A basic tenet of any weight loss program is that you have to eat fewer calories than your body uses. If you are anything like me however, you probably don't have the time, patience, desire or discipline to count calories. I could think of much better uses of my already limited free time. For those who regularly follow my blogs or articles, you'll know that I prefer to stick to some basic guidelines when I eat and to listen to my body.
There's a myriad of ways to lose fat and maintain that fat loss. Eating more fruits and vegetables along with whole grains and lean meats, nuts, and beans is a safe and healthy one. One of the staples in my daily diet and fight against fat loss is to eat as many fruits and vegetables as I possibly can. Fruits and vegetables are part of a well-balanced and healthy eating plan.
Of course eating fruits and vegetables has many benefits other than helping you with your fat loss goals. Diets that are rich in fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of some types of cancer and other chronic diseases. Fruits and vegetables are also a great source of fiber and provide essential vitamins and minerals and other substances that are important for good health.
Back to calorie counting. Being conscious of your calories or how much food you're actually consuming doesn't necessarily mean that you have to eat less food. One way to lower your overall caloric intake is to substitute low-calorie fruits and vegetables in place of higher-calorie ingredients. Because fruits and vegetables contain a good amount of water and fiber, you can eat the same amount of food with fewer calories. Most fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat and calories and are filling.
Here are some of the things I do to help keep the overall number of calories down (with the added benefit of increasing my fiber intake, thus making me feel fuller for a longer period of time).
Breakfast We've heard it a million times before, 'breakfast is the most important meal of the day'. That still hasn't changed. In fact, evidence continues to mount that skipping breakfast will not only derail your fat loss plan but can actually contribute to weight gain. A couple of things you can do during breakfast with fruits and vegetables:
-Skip the cheese on your eggs and replace it with some mushrooms, spinach, or onions. The vegetables will add volume and flavor to your breakfast with fewer calories than the cheese. -Your mom probably made you do this when you were a kid and moms know best. Add fruit to your cereal. In fact, you should cut back on the amount of cereal in your bowl for some blueberries, strawberries, bananas or peaches. You can still eat a full bowl, but with fewer calories.
Lunch One of the worst things about lunch for most people is that feeling of post-lunch sluggishness. The following tips will not only help you reduce calories, but should help ward off that sleepiness you typically feel after lunch:
-Whether it's on a burger, a wrap or on a burrito, skip the cheese (if it's a burger, skip the bun as well). Substitute the cheese and bun with vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes, or onions. You'll consume less calories and feel full faster.
-If you're a soup lover, add a cup of chopped vegetables, such as broccoli, carrots, beans, or red peppers, in place of 2 ounces of the meat or 1 cup of noodles in your favorite broth-based soup. The vegetables will help fill you up, so you won't miss those extra calories.
Dinner While you never want to skip dinner, you do want it to be your lightest meal of the day.
-Skip the pasta or rice and instead add a cup of chopped vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, tomatoes, squash, or peppers.
-Watch the portion sizes. If vegetables, fruits and whole grains aren't taking up the majority of your plate, time to readjust your portions. Try replacing some of the pasta, rice, meat, and cheese with greens, steamed broccoli, asparagus or another favorite vegetable. This will reduce the total calories in your meal without reducing the amount of food you eat. BUT remember to use a normal or small-size plate, not a platter. The total number of calories that you eat still counts, even if a good proportion of them come from fruits and vegetables.
Snack Time Eating five to six meals a day has become a staple saying in almost any article you read regarding diets and eating right. Use those in between meal snacks as an opportunity to eat a fruit or snack on some pre-cut, pre-washed carrot sticks. Throw in 6-8 almonds and you have a great in between meal snack that will keep you feeling full until your next full meal.
Substitution If your goal is fat loss, be careful not to just add fruits and vegetables to your existing diet. The key is substitution. Although it's true that fruits and vegetables are lower in calories and higher in fiber than many other foods, they do contain some calories. If you start eating fruits and vegetables in addition to what you usually eat, you are adding calories and may gain weight. Eat fruits and vegetables instead of some other higher-calorie food.
Forget the calorie counting, using smart strategies like substituting with fruits and vegetables is a great way to achieve your fat loss goals without having to take out the calculator or lookup the caloric value of a food. If a strategy is not simple and easy to implement, most people won't follow it for too long and in the long run consistency in your exercise and eating habits is the key to success.
