Jul 9, 2010

5 Super Simple Weight Loss Tips

Weight loss is one of those subjects that everyone is always talking about. It seems you can’t go anywhere without seeing or hearing some type of weight loss message. Stories of the dangers of not losing weight appear regularly on the nightly news. Retail outlets and the Internet both are full of weight loss books and products. Weight loss is discussed in medical centers and at schools and even in the work place. If you’re trying to lose weight, here are a few tips to get you going.

Tip #1 – Stop Talking About Weight Loss!

All that talk about how much you want to lose weight isn’t going to make the weight come off. You’ve got to take action, starting right now. So take this simple advice: Stop moving your mouth and start moving your body! It won’t take long to begin seeing the results.

Tip #2 – Slow and Steady is Best

Slow and steady weight loss is better (and safer) than riding the dieting roller coaster. If you’re looking for long-lasting weight loss results, aim to lose an average of about two pounds each week. In order to lose weight you’ve got to consume fewer calories than you burn. As a bonus, when you combine dieting with exercise, you’ll be reducing your caloric intake and increasing your caloric burn rate at the same time.

Tip #3 – Save Your Money

Don’t spend your hard-earned money on the latest weight loss gimmicks. Pills, fad diets, hypnosis, and extreme surgical procedures are not the answer! These gimmicks won’t slim you down, but they will fatten the bank accounts of those who promote them! Eating a nutritionally-balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, good fats and lean proteins will encourage weight loss faster than any miracle cure you can buy.

Tip #4 – Weight Loss is a Way of Life

Unfortunately, the issue of weight is something that most people will struggle with throughout life. Excess processed foods and a sedentary lifestyle are the two biggest contributors to this constant struggle. If you want to lose weight and keep it off, you’ve got to change the way you think about food. It should be thought of as a source of fuel, not a passion. Successful weight loss really is about making lifestyle changes, including making the right food choices, and then sticking with those choices throughout life.

Tip #5 – Weight Loss is More Than a Number

When you’re dieting, don’t become a victim of the dreaded scale. When the numbers go down, happiness goes up. But when the numbers stay the same or go up, it is easy to give up and give in. Remember that even if your weight isn’t changing as you would like, your body is. You’ll be taking better care of your heart. You’ll be lowering your cholesterol levels. You’ll be sporting a leaner body and your clothes will begin fitting more comfortably. When you learn to find joy in these other benefits, you’ll want to keep on being a loser!

Jul 7, 2010

Alkalize to Reduce Your Size and Lose Weight

It is a fact that over 75% of people who lose weight put that weight back on within a year and of those who put it back on a further 50% will actually put on more weight than they started with in the first place!

How is that for a scary fact?

What I am about to tell you will help you to reduce your weight and help you to keep it at a level you are happy with. You will notice I have put the word help in bold text, this is because this is just the start to reducing your weight and it is without doubt the most important gift you could give to your body to help that weight reduction.

Do you know what a ph scale is?

A ph scale is a measurement guide to acidity and alkalinity. It is a sliding scale from 1 to 14 where 1 is completely acidic and 14 is completely alkaline. This means that 7 is completely neutral, neither acid nor alkali.

Why is this so important? Well our bodies are a fine balance between acid and alkali and the optimum level for our bodies to be at is 7.36 which is just slightly alkali. If you are over weight I guarantee that you body is acidic because that is basically what fat is, stored acid that your body has not been able to break down.

When you start to get your body back towards the optimum level of 7.36 your body will automatically react to get rid of some of the waste acid it is currently holding on to. But your body needs help to become more alkaline and to get rid of this waste.

Fortunately there is a product which is a solution to both of these areas and it is called ‘water’ that’s right – water.

I am sure that you have heard people say many times ‘you should drink at least 6-8 glasses of water per day’, do you take any notice? I am guessing that you are now in one of the 3 following categories:

1. You have heard people say this and you now do drink this amount of water per day. 2. You have heard people say this but you just can’t be bothered because it means you will go to the toilet more often. 3. You have heard people say this and you just don’t believe them.

