Top 10 Reasons to Exercise Regularly (Besides Losing Weight)

You've been told a hundred times that exercise is good for you, and it's true—but it's good for a lot more than just losing weight or building muscle. Here are 10 other benefits you'll see from just a little daily exercise.

Control the Damage From Overeating

Here's what you need to know...

• Any meal over 750 calories (not including the peri-workout nutrition period) results in a measurable amount of fat storage, regardless of macronutrient profile.
• Glycogen-depleting workouts done before a cheat meal can help counteract its detrimental effects.
• Eating a low-glycemic meal a couple of hours before a big meal can improve carbohydrate tolerance and quell the appetite.
• Taking thermogenic and nutrient-partitioning supplements before pigging out can undo much of the damage.
• If you ignore any or all of the preceding tips, you can do a modified Pulse Fast the day after the meal to set you right.

Fat Burners: Do They Work?

Fat Burners: Do They Work?

Over the years there have been many new supplements that have came to market promising the world. How does one know what to use? What actually provides a good return on the financial investment? Sure literature may show it works, but compared to a placebo, how much did it work? 1% better? With so much competition for our supplement budget it is essential that a bodybuilder on a limited budget purchase supplements that work.

So, what supplements really work to burn fat? In this article I will attempt to discuss the supplements that I feel are worth the money and that I believe should be in everyone's arsenal.(e.g., calcium).

Low Fat Apple Cake

Low Fat Apple Cake

Nutritional Info

• Calories: 248
• Protein: 5.0g
• Carbohydrates: 44.0g
• Fat: 5.0g
• Cholesterol 85mg
• Sodium 354mg
• Potassium 109mg

Preparation Time 15 min
Cooking Time 50 min
8 servings

The Ultimate Home Workout for Women

The following are a few simple exercises that you can do at home that require no specialized other than basic equipment that you may find around your home that you can do to tone up and look great!
The object of the workout should be intensity, so rest no more than two minutes at the end of each circuit before starting the next one.



Other tips: Perform 8-12 repetitions of each exercise (resulting in failure at the last rep), and work up to four to six complete circuits.

Now before you start, you should warm up properly and stretch. Warm-up exercises and stretching are essential to any workout. Both help prepare your muscles and joints for more intense activity. This helps prevent injury, as well as promoting circulation. Warm-up exercises should be done before stretching.

Warm-up exercises increase the temperature of the body, making the muscles more flexible and receptive to strenuous activity. Warming up should slightly increase the heart rate but not to the level experienced during your workout. The warm-up should be intense enough to increase your body temperature but not strenuous enough to cause fatigue. A rule of thumb might be to work hard enough to break a mild sweat.

Eating a Rainbow Every Day

Though you can’t literally eat a rainbow, you can consume a rainbow of colors in your produce.  Because beneficial vitamins and phytochemicals are found in a variety of fruits and vegetables, to get enough of them in your diet means consuming a spectrum of produce.  Certain colors are equated with certain nutrients*, too, such as orange and the antioxidant beta-carotene.  Foods sharing the same color have specific properties that target specific diseases.  Cancer experts recommend eating from each of the following rainbow groups daily as a measure of prevention:

Fitness Tip: Sodium and Your Diet

Fitness Tip: Sodium and Your Diet - Who doesn't like the taste of salt?

As a way of lowering your blood pressure, keeping salt in your meal plan in check is another important way to support your overall health. Read labels, and watch out for prepared foods that contain large amounts of salt such as soups, snacks, and even some sodas. If you are craving salt, try enhancing your food flavor with fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice or some NO sodium or low sodium seasoning.

Fitness Tip: Eat More Food

Fitness Tip: Eat More Food - How many times have you starved yourself into either not losing weight or even gaining the weight back from your latest diet plan. Most diets and most people make a huge mistake and cut so many calories out of their meal plans that they put their bodies into what we call protection or starvation mode. Yes, your body is defending against you starving it. It is a natural occurrence in all people, and it can be the biggest nutrition mistake you can make.

Remember to EAT, but make sure that you are doing the following healthy meal plan tips.
a. Reduce caloric intake no more than 500 calories from your maintenance levels.
b. Eat more early and less later - Breakfast should be the biggest meal of the day.
c. Eat 5-6 small meals daily
d. Eat every 3 hours
e. Do not eat at least 3 hours before bedtime
f. Balance is the key - Not too much protein, fat or carbs
g. Eat high quality lean proteins - Fish, lean Poultry and very lean Red Meats
h. Eat high quality Carbs - 100% Whole Grains, high in fiber
i. Drink plenty of Water - Green Tea and Low or No calorie fluids
j. Keep Sugar to a minimum - Use Splenda or Stevia as a sugar alternative
k. Keep sodium in check - No extra salt added to your meal plan
l. Eat foods from the most natural state possible - Processed foods tend to have lots of preservatives, sugar, salt, fat, and those things that make you gain weight.

Skinny Dip: Cantaloupe Chutney

Food for Thought: Serve this tasty chutney as a dip or as a topping for whole grains, steamed veggies, chicken, fish or tofu.

• 4 cups diced cantaloupe (about 1 melon)
• 1⁄3 cup golden raisins
• 1⁄3 cup minced red onion
• 1⁄4 cup sugar
• 1⁄4 cup water
• 3 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Place pan over medium-high heat and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 25–30 minutes, until cantaloupe breaks down. Cool to room temperature, then drain (but reserve the liquid to use as a marinade for another dish). (Makes 10 servings).

Per serving: Each 1⁄4-cup serving contains: 62 calories; 0 g total fat; 0 g saturated fat; 16 g carbohydrates; < 1 g protein; 0 g dietary

How small amounts of certain foods can reduce cholesterol

Plant sterols occur naturally in a host of foods—primarily soybean oil, nuts, seeds, legumes and some fruits and vegetables. Because plant sterols are chemically similar to cholesterol, the human body tends to absorb them and pass cholesterol out of the body as waste. The net result is that consuming foods rich in plant sterols can reduce the body’s blood cholesterol levels. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allows food companies to declare the heart benefits of plant sterols on product packaging.

What are plant sterols? - Plant sterols are compounds found naturally in everyday foods like vegetables oils, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables. They have a chemical structure similar to cholesterol. U.S. diets containing these foods provide 140–400 milligrams of plant sterols per day.

How effective are plant sterols at lowering LDL cholesterol? - Numerous studies have concluded that consuming at least 2 g of plant sterols a day is associated with an average 10% reduction in LDL cholesterol.

How do plant sterols lower cholesterol? - Because plant sterols have a similar chemical structure to cholesterol, they block the absorption of cholesterol in the small intestine.

Fitness Tip: Liquid Beverage - Adding Green Decaf Tea to your diet

Fitness Tip: Liquid Beverage - Adding Green Decaf Tea to your diet has been shown to provide several health benefits that include metabolizing fat, supporting digestion, and also adding a good source of antioxidants. Green Tea can be sweetened with Splenda or Stevia as an alternative in keeping with a NO Calorie beverage choice for your meal plan.

Is Soy Actually bad for your health?

There are health benefits to soy, but many of them have since been proven to not be as beneficial as previously thought according to a large body of  emerging research.  Soy is soy safe?  Do the benefits of eating soy outweigh the risks?

The Popularity of Soy

The upswing in soy consumption in the US as a healthy food was in direct response to the October 26, 1999, statement released by the FDA that authorized the use of health claims about the role of soy protein in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) on labeling of foods containing soy protein.

Fitness Tip: Whole Grain Goodness

Fitness Tip: Whole Grain Goodness - 100% Stone Ground Whole Wheat products are the way to go when it comes to eating high quality wheat derived carbs. They are loaded with more fiber, reducing you risk for heart disease, cancer, and other health related diseases. Focus on Oats, Barley, Bulgur, Quinoa, Brown Rice, Millet, Buckwheat, and Ground Flaxseed.

Flush It Out

Fitness Tip: Flush It Out - Water does the body good when it comes to good health. Water helps flush out toxins and other unwanted things lingering in your body. Water also replenishes fluids that help lubricate the internal body, while keeping you hydrated, lowering your desire to eat, and also helps keep your skin looking smooth and young. I know it's hard to drink lots of water, but find bottled water you enjoy the taste of or filter your tap water and keep it chilled in the refrigerator. You should be drinking at least 64 oz per day up to 128 oz to keep your body hydrated and working properly.