Wednesday, 5 September 2012

Lose Weight by Eating More -- Food that is Virtually Impossible to Store as Body Fat

Lose Weight by Eating More -- Food that is Virtually Impossible to Store as Body Fat
By: Marty Gallagher
Certain foods are extremely difficult for the human body to convert into body fat - not impossible but damned near impossible. By consuming calories derived from these foods, the anabolic margin of error is extended dramatically, which means it will be easier to lose fat and gain muscle, if you choose.

Lean protein, protein devoid of saturated fat, has been the staple, the bedrock nutrient of elite athletes for 50 years. Why? You can eat a mountain of lean protein and not get fat - assuming you train with intensity sufficient enough to trigger muscle growth. Lean protein is difficult for the body to break down and digest. As a direct result of this digestive difficulty, the body kicks the metabolic thermostat upward to break protein down into subcomponent amino acids.
The human body wants to preserve stored body fat as a last line of defense against starvation. If overworked and under-fed, the body will preferentially eat muscle tissue to save precious body fat.
Obese people that go on crash diets, precipitously slashing calories, might lose 100-pounds of body weight, yet still appear fat. Despite losing from say 350-pounds to 250-pounds, they still appear fat because they still are fat. The body has cannibalized muscle tissue and saved the fat. Though they might weigh 100-pounds less, they still possess 25-40% body fat percentile.
Lean protein is the bedrock nutrient in the physical renovation process because it supplies muscle tissue battered by a high intensity weight workout with the amino acids needed to heal, recover and construct new muscle tissue. Lean protein is a bedrock nutrient in the physical renovation process because it causes the basal metabolic rate (BMR) to elevate; the metabolic thermostat, the rate at which our body consumes calories, increases when digesting protein. Lean protein is a bedrock nutrient in the physical renovation process because it is damned near impossible for the body to convert it into body fat.
The other bedrock nutrient in the physical transformation process is fibrous carbohydrates: carrots, broccoli, green beans, bell peppers, spinach, cauliflower, onions, asparagus, cabbage, salad greens, Brussels sprouts and the like. Fibrous carbohydrates, like lean protein, are nearly impossible for the body to convert into body fat. Fibrous carbohydrates require almost as many calories to digest as they contain. A green bean or carrot might contain 10-calories yet is so dense and difficult to break down that the body has to expend nearly as many calories to break down that bean or carrot as the vegetable contains.
Fibrous carbohydrates have a wonderful "Roto-Rooter" effect on the internal plumbing: as they work their way though the digestive passageways they scrape mucus and gunk off intestinal walls and help keep sludge buildup to a minimum. For this reason fibrous carbohydrates are the perfect compliment to a lean protein diet. Too much protein can cause bile buildup: fiber is the Yin to protein's Yang. The two nutrients should be eaten together.
Both protein and fiber have a beneficial dampening effect on insulin secretions. It is no accident that professional bodybuilders, the world's best dieters, capable of reducing body fat percentiles to 5% while maintaining incredible muscle mass, construct their eating regimen around protein and fiber.
The best way to eat is to eat often. If you eat 3,000 calories a day the best way is in five 600-calorie feeding or six 500-calorie feedings instead of a breakfast containing 400-calories, a lunch of 1000-calories and a late dinner of 1,600-calories. Avoid calories easily converted into body fat.
Eat multiple small meals in the 400-600 calorie range comprised exclusively of foods near impossible for the body to convert into body fat. Plus, these foods cause the metabolism, the BMR, the body thermostat to elevate in order to digest them. Optimally you should eat every three hours: in about the time the nutrients from the previous meal have dwindled, been expended and exhausted, in about the time the elevated metabolism is 'settling back down to normal,' eat another small protein/fiber meal. This reestablishes anabolism, kicks the metabolism upward once again and gives the body more practice at assimilating and distributing quality nutrients.
They say practice makes perfect and by eating small, power-packed, tough to digest meals every three hours, the metabolism is kept elevated, anabolism is established and maintained and the individual never feels hungry. A person who is not hungry is far less inclined to binge on sweets and treats, junk and trash then the crash diet/calorie cutters who always feel hungry, deprived, listless and lacking energy.
The small meal/protein/fiber approach has been used successfully by elite athletes for decades and is not some untried dietary abstraction - rather it is the proven method of choice, one that has withstood the test of time, one that has been used for decades and been proven effective time after time.
If a person is able to establish a multiple meal schedule comprised primarily of lean protein and fiber eaten every three hours, then adds to this eating schedule some serious weight training and a cardiovascular regimen, physical transformation is a biological certainty.
Author Bio
Coming soon! "The Obesity Solution" is designed to help overweight men and women physically transform themselves into healthier, thinner, more fit individuals. Designed by Marty Gallagher, a world champion coach and former
www.washingtonpost.com fitness columnist, he will take you by the hand to help you achieve permanent fat loss.
For more information, visit www.purposefullyprimitive.com/article.html and get a FREE special report on how to stick to a diet the easy way!
Article Source: http://www.ArticleGeek.com - Free Website Content

Tuesday, 4 September 2012

Top Health Benefits of Blueberries..Which I eat almost everyday.

