Atkins Vs. Pritikin: The Debate Rages On!

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The battle lines have been drawn and everyone has taken sides. This vicious battle has pitted brother against brother and husband against wife. It is by far the most heated subject in nutrition, and self-proclaimed gurus have crawled out of the woodwork to weigh in with their opinions on the high carb diet vs. low carb diet debate.

As a fitness enthusiast, you no doubt have been in a few discussions, some of them probably a little heated, about how much of your daily calories should consist of carbohydrates. Both sides have compelling arguments, so who's right? They both are, to a point.

Appetizers

First, you have to realize that no diet, no matter how compelling the evidence, is going to work for everyone all of the time. In other words, you have to take your individual differences into account when deciding which approach will work best for you. It is not high carb vs. low carb, it is which one will work best for you, based on your metabolism and training goals. This fact has been missed by most, and this has led to a lot of confusion and frustration among fitness enthusiasts.

The low carbs diet work, and work well, but only for some selected purposes. The proponents of the low carb diets claim that by eating less carbs and more fat you switch your body's metabolism from one that favors carbs to one that favors fat for fuel. This has obvious benefits for someone looking to lose fat. In addition, these diets tend to be very low in total calories and help to control hunger with the addition of protein and fat to each meal. That has probably been the number one positive impact of these diets on the fitness community - getting people to eat less calories, and adequate amounts of protein and good fats.

Some of these low carb diets tend to be a little extreme, namely the ketogenic carbs where carbs are virtually eliminated from the diet to force your body into a state of ketosis, where body fat is burned in the form of ketones for fuel. These diets can be very dangerous if not used properly. If you are a bodybuilder who already has low levels of bodyfat and you want to get extremely cut up, then the ketogenic diet - or better yet, its close cousin the cyclical-ketogenic diet - is perfect for you.

However, if you are overweight, and have several pounds of fat to lose to get to a healthy range, then a more moderate approach to the low carb diets, like The Zone Diet, will work best. Ketosis is not a natural state for your body to be in. It lowers the blood pH, leading to a more acidic internal environment, and long-term exposure to such an environment will cause damage to your internal organs.

Pass The Bread

The advantage of a higher carb diet - and disadvantage of the low carb approach - is that you will not get big and strong without eating an adequate amount of carbs and calories. This does not mean an extremely high carb intake, as total carb intake should still be no more than 50- 60% of your total calories. But this extra amount of carbs will go a long way in your strength and muscle-gaining goals.

Carbs fuel the anaerobic (literally meaning "without oxygen") pathways of muscular energetics. These two energetic pathways, named the ATP/ CP and glycolitic pathways, are the major suppliers of energy for activities that take less than 90-120 seconds to complete, depending on your fitness level. As I'm sure most of you have realized, the vast majority of activities in the weight room when pumping iron take less than 2 minutes to complete. In fact, most sets take less than 1 minute to complete, falling well within the anaerobic pathways of muscular energetics.

Main Course

What's my point? Well, if most of your weightlifting activities run off of stored glycogen - i.e. carbs - then why do you want your body to favor fat for energy? You don't. Several studies have shown that carbs increase performance. Cutting carbs from a mass and strength diet program is just as bad as not including protein or creatine. No one in their right mind would try to add strength and mass without those two nutrients. However, most of these same individuals will not hesitate to eat a Meal Replacement - which was designed for fat loss - in water three times a day, obtaining miniscule amounts of carbs in the process.

In addition, since intense weightlifting burns up blood sugar and stored glycogen, you will have to replace them. This can not be done optimally if you are following a carb-restricted diet. This means that you will have to allow longer recovery periods, or suffer a performance decrease, which does not help when trying to add pounds to your squat, or inches to your chest and biceps.

Most fitness enthusiasts get themselves in trouble when they become married to one concept. Frustration is brought on when they get stuck in a rut, afraid to try something radically different. Nutrition and dieting is no exception to this. Instead of debating which diet is the best, we need to look at which diet is the best for what circumstances. Eating for your specific goals, and not someone else's, is the key to figuring out which approach is best suited for you.

How to and Why You should Eat like a Diabetic, when you're Dieting

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Dieters take heed! When you're on a diet, the same principle of stable glucose levels apply; eat light and spread your caloric intake over the day. Snacks are important to be able to do this.

Fruit: Berries are sweet, easy to pop into your mouth, Raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and blackberries are all anti-inflammatory, and offer immune-boosting antioxidant activity.

