5 Ways to a Healthy Lifestyle

With good food habits and daily physical activity you will be well on your way to a healthy life.  Easy to say, but sometimes not so easy to do!

Our busy lifestyles can be hard on our family’s health. Rushing to and from school and work can make it hard to find time to be physically active. We can also slip into the habit of choosing unhealthy snacks and take-away foods or spending our free time watching TV or in front of the computer.

However, these choices can be dangerous for our health and our children’s health – both now and in the long-term. That’s why it’s so important to stop, take stock and make a conscious decision to follow a healthy lifestyle.

What can I do?

There are five simple ways for your family to lead a healthy lifestyle and get back on track:

1. Get active each day

Regular physical activity is important for the healthy growth, development and well-being of kids and teens.

They should get at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day, including vigorous activities that make them ‘huff and puff’.

Parents should be good role models and have a positive attitude to being active.

2. Choose water as a drink

Water is the best way to quench your thirst – and it doesn’t come with the added sugar found in soft drinks, fruit juice drinks and other sweetened drinks.

Reduced fat milk for children over two years of age is a nutritious drink and a great source of calcium.

Give kids and teens whole fruit to eat, rather than offering fruit juices which contain less fiber.

3. Eat more fruit and vegetables

Eating fruit and vegetables every day helps kids and teens grow and develop, boosts their vitality and can reduce the risk of many chronic diseases.

Aim to eat two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables every day. (This varies for boys and girls at different ages.)

Have fresh fruit available as a convenient snack and try to include fruit and veggies in every meal.

4. Switch off the TV or computer and get active

Sedentary or ‘still’ time spent watching TV, surfing online or playing computer games is linked to kids becoming overweight or obese.

Kids and teens should spend no more than 2 hours a day on ‘small screen’ entertainment.

Plan a range of active indoor and outdoor games or activities for your children, as alternatives to watching TV or playing on the computer.

5. Eat fewer snacks and select healthier alternatives

Healthy snacks help kids and teens meet their daily nutritional needs.

Snacks based on fruit and vegetables, reduced fat dairy products and whole grains are the healthiest choices.

Avoid snacks that are high in sugar or saturated fats – such as chips, cakes and chocolate – which can cause children to put on excess weight.

Link  http://www.healthykids.nsw.gov.au/home/fact-sheets/5-ways-to-a-healthy-lifestyle.aspx

Healthy Food Diet: 7 Day Clean Eating Challenge

Do you feel like your diet needs a fresh start? When life happens and you abandon healthy food in favor of whatever is nearby or comes out of a packet or pouch, it's time for a "clean" break. That's why we're bringing you SHAPE's 7-Day Clean Eating Challenge. While a clean eating diet plan may seem challenging, our plan is manageable and the payoffs include skyrocketing energy, weight loss, better control over your appetite, and even better-looking skin.

Just follow these 5 simple rules and try our clean eating meal plan:

1) Eat only whole foods. That means eating oats and blueberries rather than a blueberry muffin. When you eat packaged foods, only buy brands that contain “real food” ingredients--ingredients you easily recognize, can pronounce, and would use to make a “from scratch” version in your own kitchen. If a food contains even one ingredient that makes you think “huh?” skip it, at least during the clean eating challenge.

RELATED: For a super healthy and delicious snack, watch Heidi Klum make homemade hummus and kale chips, then try the recipe yourself.

2) Keep meals simple. Delicious, healthy food doesn’t have to contain a lot of ingredients. Keep your meal ingredients to a minimum—just be sure to include a source of whole grains, lean protein and healthy fat at each meal. For example, veggies and shrimp stir fried in sesame oil over a bed of brown rice seems restaurant quality but can be whipped up faster than takeout.

3) Eat slower. Put your fork or spoon down between every bite, and focus on the flavors and textures of your food.

4) Eat on a regular schedule. Try not to let more than about 4 hours go by between meals or snacks. Steady meal timing helps regulate your digestive system, blood sugar and insulin levels, and appetite.

RELATED: When you do your food shopping for the week, be sure to avoid these grocery store fat traps that can make you gain weight.

