As I sit on a flight from Dubai to London … it’s 3:30 AM (in whatever time zone I’m currently in).  And while I should be tired, my sleep is so far off from normal, I’m wide awake and probably disturbing the other passengers with my computer.  Sorry.

But how does this sleep deprivation affect me on a physiological level?  I have been traveling for the last couple weeks — Kara and I spoke in Iceland last week and then I headed to Indonesia, which is 11 hours ahead of our normal EST.  As an aside, excited for Kara who was invited as the first woman speaker from the US to speak at the Keilir Academy in Iceland. 

I digress.

Now on my way back, I just keep resetting my watch at every stop … as I come back to the US.  When I land in London, I’ll once again set my watch as we’re landing at 7 AM … and then taking off again at 10 AM.  I’ll certainly not know where I am when I finally get home.

So why does all this matter?  We’ve talked before about the importance of sleep when trying to lose weight.  Very simply, sleep more, weigh less … with most research suggesting the 8 hour mark being ideal for losing and maintaining your body weight.

But just when you think the "chapter" in this story is closed, an interesting study comes out …

… showing that even ACUTE sleep deprivation can affect body weight!  I’m in trouble! 

Check this out:

The study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition compared 2 levels of sleep — 4 hours vs. 8 hours — and measured food intake the following day.

They learned after just a single night of getting just 4 hours of sleep (sleep deprivation) the subjects at 22% (an average of 559 calories) more the following day compared to the group who got just 8 hours of sleep!

While this short term study was small, it definitely opens the door for more research on this topic to see if continued sleep deprivation (defined as 4 hours in this study) and subsequent overeating could be a major cause of obesity.

Bottom Line:

Burning the candle at both ends and thinking just "1 night of lack of sleep won’t hurt me."  Sleep is an easy part of the equation to control — even aiming for just 1 more hour each night will help.  Every little bit of additional sleep helps!

Hoping I can get back on track quickly myself…

Imagine if burning belly fat didn’t mean endless hours of exercise. 

It didn’t mean eliminating all your favorite foods and drinks.

The thought is appealing and, to be honest, it doesn’t.

And sometimes, to be honest, people work so hard at the diet and exercise pieces, they "forget" about the other pieces.  Those other pieces, though, may be what’s missing in the quest for a flatter belly.

What we call the "Fat Loss Secret Weapons."

One of those "Secret Weapons"… is something that is pretty N.E.A.T.

N.E.A.T actually stands for Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis.

It has nothing to do with your structured exercise — the time you’re at Louisville boot camp, in the gym, etc — it has everything to do with the REST of the day.

We always say that exercise is great, but it’s 30, maybe 60, minutes out of a 1,440 minute day.  In other words, IF you make time for structured exercise, that’s just about 2% of your entire day.

What you are doing the OTHER 98% is just as important.

If you’re like most, you’re sitting behind a computer, staring at a screen, you drive home from work, plop down the couch, sit for another few hours, then go to bed, and lay for another 8ish hours. 

In other words, there’s very little time spent actually moving.

That’s where N.E.A.T. comes into play.

A study published in 2005 by Dr. James Levine and colleagues showed that lean people burned about 350 more calories each day than their overweight/obese counterparts, who suffer from what we call "I-sit-too-much-itis" through simple activities of daily living — pacing, walking around the office more, and fidgeting. 

Simple movements day in and day out.

We’ll never say this should REPLACE structured exercise — weight training, intervals, etc — but it should surely complement it.  When you burn an extra 350ish calories each day through general movement, coupled with eating a clean diet and make time for structured exercise, you’ll burn more belly fat without even putting forth extra effort.

Hence the reason we call N.E.A.T a "fat loss secret weapon."

Mohr Results Bottom Line — here are some simple tips to make this NEAT idea a reality:

1. Stand up for your desk regularly throughout the day and move around a bit … it is not just great for your body, but clearing your head too.
2. Take the stairs vs. the escalator/elevator.  Basic, but it all adds up.
3. When you’re on the phone, stand or pace, rather than sit. 
4. Walk or bike to run errands when possible.  We’re fortunate that nearly every single thing we need is within walking distance — grocery store, bank, post office, etc.  Take advantage and move your body.
5. Turn off any electronics — TV, computer, etc and actually move a bit — play with your kids, grandkids, etc.

Why didn’t we listen to Hippocrates for the last several 1000 years when he said his famous quote: "Let food by thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food?"  The guy is brilliant!

As we had breakfast with Ella this morning and I watched her eat cottage cheese, pomegranate seeds, wheat germ, cinnamon, and applesauce, I was thinking about the importance of teaching her great habits.  She’s 17 months and while she surely has an occasional treat or two, we are trying to introduce her to a variety of different foods at a young age.  Sometimes she loves what we give her.  Sometimes she adamantly says NO and turns her head away.  Both are fine, we’ll keep trying.

