Our Blog

It’s the number one question our coaches get asked “How do I lose this?” (whilst patting their tummy).

In the past, so many women have virtually put themselves in a diet prison, starving themselves and doing mind-numbing high-volume daily exercise. This is all in the quest to get slim, and especially to get rid of that bloated belly.

But, despite them having to call on every bit of willpower and resolve, they end up disappointed, not feeling great, losing tone, and yet not losing that belly!

Some end up as TOFI = Thin on the Outside – Fat on the Inside.

Now… more and more doctors are considering a new health test that predicts the potential for diabetes, as well as inflammation that’s not good for the heart. Some consider it nearly as important as cholesterol tests.

What’s the new test and how much does it cost? Well, it’s FREE. It’s called the waist-to-height ratio. You probably already know your height. Just measure your waist at the belly button level. Don’t breath in!

Now divide your waist by your height. If it’s close to 50% or above, it may indicate that you have early stages of insulin resistance. If so, you should talk to your doctor. They may get you to have a fasting blood sugar test, as well as a fasting insulin test. It’s possible to have a normal blood sugar test but abnormally high insulin levels. They’ll probably also run some lipid tests, and a very interesting ratio is triglycerides to HDL. (This also predicts insulin resistance and the lower the better.)

OK then… let’s say your waist-to-height is close to 50%, or your tests aren’t great, what’s the solution? How do you get that belly fat down? There’s nothing healthy that your doctor can prescribe.

Firstly, there’s two kinds of belly fat:

1. Subcutaneous fat – just under the skin – not so bad for your health (but you may still want to get it down)
2. Visceral fat – surrounding the organs – not good for your health (and you definitely want to get it down)

By coaching thousands of women over 15 years we’ve learnt that many who carry extra fat on their belly tend to be diet resistant. Maybe these women were insulin resistant. Telling them to “eat less and exercise more” was a waste of time, effort and willpower.

They need a specific approach to diet. If they have some degree of insulin resistance (perhaps 50% of adult population), this means that their bodies have a decreased tolerance of dietary carbohydrate from any foods or drinks. Insulin is the hormone that helps us stabilise blood sugar after consuming carbohydrate from any food – healthy or not.

As most of us live busy, but physically inactive lives, we gradually lose muscle mass and our metabolic pathways change. The foods we could tolerate when we were younger – we can no longer tolerate – specifically the carbohydrate in the foods.

Did you know that one medium size banana has a similar effect (over time) on blood sugar as 5 teaspoons of sugar?

When our members start on our ICT (Individual Carbohydrate Tolerance) Reset eating plan, our goal is to discover their body’s individual carbohydrate tolerance, and what that represents in foods they enjoy.

Is it all about carbs? No. Fats matter as well. Calories do count but you just don’t have to count them.

The end result is that most members enjoy a significant reduction in belly fat. This always pleases their doctor. Unfortunately too few doctors have the time to ask “How did you do that?”