Diet And Exercise Systems.

Top 15 Weight Loss Myths

2012-01-19T07:23:00.005-05:00

There are many common weight loss myths that people live by when it comes to their health. It is difficult at times to separate the weight loss myths and fact from what is true. Many sound true while others are just laughable. I once read somewhere that if you drink water at night that you are going to gain weight or that if you scratch your head too often you are going to lose your hair....

Weight Loss Myth # 1
The more weight that I have to lose the more intense my exercise routine should be

Weight Loss Truth: Although having an intense workout routine is great, there are a few things you should consider: the first being that everyone is at a different level when it comes to their fitness and how much intensity they can actually handle. If you have been physically inactive for a number of years, an intense work out for you might be, walking half a mile a day. After you walk that half mile you notice that you are sweating bullets and that you are tired. However, for someone who has been physically active for many years, walking half a mile can be done without a sweat. Everyone has a different definition of what "intense" is.

If intense for you is working out for an hour a day, but due to life's busy schedule you only have time for 20 minutes a day, then those 20 minutes will go an extremely long way. It might not necessarily be classified as "intense", according to your definition, but those little cardio moments will have positive health altering effects.

Fat Loss Myth # 2
Stress and weight gain do not go hand in hand

Weight Loss Fact: This is one of those "laughable" myths. To learn more how stress is adding lbs. to your life please download my free E-Book, "Psychology of Releasing Weight"

Weight Loss Myth # 3
I can lose weight while eating whatever I want

Weight Loss Truth: Sir Isaac Newton once said " What goes up must come down." There are natural principles that govern our lives. If you throw a ball up in the air, it is going to come back down. You can sit on your couch and imagine and visualize that the ball will staying afloat in the air, but natural principles teach us that it will come down. Same goes when it comes to our weight.

This is one of the most common weight loss myths out there. It is illogical to think that your health and weight are going to be in balance if your nutrition consists mainly of twinkies, chips, and donuts. Sure you can burn it off by exercising, but most people whose diet consists of mainly junk food are probably not disciplined enough to stick to a workout routine. I do know a few people who, from the outside, look like they are in good shape, because they are not "fat, but who have high cholesterol.

Just because I feel sorry for crushing the hearts of so many twinkie lovers out there, I would say this. You can eat junk food, cookies, chips, ice cream, pizza, burgers.... All of those "soul satisfying foods", but it should be in moderation. Anything in excess is never good.

Fat Loss Myth # 4
Skipping meals is a good way to lose weight

Weight Loss Fact: There are numerous studies that show that people who skip breakfast and eat fewer times during the day tend to be a lot heavier than who have a healthy nutritional breakfast and then eat 4-6 small meals during the day. The reason to this might be the fact that they get hungrier later on in the day, and might have a tendency to over eat during other meals of the day.

Weight Loss Myth # 5
I will not lose weight while eating at night

Weight Loss Truth: You can over indulge in food during the day and not eat a single thing at night and you WILL gain weight. As is the fact that you can starve yourself during the day and eat all night long and you still will gain weight. The key here is balance. If your body is telling you that it is hungry then perhaps you should listen to it. The truth is, that over eating, while not exercising, will cause you to gain weight; no matter what time of the day that you eat. Whenever I am hungry at night, as is my habit with other meals during the day, I try to select something that is natural in nature. Something like fruits, vegetables, or I might even make myself a fruit smoothie. During those moments that I am craving ice cream or something sweet, I allow myself to get some, and DO NOT feel guilty about it. Many people who are overweight live their life in guilt and shame. I allow myself to get some, however, WITH MODERATION.

Fat Loss Myth # 6
I'm not acceptable until I lose weight

Weight Loss Fact: The person who doesn't feel acceptable because they are fat is because they are not acceptable to themselves first. The way that you think others view you is based on your view of yourself. I honestly believe that one must become emotionally fit before becoming physically fit. I have gone through these self-limiting emotions before. Once I realized that I was ALREADY ENOUGH in the eyes of God and that I had no need to prove myself to anyone or to receive external validation for my self-worth, that made all the difference for me. Once you accept yourself as who you are RIGHT NOW and realize that you are already enough in the eyes of God, you will not feel like you are not acceptable because of your weight.

Weight Loss Myth # 7
I need to cut calories to lose weight faster

Weight Loss Truth: Cutting your calories down might be a great thing, if you are drastically overeating and stuffing your face. However, if you are eating proportionally then cutting calories might have an aversive affect. If you are cutting calories and are starving your body, then that will lower your metabolism, or in other words slow it down, which may result in you actually not losing any weight at all, even if you are "cutting calories"

Fat Loss Myth # 8
Skipping meals will help me lose weight

Weight Loss Fact: Skipping meals may actually cause you to gain weight! You will become too hungry and will eventually have to eat. This will knock your metabolism off track and will eventually slow it down. Think of a car running low on gas (food), if you do not fill it up, it will eventually stop working. Same goes for our body, we need to keep it fueled constantly.

Weight Loss Myth # 9
I think I have genetic weight gain, it runs in my family!

Weight Loss Truth: Can someone say E-X-C-U-S-E-S? I will not deny that there might be tendencies for heavy parents to raise heavy children who will remain heavy their whole lives, but I don't believe that there is actually a "fat" gene or DNA out there. What we do inherit from our family, primarily those who directly raised us, are our views and beliefs. Your views about food, money, religion, politics, education, etc. are based upon how you were raised. If you were raised in a home where the primary meals cooked where fried foods, then you might have a tendency to continue cooking and eating fried foods throughout your life. If that is the case then you might be a little heavy around the waist. The easy thing to do is to blame it on those who were in charge of your upbringing, however, you ALWAYS have a choice to change.

Fat Loss Myth # 10
Eating healthy is too hard

Weight Loss Fact: Eating healthy is the simplest thing in the world.....once you have trained yourself to do it. How many times have you placed a goal to lose weight or to "eat better"? The first few days you are doing great, eating all kinds of foods which you normally wouldn't eat. Then something funny started to happen, you went back to your old habits and behaviors. This has happened to you in other areas outside of your health. It could be with making money, looking for a new job, or in your relationships. Creating a new habit takes time because our brain's do not like change. Change to the brain is dangerous. Anyways, if you would like to learn more about how our brain attempts to sabotage us from creating new habits then please download my free E-book, "Psychology of Releasing Weight"

Weight Loss Myth # 11
You have to give up your favorite foods to lose weight

Weight Loss Truth: What would a world without chocolate and without pepperoni pizza be like??? I think it would be a torturous world to live in!! lol, now on a real note I completely disagree with this myth. You are definitely able to eat your favorite foods. Depriving yourself of this kind of pleasure is not fun, and quite frankly you probably WILL eat it anyways. As has been mentioned before, the real key is moderation. If you are a steak lover, then perhaps it might not be the best things to eat it every single day, but perhaps once or twice a week. Those who know me personally know that I LOOOOOOOOVE chicken wings with pizza. In a perfect world where I wouldn't gain any weight and my arteries were clog-less, I would love to eat it several times per week, well more like every day. However, I know that those aren't the healthiest of food choices so I have it about 2-3 times per month. I am not giving up my favorite foods, I am just eating it in moderation so that it doesn't catch up to me in the form of excess weight.

Fat Loss Myth # 12
Overeating is caused by hunger

Weight Loss Fact: Nice try there. If only we could blame "hunger" for it. In fact, this person we call hunger has nothing to do with you OVEREATING. It might have something to do your body telling you that it is time to "fuel up" and that it needs food, but that is not an indication that one should overeat. What causes many people to overeat are different reasons. One of the main ones is feeling of stress, depression, loneliness, anxiety, fear, and other down grading emotions of that nature. Many times food can be a means of satisfying your needs. You might be actually getting your needs met through your foods. For example, if you live a lonely life, and aren't very happy, then food could perhaps be a means of you feeling happy and comforted. There are other articles that I have written on this subject but suffice it to say that overeating is NOT cause by being hungry.

