5 Easy Ways to Boost Your Metabolism
1 Don’t Skip Breakfast
The morning meal jump starts your metabolism and helps to prevent bingeing later in the day. A cup of coffee does not count – the caffeine and added sugar may give you a bit of energy and suppress your appetite for a little while it is sure to back fire into severe hunger and you will be more likely to overeat later. Breakfast should include complex carbohydrates like whole grain (granola or oatmeal), along with some protein and fat (low-fat yogurt or milk), will keep your energy levels even and hunger in check.
2 Eat more often
Get into the habit of eating every three to four hours or at least four times a day. Eating frequently stabilizes blood sugar, when blood sugar drops too low you want to eat…a lot. By keeping your blood sugar stable you can control your appetite and keep you metabolic rate high. When you go many hours without eating your body will compensate by slowing down to conserve energy…this effect hurts your weight loss efforts.
3 Eat protein at every meal
Protein will help to reduce your appetite, it takes more energy and time to digest, in effect you feel full longer than eating carbohydrates alone. Research shows that eating more protein can help you lose weight without cutting calories. Try these protein possibilities: turkey on whole wheat; hummus and pita; vegetarian chili; fruit and nuts; or protein snack bars that contain 12 or more grams of protein.
4 Hold off on snacking
Many of us grab a snack for quick energy when we are feeling tired. But do not confuse true hunger with fatigue. If you are feeling tired go for a 15-20 minute brisk walk. This will raise your heart rate and give you a boost of energy. Follow it up with a large glass of cool water. If you are truly hungry have a protein and complex carbohydrate rich snack like; whole wheat crackers and peanut butter or cheese.
5 Consume enough for your body’s needs
Eating too little slows your body’s metabolism the same way eating to infrequently does. If you want to lose weight, do not slash your calories too drastically. Instead, cut out some of the extras in your diet – things like soda, juice, packaged goods or candy. Processed foods tend to be high in fat and calories and low in vitamins, minerals and fiber.
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Cholesterol
Summary:
This article explains how to keep your cholesterol levels low by using mostly natural methods.
Ways To Keep It Low:
These days we hear a lot of warnings about cholesterol, but the funny thing is, cholesterol isn’t all bad. Your body produces it naturally and it performs some pretty vital jobs – helping to build new cells, as well as produce hormones and insulate nerves. Only when you’ve got too much do you have a problem.
Unfortunately, there’s a lot of confusion surrounding this substance because it’s made up of both good and bad cholesterol, and is known as HDL and LDL. So which is the good guy, and which is the bad guy ? HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol is the good guy (higher the better), and LDL (low-density lipoprotein) is the bad guy – the artery-clogging little devil.
Every Day Ways Of Keeping Your Cholesterol Low :-
Watch your weight.
The more overweight you are, the more cholesterol your body produces. So if your weight is up, this is one more reason to bring it down, but do so with a healthy diet.
Cut Out The Fat.
You’d be wise to cut back on such sources of saturated fat as meat, butter, cheese and hydrogenated oil. Whenever possible, replace these items with fish, poultry, low-fat dairy products and polyunsaturated oils.
Switch To Olive Oil.
Olive oil contains monounsaturates which is said to help lower cholesterol levels if added to your food on a daily basis. Two or Three table spoons full a day should be sufficient
Go Easy On The Eggs
Don’t feel you have cut them out entirely, if you want to play safe then limit your eggs to about three a week, or use egg whites only.
Be Full Of Beans
Nutritious and inexpensive, beans and other pulses contain a water-soluble fibre called pectin that helps clear cholesterol out of the body.
Eat More Fruit
Fruit also gets it’s cholesterol lowering punch from pectin, so by eating lots of fresh fruit you will help to lower your cholesterol levels.
Have Your Oats
Oat bran also helps to lower cholesterol in a similar fashion to pectin rich fruit. In fact it was a high oat bran diet that helped me to reduce my cholesterol level. I used it on cereals, and mixed it into meals that I ate. It looks a bit like sawdust, but it’s really effective.
Other Foods That Are Recommended.
Carrots can lower cholesterol. Carrots by way of their pectin content the same as fruit. Two carrots a day should be enough to help when combined with other foods which have been recommended. Eat them raw if possible.
Take Garlic
Eat raw garlic. As well as reducing your circle of friends, it will reduce harmful blood fats. If you don’t fancy eating raw garlic, then use the liquid garlic extract which can be bought in capsule form. These can be purchased at your local supermarket or health food store.
Don’t Smoke
Studies have shown that heavy smokers have a higher cholesterol than non smokers, so here’s another reason to give up. You’ll also save yourself a bundle of cash as well ! – In smoking trials which were carried out in Sweden, smokers tended to suffer from low levels of the beneficial HDL cholesterol.