Fiber: The fiber in raw veggies will help fill you up, and they provide a nice, satisfying crunch. Choose a wide range of colors (broccoli, cauliflower and carrots are good choices).

Nuts: When eaten sparingly, nuts are a terrific snack. Walnuts are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Almonds and roasted soy nuts are also good choices. Nuts can be high in calories, so a few will do you.

Dark Chocolate: An ounce of dark chocolate NOE AND THEN will satisfy a sweet tooth while providing beneficial antioxidant qualities. Choose high quality dark chocolate with at least 70 percent pure cocoa, and enjoy the rich flavor.

How to (and Should You) Use BMI to Determine Obesity

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BMI stands for Body Mass Index. It is a commonly used method of determining whether an individual is underweight, normal, overweight, obese, or extremely obese. It is nothing more than a special number that is calculated based on your height and weight (and nothing else), which you then look up on a chart. Your doctor may refer to it if you discuss your weight with him/her. It is almost certain that your health insurance company uses it. Even the Wii Fit uses it. This article discusses the steps to calculating your BMI, we well as more practical and accurate steps to take to determine if you are overweight or obese.

For those of you who like math, you can compute your BMI by taking your weight(in pounds), and dividing it by the square of your height (in inches). Then take that quotient, multiply it by 703, and note the result. That's your BMI score. Alternatively, you can use a chart like the one pictured above to determine this number.

Some charts are color-coded to immediately show you the category of your weight (overweight, obese, etc). If your chart does not show this then it will likely have the following legend that you can refer to for your BMI score: Underweight (Under 18.5), Normal (18.5-24.99), Overweight (25-29.99), Obese (30 -40), Extremely Obese (40 and higher).

That's it. You now have your BMI score, and what is supposedly means. It is worth noting several things, in an attempt to answer the "and should you" portion of this article's title. First of all, the BMI score is based on nothing other than height and weight. It doesn't take anything else into account, such as age, gender, body frame, body fat percentage, or muscular development. Many gold-medal-winning Olympic athletes are considered obese according to their BMI.

As a more practical step, if you want to categorize your weight, simply take off all your clothes, and look in a full length mirror. Turn all around, look at yourself from any and all angles, and make an assessment. You don't need any charts for this. Unless you are totally delusional, and are totally fooling yourself, you will simply be able to see what the situation is. If you are a professional athlete who is slim and muscular, you will see that. If you have a big beer belly, you will see that as well. If you are underweight, you will see that. Just look, and make a plan of action as need be, working closely with your doctor. Just be honest with yourself. If you see a big belly in the mirror, just accept that it isn't healthy, but you can do something about it, unlike people who have incurable medical conditions.

As the final step, if you are overweight or obese, and feel the need to assign a concrete number to your condition, the best thing to do is have your body fat percentage calculated. You can get a rough idea of this by using a simple, low-cost device that sends a mild current through your body which you do not feel at all. You need to follow the instructions carefully, and use it under appropriate conditions to not get a false reading. It is still not totally accurate. You can have your percentage calculated more accurately by having a professional use skinfold calipers to measure it. Finally, you can have your percentage calculated by doing hydrostatic weighing. This requires a facility that has a special weight tank that you must immerse yourself in.

Keep in mind that if you are overweight, you will know if you are losing weight based on looking in the mirror, and of course by using a simple scale. You will also know it by the way that your clothes feel, or by how many notches on your belt you are using. We do not need to be so dependent upon special methods, especially oversimplified and generic charts, to tell us such obvious things about our health.