Weight Loss Myth # 13
Only drastic diets work

Weight Loss Truth: There goes that word again...DIEt....those "drastic diets" are only good for quick weight loss and rapid weight gain once you get of it. These drastic diets range from the "cookie diet", lol.... All that way to "the water only diet"..... I am sure you can lose weight while on these DIEts, however the weight will be gained right back and usually with some added weight as a bonus

Fat Loss Myth # 14
I am too fat and too far down the road to begin

Weight Loss Fact: A long journey begins one step at a time. It is natural to expect instantaneous results and to even fear the road ahead of you; especially if you are extremely overweight. The secret here is to make SMALL incremental changes. Don't expect perfection because that will lead you to disappointment. You are never too far down the road to where you cannot see the sun's light......

Weight Loss Myth # 15
I can't do it, I have tried many times and have failed

Weight Loss Truth: The great Henry Ford once said "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't- you're right.'"......It is 90% mindset, and 10% actually getting off your butt and doing something about it. You fall down, you get back up.... you fall down again, you get back up again. If you have tried to lose weight in the past then it is time to keep trying. Discouragment is to losing weight as is a piece of fried chicken to a vegetarian......they DO NOT go hand in hand.

[Http://PsychologyOfReleasingWeight.com]

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Jump Rope For Weight Loss

2012-01-17T08:02:00.001-05:00

Skipping is such a good way to burn calories and lose weight it's also cheap which makes it one of my most recommended exercises.

Although it may take a little getting used to and a little tricky to find your rhythm, once you get skipping can be one of the best forms of cardio. All you need is a little space and a skipping rope which can normally be bought for around $5 - $10.

More benefits of jump rope/skipping below.

If your just starting out or you've never jumped rope before then this may be a little frustrating at first. But once you get that rhythm going and your timing improves you will amaze yourself.

Start off slow and try and ease into a faster pace, if you slip up and get tangled up in the rope thats fine just keep trying. The way I learned was when I was training for boxing and my trainer made me do push ups or sit ups every time I stuffed up. I guess it fast tracked my learning because I rarely miss a beat now.

Once you've start to get a little rhythm and can skip without fault its time to add a little style to your form. you can make skipping as challenging as you wish and push yourself to new extremes.

Running On The Spot

This is where you skip and run on the spot, you can speed up and slow down to suit what ever speed your comfortable. I recommend doing 3 minutes at medium pace then going all out for 1 whole minute. Increase your time as you get better and fitter.

Criss Cross

This is where you cross over the skipping rope while jumping it crossing over back and forth. Criss crosses are great to mix things up and it keeps the mind thinking. Once you have a good rhythm going you will be surprised how easy it is.

Double Unders

This is where you jump with both feet together and swing the rope twice in the one jump. This forces you to jump higher and swing the skipping rope faster. If your game go for a triple under.

Side to Side

Side to side is where you jump from one side to the other left to right while jumping rope with both feet together.

Around The World

By Warren Wheeler

Time to do some circle work. Grab your skipping rope and skip like your running on the spot then slowly skip around in a circle. This one will test you but once you get it you can try going around both ways.

Grab a skipping rope next time your at the shops and give it a go.

Click this link - Best Fat Burning Programs to view the programs I strongly recommend for men and women.

If your interested in more information about skipping, ab exercises or cardio then check out my home page and navigate through the links get started here - burn belly fat fast.

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Cardio and Fat Burning Workouts - Time is Short

2012-01-17T07:52:00.002-05:00

By Joe Gagliano

Okay so that's how many hours this week on the treadmill doing your "cardio and fat burning workouts"?____ (fill in the blank) Really, and how's that working out? Yeah I could've guessed. If you are spending more than 3-4 hours a week and not losing 1-2 pounds of fat your wasting your time.

In a second I am going to show one of the most effective and efficient cardio and fat burning exercises there is. But first.

Are you using any of these workouts for fat burning and cardio?

* Weight Training

* Kettlebell Training

* Interval Training

* Circuit Training

If not then you need to start and if you are and not seeing the results in fat loss then you need to up your intensity.

Let me give you one of the best cardio and fat burning exercises I know (and truth be told if you were to do it as I tell you it is a workout by itself).

The Kettlebell Snatch (Can be done with a dumbbell but a kettlebell is much more effective). First let me tell you how to do it.

Proper start position for the kettlebell snatch, stand up straight and push your butt out as you bend over. Make sure to bend your knees slightly and to keep your back flat. Look forward and grip the kettlebell really hard and keep your body tight. Flex your butt and abs as hard as you can.

In one smooth motion, swing the kettlebell back between your legs and quickly reverse the swing forward. As the bell swings forward snap your hips and keep the kettlebell close to your body. Use the momentum to drive the kettlebell overhead.

Cardio and Fat Burning Workout With the Kettlebell Snatch. This is how I have been using the snatch you may have to scale back depending on your conditioning. Follow my lead here and you will Burn fat like you can't believe.

Set #1 Do 1 rep each arm

Set #2 Do 2 reps each arm (I'm sure you see where this is going)

Continue up to 15 reps each (or whatever your conditioning allows) Oh wait you thought you were done? Wrong!

Set #16 Do 14 reps each arm

Set #17 Do 13 reps each (yep all the way back down)

Like I said that's your whole workout that day a cardio and fat burning workout with one exercise. Total time well that depends again on your conditioning but for the best cardio and fat burning 15-20 minutes 2-3 times a week.

The kettlebell snatch is such an effective exercise. Use it with intensity which is how you should approach all your workouts. Add in 2-3 days of weight training, switch out with some interval and circuit training and check you out the cardio and fat burning machine.

The day's of the marathon workouts are over. I don't care what that personal trainer is telling you. A minimum of an hour 5-6 day's a week on a treadmill is bull. Remember anyone can be a personal trainer. There are alot of other effective and efficient exercises and workouts for your cardio, lean muscle gains and fat burning I will be writing about soon. If you aren't up on kettlebell training go to my website The Kettlebell Training Page. I have a lot of free info there exercise descriptions, workouts and more. For more on circuit training, interval training and weight training check out my blog at That Six Pack Abs Look.

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Ab Workout Made Easy

2012-01-16T16:01:00.007-05:00

Now a days it seems everyone wants well toned six pack abs. Abs such as these are not that differcult to get. Stop sucking in your stomach when walking about because with proper exercises you won't have to anymore. Also along with proper exercises you need to take care of your diet. This means have a low fat diet with the least amount of calories in it and have a lot of fiber in your meals. Try eating 5 to 6 smaller meals instead of 2 to 3 bigger ones. This will keep your metabolism higher which results in fat loss more quickly.

All of these ab workouts can be done from the comfort of your own home you don't need to go to a gym unless of course you want to.

Lying Leg Lifts:

This may seem like a simple exercise but is a really effective exercise. Lie down on your back have your legs extended straight out and place your hands next to your buttocks but not under your buttocks as this makes this exercise less effective. Lift both of your legs up at the same time until they are perpendicular to the floor. Then slowly bring them down until they are at about 6 to 10 inches above the floor and then lift them back up again and repeat. Do this 10 to 12 times making sure not to touch the floor.

Circular Lying Leg Lifts:

Doing this exercise is a blast and my favorite ab exercises and is most effective way to burn fat and tone your abs at the same time. Lay down on your back hands behind your neck raise both your feet 6 to 10 inches off the floor keeping your legs straight and while holding your feet at that height make 4 to 6 circles with your feet by using your legs to rotate your feet. Now put your feet back on the floor. Do this 10 to 12 times. You'll notice a burn in your abs and also a bit of a burn sensation in your thighs.

Toe Raises:

Awe good old toe raises. A very good ab exercise indeed. Laying down on your back hands beside your buttocks not under keeping legs straight raise your feet 6 to 10 inches high and hold for 10 seconds then put feet back down on floor keeping legs straight. Do this 10 to 12 times.

