Monday, June 25, 2012
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Reason for Slow Female Fat Loss, 5 Tips to Fix it
Foreword: While you are working hard to get your diet right to lose weight, it is faster if you are proactive in including other programs to burn calories in your weight loss strategy. Check out this useful information for Women so you don't get discouraged (especially small-sized women!) which I have included as a bonus:
1 Reason For Slow Female Fat Loss...And 5 Tips To Fix It
Article By Tom Venuto
You may have heard (or realized first hand!), that it’s more difficult for women to lose fat than men.
Differences in male and female hormones are certainly involved - both in the fat loss process as well as in the patterns of fat storage on the body. But the biggest obstacle is NOT hormonal issues, it’s one little fat loss relativity factor that almost all women overlook…
That factor is the simple fact that women are usually smaller and lighter than men, yet they err by setting their goals and designing their nutrition plans like men or larger women.
This especially applies to short and petite women who still have body fat to lose.
Case in point: Last week I received an email from a female reader who told me she was doing 3 weight training and 6 cardio sessions per week and the cardio was 45 minutes at a clip.
She said she weighed 111 lbs at 4 feet 11 inches tall, but even though she was petite, she had “several pounds of flab” she wanted to lose and just felt kind of “mushy.”
She had been really inspired by the success stories on the Burn the Fat websites, especially the finalists in our Burn the Fat transformation challenge. But she said she was starting to get discouraged because she was losing so much slower than everyone else, it seemed.
First I asked her if she knew her body fat percentage. It may seem odd, but it’s possible to be a so-called “ideal” body weight and have high body fat and low lean body mass. That’s called “normal weight obesity” or in the popular vernacular, “skinny fat”). With the prevalence of body image disorders today, (and lets face it, the mirror plays tricks on us all), it’s especially important to understand and objectively measure body composition. Having confirmed that she did actually have body fat to lose, even though she wasn’t overweight, here’s what I told her:
When you have a smaller body, you have lower calorie needs. When you have lower calorie needs, your relative deficit (20%, 30% etc) gives you a smaller absolute deficit and therefore you lose fat more slowly than someone who is larger and can create a larger deficit more easily.
Here’s an example for a man Me: I’m male, 5’ 8”, a lean 192 lbs and very active:
For smaller women, the math equation is very different.
At only 4 foot 11 inches tall and 111 lbs, a female’s numbers would look like this:
That’s pretty low in calories. However, you would still have a fairly small calorie deficit. In fact, I would get to eat twice as many calories (2600 vs 1300 per day) and I’d still get almost twice the weekly rate of fat loss!
I know, this isn’t “fair,” but it doesn’t mean women can’t get as lean as they want to be. It means that on average, women will drop fat slower than men. It also means women with small bodies will lose fat more slowly than larger women. What to do about it?
5 TIPS FOR FEMALE FAT LOSS
#1 Set a goal that’s realistic relative to your gender, body size and weight. ONE POUND a week of fat loss is much more in line with a realistic goal for a small-framed female. Overweight people can lose it faster. Men can drop it faster.
#2: Weigh and measure all your food any time you feel you’re stuck at a plateau, just to be sure. When your calorie expenditure is on the low side, you don’t have much margin for error. One extra pastry, muffin or handful of cookies and ZAP, your little 20% calorie deficit is GONE!
#3: Remember that body fat and body weight are NOT the same thing. Judge your progress on body composition. (I teach how to measure your body fat and lean body mass in the privacy of your own home as part of my Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle Program).
#4: Keep a weekly progress chart for weight, body fat percentage, pounds of fat and pounds of lean body mass. Water weight and lean body mass gains can mask fat loss so it’s possible to make progress even though the scale isn’t moving. Pay special attention to the progress trend over time.
#5: Burn more calories from the time you already spend in the gym. Suggestions: Make 2 or 3 of your long cardio sessions higher in intensity so you burn more calories in the same or even less time. Set up your weight training with big compound exercise and brief rest intervals so you burn more calories from strength training as well.
When I first shared this information with my readers, some women told me that all this did was get them depressed or prompt them to reply, "it's not fair!" Well, no it's not fair. But "Better the hard truth than a comforting fantasy," as Carl Sagan once said.
Look at it this way: This information should not be depressing - it should be encouraging and empowering to you because this "hard truth" helps shorter/ smaller women understand how to set realistic goals and know exactly what to to do to reach them: You have to stay very active, train hard, BURN a lot of calories instead of just dieting, and you will reach any goal. It just takes a little patience.
