Best Health News - Losing Weight

Hoodia Gordonii – The Scientific Intervention

root — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 08:08:45 +0200

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The first scientific study of hoodia was really sparked by chance, as is often the case in scientific “discoveries”. What started it all was not, in fact, an exclusive study into the hoodia gordonii, a succulent that looks like a cactus. South Africa’s national laboratory was conducting a much broader study. It was only because the San tribesman were celebrated to eat hoodia gordonii that it was included in a study of indigenous foods. It is not surprising that the interest of the national laboratory was aroused, and they started to focus seriously on the hoodia gordonii’s properties. It was tested on animals by including it in their food. The animals ate it, and then lost weight. It was then a question of isolating the ingredient that was behind this phenomenon. Or were these animals going to secret weight watchers meetings all week, without the knowledge of the laboratory? That may seem very fanciful, but then so did the idea of losing weight through munching a high-pitched succulent. This was, indeed, proper extremely interesting. This was no instant discovery with an instant explanation. The originally research went back to the 1960’s, when it was not obvious that hoodia gordonii had great potential as an appetite suppressant. It was about 30 years later that the South African national laboratory succeeded in isolating and identifying the ingredient in hoodia gordonii that had the effect of suppressing appetite. The ingredient was subsequent to become known as P57. When the laboratory found that ingredient, they applied for a patent, and licensed it to Phytopharm, an English bio-technology company. Phytopharm has spent more than $20 cardinal already on research associated with hoodia gordonii. This research, which included clinical trials with fat volunteers, has yielded some likely results. Subjects given hoodia gordonii ended up eating about 1,000 calories a day less than those in the control group, who were fed a placebo. That is an impressively superior figure, when you consider that the average American man consumes about 2,600 calories a day, and a woman about 1,900 calories. reported to Phytopharm, if you take this hoodia compound every day, your desire to eat goes down. That was illustrated dramatically in the research. So, complete was looking very promising for the millions of obese men and women around the world. Large pharmaceutical company Pfizer partnered Phytopharm in expanding the research, and a synthetic form of the nitpicking ingredient was possible. However, the costs involved and the attainable volumes were too low, to make it worthwhile, so Pfizer abandoned their plans. Phytopharm definite the only way to produce enough of the product was to grow the plants in massive volumes. So, that is what they set out to do, establishing hoodia plantations in South Africa. The hoodia being used in the plantations is not precisely the same plant as that in the Kalahari, but is easier to cultivate. It is an enormous task, but cardinal that Phytofarm are confident will bring success in meeting latent demand for genuine hoodia products. However, Phytopharm says it hopes to have meal-replacement hoodia products on supermarket shelves in a few years.

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You Need To Know What Is In Your Food

root — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 21:08:45 +0200

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Whether you're concerned about cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or simply losing weight, you want to eat a healthy diet and focus on foods that are high in vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, and balanced in fats, carbs, proteins. There is only one way to incorporate healthy foods into our diet and that is to make the decision to do it! Practical information about the nutrition and safety of the foods we consume is absolutely vital in making this decision. cardinal way to learn more about what we eat, is to snoop around the supermarket. Check-out package labels to see what manufactures are adding (or removing) from the foods we eat. Read the information on the package and start making comparisons to determine which foods are the best for YOU. Know about nutritional labeling and the sometimes sneaky ways that manufacturers have of hiding what is in the food. Know and understand ingredient declarations, how they are used, and what a few of the "technical" terms mean. Are the unfamiliar ingredients good or bad for your health? Since 1994 food manufacturers have been required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to include food labels (or Nutrition Facts labels) on product packaging so that consumers have accurate nutritional information about the food they purchase. But food labels are more than just a national requirement – once you understand the information they provide, you can use food labels as a guide to planning better meals and snacks. Food labels are necessary on almost all foods, except those that don't provide galore nutrients such as coffee, alcohol and spices. Although some restaurants provide information about the food they serve, they aren't necessary to have labels. The FDA recommends that sellers provide nutritional information on produce, meat, poultry and seafood, but it's strictly voluntary. What Is a Serving? At the top of a food label under Nutrition Facts, you'll see the serving size and the number of servings in the package. The rest of the nutrition information in the label is supported on one serving. Calories, Calories From blubbery and Percent Daily Values This part of a food label provides the calories per serving and the calories that come from fat. If you need to know the total number of calories you eat every day or the number of calories that come from fat, this section provides that information. Remember that this part of the label doesn't tell you whether you are eating saturated or monounsaturated fat. On the right side of a food label, you'll see a column that lists percentages. These percentages refer to the percent daily values (%DV). Percent regular values tell you how more of something, whether it's fat, sugar or vitamin A, cardinal serving will give you compared to how much you need for the entire day. It will help you gauge the percentage of a nutrient requirement met by one serving of the product. One way to use this section of the label is when you comparison shop. For example, if you're concerned with sodium, you can look at two foods and choose the food with the lower % DV. Are you trying to eat a low-fat diet? Look for foods that have a lower percent regular value of fat. The DV is supported on how much or how little of the key nutrients you should eat whether you eat 2,000 or 2,500 calories a day. So if you eat a 2,000-calorie diet, you should eat less than 65 grams of fat in complete the foods you eat for the day. If you're eating 12 grams of fat in your one serving of macaroni and cheese (remember that's cardinal cup), you can calculate how much fat you have left-handed for the day. You can use the bottom part of the food label in albescent to compare what you are eating to the DV you're allowed for that nutrient, whether it's fat, sodium or fiber. If you need much or less than 2,000 or 2,500 calories, you'll need to adjust this accordingly. Nutrients Fat, Sugar, Sodium and Carbohydrate The sections on a food label shows the name of a wholesome and the amount of that nutrient provided by one serving of food. You may need to know this information, especially if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or are eating a diet that restricts definite nutrients such as sodium or carbohydrates. Food labels also include information about how much sugar and protein is in the food. If you are following a low-sugar diet or you're monitoring your protein intake, it's easy to spot how much of those nutrients are contained in cardinal serving. Vitamins, Minerals and Other Information The light chromatic part of the label lists nutrients, vitamins and minerals in the food and their percent daily values. Try to normal 100% DV every day for vitamins A and C, calcium, iron and fiber. Do the opposite with fat, saturated fat, sodium and cholesterol. Try to eat less than 100% DV of these. Common Mistakes to Avoid When Reading a Food Label Until you become accustomed to reading food labels, it's easy to become confused. Avoid these common mistakes when reading labels: -A label may say that the food is reduced blubbery or reduced sodium. That means that the amount of blubbery or sodium has been shrunken by 25% from the creative product. It doesn't mean, however, that the food is debased in fat or sodium. For example, if a can of soup originally had 1,000 milligrams of sodium, the reduced sodium product would still be a high-sodium food. -Don't confuse the DV for fat with the percentage of calories from fat. If the DV is 15% that doesn't mean that 15% of the calories comes from fat. Rather, it means that you're using up 15% of all the fat you need for a day with cardinal serving (based on a meal plan of 2,000 calories per day). -Don't make the mistake of forward that the amount of sugar on a label means that the sugar has been added. For example, milk naturally has sugar, which is called lactose. But that doesn't mean you should stop drinking milk because milk is full of else important nutrients including calcium. Reading Label Lingo In addition to requiring that packaged foods contain a Nutrition Facts label, the FDA also regulates the use of phrases and terms used on the product packaging. Here's a list of usual phrases you may see on your food packaging and what they actually mean. No fat or blubbery free - Contains less than 1/2 gram of fat per serving Lower or reduced fat: Contains at least 25 percent less per serving than the reference food. (An example might be reduced fat cream cheese, which would have at least 25 percent less fat than original cream cheese.) Low fat - Contains less than 3 grams of fat per serving. Lite - Contains 1/3 the calories or 1/2 the fat per serving of the original version or a analogous product. No calories or calorie free - Contains less than 5 calories per serving. Low calories - Contains 1/3 the calories of the creative version or a similar product. Sugar released - Contains less than 1/2 gram of sugar per serving. Reduced sugar - at least 25% little sugar per serving than the reference food. No preservatives - Contains no preservatives (chemical or natural). No preservatives added - Contains no added chemicals to preserve the product. many of these products may contain natural preservatives. Low sodium - Contains little than 140 mgs of sodium per serving. No salt or salt released - Contains less than 5 mgs of sodium per serving. High fiber - 5 g or much per serving (Foods making high-fiber claims must meet the definition for low fat, or the level of total fat essential appear next to the high-fiber claim). bully source of fiber - 2.5 g to 4.9 g. per serving. much or added fiber - Contains at least 2.5 g much per serving than the reference food. With a little practice, you will be able to put your new found knowledge about food labeling to work. Reassess your diet and decide what needs to be changed. Start by eliminating the foods that don't measure-up to your nutritional wants and needs, and replacing them with more nutritional substitutes. And while you're at it, visit the FDA website and learn about the new labeling requirements, including those for "trans" fat. Like supersaturated fats, trans fats can raise levels of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and increase your risk of heart disease. The "Nutrition Facts" panel on food packaging essential provide this information beginning January 1, 2006, but most manufacturers will start providing it sooner.

