Diet and Health Info

By Jason Filsaime

Obesity is the top cause of preventable illness and death in North America. In last decade, the number of people with overweight in industrialized countries has increased significantly. This serious problem is now like an “epidemic”. In the United States 33% of people suffers of weight problems; about 60 millions persons are overweight in Canada The big questions is ” What are the best methods to improve your weight loss, Diets or Exercises?”

What you need to know about diets pills and natural medicine

Many of us have heard horror stories about the ‘diet pills’ that became very popular a generation or so ago. These pills, available with a medical prescription, were basically ’speed’ - which, in a slightly different form, was sold as a street drug. These pills did make women lose weight - sometimes a great deal of weight. This weight loss came at hight price, though. A lot of people became addicted to diet pills. Others took them for so long, or at such heavy doses, that finished by ruining their health.

Nowadays, those diet pills still exist, but they are not prescribed or used nearly as often as they used to be. In general, people today are more aware of the importance of good health and doing things more naturally. All the same, losing weight is still a going concern, and there many people looking for a shortcut, so to speak. That’s where natural medicine comes in.

Natural or herbal medicine has been around for hundred of years - before western medicine or modern pharmaceuticals. It has also undergone a bit of a revival of late. People are disenchanted with the mainstream medical system, and looking for answers through an older system of medicine, one that is based on herbs and vitamins.

In fact, you can see how true that statement is just by browsing the shelves of your local drug store. Chances are, there will be almost as many herbal medicines available on your drugstore as there are conventional medicines. Even doctors are accepting the role that natural medicine has to play. Even if they don’t out and out endorse it, many doctors will concede that natural medicine does no harm, at any rate.

What you need to know about physical exercises

It’s wise to make exercise a part of your weight-loss program. Exercise has a positive psychological impact in our mind, people who are trying to lose weight and have included an exercise plan to loose weight may take advantage psychologically and experience less hunger.

Hunger as most of us know is the major cause behind obesity. Most of the persons who suffers from obesity is because they can not control the appetite. This insatiable situation for eating make people gain weight uncontrollably.

A Few Of The Best Exercises For Weight Loss

- Swimming can be a great weight loss exercise if you swing in cool water is even better because your body burns calories heating itself.

- Walking is maybe a better alternative to running or jogging. It’s easier and delivers about the same results for the same distance traveled. It’s also more enjoyable for many of us.

- Climbing up and down stairs is a very good exercise. It burns almost as many calories as jogging.

- Stationary bicycles are very effective, you can feel more motivated watching your favorite television show while pedaling.

- Parking your car far away from every place you visit can mean a lot of extra walking. Once you do it enough, it will become an almost unconscious habit.

- Walking the dog can be good exercise for you and the dog

- Getting a part-time job that requires physical exercise can be a way to guarantee you’ll get enough exercise. Just be sure it’s something you can handle and enjoy.

Finally, exercising is by far the best Method to improve your weight loss. Sometimes you will not reach your goal, but you will still have done your body good.

To learn more, please visit http://www.XtremeFatBurn.com

To learn more tips and secrets about weight loss, please visit Jason Filsaime’s website at http://www.XtremeFatBurn.com

(NewsUSA) - Since 1980, overweight rates have doubled among adults and children and tripled among adolescents, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Regular exercise and good nutrition are at the heart of staying healthy, reducing the risk of heart disease, diabetes and obesity. But eating right can be a challenge in today’s fast-paced world.

With a bit of creativity and professional-style equipment, preparing healthy, delicious food is faster and easier than it may seem. Here are tips for using blenders in the Vita-Mix Professional Series to easily create flavorful, nutritious meals and snacks:

* Fresh fruits are an essential part of a healthy diet, and they’re easy to incorporate into your daily routine. Make a fresh fruit smoothie for breakfast instead of a sweet roll, or try a smoothie for an evening snack instead of ice cream, cookies or chips.

* Soup made with fresh ingredients can make a light but satisfying entrée. Using a commercial-grade blender, you can create a variety of recipes in minutes - from a heart-healthy tomato soup to a delicious squash soup - and add more vegetables to your diet.

* The USDA food pyramid recommends 5 to 8 ounces of grains per day, with an emphasis on whole grains. The Vita-Mix Professional Series cracks whole grains into flour for creating delicious cereals, pancakes and healthy homemade breads.

