Pages
Stay In Touch
More
Copyright © 2003 - 2010
Vanko Trading Inc
2777 Darlington Road
Beaver Falls, PA 15010
724-359-2289
Vanko Trading Inc
2777 Darlington Road
Beaver Falls, PA 15010
724-359-2289
Many people cut carbs when trying to lose weight, meaning sandwiches are often on the ‘do not eat’ list. This is a real shame, since sandwiches can be healthy, nutritious, and aid in weight loss. Sandwiches can be an excellent addition to a carbohydrate or calorie controlled diet. They are also excellent for providing energy before or after a gym/training session. A carefully considered and created sandwich allows you to build the perfect ratio of protein, fats and carbohydrates; essential when creating a diet for weight loss, muscle gain or gym/training/sports endurance.
One of the easiest ways to lose weight is to restrict your carbohydrate intake. This means foods like bread, pasta and potatoes are off the menu. Despite common beliefs, it can be counterproductive to remove carbs from your diet altogether. The body uses carbs as an energy source, meaning completely removing them from your diet can result in tiredness and greatly reduced gym performance. When introducing carbohydrates back in to your diet, your body will often gain weight due to a decreased metabolism (a symptom of going cold turkey with carbohydrates). The best way to lose weight with a carb controlled diet is to reduce carbs, instead of removing them completely. This means that a sandwich can form part of a healthy, carb controlled diet. 2 slices of brown bread only have about 30 grams of carbs! Many people reduce their total daily carb intake to less than 100 grams when trying to lose weight.
When dieting for muscle gain, carbs form a very important part of your diet. The body needs surplus calories to build lean muscle mass; carbs are an excellent source of muscle friendly calories. When combined with protein and healthy fats, a sandwich can make the perfect pre or post workout meal. A pre workout sandwich should have complex carbs (white bread) for a constant energy release, as well as protein (for muscle repair). A post workout sandwich should contain simple carbs (for a post-workout muscle repair glycogen boost), and protein (for muscle repair). Healthy fats also help greatly with the repair and growth of lean muscle tissue.
An example weight loss sandwich:
2x slices of brown bread
1x slice of chicken breast
2x slice of ham
1x Tbsp of low fat mayonnaise
2x Lettuce leaves
Low fat margarine
An example of a post-workout sandwich:
2x slices of white bread
2x slices of chicken breast
1x sliced boiled egg
1x Tbsp of tomato ketchup
2x Lettuce leaves
1x Tbsp sweetcorn relish
Taylors of Oxford are a deli from Oxfordshire that specialise in creating healthy, delicious sandwiches for their customers. They also provide Oxford catering services.
Let’s be honest: counting calories is hard. Not only do you have to record every little thing you eat, but you also must find out how many calories are in each dish. Going out to eat becomes daunting! How will you figure out the calories of that delectable lasagna at your favorite restaurant? And forget going out for drinks and appetizers with friends! So, while everyone knows that counting calories is one of the most effective steps to losing weight, not everyone is able to stick with it.
MyFitnessPal can be your helping hand through the stress-inducing world of counting calories. This online community acts as a diet coach, a motivating friend, and a fitness and calorie record book. Plus, it’s easy to use and very accessible.
Getting started is simple. After creating a username, you enter your basic information into the system: current weight, goal weight, height, age, activity level, and workout goals. MyFitnessPal uses this data to create a suggested weight loss plan specifically for you that includes recommended daily caloric intake and exercise. You’re also told how much weight you will lose over a five-week period if you stick to their program; seeing your projected weight loss is a great motivator!
Keeping track of calories is incredibly simple. The database has over 1 million foods, ranging from a specific Giada de Laurentiis recipe to one slice of Hillshire Farms deli meat. The system also lets you enter your own recipes and calculates the entire dish’s caloric content ingredient by ingredient. When you type in a food, be as specific as possible (i.e. try “Lay’s baked potato chips” instead of “potato chips”) and you’ll find your food quicker. The system also remembers the foods you eat most and saves them for easy entry later.
Your daily food diary includes a nutrient summary. The summary lists all major nutrients from cholesterol to protein to Vitamin C and includes how much you should consume each day and how many you have left for the day.
Recording exercise is just as easy as food. Type in “running,” and you’re given a number of times and speeds to choose from. A downside of MyFitnessPal is that the database of fitness activities is not as large as the food database, but you’ll still be able to find most regular exercises. MyFitnessPal uses your recorded exercise to calculate how many calories you have burned; this number is subtracted from your total calories for the day. So the more you exercise, the more you can eat!
