Just another Bake Radio weblog

A Diet for Cellulite Reduction

Dieting 101 January 7th, 2009

Cellulite is something that millions of women across the word deal with. Its one thing that does not discriminate against race or age and also something that women go through great lengths to get rid of. Cellulite tends to occur most in women undergoing hormonal changes. That includes pregnancy, puberty and menopause.

The condition generally builds up in those parts of your body that do not get sufficient circulation like the buttocks, hips, and the outer layers of the thighs. Most commonly, it is found in people who lead a deskbound lifestyle that lacks physical exertion. In women, body fat is collected in small box-like cell structures but when these cells expand or begin to deteriorate because age, genetics, excess fat or toxins the cellulite occurs.

There are several techniques to reduce cellulite but one of the best cellulite treatments around is dieting. Lotions, potions, body wraps and topical creams can work for a short time but the best route to being cellulite free is through a cellulite diet. A good cellulite diet will reduce your body’s fat content thereby reducing the appearance of cellulite.

For most women though, dieting is definitely a dreaded word, but it doesn’t have to be. It doesn’t necessarily mean starving yourself. A good cellulite diet promises to get rid of that nasty cellulite and retain the slim and beautiful figure that you deserve.

Cellulite deposits can be lowered or done away with completely with the right nutrition through diet and the right amount of exercise. Such a routine will, over a period of time, definitely reduce the cellulite deposits by metabolizing the fat stores for energy. The fat is just like that on your tummy, but in cellulite it’s gone a bit wrong.

Healthy foods and best diet for cellulite is that which have simple fiber and low fat. Indulge in healthy eating which does not include too much of fatty or oily food items. Healthy eating makes it easier to keep your weight in check and your body fat down. Taking this a step further, less body fat equates to less cellulite. Healthy fats hydrate the skin because they encourage fluid to remain inside the skin cells rather than in the fat cells. So nuts, seeds, olives and oily fish are important elements of this plan.

Poor eating habits (alcohol, caffeine, spicy foods) contribute to the formation of cellulite because the toxins they produce get trapped in the fatty tissue. And despite what you’ve heard, crash diets don’t work to fight cellulite. Poor blood circulation and poor lymphatic flow can also cause cellulite according to some health experts. Poor digestion; reduced liver function; poor elimination practices through the kidneys, respiratory tract, and skin; and colon sluggishness all contribute to people experiencing increased toxicity in their bodies. Many of the toxins that are invading the human body come from diet and smoking.

Women should eat a substantial amount of these foods to increase their chances of reducing cellulite. Bananas, blueberries, mangos, cranberries are just a few of the fruits which should be eaten on a regular basis. Antioxidants help fight free radicals that cause premature aging and other skin problems as cellulite.

Research has shown that there is a link between fiber and preventing cellulite. The fiber is already well known to help us maintain a healthy weight because of its natural cleansing action in our system. Anti-cellulite diet is one of the most dangerous low-calorie types of diet. The result depends on your usual ration.

Eat lots of fish. Fatty fish, such as salmon, is highly recommended for anti cellulite diets. Fish contain many different oils that play a positive role when introduced into the body.

Fish and fish oils contain large amounts of fatty acids that are essential for the body. They greatly help to improve the texture and tone of skin by strengthening and fortifying skin cells. Fish is an excellent example, as it is a “one-food-army” when it comes to getting rid of cellulite. To effectively combat cellulite, the body needs essential fatty acids; many of which are present in fatty fish and fish oils.

Avoid becoming dehydrated - once you start to feel thirsty your body is already short of fluids so don’t leave it til then to fill up your glass.

Avoid junk and processed foods since these are heaped with preservatives and useless calories. Saturated fats, and complex carbohydrates and sugars are also the main culprits of obesity, and you have everything to gain once you remove these from your cellulite diet. Avoid drinking alcohol if you have cellulite. Alcohol is a toxin that can increase fat levels in blood, slowing down circulation and adds additional burden onto the waste removal organs.

Why I Love Weight Watchers for My Diet Goals

Dieting 101 January 7th, 2009

Weight Watchers is a sensible weight loss program. It is an international weight loss program based on a support/networking idea that has been around for 40 years. It really is a tried and true veteran of the weight loss industry that has been successful for me. With a variety of methods to choose from for both men and women, you’re almost certain to find the right path for your weight loss journey. It is a great way to loose weight and change your lifestyle so you don’t put it all back on. Weight Watchers is most often recommended in scientific studies and by editors at large.

According to the company, all foods have a point value, depending upon the number of calories, grams of fat, and grams of fiber. Weight watchers is treating me well. I’m actually really prepared for it this time as my fridge and pantry are already stocked with a good arsenal of good food. I have lost 30 lbs and my best friend lost almost 60. Weight Watchers is a wonderful tool, I love how you can eat anything you want as long as you follow your points. My goal is 40 pounds, and I hope to reach it by spring.

