Being fit and healthy is the ‘in thing’. Actually, it really never goes out of style. Your body is the most valuable asset you could have in your lifetime. That’s why it is important that you take good care of it. Give it the proper attention it needs.

When it comes to ensuring and maintaining health, the best option is to do cardio training.

What Is Cardio Training?

Cardio training involves any activity that requires the use of the large muscle groups of the body in a regular and uninterrupted manner. Some of the usual cardio training activities are walking, jogging, running, aerobics, cycling, swimming and rowing. Cardio training is considered an aerobic exercise, as you are required to move from one exercise to another.

What Are the Benefits of Training?

1. Gives Energy to the Body

You can expect more energy and higher endurance after some time of regular cardio training.

2. Prevents Diseases

You can prevent heart diseases with regular cardio training. It is also helpful in preventing other varieties of disease like diabetes, obesity and even high cholesterol. Cardiovascular training strengthens the heart and the lungs. Low to moderate types of cardio exercises are required for people seeking to prevent diseases. Examples of these are walking, brisk walking or jogging.

3. Control Your Weight

With cardio training, you are able to burn more calories. This will help you lose weight. Some of you may have already achieved your ideal body weight but  this training will make it easier to keep it under control.

Cardio training helps burn calories. However this generally depends on your current weight and the kind of cardio training you decide to do.

4. Lose Body Fats

Excess fats that continually bother you can become a thing of the past with cardio training. These activities involve the movements of large muscle groups. Regularly doing this training will make you leaner.

5. Get Rid of Boredom

Cardio training is fun. It pumps up your system. You will definitely feel more energized and on the go.

Cardio training is great for when you want to make health improvements. In the beginning it is best to do 30 to 45 minutes of exercise, 3 to 5 days a week. If you are aiming for weight loss, the training must be done roughly 5 days a week. The more frequently you do it; the more likely it is that you will lose weight. However, avoid exhausting yourself with too much exercise. Avoid going beyond 45 minutes.

Start now. Walk or ride a bike around the neighborhood. Follow that aerobics video you bought. Set a goal and follow it. At the same time, modify your diet too. Eat healthier food.

Avoid doing cardio exercises before bedtime. You will have a difficult time sleeping if you do so as the energy level of the body will stay high for sometime.

It is best to take a snack 30 minutes before doing cardio exercises. Do not start training on an empty stomach. This will not help in achieving the proper momentum when you train. At the same time, avoid indulging in large meals before exercising. Just give your body the proper supply it will need to sustain the cardio movements.

It is good to do cardio exercises outdoors. This way you can easily interact with nature and breathe fresh air. Be consistent and stick with the training once you have started it. This is the only way that cardio training will benefit your body and your health in the long run.

By Louisa Medley

What Is a Stability Ball?

This large inflatable ball is used as exercise equipment. It is filled with air and is capable of holding 600 to 700 pounds of weight. It is comfortable and gives good support.

The good thing about using the stability ball is it reduces the perception of working in training, especially for beginners. It gives some element of play and adds some fun and excitement as you advance in the movements and techniques.

Another good point with the ball is that it can be used by anybody. No fitness level is required. It is very portable and lightweight, easy to bring along even when travelling. It is also inexpensive compared to other exercise equipment and it can last for a very long time.

What Are the Benefits of Using a Stability Ball?

The stability ball definitely improves the strength of the abs and the lower back. It improves the functional strength, balance and flexibility of your body.

1. Proper Alignment

Using the ball during training will test the body to make use of the different parts to maintain proper balance. The dynamic movements during exercise will improve the natural motor reflexes of the body as different muscles are utilized in movement, especially the ones that are not usually used. The challenge posed by the ball is to maintain balance. As one aims to get the proper balance, the alignment of the body parts is also improved.

2. Great Abs

For people working out to achieve great abs, this ball can definitely target the abdominal areas. The abs and the back muscles are simultaneously moved as you work on your balance. Just imagine the good feeling of having a flat stomach area and you will definitely love this ball.

