3 Day Diet, Lose 10 Lbs in 3?

Dec | Leave a Comment

Everyone, it seems, is trying strange fads or ingesting crazy concoctions to lose weight or improve their health. They want a get slim quick fix, or an easy elixir of youth, or something else equally absurd instead of to take the time actually required to improve health. The latest fad is called the 3 day diet, and it claims that, by consuming what it tells you to, you can lose ten pounds in three days. Come on, what are we foolish. It tells you to eat saltine crackers, toast, eggs, tuna, coffee, tea, apples, cheese. All regular stuff, nothing magical or “high tech” in any of it, and in 3 days, you’re supposed to lose all of that weight. I have trouble believing it.

If it is true, it is probably because of the small amount you eat on the 3 day diet, and it probably is mostly “water weight.” Water weight means that what you lose is mostly water flushing out of your system, and very little body mass is actually reduced. Losing water weight is actually pretty pointless since it just means getting dehydrated. This can be dangerous, and is certainly unhealthy.

The best way to lose weight is the old, traditional way, in my opinion, although it takes a little longer. You exercise regularly, eat lots of green leafy vegetables, and also fruits in moderation, cut out processed and fatty foods, and don’t snack between meals. Also, very high carbohydrate food is not really good for your diet either as it will fill you up with calories. This is not a 3 day diet, or even a 30 day diet, but nonetheless, within a couple of months, you will be slimmer and healthier, and happier too.

There are diets that are outright dangerous. The Atkins diet, for example, works by throwing your liver into ketosis by eating nothing but lots of protein. This can cause liver damage, and in some cases, death. Nonetheless, it does make you lose weight at a high rate of speed, but once you get off it, you will probably gain the weight right back.

If you are going to get on a 3 day diet program, one thing to consider is what kind of exercise to do to supplement your dieting. Jogging is very good, but can be hard on your knees. Bike riding is a little safer on your joints in the long run. One of the best exercises, however, is swimming, because it is zero impact and exercises the whole body. Personally, I like to swim for at least half an hour every day. Nothing makes me feel healthier or more refreshed.

Posted by Admin | Filed Under Weight Loss

Perfect Body — What Is That Exactly?

Dec | 1 Comment

In search of the perfect body? First we must know what perfection is!

Today, our society places a great deal of emphasis on the so-called perfect body. Both men and women engage in this quest, some quite obsessively. Plenty of people work out daily at the gym, counting calories, carbs and fat as though due diligence will reveal the holy grail of the perfect body. These people may also adopt strict eating habits that allow for no excuses, eschewing food pleasures as tantamount to a great sin. With a perfectly disciplined regimen, you might just approach that perfect body, according to your own definition. However, you can spend most of your time and effort to achieve this goal and still end up dateless on Saturday night. So the quest for your imagined bodily perfection may only pay you back in vanity for your accomplishment, in wresting your physique into a pleasant view in your mirror.

This is not to say that a healthy, well nourished body should not be pursued. Exercise will tone your muscles, making you better looking, more energetic and stronger. Let’s say you inherited your Mom’s knock knees. There is absolutely no amount of exercise, dieting or any other regimen which will change that. Does this mean you don’t have a perfect body? You may think so, but maybe your boyfriend or spouse feels you’re just perfect.

Men may obsess endlessly about those elusive and prized ‘six-pack abs’ touted by the exercise machine manufacturers. Well, here’s a newsflash. Many women do not find these unnatural looking, tightly defined muscles attractive.

So how may we accurately define the perfect body? Historically, the perfect body has gone through a number of iterations and definitions, according to the times. Michaelangelo, in his desire to represent the human anatomy accurately, was a muscle definition freak, but produced nothing on the order of today’s body builders. Reubens favored a generous female form, with hips and waistlines of ample proportions, along with a good dose of fat here and there. In that day, his paintings represented the perfect body of every man’s desire. Today’s woman would be on a diet and exercise program in a heartbeat, to make the necessary corrections! Fast forward to Twiggy, of 1970s fame. This skeletal girl’s body was the goal of every female under 30.

So what’s to be learned from these examples? First, the definition of bodily perfection is truly in the eye of the beholder. If your body doesn’t match up to today’s top model or womanhood’s latest celebrity heartthrob, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to force the issue. Although you can’t change your height, proportions or bone structure, you can still look your best. Do eat healthy, do exercise and practice a moderate lifestyle. You will then have your perfect body and no one can take that away from you. You’ll be happier and have time for more substantive endeavors, such as who you are on the inside!

