3 Elements of Good Nutrition

With the amount of information that exists about good nutrition, you wouldn’t think it was that big of a mystery. The truth of the matter is, there is no mystery involved in getting the proper nutrients that your body needs. Why should you care about getting the proper nutrients? Many people are under the misconception that eating healthy is for the young because they are growing. Tissue and cells are constantly being renewed in both children and adults. The failure for these elements to repair themselves can result in diseases of lifelong misery or worse, death. To lower your risk of developing a disease, you simply need to follow three simple steps of good nutrition.  

Proper Hydration

Plain and simple, your body needs water. Being properly hydrated will benefit you from head to toe. Water keeps your cells hydrated and flowing throughout your body. It doesn't take long to witness the benefits of drinking sufficient water. Just a week of being hydrated and your skin will have a new glow. If you need to lose weight, water can help you achieve your goal. In many instances, people misinterpret thirst for hunger. Unless it's been a few hours since you have eaten, have a glass of water the next time you think you’re hungry.

There are numerous guidelines for how much water to drink. Consuming eight glasses of water each day is the most popular guideline. People have different needs. A better indication of how hydrated you are is your urine. When you are properly hydrated your urine is almost clear. There is the possibility of water intoxication so you don't want your urine to be completely colorless.

Eating Healthy

In addition to being hydrated, you need to eat a variety of foods. Forget fad diets that restrict certain foods. The key to healthy eating is to eat in moderation and variety. Your food choices should include a large percentage from complex carbohydrates, which is sufficient for energy. You should also consume several servings of fruits, vegetables, grains, and dairy every day. You should limit your servings of protein and fats to two or three servings each day. By including all of these food groups in your diet, you are less likely to be hungry or have cravings for sweets and other junk food.

Vitamin Supplementation

As long as you live in a country where food is plentiful and produced safely, you should have no problem obtaining the amount of vitamins and minerals your body needs. However, food allergies, dislikes, and illness may prevent you from eating certain foods. Some people, for example, are lactose intolerant and cannot consume dairy products. In these instances, supplementation should become a part of a plan for healthy nutrition. You don't need a prescription to purchase vitamins, but it is a good idea to discuss your particular needs with your medical doctor. Consuming excessive amounts of some vitamins can cause toxicity and unpleasant side effects.

7 Steps to Losing Weight While Keeping Your Skin Firm

Assuming you don't have an excessive amount of loose skin already it is possible to lose weight and keep your skin firm in the process. The idea is to keep your body well hydrated day in and day out. NEVER EVER let yourself become dehydrated. Drink plenty of water throughout the day and NEVER EVER totally eliminate your carbohydrate intake. From my experience, most people who have lost weight too fast by eliminating their carbohydrates ended up with a lot of excess skin afterwards. The whole idea is to lose weight to get healthier and of course to look better with your clothes ON and with your clothes OFF.

Here are some tips:

1. Follow a well-rounded balanced diet.

 

2. Follow a full body exercise routine alternating with a split routine every 4 weeks. For example, full body routine 4 weeks, split routine 4 weeks, full body routine 4 weeks, and so on. 

3. Assuming you don't have stomach ulcers and you are not on blood thinners you should also take ONE TEASPOON of cold arctic cod liver oil ONCE PER DAY with your evening meal. 

4. Take 1000-1500mg of lecithin per day. Lecithin has been known to increase the elasticity of the skin. 

5. Anything you can do to increase circulation will also help. Skin brushing techniques are very good. Do a search on the internet for skin brushing to get all the info you need. Deep massages are also good. 

6. Most importantly if you are more than 75 pounds overweight DO NOT try to lose weight too fast. The more you weigh the easier it will be to lose weight so ease into it slowly so you only lose about 3 pounds per week. Doing this will prevent the sagging skin. If you lose weight too fast you will end up with loose skin 90% of the time. 

7. Some people have done weekly body wraps with great success, but it can get messy. You can do this as an option but it's really not necessary. As an option, you can also take a supplement called collagen. 

As I stated above, one key to increasing the elasticity of your skin is to keep your body well hydrated. Yes, drinking water will do this. The average person needs at least ½ an ounce of water per pound of body weight. Possibly more depending on the type of exercise you do on a daily basis. The reason why so many people end up with loose skin after losing weight is because they go on low carbohydrate diets that will in turn dehydrate the body. If you lose weight and are dehydrated in the process you will see the weight go down but unfortunately most of the weight being lost is nothing more than water weight. If you are losing 2-3 pounds per week you are doing great. If you are losing 4-6 pounds you are pushing the limit. Any more than 6 pounds per week and you are sure to end up with loose skin after losing the weight because chances are you are restricting too many carbohydrates from your diet. Cutting out refined flours/breads and sugars will yield the best results. 

