We all remember someone who could just eat burgers; chips, pizza, cake and she wouldn’t seem to gain any weight from it. We all envied her too. What was her secret? It really wasn’t a secret at all, in fact she probably didn’t know why she could eat so much yet rarely gain a pound.

The reason why she was skinny was because she had a fast metabolism. Metabolism, it’s a word bandied about a lot, but most people really don’t understand the implications. In essence, your metabolism is the rate at how fast your body burns calories.

It’s possible to speed up your metabolism so you can burn calories faster and achieve your weight loss goals. There are various ways to do it, but we all love shortcuts, and one of the most popular shortcuts to this goal is to use what are called “fat burners”. What is a fat burner?

Fat burners are dietary supplements that are designed to speed up the body’s metabolism, thus improving the body’s natural ability to burn fat. By using a good fat burner supplement, you can burn fat quicker due to speeding up your metabolism … you can lose weight in a controlled manner … and you can feel more energized … plus you will be able to lose weight faster than through dieting alone.

But there is a catch to many fat burners. Some have been shown to cause serious health problems and some people complain that they feel anxious or jittery from using them. Fat burners aren’t for everybody. But despite these drawbacks, thousands of people still use them so they can rapidly achieve their weight loss goals. I’m not that big of a fan of fat burners but I understand that there is a demand for them.

On that basis I identified a product that shows promise, it’s called Phen375. With a name like that, it sounds like a pharmaceutical grade drug. That’s because you’re getting pharmacy grade weight loss with this product. It works by increasing your body’s fat burning ability, increasing your metabolism and at the same time it suppresses your appetite.

The results can be amazing because the company that produces Phen375 claims you can lose 5 pounds per week. Put another way, with Phen375 you can lose up to 25 pounds for about the price of a latte at Starbucks each day. Other benefits you stand to gain are you may feel faster, quicker or stronger.

This product is manufactured in a Californian FDA approved lab and according to their studies; it is proven to show an average weight loss of 25 lbs in 6 weeks. Plus it comes with a money back guarantee so either you like it and benefit or you don’t and you get your money back. I personally don’t think this product is right for everyone, but if you do, then it may be worth giving a try. You can find out more about this product at www.phen375.com

It’s the secret wish of most people to look good. But in today’s hectic age, fatty foods, rushed meals, snacking and little exercise is the norm for most of us. Consequently we find our body’s adding on unwanted pounds and inches. Most people go from crash diet to diet with temporary success. This plus today’s sedentary lifestyle results in bodies loaded with toxic waste.

The good news is there’s a way to not only peel off those pesky pounds and inches but also remove toxins from your system as well. This remarkable power is found in a little berry called an Acai Berry (pronounced ah-sigh-ee). Acai berries come from the swamps of Central America and from the Amazon Basin in Brazil.

According to many nutritionists and doctors, acai berries are considered “super-foods”. It’s easy to see why when you consider they’re packed with high concentrations of antioxidants including the proven fat-busting Resveratrol and Anthocynanins, Omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids, amino acids, fibre and other nutrients. Let’s dig deeper and look at the kind of benefits you can enjoy from acai berries.

The antioxidants they contain help you burn fat while fighting free radicals which damages your cells, resulting in disease and pre-mature aging. So acai berries are not only a powerful weight loss food they’re also anti aging and overall health boosting. In fact they aid in hair and nail beauty.

Recently the market has been flooded with acai berry products. But as you might imagine not all acai berry products are equal. We did the work to finally decide on a product that we feel presents the best value on the market today. It’s called Pure Acai Berry. And here’s what’s special about their brand of acai berry.

Many acai berry offers require you to subscribe to a continuity program where your credit card is billed each month. With Pure Acai Berry, you only buy what you need when you choose to. Most acai berry products do not contain enough mg to deliver results. Pure Acai Berry is different; it gives you 1,500 mg per day – a little more than enough for you to see results right away.

