How Much Fats Do You Need For Better Health and Fat Loss?

• Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil per meal in your vegetables or to your meat when you cook it.



• Do not add oil to a meal if you are eating a fatty fish like salmon which is rich in good fats.



• If you do not like olive oil or oily fish, eat your grilled meats and your natural vegetables but do not forget to add another source of good fats. What you can do in this case is to consume 15-20 grams of almonds or walnuts twice a day with any meal.

I recommend that you try as hard as possible to get your good fats from these natural sources. If you have issues consuming your good fats from food, I recommend an Essential Fatty Acids supplement like Labrada's EFA Lean which contains a variety of good fats. I suggest a dose of 3 capsules in 2 of your fat free meals.

Now that we have covered the myth that in order to lose fat you need to stop eating fats, let's talk about the sort of food that you can eat in order to promote fat loss.



Foods That Promote Fat Loss

When we start a diet, the first thing to do is to make the right food choices. I will eliminate all of the confusion on what to eat by detailing exactly what foods help to promote fat loss:

1. Choose the right carbohydrates like whole grain pasta, brown rice, oatmeal, potatoes, peas, corn (and yes, these are vegetables but in the category of starchy carbohydrates). Forget processed carbohydrates that come from candy, cakes, processed breads, cereals and breading as these will get you fat.



2. Choosing the right proteins like chicken (knowing that the chicken breast is much less fatty than other parts such as the thigh or the wings), white fish and salmon (yes, salmon is a fatty fish but the fats are GOOD fats loaded with Omega 3s), 90% lean steaks, egg whites (with 1-2 egg yolks as these also contain good fats), and turkey. Avoid pork (because it is high in saturated fats) and reconstituted meats such as chicken nuggets, Cordon Bleu, deli meats and fast foods that contain lots of fat.



3. Don't forget to eat your vegetables. The best vegetables you can eat are: green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, spinach, asparagus, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, garlic, and onions. You can have a desert, but it has to be a healthy one.



4. Concentrate on low calorie desserts like Sugar Free Jello and you can also have a piece of fruit with it. Samples of good fruits are: apple, kiwi, peach, strawberry, pear, pineapple, watermelon. All these fruits are good for health but like all fruits, they contain fructose. Thus, for the best fat loss, do not eat more than 2 of these fruits per day when on a fat loss diet. Note: Take a look at Hugo's article on Why Fruits Need to be Limited During a Fat Loss Diet?



5. For good fats, concentrate on getting them from the following sources: extra virgin olive oil, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts. Eliminate butter, cheese and other sauces that come already prepared as they usually contain added sugars and the wrong kind of fats!

Putting It All Together and Creating Your Balanced Diet

With all these food choices, it is now easy to compose a balanced meal without bad fats. What is a balanced bodybuilding diet you may ask? One that consists of 5-6 small meals a day consisting of 40% carbs, 40% proteins and 20% fats as laid out in Hugo's Characteristics of a Good Nutrition Program.

A normal man needs 2000 to 2500 calories a day. Thus, at 40% Carbs/40% Proteins/20% Fats he will need around 200-250 grams of carbs, 200-250 grams of protein and 45-55 grams of good fats per day divided over 5-6 meals. (Note: 1 gram of carbs = 4 calories, 1 gram of protein = 4 calories and 1 gram of fat = 9 calories).

A normal woman with average activity who is weight training and looking for fat loss needs 1200 to 1500 calories per day. That comes out to 120-150 grams of carbs, 120-150 grams of protein and 26-33 grams of good fats per day divided over 5-6 meals.

Conclusion

There you have it! Now you have a very good base to design your diet and get started on your way to fat loss. The power is within you!

About the Author

Cecile Bayeul was born in France in 1982 in a firefighter family. She wanted to become a firefighter and passed the tough professional firefighter tests which included various physically demanding feats. However, she decided to keep a more peaceful job (as her family wanted her to) so she became a nurse.

As a registered nurse she ended up studying various diet protocols for patients with special nutritional requirements due to their sicknesses.

