3 Of The Worst Things You Can Eat When You Are Trying to Get a Sexy Butt and Tone Thighs

Craving a slim, well-toned bottom to sit on when beach season finally rolls around? You'll need to start planning for that early, since body fat is notoriously slow to drop off! Everyone knows that exercise, preferably of the cardiovascular sort, and basic healthy eating are necessary if you want to achieve a sexy butt and thighs.

But not everyone is aware of some of the worst foods that can promptly kick you off your healthy lifestyle in a single serving! Keep well away from the following items, if you want that fat to stay off so you can achieve the body look of a magazine cover model.

Your first warning food is the most obvious one - fast food style hamburgers. They're loaded with subtle additions of salt, butter, processed cheese, and oil that just cram in more fat on an already fatty food item. If you must have a hamburger, make it yourself.

Grill or bake instead of frying, and use non-white bread rolls. Be especially sure to avoid mayonnaise - that's a condiment that's almost PURE fat.

At the classier end of the scale, high-end steaks are scarcely better. You pay a significant amount of money for a large cut of meat that's loaded with carbs.

While the preparation methods aren't so bad, any restaurant that gives you a worthwhile steak will also load it down with huge quantities of unnecessary side items. Split the steak with a friend, and skip the baked potato for a salad.

Here's one strictly for those up north: poutine. This savory side item of cheese curds and gravy poured over french fries has far too much fat in it for something that also comes with a burger! In fact, it's worse than most standard main food items in even fast food restaurants.

The curds are the worst offense here; if you must have poutine, order it with gravy only.

This last one is going to hurt a lot of people, but it has to be said. Deep-fried carnival food is some of the absolute worst food you can EVER eat if you want to lose thigh and glut fat!

The sheer unhealthiness of the cooking process is bad enough, but the ingredients used are so bad in and of themselves that it's like eating a dessert crammed into a steak. Corndogs, funnel cake, elephant ears... you'll find nothing good for your body at the fair.

By remembering to avoid these foods, you can make your progress to great gluts and thighs much swifter and less frustrating. Sometimes, what you don't eat is just as important as what you do eat.

Souorce: https://ezinearticles.com/?3-Of-The-Worst-Things-You-Can-Eat-When-You-Are-Trying-to-Get-a-Sexy-Butt-and-Tone-Thighs&id=5330827

Keeping Fit With Good Exercising Habits

Keeping fit is all about having good habits. I see many people with a desire to lose weight. So they set a target for themselves, and then go about a weight loss diet. This usually involves light exercises and eating less. Unfortunately, this is the type of mistakes that won't get them an results.

You see, when you exercise lightly, you are not building strength. To succeed at losing weight for the long term, you only have to keep one thing in mind - to boost your metabolic rate. Your metabolic rate determines the amount of calories that you burn each day, even while you are not working out. So the higher your metabolic rate, the more you can eat without gaining extra pounds. So the question is, how do you boost your metabolism?

The answer is a simple one. All you need to do is to give your muscles some resistance to build strength, and then feed those muscles. That means no more leisurely runs or walks. Ever heard of people boosting how they lose so much weight by spending less time? That's because they are spending time on exercises that really get them results. That's why they can afford to spend less time working out, and still lose weight. You are trying to achieve the same thing here. Just copy what the successful people do and you will see similar results for yourself.

Upon observations, here is a list of habits that will help you become fitter:

Habit 1: Eating smaller meals on a more frequent basis. You must be puzzled why some people can eat and eat but they don't grow fat. Here is the secret - the more you eat, the healthier you become. That's because when you distribute your meals evenly, your body gets a boost of energy every 2 to 3 hours. In other words, you are "training" your body to burn up food as fuel. And the body does so because it "knows" that it will have food to burn every 3 to 4 hours. So it keeps burning up calories all day long.

Habit 2: Intense workouts help to build strength. Walking, jogging, leisure swimming are not great exercises for strength building. They help you relax though. If you need a good distraction from work, then these are good exercises. But if you are looking to build strength, boost metabolism and lose weight, then you need to engage in resistance training. For 3 to 4 times each week, start hitting the gym. You don't need to spend too much time there because the exercises that you engage in will be intense. It shouldn't take long for you to grow tired!

Habit 3: Keep consuming proteins. Proteins help to repair and grow your muscles. As you gain more muscle mass, your metabolic rate will increase. You will soon find yourself burning more calories each day!

Source: https://ezinearticles.com/?Keeping-Fit-With-Good-Exercising-Habits&id=2716476

How to Maintain Weight Loss During the Holidays

How to Maintain Weight Loss During the Holidays

You have started an weight loss program and all of a sudden the holidays have come along, all those goodies like pies, puddings, cakes and cookies are calling out for you to partake in the all so goodness of them. You really don't want to do it. You may have in the back of your mind how to maintain weight loss during the holidays.

