If you are an athlete, you must maintain a healthy diet to ensure that you have the maximum energy level available to support the intense training sessions, as well as your final event. Athletes must consume sufficient amount of calories and maintain proper nutrition, so that they can reach the energy level that is required of them, otherwise the body’s lean tissues and fats will be burnt away, causing loss of energy, strength and endurance.

Thus, without the right nutrition diet for athletes, if they participate in weight class sports like boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts, they are at risk of poor energy intake. Moreover, if they undergo extreme measures to lose weight fast before the competition, this in turn will cause loss of muscle and may even interfere with athletic performance.

The right nutrition plan for athletes should include all the necessary elements that the body requires, in the right amount. Since an athlete needs to push his or her body to the limit, they cannot afford to neglect the importance of proper nutrition.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates help to maintain blood sugar levels and thus help to fuel exercise. It also helps to replenish glycogen in the body, which is stored within the muscles. The recommend amount of carbohydrate daily in an athlete’s nutrition plan should range from 6-10 g/kg body weight.

Proteins

A proper protein diet is what aids in the building of the muscle tissues. The daily requirement of protein for an athlete varies according to the kind of sport he/she is into. While endurance athletes should take between 1.2-1.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, Ultra-endurance athletes who need to practice for long hours must have slightly more protein in their diet.

Fats

Fats are not always bad and even as an athlete; you will need adequate amount of fat to help promote optimal health and necessary fat intake. Fat intake in the nutrition diet for athletes should be between 20-35% of total daily calories consumed.

Vitamin and Mineral

Usually, if you follow a wholesome and healthy diet and nutrition plan, you will not require any additional supplement of micronutrients. However, if you are dieting, you can have a multivitamin supplement or a single supplement of some nutrient, if you are diagnosed with a deficiency. Micronutrients have a number of functions in the body, including producing blood, maintaining bone health, promoting muscle and tissue repair and oxidative damage. Vegetarian athletes may have to supplement some of the minerals and nutrients that are not present in their diet.

Diet and nutrition during and after exercise

Sports drinks for athletes are extremely beneficial. You can also supplement the carbohydrate in your body, especially if you did not have your pre-exercise meal, or if you are on a diet.

Your post exercise meal should depend on the amount of time you worked out, as well as the amount of time you plan to exercise next time.

Finally, never forget that water forms one of the most important elements in the diet and nutrition plan for an athlete. Dehydration can cause muscle fatigue and cramps.

If you want a perfectly toned and sculpted abdomen, you will have to reduce weight and eat healthy. The best way to lose belly fat is by reducing your overall weight and by increasing your body fitness – as this will automatically give you a toned look, which will also reflect on your abdomen.

Unfortunately, whenever a person begins to gain weight, the excess fat tends to accumulate around the abdominal area. It is important to lose belly fat fast as it can prove to be very harmful for your health. It may sit around your belly and in some cases wrap around the important organs, harming them seriously.

How to lose belly fat through proper diet?

It is important to follow a good diet when you are trying to lose belly fat fast. This does not mean that you should starve yourself. On the contrary, you should have a number of meals throughout the day. Of course you should not overeat in all those meals. Instead, you should have small helpings of food, 5-6 times each day.

Breaking your meals through the day, instead of having 2-3 huge meals, will keep you feeling full, and thus stop you from overeating. Breaking your meals through the day also increases your metabolic rate and thereby increases the amount of calories that are burned in your body, thus helping you to lose belly fat fast! Choose a diet plan that suits your lifestyle, otherwise, you will not be able to stick to it.

To eat healthy, you can include a lot of fruits and green vegetables in your diet. Such foods will help to reduce the amount of calories that enter the body. If you do not like some food, you can add spices and herbs to make them taste better.

You should also begin to find healthy replacements of fattening foods like butter and so on. Whole grains, complex carbohydrates, proteins and other similar nutrients should be included in the diet.

How to lose belly fat through exercise?

Proper exercise is perhaps the best means to lose belly fat fast. Some regular cardio exercises like running, cycling, and swimming can help you burn a lot of fat. High Intensity Interval Training is great for losing weight by upping your metabolic rate. You should incorporate a number of exercises in your schedule, including weight training. If you are a woman, do not be afraid to weight train thinking that it can make you look masculine – because it will not. In fact, a little bit of lean muscle on your body will make you look fit and will also give you great abs that you can be proud of.

