Fitness4Her

Women's Fitness

The Amazing Diet That Lets You Eat All Day and Still Lose Weight

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If you have tried diet after diet only to be starving yourself and seeing minimal results, my diet may be the solution to your weight loss problems. Since we can’t live without food, it is ironic that many diets starve their followers by reducing the amount of calories allowed at each meal. Food is essential to any diet and eating the right kinds of food will help you lose weight and keep it off.

Rather than the traditional 3 meals a day, I recommend eating 5 meals. Space the meals about 3 hours apart. The meals will be smaller than if you were eating only 3 meals, but will satisfy your appetite at each meal. You can even split a traditional meal in two parts and eat one for lunch and the other half for a snack. If you eat like this you will never be hungry.

After your meals, get up and move around. Changing your surroundings, even slightly will help your mind adjust to the fact that the meal is over. Remember it takes your mind a little longer to feel satisfied than it does your stomach.

Don’t skip meals. Keep healthy snacks with you so you don’t ever have to skip a meal or settle for an unhealthy snack in a vending machine when you are hungry. There are several portable protein snacks that are perfect to take with you when you are on the go.

In addition to your diet, you must stay active. A sedentary lifestyle is dangerous to your health. Exercise will help you to digest your food, burn calories and build muscle.

Fitness4Her is a diet and exercise program developed exclusively for women. There are 12 principles to the Fitness4Her diet that will help you to lose weight by eating foods that are good for you. I have outlined these for you.

1. Eat often, but eat in small portions.

2. Don’t skip meals.

3. Don’t forget your fiber.

4. Eat plenty of protein, but get it from lean sources.

5. Within reason, eat as many servings of fresh fruits and vegetables as possible.

6. Reduce your intake of refined carbohydrates.

7. Reduce dietary fat generally, and particularly reduce unhealthy saturated fat.

8. Reduce your intake of salt.

9. Avoid alcohol.

10. Drink plenty of water.

11. Take a good multi-vitamin.

12. Counting calories … for those who must.

Cranberry Turkey Salad

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Made with turkey or chicken, this delicious salad is a favorite among all of my friends and family. I like to make it up and have it in the fridge. It’s great for a snack, a side dish or to have for lunch.

2 cups turkey breast, cut-up
4 cups Romaine lettuce, cut-up
1 large red apple, cut-up
Small can of mandarin oranges
1/4 cup dried cranberries
3 Tbsp unsalted walnuts, chopped
3 kiwi fruit, cut-up
Dressing 1 cup jelled whole berry cranberry sauce
1/4 cup frozen orange juice
4 tsp fresh lemon
1 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp mustard
1/2 cup chopped pimiento
1/2 cup chopped fresh chives
2 clove garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Combine turkey, apples, cranberries, mandarin oranges and walnuts in medium bowl.
2. In a small bowl mix cranberry sauce and orange juice concentrate.
3. Just before serving mix turkey with dressing.
4. Serve over lettuce and add kiwi slices.

Health Benefits:
Turkey is a low fat, low sodium, choice for protein. It is low in cholesterol, low in sugar and low in calories. Turkey is very heart healthy. The fruits provide antioxidants to fight cancer causing free radicals. Fruit also aids in digestion and provides many of the essential vitamins and nutrients required for a healthy lifestyle.

Love Your Heart With An Active Lifestyle

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The number one killer of women is heart disease, according to the American Heart Association®. The good news is, there are many steps you can take to protect your heart and make it healthier. But first you need to know your risk factors, important information like your family’s history of heart disease. Did your parents, grandparents, or siblings experience heart disease and if so at what age? Sharing these informative facts with your physician can help determine your risks.

Your diet plays a big role in your heart’s health, too. So does getting ample sleep. But neither of these risks figures in as dangerously for the heart as the effects of a sedentary lifestyle. Inactivity is a killer for women and men, alike. Outside of smoking, a sedentary lifestyle is one of the unhealthiest behaviors, but fortunately, this behavior is completely preventable.

Exercise, on the other hand, is one of the healthiest behaviors in which you can participate. It has been proven that even moderate exercise leads to a healthier heart. The more active and fit a woman is, the less chance she will have for coronary heart disease. Many studies have been conducted over decades and each time the results are pretty much the same. Exercise and an active lifestyle will keep your heart healthy.

There are so many forms of exercise to keep your heart healthy. Believe it or not, housework can count as exercise, too. But remember, your goal should be to reach a cardio heart rate for at least 20 minutes. It may take you a while to get there but the more you train your heart the stronger it will become.

