Health

In the early nineties I had the opportunity to work with some of the most famous movie stars in the world. As a manager and personal trainer for Kathy Smith and her health club, I experienced first hand the secrets to the stars. Here are a few things they did to look like they do:

1. They cross trained: They put variety into their workout plans.

2. They never ate a lot of white flour foods: Most of their foods came out of the ground. Mostly natural foods!

3. They were more concerned with their body fat levels than their weight: They concentrated more on the balance of muscle to fat, rather than their weight.

4. They did a lot of stretching: Palates and yoga was very popular.

5. They spent a lot of times out doors working out: You may be surprise at the number of people that are in better shape exercise more outdoors.

6. There diets consisted of herb and teas: A lot of natural foods were consumed.

7. They had outside help. Support systems, trainers and groups.

Losing weight on hips and thighs has always been a dream. And yes, dreams come true! It is usually difficult to lose weight from thighs and hips as compared to abdomen. Though different methods work for different people because of their individual mechanism but there is a more generic solution to it.

Here are some valuable tips which can make your thighs and hips slimmer!

1) Two spoons of triphala every night detoxify the body. Ginger water boosts liver function which further helps in fat breakdown. Tulsi water helps in a great way.

2) Exercises simply does it for you. A regular visit to gym and exercising in the right way for right muscles can help you make your body firm and tight. Aerobic exercises is another smart option.

Tip: Walking briskly is considered to be the best exercise for losing weight on hips and thighs. If it gets difficult for you to go outdoors for walking or pollution stops you from going out for walk, treadmill is THE BEST option for you. Know more about Treadmills here.

3) Diet pills don’t help in a long run. They, in no way, cut down your calorie intake which is must for lean hips and thighs.

Losing weight on hips and thighs has always been a dream. And yes, dreams come true! It is usually difficult to lose weight from thighs and hips as compared to abdomen. Though different methods work for different people because of their individual mechanism but there is a more generic solution to it.

Here are some valuable tips which can make your thighs and hips slimmer!

1) Manage your dieting habits. The major cause for heavy bottoms is unbalanced diet, a diet high in fats. Butter, cheese, milk and curd..all contribute to the stubborn fats on hips and thighs.

Tip : Switch to olive oil and vegetable oil. They are more healthy. Avoid too much oil in pulses.

2) Increase the intake of fruits in your body. Fruits improve the digestive system of the body by increasing the amount of fibre content in the diet.

Tip : Have low glycemic index (low sugar) fruits instead of desserts or sweet-dishes after dinner.

3) One other effective way to lose weight on hips and thighs is LOW CARB DIETS. Some people gain weight, especially on hips and thighs because of high carbs diet.

In this age being ignorant is like committing a crime. With so much of knowledge around you, following a trend blindly doesn’t confirm the fact that you are intelligent. But the catch here is, GO BY RIGHT KNOWLEDGE. No doubt, internet is flooded with the wrong knowledge and myths that leads you nowhere, but it isn’t hard enough to figure out the pearl in the ocean. Every now and then, we see some supplements or pills making tall claims which they down the line do not seem to validate. We will soon establish as we go on reading this article that there is absolutely no substitute for eating healthy and sweating out.

In US, where weight loss has been a part of national consciousness for three decades, several studies have been done to evaluate the effectiveness of various weight loss aids. The major reason why most of these aids escape regulation is because they are branded as “food supplements” to escape the Drugs and Cosmetics Act that regulates the sale of medicine. Here are some findings:-

1) Starch Blockers: One of the most stupid ways to lose weight, they claimed to block the digestion of starch. Not only is the claim unproven but the users have complained of diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and stomach pains.

In this age being ignorant is like committing a crime. With so much of knowledge around you, following a trend blindly doesn’t confirm the fact that you are intelligent. But the catch here is, GO BY RIGHT KNOWLEDGE. No doubt, internet is flooded with the wrong knowledge and myths that leads you nowhere, but it isn’t hard enough to figure out the pearl in the ocean. Every now and then, we see some supplements or pills making tall claims which they down the line do not seem to validate. We will soon establish as we go on reading this article that there is absolutely no substitute for eating healthy and sweating out.

In US, where weight loss has been a part of national consciousness for three decades, several studies have been done to evaluate the effectiveness of various weight loss aids. The major reason why most of these aids escape regulation is because they are branded as “food supplements” to escape the Drugs and Cosmetics Act that regulates the sale of medicine. Here are some findings:-

As a weight loss coach I speak will people regularly about their view and beliefs surrounding food and nutrition. It probably won’t come as a surprise to hear there is a great deal of confusion around nutrition. In fact, many people reading this article will have only a scant idea about the different food types and what our body actually needs to keep healthy.

