From the category archives:
Diets
The subject of a recent episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show was diet. Oprah is well known for her infamous yo-yo dieting issues, systematically gaining and losing weight for years.
This is a frustrating thing for many of us. 25% of American men and 45% of American women are on a diet on any given day. Their weight goes up and down like a yo-yo as they start and stop different diets. When they stop eating to go on a crash diet, they lose both fat and lean muscle as they “starve” themselves into shape. Then as they loosen their diet and backslide into old habits their weight increases. In a short time, they’ve gained back all the weight they lost and added on more.
According to experts ninety-five percent of all dieters will regain their lost weight in 1-5 years.
The solution is not another diet! The only solution to the problem is a combination of decreasing calories, increasing activeness (exercise), and consuming healthier foods on a more consistent basis.
Eating healthier can be defined as eating less foods that pack on the pounds and more raw foods like fruit and vegetables. Fast food, greasy fried foods, soft drinks, and sugar laden deserts are some of the primary reasons for weight gain.
Most people trying to lose weight don’t realize that the issue isn’t weight at all. It’s fat and inches. If they get rid of some of the fat while holding on to lean muscle they’ll lose inches and look good, feel good, and fit comfortably into their attire. Instead of stepping on the bathroom scale every morning, they should be measuring the girth of their waist and upper arms. Consider some athletes and bodybuilders. If a doctor were to be told their weight and height, he’d consider them obese according to the Body Mass indicator (BMI). In reality, these athletes are extremely fit and have a small percentage of body fat .
The primary objective of a diet should be to lose fat while retaining lean muscle. The best way to do this is to consistently follow a sensible plan that includes reducing calories, increasing exercise , and healthier eating habits.
Americans spend over $50 billion annually on dieting and diet-related products. If you wish to support your diet plan with a weight loss product, ensure that it’s a product that burns fat while retaining lean muscle. Remember while taking the product that you will only achieve success if it’s part of a broader plan which includes the elements mentioned above, like exercise.
Caution – It is unhealthy and unwise to base your diet upon a sharp reduction in the amount of calories you consume . Instead, substitute healthy calories for unhealthy ones. To assist in doing so, consider dietary supplements which can supply crucial nutrients. Vitamin and mineral supplement made from real food and containing plant phytosterols are best. Dieting can be a great help when interested in losing weight, you just need to ensure you are doing it the right way.
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Quinoa is a food option that is recently gaining a lot of popularity these days especially among people who want some help beyond their regular fitness training to lose some extra pounds. The plant originated from South American and is found to be in existence for the past 6,000 years. Quinoa is actually a grain crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. The plant has been a vital food source among the Andean civilization and as well as for the Inca tribes. It is best grown in places where soil drains well and the plant usually has a long growing season. Quinoa has a good nutritional content which makes it popular among vegetarians and dieters alike. How much does quinoa cost? Why is it beneficial?
Quinoa Nutritional Content
Quinoa undoubtedly contains all the nine essential amino acids making it a good source of dietary protein (about 12% to 18%). Aside from that, it is also rich in fiber which is good for the cleansing the body’s digestive system. It is also a good source of iron and magnesium. Magnesium is helpful in relaxing your blood vessels and thus aids in alleviating migraines and headaches. It is also proven to be gluten free and can be easily digested in the system. Because of its nutritional value, it is now being considered by the NASA as among the possible crops for Controlled Ecological Life Support in their manned spaceflights.
How much does quinoa cost?
It is available in bulk when bought from manufacturers themselves. A 50 lb pack would cost $160. There are some retailers which sell 5-lb packs for only $25-$30. Quinoa polenta is sold for $3.80/unit or $27.50/case. Many flavored quinoa polentas are also sold in the market and cost only $25.50. They also have quinoa pastas available from spaghetti to linguini and veggie shells for only $20-$24 per pack.
Food Preparation
Quinoa seeds are usually light and fluffy similar to that of a couscous but has nuttier and richer flavor. It can be a good replacement for potatoes, rice and other side dishes. Quinoa has a naturally bitter taste because a substance called saponin. Most commercially available quinoa seeds have already been processed to remove this unpalatable coating.
Quinoa is pretty much treated like rice. All you have to do is boil around 2 cups of water for a cup of quinoa grains. Cover the pot and wait until it simmers and cook for about 14-18 minutes or until its germs detaches from the seed. For additional flavorings, you can replace water with chicken or any meat stock. Vegetables and other seasonings can also be added to it. For breakfast, you can treat quinoa just like your cereal meal and toss in some almonds, honey and berries with it.
It’s important to note that Quinoa, like any supplement, needs to be taken in conjunction with regular fitness exercises for maximum effectiveness.
