Nutrition – Page 85 – The A.L.I.V.E. Experience

Identify What’s Stopping You from Losing Weight

By: Allison Winn Scotch

When your boss says, “We’re not here to assign blame,” duck. When we say you’re not entirely to blame for your paunch, you’re not off the hook. Nobody is the innocent victim of a drive-thru feeding. But there are sneaky factors—your friends, your family, your mindset—that can sabotage the best weight-loss plan. Your strategy: Identify the saboteurs, then adjust.

Your Wife

We do not suggest blaming her for your belly. This would be (a) wrong and (b) a reasonable defense at her trial. But know this: Researchers at the University of Minnesota found that men and women usually gain 6 to 8 pounds in the first 2 years of marriage. “Once you’re married, that need to impress is gone,” says Edward Abramson, Ph.D., author of Marriage Made Me Fat. “You may go to the gym less often, go out for meals or to parties more frequently, and develop new rituals, such as sitting on the couch with your wife and snacking.”

Fix your head: Regain that need to impress. Imagine what that girl at the gym thinks of your gut—or what she’d think if you had abs. (Just don’t hit on her.) As for that bowl of popcorn with your wife, Abramson says, ask yourself, Why am I eating? Boredom? Habit? Better yet, ask her to stop bringing those binge foods into the house.

Fix your routine: Establish healthful rituals. Instead of Access Hollywood after dinner, take regular walks, or play H-O-R-S-E in the driveway. (P-I-G might work better.) Exercise suppresses appetite. Cool down with Italian ice (120 calories per cup) instead of ice cream (290 calories per cup).

Her Belly

Dads-to-be gain almost 5 pounds from the end of their partner’s pregnancy to the baby’s first birthday, Australian researchers report. It’s especially common in young, stressed-out fathers, says Lawrence Schwartz, author of Fat Daddy/Fit Daddy. And the cycle repeats with each kid.

Fix your head: Be a heroic provider, not a sympathetic eater. Prepare as if fatherhood were a sport—because it will be.

Fix your routine: Read her pregnancy books—they’re full of excellent nutritional advice. As for her binge snacking and ice-cream jags, adopt a simple policy, says Schwartz: “She can have it, but you shouldn’t.” Maintain your exercise routine, especially weight lifting. “It’s only going to be that much harder to get back into an exercise routine once the baby’s here,” says Schwartz.

Your Kids

The presence of children in a household sharply increases the likelihood of tempting junk food in the cupboard. Some of it ends up in adult mouths. Same goes for stray nuggets and fries left over by finicky kids. “I call this ‘trolling,’ ” Schwartz says. “If you’re prone to troll, the easiest thing to do is to avoid the Happy Meal altogether.”

Fix your head: Grow up. Think: The sugary snack that a child will burn off with an hour of fidgeting will haunt you as a fat deposit. Read the nutrition label on any snack before unwrapping it. Realize the importance of setting a good food-and-exercise example.

Fix your routine: Make junk food a once-a-week thing. Designate Friday as Twinkie day. And instead of standing on the sidelines to watch your son’s game, volunteer to coach, ump, or ref. Make fitness a family thing.

Craig Ferguson

Not getting enough deep, non-REM sleep inhibits production of growth hormone, which might lead to premature middle-age symptoms—abdominal obesity, reduced muscle mass and strength, and diminished exercise capacity. You become Homer.

Fix your head: “Mentally disengage yourself before you hit the sack,” says Jim Karas, author of The Business Plan for Your Body. Don’t plot a staffing reorg before bed.

Fix your routine: Exercise in the morning or afternoon, says Eric Nofzinger, M.D., director of sleep neuroimaging research at the Western Psychiatric Institute. Evening workouts may leave you too stimulated to sleep. Establish a ritual that signals your body that the day is over 30 minutes before bedtime—turn off the computer, read, stretch, or set the TV volume low, says Karas.

Your Shift

Workers gain 7 pounds on average when they switch from a day to a night shift, according to the New York Obesity Research Center. Men working the graveyard shift tend to eat a big evening meal and go to work, says Jim Waterhouse, Ph.D., author of Keeping in Time with Your Body Clock. “Then they come home to another ‘supper’ in the morning.”

Fix your head: Adjust your concept of mealtime, says Waterhouse.

