20 May - Do large people eat more because their stomachs have stretched? Insight from the world's biggest eaters.

This question triggered in my head as I read an article in today's Sunday Telegraph Sunday Magazine about competitive eating. Aparently, there is an International Federation of Competitive Eating with members holding such records as:

• 97 Krystal Burgers in 8 minutes (Takeru Kobayashi)
• 65 Hard-boiled eggs in 6 minutes, 40 seconds (Sonya Thomas), and
• 17 Slices of pizza in 10 minutes (Patrick Bertoletti)

The article highlighted how it was traditionally assumed that bigger was better in terms of the ability to consume food in huge quantities. But Popular Science magazine had said, “All that matters is the stomach's ability to expand, to adapt itself to the amount of food being shoved down the esophagus” and “A skinny man's stomach has little fat to push against it and fight the food for space.”

If this is true then someone who carries excess body fat should find themselves feeling fuller sooner than a lean person due to body fat around the belly pressing on their stomach. This pressure mechanism would be a sort of off-switch for overeating as you gain weight.

Unfortunately, even though the off-switch may be triggered earlier it's likely that the brain's response to the `stop eating' message will be the decision maker. Douglas Seidner, M.D., Program Director for Clinical Nutrition at the Cleveland Clinic (US) said in Popular Science, that in responses to an overeating training regime, “the signal to the brain or the brain itself to become less responsive to the large volume of food.”

So, it appears that large people do not overeat because their stomachs have stretched over time. It's more a case that they pay less attention to the normal signals to stop eating.

What to do? Listen carefully to what your belly is saying to you when you eat and don't start training like a competitive eater.

19 May - Biggest Loser putting the weight back on

“I'm not manorexic says Loser Chris” headlines today's gossipy Sydney Confidential section in the Sydney Daily Telegraph. The 2007 series winner, Chris Garling is has “rubbished reports he's too thin and battling manorexia.”

But having seen the show's final weigh-in, where Chris reigned supreme in the slimming stakes with a BMI of 20.4, my opinion is that this guy looked gaunt and had lost too much weight to be healthy.

Runner-up Marty Barrett was quoted, “He is too thin and I just wasn't prepared to go to those lengths to win.” And, “It's a shame because he has done some damage to the show.”

So what do you think? Is Chris an inspiration to others or simply a guy who did what he needed to do, and arguably went too far, to win $AUD 200,000? To be honest, if eating very little and exercising endless hours of the day for a few last weeks could reap me $200K, I'd be tempted to do the same.

Evidence that Chris did what he needed to to win comes in his own comments in Sydney Confidential -- “I want to put on more weight but I don't want to put it on eating junk food - I want to do it the right way and that takes time.”

Chris also said, “I'm trying to achieve 95 - 100kg, which is right for my healthy weight range, but it will take six months to a year for me to get there.”

It's good to hear that Chris is prepared to take his time regaining his weight and he's got a preference for muscle. I'm sure one of the current affairs programs will report on his progress in a few months.

For more insight into the science behind The Biggest Loser, read my articles -- Lessons from The Biggest Loser Part 1 and Part 2

13 May - Choosing the right snack at a glance

Is snacking a good or a bad idea for successful slimming? It can be both, so what is it for you? If eating a snack between meals means you eat less at your meals, then snacking can help you cut back on calories and lose weight.

If you honestly feel you don't cut back on calories from meals, even though you snack between them, then snacking may be getting in the way of you getting results.

For weight loss, the bottom line is creating an energy deficit. This means when you go to bed you've consumed less calories than you've expended that day. Check out my new SmartShape Nutrition Placemat for Snacks in my Free Stuff section. Download and share this with friends or clients for a reality check on snacking.

As I get a little older and my metabolism slows I'm trying to snack less or snack on foods that have less calories per serve. My Nutrition Placemat shows you the best options.

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