Salt is essential for life — you cannot live without it.
Salt has been important to humanity for life on this planet.
Unrefined natural salt is important to many biological processes, including:
• Being a major component of your blood plasma, lymphatic fluid, extra cellular fluid, and even amniotic fluid
• Carrying nutrients into and out of your cells
• Helping the lining of your blood vessels to regulate blood pressure
• Helping you regulate propagation of nerve impulses
• Helping your brain send communication signals to your muscles, so that you can move on demand (sodium-potassium ion exchange)
Having outlined the importance of salt it is important to realize that too much sodium can hurt you, but the same can be said of most things — even oxygen and water.
Indeed, there is far too much sodium in processed foods. But you shouldn't be eating those foods anyway — high sodium is but one of MANY ingredients in processed foods that will ruin your immune system and cut your precious life short.
One of the latest harmful ingredients is methanol. This toxic alcohol poison is typically in nearly all fresh vegetables and fruits but is bound to pectin so it does not typically cause problems. But once they are canned in glass or aluminum the methanol dissociates from the pectin and can elevate to very high levels and contribute to diseases like MS.
Salts of the Earth
As it turns out, salt is a very general term that can mean many things. All salts are NOT equal in terms of origin, chemistry, crystal structure, biological effects — or even flavor!
Chemically speaking, a salt is simply any ionic compound arising from the joining of a positively charged ion and a negatively charged ion, so that the product is electrically neutral.
When people talk about salt, they are usually referring to refined table salt, or sodium chloride. But in fact, most minerals are salts, including magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt) and ammonium nitrate (used in fertilizer).
But with typically edible salts, most people do not realize there are enormous differences between common, refined table salt and natural, unrefined salt.
One is health damaging, and the other is healing.
ALERT — Natural Salt is 85 Percent Sodium Chloride and Processed Salt is 98 Percent
Ordinary table salt undergoes a great deal of processing between the factory and your grocer. It is approximately 97.5 percent sodium chloride and 2.5 percent chemicals such as iodine and moisture absorbents, dried at over 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit. This high heat alters the natural chemical structure of the salt.
By contrast, unrefined salt is 84 percent sodium chloride and 16 percent other naturally occurring minerals, including many trace minerals like silicon, phosphorous and vanadium.
If you want your body to function properly, you need a balanced salt, complete with all-natural elements and free of pollutants. I will speak more about my favorite natural salt a bit later.
The important point is, today's ordinary table salt has nothing in common with natural sea salt.
The Adulteration of Table Salt
What remains after ordinary table salt is "chemically cleaned" is sodium chloride, an unnatural chemical form of salt that your body recognizes as something completely foreign. Therefore, when you add more salt to your already salty Spaghettis, your body receives more salt than it can dispose of.
Typical processed salt has independent crystals that are totally isolated from each other. In order for your body to try to metabolize processed salt, it must sacrifice tremendous amounts of energy.
Inorganic sodium chloride in the form of processed salt can keep you from an ideal fluid balance and can overburden your elimination system.
When your body tries to isolate the excess salt, water molecules must surround the sodium chloride to break them up into sodium and chloride ions before your body can neutralize them. To accomplish this, water is taken from your cells.
This results in a less-than-ideal fluid balance within your cells.
Every gram of excess sodium chloride your body has to neutralize uses up 23 grams of cellular water. Hence, eating too much common processed salt will cause fluid to accumulate in your tissue, which contributes to:
• Unsightly cellulite
• Rheumatism, arthritis and gout
• Kidney and gall bladder stones
Processed salt will also oftentimes contain potentially dangerous preservatives.
Calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, and aluminum hydroxide are often added to improve salt's "pourability." Aluminum is a light alloy that deposits into your brain — a potential cause of Alzheimer's disease.
Current Sodium Recommendations
The American Heart Association has suggested limiting your sodium consumption to fewer than 1,500 mg per day to decrease your risk for high blood pressure, stroke and weight gain.
The CDC reports less than ten percent of adults are meeting this limit, and some studies have suggested many Americans are consuming more than 7,000 mg of salt per day, which is the equivalent of approximately 3 teaspoons of table salt.
The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition considers a product high in sodium if it contains more than 500 milligrams per 100 gram serving. Similarly, it considers a product low in sodium if it contains less than 120 milligrams per 100 grams.
The foods highest in sodium tend to be processed meats, which often contain a whopping 800 mg per 100 gram serving!
It probably makes sense to limit your intake of refined processed salts to these levels. However, if you are healthy your body should be able to easily tolerate much higher levels of unprocessed salts.
The only exception would be for those who have heart failure and are very sensitive to fluid overload. Those with congestive heart failure (CHF) will typically be on a number of different drugs to improve cardiac function.
So those with established CHF should maintain strict sodium restrictions but should also look into the many effective natural options out there like ubiquinol which has been shown to be highly effective in improving those with lowered cardiac ejection fractions.
Why are Processed Foods so Loaded With Sodium?
At one time, salting was one of the few ways people could preserve foods. Salt kills bacteria that can cause food to spoil.
But today, between chemical preservatives and refrigeration, salt is added for other reasons — and it's added to processed foods in HUGE amounts. The reason for this has more to do with the fact that salt is an inexpensive way to improve the taste of overcooked, bland, nutrient-butchered carnage in a can that some people call food.
Salt is used in high amounts in lunchmeats and cheeses to extend shelf life. Sodium also helps bind ingredients together and acts as a stabilizer.
Besides sodium chloride, sodium is also a component of other ingredients you will find on your labels, further driving up your sodium level:
• Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
• Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
• Sodium benzoate
• Sodium nitrate
• Sodium saccharin
Hypertension Is Driven More by Excess SUGAR than Excess Salt
While I certainly agree you should not consume large quantities of refined processed salt, just switching to low-sodium foods — especially those in a box or a can — is not going to get you very far toward your health goals.
There are other factors that control fluid and electrolyte balance, blood pressure, kidney disease, obesity and cardiovascular disease.
For example, one of the greatest revelations of late is the link between fructose consumption and hypertension. Uric acid is a byproduct of fructose metabolism, and increased uric acid levels drive up your blood pressure. The amount of salt people in this country are consuming pales in comparison to the amount of fructose they are eating on a daily basis, yet the AMA issues no warnings about this.
I believe that sugar/fructose consumption is the major driving force behind our ever-increasingly elevated blood pressures.
Can Your Sodium be Too LOW?
Yes it can!
You may not be aware of this, but you have an increased risk for health problems if your sodium is too low (hyponatremia). For example:
• A 2009 study of large-bone fractures in the elderly found the incidence of hyponatremia in patients with fractures was MORE THAN DOUBLE that of non-fracture patients. They postulated the reason for the sodium deficiency might have been the use of selective serotonin receptor inhibitors (SSRIs), a type of antidepressant drugs.
• A 1995 study by the AMA published in the journal Hypertension found low urinary sodium associated with an increased risk of heart attack.
Changes in mood and appetite are among the first noticeable manifestations of sodium deficiency, since salt is a natural antidepressant.
And the preponderance of evidence proves that sodium intake does NOT affect blood pressure unless you are especially sodium-sensitive.
Salt as Nature Intended It: Himalayan Crystal Salt
The more you can move toward a diet of whole foods in their natural state, the healthier you'll be — whether it's veggies, meat, dairy products, or salt. If you are a protein type, you will need more salt than your fellow carbohydrate types.
Given that salt is absolutely essential to good health; I highly recommend switching to my favorite unrefined salt, an all-natural source from the Himalayas. .
