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19 Şubat 2011 Cumartesi

What Supplement is Right for You?

You know if I had a nickel for every time somebody asked me “Isabel, what supplements should I be taking?”, I swear, I’d be rich (and lying on the beach in Bermuda right now…or the Bahamas…I’m not picky.)

People are so confused and, sometimes, a bit too hung up on the supplement thing. Many times they are missing the big picture.

There’s really no sense in overloading your body with a bunch of pills if you are not following the essential principles of healthy living. You would be better off focusing your efforts on getting your eating plan and your exercise regimen under control before worrying about which supplements do what or which ones may give you a “quick fix” to anything…comprende?

Now with that being said, I do agree that there are some supplements that we can be taking that do add great benefit to any meal plan (and some even help burn fat..good news right?)

That’s why I’ve decided to dedicate the next several newsletters to answering your most pressing questions about a handful of the most popular supplements out there (some good, some bad).

Most of you already know that I am a big fan and a big proponent of taking a fish oil supplement each and every day. The benefits of a high quality fish oil are endless (as I’ve written about in the FATS chapter of your Diet Solution Manual) and really should be a part of anyone’s nutrition plan…women, men, children…everyone.

I also think we can all benefit greatly from ingesting enough antioxidants each day. And if you are not getting them from food, you’ll need to supplement for those as well. Just in case you missed it, I explain the benefits and power of antioxidants as magical foods here.

Eating Healthy While Traveling

It’s difficult enough these days to maintain a healthy eating plan, let alone keep a healthy diet while traveling.

I am no stranger to maintaining a healthy eating plan while being on the road. I do a good amount of traveling myself, and my clients and readers are asking me all the time:

“Isabel, I am always on the go. How can I stick to my healthy eating plan and still live my life?”

If your days really have you running around from work, to parties, to picking up kids all over the neighborhood, here are a few strategies that really do work:

1. Make your trunk your refrigerator.

Ok, not literally, but I have known many people (including myself) to keep a small cooler in their trunk at all times. They fill it with healthy goodies at the beginning of the day (raw nuts, fresh fruits and veggies, even hard boiled eggs) along with some ice packs and extra tupperware (just in case) and they’re off for the day. At the end of the day, they empty whatever is left and the ice packs go back in the freezer for the next day. This is also a great way to keep your water bottles nice and cold and not warm from the car heat.

2. Make your supermarket your Fast Food stop.

Instead of a quick trip through the drive thru, run into the local supermarket and pick up an assortment of dried or fresh fruits, healthy trail mixes, fresh veggies and natural peanut or almond butter. Most supermarkets now have wonderful salad bars and prepared foods like grilled chicken and salmon (better than any fast food joint) and healthy sandwich options (be careful with certain condiments like mayo that may be added). Eliminate the fast food joints from your choices of “quick stops” and look for the hot spots in town that offer healthier options.

3. Be the bearer of good food.

When going to a barbecue or social event, always offer to bring something (now I sound like the etiquette police). I always bring something and that something is always healthy. I know, if nothing else, at least I’ve got that to eat (although all of my friends and family know why I do this. Even if you contribute the healthy and lean beef burgers or turkey burgers, this may deter you from the not-so healthy hot dogs and sausages. Or how about a colorful salad or fruit salad?

4. Find the healthy places all over the world.

Before I go on any trip, I go online and find the closest Whole Foods or Health Food Store. If there are none close by, I find a major supermarket. This doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy myself on vacation (like the Key Lime Pie I enjoyed down South) or when visiting family and friends, but I make sure that all healthy principles do NOT go out the window. I keep it healthy and have a great time! (not one or the other)

There are always great ways to maintain your healthy weight loss plans even if your life has you traveling and on the road quite a bit.

If you’re traveling quite a bit, it’s also important to find easy and simple strategies to maintain your current exercise routine. Here is one of my favorite exercise programs that teaches you how to get the best results in the least amount of time:

Rob Poulos’ Fat Burning Furnace

Healthy Eating On A Budget

Contrary to popular belief, healthy eating does not have to inflict damage to your wallet. In challenging economic times, many people tend to go for the “cheapest” food options and sometimes these options are far from healthy.

