Easy weight loss programs

 An easy weight loss program is one that can be somewhat effortlessly followed while still achieving safe and effective weight loss.
This kind of complicates things. Let me explain. The three hour diet suits me because I naturally tend to eat six small meals per day. So, if I make wise choices for my six mini-meals then I should achieve relatively easy, natural weight loss.
On the other hand, other people may not be able to fit six mini-meals into their day - so the three hour diet would not be an easy weight loss program for them. I also love carbs and would not find it real easy to reduce them. A low carb diet would not be an easy weight loss program for me.
It is easy to see that what might be considered an easy weight loss program for you, very well might be difficult for me. I have always said that if you find  your diet and exercise routines enjoyable then you will probably stick with them for life. I am also of the opinion that permanent, safe, and effective weight loss is more of a lifestyle change than a six, eight, or twelve week diet. I do believe that with the right choices, a weight loss program can be easy - it may meet your expectations but then again, your expectations may not be realistic. However, I don't want to get too sidetracked. Let's stick with trying to find you an easy weight loss program.
So, how can you find an easy weight loss program for yourself? First off, examine your eating habits. Do you graze all day? Do you starve yourself all day and then have a big meal in the evening? Do you control portions or is portion control your problem?
I could go on and on with hypothetical questions but it would be better if you were to just spend a week recording your eating habits. I am not condoning bad eating habits or unhealthy choices - Instead I am trying to illustrate that the easier a diet fits into your natural tastes, appetites, and lifestyle - the easier it will be for you to follow.
Most people have eating habits that can be modified to be healthy quite easily. The problem is that so many people go on a particular diet that does not suit their tastes of lifestyle. You may find that you can continue with your eating schedule and easily lose weight by just making some healthy substitutions.
For your easy weight loss program, pick a diet that promotes long term, healthy weight loss but suits your natural tastes. You will find that you can enjoy eating healthy and still lose weight.

One company that I am quite fond of is Nutrisystem. Nutrisystem makes it convenient for people with almost any type of lifestyle or taste to easily follow their meal plan. They will deliver healthy, delicious food right to your door. No calorie counting - just good food.

Weight loss vacations

Looking for a way to jump start your weight loss efforts? Consider one of the many weight loss vacations that are available. Weight loss vacations are available for many different budgets and timelines. Your weight loss vacation can last a couple of days or a couple of weeks. You are in control.

Weight loss vacations will be devoted to your physical and mental health. You will be rejuvenated while learning healthy habits to last a lifetime.

Some of the weight loss vacations we looked at involved activities such as hiking, biking, snowshoeing, skiing, kayaking, yoga, hot springs, and massage just to name a few. Other weight loss camps were more oriented toward traditional exercises such as aerobics, swimming, volleyball, etc. You will eat delicious, healthy meals while learning healthy lifestyle habits. You may start the day with some form of exercise while enjoying beautiful surroundings and fresh air. More than likely a wide range of lectures and classes will be available to you so that you can have a varied experience. The classes and lectures can include anything from weight loss, smoking cessation, stress management, or just being more accepting of yourself. You should come home with a good idea of what type of exercise and eating regimen is best for you.

Some of the weight loss vacations even offer cooking courses. If you are specifically looking for a women's weight loss camp or retreat - those are available as well. If it is important to you - be sure to ask what professionals are on staff. Some retreats have dieticians, physicians, therapists, psychologists, exercise physiologists, and fitness instructors just to name a few.

Plan your weight loss vacation just as you would a family vacation. Ask many questions, look at brochures and the resorts website. Find out what all is included in the price and what will be extra. Some resorts have limited phones and transportation - will it be important to you to get away from the resort and see other destinations? Do they have testimonials from happy customers? Is the staff friendly? Will you get one on one treatment or will you be in groups? Is the food selection something you can live with for a week? Weight loss vacations should leave you relaxed, feeling good physically, and feeling good mentally. Enjoy your weight loss vacation - Be good to yourself!

Glycemic Index What is it and can it help me lose weight

Glycemic Index

What is it and can it help me lose weight?

We all see references to Glycemic index diets in the media but have you ever wondered just what the Glycemic index is?

Glycemic index (or GI) can be defined as a 0 to 100 score for carbohydrates and how fast that particular food is likely to raise your blood sugar. The higher the score – the greater the blood sugar rise. For example, white bread is said to have a high Glycemic index score while fructose has a low GI score.

Knowledge of the Glycemic index has been very beneficial to diabetics but it can also be beneficial to dieters wanting to lose weight. Unfortunately, keeping up with the GI score of foods is a cumbersome process - not to mention the fact that we are all different and food will affect each of us differently.

Because foods with a low Glycemic index score are generally healthy, unrefined, rich in fiber, and have plenty of phytochemicals* - there is probably nothing wrong with following a low Glycemic index diet. Of course you would want to check with your doctor first.

