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By eating more plants and less meat, its suggested that adherents to the diet will not only lose weight but can improve their overall health, lowering their rate of heart disease, diabetes and cancer, and live longer as a result.

The WW plan (formerly Weight Watchers) nabbed fourth place, while the Mayo Clinic Diet, a style of eating which focuses on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and healthy fats; MIND, a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets; and Volumetrics, which focuses on low-calorie foods, all tied for fifth place.

Meanwhile, the TLC diet, designed to help lower cholesterol levels, came in at number eight. Ninth place was a three-way tie between; the Nordic diet, an eating plan that focuses of fatty fish; the Ornish diet, which involves following a low-fat, plant-based diet; and the vegetarian diet.

The popular Paleo diet scored poorly on the list, coming in at number 25, as did the Atkins and Keto diets, which came close to last.

The Paleo diet is ranked poorly among US. News experts, who consider it too restrictive to be healthy or sustainable, the report read.

The dietencourages its loyal followers to cut out grains, legumes, refined sugars and dairy and eat plenty of meat, seafood, nuts and starchy vegetables.

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Trying to lose weight? Here are the best diets for 2020 - Starts at 60

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LOSING weight and achieving that chiselled torso is one of the most common New Year's resolutions out there this January.

However, many people believe this a practically impossible task that involves hours and hours in the gym and barely eating anything.

1

Despite this, getting that honed bod you've always wanted is more than achievable if you follow several easy steps.

Here, we take you through some simple ways you can shed those pesky pounds you've put on for Christmas and reveal that six pack...

To lose weight in any form the simplest thing to do is create a caloric deficit, which means burning more calories than you consume.

Dietitian Helen Bond suggests: "A sensible weight loss is 1-2lb a week.

"To lose 1lb (0.5kg) of fat, you need to create a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories, and its easy to shift 1lb in a week simply by reducing your calorie intake by 500 calories a day."

Its easy to shift 1lb in a week simply by reducing your calorie intake

The free MyFitnessPal app is one of the best ways to record your calorie intake, but to track your calories burned, you'll need a dedicated fitness tracker.

If you already own a smartwatch, most will offer calorie tracking as standard, but for those yet to make the plunge, Garmin offers the best activity trackers on the market.

Intermittent fasting is one proven way you can shed body fat and reveal your abs.

Even Hugh Jackman used intermittent fasting to get lean for his role of Wolverine.

The most popular intermittent fasting plan is the 5:2 diet, where slimmerseat normally for five days of the week and severely restrict their calories for the other two.

On the fasting days, dieters are meant to eat 25 percent of their recommended calorie total - 500cals for women and 600cals for men.

However, for serious trainees, there's the 16:8 diet.

This diet allows you to eat for eight hours of the day, while fasting for the remaining 16 hours.

Doing squats does a lot more than just build you a Kim Kardashian-style booty.

They're the secret to strong abs as they give then that extra kick and improve core strength and definition.

This is because when performing a squat, your abs and core face constant tension - as this tension prevents you from falling over.

High-intensity training that significantly increases your heart rate is hugely effective when it comes to reducing belly fat - which can help make your abs more visible.

In fact, a recent study revealed that short spurts of intense exercise are better for weight loss and burns more fat than workouts that takes double the time

Researchers found that 23 minutes of high intensity interval training was more effective than 41 minutes of aconventional workout.

Tips to get into running

Olympic runner Jo Pavey, who is an ambassador forSimplyhealth, has shared her top tips for beginners wanting to get into running.

It led to 29 per cent more weight loss than traditional gym sessions.

Steven Ward, CEO of fitness industry body UK active, said: These figures show the positive impacts of interval training on reducing weight and, with Britain battling a grave obesity crisis, this research should be welcomed.

Typically, HIIT involves 30 seconds of intense effort, such as sprinting, cycling or doing burpees, followed by short recovery periods.

It may seem a bit contradictory, but one of thebest ways to lose water weight is to actually drink more water.

Thats because if youre constantly dehydrated, your body tends to retain more water in an attempt to prevent its water levels getting too low.

Water also boosts your metabolism, cleanses your body of waste and acts as an appetite suppressant, experts say.

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Guidelines suggest about two litres per day, but it can vary from person to person, so simply drink when youre thirsty and stop when you feel well hydrated.

You can usually use your urine colour as an indicator of hydration if its light yellow or fairly clear then youre well hydrated.

