Home

Disclaimer

Free Trials & Special Offers

Privacy

Weight Loss Tools

With New Years resolutions right around the corner, it’s no doubt that you are planning on starting a new diet. Will this one last 1-2 weeks, a month or will you make it longer. It’s all well and good to start out with the right intentions but sooner of later you’ll probably give up (statistics prove it).

This time before starting any diet ask yourself a few questions:
1. Does this diet sound healthy or is another fad type diet that promises miracles?
2. Do the foods allowed on the diet appeal to me?
3. Do I totally have to leave out my favorite foods?
4. Will I be hungry all day or will the foods allowed satisfy me?
5. Do I have to cook unusual foods or recipes or can I adopt this for my family also?
6. Will I be eating foods from all the food groups?

Although you do know that while on a diet you will have to make some sacrifices and give up the junk food but when you choose a diet, look into it first to see if it is a diet that you can actually live with and one that won’t leave you hungry, cranky or unhealthy.

Do a bit of research first and the chances of you following through with your diet plan grows 10 fold.

What diet on Christmas Day? Are you crazy?

Actually NO!
You can stay on your diet and still enjoy the season’s treats.

Here are a few tips to avoid over eating on Christmas Day

* Start you day off by eating a bowl of oatmeal. The oatmeal will help fill you up and has a lot less calories and fat than bacon and eggs or pancakes.

* 30 minutes before your Christmas dinner eat an apple. The fiber in the apple will dull your appetite and you’ll naturally eat less.

* If your a guest at a dinner and there are snacks and treats available before your meal, snack on a few nuts instead of chips and dips. Better yet, if they are nuts that you have to shell yourself you’ll find yourself eating less. Nuts also have protein which will help with hunger.

* If possible drink water or diet soda with your meal instead of regular soda.

* You don’t have to avoid the rolls, just have them without butter.

* If your meal is served with gravy, just have a small amount. You’ll still get the flavor without the average 290-385 calories that comes with each serving.

* Pie for dessert? Have a small piece and leave the end crust. That is where most of the fat and calories are.

* After dinner, help cleaning up, play with the kids or take the kids for a walk. You’ll burn off some calories and give the grown up some peace and quiet.

By just making a few simple changes you can save calories, yet still enjoy your meal. This way you won’t have as much to lose when you start your New Years Resolutions!

Green Tea and the Weight Loss connection

You have probably already heard that green tea can help aid your weight loss goals. In fact, green tea or green tea extract can be found in many of the popular weight loss supplements that are on the market today. Continue your reading to find out how adding green tea to your diet can help you shed the pounds you want to lose!

Green tea extract is used in many weight loss products as a caffeine replacement. Green tea extract is safer for then ephedrine and many other stimulants that are included in weight loss medications. In addition to acting as a stimulant, green tea extract also has other health benefits that do more for you then caffeine and other stimulants.

Health Benefits of Green Tea

Green tea is a powerful anti-oxidant. Like that of Vitamin C and beta-carotene. In fact, antioxidants are widely used as ingredients in most dietary supplements that are used for health purposes such as preventing cancer and heart disease.
Green tea can also help regulate glucose levels by slowing down the rise in blood sugar following your meals. Green tea slows down the digestive enzyme amylase which is an important in the breakdown of starches (carbohydrates) that can cause blood sugar levels to rise after eating a meal.
By drinking a few cups of green tea a day you can aid your weight loss plan significantly. Green tea raises your metabolic rate which results in a greater calorie burning affect. At first you may not like the taste of green tea but adding a sugar substitute can help to enhance the flavor. It can also be served hot or cold.
Substitute your morning coffee for green tea. You will still get the dose of energy that comes with the caffeine in coffee but now you will also help aid weight loss.

Do you have a teen that doesn’t seen interested in fitness?
Are they the type that likes to play video games or hang out an listen to music?

You probably didn’t realize it but you can turn their interests into a fitness plan for them and they won’t even realize that it’s good for them.

With the popularity of Wii, Playstation and other game console many complained that it turned teens (and others) into gaming zombies that would play games for hours and never get off the couch. However, many of the game companies started to add games to their line which involved players getting up off of the couch and actually getting the heart rate up and working up a sweat.

