Easy Weight Loss

Is weightloss ever really that easy? Well in fact it's neither too hard or too easy, but it can be simple. You don't need fancy crank diets and dubious weight loss pills to lose weight quickly and easily.

You can get rid of unwanted fat pretty painlessly by following these two straightforward weightloss steps:

1. Stay away from fructose corn syrup:

Fructose corn syrup should be avoided for two reasons:

a) It will make you gain weight. Fructose corn syrup blocks the receptors that tell your brain whether you are full or not. When you eat foods that are rich in fructose corn syrup, you are very likely to overeat and gain some extra unwanted pounds!

b) It will spike up your blood sugar level! Even if you don't suffer from diabetes now, you will soon, if you continue to eat foods rich in fructose corn syrup, that is!

Foods such as chips, candies, soda, etc, contain fructose corn syrup. For this reason, these foods should be avoided as much as possible!

2. Small meals are the way to go:

People these days tend to  devote the least amount of time possible to eating. Most people only have three meals per day, while some even wrap up the day with only two!

This is a great way to gain inches and pounds. In order to lose weight, you need to eat six small meals per day, instead of three large ones. You can simply split each of your meal into two, and eat each small meal at the regular interval of 3-4 hours.

Eating smaller meals has three major advantages:

a) Since you are eating frequently, you won't feel hungry at odd times. When you don't feel hungry, there is no reason to snack on junk foods!

b) Since you are eating frequently, your body will keep your metabolic rate high at all times!

c) Since you are eating small meals, your blood sugar levels won't spike up to abnormal levels. So eating small meals is also good for diabetics!

Eating small and frequent meals has many advantages, and won't cost you an arm and a leg to implement.

Follow the above two instructions and you will soon be on your way to permanent weight loss!

What's The Right Time to Lose Weight?

OK, you're overweight. Weight loss is important, if you don't lose weight your life span will be drastically reduced, you'll be more prone to diabetes, high cholesterol and blood pressure, heart disease, stroke etc.

You will have heard this stuff many times from well meaning friends or your doctor, but just when is the right time to lose weight?

There is no magic formula "right time". This is an individual process that only you can know. You have to decide when the right is for you. However although you may well at some stage think "that's it, I'm fed up with carting all this lard around, I'm losing weight" you also need to bear in mind that timing is important. It can make or break your weightloss plan.

The best time to start your plan is when you feel that you're overweight. However if you have become morbidly obese then it's very likely that only surgical intervention will help. So you can see that timing is very important as you really don't want to let it get to that stage.

A well known fitness coach was friends with a man who was excessively overweight, suffering from sleep apnea and feeling dizzy and sleepy most of the time. Although it was obviously the weight causing these problems, the man never asked his friend the fitness coach for any help in the way of weightloss advice.

That is until he started to realise that people were no longer inviting him to social events, and pretty much ignoring him. Finally realising that his weight was the problem he asked the fitness coach to help him. A year later he has lost the excessive weight, sleeps properly, is more active, with an enviable social life.

The point here is that it was the right time for him to do something about it. The trigger will be different for everyone. Why do you want to lose weight? Can you not stand the sight of your belly any more? Do you think you've become lazy? Are you being passed over for promotion at work? Is your doctor nagging at you to lose weight?

Whatever the reason, when YOU decide that it's time to get rid of that extra luggage then take action, and you WILL succeed!

How to lose weight and still eat restaurant food!

It's a fact of life that if you're trying to lose weight (even if you're not) you will now and then get bored with the everyday meals you are preparing for yourself, and hanker after a nice meal out.

But then, your doctor has probably advised you not to eat restaurant foods as they will lead to excessive weight gain. Well, like all things connected with dieting and losing weight there is an answer, you just have to go about it the right way.

As a very rough, general guide to start with. If a food tastes really good, chances are it has been prepared richly and probably fried (we love fried foods don't we?). Unsurprisingly, raw fruits and vegetables, which usually don't have the same apeal for most of us, are some of the best foods for fast weight loss.

Here are a few tips to help you out:

1) Try to visit vegetarian restaurants for a change. This will help you avoid the foods that are really going to pile the pounds on. Doesn't mean that non-vegetarian places are necessarily bad for you, it's just more difficult to avoid high fat/calorie foods in those places.

2) The chicken served in most restaurants contains large amounts of fat, which makes it tasty to be sure, but is not good for losing weight. Lean chicken is an excellent diet food, and you are more likely to get this in salad bars.

3) Talking of salad bars, yes great choice for those of us wishing to lose those extra pounds. BUT, beware of the salad dressing. Better leave it altogether. Most of them are high fat, high calorie, completely negating the effect of eating salad in the first place. Tell your server no dressing.

4) Buffets, oh yes, marvellous, but the enemy of all dieters. Many of the foods available at buffets are high in fats and calories, often fried in oil. Avoid buffets at all costs, especially the all-you-can-eat kind. Do I really have to explain that one? If you really must go to a buffet place choose the healthier alternatives and salads.

5) Check and control your portion sizes. If you think the amount provided is in excess of your portion requirement then just eat your portion and take your leftovers home for the following day. Most places are happy to pack your leftovers for you. Another good tip is to order the childs meal.

It's really all about common sense and discretion. So go ahead, have that meal out. Just apply these tips and you won't put on weight or feel guilty.

Do Weight Loss Clinics Really Help?

Most overweight people want to lose weight, not only to become healthy but also to look good. After all, no one wants to be seen with a fat belly and a pair of flabby arms.

People also want to shed all those extra pounds of fat in the shortest time possible. Most people go the traditional diet route but some will resort to extremes such as gastric banding and liposuction.

Then again, some people need a bit of extra support to help them achieve quick weight loss! And here is where weight loss clinics come in.

There have been many weight loss clinics popping up in recent years but not all of them are worth your money.

Some are endorsed by celebrities, but just because a clinic is endorsed by celebrities doesn't mean that it is good. Most weight loss clinics will promise you the impossible, so it is important to do your due diligence before you join any of them.

Before you join a weight loss clinic, enquire about the following:

1. Presence of qualified physicians: Enquire if there are any qualified physicians present at the clinic. For one, weight loss cannot always be achieved by diet and exercise; in some cases, people gain weight because of medical complications and in such cases, the person will need medical attention.

For another, it is important that you don't suffer from some kind of side-effects after weight loss. In short, if there are no physicians available at the clinic, then don't join it!

2. Time taken: Enquire how much time it takes on an average to lose weight, and how much weight could be lost within that time period. The salespersons might try to offer misleading answers on this question so make sure to do local enquiries too!

Remember that if the clinic claims to help people lose huge amounts of fat within a very short time, say fifty pounds within two months, then that means they are using some unhealthy weight loss methods. Avoid such clinics!

3. Food: What food do they suggest you to eat? This is a crucial question you should ask yourself before joining a weight loss clinic! Most of them offer pre-packaged meals to their clients. Pre-packaged meals are okay if you can spend hundreds of dollars on them, but what if you don't have that much money?

Besides, what will happen after you lose weight successfully? Will you keep spending ridiculous amounts of money on food? Any weight loss clinic which limits you to their pre-made meals is not a viable solution for you! You should be allowed to cook foods on your own!

4. Exercises: Regardless of whatever people tell you, it is almost impossible to lose weight fast without the aid of exercises. Changing your eating habits alone won't yield any permanent results! Weight loss can be achieved only when you combine healthy eating with physical activity.

Exercises boost your metabolic rate, which in turn helps you burn fat fast. If the clinic in question doesn't include exercise in their weight loss program, this is not a suitable clinic for you!

There are excellent weightloss clinics out there, but it really is a case of caveat emptor. Do your homework before committing and you will find the one for you if you really think you need one!

Carbohydrates - Are They All Bad? The Truth Exposed.

Lack of education and information is one of the leading causes behind many weight loss failures. As a matter of fact, lack of education gives rise to several misconceptions and superstitions! One such misconception is regarding carbohydrates. People think that carbohydrates are all bad and that if one can reduce carbohydrate intake, or even better, totally avoid carbohydrates, then weight loss will be easy! However, that is completely wrong!

There are actually two types of carbohydrates, to simplify we'll call them the good and the bad. You should of course avoid the 'bad' carbohydrates but the 'good' ones will provide your body with much needed nutrition and energy. Here's a brief rundown on what types of carbs you should consume and which ones you should avoid to ensure fast weight loss!

1. The Bad Carbohydrates: In case you don't know, processed foods contain a lot of carbs. However they are bad carbs. These foods do contain some nutrition in their natural state but as soon as they are processed through their various stages, much of their nutrition and value is lost! What is left are empty calories which only make you fat and nothing else.

Examples of such foods are chips, white bread, pasta, soft drinks, cakes, biscuits, candies, etc. These foods should be avoided at all costs, if you are serious about weight loss, that is!

These processed foods contain a lot of sugar and as you might be aware, sugar is rich in calorie content. The more sugar you consume, the fatter you become! These foods offer very little nutrition to your body and since they have very little fiber content, they are easily converted by your body into fat deposits.

Apart from weight gain, eating processed foods regularly can also result in diabetes, since your blood sugar levels increase so much that it becomes extremely difficult for the insulin produced by your body to control it!

