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5 Foods That Every Athlete Should Eat to Lose Weight

Uel Abraham — Fri, 29 Apr 2016 01:44:06 +0000

Most athletes are involved in sports that require a certain weight that needs to be maintained and worked for when surpassed. A typical example of this are prizefighters that belong to a given weight class.

Check out these 5 amazing foods that will keep you in shape for your athletic pursuits.

#1. Fruits

It’s no surprise that this tops the list. More than one research has shown that people who eat fruits are in better physical shape than those who don’t. Even though fruits contain high sugar levels, they have low energy density and the fiber in them doesn’t allow sugar to be released into the bloodstream easily.

#2. Salmon

This fish is not just very tasty, but very healthy as well. Like most other oily fish. It is loaded with high-quality protein and healthy fats like whole eggs.

It is also heavily packed with iodine which bolsters the thyroid to keep metabolism running optimally. In fact, research has shown that a lot of humans aren’t getting the right amount of iodine and foods like salmon amongst others have been duly recommended.

#3. Potatoes (boiled)

You may have previously thought that this was just high carb food that wasn’t the healthiest for weight loss but gets ready for a new belief on it.

They have numerous qualities that make them perfect for weight loss and general consumption. Why? They contain a wide range of nutrients constituting a balanced diet almost, in itself. However, they are particularly high in potassium which is excellent for the nervous system and blood pressure control.

#4. Beans

Yes, not all beans are ideal for weight loss but a lot are. These include lentils, black beans, kidney beans to mention a few. They are high in protein and fiber nutrients that have been proven to lead to a high level of satiety.

This makes it ideal for athletes who constantly feel hungry and need healthy foods to quench this.

#5. Tuna

Another low-calorie high protein food. It’s lean fish so intrinsically has very small amounts of fat. This is why it is popular amongst bodybuilders and athletes trying to lose or maintain their weight.

For a higher amount of protein, pick tuna canned in water over in oil.

Conclusion

One of the secrets behind every successful athlete is that they are very particular as to what they eat and what they don’t. You can choose to be one of those great athletes by carefully selecting what you eat and what you run away from.

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5 Foods That Are Good For The Heart

admin — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 00:56:52 +0000

Foods are very essential for our growth and bodybuilding as humans. From breakfast to dinner and in between snacks, you can enjoy a good variety of foods that can put you in good shape and also give you a healthy heart.

Nothing is more important than taking good care of your heart. Other activities such as exercise, sporting, controlling stress are just a few ways of improving your heart.
How and where to start? Well, here are some foods that can put your heart in a healthy condition with a normal heartbeat rate.

1. Almonds

Almonds provide a rich source of cholesterol-lowering sterols and contain vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin E, magnesium, and zinc which helps prepares a good heart and mood. Vitamin B and magnesium assists in producing serotonin, which helps regulate mood. Zinc has also been shown to fight against some negative effects of stress. While vitamin E is an antioxidant that destroys the free radicals related to stress and heart disease.

2. Oatmeal

Start your day with a steaming bowl of oats, we need this roughage as plenty as we can each and every day. Oats are nourishing whole grains and a great source of vitamins, minerals, and cholesterol-lowering fiber.
When on warm bowl it fills the belly or hours because of its high fiber content. You can also add it whenever you bake, substitute up to one-third of the flour with oats in pancakes, muffins, quick bread, cookies, and coffee cakes for an added dose of fiber.

3. Berries

Blueberries top the list as one of the most powerful disease-fighting foods. That’s because they contain anthocyanin, the antioxidant responsible for their dark blue color. Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries-whatever berry you like best are all full of anti-inflammatories, which reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer. Blueberries especially work overtime to provide you with antioxidants and vitamin C. Both potent stress busters. They’re low in calories and sugar, so you can snack on them to your heart’s content without an ounce of fat. Blueberries are also a good source of fiber, which to free you from cramps that occur when you’re stressed out. It can also stimulate liver cells to better break down fat and cholesterol.

4. Beans

Beans are versatile legumes that contain more protein than any other plant food. They’re packed with omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, and soluble fiber. One cup provides a quarter of what we need each day. They also provide heart-healthy and a stress-busting B vitamin, iron, and all-important calcium.

5. Spinach

Known to be the powerhouse of the vegetable kingdom Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, manganese, folate, magnesium, iron, copper, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin E, calcium, potassium, and vitamin C. Multiple phytochemical, minerals and the above vitamins gives it its rich, dark colors, and helps to fight disease, protect against heart disease, and preserve your eyesight.

