6. Eat lean cuts of meat.
Try to purchase meat with the fat already cut off. If you can’t, remove skin from chicken and the fat layer from around red meat and pork before eating.

7. Satisfy sweet cravings with a piece of fresh fruit instead of ice cream.
Full fat ice cream is loaded with calories from fat. Fruit has natural sweetness and fewer calories. If you must have ice cream, try fat-free frozen yogurt instead.

8. Cook more.
This eliminates the dependence on pre-packaged foods for meals that are filled with fat and preservatives. You and your family can experiment with new foods and expand your palate while avoiding fat traps with foods that are prepared by someone else.

Also, low fat in packaged foods can often mean a lot more carbohydrates in the form of high fructose corn syrup, and even a lot more sodium, in order to improve the taste of the food. Cook yourself, and watch the weight come off, even if it is just bloat and water weight.

With these simple steps you can shave excess calories off your diet, and off your waist and hips. Remember that 3500 calories lost is one whole pound lost, so every bit helps (as does increasing your activity level).

Reducing fat doesn’t mean you have to lose taste. Learn to flavor foods with seasonings. Use the above tips to get you started.

Before we proceed to the tips, here is some food for thought. Your body needs a certain amount of fat each day for cellular function. Fats are important for the production of a whole host of enzymes, chemicals and cellular needs. The problem is that we often eat the wrong types of fats and therefore gain weight.

1. Start with dairy.
There is hidden fat is cheeses and milk. If you drink whole milk, slowly step down your milk fat until you can drink skim milk. Or, choose soy milk, which contains the protein and vitamins you need without the extra fat.

2. Exchange thick sauces and creams for broths.
You eat broth in your soup. Use it as a base for marinating and cooking other foods. Instead of water, use chicken broth to cook rice and noodles. The broth will flavor them so there is no need to add butter or margarine.

3. Try vinegar and oil on your salad tonight.
Creamy salad dressings add a ton of fat. Just look at the label. Use flavored vinegars and vegetable or olive oil to top your salad. Lemon also works but is more bitter.

4. Go without fried foods.
Frying makes the skin crispy and good but the skin is the part of the chicken we don’t need to eat. Opt for baked chicken that has been marinated or try oven fried chicken instead. Remove the skin before battering the chicken.

Plyometric exercises involve using simple yet effective movements to build power and speed.  There are no weights used in plyometric exercises because of the intensity.  Only body weight is required.

Still a little foggy about what it is?  Think about playing tennis.  The movements needed to change direction in a second and hit a ball hard enough to return it across the net are both plyometric movements.  Other movements that fall into this category are jumping on one foot through a maze, jumping squats and jumping on and off of a box.

While they may seem like simple exercises, plyometrics are actually demanding.  Your body needs to be in good shape before attempting them.  To prepare your muscles for the impact, participate in regular weight training to build strength in muscles and bones.  Moving in so many unpredictable ways can cause injuries to joints, ligaments, tendons and muscles.

Before you begin any plyometric training, be sure to stretch properly.  A muscle that is not stretched is a disaster waiting to happen.  Get the body warmed up first so that muscles are easier to move without injury.

You can perform plyometrics for any muscle in the body that you want to improve.  The most common muscles that are targeted are the leg muscles.  Most sports and exercise classes use the legs considerably because they are the largest muscles in the body.  The goal is to teach your muscles to respond quickly without any problems.

Know that you can handle the training before participating.  If you have problems with your knees, jumping up and down on a box or winding through a maze of cones is not a good idea.  Plyometric movements are high impact.  Even for the conditioned body it is recommended that you start slow and simple and not at an advanced level right away.

Prepare your area for doing plyometrics.  Use a soft surface like a mat or cushioned floor to absorb most of the shock.  Also wear shoes that have sufficient support for all areas of your foot.  Hard surfaces can cause injuries to your body.

The everyday athlete can also benefit from using these techniques to better their performance.  Find a personal trainer who is familiar with plyometrics to show you the ropes and give you a good workout.

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degree F.

Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds and strings. Add 1/2 inch of water into a casserole pan and place the two halves face down. Bake in the oven for about 10 – 15 minutes.

In the meantime, place the apple slices in a bowl and add the brown sugar. Take the acorn squash out of the oven, turn the halves around and fill with the apple/sugar mixture. Top with a bit of butter and sprinkle with nutmeg. Cover with foil and put back into the oven until the squash and apples are cooked. This should take about another Ω hour.

Serve the stuffed acorn squash as a side dish.

Yes, it is true, there is a lot of sugar and starch in the US diet, and yes, the more you get, the more you crave. The plain fact is that it triggers a certain cycle in the body which makes the body produce insulin, and so when it comes time for the next meal, it leaves you craving that little bit more, and more, of carbs, until you start developing what is called insulin resistance.

Some diets have tried to look at the so called glycemic index, but the plain fact is that anything that comes out of a can, bottle, or package is innundated with sugar, and worse still, high fructose corn syrup.

What is corn mainly used for in the US? FATTENING beef cattle and poultry. So what do you think it is going to do to YOUR body?

And as Dr Oz says, it is all over, ketchup, mayonaisse, you name it. So you don’t even have to eat a piece of cake to be consuming a fair amount of sugar with every meal.

Speaking of cake, that brings us to our next topic-have you READ you food labels lately? If you look at a box of Pillsbury cake mix, SUGAR is the FIRST ingredient–NOT flour! And if you look at the serving size, it is 1/13 to 1/16 of the BOX! Put more plainly, you would need to make a 9 x 13 sheet cake, and cut it into thumb width portions to consume that little, with a whopping 40 grams of carbs in each of those slices (if you do Atkins plan level 1, you are only allowed 20 grams of carbs in the whole DAY).