Fix your routine: Eat your biggest meal when you get home from your shift, Waterhouse says, then relax or exercise in the morning. Get 8 hours of sleep in the afternoon, then wake up and have breakfast. Kicking off your workday (even if it starts in the evening) with a light meal that’s high in protein or fiber is crucial for weight loss.

Your Stress

Stress will spike levels of the hormone cortisol, which tells your body to store fat. “Unfortunately, some people appease their anxiety by reaching for fatty foods,” says Elissa Epel, Ph.D., an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of California at San Francisco. Eating boosts insulin levels; combining that with cortisol leads to greater fat deposits. More stress, bigger belly.

Fix your head: First, identify the type of stress you’re under, Karas says. “Is it temporary, like a bar exam, or more permanent, like your job?” Short-term stress will pass. Long-term stress may require a permanent solution, like a new job.

Fix your routine: Make healthy eating effortless, Karas says. Buy snacks that won’t send insulin levels soaring: high-fiber energy bars or single-serving bags of almonds or cashews. Fifteen minutes of explosive activity—hitting a speed bag or jumping rope—can alleviate anxieties after work. “It’s about getting the tension out,” Karas says.

Your Friends

Buddies can make or break a diet or workout plan, whether it’s unconscious scarfing of nachos during the game or the lure of pumping beers instead of iron. Worse, some guys will deliberately try to sabotage your diet, just for sport. Want a cookie?

Fix your head: Admit you need support. “Let people know how to help you, and many will,” says Beth Kitchin, an assistant professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Fix your routine: Eat a protein bar before meeting friends, so you?ll feel fuller. Drink a glass of water for every glass of beer. A time-tested strategy: Recruit a friend to diet or work out with you. Having someone to answer to is the best enforcement plan.

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Is ‘Stealth Fiber’ Lurking in Your Foods?

Nutrition

By: Stepfanie Romine

About three years ago, a friend and I were at a natural foods store in the vitamins aisle. I needed more calcium and magnesium, which I take upon my doctor’s recommendation to alleviate premenstrual mood swings. While my friend perused the multivitamins, I strolled up and down the aisle, reading labels. Then I spotted inulin, which I’d read was a great source of prebiotics. As a then-frequent sufferer of stress-related GI distress (this was during my “old life”), I was (and still am) a regular consumer of probiotics, those microorganisms found in your gut and in fermented foods like yogurt and kimchi, which can benefit your immune and digestive systems. In short, prebiotics are what feed probiotics. Anything that helps the good bacteria in your gut thrive and flourish sounded like a great product to me. Besides, I had just read that probiotics were the next big thing in nutrition.

I grabbed a jar, shelled out $8.99, and, upon returning home, stirred two tablespoons into water, just as the jar suggested. It tasted mildly sweet but not too bad. Within an hour, I learned the importance of doing your research before buying any supplement! (Who impulse shops at a health food store, I ask?)

My stomach was visibly distended, hard to the touch, and gurgling loudly. I felt as though I had just gorged on Thanksgiving dinner–I was full and bloated. Later on, I had horrible stomach pains that left me doubled over. Forced to cancel my Saturday night plans, I headed to the Internet and read up on inulin, then chucked my jar in the garbage.

A few months ago, I ate a piece of high-fiber flatbread–something I do not eat–for an afternoon snack and ended up with the same symptoms, primarily stomach pains that kept me from a training run! I read the label after the fact, and a type of added fiber was the culprit. Since then, I avoided these ingredients in all quantities. As I recently read, I’m not the only one who has trouble digesting these added fibers.

You might not have heard of inulin, but if you’ve eaten high-fiber foods–granola and snack bars, breads, crackers, cereals, and even yogurt–that have popped up on the market in the last few years, you’ve probably eaten a form of it. Inulins, which are a type of carbohydrate considered to be soluble fiber, are increasingly being added to processed foods as “stealth fibers.” What’s a “stealth fiber”? Any fiber that is added to a food that wouldn’t naturally have it. In addition to inulin, products also use polydextrose and maltodextrin, among others.

Found naturally in onions, garlic, jicama, bananas, and wheat, inulin is found in large quantities in chicory root, which makes it a popular source of “stealth fiber” for food companies. It is added to everything from diet fruit drinks to chocolate bars, muffins to breakfast cereals. Some high-fiber snack bars list it as the #1 ingredient, and it is sometimes listed on labels as chicory extract, chicory root powder/fiber, oligosaccharides, or fructans.