Also, instead of getting on the scale every week to measure your progress, go more by how your clothes are fitting. I always tell my clients to try on the tightest pair of pants they have and then follow my program for 4 weeks and then try them on again. After 4 weeks those tight-fitting pants will be a thing of the past.

Follow all the above and you will see amazing results.

8 tips for losing weight the healthy way

Almost 108 million Americans were overweight or obese in 1999. Until now, obesity continues to be a serious problem and has reached epidemic levels in 2020.

One way to prevent this scenario is to make people aware of the risks of being overweight or obese. 

Here are some diseases that you are putting yourself in risk of if you are carrying a lot of extra pounds: 

1. heart disease

2. stroke 

3. diabetes

4. cancer

5. arthritis

6. hypertension

A healthy weight helps to prevent and control these diseases. 

The quick weight loss methods which have spread like fire these days do not provide lasting results. More often than not, dieting methods which involve dietary drinks, foods and supplements (except for those that don't naturally occur in food but are necessary for your body's optimal function) or pills do not work. If they do, the results are just temporary. 

It is better to rely on a healthy weight loss option which will provide lifetime results. You have to set realistic goals and not expect to lose a lot of pounds in a short span of time.  

Here are some tips on how you can lose those unwanted pounds the healthy way:

1.   Do not starve yourself. 

The key to a healthier way of losing weight is: Do not diet. 

You may seem happy and feel that you are losing those unwanted flabs on your belly and thighs by skipping meals. But remember that this would not last long. Your body cannot tolerate having insufficient food to fuel the energy that you use up every day. 

If you get used to skipping one or two meals a day, your stored calories will be used up instead of the energy that should have been provided by your meals. So, if you just eat one huge sandwich in one day, it will end up straight to your problem area (i.e. highs, buttocks, hips). 

2.  Start your day right. 

Mothers always say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Have a healthy meal in the morning to jump-start your metabolism. 

Your food intake after you wake up will be used to burn fat all day long.

3.  Eat small, healthy meals frequently. 

Five small-serving snacks per day is better than three hearty meals. Eating more frequently, and in small servings, can prevent overeating. This will also increase your metabolism and make calories burn faster. 

4.  Decide on how much weight you want to lose. 

Keep your goals realistic. In the long run, it is virtually impossible for you to lose 40 pounds in 2 weeks. Have a mindset that you want to eat healthy to stay healthy for the rest of your life. 

Once you have decided on a weight loss plan or program, stick to it and make sure that you follow your own set of dieting rules.  

5.  Drink lots of water. 

Your body needs sufficient water to burn fat and keep your cells hydrated and healthy. 

6.  Avoid too much sugar. 

Plan your meals around lots of fruits and vegetables, some bread, rice or pasta for that carbo fix that you need, plus lean meat and protein rich foods. Sweets, sodas and pastries should be once-in-a-while indulgences only.

7.  Watch your fat intake. 

Fat is not the culprit to being overweight. You need this to keep your weight at the proper level. 

There is such a thing as healthy fats. Olive, avocado, peanuts and canola oil have them. Tuna, salmon and mackerel have omega-3 fats which is good for the heart.  

8.  Exercise. 

Leave your car if you are only going a few blocks from home, take the stairs instead of the elevator, jog, cycle or skate. Use these activities and other home chores if you are too lazy to go to the gym and take exercise classes. Make sure that you do this regularly and you will not even notice that you are already shedding pounds with these mundane activities. 

It does not matter how much weight you plan or need to lose. What is important is that you set realistic goals for yourself. 

Go slow. If you have already lost 5 or 6 pounds, give yourself a break then try to lose the next 5 pounds. 

Eat healthy, drink lots of water, have enough sleep and exercise. This will give you a higher chance of losing weight and improving your health, which would result in a new, healthier you.

6 Tips to Eating The Right Way

When you think about achieving a healthy weight, what do you think of first? Which aspects of getting to a healthy weight are important, which are essential, and which ones can you take or leave? You be the judge. 

Once you begin to move beyond the basic “eat well, move more” concept, you begin to realize that there's more to getting to a healthy weight than you may have first thought.  

It probably comes to you as naturally as breathing—the art of eating.  However, you might never have been taught to eat well.  This is critically important because, unless you learn to eat well, you may never master the art of living a healthy lifestyle.  In our society, certain inappropriate eating habits have become routine.  By attacking these habits, you can increase the likelihood that you will actually achieve a healthy weight.

