7 Fat Loss Tips For Those With Bipolar, Anxiety, and Depression Disorders

By Mike Dennison 
People who live with bipolar, anxiety, or depression disorders face a double whammy when it comes to losing weight and losing fat, especially if they want to lose fat fast. Not only do people with these conditions have to deal with debilitating and discouraging symptoms, including depression, they often have to take mood stabilizing drugs which have weight gain as a side effect. This double punch of depression and drug side effects makes it more difficult to maintain a healthy weight and much more difficult to lose weight or burn fat.

Fortunately, overcoming these two obstacles is not impossible. To help people with bipolar, anxiety, and depression disorders to lose weight and maintain a diet they can live with, below are 7 tips to help battle the bulge.

1. Set realistic expectations -- One of the first goals should not be the loss of weight, but the end of gaining weight. Since depression and mood stabilizing drugs are already working to make sure that weight stays on, the first goal has to be to simply stop the gaining of weight. After this goal has been reached, then diet and exercise routines can be further adjusted to begin realizing weight and fat loss.

2. Keep your doctor and therapist involved -- Your doctor and therapist should know about any weight loss program that you begin. Because certain foods can influence mood, your doctor should know about any changes in your eating habits so that he can adjust your medication if necessary. Your therapist should be kept informed so they can help keep you encouraged and motivated and simply be aware of a new set of circumstances in your life.

3. Start out slowly -- Suddenly introducing dramatic changes into your routine is a recipe for disaster. Make changes slowly and give them time to take effect. If can take 30 days for a new routine to become a habit so be prepared for a long journey. Weight loss entails not just diet and exercise, but also a lifestyle change. It will require patience and consistency, but change will come as a result of your diet and exercise efforts.

4. Don't go it alone -- Involve friends and family to help keep you accountable and motivated. Get a trainer if necessary to help you exercise properly. Enlist the aid of a nutritionist if you have to so that your meals can be tailored to your needs. Sign up with a meal program that has a support group. Surround yourself with people who are committed to seeing you achieve success.

5. Stay motivated -- Keep yourself going. Be sure to always tell yourself that you can do it. The key to success in any area of life is to keep going because eventually you will reach your goal. Just don't quit. When you quit is when you fail. This is not to say that you will never have set backs, that you will never give into cravings, that you will never just not feel like going on. All these things will happen, but with any journey, you only reach your goal when you keep going to where you want to go and do not stay in the ditches you may fall into along the way.

6. Educate yourself -- As the saying goes, knowledge is power. Educate yourself so you can help yourself.

Ask questions, read, and journal. Learn what works for you and what doesn't. Learn what foods trigger cravings. Learn what exercises you enjoy the most. Write everything down so that you can look back and see how far you have come.

7. Celebrate -- When you reach a milestone or achieve a goal or overcome a stubborn obstacle, celebrate.

Living with symptoms and drug side effects is difficult enough and can reinforce negative self-images so celebrate when you achieve because you did it. You made yourself a better person through your own efforts and that deserves celebration. When you celebrate though, do so in a positive way. Don't celebrate with food, but try something else you like whether that is music or a book or a new outfit. When you celebrate though, try to include those who may have helped you along the way to reach your goal.

We've looked at 7 tips for helping people living with bipolar, anxiety, or depression disorders burn fat and lose weight. You may have thought this article would have been a list of 7 foods not to eat or 7 exercises you have to do, but those things come after the steps outlined above. The most important item to reaching your weight loss goals is to never give up. As long as you keep working, keep learning, and keep going the exercise and diet information you need will come along.

Remember, when it comes to burning fat and losing weight faster, it is important to follow a good regimen of diet and exercise. For your FREE guide to start you on your weight loss visit my website at http://www.BuildingAThinnerYou.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mike_Dennison

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Cardio Tips & Tricks for Fat Loss

Tom Venuto is an NSCA-certified strength and conditioning specialist, lifetime natural bodybuilder, freelance writer, and personal coach. Today, I interview Tom about how we can get more fat loss results in less training time.

Craig B.: Tom, you've written about the "Risk to benefit ratios of extreme and controversial fat loss techniques". Have your thoughts changed on any of the rankings since you wrote that article?

Tom Venuto:
That article pretty much sums up my current thoughts about fat loss. The article looked at techniques for fat loss that are controversial, like not eating for 2-3 hours before going to bed or not eating carbs after a certain time of day, or doing early morning cardio on an empty stomach. Some experts recommend these methods; others strongly recommend avoiding them. Some say they work well; others say they don't work at all.

