Tips To Lose Weight

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Are You Really Overweight?

If you are overweight, you know it by how you feel, how your clothes fit or how you look. But, by how much are you really overweight? And how much weight do you need to lose? One measure of how much you should weight is by determining your Body Mass Index, BMI. This index gives you the relationship of your weight to your height. Here is the formula:

Your BMI = [(yourWeight)/(your Height x your Height)] x 705

If you weight 143 lbs and are 64 in tall, then

your BMI = [(143) / (64 x 64)] x 705 = 26.2. Based on the chart below a BMI of 26.2 is overweight.

· underweight, BMI = 18.5
· normal weight BMI = 18.5 - 24.9
· overweight BMI = 25 - 29.9
· slight obesity BMI = 30 - 34.9
· obese BMI = 35 - 39.9
· excess obese = BMI = greater than 40

If we consider the normal BMI number to be 21.5 then you can compute approximately how much weight you should lose using the same BMI formula but by changing things around in the formula,
(your ideal Weight) = [(normal BMI / 705) x (your Height x your Height)]

For the example above if you have a BMI = 26.2 and the normal BMI number = 21.5, then,

(your ideal Weight) = [(21.5/705) x (64 x 64)] = 124.91

you should weight 124.91 lbs. That means you need to lose (143 -124.9) lbs = 18.1 lbs.

Try to get your BMI below 25. Under this number, you can expect to have good heath if you are eating the right kinds of food and exercising regularly. If your BMI is greater than 28, you are more likely to have cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and many other diseases related to a toxic colon.

Keep track of your waistline. Your waistline, if you are a man, should be less than 35 ". For women it should be less than 30". As your waistline get larger you become more susceptible to diseases. Of course, waistlines are going to vary because people have different shapes. But you know if your waistline to big for your shape.

Now you should know how much weight you need to lose. Beside your waistline, you should also measure bust/chest, hips, and thighs.. This gives you an indication how your body is changing. As you lose fat you may not lose weight for a while. Your body will become toned as you exercise. The weight scale does not always tell you that your body is changing and losing weight.

The best fat loss system is a good body cleanse

Are You Ready For Low Carb?

Everyone’s been talking about low carb diets. While most people tend to associate it with South Beach or Atkins, there are actually quite a few books that centre on the principle of cutting out the carbs: Sugar Busters, Protein Power, The Zone Diet, Carbohydrates Addict Diet. They differ on how strict they are about carbohydrate intake—what you can eat, and not eat, or how much you are later allowed to eat in the later phases of the diet—but as a whole, they agree on one thing: carbs are bad.

The Carbohydrate Principle

Which makes you wonder: what’s so bad about carbs? The belief is that when you control carbohydrates, you lower your body’s production of insulin. Insulin gives your body the “quick fix” of energy (which is why, after eating carbs, you get the famous sugar rush). But without carbs, your body’s forced to use your body’s fat and protein stores.

Low carb diets can lead to rapid weight loss, but nutritionists are debating whether or not it should be continued in a long term. This is because you force your body to burn muscle, and muscle can be a dieter’s best friend because it burns calories even when you’re at rest. However, some diets allow restricted carbs in later phases—which would lower the rate of your weight loss, but is healthier for you in the long run.

What are the benefits of low carb diets?

* You feel (and weigh!) lighter. Low carb diets remove many high-calorie, low-nutrition foods such as pastries and pasta. It also forces the body to burn fat stores (i.e., the bulge around your hips). The foods that are typically included, mainly protein, low-fat dairy, and fibre, also tend to reduce water retention.

* You feel less hungry and more energetic. The body digests carbs and uses very quickly, leading to quick bursts of energy but also frequent hunger pangs and the infamous “sugar rush-sugar crash” cycle When you replace carbs with fibre and protein, which takes longer to process, you’ll feel full longer and have more stable energy levels. That is also linked to less mood swings and higher concentration.

