The Calorie Counting Equation
February 2, 2010 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Burning Calories
There’s no mystery about how to lose weight: you need to consume fewer calories each day than you burn during that day. And there are only three choices available to get the job done – you can reduce the calories you take in, or you can increase your activity so you will burn more calories. The third choice is to do both, and in this case one plus one definitely equals three.
The point at which you’ve burned all the calories you’ve consumed, or more accurately, all the energy readily available in your bloodstream in the form of glucose (which is created from the calories you consume) is your break-even point. Calorie demands beyond that point force the body to use up stored fat for the energy it needs – hence, you lose weight. If your daily calorie expenditure falls short of your break-even point, the unused glucose in your blood is stored for later in the form of fat. It’s simple math, really, but the bio-chemistry that kicks it all into gear is anything but simple.
This is why diets don’t usually work, or at least not as well or as quickly as advertised. Because depriving your body of calories at a level that is significantly below the break-even point, which is what severe dieting does, can be dangerous, and you won’t lose much weight in the process (if you do lose weight, you are experiencing the same life-sapping change that anorexics experience, and sooner or later it will kill you). The reason is that the body senses this calories deprivation and adapts to it by hoarding its fat cells, making it even harder than ever to drop pounds, even if you exercise strenuously. The idea is to create a reasonable daily calories deficit that is in the “fat-burning zone,” usually between a 500 and 1000 calorie shortfall per day. To make this happen, there are certain rules about dieting that apply:
-Make sure your diet plan does NOT take you below your daily minimum intake for an inactive person, or about 1200 calories for women, 1500 for men.
-Your target daily deficit is 500 to 1000 calories per day, as defined by your daily minimum for your level of activity. Any more than that will trigger a starvation-mode response that will prevent you from losing much weight at all.
-You cannot eat anything you want to get to that target calorie intake level, because in a calorie-deficient environment your body is even more in need of proper nutrition, including a balance of proteins, complex carbohydrates and essential fats (see below for more on these). If you cut out or deprive the body of any of these elements, even if you are ingesting more than your daily minimum calorie need, you may trigger the starvation-mode response anyway, and more likely, you’ll be counter-productive to your metabolism in ways that cause you to feel fatigue and alter your bio-chemistry in really ugly ways.
At the end of the day, it all boils down to this: you have to give your body what it needs, even if you are trying to lose weight. If you don’t, you won’t lose the weight you want to lose, you won’t lose it efficiently, and most of all, you won’t lose it in a healthy manner. And worst of all, whatever weight you do lose with an improper diet program will come back, and quickly, once you resume a more normal eating pattern. And then you’ll just have to start it all again.
Remember, the definition of insanity is the attempt to create different results by doing the same thing over and over. And dieting without observing these rules, and without supplying your body with the daily protein it needs to build new cells, the complex carbohydrates it needs for energy, and essential oils it requires (especially the omega oils) for optimal heart health, is truly insane.
Weight Loss Surgery: Is It Worth the Money?
January 5, 2010 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Exercise and Weight Loss
Are you interested in losing weight? If you are, how much weight would you like to lose? If you are looking to lose eighty pounds or more in weight, did you know that you may be a candidate for weight loss surgery?
Although it is nice to hear that you may be a candidate for weight loss surgery, you may be wondering if weight loss surgery is right for you. More importantly, you may be wondering if weight loss surgery is worth the money. If that is a question that you would like answered, you will want to continue reading on.
In short, the question as to whether or not weight loss surgery is worth the money has a simple answer; it all depends. While that may not have necessarily been the answer that you were looking for, it is the truth. For many individuals, weight loss surgery is well worth it; however, there are others who don’t end up benefiting from weight loss surgery. To determine if weight loss surgery is worth the cost to you, personally, you will want to take a number of factors into consideration.
One of the many factors that you will want to take into consideration, when determining if weight loss surgery is worth the cost for you, is your weight. You will find that many weight loss surgeons require that you are at least eighty pounds overweight to undergo weight loss surgery. With that in mind, you may be able to find a surgeon who will make an exception, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you should opt for surgery. If you are able to try to lose the weight on your own, through the use of exercise, eating healthy, or diet pills, you may find it more affordable to do so.
Your health is another factor that you should take into consideration, when trying to determine if weight loss surgery is right for you. Weight loss surgery is commonly referred to as a lifesaving medical procedure. Those who are severely obese put their health at risk and may experience an early death. If you are severely obese, your physician may recommend weight loss surgery. If that is the case, weight loss surgery is more than worth the costs, as you cannot put a price tag on your health and wellbeing.
Your ability to set goals and stay with them is another factor to consider, when determining if weight loss surgery is worth the cost to you. Weight loss surgery may help you lose weight right away, but the surgery alone will not help you lose weight. With a reduced stomach pouch, which is how most weight loss surgeries work, you must limit the amount of food that you eat. If you do not do so, you may gain your weight back and possibly endanger your health. If you do not think that you can follow all of the instructions given to you, following a weight loss surgery, surgery may not be the best option for you.
