Stress Reliever

After a long, grueling day at work, many of us succumb to the call of comfort food (and in exorbitant amounts, too). When we are stressed, it becomes incredibly easy to forgo a healthy dinner of soup and salad and instead give in to our calorie-packed cravings—like that big bag of potato chips on the counter, or the pint of coffee caramel ice cream that’s been frosting in the fridge. And while it isn’t a bad thing to break our diets once in a while, stress-eating can quickly become an everyday habit that will take its toll on our bodies—without actually reducing the stress.

HERBS. Herbs are chamomile, passion flower, and dandelion are effective stress relievers because they relax your mind and the muscles in your body. Steep them into fragrant teas to savor the full calming experience. This article by TheTimesOfIndia.com shares that chamomile tea, in particular, has been found to relieve cramps, spasms, and digestive problems caused by nervousness.

ORANGES. Pack a bottle of OJ or a few orange wedges with your daily baon. Oranges are rich in Vitamin C, which boosts your immune system and reduces its susceptibility to virus. A German study in Psychopharmacology has also proven that Vitamin C helps reduce anxiety by bringing down blood pressure after a stressful situation.

SWEET POTATOES. Substitute your craving for fries with some sweet potato slivers. Sweet potatoes will give you the same soothing sensation that you get from eating chips or candy bars—plus, they’re packed with fiber, beta-carotene, and other immunity-boosting vitamins.

Summer Partying and Effects

Warm weather up ahead! Summer is at our fingertips, and the first of its sizzling shindigs have already sent out their Facebook invites. It’s party time! Aren’t you excited?

But consider this: the things about summer parties that have us elatedly dancing on ledges the night before are what also get us belatedly banging our heads on desks the morning after. Let’s face it—with great revelry comes great irresponsibility, and we’ve all been a little reckless in the heat of the season. To avoid a repeat of last summer’s mistakes, here’s a list of the party hazards you could possibly encounter—and preferably prevent.


HANGOVERS
Brace yourself for the splitting headaches and energy-sucking dehydration that have little to do with the hot weather. Hangovers, formally known as veisalgia, are almost always a given after an all-night alcohol-fest—with the nausea, loss of appetite, and mind-numbing fatigue that come with them lasting way longer than the handful of hours you guzzled away.

But if the promise of a day-long migraine isn’t quite enough to make you lay off the liquor. Before drinking, eat a full meal to slow down your body’s rate of alcohol absorption, and drink a lot of water to hydrate your system pre-happy hour. Also, stick with one drink, as mixing different liquors will increase the amount of hangover-triggering toxins in your body.


BAD SKIN
Your skin is always hit hard by any hard-partying practices. Not getting enough sleep due to a get-together gone long usually leads to dark circles and the inevitable acne. Blemishes resulting from smoking and especially drinking are also prevalent, including red or blotchy skin and puffiness under the eyes.


WEIGHT GAIN
Admit it: your self-control plummets when you’re at a party. Carbs and cocktails become harder to resist when you use the excuse that you’re out and about, anyway. Don’t get caught in the trap of carelessness! Think about the “beachbod” that you’ve slaved for at gym all year—that “one last bottle” could spoil it with a beer belly; that “one last fry” could (literally) tip the scale. But if you can’t stop yourself from feasting at your summer fetes, then at least balance out the binge with some conditioning the next day. Roll out your yoga mat or go or a jog; forego the comfort food for some crisp green salad. It won’t be wasted on your waistline.

Fight Fat ~ Chili Peppers

According to a recent study, the component capsaicin, found in chili peppers, might actually prevent the build-up of fat. Capsaicin is the stuff that causes the burning sensation when you bite into a chili pepper, and makes any foods flavored with chilis hot and spicy. The article reports, “Capsaicin may help fight obesity by decreasing calorie intake, shrinking fat tissue, and lowering fat levels in the blood.”

Researchers fed lab rats high-fat diets both with capsaicin and without it. The rats that ingested capsaicin experienced changes in at least 20 fat proteins, which triggered the breakdown of fat molecules. These rats also lost 8 percent of their total body weight.

