Now that food manufacturers in the U.S. have to label their trans-fat content, some of them are switching to healthier oils like palm and coconut. I am happy to see this change for the better! I hope more grocery store products continue this trend. Undoubtedly, there will be ignorant people who will cry out that palm oil is an unhealthy saturated fat. Like coconut oil, palm oil has been mislabeled as unhealthy for far too long, when it is actually is a very healthy saturated fat. Both oils have been staples in the diets of tropical people for thousands of years, and have helped people stay lean and healthy for centuries. Like coconut oil, palm oil is great for baking and frying, and is very stable and solid at room temperature, so it does not require hydrogenation and contains no trans fatty acids. (Trans fat is the bad stuff that you want to avoid like the plague!) According to authors and researchers Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, PhD, of the Weston A. Price Foundation, “palm oil is a stable, healthy, natural fat composed of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids.” (http://www.westonaprice.org) Palm oil is the second most used dietary oil in the world, behind soy oil, and much healthier for you than soy oil. It comes from a different palm tree than coconuts– a palm tree in Africa that produces small fruits that contain the palm oil. Palm oil is redish orange colored in it’s natural (unprocessed) state and a rich source of carotenes and and one of the best sources of vitamin E. Unprocessed palm oil does have a bit of a strong taste that (for Americans) takes a little getting used to. (I use it when I cook fish, because my family doesn’t notice the small flavor difference with the strong fish flavor covering it.) Processed palm oil has the flavor removed, but so are some of the nutrients. But even then, it is still much better for you than soy or canola oil. I think it is high time Americans see what most of the rest of the world already knows, that switching to palm and coconut oil is definately a change for the better! So, look for products that contain non-hydrogenated coconut or palm oil, or better yet, make your own healthy snacks with these oils.
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As a personal trainer, one of the most common questions I’m asked is “how do I lose stomach fat?” Well to put it as simple as possible, you can’t. No matter how may crunches you do, or leg raiser, you will not be able to target the fat in your abdominal region. The reason being, you can NOT localize fat removal. Doing sit ups and crunches only work the abdominal muscles and have absolutely no effect on the fat burned in that area. When your body burns fat, it uses fat stores from where it can find fat. Your body does not know that it should be concerned with your love handles. The fat on your body is distributed differently on each of use. For many males, the majority (or most noticeable) is the fat on the stomach areas. When you lose fat, your body will do so in it’s own natural “balance.” The best way to lose that ugly fat is through diet. Once your diet is in tune, you will slowly se the fat melt away. There is no hidden secret, magic pill, or piece of equipment that will quickly remove any fat. You have to work for it, and depending on your genetics, it may take awhile.
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Myth: You’ll be OK with a high protein/low carb diet Fact: This type of diet aims to secure most of the daily required amount of calories from protein foods, such as meat, dairy products and eggs, with a very small part taken from foods containing a lot of carbs (bread, pasta, potatoes and fruits). The biggest problem with this diet is that many common and popular foods are forbidden, which makes it easy for the user to get bored or frustrated. When boredom and frustration set in, quitting time is never far off. Another problem is the lack of nutrients that are usually brought in by carbohydrate foods, while allowing the user to eat bacon and cheese that raise cholesterol levels. The bottom line is that high protein/low carb diets result in fast weight loss in some users, but it’s not just fat that goes away. People also lose some of their lean muscle mass and a lot of water as the kidneys work harder to rid the body of excess waste from protein and fat. The added stress to your kidneys is not healthy at all and, in the long run, will lead to dehydration, headaches, feelings of nausea and dizziness. Before engaging in a long-term diet, you would do well to discuss it with your physician. And if you are really keen on dieting, try a balanced diet first, because it will help you lose weight without hurting your system. Myth: Permanent weight loss can be achieved with fad diets. Fact: This is yet another common myth among the weight loss crowd. Like any other diet that tells you to cut this or that food from your daily meals, fad diets are not healthy for you. The cornerstone of any diet is supplying the body with all the calories, proteins and minerals it needs. diets that cut out foods without regard for the needs of your body cannot be healthy for you. Fad