The red light weight loss protocol: weight loss where you want to lose it

[intro music]

You’re listening to The Body Contouring Academy’s Proven Profits Podcast 

where you’ll learn simple actionable strategies from real world successful body contouring professionals to help you generate more revenue, realize the profits you want and create the life you desire. 

Hi I’m Shannon and I’m Kay and we’re your hosts of The Proven Profits Podcast

Hi there healthcare professionals and business owners, body contouring and beauty professionals!  Welcome everyone!   Kay here. Shannon and I thank you for being here too. 

We’re continuing with a focus on weight loss, patients who want to lose weight, not just to contour.  Remember, that’s a lot of folks…more than 50% of the population who want to lose weight…even higher percentage for body contouring patients.  

Last week, we discussed using a fantastic holistic body contouring therapy, whole body vibration therapy, to assist your body contouring patients who are on a weight loss journey.  

Today, we’re diving into red and near infrared light therapy for weight loss, and remarkably, for targeted weight loss...in other words what we used to think impossible….spot reducing with diet and exercise…and a little help from us and our technology.

Before we get started, please know that to thoroughly discuss all of the amazing things that light therapy can do would require this podcast episode to last a week or longer, rather than less than an hour.  Our discussion today is solely directed at discussing the theory and evidence of using red and near infra-red (NIR) light to help you help your patients get the weight loss results they want.  

There’s an important distinction that we want you to understand right now before we get started. And that is to keep in mind exactly what you are using light therapy for.  Fat reduction? or weight loss?  You can use a red light therapy device like lipo laser or zerona for targeted fat reduction, for sculpting an area with no weight loss.  Or you can use red light therapy via a lamp or belt to assist weight loss patients to lose weight where they want to lose it…without undergoing fat reduction treatments like lipo laser.  

You’re already familiar with the technology.  But its a new way to use red and near infrared light Today, we’re going to tell you all about this new way to use red light therapy, we’ll recommend a couple of machine options for your red light lamps and belts and we’ll even share our medspa protocol so you can get started with this treatment as soon as possible!

First, let’s lay some groundwork by hitting a few of the basics regarding light therapy.

The body needs light   

Food and water are not your body’s only needs; every cell in your body must have energy in the form of light too.  

Fortunately, our world consists of a whole spectrum of light wavelengths…at least five of which provide bioactive benefits to the human body. 

The natural source of light is the sun.   It might look white, but sunlight is actually a mixture of seven colors…but they are mixed up together.  And 5 or the 7 colors (or wavelengths) are bioactive to humans, meaning that they provide benefits to us.  

Let’s briefly discuss The 5 light wavelengths that provide bioactive benefits to the human body

Nanometer Range (Light wavelengths are measured in nanometers (nm)).  And today we’ll talk about the range of nm for red and near infrared, but skip the rest.

Ultraviolet (UV) Light Wavelength - 3 of them - UVA, UVB & UVC

            None of them penetrate deeply into the skin: the depth varies by wavelength             

Visible to the human eye?

Not visible to the human eye

Bioactive benefits to the human body

Enables the human body to synthesize Vitamin D

Used as a form of light therapy?

Yes, but strictly in medical settings.  UVA wavelengths are used to treat non-cancerous skin disorders; different UV wavelength combinations are also used to treat certain cancers  

Blue Light Wavelength

Very superficial.  Affects the uppermost layer of the skin only.

Visible to the human eye?

Yes, visible to the human eye

Bioactive benefits to the human body

Increases brain function and improves memory

Boosts the mood

Regulates the circadian rhythm (the sleep/wake cycle)

Stimulates collagen and elastin production

Kills bacteria and reduces inflammation

Used as a form of light therapy?

Yes, blue light wavelengths are used to treat acne, reduce photoaging changes and to provide rejuvenation benefits to the skin  

Far-infrared Light Wavelength

Can penetrate up to 1.5 inches below the skin’s surface.

Visible to the human eye?

