Without eating any special foods or doing any exercises how you do get fit and stay healthy?

You don't need any fancy foods, special supplements, or crazy diets to get fit and healthy. What you do need, however, is comittment and a bit of will power. Now don't panic - if you don't have will power, some simple steps can help you flex your willpower muscles from the comfort of your armchair so you can get fit and healthy in no time at all.

Eat Normal Foods

Crazy diets don't work. The human body was made to consume normal, healthy foods. The closer foods are to their natural state, the better.

Consume the following foods daily:

Fruits: any and all fruits are good for you. Choose whatever is in season. Shop at your local grocery store. We only buy what's on sale, whether it's peaches and plums during summer or apples in the fall. Buy what you like so you're sure to eat it! Keep most fruits in a bowl on the counter so they're visible, handy, and ripen.

Vegetables: cooked or raw, vegetables should form a large portion of the diet. Again, purchase what's in season and eat what you like. Bagged salads are great for quick meals or side dishes. Same goes for frozen and canned vegetables. They're economical, easy to heat in the microwave, and taste great. If you can, purchase and consume frozen vegetables without added sauces for the healthiest option.

Breads: Breads are tricky, since my research and opinion from years of researching and writing about diet and health point to the fact that most supermarket sold breads are virtually useless, fortified junk products. Buy and consume high fiber and whole wheat if you can, or just cut back the amount of bread you consume. If you will only eat white bread, eat it at only one meal of the day.

Breakfast cereal most often contains lots of calories, chemical fortification, and junk. Okay, so the toys are fun, but after playing with them you're still stuck with a box of cardboard flakes. Best options for breakfast cereals are hot cereals, such as oatmeal or grits, or high fiber cereals.

Protein: Lowest fat choices are chicken and fish, again baked or broiled without added coatings. Beef isn't as bad for you as all the media makes it out to be, but do choose lowest fat cuts and again, bake or broil it, don't char grill or consume huge fast food burgers. Eggs also got a bad reputation but are proving to be healthful.

Nuts, Seeds: Unsalted and raw are fine. Just watch portion sizes.

Water: Water is the beverage of choice for weight loss! Avoid diet colas and all diet drinks. The artificial sweeteners are horrible for your health despite all the safety claims - much research points to all sorts of diseases stemming from them, so avoid them like the plague. Water straight from the tap is just fine. Add a twist of lemon for flavor. If you're transitioning away from soda pop, try fizzy waters and carbonated beverages like seltzer or Perrier for a treat. Tea and coffee are fine too, but watch how much sugar and cream you add.

No matter what you consume, weight loss is always a question of taking in fewer calories than you expend. There are many websites that help you figure out how many calories you need to maintain your current weight. Since each pound of body fat consists of 3,500 calories, you must reduce your caloric intake by 500 calories a day OR expend just a little bit more. Did you know that taking a half hour stroll through the neighborhood can burn up to 200 calories? Even if you hate to exercise, try a little stroll.

Portion sizes do most of us in when it comes to weight loss. Since the 1970's, portion sizes at restaurants have grown to astounding sizes, and now we are accustomed to large portions. If you have to, use a measuring cup and food scale to get a better handle on what a normal portion size looks like. If you're hungry, fill up on vegetables and fruits with a small handful of protein, like nuts or a glass of milk.

Avoid processed, packaged foods. All of them contain tons of chemical preservatives, sweeteners, colors, MSG and other garbage your body doesn't need. You're paying for packaging, marketing and convenience.

If you want to lose weight, these are just general guidelines. I'm six pounds into my own thirty pound weight loss journey and following this advice daily. Simply by cutting back my portions, avoiding all the empty calories from packaged foods, drinking lots of water (from the tap), and not snacking I have lost those six pounds. Good luck!

Lose Weight the Easy Way!!

Losing weight seems like the most impossible thing on earth to do; however we as humans think that losing weight is out of our control. The good news is that you have total control over yourself. There are things that you can do NOW to help you lose weight quickly.

The first thing you need to do is speed-up your metabolism. Green tea is excellent and well very known to speed-up the body ability to burn fat. Next you should use hot spices in your food, that helps the body burn fat and always drink lots of water with fresh lemon juice every time. That will help you on your weight lost. Step3Lastly, stay away from foods that contain lots of fat and sugar because those foods is the only thing that is stopping you from losing weight. Good luck on your journey, you can do it. You will lose weight.

Rapid Weight Loss Idea That Are Healthy

The best rapid weight loss ideas are sometimes not the ones we may think are the best.

These days we see the ads for rapid weight loss ideas by eating cookies or taking diet pills and even though we know these are not really the best rapid weight loss ideas they still seem to sell in the billions of dollars each year.

The only real and true rapid weight loss ideas that work and help long term are solid plans that are healthy and set up in a manner that a person can actually stick with it.

A Few Rapid Weight Loss Misconceptions

One of the biggest rapid weight loss ideas and misconceptions being marketed today is "cuttig calories" to lose weight.

This is one of the biggest causes for people to stop using a weight loss program and the reason is almost always people will hit a weight loss plateau become frustrated and quit. Ever had this happen to you? Let me explain why it happens.

The key to losing weight is our bodys metabolism. You metabolism, by default, is set up to adjust to your calorie intake so it can adjust accordingly and burn the correct number of calories daily.

When you start a "calorie cutting" plan initially your metabolism is working at a higher rate and is still working to burn calories at that "pre-diet" rate so you will lose weight quickly on a calorie cutting plan initially.

As you stay on the plan your metabolsim adjust to the new calorie intake and weight loss will slow down and eventually stop as your metabolism has now completely adjusted to the new calorie intake. This is where the weight loss plateau hits and most people quit.


Many rapid weight loss ideas such as cutting carbs and diet pills simply are not healthy rapid weight loss ideas at all and in the long term will only serve to lose some weight initially and cause weight gain to evntually come back.

Finding good solid weight loss motivation and a program like the links above are the very best rapid weight loss ideas that people can actually do, stick with and be healthy long term.

How to Lose 10 Pounds Fast

Are you seeking for the fastest and most ideal method of losing 10 pounds with guaranteed results? The fact is, the main difficulty with weight loss lies on the dieter’s level of commitment to dieting and not really in the method used. And if you are all set to do everything just to take off the extra fat permanently, then here are a few steps on how to lose 10 pounds fast:

Step 1. Drink an ample amount of water

Make dinking of at least two liters of water, a daily practice. Water will make your kidneys work better and aid your liver do its work too. The liver is in charge of calculating how much fat to burn in order to give you extra energy. There are still so many benefits from drinking plenty of water and so it’s really a must.

Step 2. Go get some exercise

Doing exercise workouts or just going to the gym is very important if you intend to lose weight quickly. Without exercise, your body will only begin to burn fat when you require more energy while if you are working out regularly, you can burn fat all the time. This is the reason why exercises play an important role with weight loss plans.

Step 3. Avoid eating meals from fast food stores as well as drinking of sodas

You must realize that sodas and fast foods are one of the biggest adversaries when it is about weight reduction. Fast foods may be very convenient but then, it’s no longer a secret that it is also the leading reason for most problems with obesity. Therefore, you have to shift to eating more fruits and fresh vegetables. Protein rich foods are also advisable.

Lastly, keep an eye on your weight and move to a good healthy lifestyle. Also, have a weight loss plan and follow it to achieve your goal of dropping 10 pounds quickly.

creating a site that sells

Discover how to write copy that sells

It doesn’t matter how fancy and high tech your site is, good looking graphics will

not make you sales. Many online marketers make the mistake of putting too

much time and energy into the design of their site, and not enough into writing

effective sales copy. Producing a site that is both professional looking and

credible is a major factor in selling online, but if your sales copy is not working,

you will not make money.

Writing effective sales copy is an art. Good copy writers have learned how to

produce persuasive text targeted towards their particular audience. You really

need to understand your customers’ needs and produce copy that projects

emotion, passion, excitement and benefit.

Selling is also about enthusiasm, and projecting that on to your target audience.

Being excited about the product will shine through, so avoid dry, over formal copy

and let your passion for the subject show.

AIDA

The following is a tried and tested formula for writing effective sales copy, keep

this in mind while planning your copy’s beginning, middle and end.



A
- Attention -
Use a powerful headline that demands attention

I
- Interest -
Intrigue interest and create curiosity

D
- Detail -
Provide details about your product or service

A
- Action
- Call for action

Begin writing your copy in black easily readable font with a light background.

Complicated fonts and dark backgrounds will make your copy difficult to read and

will put off your visitor.

Avoid using fancy fonts or backgrounds that will make your text difficult to read.

Write in small blocks of text with a space between each block. There is nothing

that will make your visitor click away faster than a sea of text - so make sure you

use plenty of white space.

Selling and Emotion

The importance of emotion needs to be fully understood before embarking on a

successful copy writing project. It is a sales cliché that customers buy benefits

and not features. This is only partly true. To take the theory a little deeper, people

buy because of how those benefits will make them feel. So it is emotion that is

key to writing effective copy that sells.

Consider the following quote from Hal Alpiar President/CEO of Business works:

"You may think (and have actually convinced yourself) that the SUV

you purchased was a great investment because it allows you to sit

high enough to see above traffic, it can provide more traction in

bad weather, it can go off the road, it can tow trailers, it will

take less of a hit in an accident than a sedan, it allows you to

haul more firewood and home improvement stuff, Consumer Reports

ranks it at the top of their Best Buy list, there's tons of room for

the kids and the dogs, it can pull out tree stumps, you got zero

down and zero percent, and the service warranty is spectacular.

BUT if you think for one minute that you bought that gas guzzler

for any of those reasons (or ones like them), you're BS'ing

yourself! You bought the SUV because you think you look good

driving it!"

So in effect, sell what the surfer really wants, and establish this through

knowledge of basic human needs, which you are about to learn in the following

section.

Human Motivators

Let’s now examine basic human motivators. Psychologist Abraham Maslow,

bases human behavior around at least one basic need. His theory is that without

you addressing a less important need, there won't be any desire to pursue a

more important need.

