Healthy Dieting
| December 14, 2010 | Posted by admin under Healthy Dieting |
This blog is for people who need advice and information about losing weight. I will present the diets in this blog as objectively as I can and make sure that I give people enough information to decide what diet is best for them. I also want to get feedback on certain diets from other people and make this blog a place where you will not only get general information but also tips and testimonials from others who are reading it.
Although many people find losing weight hard, it is actually very simple, you just need to find your own program. Some diets work better on some people while others don’t. That’s why some people are losing weight on Atkins diet while others with a vegetarian diet. Another important aspect is emotional eating; those who experience this will need to identify those emotions that trigger it and control them. If you can’t, there are many places where you can get counseling.
When I started my first diet, I had little information about what healthy eating meant, so I decided counting calories. Of course, this turned out to be a very counterproductive method since I was eating a lot of unhealthy food. Many years later, I came to understand that calories were not very important as much as rations and good food was. So I started eating smaller portions of healthy food, making sure that I was getting enough energy to last the whole day. I wasn’t a very active person but I started walking 30 minutes to 1 hour each day, which helped me tremendously. When I felt better about myself and my body I started doing more exercise, like swimming and tennis. I’m not a gym person because I find sports and other group activities more entertaining than weightlifting. Of course, I experienced with the gym in my early years of dieting and found it to be a great place to lose weight with a sensible diet. But those that for some reason don’t want to go to the gym, there are many ways to exercise and also have fun. So, besides a diet that you may choose to follow, any form of exercising is welcomed if you want to boost your weight loss.
I hope you will enjoy my blog and it will help you get pass this difficult challenge that so many of us have to face at some point of our lives.
A Few Misconceptions About Diets
| November 9, 2011 | Posted by admin under Healthy Dieting |
There are different rules used by many of the dieters out there; however, some of these can be very disastrous on long and short term. Here are some of the most representative misconceptions among many diet fans.
Giving up a whole group of food – there are many diets that promote this idea and believe that giving up on meat or dairy will help you lose weight. However, this is a terrible thing to do because it can keep you from getting essential nutrients you will need throughout a diet plan. This type of diet can work on short term but as a long term strategy you will starve yourself and you will become frustrated.
Eating smaller but more meals – this is not totally a misconception because eating more meals will increase your metabolism. However, you should always make sure that your meals are light and small, because people easily forget that and turn out to eat more than they planned to. So, when you decide to eat smaller but frequent meals, make sure that they stay smaller.
Getting a lot of exercise will keep you in shape – this is true, but only if combined with a sensible diet. However, people often make the mistake of doing just exercise and no diet, or even worse, they use exercise as an excuse to eat more. So, if you are planning to do some exercise, make sure that a good diet will go along with them for optimal solutions.
Sugar makes you gain weight – actually is not sugar that makes you gain weight but the calories it contains and the combinations used for certain foods. For example, never combine sugary foods with fats like whole milk and a lot of sugar, because it can have terrible effects on your diet. Your body will use the sugars as energy and deposit the fat, so you definitely don’t want that. Sugar can be a good treat as long as you don’t go overboard.
Whenever reading some advice about dieting and fitness in a magazine or on the internet, always check out different opinions and make sure that you get an expert’s view on the matter. Following certain advice can prove to be counterproductive for your diet and interfere with your whole weight loss process. Always take into account reliable advice from doctors or nutritionist and make sure that you read more sources before forming your opinion.
How To Avoid Hunger During Diet
| August 4, 2011 | Weight Loss |
Everybody agrees that the hard part of the diet is constantly craving for bad food all the time. But there are some ways you can focus on the diet, avoid being hungry, and stop thinking about food all the time. Planning your meals – This might be hard to do at first, but soon you more »
The Okinawa Diet
| July 22, 2011 | Diets, Healthy Dieting |
The western culture has a lot to learn from Asia, especially when it comes to eating good food and staying healthy. The Okinawa diet is just one example of Asian eating style that will help you lose weight and improve your overall health. The people of Okinawa have 10 life rules that guide them to more »
Raw Food Diet
| July 8, 2011 | Diets |
The raw food diet is based on the principle that people can get healthier if they eat uncooked food. The enzymes in food are diminished if the food goes through different processes or cooking so people who are following a raw food diet will only use heat to some extent (about 100-120 degrees Fahrenheit) and more »
July Tips for Loosing Weight
| July 1, 2011 | Weight Loss |
It is not easy to lose weight safely but if you’ll follow the next steps it will be easier to achieve your target. Please use the following tips to lose weight without too much pain and suffering. Take your time while eating You should reserve more time for your meals and eat slowly. Food should more »
Weight Watchers Diet
| May 20, 2011 | Posted by admin under Diets, Weight Watchers Diet |
Weight Watchers diet is one of the most popular diets around the world. This weight loss program has been popularized internationally and it’s now present in more than 30 countries all over the world. Weight Watchers was founded by Jean Nidetch, who thought about making a support group after losing weight. The support group has regular meetings where participants try and overcome their diet problems. Studies show that being part of a support group when trying to achieve a goal is efficient and will help people deal better with different obstacles. This is why Weight Watchers is so famous nowadays, it’s not only a weight loss program but it’s also a community for people trying to reach the same goal and offer each other emotional support.
