Tiny Lifestyle Tweaks

LOSE THE SODAS AND

CHEWING GUM

Do you drink diet sodas? Or chew gum to stop yourself from snacking? Both these habits may be doing more harm than you think. Sodas are aerated and when you chew gum, you tend to swallow more often than you normally would. Part of what you are swallowing is air, which bloats up your stomach. Drinking aerated drinks through a straw is even worse. Eating food slowly will help, because gulping food means you're swallowing excess air.

Walk Straight

Do you walk with a hunch or slouch in your seat? Slouching accentuates belly fat. So correct your posture and you can lose inches immediately. Stand up straight, hold your stomach in - this will strengthen your abs and stop that roll of fat from bulging out. Maintaining a good posture will take away inches from your stomach and your waist, and add to your height and confidence too.

Loosen your Belt

The self explanatory 'tight pants syndrome' not only reduces circulation, leading to a headache, but can also cause acid reflux and heartburn.

It could also lead to build-up of gas in the intestines. So loosen that belt and feel less bloated.

How to Easily Lose 20 Pounds in 3-4 Weeks or 30 Days!

Wait! Did you know that 9 in 10 people will put some or all of the lost weight back on again! I will provide an answer to this puzzle as well if you have been seeking out a way to lose 20 pounds in 3 Weeks, then I have a surprise for you! Make sure to read closely because I plan to explain to you exactly how it can be done easily and effortlessly. Best of all the results you get from this method of weight loss do not rebound as other diets do, because it does what no other diet does, it targets your metabolism.

So How Can I Begin to Lose 20 Pounds Easily in 3 Weeks?

Its simply really, its called calorie shifting and all it asks of you is to eat! Ok I'll admit it isn't that simple, but unlike any other diet you can actually eat a normal amount of food. The trick to calorie shifting is the way in which you eat. You see this system of eating is so sophisticated as it maximizes the times your body burns the most calories of a certain type and convinces your body to burn more of those calories. It also works to constantly switch up your diet and create something called metabolic confusion where your body doesn't fall into the trap of a comfort zone where it doesn't feel compelled to burn fat.

Calorie Shifting Keeps Burning Fat for You!

Essentially by calorie shifting and creating this metabolic confusion you are sending a message to your body to keep burning fat. The reason people experience the rebound effect from most diets is because eating low calories also lowers your metabolism, it attunes itself to it in a way. The problem is with most diets is once you decide to begin eating a normal diet again you are now stuck with an even slower metabolism. With calorie shifting your metabolism will be far more active and most people who try calorie shifting actually find that they continue to burn fat for weeks following a diet.

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Get your legs long & lean

Do you covet the long, lean legs sported by celebrities? Have you been committed to your daily cardio in hopes that it will tone your lower body? Are you ready to change your workouts to make sure you have those sexy gams by summer?

If so, celebrity trainer Gina Lombardi has the five must-do lower body exercises for you! In addition to toned thighs, these exercises will also give you great glutes as well as tighten up your torso. These exercises are the rage with celebrities and by incorporating these moves into your workouts, you, too, can have A-list legs.

These five exercises, recommended by Gina Lombardi, featured trainer on Exercise TV, work the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes and core muscles. For best results, do these lower body exercises three to four times per week. In addition to consistent cardio and a healthy diet, you will see results in just a few weeks.

Squats on a vibration platform

According to Lombardi, this intense exercise is a favorite of stars Hillary Swank and Madonna. Vibration platforms have become an increasingly popular fitness tool – doing exercises on the vibrating platforms results in increased muscular power, strength, flexibility and balance. The increased stimulus to the muscle fibers also delivers results sooner than doing the same exercises on the floor. In addition, vibration platforms can boost your bone-density and are often used in rehabilitation for a wide range of injuries. Check with your local health clubs and personal training studios for vibration platform availability. (For more information, check out Lifespan Fitness’ vibration plate article.)
The move: Standing on a Lifespan or Power Plate vibration platform, perform the same traditional squat you would do on stable ground. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, bend knees and lower your buttocks until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Keep knees over your ankles and not jutting forward past your toes. Pause and return to start position. Repeat for 60 seconds. Rest. Repeat three more times.