2.  The Good Carbohydrates: So what are good carbohydrates? Good carbohydrates can usually be found in natural foods, such as raw fruits, vegetables, legumes, seeds, wholemeal pasta, wholegrain wheat, etc.

These foods contain carbs for sure but not the ones that would make you fat! Unlike the fast carbs contained in the processed foods, these are slow carbs which take a long time to digest; therefore, you don't get fat!

Plus they also contain a high amount of fiber. Fiber will keep you fuller for longer! If there was ever a natural way to suppress your appetite, then this is it!

Remember that not all carbs are bad. Making the right decision regarding carb consumption can result in quick weight loss!

Four Foods That Can Help You With Weight Loss

Ever wondered why most people gain weight during their middle age? During middle age, a person's metabolic rate slows down; hence they are not able to burn as much fat as they used to during their youth. Eating certain  foods however, can boost your metabolic rate and help you to lose weight.

1. Green Tea: If you are in the habit of drinking morning tea, replace it with green tea! Ordinary tea is not so bad, but green tea is better! It contains fat burning chemicals which will help you with weight loss. It is no wonder that many of the weight loss supplements available in the market have green tea as a common ingredient!

2. Peanut butter: Peanut butter is a great replacement for the ordinary butter. Unlike the ordinary butter, which is rich in fat, peanut butter is rich in protein and fiber, both of which will help you with weight loss. While protein will help you burn fat by building lean muscle mass, fiber will help in suppressing your appetite for a long time.

Peanut butter is widely available but I would recommend that you buy the natural ones and avoid the popular commercial brands. Or if you want, prepare it at home! Peanut butter makes for a great breakfast when combined with wholegrain wheat!

3. Almond: As you know,there are two types of fat, good and not so goods. Bad fats need to be avoided because simply, they make you fat! The good fats, on the other hand, supply your body with essential nutrients such as fatty acids. Almond is one such food. It is rich in fatty acids and protein. Almond helps you burn fat by boosting your metabolic rate!

4. Beans: How successfully you are able to suppress your hunger will determine how fast you are able to lose weight. Beans make for a great appetite supplement. Since they are rich in fiber, they help to keep your stomach full for a long time.

OK, they do have that sometimes unfortunate side-effect, but eaten regularly your system gets used to processing them in the most efficient manner, and it isn't such a problem.

So, if you incorporate these foods into your diet on a regular basis it will help you to lose weight without being too stressful.

The how to lose weight fast guide to telling good fats from bad fats.

Dietary guidelines…do they confuse you? How much protein should we eat? What about carbohydrates? Should we eat them at all? If your blood type is O, do you eat differently to your partner whose blood type is AB?

If there’s a more confusing and contradictory issue than human nutrition, I have yet to find it. Well maybe the psychology behind male and female relations comes close – anyone who’s single & online dating will know all about that!

But scientific literature on the subject of diet and nutrition is so conflicting that you start to question the value of anything you read. You take time to study, say, four articles on diet and you get four totally different opinions written by authors with lots of impressive initials after their names.

Let’s look at fats. What a maligned character is that of poor fat. The no-fat diet was huge in the 1970s (There are those who think that this could be a direct contributor to the huge surge in brain disorders like Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s that we see today).

This diet is making a pretty reasonable comeback in Generation Now. People avoid fat like a Scandinavian backpacker in a shopping mall collecting money for Greenpeace.

But this avoidance of a substance we need in fairly reasonable amounts (20-30 per cent of our daily caloric intake) in our diet is not only unhealthy but also pointless, as the liver converts carbohydrate to fat very simply and quickly.

A close relative of fat, cholesterol, is even more despised. But did you know that human breast milk has a higher proportion of cholesterol than any other food? It’s also 50 per cent fat, most of which is saturated. Hmmm.

Ok, so what is saturated fat good for? It:

- makes up 50 per cent of all cell membranes, so is essential for the health of all cells.

- protects the liver from alcohol and other toxins.

- has an immune function.

- is antimicrobial in the digestive tract.

- enhances essential fatty acid utilisation.

And what about cholesterol? It is:

- essential for sex hormone production and corticosteroids that help the body deal with stress and protect against heart disease and cancer.

- essential for Vitamin D production which in turn supports bone and nervous system health, growth, metabolism, muscle tone, insulin production,reproduction, immunity, digestion, and serotonin production.

To add to this, fat (good fat that is) in general is an anti-inflammatory and makes up the myelin sheath that covers your brain, spinal cord and nervous system.

So what’s the dietary take home message? We must increase our intake of good fats, ie coconut oil, olive oil, flaxseed oil, fish oils, etc. As long as the oil is pure, extra virgin and cold pressed it will be nutritionally beneficial.

Remember the only oil you can cook with is coconut oil or butter. All other oils are destroyed by heat. Eggs (organic) are a wonder food and should be eaten with confidence. The same goes for organic butter. Trans-fats should be banned for human consumption (animal consumption too for that matter).

But what if your doctor says you should cut out saturated fats and cholesterol from your diet? Is that right? Are they sure? Before you believe them, just take a closer look at your doctor…

So, the next time you’re dating someone & the conversion turns to diets, start talking about good fat if you need to cover a few of your own pounds hanging over your belt!

If only online dating guidelines could be broken down so easily…that’s impossibly more complex than dieting.

Weightloss exercise tips for busy people.

The pressures of modern everyday life can sometimes make it difficult for busy working people to find the time to exercise regularly as part of their weightloss program.

I have been there myself, and there were times when the stress of a busy worklife and family life made it all but impossible for me to stick to my weight loss plan.

OK that's the negative side. But you must not let stress become an excuse for giving up on the exercise, which is after all  an essential part of any weight loss regime. There are 24 hours in every day, so why can't you find the time to exercise?

You brush your teeth and shower every day don't you? And why? Simply because they have become part of your ingrained daily routine. You know that if you don't brush your teeth regularly you will suffer tooth decay and other dental problems.

You know that if you don't shower regulary, apart from being not pleasant to be around you will be prone to skin diseases and other results of poor hygiene.

By the same token, if you don't exercise regularly you will become sedentary and pile on the fat. It's just wrong to use the "I don't have time" excuse for avoiding exercise. Be honest with yourself here. You are either afraid of exercise, or you just don't know where to start. Here's a few tips to get you on your way.

Find a friend to work out with. Working out alone is not always enjoyable and it takes an enormous amount of self-discipline. However if you can find a friend to exercise with, chances are you will even start to enjoy it and look forward to the social aspect.

A big plus is that seeing your friend(s) exercising with you is a terrific motivator, you'll want to do a bit better than them as the competitive edge creeps in and you will both benefit. I say both of you, but several friends would work well, and there would pretty much always be someone to work out with if an individual occasionally drops out for any reason.

Get an mp3 player. Load it with your favourite music or even audio books, and take it with you whenever you hit the gym. This is a great way of kicking out the boredom from your exercise routine.

Do what you enjoy. There are bound to be certain exercises that you just don't like doing. Don't force yourself to carry on with them. You will rebel eventually and give up. There are dozens of exercises that essentially do the same thing. Find ones that you enjoy and you will stick with them and benefit enormously.

Start slow. It seems obvious, but as the saying goes "never overlook the obvious" If you have not exercised before, or only very little and infrequently it's only natural that you will be apprehensive about starting a regular exercise routine.

Ignore those who say you must exercise daily to lose weight. Nonsense, the key is regular exercise. You can start once or twice a week for maybe ten/fifteen minutes, and build up from there as you and your body become accustomed to it. Do it at your own pace and it will not be a chore and you will find you can fit it into your daily life.

Before you know it you'll be looking in the mirror and wondering where that fat person went!

How to lose weight fast with these 3 Super-Foods

Wouldn't it be great if you could lose weight by eating? Well, your wish is about to come true. In this post we will look at three foods that will help you lose weight. Sound too good to be true? Well, read on to understand what I mean!

1. Lean meats:
Lean chicken meat is one of the best weight loss foods you can ever have! Why? It contains lots of protein and very little fat, and as you know, protein will build lean muscles. Lean muscles will help you burn fat by accelerating your metabolic rate!

Chicken has the advantage of being readily available and is one of the most economical meats in the store. If you're not too keen on chicken try turkey breast! In any case, make sure you eat only lean meats and stay away from red meat!

Fish is also very good for rapid weight loss. Fish such as salmon and tuna contain Omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids fall in the category of 'good fats' or unsaturated fats. You gained weight because of a hormone called leptin which stores fat inside your body. Omega-3 fatty acids will cut down on leptin; when that happens, you are pretty much bound to lose weight!

2. Olive oil:
Replace your fatty oil with olive oil. Olive oil is almost free from the 'bad fats' (saturated fats) and contains a considerable amount of unsaturated fats. These unsaturated fats will not only suppress your appetite but also fight cholesterol. In short, olive oil will keep your cholesterol levels down.

3. Berries:
Berries are excellent for weight loss. There are many types of berries: blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, etc. All of them will help you with weight loss. Strawberries are one of the best among the berries: not only do they taste good, but also help in suppressing your appetite. Once you get rid of hunger pangs, you can focus more on your weight loss goals and less on eating!

