Category : Article
Posted in Article on April 18, 2012
The American Heart Association has taken the time to compare quick weight loss to fad diets. This is quite helpful for the serious dieter seeking the best form of weight loss. Based on their findings they have been able to provide the information that is informative so a logical and critical decision can be made for dieting. The following is information from the AHA on different diets and their effects.
The Cabbage Soup Diet is said to undermine the health, cause physical discomfort in the abdominal regions such as gas and leads to a disappointment when using this diet.
Many quick weight loss diets claim to be endorsed or authorized by the AHA yet this is not true. The AHA recommends diets that are flexible in the food selection and stresses the importance of nutrient rich diets with vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients essential to a healthy diet.
Many of the popular diets do not encourage physical activity or exercise. The AHA recommends walking 30 minutes at least three times a week for the physical activity that will promote weight loss. The lack of physical activity is the leading cause of heart disease and stroke.
Since the quick weight loss diets often change the eating habits of the person during the time of dieting but fail to teach how to create healthy eating habits that lead to prolonged weight management. The fact many lack this information leads the dieter to return to the old eating habits that caused the original weight gain and they will eventually gain back lost weight.
Many of the quick weight loss diets are based on myths about dieting instead of the current facts. AHA does not substantiate the concepts of fat-burning foods and food combining. They consider these concepts myths and suggest they be avoided when possible.
The only true weight loss diet includes a proper diet rich in grains, fruits, vegetables, fiber, low fat, and dairy products that is balanced and nutritional as well as physical activity. Many quick weight loss diets lack these elements so the AHA does not recommend using these diets.
The best way to lose weight is with a healthy diet that is balanced as well as adding physical activity as a regimen that not only provides a weight loss for the individuals but also increases their body’s level of health. The AHA has guidelines available on their website that list the right diets and physical activities to implement to lose weight effectively with lasting results. Education on the dieting is essential to creating a healthy life style and body. The AHA has support groups, diet planners, suggestions, tips, and other dieting information that will transform anyone’s life into a healthier and more productive life.
Posted in Article on April 16, 2012
The dumbbell tricep extension is going to help build strength in your upper body. It will help in balancing the strength between your two arms.
The one arm dumbbell tricep extension will work one arm at a time. Choice a dumbbell that has the proper weight on it for you, then find a bench with back support. Sit on the bench with your back flat against the support. Place one leg on each side of the bench with your feet flat on the ground.
Once your back is flush and your feet are flat lift the dumbbell in the air. Then move your arm up in the air until it is straight up and down. Turn your wrist so it is pointed toward the wall in front of you. Your pinkie will be on top of the dumbbell towards the ceiling. Relax your other hand going straight down your side. You are now in the starting position for the dumbbell tricep extension.
While inhaling, lower the dumbbell behind your head only using the forearm. Bend your elbow as you lower the weight behind your head. As you are lowering the weight start turning your wrist so it is facing your head. Your elbow will be pointing at the wall across from you while your pinkie will be on top of the dumbbell towards the ceiling. Tighten your tricep for a second then start exhaling. While flexing your tricep pull the weight up and come back to the starting position. Complete the required repetitions then put the dumbbell in your other hand and repeat the steps.
The lying dumbbell tricep extension will build upper body strength also. You will need two dumbbells with weights on them that you can handle with ease. With the weights in hand sit on the bench and place your feet flat on the floor. Carefully lay back on the bench so your back is flat.
Slowly raise the dumbbells in the air until your arms are straight and in a 90 degree angle. The palms of your hands should be facing each other. This is going to be your starting position.
While inhaling, start lowering the dumbbells down to your ears. Bend your arms at your elbows and keep your upper arm straight. When the dumbbells have almost touched your ears then start exhaling. While exhaling bring the weights back up to the starting position. Make sure to complete the required amount of repetitions.
If you have any problems with your elbows then you might not want to proceed with this exercise. Since you are only using your forearms and triceps the exercise could put some unnecessary pressure on your elbows. Whenever you work with dumbbells you do not want more weight then you can handle with ease. If your weights are too heavy then you will not be able to control them. By not controlling the weights properly you could hurt your elbows rather badly. Do not over exceed your limits when you are working with the dumbbells.
