P90X GIVEAWAY! Why do you want to lose weight?

We are starting our new monthly giveaway series with a BANG. P90x is one of the most hardcore workouts available and has a very passionate fan base. This month we are giving away a copy of the p90x 12 disc set.

All you have to do to participate is add a quick comment below with the reason you want to get into shape or lose weight… i.e. more energy to play with your kids, health reasons, etc. The comment doesn’t have to be fancy, just be honest

Depending on the level of participation, we will randomely select one or two winners at the end of the month.

ATD: What Diet Should I Follow for PCOS?

Hello, I have PCOS.  I really don’t know how to count calories and I’m really not sure what meals I’m supposed to eat. I have tried a lot of different ideas but none of them seem to work for me I can’t seem to get the weight off. I’m a really picky eater. My question is what do you suggest I do?  –Iris W.

Dear Iris,

There is some evidence that women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome have an increased rate of heart disease and diabetes. Insulin resistance is not uncommon, and about 50% of women with PCOS are overweight, although it is not clear why. The recommended diet for PCOS is usually low in simple sugars, moderate in complex carbohydrates, and moderate in fat and cholesterol.

What Triggers Your Bad Habits?

I spend a few hours each week visiting diet and health blogs to see what the word is on the street.  Occasionally I’ll leave comments but mostly I enjoy reading and being entertained by others.  I was reading Ryan Sullivan’s blog No More Bacon, and found his views on triggers and what causes people to take action refreshing. His story is living proof that triggers work.

Here is my non-weight loss related story about triggers, that could trigger something in you.

ATD: Which Diet Product Do You Recommend?

I would like to know your views, please, on Sensa!  I am 5’1″ and weigh 129.  I am looking a Fat Loss 4 Idiots, the Nuphedrine, or Sensa, but would like your opinion.  I work at a desk and then go to take care of my mother.  I should be walking more, and am not happy about this weight…thanks for your assistance. –Terri B.

Dear Terri,

ATD: How Many Calories are in Complex Carbs?

Can you advise how many calories there are in one gram of simple carbohydrates and in one gram of complex carbohydrates?
Many thanks for your help.
Kind regards, Sue E.

Dear Sue,

There are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrates, whether it’s complex like potatoes, or simple like fruit sugar. This doesn’t mean each gram of  a potato or an apple has 4 calories, because much of the weight of fruits and vegetables is composed of water.

Don’t Be “Too Adventurous” With Your Diet

 photo credit: U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Northeast Region

I always encourage people to become a bit more adventurous with their diet, just to keep things interesting. What I mean by that is, try new fruits and vegetables you haven’t had: An aprilum (cross between an apricot and a plum) or spaghetti squash; a new brand of yogurt or a whole grain pasta.

Interesting Research on Child Nutrition

There’s been several interesting studies lately related to dairy, nutrition and children.  Here are some thoughts from Karen Kafer:

• In the April issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, a new study found girls that drank soda at age 5 had higher subsequent soda consumption and lower milk intake in later years.  This resulted in a higher consumption of added sugars and lower intakes of protein, fiber, vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous and potassium from ages 5 to 15 years, as compared to girls who did not consume soda at that age.  They found additional evidence that children need more parental guidance regarding consuming soda and other sweetened beverages.

Five Great Reasons to Exercise

Yes, you know you should be exercising. But, like flossing every day, or cleaning the oven, exercise can end up being of those “should do” things which we put off almost indefinitely.

Perhaps it feels like a chore. Maybe you’ve had bad experiences with exercise in the past. You might struggle to see the point – surely what’s important when you’re on a diet is that you eat less?

Sometimes, it’s worth having a reminder of the reasons why we want to do something – not just why we feel we should. Here are X great reasons to exercise:

Therapeutic Diets

photo credit: subewl

Most people think of a diet as a food regimen followed for weight loss. But there are millions of people who must follow special dietary restrictions for their health. Sometimes this is referred to as “Medical Nutrition Therapy”. It’s used to control blood sugars in people who have diabetes, blood pressure in people with hypertension, and allergic reactions to people with gluten intolerance and other food-triggered reactions, among other conditions. People with kidney problems, heart problems and clogged arteries must follow certain dietary guidelines to extend their life. Intestinal illnesses may require either high- or low-fiber diets and still others may require a high- or low-fat dietary intake.