Regular stomach crunches reverse and cross crunches can help you lose belly fat fast and achieve a perfectly toned stomach.

One of the best ways to prevent colds and flu is to get a flu shot during the flu season. Though this is not a natural method, it is very effective. Other than this, there are certain simple rules that you can follow to prevent cold and flu.

Clean hands

Washing your hands will ensure that you do not get the flu virus on your bare hands, either for doorknobs or telephones that have already been touched by an infected person. Since cold and flu viruses are spread by direct contact, you should be careful while touching public objects that may be infected.

Use a tissue while sneezing

Do not cover your mouth with your bare hands while sneezing. You will simply pass on the virus to someone else. You should also not touch your face as the flu viruses enter through the eyes, nose, or mouth.

Fluids and fresh air

Since fluids flush your system, it helps to wash out the toxic materials and helps to rehydrate you. Apart from this, a few strolls in the park can be good for you, especially during the winter season, when central heating makes you susceptible to catching cold.

Exercise and food

The right kind of exercise can help you to prevent colds and flu. Aerobic exercise makes the heart pump larger quantity of blood and increases your body temperature. This helps to increase the body’s natural immunity system.

Foods containing Phytochemicals are also great as a flu remedy. Phyto means plants and these are natural vitamins that make you stronger. In addition, even low fat yoghurt is believed to reduce your susceptibility to colds by 25 percent.

Smoking

Smoking makes you very susceptible to cold and flu. It dries out your nasal passages and paralyzes the delicate hairs that line the mucous membranes in the lungs and the nose.

Sleeping and resting

A good night’s sleep can boost up your immunity, thereby helping to prevent cold and flu. However, once you catch a cold, you should be ready with certain cold and flu remedies. Perhaps the most potent remedy is rest. You should be adequately rested as this will give your body the chance to heal itself. Avoid going to work, as this will affect the quality of your work, and might also infect your co-workers.

You should have plenty of fruits and vegetables, as they contain the vitamins that are necessary to maintain a good immune system. Another good flu treatment can be done through nasal irrigation, which helps to clear the sinuses of mucus carrying the cold or flu virus. Including zinc in your diet is also important to prevent cold and flu.

Elderberry is known to have great powers to prevent common cold and flu. Red Wine is also found to have decreased the chances of contracting flu by 20%, if you have a glass of wine daily. Garlic is yet another powerful anti-viral that usually tends to kill the cold viruses. Other immunity boosters that can help to prevent colds and flu are Echinace, Echinace , Andrographis, coconut oil and ginger.

Remember that in case of cold and flu, prevention is better than a cure.

Being pregnant is a special time in your life when you can see your body change physically. You are now responsible for taking care of yourself as well as your unborn baby. As such, it is important that you stay fit and take care of your health. Though it might come as a surprise to many, exercise for pregnant women during this period can be very rewarding – helping you to stay on the top of your health.

While performing any exercises while pregnant, you should remember to take certain precautions while working out. Not all exercises are good exercises for pregnant women. As a rule of thumb, you should take care that your heart rate never goes above 130-140 beats per minute. In case you feel that this is the case (you will feel too hot and uncomfortable), you should allow your body to cool down. Remember that heating up can be very harmful for both you and your baby – so you need to be careful.

Another thing you should remember is that, bad exercises for pregnant woman will make you hold your breath. But this should not be the case. If you find that you have to hold the breath while carrying out an exercise, you must realize that you are overexerting yourself and must stop immediately.

Practicing safe exercises for pregnant women

Here are a few pointers that you should take note of while you are pregnant, and after you bring your new baby home.

It is a good practice to exercise regularly – three times a week is a good habit. Always ask your trainer about the safe exercises for pregnant women and how often you should do them. If you are in doubt, always make it a point to ask someone who can guide you in the right direction.

If you have been using weights as well as doing aerobics before you got pregnant, you can still keep them up in moderation. However, it is also very important to note that if you were exercising before, you should not begin a new program now. You can however use some light weights and walk a bit, if your doctor recommends it.