Sit ups:

Everyones heard of these. Lay on your back and keep your legs straight. With your hands behind your head around back of neck simply situp and touch your knees with your elbows. Do this 10 to 12 times. A simpler less advanced version of a situp all you have to do is bend your knees and situp and touch your knees with your elbow.

Roman chair crunches (ADVANCED AB BLASTING EXERCISE):

If you have a roman chair great but you don't need one to do this one. Caution this is a advanced ab blasting exercise and you should not attempt this one until you've done the above exercises for several weeks. To do this you can use your living room table one that is really sturdy and strongly built as it has to be able to support your full body weight, I can't stress this enough. First off you'll need a partner to hold your legs and feet down unless you've got a roman chair. Sitting on a table that is long enough for the length of your legs at least to your leg joints by the knees and your buttocks seated at the edge of the table with your partner holding your legs down by sitting on your legs. Next from a sitting position at a 90 degree angle with your hands behind your head lay down so that your body is at a 180 degree angle or as close a it can be to 180 degrees, in other words from sitting normally to laying down flat on your back. Your upper body will be suspended in mid air over the edge of your table. Now sit back up normally. Repeat 5 to 7 times. As you get more used to this advanced ab exercise repeat 10 to 12 times. You can also do a more advanced version of this exercise by holding for 5 to 10 seconds in the laying down position but only when you are ready to do this. Repeat this advanced version 10 to 12 times.

You should also in cardiovascular exercises such a running, bicycling etc. Also if you experience any pain from ab exercises you need to slow them down or even stop them. Feeling a burning sensation though is normal and is whats needed to melt away fat and tone muscle. I suggest that you do these exercises 3 time weekly every other day such as Mon. Wed. Fri. take the weekend off and then repeat. Do this for one month and then start doing them 5 days a week and take 2 days off and repeat. You'll be amazed at the results.

Article by: Arnim Krause

Want more ways to exercise?

Why Most People Fail At Losing Weight

2012-01-15T14:42:00.005-05:00

Why do so many people fail at losing weight? Is it because they are lazy? No. Is it because they are addicted to food? No. Is it because they aren’t good at exercising? No. Failure at weight loss stems from a few main factors:

People don't truly understand the risks of being overweight. Why do most want to lose weight? Most would say to look better. Looking better certainly is a benefit of losing weight, but this shouldn’t be the sole reason to lose weight. There is a 1000 pound gorilla in the room and it’s often ignored. Being overweight for a long period of time kills thousands of people each year. Thousands of studies have shown and proven without any doubt that losing body fat will improve and lengthen your life. Knowing the dangers of being overweight is a tremendous motivator to not only lose fat, but to keep it off.

People don't commit to permanent lifestyle changes. So many people think of a "diet" as something temporary. When they are on a "diet" they restrict themselves so much that they are miserable. Sooner or later failure is inevitable because of the unreasonable demands of most "diets." Some of these diets force you to only eat certain foods (e.g., no carbs, special soups etc…) You, like myself, have probably tried them before. The key to losing weight long term is to make gradual lifestyle changes you can stick to forever.

Most individuals are not provided the truthful facts of losing weight and becoming healthier. With the conflicting information in the media, and all of the different lose weight quick fad diets, it’s understandable why so many people really don’t know the truth about losing fat and keeping it off long term.

Most people don't understand they are constantly either gaining fat, or losing fat. There is no in-between. Some people justify binging or giving up because they hit a small road-block. This isn’t an all or nothing game. For example, when I was overweight, if I ate an unhealthy lunch, I’d go ahead and eat an unhealthy dinner since I already "messed up" the day. Or I’d say, I’ll start eating healthy on Monday since I’ve already eaten poorly this weekend. Every person at times eats too much. The successful people will not let a road bump completely derail their entire lifestyle change. If you are not implementing positive lifestyle changes and losing weight, you are gaining weight. Again, there is no "in-between."

Most people don't realize what they consume each day. So many overweight people eat thousands of extra calories and fat without realizing it. It’s tough to know if you are gaining weight or losing weight each day unless you are keeping an eye on what you’re consuming.

This article was written by Mandy, the creator of FreeWeightloss.com, and the author of theUltimate Weight Loss eBook.

Lady Doctor Gets Death Threats for Revealing TOP SECRET Fat Loss Secret to

2012-01-08T17:56:00.000-05:00

A new breakthrough secret is all you now need in order to forever shed countless pounds, stay healthy, and add many years to your life!

A lady doctor from Arizona has blown the lid off the best-kept secret in weight loss ever discovered -- and this has the whole diet food and drug industries turned upside down and in nothing less than a torrential uproar.

Her name is Dr Suzanne Gudakunst, and she's marching to the beat of a different drum.

And no, nothing about her "secret" is difficult -- nor does it require that you do something completely out of the ordinary or anything unnatural.

Instead, the Arizonian boasts proudly "...this is something that I caught onto just before 2002 when there was so much research and exploration going around concerning the human colon and digestive system working in harmony with nutritional absorption, and I started doing independent studies just to test things at first ... but which I later expanded on after seeing some fantastic results."

This same woman medical practitioner went on to accurately determine a definitive correlation between harmful plague and parasitic infestations of the human bowel tract, and people suffering chronic obesity -- and who despite intense diet and exercise appeared to be unable to lose any weight whatsoever.

Over the course of six years the Arizona doctor developed a number of natural treatments for the removal of these same harmful, even life-threatening plaques and rapidly reproducing digestive parasites -- and when applied to even worse-case patients suffering extreme obesity (98% of which were in immediate danger of dying) she saw a 100% effectiveness and success rate.

She then borrowed from her research on the severely obese, and applied the same strategies on milder cases of overweight persons -- only to find the same effectiveness and quality results as described above (although the individual weight loss per subject wasn't nearly as much as those obese patients 100 lbs to 200 lbs or more overweight).

So powerful is her secret that she's able to reverse diabetes, rid illness altogether in people suffering from cancer (linked directly to poor diet and overweight factors), as well as an elimination of an entire spectrum of serious and otherwise life-threatening diseases.

Nearly 100% of all her case subjects were told in the alternative by "conventional doctors" that they either had just months or years to live, or they would never live a life anything resembling remotely a "normal" existence -- yet after applying Dr Suzanne's treatments saw a complete contradiction to others doctors' prognoses.

Again, nothing about her secret is unnatural or requires someone to do any major action or modification in their lives.

In fact, her entire treatment is based completely on built-into-nature 'protection agents' scattered throughout the world in the form of select herbs, extracts, and organic constituents, and which can be found in a variety of plants -- but when combined in specific combinations and carefully chosen amounts make for a solution to what is perhaps the world's worst ever plague: OBESITY (and the illnesses and diseases resulting from it -- or at least severely aggravated or exacerbated by it).

Now to everyone else's great gain, whether suffering from just a few extra pounds and inches, to those extremely fat and overweight, this brave, bold lady doctor is releasing to the general public her secret for forever destroying the tight unrelenting closed-fist of obesity's stronghold over the now more than 40% of Americans labeled obese, and others worldwide.

But she's not promising any of us for how long.

Some experts and sociologists suggest that in the bigger scheme of things, the world will never tolerate a discovery of such magnitude, any more than it would be realistic to expect a car that runs on water (even if very real) to ever become commercially available to the general public for day-to-day use.

One well-respected and famous diet & wellness author wrote years ago that if anyone ever "truly unlocked the keys to permanent fat loss, they may actually suffer the same fate as JFK."

It is currently available at:

Top Fat Loss Secret

...so you may want to head on over there now and get it and before someone or "something" gets it forever yanked out of ever getting in YOUR hand at least.

It's in a very easily readable format and is quickly and readily understood and mastered by anyone with even a 4th grade reading level.

While you're there, why not scroll down and review for yourself the huge successes others are now having with this incredible breakthrough in rapid, massive weight loss and extremely improved and enhanced health, now made freely available to the rest of us?

