Monday, April 23, 2012

How Fitness Can Help You Deal With Life's Daily Stresses

One of the questions we get asked all the time is "Will fitness help me deal with the life's daily stresses?" The Answer is yes and in more ways than just being fit. Eating healthy and exercising regularly, even if it’s as little as daily walking, help you look and feel better both of which makes EVERYONE less stressful when compared to being out of shape.

We are not sure there is a better way to manage stress than exercise. It is well accepted in the scientific community that exercise counteracts stress-related disorders. Exercise has been proven to be a better strategy for treating depression than any drug on the market. The hormonal changes, including the release of endorphins during and following exercise, naturally soothe the entire body. Exercise and proper diet help keep the brain “young” - i.e. improves cognitive functioning by helping maintain the integrity of your brain cells just like exercise and diet improve your muscle cell functioning. And finally, both short-term exercise and long-term aerobic exercise training are associated with improvements in various aspects of psychological functioning. Cross-sectional studies reveal that compared with sedentary individuals, active persons are more likely to be better adjusted, to perform better on tests of cognitive functioning, to exhibit reduced cardiovascular responses to stress, and to report fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Exercise can help you recharge, and eating properly positively affects the way you look and feel. Any way you slice it, fitness creates a happier, more satisfied person. Once you’ve experienced the euphoric feeling of true fitness, it’s locked in your mind and will emanate throughout your body.


www.worldgymdc.com

Friday, April 20, 2012

How You May Be Sabotaging Your Weight


Weight Control Basics
woman with water bottleYou may recall from Weight Control 101 that your weight is determined by the calories you take in and the calories you burn on a daily basis. If you’re like most adults, you’ve been taking in more calories than you burn and you have excess body fat that you’d like to get rid of. If you’re not like most adults, consider yourself warned as experts predict that 9 out of 10 people will become overweight or obese at some point in their lifetime.  This underscores the importance of consistently balancing the calories you take in with the right amount of activity, especially since the majority of people pack on the pounds slowly and steadily without really noticing it. Years of misjudging your intake by just a few calories at a time will end up sabotaging your weight. For example, if you gain the average amount of one pound per year, this means you’re off by only 10 calories a day. After 20 to 30 years, you’ll end up 20 to 30 pounds overweight. To help you avoid this, here are common ways people underestimate the calories they take in and unknowingly eat more than they realize.


What you don’t know WILL hurt you
Research shows that most people: 1) don’t know how much to eat to control their weight;  2) don’t accurately judge the calories they take in and 3) have no idea they take in extra calories in different situations.
In a recent national survey, only 15 percent accurately estimated how many calories they should eat to maintain their weight.    Ask yourself – how many calories should I eat to maintain my weight? This begs the question – is it possible to maintain a healthy weight without knowing how many calories to eat? Certainly, if you keep regular tabs on your waistline and make the needed adjustments to your diet or activity level. Studies on college freshmen showed that daily weighing helped maintain body weight whereas those who did not weigh daily gained nearly seven pounds in ten weeks.   Since most people don’t weigh themselves daily or even monthly, they don’t notice the weight creeping on. And as you can see, what you don’t know WILL hurt you.

You eat more than you think you do
Let’s say you do know how many calories to eat to manage your weight. The next question is - do you accurately judge how much food you eat? Not according to research. When people are asked to record how much they consume, they consistently underestimate.  , ,   Overweight and obese women tend to underestimate more than other people, and it worsens as body mass index (BMI) goes up.  ,  That is, the higher the BMI, the fewer calories people report eating. Meal size also affects how accurate we are. The larger the meal, the more we misjudge how much we eat. One study demonstrated that participants underestimated a large meal by up to 1,000 calories.   If you ate an extra 1,000 calories once a week without making up for it with more activity, you’d gain almost 15 pounds in a year. An extra 1,000 calories equates to eating one more slice of meat lover’s pizza and one more fruit smoothie. The bottom line is we eat more than we think we do, making weight control quite challenging. 

You eat more and don’t even realize it
Studies have also shown that people unknowingly consume more calories in the following situations:
• Food is presented in large quantities (restaurants, parties)
• A wide variety of food is present (buffets,  all you can eat)
• More people are present
• Being distracted and doing something else (watching TV)
• Eating out of large packages (bag of chips, tub of ice cream)
• Tempting foods are within reach and within eyesight
• Frequently dining out
By becoming aware of how you eat in these situations, you’ll be better equipped to control the amount of food you take in.