You are thinking that if I just have a little it won't do that much harm. Well do you realize that just by you eating a little will lead up to you eating more and before you know it all the weight that you worked so hard to burn off will be back and then some. No worries there is a solution, you can seek out some modified versions of those same deserts. Or you can choose to instead having a whole slice of pie have a have of a slice. By cutting down by half the amount of desert you take in you will only take in half the calories.

It is better for you not to torture yourself or deprive yourself of those treats because you just might end up going for it and then going to far. It seems that is just human nature. One thing that you can do is create those same deserts using some substitutes that are less fatty. If you go to Foodnetwork.com and click on the Healthy Eating tab you will be able to find some low fat recipes that will taste great.

Here are a few things to keep in mind never skip any meals, some folks think that if they skip a meal that will leave the door open to splurge on the holiday foods and deserts. That is not the case, by skipping a meal you will become moody, tired and more hungry. You will end up becoming a eating machine and you will end up stuffing yourself before you know it. Whatever weight-loss progress you have achieved would be all at a loss. So don't allow yourself to get in that situation.

One of the best things that you can do before going to the family get-together or part is eat a healthy snack before you go like a fruit salad, or a veggie salad. You also can drink some water that will help you to not to be in starvation mode by the time you arrive.

Make sure that once you get to the relatives house or that party that you make sure to sit far away from the buffet area, if it is out of your site it will be out of your mind. You really don't want to challenge your willpower, because in the end guess who would win. If you have no choice in where you have to sit make sure you make the right choices, get a small plate and choose some fruit or cut up veggies.

Drink plenty of water during the get-together or party and it will again help you be hydrated and it will help you feel full. You will also boost your metabolism and wash some of the fat out of your system. Make sure that you don't stop your exercise program during the holidays you will need all the more to burn the calories. You make have to add some additional work-outs in. Instead of doing a 30 minute a day program you may have to do 60 minutes a day (30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the evening).

Remember to choose some exercises that are fun, walking is the easiest form of exercise. You also may want to purchase a Nintendo Wii System, the Wii System offers a choice of exercise programs that will help you to get healthy and you will not realize that you are exercising. Wii sports and Wii Fit are really good for the whole family.

You can enjoy the holidays and you can have fun just as long as you do the things you need to do so that you do not mess up your weight-loss program. If you do all that was suggested in this article you will not ever wonder again how to maintain weight loss during the holidays.

Source:ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Maintain-Weight-Loss-During-the-Holidays&id=3442699

7 Super Effective Weight Loss & Fitness Tips

7 Super Effective Weight Loss & Fitness Tips

Beat the Confusion

I feel compelled to share my '7 Weight-loss Tips For Fitness' with you because when I set out on my quest in fitness and exercise I had a lot of trouble actually losing weight because of all the confusing information out there. For a couple years I had gained more and more weight from eating 'fat free' foods. Most of us know that story- as we as a society followed false advertising we thought that consuming 'fat free' foods was what made us lose weight. As we followed the herd, we got fatter (as a society). So hopefully! YOU are in the know now too and realize that 'fat free' is not the way to go. More importantly, I knew I didn't want to lose it by popping pills. They never set right with me anyway.

Here are my 7 quick helpful tips I learned along the way that are really effective and hopefully can benefit you too.

1. Muscle Burns Fat- So hit the weights. You don't have to do grueling workouts but start doing some moderately challenging weightlifting a few times a week to build muscle tone. As long as you incorporate some cardio (biking, walking, running, elliptical, aerobics) you won't get big and thick.

2. Include SOME Cardio- Not only does it burn fat, it's beneficial for your heart and dusts off the cobwebs that attribute to heart disease. Enough said.

3. Have A Plan- When you go to the gym, have a plan so you know what you are going to do. Don't wander around from one machine to the next, not sure what you should do. It's a waste of time and is very ineffective. Design a workout for each day of the week, each week, for 6 weeks and stick to it. After that, switch up your workout and either change the weights and exercises or types of workouts. (I will have more on that later in my workout/fitness 7 day series- stay tuned).

If you workout at home, you actually have several options:
(1) Buy a pilates video that will help increase lean muscle mass and your ab muscles.
(2) Do a simple workout with 3 sets of 15 reps of a combination of Squats, Pushups, Lunges, Pull-ups & Abs.
(3) Consider getting a couple videos. I like Gilad's, "Arms of Steel" and "Legs of Steel". They are only a 1/2 hour each and very effective. You need a few sets of weights like: 5#, 8#, 10# and probably higher for men. As an example: Do legs one day, cardio the next, arms the next and cardio the next, and repeat that sequence. Be sure and rest 1 or 2 days a week.

Regardless of what you do, make your workouts count, have fun and do what you really enjoy.

4. Eat Real Food- You can lose more weight and get toned just by eating healthy food everyday. Foods like: chicken, eggs, fish, steak, veges, fruits and nuts. This is what your body was meant to have. Processed and even most frozen meals have preservatives and chemicals in them that your body actually spends more time trying to get rid of. When you eat, shoot for a balanced ratio of proteins, carbs and fat. Here's the ratio real quick- Protein 7 grams, Carbohydrates 9 grams, Fat 1.5 grams. This ratio is usually ideal for snacks, double it for meals. Men and highly active people will have to triple it.