Just recently my husband and I put ourselves on a serious “budget” and of course this meant a “food budget” as well.

Below are the simple steps we took to continue to live our healthy lifestyle while saving a few dollars in the process.

1. We drastically cut out eating out. It’s shocking to discover how much you are really spending by buying a quick pizza and ordering quick take out every once in a while. What we often don’t realize is that every once in a while is much more often than we think. We are now cooking at home a lot more and discovering quick, easy and delicious recipesthat cost very little when made at home. Now we are no chefs by any means but it’s amazing what you can put together in 20 minutes or less by just getting a bit creative and seeking out new recipes.

2. My husband is now packing his lunch. Truth be told, I pack it for him. I often take leftovers from the night before and put them together in a salad or a sandwich. He was spending an average of $7-$10 each day on lunch and taking his lunch instead will save us over $280 a month.

3. Bargain shop. I have become a master of seeking out the sale. I know which grocery stores will put their fruits and vegetables on sale and where I can get the best bargains. If the weather permits, I always go to the local farmers markets to get fresh fruit and veggies. Not only will you save a ton of money at a farmers market, the produce is fresh and delicious.

4. We have learned to love and embrace leftovers. It is amazing what you can do with leftovers once you get a bit creative. Don’t let food go to waste. Use leftovers from the night before for lunch or re-heat for dinner.

5. Cut out the expensive junk food. It’s shocking how expensive cereal, crackers and packaged snacks are. You can get 10x’s more for your money and value by buying plain oatmeal, making your own bread, and snacking on fresh fruit.

Healthy eating does not have to break the bank. Find good deals, learn to embrace cooking and discover the power of the leftover and you will be well on your way to a healthy, cost effective eating plan.

Get started on your own Fat Loss and Healthy eating plan right away with these Simple and Healthy Meal Plans.

Healthy Restaurant Eating

Healthy restaurant eating is possible and can be much easier than you think. If your schedule has your traveling a lot or opting for take out often, use the ideas below to stick to your healthy meal plans while still enjoying your meal out.

Here is my plan of attack whenver I am on vacation, traveling for business or just in a situation that has me ordering out more than I am able to cook.

I do what I call “damage control”: Do the best I can, with what I’ve got and have an awesome time on my trip!

Prepare my “emergency kit”. I will pack and take with me: walnuts, almonds, almond butter, organic turkey and beef jerky, apples and pears. None of these need refrigeration so they will keep well wherever you are. If I’m in a situation where there is no protein handy (like when it’s time for a snack), I’ve got my nuts and jerky to tie me over. If you don’t have something handy, you just may find yourself grabbing pretzels and potato chips (or whatever other horrid food people eat while away).

Breakfast

There is always a protein on the menu, no matter what. Omelets, or smoked salmon are my favorite choices but I’ve even gone to places that now carry turkey bacon and turkey sausage on the menu. Stay away from the heavy and deadly pancakes and waffles. This is a blood sugar disaster waiting to happen. Eating a sugar loaded breakfast like this will only set you up for hunger and cravings the rest of the day. And, just may ruin an otherwise great day.

Lunch and Dinner

I have said this before. Most of us know what is healthy on the menu but we still continue to order the crappy stuff. Yes, I do believe in a treat and a cheat meal once or twice a week, but definitely not every night of your vacation. Some people eat and choose items off the menu like they are being sent to starvation camp when they get home. This is not an “all or nothing” deal. You’ve committed to eating healthy for a lifetime. Don’t worry. The food will always be there whether you eat it all at once or space it out over a lifetime.

Ok, back to my point. First, items on the menu that you know are drenched in heavy sauces are an instant No-No. Fettuccine Alfredo? Come on now. Are you serious? Can you get the steak, veggies and salad instead and be just as happy? Or, the Chicken Cacciatore with a side of broccoli rabe? (Yes, we’re at an Italian restaurant). Often times, our taste buds are really just as happy with a healthier choice. No, this is not deprivation. This is choosing to feel good, be healthy and eat good food at the same time. Comprende?

