Pray It Off "Exercise, Positive Thoughts, Recipe" April 16, 2010 WITH VIDEO

The Magic Bullet for Weight Loss: Diet or Exercise?
http://www.thatsfit.com
Which is more important for weight loss, exercise or diet? -- Martha Hagman

This is a complicated question and one that I can't completely answer because it hasn't been completely answered by science. A satisfactory explanation for how best to lose weight and why it is so easy to gain weight has yet to be determined. I've discussed many possible contributing factors in this column: Genetics, hormones, biological viruses, social viruses, stress, your romantic partner -- even air conditioning. All are suspected of playing a role in how and why the body stores fat.

It's easiest to point a finger straight at calories because it makes sense that if you take in more energy than you burn off, you will hold on to what's left as excess body weight. So let's talk about whether eating fewer of them or burning more of them is the better weight loss strategy.

A number of studies have concluded that restricting calories is a better way to drop a pants size than spending more time in the gym. For example, one University of Pennsylvania trial found that men and women who exercised -- but didn't bother to control what they ate -- lost 0.3 percent of their initial body weight compared to those who dieted but did not exercise and lost 8.4 percent of their weight.

Don't cancel your gym membership just yet. This study, like many others looking at the problem, did not compare diet and exercise on equal footing. The women in the diet-only group cut 945 calories per day, and the men cut 1,705 calories. Meanwhile, the exercise-only groups walked or jogged for 30 minutes, five times a week, expending an average of 255 and 190 calories per session for men and women, respectively.

This is sort of like comparing apples to really big apples. In a research study cited by the American College of Sports Medicine to support their daily exercise recommendations, researchers compared people who ate 500 fewer calories per day with those who burned an extra 500 calories by walking and both groups lost about the same amount of weight. This seems to be the general finding with more recent studies, as well. Of course, you'd have to run about six miles to burn off a Milky Way Bar that takes less than a minute to eat (speaking only for myself, of course). That's why once you step outside the laboratory, dieting probably plays a bigger role in weight loss than exercise.

Still, it's clear that combining diet and exercise achieves better results than doing either separately. In a review of more than a dozen studies lasting up to a year, the National Institutes of Health found that groups who did aerobic exercise and cut calories lost an average of 4.2 pounds more than groups who just dieted. Groups that added weight training to the mix were rewarded with losing two additional pounds on average.

Putting all this aside for the moment, the better question seems to me, "What is the best way to prevent yourself from gaining weight in the first place?" or perhaps more applicable to most of us, "What's the best way to keep it off once you've lost it?" Here, the evidence is becoming crystal clear: Exercise is the key factor. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that over 70 percent of people who succeed in keeping their weight down over a five year period exercise regularly as part of a lifestyle change, compared to only 20 percent of people who have regained their weight. The National Weight Control Registry puts the percentage of successful losers who exercise closer to 80.

I've often said on this blog, and I'll say it again, that the formula for losing weight is as simple as moving more and eating less. I think as we continue to unravel the mysteries of body weight we will find this to be fundamentally true still but with many factors tossed into the mix which complicate how your body stores and sheds calories. For now, the best pieces of ammunition you have to fight extra pounds are to get your fanny in gear and use a smaller fork.

You can refer back to the list of Positive Affirmations here:
Pray It Off


Cherry-Almond Snack Mix
http://www.everydayhealth.com

Ingredients
4 cups cereal, sweetened oat squares
1/2 cup nuts, almonds, sliced
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice
Dash salt
1 cup cherries, dried, and/or golden raisins
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 300°F. In a 15x10x1-inch baking pan, combine cereal and almonds. In a small bowl, stir together melted butter, apple pie spice, and salt. Drizzle butter mixture over cereal mixture; toss to coat evenly.
2. Bake about 20 minutes or until almonds are toasted, stirring once during baking. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Stir in dried cherries or raisins. Cool completely. Store in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to one week.
Yield: 5 servings
Total Time: 30 mins
Nutritional Info (Per serving): Calories: 82, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 58mg, Dietary Fiber: 1g, Total Fat: 3g, Carbs: 12g, Cholesterol: 3mg, Protein: 2g

Empty And Beautiful by Matt Maher

My past won't stop haunting me
In this prison there's a fight between
Who I am and who I used to be

This thorn in my side is a grace
For because of it the flesh and blood of God
Was offered in my place, my place

CHORUS: You fought the fight in me
You chased me down and finished the race
I was blind but now I see
Jesus You kept the faith in me

Where did my best friends go?
In my defense they disappeared
Just like Your friends did to You, oh Lord

But You were there, You gave me strength
So this little one might come to know
The glory of Your name, Your name

CHORUS
Awaiting, set apart like incense to Your heart
A libation I'm pouring out
Empty and beautiful, beautiful, beautiful

CHORUS
You fought the fight in me
You chased me down and finished the race
I was blind but now I see
Jesus You kept the faith in me
Jesus You kept the faith in me
Savior, You kept the faith in me

PIO GROUP PRAYER TIME
April 16, 2010

• Have you ever thought if you only lost the weight, you would have a different life? Discuss.
• Have you ever “demonized” yourself about your weight?
• Do you ever LISTEN to what feelings are doing to your body? Describe how you feel, physically when you are: Stressed; nervous; disappointed; betrayed; lied to. Describe how you feeling in your body right now? Be descriptive.
• Have you ever used food to feel numb? Did it help? Does overeating ever lead to rapture? Is there something better than turning to food?
• Discuss the phrase: “No amount of weight loss will touch the part of you that is convinced it is damaged.”
• Do you eat after 7:30 – can you stop?
• Do you chew each mouthful 20 times? Can you try to this week?
• Say the Hail Mary to Close the Group.

“Come near to God and He will come near to you.” James 4-8