diets fail to deliver on the promise of permanent weight loss because people will always crave the forbidden foods and will always end up breaking the rules and ditching the diet. The key to making weight loss permanent is more Exercise and to avoid eating food that makes you fat without nourishing your body. Our extensive studies confirmed the importance of exercising and of a well-balanced diet. Myth: Low-fat or no fat food is always a good choice. Fact: The only low fat foods that are also low in calories are fruits. The rest of the huge low-fat or non-fat group are not a safe choice if you are dieting. These products may have added sugar, starch or flour to make them taste better, which means extra calories that do not belong into your diet. So make sure you check the list of ingredients on packages whenever you decide to buy low-fat. Myth: Switching to vegetarian food will help you lose weight and stay healthy. Fact: I know this is a hard pill to swallow, but no food plan will work for you unless you take charge of your eating and make sure that everything that goes past your lips is the right kind of food. The key here is to be absolutely sure that the vegetarian diet will give your body all the nutrients and calories it needs. Eating heaps of foods that do nothing for you from the nutritional point of view, outside maybe of filling your stomach, can bring you a lot of trouble in the future. Since plants tend to have a lower concentration of nutrients than meat, you will have to eat more food than before to make up for this difference. Not to mention that a strictly vegetarian diet will not get you enough vitamin B12, vitamin D, iron, calcium and zinc. These substances are taken mostly from dairy products and eggs in a regular diet, but true vegetarians can’t touch those. You’ll have to rely on the few and uncommon vegetables that can provide these substances. Myth: Dairy products cause heart problems and make you fat. Fact: Well, thanks to modern medicine everybody knows that eating a lot of dairy products is a surefire path to high blood pressure and stroke, although a large group of people from France refuse to die despite the large quantities of cheese and wine they consume. Dairy products are the main source of calcium that keeps your bones strong and healthy. It is absolutely essential for children and can be in no way overlooked by adults. Dairy products also contain vitamin D, which is crucial to maintaining the normal levels of calcium and phosphorus in your bloodstream. If you don’t want to gain weight from dairy products, then choose low-fat or non-fat brands. There are enough of those around. If you are lactose-intolerant, drink soy or rice milk. It does not taste exactly the same as true milk, but it’s still good and nutritious. Butter and margarine are the only dairy products you should worry about. They do contain big levels of fat. Still, if you can’t do without them, at least eat butter. Margarine is an over-processed fat that is not particularly good for you. Butter may be a bit fatter, but it definitely is the healthier of these two. Source: www.weight-loss-diet-nutrition.net
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Losing weight doesn’t have to be boring when you focus on living foods. What does this mean? Simply by making sure your plate reflects a range of colours, you’ll naturally create more balanced and healthful menus complete with a range of living foods. What are living foods? They are re live, colourful, fresh and raw – fruits, vegetables and salads! Let’s Look At The Positives 1. Colourful foods have no preservatives and no added colour! 2. Provide an abundance of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fibre, water and trace elements. 3. Have a high water content – an excellent source of hydration for the body. 4. Are visually appetising. 5. Their firm textures demand a good chew, so we eat them more slowly and feel full afterwards. 6. Are quickly and easily processed and assimilated by the body – less work for the digestive system. 7. Are safer – contain less undesirable man-made chemicals. 8. Are as nature intended (unlike processed, pre-packaged modern fast foods!) 9. Are pure energy – living food. Consuming Cooked Foods 1. Heat destroys the vitalising nutrients in colourful foods. So much so that sometimes, you may as well be eating cardboard for all the good it does your body! 2. The effectiveness of fibre in cooked fresh foods is reduced – vegetables that are floppy and overcooked pass through the body with a reduced ‘cleansing’ action. 3. If you cook vegetables, always steam them lightly and aim to retain their ‘crunch’! 4. Cooked vegetables tend to turn out soft and therefore require less chewing, which means they are usually eaten more quickly, so are less satisfying. 5. Heat also destroys the enzymes in fresh foods, which are essential for digestion. This means the body has to tap into its own precious supply of enzymes to support the digestive process. 6. Heat also destroys the enzymes in fresh foods, which are essential for digestion. This means the body has to tap into its own precious supply of enzymes to support the digestive process.