This salt is very special — it is completely pure, having spent many thousands of years maturing under extreme tectonic pressure, far away from exposure to impurities, so it isn't polluted with the heavy metals and industrial toxins of today. And it's minimally processed — hand-mined and hand-washed.
Himalayan salt contains 84 trace minerals from our prehistoric seas, and its crystalline structure actually stores vibration energy which is restorative to your body.
The crystal salt from the Himalayas does not burden your body as refined salts do.
It is very difficult for your body to absorb too much crystal salt since there are effective feedback loops that regulate this process. Natural crystal salt always promotes a healthful balance and does not contribute to high blood pressure like refined table salt.
And it's the most delicious salt you'll ever find!
Not only is Himalayan salt nutritionally beneficial and delicious, but it also has several great healing applications when used topically:
• Bath Soak: As a "brine bath," it is stimulating and even moisturizing to your skin, as well as detoxifying. Use a 1 percent concentration, which is equal to your natural body fluids (add about 2.6 pounds of salt to an average tub of water). Soak for 15 to 20 minutes, and do not shower off—just blot with a towel.
• Salt Sole: Sole simply means a supersaturated saltwater solution (about 8 percent salt), and with this you can treat a number of skin conditions, including itching and rashes.
• Sinus Flush: Mix with pure water in a neti pot a 1 percent solution (normal saline) with warm water for a beneficial sinus or allergy treatment; use 1 gram per 100ml (one-fifth teaspoon in 3.34 ounces lukewarm water).
• Eye rinse: The same 1 percent solution rejuvenates tired or irritated eyes.
• Throat gargle: To treat a cold or sore throat, gargle with a 1 percent saltwater solution (but don't swallow).
• * These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition, consult your physician before using this product.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
BURN CALORIES WITH PROPER MENTALITY
D
ear friend,
If you have tried every diet on the planet, every exercise program from the latest fitness guru and repeatedly failed to achieve your weight loss goals you probably need to check if there are certain things you are not doing properly.
Successful weight loss doesn’t just happen. It took more than a few days to reach the point where you are at right now. Give yourself a break and expect it to take awhile before you see measurable results. Take a leap of faith and follow some basic principles.
Begin with your “self-talk.” This is the conversation that runs through your brain continuously. What kind of conversation do you have with your self-talk? What type of negative self-talk has kept you from reaching your goals in the past?
If you had a chance to do it over again, would you change the dialogue? That’s a no-brainer isn’t it? Well, the good news is that you can turn the tide of negative self-talk beginning right now. It’s never too late to begin and you start by reprogramming your self-talk. A good starting point is to begin with positive affirmations. Positive affirmations spoken aloud with authority and belief, positively affect your attitude, focuses your thinking and lead to a course of action that will help you become the person you want to be and have the things that you want to have.
Begin by writing your affirmations on paper. You need to take some time for this exercise. You can begin with something like, “I want to lose 25 pounds before Christmas.” That’s a worthy goal and attainable, but we need to put some work into structuring the affirmation.
First of all, “I want” gives the impression that what you desire is always in the future. In order to re-program your self-talk, you need to trick your mind into believing that you have already achieved success. This is how your subconscious functions.
Your subconscious has no capacity for understanding the concept of time. Everything is in the moment . . . here and now. When you tell your subconscious that you “want” that is exactly what you will get . . . want . . . without ever achieving fulfillment. Unless you change your mental tape recorder, you will achieve exactly what you are telling your subconscious, that you “want to lose 25 pounds.” You will “want to lose 25 pounds” for the rest of your days unless you change your self-talk.
If your weight is 150 pounds and you desire is to weight 125 pounds, then you need to “be” 125 pounds from the moment you make the decision to change your self-talk.
What if you write your affirmation to read something like this: “I am healthy and fit weighing 125 pounds.”
What are you telling your subconscious now? It’s extremely important that you phrase your affirmation as if you have already accomplished what you desire. Work on writing it out until you have it precisely as you wish to become.
It is extremely important that your affirmation is crystal clear because what you affirm is exactly what your subconscious mind will bring you.
You needn’t limit yourself to one affirmation either. Write another one that reflects your new exercise program. “I enjoy my healthy new exercise program,” or, “I love the healthy foods I eat.”
Write and rewrite until you are absolutely certain that you have written your goals “in the here and now” AND represent precisely what you desire. Only then do you begin to speak it aloud and do so several times a day.
Remember to use the present tense. “I acknowledge achievement in all my weight loss goals.” “I have the skill and talent to exercise every day.” “I am a winner.” “I am grateful for all of my accomplishments no matter how small.”
At first you will feel awkward and uncomfortable and you may not feel or believe what you are saying. It doesn’t matter; continue to speak them aloud with as much conviction as you can muster. It’s taken a long time to train your subconscious to use negative self-talk. If you will persevere with speaking your affirmations aloud, firmly and confidently, you will be amazed at how quickly you can turn your thoughts around.
You didn’t hop on a bicycle the first time and just take off down the street. It took practice to train your body to balance on those two wheels. This will take some practice as well. Continue to repeat your affirmations aloud, several times a day for the next 30 days and you will be amazed at how much you change your thinking and attitude.
Let’s investigate how words affect you in your everyday life. Take a trip down memory lane and recall some real life experiences that made you happy, proud, and successful or any combination of the three.
Spend some time recalling how you felt. Maybe you won a spelling bee as a child, or hit a home run. Who was there? This will help you remember that you had those feelings once and you can achieve them again. What words did others use while you were experiencing those feelings of joy and happiness?
Recall those words and put them to work in your daily conversations. They are words that are already proven to have a positive affect on your well-being. Recalling and including them in your day will trigger those feelings again because your subconscious already has an association with those words and their results.
Above all, take action. If you have become a slave of procrastination decide to rid your life of it once and for all. Yes, you can create affirmations to help you there as well. “I have the attitude and skills to take action today.” “I am winning in my life by turning my attitude into action.”
Do nothing and nothing gets done. Do something and many things are placed in motion. Regardless of what you are doing in life, you need to take action. Do something every day to put your plan in motion.
How is your attitude? What are your first thoughts when you awake in the morning? You’ve got quite a lot to choose from. Do you begin the day by dragging out of bed bemoaning the fact that you have to get to work? Or, do you embrace the morning as another great opportunity to do great things? Put the universal law of reciprocity to work in your life every single day. Did you know that as much as ninety nine percent of our conversation is negative? There are some folks who can hardly wait to get their mouths open so they can “one up” another persons current negative situation. Hmmm, think back to that self-talk. If what you hear every day is negative, it’s no wonder your self-talk brings you down and prevents you from being, doing and having everything you desire. Try this exercise. Make a decision today, right now, from this moment to spend the rest of the day contributing to conversation in a positive way.
Impossible, you say? Not so. Say that somebody complains about another rainy day. Your response might be, “yes, isn’t it great, seeing that beautiful rainbow!” Try and create the habit of saying something positive to everyone.
If you are learning to say something positive to everybody about everything every time, you are disciplining your subconscious for positive results in everything that happens to you. This way you will be able to achieve great result. Try this and you will be glad you did. To your good health!
ear friend,
If you have tried every diet on the planet, every exercise program from the latest fitness guru and repeatedly failed to achieve your weight loss goals you probably need to check if there are certain things you are not doing properly.
Successful weight loss doesn’t just happen. It took more than a few days to reach the point where you are at right now. Give yourself a break and expect it to take awhile before you see measurable results. Take a leap of faith and follow some basic principles.