5. Ab Exercise Truths- Crunches and ab exercises are good for strengthening and I actually believe they are equally important for strengthening your back. Commonly, people with back problems have weak abdominal muscles. But, gaining lean, sexy abs has everything to do with your diet. Eating low glycemic foods like veges and some fruits, doing a little cardio 5 days a week and pilates were the most effective for me.

6. Pilates- When I discovered pilates, I actually thought it would be boring but I wanted a different kind of workout and something I could do quickly at home. I grew to really love it. It's not an exciting workout but the effects were great. It helped to really strengthen my inner core and boosted my runs incredibly!

7. DO IT TODAY- We are all guilty of finding something else to fill our time with but if you get started and stay consistent, chances are you won't find anything else that really makes you feel as good as exercise. No one else can do it for you so in the famous words of Nike, "JUST DO IT."

I hope these tips help you to iron out some of the confusion we are bombarded with on a continual basis. More than anything, I hope they don't add to your confusion. Ha. Ha.:-|

Source: ezinearticles.com/?7-Super-Effective-Weight-Loss-and-Fitness-Tips&id=4408205

Low Calorie Cutting Diet | Meal Plan For The Entire Week

Need help planning a meal plan? Then check this video and see if this helps.







Source:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bqy7OKgbZ7k

A Healthy Diet Plan - The Top Essentials You Have to Know

A Healthy Diet Plan - The Top Essentials You Have to Know

If you're like 90% of overweight people you've probably tried loads of ways to slim down, hopefully on a reasonably healthy diet plan You may even have had some success in losing weight from time to time. But the likelihood is, you've put it all back on again once you've come off the diet -- and maybe even gained more than you actually lost in the first place.

Maybe you go to bed thinking about food. Maybe you wake up thinking about food. Perhaps the stresses of life, emotional upsets and even celebrations cause you to overeat. If so, you know you're not thinking like your slim friends but you don't know what to do about it. Well, I can tell you now, the most healthy diet plan of all is simply to learn to listen to what your body is telling you.

Don't worry if you've tried and "failed" at losing your extra pounds. In fact there's no real mystery to getting slim. The key is to learn how to be in charge of your eating without giving up the foods you love or depriving yourself. How to enjoy being healthier but also how to eat what you want without guilt.

A truly healthy diet plan, if you like, is finding out how to recognise when you're really hungry or whether your desire to eat comes from a different place. When you are hungry it's absolutely fine to eat something. Just make sure you're only eating enough to reach the point of satisfaction -- you don't need or want to feel over-full.

But there may be emotions that you "push down" with food -- boredom, loneliness, anger and so on. If so, the starting point is to identify the emotion and think about how you can address it. This may be hard at first as you've become so used to using food to ignore the feeling. But you know deep down that eating doesn't actually solve the problem and the emotion won't go away through you stuffing yourself -- and piling on the calories in the process.

See if you can catch yourself before you eat for reasons other than hunger, and ask yourself what it's really about. If the feeling is really boredom, for example, phone a friend, go for a walk, read a good book or clear out your wardrobe.

And learn to limit your eating to "just enough" so that you recognise when you're satisfied (when your stomach is only a little, if at all, distended and you feel reasonably light) and stop at that point. If you only eat enough so that you're satisfied, you will become hungry more often during the day. That's fine. Eat little and often (every 3 hours or so) if you need to. Your body will tell you what it needs, if you'll just trust it a little.

In fact, as time goes on you'll find that you feel like less food than you did in the past. Your stomach, which has been stretched each time you overate, will re-learn how to feel good at its natural size and you'll feel uncomfortable taking it beyond that.

Because this new, and truly healthy diet plan says you can eat whatever you like -- no foods are off limits -- you may worry that you'll only want to eat fatty, sugary or salty foods. This may be the case at first, but as you progress with the system of listening to your body you'll find that you actually start to crave healthier foods too, and the unhealthy ones will fall out of favour.

In my own case, now that I've been following this plan for years, I've rediscovered a taste for healthy foods I previously rejected. Apples, for example, now taste incredibly sweet and delicious to me. Cheesecake, on the other hand, I can only eat in a very small slice, and I definitely wouldn't feel like it every day.

So this is, in a sense, not a healthy diet plan at all but a whole new way of living your life and responding naturally to your body's needs. I've shed my extra 40 pounds through living this way, I have more energy than I ever did, and I look and feel 100% better. Think about how this will work for you. Picture your clothes feeling looser, seeing a slim person smiling back at you in the mirror, and your friends complimenting you on your new figure!

Source; http://ezinearticles.com/?A-Healthy-Diet-Plan---The-Top-Essentials-You-Have-to-Know&id=2866763

How Weight Watchers Can Help You

How Weight Watchers Can Help You

The Weight Watchers Organization

Weight Watchers is the largest and also the leading company of weight reduction products in the world. Founded in 1963, this hugely successful company focuses its diet plans around three simple concepts.