4 Reasons Why People Start Looking For Stomach Shaping Workouts

An effective stomach shaping workout can do you a great deal of good. This is such an established medical advice, there should be no doubts at all. And yet, if you are like many typical office workers, the only exercise you get is walking to and from your car to your office or garage. Go jogging, play tennis, work out at the gym? Don't be ridiculous! Not with an 80-hour work week. And yet, some people get off their butts to start working out again, after years of inactivity. Why them and not others? When interviewed, here are the four most common reasons they give.
1. Simple Physical Activities Get Harder
For those people passing the 40-year mark, they start noticing that simple physical activities begin to leave them breathless. The 20-yard dash from the entrance of their office building to the closing lift door leaves them panting and sweating. Bending down to pick up the pen they dropped suddenly requires effort. When they see their reflection, the first thing they see is their belly. The first time they notice this, it's quite a shocker. It gets them looking for good abdominal work out tips to get themselves back into shape.
2. They Start Turning Into The Blob
Especially for singles, when they realize that they couldn't get any dates for the past 3 months, this is a major downer. They step into a bar... and people of the opposite sex no longer check them out. Other men glance at them with smug looks or rude sniggers. For many, the urge to regain both their handsome looks and social life is a strong driving force to get them searching for great ab workouts.
3. The Doctor Said "Exercise... Or Else!"
One thing that almost always sent someone hunting for workout routines for their abs is the result from their latest medical screening. As long as the results are all in the black, it is all too easy to ignore their pants getting tighter. But once their doctor starts warning them that their flab has left them with high blood glucose readings, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and a higher health insurance premium, not being able to see their feet when they look down starts taking on greater significance. No one wants to die young, and this desire often proves to be a strong motive to start working out on stomach shaping routines to get rid of the unnecessary and ugly flab around the belly.
4. Their Wives Start Nagging Them About Their Weight
Family men often start following abdominal work out tips when their wives start complaining that they are starting to look FAT. To keep their wives from worrying about them (or to stop the incessant nagging - take your pick), they start making time to work out three or four times every week. They may have to wake up a half-hour earlier everyday, or sleep a half-hour later, but they dig into some simple workouts to trim the flab around their middle.
Regardless of why people start on their stomach shaping workouts, they end up more healthy and more alert. They live longer, and remain vigorous even to the end of their lives. Whether they do it for themselves or for their loved ones, they often find the workouts worth it.

Boost Your Immune System

The Immune System is probably the most important system in your body. It was designed by nature, millions of years ago, to aid the body in recovering from injuries and illness. In other words “a natural built in healing system”.
Your blood is composed mainly of red and white cells, the red ones carry the oxygen and nutrition to all parts of the body, the white ones are the defenders and scavengers of your body, during infection, they are immediately called upon to fight the infection and clean up afterwards.
These billions of cells work very hard and consequently they have quite a short lifespan, usually, only a few days.
Originally the Immune System did not face as many problems, as it does in this day and age, now it has to cope with pollution, poisons, toxins, pesticides, herbicides and chemicals, in the air that we breathe, the food that we eat and the water that we drink. As you will understand, the immune system is fighting a huge battle, just trying to cope with all these attacks that are happening every day. Luckily for us, these cells can be generated very quickly, so with the correct nutrition, it will not take the immune system much time, to get back up to full strength.
When you have a vaccination, your immune system is given a copy of a specific disease, so that if the system comes across the disease again, the memory cells in the immune system, will know exactly what action to take, likewise, if you have had a disease before, they know what to do in the event of reinvasion.
The cells involved in your immune system, have what is called “cellular communication”, this means that the cells all talk to each other, they ask each other if they are OK, if one says it is unwell, the others will all help it to heal, if it is beyond help, the other cells will exterminate it and then eliminate it completely from the body.
Sometimes the immune system will go astray and start attacking the good healthy cells, then problems occur which are known as auto immune system diseases, which can cause cells to mutate with all sorts of consequences. Auto Immune System diseases are increasing all the time, and is one of the most serious threats to good health.
There is a natural slow decline in the efficiency of the body’s immune system, which partly comes with age; you tend to absorb some nutrients less efficiently.
There is evidence that suggests a nutrient dense diet, may slow this decline, slow the aging process, improve your immune system and energy by giving it a boost or modulating the cellular communication process.
One of the Natural Healing products that are available through our website, is a natural nutrient, that has been used for over a thousand years and it is known as the most “Nutritionally Dense” food in the world.
Your immune system needs help to function at the highest capacity. Without an efficiently functioning immune system, you are not going to maintain good health.
Health is you’re your most valuable asset, even though you might not realize this now, when it begins to deteriorate, it could just possibly be to late to do much about the consequences of ill health. Possible help for the Immune System is a healthy diet, with lots of natural sources of Vitamins A, C and E, Zinc, Iron, Folate, Vitamin B6. Check out the website for more information.

What is an Antioxidant?