As you can see, just because you want to lose weight doesn't mean that you have to starve. Many people tend to starve or follow crash diets but nothing beats eating and losing weight. I firmly believe that if you eat the right foods, you will not only lose weight but also become healthy.

As a plus, the foods I mentioned above are also rich in vitamins and antioxidants. And remember that these are not the only weight loss super foods that are available to you. Other foods such as nuts, oatmeal, eggs and almonds can also help you with weight loss. Add these foods to your diet and see how quickly you are able to get rid of that surplus fat!

10 Foods To Help You Lose Weight

Although some of us might not think so, especially here in UK right now, summer is on the way (honest) and we are going to be spoilt for choice with healthy, tasty natural foods  to help us in our healthy eating weight loss program.

Here I've put together a list of ten of my favourite vitamin rich foods to include in your diet to ensure that you never run the risk of deficiencies, not to mention helping out your brain, heart, vision, joints and just about everything else by consuming them....

Dark Leafy Greens

Dark green is the key, with examples of amazingly vitamin rich, leafy vegetables including spinach, mustard greens, beetroot greens, turnip greens and kale as just a few. Adding these to a salad will give you high amounts of vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and carotenoids.

Mustard greens themselves have an incredible array with vitamin A, C, E, and B6, folate, dietary fibre, tryptophan (one of the essential amino acids that the body uses to synthesize the proteins it needs), manganese, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron and copper all being found in this green.

Asparagus

These fleshy spears are extremely high in vitamin K and folate and are also high in protein for a vegetable. It is also a superior source of vitamins C, A, B1, B2 and B6. It's high in essential minerals as well including copper, phosphorous, potassium, iron, manganese and magnesium.

Plus, asparagus is also a natural diuretic that provides benefits for the heart and also prevent birth defects (thanks to folates ability to protect against spina bifida!).

Blueberries

The blueberry is one of the healthiest fruits in the world, as well as being one of the tastiest. It has incredible amounts of vitamins C and E, calcium, magnesium, potassium, manganese, dietary fibre and riboflavin. Because of its dark blue/red flesh, it contains some of the most potent antioxidants around.

The phytonutrients contained in this amazing berry help to destroy free radicals that damage the body's tissues. They can help prevent heart disease, cancer, dementia, ulcers, varicose veins, cataracts and glaucoma. Blueberries also have anti-inflammatory abilities that can also protect brain cells from damage.

Other Berries

Berries are abundant in summer so consider having a berry fruit salad first thing in the morning or for a mid day snack. Cranberries are proven natural healers of the urinary tract (number one in fighting UT infections!) and as a digestive aid. They have incredible amounts of vitamin B2 alongside a few other B vitamins. They also host high levels of fibre, vitamin C, iron, manganese and copper.

The raspberry is rich in tannins, elagic acid and flavonoids. With potent antioxidants and antimicrobials, research has suggested that the mighty raspberry can even help fight cancer. They are high in fibre, vitamin C, B2, B3, B5, B6, folate, manganese and impact minimally on blood sugar levels.

Strawberries are well known for their phenols, which have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory qualities. Jam-packed with more than 12 essential minerals and vitamins, strawberries are very high in vitamin C and K and in dietary fibre.

Rock Melon

Although this beautiful melon peaks in summer, it is often available all year round. It offers an excellent supply of beta-carotene, potassium, and vitamin C. One cup of rock melon has under 60 calories, but is already well above the recommended daily intake of vitamin A.

The orange flesh of the rock melon boasts vitamins B1, B3, B5, B6, folate and great source of dietary fibre. The B vitamins combine to make a great energy producer for the body, helping to control carbs and blood glucose levels through processing the carbohydrates and slowing digestion with its fibre content.

Spelt Grain

Just two ounces of this ancient whole grain contains more than your daily requirement of vitamin B2. Though largely unknown to many, spelt can be found in cereals, crackers, breads and baked goods.

Your local health food store will have it in the form of grain, flakes or flour. It has a wide range of nutrients for a whole grain including an excellent source of niacin, thiamine, manganese and tryptophan. It also packs a decent amount of fibre, zinc, copper, protein and iron.

Broccoli

Broccoli, possibly my all time favourite veg is a nutritional wonder. The exceptional nutritional value of broccoli is most visibly seen in its vitamin K levels. It is also very high in vitamin A, folate and dietary fibre not to mention protein, thiamine, riboflavin, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium.

This is a vegetable not to be missed! Who said Mum didn't know what she was talking about?

Lentils

Lentils can provide an upward of 80% of your daily value of iron in one cup! The same amount of this amazing food contains 230 calories and hardly any fat. Whilst its iron levels will boost the body's energy and help prevent anaemia, its fibre content will stabilize your blood glucose levels and also net you four B vitamins, seven other essential minerals and a heaping amount of protein.

All of the mighty lentil's nutrients can be found in high levels. As a note of interest, the history of lentils dates back 8,000 years! Found in archaeological sights in the Middle East, it is possible that lentils could be one of the first foods ever cultivated.

Black Beans

Also known as Mexican or Spanish black beans, they have a phenomenal source of molybdenum, a trace mineral that detoxifies sulfites in your body. Black beans (like most beans) are good for your heart, and contain an excellent source of dietary fibre, folic acid, magnesium, and polyphenols that bring down cholesterol levels.

They are also high in vitamin B1, tryptophan, phosphorus, iron, manganese and potassium. Each cup of black beans carries 15g of protein too!

Brussels Sprouts

Although a tough vegetable to get any child to consider (or some adults for that matter), the active constituents of Brussel sprouts are cancer fighters, great for skin, boosts the immune system and ensures the colon stays healthy. Best boiled or steamed, they contain gigantic amounts of vitamin K as well as high levels of vitamins C, A, B6 and B1, and fibre on top of a good amount of 14 other major minerals and vitamins.

And the best part for those needing to lose weight, you can eat as much of these as you want to alleviate those hunger pangs and not feel the slightest bit guilty.

Fat in the front can mean a pain in the back!

There are many people that struggle with weight loss on a regular basis, but the fact is, it may be more than a simple cosmetic issue. 

Lots of people who are overweight experience back pain, and are suffering needlessly, simply because they are having a difficult time in getting rid of the extra weight that they are carrying.  The truth of the matter is, if you are carrying around an additional weight in the front of your body, your back is going to suffer as a result.

The simple reason for this is because the spine was not designed in order to carry a load that is heavier than our body at its natural, lean weight. 

As you put on additional pounds, the spine begins to distort and to compress, causing a lot of the pain that you may be experiencing.  It can also have an effect on your pelvis, tilting it forward and perhaps causing it to pinch your sciatic nerve. 

This is one of the main reasons why people who are overweight tend to have problems with their lower back, either because of sciatica or because of the distorting of the spinal column.

If you are experiencing this problem then there is really only one thing that you can do in order to overcome it.  You need to get rid of some of the additional weight that you have been carrying around, and your spine will begin to ease up and go back into its regular position. 

Unfortunately, weight loss is not something that is simple and it is a bit time consuming but the benefits of losing weight far outweigh any inconvenience that you may experience from the effort.

Two things that you can do in order to lose weight naturally are to get a little bit of exercise, and to modify your diet so that you are taking in fewer calories than what you are using throughout the day.  Start exercising slowly, especially if you're having problems with back pain. 

You should also do stretching exercises as well as concentrating on your core body muscles so that it will help to strengthen this area of your body, further reducing the amount of pain that you are experiencing. 

Within just a week or two of being on this weight loss program, you should begin to notice differences in the way that you feel.

Lose Weight The Easy Way!

Do you want to lose weight without having to eat boring meals and ironing it out for hours at the gym? OK silly question, you probably wouldn't be here if you weren't at least interested right? Anyway, there are ways that can help you do just that. Here's just a few.

Get rid of hunger: Getting rid of hunger is one of the most important things you need to do in order to lose weight successfully. If you are always hungry, you will always eat, and weight loss will never happen. You should eat foods that can keep you full for a long time. Fiber-rich foods such as lentils, legumes, nuts, apples, peas, etc. are good foods that not only suppress your hunger but also keep your digestive system healthy!

Drink more water: You're probably fed up with hearing it, however believe it or not, you can lose at least 7-10 extra pounds just by drinking enough water. How? When you don't drink enough water, your body stores water inside, so as to meet any future water scarcity. Your body won't hoard water like this if it feels that there is an abundance of water. To assure your body of this abundance, you should drink at least eight 8ounce glasses of water daily!

I have found that people managed to lose a minimum of seven pounds once they started drinking more water! Once your body gets water regularly, it will stop hoarding water and flush out any excess water that it has stored! I'm willing to bet that although you have heard this dozens of times you still don't drink enough water.

But this is not where the many benefits of water end. Water also boosts your metabolic rate, which helps you burn fat and lose weight. Water also detoxifies your body. When your body has gotten rid of all the toxins, you will not only lose some more pounds, but also feel better into the bargain!

Hula Hooping: If you want to lose weight without exercises, hula hooping is a fun way to do it. All you need is an inexpensive weighted hula hoop (try e-bay). Just twirl it around yourself for at least one minute at a time. You need to do this exercise for ten minutes everyday, but if you cannot do it all at once, don't worry. Just do it whenever you find a little time.