When you register, you’re given the option to invite your friends to join; simply enter their email addresses. As you probably know, dieting with friends is mutually beneficial. It’s a support system that keeps everyone involved in the dieting, encourages improved fitness, and celebrates your weight loss. Obviously, it’s a recommended step! However, MyFitnessPal also has forums, which are an excellent alternative to inviting your friends. Everyone posting is very excited to be part of the community and is ready to motivate others. You can browse through topics about nutrition, recipes, fitness tips, and more. If you have any questions, you’ll be able to find someone to answer it.
If you stop recording your food, MyFitnessPal steps in as a virtual trainer and emails you, reminding you to keep up with your weight loss program if you want to lose weight!
Bottom line: MyFitnessPal is incredibly easy to use, convenient, and an excellent tool to develop healthy dieting and weight loss habits. Plus, there’s a free iPhone and Android application, making it easy to take your weight loss habits on the road.
Liz Childers contributes to a number of blogs, including the official blog of Knife Depot.
One reason why diets never work is because we think of it as a short term method to losing weight. But if we really want to lose weight and keep it off it has to become a lifestyle. Another reason is that most diets are too hard to follow for long term. They would often require you to consume too little calories per day or only a specific type of food. As a result diets become no fun. In fact most people associate the word “diet” with pain.
The good news is it doesn’t always have to be like this. Yes. You don’t have to starve yourself to become thin. You can also lose weight by eating more. Now, I don’t necessarily mean more in quantity. What I mean is “more often.” By eating smaller, more frequent meals you get your metabolism going throughout the day. The disadvantage with going through long periods without food is that it puts your body in starvation mode. When this happens instead of burning calories your body attempts to preserve it. This is why even when you starve yourself you’ll end up losing weight really slowly. By eating more often you keep your body burning calories throughout the day.
But what should you eat? Think of your body as a tank that you must fuel up everyday. Now it is your choice whether to fill it up with good food or junk. Most people choose the latter. They eat frequently alright. But they eat the wrong kind of food – fast food, sweets, junk… if you fill your body with these kinds of food then you are definitely going to go fat. So why not eat healthy? Make it a habit to eat fiber rich foods like vegetables and fruits. Of course I am not saying you should swear off chocolates and Cheetoh’s forever. Depriving yourself is never the answer. It is all about portion control. Make sure that you fill up first on the good stuff. When you’ve made it a habit to eat healthy you will find your cravings slowly disappearing.
Is there a schedule you should follow? You should eat every three hours. That is 6 meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner plus 2 snacks. Breakfast can consist of oatmeal and a banana. For lunch, you can have salad plus a slice of steamed tuna in garlic sauce. For dinner you can have chicken breast and mixed vegetables. Snacks can be nuts or any piece of fruit.
Again, losing weight is about having the right mindset and having a healthy lifestyle. With small, frequent and healthy meals plus daily exercise you will find yourself dropping off pounds in no time.
“Amy C. is an interior decoration aficionado and online marketer. She also likes testing and trying new home and office decorating themes. In addition to being an interior decoration hobbyist, she enjoys designing calming indoor fountains and glass art. Amy invites you to browse her delightful collection of glass vases”
Losing weight is easy. Your calories consumed must be less than calories expended. Simple. Anyone who has ever tried to lose weight just laughed out loud at my above claim. These wise folk, realize cutting calories is easier said than done. While I completely agree that making diet changes is extremely difficult, for some, the trouble is they have no idea how many calories they should be actually be consuming. “Based on a 2,000 calorie diet,” I’m sure we’ve all run into this phrase on one food label or another. Unfortunately, this has become the benchmark for calorie consumption. Many people assume that if they stay under this number, they’re in the green and the weight should start melting off. Not so fast. Our daily calorie budget should be specific to our bodies and notthis general number.
So How Many Calories Should I Be Consuming?
Each person requires a certain amount of calories to survive and carry out basic functions like breathing and digestion. This is called their Basal Metabolic Rate or BMR. It’s essentially how many calories you would expend if you stayed in bed all day (not a bad idea). Knowing your BMR allows you to modify your daily calorie intake to create a deficit to lose weight. To get an approximation of your BMR, I suggest using the Harris-Bennedict formula. Calculate your BMR: Adult Women: 655 + (4.3 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) – (4.7 x age in years) Adult Men: 66 + (6.3 x weight in pounds) + (12.9 x height in inches) – (6.8 x age in years) These calculations will result in your BMR, the calories needed for basic bodily functions. Now, because most of us aren’t lying in bed all day (as much as we’d like to), we need to account for activity to find our daily caloric needs. Calculate activity:If you’re sedentary: BMR x .20 Lightly active: BMR x .30 Moderately active (exercise most days a week): BMR x .40 Very active (exercise intensely on a daily basis or for prolonged periods): BMR x .50 Extra active (hard labor or athletic training): BMR x .60 Add this number to your BMR and the result will be the number of calories you can consume and maintain your current weight. If you’re interested in losing weight, you’ll have to take in fewer calories. Note that as you age, lose weight or change activity levels, your BMR changes. So you may have to make adjustments as you progress.
