Tag Archives: health living

Lose weight without getting hungry

“I really need to lose weight but I hate feeling hungry nearly all the time,” I suppose this has to be one of the most common statements, made by people who follow many of the so called fad diets. If your diet leaves your stomach rumbling every hour on the hour, your body is telling you it’s time to make a change. I used to believe losing weight meant starving yourself. It took me a a very long time to accept the fact that I could actually eat heartily and still drop a few pounds in weight.

The times I spent starving myself in the name of losing weight were miserable. When I did manage to shed a few pounds, I would sadly put it all back on, in a matter of weeks. Sometimes I’d even gain a few extra pounds. Now that’s what I call depressing!

What I learned through many years of research (trial and error) is that when you follow a healthy eating plan, you can eat until you’re full, and still see amazing weight loss results.

What Are Healthy Foods?

Healthy foods are not created in factory’s where food is processed to death. If the food is dried, dehydrated, canned, frozen or filled with ingredients you can’t pronounce. I suggest that you stay away from it. Some good examples of healthy foods include fresh fish, naturally raised meats, legumes, seeds, organic poultry, organic eggs, raw nuts, along with fresh fruit and vegetables.

There’s nothing more miserable than having to deal with hunger pangs all day. If your meals aren’t satisfying your nutritional needs, this is exactly what’s going to happen. Here are some tricks to make your meals more filling:

Add a source of good quality protein and a source healthy fat (yes, fat) to each of your meals. Doing this should make your meals more appetizing and curbs the hunger. Sources of healthy protein include natural meats, organic whole eggs, organic poultry and fish. Sources of healthy fat include avocados, fish, beans, raw nuts, coconut oil and olive oil.

Fill your plate with veggies. They help to divide your plate into three sections, and fill the larger section with veggies. Leave the other two sections for meat and other foods. Veggies are full of fiber, so they expand in the stomach, digest more slowly so keeping you full longer. Try eating green leafs such as cabbage, spinach, broccoli which are rich in magnesium. (at least 57% of the US population does not meet the US RDA for dietary intake of magnesium)

Drink a glass of bottled water before each meal and throughout the day. This will help you feel full faster and reduce hunger.

Examples of Healthy, Filling Meals and Snacks

At Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs, 1/3 cup of oatmeal with cinnamon and a small pear.

Snack: 1 medium apple, 1 cup of cucumber slices and 1 oz of raw nuts.

For Lunch: 4 oz ground turkey, 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice, 8 oz carrot sticks, and a small green salad with vinegar and olive oil dressing.

Snack: 2 tablespoons of almond butter, 2 slices of rye crisp bread and 8 oz of celery sticks.

For Dinner: 5 oz boiled halibut steak, 1/2 cup of green beans sauteed in garlic, small baked sweet potato and a small green salad with apple cider vinegar and olive oil dressing.

Diet plans that leave you hungry all the time (or even some of the time) are useless, why are you making life so miserable. Why not ditch the diet altogether and eat healthy instead? If you do it this way, you can eat delicious, filling foods and still lose weight.

Why not check out Mike Geary’s Fat Burning Kitchen Program for more great advice and recipes.

Flat Six Pack Abdominals, Lean Stomach

My friend Mike Geary told me about an interview he did with a fitness professional from NYC, non other than certified personal trainer, Geovanni Derice. In it he reveals some of the hardest hitting strategies for getting rid of stubborn stomach fat to uncover those flat six pack abdominals that everyone wants.

“GD: Welcome Mike to our 4-ever-Toned Fitness Journal. For those people who do not know you, please tell us a few things about yourself, and how you can help our readers with their fitness, health and fat loss.

MG: Thanks for having me on, Geo. Well, to go back a little, I have been heavily involved in fitness and sports for about 17 years now, ever since I was a teenager. I got involved in sports in high school which got me interested in strength training and conditioning.

At that point, once I started feeling more energetic, then getting stronger, and looking better, I was instantly hooked for life. I’m now 33 years old and I’m still addicted to the way living a healthy and fit lifestyle, makes me feel energetic, confident, and youthful on a daily basis.

I decided earlier in my 20’s that I wanted to make the commitment to help other people experience the excitement of being fit, and getting themselves in the best shape that they can. Since we’ve reached a tragic epidemic of obesity, heart disease, fatigue, diabetes, cancer, depression, etc. That’s why I decided to became a fitness professional. It just gives me such a buzz to help others, who have been struggling for years to get into shape, and to show them that it can be done, and how it can be a fun process.

I’ve expanded over the years from just reaching local individuals with personal training, into being able to help people all over the globe achieve their fitness goals thanks to the internet. I hope that my passion for fitness, helps to inspire people to take action, and improve how they look at life.

GD: Mike, one question is: there are so many things out there as to what works and what does not work… if you had to pick the 3 things that work time and time again to get flat lean abs, what else would they be?

MG: The first and most important thing to get under control, in order to lose your abdominal obesity and get flat six pack abdominals is cleaning up your diet. Exercise is important, but your diet is more important when it comes to losing body fat so that you can see your abs.