If you were wanting to research following a low Glycemic index diet for weight loss I would suggest that you try one of the popular diets which guide you as to which foods to buy, when to consume them, and the portion sizes to consume. As said before – Keeping up with the GI of foods could be a very cumbersome process that most people will not want to do.

acupuncture

Ear staples are a form of a thousands of year old art known as acupuncture.

Ear staples are something I have never tried but I did try acupuncture a few years ago just so I could say that I had experienced it. I really had no reason for going at that time (pain, etc.) so I just told the practitioner to give me what she thought best. She gave me what she called a “tune-up”. I must admit – I felt something. It felt like energy shooting through my body. I have never tried acupuncture again but know some people who swear by it for pain relief.

Lately I have been seeing reports of something new, (to me at least) ear staples for weight loss. A tiny metal ear staple is placed upon and acupuncture point inside the ear. The acupuncture point is the one some refer to as the stomach point. Like anything else in the weight loss world, acupuncture ear staples weight loss is controversial. You have believers and you have skeptics. Acupuncture staples have also been used for addictions such as smoking, and drugs.

I wish that I could supply you with an answer as to whether acupuncture ear staples will work for you and help you lose weight. The jury is out on this one and I have to admit I am kind of leaning toward skeptic. Some people may choose to try it if their local acupuncturist does it inexpensively and cleanly. If any of you try acupuncture ear staples please send in your experience. Our readers would love to hear about it.

Meal replacement Powders and meal replacement bars to help you lose weight and control your hunger.

Controlling your hunger and losing weight using meal replacement powders and bars.

The market is flooded with weight loss supplements that make weight loss look like an easy thing.

You see a perfect bodied young man or woman giving credit to this pill or that pill. I believe there are some merits to some of the weight loss pills on the market but this article is about using supplements in a different way.

I am not going to talk about taking a pill to lose weight but about using supplements to control your hunger. The supplements I am speaking of are Meal replacement powders (MRP’s) and meal replacement bars. These are sometimes referred to as protein powder, protein shakes, diet shakes, diet bars, protein bars, food bars, food shakes, low carb bars, low carb shakes and the list goes on and on. What these supplements were originally designed for was as a meal replacement. Usually you replace a meal or two a day with one of these delicious meal replacement powders or meal replacement bars and then you eat sensibly the rest of the day.

The problem I see with this plan is that it does not control your hunger and then you end up making bad choices for your meals and snacks. I do really well with my eating choices until I become too hungry; at this point I will usually eat anything that gets in my path.

I have found that I can control my hunger by using a nutritionally packed meal replacement shake or meal replacement bar. (A word of caution; I am speaking of high quality meal replacement shakes or meal replacement bars, not sugar packed candy bars stuffed with a few vitamins and then marked up in price and sold as an energy bar.

As I said before, I get very hungry and then make bad choices. I typically eat every three hours, so I must be very careful about my choices. By eating a meal replacement bar or drinking an MRP, I can control my hunger for those three hours. I am not suggesting that you eat every three hours. That just happens to be my natural schedule. If I make bad choices every three hours you can imagine what the outcome might be.  When I sit down to eat a meal, I am usually just three hours past a meal replacement powder and not overly hungry. This means that I can eat until comfortable and sometimes even eat cheat foods.

If you are the type of person that eats “three squares” a day then you might want to use your meal replacement powders in the following way:

Breakfast: Meal replacement powder or Meal replacement bar

Lunch: Meal replacement powder or Meal replacement bar

Dinner: Sensible dinner with plenty of fresh vegetables.

If you are like me, and eat about every three hours try this:

Breakfast: Meal replacement powder or Meal replacement bar

Snack: Half a meal replacement bar

Lunch: Sensible lunch with plenty of fresh vegetables

Snack: the other half of the meal replacement bar or shake.

Dinner: Sensible dinner with plenty of fresh vegetables.

If you are the type of person whose weakness is snacking then try carrying a meal replacement bar and taking a bite of it every now and then when the urge for a snack hits you.

Meal replacement powders are extremely portable. Find a shaker cup and a water fountain and you have the perfect meal in seconds! I take two shakes with me to work and very rarely travel in my car without a meal replacement bar.

Shop around to find the perfect meal replacement bar or shake for you. I suggest purchasing small quantities and experiment with the tastes before you order large amounts. Some simply do not taste well at all.

 Meal replacement bars and shakes can be very cost effective when you compare them to the cost of eating out.

I wish you the best of health!

Green tea and weight loss

Green tea (Camellia sinensis) and weight loss. What are the benefits of green tea for dieting?

It seems lately that I have come across an abundance of information on the benefits of consuming green tea. Because of this, I have been inspired to compile some of the information - specifically regarding green tea and weight loss.

