| Written by Doug Gibson, on 19-05-2008 12:03 |
Sensible Fitness: Are Celebrity Diets Worth Their Fame?
From Beyonce’s maple syrup diet to Dr. Phil’s fat-shedding food plan, our fitness expert gives you the skinny on the stars’ weight-loss secrets – and tells you which ones will actually for work for you.
Question:
It seems like every celebrity whose body I love and aspire to have claims they do yoga (and typically that's all). My ideal body type is that of Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox or Heather Graham, yet after reading up on yoga,I don't see how it could help me loose weight or stay in shape since it burns such few calories. What are your thoughts? — Sian
Answer:
What an excellent question, Sian! There are many trends that come and go in the fitness industry, and while yoga has a history that goes back thousands of years, it also goes through phases of increased popularity. We have been in one of those phases for a few years. It is a great form of exercise, but you are correct that it may not be your best choice for weight loss.
Yoga is an incredibly beneficial form of exercise for both the mind and body. It promotes strength, flexibility, balance and an overall mental wellbeing. Who can argue with that? Yoga places great demands on your core musculature by using a lot of static contractions in which you are holding poses. This type of contraction is seen a great deal with the core muscles in everyday life and is very beneficial. I think yoga is fantastic and can lead you to a healthier lifestyle, but let’s also look at it from a different angle.
Yoga does have some drawbacks as a sole form of exercise. The primary force or resistance that you are battling is gravity and your body weight. Without using an additional external force, such as a dumbbell, there will be many muscles that will not be trained in a functional range of motion or with a functional type of muscle contraction. This is especially true when we are talking about your arms and legs, where some muscles can be missed entirely with yoga. Let me give you just one example.
Much of human movement (and what causes many back injuries) is related to lifting and/or pulling. When you are pulling in your garden hose or lifting a case of water (both external forces) you are using your biceps and certain back muscles. Without an external force in your yoga routine, you will be missing these muscles and the benefit of training them functionally. You cannot easily reproduce these movements, muscle contractions or range of motions with your body weight and gravity alone.
Now let’s talk about the calorie burning power of yoga. There are forms of power yoga that claim to burn considerable calories and you will walk away from these classes exhausted, but they certainly are not a form of exercise that burns a high number of calories. I want everyone to pay attention to the next few sentences! The body requires oxygen to burn fat. If you want to burn a lot of fat you must be breathing hard. I don’t care if you are sweating a lot, I don’t care if your muscles are burning, I don’t care if you are tired. You must be breathing hard! Lots of air must be going in on out of your lungs. Period.
It is now time for me to show you how cynical I can be. I am only doing this because often it is a reality. Who knows what the TV stars are truly doing? This goes for not only exercise but also other form of non-traditional methods of staying long and lean. We only know what is said while they are in front of an interviewer. When fame and million dollar TV contracts are on the line, most will do whatever it takes to stay thin.
Lastly, keep in mind that TV stars can be in an elite group of genetically and metabolically blessed people. You have seen them, the women who can eat anything and not gain a pound. When you are looking into the mirror, look at the cards that God has dealt you. You may gain a pound by sniffing chocolate, and thus have to exercise a little harder and eat a little stricter. But every one of your efforts is worth it when you go shopping for a smaller size.
Not everyone is going to have the exact body type of your favorite star, but that does not mean that you are robbed of the raw sex appeal that confidence and self-esteem conveys by knowing you are in great shape. But that is just the opinion of a former bodybuilding champion who absolutely loves women. What do I know?
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