Remember that as a pregnant woman, you need even more fluids, and so does your baby. As such, you should drink plenty of water during, after and before the exercise routine. Also remember that you should not perform any exercise that requires you to be on your back, as these are not safe exercises for pregnant women who are in their second and third trimester.

Avoid jerky movements during pregnancy and also make sure that you never perform squats as this can cause the separation of the placenta from the uterus.

Safe exercises for pregnant women

Important exercise for pregnant women includes curl ups – these are modified sit ups that can me done to a maximum of 45 degrees from the floor and the knee should be bent and weight should be on the floor. However, remember that this exercise may be very dangerous after the first trimester.

Kegel exercises will help you to strengthen the pelvic muscles and thereby safeguard you from a number of prospective complicacies during pregnancy, including stress incontinence or urine leakage.

Some stretching exercises are great for your hamstrings and your back and will help you to stay fit during your term. Performing some light yoga during this period is also a great idea.

Finally, remember that just because you are pregnant, does not mean that you will have to let yourself go. On the contrary, staying fit and healthy during this period is even more important. So working out and performing the best exercises for pregnant women can help you to have a healthy life and a healthy baby.

As a part of your fitness training program, pumping iron is something that you should not ignore. Today, more and more women are hitting the gym not only for aerobics, but also for weight training. Weight training for women is a way of achieving a toned, lean and sexy body that you can be proud of.

Fitness exercise with weight not only keeps you slim, lean, fit and healthy, but also adds to your body strength. It helps you stay energetic and gives you a lot of stamina to work through the day.

Resistance Training for women has other benefits too. It keeps your heart as well as your connective tissues stronger. You will also develop stronger bones. Weight training for women is especially good as it minimizes chances of developing osteoporosis problems.

Why should you include weight training in your fitness training program?

Everyone likes a toned body. Plus, if you are trying to lose some excess fat, nothing could be better than pumping iron when you are in the gym. The National Center for Health Statistics has found that only 21% of women weight train more than two times a week. But unfortunately, when you skip the weights, you are losing out on the best chance of burning calories – by almost doing nothing.

This is because, a study has shown that women who completed an hour long weight training session, would end up burning an average of 100 calories more in the 24 hours after the workout, even when they did not exercise in the interim period.

Yet another long term benefit of weight training is that it will help you to develop lean muscle. Muscle in turn, helps to increase your metabolic rate and thereby burn up more calories. This means that muscle can help you destroy calories, even when you are not in the gym. If you replace say around ten pounds of fat with 10 pounds of muscle, you will end up burning about 25-50 calories per day, without even making an effort.

Get started with your weight training

Before you begin to track the progress, remember that you should not track it with your scale. Sometimes, you will find that you have lost an inch or more off your belly, even though you have not really lost much weight. This is because,  exercising with weights have paid off and you now have more muscle than fat. Since muscle is heavier than fat, you would not weigh a lot less than before, but you will definitely appear much more slim and lean.

While following any fitness exercise program, you should aim for a total body workout that will target every part of your muscle. Aim for exercises that will target various groups of muscles, like squats, bench presses, dead press, shoulder press and so on.

Another thing to follow during fitness training is you should alternate moderate intensity workout of 8 to 10 reps with 12 to 15 reps.

Eating right

For the most successful results of weight training for women, you should eat a balanced diet. Since your muscles need protein, you must include a lot of protein in your daily diet.

Avoid straining

You can include three days of weight training and three days of aerobics in your fitness training routine. However, take care never to perform more exercise than required, as you can strain yourself.

Finally, if you wish to stay healthy, fit and strong, weight training is the way to go. You will be able to show off a great body that is lean and sexy, with just the right amount of curves. Remember that weight training will not make you look bulky and masculine. In fact, it will make you look curvier and even more feminine.

When you were growing up, I bet you didn’t even think of the word ‘diet’.  In fact, most young people can get away with a less than perfect diet.  As a youth or a teen your probably didn’t see the effects of unhealthy eating or lack of physical activity. As you grow older, your body will change and soon enough you will see the effects of being a couch potato. Most people blame this on metabolism slowing down.