To begin with, it is important that you learn to eat slowly.  At first, this might be quite a challenge.  We have been conditioned to live in a fast-food world.  We rush meals in order to have time to run to soccer practice, to a piano recital, or to school and work.  We think that rushing saves us time—but such a routine can easily backfire, leaving us with unwanted pounds.  Studies have shown that at least 10 minutes is required before the brain receives the message that the stomach is full.  This means that you could be eating long after you are actually satiated.  Your meal—whether it’s in the morning, afternoon, or evening—should last at least ten minutes.  Train yourself to lengthen your meal by engaging in conversation, resting your fork between courses, chewing slowly, and drinking plenty of water between courses.  You should also wait at least ten minutes after your main meal before deciding if you need dessert.  Within that period of time, you may discover that you weren’t really hungry after all.

Another trick is to place serving dishes on the counter and leave them there.  As a result, you’ll actually have to get up out of your seat in order to get more food.  You may decide that it’s not worth the bother.  Or you may find that you discover that you need no more food between courses.  Also, do not eat directly from an ice cream carton, tortilla chip bag, or cracker box.  Otherwise, you could find yourself easily overeating.

You should always eat at the table.  This prevents you from trying to engage in multitasking, such as surfing the ‘Net, watching television, or flipping through magazines while you eat.  At the table, you’ll be forced to concentrate on how much food you are putting into your mouth.  If you eat anywhere else, you may lose track of how much food you’re consuming.

Abandon the idea that you must clean your plate.  It is simply not true.  Research has shown that more than half of adults insist on cleaning their plates, even when they are already full.  This means that you are overeating simply out of politeness.  Such a habit only serves to add unwanted pounds.  Instead of cleaning your plate, try eating only that portion of food that makes you feel full.  You’ll be healthier and happier that way.

Do not keep food in plain view during the day.  If the cookie jar is open or the pretzel bag is out on the table, you’ll have a tremendous urge to eat, even if you are not hungry.  After a meal, put your food away in the refrigerator, inside your cupboard, or in the Lazy Susan.  This way, you’ll actually have to do some work to get at food before you consume it.

If you happen to overeat, don’t spend a great deal of time sulking.  Accept your mistake and move on.  If you’ve veered off course, take corrective action and forget about it.  Otherwise, you could find yourself eating out of frustration, or going off your plan entirely.  It’s better to sabotage a single meal than a lifetime’s worth of meals.  

You may be self-conscious at first as you attempt to change your eating habits.  Realize that your bad habits did not start overnight, so it will take some time to correct them.  While it may seem an arduous task initially, it is well worth the effort.  You’ll quickly find that your new eating habits have helped you to lose unwanted weight.  Granted, such techniques as hiding your food and eating more slowly will not in themselves cause you to achieve a healthy weight, but they will help you to curb your overeating over the long run.  And you’ll be a better person for it.  

Take time to consider the points presented above. What you learn may help you overcome your hesitation to take action.

2 Tips to Eating Out Wisely

Many people I know love eating out at different cafes and restaurants. They love trying out new places almost as much as they love returning to their old favorite spots. They love trying new menu items and discovering new ways to eat the foods they enjoy the most. Eating out can be both a wonderful and very dangerous thing.

In America we are blessed to have restaurants dotting the streets of many towns and cities of all sizes. We are rarely at a loss for places to eat out. One of the greatest things about eating out is that it saves time that many busy people do not have to waste. After spending long hours at our workplaces, few people have the time or energy to return home and cook a gourmet meal. Eating out seems to be a great solution at the end of a long, tiring day.

Eating out can also be great because we can try a wide variety of foods and drinks that we don't have the ability to make ourselves. No one loves eating the same basic foods over and over again, so eating out can be a good way to give our taste buds something new.

However, if we are not careful, eating out can also be dangerous for a couple of big reasons.

First, we must use caution in eating out for the sake of our health. Most restaurants and cafes offer huge portions of items that are unhealthy to eat and drink. Eating out often means filling up on appetizers, a main course, a few high calorie beverages, and a dessert to finish off the evening. Think about how many calories you can consume during a meal like this. I am not, of course, saying that we should never enjoy eating out. I am, however, saying that we need to be careful, for our health's sake, about eating out too frequently. We must be careful to watch our choices when we are eating out. Choose healthier items or commit to only eating half of the meal you choose. There are ways of eating out healthily, it just takes conscious effort.

Another huge reason to be careful about eating out too often is your pocketbook and budget. It is no secret that eating out costs more, on average, than cooking meals in your own home. It is easy to accumulate large bills, especially at nicer places. So be careful that you stick to a budget when you make plans for eating out.

Beware. Eating out can be one of the greatest pleasures or one of the most dangerous things. Enjoy it, but do it with caution.

Five Keys to Exercise and Burn Fat on a Busy Schedule

In my health and wellness consulting business, I get the opportunity to talk with people from all walks of life about their health, fitness, and weight loss goals. Whether their goal is to lose weight, gain muscle, stick to a diet plan or program, improve their cardiovascular health, or simply to maintain their current fitness level they all have one common enemy---TIME.

