Tag: Cardio Exercises

Avoiding Liquid Calories for Weight Loss.

Drinking more liquids is usually recommended by dieticians and doctors for those on weight loss plans. Usually, liquids contain less carbohydrates than solid food. This is great advice for water (it has zero calories). On the other hand, many liquids have tons of calories that go unnoticed.

Avoiding liquid calories is difficult. Many drinks have undetected calories. Hence they have a huge impact on your weight loss. Exactly like calories from food, liquid calories will make you gain weight. Liquids don’t make you feel full for long. Therefore, we end up taking in more calories, since they come from two sources. Reducing calories in the form of solid food is easier. We simply reduce food intake. With liquid calories however, we drink to quench thirst, or to help food go down, many times not noticing how much we drink.

How to avoid liquid calories in your diet

Drink water instead of sports drinks and soft drinks.

Water has lots of health benefits and has zero calories, and therefore is one of the healthiest drinks you can take. Sodas have lots of sugar in them, which increases blood sugar levels. Therefore causing an insulin reaction in the body. With time, this will lead to weight gain and diabetes. Sugar-free drinks contain sugar substitutes such as aspartame, equally as dangerous. It increases the risk of metabolic syndrome, resulting in belly fat and high cholesterol.

Unless you are doing hardcore cardio exercises, you don’t really need the calories from sports drinks. Energy drinks have several disadvantages to your body, such as putting unnecessary stress on your heart and having lots of carbohydrates. For instance, a small can of Red Bull has only 115 calories, but a whopping 28.3g of carbohydrates, which are converted into fat.

Watch out for fruit juices

In as much as you will get the same nutrients when eating a fruit or drinking its juice, eating the fruit is better as it is more filling, and for longer, due to its fiber. Additionally, juices may have been sweetened with sugar.

Drink low-fat milk

Avoiding liquid calories by opting for low-fat milk in place of full fat milk works well. A cup of whole milk has 148 calories while a cup of low-fat milk has only 90 calories.

Avoid flavored and coffees

Most of the specialty coffees, such as Cappuccinos, Season Blends and Mochas have over 400 calories per serving. Drink regular coffee instead.

Avoid alcoholic beverages and cocktails

Alcoholic drinks and liquors have calories, especially cocktails with sugary mixes or cream. When you take alcohol, the body immediately starts metabolizing it. Hence it stops breaking down fat. This will stop your weight loss. Limit your alcohol intake or completely avoid it to lose weight.

Finally, routinely avoiding liquid calories will result in substantial weight loss.

How Does Strength Training Help Prevent Disease and Degenerative Conditions?

While  cardio workouts are great fitness routines, it’s important to add strength training into your routine too. Cardio exercises, such as running or swimming increase lung capacity and stamina.

Strength training exercises, on the other hand are designed to strengthen the body by repetition. Popular examples include push-ups, crunches, lunges and squats.

These tone your body, improve conditioning levels and make you healthier. It is also a great way to prevent diseases and other health conditions. It should become an essential part of your weekly routine.

Here are some of the ways strength training will prevent health problems:

1. Flexibility

As we age, our bodies become less flexible. Which make everyday movements such as sitting down and standing up very difficult. The more flexible you are, the easier you will be able to move around and carry out simple tasks. Additionally, it’s also a good way to help prevent arthritis and osteoporosis which develop as you age.

2. Heart Health

The risk of developing heart disease, and even bigger problems such as strokes increases with age. With regular exercise and strength training, you’ll be able to get your heart rate up and down and keep it working hard to improve the blood flow around your body. Hence, the better your heart pumps, the better your entire body will work.

3. Hypertension

Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is very common in both younger and older people alike. You don’t have to be middle-aged or elderly in order to suffer from high blood pressure. Regular exercise, including strength training, will lower high blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart attacks.

4. Diabetes

Strength training helps your body to better absorb insulin, reducing and preventing the development of Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes often develops in people in their mid-50s or 60s.

Finally, using strength training and aerobic exercises will dramatically cut the risk of all of the above. It is the path to a life of health and wellness.