His idea is based around "the hierarchy of human needs." Here are the five

human motivators, as he sees them, beginning with the basic, and ending with

the most important needs.



Physiological

- Basics needs include hunger, thirst, shelter, clothing and sex.



Safety (Security

)

– The need for physical, emotional and financial security.



Social (Affiliation)

– The human need for love, affection, companionship and

acceptance by their peers.



Self Esteem

- Human need for achievement, recognition, attention and respect.



Self-actualization

- The need for people to reach their full potential.

You should incorporate these needs into your writing. Get inside the head of

your audience, feel their needs, wants and desires and include passion and

emotion in your headlines and copy. So sell security (social and relationship),

independence, self-confidence, achievement and not what the product does:

-

Extra strong Lock

-

Reduces fat

-

Improves appearance

-

Contains Xeterma B1z.

These are all features. However, how will purchasing the product make the

customer

feel?

Concentrate on this on not features and technical specifiations.

Features and technical data can be used to back up your site’s claims - but

should not be used as the key selling tool.

So what?

An excellent technique for improving your sales copy is to ask yourself "So

what?" after each benefit claim. For example:

"Guaranteed to help you lose weight"





So What?

"
…so you can invest in confidence" or
"….so you can have peace of mind

while achieving your goals of a better body

"

Headline

The headline is the first and most important factor in your sales copy. This is the

A

part of the AIDA model – you must grab the readers attention and compel them

to read on. Around 5 times as many people will read the headline than the copy

body.

So unless your headline sells your product immediately, the rest of your copy will

be useless. Use the headline to immediately capture your audience’s attention,

and to stimulate a specific emotion,

as emotion sells.

"Feel embarrassed about your weight?"

"What would a slimmer body mean for you?"

Asking a question is a good way of provoking thought and drawing the reader in.

Try using imperatives:

"Lose weight quickly and easily with product X"

"Imagine the relief of reducing your debt today"

Some tips for writing powerful headlines:



Write 20-30 different headlines.



Take days break to give your self a fresh perspective and review again,

and choose the best



Ask your self how they can be improved, are they addressing your

Writing an Introduction

Ok, now you have captured your visitors attention, you will need to draw them I

not your introduction. Keep it brief and to the point. Create a value proposition,

and let them know exactly what you are offering.

This will create the I – interest part of AIDA, and give the reader more reasons to

read on. Give the visitor reasons as to they should read on, mention what useful

info others have got out of the site

Writing the bulk of your copy.

You will now need to start writing the main body of your copy. Avoid using jargon

or technical terms your visitor may not understand, this will only alienate them.

Avoid negativity, hype and buzzwords, and write in as style that everyone can

understand. Try using prep positional phrases such as "As you know..,

Naturally…., Everybody knows…." Whatever follows these are more likely to be

accepted by the reader.

The power of words

Here are some tips on using alternative words with for better association. These

are not set in stone and open to debate, but provide an interesting insight into the

power of words. Every word counts, so ensure you incorporate potency:



Buy

— This implies people have to pay money — experiment with alternative

try using
claim eg "click here to claim your membership to … ) or
invest

(Visit mywebsite.com to
invest in a better future … ).
This is contrary to the

marketing
must
having a clear call to action ie "buy now" so only use

alternatives where applicable, within the body of your text for example.

Learn
— This implies there is work involved – try using discover
"discover

the secrets behind…. … "

Tell
— Nobody like to be told what to do – use reveal
"This site will reveal

the effectiveness of….."

we will show you…"

Avoid lazy words like the following:

Things
— EG "Show you things" — Instead use
tips, tricks & techniques

(
.. discover tips, tricks & techniques that will …
"

Stuff
— EG " …show you stuff, tell you stuff " — Use some thing juicier, like
-

insider secrets

(We will reveal insider secrets that only the … )

Creating effective web copy will not win you any creative writing prizes or

journalism awards but
it will make you money.
These tips are open to debate

Use Plenty of Subheadings

Your next step will be to add subheadings. Subheadings are basically just

smaller headlines used to break up your text blocks. They also provide your

readers with important highlights of your paragraphs.

Use plenty of subheadings throughout your copy, as not all your visitors will read

your copy word for word. They'll simply scan it and only read what catches their

attention. So give each section a juicy subheading and a reason for the visitor to

read on.

Create USP’s

You need to set the product you are promoting apart from every other competitor

in a positive way. Using a Unique Selling Proposition will make your offering

more valuable than competitors and negate the need for the surfer to shop

around. This will make up part of the D details of AIDA

A strong USP is an absolute must in giving your audience a compelling reason to

buy from your site. A great way to develop a USP is by commencing: "Unlike the

majority of its competitors….



"Unlike the majority of weight loss products "product Z" will help

Lose up to 6 pounds of body fat per week - without the use of

harmful synthetic appetite suppressants"

"Unlike other extenders, SizeGenetics is a combination of 2 systems

that are proven to give you the most noticeable size gains"

The main purpose of a USP is to address a hole in the market place that the

product can really fill. Don’t forget that a USP can be incorporated into a headline

or sub header in your copy writing.

Limit the Risk

All MoreNiche/Lativio products come with a rock solid money back guarantee for

6 months. You must hammer this home as it makes for a soft easy sell. Display

the guarantee in bold text and highlight with a graphic - 6 months is longer than

most products in the online industry, point this out and make a unique selling

point. The more you remove the risk, the more chance of the sale.

You may also want to highlight the secure ordering processes, data protection

and privacy, and discreet packaging. Pre-empt their objections to buy and

address them, build your potential customers' confidence and put them at

ease.

Use a Post Script

Visitors scan your copy on websites, they will read your headline, sub-headlines

and the PostScript message more than anything else. Place your most important

benefits within your P.S. message. Summarize the main points, the benefits &

the emotions that these will - it will be read.

Call for Action (CTA)

 

Ask for the business!. The crucial A part of AIDA. A common mistake with

online marketers is not asking for the business at the end of a pitch. Don’t just

hope they decide to buy - prompt your visitor to buy with a clear CTA – if you

don’t ask you won’t get!. At the end of each review page, article, or product

feature always, always include a clear link to order here are some examples:



"Take control of your size, order your SizeGenetics today"

"Discover how to lose weight easily, visit the X Product site today"

Some General Tips for a successful site

Speed of Loading

Ok this may be stating the obvious - You literally have seconds to grab your

surfers’ attention. So, it is very important to ensure you site loads as quickly as

possible.



Optimise your image files for faster down load



Don’t over complicate the site



Choose a reliable host



Avoid heavy use of Flash

Target your market

A successful web site will cater specifically to the needs of your potential

customer. When designing your site, keep this in mind. Know your audience and

get inside their head, try and think like your potential customer - examine their

hopes fears and desires.

Next, ask others, test and survey. What you think is the right approach won’t

necessarily be the same for everybody. For example of you are targeting women

and weight loss, talk to women, what’s important to them, what emotion drives

them to lose weight?.

Focus

The focus of your websites is to inform and more importantly to sell. Don’t try to

sell lots of unrelated products on your site, keep it targeted. If you want to feature

different products then build separate pages and areas for each one.



Avoid adding adsense adverts to your site, MN commissions make these

potential earnings look miniscule.



Do not stick banners everywhere in random places.

Credibility

More money is being spent on the internet than ever. Potential customers can

still be apprehensive about parting with their credit card details online. You can

build credibility by providing detailed information on:



Policies - Such as privacy, Spam



Privacy Statement



Procedures



Real contact information and physical address.



Where possible include testimonials from customers



Research the products yourself with free samples from our selves. You

Ease of Navigation

Ok, again, it may seem obvious but the quickest way to kill a sale is to present a

confusing web site. Surfers are impatient and easily frustrated. If they can not

find what they are looking for quickly they will go elsewhere. So keep your

navigation:



Simple



Clean and easily readable



Accessible from every page of the site.

They ask for apples give them apples.

Don’t try and con your surfer. If you offer a link to "top reviewed weight loss pills"

then don’t just link to a product site. Your surfer will be looking for a comparison,

so send to a review page or feeder site that will give them the "top reviewed

weight loss pills". Not giving the surfer what they are asking for is a sure shot way

to get them to hit the red X.

Weight gain or loss?The metabolic nightmare

At last it is real fat that is going

Food isn’t just a comfort thing, something to look forward to and enjoy.  Taste of course is important for our well being and the presentation important for special occasions, but our food plays a much more important role in our quest to survive on a daily basis and can be one persons pleasure while being their neighbours nightmare.

I have written this blog for the many people like myself who love food. Love to play with it, decorate our tables with it, impress our friends with it and savour the many different tastes of todays cuisine, but most of all for you who like me has tasted one too many of those great savoury snacks and have suffered the consequences more often than once.

The yo-yo dieter, the binger and the starver, we are all in the same boat chasing our own tails wondering why we are so good at losing weight but even worse why we find ourselves constantly back at square 1 but each time we are able to consume less before the starting point is staring back at us from the mirror.

Oh Sh****ugar here we go again!

Well i have done my best to find out why and i want to share this. I also hope this will encourage others to join me in my quest to once again shed the pounds but this time for good and more than that in a sensible way.

This is the background information that well help me understand the real dieter and this is why i believe i will be much slimmer, much fitter and much healthier by June 2011.

This is the beginning. Here we go.

First of all understanding the digestive system. What happens to my beautiful food.


Our food is turned into the energy we need so dearly to grow and to function in our every day daily lives.

Through a complex process which takes place in the gastrointestinal tract has many important functions. These functions start in the mouth and continue through the esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines. Other organs involved in this process are the pancreas, liver and gall bladder.

And all i did was swallow a big delicious marshmallow or two followed by a scrumptious chocolate bar.

Lets take a basic look at what happens.