5) Listen to your body. Eat when you’re hungry and stop when you’re full, meaning satisfied, not stuffed. The recipes here intentionally don’t provide amounts. That’s so you get used to relying on your hunger and fullness cues to tell you when to stop and start eating

Each day eat three clean eating meals and one snack.

DAY ONE SAMPLE DIET:

THREE CLEAN EATING MEALS AND ONE SNACK

BREAKFAST

Cook old fashioned quick cooking oats using organic skim or soy milk. Top with a sliced apple and garnish with chopped walnuts.

RELATED: For more morning meal ideas, try these 8 "dinner foods" you should eat for breakfast.

CLEAN EATING LUNCH IDEA

Toss baby spinach with balsamic vinegar and salt-free dried Italian herbs. Top with a scoop of chilled red quinoa and cannellini beans (canned, drained and rinsed beans are OK) and sliced avocado.

CLEAN EATING SNACK IDEA

Drizzle a little honey into a container of nonfat Greek yogurt, fold in a sliced mini banana and garnish with sliced almonds.

DAY ONE CLEAN EATING DINNER IDEA 

Saute onion, halved grape tomatoes and chopped green bell pepper in extra virgin olive oil until slightly tender. Add chicken breast or organic tofu to heat through. Serve over whole wheat penne.

DAY TWO CLEAN EATING DINNER IDEA

Lentils and quinoa with mint and lemon saute chopped red onion, minced garlic, celery and red bell pepper in extra virgin olive oil until tender. Add lentils (vacuum sealed or canned, rinsed and drained are both OK) to heat through. Serve over a small scoop of cooked quinoa and garnish with fresh mint and juice from a fresh lemon wedge.

RELATED: Have a healthy meatless dinner on the table in no time by making one of these 10-minute vegetarian meals.

DAY THREE CLEAN EATING DINNER IDEA

Tuna Lettuce Wraps with Basil Pesto and Couscous

Fill large outer romaine lettuce leaves with a mixture of drained chunk light tuna canned in water tossed with basil pesto, minced sundried tomatoes and whole-wheat couscous.

RELATED: When you don't have time to hit the grocery store, whip up one of these healthy and delicious meals you can pull from your pantry.

DAY FOUR CLEAN EATING DINNER IDEA

Mexican Salad with Corn, Avocado, Beans, and Lime

Mix mashed avocado with minced onion, tomato, fresh lime juice and cilantro. Toss with torn romaine to coat leaves. Top with a small scoop each of frozen, thawed corn and black beans (canned, drained and rinsed are OK).

RELATED: Keep homemade salads low-cal by skipping the bottle and making your owngreen goddess dressing.

DAY FIVE CLEAN EATING DINNER IDEA

Seared Shrimp in Coconut Oil

On the stovetop, sear fresh shrimp in coconut oil and season with fresh grated ginger and scallions. Serve over a bed of mixed field greens and top with fresh pear slices.

DAY SIX CLEAN EATING DINNER IDEA

Spaghetti Squash with Garlic, Mushrooms, Tomato and Feta

Saute chopped onions, minced garlic, sliced mushrooms and a small, diced plum tomato in extra virgin olive oil. Reduce to low heat to keep warm. Slice a small spaghetti squash in half, remove seeds, place face down in a glass dish with a few tablespoons of water. Cover with wax paper and microwave on high for 7 to 8 minutes. Rake out strands, toss with sautéed veggies and garnish with crumbled feta cheese.

DAY SEVEN CLEAN EATING

Pineapple Chicken with a Twist

Stir fry sliced red and green bell peppers and a dash of crushed red pepper in sesame oil. Add diced, cooked chicken breast and pineapple chunks to heat through. Serve over a scoop of cooked wild rice.

Link  http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/cooking-ideas/healthy-food-diet-7-day-clean-eating-challenge/

How to Prevent a Stroke

Don't be the victim of a stroke. Here are six strategies that can reduce your risk.

