Weight Loss Article - Health Care Suggestion

Chinese Green Tea

2007-11-20T23:27:00.000+07:00

Of historical note,tea is nearly 5,000 years old and was discovered, as legend has it, in 2737 B.C. by a Chinese emperor when some tealeaves accidentally blew into a pot of boiling water. In the 1600s tea became popular throughout Europe and the American colonies. Since colonial days, tea has played a role in American culture and customs. Today American schoolchildren learn about the famous Boston Tea Party protesting the British tea tax -- one of the acts leading to the Revolutionary War. During this century, two major American contributions to the tea industry occurred. In 1904, iced tea was created at the World's Fair in St. Louis, and in 1908, Thomas Sullivan of New York developed the concept of tea in a bag.

The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches to depression. In her book Green Tea: The Natural Secret for a Healthier Life, Nadine Taylor states that green tea has been used as a medicine in China for at least 4,000 years.

Calories and Carbs and Fat, Oh My!

2007-11-19T12:40:00.000+07:00

Regardless of how much weight you might want to lose, you'll no doubt run into the same confusing issues everyone else does. Should you cut down your calories? Should you reduce or eliminate your carbohydrate intake? Or should you just cut out fat? I know I get so confused by all the different information available out there, I sometimes wonder if it would be easiest to just stop eating.

Well, obviously, not eating can and will kill you, if you keep the fast going long enough. Some forms of juice fasts and even water fasting can be beneficial, but chronic fasting will impact your health. Particularly if you do any of this for long periods of time.

The problem isn't really that there exist so many opinions, facts, and theories on weight loss, the problem is that many of these approaches work. Going on a juice fast will make you lose weight. But staying on a juice fast for too long could create further problems down the road.

Now to talk about lowering calorie intake. The body burns a certain amount of calories in any given day, so taking in less than you're using will cause you to lose weight. The problem most people run in to with this approach is they become hungry all the time. Modern day foods don't keep most of us full and satiated for very long, but they contain quite a bit of calories.

So eating three simple meals of 400 calories each will give us a total of 1200 calories for the day. This is quite low for most men and women, but it will cause you to lose weight. Unfortunately, the three meals you choose to eat may not satisfy you, so you end up hungry or even famished more often than not.

You could try eating five meals totaling just 250 calories each and that will help quite a bit. You're not going so long between meal times, and you may not feel quite as deprived in the process. You have to be careful with your meal choices when going this route though because as I've said: Our modern meals are not overly low in calories. In fact, many quick snacks come close to having 250 calories all by themselves.

If you're interested in a weight loss program that utilizes more meals per day, check out Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle. This program turns fat into muscle and gives you everything you need to stop being a fatty for good. Click here now to burn the fat once and for all. -- Editors

So what about cutting fat then, and forgetting the calorie intake? The downside of the anti-fat diet is that eating foods with little to no fat will leave you hungrier than eating foods based on calorie totals. Also, an extreme anti-fat diet will cause health problems down the road.

Fat helps fill you up and keep you feeling satiated for a longer period of time. But even worse, foods without fat tend to have many more "fillers" in the form of sugar and starch. Sugars and starches are processed by your body quickly, which means you're hungrier again sooner. And many people make the mistake of thinking as long as they're not eating fat, they can eat "non-fat" products anytime they'd like. In reality, they're loading up on too many calories, and too much processed sugars and chemical-laden junk.

That said, of course there are fats you should limit in your diet. These are considered to be "bad" fats, and are called saturated fat or trans fats. Too many of these types of fat can cause health problems in addition to weight problems.

Now let's look at the low carb issue. Eliminating carbs all together was all the rage years ago, but that's not a wise move, as time has shown. Most of your healthy fruits and vegetables have at least some carbohydrates in them. So a better plan is to limit or restrict your carb intake instead of trying to eliminate it all together.

In fact, you should strive to choose healthy good carbs instead of simple ones. You can still limit the total amount of carbohydrates you take in each day, but be sure to eat those which are good for you such as what you find in vegetables or organic cheese.

I bet you've heard about the program where you're able to eat as much food as they want as long as you limit carb intake. Some practioners eat 3000 calories or more each day, but as long as they're restricting the carbs, they can still lose weight.

Why this works is quite simple. Cutting out quick, simple sugars, starches, and carbs from your diet will regulate your body's insulin production. And it will force you to eat alternative foods, which fill you up better and keep you full longer.