First, a successful diet plan must limit the amount of calories consumed, second, exercise is a critical component of any diet program and third, support from a team designed to help you make good choices and guide you towards your ultimate goal is a great help. The company boasts over 1.5 million members following the weight watchers diet and holds over 50,000 meetings globally every week.

How It Works

The Weight Watchers system works on a “points” basis. Points are based on the calories in a product making the plan seem more exotic. While it’s a relatively simple concept, reducing calories is a key ingredient in dropping pounds. Weight Watchers now has two alternative diets, the Flex Plan and the Core Plan.

As you would expect from the name, the Flex Plan gives you more food alternatives. This diet follows the point system, and since every type of food is assigned a “point” value, you can eat all your favorite foods, you just need to control the amount you eat. The points you are allowed to consume on any given day are based on your gender, age, weight and height. This is an easy diet to follow, with just a little math required to add up and manage your daily points.

The Core Diet strays from the basic points system and is good for people who don’t want to count and measure everything as this system is based on eating healthy foods. You can choose foods from all the basic food groups including fruits, vegetables, grains, starches, lean meats, poultry, and dairy products and you can eat all the “acceptable” food you want and even cheat once in a while with a snack (provided that it’s in a controlled amount).

Weight Watchers encourages regular exercise and their website which can be found at http://www.weightwatchers.com, has several different options. One of the changes to their program is that instead of penalizing the dieter for not exercising, the program encourages exercise by adding additional points for those exercising.

Meetings

One of the other keys to the Weight Watchers programs is attending meetings. While you can use the on-line program, the support and guidance from in-person meetings greatly enhances the success rate. It’s always helpful to hear real experiences from fellow dieters and learn from their weight battles and make the necessary lifestyle changes to maintain your weight.

Weight Watchers diets do not work for everyone. The core of the diet is based on calories. There can be potential health problems linked to weight issues such as adrenal fatigue, carbohydrate sensitivity, low serotonin levels, or intestinal parasites. Also, since members need to stay within a point total, they have to eat a well balanced diet to consume all the required nutrients and vitamins the body needs for good health.

Sometimes counting points can be become tedious or lead to a food fixation. The cost of partaking in all the weight watchers programs can be quite expensive. There is a $30 sign up fee for the on-line plan and $17 per monthly, and that’s in addition to your food, and depending on the area you live in, attending weekly meeting usually costs about $10 per week.

The big question is, are people successful at losing weight with the Weight Watchers programs. In a study printed in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in 2003 (and funded by Weight Watchers), individuals following the Weight watchers Points program lost an average of six pounds after two years. Dieters attending at least 78 percent of the weekly meetings almost doubled the weight loss to 11 pounds, to be successful in losing weight, you need to seriously follow all aspects of the program.

Source:http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Weight-Watchers-Can-Help-You&id=732249

Let's Talk About Fad Diets

Let's Talk About Fad Diets

Although the big push for fad diets has died down a little bit, it is still estimated that at least two-thirds of Americans are on some type of diet at any given time. Although research shows the importance of eating from all the major food groups, people are still confused about what type of diet to follow, keeping the window open for more quacky solutions to pop up.

In an effort to help readers determine what makes a diet healthy and when it's time to steer clear, I am going to discuss what makes a diet a 'fad' diet and why these diets are something best to stay away from. Along the way, we will discover what each food group has to offer that can be beneficial to our health.

Our bodies are uniquely designed to take advantage of the proteins, carbohydrates and fats that we eat. In order for the liver to do the best job it can for us, we actually need all of these nutrients, known as macronutrients. Even a 'detoxifying' diet should also include all of these macronutrients!

During the past 20 years there has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States. Currently, more than 64% of US adults are either overweight or obese, according to results from the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). So, look at the facts: Two thirds of all Americans are on some 'diet', yet we are getting fatter and fatter. Would that perhaps mean that the fad diets don't work? Let's talk about it.

Identifying a fad diet

A 'fad diet' is defined as something temporary. Therefore, it's no surprise that these diets are not successful. Let's begin by looking at how to identify a fad diet.

#1 - Promises a fast weight loss.

This is great, in the short term, but how many readers have or know someone who has followed one of these diets, only to regain the weight back, plus more for added bonus? When people lose weight very quickly, they lose a lot of lean muscle tissue, and the weight that comes back will most likely be more fat and less muscle, making it easier and easier to regain weight each time they drop the last fad diet. A healthy diet to follow will be one that will encourage slow, progressive weight loss over a longer period of time. It will have enough calories to support vigorous exercise, so that you lose fat and not muscle. Diets that are too low for the body's basic needs will result in the body breaking down it's protein stores (muscle) for the fuel it needs. Sort of defeats the whole purpose of the diet!

#2 - Eliminates foods or food groups.

The very first thing that alerts us that a diet is a 'fad' is when a particular food, or entire food group, is considered off-limits. This is a good time to talk about the low carb diets.

