The Swiss ball training for the abdominal region will increase muscle tone, balance and midsection function. Adding Swiss ball training to your workouts will definitely improve your look. Swiss ball training not only improves your muscle tone but will also increase your ability to perform other activities.

The 30″ Anti-burst Swiss Pro Ball differs from your machine training in the fact that it creates an unstable environment.This unstable environment activates your nervous system to get excited and produce more electrical activity. First thing you’ll find when working out on a Swiss ball is it tends to be difficult and tiring. This is a by-product of neutralizer and stabilizer inadequacies.

Neutralizers are muscles that allow you to have smooth movement patterns. Stabilizer’s are muscles that surround joints and help prevent injuries. By increasing the amount of electrical stimulation to the neutralizers and stabilizer musculature  we will enhance performance of any given the activity.

The function of our abdominal region is imperative to proper movement. To increase function we must look at the muscles involved in the abdominal core region. The abdominal core is made up of the internal oblique, external oblique, transverse abdominis and the rectus abdominis. Which muscle do you know by name? Most people say the
rectus abdominis because it creates the six pack beautiful abdominal look. The problem arises from excessive rectus abdominal exercises’s faulty posture and of range of motion deficiencies in the spine.

Use a Swiss Ball for training the abdominal core. Note: If you have any problems with your low back make sure you place a towel underneath your lumbar spine the thickness of your hand.

Always train the abdominal region like you train any other muscle. The fact is that most people exercise the abdominal region by following an incomplete or faulty system for training. Why do we all do 100 sit-ups at a time? Would we do 100 bicep curls? No! That would be thought of as improper training.

Train your abdominal region 3 days a week with a day rest in between each session. Always use the correct sequencing of exercises. This allows for your nervous system not to be over burdened. The correct sequencing of exercises would be:

-Lower abdominal
-Oblique
-Upper Abdominal

Note: Before engaging in any of these activities please consult your physician if you have any core, dizziness, or any other ailments.

Here is my favorite Swiss ball training routine. I call it the big five! If you have never done any Swiss ball training be prepared for a sore abdominal region the next day.

Swiss Ball Exercises “THE BIG FIVE”

1-Prone ball roll
2-Supine lateral ball roll
3-Side flexion
4-Prone Jack knife
5-Forward ball roll

Follow this routine three days a week and you’ll see muscle tone like you never seen it before!

Two new studies have shown that high fructose corn syrup is not the safe sweetener that the food industry would have you believe.

The studies have shown that in addition to high fructose corn syrup contributing to weight gain and increased risk of cardiovascular problems, it also causes the kind of liver damage seen in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) and the changes consistent with Metabolic Syndrome, also known as Insulin Resistance or Syndrome X.

While Fruit Loops is not a food I recommend – actually it’s a chemical, fake food, not really a food – there is a lesson here for anyone who buys any packaged foods at all.

The chemical got into the cereal from the packaging. The chemical is what is called a food contact substance. Any packaged food that you buy has the potential of being contaminated by food contact substances. The safest food packaging material is glass.

This should be motivation to buy as much fresh, whole foods as possible.

Research reveals that exercise supports the intimate connection between the health of the body and that of the mind. Since exercise is the body’s key method of staying healthy it also appears to be crucial to mental health as well.

Our busy lives don’t come without stress which is just a build up of over thinking without release. Modern life has us performing constant intellectual thinking tasks and we need a reprieve from these. Proper exercise is the tool that will give you that release stimulating a healthy release of the body’s natural chemicals that have a soothing and calming effect.

The time spent on your exercise session is also a bit of “me” time. This can provide a time for reflection and some alone time to contemplate thoughts or problems. It can be a special time to re-center yourself and get in touch with the real you which tends to be put aside and lost in the busyness of our lives. You will feel more in control of your life.

Exercise will get you active in a productive manner which the human body is dependant on to be able to stay healthy and well. The brain will send out the good chemicals signaling a happy pleasant state of mind both during and after the exercise session. This will set you up for the day enabling you to deal more effectively with problems or challenges that otherwise might have caused you significant levels of stress.

The brain is the “muscle” of conscious intelligence and just like the muscles in the rest of the body develops and gains strength during youth. As we get older we can maintain the strength of our brain or we can allow it to degenerate and become weaker diminishing its capability and thinking power.

