In this last week of our Spring Reset (..food based, supplement supported, anti-inflammatory, clinically studied cleanse) we have added avocado to our meals daily. This little dandy reduces inflammation, retards hunger and makes our skin glow! With the truth revealed about how GREAT fats are for us, it's time to up the ante with Avo!      http://www.fitsolutionsblog.com/eating-avocado-each-day/#!60

Eating Avocado Each Day

Eating Avocado Each Day

We have all heard about eating an apple a day, but how about Eating Avocado Each Day? It is believed that the avocado originated in Puebla, Mexico, and the oldest evidence was found in a cave dating back to around 10,000 BC. This cultural food was classified in the same family as camphor and cinnamon. The avocado is considered a large berry, and grows on a tree that can reach heights of 6 feet. Avocados truly ripen in 1-2 weeks after being picked.

Avocados are often referred to as the healthiest food due to its impressive nutritional value, which is whyEating Avocado Each Day could benefit you.

Eating Avocado Each Day

Avocados contains these vitamins and minerals:

• Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin K
• Calcium
• Iron
• Magnesium
• Manganese
• Phosphorus
• Sodium
• Zinc

Other benefits to Eating Avocado Each Day:

• Avocados have 14% potassium compared to 10% of a banana.
• Avocados have 23% folate. Folate can lower incidences of heart disease, lower the risks of a stroke, and is essential in the prevention of birth defects such as spina bifida and neural tube defect.
• Avocados contain an antioxidant called glutathione that can also help prevent heart disease, cancer, and slows the signs of aging due to the fact it helps fight off free radicals
• Avocados can help our body absorb 5 times the amount of carotenoids (lycopene and beta carotene), and they contain more carotenoid lutein than any other fruit, which can protect against muscular degeneration and cataracts.
• Avocados are also high in beta-sitosterol, which can aid in lowering bad cholesterol by 22%, raise good cholesterol by 11%, and lower blood triglycerides by 20%.
• Avocados are also high in fiber which will help you feel fuller longer, potentially help with weight loss, and helps maintain metabolic health and steadies blood sugar levels.
• Pholyphenols and flavonoids are also found in avocados, which have anti-inflammatory properties.
• Avocados cleanse the intestines, relieve bad breath, nourishes the skin and are beneficial in helping treat psoriasis and other skin irritations.

With all of these amazing benefits you may want to consider adding this healthy fat to your daily nutrition. It is good to have a serving of a healthy fat each day, so why not have avocados be a part of that plan. Eating Avocado Each Day as a part of your healthy nutrition could really pack a punch in health benefits. Bring on the Avocado!

For more great article on fitness, nutrition and cutting edge supplementation - check out my blog http://www.fitsolutionsblog.com/#!60

Hydration – Is it Important to Weight Loss

Hydration – Is it Important to Weight Loss

Hydration is important for so many reasons, but is it important to weight loss? Our bodies are about 50-75% water depending on our body composition. Water is responsible for many different functions throughout our body.

Water gives us so many benefits such as;

• Regulates our body temperature
• Carries oxygen and nutrients to the cells
• Dissolves minerals and nutrients
• Aide’s digestion and prevents stomach aches during digestion
• Protects the body organs and tissues
• Lubricates joints
• Keeps us alert
• Prevents headaches
• Boosts cognitive abilities and focus
• Protects the heart

Of course this just names a few benefits that come from being properly hydrated.

It is important to be hydrated, but is it important to weight loss? The answer is, YES!

Proper hydration increases the metabolism. According to a recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, drinking 17 ounces of water increases the metabolic rate by 30% in healthy men and women. The maximum effect on the metabolic rate was reached 30-40 minutes after the water was drank.

Think about that…

If you are properly hydrated throughout the day, your metabolism is functioning better and burning more. If you are hydrated during exercise, you will also burn more.

So, if you are among the thousands who want to lose a few or many pounds, proper hydration is a must. Many people track their food and physical activity when they want to lose weight, but very few track their water intake. If weight loss is your goal, you should be tracking your water intake as well. Really everyone regardless should track their water intake to ensure they are hydrated. Proper water intake throughout the day can help assure our metabolism is operating at full capacity.

So how do you know how much water your body needs? It comes down to using a simple formula to calculate your general water needs. Please note: This formula is not exact, but accurate enough to be very close to what your body will need. Of course if you are still feeling thirsty you may need to add some more. Being thirsty mean you’re dehydrated.  If you find you need more water, increase by 8 ounces at time. Once the consistent feeling of being thirsty is gone, you have hit the mark.