If you do it only ten times per day, each time spending just one minute on it, you will be able to lose weight. Plus it is fun to do!

As you can see, weight loss doesn't have to be hard and scary. Follow the three tips above and see how easily you shed those extra pounds!

Simple and Powerful Techniques to Help You Achieve Your Weight Loss Goals

Many factors that determine the success or failure of your weight loss goals. Here are a few things you can do in order to lose weight successfully.

Set small goals: Most people are unable to achieve their weight loss goals because they always think big. There is nothing wring with thinking big, but don't make your goals so big they become overwhelming and intimidating to you! Don't stretch your weight loss goals so far that you feel tempted to quit altogether! Start slow and you'll see how easy it is to shed those obstinate pounds!

You know that you need to make huge lifestyle changes in order to lose weight successfully. Now, keep in mind that you cannot make these changes overnight! For example, if today I ask you to avoid eating junk foods altogether, will you be able to follow my advice? You will probably try hard to avoid junk foods for a day or two, and by doing that, you will be all the more tempted to take a bite of your favorite fatty foods. As a result, you'll end up gaining more pounds than what you started with! What a waste!

Here's an easier way to do it: Instead of trying to cut down on your junk food intake entirely, try to replace one junk food with one good food. Do you eat butter? Well, replace that with peanut butter. Next day, replace burgers with raw carrots! If you eat white breads, replace that with wholegrain wheat breads.

You won't be able to accomplish all of these changes overnight, but you will be able to achieve your goals if you do it slowly, bit by bit. Eventually you will realize that you have completely replaced your bad foods with the healthy foods, but without going through any stress or temptation!

Replace bad habits with good ones: Remember that you gained weight because of certain bad habits. Ideally you should break those old habits in order to lose weight, but I know that breaking an old habit is easier said than done. What you can do instead is modify your bad habit enough so that it becomes a good and healthy habit.

If you are like many people, you have a habit of snacking in the afternoon. Instead of trying to break your afternoon snacking habit, try to replace the snack itself!. If you eat chocolate soups and cookies as snacks, replace them with low-fat yogurt and raw fruits!

Get rid of temptations: Unless you learn to control your temptations, you won't be able to lose weight successfully. Whenever you are tempted to eat, do something that distracts you from the thought of food. You can do anything such as dancing, driving, walking around your house, doing some sit-ups, or drinking a glass of water. All of these things will help keep yourself away from the food cravings!

Positive Steps To Successful Weight Loss

You have probably heard a lot about the importance of positive thinking in weight loss. If you keep harboring negative thoughts, you will never be able to lose weight. On the other hand, if you become a positive thinker, weight loss will become easy for you.  Trust me, this isn't bunk, as Henry Ford might say.


Believe it or not, you are unable to lose weight because you believe that you are fat; chances are that, you even hate yourself for the same reason. Now, if you believe yourself to be thin instead. can you imagine the positive impact it can have on your weight loss goals? Your mindset and attitude can make or break your weight loss goals. Here's how to develop a positive mindset.

Remember though that just as you cannot lose weight overnight, you also cannot transform your negative thoughts into positive ones within a very short time. So be patient with yourself and try to incorporate these changes slowly into your life!

1. The reason behind your weight loss: What is the big reason behind your weight loss efforts? Why do you want to lose weight? Is it simply because you are unable to bear the taunts you receive from your office colleagues, or is it because you keep getting turned down for dates, or is it simply because you want a figure like your favorite celebrity whose photo you recently saw in a magazine? Whatever it is, write them all down on a piece of paper. Note down all the reasons behind your weight loss endeavors, no matter how small or big they are!

For best results, buy some Post-It-Note stickers and write down everything on a sticker, and make copies of it on other stickers. Then stick them in strategic places in your home so that you are reminded of your weight loss goals everyday. Don't forget to stick them in your kitchen and refrigerator as well: those are the places where you are most likely to be tempted to eat the 'forbidden foods' or 'cheat' on your diet program!

2. Motivation and realistic goals: Now is the time to set some realistic goals for yourself. To do that, you need to know your ideal body weight, and then subtract that from your current body weight. The resulting figure you now get is the amount of body weight you need to lose to acquire the kind of figure you want.

Now, realistically, you cannot lose more than 2 pounds per week. Do the math and find out how many pounds you can lose a year from now. Again, be realistic in your goals, as unrealistic goals serve no purpose. If you weigh 100 pounds or more, don't expect to gain a svelte figure like Jessica Alba within a month!

Once you have set your goals, you now need some motivation that will help you achieve your weight loss goals. What you use to motivate yourself will depend on the reason behind your weight loss. If you want to be like your favorite celebrity, hang the pictures of that celebrity all around your house. Side by side, also hang your picture with your current body weight! That would be more than enough to keep you motivated!

Stick with it, and believe in it. I promise you, this stuff works!

Why Low Calorie Diets Don't Work

If you are planning to follow a low calorie diet plan in order to lose weight/fat, here is some information you may find interesting, as to why they generally don't work.

So many people follow certain popular low calorie diet plans for a few weeks only to find out that they haven't lost much weight. They then feel that weight loss is impossible and they quit the diet program altogether!

The number one reason why low-calorie diet plans don't work is that when you eat low-calorie foods, your body basically remains malnourished. You feel sick and tired at all times. Forget about exercises, you don't have enough energy to complete even your regular activities. All these things happen because your metabolic rate is low!

If you want to lose weight successfully, you need to bear the following in mind:

Calories are not your enemies: Calories are not what you should avoid, calories are required to supply your body with the necessary nutrition and energy. When your body gets enough food, it'll increase your metabolic rate, which will automatically result in weight loss!

The bad calories are those that are contained in junk foods. So while you won't accumulate fat by eating 10 apples per day (even though a single apple contains almost 100 calories), you will surely get fat by eating 10 burgers!

That is the basic difference! You need to avoid empty calories (that is, junk foods) and embrace negative calorie foods, such as fruits and vegetables. Now negative calorie doesn't mean that there are no calories in these foods, it only means that in order to digest them, these foods will force your body to burn more calories than they provide! This results in calorie deficit which will ultimately result in weight loss!

Muscle building is important: Do you know that in order to maintain themselves, muscles burn a lot of your calories? This in effect means that the more lean muscles you have, the faster you will be able to lose weight!

Eating protein-rich foods is a good way of building lean muscles; working out regularly in the gym is another. There is another advantage of eating protein-rich foods: you won't feel hungry as often, which reduces the likelehood of overeating.

When you eat low-calorie foods, you are not able to build muscle, instead you lose muscle. When your body doesn't have enough lean muscle it is not able to burn fat, since your metabolic rate remains at an abnormally low level. One more reason why low calorie diets don't work!

Most of these low calorie diets will only help you lose water and muscle. While you maybe misled into believing that you have actually lost several pounds, you have not lost the single most important thing that is keeping you from becoming slim: and that is FAT! Unless you lose fat, there is no way you can become fit!

Motivate Yourself To Get Rid of Belly Fat

Everyone knows that weight loss, to a large degree is all about modifying your lifestyle habits. What many don't realize that this cannot be done overnight! If you try to make significant changes in your lifestyle within a very short time, the chances are that you will only be frustrated and disappointed with your weight loss efforts. Also, there is more to weight loss than just diet and exercise. For today let's get beyond the world of strict diets and rigorous exercise routines!

Avoid self-destructive thoughts: Self-destructive thoughts will do you more harm than fake diet pills. Just imagine, if you always think that you cannot do the things you need to do in order to lose weight, how can you ever achieve your weight loss goals? If you think that you cannot do sit-ups and push-ups, you are probably jumping to conclusions and being too self-analytical even before you have tried these workouts!

If you think that doing thirty push-ups is overwhelming for you, start small. Start with 10 push-ups, and thank yourself once you have done it successfully! Then try to add one or two extra push-ups every day to your routine until you reach your target of thirty. You see, when you start small, it becomes much easier to reach your goals!

Instead of thinking too much, just take action and DO it! The amount of time you spend on thinking and criticizing yourself, you may as well as spend it on some exercise. While the former will do you no good, the latter will help you burn fat and lose weight!

Get support: Proper support is essential in order to keep you determined and motivated. Without support, you won't be able to lose weight successfully. That is why it is essential that you enlist the support of your friends and family who understand you and support your goals.

It is also essential that you choose a weight loss program which offers support to its members in the form of a support group or forum. In a forum, you will get support and tips from your peers and experts alike! Surround yourself with supportive people and stay away from the negative people who can only find faults with you!

If you follow these tips there is no reason why you won't be able to lose weight! Remember that you can achieve whatever you believe in your mind. If you believe you can lose weight, you WILL! Remember the famous words of  Henry Ford, "If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right".

Overcoming Weight Loss Plateau

You were probably losing weight successfully for the first few weeks after you joined a new diet program, only to be stuck at a certain point later. When people start a diet program they usually rapidly lose a few pounds, because most diet programs are created to offer you 'instant weight loss'. Sadly enough, this 'instant weight loss' is more often than not 'temporary' weight loss.

You will lose weight very quickly for the first few weeks but after that, you will suddenly discover that the scale is not going down anymore! You are not losing any more weight. You have hit a situation commonly known as weight loss plateau! In such situations, the only remedy is a complete overhaul of your lifestyle habits.

