Saturday, June 23, 2007

YOGA AND WEIGHT LOSS

Excess weight gain has become a phenomenon in today's age, when lifestyles have become sedentary, and food more liberal with extra calories. Today our children prefer T.V. over their friends and play, merely a reflection of their parents who also somewhere prefer T.V. over socializing or even over spending time with their children (if they spend some time surely some running around will help burn some calories). These are only a few factors, which have resulted in increasing amount of people with the problem of excess weight or obesity.

Stress, wrong food habits (i.e. irregular timings for food, unhealthy (junk) food), lack of exercise, thyroid problem etc. could be some of the reasons resulting in weight gain.

To lose weight, it is important to do so, not just by doing diets, or exercise programs, which are too tedious, which may yield results but which do not keep you that way. Sometimes after sudden loss of weight the skin sags making one feel worse. The best approach is to lose weight gradually and for good. Yoga offers a good solution to this problem. Yoga tones the body in a uniformed manner, unlike any " weight loss program" which claims to decrease your butts by this much inches and waist by this much, leading to side effects. Yoga can be practiced at any age to keep the body supple.

A plan to reduce weight naturally is:
Cleansing techniques: -
Kunjal Kriya (stomach wash and lung cleansing)
Basti (colon cleansing)
Laghu Shankha Prakshalan (digestive system cleansing technique)
Baghi(tiger exercise)
Yoga Asans (postures)
Sun Salute (Practise 2 times and hold each pose for 3 breaths), Tree pose, Angle pose, Triangle pose, Hero pose I and II, Locust pose, Cobra pose, Camel pose, Aeroplane pose, Wind releasing pose, Child pose (sitting), Spinal twists (sitting & dynamic poses), Cat pose


If you wish to work on one body part more like the hips or abdomen or thighs or arms or legs or chest you can incorporate the asnas specific to your requirement in the above plan.

Yogic Asans to tighten the abdomen are:

Abdominal lift, Child pose, Cobra pose, Wind releasing pose, Yogic seal pose, Spinal twist, Lying on back pose - baat pose, Naval Move Asana (lying on back).

Yogic asans for arms and legs:

Tree pose, Hero pose, Dog pose (face up), Dog pose (face down), Swinging lotus pose, Bridge pose (face up), Bridge pose (face down), Celebacy pose, Squat and rise pose.

Yoga plan to tighten the chest:

Triangle pose, Hero pose, Baat pose (lying on back), Cobra pose, Wind releasing pose, Dog pose (face upand down), Lumbar wheel pose, Spinal twist.

Yoga Asans to tone up thighs and hips:

Sun salute, Hero pose I + II, Triangle pose, Angle pose, Dog pose (face up), Dog pose (face down), Celebacy pose, Advanced wind releasing pose, Butterfly pose.

Pranayama (breathing exercises)

Yogic Breathing: Inhale. First blow your abdomen, and then expand the chest. While exhaling, first relax the chest and then the abdomen. Practise like this for 10 times.

Meditation and Relaxation

Focus your attention on your breathing, feel its temperature and keep your breathing, thoroughly equalised (i.e. inhale for 3 sec and exhale for 3 secs).

Naturopathic treatment

This can be done in conjunction with the above yogic exercise plan. For the naturopathic treatment you will need to consult an experienced naturopath.
Chromotherapy: refers to treatment of disease through sun-rays, directly or indirectly such as sun-charged water, oil etc.
(i) Green water: is neutral in nature and help to reduce excessive heat in the body.
(ii) Yellow\orange water - 25ml or ½ cup of this should be taken twice after each major meal. It is beneficial for cases in which improper digestion and flatulence is there.

Hydro therapy: refers to the treatment of disease with water.
(i) Cold shower: It should be taken after whole body dry friction, and helps in dissolving and burning fat. It also helps in cases of cellulite.
(ii) Steam/sauna / Hot foot bath: They all help to reduce fat by removing toxins and morbid matter from the body. Helps to dissolve fat.
(iii) Enema: This is a method of cleaning the intestinal tract, to know more about it.
(iv) Water intake: 8-12 glasses of water should be taken per day. Water should be taken at least ½ hour before meal .