With a taste that can range from bland to mildly sweet, food processers use it to replace sugar, fat and flour; it has minimal impact on blood sugar, making it appealing for diabetics. When added to foods, like granola, snack bars, or cookies, it can make them appear healthier than they are.

For some people, the fiber causes no side effects. For others, who either consume large quantities or are sensitive to it like I am, it can cause some mighty unpleasant side effects. Research has shown that inulin may boost the growth of friendly bacteria in the colon, but SparkPeople’s Head Dietitian, Becky Hand, warns not to rely on foods like “yogurt fortified with inulin to have the same health benefits as a high fiber diet.”

Joanne Slavin, a registered dietitian at the University of Minnesota at St. Paul, recently studied the effects of inulin. After a night of fasting, participants ate a healthy breakfast that included orange juice mixed either with a placebo or with varying amounts of two types of inulin products: native inulin and shorter-chain oligofructose.

“After their ‘fiber challenge,’ participants were called several times over two days and asked about symptoms such as gas/bloating, nausea, flatulence, stomach cramping, diarrhea, constipation and GI rumbling.

Those that got any dose of inulin generally reported ‘mild symptoms’; the highest scores in every symptom except constipation were reported by those who got 10 grams of oligofructose. The findings are in line with previous research that found the short-chain “sweet” inulin causes faster fermentation in the gut leading to more gas and gastrointestinal symptoms.

Flatulence was the most common symptom reported by all subjects who got fiber although symptoms were ‘highly variable’ among individuals and many subjects did not experience any, the investigators say.”

Though considered both a carbohydrate and a type of fiber, inulin isn’t treated the same by your body. Carbs are digested and become fuel; insoluble fiber works like a scrub brush to clean the intestines as it passes through the GI tract undigested, while soluble fiber forms a gummy coating on the intestines and helps prevent and slow absorption of various substances, including glucose and cholesterol. Inulin travels undigested to the colon, where the friendly bacteria (probiotics) in your gut feed on them. The probiotics ferment the inulin. The by-product of any type of fermentation is gas, and inulin can also cause diarrhea, bloating, and nausea. Experts say that though added fibers like inulin are called fibers, they don’t have the same benefits as the real deal, which is found in whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

This article clarifies the difference between fiber found in whole foods and added fibers:

“The most recently accepted grouping by the Institute of Medicine divides fiber into two categories: dietary and functional. Dietary is the kind found naturally and intact in oat bran, whole wheat, beans, prunes, peas, and almonds, and other plants. Functional refers to both the synthetic variety like polydextrose as well as naturally occurring inulin, which is extracted and purified from chicory roots.”

Bottom line: We all need 25-35 grams of fiber daily, and our dietary experts recommend eating a diet rich in whole grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables to reach that goal. If you choose to consume products containing inulin or other “stealth fibers,” read up on the side effects and limit the quantity.

I’m not a dietitian or health professional, but I can say that I would rather get my fiber the natural way. While you can get eight grams of fiber (about a third of your daily requirement) from sugar-free jelly beans, should you?

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12 Tasty Substitutions When Cutting Carbs

Nutrition

“The best way to cut carbs from your diet is to make creative substitutions,” says Arthur Agatston, M.D., author of The South Beach Diet. “That way you can still eat the foods you love, without busting your diet.”

Dr. Agatston told us how to make cauliflower taste like mashed potatoes. Other nutrition experts gave us tricks for cutting white flour, pasta, and potatoes and replacing them with lower-carb alternatives that taste nearly identical. We then had some loyal carbo-cravers taste-test these dishes. Turns out some of them are so good, you’ll wonder why you weren’t eating them in the first place.

Hash Browns

Substitute: Squash for potatoes

Summer squash (the football-shaped yellow kind) tastes similar to potatoes when cooked—but has just a fraction of the carbs. Grate the squash, mix in an egg as binder, make patties, and fry them in olive oil, says Mary Dan Eades, M.D., coauthor of The Low-Carb Comfort Food Cookbook.

Carbs Eliminated: About 15 grams (g) per hash-brown patty

The Taste: “Not as firm and crispy as regular hash browns, but the potato flavor is there.”

