The Weight Loss Secret That Guarantees Success!

The Weight Loss Secret That Guarantees Success!

Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Smith

 

People are constantly searching for that one strategy or principle that is guaranteed to help them lose weight quickly and easily and of course, with little effort.

 

Well, there is one weight-loss strategy that most people never seriously consider when it comes to guaranteeing quick and effective weight loss results. It is so simple in fact that so many people overlook it in their quest for the ‘holy grail’ of weight loss.

 

By using this ‘secret’ you are virtually guaranteeing your success. So what is this secret you ask? Here it is…

 

Prepare your own meals!

 

What? That’s it! It can’t be that simple I hear you protest!

 

Before you dismiss this idea as a useless principle and too simple to be effective, think about it for a moment.

 

Think about how many meals you have each week that you don’t prepare yourself. These may include eating out at restaurants, dining at a friend’s house, going through a drive-through at a fast-food outlet, picking up Chinese or a pizza on the way home or simply throwing one of the frozen dinners in the microwave.

 

If we assume that we consistently have 5 (or 6) small meals a day, as we should, then over the period of week we will consume at least 35 meals. Plus, if you are certain that you’re only having 2 or maybe 3 meals that you don’t prepare yourself then you’ll be fine.

 

These 2 or 3 meals will generally be your 1 or 2 ‘Treat Meals’ each week as well as 1 meal that you may have at a friend’s or family member’s house. The other 32 or 33 meals should be prepared by you.

 

As hard as it sounds, you’ll be surprised at how easy it can be. Firstly, breakfast every morning is pretty easy to prepare. It may be 30 grams of cereal with some LSA and psyllium husks or 2 eggs on a piece of toast. Simply have it before you leave home for work or school. Both options will only take you a few minutes to prepare and consume.

 

Then your mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks should also be relatively easy. You may have the occasional protein shake, a piece of fruit with some almonds, 100 grams of yoghurt with 200 grams of low-fat cottage cheese, or perhaps a tin of flavoured tuna on 2 corn thins. Organise a carry bag or ‘fridge’ bag to carry your meals to work or school with you.

 

Well, there’s 21 meals sorted out already!

 

Your lunch meals during the week should be prepared the night before. Then you can simply keep it in the fridge with your mid-morning and mid-afternoon meals and easily take it with you the next day.

 

Most people find it easy to simply prepare extra food at dinner so they can have that for lunch the next day. This way you save a lot of preparation time. Some people even go as far to prepare the weekly evening meals on the weekend and then put them in the freezer so they can use them whenever they need them. This is especially useful for busy people who work long hours and who are generally tired when they arrive home in the evenings.

 

In the morning when they go to get their mid-morning, lunch and mid-afternoon meals from the fridge in the morning before they head off to work, they simply transfer a meal from the freezer into the fridge so when they arrive home after work it has defrosted and only needs to be heated up for dinner.

 

There are so many benefits to preparing your own meals and disciplining yourself to create the habit of meal preparation. It is one of the main reasons why most people don’t achieve the goals they want. If only they disciplined themselves to perform this one action they would be amazed at the results they would achieve.

 

Most personal trainers say that if their clients are disciplined enough to prepare their meals then it is far more likely that they will achieve the results they want.

They believe that this one habit alone is even more important than any nutritional plan or exercise program that the client may follow! By simply preparing their meals themselves success is almost guaranteed.

 

Here are just some of the reasons why preparing meals ensures successful body composition change:

 

- Mindset. The habit of preparing good, wholesome, healthy meals helps people stay focused on their physical goals.

 

- Effort. The more effort people put into their own meal preparation, then the more they tend to respect this important necessity of life. If they rely on other people or companies to do it for them then the less they tend to care about what goes into their bodies.

 

- Control. Preparing meals gives people control on what goes into a meal. If people eat out on a regular basis it is very hard to control exactly what goes into a meal.

 

- Knowledge. People who don’t cook much don’t know what food is going into their body when they eat out or get take away. Shopping for food, measuring it, preparing it and then putting the food into a meal gives people a wealth of knowledge about what they should eat every day.

 

- Variation. Preparing your own meals ensures you can have a huge variety of healthy meals to ensure you never get bored. As long as you know basic cooking methods as well as how to use herbs and spices, the variety of meals you can prepare is endless.

 

- Avoid temptations. Having your meals with you at work or school makes it easier to avoid temptations. When you’re feeling really hungry and you walk into a shop to buy your lunch or a snack, not only do they rarely have healthy options available but the temptation to get something sweet or high in fat is huge.

 

If you sincerely want to achieve further body composition changes and you are not preparing at least 32 meals a week for yourself, then you need to consider modifying your nutritional habits.

 

Once you start making meal preparation a regular habit of yours, you will then fully understand why it really is ‘The Weight-Loss Secret’.

 

 

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Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. His website is:

http://www.quick-weight-loss-principles.com

 

 

How You Can Get 6-Pack Abs!

How You Can Get 6-Pack Abs!

Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Smith

 

If you mention the words, six-pack and summer together, most people immediately think of beer. Images flood their mind of relaxing, warm, summer days spending time with friends and having a couple of coldies! In this article, we’re more concerned with the other type of ‘six-pack’ the abdominal type and how you can get them fast!

 

There is no other body part that is more universally revered than a set of rippling abdominal muscles. They are the hallmark of athleticism and indicate a great level of physical condition. A ‘wash-board’ midsection gets noticed.