Dropping only ONE pound per week (or less) may seem excruciatingly slow, but even if you get a HALF a pound a week fat loss, that’s still progress. Celebrate it. Keep that up over time, and you will reach your goal. Persistence pays.
1 Reason For Slow Female Fat Loss...And 5 Tips To Fix It
Article By Tom Venuto
You may have heard (or realized first hand!), that it’s more difficult for women to lose fat than men. Differences in male and female hormones are certainly involved - both in the fat loss process as well as in the patterns of fat storage on the body. But the biggest obstacle is NOT hormonal issues, it’s one little fat loss relativity factor that almost all women overlook…
That factor is the simple fact that women are usually smaller and lighter than men, yet they err by setting their goals and designing their nutrition plans like men or larger women.
This especially applies to short and petite women who still have body fat to lose.
Case in point: Last week I received an email from a female reader who told me she was doing 3 weight training and 6 cardio sessions per week and the cardio was 45 minutes at a clip.
She said she weighed 111 lbs at 4 feet 11 inches tall, but even though she was petite, she had “several pounds of flab” she wanted to lose and just felt kind of “mushy.”
She had been really inspired by the success stories on the Burn the Fat websites, especially the finalists in our Burn the Fat transformation challenge. But she said she was starting to get discouraged because she was losing so much slower than everyone else, it seemed.
First I asked her if she knew her body fat percentage. It may seem odd, but it’s possible to be a so-called “ideal” body weight and have high body fat and low lean body mass. That’s called “normal weight obesity” or in the popular vernacular, “skinny fat”). With the prevalence of body image disorders today, (and lets face it, the mirror plays tricks on us all), it’s especially important to understand and objectively measure body composition. Having confirmed that she did actually have body fat to lose, even though she wasn’t overweight, here’s what I told her:
When you have a smaller body, you have lower calorie needs. When you have lower calorie needs, your relative deficit (20%, 30% etc) gives you a smaller absolute deficit and therefore you lose fat more slowly than someone who is larger and can create a larger deficit more easily.
Here’s an example for a man Me: I’m male, 5’ 8”, a lean 192 lbs and very active:
- Daily calorie maintenance level: 3300 calories a day
- 20% calorie deficit = cut out 660 calories
- Optimal calorie intake for fat loss: 2640 calories a day
- On paper predicted fat loss: 1.3 lbs of wt loss per week
For smaller women, the math equation is very different.
At only 4 foot 11 inches tall and 111 lbs, a female’s numbers would look like this:
- Daily maintenance level 1930 calories (even at a moderately active exercise level).
- 20% deficit would = 386 calories
- Optimal intake for fat loss 1544 calories a day
- On paper predicted fat loss only 8/10th of a lb of fat loss/wk.
That’s pretty low in calories. However, you would still have a fairly small calorie deficit. In fact, I would get to eat twice as many calories (2600 vs 1300 per day) and I’d still get almost twice the weekly rate of fat loss!
I know, this isn’t “fair,” but it doesn’t mean women can’t get as lean as they want to be. It means that on average, women will drop fat slower than men. It also means women with small bodies will lose fat more slowly than larger women. What to do about it?
5 TIPS FOR FEMALE FAT LOSS
#1 Set a goal that’s realistic relative to your gender, body size and weight. ONE POUND a week of fat loss is much more in line with a realistic goal for a small-framed female. Overweight people can lose it faster. Men can drop it faster.
#2: Weigh and measure all your food any time you feel you’re stuck at a plateau, just to be sure. When your calorie expenditure is on the low side, you don’t have much margin for error. One extra pastry, muffin or handful of cookies and ZAP, your little 20% calorie deficit is GONE!
#3: Remember that body fat and body weight are NOT the same thing. Judge your progress on body composition. (I teach how to measure your body fat and lean body mass in the privacy of your own home as part of my Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle Program).
#4: Keep a weekly progress chart for weight, body fat percentage, pounds of fat and pounds of lean body mass. Water weight and lean body mass gains can mask fat loss so it’s possible to make progress even though the scale isn’t moving. Pay special attention to the progress trend over time.
#5: Burn more calories from the time you already spend in the gym. Suggestions: Make 2 or 3 of your long cardio sessions higher in intensity so you burn more calories in the same or even less time. Set up your weight training with big compound exercise and brief rest intervals so you burn more calories from strength training as well.