* Better blood pressure and cholesterol. Low carb diets usually remove saturated fats, and refined or processed food, and shift to what is called “whole food groups” (low fat dairy, protein, fibre) which help control blood pressure and cholesterol. The significant reduction of sugary food—which typically contain lots of calories, no nutritional content—also helps control obesity, which is a big factor in heart attacks.

What foods are low carb?

Low carb diets sound good, but be prepared: low carb diets will take out what many consider as staples in all meals: bread, pasta, and rice. In fact, low carb diets will remove anything made of flour, starchy vegetables like corn and potatoes, and foods that contain sugar (this includes several fruits), and cereals that aren’t specifically labelled as “low carb”. However, you will be allowed to take meat and eggs, low sugar fruits like strawberries, and high-protein but low-fat alternatives like soybeans. Some low carb diets allow dairy.

The best fat loss system is a good body cleanse

Are You Looking For Fast/Quick Weight Loss?

Except the sun and the moon, everybody seems to be in a hurry!

We can predict by mathematical calculations the time of sunset after 1000 years and the time of moonrise on the same day. Through calculations, we can predict it today! The natural forces are not in a hurry! Everything is unfolding as it should! In a set pattern! Nature evolves with a method and it is in not in a hurry to prove and disprove anything!

You don't learn something from nature, though you are a part of the nature! When you disobeyed the laws of nature and went on an eating spree, you never thought of the consequences—that your body will grow and expand like a Bo-tree one day. Now you want a fast/ quick weight loss program!

Better late than never! You have woken up at the right time! Can you ever achieve by weight loss that picture-perfect figure, that was you 20 years ago? fYour goal is achievable, provided you make certain firm decisions!

A morning-walk schedule is best to start with! On the first day, you may feel tired! On the second day, you may feel extremely tired! On the third day, you are bound to have joint pains! On the fourth day, your weak will power, may advise you—okay, please skip today's schedule -sleep for another two hours! And you have ignored this advice and had a pleasant walk- your will power is gaining ground and stabilizing!

When you are walking alone, thus, you know that you are walking. There is another type of walk, one in which you do not know that you are walking, and yet is a double-benefit scheme! Your ever faithful dog! Dog ownership nearly doubles the amount of time you spend in your walks!

By now, you must have shed some grams of your weight, if not some kilograms! Well done! You can think about the realms of higher adventures now! Read and understand the texts like Ashtanga Yoga and Bikram Yoga. The procedure is foolproof ! Ashtanga Yoga was authored by a realized soul and hence, undoubtedly faultless!

Our eating menu need not be that extensive and contain matchless spices! Just go back to your own history—human history! Life at the earlier stages was not all that complicated! How did our ancestors cook before the advent of fire? Look at the animals -they eat raw, that which is available in nature and according to their own nature! Only man has taken to the habit of cooking! Do animals have these many diseases and so many hospitals? Therefore the cases of obesity among birds and animals are rare!

Man, discover yourself! Ponder deeply! Fast and quick weight loss is a possibility within your range!

The best fat loss system is a good body cleanse

Are you an emotional eater?

We go out to eat to celebrate a birthday, anniversary, promotion, etc. Or we entertain around dinner parties and holidays. At church functions, there are socials and potluck meals. You name it and somehow it all revolves around food. Yes it has a role in our lives of comfort and entertainment. Culturally and instinctively we prepare and serve foods to comfort those who have experienced loss, to celebrate joy or to show friendship and love. Food is very important in our lives. Without food we would not be able to perform our daily activities. Our muscles would wither, our nervous system would fail. We all need food.

WHAT IS EMOTIONAL EATING?

But are you also eating whenever you are lonely or sad? Seeing food as more than just a source of energy and enjoying it simply for the satisfaction it gives is not wrong. In fact science shows that food can promote good feelings by chemical reactions caused in our brains. What IS a problem is when an individual cannot experience pain, anxiety, joy or even boredom without turning to food as means of dealing with those feelings, or they are obsessed with food, weight and dieting.

Emotional eaters turn to food as a source of distraction from dealing with feelings. However, eating these foods leads to feelings of guilt which can only be soothed with more eating, restrictive dieting, excessive exercise or purging.