I am here to tell you that you absolutely must drink at least 2 litres (3 would be better but do not exceed 3) of alkalizing water (bottled mineral water preferably) per day. This water will re-alkalize your body therefore giving your body chance to get rid of the excess acid it has been storing and it will help get rid of this waste through your natural systems (again I am not going to graphic on this). I guarantee that if you start to drink at least 2 litres of water per day you will start to feel the effects within a fortnight. But before you rush off to get a glass right now…………. No actually go get yourself a nice big glass full I will wait for you…….

Are you back, excellent.

There is something else you can do to help your body’s alkali levels and that is to drink green drinks. You can either get these ready made or you can get powders to mix with your water to produce a green drink.

Green drinks are made from all natural ingredients that are high in alkali levels which is obviously superb for your body. Search the net for green drinks there are numerous ones out there.

I personally drink 2 ½ to 3 litres per day of green drinks and since I started I have found a massive difference to my life.

So there you have it, you now know the greatest gift you can give to your body to help you reduce your weight.

Graham Nicholls 2006

Jul 4, 2010

Calorie Counting and Weight Loss

You and I know that losing fat and staying in great shape is a difficult task because it is so hard to stay motivated and it is so tempting to cheat, especially when you can hide the cheating. We dieters have all been in a starving situation when dieting and our mind reasons very quickly why that extra piece of pie is not going to hurt us. We take it, forget about it and then wonder next day why we didn’t lose weight.

For most of us dieting is a constant battle between emotion and reason and when hungry, reason is out of the window and emotion just wins. We do not see the immediate effects of our behavior and therefore our brain is fooled into thinking that everything is all right. On the other hand, let’s say you would get very sick when eating more than you need, overeating would stop very quickly.

Getting sick after a little bit of overeating does normally not happen therefore we need to find a different way to show the consequences of our behavior. We need to show this in a factual manner, an immediate visual display of the results of our cheating. It is not punishment right away, but over time our brain will be conditioned such that taking an extra piece of pie will give negative weight loss results. Then we will start to understand why we don’t lose weight and can pinpoint the causes.

What should this visual display look like? First I like charts, they are very easy to understand and can show trends and correlations between variables. In this chart I would like to see over a period of time, the average calories that I take in per day compared with the average calories that I burn per day. If the chart shows that the intake calories are lower than the burned calories, I will lose weight and vice versa I will gain weight. Correlate that with a chart that shows your weight or BMI (Body Mass Index) over time and I have the tool that helps me regulate my food consumption versus my daily activities.

If I add my hunger levels before and after the meals, I can fine tune my meal plans and daily activities. In this way I can sustain my dieting for a long time and preferably it will become my way of life. I have minimized the hunger pain and increase the pleasure of losing weight and feeling more attractive.

There is abundance of free online food calorie calculators. These calorie counters just display nutrition facts and are not going to help you lose weight. Nor is a simple calorie calculator that tries to calculate your calories burned solely based on your weight and average activity level. These are simple little gimmicks that are a waste of your time.

Only when you seriously can track and correlate your calorie intake and calories burned over time, depending on your age, weight, gender, height and individual activity intensity levels can you precisely measure your calorie balance. Seeing visually that your weight loss program works is a big motivator to stay on track. Also you can see immediately when you are off track and you can adjust your situation accordingly.

Acquiring great health is a complex task. Interrelating factors like diet, nutritional facts, meal plans, calorie balance, body reading measurements, supplement and medicine intake, exercise routines, daily activity intensity and costs will make it very difficult for you to see the forest for the trees. Well designed software that keeps track of all of the above factors and can correlate them will make it very easy to manage your health, fitness, weight loss, muscle mass gain or any goal you have set...

Jul 1, 2010

Best Key Ingredients For Ultimate Weight Loss Success

So you've made the resolution that THIS is the year you're going to lose weight and get in the best shape of your life. You're not going to settle for second best - you're going to achieve that dream body you've always wanted.

Great news - this is actually the best time to make that commitment. Why? Because you can take advantage of the powerful momentum and energy a New Year brings to achieve your weight loss dreams.

But there's nothing worse than committing to lose weight, only to get lost among the 5 gazillion diets out there. It can get confusing - you may end up wasting a lot of money and effort. You may end up wondering which diet is really the BEST diet for you.

You may even end up feeling so frustrated that you give up on your dream of becoming slim and healthy. But it doesn't have to be that way.