When I first shared this information with my readers, some women told me that all this did was get them depressed or prompt them to reply, "it's not fair!" Well, no it's not fair. But "Better the hard truth than a comforting fantasy," as Carl Sagan once said.
Look at it this way: This information should not be depressing - it should be encouraging and empowering to you because this "hard truth" helps shorter/ smaller women understand how to set realistic goals and know exactly what to to do to reach them: You have to stay very active, train hard, BURN a lot of calories instead of just dieting, and you will reach any goal. It just takes a little patience.
Dropping only ONE pound per week (or less) may seem excruciatingly slow, but even if you get a HALF a pound a week fat loss, that’s still progress. Celebrate it. Keep that up over time, and you will reach your goal. Persistence pays.
Your
friend and coach,
Friday, June 22, 2012
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
Do Carbs Make You Fat? Video
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Does Fat Make You Fat Video?
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Lose Weight without Feeling Hungry
Lose Weight without Feeling Hungry
Healthy foods are not created in a factory or processed to death. If the food is dried, canned, frozen or filled with ingredients you can’t pronounce, stay away from it. Examples of healthy foods include fresh fish, naturally raised meats, legumes, seeds, organic poultry, organic whole eggs, raw nuts, and fresh fruit and vegetables.
How to Make Healthy Meals More Filling
There’s nothing more dismal than dealing with hunger pangs all day. If your meals aren’t satisfying you, this is exactly what’s going to happen. Here are some tricks to make your meals more filling:
Examples of Healthy, Filling Meals and Snacks
“I need to lose weight
but I’m sick of feeling hungry all the time,” is a common statement
made by individuals who follow fly-by-night diets. If your diet leaves
your stomach rumbling every hour on the hour, it’s time to make a
change. I used to think that losing weight meant starving. It took me a
while to realise that I could actually eat heartily and still LOSE weight.
The time I spent starving in the name of losing weight was miserable. When I did manage to shed a few pounds, I would gain it all back in a matter of weeks. Sometimes I’d even gain a few extra pounds. Talk about depressing! What I learned through years of research (and trial and error) is that when you follow a healthy eating plan, you can eat till you’re full, and still see huge weight loss results.
What Are Healthy Foods?
The time I spent starving in the name of losing weight was miserable. When I did manage to shed a few pounds, I would gain it all back in a matter of weeks. Sometimes I’d even gain a few extra pounds. Talk about depressing! What I learned through years of research (and trial and error) is that when you follow a healthy eating plan, you can eat till you’re full, and still see huge weight loss results.
What Are Healthy Foods?
Healthy foods are not created in a factory or processed to death. If the food is dried, canned, frozen or filled with ingredients you can’t pronounce, stay away from it. Examples of healthy foods include fresh fish, naturally raised meats, legumes, seeds, organic poultry, organic whole eggs, raw nuts, and fresh fruit and vegetables.
How to Make Healthy Meals More Filling
There’s nothing more dismal than dealing with hunger pangs all day. If your meals aren’t satisfying you, this is exactly what’s going to happen. Here are some tricks to make your meals more filling:
- Add a source of quality protein and a source healthy fat (yes, fat) to each of your meals. Doing this makes meals more satiating and curbs hunger. Sources of healthy protein include natural meats, organic whole eggs, organic poultry and fish. Sources of healthy fat include avocados, fish, beans, raw nuts, coconut oil and olive oil.
- Load your plate with veggies. Tip: divide your plate into three sections and fill the larger section with veggies. Leave the other two sections for meat and other foods. Veggies are full of fiber, so they expand in the stomach and digest slowly so keeping you full longer.
- Drink a glass of water before each meal and throughout the day. This will help you feel full faster and reduce hunger
Examples of Healthy, Filling Meals and Snacks
- Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs, 1/3 cup of oatmeal with cinnamon and a small pear.
- Snack: 1 medium apple, 1 cup of cucumber slices and 1 oz of raw nuts.
- Lunch: 4 oz ground turkey, 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice, 8 oz carrot sticks, and a small green salad with vinegar and olive oil dressing.
- Snack: 2 tablespoons of almond butter, 2 slices of rye crisp bread and 8 oz of celery sticks.
- Dinner: 5 oz broiled halibut steak, 1/2 cup of green beans sautéed in garlic, small baked sweet potato and a small green salad with apple cider vinegar and olive oil dressing.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Lose Belly Fat in 4 Easy Steps
How to Lose Belly Fat in 4 Easy Steps
A flabby midsection is not just embarassing. It is actually risky. The spare tire around your tummy increases your risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes. However, you don’t need a complicated diet plan to learn how to lose belly fat. Stomach flab may be stubborn, but with proper nutrition, hydration, exercise, and a can-do attitude you can lose that belly fat.
