5 Simple Eating Habits That Can Help You Lose Weight

If you want to lose weight, the best and surest way by far is to reduce your calorie intake. Yes, exercise definitely helps, but as most people have experienced and some recent studies show, it may actually increase your appetite. Unless you possess an iron will, you could easily find yourself going on a binge after your workout. The result would be disastrous to your weight to say the least. This is not to say you should not exercise -- in fact you should exercise daily because of its proven health benefits.

The point is if you are serious about losing weight, you simply must limit the calories that you eat. Other than going on a serious, structured diet program, you could adopt several simple healthy eating habits that could help you do just that. Here are some of them:

1. Think small portions - If you start off with a big serving, you are placing yourself in a situation where you would have to eat it or else see it go to waste. By going small portions and following the other tips in this article, you could learn to satisfy your hunger with less food than usual. So instead of filling up your plate, try going for 3/4 (or even half) of your usual serving size.

2. Eat more fruits and veggies - Not only are they rich in nutrients and antioxidants which keep you young and healthy, but because they contain a lot of water and fiber, you would feel full faster. Indeed if you feel the need for a second serving, load up on the veggies instead of calorie-rich foods.




3. Chew your food well - Do not rush. Eat slowly and chew your food well, trying to fully appreciate the flavors of your food. This gives your body the chance to feel full.

4. Go easy on the alcohol - Alcohol is calorie dense and can contribute to weight gain. In addition, alcoholic drinks whet your appetite and weaken your resolve not to overeat.

5. Do not skip meals - At first glance skipping meals would seem to make sense because of less food intake. However, it is not such a good idea because the human body tends to hoard calories more efficiently when meals come irregularly. Besides, if you're very hungry you are more likely to overeat. Instead, eat at least three square meals a day, most especially breakfast.

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South Beach Diet Foods To Avoid

When starting a diet, the first question most people ask is "What can't I eat?" It's a valid question. After all, how many of us have deprived ourselves of one thing or another to lose weight?

Since the South Beach Diet aims to resolve a condition known as insulin resistance (the inability of your body to properly process fuel, fats or sugar), it focuses on foods with a low glycemic index. The glycemic index measures how much a certain food increases your blood sugar. The higher the food indexes, the more it will contribute to your weight gain.

By using the glycemic index as a guide, emphasis is not put on eliminating certain food groups as much as it is put on regulating your blood sugar levels by eating foods that are slowly absorbed into your system. A good rule of thumb is that whole is always better than sliced which is better than mashed or pureed and much better than squeezed. The reason is the more processed a food, the less fiber it contains. Fiber does the essential job of slowing down your body's absorption of food. For example, eating an apple is not the same as drinking apple juice.




A whole apple contains the majority of its fiber in its skin which slows your body's absorption of the apple's natural sugars. Remove the fiber, juice the apple and your body quickly absorbs the apple's sugar directly into your blood stream.

So, what foods have a lower glycemic index? Typically, foods that are more acidic or have higher fiber or fat content score lower on the glycemic index. (Remember lower is better.) Foods to avoid are highly processed. A good example is bread. In the process of making white bread, grains are stripped of all fiber (unlike whole wheat or whole grain bread).

The South Beach Diet also asks that you avoid low-fat prepared foods (with the exception of dairy) since the fat is normally replaced with sugar. However, this doesn't mean that you should eat as much fat as you want. The diet emphasizes lean proteins and fish, low-fat dairy products (since sugar is usually not added to them) and mono- and polyunsaturated fats such as olive oil, canola oil and peanut oil. The occasional treat is allowed, as long as it is done in moderation.

As you are on the diet, you will notice how your body reacts to different foods. Not everybody is the same and, in addition the diet's guidelines, you will develop your own sense of which foods to avoid and which foods you can enjoy more often.

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Lose Weight and Feel Great With the Anti-Inflammatory Diet

The anti-inflammatory diet can make you feel great! "How," you ask. By cutting out or significantly reducing your consumption of pro-inflammatory foods. When these foods are cut from your diet, inflammation in the body reduces taking stress and strain from the joints and organs.

While following this diet your chance of weight loss also goes up. "How does this happen," by reducing your consumption of grain and wheat products, sodas, and other simple sugars that cause excess weight.

I'll start this discussion by telling you what extra inflammation in the body causes; chronic pain, arthritis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, allergies, acne, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, cancer, hypertension, depression, and diabetes. However, this is a shortened list there are many other conditions out there caused by inflammation.




In short summary, the fewer inflammatory foods we eat, the less inflammation we have in the body.

Background Information on Pro-Inflammatory Foods:

Grains, refined sugars, partial-hydrogenated oils, vegetable and seed oils are from modern man. These foods have been around a short time; hence, obesity and disease are on the rise. Humans are genetically adapted to eat fruits, veggies, nuts, lean meats, and fish, foods not related to chronic diseases.

Why Do Grains Inflame?
 
Grains contain a protein called gluten. Gluten is the main cause of many digestive diseases, such as celiac disease, also contributor to frequent headaches. They also have a sugar protein called lectins which has been shown to cause inflammation in the digestive system. Grains also contain phytic acid which is known to reduce the body's absorption of calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc.

Lastly, grains contain high amounts of fatty acid biochemicals called omega-6 fatty acids which do cause inflammation. Fatty acid biochemicals known as omega-3 fatty acids are anti-inflammatory and found in fresh fish and green vegetables.

What Should I Eat?

Anti inflammatory foods

- All fruits and vegetables (raw or lightly cooked)
- Red and sweet potatoes
- Anti-inflammatory omega-3 eggs
- Raw nuts
- Spices such as ginger, turmeric, garlic
- Organic butter, coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh fish, avoid farm raised
- Meat, chicken, eggs from grass-fed animals
- Wild game such as deer, elk, etc.
- Water, organic green tea, red wine, stout beer

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Dr._Steve_Smiley/606995

Losing Weight and Build Muscles Nutrition

If you come to the fitness club you can see two types of people, there are endomorphs, who want to lose fat and skinny ectomorphs, who want to build more muscle mass.

Right now, we'll talking about both problems, and explain some tips, you'll need to know, if you really want to getting results from your trainings.

Firstly, if you want to lose fat and build muscles, you need diet. It doesn't mean you getting hard limits, just use energy balance. It means that, energy come to you from food must be equal energy you spend during the day. Remember this gold rule. And now we can modify a little bit our rule to lose fat (it means you need to minus 500 calories from energy come from food) or to build muscle (plus 500 calories to your daily energy income). It pretty easy to use this method and you get incredible results as fast as possible.




How to calculate your daily calories

Right now I show you how easy you can calculate your daily calories norm. It'll be easy if I'll be using example:

My weight: 90 kg
90 * 2.2 = 198 pounds
198 * 10 = 1980 calories per day
1980 + 500 = 2480 ~ 2500 calorie to build muscle
1980 - 500 = 1480 ~ 1500 calories to loss weight

I hope you understand my train of thought and now, you will be able to eat correct and healthy nutrition. Also, right now, you know your daily numbers of calories, protein, carbs and fats, and I totally recommend you use it.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Rustu_Air/714677