The main message I wanted to get across is that when you generalize by saying things like, "This technique is good", "that technique is bad", or "never do this," "always do that," you're limiting yourself. I believe in the philosophy that the person who has the most flexibility and the most choices is the person with the most power to get results and to break past barriers (which unfortunately, are often self-imposed by all or none thinking).

Instead of making generalizations, I prefer to approach training and nutrition from the viewpoint of personalization and risks versus benefits. If you think about it, all exercise has risks. Squatting has risks. Running has risks. Competing in sports has risks. You can't avoid risks. Heck, being alive has risks! The idea is to manage risks, not to try and eliminate them.

Take fasted cardio in the morning for example. Are there risks in using this technique in an attempt to accelerate fat loss? Yes, absolutely. Cortisol is higher in the morning, so you are more catabolic and you might lose muscle. Does that mean there are no benefits and you should never use this technique? Not necessarily. Does doing cardio on an empty stomach guarantee you're going to lose muscle? No, it only increases the possibility. Yet many trainers, strength coaches, athletes and bodybuilders approach techniques like these with "It's good" or "It's bad" with no shades of grey in between.

The truth is, the value of each technique depends very much on the context. I remember reading something Charles Poliquin wrote about how ridiculous it was to think about his "manly men" athletes (as he called them), such as a 6 foot 5 inch 250 pound hockey player, doing any kind of conventional "aerobics." That makes complete sense to me - in that context. If the athlete shows up after the off season carrying some undesired body fat, that weight can easily be shed with strength training and nutrition. Combine that with energy expended from practice time and no aerobics are necessary.

But does that mean "All aerobics are bad" or "Cardio is completely worthless." Well, again, it depends on the context. Bad or worthless when? How much? How intense? What kind? Under what circumstances? And for whom? Are we talking about a 55 year old sedentary woman with 35% body fat, an elite shot putter or a bodybuilder six weeks out from a competition?

I think these rigid all or none beliefs get formed gradually over a whole lifetime of experiences. We tend to collect our own personal biases and carry them along with us - I know I had to overcome my "pure bodybuilder" mentality and develop more flexibility in my approaches in order to really serve my non-bodybuilder clients the best. I specialize in fat loss - including nutrition, exercise and the psychological/emotional aspects - and my personal interest is bodybuilding.

I don't train people for sports, so I don't have the perspective that most strength coaches do. Similarly, I imagine that many top strength coaches have developed an anti-cardio bias from their experience working with power, speed and strength athletes who have always been told that aerobics kills your strength, and perhaps they generalize their beliefs to apply to everyone.

Bottom line and the whole point of my article was that there are no absolutes, everything is context dependent.

CB: You rank "fasted cardio in the morning" as a high risk, high benefit activity for fat loss. Is this something that you use yourself or with clients?

TV:
Because it's high risk, it's not necessarily a fat loss technique I recommend for everyone all the time. But I'm not afraid to use it and I believe it has benefits that can outweigh the risks, depending on the circumstances. I usually do fasted cardio in the morning about 8-12 weeks before a competition. But it depends on my weekly results. If I'm losing fat quickly and easily, I don't need to use any high-risk techniques. Sometimes I'll still do cardio in the morning, because I like doing it then, but I'll have a whey protein drink or even a whole meal shortly beforehand.

I like to have an enormous amount of flexibility in my approach. If there's a plateau in fat loss, I want to be able to dig into my bag of tricks and have a lot of stuff in there to pull out when I need it. If you only have one way and you get stuck, you have a problem. I don't like rigid formulas. I like freedom to choose my approach according to how things are going.

Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men's Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training fat loss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men’s Fitness and Maximum Fitness magazines, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat, gain muscle, and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week. For more information on the Turbulence Training workouts that will help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment, visit www.TurbulenceTraining.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Craig_Ballantyne

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Fat Loss Tips - The Other 6 Commandments of Fat Burning

By John Stamford 

In a previous article, titled "The 6 Commandments of Fat Burning", I shared with you 6 fat loss tips, which if followed, will supercharge your weight loss progress. Now that you have hopefully put the other tips into action, I present you with the other half of the equation. By combining these commandments with those mentioned in the previous report, your weight loss progress will be unstoppable.


