Suspend-It

The time to reduce belly fat is NOW!

For me anyway.

My sister Anne’s wedding is on the 16th of February. She gave her entire family very specific requests (more of threat) that we all have to look gorgeous on her wedding day. That includes trimming down. She doesn’t want anyone who looks ugly to be in her wedding. It was more of a loving threat though, but I took it as a challenge of course.

I have already enrolled in Bikram Yoga with my friend last January 4. But to make sure that I get a very gorgeous figure in time for her wedding, I’ll be cutting down on my carbohydrates as well. And, as my friend Mark suggested, I need to take vitamin C as well since this helps burn fat.

I already bought a gold and black dress this Saturday for her wedding and I look really great in it! Now if I’ll just trim down on my waste, I’ll definitely look fabulous in it. ^_^

Now that the festive season’s over, everyone’s complaining about eating waaaaaaaaaaaay too much during the holidays to the point of regret. They are now seeing the accumulated, unwanted fats on their used-to-be well-maintained figures. I can’t blame them of course. It’s really hard to resist sumptuous meals especially if it’s laid in front of you.

As for me, I’m not overly concerned about the additional weight I gained this December. I was already expecting it and I have a contingency planned way before the holidays. No, it’s not the usual elliptical and stretchings – I enrolled in Bikram Yoga and started on January 4, 2010. Nothing can beat that glorious 90-minute whole body sweaty exercise in the steam room in getting back to your gorgeous figure. Jealous, huh? 0:p

If there’s one thing I envy about other girls, it is the soft flowing hair. As my mom always told me, “it’s their genes dear”. She always says that when I compare myself to others. I asked a friend of mine, who is a dermatologist, about how to keep my air and skin as beautiful as others. She told me that, genes do play a role in having glowing skin and nice hair but one big factor to consider is nutrition.Hair and skin need almost the same nutrients. Having a high vitamin E diet can really make your skin glow, that is if you keep yourself hydrated with lots of fruit juices. Good sleep and lots of exercise will also help your body detoxify which also make you look and feel better. Supplements such as metathiones and vitamins for hair are also available, however it is always better to consult your physician first. These supplements claim to make the skin fairer and the hair shiny and soft although you must be aware that some brands my have side effects to some people.

Okay, fine, cigarettes do not fall under the new weight loss pill category. Then again, did you know that in spite of the ads and laws being implemented on why smoking is bad for your health, smoking cigarettes actually do have benefits?

Yep. Because Nicotine is an appetite suppressant, one of the beneficial aspects of smoking is that it keeps the weight down. Cigarettes do this by:

• Keeping food in your stomach longer
• Suppressing your appetite
• Artificially speeding up your metabolism

Smoking burns up an extra 200-300 calories each day in a heavy smoker. Consequently, when you quit smoking, it’s normal to experience a gain of between 5 and 10 pounds during the first few months. However, if your eating habits have remained the same as when you smoked, you can easily shed this small gain with simple daily exercise such as a brisk, 30-minute walk.

So yeah, for those who want to quit smoking, you do not have “weight gain” as an excuse for not being able to. 0:p After all, knowing this benefit of smoking allows you replace the good side of smoking with things that are safer and healthier for you, while achieving similar results.

A healthy fat intake depends on your age and your lifestyle. The older and less active you are, the less fat you must eat. To lose weight, you must first have an idea on how much fat you take in, for this will be your basis on how much fat you need to lessen.

And now for the hardest part, before you think of using a weight loss product steer clear of your favorite pizza for a while. Burgers too are also very high in fat, from the buns, to the mayo, to the cheesy bacon mushroom melts. Choose healthy snacks like salads, fruit yogurts or corn chips. Choose white meat like chicken or turkey and remove the skin. For lean meat, it is better to grill it so that the fat will drip while cooking. Fish in olive oil is also great for loosing weight.

Always remember that low-fat food is may be low in fat, but if you eat too much, the effect is the same as eating fatty food of lesser volume. Try to dig in fruits and vegetables. These foods have no fat. So better have them in your diet.