Mash Potatoes

Substitute: Cauliflower for potatoes

One of Dr. Agatston’s favorites: Steam some fresh or frozen cauliflower in the microwave. Then spray the cauliflower with butter substitute, add a little nonfat half-and-half substitute, and puree in a food processor or blender. “Salt and pepper to taste and you’ve got something that quite honestly can compete with the real thing any day,” says Dr. Agatston. To make it even better, try adding roasted garlic, cheese, or sour cream to the mixture.

Carbs Eliminated: 30 g per cup

The Taste: “After a couple of bites, you forget it’s not potatoes.”

Lasagna

Substitute: Zucchini slices for noodles

Slice four to five medium-size zukes lengthwise into three-quarter-inch-thick strips, instructs Lise Battaglia, a New Jersey chef whose past clients include Jon Bon Jovi. Sprinkle Italian seasoning on the strips, place them in a single layer on a nonstick cookie sheet, and bake at 425 degrees F for 20 minutes. You want them firm, not crisp. “Then simply make the lasagna as you normally would, replacing lasagna noodles with the baked zucchini,” she says.

Carbs Eliminated: 36 g per serving

The Taste: “Delicious. The zucchini provides texture that you don’t get from noodles alone.”

Spaghetti

Substitute: Spaghetti squash for spaghetti

A cooked spaghetti squash is like Mother Nature’s automatic spaghetti maker—the flesh becomes noodlelike strands. “All you have to do is cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. Then place each half—cut side down—on a plate with a quarter cup of water,” says Elizabeth Perreault, a chef at Colorado’s Culinary School of the Rockies. Nuke the squash for 10 minutes or until it’s soft to the touch. Let it cool, then scrape out the “spaghetti” strands and top with pasta sauce and cheese.

Carbs Eliminated: 30 g per cup

The Taste: “Great. Spaghetti squash has exactly the same consistency as real pasta.”

Pancakes

Substitute: Oatmeal and cottage cheese for pancake mix

Here’s a can’t-fail recipe from The South Beach Diet. Mix together half a cup of old-fashioned oatmeal, a quarter cup of low-fat cottage cheese, two eggs, and a dash each of vanilla extract, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Process in a blender until smooth. Cook the mixture like a regular pancake.

Carbs Eliminated: 45 g per pancake

The Taste: “With syrup, you could never tell the difference.”

Scalloped Potatoes

Substitute: Tempeh for potatoes

You may think you don’t like soy-based foods, but that could be because you don’t cook them right, says Beckette Williams, R.D., a San Diego-based personal chef. “Tempeh can be really bland, but if you jazz it up with herbs and spices, it’s a great substitute for potatoes.” Her recommendation: Saute a couple of cups of thinly diced tempeh with garlic and onions. Then pour a cheese sauce (sharper is better) over the tempeh cubes and bake for half an hour.

Carbs Eliminated: 11 g per cup

The Taste: “Just like a slightly nutty baked potato.”

Macaroni and Cheese

Substitute: Diced vegetables for macaroni

Even instant mac and cheese can go lower-carb; use only half the pasta in the box and bulk it up with a couple of cups of frozen mixed vegetables, says Sandra Woodruff, R.D., coauthor of The Good Carb Cookbook.

Carbs Eliminated: 13 g per cup

The Taste: “I hate broccoli, but I wouldn’t mind eating this.”

Pasta Salad

Substitute: Mixed vegetables or black beans for half the pasta

Same idea as the mac and cheese, but try black beans, diced tomatoes, and chunks of ham, tuna, chicken, or hard-boiled eggs, suggests Richard Ruben, an instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. “These kinds of salads are a blank slate, so you can top them with anything from a creamy blue-cheese dressing to vinaigrette, or even lime juice and slices of avocado,” Ruben says.

Carbs Eliminated: 10 g per cup

The Taste: “Awesome. I don’t miss the extra pasta at all.”

Cheese-Flavored Chips

Substitute: Low-fat string cheese for chips

Just crazy enough to work: Cut sticks of string cheese into quarter-inch-thick slices and scatter the rounds on a cookie sheet coated with nonstick spray, leaving them an inch or two apart. Bake at 375 F for 4 to 5 minutes or until the cheese melts and turns golden brown. Let them cool, then peel the chips off the tray.

Carbs Eliminated: Up to 90 g per serving

The Taste: “Like the cheese you pull off the top of a pizza.”

Pizza

Substitute: Portobello mushrooms for pizza crust

Cut the gills out of the inside of the mushroom, says Ruben, “then place the mushroom on an oiled cookie sheet and bake for 5 to 10 minutes so it dries out slightly.” Add tomato sauce, mozzarella, and pepperoni or other toppings and broil until the cheese begins to melt.

