Losing Fat Without Dieting

While the end result is a lost of body weight, no matter how you do it, are some methods of losing excess body fat better than others? Or, in other words, does the method of fat lost utilized make a difference in how your body will look afterwards? And, can you actually lose your excess body fat without dieting? The Body of Work documentary video which profiled the 1997 Physique-Transformation Challenge and its 10 finalists, attempted to answer these questions.

Highlights of Losing Fat Without Dieting:

• What an overweight person is actually trying to do is lose excess body fat.
• A research study found that six months of aerobic exercise combined with bodybuilding resulted in better overall fitness and fat loss without significant changes in bone mineral density.
• Bill Phillips succeeded in making a strong case for losing excess body fat by a combination of bodybuilding and aerobic exercise.
• Given enough time, most people can safely build up to an high-exercise intensity level.
• Everyone who exercises regularly will eventually end up with a great looking body, even if it is not perfect.
• All of the finalists, lost all their excess body fat.

The Natural Health Perspective is a health and wellness rather than a medical web site. A natural health site should naturally offer a more commonsense approach to losing fat. Therefore, no attempt will be made to offer medical approaches to losing body fat. This web page is based mostly on a commonsense review of the Body of Work documentary video which profiled the 1997 Physique-Transformation Challenge and its 10 finalists.

Losing weight is actually a misnomer. What an overweight person is actually trying to do is lose excess body fat. And, the only way that this can be done is by 1) restricting caloric intake (or what is commonly referred to as dieting), 2) exercising (in order to burn up calories stored in your body as body fat), or 3)some combination of both dieting and exercise. There are two basic forms of exercise to consider: aerobic and anaerobic (or what is commonly referred to as bodybuilding).

Muscle is metabolically active while body fat is not. In other words, muscle will burn up calories even when you are resting. A research study found that six months of aerobic exercise combined with bodybuilding resulted in better overall fitness and fat loss without significant changes in bone mineral density. A loss of bone mass is a common problem seen in people who try to lose weight by just dieting.[3] Further, dieting alone commonly causes substantial loss of muscle tissue, but the addition of aerobic exercise has been shown to reduce this loss. Research also shows that bodybuilding appears to prevent the loss of or even increases muscle mass during dieting.[4]

The 1997 Physique-Transformation Challenge, which was a contest with 54,000 contestants, attempted to answer an important question. Could any ordianary person starting from scratch lose up to 50 pounds of fat, and beautifully reshape their body, at the end of just 12 weeks (or 3 months) by a combination of bodybuilding and aerobic exercise without dieting? The video attempted to answer this question by profiling the life of the 10 finalists. There is also a book called Body for Life (see ordering information, below), written by Bill Phillips, which does a good job of providing a plan of attack, or a suggested exercise program for losing excess body fat. Each of the profiled contestants had a beginning and ending photograph taken. The Body for Life book profiles additional contestants. And, the Body for Life Success Journal (see ordering information, below) profiles even more contestants. These addititional inspirational contestant profiles come complete with beginning and ending photographs and a paragraph or two denoting their real life experiences. Many different females and men were profiled in these two other books.

The 10 finalists of this contest consisted of one female and 9 men. All of the finalists, lost all their excess body fat. The men, in addition, all looked like they could win a bodybuilding contest. The female finalist did not show any evidence of big muscles, but rather looked shapely and well toned. Two of the men were in their 50's with gray hair. Steps were taken to make sure that none of the finalists cheated by taking steroids or other illegal drugs. The video did a pretty good job of selling the dream of succeeding, but I found very little hard information as to how these particular individuals actually managed to succeed. The Body for Life book (see ordering information, below) provides this missing information in the form of a suggested exercise program for losing excess body fat.

The Natural Health Perspective site must caution the public against starting any exercise program at a high-intensity level. People new to exercise should always start at the beginning with a low-level of exercise intensity and then gradually build up to a higher level of intensity during their workouts. People new to exercise usually can safely start a walking exercise program. The idea is that you body has to be given enough time to adjust to any exercise program. Given enough time, most people can safely build up to an high-exercise intensity level. Hence, anyone new to exercise should take Bill Phillips's high-intensity exercise advice with caution until they can safely perform high-intensity aerobics without raising either their pulse rate or blood pressure to dangerously high levels.

