Overdo the Ice Cream? or benish belly fat!

Bathing suit season inspires us to be as fit as possible — but by the end of the Summer, we've spent more time barbecuing and eating ice cream than we have working out!

1. Work out in the great outdoors. The weather is getting cooler, making late summer/early fall the perfect time to take your workout outside, says White. "Grab a friend and some weights and create a circuit in the backyard," he suggests. Plus, racing season begins in the fall — consider signing up for one near you! For more outdoor workout inspiration, check out SELF's 8 Outdoor Bench Moves.
2. It's all about the schedule. "The key to fitting into those skinny jeans is schedule," says White. "Adopting a routine will help in every facet of your weight-loss plan." Put regular, healthy meals and workouts right into your weekly fall calendar, and you'll be ahead of the game. SELF's Diet Club is a great way for you and your friends to plan an 8-pound weight loss in just four weeks.
3. School or office-supply shopping? Pick up an extra notebook, and use it to record everything you eat. "You are less likely to snack if you know everything you eat must be written down!" says White.
4. Take advantage of the cornucopia of new fruits and vegetables the cooler months bring. "Explore the fare at your local farmers' market," says White. "By buying local, you're supporting the community and cutting out some of the processed and fake foods from your diet!"
5. Don't drop your water habit just because the temperature is dropping. "Just because you aren't sweating doesn't mean you don't need water," says White. "Carry a water bottle with you wherever you go."
6. Get back on a regular sleep schedule. "Sleep is often compromised in the summer with vacations and trips to the beach," says White, adding that this is the time to set a regular schedule again. "Getting enough sleep is sometimes ignored in the weight-loss equation, but it's a crucial element," he says. "Exercise factors into this as well -- if you exercise, you're more likely to fall asleep faster and sleep more soundly
   

   5 Foods That Banish Belly Fat 

    There are exercises that target your abs to help you get the rock-hard stomach you've always dreamed of. But if you really want to double-team belly bulge, you'll need to eliminate sugar and processed carbs while also incorporating fat-burning foods into your diet. Keep reading to see which foods can help trim inches from your waistline!
   
   
   
   

   Oatmeal

   You may think that eating less will help you lose weight, but you should never skip meals, especially the first meal of the day. Eating a healthy breakfast jump-starts your metabolism, regulates your blood sugar levels, and gives you energy to carry you through lunchtime. Fiber-rich oatmeal is a great option because it's filling, so you won't indulge in a muffin or bagel by midmorning. Opt for plain oatmeal since the flavored brands can be full of sugar.
   
   
   
   

   Blueberries

   Research has shown that a diet rich in blueberries may help diminish belly fat. Even if blueberries are frozen, they maintain most of their nutritional benefits.
   
   
   
   

   Almonds

   It's said that MUFA (monounsaturated fats) are a secret ingredient that helps burn away belly fat. Almonds are a good source of monounsaturated fats and help curb cravings since they are a good source of vegetable protein and fiber.
   For a fun twist on regular almonds, try this healthy and hearty almond berry banana yogurt smoothie.
   

   

   
   

   Salmon

   Cutting down on fried, fatty, calorie-rich foods in order to obtain lean abs is a must. What's great about lean proteins like fish, tofu, or turkey meat, is that they provide you with lots of energy and burn more calories when digested.
   When choosing a fish, try salmon or tuna since they are both high in omega-3s, which reduce inflammation in the body and can help regulate your hormones.
   

   

   
   

   Lettuce

   Green veggies like romaine or arugula lettuce, spinach, and broccoli are not only packed with vitamins and minerals, low in calories, but contain a high amount of fiber as well. Make yourself a ginormous salad for lunch and it'll keep you filled throughout the afternoon. Or have a smaller salad before a meal, and you'll find yourself eating less of the main course.

