Daily Diet Blog

January 31, 2008

Horizon Ellipticals Killing the Competition?

Filed under: Exercise Equipment — EatingToLive @ 8:34 am

I wouldn’t doubt it.  I love my Horizon elliptical machine.  Not only is it a smooth ride with no maintenance, but it feels extremely sturdy and professional to get on it.  It’s also quiet, and has just the right amount of features on it to not be too confusing, but also to be extremely efficient at getting the workout you want out of about a thirty minute session.

It’s funny, because a friend of mine was just telling me that she likes the treadmill better because the elliptical machine seems to hard for her.  I told her that I used to think an elliptical was one of the toughest cardio workouts I had ever had, and now I can whiz through a half hour on the thing with no thoughts.  Don’t get me wrong, some days it’s not “easy”, but it’s also not backbreakingly hard like it was when I first started. 

It just goes to show that an elliptical provides a superior workout to the treadmill, because it’s easy on the joints, but it provides an excellent workout and burns tons of calories because you are in constant motion.  It also is great for women who don’t want to bulk up, but instead want that “dancer’s body” look.  That’s why I use my Horizon elliptical, because when I use other exercise equipment, it tends to bulk my legs up since I have a lot of muscle in my legs to begin with, and want to keep the feminine look. 

January 29, 2008

Cinnamon a Natural Appetite Suppressant?

Filed under: Dietary Supplements — EatingToLive @ 4:00 pm

I had read in a couple of different places, both online and in magazines, that cinnamon was being hailed as a mild appetite suppressant, as well as a stabilizer of blood sugar.  Mind you, there is a HUGE connection between blood sugar levels and hunger, hence the reasons for people with unstable blood sugar to have ravenous appetites much of the time.  So this connection between hunger, appetite and blood sugar levels that has been insinuated about the common spice cinnamon does make sense logically.  But does it work?

Well, I set out to figure that out, and here’s my conclusion about whether cinnamons naturally suppresses the appetite.  I found that I think it does, although it seems fairly short lived, so for me, I did have to keep taking the cinnamon to achieve constant results. 

Here’s what I did.  I actually had a small shaker of cinnamon in my desk at work which I had gone through a phase using in my coffee and hot chocolate for a while, so I decided I would take a small dose of cinnamon in the morning with my breakfast to see if it staved off my usuall “mid morning” hunger, and voila, it did seem to lessen my hunger, as well as prevent me from getting the shakes, which I will usually get around ten to eleven, since I eat very early in the morning - around seven, and I’m the type of person who does have to eat at frequent intervals to keep my blood sugar steady.

I noticed this lack of shakiness and seeming evenness of mood and concentration throughout the morning, when usually I’d be thinking about food already by about ten o’clock, since I do need to eat every so often.  I just took probably not even a fourth of a teaspoon, but I took it straight - I didn’t mix it with anything, I just shook it out onto my hand and licked it right off!  Not the tastiest thing, but it’s also not horrible - it is, after all - cinnamon.

So if you’re looking for an experiment on how to naturally suppress the appetite, and you have some cinnamon laying around, there’s no harm in seeing what it does or doesn’t do for you, that is if you can stomach the taste of cinnamon, and I don’t know many people who don’t like the spice.  Just imagine you’re eating a slice of pumpkin pie and that may help it go down.  Don’t take it with sugar though, or you will defeat the purpose. 

January 27, 2008

Weight Loss Via Hypnosis

Filed under: Hypnosis Weight Loss — EatingToLive @ 6:41 am

There’s been a surging interest in the art of hypnosis for weight loss, and there’s a good reason for it.  Unlike many temporary fixes, hypnosis can offer a liftime of changed eating habits and a new outlook on eating and diet, because it essentially reshapes the subconscious and looks for triggers to overeating and eating the wrong things on a deeper level, instead of just addressing it by taking herbal weightloss supplements and appetite suppressants, which can definitely be a great jump start to a diet, but they don’t address the underlying reasons for weight gain and weight problems.

Hypnosis of course, also needs to happen on an ongoing basis, although it definitely enters a maintenance phase after a little while where it only needs to be repeated when the person feels it’s effect is “wearing off”, or they need a refresher, so to speak.  I’ve of course had my own success with hypnotherapy for weight loss, so I can definitely endorse it and say that it makes a huge, lasting difference in your appetite and the way you view food and even exercise.