How Many Carbs Should I Eat in a Day?

2012-01-06T11:32:00.000-05:00

Everyone eats carbohydrates. You pretty much can not get around it. We need carbs for energy after all. But the questionstill remains: how many carbs should I eat in a day? Are there drawbacks from eat too little or too many carbs? What are theside effects of eating carbs or abstaining from eating carbs? Well once again, as with protein, it depends on what you do on a daily basis. Furthermore, ingestion of carbs should be focused more around the question: WHEN should I eat carbs during the day?

As with how much fat to eat in a day and how much protein to eat in a day, it all depends on a couple factors:

* job
* insulin resistance
* activity level
* target body weight
* exercise goals
* lifestyle

The most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans, as stated by the Department of Health and Human Services, suggest that roughly 50% of your daily calories come from carbs. Thus, a person who eats approximately 2,500 calories per day should take in about about 300 grams of carbs. This number is not altogether bad for the average American, but we have to take into consideration the sources of those carbs.

These are the kinds of carbs to avoid at all costs:

* sugary snacks and pastries
* sugar-sweetened soft drinks or fruit juice
* candy
* cookies
* regular fried greasy chips
* processed, packaged snack foods
* high sugar kids cereals
* processed white flour products such as white bread and pasta

These foods offer virtually no nutritional value, and they contain far too many calories. Some of these foods also contain saturated and trans-fats that are bad for your heart, and sugary foods can lead to such maladies as type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Specifically if you are already insulin resistant, you should avoid these bad carbs as they will just ruin your day by making you tired, slow, dumb, and hungry

Instead choose these kinds of carbs:

* fresh fruit
* vegetables
* whole wheat and whole grain products
* beans, nuts, and other legumes

When Do I Need More Carbs?

People that exercise with high intensity or with prolonged endurance, can benefit from a high carbohydrate intake before exercise. It is feasible to consume a high carbohydrate meal before a marathon, or a moderately high carbohydrate meal before lifting weights or martial arts training. It is not a good idea to consume too many carbs in one sitting, but 50 grams is not out of the question if you are preparing for a physically draining event.

During and after exercise is also a key time to consume carbs. In fact this is the only time it is recommended to consume sugary carbs. I tend to sip on Gatorade during a workout and my post-workout drink contains about 40 grams of carbs in the form of dextrose. If allowed to choose, I would choose Biotest Surge as my post-workout drink of choice. This is a product that is specially formulated to replenish lost glycogen stores and restart protein synthesis after a demanding workout.

When Do I Need Fewer Carbs?

There is no need to eat carbohydrates at night. Ever. Some folks believe in consuming a high-carb meal the night before an event like a marathon, but I just don't see it. I would say eat that meal in the morning if the event is in the late morning or early afternoon. The best time for a high carbohydrate meal is in the morning, when your body is prepared to uptake glycogen for energy for the day. Lunch should be a moderate carb meal as you don't want to get that 'bonk' feeling in the middle of the afternoon. Also consider that if you don't plan to exercise during the day then there is really no need to gulp down many carbs at any point in the day.

Carbs and Fat Loss

If you are on a fat loss diet, then there is definitely no need to eat more than 100 grams of carbs in any one day. I don't necessarily support Atkins, but there are valid points to that diet. When I am in the middle of a hardcore cutting phase, trying to get as lean as possible in a given time frame, I will only consume 20-30 grams of low glycemic index carbs for breakfast.

For lunch I will try to avoid most carbs, opting for whole grain bread or a salad if necessary. My pre-workout drink is typically 1/2 a serving of Biotest Surge, I sip on Gatorade during the workout, then finish off with 1 serving of Biotest Surge after the workout. On non-workout days, I skip all of that and choose a protein bar, cheese, or a meat snack instead.

Dinner is always low carb during a diet. Soup, meat and vegetables, and salad are all great choices for low carb dinners. Appropriate snacks are meats, cheeses, protein bars or shakes, veggies, and other super-low carb foods. Typically in the midst of a diet phase, I eat around 75 grams of carbs on a non-workout day, and maybe 120-140 grams of carbs on a workout day.

In conclusion, I recommend that if you are moderately active, you should derive maybe 30% of your daily calories from carbs. Sure, my opinion differs from specialist government agencies, but that is only because I have seen low carb diets work. I have also seen Americans grow obese and suffer from a long list of carbohydrate induced diseases.

A 200 lb man on a 2500 calorie diet would probably eat maybe 180 grams of carbs in a day, all from unprocessed whole food sources. A 140 lb woman on a 1500 calorie diet might only eat 100 grams of carbs in a day.

Someone on a strict diet might limit themselves to 50 grams of carbohydrates a day regardless of sex or weight. Just remember to avoid those nasty sugary processed carbs so that you can stay healthy, avoiding energy crashes and adult-onset type II diabetes.

Steve Hanson - About the Author:

Steve Hanson has 10 years experience in the fields of exercise science and sports nutrition. He writes articles on all forms of athletic training and nutritional theories. View the blog to learn more about your favorite exercise and nutrition topics. Articles on Conditioning, Weightlifting, Powerlifting, Strongman, Diet, Nutrition, and Martial Arts :: Project Swole http://www.projectswole.com

Tips On Healthy Dieting To Lose Weight

2012-01-03T08:03:00.000-05:00

There is really a lot of information about the tips for losing your weight and healthy dieting techniques. Some of the tips are intriguing because they are not very realistic for a lot of folks. The people have to face them amidst tight work at office and other family related works.

You will be hearing many pieces of advice that have existed for quite a long time, but sometimes it is rejected by thinking that they are not significant. This is because people provide diversified information on the same issues. People have to learn the value of taking their meals more frequently on a single day.

Diet and Exercise

The quantity of your food you consume at a time is not fully converted into energy, but will become fat. If you are interested in increasing your metabolic rate, you have to take food at regular intervals of time, but with fewer calories.

You should not say that you have no place in your budget as a reason to perform exercises. In fact you need not have to spend a lot of money, every month, on this count. Doing exercise is certainly essential and you can do that for totally free. Walking is a fantastic exercise and you can gradually begin to do vigorous trekking. There is no expense involved in these exercises. You have many types of exercises that you can do at home. You can discuss with your friends and chart out a plan regarding this. It is simple to look for alternative exercises also.

Take care of the preparation of foods. The best way to prepare your greens is to steam them. Great steamers are available for utilizing to steam all kinds of foods. When you steam green vegetables, the benefit is that there will be very little loss of nutrients contained in them.

People take pleasure in eating favourable foods at restaurants. Consuming great sized dinners are an unhealthy way of eating in a day. The best solution to avoid this is that you better stop eating just before getting that full sensation. If possible, you can look at a children’s menu and order a more regular size meal.

You will come to understand that there are so many small things, which the people tend to do, have an effect on their diets. But people could not avoid these wrong habits. As eating habits will have a great impact on the health of the people, they have to be vigilant in watching their food habits on a daily basis.
By: Chitrang

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If you are really interested in weight loss programs it is better to consult the website getfityou.com/ and derive the benefits.

Dieting for Weight Loss

2012-01-02T11:44:00.001-05:00

by: Lance Miller

The most common reason that people cite for dieting today is weight loss. While most of us would love to claim the noble mantle of dieting for health the vast majority of us are doing so for vanity. This, however, is a perfectly acceptable and plausible reason for making the lifestyle changes that are necessary in order to diet. In fact, this reason might prove to be a far greater motivator than many of the other commonly stated reasons for dieting.

When dieting for weight loss one of the most common complaints is constantly feeling hungry. In order to help combat this, you might want to incorporate some of the following strategies into your dieting program. First of all, eat more high fiber foods. Whole grains, apples, pears, and lima beans are a great source of fiber as are many breakfast cereals. Easy does it however when it comes to fiber as it may be filling but there are some unpleasant side effects that may accompany heavy fiber eating (remember that beans are a good source of fiber). Try using a product such as Bean-o when consuming larger amounts of fiber. You might also try spreading your fiber intake throughout the day rather than consuming all your daily fiber at once.