If you decide to neglect your body, then prepare for it to have a rapidly devastating visual and physical affect on your overall heath.  An unhealthy lifestyle ages a person in both looks and vitality, while those who take care of themselves can enjoy the benefits of a more youthful energetic body and usually they appear years younger as well.

“You are what you eat” – sound familiar?  There are piles of research papers validating how the vitamins and minerals in food are necessary for the body to replenish, heal and fuel itself.  There is also just as much data proving what the lack of these nutrients cause: a multitude of deficiencies that render the body helpless in fighting infections, fatigue, and physiological problems.

However, society is flooded with contradicting messages.  Fighting for consumer’s attention with the myriad of information on organic products, vegetarianism, juicing and designer water is the media’s pressure to save time and energy by purchasing pre-made, pre-packaged foods.  Little consideration is given to the fact that there could be just as many, if not more, chemicals and preservatives in those alternative selections.

Most of those full colored, hot bodied ads in the magazines are for packaged and processed items.  Why?  Manufacturers pull out all stops in getting the public to notice their products, and they usually succeed!  The public is so inundated with advertising that eating fake food isn’t given a moment’s thought.  Unfortunately, because the majority of people are used to eating this way, they don’t realize that it is keeping them from their highest potential of feeling great.

Once someone decides to improve their health and lifestyle, a diet change is usually paired with a new exercise regime.  And, for most adults, it becomes very apparent that an implementation of any physical workout can either be supported or hampered by their choice of diet.  If one listens to their body, it’s obvious that physical stamina varies from person to person.  This may be due to amount of sleep, time of day, or type of exercise being one is trying to attempt.  But there are many other factors as well, it could be due to a blood sugar drop, lack of stored carbohydrates, not enough protein, or other diet-related scenarios.  The older a person gets, the more obvious it becomes that eating a rounded diet of fresh foods, in as natural a state as possible, is necessary for maximum physical efficiency.

So why even bother with exercise if you improve your diet?  Well, why is it that so many athletes and celebrities who work out daily appear to be younger than their years?  Believe me, it’s not just from plastic surgery. Ok well, for some of those people it is, but the truth is, the body’s structure has intended it to do more than just sit. Until a person experiences the joys of a physical fitness outlet on a regular basis, they won’t understand the emotional and physical benefits that exercise brings.  The sense of achievement that accompanies every improvement in strength or endurance has no comparison.  Furthermore, the body is recapturing vitality-the essence of health, youth, and life itself.

When good nutrition and physical fitness work together, the body performs at its optimum.  A better diet results in more energy to exercise; more exercise means losing pounds and developing muscle.  More muscle means a stronger, leaner body.  A new body may motivate one to continue the positive cycle.  Finally, this healthier lifestyle will bring a wealth of emotional benefits, all of which may very well turn back the clock.

I woke up this morning and I could hardly get myself out of bed. Why are my muscles so sore? It feels like someone was beating me with a bat all night long. Sound at all familiar? I’m sure you know what I’m talking about as it has probably happened to you before – you exercise or do some strenuous work and wake up the next morning with sore muscles – even thought your muscles weren’t sore the night before.

You may be experiencing something known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (or DOMS). Whatever exercise, activity or project you did, you tried to do too much, too quickly. Now, you have the sore muscles to deal with.

What causes sore muscles?

Theories on the cause of muscle soreness have evolved over the years. Just a few short years ago, lactic acid would have been blamed as the culprit for those aching muscles. However, that theory has all but been dismissed today.

During high levels of physical activity (i.e. exercising and/or weight training), your body produces lactic acid because the muscle’s demand for oxygen gets too high and the blood cannot deliver all the oxygen it needs. In order to produce energy needed for the muscles to function, the body begins a process that works without that oxygen and its through this process a byproduct is created: lactic acid. The lactic acid builds up and gets locked inside your muscles and since it is an acid, it has the ability to cause a burning sensation within your muscle‘s tissue.

For many years, lactic acid build up was thought to be the cause of sore muscles. Today, new science has proven that this is not totally correct. The results show that lactic acid does not remain in the muscles for any length of time. Lactic acid is completely washed out between 30 and 60 minutes after the physical exertion (workout, exercise, etc). With most muscle soreness being noted 24 to 36 hours after the exercise, the cause of sore muscles isn’t a result of lactic acid in the muscles.