This is great news for all you spicy food lovers—who knew that your favorite fiery recipe could actually help you shed some pounds? Got some spicy recipes of your own to share?

Are Dried Fruits Healthy Snacks or High Sugar Treats?

Drying is an effective method of food preservation. Bacteria need water to break down food so removing the water preserves the fruit. These are then used as snacks or as ingredients in baked desserts. The question is, are they really healthy or simply high-sugar treat?

The caloric content of a serving of dried fruit is approximately twice that of its fresh equivalent. This is largely because dried fruits are just a fraction of the size of the fresh ones. One can very easily consume a handful of dried mangoes, not realizing that it is equal to 3-4 pieces of fresh mangoes. The dried variety is not a filling because of its zero water content. And yes, many dried fruits are cooked in sugar, jacking up its caloric content even further. This is true even for raisins, a staple of trail mixes. So the rule of moderation should still be followed, in this case even more strictly. If you want to indulge in dried fruits, a piece might be more than enough.

Stop Your Job From Sabotaging Your Body

Does your work require more than six hours of chair time per day? Then you're 68 percent more likely to wind up pverweight than those who sit less. Those who sit for more than six hours a day gained weight nearly 17 pounds on average - within eight months of starting a sedentary office job.

Keep desk bloat at bay with these simple tweaks:

7:30-8:30 AM: Drive to Work
+ MOVE MORE: Squeeze glutes while sitting in traffic.

8:30-1:30 PM: Sit at desk
+ MOVE MORE: Get up and stretch at least every 30 minutes; stand for phone conversations and to read e-mails. If you think the request would fly, ask for a higher desk so you can work standing up.

1:30-2:00 PM: Lunch
+ MOVE MORE: Add a brisk 10-minute walk

3:30-4:00 PM: Hallway conversation with co-worker
+ MOVE MORE: Ask the colleague to go for a stroll around the building or block.

6:30-8:00 PM: Dinner and household chores
+ MOVE MORE: Add a 20-minute walk around the neighborhood before settling in for the evening. Pump up your post-work chores with your favorite iPod playlist and dance while you dust. If you live in a house with stairs, make as many trips up and down them as possible, alternating between upstairs and downstairs jobs. Go beyond the usual sweeping up and start some big energy-burning projects like painting, remodelling, rearranging, and prettying up your place.

8:00-11:00 PM: Surf the web, watch TV
+ MOVE MORE: Sit in an exercise ball. Tie exercise bands around stable pieces of furniture and do arm curls and rows. Get up every half hour and take a quick trip up and down the stairs. Or dance around during commercials.

Body Beautiful

Summertime means smoldering hot beach weather and the perfect opportunity to showcase and flaunt the body you’ve been working hard to tone. Staying in shape during this particular season so you can fit into that itsy bitsy bikini is a must on many women’s lists.

Check out these simple suggestions on how to stay in your best form year-round:


REPLICATE POSITIVE BEHAVIOR. Look at the behavior or habits that helped you get into your best form. What specific activities (along with the timing, intensity and frequency) did you do that were easy to incorporate into your daily routine? Did you pack your own nutritious, home-cooked lunch to school or work instead of resorting to greasy fast food meals? Did you find yourself doing your one-hour workout after office hours rather than in the morning or over lunch break? Remember what worked well and continue to do them even after the summer.


JUNK FOOD SUBSTITUTES. Thou shalt not deny thy cravings, especially in the beginning. You’ll only end up depriving yourself and prompt your body for some major withdrawal and bingeing. It helps to wean yourself slowly from your waterloo of unhealthy junk and comfort food and then eventually replace them with healthier yet equally filling and satisfying choices: trading a tart and sweet cup of frozen yogurt for X number of donuts or a serving of fresh fruits for slices of cake. Stick to your substitutes all year round.


PORTION CONTROL AND FOOD-TO-EXERCISE RATIO. The simple math behind weight management confirms that if you want to maintain your weight, the number of calories you take in should equal the number of calories you burn. Adding to this equation more exercise will help you lose more disposable weight and will tone and shape your body.