The health benefits of blueberries or foods containing real blueberries or pure blueberry juice are numerous. Research continually proves that this fruit contains powerful antioxidants that ward off a variety of diseases. In addition, the fruit is packed with other vitamins and minerals necessary for a healthy body.

The blueberry originally grew native to North America and was not introduced to the European continent until the 1930s. Nowadays, the plant is also grown in Australia, New Zealand and certain parts of South America. It is a perennial and typically blooms during the middle of the summer. The plant has two main varieties of bushes. The wild variety grows quite low to the ground and is called the lowbush blueberry; the taller variety is a cultivated plant called the highbush blueberry.
The fruit of the blueberry bush is spherical in shape and is approximately a half of an inch in diameter. When it is ripe, the berry is a deep blue or blue-violet color. The taste varies based on the ripeness of the fruit; the flavor becomes less acidic and much sweeter the longer that the berry is on the bush.

Blueberry Nutrition Information

Raw blueberries are a wonderful choice for a snack. A typical portion size is about two and a half ounces, which translates into approximately fifty average sized berries. A portion contains around forty calories; almost none of these calories are from fat. Of course, there is no cholesterol and only a minute amount of sodium. The fruit is composed mainly of carbohydrates with approximately seven grams of sugar and two grams of dietary fiber in one serving.
Although blueberries contain small portions of a variety of vitamins and minerals, they are mostly known for supplying vitamins C and K and the mineral known as manganese. In fact, according to the United States Department of Agriculture's guidelines, this fruit provides a fifth of the recommended daily amount of manganese and a fourth of the daily amount of vitamin K. In addition, blueberries have a small amount of the B vitamins which provide energy to the body.

Eating Blueberries

Perhaps the best way to gain the most nutritional value from this fruit is to eat it raw. Some choose to sprinkle them on their morning cereal or oatmeal while some add them to fruit or green leafy salads. Another excellent option is flash-frozen blueberries; this method preserves almost all of the nutrients. Blueberries can be found seasonally in most grocery stores' produce sections as well as sporadically during the winter months when they are imported from warmer climates. Another great option, especially for those who do not like to eat fresh fruits and vegetables, is blueberry juice which can often be found in markets' organic sections. It is often found in conjunction with pomegranate juice, which is another powerful antioxidant and is a great way to enjoy blueberry health benefits. Additionally, blueberries are delicious when added to baked products such as muffins, breads, cakes and pancakes.
Very few people suffer from allergies to blueberries. Those who are affected generally have mild to moderate symptoms. An allergy to any kind of berry can begin at any point in one's life and may not happen when he is a child. The most common reactions occur when the body rejects the food because it is unable to digest it. The symptoms that occur from this include nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea or a moderate to severe stomach ache. Some people may develop a rash. Antihistamines such as Benadryl can be given for a skin reaction. Very few people develop an allergy so severe that they need to be taken to the emergency room. However, a few people are so allergic to the fruit that they have an anaphylactic reaction and develop shortness of breath, a swollen tongue or other violent reactions. Babies under nine months of age should not be fed blueberries since their bodies have not yet begun production of the enzyme needed to digest this fruit.

Health Benefits of Blueberries

Several recent research studies have shown that blueberries hold even more health benefits than was originally thought. It should also be noted that the wild blueberry varieties contain even more of some nutrients than do the cultivated varieties. Reports released in 2007 showed that the many antioxidants in the skins and flesh of blueberries fight off the effects of Alzheimer 's disease and slow its degenerative process. In fact, some studies have even shown that consuming this berry can lessen the negative effects from a stroke or other ischemic event. The Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry published a report that showed that individuals who consumed blueberry juice had better memory and fewer problems with depression. Multiple studies have also shown its benefits on the heart and cardiovascular health. The high amount of anthocyanins in blueberries, which gives the fruit its deep blue color, relaxes and widens the blood vessels causing decreased blood pressure. It may also decrease bad LDL cholesterol levels. Finally, a research study by the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center showed that blueberries decrease abdominal fat and in turn decreases the incidence of metabolic syndrome.
In addition, blueberries have numerous health benefits that have been known by scientists for several years or decades. Blueberries have more antioxidant properties than any other fruit. Antioxidants have been shown to decrease the movement of free radicals throughout the body, which in turn decreases one's risk for cancer and decreases the effects of aging throughout the body's organs especially the skin. It is also well-known that blueberries, similar to cranberries, promote the health of the urinary tract by cleansing the tract of unhealthy bacteria and thereby preventing urinary tract infections. This fruit's high levels of anthocyanins aid in vision by decreasing the incidence of vision loss from such disease processes as macular degeneration and cataracts. Finally, the dietary fibre from the skin of the fruit decreases the incidence of constipation while the vitamins and minerals such as copper improve digestion.

Summary

Blueberries are truly natural powerhouses that are filled with nutrients to ward off a number of diseases and aid in good health. Scientific research studies continue to dig deeper into this fruit's many wonderful attributes. With so many delicious ways to eat this fruit, no one will be able to resist its juicy, sweet flavor and gain from the health benefits of blueberries whether eaten whole or as blueberry juice.

Welcome to my blog!

Hello everyone, hope you enjoy my blog. I've just become very interested in diet and nutrition and would like to share a few tips which I've found over the last year.