Begin with your “self-talk.” This is the conversation that runs through your brain continuously. What kind of conversation do you have with your self-talk? What type of negative self-talk has kept you from reaching your goals in the past?
If you had a chance to do it over again, would you change the dialogue? That’s a no-brainer isn’t it? Well, the good news is that you can turn the tide of negative self-talk beginning right now. It’s never too late to begin and you start by reprogramming your self-talk. A good starting point is to begin with positive affirmations. Positive affirmations spoken aloud with authority and belief, positively affect your attitude, focuses your thinking and lead to a course of action that will help you become the person you want to be and have the things that you want to have.
Begin by writing your affirmations on paper. You need to take some time for this exercise. You can begin with something like, “I want to lose 25 pounds before Christmas.” That’s a worthy goal and attainable, but we need to put some work into structuring the affirmation.
First of all, “I want” gives the impression that what you desire is always in the future. In order to re-program your self-talk, you need to trick your mind into believing that you have already achieved success. This is how your subconscious functions.
Your subconscious has no capacity for understanding the concept of time. Everything is in the moment . . . here and now. When you tell your subconscious that you “want” that is exactly what you will get . . . want . . . without ever achieving fulfillment. Unless you change your mental tape recorder, you will achieve exactly what you are telling your subconscious, that you “want to lose 25 pounds.” You will “want to lose 25 pounds” for the rest of your days unless you change your self-talk.
If your weight is 150 pounds and you desire is to weight 125 pounds, then you need to “be” 125 pounds from the moment you make the decision to change your self-talk.
What if you write your affirmation to read something like this: “I am healthy and fit weighing 125 pounds.”
What are you telling your subconscious now? It’s extremely important that you phrase your affirmation as if you have already accomplished what you desire. Work on writing it out until you have it precisely as you wish to become.
It is extremely important that your affirmation is crystal clear because what you affirm is exactly what your subconscious mind will bring you.
You needn’t limit yourself to one affirmation either. Write another one that reflects your new exercise program. “I enjoy my healthy new exercise program,” or, “I love the healthy foods I eat.”
Write and rewrite until you are absolutely certain that you have written your goals “in the here and now” AND represent precisely what you desire. Only then do you begin to speak it aloud and do so several times a day.
Remember to use the present tense. “I acknowledge achievement in all my weight loss goals.” “I have the skill and talent to exercise every day.” “I am a winner.” “I am grateful for all of my accomplishments no matter how small.”
At first you will feel awkward and uncomfortable and you may not feel or believe what you are saying. It doesn’t matter; continue to speak them aloud with as much conviction as you can muster. It’s taken a long time to train your subconscious to use negative self-talk. If you will persevere with speaking your affirmations aloud, firmly and confidently, you will be amazed at how quickly you can turn your thoughts around.
You didn’t hop on a bicycle the first time and just take off down the street. It took practice to train your body to balance on those two wheels. This will take some practice as well. Continue to repeat your affirmations aloud, several times a day for the next 30 days and you will be amazed at how much you change your thinking and attitude.
Let’s investigate how words affect you in your everyday life. Take a trip down memory lane and recall some real life experiences that made you happy, proud, and successful or any combination of the three.
Spend some time recalling how you felt. Maybe you won a spelling bee as a child, or hit a home run. Who was there? This will help you remember that you had those feelings once and you can achieve them again. What words did others use while you were experiencing those feelings of joy and happiness?
Recall those words and put them to work in your daily conversations. They are words that are already proven to have a positive affect on your well-being. Recalling and including them in your day will trigger those feelings again because your subconscious already has an association with those words and their results.
Above all, take action. If you have become a slave of procrastination decide to rid your life of it once and for all. Yes, you can create affirmations to help you there as well. “I have the attitude and skills to take action today.” “I am winning in my life by turning my attitude into action.”
Do nothing and nothing gets done. Do something and many things are placed in motion. Regardless of what you are doing in life, you need to take action. Do something every day to put your plan in motion.
How is your attitude? What are your first thoughts when you awake in the morning? You’ve got quite a lot to choose from. Do you begin the day by dragging out of bed bemoaning the fact that you have to get to work? Or, do you embrace the morning as another great opportunity to do great things? Put the universal law of reciprocity to work in your life every single day. Did you know that as much as ninety nine percent of our conversation is negative? There are some folks who can hardly wait to get their mouths open so they can “one up” another persons current negative situation. Hmmm, think back to that self-talk. If what you hear every day is negative, it’s no wonder your self-talk brings you down and prevents you from being, doing and having everything you desire. Try this exercise. Make a decision today, right now, from this moment to spend the rest of the day contributing to conversation in a positive way.
Impossible, you say? Not so. Say that somebody complains about another rainy day. Your response might be, “yes, isn’t it great, seeing that beautiful rainbow!” Try and create the habit of saying something positive to everyone.
If you are learning to say something positive to everybody about everything every time, you are disciplining your subconscious for positive results in everything that happens to you. This way you will be able to achieve great result. Try this and you will be glad you did. To your good health!
BURN CALORIES FOR LIFE TROUGH PROPER ACTIONS
Before we can begin, we need to grasp an understanding of the problem.
Two out of three persons in the world today are overweight. The primary cause is that we eat more and exercise less. There is no doubt that the more advances we make that enhance our lifestyle the heavier we become.
Wait a minute! What about all those low-fat foods that we eat now? How come I reduced fat in my diet but I’m still gaining weight?
It’s a simple answer. A few years ago we all became aware of the detrimental effects of fat in our diet. What did we do? We began to concentrate on lowering cholesterol and taking fat out of our diets.
This is a good thing. However, The American National Center for Health Statistics studied eating habits of 8,260 adult American between 1988 and 1991. Their research showed that Americans had significantly reduced their fat intake but still packed on the pounds.
How did this happen? There is no mystery. In the process of counting fat grams, we stopped counting calories! Many of us bought in to the theory that if its “low-fat” it won’t make us fat. The question now should be, is that correct? This is obviously not.
You can’t forget about counting calories. If you eat more calories than you need the body will store them as fat, it is a simple fact of nature. It doesn’t matter whether the calories are from fat or carbohydrates.
One school of thought believes that eating small amounts of fat can actually keep you from over indulging on total calories. The theory is that dietary fat causes our bodies to produce a hormone that tells the intestines to slow down the emptying process. You feel full and therefore are less likely to overeat.
Adding a little peanut butter to your rice cake may satisfy your hunger for a longer period of time, thus preventing you from eating more than you need.
Here’s more surprising news. Tufts University scientists put 11 middle-aged men and women volunteers on a variety of average, reduced and low-fat diets.
The results? Extremely low-fat diets, which provided only 15 percent fat from calories, (this is a diet near impossible in real life) did have a positive effect on blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
However, a reduced-fat diet (much more realistic) only affected those levels if accompanied by weight loss.
In fact, they concluded, cutting fat without losing weight actually increased triglyceride levels and decreased high-density lipoproteins (HDLS), the “good” cholesterol that helps protect again heart disease.
We can deduce, therefore, while excess fat isn’t healthy, fat is also not necessarily a bad thing. Without some fat in our diet, the body won’t make nerve cells and hormones or absorb some of the fat- soluble vitamins such as Vitamin E.
Okay, so how can you determine your ideal weight? Just how much fat and how many calories should you consume to reach and maintain a healthy weight?
