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Long before a sticky note could list all of my nutrition knowledge with room left to spare, I knew one thing for sure: the leaner I got the harder it was to lose body fat. I knew I could just “clean up” my diet a little and drop from 12% to 8% body fat. Then, all I had to do was get on the bike a few times a week and I’d be at 6%. I would have to really be consistent to go to 5% and it was brutal to go any lower. Low-carbs, high-cardio, hypoglycemia, muscle loss…what was I doing wrong?
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Isn’t a pound a pound? I have even joked that I could be the best 6% bodybuilder in the world if everyone else would just stop there too! But regardless of the cost, winners don’t stop there. And the cost is different for everyone.
"the leaner I got the harder it was to lose body fat"
You know genetics are both the gift and curse that either propels you forward or holds you back in this sport. You may never have my legs and I may never have your back even though we both try and train our hardest – muscle shape is muscle shape. Two of my kids have my wife’s build and two have mine. No amount of training would morph one into the other, they will just be bigger versions of what they are – strengths will be even stronger and weaknesses will still be evident. Body fat storage and metabolism are very much the same. Here’s a little preview. We’re in the middle of an obesity epidemic, agreed? Two-thirds of us are overweight and childhood obesity is up five-fold. But, dig a little deeper and what you’ll find is pretty surprising. Among the developed countries, though childhood obesity has increased that much in 30 years, the bottom 50% of the BMI (body mass index) hasn’t increased at all. That means the leanest 50% of kids across the world haven’t gotten fatter at all, but the heavier you are on the BMI, the higher the increase in obesity. Translation: if a child has the genetics to become obese, then due to today’s societal changes (mom’s not home cooking, greater than 60% of our meals being out now, less activity, etc.) they get even heavier. But, children who don’t have the genetics to become obese, though they live in the same culture with the same foods and temptations don’t gain weight.
 What are some of those genetic differences? First, we go through two “filling” and two “stretching” phases in our growth as children. The amount of body fat cells our body creates is mainly genetic but also is influenced by how much we eat during that first year of life and the period right before puberty. One person may have 15 billion body fat cells and another may have 150 billion. All of the hormones that cause body fat storage now have 10x the loading docks for the triglyceride payloads. Let me give you an example. You’re cruising along, the diet is going great, and then you read an article that says once a week you need a trillion grams of carbs so you don’t lose muscle. So you visit the YMCA Annual Pancake Breakfast and break the world record. (Actually, I’m sorry to say it doesn’t even take that extreme of an example. Did you know you can refill all the glucose in your blood stream with an apple? And you can refill your liver with two pop tarts? How about the fact that 300-450 grams of carbs can pack all of your muscle tissue with all the glycogen it can hold?) So, as you’re wiping the maple syrup from your chin, your body is quickly on carb overload. You IMMEDIATELY stop burning body fat. Normal circulating amounts of insulin are three times that of glucagon – your best friend in fat loss. That means we’re three times better at storing fat than losing it. Think about the biology; your body is designed to be conservational and to survive – its primary concern is not how you look in a coat of dream tan, naked in front of 1,000 people. When you’re depleted – in a calorie deficit – your body is looking for ways to store fat. Glucagon production stops and insulin comes tearing out of the gate. It not only shuttles glucose to the muscle – like we hear about in muscle-building articles – but it also slaps the liver into a glucose-to-fat conversion mode and body fat cells start hording it. That happens right now, one high-carb meal, don’t pass go – fat storage is the goal of the entire body. “But is was just one meal! But my body needed it! But I just had one dessert! But I even though it was three cups of rice, it was clean food!” Your body doesn’t care – it just wants to store. Now, if I have 150 billion fat cells and you have 15 billion, who is better at storing fat? Who can afford more slips on a diet? Certainly not the person who struggles to get lean. (Keep in mind, I’m not talking about very moderate increases in carbs – I’m referring to planned or unplanned increases that are too much at one time.)
There are so many related hormonal/biochemical reasons that some people are naturally thin and some are heavy. Of course we can do our part to gain or lose weight despite our genetics, but working against your genetics is a hard day. It’s a battle. I’m oversimplifying and skipping important issues to make the point, but one more factor in weight loss that has been given much play is the hormone, leptin. Leptin is secreted by fat cells and is the primary signal carrier for hunger/satiety. When enough filling occurs in the fat cells, leptin is released and tells the brain to back off the hunger. When not enough leptin is present, hunger rules. There is a marked difference in the obese versus the ectomorphs in terms of leptin. Experimental studies show obese children deficient in leptin eat dramatically less and lose weight when leptin is brought to normal amounts.
There are two lessons here. First, having hit adolescence with a way-big filling phase – yes I was a fat little kid – and coming from a family of massive obesity, I think I should receive a handicap as a WNBF pro. I think even if you can’t see cross-striations in my spleen, I should place ahead of Dave Goodin at least once in my career. Okay, okay, I’ll be serious. Those who bear the label “carb-sensitive” or know that they are anything but an ectomorph, have to be prepared to work harder. You may have to go lower on carbs, but be careful to cycle nutrition to keep your metabolism higher. You may have to diet longer and stay leaner in the off season. You may have to do more cardio. I have to be honest; these clients are tough. They work harder, they suffer more, they have to endure endless shifts in nutrient cycling that I concoct, but many tireless, hard-case dieters have won shows and have won pro cards. There are advantages in muscle retention, but that’s little consolation when you feel like you’re not getting anywhere. Hang in there – David killed Goliath and the tortoise beat the hare. If you’re willing to work, you can level the playing field and you can win! Knowing you worked harder than most, the victory will be that much sweeter.
Thanks, Dr. Joe Klemczewski
Hard Case Weight Loss - Part 2
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