1. Eat Frequently - Every time we eat meals that are high in protein, we get a small spike from our metabolism. Therefore, we should take advantage of this and eat a minimum of 6 small meals everyday. Don't ever leave it more than 3 hours before eating again and you will help to ensure that your metabolism is working at peak capacity for the entire day. The optimum time would be every 2.5 hours. Of all of the fat loss tips to perform, this is the one that must be followed every single day.

2. Only Low GI Carbs Before Gym - Never eat simple (High GI) carbohydrates before training, as you will not burn as much fat as you would like if you do. In order to prevent your insulin being spiked, eat only slow-digesting carbohydrates, such as fruit, sweet potato or rolled oats. These will provide you with the endurance that you need for your workout and won't impede your fat burning efforts.

3. Never Forget Post-Training Nutrition - It is important that you refuel your body with quality carbohydrates and protein immediately after training. You have a 1-hour window of opportunity: Never leave it longer than 1 hour. This is the one time that you can actually eat fast-digesting carbs, as your body will not store them as fat during this time. Rather, your body will soak them up almost immediately in order to begin recovering.

4. Time Your Cardio Right - In order to get the most out of your cardio training, you need to be doing it at the right time. I personally recommend my clients to never perform cardio training after they have eaten in the last 3 hours. For this reason, perform your cardio in the morning when you first wake up and never after eating any form of carbohydrate. You can however have a small amount of protein and even a coffee (no sugar or milk) beforehand.

5. Don't Overdo It - You need to train hard in order to see results. You even need to be increasing your intensity if you want to see consistent results. But don't fall into the trap over over-training. If you push your body too far, you will not burn as much fat as you would like, as your body will not be able to function as it should.

6. Glycogen - Glycogen is essentially made from carbohydrates that have not been used by your body and is stored in your muscles. When your glycogen levels are down, you are able to burn fat more easily. Every 2 weeks, eat no more than 90 grams of carbohydrates for 2 days then return to your normal diet.

By combining these fat loss tips with those covered in the previous article, which covered the first 6 commandments, you will have a comprehensive knowledge of how to lose weight. If you make these commandments a habit, you will see that achieving the body of your dreams is just a matter of repetition.

John Stamford is a personal trainer, nutritionist and an expert in everything relating to fat loss. Visit his website in order to discover "One Tip That May Be Preventing You From Losing Fat", plus receive Free Updates for life at:
http://www.FatLossEnigma.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Stamford

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Top 10 Fat Loss Tips

By Helen Kantilaftis 

 It may be wet outside, but don't let that get you off track. So we thought we could help you get a head-start with losing those extra kilos before the winter months quickly fade into the spring and summer months. Here are our top 10 tips that you can start incorporating into your day from today:

 TIP 1:
Start minimising bread, pasta, rice and fruits. This will lower your carbohydrate intake, helping you lean-up. This is particularly important if you spend most of your day behind the desk (you just DON'T NEED all that energy when your not moving much during the day).


TIP 2:
Increase your protein (chicken, meat, eggs, fish, PROTEIN SHAKES, etc), good fats (nuts, avocado, olive oil, etc) and green veggie (broccoli, spinach, asparagus, green beans, etc) intake.

TIP 3:
Eat regular small meals throughout the day (every 3 hours) and make sure you have protein in each meal.
TIP 4:
BE PREPARED - Have a small bag of nuts and a protein bar in your bag for the desperate times. It will save you!

TIP 5:
Make fish-oil your best friend! Fish oil is another form of good fats which assists in stored-fat loss, balances blood sugar (helps with the sugar cravings throughout the day), elevates mood, helps lower cholesterol, stimulates growth hormone release and many more benefits. Just make sure you select a good quality fish oil!

TIP 6:
Have a good quality multi-vitamin. You will see a boost in energy, it can assist in minimising stress, and provides the body with nutrients which most of us may be missing from our diets. This will help your organs function better and therefore your body will perform better.

TIP 7:
Use L-Carnitine to stimulate the use of stored fat as your source of energy when training or during daily activities. On training days, take it 30-40 minutes before training, on non-training days, take it first thing in the morning before eating.

TIP 8:
Get rid of MILK from your diet... this includes SKIM (it is full of lactose which most people are intolerant. Lactose is also a form of sugar, therefore a carbohydrate!). You can still eat cheese, within moderation. What about soy milk? Soy can increase estrogen, meaning looking more bloated/soft rather than toned. And if you're worried about calcium, then do what cows do. Eat green veggies.

TIP 9:
Keep water intake up. If you urine is dark, it means you're dehydrated so drink more water! Check-it-out next time, it is the most accurate indicator. It should be almost clear if you are properly hydrated.

