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Pregnancy & Nutrition

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:34:12 +0100

You want what's best for your baby. That's why you add sliced fruit to your fortified breakfast cereal, top your salads with chickpeas and snack on soy nuts. But do you know what foods to avoid during pregnancy?Start with the basics in pregnancy nutrition. Understanding what foods to avoid during pregnancy can help you make the healthiest choices for you and your baby.

Avoid seafood high in mercury

Seafood can be a great source of protein, and the omega-3 fatty acids in many fish can promote your baby's brain development. However, some fish and shellfish contain potentially dangerous levels of mercury. Too much mercury could damage your baby's developing nervous system.

The bigger and older the fish, the more mercury it's likely to contain. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encourage pregnant women to avoid:

Swordfish
Shark
King mackerel
Tilefish

So what's safe? Some types of seafood contain little mercury. Although concerns have been raised about the level of mercury in any type of canned tuna, the FDA and EPA say pregnant women can safely eat up to 12 ounces (340 grams) a week. Similarly, the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend 8 to 12 ounces of seafood a week for pregnant women. That's about two average meals of:

Shrimp
Crab
Canned light tuna (limit albacore tuna, chunk white tuna and tuna steak to no more than 6 ounces, or 170 grams, a week)
Salmon
Pollock
Catfish
Cod
Tilapia

Not all researchers agree with these limits, however, citing a study that noted no negative effects for women who ate more seafood than the FDA-approved guidelines.

Avoid raw, undercooked or contaminated seafood

To avoid harmful bacteria or viruses in seafood:

Avoid raw fish and shellfish. It's especially important to avoid oysters and clams.
Avoid refrigerated smoked seafood, such as lox. It's OK to eat smoked seafood if it's an ingredient in a casserole or other cooked dish. Canned and shelf-stable versions also are safe.
Understand local fish advisories. If you eat fish from local waters, pay attention to local fish advisories — especially if water pollution is a concern. If advice isn't available, limit the amount of fish from local waters you eat to 6 ounces (170 grams) a week and don't eat other fish that week.
Cook seafood properly. Cook most fish to an internal temperature of 145 F (63 C). The fish is done when it separates into flakes and appears opaque throughout. Cook shrimp, lobster and scallops until they're milky white. Cook clams, mussels and oysters until their shells open. Discard any that don't open.

Avoid undercooked meat, poultry and eggs

During pregnancy, you're at increased risk of bacterial food poisoning. Your reaction might be more severe than if you weren't pregnant. Rarely, food poisoning affects the baby, too.

To prevent foodborne illness:

Fully cook all meats and poultry before eating. Use a meat thermometer to make sure.
Cook hot dogs and processed deli meats, such as bologna, until they're steaming hot — or avoid them completely. They can be sources of a rare but potentially serious foodborne illness known as listeriosis.
Avoid refrigerated pates and meat spreads. Canned and shelf-stable versions, however, are OK.
Don't buy raw poultry that's been pre-stuffed. Raw juice that mixes with the stuffing can cause bacterial growth. Frozen poultry that's been pre-stuffed is safe when cooked from its frozen state.
Cook eggs until the egg yolks and whites are firm. Raw eggs can be contaminated with the harmful bacteria salmonella. Avoid foods made with raw or partially cooked eggs, such as eggnog, raw batter, hollandaise sauce and Caesar salad dressing.

Avoid unpasteurized foods

Many low-fat dairy products — such as skim milk, mozzarella cheese and cottage cheese — can be a healthy part of your diet. Anything containing unpasteurized milk, however, is a no-no. These products could lead to foodborne illness.

Unless these soft cheeses are clearly labeled as being pasteurized or made with pasteurized milk, don't eat:

Brie
Feta
Camembert
Blue cheese
Mexican-style cheeses, such as queso blanco, queso fresco and panela

When selecting eggs, consider buying the pasteurized variety. In addition, avoid drinking unpasteurized juice.