For most of us, the #1 challenge in the quest to stay in shape and/or lose weight is not exercising itself but being able to actually fit an exercise program into our busy schedules.

So how do you do it? How do you balance the demands of family, career, important errands, relationships, organizational responsibilities, and working out? I have found that there are five keys that will help you to be able to fit a consistent workout plan into your already hectic life.

Commit to a specific schedule

When you fail to plan you plan to fail. Don't try to haphazardly fit your workouts into your schedule without any rhyme or reason. Don't think you're guilty? If you've ever told yourself "I'll workout as soon as I get some time", you were in direct violation of this key principle.

In order to set yourself up for success, you will need to take the time to literally write your workouts into your weekly schedule. In order to be effective, you will want to follow your exercise program at least 3 days per week. Anything less would be kidding yourself.

Therefore, right in the midst of all of your appointments, "to-do" lists, etc., should be a written plan for your weekly workout routine, so that you will never be in the dark as to when you committed yourself to sweat!

Utilize the weekend

Take advantage of the fact that it only takes 3-5 days per week to put together an effective, results-producing workout. One trick to help you pull it all off is to workout on the weekends. One of the benefits to this course of action is that your schedule is more flexible and under your control during this time.

What it also means is that when the hectic weekdays roll back around, you will only be responsible for working out 1-3 days during the work week. (This worked for me back in the day when I worked outside the home.)

Keep your workouts as a high priority

One of the biggest mistakes that even many people who have scheduled a workout program into their schedule make is allowing it to be bumped off of their schedule too easily.

Although things will occasionally come up that will cause you to have to reschedule the workout you had planned, you must be vigilant in making sure that only the most important emergencies are allowed to temporarily take you off of your plan.

In the event that one of those important emergencies does happen and you can't make it to your workout, reschedule with yourself to make it up on the next possible day that you are available to do so. If your own health, fitness, and efforts to lose weight are not a priority to you, they certainly won't be so to anyone else.

Enroll others in your goals

Don't go at this alone. Let the important people in your life know what you are up to. Your spouse or love interest, parents, children, co-workers, and close friends will often pitch in and help you to meet your fitness or weight loss commitment to yourself if you make them aware and ask for their support.

Leverage these relationships to delegate some of your normal responsibilities or even allow you to shift appointments that you have with them as you restructure your schedule for your workout. If any of them are into exercise or trying to lose weight themselves, don't hesitate to form a buddy system with them as you move forward with your program.

Don't beat yourself up

No matter who you are, there will be times in your workout program that you just aren't able to keep it up as you would like due to outside demands.  Don't be too tough on yourself when that happens.

Remember that it is what you do consistently over a long period of time, not what you do in spurts, that truly counts. Just make sure that you get back on the horse full force as soon as you can and continue to press forward, doing your best to avoid slacking off again.

No matter what goals you have for health, fitness, or weight loss, you CAN fit an effective exercise program into that hectic schedule of yours and be amazingly successful at getting the exact results that you want!

How to Lose Weight At Home Without Starving Yourself

Many people believe that weight loss is a painful thing. To shift those stubborn pounds, you must go hungry all the time. Many are afraid to even set a weight loss goal because they can’t stand the thought of going hungry and the frustrations that it brings.

For a lot of people, it's just better to be overweight than to suffer hunger pangs. 

Well, who can blame them? 

If the only way to lose weight or stay slim was to go hungry all the time very few people would be at their ideal weight and the vast majority of the planet would be extremely overweight! It isn’t necessary.

Our body is a marvelous device. It is truly amazing! Its natural rhythm and internal workings tell us when we are hungry. It has a self-protection mechanism that lets you know when you need to stock up on fuel. A hunger signal is the body notifying you that you NEED to eat in order for you to sustain a healthy level of energy and have the reserves necessary for healing, repair and maintenance of your cells. Serious hunger pangs are a strong self-preservation signal from the body that it is in danger and needs food immediately to restore its balance. These signals should not be ignored!

Your body has no idea that food is in plentiful supply and that it is one of the cheapest commodities of the 21st Century. Your body is acting the same way your ancient ancestor’s bodies worked. The general design of the human body hasn’t changed one bit since then. When your ancient ancestors were living in caves they relied on their ability to hunt for food to feed themselves. Sometimes they would go days or weeks without a kill and the body would send them warning signals that they were in serious danger. When they did eat, the body immediately, being still in self-preservation mode, stored as much of the energy as it could in reserve as FAT! Your body works in exactly the same way today.