Green tea contains a number of things that are reported to be very healthful for you. Among these are:

Tannins, phenols, polyphenols, and flavanoid compounds, the amino acid theanine, and catechins of which egcg seems to be the most beneficial.

Our green tea pill Recommendation: Green Tea Caps

Our green tea (tea bag) recommendation: Long Life Teas Organic Tea Green Tea With Lemongrass -- 20/Box

Some of the reported benefits you will see when researching green tea are:

	Protecting skin from ultraviolet radiation
	Protection against a number of different cancers
	Increased life span
	Protection of the brain
	Increased antioxidant levels
	Theanine has been reported to negate the jittery effect of caffeine, and heighten mental acuity and some have even said give a relaxed but aware state.
	Last but not least are increased fat metabolism

This increased fat metabolism is what is of most interest to people looking for the benefits of green tea for dieting. It simply means the rate at which you burn calories and the body's ability to burn fat.  The studies seem to point to a connection between the caffeine in green tea and the epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) which causes a boost in noradrenaline. Noradrenaline helps your body boost your metabolism and suppress your appetite.

Some experts recommend that you take a standardized green tea supplement which contains 90mg of EGCG and 50mg caffeine. Of course you should always consult your physician before taking any supplement, especially one with caffeine.

Drinking green tea can be a pleasurable experience. I have tasted some very good green teas and I have tasted some that taste like what I imagine blended grass would taste like. My favorites seem to be the mixture of green tea and lemongrass. The best tasting ones I have found have been in health food stores or online. Don't give up on your first taste. Experiment around and try different flavors of green tea. You may find one or more that you just absolutely love. I generally microwave my green tea and drink it warm. I have brewed several bags at a time using boiling water and then place in the refrigerator for a nice cool beverage as well.

Drinking green tea can also be an aid to weight loss if it takes place of another habit such as coffee with sugar or cola. I know many people who start the day with a sugar filled caffeine cola or sweetened iced tea. This is how they get their morning caffeine. Why not substitute green tea for this and enjoy the feeling and health benefits? Replace that after lunch cup of coffee with a cup of green tea. You will be doing something healthy for your body and you won't experience the "drop" that coffee can leave you with an hour or so later. Also enjoy a cup of green tea before your exercise routine, just be careful and do not consume it late in the afternoon.

A cup of green tea contains about half as much caffeine as a cup of coffee. If you are sensitive to caffeine – use caution or avoid all together.

I am a believer in a healthy lifestyle to achieve your desired weight. If you know me or read any of my articles you also know that I am a believer in supplements – Only as an aid to a healthy lifestyle. Not a magic solution. I see green tea as an effective tool in your weight loss arsenal.

Green tea seems like a wonderful addition to your daily life which may help you boost your metabolism, ward of sickness, and give you a gentle caffeine lift.

Having A Weight Loss Plan

Very strange indeed! You have heard plans for gaining! Here you are thinking about a loss plan! And you are very serious about this loss! You have a loss-sharing buddy, you congratulate each other over the losses you have 'gained' in the period under review! Any reduction in the loss is not to your mutual liking!

Any weight loss plan that does not take the diet aspect into consideration, is no plan at all! Who are the starred generals in the weight loss plan that are expected to give sterling performances? Of course, the old war-horses! They are: Exercise and Diet!

How to get results from the weight loss plan? Whatever methods you use, they must perform two functions-stimulate metabolism which do the job of fat burning and continuously assist you in the process of loss, without intermission! Any plan or any ingredient that is appetite-suppressant without causing any side effects, is suitable for your weight loss plan. It must lessen your struggle with weight on various parts of your body. It must trim the excess fat around the waist and buttocks.

Relentless research is going on in this million-dollar weight loss project. The whole idea is to find sensible and sustainable ways for overweight patients to lose weight, and to maintain that gained position of weight loss over a long period. It is the most frustrating experience to gain weight after so much of trials and tribulations, after having once lost it!< 

The importance of exercises is emphatic. Nobody has ever said- I did exercise and I gained weight! The various yoga asanas and Ashtanga Yoga & Bikrama Yoga are very useful. The overweight and obese specialists emphasize on one thing even after prescribing medication-understand the importance of exercise for all successful weight loss programs. Physical activity is key to staying healthy.

You are fat because you are lazy. Now, you are moving in the right direction, because now you know the value of right nutrition. It goes without saying that when you talk about right nutrition, all items of wrong nutrition need to be avoided at all costs. Even for the sake of temptation, those should not be given a chance to enter into your system. They have created enough havoc in the past. Let them take the well-deserved rest now.

Keep a careful calorie count. There should be awareness in you about what should be done and what should not! You know what is your problem, you have understood the cause of your problem and therefore you will find the answer for your problem-definitely!