You’re getting 100% pure (no extract) unaltered, high potency acai berry. Other companies do not have an ORAC rating, but Pure Acai Berry has a certificate of analysis and purity and the highest ORAC content and is certified organic and is produced in CGMKP facilities. This means you’re getting a high quality product that’s more than worth the investment to look and feel your best.

The maker of this product believes a 1 to 5 pound weight loss is possible per week and they give you a 6-month money back guarantee, so there’s no risk to try this product. That’s a longer guarantee than most weight loss aids on the market. This is a very impressive product and one to keep an eye on. You can find out more about Pure Acai Berry at www.pureacaiberry.com

Can Safflower Oil Really Help You Shed up to 20% of Your Body Fat in 12 Weeks? (My Review of BODA Extract No. 3)

When most people think of safflower, they think of cooking oil. But Safflower is without question the next biggest breakthrough in the battle against body fat.

When I first heard of this, I was initially skeptical. But when I heard more, it all made sense. The key to safflower helping you drop down a couple of dress sizes in a short time is due to its linoleic acid content.

Apparently 25 years of research and 600 studies prove that linoleic acid holds the key to helping you shed 20% of your body fat in as little as 12 weeks! The remarkable body slimming power of linoleic acid has been featured on WebMD, CNN, CBS News and the Today Show. That’s an impressive record to be sure.

Here’s where it gets even more interesting. It’s very possible you could see a 20% drop in body fat without a change in your current lifestyle. This makes this weight loss solution perfect for people who just do not have the time, schedule or discipline to adhere to a strict diet and exercise routine.

I’ve been researching weight loss products for some time now and very few products have 25 years worth of research that validates any weight loss claims. On that basis, I started wondering why no one has taken advantage of this research.

Fortunately a company based in Boulder, Colorado, called BODA Botanicals took the inititive and developed a weight loss product with the active ingredient of linoleic acid.

They call their product “Extract No. 3” and it contains 100% natural conjugated linoleic acid derived from safflower seeds. Their product is even approved by the FDA to claim that it can help you increase lean muscle and reduce body fat. Few weight loss products can live up to this. This is why I see BODA Extract No. 3 becoming the next big weight loss product.

And get this, not only does it help you reach your weight loss goals in as little as 12 weeks, you’ll benefit from the healthy fatty acid in it! It’s like taking a vitamin that’s good for your body and your figure!

BODA Botanicals is a member of the Better Business Bureau. We checked in with the Denver BBB office and found that this company is in good standing and is safe to do business with. Their product is also FDA “GRAS” approved, which means it’s recognised as safe to take.

And to prove their product works, BODA Botanicals have a 30 day satisfaction guarantee on Extract No. 3. So if you’re not entirely thrilled with the results you get, let them know and they’ll issue a full refund, minus shipping and handling. You can learn more about this product at: www.bodaweightloss.com

Did you know that stress can affect your weight? It’s true. There are two ways stress can affect your weight. The first is through what’s called Cortisol. You may have heard recently about Cortisol and how it can pack on the pounds – especially on your torso.

What is Cortisol? Cortisol is a hormone that is produced by your adrenal glands. It belongs in the category of hormones called “Glucocorticoids”. These hormones have the ability to increase blood glucose levels. Out of these hormones, Cortisol is the number one hormone to look for. What’s important to understand is that Cortisol is released when you’re dealing with stress, be it physical, mental or emotional.

Stressors include relationship problems, lack of sleep, poor diet, financial problems, career problems, medical trauma, unhealthy diets and even intense physical training.

When your body and mind perceives a stressful situation, Cortisol shifts your body into the fight or flight response, which pumps glucose into your tissues and blood stream to increase your energy to handle the threat. Over-production of the hormone Cortisol is linked to storing fat on your belly. But there’s a twist.

The type of body fat that primarily develops in your abdominal region is visceral fat. In other words, this kind of body fat is mostly stored around your internal organs and deeper in your torso. Keep in mind most body fat, known as subcutaneous fat, is stored just below the skin. This is a problem, because this visceral fat, being so deep inside the body significantly increases your health risk for heart disease and diabetes.