Your exercise program needs to contain at least 60% strength training exercise and is an important factor in maintaining mental fitness. When you exercise and raise your heart rate this increases blood flow to the brain which in turn leads to enhanced memory, and better intellectual capacity and mental function.

Another important benefit you will experience is that you will feel so much happier within yourself; which could be defined as an inner sense of well-being. This will in turn give you a better outlook on life, seeing your cup as half full rather than half empty. If you are not already appreciating all of the good things in your life then you just might start.

If you have previously been living a no exercise lifestyle you will feel a huge boost in your energy levels. Exercise gets your blood pumping, pushing life giving oxygen into every cell and system keeping you youthful and vibrant. Think of it as a tool to move you beyond life’s challenges and make it part of your mission for better health and well-being.

If you feel exhausted and want something fresh to release all your fatigue, why don’t you take a teaspoonful of honey and add to your tea. You are going to feel better then.

It’s not difficult to find honey, it is easy to get and available everywhere in the market. They used honey for different purposes such as for health treatment, food and beverage, and other useful matters.

Nobody has doubts about the usefulness of this sweet viscous fluid produced by bees. Honey also makes a good alternative to sugar in food and beverages.

Honey is a source of nutrition. It contains many enzymes, vitamins, minerals and amino acids, as well as fructose, glucose, and water.

In addition, honey also contains antioxidants that can fight free radicals in the human body. Free radicals are molecules that attack healthy human cells.

Current research on honey has shown it is beneficial as an antimicrobial agent that can treat different kinds of ailments. The most common use of honey as an antimicrobial agent is to treat wounds, burns and skin ulcers.

Honey can also help seasonal pollen allergies. Consuming a teaspoonful of honey a day for a few months can boost your immune before the allergy season (mostly during autumn).

Thanks to the bees, people can taste the sweetness of honey and take the benefits out of it to improve their health.

Probably bees are the most helpful insect to humans as they produce not only honey, but also some other things related to honey. Let’s see what they are:-

Royal Jelly – This is the most nutritious food for the queen bees throughout her life. Luckily, human can also consume some of it. Its tastes a little bit bitter, but has so many benefits. It’s rich in vitamins, minerals, proteins, amino acid and antibiotic. It can enhance immunity, prevent arthritis and multiple sclerosis, treat asthma, slow down the signs of aging, stimulate hair growth etc.

Beeswax – It’s a product from the abdomen of the worker bees. Worker bees have some glands on the inner sides of the ventral shield or plate of each segment of the body. The beeswax is useful to make lipstick, capsule, balm, body lotion, candles or as a wood polish or floor polish.

Bee Pollen – It’s the male seed of a flower blossom that is gathered by the bees. Whoever consumes bee pollen may have more vitality in life. Most athletes like bee pollen because it sustains and enhances their quality performances. For ordinary people, bee pollen can stimulate organs and glands, rejuvenates human body, and brings about a longer life span.

As you can see, all the products “made” by the bees are beneficial for our health. Why don’t you try them for your health sake.

For years, all types of sugars were categorized under one purpose for the body – energy. The entire medical community and the public alike have thought that all types of carbohydrates serve only one purpose. It was only recently discovered that a type of sugar called glyconutrients or sweet nutrients serve purposes that are crucial in cellular communication.

What are glyconutrients?

Glyconutrients, or sweet nutrients, are a class of sugar that bond with lipid and protein cells in our body to enhance cellular communication or the process of transferring signals from one cell to another.

Are all glyconutrients helpful to our body?

Actually, not all of these sugars can be of help to bodily functions. There are only eight that are noted for their individual benefits to our health and wellness. These include glucose and galactose, the two most commonly consumed by almost everyone, with the rest comprising of xylose, fuctose, mannose, N-acetylglucosamine, N-acetylneuraminic acid, and N-acetylgalactosamine.

Do the eight essential glyconutrients benefit the body in the same manner?

