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Fat-Proof Your Life

Health — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 04:06:06 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Maridel Reyes

It's true that there are certain times in your life when extra poundage seems to appear out of nowhere . . . and settle on you. In fact, experts have honed in on the exact moments when you're most vulnerable to weight gain.

"Life transitions, having a baby, and going through menopause cause many women to pile on pounds," says Susan Albers, PsyD, author of But I Deserve This Chocolate!: The 50 Most Common Diet-Derailing Excuses and How to Outwit Them. "But with planning and prep, you can stay thin."

We asked top experts for their strategies to help you ward off weight creep - and even shed pounds - at these tricky stages. Solutions ahead.

Getting married

Heavier ever after? It can be the flip side of wedded bliss: "Six out of 10 of my clients come back heavier after the honeymoon," says celebrity fitness and wellness guru David Kirsch.

Health.com: 25 Diet-Busting Foods You Should Never Eat

Young newlyweds pack on an extra six to nine pounds in the five years after getting hitched compared to singletons, according to research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. And most of that gain happens in the first year of marriage.

"Couples start to mirror each other's eating habits," explains Albers. "You might be matching him calorie for calorie without realizing it."

Learn how to keep the pounds down postmarriage and in the mommy years, after the break.

Feel-Full Quick Tricks

Health — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:49:40 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Health.com

It's not just what you eat that can make you more satisfied - it's how you eat, too. Try these tips to feel fuller longer.

H2O some more
Drink two eight-ounce glasses (16 ounces total) of water before each meal. It will fill up your stomach and trim up to 60 calories per meal.

Health.com: Which Foods Burn the Most Fat?

Flavor of the day
Use vinegar (or vinaigrette) and cinnamon for flavor whenever possible. These two ingredients can help regulate blood sugars after meals and help you feel full longer after eating, according to a study from the Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, in Zurich, Switzerland.

Keep reading for quick feel-full tricks.

The Secrets of the World's Healthiest Women

Health — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:45:10 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

From pouring on the olive oil like the Greeks to slashing stress like the Scandinavians, what we
can learn from the happiest, slimmest, longest-living cultures around the globe.

The secret to a long, healthy life in America? According to longevity researchers, it may be to act like you live somewhere else.

It seems like every year another country's lifestyle is touted as the new magic bullet to cure us of obesity, heart disease, and premature death: for an unclogged heart, herd goats and down olive oil like a Mediterranean. Avoid breast cancer and live to 100 by dining on tofu, Japanese-style. Stay as happy as Norwegians by hunting elk and foraging for cowberries.

Health.com: Weight-Loss Secrets From Around the World

The places we're usually told to emulate are known as Blue Zones or Cold Spots. Blue Zones were pinpointed by explorer Dan Buettner and a team of longevity researchers and are described in his book The Blue Zones: Lessons For Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest. They're areas in Italy, Japan, Greece, California, and Costa Rica where the people have traditionally stayed healthy and active to age 100 or older.

Keep on reading for more great tips from around the globe.

6 Ways to Sit Less Every Day

Health — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:03:42 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Sarah Kehoe

Need help being less sedentary? Here are the best ways to sit less and move more, from easiest to hardest.

Pace on the phone
Invest in a two-way speakerphone, a superlong phone-to-ear cord, or a quality headset so you can be more mobile while you chat.

Even if you simply stand while on the phone, you'll naturally shift from leg to leg.

Health.com: Little Ways to Lose Big Pounds

Putter after eating
Or take a quick walk postmeals. The fat levels in your bloodstream are highest after eating, and simply moving around afterward increases the activity of lipoprotein lipase, which spurs your metabolism.

Opt for bar seats at restaurants
Sit on the front third of the bar stool. Spread your feet just wider than hip distance, so they're supporting a fair bit of your weight, and gently roll your hips forward, arching your back slightly.

This position is called "perching" - it maintains an S-shape in your spine and distributes your weight more evenly.

Health.com: 20 Ways to Torch 200 Calories

Leave the seat at home
Whether you're going to a concert, tailgate, or park, don't bring a chair.

You'll find that if you don't have one, you stand the whole time or naturally move back and forth between your blanket and standing, says Marc Hamilton, PhD, a microbiologist at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center.

More suggestions for giving up the chair after the break.