Desserts

I love desserts too and I will definitely get myself a yummy piece of apple pie or chocolaty treat while I am away. But if the piece of dessert is bigger than the size of my head, I will not eat the whole thing. There is no need. My taste buds are just as happy with a few bites (and my body is happier too). Remember, we’re not going to starvation camp after this. Trust me, there is enough apple pie, chocolate or (insert your favorite dessert here) to have a small amount at a time for the rest of your life.

The Trolls

The who? Yes, you know who the trolls are. Those people who tell you to “just eat what you want”, or “don’t torture yourself”. These people always seem to come out of hiding when dining with you at a restaurant. (They are also present at parties and family functions. Be afraid. Be very, very afraid). Don’t let anybody else tell you that taking care of yourself and feeling great is a bad thing. I don’t mean to talk bad about your family and friends, but chances are they are not too thrilled with their current weight and health and really just upset that you actually started to eat healthy and take control of your life.

Remember, there is no need to avoid restaurants and vacations (but please do avoid fast food joints). You just need to focus on the healthier options and have a great time!

Here’s one of my favorite desserts, Chocolate Pudding, completely Diet Solution approved, that you can easily make at home:

http://www.thedietsolutionprogram.com/content/2010/09/delicious-chocolate-pudding/

Healthy Restaurant Eating

Here is my plan of attack whenver I am on vacation, traveling for business or just in a situation that has me ordering out more than I am able to cook.

I do what I call “damage control”: Do the best I can, with what I’ve got and have an awesome time on my trip!

Breakfast

Lunch and Dinner

Desserts

The Trolls

Remember, there is no need to avoid restaurants and vacations (but please do avoid fast food joints). You just need to focus on the healthier options and have a great time!

Here’s one of my favorite desserts, Chocolate Pudding, completely Diet Solution approved, that you can easily make at home:

http://www.thedietsolutionprogram.com/content/2010/09/delicious-chocolate-pudding/

3 Simple, Healthy Meal Plans You Can Start Right Now

Is it possible to put together a simple and healthy meal plan? One that is not going to be complicated and hard to follow? Yes. It is possible and I will show you how. The healthy meal plans below will help you achieve your health goals while simultaneously shedding fat off your body.

Here are 3 healthy meal plans you can get started on right now.

Breakfast

Protein should be included in every meal throughout the day and breakfast is no exception. Make sure to include organic eggs, cottage cheese, raw nut butter or smoked fish as one component of your healthy breakfast. Carbohydrates should also be included in the form of oatmeal, sprouted grain bread, fruit and/or vegetables.

3 great sample breakfasts are:

Oatmeal with almond butter, topped with fresh berries and a bit of Stevia to sweeten.

2 hard boiled eggs, 1 slice sprouted grain toast and ½ grapefruit

Smoked salmon over sliced tomato and 1 green apple

Lunch

The same rules apply as breakfast. An easy way to ensure that you always have a healthy protein available for lunch is to pack leftovers from dinner the night before. Leftover hamburger, chicken legs or wild fish are all great to include in a salad or over vegetables.

3 great sample lunches are:

Baked Tilapia over sautéed spinach, green salad with chick peas (oil and vinegar as dressing) followed by ½ cup of pineapple.

Leftover chicken legs with ½ sweet potato and broccoli.

Lean hamburger over portabella mushroom and brown rice. Cooked vegetables or a green salad. 1 orange.

Dinner

You can really be creative with dinner. Look for recipes that are quick and easy and modify them with your own healthy ingredients as needed. Again, always remember to include protein and carbohydrates.

3 great sample dinners are:

Mexican salad: Ground beef over shredded lettuce and tomato, guacamole and brown rice.

Grilled Salmon over asparagus, green salad (oil and vinegar as dressing) followed by a fresh fruit salad.

Buffalo meat balls over rice pasta with sautéed broccoli.