• While there are risk factors for stroke you can't change (age, race, family history), there are many more that you can. Here are six ways to get started now.
  Keep your blood pressure low. High blood pressure (a reading of 140/90 mmHg or higher) increases your stroke risk by four to six times. If you have high blood pressure, take steps to lower it. Controlling blood pressure is one of the most important things you can do.
• 
  

Lower Your Cholesterol

A total cholesterol level of more than 200 mg/dL puts you at higher risk for stroke. "About half of all strokes are caused by plaque in the carotid arteries," says Richard Lee, M.D., surgical director of the Center for Atrial Fibrillation at Northwestern School of Medicine in Chicago. Those are the arteries that supply the brain with blood. Elevated cholesterol can lead to plaque formation. If diet and exercise don't bring your numbers down, talk to your doctor about prescription cholesterol-lowering drugs, called statins.

Find Out if You Have A-Fib

Atrial fibrillation, or a-fib, as doctors call it, is a condition where one of the top chambers beats out of sync with the rest of the heart. This allows blood to pool, which can lead to a clot that travels to the brain. A-fib accounts for about 20 percent of strokes. Few doctors even realize it's that high, Lee says.

Here's a quick test to tell if you have an irregular pulse, which can be a sign of atrial fibrillation: Press two fingertips on the opposite wrist and find your pulse. Don't worry about counting beats; just feel for an even, steady drumbeat. It helps to tap your foot along with each beat.

An irregular beat feels like an extra or missed beat. If you discover this, or if you ever feel like your heart races or flutters for no reason, see a doctor. The effects of a-fib can be controlled with medication or surgery.

Stop Smoking

Smoking doubles stroke risk. If you haven't tried quitting in a while, see your doctor. There are new tools to help you quit. You can also check out SmokeFree.gov, a smoking cessation resource sponsored by the federal government.

Watch Your Weight

Extra baggage overworks your entire circulatory system and raises stroke risk. More younger women are having strokes, and rising obesity rates likely are to blame.

"Abdominal obesity is a known predictor of stroke in women and may be a key factor in the midlife stroke surge in women," says Amytis Towfighi, M.D., of the neurology department of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

If you need to lose weight, aim to drop only 1 pound a week while exercising three times a week for 30 minutes at a time (brisk walking works great).

Control Your Diabetes

Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes are major risk factors for stroke. And strokes seem to cause more damage if they strike when your blood glucose levels are high. If you have diabetes, make sure you control your blood glucose levels as closely as possible.

Link   http://www.bhg.com/health-family/fitness/workouts-programs/how-to-prevent-a-stroke/

The Biggest Mistake People Make When It Comes To Weight Loss

The Biggest Mistake People Make When It Comes To Weight Loss

As a certified fitness trainer and health coach, I work with people all the time who want to lose weight. Some are depressed about how much they weigh. Others are frustrated because they drop a few pounds, only to put them right back on. Some want my help because they feel defeated or their weight loss has plateaued.

Many women tell me they don't feel like their outside matches how they feel inside. Some used to be athletes, or at their ideal weight and are now struggling to find that person once again.

I get it.

I live in the weight loss space and know how exasperating it can be for people who want more than anything to take off the extra weight. However, I meet too many women who put their lives on hold until they reach some ideal number on the scale. It's as if life begins when three specific digits appear on the scale. Or they won't smile again until they lose weight. I don't care what weight you're at—don't put your life on pause as you embark on your weight loss journey.

Here's a little secret: You are completely worthy of love (your own love too!) right now. You don't have to wait for your weight to be a certain number to love yourself, deserve love from others or live your life.

I'm all about change from a positive place.

If you're beating yourself up, thinking defeating thoughts, and feeling unworthy of love because of your size, you're going to have a difficult time losing that weight. Change is more likely to happen if you can start from a positive place. This way, you're in the control seat and you believe change is possible. You tell yourself positive things like Yes, you can or I've got this. When you are a positive person, positive things happen.