The Top Fat-Burning Foods

Health — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:10:08 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Paige Greenfield

It's true: certain foods have a very high thermogenic effect, so you literally scorch calories as you chew. Other eats contain nutrients and compounds that stoke your metabolic fire. Feed your metabolism with these.

Whole Grains
Your body burns twice as many calories breaking down whole foods (especially those rich in fiber such as oatmeal and brown rice) than processed foods.

Health.com: Best Superfoods For Weight Loss

Lean Meats
Protein has a high thermogenic effect: you burn about 30 percent of the calories the food contains during digestion (so a 300-calorie chicken breast requires about 90 calories to break it down).

Low-Fat Dairy Products
Rich in calcium and vitamin D, these help preserve and build muscle mass - essential for maintaining a robust metabolism.

Health.com: Ditch Five Pounds Without Trying

Green Tea
Drinking four cups of green tea a day helped people shed more than six pounds in eight weeks, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports. Credit EGCG, a compound in the brew that temporarily speeds metabolism after sipping it. To up your intake, keep a jug of iced tea in the fridge.

Keep reading to see other foods that burn fat!

Lose Weight and Get Fit With Your Phone

Health — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 04:14:36 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

A sleeker, stronger body could be just a tweet or a Facebook post away
By Jamie Beckman

One of the best tools for peeling off pounds is already in your bag: It's your smartphone or iPad. In fact, all that texting, tweeting, and posting - the average woman spends more than 80 minutes a day on her phone, according to a recent report from the mobile apps analytics firm Flurry - can tip the scales in your favor.

And one in three of us are already using social sites like Facebook to get slender, reports research from the University of Arizona. So go ahead and steal these suggestions from women who took their shape-up viral.

Tweet Your Way Thin
Nancy Tessier, 50, lost 28 pounds by posting all her meals and snacks to Tweet What You Eat (@twye), an online food journal that lets others eyeball your noshes. "Sometimes it was a lot easier to decide not to eat something than to have to tweet it for the world to see," she says.

Posting your weight-loss numbers can help, too. The University of Arizona research suggests that women who reveal shape-up victories on a weekly basis trim down faster than those who update less frequently. If you're feeling shy, think up a Twitter handle and upload a cartoon character as your avatar so you can share the skinny without feeling self-conscious.

Health.com: Diet Tricks the Pros Tell Their Friends

Gain a Following
Get some virtual support pronto by following Twitter hash tags like #fitblog. Carla Shorts, 27, started chiming in on #fitblog's weekly live chats - and dropped from a size 12 to a size 6 in just a year. "When my weight loss reached a plateau, having women point out that my 30-minute elliptical routine wasn't going to cut it anymore was key," she says. "I started running and began to lose again."

You can also start your own hashtag, like Sherry Pagoto, 38, from Massachusetts, did with #plankaday, a challenge to spend at least a minute in plank pose each day.

Find more ways your phone can help you lose weight after the break.

How to Get Your Metabolism Moving

Health — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 03:03:06 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

Does your metabolism grind to a halt after 35? Can certain foods rev it up? Answers ahead — and they're good.
By Paige Greenfield

Here's something to feel good about: your body is a calorie-burning machine. You'll even torch a few while reading this article. The point is, every single thing you do — from breathing to eating to sleeping — uses energy. The number of calories it would take just to lie in bed all day is called your resting metabolic rate. And just like your curly hair or warm personality, yours is unique.

"There are so many factors that determine your metabolic rate," says Janet Rankin, PhD, professor of human nutrition, foods, and exercise at Virginia Tech. Among them: your height and weight (bigger people burn more calories), your gender (women have slower metabolisms than men), your age (your metabolic rate declines as you get older), how much muscle or fat you have (muscle burns more calories than fat does), and your DNA.

Health.com: Little Ways to Lose Big Pounds

Although you can't rewire your double helix or switch back the clock, there's still plenty you can do to be a fast burner, Rankin says. All you need to do is remember these four research-backed truths.

Cardio Revs Your Metabolism For Hours Afterward
Resistance training often hogs the metab-boosting spotlight. It's no wonder, since a pound of muscle at rest fries three times as many calories as a pound of fat. However, cardio is every bit as crucial for keeping your metabolism humming.