Men look on with awe and envy, whilst women stare with wonder and admiration. Add to this the fact that when you’ve got a great set of abs -  you feel great. It makes sense that achieving a chiselled stomach is high on the list of priorities for most men. Unfortunately though, it is a very elusive goal. It seems that no matter how hard they try and no matter what exercises they perform, some guys never seem to attain the highly desirable, ‘granite-like’ midsection displayed by many of the men that grace the pages of Men’s Health magazine!

 

Surprisingly, it is actually very easy to get a great set of abs and in this article we will show exactly what you need to do

 

Attaining a great set of abs requires a multi-directional approach; you must combine a variety of factors in order to get the desired result. To get a great set of abs, you need to apply principles to build the abdominal muscles as well as principles to strip the fat that overlies them. Let’s face it, even if you have the most well-developed abdominal muscles in the world, if they are covered by an ugly layer of fat, you won’t be able to see them and neither will anyone else!

 

Before we cover the exercises for training the abdominal muscles, let’s firstly go through the ten ‘Six-Pack Abs’

principles:

 

1. Train all the abdominal muscles

 

2. Apply the abdominal training principles

 

3. Do not perform more than 20 reps per set

 

4. Train to failure on every set

 

5. Progressively overload the muscles

 

6. Don’t train abs more than twice a week

 

7. Perform 2-3 giant sets of 5 exercises each workout

 

8. Train all muscle groups (weight training)

 

9. Regularly perform cardiorespiratory (aerobic) exercise

 

10.  Follow a sound nutritional plan

 

1. Train all the abdominal muscles

 

The abs are made of four muscles: rectus abdominis (the muscle at the front of your abdomen), the internal obliques, the external obliques (the muscles at the sides of your body) and transversus abdominis (the inner-most layer of abdominal muscle).

 

In order to have great-looking, strong and functional abdominal muscles it is imperative that exercises are performed that work all four muscles.

 

2.  Apply the abdominal training principles

 

The abdominal training principles should be used when any exercise is performed for the abs. They are as follows:

 

- Perform the movements slowly

 

- Work through a full range of motion (from full extension to full contraction)

 

- Emphasise the stretch of the muscle being worked

 

- Breathe out during the flexing (concentric) phase

 

- Focus on squeezing the muscle being worked

 

3. Do not perform more than 20 reps per set

 

Performing more than 20 reps per set trains your muscles for endurance rather than strength or muscularity. If you can perform more than 20 reps for an abdominal exercise, change the exercise or find a way to make it harder. Aim to work within the rep range of 8-15.

 

4.  Train to failure on every set

 

The abs are just like any other muscle group in the body, they respond to the same stress. If you want to get maximum benefit from your ab workouts, take each set to a point of momentary muscular failure; continue the exercise until you can’t perform another rep; no matter how hard you try.

 

5. Progressively overload the muscles

 

Since the abs respond and adapt to training just like any other muscle group, you must find ways to make the ab workouts progressively harder. This can be done by selecting more advanced exercises, reducing the rest between sets, performing a few more reps for each set than the previous workout or increasing the number of exercises being performed in the workout.

 

6.  Don’t train abs more than twice a week

 

It is common for people to train abs every day under the mistaken belief that it will help them burn the fat off their stomach. ‘Spot-reduction’ is a physiological impossibility. Abdominal training will only build the abdominal muscles. Cardiorespiratory (aerobic) exercise, a good nutritional plan and an elevated metabolic rate (from having more muscle on your whole body) are the only factors that can help you lose body fat.

 

7.  Perform 2-3 giant sets of 5 exercises each workout

 

There are many ways to train your abdominal muscles in order to get the results you desire. This is just one training regime that is very effective. It is a very intense way to train your abs and is also a very efficient way to train them. You will get fast results from a relatively short training time.

 

8.  Train all muscle groups (weight training)

 

By performing weight training exercises for all your muscle groups you will increase your muscle mass. Since muscle is one of the most metabolically active tissues in the body (it burns up a lot of energy), your metabolism will get an enormous boost An elevated metabolism means you will burn off fat faster and your abs will show through sooner.

Perform at least 3 weight training session a week.

 

9.  Regularly perform cardiorespiratory (aerobic) exercise

 

Cardio is enormously beneficial in helping you shed body fat fast. Not only can it help you burn fat whilst you are exercising, but it can also keep your metabolism elevated for some time after the session is completed, further enhancing fat loss. Cardio also increases the levels of oxidative (fat-burning) enzymes in muscle cells, making your muscles more efficient fat-burners. Perform at least 3 cardio sessions a week.

 

10. Follow a sound nutritional plan

 

The old saying, ‘You are what you eat’ holds true. If you eat badly, your body will look and function badly; but if you eat well, your body will look and function well. By being disciplined with your eating habits you will be amazed at how easy it is to stay in great condition, have abs all year-round and feel fantastic!

 

 

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Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. Lots of free articles and interesting weight loss information can be found on his website:

http://www.quick-weight-loss-principles.com

 

 

Get Rid of Cellulite Forever!

Get Rid of Cellulite Forever!

Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Smith

 

Getting rid of cellulite forever is actually easier than you think. The fact is that cellulite is nothing more than normal fat that overlies connective tissue that has a different structure than other parts of the body that don’t have cellulite.

 

Then, when these fat stores fill with fat, the connective tissue pulls on the fat tissue creating the dimpling effect. It is sort of like overstuffing a sofa. As a result, the best way to get rid of cellulite is to simply lose fat! Cellulite creams, pills and massagers are all a complete waste of money so don’t get sucked in by these scams!

 

If a genie suddenly appeared before you and granted you a wish and that wish allowed you to change something about your body, what would it be? Some women may wish for a few less kilos and others a nice, toned body, but getting rid of cellulite forever is probably the most popular wish!