Avoid unwashed fruits and vegetables

To eliminate any harmful bacteria, thoroughly wash all raw fruits and vegetables and cut away damaged portions. Avoid raw sprouts of any kind — including alfalfa, clover, radish and mung bean — which also might contain disease-causing bacteria. Be sure to cook sprouts thoroughly.

Avoid large quantities of vitamin A

Too much vitamin A can cause birth defects. The Institute of Medicine recommends that pregnant women age 19 and older get 2,565 international units (IU) of vitamin A daily. For perspective, 3 ounces of cooked beef liver contains 27,185 IU and 3 ounces of cooked chicken liver contains 12,325 IU.

Avoid excess caffeine

Caffeine can cross the placenta and affect your baby's heart rate. While further research is needed, some studies suggest that drinking too much caffeine during pregnancy might be associated with an increased risk of miscarriage. Because of the potential effects on your developing baby, your health care provider might recommend limiting the amount of caffeine in your diet to less than 200 milligrams a day during pregnancy. For perspective, an 8-ounce cup of brewed coffee contains about 95 milligrams of caffeine, an 8-ounce cup of brewed tea contains about 47 milligrams and a 12-ounce caffeinated cola soft drink contains about 29 milligrams.

Avoid herbal tea

There's little data on the effects of specific herbs on developing babies. As a result, avoid drinking herbal tea unless your health care provider says it's OK — even the types of herbal tea marketed specifically to pregnant women.

Avoid alcohol

One drink isn't likely to hurt your baby, but no level of alcohol has been proved safe during pregnancy. The safest bet is to avoid alcohol entirely.

Consider the risks. Mothers who drink alcohol have a higher risk of miscarriage and stillbirth. Too much alcohol during pregnancy can result in fetal alcohol syndrome, which can cause facial deformities, heart problems, low birth weight and mental retardation. Even moderate drinking can impact your baby's brain development.

If you're concerned about alcohol you drank before you knew you were pregnant or you think you need help to stop drinking, consult your health care provider.

The Truth About Drugs

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 03:53:42 +0100

Are generic drugs cheaper?

Not always, and not by as much as you might think. "If you check drugstore.com, the difference is huge--say, $30 for generic versus $200 for brand name," says Douglas Kamerow, M.D., chief scientist for RTI International, an independent research institute. "But if you have insurance, the difference may not be so big--maybe $3 versus $12." With some drug plans, brand-name meds may actually cost less than their generic equivalents. This happens, for example, when major drugmakers negotiate deals (often after losing their patent) to offer meds at a discount, Dr. Kamerow says.

Your move: Use a prescription drug calculator, available through your insurance provider, to easily compare prices for your plan. For example, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan offers a "Top 100 Generic Drugs Calculator," and Cigna's website features "The Prescription Drug Price Quote Tool."

Are generic and brand-name drugs the same quality?

Usually. However, "most of our generic drugs come from large overseas manufacturers in India or China," says Dr. Kamerow. "There may be questions about the integrity of the product--whether it is what they say it is." For example, in 2009, the FDA took action against the generic-drug company Ranbaxy Laboratories for lying about test results at a facility in India. It's largely an issue of logistics: The FDA would need 9 years to inspect eligible foreign facilities once (at the 2009 rate of inspection), according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office. In a 2009 survey of pharmacists, 95 percent said they feel a generic drug's country of origin affects its safety.

Your move: You can check the FDA's MedWatch to see if any quality issues have been reported for your medications. If you're concerned, Dr. Kamerow also suggests inquiring about "branded generics," or generic drugs produced by brand-name drug companies; these make up about 25 percent of the global pharmaceutical market.

Do generic and brand-name drugs use the same formulas?

No. They have the same active ingredient but sometimes contain different inactive ingredients. "It's uncommon, but a patient may have an allergic reaction to the inactive ingredients in one and not the other," Dr. Kamerow says.

"Or, more likely, the active ingredients will be absorbed in your body slightly differently." For drugs that require precise blood levels--such as certain antifungals, antibiotics, and blood thinners--even a small difference in absorption might alter their effect, he says.

