I wonder if you have ever come across the saying "If you do what you've always done you'll get what you always got"?
This saying can be particularly true for anyone who wants to lose weight. It is vital to change your whole outlook on food and your way of eating if you are to successfully lose weight and maintain that weight loss. You need to be able to accept that what you are currently doing doesn't work. It is also important to realise that if it isn't working for your weight it won't be working for your overall health either. The two are intrinsically linked.
However many people choose to live under the misapprehension that you can be fat and healthy. This is a myth readily accepted by those people who don't want to face up to their weight problem. They are just kidding themselves so that they don't have to make the necessary changes to lose weight and improve their overall health for the present and for the future.
The reasons for being overweight are many and varied, but my experience as health professional and weight loss advisor I have encountered many overweight people who have long standing emotional issues that need to be addressed before the the person can begin to emabark on a fruitful weight loss campaign.
One of the best ways to address these emotional eissues is through something called the Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT. To find out more about EFT you can visit the EFT site belonging to Gary Craig, the doctor who started EFT
Saturday, 31 January 2009
Saturday, 24 January 2009
Weight Loss for the over 40's
Did you know that your calorie burning efficiency slows down once you reach the age of 40? Apparently it is not unusual for the average woman over 40 making no dietary changes, to gain about a pound a year. By the time she is 60 she can easily be 20lb overweight. The main reason for your calorie burning ability to slow down is the decline in your activity levels as you get older. However that is not all. Your metabolism slows down also.
Before you know where you are you have gained fat around your belly - just where you didn't want it. Unfortunately this belly fat is not only unsightly it is also a huge health risk too.
However there is light at the end of the tunnel. If you include plenty of Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acids (MUFAs) in your diet they can help to seek out and erase the belly fat. Foods such as peanut butter (no additives) olive oil and avacados are just 3 of the foods you can eat to get rid of belly fat. By eating these foods high in fat you will feel more satisfied and less likely to reach for the chocolate bar or the ice cream after your meal. They can be a great benefit to your weight loss diet.
There are other methods that will help you lose body fat. Sometimes there is't just one right way . It may be necessary to combine a few regimes to help you to slove your weight loss problem
Before you know where you are you have gained fat around your belly - just where you didn't want it. Unfortunately this belly fat is not only unsightly it is also a huge health risk too.
However there is light at the end of the tunnel. If you include plenty of Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acids (MUFAs) in your diet they can help to seek out and erase the belly fat. Foods such as peanut butter (no additives) olive oil and avacados are just 3 of the foods you can eat to get rid of belly fat. By eating these foods high in fat you will feel more satisfied and less likely to reach for the chocolate bar or the ice cream after your meal. They can be a great benefit to your weight loss diet.
There are other methods that will help you lose body fat. Sometimes there is't just one right way . It may be necessary to combine a few regimes to help you to slove your weight loss problem
Friday, 23 January 2009
Eat and Lose Weight
There seems to be a common misconception amongst people on weight loss diets , that they need to starve themselves to lose weight. On the contrary starving yourself can actually have the opposite effect, as your body readjusts its metabolic rate to cope with the sudden change in eating habits and you may even gain weight or at best stay the same weight.
It is now widely accepted that you must eat to lose weight and by that I mean there is no need to go hungry. A purposeful and informed way of eating is essential for both your weight loss and your overall health.
By chance, a Frenchman called Michel Montignac, came across some statistical investigations into diabetes, which revealed that 80% of all diabetics are obese. He decided to investigate further to see if both ailments had the same origin.
What he discovered was that weight loss occurs when you eat food with a low glycemic index. The people with type 2 diabetes are suffering from something called hyperinsulinism. When they started to eat a diet made up of low glycemic foods not only did their symptoms improve but they also lost weight.
Montignac makes it quite clear that he believes that we don't put weight on because we eat too much, we put weight on because we eat the wrong type of foods. It is vital therefore to eat healthily and to be aware of the food we are eating and its value to our health and well being
The Montignac method is a way of eating that is now scientifically supported. There also now many other versions of the GI diet available through Amazon. Unfortunately the original book by Michel Montignac is not currently available I can recommend another book that has taken the GI diet one step further and instead looks at the Glycemic Load (GL) of food. The author Patrick Holford, is an eminent nutritionist in the UK and has authored many books on the subject of natural health and weight loss
It is now widely accepted that you must eat to lose weight and by that I mean there is no need to go hungry. A purposeful and informed way of eating is essential for both your weight loss and your overall health.
By chance, a Frenchman called Michel Montignac, came across some statistical investigations into diabetes, which revealed that 80% of all diabetics are obese. He decided to investigate further to see if both ailments had the same origin.
