My Daily Update 1

Day 3 of my workout…

Considering that I had not done much exercise than carry my office bag around and moved from the car park to the office and back and a few visits to the cafeteria which is a 5 minutes walk- I was shocked at my complete lack of fitness when I got onto the Treadmill.

Nevertheless, not to be deterred, I am on this – and completed this for the 3rd time this week. This is more than what I have done since we bought the treadmill more than a year ago! 

Morning:

Walked 1.2 KM, 90 Calories burnt, 30 minutes.

Evening:

Walked 1.8KM, 130 calories, 25 minutes (faster walk/ run).

Feeling – lot lighter! Lot better.

The Benefits of Cinnamon!

 

Having recently being asked (no- ordered) by the Doctor to get my Cholesterol under control, I started reading about the best ways to lose Cholesterol.

Here is a good article I saw on the benefits of using Cinnamon. I have been using this for the last 2 weeks now, and whilst I cannot judge the benefits yet, it does tastes nice.  A good way to start the day.

The article-

Studies have shown that just 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon per day can lower LDL cholesterol.

Several studies suggest that cinnamon may have a regulatory effect on blood sugar, making it especially beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes.

In some studies, cinnamon has shown an amazing ability to stop medication-resistant yeast infections.

In a study published by researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maryland, cinnamon reduced the proliferation of leukaemia and lymphoma cancer cells.

It has an anti-clotting effect on the blood.

In a study at Copenhagen University, patients given half a teaspoon of cinnamon powder combined with one tablespoon of honey every morning before breakfast had significant relief in arthritis pain after one week and could walk without pain within one month.

When added to food, it inhibits bacterial growth and food spoilage, making it a natural food preservative.

One study found that smelling cinnamon boosts cognitive function and memory.

Researchers at Kansas State University found that cinnamon fights the E. coli bacteria in unpasteurized juices.

It is a great source of manganese, fibre, iron, and calcium.

Article from: http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/10-health-benefits-of-cinnamon.html

Glycemic Index Diet

Technorati Tags: Weight Loss,GI Diet

When one gets deeper and deeper into the world of Dieting, one starts hearing terminology, many of which sounds more from the world of the armed forces, drop out.  GI is one of those. GI is a short form for the term Glycemic Index which is a means of measuring the impact of food in the levels of blood sugar. On consuming foods with higher GI the blood sugar levels rise up very quickly in the body. While on the other hand, for the people who are on a GI diet shall control the blood sugar levels for longer durations of time. 

There are two basic disadvantages of over-consumption of high GI foods:
1. High GI foods provide energy but this energy is not long lasting and is followed by an energy lull. The person gets hungry and desires to eat more.
2. On consuming high GI foods body gets instant energy in the blood. The body then does not make use of stored energy in the form of fats and in turn leading to difficulties in losing weight.

The GI diet helps in weight loss in many ways. On eating meals with low GI the dieter feels less hungry which means the person is able to control his food cravings. The dieter is able to fulfill needs of the body as desire for snacking and over eating reduces to a great extent. Dieters on a GI diet eat meals which contain low GI and keep away from high GI foods. Nevertheless combining higher GI food with lower GI foods keeps complete GI level of the meal balanced. Low GI necessarily doesn’t mean low fat so dieters should keep a check on their fat content regularly.

For all those on a GI diet there is no restriction on any kind of food the only secret of success here is consuming more low GI foods than high GI foods. Try to control their tendency to over eat and can be achieved through the GI diet. It is essential to keep a check on the portion sizes of the meals and try keeping them at a low as far as possible.

Here are some practical suggestions for living through a low GI diet:

Staples: Dieter don’t have to sacrifice any staples and can consume Pasta, sweet potatoes, white long grain rice, linseed breads which low GI staples. 

Snacks: The aim of low GI diet is to make one feel less hungry so that their snacking reduces. If one feels like nibbling some snacks in between they can have snacks in restricted quantities.

Keep this in mind while you consider your diet plans.

The joys of Dieting: Cabbage Soup Diet

Now this is something I am not sure I want to try everyday! Cabbage Soup Diet.

Cabbage soup diet is a very famous quick weight loss diet. The diet primarily focuses on consuming cabbage soup along with some low- calorie foods for losing weight quickly within short period of time. Since the choices for food in this diet are quite limited some factors like boredom, insufficient nutrition are unavoidable.