You have probably done the same sets of exercises as well as eaten the same types of foods over and over again during those first few weeks when you were losing weight. As a result your body got accustomed to your diet and exercise routine. When that happened, your weight loss methods failed to bring any sustainable results!

If you want to go beyond this point, you need to change your diet and exercise regimen.

Here are two methods you need to follow to get out of the weight loss plateau.

1. Calorie-counting is not the way to go: When you count your calories, you basically limit the intake of calories to an abnormally low level. When you eat low calorie foods, there is no incentive for your body to increase your metabolic rate since it has to burn only a few calories.

The result is that your metabolic rate always remains at a very low level. When your metabolic rate is low, you aren't able to burn fat!

In order to burn fat and lose weight successfully, you need to forget about calorie counting and eat enough so that your body is forced to keep your metabolic rate at a high level. Your body needs fuel to burn fat, and it can get that fuel only from foods!

2. Exercise more:  If you have been avoiding exercises altogether, or have been doing only light exercises, then you cannot lose weight. Weight loss is only possible if you perform high intensity workouts daily. Instead of being afraid of exercises, try to love them. Exercises are yet another powerful way of increasing your metabolic rate.

If you were expecting a magic answer, I'm sorry. Whatever you may read there is no such thing. However if you follow these two methods they will help you to get the body you desire!

Handy Weight Loss Tips That Work

Here's your first weight loss nugget: Just because somebody has muscles doesn't mean you should automatically take their weight loss advice.

I'm going to give you a few tips, some weight loss tips that really work. Use this advice and you will lose weight.

One: Never begin a diet with a half-hearted attempt. The mere thought of giving a new a diet a "try" is good enough reason why you will fail. Like Yoda once said to Luke Skywalker, "There is no try. Only do or not do." Live by those words.

Two: Prepare yourself in advance to focusing 100% for 3 weeks on your weight loss efforts. That means planning your meals, planning your workouts, making sure you write down your goals. Keep your head down and focused for 3 weeks. By the end of that time you will see your first results.

Three: Do not live on the scales. They are one of the biggest culprits for derailing weight loss success. If the scale doesn't read how you'd like it to read, your whole day has a chance of being destroyed. And so does your weight loss.

Bonus tip: You can expect to lose 5-10 pounds in the first 2 weeks if you only increase your water intake and begin walking.

Four: As the song goes, eliminate the negative and accentuate the positive. There will be weight loss doubters. There will be people who secretly wish you to fail behind you back. Don't fret. Just recognize it and remove it as quickly as you can.

When you do lose the weight, don't hold a grudge. Just smile and hope for better things for those that doubted your weight loss power.

Five: When disaster strikes in the form of depression or a diet breakdown. Pick yourself back up immediately and begin again. Seize the moment and renew your weight loss commitment. Rededicate yourself by writing a letter of forgiveness to yourself. Remember the words of Winstone Churchill, "never, never, never, never give up."

That's some weight loss advice that really works. Use it and go out and grab your new tighter, slimmer body. Hey, you deserve it, right?

Low Carb Cooking For Weight Loss

Around the world people are paying more attention to their bodies and their health than perhaps at any other time in history. One method that has shown great success in helping people quickly drop those unwanted pounds is through low carb cooking and dieting. This method of weight loss (The Atkins Diet springs to mind) seems to have taken the world by storm promising quick results for the simple (or not so simple) lifestyle change of eliminating as many carbohydrates as possible from our diets.

The notion of low carb eating is appealing, not only to women hoping to drop those vanity pounds but also men who welcome the idea of eating all the steaks they can handle throughout the year. Low carb cooking is becoming a way of life for many families as a result. Although the idea of this particular lifestyle change and the reality of it do on occasion seriously collide with one another.

If you are interested in dropping those unwanted pounds and keeping them off, this is a method that without doubt gets results. The problem is that you must stick to the diet in order for the results to remain consistent even after you've met your weight loss goals. This means that you are not really embarking on a diet so much as a complete re-think in the way you eat.

One great thing about low carb cooking is that it is so widely popular. This means that you will have no trouble finding resources, tips, tricks, advice, and even amazing substitutes for those things you often miss most when engaging in the low carb lifestyle.

Popular stores such as Whole Foods and Trader Joes are great places to go for specific foods that are low carb in nature and designed to meet the chocolate or breading needs of those who feel more than slightly deprived by the rigorous restrictions of a low carb lifestyle. Many mainstream grocery stores are also beginning to see the value of catering to this 'high end' market of consumers and offering a wider variety of low carb friendly foods to consumers.

You can find recipes that are low in carbs by the sackfull at your local libraries and bookstores around the world. You can also find many resources on the Internet to help assist and encourage you in your low carb lifestyle incorporation.

In addition to the cookbooks, recipes, and encouragement you also need to weed out the fact from the fiction when it comes to low carb cooking. The best way to do this is to go straight to the source. If you are going to incorporate this lifestyle altering diet into your way of life, you want to make sure that you are following it to the letter and not some knock off version that may not be as effective.

When it comes to low carb cooking you have the perfect excuse to use your grill well and often. In fact, I highly recommend a George Foreman grill (or similar low cost version) for your home for those days when grilling outside simply isn't an option.

In some homes I know, those are the days when the snow reaches the bottom of the grill, but they are the exception rather than the rule. Most importantly about low carb cooking you should keep your goal in mind. If you aren't making progress, check what you are doing and adjust your cooking and eating accordingly.

Lose Weight Fast Diet Plan

Get ready to lose 10 pounds! By paying attention to the amount of food you eat, eliminating unnecessary sugar and fat from your foods and making sure you include absolutely delicious meals and snacks to keep your taste buds happy. Use this easy-to-follow and super healthy diet plan to lose the first 10, the last 10, or any 10 in between! Because it’s a balanced and flexible program, you can stay on this diet as long as it takes.

Top Fast Weightloss Lucky 13 Secrets.

1. 
 Keep track of everything you eat and drink. No need to estimate calories – just write down the type of food or beverage and the amount. Don't cheat. Write down everything.

2 .
Cut your fat intake in half, that means half as much margarine or butter on toast, vegetables and your muffin, half the mayonnaise on your sandwich, and half the oil in the pan when you saute foods. You get the idea!

3.
Limit the sugar treats to three times per week maximum.

4.
Include good sources of protein at meal, chicken, fish, legumes, peanut, cottage cheese, eggs or yogurt.

5.
Eat at least one meatless lunch and dinner each week to reduce fat, increase fiber, and get yourself into the habit of building meals around whole grains, beans and vegetables.

6.
If you’re not currently using skimmed milk, halve the level of fat content in the milk you use. For example, if you currently use two percent, use only one percent. If you insist on whole milk, try two percent.

7.
Eat at least two servings of fresh fruit every day. Choose whatever type of fruit is in season.

8.
Instead of fruit juice for breakfast or snack, drink water. Add a slice of lemon or lime for zest.

9.
Include two servings of vegetables with lunch and dinner, for a total of at least four servings per day.

10.
Choose one to two servings of foods made from whole grains with every meal.

11.
Shut off the TV whenever you eat – that includes meals and snacks. Studies show that we eat larger portions when we snack in front of the tube, and typically those foods are high in fat and sugar, which means excess calories!

12.
Choose calories you can chew – that means only calorie-free beverages (except for milk) Sodas are loaded with empty calories, and fruit juices provide less fiber and vitamins per calorie than the fruit they’re made from.

13.
Plan ahead for meals and snacks so you know exactly what you plan to eat. Last-minute choice tends to be higher in calories and lower in satisfaction.

Exercising Properly To Lose Weight

There are two main types of exercise that you can do - aerobic and anaerobic.  The first one, aerobic, means with oxygen.  Aerobic type exercise has an important distinction, it burns fat as the main fuel. 

Anaerobic on the other hand, burns sugar as the main source of fuel.  Despite common myths, exercise doesn't have to be drastic in any way to provide massive benefits.  Even if you choose light exercise, you will still burn fat.

Light exercise will clear out lactic acid, which is a waste of the body, and stimulate your cells to regenerate.  To be sure that you are burning fat rather than sugar, it's very important to make sure that you are doing several things as you exercise.

The most important thing you can do as you exercise is breathe deep.  You should always breathe in deep into your stomach through your nose, hold it for a few seconds and then exhale hard through your mouth.

Second, you should make sure that you exercise at a comfortable level.  You should exercise at a level of 7 out of 10, and still be able to carry on a normal conversation while you exercise.  You should do this for 45 minutes or so each day, then you'll begin to notice just how much your energy will increase.

Even if you don't think you have the time to exercise, rest assured that there is always time. If you have to, use the time that you would normally spend sleeping.  With exercising, you'll find that you actually need less sleep than before.

You can also use the time of your lunch break to exercise as well.  The increase in productivity will have you more on the ball, and you can save your time through the dramatic increase in your overall productivity. 

Cellularise, or rebounding, is one of the best forms of aerobic exercise there is.  If you have access to a rebounder, you shouldn't hesitate to use it.  Use any break you have at work to engage in some type of movement and deep breathing.