Believe it or not, all of these common approaches to weight loss work together. And they all work best when you cut out simple starches and sugars from your diet. Cutting your carbs very low for just a few days will kill your cravings for sweets... but it may also kill your appetite. In the end you actually consume much less calories overall, because you're not hungry often and you're not getting hit with sugar cravings. So a low carb diet will turn into a low calorie diet over time.

The same applies to low fat diets. If done well, you will find yourself eating more fiber rich foods to help you feel full longer. And foods which are naturally higher in fiber are also naturally lower in carbs and calories.

It all boils down to eating well. Choose healthy fats and healthy carbs, plus eliminate simple starches and sugars, and you will lose weight.

Comparing the Big Three Fad Diets

2007-11-18T18:33:00.001+07:00

If you've been struggling with weight and losing weight for any length of time, and if you go to the supermarket, if you watch television, listen to the radio, read on the internet or do just about anything else that brings you into contact with the world, then you know that weight loss is a national obsession. This obsession is characterized -- and has been for decades -- by the periodic acclimation of "the only diet you'll ever need!"

Fad diets have come and gone over the years. Some linger, most are forgotten by all but those who might have lost weight, gained weight or been damaged by them. Some of the diets were so unhealthy that they garnered the warnings of medical America, or were loudly decried as dangerous and unhealthy. As early as the seventies, there were diets that recommended cutting out ALL carbohydrates and consuming only meat and proteins -- or the reverse, eliminating all proteins entirely.

The current "fad diets" include some of the most famous diet names in the recent history of weight loss: the Atkins Diet, the South Beach diet, and the Zone diet. All three have come under fire for their contention that one can eat a healthy diet and lose weight without restricting the intake of protein and fat-rich foods like meats and cheese. This flies in the face of conventional medical advice to restrict fatty foods in the diet.

So what about these three diets? Do they work? Are they safe? Can each of them, as claimed, form the basis for a lifetime of healthy eating? The answers are -- surprisingly enough to all three -- very likely. On the surface, each of them makes the claim that carbohydrates are bad, proteins are good, and you can eat all the protein you want and still lose weight.

How does that reconcile with the contention that a healthy diet is low in proteins and saturated fats, derives 50-60% of its calories from carbohydrates, and emphasizes whole grains and fresh vegetables as the main source of nutrition? Take a closer look at a typical menu recommended on each of the above diets and see.

Typical Meal Using USDA Recommendations:

3 oz lean fish (brushed with olive oil and garlic and broiled)
2 cups of spinach salad with grapefruit
1 tablespoon olive oil vinaigrette dressing
1 oz slice whole grain/whole wheat bread

Contains: approx 350 calories
20 g. carbs
15 g. protein
14 g. fat

South Beach Diet Dinner Menu:

Poached salmon with Greek salad.
Organic, nonprocessed jelly with low-fat topping

Contains: approx: 300 calories
17 g. protein
3 g. carbs
14 g. fat (olive oil in Greek dressing)

Atkins Diet Dinner Menu:

Spring Salad
Green Goddess Dressing
Maple-Mustard Glazed Baked Ham
Baked Artichoke-Parsley Cheese Squares
Roasted Asparagus
Atkins Coconut Layer Cake

Contains approx: 400 calories
18 g. protein
17 g. carbs
8 g. fat

The Zone Dinner Menu:

Baked salmon with fruit salsa (kiwi, blackberries, apple)

Contains approx: 435 calories
17 g. protein
10 g. carbs
5 g. fat

Notice anything? No matter how the ingredients are counted -- calories, carbs, exchanges, and food blocks -- the bottom line is the same. A healthy diet that will lead to lasting weight loss includes a balance of protein, carbohydrate and fats with an emphasis on complex carbohydrates and lean meats.

So pick the diet that seems to make the most sense to you - and use it as the start of a new healthy eating style for a healthier, slimmer you!

2007-05-03T21:23:00.000+07:00

Herbal Remedies for Your Unwanted Weight
by Eliza Maledevic

If you are truly determined to lose weight, you can definitely lose that unwanted weight of yours.

Plenty of people who are suffering for obesity or weight problem, got frustrated and distress, at some point they even prevent themselves from mingling with other people. But, this is not the right thing to do. You have to do something about it if you want this problem to be solved. They are a lot of ways you can do to lose that unwanted weight. But this will take some of your time and effort.