Posted by Sandra | Filed Under Mental Fitness

Best Weightloss Is Up To Individual

Nov | Leave a Comment

With so many diet and exercise programs out there it can be difficult to decide on the best weightloss plan to use. Choosing a weight reduction program is no easy task but you can make a reasonable selection if you consider your goals and your lifestyle before jumping into what you may think is the best weight loss plan for you.

First of all you need to consider the core of your weight problem. Do you want to drop ten or twenty pounds? Are you fighting a life-long obesity problem? Is your weight associated with a recent pregnancy? Does depression or mood adversely affect your weight? In order to find the best weightloss program, it is crucial that you consider the source of your problem.

Depression is a serious matter. Rather than trying to find the best weightloss strategies to use a person who is depressed is better suited to research his mood condition. This individual may find that once the depression is treated, the pounds melt away. Treating the depression itself is often the best weightloss plan available.

A person who wants to drop some vanity pounds after giving birth would want to take a very different approach than someone who needs to lose a lot of weight that she has been carrying around for years and years. The best weightlosss program for one person may not be the best for another. The new mom could benefit from taking on a trendy six-week fat burning exercise program while the lifelong obese problem will need medical intervention.

Speaking of medical intervention, make sure that you talk to your doctor about the best weightloss program for you. You can save a lot of time and effort by simply asking your physician about which program would be best for you. Your doctor can help you start off in the right direction.

You doctor can also suggest whether you should start and exercise program. The best weightloss strategy for many individuals is to simply start a reasonable exercise routine. You may find that you don’t really need to diet as long as you increase your activity.

Others would not benefit from the exercise approach. Some people are not healthy enough to engage in many exercise routines while others can injure themselves if they engage in rigorous activity. It is always a good idea to talk to your doctor about the best weightloss program for your needs and lifestyle.

Posted by Sarah | Filed Under Weight Loss

Post Thanksgiving Weightloss Tips

Nov | Leave a Comment

Even the most seasoned weight loss expert can use some weightloss tips every so often. Our eating habits are tied very closely with our behavior and using a behavioral approach to dieting can be beneficial to certain types of people who have bad eating habits that can be overcome with a little behavioral intervention.

Many times an individual eats without thinking. This means that the person’s habitual behavior has overrun his cognitive functioning. In a nutshell, we basically shove food into our mouths just because it is there. Among the many weightloss tips offered, thinking before snacking is the prime tip as far as the behavioral approach goes. When we act on impulse, we rarely make good choices.

The behaviorist will look at the problem in a number of ways. The best approach would be to get into the habit of slowing down a little bit. Some good weightloss tips include waiting ten minutes before grabbing that snack that is calling you from the pantry. You may discover that you are not really hungry. If you wait ten minutes the craving will most likely go away on its own.

You can also opt to go for a brisk walk when the urge to cheat on your diet arises. This is a great way to get much needed exercise along with self-control. You will be less likely to run to the pantry upon entering the home after a jaunt around the neighborhood. You will be more likely to go for a big glass of cold water instead.

Some people laugh at these two weightloss tips but they do work if you take a behavioral approach. You have to focus on your actions. The best way to look at it is making priorities. Do you want the chocolate cake or do you want to fit into those jeans tucked away in your closet? There are times that the chocolate cake will win but not often if you focus on your behavior.

Weightloss tips that involve a behavioral approach also include portions. We often need to train ourselves to understand how much is enough. Getting into the habit of buying single-sized servings or taking the time to measure will increase your chances of success.

You also may find that there are certain “triggers” that cause you to eat. This is a simple stimulus-response cycle that the behaviorists claim can be broken with a little effort. Weightloss tips in the trigger realm include avoiding the kitchen right after a stressful situation, eating only at the dinner table and keeping a diary of what happens right before you get a craving.

Posted by Sarah | Filed Under Weight Loss

How Well Do Detox Diets Work?