No, not visible, but humans can detect far-infrared light as heat and may report “seeing” far-infrared light as heat

Bioactive benefits to the human body  

Improves blood and lymphatic circulation

Promotes wound healing

Promotes detoxification 

Assists in muscle recovery

Enhances the immune system

Promotes weight loss

Used as a form of light therapy?

Yes, far infra-red light wavelengths mostly are utilized in dry ‘infrared’ saunas  

Red Light Wavelength

Has the ability to travel fairly deep into the skin, but does not penetrate as deeply as near infra-red light wavelengths.  It can penetrate about 3 inches deep and therefore can affect the skin, blood vessels, the subcutaneous fat layer, and muscles.

Nanometer Range

Red light emits wavelengths found most commonly in the range of 635 nm - 650 nm, but can be up to 699 nm 

Visible to the human eye?

Yes, red light is visible to the human eye.

Bioactive benefits to the human body

Promotes and accelerates fat loss  

Improves aging issues such as wrinkles and sun damage

Increases collagen and elastin production to tighten skin and reduce scarring

Improves blood and lymphatic circulation

Promotes detoxification

Speeds up healing after surgery or an injury

Smooths cellulite

Slows hair loss and assists in re-growing hair  

Used as a form of light therapy?

Yes, there are many devices that emit either red light alone or in combination with other light wavelengths.  Depending on the level of the machine, these devices are available to the consumer, to the non-medical professional and to the medical professional alike.   

Near Infra-Red Wavelength

Of all the therapeutic wavelengths, near infra-red penetrates the deepest into the skin.  This wavelength can penetrate greater than 3 inches into the body.  

Nanometer Range

Visible to the human eye?

No,  the human eye cannot detect near infra-red light wavelengths, but researchers from some recent studies say yes we can.  

Bioactive benefits to the human body

Reduces body fat

Regenerates cells

Rejuvenates the skin

Improves circulation, both blood and lymphatic

Provides pain relief

Heals wounds and injuries faster

Lessens pain in muscles and joints

Promotes healing

Faster recovery time after a workout

Used as a form of light therapy?

Yes, there are many machines that emit near infra-red light.  Most are combined with red light or other wavelengths. And as with red light therapy devices, they are available to the consumer, to the non-medical professional and to the medical professional alike.  

You have to agree that’s a broad range of benefits!  

Now let’s cover some basics about the light therapy machines.

With the exception of the UV light wavelength, you can find all of the bioactive light wavelengths in light therapy devices, either with a single wavelength or a combination of more than one wavelength.  Problem is, there are literally hundreds - and maybe more like thousands - of light therapy devices to choose from.  

Be aware that many other names are used for light therapy: LED (light emitting diode), cold laser, LLLT (low level laser therapy), red light therapy.  

Each light therapy device, though the specific wavelength(s) may differ, delivers non-invasive treatments that use a low level light to induce a biological process called photobiomodulation (PBM).  

Photobiomodulation (PBM) acts directly on the cells to provide benefits.  The specific benefits delivered vary from wavelength to wavelength (like we discussed earlier with the different colors).  

When wavelengths are combined and delivered in a single device, PBM can produce even greater benefits.  Like combining red light and near infrared light.

There are so many red and near infrared light devices that you can buy.  When you start researching, t’s easy to go down a rabbit hole.  So to save you time searching for your red light and near infra-red light device, we have recommended two red and near infrared light devices for you.  One is therapy delivered via a lamp and the other is delivered via a belt.    We’re going to talk about how to use both of these in a minute.  When you’re ready, take a look in today’s show notes for the links to those machines so you can get the details.

So we’ve covered the theory of light therapy, the basics of the benefits the different colors or wavelengths deliver to the patient, and a couple of good red and near infrared light therapy machines for you to use.  

Now let’s move on to the really fun stuff.  How to use red and near infra-red light to command weight loss results.  

First, you must understand the mechanism of action

There are literally thousands of studies proving the wide array of benefits light therapy delivers.   It’s probably the most studied body contouring technology out there.