Emotional eaters tend to value themselves based on their weight and how closely they've stuck to their 'ideal' diet. Because of this distorted relationship with food, foods are labeled "GOOD" and "BAD". Emotional eating can lead to serious eating disorders and depression.

HOW DO I KNOW IF I'M AN EMOTIONAL EATER?

Do you turn to food for reasons other than hunger? Are you obsessed with thoughts of food - whether you plan to eat it or are concentrating on restricting yourself from eating it?

Do you regularly try diets and fail - leading to guilt and further over eating? Do you think about or attempt to purge excess food by throwing up or using laxatives? Do you exercise compulsively when you think you've eaten too much?


HOW DO I OVERCOME EMOTIONAL EATING?

Since emotional eating is caused by looking to food as a coping strategy for emotional distress dieting can actually create more problems. When the emotional eater fails to stick to a diet they suffer feelings of guilt that can only be soothed with more food and in turn, more guilt or punishment.

Instead of trying to focus on what they are eating, the emotional eater needs to learn new skills for coping with stressful emotions. Often this requires the help of a Personal Coach or Psychotherapist who deals with emotional eating. It is only by finding replacements for the comfort food provided that the individual can put food into its rightful place and learn healthy eating habits that last a lifetime.

The best fat loss system is a good body cleanse

Are You a Binge Eater?

Ever wonder if you have a serious problem with binge eating?

In a recent issue of the Harvard Mental Health Letter, I read a feature article about the treatment of bulimia and binge eating.

Bulimia is defined as 2 or more episodes of binge eating (consuming a large amount of food in 2 hours or less) at least twice a week for 3 months.

These episodes may be followed by vomiting or purging (with laxatives or diuretics) and may alternate with fasting and compulsive exercising.

People who suffer from bulimia often view this behavior as a shameful secret.

Binge Eating Disorder (binging that is not followed by vomiting, fasting or exercise) has gotten more attention recently since it is being considered for inclusion as a psychiatric diagnosis.

The criteria are tentatively listed as “a condition that causes serious distress with at least 3 of the following symptoms occurring at least 2 days a week for 6 months:

• eating very fast
• eating until uncomfortably full
• eating when not hungry
• eating alone
• feeling disgusted or guilty afterward

Since most of the population has probably engaged in these eating behaviors at one time or another, I guess it comes down to the frequency and severity of the problem.

You can be a binge eater, but you would have to be binging quite regularly to be considered to have Binge Eating Disorder.

Many people engage in some of these behaviors all the time. People who live alone often eat alone. And while eating when you aren’t hungry is not the most satisfying experience, sometimes it is just an ingrained habit.

You do not have to be overweight to be a binge eater.

Many people with binge eating problems think they are overweight or are worried that they will become seriously overweight.

Dieting does not necessarily stop the binging and is often viewed as being part of the problem rather than the solution.

The body resists dieting by slowing metabolism and increasing appetite, commonly accompanied by an intense preoccupation with food, more binging, anxiety and depression.

If you are struggling with bulimia or severe binge eating problems, seek help and get the support you deserve. Don’t keep it a secret. You do not need to be heroic and suffer alone.

If you engage in some of the binge eating behaviors, join the club.

You can learn to change all of these behaviors, even mild to moderate binge eating by listening to your body, eating mindfully and being kind to yourself.

The best fat loss system is a body cleanse

Are Weight Loss Supplements Useful?

It doesn’t matter what you are doing - browsing the Internet, surfing cable, or flipping through your favorite magazine – you will find plenty of advertisements that promote the magical qualities of weight loss supplements. Weight loss supplements come in all manner of shapes, sizes and styles and have a range of claims and solutions. And there are all manner of claims – from pills, patches and creams. But do these cures really work? Only you can decide that for yourself. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular weight loss products and the positive benefits and negative effects of each, so you can make up your own mind.

Bitter Orange, Citrus Aurantium, and Sour Orange: These products are made directly from concentrated extracts from orange peel. They often claim that they increase metabolism, but there has been no conclusive tests to back this up. Bitter Orange, Citrus Aurantium, and Sour Orange contain the stimulant synephrine, which can cause hypertension and cardiovascular toxicity. Individuals with heart disease, hypertension, and glaucoma should avoid these at all costs.

