Hoodia Gordonii - Why Hoodia Beats Man-Made Diet Pills Every Time

Hoodia Gordonii - it's everywhere these days. On 60 minutes, in the health food store, in your diet pills, on the Internet. You've seen it and probably wondered 'What's so great about Hoodia?'

Hoodia Gordonii is a natural appetite suppressant made from the Hoodia Gordonii plant - a cactus of the "succulent" cactus family, which grows in the Kalahari Desert region of South Africa. Hoodia has been used by the indigenous Bushmen for years as a natural appetite suppressant during long hunting trips where food was scarce.

So what's so great about Hoodia Gordonii? Here are 3 reasons why Hoodia is better than any man-made diet pill to help you lose weight quickly and safely:


1) Hoodia Helps You Lose Weight Without Hunger or Feeling Deprived

One of the first studies of Hoodia Gordonii was done in the UK on obese patients. Half of the volunteers were given Hoodia Gordonii, the other half were given a placebo. The subjects were allowed to do nothing but read, watch television and eat.

After 15 days it was found that those taking Hoodia had reduced their calorie intake by 1000 calories a day. Despite having unlimited access to food, the Hoodia subjects lost weight without feeling hungry.

People on various brands of Hoodia have reported losing 100 pounds in 6 months, 84 pounds in 5 months and up to 4 pounds a week by taking pure Hoodia. So if you're looking for a way to lose weight but hate feeling hungry or deprived, Hoodia can help you to reach your goals without the pain of dieting.


2) Great For Emotional Eaters

Not only do you feel full when you take Hoodia but many people say they don't even have the desire to eat. Some say they don't even think about food while taking Hoodia.

This is great for emotional eaters - whose weight may be more a result of eating out of boredom or emotional needs than because of hunger. It's also much easier to make healthier food choices when you feel satisfied and full, which contributes to your overall health and vitality.


3) Natural & Safe

Sure, you can take the caffeine-filled, chemical laden man-made diet pills and lose a couple of pounds - but why would you want to? You don't know what else it's doing to your body - and it could be causing some major damage. One of the best benefits about Hoodia Gordonii is that it's both natural and safe to take.

Since Hoodia is a plant, and not a man made chemical, it has little chance of causing side effects. In fact the South African government classified Hoodia as a food - not a drug. Scientists have been studying Hoodia for about 10 years and have found no evidence of any negative side effects.

Couple this with the fact that the Bushmen in the Kalahari desert of South Africa have been eating Hoodia for hundreds of years with no ill effect. You can see why Hoodia is an amazing alternative to caffeine-laden, questionable diet pills.

While these 3 benefits definitely make Hoodia sound better than any man-made diet pill, there are a couple of things buyers should be aware of:

There are a lot of 'fake' Hoodia diet pills out there. Because Hoodia is a protected species (and it also takes 2 - 5 years to mature), the demand is becoming greater than the supply and many manufacturers are bottling inferior forms of Hoodia that don't offer you the appetite suppressant effects of pure Hoodia.

Also, you probably don't want to be on Hoodia Gordonii forever. You should try to change your diet to one rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats etc. before transitioning off Hoodia to maintain your weight loss. Good luck on your road to wellness!

To find out how to spot the real Hoodia (and save yourself both money and frustration), visit:


What To Know Before You Buy Hoodia.

Be Careful With Diet Pills

If you are a person who has struggled with their weight and has a BMI, or body mass index, above a 27, the idea of a pill helping you lose weight is very appealing. Taking diet pills seem to be the quick fix to helping obese persons lose weight. There are advantages to taking diet pills, but you have to weigh these benefits with the potential dangers of taking diet pills.

Some things you have to be careful about when taking diet pills are:

· Dangerous side effects and drug interactions – Some prescription diet drugs are very strong. Possible side effects occur in almost all prescription medications, and some can be very serious in nature. Each diet pill has its own unique set of side effect warnings, but some of the more commonly listed side effects are dry mouth, sleeplessness, irritability, upset stomach and constipation. You also have to look at the possibility of drug interactions between the diet pills and other medications you are taking. If you have any other health issues, the taking of diet pills may cause serious consequences when combined with other medications.

· The potential for becoming dependant of the diet pills – There are many diet pills that can become habit forming. Some prescription diet pills are stimulant-based and can be abused by users. This abuse can lead to dependence, just as with any other strong medication. Make sure to talk with your doctor if he decides to put you on a diet prescription that has been shown to be habit-forming. Find out what signs you should look for to indicate if you are having a problem.

· The potential of the diet pills disrupting regular metabolism – Since prescription diet drugs main purpose is to suppress appetite, the person taking diet pills may find themselves consuming many less calories than normal. This is good for losing weight on the surface, but ultimately will lead to your natural metabolism to slow down. When your natural metabolism slows, so does the rate in which you lose weight. That is why people who take diet drugs find they only lose a finite amount of weight when they take diet pills alone.

In order for diet pills to work for you, the first thing you should do is talk to your doctor. Find ways to change your lifestyle on top of the taking of the diet drugs to help you lose weight. Regular exercise, changing food choices, and regular check-ups with your doctor are great ways to increase your weight loss success.

Passionate Thinking Will Bring You Ripped Abs

The best way to stay motivated about losing weight is not to focus on which ab workout you're trying or which crazy diet you're on. Don't think about all the sacrifices you're making by not eating that chocolate cake or missing a rerun of your favorite tv show to go on a walk. Instead focus on the reasons you want to lose weight in the first place.

Do you want to better your health? Get a nicer looking body? Those are the reasons most of us have for wanting to lose weight. The most important thing to fully understand is the "why am I doing this?" And "what is in it for me?" Am I looking for overnight successes or can I have a healthy body all my life. Ask yourself these questions and keep the answers in mind on your weight loss journey.

It takes effort to accomplish anything in life, and it also takes change. One of the hardest things to overcome can just be changing your everyday habits. To change your habits, you've got to change the

way you think. Most of your weight loss battle will be fought in your mind, and not in the gym or on the track.

One way to stay motivated is to find a picture of a great, healthy body that you would love to have. Print out this picture and put it in your purse or wallet. Others will be more motivated by keeping a

picture close to them of what they look like right now--the 'before' photo. Along with whatever picture you choose, write down your goals and some affirmations: "I will be 10 pounds lighter by July 4th."

"I will fit into that bikini this summer." "My spouse will tell me I look amazing." These are just examples, write down what works best for you.

When you've selected a few of your personal phrases, they'll start to trigger your new positive frame of mind. Say these statements to yourself in the morning when you wake up and before every meal. Never

miss them, this will help change your life, and for the better--much better.

You can buy all the workout machines you want and try every crazy diet on the planet if you want. Do this things work? or are they all hype. Most stuff we see on tv is only hype, as some may work it is

still the basic fundamentals about fitness we all should practice.

If you're in this for long term, great results then you've got to change your habits, and your way of thinking. Tell the affirmations to yourself until you really belieive them, and then still say them! Do

this everyday for three weeks and you'll begin to see weight loss as it was meant to be. You'll meet new levels of achievement that you didn't even know existed. Keep sharp and focused on the right things, stay

passionate and consistent about your new way of life and your rewards will soon begin to reap.