There are excellent CD’s you can buy now that offer hypnsosis help for losing weight, and there are also even credited and licensed hypnosis professionals that you can look up in your local phone book or perhaps ask around and get referrals to someone good.  Heck, I’ve even been hearing on the radio lately about these group hypnosis sessions where people sit in a group and get hypnotized by a professional to do things like quit smoking and to lose weight, and supposedly this can be equally effective, although of course the issue with follow up is better addressed if you have self hypnosis cd’s at home where you can pull them out any time you feel you need a refresher.

Either way you slice it, hypnosis can be an incredibly effective way to lose weight and reshape your eating and exercise habits.  It’s better any day than doing drastic things like starving yourself only to binge eat later, or getting radical surgery to lose weight or taking dangerous drugs. 

January 24, 2008

Sauce and Dressing Calories Add Up

Filed under: Health & Fitness Tips — EatingToLive @ 12:52 pm

You might think that those seemingly harmless salad dressings, mayonnaise and other creamy sandwich spreads, and sauces that we drench our meats in like bbq sauce are relatively harmless as far as calories go, but you’d be very wrong. 

Unfortunately, savory sauces that really dress dishes up, especially if they are creamy or thick in nature, are usually havens for hidden calories that ultimately add a ton more calories to your bottom line at the end of the day, and don’t even add anything to fill you up, which is a double whammy.  Yes, many sauces and dressings are essentially like soda - empty calories! 

They may even increase your appetite as opposed to what our goal is to eat foods that naturally suppress our appetite and make us feel satiated.  Take one of my favorites, and admitted weakness - BBQ sauces.  BBQ sauce is laden in sugar, with a high sugar count and carb count to begin with, especially if it is a sweeter variety that adds honey.  So, essentially by adding this sauce to your meat, you are ensuring that you’ll be ravenous in a few hours, if that.

Couple that with another favorite and admitted weakness of mine, which is coleslaw, and you’ve got a three alarm fire on your hands when it comes to your appetite in the next hour or two.  We just had BBQ with sauce and also with coleslaw (this really is a delectable combo), but since the coleslaw was laden in creamy sweet, tangy sauce also, we were starving in about two hours, to the point of shaking.

Lesson here is that sauces are to be only eaten when they are considered a treat and you know you are eating badly.  It’s ok to eat badly once in while, just don’t make it a habit.  And, if you can, cut back on the dressings and sauces even when you do eat bad, and opt for more of a vinegar based sauce, something that’s not as creamy and that satiates rather than accelerates the blood sugar levels and appetite, acting as a natural appetite suppressant so you don’t over do it again in the very near future. 

If we eat the right foods, it actually makes our blood sugar regulate, much like the natural compounds in products like hoodia, which work by way of regulating blood sugar, one of the key components in regulating the appetite, and even staving off excessive thirst - one of the hallmarks of diabetics (excessive thirst is a part of diabetes).   

January 22, 2008

Food Pyramid for Seniors Gets a Makeover

Filed under: Dieting Trends — EatingToLive @ 9:13 am

I’ve long disagreed with the food pyramids.  Although I think their heart is in the right place, these government agency issued food guide pyramids are often misleading and don’t put enough emphasis on the importance of how foods are cooked, and what types of specific foods should be consumed in abundance and which should probably be minimized.  They are very general, which may only confuse the general public further as to what’s really good for them, and in what amount. 

Well, they may be trying to tweak a new food pyramid guide now directed especially for seniors, who do have slightly different dietary needs than younger Americans.  Although the same foods should probably be eaten, I guess this new pyramid if more or less portioning them out a little differently.  I’m not so sure about that either, since it also depends on other things like your level of activity, metabolism, and how foods are prepared. 

What does the new food guide pyramid for seniors stress?  Well, it stresses that they get more calcium fiber, and Vitamins A and D for one.  These vitamins and nutrients do become more important as we age, so this I think is the correct message to send out regarding how seniors should modify their diets in any ways they can to maximize these nutrients. 

Calcium is good because it strengthen bones at a time when bone density dwindles and many have problems with curvatures and other things with their bones breaking more easily and not being able to support themselves as well.  As far as fiber goes, it’s more important to get fiber as we age because our colons and digestive and waste elimination systems naturally slow down, and we need all the help we can get keeping it healthy and cleansed as best we can.  For a good product to speed up waste elimination and improve colon health see our Bowtrol review.