In order to have rapid weight loss success, you have to find the best diet for you (a.k.a. the diet that will speed you towards your dream body at lightning pace). There are millions of diets - but only a few that are best for you and your lifestyle.

The best diet for you will have the 3 key features listed below. Choose your diet with these 3 key features in mind and you're already halfway to your weight loss dreams.

#1 Proven Success Rate

Are there before and after pictures of people who have lost weight with that particular diet? Are there customer testimonials? Have there been independent studies done on the diet's success rate?

The diet you choose doesn't have to have all three of these but try to find at least some kind of proven success rate before choosing that particular program.

Finding a diet with a proven success rate not only lets you know that the diet works but it also helps give you the confidence that the diet will work FOR YOU.

Confidence is one of the most underrated factors in a successful weight loss program. If you've tried and failed with diets before you especially need that extra boost of confidence to carry you through the more difficult times in the diet. By reminding yourself that this diet has been proven to work - you'll be able to keep going and reach your weight loss goals.

A related feature that gets extra points is if the diet has been recommended by an expert or a physician. Again this boosts your confidence that the diet is safe and effective.

#2 Affordable.

Losing weight should not cost you thousands of dollars (unless we're talking about surgery here and that's an entirely different article). The best diet will be affordable for the average person.

If the diet costs too much, be very suspicious and look elsewhere. There are too many shady diets out there and as a consumer, it pays to be cautious.

I'll give you an example of what I mean:

A close friend of mine went to a well-known weight loss clinic in our area and was told she had to pay the yearly fees up front (around $1000 NOT including food). They also told her she had to buy their food in bulk (like $500 for a year's worth of chocolate). When the chocolate gave her heart palpitations and she had to take it back, they told her it was non-refundable. She was out the money for the chocolate. Plus, she feels she can't leave the program because she's paid the yearly fees (which, you guessed it, are also non-refundable).

She unfortunately made the mistake of ignoring her instincts and paying way too much money for a diet program. If you notice you're being asked for hefty fees right out of the gate, warning lights should be flashing in your mind.

Now on the other hand, the best diet WILL cost you something. It actually is better if you put some cash on the table for your diet program. Why? Because when we invest in something we're more likely to stick with it. When we invest in something we are more likely to follow through and get the results we want.

For example I did a liver detox several months ago. I'm not really into liver detoxing but I read an article and figured I'd try it.

The detox kit cost me a whopping $50 and when I opened the instructions they told me I had to give up junk food for two weeks. In any other universe I would have laughed and simply forgotten about detoxing my liver. But because I'd shelled out $50, I was invested - I decided that I hopefully wouldn't starve from lack of junk food over two weeks and suffered through it.

If I'd gotten the detox kit for free there's no way I would have followed those instructions. But because I was invested, I followed through and now have a healthier liver thanking me for it.

So when searching for the best diet, putting out some money on yourself and your dreams of a better body is actually a healthy thing. Just keep in mind that you shouldn't have to spend thousands of dollars on it.

#3 Compatible with Your Tastes and Lifestyle

This is THE most crucial step however it's the one where most people go wrong. When choosing a diet, they simply pick one and go, without considering if it is compatible with their tastes and lifestyle.

For example, if you hate feeling deprived or empty you might want to choose a program that lets you eat many times during the day so you don't feel hungry. If you get bored easily you want a diet program that gives you tremendous variety and flexibility. If you don't do a lot of cooking or food preparation, you'll want to look at a program where the food is pre-made for you.

Diets are like cars - there are hundreds of different models out there, each with their own unique features. And they can get you where you want to go. But your personality might gel better with certain features than others.

Dieting is hard enough. Don't make it harder on yourself by choosing a diet not compatible with who you are. Setting yourself up for success will also guarantee that you'll stick it out until you reach your goal.

And one other thing, the best diet will be one that you can get excited about. Choose a diet that you enjoy, that you believe in, that may actually be - gulp - fun.

Emotional excitement will fade in time, yes. But it can give you enough of an emotional push to get you over the initial hump. By that time your first few pounds will have come off and will serve as your continuing motivation.

So those are 3 key considerations when looking for the best diet. Keep them in mind and you will progress in leaps and bounds towards your dream body. Remember, planning now may seem boring - but it's the key to your future weight loss success.