But despite that and despite the hundreds of studies that prove red light and near infra-red light (1) enhances weight loss, (2) promotes fat burning and (3) shrinks inches, the exact mechanism of action (how it works exactly) is still somewhat debated.  

What’s not in debate though?  Study after study has consistently shown it works. 

This is the widely accepted theory of the mechanism of action:  

Combination red and near infra-red light (NIR) treatments work by 

causing fat cells to release stored fat into the bloodstream, 

where the body can 

burn the fat off for energy needs during exercise and/or 

burn the fat off for energy needs during a calorie deficit. 

Therefore, your patient must expend energy (exercise) and/or produce a calorie deficit (follow a weight loss diet) when undergoing a red and near infra-red light treatment series so as to produce optimal fat burning and weight loss results.

So…

Use this equation as the basis of each of your weight loss and fat loss treatment protocols

 Red & NIR light + Weight Loss Diet (calorie deficit) + Exercise (energy expenditure) 

= weight loss, fat loss and inch loss

Now there are a couple of Light therapy machine exceptions (though we may not completely agree)

⇨ Some red and near infra-red devices (such as Lipo Laser and Zerona Z6) have been shown to reduce fat and inches without the use of diet and exercise, though we firmly believe (from years of experience) that your patients will not achieve best results without a concomitant healthy lifestyle (i.e. healthy eating and movement).  

Okay.  Here’s that distinction showing up.  Both Lipo Laser and Zerona Z6 have been shown to produce inch loss, but neither of these machines have been proven to command weight loss.  These are fat reduction machines.  They produce a loss of inches but do not lead to weight loss.  

Other light therapy machines 

⇨ And especially if you’re not using Zerona Z6 or Lipo Laser, we cannot more highly recommend combining treatments using red/NIR light therapy with diet and exercise.  

Now let’s get into the details.  

First, we’re talking weight loss here, not fat reduction treatments

How does red and near infra-red light lead to weight loss

A calorie deficit is critical:

Red and near infra-red light only sets the stage for fat burning 

Remember the mechanism of action?  Fatty acids from fat cells are released into the bloodstream to be burned off for energy. 

Red and near infra-red light therapy causes fat cells to release fatty acids into the bloodstream where that fat has the potential to be burned off.

The body will not burn this released fat unless it needs it for energy.  

BUT…if the body doesn’t need it for energy, it will store the fat that was released in nearby fat cells.  

When this happens, the released fat may move to different fat cells, but it will not be burned.  It remains in the body.

This is why your patient must be in a calorie deficit to achieve actual fat loss.

Second, 

For red and near infra-red light to lead to weight loss

Good blood flow to the fatty area is critical:  

Red and near infra-red light doesn’t burn fat by itself

Think about the mechanism of action.  Fats from fat cells are released into the bloodstream to be burned off for energy.  There must be good blood flow to carry the fats away to be burned for energy.  

Red and near infra-red light boosts blood flow.

Educate your patients about lifestyle factors that help with increasing circulatory flow: adequate hydration, low stress levels, quality sleep, daily movement and healthy nutrition. 

PRO TIP

The amount of blood flow to fat tissue is highly variable depending on the body area.  

Some areas are highly vascularized (visceral fat) while others are poorly vascularized (outer thigh fat).  

The poorer the blood flow, the poorer the fat burning results using diet and exercise alone and the more resistant to non-invasive body contouring treatments.   

And the big one…

Third,

For red and near infra-red light to command weight loss

AND 

target fat loss in problem areas (Spot Reduction)

This is where we see how red and near infra-red light does what we used to believe impossible

As long as a calorie deficit exists, exercise is recommended, but not critical, to achieve fat loss or weight loss

BUT…

To help your patient lose weight plus target stubborn fat in problem areas, i.e. Spot Reduction, targeted exercise is critical and concurrently with a series of targeted red and near infra-red light treatments, using the light therapy lamp or belt.  

The studies published to date have examined simultaneous targeted exercise and red/NIR application, in other words, the activity was in tandem with the red/NIR light treatments. At the same time.  How did they do that?

