Food Pyramid - Why This Doesn't Work Best For Fat Loss

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

The food pyramid was first formulated in 1978 by the Danish and adopted in 1992 by the United States Department of Agriculture. 2005 saw a change to the food pyramid to MyPyramid. This new pyramid is very similar to the old one, stating that the majority of the food consumed should come from grains, breads, cereals, crackers, rice and pasta. It states that if you are going to be eating something that has fat in it e.g. milk, to go with fat-free. There is also no real line for oils and fats.

Food Pyramid - Why This Doesn't Work Best For Fat Loss

More and more nutritionists and personal trainers have started implementing something quite the opposite to that of the food pyramid for fat loss. More studies have also shown that the food pyramid lacks aspects that help with losing body fat.

Carbohydrates in the form of grains, cereals, pastas, rice and breads make up the biggest proportion of the food pyramid. These tend to be high glycemic and have high glycemic loads. When consumed, these foods cause a blood sugar spike in the body. The body has to then release insulin to help curb the blood sugar spike and bring it back down to normal levels. If the body's liver and glycogen stores are full, then the excess carbohydrates will be converted to fat and stored in the body's fat stores.

I would recommend eating starchy carbohydrates such as oats, sweet potatoes and pulses earlier in the day. The body's liver and muscle glycogen levels are lower in the morning. The body can handle starchy carbohydrates better in the morning too, due the body's improved insulin sensitivity. As the body goes on, meals should be made up of fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, poultry, nuts and seeds and healthy fats.

The majority of food should come from vegetables and low glycemic fruits such as blueberries etc. Fruits and vegetables are packed with micro-nutrients such as antioxidants and minerals. Fruit and vegetables give you very low calories for the amount you can eat. They tend to be high in fiber, which has a fulfilling effect on the body. The stomach has stretch receptors, which tell the brain when you are full up. This means that you can fill up on micro-nutrient dense foods. Match this with the likes of starchy carbohydrates, where you get a lot of calories per gram of food weight.

Meat, fish and poultry are limited in the MyPyramid. Protein based foods should be the next important food after fruit and vegetables. I have competed in two bodybuilding shows whereby I have reached sub 5% body fat levels. I consumed protein based foods at every meal and recommend these foods should be consumed with every meal. Protein based foods have a high thermic effect in the body, whereby the body has to work harder and use more stored energy to help digest these foods.

Fats and oils that are naturally occurring and added, have a very minimal amount of room in MyPyramid. Fats have been shown in many studies to help the body breakdown stored body fat into a source of energy that the body can use. Meat is high in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) which has been shown to help reduce body fat. Monounsaturated fat, which is in olive oil has also been shown to help the body release body fat and use it as energy. As part of both my bodybuilding nutrition plan, I ate a high amount of fat, about 60% of my daily calorie intake came from fat and I reached body fat levels as low of 3%.

When I suggest using this eating plan to my personal training clients, they seem a bit reluctant as they look at it and find it hard how they are going to be fulfilled by eat. By eating like this, you will automatically eat more fiber, which will make you more fulfilled.

I don't see this as a diet, more just a way of how we should be eating; as close to the ground as possible, eating from what nature can give us, and trying to eat like our Paleolithic ancestors. I tell my clients to try and avoid foods, which have been processed or made such as pastas, breads etc.

By reducing down starchy carbohydrate levels, fat intake should increase. This will give you a much more sustained level of energy release than carbohydrates. Charles Poliquin, one of the most successful strength and conditioning coaches to professional and Olympic athletes, recommends the meat and nuts breakfast. This allows the body to control blood sugar levels and gives you a sustained level of energy. The athletes he trains are some of the best in the world and if they have the energy to get through 30 hours + of training and sport, then the average desk jockey should easily get the energy from eating like this.

Not all clients implement this way of eating as it is quite a different way of eating. Even though they will add in aspects of it, the clients of mine, which completely implement this way of eating, are the ones which see massive results in body fat reduction. They also find they have more energy during the day and during their training sessions and just plain feel healthier.

