<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<rss version="2.0">
<channel>
<title>Latest Articles by thesecret2fatloss</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/</link>
<description>Articles at Populate.NET</description>
<language>en-us</language>
<item>
<title>The Secret To Fat Loss Is Losing Abdominal Fat</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-to-fat-loss-is-losing-abdominal-fat.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-to-fat-loss-is-losing-abdominal-fat.html</guid>
<pubDate>Sat, 04 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ Over 60% of the US population is classified as overweight. Amazing, isn't it? The worst part is that this numbers keeps rising year after year because there is definitely some serious deception going on and the culprit is targeting the public!

THEY ARE BEING FED FOODS DESIGNED TO MAKE THEM FAT. The worst part of this whole process is that these same overweight individuals are not being forced to eat the foods that are making them fat, they are doing so voluntarily!

Why would they do this you ask? Why would such a vast majority of people eat foods that are known to make them fat? Why would they eat foods that kill themselves slowly?

It has to do with an array of deceptive marketing, an abundance of conflicting and confusing professional advice, and just downright lack of discipline!

Is there hope? Scientific research has recently determined that although it is unhealthy in general to have excess body fat throughout your body, it is also particularly dangerous to have excess abdominal fat.

The reason for this is that excess abdominal fat has been shown to increase the odds that someone will eventually end up having other lifestyle related diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or stroke.

There are two types of fat that you have in your abdominal area. The first type covers your abdominal muscles and is called subcutaneous fat. This fatty region lies directly beneath the skin and on top of the abdominal muscles.

The second type of fat that you have in your abdominal area is called visceral fat, and that lies deeper in the abdomen beneath your muscle and surrounding your organs.

Both subcutaneous fat and visceral fat in the abdominal area are serious health risk factors. However, recent studies have shown that having excessive visceral fat is even more dangerous than subcutaneous fat.

Both types of fat greatly increase the risk your risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, sleep apnea, various forms of cancer, and other degenerative or other non-specific lifestyle related diseases.

Visceral fat is particularly dangerous because it has been shown to release more inflammatory molecules, free-radicals and toxins into your body on a never-ending basis.

Let's be real folks, if you truly care about the quality of your life and of your loved ones, your top priority should be to reduce abdominal fat. Think about this for a second and really contemplate it.

Besides reducing your risk for disease, having less ugly fat around your waist will make you look sexy. You will be able to visibly see those sexy six pack abs that everyone wants.

So your probably asking if there is a secret to getting rid of extra abdominal fat? Is there actually a REAL solution beyond all of the gimmicks, lies and hype that you see in ads and on commercials for "miracle" fat loss products?

The first thing you must understand is that there is no such thing as a quick fix for any great achievement. There are no pills or supplements of any sort that will help you lose your abdominal fat faster.

Also, those infomercial gimmicky ab rockers, rollers, or ab belts will NOT help get rid of abdominal fat either. You can't spot reduce your stomach fat by using any of these worthless contraptions. It simply doesn't work that way.

The ONLY solution to consistently lose your abdominal fat and keep it off for good is to combine a sound nutritious diet full of unprocessed natural foods with a specially designed exercise program that stimulates the necessary hormonal and metabolic response in your body. Having these two methods properly designed will ensure that you will lose fat.

There have been so many research panels and studies that took thousands of participants and divided them into two groups: diet only vs. exercise and diet. Now, both groups in these studies made good progress but it was also noted that the exercise and diet group lost significantly more abdominal fat than the diet-only group. 

In fact, in one such study participants lost 9x the abdominal fat with exercise than their non-exercising counterparts. Wouldn't you like to lose abdominal fat that quick?

However, your exercise program must be specially designed to lose body fat. The majority of people that attempt getting into a good exercise routine are NOT working out effectively enough to really stimulate the loss of stubborn abdominal fat. Just take a walk through your local gym.

Most people follow a routine that they saw last week in their favorite men's or women's fitness magazine and they think they have found the secret to getting skinny or ripped. They soon find out that the program delivers little in terms of results and, then they become frustrated after weeks or months of no results and wonder where they went wrong.

Well, the good news is that I've spent over a decade researching this topic, analyzing the science, and applying it "in the trenches" with myself as well as thousands of my clients from all over the world to see what works to really stimulate abdominal fat loss. I have made this process into a perfect science and it gets results EVERY SINGLE TIME.

Forget about your past fat loss attempts that failed. Don't focus on things that don't or didn't work. Here's the truth: the more you learn about how to lose weight and burn fat, the faster and more real your results will become.

You know exactly how much more confidence you would have if you lost that ugly stomach fat and begin getting your perfect figure back.