While the video was all about these 10 finalists, I found the fate of the other 50,000 contestants more interesting. Were they all lazy, unmotivated, or morally bankrupt individuals? Didn't they work hard at exercising? Why didn't they succeed, while the 10 finalists did? Surely a large number of these other 50,000 contestants put a great deal of effort into winning the contest, but failed none the less. A better question should have been asked. If 54,000 real people started out following the exact same combination of bodybuilding and aerobic exercise would at least 50,000 of them end up losing all their excess body fat in just 12 weeks? The correct answer would have been NO. But, they would all have been well on their way of doing so, nevertheless. In other words, the end result would NOT have been negative. Everyone who exercises regularly will eventually end up with a great looking body, even if it is not perfect. People around you will take note of your new body. Your lost of excess body fat, improved posture, with a more shapelier and toner body will impress those around you who still have beer bellies or big butts. However, most people would probably require more time than 3 months to succeed. Planning to lose all your excess body fat in 6 months would be a more realistic goal.

It is pretty well recognized that there are 3 basic elements in any exercise program: the workout itself, nutrition, and a recovery period. The actual routines used by these finalists were never mentioned in the video. Perhaps, the secret lies in their workout routines? What exactly did these finalists eat? How much was protein? What about vitamin pills and other health drinks and supplements? The video was silent on these issues, although we did see one group meal at the end of a workout day that included a big steak for everyone. Perhaps, the real secret was in the nutrition of these finalists? The Body for Life book (See ordering information, below) provides this missing information in the form of a suggested nutritional program that recommends eating six meals a day.

Another question left unanswered was whether these 10 finalists lived a real life during those 12 weeks of training. I expect not. In other words, I expect that the life of these 10 finalists during their 12 weeks of training was exercise and little else. Is such a lifestyle realistic, healthy or even desirable over the long run? I would rather doubt it. Did any of these people, have a real family to contend with? I would say that these finalists took their exercising to the extreme, which is unhealthy because it violates the ancient principle of moderation. Most do not have the luxury of putting their life on hold for 12 weeks. And, do not forget that these finalists were motivated to go to extremes precisely because they were trying to win $60,000 USA cash money and a Lamborghini automobile as prizes. The average person has no chance of winning a $250,000 automobile for losing 50 pounds of fat in just 12 weeks.

Bill Phillips did succeed in making a strong case for losing excess body fat by a combination of bodybuilding and aerobic exercise, because dieting alone or with aerobics wont reshape your body like bodybuilding can. Further, with the right combination of bodybuilding and aerobics there is no need to diet. Bill has documented in the form of beginning and ending photographs real people who have lost up to 50 pounds of body fat by exercising, without resorting to plastic surgery. In other words, losing 50 pounds of body fat by a combination of bodybuilding and aerobic exercise without dieting does a great job of reshaping your body, even if you require more time. These photographs will motivate anyone interested in losing their excess body fat.

Physical exercise will improve your natural health and fitness. Physical exercise is part of healthy living. Anybody interested in natural health should regularly participate in moderate forms of physical exercise like fitness walking. An active lifestyle, is even better than physical exercise, in improving your natural health and fitness.

NOTICE: Please read both my Exercise Disclaimer, Links and Advertisement Disclaimer, and Warranty Disclaimer before using this web page.

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References

1. Body of Work, Film by Bill Phillips, Director: Edward Asiano, Peter Jaysen, Studio: Seventh Dream Pictures, Video Release Date: 1998 .
2. Bill Phillips, Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength, Collins, 1999.
3. Exercise Won't Harm Aging Bones
   Stewart KJ, Bacher AC, Hees PS. Exercise effects on bone mineral density relationships to changes in fitness and fatness. Am J Prev Med. 2005 Jun;28(5):453-60. PMID: 15894149.
4. Walberg JL. Aerobic exercise and resistance weight-training during weight reduction. Implications for obese persons and athletes. Sports Med. 1989 Jun;7(6):343-56. Review. PMID: 2662322