No, not at all. These eight essential monosaccharides behave differently in the human body. Although all of them have properties important to enhancing cell to cell communication, and the majority of them are crucial in inhibiting the growth of tumors in various areas of the body, each still has benefits that differ from the others. Glucose or table sugar, for example, is a great source of energy that goes immediately into the bloodstream while mannose has anti-infection properties that ward off infections from developing inside the body. The same is true with fucose, a glyconutrient that is found in high quantities in human breast milk. N-acetylglucosamine, on the other hand, has properties suitable for repairing weakened cartilage, bone structure, inflammation, and pain caused by osteoarthritis and N-acetylneuraminic acid is pivotal in brain development, learning, memory, and performance.

Where can we find these nutrients?

Actually, these can be found in various sources like aloe vera, a seaweed called Undaria pinnatifida, in the human breast milk, in the gums of the African acacia tree and Indian sumac, and in certain fungi and mushrooms. However, since these are not typically available, the next best options are the supplements that can be bought from local health stores.

Do these nutrients have side effects?

Simply put, these nutrients are just foods. They are not synthetic materials that are foreign to the body. They are much like the usual vegetables we eat. Thus, there are no known side effects to taking glyconutritionals regularly. As of the moment, we should be content knowing that these are harmless, side-effects-free nutrients that are needed by the body.

How do glyconutrients work?

These work by bonding with various cells in the human body in a process called glycosylation. Through this bonding, it becomes possible for cells, molecules, hormones, and microorganisms to easily attach to target cells.

How is it that my doctor does not know anything about these nutrients?

This technology is new. It is very likely that your doctor, in fact many doctors, are not aware of these recently discovered nutrients. It is only a matter of time though until these nutrients gain wider acceptance among health practitioners since great emphasis is given to the efficacy of these nutrients to promote health, delay the process of aging, and improve cell to cell communication.

If we do this we eat only to supply the demands of the body. We cannot repeat too often the admonition, do not eat if you are not hungry. If this plan were followed, the present three meals-a-day plan would end. Also the practice of many, of eating between meals and in the evening before retiring, would cease. For most people real hunger would call for about one meal a day, with occasionally some small amounts of fruit during the day.

Hunger is the “voice of nature” saying to us that food is required. There is no other true guide as to when to eat. The time of day, the habitual meal time, etc., are not true guides. Although genuine hunger is a mouth and throat sensation and depends upon an actual physiological need for food, muscular contractions of the stomach accompany hunger and are thought by physiologists, to give rise to the hunger sensation.

Carlson, of the Chicago University, found that in a man who had been fasting two weeks, these gastric “hunger” contractions had not decreased, although there was no desire for food. The same has been observed in animals. Indeed these contractions are seen to increase and yet they do not produce the sensation of hunger. I do not consider these so-called “hunger-contractions” as the cause of hunger. Real hunger is a mouth and throat sensation.

But there is a difference between hunger and what is called appetite. Appetite is a counterfeit hunger, a creature of habit and cultivation, and may be due to any one of a number of things; such as the arrival of the habitual meal time, the sight, taste, or smell of food, condiments and seasonings, or even the thought of food. In some diseased states there is an almost constant and insatiable appetite. None of these things can arouse true hunger, this comes only when there is an actual need for food.

One may have an appetite for tobacco, coffee, tea, opium, alcohol, etc., but he can never be hungry for these, since they serve no real physiological need. Appetite is often accompanied by a gnawing or “all gone” sensation in the stomach, or a general sense of weakness; there may even be mental depression. Such symptoms usually belong to the diseased stomach of a glutton and will pass away if their owner will refrain from eating for a few days. They are temporarily relieved by eating and this leads to the belief that it was food that was needed.

But such sensations and feelings do not accompany true hunger. In true hunger one is not aware that he has an empty stomach for this, like thirst, is a mouth and throat sensation. Real hunger arises spontaneously, that is without the agency of some external factor, and is accompanied by a “watering of the mouth” and usually by a conscious desire for some particular food.

Dr. Gibson says that, “The condition known as appetite, … with its source and center in nervous desire, and its motive in self-indulgence, is a mere parasite on life, feeding on its host – the man himself – whose misdirected imagination invites it into his own vital household; while hunger, on the other hand, is the original, constitutional prompter for the cell-world calling for means to supply the true need and necessities of man’s physical nature.