Nov | Leave a Comment

It seems that there’s always some new alternative therapy that’s all the rage, and right now its detoxification diets. These diets are intended to help the body to eliminate toxins in many ways, and while detox diets are effective by themselves, they may be reinforced by eating certain foods and drinking prescribed liquids. Just like anything else, how well these diets work for you will depend on how well you follow them, and of course, it’s not right for everyone. As before starting any type of diet or exercise program, it’s recommended that you speak with a health care professional first, regarding your physical health, and how the process may affect any current health conditions. A detox diet may be contraindicated in people with certain chronic illness, and who are on certain prescribed medications.

The removal of potentially toxic substances from the body is a common treatment for alcohol and drug dependence, but the term is also used to refer to diets, herbs, and other methods of removing environmental and dietary toxins from the body for general health. The benefits of detoxification diets and how to properly detoxify your body can be found on a number of sites online. Just remember that not all of these cleansing therapies are safe, and some can really cause harm to your body, which is why it’s so important to consult your physician first before proceeding with any type of detoxification program. The liver is the primary organ involved in detoxification, which is why it’s important to support and protect the liver during the detoxification process, especially if there are any health concerns involved. Elimination in the form of stool and urine is also increased to cleanse the colon, and to enhance circulation to clear toxic substances and allergens from the body.

For general information about detoxification diets, visit www.altmedicine.about.com, for instructions and common questions about how to detox your body using colon cleanses and prescribed food lists. Start with the detox screening quiz, learn the detoxification diet basics, find out what foods to eat and ones to avoid, and how the diet can be customized for individual needs. Many people believe that various health conditions are caused by toxins and pollutants in the body, which can cause everything from indigestion, food sensitivities, and bacterial overgrowths to weak hair, skin, and nails. Detoxification diets are intended to rejuvenate both the mind and body, the premise being that as toxins are eliminated from the body, our outlook changes toward a more healthier vision, once that will enhance and sustain life, and create more positive energy around us, something we all need!

Posted by Sandra | Filed Under Weight Loss

Atkins Dieters Only – Do You Make These Common Mistakes?

Nov | Leave a Comment

The Atkins diet is one of the simplest weight loss plans to follow. Although the principles are clearly set out in the books, there are some common misconceptions that occur for dieters. These mistakes can make a big difference in the amount of weight you lose and effectiveness of the diet overall. If Atkins isn’t working for you, or you find yourself suddenly gaining weight after weeks of effective dieting, make sure you aren’t making any of these common mistakes.

First, make sure to be patient with your weight loss. If you lose 8 lbs per week on the Induction phase and then slow down once you enter ongoing weight loss phase, this is perfectly normal. The level of carbohydrate grams that are acceptable on the Induction portion of the diet are not meant to carry you through the rest of your dieting experience. Induction is meant to break you of carbohydrate cravings and detoxify your body from sugar. Starting with the ongoing weight loss phase, you will begin introducing small levels of carbohydrate grams each week. This may slow down weight loss a bit from the level it was at during Induction, but this is completely normal.

Also, people are different and react differently to the diet. Some people lose weight in spurts, and other lose weight more steadily. A plateau can last for a few weeks and then voila, you’ve lost five pounds in a matter of a few days.

Make sure you are avoiding caffeine in all of its forms as well as aspartame, a common artificial sweetener. Both of these chemicals can impact blood sugar levels negatively. Look out for caffeine in coffee and diet sodas. Watch out for aspartame in diet sodas and sugar-free gelatin. These can cause cravings for sugar and take your body out of ketosis after just one serving.

Watch your daily intake of cheese. Although cheese is on the acceptable foods list, it does have small amount of carbohydrates. Your best bet is to limit your cheese intake to 4 oz per day. You can have more on special occasions, but it should not be used as your mainstay for protein. Meats, eggs and tofu are much better choices and don’t contain carbohydrate grams.

Remember to emphasize vegetables during Induction and beyond. Your carbohydrate grams should be primarily derived from leafy, green vegetables and other acceptable vegetable choices. Vegetables fill you up without spiking your blood sugar. They provide essential fiber and nutrients that help your weight loss efforts and overall health. After induction, you should have 3-4 cups of salad and 1 cup of cooked vegetables each day. Make sure the vegetables you are using are on the acceptable foods list. Eliminating vegetables from your diet can shut down your metabolism and cause your weight loss to stall.