There is a second way that stress can affect your weight. You’ve no doubt heard of the expression, “comfort food”. For many people, food is an escape from their problems. Many people abuse food just as drinkers may abuse alcohol to find comfort.

Typically the foods that people seek comfort in when stressed are calorie-rich, unhealthy, weight-gaining foods. This can include foods like pastries, chocolate, desserts, ice cream, hot dogs, hamburgers, and chips. Anyone who’s ever seriously dieted knows that just eating one hamburger can ruin days or even a couple of weeks worth of hard work.

Another way stress can affect your weight is that when stressed; a person who’s actively trying to lose weight may become apathetic or depressed and quit their weight loss regime entirely. Learning how to manage your stress is very important if you truly wish to lose weight.

Secrets of Weight Loss Experts Revealed …

It’s the question everyone wants to know, “How fast can I lose weight?” It’s easy to see why people want to know. An event comes up, a school reunion, a wedding, a job interview, or a party. But before I explain how fast you can lose weight, let me give you brief understanding of the following facts.

When you lose weight, you don’t just shed the fat. You also lose a combination of body fat and muscle tissue. There are studies that clearly show that when we diet, the weight we shed consists usually of about 75% fat and the remaining 25% is muscle. On top of that, a lot of weight loss will end up being water loss. This is important to realise because about 70% of your total body weight is water. Now that you realise, the next thing to understand is that there are factors that affect how fast you lose weight.

You see the human body doesn’t lose weight at a typical rate or speed. In other words, there’s no set speed and different people lose weight at varying speeds. The reason why is because weight loss depends on the amount you weigh, your diet, your lifestyle, your level of physical activity, your current state of heath, your metabolic rate, and the level of stress you’re under. Obviously that is a lot of factors to consider when you wonder, “How fast can I lose weight?” Sure, it would be great if you knew unequivocally the rate of fat loss you can expect, but it’s not possible, but now you understand why.

No doubt you’ve seen weight loss claims of losing up to 20 pounds per week. What you’ve got to realise when that happens is that most of that is water weight. There are a couple of problems with this. First, losing that much weight in one week, especially considering it’s mostly water is not healthy. Second, since it’s mostly water weight, the results will be temporary. So what is the ideal amount of weight to lose per week?

Most experts would consider about 3 to 4 pounds per week to be reasonable. However, the catch is, its usually very overweight people who’ll see this much weight lost on average per week. On the other hand, if you have a woman who weights about one-hundred and forty pounds, you can expect about a 1 to 1.5 pound weight loss per week. This is not really fast weight loss. It’s not what you want to hear, but the fact is, the human body is not really designed to quickly shed weight.

Your body is designed to survive famine – it’s hard-wired into your system and that means retaining fat. So when you go into an aggressive weight loss program, your brain shifts into gear to slow your metabolism so you hold onto stored calories in your tissues. This is why so many people hit weight loss plateaus. Another problem with losing weight fast is that you can experience unpleasant side effects such as loose skin, and gallstones. Another problem with trying to lose weight fast is that you’re not training your body to speed up its metabolism and you’re not developing positive new habits that’ll give you a thinner figure. The truth of the matter is, slow and steady wins the race.

Virtually all aspects of the food industry have been hit with the much needed health craze of the world. And through the years we have been dutifully warned that fat is bad. For this reason even the fast food chains and popular restaurants are listing “low fat” items on their menus. However, the fact remains – all fat isn’t bad fat. In fact, our bodies actually need fat . Let’s look a little deeper into the types of body fat and dietary fat to get a greater understanding.

The Two Types of Body Fat

In the human body we have visceral fat and subcutaneous fat. Visceral fat is located in the abdominal cavity and surrounds our vital organs. Too much of this fat can cause serious medical conditions such as hypertension, heart disease and increased risk of diabetes. However, visceral fat also acts as a shock absorber for trauma to the body. Subcutaneous fat is located just under the skin and also acts as a protective layer. Both fatty tissues serve as reserve energy storages and insulators. In addition, fat aids the body in absorbing essential nutrients and even lubricates the joints.

