Are Hormones stopping you from losing weight?

I can really relate to this. I have had the implant fitted in my arm, and my weight has fluctuated. This doesn't mean that the implant is a bad thing, just that my hormones are not in balance. Hopefully, this information will help you, like it helped me..... Steph

Have You Given Up On Losing Weight?

As a Doctor who has seen many overweight patients, I’ve been witness to their deep-seated frustration. My colleagues and I hear a disturbingly consistent set of complaints and negative self-talk.

Does any of this sound familiar?

• I’m doing everything right and STILL can’t lose the weight.
• I feel hopeless and depressed.
• Not only do I look old, I feel old.
• Go out? I don’t want to go out. I don’t want people to see me.
• I don’t want to buy new clothes. What’s the point?
• I just don’t feel valuable.
• I’m never going to look good again.
• This is out of control! How big will I get?
• What’s WRONG with me?!

Sorry for the dramatization, but it’s hard for me not to respond to the pain and suffering that THEY felt and YOU might be feeling. The kind of pain that makes too many people simply GIVE UP on their dream be being slim and feeling good again.

But, there’s something you need to know BEFORE YOU throw in the towel:

It’s Not You, It’s Your Hormones!

And they’re standing like brick wall between you and your goals.
But I’m here to tell you there’s a way to smash through that wall, lose the weight, and be in control of your life again.

I’m about to reveal some breakthrough tools you can use to literally melt the fat away that has been holding you down for so long. And it’s not what you think.

So let’s get started… Here are:

The 4 Big Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight

Fat Burning Barrier #1: Not Enough Adiponectin

Adiponectin is literally the hormone that tells your body to burn fat for fuel. And it’s like your body’s “fat burning torch.”

Multiple studies have shown that the more of this super hormone you have circulating in your bloodstream, the more fat you burn.

And research shows that low levels of adiponectin are associated with a higher incidence of obesity.

According to Dr. Leo Galland, Director of The Foundation for Integrated Medicine,

“A lack of adequate adiponectin is emerging as a significant factor in people’s inability to melt flab and stay slim.”

The frustrating thing about adiponectin is that the more fat you have, the lower your levels – which is why LOSING fat is so darn difficult at the beginning. You need a kick start…

So here are 2 “at home” methods for naturally boosting your adiponectin levels and stoking your fat burning fire:
Adiopnectin Boosting Method #1

• Increase your magnesium intake, either by taking a high quality supplement,
  which is quite inexpensive, or by consuming seeds – pumpkin seeds are great – and green, leafy vegetables like spinach and kale.

Adiopnectin Boosting Method #2

• A much more aggressive approach is to do something called “intermittent fasting,” which has been shown to significantly increase adiponectin levels. This works by fasting one day, and then eating big the next…and so on. While it can work for weight loss, the jury is still out as to whether this is healthy or not. Plus, who wants to live this way?

There’s another solution I will get to later that I think you’ll really appreciate.

Now let’s move on to the hormone that’s keeps you famished and running to the fridge, especially at night, which is the worst possible time to be overeating.

And that’s…

Fat Burning Barrier #2: Too Much Ghrelin

Ghrelin is called the “Hunger Hormone” and, basically, the more ghrelin you have in your system, the hungrier you are.

So if you find yourself fighting cravings and can’t seem to stay away from the fridge after dinner, it’s probably due to elevated ghrelin levels…

And the hard fact is that ghrelin works directly on the hunger center of your brain by activating the brain’s reward response to highly addictive sweet, fatty foods. This increases your food intake at the worst possible time, usually at night, and ultimately makes you gain more weight.

Even worse, it appears ghrelin makes us fatter whether we eat more or not.

You can see now why losing fat is almost impossible with elevated ghrelin levels.

But here’s something you can start doing TONIGHT to lower your ghrelin levels and feel more satisfied tomorrow…

Natural Ghrelin Busting Tip

New research makes it clear that even low levels of sleep deprivation increase your ghrelin levels and lead to more fat being stored in your body.

