Author Archive

500 Lovemaking Tips ­ Book Review

Posted by me 25 Jun, 2010

 
One of the biggest challenges couples in long-term relationships face is trying to keep their lovemaking red, hot and steamy. Early on in a relationship, the passion and newness of your lovemaking is always unforgettable; but, as that initial magic fades, it becomes harder to make things exciting again.
So is “500 Lovemaking Tips and Secrets” [...]

 

One of the biggest challenges couples in long-term relationships face is trying to keep their lovemaking red, hot and steamy. Early on in a relationship, the passion and newness of your lovemaking is always unforgettable; but, as that initial magic fades, it becomes harder to make things exciting again.

So is “500 Lovemaking Tips and Secrets” by acclaimed author Michael Webb the right book to bring back the fire? Here’s my take on it.

The book begins with a general foundation and understanding on lovemaking, briefly discussing topics like bedroom toys, adult films, the importance of romance for lovemaking, and interesting truths about Kama Sutra. It also contains a lubrication guide and 16 fully illustrated lovemaking positions in the back of the book. These are all nice touches, but the main attraction and bulk of the book is the 500+ tips.

I have to say, I really LOVE that you can open the book, pick a page and have between 8 ­ 10 easy-to-read tips ready to inspire or use right away. No need to read through dozens of long-winded paragraphs. Everything is formatted neatly and is very easy on the eyes. This is a big plus when you’re just about to make love spur-of-the-moment and you want some ideas.

So, what about the actual tips themselves?

This book is a treasure chest of ideas. It has 539 tips in total. They range from oral sex tips for both men and women, to games you can play to make foreplay more fun (although I would have loved to see more games). It also has tips to make intercourse feel better and unique, ways to surprise your partner like “coming out of the shower with just a towel and playing with your wife,” and even some cool places to make love that most people would never have thought of. While I didn’t find all the tips exciting (which was expected), I found more than enough that appealed to me.

The tips are all mixed together, which can get a little overwhelming. I recommend you skim through the book a few times rather than trying to read the whole thing in one sitting.

This book also lives up to its promise of not containing any raunchy, degrading, immoral or perverted ideas that so many lovemaking books seem to have.

In conclusion, while not all the tips in the book amazed me and I would have been nice to see some more ‘games’, it’s still THE most complete book of tips and ideas on improving lovemaking I’ve ever read. Nothing else comes close. All in all, I found it very enjoyable to read and use :) So if you want to make your lovemaking exciting again or even if you just want some tips for more pleasure, then I highly recommend this book for you.
 
For more information about 500 Lovemaking Tips : Click here

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Lose 30 in Thirty Review

Posted by me 2 Feb, 2010

Internationally recognized fitness expert Rocco Castellano has decided to let the general public in on the methods he uses to help celebs lose 30 pounds in thirty days. Rocco is the go to guy for beauty pageant contestants, professional athletes, models, and music and film stars who need to lose weight fast. He’s been producing [...]

Internationally recognized fitness expert Rocco Castellano has decided to let the general public in on the methods he uses to help celebs lose 30 pounds in thirty days. Rocco is the go to guy for beauty pageant contestants, professional athletes, models, and music and film stars who need to lose weight fast. He’s been producing spectacular results for these high paid people for years. Castellano has proven over and over again that anybody can lose weight-quickly.

But there’s a catch, of sorts. You won’t find any coddling here. There’s none of that popular tripe like, “It’s not your fault you’re fat.” Nope. Rocco believes in telling it like it is. In fact, he’s downright blunt about the fact that your weight is your fault. His mantra, “Say it with me. IT IS MY FAULT.” This is refreshingly honest, if you ask me, because, although it’s tough, it also empowers people to know that they CAN lose the weight. You just have to do exactly what Rocco tells you to do.

One of the best parts of Lose 30 in Thirty is that it cuts through all the bullshit that’s out there concerning weight loss. There are people making a fortune by selling “secrets” that are really a bunch of bull. That kind of thing makes Rocco fighting mad. He’s made it his personal mission to tell people the truth so that they can finally get the results they need instead of just wasting their time and their hard-earned money.

Lose 30 in Thirty isn’t just about losing weight and inches, though. It’s really about reshaping your body. Those beauty contestants wouldn’t look very good in their swim suits if they had saggy skin hanging on their stomachs, would they? Rocco will guide you through everything it takes to make your body firm and lifted in all the right places. And you’ll likely become healthier in the process.

Rocco’s material includes vitally important specifics that you need to know in order to take control of your body. Things like:

  • What type of exercises that will KEEP you from losing weight
  • Exactly what you should and should not be eating to melt pounds
  • The truth about supplements and weight lossNothing is left out. You get:
  • Lose 30 in Thirty Fitness Program eBook
  • Lose 30 in Thirty Food Journal
  • Lose 30 in Thirty Workouts Cards (135 in all)
  • Sample Meal Plans, plus 12 month’s of Online Meal Plans
  • Specialty Workout Cards
  • askROCCO Grocery ListThere’s a whole bunch more in the program, too, but I think you get the idea.If you are serious about wanting to lose weight fast, then Lose 30 in Thirty is the program you’ve been waiting for. Take charge of your body, and your life!
      
