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How to Lose Belly Fat

August 5th, 2016 • Posted by Suzy Frick • Permalink

There are many dangerous and ineffective gimmicks about how to lose belly fat. While there is no "magic bullet" that will target abdominal fat in particular, this article will explain what causes an expanding waistline and how you can make that spare tire go away.

Jump-starting Your Metabolism
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Eat breakfast. It might seem counterproductive to eat if you're trying to lose weight, but studies show that eating breakfast within an hour of waking up keeps your insulin levels steadier and your LDL cholesterol levels lower.[1]Building a healthy breakfast:
Choose a protein: eggs, beans, peanut butter, nuts, lean meat
Choose a fiber: oats, fresh fruit, leafy green vegetables
Minimize refined sugar: Avoid sugary cereal, pancakes, pastries, instant oatmeal
Tip: Oats and other low-GI carbs maintain healthy blood sugar levels, making it easier to lose weight

Decompress. Research indicates that the secretion of cortisol (a hormone your body produces during times of stress) is correlated with an increase in belly fat.[2] Some strategies for combating everyday stress:
Most persons need at least 7 hours of sleep every night.[3]
Set aside time to relax. Even if it's only 15 minutes on your lunch break, find time to simply close your eyes, breathe deeply, and forget your worries.
Keep anything that stresses you away from where you sleep as much as is practically possible. Keep your workspace and bedroom separate. Resolve to leave your worries behind as soon as you step into your bedroom.
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Aim to take 10,000 steps a day. In one study where men reduced their daily steps from about 10,000 to less than 1,500 (without changing their diet), their visceral (belly) fat increased by 7% after just 2 weeks.[4]
Get a pedometer and try to increase the number of daily steps you take.
Take stairs instead of elevators; walk instead of driving.
Stand up and walk for 30 steps every 30 minutes. If you have a sedentary job, consider getting a treadmill desk.
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Switch out refined grains for whole grains. In a scientific study, people who ate all whole grains (in addition to five servings of fruits and vegetables, three servings of low-fat dairy, and two servings of lean meat, fish, or poultry) lost more belly fat than another group that ate the same diet, but with all refined grains.[5]
Grains melt fat. A diet rich in whole grains changes the glucose and insulin response in your body to hasten the melting of fat, and visceral fat, that deep layer of fat, is easier for your body to burn than the subcutaneous fat under your skin (the fat that can be seen and grabbed).
Avoid white grains. For instance, eat brown wheat bread instead of over-processed white bread, and favor wild brown rice over white rice.

Drink plenty of water. Studies suggest that consistently drinking water throughout the day can lead to a more active metabolism, regardless of dieting.[6] Drinking more water also helps your body flush out waste/toxins and improves your overall health.
Aim to drink an 8-oz. glass of water 8 times per day, or 64 ounces total.
Carry a water bottle so that you can drink whenever you feel thirsty.
Know how to tell when you're sufficiently hydrated. You'll know you're drinking enough water when your urine runs almost clear. If it's still yellow, drink up.
Significantly reduce alcohol, sugary drinks (like Coke, 7-Up, Pepsi and all the diet drinks), and carbonated beverages. [7]

Exercising for Fat Loss

Exercise in small bursts. Research shows that interval training, or alternating short bursts of energy with brief resting periods, can improve muscle and build endurance more quickly than traditional exercise.[8]Interval Training for Weight Loss:
Sprints: Run at top speed for 20 seconds, then slow to a walk until you catch your breath. Repeat for 10 minutes.
Exercise equipment: Set a treadmill, elliptical, or stationary bike for interval training.
Quick options: Fit brisk 5-minute walks or stair climbing into your day as often as possible.

Skip the crunches — for now. Abdominal crunches and sit-ups should build strong muscles, but you might not see them under belly fat. In fact, crunches might actually make your stomach look bigger as you build up thicker abs. Instead, if you strengthen your back muscles, your posture will improve and pull in your belly. Alternative core exercises:
Planks: Get in the push up position, but rest on your elbows and forearms. Pull your stomach muscles in tight, keeping your back, neck, and bottom in a straight line. Hold this position for 30 seconds or as long as possible. Rest and repeat 3-5 times.
Squats: Stand with your feet about 8 inches (20 cm) apart. Extend your arms in front of you and do four sets of 15-20 squats.
Side stretches: Stand up straight, with your feet hip-width apart. Put your right hand on your right hip, and lift your left arm straight up, with the palm facing right. Keeping your legs centered, lean to the right and "reach" over with your left arm, stretching your left side. Repeat 3-5 times on each side.
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Ramp up the cardio. Do aerobic exercises which get your heart pumping, burn calories quickly and facilitate fat loss all over the body, including your belly. You can't "spot-burn" belly fat, but it's usually the first to burn off when you exercise, regardless of body shape or size.[9]
Time your miles. Track your progress by timing how long it takes to run a mile. As cardiovascular stamina improves, you'll notice the time going down.
Correct shin splints. If you get painful shin splints (pain along the front of your shins when you run), you may be over-pronating (landing with most of your weight on the outer side of your foot). There are shoes designed specifically to help alleviate this.
Don't overdo it. Start with three cardio workouts a week. Pushing yourself hard every day doesn't allow your body enough time to recover and build up muscle, and could lead to injury.

Add resistance training. A 2006 study published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism suggests that combining cardiovascular (aerobic) exercise with resistance training is more effective than cardiovascular training alone in getting rid of abdominal fat.[10] You can do resistance training with free weights, exercise machines or resistance bands and it may also be useful to train from unstable positions due to increased muscle activity.

Dieting for Fat Loss

Reduce calorie consumption. Unless you restrict calorie intake, you won't lose belly fat. Try these tips:
Remember that it takes a 3500-calorie deficit to lose one pound of fat. That is, you have to either burn off 3500 calories through exercise or eat 3500 calories less than you burn in a week.
Aim to lose a maximum of two pounds per week. Losing any more than that can be unhealthy and leads to a cycle of "crash" dieting, in which you rapidly gain back any lost weight.
Keep a food diary. Most people tend to underestimate how much they eat. Get an honest assessment of your eating habits by writing down everything you consume for a week. Utilize an online calorie calculator, and figure out roughly how many calories you're consuming in a day. From there, see what you can afford to cut.
Try a diet in which you consume 2200 calories (men) or 2000 calories (women) per day. This should cause a deficit sufficient for you to lose one or two pounds per week, depending on your activity level.

Eat good fats. Studies suggest that a diet with a higher ratio of monounsaturated fats like avocados, nuts, seeds, soybeans, and chocolate — can prevent the accumulation of belly fat.
Trans fats (in margarines, crackers, cookies, or anything made with partially hydrogenated oils) seem to result in more fat being deposited in the abdomen. Avoid these as much as possible.

Get more fiber in your diet. Soluble fiber (such as that found in apples, oats, and cherries) lowers insulin levels which can speed up the burning of visceral belly fat.
Add fiber to your diet slowly. If you are currently getting 10g of fiber a day, don't jump to 35g of fiber the next day. The natural bacteria in your digestive system requires time to adapt to your new fiber intake.
Eat the skin on your fruits and vegetables. Incorporating more fruits and vegetables into your diet adds fiber, but only if you eat the skin, as that's where most of the fiber is. Don't peel those apples before you eat them. With potatoes, leave the skin on (with baked or mashed potatoes) or if you peel them, make snacks of them, such as baked garlic Parmesan peels. Keeping the skin on potatoes when cooking them helps keep more vitamins/minerals in the flesh (just don't eat any parts of skin that are green).
Eat more split pea soup. Split peas are a fiber "power food". Just one cup of them contains 16.3g of protein.

Measuring Progress

Calculate your waist-to-hip ratio. Your waist-to-hip ratio — or the circumference of your waist divided by the circumference of your hips — can be a good indicator of whether you need to lose belly fat. Here's how to get it:
Wrap a soft tape measure around the thinnest part of your waist at the level of your navel. Note the measurement.
Wrap the tape measure around the widest part of your hips, where you can feel a bony protrusion about 1/3 of the way from the top of the hipbone. Note the measurement.
Divide your waist measurement by your hip measurement.
Know what's healthy. Women should have a ratio of 0.8 or below; men should be at 0.9 or lower.[11]

Continue taking your measurements as you progress. After incorporating some of the above strategies, keep measuring so you can see your progress.

Weigh yourself at the same time each day. Because body weight fluctuates depending on the time of day, when you last ate or when you last had a bowel movement, standardize the process by weighing yourself at the same time each day. Many people choose to do this the first thing in the morning, before breakfast.