One answer won’t work for everybody. So you need to do some figuring to determine how much fat and how many calories you can have. First, you need to determine your ideal weight. Here is a simple method to determine what that weight should be:
For Women
The ideal weight for a woman who is exactly 5 feet tall is 100 pounds. For every additional inch above 5 feet, add five pounds. If you are shorter than 5 feet tall, subtract five pounds for every inch you measure below 5 feet.
Next, determine whether you have a small, medium or large frame. Using a measuring tape, measure your wrist. If your wrist measures exactly 6 inches, you have a medium frame and the weight number you calculated above, does not need to be adjusted. If your wrist measures less than 6 inches, subtract 10 percent from your ideal weight. If your wrist measures more than 6 inches, add 10 percent to your ideal weight.
For Men
The ideal weight for a man who is exactly 5 feet tall is 106 pounds. For every additional inch above 5 feet, add 6 pounds. To determine whether you have a small, medium or large frame, measure your wrist. If your wrist measures exactly 7 inches, you have a medium frame and you do not need to adjust your ideal weight. If your wrist is smaller than 7 inches, you have a small frame and should subtract 10 percent from your ideal weight. If your wrist is larger than 7 inches, you have a small frame and should add 10 percent to your ideal weight.
Okay, now that you know what your ideal body weight should be, let’s take a look at how many calories your body needs each day. Before we do this however, you need to take into account your level of activity.
If you are totally inactive and usually get no exercise, multiply your adjusted ideal weight by 11. If you get regular exercise two or three times a week, multiply your adjusted ideal weight by 13. If you get regular exercise four to five times a week, multiple your adjusted ideal weight by 15. And finally, if you get regular exercise six to seven times a week, multiply your adjusted ideal weight by 18.
Now that you know your ideal weight and how many calories you need each day you can easily figure out how much fat you can eat. Most nutritionists recommend that you limit daily intake of fat to 30 percent of your total calories. However, if you want to lose weight or have a history of heart disease or cancer, limit your daily fat intake to 20 percent of your total calories.
Let’s take a look at a real life example. If Jane is a 5 foot 4 inch woman with a medium frame her ideal weight is 120 pounds. Jane is trying to lose weight so she needs to keep her fat calories down to about 20 percent.
Jane is exercising two to three times a week so we can multiply her ideal weight by the number that matches her activity level, which is 13. Now we know that Jane needs 1,560 calories each day.
If we take 20 percent of 1,560 (1,560 multiplied by .20) we get 312. Next, translate fat calories into fat grams (this will make it easier for you to read food labels). One gram of fat equals 9 calories. So if we divide 312 by 9 we know that Jane can eat about 35 grams of fat per day.
Because Jane is overweight and trying to lose, her ideal weight and current weight do not match up. Jane needs to adjust her total calorie consumption. In order for her to lose one pound, she needs to eliminate 3,500 calories.
One simple solution is to lose a pound a week. That’s a worthy, healthy goal and we’ll explore methods that will help you achieve that goal in the next article. That is how to burn calories through proper DIETING and EXERCISE.
Two out of three persons in the world today are overweight. The primary cause is that we eat more and exercise less. There is no doubt that the more advances we make that enhance our lifestyle the heavier we become.
Wait a minute! What about all those low-fat foods that we eat now? How come I reduced fat in my diet but I’m still gaining weight?
It’s a simple answer. A few years ago we all became aware of the detrimental effects of fat in our diet. What did we do? We began to concentrate on lowering cholesterol and taking fat out of our diets.
This is a good thing. However, The American National Center for Health Statistics studied eating habits of 8,260 adult American between 1988 and 1991. Their research showed that Americans had significantly reduced their fat intake but still packed on the pounds.
How did this happen? There is no mystery. In the process of counting fat grams, we stopped counting calories! Many of us bought in to the theory that if its “low-fat” it won’t make us fat. The question now should be, is that correct? This is obviously not.
You can’t forget about counting calories. If you eat more calories than you need the body will store them as fat, it is a simple fact of nature. It doesn’t matter whether the calories are from fat or carbohydrates.
One school of thought believes that eating small amounts of fat can actually keep you from over indulging on total calories. The theory is that dietary fat causes our bodies to produce a hormone that tells the intestines to slow down the emptying process. You feel full and therefore are less likely to overeat.
Adding a little peanut butter to your rice cake may satisfy your hunger for a longer period of time, thus preventing you from eating more than you need.
Here’s more surprising news. Tufts University scientists put 11 middle-aged men and women volunteers on a variety of average, reduced and low-fat diets.
The results? Extremely low-fat diets, which provided only 15 percent fat from calories, (this is a diet near impossible in real life) did have a positive effect on blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
However, a reduced-fat diet (much more realistic) only affected those levels if accompanied by weight loss.
In fact, they concluded, cutting fat without losing weight actually increased triglyceride levels and decreased high-density lipoproteins (HDLS), the “good” cholesterol that helps protect again heart disease.
We can deduce, therefore, while excess fat isn’t healthy, fat is also not necessarily a bad thing. Without some fat in our diet, the body won’t make nerve cells and hormones or absorb some of the fat- soluble vitamins such as Vitamin E.
Okay, so how can you determine your ideal weight? Just how much fat and how many calories should you consume to reach and maintain a healthy weight?
One answer won’t work for everybody. So you need to do some figuring to determine how much fat and how many calories you can have. First, you need to determine your ideal weight. Here is a simple method to determine what that weight should be:
For Women
The ideal weight for a woman who is exactly 5 feet tall is 100 pounds. For every additional inch above 5 feet, add five pounds. If you are shorter than 5 feet tall, subtract five pounds for every inch you measure below 5 feet.
Next, determine whether you have a small, medium or large frame. Using a measuring tape, measure your wrist. If your wrist measures exactly 6 inches, you have a medium frame and the weight number you calculated above, does not need to be adjusted. If your wrist measures less than 6 inches, subtract 10 percent from your ideal weight. If your wrist measures more than 6 inches, add 10 percent to your ideal weight.
For Men
The ideal weight for a man who is exactly 5 feet tall is 106 pounds. For every additional inch above 5 feet, add 6 pounds. To determine whether you have a small, medium or large frame, measure your wrist. If your wrist measures exactly 7 inches, you have a medium frame and you do not need to adjust your ideal weight. If your wrist is smaller than 7 inches, you have a small frame and should subtract 10 percent from your ideal weight. If your wrist is larger than 7 inches, you have a small frame and should add 10 percent to your ideal weight.
Okay, now that you know what your ideal body weight should be, let’s take a look at how many calories your body needs each day. Before we do this however, you need to take into account your level of activity.
If you are totally inactive and usually get no exercise, multiply your adjusted ideal weight by 11. If you get regular exercise two or three times a week, multiply your adjusted ideal weight by 13. If you get regular exercise four to five times a week, multiple your adjusted ideal weight by 15. And finally, if you get regular exercise six to seven times a week, multiply your adjusted ideal weight by 18.
Now that you know your ideal weight and how many calories you need each day you can easily figure out how much fat you can eat. Most nutritionists recommend that you limit daily intake of fat to 30 percent of your total calories. However, if you want to lose weight or have a history of heart disease or cancer, limit your daily fat intake to 20 percent of your total calories.
Let’s take a look at a real life example. If Jane is a 5 foot 4 inch woman with a medium frame her ideal weight is 120 pounds. Jane is trying to lose weight so she needs to keep her fat calories down to about 20 percent.
Jane is exercising two to three times a week so we can multiply her ideal weight by the number that matches her activity level, which is 13. Now we know that Jane needs 1,560 calories each day.