KEEP ON MOVIN’!. You need to keep active, even if the only things you can manage during the wet months are walking up a flight of stairs rather than taking the elevator or doing chores like washing the car, gardening, or picking up after the kids. With just these, you’re already killing two birds with one stone: doing what you need to and burning calories while you’re at it! Of course, emphasis is still given to proper and regular exercise (an hour a day or every other day). More and more physicians are walking their talk as they prescribe exercise as the best form of illness prevention; this way, you keep your body's cells healthy and disease-free (obesity included).


ADD VARIETY TO YOUR EXERCISE. Acknowledge, anticipate, and plan for moments of sloth, boredom, and de-motivation. When you feel these setting in and your discipline slips because, after all, summer’s over with and you have a full year to prepare for the next beach season, mix up and switch your exercise routine to shake it off. Explore alternatives outside of your village or gym’s facilities or club/village’s sports complex. Try out a new sport that doesn’t confine you to a small space or that allows you to socialize with new people, such as Ultimate Frisbee, mountain trekking, kite-flying, Gotcha!, even squash.


SET SMALL GOALS WITH THE BIG. Set small, doable goals all throughout the year that serve as your fitness checkpoints: look and feel good in a new dress for you upcoming birthday, your high school reunion, or even as forward-looking as the Christmas holidays. Is there a mountain climbing vacation you and your friends are planning for which you want to be physically confident enough to trek? Face it: by keeping those extra pounds off, you’re saving yourself from an up-and-down cycle of weight gain and loss. The next thing you know, next summer will have arrived, and you’re even fitter and more fabulous than ever.


REWARD YOURSELF. Acknowledge your successful arrival at each of these checkpoints by rewarding yourself—ideally, of course, not in the form of food rewards, but by treating yourself to small accessories, an appointment at the spa or salon, maybe a new pocket book, magazine, or gadget.


STAY COMMITTED. This is always easier said than done. Since we know the occasional slip-up is inevitable, here are some ways to stay committed to your vow of overall health:

Journalize. Writing down your daily nutritional and caloric intake and workout plan along with your feelings and thoughts may be a bit too obsessive, and this may not be convenient for everyone, but it’s a tried and tested tool to monitor your eating and exercise habits, uncover major fluctuations, and outline adjustments to be made.

Count and Celebrate the Benefits. List down all the perks of keeping your curvacious Body – how did your mind, body, and spirit feel when you were in your best form?

Buddy up. Seek the support of your girlfriend, significant other, sibling or kids to help keep you on track.

Make sure you’re on the lookout for tragic loopholes that cause fitness setbacks. Stay vigilant in your resolve, and even after your summer tan fades away, you’ll be able to maintain that same fit and healthy glow.

Breathe Through It

If you’ve put on a few pounds, it might have as much to do with what’s in your head as what’s on your plate. “Emotional stress can cause weight gain”. It speeds the conversion of calories to fat because you’re more likely to overeat or make unhealthy choices when stressed. Manage the stress, and you’ll manage the weight. A great way to do that: Focus on slowing down your breathing, which will help reduce stress hormones.

TRY THIS: The Pursed-Lip Breath. Slow, practiced breathing increases HRV (heart rate variability) and makes you more aware of your actions, so you’d better able to lower your stress level and get a handle on overeating. A four-second nasal inhale followed by an eight-second exhale through puckered lips (as if exhaling through a straw). Another option: The Hindu breathing method called ujjayi. Inhale through your nose for six seconds, then exhale through your mouth for six seconds as if you’re trying to fog up a mirror, making a “hahahhh” sound while pulling in your abdomen. On your next breath, try making the same noise with your mouth closed. It should sound like a seashell against your ear.

Lose 1 pound per week, Cut Out 500 calories per day

Dodge dining-out disasters: Even your seemingly healthy grilled fish and vegetables can pack more calories and fat than a stick of butter. Many restaurant meals contain up to 2 ounces of added oil [500 calories]. Pasta dishes are notorius: Oil is used throughout cooking process and added to sauces and cooked noodles. Stick with steamed veggies and grilled, poached, or broiled lean protein (like poultry and fish).