Staying Motivated

Join forces with a friend. Trying to lose weight with a partner can help you stay accountable for your actions, as well as giving you an extra incentive to keep exercise appointments. Share your victories together, and discuss solutions to whatever roadblocks you encounter.

Understand risks associated with belly fat. Losing belly fat doesn't have to be solely a cosmetic goal; understanding the health issues linked with belly fat can help motivate you.
Belly fat is linked with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer. Specifically it's the deepest layer of belly fat — the fat you can't see or grab — that poses health risks. That's because these "visceral" fat cells actually produce hormones and other substances that can affect your health (e.g. increased insulin resistance and/or breast cancer risk).
The fact that "visceral" fat cells are located right next to and in between organs in your abdominal cavity doesn't help. For example, fat next to the liver drains into it, causing a fatty liver, which is a risk factor for insulin resistance, setting the stage for Type 2 diabetes.

Tips
Many women start gaining more weight in their belly as they age, especially after menopause. The body fat distribution changes — less fat goes to your arms, legs and hips, and more goes to your midsection. Some people even find their waistline widening while their weight remains the same. Nonetheless, the above steps will help to do away with belly fat.
Doing stretches in the morning works out your muscles. Remember to eat a healthy breakfast, go for a walk, drink water, get a good night's sleep, and be kind to yourself.
Don't think that adopting an eating disorder is the way to go. Even if its 'temporary', it still is the type of thing that will stay with you forever. Eating disorders aren't the type of thing you can just get over.
If you're not that in to regular water, add a slice of lemon, lime, or orange to it.
When you feel dragged down because you haven't slept much, consume lean proteins. Without proper sleep, we tend to crave sugar and junk food. Curtail this by eating lean proteins (nuts, fish...).
Green tea is a brilliant alternative to coffee and other drinks that are commonly consumed.
Skipping (jump rope) is great for losing body fat. It burns more calories than running.
Exercise in the morning. It burns more calories than any other time of the day. It can be hard waking up with energy so try to get as much sleep as possible, around 7-8 hours for adults you will see the results.
Doing a few jumping jacks or push-ups just after waking up will also kick-start your metabolism and also wake you up!


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Why You Should Visit a Massage Therapist Today

July 21st, 2016 • Posted by Suzy Frick • Permalink

You work hard, and your body hurts. You deal with stress, and your muscles tighten. Your body ages, and you feel it a little more every day. Did you know it does not have to be that way? When you work regularly with an experienced, trained Massage Therapist, your body can feel better every day, and bounce back more quickly from injuries or other sources of pain you endure. Your therapist can help you take care of yourself so you are ready to face what the day and the week might bring

1. Help With Chronic Pain

Muscle and joint pain happen to almost everyone at some point in their lives. But you do not have to just accept and endure. These aches and pains do not just occur overnight; they result from wear and tear that we put on ourselves over months and even years of our lives.

Muscles stiffen and become more brittle; cartilage and tendons similarly wear down and hurt more over time. And if you just let them go without doing something to take care of yourself, they will only get worse. A good massage therapist can help you head off some of these problems. By working into the muscles, massage therapy loosens the muscle fibers and stimulates blood flow. When you receive regular treatment, this helps undo some of the atrophy and deterioration that causes your chronic pain, leaving you more flexible, more supple, and more comfortable in your day to day grind.

2. Higher Energy Levels
The benefits of massage therapy treatment do not stop with less pain. Have you ever wished you had more energy to do what you need to do? Low energy comes from a combination of physical and emotional constraints. When it hits, though, it can wreak havoc in your life. You lose motivation and you fall behind, which in turn adds stress and creates a vicious cycle from which it can seem impossible to emerge.

Your massage therapist can help you break free. The process of massage helps loosen up the tightness that serves as a physical manifestation of your stress. It also improves your circulation and your breathing, allowing you to relax better both physically and mentally. As you let go of some of the strain you have endured, your energy will pick up, helping you attack your day with new vigor.

3. Better Immune Health

If you have felt sick more often than feels right, it may be that your immune system isn’t working as efficiently as it should. This comes sometimes through stress, sometimes through clogged pores or lymph nodes, and sometimes just through lack of sleep. The body is not meant to go through everything we tend to put it through, and the immune system suffers as a result.