Chromium (Examples of Chromium products include Puritan’s Pride Chromium Picolinate, Vitamin World Naturally Inspired Yeast Free Chromium Picolinate, Nutrilite Trim Advantage): The claims that chromium increases weight loss and improves body composition have been backed by one main study which proved this to be the case. There are two types of chromium: Trivalent (which the body requires and is considered safe in doses of 200 micrograms or less daily) and Hexavalent (but this form can cause stomach upsets, ulcers, convulsions, kidney and liver diseases, and death).

Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) (Examples of this product include Vitamin World CLA, Nature Made CLA, Now Foods CLA): This product claims to promote leanness, but there are very few studies that actually support the marketing claims. While more research is needed, CLA is generally safe.

Ephedra/Ephedrine: Ephedra may aid weight loss by suppressing appetite, and research has proven its effectiveness when used with caffeine. However, ephedra causes high blood pressure, stroke, and serious heart problems, which is why the sale of dietary supplements containing ephedra was prohibited in April 2004.

7-Keto Dehydroepiandrosterone (7-keto DHEA): Preliminary research indicates that this product may decrease body weight and fat composition by increasing metabolism, but larger research studies are needed.

Hydroxycitric Acid (HCA) and Garcinia Cambogia: These products claim to suppress appetite and improve fat metabolism. While studies have shown mixed results, they are generally safe.

L-Carnitine: L-Carnitine claims to inhibit obesity, but there is very little evidence of its effectiveness.

Dihydroxyacetone (DHA), Pyruvate, and Dihydroxyacetone and Pyruvate (DHAP): A few small studies suggest that these supplements may have modest effects on weight loss, but research is needed. Presently, no serious side effects have been reported.

Lecithin, Guar Gum, Psyllium Hulls, Chickweed, and Chitosan (Examples: Chito-Trim, Exercise in a Bottle, Fat Blocker—Chitosan Complex, Fat Grabbers, Fat Trapper, Fat Trapper Plus, Metabo Fat Blocker, Miracletab, Now Chitosan with Chromium): These products claim to help break down fat so that it can be absorbed, emulsified, trapped, and eliminated by the body. There is currently no competent and reliable scientific research to support such claims.

The best fat loss system is a body cleanse

Are the barriers of dieting psychological or physical?

On the last count the word ‘diet’ produced in excess of 157 million web pages of diet plans, pills, potions and dieting tips from health institutions, diet companies, nutritional professionals and otherwise - from all over the world. And yet we are approaching the peak of an obesity epidemic which is causing untold mental misery and depression, aside from the ever increasing debilitating diseases being linked to those overweight or obese. With such an abundance of information available - how can this be?

The trend is unforgiving and is second only to smoking in terms of the cause of self-inflicted premature loss of life, but left to its own devices within the next five years obesity is sure to take the number one slot. Mother Nature is ruthless in her approach to life, in that she only allows the fittest to survive and the trend we see today is her reaction to the effects of a diet that is clearly not suited to the well-being of the human body and mind. We only have to stop, take a step in back and look around us to see that there is one hell of a serious problem. There is no need for statistics, reports or media news to tell us such. It's clear that we as individuals have to make a change in what we do if we have any intention to reverse the current obesity trend. The ultimate responsibility lies with each and every one of us to act for the benefit of ourselves.

We have to accept the fact that the grocery industry is a host of contradiction in that it sells both dietary products along side the very products that cause us to be overweight or obese in the first instance. This is so obvious in our supermarkets today. It has become human nature that profit has a higher weighting than human health, and this is evident in many industries around the world, and is far from unique within dieting circles. We must also bear in mind the diet companies, whilst they portray an air of interest and concern, in reality they are totally dependent on your failure to diet for their very own business survival. If they were good at what they do – their businesses would surely fail. So who can we trust aside from ourselves. The evidence is clear -there is no debate.