Posted in Article on April 12, 2012
Obesity is defined as having too much body fat. The body consists of water, fat, protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. When there is too much fat, you are at higher risks for health problems such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
When you are obese, you magnify your risk for heart disease. When there is excess body fat it raises your cholesterol and triglyceride levels. It raises your blood pressure and can lead to diabetes. In some cases for people with diabetes, they have doubled their risks for a major heart attack or stroke.
Obesity is caused by having more calories consumed, than are burned with physical activity, whether from daily activity or exercise. When there is a great deal of calories consumed, with too much saturated fat and cholesterol, the levels of cholesterol in the blood rises. This increases the risks for heart disease.
Determine If You Are Obese:
Body fat is measured by waist circumference and by body mass index. The high-risk waistline is more than 35 inches for women and more than 40 inches for men.
The body mass index assesses the body weight in comparison to the height. It is a method to measure the body’s composition in correlation to the body fat. It is calculated by taking the body weight in pounds divided by the height in inches squared then multiplying it by 703.
The National Center for Health Statistics has the following levels for mass body index calculations:
18.5 is considered underweight.
18.5 – 24.9 is considered healthy.
25.0 to 29.9 is considered overweight. This is generally 10over the ideal body weight.
30.0 or greater is considered obese.
Extreme obesity is defined as a body mass index of 40 or greater.
Here are some suggestions to reduce or prevent obesity:
1. Add physical activity to your daily routine. Adults need to have at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity three or four times a week. Children need to have at least 60 minutes the same amount of times a week.
2. Reduce time watching television or sedentary activities including time on the computer or playing video games.
3. Create opportunities for physical activity at work as well as home.
4. Promote healthier choices of food serving five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables every day.
5. Reduce the portions of the food consumed. Avoid “supersized” meals and value meals with larger portions.
Taking steps to avoid or reduce the chances of obesity has many benefits for everyone. The fact of living a healthy longer life is incentive to work on the weight issues leading to heart disease and other health related issues. Americans have the highest rate in the world for heart disease based on the amounts of people that are overweight.
Posted in Article on April 10, 2012
If you thought that the One Arm Dumbbell Preacher Curls is hard, well…let?s just say that the barbell biceps curls is a workout that is not meant for beginners. This exercise combines the use of heavy weights with a special movement that helps to place virtually all the pressure exactly where you want it ? on the muscles of your abs. Some people would prefer to work with a trainer until they get used to the exercise
Yes, everyone wants to Get Ripped, but as mentioned earlier on, this exercise is NOT MEANT for beginners! If you have mastered all the exercises that have been explained to you in the past series, then you are good to go.
What You Will Need to Perform This Exercise
In order to perform this exercise, you will need a large barbell, two weight plates that weigh ten pounds (at least) and two weight clips.
How to Perform the Barbell biceps Curls
First set the weight plates on the barbell, then use the clips to hold the weight plates close to the middle of the barbell as much as possible. These plates need to spin freely ? this way, the barbell will roll (they mustn?t wobble).
Then, kneel in front of the barbell, make sure that your knees are shoulder width apart; you should have a firm grip of the barbell with both hands. Ensure that your hands are a bit wider than shoulder width apart.
You should extend both feet behind you ? this way, your body weight will balance on not just your toes but also on your straight arms as well. Your arms should of course be straight but not locked.
Now, roll the barbell ahead of you in way that your body drops almost to the floor. But you will need to nearly lock your arms to do this. Keep looking forward and down and also make sure that your body is in a straight line.
You will then need to push the barbell and yourself back into the push-up position. Make sure you don?t bend your arms or even arch your back when performing this exercise. Ensuring that you keep your body straight will of course need serious concentration on your part and a lot of abdominal strength.
You can repeat this exercise for as many times as you please. But at first, you should do few repetitions in every set and also make sure that you take note of your body position. As you begin to gain endurance and your comfort level with this exercise rises, then you can go on to increase the number of repetitions. You need to understand that it is a lot better (and safer) to do fewer repetitions and execute them perfectly than to do lots of repetitions and do them incorrectly.