Another method for feeling fuller when dieting is to drink plenty of water while dieting. Water provides an important service to the body and is very necessary when it comes to delivering all the nutrients where they need to go. Water also helps regulate your metabolism, which is very important to the dieting and weight loss process. Additionally, water will help you skin retain its elasticity so that your skin can go more easily back into place once the serious weight loss begins.

Learn to control your portions. We live in a world where portions are over inflated and super sized so often that we no longer know what an appropriate portion looks like. Restaurant meals are quite often more than adequate for at least two full meals and that is before salads, soups, appetizers, or desserts have been ordered. Learning to portion correctly can save you from over loading your calorie intake for the day massively. It can also help you get extra helpings of the lower calorie foods such as lettuce and other vegetables rather than taking such large portions of calorie rich starches or fried foods.

Do not go "Gung Ho". There are limits to what the body and the mind can handle. When you go on a diet you are making a drastic change to your bodies caloric intake. If you go overboard you can lead to health risks along the way. Begin cutting calories a little at a time and incorporate changes as you go rather than going in with an all or nothing attitude. If you go overboard with your dieting plans chances are that you are dooming your diet to failure.

Take your diet one step at a time for the best results and be sure to incorporate extra physical activity into the mix. Even gardening when done on a regular basis can burn calories, so can cleaning the house, and playing with the little ones. Take a walk to the park or the corner store rather than getting in the car and pull a wagon or push a stroller while you're at it. The added weight will be just enough resistance to burn a few extra calories.

Dieting for weight loss does not necessarily have to be a major sacrifice on your part but in order to be successful it will be a radical change in lifestyle, particularly if you need to lose more than a few vanity pounds. The health implications of loosing the weight are well worth the required effort and should not be taken lightly no matter how excited you are about your new body that is hiding inside your old one.
About The Author

For more info, please visit http://frankloseweight.com and find out more what I have to offer.
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What Is Raw Food and Why You Should Eat It

2012-01-01T18:10:00.000-05:00

The raw food movement has been growing rapidly over the last few years, by now you have probably heard someone talking about a raw diet, or their friend on a raw diet. What does this mean, and why would anyone want to eat raw?

Food that's considered raw ranges from fruits and vegetables to unpasteurized dairy, raw nuts and seeds, and uncooked meat products. Most people who eat raw consume a mainly vegan diet, so raw milk and sashemi are not consumed regularly. Most who convert to a raw diet do so to achieve the health benefits that many claim to attain after changing their diet. Some of the reasons people eat raw are as follows.

1. Nature knows more about digestion and nutrition than science. It's true that our scientific knowledge about the body and nutrition is growing steadily, but the amount that is unknown is still astronomical. Some people dislike the compartmentalization of the body by science and the isolation of singular nutrients from food, saying a holistic approach is much more effective to health and vitality.

2. Raw food contains enzymes that help with digestion. These enzymes are destroyed by heat, so once food is cooked over a certain temperature the enzymes become damaged. Some people think this is why those who eat mainly raw food tend to look younger than their years.

3. Uncooked and unprocessed foods have life force. Also known as chi or prana, life force is the energy that is contained in living foods. Consuming this life force has spiritual and health benefits for the consumer.

If these are a little too 'airy fairy' for you, there are more tangible reasons to eat raw food. People report substantial weight loss after switching to a raw food diet, and all the health problems that came with their weight problems disappear. With the help of a healthcare professional, people have 'cured' their diseases including (but not limited to) high blood pressure, allergies, skin conditions, bowel conditions, cancer, diabetes and more. You can find a success story for just about every condition out there, that someone has cured themselves of using mainly dietary changes.

So, how much is enough? The general consensus is the more the better. If you want to receive the best health benefits, more than half of your food intake should be raw fruits and vegetables, with a few nuts and seeds. There is also evidence to show that organic and fresh food is best. Although depending on your location, it's more important to do your best than to stress about eating 100% organic.

The best way to get started eating raw food, is to switch one meal per day to be raw. If it's breakfast you could start juicing your own fruits and vegetables and switch that out for your regular cereal and milk. You're likely to lose a few pounds just making that one small change. If you don't want to splurge on a juicer, make your lunch a raw salad every day and try making your own salad dressings to keep things interesting. Once you create the new habit for yourself, it only gets easier.

Kimberly Sawchuk has more information about raw food including easy raw food recipes at http://www.realrawhealth.com. If you or someone you know is looking to lose weight naturally or just want some questions answered about a raw food diet, check out the coaching services at http://realrawhealth.com/services/.

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Here's some food for thought!

2012-01-01T18:05:00.000-05:00

Here is a interesting article that I found on the net that I wanted to pass on to you!

The US Department of Agriculture report "Profiling Food Consumption in America" states that "Although multiple factors can account for weight gain, the basic cause is an excess of energy intake over energy expenditure." Translation, we gain weight when we eat more calories than we burn.

Part of the weight loss challenge is that too many diets and diet experts spend far too much time tinkering around the edges of the problem by selling ideas that have little effect on real weight loss. They promote dieting, intense exercise, pills, supplements and shots. All to no avail.

There is a simple fact that cannot be avoided. To lose weight, you must eat fewer calories than you expend. Nothing else will work.

If you're serious about losing weight there are some things you must know and truths you must face if you're to be successful.

o Burning more calories than you eat is the ONLY WAY to lose weight. You must burn 3500 calories more than you eat in order to lose 1 pound of body weight.

o It is almost physiologically impossible for the average person to lose more than about 4 pounds of body fat in one week. Even with a Basal Metabolic Rate of 2,500 calories and eating only 500 calories each day, it would only be possible to lose 14,000 calories per week, that's 4 pounds. Exercising on top of that or staying on that diet for very long would be virtually impossible for most people.

o Any diet that promises 20 pounds of weight loss in 30 days is talking mainly about losing water weight. To actually lose 20 pounds of body weight in 30 days, a 30 year old, 180 pound woman would have to burn 2,333 calories per day, that's about 233 more than her BMR. That means she would have to spend about an hour on a treadmill every day while eating nothing for an entire month. On a 500 calorie per day diet with no exercise, she could only lose about 12.86 pounds in one month, or about 3 pounds per week.

o There is no pill, product or diet on the market that can significantly increase the number of calories you burn without reducing how much you eat.

Weight loss can only be accomplished by retaining fewer calories than you eat and there are only two ways to do that. You can reduce how much you eat or you can burn off some of those calories through exercise. There is nothing else that will produce weight loss.

So if you are a typical young woman and believe you can lose 20 pounds of fat in one month, here's what you need to do. Just exercise for one hour every day and eat nothing for the entire month. That's right - eat nothing. Go ahead, try it.

Natural weight loss is a fairly simple proposition, if it's faced head on and done in an uncomplicated way. Indulging one's fantasies of losing weight with pills or with the latest "fat burning secret" will only lead to failure, disappointment and loss of self-esteem.

It you don't change your habits, your habits will make sure you never change.

My name is Larry Allen and I spent the last four years researching and analyzing why diets and exercise programs don't work to lose weight and keep it off.

"It's Just A Habit" is an bold, new, weight loss solution that shows you a natural, easy and effective way to lose weight without diets, pills or exercise programs. It provides the support and one-on-one coaching you need to successfully lose weight and keep it off.

Visit our website at http://www.ItsJustAHabit.com and discover why you haven't been able to lose weight permanently and what you can do about it. You can also join our free forum to talk about how habits rule our lives.

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Keep Healthy With Diet And Exercise

2010-02-17T09:56:00.001-05:00

Keep Healthy With Diet And Exercise
by Arnim Krause

If you want to get healthy and lose weight, it is of the utmost importance that you diet and exercise. You can do them individually, but you get the very best results when you practice them together.