The diet plan doesn’t comprise of any recommendations of exercises, no alterations in bad habits it is just a strict list of items to eat every day of the week. Another thing is that foods prescribed in the diet have to be eaten at home only because such foods won’t be available in the hotel menus. This diet promises dieter to shed atleast 10 pounds within a week’s time as dieters are limited to one week at a time in this diet plan. For those wanting to lose more weight are recommended to hold on before plunging into the next week of this super-low calorie diet.

This 7-day cabbage soup diet plan allows the dieter to eat everything till the time dieter can adhere to small list of foods allowed on alternate days in addition to two daily bowls of fat free cabbage soup. Other foods in the list are vegetables, fruits, skimmed milk and meat. Drink plenty of water and try to avoid alcohol while on diet.

Let us look at a sample cabbage soup diet plan:
Day 1: Cabbage soup along with plenty of fruits except bananas. Drink cranberry juice, water, sugarless tea or black coffee.
Day 2: Cabbage soup again with all vegetables which are low on calorie except beans, peas or corn and also baked potato with butter.
Day 3: Cabbage soup along with a combination of above mentioned fruits and vegetables.
Day 4: Cabbage soup with up to 8 bananas and drink two glasses of skimmed milk.
Day 5: Cabbage soup along with 20 ounce of beef, fish or chicken, about 6 fresh tomatoes and about 6-8 glasses of water.
Day 6: Cabbage soup with 3 beef steaks and unlimited amount of vegetables.
Day 7: Cabbage soup with 2 cups of brown rice, sugarless fruit juices and unlimited number of vegetables.

The cabbage soup recipe may vary slightly among different versions of the cabbage soup diet.

Basically it is made out of cabbage along with assorted vegetables like onions and tomatoes with flavors added by onion soup mix, tomato juice and bouillon.

What in the world is a South Beach Diet?

The south beach diet, ironically, was created by Arthur Agatston, M.D. a cardiac physician. This diet was designed to help his patients suffering from insulin resistance syndrome as other diet programs devised to lower risks of heart disease were not effective. Thus Arthur developed a new diet plan with elements of some diets like the Zone and Protein Power to discover this effective formula for south beach diet.

South beach diet is successful because it identifies the difference between good and bad carbs. Dieters following this plan can eat a variety of food as the south beach diet doesn’t restrict any specific food.

This diet plan gained popularity for its ability to make people lose weight the healthy way. In this south beach diet the person is able to choose between good and bad carb foods. This encourages dieters to consume more fruits and whole grain breads and making it more balanced in comparison to other diet programs.

The south beach diet caters for the effect food consumed has on blood sugar levels. The Glycemic index is used to measure the difference between good and bad carbs. The entire diet program is divided into three stages and limitations of eating get relaxed as dieter approaches end of the diet. Dieter shall witness considerable weight loss during the initial phases of the program more than the second half. This is an advantage from point of view of the dieter as it becomes easier for them to hold on for longer time. More strict limitations apply only during the first two weeks. Even though there are limitations the dieter doesn’t usually feel hungry, as a matter of fact he/she can eat six meals a day with each meal satisfying the real hunger and not more. Best foods to include are ones rich in fats and having lowest Glycemic Index controlling blood sugar levels. A big no to rice, pasta, potatoes, bread and fruits in the first two weeks.

The second stage permits dieter to eat foods rich in healthy carbs. Fruits and whole grains are permitted with meals having lesser restrictions and more variety to choose from compared to the first stage.

The third stage brings about a diet plan which the dieters have to stick to life long. More foods are permitted but difference is that food craving shall reduce drastically by this time. Thus helping maintain weight lost during the diet.

Recommendations...

Natural Brain Substance Blocks Weight Gain In Mice, Researchers Discover

 

This is an interesting article I found! What works for the mighty mouse, should find its way to us in the near future!  The easy way to ensure that we do not end up suffering to lose weight!  Eat all you can- but do not put weight.

Science Daily (Jan. 29, 2009) — Mice with increased levels of a natural brain chemical don't gain weight when fed a high-fat diet, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.The chemical, orexin, works by increasing the body's sensitivity to the "weight-loss hormone," leptin, the researchers report.

Read more about this here.