TIP 10:
DO SUPER-SET STYLE WEIGHT TRAINING to build muscle tissue and lean-up at the same time! It takes more energy to sustain muscle than fat, meaning you burn more fat in normal every day activity if you build muscle tissue... you don't need to look like Arnie, just do some form of resistance weight training! Super-setting your weight training significantly increases the heart rate, which is what we all attempt to do when we do cardio training. An example of how you can super-set is as follows e.g. For a chest and back workout, you can super-set by doing a set of chin-ups (for your back), followed immediately by a set of bench press (for your chest) with NO REST IN BETWEEN. Repeat this set another 2 times.

Incorporate any or all of these tips, and you will see results within a week. These are lifestyle changes, so make them part of your everyday routine to get the most success most success, for now and the future.

Please note, each individual and circumstances may vary. Therefore, the information offered is intended for people in good health. Anyone with medical problems or injuries of any nature should see and consult a doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. In general, suggested tips can be very effective. It is advisable to consult your doctor(s) before making major changes in your lifestyle.

If you need any help or more information with any of these points we are happy to help.

Give us a call on (02) 9955 3440, email us at info@psnutrition.com.au, or drop-in and visit us, Performance Sports Nutrition, Shop M05, Level 2, Elizabeth Plaza, North Sydney (by the Greenwood Plaza foot-bridge, by Fitness First). Check out our product range at http://www.psnutrition.com.au.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Helen_Kantilaftis

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Fat Loss Tips - How To Eat For Maximum Weight Loss

By David Dack 

In order to burn the greatest amounts of fat within a reasonable time-frame, you need to practice the right fat loss principles. See, burning fat is no big secret. In fact, as with any other science, if you want to get the desired results you need to be doing the right things. The law of cause and effect holds true across all disciplines and areas of life.
 Therefore, if you want to shed the extra pounds for good, here are 2 fat burning principles you need to practice on a regular basis.

Don't Skip Meals

Many weight loss enthusiasts believe that by
skipping meals they could speed up the weight loss process. This a big mistake. In fact, opting for this approach will only lead to weight gain and a myriad of health problems.

If you skip on food, you force your body to enter into starvation mode, thus it'll burn less calories per minute than it used to. This lead to weight loss plateaus or even gains. Not only that, meal skipping makes more hungrier, thus you're most likely to binge and overeat on your next meal. Those late-night cravings can sometime take the best out of you.

Therefore, make sure to properly address your eating needs-even if you're aiming to lose weight. Aim to eat 5 small meals spaced 3-4 hours apart. Opting for this eating recipe will keep the starvation mode at bay, rev up your metabolism levels, and you'll have the needed energy and nutrients to go by your day performing at your best.

These meals should be a good balance of low glycemic carbs (use the glycemic index to plan your meals), lean protein, and healthy fats. Your eating choices will largely depend on your weight loss and training goals. Hence, it's critical to find your balance.

Watch your Blood Sugar Levels

Keeping tags on blood sugar is not only for the diabetic. Everyone should keep a keen eye on their blood sugar and do the possible to keep it on the low. Otherwise, spiking it can compromise weight loss efforts and lead to a myriad of health troubles.

High blood sugar usually forces you body to store carbohydrates as fat instead of making it available as energy for the exercise. Furthermore, the higher blood sugar you've, the hungrier you get, thus you'll be prone to binge and overeat as a result. Well, it's surely not a surprise that sweets can make you fat.

Therefore, you need to avoid spiking your blood sugar at all costs. To help you with that, try the following:
- Use the glycemic index to plan for your food intake.

- Never eat too many carbs at once. Instead aim for healthy mix of good carbs with lower glycemic rates, lean protein and healthy fats.

- Eat your vegetables with every meal.

- Eat carbs within and immediately after a workout. During this recovery window, the body is more primed to sock away carbs as glycogen instead of fat. It'll also speed up your recovery.

These eating guidelines may seem simple, but they're elusive to most people. Nevertheless, the key to success is implementation, not knowledge. Therefore, make sure to gradually incorporate these principles into your eating plan and take action, even if it was just a small change. Everything counts.

David DACK is a runner and an established author on weight loss, motivation and fitness.

If you want more free tips from David DACK, then go to http://runnersblueprint.com/weightlossrunning.html and for a limited time you can grab this special "Weight Loss By Running" (Value $18) report For FREE.
Or you could go and visit his awesome blog at: http://www.runnersblueprint.com/blog/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Dack

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