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Interview with the Fat Loss TroubleShooter
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Interview with the Fat Loss TroubleShooter
By Jamie Hale
The following interview was conducted with Leigh Peele (Author, Nutrition and Exercise Consultant from North Carolina).
J Hale: How does it feel to be a female in an industry that consists of mostly males?
L Peele: Honestly it has ups and downs, more so in person. I think in print there is something A-sexual about my delivery, I can joke with the boys so to speak so people almost forget I am a female and make no judgments in that aspect. I rarely get "for a girl she knows her stuff" kind of comments. In person it can be a bit more trying, but you push through it and you show what you got. I would also be lying to say it didn't matter, I mean I can't spot certain levels of lifting, don't get me wrong I can hold my own, but I haven't gotten where I am letting my ego take control of my common sense. It seems with men I go more nutrition and with women I go more lifting. Not that there isn't a split there, but for generalization purposes it can go down like that.
J Hale: What does you current training and nutrition regimen look like?
L Peele: I just came out of an injury and am getting back into things full force. I am in a cut right now as I was trying to do an experiment with a colleague that went in the wrong direction. I had just started one of my programs publicly when I think 10 days in I got injury during a friendly game of football between friends. Took me out of things for about 8 weeks all total really. Couldn't lift or do much of anything and was advised by a wise friend to take it easy on the deficit while healing which was good advice because I go there much faster. Sometimes I have a hard time practicing what I preach just like anyone else. Still I lost a few pounds just from various living. My lifestyle obviously does not lead towards sitting still too much. Even when I am writing online I am out training, it’s just in between clients and such. I am getting ready to throw myself into a full force cut, get the weight off so that I can get back into my usual love which is bodyweight training/dance. Being even 10 pounds heavier though just makes that really difficult so going to focus on getting that off over the winter, by spring I'll be a little lighter and jumping again.
J Hale: Do you prefer training people or writing?
L Peele: This is a great question. I love both honestly and wouldn't give up either for anything. Training is just exciting and I love pushing people, I love being in the moment of driving someone. When you are training, be it performance or fat loss, there is this moment in the middle of every session when you are pushing the person and you can see their montage of change. You can feel when they don't have it left to give and the key to being a good trainer is giving them yourself in that moment. I love the rush of that. When I write my words can travel to millions at the click of send, now granted its more like the hundreds that read most of my work. I believe in the knowledge I can deliver, I believe in the change I can make and I value and take any chance I can get to do it. I know my words aren't for everyone which is why I always liked the quote "Words calculated to catch everyone may catch no one.". I just want to catch one and then I am good.
J Hale: Do you prefer training a specific type of client?
L Peele: I would be completely lying if I said no right now because I am missing a good fat client who has been stuffing their mouth. Since I have been up to my elbows in anorexic females and males as well as general undereater/overtrainer clients and their oxidation and repair functions I have been missing the good ole fashion fatty. Funny enough I am still getting my athletic client fix in, in fact they make up quite a large bit of my client base but not for the performance enhancement aspects that one might think. For every 1 athlete I work with that values nutrition and proper training I get 2 that it is a wonder they can function at all, let along increase performance. Don't get me wrong I am doing what I do to help those that aren't taking care of themselves. Most are unaware of the fact there is a problem at all. I just wish our culture educated more so that this wouldn't be an issue in the first place.
J Hale: Give us some information about your products
L Peele: At the moment I just have my book The Fat Loss Troubleshoot. I am in the process of updating it right now and if all goes well, unless I get an attack of Lyle McDonald syndrome, it should be done in a few weeks and then on to editing. I had an offer for hard print but they wanted the kind of image I didn't want to sell. So for the time being I am going to do electronic book (e-book) again. This edition, if I can be frank, kicks the other ones ass. The first was very, very, basic. This one, while still going to be easy for the average reader, is going to be a lot more full of things I feel I shine on discussing. I was also going to release another book Metabolic Repair Manual as a separate book as well but it hit me that it could be perpetuating a large number of women who look to blame health conditions over taking accountability. So you can only get the Metabolic Repair Manual along side the Troubleshoot. I think its the best way I can get the information out in the world but without being another "Thyroid Diet" where the program fits at best 7-10% of its readers.
J Hale: Do you have any current projects you are working on
L Peele: Other than updating the Fat Loss Troubleshoot as I stated above, I am always knee deep in toying with test clients. People will say to me that I can't possibly have that many clients in a year, especially living in a smaller city. Well what they don't realize is some are completely free, most at a severe discount to receive my services and with the virtue of the internet some are all over the world. When I am doing a study and test of a style of exercise/nutrition I have a hunt day, pick out my prospects and get to testing. Now this isn't peer reviewed, I am not publishing my findings as facts because there is a process to be followed. It does however allow me to make proposals to professors at university for studies to run in their departments based on my research. There is one underway right now and I am highly proud that my work and study has lead to their starting it. Not to mention I get to give loads of emotional support to my other clients by saying "x person has been there" or "yes, this is all normal". I am not blind leading the blind.
J Hale: In speaking with you it is apparent you are very interested in hormones. Tell readers something about females and hormones they may not know.
L Peele: What most may not know or more so may not want to admit is that despite the equal opportunitist in me, female and male training and weight loss is different. Now before I get smacked by rotten fruit please note I said weight loss, not fat loss. The basic principals are all the same. Most all the reason for it being different is due to a females tendency to eat to little and train to hard. A male does this and the effects are the same it just happens to females easier and more often. What is largely affected? Hormones and water balance, making the ability to track your fat loss nearly impossible and your ability to store water the norm. If cases get worse then there is the problem of stress release hormones, amenorrhea, joint problems, and more. Also recent studies I have looked (thanks to a point from Lyle Mcdonald) at have showed that shorts bouts of extreme interval training for less advanced and "prepped" trainees may be the worst thing to do. Going to have to re-write all those HIIT recommendations for fat loss for women.
J Hale: What do you think is the future of nutrition research? Where would you like to see nutrition research go?
L Peele: If you follow the patterns and trends of what most are doing in nutrition research right now it really all about mortality and nutrition. Eat this you age better, eat that you age worse, consume this and you will die soon. Everything from trans fat to antioxidants and how they relate to our beauty and mortality. Nutrient specific I think since fats were crucified for so long that this is the "age of fat" if you will but the death to carbs which I find just as ridiculous as it was to fats. This is where the lack of common sense really amazes me with those in a field who are supposed to be so smart. You sign on for the support of one wrong doing in the past but you jump on the train for another. Weak.
As far as where I would like us to go? I would love more focus on digestive enzyme function, I feel its a true starting point for a lot of problems but it is such a deep and broad subject that we need to jump on this now just to get remotely into in10 years time.
J Hale: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
L Peele: The ultimate goal for me right now is to have my own gym. People can come there if they want but really I just want my own playground. It will have obstacle courses, trampolines, lines of pull up bars, squat rack, places to throw and catch and swing to your hearts delight. It not just equipment either, I want my own lab to run tests, conduct my own studies as much as I can with exercise and fat loss. I want to be able to house people for longer camps, take accountability to that next level. Really I am just a big kid that still has dreams of big toys they want to get to play with on a daily basis and in 10 years I will have my dream. Actually my plan is to get started by 7.
Visit Leigh Peele’s site at www.avidityfitness.net
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