All in all, I think the new food pyramid guide for seniors is a good thing, however there are always also individual considerations to be taken into account when we figure out what kind of foods are best for our systems.  Even with fiber, since many of us react differently to fiber levels being increased. 

January 20, 2008

YMCA Crusade Against Obesity

Filed under: Diet and Weightloss News — EatingToLive @ 2:48 pm

The YMCA, an institution that has been around for years, and that I can remember belonging to as a kid for my swim lessons and open swim meets, has always been a beacon of good will and fitness for both the affluent and the underpriveleged, and the company is now focusing on bigger and better things.  That bigger, better thing, is actually a focus on becoming the primary crusader against obesity by educating on physical fitness and diet, so that people can educate themselves on not becoming obese.

It says, and I echo this sentiment wholeheartedly, that it wants to address the nation’s ongoing lifestyle related glut of health issues.  What they mean is that Americans have become increasingly unhealthy and diseased, which is a direct result of the increasing obesity rates and the tendency toward gluttony and the “more is better” attitude here that Americans have toward foods and everything else. 

They aim to change that mentality, and are focused on educating not only their clientele, which is some of the most diverse ethnically, race and income wise, but also the world, or at least the US, on how not to have health issues and stay healthy and vibrant.  Good so far, huh?

The new program they have that is aimed at increasing health and vitality is called “Activate America”, where they are redesigning health regimens and physical activities to help keep people on track with their weight loss and maintenance goals, and to encourage further stick-to-it-tiveness in their programs.  The YMCA was actually begun in Britain as a young men’s fitness and spirituality center for Christians, but quickly spread to the US and further diversified its offerings and programs to encompass its growing clientele. 

January 17, 2008

Cinnamon a Natural Blood Sugar Regulator?

Filed under: Weight Loss — EatingToLive @ 7:11 am

Well, there sure are a lot of pieces of good news in the alternative health market and also in the world of controlling our appetites through natural means, as well as our blood sugar, which has a direct effect on our appetites, and many times dictates whether we will pig out and go overboard or whether we will maintain an even keel of appetite and eating correctly.

Our blood sugar is really what makes us get that shaky, weak feeling when we haven’t eaten enough, or when we have gone too long before eating.  I used to actually pass out quite often in my youth because I had such an unstable blood sugar, most of which was self-induced because I happened to love things like potatoes and pasta as a kid, which are pretty much guarantors of the fact that you will be starving again in about two hours, and your blood sugar will plummet, leaving you ravenous.

Cinnamon has been getting a lot of good press as of late as a possible natural blood sugar stabilizer when it is eaten in it’s pure form.  Research has found that when subjects took teaspoons of cinnamon, their blood sugar levels remained stable for much longer, and hence they were less likely to pig out on foods that were inappropriate (we crave simple carbs when our blood sugar is low, even though theoretically that is the worst thing we can eat for our blood sugar), or eating way too much of even a good thing.

I tried my own little experiment with cinnamon, but instead of taking a teaspoon of it, I actually mixed it in with my water and drank it little by little throughout the day.  I did find that I did not get my typical mid-morning hunger assault like I usually do, and that I also wasn’t getting shaky when I’d normally be reaching that point of no return where you tend to feel that no matter what or how much you ate, it would still take a while for your mind to clear and your sense to stabilize. 

I found cinnamon useful definitely.  It actually added a bit of flavor to normal old, boring water too, so it may be of benefit to get people who don’t like water to drink more water, which is a great system purifier and cleanser. 

January 15, 2008

Sugarless Products Induce Diarrhea, Gas and Excess Weight Loss

Filed under: Diet and Weightloss News — EatingToLive @ 1:06 pm

You know, this is one of those news stories you read, and you have that moment where you know you experienced the same thing from a certain product that is now being definitively reported on as having the exact effects you experienced.  I’m talking about products made with sugar substitutes sorbitol, malitol and even some others ending in “tol” that have an effect that results in severe diarrhea, painful gas, and even excess weight loss if they are consumed in excess. 

Sure, the packages of products that are supposedly “healthier” for you that contain these sugar substitutes are labeled with warnings that excess consumption can cause loose stool, but honestly I think even moderate consumption has a negative effect on at least my system.  I am admittedly a little bit sensitive when it comes to my bowels, but I would swear that every time I even chewed one piece of sugarless gum, I’d almost instantly feel gas and bloating come on.

