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Weight Loss Exercise

4 things to do today to lose weight

Everyone likes to have shortcuts to losing weight. Although as we all know the important things really are to have a good diet and to get exercise.

Having said this though there are times that you can make a real difference quite easily. Some people make such incredibly poor decisions that they can turn things around pretty easily. So for these people here we go.

1. Stop smoking – Smoking lowers the amount of oxygen that your body can get to your muscles. In fact if you quit smoking the amount of oxygen in your system will increase even within the first day. Some people smoke in the bizzare thought that by smoking you will eat less and although it is hard to eat with a smoke in your mouth, this will be counteracted by the fact that you will not have the energy to exercise and keep yourself healthy.

2. Don’t drink – Drinking alcohol will lower your metabolism and force your body to store more fat. I do not know the details of this but if you go about having a couple of beers every night then cutting these beers out will make a huge difference to how you feel, your outlook on life, and your chance to be motivated to workout in the evening.

3. Cut out Deep Fried Food – Deep fried food is the worst kind of food that you can eat in two ways. Deep frying radically increases the amount of fat in any food, and deep frying destroys any nutrients in the food before it gets to your mouth. Look for instance at a piece of chicken, A deep fried chicken breast has 28 grams of fat compared to only 8 grams of fat in a oven baked breaded chicken breast. Do the math, that chicken breast will go from 260 calories to almost double at 460 calories.

4. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables – Fruits and begetables on Weight Watchers and most other dits are almost free calories. The reason that ist is easy to eat lots of fruits and vegetables on any diet is again due to two things. The high water level in fruits and vegetables create more fullness for less calories and secondly fruits and vegetables are high in vitamins, minerals, and many antioxidants that will help you get healthier in the long run. Eat lots of fruits an vegetables and you will surely not have room for all of those crappy foods that call you by name.

As I mentioned earlier you may already know these things and follow them. If this is the case then please email this article to someone that can use it. These are really easy tips and will make a monumental change to your health just by applying them.

Categories
Weight Loss Exercise

Exercise at the computer

Exercise at the computerAs we all know it is difficult to do exercises at our computers and stay in shape. Most of the time you are probably sitting just like me right now, hunched over the keyboard, body frozen in a position to type and slightly tightening the shoulders (that will not feel so good later today).

The best way to stop yourself from getting those aches and pains at your desk is to take quick breaks occasionally during the day to stretch, and here are a bunch of stretches that I found courtesy of Dr Rick Morris.

First remove your shoes and loosen restrictive clothing. Be sure that your area is free from hazards.

The Bird Grand your right ankles with your right hand with your right knee bent. Hold on to your desk with your left hand (standing on the right side of your desk); now bend over at your hip (not your waist) keeping your back straight. You should feel a nice stretch in the back of your left thigh and the front of your right thigh. Hold this position for one minute and repeat on the opposite leg.

Neck and Upper Back Stretch Hold your hands together behind your back as low as possible with your palms facing away from your body. Bring your chin all the way down to your chest and take five deep breaths in and out. Now turn and tilt your head to the right while pulling down with your left arm. Hold for five deep breaths. Now perform this to your left side.

Shoulder Rolls Shoulder Rolls, with your arms dangling at your side, roll your shoulders forward, upward and backward in a circular motion for 30 seconds. Start slowly and progress to a fairly quick motion.

The Teapot Stand with your feet shoulder width distance apart. Put your hands on your waist. Turn your left foot out completely (90 degrees) and your right leg in 30 degrees. Now tilt to your left while your left hand is on your left thigh or knee. Hold your right arm straight out from your shoulder. Continue bending to the left side as long as it feels comfortable. Hold this position for eight breaths. Be sure to continuously hold your left leg with your hand wherever it is most supportive. Continue this on the other side. You should feel a stretch to you outer waist and hip on the side opposite the direction that you are bending.

Outer Neck and Shoulder Stretch Put your right arm behind your back while tilting (not turning) your head to the opposite side. You should feel a pull in your right neck and upper shoulder. If a pinching sensation occurs to your left side, do not perform this exercise. Hold the position for five deep breaths in and out, relaxing more deeply with each exhalation. Repeat to the opposite side.

Neck Sling Clasp your hands behind your neck, elbows out, with your little fingers pressing up against the base of your skull. Now arch your middle back against the back of a firm chair (it should not fall back). The back of your chair should not be higher than the bottoms of your shoulder blades and lower than the bottoms of your ribs. Now allow yourself to fall backwards letting your head BUT NOT YOUR NECK extend over the back of the chair. This should feel great; if not, do not go back as far. Just relax like this for 30 seconds.

Neck Circles Neck Circles, put your arms down to your sides and let your chin drop to your chest. As you take in a deep breath, turn and tilt your head to the right. As you exhale drop your head back to your chest. Next, breathe in while turning and tilting to the left. While exhaling, bring your left head back to your chest. Start off slowly without pain and progress to a fairly rapid and continuous breathing and neck movement pattern. Do this for 30 seconds.

The Lumbar Arch The Lumbar Arch, lean against the back of your chair with the support being firm and fitting well within your low back. Arch against this as long as it feels comfortable. Place your hands behind the back support or under the seat to give added resistance (note: do not lock your neck backwards). Take five comfortable deep breaths while in this position.

Bend Overs Bend Overs-Straddle your seat with your legs wide apart and locked under the chair. Push your bottom all the way to the back of the seat and bend completely forward and down. If pain or instability begins to occur, stop, and see your chiropractic doctor. This could be a sign of a weak disc, Hold this position, if it is comfortable, for five deep breaths. Next, twist and bend over one leg and then the other. Each position should be held for five deep respiratory cycles.

The toughest thing about these exercise is starting to do them. Try them out today and see how musch better you feel. The key of course is to take good care of your posture in the first place but these exercises are going to do a worl of good for you as well.

Categories
Weight Loss Products

Science or Snake Oil: is Garcinia cambogia the magic weight-loss pill it’s hyped up to be?

The burgeoning field of complementary medicines, including weight-loss products, is now a billion-dollar industry. Every year, more people are spending disposable income on complementary and alternative medicines that may prove to have no benefit for our health.

Garcinia Cambogia is one such example. Marketed as a weight-loss pill, it has had an exponential rise in sales since it was featured on the Doctor Oz show.

Garcinia cambogia is the former scientific name of a native Southeast Asian plant, belonging to the family Clusiaceae, that bears a pumpkin-shaped fruit. The skin of the fruit contains the active ingredient, hydroxycitric acid (HCA). HCA inhibits an enzyme that produces fatty acid, thus suppressing fatty acid and the processing of cholesterol.

But does this mode of action translate to the weight-loss claims associated with it? Or is it just clever marketing convincing us this product helps us lose weight?

An Australian advertisement for the weight-loss supplement Garcinia Cambogia.
Screenshot, http://www.garciniacambogiasave.com/, CC BY

Double-blinded, randomised controlled trials are the gold standard of clinical study and whenever possible should be conducted to test the effectiveness of a treatment compared to a placebo. Weight-loss products should be assessed for a minimum of six months, with a further six-month follow-up period (12 months total).

There has never been a long-term study investigating the efficacy of Garcinia Cambogia. Most of the studies have been conducted in animals.

In fact, the majority of well-designed trials investigating the effect of this product on weight loss have found no effect that is of clinical relevance. In a 12-week double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted in humans, people receiving 3000mg of Garcinia Cambogia extract (1500mg of the active component HCA) per day lost the same amount of weight as the control group.

Another 12-week study with a four-week follow-up (16 weeks total) also found no greater weight-loss effect than for a placebo control group. For those studies where a statistically significant effect was reported, the weight loss was around one kilogram more than for those receiving a placebo pill.

Positive and greater weight losses were found in some studies, but this effect is suppressed when looking at all of the studies combined.

The Garcinia Cambogia plant.
Livia Lacolare/Flickr, CC BY

With respect to other health benefits from taking this supplement, the evidence to suggest it can improve blood cholesterol levels is lacking.

Most importantly, the product safety profile of Garcinia Cambogia has been adequately tested and there appear to be no issues.

Some complementary medicines have been found to contribute to improved health outcomes, through increased efficacy and cost-effectiveness. However, if there is to be a role for such complementary and alternative weight-loss products and medicines, we must build upon the evidence to investigate whether these increasingly popular products are a viable treatment option.

A recent Obesity Australia and Price Waterhouse Coopers report found obesity cost Australia A$8.6 billion in 2011-2012, with the indirect costs far higher. We must establish whether complementary medicines have a role to play in preventing and treating obesity. If we take no action to reduce obesity rates, an additional 2.4 million people will become obese at a cost of $87.7 billion over 10 years.


Please visit this website if you’re interested in taking part in our clinical weight-loss trials on Garcinia Cambogia and other weight-loss supplements.