Tag Archive for: #wonderfullyfit

Wonderfully Fit Personal Training

How Much to Eat to Stay Healthy and Fat Free

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How would you respond if you were told to leave food on your plate? Would you say that is being wasteful and it has cost you money, or would you actually leave food on your plate? Of course it is a waste if you don’t finish everything on your plate, and it goes in the bin if you don’t eat it all. Equally, it will go down the loo if you eat it all on your plate.

The only difference between two scenarios is that with the second situation, your waistline gets to keep some of the food you’ve eaten! As soon as you cook more that your actual need, it is both waste of energy and money. It doesn’t really matter if you eat it or bin it. It will be wasted either way.

food

According to studies about health and food during the World War II, the British people, as a nation, were healthier than today. Although people suffered in many other ways, their diet was the healthiest than ever during the wartime rationing. Less meat, less fat, less eggs and less sugar were eaten by people than ever before.

They were only allowed three rashers of bacon and one egg a week, but Britons lived a very healthy life during the war time rationing. In contrast, nowadays almost a quarter of all adults are obese, and a worrying quarter of all British toddlers are overweight…

There is too much sugar, fat and salt in our diet today than ever, and it’s putting us at increased risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes, a number of cancers, including colon, stomach, and breast cancer. As well as the increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and infertility; disorders such as fatigue, low self-esteem, and poor mental & physical performance are also associated with a diet high in fat, sugar and salt.

Further more, the risk of depression, anxiety, PMS, and a food craving is increased by eating a high energy density-low nutrient foods. At the same time, poor concentration, hyperactivity, and aggression can potentially be caused by high additives, preservatives, and refined sugar. See where we are heading as a society!

Scientists starting to believe that we, as a society, are obsessed with food, and yet there are more readily made food available than ever before. It is not very hard to work out that when food with such abundance is mixed with people’s desire to eat, things will go a little wrong! Additionally, considering all the emotional issues related to the comfort food adopted by many people nowadays, it can easily be seen that how things have all really gone wrong!

To conclude, excess eating in large portions must be avoided at any meal time. This is a very important step to take in order to maintain a healthy eating plan every day. The food should be eaten frequently in segments rather than taken in bulk at each meal time. This will promote healthy metabolism and maintain the regular energy level.

The metabolic system will function more efficiently if food is supplied in low amounts in different periods of time during the day. The risk of fat accumulation in the body will considerably be reduced, and this will help to stay healthy and fat-free for life.

Is Exercising Necessary for Management of Diabetes?

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Yes, it is necessary. Diabetes has no cure, but you can appropriately manage it with diet and exercise. Despite exercise being a valuable tool, most people don’t engage in it, and those who do, lack the motivation to continue.

While apathy is a core reason for not exercising, lack of information is a factor too. Most of the persons with diabetes lack the proper knowledge on the type of exercises that they should implement in the daily routine.

diabetes

Which types of exercises are suitable? Aerobics and resistance exercises are regarded as the cornerstone for the management of diabetes (1).

Aerobics

Aerobic exercises include cycling, treadmill, running, swimming, rowing, walking, and running. These types of exercises, if done correctly can offer significant benefits to you.

The exercises help in;

  • Improving insulin sensitivity
  • Oxygen consumption
  • Increase in the respiratory system function
  • Reduction of the metabolic risk factors
  • Assists in maintaining blood pressure
  • High-intensity aerobic activities can aid in weight loss
  • Helps in controlling the glycemic levels
  • Improves the lipid profile
  • Restores the endothelial functions
  • Reduces arterial stiffness
  • Helps in the uptake of glucose in the skeletal muscles

The frequency of the aerobic exercises should be three days per week. For persons with diabetes, it is recommended that you have 150 min/ week of aerobic exercises (2).

Resistance exercises

These exercises include weight lifting. Because of the use the equipment, the resistance exercises can prove to be difficult for some of the people especially the seniors.