Buddha Lunges

Lombardi says these high-power lunges keep Sally Pressman (from "Army Wives") in tip top shape.

The move: Start with your feet together. Step forward with your right leg, keeping your back straight, and bend your knees until your right knee forms a 90-degree angle. Hold this position for a count of five then push back with your right leg and return to start position. Do 12 to 24 lunges on each side.

Mountain Climbers

Actress Catherine Bell, best known for her role as Sarah "Mac" MacKenzie on the TV show "JAG," keeps her legs fit with mountain climbers. You can do this exercise at varying speeds – the faster you “climb,” the more cardio it will become. Make sure you keep your belly button pulled in toward your spine to best engage your core muscles.

The move: From a traditional push-up starting position (on your hands and toes), lift your right foot and bring your knee to your chest. Touch your right foot down then return to start position. Repeat with your left. Do 24 repetitions for each leg.

Step-ups

You can do this exercise using only your body weight or you can hold a 5 to 10 pound dumbbell in each hand for added resistance. This is another exercise that targets your muscles while also boosting your heart rate.
The move: Using the stairs or another step (you can use a sturdy chair, if you are tall), step up with your right foot. Bring your left foot up to touch the right foot and then step back down to start position with both feet on the floor. Repeat with your left leg. Do 24 repetitions on each side.

Squats with Kettlebell swing

This is another hard-core exercise favorite of Army Wife Sally Pressman. Kettlebells are one of the newest and most effective tools in functional fitness (and considered a celebrity fitness secret!). Kettlebells are solid cast-iron weighted cannon balls with U-shaped handles. They come in a variety of weights from ten pounds up to over 100 pounds. Kettlebell training is a full-body modality that improves overall strength and also gives you an awesome cardio workout. Best of all, according to fitness experts, when you use kettlebells, you can get superb results in half the time of traditional exercises. (For more information about kettlebells, check out this article!)

Sleep well to lose weight!

Getting more sleep could help you shed those extra pounds, a study has suggested.

According to the study, body mass index (BMI) is linked to length and quality of sleep in a surprisingly consistent fashion.
During the study, researchers analyzed the sleep, activity and energy expenditures of 14 nurses who had volunteered for a heart-health program at the Walter Reed, where the nurses were employed.

The program included nutritional counselling, exercise training, stress management and sleep improvement. Each participant wore an actigraphy armband that measured total activity, body temperature, body position and other indices of activity and rest.

"When we analyzed our data by splitting our subjects into 'short sleepers' and 'long sleepers,' we found that short sleepers tended to have a higher BMI, 28.3 kg/m2, compared to long sleepers, who had an average BMI of 24.5. Short sleepers also had lower sleep efficiency, experienced as greater difficulty getting to sleep and staying asleep," said lead author Arn Eliasson, of the Integrative Cardiac Health Project at Walter Reed Army Medical Centre.

The researchers also found that overweight individuals tended to be more active than their normal weight counterparts, taking significantly more steps than normal weight individuals: 14,000 compared to 11,300, a nearly 25 percent difference, and expending nearly 1,000 more calories a day-3,064 versus 2,080.

However, those additional energy expenditures did not manifest in reduced weight. "We found so many interesting links in our data. It opens up a number of possibilities for future investigation. Primarily, we want to know what is driving the weight differences, and why sleep and weight appear to be connected," said Dr. Eliasson.

Dr. Eliasson postulates that getting less sleep might disrupt natural hormonal balances and could thereby cause those individuals to eat more.

Stress may also play a role in both reducing the length and quality of sleep and increasing eating and other behaviours that may result in weight gain. The study has been presented at the American Thoracic Society's 105th International Conference in San Diego. - TOI

Yoga Diet To Keep Your Body And Soul Healthy

Author: Roberto Sedycias

Basically a Yoga Diet is a totally vegetarian diet. The spiritual reason behind it is the fact that people who practice yoga gain some consciousness of mind which does not allow them to eat meat of living beings. They practice kindness to all animals and lay emphasis on the benefits of vegetarian diet.