Any type of exercise you do will strongly benefit your heart.  It will make it a stronger and larger organ.  Deep breathing will help your lungs become stronger and larger as well.  There is research now that links exercise to helping benefit and almost prevent each and every type of disease or ailment.

Movement of the joints will promote proper blood flow and create energy, as sitting down all day will rob your body of much needed energy.  If you sit down all day, it's very important that youpromote blood flow, circulation, energy, brainflow, and the strength of your heart.  With just a little bit of your time devoted to exercise, you'll find yourself healthier, and leaner, than you have ever been in the past.

Weight Loss and Cooking Oils/Fats

Everyone knows the foods to eat that improve health,although how we cook the food can be just as important. With there being so many oils and butter products claiming to be the best, it can be quite difficult to know which ones to use and which ones to avoid. So here's a brief guide on just a few to help you.

1. Canola Oil.

Canola oil is a popular oil, with many physicians claiming that it has the ability to lower the risk of heart disease. The oil is low in saturated fat, high in monounsaturated fat, and offers the best fatty acid composition when compared to other oils.

You can use canola oil in sauteing, as a marinade and even in low temperature stir frying.  It has a bland flavor, which makes it a great oil for foods that contain many spices.  Unlike other oils, this one won't interfere with the taste of your meal.

2.  Olive oil.

Olive oil offers a very distinct flavor with plenty of heart healthy ingedients, and just happens to be one of my personal favourites. The oil is rich in monounsaturated fat, helps to lower cholesterol levels and reduce risk of cancer. It's also rich in antioxidants and has a very long storage life.

Even though it can be used in cooking, it's the healthiest when uncooked, such as with a salad or dipping sauce. When you use it with cooking, you should heat it on low to medium temperatures, making sure to avoid high heat.

3.  Butter.

Butter is one food that has been around for many years. Butter tastes good, and offers sources of Vitamin A and other fat soluble vitamins such as E, K, and even D. Butter is also made from natural ingredients and not chemically or artificially processed.

You can use butter with cooking, baking, or as a spread. You can also pair it with creamy sauces, marinades, baked dishes, and of course, bread. Again one of my favourites. As long as you don't overdo it!

4.  Margarine.

Margarine was first introduced as an alternative to high fat butter. When it was first created however, it was loaded with trans fat, a substance that we now know raises bad cholesterol. As a cooking medium, margarine tastes good, it's lower in fat than most oils and butter, and it's quite easy to spread. It's available in a variety of different products and is a good source of vitamin E.

When it comes to cooking with oils, there are several to choose from. Certainly many more than those mentioned here, although the ones above are the most popular. Eating healthily involves cooking healthy food - which is where your cooking oil really takes center stage.

Atkins Low Carb Shopping Tips

When you start the Atkins diet, you are entering a new world of eating. And nowhere is that more apparent than at the supermarket. Suddenly, all of your stand-by foods like macaroni and cheese, pasta and bread are no longer on your shopping list.

When you go shopping for the first few times you may feel like a fish out of water. However, with a bit of practice you’ll feel just as comfortable as you were with your previous shopping lists.

Successful Atkins shopping starts before you reach the store. There are many resources for shopping lists online and in Atkins books. Before you head for the store, make a list of the week’s recipes and then decide what you’ll need to make each meal. Make sure to purchase low-carb snacks for in between meals.

Also, plan for modifications to the meals for other people in your home. You won’t be able to make totally different meals for yourself and your family for the long term. The best approach is to use the main meat dish for your meal for the entire family and then a carbohydrate side dish for your family. For example, if you are eating meatloaf you can add half a potato for the other members of your family.

Once you’ve made your meal plan for the week, its time to hit the store. When you arrive, buy your protein items and produce first. This may sound very simple and like it won’t make much difference, but it will. Once you’ve filled your cart with all of the acceptable foods, there won’t be room for much more.

Consider buying your meat in bulk. This will save you money if you know where to get family sized packages of meat. When you buy meat in large quantities, you can also cook it in bulk as well. Taking time a few days per week to cook meat makes it simple to follow the Atkins plan. You can cook your meat beforehand and have it ready to go when you need it. You can purchase ground beef, chicken pieces, small steaks and even seafood in bulk.

Cheese, if you can tolerate it, can also be purchased in bulk. Many stores offer store-brand cheese in large bricks. You’ll need to make sure to read the labels before you purchase any cheese. Make sure that when you eat cheese to eat some fiber (salad or raw veggies) as well. Having large blocks of your favorite cheeses on hand can make it easy to grab a quick snack between meals.

As you walk around the store, stick to the outer edges. The outer aisles have the freshest food. Think about your neighborhood grocery store. Most often the deli, the meat counter and the produce section are all along the sides of the store with the packaged items in the aisles.

This is especially important if you are in the initial phases of the Atkins diet. You’ll want to stay away from all packaged foods during induction, even if they are low carb packaged foods. Once you add more carbohydrate grams to your daily limit, you can start to experiment with low-carb packaged foods.

That leads to the next important tip – read the labels! Just because an item says it is low carb, it may have hidden sugars. Do your investigative work at the grocery store so you won’t get home with products that cause you to gain weight.

Shopping for the Atkins diet will take some time to get used to. You’ll be navigating parts of the grocery store that you may not be familiar with. You’ll also be purchasing items you’ve never cooked before.

However, with planning and dedication low carb shopping will become easier. Just remember to make a list before you visit the store and stay toward the outer aisles of the grocery store. In no time, you’ll be an experienced low carb shopper.

Could a Local Weight Loss Center Help You?

Have you ever though about joining a weight loss center to help you lose weight?  A weight loss center membership can be a good way to help you achieve your goal of losing weight.  If you have never been a member of such a group before, you may be wondering how you can go about finding one to join.

You firstly probably need to know what weight loss centers are. You will find they come in a number of different formats.  Most commonly, weight loss centers are used to describe local weight loss programs, where you attend group meetings at the “center.”  There are some weight loss centers that have weekly or biweekly meetings, like for weigh-ins.  There are also those where your membership fees give you access to onsite exercise equipment or the ability to attend an aerobics class.

One of the many ways that you can go about finding a weight loss center is by using your local phone book. When using your local phone book, you will want to checkout the business directory section, which is also commonly referred to as the yellow pages.  You may be able to find the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of local weight loss centers by looking under the headings of “weight loss,” or “health and fitness.”

In addition to using your local phone book, you can also use the internet to help. When using the internet, you can use online business directories or online phone books. These online resources are nice, but they are similar to what you would find in your local phone book. Often times, you only get the name, address, and telephone number of a weight loss center.  If you were to use an online business directory, you may also get the address to an online website, if the weight loss center in question has one.

In keeping with using the internet to help you find a local weight loss center, you can also use standard internet searches to your advantage.  When performing a standard internet search, you may want to search with phrases like “weight loss centers,” or “weight loss programs.”  This generalized search may return results for nationally operated weight loss centers.  If you are looking for a local center, you may want to incorporate your city or your state into your standard internet search as well.

Another great way that you can go about finding a local  center to join (and usually the best way in my opinion) is by asking those that you know for recommendations. This includes your friends, family members, co-workers, neighbors, or your doctor.  Whether the individual in question was or still is a member of the weight loss center in question or they know someone who was, you may be able to get a lot information by speaking to those that you know.  It is also nice, as you often don’t just get the name, address, or telephone number of a local weight loss center; you also should get personal recommendations and constructive criticism as well.

The above mentioned approaches are just a few of the many ways that you can go about finding local weight loss centers to join. Although it is nice to hear recommendations from those that you know or use the internet to help you familiarize yourself with all of your options, it is important that you take the time to find the perfect weight loss center for you and needs. This should involve examining the membership features that you have access to, the cost of becoming a member, and so forth.

Diet Versus Lifestyle

Why is it that merely saying the "D" word, you know "diet" brings immediate thoughts of failure to the minds of many men and women around the world? Could it be that we have all learned through trial and error that diets simply do not work?

I know many of you are sitting back with jaws dropped at the moment. After all, this is an article about dieting, right? It is and it isn't. Dieting is the kiss of death for many while a new phase in your life or lifestyle adjustment may be just the thing that will mean success for you and your fitness and health goals.

Eating for some is an addiction. Unfortunately, you can't exactly give up eating all together as a smoker can give up cigarettes. I'm not suggesting by any means that giving up cigarettes is easy but how much more difficult would it be if you were forced to have three a day?

At that point you may as well enjoy them every time the urge hits right? The same holds true for food. You must eat in order to survive. You cannot live without eating. This means that if food is a problem in your life, you must find a healthier way of viewing food.

Isn't this where diets generally come in handy? The short answer is no. This is where diets often fail. Diets do very little to change how we view food. In fact, most diets only serve to tell us which foods are good, which foods are bad, and which foods (typically most of the foods we enjoy most) are strictly taboo. Diets begin by forcing people to feel deprived or punished. And no one likes to feel either of these things.

Even worse however, is that we punish ourselves further when we slip along the straight and very narrow pathways upon which our diets place us. This means that we are going to wallow in guilt over every little misstep we make until we give up all together and decide to over indulge once again and ignore the guilt all together.

In order to have real success you must make a lifestyle change. This is the only way that you will be able to shed those unwanted pounds without experiencing the horrible guilt that so many dieters go through each and every step of the way with their diets.