Starving yourself just doesn’t work. It goes against nature to think that you can starve yourself and lose weight. Of course, there are people who just don’t take in anywhere near enough food to sustain themselves, but we all know the effects of this kind of dieting! When you’re done starving yourself and resume eating normally, you can gain up to twice as much as the weight you lost in half the time. In fact, starving yourself could be a sign that you have an eating disorder. Please seek help from a medical professional if you find yourself skipping more than 2 meals a day on a regular basis.

So, we know that starvation diets don’t work, and you don’t want to spend 2 hours a day in the gym. How do we lose weight then? Well, the good news is you do not have to go hungry to lose weight. Nor do you need excessive amounts of exercise. The truth is, eating regular nutritional meals and allowing your body to fill itself to satisfaction is the key to reaching and maintaining a healthy, slim body. By not allowing yourself to go hungry you will in fact avoid overeating - which is the very thing that usually happens when you break a starvation diet.

One method is to eat five or six, fairly small, healthy meals divided up throughout your day. Instead of eating three large meals at breakfast, lunch and dinner, divide the same quantity of food into 6 meals instead and eat an extra small meal between a small breakfast and lunch, one between lunch and dinner and if you are hungry later have another one. Try to avoid having the last meal close to bedtime, anytime up to 2 hours before bed is all right. 

Don’t wait when you feel hungry. Eat as soon as you can. If you wait for a long period of time before you eat your body will go into panic mode, thinking that you don’t have enough resources to feed it and you will overeat! Therefore, eating frequent yet smaller meals will help to keep your body satisfied and you will be less likely to over-indulge.

Do not miss a meal in the hope that it will help burn some extra calories. You may believe that by skipping a meal you will save some calories or fat intake, but, as you have seen, the opposite tends to happen. In addition, if you go for a long period without a meal, you are much more likely to over-indulge when you get fed-up and can‘t take being hungry anymore. 

Did you also realize that by skipping meals you are actually slowing down your metabolism? Because your body thinks there is a food shortage it not only stores extra fat but it also slows down the amount of fat it burns. The body’s natural survival instinct is triggered, you put on extra weight and burn fewer calories and fat. As the body burns fat to convert into energy you will find that you become lethargic and tired. Starving yourself just doesn’t work!

In addition to eating smaller, more frequent meals, you should also teach yourself to eat slower. Place your knife and fork down between every bite and chew for a few seconds longer than normal. It can take us up to twenty 20 minutes to realize that the body is full and completely satisfied. When you eat at a fast pace “stuffing“ food into you before you have time to recognize the “full“ signal your body is sending your brain. When you eat at a slower pace you start to recognize these signals from your body and train yourself to identify them at an earlier stage.

Get a few minutes more of non-exercise activity (outside of your regularly scheduled work out session). To some of you this may sound like a lot. But all you have to do is split it up throughout the day. Leave for work with an extra 5 minutes to spare and walk to a bus stop further away from or park the car 5 minutes further away than you usually do. At lunch, take a 5-minute stroll or take the stairs instead of the elevator. Walk to the local shop instead of driving. It is easy to complete 15, 30 or even an hour of extra exercise everyday if you split it up like this. And remember don’t starve yourself, it just doesn’t work! Again, starving yourself could be a sign that you have an eating disorder. Please seek help from a medical professional if you find yourself skipping more than 2 meals a day on a regular basis.

How to Eat to Live and NOT Live to Eat

Eating is an essential part of life. We cannot sustain life for long without eating, so it is important that we take the time to learn how to eat well in order to have the best life possible. Our views of eating and the eating practices we adopt will affect our lives and our health in significant ways in the months and years ahead. Eating well can literally change everything.

Eating can be both a blessing and a curse. Many people struggle with eating because they cannot keep it in balance. They end up eating too little or too much and do not live healthy lives because of it. We all know the dangers of eating too little. Probably everyone has at least one friend that struggles with an eating disorder of some kind. That friend just cannot seem to get a grip on their eating patterns and they are unhealthy because of it. They think about or talk about food almost constantly.

Other people struggle with eating too much. Eating more food than we need to live is something that the majority of people, at least in the West, struggle with. Eating is associated with most kinds of social activities and events and therefore people learn to eat for reasons other than to satisfy hunger or prolong their health. Eating becomes a way to experience pleasure or to numb the pains of life.

The bottom line is that whether people struggle with eating too little or with indulging on food too much, they are not using food in ways that are healthy and life-enhancing. Eating, while it is definitely meant to bring people pleasure and satisfaction, is primarily to be a means of sustaining a healthy life. Our problems begin anytime eating is neglected or indulged in beyond what is necessary.