What is it that has made carbohydrates a bad nutrient? When you look at other countries, where the intake of carbohydrates is as high as 80%, and see that many of these countries are not suffering even close to the obesity rates we are in America, you have to wonder why they are not having the same problem. So, can it really be the carbs? Probably not. But, maybe it's the type of carbs. Many people who decide to go on one of the popular low carbohydrate diets start to eliminate a lot of food from their diets, including all the snack foods they were eating, particularly at night. Gone are the chips, the cookies, the crackers, the ice cream. Gone are up to 300 to 1,000 calories per day! Anyone would lose weight if they cut out those many calories from their daily diet.

Another problem with eliminating entire food groups, especially on low carb diets, is that they are recommending eliminating or limiting the intake of nutrient-rich fruits and vegetables. With all the substantial research showing how beneficial these foods are to preventing various diseases, such as cancer and heart disease, it's amazing that anyone involved in healthcare would recommend such a diet. Something to also notice, however, is that none of these fad diet books are written by anyone with a degree in nutrition. Even the medical community is confused, which explains why physicians will fall for some of the hype fad diet authors write.

But let's talk a little more about fruits, vegetables and starches: A diet high in animal protein and animal fat has been linked to various disease and inflammation states. A diet very high in protein puts a great load on our kidneys and can contribute to constipation, gout and bone loss due to calcium depletion from the high protein load.
Combine that with decreased fiber from lack of whole grains and fiber-rich fruit and vegetables, and many people just don't feel well; they feel fatigued, sluggish and their immune system is depressed.

#3 - Starts with a shock or follows a strict plan.

When the diet says you have to start with an extremely restricted diet, or you can only eat certain foods on particular days, you know it's a fad diet. They justify this by saying you have to clean out the body, or only certain foods will help with the weight loss process. Any change in how you currently eat will result in changes on the scale. Very few people can remain on these diets very long, so once they are 'off' the diet, the weight returns. The dieter learned nothing other than the misinformation the author provided them with. This can actually have far-reaching consequences, as then the dieter is more confused than ever and doesn't know what to believe!

Once a person learns what the qualities of a healthy diet consist of, they find that their optimum calorie level is for their own needs, and they are able to achieve their goals, combining their eating plan with exercise. Not only do they start to enjoy life again, but enjoy food AND see weight loss!
Although fad diet authors want you to believe their 'miracle' (and buy their products), there really is no get-thin-quick solution that is permanent.

But what does constitute a healthy diet? A healthy diet is one that is adequate in calories to support healthy weight, low in animal fats and saturated fats, animal protein should be very lean and adequate enough to support a diet high in fruits and vegetables and whole grain starches. Any healthy diet can include foods that are just for enjoyment, however. All foods really do fit, in moderation. A general rule is an 80/20 rule: Eighty percent of the time the diet should be healthy and then 20% of the time it can include foods you would not eat on a regular basis if you were trying to eat for health and weight loss.

#4 - Contradicts what experts say.

Authors of low carb diets say that the carbohydrates are what have made American's fat. But they can't explain why other countries whose diets are very high in carbohydrates don't have the same problems with obesity. You know it's a fad diet when the author says they have the 'inside' or 'hidden' truth about our health or diets. You also know it's a questionable publication when they say there is a hidden agenda among health professionals or the government.

But why is America getting fatter and fatter? America is a country of grab-and-go: The faster, the better. Families seldom sit down to meals, together. There are fewer physical fitness programs in school and many of the school food choices are fast foods. People and entire families eat 2-3 of their daily meals from a drive-through or a restaurant, most of which provide very few of the foods high in nutrients and low in calories. Restaurants add extra fats to their dishes to enhance the taste, so a meal you could make at home without added fats could have up to 60% of it's calories coming from fat to make it taste better! Plus, the serving sizes are much larger than they were 20 years ago, so most of the time the size of the meals could actually feed us for 2 to 3 meals, instead of one! However, many people still feel they must clean their plate rather than let the food 'go to waste'. They really should say, "go to waist"!!

As you read this, think back to the last week. How often did you sit down at home and eat a home-cooked meal? Do you eat breakfast, lunch and dinner each day? How often do you exercise vigorously? In Europe, the meals are much smaller and people walk a great deal more than in America. In some neighborhoods, it's actually impossible to walk to work, even if you live very close! Our road systems are no longer built for riding bikes or walking to work. You take your life into your hands, either from passing traffic or crime.

#5 - Relies on testimonials rather than scientific research.

The fact that Jane lost pounds in a week because she just ate cabbage soup does not mean it's safe, effective, or that it will work for you! What if you don't LIKE cabbage?

An example of testimonials, combined with the research to back it up, is the National Weight Control Registry. In order to join the Registry, a person has to have lost pounds and have kept it off for a year. Currently consisting of over 4500 individuals, the Registry was founded in 1993 as a longitudinal prospective study. Currently, there have been six studies resulting out of the Registry. For more information on the Registry, along with how most of the Registry members have in common, here is the website: http://www.nwcr.ws/.

#6 - Has a gimmick.

