The Cortisol Connection Diet

Chapter 4:

Thermogenesis

The term thermogenesis refers to the generation of heat (thermo- means "heat"; -genesis means "create"). In the body, heat creation comes from the conversion of food into energy: heat is given off as a by-product of energy metabolism. You can increase your level of thermogenesis in several ways-such as by eating more, eating more of the right foods, and exercising. Simply eating more food tends to increase thermogenesis up to a point, but then the inevitable happens: you start to gain weight because you don't burn off as many calories as you take in. A better approach is to eat more of the right foods-and an even better approach is to eat those right foods in the right combinations to boost thermogenesis even more. By following the Balance-Factor and Helping-Hand approach outlined in Chapter 1, you'll achieve the optimal combination of thermogenic macronutrients.

We're Not Getting Any Younger

As we age, our metabolic rate drops, and most of us begin to pack on the pounds. If, in response to stress , we add that fat in our abdominal area, our body changes shape from that of an hourglass to one more resembling a shot glass-and repeated diets only compound the problem.

Most of us will experience a drop in metabolism of about 0.5 percent per year after the age of twenty. This phenomenon is largely due to a loss of about five to ten pounds of muscle tissue every decade. Half a percentage point may seem like a small decrease, but when we consider the effects over ten or twenty years, it means that we're burning 5 percent fewer calories at age thirty and 10 percent fewer calories at age forty-and so it goes, with about 5 percent fewer calories burned for every ten years of age. Just imagine: By the time we turn fifty, we're burning 15 percent fewer calories than we did when we were twenty.

How does this translate into maintaining your youthful figure? An average-size person consuming about 2,000 calories per day at age twenty needs only 1,700 calories at age fifty to maintain his or her body weight. That's 300 fewer calories per day. This means that if you don't make some serious changes in your diet and exercise patterns, then your fifty-year-old body will be carrying around thirty extra pounds of fat compared to when you were twenty!

Change in Metabolic Rate and Weight Gain with Age

*without a corresponding change in diet/exercise patterns

Connie

Coming into Dr. Talbott's program, I felt I was ready for a change in my lifestyle to becoming a "healthy" person. I had already made a commitment to myself at the beginning of the New Year to try to make change sin my diet and exercise programs to become healthier. This program came at the right time and made all the difference for me because I had read and tried just about every diet out there and had decided that I needed to do something different. Dr. Talbott's program seemed to combine all the best aspects of all the other diets without any of the silly gimmicks - but the best part was that it was so balanced and easy to follow that it easily became part of the healthy lifestyle that I had been searching for.

I really didn't set high goals for myself at the beginning - I only wanted to work on a more healthy diet and STOP gaining so much weight. If I could get some weight LOSS along with a healthier lifestyle, then that would be an added bonus. I found the nutritional information and the education about metabolism that Dr. Talbott gave us to be invaluable and on the cutting edge. I've been reading a lot about nutrition and how the body responds to emotions, so I understand the "cortisol connection" that Dr. Talbott talks about and how important it is. These connections between emotions and how our body's work is REAL - and now I am living proof.

I am quite surprised and thrilled at the results after 12 weeks working on Dr. Talbott's program. I've lost weight and inches - and all without really "trying" to do anything but slow/stop my weight gain (and even with about 3 weeks of vacation with all the delicious foods). The program has helped me change my attitude about food and I am making better choices to match the balance of nutrients that Dr. Talbott talks about in his program. I am now sharing my experiences with my friends, family and neighbors because I know that if Dr. Talbott's program can help me to work towards a better me, then it can help anybody.

*Actual Book content excerpted from The Cortisol Connection Diet: The Breakthrough Program to Control Stress and Lose Weight by Shawn M Talbott, PhD