Why weight loss is called a cleanse

We store energy reserves on our body mainly as 1) fat under the skin..jiggle jiggle; and 2) glycogen (a type of carbohydrate) in the muscles and liver.

Fat is hydrophobic..meaning it doesn't like water (remember from science class.. oil and water don't mix). Fat is therefore stored as dehydrated globules and often appears cottage cheese like under the skin. Glycogen though is hydrophilic..meaning it loves water. What this means is that when we store glycogen, we store water along with it. Specifically, when we store 1 gram glycogen, we store 3 or even 4 grams water alongside it. Here are a bunch of cool reasons why this is important...

1) When we lose weight initially, we first lose our glycogen stores. Remember, carbs are the body's preferred fuel source so we must rid our glycogen stores before shedding our fat stores. So this is why people can lose up to 10 lbs in the first week of a diet. And it's also why the first week is called a detox and cleanse. When we lose 1 part glycogen from our muscles and liver, we lose 3 parts water as well. This water is released in to the body. The body is hydrated and cleansed. The kidneys then rid the body of this excess water filtering out toxins along with it.

2) It explains why men tend to lose more weight quickly on diets. They have more muscle and therefore more glycogen and water stored to lose.

3) It helps us understand why overeating can puff us up. You've been doing great on your diet and then all of a sudden, you go to a few xmas parties..have lots of high carb desserts..and the following week you're up 5 lbs and bloated like crazy! This is glycogen and water weight. The good news is you can reverse it quickly by eating clean the following week and exercising. Speaking of exercise..

4) A very cool study was referenced in the Globe and Mail last week (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/alex-hutchinson/rethink-how-you-rehydrate-when-exercising/article1815800/). It basically explained that the age old theory that the amount of weight lost post exercise directly reflected the amount of water lost from the body, may be false. In fact, the body does a great job hydrating itself naturally during exercise. How? Because glycogen is burned as a fuel. And remember, when we burn up 1 part glycogen, we release 3 to 4 parts water into the body. The body is one heck of smart machine. It helps hydrate itself!


5) It reminds us that we have carbs stored in our body. Carbs have 4 calories per gram. Let's say our body needs 2000 calories to function, and we only feed it 1500 calories, the balance of those 500 calories has to come from somewhere.. and it does.. from our carb stores, our glycogen! If we want to lose weight, we need to create this caloric deficit in the body so that our bodies are forced to use up the glycogen so we can then burn the fat.