Appetite does not express our needs, but our wants; not what we really need, but what we think we need. It is imagination running riot, fashioning out of our gluttonous greed an insatiable vampire which grows with our wants, and increases its power until finally it kills us unless we determine to kill it. As long as our attention is absorbed in the pleasures of the table, in the gratification of eating for its own sake, and in the introduction of new combinations to bring about stimulating effects, we are increasing the power of our appetite at the expense of our hunger.”

The hungry person is able to eat and relish a crust of dry bread – he who has only an appetite must have his food seasoned and spiced before he can enjoy it. Even a gourmand is able to enjoy a hearty meal if there is sufficient seasoning to whip up his jaded appetite and arouse his palsied taste. He would be far better off if he would await the arrival of hunger before eating.

There is no doubt of the truth of Dr. Geo. S. Weger’s thought that “appetite contractions in the stomach are often excited by psychic states, as influenced by the senses.” Appetite contractions thus aroused, are of distinct advantage in digesting a meal if they are super-added to pre-existing hunger contractions. We know that these psychic states increase the flow of the digestive juices–make the stomach “water” as well as the mouth – and enhance digestion.

Dr. Claunch says, “the difference between true hunger and false craving may be determined as follows: when hungry and comfortable it is true hunger. When hungry and uncomfortable it is false craving. When a sick person misses a customary meal, he gets weak before he gets hungry. When a healthy person misses a customary meal, he gets hungry before he gets weak.”

If we follow the rule to eat only when truly hungry, those people who are “hungry” but weak and uncomfortable would fast until comfort and strength returned. Fasting would become one of the most common practices in our lives, at least, until we learn to live and eat to keep well and thus eliminate the need for fasting.

There are individuals who are always eating and always “hungry.” They mistake a morbid irritation of the stomach for hunger. These people have not learned to distinguish between a normal demand for food and a symptom of disease. They mistake the evidences of chronic gastritis or of gastric neurosis for hunger.

Hunger, as previously pointed out, is the insistent demand for food that arises out of physiological need for nourishment. Appetite, on the other hand, is a craving for food which may be the result of several different outside factors operating through the mind and senses. Anything that will arouse an appetite will encourage one to eat, whether or not there exists an actual need for food.

Hunger may be satisfied and appetite still persist, a not unusual thing. Our many course dinners, with everything especially prepared to appeal to the taste and smell, are well designed to keep alive appetite, long after hunger has been appeased. No man is ever hungry when he reaches the dessert, so commonly served after a many course dinner. Few, though filled to repletion and perhaps uncomfortable in the abdomen, ever refuse to eat the dessert. It is especially prepared to appeal to appetite. This style of eating necessarily and inevitably leads to overeating and disease. Too many articles of food at a meal overstimulate and induce overeating.

Hunger and the sense of taste are the only guides as to the quantity and character of food required. If we eat when we are not hungry, and if the delicate sensibilities of taste have been dulled and deadened by gluttonous indulgence and by condiments, spices, alcohol, etc., it ceases to be a reliable guide.

The unperverted instinct of hunger craves most keenly the food that is most needed by the body and the unperverted taste derives the most pleasure and satisfaction out of the food or foods demanded, and will be satisfied when we have consumed sufficient of such food or foods to supply the body’s needs. But, if we have been in the habit of crowding the stomach when there is no demand for food, just because it is meal time, or because the doctor ordered it, and we know no other indication that enough food has been consumed, than that the stomach can hold no more, we are headed for disaster.

The existence of a natural demand for food indicates that food is required by the body and that the organs of the body are ready to receive and digest it. Eating when there is no time, or as a social duty, or because one has been able to stimulate an appetite, is a wrong to the body. Both the quality and quantity, and the frequency of meals should be regulated by the rules of hygiene rather than by those of etiquette and convenience.

This is an extract from “Amazing Weight Loss and Health Tips“. Simply right click on the link and select “Save Link As” to download your free copy.

Are you still on track with your healthy eating plan? If you’ve slipped a bit, go back to your Personal Food Planner and make sure you have healthy foods you like to eat substituted for those unhealthy ones that have caused you to slip-up. Keep your Personal Food Planner with you when you eat away from home to remind yourself about your healthy choices.