Your move: Ask your doctor if your drug has a "narrow therapeutic window." If it does, Dr. Kamerow suggests that you avoid switching from a brand name to a generic and vice versa--or even from one generic to another--unless you have blood work done to establish a new dosage.

Something else to consider: Since the 1990s, the number of fatal overdoses from prescription medications has increased by almost fivefold.

Surprising Facts About Abs

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 07:42:43 +0100

You Don't Need to Train Them Every Day-

If you perform ab exercises daily in the pursuit of a perfect belly, you could be overtaxing your muscles. Some train abs 7 days a week and won’t allow for any rest. That just damages the muscles. Focus on abs three or four times a week.

Abs Exercises Alone Aren't Enough-

It’s also important to mix things up: New research published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research shows that doing a routine of core-strengthening exercises alone won’t slim your waistline. When volunteers did seven moves 5 days a week, they had stronger ab muscles but they didn’t lose fat or inches. To reveal chiseled abs, you need to train all your major muscle groups, do cardio, and follow a healthy diet.

If You Want Stronger Abs, You'll Need a Stronger Back-

If your abs are the star of the show, think of your lower back as the supporting cast. When it comes to waist circumference, your lower back factors into that figure just as much as belly fat does, says White. "By tightening your lower back, your waist will look slimmer." Also, a strong lower back makes it possible for you to complete intense ab-focused workouts with less risk of injury. "You can’t be one-sided," says White. "It’s the same problem we see in athletes who overdevelop their quads and end up with hamstring injuries." If you neglect your back, not only will you have a more difficult time completing ab exercises in the first place, but you’ll also have a better chance of injuring yourself and having to put off ab-targeted moves completely while you recover. In other words, if you want that six-pack, your lower back better be in shape.

Some Ab Moves Are More Effective Than Others-

Exercise infomercials love to lure in buyers with the promise of six-pack abs. But a 2001 study sponsored by the American Council on Exercise (ACE) found that the most effective ab-targeted moves can actually be done at home with minimal equipment. Researchers tested the amount of muscle activity required of participants while they performed 13 basic ab exercises. The bicycle crunch, the captain’s chair, and the stability ball crunch were named the best moves, requiring 148, 112, and 39% more muscle activity, respectively, than the traditional crunch. And if you want an obliques-targeted move, incorporate the reverse crunch into your workout. It’s 140% more effective at hitting the sides of your torso than the traditional crunch.

Some Ab Moves Aren't Worth Doing-

The same ACE-sponsored study determined the least effective ab-targeted exercises. The exercise tubing pull and the Ab Rocker machine were at the bottom of the list, requiring 8 and 79% less muscle activity, respectively, than the traditional crunch.

You May Have More Belly Fat Than You See in the Mirror-

There are two types of fat: subcutaneous and visceral. Subcutaneous fat is the most common—it resides all over the body, just below the skin—but visceral fat resides deep within the torso and wraps itself around your heart, liver, and other major organs. While subcutaneous fat is easy to see in the mirror (it’s the stuff you can pinch), visceral fat is difficult to detect without a CT scan or a MRI. In fact, it’s possible to look relatively thin and still have too much visceral fat. Find out why this is a problem on the next slide.

Belly Fat Can Increase Your Risk of Osteoporosis-

Because underweight women are known to have increased risk of osteoporosis, it was assumed that the heavier you are, the healthier your bones. But the results of a recent study presented at the Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America suggest otherwise: Researchers found that visceral fat is associated with reduced bone-mineral density in obese women.

You Can Eat Your Way to a Flatter Belly-

A Spanish study published in the journal Diabetes Care found that eating a diet rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) can actually help prevent weight gain in your belly—more specifically, the accumulation of visceral fat. Foods like avocados, nuts, and olive oil are high in MUFAs, which are also known to help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol.