Most people need between 7-8 hours of sleep.Unfortunately, jacking yourself up in the morning with caffeine or energy drinks is exactly the WRONG thing to do if you want to lose weight, which you’ll see why in just a moment.

But if you thought ghrelin was bad news for your waistline, YOU need to see what’s been dubbed the “Fat Storage Hormone.”

Fat Burning Barrier #3

If you’re overweight, there’s a good chance that you’re experiencing some level of insulin imbalance, resulting in excess glucose, or sugar, in your system.

While this doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re diabetic, it does mean that your body’s insulin, or glucose regulator, becomes less effective at lowering your blood sugars.

The end result is that instead of using the excess sugar to feed your muscles or burning it for energy – most of the carbohydrates you consume get stored as fat.

It’s simple, if you have insulin resistance it makes it virtually impossible to lose fat…

But there’s a surprisingly simple trick to addressing the excess glucose problem, and it just might already be in your kitchen cupboard…

Natural Glucose Reduction Trick

A recent study found that consuming 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar before a high carb meal significantly reduces blood glucose levels for those people with insulin resistance, which is that imbalance I spoke about.

While this might not be appetizing for everyone, the study did say that apple cider vinegar might work as well as prescription drugs at regulating blood sugar.

But even if you do drink your vinegar, you’ll still continue to store additional fat, especially abdominal fat, if you don’t keep this final fat burning barrier at bay…and that’s

Fat Burning Barrier #4: A Cortisol Overload

Your body produces cortisol in response to stress and ramps you up so you can be ready to fight or flee.

This CAN be a good thing in dangerous situations, like if you were to run across a bear while hiking.

But the constant stress we’re all under in today’s hectic, 24/7, crisis-driven world elevates our cortisol levels far beyond what we were originally designed to handle.

The result is a quadruple whammy on your waistline:

#1Excess cortisol increases your cravings for sweets and carbs, which can lead to overeating and constant hunger.

#2Cortisol causes your body to actually BREAK DOWN your muscle tissue for energy. Which is absolutely the worst thing for weight loss since the less muscle you have, the lower your metabolism will be and the more fat you’ll gain.

#3Elevated cortisol levels cause a larger percentage of fat to be stored in the abdominal area. What’s worse is that the more abdominal fat you have, the more cortisol you produce in response to stress, which then causes more abdominal fat to be stored.

#4Finally, recent studies link high cortisol levels to depression in adults and children. And we all know that when you’re depressed, you eat MORE.

It’s like a vicious cycle with no end in sight!

So here are some simple tips you can start using immediately to reduce your cortisol levels naturally:

Natural Stress Relief

First of all, you need to know that caffeine increases cortisol secretion in people undergoing mental stress. For many of us, that’s just about all the time.

Here’s a really good exercise I use with my family that reduces stress fast:

• As you’re sitting there, simply breathe in through your nose and count to four, hold it for 2 seconds.
• Make sure to breathe into your belly- it should expand.
• Then let the air out through your mouth until it’s comfortable – then pause for one second.
• Repeat this 8 times and you’ll reset your stress response… easy!

http://www.realdose.com/weight-loss/the-four-fat-burning-barriers-and-how-to-shatter-them/

Health Benefits of Breakfast And Whole Grain

By Josh Manuel

The health benefits of breakfast has not been taken seriously recently in our society, although we focus quite a bit on steps to remain healthy, we don't take our breakfast into serious consideration. We pay attention to personal hygiene, load up on multivitamins, and also enrol in gym memberships in the hope that we will be motivated to regularly get exercise. But then it turns out that one of the easiest preventative steps we can take can be done at home right at the start of each and every day.

In this article, we find out why breakfast is better in our daily life and the health benefits we derive from such important meal of the day.