Wherever you are in your journey, don't let extra weight prevent you from having a full life right now. Go to the gym, go on a date, buy the dress, attend the party, pose for the photograph, jet off on vacation ... Do all the things you want to do, regardless of the number you see on the scale. Live fully and you'll build the confidence you need to make positive change. Plus, we should all accept ourselves and our flaws. Life is about learning, right? Perfect is a title nobody gets.

How do you do this? A few ways:

Practice loving yourself and not tying your emotional state to those three numbers on the scale.

You can set a goal weight, but keep it in perspective. Your mood shouldn't soar up or down based on that number on the scale. Be kind to yourself.

Realize the story you tell yourself about yourself is powerful.

How you see yourself will match your actions. Who do you think would have more success on their weight loss journey ... someone who is enjoying life as they work to lose weight, or someone who stays at home waiting for the day when the scale hits a certain number? Elevate your self-perception and make the story you tell about you a positive one, and watch how can accelerate your weight loss results this year!

Decide to love your body this year! Know that you can be on a journey of self-improvement and love yourself through it—ups, downs, flaws, setbacks, triumphs and all! This is your one life after all. Don't you want to live it?

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

Link  http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-12221/the-biggest-mistake-people-make-when-it-comes-to-weight-loss.html

5 crazy diets you should avoid

5 crazy diets you should avoid

Experts have drawn up a list of the five most bizarre and dangerous celeb weight-loss diets that are currently the rage. Here's why you should avoid them.

When it comes to losing weight, people will try anything for quick results – no matter how dangerous or ridiculous it may be.

Experts have recently released a list of five bizarre and dangerous slimming diets that are currently all the rage in various parts of the world:

The Breatharian Diet which entails attempting to survive on air alone. 

The Biotyping Diet that requires the user to carefully select foods to match them to the dieter’s ‘biotype’. For example, ‘Thyroid types’ would need to eat a ‘hunter-gatherer’ diet to achieve weight loss and good health (Bates, 2013).

The Gluten-free Diet which bans all gluten and thus dictates that users avoid eating foods that contain wheat, barley, rye, oats, titricale and kamut (grains that may contain gluten).

The Alcorexia or Drunkorexia Diet that is based on a basic starvation diet and loads of alcohol to make up the remaining calories or kilojoules required for survival.

The Dukan Diet (Dukan, 2010), another high-protein, low-carbohydrate clone diet proposed by a French medic. In South Africa we have the very similar ‘Noakes Diet’ which has been proposed enthusiastically by a South African Professor of Exercise and Sports Science.

As usual, each one of these potentially harmful diets has its high-profile, glamorous adherents who swear that they have either lost weight with one of the diets or owe their svelte bodies to eating according to the words of wisdom dispensed by their gurus who propagate these diets. I was particularly disappointed to read that Michelle Pfeiffer supports the Breatharian Diet, Boy George is a Biotyping follower and Gwyneth Paltrow is a Gluten-free Diet adherent.

By making public statements that they use one or other unbalanced diet, these celebrities are setting what may in some cases become a dangerous and even fatal example. Imagine what could happen if a young, impressionable teenager, who may, or may not be overweight, reads that her pop or film idol skips food and substitutes alcohol to lose weight or just take deep breaths instead of eating. 

It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that such a young person may copy this kind of irresponsible behaviour and end up with alcoholism or anorexia or suffer a fatality. It makes my hair stand on end when I think of the damage this sort of celebrity example could cause to members of the general public.

Analysis of the diets

Let’s analyse each one of these diets to see if they will cause weight loss and what potential risks they are associated with. 

All five of these potentially harmful diets will quite probably cause some weight loss. 

a) Breatharian Diet

If you follow the Breatharian Diet and stop eating and ‘swallow’ air instead of food or drinks, then you will of course lose weight, but you will also develop serious nutrient deficiencies and damage your health. 

For example if you swallow air instead of having a glass of low-fat milk you will lose out on the high-quality protein, easily absorbable calcium, phosphorous and vitamin B2 (riboflavin) that milk contains. Over time this will cause ‘brittle bones’, a condition that is already rife in young women and teenagers of both sexes. In later life this substitution of dairy products with air may contribute to osteoporosis. 