The problem with diet plans that have some type of gimmick, is people can't stay on them and they don't learn how to eat for the long-term. It's no secret that all the books must have something to 'catch' the reader. However, hidden among all the hype are books that really DO offer safe and effective solutions to weight loss. A book written by a registered dietitian (RD) is a guarantee that the material is accurate and safe. An RD is someone whose education, training and experience all revolve around the science and practice of nutrition; these truly ARE nutrition experts.

Consider this: If you had heart disease, you would see a cardiologist who specializes in heart health. If your teeth needed work, you would see a dentist. However, many people will buy 'diet' books from people who are not educated in nutrition! People will buy a diet book from a person who found what worked for them, or a movie star or a physician. In many of these books, because the author does not understand nutrition, many facts are distorted or misrepresented. It may not always be on purpose, but the point is these books are written by someone who really does not know nutrition and the science behind it, so either they distort the facts, or they make them fit the gimmick they are trying to sell.

So, the next time a friend mentions this great new diet they're on, or you see a new book that offers 'miracle' weight loss or something that 'health professionals don't really want you to know', take a step back and ask yourself these questions:

1- Does it promise fast weight loss?

2- Does it eliminate any major foods or food groups?

3- Is there a strict plan that must be followed for success?

4- Does it contradict what nutrition experts and science has to say?

5- Does it rely primarily on testimonials and 'before and after' pictures too good to be true?

6- Is there a gimmick?

If you answered yes to all or most of these questions, after you have stepped back, walk away and find a better plan. Isn't today time to get real and make your weight loss plan permanent and realistic?

Marjorie Geiser is a registered dietitian, certified personal trainer and life coach. Marjorie has been the owner of a successful small business, MEG Fitness, since 1996, and now helps other nutrition professionals start up their own private practice.

Source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Lets-Talk-About-Fad-Diets&id=27487

The Candida Diet

The Candida Diet

The Candida Diet is a necessary evil, as many of my patients will agree. If you are a Candida sufferer, the diet is something that "you can't live with yet you can't live without." The diet is feared, hated, despised, misunderstood, and often can make the difference between the success and failure in the elimination of the yeasty beast! The purpose of this article is not to explain what the Candida Diet is. This can actually be found on our website in the "patient only section," or by simply searching the Candida Diet on the internet. The purpose here is to explain why it is important!

I will also explain how the diet is generally healthier than most diets that are being followed in the 21st century.

The Candida Diet is low in carbohydrates, low in sugar, and generally low in fermented foods like vinegar, alcoholic beverages, etc. Candida feeds on sugars. Sugars make it grow and strengthen its adherence to the intestinal lining. While on a Candida Diet, the total amount of carbohydrates for the day should not exceed 150 grams. At the Biamonte Center, we use 3 versions of the Candida Diet that range between 30-50 grams, 60-90 grams, and 100-150 grams of total carbohydrates for the day. Avoiding sugar and alcohol are the most important factors. These substances can cause the fastest and greatest increase in Candida growth. They are the most dangerous. Starches come next. Starches convert to sugars in your body. Candida can feed on healthy sugars just the same as it can on junk food. Many of your patients will notice that sweet fruits will flare their symptoms just as noticeably as junk foods! When eating starches (carbohydrates), choosing those foods that have a lower "glycemic index" rating is best. The glycemic index is a scale that rates how fast a food converts to sugar in you blood stream. Examples of the glycemic index can easily be found on the internet. Fermented foods like soy sauce, vinegar, etc. can be important to avoid, especially if the person has reactionary symptoms from the food. These foods often produce an allergic reaction in the Candida sufferer's intestinal tract which can upset the good flora and the intestinal immune response. Foods from the fungus family like mushrooms, etc. can be allergens in the same manner as the fermented foods.

Foods high in yeast can have a similar effect to fermented foods and the foods from the fungal family. Foods that contain yeast do not contain Candida. They contain baker's yeast. This is not Candida. These foods can aggravate Candida by causing allergic reactions, but they cannot cause Candida.

The Candida Diet, though apparently restrictive, is actually higher in nutrients than the diet of the average American. The Candida Diet in fact is very similar to "The South Beach Diet," "The Zone," and "The Hunter/Gatherer Diet" (also known as the "Paleolithic Diet"). There are races of people who are all slimmer, stronger, and faster than us. They all have straight teeth and perfect eyesight. Arthritis, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, depression, schizophrenia, and cancer are absolute rarities to them. These people are the last 84 tribes of hunter-gatherers in the world. They share a secret that is over 2 million years old. Their secret is their diet- a diet that has changed little from that of the first humans 2 million years ago, and their predecessors, up to 7 million years ago. Theirs is the diet that man evolved on, the diet that is coded for in our genes. It has some major differences to the diet of "civilization." You are in for a few big surprises.