It is also very important that you eat regularly while you are on the Atkins plan. Never go more than five waking hours without eating a combined snack of protein and fats. Two things happen when you skip meals. First, you cause a blood sugar drop that will have you craving carbohydrates like bread and sugar. Secondly, continued periods of not eating will slow down your metabolism and make it even harder to lose weight.
Finally, make sure you are drinking enough water each day. Water has a myriad of benefits for every human being, not just those on the Atkins diet. Thirst can sometimes be masked as hunger, so staying well hydrated will keep you from craving foods you shouldn’t be eating. Water also helps you avoid constipation, which is an occasional side effect of the Atkins diet. Drinking 8 eight ounce glasses of water per day will also help you flush out the toxins from your system that are produced when you burn fat.

These common mistakes can make people frustrated with the Atkins diet when there is no need to be. If you are just starting out on the diet, make sure to prepare yourself for these mistakes. If you’ve been on the diet for some time, evaluate your eating habits and make sure you are following the program correctly.

Posted by Sandra | Filed Under Weight Loss

High Protein Diet Talk

Nov | Leave a Comment

Are you on a diet? You see, the funny thing about diets is they never actually end. The effective way is to adopt a nutritious set of eating habits and stick with them forever. However, many people are under the misconception that you diet for a month or two in order to drop weight, and then you quit. Now, there’s just one tiny problem with that scenario. You’ll gain the weight back. This is why you have to stick to your new healthy eating habits for good. One of the more famous diet plans lately is the Atkins diet. Have you heard of this one? With all the attention it was receiving on the news, you probably have. This is the infamous high protein diet. And when I say high protein, I mean high protein. Apparently it relies on a lot of meat products. While meat is high in protein, it certainly shouldn’t be the only food group you are consuming.

Does your diet help you bulk up? This is why so many individuals search for a good high protein diet. As we all know, protein is what builds our muscles. If you take a gander at Flex magazine, you will see several men who have acquired high protein diets. Now, one of the big concepts storming the health media these days concerns high protein and low carbs. This is basically supposed to lead to more muscle and less fat. If you weren’t already aware, carbs often turn to fat and make us gain weight. Therefore, carbs bad, protein good. While I personally do not knock the benefits of a high protein diet, I don’t know that it’s right for everyone. Sure, if you’re trying to build muscle mass, then a high protein diet is ideal for you. However, if you’re simply trying to drop excess fat, then maybe a more balanced diet of healthy foods would suit your agenda. My brother is constantly on a high protein diet. But this is because he lifts weights. He’s always trying to beef up more and more, hence the six cans of tuna a day. Yikes, you can have that high protein diet.

If you are searching for more information on a high protein diet, or any diet for that matter, the Internet can be of great help. Browse through a plethora of diet and weight loss options in order to find that right one for you. It may also be prudent to consult a nutritionist if you’re uncertain about a particular diet plan.

Posted by Sandra | Filed Under Weight Loss

The Coffee Diet To Lose Weight?

Nov | Leave a Comment

Many people need to lose some extra pounds that tend to show up in unflattering places on the body. One remedy that has attracted recent attention is the coffee diet.

Everyone knows that the only way to lose weight is to decrease your consumption of food and increase the amount of food that your body ‘burns’. Many people complain that even when they cut down their intake, they still do not lose very much weight. One problem may be that, even with increased exercise, they are not ‘burning’ enough calories.

One possible solution is by trying the coffee diet. The basic premise is that under this program, and with a decrease in eating and an increase in exercise, your body’s metabolism will be increased and you will ‘burn’ more calories. In addition, the increase in coffee will also help to suppress your appetite particularly for carbohydrates. Looks like you win all the way around using the coffee diet.

Under the coffee diet, you need to drink more coffee. You should also consume a normal breakfast in the morning to get your body’s metabolism working to help burn off your excess weight.

The idea is that you do not have to make any great changes in your lifestyle. Each cup of coffee contains about 100 mg of caffeine. On the coffee diet, after you drink your coffee, your metabolic rate can increase as much as 10%. For a person not used to drinking coffee, the coffee diet can increase the metabolism even more.

When your metabolic rate is increased while on the coffee diet, you burn more calories than before even when you are not active. Not that you can just sit there and burn off weight, but your body is burning calories faster.

The other potential benefit of the diet is that there are few side effects as with other products. Other than the normal ‘side effects’ of drinking coffee, everything is the same. Now of course, some people are sensitive to caffeine at any time. However, there are no artificial or unnatural chemicals in the coffee itself. Naturally, if you are trying this diet, don’t put three tablespoons of sugar into your coffee, and coffee ice cream does not count as a diet helper. However, if you like your coffee with a little cream and sugar, go low fat or sugar substitute.