Get informed and take charge
One of the most effective ways to get informed about the way you eat is to track it regularly. People who do lose more weight.   To avoid calorie amnesia, jot down everything you consume right away. Start to pay attention to the calorie content of the items you choose by reading food labels and looking up the calorie content of restaurant foods and beverages. Keep in mind that many beverages contain calories so be sure to count those tea drinks, sports drinks and alcohol.  They add up quickly especially if you’re thirsty. In certain states it is now required by law to post the calorie content directly on the menu board. You’ll think twice once you realize your favorite coffee drink and muffin has 1,000 calories. If you’re really motivated, weigh and measure the amount of food you eat with a food scale, measuring cups and measuring spoons and calculate the calories you take in. This pocket size Calorie, Fat and Carb Counter contains thousands of common foods, restaurant items and useful information. Since humans are creatures of habit, you’ll get familiar with the items you eat regularly and measuring will no longer be necessary. The idea is to get educated on how much you eat.
To prevent unconsciously eating excess calories, follow these tips:
  • Eat and only eat. Avoid being distracted during mealtimes or snack times. 
  • Eat from smaller plates, bowls and glasses.
  • Portion out your food and avoid “family style” eating or eating out of the package.
  • When you dine out, control the portion sizes by sharing meals or packaging some to take home right away.
  • During social occasions, decide on what you’re going to eat and stick to it. Otherwise you’ll graze mindlessly.
  • Limit your alcohol intake. Alcohol tends to stimulate appetite and reduce your awareness of what you’re eating and how much. 
  • Keep snacks, treats and tempting foods out of reach.
  • The old adage “knowledge is power” is true for weight control if you use it to make informed decisions.

It’s not rocket science if you judge by RESULTS over time
It’s challenging to manage something you aren’t aware of and don’t keep track of. Since only one third of the population acknowledges that calories are responsible for weight gain, it’s no wonder there’s an obesity epidemic. 21 (And by the way, it’s no coincidence that one third of adults have a healthy body weight.) Knowing how much you consume is a key part of successful weight control, but even if you don’t know – the scale will tell you. If the number on your scale increases over time, you’re taking in more calories than you’re burning – PERIOD. The solution is to burn off that extra fuel by moving more and eating fewer calories.  If you don’t measure your results by checking your weight regularly, you’ll end up sabotaging your waistline and likely your health.

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Tips To Help You Keep Your Diet Under Control On Easter

Easter is here and for weeks now as we have completed our weekly grocery shopping we have been forced to walk past a never ending range of Easter eggs & candies scattered all throughout the store. For weeks these childhood favourite treats have been tempting us with their fancy packaging.

Did you start your Easter early by giving in to the temptation each time you did the grocery shopping? Have you bought Easter eggs or candies for others only to have eaten them yourself? Easter is one of those times of year when time off work, social events, and plenty of delicious food can lead to gaining a few extra pounds.

Chocolate is high in sugar and fat and low in essential nutrients. A diet that is high in sugar can lead to chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure) and obesity. Unlike other foods, when we consume sugar it does not cause the release of the hormones that tell our body we have had enough to eat and here is why over indulgence is a big risk. The best way to stop your good habits from falling by the wayside this Easter Sunday is to plan ahead and stay in control.

For the sweet tooth and the chocoholics Easter can be a risky time to over indulge so below are some tips to keep you in control:

1. Exercise on Sunday like any regular day, if you have exercised you are more likely to make better food choices and less likely to over indulge.

2. When you are eating, think about your food choice before you put it in your mouth. Consider whether your body really needs that particular food and the consequences that may follow after eating it then make you final decision.

3. Set yourself a Easter egg & candy quota.  If you fulfill your daily quota take notice of how you feel. If you feel sick your quota was way too high. Don't go over your quota, not even by the smallest amount.

4. If you are the host for a Easter get-together ensure to create healthy options and include lean meat and lots of vegetables. Over Easter we still should be aiming for a nutrient - rich diet rather than one that is high in saturated fat and sugars.

5. Be aware of how much energy an Easter egg contains and if you are going to eat it then you will need to balance it out by burning it up.

Don't give up on the Easter bunny altogether, just act in moderation and stay in control. You will feel great for doing so.

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