Get the solution to fat loss by finding the secrets that have been recently discovered. If you look carefully and do the proper research you will see how real the results can become! ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Secret to Sexy Flat Abs is Fat Loss!</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-to-sexy-flat-abs-is-fat-loss.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-to-sexy-flat-abs-is-fat-loss.html</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ Sexy flat abs are everyone's dream. You'd be hard pressed to find someone who didn't want abs to flaunt at the beach. To get them, everyone's looking for the secret. With so many infomercials out there, people are getting fooled everyday when, actually, those infomercials are completely useless compared to the real methods of getting those sexy abs!

The issue with our six pack producing methods arises when you research and realize that the most recommended abdominal exercises are practically useless when trying to achieve a six pack or flat sexy waist.

This is because almost all of the popular ab exercises ignore the one crucial rule in getting a six pack...reducing belly fat. And while many abdominal machines claim to reduce fat around your waist, it just won't happen unless you can burn excess calories with a proven system.

Rather than focusing an enormous amount of time on doing abdominal exercises, the bulk of your workout effort should be spent doing multi-joint, compound exercises which work a large percentage of musculature on the body. This will ensure that you activate your metabolism by using the most amount of muscle possible during an exercise routine.

All body exercises are the best ones to use. If not all body exercises, then exercises that target large muscle groups, like legs, upper back, lower back and the chest area, are great to work with. They boost your metabolism, which we all know is a very important goal in weight loss. What's more, a boosted metabolism level helps to shrink belly fat the fastest! Those infomercial ab machines don't do that. Neither to countless ab workouts!

This simple adjustment to your workout routine is one of the most closely guarded secrets of all the fat loss gurus.

Another mistake many people make when trying to get a six pack is that they do an extensive amount of sets with barely any resistance involved. This will do very little for getting your six pack. You see, the abdominals are very dense muscle tissue and they are meant to be worked with high amounts of tension.

Because of this, the best exercises for abdominal muscles are those which provide enough resistance to onset fatigue at a range of about 6-15 reps. If you are doing more than 15 reps with your abdominal exercises, you are wasting your time.

The high tension exercises that give the best results are usually very intense in the aspect of having to maintain proper posture through out the movement. While many people who practice sit ups regularly never practice controlling posture throughout abdominal movements, this is the way to go. You will notice that many people do their ab exercises wildly out of control.

For example, hanging leg raises are one of the best, if not possibly the best, high-tension ab exercises you can do. It works your torso, or abdominal, muscles and forces your body to maintain great posture control and high tension throughout your body. Those crunch and situp fanatics usually can't even complete 5 solid reps of hanging leg raises. Tells you something, doesn't it?

In summary, the number one way to get your six pack is by decreasing the amount of body fat around your stomach. This layer of fat must be completely eliminated to see your true potential with using any ab exercise. For more efficiency with your workouts, be sure to use abdominal exercises challenging enough to produce fatigue well before 15 reps and you will begin to see the difference! ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Secret Rules to Successful Weight Loss</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-rules-to-successful-weight-loss.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-rules-to-successful-weight-loss.html</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ What would you do if your weight loss dreams could be answered? What if there's a definite secret to burning fat and losing weight? Because there IS a real and effective way to lose weight! It doesn't involve crazy expensive magic pills or weird patches on your skin. And the secret doesn't involve calling you an idiot or ingesting strange parasites. It's very simple.

Now, everyone claims to have the secret, but honestly, have you heard of their methods? Nothing but a bunch of BS! Like one particular "Fat Loss Secret" - Do you really believe that getting rid of so called parasites is the key secret to weight loss? I think NOT! These are nothing but scams.

Let's be realistic for a moment - you wouldn't seek out a poor person to learn how to make money. So why do people go to overweight doctors and 'gurus" to learn how to lose body fat? Just as there is a definite way to gain weight - which is pretty easy, there is a definite method to lose weight.

The world is becoming fatter and fatter at an incredible rate. Whats worse is that more and more of our children are now experiencing a tremendous increase in child obesity. We have a gigantic problem to deal with. The solution to this problem is a biochemical, fat-blasting miracle. That's exactly what this program is all about.

The 5 Essential Fat Loss Rules

#1: THE PROVEN SYSTEM RULE.

Whichever fat loss or weight loss plan you choose, it must be proven by thousands of people. Chances are if a large population of individuals can get results from a weight loss plan, than you can too. Fact: If you can't find anyone talking about a weight loss program as being successful...don't try it.

#2: THE EASY TO USE RULE.

Whoever coined the phrase "Keep It Simple Stupid" was absolutely right! Usually the best solution is the simplest one and that is definitely true with weight loss. The successful diets out there are all as simple as possible. If you can make your weight loss plan almost completely automatic, then you definitely are on the highway to real weight loss results. 

#3: THE BASIC / CHEAP FOOD RULE.