In order to relieve stress from her job and to heal from an anorexia caused by a difficult divorce she picked up natural bodybuilding. Through bodybuilding she learned to regain her confidence and to be happy with her body.

Her passion for fitness led her to start conducting personal training not only for women but for men as well. She teaches that by embarking into a fitness program you can achieve any body that you want; something that builds up faith in oneself and develops the valuable skill of goal setting; things that at the end of the day improve every single aspect of your life!

When people think of bodybuilding, the first thing that comes to mind is big arms. How many bodybuilders, me included, just started by doing some biceps curls? After all, one of the most common requests bodybuilders get is to flex their arms. And while a great physique is much more than big arms, nobody can argue that all great physiques have equally great arms!

Since I have gotten a lot of requests lately to publish a new arm routine to get the arms ready for summer, I decided to publish one of the latest bodybuilding routines that I have been using to train my arms.

In order to use this routine you will need to incorporate it into a split routine that works both biceps and triceps on the same day. This routine is for intermediate to advanced trainees. If you are an absolute beginner, please refer to the bodybuilding routine presented on my getting started in bodybuilding guide.

Gain Up To An Inch In Your Arms With This Bodybuilding Arms Workout

Without much further ado, here is your bodybuilding workout for great arms over the summer. You will be using trisets and supersets. A triset is composed of three exercises that get performed one after the other with no rest in between. Only after you perform the last exercise on the triset you can rest for the recommended amount of time and start over.

A superset is the same as a triset, except that it is composed of only two exercises.

For more advanced techniques like these ones, please take a look at my article on Advanced Bodybuilding Training Techniques To Break Plateaus.

As you will see, I am offering you three workouts below. I want you to rotate these workouts. So one day you will do Workout (A), another day Workout (B) and another day Workout (C).

Workout (A)

Triset:
Triceps Pushdowns 3-4 sets of 10-12 reps
Concentration Curls 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
Overhead Triceps Extensions 3-4 sets of 10-12 reps
(Rest 1 minute between trisets)

Triset:
Incline Dumbbell Curls 3-4 sets of 6-8 reps
Lying Dumbbell Triceps Extensions 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps
Hammer Curls 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
(Rest 1 minute between trisets)

Superset:
Wrist Curls 2 sets of 25-50 reps
Reverse Wrist Curls 2 sets of 25-50 reps
(Rest 30 seconds between superset)

Workout (B)

Triset:
Triceps Kickbacks 3-4 sets of 15-20 reps
Barbell Curls 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
Triceps Pushdowns with Straight Bar 3-4 sets of 10-12 reps
(Rest 1 minute between trisets)

Triset:
Concentration Curls 3-4 sets of 6-8 reps
Triceps Dips on Bench 3-4 sets of 15-20 reps reps
Reverse Barbell Curls 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
(Rest 1 minute between trisets)

Superset:
Reverse Wrist Curls 2 sets of 25-50 reps
One Arm Dumbbell Wrist Curls 2 sets of 25-50 reps
(Rest 30 seconds between superset)

Workout (C)

Superset:
Preacher Curls 10 sets of 10 reps
Parallel Bar Dips 10 sets of 10 reps
(Rest 1 minute between supersets)

Triset:
Cable Curls 3 sets of 15-20 reps
Rope Triceps Pushdowns 3 sets of 15-20 reps reps
Barbell Wrist Curls 3 sets of 25-50 reps
(Rest 1 minute between trisets)

Bonus Abdominals' Routine

As a bonus, here is a nice abs routine that you can do before the arms workout:

Triset:
Leg Raises 3 sets to failure
Bicycle Crunches 3 sets to failure
Crunches 3 sets to failure


This abdominals' routine took me less than 15 minutes to perform and it proved to be not only a great abdominal workout but also an awesome way to warm-up the body and get it ready for some arm work.

Conclusion

Try out the arms routine above and let me know how it worked out for you. You'll probably have as much fun as I did and will get a great pump as well. The whole thing, counting abs, should take you around 50 minutes, give or take 10.