Adaptation II - Examples and Practical Advice

root — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 21:08:45 +0200

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Understanding the theory of adaptation (see previous article, Adaptation I will give you the tools to evaluate your diet and daily routine. If you have any question about whether something is good for you, always examine both the immediate effects and the adaptation effects equally. This article will look at various examples of adaptation and practical advice based on the theory. Review: Adaptation is: A survival mechanism A reaction or response to everything Not low conscious control alveolate Designed to make you better at whatever you're doing (even if that's sitting on the couch) Usually gradual Walking Is walking for a long time a bully way of losing weight? Look at it this way: the direct effect is that calories are burnt over that period, and you will by using your fat stores for fuel because it is aerobic exercise. (See the article on Exercise, click here.) So that's a positive: you're burning calories, and as long as you don't eat too much food, you're losing weight. But what will be the adaptation? You're informatory your body that you will need to walk for a long amount of time to find food. So, how will your body adapt to make you a better walker? Expending energy faster? Burning fat easily? NO WAY. If you need to walk through the savanna for a long time, you want your body to conserve as much energy (fat) as possible and retain as more water as possible. This is the opposite of your goal, you will not lose weight in the long-term, so you shouldn't do it. Sprinting What about high-intensity exercise? The immediate effect is to burn calories in your blood, but there isn't enough time to start burning fat. Your muscles may burn with lactic acid, and you can't keep it up for very long. That isn't too good, because you won't burn as many calories as you did walking. But is the adaptation going in the correct direction? Your body will try to make you a better runner by making calories available to you at a moment's notice to fuel your run (burning fat faster), and will try to get rid of the fat that is slowing you down. This is a great adaptation. The best advice regarding exercise for weight loss in accordance with adaptation is this: warm up by doing a fast walk for 10-15 minutes, so that your body goes into a fat-burning mode. Then, turn up the intensity as high as you can and speed through the close 10-15 minutes. This can be running, climbing stairs, bicycling or whatever activity you like. I recommend a stationary bike because the risk of falling or hurting your joints is minimized. If you do this before breakfast, you're also training your body to use stored energy (fat) instead of energy from food in your stomach. If You Could Be an Animal... If your physique could resemble an animal's, which mammal-like would you choose? Try to ignore symbolism, and just pick an animal whose body composition you'd like to approach. galore men would choose a lion and many women would choose a gazelle. These animals have adapted to get the bodies they have, and their adaptation, like yours, is based on how they behave day to day. So how do these animals behave? We can't compare their diets, because a gazelle is a herbivore, a lion is a carnivore, and humans are omnivores. However, we can look at their exercise needs. A lion, to get food, has to sprint for up to 5 minutes until it grabs its prey, which is usually beautiful big. When it does, it wrestles with it for up to 10 minutes, flexing complete its muscles and changing positions, putting all its force against the other animal. This builds muscular strength and size and eliminates body fat. A gazelle spends a lot of time eating, but each mouthful is tiny. It takes a long time to eat, and never gorges. When the grass all around it is bare, it bounces unsatisfactory to another place to find food or water. The gazelle is highly alert because it is vulnerable to attack, and often twitches or fidgets to make sure it can escape quickly. When it is attacked, it runs (bounces) incredibly hurrying for up to 20 minutes until it is safely dead of danger. This activity makes it long and slender as an adaptation to its environment. Don't be a house cat. Many cats are overweight because their environment doesn't challenge them to run to catch food (or avoid being caught), and sleep or lie around for 18 hours a day. If you have a desk-job, and then watch TV on the couch, that is exactly what you are doing. Three Squares Should you eat only three meals a day and avoid snacking to lose weight? Well, you will be consuming fewer calories, so that's a plus. However, the bigger effect is this: your body will think food is rare and that you may starve. If you go 5 or 6 hours between meals, or if you skip breakfast and go 16 hours or so without food, what else could your body possibly conclude? Your brain can't tell your cells "don't worry, we're trying to lose weight," because your intentions don't mean anything to your organs. Your organs react and adapt to the stimuli presented to them. So they think that you're in the desert. How do you survive in the desert? Conserve as much food in your body as possible (fat), lentissimo your metabolism to prolong your life (so you'll feel drooping a lot), and retain as much water as possible. What about the opposite? What if you eat small portions every two or three hours? Your body will think that you're in a place where there is food whenever you need it, like-minded a jungle full of fruit trees and other easily stocked food to eat. What is the reaction? Hooray! Better to speed up the metabolism, so that the stomach is smooth digesting the previous meal before the next one comes; no need to store fat that is just leeching circulation and water; and get rid of any excess water in the system, because fresh water is constantly coming in. This is in line with your weight loss goals, so this is the route to take. Calories: Eat little or burn more? The final effect of your body's great adaptation latent is the question of which is more effective: eating few calories or burning more calories with exercise? Let's look at these two propositions in terms of adaptation. If you first remove a significant number of calories from your diet, you will feel less energetic (because calories are energy), therefore, you won't feel like exercising, and you won't be able to exercise for as long. On the else hand, if you start exercising more each day, it will make you hungrier (because your body knows it's not getting enough calories to support this new activity), but as long-life as you try to keep your eating habits the similar and pay attention to satiety (read my article on Satiety, click here), you'll feel great, your endurance will improve and your overall health will keep getting better. At that point, if you reduce the calories in your diet, then you will be able to cope with slightly less energy, because your body will already be more efficient at using that energy to fuel your exercise.