Yoga Diet has been able to stand the test of time and has been around for a number of years. It primarily consists of whole grains, cereals, fresh vegetables and fruits. Practicing it not only takes care of your health but also helps in rejuvenating your soul and spirit. Also it helps you to lose weight and remain healthy, thus making you feel better.
The main contents of a Yoga diet and the ways and means in which you can stay healthy with a yoga centered diet are discussed here.

As the yoga diet is typically a vegetarian diet without any meat or fish, the protein requirement of your body is taken care by the incorporation of beans and legumes in your diet. A good quantum of salads, sprouted beans, lentils, bean soups and dishes made from lentils and beans are instrumental in providing you the much needed protein intake. Dairy products such as milk, cheese, butter, yoghurt etc. are allowed and are helpful in providing energy to the body. Seasonal and organic vegetables are the main source of nutrition. Dishes such as curries, appetizers and entrees can be made out of such fresh vegetables.

Plenty of water intakes are recommended for a healthy mind and body. According to the prescription of a Yoga Diet, your body should get at least 2 liters of water everyday which may be consumed in the form of plain water or fruits and vegetable juices, nut milk, soy milk and other liquids. Mainly recommended food are those which can be digested easily such as juices, fruits, vegetables, milk, honey etc.

Foods which are difficult to digest must be avoided. The main concept of yoga is to keep your immune system in good shape and if you intake lots of heavily processed food which cannot be digested easily then the whole purpose of Yoga diet will be defeated. You should avoid consuming food made with white flour or white sugar and packaged food which are added with preservatives to keep them fresh for a longer period. This type of food can be detrimental to your health.
Yoga diets also prescribe that you must eat your food slowly and chew it properly before swallowing so that it can be digested easily. Fibrous foods and green leafy vegetables are most recommended for easy digestion.
If you follow a proper yoga diet and supplement it with yoga workouts, you are sure to stay fit and lose weight at earliest. This is also sure to reduce the chances of heart attack, kidney diseases, stroke and cancer. Meat lovers are more prone to cancer and heart attacks than those who follow a balanced vegetarian diet.
A well chalked out yoga diet provides all the necessary protein and minerals to your body and the yogic exercises practiced along with pure vegetarian diet provides you with spiritual rejuvenation thus making your body, soul and spirit work in the right union and yield positive results.

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Bikini diet

To tone up so you fit into anything, including a bikini, follow the following tips.

Herbal teas like those made from fennel, green tea, aniseed, cinnamon, ginger may be preferred because they are natural themogenics. This means they rev up the body's burn mechanism, hiking metabolism, helping with fat burn.

Ant-cellulite menu: daily you need three portions (one portion equals a handful) of vegetables, three portions of fruit, three portions of salad, one portion low-fat dairy, one portion good fats (from nuts/fish), one portion brown rice.

Foods to avoid while toning up (and also during summer because they can aggravate dehydration and weakness): fizzy drinks, all caffeine laced stuff, including coffee and soft drinks, white bread and processed foods. Processed foods will aggravate waste build-up, leading to dimpled cellulite.

Have a glass of water with freshly squeezed lime first thing in the morning. Do not consume anything after this for at least an hour. This is a great de-toxifier. Detoxification has to be part of your tone-up because toxic waste causes bloating and water retention, especially around the tummy.

Some detox refreshers: cranberry juice (to keep kidneys super-efficient), a green tonic (of either palak, coriander and mint) for great skin and eyes; a regular intake of lettuce (for clear skin and eyes).

Women concerned with weight not health

Majority of women are more concerned about their weight than overall health, says a new US poll.

The new Associated Press-iVillage poll found that half of the women aren’t down with their weight - even the 26 percent of respondents whose body mass index (BMI) is in the normal range. Of the 1,000 respondents, just one third said they don’t like their physical condition - despite the fact that obesity and a sedentary lifestyle increase the risk of ailments like heart disease and Type 2 diabetes.

“So many women think more about the number on the scale than whether their blood pressure or cholesterol is normal,” the New York Daily News quoted registered dietitian Keri Gans, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, as saying. “They really don’t think about disease risk as much as they do about their weight,” Gans added.
The survey also revealed that women exercise for a median of just 80 minutes per week, which means that half the women do even less exercise.

