In this article I feel the need to address a confusion that I’ve encountered a few times. This is regarding nutrition, more specifically carbohydrates. Now for the last ten years or so carbohydrates have gotten a bad rap. Diets like Atkins made people fearful of carbohydrates. More recently simple carbohydrates have been increasingly linked to obesity and diabetes. Read any article that has anything to do with weight loss and you’ll read about complex carbs. They’ll tell you to ditch the white flour, white bread, and white sugar. Replace them all with complex carbs like whole wheat breads, sweet potatoes, brown rice, etc. This is actually great advice. However I’ve noticed a few instances where this is seen as a misguidance Here is the way it works. Simple carbohydrates like white rice … Read entire article »

The following question was e mailed in by a reader. Their name has been removed as they asked to remain anonymous. Hi, I was hoping to get some help with a workout problem. I’ve been doing the **** workout DVDs. A few people I know have gotten great results from this so I decided to give it a try. My brother dropped 20 pounds on this program. In the first two weeks I lost about 3 pounds. I’m trying to follow the program as close as possible, but it seems like my progress has stalled. I’m now wondering if that first 3 pounds was water weight or am I doing something wrong now? Thanks for the advice, ***** This problem is quite common for people. I’m not trying to rate or judge programs … Read entire article »

With the holidays coming up and Thanksgiving in less than a week the question may arise as to what challenges this will pose to your healthy eating. Thanksgiving is not famous for healthy eating. Sure the turkey is packed full of protein and there may be green beans or other vegetables. Then again there is pie and macaroni and cheese and all that other stuff that is good for your taste but not your waist. What do you do? Well you can be bold and avoid all those foods and eat clean. So while your family enjoys that entire feast you will enjoy turkey, steamed broccoli and…ok I’ll stop now because this doesn’t sound like much fun.The thing is some people can avoid all this and eat clean. They should be celebrated. The greater … Read entire article »

Let’s face it; even if you survive on fast food you have an assumption of what is healthy. Maybe you don’t like vegetables but you know they’re good for you. You may eat a steady diet of junk food but don’t mistake it as healthy. Food that is good for you and food that isn’t good for you is pretty cut and dry, or is it? We’re going to examine some foods assumed to be good for you that may not be as well as foods thought to be bad that you should be eating. First up the foods who wear the disguise of good for you. SMOOTHIES- What can be healthier than a smoothie? Your local gym or spa may have a smoothie bar in it. They are made of fruit and … Read entire article »

Cheating in school can get you a failing grade. Cheating at sports can get you thrown out of a game or if on the professional level a hefty fine. Cheating on your spouse can get you in divorce court giving up your money and belongings. In most every context cheating has a negative result, except fitness. Now it is beyond common knowledge that if you want to lose or maintain weight you need to have a strict diet. It the fitness world we call it EATING CLEAN. There is a certain drawback to eating clean though all the time. It can actually work against you. The greater majority of people enjoy pizza, sugary drinks, cookies and backed goods, chips, ice cream, you get the idea. There is a smaller minority who are able to … Read entire article »

Everything that has to do with your fitness can be controlled by one foundation. Everything you do to improve your health and your level of fitness is contingent on INPUT. INPUT is what you eat, what you drink, and the supplements you take. Whether you want to lose weight, gain muscle, improve your health, be an athlete, or whatever your goal may be, what you put in will be a major factor in what you get out. So let’s take a look at some things you should be inputting. GO PRO Protein that is. Protein provides the building blocks to your body. The amino acids in protein break down and help repair, and build muscle tissue. The more muscle tissue your body has the leaner you usually are and the more calories you’ll burn … Read entire article »

Probably the number one which is why it is listed first. This one is likely worse than sitting at an actual fast food restaurant. It’s your workplace. If you’re in a traditional office environment there are dangerous to your healthy goals around every corner. The most prevalent is believe it or not, your workspace. A desk, chair and computer are the worst things that can happen to your weight loss or maintenance goals. Sitting there requires very little activity, this is further compounded by the fact that you may only get up to take breaks, lunch or to run to the restroom. It is not uncommon for a person to spend several hours in their chair and not get up. This is basically the equivalent of sitting on your couch watching TV. If that … Read entire article »

It is a classic western movie scenario. The hero in his white hat stands off against the villain in the black hat. The world of nutrition is nothing like this, in this movie the bad guys wear white. Carbohydrates come in two forms. COMPLEX- Are in their most natural state. The are the whole part of the grain with the fiber and nutrients intact. They digest slowly in the body. SIMPLE- These are refined from their natural source. The fiber and nutrients are removed to make a sweeter or lighter taste. These carbs are the ones that cause undesired weight gain. Once upon a time the brilliant food scientists figured out if they strip a grain of everything and leave a fluffy white shell people will like it.. From this we got white bread, … Read entire article »

Who here had been on a diet? Chances are a great number of you answered YES. There are two definitions to the word diet. One is the accumulated food you eat on a regular basis. That diet should be healthy and balanced. Then there are fad diets. These are usually temporary programs that people partake in to attempt to lose weight. The simple fact is FAD DIETS DON’T WORK. Alright perhaps they work short term but you can’t survive on them. They usually are either very restrictive, very hard to follow, and possibly very unhealthy. I am one of the biggest opposers of fad diets. Let’s examine some of the most famous. LOW CARB/NO CARB (ATKINS)- One of, if not the most famous. Dr. Robert Atkins by no means invented this … Read entire article »