N - Nutrition: What Not to Eat

Nutrition is the first link in the Health Chain - NEW START. There are so many aspects to the subject of Nutrition. This article is going to lay out the basics as to
WHAT You DON'T Eat
I believe in trying to make things as clear and simple as possible, and I believe that God cares just as much about the health of our bodies as He does the health of our souls, and that He's made it very clear in the Bible what we should eat. After all, He created us, and as the Designer of our bodies, surely He would tell us how to best take care of them. You never buy anything of good quality that doesn't come with an Owner's Manual, right? Likewise God has given us clear instructions in His Word as to how we should take care of our health.
MEAT
I'm a firm believer that the VEGAN diet is the healthiest diet... afterall, that is the diet that God gave us when He created us. The Bible tells us that when God created us, our diet consisted of Fruits, Grains & Nuts.
But then, after sin came into the world, He modified the diet, and vegetables were added. "Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field." Genesis 3:18. Vegetables have properties in them that were not needed before sin... But sin changed things... Everyone knows how carrot juice and beets and broccoli help people with cancer...
Meat was not added until AFTER the Flood ~Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. Genesis 9:3. And then in Leviticus Chapter 11, God made a distinction between which meats were permitted to eat and which were not, clearly explaining the CLEAN & UNCLEAN meats. In order for a mammal to be considered clean, it MUST chew the cud and have a split hoof. In order for a fish to be considered clean, it MUST have fins and scales.
When we get to Heaven, our diet is going to go back to the diet that God created for us, in the beginning, a VEGAN diet. Nothing will ever die in Heaven, so there will never be any dead animals to eat. Doesn't it make sense that we should, as much as possible work towards the VEGAN diet NOW? Surely God knows what is best for us.

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Achieve Your Dream Body in 8 Weeks

Weight loss is actually simple when you know what you are doing.
The market however has created this giant illusion that you need this magic pill and that super program to get your best body ever.
This however is not the case
You can start losing weight today by following the 3 pillars to weight loss success
1. Nutrition
This is the most crucial part of weight loss!
It is not that magic pill you drink before or after meals. It doesn`t run for hours and hours on end on a treadmill until sweat streams down your face like a river. Sure, this would help but you can then cancel the entire workout with a nice fast food burger after the workout to "reward" yourself.
The key to nutrition for weight loss is consistency.
Choose a plan and then stick to it.
I would recommend the following plan
The Banting Diet
This is the diet that I personally use. It is the most simple and easy to follow diet on the planet and I have tried a few. You do not need to weigh any food. You don`t have to eat by the hour. You do not need 6 different Tupperware containers.
The diet is simple.
Eat when you are hungry and stop eating when you are full. However, you need to eat food from certain lists. The green list means you can eat as much as you want from the list. Then, from the orange list you can have 1 item and the red list is a big NONO.
2. Training
Training to me is very important on any weight loss program as it accelerates your progress. On the Banting diet, you will still lose weight, whether you are training or not, however you will have much better results when following a training program as well.
I would recommend weight training programs that are designed by Kris Gethin, I find that I resonate with his style of training and have achieved the best results following his programs.
The gym, however, is not for everyone and if you feel like the gym scares you, you can also follow a training program at home. Simply do 20 minutes worth of HIIT cardio in the morning and evening.
How does HIIT work?
Let`s say for example you enjoy jogging...
You will run for 15 seconds as fast as you possibly can and then jog slowly for 45 seconds. Do this 20 times and you are good to go.
3. Motivation/support
Support: Find a person who you can be accountable before you start. This way you know that when you eat that piece of chocolate cake you have to tell someone about it and you will be less likely to consume it in a moment of weakness.
Then for motivation: Find a picture of a person you want to look like and stick that picture in places where you will see it often. Looking at your goal continuously helps you to stay on track.

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How to Succeed at Weight Loss