The latest hype in the weight loss industry is these phoney mail order diets that get delivered to your doorstep. They charge about $300 per month for a meal that's no different than what you would get in the frozen food section of your local supermarket. Complete RIP-OFF. You need a diet you can afford the entire year...every year. Your fat loss program needs to be basic, cheap, and effective!

#4: THE NO B.S. RULE.

Have you been to a website recently and you know something was just not right? Even as you are reading this your B.S. detector is on FULL ALERT ! That's a great thing, because you need to always question the information your being fed. The truth -- 99% of the weight loss information on your news station, your favorite website, and in your newest weight loss book IS B.S.!

#5: THE QUICK RESULTS RULE.

Quick results are great and I don't think anyone can argue with that. Who wants to wait months to see results? If you follow this rule, you'll be sure to pick the right weight loss program that gives you highly-targeted, quick results to prove that you're on the fast track to losing weight. The best part of quick results is that it keeps you motivated and on track with your diet!

So, be sure to follow the above 5 rules whenever you decide to try a weight loss program or diet. This will help you to lose weight safely and quickly, and having safe, effective weight loss are the two things every dieter should be after. ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Is Simple Really the Secret to Fat Loss?</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/is-simple-really-the-secret-to-fat-loss.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/is-simple-really-the-secret-to-fat-loss.html</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ It's almost like everywhere you turn, you see a new fad diet being advertised to the point of overkill. How do you pick out the best weight loss program for you if all you hear and see are these annoying ads for diets that don't work? It's simple! No really, it is: the best weight loss program for you is the simplest one, which is almost always the most effective one too.

There are three main points that a weight loss plan can be judged upon: mindset, food, and exercise. A successful weight loss plan should have all three. You might notice that some of the fad diets out there, sadly, don't even touch on the mindset, which is a crucial part of losing weight. Here are those three points and how to tell if they're right:

The Right Mindset: To successfully lose weight, you have to make sure that your mind is in it. Without that, it can be nearly impossible to achieve. First, you should lose weight for the right reason: for your health, instead of for vanity because it isn't a matter of whether you are or aren't a beautiful person; it becomes a question of keeping yourself healthy and being able to live life to the absolute fullest.

It's not some crazy goal that is unreachable. Actually, it's really very important to stay in shape and healthy, regardless your motivation. The first step to losing weight is to believe that you can do it. You need to get through this first step to see results. It may sound cheesy but believing in yourself is such an important step.

The Right Food: It's undeniable. There are just certain foods that will make you gain weight and then there are certain foods that will not only help you lose weight, they are healthy for you and helps with overall well being. Now, think about that for a second: would you like to eat foods that make you gain weight or would you like to eat foods that help you lose weight and promote general well being?

It's an important question to ask because it might just be a regular question that comes up. The foods that make you gain weight are, in general, junk foods and fast foods. Now for foods that promote weight loss, go with fresh vegetables, fresh fruits and quality meats! Try not to fry foods though since that will basically take away those good qualities of these weight loss promoting foods.

Oh and avoid soft drinks too since those just make you more thirsty instead of quenching your thirst. When you need to drink something, go with water with a slice of lemon or other garnish. It's healthy and will help to promote great well being by flushing out toxins from your body. Water is possibly the best drink to have period.

The Right Exercise: Despite what some diets and exercise shows say, cardio is not the only way to lose weight. As a matter of fact, if you do strictly cardio exercises, you're really missing out. Add in some strength training and you'll really be on your way. Strength training, or weight training, helps to increase your muscles' capacity, which can and will help your body burn fat more easily and quickly, which helps you lose weight more efficiently and faster!

With that kind of positive result, all the more reason for you to add some weight training into your workout portion just to ensure you lose weight with the best possible results. Aim for daily 15-20 minute workouts. If your schedule doesn't allow for that, well, at least 15-20 minutes roughly 3-4 times a week should do the trick. Stick with this type of schedule but keep your workouts interesting by switching up the actual exercises you do. Not only will this keep your attention and interest, switching up exercises is even better for your body because the same thing over and over again works only the very same muscles over and over again, which equals limited progress. And make sure to combine cardio and weight training to get the best results.

There you have it! The three most important parts of a weight loss plan and the easiest way to tell if the diet that you found is actually going to work for you. If the fad diet doesn't include all three, it's not going to work. If the fad diet's main points don't include these three or if they go against it, it's not going to work. Why? Because anything other than these three is just not worth it! These three RIGHT points are so simple and it's the simplest things that end up working the best for everyone.

So make sure that whatever diet you find follows these three main points with whatever variations they can throw at you. With these three main points, any variation they include, ie: yoga, low-carb, low-calorie, pilates, meditation, etc., will only add a bit of spice to your successful weight loss efforts! ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>3 Secret Guidelines to Use When Choosing a Weight Loss Program</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/3-secret-guidelines-to-use-when-choosing-a-weight-loss-program.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/3-secret-guidelines-to-use-when-choosing-a-weight-loss-program.html</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ The world is full of fad diets and other gimmicky weight loss items (pills, patches, supplements, exercise machines, the list goes on and on). Some of these things are completely useless and, frankly, a waste of time. But don't count all weight loss programs out because there are others with proven and consistent success. But how do you find these successful programs? By making sure the one you pick follows 3 very basic guidelines to losing weight.