One of these games which is now the hottest selling game is Dance Dance Revolution DDR as it is often called gets you kids off the couch and moving. A 30 minute game will give them an equivalent of a 30 minute aerobic workout, but with DDR, they look forward to playing it.

The second fun way to get your kids active is with Hip Hop Abs, an exercise DVD that you may have seen in an infomercial. With HHA your teen will move and dance along with Shaun T. to hip hop style music. Also it’s geared towards teens and young adults, it appears that everyone is getting in and dancing to the beat. Although it’s advertised as a way to dance your way to flatter abs, HHA works your entire body.

If you want your kids off the couch both Dance Dance Revolution and Hip Hop Abs will do it, and what makes it even better –is that they will want to do it.
Now that the way to get your kids moving.

Dance Dance Revolution

When ever you start on a new fitness plan, it is always advisable to find your targeted heart rate and work within those numbers. Sounds simple, but how do you track your heart rate easily?
A Heart Monitor.

No, don’t be thinking about the type of heart monitors that hospitals use. The ones for home us are so small that you don’t even feel them.

Lets learn a bit more about heart monitors

What is a Heart Monitor?
Also known as a cardiac monitor, a heart monitor is a piece of electronic equipment that can be used to track or observe heart functions continuously. It allows people to place a numerical value on their healthiness based on their heart rate and have a target heart rate to work for. The more complex versions of the heart monitor allow physicians to see any signs of deterioration or improvement and make the necessary adjustments immediately but you won’t need one of these.

Types of Heart Monitors
Today, heart monitors are produced by the millions and designed to cater specific types of individuals. Some heart monitors are primarily designed for weight loss programs while others are meant for the use of athletes or fitness programs. Some are wireless or come as a built-in feature of exercise equipment like a treadmill or an exercise bike. It can be strapped to your wrist or of considerable size.

Factors on Selecting the Best Heart Monitor for You

ECG-Accurate Monitors with Chest Straps – Heart monitors that come with chest straps are more often the most accurate of heart monitors. The chest strap is strapped around your chest, a few centimeters below your breast. It contains a device that’s able to detect electrical activity of your heart and transmit it to the brain of the machine – just like an ECG. The results are shown on the display monitor, which most of the times is attached to your wrist like a watch. Others however prefer results to be transmitted through audio messages via earphones.

Lastly, the only alternative against buying heart monitors with chest straps are the ones that rely on pulses on your fingertips. These however do not provide readings as accurate as those with chest straps.

Heart Monitor Features – Basic and lower end models tend to display only your heart rate and maybe the elapsed exercise time as well. This of course does not provide sufficient information if you want to know exactly how much you need to improve before you can be qualified as a completely healthy individual. Higher end models will naturally offer a wider range of features – for a price. Examples of such features are – but not limited to – heart rate zone alarms, timers and number of calories burned. It may also allow users to set pre-programmed workouts along with a targeted heart rate.

Ease of Use – Lastly, you must purchase a heart rate monitor that you will have no problems of using. What good would a high end heart monitor do if it takes you an hour to operate it? Are the numbers and words appearing in the heart rate monitor readable? Can it be used in no-light situations? Are buttons well-labeled and ergonomically positioned?

To Buy or Not to Buy a Heart Monitor

If you are intent on purchasing a heart monitor, you need to ask yourself another question: do you need to make a solo purchase or is it alright with you to use the heart monitor that comes as a built-in feature of a treadmill?

Cost
You will find that heart monitors range in price from $20 all the way up in to the hundreds. For a standard heart monitor for fitness, except to pay $35-80 depending on the style and design.

Although it’s not 100% necessary to use a heart rate monitor while working out, you will find that if you do chose to use one, your workouts will be more effective and if you are trying to lose weight by working out you’ll lose it quicker.

Heart rate monitors can be found in the fitness department of major department stores and sports and recreation stores along with the internet.

The Mediterranean Diet has become ever increasingly popular and everywhere I look I am now seeing more and more statistic that show how healthy it is.

Although it’s similar to the American Heart Association dietary guidelines it’s not the same - well not exactly. The Mediterranean allow more good mono-unsaturated fats and includes a larger variety of foods.

With the Omega-3 oils in the news lately it’s no wonder that the Mediterranean Diet is gaining popularity from dieters and from the medical community, since the Mediterranean diet is high in Omega-3 oils.

If you want to learn more about the Mediterranean Diet just Click Here