Interval Training

 Interval training is a type of physical training that involves bursts of high intensity work. This high intensity work is alternated with periods of rest or low activity, the eponymous intervals.
The term can refer to any cardiovascular workout (e.g. cycling, running, rowing, etc.) that involves brief bouts at near-maximum exertion interspersed with periods of lower-intensity activity.
Interval training is often practiced by long distance runners (800 meters and above). Sprinters and footballers have also been known to use this type of training.
No matter what mode of exercise you choose (treadmill, outdoor walking or running, swimming, elliptical, cycling), every workout can be different and the variety within each session keeps things fresh and fun. If you are sick of walking on the treadmill for an hour each day, adding intervals can jumpstart your body out of its low-intensity cardio rut.High-intensity interval training has also been shown to improve athletic performance. For already well-trained athletes, improvements in performance become difficult to attain and increases in training volume can potentially yield no improvements. Previous research would suggest that, for athletes who are already trained, improvements in endurance performance can be achieved through high-intensity interval training

High-intensity interval training High-intensity interval training (HIIT) or sprint interval training is an exercise strategy that is intended to improve performance with short training sessions. HIIT is a form of cardio which is beneficial to burning fat in a short and intense workout. Usual HIIT sessions may vary from 9–20 minutes. The original protocol set a 2:1 ratio for work to recovery periods. For example, a runner would alternate 15-20 seconds of hard sprinting with 10 seconds of jogging or walking The premise of interval training is simple: When you vary your effort by mixing periods of high and low intensities during your workout, your fitness will improve faster and more dramatically—and your workouts will be less boring. During your session, you’ll alternate between shorter, high-intensity intervals and longer, lower-intensity recovery periods. The high-intensity intervals can be "anaerobic" (where you are working as hard as you can, and your heart rate is usually over 85% of your estimated maximum), or simply more intense, like in the 75-85% range, which is still “aerobic.”

  You'll know when you’ve reach an anaerobic intensity because you'll start feeling a burn in your working muscles. Adding some anaerobic intervals to your workouts will usually give you better results. But since they are more demanding, anaerobic intervals should be shorter and accompanied by longer recovery intervals. As your fitness level improves, both the length of the high-intensity intervals, and the amount of work you can handle during them, will increase.
 During a complete workout, you go through five to ten cycles of high and low intensity. Depending on your fitness needs, you can vary the length of each interval, number of intervals, distance, and speed
 .

Try these interval workout ideas!
(Always remember to warm up for a few minutes before you start, and don’t forget the cool down at the end.)

• Cycle or run at high intensity (determined by your fitness level and/or your heart rate monitor) for one minute. Follow this with three minutes of lighter cycling or running. Repeat this cycle ten times for a 40-minute workout.
• If you are walking outside, walk as fast as you can for one block, then an easier pace for two blocks.
• If you are on the elliptical machine, increase your speed and/or incline for the first minute of a song, and slow down on a flatter grade for the remainder of the song.
• If you are up for the challenge, utilize a one-to-one ratio, with three minutes at high intensity followed by three minutes at lower intensity.

 Remember, the point is to push yourself just beyond your comfort level, but not to the point of complete exhaustion or injury. Tailor the timing to what you want to accomplish. If you are a beginner jogger, interval training (alternating between jogging and walking) can be a good way to get started without having to run for 30 minutes straight.

1. Efficient

Super-efficient HIIT is the ideal workout for a busy schedule—whether you want to squeeze in a workout during your lunch break or to get in shape for a fast-approaching event. Research shows you can achieve more progress in a mere 15 minutes of interval training (done three times a week) than the girl jogging on the treadmill for an hour. And according to a 2011 study presented at the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting, just 2 weeks of high-intensity intervals improves your aerobic capacity as much as 6 to 8 weeks of endurance training.

2. Burn More Fat

Not only do you burn more calories during HIIT workouts, but the effect of all that intense exertion kicks your body's repair cycle into hyperdrive. That means you burn more fat and calories in the 24 hours after a HIIT workout than you do after

3. Healthier Heart

Most people aren't used to pushing into the anaerobic zone (that lovely place where you can't breathe and you feel like your heart is trying to jump out of your chest). But in this case, extreme training produces extreme results.  that after 8 weeks of doing HIIT workouts.

