Category : Article
Posted in Article on February 22, 2012
People are obsessed with diets. They are constantly seeking the right diet to help them lose weight. There are currently eight popular diets that have worked effectively for many people and providing more options for dieting.
1. Atkins Diet focuses on controlling the levels of insulin in the body through the food consumed. It is based on the consumption of proteins in the diet to reduce the levels of insulin in the bloodstream. The increasing of the proteins leads to weight loss in many people.
2. Zone Diet creates a nutritional balance with 40% carbohydrates, 30% fats, and 30% protein. The focus is to control the insulin levels that will result in weight loss. The diet consists of unrefined carbohydrates and fats including nuts, olive oil, and avocado.
3. Vegetarian diet concentrates on eating non-animal based foods except for eggs, honey, and dairy products. Vegetarians have a lower body weight; suffer from less diseases, and longer life spans, according to current studies. Since the meat products have been removed from the diet, vegetarians consume less fat according to the studies.
4. Your Vegan diet is more a philosophy and way of life since the diet does not include any animal-based products including eggs, honey, dairy, and meat products. The concept of the diet is based more on environmental and ethical reasons versus health related issues.
5. Weight Watchers Diet focuses on weight loss, exercise, and a support network or group. Dieters have the ability of meeting in person with the groups or using online services for support. The diet reduces the types of foods consumed while increasing the levels of exercise.
6. South Beach diet focuses on the levels of insulin and refined carbohydrates in the diet. The foods consumed are low in fat as a method of controlling the insulin, which leads to weight loss and better health.
7. Raw Food Diet involves eating foods and drinks that are not processed but are only in their original form and organic. There are four types of raw foodists, raw vegetarians, raw vegans, raw omnivores, and raw carnivores. The belief of consuming the food in the raw form is the food does not have additives or extras that will cause health related issues including weight gain.
8. Mediterranean Diet is a diet from Southern Europe that focuses on the eating habits of citizens of Crete, Greece, and southern Italy. The concentration is on a lot of plant foods, fresh fruits as dessert, beans, nuts, cereals, seeds, olive oil for the main source of dietary fats, cheese and yogurts for the main dairy foods, moderate levels of fish, consuming less than four eggs a week, limited amounts of the red meat, and limited amounts of wine. The Mediterranean Diet consists of fat with the saturated fat less than 8% of the caloric intake.
There are benefits of each type of diet. Depending on the personal life style, there is a diet available for everyone.
Posted in Article on February 19, 2012
The fastest way to lose belly fat for women is to modify your diet and do the combination of cardio and strength training exercises that make you lose weight all over. That’s because fat gets stored in the tummy first and the stomach is the last place it comes off. Women who are otherwise fit all over may feel a little self conscious in a bikini. So, the fastest way to lose belly fat is to realize that you’ve got to get into perfect shape.
There is no one specific exercise that will make you lose your stomach if you are 20 pounds overweight. Sit ups and crunches will help strengthen the muscles in the area, but do nothing to burn the fat. And, belly fat is, at its core, fat. The only way to lose fat is to eat fewer calories than you burn.
So, one element in the fastest way to lose belly fat is to come up with a healthy eating plan. This is an eating plan for life, not some fad diet. When you yo yo in weight, you actually compound the stomach fat problem because you lose weight in other areas but you put it back on in the stomach area first. So, making a change in your diet on a permanent basis is key.
You’re developing a lifestyle, not going on a temporary diet.
Your diet needs to be concerned not only with the total number of calories but the kinds of calories. You need to take in at least 1 gram of protein per day for every pound you weigh. You also need some fat in your diet. A diet of 30:20:50 in the ratio protein: fat: carbohydrates makes a lot of sense for an overweight woman who wants the fastest way to lose belly fat. Fish oils are the best kind of fat for this purpose.
Next up is your training program. The fastest way to lose belly fat is by doing both weight training and cardio exercises. A study of overweight women showed that women who alternated between cardio and strength training every other day lost significantly more fat in their stomachs than women who relied on aerobics alone.
The best way to do aerobic exercise is high intensity interval training. This is where you do a two minute burst of activity at the most intense level you are capable of doing followed by three minutes of moderate activity. Repeat the cycle.
You will also want to track your progress. Not only will you be encouraged to see your belly fat decreasing, but if you stall or go up, you will be able to correct the problem quickly. It is a good idea to take your body fat measurements every two weeks.
The fastest way to lose belly fat is to develop good lifestyle habits. Once you lose the weight, your belly fat will come off.
Posted in Article on February 18, 2012
There are several easy ways to deal with weight loss that will help with your diet as well. The simple methods include changing the way you live your life and eat. With the changes will comes losing of weight.
Here are some tips for losing weight:
1. Drink about 8 glasses of water a day. The body needs water to flush the wastes from the body and to create a healthier body.
2. Start your day out by drinking a glass of water, before you do anything else that morning, get the water into your body to jump start your system.
3. Before you eat any of the other meals during the day, drink a glass of water. The water will help you feel fuller and eat less for the meal.
4. Drink another glass during the meal. The water helps your food digest better and helps you eat less.
5. Avoid sweetened bottled drinks. The sodas are filled with sugars that will make you gain weight.
6. Add water vegetables and fruits such as tomatoes and watermelons. They contain about 90% water that will provide the essential water as well as nutrition.
7. Eat fresh fruit versus drinking fruit juice. The drinks are sweetened while the fresh fruits do not have the additives and they provide essential fiber to your diet.
