Fat Burning Foods - Part 2

Continued from where we left off a few days ago, another great source of fat burning food is that of the pomegranate. It has a high level of Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), polyphenols and antioxidant.  CLA is said to help in the firming process of our tummy as it causes the lowering of body fat and increase in lean muscles. Polyphenols helps our body to burn fat via inducing the thermogenesis process, where the body burns fat to maintain its core temperature. The high antioxidant property of pomegranate reduces the amount of free radicals cortisol in our body.  Cortisol will encourage lean muscle break down to produce energy for the body while promoting fat storage in our mid section.  Eating more pomegranates will stop these bad cortisol from spoiling our fat burning and muscle building regime.

Lentils provide a great source of minerals for our body, which is essentials in the fat burning process and also it has a filling property which helps us feel full and thus won't overeat and get obese in the process.  Lentils also are rich in plant proteins and low in carbohydrates which show us why they are an idea food if we are to keep our body fat composition low.  Its high fiber content helps to reduce our body cholesterol as well.

Foods that are rich in Omega 3 fatty acids like fish are a good source of fat burning food. So how does it work here?  Well, Omega 3 is said to help increase the permeability of the cell membrane and this can help increase protein synthesis improving our glycogen storage capacity as a result.  This in turn helps to regulate more Leptin production in our body as our insulin levels are more balance.  The more Leptin in our body, the less easy we will feel hungry. Leptin is a hormone produced by our body fat.  Which means the more Leptin is produced the more body fats are used and the less easy we will feel hungry.  Less insulin level in our body means less fat will be stored into our tummy.  Omega 3 can also improve the fat burning process in mitochondria, our fat burning furnace in our body.  It is like adding oil to a burning fire which helps it burn even more efficiently our stored fat. 

Finally, the all important source of life, where everything is originated from and that is water.  Without water we all will not be able to survive anyway.  Water is the source of minerals which helps to regulate our body’s metabolism.  With a well metabolic rate, our body will burn fat more easily, keeping our body fat at an optimum level at all time.  It is important to know that all our cell activities in our body, including the fat burning process, requires water in order to be able to carry out in an efficient manner.  That is why we need to drink at least 8 glasses of water everyday so that our body can perform at the healthiest level for our own benefit.

Fat Burning Foods - Part 1

Have you ever encountered with the term "fat burning Foods"?  Well most people would know that our body fat can be burnt by doing exercises, but foods that can burn off fats in our body?  Not many would have known about this I think.  Actually, fat burning foods are foods that help you burn off or speed up the burning of excess fat in your body.  The concept is very simple, when we digest food in our body, we need some energy to do this.  The harder the food is to digest, the more energy it is required from our body to do so.  Thus foods that are harder to digest makes our body work harder and as a result more fats are burnt off to provide the required energy for the digestion. 

Vitamins and minerals in foods act as agent to increase our body’s metabolism which in turn will create an ideal environment for more fat to be burnt as more energy is required when our body is on a high metabolic state. Fruits are the best source of vitamins and minerals provider.  Which is why it is wise to include plenty of fruits in your daily diet so that the minerals and vitamins can help to increase your body metabolism and burnt off the excess fat in your body?  Furthermore, fruits are high in fiber and low in calories and these will not adds to your lipid storage in your body.  It will only benefits us by lowering our cholesterol level and helps to clean up our blood system as well.

Oats are not only fat free and zero in calorie, it has the all important, insoluble fiber which helps us feel full and will not have the hungry feeling of wanting to devour more food than we need.  This is very important in terms of not over eating and produce the excess calories that will eventually be stored as fat in or body.  Having oat meal as breakfast is probably the best off the dawn meal you would ever have as it is said to be the healthiest breakfast ever. You can slice a couple of banana and add some honey and raisins for taste. The vitamin C in the banana is also part of the ingredient for an efficient metabolism in our body.

The white and lean chicken breast is probably the best source of protein you can ever get.  It is low in fat and high in amino acid.  Digesting protein is very hard and requires a lot of energy from our body to do so.  Thus chicken meat is not only a good source of fat burning food, it is also a source of food that is hard to turn into fat storage in our body.  The red meat counterpart like beef and lamb will always contain a higher level of fat content in them which is why they taste much nicer than chicken as most people say.  But for my body fat sake, I will undoubtedly choose the white meat counterpart of chicken meat which can help me control my waistline.

I will continue will the rest of the fat burning food in my next post. So stay tune for a good health, fitness and life!

 

How Can You Get Six Pack Abs

  The question everybody is asking here is "how can I get six pack abs"?  This is true especially for men as it is much more difficult for men to get a six pack abs as compare to the women.  Most fat are stored around men's abdominal areas whereas it is deposited in women's bum predominantly.  That is why women are much easier to get a six pack than men.   The storage area of fat is God's designed and we can do nothing about that but what we can do is to burn off all those excess fats across our mid section area and do some abdominal exercises to get our all craving super hero six pack abs that we love to have.