4. No Equipment Necessary

Running, biking, jump roping, and rowing all work great for HIIT, but you don't need any equipment to get it done. High knees, fast feet, or anything plyometric like jumping lunges work just as well to get your heart rate up fast. In fact, some equipment like dumbbells can make HIIT less effective because you want the focus to be on pushing your heart to its max, not your biceps.

 

5. Lose Weight, Not Muscle

Anyone who has been on a diet knows that it's hard to not lose muscle mass along with fat. While steady state cardio seems to encourage muscle loss, studies show that both weight training and HIIT workouts allow dieters to preserve their hard-earned muscles while ensuring most of the weight lost comes from fat stores. Win/win!!!!

 

6. Increase Metabolism

In addition to increased fat burning and more muscle preserved, HIIT stimulates production of your human growth hormone (HGH) by up to 450 percent during the 24 hours after you finish your workout. This is great news since HGH is not only responsible for increased caloric burn but also slows down the aging process, making you younger both inside and out!

 

7. Do It Anywhere

You can do it in a boat, you can do it with a goat. You can do it here or there, you can do it anywhere! Dr. Seuss would have loved HIIT. Since it's such a simple concept—go at maximum effort for a short period of time followed by a recovery period and repeat—you can adapt it to whatever time and space constraints you have.

 

8. Challenging

This is not a workout you can do while reading a magazine or chatting with your friend. Because it's so short, you will be working hard the whole time. The trade-off is this format offers seasoned exercisers a new challenge and new exercisers a quick way to see results. You may be in pain, you may be sucking wind, but you definitely won't be bored!

 

 

 

Foods that Can Ruin Your Workout

20 Foods that Can Ruin Your Workout

 

Flaxseeds

While they are great for your body (and weight loss), flaxseeds are full of fiber, which could impede your workout efforts by causing gas and/or bloating.
You definitely want to limit the amount of fiber you take in 2 hours before and after exercising. In addition to flaxseeds, stay away from fiber supplements, bran, and high-fiber breads and opt for a mixture of protein and carbohydrates instead right before your workout.

 

  

Gel Packs

Think that energy gel is a great way to prep for your workout? Think again! "Unless you are very athletic (engaging in over 90 minutes of cardiovascular training per day), chances are you don't need those gel packs, Taking in all that sugar will disrupt insulin levels and lead you to a dietary-binge later on in the day.

  

Hummus

Don't get us wrong, we love healthy hummus just as much as you do, but you may want to stay away from it right before a workout."Bean-based foods (such as hummus) are high in indigestible carbohydrates that may cause uncomfortable gas and bloating.

 

Dairy

While low-fat dairy may be part of a healthy diet, consuming it before a workout could slow you down. "Most athletes I work with have issues consuming dairy 2 hours before and after exercise,

  

Flavored Water

Even though most flavored waters are touted as great 'fitness' drinks, many are full of sugar, or worse, artificial sweeteners that could hinder your workout."I would not recommend drinking artificially sweetened beverages prior to working out. I'm against artificially sweetened anything. Artificial sweeteners have been shown to disrupt beneficial bacteria in your gut, and optimal digestion and absorption of nutrients begins in a healthy gut.

  

Green Bananas

While bananas are a great pre-workout snack, make sure you grab a ripe one! Unripe fruit isn't a good idea before you work out, as it could cause uncomfortable gas and bloating, Hartley says. Choose a banana that's completely free of any green at the stem. Brown spots on the skin indicate it’s in the ripe stage. At this stage the sugar content will be absorbed easily, otherwise, the unripe banana is in the starch stage and more difficult to digest.

 

Hard Boiled Eggs

Hard-boiled eggs are a great source of lean protein, but they don't provide carbohydrates for energy. Plus, their protein stays in the stomach and takes a long time to digest, which could weigh you down at the gym, 

  

Protein Bars

Don't be fooled. Many protein bars on the market are no better for you than a candy bar! If your bar has more than 200 calories and too little protein, it could be weighing down your workout,a certified nutritionist and eating strategist.