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Discover Healthy Recipes - Eating the Caveman Way

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

The Paleo Recipe books are changing people's lives everyday just by going back to eating the way our Cavemen ancestors did. Humans have been eating off the land since the beginning of our existence. Eating natural foods from the earth.

Discover Healthy Recipes - Eating the Caveman Way

The Paleolithic diet, otherwise known as the ancestral human diet is not new, in fact, it's the way our ancestors ate for thousands of years before the development of agriculture. The Paleo Recipe books are based on "Paleolithic eating" or "hunter-gatherer eating". The nutritional plan consists mostly of wild plants, vegetables, fruits, fish, roots, nuts and grass-fed pasture raised meats. Because a Paleolithic diet stems from the Paleolithic Age, before the dawn of agriculture, foods such as legumes, grains, dairy, salt, refined sugar and processed foods are not included on the menu.

It wasn't until up to 10,000 years ago during the Neolithic Revolution (the first agricultural revolution) humans began eating foods such as beans, cereals and dairy products. During the Industrial Revolution in the late 18th to early 19th centuries, refined foods, oils, and processed foods were introduced. Since the Industrial Revolution, our food consumption has changed from earth based, natural to processed and canned.

Because of these dietary changes, it has been theorized that by consuming refined foods, sugars and oils, has contributed to the cause for diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, autoimmune diseases and others. In later years, with humans developing more and more of these diseases, researchers have gone back to the drawing board.

We have found that eating natural foods from the land can help you increase energy levels, lose weight, increase your sex drive, improve skin tone, but most importantly, natural foods are a way to prevent the diseases often caused by eating refined and processed foods.

Today, people are more health conscience than ever before. Thus, changing their lives and health by eating more natural foods; foods the human body was designed to consume.

The Paleo Recipe books have grown much more in popularity due to the demand for healthier recipes. For people who want to follow the Paleolithic lifestyle, The Paleo Recipe books contain all the tools necessary to do it. Create simple, tasty recipes your body will crave.

The recipes are given with clear step by step instructions that allow you to create quick, easy meals. The recipe books also include hundreds of easy healthy recipes and the tools to create those fast, simple, delicious dishes.

There are 8 recipe categories to choose from such as snacks, meat, chicken, fish and seafood, soups, salads, omelets and desserts. Easily change your eating habits without having to worry about lengthy preparation.

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How to Get Rid of Acne With the Paleo Diet With Amazing Instant Results!

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

Have you got acne? You then be familiar with people constantly telling you not to worry and that its just a 'phase' and that it will eventually go away. Yea you might believe that when you are a teenager when a lot of kids have it, but what if your that person who is well into their twenties and still has not got rid of the problem. When are you going to wait until... being bold, old age. Come on!

How to Get Rid of Acne With the Paleo Diet With Amazing Instant Results!

Although acne is not life threatening problem it is a problem that most if not all people who have it want to get rid of. Why because its just disturbing, annoying and just not natural. While we are young it makes the situation worse as it may make you feel awkward in social situations which is not what any teenager wants let alone an adult. It effects a persons self confidence and causes the person experiencing the problem to miss out on a lot of different social activities.

Perhaps you have experienced this... been in a excellent job interview with a face full of disturbing acne?... or perhaps you are out with friends and you feel self conscious of your acne as they are all getting massive amounts of attention while you are being left out.

There are billions of so called solutions to the problem of acne all claiming to be that miracle cure to help treat and get rid of acne, yet non of them ever seem to cause a dent in the problem let alone get rid of it. If this is a problem that you are having and you have tried all these miracle cures but nothing seems to be happening then perhaps its time to change your tactics?

Science has proven that diet is directly connected with acne. Bad diet = acne. Good diet = clear skin. Its as simple as that, but most people are never told that this is the case so never fail to change their diet to help rid them of the problem.

The following four cases are the main causes behind acne:
- the inflammation of blocked up pores.
- excessive amounts of oil produced by the sweat glands in our skin.
- different kinds of bacteria on our skin, some of which infect the blocked pores.
- some skin cells end up sticking together and therefore blocking our pores.

