When your body lacks enough fluids a common side effect is a headache. Many specialists claim that this occurs because blood vessels contract in an effort to conserve fluid. So the next time you feel a headache coming on drink water and continue to do so during the course of the day. Also stay away from caffeine drinks such as tea and coffee or alcohol, all of which dehydrate you and prevent your headache from going away.
Start your day with a big glass of water and continue to sip on water throughout the day. If you're looking for something with a bit more flavor, try adding slices of cucumber or lemon to your water for a refreshing boost of flavor.
Here are six food swaps to help make your next barbecue a bit lighter and kinder on your waistline.
The goal of your post workout “meal” is to replace your glycogen stores and digest some protein to help repair your muscles. This should be done as soon as possible and as shakes are much faster to digest and prepare than whole foods they tend to be the preferred option.
Stay away from Carbonated Drinks
Drinking carbonated drinks such as sparkling water and soft drinks may seem like a treat, but where do you think those tingly bubbles end up? Trapped in your belly. Watch out for sugar-free or low-carb products, too. These beverages still contain artificial sweeteners, such as sorbitol, which can be difficult for many people to digest.
So, how do you keep a spring in your step when your fuel tank is low? Thankfully, nature provides food varieties that serve up big flavor and an even bigger energy hit.
Often people think of protein as a means for “bulking up” at the gym – but in fact, protein is so much more. Did you know that protein is a component of every single cell in your body, and is used to build and repair bones and tissue?
So it’s safe to say – sourcing adequate protein is pretty important!
WHAT IS THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET?
Thanks to dense coastlines and rich soils, the islands caressing the Mediterranean Sea serve up diets full of nuts, veggies and legumes, and olive oils. Traditionally a peasant-style diet, it’s largely plant-based, with little meat, and next to no hyper-processed foods. However, it is relatively high in fat – meaning if the Mediterranean diet is as healthy as research shows, fat is not the enemy commonly thought of in Western diets.
Whether it’s your heart beating, nerves communicating or muscles pumping – your metabolism works 24/7 and is the source of your energy. To carry out these bodily functions, we require energy that ultimately comes from our food. Metabolic rate is affected by many factors, including our age, weight and genetics.
Vitamin D – The Sunshine Vitamin Your body produces vitamin D when you are directly exposed to sunlight. It is also a vitamin that you can get through certain foods and supplements to ensure that we have the correct levels in our blood.
We are often asked about the best ways to lose weight. Naturally we recommend exercise; specifically weight training and interval-based cardio, in combination with a healthy eating plan. There’s lots of anecdotal evidence out there as to the additional things people can do to make weight loss more effective. This advice ranges from the sensible to the sublime, and in some cases these hints and tips can actually do more harm than good.
Neurons in the brain produce adenosine, levels of which are monitored via receptors.
When adenosine levels reach a certain level your body naturally begins to feel tired and ready to sleep or relax. However, when caffeine comes along in the form of a standard 100mg 8 oz cup of coffee its chemical similarities to adenosine deactivates the receptors and allows the brain’s natural stimulants dopamine and glutamate to flow freely producing a false energy rush. The effects vary according to genetics, physiology and tolerance.
Although it is unlikely to have much effect on the Greek debt crisis, eating Greek yogurt has many benefits for those interested in improving their general health and fitness.
Unlike more conventional supermarket yogurts, the Greek variety is unsweetened and has a thicker texture. It can also be used in a variety of ways other than simply as a desert item or something to pour on top of your cornflakes.
Perhaps most important is the fact that Greek yogurt is basically healthier.
High in protein:Compared to most other types of yogurt, the Greek variety has from two to three times the amount of protein. One cup of plain, low fat conventional yogurt usually contains 5 – 10 grams of protein, whereas one cup of Greek yogurt has about 13 – 20 grams.
Okay so you’re planning on going to the gym for a great workout but want to make it count and don’t know what to eat after a workout, right?
Why not try a delicious whey protein shake packed with carbs and nutritional goodness? What are the benefits of “shakes”?
When comes to diet doesn’t mean starving all the time. If you’re not eating enough your body goes into ‘starvation’ mode and begins to consume muscle, not fat. You need to eat enough to maintain healthy levels of blood glucose to sustain your energy throughout the day. Three meals a day will burn stored fat if you’re also exercising regularly. Regular intake of food creates a ‘thermic’ effect as your body processes the calories. This increases your metabolism.
