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<\/a>NUTRITION<\/b><\/p>\nPart three of ways to eliminate food cravings.<\/p>\n
#1 Fix Your Digestion (aka Gut!) to eliminate carb cravings.<\/b><\/u>
\nIf your gut can’t do its job properly, it increases carb cravings.<\/p>\n
Here’s a few reasons why:<\/p>\n
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- Elevated or increased inflammation can cause carb cravings because when inflammation is elevated, your body becomes resistant to insulin\u2019s message that you are satisfied and thus, makes you crave more food.<\/li>\n
- Nutrient deficiencies are always a lead cause of cravings and even more so if your digestion doesn’t work right.\u00a0 If food is not being properly digested, how can you absorb the nutrients?\u00a0 Carb cravings tend to be associated with deficiencies of the B vitamins, chromium, magnesium, and carnitine.<\/li>\n
- Neurotransmitter function: Poor digestion (gut health) can alter neurotransmitter function and increase depression like symptoms.\u00a0 These symptoms often lead to overeating carbs!\u00a0 It’s worse than the diet cycle and studies have even shown the viscous cycle! Depression or a low mood can lead people to consume high-sugar foods to elevate their mood and feel better.\u00a0 But as we know, blood sugar drops and the cycle continues.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
How do you fix your digestion and gut health?\u00a0<\/u><\/i>
\nFirst, you eliminate foods that you may be hypersensitive to such as dairy or gluten. Next, you can use a Probiotic Supplement<\/a>. Ingesting high-powered Probiotic<\/a>
bacteria and eating lots of prebiotic foods can optimize your health.\u00a0 A prebiotic is a special type of soluble fiber that is used mostly by the beneficial (good bacteria) as a fuel. These include onions, leeks, Jerusalem artichokes, asparagus, banana, and chicory root and are easy to add to your diet.<\/p>\n
#2\u00a0 Control your stress to eliminate carb cravings.<\/u><\/b>
\nStress does alot of damage to your body and can cause a definite increase in carb cravings. Carbohydrate foods supply your brain with serotonin which is synthesized from the amino acid tryptophan and makes you feel good. When stress hits you, Serotonin gets depleted. So, you crave carbs in order to refill that Serotonin. Add to that the fact that stress elevates cortisol levels. High cortisol levels actually reduce the desire for non-carb foods, making them less appetizing. Basically, you won’t be craving fish with broccoli, but you will have a strong desire for cake, sweets and high carb foods.<\/p>\nHow do you control this craving? <\/u><\/i>
\nStress management is vital to a healthy body! Everyone needs some form of stress release. It could be weight training, walking, Yoga, Meditation<\/a> or some other form of mindset practices. Stress release has been found to have distinct effect on the body as it decreases cortisol.\u00a0\u00a0 Be sure you incorporate some stress release into your daily routine!<\/p>\n#3\u00a0 Sleep to eliminate carb cravings.<\/u><\/b>
\nLack of sleep increases desire for yummy carbs.\u00a0 Fatigue from lack of sleep also reduces your will power!\u00a0 Studies show people feel more hungry and make poor food choice when they are tired.\u00a0 This translates into eating as much as 300 extra calories a day! Insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance plunge when you are sleep deprived. This, in turn, puts your body into fat storage mode and makes it difficult to get out of fat storage mode too!<\/p>\n#4\u00a0 Be honest to eliminate carb cravings.<\/u><\/b>
\nYou’ve heard it before-keep a food journal! You don’t have to show it to anyone but yourself! Just be honest about everything you put in your mouth! When you review your food intake, don’t beat yourself up or feel guilty. This is simply information to help you overcome your biological drive for carbs. Once you see the culprits, find low-glycemic carbs that are reasonable substitutes. Identify those foods that help reduce your cravings and which increase it.<\/p>\nThe last three episodes have armed you with many tactics to eliminate your carb cravings! One or more is bound to help you!\u00a0 Be sure to comment here or on the Facebook Page which tip works for you!<\/p>\n
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<\/a><\/div>\nTRAINING<\/b>
\nWhat should you do in the gym to increase your metabolism and burn fat? Here are some tips that benefit both men and women looking to lose fat!<\/p>\n#1\u00a0 Train for Strength and Lift \u201cHeavy\u201d\u00a0<\/u><\/b>
\nDeja vu, right?\u00a0 Most people, especially women, who are lifting weights do not use ones that are heavy enough to produce any significant changes in body comp or strength.<\/p>\nAmazing research found that when moderately-trained women were allowed to pick their weights, they used loads that were 30 percent lower than the lightest weight needed to produce any benefit. This means that the weights they chose were too light to build muscle, strength, or bone.\u00a0 And thus, provide little to no benefits! Additionally, these light weights didn’t challenge them to use any extra energy so minimal calories were burned.<\/p>\n
So how do you know which weight to use? I’ll show you in the next tip! Just remember, ladies, that\u00a0 if you lift heavy weights, your body will respond by becoming more lean and athletic. You\u2019ll increase your self-confidence too!<\/p>\n
#2 Use the right weights to see changes<\/u><\/b>
\nHow do you know what weight will give you changes in your body? You use the repetitions as a guide.\u00a0 Based on your your \u201c1RM,\u201d which stands for \u201crepetition maximum.\u201d The weight at which you can do ONLY 10 reps is considered 75 percent of your 1RM, and 12 reps is 70 percent of your 1RM.<\/p>\nLet’s review an example:<\/i><\/u><\/b>