Take a look at your eating patterns. You may be surprised to see that you have established unhealthy eating habits over the years. Perhaps your schedule for each day is centered around when you can have meals or a snack. If so, there is a high chance that food has become a bit too high of a priority. Anytime that your thoughts are consumed with food, whether with restraining yourself from it or with consuming more of it, you are thinking of eating and of food in unhealthy ways.

Giving eating a rightful place in our lives without allowing it to become consuming is the key. Make an effort to keep your perspective about eating balanced and healthy. Your life will be better and longer because of it.

Beginners Guide To Healthy Eating

If you’re currently not eating a healthy diet, it can be difficult to start such a plan. However, healthy eating along with some exercise is very important for maintaining a good bodily function and goes a long way towards living a disease-free life. If you struggle with healthy eating, then you know that breaking unhealthy habits can be the most difficult part of the process. Therefore, if you truly want to live the best lifestyle possible, it is important to follow tips in order to start eating a healthier diet. 

Get rid of temptation.

A great first step when you want to start eating your way to a healthy lifestyle is to rid your home of all temptations that will distract you from following better eating habits. Ideally it would be a wise course to keep junk foods and beverages out of your house so as not be tempted to snack during the day. If you’re worried about getting hungry, keep healthy snacks like carrot sticks, yogurt, fresh fruit, or whole-wheat crackers on hand. If you find that you just cannot bear to toss out the sweets, try keeping something tiny on hand, peppermints or barley sugar. Eating a few, (emphasis on few) of these won’t ruin your diet but also will give you that little sugary fix you crave.

Learn how to listen to your body.

Another great step to healthy eating, when you’re first starting the process, is to take a few moments to learn what foods are the healthiest for you and how they work within the body. To begin healthy eating, we must start with a healthy mindset. Most people understand that fruits, vegetables, and lean meats and dairy products are good for you, but few people understand why. The key is learning about nutrients. When you understand how specific nutrients work and why you need them, it becomes more reasonable for you to make healthier choices for your body. Knowledge really is power!

Preparation is a major key when starting a new healthy diet. 

You must take into consideration your schedule for meals. If you often eat in a hurry at odd times of day, you are probably more inclined to grab fast food which will probably do more harm than good. So, plan ahead! Instead of grabbing a fast-food lunch on the go, take a bagged lunch to work, complete with a healthy wrap and some fresh fruit and vegetables. Remember not to forget your evening meal, a simple plan to have a meal ready before you get home would be perfect, but in our fast-paced lifestyle, sometimes this just can’t be done. One way to solve this problem is to plan out your evening meals for the week, on your days off. Perhaps just before you do your weekly shopping. Another warning: when going to the supermarket, do not go food shopping hungry because if you're anything like me, one or two chocolate bars won’t hurt! That becomes the first break in your healthy eating. 

Initially, many will find it very difficult to make those necessary changes to healthier eating. Along with the difficulty of change, you may not feel well for a short period of time. Usually this is normal as your body is adjusting to your new and improved lifestyle and is cleansing itself from the unhealthy toxins built up from poor eating habits. However, if this feeling continues or you are worried a visit to your doctor would be the correct thing to do.

Start with baby steps and give yourself some grace. 

Even if you only replace one soda a day with a glass of water, you are really improving your calorie intake. If you eat fast food every day for lunch, try replacing that half of the time with better quality foods. When you start by taking small steps you aren’t cutting out all the foods you love all at once. By taking your time to learn about your eating habits and slowly replacing them with better meals, by taking the time to learn and understand why you should be doing that and making the necessary changes in an orderly fashion, you will feel much better within yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally and well on the road to becoming as healthy as you can be.

How to bring more fruit and veggies in your diet

The new food guidelines issued by the United States government recommend that all Americans eat between five and nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day. When you first hear that number, it may seem like a lot, but it is much easier than you think to fit that many servings of fruits and vegetables into your daily diet. For one thing, the shelves of the grocery stores are fairly bursting with fresh fruits and vegetables. In addition, vegetables and fruits are some of the least expensive, most nutrient rich, foods in the supermarket. With all these fruits and vegetables to choose from, it is very easy to make these nutritious, delicious foods part of your daily meals and snacks.

When you consider how much a serving really is, it is actually quite easy to get five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables per day. For instance, the recommended daily amount equates to a quite reasonable two cups of fruit and two and a half cups of vegetables every day. When you consider how many fruits and vegetables are available, and how low the prices usually are, it is easy to see how to reach this daily goal.

One great way to get the nutrients you need from fruits and vegetables every day is to take full advantage of the variety of these foods available. Eating the same thing every day quickly becomes boring, so why not pick a variety of fruits and vegetables, in every color of the rainbow and in every conceivable shape, size and texture, to give yourself a varied diet every day.

