Want to lose weight?Get out of depression

In the current lifestyle for many women coping with obesity and depression, improving your mood might be the link to losing weight.Body Mass Index(BMI) of 30 and above increases the depression of person by 50 percent to 150 percent.

Researchers in America evaluated 203 women aged between 40 and 65 years with an average BMI of 38.3. The participants underwent baseline tests to measure their weight, depression score, physical activity and food intake. The researchers placed the women into two treatment groups - one focused on weight loss and the other focused on both weight loss and depression. Both interventions included up to 26 group sessions over 12 months and researchers followed up on participants at six, 12 and 24 months after enrollment.

It was found the most significant changes happened in the first six months and then remained stable afterwards. At six months, among the women who had at least a one-half point decrease on the Hopkins Symptom Checklist depression score, 38 per cent lost at least 5 per cent of their body weight. This compared with 21 per cent of the women who lost the same amount but had no decrease - or an increase - in their depression score.

Increased physical activity leads to improvement in depression and improvement in depression leads to increased physical activity. The present study shows that they go together, but is unable to say which causes which. Most weight loss programs do not pay enough attention to screening and treatment of depression and this study further underscores the importance of screening for depression in such programmes that can potentially lead to both physical and psychological well-being.

Burn Calories while sitting

A new weight loss pill has been in the news recently in UK and could you guess what is so special about it.The new drug called 'Meratol' increases metabolism, reduces calorie intake, blocks carbohydrates and burns calories all at once, claim its makers.It even claims to enable people to burn 310 calories while sitting at their desk.New drugs like these makes people go gaga over it.When drugs like these get introduced in the market people are not even bothered about the rates.

The drug, priced at 29.99 pounds, has racked up advance online orders of 30,000 in the UK and since its launch in the US in October, has sold over 100,000 units.Meratol makers claim it cuts food cravings too. It contains cactus extract brown seaweed extract, which has a high content of original marine polyphenols, prickly pear extract, which has antioxidant and diuretic properties, minerals and trace elements.

This is the season where people put around a lot o weight and the makers of the drug is going to have a great holiday season.Some doctors even said the drug is free from side effects.

Everything is in the mind

Each and everyone must be aware of the fact that successful diet is all in the mind.A protein found in cells throughout the body must exist in a specific set of brain neurons to prevent weight gain after chronic feeding on high-calorie meals.

It is called as longevity protein because of its apparent role in mediating the effects of dietary restriction on life span.The research has also shown that this metabolic sensor protein in peripheral tissues plays an important role in regulating metabolism, but its physiological relevance in brain neurons remained unclear.Commonly known as POMC, or proopiomelanocortin, neurons are found in the hypothalamus region of the brain and are known to play an important role in suppressing appetite and inducing weight loss.

In addition, the researchers found that SIRT1 must be present in POMC neurons for leptin to stimulate the remodeling of white adipose tissue into brown fat tissue, which "burns" fat to generate heat.

The researcher has said  said the idea of a drug that selectively could target neurons controlling specific fat depots and that could trigger the remodelling of white fat into brown fat has high potential.

Get out of depression to lose weight

Want to lose those few extra pounds then you need to improve your mood.This was suggested by the recent study and being obese also makes the person to enter the state of depression.Everyone knows how depression can affect your day to day activities and obviously your desired weight loss can't be achieved.

The recent study also found that "Increased physical activity leads to improvement in depression and improvement in depression leads to increased physical activity.We see in our study that they go together, but we can't say which causes which.


Simon and his colleagues evaluated 203 women ages 40 to 65 with an average body mass index(BMI) of 38.3. Participants underwent baseline tests to measure their weight, depression score, physical activity and food intake.

They placed the women into two treatment groups — one focused on weight loss and the other focused on both weight loss and depression. Both interventions included up to 26 group sessions over 12 months, and researchers followed up on participants at six, 12 and 24 months after enrollment.

The researchers found the most significant changes happened in the first six months and then remained stable afterwards. At six months, among the women who had at least a one-half point decrease on the Hopkins Symptom Checklist depression score, 38 per cent lost at least 5 per cent of their body weight. This compared with 21 per cent of the women who lost the same amount but had no decrease — or an increase — in their depression score.