Putting it All Together: Tracking Those Pesky Calories
Having an understanding of your caloric needs is the first step to weight loss. Now you actually have to cut those bad boys. Calorie counting may sound tough and tedious, but I pinky promise, it’s not that terrible. The trick is to do the counting before you dive in, not after the meal. It will lead to healthier food choices. Pen & Paper Style Many people like to keep an old school pen and paper calorie record. This could be as sophisticated as a calorie counting guide with places for each meal and lists of typical food calorie amounts or as basic as a pocket notebook where you jot down your meals and calories. There are a number of websites that can help you figure out how many calories were in that delish hamburger if it’s not listed on the package or in a menu. Tech-Savvy Style Technology lovers may enjoy online programs where they can record their calories, or calorie counting applications for their smartphones, iPads, iPhones, etc so they can keep track throughout the day. I typically use an iPhone app to track my calories and energy expenditure throughout the day so I’m constantly aware of what I’m putting in my system. The data gets uploaded to my account online so I can always use a computer to add if my phone’s not handy. The online websites and applications are especially helpful because they often provide analyses of your nutrition in addition to just tracking. This way I can understand what nutrients I’m lacking or where I need to cut down—in my case, more veggies and fewer chocolate-chip cookies. In fact, I’ve found that by just becoming aware of what exactly I’m putting into my body has motivated me to eat better. Now that I understand what’s in those cheesy fries and how they’ll completely throw off my calorie budget for the remainder of the day, I’m more apt to choose a healthier option. So get out your calculator, abacus or grab a geeky friend, figure out your BMR and set your weight loss goals. This is a do-able. It’s not a diet, it’s a lifestyle change. Happy calorie counting! Author Maggie Voelker is a giant science and health nerd with a BS in Kinesiology and Health. As a recent college graduate, Maggie’s first “real-world job” transplanted her to Indianapolis, IN where she works as a content writer for a diabetic socks company. Outside of work, Maggie enjoys exercising, bargain hunting, concerts, sunglasses, traveling and attempting to cook.
Whilst many of the benefits of a good night’s sleep are obvious and quite straight forward there is one huge boon that many people do not associate with slumber. Sleep is primarily known for helping individuals achieve alertness and improving their cerebral workings yet it also provides benefits such as helping stave off illness and, surprisingly, maintaining or even losing weight.
Studies
One of the most recent pieces of academic research that looked into the correlation between sleep and weight was conducted and published by the British Medical Journey. The longitudinal study took 244 child participants and measured both the amount of sleep they had and their Body Mass Index (BMI). The aim of the study was to see if here was any link between the two and the findings seemed to suggest that there were indeed. One finding highlighted that children aged between three and seven who slept less than the recommended eleven hours per night were much more likely to be overweight than those who managed to do so. Additionally for every hour on top of the suggested eleven a child was able to gain decreased their chances of being overweight by nearly two thirds. A similar study from the Warwick Medical School found that thirty months old who did not sleep the suggested amount were 45% more likely to be obese at the age of seven than those who managed to gain the appropriate slumber.
Sleep’s affect on weight loss hormones
As the human body sleeps it releases a number of hormones. All of these hormones have different jobs aimed at restoring, fixing and managing the body. There are those, such as Melatonin, which have the goal of fixing broken cells and thus reducing the risk of cancer. Similarly there are hormones, primarily Leptin and Grehlin, which are used to help a body understand the amount of sustenance it needs and helping it regulate its dietary requirements. As these are released during slumber, if too little sleep is gained then the hormones will be released in insufficient quantities. This can result in the human body having a superficial appetite as the hormones which are used to suppress this have not been released to the appropriate degree. 8 hours sleep per night is the recommended amount to stave off these effects.
The correlation between sleep and exercise
One of the many benefits of sleep is the improvement it can deliver to exercise standards. Even better is the fact that this is a circular relationship. A study published in Sleep: Journal of Sleep Research & Sleep Medicine in 1997 found that individuals who engaged in exercise were able to improve all subjective levels of sleep quality whilst staving off the effects of depression. The circular part of this correlation comes from the fact that individuals who are able to gain an optimum amounts of sleep, helped by exercise, are able to undertake greater levels of exercise due to the increased energy levels that come with a good night’s slumber. This, in conjunction with hormones such as Leptin and Grehlin, helps an individual lose weight as many calories whilst be burnt by this additional exercise.
About the author
Kieron Casey is a BA (Hons) Journalism graduate who blogs regularly on a number of topics including health, fitness and baby bedding.
Facebook
Twitter
Visit Our Store
RSS
Youtube