 

Well, in this article we’re going to show you exactly how to do this. Unfortunately though, it’s not going to happen instantly from a genie’s wish or even in a few days, but rest assured if you follow the plan exactly as outlined you will be amazed at how quickly you can get rid of cellulite.

 

In fact, in a matter of weeks you will achieve a dramatic transformation in getting rid of cellulite. Your hips, thighs and butt will be more shapely and toned then ever before. Plus, your natural feminine curves will be further enhanced. All it requires is that you firstly make a decision that you want to get rid of the cellulite on your body. Then make a commitment to do whatever is required, and finally follow through by taking the necessary actions every day.

 

Let’s face it, even if you know exactly what to do to get rid of cellulite, without making a decision and following through with action, the knowledge is useless. Even though we will cover the actions you need to take to achieve the look you desire, it is up to you to make the decision and then perform the required actions.

 

Getting rid of cellulite forever requires a number of different strategies. The first strategy we need to examine is the area of nutrition. Unfortunately, most people have no idea what type of nutritional habits are needed in order to lose body fat or cellulite.

 

‘Can you just eat healthy?’ is a common question. Not exactly. The old saying, ‘You are what you eat’ holds true when it comes to getting rid of cellulite.

 

In order to do that you need keep your metabolism elevated or even better, speed it up. The best way to do this is to supply your body with small amounts of high quality protein throughout the day (ideally every 2-3 hours).

 

The protein provides the building blocks your body needs to maintain (or slightly increase) your muscle mass. If you don’t provide your body with frequent doses of protein then it is likely to go into a catabolic state (negative nitrogen balance), whereby your body breaks down more body tissue (protein) than it builds up. Not only does this impact on your ability to lose fat (and cellulite) but it also slows your metabolism, making fat loss more difficult.

 

Probably the easiest way to ensure you get protein in each of your 5 meals each day is to add some nuts or LSA (linseeds, sunflower seeds, almonds) mix to your cereal or have an egg on toast for breakfast.

 

For lunch and dinner have about 100 grams (about the size of a deck of cards) of fish, chicken or lean steak with vegetables or salad. For your mid-morning and mid-afternoon meals have a protein shake perhaps with a piece of fruit.

 

By making this one small change to your diet, a slightly higher protein intake and slightly lower carbohydrate and fat intake, your body composition will automatically change.

 

The next area you need to consider for getting rid of cellulite is exercise. One of the most overlooked ways to tone up and/ or lose fat is resistance (weight) training.

Many people mistakenly believe that weight training will bulk them up. Whilst it is possible to ‘bulk up’ if you eat too much food, if you control your food intake it will not occur. Plus, it is actually quite difficult for women to increase their muscle mass, for a variety of reasons.

 

By performing weight training you will maintain or slightly increase your muscle mass, which will not only assist your toning efforts but it will also boost your metabolism dramatically (muscle is the most metabolically-active tissue in the body), which will speed up the fat-burning process in your body. This will help get rid of cellulite.

 

The other major benefit weight training provides is that it has been proven to prevent osteoporosis by forcing your body to make your bones thicker and stronger.

 

For best results, select 5 of the following exercises and perform 2-3 sets of high reps (25-30 reps per set) per

workout: squat, lunge, step-up, hip extension, leg extension, leg curl, stiff-leg deadlift, leg press, standing calf raise and seated calf raise. Perform the workout twice a week with at least 2 days rest in between each workout. This workout should be done in addition to other exercises for other body parts as well. [NOTE: Always employ the services of a personal trainer to learn how to perform the exercises correctly.]

 

The other type of exercise that is beneficial for getting rid of cellulite is aerobic (cardiorespiratory) exercise.

The main benefit of aerobic exercise is that it increases calorie (energy) expenditure, which means you can burn fat faster. It may have some very mild muscle-stimulating effects as well but no where near as much as weight training.

 

To get the best fat-burning effects from aerobic exercise, perform at least 20-40 minutes every day. If you can’t perform it every day then at least 5 days a week. It is important to select the type of aerobic exercise you enjoy and that you can see yourself performing long term; it must suit you and your lifestyle. The following exercise types are great options: walking, jogging, boxing, swimming, rowing, cycling, aerobic classes, stepping machines and cross trainers.

 

To enhance the fat-burning benefits even further, take a thermogenic before the session. A thermogenic will give you an energy boost, which will help you work harder during the session. It will also force your body to release stored fat into the bloodstream, which then may be used by your working muscles as fuel.

 

Other supplements that may enhance the fat-burning effects further are creatine, glucose disposal agents (GDAs) and thyroid-support supplements.

 

If getting rid of cellulite forever, improving your health, losing weight and having a toned body are important to you, then seriously consider incorporating the above recommendations into your lifestyle. You’ll be glad you did!

 

 

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Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. Lots of free articles and interesting weight loss information can be found on his website:

http://www.quick-weight-loss-principles.com

 

 

Cardio Pulse Wave heart test: What is it measuring?

Cardio Pulse Wave heart test: What is it measuring?

Cardio Pulse Wave (CPW) uses the BPro device and A-PULSE CASP software. This is the state-of-the-art equipment, technology and software. Now learn what the measurements mean. This is somewhat technical so bear with me.

 

A-PULSE CASP is a revolutionary product patented by HealthSTATS International Pte Ltd. It is able to measure accurately the Central Aortic Systolic Pressure (CASP), which is the blood pressure at the root of the aorta. It is the only device which can be used in common clinical setting. CASP has been shown in many recent studies as an important determinant for strokes and CVS events. It has been validated via invasive study and achieved an accuracy

(co-relation) R= 0.9917 independently. A-PULSE CASP is FDA and CE MDD registration approved. It is also being used in large drug trials by Pharmaceutical companies.