The average weight loss is 1-2 lbs a week. I tend to loose 3-5 but everyone is different depending on your starting weight and the amount of exercise you put into it.

Weight Watchers is not the most expensive diet plan, but it’s not the least expensive either. Meetings generally cost about $10 to $15 a week, but there are frequent special discount packages and prepayment plans that can decrease the cost considerably.

Maintaining a healthy weight not only helps you feel better, it can even help prevent chronic health conditions, such as high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes.

Weight Watchers is a fantastic plan but you have to remember so much with the points that it really does consume your life. You can join online and enter your food similar to this but you have to pay a monthly fee for that also.

One word of warning. Weight Watchers becoming increasingly commercial with an intense emphasis with its employees on selling, selling, selling their products at the meetings. Employees are told to really push the products because it will help members “be successful” and can lose their jobs if they’re not selling enough products.

Their online website can give you more information on Weight Watchers meeting locations and how to join Weight Watchers Online.

What is the Zone Diet?

Dieting 101 January 7th, 2009

The Zone Diet is considered a low-carb diet although it is not as restrictive as the other low-carb diets, such as the Atkins diet. However, according to the supporters of this diet, Atkins missed the point, in that he ignored the importance of hormonal balance, as well as the influence of dietary balance on digestion and hormone production.

The Zone Diet calls for three meals a day every five hours and two snacks. These are mandatory; skipping meals is not allowed. The aim is to balance proteins, carbohydrates and fats for the best effect on your blood sugar. The usual ratio is 30% protein, 40% carbohydrate and 30% fat - In Zone Language it is called 40:30:30 ratio.

The diet is actually nutritionally similar to accepted recommendations than other fad diets out there. However, it is known to be difficult to follow at every meal and could contain up to 20 to 25% of total calories as saturated fat. The Zone diet is not about counting calories, it is about eating a precise ratio of carbs, protein and fat. So you no longer need to keep track of every single calorie you put into your mouth. The zone diet is basically a Low Calorie Diet.

It eliminates foods people tend to overeat; such as sweets, chips, certain starches, and other junk food. However, it is undoubtedly hard work and in my opinion turns mealtimes into a chore rather than a pleasure. While the creator of the diet suggests that Zone Food Blocks help to make the diet easier to follow, I have to disagree. Trying to get your head around blocks of carbohydrate, protein and fat after a busy day in the office or with the children is just not feasible!

Zone Diet meals follow the hand-eye method. You can prepare a Zone Diet meal by filling one-third of your plate with a serving of lean protein no bigger than the size and thickness of the palm of your hand.

Barry Sears is the author who invented the Zone diet and he’s also one of the leading experts in the world in use of high- dose omega-3 fatty acids in the treatment of chronic disease conditions. His books have sold more than 5 million copies in the United States and have been translated into 22 languages.

Enter The Zone is the first book he wrote, which spends as much time describing the science behind the zone portions, as it does with making recommendations. The diet is directed towards controlling insulin levels by keeping insulin levels within a narrow zone of concentrations. By controlling the balance of insulin and eicosanoids with the Zone Diet, you increase the loss of fat (weight loss), increase blood flow, increase your physical and mental stamina, and decrease the likelihood of heart disease and diabetes.

Sears has turned his diet into big business. Zone Diet foods and food products, like Zone Perfect Vanilla Energy Shake, are designed as lower carb options to help you stay ‘in the Zone.’ According to weight loss trials comparing various weight loss plans, low carb diets like the Zone and Atkins offer several benefits including, better control of blood glucose levels , and faster initial weight loss than lower-fat diets. However, the longer term health risks of low carb diets have yet to be established.

The Atkins Low-Carb Diet - Be Aware of the Unhealthy Pitfalls

Dieting 101 January 7th, 2009

The Atkins diet is the most well known of the so called low carbohydrate (low-carb), high-protein diets. Thousands, perhaps millions of people have tried it. It is an appealing diet because it makes physiological sense and it allows you to eat a lot of good tasting, high fat foods – of which, Dr Atkins said you could eat as much of it as you like. It is one of the most popular diets in Hollywood, and many American men and women swear by it. But what does the Atkins diet entail?

In the in the 1970s, Robert Atkins was one of the first to realize that people need a low carbohydrate diet. He did some reading in various medical journals and came out with his own diet based solution which he then called Atkins Nutritional Approach. Atkins used his diet on himself with considerable success before he began advocating it.

Robert Atkins was excoriated by almost the entire medical profession as a fraud and a quack. Then there was a grudging admission that his diet may work sometimes, but for reasons other than those he postulated. Robert Atkins was a renegade, fighting endless battles with the medical Establishment over his notorious low-carb diet. Then, just months after the world came around to his point of view, he died in 2005.

The Atkins diet is based on the theory that eating carbohydrates stimulates the production of insulin, which in turn leads to hunger, eating, and weight gain. The theory is that people on the Atkins diet experience reduced appetite and their bodies use stored fat for energy versus burning glucose from ingested carbohydrate.