Green Tea (Camellia Sinensis) And Weight Loss

It seems lately that I have come across an abundance of information on the benefits of consuming green tea. Because of this, I have been inspired to compile some of the information - specifically regarding green tea and weight loss.

Green tea contains a number of things that are reported to be very healthful for you. Among these are:

Tannins, phenols, polyphenols, and flavanoid compounds, the amino acid theanine, and catechins of which egcg seems to be the most beneficial.

Some of the reported benefits you will see when researching green tea are:

• Protecting skin from ultraviolet radiation
• Protection against a number of different cancers
• Increased life span
• Protection of the brain
• Increased antioxidant levels
• Theanine has been reported to negate the jittery effect of caffeine, and heighten mental acuity and some have even said give a relaxed but aware state.
• Last but not least are increased fat metabolism

This increased fat metabolism is what is of most interest to people wanting to lose weight. It simply means the rate at which you burn calories and the body's ability to burn fat. The studies seem to point to a connection between the caffeine in green tea and the epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) which causes a boost in noradrenaline. Noradrenaline helps your body boost your metabolism and suppress your appetite.

Some experts recommend that you take a standardized green tea supplement which contains 90mg of EGCG and 50mg caffeine. Of course you should always consult your physician before taking any supplement, especially one with caffeine.

Drinking green tea can be a pleasurable experience. I have tasted some very good green teas and I have tasted some that taste like what I imagine blended grass would taste like. My favorites seem to be the mixture of green tea and lemongrass. The best tasting ones I have found have been in health food stores or online. Don't give up on your first taste. Experiment around and try different flavors of green tea. You may find one or more that you just absolutely love. I generally microwave my green tea and drink it warm. I have brewed several bags at a time using boiling water and then place in the refrigerator for a nice cool beverage as well.

Drinking green tea can also be an aid to weight loss if it takes place of another habit such as coffee with sugar or cola. I know many people who start the day with a sugar filled caffeine cola or sweetened iced tea. This is how they get their morning caffeine. Why not substitute green tea for this and enjoy the feeling and health benefits? Replace that after lunch cup of coffee with a cup of green tea. You will be doing something healthy for your body and you won't experience the "drop" that coffee can leave you with an hour or so later. Also enjoy a cup of green tea before your exercise routine, just be careful and do not consume it late in the afternoon.

A cup of green tea contains about half as much caffeine as a cup of coffee. If you are sensitive to caffeine – use caution or avoid all together.

I am a believer in a healthy lifestyle to achieve your desired weight. If you know me or read any of my articles you also know that I am a believer in supplements – Only as an aid to a healthy lifestyle. Not a magic solution. I see green tea as an effective tool in your weight loss arsenal.

Green tea seems like a wonderful addition to your daily life which may help you boost your metabolism, ward of sickness, and give you a gentle caffeine lift.

Wishing you the best of health,
Bill

Hoodia Gordonii-The Star Cactus

Hoodia Gordonii is the newest in a long line of weight loss supplements to hit the market. This new competitor seems to have what it takes to compete for the title as weight loss king.

Hoodia Gordonii is a cactus found in Africa, it has been eaten by the bushmen for thousands of years as a way to silence hunger pangs. These bushmen often go on hunting trips that last several days, while on these trips it is common for them to supplement their diets with Hoodia Gordonii.

Recently Hoodia hit the mainstream when Herbalists discover the powerful effects it had on appetite suppression. Hoodia Gordonii has the ability to completely suppress your appetite. In a recent study lab rats would not eat for days while being given the supplement. The rats had full access to food the entire time but, the Hoodia fooled them into thinking they were full.

Hoodia works by fooling the brain into thinking you are full regardless of whether you have eaten or not. The active compound in Hoodia works much like glucose when you have eaten a meal but, the ingredient in Hoodia is 10,000 times stronger than glucose.

If you are considering weight loss, consider looking into Hoodia Gordonii

Portion Control: Key To Maintaining Healthy Weight

Good news for people hoping to control calories-the key could be your favorite snacks; as long as they've been portioned into 100-calorie or less packages.

Convenient, portion-controlled packages are new to the market, but you don't have to buy processed foods to take advantage of this healthy trend.

For example, if sweet and juicy appeal to your taste buds, consider the orange. With only 80 calories, oranges are naturally portion-controlled, ready-to-go, juicy and refreshing. What's more, because of their high fiber and water content, oranges contribute to the feeling of fullness, which suppresses appetite and helps prevent overeating.

Citrus is a great-tasting way to make calories count by getting more nutrition in fewer calories.

Introducing kids to fruits and vegetables early in life shapes their behaviors so they choose these foods throughout life. A child who grows up nourished with wholesome fruits and vegetables will learn to prefer such foods.

That's why Sunkist partnered with Sesame Street's "Healthy Habits for Life" initiative. They encourage young children and their families to establish an early foundation of healthy habits.

Children and adults need a colorful variety of fruits and vegetables every day. Getting the proper number of servings is easy if you fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables at every meal and make them your first choice as snacks.

Successful Weight Loss Program

Are you on the look out for a successful weight loss program or for a diet that works. This article gives free tips on how to lose those excess pounds, I hope you enjoy the read.

My name is Steve Hill and I have had many problems with my weight throughout my life. I must admit that I was basically fat up until a few years ago. I was not happy being over-weight and it certainly affected my confidence and self esteem. I eventually decided that I had had enough and went about finding a way of obtaining a weight that I would be happy and comfortable with.

I was aware that most people would advise me to alter my eating habits, I was the kind of person why enjoyed eating fatty types of foods, especially all forms of fast food, especially pizzas and chips. They would also probably advise me to a join a gym, however I believed that I would not feel comfortable in gyms as they seem to be full of of thin people.

I considered and read about lots of weight loss programs but eventually decided that I needed my own form of diet.

I was not prepared to give up all of my favourite foods and this was my plan:

For breakfast I would eat something which most people would class as healthy food, which would be cerial or toast. I would have a fairly light lunch, such as a sandwich, however for my evening meal I decided that I could eat whatever I wanted. The main thing and most difficult to implement would be the fact that I could no longer eat between meals. The snacks had to go!. I am not trying to say that this was easy to do, however I had a need and was determined to lose the weight.

For exercise I decided to leave the car at home, wherever possible, and walk far more than I ever had done. I also started taking my children to the park at least twice a week. At the park we would play games such as football, cricket and baseball. It is amazing how much weight you can lose by having fun.

Weight Loss Tip #7: You Become Who You Hang Around

Can you remember the last few times you completely gorged on food that you KNEW was making you fat?

Were you alone? And if not, who were you with?

More than likely, you were pigging out with the same person or group of people that you have no doubt done this with on more than one if not many occassions.

One of the things that I teach in the Your Best Body NOW Weight Loss Program is that a regular "treat" is actually a healthy thing to keep you mentally in the game of weight loss.

At the same time, we can all tend to go overboard with this when we are in "certain company". Whether that company be friends, a significant other, or co-workers, it can be difficult to not give into the pressure and go along with whatever fattening food they may want you to indulge in with them.