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    Yeast Infection Knowledge - The Truth Behind Your Yeast Infection

    Posted by me 19 Jan, 2010

     
    Educating yourself about your candida infection is the first and most important step in curing this painful, annoying and relatively dangerous chronic condition and taking responsibility over your health and well-being.
    Although yeast infection (known by the names of Candida, Monilia or Thrush) is in fact a very common condition, (as three out of four women [...]

     

    Educating yourself about your candida infection is the first and most important step in curing this painful, annoying and relatively dangerous chronic condition and taking responsibility over your health and well-being.

    Although yeast infection (known by the names of Candida, Monilia or Thrush) is in fact a very common condition, (as three out of four women develop it at some point in their lifetimes), it is little discussed. Most people regard candida infection as a ‘on the surface’ problem that should be treated with creams and antibiotics whereas few are aware of its potentially risky complications.

    Yeast Infection is first and foremost an internal problem. Like most chronic conditions, there is never one cause for this fungal problem and thus yeast infection cannot be permanently eliminated using medications or creams that work superficially and fail to tackle the root factors that trigger the formation of candida infection in the first place.

    The problem is that the majority of yeast infection sufferers choose to leave it in the hands of others: Doctors, pharmacists, drug and over the counter industries. They willingly choose NOT to take responsibility for their candida condition, for their health and for their own body.

    If you suffer from yeast infection then you must have experienced the confusion stemmed from conflicting advice and from information overload. Honest information about vaginal yeast infection or any other type of candida infection is harder to come by than ever before, and nearly everyone has been misled at one time or another. I know I have. I wasted literally thousands of dollars on candida treatment programs that didn’t “work out” and anti-yeast infection products that didn’t do anything.

    Furthermore, to successfully navigate through today’s jungle of misleading, dishonest and conflicting information, you’re going to have to become a very shrewd and discriminating consumer.

    There are in fact, alternative, cheap, safe, natural and holistic health practices and methods necessary to permanently eliminate the symptoms of this disease and cure the root internal cause of yeast infection regardless of its type, location, or level of severity.

    To effectively overcome candida infection, you need to be aware of the real cause of yeast infection and be able to identify its symptoms. You need to know how to self-test and diagnose your candida condition, learn about the dietary principals needed to maintain a candida free environment and about the complimentary treatments that will help you battle against the negative effects and complications of your yeast infection.

    By educating yourself about the steps you need to take in order to deal with your candida infection condition and help your body heal itself and control the fungal overgrowth from the inside out you can and will eliminate the pain, annoyance, humiliation and frustration associated with this condition and feel more in control. Additionally, as a side benefits you’ll feel more energized, healthier and vibrant. You will enjoy improved digestion, enhanced vision, and healthier hair, skin and nails.

    Knowledge is power. Embrace it. Share it and apply it and you will be yeast infection free.

    This article is based on the book, “Yeast Infection No More” by Linda Allen. Linda is an author, researcher, nutritionist and health consultant who dedicated her life to creating the ultimate holistic yeast infection solution guaranteed to permanently cure the root of candida and dramatically improve the overall quality of your life, naturally, without the use prescription medication and without any side effects. Learn more by visiting her website:

    YeastInfectionNoMore.com

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    Causes of Panic Attacks

    Posted by me 31 Jul, 2009

    The short and obvious answer: panic attacks are caused by high anxiety. But, what exactly is anxiety? Understanding how anxiety crops up will help you defeat panic attacks.
    One of the biggest myths surrounding anxiety is that it is harmful and can lead to a number of various life-threatening conditions.
    Definition of Anxiety
    Anxiety is defined as a [...]

    The short and obvious answer: panic attacks are caused by high anxiety. But, what exactly is anxiety? Understanding how anxiety crops up will help you defeat panic attacks.

    One of the biggest myths surrounding anxiety is that it is harmful and can lead to a number of various life-threatening conditions.

    Definition of Anxiety

    Anxiety is defined as a state of apprehension or fear resulting from the anticipation of a real or imagined threat, event, or situation. It is one of the most common human emotions experienced by people at some point in their lives.

    However, most people who have never experienced a panic attack, or extreme anxiety, fail to realize the terrifying nature of the experience. Extreme dizziness, blurred vision, tingling and feelings of breathlessness—and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

    When these sensations occur and people do not understand why, they feel they have contracted an illness, or a serious mental condition. The threat of losing complete control seems very real and naturally very terrifying.

    Fight/Flight Response: One of the root causes of panic attacks?

    I am sure most of you have heard of the fight/flight response as an explanation for one of the root causes of panic attacks. Have you made the connection between this response and the unusual sensations you experience during and after a panic attack episode?

    Anxiety is a response to a danger or threat. It is so named because all of its effects are aimed toward either fighting or fleeing from the danger. Thus, the sole purpose of anxiety is to protect the individual from harm. This may seem ironic given that you no doubt feel your anxiety is actually causing you great harm…perhaps the most significant of all the causes of panic attacks.

    However, the anxiety that the fight/flight response created was vital in the daily survival of our ancient ancestors—when faced with some danger, an automatic response would take over that propelled them to take immediate action such as attack or run. Even in today’s hectic world, this is still a necessary mechanism. It comes in useful when you must respond to a real threat within a split second.

    Anxiety is a built-in mechanism to protect us from danger. Interestingly, it is a mechanism that protects but does not harm—an important point that will be elaborated upon later.