* With childhood obesity a growing concern, parents can prepare baby food at home using fresh, flavorful and healthy ingredients. When you make it yourself, you know exactly what is in it.

* Offer fresh and healthy appetizer options at a party. Salsa or red pepper hummus on summer squash rounds are tasty ways to celebrate any occasion.

Visit www.theprofessionalseries.com for more information and healthy recipes, such as Cherry Peach Velvet Smoothie, Cream of Yellow Squash Soup and Hot Spice Apple Barley Cereal.

(NewsUSA) - Experts say that Americans who rely on caffeine and other quick fixes to boost energy levels are losing sight of what is essential to improved physical fitness: a good night’s sleep.

In fact, an eye-opening 70 percent of Americans are getting less than eight hours of sleep at night, according to a national survey sponsored by the Better Sleep Council (BSC). And unfortunately, these restless people are far less likely to engage in high-intensity physical activity, such as running or lifting weights, than those who get eight or more hours of shut-eye.

“Sleep deprivation impacts us physically, which can negatively affect our coordination, agility, mood and energy,” says Dr. Bert Jacobson, professor and head of the School of Educational Studies at Oklahoma State University. “Research shows that quality and adequate quantity of sleep leads to improvements in athletic performance, including better endurance, energy and even mood.”

Studies also show that sleeping on a newer mattress may be the key to better sleep and increased physical endurance. According to the BSC survey, adults sleeping on newer (one to four years old) mattresses are more likely to participate in physical activities, as compared to adults whose mattresses are eight to 10 years old.

To improve the quality of your sleep, and in turn the quality of your life, try these tips from the BSC:

Exercise regularly. A regular exercise regimen helps keep you fit and also helps you sleep better at night. But avoid really strenuous exercise right before bedtime.

- Avoid alcohol, caffeine and nicotine (e.g., coffee, cigarettes) close to bedtime. These can lead to poor sleep, keep you awake or disrupt sleep later in the night.
- Watch what you eat. Finish eating at least two hours before your regular bedtime, and avoid heavy or late meals.
- Evaluate your sleep equipment. Just as we need the proper equipment to get the best workout, we also need the proper sleeping equipment to get the best night’s sleep. If your mattress is five to seven years old, or if you wake up with stiffness, aches or pains, it’s time to evaluate your mattress and see whether a new one could provide you with better comfort and support.

For more information on how to evaluate your mattress and get a better night’s sleep to improve your physical activity and overall well-being, visit www.bettersleep.org.

Metabolism is the rate at which your body consumes energy and calories. Having a high level of metabolism enables you to lose weight and burn fat even while inactive. Since most people would like to speed metabolism lets look at a few ways to do so.

Increase lean body mass through strength training. This is the most effective way of increasing your metabolism. The amount of muscle you have is a strong indicator of your body’s ability to burn calories and shed fat. Build strength by working out at least twice a week. If you don’t have weights you can use your own body’s weight for resistance. Examples of using your body’s weight for resistance training include push ups and chin ups. Start out slowly and increase the amount of repetitions each week. With weights you should try to slightly increase the amount of weight each week.

Increase the amount of daily activity you get. Simple things like walking the dog or using stairs instead of an elevator can help take off calories. Though cardio exercise like walking is not as effective as strength training, if you have been inactive just adding 30 minutes a day of walking, working in the garden, or anything else that get you up and moving can have huge health benefits.

By Rob Poulos, Fat Loss & Fitness Expert & Author of “Fat Burning Furnace”

In part one of this article, I talked about how avoiding diets is one of the best things you can do for your long term health and fitness success, especially if you want to burn fat. In this second part, I’ll show you how you can start to transition from your current lifestyle to one that creates a lean, strong body and lasting health.

From a nutritional standpoint, you need a healthy balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats in your diet to keep your metabolism firing on all cylinders, constantly burning fat. Fad diets have a coolness factor to them that sometimes makes them irresistible at first. But in the long run I’ve found it best to go back to the basics of what your body craves. Let’s talk about that…

Complex Carbs (whole grains, breads, cereals, etc.) are vital to maintaining your energy throughout the day and do a host of other things within your body including keeping you feeling full. I’ll also lump fruits in with complex carbs, because of their high fiber content and slow absorption into the blood stream, keeping our insulin level in check, which is important for less fat storage and a higher chance of burning stored fat.

