Fat Burning Secrets - Your Weight is Not that Important

That's correct folks.  Your weight is not that important.  Your body fat percentage is.  What is body fat percentage?  This is part of the composition of your body.  Your body is composed of muscle and bones etc which makes up your lean body mass.  Your body then has fat.  The percentage of your total mass which is pure fat is called your body fat percentage.

Most people when they start a fat burning weight loss regime tend to concentrate on a goal weight.  They focus on getting to this weight and don't realise that body composition is much more important.

Your body fat percentage is a much better indicator of your health.  There are different recommendations for body fat percentage levels, but the following come from the American Council on Exercise.



An example of how body fat percentage is a much better indicator of health rather than something like BMI would be "fat skinny" people.

Say I am a woman who weighs 70kg and I am 168cm tall.  My BMI of 24.4 tells me that I am in a normal weight range.  I then go and measure my body fat percentage and the percentage of my body which is pure fat is 33%.  This shows I am actually at risk.  I have too much fat compared with lean mass on my body and so I am actually at risk even though BMI tells me I am normal weight range.

The same can go the other way say I am a male body builder who is 193cm tall and weighs 115kg.  Of course this weight is muscle!  My BMI would tell me that I am obese and yet when I do my body fat percentage testing I have a percentage of 8%.  This actually means I am in the athlete class and not at all obese.

Focusing on body fat percentage rather than total mass is a much better option when setting goals.  It is a much better indication on where you are health wise.  The other reason is that muscle weighs more than fat and so sometimes when you build more lean mass you will see a gain on the scales which is actually good because it means your body fat percentage has dropped and you are healthier and leaner.  Your muscles just weigh more!

An example of how body fat percentage is a much better indicator of health rather than something like BMI would be "fat skinny" people.

Author: Laura Milczarek

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/nutrition-articles/fat-burning-secrets-your-weight-is-not-that-important-3921249.html

Watch Your Back! 13 Tips for a Healthy Back

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The three weakest links in the body are the neck, knees and back. If any of these three parts are out of commission, you know it. Your whole day is affected. With winter on its way and snow shoveling just around the corner, you must be extra careful with your back.

Just about everything you do affects your back. Most people will have back pain at some point in their life. Back pain can be caused by being overweight, performing repetitive movements, sitting, standing, stress and improper lifting procedures. The back is very complicated and taking care of it now can go a long way toward preventing many forms of back problems in the future.

Here are some tips for keeping your back healthy and strong:

1.    Practice good posture. Slouching puts undue stress on your back.

2.    Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight puts stress on the back.

3.    Eat well. We need calcium and vitamin D among other nutrients to keep bones in good shape.

4.    Quit smoking. Studies suggest that smokers are more likely to experience disc problems.

5.    Strengthen your abdominal and back muscles. By keeping your abdominal muscles strong and maintaining good posture, you will be creating a natural "girdle" around your body to give your back good support.

6.    Keep the spine flexible with yoga and gentle exercises. It's been said that a flexible spine is the secret to a youthful body.

7.    Exercise regularly to keep your body fit and strong. Many back injuries happen when people who are not active play a vigorous game of football or softball on the weekend. Condition your body with regular exercises so you can play sports without pain.

8.    Reduce stress. Tense people often have tense backs. Get enough sleep, exercise, be positive and practice deep breathing regularly.

9.    Be comfortable. Avoid restrictive clothing and high heeled shoes which can put stress on your back.

10.    If you stand for long periods of time, raise one foot on a box to lessen the strain on your back. Check your posture and try to maintain the natural curve in your spine.  Take frequent breaks if possible.

11.    If you must sit for long periods of time, get up every 30 minutes, walk around and do a few stretches.

12.    If you work at a computer, adjust your chair so your elbows to wrists are parallel to the floor and the screen is at eye level.

13.    Use your legs when lifting. Bend at the knees and straighten your legs as you lift the object. This puts less strain on your back.

We often don't appreciate a healthy back until we're laid up with a bad one. Take a proactive approach to a strong, healthy and pain-free back.

Author: Chrissy MacDonald

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/wellness-articles/watch-your-back-13-tips-for-a-healthy-back-3790428.html

Endorphins - where do they come frome?

Sport makes you happy. I guess you found this out by yourself already. Solely because you fought your "internal bastard" and picked yourself up to do some sports is often one of the most beautiful moments of happiness for most of us.

