Sunday, September 28, 2008

Looking like a Supermodel

What do you think looking like a supermodel is all about? Most people would answer make-up but it is definitely not just that. Others would say being anorexic and this is again something that is not true. In order for you to look like a supermodel you need aerobic exercise, strength training, a balanced diet and enough resting time.

From my point of view any woman can look like a supermodel. I said it so many times: there is no way you can not lose weight. All you have to do is be determined enough to do it. I am tired of people saying that it is a gift to look like a supermodel. It is not true, even if you have 100 extra pounds. Stop complaining and start working out, eating right and learning what you can do to lose weight as fast as possible. You can do it!

What You should NOT Believe about Weight Loss

There are a lot of myths going on in the weight loss industry and you should know them so that you do not believe them. If you want to lose weight you do need to know these facts!

Wrong Weight Loss Fact 1 - Miracle Exercise Machine Burns More Calories

I understand that a lot of individuals are confused when thinking about how many calories they are burning during the day. We go through so many activities that it is hard to understand. Even walking burns calories but that does not necessarily mean that you will lose weight if you walk a lot. The truth is that there is no such thing as a miracle workout machine for weight loss. The number of calories you burn is linked with the effort you put into burning them. If you use the same machine at different intensity levels you will burn a different number of calories.

Wrong Weight Loss Fact 2 - Low Intensity Exercises are Better for Weight Loss

How many times have you noticed people in the gym doing exercises at lower intensity levels? You surely did a lot of times and you should know that they are not burning more calories. We already mentioned above why. A lower intensity workout is just a lower intensity workout!

Wrong Weight Loss Fact 3 - 2-3 Days of Weekly Workout for 30 Minutes is Enough for Weight Loss.

The truth is that such a schedule is better than nothing but it is not enough. Daily exercise is not only better for weight loss but it is important for us to stay healthy. In my view the best possible way to go is weight training for 3-4 days per week and 30 to 60 minutes of DAILY cardio/aerobic exercises.

Wrong Weight Loss Fact 4 - Loosing Fat from 1 Body Part is Possible

You usually hear of this in a connection with a particular exercise that works that body part. In most cases we are talking about abs and various types of crunches. This is not true as you can do thousands of sit-ups or crunches and you will not lose belly fat.

Wrong Weight Loss Fact 5 - You can NOT Lose Weight

There is no such thing! No matter what anyone tells you, YOU CAN LOSE WEIGHT! The only thing that is different from one person or the other is the rate you can lose weight. To make it worse, one crucial aspect of weight loss stand in you believing that you can do it. Stick to what you are doing and you will reach your goals.

Wrong Weight Loss Fact 6 - An Empty Stomach Means Burning More Fat!

Oh My God - This is so wrong! Contrary to what you might believe, you might hinder your progress if you exercise on an empty stomach. You need energy to work out and if you do not have it then you can not! It is as simple as that! Do not believe all the bull you read as nutrition is highly important to lose weight!

Never believe the facts mentioned above because they are very wrong!

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Do Low Carb Diets Work?

We noticed that the latest trend in losing weight methods stands in low carb diets. The one example that always appears is the Atkins Diet and the truth is that we are faced with a lot of mixed opinions in weight loss and nutrition. This is why it is quite hard to understand how a low carb diet works and since information is the key let us take a look at this topic so that it can be properly understood.

First of, it is clear why people find low carb diets as a good way to go. We all finally understand that a high carb and low fat approach to nutrition does not work. Such a diet actually makes us fatter and will also lead to illness and diseases. Just think about the fact that most Americans eat too many carbs and not enough dietary fats, thus having poor health. We also notice that many individuals try to cut out carbs as much as possible, which is again a bad idea.

In order to not avoid the topic we can keep it simple in the sense that reducing carbs from your diet will make you lose weight. The problem is that you do not lose that much body fat. The human body will hold around 2.4 grams of water for 1 gram of carbohydrate we consume. If you remove the carbs from your diet you will not hold as much water so we are heading towards artificial weight loss. To make it even worse, you will not only lose water but you will also have less muscle glycogen. This will make you feel energy-less. Our brain also uses carbs for energy. Not having enough in your system will immediately mean that you brain will not work properly.

You surely heard a lot of people that say that carbs are stored as fat in our bodies. This is extremely wrong as any excess energy will be stored in our bodies as fat and it does not matter if it is an apple or high cholesterol sauce. Too much is always too much and it does not matter what that much is.

Carbs are important in our daily diets and they do come with vital nutrients that you will not find in any other foods. They are needed in small to moderate quantities even if you do not work out. To make it even better, when you exercise the carbs are stored in our muscles and not as fat. The bottom line is that you can eat foods that are high on carbs and still lose weight. The problems always stand in overdoing everything. Remember that you need carbs and you should focus on fruits, whole grains, vegetables and beans. Pay attention to how active you are and eat less carbs only when you do not workout. In days when you exercise you have to eat more carbs than when not exercising. To make it all even better, after you work out you can actually eat a lot more carbs. This includes ice cream. Keeping a balanced diet and working out is the right way to lose weight.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Weight Loss and Gallstones

You need to realize that overweight individuals do have a larger risk to develop gallstones (sometimes written gall stones) than regular weight people. Another thing that you have to understand is that when you go through a diet that is based on low calories intake every single day is also hazardous. This is because rapid weight loss will also increase the risk to develop gallstones. The entire topic of weight loss and gallstones is researched and analyzed but there are so few people that really understand it. That is why we need to learn the facts that are linked to this topic.