But why should youngsters worry about something that happens 30 years down the line when all they want is a skinny body right now? Well, if you are a responsible human being you will realise that what you do in your youth will influence your health for the rest of your life. So by all means take deep breaths because fresh air is important, but do also eat a well-balanced diet with a reduced energy content and do some exercise to lose weight. Keep in mind that anorexia nervosa or bulimia or orthorexia are not slimming options, but serious psychological and physiological illnesses that can be fatal.

b) Biotyping Diet

The Biotyping Diet is based on Body Biotyping which is defined as “a way of finding patterns in your physical, emotional and psychological characteristics and using them to improve your health, mainly using, but not limited to nutritional advice.” (Bates, 2013). Once the patient has been subjected to biotyping he or she is encouraged to eat only selected foods to ‘balance’ his or her pituitary, thyroid, adrenal or gonadal hormones. 

According to the proponents of Body Biotyping, these different hormones cause different patterns of growth and weight gain areas, divergent food cravings, and varied emotional reactions which when pinpointed will enable organisations such as The Perrymount Clinic in the UK to figure out what combination of foods is most suited to the needs of the individual patient (Bates, 2013). 

The ‘Thyroid-type” who should eat a hunter-gatherer or paleo diet is one example cited by Bates (2013). It is interesting to note that individuals who access the Perrymount Clinic Website can purchase a basic Metabolic Typing package for £55. The package includes a food plan, instructions for use and lifestyle improvement advice which is e-mailed to the user. Any telephonic consultations will cost £45 per 30 minutes. While it is true that hormones do play a role in weight gain, the entire presentation of this theory of Body Biotyping does not ring true, but it will certainly earn the Perrymount Clinic a lot of money.
 
Use of the Biotyping Diet could potentially cause orthorexia nervosa which is defined as “an obsession with eating foods that one considers healthy”. Orthorexia is generally associated with the development of deficiency diseases due to excessive exclusion of a wide variety of foods.

c) Gluten-Free Diet

The Gluten-Free Diet is also an avoidance diet which bans the intake of all foods that contain wheat, rye, barley, oats, titricale or kamut. Exclusion of these grains will generally cause some weight loss, but as most patients with true gluten allergy or coeliac disease know, it is a particularly difficult dietary regimen to follow in the modern world. 

Potential deficiencies of dietary fibre leading to constipation and of vitamin B complex may occur unless the user of this type of diet continues to eat other unrefined, unsifted grains such as sorghum, maize, quinoa and brown rice.

d) Alcorexia or Drunkorexia Diet

This is indeed an ill-conceived suggestion and should under no circumstances be used by anyone, particularly not by young people who are still growing. Any starvation diet will lead to weight loss until the body drastically slows down its metabolism to conserve energy. 

Inevitably individuals on a starvation diet develop the full range of deficiency diseases. Now if this alarming state of affairs is exacerbated by the intake of large quantities of alcohol, one would expect the liver and kidneys to break down relatively rapidly. 

Ironically, users of this diet may not lose as much weight as they expect, because alcohol has the second highest energy content of all the macronutrients, namely 29 kJ per gram (fat provides 37 kJ per gram, while protein and carbohydrates only contribute about 17 kJ/gram to our energy intake). Starving yourself and drinking large quantities of alcohol may therefore ruin your health, turn you into an alcoholic and even cause weight gain instead of loss.

e) The Dukan Diet

This is another repeat of all the high-protein, high-fat, low-carb or no-carb diets that have been trotted out as ‘miracle cures’ as far back as Dr Atkins last century and more recently by Dr Dukan (2010) in France, the South African ‘Dieet waarvan almal praat’, ‘Dr Cohen's Diet’ and the Noakes Diet.

I reviewed Dr Dukan’s book in April 2011. At the time I wrote: “Ask yourself if you could eat (and afford) only protein, a few selected vegetables and a small portion of oat bran for a long period during the Cruise Phase. And afterwards, could you eat the restricted diet of the Transition Phase for months and months? Research studies have indicated that the fall-out rate for high-protein diets is very high because people tend to get very tired of eating only proteins and a few vegetables (Foster et al, 2003; Stern et al, 2004). As omnivores (not carnivores), humans need a varied diet which also includes carbohydrates.”