When its dark yellow or amber then you need to be drinking more water.

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How to lose belly fat with 5 simple tips and reveal those abs - The Sun

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If you are averse to following an unheard of diet plan to lose weight, then dont worry, youre not alone.

And, more importantly, we are here to tell you that dieting is not your only option to lose weight. 26-year-old Gitanshu Behal tells us that he was able to lose 24 kgs by making the below easy changes in his lifestyle instead of following a strict diet plan.

Says Behal, at my heaviest, I weighed 95 kgs, and was a very under confident guy because of my bad physical form and fitness. Id also skip participating in a lot of activities that required any physical effort. That being said, I wasnt unaware of an ill physiques perils, and always wanted to lose weight. I even tried and failed on this journey, twice, before I made these changes in my lifestyle and actually stuck to them to shed my excess weight:

Exercising doesn't necessarily help you lose weight but it helps you be in control of what you eat. What I mean by this statement is that when you sweat during your workout, it makes you realise that you should not eat unhealthy food, which is the real culprit of your weight gain!

I am not the kind of guy who can restrict himself to only the food written on a piece of paper. I never followed any diet plan. Instead, I started noting down each and everything I was eating/drinking during the course of a day, be it an after-meal toffee/gum, tea/coffee or even a morsel of food from a colleagues plate.

This data helped me rectify my bad eating habits and also stick to foods that were good for my body. Notably, I cooked my own food. This is a key step in anyones transformation journey. When you cook your own food, you know what you are eating and in how much quantity. I used to eat 7-8 small meals a day. Small, timely meals help you build your BMR and moreover never leave you starving.

"These meals were devoid of sugar and protein-rich. They'd comprise 4-5 eggs in a day, 100-150 gms of chicken and brown bread, brown rice and whole wheat rotis among other food options."

To track my food intake calories and macros breakdown I used the HealthifyMe app. It has a lot of data of Indian food. Plus, it is a free app, if you are just looking to track your food and understand a basic breakdown. Also, there is a YouTube channel run by Guru Mann called Guru Mann Fitness. His free videos helped me understand various nutrition concepts.

In accordance with the first lifestyle change, Behal also followed the below workout plan.

I used to workout 6 days a week, focusing on one body part each day - Chest, Biceps, Triceps, Back, Legs and Shoulders - in addition to Abs and Cardio exercises.

There is no tomorrow, only today! So start with these 3 simple tips, and the results will motivate you to improve:

1. Stop eating sugar right away.

2. Stop eating fried/junk food as well.

3. Start walking, start with a walk of 30-45 minutes a day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

Disclaimer: The diet and workout routines shared by the respondents may or may not be approved by diet and fitness experts. GQ India doesn't encourage or endorse the weight loss tips & tricks shared by the person in the article. Please consult an authorised medical professional before following any specific diet or workout routine mentioned above.

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How to lose weight like this guy who lost 24 kgs with these two health hacks instead of dieting - GQ India

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NORFOLK - If you want to lose weight, but dont know where to start or you want to live a healthier life, an upcoming nutrition program in Norfolk at the YMCA may be the answer for you.

Registered nurse Deb Schmit says she has taught the 11-week Mayo Clinic Diet Program at the Osmond Hospital since 2012 and is bringing it to Norfolk for people to try.

Schmit says the program is made up of three different components with the first one called lose it.

"If you do everything they suggest you do in those first two weeks you should lose six to ten pounds in the first two weeks. It's not easy, because we're going to ask you to give up five of your bad habits, adopt five healthy habits and five bonus habits. You're going to keep track of those 15 habits throughout the first two weeks."

Schmit says the next part is called live it where she tries to get people to lose one to two pounds a week until they reach their goal weight.

She says the third phase is called all the extra stuff which is the part of the program that helps you maintain the weight youve lost.

Schmit says the program is great for diabetics or if youve been told youre pre-diabetic. People also decrease their risk for heart disease, cancer, and stroke as well.

An introduction of the program is set for Monday evening from 5 to 6 at the YMCA.

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Proven Mayo Clinic Diet Nutrition Program to be offered in Norfolk - Norfolk Daily News

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If you want to lose weight and get fit to rid your body from any ailments or aches, the first step that you need to take is ascertain your fitness goals in your mind. And then start working towards them with one hundred per cent focus, shares 34-year-old Gaurav Garg with us.