Set goals for yourself. Keep them aggressive but realistic for fitness, dropping pounds, and eating new healthy foods. Even if your goal is as simple as eating  5 vegetable servings a day it is a great place to start.

Change your way of eating. Then change your way of seeing food and you will experience amazing changes in your attitudes toward your health, your body, and even your fitness level. As the first pounds begin to drop you will begin to experience more energy and less pain when exercising. This should help keep you motivated to do even more as time goes by.

Do not think that long term weight loss goals will be as easy to achieve as the first five or ten pounds. Consistency is vitally important when making these lifestyle changes. Take each day as it comes and begin again the very next day.

This means that even if you fall completely "off the wagon" today, you can start over tomorrow. The trick is in staying the course more days than not and learning moderation and balance when it comes to straying from the straight and narrow.

There are many ways to fail when it comes to dieting and I know people who have failed in almost every one I can possibly imagine. There is no way to fail, however, when you are making positive changes in your life that are getting positive results.

It may take weeks, months, or even years to reach your goal. As long as you are making steady and continuous efforts and progress, you are doing many great things for your health and well being.

The Appetite Suppression Effect of The Atkins Diet

One of the most common, and surprising, effects of following the Atkins diet is appetite suppression. Many followers of the plan report that the between meal hunger pangs they used to experience fade away very quickly.

This makes it easier to stay on the diet and continue to lose weight. While other diets have their followers starving between meals, the Atkins diet offers relief from constant hunger. The Atkins diet, with its specific combination of foods and ingredients, has powerful appetite suppressing effects.

The first key component is the amount of protein in the Atkins diet. Protein, more so than carbohydrates, has the power to satiate hunger. If you’ve ever eaten a carb heavy meal and then felt hungry afterward, you know that carbohydrates don’t have much staying power. Protein, when combined with a small amount of healthy fats, can keep you feeling full for long periods of time.

One of the most powerful appetite suppressing foods on the Atkins diet are eggs. Eggs are a great form of quick and easy protein. A recent study showed that eating eggs for breakfast would actually stave off hunger pangs through the rest of the day.

The research concerned two groups of women. One group ate eggs for breakfast and the other had a breakfast of bagels and cream cheese. The calorie count for both breakfasts was exactly the same. The subjects kept track of what they ate the rest of the day and answered questions about their levels of hunger and satisfaction throughout the day. The results showed that the women who ate the eggs for breakfast felt more satisfied throughout the entire day. They ate less at each meal than the women who were in the bagel group.

Eggs contain about 6 grams of protein each. This helps to even out blood sugar and produces a feeling of satisfaction. Both of these factors help to curb cravings. Egg yolks also contain lutein and xenazanthin. These nutrients have been shown to have incredible effects on eye health. So it’s important to eat the whole egg, and not just the white. Eggs contain choline that is important in brain functioning and memory. These nutrients are just an added benefit to the appetite suppressing qualities.

Broccoli and cauliflower, two of the acceptable vegetables on the Atkins program, also have appetite-suppressing effects. These vegetables are very bulky and they help make your stomach feel full. When your stomach feels full, it will actually create a chemical response in your body.

Your body will reduce its appetite because it believes that your stomach is full of high calorie foods. This will happen regardless of what is in your stomach. You can achieve the same results with water and psyllium husk fiber. Both broccoli and cauliflower provide bulk in your diet and are essential vegetables on the Atkins plan.

The Atkins diet focuses on eating small protein balanced meals a few times per day. This will help keep your blood sugar stabilized and avoid carbohydrate cravings. With high carbohydrate diets, you are riding the wave of carbohydrate highs. After you eat, you feel great and full. Then a few hours later, you come crashing down and are hungrier than you were previous to eating the carbohydrate.

This cycle continues and, over time, you will eat more and gain weight. The protein, fat and vegetable meals of the Atkins plan put your blood sugar back in balance. They provide just enough of each type of food, with a proper amount of carbohydrates (from the vegetables). The vegetables provide quick carbohydrate energy, and the protein gives the meal staying power. This combination helps suppress your appetite.

The Atkins diet is actually a craving control diet that can help suppress your appetite. If you’ve had a problem with carbohydrate cravings before, this way of eating can help control those cravings. The more you eat on the plan, the better your cravings will be controlled and the easier it will be to follow the diet.

Dieting isn't a punishment!

So many people view dieting as some sort of cosmic punishment for not having the perfect body. They believe that enjoying food is somehow bad for them, which couldn't be further from the truth. If you want to be completely honest with yourself, when it comes to dieting, it isn't about giving up food or flavor; it's about discovering new foods and flavors. At least that is what it is for those who truly love food as well as adventure.

There are many spices out there that can make even the blandest of foods a little exciting. Fish and chicken are popular diet foods because they are lean meats. However, adding a little blackening seasoning is a great way to put a little punch in your meal that will make it taste great without packing on the calories of dressing marinades or soaking in butter before broiling. You don't have to stop there. Italian seasoning can also add a little flavor to your kitchen without adding the extra calories that you are working so hard to avoid.

There are all kinds of seasonings that will work well in this instance. Many great seasonings for chicken also make great additions to chicken that will be included in salads for healthier lunches or salad wraps. Grains are good for you when you concentrate on whole grains. They are quite often the primary source of fiber in a diet and you need fiber almost as much as you need water. At any rate, simple things that spice up the same old lunch can have a huge impact on your enjoyment of food.

You can even enjoy the occasional treat when dieting as long as you do so sparingly. The key when dieting is to learn about proper portions and moderate indulgence. You can find all kinds of low sugar or low carb desserts on the market that you can enjoy sparingly. You can even find sugar free or low calorie candy in some cases though you should keep in mind that calories, particularly when it comes to candy you eat unconsciously add up quickly and you must pay close attention to those things you put into your mouth.

My point in all this though is that you do not have to sacrifice flavor in order to diet. You can live without butter; there are many substitutions on the market that are quite remarkable. But seasonings are a great way to add a lot of flavor for a tiny bit of effort on your part. Desserts are also great and you can find many dips and sauces that can be made with fat free or low fat mayonnaise or sour cream in order to cut a few more calories during your dieting process.

These dips and sauces can often make a great substitution, when paired with vegetables, for those chips and dips we love so much and often miss when dieting. Cucumbers, green, red, and yellow peppers, broccoli, and carrot sticks all have a nice little crunch to them that when combined with a good low fat dip can help cure the crave beast for greasy chips that often rears its head when dieting.

If you watch your calories carefully during meals you should be delighted to know that there are many little snack treats that are prepackaged in 100 calorie packs for your enjoyment. This means that you can indulge on occasion in those treats that you love most without sacrificing all your dieting efforts in the process. These snack packs have become one of the best marketing ploys since the invention of diet colas.

We all want the benefits of losing weight and will readily admit that if it were a simple process we'd all be thin. However, having something like these hundred calorie snack packs to carry you through the worst of your cravings can mean the difference between dieting success and failure. They are definitely the difference in the old way of dieting and the new way of dieting without sacrificing flavor.

Online Weight Loss Programs: How Do They Work?

If you are interested in losing weight, you may have thought about joining a local weight loss program or visiting a local weight loss center.  Unfortunately, if you are like many other individuals who are interested in losing weight, you may not necessarily have the time to do so.

Whether you have a demanding job, a family to take care of, or both, you may find it impossible to meet up with a local weight loss group on a regular basis.  If that is the case, you may be thinking that achieving your weight loss goal is simply out of reach, but it doesn’t have to be.

What many individuals do not know is that they can join an online weight loss program. Online weight loss programs are similar to many locally operated weight loss programs.  Often times, the only difference is that you do not get to meet with group leaders or other members in person.

If you are searching for a way to incorporate weight loss into your busy schedule, I would encourage you to examine online weight loss programs.  These online weight loss programs are designed for all individuals, but they are perfect for those who regularly find themselves pressed for time.

When it comes to online weight loss programs, you will find that they come in a number of different formats.  For starters, it is possible to find free programs; however, you will likely find that the best ones require the paying of a membership fee.

Although each program is likely to vary, many have affordable monthly membership rates, some as low as five dollars a month.  It is also possible to find weight loss programs that are designed for women, men, those over the age of fifty, and so forth.

If you have never joined an online weight loss program before, you may be wondering a little bit more about how they work. As previously stated, not all these programs are the same. With that in mind, however, you will find that many operate in similar ways. A few of the many member perks that you may get, when joining an online weight loss program, are outlined below.

One of the many perks or benefits to joining an online weight loss program is that you should get access to workout or exercise information.  Many programs will give you access to their website, which should have exercises and workouts outlined for you.

You should be able to get detailed directions for those exercises, pictures, and possibly even sample videos.  Some more expensive online programs will give you access to customize workouts, ones which focus on the areas of your body that you would most like to improve.

Another member perk or feature that you should get access to with an online weight loss program is that of healthy recipes.  Healthy eating is an important part of weight loss. That is why many such programs have a healthy eating section.  Not only may you get healthy food recipes, but you may also get money saving coupons, as well as cooking and food shopping tips.

Often the only difference between a locally operated weight loss program and an online program is the fact that you do not get to meet with the group leaders or other group members in person. With online weight loss programs, you may not get in-person contact, but you may still be able to communicate. Most programs have online message boards for their members to communicate with each other.

