Blog on weight, How to Lose Fat on the Cheap

Belly fat -- especially hidden fat deep in the gut -- may indicate increased the risk for heart disease, a new study suggests. How do you know if you have fat deep in your gut? Your body puts fat under the skin and close to the surface first when it's filling fat cells and that's to insulate the body. That's a survival technique that you inherited from your ancient ancestors who had to worry about surviving through the winter. That layer of fat is not that thick, between one and two inches. Then if you're still adding fat,  your body has to put the fat inside the layer of muscle, around the organs and that the fat that causes you health problems. The six-year study of more than 1,000 adults found people with a "spare tire" in their midsection had a greater risk for heart disease compared to those with visible flab elsewhere under the skin -- or "love handles." "Adipose tissue [fat in the stomach] along with fat below the skin has been assoc...

I found this post on WebMd and for those who overeat, this read is a must. Think back to the last time you ate when you felt absolutely stuffed. Were you tearing into a huge cake to celebrate a friend’s birthday? Loading up on turkey and sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving? Or were you at home alone, maybe at the end of a tough day? How did you feel afterward -- simply annoyed that you gave yourself a stomachache? Or were you tormented by guilt or shame? For me, it was the guilt and shame that I could control myself. Eating too much every once in a while is normal. So is eating for emotional reasons. “From the moment we’re born, we’re nurtured with food, rewarded with food, and so emotional connections to food are normal,” says Michelle May, MD. People who compulsively overeat, though, may use food as their only way of coping with negative emotions. As a result, they often feel that their eating is out of control. They think about food all the time and feel guilty, ashamed, or depre...

Can you believe it, it's true there are better times of the day to exercise depending on your goal. I'm being sarcastic, there are really some people that workout and they don't have to lose weight. I didn't know that. Well, of course, there are. Is there a best time of day to exercise? Two of the top reasons people give for not exercising regularly include lack of results and lack of time. So, for many people, the best time to exercise is the time that is most convenient and the time that fits into a busy schedule. Okay, I understand that, but if you're not getting the results you've been hoping for, maybe you should think about changing the time of day. Research on exercise and time of day is growing, but still limited and not without controversy. In general, if you can find a time for exercise that you can stick with consistently, you will be much more likely to train regularly and get better results. Circadian Rhythms and Exercise Human sleep and ...

Physical activity promotes health, and for years, several public health bodies –- including the American Heart Association, US Centers for Disease Control, and the World Health Organization –- have recommended getting 30 minutes of moderate exercise, 5 or more times per week. Surprisingly, though, only a couple of more recent major studies have examined how exercise relates to longevity, and how much you should do to lengthen your life. The research : In 2007, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) looked at more than 250,000 men and women between the ages of 50 and 71, and confirmed that the standard exercise recommendations did in fact improve subjects’ longevity. An average of 30 minutes of moderate activity, 5 times or more a week, gave participants a 27% lower risk of dying during the study period, while more vigorous exercise (20 minutes, 3 or more times a week), dropped the risk o...

This is a post from WebMd that points out some things we all overlook.  I'm just going to come out and say it: The truth is, many of us get too many calories and not enough nutrients from fast food, candy, prepackaged foods, and sodas. Even if you’re not overweight, don’t be too quick to write off your junk-food habit as acceptable. Outwardly thin people aren’t necessarily healthy, as it’s possible to be skinny and in poor metabolic health, thanks to bad nutrition and lack of exercise. Many of us feel compelled to eat junk food (after all, it can taste  so  good ), but is a diet high in fat, sugar, and salt worth the trade-off of the elevated risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancers? Kicking the junk-food habit -- coupled with regular, heart-pumping exercise -- will tip the scales of healthy living in your favor. I want to point this out now before I go any farther. Eating ...

Hara Hachi Bu: The Okinawan's Secret to Longevity Experts Attribute Longevity to the Traditional Okinawan Diet By Mark Stibich, PhD This post is worth your time. I have believed in calorie reduction way before I knew about the people of Okinawa.  More Okinawans live over 100, by percentage of their population, then anywhere else on earth. And maybe that has something to do with genes. But I do know that calorie reduction is the healthy way to eat. The less body fat you have, the more energy you'll have, the more active you'll be, and the less your heart has to work. It is a fact, that if you do stay healthy and live a long life that you will usually die because your heart stops. Hara hachi bu is one of many and lifestyle customs that medical professionals in the western world attribute to the Okinawa's famously long and healthy lives. The Practice of Hara Hachi Bu The Japanese phrase,  hara hachi bun me , roughly translates into English as "belly 8...

What You Can Eat Oz provides a long grocery list of recommended foods. Load up on fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins such as skinless chicken breasts and salmon, low-fat dairy, and whole grains. Follow the "Rule of 5s" to figure out what not to eat. If foods have any of these listed as one of the first five ingredients on the label, stay away: sugars, syrups, white flours, saturated fats and trans fats. Alcohol is OK, but only one drink a day, taken toward the end of dinner. Remember: Alcohol has calories, and if you let loose, you may end up eating more than you planned to. Level of Effort: Medium Apart from eliminating simple sugars, white flour, and certain kinds of fat, the Ultimate Diet gives you flexibility in terms of choosing what to eat from all the food groups. Limitations:  Oz's "grocery list" is a long one and includes plenty of different foods to fit all taste buds. Cooking and shopping : Your cooking and s...