Hydration Formula:  

1. Know your body weight. Make sure you obtain an accurate reading. Digital scales are the most accurate. If the number on the scale shows decimals, round down if .4 or lower; and round up if .5 or higher. If using an analog scale, attempt to be as accurate as possible. (Example: 175.4 pounds = 175 pounds. 225.5 is rounded to 2225, etc.)

2. Divide your weight in half. (Example: 225 pounds/ 2= 112.5, which is rounded to 113 ounces.) This number is your required water intake in ounces.

3. Determine Your Activity Level. Your activity level is the level to which you physically exert yourself. This exertion has a direct correlation with our water intake. As we exercise or perform any physical or strenuous activity, our bodies will naturally expel water. This means our consumption will need to be increased to replenish what is lost.

A good general gage for physical activity is as follows:

• For every 30 minutes of vigorous exercise add 16 ounces.
• For every 30 minutes of moderate exercise add 8 ounces.
• For every 30 minutes of light exercise or walking add 4 ounces. *

*if you have a job that you put in a lot of time doing physical work, or walking you will need to calculate extra water that is needed for the time spent doing those activities. (Example: Person walks for 4 hours at their job – additional 32 ounces, or a construction worker is doing hard physical labor for 4 hours – additional 64 ounces)

4. Calculate your water intake needs. Follow steps 1 to 3. Add the numbers derived from steps two and three.

Example:
Weight: 250 pounds
250 ÷ 2 = 125 ounces
30 minutes of daily vigorous exercise = 16 ounces
125 ounces + 16 ounces = 141 ounces
(18 8-ounce classes or 12 12-ounce glasses of water per day)

Hydration – Is It Important to Weight Loss? YES!

Here are a few other helpful tips to keep yourself hydrated. When you are hydrated your body is happy, and your metabolism firing at full capacity.

• Drink 16 ounce of water 30 minutes prior to every meal. This guarantees you 48 ounces just by implementing this habit.
• Drink 16 ounces in the morning right after getting out of bed, and 16 ounces 30 minutes before going to bed. This gets you another 32 ounces.
• When you see others drink something, drink some water.
• Never leave the house without a bottle of water. Get a bright colored and fun bottle to help set this habit.
• If you live in arid climates, add an additional 16 ounces to your daily consumption.
• Use lemons, limes or other fresh fruit in your water.
• Use a high quality, clean and free of artificial ingredients hydration supplement during exercise.

Hydration is important to weight loss. Whatever you need to do to consume the water your body needs, set up those habits and your body will want to shed more body fat.

Discover How You Can Get Healthy, and Earn Income Helping Others Do the Same! 

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Burn More Fat by Eating Fat

Think about it… Burn More Fat by Eating Fat.
Hello… I know you mouth just dropped, but it’s true. The late 80’s brought on the onset of the low fat diet, and it has become a yo-yo of truths and myths since. Manufacturers marketed low-fat and no-fat everything, and consumers responded by chowing down. This was so wrong on all levels. Science has shown that this was stripping our bodies of a much-needed nutrients, and really helped launch the movement of increased obesity. The reason this had an impact on obesity is that food manufacturers replaced fat with loads of sugar, salt, artificial everything, corn syrup, and nutrient deficient additives. Through the years of this yo-yo, science has come out on top. Science has shown us that you will burn more fat by eating fat, creating a leaner and slimmer body.

Hold on… Fat can help us lose weight and maintain our weight? YES!
Fat doesn’t make us fat? Not when you eat the right kind of fats in the right portions. When you do this your body may actually burn more fat.

Fat is not something to avoid. Fat is essential for normal growth and development. Healthy dietary fats help with energy, protects your organs, maintains cell membranes, it helps the body absorb and process nutrients more efficiently, and it helps the body burn fat. Science has shown that our bodies should have a third of our daily calories come from healthy dietary fats.

Burn More Fat by Eating Fat

Of course deep-fried hot dog, pizza, French fries, potato chips, and hamburgers are not examples of healthy fats. These foods will not create trim body and have been part of the plague of obesity and disease.

The fats you should eat, especially if you want to lose weight and maintain a healthy weight should come from unsaturated sources. These monounsaturated (MUFA) and polyunsaturated (PUFA) fats come from foods like fish, seeds, nuts, leafy vegetables, olive oil, coconut oil, hummus, and avocados. Plus, these foods are packed with a ton nutrients.