He also shares that six months ago, he decided to commence his weight loss journey to get rid of a terrible back ache. He trimmed from a whopping 110 kgs to 81 kgs by following the below healthy and sustainable weight loss plan.

Says Garg, my weight always tipped towards the heavier side of a weighing scale. But over time, I started facing a serious backache problem, which resulted in sciatica along with fatigue and laziness. I also discovered that I have a hyperthyroidism disorder. By this point, I just knew that I had to take charge of my health and work towards being fitter. So I decided to lose weight and become active by following the below diet plan and home workout routine.

Early Morning: After taking my thyroid medicine in the morning, I eat 5-10 soaked almonds & walnuts and drink a glass of warm lemon water with honey

Breakfast: A bowl of bran wheat flakes with hot milk (without sugar) or one whole wheat bread sandwich made with onions, tomato & cucumber along with a glass of milk and some fruits

Mid-morning snacks: Fruits, preferably an apple or a bowl of papaya with a cup of green tea

Lunch: 30 minutes prior to lunch, I drink at least 500 ml of water (to minimise hunger) and then usually eat roti made from bran atta along with any green vegetable prepared with very less olive oil and a cucumber salad

Evening snack: A bowl of fruits along with a cup of green tea

Dinner: Dinner is the most important meal, according to me. Id eat a light dinner by 07:30 pm. This would comprise oats with hot milk (without sugar) or sauted vegetables, Sometimes dalia or only a bowl of green vegetables

Post-dinner (around 09:00 pm): One glass of milk (without sugar)

Before going to bed: A cup of green tea it is a must

I have not done any major exercises, however, I preferred cycling and doing simple body weight /stretching exercises such as squats, etc. as a part of my weight loss workout routine."

It's totally reciprocal - as we maintain our diet, our body weight will maintain itself as well. To maintain your current weight, you need to understand your bodys calorie consumption, and accordingly maintain your diet.

Disclaimer: The diet and workout routines shared by the respondents may or may not be approved by diet and fitness experts. GQ India doesn't encourage or endorse the weight loss tips & tricks shared by the person in the article. Please consult an authorised medical professional before following any specific diet or workout routine mentioned above.

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The ketogenic diet, as it is officially known, is a medical success story. In the early 1900s, physicians in France and the US were experimenting with fasting and low-calorie diets to help reduce the frequency of seizures in epilepsy patients. As the theory became more refined, they found that they could trick the body into thinking it was fasting by limiting the intake of carbohydrates and sugars and upping the intake of fat. The result was that epileptics experienced a reduction in seizures of up to 90 per cent. In 1923, American diabetes expert Dr Russell Wilder designed an eating regime called ketogenic therapy for treating epilepsy and other health issues.

While still used today in the treatment of epilepsy, cancer, Alzheimers, some autoimmune diseases and a number of other conditions, the keto diet, as its now more commonly known, has become a household name due to our thriving diet culture, which is always hungry for a new way to cheat the scales. For people watching their diet, a weight loss plan that says you must eat more cheese and cream sounds like a dream. But, is it?

Matt Marney is a personal trainer, Pilates instructor and fitness educator and, having taught hundreds of fitness and nutrition courses, he knows a thing or two about the body and how it burns fat. He says: Back in our hunter-gatherer days, we had periods of starvation where our bodies had to adapt to the lack of food by breaking down our protein and fat stores into fuel sources. This is called ketosis. To achieve this, you have to limit your intake of our regular fuel sources, carbohydrates and sugars.

But, low-carb diets have been around for a while and there are lots of them, including the Atkins diet and even the paleo diet Losing weight is about achieving a caloric deficit, whereby there is less energy going in than there is going out. Whichever diet you go on, you can do this. The keto diet is just one way to lose weight.

There are health benefits, however, he says. For the first time in the history of homo sapiens, we live in an obesogenic environment, meaning we have an abundance of food. We are surrounded by high-energy, high-carb, highly processed foods all day, every day. If people eat sugar and carbs throughout the day, their bodies can get used to always having glucose the quickest and easiest fuel source available and forget how to use protein and fats for fuel. Then they have lost metabolic flexibility.

When this happens, says Marney, people can start to feel dizzy and shaky if they havent eaten due to low blood sugar levels. These people are known as sugar-burners. They can benefit from going keto to help their body remember how to use other fuel sources. Additionally, cancer thrives on sugar. If I got cancer tomorrow, I would go straight on the keto diet.