Snacks

You never want to let your body get too hungry. Hunger often leads to binge eating of unhealthy food and makes sticking to a healthy eating regimen much more difficult. It’s important to keep snacks handy so you never experience hunger or a blood sugar low without having a healthy option nearby.

3 great snacks are:

2 Tbsp almond butter on ½ apple

Trail mix made up of walnuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds and dried fruit (no sugar added)

Cottage cheese and pineapple

Incorporate just a few of these meals into your daily eating regimen and you will see an incredible difference in your weight loss results. Following simple and healthy meal plans like these is the first step in achieving your health and fitness goals.

To get started right away on your own fat loss goals , download these Simple and Healthy Meal Plans right now.

Back To School Means Back To Health

It happens to the best of us. The kids get out of school and our exercise routines and healthy eating habits get thrown to the waste side. Evening trips to the ice cream shop, hours of sitting in a beach chair, long car rides where only fast food is available: all of these factors may have added a few extra pounds to you and your kids over the course of the summer. Now with the start of the school season how can you get yourself and your kids back on a good eating and exercise routine? The following 4 steps will help you lose those unwanted summer pounds and develop a good routine for the whole school year.

Pack your lunch. Not just your child’s lunch, but your lunch as well. Make meal preparation an activity that you do along with your kids. Include them in the process from start to finish. First start by making a grocery list of all the foods you will need for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the week. Remember that kids are more likely to eat healthy foods if they have chosen them themselves. Next, food shop together. And last, make lunches at the same time that you make dinner in the evening. Not only will your children enjoy the foods that they have prepared themselves but they will also learn the value of taking time to prepare healthy foods. Yes, we are all limited by time these days. But children who learn that healthy food takes time to prepare become teenagers and adults that will take the time to choose and prepare healthy foods. Children who eat on the run usually turn into teenagers who eat fast foods on the run who then turn into adults who eat fast food. This starts them on a downward spiral that will only lead to obesity and heart disease.

Schedule your exercise. Schedule your exercise routine around your child’s school schedule and/or activity schedule. For example, wear your gym clothes to drop your kids off at school and go directly to the gym. Not only will you be setting a great example for your children, you will be less likely to skip your workout if you are dressed and ready to go. You can also schedule your exercise time around your child’s sports or activity schedule. If you know your child has dance on certain days, at certain times, schedule your exercise during that time as well. If you prioritize your own exercise time this way, you will be showing your child how valuable exercise is and how it is an integral part of your day. Children who see you value and prioritize exercise time become adults who value and prioritize exercise time.

Make sure your back pack is packed the night before. Again, this does not only go for your child but it goes for you as well. What do you need to have set up at night to make the next morning run smoothly and free of chaos? When I was a little girl my mom would help us each night set up our clothes and backpacks the night before. Every night I would have to think about the next day’s activities and plan accordingly. Did I have dancing school after school? Was it gym day? Was I going to a friend’s for a play date? Now, as an adult, the questions are a bit different but still require planning and packing the night before. Am I going to the gym first thing in the morning? Do I need to pack my clothes for an after work workout? Am I meeting a friend for a run? Do I have some healthy snacks with me? This simple step each night still helps me, to this day, make each morning run smoothly.

Get a tutor or outside help. If your child was doing poorly in math, you would not just let him throw in the towel and drop math class. Same goes for your workouts and eating regimen. If you find that you’re struggling with your current plan, find yourself some outside support just as you would find your child a tutor or supplementary tutoring class. Join an exercise class at the gym, hire a trainer for a few sessions, consult with a nutritionist, find an exercise/nutrition support group. When one avenue doesn’t work, try a new strategy. You would never let your child just drop out of school if one method of learning wasn’t working. Same goes for your exercise and nutrition plan. No one plan works for everyone, so explore all your options and choose the best plan for you.

Remember that health should always be your highest priority. Teaching your child that health is just as important to their future as school will get them started on a life long path to healthy living.

Don’t go on a diet ever again until you know these 5 Essential Truths about Dieting, yours forFree Here.

Download your own Fat Burning and Healthy Meal Plans right now to get started immediately on your fat loss and health goals.

Is there such a thing as Cheap Organic Food?