For the few people out there who are not already aware, antioxidants are authoritative substances that are found in certain fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants are anti aging, which means that they allow you to stay younger longer with better health. They not only help you to stay look young but as well can slow down or even preclude certain illnesses and diseases.
If there is any substance that you should be interested with when it comes to your health, one of the top issues of all would be antioxidants. Most people have heard of antioxidants before and know that they are a good thing, but most people are not witting of just what they are and the wellness benefits they offer.
An antioxidant is a very authoritative thing, one that anyone interested about their wellness should be witting of. An antioxidant is a molecule that is equal to of deceleration or even wholly preventing the oxidisation of other molecules, viz. free radicals which are sober in the body and which can actually end up doing constipation to the body.
In other words, an antioxidant is something that helps by deceleration down or preventing oxidisation in the body and this can be very good for the wellness in a number of different ways. They can make a very prescribed contribution to your wellness and ameliorate your ecumenical state of wellness and well being.
They can also provide other benefits, such as to your whisker and skin, and so overwhelming foods that are high in antioxidants is plain one of the best things that you can do for your health.
Where to Find Antioxidants
There are actually quite an a few dissimilar foods that are high in antioxidants. If you want the best antioxidant ratio, one of the things you are departure to start overwhelming more is green tea. Green tea is made from sweet leaves and reportedly contains the peak density of brawny antioxidants named polyphenols.
These are substances that work by scavenging free radicals which are disconcerting compounds in the body that meddle with DNA or inherited material. If you want a food that is high in antioxidant levels you are emphatically departure to want to amplification your consumption of green tea.
Another food that has a high antioxidant level is fruit. Berries, actually, are all methamphetamine full of antioxidants. There is actually quite an a diversity of dissimilar fruits that contain antioxidants and this includes cherries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, crowberries, blueberries, black currants, pomegranates, grapes, oranges, plums, pineapples, New Zealander fruits and grapefruits. This fruits are all full of these antioxidants, and are departure to offer you optimal wellness benefits. They are also usable year round, which makes it easier for you to work them into your diet.
Vegetables such as kale, chili pepper, red cabbage, peppers, parsley, artichoke, Brussels sprouts, spinach, lemon, ginger and red beets, dry fruits, legumes, daft and seeds, and cereals are all high in antioxidants as well.
There are certain antioxidant rich foods which contain more antioxidants than others, and it is these antioxidant food that you are departure to want to start including more in your diet.
Of all the dissimilar antioxidant food that there is out there, there are a few antioxidant food choices in particular that are departure to be worth feeding more of. One of the foods with the peak level of antioxidants is dark chocolate.
Dark chocolate is produced by the chocolate bean, which is known to be jammed full of antioxidants. Hot tea was thought to contain the preeminent amount of antioxidants but it was new proved that this was in fact not true and or else dark java does.Dark chocolate, like red wine, is said to be able to protect against substance disease, and total bring down the amounts of free radicals in your body.
The benefits of this antioxidant food are actually plentiful. They give you anti senescent protection against degenerative diseases and help to slow the senescent process of your skin, cells, tissues and organs.
If you are bemused on this thing you should verbalize to a nutritionist. They are trained professionals in this area and will be able to offer you a net ton of worthily advice and data on this matter.
Antioxidants are able to provide stronger insubordinate immunity to flues, viruses, and infections, greatly reduced relative incidence of all cancers, bar of glaucoma and macular degeneration, reduced chance of cholesterol-oxidation and substance disease, and anti senescent of the cells in the body. They work by armed combat disconfirming free radicals in the body and this is authoritative because free rout oxidisation constipation is the basic cause of senescent and is as inauspicious and destructive to your body as rusty is to your car.
You can verbalize to your doctor or even a dietitian for more data on this, and to get a better idea of which foods contain the peak levels of antioxidants so you can amplification your intake of these foods in your dieting and see to it your optimal health.

How to Lose 4 Lbs a Month

1. take a deep breath! This will take patience!

2. You are probably eating way more calories a day than you should!! So, all you have to do is cut back.

3. Do not think of it as a diet!! This will fail you! Think of it as a Lifestyle change. You have changed your eating habits.

4. All you have to do is count your calorie intake for the day. Use websites such as Nutritiondata.com to find out your healthy weight and height measurements. I am 5'2 and 145 lbs, so therefor my body needs about 1500 calories a day to lose weight, however, i go beyond those limits. I do not eat anymore than 1200 a day to be safe.

5. You can never count on food labels, so use your digital scale. Read labels. Each label tells you that there are a certain amount of calories in EACH SERVING, but if you don't measure out the meal, then you will not know how many servings are in each container.

6. For Example. A healthy tv dinner says each serving is 320 calories. One serving is 255 grams. well, when you weigh it out the scales tops off at 275. Each gram is 1.25 calories a piece, so if your meal is 275 calories, then your meal is really 345 calories. That's 25 more CALORIES that you did not plan on. THIS ADDS UP!