Whether it be a carrot or a marshmallow food comes in very complex forms and needs to be broken down before it can pass into the bloodstream to help your body work efficiently. No matter what you eat , our teeth will begin the process by chewing up the food into smaller digestible pieces. If you don’t have teeth then soup is a good alternative. The chewing, the smell and the taste  help to produce chemical enzymes which break down sugars in the food ( Glucose, fructose and galactose )Just think, if you sit with a drop in your mouth no matter how hard this is it soon dissolves. These are your enzymes at work. The longer that pastel or drop stays there the more enzyme it will produce to melt it down. This is a mechanical thing, the only reason you produce this is to prepare the food or sweet to start it's journey through your very own digestive factory.

 When the food is chopped or dissolved enough we swallow the food down through the esophagus to enter the stomach.  Although nothing is produced by the esophagus in itself it plays the important role of stopping the food returning to the mouth. If you are very unlucky you will have experienced indigestion at some time in your life. Not very pleasant, is it? and often comes around when we have eaten too much or drank excessively.

The stomach is the factory where extreme changes take place. The stomach is a bag which contains strong acids which can kill bacteria and anything else undesirable in the food. 

It is this acid which enters the esophagus in cases of indigestion. So corrosive and i wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy.

Proteins also have to be broken down further and it is the stomach that this job is done . The all important B12 vitamin is released from food here and an enzyme is produced which allows it to be absorbed safely into our system.

Once the food has been sufficiently broken down and sorted in the stomach it is then pushed down into the duodenum or small intestine where most of the digestion and absorption takes place. The length of the small intestine can be up to approximately 650 cm in an adult. This lengthy passage is needed for the proper breakdown and absorption of vital molecules.

In the small intestines food is processed by different chemicals. Proteins sugars,  which are carbohydrates,  and fats are broken down by  enzymes released from  the pancreas.

From the liver and gallbladder comes bile , bile is produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder. Through a little tube the bile is emptied into the duodenum to complete fat digestion. In addition it is needed for the digestion of all fat soluble vitamins which are vitamins, A, D, E and K.  Once this is done then the small intestine produces more of it’s own enzymes to complete digestion during the passage.

Although most of the digestion takes place in the first part of the small intestine the absorption of water, vitamins and minerals takes place in the rest of it. So up to 80% of the water we take in is already absorbed in the small intestine.

Only once the nutrients are broken down can the essential elements pas into the bloodstream to be carried to the liver.  Once they reach the liver are they further processed.  The liver turns proteins, sugars and fat into energy.  This however, is not enough for our muscles to use the energy sufficiently.  First of all the pancreas has to release insulin which is a hormone essential for the entrance  or transport of energy giving substances into the cells.

Before we travel further we have to look at what else the liver is important for, the liver gets rid of waste materials such as the byproducts of drugs.  Whatever we don’t need and can be potentially harmful to us is transported into the bile.  This actually includes, for example,  cholesterol and metals sometimes found in food.

Although most of the absorption takes place in the small intestine we still have a very large part of the gastrointestinal tract left, better known as the large intestine or colon.  The colon is not primarily responsible for digestion but it does complete the uptake of water and minerals still found in the undigestible parts of any food eaten. Electrolytes essential for good health such as potassium, calcium, sodium and magnesium  enter the system through the large intestine.

Anything that is not absorbed is expelled through the colon together with the bile carrying the other unwanted rest from the liver. It is infact bile which gives the dark colour to our waste products.

Through the process of digestion both hormones and nerves communicate allowing this procedure to go smoothly in most cases. This is a very complex system and precise coordination is needed.

Many of these processes happen without us even having to think about them. The nervous system allowing contraction and relaxation for example happens automatically no matter what we are doing. Life in other words goes on.

The use of Energy

Every cell in your body needs energy to survive, just think how many cells you have and you will realize just what is needed to get through a normal day.

You would think that more energy is better than none but the trouble is we can only process so much at any one given time and excess has to be stored for use.

Energy can only reach each cell via the bloodstream. Once sugars have been broken down into small enough particles and entered the bloodstream it is regulated by  special cells in the pancreas called Islets of Langerhans cells. Too high levels of blood sugar can be dangerous for our health overtime and can lead to diseases such as diabetes type 2 and Insulin resistance. Insulin resistance can sometimes be an indicator that the person is developing the more serious problem of type 2 diabetes.

Carbohydrates are important to understand as these can give quick release of sugar into the bloodstream or they can also be broken down at a slower rate releasing only small amounts periodically.

Carbohydrates are found in all forms of sugars and are an essential part of very many foods.

Simple sugars do not need to be broken down and enter the bloodstream at a very fast rate, one example of this is pure glucose. Complex carbohydrates on the other hand are found in fruit sugars and need breaking down before they can be absorbed. Breaking down these sugars actually requires energy and your body needs to work that little bit harder to do this..

For people with diabetes type 1 carbohydrates need to be helped into the cell by an injection of insulin.  This treatment is individual and each patient needs to monitor their blood sugars regularly and then adjust their insulin dose accordingly.

Proteins and fats are also important for healthy living and a good balanced diet is important for the building of new cells and proper functioning of the nervous system.

Calories!  What are they and why do we need them?

A calorie is a measure of a unit of energy.  Without going into this in depth as this can be explained in deep detail on many pages of the internet if you want a better understanding, I want to look closer at why calories are needed for survival and what happens when we consume too many.

Human beings need energy to survive that would be to breath, for the heart to pump and to move around. We get this type of energy from the food that we eat.

The number of calories quoted on the packets of food that we buy indicates the amount of potential energy that particular type of food possesses. A gram of carbohydrate  and a gram of protein for example has 4 calories and a gram of fat is known to have 9 calories.

Calories in food will not just come from carbohydrates. If you look closer you will see that the calories can be divided into for example 4 grams of fat ( 4 x 9 = 36 )   2 grams of protein ( 2x 4 = 8 ) and 60 grams of carbohydrate ( 4 x 60= 240 )   giving us a total of 288 calories.

Our bodies burn these calories through metabolic processes. The carbohydrates are broken into glucose and other sugars ,the proteins into amino acids and the fats into glycerol and fatty acids by enzymes. Once these molecules have been successfully broken down and transported into the bloodstream they can either be used by the relevant cell for immediate use or sent on to the final stage of metabolism where they react with oxygen to release their stored energy.

The amount of calories that an individuals cells need to function properly is individual. The average for any one person is estimated at around 2000 calories but some people will need more than this and some people less.

Height, weight, gender and age and activity levels all play a significant role. You need to take into consideration three main factors when calculating your caloric need. Your basic metabolic rate, your daily physical activity and your thermic effects of the food you  eat.

Your basic metabolic rate is what your body will requires just to function at rest. Things you don’t go around and think about constantly like your heart beating, your lungs pulling in air and your kidneys helping to excrete waste from your system are working non stop. Your cells are renewing, your hair is growing , you sleep, you think…need  go on?  The point is this all requires energy, the energy you take in from your daily meals.

A really good instrument used for calculating the metabolic rate is the Harris .Benedict formula which is different for men and women.

Women:  Adults only  …….655+ (4.3x weight in lbs)+( 4.7x height in inches)-(4.7x age in years)

Men: Adults only….66+(6.3x body weight in lbs) +(4.7x height in inches )-(6.8x age in years)

Physical activity includes all forms of movement,  Some more energy requiring than others. 

You can find many activity websites quoting the amount of calories or approximations for how many calories are burned during an hour of different activities.

The thermic effect of food is the amount of energy needed to digest that particular type of food.

To calculate this take the amount of calories provided by the food and multiply by 0.10.

If you make calculations from all three of the above facts you can work out how many calories you need to function properly each day.

It is important to note though that your exixting weight and muscle mass can affect how many calories you will burn in activity. The more muscle mass your body has means that you have more energy cells to maintain thus burning more calories.  If your proportions consist of more fat cells then the energy you use during exercise will first have to break down the fat cells before utilizing themfor energy. This process can take a little bit longer . Be patient though the more exercise you do the more muscle you will gain and the more fat cells you will burn. Leading to a healthier , leaner physic over time.

Too many calories , What happens?

Taking in more or fewer calories than your body needs will have consequences in the fact that you will either gain or lose weight.  For your body to store one extras pound of fat it needs to gather 3500 calories from your food.  To burn off 1lb of fat it needs to use up 3500 calories from it’s stores or from the food you have eaten.

When we want to actively lose weight we quite often start an activity plan or join a fitness centre together with using a calorie controlled diet.  When we run on a treadmill for example at a slower pace ( also walking/running technique ) we can burn as many as 350 to 400 calories in one hour. For the very fit who run fast and push their heart rates up this amount of calorie burn can be quite a bit higher. When you stop exercising this increase in metabolic rate takes a little while to return to it’s previous level which means you burn calories at a higher rate for a couple of hours after the activity stops.

It is also important to understand that a calorie is a calorie no matter if it comes from protein, fat or carbohydrate. A lb of fat is worth 3500 calories and that is what you need to aim at to go down or up in weight.  If your output of energy is the same as your intake of energy then your weight will be maintained.  This is why top athletes need to eat so much more than an office worker who sits at a desk all day and maybe pops into the fast food store on the way home to eat in front of the television.  If you want to lose you need to use. Simple as that.

Importance of nutrition

When people want to lose weight they often cut out fats immediately.  This is of course important if the fat consumption is higher than their recommended daily dose.  However, it is also important to realize that some fats are healthy to consume. Fats help for example , the body to transport vital vitamins. It is recommended that our daily intake of fat should be 30% of our daily calorie intake required for healthy functioning.

It has been said that anyone on a calorie controlled diet should never eat less than 1100 calories per day. By going lower than this you are putting your body into a crisis situation which can eventually have negative consequences on your health.  It is so much better to get help and control your calorie intake at a healthy daily level. This may take longer for you to rach your desired goal weight but you will be much healthier and happier with the results.  Just thnk if you lose 10 lbs in weight over time this is the equivalent of 10 x 3500 calories in fat you have lost.  Some people have the tendency to start fad diets. These will help you lose weight quickly.  Now this is not logical when you think that the weight loss should be actual loss of fat.