The classic keto approach recommends a 4:1 ratio of fats to protein and carbs, meaning 90 per cent of your calories come from fat, 6 per cent from protein and 4 per cent from carbohydrates. In real food terms, this means you would be eating approximately 10 to 15 grams of carbohydrates each day (a slice of bread or a third of a cup of cooked rice), with one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight (if you weigh 60 kilograms, this might be a 250-gram steak) and the rest of your diet would be fat, according to the American Fitness Professionals Association.

David Wilkins, a recruitment consultant and business owner who lives in Dubai, is also a fitness enthusiast and a spinning instructor in his spare time. He says his default eating mode involves an abnormal amount of sugar and processed carbs and that the keto diet helps him reduce that. I have been on the keto diet before and have just gone back on it. I am currently at about 98kg last time on keto I got down to 92kg and 12 per cent body fat.

I use an app to track my eating to make sure I get the right balance of macronutrients. I have a slice of toast at breakfast and thats my carb intake done for the day. For lunch, I have salads with nuts and olive oil and cheeses But I do get sick of all the fat and I really miss chips. I cheat once a week and have a day where I eat whatever I want. You arent meant to do this as it kicks you out of ketosis. But I find that eating keto six days a week helps me stay away from bread and doughnuts. Also, I instantly have more energy and mental clarity when I eat keto.

The keto diet is undoubtedly popular. Online searches for ketogenic has seen the largest growth among most-searched dietary requirements in the UAE over the past three years, with a 1,028.21 per cent rise, according to digital marketing suite SEMrush. Offline, an increasing number of keto-friendly restaurants and delivery companies are also opening in the country. For example, Emiliya Ninova and her husband, Antoine Soliman, launched Keto by Foxxy in January 2019, offering keto-friendly cakes, cookies and other treats. This month, they launched their second company, The Keto Fix, which fills the junk food gap.

In the last six months of 2019, Keto by Foxxy had more than 30,000 new clients, which shows how popular it is, says Ninova. My husband and I went keto and both lost 17kg. But we both have a sweet tooth, so I started baking keto treats for us the business grew from there.

Similarly, Ketology, a keto food delivery concept in Abu Dhabi, which launched in May last year, has received such positive feedback in the capital that, this month, they also started work on their Dubai kitchen. Natalie Latouf, business development manager at Crave Restaurant Management, the umbrella company, says they were surprised by the success. We create delivery restaurant concepts and saw a gap in the market for something offering a fully keto menu of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks. Its been really interesting for us, as Ketology has been very successful in comparison with some of the other concepts we have launched.

For Marney, the most important thing is doing it right. People get locked into a dogma. They like to be able to say that they are on the keto diet, but they often arent doing it properly. If you have cut out carbs and sugar, but you havent increased your fat enough, you arent keto, you are just low-carb.

I havent done keto myself, as I like carbs too much, but as a personal trainer, I would never tell a client to go on the diet. Personal trainers are not nutritionists or endocrinologists we shouldnt be giving that advice. Some people get flu-like symptoms on the keto diet and other side effects. Its a serious business for your body. Yes, you may lose weight, but thats because you have cut out an entire macronutrient. There are lots of ways to lose weight and we are all different physiologically, so if you want to try the keto diet, do so, but see a qualified dietitian first.

Updated: January 18, 2020 12:02 PM

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Keto diet: the good, the bad and everything you need to know - The National

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Results from a clinical trial assessing the safety of Belviq and Belviq XR (lorcaserin) show the drug may be associated with an elevated risk of tumors, but the cause of the cancer is uncertain, regulators say.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning on January 14, 2020, that the prescription weight loss drug Belviq (lorcaserin) might be associated with an increased risk of cancer.

In a clinical trial following about 12,000 patients over five years, more patients taking lorcaserin were diagnosed with cancer compared with patients taking a placebo, according to the FDA.

At this time, the cause of the cancer is uncertain, and we cannot conclude that lorcaserin contributes to the cancer risk, the FDA said in its warning statement. However, we wanted to make the public aware of this potential risk.

A spokesperson for the FDA declined to provide additional information about the type of cancer or the magnitude of the risk while the analysis of the trial results are ongoing.

Tumors were observed with lorcaserin in two-year studies of rats,according to safety information on the FDA-approved label for the drug. These findings were based on doses far higher than doses used in humans, according to the label.