In view of the potentially harmful effects these diets can have on health, I can only urge the South African public to follow a well balanced slimming diet prepared by a registered dietitian and regular exercise if you want to lose weight this year. Please don’t endanger yourself by trying out any of these fad diets that are doing the rounds.

References: (Bates C (2013). Body Biotyping. www.theperrymount.com; Dukan, P (2010). The Dukan Diet. Hodder & Stoughton, UK; Foster GD et al (2003). A randomized trial of a low-carbohydrate diet for obesity. New Eng J Med, 348(21):2082-90; Irish Independent (2013).www.independent.ie/woman/diet-fitness/this-years-most-dangerous-fad-diets-29785945.html; Close your mouth to these five dangerous fad diets. Pretoria News, 31th December 2013, page. 4.; Stern L et al (2004). The effects of low-carbohydrate versus conventional weight loss diets in severely obese adults: one-year follow-up of a randomised trial. Annals of Int Med, 140(10):778-85.)

(Photo of crazy happy woman from Shutterstock)

Link  http://www.health24.com/Diet-and-nutrition/Weight-loss/5-crazy-diets-you-should-avoid-this-year-20140114

FLAT-BELLY EATING PLAN

FLAT-BELLY EATING PLAN

This meal-plan will flatten your belly in no time at all!

Flat-Belly Breakfast

Oatmeal with Pecans and Berries 1 packet instant oats (no sugar added) made with 1 cup skim milk and mixed with: 2 Tbsp chopped pecans 1/2 cup raspberries 1/2 cup blueberries The soluble fibre in oatmeal will keep you full well past the time you usually start thinking about lunch. Total: 1474 kilojoules

Banana Snack 1 medium banana 2 tsp peanut butter Natural nut butters provide filling protein and healthy fats. Plus, studies have found that noshing nuts in the am causes you to eat fewer calories throughout the rest of the day. Total: 701 kilojoules

Chicken Pita About 4 slices of chicken breast 1 tsp Dijon mustard 1/4 cup spinach 4 small tomato slices 1/8 cup sprouts 1 small wholewheat pita Side Salad 1 cup chopped lettuce 1/2 cup chopped cucumber 1/2 cup chopped red pepper One spring onion 1 tsp olive oil Dessert 1/2 cup strawberries Tossing surprising ingredients into a salad is the key to preventing "same-old salad" fatigue. Spice up your greens with unexpected extras such as artichokes or capers. Total: About 1659 kilojoules

Skim Latte 180ml skim milk 180ml coffee sprinkled with cinnamon 14g 70% dark chocolate Skim milk is a dieter's best friend, and not just because it's fat-free and low-kilojoule. Studies show that the calcium you get from two daily servings of dairy is associated with lower body weight. Total: 630 kilojoules

HeaHealthy Chicken Parmigiana with Penne 113grams grilled chicken, diced 1/2 cup tomato sauce 1 cup cooked spinach (sauteed in 1 tsp olive oil) 1/2 cup wholewheat penne 1 1/2 Tbsp grated Parmesan Spinach contains lipoic acid, which plays a role in energy production and may help regulate blood sugar levels. Total: 1835 kilojoules

Link  http://www.womenshealthsa.co.za/weight-loss/eating-strategies/easy-eating-plan-for-a-flatter-belly?

The 'Lose Your Love Handles' Workout

Love handles, the spare tire, the middle age spread: Call it what you will, but nobody likes having excess flab around the waistline (not even when we name it cute things like "muffin" top). And while you can target the oblique muscles located on the sides of your waist by doing specific toning exercises, doing tons of abs moves alone isn’t enough to shrink your waistline. Your best love handle melting strategy involves the same principles for losing weight anywhere on the body: eating better foods (and less in general), and performing both fat-burning cardio along with muscle-toning strength training.