The exercises help to increase the muscle strength and lean muscle mass. Increase in the muscle mass results in the Blood glucose uptake which in turn increase the insulin action. With the exercises, your blood glucose intake will improve whether insulin is available or not (2).

Combining aerobic and resistance exercises can be more effective in the blood glucose management (2).

It is essential for you to engage in resistance exercises twice a week. 5 to 10 exercises involving both the upper body, core, and lower body is enough for you.

Side effects

Exercises are great not only in the management of diabetes but also for improving your general health. However, if not done correctly, they can pose a risk to your health.

Exercises can lead to sudden cardiac health especially in patients with coronary heart disease. It is, therefore, crucial for you to be screened for myocardial ischemia before engaging in any exercise (1). It is vital for you to finish the workouts with a cool down session to recover the heart rate. Cardiac autonomic neuropathy results from failure of heart rate recovery.

Fatigue and tiredness may also create an imbalance between the oxygen delivery and intake. The onset of hypoglycemia after the aerobic exercises may be a risk for a person taking insulin. You are advised to consult a dietician or a doctor on the different exercises that you can use.

Make a point of conducting a pre-exercise assessment before any exercise.

Wonderfully Fit Personal Training

Foods to Eat to Stay Healthy

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Over the years, people have become more and more conscious about which food to eat to stay healthy. Over the years too, several recommendations have been advised.

To this end, books were written, keep fit programs were sold and advice followed. The average lifespan though stayed the same, seventy years, much the same as centuries ago.

healthy

What are the foods to eat to stay healthy? Everything but in moderation

Doesn’t it sound very much like what the Hebrew book says?” Lifespan of seventy years”, “all food have been cleansed”, “avoid gluttony?” Through all these years, this has never been challenged. This fact remained sure and true. If ever, several adverts have already claimed superior benefits of their weight reducing, health-inducing product. What the adverts succeeded at was over-selling and over- highlighting their claims but never challenged this fact.

But that is always true with commercialism. In this age where cents and dimes are often the rule of the day, there is no compunction to oversell a product to the point of using scare tactics for the targeted consumer to get their attention and possibly draw out their wallets and part with their money.

Do not fall for fad foods. If they were true, some of them should have stayed on in the market and have grown in market share as far as food choices are concerned. Nothing has and nothing will, because the price paid is too high for the benefit received and people eventually could see through that.

Instead eat food that tastes good. Eat all foods that are recommended in the good old food chart. The body needs sodium, it helps cleanse the body and prevent diseases. The body needs fat. Fat insulates us from the elements and helps keep our body lubricated as machines are lubricated. Fat also keeps our skin supple and feeling younger.

Have protein in the diet, you cannot do with less of it especially when in the healing and during the growing up years. Calories are needed to maintain energy levels so is sugar. But then everything has to be taken in the right amounts and quantities. Everything in moderation

The problem is not the food; the problem is the attitude towards food. It is the preference of one food group over the other that keeps the system unbalanced and wanting of nutrients that weakens the body. It is the lifestyle that prevents us or allows excuses not to eat right but have fast food as the usual recourse.

Aside from the food groups that have been classified by science, there are only two types of food in nature that are provided to us. One is food for nutrition, the other are food for medicine and healing. Examples of these are garlic, turmeric and other herbs too many to mention.

Every food has its own function and counter action. Spinach has oxalic acid and oranges have counter effects bad for certain blood types, eating raw exposes us to certain microorganisms etc. Nonsense, every food has properties different and tends to counter balance another food.

In an effort to sell a product, a brand, or an idea, what results is a scare that effects in limiting us with food choices often to those that we do not enjoy. The limiting of food choices keeps on evolving that if everything that is heard or advertised is listened to, nothing is worthy of eating anymore.