 

What is arterial pulse waveform?

 

When the left ventricle ejects blood into the aorta in systole, the perturbation generates a wave that initially travels through the arteries from the heart towards the arterial tree.

 

Pulse waveform has 2 components. 1) Forward travelling wave when the left ventricle contracts and 2) Reflected wave returning back from the peripheral.

 

What is CASP (Central Aortic Systolic Pressure)?

 

This is the blood pressure at the root of the aorta or the largest artery in the body, as the blood is being pumped out of the heart. This pressure is called Central Aortic Systolic Pressure or CASP. CASP has been shown to be an important factor in the relation to strokes and cardiovascular events, more so than the brachial pressure, or the pressure at the arm commonly.

 

How to measure CASP?

 

Invasive method

 

This is direct measurement and has been considered as the most accurate method. To perform the measurement, a catheter must be inserted into the aortic root from brachial or femoral artery, which is obviously an invasive method and could result in complications. This invasive method of measuring CASP is not available in clinical setting. However, A-PULSE CASP can be used in clinic and the accuracy has been validated against this invasive method, the result is R= 0.9917 (co-relation). (What this means, for those of you who are like me and don’t quite get the point, is the CPW is 99.17% as accurate as the cathater

method!)

 

Non-invasive method

 

HealthSTATS (HS) invented a device named BPro which is able to capture radial pressure waveforms. Furthermore, HS developed a proprietary formula to derive central aortic systolic pressure (CASP) from the calibrated radial pressure waveform.

 

What is augmentation index?

 

The difference between the second and first systolic peaks expressed as a percentage of the pulse pressure.

 

What is the arterial compliance?

 

The ability of an artery to increase the volume in response to a given increase in blood pressure is called compliance.

 

What is pulse wave velocity?

 

PWV is the speed at which the pressure waveform travels (wave propagation) along the aorta and large arteries, during each cardiac cycle.

 

What is applanation tonometry?

 

The principle of applanation tonometry is that the force acting on the plunger is proportional to the pressure in the artery when where the artery surface is flattened.

 

 

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Eric Glenn is the successful owner of several global health businesses and regularly advises clients and customers on health, nutrition and creating their own global business.

Eric strongly recommends the use of supplements with Synergy Worldwide to improve your health. To learn more about supplements that can help to improve your health visit http://www.ericglenn.com or his health supplements website http://www.synergyteamglobal.com

 

 

Speed Up Metabolism

Speed Up Metabolism

Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Smith

 

It seems that almost everyone you speak to these days is on a diet or would like to lose body fat. One word that often pops up in conversation is metabolism. It is usually in the context of, ‘I’ve put on so much weight so I must have a slow metabolism’.

 

Metabolism is the sum total of all the chemical reactions that take place within all the cells of the body. These chemical reactions use up energy and of course, the more energy you use up the more fat you will burn. Metabolism is a very individual thing. I’m sure you know some people who can literally eat whatever they want and still lose weight, whilst others only need to look at food and they put weight on.

 

Why is this? Well, there are 3 major factors that influence our metabolism and we will examine each one to find out how you can affect it using lifestyle factors so your metabolism fires up to the point that your body turns into a 24-hour-a-day fat-burning machine!

 

Muscle mass

 

The first factor is your muscle mass. Since muscle is the most metabolically active tissue in the body (along with nerve tissue), which means it burns up the most energy, the more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism gets and the faster you can burn off body fat.

 

Now I know you’re probably thinking, ‘But I don’t want to put on muscle!’ Before you disregard this idea, consider

this: If you want to lose weight and you don’t force your body to at least maintain your existing muscle mass (through weight training), up to half of the weight you lose can come from muscle tissue. If this occurs, your metabolism will slow down dramatically making it harder to continue to lose weight and easier to put the lost weight back on. This is often the case when people go off a diet, they put the lost weight back on and it usually comes back with re-inforcements! It is called yo-yo dieting, referring to the up and down movements of the dieter’s bodyweight..

 

All you need to do to prevent the muscle loss that results from dieting and/ or performing aerobic exercise is to simply perform a minimum of two 30-minute weight training sessions a week. A qualified personal trainer can show you exactly what to do to ensure you weight train safely and effectively.

 

Furthermore, if you put on just a few kilos of body-shaping muscle it will have a huge impact on your metabolism. For every kilogram of muscle you put on, your metabolism increases by around 100 calories per day and over a few weeks this can help burn up a substantial amount of body fat. So even though your bodyweight may not change substantially, your body composition has because you have increased your muscle mass and lost body fat.

 

Also, as we age we tend to lose muscle. This results because our body’s functioning capacity reduces but also because our metabolism slows down due to a loss of muscle mass, which results from inactivity. Just as the saying

goes: ‘use it or lose it’. In fact, research shows us that from the age of 30 to 65 most people have halved their muscle mass and doubled their fat mass and this is often called the ‘middle-age spread’. The ‘middle-age spread’ can easily be prevented or reduced by simply maintaining your muscle mass and therefore your metabolism through weight training.

 

Thyroid function

 

The gland that directly affects the metabolism of all body cells is the thyroid gland, which is situated around the trachea in the throat. The thyroid gland produces the throid hormones, thyroxine (T4) and tri-iodothyronine (T3) and these hormones directly increase the metabolism of all body cells. T3 is actually five times more powerful than T4.

 

The thyroid gland’s functioning is affected by many factors. Primarily, meal frequency and nutrient intake.

