Tags » ‘fitness’
February 4th, 2012 by admin
Dinner is probably the healthiest meal for most of us. We often overlook breakfast and eat lunch on the run, but for dinner, most of us take more time in preparing and planning how to eat a balanced, healthy dinner. But theres also a lot of pressure on dinner. Its the last meal of the day and if you are lacking important nutrients in your diet that day, you have an opportunity to make up those nutrients in your evening meal. But you dont want your meal too heavy or you might not sleep well. Conversely, eating too little will not only likely leave you lacking in nutrients, but could also leave you ravenous for breakfast 12 hours later. So how do you make sure dinner is a balanced, nutrient-packed meal? Plan, and plan some more. Although we are more likely to spent time preparing dinner versus other daily meals, its also a meal that can easily get derailed. You plan to grill chicken breasts and vegetables, but then belatedly remember your son has a baseball game or its open house at school. So its chicken nuggets all around. Planning keeps you in synch with your schedule. If you plan a weeks worth of meals, you can think about the various obstacles you might find that week in actually bringing your plans to fruition. You can plan a quick pasta salad on open house night, and healthy, veggie-packed sandwiches on baseball night. This keeps you out of the fast food lane. What are some other tips for planning healthy dinners? *Dont cook separate meals for picky children. If you know that your salmon and sauted spinach will also result in you making mini hot dogs and fries for the kids, you might rethink it, not having the time or energy to make two completely separate meals. Then you suffer, and they do as well. Its important to expose your children to a variety of foods, so make the salmon and spinach. Be sure to offer applesauce, whole wheat bread and some fruit. Then everyone gets a healthy meal and your children just might surprise you by actually eating some of the adult meal. *On weeknights, stay away from involved meals. Think of things that can be prepared in less than 45 minutes, though its ideal to keep your meal prep to 30 minutes whenever possible. *Do as much prep as you can ahead of time. If youre planning grilled chicken and vegetables for dinner, say, then you can clean and slice your vegetables in the morning before you head out for the day. Marinate the chicken. In the evening, all thats left is tossing a quick bag salad and grilling your meat and vegetables. This saves on clean-up time as well. *If you must eat out, apply the golden rules for restaurant eating: Stay away from white or heavy sauces, order oil and vinegar to dress your salad, and eat only half the entre, pack the rest and enjoy it for lunch the next day. Eating A Healthy Dinner: A Simple Matter Of Planning is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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February 2nd, 2012 by admin
Men have been fighting hair loss since the beginning of time with methods that are at times ridiculous and dangerous. Todays man has more choices than previous generations, but harsh and unnatural chemicals may not be the first choice for many men. Fortunately, there are several hair loss products that are based on traditional, natural treatments that may be just as effective. Male pattern baldness is often genetic and/or related to too much dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the follicles of the scalp. This is a specific type of testosterone that is only found in hair follicles. For years, saw palmetto oil has been used to treat prostate problems, and it has been found to have some beneficial effect in blocking the DHT that causes most male hair loss. A good multivitiman containing B5, folic acid, silica and biotin will help maintain hair health, but be sure to regulate your dosages carefully. Taking in excess of 30mg of zinc daily can cause a copper deficiency, often linked to hair loss. Before supplementing copper, restrict your intake of zinc, as copper can become toxic. Traditional asian medicine links hair loss to kidney malfunction and often prescribes a kidney tonic to correct male hair loss. Another ancient remedy is aromatherapy and the use of essential oils. A combination of rosemary, thyme, lavender and cedarwood was studied in Scotland and the results were encouraging. The essential oils were mixed with a carrier oil, either almond or grapeseed oil, warmed and then rubbed into the scalp. The treatment was continued with a warm head wrap. Used for several months, the tonic helped over 40% of the studys participants regrow hair. Perhaps the easiest natural treatment for male hair loss is a change of diet. Increasing foods rich in iron and silica seems to help strengthen the existing hair and encourage new growth. Consider adding foods rich in silica like potato and cucumber skins, peppers and sprouts. In todays overly medicated society, many are hesitant to try another prescription drug. You have a choice not to. Many of the natural hair loss treatments are pleasant and more often than not, have no side effects. You may be pleasantly surprised at the results. Male Hair Loss: Natural Hair Loss Treatment is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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January 29th, 2012 by admin