7. Speaking of adding. WRITE everything down. This will show you your progress.

8. Plan your meals. If you already know when you are going to eat next, then it wont have you thinking about your next meal as much. You already know. There are a million great tasting foods out there that is low in calories.

9. Eat every 3 hours. If you eat every 3 hours your body does not have time to stop digesting your food. This will maintain your metabolism. This is great for people who are not active.

10. Buy a calorie counter. These are $20 at any wal-mart or department store. This will gauge about how much you burn just by walking everyday. Walking to your car, walking to your house, to the fax machine all the way upstairs. If you see your progress it will encourage you.

11. By now, if you count and weigh all of your food. Weigh yourself every other day, in the morning at the same time, NAKED. You will start to see at least a 1 lbs a week coming off.

12. About 8-10 lbs later you will plateau. You will then need to change your calorie intake. Do something different to your eating habits. I recommend one cheat day a week. Eat whatever you want. Starbucks, Mcdonalds, honey buns...anything you want. This will give you something to look forward too!!!

13. Remember, Weigh yourself, write your calories down, count everything!!! I have lost about 33 lbs doing this. Follow all of these steps and you will lose weight. It wont be automatic, but you will feel better and feel good about yourself. Its so easy!!!

14. Being skinny is what everyone wants!! Keep that in mind! You are doing something that most people aren't. You took the first step by reading this article!

How to Achieve Weight Loss If You Can't Exercise

Weight loss is a sore subject, right? You want to lose weight but you can't exercise. Maybe you've been injured in an accident or perhaps you're too heavy to safely exercise. You might be feeling like it's a hopeless situation. You need (or want) to lose weight but without being able to get on the treadmill or hit the walking track, you're thinking you'll have to stay the size and weight you are right now. That isn't true. To jump start your metabolism, curb your appetite, and start melting those pounds away, all you have to do is follow the steps I'll be addressing below. By spending a few dollars and dedicating some time and flexibility into your daily regimen, you'll see results that will have you skipping down the road of weight loss success!

Take the pen and paper and write down your goals. If you have a visual of what you're wanting to accomplish, it will help you to stay focused and succeed to lose weight. Also write down the benefits of losing weight. Write down anything else you think of. It could also be beneficial to keep a food journal. Seeing what you put into your mouth can be a big wake up call and help you reach your weight loss goal.

Go to the health food store. Purchase organic apple cider vinegar with Mother. ("Mother" simply means that the vinegar is not processed and the living enzymes remain intact.) This will cost between $3 and $5. Not a huge investment for something so precious as your health and self-esteem. (Not everyone suffers low self-esteem from being overweight. But if you are, you'll realize that spending a few dollars to feel better about yourself is a small price to pay.) What are you going to do with organic apple cider vinegar, you ask? You're going to drink it every day, religiously, to curb your appetite, promote a healthy bowel, give you glowing skin, and start melting that fat right off your body!

Recipe for organic apple cider vinegar weight loss drink:

Put 1 teaspoon organic apple cider vinegar in 4-8 ounces of water. Add
1 packet of Stevia Balance packet. (Stevia Balance is a healthy, natural sweetener that helps balance your blood sugar and can help you lose weight). Add ice if you'd like, stir, and enjoy! (It is similar in taste to Lemonade in that the tartness of the vinegar balances out with the sweetness of the Stevia.)

Alternately, if you prefer hot drinks you can add 1 teaspoon of the organic apple cider vinegar to a cup of hot water and a drizzle of (raw) honey or Stevia Balance packet.

While you're at the health food store, pick up a box of organic green tea. Make yourself a cup of hot tea each morning before you eat. You can also drink it (hot or cold) throughout the day. Several cups per day is perfectly safe. It will curb your appetite, help melt away fat, help your metabolism, and also helps fight cancer and disease!

Go to the grocery store. Choose your favorite vegetables. Don't like vegetables? Try at least one or two. Work in raw foods whenever possible. By limiting your intake of processed foods and beverages, you'll discover that pounds come off a lot easier.

Start eating organic, omega eggs. These are a wonderful source of protein that are rich in nutrients and will help your heart, skin, hair, and overall health. If you eat a healthy protein for breakfast - such as an organic, omega egg - you'll notice that your appetite is held over quite nicely until lunchtime. Most people who eat eggs for breakfast feel more energized throughout the morning as well.

Be creative with snacks, lunches, and dinners. Mix veggies with proteins. Snack on raw nuts and seeds. They're filling, nutritious, and healthy for you!