    The Physical Manifestations of a Panic Attack: Other pieces of the puzzle to understand the causes of panic attacks. Nervousness and Chemical Effects…

    When confronted with danger, the brain sends signals to a section of the nervous system. It is this system that is responsible for gearing the body up for action and also calms the body down and restores equilibrium. To carry out these two vital functions, the autonomic nervous system has two subsections, the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.

    Although I don’t want to become too “scientific,” having a basic understanding of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system will help you understand the causes of panic attacks.

    The sympathetic nervous system is the one we tend to know all too much about because it primes our body for action, readies us for the “fight or flight” response, while the parasympathetic nervous system is the one we love dearly as it serves as our restoring system, which returns the body to its normal state.

    When either of these systems is activated, they stimulate the whole body, which has an “all or nothing” effect. This explains why when a panic attack occurs, the individual often feels a number of different sensations throughout the body.

    The sympathetic system is responsible for releasing the adrenaline from the adrenal glands on the kidneys. These are small glands located just above the kidneys. Less known, however, is that the adrenal glands also release adrenaline, which functions as the body’s chemical messengers to keep the activity going. When a panic attack begins, it does not switch off as easily as it is turned on. There is always a period of what would seem increased or continued anxiety, as these messengers travel throughout the body. Think of them as one of the physiological causes of panic attacks, if you will.

    After a period of time, the parasympathetic nervous system gets called into action. Its role is to return the body to normal functioning once the perceived danger is gone. The parasympathetic system is the system we all know and love, because it returns us to a calm relaxed state.

    When we engage in a coping strategy that we have learned, for example, a relaxation technique, we are in fact willing the parasympathetic nervous system into action. A good thing to remember is that this system will be brought into action at some stage whether we will it or not. The body cannot continue in an ever-increasing spiral of anxiety. It reaches a point where it simply must kick in, relaxing the body. This is one of the many built-in protection systems our bodies have for survival.

    You can do your best with worrying thoughts, keeping the sympathetic nervous system going, but eventually it stops. In time, it becomes a little smarter than us, and realizes that there really is no danger. Our bodies are incredibly intelligent—modern science is always discovering amazing patterns of intelligence that run throughout the cells of our body. Our body seems to have infinite ways of dealing with the most complicated array of functions we take for granted. Rest assured that your body’s primary goal is to keep you alive and well.

    Not so convinced?

    Try holding your breath for as long as you can. No matter how strong your mental will is, it can never override the will of the body. This is good news—no matter how hard you try to convince yourself that you are gong to die from a panic attack, you won’t. Your body will override that fear and search for a state of balance. There has never been a reported incident of someone dying from a panic attack.

    Remember this next time you have a panic attack; he causes of panic attacks cannot do you any physical harm. Your mind may make the sensations continue longer than the body intended, but eventually everything will return to a state of balance. In fact, balance (homeostasis) is what our body continually strives for.

    The interference for your body is nothing more than the sensations of doing rigorous exercise. Our body is not alarmed by these symptoms. Why should it be? It knows its own capability. It’s our thinking minds that panic, which overreact and scream in sheer terror! We tend to fear the worst and exaggerate our own sensations. A quickened heart beat becomes a heart attack. An overactive mind seems like a close shave with schizophrenia. Is it our fault? Not really—we are simply diagnosing from poor information.

    Cardiovascular Effects Activity in the sympathetic nervous system increases our heartbeat rate, speeds up the blood flow throughout the body, ensures all areas are well supplied with oxygen and that waste products are removed. This happens in order to prime the body for action.

    A fascinating feature of the “fight or flight” mechanism is that blood (which is channelled from areas where it is currently not needed by a tightening of the blood vessels) is brought to areas where it is urgently needed.

    For example, should there be a physical attack, blood drains from the skin, fingers, and toes so that less blood is lost, and is moved to “active areas” such as the thighs and biceps to help the body prepare for action.

    This is why many feel numbness and tingling during a panic attack-often misinterpreted as some serious health risk-such as the precursor to a heart attack. Interestingly, most people who suffer from anxiety often feel they have heart problems. If you are really worried that such is the case with your situation, visit your doctor and have it checked out. At least then you can put your mind at rest.

    Respiratory Effects

    One of the scariest effects of a panic attack is the fear of suffocating or smothering. It is very common during a panic attack to feel tightness in the chest and throat. I’m sure everyone can relate to some fear of losing control of your breathing. From personal experience, anxiety grows from the fear that your breathing itself would cease and you would be unable to recover. Can a panic attack stop our breathing? No.

    A panic attack is associated with an increase in the speed and depth of breathing. This has obvious importance for the defense of the body since the tissues need to get more oxygen to prepare for action. The feelings produced by this increase in breathing, however, can include breathlessness, hyperventilation, sensations of choking or smothering, and even pains or tightness in the chest. The real problem is that these sensations are alien to us, and they feel unnatural.

    Having experienced extreme panic attacks myself, I remember that on many occasions, I would have this feeling that I couldn’t trust my body to do the breathing for me, so I would have to manually take over and tell myself when to breathe in and when to breathe out. Of course, this didn’t suit my body’s requirement of oxygen and so the sensations would intensify—along with the anxiety. It was only when I employed the technique I will describe for you later, did I let the body continue doing what it does best—running the whole show.