Walking and jogging are also good forms of exercise that even a beginner can excel at. But if you need something more stimulating, try taking tennis, dance or spinning classes to stir up some fun. Any sort of sport that you enjoy playing will help you to work your heart and increase oxygen circulation, the key to helping your heart work at optimum condition.

Your body’s ability to take in and use oxygen improves with regular exercise making it easier on your heart to reach a cardio heart rate. Effective exercise occurs when the heart, lungs and muscles work together. Regular cardio exercise will help your heart to become a more powerful pump so that it can supply the body’s needed oxygen at a slower heart rate.

Exercise is essential to a heart healthy lifestyle. Love your heart and become an active participant in your own life story.

The Healthy Benefits of Tea – Nature’s Beneficial Brew

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If you want a drink that will keep you healthy, make you feel younger and possibly live longer, put down that coffee cup and try a hot cup of tea, instead. Although, it contains caffeine, tea is especially beneficial to your heart and overall health.

Tea contains flavonoids, antioxidants that help to neutralize free radicals, which can cause cancer. Recent studies have found that people who regularly consume Black Tea have a reduced risk of heart disease and stroke.

Virtually calorie free, tea is a refreshing beverage that contains no sodium, fat, carbonation or sugar. It also helps to maintain proper fluid balance. But drinking tea is not the only way to benefit from this natural beverage. Tea can be used in a variety of dishes from salad dressing to cake batters.

Tea aids in digestion and can help you to lose weight. By far, lower in calories than sugar-laden soft drinks, tea works on the body like a natural laxative. A great ally for losing weight, tea can boost exercise endurance. It also magically shrinks your waistline.

From the first sip to the last, a good cup of tea comforts a weary soul like a familiar friend. Warm and comforting, a cup of hot tea can make the stress melt away. There are even teas that will calm you and help you fall asleep, like chamomile tea.

Although tea has been around for thousands of years, it has found a new group of followers for its mystical brew. Tea bars and stores devoted to selling teas have sprung up everywhere. They encourage tastings and promote different brands and tea and food parings. There are so many different flavors that it’s easy to fall in love with at least one of them.

Loose-leaf tea comes in a variety of types in Black, White, Green or Oolong tea. Each has a different flavor and different health benefits. Loose-leaf tea is a higher quality tea with a much better taste than bag teas.

Iced tea is also beneficial to your health. Choose unsweetened tea to keep it virtually calorie-free. A cold glass of tea is a welcome refreshment on a hot summer day. It goes well with sandwiches, snacks or a full course meal. Totally versatile, hot or cold, tea is the favorite beverage that Americans choose to quench their thirst.

Early To Bed And Plenty Of Rest

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Rest is essential for women who want to be healthy and fit. Most people require 7 to 10 hours of sleep each day to reach their full potential. Not only is the amount of sleep important for optimum health, research has shown the time of day that we retire is also very important. Sleep experts say that if you go to bed early and wake up early, you will experience better restorative sleep, allowing you to be more productive during the day.

For me, rising early means quiet time at my house. I use this time for my affirmations, journaling, goal-setting and planning my day. It’s a great time to exercise, go for a morning jog or do some resistance exercises in my living room. What I enjoy most about rising early is that it gives me time to focus on my goals and take control over my life. Planning healthy meals is also easy when I inventory my supplies first thing in the morning. This way I ensure that I have all the ingredients I need for healthy, satisfying meals. I have found this to be a good way to avoid the temptations of fast foods when I am hungry for a quick meal.

If you have trouble going to bed early, try going to bed each night just 5 minutes earlier. Continue this for a full week, and you will soon be retiring 35 minutes earlier. Try reading something enjoyable to help you get ready for rest. Studies have found that reading is a much more relaxing prior to bedtime than television watching. However, if you enjoy watching a little television before retiring that works too. Just try to stay away from viewing shows that tend to excite or aggravate you, as this may interfere with your sleep.

Another great pastime before going to bed is making love. Sex is the perfect way to relax and exhaust your body physically and mentally. It has been attributed to deep and restful sleep and will benefit both you and your partner.

Your bed and bedroom are also important for restful sleep. A comfortable bed and a cool and relaxing bedroom, free of distractions will help you sleep like a baby. Get to bed early and arise each day with enough time to exercise, write in your journal and eat a healthy breakfast.