A mere eight percent of the women surveyed say they eat the minimum recommended servings of fruit and vegetables (five a day) and a full 28 percent said they consume those five servings just once a week or less. TOI

Why people want to lose weight?

Weight Loss is the most common reason that an individual will start to a diet. Whether it is to become more physically fit, comfortable, more attractive or for health benefits, losing weight is indeed a positive change in many people’s lives. In some instances, losing weight can even save lives. For those who struggle in the battle of weight loss, may even come across many stereotypes or statements that heightens your determination of losing weight.

I have asked many people who are or has been on a diet and the reasons why they choose to lose weight are:
Appearance: Many people have self-esteem issues when it comes to their weight. For some men, their weight problem may not attract a person to him. For some women, it is the same. Women are more conscience of their appearance. They want to be more attractive to the opposite sex. Both sex, may feel that if weight is loss, a new or existing relationship would strengthen.

Break The Stereotype: There are stereotypes that are forced upon people who are overweight. Some people that are overweight, is looked at as if they are unhappy, tired, or lazy. I have heard some state, "I'd hate to be that person." Many reasons why a person chooses to lose weight, is to break this stereotype. An overweight person has the self-esteem to endure the weight loss process. Therefore, losing weight makes the individual feel much better physically and mentally.

Health Reasons: Many people want to lose weight in order to physically feel better. A person may be 5 pounds overweight. Or a person may be 20 pounds overweight. The main goal here, is to shed off that excess weight. There are millions of people in America who are ill. By losing weight, this may deter heart disease, high blood pressure, cholesterol levels, strokes, and diabetes. The chance to diet, eat healthy, and lose weight is a positive option.

Better Employment: It seems as if our appearance, also helps to determine our employment status. People may want to lose weight before that great interview. To look your best at an interview, creates a positive first impression. When you walk in the room for the interview, you are seen to have confidence and a glow about yourself. When interviewed, the employer may judge by looks. The notion of being overweight, may tie into the employee being possibly lazy and a unhappy worker. Therefore, this is another good reason why people want to lose weight.

Clothing: Many people tend to have a closet or closets full of garments. Some may even have clothes which was kept from 10 to 15 years ago. Those clothes may have shown a special quality, feature, or made the person feel good about themselves. So the choice to lose weight, is undoubtedly a decision one makes. They may want to once again, fit into the clothing and feel the youth they had 10 to 20 years ago. We notice this happens around the time of our class reunion.
Another reason to lose weight, may be the savings of buying new clothes. A lot of people may buy a suit or dress that fits very nice. A year later, that same suit or dress may be too small. To buy clothing every year, will add up, which means money is being spent. For this reason, people become very motivated to lose weight.

Save Money on Travel: Nowadays, people who are overweight or so called obese, are punished. On some airlines, a person who is overweight and cannot fit in the planes' single chair, can possibly be charged a double fee. An individual may seem fit to lose weight in order to save him or herself money.

There are many reasons why people want to lose weight. Looking better and feeling good about themselves is terrific. Having a plan and setting a routine is the first big step in losing weight. Yet, there are a lot reasons why people fail the battle of weight loss.

To successfully hit your weight loss goal, I have done an extensive research and discovered to my surprise, the biggest mistakes on why people fail at losing weight. I also have learned that you can possibly learn from other people's mistakes, which will make your fight against obesity much easier.

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12 healthy tips on eating habits

