper
hormone production. If hormone production is off so
will your metabolism be. Hormones regulate many
things in the body including your ability to build
and maintain muscle tissue, which is responsible for
a large portion of your energy expenditure. In
simple terms, muscle burns calories 24 hours a day
and if you eat a low fat or no fat diet you will
have a hard time building and maintaining muscle.

Here are some facts:

Obesity increased from 14% of the American
population in 1960 to over 22% by 1980
the Harvard Nurse's Health Study which ran well over
10 years found that not only did low fat diets not
decrease the risk of heart disease but also that
saturated fat wasn't so bad after all, and that too
little was just as harmful.

To read more of the facts about dietary fat and
health check out these great resources:

http://www.gunnarlindgren.com/nutritionx.pdf

http://health.discovery.com/diseasesandcond/encyclopedia/1898.html

http://www.drlam.com/A3R_brief_in_doc_format/2002-No3-FatandCholesterol.cfm

So to sum things up:

If you want to lose weight and be healthy - DON'T
eat a low-fat diet! You would have to be absolutely
insane to after learning the truth about dietary
fats. If you have doubts or questions please do some
research and you will be amazed at what you will
find out. In the meantime, go eat some healthy fats!

About the Author:
Jesse Cannone is a certified personal trainer and
author of the best-selling fitness ebook, Burn Fat
FAST. Be sure to sign up for his free email course
as it is full of powerful weight loss and fitness
tips that are guaranteed to help you get the results
you want. http://www.guaranteed-weightloss.com