Carbs Eliminated: About 20 g per slice

The Taste: “Like pizza, but moister. Give me a fork!”

Beef-a-Roni

Substitute: Eggplant for pasta

Mixing diced eggplant with ground beef is healthier and more highbrow than this old skillet special—call it moussaka American style. You have to soften the eggplant first, says Williams. Cut it in half, brush it with olive oil, and then broil for 10 to 20 minutes. “Let it cool, dice it up, and mix with hamburger, tomato sauce, and spices,” she says.

Carbs Eliminated: 26 g per cup

The Taste: “Exactly like Hamburger Helper, in a good way.”

Sandwiches

Substitute: Napa or Chinese cabbage for bread

Slap your turkey and Swiss onto a leaf of cabbage and roll it up. “I’ve made some great-tasting BLTs using cabbage instead of bread,” Battaglia says. Dip the roll in low-fat mayonnaise or mustard.

Carbs Eliminated: 29 g per sandwich

The Taste: “Better than eating plain cold cuts.”

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The Top 5 Healthiest Fat-Burning Foods

Nutrition

If you want to lose body fat faster, try incorporating these 5 healthy super-foods into your diet & regular meal plans.

by Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author – The Truth about Six Pack Abs
1. Grass-fed beef or bison (NOT your typical grocery store beef!) – I know most people think that red meat is unhealthy for you, but that’s because they don’t understand how the health of the animal affects how healthy the meat is for consumption. Keep this in mind — “an unhealthy animal provides unhealthy meat, but a healthy animal provides healthy meat”.

Typical beef or bison that you see at the grocery store is raised on grains such as corn and soybeans. Soy and corn are NOT the natural diet of cattle or bison, and therefore changes the chemical balance of fats and other nutrients in the beef or bison. Grain-fed beef and bison is typically WAY too high in omega-6 fatty acids and WAY too low in omega-3 fatty acids.

On the other hand, grass-fed beef from cattle and buffalo (or bison) that were raised on the type of natural foods that they were meant to eat in nature (grass and other forage), have much higher levels of healthy omega-3 fatty acids and lower levels of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids (that most people already eat way too much of) compared to grain fed beef or bison.

Grass fed meats also typically contain up to 3 times the Vitamin E as in grain fed meats.

Not only that, but grass-fed meat from healthy cattle or bison also contain a special healthy fat called conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in MUCH higher levels than grain-fed meat. CLA has been proven in scientific studies in recent years to help in burning fat and building lean muscle (which can help you lose weight!). These benefits are on top of the fact that grass-fed meats are some of the highest quality proteins that you can possibly eat… and this also aids in burning fat and building lean muscle.

Grass-fed meats are a little harder to find, but just ask your butcher or find a specialty grocery store and they usually have cuts available. I’ve also found a good site to order grass-fed meats online – http://healthygrassfed.2ya.com

2. Avocodos – Even though these are typically thought of as a “fatty food”, it’s all healthy fats! Not only is this fruit super-high in mono-unsaturated fat, but also chock full of vitamins, minerals, micro-nutrients, and antioxidants.

Also, I think guacamole (mashed avocados with garlic, onion, tomato, pepper, etc) is one of the most delicious toppings ever created, and you can be happy to know that it’s also one of the healthiest toppings you can use on your foods. Try sliced avocados or guacamole on sandwiches, burgers, scrambled eggs or omelets, in salads, or as a side to just about any meal.

The quality dose of healthy fats and other nutrition you get from avocados helps your body to maintain proper levels of hormones that help with fat loss and muscle building. Also, since avocados are an extremely satiating food, eating them helps to reduce your appetite in the hours after your meal. Say goodbye to junk food cravings and bring on that lean body!

3. Whole Eggs, including the yolk (not just egg whites) – Most people know that eggs are one of the highest quality sources of protein. However, most people don’t know that the egg yolks are the healthiest part of the egg… that’s where almost all of the vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants (such as lutein) are found in eggs.

Egg Yolks contain more than 90% of the calcium, iron, phosphorus, zinc, thiamin, B6, folate, and B12, and panthothenic acid of the egg. In addition, the yolks contain ALL of the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K in the egg, as well as ALL of the essential fatty acids. Also, the protein of whole eggs is more bio-available than egg whites alone due to a more balanced amino acid profile that the yolks help to build.