But like any exercise program, you should cater your exercises to your specific goals. And if whittling your waistline is one of your goals, you should be doing exercises to help you reach it.

I designed this workout circuit to help you target your waistline in a smart way: by keeping your heart rate elevated to burn more calories than you would simply lying on the floor and doing crunches. You’ll alternate a cardio move that also targets your core with a traditional oblique toner for maximum benefit.

Scroll down below this graphic to see detailed instructions for each exercise.



Workout Instructions:
Warm up for 3-5 minutes by marching in place or walking. Try this workout 1-3 times per week on alternating days.

Cardio Toner #1: Torso Twister (Dancing Twist)
Turn up your favorite song and dance off those love handles with this move! Stand with feet together, arms bent front of chest. Take a step to the left and twist your waist to the left, keeping hips square. Step right foot in, bringing feet together and untwisting torso back to center. Repeat on the right side, and continue stepping/twisting to each side for at least one minute. Turn Up the Burn: Repeat for an entire song.




Targeted Toner #2: Belly Blaster (Bicycle Crunches)
This classic move (ranked the #1 most effective move for your abs) activates both the abdominal wall muscles and the obliques. To do it, start lying on your back with knees in table top, hands clasped behind head and shoulder blades off the floor. Extend right leg out almost parallel to the floor, bending left knee into chest as right shoulder twists toward the left knee, then quickly switch to the other side. That’s one rep. Do 20 reps. Be sure to keep elbows wide and avoid pulling on your head with your hands.

Cardio Toner #3: Jiggle Jabber (Cross & Cover)
Kickboxing is a fun and really effective way to work your obliques since every punch involves the core! This punching combo will work your waist and help you fight off fat at the same time. Stand with feet slightly wider than hip width, knees slightly bent, elbows bent in front of chest, fists near chin. Throw a cross with your right arm by punching across your body, rotating palm down (avoid locking elbow), turning right hip slightly forward and lifting right heel off the floor. Quickly pull arm back in to body and repeat with left arm.  (Notice the "turn" or pivot of the body to each side as you punch, which engages the core.) Then immediately block your face with your arms (elbows up) as if trying to avoid a punch by twisting left, then right, keeping hips square and knees bent while you twist. That’s one rep. Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch leading sides for 30 more seconds. Turn Up the Burn: Repeat for an entire song.

Targeted Toner #4: Waist Whittler
(Windshield Wipers) 
You’ll use your abs to control your lower body’s range of motion (like you do in real life activities) with this exercise. Start lying on back with knees bent at 90 degrees over hips, arms extended to sides of shoulders on the floor, palms facing down. Brace abs in tight and squeeze legs together as you lower both legs (maintaining 90 degree position) to the right, keeping both shoulder blades and arms pressed into the floor. Use abdominals and obliques to return legs to starting position, and then repeat to the left. That’s one rep. Do 20 reps in total. Turn Up the Burn: Try extending your legs straight.

Cardio Toner #5: Side Sizzler (Side Knee Strikes)
Power up your heart rate while you work your waist with this kickboxing-inspired cardio burst. Stand on left leg with knee slightly bent, right leg extended out to the side with toes lightly tapped on the floor, arms extended overhead on the left. Bend right knee and lift thigh toward chest while pulling elbows down to the outside of the thigh, twisting to the right. That's one rep. Do as many reps as you can for 30 seconds, then switch sides and repeat. Turn Up the Burn: Repeat for an entire song.


Targeted Toner #6: Muffin Top Melter
(Side Plank Press)
Target your obliques while also engaging your arms, shoulders, hips and legs for a strength building exercise that works multiple muscles simultaneously. Start lying on left side, with left elbow bent under shoulder, propping upper body off the floor, left knee bent, right leg straight, and right arm extended next to the hip, palm facing up. Lift hips off floor, reaching right arm overhead by right ear, with eyes focused down or straight ahead to prevent neck strain. Lower hips and arm. That’s one rep. Try up to 20 in a row and then repeat on the other side. Be sure to keep elbow directly under shoulder joint avoid strain. Turn Up the Burn: Extend both legs out straight into a full side plank instead of keeping bottom knee on bent on the floor.