If we take a moment to just look at an avocado. It has great benefits and fat burning potential. These nutritional hand grenades have an explosive impact on our diets. They’re infused with the key nutrients and the biggest benefit: Healthy Fat.

Check out how an avocado can really enhance your diet. Avocado toast is a bite of goodness gives you a punch of three macro-nutrients that will give you a kick of energy. You get carbohydrates, protein, and fat. A gram of fat packs more than twice as much energy than a gram of carbs or protein gives you. So this little healthy fat addition to your toast helps revs up your calorie burning furnace because the fat helps fuel the calorie burning process which helps maintain your metabolism. Yes, it takes healthy new fat to burn off the old unhealthy belly, thighs, or butt fat.

Another great idea is to put an egg into the middle of the avocado where the seed normally sits. This will give you a good source of protein and fat. Besides protein keeping you fuller longer, so does healthy fats. So another benefit of the healthy fat is that it stays in the digestive system longer than other nutrients which in turn can help to stabilize blood sugar levels as well.

So now that you know that you will Burn More Fat by Eating Fat, let’s touch on how healthy fats also help you Builds Muscle, and process other nutrients more efficiently.

Healthy fats incorporated into a healthy portioned nutrition plan along with an effective exercise program will have you increasing muscle. Again increasing muscle mass is vital to increasing metabolism and burning calories while at rest and when exercising. A metabolic study released in 2011 examined the adults ages 25 to 45 that increased their healthy fat consumption had higher protein concentrations and increased size of muscular cells versus the group that had lower levels of healthy fat intake. This also proved that healthy fat would help prevent muscle mass loss due to aging.

As for nutrient processing, many nutrients including vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat-soluble. This means that the body cannot absorb these nutrients without fat. If you cannot absorb nutrients properly your body can become nutrient deficient. These deficiencies may bring on dry skin, hair loss, muscle cramps and pains, blindness, brittle bones, and abnormal blood clotting, just to name a few. Vitamins are also key to maintaining energy, focus, and muscular health, all of which contribute to maintaining a healthy weight.

Embrace the fact that fat is essential to a healthy diet. Remember to make a third of your daily calories coming from healthy fat so you can begin to establish some healthy changes.

Stay Strong and Stay Young!!

Preventing injuries, illness and holding back aging

is absolutely in your control!

http://www.fitsolutionsblog.com/strength-training-will-keep-you-young/#!60

Strength Training Will Keep You Young

Many people today are continually looking for a magical quick-fix to weight loss, maintenance of health, youthful appearance, and vitality. The truth is…

There is no quick fix! There is however a way that can help with the things people are looking for, and it can be accomplished in 30-40 minutes. The best solution has proven success and has shown to help in all areas, time and time again. The answer is strength training.

Strength Training Will Keep You Young!  Strength Training is exercise that creates a muscular contraction by using gravity or a force to oppose muscle contraction. Strength Training Will Keep You Young, and has shown to be the closest thing to the Fountain of Youth. It has many health benefits such as strengthening your bones and heart, improving your balance, helping you lose body fat, maintain skeletal muscle, and more. No other single activity has a more positive impact on your mind and body, than Strength Training which is why Strength Training Will Keep You Young.

Strength Training Will Keep You Young and provide…

1. Increased Bone Density, Preservation of Lean Muscle, and Joint Support

People can lose up to 1% of their muscle and bone density per year after the age 30. For women this amount doubles during menopause. Decreased bone density is the leading cause of osteoporosis, yet it is preventable nine times out of ten with regular weight bearing exercise.

Muscle hypertrophy and atrophy can be prevented through regular strength training. It will preserve lean muscle mass, prevent saggy skin, and help keep joint pain to a minimum.

The best protection for the joints is to ensure their surrounding muscles are strong enough to support them. Your core (abdominal and low back muscles) supports your spine, your leg muscles (hamstrings, quadriceps, and calves) support your knee, and so on.

Improvements on bone density, muscle strength and tone, and joint support keeps injuries at a minimum or prevents them all together.

2. Increased Metabolism

Research has found that for every pound of muscle you gain, you burn 35-50 more calories each day. Every muscle cell gained helps increase the metabolism. Therefore, you burn more calories, when active, inactive AND while sleeping.

3. Better Posture

Stronger muscles help maintain proper posture. Improved posture allows you to move more efficiently, with more range of motion and freedom, will give you more confidence, and makes you look slimmer.