Believe in Yourself
The way you feel about your ability to lose weight will play a major role in your success. Do not allow yourself to be plagued with self-doubt and negativity, because that can weaken your resolve when things get tough. In order to achieve your weight loss goal, you must truly believe you can succeed.
Losing weight is not just about vanity; it’s also about living healthy and feeling your best everyday. Think of your fat burning journey as a lifestyle change rather than a diet to keep yourself in the right frame of mind. If you focus on healthy living instead of dieting, you’ll maintain momentum and it will shift you towards positive thoughts and away from negative feelings.
Eat Nutritiously
Eat a healthy diet to keep your metabolism operating properly so you burn stomach fat more effectively. If your eating plan lacks any of these components ie. essential carbohydrates, protein, healthy fat, vitamins and minerals, it’s not nutritious.
To ensure you get adequate amounts of all of these nutrients, incorporate a variety of healthy, whole foods like vegetables, fruits, poultry, lean meats, raw nuts, legumes, beans, seeds and whole eggs into your diet.
As for counting calories to lose weight, I do not recommend this because it has been found to be ineffective and will become a chore. This does not mean wanton, uncontrolled eating because you need to be conscious of what you ingest but you do not have to obsess and count every single calorie because this is not sustainable when it becomes a chore.
There is ample evidence that if you eat the right foods, and stick to reasonable portion sizes, you can lose belly fat without counting a single calorie.
Drink Plenty of Water
Water is often overlooked in nutrition plans. But this element is crucial for burning fat and maintaining proper health. Water helps metabolize stored fat and rids the body of excess fat and toxins. Water also prevents bloating and constipation, and helps curb your appetite.
Most people underestimate how much water they need, so they don’t stay properly hydrated. For optimum health, drink half of your body weight in ounces of water daily. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, you should drink at least 100 ounces of water per day.
Get Up and Exercise
When you start your healthy eating plan, you’ll automatically reduce your caloric intake and start to shed some weight. However, unless you add exercise into the mix, your metabolism will eventually slow down and ultimately reduce your ability to burn stomach fat.
There’s no way to target specific areas for fat loss. Crunches, sit-ups and other ab-specific exercises only work to tone the muscles. The only way to get the svelte tummy of your dreams is to burn the fat off. If you don’t, any muscle tone you achieve via abdominal exercises will be buried under the flab.
If you combine 30 to 60 minutes of moderate to intense cardiovascular activity with proper nutrition, the fat around your belly will melt like butter. If you’re out of shape, doing a 30 to 60 minute workout may be too much at first. It’s okay if you start off exercising for 5 or 10 minutes. Simply work your way up as your fitness level improves.
Don’t try to change your lifestyle overnight; Start by making small tweaks. In the beginning, you might try drinking more water, increasing your fresh vegetable intake and exercising three days a week. Once you get used to these adjustments, gradually build on them. Remember, small steps can lead to big results.
Sitting and wishing won’t help you get the trim tummy you’ve always wanted. Let the Diet Solution Program teach you how to lose belly fat and improve your overall health.
A flabby midsection is not just embarassing. It is actually risky. The spare tire around your tummy increases your risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes. However, you don’t need a complicated diet plan to learn how to lose belly fat. Stomach flab may be stubborn, but with proper nutrition, hydration, exercise, and a can-do attitude you can lose that belly fat.
Believe in Yourself
The way you feel about your ability to lose weight will play a major role in your success. Do not allow yourself to be plagued with self-doubt and negativity, because that can weaken your resolve when things get tough. In order to achieve your weight loss goal, you must truly believe you can succeed.
Losing weight is not just about vanity; it’s also about living healthy and feeling your best everyday. Think of your fat burning journey as a lifestyle change rather than a diet to keep yourself in the right frame of mind. If you focus on healthy living instead of dieting, you’ll maintain momentum and it will shift you towards positive thoughts and away from negative feelings.
Eat Nutritiously
Eat a healthy diet to keep your metabolism operating properly so you burn stomach fat more effectively. If your eating plan lacks any of these components ie. essential carbohydrates, protein, healthy fat, vitamins and minerals, it’s not nutritious.