Research has indicated that the cause for sore muscles is micro-trauma to the muscle fibers. When you overdue any physical exertion, whether it be during work or play, you do some localized damage to the muscle fiber membranes. This damaged muscle can then become inflamed, which can cause soreness in your muscles.

Some other factors which could cause sore muscles include:

• Damaged muscles release chemical irritants, which can irritate pain receptors.
• There is an increase in blood flow to the area because of the increased activity of the muscle. This increased blood flow can cause swelling, which can irritate pain receptors.

Just remember, whenever you overdo an exercise or over exert yourself physically, there is the possibility you won’t wake up feeling like superman. You will wake up because your muscle fibers have microscopic tears due to being fatigued from the exercise, and thus are swollen and sore.

By moving the sore muscles, you can gradually return them to their normal state. Don’t try to exercise at your previous intensity, though, since the damaged muscles have lost some of their strength. Give the muscles some time to heal before attempting to exercise or work at the same level that originally caused the muscle soreness.

How do I avoid sore muscles?

While there is no “cure” once you have sore muscles (other than time), there are tricks to help you avoid sore muscles:

• Make sure that you stretch and warm up properly before any physical activity. Stretch and cool down at the end of the activity. This will help you avoid the sore muscles in the future.
• When you exercise, gradually increase the intensity of the workout. This will allow the strength and endurance of your muscles to grow.
• Make sure that you are using the correct form when exercising, as incorrect posture and positioning can cause sore muscles.

The best way to think of sore muscles is to equate it to an injury. When you are injured the only way to recover is to rest. You cannot push yourself or you will cause more damage or even more serious injury. The same holds true with your muscles. You do not have to stop activity completely, but you will have to rest for several days in order to give the muscles a chance to heal.

Can a handful of walnuts help prevent a heart attack? How about a bowl of oatmeal, or even a baked potato topped with some heart-healthy margarine? A few simple tweaks to your diet may be enough to lower your cholesterol to a healthy level and help you stay off medications.

Walnuts, almonds and more
Many studies have shown that walnuts can significantly reduce blood cholesterol. Walnuts are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, which helps keep blood vessels healthy and elastic. Almonds and some other nuts also have a similar effect.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, eating about a handful (1.5 ounces, or 42.5 grams) a day of most nuts, such as almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, pecans, some pine nuts, pistachio nuts and walnuts, may reduce your risk of heart disease.
But all nuts are high in calories, so be sure to limit yourself to about a handful. As with any food, eating too much can cause weight gain, and being overweight places you at higher risk of heart disease. To avoid gaining weight, replace foods high in saturated fat with nuts. For example, instead of using cheese, meat or croutons in your salad, add a handful of walnuts or almonds.

Oatmeal and oat bran
Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, which reduces your low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the “bad” cholesterol. Soluble fiber is also found in such foods as kidney beans, apples, pears, psyllium, barley and prunes.

Soluble fiber reduces the absorption of cholesterol in your intestines. Ten grams or more of soluble fiber a day decreases your total and LDL cholesterol. Eating 1 1/2 cups of cooked oatmeal provides 6 grams of fiber. If you add fruit, such as bananas, you’ll add about 4 more grams of fiber. To mix it up a little, try steel-cut oatmeal or cold cereal made with oatmeal or oat bran.

Fish and omega-3 fatty acids
Research has supported the cholesterol-lowering benefits of eating fatty fish because of its high levels of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids also help the heart in other ways such as reducing blood pressure and the risk of blood clots. In people who have already had heart attacks, fish oil — or omega-3 fatty acids — significantly reduces the risk of sudden death.
Doctors recommend eating at least two servings of fish a week. The highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids are in mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon. However, to maintain the heart-healthy benefits of fish, bake or grill it. If you don’t like fish, you can also get omega-3 fatty acids from foods like ground flaxseed or canola oil.

You can take an omega-3 or fish oil supplement to get some of the beneficial effects, but you won’t get all the other nutrients in fish, like selenium. If you decide to take a supplement, just remember to watch your diet and eat lean meat or vegetables in place of fish.

Olive oil
Olive oil contains a potent mix of antioxidants that can lower your “bad” (LDL) cholesterol but leave your “good” (HDL) cholesterol untouched.