Sorry to say that much of this weight will come from many of your cells ability to hold water.

Too little energy in will also soon deplete you of other types of energy resulting in sluggishness, tiredness, sore muscles, irritability and good health.

These diets might be good for some people to kick start their slimming process but they should never be continued for more than two weeks maximum. Just remember what a resting metabolic rate entails. Heart beating, cell renewal, bone renewal, cell hydration many vital functions that need energy.

It is also a known fact that when you starve your body, your metabolic rate is reduced to a minimum to compensate. This is very unlucky as you will soon see a weight increase when you come off of the fad diet and resume your earlier habits. As you have reset your metabolic rate this fat is the much harder to lose the next time around.

Finally I would just like to say if you have been like me and ignored this advice above hope is not out!

It is possible to increase your metabolic resting rate once again it just takes time and patience.

I have started my journey to a healthier fitter future I hope there are some others out there joining me and proving the experts of todays nutrition and health right in their research.

How Many Calories Should I Eat In a Day to Lose Weight

Just How Many Calories Should I Eat In a Day to Lose Weight?

Many people wonder how many calories should I eat in a day to lose weight. It is a simple question, but there is more to the answer than a simple number. The main goal is to lose some weight and while diets and exercise might not be exciting in our minds, everyone has a different reason for going through the actual process.

There are different ways people approach this as well. In some cases, people attempt to only change the exercises they do, but that doesn't remain very effective. In most cases, your diet needs to change to ensure the maximum amount of weight loss. This doesn't mean that it isn't important for you to exercise. Instead, it means that both are required to help you lose weight and get the most out of your life.

With that in mind, you need to understand that every food you consume will have a calorie value attached to it. Calories when they are in excess of what we need to survive are stored in our body and begin leading to weight gain. When we consume enough of these calories, we face obesity and the issues that come along with this as well.

Everyone Is A Little Different

Since we are all different, our demands for calories are different as well. Because we have different genetics and other factors in our bodies, it is impossible to define everyone in the world to a single set of calorie restrictions. There is, however, a general spread of calories that is considered acceptable for people to consume and will generally help you to reach an ideal weight over time. For men, you are looking at a calorie intake of between 2,000 and 2,500 each day. Women in turn should look at 1,500 to 2,400 for their daily needs. When you go above these maximums, you begin to see the weight begin to build up.

Now, it is important that you look at how many calories are in the average pound of fat in your body. Most people will claim you need to burn 3,500 calories to remove a single pound. Keeping that in mind, you need to realize it doesn't mean reducing your intake by that much each week. Instead, you need to actually burn those calories through physical exercise. Essentially, this is 3,500 calories burned above your daily physical needs. So for a single pound of weight to be lost during the course of a week, you need to burn 500 calories each day.

When you are a heavier person, you will use more calories to work out then you are lighter. This is why many people begin to lose weight quickly at the start of their diet, then slow down as it progresses. Just don't let that information discourage you. The more physically fit you become, the more calories you in turn burn when you aren't doing much at all.

As we mentioned different people will have different calorie requirements as well. Take for example a man who does little to no exercise that is in his 20's. This individual will need about 2,400 calories daily to maintain, women on the other hand will need about 2,000. In turn, if they are heavily active, the calorie requirements for their body will greatly increase as the demand for more energy is there. Just keep in mind that when you are dieting, you should never allow your calorie intake to go below 1,200 calories in a single day. This is the bare minimum you can safely eat and still lose weight.

Men Vs Women

Here's a simple formula that will help you to determine what your calorie needs will be on a daily a basis. Remember, you will need to reduce this need to begin losing weight. First, we will look at men. Begin the process by pulling your calculator out. Then add the following up. You will need 66 base calories and then add it to your weight times 6.3. You then add this total to your height broken down into inches and multiplied by 12.9. When that is done, subtract your age multiplied by 6.8 and you will have your calorie requirements.

Women in turn will be very different. They will begin with a base of 655 and then multiply their weight by 4.3 Their height is then multiplied by only 4.7 and then their age times 4.7 is removed from the total. When you follow this guideline, you will understand a more direct calorie requirement to you based on your body and not on industry standards. .

Adding Balance

While you are going through the process of cutting out calories, take a moment to look over the things you currently eat that you can live without. It might be a sugar-filled soda that adds 120 calories to your day or that batch of French fries at lunch. With a number of different options, you will begin to see that your life offers you a number of places to remove calories without having to go on a specific diet.

But there are foods you might need to add to balance out you intake and give you more nutrients than calories. These foods include green leafy vegetables, tomatoes and fruits that are low in sugar. In addition, you will need to increase your protein intake during this time as well. This increase will burn off more calories and have you feeling better at the same time.

Finally, the most important thing you need to consider is that you need as many calories each day as it takes you to remain healthy and happy. This number can change from person to person and you need to find the healthy balance for you as an individual. If you do this, you will find that you do have a shot at not only feeling better about how you look, but how you feel as well. So take a moment and look at your life and determine how many calories you need to remove personally to lose weight.

How to be more successful

Lorii Myers Thinks...

TUNA, TUNA OR TUNA

The No Excuses Project

An important part of why I can lose weight quickly is that I block out food cravings.
I tend to start out by getting really focused by building a great workout plan that's fun and versatile. Then as I know that seeing results quickly will keep my focus level at an optimal level, I add in a strict calorie reduced healthy diet.
I tend to think of food as fuel at this point. As such clean fuel will get results the fastest.
Think of your body as a hot performance car -- would you buy anything less than the best premium fuel on the market for it?
I am big on getting results! So for me it’s the tried and true basics -- the olive oil, the fish and poultry, veg. and fruits from fresh and no juices... things like pickles and 5 cal. Jell-O are FREE meaning next to no calories!
Sometimes the tuna, tuna or tuna gets a bit boring but the results... are still worth it.
The biggest loser cookbook above promises results where your "fuel" is a little more interesting... have you seen it? Do you agree?
What is your favorite lose-weight fuel?
BENCHMARKING BY INCHES

The No Excuses Project

At the beginning of the No Excuses Project I took some time to set goals and did my usual beginning routine -- you know -- you take the before pic and jot down your weight and measurements at different points on your body -- those places where you either want to gain or lose and get psyched up.
Now at the end of week three, I have lost four pounds which leaves me with nine more to go. My weight loss really wasn't my top priority -- it was more about making healthy choices and getting in shape.
But this morning I took my measurements and split them into two categories. Cat. One for places where I want to lose inches and Cat. Two for places where I want gain inches. Then I compared my beginning inches to my inches from today and I have seen more improvement here than in my overall weight loss. YAY!!!
The best part of my Benchmarking by Inches strategy is that I plan to reward myself by buying some new clothes for the spring. I'm thinking short sexy dresses and some sleek new golf wear.
What is your benchmarking strategy and is it working?


INSTANT EXCUSE BALL

No Excuses Project

I stumbled on this INSTANT EXCUSE BALL the other day. It's probably the opposite of my No Excuses project but it looks kinda funny. I read some of the reviews... might buy it...
I started to wonder if I had a ball like this and combated an excuse a day would I possibly end up tackling all the possible excuses in the course of a year?
Interesting, most of my friends don't use excuses -- being pretty direct they seem to just come out and tell it like it is -- in a nice way that is.
Yet there are a lot of excuses out there and sometimes we use them without even realizing it. These are the one that I am interested in.
I am anxious to hear your top excuses as I am compiling a top ten list!


OOOPS

No Excuses Project
I fell off... it was the weekend. I ate too much, had some cocktails and didn't work out!
I even gained back a half a pound.
We had a reunion with our BVI sailing buddies and you know what? It was worth it. We had a lot of fun and I will just work out harder this week to make it up!
Still gotta have a life!WHAT DID YOU LEARN TODAY

The No Excuses Project

WRITERS' BLOG!
A play on words! Writers' Block -- Writers' Blog!
I haven't hit this yet but it's early for me. I still have way too much to say. lol
Here is a kewl observation though...
Say you see people that you haven't seen for a while and you talk... blah, blah, blah!
Now-- what do you talk about? Is it new interesting STUFF? or the same old, same old -- regurgitated?
Now I'm not only talking about who you are talking to..... no, I'm talking about you to. What are you talking about?
I talk to a lot of different people in the course of a day. Quite often something of interest from those conversations ends up in my blog.
Am I saying that in order to not get writers' block you need to have interesting friends and colleagues and that you yourself need to be interesting... or at least interested?
Yep! Pretty much!
When I was a kid I would rush home from school and mom would say, "What did you learn today?" Thinking back...it's a great question!
So here goes, wait for it.... wait for it.....
What did you learn today? Oh Yeah, and make it interesting!
LOVE THY COMPETITOR??? !

The No Excuses Project
I have always worked in extremely competitive marketplaces where you watch your competitors and you watch your back. It does keep you sharp.
When I made the move to writing a few years back however I had to totally rethink the entire competitor concept. You see, a fellow author, writing in the same genre as you is usually more of an ally than competitor. There is a sense of camaraderie and well accepted belief that you are stronger together. I might say, "Hey, if you liked my book you will probably like this one too" when referring to another authors book.
As a manufacturer, distributor, or retailer I would never do such a thing... like say, "Hey, if you like my product you would probably like our competitors too....!"
Yeah, that would just not work!
Writing has been and continues to be a nice friendly break for me. I can reserve my competitive spirit for the golf course.
BY THE WAY, I'M DIGGING "MOJO" BY MARSHALL GOLDSMITH. HAVE YOU READ IT?


ABOUT MY NEW BOOK …. 3 OFF THE TEE: TARGETING SUCCESS – Pub date March 01, 2011

Lorii Myers thinks...: 3 Off the Tee: Targeting Success:

"In 3 Off the Tee: Targeting Success, the juxtaposition of business and personal success to the game of golf offers great appeal. ..."Lorii

HOW SOCIAL IS THE NETWORK?