Are Organic foods really worth their, sometimes, high prices? Is there any way to make organic eating affordable?

Many times people’s biggest resistance to buying organic is the higher price. But there are ways to make organic eating cheaper and much more affordable for you and your family.

What exactly is Organic Food?

Organic food is food grown or raised without the use of synthetic (chemically formulated) pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers. This method of farming allows foods to grown in nature as they were intended. Consider that conventional farmers in the United States spray 2 billion pounds of pesticides a year on crops to compensate for poor farming practices. Do you know where those pesticides end up? In our food supply!

Aside from pesticide contamination, conventional produce tends to have fewer nutrients than organic produce. On average, conventional produce has only 83 percent of the nutrients of organic produce. Studies have found significantly higher levels of nutrients such as vitamin C, iron, magnesium and phosphorus, and significantly less nitrates (a toxin) in organic crops.

When I first discovered that organic foods might be the missing link to my weight loss and health efforts (read my story here), I had just graduated from college and was living in a miniature apartment in New York City which was quite pricey, that I could barely afford.

How in the world was I going to spend the big bucks on organic food?

Here is how I mastered the art of “going organic on a budget”:

I stopped buying crappy “non foods” (and, yes, crappy is a scientific term). Most protein shakes, “health” bars, and processed foods are actually pretty expensive and when you completely eliminate them from your grocery list, you will save hundreds of dollars. Take a good look at the price of sugar cereals, packaged cookies and cakes, and frozen TV dinners. You will see how the prices of these foods quickly add up. That same amount of money can be better spent on a week’s worth of organic produce.
When I started eating reasonable portions, the food was not that expensive. When I really took a look at how much I was eating and how much I was supposed to be eating, I clearly had mistaken myself for a 200 lb sumo wrestler. I had portion distortion to say the least and eating less meant spending less!
I sought out the local farmer’s markets. The prices were so much better and I always got fresh food in season. And, honestly, if the price of cherries was the equivalent of diamond earrings, I would choose a different fruit. Go for the apples, pears, or bananas. Variety is good anyway so choose the fruits and veggies without the diamond prices.
I transitioned my kitchen and my whole house slowly. I probably did not have a complete organic kitchen until 3 years later. Not the ideal, but I did the best I could. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither was my organic palace. Do the best you can, start with a few items and then go from there.
Buy organic foods “selectively”. The following foods have been shown to have the highest levels of pesticide residue, so they should really always be purchased organic:
Fruits:
Peaches
Apples
Strawberries
Nectarines
Pears
Cherries
Red Raspberries
Imported Grapes
Vegetables:
Spinach
Bell Peppers
Celery
Potatoes
Hot Peppers
Animal products
*Always look for animal products (meats, poultry, and dairy) that have no added antibiotics and growth hormones. Ingesting meats that have been injected with these harmful substances is equivalent to eating the hormones and antibiotics themselves. Very dangerous!
These foods tend to be lower in pesticide levels so can be purchased conventional if necessary:
Fruits:
Pineapples
Plantains
Mangoes
Bananas
Watermelon
Plums
Kiwi Fruit
Blueberries
Papaya
Grapefruit
Avocado
Vegetables:
Cauliflower
Brussels Sprouts
Asparagus
Radishes
Broccoli
Onions
Okra
Cabbage
Eggplant

There’s no material item that comes close to matching “feeling good” about yourself. Take a look at where you’re spending your money now and figure out how to fit organic foods into your budget (even if it’s a slow transition). I promise that if it was doable for me, it’s doable for you too!

Find out how to easily equip your entire kitchen with the best fat burning foods here: Fat Burning Kitchen.