So clearly, things are out of control with the way we eat. As proof, the US obesity percentage is 34%-compared to Italy, which has only 9%. And yet the Italians are famous for the delicious food, including pasta and pizza.
What is the difference? you might ask. Well, I would guess they all cook fresh, eat a lot more fresh frutis and veggies, and exercise portion control.

But it is a clear signal that things are out of control in the land of plenty. If oyu want to lose a fast 5 to 20 pounds, try cutting your carbs. It may not be a sustainable lifestyle long term but it can get the weight off quickly to encourage you to continue looking at your eating lifestyle and making smarter choices, to help you slim down.

Helpful Books for Carbohydrate Addicts

Dancing can be used to get regular physical activity into your daily routine.  Exercise keeps the body younger for longer.  Muscle mass increases and bone health improves.  Because you have to learn and remember the different steps of the dance, your brain is also getting a workout that builds new synaptic pathways and increases brain power.

Ballroom dancing is just one form of dance but it combines different dance techniques.  It features dances done by partners and can be slow or fast depending on the type of dance you are performing.  Modern ballroom dancing includes Latin dances, as well as American-style dancing that features a lot of dips, turns, and quick movements.

Dancing has many benefits for the body, mind and spirit.  First of all it is a low-impact form of exercise that provides a weight-bearing component.  You can strengthen your bones and muscles as you twirl.  The entire body gets a workout.  Doing many of the steps requires certain positions for the arms and legs which mean the abs are engaged the entire time.

Over time, you develop stamina as you get used to the movements and the time it takes to complete the dancing class.  Well-conditioned muscles are more flexible and give a slender look to the body.

So what are you waiting for?  Keep the mind young, the body firm and the spirit high with a little ballroom dancing.

Anorexics are headed for trouble.  With the lack of nutrition being given to their bodies, the cells get what they need wherever they can.  Bones become weak because cells are robbing calcium from the bones.  Lack of energy is a common symptom because there is no fat for fuel.  The organs will eventually begin to shut down.
… continued
All the while, the person suffering from anorexia nervosa is in denial.  They do not believe that they are doing anything wrong and are reluctant to talk about what is happening to them.  Depression sets in because no one understands them.

Anorexia nervosa is a serious condition.  The first step in curing it is to get help at the first sign that something is wrong.  In order to do that, communication between you and your child or other family member must be open and healthy.

Doctors don’t know what causes anorexia nervosa.  Lately the increase in the prevalence of the condition has been blamed on society’s image of beauty.  When young girls (and boys), see the beautiful bodies of models gracing the covers of magazines and the movie screen, their own inadequacies about their body surface.
Family dynamics have also been seen as a cause.  In families where communication is poor and affection withheld, kids may seek to find control, the control is the food that they eat.  Having high expectations that put undue pressure on the child can also lead to eating disorders.

Anorexics may begin with a diet but it doesn’t end there.  The obsession with their weight spurs them on to eat fewer and fewer meals.  They stop their hunger by drinking water or exercising more.  Even when the numbers on the scale drop, their lack of self-esteem won’t let them stop.

Because of their perceived problem, they may shy away from social gatherings, especially those that involve food.  In school, they may separate from their friends as the condition takes over their lives.  Any excuse is used to keep them out of family functions.

Over time the person with anorexia nervosa changes in appearance.  They may wear big clothes to hide the weight loss but if you maintain physical contact with your child you will sense the changes.  Their bodies are frail and emaciated.  The natural puberty cycle is often stunted in their bodies.  For girls, menstrual periods stop or donít start at all.

Anorexics are headed for trouble.  With the lack of nutrition being given to their bodies, the cells get what they need wherever they can.  Bones become weak because cells are robbing calcium from the bones.  Lack of energy is a common symptom because there is no fat for fuel.  The organs will eventually begin to shut down.

All the while, the person suffering from anorexia nervosa is in denial.  They do not believe that they are doing anything wrong and are reluctant to talk about what is happening to them.  Depression sets in because no one understands them.

Anorexia nervosa is a serious condition.  The first step in curing it is to get help at the first sign that something is wrong.  In order to do that, communication between you and your child or other family member must be open and healthy.

We really hope you are enjoying our blog. We at Goddess strive to bring you the most full information about healthy living. Lately we have noticed trends and eating habits that are not healthy for anyone. It is a misconception to think only woman suffer from eating disorders. In today’s society the fight to stay on top comes from both the male and female counterparts. Bulimia, anorexia, depression these diseases do not pick the sexes they want to attack. Woman and men have different ways to deal with each situation, but please keep in mind we can all be affected!

For the next few articles we are going to talk about, Bulimia and Anorexia0 Nervosa and how they affect both female and males.

Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by binging and purging of food.  Bulimics have a poor self-image and the disorder is an extension of that.  Women as well as men suffer from this type of eating disorder.

Bulimia nervosa can sometimes begin as a way to finally get off the roller coaster of dieting.  Many bulimics have dieted before but without sustained success.  They begin again, only this time, they take extreme measures to try to achieve their desired body image.

While bulimia affects mostly women in the United States, a fair percentage of men have also been identified as bulimic.  Bulimics are prone to compulsions.  When they eat, they do it in secret and are out of control.  They eat until they have stuffed as much food in themselves as they can.  The binging can be due to emotional stress within their peer group or at home.

After eating as much as they can, they will immediately vomit.  Vomiting may remove the evidence in their mind that they were ever out of control in the first place.  Even after normal meals they will excuse themselves and go to the bathroom where they force themselves to throw up.

You may notice that your son, daughter or friend is bulimic.  They may have been previously addicted to something else like drugs or alcohol.  Their weight will fluctuate but it doesn’t usually reach the low level of a person suffering from anorexia nervosa.