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Weight Loss Exercise

Why You Need Magnesium


Why You Need Magnesium

Magnesium is an extremely important mineral to both your weight loss goals and your health. In fact, it’s the 4th most abundant mineral in your body and it’s constantly being depleted. Half of your magnesium is contained within your bones. The rest is found in your cells and blood. It’s needed to carry out more than 300 processes and reactions in your body. A deficiency in magnesium could cause complications and weight problems.

Increasing your intake of magnesium is likely to have positive effects on your weight, but magnesium itself doesn’t cause weight loss. It’s not your typical weight loss supplement, since your typical weight loss supplement will work either by increasing metabolism due to containing stimulants or causing you to feel full due to containing appetite suppressants.

If it doesn’t do either of those things, how in the world can it help with weight loss? It helps in a variety of meaningful but subtle ways. Let’s go into more detail

Magnesium Affects Blood Sugar

Why You Need Magnesium

Nuts are high in Magnesium

Blood glucose (sugar) levels have a big impact on weight fluctuations. The steadier your blood sugar remains, the healthier you will be and the healthier your weight will be. When your blood sugar spikes, insulin is released by your pancreas to help your cells take in the sugar where it can be stored as energy. When glucose is stored for energy and not expended, it turns into fat. Blood sugar spikes and insulin surges also signal the release of cortisol – the belly fat hormone. When your blood sugar spikes all the time, your body becomes resistant to insulin and more and more is needed. Constantly raised insulin levels also increase cortisol levels.

Magnesium helps you to maintain a steadier blood glucose level by improving the function of insulin. Adequate levels of magnesium discourage insulin resistance, making the amounts of insulin released by the pancreas more effective.

Magnesium Makes Other Nutrients More Accessible

This wonderful little mineral does a good job at helping your body better absorb other minerals too. Suffering from a magnesium deficiency leads to improper absorption of fats, carbohydrates and proteins. Think this is a good thing? Like you’ll be able to eat food and it’ll pass through you unused? Wrong. Your body needs the correct amount of fats, carbs and proteins to function properly. When your body has adequate amounts of these nutrients, it will activate the enzymes that tell your brain your body has had enough to eat. It helps you feel satisfied, leading to reduced calorie intake.

It Gives You Better Sleep More Energy

How does one mineral accomplish seemingly opposite effects? Well, as mentioned, magnesium is responsible for a number of processes and biochemical reactions. Falling short on this mineral leaves people tired but doesn’t allow them a deep, restful sleep. Getting more magnesium (if deficient) can help you fall asleep easier, enjoy a higher quality sleep, and have the benefit of increased calm energy while awake. These are all necessary for weight loss, since the sleep deprived tend to weigh more (due to increased cortisol resulting from the lack of sleep) and the fatigued have less energy to use for resisting temptation and exercising.

Magnesium: The Great Stress Fighter

Did you know that one of the most common ways people react to stress is to eat more than they usually do? And guess what they eat? That’s right, crap foods… Disgustingly delicious, easy-to-overindulge-in comfort foods. Junk like chips or ice cream. No effort required fast foods. You get the idea.

Your adrenal glands will excrete adrenaline (also known as epinephrine or norepinephrine) whenever it feels stressed. For many of us, this happens way too often. Like any other part of your body, your adrenal glands can suffer from poor health. Magnesium, though, is one of the supporters of healthy adrenal glands. Getting adequate amounts of this mineral make your adrenals less likely to overreact and flood your body with the stress hormone adrenaline.

And you already know how magnesium helps to control cortisol by helping us sleep better. Reduced amounts of stress hormones will do a world of good for your health and will help to whittle down your waistline, too.

Foods high in Magnesium

By now you’re sold on the benefits of magnesium and are ready to make sure you have adequate levels to keep your body functioning, right? Good!

Dietary sources of magnesium are bran cereals, all types of nuts, spinach, potatoes, beans, oatmeal, peanut butter, brown rice, bananas, and – oddly enough – chocolate milk. People also take Epsom salt baths to absorb magnesium through their skin. Supplements are yet another option. If you choose the supplement route, look for magnesium chloride, magnesium lactate, or magnesium citrate on supplement labels. Avoid magnesium oxide as it isn’t as bioavailable (absorbable and usable by your body) as other sources.

Obviously, you should discuss your plans to get more magnesium with your doctor to make sure it doesn’t cause you any complications. Your doctor can also give you a personalized dosage recommendation tailored to your individual health profile.

Magnesium is a valuable nutrient that can help a great deal in helping you lose weight as long as you use your common sense along with it. Please don’t go expecting a magnesium supplement to help you shed 20 lbs if you sit around all day eating cheeseburgers and fries. Take advantage of all magnesium has to offer, along with employing a healthier lifestyle as watch the pounds melt away.

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General Weight Loss Tips

Lose Weight By Lowering Your Insulin Level

Many people are probably unaware that they can lose weight by lowering their insulin levels. Revelations about insulin’s role in weight control and overall health have helped many people successfully lose pounds when other methods have failed.

Scientific studies demonstrate that lowering one’s insulin level is not only an effective and safe way to lose weight, but that lower insulin directly contributes to good health in a number of ways.

How insulin works

Insulin is one of the body’s natural hormones that is produced in the pancreas and is used to regulate fat and carbohydrate metabolism. Stimuli like ingested protein and blood glucose levels cause the pancreas to secrete insulin. The hormone regulates both the rate at which the body stores and burns fat.

By lowering insulin levels, the body stores less fat thus preventing weight gain. Studies also suggest that lower insulin contributes to slower aging, lower blood pressure and improved cholesterol levels along with having other health benefits.

Individuals can control their insulin levels using a holistic approach that involves diet, exercise, nutritional supplements and, in some cases, insulin-regulating drugs.Insulin resistance

Many people develop insulin resistance resulting in higher than normal insulin levels in the system. The cause of elevated insulin levels is often linked with the modern lifestyle in which large amounts of sugar and complex carbohydrates are consumed. Other factors that may contribute to insulin resistance are alcohol consumption, nutritional deficiencies, lack of exercise, smoking and stress. Web MD goes into depth on the health issues associated with insulin resistance. It can be read here.

The high rate of obesity in America is often linked with Americans’ high levels of insulin. Many snack foods are loaded with carbohydrates and people are not getting as much exercise as before. Consequently, many become insulin resistant and their bodies produce higher levels of insulin contributing to health-threatening weight gain.

Studies also show that these high insulin levels may be contributing to the widespread incidence of cardiovascular disease. The research shows that people with elevated insulin levels had higher risks of heart disease, hypertension, blocked arteries and high cholesterol.

Cutting insulin levels by lowering intake of carbohydrates

One of the most effective ways to lower insulin in the system is to reduce the amount of high carbohydrate foods in our diet. Traditionally, grains and starches make up a large percentage of the modern person’s diet.

We can safely reduce carbohydrate intake by paying more attention to the food we eat. Some foods more readily stimulate the release of insulin than others. Foods that quickly raise the blood glucose levels are the ones to watch most closely. These foods are said to have a high glycemic index (GI) and include grains like rice, wheat and corn; and starchy foods like potatoes and bananas. One does not have to give up these foods, but it is a good idea to be aware of the glycemic index of foods that you normally eat.

Use whole rather than refined grains and try to reduce consumption of sweet foods like sugar and honey. Most processed snack foods should be avoided if possible.

By eating a more balanced diet not so rich in high glycemic index foods, the body’s insulin levels should begin to normalize. Another method of keeping the blood glucose levels lower is to eat a larger number of smaller meals each day. Instead of eating three “square” meals, for example, you could reduce the size of breakfast, lunch and dinner and add some healthy snacks between these meals. Some experts recommend eating about five or six meals a day to avoid sharp swings in blood sugar.

A more balanced diet will contain a higher percentage of proteins and fatty foods as a source of calories. Contrary to a common belief, fat in food does not automatically translate into body fat. By eating a higher percentage of protein and fat rich foods, the body is able to get sufficient energy without pushing up insulin levels. While some fats may contribute to cardiovascular problems, other fats are much less dangerous and are even beneficial so long as one does not overindulge. Omega fatty acids, for example, found in seafood and various plant sources are thought to contribute significantly to cardiovascular and overall health.

The importance of exercise

In addition to controlling excessive intake of carbohydrates, you can also control insulin levels by maintaining an active lifestyle with plenty of regular exercise. Physical activity helps burn off glucose in the blood reducing the amount of stimulus that causes the pancreas to release insulin. Studies have shown that aerobic exercise and resistance training enhance the body’s insulin sensitivity and also may stimulate sex hormones that refine the body’s insulin response.

Of course, regular exercise can also directly burn off fat and it helps tone up the cardiovascular system.

Using nutritional supplements

Certain minerals are thought to help the body control insulin levels better. Chromium is an important element in the Glucose Tolerance Factor (GTF), a molecule used to regulate blood sugar. Chromium supplements can help lower blood sugar levels and decrease insulin resistance. Foods high in chromium include onions, sweet potato, tomatoes and mushrooms.

Vanadium is another important mineral that can help control insulin levels. Vanadium works by performing some of the functions of insulin. Foods high in vanadium include soybeans, mushrooms, black pepper and parsley. Some experts, though, state that foods do not contain enough vanadium to impact glucose levels and that one should instead use nutritional supplements as a source for this mineral.

Controlling insulin with drugs?

Some doctors recommend using drugs like metformin to reduce insulin levels and promote weight loss. Metformin acts in a manner similar to vanadium in that it mimics the action of insulin. Metformin is considered safer than its predecessor, the anti-diabetic drug phenformin. However, metformin is not available over the counter and must be prescribed by a health professional.

Losing weight requires staying the course

Like any weight loss program, a regimen that involves lowering insulin levels will not work overnight and persistence is required. Generally, it is best to consult with a physician before undertaking an insulin-based weight control program.

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Diet Pills

Whey Protein May Act as an appetite suppressant?

Appetite suppressants are all the rage on the market today. Anyone who has ever wanted to lose weight has dreamed of a product that helps control hunger. There are diet pills that many wonders for thousands of people, but there are also several natural methods to control the appetite. A product that can help in achieving appetite suppression are whey proteins.

Whey protein is excellent to suppress appetite for several reasons. First, whey protein helps to stabilize levels of blood glucose by slowing the absorption of glucose in the blood. This process helps to reduce hunger in turn lowering insulin levels and make it easier for the body to burn fat. This particular provision of weight loss may also be useful for people with diabetes. Because whey protein may help stabilize glucose levels in blood, people who have difficulty managing their blood glucose due to diabetes may benefit from this supplement in particular. However, as with any other supplement, it is always important to talk with your doctor before adopting any changes in nutrition, especially if you have a preexisting condition.

The second way that aids whey proteins by suppressing the appetite through the use of bioactive components that stimulate the release of two hormones, appetite (cholecystokinin and glucagon-like peptide-1). These two hormones when released to help control our hunger drives. There are some other studies that show that whey protein has a greater impact on satiety than casein (Casein is another protein found in milk). Clearly ahead of these studies point to one conclusion, whey proteins can certainly serve as an appetite suppressant. So, if there is something missing in your diet, perhaps an extra boost of energy or a better handle on your appetite, you should give whey protein to try.