When shopping for fruits and vegetables, it is important to choose a variety of different colors. This is for more than purely artistic reasons. The variety of color in fruit and vegetables represent different types of nutrients, and choosing a variety of colors will help ensure you get all the vitamins and minerals you need each and every day.

Finding new recipes is another great way to ensure you get those five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day. Everyone likes to try out new recipes, and these new recipes may just provide the impetus you need to eat all those fruits and veggies.

New recipes can also provide you the opportunity to try out some fruits and vegetables you have never tried before. For instance, everyone has eaten oranges, but have you tried kiwi fruit or mangoes? How about spinach or kale? Trying new things is a great way to find new favorites while getting the best nutrition available.

Many people mistakenly think that they do not need to eat five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day if they just take a vitamin supplement. Nothing could be further from the truth. That is because fruits and vegetables contain far more than the micronutrients identified by science and synthesized in vitamin pills. While these micronutrients, such as vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin E are important to good health, so too are the hundreds of other elements that are contained in healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. These elements are not available in any pill, they must be ingested through a healthy, balanced diet that contains plenty of fruits and vegetables.

In addition, fruits and vegetables are much less costly than vitamin pills. Fruits and vegetables are very inexpensive, especially when purchased in season and grown locally. In the long run, getting the nutrition you need from the food you eat is much less expensive, and much better for you, than popping those vitamin pills every day. 

Having said that, if you find yourself having trouble getting up to 9 servings of fruit and vegetables each day, consider supplementing with a meal replacement smoothie that fills potential nutritional gaps in your diet. I personally enjoy one that contains much of the recommended vitamins and minerals plus prebiotics and probiotics that support a healthy gut, and rarely found superfoods that optimize bodily function including increasing energy, curbs cravings and improves regularity.

So, try your best to get your five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables every day. It may seem like a lot, but you can meet this goal simply by including fruits and vegetables as snacks, as garnishes, as side dishes and as meals or in the alternative, supplement with a high-quality meal replacement smoothie.

Balance your diet, balance your life

When it comes to healthy weight loss, one of the secrets of success is to eat a balanced diet. Balance here means eating the right amount of nutritious food. In our fast food, take-out world, it is easy to get the quantities wrong and also miss out on the quality as well. So eat when you are hungry but don’t overdo it. 

Getting back to the basics is important. Instead of snacking constantly during the day, do your best to eat three regular meals. Cook or have your food cooked using wholesome, natural ingredients and then eat with others in a relaxed manner. It is not only a question of what you eat, but how you eat that counts.

You may be surprised to know that in France, the land of fatty cheeses and gourmet foods, people in general stay slim. The reason is apparent if you go to a local outdoor market where large quantities of fresh vegetables are sold. The French prepare balanced meals and still manage to eat together more often than their counterparts in the USA.

So, sit down with your family and friends and eat nice meals together. If you are troubled by “demon hunger” during the day, eat a few pieces of fruit rather than a donut or any other fattening food.

While there are many fad diets (low fat, low carb, etc.) that are being promoted today, it is far better if you can settle into a way of life that you can easily and happily follow for the rest of your life. 

The traditional diet of yoga practitioners has been a vegetarian diet. The yoga diet consists of fruits, vegetables, grains and milk products. You can not only survive on such a diet, but you will thrive as well, and lose weight all at the same time.

Try it out. Substitute meat dishes with soy products (if you have no allergies), lentils and other legumes, and whole grains. You can get enough protein (especially if you also consume nuts and milk products) so you don’t have to worry about it.

You can also enjoy yourself in the process. Instead of an ice cream thick shake, blend together fruits, juice and yogurt and make a healthy smoothie. Losing weight does not require you to suffer; it is only a question of choosing your food well and balancing your lifestyle. 

If you want to lose weight on a long term basis you have to change your diet or your pattern of exercise or both. Try out a balanced vegetarian diet and if you find it helpful, then stick with it for the rest of your life.

6 tips to prolong your life by 13 years!

We hear it all the time…lose weight for your health. However, few people realize the extent to which this is critical to their physical well-being and ultimately their life expectancy.

In January 2003, the Journal of the American Medical Association featured a study finding that obesity appears to lessen life expectancy, especially among young adults. The study showed an obese 20-year-old white male, (5'10")178cm and weighing (288 pounds) 130kg was estimated to lose 13 years of his life as a result of obesity.

It is now well researched that a Western diet that leads to obesity may actually act to stimulate the growth of cancer cells. It is never too late to improve your health through healthy eating and adopting a healthier lifestyle. Here are simple steps to follow which can make an immediate improvement to your health and vitality.