Fat Loss Tip Number 1: Plan and Prepare

The beginning of your fat loss journey starts with setting goals for yourself. Make sure they are realistic and attainable within the time period you are aiming for. Here are some good questions to ask:

1. What is your goal for your physique?
2. How much weight or fat do you want to lose each month?

The key to your planning and preparations is to make them achievable otherwise disappointment and frustration are all you will feel, despite all of your efforts. To prepare, make sure to clear your house of unhealthy foods, such as soft drinks, junk foods, sweets, or in other words, anything that's highly processed.

Instead, stock your house with fresh foods such as vegetables, fruits, plenty of waters, healthy snacks (preferably homemade or at least minimally processed). Vitamin and mineral supplements are not recommended unless you research the types of vitamins and minerals you may need. It's advised that you discuss your vitamin and mineral intake with your physician and/or a nutritionist.

Fat Loss Tip Number 2: Eat!

Yes, you must eat when you are trying to lose weight. I know, it doesn't sound like it will work but, believe me, it does. What you should avoid doing is skipping meals! Don't do that. It will NOT help you lose weight. It can actually prevent you from losing weight or even worse make you GAIN weight. If you skip meals or just avoid eating, you will eventually train your body into being hungry all the time so when you DO eat, you end up stuffing yourself way more than you can handle.

So instead of skipping breakfast, lunch or dinner, you can change the 3-full-meals-a-day rule into something more often: try to eat 5 to 6 small meals a day. These meals should be full of nutritious foods, not highly processed snacks. Make sure to always eat fresh, whole foods at eat of those 5 to 6 meals.

Fat Loss Tip Number 3: Exercise

Eating well and healthy is half the battle to losing weight. The other half is to exercise! This will shape and sculpt your physique more effectively than eating healthy alone (but don't forget the importance of a great nutrition plan). Exercise regularly and with a steady routine to see results.

To lose weight, the best time of day to work out is usually the mornings. Incorporate both cardio/aerobic as well as strength training exercises into your routine for the optimal results. A good cardio base will help regular your heart rate and increase your stamina, while strength training not only increases your overall strength, but it also tones your body in key fat-sensitive areas.

If you're not sure what to do when you're at the gym, or if you're looking at some of the machines like a deer in headlights, see if your gym has a free session with a personal trainer. In general, personal trainers are a great resource but make sure your personal trainer is certified and caters your workouts to YOUR goals. Trainers can and should customize your workouts for your body type and fat loss goals. If you're not so keen on hiring a personal trainer, at least use up the free session that most gyms offer to get a general idea of the types of exercises you can incorporate into your own program.

And those are it! Just three very simple, very basic fat loss tips to follow. Use these tips with any of the fat loss programs out there and you'll be sure to succeed, regardless of what directions those fat loss programs take you. ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Simple Secret to Fat Loss</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-simple-secret-to-fat-loss.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-simple-secret-to-fat-loss.html</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ Do you struggle at losing weight? Do you wish there was a secret to fat loss? You've probably been searching everywhere for answers to your weight loss questions and you've probably been online for at least an hour already searching. After all that, you're ready to read something of real value...am I right?

You see the infomercials almost daily and you think to yourself, "If only I could see the results that these people are getting in the testimonials". You see that a middle aged man or woman has lost in excess of 30lbs. and you just wonder how it can be done.

Take a quick moment and think about all the "quick fix" solutions to weight loss out there and how they always seem to fall short of the expectations you have put on them. How much have you spent on such infomercials? Twenty, twenty,...$100?

It's actually downright insulting for these snake-oil salesmen to push their products on you! However, they are so well put together! It's really a psychological game and these companies play it so well.

Well, it's time to go beyond infomercials and fad diets to what's real and what will get results, the reality of weight loss, of abdominal reduction and burning fat. No silly infomercial-hosts, no weird or painful sounding methods, just the simple science behind the secret to fat loss.

First, we need to address the important principle of structuring your workouts. In order to stimulate fat-loss, especially from your stomach, you need to stop wasting so much of your time doing worthless crunches and in the hopes of "spot-reducing" your abdominal fat.

Spot-reduction does not occur because fat loss AND weight loss occur from the body as a whole. Your body is not capable of selecting where it would like to burn fat from.

You can never lose fat from your stomach by exercising that area alone. You must do something much more capable of burning fat from the entire body and that's what we will discuss next!