Weight Watchers diet is based on a food list that has a certain number assigned to each item. The person who is trying to follow this diet will need to eat according to the points allowed for their weight, age and height. For example, a person that weights 175 to 199 lbs will be allowed to consume 22 to 27 points. If an item they are eating is not on the Weight Watchers list they can calculate the points using the following formula: (Calories + (Fat x 4) – (Fiber x 10)) / 50. The dieter can choose to eat whatever they want as long as they eat according to the points. However, they will need to choose the most nutritious foods, drink plenty of water and eat vegetables every day. Due to the point system people will eventually favor healthy and nutritious food to rich calorie, high fat or high carbohydrate foods.
The Weight Watchers diet has its pros and cons like any other diet. Although it may not work for people who are busy and don’t want to count points, it will teach others portion control and healthy eating. Some people might find the regular meetings a bit tiring and that might be an obstacle in sticking to the program. Weight Watchers is almost the same as counting calories and this might make some people give more importance to their food. This can be a double edged sword as it might make people become obsessed with points and constantly thinking about food, but it can also be a good way to teach them about healthy eating and choosing good food over junk food.
The Zone Diet Guidelines
| May 10, 2011 | Posted by admin under Diets, The Zone Diet |
The Zone Diet was introduced by Dr. Barry Spears as an alternative to the diets promoted in the media. He considered that people were misguided into eating too many carbohydrates and obtaining few or no results in the long run. The popular diets promoted low fat foods. Although people lost weight, the nutritional value and lack of healthy fats were insufficient. Studies also showed that people who were eating low fat for a certain period went back to their old habits because they were constantly hungry.
Dr. Barry Spears had his own theory concerning insulin levels and carbohydrate intake. The more carbohydrates a person consumes, the harder it is for them to lose weight. This is why the Zone Diet promoted good carbohydrates, healthy fats and proteins. It is important that your diet is composed of approximately 40% carbohydrate, 30% fat and 30% protein. This way, you will maintain your insulin level at a healthy rate and you will manage to lose weight and keep it off.
There are a few rules that need to be followed if you decide on the Zone diet:
1- Eat proteins during every meal. The meat should be lean meat that has the size of your palm. Your snacks should also include proteins.
2- When you eat carbohydrates you will have to opt for healthy choices such as: vegetables, beans, whole wheat breads, etc. You can sometimes eat foods rich in carbohydrates such as fruit juices, brown rice, cereals as long as you don’t do it every day.
3- Don’t underestimate the fat content of your diet. You will need good fats to survive such as oily fish, olive oil, nuts, seeds, and avocado.
4- Make sure that you have a snack or a meal after you wake up. Don’t let more than an hour pass between those because not eating for long periods of time will change your insulin levels. The time between your meals should be approximately 6 hours; however, you will have to eat a snack during this time even if you are not hungry. This maintains your body in a “fat burning” state.
5- Don’t starve yourself, make sure that you drink plenty of water.
During the Zone diet you will see that you can concentrate better, you will not be hungry and you will manage to lose weight slowly and healthy. Also, after you lose the amount of weight you want you will not have a hard time maintaining it as long as you don’t go back to your bad habits. Of course, you can eat something forbidden once in a while, but don’t do it regularly.
The Vegetarian Diet Principles
| April 30, 2011 | Posted by admin under Diets, The Vegetarian Diet |
The vegetarian diet is one of the most popular, but even though it can lead to weight loss some people choose this way of life mostly because of ethical reasons. Generally a vegetarian does not consume fish or animal meat. However, there are types of vegetarians, called vegans and they don’t consume any animal products like dairy, honey, eggs, etc.
Other types of vegetarians are:
-lacto-vegetarians, they consume milk and other dairy products.
-lacto-ovo-vegetarians, they consume dairy products and eggs
-fruitarian vegetarians, they only consume berries, nuts and seeds, mostly due to ethical reasons. The reason for such a restricted diet is the fact that they eat only products that fall naturally from a plant, believing that this way the plant is not damaged for the purpose of eating it.
-living food vegetarian or raw food diet consists mostly in raw products and some partially cooked ones.
- semi vegetarians can be pescovegetarian (pescentarianism), Pollotarians, Flexitarians. Pescovegetarians add fish and seafood in their diet, but don’t eat other types of animal meat. Pollotarians add chicken and poultry, but no red meat. Flexitarians eat meat occasionally. This way of eating is not usually accepted as a vegetarian diet.
There are different studies which show that a vegetarian diet will usually improve cholesterol levels and people eating this way have a lower body weight. Also, it seems that they have a lower risk of getting cancer and live longer compared to those who eat meat.
