Help With Weight Loss - Diet and Exercise

Some people think that a lot of these diseases are hereditary and because their dad, granddad etcetera, etcetera, had them they are going to get them, now some diseases are passed down generation to generation, but by changing your lifestyle, by eating a better balanced diet and by exercising regularly you can change the course of your destiny.

Did you know that most overweight people are prone to throat cancer, this is due to the excessive over eating which creates extra stomach acid which keeps rising up to the throat area which in turn can cause throat cancer.

The secret to success is having the courage to start in the first place, then what you need to keep in mind is how you will look in 6 - 12 weeks.

You Can't Out Train a Bad Diet

It doesn't matter how hard you train, you are what you eat. If you live on a diet of rubbish, that's how you will look and feel, that's why any good weight loss program will combine nutrition with exercise.

The Start - Banned foods

The first 2 weeks of your program should be focused on ridding your body of toxins and losing stubborn fat, so these foods should be banned for the first 14 days:-

• All alcohol
• Caffeine - coffee and fizzy drinks
• Wheat and gluten - pasta, bread, cakes, biscuits and most sauces which contain gluten to thicken them up
• Processed foods - anything containing e-numbers or pre-packed like microwave and readymeals
• Sugar
• Cream, low-fat spreadable margarine/butter and cheese

Do's

• Drink water, when your body is dehydrated it stops burning fat, you should consume at least 2 litres a day, if you find it to bland add some cordial
• Drink green tea it helps boost your metabolism
• Cook with extra virgin coconut oil, it taste great, helps with fat loss, olive oil is good for your salads but when heated up it turns those good fats into bad fats
• Keep a food diary, good and bad, it helps show what works and what causes your energy slump
• Exercise - healthy eating and working out go hand in hand on a weight loss journey, so double your chances and do both

What can I eat in the first 14 days

Lettuce leaves and rabbit food, OK just kidding, check out the following list to create delicious breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks. This is no carb free diet, although your bread intake is restricted in the first 14 days, wholemeal foods are a necessary part of your balanced diet so Don't ditch the carbs.

Meat

Beef, chicken, turkey, rabbit

Drinks

Water, green tea, herbal tea, rice milk, almond milk, soy milk

Vegetables

Lettuce, carrot, rocket, spinach, sprouts, water cress, leek, peas, peppers, mushrooms

Fish

Mackerel, salmon, tuna, sardines, cod, prawns, crab, trout, squid

Fruit

Berries, apple, mango, coconut, grapefruit, melon, pineapple

Dairy

Eggs, feta cheese, goats cheese, cottage cheese, natural yoghurt

Nuts/seeds

Almonds, Brazils, Cashews, Macadamias, Pine nuts, Poppy seeds, Pumpkin seeds, Flax seeds, Walnuts

Oils/fats

Sesame, almond, coconut(cook with this one), Fish oil, olive oil, hummus

Grains

Wild rice, brown rice, pulses, lentils, basmati rice, rice cakes, oats, couscous

Snacks

Carrots and hummus, fruit, hand full of nuts, rice cakes, natural yoghurt, meal replacement shake

Example meal plan

07.30 Breakfast

Porridge made with water, add a few raisins, berries or seeds

10.30 Snack 1

Strawberries or Blueberries with low-fat Greek yoghurt, or a meal replacement shake

13.00 Lunch

Feta cheese salad with peppers (if you like the heat, chilli peppers are great for weight loss) and a handful of whole grain rice

15.30 Snack 2

Humous and carrot sticks. (Warning - Humous can be very more-ish) or meal replacement shake

18.00 Tea

Stir fry with prawns

20.00 Snack 3

Small handful of Almonds or cashew nuts

Good Fat Bad Fat

Here's the thing, you need fat to live but too much fat will cut your life short, so you need to cut down on saturated fat and eat more unsaturated fat.

Saturated fat can cause a build up of cholesterol, which can lead to heart disease. On average we eat 20% more saturated fat than recommended that's 20g for men and 30g for women.

Unsaturated fats are the good guys and can lower blood pressure.

Saturated fats - fatty cuts of meat, Butter and Lard, Cheese especially hard cheese, Cream and Ice Cream, Cakes, Pastries and Biscuits

Unsaturated fats - Oily Fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel), Avocado, Nuts, Seeds, Sunflower and Olive Oils

Low Fat

Low fat doesn't necessarily mean it's the healthier option, for example a low-fat mayonnaise is still high in fat, just not as high as the standard one, and with most foods when they reduce the fat it is usually replaced with sugar ( weight watchers meals are a typical example, which is why weight watchers is not recommended for people suffering from diabetes ) which means the product is actually higher in calories than it was originally.

Protein

Protein is an important part of your weight loss program, protein is needed to repair and build muscle after your workout, if you are low on protein the only place your body can get it from is your muscle tissue, which will stop your muscles from growing, you will still lose weight but you will just be a thinner version of yourself with no toned or defined muscle.

How much protein do we need?

In order to lose weight successfully through diet and exercise you need 1 gram of protein for every pound you weigh a day, from either animal or plants, highly recommended is natural food form protein supplements like hemp or pea protein as a boost, these can be drunk as a shake or sprinkled over salads, in stews or soups even mixed with peanut butter to make it SUPER peanut butter.

Although protein dense animal proteins are usually higher in saturated fats it's best to opt for lean meats like seafood, poultry, lean cuts of beef or lamb. Plant proteins include legumes, soy, nuts and seeds, and all these contain healthy unsaturated fats.

Carbohydrates

Carbs are your bodies energy source, they provide regular energy throughout the day, but too many carbs will make you feel tired and sluggish, try eating carbs before a workout and you will find it harder to perform, but we need a regular supply of carbs through out the day to supply us with the energy we need and we need our protein for muscle repair and growth plus the energy required to break down this protein uses a lot of calories which burns fat.

The Importance of Weight Training

There's more to weight training than you might think. Now everybody knows that cardio exercises like running, cycling and aerobic workouts are great for weight loss but as soon as you stop the fat burning stops.

What makes weight training so unique is that you carry on burning calories long after your training session as stopped, even while you sleep, why? Because through weight training for every pound of muscle you gain you will burn 50 more calories every day.

A thing here to bear in mind is that pound for pound muscle weighs heavier than fat, so at first you might think you are putting weight on, but what's happening as your body tones up the weight is shifting and you are starting to look slimmer. This is also the best thing for women because it's testosterone that is responsible for muscle shape and development and women only have around 5% that of men women will tone up but not bulk up, but not only that, resistance training can help prevent osteoporosis and arthritis.

The health benefits of weight training go much further, for example, just two 15-20 minute sessions a week can also help reduce the risk of injury as you will have stronger muscles, tendons and ligaments are more flexible so can cope with more stress.

Also it can have a positive effect on insulin resistance, resting metabolism, blood pressure and body fat, it will also reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

Eating healthy and exercising should be part of our daily lifestyle, not waiting until we have six weeks left for our summer holiday or just for a new years resolution. There's more to exercise and a balanced than just weight loss, it's about being stronger to avoid injury, preventing illness being fit and active in old age. People who eat and train properly are as fit and active in their 70's as they were in their 40's, being 50 and 60 now is not old. For exercise and diet advice visit I need to lose weight Free fat burning recipes and exercise programs

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