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Copyright 2006 Eva Moffat 1. Use fruit purees instead of butter 2. Eat cheese but get rid of the fat 3. Don’t exercise before meals 4. Eating in front of the TV is bad for you 5. Always have a breakfast 6. Fructose is better than glucose 7. Bad fats are not good for you 8. Use skim milk rather than whole 9. Don’t have more than four egg yolks a week 10. Before cooking, trim all the fat from meat Substitute Fruit Purees Instead of Butter If when eating mashed potatoes, adding fruit puree instead of butter, will cut down the calories and give your mashed potatoes a different but pleasant flavour. Eat Cheese But Discard The Fat Cheese is good for you; it’s full of calcium. But it is also full of fat. Get rid of the fat by putting the cheese into the microwave for about 10 seconds, then drain off the fat and grease. (Be careful not to leave it in the microwave too long, unless you want Welsh Rarebit). Or alternatively, you could buy a cheese that has less fat in it. Don’t Exercise Before Meals If you exercise before meals you are just making yourself hungrier as you are burning the fat. So to satiate your hunger, you will eat more. A better idea is to exercise after eating. Then your body has to work harder to digest the food. WARNING: Don’t exercise immediately after a meal, or you will make yourself sick. Exercise an hour after eating. Eating While Watching The TV Is Bad For You You can so easily overeat. The programme you are watching may be so exciting and you are engrossed in it, you won’t be aware of what you are eating. Always Eat A Breakfast Breakfast is the first meal of the day. The word Breakfast = Break Fast. You probably have had nothing to eat since supper the night before. So you are Breaking The Fast. Your body will burn more calories if you eat breakfast. Fructose is Better Than Glucose Drinking Water With Fructose (Fruit Juices) rather than Glucose, will act as an appetite suppressant. Drinking a glass of orange juice an hour before eating will take the edge off your appetite. Bad Fats Are Not Good For You Bad fats are Trans Fatty Acids. Many margarines are Trans Fat. Butter is not. When cooking use cooking oil instead. Read the labels on the food you buy. If you see the words Hydrogenated Oils run a mile as this means it contains Trans Fatty Acids. As a bonus, running that mile will use up some calories. Use Skim Milk Rather Than Whole Drinking Whole Milk means you are drinking the cream and this of course is extra calories. Switching to Skim Milk will still give you all the goodness of milk, without the fat. Don’t Have More Than Four Egg Yolks A Week Do you remember the Advert on TV ‘Go To Work On An Egg’ personally I think you’d be more comfortable on the bus, but there is no accounting for taste. Seriously, the white of an egg (the Albumen) is full of the wrong kinds of fat. So better to have the yellow part of the egg (the Yolk) and then only a maximum of four times a week. Before Cooking Trim All The Fat From The Meat If you love your meat, by trimming all the fat off it before cooking will cut down your calories intake dramatically. Or alternatively, eat skinless chicken or fish.
