The Nutrition of Weight Loss Food Programs

Some weight loss food programs are better for you than others are. Some companies are masters at marketing while limiting the actual quality of the foods they put into those pretty boxes. Others give you nothing but nutrition but it tastes so bad that you cannot enjoy it. When it comes to finding meals that are right for you, both your goal to lose the pounds and your desire to eat something good, it is important to look at the nutrition included in each meal. Is this the best possible product for you?

The Importance of Protein

One of the key nutritional elements you need any weight loss food programs to offer is a good source of protein. It is the building block of muscles. As you begin to work out to enhance your dieting success, your body will develop firmer, leaner muscle mass. In fact, this leaner mass will burn through stored fat faster than any other cell mass in your body. However, to become strong, muscles need a good source of protein. It will give you the tools to build a strong body that is burning fat quickly.

You Need Vitamins and Minerals

Though most individuals should still take a multi-vitamin, you can and should invest in products packed with nutrition. You need nutrients that are going to add to your energy reserves so that you can exercise and go through your day. If you are eating just low calorie foods all of the time, this simply will not work. You could just eat celery every day if you wanted that. This does not give your body enough energy, though, to get through your day. Every system, including your immune system, requires a source of energy from nutrition.

Calorie Restriction Is Important

Finally, to lose the pounds, you simply need to reduce the number of calories your body is taking in. You could eat nothing but fruit and get the nutrition you need, but since this does have a high amount of calories, it may not be a good option. It's better for you and your overall health to focus on foods that balance nutrition and calories so that you can see the weight come off without lacking the energy you need to exercise and to go about your day.

The right weight loss food programs can do this for you. They base their meal selections on nutritional value, including protein and calorie restriction goals. This way, you have a simple, easy-to-follow plan that allows you to achieve the goals you have. Do not go with just a pretty box but rather a plan that is going to help you to cut off the pounds quickly.

Participating in weight loss food programs can really help you learn to control your diet. Contact the wonderful staff  and take control over your life.

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More Protein = More Weight Loss?

by Madeline Haller

Looking for a more effective way to drop pounds? Swap out carbs for protein. People who follow high-protein diets may have more success losing weight than those who eat less protein and more carbohydrates, says research published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.


We'd prefer a juicy steak instead.

Researchers pooled results from 24 past trials that put subjects on reduced-calorie, low-fat diets. Half of the subjects were assigned to a high-protein diet (on average, about 120 grams of protein per day), while the other half consumed a standard-protein diet (on average, about 67 grams per day).

Both diets had an average energy intake, for males and females, of 1,550 calories per day, says study author Thomas Wycherley, Ph.D., a postdoctoral research fellow from the University of South Australia in Adelaide. But over an average of 12 weeks, people who followed the high-protein diet lost 1.7 pounds more than those in the standard-protein group.

You may lose more weight on a high-protein diet because your body spends more energy processing dietary protein than it does carbohydrates, Wycherley says.

Think of it this way: If you eat 100 calories of protein, your body will burn about 20 to 30 of those calories while processing the protein, says Wycherley. Compare that to 100 calories of carbs, and your body only burns about 5 to 10 calories.

Another reason for the weight loss may be because protein helps preserve muscle mass. And since muscle mass burns more calories than other types of mass, the additional calorie burn could result in a decrease in weight. (Looking for the best sources of protein for men? Try these 5 Protein-Packed Gym Snacks.)

So how much protein does the average guy need?

Men between the ages of 19 and 70 should shoot for 56 grams per day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yet most adults would benefit from eating more than the recommended daily intake, says Donald Layman, Ph.D., a professor emeritus of nutrition at the University of Illinois.

Here’s how to put it into perspective: Highly trained athletes thrive on 0.77 grams of daily protein per pound of body weight. That’s 139 grams for a 180-pound man, says Mark Tarnopolsky, M.D., Ph.D., who studies exercise and nutrition at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

Want to make it work for you? Step on a scale, be honest with yourself about your workout regimen, and check out the following chart.

How Much Protein Do You Need?
ACTIVITY LEVEL                                                           PROTEIN NEEDS
You work out five or more days a                                       0.55 grams per pound

week for sixty minutes or longer
                                                                                                            
You work out three our five days a                                     0.45 grams per pound
week for 45 minutes to an hour
                                                                                                            
                 Therefor a 180-pound guy who works out
      regularly needs about 80 grams on protein a day


And if you only hit the gym twice a week for around 30 minutes, you’re in the clear. According to Dr. Tarnopolsky, there’s no need to go beyond the recommended daily amount if you’re not highly active.

Additional reporting by Adina Steiman

10 Tips To Reduce Stomach Fat

There are plenty of people who want to reduce stomach fat. While "six pack" abs are certainly the fashionable look right now, not that many actually have them. Of course, that doesn't stop most of us from trying to obtain them, does it? Here is a list of 10 tips to keep in mind as you work to get rid of belly fat:

1. Short of surgery, there is no simple process to quickly remove the fat. Reducing it requires time, patience and work.

2. When you exercise, make sure your movements are smooth and controlled.

3. Do your best to not arch your back during your abdominal workout. Arching your back can strain the muscles in your lower back and increase the length of time it will take to lose the fat.

4. Lots of people think that, in order for exercise to be effective, exercise must be done until the person feels out of breath and physically tapped. This couldn't be farther from the truth. Exercise until it feels uncomfortable and then cool down. As time goes on, you'll find that the time it takes to feel winded or uncomfortable gets longer and longer.

5. Sit ups, when not paired with a full body workout do not actually flatten your stomach. In fact, unless you are working your entire abdominal region (and the rest of your body), sit ups will tone your abdominal muscles, making them more pronounced behind the layer of fat--making your stomach fat even more obvious!

6. Do some crunches when you would normally be lying around and doing something passive (like watching television or listening to music). Crunches are one of the best exercises you can do to work your abdominal muscle area.

7. Keep your workout routine varied. The more you do an exercise, the more your muscles will become used to it and the less effect it will have on your muscle tone and it will make it harder for you to get into shape.

8. Make sure that you are eating a healthy diet. All of the exercise in the world won't do you any good if you aren't eating healthy as well. Healthy foods have fewer calories and are easier for your body to digest.

9. Stay away from saturated fats and foods containing high fructose corn syrup. Saturated fat and high fructose corn syrup are two of the leading reasons why people have problems with belly fat in the first place.

10. Maintain proper posture. By sitting up straight you will be able to reduce the appearance of your stomach fat. Proper posture will also help you when you work out and you'll find that you have less muscle aches!

These are just ten short tips to help you reduce stomach fat on your body. Remember that you need to work at all of your body's fat to truly lose any weight or fat inches. If you only work on your stomach, your fat will simply relocate to some other area of your body!

Author's Resource Box

You can find out more about how to Reduce Stomach Fat as well as much more information on eliminating belly fat at http://www.BurningStomachFat.com

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