For those who want to become vegetarians, doctors recommend gradually decreasing the amount of meat you eat and increasing the consumption of vegetables, beans, fruits, etc. It is also recommended to choose whole grain bread or cereals, brown rice, low fat dairy products. Make sure that the diet is varied so that you can benefit from all the nutrients available. It is also recommend planning your meals ahead and reading any food label that you want to buy. They need be careful on getting enough protein, iron, calcium and zinc. Soy products are also recommended since they have so many nutrients and benefits for your health. You can choose from a big variety of soy products: tofu, soy milk, soy yogurt, soy cream cheese, veggie burgers, and also infant formulas for babies that are allergic to milk.
The vegetarian diet has many health benefits, but it’s not for everybody. If you are constantly craving meat and you don’t have a serious reason to follow this type of diet, at least try to occasionally reduce the amount of meat you consume.
10 Things To Know Before You Go On Diet
| April 27, 2011 | Posted by admin under Diets, Weight Loss |
To lose weight healthy is not only about reducing calories using diets and exercise. It is about everything, it’s about our genes, about the environment our mood, our methods, our temperament. our conscious decisions and our willpower. We have to use to good habits and expunging bad ones.
1) You’re consuming too much food
Low-carb isn’t magic. It reins in wild hunger and tames insulin, but calories do still matter – especially once you approach your ideal weight. In fact, those last few pounds often don’t respond to the same stuff that worked so well to get you to this point. Eating nut butter by the spoonful and hunks of cheese without regard for caloric content may have gotten you this far, but you’ve got to tighten things up if things aren’t working. And that’s the real test, isn’t it? There is a metabolic advantage to eating according to the PB, but if the weight isn’t coming off, something’s up – and calories may need to come down.
2) You’re adding muscle.
I don’t advise people to rely as much on the weigh box . Even though the weightier has a key role in your weight-loss plan, it can be sometimes misleading, as it does not show you how much of your weight is fat and how much is muscle. You may feel like you’re not making any improvements if the scale shows you the same weight, when you’re actually losing fat and gaining muscle. A simple weigh box won’t tell you that. Measuring your waist or even buying one of those body fat percentage tests better help reveal how much fat you are really losing.
3) You may be just tense
Ever wondered why it’s so hard to lose weight, even though you are doing all the right steps? Consider stress. Emotional stress, physical stress, financial stress, relationship stress – all kinds are no different in the way your body perceives them, as stress leads to cortisol increase. This causes lower insulin resistance, fat gaining and muscle catabolism. Stress has been one of the most harmful factors to the human body for about 200,000 years and it’s no different now, considering all tensioned aspects of modern life that impede you from having a relaxed attitude towards life and thus, a good physical shape with less effort.
4) You’re not active enough
Moving at a slow pace may not be as helpful as you thought it might be. A daily 55-75% max heart rate is something you should aim for if you want to lose weight. It’s also easier than you may expect – every tiny movement helps you burn that fat you’re trying to get rid of. If you feel you could do more aerobic training, then you’ re probably not doing enough. Regular physical activity helps improve your overall health and fitness. The more heightened, the more efficient for your weight loss program.
5) Let’s discuss overeating
Maybe you shouldn’t put all your hopes in low carb food. While it may tame your appetite for sugar cravings and ease hunger, do still take calories into account. You’re dealing with the trickiest turning point if you expect the same things that worked so far to help you now, when very close to achieving the weight you aimed for. There may have been certain foods and habits that although helped you lose a lot of weight until now, you’ll discover they’re inefficient now. According to the PB, if you get to a staggering point, when losing weight simply does not happen anymore, you should take drastic measures and consider a significant calories cut down.
6) Right balance
Like it or not, your ideal weight may not be the weight you actually have in mind. Your body’s ideal weight is determined in your genes. A study revealed that most women are in a healthy physical shape when the fat percentage from their body is higher than encouraged by fashion magazines. Breaking bad eating habits is already an ordeal, but not fulfilling your body’s requirements is surely harder and unquestionably damaging. You should think twice before playing with these things.
7) You don’t pay attention to the carbs.
Yes, it’s still carbs that should be most taken into account when you aim to lose weight. You may want to avoid processed foods as much as you can, due to hidden sugars they contain and also fruits, for about the same reason.
8) You’re not honest enough.
Analyze the causes that made you gain the weight. Having lost that weight now is not enough. It’s a new way of living you have to start, as well. Admit to yourself all those old bad habits so you are able to break them and stop clinging on.
9) You keep finding excuses.
Acknowledge if you look for reasons not to work out or not be careful about what you eat. Your body doesn’t know it’s somebody’s birthday or that your friends are all having pasta at 3 in the morning. The body still reacts to the way you treat it and will eventually gain fat.
10) How much do you sleep?
Lack of sleep causes your body to produce cortisol, which determines you to gain fat. A 7-8 hour sleep habit, followed on a regular basis, influences your body to produce the opposite, a growth hormone plasma which is the strongest fat burner.
For some, dropping the weight is quick and avoiding sugars, carbs, hydrogenated fats does it for them almost instantly. If you are not one of these lucky people, no need to despair or think of giving up. Keep doing the right things and you will lose the weight. The most important aspect which ought to be considered, regardless of the category you’re in, is that after you reach the ideal weight, a new lifestyle must begin. Only constant awareness will keep you from going through the same hassle and dealing with same frustration over and over again.
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