\nWhen training to lose body fat, you want to remain in the 8 to 12 repetition range for best results and complete from 4 to 8 sets.<\/p>\nIf you\u2019re training for fat loss, you\u2019ll generally want to be working in the 8 to 12 rep range for between 4 and 8 sets. This will lead to a lot of lactic acid being produced, which is associated with a big metabolic disturbance. So, if you are in the 10 to 12 rep range and you put 105 pounds on the squat bar, but find that you can do 13 or more reps, the weight needs to be increased. Likewise, if you can only perform 8 or 9 reps, your load is too heavy. Say, you finish up your training cycle and decide it\u2019s time to build strength because you have the goal of squatting your body weight. You\u2019ll want to work in the 3 to 5 rep range with a much heavier weight than your 105 pounds, say 130 pounds.<\/p>\n
#3: Have a Plan!<\/b><\/u>
\nDeja vu again!\u00a0 You’ve heard me say this time and time again!<\/p>\nYour body can adapt quickly, which means that to keep making progress, you have to change some aspect of your workouts regularly. This is known as periodization. Basically, have a plan!<\/p>\n
For example, if you\u2019re training for strength, over the course of six weeks, you\u2019d continually increase your weights at least every two weeks, even if only by one pound. When you plan and use periodization in your program you set goals for short and mid range for a specific period of time. It’s best to plan out your workouts for at least four weeks, but you could do it for the whole year.\u00a0 This way, every time you walk into the gym you know exactly what you need to do.<\/p>\n
Save time and stress by having a plan! You won’t waste time repeating workouts or weights that your body has already adapted. This also helps in decreasing the chance of you skipping your workout.<\/p>\n
#4 Avoid Anything that Causes Excess Stress<\/b><\/u>
\n\u201cDiets,\u201d Cardio and Mental Stress are considered long-term stress. This is especially bad for the female body because it can mess up the female hormones. Reports suggest that when women restrict calories and do intense training such as sprints, they have a hard time losing body fat, especially in the long-term. The mega dose of physical “dieting” stress from low calories combined with overtraining increases cortisol. Progesterone, which is the hormonal precursor to testosterone and estrogen, is used to produce cortisol instead, leading to hormonal imbalances. This is what inhibits fat loss and make you feel blah.<\/p>\n#5: Prioritize Sprints to Lose Fat<\/b><\/u>
\nForget About Traditional \u201cCardio.\u201d There are already too many reasons to stop depending on cardio for fat loss! Just don’t severely restrict your calories at the same time! Need some reasons? Ok!<\/p>\n- \n
- It takes at least double the training time to burn the same amount of calories with cardio as with sprint training.<\/li>\n
- Cardio doesn\u2019t build lean muscle mass (and may cause you to lose muscle in the long run).<\/li>\n
- Cardio\u00a0 doesn\u2019t produce much of an after burn, whereas interval training, such as sprints and weights makes your body burn more calories in the 24 hours after you exercise.<\/li>\n
- Cardio can lead to an elevation in the stress hormone cortisol, which leads to a worse body composition, whereas sprint training elevates hormones that build muscle and burn fat.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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Bottom line take away:<\/b><\/u><\/h3>\n
To boost metabolism and burn body fat here’s what to do:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Your first priority for changing your body should be weight training<\/li>\n
- Secondly, do some form of interval training such as sprints, \u201cstrongman\u201d exercises like pushing a weighted sled, or circuit weight workouts that use zero rest between sets.<\/li>\n
- Eat adequate protein, carbs, fats and calories! No severe restrtictions!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Keep in mind, that these suggestions doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t go running, hiking, or biking for pleasure\u2014exercise is good especially if you enjoy it! Just don\u2019t make the mistake of trying to use cardio to tone your muscles and permanently boost your metabolism.<\/p>\n
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<\/a><\/div>\nMOTIVATION<\/b>
\n3 steps to better self confidence and self esteem!<\/p>\nWhere is your self confidence and self-esteem on a scale of 1 to 10?
\n1 = I have no self confidence
\n10 =Over the top, I am very self confident.
\nFor example, 10 would be you go to the gym, work out with weights and don’t notice (or care) if anyone else is there, (esp men, if you are a woman).<\/p>\nAsk yourself a few questions:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Does your confidence change for different activities?<\/li>\n
- Is that your confidence in YOU or in your ability to do a skill?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Self-confidence isn’t an overnight acquisition. It takes dedication and desire to recognize you are a good person that is worthy of respect, love, and self-worth.
\nHere are three simple steps to increase your confidence!<\/p>\nPart 1: Fix Your Self Talk<\/b>
\nAcknowledge your emotions.
\nEmotion Checklist: Look Briefly for the Origin<\/p>\nPart 2: Recognize and acknowledge your successes.<\/b>
\nIdentify and own your successes.
\nBe a Victor.
\nBe thankful.
\nHelp others.
\nAccept compliments.<\/p>\nPart 3: Forget your mistakes<\/b>
\nTalk about insecurities with trusted friends. Learn from your mistakes everyone makes mistakes, and hopefully they don’t make the same mistake twice! Approach mistakes as learning experiences. Make them an asset rather than a failure!<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fitnessmakeover.com\/images\/social\/yellowcommentbubblespeaker1.png\" "\\"\\"")
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\nGet all the most recent episodes on iTunes<\/a> or download this episode here:<\/p>\nFit 225: More Crab Craving Solutions, Burn Fat, Gain Self Confidence!<\/a><\/p>\n
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