One of the hardest things to do is to maintain motivation and goals while training. Life may sometimes just be too busy or too stressful to find time to exercise or eat right. Times like these make it of the utmost importance to be able to keep your goals. This is no easy task, but luckily there are several things one can do to make sure they keep their goals.

Find a buddy. This is probably one of the most useful things that can be done when setting goals. Another person knowing your goals and weaknesses will hold you accountable, so they can cheer you on to your goals. Let them know what you plan for your goals and have them help you maintain them. Have them share everything with you, from work outs to what you eat and low fat recipes, and keep each other updated on how you are doing. When someone is waiting for you to go to a work out, that will give you that little push to the gym on the days when you don't want to go.

Having a schedule and routine is another good idea. Decide when you workout best and stay to that time. If you are more of a morning person, get up in the morning and start your day off with a run or aerobics. If you have more energy or time in the evening, have your work out occur in the evening. No matter what, make it a routine. It takes about three weeks to create a habit, and if you work out consistently, you can help make exercise a habit.

This same philosophy goes to diet as well. Scheduling your feeding time will help you stay about from snacking or binging due to hunger, since you will have filled up already.

Keep your goals in mind at all times. A good idea is to mark every day you keep your goal on a calendar, posted on the refrigerator or somewhere visible. Keep your goals in mind daily through sticky notes or joining online groups.

Make sure your goals are reasonable. Aim high, but have a few goals within easy reach. It's good to have a short-term and long-term goal. A short-term goal could be something simple such as "eat healthy five days in a row" or "Work out five days a week for a month." The important thing about short-term goals is that they are within reach and attainable. Long-term goals could be anything from living a healthier lifestyle to large weight loss goals.

Whatever you do, do not be discouraged and give up. Diet and exercise are difficult. Challenges will come. If you make mistakes, skip exercise or eat too much fatty food or gain weight, just forgive yourself. Everyone makes a few mistakes. Just do not let it keep you from getting back to your goals. These are habits you will keep forever, and it takes a little time to get them. It is possible, and the results are more than worth the sacrifice.

Weight loss diet plans can be seen all over the Internet at your disposal. To find the latest on ways to lose weight, you should find a website that has good ideas. This and other unique content lose weight articles are available with free reprint rights.

Loose Weight made simple!

2010-01-22T19:07:00.000-05:00

Hello and welcome to my blog!

Ok so you want to loose weight but you're not really sure where to start, or maybe you've checked out and/or tryed a few weight loss systems and diet formulations and have not had much success if any!

Don't give up now or ever. You have to have the mindset that nothing will stop you from acheiving your goal for permament weight loss. Don't let anyone discourage you towards your ideal weight, it does not matter what other people say to you or think in a negative way, ignore them! I remember once someone said to someone I know "You're really cute, but to bad you're overweight"! Before I could tell him how rude and inconciderate he was and give him a peice of my mind this someone said to him "Ya I can loose my weight but to bad you can't loose your ugly face"! This someone I'm talking about that had the weight problem is my wife, did she ever give him a taste of his own medicine so to speak!

Now even though I don't know you you are a beauiful person and don't let anyone ever tell you any different no matter if you only need or want to loose a few pounds off or if you need to loose mega pounds off of yourself. You can and will do it, put that trust into yourself and never look back and the weight will shed off.

Now I'd like to address the fact no matter what diet plan you use it is only half complete if you do not exercise! Eating the proper food and taking supplements is great and you can start loosing weight. But put a exercise routine into the picture even just 10 minutes per day can greatly increase the amount of weight you loose when you diet! Start slowly and work your way up in the amount of time and intensity of your exercise routine.

Something that's also very helpful drink lots of water at least 8 glasses per day. Stay away from pop (soft drinks) even the diet pops, they're unhealthy for you and besides the point water is cheaper!

Taking certain supplements such as vitamins/minerals and protein shakes also helps. Then there's weight loss supplements some of which will increase the amount of weight you can loose. When I say some of which I mean not all weight loss supplements work very well if at all and even worst some weight loss supplements can even make you sick! Not good that's for sure!

Now the question that you might be asking is "well then what weight loss supplements work and are healthy for me to take?"

With the hundereds if not thousands of weight loss supplements out there nowadays some of them excellent, some of them not so good and some of them just plain old nasty doesn't work make you ill stuff how do you find out what's what?

Well there's several things that you can do, you can research till you drop till you find a good supplement. Another way is to become a guieny pig and just see what happens, you might actually drop dead for real.

And then there's another way where you can go to a Review Site and get the thumbs up on weight loss supplements that work and are actually good for you as well. You also get to have a Free Trial on various different products that help you loose those unwanted pounds.

Want to read all of the reviews on only the best of the best than I suggest you visit this cool website that I found and then you be the judge! All of the best luck to you towards your weight loss goals and have a good one!

Here's the cool website on weight loss reviews that I found for you.

Now if you want to read and learn more sign up for my 5 part news letter about the Top 10 diet Myths Exposed! There's no obligation or commitment of any sort on your part. This newletter is completely "FREE" to you and you'll receive part 1 through 5 over the next 5 days to your inbox. To get part one in the next few minutes and get started on your weight loss quest Click Here

Weight Loss And Exercise Hand In Hand!

2010-01-20T14:37:00.002-05:00

If you are really serious about loosing weight I suggest that you read a article by Will Brink who is an authority on the subject of weight loss and exercise. By following what he teaches you will loose weight fast guaranteed!

The Big Picture of Permanent Weight Loss

By Will Brink

Most people who read my articles and e-books know me as a science guy who likes to quote studies and apply research to everyday problems such as weight loss, bodybuilding, and other health/fitness related topics. However, sometimes you have to step back from the science and look at the big picture to help bring people back into focus, so they can see the forest for the trees, so to speak.

For most people reading this article, finding an effective diet that works most of the time must seem as complicated as nuclear physics. It’s not, but there are a bewildering number of choices for diets out there. High fat or no fat? High carbohydrate or no carbohydrate? Low protein or high protein? To make matters worse, there are a million variations and combinations to the above diet scenarios to add to the confusion. It seems endless and causes many people to throw up their hands in frustration and give up. In this article I will attempt to change all that.

There are some general guidelines, rules of thumb, and ways of viewing a diet program that will allow you to decide, once and for all, if it’s the right diet for you. You may not always like what I have to say, and you should be under no illusions this is another quick fix, “lose 100 lbs. in 20 days,” guide of some sort. However, if you are sick and tired of being confused, tired of taking the weight off only to put it back on, and tired of wondering how to take the first steps to deciding the right diet for you that will result in permanent weight loss, then this is the article that could change your life…

Do you need to be a scientist to apply what you will learn here? No. A mind reader or clairvoyant? No. A nutritionist or medical doctor? Not at all. What you need to be is open-minded and willing to learn a few key concepts that will allow you to sort through the confusion.

You will be able to apply what you learn here to any diet you are considering and decide if it makes sense, once and for all! The process, however, is neither easy nor quick per se, but I never promised you either of those things… T

his article does not look at specific diets but will teach you to take a logical approach and apply some common sense to choosing a nutritional plan for life long weight loss. If you are willing and able to make a paradigm shift, then let’s proceed.

Does your diet pass “The Test”?

What is the number one reason diets fail long term; above all else? The number one reason is…drum roll…a lack of long term compliance. The numbers don’t lie; the vast majority of people who lose weight will regain it - and often exceed what they lost. You knew that already didn’t you?

Yet, what are you doing to avoid it? Here’s another reality check: virtually any diet you pick which follows the basic concept of “burning” more calories then you consume – the well accepted “calories in calories out” mantra – will cause you to lose weight. To some degree, they all work: Atkins-style, no carb diets, low fat high carb diets, all manner of fad diets - it simply does not matter in the short term.