Medication – Drugs
There’s now plenty of drugs on the market for lowering cholesterol levels. But, as with all drugs there’s always side effects to take into account, so try the natural methods first. Only use drugs as a last resort.
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5 Best Ways To Lose Weight
When you are dealing with a phenomenon as diverse as human beings, it is very difficult to create rules which will work equally well for everyone. Nevertheless, there are some characteristics shared by all human beings, and this means that some basic principles can be developed. Here are five proven techniques to help you lose weight.
Best Way 1
The most fundamental strategy of successful weight loss is to burn more calories than you take in. You shouldn’t find it difficult to apply this in some aspect of your life. Adjust your diet by cutting down on high fat food, and take some simple exercise for twenty minutes, three times a week. Going for a brisk walk instead of driving everywhere will have the desired effect, as will gentle jogging or swimming.
Best Way 2
Gym membership is becoming increasingly popular, and, as long the exercise you do is well planned, it can be extremely beneficial. Aerobic exercise has to be the focal point of your plan, otherwise you could do more harm than good. Provided you adhere to this basic rule, some anaerobic weight or resistance training can help tone up your body. This will give you more strength and vitality, and should increase your confidence.
Best Way 3
Going to see a professional nutritionist or dietician can pay off handsomely. If you go it alone, you will need to put in some serious research to make sure you are genuinely eating healthily, and many who try this find themselves discouraged by the lack of variety in their diet. It certainly doesn’t have to be that way, as there are plenty of different healthy meals which help you lose weight. Getting the advice of a professional can make the task of losing weight seem so much more enjoyable!
Best Way 4
Find a friend to train with. If you and a friend are both regularly free at the same time of day, it can make sense to train together. Having someone to help you through the times when you don’t seem to be getting anywhere can keep you in the game until the improvement suddenly appears. Having a social aspect to your exercise will help you look forward to it, and make you more likely to stick to it!
Best Way 5
Eat less food more often. Many medical practitioners now recommend eating more meals a day, with less food at each one. This is a more balanced way to take food into the body, spreading the load on the body over a far wider period of time. The system of eating three meals a day is designed far more to fit in with the working day than it is to fit in with the needs of the human body. When you eat less more often, the body absorbs more of the nutrients in the food, so your body craves fewer calories.
The best and most effective method for weight loss does depend on the individual, but follow these time tested principles and you will see results. Click the links below to discover some effective resources to help you.
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4 Steps to better health
It’s possible to learn HOW to better your health in only 4 steps and this article will show you how. Each step is a bite-sized nugget of healthy living information you can actually use.
Let’s get started…
Step 1: Nutritional Supplements
In my opinion, they are very necessary and very beneficial- especially when combined with healthy eating habits. It’s very difficult to get all the nutrients your body needs through food alone, but combining proper nutrition with nutritional supplements is very powerful.
That being said, the one supplement everyone should be taking is a good multi vitamin/mineral. Look at it as added insurance- eating well is crucial, but now that you’re also taking a multi, you can rest assured you’re getting the nutrients your body needs.
Step 2: Nutrition
Good nutrition is SO important. You are what you eat…remember that. Make a conscious effort to gradually improve your eating habits, eating more of the good foods (nuts, berries, peanut butter, olive oil, greens, chicken, whole grains, etc.) and less of the bad foods (fried food, saturated fat, fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, etc.). Reading the label of what you’re eating will tell you a lot.
You may think you lack the needed will power, but you’ll be amazed at what happens when you start to gradually improve your eating habits.
Step 3: Exercise
Exercise is the missing piece of the puzzle when it comes to better health. There are so many benefits of exercising, including stronger bones and improved libido- it’s a no brainer to start doing it. Your goal should be to exercise 3-5 times a week with a combination of cardio exercises and strength training (but no more than 1 hour per workout session).
It’s been measured that if you add 3 pounds of muscle to your body, this added muscle will burn as many calories as if you ran 1 mile. Muscle burns calories!
Step 4: Stress Management and Sleep
Stress management and getting good sleep each night round out your path to better health. Until you find a way to manage your stress, it will continue to do damage to your body. Two tips you might want to implement include prioritizing your day each morning and practicing deep breathing exercises (yes, you probably already knew this, but have you tried it?).
Getting enough sleep each night is equally important when you consider your body uses this time to repair itself. You should aim for 7-9 hours each night. Two tips you might want to implement include exercising and avoiding late night eating.
Now that you have the basics, expand on this information. Step 1 research more about Nutritional Supplements, Step 2 research more about Nutrition and so on. I guarantee after the 4 steps you’ll feel more confident about reaching your health & fitness goals.
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- Published in Health