Losing weight, eating healthier and becoming more active... while these sound like common resolutions for the New Year, these goals don't have to begin January 1st. Making this healthy lifestyle change can be good any time of the year.
Many people struggle with weight loss and eating enough of the right types of foods. Finding time for physical activity is another common challenge a lot of people face. While it can seem overwhelming at first to make the changes needed for a healthier lifestyle, chances are you'll love the benefits which often include increased energy and reduced joint pain.
7 Tips to Help You Succeed at Weight Loss
For those of you who struggle to find the motivation and energy to succeed during a healthy weight loss program, here are 7 tips to help you stay focused.
1. Make a Schedule: Weight loss programs can seem daunting and intimidating at first, but a schedule can make everything seem more manageable. Creating lists, plans and scheduling out your workouts and meals will help you follow an organized and constructed program. Although planning takes time, this will help you find pockets of time for weekly workouts and even help you make your lunch and plan for snacks. Taking a couple minutes to plan ahead will relieve your stress and keep you focused on the path to success.
2. Reward Yourself: I'm not talking about with candy... reward your weight loss by going for a walk, buying a new book, taking a bubble bath or purchasing a new clothing item... Rewarding yourself with inedible items will keep your weight loss program move forward successfully. These types of "treats" help you stay focused on your goals and motivated to reaching another milestone in your weight loss program.
3. Stay Off the Couch: I know it may seem unusual, but try watching your favorite TV shows while walking on a treadmill or doing some yoga stretches. According the Institute for Medicine and Public Health, the average person sits in front of the TV for 56 hours a week. This sedentary lifestyle can lead to heart disease and high blood pressure. Stay on track by forgoing the sedentary TV time and finding a way to stay active instead.
4. Eat In: I know, I know. Everyone loves to eat out, but staying in and fixing your own meals six out of seven nights a week will help you maintain your nutritional goals. When you eat out all bets are off. Oftentimes the menu gets a hold of your good decisions and you wind up with a bucket of fried food in front of your face. Cooking your own food allows you to stay in control of what goes into your meals and your mouth.
5. Substitute: Stay on track by substituting fresh fruits and veggies for your potato chips and sugary snacks. Try swapping out different exercises as well to avoid getting into a rut or suffering from an overuse injury. Doing the same physical activities day after day can become boring, so try mixing up your workouts to keep things interesting and fresh.
6. Smile: Stay positive! Every day you should wake up feeling renewed and confident in yourself. Just because you may not have achieved your weight loss goal yet, doesn't mean that it is impossible. Having a positive attitude and pleasant demeanor can go a long way to help increase your motivation.

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These 8 Types of Foods Make You Fat and Gain Weight

Let us discuss about the foods that help you in gaining fat and weight. There are many foods which you think are healthy, but make you fat in the long run. Some of the facts may surprise you and you will be shocked how you have been thinking about these foods. Let us discuss one by one.
#1. Fat Free - Fat Free Rice Cakes, Low fat biscuits, calories counted ready meals
This food contains starch with zero fibre. Starch is finally converted into sugar in our body. Our body produces insulin to control sugar. Insulin production helps in storing fat, increasing hunger and craving. So this cycle keeps repeating and we gain weight.
Eating high starch grain based diet will make you fatigue, depressed, constipated, malnourished, irritable and vulnerable to chronic illnesses like high blood sugar, type 2 diabetes.
Food companies market them as healthy food, but in reality they are helping you in gaining fat and weight, so avoid them as much as possible.
#2. Slim Fast Shakes
Most of these shakes are made up of high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, enriched flours. The corn syrup is a grain, not a vegetable. It is an anti nutrient, contains omega-6 fats which are inflammatory and blood sugar disruptive. In flour enriched products, only two or three nutrients are added back after removing 15 nutrients. These products are left which nothing as nutrients.
#3. Sugar free - Sugar Free Ice Cream, Sugar Free Snacks and Desserts
Sugar free products are loaded with artificial sweeteners. These sweeteners will make you gain weight as they trick your mind and body. They do not feed your body anything what it actually needs. This will produce vicious cycle of craving, eating, eating more artificial sweeteners and more craving. As a result of this, you will gain weight in long turn.
If you really care about your health then keep away from highly toxic aspartame (NutraSweet) and other sweeteners such as sucralose (Splenda), saccharin (Sweet-n-Low), and acesulfame-k.
#4. Protein and Energy bars - Soy protein energy bars, Tofu, Soy milk
Protein and Energy bars are basically soy protein isolates. So protein isolates create deficiencies of vitamin E, D, B12, calcium, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron and zinc. Zinc is necessary for a strong immune system and also plays important role in intelligence and behavior because it is needed for optimal development and functioning of nerve and brain system. It also helps in controlling blood sugar level and it is required for healthy reproductive systems.
So do not consume higher doses of Protein energy bars and tofu products.
#5. Diet Soda
Diet Soda contains artificial sweeteners which are not healthy at all. Sweeteners like NutraSweet and Splenda do more harm than good to our body. They raise insulin in our body and store fat. So avoid them all.
#6. Refined vegetable oils - canola oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, and safflower oil
We have been told to avoid fats. But it's not the case. There are two types of fats, good fats and bad fats.
Bad fats are trans fat and vegetables fats. This is contrary to belief that cholesterol and saturated are bad fats. But in reality they are good fats which are required by our body to function properly.

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Painless Ways Of Losing Weight

If you are desperate to lose those excess pounds, know that there are painless ways for losing weight. Though eating healthier and adhering to an exercise regimen will take some work, it won't really require heroic effort. All you need to do is to make simple lifestyle changes.
How To Lose Weight
Add foods to your diet rather than subtracting them - You must add healthy goodies that you really love such as juicy grapes, cherries, or snow peas. Consider slipping those favourite fruits into your bag and add the veggies into stews, sauces, and soups.
Forget working out - If "exercise" will inspire you to creative avoidance, experts recommend avoiding it. Maybe the trick for you to enjoy a workout is to never call it working out. So burn some calories and invigorate muscles by riding bikes, hiking, beachcombing, grass skiing, and washing the car.
Walk - If the weather is nice, a super-easy way of staying fit is to walk. It would be wise for you to get out of your office and enjoy walking meetings. Also, take the stairs whenever you have the chance. Experts say that walking for at least 30-minutes a day is a good start.
Switch to lower-calorie versions of the food you love - While you are trimming fat calories, boost your fiber intake since this will help you feel satisfied longer. Adding a cup of whole wheat flour to your pizza dough can be a smart option.
Hydration helps - Keeping your body refreshed with lots of water might likewise help your workout. Most people say that they can exercise more and much longer if they are hydrated.
Tune in - Practice some stress-relieving cardio boxing whenever possible. Also, try dancing to the music you love. When watching your favourite show, pedal your stationary bike or walk the treadmill during commercials. It would also be a wise idea for you to put in high-energy exercise videos and be motivated by it. Well, it would not actually matter what you do as long as you are up and active.