These causes are shown by scientific research to be directly caused and enhanced by the food that we consume on a regular basis. As mentioned above, bad diet = acne, good diet = clear skin.

Having a ton of different benefits the paleo diet has been shown through research to be very very effective in completely finishing and preventing the start of acne. The natural foods that have been allowed in the paleo diet are shown to have a massive positive impact in preventing the four causes mentioned above. The foods that are prevented from being consumed in the paleo diet are scientifically proven to enhance acne.

Implementing the paleo diet will result in the elimination of acne and clean smooth healthy skin.

You have nothing whatsoever to lose from trying the paleo diet. So if you want to completely get rid of the acne that you have been experiencing then take the simple action of changing your diet to consume foods that nature has intended you to eat.

Check out http://www.mypaleocookbook.com for more information and recipes to help to prevent and remove acne.

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The Paleo Diet Lifestyle

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

Health is wealth. You are what you eat. These are sayings that you might have heard often enough to know what they mean. But how many people do you know who really take these concepts to heart? Indiscriminate eating can do more harm than good for the body and it is about time that you think about trying out the Paleo Diet.

The Paleo Diet Lifestyle

Everyone knows that you can get a lot of nutrition from eating food, but as another saying goes, too much of anything can be harmful. That is why when you hear the word diet it usually means to limit what you are eating to a bare minimum. This can be extremely excruciating for some people who are used to eating anything that comes their way.

Some forms of diet are all about watching the amount of calories that you take in. This can also be good because you are living not only in a healthy way but also aware of the food that you take in. Unfortunately, not all foods have a label on them and when you have reached your calorie limit for the day early on, you might end up forcing yourself not to eat until the day is done. This can also be a very painful way to be healthy. Often, this is not even healthy at all.

You can also cook your own meals. That way, you are always aware of how many calories you are taking in and you can even control the amount in the food that you are cooking by making sure that you include only low-calorie ingredients in your dish. But how many of you can cook well, and want to take the time, beyond the basic ham and eggs? Also, what if you are pressed for time and you are forced to buy from fast food chains? These are still concerns with this kind of solution.

The Paleo Diet

You might want to ask now what would be a good solution in this case. The answer is the Paleo Diet. But what is it really? It is a way of food intake. It is based on the way cavemen ate.

In prehistoric times, people didn't have the luxury of a microwave and preservatives so they simply ate whatever they found: fruits, vegetables, and meat from the animals that they can catch. That is all they ate because that was all that was available to them at the time.

Some might complain that this is impossible to do in the present age. However, there are many people who are actually doing it. The presence of cookbooks for Paleo Diet is a proof of the success that this has given some people.

Some might get the wrong idea of hunting for their own food in the wild. This is not a call to go back to nature and be wild. It simply means to eat food that has minimal to no preservatives.

Eventually such a way of eating can become a lifestyle and that is when things will get a lot easier for you since you no longer have to struggle to maintain the diet. Some people might see this as hard, but it can actually be very simple.

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The Truth About Anti Aging Skin Care Treatment - A Simple Guide

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

This is an anti aging skin care guide that tells you some key truths you can't avoid:

The Truth About Anti Aging Skin Care Treatment - A Simple Guide

-- Why skin cream works best when you're taking care of your health;

-- What treatments and ingredients are dangerous;

-- What kind of anti aging skin care treatment has shown excellent results in clinical testing.

The skin killers are excessive sun, especially sunburn; smoking; and a diet high in sugar, starchy foods and dairy products.

Now, I'm not a fanatic about the sun. I regularly get some sunshine and fresh air. Sunlight is the natural, free source of abundant vitamin D, which most of us in modern countries are lacking. Vitamin D is essential for good health.

But avoid getting sunburned. That's very important.

Most people, even smokers, will agree that smoking is bad for you. Smoking has been shown to cause aging skin, you probably know that, so no lectures here.

But most people don't know that the food you eat makes a big difference in your skin.