Conclusion

These foods will definitely give you the best of hearts and a healthy lifestyle. They will also ensure that your body is on the right defense to fight against diseases and other attacks.

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5 Foods That Slow Down Your Metabolism

admin — Tue, 29 Mar 2016 15:00:47 +0000

Your metabolic rate is the rate at which your body uses up energy at rest. People whose bodies use up energy at rest at a higher rate than others are said to have ‘fast metabolism’ and people whose bodies use up energy at lower rates are said to have a ‘slow metabolism’. Although the nature of our metabolism doesn’t determine whether or not you are going to be fat or slim, it affects the number of calories your body is able to burn at any instance. This means if your metabolic rate is slower, you actually need fewer calories to get fatter and vice versa.

Your metabolic rate is determined by your genes and the levels of some of your hormones, e.g. thyroid hormone and the adrenocortical hormone. However, it is also, to an extent, affected by what you eat and how you live. This is because when your body is made to do more work, it ends up using energy faster than when it has less work.

Therefore it is possible for you to either accelerate or to slow down your metabolism by what you eat and how you live. Some foods which slow down your metabolism include:

1.Sugar

Sugar is easily broken down by the body and causes a sudden increase in glucose when taken in. This reduces the work your body has to do and basically slows down your metabolism.

2.Fats

Fats are important for children and adolescents because they are firstly the basis upon which most of the sex hormones are built and they are secondly a high energy source (excess energy i.e. ATP is stored as fat in your body). By providing your body with a burst of almost raw energy, you reduce the work it has to do for itself thereby slowing your metabolism.

3.Refined Carbohydrates

Refined carbohydrates such as white bread are not only a source of high-calorie carbs, they are also a source of easily broken down carbs. Easily broken down carbs release energy without making the body really work for it. This means the body is gaining more energy than it needs without using up any of the energy it had before, and this slows down your metabolism.

4.Sea Salt

Although sea salt is said to taste better in meals, iodized salt is important regardless of your age (be careful though, you can have too much iodine) because it is important for your thyroid function. A well-functioning thyroid maintains your metabolic rate while a thyroid lacking iodine would ultimately slow down your metabolic system. It is no wonder symptoms of hypothyroidism include excessive weight gain, inability to generate heat, weakness, and fatigue.

5.Fruit Juice

Fruit juice lacks the fibers contained in whole fruits. This means you are feeding yourself with sweetness and not letting the bodywork for it. In addition, some fruits might have had pesticides used on them. These pesticides also further poison your metabolic system and lead to its slowing down.

Conclusion

The workings of your body can be affected by what you do. It is important to eat healthily and exercise regularly to maintain an adequate metabolic rate.

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5 Best Carbs For A Zero Belly

Valentine Oliver — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:15:24 +0000

Almost every person out there trying to lose weight, thinks of carbs as their worst enemies. They tend to double up their protein intake, but totally erase carbs out of their diet.

It is true that protein would help boost your metabolism, and help you burn more calories. But you should also take note that most of the vitamins and other micro-nutrients we need to shut down our fat genes are found in carbs. Also, the fiber that we really need to keep our bellies healthy and full to prevent us from overeating, are mostly found in carbs. Carbs also help fuel brain function and physical activity.

So inasmuch as you want to lose weight really quick and you’ve read a lot of misleading weight loss articles that have advised you to totally cut out the carbs, you might want to start eating more carbs than you used to. You just have to be judicious. Here are 5 carb-rich foods you should add to your diet:

1. Sweet Potatoes

These carbs are one of the best choices you could ever make. They digest slowly and therefore, keep you feeling full and energized for long. Sweet potatoes are loaded with fiber, an essential nutrient for weight loss. The main ingredients to focus on here, are carotenoids and antioxidants which stabilize blood-sugar levels and lower insulin resistance, which in turn, help prevent calories from being converted into fat. Sweet potatoes are also high in vitamins.

2. Oats

This should be your ideal breakfast. Research has shown that oatmeals give greater feelings of satiety than any other breakfast cereal you could ever think of. Oats also contains butyrate, a fatty acid that reduces inflammation throughout the body. This super breakfast is also known for its high content of fiber, which will help you feel full for longer.

3. Whole Wheat Pasta

You’ve most likely heard that pasta is bad for your weight loss goals, and perhaps you’ve tried to the best of your ability to avoid it as much as you can. Spare yourself the trouble, as not all pasta is bad for you. In fact, whole wheat pasta actually contains a good amount of fiber, which keeps you full and prevents blood glucose spikes and crashes.