It is indeed a mandatory requirement for sports-persons to keep a check on what they eat as what they eat ultimately reflects in their performance. A healthy blend of all the required nutrients helps them gain endurance and energy to sustain in their game for long. Though different kinds of sports-persons have different kinds of requirements in accordance with the sports they are involved into, there is a basic criterion of healthy eating that suits them all. As a sportsperson, one must avoid junk and aerated food and try to savor as much healthy and fresh food as possible. The diet of an active sportsperson should revolve around energy derivation and prevention of injuries caused due to nutritional deficiencies. Rich carbohydrates, moderate proteins, vegetables, iron and balanced blend of minerals with other vital elements is necessary for a healthy sports diet. Eating only one type of food can also lead to serious nutritional deficiencies in their body.

Healthy Sports Nutrition Diet

Carbohydrates

• For snacking purpose, you can opt for pasta, macaroni, spaghetti, noodles and ravioli. You can either have them plain or slather some sauce; it is entirely your call.
• If you are a rice eater, you can consume rice but it is preferable to eat it along with a low fat sauce which is not too spicy. To try out something different, you can opt for soy sauce flavoring.
• Indian cooking generally makes extensive usage of potatoes. You can eat boiled, mashed and baked potatoes but avoid grabbing French fries. Limit your intake of butter, gravy and sour cream.
• From the list of starchy vegetables, peas, carrots and sweet potatoes are your best bet.
• Some people are under the misconception that breads do not form part of sports nutrition food. But, there is nothing like that and you can consume breads, rolls, muffins, bagels etc. Prefer going in for nutritious low fat bread products like multi-grain or whole-wheat bread.
• As far as cereal intake is concerned, avoid consuming cereals which have very high sugar content.
• It is not advisable to consume high fat milk products, especially before your sports performance.
• What you should ideally look out for is a diet that leads to the process called 'carbo-overloading' right before the event or the game. This will ensure the build and maintenance of muscle mass in the body. Foods such as oatmeal, bread, potatoes, maize grit, fruit juice, sweet corn, bananas and special foods with extra carbohydrate content in them are ideal if carb-overload is what you are looking for.
• A high carbohydrate intake is especially beneficial for those who are about to participate in a high-intensity exercise or any sport that extends for more than 90 minutes. Marathons, cricket and football are high-intensity activities and require large amounts of carbohydrate storage for the particular day to maintain and replenish the lost glycogen at the end of the day.

Proteins

• Proteins are another essential component that cannot be missed. They are officially known as the 'building blocks of the body' and should essentially be consumed by athletes to build or repair muscle that has been affected or broken down during sport or exercise. Apart from their basic function, proteins, in form of amino acids, aid growth and strength that are vital to the performance of an athlete.
• Sportsmen need nearly twice the amount of protein intake than the average adult. Protein rich foods come in the form of eggs, meats such as turkey, fish and chicken, tofu, cheese, peanut butter and lentils.

Iron, Vitamins & Minerals

• Being a sportsperson does not give the flexibility to have only a rich supply of carbohydrates and proteins. The trick is to have a balanced diet on all occasions to ensure the proper functioning of the body. Therefore, it necessary to get all the greens stocked on the plate before that big game or workout!
• Vegetables and fruits are high in vitamins and minerals. These are the basic roots of a balanced diet and the ACE studies confirm that a high intake of vegetables and fruits could fuel sufficient iron, calcium, carbohydrate and protein into the system.
• The best thing about vegetables and fruits is that large quantities or consumption does not hinder or affect health rather helps to work towards building a better lifestyle.
• All vegetables, especially the green ones such as spinach, lettuce, leeks, broccoli, asparagus, peas, cabbage and beans, are high in minerals, calcium, iron and vitamins. These do not only ensure proper circulation of oxygen all through the body but also ensure the production of new blood cells, keeping the system healthy overall.