There’s so much confusion these days about what a healthy diet that promotes fat loss really is. After all, we are constantly bombarded by conflicting messages in the media about what is healthy, and you have all of these gimmicky diet books about various diets too many to mention. There’s so much conflicting info, that the average consumer doesn’t even know where to start when it comes to eating for fat loss.

The second thing that works, is to focus on the intensity of your workouts and focus on working the body as a whole in order to get the best metabolic response to lose that stubborn stomach fat.

For you to get lean, the workouts should have a high intensity, with short rest periods, working the largest muscle groups of the body, instead of trying to isolate specific small muscles like the biceps, triceps, or calves.

For the third thing, let’s talk about actually training the abs specifically. When it comes to training the abs. I always recommend forgetting about the crunches and situps for the most part. They are OK for someone who is really unfit, but most people that already have some training under their belt need a much better stimulus for their abs than doing crunches. Although crunches are one of the abs exercises that actually provide the least amount of resistance. Just remember that resistance is what develops and tones the muscles.

I provide a wealth of great abs exercises in my book, but one of the highest resistance exercises for the abs, is hanging leg raises (but NOT the way you see most people at the gym doing them). The key to doing these and actually working the hell out of your abs is to curl your pelvis up as you raise your legs. Most people don’t ever do it the right way. To be truthfully honest with you, the majority of people cannot do this to begin with, but I provide some strategies in my book how to progress to doing these correctly.

GD: Where are most people going wrong when it comes to developing the coveted “6 pack abs”?

MG: Well Geo, I know this sounds funny to most people, but the MAIN thing that people are doing wrong to get those flat six pack abs is… are you ready for this?

They spend entirely too much time focusing on training their abs! WAY too much time spent on abs exercises. Crazy, but that’s the truth.

Remember, having a flat and visible six pack of abs is all about getting down to a low body fat percentage.For you to do that, your workouts must focus on stimulating a fat burning hormonal environment in your body, and thus increasing your metabolic rate. That is not going to happen when you focus too much time training a small muscle group like the abs.

Instead, you must use the majority of your time focusing on training the largest muscle groups of the body like the legs, back, and chest. That’s what stimulates your metabolism and the fat burning hormones that will get you truly lean and sporting a flat six pack!

GD: Which exercises do you rate as the top exercises that people need to do if they are to get maximum definition with their midsection?

MG: When it comes to developing the abs themselves, I again refer to any kinds of hanging abs exercises, as well as some good floor abs exercises like lying leg thrusts. All these routines are described as well as illustrated in my book mentioned below.

However, maximum definition in the abs and midsection comes from losing body fat, the most effective exercises featured in my program for that one goal. Various forms of swings and snatches (unique dumbbell or kettle bell exercises that almost nobody ever does), squats, dead lifts, lunges, step-ups, clean & presses, mountain climbers, sprinting, and other full body exercises and calisthenics. If you desire great looking flat abs, focus on the above methods instead of focusing so much on training the abs directly!

GD: When it comes to diet Mike, people really have tried millions of ways to get one thing and that is fat loss. What do you recommend to your clients, to lose body fat and keep it off?

MG: I have included a fully comprehensive discussion of this topic in my book, which makes up almost half of the book. The most important thing to achieve is that your diet is as natural, and as unprocessed as is possible. It almost always comes back to the over processing of food that makes it unhealthy, and it will wreck your metabolism and hormone balance in your body.

For example, why would you want to eat refined grains, if you can eat whole grains (even better are sprouted grains, as I usually recommend limiting grain foods overall for best results).

Why eat all that disgusting refined sugar that causes weight gain, when you can get natural sources of sugar from a high nutrient whole food like fruit. Why do we eat highly processed, refined, and hydrogenated vegetable oils (these are THE worst thing in the modern diet), when we can eat natural sources of healthy fats like nuts, avocados, fish, eggs, coconut milk, even organically raised meat.

The point here is to not fall for some quick gimmick like extremely low carbs (although I do believe in a fairly reduced carb intake as that is a big problem for most people), low fat, super high protein, or any other combination that has you focusing on one macro nutrient compared to another.

Your body needs all macro nutrients to thrive and obtain a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc. Cutting out an entire food group out just works against what your body needs. I go into more detail on this vitally important topic towards losing body fat (especially that stubborn stomach fat) for life in my book.

GD: Thank you very much Mike for taking the time to share with us all of this great information.

I hope you enjoyed reading this interview and got several useful bits of info to get you motivated and started on showing off your flat abs shortly. If you have not already got a copy, be sure to pick up a copy of Mikes Truth about Six Pack Abs Ebook, and discover for yourself the entire system he developed for ridding yourself of that extra abdominal fat for good!

Six Pack Abs

Eating Coconut Oil can help you Lose Fat

Coconut Oil is a wonderful healthy food that has been shown to increase metabolism and assist in burning unwanted fat off your body. It is a wonderful superfood, that has been around for centuries and a great addition to any fat burning meal plan.

Unfortunately, some people have a really hard time believing that coconut oil is not “fattening” or “dangerous”. Including many in the health industry, but thankfully that’s all changing.