Simple Carbs, or sugars (candy, soda pop, white processed baked goods, etc) are to be avoided and kept to a minimum for the most part. They provide little nutritional value to you and are what I often refer to as empty calories. They just add calories to your body with little or no nutritional value that are going to end up in your fat stores if you’re not careful with how much you ingest. Forget about maximum fat burning here. Of course, many people are aware of the blood sugar and insulin connection with eating too many simple carbs. Our insulin regulates are blood sugar level and takes any excess sugars and stores them as fat. We then are stuck getting tired and hungry, making repeating this cycle far too easy. The best way to avoid this, I’ve found, is eating a sensible amounts of complex carbohydrates instead.

Proteins (lean meats, fish, poultry, soy, beans and legumes, etc.) are important to maintain the cellular structures in your body and provide the building blocks for the lean muscle you’re after, which is vital if you want to burn fat fast. But with anything else, don’t go overboard with protein. Some fitness experts claim that you’ll need a minimum 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight each day. There is no real proof that this is the case, and ingesting more protein than your body needs ends up going to your fat stores…plus it doesn’t do your kidneys or liver any good either. I’ve found that keeping protein to around 0.5 grams per pound of bodyweight each day more than sufficient in feeding the lean muscle growth that my Fat Burning Furnace students stimulate with their properly performed resistance exercise.

Another important aspect of protein involves whether or not you’re getting your protein from animal or plant based sources. While the traditional American diet recommends most animal based proteins, recent data suggests that too heavy a reliance on animal proteins increases risks for disease. On top of that, animal proteins contain almost no fiber, which doesn’t go very far in keeping you feeling full, and negatively effects your ability to burn fat. When choosing your protein sources, make sure you eat a good portion of your protein from plant sources (soy, beans, legumes, etc.). You don’t have to be a vegetarian, but I recommend keeping your animal proteins on the low side.

Fats (found in many proteins, nuts, oils, etc.) are essential to maintain certain bodily processes like hair, nail, and skin regeneration. There is a lot of confusion with fats out there, some recommending extremely low fat diets and others even recommending a very high fat diet. If you are focusing on lean protein choices in your meals, and including small amounts of healthy oils, nuts, and seeds in your diet, your fat intake will be in order.

So how much of each of these macro nutrients should you be eating to maximize fat burning and get that lean fit body you’re after? It’s easy to get caught up in the percentages and counting calories, but the easiest way I’ve found is to count portions instead of calories. An easy way to ensure that this happens is to make sure you eat both a portion or two of complex carbs and a portion of protein at each meal. Add as many green veggies as you can eat, as they’re super low in calories and provide more fiber, enzymes that aid in digestion, and vitamins and minerals that will be more than adequate for most people. Remember, focus on nutrient rich foods and you’ll find that burning fat and getting healthy will seem like a natural.

How many times per day should we be eating to burn the most fat? I can tell you that three meals a day is not going to cut it when trying to burn fat fast and get lean, at least not in my experience. In fact, if you wanted to get as fat as possible, you should eat all of your daily calories in one meal. Eating smaller more frequent meals throughout the day is the fastest way to fat loss. It fires up your metabolism, as every time you eat something, the metabolism kicks it up a notch. Try and eat 5-6 smaller meals per day, spaced about 3 hours apart.

Now, I know many people don’t want to be taken out of their breakfast, lunch, and dinner routine…so you can still eat at those traditional meal times, but try cutting back a bit on how much food you eat at those meals and add those calories into 2 or 3 snack meals in between. A snack meal could be a protein/energy bar or maybe even a piece of fruit and a slice of whole grain bread.

So you see, eating for a lean, strong, and healthy body isn’t so difficult…and it doesn’t require you to eliminate essential foods like complex carbohydrates from your diet. In fact, doing so will put you into the cycle of confusion of fad diets that is all too prevalent in fitness today. And that’s a cycle that’s tough to break out of. Focus on foods your body craves naturally instead, and the rest of the details will be easy to implement into your lifestyle. Before long you’ll start to burn fat faster than you might have thought possible.

Claim your free copy of Rob Poulos’s “7 Secrets Of Permanent Fat Loss & Fitness” at his website: http://www.fatburningfurnace.com

Rob Poulos is a celebrated fitness author, fat loss expert, and the founder and CEO of Zero to Hero Fitness. Rob created the world’s most efficient method for fast and permanent fat loss with his “Fat Burning Furnace” system to help those looking to put an end to restrictive fad diets, long boring cardio workouts, and the need for super-human willpower for good.