Most of the obese people or with weight problems just lock up themselves to their room and do not want to face the world anymore. That's definitely a bad idea. You have to go out and find ways to help yourself. Having weight problem can give you higher risks of having other illnesses. So you have to work on your weight problem.

If you do not want to use prescribed medicine because you are afraid of the risk of having side effect, you can use herbal remedies with your weight problems. Herbal remedies can lose your weight naturally.

There are plenty of diet pills and suppressant out there. You can also use the internet in looking for herbal remedies. There are masses of websites that offers herbal remedies, so just take time to search for the best website. You can look for the herbal remedy that is widely used with lots of people; you can look for the personal experiences and testimonials of people who had weight problems before.

Using herbal remedy can help you lose weight naturally and without side effects. In losing weight you can to take into consideration your health.

Yes, herbal remedy can help you lose your weight but in order to make it work faster, you have to do something to help out in your losing weight process. You have to watch your food intake; you have to be careful with the food you eat. Make sure that you are eating foods with nutrients and eat only the right amount of food. Never eat too much and foods with carbohydrates and sugar. It is better to eat right amount of fruits and vegetables than eating plenty of pastas, pastries and soda.

Exercising is also important. This could help you lose your weight faster. Just give 30 minutes or an hour of your time in exercising by walking or jogging.

You do not have to leave everything on your herbal remedy. You have to watch what you eat and exercise daily in order to lose that unwanted weight faster and effectively.

Indeed, losing your weight can help your health and can prevent yourself from other diseases. So showing your determination and eagerness can be very helpful. You can start it by purchasing herbal remedy online but make sure to find the best one for you. Then you have to do exercising and proper diet. Doing all these can help you lose your unwanted weight.

So to all people with weight problem, start moving and lose that unwanted weight by taking herbal remedy, proper diet and exercise.

2007-05-02T20:36:00.000+07:00

Learn the Truth about Dieting Myths
By: MN_Nikk

Are you confused by all those diet myths going around? No wonder your head might be cracking now with those literally hundreds of myths coming from everywhere and everyone.

The problem with diet myths is that they force you to let your body undergo through all those kinds of things which are either a complete waste of time or even harmful to do. How will you know if it's for real or just a myth?

Knowing Fact from Fiction

If you are one of the many people struggling to find fact from fiction with the many diet myths around today, here are some of the most common myths and the truth behind them. Hopefully, this will help you to live a healthier life. If you need to lose weight, do it in a healthier and more knowledgeable way.

. The Later You Eat, The More Weight You Will Gain

This is an extremely common misconception about dieting and as there is a good theory behind it, generally it is not really true.

The reason that it is so believable is because after a certain time you do not really do much exercise. You simply relax and then go straight to bed. This means that whatever calories you put into your body, remain there for longer without being burnt off. So people think that because they are not burning them off straight away the weight will come straight on. All you need to do if you eat late at night is exercise more the next day.

The only way that you will put on more weight by eating at night is if you do not eat much during the day. So, eat healthily and try not to eat too late as it does give you in digestion sometimes, but if you have to eat late occasionally then do not worry -- it will not store extra fat within the body.

. If You Have a Slow Metabolism, You Will Gain More Weight

Again, this is another common misconception with dieting. Many overweight people do blame their problem on a slow metabolism. However, experts say that the bigger you are, the more calories you need in order to keep the body going. So, as the metabolism is resting, it burns more calories than somebody with a quicker metabolism.

The reason that you are gaining weight is simply because you are not burning off enough calories compared to what you are eating. You need to start either cutting down slowly on your food portions or exercising more in order to lose weight.

The two diet myths mentioned above are just two of the most common myths in dieting. There are others such as "Fad diets help you to lose weight quickly and healthily" and "zero fat diets are good for you" - both are complete rubbish. You need a certain amount of fat in your body in order to stay healthy. There are different types of fats and it is only one type of fat which you need to cut down on. Fad diets are also a complete waste of time as they cause you to lose weight quickly but the weight comes straight back on once the diet has stopped.

So, don't believe too much to diet myths and always do your research beforehand. That way you will become more knowledgeable and you will learn to lose weight the right way.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com

For more information on Healthy Weight Loss, visit Proactol.com.

2007-05-01T16:05:00.000+07:00

10 Tips for Eating Out While on a Diet
From Jennifer R. Scott
Dining out on a diet doesn't have to be cause for panic. With a little planning and preparation, you can make it through eating out without blowing your diet.

