Jon's Health and Fitness Blog

10 Foods For a Fat Burning Diet

2008-12-30T17:50:00.000-08:00

There are two ways to effectively increase your metabolism, to enable you to burn more fat;

1. Exercise more, and specifically build more muscle (aerobics is not as effective as resistance training).
2. Eat fat burning foods (remember, not eating actually slows fat burning (lipolysis) which means starvation diets can make you fatter!).

By eating fat burning foods, not only do you improve your chances of burning fat, but you also fuel your body to help build more muscle. So if you are serious about losing weight, reducing that belly fat and getting slimmer and leaner, then ensure that you are eating some of these fat burning foods every day:

1. Salmon.

Salmon is great for our brains and contains essential fats. Diets high in Omega 3 fatty acids have been shown to improve weight loss. Also, liptin that is present in fish alters your metabolism to increase the chance of using stored fat for fuel. Ideally you should eat salmon or trout 3 or 4 times a week.

2. Soup.

Soup is a fantastic way to lose weight, and the winter months make it more appealing too. A study published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Deitetics showed that on average men that ate soup 5 days or more a week had a body mass index of 23. This is an ideal bodyweight for a lean man with average build.

3. Beans.

Beans are a great, especially kidney beans. So chilli con carne with a large serving of kidney beans makes a good weight loss meal. Kidney beans can stop carbs from breasking down into sugar, which slows digestion. This in turn prevents carbs from converting to belly fat.

4. Fat-free yoghurt.

Fat free yoghurt helps to increase lipolysis (fat burning), however you need to eat at least 3 servings a day to see results. In a study carried out by the University of Tennessee, men that ate the fat free yoghurt diet lost 81% more belly fat than the non-yogurt eaters. The high calcium and protein properties make it a great weight loss aid.

5. Whey protein.

Whey protein is one of the most popular supplements for bodybuilders. However, it helps to strip away fat as well as build muscle. The University of Toronto found that men that drank two whey protein shakes a day would eat on average 200 calories less than other men. Also the men on the why protein diet increased muscle mass by 8% and lost 3% more fat than the non-wheyers.

6. Chilli Peppers.

The hotter the chilli the greater the fat burning potential. Chillies contain capsaicin, which not only protects against prostate cancer and maintains a healthy heart, but also increases metabolism to much that is strips fat off. If you want super hot, go for Scotch Bonnets!

7. Pistachios.

The classic party nut. Pistachios are high in lean protein and they also curb the effect of carbs on your blood sugar. This means that eating pistachios helps to keep your waist slim. These make an ideal snack.

8. Cereals.

Breakfast cereals such as Weetabix, Shreddies oats and muesli all help to keep weight down. A study by the National Weight Control Registry found that people that lost weight and kept the weight off were more likely to eat breakfast cereals rather than any other breakfast. Cereals are release energy slowly meaning that you are less likely to snack on junk foods before lunch.

9. Cottage Cheese.

Another favourite of bodybuilders and athletes. 200g of cottage cheese has as much protein as a small steak, and it also contains casein. This means that cottage cheese is a slow digesting food, meaning that you are less likely to overeat later in the day if you eat cottage cheese for lunch. It also makes a great snack if you have an intense training schedule.

10. Grapefruit.

Finally some fruit! The 5 a day rule is healthy, but does not generally help us to keep the fat off. Ideally you should eat one and a half grapefruits a day, split into 3 snacks. Grapefruits are high in vitamin C, which actually dilutes fat, making it easier the flush fat from your system. Researchers at Louisiana State University found that people who ate grapefruits regularly lost on average 4 pounds more over a 12 week period than other diets.

Daily Fat Burning Diet

With a little imagination you can consume all of these foods in one day, which will provide you with an excellent muscle growth / fat reduction diet.

Breakfast: Start the day with muesli and a grapefruit

Morning snack: Cottage cheese makes a good morning snack as it requires not preparation.

Lunch: Extra hot mince beef chilli, with extra kidney beans. For dessert eat a fat free yoghurt.

Afternoon snack: If your energy levels start to wane, grab a bag of pistachio nuts and munch your way through them. This should keep you going through to dinner. Have a whey protein shake too.

Dinner: Soup of the day, followed by baked salmon served on a bed of watercress and rocket.

Post workout (any time of day): Whey protein shake.

This meal plan includes all the fat burning superfoods on the menu, and combined with regular weight training sessions almost guarantees that you will build muscle and burn fat. Enjoy.