Every region on earth will always provide a balanced food source for that region. Foods grown in the US are different from those grown in China. But when examined closely, the tastes may change but the same balancing effect in the diet is present, anywhere in the world. That should tell us something. The earth provides everything for our enjoyment and health. Anyone who is not trying to sell anything will say the same thing, “that we should eat all the food groups in correct quantities and proportions”. That way we enjoy life, that way we stay truly healthy.

Role of Exercises in Avoiding Risk of Diabetes in Adults

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Diabetes is an illness that causes an increase in the blood sugar levels and can have a devastating effect on the kidneys, eyes, heart and lower extremities. Uncontrolled sugar levels for the prolonged periods of time may lead to blindness, sudden heart attack, kidneys failure and even amputation of your limbs.

Moreover, diabetes is responsible for the millions of deaths around the globe and is considered as one of the top 5 reasons of mortality every year. However, a recent research revealed that with a healthy diet and regular strength training routine, 70-80 percent of new diabetes cases can be avoided. Therefore, a regular exercise routine not only lowers your risk of developing diabetes, but it also trims and tones your entire body.

diabetes

It is very important that you incorporate a strength training routine at least four times a week to avoid diabetes. Strength training consists of machines and free weights that work your large muscle groups and can play a vital role in preventing diabetes because it keeps your large muscles proactive and they turn excess glucose into glycogen by using insulin effectively. As a result, glycogen is stored in your body and is used as a fuel later on.

It is important that you target different muscle groups in each session to give your muscles a sufficient time to recover and rebuild. Moreover, you should breathe deeply in between each rep during strength training. Deep breathing not only forces oxygen to pass through tissues and cells, but it also pushes glucose out and reduces the high sugar levels associated with diabetes. Make sure that you set realistic goals for yourself during resistance training. You should start slowly and increase numbers of sets as well as reps gradually.

Another wonderful routine that helps you prevent diabetes is including cardio exercises along with strength training sessions. Exercises like walking, running, swimming and rope jumping not only are beneficial to your cardiovascular system, but they will also help prevent diabetes by burning extra glucose that your body doesn’t need.

As a result, your blood sugar levels will remain in check and stay stable in your body. Moreover, cardiovascular exercises also ensure a steady flow of blood throughout your body.

It is also a good idea to prefer walking over motor riding. Whenever you go out for shopping, you should park your motor bike or car at a place which is quite far away from your destination. You should also use the stairs instead of an elevator to give yourself some extra cardio exercise. Each of these changes not only will burn your body fat, but will also control the high sugar levels associated with diabetes.

Moreover, it is also important that you stay happy and in a good mood all the time. Make your life simple and enjoy each and every moment of your life. Tension, stress, anxiety and depression may lead to the development of diabetes and high blood pressure. Hence, they should be avoided if you want to avoid the diabetes.

Wonderfully Fit Personal Training

What to Eat to Stay Healthy and Lose Fat

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To lose fat and stay healthy, it is important to know that whether we gain or lose body fat depends on our caloric intake and output. I believe that to lose fat, we need to cut our caloric intake. It is important to eat well to not only lose fat, but to stay healthy as well. Staying healthy is the most important thing in our life.

So it is very important that the calories we eat should not all come from the same source. We need a combination of Carbohydrates, Protein and Fat in the right proportion, as they serve different function in our body.

healthy

The Do’s and Don’t of What to Eat

We need to eat food that is high in complex carbohydrates and fiber.

Carbohydrates are an essential source of energy, especially when we do both cardiovascular exercise like running as well as when we are doing weight training. In short we need carbohydrates to engage in all kinds of exercise. When your body has depleted its store of carbohydrates, physical performance is compromised. Some examples of high complex carbohydrates are things like vegetables, whole grain and fruits. Wholemeal bread and polished rice are very good example of whole grain that is a very good form of complex carbohydrates.

However let also remember not all carbohydrates are created equal. A diet that is high in simple carbohydrates can disrupt your metabolism of fat and can also cause an increase in body fat. Simple carbohydrates are things like white rice, white bread, cakes, and soft drinks. Simple carbohydrates should be consumed in lower amount.