 

Coffee Drinks

Need an afternoon pick me up? Skip the whipped coffee drink if its within a few hours of your workout time. While caffeine can improve your workout, the excess sugar and calories won't."They pack on the calories, but they won't keep you full. And many [coffee drinks] can contain the equivalent of 20 packs of sugar.

 

Coffee Drinks

Need an afternoon pick me up? Skip the whipped coffee drink if its within a few hours of your workout time. While caffeine can improve your workout, the excess sugar and calories won't."They pack on the calories, but they won't keep you full. And many [coffee drinks] can contain the equivalent of 20 packs of sugar,But think high-antioxidant green tea or black tea or even a nonfat latte (you get some protein in) which can provide an energy boost. Pair it with the right protein bar for the perfect balance.

 

Store-Bought Smoothies

While the right smoothie can be a great pre-workout snack or meal, if you buy one on the go, chances are you may get weighed down by extra sugar and fat. Blending your own fruit smoothie (use real fruit, not juice) with a scoop of protein powder is your best option

  

Fruit Juice

Gulping a glass of OJ might seem like a good idea before your morning sweat session, but you'll question your decision halfway through spin class, when climbing that hill seems impossible. What gives? You are better off eating the orange instead,Juice (even 100-percent fresh-squeezed) has a lot of sugar, and no fiber. While it still offers some vitamins, it will go right through your system, causing a blood sugar crash later.

 

Protein Shakes

Bodybuilders swear by them, so they must be good for workouts, right? Wrong! Not all, but most pre-made protein shakes contain a lot of processed ingredients, excess sugar (or sweeteners), and dairy products that can cause bloating, gas, and fatigue. Not exactly what we'd call a fitness trifecta. 

 

Rice Cakes

Sure, they may be low-cal, but besides containing some sugar and salt, rice cakes offer zero nutrition or protein to help you stay full or power through your workout routine.

 

Trail Mix

While it seems like the perfect portable pre-workout snack, trail mix can take a long time to digest and can be gassy for certain people,

 

Avocados

Steer clear of foods high in fat (even the good kind of monounsaturated fat) like avocados just before exercise. "Fats are very important and should be consumed at other intervals in the day, just try to limit your fat intake two hours before and after exercise

Are GMOs Making You Fat?

It’s no secret that Americans are getting fatter. And sure, the usual suspects—more processed food being packed into our diets and too-frequent fast food fixes—clearly play a part, but now there’s another theory: genetically modified (GM) crops, according to new research.

As part of a long-term project studying the health effects of GM foods—crops that have had their DNA modified to resist pesticides and drought—researchers from Norway fed food containing GM corn to one group of rats and food containing non-GM corn to another group. Over the course of 90 days, the rats on the GM-corn diet grew fatter and ate more food than the rats on the non-GM diet. The researchers also noticed that rats got fatter when they ate fish that had been raised on GM corn.
 If the same effect applies to humans, how would it impact people eating this type of corn over a number of years, or even eating meat from animals feeding on this corn?. 
Then there’s the nutrient issue. Research from the nonprofit Organic Center has found that nutrient levels in modern crops are anywhere from 10 to 25% lower than they were 50 years ago, likely because the crops are bred for higher yields, as many GM crops are. As nutrient levels go down, we have to eat more to get the recommended levels of nutrients we need, which may explain why GM crops led to overeating rodents

 Chemical companies often say GE crops will reduce the use of pesticides, but the opposite is actually true. "The concern is that, just like Monsanto's genetically engineered corn that is resistant to RoundUp (glyphosate) herbicide, the approval of a cultivar resistant to 2,4-D will cause an exponential increase in the use of this toxic agrichemical,"

100% Natural' Foods—Exposed

 

Natural Foods That Aren't

Unless you have a green thumb, lots of outdoor space, and the time to grow your own grub, sticking to a diet free of processed ingredients can be challenging. (If you are that person, can we come over for dinner?) Otherwise, you do your best, eating whole foods whenever possible, and opting for the most unadulterated, natural options you can find when you buy from the box or the bag. Or so you think.

Without getting so much as a wrist slap, so-called “natural” foods can still contain a wide range of processed sweeteners, lab-produced “natural” flavors and colors, additives and preservatives.