If we take 20 percent of 1,560 (1,560 multiplied by .20) we get 312. Next, translate fat calories into fat grams (this will make it easier for you to read food labels). One gram of fat equals 9 calories. So if we divide 312 by 9 we know that Jane can eat about 35 grams of fat per day.
Because Jane is overweight and trying to lose, her ideal weight and current weight do not match up. Jane needs to adjust her total calorie consumption. In order for her to lose one pound, she needs to eliminate 3,500 calories.
One simple solution is to lose a pound a week. That’s a worthy, healthy goal and we’ll explore methods that will help you achieve that goal in the next article. That is how to burn calories through proper DIETING and EXERCISE.
WAYS TO BURN CALLORIES TROUGH PROPER DIETING
First and foremost, to achieve maximum result you need to avoid FAD. If you don’t believe me, ask your doctor about these: negative calorie diets, extremely low calorie diets, low carb diets, and any other type of “fad” diet that is unbalanced.
Changing diet should be a matter of a healthier lifestyle. Learn all you can about different foods and nutrition. The more you know about them, the better for you. It is pertinent you put the following into consideration;
1. Substitute fruit purees for butter or margarine. They are easy to prepare in a food processor and will significantly reduce calories and fat.
2. Cheese is good for you, but the fat is not. Try this: Zap cheese in the microwave and drain off grease or choose lower fat options.
3. Exercising before you eat just makes you hungrier. Exercise AFTER eating when the body has to work harder to digest food.
4. Don’t eat while watching television. You can become so engrossed in your program, that don’t even realize how much you are eating.
5. Too many people skip breakfast. Eat in the morning when the body burns more calories.
6. Water mixed with fructose suppresses appetite better than glucose with water or diet drinks. Drink a glass of orange juice one half to one hour before a meal.
7. Avoid trans fatty acids as much as possible. Use olive or canola oil when cooking. Avoid products that list partially hydrogenated oils, since these are trans fatty acids.
8. Switch from whole to skim milk. All the nutrients are there without the fat. Okay, at least cut back to low fat (1%)!
9. Limit yourself to just four egg yolks a week.
10. Trim all fat from meats before cooking. You’ll be amazed at how much you reduce your fat intake if you take this one small step.
11. Eliminate fried foods. Do we need to say why?
12. Cream sauces like alfredo and hollandaise are loaded with fat. Use tomato-based sauces instead of cream.
13. Use lemon juice or low sodium soy sauce for flavor.
14. Don’t skip meals. When you do, you eat more at your next meal and usually eat the wrong foods.
15. Read labels – check fat, sugar and salt content.
16. Stop buying on impulse. Never shop for groceries without a list.
17. Avoid shopping when you are hungry – eat first!
18. Shop for groceries once a week and only buy from your prepared list.
19. Head directly to the fruit and vegetable aisles when you enter the grocery store. Fill up your basket in these aisles and you’ll be less likely to buy binge food.
20. If you have a local “farmers market” where you can buy your fruits and veggies off the truck, by all means do so. They’ll be fresher, healthier, and tastier.
21. Make sure you buy everything you need for your weekly meal planning. Returning to the grocery store numerous times increases the risk of buying what you shouldn’t. The grocery stores know their business very well and present items that are hard to resist.
22. Vary your foods – introduce something new each week. Menu planning can become boring when you eat the same things. That boredom translates into over eating. Try new healthy recipes each week.
23. Stay away from processed foods as much as possible. Yes, they are very convenient. They are also loaded with fat and/or sugar, not to mention the chemicals.
24. The ads are so compelling. Cut fast food from your diet!
25. Eat more fish but avoid breading or batters. Fish oil is good for you.
26. Eat more vegetables. Try mixing and matching fresh vegetables for variety.
27. Steam your veggies instead of boiling them. They’ll taste better and you’ll retain more of their nutritional value.
28. Use fat free or low fat salad dressings or make your own using lemon juice, spices and a tiny amount of olive oil.
29. Exchange water for soft drinks – yes, even diet drinks!
30. Slim down with casseroles – just use lean meat and veggies.
31. Go ahead and snack, just snack on good stuff, like raisins, nuts veggies and dried fruit.
32. Never eat while you are standing.
33. Don’t sample when you are cooking. A taste here, a little bite there and before you know it you’ve eaten an entire portions without sitting down at the table!
34. Don’t give up potatoes. A baked potato has 0 grams of fat and only 160 calories. Just don’t eat fries that weigh in at 13 fat grams and 480 calories!
35. Stay away from pastries. They are loaded with fat and sugar.
36. Eat more salads but don’t let salad become boring. Add different ingredients. Throw in a few raisins, nuts, and canned beans like garbanzos and vary your dressings. Leave out the mayo!
37. Limit your intake of meat to just two or three meat choices per week and select more “white” meats than red.
38. You don’t have to give up dessert, just rearrange it. Try mixing fresh fruits with low fat yogurt. Strawberries with banana yogurt are delicious!
39. Add nuts to your yogurt and salads. Chopped nuts such as almonds, pistachios, walnuts, or peanuts make a great alternative to “breaded” style garnishes like croutons and they are much healthier.
40. Replace white bread with whole grain bread. If you can find bread that still contains the “wheat germ,” buy it!
41. When baking, applesauce makes a great substitute for shortening.
42. Prepare foods in different ways. Instead of traditional frying, try stir-fry and use a low fat spray or non-stick pan.
43. Reduce portions at mealtimes. We live in a “jumbo size” world. There’s no reason why the portions we consumer need to be super sized as well.
44. Measure portions one time to get an idea of what a portion of any given food should be. Do it once for each food that you commonly eat. Eventually, you will be able to “eyeball” a proper serving.
45. Keep a food diary of everything you eat. This is the first step to acquiring a new, healthier life style.
46. Wait no more than five hours between meals or snacks. This will help to stabilize your metabolism.
47. Specific food combinations can help to burn calories by enhancing your metabolism. Eat carbohydrates that are rich in fiber such as fruits and vegetables. They take longer to digest and you will feel “fuller” for longer periods of time.
48. Use fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables. Canned veggies are okay in a pinch, but generally include more salt than you need. By the time they are canned and processed, they have lost much of their nutritive value.
49. Eat more yogurts. Yogurt is a protein as well as a carbohydrate therefore giving you the small amount of energy needed to burn the protein.
50. Add more tuna to your diet. You can grill it, broil it, steam it and poach it, all without any added fat. Just be aware that tuna may contain trace amounts of mercury, so limit the amount you eat each week, especially if you are pregnant.
51. Try different varieties of beans rather than sticking to the same old type you are accustomed to. Beans are a fantastic great source of energy, protein, minerals, and fiber.
52. Beware of misleading claims. Reduced fat merely means that the item has 25% less fat. Use common sense. If something “normally” contains 300 fat grams, then reduced fat means it still has over 200 grams of fat!
53. Salads to avoid are tuna, chicken and egg. It isn’t the meat or egg that’s the problem. It’s the mayonnaise. Try making them with plain yogurt and spices to dress it up and you’ll have a healthy combination.
54. If you absolutely must have your fatty salad dressing, try this. Have the dressing on the side and dip your fork into the dressing before you spear the salad ingredient. You’ll have your taste but without dredging your salad in fat.
55. Love avocado? Go ahead and indulge a quarter cup but don’t mix it with sour cream!
56. Roasted, flavored almonds make a great snack.
57. Make your own potato chips. It’s simple. Thinly slice a large baking potato and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet sprayed with low fat aerosol spray. Spray the slices lightly as well. Sprinkle with paprika and any other spice of your choice. Bake in a 400 degree oven for thirty minutes making sure to turn once. ‘Voila! Your own home baked potato chips and a great snack.