Can you remember the last few times you completely gorged on food that you KNEW was making you fat?

Were you alone? And if not, who were you with?

More than likely, you were pigging out with the same person or group of people that you have no doubt done this with on more than one if not many occassions.

One of the things that I teach in the Your Best Body NOW Weight Loss Program is that a regular "treat" is actually a healthy thing to keep you mentally in the game of weight loss.

At the same time, we can all tend to go overboard with this when we are in "certain company". Whether that company be friends, a significant other, or co-workers, it can be difficult to not give into the pressure and go along with whatever fattening food they may want you to indulge in with them.

So how can you get a grip on the situation?

One word---CONTROL.

Now, when I mention this "control", I'm not talking about the strict, cast-iron stomach type that has you to stick to your celery and fruit even in the midst of your favorite pizza or pastry. If you had THAT, you wouldn't be pigging out in the first place, right?

What I'm referring to is much easier, because you don't have to do it all alone.

This type of control is not just over yourself, but is exercised on your environment. It works by simply letting everyone around you know that you are participating in weight loss---not just for aesthetics, but for your health, and sincerely ask for their help.

Some people in your life will be resistant to your change at first. However, with time and consistency you will see them develop a respect for you that will make them want to HELP you eat the right thing so that you reach your weight loss goals.

This doesn't mean that you'll never enjoy your favorite decadant food with friends or loved ones again, but it does help you to not fall into a revolving door of poor food choices by giving in to every bad-for-you treat that is placed before you.

Then, when you do get around to indulging, you can do so guiltlessly because you've exercised the CONTROL to stay on the weight loss straight and narrow---most of the time.

To YourBestBody,

Lawrence Cole
Your Lifestyle and Fitness Coach

See this Weight Loss Article at YourBestBodyNOW.com

Obesity: enemy of the heart

According to the American Heart Association (PCA), one third of children and adolescents and 66 percent of the adult population is overweight or obese. If the trend continues, there will be a reduction in life expectancy of our children, making it the first generation to live less than their parents.

Obesity in simple form is an excess of body fat. The body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference measures are most commonly used. The BMI is the ratio of weight in kilograms to height in meters measure. The normal BMI is between 18 and 24.9 kg/m2. Overweight is any measure between 25-29.9 kg/m2, and obesity a BMI greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2. The waist circumference should be<40cm in="" men="" and=""><35cm in="" women.="" obesity="" is="" associated="" with="" the="" development="" of="" hypertension,="" stroke,="" blockage="" of="" the="" coronary="" arteries,="" diabetes,="" failure="" and="" heart="" rhythm="" disturbances.="" in="" young="" people,="" obesity="" is="" associated="" with="" the="" development="" of="" adult="" conditions="" such="" as="" hypertension,="" type="" 2="" diabetes="" and="">

It is difficult to associate obesity a factor, as it develops a complex relationship that involves lifestyle, the environment and genetics. However, there is a causal relationship between poor nutrition and unhealthy lifestyles. The sedentary lifestyle, produced by busy lifestyles, overexposure to television, computers and video games, along with the excessive consumption of calories, breaks the balance needed to maintain a healthy weight.

Education is extremely important, particularly since early age, to establish good eating habits and healthy lifestyles.

To bring the message and awareness generation of young people about the importance of prevention, the American Heart Association created the Alliance for a Healthier Generation in conjunction with the foundation of former President William Bill Clinton.

On the Island, the association established partnership with the Government of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Form.This government initiative and whose guidelines are based on those of the Heart Association, offers a real alternative for the prevention of obesity through education and offering physical activity programs, among other things.

Obesity, together with other factors such as hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipedemias and smoking is a risk factor crucial to the development of cardiovascular diseases. However, contrary to other factors, obesity (next to smoking), is the most changeable of all.

By developing or modifying good nutritional habits and increasing physical activity can have a healthier life

Phentermine Helps Cut Weight

Everybody, young and old have to adjust their day by day lifestyle due to being overweight. In an attempt to stem the tide on fat, people starting to find out from their home or office computers for absolute drug for weight loss. They deem that wherever, there are commanding drugs that will resolve all diet issues for everybody.

When our bodies are clean and strong, they are capable to eliminate toxins, but when they become overloaded, they become lethargic and more vulnerable to sickness. The immune system also loses the capacity of hostility off attacking viruses that can lead to sickness. Weight loss is a very significant pace for people who desire to get better their fitness. A lot of dieters are observing their weight directly than ever before and are seeking various weight loss aides including weight loss drugs.

When it comes to weight loss drugs, the best mode to lose weight is to insure your weight loss drugs. Weight loss pills with ingredients that have a history in promoting weight loss should be at the top of your list. A weight loss drug, better known as Phentermine is one of the most popular diet drugs known to people worldwide. It is used treat obesity.

Phentermine is a recommended diet pill which rouses the nervous systems, which boosts your heart rate and reduces your craving. This diet drug is very similar to other diet pills that are used as a short-term enhancement to diet and exercise in the treatment of fatness.

Phentermine is an addictive diet drug which can be abused; abused to the point that it could lead to solemn fitness conquences could occur if used improperly. A diet drug, no matter what components it may enclose have one worldwide assert: to help you lose weight. Although, every diet drug been sold to people across the globe can’t be used by everyone, there’s one product that will satisfy everyone eventually.

Weight Loss Tip #9: Don't be a New Year's Casualty!

I got so caught up in this year's fitness goals that I completely forgot about something that I usually brace myself for this time of year.

But no sooner had I stepped into my gym a week or two ago than I was sharply reminded of it.

Reminded of what?, you may ask.

The New Year's Resolution crowd.

They come every year like snowbirds to Florida; they're so predictable, that I can literally set my watch by them at the stroke of midnight each New Year's Eve.

And they're so easy to tell from everyone else, too. They show up in January in flocks and droves so thick that there is literally a line in front of every piece of equipment at the gym.

Then around mid to late March they start disappearing one by one like game birds being picked off by hunters. By April, they're pretty much all gone.

These seasonal "birds" are the joke of the gym every hunting season.

The question is, will YOU be one of them?

Because you certainly don't have to be. Everyone who's in shape now was once someone who was just getting started or getting back on the horse after "letting themselves go" a bit. So getting a fresh start is nothing to be ashamed about.

In fact, it should be applauded. Getting started new and fresh means that you have stepped up to the plate to do something that so many people at home just are not willing to do for themselves.

The trick is not to let it all end just as quickly as it started.

I'll give you the secret to being the last man or woman standing when everyone else has "flown back north" because they couldn't hack it.

Set your weight loss and fitness goals NOW. Make them as specific as possible. The dress or waist size you want, your perfect weight, the outfit you want to wear, the reaction you want to get. Write it all out.

Studies have shown that written goals are more than twice as likely to become reality than those that are not.

Then when you go in the gym, forget about everybody else. You heard me right---EVERYBODY.

Don't pay any attention to those toned physiques that look like they must have taken years to put together. Pay no mind to the show-off in the corner doing some fancy upside-down exercise with chains, ropes, and 2 machines. They aren't your concern.

Its all about you.

Your body. Your goals. Your workout. Your results.

