myBODY&CO

At times reducing the amount of calories we consume, and eating healthier can be easier than we think. Start by making small adjustments weekly. Each week focus on making one adjustment, then the following week gradually introduce another adjustment to your current diet and lifestyle.

This week’s challenge is to take a favourite recipe and ‘lighten it up’. Look at the table of ingredient substitutions below and see how they might work with your favourite recipe. Also look at the tips for cutting down on fat and calories during preparation. You might be surprised to find that you like the lighter version better.

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To Your Health

Popularity: 23% [?]

Sometimes at the gym, you’ll see someone who is constantly on the treadmill, or the elliptical, or the bicycle, or the stair-stepper. They’ll do about an hour of non-stop cardio. And usually they are at the gym doing the same routine 3 to 4 times a week. The only problem with this, is that most of the time these people are not losing any weight. So what is happening there, when these poor people are exercising an hour for 4 times a week!!!!

Another example, is of people who jog for an hour, 5 times per week. And the same thing happens to these people – they are not well-built (in the sense that they do not have much muscle tone), but instead have rolls of fat around their waist-line.

Also, maybe you have noticed that postman or postwoman who is walking so much in a day, and yet is still overweight.

So what is going on here, when we are led to believe that for weight loss all you need is a regular aerobic routine. Why isn’t it working for these people?

Well, doing the proper kind of exercise will definitely lead to weight loss. However, the exercise has to be monitored and controlled, and there has to be a plan in place.

First of all the cardio has to be varied, so that the body doesn’t get used to the same routine. You need to ‘shock’ the body, so that the exercise will be effective. So, it’s good to vary the equipment, but also it is good to vary the intensity of your exercise. For example, you can choose a routine of interval training, where you are alternating running for say 30 minutes and jogging for 3 minutes, or jogging for 1 minute and walking for 3 minutes.

In addition, while doing your cardio routine, it is essential to work out at the correct intensity (this is calculated by taking into account the purpose of your aerobic exercise, and your heart rate range in which to exercise).

Apart from your cardio exercise, it is imperative to integrate resistance training (lifting weights). You don’t need to build a huge muscle mass, but at least you need to maintain your muscle mass so as not to lose lean muscle tissue while losing weight. Each pound of lean muscle tissue burns between 7 – 14 calories, while a pound of fat burns 2 calories. In addition, weight training significantly increases your average daily metabolic rate – which is the perfect foundation for losing that fat.

Hence, if you are determined to lose that fat or for just weight maintenance, I would recommend a combination of cardio exercise (which would be customized to your needs and properly monitored) together with resistance training. Now this doesn’t have to take up all your time. A carefully planned and effective routine (which includes aerobic exercise, resistance training, stretching and nutrition) will take about 1 hour, 3 times a week. It can be done at the gym, but also in the privacy of your home. In addition, with a carefully laid out customized plan, you are able to see dramatic results in just 12 weeks.

P.S. If you have enjoyed this article, make sure to join this community by subscribing to the free wealth of information.

To Your Health

Popularity: 22% [?]

Imagine you are your stomach in conjunction with your metabolism. At 8am you get a fair amount of food, which you are able to convert into energy to be able to do activities in the morning. Then you get nothing for 6 hours, so your metabolism starts ‘shutting down’ because there is nothing for it to work on, and in addition now it thinks that the body is in starvation mode and starts ‘storing’ food in the form of fat so as to have from where to get energy when the body needs. Then at 2pm you get a large lunch – it is more than you can cope with, because you had slowed down part of the metabolism process, and there is too much food to handle it all. Then nothing again for another 6 hours, and another large dinner at 8pm.

So now you realize the havoc you put on your body, when you do not eat regularly. You should focus on eating about 5 times a day – consisting of small healthy meals, every 3 hours. This will actually help to increase your metabolism. In addition, it makes you feel ‘full’ all the time, so there is less risk of you eating everything that comes in sight, when you are hungry. Hence, in the long run, even though you seem to be eating more often, you are actually keeping your metabolism active and you are more likely to be consuming fewer calories.

To Your Health

Popularity: 66% [?]

Think of the last time you went grocery shopping without your shopping list. You started walking down the aisles aimlessly. You were looking at items and going
 “I haven’t had that for a long time”, or
 “I always read about this item. I’ll use it for dinner one day”, or
 “This looks delicious. I’ll buy it to try it out”, or
 “I haven’t bought a cake for ages”, or
 “Did the cheese finish? Let me buy just in case”, or
 “Look how handy this will come for those nights when we want a quick meal”, or
 “I should try eating more vegetables. Let me see what I can buy from this section”,
 … and on and on.

First of all, after this shopping spree you’ll realize that the bill comes much higher than normal. Secondly, some of the items are pushed back in the cupboards and freezers and forgotten.

Thirdly, all the extra items that you bought, you simply don’t need them. They are basically extra calories, and usually the extra items that you pick up from the grocery store are either empty calories or loaded with calories.

So, the solution to this is easy. It all boils down to planning. Make sure to go through your cupboards, fridge and freezer prior to going shopping, and make a list of all the things that you need. Another option is to keep a notepad and a pencil in the kitchen, and when you realize that you are running out of something write it down on your shopping list. Then when you are at the supermarket just buy stuff from the list, and avoid being tempted into buying other items. Don’t linger in the aisles looking at stuff – just whisk through only picking up the items that you need.

To Your Health

Popularity: 12% [?]