    Importantly, a side-effect of increased breathing, (especially if no actual activity occurs) is that the blood supply to the head is actually decreased. While such a decrease is only a small amount and is not at all dangerous, it produces a variety of unpleasant but harmless symptoms that include dizziness, blurred vision, confusion, sense of unreality, and hot flushes.

    Other Physical Effects of Panic Attacks:

    Now that we’ve discussed some of the primary physiological causes of panic attacks, there are a number of other effects that are produced by the activation of the sympathetic nervous system, none of which are in any way harmful.

    For example, the pupils widen to let in more light, which may result in blurred vision, or “seeing” stars, etc. There is a decrease in salivation, resulting in dry mouth. There is decreased activity in the digestive system, which often produces nausea, a heavy feeling in the stomach, and even constipation. Finally, many of the muscle groups tense up in preparation for “fight or flight” and this results in subjective feelings of tension, sometimes extending to actual aches and pains, as well as trembling and shaking.

    Overall, the fight/flight response results in a general activation of the whole bodily metabolism. Thus, one often feels hot and flushed and, because this process takes a lot of energy, the person generally feels tired and drained.

    Mental Manifestations: Are the causes of panic attacks all in my head? is a question many people wonder to themselves.

    The goal of the fight/flight response is making the individual aware of the potential danger that may be present. Therefore, when activated, the mental priority is placed upon searching the surroundings for potential threats. In this state one is highly-strung, so to speak. It is very difficult to concentrate on any one activity, as the mind has been trained to seek all potential threats and not to give up until the threat has been identified. As soon as the panic hits, many people look for the quick and easiest exit from their current surroundings, such as by simply leaving the bank queue and walking outside. Sometimes the anxiety can heighten, if we perceive that leaving will cause some sort of social embarrassment.

    If you have a panic attack while at the workplace but feel you must press on with whatever task it is you are doing, it is quite understandable that you would find it very hard to concentrate. It is quite common to become agitated and generally restless in such a situation. Many individuals I have worked with who have suffered from panic attacks over the years indicated that artificial light—such as that which comes from computer monitors and televisions screens—can can be one of the causes of panic attacks by triggering them or worsen a panic attack, particularly if the person is feeling tired or run down.

    This is worth bearing in mind if you work for long periods of time on a computer. Regular break reminders should be set up on your computer to remind you to get up from the desk and get some fresh air when possible.

    In other situations, when during a panic attack an outside threat cannot normally be found, the mind turns inwards and begins to contemplate the possible illness the body or mind could be suffering from. This ranges from thinking it might have been something you ate at lunch, to the possibility of an oncoming cardiac arrest.

    The burning question is: Why is the fight/flight response activated during a panic attack even when there is apparently nothing to be frightened of?

    Upon closer examination of the causes of panic attacks, it would appear that what we are afraid of are the sensations themselves—we are afraid of the body losing control. These unexpected physical symptoms create the fear or panic that something is terribly wrong. Why do you experience the physical symptoms of the fight/flight response if you are not frightened to begin with? There are many ways these symptoms can manifest themselves, not just through fear.

    For example, it may be that you have become generally stressed for some reason in your life, and this stress results in an increase in the production of adrenaline and other chemicals, which from time to time, would produce symptoms….and which you perceive as the causes of panic attacks.

    This increased adrenaline can be maintained chemically in the body, even after the stress has long gone. Another possibility is diet, which directly affects our level of stress. Excess caffeine, alcohol, or sugar is known for causing stress in the body, and is believed to be one of the contributing factors of the causes of panic attacks (Chapter 5 gives a full discussion on diet and its importance).

    Unresolved emotions are often pointed to as possible trigger of panic attacks, but it is important to point out that eliminating panic attacks from your life does not necessarily mean analyzing your psyche and digging into your subconscious. The “One Move” technique will teach you to deal with the present moment and defuse the attack along with removing the underlying anxiety that sparks the initial anxiety.

    Learn more

    Panic Away

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    Tips On Preventing The Swine Flu

    Posted by me 26 May, 2009

    For years we’ve worried about the possibility of a flu pandemic, and it seems those fears may become a reality. The swine flu, which recently surfaced in Mexico, has sickened thousands and alarmed millions of people around the world.
    As of the time that I’m writing this, there are 109 confirmed cases of H1N1 flu in [...]

    For years we’ve worried about the possibility of a flu pandemic, and it seems those fears may become a reality. The swine flu, which recently surfaced in Mexico, has sickened thousands and alarmed millions of people around the world.

    As of the time that I’m writing this, there are 109 confirmed cases of H1N1 flu in the United States—spread out among 11 different states. Not surprisingly, I’ve been fielding a lot of questions about it from colleagues, patients, and subscribers who want to know what they can do to avoid contracting the virus—as well as how to cope if they fall ill. Here’s what I’ve been telling them…

    Prevention is your best defense

    The first thing you want to do is follow the same basic flu prevention techniques that you would during the regular cold and flu season. So far, the virus seems to be behaving like more common strains of flu, which means good hygiene is essential if you want to avoid infection. Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly, especially if you’ve been around someone who is sick or you’ve visited a public place.

    Good hygiene also requires that you avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth. This is a special challenge at this time of year because so many of us—including me—have seasonal allergies. However, it’s the best way to avoid transferring traces of the virus that may be on your hands to the mucous membranes where infection could take hold.

