The Infonian

Your acknowledgment of the need and desire to lose weight is the first and most difficult step on the path to weight loss. When your weight is of concern to you, the emotional and physical toll it takes on you can be very stressful.

But people can have a difficult time realizing that in order to lose weight they actually should eat more often throughout the day. A common strategy at the beginning of a diet is a drastic reduction in the amount and kinds of food eaten. However, that may in fact ultimately do more damage than produce any benefit.

If you are not eating enough throughout the course of the day, you are setting yourself up for a weight loss disaster. By not eating enough you set your body up to have low energy throughout the day. Your body will also go into starvation mode and try to store as much fat as possible, which will thwart your weight loss attempts. Additionally, if you are depriving yourself, you will start to experience more intense food cravings than you would otherwise.

Your body’s main goal is to keep yourself alive and operating properly and healthfully. Our systems have all sorts of survival mechanisms in place to keep your systems working. These systems will automatically start up when your body gets the signal that it is needed. One of our most highly developed defensive mechanism is our response to famine.

Your internal mechanisms do not really realize that you could sit down and eat whatever you want. If your body is not aware that you are choosing to not eat those calories, instead, your body thinks that you are starving so it will automatically adjust how it is operating to make sure that your body is able to create the necessary energy to operate properly.

Your body’s famine response will kick in automatically by keeping yourself from eating for long between meals or by not eating enough throughout the day. When this happens, it automatically slows your metabolism, making it more difficult to burn fat quickly and effectively. Having an efficient metabolism is an essential key to your success,when your goal is weight loss.

As a result of your eating habits you will start to lose the toned muscle instead of the fat. The muscles in your body will suffer and have problems with typical daily activities if you have a diet that is low in protein. The loss of lean muscle also causes your metabolic rate to diminish even further. Again reducing the amount of fat that your body is able to burn.

When you are looking to lose weight, ensuring that your metabolism is fully functioning is an essential step to ensuring your success. The key to keeping your metabolism up is to make sure that you are eating small meals about three hours apart. If you do that in coordination with a fitness program you are sure to quickly become the new you that you have always dreamed of being.

Author: Robert Bell

Many quick fat loss diets are out there for you to choose from. In order for a program to work for you, you have to stick with it, however. There are also a lot of trendy diets which may not work for you. You should try to find a healthy diet that is easy to follow and will get you the results you want.

The best way for quick fat loss, and keeping the weight off, might have a lot to do with your own personal diet that you create. Learning what food choices there are that won’t go to your waistline and establishing permanent eating habits that you can live with is a better way.

Nutritionists and dietary experts concur: Fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, lean cuts of meats and complex carbohydrates are not only healthier for us, all of these foods will aid the body to eliminate unwanted fat.

Eating less more often is also an important step. Increase the number of meals you eat everyday and lower your calorie intake. You will feel full for the whole day and your metabolism will be up, helping to burn fat.

Also eliminate processed foods and foods with preservatives. This will decrease the amount of work your body has to do to remove toxins from your blood and tissues. You can achieve quick fat loss if you reduce your calorie intake and more importantly eat the right foods that will boost your metabolism and fat burning.

The French are notorious for staying slim. The meals are sparse, yet they eat small servings of fruit, vegetable, real cheese, lean meat and even a drink a glass of wine with the meal. Slow down and stretch your meal times out. This allows you time to feel fuller.

Drinking about 8 cups of water daily is also essential to weight loss and health. It will wash your body of waste and help it function properly.

Along with diet, you’ll also need a proper weight loss exercise program. Running, biking, swimming are all graet aerobic exercises that will help you burn fat. Combine it with weight lifting to tone your muscles and you’ll have a very effective fat burning workout.

While planning your quick fat loss program you should consider one that you can make your friend for life. If you are craving your favorite snack it is alright to cheat as long as you get right back on your diet as soon as possible.

Author: Robert Bell

Testosterone is a hormone produced by the adrenal gland in both males and females. As we age, testosterone production slows down and the body has a decrease in the amount of free testosterone that is available in the bloodstream. These reduced levels of testosterone can cause a variety of problems including hair loss, irritability, growth of unwanted body hair in women, a reduced libido, and the inability to maintain all of your muscle mass. If you want to counteract some of these problems, there are several ways to increase your testosterone levels naturally so that you can look and feel better. Raising your testosterone levels can happen if you eat the right kinds of foods. Studies have shown that the proteins in eggs and whey allow the adrenal glands to keep the levels of testosterone in the body steady. Eating fruits and vegetables can also have a positive effect on the levels of testosterone in your body. Because fat contains enzymes that convert testosterone to estrogen, having a lot of fat on your body increases your chances for developing low testosterone levels. Eating fruits and vegetables can help you lose fat and also develop a stronger immune system. Eating meat can also help you to raise your testosterone levels. In a research study, one group of participants ate a vegetarian diet while others ate a diet of meat. Those who ate the meat diet experienced an increase in their testosterone levels. The protein in nuts can also be very beneficial for raising your testosterone levels. Studies have shown that nuts, particularly peanuts, can raise testosterone levels better than other foods.

Weight bearing exercises are also an excellent way to help increase the levels of testosterone in your body. Instead of training one or two of your small muscles, you should concentrate on training large muscle groups to get the maximum effect of these exercises on your testosterone levels. When you are doing these exercises, doing a heavy workload can also maximize the benefits of this type of exercise when it comes to increasing your testosterone levels. Instead of doing many repetitions with a low amount of weight, do five repetitions with a weight that is difficult for you to lift. Working large muscles groups by using a heavy workload has been shown to help with your efforts to increase testosterone levels in your body.

Several ways of increasing your testosterone levels are actually very common-sense approaches to health and wellness. One method of increasing your levels is to limit the amount of alcohol you consume. Consuming alcohol makes your body slow down its production of testosterone and other hormones because it is busy processing the alcohol to clear it out of your system. Another method of raising your levels is to get enough sleep at night. Scientific research shows that people who get a good night’s sleep are able to maintain higher testosterone levels than those who are sleep-deprived. If your levels are low, try changing your sleeping habits to get a better night’s sleep. Following all of these natural methods of increasing your testosterone can raise your levels and make you look and feel better.

Mike Westerdal is the owner of www.criticalbench.com . Visit his site to receive two free PDF reports entitled, “31 Days To Bigger Arms” and “Boosting Testosterone Levels for Big Muscle Gains.”

Author: Mike Westerdal

Years ago, it was not uncommon for bodybuilding experts to advocate an unrestricted, very high-calorie diet-in combination with an intensive weight training program-for someone wanting to gain muscle. The rationale was that if you wanted to gain muscle, you could eat basically whatever you wanted in order to bulk up and then later on, you could work on eliminating excess fat if necessary. Nowadays, we’re a lot more enlightened and we know that not only is this not an effective strategy, but it’s not particularly beneficial for your health either. The most effective eating regimen for gaining muscle is one that includes plenty of lean protein, healthy carbohydrates in moderation and unsaturated fats. Protein is a basic, essential building block of muscle growth and if your objective is to maintain or gain lean muscle mass then you need to eat plenty of it every day. When the body isn’t getting enough protein from the foods you eat, it will use protein from muscle mass to meet its energy needs.

Carbohydrates get a bad rap from a lot of the so-called “health gurus” out there but the fact is they’re not telling the whole story. Carbohydrates provide the body with the fuel it needs for both physical activity and proper functioning of the organs. The key is to recognize the difference between good (“healthy”) and bad carbs. Healthy carbohydrates come from vegetables, fruits, legumes (beans) and whole grains. The bad carbs come from highly processed foods, white breads, sugary sodas, snacks and pastries.

Fat is another oft-misunderstood component of our diets. All fats are not bad for us. In fact, our bodies need some fat in our diet in order to function normally. Again, like carbohydrates, the key lies in understanding the difference between the good fats and the bad ones. Saturated fats are the “bad fats” that we should avoid. Saturated fats come from animal fats, dairy products and oils such as coconut or cottonseed oil. They’re also common in a lot of prepared foods. Unsaturated fats-although they still need to be consumed in moderation-are the ones that are better for our bodies, helping it to perform and function normally.

Okay, so now that some of the basics are out of the way we’ll address the question, “What should I eat to put on lean muscle mass?” Individual protein, carb and unsaturated fat requirements will vary from person to person, depending on body type, weight, physical condition, fitness goals, etc.

A good basic eating strategy for gaining muscle mass is to get the majority of your calories from lean protein sources. A general rule of thumb is about a minimum of 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. Limit your intake of healthy carbs and unsaturated fats. Don’t avoid them entirely though because your body-and your muscles-need them, just keep protein the central focus of your diet.

In order to gain muscle mass you’ll need to consume more calories than you burn. You should start out by determining your body’s calorie requirements for maintaining your body weight, account for your activity level and then add from there. You should also eat five to six meals a day, spread out two to three hours apart throughout the day. Eating just one or two large meals a day isn’t the right strategy for putting on muscle.

Since protein is going to be the foundation of your diet, you’ll want to mix up your sources or you’ll quickly get sick of eating the same couple of things day after day. Skinless chicken breast and fish are two excellent sources of lean protein. Grill or broil them-don’t fry or drown them in rich sauces. Other good sources of protein include turkey breast, lean beef or pork, egg whites, cottage cheese (fat free or low-fat), canned tuna (packed in water not oil) and protein powders.

