Are you “dieting” and not losing weight? Does your weight remain stagnant even though you exercise on a regular basis? Might you even be putting on weight despite your best efforts? And, what does “blood sugar” have to do with this? Your body has two options for fuel. It can burn fat, and/or, it can burn sugar! Unless you are exercising in an “aerobic” state, with other factors in place, the preferred fuel will be predominately sugar. But while exercising aerobically is the most efficient way to burn body fat at a rapid rate, you can turn your body into a fat burning machine twenty four/seven. You can burn more fat while at rest and especially during exercise. (Wouldn’t you like those workouts to really bring on maximum results?) It’s all in the biochemistry of blood sugar levels. So let’s keep it real simple here. Every time you put a simple sugar in your body, you literally “lock in” stored body fat. That’s right: fat will not be used as a primary fuel! It has to do with insulin. Insulin is the hormone that regulates sugar transport and storage. It is vital for energy production. It is produced by the pancreas in amounts dictated by blood sugar levels. (Unless you have Diabetes which is a blood sugar irregularity.) Insulin transports blood glucose to the muscle cells to use as energy, thus reducing the amount of sugar in the blood. This is a good thing! But when you experience that sugar induced blood sugar elevation, your pancreas sort of over reacts and sends out more insulin than required. You get a short term energy rush and then crash, feeling weak and tired. Insulin is also the vehicle which fat rides on to be stored – and it locks it into the garage where it is stored, ie: your hips or waistline. Here’s what’s happening: All carbohydrates must be broken down to their smallest molecular level (simple sugars) before they can permeate the stomach and intestinal walls and enter the blood stream. When you eat carbohydrates, especially simple carbohydrates on their own (ie: without complementary proteins and fats) all of those sugars are absorbed at once. You momentarily have high blood sugar. The brain then signals the pancreas to send out insulin, and since blood sugar levels are elevated , it over compensates! The excess insulin then stores calories as fat and locks them in so you can’t use them. What else is happening? Your sugar rush is short lived, for as soon as the insulin starts getting the blood sugar down, it is overcompensating thus leaving you with residual low blood sugar. Now, the body is a real stickler at maintaining homeostasis and wants the blood sugar to be balanced. When it is too low the brain sends out signals to eat more sugar! Can you see the cycle? When you eat sugar, you crave sugar! So we know cookies are not the best thing to eat, either is ice cream on a regular basis. Neither pass the sugar test. Many low fat dieters, thinking they are doing the right thing, will fill up on foods like pretzels, rice cakes, reduced fat crackers and such. While sugar may not be the first ingredient in these foods you will find “processed”, “enriched”, or “bleached” flour. Guess what? They break down very quickly to sugar! Those sugars are easily converted to triglycerides which are then stored as fat. Yes: FAT! How do you burn more fat instead of blocking it’s metabolism? You know insulin is the “fat-storing” hormone, but you may not be familiar with the hormone glucagon. Glucagon is your “fat releasing” hormone. Yeah! The problem is your body cannot effectively produce both insulin and glucagon at the same time. So if you are caught in this vicious cycle of carbohydrate cravings your body is too busy producing excess insulin and cannot effectively produce glucagon. No glucagon, no fat release! No fat release, no burning!