Author: Jaspal

• We live not upon what we eat, but upon what we digest. – Abernethy
• Watch your food…. how you feel, how you eat, when you eat, how much you eat :o)
• Always eat slowly and chew well your food. By doing that you are going to have better taste, better digestion, better appetite, easy and quick feeling of full and satisfaction. More important, you need less food to satisfy your hunger. But if you can’t spend enough time due to any reasons, make sure to eat slow and take your time in having our dinner. It will bring more calmness and peace into your life :o)
• Don’t injure/ruin your system by over-feeding it. Over-eating on a regular basis will kill you long before your time.
• Little raw food (except some vegetables & fruit ), half cooked or raw non-vegetarian food, bar-be-que half done, sushi from non-vegetarian foods, and all class of beans, half cooked rice etc. take more time to digest, so remember to chew well these foods.
• Avoid fried or deep fried, very spicy or hot, very sour, very sweet, very salty food as much as you can on a regular basis. If you can’t avoid due to any reasons, drink more water and breath more during that day.
• Avoid stale food or left over food as much as you can. If you can’t avoid due to any reasons, drink more water and breath more during that day.
• Freshly cooked food is always healthier and digested easily and quickly.
• Avoid anything very cold with very hot food. Keep a little gap or the temperature should be close to each other.
• Having anything salty with pure form of milk is dangerous and toxic.
• Always keeps on changing your cooking oil. Sticking to one of the best in the world and very expensive & pure cooking oil is the most dangerous, and unhealthy. Your body shouldn’t immune to only one oil always, otherwise you will be prone to have digestive problems always adapting and adjusting to the food cooked in different oils than yours, especially travelling, partying or eating out. Your body will not be ready to accept the food cooked in different oil other than your brand. Instead my friendly advice is to give yourself always healthy and pleasant surprises by eating different food staying within your limits.
• Drink water after at least 30-45 minutes or more of having your meals.

Bebo at “Lose your weight”

Breakfast for a slimmer you!

Is your expanding waistline giving you nightmares? Well, take heart. Researchers have found that a breakfast of muesli with milk, tinned peaches and yoghurt can help weight loss.

Experts at the University of Nottingham suggest that the low GI breakfast with apple juice helps the body break down fat better than a high Glycaemic Index start to the day of sugary cereal and white toast, reports The Daily Express .

Scientists discovered that the type of food you eat before exercise can directly impact on your health. A study led by Dr Emma Stevenson looked at young women after an overnight fast. In one study period they were given a breakfast of food known to cause large rises in blood glucose – those with a high GI, including cornflakes and milk, white bread and jam and a fizzy, sugary drink.

In another period, they breakfasted on food with a low GI, although both breakfasts had the same amount of calories, carbohydrate, fat and protein. The low GI breakfast was muesli, milk, tinned peaches, yoghurt and apple juice. Three hours after eating, the women walked for an hour on a treadmill. A lunch – the same in both study periods – was then provided. Throughout the day blood samples and samples of expired air were taken.

From analyses, researchers found blood glucose levels were higher after the high GI breakfast than the low one, and had returned to normal by the time the women began to exercise. However, plasma free fatty acids (FFA) – which show the amount of fat used up for energy – began to rise two hours after the low GI breakfast, the researchers found. Exercise then led to a rapid increase in FFAs in both groups – but concentrations were higher in the low GI group. After lunch the concentration of FFAs was the same in both groups, but overall fat oxidation was higher in the low GI group than the high GI group.

Dr Stevenson said: “We concluded that consuming a low GI breakfast increases fat oxidation both at rest and during subsequent exercise. A low GI breakfast also had an impact on appetite, with test subjects feeling fuller for longer after they’d eaten these types of foods.” - TOI

5 ways in losing weight fast

Many diet programs will offer you the same thing. That is losing weight fast. They promise that you quickly lose 25 pounds, will you join it? Well, maybe you will see their example program. After see it, I’m sure that you will decide to ignore it. Why? Yes, because most diets of this are very strict. They will send you daily menu with reduce your calorie intake and severally restrict your food choices. Even the diet really work, it’s only for short term or what we call it yo-yo diet.
You don’t want that happens to you, right? 

Well, I will give you 5 ways in losing weight fast. It will not make stress, because this ways is a part of your life style.

1. Healthy Breakfast
Begin you long day with breakfast. Include calorie in your breakfast, it will give you energy for facing the day and give back the nutrient to your body after sleep along night.

2. Forget about counting the calorie
Reducing the calorie intake is not help you in losing weight. It only made your body not get enough energy in burning the fat. Better to try calorie shifting diet (for more information visit calorie shifting).

3. Healthy snack
The ideal snack contains high fiber, like fruits. Hmm, I think, an apple a day already enough.

4. Move more
Well, you don’t need extreme exercise or fitness. You only need move more, 30 minutes every day. Walk with your dog or walking to the office.