Watching TV can make you Fat
Watching TV can definitely make anyone fat. No, not just because it is a sedentary activity, but because the information most commercials are giving is extremely misleading and really confusing, to say the least.
Most people who know me, know I am not a TV watcher. Actually, I don’t even have cable at home (A rare thing these days, I know.) Very often, I have no idea which show is the “latest craze” and which commercials are all the rave.
Last week the TV did catch my attention. I was at my parent’s house and my mom had the TV on in the background. I was helping her cook and I nearly chopped my fingers off because I couldn’t believe what I was hearing!
“Eat Cheerios to lower your cholesterol.” “Three or more glasses of skim milk a day are a great way to lose weight”. Then it got ugly “Splenda is just like sugar and is great for kids”.
The worst of them all (the one where my mother had to nearly restrain me from attacking the TV“There is nothing wrong with High Fructose Corn Syrup. It comes from corn and can actually be good for you.” I nearly passed out.
I can see why people are totally confused about healthy eating. I can also see why obesity, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes are at an all time high in this country and in many others as well.
After I was done hyperventilating, I decided to first turn the TV off (because my heart just couldn’t take anymore) and then write this newsletter to clear up a few misconceptions.
1. Cheerios biggest claim to fame is that eating them will help you lower your cholesterol. I am here to tell you that eating processed grains, especially in the form of cereal can actually make your cholesterol go up! The cholesterol study done showed how soluble fiber can help the body eliminate bad cholesterol from the body. Cheerios has 1 gram of soluble fiber per serving. Woop-dee-doo. Big deal. I can get 2 grams of soluble fiber from an apple, 3 grams from broccoli and carrots, and more than 4 grams from kidney beans. (Beat that Cheerio Man). Honestly, I don’t think there are many foods in a box that are healthy at all. They have to be highly processed to stay shelf stable, many times loading them up with chemicals and fillers that are making us gain weight. My recommendation is ditch the cereal and pick up some wholesome natural foods like fruits and veggies. Natural grains like brown rice, millet and quinoa are 10x’s better than any boxed cereal.
2. Milk does a body bad! That’s really what the commercial should say. Ok, that is not entirely true. Conventional milk does a body bad. If you have read the Dairy chapter in The Diet Solution Program, you know my stance on milk: Organic is a must and Raw Milk is even better. If you didn’t read my article on milk, you can read it here:
http://www.thedietsolutionprogram.com/articles.aspx?article=Is-Milk-really-Healthy?
But don’t go yet until you read #3.
3. Give Splenda to my children? Never! Splenda has not been out on the market long enough to show whether it is actually safe or not. Until then it is a public health experiment (No thanks, I don’t’ want to be your guinea pig). Being the organic chemistry nerd that I am, I know exactly how sugar is converted to Splenda. I will spare you the chem lesson but tell you that Splenda (or sucralose) is a synthetic compound stumbled upon in 1976 by scientists in Britain seeking a new pesticide formulation. Huh? Did you say pesticide? Yup. Many chemists believe this molecule resembles a pesticide much more than it resembles natural sugar. If this is still in debate, I will not be a test subject. I highly recommend you take yourself and your children out of this experiment as well. My tip: Stick to natural sweeteners like whole fruits, stevia and agave syrup and stay away from artificial sweeteners like Splenda, Equal and Sweet & Low.
I could probably go on and on. If I watched TV long enough (or if I actually purchased cable) I could probably find 10, 20, 100 more commercials that are giving us false info, all in the name of selling products.
Now, go shut the TV off will ya?
Read the Real Truth about Healthy Eating and Weight Loss and get started on your own fat loss and health goals right away.

Eat More and Do Less Cardio to Lose that Unwanted Weight

Is the above statement too good to be true? That’s what Rory DeLuca thought. The 42 year old New Jersey resident, husband and busy father of 3 couldn’t believe what I was telling him when he came to see me in January 2006. Like most people, after the holidays, Rory was frustrated with his increased weight and was even more frustrated that his previous “weight loss” efforts were not providing any results. He told me he was trying to eat less and run 4 miles every day, but every time he tried to stick to that routine, his back would hurt because of the running and he would end up starving at the end of the day. You can imagine his surprise when I told him that he would have to eat a lot more and do less cardio to achieve the results he was looking for.

Now, 3 months later, Rory has lost a total of 30 pounds and 9 inches off his body. His back no longer hurts and he is not starving. He eats tons of food all day and exercises less than an hour 5 days a week. So what is the secret to his success? Three very important weight loss principles that we can all incorporate.