Now, don't be put off by my bashing on ab exercises. I still believe ab exercises are an important addition to any workout. The point I would like you to run with is that ab exercises are great for strengthening the core area, however, they will not make you burn the most calories for your buck!

Instead, I like to concentrate on what I call the after-burn effect. You see, if you use multi-joint exercises like presses, pulls, and lunges, you will actually end up burning more fat from your belly than by using ab exercises!

After hearing some of the garbage that's out there, I'm sure it may be difficult for you to imagine this but these types of exercises boost your body's metabolic rate like crazy for up to 72 hours after you've worked out! So really, it's almost like you're working out non-stop!

If you do an intense workout consisting of these multi-joint exercises, you will reap an amazing benefit. During this 48-72 hour post exercise period your body will actually be flooded with fat-burning and muscle building hormones!

So, how do you do it? How do you accomplish this avalanche of fat-burning hormones? Easy, you use exercises like squats, lunges, deadlifts, presses, pulls, AND your favorite ab exercises together. However, your priority is placed on the exercises that are more intense and require more concentration.

This boils down to taking minimal rest periods and ignoring your gym friends' gossip. You need to be intense! Keep track of your rest times and tell your buddies to meet you for food after your amazing fat burning workout!

Second, we need to eat for fat burning. Your nutrition literally has the power to make you burn fat. Of coarse, the exact opposite is true, food can also be the cause of your fat gain just as easily. The key is to use science in your favor to determine which foods should be eaten to accomplish your fat loss.

By following the recommendations of fad diets you will actually keep yourself from burning fat. Imagine that. The very thing that all of the fad diets claim to cure, they actually aid! If you follow the advice of the low-carb diets, soup diets, amazon diets, low-fat diets, and calorie ratio diets, you will only end up gaining fat because they do not understand the science behind fat loss.

The truth is that none of the fad diets actually discuss the simple science behind fat burning. It really is very simple because it depends on your body's hormonal balance being at a specific level. Very basically, if your body doesn't reach that hormone balance, you don't burn fat.

When you begin to move away from the fad diets and toward a realistic fat burning program you will find that becoming leaner happens automatically. It has to become lean if your hormones are in their proper levels because hormones have the master key to this process!

In a nutshell, the secret to fat loss is very simple. Eat foods and workout using exercises that boost your body's fat burning hormone levels, while limiting your "fat adding hormones". It's not difficult and it's actually very simple, with a basic cause and effect outline to it. One key to remember, stay positive about your fat loss goals and remind yourself to take it one day at a time! ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Secret Plan to Burn Fat and Lose Weight Quickly</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-plan-to-burn-fat-and-lose-weight-quickly.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-secret-plan-to-burn-fat-and-lose-weight-quickly.html</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ It didn't happen overnight. It took time for you to gain weight. As much as you may dislike it, it will take time for you to lose weight. Normally, this process can be slow but there are ways around it. There are secrets you can use to lose weight and burn fat quickly.

First, weight loss supplements are garbage. The fact of the matter is that no supplement can make you lose weight without being used in conjunction with exercise. If that's the case, how do we know it wasn't the exercise by itself that produced the results?

Seriously, the truth is that we can't know for sure if exercising by itself made you lose weight or if it was the addition of of the supplements. But keep in mind that since neither you or I have lost weight using those gimmicky supplements, I'd bet money (and you probably could too) that they don't work. Okay, so what now? What does work?

Honestly, the only thing that can make you lose weight is eating the right food. If you aren't eating natural foods, you will gain wait. It doesn't get simpler than that. The sad fact is that we as humans try to make the process more complex and harder than it has to be.

Another important addition to your weight loss plan will need to be a daily exercise routine. Yes, that means doing some type of activity every single day. No that does not mean that walking up 6 flights of stairs counts as your exercise. Your routine should be roughly 30min. to one hour in length and make you slightly out of breath.

Exercising regularly will help to boost your fat burning hormone levels and actually will also lighten your mood. Don't be surprised if you feel pretty darn happy after a workout. This is a great help to people who may feel depressed because of their weight gain.

People with a family history of heart disease need to be especially careful to include exercise in their daily routine since obesity and being overweight drastically increases your chances of having a heart attack and stroke. Do not take your fatness for granted, it is a signal that things aren't ok inside the body as well!

You should start your weight loss journey with making a commitment to find a healthy diet plan and stick to it daily. Supplement your healthy eating with daily mild to moderate exercise and you will begin to notice changes little by little.

Remember, weight loss is meant to be an enduring, yet easy process that starts with making the right decisions every single day. Do not try to look at how long you will have to go without eating certain foods. Merely, make good decisions one day at a time and refuse to stress when you slip up...just keep moving forward! ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Could Saturated Fats be a Secret Fat Loss Tool?</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/could-saturated-fats-be-a-secret-fat-loss-tool.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/could-saturated-fats-be-a-secret-fat-loss-tool.html</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ For the past 20 years, many people have struggled to lose weight and burn fat but there's a simple reason for this. Because for the past two decades, the US public has been completely brainwashed into believing a horrible lie that prevented weight loss success.