Skipping meals is bad for your body. This applies especially to breakfast. Even if you don’t feel hungry at that time, eating and drinking something nutritious in the morning is one of the best things you can do for your body.
When trying to lose weight it’s important to know your daily caloric intake. To reduce weight safely at the rate of 1 to 2 pounds a week you need to subtract calories from your daily total.
Present day work environments and schedules are not usually very sympathetic or flexible towards those trying to follow a healthy lifestyle or on a diet. Shift work, overtime, deadlines, family responsibilities and commuting can all wreck your fitness regime if you let them. While some compromises may be necessary the secret is to stay in control of the situation as much as possible.
Here are few suggestions to help maintain your weight loss program while also keeping your job.
Control your eating environment. Don’t let others dictate your food choices and don’t be afraid to turn down offers of unhealthy snack foods or drinks at meetings or office parties. Don’t be intimidated by other people’s views on your dieting. If necessary, explain what you’re doing and why. Be positive and assertive. Choose who you hang out with. Try to find like-minded co-workers to help give support to your health regime.
Whether it’s the Christmas/New Year period or a summer season break you can put on weight faster than you get a sun burn if you relax your dietary rules while having fun. Christmas and New Year is probably the worst time for dieters as it basically celebrates gluttony, but the rules are the same for any place or time when we may be tempted to over-indulge. So here are a few ways to stay in shape.
Drinking alcohol in moderation may be difficult if everyone around is being immoderate. Alcoholic beverages especially eggnog are high in calories and the carbohydrates in Guinness are 100% sugar which can result in an insulin rush.
Although drinking water while eating is not good for digestion, having a glass before a meal will suppress your appetite as well as help avoid dehydration.
Eating carbohydrates late at night is, as we all should know, real bad news for our digestive systems and for putting on weight – right?
The hypothesis behind the assertion that ingesting carbohydrates at night is based on the fact – well, supposed fact – that as you approach bed time your metabolism begins to slow down and thus during sleep your digestive system is also likely to be in a low power state. As you are burning fewer calories during this time your metabolic rate switches off or goes into a low power mode. At least that is the conventional wisdom.
However, research has shown there are rises and falls in the metabolic rate even during deep REM sleep – known as the sleeping metabolic rate (SMR), which often correlates with day time rates. There’s also evidence that exercise increases metabolic rates, which perhaps proves the old adage, ‘after supper walk a mile.’ Obese individuals are likely to have lower metabolic rates than the average.
Fat never goes out of fashion at least not the numerous approaches to getting rid of it. How it gets there is generally well documented usually under the headings of an unbalanced diet and lifestyle. Of course, getting rid of just about anything is always going to be harder than if we’d simply avoided it in the first place, but here we have a recent study that looks at making a cure for too much fat from one of the main culprits: namely dairy products.
It is a truth generally acknowledged that one of the main causes of obesity is a diet high in dairy fats. However, it has been discovered that diets high in low-fat dairy calcium in fact helped burn off more fat than low calcium diets mainly because calcium plays an important role in regulating body weight and fat metabolism.
Although better known for maintaining bone density and strength, calcium also lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, and has been shown to increase weight loss. A recent study found an increase in dietary calcium intake to 1200 1300 mg per day together with a normal intake of protein increased fat and energy excretion by about 350 calories per day.
In the last decades many different theories about salt or sodium have come to light.
Weight gain and retention have many origins as well as supposed solutions. However, one common food item with a significant impact on body weight is salt, or sodium.
Food manufactures add a lot of salt to foods, deadening our over-stimulated taste buds, and to increase product shelf life. Salt is in virtually all commercially produced foods and drinks including diet soda and even some supposedly organic products. We get used to the taste and then find products with less or no salt not to our liking.
Everyone needs a certain amount of protein in their diet and anyone involved in fitness training and body building will logically need more in a daily basis. One way to get an energy boost after working out while avoiding the dangers of high fat sources of protein, such as fatty meats, is by shaking up a shake based on protein powder alternatives or buy one of the hundreds brands in the market.
There are a number of such alternative sources of protein that are ideal for making shakes, including soy, egg and whey. All are high in protein and low in carbohydrates. All you need is a blender, 1-2 minutes and some imagination.