The problem is, labels can be misleading. You’d need several pairs of hands to count the number of “100% Natural” claims you see in just one aisle of the supermarket. Lately, though, some brands’ health halos have been showing some tarnish.But those are just two examples—unfortunately, there are many others. Here, we take a look at the ingredients in some of your favorite “natural” foods, so you can decide for yourself what's real and what's not.

1. Granola bars

What could be more natural than granola, you ask? Well, unless you're baking it yourself with whole ingredients, plenty. While many granola-bar brands have removed high-fructose corn syrup from their products in response to consumer concern, a laundry list of other less-than-natural ingredients remain, including processed sweeteners such as corn syrup, fructose, and invert sugar, and the vague "natural flavors"—an umbrella term for flavors derived from natural sources, but which are often processed in a lab like artificial flavors.

2. Yogurt

The ultimate health food, right? Not always. Natural and artificial flavors and processed sweeteners abound in many packaged yogurts, so don't assume that blueberry flavor (not to mention the purplish hue) is coming only from real blueberries. As always, scrutinize the label, and buy organic if you want to avoid dairy from cows given artificial growth hormones.

3. Non-dairy and soy cheeses

Not surprisingly, "natural" cheese substitutes often contain added colors and flavors to make them more, well, cheese-like. One common ingredient? Carrageenan, a processed carbohydrate that may upset some people's stomachs.Additionally, soy is one of the most commonly genetically modified crops around—roughly 94% of the soy grown,so if you're wary of frankenfoods, make sure you're buying organic.

4. Bottled iced tea

Beverage companies love to tout their tea drinks as a healthy alternative to soda—and what could be bad here? After all, black and green teas are loaded with antioxidants, and herbal brews can help digestion, an upset stomach—even rattled nerves. But if you check the ingredients list of your "all-natural" bottled iced tea, you may discover a few surprise ingredients in addition to leaves and water. Some sweetened teas rely on high-fructose corn syrup instead of real sugar. And if you're sipping a fruit-flavored tea, you likely won't find real lemons, raspberries, or peaches in there, but instead "natural flavors."

5. Salad dressing

"All natural" shows up on lots of salad dressing labels, but take a look at the extra-long ingredients lists on many of the big brands and it's hard not to feel skeptical. High-fructose corn syrup and "natural flavors" abound (not to mention the fact that bottled dressings are often heavy on other kinds of sweeteners and saturated fat, making them total diet disasters). If you don't want to spoil the healthfulness of your salad, try mixing your own dressing at home with a little extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar or lemon juice.

6. Honey

Bad news: Nature's perfect sweetener isn't always 100% natural. The jarred honeys you'll find in an average grocery store have all undergone various levels of processing, and it's hard to know how much just from looking at the labels. In fact, according to research by Food Safety News, most store-bought honey isn't technically honey at all, because virtually all of the natural pollen has been filtered out. For truly natural honey—and all the immune-boosting and allergy-fighting benefits that come with it—head to a farmer's market, where you can buy it raw from local beekeepers.

7. Ice Cream

Many so-called "all natural" ice creams contain way more than milk, eggs, and sugar—such as "natural flavors," highly processed sweeteners like corn syrup, modified starches (additives processed from naturally occurring food starches that are often used as thickening agents), and juice concentrates (used as flavors and sweeteners). Not exactly how you'd churn it at home, right? If you're picking up a pint at the grocery store, look for one made with a short list of whole ingredients.

8. Breakfast Cereal

Stroll the aisles of your local grocery and you’ll find countless cereal brands that bill themselves as “all natural” and "good sources of fiber and whole grains" but are full of sugar and artificial colors. (Some of the 10 worst kids' breakfast cereals come to mind.) But even brands we think of as healthy don't always live up to their reputation. Kashi came under fire on social media sites this year for calling its cereals "natural" despite being made with GMO soy.

9. Flavored Waters and Sports Drinks

Does this sound like a healthy way to top off your workout? A bottled beverage "naturally sweetened" with barely pronounceable ingredients like erythretrol and crystalline fructose. We'll take a glass of tap with a splash of lemon, thank you very much.