After all, at this age, she doesn’t know what sugar, trans fat, fast food, soft drinks, sweets, etc are … so why even introduce them regularly?  They’ll surely be plenty of times she’ll be asking for that junk when she gets older.

But it’s scary to me to think that the New England Journal of Medicine said that those born in the year 2000 forward will be the first who will not outlive their parents …

Dr. Richard Carmona, former Surgeon General of the United States, said this in 2003: "Obesity – it’s the fastest growing cause of disease and death in America.  And it’s completely preventable."

Is is predicted that by 2015 (4 years from now) — 75% of Americans will be overweight  and 41% will be obese

This is preventable.

It is projected that at the rate we’re headed, 50% of the population will have diabetes by 2020. 

This is preventable.

A new report out showed that the health care costs of not eating fruits and vegetables is $56.2 BILLION per year.  Billion, with a ‘B’

This is preventable.

Eating too much sodium is the #1 dietary cause of preventable death according to a recent study.  Eating too few omega-3 fats is #2.

These are preventable.

Studies suggest diet and exercise have a more powerful effects on diabetes prevention than the most common diabetes drug prescribed, Metformin.

Are these statistics alarming to anyone else? 

Pick up an apple instead of Doritos.  Put down the soda and pick up a bottle of water.  Open a can of tuna and add it to salad for lunch.  Swap out the salt shaker for some herbs and spices.

We’re not asking for people to live on boiled tofu and steamed veggies each day.  These very small dietary changes will SAVE YOUR LIFE.

In the year 2000, $117 Billion of Health Care costs and 300,000 deaths were directly correlated to overweight and obesity. 

We don’t ask for much — make ONE positive change every single week.  That’s it.  One.   

Diet cures disease.  Exercise cures disease. Medications can’t say the same.  They simply mask the symptoms as you get worse overtime. 

Nutrition is the medicine of the 21st century.

It’s scary when a single "thing" that every single person out there has will increase the risk of becoming obesity … by 171% according to one study.

Do you know what "IT" is?

Your friends. 

According to the Framingham Heart Study — an ongoing study that’s been following around 12,000 participants for decades — concluded that if a friend becomes obese, the likelihood that you will too skyrockets by 171%!

That is insane.

Here’s the deal — you spend time with people who are "like you."

Similar interests.  Same type of enjoyment.  Comparable tastes.

And the other piece is that if your comparison is someone who is overweight or obese, the perceived acceptable body type is likely to change.

We all want to be comfortable.

And straying too far from the people you spend the most time with makes it uncomfortable.  This is likely the same reason about 95% of people who win the lottery are broke in a very short time.  They’re not sure how to handle the new "lifestyle" that is likely to come with suddenly having large sums of money.

Mohr Results Bottom Line: So then what is the solution?  Should you abandon all your friends the minute they gain some weight?  Of course not …

… but make sure you surround yourself with positive influences.  It’s one of the reasons the women in our Louisville boot camp are so successful — they’re surrounded by like minded women who are working towards similar goals. 

Maybe don’t spend all time together around food.  Or join a local intramural sport team, even if you’ve never played that sport in your life.  Friends will either bring you up or bring you down — find those who are positive influences rather than negative "Debbie downers."

That’s sad…

Because like most people, I sit behind a computer most of the day.  Sure, I carve out time to train.  And, yup, we go to the park with Ella every single afternoon so am moving more than.  But the rest of my day is spent sitting.

And how about this…

Although studies show we’re eating LESS and exercising MORE than we were decades ago (which doesn’t say much), leisure time activity is WAY down…way, way down.

Those are the calories that really add up. 

Here’s what I’ve started to do on a daily basis — not just to move my body more, but to clear my mind as well.

I set my watch. 

90 minutes.

I’ll work on a task for 90 minutes (that’s really maxing out my attention span anyhow) and rather than wasting time playing on the internet, I’ll maybe get outside for a quick walk, move around and get out of the office for a bit, or simply just stand up from my chair and do some really basic "exercises" to use muscles in the back of my body, since they’re so relaxed while hunched over my computer.

We are also going to be switching gyms to one that’s closer to our house — one we can walk or jog to rather than drive 20 minutes to get to.  Yet more opportunity for movement.

It is scary, though.

Maybe if your office offers a gym or some type of exercise class, you could consider getting involved at lunch.  Or if you’re already exercising in the morning, like the women in Mohr Results Boot Camp, then instead of sitting at your desk or going out to eat for 30 or 60 minutes and eating lunch, spend half that time going for a walk.

Moving has to be deliberate. 

Our jobs make us fat.  The foods we eat make us fat.  The drinks we drink make us fat.

Time to take the bulls by the horn and be in control of you.