1. Check to see if you are overweight or obese.

To find out your BMI you need to divide your weight (measured in kilos) by your height (measured in metres) squared. If the result is greater than 25, your health may be improved by losing weight. Having said that, use this a guide only. BMI measurements don’t account for all factors that account for your weight. In other words, if your BMI is at 26 or 27, there is no cause for alarm. Rather, it is a marker to indicate that you should evaluate your diet and activity level to optimize your overall health. 

2. Match your diet to your body’s requirements.

If you eat and drink more calories than your body requires you will put on weight. Learn to control calories and portion sizes, make recipes leaner, and eat infrequently from fast food restaurants. Also learn how to snack with healthful choices.

3. Color your diet with a large variety of colorful, cancer-fighting fruit and vegetables.

There are seven different color ranges of both fruit and vegetables and by choosing between 5 to 9 daily serves from a wide range of fruit and vegetables, we are extending our consumption of cancer (and other disease) fighting nutrients. The prettier your plate, the better.

4. Eat lean protein with every meal.

Protein provides a powerful signal to the brain providing a longer sense of fullness. The right source of protein is essential to controlling your hunger with fewer calories and necessary to maintain your lean muscle mass. Choices of protein should be smoothies with fruit; the white meat of chicken and turkey, seafood such as shrimp, prawns, scallops and lobster and ocean fish.

5. Rev up your metabolism with activity.

If you want to enjoy a lifetime of wellbeing, exercise is a key ingredient. Thirty minutes activity each day that takes as much effort as a brisk walk is recommended for adults. Children should be active for an hour each day.

6. Get support to ensure you develop a healthy eating plan and reach your goal weight.

A study, “Effects of Internet Behavioral Counseling on Weight Loss in Adults at Risk of Type 2 Diabetes” shows that participants who had the support of an accountability partner lost more weight than those who didn’t. The study concluded that the support of an accountability partner can significantly improve weight loss results.

Being overweight or obese has been identified next to smoking, as the most preventable major risk to developing cancer. Even small weight losses have been shown to have beneficial health effects including reversing some of the effects of chronic illness and stroke. So, it’s never too late to start and you can never be too young or too old to be concerned about your health and do something about achieving a healthier weight.

The Top 10 Healthy Eating Habits That Gets You Results

 

In a nutshell, a healthy diet involves:

(1) More home-cooked food, less eating out.

(2) More fresh fruit as snacks.

(3) More fresh vegetables as snacks and with meals.

(4) More beans as sides or in stews.

(5) More dense chewy bread, less refined white breads and bread snacks.

(6) More fish, skinless chicken/turkey, less red meat.

(7) Smaller servings of red meat, larger servings of vegetables.

(8) Eating low fat dairy foods.

(9) Adding less fat in the form of butter, mayo, sour cream, to the food on your plate. This is a huge source of excessive calories.

(10) Stocking up with healthy snack foods to keep hunger at bay. If you fill up with healthy nutritious calories, you won't want the junk foods that hunger makes you eat. As far as weight management goes, hunger remains Public Enemy Number One.

Eat right, feel amazing

One of the most important things to do when you are trying to get in shape is paying attention to your diet. This may surprise you, but this does not take any extra time from your schedule, and you will feel much healthier when you eat the right foods in the right quantity.

One of the best ways to change your diet is to change to an organic one. It is good to increase the fiber in your diet, which will clean out your colon of all negative weight loss inhibitors. This means that instead of eating refined or processed foods, you should eat whole grain foods like brown rice and whole wheat bread. This has more fiber and less bad fats such as trans-fat and cholesterol. 

You should also increase your input of protein, minerals and vitamins. To do this it is good to eat more fruits and vegetables and substitute red meat for fish and chicken. These meats have less calories and fat and still provide more protein. 

One of the most important parts of changing your diet is to completely eliminate junk food. This will include candy, chips, popcorn, ice cream, milk shakes and soda. (but if have a legendary sweet tooth like mine, keep reading. I’ll share some swaps that taste just as delicious but are good for you).You can substitute fruits and vegetable snacks instead. Instead of sodas you can drink water or dilute juice with water for flavor. You will find this makes a huge difference in your sugar and fat intake. 

You will feel healthier and have more energy when you change your diet. At first you may feel a little different with the extra fiber and complete change in food but this will soon pass and your body will work better and more efficiently. You will have more energy and feel like an entirely new, better person.

Keeping fit does not just depend on exercises, diet also plays an important part in improving your body composition. Remember that looking after your health and staying fit is an investment in yourself and something you should not neglect or you will find that you will regret poor health habits later. Diet is one part of staying fit that does not take any extra time and you will reap the benefits throughout your life once you get into a good habit. With these few points you can make huge strides towards staying fit and healthy and being able to do the things you want to do.

As promised, I got the hook up for healthy dessert recipes that help you stay on track and gives you a little flexibility in your routine.