The above mentioned factors are just a few of the many that can help you decide if weight loss surgery is right for you or if it is worth the cost. As a reminder, it is important that you take the time to first consult with your doctor. Not all individuals are candidates for weight loss surgery.
Basic Yoga Excercises Explained
December 18, 2009 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Exercise and Weight Loss
We are going to try some exercises for the neck and eyes which will help do away with eye strain, tension, and stiffness of the neck. You can do them whenever you please.
Just drop your head forward, then rotate it several times. If the rolling goes smoothly without any grinding or crackling noises you have nothing to worry about; if it doesn’t, better try the neck exercises.
TECHNIQUE: Here is how the neck exercises are to be done:
Sit on the floor with your legs crossed and keep the hands on the knees. If you prefer to sit on a chair, choose a hard one, otherwise you will find it difficult to keep your back straight, which is essential.
Relax the whole body. You should be conscious of it only from the neck up – the rest should remain motionless and as unstrained as if you were sitting under water up to the neck.
1. Now close your eyes and effortlessly and gently let your head drop forward and backward, then again forward and backward. Do each exercise four times to begin with. Later on you can increase the number to six or more. When dropping the head backward keep your facial muscles relaxed; the lips should part slightly when the head is thrown back.
2. In the next exercise, you first turn your head to the extreme right and return it to normal position; then turn to the extreme left and return to normal again. Repeat four times. Turning the head to the sides contracts the muscles, returning to normal position relaxes them.
3. In the third exercise you bend your head to the right as if someone were pulling your right ear towards the right shoulder, and straighten the head, bend it to the left and straighten again. Repeat four times.
At the end of the last exercise, pat the neck with the back of both hands, smacking it under the chin and on the sides. To pat the back of the neck, use your palms and finger tips.
The daily practice of these exercises will loosen up the tension in your neck muscles and keep them relaxed and elastic. It will also control any tendency to a double chin and help to improve your eyesight. The vision gets better and clearer as the ophthalmic, or eye, nerves receive a richer supply of blood.
Eye Exercises
Remain sitting in the same position as before. Open your eyes, then check on your posture. Is your spine erect?
Now raise your eyes and find a small point that you can see clearly without straining, without frowning, without becoming tense and, of course, without moving your head. While doing this exercise look at this point each time you raise your eyes.
Next, lower your eyes to find a small point on the floor which you can see clearly when glancing down. Look at it each time you lower your eyes. Breathing should be normal – that is, you don’t have to do deep breathing.
Technique:
1. (a) Raise the eyes to look at your chosen high point.
(b) Lower the eyes to look at your chosen low point.
Repeat four times. Close the eyes and rest a moment.
2. Now do the same using points to your right and to your left, at eye level. Keep your raised fingers or two pencils on each side as guides and adjust them so that you can see them clearly when moving the eyes to the right and to the left, but without straining.
Keeping the fingers at eye level, and moving only the eyes, look to the right at your chosen point, then to the left. Repeat four times. Blink several times, then close your eyes and rest.
Your neck and eyes will greatly benefit from these exercises.
Gulf Coast Kayak Fishing Combining Fun, Fishing and Excercise
November 27, 2009 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Exercise and Weight Loss
By the time mid-February comes around on the Gulf coast,
signs of spring are usually in the air and have not gone
unnoticed by fish and fishermen alike. Now that water
temperatures have begun their climb to more
accommodating levels, gamefish will soon become more
accommodating, too, as the sun warms the shallow flats
and baitfish gather on the shorelines.
One of the easiest and most stealthy ways to prowl the flats
in search of heavy trout this time of year, as well as any
other season for that matter, is by way of a paddle powered
kayak or ‘yak for short. They are easy to handle both in and
out of the water and large numbers of fishermen have
already flocked to the sport. Special havens and trails have
even been created in coastal areas exclusively for the use of
unmotorized craft.
Kayak fishing is clearly the way to go if you want to combine
fun, fishing and exercise.
How to burn more calories when walking – Part 1
October 19, 2009 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Burning Calories
What I have found is that your body quickly adjusts to many forms of exercise and therefore it may not be as beneficial because you have reached a plateau.
I have always been very active and physical activity was extremely important. I was a runner and trained in the martial arts. I developed a foot and hip problem and have had to give up the above.
I have had to start walking as my form of fitness. After three month I realized that I did not seem to benefit as much from the walking as when I started.I did some research and found out that I had reached a plateau and I needed to mix up my walking program.