As a rule of thumb, eating breakfast every day in the morning is essential to our health. Regularly eating breakfast can assist decrease the risk of insulin resistance syndrome, diabetes or coronary heart disease by 35% to 50% compared to your odds if you skip the morning breakfast meal. In doing this every morning it boils down to the large number of disease prevention just by paying close attention to one important meal of the day. Breakfast is a vital meal... as our mothers always say. It appears mum was right after all.

Now what's the best choice for breakfast that the American Heart Association (AHA) recommends to gain prevention against the above listed diseases? Building a healthier life free from cardiovascular diseases and stroke? A bowl of whole-grain cereal with milk added as part of a balanced breakfast. Let's find out why whole grains are better than refined grains and how to add more whole grains to your diet. The fiber in whole-grain cereals and dairy products help protect against obesity and heart problem by improving blood sugar levels and levels of cholesterol.

LIST OF WHOLE GRAINS

The following, are examples of broadly speaking accepted whole grain foods and flours.

• Oats, including oatmeal
• Barley
• Quinoa
• Buckwheat
• Corn, including whole cornmeal and popcorn
• Rice, both brown rice and colored rice
• Rye
• Teff
• Wild rice
• Triticale
• Millet
• Sorghum (also called milo)
• Wheat, including varieties such as spelt, emmer, farro, einkorn, Kamut®, durum and forms such as bulgur, cracked wheat and wheatberries
• Amaranth

Well then, why shouldn't you wait to have whole grain bread at lunch instead? The answer lies in the concentration of fiber content in whole-grain cereals. Grains, especially whole grains, are an essential part of a healthy diet. All types of grains are good sources of complex carbohydrates and some key vitamins and minerals. Grains are also naturally low in fat. All of this makes grains a healthy option. Better yet, they've been linked to a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes, certain cancers and other health problems. It is extremely hard to match the quality and amount of fiber present in whole-grain cereals with whole-grain bread. The soluble fiber in the cereals is directly associated with reduced risk of cardio disease.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Health-Benefits-of-Breakfast-And-Whole-Grain&id=7656392
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Speed Up Weight Loss Today

By Mike Hoad

10 Ways to Speed Up Weight Loss

1) Add chilli peppers spice to your meals.

Believe it or not adding chilli to your meals can help you to reduce body weight (body fat). It contains substances that drastically enhance the circulation, thermogenesis (heat production) and oxygen intake. Add this to your meals for a simple but effective way to get lean.

2) Control your carbohydrate meals.

Refined carbohydrates like sugar and white-coloured flour are unfortunately far too common in the modern diet strategy. These 'fast' carbohydrate meals spike blood sugar which in turn produces the storage hormone insulin. Where does the body store these calories? Fat tissue! Cut sugar and white-coloured flour out if you're trying to decrease body-fat.

3) Use fasted cardio

Doing aerobic exercise either in the morning before consuming anything or after your last meal before bed can quickly enhance fat decrease. I often give this to my online health and fitness customers. Aerobics performed before consuming anything forces the body to use fat for energy as muscle glycogen stores are low. This metabolises fat for fuel.

4) Take cold showers

Recent analysis shows that taking cold showers can enhance your metabolism. What you need to remember is as that your body will resist change. When you start any diet strategy your metabolism will slow down. Which indicates you need to trick the metabolism to speed up when you are dieting to speed up body fat decreases. Although not the most pleasant way to do this, a 10 minute cold shower makes the body keep working harder to stay warm and therefore uses up more calories. This method is very effective if you have the guts to try it.

5) Lactate training

The burning sensation when you lift weights is the accumulation of lactic acidity in the muscle tissue. The training increases acidity as a by-product of muscle contractions. This lactate activates the release of HGH which in turn leads to fat decrease. Keep your repetitions slow and be smart with your weight selection if a body fat decrease is your goal.

6) Control fat intake

The health advantages of omega 3 have been well documented. Actually all fats (except trans fats) have a role in the diet. However, when trying to build a physique what you need to keep in mind is your day-to-day fat intake. Fats are higher in calories than carbs or protein. Therefore, do not overeat fats if you want to get lean.