Here are a couple of simple recipes to replace some of the snack foods you are probably used to eating.

1. Quick Trail Mix

Raw sunflower seeds
Raw pumpkin seeds
Raw shredded or sliced coconut
Any other of your favorite raw nuts
Raisins

Toss in a container and take with you to snack on instead of candy bars or other processed snacks.

2. Crispy Pumpkin Seeds

4 cups raw, hulled pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons sea salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
Filtered water

Dissolve salt in water and add pumpkin seeds and optional cayenne. Leave in a warm place overnight. In the morning, drain the mixture through a colander and spread on a stainless steel baking pan. Place in a warm oven (no more than 150 degrees F) for the day ( they will need about 12 hours ), turning occasionally, until thoroughly dry and crisp. Store in an airtight container.

Note: The seeds can also be dried in a dehydrator instead of the oven.

Today I will attempt to explain about that “secret fire” that is responsible for controlling your body weight.

Of course, we are talking about your metabolism, which is the collective term used to describe the entire complex of cellular processes that take place in your body to convert stored body fuel (mostly fat) into the energy that powers your body, driving its chemistry, and keeping it warm.

It is common to hear people talk about their metabolism, more often than not as part of a conversation in which they lament the “fact” that their metabolism has slowed down now that they have escaped those wonderful teenage years and the period of their early twenties when they could eat, ignore the gym, and still see an attractive and youthful-looking body every time they pasted the bathroom mirror each morning.

But your metabolism does not really slow down, as much as it decreases in volume. This is because the bulk of the energy made available to your body comes from cellular chemical conversion processes that take place in the muscle tissue of your body. But as you age, you slowly lose muscle mass, unless you take active measures (e.g. strength training workouts) to ward off this inevitable muscle shrinkage. In fact you lose about 3 kilograms of muscle mass for each decade that passes after you hit your twenties.

So, to a good approximation, the size of your metabolic fat-burning furnace can be directly measured by weighing the amount of lean muscle tissue in your body. This is why fitness experts are so obsessed with measuring the ratio of lean muscle tissue to body fat – the bigger the number, the greater your metabolic rate, and the faster you burn fat even when you are resting.

If nothing else, you should take away the message that the key to ridding your body of unwanted body fat is to increase the size of your metabolism by adding muscle – because muscle loves to consume fat. It is that simple. Aerobic exercising cannot do this for you because it is based on the idea of depleting fat reserves by working off calories through low-impact, long-duration exercising, and by maintaining a low-calorie diet.

The problem with the aerobic pathway to a slimmer body is that it relies on willpower to maintain that low-calorie state throughout the day. You cannot fall back on a high metabolism to help you burn excess fat because aerobic exercise is not conducive to building muscle, and in fact can help to deplete it.

Willpower is essential, as it is needed to inspire us to keep hitting the gym regularly. It is not needed to maintain a low-calorie diet that has you fantasizing about salty potato chips for half of the day, because going hungry is not part of any reliable weight loss system.

Your Personal Food Planner is designed to help you develop healthy eating habits that last a lifetime.  It will help keep you focused on eating healthy foods you like – healthy foods that are acceptable substitutes for the unhealthy foods you like.

The key to your success in developing healthy eating habits is to substitute healthy foods you like for the unhealthy foods you like.

Grab your Personal Food Planner from the link below:- ( right-click and “Save As” )
http://www.AboutNaturalWeightLoss.com/PersonalFoodPlanner.pdf

Save this file so you can use it over and over again. Simply print out a copy whenever required.

Here’s how to use Your Personal Food Planner:

1. Choose one or two foods
- you like to eat that are unhealthy and
- you are ready and willing to eliminate

Write them in the Foods I like to eat that I should avoid column.

If you’re not ready to eliminate certain unhealthy foods you like to eat, find some you are ready to eliminate.  This will make it a lot easier for you to be successful in your healthy eating adventure.

2. Next, choose some healthy foods to substitute for the unhealthy foods you are ready to eliminate.  Choose foods that
- you already know you like and/or
- you would like to try

Write them in the Healthy foods I can substitute column.

3. Keep doing this until you have eliminated all the unhealthy foods you like to eat, and eating healthfully has become so automatic you don’t have to think about it any more.