Go ahead and take that "before" picture. Look at it everyday as you work away from the old and toward the new you.

If you can just make it through the first few months you've greatly increased your chances of being around for the long haul.

Don't cheat yourself by being on of this year's gym casulties.

...And if you can't make it to a gym, that's all the better. Do the YourBestBodyNOW 15 Minute Workout at home and find a place close to home to get in your cardio.

The only thing that can keep you away from your goals is you.

Don't allow that to happen.

Start this year strong and dig as deep as you can to make sure that you keep it up until you get exactly what you want. You can do it, I know you can.

To YourBestBody,

Lawrence Cole
Your Lifestyle and Fitness Coach

The Reason Diets Fail You

This year millions of people will embark upon a diet and most will fail to lose weight. The usual response to this failure by the people marketing the diet is to blame the individual for the failure. This leaves the person feeling defeated and guilty because of their lack of "will-power"

Blaming the individual also preserves the illusion that diets are an effective way to lose weight. I think it is time to move the discussion beyond this "blaming" level and explore the real reasons diets fail.

I will use an example to explain my position.

When most people are presented with something like a chocolate (candy) bar it is not long before they feel a desire to eat the thing. Most will simply blame the chocolate for causing the desire. They will then try to battle the craving with "will-power". Usually they lose this battle and sooner or later give in and eat the chocolate bar. This "giving-in" often marks the end of the diet.

Now lets look at why this "giving-in" occurred. We know that the cognitive process that caused the craving to eat the chocolate bar went something like this; sensory input was received through the appropriate receptors [mainly eyes in this case] and the mind formed some type of neural or sensory representation of the object that will be defined as a chocolate bar. We can regard this process as inescapable. If the sensory receptors are in working order, the mind must form a representation or neural image of the object.

When a neural image has been formed we have been taught to assign meanings, from memory, to these images as they occur in the mind. The assignment of meaning is followed by an emotional response appropriate to the meaning assigned. In the case of the chocolate bar the meaning assigned included past memories of pleasant experiences assosciated with eating chocolate bars, hence the craving to eat this chocolate bar. So really it was not the presence of the object that will be defined as a chocolate bar that caused the craving, but the cognitive process outlined.

Specifically it was the assignment of meaning that caused the craving. And because this assignment of meaning has become totally automatic in most people, the chocolate bar gets the blame for the craving when in fact it only had the power to cause the mind to form a meaningless image. For most, the meaning and image have become "fused", with the meaning now seen as an inherent part of the neural image itself rather than something assigned from within the mind. This of course gives the stimulus the power to be the cause of the response.

Just thinking about or reflecting upon a chocolate bar has the same effect. A neural image is formed from that reflection and when it has been formed the cognitive process of automatically assigning meaning to it is exactly the same as with images caused by an external stimulii. We feel a strong desire to eat the chocolate bar.

This all means of course that every time we are presented with a chocolate bar or some other desirable food, the mind automatically performs the cognitive process outlined and creates a desire to eat the delicacy. These continual emotional responses build up and eventually wear us down. This is the reason we "give-in" and the diet goes out the window.

My point is then, the only way to reduce our food intake and still feel comfortable is to modify this process of automatically assigning meaning to the images that come into our heads. This way we can reduce the desire to eat unnecessarily and thereby modify our eating behaviour so that we lose weight and keep it off.

Diets do not supply these techniques and in actual fact they fail the individual not the other way round as their providers would have you believe. If changing our behaviour was easy as making a decision to go on a diet, most of us would have changed many things about ourselves long ago. The truth is we need techniques that will help us to bring that change about or we are setting ourselves up to fail.

Why Can't I Lose Weight?

That's the question many people ask when their weight loss plan isn't working.

Asking yourself 'Why can't I lose weight?' is actually one of the best things you can do for yourself. It says you know that what you're currently doing isn't working for you.

You're at the place where you're ready to look at alternatives - try something different to get a result you want.

So why can't you lose weight? Here are 3 possible reasons you may not be losing weight - and some suggestions on what you can do about it.


#1) Medical Reasons

Now this is not the same as saying you're genetically programmed to be overweight. That is hogwash. In fact scientists estimate that even if you do have a genetic propensity to gain weight, your genes only account for 15 - 25% of your current weight. So forget the genetics excuse.

But there are medical reasons that some people can't lose weight. Low thyroid, adrenal exhaustion, insulin resistance and other medical conditions can make losing weight near to impossible.

That's why before starting any weight loss plan, you should talk to your doctor first. Have a full workup and make sure that you don't have any health issues standing in the way of your weight loss.

There's nothing more frustrating that trying to lose weight, doing all the right things and not losing an inch - all because of a medical condition. Get the medical condition cleared up first and then address the weight (in fact, the weight may just go down on it's own once you get the medical condition addressed).


#2) Emotional Eating

I recently read an article where a nutritionist estimated that 75% of overeating was due to emotions. 75%! Can you imagine what would happen if you learned to eliminate emotional eating and cut out all those calories? What a weight loss impact! The weight would be falling off.

Unfortunately, in today's world, emotional eating is on the rise. Most people today are feeling the pressure of an increasingly hectic lifestyle. We hardly have time to tie our shoes, never mind deal with our emotions.

Because of this, our emotions get stuffed down and ignored until finally they explode and we're face-down in a bowl of Rocky-Road ice cream with extra chocolate sauce.

Here's the bottom line: you are human and you have emotions. Your emotional needs are important and need to be addressed properly with love. You need emotional nurturing and proper emotional care.

If that means you take a 5 minute break every few hours at work to regain your emotional balance, do it. If that means you need to unwind by doing a mall walk and window shopping after work - don't let anything stop you.

Learn to nurture your emotional health and you'll nip emotional eating in the bud - and start losing weight FAST.


#3) Mismatched Weight Loss Plan

There are many different ways to lose weight and dozens of weight loss programs to choose from. Some plans emphasize a change in diet, others emphasize a change in exercise, others focus on the inner reasons for overeating.

Every person is different and will lose weight in their own unique way. If what you're doing now isn't currently working, it may be a simple case of personality-plan mismatch.

Maybe instead of a diet-focused weight loss plan, you would feel better with a fitness-focused weight loss plan or a psychological weight loss plan. There are lots of plans to choose from and you deserve to take your time and find one that fits your personality and lifestyle best.

If you think this is the case, take some time to review different diet or weight loss plans. Find one that you can get excited about, one that makes sense to you and that fits your belief system and personality. That's when you'll make real weight loss progress!

So those are 3 possible reasons for your weight loss plateau. You don't have to stay stuck in a weight loss rut. You don't have to keep asking yourself the frustrating question: Why Can't I Lose Weight?' Keep believing in yourself and in your dreams. Don't give up and you will get there!

The Benefits Of A Christian Weight Loss Program

One of the best ways to lose weight is to have a change of heart as well as a change of mind. When you participate in a Christian weight loss program you’ll soon discover that the emphasis will include more than simply losing weight.

You can take as many diet pills as you want and it will still not provide a method for proven weight loss in the long term. With pills you will generally see results as long as you are taking the pills. Once you abandon the pills because of total cost or dissatisfaction in how your body is reacting to the stimuli found in most diet pills you will see the weight return - and the weight always seems to bring friends.