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Do You Make These Mistakes With Your Weight Loss Program?

Today, I am going to point out a few common mistakes we make in our weight loss efforts. We put hard efforts, but do not understand where we are going wrong. Most of us have faced these challenges at some point of time. Take one mistake at a time and improve upon it.
#1. Not drinking enough water? It is a must for fat loss!
I figured out that drinking water is really challenging. We have to at least drink 3-4 liters of water each day during our fat loss regime. It is required for proper functioning of our liver. You could suffer from headache if you do not drink enough water. So make extra efforts to drink more water during fat loss days. Simple method can be to buy a one liter water bottle and drink four bottles each day.
#2. Not eating enough protein? Have at least 20-30 grams per meal.
Protein is critical for fat loss. It is the building block of muscles. Eat at least 30 grams in breakfast and more than 20 grams in lunch and dinner. It will control your food craving and provide necessary energy for that day. For first few days you will feel like you are overfeeding but you will be comfortable after a few days. 2-3 whole eggs or chicken or 30 grams of protein shake with milk can do the trick.
#3. Not eating within one hour of waking.
Not eating within one hour of waking up from bed can affect your fat loss program. Skipping breakfast is also closely related to over eating later in the day. Even if you do not feel hungry in the morning, have a little breakfast with milk shake. So make special efforts to eat in the morning.
#4. Overeating fast food, nuts, peanuts, etc.
Fast food can kill your fat loss efforts and it is really challenging to avoid them or stop them. So eat foods which are rich in protein, legumes and fiber. Also do not over eat nuts and peanuts. Once we start eating nuts, we do not stop eating them. They are addictive and tasty. You can have fast food on cheat days. So whenever you get a feeling of eating some fast food, make a note of it and eat on cheat days after exercise.
#5. Overeating sugar-free or low-fat foods.
When we are on a fat loss program, we tend to consume foods which say sugar-free or low-fat foods. They do not help in losing fat but help in gaining fat because these foods contain artificial sweeteners which increase your food craving and you tend to eat more.
#6. Hitting the gym too often.
When you are on a fat loss mission, focus more on your eating habits. Spending more time in the gym can reverse the focus because you tend to eat and drink more. So, do high intensity training 2-3 times a week, not more than that.
#7. Skipping the breakfast.
People who skip their breakfast tend to become fat. Because when you do not eat in the morning, your sugar level goes below required and you binge more during the day. So your pancreas has to produce more insulin. This can lead to type 2 diabetes in the long run. So have a protein rich breakfast and enjoy it, you will be more energetic to lose fat.

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Targeting Rapid Fat Loss

Your body needs to be able to function and when you cut your caloric intake below 1000, your body will begin to suffer. The more muscles you pack on, the more body fat you will burn because the calories you have eaten will be burned for energy by your muscles. In order to burn calories from your stored fat, your body requires the presence of oxygen. During aerobic exercise, your body goes through several stages before it reaches the point where you are burning fat.
Unprocessed foods are simply better for your metabolism and make it easier for your body to maintain a faster metabolism. A healthy body will be able to easily absorb the key nutrients in whole foods, eliminate waste effectively, and have the necessary energy to exercise on a regular basis. Plenty of foods can alter your mood for the worse, particularly if you eat them in large portions. You do not have to drastically cut down on calories or reduce the intake of carbs to a low level.
Your metabolic rate has always been, and will always be, a result of a combination of your activity levels, caloric intake, and the types of foods that you consume. When you eat small amounts often your body is constantly working to digest and absorb food which requires energy. Regular exercising can be quite the challenging activity if you do not know where to begin or how to perform the exercises properly. Numerous studies have shown you will burn more calories and more fat if you train in intervals.
Seated cable rows are a great way to work the back muscles. For the most efficient workout possible, try to have most or all of your exercises pre-set and ready to go. The squat jump is an effective exercise for developing the quads and glutes, and is carried out by performing a squat and forcefully jumping up, landing back in a squat. Your toes should slightly be pointing outward, while your feet should be at shoulder-width distance. The straight leg deadlift is an excellent exercise for strengthening the hamstrings and lower back. The alternating superman is an effective exercise for developing the core and lower back, and is performed by lying prone, lifting the legs, arms, and head and holding it.
Good health and a fit body are within your reach with a personal trainer to help you stay fit and give you one-on-one instructions to help you reach any fitness goals. You can also try certain diets that incorporate tested and proven principles in fitness and weight loss, putting them into an orderly program that melts away body fat.

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