It is important to immediately stop if you feel any back or neck pain while performing this exercise and consult your physician before you even attempt to do the barbell biceps curls again.
Who said exercise couldn’t be fun? You can literally exercise any time, any place if you just use your imagination a little. Take for example regular household chores, did you know that a 150 pound woman can burn approximately 230 calories in thirty minutes just by performing housework? Who said housework was a chore? Not anymore!
It is very true housework can really burn the calories especially if you put a little more effort into it. So instead of just vacuuming in a kind of lazy way, concentrate on your movements. Push the vacuum a little further away from you and pull it back with more gusto! Now you are burning a few extra calories.
The same applies to cleaning the bath tub or washing the floors. Instead of thinking about how much you dislike the chore. Think instead about applying a bit more pressure to your movements.
When you are cleaning and dusting take longer strides with your legs too. Take a long stride and then hold the position for a few seconds to help stretch your muscles. Then bend at the knees. When picking things up off the floor use your knees to bend down or you can bend straight legged. But just be careful not to over stretch and pull a muscle.
Outside the house you have lots of additional ways to exercise. Gardening, weeding, cutting and raking the lawn are all wonderful workouts. If you don’t normally do these chores offer to do them once a week and take advantage of using a different set of muscles.
The same goes if you have a dog, offer to be the one to take them on a walk. Or give your dog a surprise and take him for two walks a day instead of one, they will be excited and happy to go with you.
Most kids these days have some type of gaming console so why not take advantage of this and get an exercise video game. If you are a little embarrassed about anyone seeing you, get up early in the morning and play the game. Before long your kids will want to exercise along with you.
It really is easy to incorporate exercise into your daily chores. No matter what cleaning chore you are doing there is a way to bend, stretch and just put more effort into it. So go ahead and have fun while cleaning, your body will love you for it.
So the Chinese have had green tea now for around 4,000 years. They’re keen with herbs and stuff, and they stick with green tea’s ability to help you lose weight. Case in point: the Japanese. Their society is literally addicted to green tea, with local demand pushing the local supply of high-grade green tea to the limit. And if you notice, it’s rare to find overweight Japanese. And they attest it all to their insatiable thirst for green tea.
So here’s the question: are green tea weight loss diets plausible?
The quick answer to that question is a resounding yes! Whether through drinking green tea or through dietary supplements, green tea weight loss diets revolve around the time-tested reliability of green tea to help in weight reduction.
Green tea weight loss: The Scientific Studies
The Study:
There is this physiologist, William Rumpler, who’s currently investigating the effects of green tea on the energy expenditure and fat oxidation of the body when exposed to green tea. In English, that means your body’s generation of energy for you to work and the tendency to burn up fat for fuel. Both are ways for you to lose weight.
The only weight-reducing component that they’ve identified in green tea is the caffeine. However, when they had other subjects consume caffeinated water instead of full-strength green tea, they experienced some strange results. Not surprisingly, the subjects who took full-strength green tea had significantly greater energy expenditure and fat oxidation levels in their body.
The Implications:
All they could do is attribute the weight-loss effects of green tea to confounding variables. Simply put, this means that they don’t know what the heck it is in green tea that helps people lose weight. The only thing the scientists are sure about is that it helps you lose weight. More studies in this field will probably isolate what makes you lose weight when you drink green tea.
But no matter what research will yield, they’ve already proven the fact that green tea weight loss diets work. And that’s what really counts.
The Bonuses:
Other related studies about green tea indicate that not only will you lose weight, but you’ll also have a healthier life in the process: antioxidants help clean up the damaging free radicals that float around in your body, your intestinal track is less likely to absorb excess cholesterol, and your risk to get cancer is significantly lowered.
What more could you ask from green tea weight loss diets? You get what you want and even more, all for just drinking a couple of cups a day!
The Wrap-up
Green tea weight loss diets not only help you lose weight, but you’re losing it naturally and healthily. There’s no need to take in chemical poisons to lose weight; no need to undergo surgical procedures that’ll cost a small fortune and create a scar on your body. All you need is a healthy lifestyle complemented by a green tea weight loss diet, and you’re sure to go down the road to a slim and healthy future.