58. Switch from cream of wheat cereal to oatmeal. The whole grain in oatmeal is much better for you and won’t leave you hungry an hour later like the cream of wheat.
59. If you plan on eating out at a buffet, eat something before you go. Don’t skip a meal and plan on chowing down at the buffet.
60. Grab a table as far from the buffet as possible. You’ll lessen the temptation to graze or go back for seconds.
61. Go through the buffet line one time only.
62. Load up at the salad bar. Gelatin or plan green salads should be abundant.
63. Pile on the grilled food looking for baked roasted or grilled entrees like fish or lean roast beef.
64. Avoid the breaded fish or fried chicken.
65. Select soups that you can see through. If you can see through them, they are broths with less fat and calories.
66. Eat slowly. Savor each bite. Take your time and enjoy eating. If you eat too fast, your stomach will be full long before the message to stop chowing down reaches your brain.
67. Ask yourself if you really tasted and enjoyed that last bite of food. If your answer is no, it’s time to slow down.
68. To help downsize your portions, use a smaller plate. Instead of a dinner plate, use a salad plate for your entire meal.
69. When eating in a restaurant ask for a child’s portion or ask to have the entrée split and have the second half packaged as takeout.
70. As an assist to making certain you are getting the right nutrition from your vegetables, alternate the colors from day to day. One day eat fresh yellow and orange vegetables like squash, pumpkin, and carrots then switch to green the next day, like spinach, or dark leafy lettuces.
71. Pass up peanuts for snacking. Two ounces of salted peanuts has 328 calories. Nibble on pretzels instead. 20 of the small ones have as little as 80 calories and most are fat free.
72. Skip fried shrimp. A three ounce serving has 206 calories while the same sizes boiled are only 84 calories.
73. If you love pie, stick with the fruit pies. Pumpkin and other fruit pies are lower in calories. Pecan pie has about 430 calories while the same slice of pumpkin pie is only 240. You can drop another 100 calories if you don’t eat the crust!
74. Try Canadian bacon instead of regular bacon. One ounce of regular bacon is about four medium cooked slices and carries 163 calories. A one ounce slice of Canadian bacon is much leaner and only has about 57 calories.
75. Avoid the high fat temptations when dining out. Call ahead. Many high quality restaurants will accommodate your needs if you give them sufficient time beforehand. Explain that you are on a low fat diet and ask if they can prepare your food without frying.
76. If you frequent a specific restaurant, ask to take a menu home so you can study what they offer and learn how to plan your meals out.
77. Steer Clear of fast food restaurants. Most of their food is 40 to 50 percent fat. Many are finally wising up, however, and you can get salads, plain hamburgers or grilled chicken. You can also ask for the restaurant’s nutritional information. Many now offer that.
78. Stay away from the appetizers unless you request crackers, pretzels or fresh vegetables like carrots or celery with a honey-mustard dressing (not ranch).
79. Put your waiter through his or her paces. Ask lots of questions and don’t stop until you are satisfied. How is the fish grilled? If it is in butter, ask for it dry. If a fried entrée is offered on the menu, ask if the chef can bake it, broil it, grill it or steam it to cut down on the fat. Make sure they follow up. It’s your meal and your money paying for it and within reason you should be able to get it the way you want it.
80. If a restaurant won’t split a portion in half for you, preparing half of it “to go,” request a doggie bag or box be delivered with your meal and split it yourself immediately before you begin to eat.
81. You can also carry a “survival kit.” Use a small plastic sandwich bag and carry packets of low fat dressings, herbal teas, spices or other essentials that may not be readily available at a restaurant.
82. Split a meal with a friend. Order soup or salad a’ la carte with one entrée and ask the waiter for an extra plate. It will save you money AND reduce the fat in each meal.
83. Visit pizzerias that offer salads and pizza by the slice. Don’t order pizza with meat. Stick with vegetable toppings and, if possible, wheat crust. Some pizza places do offer that option.
84. Eliminate tartar sauce. If you order a fish fillet sandwich ask that the tartar sauce be left off the bun.
85. Bake with cocoa instead of chocolate. For each ounce of unsweetened chocolate called for in a recipe, substitute 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder.
86. Use evaporated skim milk for sauces and soups. It has the texture and the flavor of cream but without the fat. Each cup contains 80 grams less of fat and 600 few calories than heavy cream.
87. Plain nonfat or low fat yogurt is a great replacement for sour cream. Use it to make salad dressings. It’s also good as an add on to breakfast cereals and desserts.
88. Low fat foods may seem less flavorful when you first try them because fat adds flavor to some foods and you are used to that. Add zip with lots of herbs and spices like basil, garlic, ginger, onion powder tarragon and oregano. Vary the spices and come up with your own combinations.
89. Yogurt can help you lose weight while protecting muscle. A recent study of overweight people who at three servings of yogurt daily for 12 weeks lost 22% more weight, 61% more body fat and 81%more abdominal fat than people who ate a similar number of calories but no dairy products.
90. Spicy foods can curb your appetite as evidenced in a recent study. People who ate a sauce containing capsaicin (the compound that makes hot pepper spicy) consumed an average of 200 fewer calories over the next three hours than those who didn’t eat the sauce. Consider eating more spicy foods.
91. A 12 ounce cola has 150 calories, two tablespoons of full fat salad dressing 150, a glazed doughnut 250 and a 4 ounce bagel, 300. Just eliminating these items will help you to lose weight.
92. Another recent study shows that calcium from diary foods is more effective for weight loss than supplements. Why? Food is a complex mixture of known and unknown components that can’t be reproduced in a nutritional supplement. Dairy contains calcium and a host of other biologically active components including the amino acid Lucien. Recent research reveals that Lucien may increase the ability of muscle to use fat. Drink low-fat or skim milk before a meal. Studies show that getting a liquid form of dairy before eating helps you feel fuller sooner at that meal and eat less at the next meal. If you are lactose intolerant, try yogurt with live culture (it has very little lactose) or take a lactose supplement when consuming dairy.
93. Eat fish at least twice a week. The omega 3 fatty acids in fish have been shown to reduce heart attack and stroke risk in addition to helping you maintain a nutritional diet.
94. Sometimes you can go with fast food. Burger Kings BI Veggie Burger with reduced fat mayonnaise contains 340 calories and 2 grams of saturated fat. It’s better than just about any burger at any other food chain.
95. McDonald’s Fruit and Yogurt Parfait is low fat vanilla yogurt layered with berries and topped with granola. It’s a nutrient rich bargain at only 380 calories.
96. Subway’s 7 subs with 6 grams of fat or less include ham, roast beef, chicken and turkey and range from 200 to 300 calories for a six inch sub.
97. Wendy’s Mandarin Chicken Garden Sensation Salad is a creative salad alternative of mixed greens, chicken and mandarin orange sections, roasted almonds and a half packet of Oriental sesame dressing is a great alternative at just 470 calories.
98. A veggie sandwich may not always be the ideal choice. The two ounces of cheese added to these popular lunchtime meals contain three quarters of a full day’s allowance for saturated fat. Tuna salad (because of the mayonnaise), has 720 calories and chicken salad is 550 calories. Stick with turkey, roast beef, chick breast or veggie sandwich without the cheese.