I walk five times a week for at least an hour every time. Into that hour I coporate moderate walking to fast walking to power walking also doing gentle uphill.I have seen amazing results and would recommend this to any walker out there. How you mix up the walking is up to the individual. The key thing to remeber is add variety to your walk and you will burn so many more calories.
I hope this is helpful to all you walkers out there.
Learn The Easiest Secrets To Lose Body Fat
June 29, 2009 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Burning Calories
No longer do you have to spend hours and hours in the gym to lose body fat. The truth about losing body fat has nothing to do with your ability to go to the gym. In fact, it has every thing to do with finding the right diet.
Understand this about going to the gym. This is a good thing to incorperate with your diet. Remember one thing. You must diet to see the results of your exercising. You do not need to exercise to see the results of your diet.
Dieting and losing body fat no longer means you have to sacrifice flavor. More and more food processers are making weight loss alot easier. Diets are no longer about being strict on what you eat and living on salads.
Dieting is all about calorie intake. Eat less calories than your body burns. All you need to do is understand how to keep your calories down and you will lose weight fast. There are so many healthy ways to keep your calories down. Dont feel like you have to sacrife foods. Pick one day a week and reward your self with a high calorie meal. This will actually help you. To add a high calorie meal once a week will shock your body and cause it to help burn more calories. Then the next day when you drop back to low calorie, your body will still burn as if it was taking in alot of calories. This is when you start to burn more fat.
Using the right diet will teach you two very important things. First you will learn what foods to eat. Believe it or not, there are actually some foods out there that will increase your ability to lose body fat. The second thing you will learn is when to eat. This is the most important thing to learn. Learning this will allow you to eat all the foods that normally you would not be able to. This is how you will be able to lose body fat and not sacrifice all the foods you love.
Dont be affraid to eat. The days of 3 square meals are over. Eat 5 to 6 times a day. Eat less per meal but eat more meals. This will keep your body burning calories and fat all day.
They next thing you must do to esure that you lose body fat is drink alot of water. I cant stress this enough. Water is very important. Stay away from sodas and tea. Even though diets have no calories, they still are not great to have. Soda and tea will stall you fat burn. Water will not and you must take in about half your body weight in ounces of water.
Remember that there are good calories and bad calories. There is alot of help out there to teach you which calories are good and which ones are bad. You want to make sure not to take in to many “empty calories”.
You will see that it is easy to lose weght fast. More importantly you will see how easy it will be to keep the wieght off. After all, we not only want to lose weight but we want to make sure it never comes back!
Why the HAPPY DIET works
April 12, 2009 by Fight that Flab
Filed under Dieting and Food
Understanding why and how the happy diet works.
There is a simple explanation and that being is you get to choose what you want to eat. Most diets today prove to be very stressful for many men and women in their quest to lose weight. This is because they are following instructions from others on what they should and should not be eating. How do these people know? What tickles your fancy?
Discover how the happy diet can work for you, what is the happy diet you ask. It is a diet carefully devised by youself with all the things that you like to eat. You get to choose your own meats fresh fruit and vegetables
Diets definitely work if you adhere to all the rules, break them then no results. Now let us get cracking on a diet that makes sense and guaranteed to put a smile on your face Just imagine your own diet with all the juicy ingredients and succulent meats that suit your palette
Always consult a doctor if you are thinking about dieting or exercising as we individuals all differ in many ways.
A little research on daily intake of carbohydrate protein and fat is an important factor when devising your own diet. I suggest you browse magazines or approach slimming informational centres to find out about your chosen foods.
Find a list of all the foods that you know you are going to enjoy using in your recipes and that are good for helping you to shed those excess pounds. Then narrow it down to the ones that you want to have on your menu.
This part of the happy diet can prove to be very educational and fun to say the least. People accept diets and all the ingredients. This way you get to delve more intimately into the choices you have made for your own personal plan.
After checking all the important factors as in i.e. consulting the doctor and daily intake of fats etc. we are now ready for the physical side of things. A few ideas to help speed up the process (exercise) try dancing round the kitchen table with the kids they make think you are mad but who cares you are on a mission to find the new you. Spring clean not once a week maybe twice. This will help hurry things along and into the bargain a cleaner house. Remember this is your plan so do it when it suits you. Results will only come if you stick to what you started out to do. Walking a great form of exercise, why not consider salsa lessons it all helps. Do not expect results over night
For starters (Excuse the pun) throw out the frying pan. Less grease on the plate to lose weight Grilling with out a doubt is a far healthier and tastier option.
Cut down (YES) cut out (NO) you can still nibble on little goodies. Just cut down? Watch where others go wrong, most diets of course will not work if the rules are broken. Now why would you want to break the rules on the happy diet when all that is on the menu was chosen by you? (It makes sense) Consulting a dietician is a good idea for information. Joining a book club may also prove to be priceless in your quest. Make your own recipes to suit your own taste buds. http://www.benidormbeaches.com