Do also make sure that you are getting enough protein in your food.

Protein is a muscle food that is very essential in the building of muscles. When you undergo physical training and begin to develop more muscle tissue, your body will require more protein to repair, maintain and grow your muscle cell. Protein have another important function. Protein are made up of amino acid, which form enzymes that are needed to make your body run correctly and healthy.

Do stick to a diet low in saturated fat.

Yes our body need fat too. And you need a certain amount of fats in your body. However remember there are good fat and bad fat. Saturated fats are bad fats and should be eliminated from your diet. Some example of Saturated fat are animal fat and butter. Most food high in saturated fat are low in essential fatty acids and high in cholesterol. Food that is higher in unsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fats can lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease. These fats, found in plant and fish oils, tend to be high in essential fatty acids.

Eat Plenty of fruits and vegetables.

It is important that we eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Many experts recommend that we eat 5 serving of fruits and vegetables daily. Fruits and Vegetables contains a lot vitamins and essential minerals that the body need s to stay healthy. So please eat your fruits and vegetables to stay healthy. Eating fruits and vegetables also help you ward off health diseases, stroke, control blood pressure and prevent certain kind of cancer. So you can see it is very important to eat your fruits and vegetables daily.

I believe with regular exercises and eating right, you will not only lose fat, gain muscles, you will also live happy and healthy.

Exercise Can Reduce Your Risk of Diabetes

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Diabetes is a disease that affects 25.8 million Americans according to the American Diabetes Association. This is over 8% of the total population in the United States. There are two types of diabetes, which I will not go into great detail to describe, but very basically Type I is often referred to as juvenile diabetes and Type II is Adult Onset type that is often a result of poor diet, sedentary living, and obesity.

Health care practitioners and exercise scientist have long promoted physical activity as an effective way to help with symptoms of diabetes, but more and more research today offers proof that exercise can not only help with symptom management, but also in preventing development of the disease all together (Type II).

diabetes

For those with diabetes, exercise helps in two ways. First, exercise helps with controlling weight and secondly, exercise helps to lower and stabilize blood sugar levels. While most doctors suggest cardiovascular works (as it increases breathing rates and strengthens the heart) more research is promoting weight and resistance training. In fact, one study I looked into found that weight training alone may reduce the risk of developing diabetes.

Even low intensity physical activities have a positive effect on diabetes management, including such activities as walking, biking, gardening and housework. These activities are easy enough for most people of all ages to engage in to some degree. Obviously more exercise can reduce the risk of diabetes even further. Before beginning any exercise routine, it is advisable to check with your healthcare practitioner for an evaluation and to discuss potential risks.

One concern that many diabetics have is the nerve damage that they might have experienced in their legs and feet. If this is the case, I recommend that these folks look into water exercise as a very low impact form of exercise. Many local pools and fitness centers offer an array of water fitness classes that are lead by certified instructors. Exercising in water helps to drastically reduce the pressure on your legs, ankles, knees and other joints, and in this way, it can make exercising more accessible to people with issues of this nature.

Also folks with joint issues should consider some weight training exercises that focus more on the upper body. Even a small amount of weekly weight training appears to have substantial benefits in terms of lowering the risk of developing diabetes. An independent study found that men who lifted weight for just up to 59 minutes a week lowered their risk of diabetes by 12%. Weight training is also an effective means of strengthening the skeletal system and joints, as well as building muscles that surround the joints, which is important for stability and can actually help lessen joint pain.

As a Chiropractor and certified fitness trainer, I always recommend that once folks gain clearance to begin an exercise regime from their healthcare professional, they begin slowly. That being said, prior to beginning any exercise routine, check with your healthcare provider to discuss any potential risks.