The Four Types of Dietary Fat

As a vital part of dietary intake we need to ingest a certain amount of fat. In our fat conscious society we have undoubtedly seen and heard the many recommendations for ingesting less and less fat for a healthier life. Basically there are four types of dietary fat:

Saturated Fat – This type is mainly found in foods such as meat and dairy products. You may have heard this type of fat referred to as “animal fat”. At room temperature saturated fat remains solid and is either white or cream colored. Fry up some ground beef take a look at the sludge formed in the bottom of the pan after it cools. Now imagine that same sludge fighting its way through your arteries. Saturated fat melts at 86 to 95F; the average body temperature is 97.9F.

Monounsaturated Fat – You’ll find this type of fat in the increasingly popular olive oil varieties, as well as canola, sunflower and nut oils. It is also present in peanut butter, avocados and certain types of nuts and seeds. This type of fat is in the middle of the road as far as the melting point is concerned and only turns solid when chilled. A particularly beneficial function of this type of fat is the ability to raise HDL (the good cholesterol) while decreasing LDL (the bad cholesterol).

Polyunsaturated Fat – The two mains types of this fat group are omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. You’ll find this fat in a number of fish and vegetable oils. This is the healthiest of all the fats listed so far, so it would be prudent to replace the other types of fats with polyunsaturated fats as much as possible in your diet. Take special notice of the caloric intake when using this type of fat as it can be considerably high.

Trans Fat – Unlike the previously mentioned fats which are natural, this type of fat is man made and mainly found in processed foods. Fast food chains are notorious for using trans fats to deep fat fry their menu items.

As a general rule, the unsaturated fats are better from a health standpoint and trans fats should probably be avoided altogether. When you look at the nutritional value of any given fat-containing product you’ll find there is usually a combination of the fats listed above. The essential fatty acids containing omega 3 and 6 are commonly referred to as fat burning foods and can help in weight reduction. Now that you have a better understanding of good and bad fats, be sure to pay greater attention to food labels boasting “low-fat” and “reduced-fat” options.

It might surprise you to know that people who are overweight generally don’t breathe in enough oxygen. That’s likely a statement you probably haven’t heard before. But if you look at the evidence, many people on bottled oxygen tend to lose weight. Of course, acquiring bottled oxygen isn’t a viable option. Why is breathing properly important for you to lose weight?

Breathing is a great degree responsible for releasing some of the toxic load on your body and aids in digestion. In fact, your breathing is responsible for removing close to 70% of bodily waste products in the form of carbon dioxide. Now if you’re not breathing properly this means you’re not releasing enough toxic material and your other body systems such as your kidneys and liver have to work overtime to remove toxic waste product.

Take into consideration, that many foods are processed, packed with ingredients that the body regards as toxins. For some people, they experience food allergy reactions, which can express itself in a variety of symptoms. One of which is shallow breathing. When you’re engaged in shallow breathing, the body is not taking in enough oxygen for metabolic processes to work optimally. This is important to realise because the secret to almost effortless weight loss is speeding up your metabolism – and breathing properly plays a role in helping you lose weight.

Consider for most overweight people, their breathing is somewhat restricted. The extra layers of weight may hinder proper posture or cause a person to make a habit of bad posture so their diaphragm doesn’t expand fully as they breathe. You may have heard how pregnant women may sometimes have trouble breathing fully, this happens sometimes even for thin pregnant mothers. It’s also true that for sedentary people, their breathing function is in a weakened state.

The solution is to fix the problem by breathing more fully, because adding a healthy breathing routine to your weight loss program is proven to make fat melt away. The reason why it works is because when you add extra oxygen to your body fat, it will undoubtedly break down into water, which flows into the blood stream and then through the kidneys where it’s excreted as urine. It is also excreted through breath as carbon dioxide. So where do you begin?