The Food and Drug Administration recommends using about 2 tablespoons (23 grams) of olive oil a day to get its heart-healthy benefits. To add olive oil to your diet, you can saute vegetables in it, add it to a marinade, or mix it with vinegar as a salad dressing. You can also use olive oil as a substitute for butter when basting meat.

Some research suggests that the cholesterol-lowering effects of olive oil are even greater if you choose extra-virgin olive oil, meaning the oil is less processed and contains more heart-healthy antioxidants. But avoid “light” olive oils. This label usually means the oil is more processed and lighter in color, not fat or calories.

Foods fortified with plant sterols or stanols
Foods are now available that have been fortified with sterols or stanols — substances found in plants that help block the absorption of cholesterol.

Margarines, orange juice and yogurt drinks fortified with plant sterols can help reduce LDL cholesterol by more than 10 percent. The amount of daily plant sterols needed for results is at least 2 grams — which equals about two 8-ounce (237 milliliters) servings of plant sterol-fortified orange juice a day.

Plant sterols or stanols in fortified foods don’t appear to affect levels of triglycerides or of “good” high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Nor do they interfere with the absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins — vitamins A, D, E and K.
The American Heart Association recommends foods fortified with plant sterols for people with levels of LDL cholesterol over 160 milligrams per deciliter (4.1 mmol/L).

Consider your diet first
Before you make other changes to your diet, think about cutting back on the types and amounts of fats you eat, which can raise your cholesterol. That way, you’ll improve your cholesterol levels and health overall.

When cutting fat from your diet, focus on saturated and trans fats. Saturated fats, like those in meat and some oils, raise your total cholesterol. Trans fats, which are sometimes used to make store-bought cookies, crackers and cakes, are particularly bad for your cholesterol levels because they raise low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the “bad” cholesterol and lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL), “good” cholesterol. You should try to limit the number of calories you eat daily to less than 10 percent from saturated fat, and eliminate as many trans fats from your diet as possible.

How would you like to lose an extra 10 to 15 pounds? What if I told you it was easier than any diet plan out there today? Sounds good doesn’t it? The truth is, losing weight is easier than most people think it is. I think you will be pleasantly surprised that you don’t have to cut out all your favorite foods or starve yourself to get that great body you want.

I know that as soon as you start to think about losing weight, you immediately remember a time when you starved yourself or only ate flavor-less vegetables. Can you feel the hunger pains now? No wonder people have a horrible time trying to stick to a ‘diet’.

The fact is, you can feel better than you do today. You can have more energy, you can improve your long-term health prospects and you can even get lucky more often (with better results). And food—the right kind of food—is your ticket to success. All the secrets are right here. I hope you are ready to eat!

Eat 5 Meals a Day

I’m not kidding. Eating more often throughout the day is actually better than starving yourself. Five meals a day breaks out into three meals and two snacks. In a study in the American Journal of Epidemiology, researchers found that men and women who ate four or more times a day had half the risk of becoming overweight compared with those who ate three times or fewer. This doesn’t mean three feasts and two 900-calorie “snacks”; read on for the foods to pile on your plate.

Fill Up on Fiber

“Fiber is the best food you can eat when you’re trying to lose weight,” says Gay Riley, R.D., a nutritionist in Dallas and the author of Pocket Personal Trainer. Here’s why: It slows your rate of digestion, which keeps you feeling full longer and reduces sugar cravings. And because it binds to other foods, fiber helps hustle calories out of the body.

A USDA study determined that people who consume 24 grams (g) of fiber daily earn a 90-calorie free pass. Your goal is 5 g fiber at each meal.

5 or more g fiber:

• 1 cup of any cereal with “bran” in the name—such as raisin bran or All-Bran. If the magic word is missing, check the Nutrition Facts label.
• 1 cup of cooked beans—pinto, kidney, navy, any kind

2 to 4 g fiber:

• 1 medium apple, pear, orange, or banana
• 1 cup of any fruit that ends in “berry”
• 1/2 cup of cooked asparagus, broccoli, brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower, green beans, sauerkraut, or spinach
• 1 ounce (about a handful) of almonds, peanuts, cashews, pecans, or sunflower seeds
• 1 cup of cooked brown rice or whole-wheat pasta, or two slices of whole-wheat bread

Put a Limit on Starch

Since 1980, the average guy’s food intake has grown by 500 calories a day, nearly 80 percent of which can be attributed to carbohydrates; in that time, obesity has increased by 80 percent.