The relevance of these findings in animals to humans is unknown, Eisai Inc., the drugmaker that sells Belviq, said in a statement emailed to Everyday Health.

In humans, post-marketing adverse event reports do not suggest an increased risk of cancer, but we are working with the FDA to carefully assess the data from the recent clinical trial, Eisai stated.

RELATED: What Really Causes Obesity?

The FDA initially declined to approve lorcaserin in 2010 in part because of questions about the tumors found in rats. Regulators also had questions about cardiovascular side effects, including heart valve defects.

Lorcaserin won FDA approval in 2012 to aid weight loss in obese adults and in overweight adults who have health problems linked to excess weight, such asdiabetes, high blood pressure, and elevated cholesterol. The drug works by increasing feelings of fullness so that less food is eaten. It is available as a tablet (Belviq) and an extended-release tablet (Belviq XR).

As a condition of approval, the FDA required Eisai to conduct several clinical trials known as post-marketing studies, including a long-term safety trial of cardiovascular side effects, the FDA said in the warning issued on potential cancer risks.

Some results of the trial of 12,000 patients,published September 20, 2018, in the New England Journal of Medicine(NEJM),found heart problems no more common with lorcaserin than with a placebo. After a median follow-up period of 3.3 years, roughly 2 percent of patients in both groups experienced things like heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure.

In this trial, a total of 215 patients on lorcaserin, or about 3.6 percent, developed cancer, researchers reported. So did 210 patients taking a placebo, or 3.5 percent, a difference too small to be statistically meaningful.

On the basis of these results, the potential cancer risk disclosed by the FDA was unexpected, says Frank Greenway, MD, the medical director at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Dr. Greenway wasnt involved in the NEJM trial, but has done other research on lorcaserin funded by Eisai.

The FDA did not tell how many more cancer cases were seen, Greenway says. We really do not know enough about the elevation of cancer risk to assess what the risk really is.

RELATED: Obesity Triggering Rising Cancer Rates in Millennials

Still, patients taking lorcaserin who dont lose 5 percent of their body weight after 12 weeks should stop, Greenway says. They should also discontinue use if they are taking the drug to improve weight-related health conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure and dont see anticipated improvements in these conditions, he advises.

One challenge for patients who might be worried about a potential cancer risk with lorcaserin is that obesity, too, is associated with an elevated risk of several cancers, says Beverly Tchang, MD, of the division of endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism at NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Excess body weight explains 3.9 percent of cancer cases worldwide, according to a study published December 2018 in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

Being obese or overweight is associated with an increased risk of 13 cancers affecting the breast, colon and rectum, uterus, esophagus, gallbladder, kidney, liver, ovary, pancreas, stomach, and thyroid, brain and spinal cord, and blood cells.

More recently, some research has also tied excess weight to risk of prostate tumors as well as cancers of the mouth and throat, according to this study.

RELATED: What Are the Risk Factors for Cancer, and Can You Prevent It?

With lorcaserin, its possible that any increased risk of cancer might be because patients on the drug see doctors more often or are more up-to-date on routine cancer screenings than other people, Dr. Tchang says.

Patients on lorcaserin may be more likely to see doctors or interact with medical care because they are already motivated to take charge of their health, whether by diet/exercise or adherence to cancer screening guidelines, Tchang says. If these patients are more likely to be on top of their cancer screening, then we will see a higher cancer incidence in this group.

Once details about any cancer risk are clearer, patients will need to weigh these risks against the cancer risks associated with obesity to make an informed decision about whether to start taking the drug or to discontinue use if theyre already on it, Tchang advises.

Certainly if the cancer risk associated with obesity is greater than that with the drug, then stopping lorcaserin and allowing obesity to develop could potentially increase a persons risk of cancer in the end, Tchang says.

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Weight Loss Drug Belviq May Be Associated With Cancer, FDA Says - Everyday Health

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Quinoa (Photo Credits: Pixabay)

Most of us consider weight loss an impossible task and lose hope without giving any effort. One must have the will power, dedication to lose weight, which in turn helps the individual lead a healthy lifestyle. Good eating habits play a crucial role, where good foods should be selected to make your meal nutritious. One such food item is quinoa that can help in improving health in many ways. In this week's weight loss tip, we will discuss how quinoa can help to lose weight.Health Benefits of Quinoa: Why this High-Protein Superfood is Important for Vegans & Vegetarians.

