Ready to get fit after the birth of your new baby? Jamie Eason is here to help. Check out her upcoming 12-week post-pregnancy plan and learn how you can achieve the best shape of your life!
Chromium is a mineral our bodies use in small amounts for normal body functions, such as digesting food. It is known to enhance the action of insulin. Chromium is found in meat, whole-grain products, some fruits, vegetables & spices.
Several studies have now demonstrated that chromium supplements enhance the metabolic action of insulin and lower some of the risk factors for cardiovascular disease, particularly in overweight individuals. Chromium picolinate, specifically has been shown to reduce insulin resistance and help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease & type 2 diabetes. Supplements containing 200 to 1000 mcg chromium picolinate a day have been found to improve blood glucose control.
In another study published in May 2015, they found that a caffeine-based CBA/Chromium III formulation curbs the adverse effect of high-fat diet on body weight and insulin action in mice. Data suggests that this formulation could serve as a promising alimentary supplement to facilitate weight control in humans.
Caution needs to be taken into account, as some other evidence suggests there are no adverse affects to taking Chromium. The jury is still out, as various other studies show no effect of Chromium with people who are NOT diabetic or insulin resistant.
As always, check with your health professional before taking supplements.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15208835
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18388893
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Chromium-HealthProfessional/
Creatine supplements are used by athletes, bodybuilders, wrestlers, sprinters & other who just want to gain muscle mass. The body produces some of the creatine it uses, other sources come from protein rich foods such as meat or fish.
Creatine has the ability to increase muscle stores of PCr (phosphocreaine), potentially increasing the muscles ability to resynthesize the ATP from ADP to meet increased energy demands. Did you just say “What the?”
Confused???? If so watch this great video I recently found on Youtube How does Creatine work?
Extensive research has shown that oral creatine supplementation at a rate of 5 – 20 grams per day appears to be very safe & largely devoid of adverse side effects, while still being effective in improving the physiological response to resistance exercise, increasing the maximal force production of muscles.
A supplementation of creatine is not recommended for people with kidney or liver disease or diabetes. Others who should avoid taking it are children under 18 and women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
You are trying to use your willpower and resist that bad food. But that pizza and icecream are calling you. “Eat me, eat me!” Your willpower snaps & you eat an extra slice or a scoop of icecream.
What happens next? You think since I have already blown my diet, I might as well keep going. WHAT THE HELL.
The “what-the-hell effect” is well known to willpower researchers such as Roy Baumeister. There’s even a formal scientific term for it—counterregulatory eating—but since that’s such a mouthful, let’s just stick to the “what-the-hell effect.” In their recent book, Willpower, Baumeister and co-author John Tierney cite numerous experiments that show that dieters often do okay until the inevitable day when they break their diet rules. Then they stop monitoring their eating (“Was that my fourth piece?”) and ignore or are unaware of their feelings of fullness.
How can you avoid the what-the-hell effect? First, STOP DIETING! Dieters can become so preoccupied with following the rules of their diet that they can lose touch with their inner sensations of hunger and fullness. Moreover, if you are on an extreme diet, your hunger will propel you to gobble more than you intend—or even want. And diets don’t work! 95% of dieters regain their lost weight within two years. Instead of dieting, follow a sensible eating plan.
HERE ARE A FEW TIPS TO PREVENT THE “What the Hell Effect”
1. Set specific short term goals – give your willpower the best chance for success, break your goals down to smaller specific chunks. Create small wins that help you build emotional momentum.
2. USE ACCOUNTABILITY LOGS – mistakes happen. When you maintain an overall positive daily trend with a habit, it becomes easier to accept those small failures. Simply take note of the mistake, record it in your journal & then move on. It is NOT a catastrophe.
3. UNDERSTAND THE UNDERLYING PROBLEMS – remind yourself not to turn a “little” mistake become a “big” mistake by remembering that everyone experiences some form of habit regression from time to time.
4. TURN GOALS INTO CELEBRATIONS – tell yourself when you have achieved your first small goal, you will buy yourself that new dress, or go to Gold Class Movies.
In summary, focus on one habit at a time, be specific in your goal setting, & understand that mistakes will happen.
When you realise you’re experiencing this kind of mindset, you can avoid complete failure & simply have a “bad day” that’s easy to overcome.
With Christmas just behind us, and the new year approaching, I thought perhaps a few of us might be looking down at our belly’s and thinking, what have I done?