The lesson: Cap your intake of the most carbohydrate-dense foods—such as grains and potatoes—at three servings a day. (One serving is the equivalent of one slice of bread, 1/2 cup of cooked pasta or rice, or one small potato.) Always eat the highest-fiber, least-processed versions of these foods—whole-wheat breads, pastas, and cereals; brown rice instead of white; and whole potatoes, including the skin.

Don’t Count Calories

A good diet is effortless. By frequently eating the right foods, you’ll eliminate hunger and control your calorie intake.

Never restrict your produce intake. You can’t eat too many fruits and vegetables. Potatoes accepted, they contain very few calories, little starch, and lots of fiber.

Have some protein with every meal. Make an effort to eat a serving or two of high-quality protein—yogurt, cheese, milk, beef, turkey, chicken, fish, pork, eggs, or nuts. You’ll get the daily ideal 8 g leucine, an amino acid that’s critical for boosting metabolism and preserving muscle as you drop pounds.

Don’t be afraid of fat. Researchers at the City of Hope Medical Center, in Duarte, California, report that men and women who ate a low-calorie, high-fat diet lost 63 percent more weight in 6 months than those who followed a low-fat plan with the same number of calories. By replacing some of the starches with fat—which takes longer to digest—you’ll stay full longer and eat less. Emphasize healthy, unsaturated fats: In the study, the high-fat dieters ate 3 ounces of almonds a day.

The Most Important Meal of the Day

University of Massachusetts researchers found that men and women who skip breakfast are 4 1/2 times more likely to be obese than those who don’t. “Eating breakfast is like putting kindling on the fire of your metabolism,” says Riley, so your body will be less likely to store fat.

Make sure you eat within 90 minutes of waking—participants in the study who waited longer increased their chances of obesity by nearly 50 percent.

Cholesterol is a type of fat made by your liver. Some cholesterol comes from the food that you eat. Foods that come from animals – such as eggs, meat and dairy products – have cholesterol in them. Foods that come from plants don’t have cholesterol. But it’s not just the cholesterol in foods that counts. Foods high in saturated fat (hydrogenated vegetable fats, tropical fats (coconut and palm oil), and animal fats) can also raise your cholesterol level.

Why is a high cholesterol level unhealthy?

Some cholesterol is needed for good health but too much cholesterol in your blood can raise your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. The extra cholesterol in your blood may be stored in your arteries (large blood vessels) and cause them to narrow. Large deposits of cholesterol can completely block an artery. If an artery that supplies blood to your heart becomes blocked, a heart attack occurs. If an artery that supplies blood to your brain becomes blocked, a stroke occurs.

Cholesterol travels through the blood in different types of packages called lipoproteins. Low-density lipoproteins (LDL) deliver cholesterol to the body, and high-density lipoproteins (HDL) remove cholesterol from the bloodstream.

Too much LDL cholesterol is bad for the body because it builds up in the arteries, while the HDL form is good because it helps remove cholesterol from the bloodstream. It’s the balance between the different forms of cholesterol that tells you what your cholesterol level means.

When should I start having my cholesterol level checked?

If you are 20 years or older, talk to your family doctor to see whether you should have your cholesterol tested. If you have no risk factors, routine screening usually begins at the age of 40 for men and 50 for women or earlier if they have stopped having regular menses.

How often you have your cholesterol level checked depends on your age, family history and what other risk factors for heart disease you have. If your cholesterol is up, your family doctor can also advise you when to have follow-up cholesterol levels done.

Other risk factors for heart disease

• Being a man of 45 years of age or older
• Being a woman of 55 years of age or older
• Having a male parent, grandparent or sibling who had heart disease before age 55
• Having a female parent, grandparent or sibling who had heart disease before age 65
• Smoking
• Having high blood pressure
• Having diabetes
• Having a total cholesterol: HDL cholesterol ratio above 4
• Having an LDL cholesterol level above 2.0 mmol/L (in the presence of other risk factors)
• Having an HDL cholesterol below 1.0 mmol/L
• Being very overweight
• Having excess fat around your waist (more than 102cm for men and 88cm for women)
• Having already had a stroke or a heart attack
• Having already had angioplasty or heart surgery
• Not exercising
• Metabolic syndrome
• Being on hormone replacement therapy for more than 5 years

What is Metabolic Syndrome (or Syndrome X)?

