The truth is bodyfat is paramount to survival. No one can have a virtually fat-free body and be healthy at the same time. NO ONE! Fat bolsters immunity, this much is known. Cells that are precursors to fat cells are called pre-adipocytes. These cells act like special immune cells that can devour invading germs and bacteria. (think of Pac Man here). In part, this explains why people who diet to “lean out” or compete – tend to report getting sick more often and feeling more inflammation from general aches, to chronic joint pains. Frequent dieters also tend to be people who catch the most colds and other bugs going around. I’ve witnessed this my whole career in the post-contest phase when so many competitors get sick, once they go back to eating regular food that other people may have handled etc. Of course, at extremes – many who have competed end up in the hospital afterwards – for all kinds of assorted reasons. But the main message here is that bodyfat is protective when it comes to truly caring about your health over vanity – being lean is a vulnerability that exposes you to all kinds of illness that clearly show lack of health regardless of appearance.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 01:15:00 +0000