1. Rory started strength training 3x’s a week. The key here is Rory was doing the right kind of strength training for his weight loss goal. He was not going from one machine to the next, doing 3 sets of 10 reps on each one. His strength training routine incorporated exercises that used his whole body so his heart rate was up the whole time. Try doing 3 exercises, back to back, using only free weights, stability balls and your own body weight, and you’ll see how quickly your heart rate goes up. No sitting on a bench and chich chatting in this workout. We keep the intensity high the whole time and the workout is complete in 45 minutes.

Incorporating strength training and reducing the amount of aerobic cardiovascular training was integral to his success. The ONLY tissue in the body that burns fat is Muscle. So the more muscle you have in your body, the more fat you’re burning at any given time during the day. The amount of muscle you have in your body also greatly affects your metabolism. So someone with more muscle mass will have a higher metabolism (This is why most men can eat a lot more than women). For example, one pound of muscle in your body requires approximately 50 calories per day. So if I had two people, both weighing 150lbs, but one was comprised of 100lbs of muscle while the other was comprised of 120lbs of muscle, the one with the more muscle mass is burning more calories all day long. That means that this person can eat more during the day and still maintain their weight and will also have an easier time losing weight. Aerobic training does burn calories while you’re doing it, but it does not do anything to increase the amount of muscle in your body, thus it does not help you to continue to burn calories when you’re done

2. Rory only did aerobic cardiovascular exercise using interval training. This concept could encompass a whole article unto itself, but basically, your body becomes accustomed to anything that you expose it to for long periods of time. Aerobic cardiovascular exercise makes your body more efficient at burning fat. But that’s exactly what you don’t want (If your car was more efficient at burning gas, you’d use less of it). Same with your body. If your body becomes efficient at burning fat, you burn less of it for the same amount of work. So instead of burning 200 calories for your 2 mile run, you may burn 150 calories for the same distance in 2 months. So you’ll have to increase the distance and continue to do this, just to burn the same 200 calories. This can eventually turn into running for an hour just to burn the same number of calories! I don’t know about you, but this is exactly what I don’t want to do.

Interval training refers to a series of intense activity separated with short rest periods. You want to make sure that you are constantly changing the intensity of your cardio workout during the whole workout, alternating from high intensity to low intensity. So a typical workout on an elliptical machine would be 5 min warmup, 1 minute at a high intensity (level 9or 10), then 2 minutes at a lower intensity (level 3 or 4). You would repeat this 3 minute round 3 or 4 times, gradually increasing the intensities once you feel like it’s getting easy. Cool down for 5 minutes, and that is a total of 19-22 minutes of cardio, not 1 hour! Keep your body guessing the whole time and it will not become accustomed to the same cardio workout.

3. Rory ate a lot of food all day long. Rory couldn’t believe his meal plan when I laid it out for him. He was going to be eating more than he was currently eating and couldn’t believe this was actually going to help him lose weight. The biggest difference would be what foods he would be choosing. Every meal was comprised of a healthy protein, carbohydrate and good fat. Lots of eggs (whole organic eggs, not whites), poultry, meat, fruits, whole grains, vegetables, olive oil, and raw nuts and nut butters. In order for his body to burn fat, it had to believe it wasn’t starving and the only way to do that was to feed it well.

So what can you do to achieve the same great results?

Incorporate both a good strength training routine and interval cardio routine to your workout regimen. Don’t just do one all the time. Your body needs muscle to keep your metabolism high, and it also needs cardio to keep your heart strong, so find a good balance between the two.
Incorporate a strength training routine that focuses on whole body movements. No sitting on machines, please. Unless you are rehabilitating an injury, you want to keep your body moving the whole time. What do you think burns more calories, a squat with a shoulder press combination or sitting on a leg press? Just try to squat and raise your arms overhead a few times and you’ll see how quickly your heart rate goes up. Keep your body moving through the whole workout and you’ll be sweating just as much as during your cardio.
Eat consistently throughout the day. We’ve all heard it before: Eat five meals a day to lose weight. Well, guess what? It works, as long as those meals incorporate healthy food. Eat a protein with each meal. That is the biggest mistake I see. People are not feeding their muscles with enough protein. Remember, you want to keep your metabolism cranking all day and the best way to do that is to feed your body and to keep your muscle mass high.