A Strong Stomach Protects Against Injury-

A study conducted by the U.S. Army found that strong abdominal muscles are linked to injury prevention. Researchers tracked 120 soldiers during a year of field training and found that those who were able to perform the most situps (73 situps in 2 minutes) during their initial standard army fitness test were 5 times less likely to suffer lower-body injuries (including lower-back injury) than the men who completed fewer than 50 situps. What’s more, top performance in other areas of the fitness test—like pushups and the 2-mile run—offered no such injury protection, suggesting that a strong core plays a larger role in injury prevention than other muscle groups do.

10 Ways to Have Great Posture as You Age

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 21:32:17 +0100

Good posture will do more to keep you looking youthful as the years go by than a face-lift or Botox. And the benefits of maintaining your bone health are much more than skin-deep.

Although a stooped posture may seem to go hand in hand with old age, you can help prevent the characteristic rounding of the spine that is often caused by osteoporosis and the destruction of the vertebrae in the upper and middle spine.

Here are 10 tips to keep you standing tall at any age.

Open up

Now that many of us spend our days hunched in front of a computer, "it's very important for us to be able to stretch and open up and improve our range of motion," says Jonathan F. Bean, MD, MS, MPH, an assistant professor in the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School in Boston.

To stay limber, try to get up for a couple minutes every half hour and stretch, walk, or stand.

Easy exercises

Try this exercise: Every morning and night, lie down on the floor and make slow "snow angels" with your arms for two or three minutes.

For an extra challenge, roll up a towel and put it on the floor underneath your spine. Many gyms have half foam rollersa tube cut in half lengthwisethat you can use for even more of a stretch.

But do these stretches slowly and stop if you feel anything worse than mild discomfort or pain, says Dr. Bean. "You want to work up to that, you want to make sure that you first get the flexibility."

Sit straight

When you do have to work at a desk, "sitting up with good, tall posture and your shoulders dropped is a good habit to get into," says Rebecca Seguin, PhD, an exercise physiologist and nutritionist in Seattle.

This can take some getting used to; exercise disciplines that focus on body awareness, such as Pilates and yoga, can help you to stay sitting straight, Seguin says. Make sure your workstation is set up to promote proper posture.

Strengthen your core

Pilates and yoga are great ways to build up the strength of your "core"the muscles of your abdomen and pelvic area.

These muscles form the foundation of good posture, and a strong core can have many other benefits, from improving your athletic performance to preventing urinary incontinence.

A stronger core can even make sex more fun.

Say om

In addition to helping to increase body awareness and core strength, yoga is an excellent way to build and maintain flexibility and strengthen muscles throughout your body, Dr. Bean says.

Start practicing yoga gradually and listen to how your body responds, he points out. Make sure your yoga teacher is sensitive to your needs and abilities, and available for feedback. Hatha or restorative yoga are good places to start if you're a beginner.

Support your spine

After menopause, women may have more weakening in the muscles around the spine than aging men do, Dr. Bean says.

Exercises targeting the back extensors, neck flexors, pelvic muscles, and side muscles are crucial. Trainers at gyms can help; there are even special machines that target these muscles.

Endurance in the spine and trunk muscle groups is important too, according to Dr. Bean; "that's what allows us to stand up for long periods of time without our back hurting us."

Lift weights

The vertebral compression fractures that subtract from our heightand can lead to the "dowager's hump" in the upper back that's a hallmark of old ageare due to the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis.

Women — and men — can prevent these changes with weight-bearing exercises, like walking, stair climbing, and weight lifting.

"People who walk regularly through their whole lives tend to have better bone density than sedentary people," Seguin explains.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is essential for bone health, and may help us maintain our muscles too.

Try to get it from a healthy diet. A recent report from the Institute of Medicine, an independent, nonprofit organization, found that most of us get enough vitamin D from food and sunlight without taking supplements.

The recommended dietary intake for vitamin D is 600 IU a day for women up to age 70 and 800 IU for women older than 70.

