Category Archives: Nutrition

May 2 2012

5 Easy Steps to Burn Fat Now and Stop Procrastinating!

Burn fat and lose weight now! Stop procrastinating until next week….next week never comes! Having a sense of urgency to transform your health and body is good. It can be tough to get started. So, just get started. What’s stopping you?

Maybe this…

According to a WebMD article, “Why We Procrastinate,” researcher Piers Steel, PhD at Canada’s University of Calgary says:

“Essentially, procrastinators have less confidence in themselves, less expectancy that they can actually complete a task.”

“Perfectionism is not the culprit,” he continues. “In fact, perfectionists procrastinate less, but they worry about it more.”

Unless you have a medical or physical limitation, you have NO EXCUSES for putting off exercise and eating better. So, take steps and take charge of your health and fitness. No one can do this for you. You will stumble some but you can accomplish more during the journey. You can do it.

Note: You may need to get medical clearance before starting an exercise program, especially if you have been inactive.

Here are 5 steps you can take NOW to start burning fat and losing weight:

1. Do something you love. What physical activity do you love? Are you in an “exercise rut?” Forget all the exercise theories and articles! Just get started with an exercise activity you love and do this activity for at least 30 minutes on most days. Before you know it, you will have started exercising regularly again.

2. You don’t have a meal plan yet? Here are some things you can start doing today to improve your eating habits:

–Drink only water or unsweetened drinks for beverages
–Severely limit candy, cookies, pastries, junk food and processed foods
–Eat at least one fruit or vegetable with every meal
–Eat protein with every meal, such as eggs, fish, nuts or lean chicken/beef/turkey
–Eat small meals, every 3-4 hours
–Start writing down what and why you eat to hold yourself accountable

3. Tell a friend about your immediate plan to start getting fit. It helps to have someone hold you accountable and its even better if that person will join you. You need help to accomplish your fat loss and weight loss goals. That could be a trainer, a friend, a spouse or other family member. Research proves that those who have weight loss buddies are more likely to succeed.

4. So, you’re too busy to exercise? Not! Many days, I fit in 15-20 minutes of exercise while waiting for a client training session. Take advantage of “DEAD TIME” during your day and exercise. Twenty minutes of exercise here and 20 minutes of exercise there works just fine.

5. You don’t have any equipment or a gym membership? No problem. You don’t need either one to get started. You can do bodyweight exercises anywhere, anytime.

Get yourself going……today!

Be sure and download my FREE 14-Day Accelerated Fat Loss Program and get started changing your body!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs

Apr 29 2012

How to Eat Great and Lose Weight

Snacking on dried out rice cakes and wilted lettuce leaves is no way to spend your mealtimes. You don’t have to eat bland, boring foods just to trim up. It is possible to eat great and lose weight all at the same time. If you choose quality foods and have a willingness to try new things, you can get down on delicious meals and shed pounds too.

Choose the Right Foods

You can’t possibly lose weight if the foods you use to prepare your meals are unhealthy and loaded with calories. When you avoid processed nonsense and stick with fresh ingredients, you can’t go wrong. Anything boxed, frozen, jugged or canned is considered processed and has no place in a healthy diet.

Foods that should be staples in your healthy meal plans include fresh fish, naturally raised meats, organic poultry, organic whole eggs, raw nuts, fresh herbs, and fresh fruits and vegetables. Natural foods are better for you because they are low in calories and filled with plenty of nutrients your body can use.

Also, natural foods aren’t loaded with a laundry list of additives that contribute to weight gain, diabetes, cancer, hypertension and other health problems.

Experiment with Recipes, Flavors and Cooking Methods

I love grilled chicken, but if I had to eat it every day, I’d go bananas—I imagine you would too. Free yourself from the bondage of humdrum, tasteless meals by experimenting with recipes. Thumb through cookbooks, surf the Internet and use your imagination to whip up meals you can’t wait to sink your teeth into.

When you come across recipes that have unhealthy ingredients, simply swap the bad ingredients out for healthier ones. For instance, if a recipe calls for milk, you can replace this ingredient with coconut or almond milk. Also, don’t be afraid to switch out spices and seasonings to add a new flavor to a dish.

Vary your cooking methods to keep things fresh and give food a different taste. For instance, if you always broil your steak, try sautéing it, or covering it with olive oil and dropping it on the grill. All of these cooking methods are healthy and easy to master.