Careful with that cappucino: Vanilla shots, caramel, sugar packets- they're not harmful just because they're in your cup of joe. A large white -chocolate mocha with whipped cream logs in at 630 calories (the whip alone has 100!). Get your sweet fix with two shots of sugar-free vanilla syrup in a medium cappuccino with soy or fat-free milk and kick 500 empty calories to the curb.

Dress down: Most entree salads at restaurants are pre-dressed with 6 to 10 tablespoons of dressing. And most dressings have 70 to 100 calories per tablespoon and 7 to 10 grams of fat. That's an average of 680 calories just for the dressing (not even counting croutons and bacon bits). Order dressing on the side and dip into it sparingly with your fork between bites. You'll cut back to about 2 tablespoons (roughly 175 calories).

Lighten up at happy hour: If it tastes sweet or has a salty rim, it's bad news. Most cocktails have 2 to 5 ounces of liquor. Add in 5 ounces of sugary syrups or mixers and you can down more than 700 calories in just one drink! Go for a bottle of light beer, which contain around 125 calories each.

Live Right!

Listen to your body that's what health gurus always say. But to those who are always on the go, listening to what the body needs is simply to fill the stomach with food and sleep before the clock strikes midnight.

It all starts with the body because when one learns how to maintain a healthy body, one's mind will be free from the perception of stress and will easily respond faster and function longer. This will give a person more time to do what his heart desires.

Heaving the air in and out with matching heaving in and out of the shoulders is not the proper way to do it. But since most people are taught this way, it consequently became a habit. It is important to learn how to breathe properly since 70 percent of the toxins go out through exhalation. When a person wakes up feeling tired, full, and heavy because of the previous nights' sortie of unmindful eating and an unhealthy lifestyle, he will carry the same bad feeling towards the rest of the day. Thus, eating is not just gorging on whatever food to satisfy hunger. Rather it should be seen as a way to nourish the body. Laughter is another factor that could lead to holistic health. Laughter is a way to condition the mind and body. Proper diet is a choice. However, given too many food choices, keeping a healthy body seems like an uphill climb. One may be determined one moment, then give up the next. Only when consequences like hypertension, diabetes, or digestive track related diseases start to manifest will one begin to really think. One of the causes of hypertension, diabetes, and colon diseases is the lack of proper diet including lack of fiber. Constipation, weight gain, feeling tired and nauseous, most of the time, are diet related. But proper diet is a choice. Free the body from unwanted waste and waist.

Being healthy is not that difficult after all. The trick to living right is taking those baby steps to live healthy, exercising more regularly, getting enough sleep, adding fruit to meals, and incorporating fiber in my daily regimen. And don't forget to laugh heartily.

Sitting Disease

Even if you think you have an energetic lifestyle, sitting is how most of us spend a good part of our day. And it's killing us-literally-by way of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. All this downtime is so unhealthy that it's giving birth to a new area of medical study called inactivity physiology, which explores the effects of our increasingly butt-bound, tech driven lives, as well as a deadly new epidemic researchers have dubbed "sitting disease".

Electronic living has all but sapped every flicker of activity from our daily lives. You can shop, pay bills, make a living, and with Twitter and Facebook, even catch up with friends without so much as standing up.

When you sit for an extended period of time, your body starts to shut down at the metabolic level. When muscles, especially the big ones meant for movement, like those in your legs, are immobile, your circulation slows and you burn fewer calories. Key flab-burning enzymes responsible for breaking down triglycerides (a type of fat) start switching off. Sit for a full day and those fat burners plummet by 50 percent.

The less you move, the less blood sugar your body uses; and your chance of contracting diabetes goes up 7 percent. Your risk of heart disease goes up, too, because enzymes that keep blood fats in check are inactive. With less blood flow, fewer feel-good hormones are circulating to your brain.

Shake things up throughout the day by interrupting your sedentary stints as often as possible. Stand up every half hour. If you are at home, limit the TV time two hours or less. Better yet, watch it from a treadmill or exercise bike.

Swapping a more active approach for just a few of your daily activities can help stave off the one-to-two pound weight gain most of us accumulate every year.