As a reminder, it is important to remember that not all online weight loss programs are the same.  Despite the possibility of a variance, you should find that many are more than worth your money, especially if you regularly find yourself pressed for time.

Teen Dieting

There is more teenage and childhood obesity today than at any other point in the world's history. Much of the blame for this is down to the fast food, low energy society that we have become. Far too often we feel that it is safer to keep our children inside our homes rather than out and about in the great outdoors. The things we are doing for the protection of our children are actually detrimental to their health.

There are things however that are being done to address the problem and get children more involved, more active, and better educated about making the proper choices about diet, nutrition, fitness, and overall health. The problem for most teens is getting them off the computer, phone, or away from the television long enough to get active.

Even video games are getting in on the act of getting children up and active by creating games such as Play Station 2's Dance Party Revolution and the Nintendo Wii gaming system. These systems allow consumers, to actively participate in the game play adventure rather than sitting back and playing the game in a static environment. It is a great way to get teens off their backsides and active. These games are also fun for adults and will have the same effects when it comes to activity. Whoever thought we'd be actually encouraging game play for exercise?

Get Outside and Get Active

Teens learn by example and whether they care to admit it or not, they typically enjoy doing things as part of the family. Go rock wall climbing or mountain climbing. Go bike riding as a family. Camp in the great out doors and go hiking, boating, or biking yet again. Learn a new sport together. It's amazing how much fun you can have learning how to scuba dive and while you are at it, you won't be consuming empty calories. Even if the sport you take up together doesn't involve a lot of physical activity it is quite likely more active than sitting in front of the television.

Have your teen join a recreational sports team.

There are many kinds of sports teams  in most communities  which teens can join. Even those with no skills at all can join and play in some of the leagues while other leagues are competitive. Getting out and about for a softball game, soccer game, and even volleyball can be a great way for the family to do something together and the games and practices are opportunities for your teen to be active.

Lawn work. 

Is another way to get out and get active with your teen. The key, as always, is in your teen burning more calories than he or she consumes. It is often easier said than done but it is quite possible if you work to get them out and about. Find things however that will be interesting to them, and focus on those rather than torturing them with activities that hold no interest at all (well maybe not the yard work). At any rate, filling their time with activities is also allowing time that they aren't consuming calories as well and that is something worth considering.

Encourage your teen to eat healthier foods.

Eliminate calorie-loaded sodas, fruit juices, and energy drinks from your pantry shelves, and encourage your teens to drink plenty of water each day. Introduce as many vegetables as possible into their diet and get rid of the prepackaged convenience goodies that teens are notorious for depleting in one sitting. Also having your teens actively participate in the preparation and clean up for meals will help them pay more attention to the things they put into their mouths, as well as the mess they make in the process.

Atkins Weight Loss Plan Review

Feast or famine as they say in the diet circles. The Atkins weight loss plan is that kind of animal. Will it work for weight loss? Heck yes, it will. But what do you do when you crave a box of cookies? Do you put the diet on the shelf?

In a word, no you don't. For every rule that's made, there's another rule made to be broken. The simple truth is the Atkins diet plan will help you lose weight like a like a popped balloon loses air. But it isn't something that can be sustained over an extended period of time.

If you're going to a wedding a week from this Tuesday and you need to lose a quick ten pounds, hit the Atkins diet and push yourself into the gym. You will lose the weight.

The great part about it is this: by the time you reach the wedding, you can eat mostly what you want without looking horrible that night. And if you have the willpower the very next day to get back on the Atkins diet, then no harm, no foul.

If you cannot jump back on immediately, there will be a price to pay. That balloon might get all of its air back, and then some.

But losing weight is more than getting ready for a wedding. Atkins can certainly be used as a quick fix, but what if you're trying to lose weight and keep it off?

My first advice is, join a gym. The Atkins weight loss plan helps you dig into your fat storage. By joining a gym and working out regularly you help the diet work even better. You can use the advantage of your body's ketogenic state (caused by eating almost no carbohydrates) to your fitness advantage.

By speeding up your metabolism over time, you can transition, and ease yourself off the Atkins diet, and push into a more conventional eating formula. Perhaps the Zone Diet, for example.

In summary, there is more than one way to lose weight. The Atkins weight loss plan is one way, and it does work. However, it will probably not be the last diet plan you engage in. Include a fitness routine no matter how small, and you're guaranteed an easier time bridging the weight loss gap.

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Balanced Weight Loss Diets

Composition of energy value and preparation of food ration is called a diet. A balanced diet is necessary. More fruits and vegetables and a variety of diet should be taken. The best method is to follow a diet plan.

Diet plans should be followed strictly for weight loss. Otherwise, health problems like tension, heart attack, cholesterol and diabetes may occur. Diet planning should be followed regularly otherwise it will lead back to obesity. . A balanced weight loss diet is one that provides all nutrients necessary for the body.

While on weight loss program, soup is a supplement and vegetables can be substituted according to taste. Vegetables like asparagus, peas, corn, turnips, cauliflower etc. can be added but beans should be avoided because they are high in calories.

Food containing low calories and low saturated fats should be taken. This makes the body healthier and wards off diseases. Proteins, carbohydrates and vitamins should be taken in regular quantity. Carbohydrates should be less in quantity. Dairy products rich in fat should be avoided. All these measures help people live longer.

A balanced weight loss diet is the diet that gives all the necessary nutrients. Weight loss diet does not ask you to starve. We should take food to gain energy and keep ourselves active. Weight loss diet replaces damaged tissues and cells through proteins, vitamins and minerals that we take in.

The more active we are the more energy we need. So it is essential to eat a well balanced diet. A right combination of cereals, vegetables, fruits, milk, yogurt etc should be taken. Enough food provides energy for the body but more food stores it as fat to put on weight.

DAY 1: Lots of melons is recommended the first day. Chances are that you lose 3lbs.

DAY 2: Stuff yourselves with all vegetables-unlimited amount or type.

DAY 3: Mix fruits and vegetables-except bananas and potatoes.

DAY 4: Eat as much as eight bananas and three glasses of milk.

DAY 5: Eat 10 oz of lean beef and six tomatoes. Increase water intake to clean the body of uric acid.

DAY 6: Eat unlimited amount of beef and vegetables.

DAY 7: Take brown rice, all vegetables and fruit juice.

High protein and low carbohydrates food should be taken. Dairy products and fat products should be avoided. Cholesterol leads to heart problems and carbohydrates change into fats. Vegetables, chicken, grains, fish and nuts, which are protein rich and low in calcium, add to diet plans. Regular exercises and walking is a must. This helps in burning excess fat. A balanced weight loss diet provides the nutrients necessary for your body.

Quality as well as quantity of food should be taken close care of. Some tips are:- Milk can be used in place of cream in coffee and eat vegetable salads and drink fruit flavored water.

Advantages of weight loss diet foods:
A diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables not only gives vitamins, nutrition and minerals but also acts as a good antioxidant which wipes out free radicals and plays an imperative role in making us healthy and younger thus enabling us to lose weight in a natural way.

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How To Figure Which Is The Best Weight Loss Plan For You?

You want to lose weight, but you don't want to waste your efforts! You want each and every task and every minute that you devote to weight loss to count! I agree. Time is your precious commodity. And I am not talking about those flashy plans that promise you the world. I am talking about the best weight loss plan that is effective for you for the long run.

The number one question I get asked is: what is the better: Counting Carbs or Counting Calories? I am going to answer that here.

With my 10 years of working in the weight loss industry, I have never known of any program, study or research that showed weight loss without having to decrease the amount of calories you eat. The bottom line is: calories in - calories out. You need to burn calories than you eat.

With that said, the Low Carb Programs DO help you to make healthier choices with foods that will burn off quicker/better than if you just ate junk food.

You might be thinking "if its calories that count, why can't I eat what I want and just stay under 1200 calories a day (the minimum a body needs to function)?" Here is why that is not a good idea:

Your body has to have the ability to burn off the calories you consume. Your body needs the proper amount of vitamins and minerals in order to burn off the fat. The energy you get from the junk food becomes unavailable you your body and is stored as fat! Or at least until it gets the vitamins and minerals to burn it off. In the meantime, you still feel hungry and go search out more food. And that turns into fat too. It becomes a vicious cycle.

Another reason what you eat counts: refined foods lack fiber and therefore stay in your intestinal track longer and take up to 5 times as long to process ( think 25 hours vs 5).

In choosing which way to go to lose weight, ask yourself these questions:

1. Is it a balanced program that I can live with long term?

2. Will it teach me and my family healthy eating habits?

3. Does it give me menu's and recipes to use?

4. Does it give me alternatives to eat out if I need to?

5. Does it give support and a money back guarantee?

Ultimately, you have to be the one to choose what is right for you. There is no one size fits all when it comes to the best weight loss plan. If the program answers all those items to you satisfactorily, then that may very well be the one for you.

If you are ready to learn more solutions that help you deal with your weight and your behavior and its relationship to your health, I invite you to Download your Special Report on "Sugar Solutions That Work" by visiting Crush Sugar Cravings. You will gain insight on how to find healthy solutions to your weight problems.

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