Green vegetables (especially broccoli), leafy vegetables, sweet potatoes, potatoes, whole grain breads, whole oats/oatmeal (not the flavored instant packs) and beans are good sources for healthy carbs. Avoid any processed foods, snacks and pastries. You can pretty much eat about as much green vegetables (steamed is best) without worrying about getting too many carbs, but do watch your intake of everything else on the list above-the carbs add up quickly.

Unsaturated fats should comprise the smallest portion of your daily diet. Good sources of these healthy fats include olive oil, sunflower oil and avocados. Almonds and walnuts are both also excellent sources of healthy fats but limit your intake of nuts to no more than a handful a day.

This is of course not everything you need to know in order to eat to gain weight but it should be enough to give you a basic foundation upon which to get started on the path towards putting on lean muscle mass, not just fat.

Author: Mike Westerdal

You may not have even heard of it but Adrenal Fatigue is a health disorder that can affect anyone-even bodybuilders. It is a condition that is marked by persistent or deep fatigue, loss of strength and a decline in endurance. It can also be a contributing factor in a variety of health conditions ranging from allergies to obesity. Adrenal fatigue is not adrenal insufficiency, which is a condition that can result in Addison’s disease-the worst degree of adrenal insufficiency that can lead to serious illness or even death. Adrenal fatigue is thought to be the result of a decline in the function of the adrenal glands, which play a vital role in our bodies’ management of stress-physical, emotional and psychological. The adrenal glands secrete a complex array of hormones including cortisol, testosterone and estrogen that regulate a broad range of functions in our bodies. Adrenal fatigue sets in when the adrenal glands become weakened and in turn, their response to stress becomes insufficient.

Adrenal fatigue can be debilitating and can lead to serious health problems. People suffering adrenal fatigue usually find that they have trouble being active. Weight training becomes difficult, they tire more easily and find that recovery from the exertion takes a lot longer than usual. Besides just not “feeling well,” some suffers of adrenal fatigue also experience mild joint and muscle pains, reduced sex drive, bursts of energy in the evening (but tired the rest of the time), an unexplained craving for salt, as well as other symptoms.

It’s thought that adrenal fatigue is brought on by chronic, persistent stress of any kind. Some experts also say that it can be brought on by persistent overdosing of stimulants found in energy drinks, fat burners and even coffee. They say that the stimulant overexposure exacerbates the weakening function of the adrenal glands.

Diagnosing adrenal fatigue isn’t an exact science but there are several lab tests that can be done that can provide an indication of how well the adrenal glands are functioning. Blood pressure tracking, pupil contraction testing and temperature tracking are some of the other methods used that might indicate the presence of adrenal fatigue.

Besides cutting out the stimulants and eliminating the stress in your life (easier said than done, I know), adrenal fatigue treatments include hormone replacement therapy, a regimen of specific supplements and a healthy diet.

Diets that include refined sugars and processed carbs are not just hell on your body in general, but they’re particularly stressful on the adrenal glands. A proper diet with the right balance of proteins, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats can help prevent adrenal fatigue and can help you recover from it too. Eat frequent small meals (five to six a day) and avoid prolonged hunger.

Here are some of the supplements that have shown some promise in being effective in preventing and treating adrenal fatigue:

Pantothenic Acid (PA): Also known as vitamin B5, PA plays a major role in the production of adrenal hormones, especially during high stress situations;

Ascorbic Acid: This is a sugar acid that has strong antioxidant properties. It is found in the highest concentrations in the cortex and the medulla of the adrenal gland. It is widely believed that a deficiency in ascorbic acid results in reduced adrenal activity;

Vitamin C: The adrenal gland has one of the organs that has the highest concentrations of vitamin C;

Vitamin E: The adrenal gland also has very high concentrations of vitamin E. In the adrenal gland, vitamin E plays an important role in steroidogenesis;

Vitamin A: Another important cofactor in steroidogenesis;

Vitamin B6: Pyridoxal phosphate (P5P) is the active form of vitamin B6. It helps stimulate release of adrenal catecholamines. P5P also alters cell receptor response to steroid hormones.

Hormone replacement therapy is the third option for treating adrenal fatigue. Specifically, treatment for adrenal fatigue calls for bio-identical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). This differs from general hormone replacement therapy (HRT) that BHRT involves supplemental doses of steroid hormones (hydrocortisone and aldosterone) that have a chemical structure identical to human hormones produced by the human body. HRT uses animal or synthetic hormones that have structures similar or identical to those produced by the human body.

Symptoms of adrenal fatigue can vary from very mild to downright debilitating. Your best defense against it is to maintain a healthy diet, cut the stimulants, limit your caffeine and make sure that your supplement regimen includes the vitamins and compounds listed above.

Author: Mike Westerdal