But this doesn't yet reflect the right hormone production. Endorphins are only created at a higher heart rate (more than 80% your of maximum heart rate).

But don't worry. You don't have to do competitive sports or marathon in order to feel happy. Your personal happiness is already achieved when you finally pick yourself up to get to the jogging track. 

Every kind of activity helps us to get a better mood, to get the head "free", to burn fat and feel fitter.
Doesn't that alone prospect happiness?

In addition, some studies have found that exercise positively affects us to build more confidence and he can have a preventive effect on depression and some other diseases.

So what are you waiting for? Earn your lucky kick!

Don't forget to reward yourself!

Don't you also get paid for your work? And if you wouldn't, wouldn't that very depressing?

You should keep it with your goal of diet and weight reduction the same way. Here it also requires a lot of hard word to get successful. 

Therefore you should divide your big goal in many small goals and always reward yourself when reaching such intermediate goal (e.g every 2 pounds less I get one more piece of clothing). Such a separation of your big goal doesn't only fill your wardrobe, but also promotes keeping up to reach your goals, because the steps don't appear too big.

You should probably make a contract with yourself, in which you exactly define how you want to reward yourself when achieving your goals.

By the way, soothing massages in a beautiful spa or a visit to the cinema with your best friend are great rewards, because their achievement is determined by a specific date!

It will be worth the effort! Just think of all the rewards ;-)

Please send us your favorite rewards and share them with our readers.

Zumba - What the heck is that?

Zumba is a new trend sport which almost let you make forget the workout through its high fun factor. Zumba comes from the U.S. and contains a lot of Latino rhythm. Zumba is offered in more and more gyms as a secret weapon against the pounds.

In Zumba dance, laughting and burning fat are top priority.

Due to the hot rhythms and high fun factor a class often resembles more of a Latino party then an aerobics workout. It is important to know that there are no fixed step sequences in Zumba and hence it is always open for new class members.

Incidentally, there are tons of DVDs available that invite you and your friends to exercise inside your own four walls.

If you love Latin music and dance, then Zumba is the right thing for you to have your pounds melting away.

To check out if Zumba is also offered in your area, check out: www.zumba.com

Small energy boosts for any time of the day (and night)!

Probably every one of us needs refreshing energy from time to time, especially in stressful jobs, whether at home with the kids or the office. Everyone of us has already gone through hard energy times.

There the chocolate or candy bar from the secret drawer, or the juicy piece of cake from the bakery around the corner is just right. But wait - STOP! - You actually wanted to lose pounds and you don't want put the back on your hips because of the the desire for sweets, right?

If your body screams for sweets for your second breakfast, after the (probably too heavy) lunch, for coffee or after dinner in front of the TV, then give your body something sweet, but nothing that is sweet and fat at the same time!

The solution: Fresh or dried fruits

For such moments I highly recommend ripe fruits and dried fruits without added sugar. They contain a lot of fruit sugar and hence are sweet, have energy and bring down your desire, contain no fat and far fewer calories.

The advantage of dried fruit over fresh fruit is that this was made ​​more durable by drying and thus can endure until moment X in the secret "sweets" drawer. Dried fruit also as a higher concentration of grape and fruit sugar, minerals, fiber and phytochemicals. The drawback of dried fruits is that it doesn't have the amount and variety of vitamins anymore as fresh fruit.

Our tip: Have 1-2 servings of ripe fruit available daily and if your appetite for something sweet gets stronger then grab your dried fruit instead of chocolate and other things.

Children and diet?

How much fruit did you give your children to eat today?

The subject of a diet is a very sensitive issue for children, because more and more of our children are overweight. Nevertheless, a child should NEVER go on a diet without medical advice and assistance.

Every pediatrician has information on this topic and can easily find out whether your child is over- or underweight or in the normal range.
In any case, YOU are in demand as a parent to teach your child a proper eating and physical activity behavior! You are their idol! Your child trusts you and it learns from YOU!
It is important that you dedicate plenty of time with your child doing sports, living a balanced diet (rich on fruits and vegetables). Don't tranquilize your child with television, video games, candy and snacks.

Tip: If you plan to do something for yourself to reduce your weight, then make the change in a way that it automatically benefits your child as well. For example you could go with your child to gymnastics or have your children accompany you on a bike while you are jogging and then jointly prepare a fresh green salad afterwards.

Together with YOU your children can learn a proper diet and activity behavior and do not need a diet to lose weight! It lies mainly in your hands! Make your children be proud of you!