Link  http://www.sparkpeople.com/blog/blog.asp?post=the_lose_your_love_handles_workout

Why the Scale Goes Up When You Start a New Workout Plan

Probably the most common question I get when I release a new exercise program is, "Help! I'm gaining weight! Am I doing something wrong?" This is a common phenomenon with any new exercise program, such as Turbo Kick,Turbo Jam, Hip Hop Hustle, or others! It's especially common (and temporary) with intense strength training programs likeChaLEAN Extreme or Tony Horton's P90X.

The motivation to start a new exercise program is almost always to lose weight. However, what most personal trainers know--and most at-home exercisers do not--is that a new exercise program often can cause an immediate (and temporary) increase on the scale. (Notice I didn't say weight gain! I'll explain.) This common increase in the scale is also the reason why perhaps millions of people start and then quickly quit their resolution to get fit.

The temporary weight gain explained:
When someone starts a new exercise program, they often experience muscle soreness. The more intense and "unfamiliar" the program, the more intense the muscle soreness. This soreness is most prevalent 24 to 48 hours after each workout. In the first few weeks of a new program, soreness is the body trying to "protect and defend" the effected or targeted tissue. Exercise physiologists refer to this as delayed-onset muscle soreness, or DOMS.

This type of soreness is thought to be caused by tissue breakdown or microscopic tears in muscle tissue. When this happens, the body protects the tissue. The muscle becomes inflamed and slightly swollen due to fluid retention. This temporary retention of fluid can result in a 3- to 4-pound weight gain within a few weeks of a new program. Keep in mind that muscle soreness is not necessarily a reflection of how hard you worked. In fact, some people feel no signs of muscle soreness, yet will experience the muscle protection mechanisms of water retention and slight swelling.

Most people are motivated enough to put up with this temporary muscle soreness. Yet, many, especially those who really need immediate weight loss to keep them motivated, become discouraged and quit!

When I worked with a group of 70 test participants during the development stages of ChaLEAN Extreme, this happened. Who was the most upset and discouraged? You guessed it... the women! I'm happy to report absolutely for every single woman (and man) in our group, the weight increase was temporary and never lasted more than two weeks before they started to see a major drop in the scale. However, these people had the advantage of working with someone who was able to explain to them why this was happening and assure them the weight would come off if they stuck to the nutrition plan and stayed true to the program.

If you follow a multi-phase exercise plan, such as ChaLEAN Extreme, keep in mind that when you start each phase, your body will be "in shock" again. Don't be surprised or discouraged if you experience a temporary gain on the scale the first week of each phase.

My own personal example of this is running 10Ks. I don't do it very often, maybe once or twice a year. Even though I run on a regular basis, when you run a race, you push much harder. It's natural for me to be insanely sore the next day. It’s also very common for me to see the scale jump 4 pounds the next day from forcing fluids post race and the resulting DOMS. Even though I know the cause of it, it's still a bummer. We're all human and hard work should mean results. Hard work equals results, but our bodies are amazing machines and they know how to protect us from hurting ourselves. Soreness forces you to give those muscles a break. Ultimately you will lose the weight and you will change your metabolism in the process.

The key is understanding that this is a normal and temporary and stick with the program!

When to be concerned: 
If you experience a significant weight gain (exceeding 5 pounds) that does not begin to decrease rapidly after the second week, guess what it is? I'll give you one hint... you put it in your mouth and chew it. You know it! Your food (or calorie-laden beverages). News flash, friends… exercise doesn't make you gain weight. Consuming more food than you burn makes you gain weight!

So if after two weeks you are not losing weight and have gained weight that's not coming off, it's time to take a close and honest look at your food intake. Start using SparkPeople's Nutrition Tracker regularly, and be honest.

Moral of the story: 
Be patient young grass hopper. You'll be lean and mean in no time!


(Photo courtesy of Chalene Johnson)

Link  http://www.sparkpeople.com/blog/blog.asp?post=why_the_scale_goes_up_when_you_start_a_new_workout_plan