4. Whole Wheat Bread

It is true that the breads available in most supermarkets are definitely not healthy for us. But you don’t have to completely kick bread out of your diet. Whole-wheat bread just like whole wheat pasta, is high in fiber content, which would help increase satiety and prevent overeating. So you can still eat bread, but you just need to choose the right type.

5. Barley

A cup of barley contains 6 grams of fiber. This amazing grain doesn’t only keep you feeling full for longer, but also helps to quell inflammation, and lower blood glucose and cholesterol levels. Your daily allowance of this food should be a quarter cup.

Conclusion

It’s important that you don’t take too much of any of these foods. If you don’t know how much is too much for you, it won’t be such a bad idea to visit a dietitian.

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5 Foods To Include In Your Daily Diet For Weight Loss

Valentine Oliver — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 12:00:06 +0000

You probably know by now that weight loss starts from what you eat and you can’t effectively lose weight without cutting down on certain unhealthy foods such as candy, and most types of food that are high in carbohydrates, unhealthy fats and calories. Since you’re cutting down on so many foods, though, the question you might ask is: “what foods should I eat then”? Here are 5 foods that you might want to make a part of your daily diet for faster weight loss:

1. Beans

This food could be crowned the king of weight-loss foods. It helps you lose weight in multiple ways as it contains a considerable level of carbohydrate and is very high in fiber and protein.

Because of its high protein level, it gives your body a hard time trying to break it down, thereby causing it to burn more calories in the process. Coupled with its high fiber content, it keeps you feeling full for a long period of time, suppressing cravings.

It is true however that beans is known to gassy. So to deal with this problem, soak your beans overnight and wash it thoroughly before preparing. The beauty of beans is that it can be prepared in numerous number of ways.

2. Green Tea

Have a cup of green tea with a little bit of honey each morning to start off your day. This tea is one of the healthiest teas all over the world. It is known for its effectiveness at helping people lose weight and also for keeping brain cells healthy. Green tea is filled with so many antioxidants that help improve your mood and brain function.

3. Whole grains

Whole grains are generally rich in fiber, and fiber over the years has been known for being one of the best foods for weight loss. Eating a food endowed with fiber content for breakfast will help assure you of consistent calorie burns for the rest of the day. Plus it also keeps you feeling fuller for a longer period.

4. Avocados

Avocados are another great source of fiber, containing a whopping amount of about 13.4 grams of fiber per single fruit. This hulk-colored fruit also contains a lot of vitamins and is also a good source of healthy fat, which is good for your heart’s health.

Avocados can be added to your everyday sandwich, or you could even have them as a snack during the day.

5. Fruits and vegetables

Fruits especially apples, berries and pears, are both rich in vitamins and fiber. They help keep you feeling full for a longer period, while they help nourish your system and your skin. The vitamins from the fruits and vegetables are also healthy for your brain and other sense organs, vision in particular.

Conclusion

Choose to live a healthy lifestyle today by incorporating these foods into your daily diet. They can be added in different ways. It is also important not to overeat them, because when foods like beans and other high protein foods are eaten in excess, the excess is often stored as fat.

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5 Foods That Can Keep The Body Hydrated

Oluwatosin Faith Kolawole — Tue, 26 Jan 2016 13:00:48 +0000

Water is essential to life and definitely the best means of keeping the body hydrated. You will need to drink sufficient amounts of water for the body to function well on a daily basis, which in return, would reduce the risk of getting dehydrated and several other health risks.

Water can be passed into the body by different means, and not just by drinking natural water like some think. Some foods provide water in the body and at the same time give healthy nutrients that the body requires. So if water is just too boring for you, here is a list of some other healthy foods that will provide your body with water and nutrients at the same time:

1. Cucumber

Cucumber contains over 90% of water, together with vitamin C and caffeic acid. It helps to reduce swelling and soothe irritations on the skin surface. It can also be made into cucumber soup, for more effective use by blending with few ingredients like: non-fat yoghurt, mint, vegetable broth, and so on.

2. Watermelon

Watermelon is known to be one of the top leading fruits that can influence health positively. It has a 92% water content, is rich in vitamin C, strongly helps to keep the body hydrated and contains other nutrients which help to maintain health. Some other benefits include healthier skin and hair. Interestingly, every part of the watermelon is useful, including its seeds.

3. Chicken soup

According to recent studies, chicken soup can actually be medicinal in certain cases. This food helps to improve health and hyrdate the body, as it supplies more water needed for it to function effectively, along with other health benefits.