 

Nutrition experts recommend we have 5-6 small meals each day spread out every 2-3 hours. By doing so, we tell our body that we have a continual supply of nutrients. If we go without a meal for around 4 hours or more the body’s starvation mechanism kicks in and the first thing that occurs is the body reduces it’s output of thyroid hormones.

 

The starvation mechanism is an evolutionary response to a low blood glucose (sugar) level. It helped our ancestors survive famines thousands of years ago. Unfortunately the same thing occurs in our body as well. Whenever our blood glucose drops too low, our output of thyroid hormones decreases, which slows down the metabolism of all body cells, therefore preserving energy and helping us survive the ‘famine’.

 

Also, certain nutrients influence the functioning of the thyroid gland. Kelp (a type of seaweed that is a good source of iodine) and the mineral selenium have been shown to have a direct impact on the functioning of the thyroid gland. When these nutrients are supplemented in the diet they increase the output of thyroid hormones, even in people with normal functioning thyroid glands. Of course, an increase in the output of these hormones boosts the metabolism of all body cells.

 

Sympathetic tone

 

Sympathetic tone is the term used to describe the amount of norepinephrine (NE) released from the ends of neurons.

Norepinephrine is a neurotransmitter (nerve transmitter) and the more NE is released, the higher the sympathetic tone or metabolic activity of many organs within the body.

This means the body’s metabolism speeds up.

 

The people who can eat everything and not put on weight generally have a naturally high sypathetic tone and those people who put on weight just by looking at food tend to have a low sympathetic tone.

 

The easiest way to increase your sympathetic tone is by using ‘thermogenics’. Thermogenesis, as the name suggests, means the production of heat within the body ['thermo':

heat, 'genesis': the beginning]. Heat is a by-product of energy production, therefore if you burn up more fuel, you

generate more heat.   Some examples of thermogenics include

certain foods like, coffee or cocoa (caffeine and

theobromine- in cocoa) and chilli (capsaicin) and certain herbs (forskolin, evodiamine and ephedra). Green tea also has a very mild thermogenic effect but is mainly used as a ‘thermogenic extender’, which means it helps the thermogenics last longer in the body.

 

Thermogenics have a powerful effect on your metabolism so it is worthwhile ‘cycling’ their use, which means use them for a period of time, say eight weeks and then stop them for 2-4 weeks. You may also want to use them for two days on and one day off during the 8-week cycle.

 

So there you have it! Now you’ve go no more excuses for having a slow metabolism and you have some powerful strategies for boosting your metabolism and easily shedding those unwanted kilos in the lead-up to summer. Plus, there is a simple test to determine your metabolic rate and see if it is necessary to employ any of these strategies.

 

A summary of the strategies is as follows:

 

o Weight train twice a week.

 

o Have 5-6 small meals each day

 

o Supplement your diet with kelp and selenium*

 

o Use thermogenics occasionally*

 

So go to it and start turning your body into that fat-burning machine so by the time summer comes around you’ll be ready to put on your bathing suit with confidence!

 

* Before using any nutritional supplement, speak with your health care professional.

 

 

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Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. Lots of free articles and interesting weight loss information can be found on his website:

http://www.quick-weight-loss-principles.com

 

 

The Truth About Carbohydrates and Weight Loss

The Truth About Carbohydrates and Weight Loss Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Smith

 

When someone decides to lose body fat whether it is for summer, an event or simply to improve their health, one of the first changes they consider making is to their eating habits. Once the decision is made, the next step taken is to research their possible diet options. This may involve speaking with people, reading magazine articles or visiting their local book store to try and find the ‘holy grail’ of

diets- the diet that is guaranteed to shed the fat off their body quickly and with little effort.

 

Of course a diet-only approach to fat loss is futile in itself but to make matters worse, dieters often become hopelessly confused about what to eat for the best results.

Should they reduce their fat intake? Cut out all their carbohydrates? Only eat soup for a few days? Eat based on their blood type? Follow a de-tox diet? Liver cleansing?

The options are endless.

 

The area that probably has dieters baffled the most is the issue of carbohydrates. Currently there are two dominant schools of thought when it comes to carbohydrate consumption.

 

On the one hand, we have dietitians and nutritionists telling us for the last 20 years that carbohydrates don’t make us fat. This view is clearly stated in their promotion of the USDA’s Food Pyramid and in more recent times, The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating. Both of these food guides recommend the majority of food intake come from refined carbohydrate sources, like bread, pasta, rice, cereals and other grain-based food products. In fact, the USDA Food Pyramid recommends we eat 6-11 serves a day of these carbohydrate sources in order to have a healthy diet!

The advocates of this style of eating are often heard to say things like, ‘Carbohydrates don’t make you fat, it is what you put on them that makes you fat.’ Examples include, sour cream on potatoes or butter on bread.

 

On the other hand, there are the advocates of low-carb diets. Popularised by Dr Robert Atkins in the 70′s (even though their use has been documented for at least 150 years), low-carb eating appears to be experiencing a re-surgence. This is due mainly to the fact that many Hollywood celebrities have confessed to using them to achieve their movie-star bodies. As a result, the market is being flooded with low-carb diet books and an amazing array of low-carb products, including meal replacement bars, cookies, muffin mixes, cereal products, pizza bases and many others. Often these diets allow an almost unlimited amount of food so long as carbohydrates are restricted.

 

These diametrically opposed views often leave people hopelessly confused about what to eat to achieve maximum fat loss. In this article I hope to clear up the confusion so you can enjoy your food whilst at the same time lose all the body fat you want.