7) Have small feedings

Overeating will cause you to gain fat via a variety of mechanisms. Firstly you eat too many calories for your bodies systems to use so they are stored in body-fat cells. Secondly, these large meals cause a rapid raise in sugar stages which activates the release of huge amounts of the hormone insulin. Insulin can stay raised for a long period after this, meaning that you will keep storing fat not losing fat.

8) Eat frequently

Eating regularly keeps the metabolism fast. You should aim to eat every 2-3 hours. Many people make the mistake of starving themselves to lose fat. This will not work and your body will slow everything down. Keeping the metabolism quick is key to the dieting and frequent feedings are an excellent way to do this.

9) Make resistance training a priority

Many people who aim to reduce body weight (body fat) incorrectly see aerobic workouts as their primary source of exercising. Resistance training actually does a lot more for fat decrease than aerobic work. The truth is 1 lb of muscle equates to 50 calories consumed daily. Therefore, the more muscle you have the easier it is to stay trim. Your metabolism remains elevated for up to 5 hours after resistance work compared with 1 hour after aerobic work. Both my regular and online health and fitness customers are consistently amazed at just how effective proper fat-loss focused weights programmes can be.

10) Consume organic tea

Green tea contains powerful antioxidants that boost feelings, enhance the metabolism and help prevent a variety of diseases. New evidence is emerging that organic green tea can even help people. Research has shown that using a combination of caffeinated drinks and teas burns more calories than the use of caffeinated drinks alone or a placebo. Consume three cups of organic green tea daily to improve your feelings and keep your fat decrease going.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Speed-Up-Weight-Loss-Today&id=7607003

Why Choose Weight Loss Tablets?

By Simon P

Weight gain is just about the easiest thing you can do in today's world. Lifestyles are crazier than ever, and supermarkets are stuffed with substandard pre-packed food, which should really be called "non-food". I say "non-food" because much of it bears very little resemblance to any foodstuff in it's natural state, and often contains little to no nutritional value. These "food" products are packed to bursting with additives, sugars, fats, you name it. And it doesn't make it any easier when these kinds of products have typically been getting cheaper and cheaper, making them an increasingly more attractive choice for increasingly more cash-strapped families to throw into the shopping cart.

Unfortunately the worst kind of food available, and the highest in calories and unhealthy fats, are often the cheapest. Something is very wrong when you can feed a family much cheaper by going to McDonalds for a one dollar burger, than you can by going to a supermarket and buying fresh vegetables and fruits to prepare a wholesome and healthy meal at home.
Our food choices have set the stage perfectly for an overweight and obese society.

There can also be no doubting that in these busy modern times, people are looking for a quick and easy fix in most areas of their personal life, in the hope of gaining back more time and freedom for themselves. Weight loss is certainly no exception to that rule. In fact "quick and easy weight loss", or similar phrases, are one of the biggest daily online searches today, and the competition in this particular weight loss market is worth billions of dollars each year.

Over the last few years, weight loss tablets in particular have been gaining enormous popularity and enjoying booming sales and high re-order rates. And it's very easy to see why. Many of the latest generation of products offer exactly the kind of quick and easy fix people are looking for. They promise fast and safe weight loss with absolutely no impact on your busy life. All you have to do, is remember to take a pill each morning and you're done. The pills will do the rest! It almost sounds too good to be true.

So is this solution really the magic bullet or the gold at the end of the rainbow? Well, while there can never be any real substitute for healthy eating and exercise to maintain a healthy and slender body, many people simply do not have the time or financial resources for costly gym memberships or the latest fad diets. Many of you likely don't even have the time for exercise period. We are working increasingly longer hours, getting home later and later in the mid-late evening, leaving no time to do anything except eat and play with the kids, and then relax for an hour if you can! Some are not even lucky enough to have a spare hour in their day.