4. Decreases the Risk of Diabetes

Adult-onset diabetes is a growing epidemic. Research has found that a few months of regular weight training can increase glucose utilization by 23%.

5. Reduced Stress

Strength training elevates the level of endorphins which has been shown to combat stress. Strength training has also been recommended as one of the greatest antidepressant, improved sleep aid, and overall factor in quality of life improvement because it combats stress.

Strength Training Will Keep You Young

No Matter How Old You Are Strength Training Will Keep You Young and Feeling Good. Remember this doesn’t mean bodybuilding and bulking up big muscles. The implementation of a regular weight/strength training routine that targets specific muscle groups can give you exactly what you need. This can also be done right at home with Beachbody’s New Master’s Hammer and Chisel Program, or other programs like P90X3, Body Beast, 21 Day Fix, or 21 Day Fix Extreme. Regardless of your gender, age, or current abilities, all of these programs can be modified to fit your training abilities and provide you the muscle your body needs and craves to have.  

Strength training will make you will feel healthier, have more energy, look better, reduce the risk of injury, and decrease joint and muscle pain. Strength Training Will Keep You Young, and is the closest thing we have to the Fountain of Youth. It is never too late to get started.

DOES A CRASH DIET WORK?

Crash diets promise quick and efficient weight loss, but the real question isDoes a Crash Diet Work.

Crash diets are diet plans that severely reduce calories, are nutritionally restrictive, and are supposed to promote quick weight loss. Often these diets focus on one or two food groups and are not intended for long-term lifestyle changes. Most Crash Diets have a calorie count of less than a 1,000 calories a day. Long-term, this can be dangerous and create issues throughout the body.

Does a Crash Diet Work? Crash diets can be temporarily effective for people who have no personal control and are easily tempted by food (underscore “temporary”).  Temporary means no more than one week. Crash Diets, when set up properly are not really crash diets at all, they are shred diets. Meaning you will shred and drop some weight quickly because it shocks the body. Again this should be very temporary just to get the weight loss process going, to curb cravings, and begin the process of seeing portions for what they should be. This type of plan should not be maintained beyond 7 days.

DOES A CRASH DIET WORK?

Crash diets can have many risks due to their nutrient deficiencies. These diets make it difficult to get a sufficient amount of calcium, vitamin D, or iron and other important nutrients. If this type of plan is followed long-term it can cause permanent damage to the organs by not providing them with their required fuel. If there is too much fluid loss, you can damage your electrolyte level, and become easily dehydrated, and when this happens you may experience cramping, fainting, and even heart failure.

Another issue with a Crash Diet is the slowing of the metabolism. Our bodies are extremely efficient machines and will slow down and lower its resting metabolic rate in order to survive longer if the calories or nutrients are too low. When this happens for long periods of time our bodies begin to cannibalize its own lean muscle tissue for nutrients to maintain itself. Slow metabolism will create a decrease in energy and you will feel sluggish, have ashy skin, and other issues. This will have a negative effect on your home and work life, and your ability to workout will be non-existent.

Another negative factor of a Crash Diet is its effect on your emotional and mental state. When on a crash diet, irritability, depression, and lack of patience begin to set in. Sleep patterns are disrupted and in severe cases it can cause full blown insomnia. Again this will affect your workouts, because it is during rest that the muscles recover.

Does a Crash Diet Work? The answer really is NO. When you return to a rational eating plan, your body will store everything you eat, as it thinks it has been starving for the last few weeks, and as a result support rapid weight gain.

The answer is, as it has been for centuries, a decision to change has to be greater than to stay the same. To lose weight you must make a lifestyle change. You have to have motivation and discipline to stick to a well-rounded clean eating plan. Though you can kick off with a 7-day shred plan that is a well-balanced 900-1200 calories, you must bump that up to me 1,400 to 3,000 calories depending on your needs for long-term success at weight loss, muscle building, or other goals. These calories should be split up over 5 to 6 meals a day and have a proper balance of protein, carbs, and healthy fats.

DOES A CRASH DIET WORK?

If you combine this with 30-45 minutes of intense exercise you will be speeding up your metabolism.

Does a Crash Diet Work? Not if you want your New Year’s resolutions to come to fruition. Stay off the crash diet / fad diet merry-go-round. Commit to choosing your health and making a lifestyle change.

FOAM ROLLING - IT'S A GOOD THING!