With a Christian weight loss program you are encouraged to come to an understanding of who God intended you to be. This becomes important because inactivity has a keen effect on depression and self-esteem. When you combine a three prong approach to this process you find there is a lifestyle change, weight loss and exercise.

A quality Christian weight loss program is concerned about the whole person and not simply quantifying results. It’s not uncommon for those who are looking to lose weight to find general discouragement when they observe that those who do exercise seem more enthused with life and are generally happier. The reason for this is that when a person exercises regularly endorphins are released that give a positive boost to their outlook on life providing a positive outlook on life. Those who exercise regularly experience this sensation and it provides a unique bonus to their health maintenance goals.

This is why so many find exercise almost addictive when it is practiced regularly. A Christian weight loss program helps you find a balance between appropriate exercise, healthy food choices, and the spiritual dimension to your life that most weight loss programs never seem to address.

God’s Word tells us in Romans that "There is... no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." A Christian weight loss program is not about guilt; rather it is designed to enable you to find a better way to manage your weight loss objectives in a way that does not deny your faith.

When choosing a Christian weight loss program you should look for results, but also attention to biblical precepts that enable you to feel comfortable with a plan that has allowed others to see long term results.

Such a program assists in providing you with an understanding that change is something that is achievable once the problem is recognized. Just as faith is an element to help an individual heal from various diseased, that very same faith can be used successfully in a Christian weight loss program that places high value on trust.

When you feel better about yourself and natural endorphins are released you will find you have more energy and a better countenance. A quality Christian weight loss program helps you understand these dynamics and make use of them in the positive changes you will discover in a new lifestyle choice.

A good program will not insist on expensive weigh loss pills or fitness club membership. They will, however, provide a means to enhancing your metabolisms ability to burn fat and increase your energy level - and they never leave the faith element in your life behind.

Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery

Gastric bypass surgery comes in many forms but the most popular are combination-techniques that shrink the stomach by stapling off a small section and shortening the small intestine by reattaching it at a lower point where fewer calories will be absorbed.

Gastric bypass surgery and other bariatric procedures were traditionally performed with large incisions but laparoscopes have changed that resulting in lowered risks of many potential complications. Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery is a less-invasive technique involving several small incisions in the abdomen through which surgical instruments are inserted. The laparoscope (camera) is also inserted inside the abdomen so the surgeon can see.

The benefits of Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery are smaller scars, lower risk of hernias, and faster recovery compared to traditional large incision gastric bypass surgery. Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery cannot be used, however, if the patient weighs over 500 pounds. A doctor may recommend a short-term weight loss procedure like mouth-wiring to lower the weight of the patient to 400 or less so laparoscopic bypass surgery can be performed.

As in any surgery for weight loss, potential candidates should remember that Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery is not a miracle cure and will involve a 90-minute to 2-hour surgical procedure, a 3-6 week recovery time, and a lifelong commitment to a healthier lifestyle. The risks of the surgery include infections, bleeding, and respiratory problems. It may be difficult to eat anything for the first few weeks after surgery without feeling uncomfortable and it will take 6-8 weeks before you are able to digest proteins or complex carbohydrates.

Patients who follow guidelines can reasonably expect to lose at least 50% of their excess weight over a 12-18 month period and have retained that weight-loss by at least 70% by ten years after the surgery.

Why You Should Consider Gastric Bypass Surgery

Losing excess weight can transform your life on the physical, social and emotional levels. However, in some cases,weight loss surgery is the only way to shed those unwanted pounds. One of the most effective surgical procedures isgastric bypass surgery and can produce amazing results.

Obesity is a condition which drastically lowers the quality of your life. It can causes serious health problems and makes many of the simple pleasures of life impossible. For example, choosing fashionable clothes and swimming are generally off-limits. If you find yourself in this condition, don't despair. Gastric bypass surgery may offer a solution to your dilemma.

Gastric bypass surgery is known as a restrictive/malabsorptive procedure. This means it combats obesity in two ways. Firstly the size of the stomach is restricted resulting in you taking in less food, and secondly a bypass of some part of the digestive system is carried out. This bypass reduces the amount of calories absorbed by the digestive system. This type of surgery has been shown to produce the greatest weight loss in the fastest time. Now, let's look at the procedure.

The most established and commonly-performed type of gastric bypass operation is called a Roux-en-Y. Here's how it works.

First, a section at the top of the stomach is completely closed off with staples to form a pouch. When you eat, this pouch fills quickly and sends a message to the brain to indicate it's full. Thus you feel full and stop eating after just a small amount of food.

Then, a new opening is formed in this pouch and a section of the small intestine is cut and attached to this new opening. Thus the food bypasses most of the stomach and a section of the small intestine. This results in drastically reduced absorption of calories. The surgeon will determine the length of intestine to be bypassed based on the amount of weight that needs to be lost.

Gastric bypass surgery is highly effective. Reductions of 80 per cent of excess weight in the first year are common. On average, a patient will lose up to three quarters of his excess weight in the two years following gastric bypass surgery. But the benefits will come far quicker, especially if you suffer from diabetes or high blood pressure. Your physical condition will improve and along with it, your self-confidence.

What's more it's relatively safe. The procedure can be carried out using laporoscopic (keyhole) or open surgery. However, like any form of surgery it comes with its own risks. Some general problems that occur rarely include anemia through loss of nutrients, leakage, and infection. Your doctor can advise you on ways to minimise any risk and so make your operation as safe and easy as possible. Bear in mind too that gastric bypass surgery requires lifelong changes in your diet and lifestyle.

So is gastric bypass surgery for you?

Firstly, you should have been seriously overweight for at least five years. In addition, you should have tried and failed to reduce your weight through traditional methods such as diet and exercise. These attempts should have been serious and prolonged, i.e. for at least six months.

Another factor is that your health is at serious risk owing to your weight. This is known as morbid,obesity and corresponds to a body mass index of over 40 or if you have a BMI of over 35 combined with an attendant medical condition.

In addition, you should not be suffering from any psychological or physical condition that precludes the weight loss operation. Consult your doctor for detailed information.

If you feel these conditions apply to you, the next step is to consult with a doctor specialising in bariatrics (obesity cure). He will be able to determine if gastric bypass surgery is for you. If so he will advise you on the procedure and make arrangements for you.

Losing excess weight can transform your life on the physical, social and emotional levels. So if you're obese and want to makeover your health and life, call a specialist and inquire about gastric bypass surgery today.

When It Comes To Fast Weight Loss – Just Remember That 2 + 2 Doesn’t Always Equal 4

Article Body:

Everybody knows that calories are the enemy, and that more calories equals more weight gained. Therefore, most people believe that losing weight is as simple as cutting way back on calories.

It's just simple mathematics, right?

After all, if you're eating 3,000 calories per day and you cut back to 1,000 calories per day, then those extra 2,000 calories have to be burned from your body, right?

It's as simple as 2 + 2 equals 4, right? Well, this is not exactly true.

First, let's talk about the average person who begins a diet. The scenario usually goes something like this...