Pls be awake!

Face with your self...Take the control for your body!!

 One day I was going through different blogs that had only reasons to be thin. I always saw people talk about how those aren't the reasons you should strive to be thin because some of them were completely unrealistic.
  I just thought I would make a site for people who are focused on just becoming fit with more realistic things to strive for [than just being thin].
 You may think you train hard when you hit the gym solo, but are you truly working to your full potential? Or maybe you do push yourself hard—too hard, which can lead to weight gain and a weakened immune system due to overtraining,
  Showing up to the gym for a workout after a late night of drinking and very little sleep isn’t exactly a recipe for success. When you're dehydrated (which can leave you feeling run down, anxious, and foggy) and tired, your body is at a major disadvantage from the start, and you won’t be able to perform as well.f you're really serious about seeing results, drink in moderation (we love these skinny cocktail ideas) and get plenty of sleep so you can make the most of your sweat sessions.

If you're really serious about seeing results, drink in moderation (we love these skinny cocktail ideas) and get plenty of sleep so you can make the most of your sweat sessions.

 Clients blame personal trainers too much for the failure of their goals, You may spend an hour at the gym, but the remaining 23 hours may be filled with weight-loss stalling habits like overeating, lack of sleep, and stress. “Weight loss does not just happen in the gym. It is 80 percent diet, sleep, stress, and lastly, exercise,

Instead of looking for someone (or something) to blame, take a look at your overall lifestyle. Start implementing small changes on a daily basis that can help you improve overall health, boost energy levels, and lose weight.

  Only dieting and not exercising.
This may be one of the most common reasons your weight loss is stalling. Yes, you can lose weight through diet alone, but it will be a lot harder. You can only cut so many calories without feeling overly hungry, lethargic or miserable. Yet by exercising along with making dietary changes, you can eat more (and feel more satisfied) and still lose weight. Plus, you'll get all the amazing physical and mental benefits that come from exercising, including improved appearance, better muscle tone and a healthier body overall.

  Add exercise to your weight-loss plan. It doesn't have to be boring, strenuous, or time-consuming either. Even 10 minutes a day can make a huge difference in your results. For tons of fun, easy and effective workout ideas. You're sure to find something that you enjoy!  

 Trying to eat as little as possible.
If cutting calories is good for weight loss, then eating as little as possible is better, right? Wrong (especially if you're also trying to fuel your body for regular workouts). You need to eat a certain calorie level to function optimally and get all its essential nutrients your body needs to stay healthy. Eating much less than that can cause serious problems in the long term and damage your metabolism, making weight loss even harder.
 

  Don't just guess how many calories you need, and don't eat what someone else eats either. Your calorie range that is personalized for you and your goals. Eating within that range (even at the very top of it) will help you reach your weight loss goal. There is no reason to go below it. Remember: You have to eat to lose!

Giving up too easily.  
No person who ever lost weight successfully reached that goal because they were perfect all the time. Setbacks happen to everyone, even the most successful people. We've all had days where we made a poor food decision during a meal—or even for an entire day. We've all missed workouts, forgot the lunch we packed, or been too busy to cook a diet-friendly meal at home. But those who continue dropping the pounds pick themselves up, forgive themselves from their mistakes, learn from their slipups, and just keep right on going.

Remember that perfection has no place in a weight loss plan. When you do make a mistake or feel like you're not making enough progress, don't give up. Change requires time and old habits die hard. When you feel yourself ready to give up, reach out for some support, and don't wait until next week or next month to get back on the wagon.

 

Confusing "healthy" with "low-calorie."
Research shows that when shoppers see "healthy" buzz words or claims on food packages (think: gluten-free, organic, all-natural, sugar-free, low-fat, etc.), they automatically assume the food is low in calories. This couldn't be further from the truth. Food manufacturers will plaster all sorts of enticing lingo onto their packages, knowing that you'll think exactly that. But none of these words really tell you much about the healthfulness of a product; and none of them actually have any affect on a food's calories.
 Read front-of-package labels with a discerning eye, and always turn over the package and look at the nutrition facts (and ingredients) to get a full picture of what a food is really like. This goes for restaurant menus, too. Don't let healthy-sounding words make you think a food is actually low in calories. Know your menu watch words or look up nutrition facts before you place your order.