Although you may think the idea of a coffee diet might just be another fad, there have been some scientific studies made on using it. The results showed that some people, but of course not everyone, benefited from the coffee diet.

Posted by Safe Diet | Filed Under Weight Loss

Diet Information and The Media

Nov | 1 Comment

Our society today certainly struggles with a weight epidemic. The media is more than confusing when it comes to this dilemma. While we are flooded with fast food adds, we then see how unbearably thin our entertainers are becoming. It’s an odd situation. People continue to stuff their faces with pizza and burgers, yet always seem to want that size six waist. There is probably no ideal solution to this age-old problem. When it comes to our weight and health, a reasonable diet and sufficient exercise always prove superior. Fortunately there is diet information everywhere we turn.

My mother is someone who has always struggled with her weight. It wasn’t until she hit her 50′s and became afflicted with diabetes, that she actually started taking it seriously. With the plethora of diet information I found via the Internet, I was able to help my mother get started on a path to living healthy. Understanding your body and how it functions is key in forming a good diet. Since my mother was already overweight, I knew that I had to decrease her caloric intake. She needed less fat, salt, and sugar, and more low calorie meals.

If you watch television, then you’ve surely been bombarded with diet information from some fitness guru. The key is finding the diet that’s right for you. We all have different nutritional needs on some level. While some of us need more fiber in our meals, others need more protein. A great place to begin your search for diet information is online. You will be overwhelmed by the loads of free facts that can help you get started. If you venture out to the local supermarket, you will find a variety of diet products. From frozen entrees, to quick and convenient snack bars, there is much to choose from. Many diet plans offer a variety of meals that contain low amounts of fat, carbs, and calories. These are things that our body often gets too much of.

Whether you’re looking to start that new celebrity diet, or simply desire some diet information, you will find it on the World-Wide-Web. The key to dropping weight is eating healthy and acquiring a daily exercise routine. With proper diet and fitness benefits, your body will soon transform into that size six you crave. It’s time to live healthy, and rid yourself of that burden, which too often destroys your confidence, as well as your body.

Posted by Sandra | Filed Under Diet

Who Is The Weight Loss Body Wrap For?

Nov | 1 Comment

A couple of years ago, when I was a teenager, , I was an extra ten pounds heavier than where I wanted to be. I wanted to get rid of the extra weight. I didn’t realize that I looked fine the way I was, and that had a lot to do with a poor body image. I remember seeing a sign that said a weight loss body wrap would take care of the extra pounds I was carrying around. I remembered thinking that if only I had the money to pay for the wrap, I’d give it a try. I never did it, as my mother thought it was silly and not worth our hard earned money. Thankfully, mom was right. In my case it was not worth it, but there are some cases when they are just what someone needs.

So fast forward to today. Knowing what I know now, let me share that when you want to truly lose weight and keep it off, the weight loss body wrap won’t do you much good. It might give you a good head start on your diet plans, and that can help, but it is not really weight loss in the sense that you think. What you lose through the process of going through a weight loss body wrap is water weight only. That means you are not losing any fat, but instead, getting rid of excess body bulk in the form of water. This is something that comes off in the first weeks of any diet, and that means the wrap can give you confidence, but you won’t loss fat.

The weight loss body wrap can help when you have been dieting and you feel you have hit a plateau. These happen from time to time in any diet, and they can be huge morale busters. If this goes on and on, the person dieting may give it up entirely. If they were to get a body wrap to lose weight, they may get that confidence boost that they need to move on. However, someone thinking that they could get one every other week to get rid of all of their extra weight will find that this simply does not work.

So who could benefit the weight loss body wrap? What comes to mind is someone who has an upcoming event and wants to lose just 5 or 10 pounds to fit into an outfit might want to give the weight loss body wrap a try. For this situation, just know that this can provide those quick weight loss results, but you may very well gain that back a week or so later when the water builds back up in the system. However, it is a good answer for something that needs to last only a few days. When you want just five pounds gone to fit into the sexy dress, the weight loss body wrap can help, but just remember it is very temporary in nature.

Posted by Sandra | Filed Under Weight Loss

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