 

Insulin and glucagon

 

In considering carbohydrate and its affect on our body fat stores, we must firstly understand the function of two hormones, insulin and glucagon. Both of these hormones are produced by the pancreas (an organ that sits behind the

stomach) and work in concert to regulate our blood glucose level. For example, when our blood glucose level rises (after a meal), insulin is the hormone responsible for storing the glucose and normalising the blood glucose level. When the blood glucose level falls, glucagon promotes the release of glucose from the liver, bringing the level back up again.

 

For fat loss to occur, insulin release must be minimised as much as possible because of the effects it has in the body, which include:

 

- Promotes the storage of nutrients in cells (positive

effect- anabolic).

 

- Promotes the storage of fat in the adipocytes (fat cells).

 

- Promotes the uptakes of glucose into the adipocytes and their conversion into fat.

 

- Increases the activity of fat manufacturing and fat storing and enzymes (lipoprotein lipase – LPL and fatty acid synthase – FAS).

 

- Inhibits the release of fat from the adipocytes (it stops fat burning).

 

Insulin is released as a result of mainly two factors and the amount of insulin released is in direct proportion to these two factors.

 

- The size of a meal.

 

- The amount of glucose in the bloodstream.

 

Accordingly, eating smaller, more frequent meals may help to reduce the insulin response (i.e. eat 5 or 6 small meals a day).

 

Also, regulating the amount of glucose entering the bloodstream will help. This may be achieved by:

 

- Reducing the portion of carbohydrate in each meal.

 

- Emphasising low Glycaemic Index (GI) carbohydrates.

 

- Emphasising low-density carbohydrates.

 

- Ensuring each meal contains a portion of protein, fat and fibre as well as carbohydrate.

 

Reducing the portion of carbohydrate in each meal

 

Since insulin is released in response to an increase in blood glucose and fat loss will be maximised if insulin is low, people may be forgiven for thinking that a low-carb diet is the answer. Whilst it is true that these diets do promote fat loss, I do not recommend them for the following

reasons:

 

- They are too hard to sustain long-term.

 

- They may lead to deficiency diseases due to their avoidance of fruits and vegetables.

 

- They may negatively affect bodily functions due to a reduced fibre intake and possible high intakes of saturated fat and cholesterol.

 

Despite the possible negative consequences of low-carb diets, the overall philosophy of reduced insulin response is sound. Therefore, people wanting to lose bodyfat should reduce (without eliminating) their portion sizes of carbohydrate in every meal.

 

Emphasising low Glycaemic Index (GI) carbohydrates

 

The GI is a score given to carbohydrate-containing foods based on how rapidly they cause a rise in blood glucose after being consumed. A high GI means the food causes a rapid rise in blood glucose and a low GI means the food causes a more sustained release of glucose into the bloodstream.

 

Since a rise in blood glucose promotes insulin release we should emphasise low GI carbohydrates in our diet.

 

Emphasising low-density carbohydrates

 

Carbohydrate density describes the amount of carbohydrate a food contains per serve. For example, pasta (high-density) contains 76.5 grams of carbohydrate per 100 grams whilst broccoli contains a minuscule 0.5 grams per 100 grams.

Obviously the greater the carbohydrate density the greater the likelihood of the food causing a rapid rise in blood glucose, and in turn, insulin as well.

 

Ensuring each meal contains a portion of protein, fat and fibre

 

Not only does having protein, fat and fibre with the carbohydrates ensure a more ‘nutritionally complete’ meal but these nutrients also have the effect of slowing down the absorption rate of the carbohydrates, which allows a more sustained release of glucose into the bloodstream and therefore a reduced insulin response.

 

Quite often people will have a piece of fruit, a diet yoghurt or a low-fat muffin for their mid-morning or mid-afternoon meal in their quest to lose body fat.

Unfortunately, these foods alone don’t provide an adequate amount of all the nutrients required by the body and may also cause a rapid rise in blood glucose, halting fat loss in its tracks!

 

As a result, these foods should only be consumed with other foods to ensure a complete meal. For example, have a piece of fruit with some nuts, mix a small amount of cottage cheese with the yoghurt (it doesn’t taste that bad-

honest!) or have a low-fat muffin with a protein shake.

 

From this information it is safe to conclude that following a diet based on the Food Pyramid or the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating perhaps isn’t the best way to assist your fat-loss efforts. Furthermore, a big question to ask yourself is this:

 

‘Since the Food Pyramid was designed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), do their interest lie in looking after your health or in supporting the economy?’

 

[NOTE: The base of the Food Pyramid recommends 6-11 serves a day of high density, mostly high GI, refined, grain-based carbohydrates.]

 

In summary, your fat-loss efforts will be greatly improved by consuming carbohydrates in the following way:

 

- Eat smaller, more frequent meals.

 

- Reduce your portion size of carbohydrate without eliminating it.

 

- Ensure all meals contain portions of carbohydrate, protein, fat and fibre.

 

- Slow the passage of glucose into the bloodstream by emphasising low-density and low GI carbohydrates.

 

If you make an effort to ensure these recommendations are followed every day, you can literally watch the fat melt off your body! Go for it!

 

 

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Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. Lots of free articles and interesting weight loss information can be found on his website:

http://www.quick-weight-loss-principles.com

 

 

How To Select Foods For Maximum Weight Loss

The type of food you select in order to assist your weight-loss efforts can have a massive impact on the results you achieve. If you are serious about losing as much weight as possible, make sure you use the following suggestions when it comes to selecting the right foods for you.

 

The foods you select must be:

 

Easy to obtain.

 

If you intend to follow a sound nutritional plan for the rest of your life, no food should be totally restricted and the types of foods eaten should be easy to obtain.