1. Order from the appetizer menu. Hungry? Order a side salad as well ... a good way to ensure you're still eating instead of watching your date finish off his entree after you've polished off that shrimp cocktail.

2. Keep tabs on that tubini. Endless pasta may be your idea of bliss (Darn near nirvana for yours truly!), but it's a scary prospect to those of us who overeat. Stick with a single entree and don't worry about being a member of the clean plate club. I won't tell your mom if you don't tell mine.

3. Meat yourself half-way. As tempting as that guy at the booth across from you is making that bucket of fried chicken look, always elect poultry to be prepared the following ways: steamed; poached; roasted; broiled; boiled; grilled; or baked. As for you beef-eaters out there, be sure you choose lean cuts like loin or flank.

4. Modify the menu. In my neck of the woods, where anything and everything can be batter-dipped and fried, I ask for fried entrees and sides to be boiled, broiled or roasted and I'm rarely turned down.

5. Beware the buzz words: Cream sauces; butter; oil; au gratin; breaded; Alfredo; battered or batter-dipped and, Mom's favorite topper, gravy. Avoid them all unless you're putting in some extra sessions on the stair climber this week.

6. Wrap it up, I'll take it! You know you're at a nice restaurant when the server wraps up your food for you at the end of the meal so you don't have to worry about fashioning that tin foil swan for yourself. Keep temptation at bay by asking the server to wrap up half your meal before you start eating.

7.Don't let take out take over your diet. Take out half of your take out ... and put it into plastic containers ... tuck it away in the fridge. After a long day at work, chances are you won't want to go to the trouble of heating up the rest. (Instant will power!)

8.Cram for tonight's dinner. Ask your favorite eateries to fax you take out menus and then keep them on-hand. Highlight the healthiest options and choose your entree ahead of time.

9. Banish buffets. Portion control can become a foreign concept for the best dieter at a buffet. Who can practice portion control when there are new, clean plates beckoning for more? The variety of foods available at buffets is also daunting; studies have shown when we're given more choices we tend to eat more.

10. Mini meals make your day. Eat smaller meals during the day if dining out tonight, just be sure you don't eat too sparingly so that you're so famished by dinnertime you end up overeating (It was a dark day when I clearly ignored my own #9 tip and visited Golden Corral in a ravenous state with a fellow weight-watcher. The look of horror on her face as I went for round number three is one I won't soon forget!). Have a small, healthful snack in the afternoon to quell hunger.

2007-05-01T15:57:00.000+07:00

How to Calculate Your Caloric Intake and Use it to Lose Weight
From Jennifer R. Scott

Question:
How many calories should I eat if I want to lose weight?

Answer:
It's Relative
Technically, there's no magic number of calories we should all eat each day to lose weight. While most people can lose weight eating around 1,500 calories, you can assess your own personal caloric needs with a little math.

Why Estimate Your Caloric Needs?
To estimate how many calories you should consume in order to maintain your weight, you'll need to do a little math. By using a simple formula called the Harris-Benedict principle, you can assess your basal metabolic rate -- also known as your BMR.

(Then, to lose weight, you'll need to cut calories or burn extra calories and shoot for a level lower than the results you get with this formula.)

Calculate Your BMR
Your BMR is the amount of energy your body needs to function.
We use about 60 percent of the calories we consume each day for basic bodily functions such as breathing.

Other factors that influence your BMR are height, weight, age and sex.

Step one is to calculate your BMR with the following formula:

Women:
655 + (4.3 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)

Men:
66 + (6.3 x weight in pounds) + (12.9 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years)

Please note that this formula applies only to adults.

Calculate Activity
Step two: In order to incorporate activity into your daily caloric needs, do the following calculation:

* If you are sedentary : BMR x 20 percent

* If you are lightly active: BMR x 30 percent

* If you are moderately active (You exercise most days a week.): BMR x 40 percent

* If you are very active (You exercise intensely on a daily basis or for prolonged periods.): BMR x 50 percent

* If you are extra active (You do hard labor or are in athletic training.): BMR x 60 percent

Add this number to your BMR.

The result of this formula will be the number of calories you can eat every day and maintain the weight you are currently at. In order to lose weight, you'll need to take in fewer calories than this result.

As you lose weight, you can re-calculate the formula to assess your new BMR.