Keeping Dieting Simple

We often turn our diets into a huge, complicated mission.

We try, in vain, to absorb all the (conflicting) nutritional advice out there.

We obsess over details, and get caught up in trying to achieve perfection – berating ourselves when we don’t quite manage it.

It’s very easy to get paralysed by indecision when we’re trying to lose weight. Perhaps we can’t decide what diet we should follow. Maybe we have limited time and attention, and don’t know whether it’s better to exercise or to prepare elaborate raw-food meals.

Something’s Missing On Losing It With Jillian

(Bob & Jillian – The Ying to my Yang)

So by now I’m sure most of you have watched Losing it With Jillian Michaels on NBC.  For those who haven’t, the show revolves around Jillian living with overweight families for 1 week to figure out where they went wrong with their bodies, health, weight, habits, etc.  Now, I really wanted to hate this show (mainly because of that signature hip pose she does in every picture she takes), but with each episode I grew a little fonder of what NBC and Jillian are trying to do.  But not everyone seems to be able to tolerate the single dose of Jillian.

How to Avoid Boredom Eating

One of the most common reasons for snacking is boredom.

If you’re hanging around without much to do – perhaps a slow day at work, or looking after kids – then it’s very easy to turn to food as a quick moment of interest.

You may convince yourself that you’re “peckish” or “hungry” every few hours, so that you have an excuse to eat. You may be going through a situation where, in some ways, food is the most interesting thing in your life – where your thoughts are constantly turning to the next snack or meal.

How to Get Motivated to Diet When You Have Lots of Weight to Lose

If you’ve got a lot of weight to lose, you’ll have been overweight for a while – perhaps almost all your life.

It can be incredibly daunting to think about changing your habits and losing a significant amount of weight – but you can do it.

Are you feeling anxious about the journey ahead and wondering if it’s worthwhile or whether you’ll have the willpower to stick to your diet?

Here’s how to get motivated.

Aim to Lose 10% of Your Starting Weight

First, don’t set a target goal which takes you right down to a BMI of 20-25. Instead, aim to lose 10% of your starting weight.

What’s the Right Amount of Sodium?

photo credit: Mark Heard

With all the discussion about forcing food manufacturers to lower their sodium content, many people are left wondering what the right amount of dietary sodium is. If you’ve read the food labels on packages lately, you may have noticed that many foods contain hundreds of mg of sodium and others may even contain over 1000 mg. How much is too much?

The answer, according to the 2005 dietary guidelines, was 2300 mg per day (the equivalent to a little over a teaspoon of salt). But the 2010 guidelines are going to suggest 1500 mg as a daily intake, largely to target the significant number of people who have tendencies towards high blood pressure   Americans average closer to 4000 mg per day!

ATD: Will a Detox Help Me Lose Weight?

Let us know how you’re doing once you get started and we’ll help you along the way

How to Establish an Exercise Routine You Can Stick To

How often have you started a new exercise plan, and given up after a week or two? Perhaps you planned to go to the gym three times a week after work, or you were going to do an hour of walking every day. You lasted for a few days – but then you were too busy, and too tired, to carry on.

To get real benefits from exercise, you want to find ways to stay consistently active – rather than exercising for brief, intense periods. (You’re also more likely to injure yourself if you exercise irregularly.) Here’s how to establish a routine which you can stick to.

How Quickly Can I Lose 20 Pounds?

One of the questions I am most often asked is how to lose weight quickly. When someone has a special event coming up, they suddenly realize they would rather weigh 20 pounds or so less in order to fit into a certain outfit, or just to look more fit for the people they will be mingling with. Then, the race is on! How can I lose all this weight in a week or so?

Is This Diet Too Good to be True?

photo credit: malias

With so many diets advertising quick weight loss and boasting to burn off the most fat, how can you tell which one will really work? Here are ten top warning signs that the latest fad diet really is too good to be true!