As per United States Department of Agriculture, 185 gm of cooked quinoa consist of 8.14 gm protein, 3.55 gm fat and 39.41 gm carbohydrate. Many of youmay not be aware of the factthat quinoa is a complete source of protein as it contains all essential nine amino acids that our body require to function well. Quinoa is largely available in two kinds: red and white. Quinoa is considered as pseudocereal or pseudo-grain and it can be cooked like rice.Weight Loss Tip of the Week: How to Use Celery to Lose Weight (Watch Video)

Apart from protein, quinoa also contains monounsaturated fats, potassium, phosphorus, copper, zinc, vitamin E and B6 that are good for the body. Since this pseudocereal is high in protein, it gives rise to satiety by regulating hunger hormone ghrelin to check cravings. This helps the person to avoid over-eating and play a big hand in weight loss. Also, quinoa is much higher in fibre than any other grain, which again keeps the body full for a longer time. Quinoa is also low in glycemic index value, this thereby helps in slow digestion and curb hunger.

Irrespective of whether you are vegan, vegetarian or non-vegetarian, you should consider including quinoa in your diet for a healthy body. Apart from adding this healthy pseudo-grain in your meal, also take out time for some exercise and avoid refined sugar, processed food for achieving a good body.

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Weight Loss Tip of the Week: How to Use Quinoa to Lose Weight - LatestLY

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Diet. Detox. Paleo. Parisian. Whatever you want to call it, nearly half of Canadians are following some sort of food plan to lose weight, according to a recent national poll.

Whether for health or aesthetic reasons (or a bit of both), the desire to slim down feeds billions of dollars into the weight loss industry every year. And yet, as studies keep telling us, results are almost never permanent. Its enough to make the diet-weary roll a fat one and forget itwhich, coincidentally, may be an effective slimming strategy in itself.

Dr. Stephen Glazer, chief medical officer at CannaWay Clinic and bariatric expert, says while research is still in its infancy, studies suggest the endocannabinoid system contributes significantly to both obesity and metabolic disorders.

Simply put, the endocannabinoid system is a network of cellular receptors in the body that help keep our system in balance. It is the CB1 receptors within the endocannabinoid system that interact with THC, leaving us feeling euphoric (or high).

Glazer says these same CB1 receptors play a large role in energy uptake, storage, and conservation. When this receptor is activated by THC, either through ingestion or inhalation, it heightens our taste and smell pathways and activates our brains appetite centre, colloquially known as the munchies. This is why he says his patients at CannaWay receiving chemotherapy can benefit from medical cannabis to help them rebuild a healthy appetite.

But arent we talking about losing weight? Yes.

As it turns out, Glazer says new research looking at the average Western diet, which tends to be high in omega-6-fatty-acids and low in omega-3-fatty-acids, points to chronic and excessive stimulation of the CB1 receptors.

To put it in perspective, the ideal omega-6 to omega-3 ratio for the human body is 3:1. But in the average Western diet, this can be as high as 20:1. Overactive CB1 receptors could be throwing the entire endocannabinoid system off balance.

In other words, the system that keeps our bodies in balance is itself out of balance, thanks to the foods were eating.

While it seems counterintuitive that something responsible for a food frenzy can also help you shed pounds, research suggests regularly activating CB1 with cannabis can help calm this overstimulated receptor over the long term, a phenomenon called down-regulation.

Glazer says one study in particular showed long term, regular cannabis is linked to lower body mass index (BMI) and obesity rates. This is an exciting development, in specific relation to the long-lasting down-regulation of CB1, which may suppress appetite while increasing calories burnt.

But its not just THC at play when it comes to hunger, or lack thereof. Glazer says another cannabinoid, called THCV, may actually block the effect of THC on CB1 receptors, potentially suppressing appetite. He cites more recent evidence that suggests THCV may increase connectivity in areas of the brain associated with appetiteareas that have been shown to be affected in obesity patients. Thus, THCV may play a role in reducing the incidence of obesity.

Blocking CB1 receptors to suppress appetite is something the pharmaceutical industry has already looked into. A drug called Rimonabant showed promise in the lab, although clinical trials resulted in negative psychiatric side effects, and research was abandoned.

CBD, the darling cannabinoid of late, could also be responsible for trimming weed-loving waistlines over time. Over time CBD has been shown to increase our bodys brown fat, or brown adipose tissue, a special kind of fat that burns through regular body fat for fuel.