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Six Steps to Weight Loss Success

root — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 03:08:45 +0200

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What does it take to lose weight? When it comes to losing weight there is so more conflicting information out there that a lot of people antimonopoly are not sure where to begin. There is an old saying that states "if you want learn how to get rich then hang dead with rich people" Well, that old saying can also be applied if you want to lose weight. The bottom line is, if you want to lose weight follow the advice of those that have successfully done so. When it comes to reducing body fat, Bodybuilders are the Kings and Queens to losing weight. Although many of their practices are too intense for most people, there are some great secrets that should be used by everyone. Before we begin we should first cover a few basic rules. Rule number 1, there is no such thing as a magic pill! Yeah, I know that stinks but the facts are the facts. Although there are diet supplements and diet pills/ patches that will assist with weight loss they are not the magic solution. You will still need to add in a good diet and exercise program, which leads us into Rule Number 2. Rule number 2, Proper diet and exercise is key. If you want to lose weight for the long term then you will need to have a good exercise and diet program. We will cover this more in detail later. Rule number 3 encompasses both rules 1 and 2. For most people they just need to take the steps to safely increase their metabolism. Most people have slowed their metabolism behind so much that they seem to not be able to lose weight even if they eat only once or twice a day. Steps to increase your metabolism and burn unwanted body blubbery Step 1: Drink a gallon water ordinary Most of us are already aware that our bodies are mostly ready-made up of water. So much of it that approximately 65 percent of our bodies is water. The brain uses it, the organs, the skin, bones and even the way nutrients and waste are passed in and out of the cells. Drink too little water and you may be at risk for headaches, muscle cramps, dizziness, constipation and other nasty symptoms. However, if you drink an up to amount of water you gain some great benefits such as a clearer mind, more energy and even help your body metabolize body fat. As a overall rule I try to start out at a gallon a day and move up from there. Yes it is difficult at first but in a short amount of time your body will adapt. I have also added an extra step to my water consumption by drinking it ice cold. You not single get the benefit of metabolizing body fat by drinking a gallon of water a day but you also get an extra benefit with cold water by expending more calories difficult to warm it up. How to prepare – get an pillaged one-gallon plastic milk carton (or water jug) and fill engorged of water and put it in the freezer the night before you need it. The next morning a wall of ice will form inside the milk carton. Take a butter knife and punch a hole through the top layer of ice. You now have an ice-cold water jug that you can carry with you throughout your day. Step 2: Eat six (6) small meals a day I know this sounds all wrong but I am going to paint a less picture for you to help you grasp this concept. Your body is a precise adaptable machine that is going to adjust itself to survive as efficiently as possible. If you only eat cardinal meal a day, large or small, your body will make adjustments according to your rife caloric intake. In else words, if you are single eating once a day your body will want to store calories as fat so that it has an ample supply of energy to live unsatisfactory of before the next feeding. The less you eat the less your body is going to burn therefore slowing behind your metabolism. Now, that doesn’t mean you can eat cardinal servings of fast food or junk throughout the day and lose weight. You need to live on a balanced diet that is full of protein, fruits and vegetables and good carbohydrates (yams, brown rice, oat meal, etc…). Does this mean you have to give up junk food and sweets? Nope, this leads us into our next step. Step 3: Add a cheat meal to your diet As explicit earlier your body is an amazing machine. Not single is your body going to do what it can to insure its survival, it will also try to maintain balance by adapting to its environment. In other words, if you eat the same thing day in and day dead your body will eventually adapt to your current caloric intake by adjusting your metabolism. For example, if you were eating 2000 calories a day and dropped down to 1500 calories a day, your body will eventually adjust your metabolism to efficiently run on 1500 calories a day. The key is to trick your body and keep it guessing. One of the greatest, and most fun I might add, tricks used by bodybuilders is to add a cheat meal to their diet. For one meal a week you can go hog intractable and eat whatever your heart desires, whether it be pizza, ice-cream or a meal engorged of Snickers. Now I understand there are those that would prefer to eat a cleaner diet so for them I recommend that they antimonopoly double their carbohydrate intake cardinal to two full days dead of the week (this is what I actually did when preparing for bodybuilding contest) The realistic asset of the cheat meal is that it keeps you honest with your diet. If your cheat meal is on Saturday and Wednesday your getting a really bad pizza craving, you can simply convince yourself to stay on track by reminding yourself that in three more days you can have whatever you want. Pushing your cravings off to your cheat meal date becomes a little goal for you to achieve while allowing you to maintain your sanity. Step 4: Change diet later in day As your day progresses you will want to shift your diet from the more interlocking carbohydrates such as rice, potatoes and bread to more fibrous carbohydrates such as broccoli and other vegetables. The fibrous carbohydrates take longer to burn and you will not have to worry about spiking your insulin levels before you go to bed. Once exception to this rule is if you are working out in the evenings. In this case you will need to take an adequate amount of carbohydrates for your workout. *Note: A bully diet program should be planned for each individual. I would recommend consulting with a good nutritionist to be put on a diet program that works for you. Step 5: Cardio in the morning A boffo weight loss routine involves some diet and exercise. If you are looking for long results, one does not go without the other. If you avoid doing either cardinal or the other, you may experience some short-term success followed by long-term frustration. A great example of this is to watch people who are always doing the yo-yo diets. They lose weight cardinal week only to gain it back plus some a hardly a weeks later. Hey, we have all done this so keep in mind that some exercise and diet is the key to long-term success. One trick that I have found works is to do your cardio workouts in the morning. Ideally I would walk on the treadmill or stair stepper at a moderate pace for 45 minutes in the morning (moderate pace meaning that I was breaking a good sweat but could maintain a conversation if necessary (Too fast of a pace and you will burn carbohydrates instead of fat). The benefits to this are that you not single increase your metabolism for the day you also will feel better too. Even though I appear to have been stressing the benefits of a good cardio program, it would be irresponsible of me to not also point out the benefits of weight training. Simply put, the more lean muscle mass you have the more calories your body will burn. I highly recommend you consider adding a weight resistant workout to your body fat reduction arsenal. Step 6: Supplements I would like-minded to stress that diet supplements are a tool to help you reach your goal. Supplements alone are not a magic pill that will give you instant results. However, that being said, a bully diet supplement added to a solid diet and workout program will help accelerate your results. Tying it all unneurotic I have personally used these six weight-losing principles to help me reduce unwanted body fat to win several bodybuilding contests. For example, I applied these perfect principles to reduce my body fat from 28 percent to less than five percent in a six and a fractional month period. Although many of the diet practices practical for a bodybuilding show may be extreme, these six principles can be applied and tuned for everyone looking to reduce body fat. In conclusion and to recap, the cardinal basic steps to weight loss success is to drink a gallon of ice cold water a day, eat six smaller meals a day verses the traditional large three, add a cheat meal to your diet program, adjust your carbohydrate intake towards the end of the day, do cardio workouts in the morning and finally add supplements as a tool to your diet and workout program.