Here is the lie...Guru's, physicians, personal trainers, and even your best friend have told you that eating saturated fat is "bad" for your health. THIS IS A LIE!

Albeit, this lie was only partly spread with bad intentions. You see, the food industries wanted to develop a sales pitch for selling margarine, so they had to come up with a marketing strategy.

In a downright deceptive effort, the first pioneers of margarine set out to make saturated fat the enemy of every health freak. Thousands of articles claiming to be backed by physicians were released and the mainstream media followed the buzz by constantly republishing VERY BAD INFORMATION.

And so, the masses began to take hold of this idea and make it their motto. They truly believed that avoiding saturated fat would be their ticket to health nirvana.

However, their was one problem with this. While margarine sales were booming for companies, the rate of cardiovascular disease in the US began to increase steadily. Until in the 1990s, it started becoming the #1 source of death.

Currently in America, the #1 cause of death is heart disease. Now, depending on who you talk to, the exact number changes but it roughly makes up 30% of all deaths in the US. Can you believe that?

All of this because of a "healthy lie" that people deemed as being the truth. Here is the real truth about saturated fat that is equally important to your weight loss as well as your health. In fact, you can't lose weight unless you practice what I am about to discuss.

First of all, did you realize that although doctors, nutritionists, dietitians, fitness professionals, and the media all have told you that it's a FACT that saturated fats are bad for you, this "FACT" has NEVER BEEN PROVEN!

In reality, this "fact" is nothing more than an extremely flawed hypothesis, which goes all the way back to a research study from the 1950's. In this study, a scientist named Ancel Keys published a paper that laid the blame on dietary fat intake for the increasing heart disease issue around the world.

However, one of the major flaws of the study was that it used inconclusive data from an extremely small population of people taken from several countries. Really, the population was so small it would never be considered legit by today's "research standards".

Following his research years later scientists found there was in fact, no link between fat consumption and heart disease deaths. Therefore, while his hypothesis seemed to have powerful supporting data when it was first introduced, it was really empty.

Second, his blaming of fat intake for heart disease was completely isolated from other possible lifestyle related habits that were capable of causing heart disease. There was no data or consideration of other factors that may play a role in heart disease such as smoking, stress factors, sugar and refined carbohydrate intake, and fitness levels.

Really, his conclusion ignored a holistic view of the disease and completely focused on the issue of saturated fat. It was almost like the study was bias from the onset.

Unfortunately, Keys study has been cited for over 5 decades now in various research journals, books, magazines, and other supposedly factual literature. It's even taught in grade school and most physicians will even follow this advice and tell their patients!

What's more, since Keys' study, almost every study related to the same topic has not been able to find even a small correlation between saturated fat intake and cardiovascular disease. Not even a small correlation! Let that sink in for a second while you think about the lie that was fed to you.

In fact, the most recent and reliable research suggests that saturated fat is important for both cardiovascular health and weight loss! This is the exact opposite of what the majority of health gurus promote!

For instance, there are several well known tribes in Africa (Masai, Fulani, and Samburu), where their diet consists mostly of raw whole milk, large quantities of red meat, and cow/goat blood. Their saturated fat intake is THROUGH THE ROOF and yet the occurrence of heart disease is non-existent to members of the tribe.

In fact, according to Dr. Weston A. Price - a dentist who studied tribal dietary habits - all tribesman he studied had zero incidence of cardiovascular disease if they held fast to their ancient eating habits. It was only when these same tribesman turned to modern food supply that they began to develop the common diseases we are faced with today.

In Price's study, he correlated his results by studying how food caused tooth decay in ancient and modern times. What he found was simply amazing. Tribal members that stuck to their ancient diets were completely free of cavities! They didn't even brush their teeth!

If that example of healthy eating helps you realize how powerful an effect your diet has on your health, then congratulations. You are now getting closer and closer to realizing and achieving your weight loss and health goals.

Consider this, although saturated fat intake does increase your LDL bad cholesterol, it actually increases your HDL good cholesterol morso. The result is an overall improving of your cholesterol ratios. THIS has been proven to be more important that just total cholesterol level.

The term "saturated fat" actually is applicable to a whole slew of saturated fats because not all saturated fats are equal because each one has different chemical structures. Even though they may be different, they're similar enough to all be called "saturated fats". It's important to know how each one acts in your body and it is very simple and easy to remember.

The 3 most prevalent types of saturated fat are stearic acid, palmitic acid, and lauric acid. Each naturally occurring food contains varying ratios of each type of fat and this important because it means that certain foods contain better fat profiles than others.