Fasting: also helps in burning fat.

Dicto-therapy:
Carbohydrates is one of the major source of weight gain. Breakfast may consist of food consisting of proteins and fat. Lunch should consist more of carbohydrates and dinner should have more of proteins. In addition increase of vitamins and minerals through vegetables and fruit will help you fill stomach and change quality of calories and reduce fat. Roughage taken in form of wheat/oat bran are highly beneficial to detoxify digestive system and help to reduce fat from body.

Source:  http://www.healthandyoga.com A popular website that helps you find natural solutions for complete health and detoxification.

Discover health and beauty…. Naturally!!

What To Do When You Just Can't Lose Weight

I know what it's like to be stuck. I lost a little weight and then I stopped. I had about 25-30 lbs. to go and nothing was happening. I was exercising, eating healthy and no more weight loss. Here is how I was able to lose the rest of the weight I wanted to. You can do it too!

1. Rethink your diet.
It is time to stop dieting and cutting calories. Avoid quick fix fad diets. You usually end up gaining more weight when it is over than you weighed when you started. Your goal should be to get healthy. Work towards a lifetime goal of a healthy diet and lifestyle change.

And be careful, some foods, such as soy and skim milk, which are marketed as health and diet foods are unhealthy and/or actually help make you fatter. (For more information see our free ebook at http://enzyme-health.com.)

2. Eat healthy life-giving foods.
Choose healthier organic produce, meats, eggs and milk products. Get plenty of proteins, to help you build muscle and burn fat.

3. Cut out the bad carbs and processed foods.
Avoid the bad carbs-- white sugar and white flour. Stay away from the processed foods as much as possible. It is the bad fats and oils, carbs, preservatives, MSG, and food dyes that keep many people overweight.

4. Try cooking with coconut oil.
Coconut oil is the best oil you can use in your diet. It actually promotes weight loss by burning as fuel for the body instead of storing as fat. It is a harmless saturated fat that has been proven not to cause heart disease, and actually helps fight cardiovascular disease. And you can use it for higher temperature cooking, unlike olive oil.

5. Exercise moderately-- but don't over do it.


People talk a lot about the need to add more exercise, but too much exercise can be almost as bad as too little. Listen to your body. Start slowly and increase your exercising gradually. Vary your exercise routines. Alternate weight training and aerobics exercises on different days.

6. When you still can't lose weight, get some help.


Sometime you just need a little extra help. There are proven herbs and supplements that can that can give you that extra edge you might need to cut your appetite, give your metabolism and energy levels a boost, and help you burn fat and build muscle.

There are also a lot of diet scams out there, so be careful. I did a lot of research, and tried a lot of supplements with empty promises-- but you can learn from me. I found the best fat burning and weight loss supplements, and they are all in one simple patch that you apply daily. I am really excited about this product. It gave me the added push, when I needed it. Maybe it can help you too.



About the Author:

By Dianne Ronnow, © 2006 Mohave Publishing. Lose the weight for good! Go to Jenfe-Diet-Patch.com and Coconut-Oil-Diet.com now for more healthy weight loss diet information.

Read more articles by: Dianne Ronnow

Article Source: www.iSnare.com

Sunday, June 10, 2007

Reduce Weight And Lose Body Fat Forever – 10 Commandments

Want to know how to reduce weight fast and lose that weight
forever? Here are the Ten Commandments you need to do to reduce
weight and keep body fat away permanently.

1) Cardio Exercises – Do your cardio exercises frequently.
These can be any exercises that work up your heart rate to the
extent that you are huffing and puffing for at least 20 – 30
minutes. Do your cardio exercises 5-6 times a week if you want
to reduce weight or 2-3 times a week for weight maintenance.