Loren Cordain of the University of Colorado, is a researcher on the Paleo diet our ancestors ate. In many studies, he showed that it's possible today to eat similar foods to our ancestors.

When we do, we can eliminate acne when nothing else has worked. (Dermatologists have been telling people for decades that diet has nothing to do with acne. It turns out those "experts" are dead wrong.)

Just as important -- eating right can reverse aging markers, measured by exact scientific standards!

The foods that make the difference are: lean meats and fish; non-starchy vegetables and fruits; and healthy oils, like omega 3 fish oils, canola oil and olive oil.

The foods that make us fat, diabetic, and struggling with heart disease are the same ones that cause acne and wrinkled, sagging skin. They are refined sugar, fatty meats, dairy products and the starchy foods. That includes milk, cheese, grains, cereals, bread, pasta and potatoes. It also includes most vegetable oils that we used to be told were great for health, like soybean oil, to take the most popular example.

The harsh anti aging skin care treatments include dermabrasion (scraping off the outer layer of skin), chemical peels (irritating the skin so the top layer peels off), and cosmetic surgery. All are relatively expensive, none nourish the skin in any way, all have some nasty possible side effects, and all of them have to be repeated as their effects fade.

I avoid them for all those reasons, and I would be a hypocrite to recommend them.

Some dangerous ingredients, I'm sorry to say, are very common in so-called anti aging skin care treatments:

-- The petroleum byproducts, including mineral oil by any of its names, liquid paraffin, paraffin wax, petrolatum and petroleum. They block pores, encourage acne and rapid skin aging, can cause photo-sensitivity so your skin sunburns more easily, and strip your skin's natural oils, leaving your skin drier than ever.

-- Fragrances are a huge variety of chemicals, many toxic. Many affect the central nervous system, causing irritability and depression. Avoid fragrances in skin creams. A light body spray is much better if you just want to smell nice. It doesn't have to be rubbed onto the skin, which causes much more to be absorbed.

-- Acrylamide, common in skin creams, is suspected of causing breast tumors.

-- Polyethylene glycol (PEG), suspected of being carcinogenic.

There's a more complete list on my website.

What works

The main causes of aging skin are well known and widely studied. Anti aging creams can only work by reversing those causes. The most important are:

-- Loss of collagen and elastin, the key proteins the give skin its firmness and elasticity;

-- Loss of hyaluronan or hyaluronic acid, which you might think of as the "glue" that holds collagen and elastin in youthful, healthy skin.

-- Oxidation damage from free radicals in the skin, when your skin is lacking antioxidants from lack of nourishment.

In fact, every one of those can be reversed.

See my website for some modern ingredients which have shown in clinical trials they actually reverse all the major causes of skin aging and make an effective anti aging skin care treatment.

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All About The Paleo Diet

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

Over millions of years the human diet has evolved; we began eating foods that existed in nature and transitioned to our current eating habits which is infused with unnatural, processed foods and substances. The Paleo diet, also called the caveman diet, is a hunter-gatherer based diet that can be traced back to the Paleolithic Era. During the Paleolithic Era, agricultural methods of farming were not available; therefore, humans ate what occurred in nature including some meats, fish, vegetables, wild fruits, nuts, and even mushrooms. Nonetheless, Paleo which is short for Paleolithic incorporates the Paleolithic eating habits, thus allowing this diet to bring eating back to its true roots.

All About The Paleo Diet

What Can You Eat While On the Caveman Diet?

Processed oils are not passable. Only natural oils are satisfactory for consumption in the Paleo diet. Olive oil, avocado, coconut, and almond oils are good examples of natural fruit based oils. Ideally, wild game is a pertinent part of the Paleo diet; however, since this isn't the Paleolithic period where everything is wild, lean, grass fed animals are acceptable substitutes.

Water is the only acceptable drink in the Caveman diet. Anything other than water would be considered cheating. Although some dispute that agave nectar is a natural substance available in nature, others disagree and conclude that agave nectar is only an agave based high fructose syrup. The only adequate sweetener is honey. Additionally, seasoning agents like salt, meat rubs, or poultry seasoning are not passable in the Caveman diet.