Well, Dr Oz has the answer. Apparently. With 3 easy steps.
1. Take 125mg of Forskolin in the morning. Forskolin is a herbal extract from Coleus forskohlii, a plant belonging to the mint family.
According to Dr Oz, adding it to your diet is like lighting a furnace inside the fat cells, helping them burn away. This fat torching root zeros in on fat, not muscle. (make sure supplement label says contains at least 10% forskolin)
2. Torch Visceral Fat with spices – Visceral fat is dangerous belly fat the is found deep below the skins surface, and often surrounds the organs. It is biologically active, churning out hormones & inflammation that helps keep us fat and contributes to other health problems.
What to do: Use blood sugar-stabilising spices every meal. Consume 1/2 teaspoon of one of these spices each meal: cinnamon, clove, oregano, cayenne or turmeric.
3. Drink Green Tea Lemonade – the antioxidants in green tea could help increase metabolic rate & lean body mass. The lemon helps your body pull out up to 6 times more antioxidants from the green tea – supercharging its belly melting power.
Ingredients – Put a green tea teabag into 2 cups of warm water for at least 20 minutes. Then add 1/2 squeezed lemon. Drink this hot or cold, everyday.
None of that sounds too difficult. Obviously, staying away from sugar, wheat and processed foods are the best place to start. Oh, and drink plenty of water. Oh, and get off your bum and exercise to build up your lean muscle mass and increase your metabolism.
I just googled Forskolin and found that Chemist Warehouse has some at a great price $14.99. So I am off for a drive to pick some up. Can’t hurt.
Please, let me know if you have tried this before and had any success or failure.
Merry Christmas, and a happy, healthy new year to you all.
x
My job is both rewarding and frustrating. I hear all the excuses under the sun. People want the results, but unfortunately lack the determination to achieve their outcome. People have got to understand that they didn’t all of a sudden become overweight or unfit, it is a slow and graduate process that seems to creep up on them. And therefore the fix is not going to be a quick one. The quick fixes will not last, studies have shown over and over again dieters, the majority of the time will put the weight back on, and then some. It is a lifestyle change my darlings!! that will lead to a long lasting healthy life.
Andrew has lost 10cm from his waist, 18.3cm from his belly button & 9cm from his hips.
Anyway, I digress. I am very proud to share with you 2 people that have shown absolute dedication, consistency and focus in their fitness and weight loss goals. There have been many times of struggle & anguish, but they have stuck to their resolve and the results are remarkable.
EMMA & ANDREW These results were achieved in 87 Days. Look up “awesome” in the dictionary, and there should be a photo of these two fabulous people. They lost over 13kg each. Congratulations x
Emma has lost 10cm from her waist, 16.8cm from her belly button, and 7.5cm from her hips.
Emma has gone from a size 14 to a size 8
This baked oats recipe can be made in about 30 minutes. Goodness of oats, and sweetness from the pumpkin & delicious spices. Make a big batch and freeze some. Mix it up and add extra egg and protein powder to increase that protein content.
Our Australian Government has the following physical activity recommendations for Adults between the ages of 18 – 64 years of age.
- Be active on most, preferably all, days every week.
- Accumulate 150 to 300 minutes (2 ½ to 5 hours) of moderate intensity physical activity or 75 to 150 minutes (1 ¼ to 2 ½ hours) of vigorous intensity physical activity, or an equivalent combination of both moderate and vigorous activities, each week.
- Do muscle strengthening activities on at least 2 days each week.
You can download their “Make your Move – Sit Less – Be active for life!” brochure from their website: http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/content/health-pubhlth-strateg-phys-act-guidelines#apaadult
Not convinced of the benefits of regular exercise?
Adding in a couple of strengthening sessions a week with your brisk walk or jog, and you can expect to build muscle, protect your heart, avoid obesity and even live longer.
Regular exercisers have a 40 percent lower risk of developing dementia, and a 60 percent lower risk of any type of cognitive impairment, according to a 2012 study. In young adults, regular exercise can increase bone mineral density by as much as 2 to 8 percent a year, according to the New York Times, helping to prevent dangerous falls and fractures later in life.
Some of the big differences between sedentary and active people are obviously beneficial, like a longer lifespan or a less-taxed heart. Others are a little less clear, like a higher maximal oxygen uptake, or VO2max, which reflects a regular exerciser’s increased capacity for aerobic exercise, or a more efficient sweating response, which helps regular exercisers cool their bodies quickly. Check out these and other differences exercise makes. Then go ahead and lace up those sneaks.
