Drink before you eat

Many times when someone feels hungry, they are actually thirsty. Before a meal I suggest having a full glass of water. That will fill you up and satiate both your thirst and hunger. By doing so, it will hopefully make you eat less when you actually sit down for that meal.

It's a good tip if you are trying to cut calories and still want that feeling of fullness!

So remember when you just want to run to food, grab a glass of water instead!

Type 2 Diabetes: What you need to know

A slideshow providing an overview of Type 2 Diabetes. A disease that can be heavily controlled through diet and lifestyle changes!

http://diabetes.webmd.com/slideshow-type-2-diabetes-overview?ecd=wnl_day_081211

Just Cut It Out!

One of the best pieces of advice I got growing up was to cut out all soft drinks (soda) from my diet and to this day I have stuck to it! I will now pass on this advice to all of you to help make a significant change to your diet and lifestyle!


Here are my reasons for why you should cut out soft drinks from your diet, and you can thank me later. 


Regular soda (non-diet) contains way too much sugar that there is constant weight gain in an individual. Sugar is basically empty calories and can contribute to weight gain and diabetes, so that alone should stop anyone from drinking regular soda.


The hard part is try to convince anyone to stop drinking diet soda! I know that diet soda has that sweet taste without the calories but diet soda is still bad for you and here are some reasons why: 


1.  One 12 oz. can of diet soda contains approximately 30-50 mg of sodium. An individual is recommended to have 1500 mg of sodium a day. Someone who drinks diet soda in excess has the risk of consuming far too much sodium. Too much sodium in the diet can lead to heart disease, which is the leading cause of death in the United States. 


2. Diet soda contains caffeine. In small amounts caffeine is safe, but caffeine does have side effects including addiction, anxiety and insomnia. 


3. Both regular and diet soda contain phosphoric acid. Phosphoric acid and calcium have a balancing act in the body. When you consume too much phosphoric acid it pulls out calcium from your bones to help balance the amount of phosphoric acid in the body. The phosphoric acid leaches calcium from your bones, which can effect bone health. 


I can't force anyone to stop drinking soft drinks, but I can say that it is the simplest change in diet and lifestyle that can make a difference. Not only to someone's diet but their mood and quality of life. 

Article of the week

8 Flat-Belly Foods to Beat the Bloat

http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/8-flat-belly-foods-to-beat-the-bloat.html

Your Lucky Number

The amount of calories that are found in one pound of body weight is equal to 3,500 calories.

Through diet and exercise anyone can easily lose a pound a week.

Here are the calculations to understand this concept:

There are 7 days in the week.
If you can cut 500 calories a day,
500 x 7 = 3500 calories,
= 1 pound loss

I understand this idea is easier said than done however there are many ways that someone can cut 500 calories out of their day. Some options are cutting your portions in half, drinking water, eating fewer carbohydrates, and eating more fruits and vegetables.

Exercise is a huge component in cutting those calories down too. Even if you have a bad day eating, you can make it up through exercise!

Feel free to comment on ideas and share with others on ways you can cut 500 calories out of your day!

Understanding your metabolism

Aside from weekly postings I will be posting interesting articles pertaining to various subjects on food and diet.

Below is a link to understanding your metabolism and how diet plays a role in your overall rate of metabolism. 

Enjoy and if there are any questions feel free to ask and I will answer! 

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/rm-quiz-truth-about-metabolism?ecd=wnl_day_080411

Knowing your ideal body weight

Before deciding to change anything about ones self I think it is important to figure out what a person's ideal body weight should be. It is a very simple formula that anyone can do if you know your height. It's as simple as that!


For Men: 106 lbs for first 5 feet + 6 lbs for each inch over 5 feet (medium frame)
                Small frame (- 10%), Large frame (+ 10%)

For Women: 100 lbs for first 5 feet + 5 lbs for each inch over 5 feet (medium frame)
                     Small frame (- 10%), Large frame (+ 10%)

Let me give you examples: 
A woman who is 5'3 and has a small frame can have an ideal body weight range anywhere from 103 lbs. to 115 lbs. 


A man who is 5'10 and has a larger frame can have an ideal body weight range anywhere from 166 lbs. to 182 lbs. 

Once someone understands a normal weight range for themselves they can then get an idea of what their goal should be in terms of weight loss. 

It is important to remember that being a healthy weight is much more important than trying to be underweight!