Mull about it over a cup of green tea.
Heart disease consists of a number of problems affecting blood vessels in the heart and throughout the body. The types of heart disease are:
Coronary artery disease, which is also known as CAD, is the most common form of heart disease that leads to heart attacks. CAD is when the arteries become hard and narrow. This causes the blood to have a hard time flowing properly leaving the heart without the amounts of blood it needs to function correctly.
CAD leads to angina, which is pain in the chest feeling like a squeezing pain in the chest and sometimes in the arms, neck, jaw, and back. Some people state it also feels like indigestion. Angina is not a heart attack, yet it can be a sign of a future heart attack. Heart attack is another element of CAD. This occurs when the arteries are either completely blocked or severely damaged.
Heart failure happens when the heart is unable to pump the blood through the body, leaving the primary organs to receive insufficient amounts of blood and oxygen. The signs of heart failure are shortness of breath or feeling like there is not enough air, swelling in the legs, ankles, and feet, and extreme tiredness or fatigue.
Heart arrhythmia is the changing of the heartbeat. People suffering from this complain of dizziness, feeling faint, out of breath, and having chest pains. In some cases, the irregular heartbeat is harmless yet in others, it results in surgery to install a pacemaker.
Women need to worry about heart disease since one out of four women in America die of heart disease. In 2004, nearly 60more women died of cardiovascular disease than all forms of cancer combined. The odds of developing heart disease; increases with age. Both men and women have heart attacks yet women die more frequently from them then men.
To help prevent heart diseases know your blood pressure. People with high blood pressure do not always show signs so it is recommended to have your blood pressure checked every 1 to 2 years.
Avoid smoking since as it is one of the leading contributors to heart disease.
Get tested for diabetes. People with diabetes have increased risks of heart disease and other serious health problems.
Get your cholesterol checked. High cholesterol clogs the arteries keeping your heart from getting the blood it needs. This leads to heart attacks.
Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight increases your risks of heart disease.
Limit alcohol consumption to one drink a day with no more than a 12-ounce beer or a 5-ounce glass of wine.
Find healthy ways to deal with stress. Stress is a silent factor for heart disease.
Changing your current life style can help reduce the risks of heart disease.
Add exercise and a healthy diet to your life to improve the quality of life and reduce the risks of heart disease.
Are you looking for a quick weight loss diet plan? If you have a big event like a wedding or reunion coming up, you may want to drop a few pounds before the big event. To do this, you can’t take the long view and build up an eating and exercise plan that will sustain permanent weight loss. But, you can find a quick weight loss diet before the event.
The first diet I’m going to introduce you to has been called by many names, the most popular of which are “The Three Day Diet” and “The Grapefruit Diet.” This is a contemporary update to the plan first introduced as the Scarsdale Diet.
The Grapefruit Diet requires you to eat specific foods in limited quantities. Overall, you will be eating less than 1000 calories a day which is why it is a quick weight loss diet.
On a given day, breakfast might be 2 eggs, 2 slices of bacon, black coffee and 1/2 a grapefruit. Lunch would consist of salad with salad dressing and unlimited lean meat. Dinner would be any non-starchy vegetables, unlimited fish, and half a grapefruit. As a bedtime snack, you could have 8 ounces of skim milk.
The “magic” ingredient of this quick weight loss diet is supposed to be the grapefruit. However, many scientific studies have shown that grapefruit has no specific weight loss value and the real secret behind this diet is the limited calories and lack of carbs.
However, you can lose weight on the Grapefruit Diet. The average person will lose 10 pounds in the 12 days that is recommended that you stay on the plan.
Another quick weight loss diet is the Cabbage Soup diet. This has not been associated with any specific hospital. However, in many parts of the country, it becomes affiliated with a regional medical center to give it credibility.
At the core of the Cabbage Soup diet is, well, cabbage soup. This is essentially a soup made from vegetable broth, lots of cabbage and any other non-starchy vegetables that you would like. Then, on various days, you can eat specific foods. For instance, on one day you can have all of the bananas and milk you want. On another day, you can have up to 16 oz. of red meat.