You get colds, headaches, and other health concerns that may seem minor, but quickly start to affect your work and home performance of duties, and get in the way of enjoyment of your life. When you receive massage therapy, you invigorate your body in multiple ways. One of the reasons you should always drink plenty of water before your treatment is because your massage therapist helps clear your system to flush out toxins and unhealthy chemicals. Your body relaxes and opens, and starts to respond better and more effectively to viruses and environmental triggers. You will be better prepared to stay healthy over time, and strong enough to do all of the things you need to do.

4. Recover Faster

Beyond the problem of getting sick or feeling sore, often people have trouble responding and healing when these things do happen. As we wear ourselves down, we cannot recover from illness or injury nearly as quickly as we should. This happens because, even before we realize something is wrong, the incremental damage we do to our systems slows down our bodies’response abilities. You fight harder to get better, and it takes more time and energy than we want to expend.

There is no reason it has to be this way! When you visit a massage therapist regularly, you will receive holistic help. Your entire body will benefit from the treatment, not only feeling better,but healing the micro injuries that create these difficulties in everyday functionality. It takes time to fully heal, of course, but you will discover that you feel better and recover more quickly from various maladies as you undergo treatment. It will help you feel better on a day to day basis, and fend off the problems that are holding you back now.

5. Take a Break!

Sometimes what you need more than anything isn’t just physical relief, but a break from the routine of work, home life, or both. Stress buildup is part of this, but a break before you get to that frenetic point can provide tremendous preventative benefits. You do so many things for other people in your life, and that is wonderful. But you need to take some time out to do something for yourself. It helps you relax and mentally recover from everything else, and then frees you up to be a better version of yourself going forward.

Your massage therapist understands this, and works hard to help you find a moment that you can let go of some of your burdens. You can talk about your day or remain silent through your therapy session. You can receive calming aromatherapy or just a clean scent in the room. The treatment caters to your needs and focuses on what you want. For an hour or two, you can do exactly what you want before returning to the world refreshed and renewed.


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Why You Should Drink More Water During Hot Weather

July 20th, 2016 • Posted by Suzy Frick • Permalink

When you spend time outside in hot weather you probably start to feel thirsty in a fairly short time. That's a normal response and one you should pay close attention to -- it means your body needs more water to deal with the heat.

Your body functions best within a certain temperature range, and when you get too warm, it needs to cool off. There are a couple of ways your body accomplishes this cool down.


First, your blood vessels dilate to increase blood flow to the skin. This allows excess heat to radiate away from your body. Then you also start to sweat. Evaporation of the sweat cools the skin, which in turn helps to cool the whole body. But, the problem is that excessive sweating can lead to dehydration.

You sweat more when the temperature's hot, especially if you're working or exercising in the heat. Drinking water helps replenish the fluids lost by excessive sweating. If you don't get enough water, you may become dehydrated, and the combination of hot temperatures and dehydration can lead to serious heat-related illnesses.

Signs You Need More Water
Even before you become dehydrated, you'll feel thirsty, and your mouth may feel dry or sticky. After a while, you may also become lethargic and fuzzy-headed. Other signs include reduced urine output (and the urine is dark yellow). You might even notice your eyes look a bit sunken and feel dry.

Even a little dehydration can be a problem so don't ignore those early signs. Studies indicate subclinical (mild) dehydration reduces cognitive ability and physical coordination.

Tips for Hydrating in Hot Weather
Start hydrating right away. It's easier to maintain your fluid balance if you start out in a well-hydrated state.

Schedule regular beverage breaks and keep a water bottle handy so you can take frequent sips of water while you work or exercise.
Choose electrolyte-replacing drinks for maximum water absorption.
Drink water after you've finished work or an exercise session.
Snack on fresh fruits like berries, watermelon, peaches, and nectarines.
Don't drink large amounts of plain water all at once - this can lead to hyponatremia or water-toxicity.
How do you know if you've consumed enough water? One way to gauge your hydration level is to look at the color of your urine. If you're well-hydrated, it should be pale. Also, you'll be urinating more frequently.

Sources:

United States National Library of Medicine MedLine Plus. "Dehydration." Accessed March 3, 2016. https://medlineplus.gov/dehydration.html.

The Annals of Occupational Hygiene. "Hydration, Hydration, Hydration." Accessed March 3, 2016. http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/content/54/2/134.long


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