3. Muscle Strength and Endurance

The stability ball can help in alleviating any back pain and preventing back problems in the future. As all the major muscle groups are exercised, muscle tone, strength and endurance are also improved. This teaches the body flexibility, stability and resistance.

4. Core Stability

This concerns the major muscles that help to stabilize and support all of the body’s movements. This is made up of back and the deep abdominal muscles. With the ball, no matter how deep or into the core these muscles are, they are still exercised. This is something only the stability ball can guarantee.

5. Stretching

The ball is a good companion during stretching exercises. With this you can easily move into and move out of different stretching positions.

6. Losing Weight

Of course, with all the good benefits of using the ball, you will not miss out on the aspect of losing weight. With regular exercises and training using the stability ball, a person can lose some unwanted pounds as the body is firmed.

Health is definitely your most important asset. So do your regular exercises and maintain a healthy diet. Furthermore, enjoy happy and fun training with the stability ball.

By Louisa Medley

Does Alli work as a weight loss pill? The quick answer seems to be yes, but there is a downside, so read on.

What is Alli?

Alli is the over-the-counter name for orlistat and is essentially a fat blocker. It works by preventing the body from absorbing the fat from the foods that we eat, and it is the one freely available drug that has FDA backing for its claims to aid weight loss. You might think you could eat all the fatty foods you liked and then take Alli in order to not gain weight but sadly that is not true. It should always be taken with a low fat diet plan as this will increase your weight loss.

How much can you lose with Alli?

The amount of weight loss achieved with Alli is variable. In a study involving one-year clinical trials, between 35.5% and 54.8% of participants attained a 5% or greater decrease in body mass. Between 16.4% and 24.8% of the subjects achieved a 10% or more decrease in body mass. In combination with a calorie-controlled diet, the effects could be expected to be greater. It was also shown to reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The participants regained an average of one third of the weight that they had lost after stopping Alli, but this is typical of most dieters.

Disadvantages

The main disadvantage of Alli is the side effects, which center around digestive and bowel problems. The higher the fat content in the diet, the greater these side effects are likely to be, as the undigested fat is expelled from the body. Flatulence, loose stools and bowel incontinence can result, especially in the early stages before the body is accustomed to the drug. The manufacturer’s website warns, “You may feel an urgent need to go to the bathroom’.

However these side effects are reduced if you stick to the recommended low fat diet and as the manufacturers hint, the potentially embarrassing side effects can even be helpful in encouraging you to keep to your diet. Always remember that Alli does not claim to work without consistent efforts toward weight loss from you. What they do claim is that it can improve your weight loss by up to 50%. That would mean a person who lost 10 pounds without taking Alli would lose 15 pounds taking it. It boosts your weight loss and rewards your efforts with better results than you could get by yourself. Note though that individual results will vary and are not guaranteed.

Our Conclusion

Sadly there is no magic diet pill that will melt away your excess pounds while you sleep, but Alli is a pill that has documented results. If you are determined to lose weight and have been struggling with diets without much effect, it may be a good time to discuss it with your doctor and find out if Alli will work for you.

By Louisa Medley

One thing I am not a fan of is fad diets and new products that claim you can lose weight fast with minimal effort. Once you’ve purchased it and try it out you realize it was all a big lie. Well it seems this amazing new product ‘The Slim Girls Box of Secrets’ can do just that and I am so excited about this product.

‘The Slim Girls Box of Secrets’ is unlike anything else you will have tried, you don’t need to go to the gym, you can eat whatever you like as there are no banned foods and it promises you can lose 14 pounds or more in a month or you can have your money back.

I decided to get reviewing and contacted Ali Campbell the nutritionist to the stars, who is the brains behind this new product. Once the product arrived I opened the stylish box to find it contained: 2 DVD’s, 2 CD’s, a 220-page book and a styling kit, it looked incredibly impressive.

After watching the interesting DVD’s, I relaxed to the hypnosis CD’s and read through the book, which is such an easy book to follow. I realized this program was not based upon dieting and exercising but was focused around the battle in your mind and how winning that can boost weight loss. It covers such areas as:

Why you must let go of feeling ‘fat’

How to ‘switch off’ emotional hunger

How to lose weight whilst sitting on the couch, and plenty more.