It is a condition involving the combination of risk factors for heart disease such as being overweight ( or excess abdominal fat), high cholesterol, high glucose and high blood pressure. Since each of these risk factors individually puts you at risk for heart disease, having 3 or more of them together increases your risk 6 times more for a heart attack or stroke. Syndrome X is the result of inactivity and a diet rich in saturated fats. It can be controlled with lifestyle changes such as healthy eating, exercise, weight loss and smoking cessation.

What should my cholesterol level be?

Your doctor will measure your cholesterol level. If the total level is high, a second test may be done to measure the levels of HDL and LDL.
If your total level is high because of a high LDL level, you may be at higher risk of heart disease or stroke. If your total level is high only because of a high HDL level, you’re not at higher risk.
Target LDL, HDL and total cholesterol:HDL levels
Your doctor can determine your target levels based on your risk factors for heart disease using your age, gender, total and HDL cholesterol, blood pressure level, medications and smoking status

Target LDL, HDL and total cholesterol:HDL levels

• An LDL cholesterol level of less than 3.0 mmol/L is best
• An HDL above 1.0 mmol/L is best
• If your risk is low, your LDL cholesterol should be less than 5.0 mmol/L and total cholesterol HDL-C ratio should be less than 6.0
• If your risk is moderate, your LDL cholesterol should be less than 3.5 mmol/ and total cholesterol HDL-C ratio should be less than 5
• If your risk is high, your LDL cholesterol should be less than 2.0 mmol/L and total cholesterol HDL-C ratio should be less than 4.0
• An HDL cholesterol level of less than 1.0 mmol/L means you’re at higher risk for heart disease.
• If you have diabetes, your LDL should be less than 2.0 mmol/L.
• If you’ve already had a heart attack your LDL needs to be less than 2.0 mmol/L.

What can I do to improve my cholesterol level?

You can do a number of things to improve your cholesterol level. Eating healthy food can help lower your LDL cholesterol level, and a healthy diet may help protect the body from the damaging effect of cholesterol. You can raise your HDL cholesterol level by quitting smoking if you smoke, losing weight if you are overweight and exercising.

Following a healthy low fat diet almost always lowers cholesterol levels. If healthy eating, exercising and other changes don’t work after about three to six months, your family doctor may want to discuss using medicine to lower your cholesterol level. This is a lifelong treatment, so it should be thought about only if healthy habits don’t work.
What sort of foods are healthy choices?

Lowering your cholesterol level by eating healthy foods low in fat is easier than you might think. It mostly takes a bit of common sense and a real interest in improving your health. You don’t have to quit eating your favourite foods, although you might need to eat them less often or sometimes replace them with healthier choices. Foods low in total carbohydrates, saturated and trans-fatty acids, but high in complex carbohydrates, protein, mono- and polyunsaturated fat can help you lose weight.

Eat more of these foods (Omega-3 fatty acids):

• Fish, poultry without the skin, lean beef
• Skim or low-fat milk
• Sherbet, sorbet, ice milk
• Egg whites
• Steamed vegetables
• Baked potatoes
• Clear soups
• Unsaturated vegetable oils: corn, canola, safflower, sesame, sunflower, olive, soybean
• Angel food cake
• Graham crackers, animal crackers, fig bars, vanilla wafers, lady fingers
• Pretzels, air-popped popcorn, bagels, English muffins
• Pancakes or cereal with low-fat milk
• Fruit

Eat less of these foods:

• Sausage, organ meats (like liver)
• Whole milk
• Ice cream
• Egg yolks
• Buttered or fried vegetables
• French fries
• Creamed soups
• Saturated fats: butter, coconut oil, palm oil, lard, bacon fat
• Cheesecake
• Pastries, doughnuts
• Potato chips
• Refined carbohydrates and sugar
• Eggs and bacon