Water

• Finally, it is imperative to understand that water is the source of all health and life in any living being. Large quantities of water go a long way in maintaining an athlete's or sportsman's health. Water ensures that the toxins are flushed out of the system and also replenishes oxygen supply around the body, providing the necessary minerals required to balance the diet.
• An athlete should drink plenty of water, twice the normal amount advised for the average human being, and should make sure he or she has a lot of water one hour prior to the sport or exercise. Too much water right before the start of the sport or exercise, can lead to the formation of cramps in the abdomen or in the gastric pit.
• Water also replenishes the potassium lost from the body while sweating heavily. Therefore, a full bottle of water should be consumed an hour before the high-endurance sport/work out.

Eating only one type of food can lead to serious nutritional deficiencies in an athlete's body. So, always make sure that, except for pregame meal, the diet consumed by a sportsperson is enriched and balanced with vitamins, minerals, proteins and fats to ensure best health and better performance on field.

Do you fell lethargic? Do you often remain sick? I f so, you need to pay attention to your health. This is because it is health that allows you to work or play properly. An unhealthy person fails to carry out different tasks in his life. He often remains ill which does not allow him to fulfill his personal and professional goals. Even if he tries to do so he gets tired very quickly. For this reason it is vital to know and follow certain fitness tips that can help you to lead an energetic life. Here are 5 most important men's fitness tips that can endow you with a strong and fit body.

1. Diet. Your diet plays a very important pole in your fitness eating too little or too much is never desirable. A balanced diet is what you need to lead a healthy life. Make sure you take fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat. Having dairy products such as milk cheese and butter in a little quantity is also important to have a strong body.
2. Exercise. Doing exercise on daily basis is another very vital fitness tip for men. Exercising allows you to have a strong body inside-out. It enables you to have strong muscles and bones. Also, exercising helps to regulate your body temperature and expels undesirable chemicals from your body. Any exercise that you can do personally or in the gym can be a good choice. You can start with some light routines and increase the intensity and time slowly and gradually. Swimming, running, jogging, and walking can be great exercise for men.
3. Health Checkup. It is important to see your doctor from time to time. It allows you to know if you are suffering from any serious disease. If so, your doctor can diagnose it well in time and recommend you a treatment.
4. Health Supplements. Another useful men's fitness tip is to take some health supplements. You can ask your doctor or some vitamins and mineral supplements or use some popular ones. They help to make up for the deficiency of different important minerals or vitamins in your body. Having them on regular basis will certainly make you feel healthier and stronger.
5. Water. You must also take lots of water every day if you want to be strong and healthy. Water has endless benefits for your health. It gives you clean and beautiful skin, keeps your body hydrated, and helps to regulate your body temperature.

 

Encouraging your kids to play sports is one of the best ways to help them develop healthy habits that will last a lifetime. But some parents take that support too far by emphasizing winning rather than developing skills and having fun. The crazy sports parent isn't that uncommon. Here are some tips to make sure you don't become one of them.

The line between encouraging your child and pushing him beyond his abilities can be somewhat easy to cross. Youth sports parents occasionally need to be reminded of some basic "do's and don'ts" to help children become happy, healthy and confident young athletes.

Youth Sports Parent Do's:

• Encourage your child to try and play any sport he or she enjoys. The biggest motivation for kids to play sports is having fun, and they often drop out because they are no longer finding the activity pleasurable.
• Support your child's decision not to play a sport if he or she doesn't want to. Pushing a child into sports may lead to conflict, poor motivation and other problems at home.
• Let your child make mistakes. Doing so is part of learning, and if kids are so afraid of messing up that they quit trying, they unknowingly stop improving.
• Enjoy what you child does and can do. A parent who is interested and supportive, but not too serious or directive, will allow the child to set her own goals and be accountable for her achievements.
• Encourage your child to set goals, and measure his progress. A child who plays sports often needs help defining appropriate and realistic goals that stretch him without becoming overwhelming. This is one of the best things a parent or coach can influence.

• Remind your child of all the health benefits of playing sports, and encourage her to focus on positive health behaviors.
• Encourage your child to compete against himself, and use competition as a way to improve his own abilities.