Hopefully, this will help you to reduce those countless hours on the treadmill and stop starving yourself to lose a few pounds. I don’t know about you but if eating all day and doing less cardio is going to keep me at a healthy weight and in shape, I say AMEN to that!

Stop your weight loss struggles once and for all with these Fat Burning Meal Plans.

The Best Way To Fire Up Your Metabolism, Burn Fat Fast and Develop Lasting Health

By Rob Poulos, Fat Loss & Fitness Expert & Creator of ‘Fat Burning Furnace

Ask ten people what type of exercise they should be doing to burn fat and fire up their metabolism and they’ll all probably tell you the same thing. They’ll tell you that you need to do 30-40 minutes of moderately-paced aerobic exercise on a treadmill, elliptical machine, stair climber, etc. for 3-5 times per week.

They’ll probably also tell you that more is better…4 times per week would be better than 3, and 5 times per week would be even better.

People will tell you this because that’s been and continues to be the mainstream recommendation for fat burning by many fitness professionals. Get in a certain target heart rate and stay at that heart rate for 30 minutes or so, several times per week. I am here to tell you there is a better way.

Sure, you’ll burn some calories while you’re running to nowhere on a treadmill, but you won’t make a complete physique transformation with this type of exercise alone.

In fact, this type of exercise can actually be counterproductive to burning fat. Here are just a couple of reasons:

Long duration, lower intensity aerobics calls upon your stored body fat for energy during the sessions. While this may sound good, this can actually cause your body to create more body fat in reserve after the workout is over to have ready for your next workout.

Yikes!

What’s worse, this type of exercise when done frequently as typically suggested, trains your cardiovascular system to be efficient. Again, while this sounds good, your heart and lungs can actually reduce their capacity for work as they are getting more efficient at doing easy work (your long duration, low intensity aerobic workouts), which reduces their ability to handle stress.

This can lead to a host of other problems including higher change of heart attack. You are only working within your current aerobic capacity because you’re never challenging it to go beyond what it’s capable of. And anything that is easy will not yield results even close to what’s challenging for the body to accomplish.

Instead, you should be challenging the body to increase its capacity, so that it is stronger and able to deal with stress more easily. How is this done?

The fastest and most efficient way to rev up your metabolism, burn fat faster, and develop lifelong health and fitness is to add lean muscle to your body through resistance training – period. You want life changing results in the quickest possible time? Get stronger and build some muscle. When you add lean muscle to your body you’ll be literally turning your body into a fat burning machine!

Let’s say that you were eating the amount of calories that allow you to maintain your current bodyweight, but began to add lean muscle to your body through proper resistance training…you’ll need to use some of those calories you’re eating to feed the new muscle, creating a calorie deficit in your body.

In addition, when you stimulate your body with proper resistance training like I teach my students, the repair and growth process will call upon your stored body fat for energy. This calorie deficit combined with the repair and growth process will allow you to burn fat all day long, every day. You’ll even get these fat burning effects when you’re sitting around doing nothing at all.

Also, properly conducted resistance training actually increases your heart and lung’s capacity for work. By placing intense demands on your body, it is forced into being ready for anything you throw at it. This makes you more resistant to cardiovascular health problems that plague most people…even those that exercise with aerobics frequently.

And the beauty is I’ve discovered that you don’t have to spend much time working out to get the fat loss effects, and strength and muscle gains that will create this environment…you can actually get it done with 2 or 3 weekly workouts that last between 20 and 30 minutes, and even less time at an advanced level.

And it’s easy to make this type of exercise part of your life because of its efficiency…and it will help keep you lean and healthy for the rest of it…muscle is the stuff that fat burning furnaces are made of! That I can promise you.

Click here to take a look at some great fat burning exercises.