Fitness Goals

Working out is really a competition-against yourself.. And the best way to know if you're winning is to track your progress. Sounds great, except it's hard enough to remember to pack a sports bra, much less recall how much weight you hoisted last Tuesday. That's why you've gotta write it down. Every detail on paper will let you know when to scale back and when to jack it up a notch. Even better, you'll know you're getting fitter.

Easy Fiber In 5 Foods

Whole Fruits. The peels of fruits are good sources of fiber. Leave the skin on when you snack on apples and potatoes.

Dried Fruits. Substitute junk food for raisins, and prunes to get your fiber fix.

Browns. Instead of white bread and white rice, opt for the browns: wholemeal bread and brown or wild rice.

Beans. Almost all beans are full of fiber. With the many types, you can have them in almost anything- soups, salads, among others.

Smoothies. Skip the soda and fattening drinks. Whip up a yoghurt drink partnered with fruits.

This Is Your Brain On Fat

Weight gain could increase your risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Overweight people had an average of 4 percent less brain tissue than normal-weight adults; obese subjects had 8 percent less. Most depleted was the frontal lobe, the same area affected by dementia.

A high-fat diet clogs arteries, so oxygen can't reach brain cells and they die. So get moving: Aerobic exercise increase oxygen to your brain, which helps preserve tissue.

Sip green tea

You might love your lattes, but if you switch to green tea, not only will you get a healthy dose of disease-fighting compounds, you'll also cut body fat. In a study from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, people who drank a bottle of tea fortified with green tea extract every day for three months lost more body fat than people who drank black tea. Researchers at a health care lab in Tokyo believe disease-fighting antioxidants called catechins in green tea may help decrease body fat.

Healthy Snacks Part IV

13. Pumpkin Seeds

Why Eat Them?
* Good source of zinc
* High source of phosphorus and rich source of magnesium, important for bone health which, together with B vitamins in the seeds, helps turn food into energy
* Rich in iron, needed to form red blood cells

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Mix with sunflower seeds for a healthy blend of beneficial omega 3 & 6 fats
* Sprinkle on cereal salads, rice dishes or enjoy them on their own as a snack
* Add to baked recipes eg breads, cakes, flapjacks


14. Raisins

Why Eat Them?
* A high energy low fat snack
* Contains natural antioxidants
* Good source of insoluble and soluble fibre
* Full of natural sugars which may help sustain energy

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on when exercising outdoors or gardening
* Sprinkle over cereals, porridge, muesli or yoghurt
* Mix with other dried fruit, nuts and seeds to create a healthy snack


15. Sunflower Seeds

Why Eat Them?
* Contain beneficial antioxidants, vitamin E and selenium which may help protect cell membranes from damage by free radicals
* Full of magnesium, required for normal nerve and muscle function
* Contains phosphorus, which when combined with magnesium, may also support bone health
* These two minerals, together with B vitamins, are essential for energy release in the body
* High in protein and low in carbohydrates

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Mix with pumpkin seeds for a healthy blend of beneficial omega 3 & 6 fats
* Sprinkle over cereal, yoghurts, salads, rice dishes or enjoy them on their own as a snack


16. Walnuts

Why Eat Them?
* Rich in omega 3 fatty acids with research shows, may help reduce cholesterol levels
* Have one of the highest ratios of polyunsaturated (good) to saturated (bad) fats (7:1) of any natural food
* Good source of fibre, protein, folic acid, vitamin B6, magnesium and phosphorus
* Natural source of melatonin, a hormone which regulates sleep-wake cycles

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Use in baking recipes
* Mix with other nuts, dried nuts and seeds to create a healthy snack
* Add chopped pieces to salads, muesli or yoghurts

Healthy Snacks Part III

9. Linseed (Flaxseed)

Why Eat Them?
* Fibre rich to help maintain healthy digestion and bowels
* High in soluble fibre which research shows may help lower cholesterol
* Rich in lignans, used by the body to produce compounds called phytoestrogens which may help regulate certain hormone levels
* Good source of calcium, iron, and zinc

How To Eat/Use Them
* Eat straight from the packet
* Add to baking or cooking recipes such as scones or stews
* Add to yoghurts or soups to enhance texture, flavour and dietary value