Stearic acid is found in animal fat and cocoa in higher ratios than other foods. Resent research shows that stearic acid has no negative impacts on heart disease risks. Most studies have found that it's either neutral or beneficial.

In fact, your liver breaks down stearic acid into a monounsaturated fat called oleic acid, which is the same type of fat that makes up most of heart-healthy olive oil. This proves that it is very usable by the body for energy production.

Lauric acid is another beneficial saturated fat. Not only has lauric acid been shown to increase your HDL good cholesterol levels significantly, but it is also the hardest fat to attain in the Standard American Diet (SAD).

Lauric acid has even been shown to have some powerful immune-boosting effects. It is currently being studied for it's implementation in treating HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other immune related research to help improve immune function in patients.

Tropical oils such as coconut and palm are the best sources of beneficial lauric acid. If you buy coconut oil be sure to obtain extra virgin coconut oil. It should have the aroma of coconuts and a fairly tropical taste to it.

Palmitic acid is the other main component of saturated fat and has also been shown in studies to increase HDL good cholesterol to the same, if not greater extent than LDL bad cholesterol, thereby making it either neutral or beneficial, but certainly not bad for you.

It makes you wonder, if all the researchers have tried so fiercely to bash saturated fat , but have continued to fail to show a correlation between saturated fat and cardivascular disease, what are the REAL causes for heart disease?

Well, here are the real causes of heart disease:

* Trans fats (artificially or partially hydrogenated oils)

* Heavily refined vegetable oils such as soy, cottonseed, corn oil, etc. (inflammatory inside the body, and typically throw the omega-6/omega-3 balance out of whack)

* Too much refined sugar in the diet (including high fructose corn syrup)

* Too much refined starches such as white bread, low fiber cereals, etc

* Smoking

* Stressful lifestyle

* Lack of exercise

* Other lifestyle factors

Really, the attempts of the big food companies to spread the lies and make you think vegetable oil are the best thing on earth have been quite successful. However, you can make the decision for yourself to start including better fats into your diet to replenish and nurture your body. These same "healthy" saturated fats will help you to lose weight also because they possess a very high ability to keep you from craving.

Do not let the pull of the multi-billion dollar food industries distort the truth for you and your family. You can make the difference in both your weight loss and your health by changing your diet to include more healthy saturated fats.

Long after this article is written the media and big food companies will still be trying fiercely to make saturated fat look like it is the cause to heart disease. More and more pharmaceuticals will be developed to "combat" heart disease, yet the incidence of this disease will continue to rise. It will continue to rise until our healthcare system can no longer support ANY type of heart disease related expenditure.

To ensure you get the proper amount of healthy saturated fats, you should stick to a diet with foundations in overall well-being and health. For example, organic eggs, red meat, cold water seafood, avocados, nuts and organic oils such as olive and coconut oils are just about the best components of a healthy diet you can find.

Also, your food sources should be as healthy as possible. This means making sure that your fish is NOT farmed, but wild Alaskan or cold water caught. It also means that your meat sources are "grass fed" or "open/free range". These animals should NOT be fed grains in their diet because it will distort the type of fats found in the meat tissue. The healthier meats have better omega-3 to omega-6 ratios than standard commercial meats and will help satisfy your hunger more. ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Simple Reason Calorie Counting Diets Just Don't Work</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-simple-reason-calorie-counting-diets-just-don-t-work.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/the-simple-reason-calorie-counting-diets-just-don-t-work.html</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ Calorie counting might make sense at first. I mean, if you're controlling the number of calories you eat in a day, it would make sense that it can help control food intake and, as a result, weight gain or loss. But going through all of that really isn't the best way to lose weight. There are a few reasons why and, I'm sure, once you go through these reasons, you'll agree that calorie counting just doesn't work if you want to lose weight.

Early disclaimer here and to clarify my later explanations, calorie counting might work for some people. These people are ones who have all the time in the world to shop for their own groceries and prepare their food at their leisure without even a second thought to a schedule or something called daily life! Now, if you're like me and most other people, your time is precious and there isn't enough of it in your day. That being said, it's clear that calorie counting is not for those who have busy schedules and full days. It can be and usually is tedious and time consuming, not to mention boring.

Dieting doesn't have to be exciting but does anyone really want it to be boring? Then again, that's not the reason why calorie counting sucks for weight loss. That's just the result of trying to count calories for those who lead real lives. 

Something to keep in mind: the quality of calories has a huge influence on your total calorie intake. If you're reaching for those low-calorie snacks or low-calorie prepared meals or whatever, basically anything low-calorie, then you're feeding yourself horribly bad quality calories. You're pretty much eating empty calories, basically garbage combined with chemicals and excess sugar to make you feel full. 