Foam Rolling has many potentially valuable effects for the general population. One of the greatest benefits of foam rolling, also known as self-myofascial release, is to decrease lactic acid pain that can be experienced during a workout. The irony of foam rolling is that it can be quite painful, at least when you do it inconsistently or are just getting started with a Foam Rolling regimen.

With Foam Rolling you need to start appropriately. Starting with your iliotibial band with both legs stacked is probably not going to work well for you. You want to start with one leg and progress to two over time, as your pain tolerance increases (or better said, as your soft-tissue extensibility improves).

Foam rolling may help promote muscle balance around a joint if you first inhibit a short, tight, strong muscle and then immediately activate a long, flaccid, weak muscle on the opposite side of the joint. In layman’s terms, you soften the “tight” tissue and tighten the “soft” tissue.

FOAM ROLLING: IT’S A GOOD THING!

Though pressure is needed and it can be painful, too much pain is not a good thing. You need to do it properly so you do not create subsequent inflammation. Think of the foam roller as just another tool in your toolbox. You need to use it just as you would any tool. If you use a sander to smooth a piece of wood, you don’t sand too long or hard in one spot.  So like the sandpaper, just a few strokes with a foam roller may be enough.

If you do decide that the foam roller is a good warm-up tool, it doesn’t mean that you should use it on every muscle if the muscle doesn’t need to be rolled. A good rule of thumb is when you find that foam rolling is no longer painful, stop doing it before a workout. At that point you would use foam rolling as a separate restoration method as its own regimen for some relaxation later at night, but not before you train.

FOAM ROLLING: IT’S A GOOD THING!

As a restoration or training method, you need to determine what works well for you. You must always keep in mind that what works well for you today may not work well for you tomorrow. So, go ahead and experiment with foam rolling during your warm-ups. Once the pain of foam rolling diminishes, you will then move into using as its own regimen and not prior to training. 

101 HEALTHY SHAKE RECIPES 

See Big Results with Small Changes

People who want to lose weight, be better athletes, gain muscle, and more want to see results. Results can come without a lot of big changes. You canSee Big Results with Small Changes. As Darren Hardy says, many small changes will compound into the large change you are looking for. Whether you’re just getting started or a seasoned fitness person, you will See Big Results with Small Changes when you follow these few ideas.

SEE BIG RESULTS WITH SMALL CHANGES

Nutrition is 80% of a healthy lifestyle, so nutrition is the best place to start so you can See Big Results with Small Changes.

1. Reach for mustard, hot sauce, and salsa instead of ketchup, mayo, or sour cream for fewer calories, more nutrients, and less sugar.
2. Eat slowly. It takes your body 20 minutes to realize it’s full. Eating slower will help stop you from overeating.
3. Use Avocado instead of butter or mayo on your sandwiches. It’s full of healthy monounsaturated fat and fiber.
4. Replace refined carbs (like white rice or enriched pasta) with whole grain versions. Whole grains have more fiber and more nutrients and absorb slower. This keeps your blood sugars more even and provides longer-lasting energy.
5. Dump the sugary drinks and diet drinks. You’ll save hundreds of calories and won’t be drinking chemicals.
6. When cooking use extra virgin olive oil instead of butter. It is heart healthy and doesn’t leave by products when it is heated
7. Dedicate 75% of your plate to vegetables and the remainder to whole grains and lean proteins. You will feel more full and provide your body with necessary vitamins and minerals.

See Big Results with Small Changes in daily life can also have a huge impact.

1. Sign up for an athletic competition or event. Having an event to work towards can really keep you motivated.
2. Plan a fun activity, like a hike, group run, bike ride, or snowball fight. Activities and laughter with friends and family have an impact on your health.
3. Get proper sleep! 7 to 8 hours of sleep will help your muscles recover faster, your brain work better, and you are more likely to not overeat.
4. Go the distance. Take the stairs! Park farther from the entrance! Your body wants you to be moving, plus that means more calories burned.
5. Keep your workout playlist fresh. Fresh music keeps the brain happy and you going.
6. Move while watching TV. Do push-ups, crunches, squats, or stretch during commercials. These mini works provide extra calorie burn and feed your brain with chemicals it needs to function better.
7. Reward yourself with clothing or new fitness gear when you hit milestones. Train your brain to stop rewarding your body with food.
8. Wear a pedometer. Blast belly fat by moving 10,000 steps per day, or approximately five miles.