If you’ve been fighting the “battle of the bulge” for some time, and you can’t quite figure out just why that stubborn fat won’t budge, you’re in luck. A George Washington University weight loss expert reveals four fat cell facts that in fact, may just help you get and stay slim and in shape.

Fact Number One: “Pre-fat cells” desperately want to become fat cells, and you’re probably helping them do just that

Even now, you are producing millions of pre-fat cells and all these get converted into full fledged fat cells. In scientific terms these cells are referred to as adipocytes. Even though you do not wish to transform them, unintentionally you help them in getting converted. How can you prevent this?

A weight loss expert at George Washington University makes this conversion process clear: Pre fat cells do not store fat, on the other hand, full fledged fat cells do. Whenever the production of two hormones increases in our body, these pre fat cells get transformed into fat cells.

The two hormones we are talking about are insulin and cortisol. We tend to stimulate over production of these with our lifestyles and eating habits.

Most often, cortisol is overproduced when you get too little sleep and have too much stress. Does that sound familiar? If it does, guess what? That’s right; you are stressing and under-sleeping your way to fat cell growth.

Little sleep and extra stress is also the reason behind the other hormone-insulin being produced in excess. Not only this, it is also over produced under the influence of our unhealthy food habits. Food which is high in simple carbohydrates, stimulate insulin production which results in weight gain thus and accumulation of fat deposits. Your insulin levels will also be higher than what they should be if you do not exercise.

Fact Number Two: Once the fat cells are accumulated, they don’t go away

Again, this is something that’s your responsibility. It takes some doing to get those fat cells, but once you’ve got them, you’ve got them forever. So congratulations. Your new fat cell friends got to jump on board because you didn’t take care of yourself, didn’t sleep enough, didn’t eat right, didn’t exercise, had too much stress, and so on.

What can be done?

Fact Number Three: Sleep will help you lose weight — fat weight, that is

If you spend at least seven to nine hours a night asleep (REALLY asleep, no TV going, in other words) you’re going to lower your levels of cortisol and raise your levels of beneficial, fat-hating hormones like testosterone, leptin, and growth hormone. With enough leptin, for example, you’re less hungry (which will help you make better food choices) and your metabolism is higher (which will help you burn fat). Growth hormone and testosterone (yup, even for women in smaller amounts than for men) encourage muscle growth and fat burning.

But this does not have anything to do with artificially inducing any of these hormones. A good night’s sleep is helpful in doing this job perfectly.

Fact Number Four: Sleep also lowers your levels of cortisol and insulin, which discourages fat storage

Our weight loss expert at George Washington University explains that fat cells once acquired never go away. But this does not mean that they store fat automatically without your involvement. Small amounts of fat are required for proper functioning of the body but to keep excess levels of fat off, reducing insulin levels will help by increasing levels of hormone sensitive lipase (HSL). HSL results in keeping fat out of the fat cells. While increased levels of insulin can raise the production of lipoprotein lipase. This lipoprotein lipase or LPL allows fat to come in and settle down. This is really not what any of us want.

The solution to this problem is quite simple. Proper sleep and a stress free environment accompanied by healthy diet and proper exercise can help shed excess fat from your body.

Josef Brandenburg is a prize winning Georgetown University area weight loss specialist. His clients count on him to help them get the bodies they have always wanted in their spare time and without starving themselves or eating nasty food. Click here to find out more about his 7-Day Free Trial.

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