Create a Calorie Deficit
In order to lose weight, you must create a calorie deficit. It is easier and healthier to cut back your calorie intake a little bit at a time. Every 3,500 calories is equivalent to one pound.

So, if you cut back 500 calories a day, you should lose about one pound per week. That said, If you exercise to burn off 500 calories a day you should lose approximately one pound per week. Do both, and ... you get the picture. Ideally, you should do a combination of both, (e.g. cut back 250 calories; burn an extra 250 calories).

Your weight loss will vary from week to week and at times you may even gain a little weight -- if you're working out you could be developing muscle, which weighs more than fat.

The long-term results are what matters.

Lose at a Healthy Rate
A healthy weight loss goal is to lose .5 to 2 pounds per week.
Losing more than 2 pounds per week will mean the weight is less likely to stay off permanently. Never cut back to fewer than 1,200 daily calories without medical supervision.

To find out how you are spending your current calorie intake, keep a detailed food diary for at least one week. (You can check the calorie content of most foods at calorie-count.com.)

Make the Cut(s)
With careful review, you will find ways to cut back those 250 calories a day: the milk in your cereal ... the can of soda you drink daily ... the butter on your toast.

Making little changes like these will really add up in the long run.

To assess your daily caloric intake, use calorie-count.com to look up the calorie content of the foods you recorded in your food diary. Pay attention to serving sizes -- if your portion consisted of two servings, then be sure you double the calories. Track your daily intake either online or in your food journal.

Next, find foods you can do without altogether, reduce portions of, or switch for lower-calorie alternatives.

And guess what? It's easier than you think. Take it one meal at a time. Or even one food at a time. And then, one day at a time.

Tomorrow, trade whole milk for reduced-fat milk The next day, try diet soda instead of regular. Three days in, switch to light wheat bread instead of white. All the calorie-reductions you make (and stick to) will add up in the long run.

Burn it Off!
Becoming more active will knock the remaining 250 calories out. For example, a 180 pound person who walks at a brisk 3 miles-per-hour will burn just over 250 calories in 45 minutes.

Experts agree that it's easier to exercise than to cut the same number of calories that exercise shaves off. In other words, it's just plain easier for us to be a little more active than to do without more food to achieve the same calorie-reduction.

Please check with your doctor before significantly changing your diet or starting a new exercise regime.

2007-04-30T19:02:00.000+07:00

Cold, Hard Facts About Calories

From Jennifer R. Scott

Calories Still Count
For about a decade-and-a-half now, popular diet books have asked us to count fat or carbs, but what about calories? Well, no matter which way you cut it ... cutting calories is actually behind every diet.

Consider carb-cutting diets. The carbs you cut are refined carbs. What makes refined carbs the enemy? The fact that they're basically sugar.

Why do you gain weight if you eat too much sugar? Because you're eating too many calories. Exchange those "bad carbs" for "good carbs" that are better for you -- and happen to have fewer calories -- and you'll lose weight.

Bottom line: If you eat more calories than you need, you'll gain weight. Any successful weight loss method comes down to taking in fewer calories and burning extra calories with exercise.
The rest is just a new spin on an old concept.

Put it in Perspective

If you've met someone who claims they can eat anything and as much as they want and then burn it all off later with a good workout, you've got another thing coming! It just can't be done.

For example, according to calorie-count.com, a McDonald's double cheeseburger contains 460 calories...

To burn off the calories in just that one sandwich, the average 150-pound person would have to do moderate-intensity aerobics for an hour!

Add on a shake and order of fries and you might as well cancel any plans you had for the half-a-day you'll need to spend at the gym to un-do that one meal! Shocking, huh?

More Calories In = Fewer Calories Out?
Some research has suggested that eating too many calories at a time may actually make it more difficult for your body to shed excess weight when you exercise.

In the example before, if you over-eat regularly, you may not use those 400-odd calories in your hour-long aerobics session... you may actually burn fewer calories than someone who ate less.

Consider Your Caloric Goals
The average recommended caloric intake for losing weight is about 1,500-1,700 calories each day, (Most experts recommend 1,500 calories as a good weight loss diet.) but it does vary according to your weight and activity level.

To begin, you will need to calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate in order to assess how many calories you need to eat each day to function. The formula considers both your weight and activity level.

Once you do this, you can begin identifying ways to cut back on the calories that are in excess of your needs.

