Rapid Weight Loss

Lose Weight By Creating Your Own Exercise Program
By Shafir Ahmad

Experts recommend that you accumulate one hour of physical activity every day to stay healthy or improve our health. Obviously this is also good if you are trying to lose weight and keeping it off.

The rule is the more intensive the activity is, the shorter the duration of exercise. As you progress into activity with moderate intensity, you can cut down to 30 minutes a day for four days per week.

There are 3 types of exercise that your body needs to keep healthy - cardiovascular, flexibility and strength. Cardiovascular activities are those ranging from moderate to vigorous exercises.

Here are some of the light, moderate and vigorous activities:

Light activity : Light walking, stretching, volleyball (60 minutes)

Moderate activity : Swimming, cycling, dancing, brisk walking (30-60 minutes)

Vigorous activity : Jogging, basketball, aerobics, hockey, fast dancing (20-30 minutes)

Aerobic or cardiovascular activities help you to become slim and get your heart, circulatory system and lungs in great shape. If you are working out at between 65 to 90 percent of your maximum heart rate, you are exercising hard enough. Older adults and beginners should aim at working out at 40 to 50 per cent of their maximum heart rate. Activities include rowing, step aerobics, soccer,hiking, distance cycling and water aerobics.

An easier way to tell if you are working too hard or slacking off is by way of conversation, which if you can talk comfortably while exercising, you are not overdoing it.

Being flexible means that your joints can move fluidly through a full range of motion like bending and stretching. The more flexible you are the less likely you will get injured. There is a long term gain if you get into the habit of flexible activities when you get older. Flexible activities include mopping, yoga, bowling, sweeping, golfing, pilates, tai chi, curling.

Strength training or also known as resistance training builds muscular strength, tone and endurance. It improves posture, prevent injuries, reshapes problem areas, increases metabolism and helps to prevent osteoporosis. All health benefits of strength training can be achieved in two 15-20 minute sessions per week. Activities include climbing stairs, heavy yard work, pushups, squats, abdominal crunches and lifting free weights (dumbbells).

Throughout your program you must periodically increase the amount of work your muscles perform for example, you need to increase the amount of weight you lift or the number of pushups or situps.

The best time of the day to exercise will depend on what activity that you do. However studies have found that afternoon or early evening is best for strength training. Still it does not matter what is the best time to exercise. What is key is that you pick a time when your energy level is still, and when you feel motivated.

Get your exclusive free report on Weight Loss at http://www.Weight-Loss-Secrets-Revealed.net

If you are even remotely interested in finding the best weight loss program for you, check out my site for more information and secrets on diet meal plan.

Shafir Ahmad is an Infopreneur bringing you the best information.

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By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Chris_Bandler]Chris Bandler

You can lose a lot of weight just by changing the way that you eat. Get the tips you need in this article.

Smaller Amounts More Frequently

One of the easiest ways to lose weight is to eat less food but more often. The way I do this is to divide my daily calorie maximum by six. Here’s an example.

Let’s say that I want to lose weight by eating only 1200 calories per day. Instead of eating 3 meals a day of 400 calories each, I’m going to do it differently.

Instead, I’m going to eat 6 meals a day of 200 calories each.

You only get hungry about 2 to 3 hours after every meal. So I can eat roughly every 2 to 3 hours but only eat 200 calories at a time. This is actually the way that we are supposed to eat and is better for more efficient metabolism.

Look around you in nature, do you see animals eating 3 squares meals per day? Only if they are domesticated. Most other animals forage and eat all day long.

Low GI Foods

You will lose more weight if you burn all the food you eat instead of converting it to fat. Junk food easily goes on as fat because it causes our blood sugar to peak very quickly and then crash afterwards.

Instead, you want to be eating slow burn foods. We say that these have a low glycaemic index or low GI.

So instead of eating white bread, eat brown. Avoid alcohol and starchy carbs like potatoes. Eat more nuts and seeds but not too many. The more refined and sweet tasting something is, the higher the GI.

