Have You Got a Muffin Top?

Posted by Tomas Conefrey on February 22, 2016 in News

If you’ve a tendency to store fat around the middle and have a muffin top then you need to read this!

So what’s the deal with apple shapes? Safefood had us all measuring our waist circumference back in 2011 with their “Stop the Spread” campaign but they never fully explained why it makes a difference where we store our fat. Whether it’s our thighs, hips, arms or gut – isn’t it all the same? Unfortunately not – I’m going to shed some light on how that muffin top effects your health and what you can do to get rid of it.

If you’ve got a big belly your most likely suffering with a certain degree of insulin resistance. The bigger the belly the more insulin resistant you are likely to be. Insulin resistance is linked with metabolic syndrome such as diabetes and heart disease so getting control of your blood sugar is more important than just looking good in a bikini!

Overweight people handle food a whole lot differently than thin people so it’s not just a case of eating less or moving more. We have a very limited ability to store carbohydrates in the body. Once our muscle and liver cells are full we start to store glucose in our fat cells. So it’s mostly sugar (not fat) that gets sorted in fat cells! A diet high in sugar can eventually lead to insulin resistance. The following text gets a little scientific but stick with me! By the end of it you’ll have a light bulb moment. Never again will you blame yourself for being weak or lacking will power. You’ll understand why some people store more of their food as fat while others tend to burn it for energy. You’ll look at food in a completely different way and finally get control over that relentless sweet tooth.

If you are insulin resistant, this is what happens when you get carbohydrates:

You’re hungry so you grab a sandwich, biscuit, cake, chips etc.
The food causes a blood sugar spike (all carbohydrates break down into glucose aka sugar)
Sugar is toxic in the bloodstream so the pancreas releases insulin – a hormone that allows muscle cells to open up to glucose and use it for energy.
Your cells have stopped responding to the insulin. The glucose can’t get into cells so you don’t feel satisfied after eating. To fell full you need much more food than a healthy person.
You eat again. This escalates the problem as you further spike sugar and insulin levels. Insulin keeps fat locked up – so when your insulin is high you can’t burn fat!
You end up in a constant state of hunger and fatigue and you continue to crave carbohydrates – the very food that causes the problem.

Now we all have a friend or colleague that can eat whatever they want and not put on weight. This is proof that there’s a whole lot more to weight loss than counting calories. Your slim friend who lives off junk food is genetically and hormonally gifted. So when they eat a donut and half a bag of cookies their blood sugar spikes and their pancreas releases the appropriate amount of insulin. Their cells are sensitive to the insulin so glucose gets in. They feel full and have plenty of energy. As the insulin is cleared from their blood stream and they’re able to burn stored body fat for fuel in between meals. With an insulin resistant person, insulin spikes are higher and last longer. When insulin is high we cannot burn body fat!

Why dieting won’t do anything for a muffin top:

So you’ve excess body fat that you want to get rid of. The solution is simple right? Just eat less and move more. Here’s the reason why dieting won’t cut it – your body already thinks its starving! All the will power in the world won’t over-ride the body’s basic need for survival. You could have 5 stone to lose but if you can’t get energy from the diet (cells are insulin resistant) or stored body fat (insulin in the bloodstream prevents it) your body will literally think it’s in the middle of a famine. Crash dieting will further down regulate your metabolism and make you even more likely to store food as body fat.

Attack the root of the problem:

So what should you do if you’ve an apple shaped figure and are insulin resistant? Break the viscous cycle by attacking the root of the problem by boosting your carbohydrate tolerance. Chromium is an essential trace mineral which is found in small amounts in the diet (most foods contain 1-2 micrograms or less), leading to a low dietary intake for most people. Chromium is required for the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats but most importantly, it is essential for the function of insulin.

How chromium helps with weight loss and insulin resistance:

Helps regulate blood sugar levels
Helps combat insulin resistance
Helps metabolise carbohydrates, proteins and fats
Helps combat sugar cravings

Chromium acts as a co-factor to insulin to increase its effectiveness in transporting blood sugar into cells. When glucose can get into cells, you break the viscous cycle of hunger and fatigue and start to handle your food more like a thin person. Regulating blood sugar has been proven to enhance fat loss, decrease appetite and reduce the likelihood of chronic diseases such as diabetes.

Chromium Pharma Nord

Chromium Pharma Nord is the only organic chromium on the market. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) has confirmed that this type of chromium is absorbed up to 10 times better than chromium picolinate. Organic chromium is the safest, purest form to supplement with. Chromium Pharma Nord is a single presentation which allows for optimal absorption. It’s best not to take chromium in a multi-vitamin as certain minerals (such as zinc) compete with its absorption.