The diet is usually referred to as the "Paleolithic Diet," referring to the Paleolithic or Stone Age era. It is also referred to as the "Stone Age Diet," "Cave Man Diet," or the "Hunter/Gatherer Diet." More romantic souls like to think of it as the diet that was eaten in the "Garden of Eden," and they are correct in thinking so. For millions of years, humans and their relatives have eaten meat, fish, fowl, and the leaves, roots, and fruits of many plants. One big obstacle to getting more calories from the environment is the fact that many plants are inedible. Grains, beans, and potatoes are full of energy but are all inedible in the raw state, as they contain many toxins. There is no doubt about that- please don't try to eat them raw. They can make you very sick.

Around 10,000 years ago, an enormous breakthrough was made- a breakthrough that was to change the course of history, and our diet, forever. This breakthrough was the discovery that cooking these foods made them edible- the heat destroyed enough toxins to render them edible. Grains include wheat, corn, barley, rice, sorghum, millet, and oats. Grain based foods also include products such as flour, bread, noodles and pasta. The cooking of grains, beans, and potatoes had an enormous effect on our food intake- perhaps doubling the number of calories that we could obtain from the plant foods in our environment.

Grains, beans, and potatoes (GBP) share the following important characteristics:

-- They are all toxic when raw. There is no doubt about this; it is a fact that no competent source would dispute. They can be extremely dangerous and it is important never to eat them raw or undercooked. These toxins include enzyme blockers, lectins, and other types. I will talk about them in detail later as they are very important.

-- Cooking destroys most but not all of the toxins. Insufficient cooking can lead to sickness such as acute gastroenteritis.

-- They are all rich sources of carbohydrate, and once cooked, this is often rapidly digestible, giving a high glycemic index (sugar spike).

-- They are extremely poor sources of vitamins (particularly vitamins A, B-group, folic acid, and C), minerals, antioxidants, and phytosterols.

Therefore diets high in grains, beans, and potatoes (GBP):

-- contain toxins in small amounts

-- have a high glycemic index (i.e. have a similar effect to raw sugar on blood glucose levels)

-- are low in many vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytosterols ( i.e. they are the original "empty calories")

-- have problems caused by the GBP displacing other foods

As grains, beans and potatoes form such a large proportion of the modern diet, you can now understand why it is so common for people to feel they need supplements or that they need to detoxify (i.e. that they have toxins in their system). Indeed both feelings are absolutely correct. The essentials of the Paleolithic Diet are:

-- Eat none of the following: (Note the following is not the Candida Diet - this information is present in order to compare the Candida Diet to the Paleolithic Diet.)

-- grains- including bread, pasta, noodles

-- beans- including string beans, kidney beans, lentils, peanuts, snow-peas, and peas

-- potatoes

-- dairy products

-- sugar

Eat the following: (Note the following is not the Candida Diet- this information is present in order to compare the Candida Diet to the Paleolithic Diet.)

-- meat, chicken, and fish

-- eggs

-- fruits

-- vegetables (especially root vegetables, but definitely not including potatoes or sweet potatoes)

-- nuts, e.g. walnuts, Brazil nuts, macadamia, almond- Do not eat peanuts (a bean) or cashews (a family of their own)

-- berries- strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, etc.

Try to increase your intake of:

-- root vegetables- carrots, turnips, parsnips, rutabagas, Swedes

-- organ meats- liver and kidneys (I accept that many people find these unpalatable and won't eat them.)

This diet strongly resembles the typical Candida Diet, which in fact is higher in nutrient density than most diets that are followed by the average American.

From a layman's point of view, we can say that we use the diet to starve Candida in order to kill it. From a more scientific point of view, sugars, when metabolized by Candida cells, help Candida to adhere to the intestinal lining in order to hold on and keep its grip on you! Therefore, the avoidance of sugars can weaken the grip that the Candida has on your intestinal lining.

Sugars also make up and comprise the outer most layers of the yeast cells. A flip to this statement is the sugar, "Mannose." The sugar, Mannose, is currently being researched by this author, as it has shown the ability to block the adherence of Candida to the vaginal lining and perhaps the intestinal lining.

Candida above all is a yeast/fungus so it can be considered vegetation, like a mushroom. Like brewer's yeast, it metabolizes sugars and converts them to toxic alcohols called aldehydes. Many of the symptoms of Candida are produced by this toxic alcohol, the toxic proteins called antigens, mycotoxins (fungal toxins), and the neurological toxins (neurotoxins) that the Candida produces. When Candida is fed sugars, it not only strengthens its grip on you but it produces more of these toxins. Starches and carbs are naturally broken down and converted to sugars by your own body. This is normal for your health. However, Candida will eat these sugars as well. Fermented foods contain predigested sugars and substances that react like an allergen with your Candida. So sugars, starches, alcohol, and fermented foods feed Candida and make it worse! They also make it harder for medicines to kill Candida.

Diet, however, rarely causes Candida. It is usually caused by antibiotics, steroids, birth control pills, and other drugs. However, a diet high in sugar, starch, and alcohol, consumed during a period of extreme stress, can bring Candida about as if one took these medications.