 Unrealistic expectations.
These days with news stories, weight-loss advertisements and reality shows alike touting fast and extreme weight loss as the norm, it can be easy to think that you are capable of those kinds of results, too. But in truth, these are extreme and abnormal results that most people cannot expect to replicate. If you're expecting to drop a lot of weight fast—and to do so consistently—these unrealistic expectations could be setting you up for failure. There's nothing worse than expecting to lose 10 pounds in your first week, but to only lose one.
 

Intuitive Eating

What is Intuitive Eating?
Intuitive Eating (IE) is a style of non-dieting that teaches people to trust their body's signals--the opposite of what most diets do. Rather than trying to "suppress your appetite" or "stoke your metabolism," you focus on eating what your body tells you it needs and wants and stopping when you are full. Therein lies the best part of Intuitive Eating: you eat what you truly want, when you want it. It's also the hardest part: you eat whatever you truly want, only when you truly want it.

A common misconception with IE is that it's a no-holds-barred food fest where you eat anything and everything without limits. While that may sound like diet heaven at first, it would not make your body feel good in the end. And eating what makes your body feel its best is exactly what you are trying to do. You discover pretty quickly--once you start paying attention--that eating bags of jelly beans every day makes you feel tired and sick, while filling up on a salad with protein, veggies, and homemade dressing is energizing (and delicious). It's that slight change of perspective--it's not that the jelly beans are "bad" or "off limits" but rather that you don't feel good when you eat a lot of them--that makes all the difference.

 

   How to Start Eating Intuitively
The first step is making these two little changes:

1. Eat un-distracted. Sit down with no books, no TV, no computers, and (at first) no serious conversation to distract you. Without making judgments about it, you want to pay attention to everything you eat. Note how it tastes, how it smells, how you feel when you eat it.

2. Eat only when you are hungry and stop when you are full. I thought that years of stifling, ignoring, or masking my body's hunger cues would make this impossible for me, but our bodies are smart. As I learned to trust mine, I learned that it would, in fact, tell me when it needed food and when it didn't.

It's hard to eat this way in a world with TV screens in restaurant tables and unlimited appetizers. Pushing away your plate when everyone else is still digging into their food is hard. Eating a piece of rich dark chocolate when everyone else is giving up sugar is hard. But none of it is as hard as fighting your body for the rest of your life. Doing these two things will make a huge difference in how you think about food. Food is not a punishment or forbidden fruit or even a decadent excess; it's a life-sustaining gift.

Breathing Mistakes to Avoid When Working Out !!!

   Proper form is a must whether doing cardio, strength training, or flexibility training, but how you breathe is also really important. Here are some common breathing categories people fall into when exercising — sound familiar?
Which one are you??:)
 

• I'm the Big Bad Wolf: When doing sprinting intervals or pushing yourself really hard, huffing and puffing comes with the territory. There's a level of intensity though that you shouldn't surpass, so if your labored breathing is causing you to feel dizzy or light-headed, take it down a notch or take a rest to get your breathing back to normal.
• I'm underwater: Lifting heavy weights, or doing challenging strength training or balancing yoga moves can be so strenuous and require so much attention that you don't even realize you're holding your breath. Aside from your muscles needing oxygen in order to perform their best, holding your breath can cause major headaches or nausea, so try to focus on inhaling and exhaling evenly, without pausing. You can even watch yourself in a mirror to help you remember.
• I'm in labor: If you're not a breath holder, you may pucker your lips and be a short quick breather instead. While this does do the job of bringing oxygen in and releasing carbon dioxide out, avoiding full, deep breaths can also lead to dizziness and headaches.
• I'm a bunny: This refers to people who only breathe through their noses. While this is great for allergy sufferers (your nose hairs can help filter out allergens), if you're doing intense cardio, it's tough to get in big gulps of oxygen through your two tiny nostrils. It also makes it hard to release carbon dioxide quickly. When kicking up the intensity, don't forget to breathe through your mouth.
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  5 Workout Mistakes to Avoid for Better Results