10. Macadamias

Why Eat Them?
* Low in sodium
* High in monounsaturated (good) fat
* Cholesterol free
* Good source of nutrient (potassium 410mg per 100g); phosphorus (200mg per 100g);
magnesium (120mg per 100g); and calcium (62mg per 100g)

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* eat as a healthy hunger busting snack instead of crisps or chocolate
* Add to cereals or make your own muesli by mixing rolled oats, bran, seeds, dried fruit and macadamias
* Use chopped in yoghurts, baked goods, pasta, risotto, stir fries or Asian style cuisine


11. Pistachios

Why Eat Them?
* One of the lowest fat nuts
* Have dense levels of eight essential nutrients – thiamin, vitamin B6, copper, manganese, potassium, fibre, phosphorus and magnesium in 100g of shelled nuts
* Contain more lutein, beta-carotene and zeaxanthin than any other nut

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on – shelling them helps extend the snack experience!
* A 30g serving makes a healthy snack for only 87 calories and has more 30 different vitamins, minerals and other beneficial nutrients
* Can be chopped up and sprinkled over cereals, yoghurt or added to muesli
* Combine well with chocolate in many pudding recipes


12. Prunes

Why Eat Them?
* Rich source of fibre. The insoluble fibre provides food for “friendly” bacteria in the large intestine
* High in antioxidants, essential for countless processes in the body
* Virtually fat free
* High in minerals and good source of iron

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Can be eaten straight from the packet
* Add to cereals, porridge or yoghurt or eat with hot custard
* Add chopped & pitted to recipes, smoothies & juices

Get Rid of Your Love Handles Now!

To get rid of love handles, you’ll simply need to trim down your overall body fat.

Some people are blessed with the ability to spread it all over the body, whereas others seem to upsurge fat in certain areas, and love handles are a frequent offender. If you are fit and trim save for your slight bulges, then doing exercises to get rid of love handles by targeting the external obliques and latissimus dorsi can help diminish fat and create muscle tone in an instant. Weight loss is tricky, but it isn’t complicated as you think. With obedience and a little information, you’ll get rid of your love handles in no time.

A lifestyle change should be followed and always remember that! Fad diets, pills, and absurd contraptions peddled by celebrities don’t work. Changing how you live isn’t easy. Begin by assessing where you are—by writing down your goals, your weaknesses, and the hindrances in order to change your life, such as finding time to work out. If you’re really pressured of getting rid of love handles, you need to focus on your goals and make it happen.

Diet is the most essential variable in weight loss. Consuming fewer calories than you burn up each day is the essential part in this activity. Normally, the average healthy person should be getting 2,000 calories a day, but if you are trying to lose love handles and fat in general, you should be digesting somewhere between 1,400 and 1,800 calories only on a daily basis. However, just a precaution - if you reduce your daily caloric eating much further, you’ll suffer energy loss, reduced cognitive function (extended brain farts), and other health problems related to inadequate nutrition. Losing more than 1—2 pounds a week is not recommended.

Bring to an end your ingestion of high energy density foods (saturated fat, starchy carbohydrates, red meat) and start focusing your interest on eating low energy density foods (fruits and vegetables). Fruits and veggies should be the basis of your diet since it contains fewer calories per gram, and you can eat them almost with no limit. They are also rich in vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals that prevent diseases.

Aside from diet and nutrition, aerobic exercise and weight training will accelerate weight loss. For getting rid of love handles, aerobic exercise such as walking, jogging, sustained exertion, among others is more important than any abdominal exercise. It is not only essential to get rid of love handles, but will have many benefits beyond your appearance, for instance increased energy, improved moods, and greater physical health. Increasing your heart rate and breathing for at least 40 minutes as many days a week as possible is also recommended. Remember that diet is not the only solution in getting rid of your love handles – you should indulge on weight training, or anaerobic exercise, so that your muscle mass will increase, which eventually leads to increased metabolism.

