2007 is just around the corner and weight loss is the number one New Year's Resolution each and every year. How many of you would like to lose weight, lose inches, have more energy, be healthier or just feel better? Wouldn't it be great to have 2007 be the year to truly shed those extra pounds?

If you're like me, though, you've tried a lot of different diets and they all seem to fail for one reason or another. Some are nutritionally inadequate--you feel bad sooner or later. Others are too hard to follow, so they interfere with life. With several programs, the results are too slow which leads to frustration and ultimately the end of that diet. There have been fad diets with unsafe ingredients (stimulants) that produce negative side effects and, in some cases, major health problems. And, of course, there are those dreaded diets that slow your metabolism and cause the "yo-yo" effect (or "bungee-cord effect"). This means you lose weight, then gain weight, then lose more weight and then gain it all back. Do you remember the low carb diet craze? The hype behind them has somewhat died down and you don't hear much about them anymore. Now that they are no longer the 'fad,' UCLA researchers have discovered a major amino acid deficiency in dieters. Amino acids are your cells' building blocks found in proteins. They regulate blood sugar levels--this results in reduced hunger pangs and food cravings. Amino acids also maximize your metabolism. When low carb diets were the craze, people ate more protein and that gave them more amino acids. When people increased the carbs in their diet, they decreased the amount of protein they were consuming. This has resulted in the amino acid deficiency that researchers have discovered. Recent research at the Harvard School of Public Health suggests that consuming leucine, an amino acid, can cause major changes in cells. If someone consumes the proper amount of leucine, it can increase energy levels by 50%, decrease in between meal snacking by 81% and reduce caloric intake by 16%--all within 48 hours! This helps people to lose inches and quickly.

This is powerful! Leucine can help your body to lose the unwanted fat but retain muscle. Retaining muscle mass is very important to long term weight loss and maintenance because muscle burns more calories than fat. In the long term, this helps you to lose the unwanted pounds and keep them off! So, where can you get extra leucine? Here are a few sources:

 Red meat  Brown rice  Leucine-rich shakes  Beans  Nuts  Nonfat milk

In the January 2007 issue of First for Women on the Go Magazine, there is a four-page article on the power of this important amino acid. And, they recommend an inch loss program powered by Leucine. (Check out the testimonials on page 33--they are exciting!)

If you are serious about losing weight in 2007, you can do it! Write down your weight loss goal. Read about leucine and decide if a program powered by this potent amino acid would be right for you. Develop your plan of action (be sure to include lots of fresh fruits and veggies, water, and exercise) and make 2007 the year you lose that unwanted weight!

To your health, Jennifer Glacken