Senin, 30 April 2012

Three Types Of Cleanses And What They Can Do For Your Body

Today, cleansing and detox methods are popular due to their health benefits. Three of the most popular include nutritional cleansing, colon cleansing and the Master Cleanse.
Nutritional Cleansing
Among the cleansing methods, some people consider nutritional cleansing as the best natural cleansing method available. They claim that it makes them healthier, cleaner and more energetic. Advocates of nutritional cleansing also claim that it is a good method of reaching an ideal weight. But, what does colon cleansing do?
This cleansing method removes the impurities from your system and nourishes your body with essential nutrients for immediate recovery. It utilises vitamins, minerals and natural herbs that enable your body to build resistance against diseases. Because it helps your body eliminate harmful substances that cause illness, it cleanses and revitalises you, gives you more energy and allows your body to be more efficient than it was prior to natural cleansing.
What Happens During Nutritional Cleansing?
Three things happen during nutritional cleansing:
  1. Toxins are flushed out of the body
  2. The good nutrients are absorbed by the body
  3. The body is nourished with the nutrients used during nutritional cleansing
Common Ingredients of Nutritional Cleansing
The nutritional cleanse method combines the following ingredients in balanced amounts to achieve the best results:
  • Alfalfa
  • Aloe
  • Burdock
  • Choice of minerals and trace elements
  • Ginger
  • Selected roots and plants
Colon Cleanse
A colon cleanse removes harmful substances from the body through a colon cleansing process which targets the colon, kidneys, liver and other organs. Because impurities and toxins are removed, the body can function effectively.
Colon cleansing is based on the belief that the body fails to digest meat or certain foods properly causing autointoxication which is believed to be caused when accumulations of faeces line the walls of the large intestine and promote parasites or pathogenic gut flora, causing negative symptoms general ill-health. Consequently, the body is poisoned due to the toxins that enter the blood. Symptoms of autointoxication include, fatigue, low-energy, weight gain, and headache.
Autointoxication is caused when toxins enter the body due to modern lifestyles that oftentimes involve high levels of stress and unhealthy food choices.
Beneficial Effects of Colon Cleansing
A colonic colon cleanse may result in the disappearance of problems in your digestive system such as bloating, candida, IBS and constipation. Most people report that they feel better after a colon cleanse and certainly have better functioning organs.
The Master Cleanse
This type of cleansing is also known as the "lemonade diet". It was postulated by Stanley Burroughs in 1940s.
The Master Cleanse is known to relieve the following:
  • Gout
  • Pain
  • Infection
  • Symptoms of arthritis
Many people report that the Master Cleanse is hard to follow due to its dietary restrictions. However, people who are determined to follow this diet use it for a minimum of 4 days and a maximum of 2 weeks. It should be noted that if you want to eliminate fat, this may not be the right detox diet for you as the Master Cleanse aims to cleanse the body and promote weight loss due to water and fluid retention.

Minggu, 22 April 2012

3 Pillars of a True Idiot Proof Diet

The fitness industry continues to churn out miracle diets and all of them are crazy. People for whatever reason continue to subscribe to what will eventually get them injured, or back to over eating and gaining weight because it's just too hard to follow the script on some of the more restrictive diet plans that are gaining steam in the public eye. With so many options to choose from, it is important to at least have the following 3 pillars of a true idiot proof diet in your mind, so that you're not another victim of a lackluster plan that will have you starving instead of enjoying life and losing weight at the same time.
Exercise - The dreaded word is something that a lot of people aren't going to want hear or read. But this is not a call for you to be the next Lance Armstrong or anything like that. If you think that you have to run a marathon in order to get this done, stop panicking right now. You don't have to be a pure bred athlete and you don't need to be a professional, but if you simply walk, you can start to move forward fast. The very least you can do is get up, walk around 15 to 30 minutes daily. This is an easy thing to do, and you can start with increments of 5 minutes, and then build up over time.
Food - This is not the enemy at all, and you need to remember that. Do not under any circumstances subscribe to the notion that you can't eat as you please. There are some foods that aren't good for you, but these are going to be obvious. For example, consider the fact that deep fried butter or something that is larger than your head is probably not something that you should be eating on a regular basis. Keep that in mind, and don't allow yourself to eat a thimble full of water to survive. This is not to say that you can eat whatever you want; just don't take it to an extreme, which will be a mistake.
Drinking Calories - If you've given up eating a lot, and are on your way to weight loss, do not drink a lot of calories. That means you don't need to drink a gallon of soda. That's not to say that you can't drink soda, just don't over do it. Soda is not the enemy either, just be careful here, as it can be a lot easier to drink your daily allotment of calories and not feel like you have.
The above 3 pillars of an idiot proof plan of action is solid, and will keep you moving forward with relative ease. Do not go with extremes, always look for balance, and you'll succeed in your plan to lose weight and gain lean muscle.