To clarify, calories are the energy source for your body to use in daily bodily functions, for example, breathing, walking, eating, etc. So just like you're drooling over the latest, greatest gadget or fashion offering, you should also be obsessed with providing your body with the best source of energy possible. Usually, if you get the best source of calories possible, the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients follow easily. And just to repeat, low-calorie foods are horrible energy source. There are nearly no nutrients in them and the calories they do provide barely tide you over.

Another reason why calorie counting doesn't work: restaurants, coffee shops, friend's houses don't offer nutritional information and calories per serving! There are so many hidden calories as you go through your day that it's extremely easy to go over your allotted daily calorie limit. You would have to prepare each and every one of your meals on your own, which, as we mentioned earlier, isn't likely to happen. 

Need examples of hidden calories in foods? Sure! Here we go. For breakfast, did you make that coffee you drank at work? Did you make your own breakfast sandwich or bagel? Or did you grab it on the go at the nearest deli? Did you make that slice of pizza you had for lunch? Enough examples for you? Just wanted to show you how easy it is to unknowingly go over your daily calorie intake limit. Now if you dine out for dinner often, tell me, how many restaurants do you see provide diners with calorie counts for each of their menu offerings? Highly unlikely, right?

The bottom line is this: if you're serious about losing weight, and I'm talking about body fat (not water weight or anything else), then you need to forget about calorie counting. It doesn't work and it won't work for you. The best thing for you and anyone else who's serious about losing weight is to focus on the basics: healthy, wholesome fresh foods and high quality meats and regular exercise.

When I say fresh foods, I don't mean that you have to prepare them. Just make sure that you avoid fast food joints for lunch and focus on eating healthy foods that include greens and meats. Healthy foods energize your body like you wouldn't believe. If you don't do the exercising, healthy eating will at least get you started on the right track until you feel comfortable enough to start exercising. Regular exercise just makes your weight loss skyrocket. Once you eat healthy and exercise, losing weight will come easily! ]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to Lose Weight Easily</title>
<link>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/how-to-lose-weight-easily.html</link>
<guid>http://www.populate.net/Fitness/Weight_Loss/how-to-lose-weight-easily.html</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[ When people think of losing weight, usually the thought of a difficult and annoying hassle comes to mind. But, that's definitely not the case. Actually, losing weight is quite easy, if you know the best ways to do it. Losing weight can be easy and it can be efficient and enjoyable at the same time. Believe me, it is definitely possible, even if it doesn't sound that way.

The only reason everyone thinks that losing weight is difficult is because they've been using the wrong methods! There are a lot of different ways to lose weight, but you have to know the basics and core principles before you can pick the most effective weight loss plan out there. Here are some basics to help you lose weight the easy way:

Easy Weight Loss Way #1: Get your mind (and body) into it! One of the easiest, if not THE easiest, way to lose weight is to make sure your mind is completely ready to do it. You don't need to think about it 24/7/365 but you do have to give it some thought, especially in the beginning.

Figure out the weight you need or want to lose, a rough estimate is fine and plan a deadline for yourself; it will make you that much more determined when you have a actual date to achieve your weight loss by.

Easy Weight Loss Way #2: Make healthy food choices! So to make healthy food choices, you have to know what "healthy food choices" means, right? The first step, get to know food labels. I don't mean the calorie count, fat count, etc., even though those are important; I mean the ingredients, which is the first thing you should look at. There are plenty of "healthy" or "natural" foods out there that, well, really aren't all that healthy or natural.

If you can't pronounce an ingredient, more than likely, it's a chemical. Now, when do healthy, wholesome foods have individual chemicals in them? The second thing you should look at is the nutritional breakdown (see? I told you it was still important). Even if the food item has no weird, chemical names, you should check to see the amount of sugar it has. Sugar is lovely to eat but not so great for losing weight. So get familiar with food labels and it will make your weight loss easier.

Easy Weight Loss Way #3: Change your food lifestyle! That might sound odd but if you think about it, most diets ask you to avoid certain foods for only a certain amount of time. Usually, after that period, you go back to eating those foods and then it happens, the weight comes back.

Instead of taking a vacation from certain foods, just change your food lifestyle instead! To change your food lifestyle, you need to decide that you want to eat healthy all the time; this is the fundamental change that you need to make. There are plenty of healthier choices and alternative meals to your favorite foods, and the best part, these alternatives will speed your easy weight loss!

Easy Weight Loss Way #4: Put your body to work! This requires some exercise and it is very important to losing weight. It is definitely not as difficult as some people make it sound. The first thing to do is consult your physician before beginning any physical activity; it's wiser that way.

Then it's a good idea to either research on your own or consult a personal trainer on the best exercises for you, your body type and your weight loss goals. A personal trainer will be more capable of giving you the best exercises to help you lose weight.

See? Not difficult at all! Very simple, very easy and very effective! So try these easy weight loss tips and you'll see, there definitely is an easy way to lose weight! ]]></description>
</item>

</channel>
</rss>

