Did you know that you need sleep to lose weight ? No, I am not talking about some magic pill or a magic potion that will help you lose weight while you sleep. I am talking about the fact that a lack of sleep may cause you weight gain and/or hamper your efforts to lose weight.

Why Do We Need To Sleep To Lose Weight? An Interesting Observation

Our society has become more and more fast paced. Juggling the kids and careers, working long hours or keeping more than one job to keep ahead, leaves precious little time for luxuries such as sleep.

Less than 25% of people get the recommended 8 hours of sleep. That means that 75% of people do not! This is a fascinating finding, considering that between 75 – 80% of our population is overweight. It makes me wonder if this is just and interesting coincidence. Or, do people truly need to sleep to lose weight or to prevent weight gain? It makes me wonder if these two percentages are directly related. Read the rest of this entry

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Weight Loss Calculator – How Many Calories To Lose Weight

The weight loss calculator helps you calculate how many calories daily you should intake to reach your weight loss goal. The calculator will warn you if your diet goal is too risky for your health. Please note that if you increase your activity level you can increase your calorie intake and feel fuller.

 Weight loss is a result of negative energy balance. What that means is that when losing weight (and you are otherwise healthy) your body is taking in less energy (calories) than it is expending.

This weight loss calculator indicates how many calories you should reduce in order to reach your desired weight. A very nice feature is that it also gives you a warning if your weight loss goal in a specified time frame is unreasonable and dangerous to your health.

You may also use the BMI Calculator to determine your Body Mass Index and see whether you indeed need to lose weight.

The above calculator is fully functional, so if you want to use it yourself, go ahead. Please note it can’t replace a professional medical advice! If you are planning a weight loss diet, do consult your doctor. Use this weight loss calculator as a guide only.

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Fiber, also known as fibre, "dietary fiber" are the "buzz"  words of every newly created weight loss diet program on the market. Finally, the significant role that fiber plays in our health is beginning to be understood by the general public.

What Is Dietary Fiber

It is a complex carbohydrate, a nonstarch polysaccharide. In nature, fiber is a structural part of a plant. Dietary fiber is the edible part of a plant that is indigestible by our digestive system. It is found in all plant foods. Fiber includes:

• cellulose – found in all fruits, vegetables and legumes
• hemicellulose – a main component of cereal fiber
• pectins – found in fruits and vegetables; high quantity of pectin is found in citrus fruits, hence the importance of lemons in making jams
• gums and mucilages – psyllium plus others that are added by food manufactures to processed foods to stabilize them
• lignin – found in the woody parts of the plant

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This post tries to answer the question "what are carbohydrates ?" I wrote the article fairly simply, to make sure that anyone can understand the topic.

What are carbohydrates – a simplified lesson

Carbohydrates are essential macronutrients to sustain human life. Roughly half of our energy to function comes from glucose and its storage form glycogen. For our bodies to produce glucose and glycogen we need to consume carbohydrate rich foods. In turn, we convert part of carbohydrates we eat to glucose for immediate energy and the rest is stored as glycogen and fat for future energy requirement. The dietary carbohydrates come in two forms: simple carbohydrates (for example sugar) and complex carbohydrates (starches and fiber).

  Read the rest of this entry

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Glycemic Index (GI) is a method to classify carbohydrates according to their potential of raising blood glucose levels. Because the body converts different types of carbohydrates into sugar at different rates, the glycemic index (GI) was established to indicate how quickly a food affects blood sugar level. Foods that have a low GI cause a slow increase of glucose in bloodstream and a slow and controlled insulin release. On the other hand, foods that have a high GI cause a rapid increase in glucose levels thus rapid increase in insulin, which is not what you want when trying to lose weight permanently and maintain good health. You can think of the low Gi and hi GI carbohydrates as the "good carbohydrates" and the "bad carbohydrates", respectively. Read the rest of this entry

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Many dieters wonder how to lose weight fast. Most importantly they want to know that if they lose the weight how do they do it effectively and keep those nasty pounds from coming back.

To lose weight is possible using a number of quick weight loss methods (good and bad), however, to keep the results of a quick weight loss is almost always impossible. Usually the weight is back within a short period of time with a vengeance.

In my research for fast weight loss with long term results, I came across an amazingly simple solution to this never ending problem of the lost weight bounce-back. Read the rest of this entry

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I have compiled 101 lose weight tips that are healthy and reasonably simple. I have done that because too many people struggle with dieting.  Yet losing weight need not be a difficult undertaking.  The lose weight tips are designed to help you kick start your weight loss journey. They aim to help you lose weight, to maintain your weight loss and finally to help you achieve permanent weight loss.

Some of the lose weight tips are expanded in the articles posted on the site. A link will be provided to you for an easy access to the articles. Please take advantage of these posts as they provide a deeper insight or a more comprehensive information about the particular tips to lose weight.

Please make sure that you discuss your desire to lose weight with your healthcare practitioner.

Easy Lose Weight Tips To Help You Lose Weight Permanently

The first 6 lose weight tips are preliminary but are essential for you in order to get a solid start.

1.    Use the BMI calculator and find out if you need to be concerned about your weight. Body Mass Index ( BMI ) is a ratio of a person’s weight to his/her height. Currently, the index is one the simplest yet accurate indicators for body fat of most people. It allows you to determine if your weight is within or outside of the healthy range.

2.    Set your weight loss goal. Set it in small increments. Suppose you need to lose 100 pounds. That may seem like such a huge and unreachable  goal that you may be too frightened to even start. However, if you break your desired weight loss into reasonable increments, such as losing 10 pounds in 4-6 weeks, it suddenly appears doable. 

3.    Set a time line. A reasonable goal for losing 10 pounds is 4-6 weeks. You may lose the first 10 pounds much faster, maybe in a week. Subsequent pounds though, will come off a little slower, between 1-2.5 pounds per week . After each 10 pounds re-asses your time line.

4.    Do a little math. Based on your personal information, sex, age, weight and height and your physical activity calculate how many calories you will need to lose on daily basis to reach your goal. Use the weight loss calculator to find out how many calories you need to consume to lose weight. Remember, if you increase your physical activity you can eat more! 

5.    Create a fan club for yourself. Nothing is more encouraging than a good support from your friends and family. If this is not possible join an online forum where you will meet people who are in the same situation as you are. This is one of those weird lose weight tips, but it is important!

6.    Purchase a scale if you do not have one already. The best ones are the digital ones. You will want to weigh yourself once per week or two at the initial stages of your weight loss. At this stage do not weigh yourself more often then that. Later, at the maintenance level you may want to weigh yourself as often as once per day.

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7.    Drink water. 8-10 glasses of water per day are generally recommended.  Water will help you get rid of toxic waste. Water is absolutely essential in order for you to lose weight. Most people do not know that water helps the body get rid of toxins and metabolize fat. Many people also are not aware that if they retain water, drinking plenty of water is actually the best natural treatment for water retention. Almost every article on lose weight tips will include drinking water as one of the most crucial tips. It is that important!

8.    Have water as soon as you wake up. That first glass of water will start your metabolism going.

9.    Have water every time you eat. Drink it before a meal and during the meal. It will dilute your blood after eating and that will prevent you from feeling sluggish after you eat. As, well it will make you feel full.

10.    Drink water if you feel you are hungry.  Whenever you think you are hungry, first have a glass of water. Wait 10 -15 minutes to see if your feeling of hunger subsides. Often we mistaken thirst for hunger. Read the rest of this entry

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