THE FITNESS EXPERT By John DeFendis

Diet Tips for Weight Loss
(Week #5)

Do you feel puffy? Bloated? Are your rings fitting too tight on your fingers? Do you look like you swallowed an air hose? Well, I'm sorry if I have offended anyone with my previous questions but not enough people have been listening to this part of my Burn Fat...Build Muscle Program. For over 10 years I have been preaching about the hazards of an excessive salt intake. Excess salt intake will cause fluid retention (edema) and contribute to the circulatory disorder hypertension. Hypertension is the medical term for abnormally high blood pressure. Too much salt or sodium in the diet can also sabotage what could have been a successful weight loss program. Heres why:
When we ingest too much sodium our body retains tremendous amounts of water. Once this takes place our body no longer filters fluid properly. We do not urinate as much and we do not drink as much. The excess salt clogs our filtration system. When this occurs it interferes with the efficiency of our metabolism. It makes it more difficult to burn and transport fat. There are several ways to combat this. The most common method that is often used by most diet programs like Weight Watchers is to force down 8-10 glasses of water each day. Unfortunately this does not solve the problem, this only masks the problem because we continue to ingest more sodium and the body continues to retain more water. There are three ways to solve the water retention problem and improve our ability to lose weight. The first and most important method is to reduce the sodium in our diets. That means stay away from high sodium foods and dressings like cheese, regular sauces like spaghetti sauce, soy sauce and barbecue sauce. Avoid ham, pickles, canned foods and fast food restaurants. Replace high sodium foods with low sodium foods like No Salt Spaghetti Sauce and Salsa, Fresh Poultry, Fish and Vegetables. The second method of reducing the water retention and sodium build up in our system is to take herbal water eliminators like those found in the Burn Fat...Build Muscle Pack. This will allow the body to release water and subsequently reduce sodium levels in the body. The last method to reduce the sodium build up is to exercise regularly. By exercising we stimulate our body to perspire. When we sweat we lose water and with that water loss we simultaneously lose sodium in our perspiration. The more water we lose, the more salt we excrete. Before you know it we become a lean, mean, filtration machine! If you adhere to these guidelines you will have a much more efficient metabolism, lose that puffy appearance, and reduce bodyfat faster and easier. Oh, I almost forgot to give you a very important tip...READ THE LABELS. That's right...get used to reading the labels and always try to avoid foods that are laden with salt and sodium. If a product has over one hundred milligrams of sodium per serving then stay away! I am very confident that you will acheive great results from reducing the salt in your diet. You will not only look better but you will feel better and be healthier. I wish you the best of luck and always remember...I am only a phone call away. Your Coach and friend,

John A. DeFendis
NOTE: JOHN DEFENDIS IS A CONTRIBUTING WRITER FOR THE FORUM NEWSPAPER. HE IS A FORMER MR. U.S.A. AND HAS BEEN FEATURED ON "ABC T.V.'S 20/20", "GOOD MORNING AMERICA", AND "THE JOAN RIVERS SHOW". HE HAS BEEN A TRAINER FOR OVER 20 YEARS AND IS THE DIRECTOR OF EXERCISE WITH THE IFPA. HE DEVELOPED THE BURN FAT BUILD MUSCLE PACK AND CAN BE CONTACTED AT (561) 968-6578.