Alcohol is debatable since alcohol occurs in the fermentation of fruits; however, most Caveman diet experts agree that it is best to completely exclude alcohol from the diet.

Benefits

Medical researchers and scientists believe that the Caveman diet is the healthiest diet available. They believe that the diet regulates insulin by improving glucose and lipid function. Additionally the Caveman diet also reduces the risk for heart disease. The diet is infused with fiber, which is essential in improving the digestive system and providing remediation for digestive and gastrointestinal problems like constipation and IBS.

Weight Loss

The Caveman diet is high in fiber, low in carbohydrates and exceptionally high in protein. With this combination, the end result is fast and healthy weight loss. Additionally when the Caveman diet is incorporated as a lifestyle change instead of a quick fix diet, residual weight loss is attained while overall health is drastically improved.

Who Should Not Begin The Paleo Diet

Pregnant, breastfeeding mothers and small children would not benefit from the Paleo diet. Due to metabolic changes during pregnancy, the liver cannot tolerate such high amounts of protein. Therefore, in order deter complications during pregnancy, pregnant women should not start or continue with the Paleo diet until after delivery and breast feeding. Infants and small children require iron that is not greatly available with the Paleo diet. Iron that is available in foods like processed cereals are prohibited in the Paleo diet, however these foods contain nutrients that children need. Therefore, the Paleo diet is not ideal for infants and small children.

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The 2 Worst Foods That Make You Fat - One May Shock You

Is The Paleo Diet Healthy :

The 2 fattening foods that I'm going to talk about in this article may actually shock you... most people falsely believe these 2 foods are "healthy".  In all of my years working as a Certified Nutrition Specialist, this usually surprises people when I mention they should consider eliminating these foods from their diet.

The 2 Worst Foods That Make You Fat - One May Shock You

Everybody these days knows how bad trans fats and high fructose corn syrup are for you, so I figured I'd spare you yet another lecture on those... Instead, read on to see a couple foods that may shock you that they may be packing on the blubber.

The first type of food that is often falsely believed to be healthy is wheat products... this includes most breads, cereals, bagels, muffins, pasta, crackers, and so on.  And yes, I am including "whole wheat" in the category of this fattening food.

First of all, a large percentage of the population has some degree of intolerance to the gluten in wheat and some other grains. Full blown celiacs are the most sensitive to it, but what most people don't realize is that the majority of the population was never meant to eat large quantities of wheat.  The human digestive system has never adapted to large amounts of wheat in the diet.

The introduction of wheat into the human diet has only been in the last couple thousand years, and it has NEVER been in such large quantities in the human diet until the last 80-100 years.  This is a small time frame compared to the traditional diet that the human digestive system developed over several hundred thousand years eating a hunter-gatherer diet of meats, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.

From my experience with many of my clients, when they heed my advice and eliminate wheat from their diet for 2-3 weeks to see if they start to lose weight and feel better, this almost always makes a HUGE difference.  Many times, they not only start losing body fat much faster, but they also finally get rid of headaches and indigestion that has plagued them for years.  Sometimes even skin problems go away when eliminating wheat from the diet.

The 2nd example of the worst fattening foods that shocks many people because it is thought to be "healthy" is -- fruit juice. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not an anti-carb advocate per se... I actually think most fruits are VERY healthy for us. However, we were NOT meant to separate the juice from the rest of the fruit and only drink the high calorie sugary mixture and leave behind the fiber and other beneficial components of the fruit.

When you only drink the juice of fruits (apple juice and orange juice being 2 of the worst culprits in the western diet), you are not getting the appetite satisfying effect of the fiber in the fruit, and you're left craving more carbs.  Also, the fiber in whole fruit helps to slow the blood sugar response when eating whole fruit compared to fruit juice.

Bottom line... overconsuming fruit juices makes you fat.  On the other hand, eating whole fruits including all of the fiber helps you maintain a healthy balanced diet and high nutrient density (as long as the rest of your diet is whole unprocessed foods as well).

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