While all vegetables are basically good for your health some are better than others. Cruciferous veggies are special due to their chemical composition which includes sulphurous compounds which give then their pungent flavour. When broken down by either chewing or chopping these sulphurous compounds are converted into isothiocyanates (ITCs) which can prevent and help fight cancer as well as boosting the immune system. Cruciferous veggies also contain antiviral/bacterial agents that can help keep you disease free.
Cruciferous veggies include beets and their greens, bok choy, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, radishes, turnip greens and watercress.
Summer is next to our door, and clean eating is a must, if you want to have a healthy body. Clean eating basically means to avoid pre-packaged and processed foods and return to basics – fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains *(preferably organic) and lean protein from fish.
Let’s start with vegetables. Dark green veggies such as broccoli, spinach and kale are high in folates – a cardiovascular booster – and low in carbohydrates.
Tomatoes are high in vitamin C and can be mixed with fresh basil in a salad or eaten alone as a snack. Try adding some roasted garlic to the mix. Garlic is a strong anti-oxidant that boosts the immune system, increases blood flow and lowers cholesterol.
Stress is higher and higher with the pressures of modern life. Stress increases cortisol levels which have a negative impact on muscle tissue as well as increasing the risk of stroke, heart disease and depression.
Lifestyle choices are both the cause and the cure of too much stress. If you can’t change your lifestyle, at least try to eat more stress reducing foods. Here are five of the best.
Summer is pretty close to the end and when at the thought of exercising, you begin to potter around, clean the house and look for food (and discover there is none, so you buy some junk food). Well, you need to stop, and ask yourself – WHY AM I AVOIDING IT?! If you’re anything like me, the answer may be, ‘I’ve had a bit of time off and I know I won’t be at the same standard I used to be, it’s going to be painfully depressing.’ Well, guess what sweetheart, procrastinating and procrastibaking aren’t going to help you and really, who cares if you’re not as good as last time?! Exercise should be about having fun, see it as a healthy challenge to reach those goals again.
Winter is harsh on skin specially if you live in the city. As the chill winds howl and snow falls down from the sky, every other part of your body gets covered – except for the face. Exposed to the elements, the face will often suffer from dry, irritated skin. With a number of creams on the market aimed at tackling such an ailment, it probably seems like no big deal if skin starts to crack a little. But, it can cause great discomfort, and can actually be prevented by using a simple little product you’re almost certain to have at home: Honey.
Sometimes the hardest part of making a positive shift is knowing where to start. It can be overwhelming when there are a number of changes to make or even when there is one big one. If you want to adopt healthy habits that will last, then the easiest way to do it is by making small, gradual changes.
Looking at most bodybuilder blogs and articles you could easily assume that only meat eaters need apply. However this is certainly not the case and there are a huge number of vegetarian bodybuilders today.
The wellness world is growing consistently. From having a muscle headed body for the men, to a thin and trim search for the women. Everyone is on a nonstop fight for attaining to that flawless body.
Health is the quest for upgraded personal satisfaction, self-awareness, and potential through constructive way of life practices and mentality. On the off chance that we assume liability for our own particular wellbeing and prosperity, we can enhance our wellbeing consistently. Certain components impact our condition of wellbeing, including healthy food, physical movement, and activity.
Hello, luscious, creamy vat of peanut butter. I’m diving in. Before I do though – does anyone know who invented peanut butter? Or any nut butter for that matter? I have no idea, I’m just throwing it out for conversation. Cause they certainly should get a Nobel Prize. Or something.
I actually don’t have a peanut recipe to share today, just some news about one of America’s fave foods.
Processed sugar pretty much has 99% of the population in its white devil grips. Weight gain, foggy heads, Candida, depression… just a few of the by products it leaves in its trail of excess consumption. Yes it is dam hard to break the bond but it can be done will a little (or a lot!) of will power and some handy tips to cope with cravings.
Do you need to buy organic all the time? There’s a difference between organic and conventionally grown foods when it comes to nutrition, safety and price. The organic food aisle can be difficult to navigate – not to mention, costly – but there are a few organic and pesticide-free products that are certainly worth the investment.
Eating healthy and sticking to a budget is not always easy, but with a few simple tricks you can keep your wallet fat and your waistline trim!
1. Ditch the Gum
When you chew gum, you also swallow a whole heap of air, which can lead to stomach distention.
Despite contrary belief, bread offers many nutritional and health benefits for a well-balanced diet. But with so many options and information out there, how do you know if you’re choosing the right one? Use our guide to help you pick the best bread for you.