No Junk

I know it goes without saying but I’ll say it anyway. You must cut out the junk. You know what junk is and you simply can’t lose a lot of weight if you are eating junk every day. Promise yourself to cut the junk out for at least 2 weeks so that you can see how much weight you are capable of losing without it.

Fruits

This is a great way to replace the junk. Buy yourself some exotic fruits. Fruits are great and a better replacement for junk and candies. Fruits are what nature intended us to eat. Bright so we are curious, full of water and nutrients and easily digestible.

Don’t believe the phony stories that fruit has a lot of sugar and is bad for you. There are some people who live entirely on fruit! Fruit is good for you and never bad for you.

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Consuming diet pills seem to be a magical solution to many dieters and overweight people. And yet people need to be aware that losing weight is not just about swallowing pills and the weighty problem will be dissolved.

Before you decide to consume any diet pills or supplements, it is advisable that you consult your doctor first. Different diet pills work in different ways for different weight problems. However the fact remains that diet pills are created for overweight people to help solve a health problem that can lead to illnesses such as diabetes, depression, heart disease and others.

These days there are way too many diet pills in the market that it is easy to be confused or totally sceptical about their effectiveness. Just remember that taking diet pills are not effective if used on their own. If you truly want to benefit fully from diet pills, you must use them as supplementary to other weight loss efforts like eating healthily and exercising.

Diet pills do help to lose weight quicker in any weight loss program especially in obesity. Look up the ingredients in diet pills so that you understand the advantages as well as the health risk. For example, ingredients that claim to alter your metabolism may affect your heart rate and this may be too risky if you have any kind of heart problem.

There are pills that can reduce the body’s absorption of fat from foods, thereby reducing weight and cholesterol. And some pills can block the action of lipase, an enzyme in the intestine that breaks down fat. Ask yourself if you have illnesses that do not work well with the ingredients in the diet pills.

One of diet pills’ function is to suppress your appetite and since your body needs a wide variety of vitamins and minerals to stay healthy, be mindful that your loss of appetite does not stand in the way of consuming necessary nutrients, or you will be at risk for certain health problems. If you know this, perhaps you may want to supplement these nutrients with nutrition supplements like calcium, vitamins, iron, etc.

Although there are diet pills that are harmful to the body, not all diet pills are necessarily bad. Those that are made from herbs also have several health benefits other than weight loss. Some of these herbal pills come from plants such as green tea, nettle and dandelion.

If you become wiser on the use of diet pills and supplements, you can not only benefit fully from them for weight loss but also to safeguard against other diseases.

Get your free report on weight loss at http://www.Weight-Loss-Secrets-Revealed.net and you can also find more information on weight loss diet pills.

Shafir Ahmad is an Infopreneur bringing you the best information.

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Post natal flab is something that all new mothers are anxious to shed as soon as they give birth and is a challenge for many women. Given that the body goes through many changes and hormonal challenges for nine months, it is no wonder that trying to lose weight after giving birth takes time, determination and patience. Some women never got back their shape and weight of pre-pregnancy days.

Doctors recommend that in the first 6 weeks after delivery, new mothers should focus on getting the necessary rest and bonding with baby. According to doctors, in most cases, a return to pre-pregnancy body composition may take anywhere between nine months to a year.

There are many ways to shed off post natal flab and postpartum exercise is most often a better option than trying to diet. Dieting is not sensible at this time, especially if you are breastfeeding. Your body also needs the necessary nutrients to repair itself.

Your readiness to exercise is a function of pre-pregnancy fitness level and postpartum health status. When you are ready to resume exercise after six weeks, ensure that you use a good support bra for comfort during exercise. It should be a gradual and not a sudden and vigorous routine. Exercise should not cause any associated pain or any bleeding.

If you have adequate postpartum exercises as suggested below, it should aid a speedier return to your pre-pregnancy figure, increase your energy level to cope with demands of newborn baby.

1. Pelvic Floor Exercise

Tighten your anus as thouigh you are trying to prevent yourself from passing urine. Hold for 5 seconds and then relax. Repeat 10 times. Never do this while passing urine.

2. Pelvic Tilts

Kneel on all fours with a flat back, and your hands and knees planted on the ground. Curl your back towards the ceiling without shifting your body or moving your arms or legs. You will feel your pelvis being pulled towards you and your back arched back.

3. Torso Stretch

Stand with your feet hipwidth apart and holding your hands together. Straighten arms above you such that you feel a gentle pull at the inner side of your arms. Hold for 15 seconds. Repeat for 5 times.

4. Chest Stretch

Stand with feet hipwidth apart holding your hands together. Straighten arms behind you such that you feel a gentle stretch at the front of your chest. Hold for 15 seconds - repeat 5 times

5. Triceps Stretch

Bend your left elbow behind your head and use the right hand to gently pull the left elbow in further until you feel a stretch in the back of your arm. Switch sides and repeat.

6. Back Stretch

Clasp your hands together in front of you and round your back towards the floor, pressing your arms away from body to feel a stretch in your upper back.

7. Shoulder Stretch

Bring your left arm across the front of your body. Use your right forearm to pull the left elbow towards your ody, keeping the left arm extended. Switch sides and repeat.

For women with C-section delivery, you are encouraged to walk as soon as possible to increase healing, circulation and minimise muscle wasting. When they are ready, they can also participate in the same exercise program as above.

The first step for weight loss is to evaluate your body weight in order to understand if you are overweight and the extent to which you’re overweight. Once you have done this, you can then proceed to chose a weight loss program that suits your unique weight loss goals and your lifestyle.

Evaluating your body weight is very simple . There are two methods that most professionals use to assess body weight, and these can be easily used by individuals at home to assess their weight. These are the Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist Circumference.

The Body mass index (BMI)- The Body Mass Index uses an individual’s weight in relation to height to measure body fat. Using the Body Mass Index, weight is assessed using the following scale:

 
BMI between 18.5-24.9 - Healthy Weight
BMI between 25-29.9 - Overweight
BMI 30 or higher - Obese

It is important to keep in mind that not everyone whose BMI is in the “healthy” range is at their most healthy weight. Those people who carry excess fat, with little muscle, need to concentrate on losing body fat and increasing muscle. Some people may have a BMI just above the healthy range, but have lots of muscle and little fat. Generally speaking, however, the higher the BMI measure beyond the “healthy” range, the greater the health risks associated with body weight.

Those people with a BMI above the healthy range should visit a health care practitioner to discuss potential weight related health risks.

Waist circumference

Waist circumference is a measurement taken around the waist. Waist circumference introduces another factor relevant to body weight and health risks, namely body shape. “Apple” shapes carry most of their fat around the waist and upper body. “Pear” shapes carry most of their body fat around the hips, thighs and lower body. When assessing health risks, most health care providers consider a pear shape to be less harmful to health than apple shape, due to the fact that most apple shapes carry excess weight around the abdomen which increases health risks associated with overweight and obesity.

Healthy weight women should have a waist circumference below 35 inches, while healthy weight men should measure under 40 inches.

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When I first started exercising again after I gave birth to my son, my biggest concern was losing the belly fat I had acquired during my pregnancy. Apparently bean burritos and double cheeseburgers are not the best way to maintain a healthy weight.

How to lose belly fat is a question that many people ask. It seems that the stomach is a very common problem area for people from all walks of life.

We have all heard that diet and exercise are the 2 key ingredients in staying healthy and fit. Eating healthy has gained a lot of attention since the release of the documentary “Super Size Me” and the importance of exercise has also had its share of time in the spotlight with shows like “The Biggest Loser” and the different exercise equipment popping up across paid programming.

But what exercises can we do to lose belly fat and lose it fast?

One exercise that targets the stubborn stomach area is called The Bicycle.
To do The Bicycle, simply lay on the floor pressing your lower back to the ground. Your hands are beside your head. Bring your knees to an approximate 45-degree angle and slowly go through the motion of pedaling a bicycle. Your left elbow will touch your right knee and then your right elbow will touch your left knee.

The second exercise you can do to target your belly fat is the basic Crunch.
You will start by laying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Your hands will be positioned by the side of your head with your fingertips resting just behind your ears. Press your lower back into the ground. Slowly curl up until both shoulders are lifted off the ground a few inches. Hold for a few seconds and then slowly release back to the floor.

Lastly, if you have a large exercise ball you can use this as part of your abdominal exercises. Sit on the ball and place your feet flat on the floor. Slide down the ball until it rests against your back and lie back on the ball until your torso is parallel to the floor. Slowly raise your torso up off the ball until you are at about a 45-degree angle while contracting your abdominal muscles. Hold for a few seconds and then release.

It is also important to remember that Aerobic exercise is still one of the best ways to burn calories and manage weight.

First and foremost, I am a mom. I am also an information junkie. I began getting very interested in weight loss, and belly fat to be more specific, after I gave birth to my 4th child and my tummy didn’t snap back that way it is supposed to. If losing belly fat is important to you, check out The NEW Weight Loss Patch and get your FREE sample today!

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Why do so many of us fail or give up our efforts to lose weight? The reason is that we pay too little attention to our emotions and what drive us to eat unnecessarily. If you are able to get a grip on these emotions, you have a better chance of success and losing weight and keeping it off.

Here’s a motivation checklist:

1. Commit

As with every goal in life, make a commitment to lose weight that no matter what happens, rain or shine, you are committed to make that trip to the gym. Adopt that “I can do it” attitude and remember to draw on these successes when the next time you are faced with yet another challenge.

2. Give yourself 10 good reasons

List 10 things that drive your weight-loss desires, for example , “lower my cholesterol level” or “increase my energy level” or “fit into that new bikini”. Keep the list handy , either in your purse, or at your desk where you cannot miss it. When you suffer a dip in motivation, looking at the list will guarantee a recharge.

3. Downsize the less than healthy foods

Who says you cannot enjoy your life while dieting. The key is to eat in moderation all the things that you love. Eat with awareness. If you must have your regular fix of icecream or chocolate, plan your eating habit. Establish how much you consume in a week, cut it by half or a third, either through size or frequency.

5. Practise never-miss-a-meal habit

It is a fact and reality that whenever we skip meals and become extremely hungry and sluggish, we tend to grab any food to satisfy hunger for example potato chips or some snacks. Or we could gobble down in larger volume for the next meal. So the lesson here is to ensure you never miss your healthy meals. Imagine the energy that you get when you practise healthy eating habits.

6. Share your gameplan

Set up your support system and share with those whom you think can encourage you in your weightloss effort. Decide what you want friends and family to do to encourage you. For example, remind them to be mindful of what or what not to offer you in terms of food.

7. Stop thinking little things have no calories

sometimes we tend to forget little bites like a handful of potato chips, sweets, jelly beans - are too small to have any calories. They all add up. Think of how little satisfaction you get from these little bites and how they negate your effort to lose weight. Over time, you will adjust your eating pattern and will no longer be tempted by these little distractions.

8. Post a note strategically

Put signs in your kitchen or refrigerator to remind you, “what you are looking for is not here”. Sometimes we have a tendency to overcome any emotional upset by eating. Instead go out and exercise and release the emotional baggage. That is guaranteed to make you feel better than eating anyway.

9. Recharge your motivation battery

There will be down times when you are in no mood to exercise or cooking healthy food. You might think it is easier to just order pizza. It is time you revist your goals and remind yourself you got this far, so why blow it now. Just get up and run.

10. Celebrate the smallest of victories

Focus on your successes, no matter how small they are. Write them down and put the list where you can see them to motivate you. You will feel gratified and happy that you have made achievements and will encourage you to increase your successes.

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This is a nightmare for everyone who follows a diet
You have almost reached your goals and than boom a return in weight
You ask yourself: How is that possible, have if followed a wrong diet?
If you follow a diet it is very important that you do everything right.
In this article you will discover six diet mistakes to avoid.

Diet mistake #1: Support

This is just the same such as stop smoking or exams you need support from people.
Without support it is very difficult to keep with your diet plan.
Online support is also an option just visit some forums about dieting or weight loss.
Diet mistake #2: Not drinking enough water.

Water is one of the most important elements in your life.
Drink at least eight glasses of water per day and even more in the summer (or other hot periods).
Drink water from a bottle and not from a glass, you will drink a lot more.
Diet mistake #3: Skipping breakfast.

I can’t say this enough do not skip your breakfast.
This is the most important meal of all; it gives you energy to start the day.
If you skip you are more likely to eat high fat and high sugar snacks.

Diet mistake #4: Juice or fruit?

For every piece of fruit you can buy the juice however it is better to eat the real stuff.
The industry added a lot of calories and sugars in the fruit juice.
Fruit juice doesn’t contain any fibers.
Diet mistake #4: Exercises are necessary

You can spend hundreds of dollars on diet products and information if you don’t do psychical activities your weight-loss programme is not complete. Some effective ways to lose weight with exercises are fitness, running, belly dancing, jogging. Be active for at least 30 minutes in a day.

Diet mistake #5: Eating low fat snacks

Go to your local store and you will find a lot of low fat snacks crisps, chips, chocolate bars.
Of course you can spend a few dollars on it from time to time but eating to much low fat snacks can kill your diet.
Diet mistake #6: Setting unrealistic goals.

Having weight loss goals for yourself is a good idea but setting unrealistic weight loss goals can cause frustration and especially if you don’t reach them.
Researchers have found out that losing weight quickly is not healthy at all.
So you have read the 6 “Diet mistakes to avoid”.
I hope you have learned something from it. Although this article will help you out it is not enough, knowledge is the key in your weight loss battle.

When it comes to dieting you need to stay informed.
Why don’t you try out some low fat desserts.
More weight loss articles and tips can be found on my site + free report (97$ value).
Quick weight loss tips

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By Jessica Dawn

When it comes to losing weight, maintaining your weight, or changing your body composition, understanding calories is crucial to your success.

I know the idea of counting calories is maddening, but the truth is that in order to lose weight (or body fat), you must create a caloric deficit; you must burn more than you consume. Maintaining your weight requires you to burn as much as you consume & if you want to change your body composition (lose fat), you must understand how to retain or build your lean body mass & burn fat (understanding calories is a big part of this).

I am not suggesting you count calories for each meal, each snack, and every single bite of food you have. I could never do that myself so I wouldn’t recommend it for you (unless you want to that is). I simply want you to know that in order for you to reach your goals, no matter what they are, it requires you to gain a basic understanding of how calories work.

The first step you should take is to learn how many calories you require each day. There are a couple of different formulas you can use to calculate your caloric needs. If you would like to learn how many calories you need each day, click here. This calculation will give you a general idea of the calories you need each day. Be aware that this equation does not take into consideration LBM (Lean Body Mass) which plays a major role in the number of calories your require each day (higher % LBM = higher metabolism), but it will give you a general idea to start with.

The second step you should take is to educate yourself on the calories contained in the various foods you eat. Although I personally would never count the calories I eat for each meal, I do have calorie strategies in place. I’ve been paying attention & educating myself about the number of calories contained in various foods for a long time now and it really helps me. For example, I know about how many calories are in a medium apple, my favorite granola bar, & a tablespoon of peanut butter (one of my weaknesses, I’ve been caught eating pb out of the jar numerous times!). Since I remember this information, I can estimate how much food I should eat each day, each snack, each meal. Even though I don’t know the real number of calories and never will!

You can start to become aware of the calories contained in various foods by reading the labels. You’ll begin to see that things like peanut butter, butter, & oils are mostly fat and are very high in calories. It doesn’t mean you should not eat high calorie foods, but once you know this you can begin to adjust what you eat based on your personal needs.

Every step you take towards your goals is a positive step. Educating yourself and understanding the basics of how your body works is a major positive step you can take by learning a few new nutrition facts each day. Calories are an important part of losing weight and reaching your goals so I encourage you to learn something about calories each day (even if it’s just a little fact).

Jessica Dawn is a fitness professional who has been studying health & fitness for over 10 years. In addition to actively participating in fitness, Jessica has a degree in Kinesiology (exercise science) which allows her to understand both the scientific and behavioral aspects of weight loss and fitness.

Jessica Dawn is a leader in teaching health & fitness through the internet. You can also visit her blog @ http://www.visfitness.blogspot.com and learn proven stratgies to make your fitness program effective. To receive a free report, visit: http://www.visfitness.com

In this course, Jessica will show you how to develop a lifestlye of health, vitality, and fitness. She answers the quesions you have about life-long weight control and resolves the roadblocks you may have faced in the past so you can achieve your goals and remain fit for life.

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By Craig Ballantyne

Are there really any fat loss secrets? Well, of course! After all, if everyone knew these secrets, we wouldn’t have any fat people, would we? And if you knew them all, then you’d be able to boost your metabolism and fat burning and get rid of that last bit of fat around your belly. So take a look at these tips to burn your belly fat and lose weight fast.

An interviewer recently asked me, “What are your top 5 fat loss tips”?

Well, here’s my answer on my fat loss secrets.

Starting with the top 5 beginner tips…

1) No liquid calories (with the exception of milk - as long as it fits your daily nutrition plan). So get rid of all the juices, the sodas, and the sports drinks. Liquid sugar is the last thing you need when you are trying to lose fat. And say goodbye to booze - not only will it lead to excess calories in, but it can also reduce the quality of your sleep - and that just leads to a whole other list of problems.

2) No fast food. Do not eat at fast food restaurants. Even if you choose what you think is healthy, remember this: Fast food restaurants are all about profit. And in order to profit while giving you cheap, quick, and easy to prepare foods, the quality of the food ingredients will be poor - especially the protein.

Now you might have read that you can still make healthy choices at fast food restaurants. But you know what, that’s just politically-correct nonsense. If it’s fast food, it’s poor food. You do realize it’s no coincidence that fast food chicken breasts are the exact same shape and size, right?

Walking into a burger joint and grabbing a pre-formed chicken breast on a white bread bun with a piece of old lettuce and a half-green, half-pink tomato is not healthy eating.

The politically-incorrect truth is that it’s going to take time and effort to eat properly. You will have to plan, shop, and prepare healthy meals. You will have to spend time cleaning, cutting, and cooking your food. That’s the truth.

But believe me, it will taste so much better than fast food, and healthy eating will make you more alert. Eating fast food will make you feel terrible, and will make you want to have an afternoon nap at your desk.

Do the best you can to improve on your nutrition everyday.

3) Eat more fruits and vegetables. If you are eating 2 servings per day, then go up to 4 servings per day by the end of the week. And even if you think you are doing great by having 5 servings per day, you still need to double that (take 2-3 weeks to work your way up to 10 servings per day). Stick with fiber-rich fruits and vegetables. And go organic whenever possible.

4) Eat 1oz of almonds or walnuts per day (1/2 oz in the AM, and the other half in the afternoon). Most nuts are roasted in hydrogenated oils (trans fats), so stick to non-roasted nuts.

5) Be consistent with your workouts, and make sure the workouts are efficient and effective. To make it easy for you to follow, stick with the strength and interval workout system.

It doesn’t matter if you train in the morning before or after breakfast, or at night before or after dinner, or at 1pm on days when the moon is in line with Saturn…don’t worry about the details, just train consistently.

6) BONUS TIP: Go for a walk after lunch or dinner (or anytime you eat a big meal). Research shows this will help you control your cholesterol and triglycerides, plus any movement is better than sitting around watching the TV and snacking.

Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men’s Health and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training for Fat Loss have helped thousands of men and women with weight loss and fat burning in less than 45 minutes three times per week. Turbulence Training for Fat Loss workouts help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment. Craig’s bodyweight workouts for fat loss help you lose fat without any equipment at all.

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