If your goal is to lose some weight quickly, then pick one and follow it. I guarantee you will lose some weight. Studies generally find any of the commercial weight loss diets will get approximately the same amount of weight off after 6 months to a year. For example, a recent study found the Atkins' Diet, Slim-Fast plan, Weight Watchers Pure Points program, and Rosemary Conley's Eat Yourself Slim diet, were all equally effective. (1)

Other studies comparing other popular diets have come to essentially the same conclusions. For example, a study that compared the Atkins diet, the Ornish diet, Weight Watchers, and The Zone Diet, found them to be essentially the same in their ability to take weight off after one year. (2)

Recall what I said about the number one reason diets fail, which is a lack of compliance. The lead researcher of this recent study stated:

“Our trial found that adherence level rather than diet type was the primary predictor of weight loss”(3)

Translated, it’s not which diet they chose per se, but their ability to actually stick to a diet that predicted their weight loss success. I can just see the hands going up now, “but Will, some diets must be better than others, right?” Are some diets better then others? Absolutely. Some diets are healthier then others, some diets are better at preserving lean body mass, some diets are better at suppressing appetite – there are many differences between diets. However, while most of the popular diets will work for taking weight off, what is abundantly clear is that adhering to the diet is the most important aspect for keeping the weight off long term.

What is a diet?

A diet is a short term strategy to lose weight. Long term weight loss is the result of an alteration in lifestyle. We are concerned with life long weight management, not quick fix weight loss here. I don’t like the term diet, as it represents a short term attempt to lose weight vs. a change in lifestyle. Want to lose a bunch of weight quickly? Heck, I will give you the information on how to do that here and now for no charge.

For the next 90 to 120 days eat 12 scrambled egg whites, one whole grapefruit, and a gallon of water twice a a day. You will lose plenty of weight. Will it be healthy? Nope. Will the weight stay off once you are done with this diet and are then forced to go back to your “normal” way of eating? Not a chance. Will the weight you lose come from fat or will it be muscle, water, bone, and (hopefully!) some fat? The point being, there are many diets out there that are perfectly capable of getting weight off you, but when considering any eating plan designed to lose weight, you must ask yourself:

“Is this a way of eating I can follow long term?”

Which brings me to my test: I call it the “Can I eat that way for the rest of my life?” Test. I know, it does not exactly roll off your tongue, but it gets the point across.

The lesson here is: any nutritional plan you pick to lose weight must be part of a lifestyle change you will be able to follow - in one form or another - forever. That is, if it’s not a way of eating you can comply with indefinitely, even after you get to your target weight, then it’s worthless.

Thus, many fad diets you see out there are immediately eliminated, and you don’t have to worry about them. The question is not whether the diet is effective in the short term, but if the diet can be followed indefinitely as a lifelong way of eating. Going from “their” way of eating back to “your” way of eating after you reach your target weight is a recipe for disaster and the cause of the well established yo-yo dieting syndrome. Bottom line: there are no short cuts, there is no free lunch, and only a commitment to a lifestyle change is going to keep the fat off long term. I realize that’s not what most people want to hear, but it’s the truth, like it or not.

The statistics don’t lie: getting the weight off is not the hardest part, keeping the weight off is! If you take a close look at the many well known fad/commercial diets out there, and you are honest with yourself, and apply my test above, you will find most of them no longer appeal to you as they once did. It also brings me to an example that adds additional clarity: If you have diet A that will cause the most weight loss in the shortest amount of time but is unbalanced and essentially impossible to follow long term vs. diet B, which will take the weight off at a slower pace, but is easier to follow, balanced, healthy, and something you can comply with year after year, which is superior? If diet A gets 30 lbs off you in 30 days, but by next year you have gained back all 30 lbs, but diet B gets 20 lbs off you in the next 3 months with another 20 lbs 3 months after that and the weight stays off by the end of that year, which is the better diet?

If you don’t know the answer to those questions, you have totally missed the point of this article and the lesson it’s trying to teach you, and are set up for failure. Go back and read this section again…By default, diet B is superior.

Teach a man to Fish…

A well known Chinese Proverb is;

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

This expression fits perfectly with the next essential step in how to decide what eating plan you should follow to lose weight permanently. Will the diet plan you are considering teach you how to eat long term, or does it spoon-feed you information? Will the diet rely on special bars, shakes, supplements or pre-made foods they supply?

Let’s do another diet A vs. diet B comparison. Diet A is going to supply you with their foods, as well as their special drink or bars to eat, and tell you exactly when to eat them. You will lose – say – 30 lbs in two months. Diet B is going to attempt to help you learn which foods you should eat, how many calories you need to eat, why you need to eat them, and generally attempt to help teach you how to eat as part of a total lifestyle change that will allow you to make informed decisions about your nutrition. Diet B causes a slow steady weight loss of 8 -10 lbs per month for the next 6 months and the weight stays off because you now know how to eat properly.

Recall the Chinese proverb. Both diets will assist you to lose weight. Only one diet, however, will teach you how to be self-reliant after your experience is over. Diet A is easier, to be sure, and causes faster weight loss than diet B, and diet B takes longer and requires some thinking and learning on your part. However, when diet A is over, you are right back where you started and have been given no skills to fish. Diet companies don’t make their profits by teaching you to fish, they make their money by handing you a fish so you must rely on them indefinitely or come back to them after you gain all the weight back.

Thus, diet B is superior for allowing you to succeed where other diets failed, with knowledge gained that you can apply long term. Diet programs that attempt to spoon feed you a diet without any attempt to teach you how to eat without their help and/or rely on their shakes, bars, cookies, or pre-made foods, is another diet you can eliminate from your list of choices.

Diet plans that offer weight loss by drinking their product for several meals followed by a “sensible dinner;” diets that allow you to eat their special cookies for most meals along with their pre-planned menu; or diets that attempt to have you eating their bars, drink, or pre-made meals, are of the diet A variety covered above. They’re easy to follow but destined for failure, long term. They all fail the “Can I eat that way for the rest of my life?” test, unless you really think you can eat cookies and shakes for the rest of your life…Bottom line here is, if the nutritional approach you use to lose weight, be it from a book, a class, a clinic, or an e-book, does not teach you how to eat, it’s a loser for long term weight loss and it should be avoided.

The missing link for long term weight loss

We now make our way to another test to help you choose a nutrition program for long term weight loss, and it does not actually involve nutrition. The missing link for long term weight loss is exercise. Exercise is the essential component of long term weight loss. Many diet programs do not contain an exercise component, which means they are losers for long term weight loss from the very start. Any program that has its focus on weight loss but does not include a comprehensive exercise plan is like buying a car without tires, or a plane without wings. People who have successfully kept the weight off overwhelmingly have incorporated exercise into their lives, and the studies that look at people who have successfully lost weight and kept it off invariably find these people were consistent with their diet and exercise plans. (4)

I am not going to list all the benefits of regular exercise here, but regular exercise has positive effects on your metabolism, allows you to eat more calories yet still be in a calorie deficit, and can help preserve lean body mass (LBM) which is essential to your health and metabolism. The many health benefits of regular exercise are well known, so I won’t bother adding them here. The bottom line here is, (a) if you have any intentions of getting the most from your goal of losing weight and (b) plan to keep it off long term, regular exercise must be an integral part of the weight loss strategy. So, you can eliminate any program, be it book, e-book, clinic, etc. that does not offer you direction and help with this essential part of long term weight loss.

Side Bar: A quick note on exercise:

Any exercise is better than no exercise. However, like diet plans, not all exercise is created equal, and many people often choose the wrong form of exercise to maximize their efforts to lose weight. For example, they will do aerobics exclusively and ignore resistance training. Resistance training is an essential component of fat loss, as it builds muscle essential to your metabolism, increases 24 hour energy expenditure, and has health benefits beyond aerobics.