Eat a healthy diet

  Before me go into the fat burning routine, there is a more crucial thing that we have to get use to so that we can achieve our six pack goal in a much easier manner.  The old saying of "we are what we eat" really has some truth in it.  If we dream of having a six pack abs while still insist on swallowing the oily cheese burgers, creamy chicken pie, succulent deep fried chicken wings, the ever popular double cheese pepperoni pizza and the saliva dripping BBQ pork chop topple with cream soda and ice float root beer, well I think we aren't getting anywhere near to that washboard abs that we so wanted to have.  What you need here is to cut down all the fatty foods and substitute them with a high fiber, low calories and lean meat diet. Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits.  Consume white meat like fish and chicken instead of the more fatty red meat like beef and lamb.  Use the healthier olive oil in your daily cooking instead of butter.  Try steaming your food instead of frying them to cut down on the oil usage. Cut down on sugar intake, substitute white sugar with brown sugar.  Take the unprocessed brown rice rather than the clean white rice.  Eat whole-wheat or whole meal bread instead of the white ones.  Brown rice and whole meal breads contain more fibers which is good for your body.  Take high fiber snacks instead of the normal ones.  Do the same with biscuits and confectioneries to experience a healthier living. Drink water instead of beer, coke or syrups.   Our body needs at least 8 glasses of water each day so that the system within our body can function efficiently. Take smaller 5-6 meals instead of 3 nig meals a day.

Exercise Regime

  Next we are going to look into the exercise part that will going to get us a six pack abs.  We can start off by doing sit ups.  Do 20 reps of sit ups as warm up.  Then rest 30 seconds and continue to do 4 sets of 20 reps with a 30 seconds rest interval between each sets.  You can start off doing this 100 reps sit ups exercise on alternate days to build a solid mid section base. After 4 to 6 weeks you can do this sit up exercise on a daily basis.  Sit ups target the upper abdominal muscles predominantly so in order to get a more balance six pack abs, you need to incorporate leg raise to target the lower abdominal muscles. You can do this exercise by sitting on the edge of a couch with both hands planted firmly beside your hips, holding the couch.  Raise both your legs, bending them while you move them towards your chest.  The lower them back to the original position, without touching the floor and move back up and repeat the process.  Do 20 reps and rest 30 seconds as per the sit up exercise until 100 reps have been completed.  Next you need to exercise your side oblique muscles which are the muscles beside your six packs abs.  You can target these side abdominals by doing alternate bicycle kicks. Lie on the floor face up, bend your legs slightly with both your arms behind your head.  Raise your right elbow and left knee until the touch each other. Lower them down and do the same with the left elbow and right knee. Do 20 reps for each sides and rest 30 seconds then repeat until you completed 100 reps.

Abs Definition

  It is useless if you only train your abs muscles but you ignoring the layer of fats covering it.  You can tell people you've got six packs and they will tell you, yes six in one abs you got there!  What you need to do is to burn off the layer of fat covering your wash board abs.  The way to do it is to do cardio exercise to burn off that excess fat. Do 20-30 minutes of stationary bike each day to sweat off those irritating lipid cells that covering your six packs.  You can alternate the bike session day with jogging or aerobics classes if you wants some variety in your exercise.  The main thing is to get a 20-30 minutes of cardio exercise each day to melt that stubborn fat cells off your abdominals!  Be sure to drink a lot of water as you can get dehydrated with the amount of water loss through your excessive sweating.  Bear in mind that besides doing cardio exercise, you must be strict to follow the diet that I have suggested above.  If not all your hard work each day will go into the drain as no self discipline will only make the fatty cells come back to hibernate around your abdominal wall!  Whereas if you can get past yourself, discipline wise, then I am sure that elusive six pack abs will be yours to keep for sure and you will indeed enjoy a good health, fitness and life!

The Benefits of Exercise

  I was sitting at a couch in a hot and lazy afternoon, slowly slipping down into a slumbering position as I switch on the television to watch the London Olympic Games.  As I was flipping through the channels, I felt my stomach very bloated.  I said to myself, well, probably it was due to the instant noodle I had just now for lunch.  Then all of the sudden I felt the urge to stand up and do some exercises.  This was maybe because of the bloated stomach that was hard to bear and the fact that I haven't been doing any exercise for the pass one week.