    Next, eat a consistently nutritious diet. Fruits and vegetables, which are rich in antioxidants, are especially important. You also want to watch your intake of sugars, since high-glycemic carbohydrates and sweets weaken the immune system, as will alcohol.

    Bolster your immune system so it’s in peak shape

    A strong immune system continues to be your best defense against any acute illness, including the swine flu. There are several potent nutritional supplements that you can start taking now to power up your immune system, including:

    1. Resveratrol: This powerful antioxidant, which is found most abundantly in red grape skins, helps to prevent the flu by making it tougher for flu cells to divide and replicate themselves.
    2. Quercetin: This powerful polyphenol that is found in fruits and vegetables is very similar to resveratrol in its chemical structure. It helps to protect the lung tissues from free radicals, and helps to prevent cytokine storms, which are the inflammatory messengers that can overwhelm healthy lung tissue.
    3. Beta Glucan: This complex sugar (polysaccharide) is derived from the cell wall of baker’s yeast, oats, and barley, as well as some medicinal mushrooms. As a supplement it primes neutrophils, white blood cells in your immune system that engulf alien microorganisms.
    4. Selenium: You need selenium to make glutathione, your body’s most potent natural antioxidant. Plus, as a cardiologist I’m very in touch with the impact of selenium on cardiomyopathy. Years ago, a famous disease in China called Keshan disease was causing cardiomyopathy in adults and children, due to a deficiency in selenium that weakened the heart muscle. When patients were given selenium, it increased the efficacy of the white blood cells, mobilizing them to eradicate the infection that caused the cardiomyopathy.
    5. N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC): This important amino acid is the precursor to glutathione—which as I just mentioned is your body’s most potent antioxidant. It also helps to support your liver, and helps remove toxins from your body.

    What to do if you begin to feel ill

    If you follow all of these precautions and still begin to feel worn down and symptomatic, you want to do three things:

    1. Add licorice root to your supplement regimen. Licorice root extract supports the adrenal glands and fights inflammation in the lungs. Star anise is an herb that is one of the materials used to make the flu medication Tamiflu. Interestingly, the star anise plant is in a similar plant family to licorice root. This may explain the antiviral properties of licorice root extract. There is a lot of press about Tamiflu, but I would be cautious about giving Tamiflu to young adults unless there is a diagnosis of the H1N1 flu, since overuse can cause bizarre psychological reactions. Licorice root extract is safe, and it does have some efficacy in treating viruses. It’s sold in liquid form, and you should take one dropperful under the tongue twice a day. NOTE: If you have high blood pressure, use licorice root extract only on a very short-term basis, one to two weeks at most. With prolonged use, licorice root can cause blood pressure to rise. If you have a home blood pressure monitor, keep a close eye on your readings.
    2. Up your vitamin C intake…and I don’t mean by just a little bit. I recommend 5,000 mg of vitamin C a day, in divided doses, to help fight infection. Just be aware that this much vitamin C can cause diarrhea. If this happens to you, reduce the dosage to the highest amount you can tolerate.
    3. Seek medical help. This is one time that you shouldn’t try to go it alone. The sooner you are evaluated by a doctor, the better your chances of having a short illness and full recovery.

    Finally, keep a positive mindset

    I can’t stress enough how important it is that you avoid undue stress and have positive intention as we weather this storm. By that, I mean telling yourself that you’re not going to become sick and then trusting that you—and your immune system—are up to the challenge.

    Too often, we subconsciously create what we fear the most. This is undoubtedly a frightening time, but don’t allow those emotions to consume you. A cautious but positive approach to life is the best medicine for all of us right now.

    It’s also important to remember that we’ve seen swine flu before and it does not carry the mortality and morbidity of other previous flus, such as the epidemic of 1918.

    If You Would Like more info on Resveratol check this out:

    http://www.rejenx.com/luvnlife

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    Your Thyroid and Weight loss – The Connection is Real

    Posted by me 22 May, 2009

     
    Your thyroid dictates much of your metabolism… any malfunction or disease afflicting this area may cause you to have problems in metabolism leading to a  problem with your weight – you may either gain weight, lose weight, or may find that losing weight is harder than usual.
    Those that plan diets do not take into consideration [...]

     

    Your thyroid dictates much of your metabolism… any malfunction or disease afflicting this area may cause you to have problems in metabolism leading to a  problem with your weight – you may either gain weight, lose weight, or may find that losing weight is harder than usual.

    Those that plan diets do not take into consideration how their thyroids and metabolism may affect their weight loss program. Most experts and even the media pitch in and recommend that the best way to lose weight is cut calories.

    Those with a condition called hyperthyroidism suffer from an overactive thyroid leading to one having his or her metabolism skyrocket. If this is the case, then you will probably lose weight fast. This is a nice proposition for some who wish to lose weight. However, this is actually hazardous to the health.

    Aside from the medical difficulties such a disease brings, one will also notice weight problems as a result. These people have trouble keeping on weight and may notice weakness and bulging of the eyes. This disease may need special treatment from doctors.

    Hypothyroidism on the other hand works in the other direction – slowing metabolism until the body gains weight at an incredible rate. Like hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism causes a general weakness in the body. It too may need special treatment and may cause serious health problems if left unattended.

    While cutting calories in itself can be very hard for most people – imagine, the people involved in life and death struggles at the supermarket regarding whether to buy that extra box of sweets, some have exactly the opposite problem.