A gallstone is formed of solid material and appears inside the gallbladder. You will develop them as many small stones or as one large stone. They come as a mix of compounds although most of them are cholesterol. The real problem stands in the fact that people with gallstones do not have any symptoms in most cases and they do not really know that they are suffering from gallstones. On the other hand, there are cases when painful attacks happen and this is not pleasant at all.

The gallbladder is the place where the bile is stored and released into the intestine in order to help in aiding digestion. Bile is simply a fluid that is created by the liver and it helps digestion as it contains various substances named bile salts. They basically act as natural detergents that break down fats found in what we eat. The bile is highly important in eliminating cholesterol from our body. To put it simple all is needed in order to eliminate cholesterol from our bodies.

How do gallstones get formed? Most researchers think that there are 3 situations when this happens. The first one is linked to a supersaturated bile as it contains too much cholesterol than salts can dissolve. The second one is linked to a visible imbalance of various substances including protein. That is when cholesterol starts to crystallize, thus forming gallstones. The third situation happens when the gallbladder can not contract enough to empty the bile regularly.

The real problem with gallstones is that obese people are more likely to develop them. The greater the obesity level the greater risk of forming these stones. Nobody really knows why this happens but most people think that the liver is producing too much cholesterol so it can easily lead to a supersaturation inside the gallbladder. Also, if you lose a lot of weight rapidly you will have the same risk as gallstones are considered a complication of voluntary weight loss that can easily happen.

All this raises one huge question: Why Does Weight Loss Cause Gallstones? The popular belief is that dieting can destroy the balance found between cholesterol on bile salts in the gallbladder. This basically means that you have increased cholesterol level and decreased bile salts levels. If you spend a long time not eating then the gallbladder will not contract often enough to empty the potential small bile gallstones that can appear and so they become dangerous.

Now the real problem stands in thinking whether or not it is worth losing weight if there is a risk of developing gallstones. The answer is YES and you do need to lose weight properly. Gallstones appear when you are trying to lose weight too fast and when you are basically not eating. Holding a proper weight loss diet will aid you in more ways than one.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

4 Reasons Why You Can Not Lose Weight

You should be aware of the fact that a lot of things go into gaining and losing weight. The truth is in most cases the one fact that stops you from losing weight is one element that makes you gain weight. Let us take a look at the 4 most common reasons why people find it hard to lose weight.

Poor Eating and Not Enough Exercise

This is probably the most common element out there. You simply can not lose weight just by reducing calorie intake. You do need a good eating plan and enough exercise in order to reach your goal of dropping pounds. In USA you will notice that most citizens do not get enough exercise to burn the calories they take in daily. This basically means putting on weight and there is no way around that.

If you want to maintain your weight you do need around 30 minutes of daily cardiovascular workouts. This includes playing with kids, washing your car, walking and so on. If you are looking to lose weight you do require at least 60 minutes of cardio daily. The start to creating any program to lose weight should be focused on an examination of what you are eating. We recommend that you keep a diary for this purpose and always look at the nutritional labels on products so that you know how many calories you take in. This includes minerals, vitamins, sugars and fat. You do need to eat whole grains, vegetables and fruits. Do not go over your daily calorie intake levels.

Syndrome X

When one talks about Syndrome X he is referring to a metabolic disorder. Statistics showed that one in 4 Americans suffer from it and is characterized as leading to diabetes and cardiovasular disease if not treated. People suffering from Syndrome X are insulin resistant. Every time we eat insulin is released in order to help glucose reach the cells where it is efficiently burned. If insulin resistance is the case the cells do not allow entry of glucose. Because it has nowhere to go it will start building up in our bloodstream. To make it even worse, the liver will also end up pumping more glucose, making everything worse. Extra glucose ends up going to the liver and transforms in fat. Insulin resistance is caused by exercise lack, diets that are too high in carbohydrates and obesity. If you are suffering from Syndrome X you should consult a doctor so that he aids you in your weight loss plans.

Stress

So many people neglect the impact of stress on our lives. One of its negative effects is causing weight gain. Whenever you work too much or you basically suffer from too much stress your body will react funny. Your adrenal glands usually end up pumping cortisol on a regular basis. In case you did not realize it, whenever stress disappears you end up looking for food. Cortisol is telling us to eat and in most cases this is too much food. You are basically overeating. Managing stress is the most effective way of avoiding Cortisol surplus and aids you in avoiding weight gain, thus losing weight. You might even want to consider a therapist if you can not handle taking care of stress yourself.

Hypothyroidism

It is always good to test your thyroid gland as it regulates our metabolism. If hormone levels decrease our body slows down and this is called hypothyroidism if it is caused by thyroid hormone. Because of it our cells need less energy and eating normal actually leads to weight gain. Extra calories are transformed into fat. Keep in mind that hypothyroidism can be treated but it is crucial to consult your doctor for this.

Keep in mind that there are other possible problems that can lead to weight gain or simply not being able to lose weight. Nowadays it is quite complicated to maintain that perfect figure and all comes with some sort of sacrifice. Always keep this in mind and stay motivated as it is possible to lose weight in 99% of cases.