Holistic, Alternative Medicine Education and Insight

Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts

Saturday, January 26, 2008

An Early Start to Burn Fat and Lose Weight

burn fat, lose weight naturally - natural weight loss - boost metabolismDid you know that in the morning before breakfast is considered the best time to exercise if you are trying to lose weight and burn fat?

Besides the cardiovascular and mood-enhancing benefits, exercise helps you slim down and become more toned. However, for optimal fat burning, it's just as important to plan when you work-out as to what exercises you will do.

As it turns out, early morning exercise is best. Studies have shown that working out on an empty stomach forces your body to burn much more fat than it would have later in the day. How does this work?

When you awaken in the morning, your body has gone without food for approximately 8 hours. Your insulin levels are low; your glucose and glycogen levels are low as well. Each of these factors contributes to burning more stored fat and thus losing the type of weight you want to lose. However, if you eat before you workout, your body has to burn off what you just ate before it can tap into your fat reserves.

Early morning exercise appears to also have a metabolism boost as well. This means that you tend to continue to burn calories for hours even after the work out is over. Combining weight training in your morning routine is a powerful one, two punch for weight loss. Weight training builds muscles which dramatically affects fat loss. By doing it in the morning, you have an even more extended metabolic rate increase.

Whether this fulfills some ancient instinct to expend energy before we could have food as our hunter-gatherer ancestors did, morning exercise appears to restore the natural order of things for a holistic balance and normal weight.

For optimal fat loss, consider setting the clock a little earlier and blending when you exercise into your weight loss program.

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Monday, August 13, 2007

Holistic Benefits of Fiber

Dietary fiber may help prevent colon cancer, reduce blood cholesterol, and help maintain a health weight. Additionally, people with type-2 diabetes or insulin resistance are helped with fiber as it can help manage insulin levels by lowering their blood sugar.

But why is fiber a nutritional powerhouse and how does it benefit holistic health and wellness?


Dietary fiber is a member of the carbohydrate family and consists of fruits, vegetables, and the outer linings of seeds, grains, nuts, and beans. Dietary fiber comes in two forms: soluble and insoluble fiber. The human body needs both types to be healthy.


Benefits of Soluble and Insoluble Fiber

Soluble fiber can be dissolved by water. It is often found in apples, bran, beans, oatmeal, seeds, bananas, carrots, and citrus fruits. When digested soluble fiber is combined with water, it can be absorbed into the bloodstream through the intestinal walls. In the blood stream, it works to balance cholesterol levels and block fat absorption.

Insoluble fiber, as opposed to soluble fiber, can not be dissolved in water. It consists of the cellulose that makes up plant cell walls. It is often found in wheat bran, whole grains, and the skins of most fruits and vegetables. Insoluble fiber is more resistant to digestive enzymes in the gastrointestinal tract than soluble fiber. As such, it helps to gather up trapped or undigested foods in the intestines as it passes through the colon and therefore is a great remedy for constipation.

Nutritional fiber supplements can also be a healthy alternative for those who can not get sufficient amounts of fresh fruits and vegetables in their diet. Nutritional supplements often include combinations of psyllium husks, oat bran, apple pectin, and/or other natural cellulose derivatives. Whether in powdered form or capsule, all-natural nutritional supplements can benefit a healthy diet. However, the best holistic plan is to incorporate a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and whole grains in your daily diet. Super-charge your nutrition and include dietary fiber as a natural health staple.



For additional information about alternative medicine and other nutrition facts:


To learn how to optimize nutrition and learn about holistic health:
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