It may seem surreal but I decided to speak to the man behind the box, Ali Campbell, to see why this approach is so successful.

Ali Campbell is a nutritionist, life coach and hypnotherapist to the stars taught by the famous Paul McKenna. He can boast a long list of clients stretching from the royal family to Mica Paris. He said that conventional weight loss programs focus on changing too much and in fact weight loss can begin by simply changing your own mental perspective. This type of program has never been released before so it is unique in everyway. The contents of the box are easy to follow but you also receive online support along your journey from some of the best coaches, personal trainers, therapists and stylists in the world. Such people as:

Ali Campbell

Nicky Hambleton-Jones (10 years younger, CH4)

Annie Ashdown (Life coach on Kyles Academy, ITV)

Dr Carole McAlister, and many more.

I am trying to think of bad things to say about this product but all in all it seems great, not to mention the many success stories highly publicized in all top UK fashion magazines. I guess not all the people who purchase this product will lose 14 pounds in one month but with a 45-day money back guarantee I think it’s pretty obvious this product is genuine. If it’s not right for you, you always have the security of sending it back.

I personally have a lot of confidence in this product. My sister decided to take my box and give it a go and within her first two weeks she had lost 6 pounds. Due to this, my conclusion is that I would definitely recommend The Slim Girls Box of Secrets. It is a safe, healthy, supportive method of losing weight. To purchase this wonderful product or gain more information click on this link www.theslimgirlsboxofsecrets.com.

By Louisa Medley

Banishing your food cravings is one of the fastest ways to lose weight. Cravings for fatty, sugary and such ‘great’ foods are just parts of the brain associating these types of food with satisfaction, so your mind naturally presents these options to you before any others. There are different types of cravings that you need to recognise and alter so that the excess weight can start to fall off.

Psychological Cravings

Sugar cravings are a common craving for most people, when carbohydrates such as sweets, chocolate, bread and sugar are eaten your body turns them into blood sugar which, if not burnt off, is converted into fat and stored till later. Often the fat is not burnt off and then the weight piles on.

Cravings Related to Thirst

Your body naturally craves food and particular nutrients to remain chemically balanced. Cravings come normally when your body is actually thirsty, this is why people normally mistake hunger for food. If you feel hungry drink some water, if the hunger doesn’t pass then eat something small and healthy.

Emotional Cravings

There are three emotional cravings that your mind will link to you eating. These cravings often lead to excess weight gain.

1. Craving Comfort

When a craving comes and it’s for a ‘little something’ a ‘little treat’ this is normally an emotional craving. What is the craving for? Is this craving linked to a desire to be relaxed, are you eating due to stress?

2. Craving Love

The famous saying is ‘the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach’. Food and love are linked throughout life. Do you choose chocolate to try and meet your needs for love? No amount of chocolate can make you feel loved, special or wanted. Rather than resorting to food look at the depth of your reasons. Addressing painful things in life can change a lot of things not just your weight.

3. Craving Security

A basic need for everyone is wanting all our problems to go away, the need to be taken care of, relieving stress, and avoiding fear. Often, when we’re stressed we opt for snacks, if something happens we often tend to turn to food rather than facing the issue.

Our cravings may be emotional or physical. To satisfy your cravings take your mind off food and distract yourself. Grab a glass of juice or water and keep busy, watch a film, read a book, call a friend or go for a walk. If they are emotional address the issue and ask yourself if you really want to respond to the craving and potentially gain weight. Break the cycle, opt for a healthier option and remember where you want to go and don’t caught up in the moment.

By Louisa Medley

Certain diets fail and in order to lose weight easy it’s important that you set goals for improving your health and fitness levels as well as losing weight. Eating healthy food and taking regular exercise are the main factors to easy weight loss but we must also overcome the battle with our minds.