 

Whether you get them from supermarkets or fruit and vegetable stores for home preparation, or whether you eat out at restaurants, it should be easy to obtain meals that contain normal, everyday food and that assist your weight loss efforts.

 

Having suitable meals simply means you provide your body with a portion of carbohydrate, protein and a small amount of fat every few hours throughout the day.

 

A simple way to determine your portion sizes of carbohydrate and protein from whole-food sources is to use the size and thickness of your palm.

 

Even if you are eating at a restaurant it is very easy to get a suitable meal by simply being selective about the foods you choose and also by telling the waiter exactly how you want your meal prepared.

 

Remember, you are eating at their establishment and it is your right to have the food prepared the way you want it.

It is also your body and you certainly don’t want to be putting unwanted food or excess calories into it if you don’t have to.

 

If you are going to a friend’s house for a meal, you may want to prepare a healthy dish to make a contribution to the meal. Alternatively, you may want to eat before you go there so if they don’t have suitable food on offer, you can still eat their food but simply have a small amount.

 

Easy to prepare.

 

The preparation of meals should be quick and easy and each meal should contain everyday foods that you enjoy eating and that are nutritious for your body. Easy preparation of meals is essential because with our hectic lifestyles these days eating seems to have become a time-consuming chore.

 

Just consider the popularity of fast food outlets. They may not provide our body with ideal nutrition but they fulfil our need for quick, easy, convenient and good-tasting meals.

 

Since what we choose to eat influences the way we feel, our energy level and ultimately, how our body looks, it is imperative we make wise food choices and that these choices are convenient and easy.

 

Foods that you currently eat and enjoy.

 

Ensuring that the nutritional plan you follow contains normal, everyday foods that you currently eat and enjoy means there is a greater likelihood of long-term sustainability. If you are required to follow a nutritional plan that includes foods you don’t like or foods that you don’t normally eat, then it is highly likely that you will eventually give up the plan.

 

The same foods your family consumes.

 

The meals you choose in order to accelerate weight loss must contain the same foods that your family normally eats.

For most people, preparing two different meals at night, one for the family and one for themselves is simply out of the question. It is essential that the evening meal helps you achieve maximum weight loss without eating differently from the rest of your family.

 

Foods that provides good nutrition to your body.

 

Not only should the foods you eat achieve maximum weight loss but they should also be highly nutritious. They must provide your body with all the nutrients it needs to function optimally.

 

Varied to minimize any deficiencies.

 

Variation in the diet is also important. Not just to prevent boredom but also to ensure your body doesn’t become nutrient deficient. Since the body has a requirement for at least 40 different nutrients every day, it is imperative that you consume a wide variety of different everyday foods to ensure you get adequate amounts of these nutrients.

 

It is also important that you eat a wide variety of foods to ensure you don’t miss out on any ‘yet-to-be-identified’

nutrients. One of the best ways to achieve this is by consuming a variety of everyday foods.

 

By using these strategies you can rest assured you will lose all the weight you want.

 

 

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Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. Lots of free articles and interesting weight loss information can be found on his website:

http://www.quick-weight-loss-principles.com

 

 

Tips for Losing Belly Fat

Tips for Losing Belly Fat by Alex De Mostafa

Who doesn’t want to flaunt a lean and athletic body in beachwear or a swimsuit? Walking around with a well-sculpted muscular body and having the members of the opposite sex ogle over it, is a secret desire most of us have.

Acquiring a fit and ship shape body often seems quite an uphill task. For ordinary men and women, who have regular full time jobs, it is often quite difficult to spend hours in the gymnasium to acquire body like professional athletes.

However, if you are interested in building muscles and burning fat without spending too much time and money at high-end gyms then you need not be discouraged. There are lots of websites on the internet which can provide you with useful exercise tips and diet guides to for losing extra weight, building muscles and regaining your youthful fitness in minimum time.

There is quite a lot of hard work and diligence involved in the process of getting a well toned body. Abdominal fat, or belly fat as it is more popularly know, is not so easy to lose through merely a strict diet plan.

This is because fat tissues in the abdominal area often become resistant to efforts of losing fat. Crash dieting and the resultant sudden loss of weight and then regaining the same weight makes augments the problem of stubborn belly fat.

Cardiovascular exercises like jogging, cycling, stair climbing coupled with a low- fat diet would help you lose over all fat from your body. But, if you are planning to burn fat from your abdominal area and procure a wash board flat stomach in the process, then you need to put in extra effort.

However, the positive aspect of this course of action is that you need not go to exclusive gyms or health spas to get a toned abdomen. You can pick up more information about muscle building and losing belly fat from the various heath and fitness websites available in the internet.

For muscle building and spot reductions of fat from your abdominal area, you need a more specialized exercise plan and a weight training routine apart from generic cardio exercises. This rigorous training program should be supplemented by a low fat and high protein diet, which would help you in muscle building and fat reduction.

Also, make sure to drink lot of fluids during your training schedule. Water assists in the process of losing belly fat and so gulping down glasses of water along with your high protein fare would definitely speed up your weight loss.

Eatin Meat While Losing Weight

Eatin Meat whlie Lose Weight

Yes You Can Be A Meat Eater

 

Many people do not understand. Yes You can eat meat and lose weight. As a matter of fact we should eat some lean meat for health purposes. A healthy diet should include some lean meat for iron, protein and other nutritious reasons. The problem is in our society most meat is not lean and most people overeat. Too much of a good thing is not good at all. So the question is how much is too much?

Better yet, how much lean meat can I eat and still lose weight?