Eat healthy

We all know the bone benefits of calcium. It is recommended that women 19 to 50 years old get 1,000 milligrams of calcium daily. For older women, it's 1,200 milligrams. But again, it may be best to get calcium from food rather than supplements.

The recent Institute of Medicine report found that most people, except adolescent girls, get enough calcium from their diet. In addition, studies have shown that people taking calcium supplements have higher rates of heart attacks and kidney stones.

Talk with your physician about whether or not you need to take supplemental calcium.

Consider medication

Your doctor will be able to tell you whether you need a bone mineral density scan to detect osteopenia or osteoporosis.

Although Seguin says that activities like progressive resistance training can halt or reverse bone loss in some cases, medications may also help. These include bisphosphonates like Boniva, Reclast, and Fosamax. (Although safe, such drugs can increase the risk of rare fractures or other problems.)

Hormone-based medications that can help build bone density include Evista (raloxifene), calcitonin, and parathyroid hormone.

Fight Fatigue with... Spinach

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 16:18:23 +0100

Spinach is chock-full of nutrients that are essential for battling fatigue and helping our bodies perform at their peak. Not only is spinach one of the most iron-dense food sources on earth, it's also extremely rich in magnesium and potassium and is an excellent source of energy-supporting B-vitamins.

Why it works: Iron plays a direct and important role in fighting fatigue. It's a known energy booster, helping the body produce energy by delivering oxygen to the cells and enabling them to perform optimally. Without sufficient oxygen, our cells slow down and can even shut down altogether. Low iron levels can cause both physical and mental fatigue, as well as anemia. Symptoms of anemia include tiredness, lack of energy, weakness, trouble concentrating, apathy, insomnia, and loss of appetite. Spinach and other leafy greens offer a high rate of iron for an extremely low caloric intake. Spinach also happens to be an excellent source of vitamin C, which boosts iron absorption. Magnesium is another mineral that plays a vital role in the production of energy. In fact, it's involved in hundreds of enzymatic reactions throughout the body and directly affects our cardiovascular, digestive, and nervous systems; muscles; kidneys; liver; and brain.

Magnesium is necessary for the production of energy, proper digestion, and the regulation of nerve and muscle tone. It's no wonder that a lack of magnesium can cause our brains and bodies to slow. Unfortunately, magnesium deficiency is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies in the U.S. Even a slight deficiency can result in reduced energy levels, which causes your body to work harder and can lead to exhaustion. Symptoms of magnesium deficiency include imbalanced blood sugar levels, depression, muscle weakness, muscle cramps, muscle spasms, muscle soreness, body tension, low energy, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, confusion, and lack of appetite.

Like magnesium, potassium also helps muscles and nerves function properly. Physical overexertion is a common cause of potassium deficiency, but it can also occur if you become dehydrated due to illness or for any other reason. Symptoms of potassium deficiency include muscle weakness, confusion, and fatigue.

When to eat it: For the amount -- and array -- of nutrients packed into these leafy greens, we'd all be better off if spinach made an appearance at every meal, every day. But let's be practical. Incorporate spinach into your diet as much as you can, as often as possible. Try steamed spinach and organic, farm-fresh eggs for breakfast; tuck spinach into your sandwich at lunch; layer it in your lasagna at dinner. You get the idea.

How to enjoy it: You don't have to resort to a spinach salad or side dish at every meal. Spinach is so mild you can add it to just about anything -- soups, stews, casseroles, dips, smoothies, and stir-fries.

Extra credit: Fold pureed spinach into baked goods. No one but you will be the wiser, and everyone will be a little healthier for it.

Great ad from Health Families BC

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 17:37:53 +0100

I was reading the Vancouver 24 and came across this full page ad. Well said. Below is a healthier recipe for a lean lasagna.

Lean Lasagna

INGREDIENTS

Vegetable-oil cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cups tomato sauce
3 tablespoons Italian seasoning (or 1 tsp each dried basil, parsley, and oregano)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
6 cups chopped fresh spinach
2 cups fat-free ricotta
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 package whole-wheat lasagna noodles (about 8 oz, or 9 noodles)
2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray a medium-sized nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Sauté onion for 2 minutes, then add turkey and cook an additional 5 to 7 minutes. Add tomato sauce, all seasonings and mushrooms and simmer 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. In a bowl, combine spinach, ricotta, and nutmeg. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and rinse with cool water.
For assembly
Coat a 9" x 13" baking pan with cooking spray. Arrange 1/3 lasagna noodles (3 noodles) on the bottom of the pan. Spread a layer of ricotta mixture, then turkey mixture, then 1/3 mozzarella. Repeat layers, ending with mozzarella. Bake 20ozzarella. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until cheese bubbles. Cool at least 5 minutes before cutting.

THE SKINNY

310 calories per serving, 6 g fat (3.5 g saturated), 31 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 33 g protein

10 Signs Your TOO Stressed

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 22:52:50 +0100

1. Weekend headaches

A sudden drop in stress can prompt migraines, says Todd Schwedt, MD, director of the Washington University Headache Center. Stick closely to your weekday sleeping and eating schedule to minimize other triggers.

2. Awful period cramps

The most stressed-out women are more than twice as likely to experience painful cramps as those who are less tense, a Harvard study found. Researchers blame a stress-induced imbalance of hormones. Hitting the gym can soothe cramps and stress, research shows, by decreasing sympathetic nervous system activity.

3. An achy mouth

A sore jaw can be a sign of teeth grinding, which usually occurs during sleep and can be worsened by stress, says Matthew Messina, DDS, a consumer advisor to the American Dental Association. Ask your dentist about a nighttime mouth guard—up to 70% of people who use one reduce or stop grinding altogether.

4. Odd dreams

Dreams usually get progressively more positive as you sleep, so you wake up in a better mood than you were in when you went to bed, says Rosalind Cartwright, PhD, an emeritus professor of psychology at Rush University Medical Center. But when you’re stressed, you wake up more often, disrupting this process and allowing unpleasant imagery to recur all night. Good sleep habits can help prevent this; aim for 7 to 8 hours a night, and avoid caffeine and alcohol close to bedtime

5. Bleeding gums

According to a Brazilian analysis of 14 past studies, stressed-out people have a higher risk of periodontal disease. Chronically elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol may impair the immune system and allow bacteria to invade the gums, say researchers. If you're working long hours and eating dinner at your desk, keep a toothbrush on hand. And "protect your mouth by exercising and sleeping more, which will help lower stress," says Preston Miller, DDS, past president of the American Academy of Periodontology.

6. Out-of-nowhere acne

Stress increases the inflammation that leads to breakouts, says Gil Yosipovitch, MD, a clinical professor of dermatology at Wake Forest University. Smooth your skin with a lotion containing skin sloughing salicylic acid or bacteria-busting benzoyl peroxide, plus a noncomedogenic moisturizer so skin won't get too dry. If your skin doesn't respond to treatment within a few weeks, see your doctor for more potent meds.

7. A sweet tooth

Don’t automatically blame your chocolate cravings on your lady hormones—stress is a more likely trigger. When University of Pennsylvania researchers surveyed pre- and postmenopausal women, they found only a small decrease in the prevalence of chocolate cravings after menopause—smaller than could be explained by just a hormonal link. Study authors say it’s likely stress, or other factors that can trigger women’s hankering for chocolate.

8. Itchy skin

A recent Japanese study of more than 2,000 people found that those with chronic itch (known as pruritis) were twice as likely to be stressed out as those without the condition. Although an annoying itch problem can certainly cause stress, experts say it’s likely that feeling anxious or tense also aggravates underlying conditions like dermatitis, eczema, and psoriasis. “The stress response activates nerve fibers, causing an itchy sensation,” explains Yosipovitch.