If you have not exercised regularly in quite some time, begin with 15-20 minutes of low-intensity exercise 2 to 3 times per week, and then gradually increase the duration of your workouts after 3 weeks. Walking and water exercise are great ways to get started and not only will you reduce the risk of Type II diabetes, you will also burn calories and be working towards a more active lifestyle!

Wonderfully Fit

A Step-By-Step Gluten-Free Diet You Can Follow

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Starting any new diet can be challenging. However, by taking several small steps at the beginning, and by making sure you have a plan you know you will be able to stick with, getting the ball rolling on a new diet doesn’t have to be impossible by any means. We aren’t saying it will be challenging, but a little research is definitely going to go a long way.

That thought can definitely be applied to a gluten-free diet. The more you learn about the basics of a gluten-free diet, the easier it will be to make necessary changes to how you shop for, prepare, and eat food.

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Getting Started On Your Gluten-Free Diet

One of the great misconceptions with a gluten-free diet is that it’s terribly limiting. This isn’t really true. Yes, you have to cut a few things out, but the list isn’t as substantial as some will have you believe. A gluten-free diet can involve many steps. Here are the basics to guide you in the early stages:

Identify the gluten-free groups

Fruits, veggies, many kinds of meat and poultry, many kinds of fish and seafood, dairy, and beans/legumes/nuts are all safe food groups. Obviously, within this range alone, you can begin to see the possibilities.

Learn about grains

There are many, many grains you can actually eat on a gluten-free diet. This can include rice, tapioca, beans, soy, potatoes, and gluten-free oats are just a few.

Learn about the alternatives

There are numerous gluten-free alternatives available these days. An important step in embracing a gluten-free diet is to learn more about those alternatives, and find the ones that are going to appeal to you. Using alternative flours and grains, you should be able to find some appealing possibilities. However, it is important to make sure you’re reading labels carefully, ensuring that you are actually purchasing something that will be gluten-free.

Learn about the things you can’t have, or the things you need to be very careful about: Read the labels carefully for products like soups, sauces, beverages, vitamins, supplements, and medicines.

Find a good 7-day program to get going

A good 7-day gluten-free diet plan is ideal for getting started on the right foot. You can use one of these plans to establish a clear idea of your meals, drinks, and even snacks.

Consult a nutritionist

If you can afford it, consider seeking out the advice of a professional nutritionist. They can help you to fill in the blanks with your new diet.

10 minute workout tips

Get Rid Of Unwanted Belly Fat With A 10 Minute Workout

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As hard as it may be to believe, you can successfully and quickly lose unwanted belly fat by simply doing one ten minute workout each day. A lot of people never try to lose weight because they feel that they would need to invest the time and money getting a gym membership or buying expensive fitness equipment.

However, neither of these are a requirement to lose body fat. That being said, there are a few things that you can do that will make or break your weight loss efforts.

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3 Tips to Losing Belly Fat with a 10 Minute Workout:

1. Do your workout early in the day.

When working out, even for just ten minutes, your metabolism levels will be temporarily raised. A faster metabolism rate means that you will be burning off calories and stored fat at a quicker pace. Not only that, but this raised metabolism can last for a few hours after your workout. Since your metabolism naturally slows down when you sleep, doing your 10 minute workout close to your bedtime will mean that you won’t be able to take advantage of the higher metabolism boost. Doing your workout earlier in the day will result in you getting the maximum effect of the temporary raised metabolism.

2. Choose weight training exercises over aerobic exercises.

There are three reasons why this is recommended. The first is that weight training exercises burn more calories in the same amount of time as aerobic exercises. The second reason is that the increased metabolism levels last longer after doing a weight training workout. Finally, weight training leads to an increase in muscle mass. The more muscle tissue that you have, the more calories are burned throughout the day.

3. Change your workouts each day.

Muscles tend to learn a workout routine after a while. What this means is that your body, your muscles specifically, learn how to best complete a workout routine using the least amount of work. By changing your 10 minute workout each day, you create something called “muscle confusion,” which means that muscles are never able to adjust to your routine and are constantly working at their maximum levels. An easy way to accomplish muscle confusion is to work out a different muscle group each day. So one day you can do exercises that work out the chest muscles. The next day it may be the leg muscles. The following day it can be the arms muscles.