First, you want to practice healthy breathing techniques. Generally speaking, you can do this by inhaling slowly and deeply through your nose. Keep in mind a proper inhale takes about five seconds, from there you exhale slowly through the mouth, emptying your lungs completely. You want to breathe with your belly and not in your chest or throat as most people do – which is shallow breathing. You want to work toward breathing six to eight breaths per minute.

Next, you want to begin to engage in exercise. This will help you develop a breathing habit that works to remove toxic waste material and ultimately help boost your metabolism. As you begin to develop a better breathing habit, and practice your routines, you’ll notice that you’ll have newfound energy. With this newfound energy, you’ll feel better, and will have more desire to engage in more physical activity, including exercise and sports. The answer to the question, “Can breathing properly help you lose weight?” is without a doubt – yes.

Chances are you’ve heard of an amazing type of weight loss product called fat blockers. These products have received a lot of press, that’s because they’ve made it easier to maintain and lose weight than ever before. How’s this possible?

The conventional method for most people to lose weight consists of engaging in a diet of some sort. And most diets require the dieter to dramatically alter their eating habits. For most people, maintaining a new diet is very difficult and many ultimately fail at their venture. One of the key reasons why people fail is that most restaurants are not accommodating and schedules often don’t cater to the diet a person is embarking on.

But what if there was a way you could eat most of the same foods you already enjoy or make your diet even easier, without packing on the pounds? That “way” already exists in what are called fat blockers. Essentially what a fat blocker does is it prevents your body from absorbing the fat content of the food you’re eating. So here’s how this works.

You buy a product that’s a fat blocker. You take it before or after you eat a meal and the fat blocking ingredients in your system block the fat you eat from your meal from attaching to your body. The end result is you don’t keep packing on belly fat or fat in any other unwanted areas. For the dieter, this makes dieting much easier because you can have the fat blocker product instantly accessible in your handbag and use it as needed during your daily schedule.

Most fat blockers are safe, and use natural ingredients that work in tandem with your body. Scientists in universities have evaluated various fat blocking agents and shown that they do indeed work. The result is, that various companies produced a product based upon those ingredients. You may have heard of some of these fat blockers. As you might have guessed some fat blockers are better than others. The one fat blocker that really got our attention was a product called Proactol. Here’s the interesting thing about Proactol.

Users of this product report amazing results such as one man dropping 106 unwanted pounds. One woman claimed she went from 95kg to 62kg in 8 months. Another woman claims to have gone from a size 16 to a size 10. The active ingredient in Proactol is a patented fibre complex that is from a nutritious cactus called “Opuntia ficus-indica”. The non-soluble fibres in Proactol come in contact with dietary fats and instantly bind with them to form a fluid gel around the fat. When this happens, the fat particle becomes too large to be absorbed by the body and is then safely passed through the body.

According to the makers of Proactol, this product is clinically proven to bind up to 28% of dietary fats. You ingest 2 to 3 tablets after a meal. The prices are reasonable for a product like this and it appears that it’s of good quality since you’re getting 100% natural, organic ingredients. The makers of Proactol also offer a full money back guarantee if you’re not delighted with your results. This product has appeared in The New York Times and The Telegraph.co.uk publications.

You can find out more about this product at: www.proactol.com

When we think of increasing our exercise plan, or even starting an exercise regime, many find all sorts of excuses… limited finances, busy schedules, other health concerns… but when you consider walking to a healthier you, no excuse will work. Walking is the cheapest, easiest to incorporate into everyday lives and the least strenuous type of exercise.

Why Walk?

• Improved stamina and energy levels
• Increased blood flow/circulation
• Heart and lung health
• Aid in reduction of cholesterol and elevated blood pressure
• Assist weight loss and reduction of body fat
• Reduces everyday life stressors

How Much, How Often and Where?

These questions are all answered on an individual basis, but walking can be incorporated into every lifestyle with any budget. Ideally you’ll want to set a goal of 10,000 steps a day. It may sound like an intimidating number, but you must consider the amount of steps you already take in any given day. Chances are you walk to the kitchen more than once, the car a couple times a day, the bathroom several times a day, around the office to get to the fax machine or talk to a co-worker, and around the house chasing after kids. You can purchase a pedometer to count the steps for you, or you can just simply come up with a guestimate. Ten minutes of walking is equivalent to about 1,000 steps.