The diet is meant to be a lifelong approach to eating, rather than a lose-weight-quick routine. It is essentially a high fat, high protein and low carbohydrate diet consisting lots of foods such as bacon, steak, and cheese. There are four phases, each offering a slightly wider choice of foods than the last. Dieters are advised to cut out all carbohydrate for the first two weeks before moving on to the second section, where a few carbohydrates are reintroduced.

The Atkins Diet is the most famous low carb diet, but it is full of pitfalls just waiting for you to walk into. The diet can be dangerous (all those saturated fats and cholesterol) and difficult to stay on. If you do hang in there, you will lose weight simply because you eat less. The Atkins diet is very unhealthy, but that did not stop other media firms in countries around the world from covering it. If something seems like a good idea or profitable at the time, the media will cover it. It is so one-sided and rigid, that many health care professionals have voiced concern with its lack of balance. Most dietitians advocate eating a healthy, well-balanced diet, with a mix of protein, carbohydrates, and fats in moderation.

The Atkins diet is shy on vital nutrients supplied by fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and dairy products, including B vitamins; vitamins A, C, and D; antioxidants and phytochemicals; and calcium. Over time, a diet high in protein can draw calcium from the bones, increasing the risk of osteoporosis and hip fractures. While this eating pattern hasn’t been shown to be harmful when followed for one year, many nutrition experts worry that the high levels of saturated and trans fats as well as cholesterol in these foods will increase your risk for heart attack if you follow the diet for an extended period of time.

The Low Down on Choosing a Diet Right for You

Dieting 101 January 6th, 2009

Dieting is frustrating: one minute you’re told that certain foods are bad for you, the next minute the media is hyping the benefits of those same foods. Before you begin your diet make sure you do your research.

Here is the thing. Dieting is a multi-billion dollar business. Even most obesity researchers are funded by the diet industry. This means that large companies and the media have an interest in you buying the next hot diet or dieting tip. Losing weight is simple in concept but difficult to implement for many people, and so everyone is looking for something to lose weight quickly and easily. Don’t be fooled. Dieting is hard as I’ve heard my husband say a thousand times. It is an act of self-control and avoidance of fatty food, low cholesterol food, less oily food, so as to maintain the fat-to-muscle ratio.

Eating is a pleasure, but when I’m dieting, it’s always riddled with guilt. Recently, I learned that dieting is not an effective means of weight loss. In fact, dieting can lead to weight gain.

What do you mean, I hear you say? Well, eating a healthy diet and “dieting” may sound like they’ve got a lot in common — but they’re actually worlds apart.

Dieting is the most popular method for weight loss, except while it may lead to people losing a few pounds they quickly turn around and start eating what they were before they began to the diet. Feeling guilt they eat more, putting on more weight. Welcome to the yo-yo dieting syndrome.

Calorie-restriction options are all over the place. All of us tend to report the same miserable bodily reaction to not eating, whether we live on diet coke or raw vegan cuisine. Not to mention that calorie needs vary by person. One woman may need 1500 calories but another may need 2500! So one diet is not for everyone!

Successful weight loss management plan requires energy input to be less than energy output. It means changing your daily lifestyle to be more healthy and in such a way that you stick to it. Sad but so, one cannot have a trim, healthy body without permanently embracing a healthy daily diet.

Eat complex carbohydrates and lean proteins. Lean proteins are low in calories and fill you up. Eat whole foods only. Never eat more than a hand full in 1 1/2 hours, and when I say whole foods I mean chocolate (dark only!), cheese (real cheese, not american or muenster), butter (not cancerous margarine), eggs, nuts, fresh fruit (not canned in syrup) , fresh veggies, poultry, fish, you know, stuff that has been around for 100s of years. Eat several small meals a day to stay satisfied and energetic. Eat in rhythm with your stomach. Practice listening for physiological hunger, fullness, and cravings.

Avoid fast food restaurants. Save trips to fast food restaurants for when they are most needed, no more than once a week. Avoid butter, bacon, whole milk, coconuts and such like the plague. Instead, make use of olive oil (virgin) and fatty fish.

It is advisable to exercise along with dieting as it will help in losing weight easier, help you live a healthy lifestyle and may reduce the pressure felt by dieting. Exercise not only burns calories but also helps keep your body healthy and improves your general well-being. The benefits of introducing just a moderate amount of exercise (using the right exercise equipment ) into your daily regime, range from preventing chronic health conditions to boosting your confidence and self-esteem, reducing stress, sleeping better and even living longer.

Walk — walk for at least 60 to 90 minutes per day. Are you thinking that’s too much, how could you possibly fit it into your already busy life? Walking with friends is one low-cost way to stay fit.

Whatever the motivation you choose, it is important that you are dieting for the appropriate reasons so choose the right one for you. Loosing weight can be a very frustrating time, and your patience will be tested every day.