Sports Parents Don'ts:

• Don't push your goals on your child. Many parents get into trouble by trying to seek out their own identity though their child's success. Remember that your child is a unique person with individual interests and goals, and allow him to define his own goals.
• Don't look for excuses for losing a game. Many parents think they are helping by finding blame in the weather, equipment, or field. However, this attitude often backfires because kids fail to learn accountability for the outcome. These kids may never learn from their mistakes or try something new because they are quick to blame others for their short-comings.
• Don't focus on winning -- focus on fully participating. Children who are expected to win are often too anxious to do their best during a game. Additionally, they may lose interest in sports and competition of any kind. Parents who choose not to focus on having fun, developing new skills and doing one's best encourage kids to become resistant and resentful, unsure of themselves and their abilities, and disinterested in trying again.
• Don't criticize or yell instructions during the game. This only embarrasses your child and adds to the pressure she feels. If your child needs some simple feedback, provide it calmly and clearly in a positive way. Tell her one or two things to do, not a list of things not to do. Kids can only handle a little information at once, so be clear and calm.

Remember that playing sports as a child should be all about growing, developing, having a good time, and learning important social skills. Most kids want to play sports because they enjoy it. If the sport becomes pressure-filled or overly stressful, kids may lose interest or even develop serious coping issues that take a lot of the joy out of being a kid. Parents can help make sure kids stay kids, have fun playing sports and develop new healthy habits with the right balance of encouragement and support.

Sources:

Kay Porter, Ph.D. The Mental Athlete, Human Kinetics, 2003

Weiss, M. R., Fretwell, S. D. (2005). The parent-coach/child-athlete relationship in youth sport: Cordial, contentious, or conundrum? Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 76 (3), 286-305.

 

 There's no secret to being fit and healthy. The hardest part is getting started and sticking with your routine. The process requires time and more importantly...dedication.

I run ten to fifteen miles per week and eat a very healthy diet.  With the amount of exercise I do and the type of food I eat, I should be extremely lean and toned. But I wasn't really seeing the results that I wanted.  I realized that my body simply adjusted to my daily routine and it needed a lift.

I started looking for new exercise routines to jump-start my fitness slump.  In my research, I  found lots of tips on how to make my routine & my diet more efficient.  By incorporating these 5 simple steps, I've seen significant results and finally figured out what works for me. And it can work for you too!

#1: Drink Lemon Water
Start your morning by flushing the toxins from your body by drinking a warm, 8oz glass of lemon water.  Lemon water is an essential addition to your daily routine.  It provides minerals and vitamins including vitamin C, B-1, B-2 and B-6 and aids in your body's digestion.  Throughout your day, drink at least 8 glasses of lemon water a day. By adding this simple step to your diet, you'll not only help your body's digestion and aide in weight loss, you should discover better looking skin and new found energy.

#2: Drink Tea--- Green Tea
A friend of mine once told me that if there's only one thing you change in your diet, drink green tea every day. Research has found health benefits linked to fighting cancer and heart disease, lowering cholesterol and burning fat.  I've also read that by drinking green tea, you can increase your body's resting metabolic rate. That's all I needed to hear. I have an extremely slow metabolism, so I don't ask questions.

#3: Plyometrics (and traditional weight training)
Cardio is key to keeping your heart healthy and improving your stamina. Keep doing it! But to build overall body strength and speed, you've got to incorporate the principles of plyometrics.

Running has helped me develop great lower body strength, but my upper body strength is nothing to brag about.  If you recall, I've mentioned that I'm a slow runner.  I've looked at my race results year over year and was shocked to see my pace has not improved.    I started incorporating weight training into my routine along with plyometrics and I've noticed a difference in my muscle definition, along with an increase in my running speed (yeah!).

You don't need to spend tons of time in the gym.  It's not about the amount of time you spend, it's about how efficient you are.  Read more about this in my next post about Quick and Efficient Muscle Building Routines that you can add to your cardio workout.

#4: Whole Foods
Are you eating clean and whole foods? Our busy schedules have us on the move all the time, making it harder and harder to focus on preparing the right foods for your family's meals.  You don't have to be an expert to know that organic, whole foods are much better for your overall health vs. eating processed or pre-prepared foods.