2) Build Muscles – Muscles burn calories even when you are not
doing anything but resting. The more muscle mass you have the
more calories you will burn a day and in the course of over a
period of time, the calories you burnt will add up very
substantially. Building muscle mass is one sure way of losing
body fat forever.

3) Eat Carbs Early – Take your meals with carbs earlier in the
day and cut down on carbs on later meals. This is to prevent
unused carbs from turning into body fat when you sleep and to
regulate insulin level.

4) Don’t be too afraid of fats – The fats in your diet that are
bad for you are saturated and trans fat. So replace these bad
fats with unsaturated fat and essential fatty acids (EFAs) and
these good fats will keep your body fat and fat related
diseases down. But do take your fats in moderation as after
all, they are still calorie laden.

5) Complex Carbs – Choose your carbs. Avoid starchy and refined
carbs such as pasta, pizza, white rice and white bread. Replace
them with brown rice, brown bread and high fiber carbs like
green leafy vegetables.

6) Food Portion – Decide how much you want to eat at each meal
and then keep to it and do not eat anymore when that portion is
consumed. Eat slowly to let your body signal to your brain that
you are full. This usually takes about 20 minutes. Extra food
means extra and calories mean extra body fat if the food is not
converted to energy.

7) Avoid Canned Or Boxed Food – These food are usually high in
trans fat, sodium, sugar and simple carbs all of which will
help you to gain weight and body fat.

8) Eat Often – By eating often, say at every 3 hourly
intervals, your body will think that food is abundant and
therefore less likely to store body fat for emergency such as a
famine. But do bear in mind to keep the portion small so as not
to consume more calories than you expand.

9) Get 8 Hours Sleep – Research after research has shown that
people with less sleep are more prone to being fat.

10) Do Not Skip Meals – Skipping meals will slow your
metabolism and forcing your body to use your muscles for energy
instead of your body fat. This is a vicious cycle, the less
muscle you have, the more your metabolism slows down.

There you are. By committing to these 10 commandments, not only
will you reduce weight but will lose your body fat forever.

About the Author: Chris Chew is a personal trainer of actors,
male pageant winners and top models. Read more of his fitness
tips at http://www.sgfitness.com and
http://www.sgfitnessonline.com

Source: http://www.isnare.com

How Not To Gain Holiday Weight So You Have No Need To Lose Weight

Holiday season is just round the corner. There will be parties,
celebrations, food and champagne. Ahhhh....that irresistible
succulent Christmas turkey and sumptious pudding. That mouth
watering new year buffet and the countdown champagne are so
tempting. Your spirit is willing but your flesh is week. You
binge.

So what is price you pay for your hoilday binge? Well, stepped
onto the bathroom scale and horror of horrors, you have gained
a few pounds!! Aaaaaaaaarrrrgghhh!! You pulled your hair and
gnash your teeth wondering how you can lose the holiday weight
you have gained. You even contemplate to engage a personal
trainer to put you on a weight loss program. Whoa, fret no
longer. With a little thought and planning, you can avoid
holiday weight gain.

Here are some tips on how not to put on holiday weight so that
you don't have to lose weight post holiday season.

1) Just Remember that the holiday season is just a few days.

So that the days you squeal , "I will gain weight around the
holidays," or "I know I will gain 5 pounds during holiday
season" or "I’ll start a weight loss program after holiday
season is over." are over. Why? Well, since you know that there
is only a couple of days you will eat more, then you just eat
more on those days and no more. Don't let it the binge into a
week or more by taking home all the leftovers or storing more
sweets snf pastries than you need for that particular holiday.
It is usually what people find in the fridge and on the kitchen
shelf after the holiday that they continue to binge. Empty
fridge and the shelves. This will help you not to put on too
much weight so you need not lose weight post holiday season.

2) Turn Off Your TV Set

Hey! Instead of watching all those holiday special programs on
your goggle box, get moving! Instead of watching a soccer game
on TV, get a ball and go to the nearest park for a kick around.
Instead of lying on your couch snacking to a packet of chips, go
lie by the poolside, then do a few laps. Better still, get your
family and friends to join you. Go for a jog instead. If it is
winter where you live, be innovative, think of some indoor
activities or exercises you can do.While others gain weight,
you may even lose weight. Afterall its a holiday. Have fun!