The bad fat: Saturated fat

Foods high in this kind of fat include fatty meats, coconut oil, cakes, pastries, and our all time favorite burgers. These tend to raise cholesterol levels therefore must be reduced if not avoided. There is also the “trans fat” which is also Saturated fat, which can be found in dairy products and commercial frying oils.

The good fat: Unsaturated fats

Mono-unsaturated and Poly-unsaturated are basically the same in terms of benefits to the body. These particular types of fats are lower blood cholesterol and reduce the risk of blood clots, which is good. These fats come mostly from vegetable oils, peanut butter, and fish oils. The so famous Omega -3 fat is also unsaturated.

Big Fact:

Most people think that good fats don’t make them overweight. These people see these good fats as natural weight loss supplements. Wrong! Fats are still fats. Saturated or unsaturated, these fats will pile up in your body if not used. The body stores fat as energy reserves so if you don’t use your reserves, you’ll end up looking like a warehouse in no time.

When treadmills and static bikes do not seem to work anymore, it’s time to think about what you’re doing wrong. Yes, right. It’s your diet. Eating too much is the major cause of obesity. It doesn’t matter if you eat spam “lite” or “diet” coke, the small amount of fat you take into your body will pile up eventually.

Here are some brief facts about fats that you may not know about. There are three types of fats: saturated, poly-unsaturated, and mono-unsaturated fats. All fatty foods contain a mixture of these three fats, they only differ in the ratio. These three fats may raise or lower cholesterol levels, hence good and bad fats.

My sister Anne has been having a hard time controlling herself from stuffing food into her stomach whenever she sees appetizing dishes. Since she’s fond of night outs, she’s consequently constantly exposed to a lot of mouth-watering delicacies. Unfortunately, her night outs is starting to take its toll on her “voluptuous figure” as she puts it.

Normally, the easiest solution for this type of dilemma would be to take appetite suppressants. Then again, why pop those in when you can do yoga – Bikram Yoga to be exact? And I quote the following benefits from Bikram Yoga Grass Valley/Nevada City:

BENEFITS OF BIKRAM YOGA:

• Reshapes your body
• Restores flexibility
• Tones, strengthens, and lengthens your muscles
• Strengthens your spine
• Improves circulation
• Reduces risk of sports injury
• Achieves relief from pain
• Reduces your weight – lose pounds by balancing your metabolism
• Raises energy level
• Diminishes the effects of stress
• Increases balance, coordination, focus and discipline
• Clears your mind
• Calms your soul
• Ensures healthy and balanced functioning of the skeletal, muscular, circulatory, nervous, digestive, elimination, respiratory, endocrine, and mental systems of the body

BENEFITS OF THE HEAT:

• Warms the muscles for greater flexibility
• Helps achieve a deeper stretch
• Flushes toxins from the body
• Improves efficiency of the immune system
• Creates a cardiovascular workout
• Burns calories
• Builds endurance

So, next time you think of getting back your covetous figure, go Bikram! 0;)

My cousin has been having constipation problems for quite some time now. She shared to me that one of her friends advised her to try a colon cleanser and given her current state, she might just do that.

I told her to check with her doctor first before trying anything else. In most cases, as I’ve mentioned in my Colon Cleansing: Is it necessary? post, most doctors do not recommend it for detoxification, let alone fixing your bowel movement. It’s generally unnecessary and at times may even be harmful.

I did recommend that she eat more green foods and do Bikram Yoga. Yoga’s overall health benefits, not to mention the fact that it helps blood circulation, could greatly help improve her current situation. She’s considering it and said she’ll keep me posted on that one. I hope it works for her.

My friend Andrea and I were planning out our health routine for the next 3 months at the Sahara hotel. I had been slacking off on eating, sleeping, and exercising properly for the last few weeks and it certainly wasn’t doing me any good. So today, we decided to start eating healthy and to swim. For breakfast we had oats and cereal and a banana shake. For lunch we decided to get a fulfilling salad. And for dinner we’re planning on getting grilled fish. I’ve always been a healthy eater. It’s just that when you’re busy and always on the go, you can’t help but sometimes slack off. I hope we keep this up. Bonne chance!