The news is that a study was done on both a young woman and older man as to why they were losing too much weight and found that both of them were consuming a lot of products that contained sorbitol, which is in most sugarfree gums these days that you see in drug stores unfortunately.  It’s funny because I remember when the correlation between my painful gas and the gum chewing finally dawned on me, and it was quite a long time after I had been chewing the gum. 

I thought my IBS was just acting up, but it was really just an unfortunate side effect of chewing this gum with sorbitol.  And the gum isn’t even the greatest contributor - many of those sugar free chocolates and candies you see in the candy aisles are pretty dangerous if you want to leave the house or be around people. 

In my opinion, it’s better just to stay away from this stuff all together, as we really don’t know the side effects of this stuff yet, and we do know that it affects our digestive tract and colon in a negative way.  May it possibly contribute to problems down the line such as cancer?  We just can’t safely say “no”, so my suggestion is to stear clear or severely limit these products, or try a great natural appetite suppressant like hoodia gum (which releases slowly so you have great appetite control all day) or something so that you aren’t tempted to go there in the first place! 

January 13, 2008

A Healthy Colon and Weight Loss Goals

Filed under: Health & Fitness Tips — EatingToLive @ 6:47 pm

How important is a healthy colon as it relates to maintaining a healthy weight, and also being able to lose weight?  Well, it’s very important actually.  Your colon and your whole digestive system are the way out for toxic substances as well as excess fats, sugars and other toxins that build up in our body and cause excesses of fat stores, cellulite and other unsightly bulges and creases where we don’t want to see them, and if our colon or waste tracts are backed up or unable to process and eliminate correctly, our weight loss goals may be stopped dead in their tracks.

You’ve probably heard that phrase before that “death begins in the colon”, and while is may seem sensationalist (I know it did to me at first), it is actually true in many cases.  Most times people with stagnant colons and digestive health issues simply do not eat the right diet for their condition and they unknowingly (or perhaps knowingly in some cases) clog their system further, and irritates the linings in critical organs like the colon and intestines, making it more difficult to move toxic waste out efficiently.

A good herbal colon cleansing like the Bowtrol system (see the Bowtrol Colon Cleanser Review) is in order for anyone embarking on a weight loss goal, and that is because most people need one in the first place, and if they are to lose weight successfully and feel great doing it, they first need to make sure that they can get rid of all that excess stuff efficiently.

It is said that many times if we have highly efficient colons that we could successfully rid our bodies of the daily assaults we place on them with chemicals and preservatives in our foods, not to mention unhealthy, saturated fats and refined sugars.  And what about how we absorb the good stuff?  Well guess what, if your digestive system and colon are not in good shape, it inhibits the body’s absorption abilities, so those antioxidants your eating or drinking aren’t as able to be absorbed and do their good work in the body. 

So you see, colon cleansing it two fold, not only does it get rid of toxic materials that increase weight and make you feel icky, it also increases the absorbent abilities of the main organs of the body that are responsible for moving antioxidants and beneficial nutrients to where they need to go and be utilized. 

January 11, 2008

Oklahoma City Mayor Challenges Residents to Lose Weight

Filed under: Diet and Weightloss News — EatingToLive @ 12:59 pm

Well, Oklahoma City has a very unfortunate distinction, and that is that is one of America’s fattest cities.  The mayor of Oklahoma City would really like to change that distinction, and has recently made a public challenge to all Oklahoma City residents to lose one million pounds collectively, himself included since he has been struggling with his own weight for a while now.

He’s even had a special website made up for the challenged residents to track their weightloss, and of course for the record keeping to begin on the weight loss initiative.  Among the other improvements, he wants to improve diet education and also to try to make the city itself more friendly for those that like to walk, whereas right now it’s not the most walk-friendly neighborhood.  By changing that he is hoping to get people walking more and sending a message that excess weight needs to be lost if they are to have a healthy, happy population.

The great website that’s been set up for the weight loss initiative also boasts BMI calculators (body fat mass indexes to calculate BMI and fat loss after dieting), and also recipes and ideas for exercise, as well as a blog and online community for residents to share ideas and experiences with their weight loss. 

Among other improvements to the city for walking, the mayor wants to also include more bike trails and the like to make exercise more appealing and easy to do/accessible.  The mayor himself has lost quite a bit of weight on his own initiative, but he says he has a bit more to go and has set that goal for himself.  One things for sure, he’s leading well by example! 

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