Acupuncture is derived from two Latin words ?acus? meaning ?needle? and ?pungere? meaning ?prick?. This practice is done by manipulating and inserting very fine filiform needles in specific point areas in the body. With this technique, it alleviates pain as well as other therapeutic purposes.
The acupuncture theory states that the points which the needles have to be inserted are found along the meridians of the body, which is called the qi. Qi is a type of vital energy that is said to be flowing. As for these statements, there is really no accepted anatomical and physiologic basis for such concepts in acupuncture due to the fact that most Acupuncturists view them in their functional term, more than its structural term. It is famously known that acupuncture is safe to use, especially if it is done by a highly experienced and trained practitioner.
The history of acupuncture dates back to ancient China, where it originated. It is a type of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), which has been developed 5,000 years ago. There are different varieties of acupuncture such as Classical Chinese, Tibetan, and Japanese as well as Korean acupuncture, which are up to now still being used and taught all over the world.
In the issue of acupuncture as a key to weight loss, it is still believed that it is not a direct way of losing, although it can help people lose weight faster. True enough, weight loss is still achieved when commitment to lifestyle change is done by having the proper diet and exercise.
Being an adjunctive therapy, the way acupressure can help in weight loss is by lessening stress which is a root cause for overeating. Acupuncture does this with the use of a needle. With this needle, insert it to a specific point in the body as well as the ear. Through this method, the endorphins are released.
Endorphins are neurotransmitters that have a relaxing and calming effect on our body. This means that Acupuncture can alleviate stress. Moreover, endorphins also affect the hormonal and digestive system. This will result to a rebalancing of our organ systems which has been working too fast or too slow in terms of the metabolism.
To proceed with your acupuncture treatment, you should first seek consultation from your acupuncture practitioner to discuss your habits and eating patterns. This way, he or she will be able to know which point is correct to use. Moreover, your practitioner should asses you thoroughly in order to rule out if the problem is just your lifestyle patterns or a disease entity in itself.
Usually, in acupuncture there is a need to assess your pulse. This is in order to determine the general condition of your body's energy, specifically your stomach's energy. This is by checking your pulse. Then, they will also check your tongue for cracks. After this, your stomach area will be checked for puffiness, peeling, and white or yellow coating on the stomach, which may indicate either a cold or annoying heat. This could give clues as to the reason the person has gained weight.
With the gathered information, the acupuncturist can make a treatment plan. In devising the plan, he would indicate which points would be used to aid the condition of the client. Usually, the ear is used, along with two or more other main points depending on the client's needs:
Stomach ? used for people who tend to overeat and love to nibble
Mouth - for impulsive eaters with the habit of smoking and talking much
Hungry ? for appetite control
Lung ? for people who have food addiction such as those who love sweets
Endocrine ? This is if the reason for weight gain is due to water retention
Sherman ? to induce calmness for people who tend to be angry, stressed, and insecure
Adrenal and Ovary - if the reason for weight gain is because of Menopause as well as P.M.S.
Thyroid - for people who have slow metabolism
Spleen ? for blood sugar imbalances as well as hormonal disturbances
Kidney - for hormonal as well as nervous system imbalances; water retention
In addition, some acupuncturists may also utilize electrical measures in order to increase the release of endorphins as well as the rate of metabolism. The needles inserted in the body would still be put into place for about 30 up to 45 minutes, depending on the needs of the patient.
Then, the needles should be taken out. As for the ear needle, it will be replaced with ear tacs secured by adhesive for continued stimulation in between treatments. The mechanism for this would be the fact that when the client has the urge to eat, he would just apply mild pressure on the ear point by rubbing it for 20 seconds. This pressure on the point will trigger the release of endorphin, which, in turn, will result to the relaxation of the client. This will help in reducing the urge to eat because the client will have the willpower to resist eating. Then after three days, the client should remove the tack and throw them out. However, if discomfort is felt, it can be removed much earlier than three days.
As for the number of treatments, it would really depend on the client's commitment to his or her goal of losing weight. If symptoms of severe overeating are the case, treatment of five consecutive days is suitable. This can be lessened down to every other day on the succeeding week. Then, on the third week, a period of every three days is a considerable treatment. As for clients who are average weight and wants to loss weight, possibly between 5 up to 10 pounds, two times a week is fitting. Thus, after the booster treatment, the acupuncturist and client can decide whether to continue or stop the treatment. A meeting of four times every year after the said treatment is needed every change of season to stabilize the body systems.
Both George Louris & David H. Urmann are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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