At the Biamonte Center, the Candida Diet is used to weaken the Candida by starving it. This makes it more susceptible to the anti-yeast/ anti- fungal substances that we use. The Candida Diet is not used to kill the Candida as its own weapon. Diet very rarely can eliminate Candida. Candida grows a root system into your blood vessels. Here it taps into you blood and feeds on blood glucose and other nutrients. There is always enough blood glucose to keep the Candida alive, despite being on a low carbohydrate diet or even if you fasted. Fasting cannot kill Candida! This is because even when you fast, your body must keep a normal level of glucose (blood sugar) circulating for your brain and muscles to work. However, the low carb diet weakens it, like a weed which has had little water for some time.

Even when it is barely alive, it can continue to survive. And if "watered and fed properly," could grow again, returning to its former glory.

This is a very important concept to understand when we consider the importance and place the diet treatment holds in the elimination of Candida.

DIET RARELY ELIMINATES CANDIDA. ITS PURPOSE IS TO MAKE THE CANDIDA WEAKER SO THAT THE MEDICINES CAN TOTALLY DESTROY IT!

When you cheat on the diet, the Candida can temporarily increase. If one cheats for 1 day on the diet but continues the Candida rotation and phase 0, little will happen to set one back. Any increase in growth can be reduced within 1-2 days. The more one cheats, the more Candida grows. If one does the program but does not follow the diet, either no progress will be made or the person will continually feel ill from feeding the Candida, then making it grow, and then killing it and becoming toxic from the dead Candida wastes!

So when you cheat a day or so here and there on the diet, it does not defeat the entire program, providing that you stay on the anti-fungal rotation and Phase 0.

WHY IS GLUTEN AND MILK EXCLUDED IN CANDIDA DIETS?

Many of the Candida diets also suggest excluding Gluten and Casein (milk protein) from the diet. What isn't explained is why. It is observed that most, but not all Candida patients worsen when eating these foods.

A possible theory as to why is that an underlying allergy to these foods causes damage to the intestinal condition, where damage to the intestinal villi occurs. These villi are finger- like hairs that absorb nutrients that pass through the intestines. This damage causes putrefaction and decay of food in the intestines due to malabsorption.

In that case, the Candida is provided with food so it can continue to proliferate. This can also suppress normal, healthy flora and the intestinal immune response. The underlying problem is gluten-induced intestinal damage, but because the Candida is easier to identify, the underlying pathology is missed. Candida could easily eat these foods and release allergens as a by product of its metabolism, which causes intestinal allergies and further degrades the intestinal flora.

WEIGHT GAIN AND CANDIDA

"It's Not Your Fault"

If you have failed to lose weight despite following a diet exactly, it could be due to Candida. The late Dr. Robert Atkins, an international expert on the low carbohydrate diet, says in his books that Candida or low thyroid function can prevent weight loss despite a low carbohydrate diet. Candida adversely affects your metabolism and interferes with many hormones, nutrients, and the body's ability to burn fat!

One of the major secondary problems associated with Candida Albicans is weight gain. A number of the problems associated with losing weight and staying with a diet are due to Candida Albicans. A person with Candida Albicans will often crave sugar and simple carbohydrates because this is the main source of nutrients for yeast. Mood swings and depression are often associated with the rapid change in blood sugar levels caused by the yeast.

Lower thyroid function, lower Dhea levels, Estrogen dominance, and elevated Cortisol levels are all typical in someone with chronic Candida. Each of these situations has been known to contribute to weight gain or difficulty losing weight. Focusing on removing Candida Albicans from the body rewards the dieter with a feeling of well being and weight loss that is steady, sustainable, and healthy. Very often a person trying to lose weight will not be able to do so because of a Candida infection.

A NEW MIRACLE FOOD TO STOP SUGAR AND CARBOHYDRATE CRAVINGS SO YOU CAN STAY ON THE DIET!

Hemp Hearts (Shelled Hemp Seed) is a natural food that is concentrated with all of the required proteins, essential fats, and many vitamins and enzymes, and contains only insignificant quantities of saturated fats and carbohydrates.

Because Hemp Hearts provides people with an excellent balance of proteins and essential fats, they will have less difficulty avoiding the sugar and starchy carbohydrates that cause obesity and many other late onset health problems. Individuals who use Hemp Hearts as described above--eating them in the morning for their nutritional essentials, to increase their energy and reduce their dependence on sugar and carbohydrates, and having all day to burn off the calories--these individuals always experience profound health benefits.

Except for those with diabetes and other conditions which may seem to require individuals to eat more frequently, most people eat at least four, but usually five, measuring tablespoons of Hemp Hearts early each morning, preferably on fruit and yogurt (vegetables for diabetics), but also sometimes on cereal. They frequently report that they are not yet hungry at lunch time, and often only slightly hungry at three or four o'clock in the afternoon. Those who are overweight can quite easily limit themselves to a large salad in the afternoon. Because those who eat Hemp Hearts in quantity every morning are nutritionally satisfied, they have less difficulty avoiding foods made with sugar, flour, potatoes, pasta, and rice, and they are less inclined to regain lost weight.

Source:http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Candida-Diet&id=575119