Many people may assume the more weight they need to lose, the more calories they should cut. It's actually the other way around: The more you weigh now, the more calories you can -- and should -- eat. As you lose weight, you should cut more calories.

For example, a 210-pound person cannot subsist on 1,500 calories a day. But if that 200-pound person continues to lose weight, she can eventually cut down to that level.

A Word to the Wise
While you may find a number of 1,200 calorie diets around, it's important to remember that cutting your calories too low may actually lead to weight plateaus.

There is a "starvation mode" phenomenon that happens where your body actually withholds the calories you take in for later use -- basically, it saves them up because it "thinks" you're starving. You could end up eating much less and weighing the same ... and you could do serious damage to your health.

Plus, if you're hungry all the time, you're less likely to stick to it and more likely to binge.

Never attempt to follow a diet that includes less than 1,200 calories a day unless you are under a doctor's supervision.

2007-04-29T22:22:00.000+07:00

Natural Remedy For Hives by Evelyn Lim

You may be one of those who are prone to getting hives on a regular basis. If so, you may wish to consider using a natural remedy for hives. Hives are normally caused by an allergic reaction to drugs or food. Your body releases chemicals that make your skin swell up in hives.

The appearance of hives is tiny red nasty bumps on your skin. After some time, hives usually go away on their own. However, your condition may become severe, especially if your immune system is low.

At this stage, most people turn to commercially available preparations, prescription medications or even allergy shots. These drug medications usually contain antihistamines and cortisone, ingredients that make them effective in controlling hives.

However, they should not be used for a long period of time as they usually result in many side effects. The alternative to conventional drug medications is to use a natural remedy to alleviate the inflammation and itch that comes with the hives.

Naturopathic doctors would recommend that what you should do first is figure out the cause of your hives even before you even begin to treat the condition. That way, you can eliminate your exposure to the allergen. For treatment, you can consider any of the following natural remedy for hives:

1. Quercetin is a plant pigment that is found in leafy green vegetables, onions, apples, and other natural foods. Quercetin acts as a natural antihistamine, which can help reduce or even completely eliminate hives in many people. Herbalists recommend taking 500 milligrams of this natural remedy for hives twice a day.

2. Sandalwood essential oil is especially used in Native American medicine wherein it is believed that hives are a fiery condition. This essential oil is well known for its calming and cooling effects. As such, many herbalists refer to Sandalwood as a sedative for the skin.

Simply add several drops of this essential oil to a cotton ball and then apply it to the infected area every three hours.

3. Mint is well known as a natural remedy with cooling effects. Mint oil can be also used to soothe the irritating symptoms of hives.

For a home remedy, you can create mint ice cubes and place them directly onto your inflamed skin. Seep 2 teaspoons of freshly crushed mint leaves in boiling water for about 5 minutes. Next, strain this tea and pour it into an ice cube tray and place it in your freezer. Apply the ice cubes that are formed onto your inflamed and irritated skin. If you have any remaining mint ice cubes, simply save them in a labeled plastic freezer bag for future use.
About the Author

Evelyn Lim is the publisher of a newsletter on Natural Home Remedies. She draws on her practical knowledge passed down by her grandmother in the use of herbs to treat common ailments. For free information and a bonus MP3 download, please visit her site at http://www.HerbalRemedyTips.com

2007-04-29T13:01:00.000+07:00

Dieting and Fast Weight Loss
By: MN_Nikk

Dieting is considered one of the best fast weight loss solutions. The more restrictive a diet is, the faster the results will show -- or so many people think. But is it really so? I do believe that whoever comes up with these lightning-quick weight loss programs go to great lengths to ensure that nobody will be able to follow the program. And then they can safely say that you haven't seen the expected results because you did not do what you were supposed to do. And even if you would be able to stick to it, how effective and how safe is such a program?

If just want to lose 5 pounds within a week to attend that fancy party and you don't care about the price of crash dieting, then you should be fine with almost any quick diet out there. If, however, you want long-lasting results and a new, better way of life, then this type of diet is clearly not for you.

The only way you can lose weight with a fast diet is by reducing the amount of fluids in your body. So most of the time a quick diet will make you lose those 5 pounds from the water you body retains in fat tissues, muscular tissues and major organs. Unfortunately there's no way to know how your body will react to a provoked dehydration, so instead of losing the water trapped in the fat tissues, you may very well lose water trapped in your muscles or liver or brain.