Sample Recipes to Help You Eat Great and Lose Weight

Healthy French Toast:

–2 slices of Sprouted Grain, Spelt or Rice bread
–1 tablespoon of real butter
–2 whole organic eggs
–maple syrup
–cinnamon

Directions: Mix the eggs in a bowl. Dip the bread in the egg mixture until it is completely coated on both sides. Heat a pan on low to medium heat and add the butter. Once the butter is melted, add the egg coated bread and cook each side for 3 to 4 minutes. Sprinkle the toast with cinnamon and serve it with 2 teaspoons of maple syrup.

Baked Chicken a la Isabel (one of my creations)

–1 whole baking chicken
–extra virgin coconut oil
–your favorite Italian spices (I use thyme, parsley, oregano, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in a small pan and melt it over low heat. Mix 1 to 2 teaspoons of each of your spices in a small bowl and pour in the melted coconut oil. Mix all the ingredients together. Let the spice and coconut oil mixture cool.

Rub the spice and oil mixture under the skin of the chicken with your hands. Once the chicken is completely coated, place it breast side down in a glass baking pan and pop it in the oven. Let the chicken cook for 1 to 2 hours until it’s done.

There’s nothing boring or tasteless about the above recipes. If you’re creative and are willing to experiment with new recipes, you can chow down like this everyday and look fantastic doing it.

Your dream of permanent weight loss is just a reach away.

Be sure and download Isabel De Los Rios’ FREE 14 page PDF that contains 2 nutrition articles, a week of meal plan choices and 2 recipes called The Diet Solution Fat Loss Jumpstart: 1 Week Kickstart To Your Metabolism.

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs

Apr 21 2012

Top 5 Food Sources Of Omega-3 Fats

Top 5 Food Sources Of Omega-3 Fats
By Cassandra Forsythe-Pribanic, PhD, RD

Omega-3 essential fatty acids, specifically EPA and DHA, which are the omega-3s found in seafood and fish, are special fats that our bodies do not make, but need for many essential functions. They have multiple and profound health benefits for every body, which include and are not limited to:

• Decreased risk and incidence of cardiovascular disease; healthier blood cholesterol profile
• Improved eye health, and reduced age-related eye degeneration
• Enhanced metabolism of dietary and endogenous fat
• Ideal neurocognitive development in infants and children
• Lessened PMS symptoms

However, very few of us consume enough DHA and EPA, mostly because we don’t know where or how to get them in our diets. Since very few goods contain these omega-3 fats, everyone needs to make an effort to get in as many of them as they can.

Today we’re going to make it easy for you and identify the top five sources of EPA and DHA fats so you and your family can be healthier, starting now!

1. Cold-Water Fish: Wild Salmon, Trout, Herring, and Sardines

These cold-water fish are very rich sources of EPA and DHA. Salmon and trout are best purchased wild or organically farmed. You can make salmon patties for dinner, or add sardines to a salad. Fresh caught, jarred, or canned varieties of these fish are equally high in these special fats, so you’re free to choose the form that works best for you. Just make sure you purchase jarred or canned items that have no added sugar or artificial flavors.

2. Seaweed, Spirulina, Chlorella

The cold-water fish listed above are rich in EPA and DHA due to their consumption of seaweed, which they convert to and store as EPA and DHA. You can add these special green foods to smoothies, or eat them on a salad. They’re also a rich source of iodine, which supports normal thyroid function.

3. Krill oil and Fish Oil

For some people, the simplest and most cost-effective way to get EPA and DHA omega-3 fats into their diets is to take it in supplement form. The two most concentrated sources of EPA and DHA are krill and fish oils. Ensure that you’re buying these oils from a reputable source that screens their product for mercury contamination, so that you avoid this harmful chemical at all costs. Fish also carries the risk of mercury, but salmon, trout, herring, and sardines contain very little compared to fish like swordfish and tuna.

4. Omega-3 Eggs

These special eggs come from chickens that were fed fish or algae oils. The EPA and DHA are then stored within the bright yellow yolks, making them an ideal source of omega-3s for people that dislike eating fish directly. Have an egg or two a day in scrambled eggs, boiled on a salad, or cooked in a quiche, to give your body the omega-3 fats it needs.

5. Fortified Foods

Today you’ll notice that many more foods contain DHA that never used to. Items like milk and tomato sauce are now touted as a good way to get this special fat in your diet – and they are, as long as they’re not also loaded with sugar, so be sure to check labels. These foods are fortified with algae oil so they don’t taste fishy, and can be another great way to add these special fats to your diet. Use these foods, especially if eating fish or eggs is difficult.

Be sure and Download your FREE Report, “What Your Doctor Never Told You About Fish Oil” now!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs