Tips to help you shrink your belly

I just came back from a lovely long weekend visiting my good friends in Boston and one of the most asked questions of me was "How do I lose my belly fat?"

I put together a short list of healthy, natural and easy tips that will help you manage your weight!

Eat vegetables and fruit, specially orange ones. (however, if I had to recommend one over the other, I'd chose veggies!)

Women have also been show to lose their waists by replacing refined grains like white bread and simple or added sugar with carbs from fruits and vegetables. Besides packing in the fiber, which keeps you feeling full longer, researchers suspect it's the rich antioxidants, such as vitamin C and beta-carotene, that ward off ab fat.

Carrots, cantaloupe, squash, and peaches are great sources of beta-carotene, while oranges, berries, and kiwi provide a good dose of C.

To keep calories down, pick veggies, like bell peppers, before fruits, and choose fruits over juice.

Below is information regarding the benefits of eating vegetables and fruits.

Mangoes/Pineapples: Aid in Digestion

Artichokes/Radishes: Cleanses the liver

Cherries: Diuretic and laxative qualities

Strawberries: Flush out toxins

Grapes: Cleanse kidneys, liver and aids in digestion. They are also good to eat before a run because it is a good source of energy as they contain many CHO in high concentration

Asparagus: Helps excrete waste and promotes the renewal of bodily organs

Cucumber, leeks and celery: eliminates waste

Figs: (fresh, dried, raw cooked) Cleansing effect on the intenstines, increases volume of stools an accelerate their removal



Eat Protein!

Why do you need protein?
1.Growth and repair of body tissues, including muscle, tendons, and ligaments.
2.Hormones: regulates sugar and fat metabolism
3.Transportation of oxygen throughout the body
4.Enzymes: controls the chemical processes of the ENTIRE body: Digestion and energy metabolism


Here is a list of foods that contain a good source of protein.

Omega 3 enriched hard boiled eggs, plain or greek yogurt, low fat cottage cheese, goat cheese, lean sliced meats, turkey breast, skinless chicken, fish, clams, grilled calamari, Kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, oatmeal (steel oats), nuts, seeds, almond butter, Quinoa, Hemp, salmon, tuna


Other nutrition tips:

Look for breads with the words 100% whole wheat or 100% whole grain, choose tortilla wraps, pita bread, sourdough bread, rye bread

Take an Omega 3 supplement for inflammatory prevention

Incorporate Salba, nature’s most powerful whole food: Promotes balanced blood sugar by reducing glycemic response by up to 40%, supports healthy weight management and digestion. It’s full of calcium, magnesium and iron.
(www.sourceselba.com)

You can buy Salba in a Nutrition Store: GNC, Whole Foods, Trader Joes

Drink lots of green tea!

I could go on and on with recommendations and suggestions! But hopefully this will give you a good head start as you work toward your health goals!

Stay active and anything is possible!
Donna

Movember Diet

For the next 11 days, I would like to share with you one healthy tip a day from a Diet that I came across from Prostate.net, the official site of The Prostate Cancer Institute, in Men's Health.

Remember, knowledge is power so please share this with your loved ones, friends, and colleagues.


Tip #1 REAL MEN DRINK GREEN TEA

Coffee gets a lot of press, but much of it is confusing and contradictory. Not so with green tea, which is rich in antioxidants called catechins and very low in caffeine. Green tea is the beverage to enjoy every day for better prostate health. Catechins have been shown to fight prostate cancer cells, reduce symptoms of BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia), and help stem the inflammation and bacterial infection associated with prostatitis. Enjoy green tea hot or over ice, in a smoothie for breakfast or with a meal. Make the switch to green tea this month, and you may never look back.




Stay tuned for tip #2!


Stay active and anything is possible!
Donna

Portion Control

No matter how much weight you want to lose, portion control will pay a huge factor in getting the results you want. In this day and age, the average serving size has increased tremendously which makes it more challenging for those trying to lose weight.

Here's an article that offers great suggestions on how to eat less!




http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1386


Stay active and anything is possible!

Motivation or is it self discipline?

As a personal trainer, one of my goals is to motivate my clients to maintain their exercise program, eat healthy, and get enough sleep! But what I actually do is "inspire" my clients. It's up to each individual to "motivate" themselves and it takes "self discpline" to live a healthy lifestyle. This means making healthier choices when eating and chosing to be active instead of sedentary. This takes self discpline and it's not always easy! But as I've always believed, health is worth working hard for. We have only one life to live and let's enjoy it to the max!