The majority of us know which foods make us fat and which make us healthy. As humans we tend to focus on the problems that result from eating unhealthy food rather than the underlying causes of why we are eating unhealthily.  Diet is the normal amount of food and drink consumed by a person. It can be restricted due to the levels of nutrition each person needs. By looking at the following reasons why diets fail you can take a look at why you eat negatively and if a restricted ‘diet’ is something you need to consider.

1. Your identity has stemmed from being overweight

Losing weight can threaten long, sometimes life held-beliefs about ourselves and when we lose weight we feel that we don’t know who we are anymore. If we cannot create alternative beliefs we could potentially return to old familiar ground where we feel comfortable and safe.  Sometimes, being overweight can lead us to not take full responsibility for our lives and we use our weight to blame everything on.

2. Are your emotional needs being met?

Are you under stress? Do you feel lonely? In the absence of people do you resort to chocolate, crisps, and over sized portions? Does the emotional connection to food give you immediate satisfaction and comfort? Ensuring your emotional needs are being met may mean you will not resort to food as second nature.

3. You have failed to develop sustainable habits that will keep the weight off after you’ve lost it

If you truly desire to lose weight then negative habits, if replaced, will cause loosing weight to become easy. Sustainable habits need to be practiced until they become automatic and if they are programmed into our subconscious minds we will do them literally without thinking. These habits could be to grab a glass of water, a book, a magazine, or to get a cuddle from a loved one or friend. Instead of opting to snack in front of the TV you will instantly opt for an alternative.

If the above are addressed then if you want to lose weight easy, you will. Give yourself a new identity, find ways to meet your emotional needs, and build new sustainable habits into your subconscious and you will lose weight easy.

By Louisa Medley

How to lose weight? A question asked by millions of people across the globe who desire to rid excess fat and improve their health. Searching online for information at times can be hopeless with countless businesses selling you ‘the answer’ in a box forcing you into buying something you don’t necessarily need.

Weight loss can be easy if you truly commit to change. There are three reasons why weight is gained and if these are avoided then this is how to lose weight. These three basic facts and tips will ensure weight loss:

Tip 1. Eat only when you’re hungry

Tip 2. Don’t eat more than you need

Tip 3. Keep your body on the move

Fact 1: eating more food than your body can burn off will cause you to put on weight

This simple equation should help; your calorific input should not exceed your energy output. Reducing food input so you eat no more than an amount that satisfies you will cause you to lose weight. Increase your energy outputs by doing exercise, which will increase your fitness levels. Eating a healthy varied diet that is low in saturated fats, salt and sugar.

Fact 2: if you are eating when you are not hungry, you are overeating.

Eat only when you are hungry, at times we eat and we know were not hungry and excess fat is stored. Storing excess fat will make you miserable and then overeating becomes a friend of yours. When you feel hungry ask yourself,

How do I decide when it’s time to eat?

When do I know when to stop eating?

Has my stomach rumbled?

Am I genuinely hungry?

Fact 3: ‘fast’ metabolisms do not exist, but you can make yours more efficient

Metabolism is a chemical process that operates at the same speed all the time within our systems . It is the amount of energy used up by your body. What changes is the amount of fuel you burn each day. This can be increased and improved by exercising which makes no change to the rate at which you burn calories. What this basically means is keep moving and you will lose weight. Join a gym, start yoga classes, go dancing, run each morning, and you will lose weight.

By Louisa Medley

Most people who want to lose weight want to lose it fast without dieting and exercise. Health supplements, workout plans, personal training, diets and vitamins can help with weight loss but sometimes the simplest of changes to your life can make a huge change to your body shape and also your energy levels. There are three tips that if you learn can help you lose weight fast and they are all to do with your eating habits. So let’s begin the process:

Tip No.1 Eat what your body asks for

In life we meet women who say ‘I can eat whatever food I want and I never put on weight’ they don’t count calories and they definitely don’t struggle with obesity, so how does this work? Even if they include fast food, sweets, chocolate within their diet they don’t put on weight. This is due to the amount of food they eat which is normally eaten in much smaller quantities.  They are able to do this because they ask their bodies what they want and fast sugary high in fat foods are not the desirable daily option.