What he discovered was that weight loss occurs when you eat food with a low glycemic index. The people with type 2 diabetes are suffering from something called hyperinsulinism. When they started to eat a diet made up of low glycemic foods not only did their symptoms improve but they also lost weight.
Montignac makes it quite clear that he believes that we don't put weight on because we eat too much, we put weight on because we eat the wrong type of foods. It is vital therefore to eat healthily and to be aware of the food we are eating and its value to our health and well being
The Montignac method is a way of eating that is now scientifically supported. There also now many other versions of the GI diet available through Amazon. Unfortunately the original book by Michel Montignac is not currently available I can recommend another book that has taken the GI diet one step further and instead looks at the Glycemic Load (GL) of food. The author Patrick Holford, is an eminent nutritionist in the UK and has authored many books on the subject of natural health and weight loss
Monday, 19 January 2009
Your Fat Loss Resolution
With the New Year just a couple of weeks ago it is very likely that many of you will already have given up on your New Years Resolutions. Perhaps you resolution was to lose weight, but the recent cold weather just wasn’t conducive to going on a diet and walking to work just wasn’t an option!
New Year's Resolutions can be viewed in the same light as goal setting, where the achievement or otherwise is generally measured in success or failure. Personally I don’t consider this to be very helpful and would therefore be more inclined to avoid any resolutions or goals rather than risk the feeling of failure if I don’t manage to stick to them.
However, recently I read an article on goal setting that had more of an appeal for me, the reason being it made it seems more achievable.
This is the message I took from that article:-
“YOU MUST DO SOMETHING EVERY SINGLE DAY TOWARDS ACCOMPLISHING YOUR GOAL.”
It doesn’t matter how big or how small this effort has to be. It just has to be SOMETHING. So every day that passes in your life you will incrementally be closer to getting everything you want. It’s a simple, yet powerful concept.
What I particularly like about this concept is that you can take one day at a time. I am a firm believer in “living in the present moment” and this concept allows me to do just that.
If, for example, your goal is to lose weight, then each day you can do something towards that weight loss goal. It maybe something as simple as walking instead of taking the car or maybe increasing the amount of fruit and vegetables in your diet.
For some people who need to lose weight, the prospect of having to lose “2 stone before Easter” can be a real stumbling block. When we are faced with such a difficult time limited goal it often seems so overwhelming that it’s much easier to just put off starting it until another day. And of course, only too often, that day never comes.
So it is worth remembering that if you want to improve your health or lose weight you must be taking an action every single day that contributes towards your ultimate goal. But the important thing to remember is that you goal for that day is just to do one or two things towards your ultimate goal. So each day you manage to achieve that smaller goal you will experience success. If, for what ever reason, you don’t manage to achieve that smaller goal, don’t despair, you can try again tomorrow
Try not to let a single day go by when you aren’t making at least SOME incremental progress towards your fat loss goal or resolution and you will discover over time that it will undoubtedly change your life for the better.
Achieve your goal now the easy way, taking one step at a time using my tips for losing weight .
New Year's Resolutions can be viewed in the same light as goal setting, where the achievement or otherwise is generally measured in success or failure. Personally I don’t consider this to be very helpful and would therefore be more inclined to avoid any resolutions or goals rather than risk the feeling of failure if I don’t manage to stick to them.
However, recently I read an article on goal setting that had more of an appeal for me, the reason being it made it seems more achievable.
This is the message I took from that article:-
“YOU MUST DO SOMETHING EVERY SINGLE DAY TOWARDS ACCOMPLISHING YOUR GOAL.”
It doesn’t matter how big or how small this effort has to be. It just has to be SOMETHING. So every day that passes in your life you will incrementally be closer to getting everything you want. It’s a simple, yet powerful concept.
What I particularly like about this concept is that you can take one day at a time. I am a firm believer in “living in the present moment” and this concept allows me to do just that.
If, for example, your goal is to lose weight, then each day you can do something towards that weight loss goal. It maybe something as simple as walking instead of taking the car or maybe increasing the amount of fruit and vegetables in your diet.
For some people who need to lose weight, the prospect of having to lose “2 stone before Easter” can be a real stumbling block. When we are faced with such a difficult time limited goal it often seems so overwhelming that it’s much easier to just put off starting it until another day. And of course, only too often, that day never comes.