One of the simplest systems I’ve encountered is this. If the food tastes good, then it has to be ‘bad’ for you! And then there’s its counterpart, "If the food tastes ‘bad’ then it must be ‘good’ for you". You may identify with these views, or some closely related version! Nutrition for some has been reduced to a concept of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ with little else.

Some common weight loss myths that people believe - which aren’t true!

Myth #1: Cutting down on portion size is the best way to lose weight. Not on its own. If you attempt to lose weight by just eating less, you are likely to gain the weight back. Lasting results will come from changing the types of foods you eat, not just the amounts.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with ephedra let me start by saying that ephedra has been around for thousands of years. It was discovered by the Chinese and is also recognized by the name Ma-huang. Although it is known widely around the world as, "The Miracle Fat Burner", in recent years ephedra has been the target of some major scrutiny.

A few years ago ephedra was banned in the United States. This, in my opinion, was not only a huge mistake but also extremely unfair. There are literally millions of people all over the world who believe it is the best discovery in the weight loss industry’s history. The reason for its ban was simply the fact that some people chose to abuse it. This is why I believe the banning was unfair and a mistake because, too much of any good thing can be bad. Anyone with a reasonable amount of common sense knows that. Heck, eating too many of certain kinds of fruits and vegetables can be bad for you. The same goes for certain over the counter medicines such as Tylenol and Ibuprofen. Sure the two work wonders if you have a headache or some other type of pain but everyone knows that if you take more than the recommended dosage chances are pretty good that there could be some serious side effects or even a chance of overdose.

Well, to begin with, there isn’t really any one Mediterranean Diet! There’s a whole swag of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. The basic Mediterranean Diet has common characteristics even if the sourrounding countries differ in culture, language and recipes to some extent.

* an extensive intake of fruits, vegetables, bread and cereals, potatoes, beans, nuts and seeds

* olive oil is a source of mono-unsaturated fat - common to the Mediterranean area

* some dairy products, fish and even poultry are consumed in sparing to moderate amounts, and some red meat(not much)

* eggs are consumed in low to moderate amount say 1 to 4 eggs a week

* fortunately wine is acceptable but in low quantities ie. 1 - 3 glasses per day

A good question to ask is - Does a Mediterranean-style diet follow American Heart Association dietary guidelines?

Mediterranean-style diets are often close to US dietary guidelines, but not exactly.

People who follow the average Mediterranean diet eat less saturated fat than those who eat the average American diet. In fact, saturated fat consumption is well within US dietary guidelines. More than half the fat calories in a Mediterranean diet come from mono-unsaturated fats (mainly from olive oil). Mono-unsaturated fat doesn’t raise blood cholesterol levels the way saturated fat does.

Reducing childhood obesity in the U.S. needs to be a #1 priority. Here are some ways you can help:

Parents: Set a good example. Instead of focusing on a diet for one child in the family, focus on improving the health of all family members by removing junk foods from the home, and preparing or purchasing meals that are low in fat and sugar. Serve lots of different varieties of fruits and vegetables; avoid frying food; purchase whole-grain breads and cereals; use fat-free milk for all family members over the age of 2. Restrict the amounts of meat, fish, chicken, eggs, beans and nuts to the serving sizes recommended by the USDA. The USDA website has information for all age groups and both genders, according to the amount of physical activity engaged in above your normal routine.

Twenty years of health club consulting, 50,000 hours of paid personal training, and trainer to the stars has taught me one thing; weight loss is not about numbers, it’s about your approach. Here it is in a nut shell!

#1: Determine HOW you are motivated and WHERE your desires come from. You may think you know, but you don’t. If you fall on a off the wagon you don’t know how you are motivated. People are motivated two ways: fear, pleasure or both. Your desires to feel better look better and are in better shape come from two directions, inside or out. Most people who fall off their exercise and weight loss programs do so because you are motivated by the wrong one of the two. And your desires come from the wrong direction. Figure these out and you will have staying power.

#2: Figure out the true beliefs behind each unwanted behavior of not exercising and eating wrong. You have a false belief system in your head about food and exercise. Determine what it is and then you can change it. If you are not following through and sabotaging your programs, it is because of an illusion you built up in your head.