One day you look in the mirror and you finally get fed up with the way your body looks (or the way that your clothes fit) - and on this day you get "angry" with yourself, and you begin cutting way back on calories in an attempt to starve yourself thinner.

So you officially begin your "starvation diet."

On the first day you skip breakfast altogether (after all, you're so filled with anger and motivation that it's easy to skip breakfast).

Then, a few hours later your motivation quickly gives way to severe hunger - since your body is not accustomed to being without calories for so long.

Finally, by lunchtime you're so hungry that you feel weak and miserable, but yet you tell yourself that you can make it through this tough hunger (after all, you don't want to look like a quitter to your friends and family who know that you're dieting).

So you have a small piece of fruit for lunch perhaps, bravely trying to stick to your plan of starving yourself thin.

Then, hours later when dinnertime arrives you're so hungry and weak that you have a big migraine headache - and you're beginning to realize that starving yourself might not be such a good idea after all.

However, you try to hold out for another day or two on this miserable diet - since nobody likes to feel like a quitter.

So you'll probably hold out for another day or two, making yourself miserable in the meantime.

There are even some brave dieters who may hold out for a week or so, possibly even 2 weeks for the bravest of dieters.

However, regardless of how long you hold out -- the result is still the same.

You see, even after 2 weeks of starving you won't have made any noticeable difference to your body when you look in the mirror.

Why?

Simple, because the weight lost during a starvation diet is largely water weight, not real weight loss. This water weight will be gained back immediately when you stop dieting and begin eating normally again.

Also, when you starve yourself your body begins burning fewer calories each day -- so even though you're eating fewer calories each day you must remember that your body is also burning fewer calories.

For example, let's say that you normally eat 2,500 calories per day (before you begin dieting). Then, you suddenly try to starve yourself by eating only 1,000 calories per day.

Guess what?

Even though you're eating 1,500 fewer calories per day your body will begin burning 1,500 fewer calories per day - so your weight will remain the same even though you're starving yourself.

When your body begins burning fewer calories it's called a weight loss "plateau." This is why virtually all starvation dieters cannot make the scale go down after about 2 weeks of dieting.

This is why even the most determined of "starvation dieters" always fail after just a couple of weeks.

The truth is that "noticeable" weight loss simply cannot be achieved by starvation, and it's pointless to even try that type of diet.

True weight loss can only be achieved by giving your body the right types of calories at the right times each day. Your body is like a big engine, and the truth is that it needs all 3 types of calories (protein, carbs, and fat) to some degree.

The best way to lose weight is to effectively manage these 3 types of calories, so that your body receives the proper amount of protein, the proper amount of carbs - and also the proper amount of fat each day.

Have You Thrown Your Money Away On Weight Loss Supplements That Don't Deliver?

If you are thinking about using a weight loss supplement to help you lose weight, think again. The majority of all non-prescription weight loss medications are simply diuretics - they simply drain your body of water weight, which you quickly put back on.

To give you an illustration of how futile a weight loss supplement can be, imagine a diet which allowed you to eat a cheese burger and two slices of pizza for lunch, followed by steak and potatoes for dinner, and an evening snack of cookies and chips. If such a diet really worked, EVERYONE would be doing it.

Losing weight isn't about taking a pill. If you ate the diet mentioned above on a regular basis, do you really think a pill could turn a cheese burger into something healthy? Weight loss supplement companies will often put a disclaimer on their label indicating that their weight loss supplement doesn't work, or that their product hasn't been evaluated by the FDA.

What does this mean? It basically means that supplement companies know their products don't really work, but also that they can get away with selling them as long as they add a disclaimer to the label. Their products sell well because of the psychological impact weight loss supplements have on the consumer.

So, if weight loss supplements don't work, what does work? The supplement companies have already given you a hint: eating a healthy diet. If you really want to lose weight, change your eating habits. But what do you eat? A high protein diet? A low fat diet? A Subway Sandwich?

If you have no clue what to eat, there is an ebook you need to read called "Fat Loss 4 Idiots". The reason it is mentioned in this article is because it uses online software which allows you to actually generate menus which tell you exactly what to eat. The authors of Fat Loss 4 Idiots even boast that you can lose 9 pounds in 11 days!

I was a little skeptical of Fat Loss 4 Idiots before I purchased it, but I knew it was a legitimate product because it offers very similar advice to what I read in Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle. The main difference between the two ebooks is that Tom's ebook is very detailed, while Fat Loss 4 Idiots is so simple that even an idiot can understand it.

Two Great Ways to Burn Fat Fast

Everyone who ever tried to lose weight has probably tried just about everything they could to do it at one time or another. With all of the gimmicks, fad diets, useless pills, and “secret” exercise methods out there it can be frustrating trying to get rid of unwanted fat.

Now everyone knows that there really is no secret method or trick to losing weight. Everyone knows that proper diet combined with exercise is the only real way to burn fat but there are a couple of things you can do to help speed the process up a bit.

# 1) Exercise first thing in the morning.
Studies have shown that exercising first thing in the morning can burn as much as 3 times more fat than exercising any other time of the day. One of the reasons for this is because your body’s main energy source during the day comes from carbohydrates. When you sleep for 6 to 8 hours your body uses the majority of its carbohydrate stores as energy for the various bodily functions that take place during sleep

In the morning your body doesn’t have any carbohydrates left for energy and so fat becomes the prime energy source. When you exercise right away in the morning before you eat breakfast so you don’t give your body any carbohydrates to use as energy, you will burn mostly fat for energy and that is the prime goal.

Also when you exercise in the morning it boosts your metabolism up throughout the day which means that even during the day you will burn more calories and lose more weight. Evening exercise will still burn some fat but you will have a higher carbohydrate store so you will not burn as much plus when you go to sleep at night your metabolism slows down and so you won’t burn extra fat for as long after exercise.

One last reason why exercising in the morning is good is because aside from burning more fat and having increased energy levels during the day, you will have your workout out of the way and not have to do it after a long day at work.

#2) Always eat breakfast.
Eating breakfast will help to boost your metabolism while skipping breakfast and waiting until mid morning or lunchtime will make it slow down considerably. Another thing to consider is that waiting too long to eat after you wake up will make your body break down muscle tissue (catabolism) for the protein it will be looking for.

When combined with morning exercise, eating breakfast is like a double dose of fat burning because when your body gets a morning meal, it is like putting a log on your metabolisms fire. Breakfast kicks your metabolism into high gear and makes you burn even more fat than you did during your exercise session.

By eating breakfast you also are much less likely to have those mid morning doughnuts or whatever you can get from the snack machine when you get to work. Breakfast combined with morning exercise is the best 1-2 punch you can give yourself for maximum fat burning and energy.

Remember; exercise for at least 30 minutes first thing in the morning and eat a good breakfast about 15 to 20 minutes after your workout and you will burn a lot more fat and lose a lot more weight both during exercise and throughout the day as well.

How I Lost 51 Pounds In 4 Months Using The Simplest Diet Plan In The World

Like many people I've been on dozens of diet plans over the years ranging from Atkins to South Beach to Weightwatchers to Jenny Craig and lots more besides. In fact, I've eaten enough cabbage soup to satisfy a small country! I'm 5 feet 10 and I used to weigh 230 pounds and needed to lose a good 50 pounds to get myself in some short of shape. And then it hit me. It's seems so logical now and so simple but I had ignored the simplest weight loss solution of all. Here's how I discovered it.

