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Weight Loss Exercise

Glycemic index and Glycemic load

I looked through the archives of this blog and am surprised that I have not mentioned the glycemic index before. The glycemic index is basically the measure of how quickly a carbohydrate will be burned and metabolized by your body.

Take this example, one person eats a pack of sugar and one person eats a potato.

You would expect that the sugar would quickly raise your blood sugar and then a half hour later or so your blood sugar would drop back down where with the potato your blood sugar would rise a bit for a couple of hours and then drop slowly after that time (I am only guessing at the numbers to point out the idea).

Looking at this example we would say that the sugar is a high glycemic food and the potato is a low glycemic food.

Low Glycemic Index Carbs

glycemic indexOne of the decision points that I make when I eat is to try to make sure as many of the carbohydrates that I eat are low glycemic carbohydrates.

By taking in low glycemic foods I will have lower spikes in my blood sugar and should have a much more consistent energy level throughout the day.

This is a very tough thing to figure out initially but as you get the hang of the numbers it becomes easier.

Here are some foods and their Glycemic index values:

glycemic index

Zone Diet uses the Glycemic Index

So now that you see this Glycemic index info what exactly is the Glycemic load? The amount of carbohydrate consumed affects blood glucose levels and insulin responses.

The glycemic load of a food is calculated by multiplying the glycemic index by the amount of carbohydrate in grams provided by a food and dividing the total by 100.

In essence, each unit of the glycemic load represents the equivalent blood glucose-raising effect of 1 gram of pure glucose or white bread. Dietary glycemic load is the sum of the glycemic loads for all foods consumed in the diet.

The concept of glycemic load was developed by scientists to simultaneously describe the quality (glycemic index) and quantity of carbohydrate in a meal or diet.

Where to find more on Glycemic Index and Clycemic Load

There are many books and websites that will give you numbers for Glycemic index and glycemic load of foods and I think that the best book for Glycemic index information is the GI Diet, a book that can be purchased just about everywhere.

There are a few diets that really concentrate on this info most notably the Zone diet and the GI Diet but I just look at this information as a guideline on how to eat not only focusing on the GI level or glycemic load level of a certain food but looking at my whole diet to decide how well I am eating on a daily basis.

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How To Read Food Labels

We’ve all seen those informative labels on the back of our packed food purchases. How did dieters every get along without them? If you’re like most people, you probably check out the serving size, the calories and, perhaps, the sodium level, but what about the rest?

There is so much more to learn!

Surprisingly not all food labels are the same. For obvious reasons, a bottle of soda water has less information than, say, a can of kidney beans.

Here’s a quick guide to the most common food labels. Generally speaking, less is better:

How To Read Food Labels

food labelsThe percentages in food labels are based on a 2,000-calorie adult diet. That’s important to know, especially if you are on a higher or lower calorie diet program.

Serving size – Checking out serving sizes is one thing, but the number of servings in the package is also important.

If you have a bag of diet popcorn and the serving size is one cup with there are five servings per bag, you may be doing something wrong (like measuring!) if the bag is empty after you’ve had four snacks.

Total Fats – This includes good fats such as mono and polyunsaturated fats, and fats that are not so good, such as saturated and transfats.

Cholesterol and sodium – These numbers tell you how much cholesterol and sodium (salt) are in a single serving.

These are important numbers for both dieters and people who simply want to be healthy.

The American Heart Association recommends eating less than 1,500 milligrams of sodium each day. That bag of potato chips could blow your intake in one sitting.

Carbohydrates – There are three types of carbohydrates: sugars, starches and fiber.

Calories and Fat – It’s important to find out how many calories are in a serving and how many of those calories are from fat.

Total fat should be no more than 56–78 grams a day — including no more than 16 grams of saturated fat, less than two grams of trans fat, and less than 300 mg cholesterol.

Percent Daily Values – The percent Daily Values (DV) tells you the percent of each nutrient in a single serving.

A food with a 5 percent DV of fat provides 5 percent of the total fat that a person consuming 2,000 calories a day should eat. Note: Percent DV are for the entire day.

List of Ingredients – This helpful list, in teeny tiny type at the bottom of the label, is often overlooked. Ingredients are listed in descending order by the largest proportion of the food.

The list can be a revelation form all those nasty hydrogenated oil or partially-hydrogenated oil (high in transfats) to the good whole grains.

Don’t glaze over when it comes to food labels. It’s important information

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101 Workouts for Women Book Review

Getting the proper exercise is crucial to having a healthy body and many women do not get enough of it. Some women are just in need of a little advice and guidance as to knowing the best workout for them.

The book 101 Workouts for Women: Everything You Need to Get a Lean, Strong and Fit Physique is the ultimate guide for women who want to know how to get started working out, losing weight, and staying fit.

With this book, there’s no need to worry about finding the right workout. It has many possible workouts so you’ll never get bored. Plus it caters to all types of problem areas that trouble most women.

101 Workouts for Women Description

As compared to other general health and fitness books, the 101 Workouts for Women is specifically designed to target women’s needs when it comes to workouts and exercise.

This proves very useful as compared to a general mish-mash of tips and advice on health and fitness that women usually find irrelevant and unimportant. It’s a full instruction guide that will help you learn the proper way to do the exercises in order to achieve the desired results.

What is the Idea of this Book?

The main idea of the 101 Workouts for Women book is to help women develop their own tailor made workouts based on the examples given instead of having to do a variety of general workouts that would prove futile and not helpful to their physical fitness.

In addition, this book has been put together by certified fitness experts that specialize in women’s physical fitness.

101 Workouts For Women: Everything You Need to Get a Lean, Strong, and Fit Physique

The 101 Workouts for Women provides a wide range of workouts that caters to the needs of those who have been working out and those who are just starting out. Every woman is sure to find workouts and exercises that will suit their needs, lifestyle, schedule, and so on.

The best part of this book is that it actually has a colored step-by-step picture guide that shows proper form of each exercise, which provides better clarity and understanding on how to perform the exercise properly.

There’s no need for guessing games or added research just so you can visualize the form and the proper way to do a certain workout or exercise.

Is 101 Workouts for Women a Picture Book?

The instructional pictures can also help you to know how to properly handle workout equipment such as dumbbells, exercise balls, and so on.

The 101 Workouts for Women: Everything You Need to Get a Lean, Strong and Fit Physique is truly the ultimate workout and exercise guide for women who intend to create a tailor made fitness regimen that will work best for their body, schedule, and lifestyle.

Pros of 101 Workouts for Women

  • The 101 Workouts for Women provides 101 different workouts that cater to various areas of concern of women.
  • This book assists women in knowing and having the right workout so they can workout at home. It also teaches them what to do when they go to the gym.
  • It has colored instructional pictures that complement each workout, which better guides and assists women in the proper form and way to do each workout and exercise.
  • The 101 Workouts for Women is a specified type of workout guide that targets physical fitness and exercise instead of having a generalized health and fitness book.
  • The 101 Workouts for Women helps women create their own workout regimen by trying out and choosing what suits them best and what would work best for their body.
  • It integrates use of exercise equipment such as dumbbells, balls, bands, barbells, and so on.

Cons of 101 Workouts for Women

  • For women looking into a more in-depth health and fitness guide, this book may not be for them since it lacks instructions and guidance on health and proper nutrition.

What Do Customers Say?

Users have rated it a high 4.5 out of 5 on Amazon.com, which proves its effectiveness in helping women achieve the perfect workout.

Most women commend how the book, 101 Workouts for Women: Everything You Need to Get a Lean, Strong and Fit Physique, provides a more specialized instruction guide on physical fitness instead of having a general mix of health and fitness tips and advices.

One user even noted that it works well for her since she doesn’t really have a gym membership.

The book works perfectly for her because it provides a wide range of workout that she can do at home. She is also happy that she can make use of equipment she has such as dumbbells, exercise ball, resistance bands, and so on.

Another user found the book very useful when she combined it with proper cardio (as the book suggests as well), and she feels more fit and toned than ever.

Recommendation of 101 Workouts for Women

With a price of just under $10 on Amazon.com , the 101 Workouts for Women is truly the next best thing for women’s physical fitness.

It is the perfect book for women who want to find the perfect workout and exercise strategy in order to achieve their desired results and maintain their physique.

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