Yes, there are “love handles exercises”, but they don’t work as advertised. Abdominal exercises like side bends do burn calories, but these anaerobic exercises are mostly about building and toning muscle, and you won’t see results if said muscles are hidden under fat folds of shame. Without weight loss through diet, aerobic exercise, and lifestyle changes, the love handles exercises are without merit; however, if you’re dealing with slight love handles or just a little flab, you may see results in a matter of weeks. Rather than looking up exercises on the Internet, go to a local gym and have a personal trainer safely demonstrate how to strengthen your whole core.

Healthy Snacks Part II

5. Dates

Why Eat Them?
* Nature’s natural sweets
* High in natural sugars and carbohydrates, they are easily digested to provide a quick and healthy energy boost
* Low in fat and a good source of fibre to support healthy digestion and bowels
* High in iron and potassium and contain modest amount of folate and a small amount of vitamin A, and the B vitamins

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Add chopped or sliced dates to cereals, porridge, yoghurt or smoothies
* Use in baking recipes

6. Figs

Why Eat Them?
* Fibre rich for healthy digestion
* Contain natural sugars to help balance blood sugar levels to prevent cravings
* Good source of non dairy calcium- 100g of fig is equal to 250mg of calcium – and
magnesium, required for nerve and muscle function
* Good source of iron, important for producing red blood cells

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great snacking for
* Add chopped or sliced figs to cereals, porridge, yoghurt or smoothies
* Mix with other dried fruit, nuts and seeds to create a healthy snack


7. Ginger

Why Eat Them?
* It may help quell nausea resulting from travel, motion or pregnancy sickness
* It is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine
* Research is currently being carried out into the possible anti-inflammatory properties of ginger

How To Eat/Use Them
* Adds a wonderful zing to all types of dishes and is a favorite ingredient in many Chinese and Indian dishes
* Put pieces of crystallized ginger on toothpicks as a sweet alternative to chocolate parties
* Can be found in a variety of foods and drinks, including gingerbread, ginger snaps, ginger sticks and ginger ale

8. Goji Berries

Why Eat Them?
* Nutritionally rich, they contain beta carotene (vitamin A), important for strengthening the immune system
* High in antioxidants which maintain cell health and may help fight the ageing process
* Contain a unique combination of sugar which may help stabilize blood sugar and help curb appetites

How To Eat/Use Them
* Eat straight from the bag or soak in water for a couple of minutes to rehydrate
* Add to smoothies or juices
* Sprinkle over cereals, porridge, salads or yoghurts
* Can be added to recipes

Healthy Snacks Part I

1. Almonds

Why Eat Them?
* Naturally cholesterol free
* Rich in vitamin E, low in saturated fat and a good source of fibre, protein, riboflavin, biotin, magnesium and calcium.
* Contains 13 essential nutrients. A handful daily may help lower LDL, or ‘bad’ cholesterol
* May aid weight loss as they can make you feel fuller for longer

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Use in baking recipes
* Mix with other dried fruit, nuts and seeds to create a healthy snack
* Can be added to muesli or smoothies



2. Apricots

Why Eat Them?
* Contain vitamin A, good for healthy heart, skin and eyes
* Low in fat and high in complex carbohydrates
* Packed with beta-carotene (vitamin A), a powerful antioxidant, which may help promote good vision
* Good source of iron, needed by the body to produce red blood cells; and fibre, to help maintain healthy digestion and bowels.

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Satisfy sweet cravings by eating unsulphured naturalapricots which have a similar taste to caramel
* Eating straight from bag or place in a bowl, pour boiling water and leave for several minutes to plump up
* Add chopped or sliced apricots to muesli, cereals, porridge or yoghurt.