There are also millions of people who are so overweight and fatigued/lethargic from their unhealthy lifestyle choices, that even the thought of beginning an exercise routine can seem impossible. Lack of confidence and having a negative body image is another very large factor preventing overweight or obese people from going anywhere near a gym, for fear of being laughed at or made fun of. The fact is, there are so many reasons why losing weight can be an up-hill struggle before you even begin. So what's the solution? How can you get started easily in the ideal way for you?

Step forward weight loss supplements. Thanks to advances in this area, it's now possible to purchase weight loss tablets online without a prescription, that offer a safe, fast, and easy weight loss by employing a number of tricks. Firstly they turn up your metabolism to increase the rate at which you naturally burn fat, and also trick your brain into thinking that you are full after eating smaller portions of food. In addition, that fuller feeling takes away food cravings between meals. Snacking can often have a huge effect on gaining weight, especially because snack foods are often the worst offenders - potato chips, chocolate, cookies, cakes.

In addition to the above tricks, other special ingredients contained within the tablets break down existing fat deposits and expel them from your body through the passing of stools, and prevent fat from depositing inside your body after eating. It's a full-on attack on your fat.

What can you expect from weight loss tablets? Weight loss supplements vary in potency. Some result in a loss of between 5 and 10 pounds in weeks, and some more than 10 pounds. Some users have lost 20 pounds in 2 months or less. It can vary from person to person, but you will lose weight.

What's the alternative to weight loss tablets? There are a few of course, but most are not so pleasant. Liposuction is very expensive and guarantees nothing. It also doesn't remove as much weight as you can get from a tablet in a short period. After Liposuction there is also no guarantee that you won't out the weight back on, meaning you wasted thousands of dollars and got to stay on hospital for a few days and live with a nice scar!

Having a band fitted on your stomach to shrink it, is only advised for the severely overweight with potentially life threatening obesity.

Are these products safe? Absolutely. They require no Doctors prescription, and available 100% legally online. They contain natural ingredients with no nasty side effects. However, it is advised against taking them if you have a heart condition, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have a serious illness which you are taking medication for. As with any new supplement, not only weight loss tablets, it is always advised to stay on the side of caution. Always ask your doctor if you are unsure.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-Choose-Weight-Loss-Tablets?&id=7628810

Reaching Your Weight Loss Goals Does Not Have to Be Difficult

By Aloysius Aucoin

There are many people who have a hard time reaching their weight loss goals because they simply have not taken the time to learn how their body works and what they can do to increase their metabolism and lose weight. Everyone knows that diet and exercise are the keys to losing weight. Most people think that they do not have the time to work out and that creating healthy meals takes far too much effort. You can get well and workout regardless of how busy you are, as long as you are willing to be creative.

Eating well often requires food to be easy to access. If you have to spend hours on end preparing a meal, you will not do it. No one has the time to stand over a stove for two hours every night. You may want to cook the meals for your entire week during the weekend. You can make many different healthy meals on one day and then heat them up throughout the week to allow you to have quick and easy meals whenever you want them to help with weight loss.

Another great way to improve your diet is to make sure that you always have snack foods handy. Chips and crackers are often the snack food that people go to when they get hungry. These foods are loaded with carbohydrates, salt, and preservatives that are not good for the body. Keeping handy foods such as peaches, apples, bananas, and grapes on hand will allow you to have a snack whenever you want it, without having to worry about ruining your diet.

Fitting exercise into a busy day can be a bit difficult. Many people make the mistake of assuming that the only way they will reach their weight loss goals is if they workout in the gym for hours on end. They think that expensive machines and equipment is needed to lose weight. That is not the case at all because you can use your body weight to lose weight quickly and easily. There are many exercises that you can do while you are doing something else to allow you to make the most of your day. You can do squats while you are on a business call or folding laundry. You can do calf raises while reading your email. You can make simple changes in the activities you do each day to add exercise into your day, as well. Parking in the furthest parking spot from the door everywhere you go will allow you to add extra steps to your day with ease. Taking the stairs instead of the elevator is another easy way to get more exercise. If you sit down and really think, you will be amazed at how many opportunities you have to work out throughout the day
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