Just make sure to choose free-range organic eggs instead of normal grocery store eggs. Similar to the grass-fed beef scenerio, the nutrient content of the eggs and the balance between healthy omega-3 fatty acids and inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids (in excess) is controlled by the diet of the chickens.

Chickens that are allowed to roam free outside and eat a more natural diet will give you healthier, more nutrient-rich eggs with a healthier fat balance compared with your typical grocery store eggs (that came from chickens fed nothing but soy and corn and crowded inside “egg factories” all day long).

4. Nuts: Walnuts, Almonds, Pecans, Macadamia, etc — Yes, this is yet another “fatty food” that can actually help you burn fat! Although nuts are generally between 75-90% fat in terms of a ratio of fat calories to total calories, this is another type of food that is all healthy fats, along with high levels of nutrition such as vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Nuts are also a good source of fiber and protein, which of course, you know helps to control blood sugar and can aid in weight loss.

Nuts also help to maintain good levels of fat burning hormones in your body as well as helping to control appetite and cravings so that you essentially eat less calories overall, even though you’re consuming a high-fat food. My favorite healthy nuts are pecans, almonds, and walnuts, and by eating them in variety, you help to broaden the types of vitamins and minerals and also the balance of polyunsaturated to monounsaturated fats you obtain.

Try to find raw nuts instead of roasted nuts if you can, as it helps to maintain the quality and nutritional content of the healthy fats that you will eat.

Also, try to broaden your horizons beyond the typical peanut butter that most people eat, and try almond butter, pecan butter, or macadamia butter to add variety to your diet.

5. Berries – including blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and even the “exotic” Goji berry: Berries are a powerhouse of nutrition… packed with vitamins and minerals, and also some of the best sources of antioxidants of any food in existance. Berries also pack a healthy dose of fiber, which slows your carbohydrate absorption and digestion and controls your blood sugar levels to help prevent insulin spikes (which can stimulate fat gain).

Get creative and mix up your berry intake by using the basics — blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries… but also get adventurous and give a more “exotic” berry a try, such as Goji berries (which are one of the most nutrient-dense berries on the planet).

I like to add berries to my yogurt and cottage cheese mixtures, as well as oatmeal or oat bran, salads, or just taking a bag of mixed berries and mixed nuts with me for the day as a mid-day healthy snack!

I hope you enjoyed this look at some of the healthiest fat-burning foods you can possibly eat. I could list a ton more, but wanted to give you my favorites for now!

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Getting Off The Wagon

Nutrition

by Sean Barker. http://dadfitnessblog.com/

Here is my 3 step quick start guide to getting back to clean living after your vacation.

1. Fitness

Workout, don’t wait! Get that fat burning furnace going again with your workouts. Even though we still weren’t unpacked, the next morning after we got home I pulled some workout clothes out of my luggage and hit the gym for a Dad Fitness workout. If you take up to 2 weeks off from training like I did for summer vacation, ease back into your workouts slowly. Cut your weight and reps in half for the first week or so to avoid debilitating soreness.

2. Food

Shop and Chop. Even before I hit the gym the next morning my wife and I hit the supermarket to restock our house with REAL food. I like to call it Easy Eating. 3 meals and 2 snacks a day and nothing out of a box or can except maybe beans and oatmeal. Lots of lean meats, nuts, fruits and veggies. I was so sick of restaurant food after vacation, so I use that extra motivation to get started right away and not only shop for lots of good healthy food, but chop it to make meals in minutes.

3. Fasting

Fast for Fat Loss. My good friend Brad Pilon and the author of the popular book Eat Stop Eat turned me on to the health benefits of intermittent fasting a few years ago. I was highly IMPRESSED with the physical and mental benefits of fasting for just 24 hours once a week or periodically like after letting your diet go during vacation. So after having my final vacation meal for lunch at a restaurant on the drive home I decided my stomach could use a break from food after the pounding it got on vacation. So I fasted for 24 hours, drank lots of cold clean water and broke the fast after my mid-morning workout starting with a Super Shake of whey protein, mixed berries,spinach, greens powder, plain yogurt, and a banana. Then had a veggie omelette with an orange shortly after.

Remember a weekly caloric reduction through diet and exercise, no matter how you do it is still the only proven way to lose fat.

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