  So I got up from my couch and climb on to my stationery bike and began to pedal.  I did a 5 minutes slow pedal for warm up.  I increase the speed after that.  My stomach began to feel less tension as the bloating began to dissipate. Sweat starts to emerge from my body as I reached the 10 minutes mark.  My body starts to get warmer as I felt the blood circulate rapidly throughout my body.  I continue to pedal as I was watching the Olympic men 50 km walk on my television.  Sweat started to drip like the water pipe as I reached the 20 minutes mark.  It was a bit odd as I was supposed to feel tired but instead I felt more refreshing and energized.  This was mainly due to the increase in blood flow though my system that brings in more oxygen to my brain cells that gives me the sudden fresh and alertness.  By the 25th minutes the uncomfortable bloating in my stomach has gone completely.  As I pedal through the last 5 minutes, I felt not compelled to stop.  I did stop eventually at the 30 minutes mark but continued a further slower 5 minutes pedal for cooling down.

  As I read the meter on my bike, I was surprised to find out that I had did a 10 km cardio cycling and burnt 770 calories in the process.  While normally people would felt tired and exhausted, ironically I feel lighter and full of energy.  As I looked into the mirror while wiping my sweat off my body, I saw a more ripped figure and I felt more confident of myself.  The heavy perspiring during my exercise which makes my body loses a lot of water under my skin causing the ripped effect on my body.  Besides this, the heavy perspiring during my cardio bike exercise is good for removing toxin from my system.  Of course I need to drink a lot of water after the exercise to replenish myself.  Other benefits of exercise are the increase in blood circulation which brings a more thorough flow of oxygen to cell all over my body and also it helps to speed up the removal of toxin from my body as well transported through my blood system.  As I sit there resting, watching the rest of the 50 km walk race, I began to ponder, how exercise can bring so much benefits to our body and I have made up my mind to do at least 30 minutes of exercise each day so as to capitalize on benefits that exercise can bring to us.  By the way I slept extremely well that night!

Type 2 Diabetes Treatment: Medications and Natural Alternatives

  In the United States, the national health care expenses on diabetes total $105 billion annually. Perhaps some of that money should be spent on natural alternatives instead of more medication.

  Typically, doctors will point to exercise and diet as the first priorities in treating diabetes. Patients should be encouraged to know that losing 10 percent of body weight can improve glycemic control and reduce lipid and blood pressure.

  In fact, one study has shown that diet can actually reverse type 2 diabetes. Dr. Roy Taylor of Newcastle  Magnetic Resonance Centre in England directed this study of an ultra-low-calorie diet, which decreased liver and pancreatic fat and boosted beta cell function.

  However, his study only included a small sample of the population and required a diet of only 600  calories. Before attempting such a restrictive diet, patients need to talk to their doctor. But it does show  that diet changes can make a big difference when it comes to treating diabetes.

  Lifestyle changes, however, may not be enough. Many patients require oral medication to control their blood sugar. Sulfonylureas, biguanides, thiazolidinediones and meglitinides all work in different ways to control blood sugar. Combining pills may further reduce blood sugar, but can put patients at risk for hypoglycemia.

  Over time, many oral drugs have been known to lose effectiveness, causing patients to change
medications or add insulin to their treatment. Some patients change treatment plans after learning
about the risks involved with the medications they have been prescribed.

  An example of a medication where the risks may outweigh the benefits is a thiazolidinedione known as Actos (pioglitazone). It's one of the most popular diabetes drugs of all time, but the side effects of Actos have been known to cause vision, bone and liver problems.

  The medication can also cause heart failure and increases the risk for bladder cancer by 80 percent or more. Thousands of patients have filed Actos bladder cancer lawsuits.

  It's important for patients who take Actos to watch for the symptoms of bladder cancer: blood in the urine, pain when urinating and an increased need to urinate.

In addition to medication, people with diabetes may want to explore some natural alternatives:

Coccinia indica (ivy gourd from India) possesses insulin mimetic properties.

American Ginseng (herb) can decrease fasting blood glucose and HbA1C.

Momordica charantia (tropical vegetable) can have acute effects on blood glucose.

Nopa (cactus) affects intestinal glucose and can decrease fasting glucose and insulin levels.

L-caritine-(amino acid) affects insulin sensitivity and can enhance glucose uptake and storage.

Gymnema sylvestre (herb from Ayurveda) can improve glycemic control.

Aloe vera (dessert plant) can decrease fasting blood glucose and HbA1C.

Vanadium (mineral) acts as an insulin mimetic.

Chromium and cinnamon may improve insulin sensitivity.

Acupuncture can act on the pancreas to enhance insulin synthesis.

  Hydrotherapy. Using hot tubs on a regular basis helps increase the blood flow to the skeletal muscles.

  All of these natural alternatives warrant further studies to show the extent of their usefulness. Patients should check with their doctor about medication and alternative therapy options.

Alanna Ritchie is a writer for Drugwatch.com. An English major, she is an accomplished technical and creative writer.