Here’s a couple of the studies evidencing spot reduction:

First, One study looked at women riding stationary bicycles three times a week for four weeks while being exposed to a light therapy lamp on their hips, thighs…and waist and the same number of women who did the same exercise without red/NIR application.  The group using the combination of exercise and red/NIR lost 444% more fat in the hips, thighs and waist.   

And, In another study, researchers evaluated women walking a treadmill while wearing a belt emitting red/NIR light.  The study found significant reductions in abdominal fat, significant abdominal inch loss and a reduction in fat mass in the study participants, which the control group did not achieve.  

What do these studies (and others like them) show us?

Exercise + simultaneous use of targeted red/NIR =  Spot Reduction with Weight Loss

Which is…patients telling their bodies where to lose the weight.

Isn’t this so good??  

Now the only question is…how do you put this into action to help your patients’ with weight loss plus spot reduction…in other words, tell their body where to lose the weight?

This is how we help our medspa weight loss patients achieve targeted fat loss…how they tell their body where to lose the weight

And you can use our protocol too! 

But before we discuss our protocol, Shannon has a brief message for us.

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Visit bodycontouringacademy.com, click on 'Certification Courses' from the menu

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Here’s our medspa “tell your body where to lose the weight protocol” using red and near infrared light therapy combined with exercise.  Take notes and you can use it too.

Exercise

Most of our patients either don’t have the time for exercise or don’t want to exercise, so we offer Vibration Therapy at our Medspa.  

Vibration Therapy is a passive form of exercise that takes just ten minutes…and patients love getting their ‘exercise’ by using it.  

Learn more about using Whole Body Vibration Therapy to enhance your patients' weight loss goals in our podcast, How to help your patients lose weight even if you don’t offer a weight loss program  URL  to podcast.  You can find a link to that episode in today’s show notes. 

Set the Vibration Therapy machine to run two ten-minute sessions (for a total of twenty minutes).

Don’t have a Vibration Therapy machine?  We have two of them and love them.  Find links to this machine in today’s show notes.  

Oh, and if you’d like to learn even more plus get certified in Whole Body Vibration Therapy, take a look at our online vibration therapy course.  We’ll leave a link to the course info in our show notes. 

Simultaneous Red/NIR Light Application 

Prior to powering on the Vibration Therapy machine, apply the application of red/NIR light to the targeted area.

You may apply a belt type applicator to the patient’s problem area or shine a lamp applicator to the problem area.

As with any light therapy device, the patient should wear protective eyewear.

If you use a lamp type applicator, you’ll either need to provide protective eyewear for all others in the area or use a treatment room to avoid exposure to others.

 Frequency and duration of treatments

Obtain baseline data, i.e. weight, measurements, photos

Recommend 2-3 treatments per week.

Start with a treatment series lasting 4 weeks and reassess with weight, measurements, photos.  .

There you go.  A step by step protocol to help your weight loss patients lose weight in a targeted area of stubborn fat.  That’s cutting edge.  You’ll be the talk of the town!

The combination of red and near infra-red light has long been recognized for its ability to deliver multiple benefits, including fat burning and inch loss.  But what’s new (and truly groundbreaking) is the newly compiled evidence proving its ability to command weight loss while at the same time producing spot reduction when combined with exercise.    

We’ve walked you through the theory and evidence, provided you with two good choices for your red and NIR light therapy machine and we’ve even shared our own red and red light weight loss protocol which you can use in your business.  

Now it’s time to apply what you’ve learned and use red and near infra-red light to command weight loss WHERE your patients want to lose it. 

That’s it for today.  Until next time, Beautiful Wishes

If you enjoyed our podcast, we’d really appreciate it if you take a few minutes to leave us a review. 

And, if you’d like to learn more about our courses and resources, you can get ALL the scoop by visiting our website,  bodycontouringacademy.com, that’s bodycontouringacademy.com.  

Thank you so much for listening.  As always, have a great rest of your day!  And until next time, Beautiful wishes!