    Instead of eating too much calories – which is a problem in itself, they eat too little calories instead.

    Problem… What Problem?
    The problem with some is that they believe that since the experts say that they have to cut calories, cutting calories to an inordinate amount will reap greater results. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. While cutting calories helps diets, consuming too little calories pushed the body into a hoard mode, the body’s metabolism slow to adapt to the lesser amount of available energy.

    If your body enters this mode, your body will work at such slow metabolism that losing weight becomes impossible.  The technique here should be to reduce calories without the body slowing its metabolism. Only then can losing weight become easier.

    Another problem that can arise from decreased metabolism is that when your metabolism slows due to a drastic reduction in metabolism, and then you suddenly eat a good, hearty, calorie-filled meal, you are bound to gain more weight owing to the increased surplus of energy.

    This is why an imbalanced meal is highly discouraged among those that seek to lose weight. The sudden loss and increase of calories will cause an imbalance in one’s energy consumption directly affecting fat deposit.

    Here is a simple computation to help you get to the right amount of calories you will need per day so that you get your nutrients in the right balance.

    First of all, multiply your weight in kilograms by 30. If you only know your weight in pounds, divide it by 2.2 to get to its English equivalent. We divide this number by 30 because that is the number of calories you need to maintain your weight per pound of weight.

    For example if your weight in pounds is 150, divide it by 2.2. That will give you a figure of 68.18. This is your weight in kilograms. Multiply this by 30 and you will arrive at the amount of calories you will need per day to maintain 150 lbs.

    You may consult a nutritionist to help you come lose weight. In the end it all comes down to math. If you consume more that your body needs, it stores it as fat. Now is probably a good time to start studying the back of those grocery cartons.

    Try to keep your diet at a 40% protein, 25% fat, and 35% carbohydrate meals at 300 calories per meal. Spread out these meals in a day for optimum results.

    While it may be simple computation to get at numbers, do not forget the earlier mentioned fact that the body adapts to its condition. Expose it to extreme ones and you may find yourself getting results you never wanted. Consult a nutritionist for more advice.

    (3) Comment Categories : Thyroid and Weight loss – The Connection is Real

    How Artificial Sweeteners Are Making You Fat

    Posted by me 6 May, 2009

    You know how frustrating it is to be doing everything we are “supposed” to be doing, but still, do not lose weight. Of course, this is frustrating. Losing weight is hard enough, and to change your eating habits and still see no results, that’s even more frustrating.
    Why do these people not lose weight? If I [...]

    You know how frustrating it is to be doing everything we are “supposed” to be doing, but still, do not lose weight. Of course, this is frustrating. Losing weight is hard enough, and to change your eating habits and still see no results, that’s even more frustrating.

    Why do these people not lose weight? If I had to pick the most common reason why most people’s efforts have proved no results, I would say it is the deception of artificial sweeteners and processed diet foods. Yes, you heard right. It is the diet coke, diet snacks, processed foods and artificial sweetener in your coffee that is keeping you fat.
    How is this so?

    Artificial sweeteners overwhelm your liver

    Your liver is your largest internal organ, and it’s responsible for an astonishing variety of life-sustaining and health-promoting tasks, including those that make healthy weight loss and weight management possible. Integral to countless metabolic processes, the liver supports the digestive system, controls blood sugar and regulates fat storage. One of your liver’s most important functions, and the most crucial to your weight loss, is chemically breaking down everything that enters your body, from healthy vegetables, to not so healthy fast food, from healthy water to not so healthy soda.

    It’s your liver’s job to distinguish between the nutrients you need to absorb and the dangerous or unnecessary substances that must be filtered out of your bloodstream. But when the liver is clogged and overwhelmed with toxins, like artificial sweeteners, it can’t do a very effective job of processing nutrients and fats. If it can not process the nutrients and fats that your body needs, this will cause you to gain weight or will prevent you from losing weight.

    Your liver also produces bile, a crucial substance for detoxifying our bodies. It is the job of bile to help our bodies break down the fats we need and to assimilate fat-soluble vitamins. But when our bile becomes overly congested with the toxins it’s trying to filter out, it simply can’t function properly. It becomes thick, viscous and highly inefficient in breaking down fats. The result: You are more likely to gain weight and to have a greater difficulty losing it. So the more toxic your body becomes, the more difficulty you’ll have losing weight and keeping it off because your liver just can not work properly to break down fat.

    Are artificial sweeteners considered a toxin?

    What qualifies something as a “toxin”? A toxin is anything that your body does not recognize as a natural food source. The reason why artificial sweeteners have “zero” calories is because your body does not recognize them as a food source. For example, the chemical process to make Splenda (sucralose) alters the chemical composition of the sugar so much that it is somehow converted to a completely different molecule than sugar. This type of “fake” sugar molecule does not occur in nature and therefore your body does not possess the ability to properly metabolize it. This is how the makers of Splenda claim that it has zero calories, because in theory it should not be digested or metabolized by the body (Although it has been shown that some people’s body do absorb up to 15% of the artificial sweeteners they ingest). So the more artificial sweeteners that you consume in one day, the more you are overwhelming your liver with toxins and the less able it is to do its job of processing fat. And what happens if the liver can’t do its job? You can’t lose weight or worse yet, you gain weight.