So it is worth remembering that if you want to improve your health or lose weight you must be taking an action every single day that contributes towards your ultimate goal. But the important thing to remember is that you goal for that day is just to do one or two things towards your ultimate goal. So each day you manage to achieve that smaller goal you will experience success. If, for what ever reason, you don’t manage to achieve that smaller goal, don’t despair, you can try again tomorrow
Try not to let a single day go by when you aren’t making at least SOME incremental progress towards your fat loss goal or resolution and you will discover over time that it will undoubtedly change your life for the better.
Achieve your goal now the easy way, taking one step at a time using my tips for losing weight .
Sunday, 18 January 2009
Lose Weight by Eating Right for Your Body Type
It is now more widely accepted that there are certainly body types that find losing body fat more difficult than other body types. So what exactly are these body types and which type finds losing body fat so difficlut and why?
Back in the 1940's, an American psychologist called Dr. William H Sheldon, became interested in the study of human body types. He devoted his life to observing how body types were related to temperaments. As a result of his research, Sheldon developed a system to classify the body types. He called it SOMATOTYPING.
Sheldon identified three distinct body types:
1. Mesomorphs - are the genetically gifted types who are lean, muscular and naturally athletic.
2. Endomorphs - are the fat retainers. They have a round body shape and large joints (they are "big boned") and they often have great difficulty losing body fat.
3. Ectomorphs - these types are the lean, skinny types. They are usually very thin and bony, with fast metabolisms and extremely low body fat.
The endomorph body type is the slimmer's nightmare. However it is not impossible for endomorphs to lose weight if they are prepared to follow the guidelines.
Luckily there are many techniques an endomorph can use to increase their ability lose weight, including adjustments to their training program. Training is similar to nutrition, if you train the wrong way for your body type, you will not get the results you were hoping for.
Endomorphs will only fall short of their weight loss goals if they fail to adjust their program according to their genetics. They can lose weight provided they stick to the rules of their diet plan and adhere to the correct exercise regime
Endomorphs tend to be carbohydrate intolerant and so they need to remove processed and refined carbs from their diet. This is particularly true of white sugar and white flour products, as they rapidly converts them into body fat. The endomorph would be advised to follow a diet which provided between no more than 30-40% carbohydrates and 20-30 % fats and 40% protein.
Once they have started on this dietary regime it is important to fine tune the ratios to ensure that they are achieving their desired goals and losing body fat.
Back in the 1940's, an American psychologist called Dr. William H Sheldon, became interested in the study of human body types. He devoted his life to observing how body types were related to temperaments. As a result of his research, Sheldon developed a system to classify the body types. He called it SOMATOTYPING.
Sheldon identified three distinct body types:
1. Mesomorphs - are the genetically gifted types who are lean, muscular and naturally athletic.
2. Endomorphs - are the fat retainers. They have a round body shape and large joints (they are "big boned") and they often have great difficulty losing body fat.
3. Ectomorphs - these types are the lean, skinny types. They are usually very thin and bony, with fast metabolisms and extremely low body fat.
The endomorph body type is the slimmer's nightmare. However it is not impossible for endomorphs to lose weight if they are prepared to follow the guidelines.
Luckily there are many techniques an endomorph can use to increase their ability lose weight, including adjustments to their training program. Training is similar to nutrition, if you train the wrong way for your body type, you will not get the results you were hoping for.
Endomorphs will only fall short of their weight loss goals if they fail to adjust their program according to their genetics. They can lose weight provided they stick to the rules of their diet plan and adhere to the correct exercise regime
Endomorphs tend to be carbohydrate intolerant and so they need to remove processed and refined carbs from their diet. This is particularly true of white sugar and white flour products, as they rapidly converts them into body fat. The endomorph would be advised to follow a diet which provided between no more than 30-40% carbohydrates and 20-30 % fats and 40% protein.
Once they have started on this dietary regime it is important to fine tune the ratios to ensure that they are achieving their desired goals and losing body fat.
Saturday, 17 January 2009
De-stress to Lose Weight
The issues surrounding obesity and weight loss are many faceted. There is no single reason why somebody is overweight or obese any more than there is a single reason why they find it almost impossible to lose weight successfully.
One of the least recognised reasons for the above is that of stress. Most people would deny that they are stressed, mainly because they don't really understand what stress is. Stress can creep up on you unannounced and suddenly you find yourself in its grips.
Being stressed is not a matter of having panic attacks or feeling out of control. Stress can be a simple as trying to keep lots of balls in the air. Perhaps you have a family, a job and a sick parent to look after. For some people this can be very difficult to manage. You may think you are coping really well but there will also be times when you realise that it is taking its toll.