4. Tomatoes

Tomatoes, especially the juicy ones, contain as much as 94% of water. They help smoothen the skin, as well as improve hydration, due to their large water content. For best effect, tomatoes should be taken fresh and raw.

5. Milk

Skimmed milk contains a lot of nutrients needed to maintain proper health for the human body. Aside from the fact that milk is rich in calcium which is important for forming and maintaining strong bones, it is also made up 91% of water which is essential for keeping the body well hydrated.

6. Pineapple

Pineapples are thought to be one of the healthiest fruits known to man. They are usually juicy and contain a number of nutrients such as fiber and vitamin C, in addition to large amounts of water that help to keep the body well hydrated.

7. Bell peppers

Bell peppers usually come in three main colors, green, yellow, and red, and are highly rich in water content. Ingesting a lot of these peppers would reduce the risk of getting dehydrated and help to smoothen the skin.

Conclusion

These seven foods will help keep your body well hydrated and functioning properly. However, water is still the best and most natural means for hydration, and as much as possible, you should drink a minimum of 8 glasses of water daily, to maintain a healthy life.

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Tight Tummy Tips

admin — Tue, 19 May 2015 10:50:26 +0000

Abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym.

Unfortunately we cant walk around with a photo-shopped edit or sucking in our stomachs the entire day trying to make them cute little jeans fit, trust me it’s impossible I’ve already tried. But there are alternatives, less painful and longer lasting to achieve that fabulous tummy you crave.

The tips you learn here will help you shed inches and pounds, banish that unwanted bloat, feeling even more gorgeous and confident in your body. Say hello to those skinny jeans you’ve had to bury in the wardrobe!

Eat at this magic hour

Tummy hacks that I have personally learned is that you must eat a snack that contains protein between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Go for a protein bar, a low-fat yogurt, or some almonds with an organic juicy apple. It’s important because it boosts metabolism and balances blood sugar.

The Ball.

The biggest benefit of training using the ball exercises is that they are very effective at targeting core muscles, those muscles that are essential for stability and good posture.

Ball activity:

Lay flat on your back with your arms above your head and legs straight out.
Start with a stability ball above your head in your hands.
Bring the ball up above your chest as you bring your legs up to meet the ball and place it between your ankles.
Bring the ball back down to the floor with your legs and straighten your arms back out over your head.Repeat the ball exchange 10 to 12 times, remembering to keep your lower back pressed into the floor as you do this move.

Cut down the grams of sugar.

Eat as close to zero grams of sugar as possible. This will keep insulin levels low and also keep levels of glucagon high. The best way I have ever read Glucagon described is like Pac-Man traveling around your waistline, munching up the fat to be used as energy.

The closer to zero grams of sugar you consume, the lower your insulin and the higher your glucagon,it is really as simple as that.

I recommend the DCBA approach: Diet first, Cardio second, Building muscle third, and Abs exercises last.

Let’s talk FASHION!

My speciality of course, the best way to hide your flaws is to obviously draw attention away from it and show off your assets, but keeping it classy!

If you’ve got gorgeous legs, wear slim pants, skirts(with or without tights due to preference). Have your arms or shoulders out, possibility of a sweetheart neckline or boatneck. Nonetheless, clothing is very important because so many different factors can either complement or bring the attention to the area you don’t want. Colours matter make sure they flatter you and not make you look like an overgrown peach, sometimes it is also wise to buy a size larger than usual so that your clothes don’t hug your figure in the wrong places appearing like you’re almost about to BURST!

Stay within the guidelines of spots and stripes!

Portions matter

Eating portion-controlled meals that include whole-grain foods and monounsaturated fats throughout the day is the best way to achieve a flat belly.

People who eat whole grains lose more abdominal fat, making most of the fats you eat monounsaturated fatty acids, therefore helping reduce ab flabs.

Important: Do not eat more than you need to. Sometimes what we consume is due to plate and cutlery sizes so be careful you’re not over eating.

The ultimate flat-belly day menu

Best breakfast: A slice of whole-wheat bread with natural peanut butter and 1 cup of your favorite berries.

Best lunch: Spinach salad with sliced avocado, grilled firm tofu, and cherry tomatoes, drizzled with a little olive oil and fresh lemon juice.

Best dinner: Grilled salmon, a roasted sweet potato, and sautéed asparagus with olive oil and garlic.

Best snack: A cup of fat-free yogurt with 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds.