No One Ever Got Fat Eating Broccoli Take a look at some good common sense:

No One Ever Got Fat Eating Broccoli!
By Andrew Cavanagh

Diet tips for losing weight abound. Some are good, some questionable and some are just plain crazy. At the risk of joining the ever growing list of diet tips here is probably the most important diet key both to weight loss and and excellent health.

“No one ever got fat eating broccoli.”

When you eat carbohydrates this stimulates the release of a hormone called insulin. Insulin stimulates an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase and lipoprotein lipase stimulates your body to store fat.

So a meal too high in carbohydrates can put your body in fat storage mode. But it gets worse than that.

Insulin also stimulates the production of a group of controlling hormones called type II or “bad” eicosanoids.

These bad eicosanoids are linked to nearly every chronic disease including heart disease, cancer, depression, asthma, hypothyroidism and erectile dysfunction just to name a few.

Controlling your intake of carbohydrates is crucial to control insulin and controlling insulin is crucial for fat loss and excellent health.

What's the simplest way to control insulin?

Eat low glycemic fruit and vegetables for carbohydrates.

The slower a food converts into blood glucose the less insulin is released. Low glycemic fruit and vegetables, like broccoli, convert to glucose very slowly in your body.

Fruit and vegetables are also high in the antioxidants, flavinoids, vitamins and minerals so benefical to your health.

So eat low glycemic fruit and vegetables for carbohydrates and avoid poor choices of carbohydrates like sugar filled sweets and drinks, dohnuts, biscuits and french fries.

Remember: “No one ever got fat eating broccoli.

About The Author
Andrew Cavanagh (AMWA)
For the healthiest carbohydrate choices read the Low Glycemic Carbohydrates Guide free at http://www.undersizeme.com Find Out How You Can Claim Your FREE Copy Of The Groundbreaking Undersize Me Audio Health CD And Help Save Homeless Children From The Street At: http://www.helphomelesskids.com
More fantastic features with these HealthETips.

1. Andrew Cavanagh is a professional health writer and member of the Australasian Medical Writers Association.
He is the author of One Hour to Glorious Health and Permanent Weight Loss, the groundbreaking From Depression to Glorious Health in Six Steps and the entertaining, educational Undersize Me - a month of great food and exercise. http://www.undersizeme.com
2. A colour cartoon JPEG can be supplied with this article if you would like to post it on your website.
3. A short MP3 audio (around 100kb) can also be supplied with this article - again for use on your website.
4. You can contact the author Andrew Cavanagh by email at mailto:andrewcavanagh1@bigpond.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/  ¶ 9:20 PM 0 comments

  A Pain in the Neck! Hello Slayers!

As you know, part of the Slaying lifestyle is personal stewardship for overall health. Recently, my overall health has been compromised by a pain in the neck. This pain has prevented me from doing exercise and caused me to seek comfort in food. Not conducive to the Slayer lifestyle.

Yesterday I finally went to the doctor, fearing the worst - - pinched nerve. Well, to my extreme embarssment, the Dr. identified that my computer posture is sloppy and resulted in this pain in the neck. He is right! My name is Barbara and I'm a sloppy sitter. He prescribed some anti-inflamatory medicine and muscle relaxers, then advised some ergonomic corrections. I found this article "Proper Posture/Ergonommics" by Alexander Haselkorn, MD. The article addresses correct seating posture - hopefully it can help other's who may have a pain in the neck.

Happy sitting & Happy Return to Slaying the Fat Monster!
Barbara

Ergonomics is the study of your work environment and how you adapt. It takes into consideration your comfort level in your workstation. Invariably, individuals twist or strain to reach the keyboard or sit in odd contortions which result in neck, back, or wrist pain. Some simple workstation modifications, posture awareness, and chair consciousness can prevent problems.

Lower the height of the chair so that your back touches the back of the chair and you are comfortable.
Your feet should rest firmly on the floor slightly in front of you.
Center your keyboard in front of your monitor. Your eyes should be at the same level as the tool bar.
Keep the keyboard and mouse close to the edge of the desk.
Keyboard and mouse should be positioned so your arms fall naturally at your sides, with wrists straight out in front while typing/mousing.
Support your wrist and forearms with a gel pad or wrist support.
Avoid repetitive gripping of the mouse.
Keep frequently used items close - avoid reaching for anything!
Do wrist, finger, and hand exercises.
Sitting in a chair places 400 pounds of pressure on your lower back. If your back is unable to support your body, the strain which it is undergoing will affect other areas of your body as well, including your hands, arms, and wrists.

There are a number of steps you can take to reduce strain as you work. First, consider your desk posture. Be sure to sit with your back low against the back of your chair. You may need to roll up a towel or buy a lumbar roll to maintain the natural curve of your spine. Be sure the back of the head is lifted, the breastbone is lifted, and the lower back is supported. Your back should be angled backward a few degrees to widen the angle between the torso and the thighs: this increases blood flow plus reduces the compression of the spine.

Your arms should be relaxed and loose at your sides, with your forearms and hands parallel to the floor. The correct wrist and hand position should create a 90-degree angle and the wrists should not be flexed or extended, but rather should be in a neutral position. Keep your thighs at a right angle to your torso, and your knees at a right angle to your thighs.

Be sure to change your position frequently, and avoid using excessive force while typing at the keyboard. Over time, a heavy typing style could aggravate hand, wrist, or finger pain symptoms by placing joints and tissues under continual stress. Lastly, consider the use of ergonomic devices such as back supports, mouse wristpads, and keyboard gel wristpads.

  ¶ 10:15 AM 0 comments

  No Gimmicks Here: Reasonable Thoughts on Thin Dr. Stephen Gullo, best selling author of The Thin Commandments Diet, lays diet success on strategy, not willpower. Clients willingly pay $1,500 for a single office visit with the doctor who has a 25-year track record of successfully treating patients who lose as much as 100 pounds - - AND KEEP IT OFF.

I highly recommend Dr. Gullo’s book. In 318 pages he details how to accomplish his 10 Tenets of Thin which are listed below:

1. Strategy is Stronger Than Willpower. Thin people don’t have better willpower. They just have a clear plan for what they eat.

2. Think Historically, Not Just Calorically. Identify foods that you’ve abused in the past. Use caution, even if they are “healthy.”

3. The Problem May Be in the Food, Not in You. Cravings are connected to body chemistry – learn how to forestall them.

4. Structure Gives Control. Eat three balanced meals and two snacks a day; shop wisely.

5. Separate Mood from Food. Identify emotional eating.

6. Take Control of Your Favorite Foods. Limit frequency, availability and amounts.

7. Slips Should Teach You, Not Defeat You. Winners learn from mistakes – don’t give up.

8. Stop Feeling Deprived. Get satisfaction with substition.

9. Treat Your Calories Like Dollars. Learn to get the “biggest banquet for your food buck.”

10. Losing Weight Is Half the Job; Keeping it off is the Other Half. Don’t flunk maintenance.  ¶ 8:10 AM 0 comments

  Skinny Juice - lose 8 lbs in one day Too good to be true? Probably.

I found this recipe and instructions in the May 2, 2005 First magazine. The claim is by forgoing solid foods and drinking one 8-ounce glass of this Skinny Juice an hour for every waking hour over a 24-hour span a person will detox and lose "up to eight pounds of trapped fluids and fat in one day". The recipe is from Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman's book "The Fast Track One-Day Detox Diet"

Just for grins I'm going to give this a try during the coming weekend and I'll get back with you early next week.

Skinny juice:

64 ounces Cranberry water (add 8 ounces unsweetened cranberry juice to 56 ounces purified water)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 cups freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Bring juice and spices to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes.
Cool to room temperature.
Sir in orange and lemon juices.  ¶ 1:45 PM 0 comments

  Shout-out: Experiment Fatso Hi Slayers:

I came across an interesting blog today: one man's battle against the Fat Monster. Be sure to blogroll, it looks to be an insiteful and useful journey.


Experiment Fatso  ¶ 2:34 PM 1 comments

  Strength Training: It's not just for athletes anymore Several years ago my husband introduced me to weight lifting or strength training. “You will love it,” he said with the confidence of someone who has lifted weights all his life.

The first argument I made against strength training was, “Oh, I don’t want to lift weights and look like a body builder.”

Trust me: several years and thousands of repetitions later I can confidently assure you this is not going to happen. Body builders spend hours every day in the gym lifting weights; they take nutritional supplements and eat a specific diet. They are professional athletes training in state of the art gyms built for the elite in their field. They compete in high-level events for big money purses. They have dedicated their lives to the craft of bodybuilding. Strength training by lifting moderate amounts of weight two times a week in your living room will not turn you into a body builder.

Strength training will improve your overall physical and mental wellness. Strength training tones muscles and they look great! But don’t just think muscles here, strength training improves bone integrity which may reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis later in life. Strength training will improve the immune system, lower the resting heart rate, decrease resting blood pressure and decrease the risk for developing adult onset diabetes. Evidence suggests strong muscles will increase your body’s ability to eliminate toxins, improve insulin receptor sensitivity, increase thyroid efficiency and improve hormone output. In addition it has been shown to dissipate stress and enhance mental focus. It improves posture, balance and coordination and elevates mood.

All this for 20 minutes twice a week!

For people to achieve wellness through healthy eating and fitness it is critical to incorporate a strength training program into their lifestyle. When you add muscle through weight training your body burns calories at a faster rate. During weight loss, as you continue to use the muscle mass you already have, your body will be forced to consume stored fat. Your muscle will be preserved; the body cannot consume active muscle.

If you do not keep your muscles strong while you are losing weight you risk significantly lowering your metabolism. By not exercising you could lose 25 to 30% muscle tissue. Muscle tissue burns calories more efficiently than the fatty tissue. Most commonly when dieters experience a plateau in weight loss, it is because they are not exercising. Their body has lost muscle tissue causing metabolic rate to slow dramatically. Weight loss becomes unnecessarily difficult and discouraging. It is much easier to keep the metabolic rate up by exercising the muscles at least twice a week.

Strength training, as it is called here, may also be called weight training or resistance training. It is the activity of taxing or fatiguing muscle by causing it to work against resistance. The muscle breaks down against the resistance. During the subsequent 48-hour period of rest the tissue rebuilds into a stronger muscle.
The energy required for your body to rebuild muscle increases your basal metabolism, which is often cited as the premium benefit of weight training. One pound of muscle will burn 30 more calories a day than a pound of fat.

Lifting a weight or pulling a cable attached to weights accomplishes the muscle resistance. Resistance exercises done with bands specifically for this purpose are also effective. A complete strength training circuit may be completed at home with very little equipment.

Muscle mass can be sustained with just 15-20 minutes of total body strength training twice a week. Muscle mass will be improved with more frequent, longer duration workout sessions. Experienced exercisers enjoy longer workouts, perhaps 30-minutes, three times a week.

Using dumbbells at home, perform at least one set of four to twelve repetitions for each major muscle group. As your strength improves you will want to do three sets of repetitions. A repetition is one full completion of an exercise move; ten sit-ups are ten repetitions. A set is a group of repetitions done in succession. Generally, a pause or rest is taken between sets. For example, a person doing sit-ups may count two sets of ten repetitions: she did 20 sit-ups.

Beginners to strength training ask how much weight should I lift? Lift a heavy-enough weight so that you feel fatigue on the last repetition of each exercise. Do not lift a weight so light it doesn’t require effort to move it. Conversely, don’t lift a weight so heavy you cause your muscles to burn or hurt after only a repetition or two. Strength training never needs to result in injury.

Concentrate intently on each motion as your perform your strength training exercises. The quality of movement is far more critical to success than the quantity of movement.

Weight training can be counted in your 30 minutes of daily activity as recommended by the Surgeon General. Strength training does not replace your cardiovascular training or flexibility programs, but should be incorporated into your workout week for overall health. Strength training will do wonders for your looks and health. That’s why Hollywood stars have personal trainers – they know it makes them look and feel better. While it is out of reach for most of us to have a personal trainer at our beck and call we can all take the responsibility to set a program of fitness then stick with it.

Tomorrow we will look at simple exercises you can do at home to begin your strength training lifestyle.  ¶ 12:40 PM 0 comments

  Strawberries This is a wonderful time of year for enjoying strawberries! The markets are loaded with plump ripe strawberries on sale for reasonable prices.

Strawberry Facts:
-One-cup sliced berries has 50 calories, 3.8 grams protein, 157% the RDA of Vitamin C and 24% RDA of Manganese
-In the USDA’s assessment of the antioxidant power of various fruits, strawberries placed second, after blueberries for their high antioxidant value
-Strawberries contain respectable amounts of folate – a heart-healthy B vitamin and potassium

At the Market:
-Look for strawberries that are plump, colorful and most important, sweetly fragrant
-The leafy caps should look fresh & green
-Check the packaging for signs of mold or rotting

To clean: place berries in a colander (Or leave in the plastic container if it has holes) and rinse under cold running water. Place on paper toweling to dry.


When I was a child, growing up in a fat household, I learned the only way to eat strawberries was the famous strawberry shortcake. The strawberries were cleaned & sliced, bathed in sugar (lots of sugar) then served atop a giant hunk of cake with a gravity-defying mound of whipped topping. Second helpings were encouraged. Hmmmm – now how is that all the members of the household were overweight?

Today I know better.

-Strawberries are wonderful without added sugar eaten right of the stem
-To sweeten under-ripe berries ½ teaspoon of sugar per cup of sliced berries works perfectly fine
-Strawberries soaked with a splash of balsamic vinegar and a pinch of sugar are outrageously good
-The cake and whipped topping are superfluous and counterintuitive to the healthy antioxidant benefits of fresh berries.

The following is a recipe from the Reader’s Digest cookbook: “Eat Well, Stay Well” page 338. It looks a little crazy at first glance, but we tried it last night and it was fabulous. I encourage you to give it a try. I think you’ll enjoy this taste of spring!

Strawberry Salad

¼ cup pecan halves (or walnuts)
4 cups cleaned, hulled strawberries
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
¼ teaspoon each salt & pepper
6 cups baby salad greens
4 ounces mild goat cheese (or cheese of your choice)

In a large salad bowl mash ½ cup of the strawberries. Thickly slice the remaining strawberries and set aside.
Whisk the vinegar, oil, brown sugar, salt & pepper into the mashed strawberries. Add the lettuce & toss to coat.
Divide the greens on four plates. Top with sliced strawberries, a crumble of cheese and tablespoon of nuts. Enjoy!

If you are making this salad for one I suggest preparing the dressing, then topping the measured portion of greens with the dressing, strawberries, nuts and cheese. The dressing will store in the fridge for up to a week.

If you have problems tolerating greens, just skip them and top a serving of sliced berries with the dressing, nuts and cheese. This combination would be good served atop cottage cheese as well.  ¶ 9:10 AM 0 comments