So adopt the new habit of eating healthy, ask your body what it really wants. Deep down inside you don’t want to be overweight and after a while the foods you thought you craved you no longer do. Or when you do it is not as often as you used to.  Allow your body the freedom to choose and the foods that were once forbidden you realise don’t have the same affect on you any more.

It doesn’t matter what you eat as long as you don’t eat more than you need. Just ask yourself if you’re tuned into what your body is telling you.

Tip No.2 Eat when your stomach is empty

The aim of this tip is to eat in response to hunger, don’t eat with the idea that ‘I’ll be hungry soon, or I should eat because its time to eat’. Overweight people eat before they are hungry and then spend time snacking before they think it is time to eat. Hunger pangs are an indication of hunger but can normally be warded off with a glass of water or a small healthy snack of fruit or vegetables. Eat when you are hungry, eat slowly, and stop eating when you feel satisfied.

Tip No.3 Eat until you are pleasantly satisfied, then stop

This tip will most help with fast weight loss. When cooking, if using recipes, cook for the precise amount of people eating. Don’t overcook and feel tempted to snack for the rest of the evening. Get to know the correct portion size per meal and stick to this, being hungry after eating a full meal is a state of mind. You are full do not over eat. It takes 20-25 minutes for signals to be sent to your brain that you are now satisfied, eat slowly and let your body operate in its natural way.

By Louisa Medley

In order to lose the fat stored in your body and to lose weight it is great to start with a healthy diet. In an age where diabetes and obesity are high our eating habits need to be changed so that our health improves.

The word ‘diet’ can bring a negative stigma but really it is just the intake of food. By cooking fresh food, checking the nutritional content of ingredients, experimenting with new and fun recipes, alongside occasional exercise such as yoga or pilates, weight will be lost. The following groups of food will lead to a healthy diet and can replace negative eating addictions.

• Fruit
• Vegetables
• Grains and Pulses
• Nuts and Seeds
• Protein

Fruits make yummy low-calorie and low-fat snacks and are a very important part of our diets. Fruits do contain a natural sugar but they also contain vital vitamins that are crucial to your digestive systems. Watermelon has a high GI of 72 but a low GL of 10 due to it being made up of 92% water. Watermelon contains vitamins B5, beta-carotene, folic acid; calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium.

Vegetables are low in calories and in fat but at the same time are highly nutritious. Vegetables are high in fibre, which ensures the digestive system works properly, clearing away any toxins and makes sure our body is hydrated. Fresh and raw is the best way to eat vegetables but a great way is to blend them into juices. Carrots are great for cleansing the system and are perfect for a detox as they regulate any imbalances in our bodies. Carrots contain vitamin C, beta-carotene, folic acid; iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc and fibre.

Grains and pulses are full of carbohydrates and high in calories but these are the right sort of carbohydrates. They are a vital part of a diet and need to be taken into account. They boost energy and regulate blood-fat levels. Wholewheat pasta releases energy slowly into our systems. It contains more nutrients than white pasta, it is high in fibre and the absorption of sugar is restricted too.

Nuts and Seeds if eaten in moderation are also an important part of a healthy diet. The following nuts and seeds are rich in healthy fats and are a good source of protein; cashew nuts, walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds are the most nutritious nuts followed by sunflower, sesame, pumpkin seeds which have high levels of zinc and great antioxidant cleaners.

Protein is needed for cellular growth and repair. Protein can be found in fish, meat, poultry, game, dairy, eggs, beans, lentils, nuts, seeds and tofu. The most common protein is chicken. Skinless chicken breasts that are not deep-fried are a great slimming option. It contains vitamins A, B3, B6, K, magnesium, potassium, selenium, and protein.

Adding the above to your diet can eliminate dental, acne, mental health problems as well as give incentive to cut out smoking and excessive dieting to lead to a better life.

By Louisa Medley

As soon as you wake up, gulp down a glass of cold water. It is a wonderful way to start the day; a glass of water lets out all your digestive juices and lubricates the inside of your intestines. It will flush out yesterday’s toxins and is the best start for a new day.