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Tips and Motivational Advice for Keeping Fit One Day at a Time

root — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 15:08:45 +0200

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Letâ€™s face itâ€¦. Losing weight and feeling great isnâ€™t easy. BUT the journey is well worth it! Many people commit to their health and well being via a New Yearâ€™s resolution. Why not? The New Year is a great time to make a fresh start and commitment to your health. How do you remain motivated however for an entire year? The single most important piece of advice I can offer you is this: Donâ€™t give up, and pick yourself back up when you stumble or fall. Everyone slips here and there. Just because you had one cheat day doesnâ€™t mean your entire fitness and exercise program needs to be ruined. On the contrary. Everyone slips now and again. The important to sticking with a program is to make the slips MUCH less frequent than the days you are firmly sworn to your program. So have that piece of chocolate on occasion and donâ€™t beat yourself up for it. Here are some additive great ideas for staying intended throughout the year: Tip 1 Donâ€™t make a habit of skipping breakfast. You should never skip breakfast. It is the most consequential meal of the day, and revs your metabolism to burn calories each and every day. When you skip breakfast, you are more likely to overeat and then feel guilty later in the day. Tip 2 Donâ€™t weigh yourself every day. In fact, you should weigh yourself single once a week, and when you do you should do it at the same time wearing nothing. Why? Your weight actually fluctuates a good 2-5 pounds from day to day. Much of this is associated with fluid retention, thus has nothing to do with your true fat gain or loss. Weighing yourself too often can be discouraging rather than encouraging. Tip 3 Grab a partner in crime. Find someone that can be your â€˜partner in fitnessâ€™. Call them when you are feeling unmotivated, and have them do the same. You are more possible to stay motivated if you have someone to lean on when times get tough. Tip 4 Donâ€™t skip a workout because you are tired. Did you know that working out will actually help invigorate you? If you are truly exhausted, consider toning down your workout, but never give it up completely! Tip 5 Reward yourself on occasion. All work and no play is not the way to go when it comes to your overall health and well being. Consider booking yourself for a massage or else pampering treat each month to keep you feeling great mentally and physically. Last but not least, remember to take small steps. Donâ€™t set outrageous goals. You wonâ€™t lose 10 pounds in one week, but you might lose up to 2. Over increased goals will only serve to defeat you in the long-life run. Set reasonable goals and you will find yourself much more motivated throughout the year! Article by