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Healthy pizza toppings are actually more plentiful and easy to find than you may imagine. Pizza has a pretty bad reputation. Most often, it’s thought of as a high-fat, high-sodium junk food that healthy eaters and dieters should avoid. But these days, many pizza restaurants serve pizzas that are made with fresh vegetables, cheese that’s lower in fat, and other healthy pizza toppings.
Here are some tips on what types of healthy pizza toppings to use in order to maintain your healthy lifestyle and fitness training regimen.
Although greasy meat and cheese gets most of the blame, it’s the crust that has the most calories. So if you’re watching your weight, start there. Restaurants that specialize in Neapolitan pizza or pizza Napoletana have very thin crusts that are cooked at extremely high temperatures. Light as air around the edges, and lightly charred, Naples-style crust is made with flour, water, salt, and yeast, so it’s also fat free.
Some pizza restaurants now offer whole wheat crust, which is even better. The extra fiber will help you feel fuller, sooner. And will keep you from getting hungry later. Finding more diet tips and healthy pizza toppings is not difficult with a little ingenuity and an open mind.
Basil pesto has lots of fat, so stick with tomato sauce, or a puree made from butternut squash.
When it comes to cheese, there are several smart options. Traditional Neapolitan pizza uses mozzarella cheese that’s made with water buffalo milk. While fresh mozzarella isn’t especially low in fat or calories, it is more satisfying. The smooth, creamy texture makes it seem decadent.
Feta, goat cheese, and ricotta are other cheeses that are applied with a light hand. They add a distinctive flavor without adding a lot of calories.
Most pizza meats are off limits, but prosciutto is very low in fat, and a little goes a long way. It can be high in sodium, but as a rule, you won’t eat enough for that to matter. Grilled chicken or shrimp are also wonderful. Find pizza restaurants with healthy ingredients.
You can pile on the vegetables — especially full-flavor ones like artichokes, roasted red peppers, and onions — practically guilt free. And greens like arugula and spinach are excellent pizza toppings. But be careful with sun-dried tomatoes and kalamata olives, which are usually packed in oil, and caramelized onions which are often sautéed in butter.
If you follow these tips, you should be able to keep your commitment to healthy eating and still be able to go out for a pizza. And remember, no matter how healthy you eat, fitness training is also very important to a healthy lifestyle. It doesn’t matter what kind of fitness exercises you do as long as you do something to compliment your healthy diet.
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Belly fat burning workouts, like cycling or sprinting, work but as you age it becomes harder to recover from that kind of strenuous activity. Also, it’s been proven that slower, more steady cardiovascular exercise will more effectively burn fat.
Here’s a story from one of our guests:
“After a thorough checkup, I was told by my doctor that I had to cut down on my calories if I wanted stay out of the danger zone. My blood pressure was good but climbing. I was also getting to be border line on the cholesterol levels. Something which on the surface seems catastrophic happened that caused me to lose weight fast. I had an accident.
The phrase “It’s as easy as falling off a ladder” was not cute or funny the day that I actually did. I fell from the top of an eight foot ladder on to my garage floor. The good news was that the concrete broke my fall. My wrists and left shoulder were in such bad shape that I had to stop strength training for three months. That’s when I discovered that I could adopt a fat burning program and lose 15 pounds of fat in 30 days without exercising. Here’s what I discovered.
You burn fat better when you focus on steady repetitious activities that are slow and steady. I took to walking and simply cut sugar and bread from my daily eating program. I started walking for 30 minutes a day and during the first few days, I found that even this activity was too strenuous for my shoulder as I kept trying to go faster instead of taking an easy pace.
I learned that the best fat burning speed was sub aerobic. That meant I had to be able to breathe easily and take a steady pace that kept my heart rate and breathing comfortable for an extended period. That’s where the real secret came in to play.
I began to burn more fat when I started eating water based vegetables and clean protein six times a day. Removing bread and pasta worked wonders for my metabolism. I began to see results within the second week of walking. I was losing between a half a pound to a pound a day.
The eating pattern was not very difficult once I started. There were never any feelings of hunger although I often get cravings for certain foods now and then. The daily walks went from 30 minutes to 60 to increase the fat burning potential of my daily routine. As my shoulder and wrists improved I toyed with the idea of strength training but was cautioned to allow the healing process to run its course.
Within a month of starting my walking routine, I had dropped 31 pounds of fat. I stopped over eating by altering my eating pattern. Eating six small meals kept my metabolism high and my blood sugar stable. There was no pressure to stuff myself because I always felt full from my last small meal.
The secret is in evenly distributing your meals and removing excess carbs from your diet. I miss my intense fat burning workouts but this was great at age 50. I did not have to concern my self with injury. The combination of a steady walking program and a painless change in diet can create a fat burning furnace in your body. You can lose 15 pounds in 30 days.