Healthy and Fat

Fat is probably the most tained macronutrient – everyone can tell a lot about its harmful influence on your health and physical shape, but far less can remember that fact that fat is, actually, one of the milestones of healthy body. Without it such vitamins as A, E, D and K cannot be absorbed, lack of energy will soon appear, as there will be nowhere to get it, and even body cells themselves won’t be able to communicate as there will be no cell membranes… without fat. So to consider fat NOT essential in your nutrition is one of the biggest mistakes you can do.

Still, fat is different and consequently has to be separated in two categories: e.g. good fat (mono- and polyunsaturated fats) and e.g. bad fat (saturated fats and trans fatty acids). Useful fats can benefit your health through increasing GDL cholesterol and substituting LDL cholesterol, while harmful ones can seriously damage your body if not limited.

Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are contained in vegetable oils (olive, safflower, flaxseed sunflower seed and others), nuts and fish. Including these products in your diet will help to keep good level of such elements as Linoleic Acid (Omega-6) and Linolenic Acid (Omega-3), also called EFA’s (Essential Fatty Acids). These acids have to be imported as they cannot be manufactured within the body.

Bad fats are considered bad because they increase LDL cholesterol level, which leads, eventually, to coronary diseases. Therefore you need to avoid animal sources, such as meat (except chicken), milk and cheese in big amounts. Processed food is also a rich source of fats that should be limited.

The whole fat intake should be approximately 15-25% of your total calories. Less percent may cause health problems, while going above will promote adipose tissue growth. Combining fats with high GI carbohydrates can also cause some problems, as insulin from the carbohydrates will promote this growth as well.

Gain muscle or burn fat?

This year's new years resolution -- To gain muscle or to burn fat? Seems like a stupid question, and it actually is, because to build the body of your dream you need both. Many beginners pay attention to gaining muscles mostly, but to define them you need to burn some fat also. A proper nutrition, weight training and cardiovascular exercises are key points on your way to defined muscles 

Fat Loss Process

To start fat loss, you need to eat in small portions and drink not less than 7-8 glasses of water per day. This will not allow the metabolism to slow down. In addition, it prevents you from overeating as a result of the widespread famine that comes when you are not eating. Eat 5 times a day to 300-500 calories. Also try not to take a break between meals more than 4 hours. But the key point here is to create a small deficit of 400 – 500 calories per day. Do it with respect to balance of proteins, carbs and fats in your meal and you will feel that your body have started to use it’s own fat in order to meet your energy demand. Remember, that if you don’t take enough protein, it will affect your muscles; and if you don’t take enough carbs or fats, it will affect your energy system and vitamins adoption.

Anaerobic Training for Fat Burning

Anaerobic training is the next step to defining your body. Cardiovascular exercises (cycling, swimming, running, etc) performed with some intervals in-between is much more efficiently in accelerating metabolism than the measured aerobic workout. Interval training will burn more calories per minute and speed up your metabolism for several hours. Desired volume loads with the weights in combination with intensive interval training can keep your metabolism at a high level for at least 24 hours. Perform 3 or 4 sessions a week in the morning. Strength training is also effective way to burn fat, though. Kilogram of muscle mass burns 9 times more calories than kilogram of fat mass. So do not forget to perform your usual weight workout.

Conclusion

When you’ve limited your calories intake and incorporated cardiovascular exercises into your weight program, the result won’t take long to be seen.

Milk: Two Glasses a Day Tones Muscles, Keeps the Fat Away in Women, Study Shows

Women who drink two large glasses of milk a day after their weight-lifting routine gained more muscle and lost more fat compared to women who drank sugar-based energy drinks, a McMaster study has found.

The study appears in the June issue of Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise.

"Resistance training is not a typical choice of exercise for women," says Stu Phillips, professor in the Department of Kinesiology at McMaster University. "But the health benefits of resistance training are enormous: It boosts strength, bone, muscular and metabolic health in a way that other types of exercise cannot."

A previous study conducted by Phillips' lab showed that milk increased muscle mass and fat loss in men. This new study, says Phillips was more challenging because women not only steer clear of resistance training they also tend to steer away from dairy products based on the incorrect belief that dairy foods are fattening.

"We expected the gains in muscle mass to be greater, but the size of the fat loss surprised us," says Phillips. "We're still not sure what causes this but we're investigating that now. It could be the combination of calcium, high-quality protein, and vitamin D may be the key, and. conveniently, all of these nutrients are in milk.

Over a 12-week period, the study monitored young women who did not use resistance-training exercise. Every day, two hours before exercising, the women were required not to eat or drink anything except water. Immediately after their exercise routine, one group consumed 500ml of fat free white milk; the other group consumed a similar-looking but sugar-based energy drink. The same drinks were consumed by each group one hour after exercising.