New research explains why: In a study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, people pedaled a stationary bike as hard as they could for 47 minutes.
The finding: They slashed 190 calories above their resting metabolic rate for 14 hours after their workout. Add that to the 519 calories, on average, the cyclists scorched from the workout itself, and that's one heck of a sweat session.

"If you do just two to three vigorous bouts of exercise per week for 45 minutes, you could lose a pound of fat every two weeks from the combination of calories expended during exercise plus what you burn afterward," says study author David Nieman, PhD, a professor of exercise science at Appalachian State University.

So how can you tell if you're pushing hard enough? Any sweat-inducing activity you can sustain for 45 minutes will do the trick.

More useful tips after the break.

The Burning Question: Is Doing a Detox a Good Idea?

Health — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 04:12:46 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

Cleanses have become a "celeb trend", but are they really safe?
By Health.com

NO: It's risky — and you don't need it.
Glenn Braunstein, MD, professor and chairman, department of medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles

Our bodies have built-in detoxifiers.
The liver, the kidneys, and the colon are naturally designed to remove toxins and eliminate them through our waste, so there's no need for additional help.

A (Safe!) Jump-Start Cleanse

It's potentially harmful.
Many extreme programs, like fasting, juice diets, and the Master Cleanse, can leave the body weak and devoid of vital nutrients, like protein and essential vitamins, even if you do them for a short time. Colonics — which flush the colon with warm water to remove a supposed buildup of waste there — carry the risk of dehydration, infection, and even perforation of the colon wall.

Diet Tricks the Pros Tell Their Friends

Detoxes can create more toxins.
Plans that severely restrict food can cause the body to burn fat for fuel. Burning large amounts of fat releases chemicals called ketones into the blood — and a buildup of these can cause bad breath, loss of appetite, nausea, and in rare cases, coma or death.

Keep reading to hear the argument for detox cleanses.

6 Ways to Enjoy Cocktails Guilt-Free

Health — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 09:43:21 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Tina Haupert

For me, it wouldn’t be the holiday season without enjoying a festive cocktail or two. But unfortunately most of these drinks are heavy on calories and fat, which isn’t good when I’m trying to maintain healthy eating habits.

Instead of just sipping seltzer and missing out on all of the party cheer, I follow a few simple tricks to keep the holiday cocktails from showing up on the scale.

Start With Some Bubbly
Sorry, not champagne! On a night when I know there are a few drinks in my future, I like to start off with a glass of no-calorie seltzer (or still water). The bubbles from the carbonation give my stomach a full feeling, which helps me slow down and think about my food choices as the night progresses.

If I pace myself, I have better control around all of the delicious holiday goodies. Plus it's no surprise that the calories in cocktails quickly add up, so I also like to alternate seltzer between rounds.

Diet Tricks the Pros Tell Their Friends

Order It With Extra Ice
I like to order my cocktails with extra ice, since melting cubes dilute the drink. This creates more liquid, so I can sip longer without increasing my calorie intake.

Occasionally, I'll order my drink on the rocks, which takes me longer to consume than a mixed cocktail. Sometimes it lasts so long, I don't bother with a refill, which saves me calories in the long run.

Keep reading for more tips!

How to Stick to Your Diet (or Workout)

Health — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 03:07:08 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Su Reid St. John

I've been struggling a bit recently with old, not-so-great eating habits. I've made a few halfhearted attempts to stem the tide, but it wasn't until last week, when I found my favorite jeans a little hard to button, that I realized I'd gotten pretty far off track. So I turned to a simple mantra for help: It's not an option.

I repeat it every time a plate of brownies shows up in the break room, my husband bakes gingerbread cookies and leaves them on the counter, or I'm simply contemplating a second helping of tortellini.

5-Minute Fat Burners

I actually got it from Lisa Delaney, author of the funny, insightful book Secrets of a Former Fat Girl (and former executive editor at Health magazine). She came up with the phrase in a desperate moment, trying to stop her formerly out-of-shape self from quitting yet another workout. "Those four little words ended the internal argument right there," she writes. Bam. Done.

It's not an option.

The finality of this particular mantra is what makes it so effective for me. It simply slams the door on the possibility of doing something I don't need to do - this is the way it is, no arguing. It's oddly freeing, too, because as soon as I say it, my inner waffling comes to a halt and I no longer have the stressful "should I or shouldn't I?" debate running nonstop through my brain.

More tips after the break.