Think about deli meat, for example. It's filled with all sorts of stuff that we shouldn't put in our bodies! Instead of buying sliced turkey at the deli counter, I grab a turkey london broil from the butcher.  Each week, I bake it, slice it, and store it in a container in my refrigerator.  I've just took a simple step to packing healthier lunches for me and my family (and it's more economical).

#5: SmoothiesSmoothies....what can I say. We all love them and they're easy to prepare.  My morning starts with a banana and strawberry smoothie made with almond milk and a teaspoon of Flaxseed.  There is no easier way to get essential vitamins and minerals incorporated into your daily routine.

To ensure that I don't skip this very important step, I prep my fruit the night before.  If you have a Bullet, event better. You can blend your smoothie in the Bullet mug and take it on the go. Try it. Flaxseed provides fiber to help you feel fuller to get you through your morning. And the tiny seed has been linked to research showing that it helps fight cancer.

You will figure out what works best for you but by incorporating these 5 simple steps into your daily routine, you'll feel great and discover a more fit and healthy you!

I used to be the person who loaded 99c packets of white pasta into my trolley, together with the 99c loaves of white bread, and went home feeling pleased that I had stuck to my $100 grocery budget.

It never occurred to me that saving money, by living on cheap food, might be a false economy. Not until I started researching the stuff that gets put into our food.

Nowadays, our grocery bill is roughly twice the amount it used to be. I realise that’s quite a large chunk if money is tight.

But is the food we eat really an “expense”…Or is it an investment?

My experience has taught me that it’s the latter, and here’s why:

1. Good health will save you money in the long run.

Of course there’s all the usual things like, less down-time through sickness or ill-health, less money spent on medications, less money spent on doctors and specialists, and increased productivity due to more energy and motivation.

But there’s other benefits, too, like healthier skin and hair.

It pains me to admit that over the last decade I have probably spent thousands of dollars on skin and hair-care products, with the thought that THIS one might make my hair glossy, or my skin glow….

They never did. Because the truth is, that mediocre skin and hair are less about the product you use, and more about what you put in your mouth.

I no longer waste my money on pretty products, endorsed by the latest TV star. I use only a couple of good quality products, like pure coconut oil as a moisteriser, or raw organic honey as a face-mask. If I can’t eat it, I don’t put it on my skin.

But the best benefit of all is mental health.

Take care of yourself, and you’ll think clearer, and more positively, and more creatively than you ever have before.

You simply cannot put a price on this…which brings me to my next point.

2. Good health is priceless.

Midway through 2010, after researching food additives and cosmetic ingredients, I set about to change not only our diet, but our whole lifestyle. We cut out sugar, yeast, white flour, tap water, almost all packaged foods, and any personal care product that wasn’t completely natural.

We switched to organic sourdough breads, organic dairy products, wholemeal grains, and LOTS of fruit, vegetables and nuts.

In the beginning we felt worse….

But then we began to feel better – much better. In fact, so much better, it just wasn’t worth going back.

Some of the health benefits we’ve experienced from eating better are:

- Our youngest son’s eczema disappeared, leading to a much happier little boy who started to sleep through the night for the first time ever. (He was 14mths old at this time.)

- Our older son’s reading and concentration at school dramatically improved, and his hyperactive behaviour improved to the point, that I can now tell if he’s eaten food with additives in it, without anyone telling me. The change in behaviour is that obvious!

- My energy levels improved beyond recognition. No more “nanna naps” or mid-afternoon slumps.

- My husband’s regular bouts of hives vanished, and so did the hay-fever that made him miserable every Spring.

- Colds, flus and upset tummies are now a rarity in our house. Yes, even with children attending school and childcare.

The improved quality of life and the feeling of well-being is something that all the money in the world cannot buy.

Think about it. There is nothing more de-motivating and disheartening, than constant illness, fatigue or allergies.

An investment in your health is really an investment in you reaching your potential, and living the full and rewarding life that we all wish for ourselves and our children.

And that, by my definition, is true wealth.