If, at any point, you feel like you are a little bit slower than usual, you find it a bit hard to focus and to accomplish the common tasks of everyday life, and then you're experiencing a mild dehydration that has affected your brain. Useless to say that this can turn out to be potentially dangerous because there's no way to know when your brain will overheat because of lack of water.

This doesn't sound pretty, but it can get worse and here is how. I have seen a lot of quick diets that stress on the importance of physical exercise as a way to make your weight loss permanent. One thing is for sure: the more you exercise, the better it is for your body health and also for your mind. But, there is a "but". Combining a fast weight loss program that makes you lose water with physical exercises can lead you into really dangerous situations.

They say that you have to drink plenty of water to keep hydrated and that's true. But the fact is that once the kidneys are stimulated to work overtime, the balance of your body is affected and the results are absolutely unpredictable. If you would lose the water trapped in the fat tissues then all is fine -- unfortunately body fat contains only 25% percent water. Now guess where the rest of the water is to be found! In your muscles -- muscles contain about 75% water. Furthermore, in men, about 72% of the body mass is water and only 68% in women, due to a higher amount of body fat.

So do yourself a favor -- lose weight the smart way. With sensible diets, don't dehydrate yourself to death. The only thing that you can do when you lose water is to lose muscle mass and that's the last thing you want.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com

If you want more information on why fast weight loss is bad for you, read more fast weight loss articles.

2007-04-28T18:36:00.000+07:00

5 Fat Burners To Help You Slim Down
By: Scott T Smith

It is definitely possible to speed up your metabolism, that aspect of your body that burns calories. As you age, your metabolism slows down, chiefly because you lose around a half pound of muscle each year. "If you don't use the muscle, it atrophies," explains Pamela Peeke, M.D., professor of medicine at the University of Maryland and author of Fight Fat After Forty.

Here are 5 fat burners to help you slim down.

1. Avoid alcohol

Want to keep your favorite meals from going straight to your hips (thighs, belly)? Wash them down with water, not wine. Alcohol slows your metabolism by depressing the central nervous system. A British study found that when alcohol was added to a high-fat, high-calorie meal, less dietary fat was burned off and more was stored as body fat.

2. Rev up your workouts

Interval training -- in which you add bursts of high-intensity moves into your workout -- is a surefire metabolism booster, says Glenn Gaesser, Ph.D., director of the Kinesiology Program at the University of Virginia and author of The Spark. Researchers at Laval University in Quebec found that high-intensity interval training burns more fat than regular, consistent aerobic exercise. If you usually jog at a 10-minute-mile pace, for example, add a 30-second sprint every five minutes. Or add a one-minute incline to your treadmill workout every five minutes. "Even if you just have 10 minutes for a quick workout, you can walk at a normal pace and then add in a 30-second bout of speed-walking every three minutes," recommends Gaesser.

3. Do more dairy

Women who ate low-fat dairy products, such as nonfat yogurt and low-fat cheese, three to four times a day lost 70 percent more fat than low-dairy dieters, according to a study published in the journal Obesity Research. "Calcium serves as a switch that tells your body to burn excess fat faster," explains study author Michael Zemel, M.D., director of the Nutrition Institute at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Sorry, but you won't reap the same benefits from calcium-fortified O.J. Research shows that you get the best results from dairy products themselves, not fortified foods. Aim for 1,200 mg, which includes about three servings of dairy a day.

4. Take up a new sport

Are you like Old Faithful when it comes to your morning walk or evening jog? Know this: The more you do an activity, the more your body adapts to it, so you burn fewer calories. If you want to light a fire under your metabolism, consider cross-training. For example, if you normally walk, try biking instead. "Since you're not used to working all those different muscles, it's a more intense workout, which can translate into a greater metabolic after-burn because your body is working harder to recover and get oxygen to all your tissues," says Carol Espel, M.S., an exercise physiologist for Equinox Fitness Clubs in New York City.

5. Go fish

Break out the lemon wedges: Regular fish eaters tend to have lower levels of the hormone leptin -- good because high levels of leptin have been linked to low metabolism and obesity, says Louis Aronne, M.D., an obesity specialist at the New York Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center. Try to consume three to four servings of a fatty fish, such as salmon, tuna or mackerel, each week.

Article Source: ABC Article Directory

Article by Scott T. Smith of Copywriting.Net. If you are sick and tired of being overweight, and are ready for weight loss solutions that really work, visit Slimstuff on the Web at www.slimstuff.com/

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