The training consisted of three types of exercise: pushing (e.g. bench press, chest fly), pulling (e.g. seated lateral pull down, abdominal exercises without weights), and leg exercises (e.g. leg press, seated two-leg hamstring curl). Training was monitored daily one on one by personal trainers to ensure proper technique.

"The women who drank milk gained barely any weight because what they gained in lean muscle they balanced out with a loss in fat" said Phillips. "Our data show that simple things like regular weightlifting exercise and milk consumption work to substantially improve women's body composition and health." Phillips' lab is now following this study up with a large clinical weight loss trial in women.

Funding for the study was provided by McMaster University, 

Several Kinds Of Fats

There are several different kinds of fat. Not all of them are bad for you. Learn which ones to consume and which ones to avoid using this short guide from Bob Greene’s The Best Life Guide to Managing Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes.

Healthy Versus Unhealthy Fat

Everyone has to watch their intake of unhealthy fats, but if you have diabetes, you have to be extra vigilant. As you’ll learn shortly, unhealthy fats can worsen insulin resistance and make your already heightened risk for heart disease that much greater. It’s not the total fat consumption that matters so much; it’s the type of fat consumed that affects your health. Your mission: to bring in more healthy fats and root out the unhealthy ones. We’re not necessarily suggesting that you add more fat to your diet, although if you’ve been on a very-low-fat diet and aren’t enjoying it, that may be a good idea. The goal here is to replace the unhealthy fatty foods with foods containing healthy fats.

If ordering a side of guacamole with your chicken fajita, snacking on a handful of mixed nuts, and sauteéing your favorite vegetables in olive oil and garlic all sound appealing to you, you’re already a fan of healthy fat. The reason these foods — avocados, nuts, and olive oil — are considered healthy fats is because of the type of fatty acids they contain. These and other foods we think of as fat — oils, butter, margarine, the fat surrounding a steak or sunder the skin of a chicken — are actually composed of different types of fatty acids. And it’s the fatty acids that are either good or bad for your body.

The four types of fatty acids are polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, saturated, and trans. Though most foods contain a mix, usually one type of fatty acid predominates. For instance, olive oil contains 73 percent monounsaturated fat; the rest is polyunsaturated and saturated fat.

The different types of fatty acids have different effects on your health; here’s the scoop.

Healthy Fats: Polyunsaturated and Monounsaturated (Both Called Unsaturated Fatty Acids)These are the fats you should be including in your diet because they are linked to disease prevention. Monounsaturated fats are healthiest, so aim to get the most of these, while polyunsaturated fats are next in line.

Monounsaturated fatty acids are considered healthy because they don’t raise LDL (the “bad” cholesterol that contributes to clogged arteries and heart disease) and they do raise HDL (the “good” form that actually removes cholesterol from your body). Plus, they’ve been linked to greater insulin sensitivity. Nearly all the monounsaturated fat in our diet comes from oleic acid.

Sources: Olive oil and canola oil are loaded with monounsaturated fats, so make these your staple oils. Other mono-rich foods include avocados, almonds, cashews, peanuts, and sesame seeds.

Polyunsaturated fatty acids, which fall into the healthy fat category because they do not raise LDL, include two types:

Omega-3 fatty acids offer a host of health benefits, including reducing inflammation, which, in turn, helps prevent and may even treat diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and heart disease. These fats also help prevent blood clots and lower blood pressure, can improve mood, and may increase IQ in children. The health effects are so great that there’s a case to be made for taking Omega-3 supplements in addition to what you get from your diet. The three main types of omega-3s are:

• Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is the omega-3 fatty acid that’s found in plants. ALA is critical to our survival; it’s one of the two “essential” fatty acids that the body cannot make, so we must get it from foods (linoleic is the other essential fatty acid)
  • Sources: Have one of the following every day: flaxseeds or flaxseed oil, canola oil, walnuts, and foods enriched with omega-3s, such as these products sporting the Best Life Seal of Approval: Barilla PLUS pasta, Flatout Flatbread, Hellman’s Canola Cholesterol Free Mayonnaise , Silk DHA Omega-3 & Calcium Soymilk (contains both ALA and DHA), Smart Balance Buttery Spread, Smart Balance Peanut Butter.
• Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docohexaenoic acid (DHA) are the omega-3s found primarily in fish; there are also small amounts in meat from grass-fed animals. These seem to have more potent and direct benefits to the heart, brain, and joints than ALA and are what make up most omega-3 supplements
  • Sources: Have one of the following fatty fish at least two times a week: bluefish, salmon, sardines, trout, and tuna. Fresh and white albacore canned tuna come from large fish that tend to be high in mercury, so have no more than once a week. Chunk light canned tuna is low in mercury, so it’s okay to have it a few times a week. (the rest of the fish listed are low in mercury.) If you don’t like fish or are allergic to it, you should take an omega-3 supplement; even if you do eat fish, there’s a case for supplementing