I was over in the UK on vacation and saying with an Aunt. We were having tea together and my Aunt was watching her favourite daytime TV show called "Today with Des and Mel." The host, a rather charming guy called Des O'Connor was being asked how he stayed so trim and slim and indeed virile at aged 70 (he had just once again become a father) and he gave me the simplest weight loss solution I have ever heard. In fact you'd be seriously challenged to find a fitter and more vibrant looking 70 year old anywhere on the planet.

Des's answer was that he only eats one meal per day in the evening, and in fact eats as much as he wants at that one meal sitting. During the day he may well graze on a bit of fruit and naturally drinks plenty of fluids but he swears by the plan and has done for over 40 years.

This seemed so simple and ridiculously easy and I was very doubtful whether it would work for me. However, it's based on pure logic. By missing out on significant calories during the day, the body makes up for it in the evening and then stores up calories to keep you going the next day until your evening meal. However, I'm no scientist or doctor and I'm only interested in results. Here's how it worked for me.

Week One was a little challenging. I did nibble on the odd cookie to keep me going with my morning black coffee. I missed the social aspect of lunch but contented myself with knowing that I was doing my health and body a huge favor. In week one I lost 6 pounds and in the first month 15 pounds dropped off my body! However, having been on many diet programs over the years I was worried it could all come back.With this in mind I started a gentle walking program in the evenings after my meal of the day and this really helped me with my energy levels. I really didn't want to visit a gym or stress myself by running.

I was eating everything I wanted in the evenings, including ice cream and lots of ribs and fries etc. However, after the first month my body seemed to start regulating itself and I didn't seem to crave these heavy rich foods as much. I think my body started to learn that it needed to eat well and wholesome in the evenings so it could get through the next 24 hours.

In month two I dropped another 13 pounds. In month three I lost a further 12 pounds and in month four another 11 pounds making for a total weight loss of 51 pounds in FOUR months. Truly amazing. I'm still staggered by it. I don't recommend this plan for life and have slowly reintroduced a healthy breakfast and a very light lunch. It's a truly great plan for losing excess weight quickly though - and works like nothing I've ever tried before.

One year on and I'm still at my target weight of 180 pounds. I still do my walking exercise most evenings and feel 1000% better with loads more energy. I've recommended this plan to dozens of friends and I have to say it's worked for 90% of them. Give it a shot, the odds are that it'll work great for you too! Check with your doctor first though to be safe.

Herbalife Shapeworks Diet Products - Giving you a Future

Choosing the right diet can be tricky, much of the decision should depend on your body type and the amount of weight you have to lose. There are other factors such as the areas that need slimming and how active you are each day of your life too. We all need something a little different from an effective diet system and that is what makes Herbalife Shapeworks so cool. It is easily customizable to anyone?s body and lifestyle. You can use the Shapeworks diet to simply add to the results that you would get from getting active and eating better. It is perfect for everyone no matter how much weight they want to take off.

The first thing that you need to do before you get down and dirty with any diet is to decide what you want to do. What are your goals? Do you want to stay healthy as you lose weight? How quickly do you want to take the fat off and how far are you willing to go to do it? These matter, as they will have a direct bearing on the diet plan that is right for you. The good news is that the Shapeworks diet is so flexible that it can work with you no matter what your answers to the above questions happen to be. If you just want to get back a little of your old waist line then go with Shapeworks and if you want to be eating healthy and improving more than just your weight then go with Shapeworks. There is no one that this diet cannot help.

The next thing that you need to do is find out what your body really needs to stay healthy. Most of us are not eating right as it is now and very, I mean, very few of us are getting the right amount of exercise each day. Yes, there are reasons for this and so one but the fact of the matter is that we need to keep our health up. It does not matter how busy we are or how much we love fried foods, we need to stay healthy and be good role models for our kids. That has nothing to do with being skinny, it should all be about health. If you are healthy and you eat right you will naturally find your own optimal weight.

So, what is your lean body mass? Do you have any idea? Don?t feel bad no one else knows either, except of course those on the Shapeworks diet. This diet will help you to finally get a firm handle on all of your weight loss issues. You will be able to effectively map out the amount of protein and the amount of calories that you need to be eating each and every day for good health. This is vital to the body?s ability to lose weight and then keep it off successfully.

Not only that but by eating the right amount of protein and having the right nutritional balance on your side you will be able to successfully control your hunger urges too. You will be able to cut out the need to snack between meals every day and that is going to have a massive affect on your weight loss goals and your ability to meet them. These are just some more reasons why the Shapeworks diet is such a good choice for all of us.

You can trust Herbalife and Shapeworks, people have been trusting them for years and years, decades even and they have not been disappointed, neither will you.

Best Fat Burner

What is the best fat burner?

This article will tell you but my approach is a little different. I am not going to tell you the best fat burner by discussing certain ingredients or chemicals or telling you some particular brand name is the greatest.

No. I am going to let the average person decide by casting a vote. I used an internet tool that let me determine how many searches were performed for a particular word or phrase at a certain search engine.

The results were for the month of May, 2006. I selected well known weight loss pills, brand names or an ingredient and then entered that word or phrase to get my numerical result.

The top vote getter, the most searched term for an herbal diet pill or what the people think is the best fat burner is "ephedra".

Here are the results:

Ephedra 86,507
Hydroxycut 52,524
Xenadrine 32,650
Stacker 2 19,031
Metabolife 9,819
Ephedrine 42,575
Green Tea 40,856
Chromium 8,754

Let me note a few things of interest.

More people searched for the term "ephedra" during the month of May, 2006 while searching for information on a weight loss pill or diet pill than any other well known brand or ingredient.

But what's interesting is, most people think ephedra is illegal or no longer available. Plus, ephedra is just one herbal ingredient in many fat burners.

Green tea, while it has many other benefits was not searched as often as ephedra which is considered illegal by many people.

This is also curious. The brand name Metabolife is a brand that is no longer around. The company has gone bankrupt from lawsuits yet almost 10,000 people a month search for this once great weight loss product.

Another interesting point is that the word "ephedrine" is actually a chemical within the herbal ephedra plant, but a large number of people are searching for this chemical.

Ephedrine is the major reason the herbal plant, ephedra, works so well and is considered the best fat burner, certainly among the general population of people searching the internet for weight loss pills or diet pills.

Zone Diet – A New Weight Loss System

The Zone Diet works on the principle that 100,000 years ago, we were meat eaters, and our metabolism is designed to handle the demands of a meat-based diet.

Madonna, Demi Moore, and Jennifer Aniston swear by the results of the Zone Diet, which was created by Barry Sears, PhD. The Zone Diet contains 40% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 30% fat and is known as the 40-30-30 plan.

As the food industry evolved, more carbohydrates have been introduced into our daily diet, thus causing an imbalance in our metabolism to burn fat. The reason for our extra weight can also be attributed to the many grains and starches in our diet (pasta, rice, breads, and potatoes). The Zone Diet's approach calls for a return to the diets of our ancestors where meat, fruits, and vegetables are the main dietary foods.