     When you stick to a routine, it's easy to become, well, stuck. If you're not trimming down, toning up, or feeling any fitter, it's likely due to one of the following exercise errors. 
   Mistake #1: You Rely on Cardio to Peel Off Pounds
  
  For most women, sweaty aerobic exercise alone isn't enough. "Research shows that weight loss is minimal if it isn't accompanied by dieting,"  "We may compensate for the extra energy we're burning during physical activity by doing less the rest of the day, or more commonly, we feel famished after working out, so we eat more." 
  
     The Solution: Keep your diet in check. To drop a pound, which is 3,500 calories, in one week, aim to eat 300 fewer calories every day (300 x 7 = 2,100) while burning 300 calories from exercise five times a week (300 x 5 = 1,500)."You plan for exercise. You need to plan what you're going to eat afterward,Drinking lots of water helps too. 
  
  
    Mistake #2: You Race Through Your Reps
  
  Two things could be going on here: Either your weights are too light, which is often the case for women, or they're too heavy, and you're letting momentum or gravity take over. Either way, your muscles aren't being sufficiently challenged, which is why they're not getting more toned. 
  The Solution: If you don't believe you've done just about all you can do by the end of a set, pick a heavier weight. "You want there to be a bit of strain on the second-to-last and last repsReach for a lighter dumbbell when you aren't moving the weight with steady control as you lift and lower
  
  
   Mistake# 3:You Overcrunch Your Abs
  
  If you're doing more than three sets of 15, you're wasting your time. "Extra crunches aren't going to cinch your waistline,"  "You're working the rectus abdominus, which is only one of four muscles in the abdominal wall. But it's the other three deeper muscles [internal obliques, external obliques, transverse abdominis] that give you a leaner look by helping you with your posture."
  
  The Solution: Take a temporary break from your usual crunches and try these Pilates-based moves: (1) the plank (balance on floor on forearms and toes and hold for 30 seconds), (2) double-leg stretch (lie on your back, knees bent 90 degrees with feet in air and shins parallel to the floor, shoulders off the floor with arms loosely hugging knees; extend your legs and arms out in a wide V, then return to start), (3) the side plank (lie on the floor on your right side, propped up on right elbow, feet stacked; lift your hips up, using your left hand on floor in front of you for support. Hold for 5 counts, then lower. Do 10 reps; switch sides and repeat). Do 10 reps of each move, three or four times a week.
    Mistake #4: You Aim to Stay in the Fat-Burning Zone
  
  It's no wonder you think you need to do this to lose weight: Many cardio machines tell you when you're above and below the zone. But this reason for sticking to low-intensity exercise has been completely debunked. "Because fat takes longer than carbs to be converted to energy, you burn a higher percentage of it when you're sitting or walking than when you're running. So the old thinking was that with low-intensity exercise you could torch body fat and lose weight,"
   The Solution: There's nothing wrong with low-intensity exercise, particularly if you have joint problems. "But to lose weight, you'll probably need to do it for longer than half an hour. Just for general health, the recommendation is 30 minutes five days a week,"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
   Mistake #5: You Skip the Warm Up
  
  You may think you're saving time, but you're actually just compromising the first 5 to 10 minutes of your workout. "Your body literally needs to warm up so that blood flow increases, the nervous system wakes up, and the body starts to use energy and oxygen more efficiently
  

  

    The Solution:best warm-up is to do your chosen exercise at a low intensity. Runners, for example, should walk, then jog. Keep at it until you break a sweat,"Alternately, you can try "dynamic" stretches, which are moves that take your body through the range of motions you're about to do. For a runner, that can mean high knees, butt kicks, and forward, reverse, and side lunges. "Avoid static stretching, where you're holding poses for several counts. That actually calms the system down and can impair performance!!!!!!!!!!!