3) Avoid Acohol To Avoid Weight Gain

One gram of alcohol packs a whalloping 7 calories. In contrast,
carbs and protein have only 4 calories per gram. Calories from
alcohol are just, well, calories with zero nutritional value.
They will rapidly convert into fat fast when you do not burn
them off quickly. Avoid high-calorie mixed drinks like
cocktails that are full of sugar or beer which are high in
carbohydrates which translate into even more calories. You will
definitely need to be on a weight loss program if you indulge in
too much alcohol.

4) Drink Plenty Of Water

Juices, soft drinks and coffee don't count! Just good ole plain
water. Water flushes out toxins in the body, helps the body
recover from dehydration caused by alcohol consumption. You
will also feel full so that you will not over eat resulting in
gaining weight.

5) Skip Dessert To Lose Weight

Do you need those sweet and calorie laden thingies? If you must
have them, choose those that are not that sweet or even better,
just have some fibrous fruits and nuts. Do this to keep your
weight in check.

If you can keep to these tips this coming holiday season, then
you will not gain weigh and thus may not need to lose weight
post holiday or embark on a weight loss program. Simple and
cool isn't it?

About the Author: Chris Chew is a personal trainer for actors,
male pageant winners, fashion models and other celebs. More
free fitness tips on his websites at http://www.sgfitness.com
and http://www.sgfitnessonline.com

Source: http://www.isnare.com

What You Need To Know To Lose Weight Without Dieting

If your commitment to eat right, exercise, and lose weight
always seems to lose its steam, you are not alone! Weight
problems are not just about what you are eating, but why you
are eating in the first place.

To see what I mean, ask yourself these questions. Do you think
about food and eating more than you think you should? Do you
feel guilty when you eat certain foods? Do you have trouble
passing up tempting food even if you aren’t hungry? Do you
often eat when you are bored, stressed, lonely, or angry? Do
you eat differently in private than you do in public? Do you
fluctuate between dieting and eating too much?

If you answered yes to most of these questions, you have
probably discovered that dieting hasn’t really solved the
problem. To help you understand why, lets take a look at three
different eating styles: Over Eating, Restrictive Eating, and
Instinctive Eating.

In “Over Eating” people eat because it is mealtime or because
something looks good - whether they are hungry or not. They
may also eat to distract themselves or cope with stress and
emotions. They may reward, comfort, or entertain themselves
with food. Their weight tends to go up and down depending on
whether they are off or on their diet.

In “Restrictive Eating,” a person controls his or her weight
by dieting. They decide when, what, and how much to eat based
on the rules of the latest diet they are following. Since diet
rules are always changing, they sometimes feel confused about
what they should eat. They think of food as either “good” or
“bad”—and they think of themselves as good or bad, depending on
what they ate.

Now think about someone who doesn’t struggle with his or her
weight. If you are having trouble thinking of someone like
that, think of a baby or a young child. I call this
“Instinctive Eating.” These people just seem to know when,
what, and how much food they need. When their body needs fuel,
they get hungry, triggering an urge to eat. They simply stop
eating when their hunger is satisfied. Most of them really
like to eat and seem to be able to eat whatever they want.
However they will turn down even delicious food if they aren’t
hungry.

You might believe that a person who eats instinctively has been
blessed with willpower and a great metabolism. But the truth
is, we were all born Instinctive Eaters. Its just that many of
us “unlearned” our natural ability to know how much to eat. The
good news is that you can relearn those skills if you are
willing. I did! Here are some important steps to get you
started.

1. Let go of the idea that there is a perfect diet that will
finally solve your problems. The answer lies within you.

2. Whenever you have an urge to eat, instead of focusing on the
food, first ask yourself, “Am I hungry?” Remember that hunger
is a physical feeling. It is not the same thing as appetite,
cravings, or the desire to eat.