Walking five times a week is a good goal, especially if you are walking to lose weight and increase cardiac flow. First, you’ll want to get your resting heart rate. Then use the target heart rate calculator to find out where your heart rate needs to be in order to get the best benefits from your walking routine. A brisk walk for 30 minutes is equal to about 3,000 steps and you’ll burn about 300 to 400 calories! Top that off with a sensible diet and you’ve got a weight loss program that hasn’t cost you a penny.

One of the biggest reasons people excuse themselves from walking more is time. Think about this: How much more time does it take to park your car back a little further in the car park to get in a couple more steps? How much more time are you losing if you take half of your lunch hour to walk around the building a couple of times instead of sitting in front of your computer? There are many opportunities to walk most of us just don’t think about. Instead of sitting there counting the minutes until your child has finished their karate lesson, get up and take a power walk. If you use public transport, get off a stop early so you can walk the rest of the way. Take the dog for a walk instead of letting him dig up the garden. Walking your kids to school is another great way to incorporate additional walking.

Walk Wise

Contrary to popular belief you don’t have look like one of the typical power walkers swinging your arms wildly and walking faster than half the joggers you’ve seen to reap the many benefits. Take it one step at a time and gradually increase until you’ve reached your goal. Try adding on 1,000 steps a week and you’ll be at 10,000 a day before you know it!

Of the two types of body fat, subcutaneous, meaning under the skin, is the easiest to get rid of but also the most visible. From a woman’s perspective, not only are we prone to subcutaneous fat around the thighs, buttock and hips, we also have to battle visceral fat in the abdominal area. Visceral fat, considerably harder to get rid of, is easier to hide as it is tucked around organs in the peritoneal cavity, but also carries much greater health risks. Subcutaneous fat serves as a cushion of sorts for our bodies, as well as an energy storehouse. Therefore, the body requires a certain amount of fat to run properly. The problem we commonly run into is an over-accumulation of fatty tissue that becomes unsightly and a health hazard.

The thoughts of cottage cheese and dimpled skin plagues those with and over-abundance of subcutaneous fat. Not only that, the skin shows evidence of scarring, or stretch marks, when too much pressure is expended to contain the fatty tissues. Skin has a normal elasticity component, but like when a pregnant woman develops stretch marks in the abdomen, a body carrying too much fat can react the same way. This especially happens when skin is stretched too far, too fast.

Liposuction and fat transfer (moving fatty tissue from one area of the body to another) are common procedures to rid excess fat, however there are risks associated with any procedure. The best way to get control of your health and body is by improving your diet and engaging in regular exercise. Keep in mind, you cannot eliminate fat cells by healthier eating and a regular exercise regimen, but you can dramatically reduce the size of the fat cells. Aerobic exercise is a great way to slim the body and create more energy.

Weight loss occurs when the caloric intake is less than what is expended. Because subcutaneous fat is an energy storage, this is the energy that is going to be used first of the fatty tissues (subcutaneous vs. visceral). Diet alone will decrease weight, however greater loss is obviously achieved when diet is used in combination with an appropriate exercise program.

The argument stands that some fat is good, but you can definitely have too much of a good thing when fatty tissue is the debate. Slim figures still have fat, and it’s a good thing. Overweight individuals, no matter the sex, should definitely consider revamping dietary intake and sedentary lifestyles in terms of overall health and vitality. Our culture today is obsessed with picture perfect bodies. Using that to fuel a weight loss goal isn’t the best idea and can result in more damaging results than good. The ultimate goal should be to strive for a nutritionally balanced diet and routine exercise for a healthier you! Half the battle is in finding the right diet that will work for you. Add in physical activity you actually enjoy and you will be, feel and love the health-conscious difference you’ve made in your life!