3. Brazilian Nuts

Why Eat Them?
* Packed with selenium, a powerful antioxidant vital for helping boost our immune systems
* Contain phytoestrogens which are thought to help improve menopausal symptoms.
* Rich in vitamin E, and phosphorus and magnesium, both required for bone health
* Good source of zinc, essential for helping process the carbohydrate, protein and fat in the food we eat

How To Eat/Use Them
*Great for snacking on
* Use in baking recipes
* Can be eaten raw or coated in chocolate yoghurt
* Mix with other dried fruit, nuts and seeds to create a healthy snack


4. Cashews

Why Eat Them?
* Nutrient rich with a satisfying crunch taste
* Good source of protein and naturally cholesterol free
* Rich in iron
* About 75% of the unsaturated fatty acid in cashews is oleic acid, which may help reduce cholesterol levels in the blood when combined with a low fat diet.
* Rich in magnesium and phosphorus, both important for healthy bones, teeth, and joints
* Rich in zinc, good for keeping immune system healthy and essential for good digestion and metabolism

How To Eat/Use Them
* Great for snacking on
* Can be eaten raw, oven roasted or salted
* Use in recipes, particularly Chinese or Indian dishes
* Mix with other dried fruit, nuts and seeds to create a healthy snack

Buid Your Biceps with Chinups

There's an old saying among fitness pros: "If you can't complete at least 10 chinups, you have no business doing an arm curls". That's because chinups work your biceps as hard as arm curls do, but they also help build upper-body strength. So if you're too weak to do several reps of the chinup, you should expend more energy training your entire upper body and less on one specific muscle group. Once you can do 10 chinups, though, you can strategically use the chinup to boost the size of your biceps.

Directions: Grab a chinup bar with an underhand grip, your hands about six inches apart. Now pull your chest to the bar as if you were doing regular chinup. However, as you lower your body after your sixth repetition, pause for three seconds at three different positions: once when your elbows are bent at less than 90 degrees; once when they're bent at exactly 90 degrees; and once when they're bent at more than 90 degrees. Do this for as many additional repetitions as you can. Rest for 60 seconds, and do one more set.

A Sweet Solution

You don't have to give up sweets to give up your gut. According to a study, those who ate the most candy also downed the most fruit. The connection, of course, is both taste sweet. But the same amount of fruit, byw eight, contains far less sugar and packs a healthy dose of belly-filling fiber.

Cas in point: A rergular package of Skittles has 47 grams (g) of sugar, while half a cup of blueberries serves up just 8g.

Call In The Zinc Police

If your diet is low in folic acid and zinc, you run the risk of elevated levels of the protein homocysteine, which can contribute to the onset of Alzheimer's later in life. The higher the homocysteine, the greater the damage to the brain. Folica cid was found to lower homocysteine levels in a three-year study.

Best sources: Wheatgerm, spinach, sprouts, lentils, black-eyed peas, soya beans, green peas, artichokes, brocolli, beets, and oranges.

How Are You Putting On Weight?

Are you just eating more? If so, then most likely you're putting on pounds of fat. And since we men have a predisposition to store extra fat around our middles, you're probably just following nature's wishes. Try going back to your original diet and work on the parts where you want more weight on. Work on your core, which will not only give you six-pack, but also make your work easier by transferring power to your limbs more effectively. From there, you can pick one exercise for each body part. Don't overdo working out, though, since you're already burning a lot of calories from work. Twice a week workouts should do it. Then, you can slowly add more calories to your diet once you think you're getting too lean or tired.

Eat, Drink, & Be Healthy

Think back before you snack. People who reviewed their last meal before snacking ate 30 percent fewer calories than those who didn’t stop to think. The theory: Remembering what you’ve already eaten makes you less likely to divulge.

Stubborn Fat. Reduce your starches to one serving or less on days you don’t work out; ramp back up to two servings on days when you exercise intensely.

Keep A Running Total. Throughout the day, scratch a tally mark each time you eat a serving from one of the six food groups. Dieters who keep only a basic food journal are as successful as those who record every bite.

Turn Off The TV. Men and women who watch TV during a meal consume, on average 288 more calories than those who don’t eat with the tube on.

Full-Fat Cheese

This dairy product is an excellent source of casein protein - one of the best muscle-building nutrients you can eat. What's more, when men ate 10 ounces of full-fat cheese daily for three weeks, their LDL ("bad') cholesterol didn't budge.

Mix It Up

Try something different every few weeks. Work with balls (stability, medicine, BOSU, reaction), kettlebells, elastic tubings and bands, chains, and agility ladders. You'll avoid being in a rut and your body will react positively to the new stimulus. Just make sure to get expert instruction.