This may have a variety of positive effects related to fat cell metabolism and energy expenditure, resulting in a potentially promising therapeutic agent for obesity prevention, says Glazer.

While he has not personally seen lowered BMIs in his own medical cannabis patients, Glazer says he doesnt discount the growing evidence connecting cannabis with healthy body sizes. However, hes cautious to give full credit to the handful of cannabinoids mentioned above:

We must keep in mind that the cannabis plant is composed of over 250 unique chemical compounds and the research is just getting started, focusing primarily on THC and CBD. More research is required for definitive answers, but we are moving in the right direction and the future for cannabis use and research is quite promising.

Colleen Fisher Tully is a freelance writer and editor with recent work in Clean Eating, Today's Parent, The Walrus and Local Love. She posts random thoughts on Twitter @colleenftully

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Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) rang in the new year by celebrating a milestone. The gym operator and franchiser opened its 2,000th location on Dec. 31, in Colorado Springs. This capped off an impressive year of opening 261 new locations for 15% unit growth. Now the company has its sights squarely set on the next milestone: its 3,000th location. With over 1,000 new locations currently in its pipeline, this milestone could be reached in the next three to five years.

But more than just continuing to expand the brand by opening new locations, Planet Fitness is also trying to overcome misconceptions by the public regarding fitness. The company recently sponsored an independent study that came back with four widely-held fitness myths. Dispelling them could lead to increased gym membership.

Image source: Planet Fitness

The company's Bullfit Report addresses four common myths about fitness.First, according to the report, as little as 10 minutes of exercise can yield results, not the 95 minutes that the average person thinks are required. Second, you don't need to work out five days a week for it to be effective; any time you spend exercising is beneficial. Third, head-to-head fitness challenges don't work. And fourth, most people are not motivated by common catchphrases like "No pain, no gain," but some inspirational phrases (like "Investing in yourself") can be highly motivating.

At the beginning of 2015, just prior to Planet Fitness's IPO, the company had 918 locations and 6.1 million members. That works out to over 6,600 members per location. As of the third quarter of 2019, it had 1,899 locations and 14.1 million members. That means the number of members per location has increased to over 7,400.

Planet Fitness estimates that 80% of people 14 years and older in the U.S. and Canada still don't belong to a gym. This is the crowd that it targets. It has built its empire quickly by making its gyms "Judgment Free Zones," catering to the casual gym-goer who doesn't want to feel intimidated by bodybuilders.

This strategy has proved effective. But there's still plenty of room for the company to continue growing its members-per-location metric. One way it can do this isby using the Bullfit Report to bust the myths that prevent folks from joining a gym in the first place.

As already mentioned, Planet Fitness now has 2,000 locations (primarily in the U.S.) and over 1,000 locations already in development. But just how much further can this growth-stock story run? CEOChris Rondeau reiterated during the Q3 earnings call that the company is targeting 4,000 locations in the U.S. alone. That means Planet Fitness is still just halfway through with its domestic growth, despite its strong growth over the past five years.

Furthermore, Planet Fitness has a largely untapped international growth opportunity. In 2017, it signed a franchise agreement in Panama, and in 2018, it signed one for Mexico. More recently, the company signed a franchise agreement to open a minimum of 35 locations in Australia. Even though this shows some effort, international expansion is still a small part of the Planet Fitness story.

It may simply be an issue of focus, with Planet Fitness giving full attention to its thriving U.S. operations. But this could start to change within the next couple of years. On the Q3 earnings call, Rondeau commented that chief development officerRay Miolla is approaching two years at Planet Fitness, and in about another year, Miolla's "international focus will be quite a bit stronger."

Investors should celebrate the 2,000th Planet Fitness milestone. A lot can go wrong while expanding, but the company is pulling it off quickly and efficiently. For now, investor attention should remain on U.S. operations, where it would be great to see membership per location continue to increase. Any drop in this metric in coming quarters would be a major red flag.

Also, there's no reason to fret that the growth-via-expansion story is coming to an end. Planet Fitness believes it can still double the number of U.S. locations compared to today, and its current development pipeline already covers half of that future expansion. When the time comes, it will turn its attention to the rest of the (ahem) planet.

Continued here:
Planet Fitness Just Opened Its 2,000th Location - Motley Fool

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