Weight Lifting For Women to Get Lean and Healthy

2008-12-26T17:48:00.001-08:00

Adding weight lifting exercises to your dieting efforts will help you keep your muscles while your body is losing fat. Combining dieting, aerobic exercise, and bodybuilding training will cause greater body fat losses and weight loss than if you are only doing aerobic exercise and dieting.

There are numerous things you can do to help you become healthier, slimmer, and stronger. You can find books and programs telling you about exercise and fat loss, for example. But one of the things that women do not often consider is using bodybuilding work out routines. Women generally consider that weight lifting is a man's domain. Most females also do not want to develop the bulk of male and female professional bodybuilders, and who can blame them?

If you should choose to work with weights you will not gain this bulk necessarily, but you will develop some lean muscle mass and some attractive lines and definition which show off your toned and athletic new body. Using a bodybuilding routine will help you reshape your body and tone your muscles. You can end up one or two dress sizes smaller and still weigh the same amount.

More women are finding the idea of being able to reshape their body with weights very exciting and challenging. When first starting out you can get a trainer at a gym to work with you and show you the program and how it works. Many gyms include this help at no charge. This is not the same as a personal trainer but it is free and it gets you good instruction on a weight lifting program.

You can also gain a great deal of knowledge from weight lifting books and DVDs. They have books designed for women with no prior knowledge of bodybuilding.

Some basic tips are that you need to start very slowly and perform all of your lifts slow. This is the only way to go. Never use weights that you are not comfortable with. You want to be challenged but you don't want to hurt yourself. Stay hydrated. Having enough water to constantly refresh yourself is mandatory because you are going to be dehydrating and exhausting your body over the course of your training.

Start today and before you know it you will have the trim, lean shape that you have always wanted.

For more bodybuilding tips and fat burning information visit http://www.squidoo.com/secrets-of-fat-burning and begin on your road to a healthy and beautiful body.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marilyn_Roberts

Weight Lifting For Women to Get Lean and Healthy

2008-12-26T17:48:00.000-08:00

Adding weight lifting to your dieting efforts will help you keep your muscles while your body is losing fat. Combining dieting, aerobic exercise, and bodybuilding training will cause greater body fat losses and weight loss than if you are only doing aerobic exercise and dieting.

You can also gain a great deal of knowledge from books and DVDs on the subject. They have books designed for women with no prior knowledge of bodybuilding.

Start today and before you know it you will have the trim, lean shape that you have always wanted.

For more bodybuilding tips and fat burning information visit http://www.squidoo.com/secrets-of-fat-burning and begin on your road to a healthy and beautiful body.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marilyn_Roberts

Why Skipping Ropes Are Essential to Home Fitness

2008-12-26T17:45:00.000-08:00

Few people realise that the commercial gyms that charge an arm and a leg for monthly member have their roots in boxing gyms. Many years ago managers of boxing gyms realised that some people wanted to workout without getting a bloodied nose. So they started offering their boxing gyms to non-boxers. Bearing that in mind - how do boxers workout? Do they spend hours on a the cross training machine, or pounding away on a treadmill? No, they skip (and run outside). Skipping is an excellent form of cardio exercise, and improves agility and footwork too. The monotony of a cross trainer or stationary cycle does not exactly challenge the mind - whereas skipping is almost an art form.

Speed ropes are the most popular ropes these days, designed to be light and fast, which makes skipping easier. Heavy ropes are no longer favoured, although they do still provide a challenging workout.

Here are none ropes that will go well in any home gym. They also make fun and cheap Christmas presents, ideal for motivating family and friends to get fit too!

Source: UK Fitness Equipment

Tips to get fitter, stronger and build more lean muscle

2008-04-04T05:15:00.000-07:00

For guys, looking good boils down to fitness and strength. Building muscles, such as biceps, triceps, pecs and abs, and cutting down on the fat, is mostly all a guy needs to do to go from being a boring, dull, overweight and generally invisible slob, to being a real hot catch for a girl.

So, how to do it? Weight training not only builds muscle, but also burns fat - and not just while actually lifting weights. Increased muscle mass raises our metabolic rate, meaning that you burn more energy, and therefore put on less fat, even while resting.

Recent research has even suggested that sleeping 8 hours per night can aid weight loss. Combined with a weight training regime, this is a great way to lose weight. Once you start exercising on a regular basis it is essential to get more rest, and improve your diet, as weight training and endurance training both put a lot of effort on the body, and your body needs fuel to work, and rest to recover.

For guides on where to start, check out the muscle maps and weight training explanations on Motley Health.