 

Today we consider a healthy diet should be include at least 1500 calories for women and 1800 calories for men. At these levels most people would lose weight because the average woman consumes more that 2000 calories per day, while the average man is over 2500. To lose weight we simply need to burn more calories than we consume. The nutritional information on food packages assume the average diet is 2000 calories per day. If we are burning and or eliminating 2000 calories per day then we we should lose weight reduce our eating to 1500 to 1800 daily. That seems logical but is not always true.

 

What You Eat Counts

 

The question still remains, how much lean meat can I eat and still lose weight? When we decide to lose weight we do not just count calories. We need to evaluate content. The content of a healthy diet would include a balance of a variety of necessary food groups including protein, carbohydrates and fat. We need all three groups. Sure there are good and bad of each group but, lean meat constitutes necessary protein without excess unnecessary fat. A balanced diet would be 60% to 70% fresh fruit and vegetables; 20% to 30% whole grains, nuts and beans. That leaves no more than 10% of our daily calories as lean meat.

Now if we are trying to lose weight that means on a daily basis we should not have more than 180 to 200 calories of lean meat. The average cheeseburger at a fast food restaurant is between 400 and 800 calories. That means no Big Mac’s, Whoppers or Quarter Pounders with Cheese.

 

But there are a few reasons to avoid the fast foods while attempting to lose weight. First the meat is not lean. The meat typically comes from specially bred animals that are fattened and plumped up just for the fast food chain. The truth is few people prefer the meat of a lean cow versus a nice juicy plump one if they are looking at a picture or some form of advertisement.  We have been brain washed to believe the fatter the better. The second reason to avoid fast food is because the bread and the secret sauces. They are so filled additives, sugar, corn syrup and corn starch as they add as many calories as the meat itself with no nutritional value. So not only is the meat not lean and the bread and sauces are so full of additives but the entire fast food, commercially processed,  meals are detrimental to full of sugars, sodium and starches that causes numerous health problems.

 

If you noticed you can eat 150 to 200 calories of lean meat a day and still be able to lose weight. It is highly unlikely to get that from any fast food restaurant. You could get that at home. A small fresh cut of lean beef could be about 200 calories. Poultry like chicken and turkey provide the same protein with far less calories.

There is another important factor to consider, metabolism and muscle mass.

 

Increase Your Metabolism to Lose Weight

 

The reason men can have more and actually require more calories daily is they have more muscles. The greater your muscle mass the greater your metabolism is. The greater your metabolism the more calories you burn. In other words if you exercise regularly you increase your metabolism and burn calories. If you do resistance training you turn fat into muscles, burning the fat and burning calories. Muscles continue to burn calories while you are not even exercising. But to maintain muscles you must continue to use them or they convert to fat. This is a long way of saying if you exercise daily burning more calories you can eat a little more meat and still lose weight. Keep in mind, you lose weight by burning more calories than you consume.

 

Eat Less, Eat Healthy, Burn Calories, Exercise Regularly, LOSE WEIGHT!

 

 

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Louis Jeffries, a healthy diet, fitness and weight loss professional who shares information to encourage us to live a healthy lifestyle. For more Free healthy diet, weight loss and fitness advice and tips go to http://healthyweightloss4babyboomers.com

 

 

How To Find The Best Weight Loss and Fitness Communities

How To Find The Best Weight Loss and Fitness Communities When you are going through the process of losing weight, it can be beneficial to join an online weight loss community.

Talking with like minded people can be a great motivator.

There are many communities out there from which to choose.

Some are better than others. You want to make sure you join a community that has the features you are looking for.

 

The following are reasons why I think you will want to become a part of a quality community.

 

1. These sites have a huge amount of useful information.

There are many articles ranging from general to specific weight loss plans as well as exercise and fitness routines.

I enjoy good articles that are informative and spend a lot of time on these sites just reading through the information that is posted.

 

2. Members are permitted to build their own blogs. You can also read and get motivation from others who have posted blogs. This interaction can be a very good accountability tool for you.

 

3. There are usually multiple forum topics available. You can develop a community relationship with other dieters and interact by sharing tips and experiences.

 

4. There is live chat, instant messaging, or a shout box.

These are fun tools that make it even more interactive and allow members to find accountability partners to help keep them on track with their diets or to get the latest information on workout routines. The sharing of best practices and one on one discussions make the community a great place for people to hang out and learn from others.

 

5. In addition to being able to build their own blogs, members can upload pictures, videos and articles that they find helpful to the community. The information posted is available for all members to access. There are a number of interactive components in the community that allow the members to share information in a one on one basis as well.

 

6. There are often entire sections devoted to the many diet plans that are available online. Each diet type has a separate area for members to share their experiences and results. If you are on the Adkins diet, for example, you can hang out with others who are also on the Adkins diet.

You can share what is working for you and gain motivation from like minded people trying to do the same thing you are.

 

7. The fitness area focuses on sharing routines and programs that are working for the members. There are also places for members to post pictures and videos to track their progress.

 

8. Members can create and participate in polls and there is also a section for posting classified ads.

 

9. These community sites are very user friendly. They are easy to access and maintain your content.

 

10. Most are free to join! Many sites out there charge a fee to be a member, but most allow free members access to basic features.

 

Becoming part of an online community can be a great asset for you. Interacting with, and making friends with other people who have similar goals can have a great impact. Many people are taking advantage of this every day. There are many good sites out there, so make sure you do your homework before joining.

 

 

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Tired of getting old and rehashed information about your diet or fitness program? You don’t have to. Our social networking community is there to provide you relevant and timely information and does not cost you a penny. You can find out more information on how to join at http://www.dietandfitnesscommunity.com .

 

 

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