Minggu, 15 April 2012

The Dangers of Weighing Yourself Each and Everyday

I have been working in the fitness industry for a long time and I have found that there are literally hundreds of people who weigh themselves every single morning.
Although this is a great habit to get into, there are 2 negative aspects associated with weighing yourself each morning and if you are aware of these you will be able to maintain your weight a lot easier.
The first problem many people have is yo-yo dieting. Many people wake up and weigh themselves first thing in the morning, if they are unusually light they tend to choose unhealthy foods all day as a reward for being light that morning. Then a few days later these people weigh themselves again and may be slightly heavy resulting in them either skipping a few meals or hopefully choosing healthy food options. If this continues to happen on a weekly basis then the person's weight will yo-yo up and down. This is simply due to the fact that the person's diet is all over the place and they are not eating a balanced diet.
Therefore, it is important to include healthy food options on an everyday basis opposed to a meal to meal basis.
The other problem with weighing yourself in the morning is the simple fact that you are dehydrated. The reading you are getting in the morning is a dehydrated reading because you probably have not had anything to drink all night. It is important to take this into consideration if you are recording your weight in a diary etc.
I believe the best thing to do is to get your skin fold checked by a qualified professional once every month. A skin fold reading is done using a set of calipers. The fitness professional will pinch a layer of fat at seven sites around the body. They then record the numbers and tell you how much body fat you have. Although results vary depending on who does your test over time you will be able to see an average result.
If you do not have access to someone who knows how to measure your skin folds then simply look at how your clothes fit. If you have gone down a few belt sizes or your work shirts are a bit looser than they usually are then you know you have lost (or put on) some weight.
In the end, a healthy lifestyle, good eating habits and consistent physical activity will help keep you fit and healthy forgiving life your best shot.

Minggu, 08 April 2012

Superfoods for a Super-Bod - Ever Wondered What Happened to Your Food's Nutrients?

Spinach in the 1950's had 250 milligrams of Iron
Today Spinach has .2 milligrams of Iron
UGH!! Most illness comes from mineral deficiencies. So what can we do about this... no not supplements! Well for the most part most of the supplements do not digest and because they are removed from the natural fibers and other ingredients that make up their structure they really do basically... nothing.
So today we are going to talk about:
1.How to get all the nutrition you need
2.How to feel great look great and never get sick
3.How to lose weight and feel like a million bucks
All at the same time with one magic word... Superfoods!
By implementing Superfoods into your diet will also help you to more fully recognize your body's true natural healing potentials, you will have a lot less emotional highs and lows, you will fill your body with the nutrients and minerals you long for. So also, your emotional eating becomes much easier to deal with as well because your basic physiological cravings for nutrition are satisfied.
To be healthier we need to switch to a more nutritious diet. Many labels, diet products, and pills claim to be nutritious by declaring that they offer supplements the body needs to stay healthy or that they are fat free, sugar free, or low on the glycemic index. BUT no no no... we want real, organic, health foods that are born from the earth that have a more complex structure and provide more fuel for the bang!
YUP high nutrition and low calories... NATURALLY!
Fruits and vegetables are the most nutritious foods. Most people know this to some degree. However, due today's complex and over-productive farming issues, we have depleted many of our rich and nutritious soils. Some of the darker vegetables that were once rich in nutrients are now depleted of nutrition. Most people do not have the time or energy to plant their own food, so because of this, we must look further.
Usually cutting calories almost always leads to less nutrition. But this is awful, you lose your luster, your hair and skin quality, and ultimately your health. We follow these low calorie diet with adding processed supplements that in large part are not compatible in our bodies. In layman's term, your body does not break down or use many of the vitamin and mineral capsules you spend a lot of money on.
You can get your nutrition from high-quality sources... through Superfoods!
"Within you is power which will astonish you. Within you are the seeds of greatness, of beauty, of discipline, of excellence, of destiny. This is the last moment of the way you used to be. It is time to give yourself permission to reach the absolutely highest possible state of health." ~ David Wolfe ~
So lets talk about the #1 Superfood on the planet!
Cacao (raw chocolate) is the same ingredient in chocolate bars, but without the processing, sugar, milk, or other added ingredients. In its pure form, it's one of the most nutritious foods in the world! When you drink a cacao smoothie you:
Have less food cravings, lose weight, and live longer and more vital
Are free from lows like depression
Increase your glow and sensual pleasure
Double your energy
Nourish your brain
Increase your minerals and nutrition
Feel it as an aphrodisiac
Can make the most wonderful healthy desserts
Superfoods are a class of the most potent, super-concentrated, and highly nutrient foods. They also taste great and are easy to use. You can easily blend a batch in the morning and drink that same batch in between your meals, which you can do easily with a raw cacao smoothie.
So Super Secret #1 start your day with a Superfood Smoothie!
Here is a simple and easy recipe:
One young coconut scoop out and fresh young coconut meat
Coconut water
scoop of your Divine Raw Cacao-Goji Mix
Blend and enjoy!
Raw Cacao and Raw Coconut water is like divine ambrosia!!!
So easy the hard part, is just opening the coconut. So go to Wholefoods and ask them to open it for you, and look for my upcoming video blog on how to do this at home!
Here are the top Superfoods you can also add to your morning Superfood Smoothie!
Goji berries
Cacao beans (cacao nibs, cacao powder, cacao butter)
Maca (regular maca, red maca)
Acai berries
Bee products: honey, bee pollen
Blue-green algae
Aloe vera
Noni
Yacon root (powder and syrup)
Hemp seed
Incan berries
Kelp

Minggu, 01 April 2012

What Are The Best Dessert Options On The Medifast Diet?

I'm often asked about the sweets allowed on the Medifast diet. People are often particularly interested in which taste the best and which are the most filling or satisfying. Before I tell you my opinion, I also have to tell you that there are plenty of this diet's meals that I have eaten when I had a sweet craving or wanted a dessert. Examples of things I particularly like are the oatmeals, many of the bars, and even the pancakes. However, since most people want to know specifically about desserts, I will only be discussing items that were meant only to be desserts, with the understanding that you are not limited to only these. Many of the foods on this diet offer sweet tasting options.
My First Pick: The Chocolate Chip Soft Bake: This is a new item on the menu. It kind of has the softer and more chewy consistency of the brownie, but it tastes like a chocolate chip cookie and it is a little larger than a regular cookie and more like the size of a brownie. It's kind of hard to believe that it's only 110 calories with only 7 grams of sugar. It also contains 4 grams of fiber and 11 grams of protein. So not only does it satisfy your sweet tooth, it is also pretty filling. As of this writing, this is my favorite food that's considered a true dessert.
My Second Pick: The Soft Serve: Before Medifast introduced their soft serve ice cream, many of us used to actually freeze the shakes in order to have a sweet and cold dessert. I've even frozen them in those popsicle shaped molds with great success. However, as well as that process worked (and still does,) it's nice not to have to wait for the freezing process. Not only that, but this item has a very nice creamy texture that you just can't accomplish by freezing the shakes. It also offers some interesting flavors like coffee and peanut butter. (Combining the chocolate mint flavor with the peanut butter makes for a delightful combination.) The nutritional content for this is similar to the soft bake, which is 110 calories.
Next Up, The Brownie: I really like the brownie but I chose the chocolate chip soft bake over it because I like the fact that the soft back has a combination of a cookie and chocolate taste. The brownie is all chocolate. And while I love chocolate, I find that I usually chose this item if I am having a severe chocolate craving whereas the previous items work in most all situations. Not only is this item chocolate flavored, but it has chocolate chips too, so it's like getting a double dose.
Finally, The Puddings: The last dessert I will mention is the puddings. I actually really like them and am probably only listing them last because I have been eating them the longest. All of the above items are newer items on the menu whereas the pudding has been around for a while. Still, I find it an almost daily staple. It's also very flexible as I sometimes use the dry pudding mix to make other baked goods. I particularly like the banana flavor as many of the other desserts listed above don't have a banana option.