It is not recommended that you stay on the Cabbage Soup diet for more than 7 days at a time. However, in that week, you can expect to lose 5 pounds.
The “magic” behind the Cabbage Soup diet is the same as the Grapefruit Diet. Namely, you are eating about 800 calories a day. The soup has negligible calories, so you can have as much as you want of that. You get most of your calories from that day’s assigned foods.
If you are looking for a quick weight loss diet, the Grapefruit and Cabbage Soup plans may be right for you. Keep in mind that most of what you’ll lose is water weight and you can’t expect to keep it off for the long haul. But, if you are just looking for a fast drop before a big day, either of these quick weight loss diet will work for you.
Posted in Article on March 27, 2012
Exercising as a family has lots of benefits. First it provides you with some great quality time together. Plus it shows your children that exercise can be fun and is a great way to instill some healthy habits into them. Too many children today spend so much time in front of computers and video games that they don?t understand the benefits of getting some exercise.
Exercise doesn?t have to be running and huffing and puffing around the gym. There are plenty of easy low impact exercises that can be done together. A couple that come to mind are walking, hiking, swimming and golfing. What better way to get outside with your family and have fun!
Just teaching your young child how to ride a bike or learn to skate is exercise! You are showing them how to be active and get some much needed fresh air.
Many parents put their children into baseball, soccer and even karate lessons, which is fine. But what is better is when both parents and children exercise together. So why not go on a family hike once a month?
To get your children into the habit of exercising you could allow them to pick the activity. It could be going on a mountain bike trail, ice skating, horseback riding, even going out to play miniature golf.
As with any exercise you want to make sure that your kids are wearing the correct type of clothing. This includes any protective clothing such as helmets, knee and elbow pads. If you are hiking then a good hiking boot is essential. You want to prevent injuries if at all possible.
Before you head out for the day or afternoon make sure that everyone has had the chance to warm up. This could be just doing a few jumping jacks or running on the spot for a couple of minutes. Even bending over to see who can touch their toes is a great warm up exercise that is fun for the family.
Make your chosen activity more enjoyable by taking along a camera and shooting a few pictures of your family outing. If you are hiking or walking you never know what animal, bird or unusual flower you might see.
Always go out prepared by having a small first aid kit in your car or better yet carry it along in a back pack. Hiking is a great way to teach your children how to read a map and use a compass. They won?t even realize they are learning something new as they?ll be having so much fun.
Posted in Article on March 26, 2012
It’s no secret in the United States that eating unhealthy is often the easier, cheaper option. One visit to the specialty health food stores would convince anybody that eating healthy isn’t cost-effective. The word “organic” has become synonymous with “expensive” and many people have repeatedly turned back to frozen television dinners after being dismayed at the cost of “eating healthy”.
An idea for those who would like to bring more lean meats and vegetables into their diets is to consider buying food in bulk and storing the excess in a freezer. Many bulk food companies have cropped up in recent years, most requiring a membership to take part in the deals they offer. While paying for a membership to buy food may not seem to be in line with “living on the cheap” if the membership is managed correctly and used to purchase things with the idea of storing them up and eating them over an extended period of time, the decision to partake may end up being cheaper than purchasing processed food.
The way to make bulk food work for you and your family is to appropriately plan for the ways in which you use the food and be able to store it properly. A freezer will go a long way toward keeping bulk food in good condition for a long period of time. If the freezer in your daily refrigerator isn’t large enough to be able to compensate for the amount of food you buy in bulk, purchasing a separate freezer may help you save money in the long run.
Another way to make the most out of bulk food is to consider buying a vacuum sealer. These allow you to remove the air from bags with much higher competency as compared to simply rolling the air out of Ziploc style bags. This is a great way to help save opened containers of both meat and vegetables by protecting them from freezer burn.
Buying food in bulk is a great way to help get healthier items into your kitchen while saving money. There may be a bit of an initial investment in the extra freezer, bulk food store memberships, and vacuum sealers required to make the most of buying your food in bulk. Good luck with eating healthier ?