Constant chronic stress triggers a hormone called cortisol in your body. Cortisol is often referred to as the stress hormone because your adrenal glands start pumping it out when you're under stress. On a good day cortisol helps to regulate blood pressure, cardiovascular function and metabolism. But when stress levels rise and then stay there, your body is flooded with cortisol constantly. As a result your immune system suffers, your blood pressure rises and your belly gets fatter and fatter.
One of the main reason why this happens is that cortisol stimulates your appetite and your body starts to store fat. This fat is stored in your belly as your belly loves cortisol. So it makes sense that no weight loss regime is likely to work if you don't reduce your stress and cortisol levels first.
So what are the signs of a stressful life? Well a good example is chronic back pain or neck pain. Another symptom is often digestive problems, which can also make fat loss more difficult
However there is no need to despair. The good news is that stress induced belly fat is not that difficult to lose. Just reduce your stress a little bit and weight loss will start to happen very quickly. Relaxation exercises can be very helpful in reducing stress as can simple meditation. It is about allowing yourself to be a "human being" not a "human doing"
One of the least recognised reasons for the above is that of stress. Most people would deny that they are stressed, mainly because they don't really understand what stress is. Stress can creep up on you unannounced and suddenly you find yourself in its grips.
Being stressed is not a matter of having panic attacks or feeling out of control. Stress can be a simple as trying to keep lots of balls in the air. Perhaps you have a family, a job and a sick parent to look after. For some people this can be very difficult to manage. You may think you are coping really well but there will also be times when you realise that it is taking its toll.
Constant chronic stress triggers a hormone called cortisol in your body. Cortisol is often referred to as the stress hormone because your adrenal glands start pumping it out when you're under stress. On a good day cortisol helps to regulate blood pressure, cardiovascular function and metabolism. But when stress levels rise and then stay there, your body is flooded with cortisol constantly. As a result your immune system suffers, your blood pressure rises and your belly gets fatter and fatter.
One of the main reason why this happens is that cortisol stimulates your appetite and your body starts to store fat. This fat is stored in your belly as your belly loves cortisol. So it makes sense that no weight loss regime is likely to work if you don't reduce your stress and cortisol levels first.
So what are the signs of a stressful life? Well a good example is chronic back pain or neck pain. Another symptom is often digestive problems, which can also make fat loss more difficult
However there is no need to despair. The good news is that stress induced belly fat is not that difficult to lose. Just reduce your stress a little bit and weight loss will start to happen very quickly. Relaxation exercises can be very helpful in reducing stress as can simple meditation. It is about allowing yourself to be a "human being" not a "human doing"
Friday, 16 January 2009
Fat Loss is All in The Mind
There is nothing more annoying than somebody telling you your problems are all in the mind. It can make you feel like some kind of freak who is imagining their problems. However when it comes to weight loss there is probably more truth in this statement than you might realise.
One of the main problems with being overweight is that you are blatantly aware that you are overweight. Your clothes don't fit, you don't look your best and you start to think and act like a fat person. Consequently you eat like a fat person and you exercise like a fat person.
Please understand that doesn't mean that it is all in your imagination, but it does mean that your mind is ruling your body. Have you ever heard of the Law of Attraction? The Law of Attraction says that you attract to yourself what you think about. So if you are constantly thinking about being fat and being unable to lose weight then that is exactly what you get.
There is also a saying "if you do what you've always done you'll get what you've always got". So if you want to Law of Attraction to work for you you have to change the way you think about yourself. Think yourself thin. It may sound far fetched, but if you think thin you will be more likely to eat and exercise like a thin person and in doing so you will attract the weight loss you so desire
So when I say Fat loss is all in the mind, perhaps you can now see how the power of thought can work against you. It is up to you to change the way you think about yourself and hopefully this fat loss secret will give you the kick start you need.
One of the main problems with being overweight is that you are blatantly aware that you are overweight. Your clothes don't fit, you don't look your best and you start to think and act like a fat person. Consequently you eat like a fat person and you exercise like a fat person.
Please understand that doesn't mean that it is all in your imagination, but it does mean that your mind is ruling your body. Have you ever heard of the Law of Attraction? The Law of Attraction says that you attract to yourself what you think about. So if you are constantly thinking about being fat and being unable to lose weight then that is exactly what you get.
There is also a saying "if you do what you've always done you'll get what you've always got". So if you want to Law of Attraction to work for you you have to change the way you think about yourself. Think yourself thin. It may sound far fetched, but if you think thin you will be more likely to eat and exercise like a thin person and in doing so you will attract the weight loss you so desire
So when I say Fat loss is all in the mind, perhaps you can now see how the power of thought can work against you. It is up to you to change the way you think about yourself and hopefully this fat loss secret will give you the kick start you need.
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