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I Skip Meals, Why Arent I Losing Weight?

root — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 21:08:45 +0200

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A big mistake that lots of people make is skipping meals. They think they are not eating much so they should be losing weight. Wrong! Your body was planned with the idea that you have to expend energy in order to get food. If you think back a hundred or more years ago, if you wanted to eat something you had to either go hunting everyday or grow your own food. And that’s a lot of work – that’s a lot of carnal activity. And even though we no longer have to do this, it doesn’t change the fact that our bodies are still designed this way. So when you skip a meal, your body actually thinks that you’re out in the wild and, for some reason, food is hard to come by. This is a built in survival mechanism that all of us have – it’s built in. So when your body thinks food is hard to find, it does two things to protect you from starving. early it slows your metabolism causing your body to slow behind and burn less fat. Second the meal you eat after you skip a meal will be converted almost entirely to fat and stored - to protect you from starving. So if you skip breakfast, almost all of what you eat for lunch is converted to fat. We think we’re taking in little food but in reality were causing our bodies to store fat. Your metabolism is totally manageable by you. You can lose weight easily If you speed your metabolism up naturally and safely. Increasing your lean muscle mass enables your body to burn more fat as it takes more effort to sustain muscle than it does fat. Therefore, the more wisplike muscle mass you have, the faster your metabolism is possible to be. Therefore, your exercise regime should include not only fat burning exercises but also some muscle building exercise. Women should note that this does not mean you have to get ‘beefy’ but just tone up your muscles. Protein also plays an important part in this process. Women should generally consume about cardinal grams of protein per day and men 150 grams. This can be quite demanding to achieve unless you take a protein supplement. You then know exactly how more protein you are consuming and it is much easier to control. So the message is: 1. Don’t skip meals – you will end up putting on weight. 2. Build lean muscle mass by doing a combination of weight training as well as blubbery burning exercises. 3. Make sure you are consuming the right amount of protein per day to aid in building lean muscle mass. Copyright 2005 Sheridan Woodcroft Sheridan Woodcroft is a personal weight management and health and nutrition mentor. You can visit her website to find out much about a how, with a few simple changes, you can boost your metabolism and turn your body into a blubbery burning machine and lose weight without exercising http://www.WEIGHTLOSS-4U-PERMANENTLY.COM/?refid=article-31879 Article Source: http://www.articledepot.co.uk

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It’s Not Just About Dieting…

root — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 12:38:45 +0100

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You may not like what I’m about to say, but dieting alone will not help you to lose weight. You have to give your body the exercise it needs. As I mentioned earlier, a couple of centuries ago, people were involved in a lot of manual labor. This gave their bodies complete the exercise that was needed. But due to the transformed life styles, most of us do not have to engage in strenuous work. Most of us sit in front of computers all day long or engage in other sedentary works. It is because of this that exercise becomes crucial for weight loss. Generally people do not gain weight till their early twenties. But once they cross the 25 mark, then visible signs of weight gain can be seen everywhere and in the mid section in particular. There is something very important that you have to understand if you are really considering the possibility of losing weight. You will have to consciously give your body the required exercise that it needs for the weight loss to be really effective. Watching your diet alone is not going to yield results unless it is coupled with proper exercise. You have to make a semiconscious effort for this. And the solution for this is a work out routine. When we think about the life in the country, there is always something optimistic about it. What is it that the people in the country have that we do not? When you ponder about it you find that those lucky souls eat good food, they work really hard, by work I mean real carnal work and they have bully night’s sleep. Of course they do not have all the amenities and facilities that the city life has to offer. But the city life comes with a lot of strings attached. People in the cities are generally less healthy than the people in the country. One of the reasons is pollution of course but the other reason is because people in the city do not get sufficient exercise. Now, when I talk about wholesome bodies please make no mistake about what I am referring to. I am not speaking about the Mr. Universe benignant of body, the bodies that we see on WWF. I am speaking about people who are fit. And fitness and exercise are just two sides of the same coin. They both go hand in hand. In order to stay fit you need exercise and in order to exercise you need to be fit. But just because you are not fit now, it does not mean that you shouldn’t exercise. And antimonopoly like that, just because you do not have any perceptible excess fat on your body right now, it does not mean that you need no exercise. Exercise is the unsurpassed way to keep obesity, cardio vascular disorders, hypertension and complete those lifestyle-related disorders under control. First of all let us get cardinal point straight, exercise does not necessarily mean pumping metal. If you do have the time to go to a gymnasium everyday, then that is healthy and good. But I suppose most of us do not have the time for a regular work out in a gym. So the other alternative is to do it at home of course. But whether it is at domestic or at a multi-gym, there is something that I want to tell you. Whatever you are doing, you must try and do it regularly. Consistency is precise important for an exercise regular to have the desired effect on our body. Getting started is the easy part, it is sticking to a day-to-day exercise routine that is demanding and this is what makes most people give up in between. Most people get on to a beautiful start. They buy track suits and gym-wear, running shoes and a whole lot of other gear. Their first day at the gym is almost a celebration. Then as the days go on, they find it increasingly difficult to meet the home and professional demands and so their routine slows down and finally comes to a full-blown workout burn out. In else words, the stop working dead completely It is a universal fact that the most chosen time for work outs is the evenings. If you can stick to work out in the evenings then it is well and good. But most of us find ourselves exhausted in the evenings. We find ourselves physically and mentally drained. And at that time our bodies will be just too tired for a work out. The result is that after the first few days of working out, the interest just dwindles away. The else reason is that in the evenings a thousand and cardinal things may crop up and then there is hardly time for a warm up. So it is best to ready aside some time for exercise in the morning itself. There are cardinal advantages of setting apart time in the morning. The early advantage is that in the morning our bodies are new and full of energy. Now over here I want to make one point clear. There is a popular misconception that exercise depletes the body of energy but the case is just the opposite. Exercise pumps up much blood through the different parts of the body and warms up the body, so in fact, after exercise we feel more charged and ready to face the challenges of the day. The second advantage is that in the morning we can plan for the whole day without letting the exercise routine affect the rest of our activities. What about those of us who have never worked out before? In such cases you might need to start off under the personal supervision of an instructor and that may require that you go to a gym. But what I would suggest is that there are cardinal simple things that any cardinal can do for which you do not need the help of any instructor. You know what these are? They are walking and swimming. Any body can walk and those of you who know how to swim can swim. For these two activities you do not need more gear and experts say that these two exercises have no side effects and are superior stress busters. So in the morning wake up just half an hour earlier, put on your close shoes and hit the roads. Most roads will be little crowded at this hour and less polluted too. It is a wonderful way to start a day.

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How to Avoid Using Your Home Gym as a Clothes Rack

root — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 07:38:45 +0100

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So here’s the situation… You have a home gym, treadmill, elliptical trainer, or some other piece of home fitness equipment. But it’s sitting in the corner of the room being used as a clothes rack. You haven’t gotten any use out of it for months, and you might be thinking of selling it off. There’s a reason why you initially bought this piece of equipment, and I can bet that it wasn’t meant to hang your clothes on (there are much cheaper alternatives than that). It was probably along the lines of “toning up” or “losing weight” or “getting fit” and so on and so forth. You know it’s probably a good idea to start exercising again, but you might be thinking: 1. “I’m too busy with (insert your reasons here), and I just don’t have the time right now.” 2. “I’ll do it later.” 3. “I’m not too sure what exercises to do.” 4. “I just don’t have any motivation right now. Maybe in the future when I get unemployed up I’ll start again.” 5. “I’m feeling pretty tired these days with everything going on. I’ll get to it once I have some energy.” But what were the reasons that made you buy this machine? How long did you actually use this machine? Why did you stop? And why aren’t you using it now? What you’ll do is examine your reasons why, and give you an actionable guide to get you off your couch, take the clothes off your home gym and start using it the way it was meant to be used (and start achieving your goals!) present is a Solution… You need to ready some goals, and you need to set a plan to get to those goals. That’s right, just like what complete the self help guru preaches, this is what you need to do. The reason why you need to set goals is that then you’ll have something to work towards. And I’m not talking about some up-in-the-air, indistinct goals like, “I want to look toned”, or “I want to lose weight”. I’m talking about detailed, specific goals. Something along the lines of, “I will lose 10 pounds of fat in 60 days”. Also, along with setting goals, you need to write behind your “reasons why” you want to achieve this goal. Losing 10 pounds of fat in 60 days is fine and dandy, but you’ll be way more motivated to exercise if you’re constantly reminded that your wedding is in 60 days! Here’s an acronym that will help you set and attain your fitness goals: S.M.A.R.T-R (pronounced “smarter”) SMART-R stands for: S-Specific M-Measurable A-Action oriented R-Reasonable T-Timed R-Reasons why Let’s go into details of all point: Specific “The more specific and measurable your goal, the more quickly you will be able to identify, locate, create, and implement the use of the necessary resources for its achievement.” -Charles J. Givens "I want to lose weight" is different from "I want to lose 10lbs of fat and gain muscle mass by doing 3-5 cardio workouts and 3-5 resistance training workouts per week at the gym over the course of the next 3 months." Your fitness goals should be detailed, clearly defined, and stress exactly what you’re going to do and you want to achieve. For example, instead of setting a goal to lose weight, set a specific goal to lose 3 inches off your waist, wasted 5% body fat, or lose 3 pounds of fat. important "Make measurable progress in reasonable time." -Jim Rohn If you’re not keeping score, you don’t know whether you’re winning or losing! And keeping score is all done with numbers. Do you want to lose 3 inches off your waist? Do you want to drop behind from 20% to 12% body fat? Do you want to lose 10 pounds? Whatever goal you choose, make sure that you can measure it. You need to do this so you can see and measure the progress over time. For example, losing 1 pound per week would be a goal that is measurable over time. Also, the things that you can’t measure (happiness, etc.) will come along with achieving your goals. Action-Oriented “You'll always achieve more through movement than meditation” -Gary Halbert Virtually no goals can be attained unless there’s many action taken. If you plan to lose 10 pounds of body fat, you have to figure out the “action” that you need to take the attain this goal. What resistance training exercises are you going to do? What cardiovascular exercises are you going to do? How often should you do them? In this step it’s helpful to recruit the assistance of a fitness professional who can provide you with their expertise and advice to help you reach your goal. fair "Every noble work is bound to face problems and obstacles. It is consequential to check your goal and motivation thoroughly. One should be very truthful, honest, and reasonable. One's actions should be bully for others, and for oneself as well. Once a constructive goal is chosen, you should decide to pursue it complete the way to the end. Even if it is not realized, at least there will be no regret." -Dalai Lama Now that you might have started to think of some goals, you have to remember to keep them reasonable. Losing 30 pounds in one month is not reasonable! In fact, this could be potentially dangerous to your health and be detrimental in the long term. In this case, you would probably be losing water weight and muscle mass, and in the long-life run, you would gain complete that weight back, and have less muscle mass (its your muscles that burn fat…the much of it you have, the more fat you can burn. But the less you have, you’ll be burning less body fat). Keep your goals reasonable or you might find that you’ll be putting your health at risk, or at the very least, you’ll be disappointed. Timed "A goal is a dream with a deadline." -Napoleon Hill ready a deadline. Deadlines move us to action. There’s nothing worst than having a goal, working towards it, but never finishing it! It’s almost like a major school project that’s assigned to you. Imagine if this project didn’t have a deadline, and you’re asked to complete it whenever you want. Do you think you’ll full-blown it soon? Probably not! If there’s no deadline, there’s no pressure to finish a task. It’s the same with exercise and fitness. If you set a goal to lose 10 pounds of body fat, but you don’t set a deadline, you’ll probably be difficult to lose 10 pounds of body fat forever! Set a deadline for your fitness goal, and try to achieve it. Once the deadline passes and you’ve reached your goals, set a radical one and a new deadline, and strive to achieve that! Reasons Why "Some men have thousands of reasons why they cannot do what they want to; all they need is one reason why they can" -Willis Whitney This is probably the most important step in the goal setting process. Not only is your “reason why” the motivation for you to achieve any goals, but it’s probably the reason that caused you to buy a domestic gym or home exercise equipment in the first place! You must define your reasons for wanting to achieve a goal. If you lack clear reasons why for doing so, all the goal setting and planning might antimonopoly go to waste (if you don’t have a reason to do something, why would you do it?) Spend some time and give some serious thought to this step. The more compelling your reasons are for exercising, the greater your odds will be for meeting your goals. Every person has a different reason for exercising. Some people just want to lose a few inches unsatisfactory their waist because of an upcoming event (such as a wedding, a high school reunion, a day at the beach to impress members of the opposite sex), but for others, exercising could mean the difference between life and death. Whatever your “reasons why” may be, make predictable that they’re compelling, and accurately represent your reasons for your desire to achieve your goals. Some Tips To Keep On Top of Your Fitness Goals Grab a pen, a few pieces of paper, and prepare to do some writing. Use this formula to form your goals: “I, _________ (name) WILL __________________________ (specific, reasonable, and measurable goal) by doing _______________________ (action oriented) by ______________ (timed-date). I will achieve this goal because ___________________________ (insert your reason why) Signature: _________________ (your name) Today’s date: _____________” Write this behind and make photocopies if you want to. Now, post your goals everywhere (bathroom mirrors, in your home gym, in first of your toilet…anywhere that is highly visible), and read it everyday. The more often you come across seeing your goals in writing, the more possible it’s going to be in your daily thoughts, and the more likely you’re achieve your fitness goals. Remember, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. So, if you’ve been leaving your home gym equipment to collect dust or to hang your clothes on, start with the single step of writing down your goals by following the methods above. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

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