We have all been falsely led to believe that fat. Especially saturated fats, are the cause of our weight gain and health problems. This is only partially true. There are some fats like hydrogenated oils and vegetable oils can contribute to heart disease, and weight gain. But good fats, such as coconut oil, butter and olive oil, are actually great fats for our bodies. Just consider how much healthier people were in the late 1800’s and very early 1900’s. Heart disease was almost unheard of over a hundred years ago.

Let’s put some of these bizarre MYTHS about coconut oil to bed right now, once and for all.

Myth 1 – Coconut Oil contains a lot of fat so it must be fattening.

Truth – Not all fat makes you fat (I want to get this printed on a t-shirt). Certain fats do cause you to put on weight, but other good fats will actually burn unwanted fat off your body, and accelerate your metabolism.

Myth 2 – Coconut Oil contains almost all saturated fat so it must be bad for you.

Truth – Saturated Fat is not the cause of heart disease, weight gain and high cholesterol. It has been falsely accused, and it is SUGAR that is Enemy Number One.

(To read more details about how fats can be healthy and the history of dietary fats, read my  post Butter: Good Fat or Bad?)

Myth 3 – Coconut Oil should be avoided by those who are at risk for heart disease

Truth – The fat in coconut oil is one of the healthiest oils you can consume (yes, even for those with heart disease). It is rich in lauric acid, approx 50% of the fatty acid content. Which is well known for its anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal properties (lauric acid is also contained in cow’s milk). Also it contains no trans fat. The saturated fat in coconut oil is different, in that it is of the medium-chain fatty acid (MCFA) variety. The body digests MCFA’s more easily and sends these fats directly to the liver where they are immediately converted into energy. Also the brain loves to use MCFA’s. Now isn’t that great? A fat that is used to make energy instead of storing it on our bodies.

Recently in this update Coconut oil is being used by some people to treat their elderly relative for Alzheimer’s disease, see this UK newspaper report.

I highly recommend everyone use unrefined, organic coconut oil for their cooking. About a single table spoon is more than enough for most cooking. You can even use it raw if you like as I think, it tastes amazing! I usually have about 2-3 total table spoons per day which is a perfect amount for a fat burning eating plan.

If you have a hard time finding coconut oil in your local supermarket, Available here for readers in the U.S.A: http://wildfamilynaturals.com

Now go right ahead and start enjoying your coconut oil and reap the fat burning effects right away.
Why not see what Mike Geary has to offer on such foods whilst dieting in his fat loss program.

Variety of healthy fruits in the fall.

If my practice has taught me one thing, it’s that a variety of foods are absolutely essential healthy fruits being an essential part of one’s diet. Almost every one of my friends and clients eventually comes to a point where they just can’t stand to eat one more salad, or filet of salmon. Eating boringly is dangerous when you’re learning how to be healthy. If you don’t have many options, you’re more likely to fall back on the convenient processed but bad-for-you foods you relied on in the past. Healthy eating requires variety, and lots of it.

Luckily, nature is on our side. The start of fall doesn’t only mean walking our kids to the bus stop and bracing for cooler weather. It also means we have a whole new variety of fruits and veggies to choose from! Eating seasonally offers real taste, budget, and health benefits. Here are just a few of them:

We all know that fruit tastes better in season. If you’re eating a summer fruit in the middle of winter, the chances are it was produced either by growing in a greenhouse, or other controlled environment. Or it was picked early so it could be saved and shipped to you on demand. While there’s nothing wrong with either of these methods – an out of season apple is still an apple – both methods have a real effect on taste. Fruit that’s allowed to ripen fully on the vine as they say, not only tastes better, but contains healthy sugars called monosaccharides. When you’re training your palate to like healthy fruits / foods, taste is essential.
In-season fruit is less expensive. Transporting food across long distances in the off season costs companies money, and they’ll generally pass that cost on to the customer. With a few exceptions, fruit is scarcer in its off-season. That apparent rarity is what drives up costs, which means that buying your fruit in season can significantly lower your shopping bill at the checkout. You can of course buy in-season fruit and freeze it so you can keep it longer.
Nutrients are more plentiful in seasonal healthy fruits. Fruit has only a certain amount of time it needs to ripen to be at its maximum free radical-fighting weight. Picking it early – or growing it in artificial conditions – depletes its nutrient store.

Keeping a list of what fruits and veggies are in season is a great way to make sure you aren’t eating exactly the same thing,on a daily basis, for the entire year. Here’s a list of fall fruits you can stock up on:

Apples: Some researchers believe that apples may aid weight loss by reducing the number of calories you eat throughout the day. For the full antioxidant effect, make sure you eat the skin, which is packed with nutrients.

Pumpkin: Pumpkin’s are high in fiber and packed with vitamins A, C, and beta carotene, which help boost immune function. Plus, pumpkin makes a great entrée, and a tasty dessert (heat it up and sprinkle with a little cinnamon).

Grapefruit: Research suggests that grapefruits can aid weight loss. Plus, it contains 75% of your daily value of vitamin C.

Other healthy fruits you should look for, include cranberries, grapes, figs, pears, and pomegranates.