Here is the proof that exercise changes everything
some of this information was taken from The Huffington Post article written by Sarah Klein
Posted: 22/05/2014
I watched this documentary yesterday, and it really got me MAD! The greed and deception of the food industry and governmental bodies for the all mighty $. And the affect it is having on the health of the younger generation. Although this documentary is all about American, unfortunately we here in Australia tend to follow the lead of the USA. A very dangerous path indeed.
This is not propaganda B.S, the information presented in this film is all scientifically based and proven.
The synopsis of the movie from their website reads:
Everything we’ve been told about food and exercise for the past 30 years is dead wrong. FED UP is the film the food industry doesn’t want you to see. From Katie Couric, Laurie David (Oscar winning producer of AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH) and director Stephanie Soechtig, FED UP will change the way you eat forever.
Fed Up is a film about food industry secrets and the growing child obesity epidemic. The film profiles the struggles of several overweight kids, including a 14-year-old boy electing for lap band surgery and a 212-pound, 12-year-old girl, who says her doctors write her off as a statistic
Please, please, please, get a hold of a copy of this documentary and watch it, share it with your loved ones, and take action on your health today!
http://fedupmovie.com/#/page/home
click here: FED UP – YOUTUBE OFFICIAL TRAILER
Changes in lifestyle, not diet types, are the true ways to prevent weight gain and the associated ills of diabetes and circulatory disease.
Here are six simple lifestyle changes you can make to get you on the road to permanent weight loss.
1. Practice portion control.
As an advocate for portion control, watching how much you eat is one of the best ways to lose weight. I have been counseling clients for years, and I have seen in my private practice that when clients watch the sizes of their portions (aka eat less), they shave hundreds of calories daily, and lose weight effortlessly. While it may seem obvious that larger portions have more calories than smaller portions, most people don’t recognize just how many more calories a large portion contains.
Another advantage to practicing portion control is that you do not have to cut out entire food groups to get thin and you get to indulge in your favorite treat every now and then. No dieting and no deprivation.
2. Think positive.
Instead of dwelling on the foods you cannot eat, try instead to focus on what you can have. I tell my clients that there is no restaurant that is completely off limits. You can always find something healthy to eat. For example, when going to an Italian restaurant, instead of dwelling on the fact that you shouldn’t eat fettuccine alfredo, called a “heart attack on a plate” by the Center of Science for the Public Interest, think instead of what you can eat: whole wheat pasta with veggies and fresh tomato sauce or fresh grilled fish with sautéed spinach.
3. Keep food records.
There is no better way to get a handle on what and how much you eat than by keeping food records. And, for the good news you do not have to keep records forever. People who keep records are generally more aware of the mistakes they make and are then able to make corrections. Food records help you see your patterns, both positive and negative ones. For example, are you nibbling in front of the TV without realizing it, are you famished when you get home from work so you eat whatever is on the counter. By identifying your bad habits, you can easily find substitutes for new habits.
4. Eat structured meals and snacks.
Speaking of nibbling and mindless munching, one advantage to eating structured meals and snacks is that you tend to get famished less often. And when we are famished, we tend to just grab whatever food is in sight. And, we also often end up grabbing junk food. Planning in advance is also important. Keep healthy foods at arms reach and bring along a fruit and yogurt if you know that it will be hard to buy something healthy midafternoon.
5. Move more.
All exercise helps. The key is to do what you enjoy and follow an exercise program you can stick with. You do not have to spend thousands of dollars on a fancy gym. Lifestyle activities also add up. For example, take the stairs and walk around the block at lunch. I also advise taking advantage of different exercises you enjoy during the different seasons: swimming outdoors in the summer, taking a walk on the beach, and skiing in winter. The key is to follow an exercise program that you can stick with for the long haul.
6. Cut yourself some slack.
I am a big advocate of focusing on progress, not perfection. It is important to take stock of the changes you’ve made so far and look at the big picture. For example, if you need to lose 50 pounds, and already lost 10 pounds, recognize your accomplishment, instead of complaining that you have 40 more pounds to lose. One way to recognize your progress is to try on some old clothes. Seeing that they are too loose can help you actually see your accomplishment.
This article was written by
Dr. Lisa Young
Nationally-recognized nutritionist; International Speaker; Adjunct professor of nutrition at NYU; Author, ‘The Portion Teller Plan’