    What if you don’t use artificial sweeteners? Don’t be fooled. Almost every diet product on the market has some kind of artificial sweetener added to it. Even some children’s snacks are now being made with sucralose (Splenda) and most flavored waters contain sucralose or aspartame.

    Now add up how many things you eat in one day that contain some form of artificial sweetener. The list may be very long. How overwhelmed do you think your liver is? Does it have the ability to work properly? Even if you keep your calories at bay and only drink Diet Coke with your meals, will you truly get down to the weight that you want, and stay there? It has been in my experience that the answer is “no” and until you are ready to commit yourself to a healthy way of eating, weight loss will always be a constant struggle.

    What else do sweeteners do?

    Sweeteners increase appetite

    Artificial sweeteners tell your taste buds that, “sweet stuff has arrived,” which to the brain means, “nutrition has arrived.” When artificial sweetened drink or food reaches the small intestine, the receptors find no nutrition. A message is then sent back to the brain saying, “We’ve been tricked-there’s no nutrition here.” The appestat (the part of your brain that triggers satiety) sends the message to “keep eating because we need nutrition to help process all this fake food and run your body.” So even after you eat a good portioned healthy meal (along with your diet coke) you still feel like your starving all day, or you become very hungry soon after. Your healthy eating efforts may be sabotaged if you continue to feel hungry all day. No one likes to feel hungry so you continue to eat more food until you feel satisfied, which in your effort to lose weight, may just be too much.

    Sweeteners Increase our Sweet Tooth

    Saccharin (Sweet n Low) is 300 times sweeter than sugar, aspartame (Equal) is 200 times sweeter than sugar and sucralose (splenda) is 600 times sweeter than sugar. Such sweeteners can only increase our sweet tooth and increase our taste of sweet things. If you can never get rid of your sugar cravings, any healthy eating plan will be difficult because you will constantly be craving “sweet”. Artificial sweeteners have also shown to promote the same blood sugar fluctuations as regular sugar, which, again will bring on “sugar lows” which will increase appetite and cravings. This is not to say, that something sweet now and again is not ok, but it is those people who can not control their sugar cravings that are being sabotaged by these artificial sweeteners.

    What are some alternatives to sweeteners?

    Giving up sugar and artificial sweeteners may be difficult, especially if you are accustomed to everything having such a sweet taste. A wonderful alternative to sugar and artificial sweeteners is an herb called Stevia. Stevia is an extraordinarily sweet herb, 200-300 times sweeter than sugar. Stevia is almost calorie-free, so it is perfect for people who are watching their weight. Unlike sugar, it does not trigger a rise in blood sugar so you will not get a sudden burst of energy followed by fatigue and a need for another “fix”. It increases energy and aids digestion by stimulating the pancreas. Stevia also presents great advantages over saccharine and other artificial sweeteners in that it is not toxic. Stevia is a plant that is found in nature and is not man-made in a laboratory. Stevia can be found at almost all health food stores such as Whole Foods, and is listed under the “supplement” section. Stevia can be used exactly like sugar and artificial sweeteners to sweeten drinks and it can even be used in baking.

    If weight loss or staying away from sweets has always been a problem for you, take notice of how much artificial sweetener you have been ingesting. That just may be the culprit. Make a resolution this year to give up the “fake” stuff and stick to natural alternatives like Stevia. You will not only be helping your weight loss efforts but you will also be benefiting your health.

    (10) Comment Categories : How Artificial Sweeteners Are Making You Fat

    Review of The Diet Solution Program: The Program that Promises Fat Loss along with an incredible amount of Health and Vitality.

    Posted by me 24 Nov, 2008

    The Diet Solution Program promises a complete and comprehensive weight loss program that will not only help you lose body fat, but guarantees you increased energy, health and vitality all at the same time.
    With so many weight loss programs out on the market and on the internet today, what makes this program any different [...]

    The Diet Solution Program promises a complete and comprehensive weight loss program that will not only help you lose body fat, but guarantees you increased energy, health and vitality all at the same time.

    With so many weight loss programs out on the market and on the internet today, what makes this program any different than all the rest?

    Before we get to the program, let’s take a look at the expert behind this program. Isabel De Los Rios is a nutrition and exercise specialist with 10 years of experience helping clients reach their ideal weight and tackle conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and high cholesterol. Isabel has a very extensive educational background in nutrition and exercise physiology. Her personal experience with her own weight struggles and her mother’s severe diabetes led her search for the BEST nutrition information available today. The Diet Solution Program is a result of her 15 year study and research.

    I’ve also talked to Isabel about her training and education background, and I’ll be honest, it was impressive, unlike other so-called “health experts”, who are just following main stream nutrition programs. Isabel provides her readers with the truth: the facts most people have never taken the time to research, read and decipher.

    Plus, Isabel has been a nutrition and exercise specialist for the past 10 years and has personally worked with hundreds of clients in her own private facility, overseeing successful weight loss programs. This hands on experience with real people solidified the facts and principles she had learned in books, journals and from other health professionals. The proof was really in the results of real people.

    In fact, Isabel’s articles are pretty radical when it comes to her nutrition principles which is why her approach works when main-stream nutrition fails. So if you are looking for the same old nutrition theories taught in every other book and program on the market today, this is not the program for you.