9. Worse-than-usual allergies

In a 2008 experiment, researchers from Ohio State University College of Medicine found that allergy sufferers had more symptoms after they took an anxiety-inducing test, compared with when they performed a task that did not make them tense. Stress hormones may stimulate the production of IgE, a blood protein that causes allergic reactions, says study author Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, PhD.

10. Bellyaches

Anxiety and stress can cause stomachaches, along with headaches, backaches, and insomnia. One study of 1,953 men and women found that those experiencing the highest levels of stress were more than three times as likely to have abdominal pain as their more-relaxed counterparts.

The exact connection is still unclear, but one theory holds that the intestines and the brain share nerve pathways; when the mind reacts to stress, the intestines pick up the same signal. Because of this link, learning to manage stress with the help of a clinical psychologist, meditation, or even exercise can usually help relieve tummy trouble too. However, if you have frequent bellyaches, see your doc to rule out food allergies, lactose intolerance, irritable bowel syndrome, or an ulcer.

Want a quick fat loss workout?

Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:21:56 +0100

So who wants a quick 10 minute workout for fat loss? Sorry, I was just joking! In reality, you cannot lose a lot of fat with brief 10 minute type workout sessions! However we all do wish for something like that and the sly fitness instructors use this to their advantage to fool others and make quick money. So please, I hope that no one who follows this site should ever fall for any such claims!

But what about those times when you were planning on doing a regular 45 minute workout, but suddenly something came up and you now only have 15 minutes or so to do it? Since you cannot do the full workout, are you not even going to utilize those 15 minutes that are available to you? I am sure that you will want to make the best of whatever time you have at your disposal and get an intense workout. So to encourage that spirit, I will share with you sample workouts that you can do.

One thing that you must realize, is that if you are going to cut down on training time then training intensity becomes even more crucial! So, do not just go through a warm up type workout since you have less time. The workouts I will share with you will involve bodyweight, dumbbell, jump rope and kettlebell. In other words, home workouts! I am sure if you have only 15 minutes to train, you will not have the time to travel to a gym and change your clothes twice.

In part #1 of this series, I will share workout routines that you can do without any equipment and by simply using your own bodyweight. I personally feel that many people underestimate the value of bodyweight exercises and thus do not reach their peak potential. So, here are quick bodyweight workouts that you can use whether you are a beginner, intermediate or an advanced trainee.

Bodyweight Circuit for Beginners
If you have just started your fat loss journey and are not very conditioned, then try this 15 minute workout:

10 push ups (hands on bed)
15-20 reps squatting up and down on bed
12-15 crunches
50 punches as fast as you can
Take 1-2 minutes rest and repeat the circuit as many times as possible.

Bodyweight Circuit for Intermediates:

6 push ups
6 (each leg) reverse lunges
6 Hindu push ups
12 squats
6 (each side) side bridge
Rest 1 minute or less and repeat as many times as possible. The idea is to do as many number of circuits possible in 15 minutes. More than 5 circuits would be a good number!

Bodyweight Circuit for Advanced
For advanced fat loss trainees who have used only bodyweight exercises, it is a little tough to make a generic routine without knowing what exact exercises you have been doing up to this point. So, here are two advanced workouts that you can try:

500 squats in 15 minutes
Alternate between push ups and squats and do as many reps as possible with no rest (or maybe just a few seconds)

I have not included any jumping type exercises in this routine like burpees, because I feel that if you are training on a hard surface at home then jumping too high forcefully could be a problem. Thus, I have stuck to safer options.

McDonald's Confirms Its French Fries Are Made With Beef Extract

Sat, 19 Feb 2011 01:02:44 +0100

SEATTLE - Facing a class-action lawsuit from angry vegetarians, McDonald's this week confirmed that its French fries are prepared with beef extract, a disclosure the company said is not new.

Although the fast-food giant has been saying since 1990 that its fries are cooked in pure vegetable oil, company spokesman Walt Riker said Wednesday that McDonald's never said its fries were appropriate for vegetarians and always told customers that their flavor comes partly from beef.