No Excuses Project
Someone hacked into my face book account yesterday. They sent out a query from what appeared to be a friend which read:
Hey Lorii What’s up with you in this video. Pretty embarrassing! LOL
I of course thought... WHAT????
So, from a normal looking email notification -- I click on it -- then I'm asked for my login and password -- and then I, assuming that this is totally normal -- enter my login and password.
Of course I cannot open the video... as there is no "real" embarrassing video but "they" now have my login and password.
The next thing I know there are similar type questions going out to my friends that look like they are being sent out by me... YIKES!
Shortly thereafter I was contacted by Face book. Apparently suspicious access was gained by someone with an Ottawa based IP address and so I was prompted to change my password.
So I ask... how social is this network?
Check the "social" def below! Let the hackers comply!
Social definition, pertaining to, devoted to, or characterized by friendly companionship or relations: See more.dictionary.reference.com/browse/social - Cached - Similar
A little rant! Thanks to Face book for sorting this out so quickly.
As Face book is a big part of my social network of choice, I carry on -- cautiously.


ROMA, TO THE GYPSIES AND ALEX FOX

The No Excuses Project

My daughter and I travelled through Italy the summer of '04. In late July we were in Roma and the temperate rose well into the high 40s Celsius.
We strolled the streets in search of last minute treasures to bring home when a haunting melody wafted through the air.
The dense heat seemed to swallow the lingering music and cause it to echo in such a way that we could not find its origin.
As we wandered the busy streets, we listened carefully for a clue. I held my camera above the heads of the passers by recording the tune so I could play it on my guitar when we returned home.
Shortly thereafter we rounded the corner to see a young man with tussled hair and faded jeans leaning back against a wall in the upcoming intersection. He slowly played his sultry mysterious song on a battered electric guitar while a huge, white dog lay sleeping at his feet.
I continued to record his playing while my daughter and others dropped change in a basket at his side. At that point it was as though time stood still.
Three years later I was in Fort Lauderdale with friends when we heard a man playing classical guitar in a quaint Italian Restaurant by the sea. His name was Alex Fox.
The restaurant was full but we along with the gathering crowd stood huddled together in awe.
Interestingly, his third song was a song he had written called "To the Gypsies." I knew it immediately as the song that had captured all my senses in Roma. I felt a sudden reminiscent chill as I listened. In my mind, I was back standing on that busy city street entranced and living in the moment.
It's amazing when music mentally transports you back to a different place or time. It's the crispness and intensity of the memory that overwhelms.
Is there a song that is special to you -- one that transports you back in time?


BRICKS AND MORTAR

The No Excuses Project

The continuing migration away from the physical structure of offices is overwhelming. Once contained within the "bricks and mortar" of industrialization, we are now existing happily productive at the end of a coaxial cable.
Further, we book our trips online -- have you noticed that most travel shops have disappeared?
We download our music -- most music shops have disappeared.
We rent our movies online -- most movie rental shops have disappeared.
We now, at an ever increasing rate download our books -- and our bookstores are striving to maintain a strong online presence while diversifying their in-store product breadth.
Where "bricks and mortar" were once the big plus on the balance sheet, today their elimination is often the means to reduce overhead, resulting in increased price competitiveness, and then increased profitability.
Is the increasing migration away from the "bricks and mortar" costs of owning and maintaining "buildings" of all types the plumb line to a survival strategy that works in the new competitive world as we now know it?


THE BIG PUSH

The No Excuses Project
Pro-activity – that’s the big "push."
It’s the conscious decision made to initiate preventative OR positive change.
Preventative change: It’s getting in shape because you want to, not because your lack of attention got the "best of you" and now you are falling in and out of shock as your doctor describes your self-induced health risks. It’s a preventer – you keep the odds in your favor.
OR
Positive change: It's making changes to make your life positively better.
I have an undying confidence -- I think I can do anything! Where does that come from?
If I want to do something, I think about the gap between where I am now and where I want to be and do it. I see the challenge and immediately push to come up with my best plan to get there. I push and I push hard!
My desires take priority.
The big "push" as I think of it also works as an excuse blocker. As we are targeting excuses in this project, let’s think of them as being filtered into three main categories: FEAR, LAZINESS, & STUFF YOU JUST DON'T WANT TO DO.
Fear: This usually stems from a fear of failure, rejection, or loss.
Laziness: This results from you making the decision that the quest is too much for you.
And.... Stuff you just don't want to do: You know, the stuff that could be done but you have no interest in doing it!
To be clear, do you have to do everything? Maybe you just need to prioritize what you want to do, will do and then go for it. Then "PUSH" IT REAL HARRRRRRRRD!
What are you going to do this year? What it your big push?


ONE OFFS AND FIRSTS

The No Excuses Project

I am notorious for doing things once. Some things are just better the first time around... period.
Let me explain -- say I decide to have a theme party -- we have a riot and its suggested I have the party again next year... nuh uh, I'm only doing it once.
I had a cottage party at the house one year in February. It was freezing cold outside but everyone came dressed in shorts, tees, sunglasses and flip-flops.
We played our typical cottage music, ate our typical cottage apps, and mingled in true cottage fashion. We had a fire in place of the fire pit and organized a pool tournament to take the place of playing beach volleyball and horseshoes -- a great night. BUT we only did it once.
I for some reason get totally into one-offs. I think it's because it's fresh. Your doing something for the first time and you get to be creative. There are just too many kewl things to do.
I guess the bottom line for me is... How can I possibly do everything if I started doing a bunch of things twice?What is your favorite one-off?


GREAT SAYINGS ARE NOTEWORTHY AND OFTEN BOOK WORTHY

The No Excuses Project

"I was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck: I've been pissed off ever since." Richard Pimentel (The book - Music Within)
Great sayings are noteworthy and often book worthy. If when heard, a great saying steals your attention -- you will be left wanting more. If when written, a great saying jumps off the page and smacks you upside the head, you will be filled with a sense of anticipation forced to read more hoping to interpret and fully comprehend the full meaning as it was intended.
A few words carefully positioned can make us ponder, question, and experience a gamut of emotions. They can stimulate and motivate us beyond what we ever thought possible.
I think my favorite sayings are those that make me think "WHAT?" like the one above -- the ones that can be interpreted in different ways and therefore allow me to interpret them in my own way!
What is your favorite saying?


BARBELL, BOOK OR BOTH

The No Excuses Project

People are complex and diverse beings and the mind is an amazing and powerful tool that needs to be "worked." Although the brain is not a muscle, you need to train it as if it is. Think of building and flexing the brain like a muscle in order to elevate your level of knowledge, awareness, and brilliance. It is often said when referring to muscle mass, that you have to use it or lose it! The brain is no different.
Today there is a wealth of research supporting the idea that you can take steps to stimulate and protect your mind. It all stems from education. It starts when you are very young, snuggled in bed, listening to a story read by a parent or sibling, but continues well into your senior years when challenging your gray matter on a regular basis can actually mitigate the impact of aging and its effect on your thought processes.
Exercise with barbell, book, or both
It’s never too late to pick up a barbell, book or both!
The "barbell" really represents any sort of physical activity. Maintaining good memory is directly linked to a maintaining a healthy body. You need to make a conscious effort to prevent exposure to the ill effects of the symptoms of heart disease, diabetes, and high-fat, poor health diets.
The "book", represents any form of mental activity and exercise; anything that challenges you and you enjoy! Tackle a crossword puzzle, play a game of scrabble, learn a new language, or read a book. Get that brain stimulated and working.
Now, gang "barbell" and "book" together and see what happens; a wealth of mental health and acuity evolves. New research strongly suggests mental and physical exercise of this nature may assist in the protection against or even prevention of mental disease such as Alzheimer's disease. It’s hard not to want to jump in with both feet and believe. The merits by far out-weigh any risk and you become healthier, physically and mentally. Bonus!
Okay, keeping in mind that we need to maintain a healthy brain and that entails "working it"; you need to increase your intellectual activity through formal and informal education which is tantamount to intellectual brilliance. And you have to take the brain-muscle analogy to heart as physical exercise and eating right helps the brain function efficiently.
It's win-win!
What's your favorite form of mental exercise?



SKIN TIGHTENING AND LUMINOSITY

The No Excuses Project

Have you heard of skin tightening and luminosity. I have heard of it time and time again with respect to body building. It's said to be achieved by following the combination of an intense physical work-out and an extremely clean diet as often used leading up to competition.
To me it sounds like the name for a $500.00 two ounce cream marketed to women all over the planet frantic to banish horrifying facial lines and imperfections.
Yet, I know first hand that diet, vitamins, and exercise can make a dramatic change in your appearance. A few years back I bought a book called "Shed 10 Years in 10 Weeks" by Julian Whitaker, M.D. and Carol Colman. I read the book twice and then created a regime using their recommendations that suited me personally. The book allows for changes to be made week by week for ten weeks but I was so excited to get going that I made all the changes in week one and continued well beyond the tenth week.
A few months later, I had lost about ten pounds and felt great but there was way more to it. I had a physical where there results were outstanding, I had people asking me what I was doing differently and here's the thing -- you could see a huge difference in the new growth of my finger nails and hair. It was easy to see the physical line of change separating the before and after.
I buy this book over and over again. I always seem to end up telling someone about it and then give them my copy and buy it again.
I think this book is a great start -- but skin tightening and luminosity is the destination.
Figuring out the middle part? Well that's the challenge and very much part of the No Excuses project for me. It's where the project really gets exciting.
Your thoughts?


A STIFF ONE

The No Excuses Project

Well it's the end of week one and I can feel the exercise effects now -- I'm stiff -- mostly my legs. That hour and a half walk around the lake in fresh snow was a workout for sure.
I have been doing a little bit of everything this week. My goal was to watch my fuel intake and get the exercise hours in -- my routine will develop as I go.
I like to be as flexible as possible with exercise because I want to enjoy it. I want to achieve my goals but I still want to have a life. A lot of my work life is regimented, predictable, and hectic. So I choose to look at exercise as an escape -- I get to ditch details and deadlines for activity and spontaneity -- ironically I'm stiffened at work from tension and stress and then stiffened at home from working out. What?
Well the benefits are well worth it -- you feel strong, alive, and invigorated. Week two promises to level things out on the stiffness meter and it's time to flip through my favorite mags -- Oxygen and Men's Fitness and get totally psyched.
What is your pick when it comes to motivational fitness mags? What get you cranked up?