Omega-6 fatty acids have also been linked to heart disease prevention. Some argue that because omega-6s can be converted into substances that encourage inflammation, they may actually be bad for the heart and other tissues. However, a 2009 review by the American Heart Association found that most of the evidence points to a heart-protective effect. The most common omega-6 in our diet is linoleic acid, which, like ALA, is an essential fatty acid. Most people get more than their share of omega-6s because these are the predominant fats in many processed foods, such as frozen foods, baked goods, and salad dressings, as well as restaurant fare. There are also omega-6 fatty acids in olive and canola oils, which should become your staple oils for home use.

Sources: Corn, sesame, sunflower (not “high-oleic sunflower oil,” which is high in monounsaturated fat), soybean, and walnut oils.

Unhealthy FatsCut back on foods high in saturated fat, and make it a point to avoid sources of trans fat altogether.

Saturated fatty acids are considered unhealthy fats because when eaten in excess, they raise LDL (“bad” cholesterol) and have been linked to an increased risk for heart disease, breast, colon, prostate, and pancreatic cancer. To make matters worse, a high intake of saturated fat appears to increase insulin resistance.

Sources: You can’t avoid saturated fat completely because it’s in many healthy foods, including olive oil, but you can limit the loaded sources, such as butter, cream, full-fat cheese, whole milk, fatty meats, and chicken skin. A few plant foods, such as palm and coconut oil, are also high in saturated fat. Fortunately, the type of saturated fatty acid in the cocoa butter in chocolate (stearic acid) does not raise LDL. Sometimes you luck out!

Trans-fatty acids are the most unhealthy fats of all. Not only do they raise LDL, but they also lower HDL (“good” cholesterol). These fats appear to promote visceral fat, the deep belly fat that surrounds the organs, which can trigger heart disease and insulin resistance. Although trans fat exists in small quantities naturally in fatty meats and high-fat dairy foods, the major source is man-made partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, a solid fat that is used in some commercial baked goods and makes food more shelf-stable.

Sources: Foods made with partially hydrogenated oil, including some cookies, cakes, crackers, pie crusts, and other baked goods, frozen foods, and margarine. (Fortunately, now there are brands of margarine or spreads such as Smart Balance Buttery Spread, which carries the Best Life seal, that have no partially hydrogenated oil.)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bob Greene, author of The Best Life Guide to Managing Diabetes (Copyright © 2009 by Bestlife Corporation), is an exercise physiologist and certified personal trainer specializing in fitness, metabolism, and weight loss. He holds a master’s degree from the University of Arizona and is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Council on Exercise. For the past seventeen years he has worked with clients and consulted on the design and management of fitness, spa, and sports medicine programs. Bob has been a guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show. He is also a contributing writer and editor for O the Oprah magazine, and writes articles on health and fitness for Oprah.com. Greene is the bestselling author of The Best Life Diet Cookbook, The Best Life Diet Revised and Updated, The Best Life Diet, The Best Life Diet Daily Journal, The Total Body Makeover, Get With the Program!, The Get With the Program! Daily Journal, The Get With the Program! Guide to Good Eating, and Make the Connection.

How to Grow Slim by Eating Healthy Food

Human beings need to yearn to grow slim by eating only healthy food. Healthy foods are good for both men and women. Kids need to be interested in eating vegetables instead of junk foods. Having a high demand for eating unhealthy foods will increase your chances of growing fat and fully overweight. It is not hard to lose weight and grow slim through eating healthy well-balanced diets so check out the tips below.


Tips


Move to a places where people hate fat people who have enormous appetite levels. The attitude of harsh people can open your eyes to realities at times. Maybe, you should move to a place which inhabits some of the meanest Americans and you will probably stop eating large pounds of cheeseburgers everyday. Do not move to New York City because there are many overweight people in this US city.
Workout if you want to grow slim. Also, aim to limit the number of times you eat sugary foods on a daily basis to help you to prevent a disease like diabetes from ruining your life. Instead of watching TV everyday, you need to develop a habit which will allows you to run outside of your home for hours. Avoid your breakfast and lunch and eat once a day. Always eat nutritious food in the evening if you want to burn some calories within a short time frame. Nutritious meals aren’t likely to be sold in most restaurants which operate in some of the fattest US cities in America.




Read more: http://www.choicehow.com/2009/12/how-to-grow-slim-by-eating-healthy-food/#ixzz1Hm4Ud3rh