99. All salads are not created equal. A taco salad is served in a fried taco shell filled with ground beef, cheese, sour cream and guacamole. It contains 1,100 calories a full day’s quota of saturated fat!
100. Not only is a single order of Fettuccine Alfredo an artery cloggier, it also weighs in at a whopping 1,500 calories! When eating Italian food, opt for pasta topped with marinara or meat sauce (skip the meatballs), red or white clam sauce or chicken Marsala. The application of the above points will ensure you burn those calories. In the next article, we will discuss in details how you can burn calories through proper exercise.
Changing diet should be a matter of a healthier lifestyle. Learn all you can about different foods and nutrition. The more you know about them, the better for you. It is pertinent you put the following into consideration;
1. Substitute fruit purees for butter or margarine. They are easy to prepare in a food processor and will significantly reduce calories and fat.
2. Cheese is good for you, but the fat is not. Try this: Zap cheese in the microwave and drain off grease or choose lower fat options.
3. Exercising before you eat just makes you hungrier. Exercise AFTER eating when the body has to work harder to digest food.
4. Don’t eat while watching television. You can become so engrossed in your program, that don’t even realize how much you are eating.
5. Too many people skip breakfast. Eat in the morning when the body burns more calories.
6. Water mixed with fructose suppresses appetite better than glucose with water or diet drinks. Drink a glass of orange juice one half to one hour before a meal.
7. Avoid trans fatty acids as much as possible. Use olive or canola oil when cooking. Avoid products that list partially hydrogenated oils, since these are trans fatty acids.
8. Switch from whole to skim milk. All the nutrients are there without the fat. Okay, at least cut back to low fat (1%)!
9. Limit yourself to just four egg yolks a week.
10. Trim all fat from meats before cooking. You’ll be amazed at how much you reduce your fat intake if you take this one small step.
11. Eliminate fried foods. Do we need to say why?
12. Cream sauces like alfredo and hollandaise are loaded with fat. Use tomato-based sauces instead of cream.
13. Use lemon juice or low sodium soy sauce for flavor.
14. Don’t skip meals. When you do, you eat more at your next meal and usually eat the wrong foods.
15. Read labels – check fat, sugar and salt content.
16. Stop buying on impulse. Never shop for groceries without a list.
17. Avoid shopping when you are hungry – eat first!
18. Shop for groceries once a week and only buy from your prepared list.
19. Head directly to the fruit and vegetable aisles when you enter the grocery store. Fill up your basket in these aisles and you’ll be less likely to buy binge food.
20. If you have a local “farmers market” where you can buy your fruits and veggies off the truck, by all means do so. They’ll be fresher, healthier, and tastier.
21. Make sure you buy everything you need for your weekly meal planning. Returning to the grocery store numerous times increases the risk of buying what you shouldn’t. The grocery stores know their business very well and present items that are hard to resist.
22. Vary your foods – introduce something new each week. Menu planning can become boring when you eat the same things. That boredom translates into over eating. Try new healthy recipes each week.
23. Stay away from processed foods as much as possible. Yes, they are very convenient. They are also loaded with fat and/or sugar, not to mention the chemicals.
24. The ads are so compelling. Cut fast food from your diet!
25. Eat more fish but avoid breading or batters. Fish oil is good for you.
26. Eat more vegetables. Try mixing and matching fresh vegetables for variety.
27. Steam your veggies instead of boiling them. They’ll taste better and you’ll retain more of their nutritional value.
28. Use fat free or low fat salad dressings or make your own using lemon juice, spices and a tiny amount of olive oil.
29. Exchange water for soft drinks – yes, even diet drinks!
30. Slim down with casseroles – just use lean meat and veggies.
31. Go ahead and snack, just snack on good stuff, like raisins, nuts veggies and dried fruit.
32. Never eat while you are standing.
33. Don’t sample when you are cooking. A taste here, a little bite there and before you know it you’ve eaten an entire portions without sitting down at the table!
34. Don’t give up potatoes. A baked potato has 0 grams of fat and only 160 calories. Just don’t eat fries that weigh in at 13 fat grams and 480 calories!
35. Stay away from pastries. They are loaded with fat and sugar.
36. Eat more salads but don’t let salad become boring. Add different ingredients. Throw in a few raisins, nuts, and canned beans like garbanzos and vary your dressings. Leave out the mayo!
37. Limit your intake of meat to just two or three meat choices per week and select more “white” meats than red.
38. You don’t have to give up dessert, just rearrange it. Try mixing fresh fruits with low fat yogurt. Strawberries with banana yogurt are delicious!
39. Add nuts to your yogurt and salads. Chopped nuts such as almonds, pistachios, walnuts, or peanuts make a great alternative to “breaded” style garnishes like croutons and they are much healthier.
40. Replace white bread with whole grain bread. If you can find bread that still contains the “wheat germ,” buy it!
41. When baking, applesauce makes a great substitute for shortening.
42. Prepare foods in different ways. Instead of traditional frying, try stir-fry and use a low fat spray or non-stick pan.
43. Reduce portions at mealtimes. We live in a “jumbo size” world. There’s no reason why the portions we consumer need to be super sized as well.
44. Measure portions one time to get an idea of what a portion of any given food should be. Do it once for each food that you commonly eat. Eventually, you will be able to “eyeball” a proper serving.
45. Keep a food diary of everything you eat. This is the first step to acquiring a new, healthier life style.
46. Wait no more than five hours between meals or snacks. This will help to stabilize your metabolism.
47. Specific food combinations can help to burn calories by enhancing your metabolism. Eat carbohydrates that are rich in fiber such as fruits and vegetables. They take longer to digest and you will feel “fuller” for longer periods of time.
48. Use fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables. Canned veggies are okay in a pinch, but generally include more salt than you need. By the time they are canned and processed, they have lost much of their nutritive value.
49. Eat more yogurts. Yogurt is a protein as well as a carbohydrate therefore giving you the small amount of energy needed to burn the protein.
50. Add more tuna to your diet. You can grill it, broil it, steam it and poach it, all without any added fat. Just be aware that tuna may contain trace amounts of mercury, so limit the amount you eat each week, especially if you are pregnant.
51. Try different varieties of beans rather than sticking to the same old type you are accustomed to. Beans are a fantastic great source of energy, protein, minerals, and fiber.
52. Beware of misleading claims. Reduced fat merely means that the item has 25% less fat. Use common sense. If something “normally” contains 300 fat grams, then reduced fat means it still has over 200 grams of fat!
53. Salads to avoid are tuna, chicken and egg. It isn’t the meat or egg that’s the problem. It’s the mayonnaise. Try making them with plain yogurt and spices to dress it up and you’ll have a healthy combination.
54. If you absolutely must have your fatty salad dressing, try this. Have the dressing on the side and dip your fork into the dressing before you spear the salad ingredient. You’ll have your taste but without dredging your salad in fat.
55. Love avocado? Go ahead and indulge a quarter cup but don’t mix it with sour cream!
56. Roasted, flavored almonds make a great snack.
57. Make your own potato chips. It’s simple. Thinly slice a large baking potato and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet sprayed with low fat aerosol spray. Spray the slices lightly as well. Sprinkle with paprika and any other spice of your choice. Bake in a 400 degree oven for thirty minutes making sure to turn once. ‘Voila! Your own home baked potato chips and a great snack.
58. Switch from cream of wheat cereal to oatmeal. The whole grain in oatmeal is much better for you and won’t leave you hungry an hour later like the cream of wheat.
59. If you plan on eating out at a buffet, eat something before you go. Don’t skip a meal and plan on chowing down at the buffet.
