We want to maintain a healthy weight –or, we’d just like to get to a healthy weight.  Either way, MUSCLE MASS is an important tool.

Muscle burns 2x as many calories as fat and takes up much less space.

The challenge, with many diets, is that when we lose weight, we lose it from fat loss AND muscle loss.  As we lose more muscle mass, we lose our calorie burning machine.

Here are a few tips to assist you in maintaining that muscle mass.

• Workouts – research is showing that burst workouts can assist the body in burning more fat and less muscle mass, all while ramping up the metabolism for the entire day to burn additional calories throughout. Did you know: you can burn as many or more calories in an intense 3 minutes than you can with 30 minutes of aerobics?
  
• Water – drinking 500 ml of water increases metabolic rate by 30% in both men and in women. The increase in metabolic rate was observed within 10 min after completion and reached a maximum 30–40 min after water drinking. –source JCEM
• Protein – New research suggests that many of us may need more protein than we realize. The current RDA is 0.8 g of protein per kilogram of body weight, but several studies have found that 1 to 1.2 g may be more protective against age-related muscle loss. I begin EVERY morning with a protein smoothee. 
• Leucine specifically – Whereas total protein is important in providing substrates for gluconeogenesis, leucine appears to regulate oxidative use of glucose by skeletal muscle through stimulation of glucose recycling via the glucose-alanine cycle. – Source – The Journal of Nutrition
• 1/4 plate – the protein on your plate boosts calorie burn by 25-30%
• Fruits & Veggies – 7-9 per day. There are many sources to build muscle and boost metabolism. A rainbow of these babies gives a multitude of vitamins & nutrients – solid building blocks to build healthy new muscle and to maintain what you already have.  Here are a few resources outlining specific metabolism boosting foods.
• Cinch – by Cynthia Sass
• Burn More Calories with Metabolism-Boosting Foods
• Whole Grains – Fiber is so important when building healthy muscle and then maintaining that muscle.  Fiber assists the body in moving things through, allowing the digestive system to work properly, absorb the nutrients needed and to not stay too long and absorb things NOT needed by the body. Stay away from the processed foods and look for whole grains or raw nuts. 

Using solid building materials to build a strong body/foundation will assist you in the long run! 

Keep on keeping on. ~Zig Ziglar

When you work to maintain a healthy body and a strong muscle mass in your body it will:

• Create a leaner physique
• Reduce your risk of injury
• Increase strength, stability, power and endurance
• Improve balance and mobility
• Improve the way you feel about yourself
• Increase energy and vitality
• Improve athletic performance
• Create metabolic reserve in times of traumas such as (car accidents and burns)
• Increase your metabolic efficiency
• Improve insulin sensitivity and improve blood glucose control

The system that I used to lose my 55 pounds and maintain that weight loss for over 7 years is based on the principals above.  If you would like more information on how a Shaklee 180 could assist you in building a FAT BURNING machine of a body – contact me.