“Cheat Meal” accelerates fat loss through strategic hormonal manipulation that keeps your body out of starvation mode.
Today I am going to talk to you about the all-star hormone that deals with fat loss, LEPTIN HORMONE. It is often referred to as the anti-starvation hormone that directly controls numerous metabolic processes in the body.
Leptin is a protein that’s made in the fat cells, circulates in the bloodstream, and goes to the brain. Its how your fat cells tell your brain that your energy thermostat is set right letting your brain to know that your body has had enough to eat, producing a feeling of satiety.
If you have higher amounts of body fat, you have higher levels of leptin. Much the same as if you have lower levels of body fat, you have lower levels of leptin. This is why it becomes progressively harder to lose weight at a quick rate once you actually being to lean out.
If your leptin levels are high, you become “Leptin Resistant” and your brain can’t get the message that had already enough to eat . In other words, your brain is always starved, while your body is obese. And that’s what obesity is: it’s brain starvation, always thinking its hungry.
On the other side, If you have been very focus on eating very clean and your Leptin levels get low, its possible that you cannot see big change in your body, so you feel like stuck since your body is not getting on the Fat burning zone. In that case, you may periodically include a “cheat meal”, or refeed day.
For example, my refeed day consists of a day with a 20-50% increase above maintenance calorie level. A good way to do it is to eat more carbohydrates 100-150% than normal, keep protein at about 1g/lb. of bodyweight, and keep fat intake as low as possible. A refeed, or “cheat meal” is a sure way to jumpstart your metabolism and to normalize leptin levels. I particularly have my “cheat meal” the day before I will be lifting weights and teaching Zumba. So I know I’ll be needing all those extra calories the next day.
What is crazy is that It take about seven days of eating clean for your leptin levels to decline, but it takes only about one day of overfeeding or “cheat meal” to regulate and bring leptin levels back to normal in order to get back to that fat burning zone.
Leptin is quite possibly the most important hormone you have never heard about. If your leptin levels are not in check, then you will never acquire the leanness of which you are capable. Not only may you never get as lean as you want, but your energy levels and performance may suffer as well.
But, be careful.I am not saying to go craaaaazy and eat like is your last meal, nooo!! just add a few more calories one in a while to get your Leptin levels back to up a littler bit just enough to get back in your burning Fat Zone.
More ways to maintain your Leptin Levels in a Fat Burning Zone coming soon…….
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