The reader will also note I said fat loss above not weight loss. Though I use the term ‘weight loss’ throughout this article, I do so only because it is a familiar term most people understand. However, the true focus and goal of a properly set up nutrition and exercise plan should be on fat loss, not weight loss. A focus on losing weight, which may include a loss essential muscle, water, and even bone, as well as fat, is the wrong approach. Losing the fat and keeping the all important lean body mass (LBM), is the goal, and the method for achieving that can be found in my ebook(s) on the topic, and is beyond the scope of this article. Bottom line: the type of exercise, intensity of that exercise, length of time doing that exercise, etc., are essential variables here when attempting to lose FAT while retaining (LBM).

Psychology 101 of long term weight loss

Many diet programs out there don’t address the psychological aspect of why people fail to be successful with long term weight loss. However, quite a few studies exist that have looked at just that. In many respects, the psychological aspect is the most important for long term weight loss, and probably the most underappreciated component.

Studies that compare the psychological characteristics of people who have successfully kept the weight off to people who have regained the weight, see clear differences between these two groups. For example, one study that looked at 28 obese women who had lost weight but regained the weight that they had lost, compared to 28 formerly obese women who had lost weight and maintained their weight for at least one year and 20 women with a stable weight in the healthy range, found the women who regained the weight:

• Had a tendency to evaluate self-worth in terms of weight and shape

• Had a lack of vigilance with regard to weight control

• had a dichotomous (black-and-white) thinking style

• Had the tendency to use eating to regulate mood.

The researchers concluded:

“The results suggest that psychological factors may provide some explanation as to why many people with obesity regain weight following successful weight loss.”

This particular study was done on women, so it reflects some of the specific psychological issues women have - but make no mistake here - men also have their own psychological issues that can sabotage their long term weight loss efforts. (6)

Additional studies on men and women find psychological characteristics such as “having unrealistic weight goals, poor coping or problem-solving skills and low self-efficacy” often predict failure with long term weight loss. (7) On the other hand, psychological traits common to people who experienced successful long term weight loss include “…an internal motivation to lose weight, social support, better coping strategies and ability to handle life stress, self-efficacy, autonomy, assuming responsibility in life, and overall more psychological strength and stability.” (8)

The main point of this section is to illustrate that psychology plays a major role in determining if people are successful with long term weight loss. If it’s not addressed as part of the overall plan, it can be the factor that makes or breaks your success. This, however, is not an area most nutrition programs can adequately tackle and should not be expected to. However, the better programs do generally attempt to help with motivation, goal setting, and support. If you see yourself in the above lists from the groups that failed to maintain their weight long term, then know you will need to address those issues via counseling, support groups, etc. Don’t expect any weight loss program to cover this topic adequately but do look for programs that attempt to offer support, goal setting, and resources that will keep you on track.

“There’s a sucker born every minute”

So why don’t you see this type of honest information about the realities of long term weight loss more often? Let’s be honest here, telling the truth is not the best way to sell bars, shakes, books, supplements, and programs. Hell, if by some miracle everyone who read this article actually followed it, and sent it on to millions of other people who actually followed it, makers of said products could be in financial trouble quickly. However, they also know - as the man said - “there’s a sucker born every minute,” so I doubt they will be kept up at night worrying about the effects that I, or this article, will have on their business.

So let’s recap what has been learned here: the big picture realities of permanent weight loss and how you can look at a weight loss program and decide for yourself if it’s for you based on what has been covered above:

• Permanent weight loss is not about finding a quick fix diet, but making a commitment to life style changes that include nutrition and exercise

• Any weight loss program you choose must pass the “Can I eat that way for the rest of my life?” test,

• The weight loss program you choose should ultimately teach you how to eat and be self reliant so you can make informed long term choices about your nutrition.

• The weight loss program you choose should not leave you reliant on commercial bars, shakes, supplements, or pre-made foods, for your long term success.

• The weight loss program you choose must have an effective exercise component.

• The weight loss program you choose should attempt to help with motivation, goal setting, and support, but can’t be a replacement for psychological counseling if needed.

Conclusion

I want to take this final section to add some additional points and clarity. For starters, the above advice is not for everyone. It’s not intended for those who really have their nutrition dialed in, such as competitive bodybuilders and other athletes who benefit from fairly dramatic changes in their nutrition, such as ‘off season’ and ‘pre-contest’ and so on.

The article is also not intended for those with medical issues who may be on a specific diet to treat or manage a specific medical condition. The article is intended for the average person who wants to get off the Yo-Yo diet merry-go-round once and for all. As that’s probably 99% of the population, it will cover millions of people.

People should also not be scared off by my “you have to eat this way forever” advice. This does not mean you will be dieting for the rest of your life and have nothing but starvation to look forward to. What it does mean, however, is you will have to learn to eat properly even after you reach your target weight and that way of eating should not be a huge departure from how you ate to lose the weight in the first place. Once you get to your target weight - and or your target bodyfat levels - you will go onto a maintenance phase which generally has more calories and choices of food, even the occasional treat, like a slice of pizza or whatever.

Maintenance diets are a logical extension of the diet you used to lose the weight, but they are not based on the diet you followed that put the weight on in the first place!

Regardless of which program you choose, use the above ‘big picture’ approach which will keep you on track for long term weight loss. See you in the gym!

References

(1) Truby H, et al. Randomised controlled trial of four commercial weight loss programmes in the UK: initial findings from the BBC "diet trials" BMJ 2006;332:1309-1314 (3 June),

(2) Michael D., et al, Comparison of the Atkins, Ornish, Weight Watchers, and Zone Diets for Weight Loss and Heart Disease Risk Reduction. A Randomized Trial. JAMA. 2005;293:43-53.

(3) Comparison of Diets for Weight Loss and Heart Disease Risk Reduction—Reply. Michael Dansinger. JAMA. 2005;293:1590-1591.

(4) Kruger J. et al. Dietary and physical activity behaviors among adults successful at weight loss maintenance. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity 2006, 3:17 doi:10.1186/1479-5868-3-17

(5) Byrne S, et al. Weight maintenance and relapse in obesity: a qualitative study. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2003 Aug;27(8):955-62.

(6) Borg P, et al. Food selection and eating behaviour during weight maintenance intervention and 2-y follow-up in obese men.Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2004 Dec;28(12):1548-54.

(7) Byrne SM. Psychological aspects of weight maintenance and relapse in obesity. J Psychosom Res. 2002 Nov;53(5):1029-36.

(8) Elfhag K, et al. Who succeeds in maintaining weight loss? A conceptual review of factors associated with weight loss maintenance and weight regain. Obes Rev. 2005 Feb;6(1):67-85

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About the Author - William D. Brink

Will Brink has over 15 years experience as a respected author, columnist and consultant, to the supplement, fitness, bodybuilding, and weight loss industry and has been extensively published.Will graduated from Harvard University with a concentration in the natural sciences, and is a consultant to major supplement, dairy, and pharmaceutical companies.

His often ground breaking articles can be found in publications such as Lets Live, Muscle Media 2000, MuscleMag International, The Life Extension Magazine, Muscle n Fitness, Inside Karate, Exercise For Men Only, Body International, Power, Oxygen, Penthouse, Women’s World and The Townsend Letter For Doctors.

Will was a former high level trainer with a rep for getting Olympic athletes, bodybuilders and fitness stars into shape and has gained a reputation for being a no "BS" industry insider who's not afraid to reveal the lies and hype found in the fat loss , muscle building & supplement industry.

He has been co author of several studies relating to sports nutrition and health found in peer reviewed academic journals, as well as having commentary published in JAMA. William has been invited to lecture on the benefits of weight training and nutrition at conventions and symposiums around the U.S. and Canada, and has appeared on numerous radio and television programs and now runs seminars for tactical law enforcement (SWAT).

He is the author, of Bodybuilding Revealed which teaches you how to gain solid muscle mass drug free and Fat Loss Revealed which reveals exactly how to get lean , ripped and healthy completely naturally. Both e-books come with access to his private forums and numerous tools to aid you in either endevour.

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