8. Add fiber to your diet. The body needs fiber just as it needs water.
9. Eat leafy green vegetable as a source of natural fiber.
10. Eat healthy foods by replacing the sugary and starchy foods with natural foods.
11. Avoid the garnishments on your food. The little tasty additives are fattening.
12. Learn to control your cravings for sweets. You can still have the sweets but in moderation and small amounts. Satisfy the craving by eating a bite or two.
13. Set a standard time for meals. When you have a schedule your body becomes adjusted to the schedule as well as the schedule will help you lose weight.
14. Eat only when you are really hungry. Eating when you are not hungry is one of the largest reasons for weight gain.
15. Avoid snacking between meals. Eat the scheduled meals so you will be hungry at those times.
16. If you must snack, eat vegetables or fruit. The natural foods are far better to eat anytime of the day.
17. Resist drinking too much coffee and tea. Avoid adding the sugar and creamers to the drinks. The caffeine in the drinks is not good for you, actually slowing your metabolism causing fatigue.
18. Avoid fried foods. The frying of foods adds a large amount of fat to the diet most people do not burn resulting in them gaining weight.
19. Eat foods from the basic food groups for every meal every day. The foods help to keep you healthy.
20. Drink alcoholic beverages in moderations. They are not good for you and are fattening adding to the weight gain.
There are several accepted habits in everyoneís life that can be changed to help with the weight loss. Use some of these tips to make a healthy new beginning in your life.
Posted in Article on February 17, 2012
After you have a child, you may want to lose baby belly fat. After you recover from your pregnancy and delivery, getting back in shape takes focus and determination. But you can lose the pregnancy pounds quickly if you follow this simple plan. This plan incorporates strength training using a stability ball, high intensity cardio, and a modified diet program. In just two weeks, you can lose baby belly fat.
First, to lose baby belly fat, you need to buy a stability ball. These retail for about $30 in a sporting goods store. Most women will want a 22 inch ball. If you are under 5’1, buy the 18 inch and if you are over 5’8, go for the 26 incher.
A study at Sacramento State University found that people who used stability balls to lose belly fat had developed twice the number of muscle fibers as those who did normal crunches. As you can see, this will help you lose baby belly fat quickly, so you’ll want to get one.
There will be a number of exercises in the manual that comes with the stability ball, but I want to feature a couple here that are especially helpful when you want to lose baby belly fat.
The first is the reverse crunch. Lying on your back, press your legs into the ball and lift it 3 to 6 inches off the floor. Hold it for one second, lower and repeat.
The second is the rock and roll. Get on your knees and put your elbows on the ball. Then lift your body until you are on your tippy toes at a 45 degree angle to the floor. Hold this position for one second, relax, and repeat.
Cardio is important in this plan as well. Try to get a 45 minute heart healthy workout at least 3 times a week to lose baby belly fat. This can include swift walking, jogging, cycling, or using any cardio machine at the gym.
The final component is to modify your eating habits. Try to eat 500 calories less than what you would need to maintain your weight. For instance, a 5’4 140 pound active 28 year old woman would need 2400 calories to maintain her weight. She should have a diet of just 1900 calories for the two weeks she is on this program.
Finding ways to reduce calories for a short period of time is actually easier than you might imagine. For instance, making your latte with skim rather than whole milk saves 120 calories. You can live with that for two weeks, can’t you? Other swaps include eating air popped popcorn instead of potato chips (saves 95 calories) and substituting Ω cup of sliced strawberries and Ω cup fat free vanilla yogurt for your traditional “fruit on the bottom” yogurt cup (saves 105 calories). Make 4 to 5 of these substitutions a day and you’re on your way to lose baby belly fat.
When you have a new child in the house, it can be hard to find the time and energy to put into a new exercise and diet program. But, if you really want to lose baby belly fat, you can follow this routine and be back in shape in just 2 weeks.
Posted in Article on February 16, 2012
A calorie intake counter is a digital food journal. The advantages of a calorie intake counter over a pen and paper journal is that the amount of calories in each food are already programmed into the counter. This means that you get a running total of the amount of calories you have consumed throughout the day.
One of the biggest problems that dieters have is that they have no idea of the actual calories they are consuming. For one thing, they underestimate the actual portions they are eating. They also underestimate the calories in each portion. Many foods that are supposedly “good” for us are very high in calories. For instance, a one cup serving of orange juice has 122 calories. Many dieters try to stick to a 1200 calorie diet. So, that glass of orange juice, which is supposedly part of a “balanced” breakfast, takes up 1/10th of the calories for the day! A calorie intake counter will help you avoid pitfalls like this one.
It will also provide a running total of the amount of calories you have had. So, if you have an extra cookie at lunch, you will know that you have to make up for it by exercising more or eating less at dinner.
As the calorie intake counter works like a journal, you will be able to identify your “trouble spots” after using it for just a week. For instance, you may find that the lunch options you have at work force you into eating more calories than you would “budget” for that meal. Therefore, you might make the choice to pack your own lunch so that you can have your calories spread out through the day in a way that you would prefer.
You will also be able to track how many calories you are burning with a calorie intake counter. Again, you may be surprised by some of the results. For instance, running a mile can burn off 78 calories if you are a 120 pound woman and 117 calories if you are a 180 pound man. Knowing exactly how many calories you are burning rather than just estimating is a good way to stay on track as far as losing weight.
Another thing that might surprise you is that you can burn calories by doing things you wouldn’t consider exercise. For instance, playing with your children, playing the piano, and gardening all burn calories.
A calorie intake counter is a sophisticated journal to help you keep track of your weight loss journey. You can buy them as stand alone devises or buy add ons to your iPhone, PDA, or other electronic equipment. In this day and age when we keep track of everything electronically, a calorie intake counter is just one more tool in the battle of the bulge.
