Gym owners, personal trainers and other industry experts know the real truth about health and fitness: exercise and proper nutrition is the only path to permanent weight loss! Forget all the "get slim quick" schemes out there promising you quick results with zero effort. Reality is the same thing you heard from your doctor: Eat sensibly and exercise regularly.

However, recently there have been two breaking news stories that have an impact on health and fitness. These two news items are so noteworthy they demand our attention.

Each story is a good example of how easy it can be to improve or damage your health.

Our first item shows how easy it can be to make small, sustainable changes to your life that will help you fight fat.....not make you thin, but help you fight fat. Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent for Reuters News Service, wrote a great story on the relationship between sleep and fat. The bottom line is that people who skimp on their sleep are more likely to be overweight. We're not going to print the entire story, but here's one quote: "In one study, people who slept only four hours a night for two nights had an 18 percent reduction in leptin, a hormone that tells the brain there is no need for more food, and a 28 percent increase in ghrelin, which triggers hunger."

The second news item is a good example of how easy it is to undermine our weight loss efforts with poor nutrition. Hardee's recently introduced what they're calling the "Monster Thickburger". A more suitable name would be the "Monster WeightGainer"! This burger packs 1,420 calories, which is about what many women should eat in an entire day! It also has 107 grams of fat, which is way more fat than anyone should have in one day! No wonder the introduction of this new burger caused Jay Leno to joke: "The Megaburger actually comes in a little cardboard box shaped like a coffin".

Well, there we have it. Two fairly easy ways to either improve our health or damage our health. It's easy to sleep, and it's easy to eat a Monster Thickburger. Let's make the right choices.

So, right after we get some sleep, we'll see you at the gym!

Tracie Johanson

* Tracie Johanson is the founder of Pick Up The Pace, a 30-minute exercise studio for women focusing on fitness, health and nutrition for maximum weight loss. Please visit letspickupthepace.com for more information.

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* The information in this article and on this site is for general reference purposes only and not intended to address specific medical conditions. This information is not a substitute for professional medical advice or a medical exam. Prior to participating in any exercise program or activity, you should seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health professional. No information in this article or on letspickupthepace.com should be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any medical condition.