Weightless Chest Workout

  Weightless workouts are training that do not use dumbbells, barbell or any weight machines. It is very suitable for people who are unable to find time to go to the gym and are reluctant to store their house with heavy exercise equipments.  I find that training without weights is probably best for people to strengthen their core muscles as it involves pushing and resisting movement of different muscle group in our body.

  Chest muscles are among the bigger muscles that are hard to develop for most people.  Especially for those who does office work, sitting on their desk almost from 9 to 5 daily.  What they do most of the time is probably lifting their fingers to hold a pen or typing something on the computer keyboard.  One of the most basic weightless chest workouts will be that of push-ups.  Beginners can start off doing push-ups with their knees touching the floor instead of their feet or they can do it on a wall by lifting their toes, with both hands at slightly shoulder width apart.  This can take away excessive strain as they won''t have enough chess muscle strength to do a proper strict form push-up.  You can do 2-3 sets of 10 reps push-ups, increasing the reps and sets whenever your pectoral strength has increased.

  For those who are none beginner, you can do a proper push-ups with hands slightly wider that the shoulder and both foot touching the floor.  Again do it with proper form, lower your torso down slowly until your chest almost touches the floor then push straight up in a slow movement as well.  Do 4-5 sets of 12-15 reps and increase the volume as your strength increases.  Rest for 30 seconds to 1 minute between each set. Push-ups will strengthen your chest muscles while giving your arms and shoulder some good workout as well.

  Another type of weightless chest workout is the reverse push-ups.  In this exercise, you will lay on the floor face up instead of facing down like the conventional push-ups.  You hold first your right hand in a normal push-up position while crossing the left arm over to touch palm of the right hand, in a palm to palm manner You start by pressing up using your right arm, while the left arm act like a barbell to resist the force of the push by your right arm.  Do 4-5 sets of 10-15 reps and increase your resistance if you want as you gather strength. The best is to do 1 alternate set for each side of your chest and stop for 30 seconds for a breather if requires.  I found this chest exercise is very good for beginner as they can adjust their resistance according to their strength.  The antagonistic style of training (one pushing while the other resisting) works the chest and arm muscles very well at the same time.  You will be less prone to injuries as you know your own strength base on the resistance you exerted and will not overload your own muscles with excess weight.

 

Risk of Sitting Too Long

  I have heard a lot of people saying that sitting too long may cause a downfall of one’s health.  So how true is this statement? Studies have shown that if a person sits for more than 6 hours continuously without a. well, standing break as you may call it will have a higher risk of death from all causes.  So why is that so?  Well, one common sense reason is that, sitting too long constitute muscle inactivity which in turn promotes the accumulation of excess storage fat in your body as no activities means no need to burn fats for energy within your body.  With this fat accumulation will comes high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, diabetes, uric acid etc all of which are inter- related diseases!

  Sitting for too long can also cause back pain problems. This is because not all people will sit in the correct posture.  Most of us will bend out back while sitting or even use our back bone to sit so to speak, while watching TV on the couch!  This can cause unnoticed strain to our backbone especially the lumbar joint and damage to the backbone disc in the area.  As we get older and it may happen sooner that you think, our damaged disc will start to give us problems in the form of lower back pain which maybe a very hard to bear experience!

  Long period of sitting may leads to large muscle group shut down which can leads to a fatal metabolic change in our body. People who sit for too long may greatly reduce their life expectancy.  Women will have a 37% risk of dying early while their male counterpart will see their tomb 18% early.  Is that a scary fact or what?  So the solution is if you want to live longer, is not to sit for too long.  Stand up every half an hour for a brisk walk to the wash room or do some light exercises like jumping and stretching.  This will give your body a good blood circulation needed to have a good overall well being.  Especially the blood circulation will help to carry oxygen to your muscles and rid the toxin from your system as well. 

  Let me sign off today with this scary fact.  Most of us sleep for 8 hours a day.  After we wake up we SIT in the toilet to do hour daily nature call.  After we all dressed up for work, we SIT down to have a quick breakfast! Then we SIT on our car or public transport to work.  In the office, we SIT at our desk to do work from 4 hours.  In between we SIT in toilet to let go of some stresses. (Women sit all the time in toilet, that’s why they have a higher risk of dying than men!) During lunch time we SIT down to have our lunch.  After lunch we go back to office and SIT down for a meeting.  We watch the clock and its 5 o’clock.  So it’s time to go back and we SIT in our car in the traffic jam on our way home.  At night we SIT down to have dinner with our family. After the meal we SIT in our couch to watch some TV and we SIT down and play some games with our kids.  Later it is time to say good night and we go to bed.  So let try to count how many SITs we do during a typical day and you will know that we must stand up more often and do more physical activities more often to counter the SITTING lifestyle that we have and to avoid us from SITTING our way to the grave!