1. Weight loss is guaranteed! Nutrition is never an exact science, so no one diet can guarantee weight loss for everyone.

The 75 Percent Diet

A few years ago, I came across a very simple dieting concept. No calorie counting, no weird diet foods, no skipping meals. It was simply this:

Eat 75% of whatever you normally eat.

So, if you’re currently eating a 40g bowl of cereal with milk for your breakfast, switch to a 30g bowl. If your usual lunch is a 300g baked potato, switch to a 225g one. And so on.

Why It Works

The theory behind this diet is that if your current food intake is keeping you overweight, reducing your intake by 25% will be enough for you to lose weight – probably 1-2lbs per week.

What is a Calorie?

photo credit: The Vista Dome

We hear the word “calorie” used all the time when we discuss diets. You eat so many calories, burn off a number of calories in exercise, restrict calories to lose weight; but what exactly is a calorie? Technically, it’s a measure of heat, or energy. A calorie (actually a kilocalorie) is the amount of energy required to raise a kilogram of water one degree Celsius. The number of calories provided by a food is determined by using equipment called a bomb calorimeter to burn the food and measure the energy it yields. We obtain our energy from food, and we burn it through activity and daily body functions; or–if we have enough and don’t need any more at the time–we store it as fat. Later, our body cells can access the fat and receive calories from it.

Four Ways to Deal With “Trigger” Foods

Have you ever scoffed down a cupcake or a bar of chocolate … only to ditch your diet for the rest of the day? Many of us have “trigger” foods. We label them as bad, and if we eat them, we invariably over-indulge. This leads to feeling that we’ve failed, and that we might as well give up.

Often, that giving up means that our diet isn’t just derailed for the day – we take the whole week off, or even quit dieting for months.

So, how can you deal with those “trigger” foods … and those diet-breaking moments? Here are a few different techniques to try.

Low-Calorie Dessert Ideas

photo credit: realrabbit

One of the things I miss most when dieting is having dessert. So many desserts provide many hundreds of calories. Just one cup of ice cream or slice of pie can run over 500 calories: Indulging in treats like this can cause a pound of weight gain each week. Fear not! There are some tasty treats than run less than 200 calories–some as low as 100–that are actually good for you as well.

Why Very Low Calorie Diets are a Very Bad Idea

Have you ever looked at a diet plan which promised an astonishing rate of weight loss – perhaps 10lbs in 2 weeks? Chances are, it relied on you drinking specially formulated drinks, or eating from a very restricted range of foods. “Very low calorie” diets are defined as diets which involve fewer than 800 calories per day, and are often liquid-only.

In the 21^st century, we’ve become accustomed to very quick results. We have mobile phones, fast broadband, overnight shipping, instant downloads and so on. When it comes to dieting, though, technology hasn’t made a difference. Our bodies still work in just the same way that they worked thousands of years ago.

Have You Set Your “No Eating Zone”?

One of the most basic rules for weight loss is “only eat in the kitchen, sitting at the kitchen table”. This limits the amount of food that is consumed between meals or without thinking, because usually snacks are not eaten sitting down at the table. Hundreds of calories can be scarfed down munching on a bag of chips while searching for something in the pantry to make for dinner, or mindlessly popping nuts into your mouth while scanning the newspaper.

Have Your Cake and Lose Weight Too With the Spatz Adjustable Balloon

Doctors have recently created a non-invasive approach to weight loss surgery. In a time where gastric re-routing surgeries and stomach shrinking measures are the weight loss rage, doctors have created an alternate approach that is equally effective and less invasive. The product was unveiled at digestive disease week held in New Orleans which brings together the world’s top physicians in areas of digestion and intestinal surgery. The product is called the Spatz adjustable balloon and it is inserted into the stomach as a method of decreasing the amount of food that can be eaten. The insertion process is done while the patient is conscious under sedation then the balloon is filled with water to decrease stomach mass. The amount of water in the balloon can be adjusted with a routine endoscopy procedure to meet the patient’s satisfaction and comfort levels.