MIND ALTERING

The No Excuses Project
The treadmill offers a great "time-out" luxury for those of us that live hectic lives. You jump on the treadmill -- which is great cardio -- so the time-out aspect is easy to justify because you are doing something good for yourself -- and within seconds, you are in a groove. You can throw your mind in neutral and let your thoughts wander...Ahhhhh!
You can listen to the drone of the treadmill and the slap of your feet. Slap, slap, slap.
Or you can drown out the slapping with music.
Or you can pop a DVD into the player and escape into a movie like I did yesterday.
Last year I had bought a bunch of DVDs on sale and never got around to watching any of them so I flipped through them and found one called Music Within. It's the true story of Richard Pimentel starring Ron Livingston. The caption under the title reads "anyone can change the world."
Pimentel’s' calling in life: helping people with disabilities. He prompted people to alter how they thought about people with disabilities -- all disabilities. I was blown away by the story. Honestly, if you want to see how positive change can impact the world, check this movie out.
Another explosive message from the movie was not to accept excuses. Quite brilliant.
Pimentel would not accept being held back because of his disability but moreover he would tolerate others trying to hold him back. So he set out to change their minds and did!
My hour on the treadmill was over before I knew it -- it was a great "time-out" and a heartfelt blast of inspiration.
What do you do during your treadmill travel -- watch movies? -- listen to music?


RANDOM APPS ON RACLETTE

The No Excuses Project

We had a crazy Winter Holiday Season this year. It seems like everyone we know had either a Christmas party, a Pre-New Years Party, or a New Years Party. There were even After Parties. Very kewl.
New Years Eve however stands out in my mind. We had an intimate quiet dinner with close friends just outside of town. Their house sits high on a hill overlooking a valley. Secluded and surrounded by tall snow laden trees it was a perfect backdrop for an amazing night.
They have a Muskoka room. Have you seen these? It's a separate room actually attached to the house but you have to go outside and walk down a short path to enter -- it's like having your cottage a few steps away from your house.
Once inside, the walls of glass and floor to ceiling fireplace set the tone -- relaxation -- a great place to chill out.
So, here we are, on New Years Eve, sipping wine by the fire, relaxing, and then our friends bring in a Raclette to cook some appetizers. I had seen these in Banff years ago and had gone out trying to buy one but couldn't find them anywhere. Now they appear to be everywhere. A Raclette is a compact indoor grill -- fondue alternate -- no messy oil and it’s hot in seconds!
We had scallops, shrimp, cheeses, and assorted thinly sliced colorful vegetables accompanied by some fine bottles of wine and it was great.
I, of course knowing that I was to start my "No Excuses" fitness regime soon, was totally intrigued with the Raclette and headed out to buy one on Boxing Day. A few days later my husband and I cooked an amazing Raclette meal -- tuna, calamari, veg., etc. -- very healthy. And then last night we had friends come to visit from Toronto and they cooked a feast on the Raclette. Again, very healthy!
Did you catch that? -- our friends came to visit and they made dinner. Pretty great friends I think! lol
Anyway, to wrap up here, Raclettes are inexpensive, quick, and fun. Even when counting calories like I am right now, you can throw together a healthy low cal meal in minutes!
Looking for the best Raclette App! Comment and share!!!


SKINNY KID SYNDRONE

The No Excuses Project
I was always a skinny kid growing up and I had a barrage of nicknames... Beanpole, Stick, Whip!
As a kid, I was tall for my age and I could run fast. I think sometimes being able to run fast is mandatory when you have two older brothers as I did.
In public school I played soccer and skated in my older brothers’ skates. In middle school I played volleyball, and I loved sprinting, high hurdles, and long jump. Later, in high school I ran track for a bit and used to row our around in our old aluminum fishing boat at the cottage for hours.
It wasn't until I started college at seventeen that it finally dawned on me just how scrawny I was. And that, I didn't like it. So I took up lifting weights -- not like serious body building -- I just wanted to build some muscle and in my mind at the time -- look normal!
Well, blast forward and as the years pass I go through a series of full on intensive get-in-shape regimens, not unlike this one, and get in shape. I'm talking about commitments that lasted well over a year where I worked out four to six hours a week. It worked for me -- whenever my weight started to rise I would put my brakes on and pay attention.
But then a few more years passed and imagine my dilemma when one day after a few months of raw denial, stretchy skinny jeans (yeah go figure) and a heaping pile of excuses, the skinny kid in me noticed that she was fraying the thigh and crotchal area of her "skinny pants."
In absolute horror I screamed,"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Can this happen to a skinny kid? It just seems so wrong!!!
Thus I am on the No Excuses get-in-shape plan now! Am I motivated? I'm a-frayed so!
When do you put your brakes on? You know that point when you think... Woooooooo... It's time!


WHY TAE BO

The No Excuses Project
One of my exercises of choice in this project is Tae Bo with Billy Blanks.
Why you ask? It's fast paced, there is a lot of flexibility training for your core, it's intense and challenging, and there are no squats. Squats over the years have left me with knees that emit a high pitched ear piercing crunching sound. It's so loud that people look at me like I need oiling. Geesh!
As one of my "No Excuses" project objectives outside of losing weight is increasing my club head speed in my golf swing, I am using Tae Bo to increase my core flex. Then by adding weight lifting today, I am focusing on my biceps, triceps, lats, and abs to increase my upper strength. That's the plan!
Has anyone out there tried Tae Bo? What is your favorite cardio exercise?BODY FAT %

The No Excuses Project

My original plan included a goal of reducing my body fat percentage to less than 10 percent. I have done this before. I got as low as 8 percent a few years back but it took an extreme diet combined with six hours of cardio and weights a week for an entire year. I met with a personal trainer once a month and my body fat was calculated using calipers strategically placed all over my body.
Last night I decided that I had better find simple mathematical way to determine my body fat percentage as I am not going to a gym and I am not using a personal trainer. Not at this point anyway.
Right now it's all me ... in the basement with exercise DVDs, a treadmill, and weights. Oh, and most importantly......... NO EXCUSES!
So after sleuthing the net for an hour and testing out the many online calculators I found that the two main calculators gave two very opposite results. One indicated that my body fat percentage was 29.59 % and the other 35.58.
Okay, okay, now before you break up laughing at me attempting to hit the less than 10% mark let me also add that using the same calculators to achieve my goal I would have to weigh in at 97 and 77 pounds respectively. Hmmm .... I'm 5'4'' and uuuuhhh that's not gonna work. I'm shooting for buff, stealth, strong, and ripped.
So I am still up in the air on this one. Anyone have any ideas? I would really love an easy to calculate, useful formula.
This is a work in process! Keep thinking!!! What do you do to gauge your fitness successes?


BMR

The No Excuses Project begins.

I am using my BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) to calculate my daily caloric intake for week one. (This will be reasonably accurate for most of us middle of the road types and is not recommended if you are extremely buff or extremely overweight).
The BMR calculates the volume of calories your body would burn if you stayed in bed all day. By using my BMR as my total calories consumed daily, I will jump-start my diet in week one.
Here is the calculation:
Women: 655 + (4.35 x Weight in Pounds) + (4.7 x Height in Inches) - (4.7 x Age in Years) = BMR
Men: 66 + (6.23 x Weight in Pounds) + (12.7 x Height in Inches) - (6.8 x Age in Years) = BMR


LOOKING AT 2011

The No Excuses Project

I have been thinking about excuses for some time now. They are like menacing demons that creep into our lives without us knowing. They are roadblocks, white lies to our-selves, and a reason to set the bar lower, self-justification for achieving less.

I looked up the definition, which read: an excuse is an effort to explain a fault or an offense in the hope of being forgiven or understood. Hmmm… Why do we need to be forgiven? Are we misunderstood?

I would guess that if I need to be forgiven for something, I should apologize.

If I need to be understood, perhaps I should explain myself better.

If I am making excuses on the other hand, maybe I need a swift kick in the ass!

There we go. We’re on track now. We are on track to chase down those excuses we have been harboring and eradicate them! Game on!

In book three "3 Off the Tee: NO EXCUSES", I am going to walk you through a model that will let you identify and crush excuses. I am going to challenge you to work through this model with me.

After taking a poll of peoples' top ten excuses for not achieving their goals – failure to lose weight, get in shape, or get healthy has consistently hit the top of the list. So, that’s where we are going to start. We, you and me - we are now on the same team.

Are you up for a fitness challenge?

I am taking an active role in transforming myself into the best shape of my life by the 19th hole. There will be no lip service. I’m doing it!

If you are willing to set aside your excuses now – great, let’s go! If you need help to get psyched up, then put your protective headgear on and continue to the 1st hole. We will get ramped up together, build a game plan and get fit.

You will not only be in shape at the end, you will know how to easily recognize, manage and obliterate excuses – all excuses – not only those interfering with your fitness track.

So, why do I use golf in my books? To me golf is a great representation of both healthy competition and dedication. It’s a head game and a physical game. One without the other just doesn’t work. It’s all or nothing.

Hey ... that’s life too!

We are nearing the end of 10 and it has been a challenging year to say the least.

TIC TOC, 10 AND THE MOTHERS OF REINVENTION

10 in my mind will long be remembered as the year of reinvention: Everyone trying to reinvent themselves in order to survive the wrath of the recession. Yes recession -- I said it.


Now I know the recession is supposed to be over BUT everyone I talk to seems to concur that the recession and its effects are lingering. What was once a bad month in sales is now a good month... considering.


The upside though is there has been a positive change in climate. We are becoming more ingenuous in our approach: This is working -- this isn't -- change it!


Many of my colleagues have rekindled long forgotten passions, reworked them, and then incorporated them into a new viable direction in their lives and careers. They are cultivating fresh ideas and creating new opportunities.


I am anxious to see what 11 will bring. I am optimistically ready for a great year having done some reinventing myself.

NYR READY FOR 2011 – I AM COMMITTED

New Years Resolution


Lose 10 pounds

Reduce Body Fat % to less than 10%

Exercise program: Tae Bo, Weights, Treadmill (4hrs/wk min)

Join Golf Lab and increase club head speed by 30%

Finalize the perfect balance of vitamins and diet

Obliterate all excuses!

What's your res?

NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS FOR 2011

I have been thinking about New Year’s Resolutions and why they don't usually work. New Year / New You resolutions made over a cocktail while in party mode are generally doomed from day one.
I think that unless you are totally committed to your resolution, it's too easy to come up with a good excuse for why you're not going to do it!
(I tried to get at this last week but I was too busy with Christmas and all! -- Excuse No. 1 lol)
So I am going to deliberately come up with a resolution now - before New Years. I am going to commit to it now and simply announce it on New Year’s Eve. No excuses for me!

THE RIGHT ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING!


So what is the right attitude and what does having the right attitude mean?
Does it revolve around being optimistic and inquisitive? How about confident, inspired and challenged? Perhaps it means that you readily recognize opportunity because you pay attention -- you know when the right opportunity comes your way, you will be ready!
I think the right attitude is a combination of confidence, determination, and guts. It’s a deciding factor in how you live your life. To me it’s having the impetus to step up and into challenge, having an insatiable zest for life, and being passionate about your dreams and expectations.
What does the right attitude mean to you?

In 3 Off the Tee: Targeting Success, the juxtaposition of business and personal success to the game of golf offers great appeal. Golf is the business game of choice and weaving references of the game throughout the book commands attention all on its own. In this respect Targeting Success is unique in its "healthy competition, sports oriented approach" to achieving success.


Although geared toward a business audience, the book teaches lessons of leadership, communication, teamwork and positive change - skills that, arguably, anyone can benefit from mastering. In today’s tough market, developing and maintaining a positive business attitude has never been more crucial.


ISBN: 9780986790003 Available soon in E-book format.
Publication Date: March 01, 2011

how to lose weight now

Lose weight quickly safely!
The ideal weight is when you feel good. Do you know that every act of everyday life can become effective for slimming smoothly and safely. The impact of motion on weight is very important hence the interest to choose and practice one or more physical. Explore our Lean.
 
The caloric restriction is not the only solution for weight loss. It is not necessary to spend his life in a sports club. It is high time to give you the means to lose weight by balancing efficiency and fun that is to say, a healthy physical activity, consistent with a balanced diet.
To lose weight, no need to be champion!To lose weight, endurance course. There's no need to sprint, to aim for speed records for weight loss. It is a mistake, you do not burn fat. It is therefore advisable to carry out regular physical activity such enduring. You're spoiled for choice: bicycle, walking, jogging, hiking, swimming and treadmill. Spread the welfare effort
Choose the physical activity of your choice and set the schedule in advance to be a part of planning your week. At this point, you've already a big step. Here is a method that suits both of apartment rowing, cycling, jogging and treadmill running:For a month at a rate of three times per week:
Start with 25 minutes to ensure that your heart beats between 60 and 70% of your theoretical maximum heart rate (220 - your age).
For a young woman of 30 years: 220 - 30 = 190 x 70 100 = 133. Your target area of work is 133 beats per minute, you should not go beyond. (Use a cardio frequency meter).
Find the right pace:
The intensity of effort should be neither too low nor too high. The rhythm is regular, sustained and moderate without occurrence of fatigue. After a month of training, your body has been gradually accustomed to the effort, increase by 5 minutes each week your sessions.
In the long term goal is to reach 45 minutes of endurance even more. It is better to practice one hour on a pace moderate 20 minutes on a fast pace. It's better for the line and for the heart. You improve your skills and respiratory and cardiovascular disease. Rediscover the pleasure of moving during the day Move does not mean agitated, exhausted. And you just better move. Walk to and from work. For example, exit a subway station or bus stop before your workplace and the same thing for the return. This is not sport, yet a walk repeatedly accelerates weight loss. Boude lifts when you have 3 to 4 floors to climb, do not take the escalators. In short, more opportunities to walk more.
To maximize the effects watch your diet
Find a healthy diet: this is not a diet, quite the contrary, it is a normal diet, balanced, moderate that gives pleasure, therefore the opposite of frustration. Eat better without nutritional imbalance. We can not deny everything, then keep your favorite foods but knowing moderate their consumption. Do not rush meals.
Objective look, success guaranteed!
The fat will melt for the muscles, which will improve your appearance. After some time, you get better in your clothes. You can complete this program using slimming slimming creams that will maximize your efforts. But let's be clear, only the combination of these tools anti-grease and anti-capitons come out of your kilos rebels.

How To Lose Weight Quickly Forever

For a lot of people, there is a lifelong struggle with weight ahead of them unless they change something soon. How to lose weight seems to be a skill that most people are lacking, and it's tempting just to take the first piece of advice you fall upon. But taking the time to do a little research can be well worth it.


Weight loss does not occur weekly in the double digits unless you are two hundred pounds overweight and on a starvation diet. We all wish we could lose weight as fast as the contestants on the reality shows do, but that probably isn't either healthy or effective in the long term. Being realistic about how long a diet will take can help alleviate the pressure you might otherwise put on yourself.


Diets are not one size fits all. They are not even one size fits most. The factors that go into creating a diet are what works for someone else-- someone who is not you. And these factors may work for you, or they may not. But if they don't, that doesn't mean you've failed at dieting-- it means you haven't picked the right one.


Trying to stick with a diet plan you can't stand is a recipe for disaster. There are literally thousands of them out there-- keep looking until you find one you think you can tolerate. And think long term-- plan to be on the diet for at least a year if you've got thirty pounds to lose, longer if you've got more.


Nobody who doesn't exercise actually likes to. People who like to exercise are already doing so, and that leaves the rest of the people who don't want to and don't. But exercise needs to be part of your effort, and you should spend some time thinking about which exercise activities you don't find intolerable. Consider any ways that those better-than-intolerable exercises can be improved, too.


Choose a set time to exercise during. If you fail to schedule your exercise time, chances are good you will find yourself putting it off until you no longer have time. If you have no excuses for not doing it, hopefully you can stop that kind of procrastination in its tracks.


Don't make anything so drastic that you can't stick with it. It's tempting to tell yourself that if you just manage to maintain this drastic plan for three weeks, you'll lose more than you would in three months otherwise, but if you can't stick with it, you won't lose anything. Trying to eat tiny amounts of food, or exercise for hours per day are bad ideas. You won't be able to maintain your plan, and you'll ultimately fail.


Learning how to lose weight fast is a process, not a single event. And it's definitely more akin to a marathon than a sprint. If you get off the couch and get started, doing a little bit more each day, you better your chances of succeeding immensely. Just remember-- this is one case where if you fall off the horse, you really do want to get back on, as many times as it takes. You haven't failed until you've stopped trying.

How To Lose Weight Quick

How To Lose Weight Quick with Your Coach

I lost another pound yesterday. That makes a total of 4 pounds in two weeks, that's quick enough for me.

The thing is this, if you want to keep the weight off you have to get into a routine of eating healthy meals, exercising your body and strenthening your mind. This can be very ejoyable, provided you..............

Make yourself tasty, healthy meals and ensure that you have enough food to NOT get hungry all the time. Hunger is a way of your body telling you, "I think I need more food." Your body may not be right, it may just be telling you that isn't getting as much as it is used to having, which may be more than it needs.

Exercise does not have to be a pain in the butt. You don't have to go to a gym if, like me, you find gyms really boring and the travel to and fro a real time-waster. I have invented some exercises especially for you and me. You can see a preview on this YouTube video Desk Exercises to Lose Weight.

I believe that one of the main reasons why I find it relatively easy to lose weight is that I have the discipline and strength of ming (willpower) that many other people haven't developed. Because I am a professional Performance Coach, I have worked on my personal development using programs like Magic Hats.

To find out more please click on the links below.

How to Fit More Fiber Into Your Diet

Fiber: The What, Why, and How

Fiber - a dietary component most often associated with the relief of constipation. But what is fiber, really? What other health benefits does a high-fiber diet provide? What makes it so good for you? And how can you fit more of it into your diet, without subsisting on bran flakes and Metamucil?

What it is

Fiber is comprised of all the parts of plant foods that your body cannot digest. There are two categories of dietary fiber: soluble (those that are able to be absorbed in water) and insoluble (those that are not).
Why you need it

Insoluble fiber is what bulks up your stool, increasing the ease and speed of passage of digestive material through your colon. Everyone needs insoluble fiber in their diet, but it can be especially helpful for those with constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, or irregular stools.

Soluble fiber dissolves in water to form a gelatinous substance that can lower blood cholesterol and glucose levels, making it essential in the prevention of heart disease and diabetes.

In addition, fiber is known to make you feel fuller longer, making it an ideal tool for those who wish to lose weight. Foods high in fiber also take longer to chew, giving your body more time to register what you have eaten, and send the signal back to your brain that you are satiated.
How to get it

The National Academy of Sciences\' Institute of Medicine recommends that adult males under 50 consume 38 grams of fiber a day (men 50+ should eat around 30 grams daily), and adult women should include about 25 grams (for 50+: 21 grams) in their diet. That may sound like a lot on its own, but there are some simple ways to ensure you are getting your fair share of fiber.
Choose whole-grain breads and pasta over processed products.
Eat more of your fruits and vegetables raw, leaving the skin on whenever possible.
Replace juices with whole fruit to feel fuller and get more nutrition for the same number of calories.
Snack on nuts instead of chips; the healthy omega-3 fatty acids will help you feel full, with the added benefit of fiber.


Below, I have included a table of a few high-fiber foods, as well as the Mayo Clinic\'s tips for including more fiber in your diet. Work them into your daily routine. Start slowly; a sudden change in fiber intake can cause intestinal gas. But once you see how easy it is to do, you\'ll no longer have to think about it. And your body will thank you. I promise.

Tips From the Mayo Clinic

The Mayo Clinic (www.mayoclinic.com) offers these tips for fitting more fiber into your daily routine:

Start your day with a high-fiber breakfast cereal - 5 or more grams of fiber per serving. Opt for cereals with "bran" or "fiber" in the name. Or add a few tablespoons of unprocessed wheat bran to your favorite cereal.

Add crushed bran cereal or unprocessed wheat bran to baked products such as meatloaf, breads, muffins, casseroles, cakes and cookies. You can also use bran products as a crunchy topping for casseroles, salads or cooked vegetables.
Switch to whole-grain breads. These breads list whole wheat, whole-wheat flour or another whole grain as the first ingredient on the label. Look for a brand with at least 2 grams of dietary fiber per serving.
Substitute whole-grain flour for half or all of the white flour when baking bread. Whole-grain flour is heavier than white flour. In yeast breads, use a bit more yeast or let the dough rise longer. When using baking powder, increase it by 1 teaspoon for every 3 cups of whole-grain flour.
Eat more whole grains and whole-grain products. Experiment with brown rice, barley, whole-wheat pasta and bulgur.
Take advantage of ready-to-use vegetables. Mix chopped frozen broccoli into prepared spaghetti sauce. Snack on baby carrots.
Eat more beans, peas and lentils. Add kidney beans to canned soup or a green salad. Or make nachos with refried black beans, baked tortilla chips and salsa.
Eat fruit at every meal. Apples, bananas, oranges, pears and berries are good sources of fiber.
Make snacks count. Fresh and dried fruit, raw vegetables, and low-fat popcorn and whole-grain crackers are all good choices.

How To Get Rid Of Belly Fat

If you have made a firm resolution to lose weight and get fit this year you may be looking for some good tips and ideas on how to get rid of belly fat and drop a few pounds. It is difficult for some people to lose and weight and even more difficult to keep it off. While being overweight is not healthy, belly fat is very unsafe for your health.

When doctors are asked how to get rid of belly fat most of them will tell you eat a healthy diet, limit your calories consumption, and get plenty of exercise. Walking is one of the best ways to reduce belly fat but it must be done consistently. Starvation diets are not the way to go. Even though you may be tempted to drastically reduce your calorie intake in an attempt to lose weight, resist the temptation. Cutting calories severely will not help your efforts since your body will think it is starving. When your body feels that it is starving, it will go into survival mode and slow the metabolism in order to hold onto every possible calorie. While calorie restriction is not necessarily the way to go, calorie shifting can result in losing as much as nine pounds every eleven days.

By learning to eat specific types of foods at certain times in the right order, you can discover how to get rid of belly fat and lose weight quickly. There is no time like the present to get started on an effective weight loss plan. Don’t wait until next month or next week. By starting a calorie shifting diet plan, you could be close to ten pounds lighter in less than two weeks.

You could be in your skinny jeans in no time at all. By following a plan that outlines the calorie shifting method, you will be required to eat more than three times a day. While that may seem like a lot of eating when you are trying to lose weight, remember that you are eating very specific types of foods at specific times in a certain order that will help you melt pounds off your body. You will learn how to get rid of belly fat and be on your way to a slimmer and much healthier body.

Keep in mind that you need to make some considerable changes if you really want to lose weight and learn how to get rid of belly fat. If you keep doing the same thing, you are going to get the exact same results. You cannot wish your way thinner and you will not be able to take a miracle pill and wake up in the morning to a slim, trim, healthy body. But you can take the first step toward a slim figure by trying something you have never done before. Calorie shifting is an effective and simple way to lose weight once and for all.

Guaranteed weight loss solution

I will share with you the secret of losing weight. No selling, no scams, nothing for sale. My secret comes from long years of arduous research and is the conclusive finding of hundreds and thousands of medical professionals the World over.

Guaranteed weight loss without the need for any pills, potions, drugs or silly fad diets. No unrealistic exersise programs, no eating specaily prepared meals shipped to your door. The secret will be yours in just a few short sentences time.

This secret has been passed down through the ages. The Tibetan masters and Yogis knew this secret from ages back and taught it to a select few disciples. Slowly the word has spread and even now western medicine and science agrees with this simple yet effective program. And the best thing of all? – It is free. It may even save you money. Perhaps even thousands of dollars.

Weight loss programs

There are many people telling you they have the secret to losing weight, but none of them have the true answer to losing weight – the key to unlocking the mystery that plagues the western world – how to lose weight. Here are a few typical weight loss programs that cannot work in a million years.

Losing weight by Drinking Tea

This one is billed as "A Safe Weight-Loss Method That Works." And to quote from their advertisement - Documented research reveals what Asian cultures have known for centuries: Green Tea, rich in antioxidants, increases metabolism and helps burn fat. Lose Weight With Green Tea provides all the information you need to incorporate Green Tea safely and sensibly into a successful weight control program.
You would think from this that all you have to do is drink this tea and you will lose weight – Guess what? Nope, not going to work. To be fair, they do have some genuine insights as to how to lose weight, but drinking tea is not the only part of the solution. Keep reading for the "secret," to guaranteed weight loss.
Foods That Cause You to Lose Weight

This is perhaps the biggest load of rubbish I have read. Mostly because it sounds so plausible – here is a list of foods that you can eat that will cause you to lose weight by speeding up your metabolism.

Sounds good. I guess coffee could fall into that category – it is a diuretic and a stimulant. But really, the only food I am aware of that fits this is celery – it actually tales more energy to chew and digest celery than it provides. Sound like a good diet idea to you? The Celery Diet – Guaranteed to lose weight if you eat nothing but celery. I am in no way suggesting you live on celery, but I guess it would work.

Please do not go out and live on celery for a month. I suspect you will lose weight - but not in a good way.

The South Beach Diet

Now, this one may work, but really, the information in this book is freely available and there is no need to buy special food to follow this sort of diet.
Unless – you are lazy. In which case, this diet is not going to work for you in a million years. They do make some sensible suggestions, but their ultimate goal is to sell you a book and sign you up to have meals delivered or bought through a retailer of some kind. Definitely NOT recommended.
Wu-Yi Tea
This one is most amusing. Another hubber, Maddie Rudd, has already extolled the benefits of this particular tea, so I won’t go on at great lengths. Suffice to say – you cannot lose weight drinking tea. Yes, it’s a great tea. Yes, it has antioxidant properties, but so does any other tea.It is depressing how many companies are selling this as some sort of magical weight loss supplement, but really, do you think it is that easy?The so-called "studies," are nothing less than a clever marketing ploy. Avoid this as a weight loss solution. Buy it as a great tea, but that’s it.
The Secret to Losing Weight

Finally, what you have read this far to discover. The secret handed down in secret through generations of Yogis, Martial Arts experts, Tibetan masters, Scientific geniuses, Doctors and some of the great thinkers of our time. Finally, the secret to losing weight will be revealed…..

The Ancient Secret to Losing Weight
Western Science and Eastern Mysticism have finally joined in agreement. The secret to losing weight is…
To consume less calories than you expend

Simple. Experts and Gurus around the world agree that if you ingest less calories than you burn, you will lose weight. Here is a simple example:

If you eat and drink 2,000 calories and you burn 2,500 calories, you will lose weight – Guaranteed.

If you are overweight, you are not "ill," you do not have a "disease," or a "condition," or a "syndrome."

You have merely ingested more calories than you have spent – not rocket science. Nothing can change this. It is a physical impossibility to create something from nothing.

Now, eating less than you spend requires some control over what you choose to put in your mouth and some of us (me included) have difficulty with this. But the simple fact remains – the one and only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you eat and drink.

For me, the problem is alcohol - I like wine and beer and I love to find new foods that go well with particular wines.

You do not need to pay a fortune for special diets, or pills or specially prepared food to be delivered to your home. All of that stuff is a big con. You know the high calorie stuff you eat or drink. You know if your body is working hard or you are sitting down all day.

Here are a few tips for achieving this:
When eating at a restaurant, only eat half the amount of food put in front of you. Princess Anne said this was how she lost weight. She was eating at official functions so often, she was getting fat, so she decided to only eat half what was on her plate – it worked.
Drink a large glass of water with your meals. This will help you to feel fuller and stop eating when you feel full.
Eat more fiber. Fiber is indigestible, so it passes straight through your system. It also helps your digestive system to function correctly.
Cut out large portions of soft drinks like Coca-Cola – A 32 oz Big Gulp of Coca Cola contains 400 calories and it takes around an hour of strenuous Aerobics to burn this many calories. Replace them with water – the diet junk is at least as bad for you – Nothing but chemical crap. Except Bud Light, which is mostly water ☺ And yes, I consider Bud Light a soft drink.
Increase your exercise level. Take the stairs instead of an elevator or escalator. Walk the dog a mile further than usual.


You can change the ratio of calorie intake to expenditure in only two ways. Increase your exercise level or decrease the amount of calories you ingest - or both. The only diet pill that works is amphetamines and that is now illegal. Why do you think Kate Moss is so thin? Yes – Cocaine.

There is no other way to lose weight – This is the one and only way. Many of the diet books, plans, clubs, whatever will only help you lose weight if you cut down the amount of calories you eat or increase the amount of activity you do. It is a good idea to have some sense of the calorific values of particular foods, but you already know the higher ones – They are the ones you like the most ☺.

The great thing about doing it this way, is it will not cost you a penny. Nothing. Free – It might even save you some money. The only thing I would suggest is the F Plan Recipe Book because it is full of good high fiber recipes, but much of this information is available for free online and you can just as easily print them out. I’m old fashioned and I like it on a piece of paper.

This also means that you don’t have to kill yourself by cutting out completely all the foods you like. If you can’t live without a McDonalds burger, by all means have it – Just eat one instead of three, or eat it once a week instead of every other day.

Good Luck