We may have one reprieve but it will be sometime in the future, but not now. Science and technology is getting nearer and nearer to the possibility of a wonder drug with the ever-increasing understanding of the human genotype and genetic engineering. But in reality, who would ever wish or want to be dependent on diet drugs, potentially an ongoing daily basis, simply because of a lack of understanding about the relationship between the food our body has been designed for, and the food we eat. Why is it, we knowingly overeat when we know it is bad for us and that we are doing harm to ourselves? Why is it, that the only time we choose to ignore our food is the time when we are eating it!

So, is it a psychological thing, a physical thing or is it both?

In order to answer this we must first look at the change in our diet over the last 50 years. Consumption trends of refined carbohydrates such as sugar has risen dramatically, but at the same time the consumption of fats and proteins has remained reasonably stable. Saturated fats has indeed become and still is a problem although thankfully now overall consumption of saturated fats has dropped slightly, but still remains an issue.

Many studies particularly those associated with research in how the Atkins diet worked revealed that the effect of refined carbohydrates and fats both have a form of addiction associated with them. Studies have shown that refined sugars have the effect of playing havoc with the fine balance of maintaining the level of glucose in the bloodstream. This in turn has a detrimental effect on our hormonal activity, such as insulin and glucagon which are both responsible for maintaining the level of glucose to its normal level following a ‘surge’ intake of refined carbohydrates in our diet. These acceptable levels of glucose in the bloodstream are maintained at surprisingly narrow margins.

Refined sugars therefore induces excessive hormonal activity in its attempt to restore homeostasis. These unnatural ‘swings’ in hormonal activity often cause differing mood swings from that of being happy and content to being sad, on edge, and even feelings of anxiety or panic. Prolonged exposure to these hormonal swings can often lead to the whole process becoming less effective and subsequently diabetes can be the end result.

Other studies have shown surprisingly that the effect of eating significant quantities of fats actually leads to an unexpected human reaction in terms of nutrition. You would think that eating food rich in fats would have the effect of satisfying feeling of hunger. But amazingly medical research has shown the opposite to be true. Clinical trials have shown that foods rich in fats actually induces people to eat more not less. At the time the results from such experiments were groundbreaking as they completely contradicted the nutritional thinking of the time.

It is also interesting to learn that further medical studies have suggested that foods rich in protein have been linked to the response that indicates that you have consumed sufficient food. In other words, it is believed that proteins in some way, triggers the ‘I am full’ response.

And then of course there is the massive change in our energy expenditure. We used to hunt and gather food but now we happily pop to the local supermarket to buy it, or at worse, have it delivered to our front door. Food has changed from being scarce to being in abundance (at least for us), and we have changed from being ‘active’ to relatively ‘dormant’. Move less and eat more…what should we expect?

And many believe that even the act of not exercising can trigger the bodily response to lower the metabolism and build fat layers under the skin for 2 key reasons, both being linked to human survival. In evolutionary terms, it may be that you are unable to ‘hunt’ and therefore unable to secure food. Reducing the metabolic rate of your body makes total sense to preserve energy. Secondly, if food is available during a spell of non activity, does it not make a whole load of sense to lay down fat layers under the skin to retain bodily heat and secure an energy source during potential ‘lean times’. Perfect sense, perfect design and yet we don’t understand ourselves and if we do, many choose to ignore the warning signs out body is offering.

In essence therefore, it is very clear that part of the problem within the dieting world that we humans face is certainly a physical one that is linked to the interaction of the food types we eat with that of our body. And clearly, over the last 50 odd years our diet has changed out of all recognition and yet our body is doing the same as it has been doing for well over the last 100,000 years. We are in the 21st century, our body is still in the ‘Stone Age’. Evolution is a slow slow process but over millions of years the relationship and reaction of chemicals in our food with the cells of the human body has been cemented and cast, for eons of time.

So, it is us that need to change…because Mother Nature will not entertain us for thousands of years to come…

Run with it, eat what your body has been designed for and successful weight loss will follow for sure…

The best fat loss system is a body cleanse