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Copyright 2006 Donovan Baldwin I write a lot about weight loss and fat loss and how these contribute to health. You have got to remember, however, that fat is not a villain. It is an important nutrient for the health of your body and should not be ignored or disdained. The six dietary components necessary to the health of your body are protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water. Of these, protein, fats, and minerals are used to help build the various components and systems of your body. Protein, carbohydrates, and fat are the sources of energy for your body. FAT AS A STORED ENERGY SOURCE One of the first functions you normally are aware of is that fat is a major source of energy stored in the body. While carbohydrates and protein are also sources of energy, they are not as efficient as fat. While fat provides approximately nine calories per gram, protein and carbohydrates only provide approximately 4 calories per gram. Carbohydrates are normally stored in the body as glycogen, a form of glucose found in the liver and muscles. While some glycogen is stored to provide quick energy, about four pounds of water are required to support one pound of glycogen making it not very desirable or efficient as a stored energy source. GLYCOGEN VS FAT FOR THOSE IN EXERCISE PROGRAMS FOR WEIGHT LOSS While sustained physical activity is great for weight loss, many people put the pedal to the metal and try to go as fast as they can whether running, swimming, walking, or doing aerobics. Unfortunately, activities such as these when done at high intensity levels tend to deplete the body’s stores of glycogen first. Since the activity cannot normally be sustained, most of the energy used up comes from the glycogen stores. A slower version of the same exercise, done over a longer period of time (a 45 minute walk versus a 10 minute run, for example) will not trigger the release of the body’s glycogen stores, but, as energy is needed, will cause the breakdown of fat for use as an energy source. While protein is also a potential source of energy, your body cannot store protein per se. The protein “stored” in your body is in use in the form of muscle or other tissue. In fact, protein is even used to make hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is the part of red blood cells that carries oxygen to every part of your body. If the body needs protein for energy, it has to begin breaking down an existing structure, such as a muscle. Hmm! The heart and diaphragm are muscles aren’t they? WEIGHT LOSS AND PROTEIN LOSS If you want to lose weight, one of the most important items in your arsenal can be a good structure of lean muscle mass. Muscle tends to burn more calories than fat. Also, if you have built good muscles with lots of lean muscle mass, you are more likely to be active, burning even more calories. If, however, you restrict your intake of fat to extremely low levels, your body may begin breaking down existing muscle tissue to supply its energy needs. This means less lean muscle mass, fewer calories burned at rest, and less strength and willingness or ability to participate in calorie burning activities. The bottom line is that, as stored energy, your body cannot find anything better than fat. OTHER BENEFITS OF FAT In addition to this energy service, fat also has a few other benefits for your body. In addition to being a source of energy, some forms of fat, called fatty acids, are one of the building blocks of the cell membranes which surround every cell in the body. The manner in which the cell responds to hormones, participates in the supply of nutrients and disposal of waste is dependent upon the health and integrity of these cell membranes. Fat helps to keep your skin essentially watertight and appropriately moist, and is very important to your nerves, assisting them in the speedy transmission of signals. Fat is also important for certain hormones, known as eicosanoids. These are critical for various functions regulating events such as inflammation, blood pressure and clotting, and labor. A little known fact is that an animal which is lacking appropriate levels of fat cannot go into labor. FAT AND VITAMINS Without going into a major discussion of vitamins, you should be aware that some vitamins, such as vitamin A and vitamin E, require fat for proper absorption and use by your body. FAT AND CHOLESTEROL While fat was generally touted for many years as a contributing factor in high cholesterol, studies have been emerging showing that there are good forms of cholesterol (HDL) and bad forms of cholesterol (LDL). Some forms of fat (polyunsaturated fats) actually improve the levels of these good forms of cholesterol, some increase the bad cholesterol and good cholesterol (saturated fats), and some (monounsaturated fats) have a relatively neutral effect. EXAMPLES OF TYPES OF FATS Saturated Fats: These tend to be solid at room temperature. Found mostly in meat and dairy products, some vegetable oils, such as coconut and palm oils (tropical oils) and butter (as opposed to margarine). Polyunsaturated Fats: These are mostly from plant sources such as: safflower, sunflower, soybean, corn, and cottonseed. Monounsaturated Fats: These fats come from both plant and animal products, such as olive oil, canola oil, and peanut oil. Some plants, such as avocados, may also be sources of monounsaturated fats. Let’s remember this about fats in general. Like almost everything in life, too much is bad and too little is bad. Take in too much fat and you may have problems with heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. Take in too little, and you may have problems with dry skin, immune system problems and decreased disease resistance, menstrual difficulties, loss of muscle mass, and retardation of childrens’ growth.