To ensure you get adequate amounts of all of these nutrients, incorporate a variety of healthy, whole foods like vegetables, fruits, poultry, lean meats, raw nuts, legumes, beans, seeds and whole eggs into your diet.
As for counting calories to lose weight, I do not recommend this because it has been found to be ineffective and will become a chore. This does not mean wanton, uncontrolled eating because you need to be conscious of what you ingest but you do not have to obsess and count every single calorie because this is not sustainable when it becomes a chore.
There is ample evidence that if you eat the right foods, and stick to reasonable portion sizes, you can lose belly fat without counting a single calorie.
Drink Plenty of Water
Water is often overlooked in nutrition plans. But this element is crucial for burning fat and maintaining proper health. Water helps metabolize stored fat and rids the body of excess fat and toxins. Water also prevents bloating and constipation, and helps curb your appetite.
Most people underestimate how much water they need, so they don’t stay properly hydrated. For optimum health, drink half of your body weight in ounces of water daily. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, you should drink at least 100 ounces of water per day.
Get Up and Exercise
When you start your healthy eating plan, you’ll automatically reduce your caloric intake and start to shed some weight. However, unless you add exercise into the mix, your metabolism will eventually slow down and ultimately reduce your ability to burn stomach fat.
There’s no way to target specific areas for fat loss. Crunches, sit-ups and other ab-specific exercises only work to tone the muscles. The only way to get the svelte tummy of your dreams is to burn the fat off. If you don’t, any muscle tone you achieve via abdominal exercises will be buried under the flab.
If you combine 30 to 60 minutes of moderate to intense cardiovascular activity with proper nutrition, the fat around your belly will melt like butter. If you’re out of shape, doing a 30 to 60 minute workout may be too much at first. It’s okay if you start off exercising for 5 or 10 minutes. Simply work your way up as your fitness level improves.
Don’t try to change your lifestyle overnight; Start by making small tweaks. In the beginning, you might try drinking more water, increasing your fresh vegetable intake and exercising three days a week. Once you get used to these adjustments, gradually build on them. Remember, small steps can lead to big results.
Sitting and wishing won’t help you get the trim tummy you’ve always wanted. Let the Diet Solution Program teach you how to lose belly fat and improve your overall health.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
“Cocoa-Nut” Bananas Recipe
“Cocoa-Nut” Bananas
Yummy Healthy Banana-Coconut Dessert
Courtesy of Eating Well
Ingredients
*4 teaspoons of organic cocoa powder
*4 teaspoons of toasted, unsweetened coconut
*2 small bananas, sliced on the bias
Directions
Place cocoa and coconut on separate plates.
Roll each banana slice in the cocoa, and shake off the excess.
Then, dip banana in the coconut and serve.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
Strawberry Shortcake Dessert
These delicious little shortcakes are made in muffin cups.
Ingredients
¼ cup sifted coconut flour
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3 eggs
3 tablespoons raw honey
¼ teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt
¼ teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon baking powder
Directions
Blend together butter, eggs, honey, salt and vanilla.
Combine coconut flour with baking powder and whisk into batter until there are no lumps.
Pour batter into greased muffin cups.
Bake at 205 Degree C (400F) for 15 minutes.
Serve topped with fresh strawberries and a little bit of whipped cream.
Makes 6 cakes.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Healthy Stuffed Peppers Recipe
Stuffed Peppers Recipe
Ingredients
6-8 sweet bell peppers (green, orange, red or yellow)
2 (4 oz.) cans diced green chiles
1 pound ground turkey
1 cup cilantro, finely chopped
½ cup onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt
Directions
1. In a medium sized bowl, mix diced chiles with turkey, cilantro, onion, cumin, chili powder and salt.
2. Cut the tops off of the peppers and set aside.
3. Place peppers in an 11 by 7 inch baking dish.
4. Stuff the peppers with the turkey mixture;
5. place tops on peppers to close.
6. Bake at 350° for 1 hour.
Ingredients
6-8 sweet bell peppers (green, orange, red or yellow)
2 (4 oz.) cans diced green chiles
1 pound ground turkey
1 cup cilantro, finely chopped
½ cup onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt
Directions
1. In a medium sized bowl, mix diced chiles with turkey, cilantro, onion, cumin, chili powder and salt.
2. Cut the tops off of the peppers and set aside.
3. Place peppers in an 11 by 7 inch baking dish.
4. Stuff the peppers with the turkey mixture;
5. place tops on peppers to close.
6. Bake at 350° for 1 hour.
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