    Now one of the biggest questions about the program is simply, “What is The Diet Solution Program?” Well according to Isabel, it is the most comprehensive and detailed nutrition manual available on the market today. Not only does it teach you exactly what principles you need to follow to finally reach your ideal weight, it gives you the meal plans, shopping lists and recipes to do so. It does not push some extreme, unreasonable way to lose weight. It actually teaches you how you can make this healthy way of eating into a lifestyle. And if you have ever attempted to lose weight in the past, you know that the only way to maintain it is to make it a way of life. The best part about Isabel’s program is that this new way of life is not some torturous eating regimen. She really shows you that you can eat delicious food, combined the right way, to lose weight and maintain it.

    One of the best side effects of the whole program is the increased health and vitality that every participant experiences. Decreases in blood sugar levels, lowered cholesterol, increased energy, elimination of digestive discomfort and cleared skin conditions are just some of the few benefits other people have already experienced.

    Frankly, I’ve used the program myself and recommended to many others. Why? Because I was sick and tired of following nutrition plans that either did not work or made me lose weight but feel terrible. Yes, I want to be at my ideal weight but I also want to maintain a healthy body at the same time and not have to resort to extreme, radical methods. The Diet Solution Program helped me lose weight and feel healthy and energized at the same time.

    Now realize that some effort from you will be required, but Isabel has really done all the hard work for you. Included in her program is:

    Step by step action steps telling you exactly how to put the principles in place
    Detailed daily meal plans that make everyday eating easy
    Shopping Lists to make food shopping a snap
    Delicious Recipes to make everyday meals tasty
    The manual is comprehensive. Jam packed with incredible and valuable information. But you don’t need to wait to get through the whole thing before you can start. You can use Isabel’s Quick Start Guide to start the program ASAP. Some people have even just used the quick start guide and lost 10-15lbs in a little as 6 weeks.

    The Diet Solution Program is not just another weight loss scheme or extreme diet. It is truly the only way to lose weight and enjoy a lifetime of health. The Diet Solution Program is perfect for people who have struggled with their weight their whole life and are sick and tired of programs that just don’t work long term. The DSP is also perfect for people who want to take control of their health and reverse health conditions like diabetes, high cholesterol and heart disease.

    If you’re in the slightest bit curious, I recommend you look closely at Isabel’s program. I was very impressed with all of The Diet Solution Program meal plans, the bonuses, the guarantee, and Isabel’s expertise. For the money, it’s the best deal in the weight loss industry - so much better than diet pills! And remember…

    Isabel De Los Rios’s The Diet Solution Program is backed by a 90 day money back guarantee. And this is a real guarantee… if you are not completely satisfied, you will receive your money back, no “ifs,” “ands,” or “buts.” So you really have nothing to lose.

    (20) Comment Categories : The Diet Solution Program review

    Cross Training for Fitness and Fatloss

    Posted by me 15 Oct, 2008

    The numbers on your scale do not indicate whether you are fit or fat. Far more significant than your total body weight is the composition of your body tissue. If a man’s fatty tissue is bigger than 14% up to 15% of his body mass, or if a woman’s is more than 20% to 22%, [...]

    The numbers on your scale do not indicate whether you are fit or fat. Far more significant than your total body weight is the composition of your body tissue. If a man’s fatty tissue is bigger than 14% up to 15% of his body mass, or if a woman’s is more than 20% to 22%, he or she is overweight, or more precisely, overfat.

    A small amount of fat is needed for padding the internal organs and as insulation under the skin. Excess fat leads to such diseases as diabetes, gout, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, and gallbladder problems. There are very few, very fat persons. The reason is that the fittest, not the fattest survive.

    The problem now is focused on how to resolve the problem. The problem with most people who want to lose weight is that they have the propensity to concentrate more on getting those numbers lower than what they are seeing now. What happens next is that they strive harder to achieve a lower weight, according to the “ever reliable” result of the weighing scale.

    It would be more important to think of the human body as a heat-exchange engine that works on the basic principles of energy physics. The caloric balance equals the total calorie intake minus the total calorie expenditure.

    Some of the calories people ingest are used for basal metabolism. As people get old, their bodies require fewer calories for this basic upkeep. Some calories are excreted as waste products. Some go into “work metabolism,” the energy expenditure required for any physical activity.

    Hence, if people take in more calories than are used by these functions, there is a definite caloric excess. By the laws of physics, energy is transformed rather than destroyed. In this case, each excess of 3,500 calories is changed into a pound of fat. If people want to reverse this process, they have to burn up 3,500 calories to lose a single pound.
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    (20) Comment Categories : cross training

    It’s time to start a Healthy life: your 7 days program

    Posted by me 5 Oct, 2008

    “The Way to Wellness”
    How many times have you gone to sleep at night, swearing you’ll go to the gym in the morning, and then changing your [...]

    “The Way to Wellness”

    How many times have you gone to sleep at night, swearing you’ll go to the gym in the morning, and then changing your mind just eight hours later because when you get up, you don’t feel like exercising?

    While this can happen to the best of us, it doesn’t mean you should drop the ball altogether when it comes to staying fit. What people need to realize is that staying active and eating right are critical for long-term health and wellness — and that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The more you know about how your body responds to your lifestyle choices, the better you can customize a nutrition and exercise plan that is right for you. When you eat well, increase your level of physical activity, and exercise at the proper intensity, you are informing your body that you want to burn a substantial amount of fuel. This translates to burning fat more efficiently for energy.
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    (5) Comment Categories : Healthy Lifestyle