5. The important, believe
Many people successfully lose weight because of believe that they can gain their ideal weight. it’s no use if you do all the diet program but not believe in yourself that you can gain your ideal weight.
Now, you see, only simple 5 things will help you in losing weight. Many people do diet like have a pressure, that’s why their diet didn’t work. After starving their self, they will not get enough energy in fat burn and they should spend their energy for stress in dieting? How can they success in gain their ideal weight? Just do the diet as a lifestyle!

Author: Ben Tien

Easy Ways to Lose 8-10 Pounds

There are many reasons why people want to lose weight: to look better, to feel healthier or to gain more confidence. One of the best weight loss goals you can set is to lose eight-ten pounds. This is a very achievable goal for those individuals who set their mind to it. While many individuals want to lose weight quickly, many of the quick fixes available involve rules that are far too strict and people are unable to stick to them for a long time.

Change your habits
Changing your eating habits is one the best ways to lose ten pounds. While the process may take a much longer period of time, the results tend to be more permanent. Closely examining your eating habits will reveal a lot about you.  For example, you may be snacking late at night or snacking while you watch TV instead of eating because you are hungry.

Reduce the quantity of food
Most people just eat too much. This is because the body only recognizes that it is full twenty minutes after the stomach is full. This means that you have to pay more attention to the signals your body sends when you eat.

Chew foods
You can significantly reduce the quantity of food you eat by chewing more. This increases the time you take to eat and gives your body enough time to signal whether you should eat more or stop.  It will also help to reduce the amount of unhealthy food you consume.

Change your routine
A lifestyle change is another way to lose weight. You have to change your daily routine to include more activities and exercise. You can make little changes that will bring about great changes in the end.

The following suggestions may help:  take the stairs instead of the elevator, ride a bike to work instead of driving, or consider walking if you live close to work.  Not only will this help you lose weight but you will also save money on gas. Many individuals have found that diet changes and exercise come with quick weight loss that is both unsustainable and unrealistic. It is for this reason that small changes to diet and lifestyle over time are a much better option for sustainable weight loss.

Seven Ways to Lose Body Fat, Lose Weight, Stay Fit with no Exercises

Here are the simple 7 steps to lose weight quickly and steadily and to keep the weight off:

1. Eat lesser than usual: maybe a scoop less of that ice cream, 1 less cup of tea or coffee, 1 bit less off that burger, a half a piece less of that chicken, 1 less slice of bread - just reduce a bot of everything you eat.


2. Walk more than usual: Walk up the stairs, walk to the parking lot after parking further away, walk to the grocery store, walk to library, walk your dog a bit more - just walk for the heck of it!


3. Sit less than usual: if you have a desk job, make sure you take regular bathroom breaks, get up and go drink a glass of water, walk over to a colleague to talk instead of talking on the phone, just get up and walk to that window for a few minutes.


4. Drink water more than usual: Easiest way is to keep 2 liters of bottle as your quota each day. Carry it to work, make sure you finish it. At home, drink from your “quota” bottle. Ensure you take a few more sips than you usually do.


5. Eat your dinner earlier than usual: you need at least 2 hours between your dinner and bed time. If you eat at 7PM and sleep at 10PM you are ok. If you eat at 9M and sleep at 10PM, then you must try to eat at 8PM to start with. The earlier the better. Do not sleep on a full stomach.


6. Consume 1 glass less of beer or 1 drink less of that alcohol: Alcohol really is a big reason for people to to gain weight. Kick this habit slowly - but surely by cutting down bit by bit.


7. Wake up earlier than usual: wake up 30 minutes to an hour earlier thank usual. Use this time to plan your day. This will relax you more, ease your stress and help you remember that you have to do these 7 things each day to lose that fat and stay fit and trim. you may even meditate for 10 minutes each day. Close your eyes, relax and count your breath!

Try these 7 things for 7 days - you must see some weight loss. Once you see the results you will be motivated to do more. that should drive you to lose more and more. Do this till you feel you have lost enough and maintain that weight. You not only have NOT sacrificed a LOT to lose your body fat, but you have this your lifestyle - losing weight and staying fit is, after all, a matter of a healthy lifestyle. When you are fit and slim and healthy - you are happy!