A class action suit has been filed for ''emotional distress'' caused to vegetarians, some of them vegetarian for religious reasons, who thought McDonald's fries were in line with their strong feelings about not eating meat.

The list of French-fry ingredients that McDonald's offers at its franchises and on its Web site includes potatoes, partially hydrogenated soybean oil and ''natural flavor.'' The list does not mention that the ''natural flavor'' comes from beef. To discover that, one would have to contact a McDonald's customer-satisfaction representative.

Harish Bharti, the Seattle lawyer who filed the suit against McDonald's Tuesday, said the confirmation that the company uses beef extract to flavor its fries validates his case.

Bharti argues that a reasonable person who heard that McDonald's fries are prepared in ''100 percent vegetable oil'' and read the list of ingredients would assume the food is suitable for vegetarians.

Yesterday, after news of his suit spread across the nation, Bharti said he was receiving hundreds of calls from vegetarians who think they were misled by McDonald's and want to join the suit. Some of them, he said, say they were told by McDonald's employees that the fries were vegetarian.

Beef extract, not beef tallow, as the suit alleges, is the only natural flavor in McDonald's French fries, Riker said. Asked why the company simply did not write ''beef extract'' on its list of ingredients, he replied, ''It's a good question. We're sensitive to all our customers' needs and concerns. We try to be as forthcoming and user-friendly as possible. We'll review it. We'll take a look at it.''

He added that using ''natural flavor'' as a synonym for beef extract is within federal Food and Drug Administration guidelines.

McDonald's French fries are essentially cooked twice. Central suppliers wash, steam-peel, cut, blanch, dry, par-fry and then freeze the potatoes that make the famous golden slivers. During the par-frying, ''a minuscule amount of beef extract is added,'' the company said.

Later, after being shipped to McDonald's franchises, the frozen fries are cooked in pure vegetable oil.

However, in countries such as India, where large numbers of people are vegetarian for religious reasons, McDonald's suppliers do not add beef extract to the fries, Riker said.

Bharti's suit seeks unspecified damages for the ''emotional distress'' caused to vegetarians, some of them vegetarian for religious reasons, who thought McDonald's fries were in line with their strong feelings about not eating meat.

Bharti said McDonald's contention that the information was available to people if they had only asked is insulting.

''Not only did they deceive these people,'' he said. ''Now they are claiming that all these people were deceived because they were stupid. This adds insult to injury.

courtesy of globe newspaper

Arnold Schwarzenegger's Workout Routine

Tue, 15 Feb 2011 19:46:28 +0100

Monday/Wednesday/Friday
Chest

Barbell bench press: 4 sets of 10, 8, 6, and 4 reps
Barbell incline bench press: 4 sets of 10, 8, 6, and 4 reps
Dumbbell flys: 3 sets of 10, 8, and 6 reps
Parallel bar dips: 3 sets of 15, 10 and 8 reps
Pullovers: 3 sets of 15 reps each

Back
Chin-ups: 4 sets of 10 reps minimum each side
Close-grip chins: 4 sets of 10 reps
T-bar rows: 4 sets of 15, 12, 8, and 6 reps
Bent-over barbell rows: 4 sets of 8-12 reps

Thighs
Squat: 5 sets of 10, 8, 6, and 4 reps with a 20 rep warm-up set
Front squats: 4 sets of 10, 8, 8, and 6 reps
Hack squats: 3 sets of 10 reps each
Leg curls: 4 sets of 20, 10, 8, and 6 reps
Standing leg curls: 4 sets of 10 reps each
Straight-leg dead lifts: 3 sets of 10 reps each

Calves
Donkey calf raises: 4 sets of 10 reps each
Standing calf raises: 4 sets of 15, 10, 8, and 8 reps

Abdominals
Crunches: 3 sets of 25 reps
Bent-over twists: 100 reps each side
Machine crunches: 3 sets of 25 reps
Crunches: 50 reps

Stay posted for the other days of routine from Arnold!