You can lose that belly fat simply by doing a 10 minute workout each day. Just be sure to do your workouts early in the day, select weight training exercises over aerobics, and cause muscle confusion by working out different muscle groups every day in order to get the most benefits of your workouts.

Wonderfully Fit

3 Easy Gluten-Free Breakfast Recipes

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Considering that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it makes sense to want to start your new gluten-free diet off in the best way possible. Whether you don’t have a huge budget to buy and prepare whatever you please, or if you simply don’t have a ton of time in the morning (most of us have to deal with that problem), keep in mind that there are still tons of great ideas for simple, quick, and extremely healthy gluten-free breakfasts.

Let’s go over a few possibilities that you can keep in mind for breakfast tomorrow.

breakfast

Gluten-Free Breakfast Recipes That Are Also Really Easy

Studies show that a good breakfast has a number of benefits that are realized throughout the day. You’re giving yourself a needed boost of energy in the morning. You’re also ensuring that you’ll eat a more sensible lunch, while avoiding the need to snack unhealthily throughout the day. A gluten-free breakfast can meet all of those demands. At the same time, it doesn’t have to suck up a huge chunk of your time.

Here are 3 easy gluten-free breakfast recipes to try:

1. Gluten-free waffles: 

The great thing about gluten-free waffles made from yogurt is that you can use these yummy waffles to plan your breakfasts for an entire week. Using yogurt and a little sugar as the primary ingredients, these gluten-free waffles are delicious, and you can keep them in the freezer with ease. This recipe can also be ideal for those who need to make breakfast every morning for the kids! Make sure you have a good waffle maker handy.

2. Gluten-free overnight oats:

This recipe couldn’t be simpler. All you need are some rolled oats, with some chia or flax seeds for thickening. Add just a dollop of milk, and you’re going to have an amazing, easy breakfast prepared in about five minutes. One of the best things about this recipe is how you can suit things to your specific tastes. With an endless array of flavor variations, you can rely on this breakfast choice from one day to the next. The investment is pretty minimal, as well.

3. Breakfast tacos:

This one might take just a little longer, but you can do the prep work ahead of time, if you really want to. Then the only thing you’ll need to do is heat up your taco shell. Use scrambled eggs or scrambled-up tofu (or both!) for your filling.

10 minute workout tips

Fast Weight Loss For Women (10 Minute Workout)

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Here’s a 10 minute workout that gets fast weight loss for women. Not only does this get speedy results, but you can do this at home. Better results in less time… perfect. In a few short weeks you’ll have people making comments about the obvious improvements to your body.

10 Minute Workout That Gets Fast Weight Loss For Women

workout

1. Do Hindu Squats

This is the key weight loss exercise for this program. What you do is fast paced body-weight squats. So you squat up and down as quickly as you can. With each passing repetition, swipe your finger tips to the ground to demonstrate you went down far enough. If you don’t touch the ground, the repetition doesn’t count.

Do as many repetitions as you can in 5 minutes. Your goal should be 100 in less than 5 minutes. If you can’t do that right away, that’s fine. Just shoot for that as a goal. If you want, just continue doing the hindu squats until you do get 100 repetitions and keep trying to do it in less time.

2. Hula Hooping

A kid’s toy no more. The hula hoop is fast becoming really popular for weight loss. I consider hula hooping the best exercise you can do to tone and shape the whole waist and hips area.

Just twirl the hula hoop around your waist for 5 minutes a day. You don’t even need to do it all at once. Be sure to use a bigger, weighted hula hoop or it’ll be hard to keep the hula hoop going.

There you go, 5 minutes of each exercise daily. Nothing more. There’s your 10 minute workout that gets fast weight loss for women.