3. If you are hungry, remember that there are no “good” or
“bad” foods. You are less likely to overeat certain foods if
you know that you can have them again when you really want
them.

4. Stop eating when the hunger is gone but before you feel
full, even if there is food left. Give up your membership to
the Clean Plate Club!

5. If you are not hungry, ask yourself if something in your
environment triggered your urge to eat and what you could do to
reduce the trigger or distract yourself from it. For instance,
could you put the candy dish out of sight or do something else
for a while until you are actually hungry?

6. If there was an emotional trigger, ask yourself what you
could do to better cope with that emotion. For instance, if
stress triggered your urge to eat, could you try a relaxation
exercise instead?

7. Don’t expect yourself to be perfect—it is not possible or
even necessary.

By relearning to eat instinctively, you will see that eating to
satisfy hunger is pleasurable and that it is good to eat foods
that you enjoy. You will find that meeting your other needs in
appropriate ways will bring balance and joy to your life. By
learning these important skills, you will reach a healthier
weight and a healthier lifestyle—without dieting!

About the Author: Michelle May, M.D. is a practicing Board
Certified Family Physician with expertise in the
cognitive-behavioral aspects of weight management. She is the
author of Am I Hungry? What To Do When Diets Don’t Work in
collaboration with a Registered Dietitian and Psychologist.
Visit her website http://www.AmIHungry.com for more ideas on
managing weight without dieting.

Source: http://www.isnare.com

5 Easy Steps To Help You Lose Weight

When loosing weight, most of us don't have the time to
drastically change our lifestyles. We need a practical and
convenient way to integrate effective habits into our daily
lives. The following steps are easy and practical ways to get
you on the track to loosing weight and feeling better.

1. Drink Water! Water doesn't just help quench your thirst. All
metabolic processes within the body utilize H2O and drinking
plenty of it helps your body function optimally. It also helps
you feel your best---many of the common daily headaches and
fatigues we experience can result from a lack of water intake.

2. Eat Breakfast! Many Americans fail to realize the true value
of a morning meal. It not only boosts energy for the long day
ahead, but keeps your metabolism regulated. Skipping a meal can
put the body into "survival mode" which means that it actually
begins storing and saving fat as opposed to burning it.

3. Exercise! There is no easy way around it: successful and
sustained weight loss requires a commitment to physical
activity. The best way to be loyal to physical activity is to
work it into each day. Take a small part of each day to go for
a walk, do aerobics, do yoga, or whatever other type of
activity you enjoy. Mix it up so that you don't get bored with
it. Soon, you will not only get used to it, but you will feel
better too!

4. Choose Variety! Don't let popular dieting trends fool you:
Carbs are good for you too! In fact, carbohydrates are what
your brain run on and are very important for proper body
functions. Following a high-protein diet over a long period of
time can not only cause headaches, but also places considerable
stress on the kidney. The important thing is to eat a variety of
foods. This includes fruits, vegetables and even carbs. Just
remember to be smart about the types of carbs you eat:: whole
wheat instead of white.

5. Eat Slowly! We all get in a hurry from time to time, but it
is important to take the time to listen to our bodies. Eating
quickly doesn't give our bodies time to tell our brains that we
have eaten enough. Consequently, we continue eating and are left
filling stuffed and bloated. Eating more slowly allows us to
recognize when we actually have eaten enough and stop—it also
helps us savour and enjoy the food we do eat.

Essential to loosing weight is giving our bodies what they
need. This means drinking plenty of water, eating timely and
proper meals, staying active, and giving our body the time to
tell us when it is full. Our bodies will reward us for our
attention.

About the Author: Amie Grelowski writes for
Hoodia-Dietpills.com ( http://www.hoodia-dietpills.com ).
Learn more about Hoodia Gordonii products at
http://www.hoodia-dietpills.com/what-is-hoodia-gordonii.htm .

Source: http://www.isnare.com