The Zone Diet suggests that you need the right ratio of carbohydrates to proteins and fats in order to control the insulin in the bloodstream. Too much of the hormone (insulin) can increase fat storage and inflammation in the body (conditions that are associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease). Sears asserts that by using the Zone Diet, you are actually optimizing the body's metabolic function. Through the regulation of blood sugar, you allow your body to burn excess body fat.

Although you are not prohibited from any particular food group, it is best to avoid food with high fat and carbohydrates such as grains, starches, and pastas. The ideal sources of carbs are fruits and vegetables and for monounsaturated fats olive oil, almonds, and avocados are recommended. The Zone Diet claims to use food as a drug for overall good health, weight loss and prevention or management of heart disease and diabetes.

Sears says that you can test to see whether you are 'hormonally' correct by eating following the Zone diet and see how you feel four hours later. To simplify the Zone Diet, fill one-third of a plate with low-fat protein, and then two-thirds with fruits and vegetables.

Celebrities and some health experts say that the Zone's recommendations do not stray far from the USDA's (United States Dietary Association) dietary guidelines and therefore are advocates of the Zone Diet. Others argue that the Zone Diet has flawed ratios but Sears argues that the Zone diet is a low-glycemic-load diet that has adequate protein. .

A critic of the Zone diet such as the AHA (American Heart Association) classifies the Zone Diet as high protein and does not recommend the Zone Diet for weight loss. They contend that the Zone Diet has not been proven effective in the long term for weight loss. The AHA issued an official recommendation warning against diets like the Zone Diet. They believe that the Zone Diet is hazardous as it restricts the intake of essential vitamins and minerals present in certain foods. The AHA also contends that the protein ratio in the Zone diet is too high even if the minimal fat ratio is good. Robert H. Ecker M.D of the A.H.A. finds the Zone Diet's theory on insulin flawed and argues that there is no scientific proof that the hormone insulin plays a big role in weight regulation.

Your Weight Loss Program in as Easy as a Week

The idea of the weight loss program is to be able for you to develop a consistent approach to weight loss as well as a healthy endurance when exercising. The weight loss program’s objective is to get rid of the excesses in your body, the excess fat. Not the healthy and lean muscle tissues and body fluids.

The weight loss program first requires your focus and dedication, so therefore you need to be prepared in both mind and – of course – body. It is highly advised that you first visit your doctor for a check-up before embarking on any weight loss program.

It is important that when starting on any weight loss program, one should be positive enough to work for the results. Some people get impatient easily but long term effects are assured as long as one sticks to the weight loss plan at hand.

Stretch and stretch some more. Before actually doing those exercises and working out those muscles, a little stretching is needed in order to avoid any injury or soreness in your body.

It is also not advisable for anyone to try too hard. Everything should be done in moderation. Find the level of exercise and training that suits you. It should be enough for you to be comfortable in but not too convenient that it will not be much of a challenge.

The first week

The first day of the weight loss program involves a long and steady walk in a little over twenty minutes. After the walk, follow it up with a good stretch. This takes so little of your time for the first day. In less than an hour you have taken that first step to a weight loss program that could work to your advantage.

By the second day, it is good to focus on an upper body workout. This maintains your strength to be able to go through the whole weight loss program for the week. On the third day, a brisk walk or jog for ten minutes is in order. For beginners, a lower body workout should be done in the evening.

In the fourth day, a good rest is in order, as well as a good stretch. This lag time should be used wisely though to sort out any negatives in your mindset. The fifth day starts with a good ten minute walk. Exercise the lower body in four sessions of workouts, follow this up with another ten minute walk, and another four sessions of lower body workout.

The sixth day should be spent on a low impact exercise such as swimming. To avoid boredom, do not be afraid to try something new. The last day of the week is a time to solicit the support of the people you care about. Spend time with them or get them to be with you in your long walk. Again, follow up your walk with a light upper body workout.

This is just the beginning though. If by this first week you are able to stick to the weight loss program, you have a great chance to further boost your weight loss and stay with the program until you achieve your desired result. Try as much as possible to be unlike the people who give up easily just because they could not see the result they want at the time they want – like this moment, today, now! Patience is a virtue. The same way it took your body time to gain all that weight, think about it as the time your body will have to exert just to get rid of it. Stick to the weight loss program and you will lose weight.

10 Real Life Diet Tips

Are you tired of diet tips handed out by someone with apparently unlimited income and time? For some of us, it may just not be practical to spend half of our Sunday preparing carefully portioned meals for the rest of the week, or financially feasible to buy all our meals prepackaged in just the right portions. And there are those of us who cringe at the thought of weighing food to achieve 'optimal portion sizes'. Here are ten real life diet tips for the rest of us.

1. Eating out? Restaurant portions tend to be enormous, and if it's on the plate, we tend to eat it. If it's possible, order from the kid’s menu, where portions are more reasonably sized.

2. Keep healthy snacks around and easily accessible. A bowl of fruit on the kitchen table, a container of celery or carrot sticks in the refrigerator, or a couple of pop-open cans of fruit salad in your desk at work will help you grab for something healthy when those first hunger pains begin. In other words, you'll be more likely to grab something low-calorie and good for you if it's easy to eat.

3. Substitute frozen vegetables for canned. Canned veggies tend to be high in sodium, which you don't need, and low in real nutrition, which you do. Buy economy size bags with zip closures to make it easy to pour out a single serving for a meal.

4. Buy a vegetable steamer. Steaming is one of the healthiest ways to cook vegetables. The food retains nearly all of its natural nutrients instead of leaching it out into the cooking water. Even better, it makes your veggies taste great - which means you'll be more likely to eat them instead of filling up on fatty foods that pack on weight.

5. Never eat standing up. One of the easiest ways to sabotage your diet is to 'eat without thinking'. Treat eating with the respect that it deserves. Fix yourself a plate. Sit down and eat properly. You'll be less likely to just pop food into your mouth without paying attention.

6. Spread your meals out. When you eat three meals a day, your body tends to store whatever it doesn't need right that moment. By adopting a 'grazing' habit, you'll keep your metabolism working throughout the day. Have a small breakfast, a piece of fruit with crackers or toast at mid-morning, a light lunch and an 'after school snack' mid-afternoon. Just remember that you're breaking up the same amount of food into smaller meals, not ADDING more food into your daily diet.

7. Grab a fruit juice or flavored water instead of soda. Soda is nothing but empty calories. No nutrients, lots of sugar. Instead, grab a bottle of 100% fruit juice, or water flavored with a spritz of fruit.

8. Drink water. Even the FDA recommends at least 8 full 8 ounce glasses of water a day to keep your body working right. When you're dieting, you should drink even more. It's not just that full feeling - water helps your body digest foods properly and cleans out your system.

9. Can't afford a gym membership? Make a pact with friends to exercise together. Make a date at least three times a week to play volleyball, take a walk or spend half an hour doing something active.

10. Skip the potato chips. Fatty snacks fried in hydrogenated oil like potato chips contribute fat and calories and not much else. Instead, grab a handful of dried fruit or a cup of yogurt for the same amount of calories and a lot more nutritional benefit.