60. Grab a table as far from the buffet as possible. You’ll lessen the temptation to graze or go back for seconds.
61. Go through the buffet line one time only.
62. Load up at the salad bar. Gelatin or plan green salads should be abundant.
63. Pile on the grilled food looking for baked roasted or grilled entrees like fish or lean roast beef.
64. Avoid the breaded fish or fried chicken.
65. Select soups that you can see through. If you can see through them, they are broths with less fat and calories.
66. Eat slowly. Savor each bite. Take your time and enjoy eating. If you eat too fast, your stomach will be full long before the message to stop chowing down reaches your brain.
67. Ask yourself if you really tasted and enjoyed that last bite of food. If your answer is no, it’s time to slow down.
68. To help downsize your portions, use a smaller plate. Instead of a dinner plate, use a salad plate for your entire meal.
69. When eating in a restaurant ask for a child’s portion or ask to have the entrée split and have the second half packaged as takeout.
70. As an assist to making certain you are getting the right nutrition from your vegetables, alternate the colors from day to day. One day eat fresh yellow and orange vegetables like squash, pumpkin, and carrots then switch to green the next day, like spinach, or dark leafy lettuces.
71. Pass up peanuts for snacking. Two ounces of salted peanuts has 328 calories. Nibble on pretzels instead. 20 of the small ones have as little as 80 calories and most are fat free.
72. Skip fried shrimp. A three ounce serving has 206 calories while the same sizes boiled are only 84 calories.
73. If you love pie, stick with the fruit pies. Pumpkin and other fruit pies are lower in calories. Pecan pie has about 430 calories while the same slice of pumpkin pie is only 240. You can drop another 100 calories if you don’t eat the crust!
74. Try Canadian bacon instead of regular bacon. One ounce of regular bacon is about four medium cooked slices and carries 163 calories. A one ounce slice of Canadian bacon is much leaner and only has about 57 calories.
75. Avoid the high fat temptations when dining out. Call ahead. Many high quality restaurants will accommodate your needs if you give them sufficient time beforehand. Explain that you are on a low fat diet and ask if they can prepare your food without frying.
76. If you frequent a specific restaurant, ask to take a menu home so you can study what they offer and learn how to plan your meals out.
77. Steer Clear of fast food restaurants. Most of their food is 40 to 50 percent fat. Many are finally wising up, however, and you can get salads, plain hamburgers or grilled chicken. You can also ask for the restaurant’s nutritional information. Many now offer that.
78. Stay away from the appetizers unless you request crackers, pretzels or fresh vegetables like carrots or celery with a honey-mustard dressing (not ranch).
79. Put your waiter through his or her paces. Ask lots of questions and don’t stop until you are satisfied. How is the fish grilled? If it is in butter, ask for it dry. If a fried entrée is offered on the menu, ask if the chef can bake it, broil it, grill it or steam it to cut down on the fat. Make sure they follow up. It’s your meal and your money paying for it and within reason you should be able to get it the way you want it.
80. If a restaurant won’t split a portion in half for you, preparing half of it “to go,” request a doggie bag or box be delivered with your meal and split it yourself immediately before you begin to eat.
81. You can also carry a “survival kit.” Use a small plastic sandwich bag and carry packets of low fat dressings, herbal teas, spices or other essentials that may not be readily available at a restaurant.
82. Split a meal with a friend. Order soup or salad a’ la carte with one entrée and ask the waiter for an extra plate. It will save you money AND reduce the fat in each meal.
83. Visit pizzerias that offer salads and pizza by the slice. Don’t order pizza with meat. Stick with vegetable toppings and, if possible, wheat crust. Some pizza places do offer that option.
84. Eliminate tartar sauce. If you order a fish fillet sandwich ask that the tartar sauce be left off the bun.
85. Bake with cocoa instead of chocolate. For each ounce of unsweetened chocolate called for in a recipe, substitute 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder.
86. Use evaporated skim milk for sauces and soups. It has the texture and the flavor of cream but without the fat. Each cup contains 80 grams less of fat and 600 few calories than heavy cream.
87. Plain nonfat or low fat yogurt is a great replacement for sour cream. Use it to make salad dressings. It’s also good as an add on to breakfast cereals and desserts.
88. Low fat foods may seem less flavorful when you first try them because fat adds flavor to some foods and you are used to that. Add zip with lots of herbs and spices like basil, garlic, ginger, onion powder tarragon and oregano. Vary the spices and come up with your own combinations.
89. Yogurt can help you lose weight while protecting muscle. A recent study of overweight people who at three servings of yogurt daily for 12 weeks lost 22% more weight, 61% more body fat and 81%more abdominal fat than people who ate a similar number of calories but no dairy products.
90. Spicy foods can curb your appetite as evidenced in a recent study. People who ate a sauce containing capsaicin (the compound that makes hot pepper spicy) consumed an average of 200 fewer calories over the next three hours than those who didn’t eat the sauce. Consider eating more spicy foods.
91. A 12 ounce cola has 150 calories, two tablespoons of full fat salad dressing 150, a glazed doughnut 250 and a 4 ounce bagel, 300. Just eliminating these items will help you to lose weight.
92. Another recent study shows that calcium from diary foods is more effective for weight loss than supplements. Why? Food is a complex mixture of known and unknown components that can’t be reproduced in a nutritional supplement. Dairy contains calcium and a host of other biologically active components including the amino acid Lucien. Recent research reveals that Lucien may increase the ability of muscle to use fat. Drink low-fat or skim milk before a meal. Studies show that getting a liquid form of dairy before eating helps you feel fuller sooner at that meal and eat less at the next meal. If you are lactose intolerant, try yogurt with live culture (it has very little lactose) or take a lactose supplement when consuming dairy.
93. Eat fish at least twice a week. The omega 3 fatty acids in fish have been shown to reduce heart attack and stroke risk in addition to helping you maintain a nutritional diet.
94. Sometimes you can go with fast food. Burger Kings BI Veggie Burger with reduced fat mayonnaise contains 340 calories and 2 grams of saturated fat. It’s better than just about any burger at any other food chain.
95. McDonald’s Fruit and Yogurt Parfait is low fat vanilla yogurt layered with berries and topped with granola. It’s a nutrient rich bargain at only 380 calories.
96. Subway’s 7 subs with 6 grams of fat or less include ham, roast beef, chicken and turkey and range from 200 to 300 calories for a six inch sub.
97. Wendy’s Mandarin Chicken Garden Sensation Salad is a creative salad alternative of mixed greens, chicken and mandarin orange sections, roasted almonds and a half packet of Oriental sesame dressing is a great alternative at just 470 calories.
98. A veggie sandwich may not always be the ideal choice. The two ounces of cheese added to these popular lunchtime meals contain three quarters of a full day’s allowance for saturated fat. Tuna salad (because of the mayonnaise), has 720 calories and chicken salad is 550 calories. Stick with turkey, roast beef, chick breast or veggie sandwich without the cheese.
99. All salads are not created equal. A taco salad is served in a fried taco shell filled with ground beef, cheese, sour cream and guacamole. It contains 1,100 calories a full day’s quota of saturated fat!
100. Not only is a single order of Fettuccine Alfredo an artery cloggier, it also weighs in at a whopping 1,500 calories! When eating Italian food, opt for pasta topped with marinara or meat sauce (skip the meatballs), red or white clam sauce or chicken Marsala. The application of the above points will ensure you burn those calories. In the next article, we will discuss in details how you can burn calories through proper exercise.
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