Keeping fit, healthy the safe way

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. S.J. Brown
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Passing by the commissary, base exchange or shoppette magazine racks near the check out stations at least three magazine covers portray a bikini-clad body urging readers to pick up the paper and find out how to look like the model.

This is an all-to-common center of focus for men and women around this time of year when they are getting ready for swimsuit season – summer. Several magazines offer quick fixes, magic diets, miracle pills and more in an effort to get healthy, fit and slim. But, beware.

“The safest way to lose weight is to eat a healthy diet and increase the amount of exercise you do as there is no magic involved,” said Robert Pagenkopf, 39th Medical Group fitness program manager/exercise physiologist. “Safety is first, so start slowly and increase your time of exercise to 20 to 30 minutes a day. Never starve yourself and skip meals, this will only put you in a downward spiral of unhealthy weight loss.”

The main thing to remember when trying to lose weight safely is that a healthy lifestyle change is important and that goals must be simple and realistic, said Mr. Pagenkopf, who helps people reach their goals while working at the Health and Wellness Center.

“We did not wake up one morning with 20 extra pounds on our body, therefore it will take time to lose that extra weight safely,” he added. If you are only following one part for example you exercise daily, but your diet is poor you may not see your results — you must do both areas to see the weight loss.

These miracle weight loss regimens are often called “fad diets” and are harmful for many different reasons, said Staff Sgt. Karen Garza, 39th MDG diet technician. For example, the high protein/low carbohydrate diet is still very popular among Americans, but the problem is the results from using these types of diet is very short term.

“Once they lose the achieved weight loss, people usually go back to eating how they used to, which will cause the weight to come back if not more,” said Sergeant Garza, who works at the HAWC with Mr. Pagenkopf. “Some dieters will experience low blood pressure because they are also cutting out important food groups from their diet when eliminating carbs. This means the body is getting deprived of those nutrients.”

Other issues associated with a low-carb diet include and increased risk of heart disease and cancer as well as reduced athletic performance, rising blood pressure with age, kidney stones, osteoporosis and fainting. Lifestyle change of proper portion sizes, eating “nutrient foods,” increasing fiber intake and increased water consumption are safer approaches, she added.

To safely lose weight and get in shape, Mr. Pagenkopf and Sergeant Garza suggest only losing one half to two pounds of weight per week as any more would result in muscle and water loss.

Another suggestion they both make is for people to only make short-term weight loss goals so people can obtain realistic, obtainable goals without getting disillusioned or discouraged. Because, when people get discouraged, they start seeking alternatives to the way they were trying to obtain those goals. In Turkey, this might mean a “quick fix.”

“When someone thinks of “quick fix,” liposuction automatically comes to mind,” said Mr. Pagenkopf. “However, studies have shown that 43 percent of all individuals who get liposuction will gain the weight back within six months. It is also a surgery and therefore carries the risk of death. Most people will achieve their desired weight loss through eating a well balanced diet and with regular exercise, but just because liposuction is relatively cheap in Turkey, it is not a lifestyle change.”

Mr. Pagenkopf recommends a reasonable workout regimen which includes cardiovascular exercise, resistance training and flexibility exercises.
Start off slowly at three days a week with 20 minutes a day of aerobic exercise. Gradually increase the frequency of days to five with 30 to 45 minutes of exercise. Make these changes every week or two increasing first the frequency then the time.

“Once you reach your desired aerobic goals, resistance training should be included to increase calorie expenditure and raise metabolic rate,” he said. “The more lean muscle a person has increases their caloric burn and enhances a body-composition change. Combine this fitness regime with proper diet and you have a winning combination for that swimsuit-season body.”