You’ve no doubt heard that it is better to eat many small meals throughout the day (approximately 5-6), than to go all day without eating and then “gorging” yourself on dinner in the evening. But did you ever wonder why? The fact is, your body can only process about 350 calories every 90 minutes. Eat more than that, and you’re most likely overloading your digestive system. If your body cannot use all the “fuel” you provide it at any given time, it will use what it can (and only what it can), and then store the rest as body fat. It assumes, through thousands of years of experience, that there will be “lean” times when it will need those fat reserves for fuel. But in this modern age, we, thankfully, seldom face those lean times. Because of this, if we are to keep our weight from spiraling out of control, we must, by CHOICE limit our quantities of food, as well as the KINDS of food. So, how do we use this information in losing weight? Simple. Eat light, but eat often. There are many benefits to this strategy. First, you are only providing your body what it needs, when it needs it. Second, you are able to better maintain a consistent blood sugar level, and so you’re not left feeling tired all day. And by making certain wise and healthful choices, you will find the 350 calorie limit CAN be quite filling. Make poor choices, however, and you’ll be left feeling unsatisfied. So be sure to choose healthful fruits & vegetables and limit your intake of breads & cereals (these calories will add up fast). Also, when including meat in the diet, choose ONLY healthful, low-fat fish & fowl. This one simple tip, if practiced FAITHFULLY, will help you achieve your weight loss goals. Are You Sabotaging Your Weight Loss Program is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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January 17th, 2012 by admin
Male hair loss affects 1 in 3 males by the age of 50. While there is currently no cure for hair loss, there are many hair loss products on the market purporting to remedy male hair loss and thinning hair. Not all potential hair loss products are created equal. Some hair loss products are designed to only cover up the signs of hair loss, such as wigs, toupees, and hair dyes. Other hair loss treatments lack scientific background for their claims to treat hair loss. Because hair loss is an emotional event for most men, much time and money is spent searching for a hair loss solution in the form of hair loss medications, cover-ups, and transplants. Male Hair Loss Treatment: Prescription Hair Loss Medication Male hair loss is generally regarded as natural, and not a disease. Nevertheless, many men choose to pursue the use of prescription medications as a hair loss treatment. The most popular of these prescription hair loss medications is Propecia. Propecia is the brand name of finasteride, a chemical that partially blocks the effects of male hormones that are thought to contribute to male hair loss. While Propecia has shown some effectiveness as a hair loss treatment, it is not a natural solution to male hair loss. It requires a physicians visit for a prescription, and has sexual side effects in some users. Its effects wear off immediately upon discontinuing use, resulting in further hair loss. A one month supply of Propecia costs approximately $70-$100, making it one of the more expensive hair loss treatments on the market. By contrast, Procerin for male hair loss is available without a prescription. It is a natural hair loss product, with no dangerous chemicals or side effects. Procerin is a safe alternative to prescription hair loss treatments. Procerin is the only all-natural hair loss solution backed by our 90-Day Guarantee. Male Hair Loss is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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January 14th, 2012 by admin
Choosing great body building equipment is vital to your success in this industry. There are several things to consider when shopping for your body building equipment. It is also important to note that each piece of exercise equipment is important in its own way. For example you will have to consider price at least somewhat when you are looking for new and better body building equipment. You only have so much money to spend on your body building equipment and unfortunately, you cannot spend what you do not have. Even credit cards only go up so high right? Therefore, start looking for body building equipment within your budget range and you will be much better off. It is a good idea to go into each store with a clear idea of how much money you have to spend on your body building equipment. This way you can just ask the person helping you to show you only the body building equipment that is in this price range. This will keep you from feeling bad about the great body building equipment that you cannot buy and the body building equipment that you can buy will look that much better to you as a result. You also need to have a clear picture of what your goals are. When you are shopping in the body building equipment store ask the workers what they feel might be the best choice for what you want to achieve. They should have a good idea of what body building equipment is best for what part of the body etc. There are many different kinds of body building equipment, there are free weights, and there are machines that are all connected as one piece. Which of these types of body building equipment should you choose for your body building needs? If your main goal is just to bulk up then you will want to choose free weights because these will be more for this type of goal. On the other hand, you will get more exercise options with a machine as your main piece of body building equipment. In addition, free weights as your main kind of body building equipment can grow to be quite the pain in the butt, as you have to take bits on and off all of the time. Ultimately, it is up to you, whichever kind of body building equipment you are most comfortable with is your best option. The Key to a Great Body is Great Body Building Equipment is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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January 6th, 2012 by admin
We all know the importance of eating healthy foods for their vitamin and mineral content. However, in recent years, scientists have discovered that there are hundreds of substances in food that have healing and disease prevention properties. So why, if there are foods that will heal many of our common ailments, have we not heard more about them? Maybe it’s because, just as we’ve become a fast food society, we’ve also become a fast cure society. We’re always looking for the easy way to cure and prevent diseases by just popping a pill. Just look at the increasing number of ads on TV and in magazines for drugs. Often the side effects are worse than the disease they’re meant to prevent or cure! Wouldn’t it be better to use natural remedies? Remedies with no side effects, to cure and prevent diseases? Of course it would! That’s why I decided to write this article. Here’s to a healthier life!. Perhaps as a child you were told by your mom to eat all your carrots because they were good for your eyes? As you grew up, you may have cynically been told by others that this was just an “old wives tale”. Guess what, recent studies have shown that Mom was right! Foods can prevent eye disease, heart disease, arthritis and much more. Some Basic Science: In recent years scientists have discovered that foods contain “phytochemicals”, which is a fancy name for naturally occurring chemicals. This is not the same as nutrients, which we all know are the substances necessary for sustaining life. Phytochemicals have properties that can aid in disease prevention and cures. Scientists have identified thousands of these chemicals in the foods we eat and a single serving of fruit or vegetables can contain as many as one hundred different phytochemicals. The most commonly known phytochemicals are the antioxidants. Antioxidants protect our cells from damage by toxic substances and free radicals (a by-product produced by our bodies which converts oxygen into energy). Free radicals can damage cells in our bodies which can lead to disease. Antioxidants protect the body from oxidation and reduce the risk of acquiring many common ailments. The full article is a big one and covers: Fruits and Vegetables Healing Properties Of Fruits Healing Properties Of Vegetables Seeds, Nuts, Oils and Fish Healing Properties Of Seeds, Nuts, Oils and Fish Grains Healing Properties Of Grains Healing Properties Of Beans and Lentils Healing Properties Of Herbs and Spices Healing Teas Other Healing Foods Hit the link below to continue reading it. Eat healthy Foods – It Makes Sense! is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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January 3rd, 2012 by admin
Iodine Iodine is vital to your hair growth. Sheep farmers long ago found that vegetation-lacking iodine due to iodine-depleted soil would adversely affect the growth of wool in their sheep. Likewise, to avoid hair loss, you need iodine. Iodine is synthetically added to table salt, however in this form it is not assimilated well into your body and can therefore cause iodine overload. An excess of iodine in the body can adversely affect the thyroid. The lack of iodine can cause hypothyroidism. In hypothyroidism, your cell metabolism slows down and body cells and hair cells don’t receive the energy they need to function properly. When you lack iodine, you will lose more hair than normal and may even lose eyebrow hair. You can check your thyroid with a basal thermometer, not a digital thermometer, by placing it in your underarm first thing when you wake up. Then, don’t move for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, look at the temperature. The normal body temperature for good thyroid function is 97.8 to 98.2 degrees C. Take this measurement for 5-10 day. If your temperature is below 97.6 and lower, for the 5-10 days, you will want to consult your doctor or for more direction and information. You definitely have low thyroid function. Menstruating women should start this 5-10 day check on the 3rd day of their cycle. It is best to use non-iodized salt and get your iodine from natural foods. These include seaweed, salmon, seafood, lima beans, molasses, eggs, potatoes with the skin on, watercress and garlic. Silica One of the most difficult nutrients vital to your hair growth to get in your diet is trace mineral silica. Silica is a form of silicon and is the second most abundant element in the earth’s crust, second only to oxygen. The Earth provides everything we need for health, and with silicon being so abundant, it would seem that there would never be a problem with silica deficiency. Unfortunately, trace minerals are rare in our diets because our food is processed and our soil depleted by chemical treatments. Silica provides strength to your hair, and although it will not necessarily stop your hair from falling out from the follicle, it will stop hair breakage. Silica works by stimulating your cell metabolism and formation, which slows the aging process. Foods that are rich in silica are rice, oats, lettuce, parsnips, asparagus, onion, strawberry, cabbage, cucumber, leek, sunflower seeds, celery, rhubarb, cauliflower, and swiss chard. Try to buy these vegetables from organic sources. Note that many of these foods, particularly rice, are a large part of Asian diets and Asians tend to have the strongest and healthiest hair. For best results eat all your fruits and vegetables raw. For certain vegetables that need to be cooked, steam them for only a few minutes. Be sure to test your thyroid even though doctor’s tests show you do not have a thyroid problem. The basal temperature test is sometimes more sensitive than blood tests taken by doctors. If you have hyperthyroidism, you will definitely have hair loss. Lack of Iodine and Silica Can Create Hair Loss is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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December 31st, 2011 by admin
Moshi Moshi! Hello again from the Far East on the West Coast, and greetings from the DOJO. This week, before I get in to the nuts and bolts of the treadmills and the ellipticals I work on, I’m going to start with a quick guide to how to choose a treadmill — well, how to choose a residential / home grade treadmill. Choosing a commercial treadmill tends to be a bit easier — go Star Trac, Matrix, Landice or Life Fitness and, in spite of their great ellipticals, avoid Precor treadmills. Precor is a great company, they just don’t quite have treadmills down as well as the other companies. With the commercial treadmills it’s kind of like choosing between a BMW, a Mercedes and a Lexus. It’s all about bells and whistles more than performance…they’re all great machines and we’ll talk about them another time. Home treadmills are a tough sea to navigate for most buyers — there are so many different brands and they all look alike to outsiders. Luckily, over the past 20 or so years, I’ve had to repair just about every treadmill ever made. In other words, my pain will be your salvation! My first piece of advice is: avoid anything and everything from Icon Health and Fitness. They’re the manufacturer of the units you’ll find at places like Sears — nothing against Sears, but the treadmills they sell tend to be on the lower end of the quality scale. Their treadmills seem to have specs that are too good to be true for their cost and, truth be told, they are. The old proverb, “you get what you pay for” comes in to play with them. Small motors with high RPMs to give them a perceived higher horsepower (most of their motors should really be rated at under 1.5 HP regardless of what they tell you — a motor the size of a soda can should not be powering a full sized treadmill!), lots of plastic pieces, tiny rollers, and generally unstable machines are par for the course for the Icon brands like Proform, Weslo, Healthrider and Image. Just stay away from them! There are better treadmills even at the more affordable prices that Icon tempts the unlearned consumer with. On with translating the arcane lore that is treadmill purchasing for the lay person. Let’s start with the motor. The first thing you want to do is make sure the motor is rated with “Continuous Duty.” Any sales person or manufacturer who gives you a “Peak” rating is trying to sell you a bag of magic beans. Peak is best described as the maximum a motor will perform at before it breaks down. What’s more imporant is: how the heck is that motor going to perform when you’re actually using it? Another thing a shady salesperson might mention is that a common home circuit (120v/15amps) will only let you run about 2.5 HP and any motor larger than that is a waste of money. Technically that is true (about the amps vs. HP, not the waste of money), but the larger motors will tend to last longer as they are not running at the higher RPMs of a smaller motor. And, if nothing else, the larger the motor, the smoother the “ride.” A bigger motor will allow you to run or walk on it without slipping. The next thing to look at is the size of a treadmill’s rollers. The bigger the rollers, the longer your belt will last and the better the running experience. Next, and this is my favorite thing — especially when recommending cardio equipment to my in-laws — the warranty. Like anything else, the better the warranty the more piece of mind you will have. The 5 year parts warranty on Spirit treadmills, for example, is one of the best in the business. For me, the more faith a manufacturer has in its own product (i.e. the warranty), the more faith I have in that product. Of course, doing repairs I absolutely love the lower end warranties as it means more paying work for me! What’s next? The weight and stability of the machine. There is nothing worse than getting on a treadmill and having it move back and forth, or shake, or, even worse, creak as you run on it. The heavier the unit the longer it will last. If you’re used to running on a treadmill at your local gym and then get on most home units, you’ll immediately notice the difference. You don’t want to be running around on something that feels like it is going to fall apart now do you? Don’t answer, that was a rhetorical treadmill question. The tread and the deck are where most problems for treadmills happen. When the friction from your running builds up between the deck and the tread, the badness begins. Stick with the 4-ply belts/treads that help to reduce the amount of friction, and look at units with reversable, phenolic wax coated decks. Reversable decks let you flip over your running surface to use the opposite side when the original wears down. It’s like having a free second deck if you wear out the first one. Programs. Don’t be fooled by this. Most people only wind up using 3-4 programs. If the treadmill has 20, that’s cool, but you’ll rarely use them. If you do heart rate training, then heart rate control is great. If not, it’s just an extra you’ll never use…like the clock you’ve never set on your VCR. Speed and Incline are worth talking about. Most treadmills can go up to about 10 miles per hour and a 10 degree incline. Don’t let speed or incline become a deciding factor unless you’re doing a lot of high speed or high incline training. Obviously, electronically controlled speed and incline are the way to go. If those feature are manual just move on. Finally, test out the shock absorbtion. You want to make sure you aren’t running on a hard surface. This is a “feel” thing more than a “scientific” one. If the deck is bouncy, move on. If the deck feels like running on concrete, move on. If the deck moves from side to side, move on. You want to find a deck that feels good, with just enough give and little to no lateral motion. Beyond that fans, speakers, cup holders, magazine racks and even television sets on the treadmill’s console are all just icing on the cake. It’s better to get a good treadmill without a fan or TV and spend $50 to buy your own than to get a crappy, fully loaded treadmill which will eventually just become an expensive coat rack for dirty clothes. Now, I know I alread typed “finally” but there is one last piece to consider: PRICE. You can only get what you can get but don’t be fooled into buying a lemon. There are decent (and some downright Great) treadmills at just about every price point. I’ll go over some of the best, at least in my experience, treadmills in the under $1000 range in the next week. Don’t despair, there is a good treadmill out there you can actually afford! -The Treadmill Sensei The Home Buyers Guide to Choosing a Treadmill is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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December 22nd, 2011 by admin
Beyonce admitted that she did cleansing, while using the master cleansing diet program. She could lose 14 lbs in just 14 days, and this made cleansing even popular. The singer isn’t only celebrity that commenced practicing cleansing as Robin Quivers also lose 70 lbs using another version of the master cleanse recipe. Yet, this post is not written go over other celebs good results with it, but only the master cleanse Beyonce style.
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December 22nd, 2011 by admin
The new food guidelines issued by the United States government recommend that all Americans eat between five and nine servings of fruits and vegetables each and every day. When you first hear that number, it may seem like a lot, but it is actually much easier than you think to fit that many servings of fruits and vegetables into your daily diet. For one thing, the shelves of the grocery stores are fairly bursting with fresh fruits and vegetables. In addition, vegetables and fruits are some of the least expensive, most nutrient rich, foods in the supermarket. With all these fruits and vegetables to choose from, it is very easy to make these nutritious, delicious foods part of your daily meals and snacks. When you take into account how much a serving really is, it is actually quite easy to get five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables per day. For instance, the recommended daily amount actually equates to a quite reasonable two cups of fruit and two and a half cups of vegetables every day. When you consider how many fruits and vegetables are available, and how low the prices usually are, it is easy to see how easy to reach this daily goal really is. One great way to get the nutrients you need from fruits and vegetables every day is to take full advantage of the variety of these foods available. Eating the same thing every day quickly becomes boring, so why not pick a variety of fruits and vegetables, in every color of the rainbow and in every conceivable shape, size and texture, to give yourself a varied diet every day. When shopping for fruits and vegetables, it is important to choose a variety of different colors. This is for more than purely artistic reasons. Different color fruits and vegetables have different types of nutrients, and choosing a variety of colors will help ensure you get all the vitamins and minerals you need each and every day. Finding new recipes is another great way to ensure you get those five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day. Everyone likes to try out new recipes, and these new recipes may just provide the impetus you need to eat all those fruits and veggies. New recipes can also provide you the important opportunity to try out some fruits and vegetables you have never tried before. For instance, everyone has eaten oranges, but have you tried kiwi fruit or mangoes? How about spinach or kale? Trying new things is a great way to find new favorites while getting the best nutrition available. Many people mistakenly think that they do not need to eat five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day if they just take a vitamin supplement. Actually, nothing could be further from the truth. That is because fruits and vegetables contain far more than the micronutrients identified by science and synthesized in vitamin pills. While these micronutrients, such as vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin E are important to good health, so too are the hundreds of other elements that are contained in healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. These elements are not available in any pill, they must be ingested through a healthy, balanced diet that contains plenty of fruits and vegetables. In addition, fruits and vegetables are much less costly than vitamin pills. Fruits and vegetables are very inexpensive, especially when purchased in season and grown locally. In the long run, getting the nutrition you need from the food you eat is much less expensive, and much better for you, than popping those vitamin pills every day. So dont forget to get your five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day. It may seem like a lot, but you can meet this quite reasonable goal simply by including fruits and vegetables as snacks, as garnishes, as side dishes and as meals. Eat a variety of veggies for a healthier you is a post from: Men's Health – Men's Guide to Fitness, Health, Weight Loss, Nutrition
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