When getting enrolled into a weight loss program we should make sure that screening is done for any cases of depression has to be made lead to both physical and psychological well-being.

Thinking about Food??You will be eating less

There is yet another study that makes you wonder how these sort of things can take place.A small-scale study in Science showed that people who had imagined they were eating chocolate wanted it less than those who had not been thinking of it.The researchers said that imagining eating a favourite food could be a substitute for actually eating it, thereby reducing the desire for it.

The researchers said the study showed that when people thought repeatedly about eating a food, it made them want it less because of a process known as "habituation".This means that the more that people have of something, the less rewarding it becomes and the less they want of it, even if that feeling is not conscious.

To some extent, merely imagining an experience is a substitute for actual experience. The difference between imagining and experiencing may be smaller than previously assumed. 

Other implications of this research include the discovery that mental imagery can enact habituation in the absence of pre-ingestive sensory stimulation and that repeatedly stimulating an action can trigger its behavioural consequences. 

Hanging out with fat friends??Read on this before you proceed

This research may be surprising but you need to read on this.A study has suggested that if you want to lose weight you need to hang out with people who are healthy and skinny and not with the ones who are obese.

The research conducted on 3,610 women aged between 18 and 46 showed that those who move in healthier circles are more likely to drop bad habits, eat well and even exercise more.

"These findings suggest that healthy behaviour may be contagious," the Daily Express quoted Professor Kylie Ball, from Deakin University in Australia, who led the research team, as saying.

The researchers tested the extent to which a fashion for healthy behaviour among a person's friends and family could influence their own lifestyle.

The women who took part in the study were asked to rate how much they agreed with statements such as "I often see other people walking in my neighbourhood" and "Lots of women I know eat fast food often".

"The importance of social environmental influences on health-promoting behaviours such as physical activity and healthy eating has been increasingly recognised," Ball said.

"Ours is one of the first studies to demonstrate the association of both social support and social norms with physical activity and eating behaviours.

"The potential to modify social norms as an intervention lever for promoting increased engagement in physical activity and healthy eating is worthy of further investigation," she added.

The findings have been published in scientific publisher BioMed Central's open access International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.

Want to lose weight--.Read about the Fitness Camps

Dieting not enough for Weight Loss

A new study have found out that simply reducing caloric intake is not enough to promote significant weight loss.

In the midst of obesity epidemic in one the developed countries,physicians frequently advise their patients to reduce the number of calories they are consuming on a daily basis. This research shows that simply dieting will not likely cause substantial weight loss.

To conduct the research, Cameron and post-doctoral fellow Elinor Sullivan, studied 18 female rhesus macaque monkeys at the Oregon National Primate Research Center. The monkeys were placed on a high-fat diet for several years. They were then returned to a lower-fat diet (standard monkey food) with a 30 percent reduction in calories. For a one-month period, the monkeys'' weight and activity levels were closely tracked. Activity was tracked through the use of an activity monitor worn on a collar.

"Surprisingly, there was no significant weight loss at the end of the month," explained Sullivan. "However, there was a significant change in the activity levels for these monkeys. Naturally occurring levels of physical activity for the animals began to diminish soon after the reduced-calorie diet began. When caloric intake was further reduced in a second month, physical activity in the monkeys diminished even further."

A comparison group of three monkeys was fed a normal monkey diet and was trained to exercise for one hour daily on a treadmill. This comparison group did lose weight.

"This study demonstrates that there is a natural body mechanism which conserves energy in response to a reduction in calories. Food is not always plentiful for humans and animals and the body seems to have developed a strategy for responding to these fluctuations," added Cameron. "These findings will assist medical professionals in advising their patients. It may also impact the development of community interventions to battle the childhood obesity epidemic and lead to programs that emphasize both diet and exercise."

Frequent fliers-check out this

Is it possible to stay fit while your work makes you travel most days of the month? Some frequent fliers tell us ...

So you're on the right side of 30, and after making a resolution on your birthday to 'take charge of your fitness', you renewed your gym membership and replenished your kitchen shelves with healthy stuff. However, while you are in town, you are so busy with social commitments over food and drinks that it is practically
impossible to keep track of your diet and fitness.

Hotshot frequent fliers lead a different life. One that's all about hotel reservations, eating-on-the-move and tackling jetlag. Some, however, manage to stay fit despite the chaos. We asked four such high-fliers how they streamlined their diet and exercise regimen as they zip across the world.

Diet Mantra:There can just be regulations like avoiding sugar and oily food.However, have your devised habits which keep his fitness intact - "While out on a tour, ensure that you have four-five small meals a day. Since you can't dig into desi food everywhere,  have a fresh sandwich or two. You can also carry a handful of dry fruits whenever he's stepping out.

Tips:
1.Put a good moisturiser before you male a dip
2.Have a good sleep in flights no matter how lavish the beds in your hotel rooms

Importance of Warm Up and Cool Down

An effective fitness program is more than aerobic training and strength building. To really reap the benefits of exercise, you need to add flexibility training to the mix.

Stretching can help your body get ready for exercise. It is also an essential part of recovering from aerobic activity. All exercise sessions should end with stretching - and not just for the mental relaxation benefits. The more flexible you are, the less likely you are to be injured during exercise.Stretching have great benefits in your body.

Warm Up

A good warm up prepares your body for more intense activity. It gets your blood flowing, raises your muscle temperature, and increases your breathing rate. Warming up gives your body time to adjust to the demands of exercise. This can improve your performance and help you get the results you want.

The simplest way to warm up is to do an aerobic activity at an easy pace. If cycling is what you plan to do, then start out slowly in a low gear.

How long you spend warming up will depend on your fitness level. If you are newer to exercise and you will respond better with a longer warm up.

Adding stretches to your warm up may improve your exercise performance. Once your muscles are warm, spend a few minutes on stretching. Since the goal of your warm up is to increase your heart rate and get you ready for more intense work, choose stretches that can be done standing up. Floor stretches are best for your cool down segment.

Cool Down

Just as a warm up prepares your body for exercise, an effective cool down gives your body time to recover.Your cool down begins as you gradually decrease your intensity level at the end of your aerobic exercise session. For example, if you have been walking at a quick pace, begin cooling down by slowing your steps and taking your arms out of the movement.Walk at a comfortable pace until your breathing and heart rate have returned to normal.

What to eat: Getting The Right Thing For Your Best Performance

Food provides your body with necessary energy. To make the most of your workouts, focus on these foods.

Carbohydrates:Body's chief source of fuel
You'll feel better when you exercise if you eat foods high in carbohydrates and low in fat. Your body stores excess carbohydrates as glycogen — primarily in your muscles and liver. Your muscles use stored glycogen when needed for energy.

A diet containing at least 50 percent of calories from carbohydrates allows your body to store glycogen, but if you're a long-distance runner or you exercise for long periods of time, you might want to consume more carbohydrates regularly and consider carbohydrate loading before a big athletic event.

Good carbohydrate sources include cereals, breads, vegetables, pasta, rice and fruit.
Foods high in fiber and fructose right before an intense workout may cause problems. High-fiber foods, such as beans and lentils, bran cereals and fruit, may give you gas or cause cramping. Fructose, a simple sugar found in fruit, can increase the tendency for diarrhea with high-intensity exercise.Consider beverage sources if you don't like to eat solid foods before exercising.

Protein and fats: Important, but not your body's top fuel choice
Protein isn't your body's food of choice for fueling exercise, but it does play a role in muscle repair and growth. Most people can easily get the protein they need from food sources and don't need additional protein supplements. Good protein sources include:

Meat
Dairy products
Nuts
Fat is an important, although smaller, part of your diet. Fats, as well as carbohydrates, can provide fuel for your muscles during exercise. Try to get most of your fat from unsaturated sources such as:

Nuts
Fatty fish
Vegetable oils

Avoid fatty foods just before exercising, though. Fats remain in your stomach longer, causing you to feel less comfortable.

Get rid of backpain

A lot of people suffer from back pain these days and experts believe that exercise serves as the most successful approach to speed recovery from back pain and water exercises in particular, are becoming increasingly popular in relieving and relaxing people suffering from the condition. By providing the safest conditions for healing back injuries, water can significantly reduce the stress in the back while supporting the weight of the body. Pool/water exercises have proved to be an excellent way of strengthening the back muscles without causing additional inflammation or pain. Here are a few back pain exercises that have proved to promote successful recovery in a considerably shorter period.

Warming up before performing any kind of pool exercise is greatly essential as it lets the heart rate and body temperatures adjust to the level required for the exercise. The warm up session normally takes around 5-10 minutes and usually involves performing the planned exercise movements in a slow manner. Remember, there are various forms of pool exercises and no matter which exercise you go for, missing the warm up session can prove to be a big mistake.

You can start your session with a simple pool exercise by standing in water at the mid-chest position. For around two seconds, stand on the tip toes and then return to your original position, which should be followed by standing on the heels for a period as long as 2 seconds. Repeat the two movements twenty times. Then, there's another simple pool exercise involves standing at a distance of around twelve inches from a side wall, having the toes separated from the wall. Try to adjust in a sitting position with the back leaning against the wall and then return to the previous position. You can even move in a backward direction for reaching the wall. This exercise needs to be repeated at least, ten times. Moreover, you may consider performing an unusual yet effective form of exercise. Stand with your body immersed into the water up to the level of the chest, lean forward in a slight manner and start running for around 5 minutes at minimum.

Exercises a must for Diabetes

With more number of people suffering from diabetes these days,a healthy lifestyle needs to be promoted among the people in order to battle it.Out of 220 million people worldwide,50.9 million people are in India which is definitely such an alarming number.Diabetes, a metabolic disorder, usually occurs when the body does not produce insulin -a hormone that is required to convert sugar and carbohydrates into energy.

Regular Exercises and health check ups are needed to avoid the disease and there should be awareness among the youth.There are even some people who lacks awareness about diabetes and with the help of diabetes clinic it can be achieved.

Increased fatigue, frequent urination, weight fluctuation, blurry vision, and poor wound healing are the common symptoms of diabetes.A diabetes known as Type-2 diabetes is present even among the children and this happens mainly due to childhood obesity.

Diabetes prevention is possible and powerful and the disease can be defeated.

Healthy Eating Plan

A healthy eating plan is often needed to keep up the body in good shape.When the day starts people rush up to reach their office by eating breakfast for namesake or either skipping it.When this happens daily,body does not get the essential nutrients.The following video shows "How to develop a healthy eating plan"
 

Importance of Breakfast

The most important meal of the day is a title that breakfast just can't escape. When you feel yourself thinking about skipping this all-important part of your morning, you are missing something

A low carbohydrate food or toast with peanut butter is better than no breakfast at all, right? Not necessarily. If you make the effort to eat breakfast, why not do it right? And while you are at it, do it at home.The likelihood of eating a healthy, well-balanced breakfast drops dramatically once you walk out the front door.

Children who eat breakfast regularly perform better in school. Just ask any teacher. When you are not hungry, you can focus on other tasks.Children who eat breakfast also perform better on tests.You can extrapolate this to your life: Adults who eat breakfast perform better in the workplace and home environment. Breakfast helps reduce distraction and can actually help you feel more alert.

It is okay to feel hungry between breakfast and lunch. Prepare yourself for this situation by packing a snack with less than 250 calories.If you feel guilty about eating so often, keep this in mind: A healthy small breakfast and a healthy small snack in order to get you to a healthy small lunch is a much better option than a gigantic fattening lunch you attacked because of morning food depravation.

Skipping your breakfast could be the biggest mistake of the day-Give you body what it deserves

Benefits of Group Workout

Working out with a group is always fun and relaxing as it helps to maintain our spirits through out the workout.The biggest benefit of exercising with a group is that you never get fed up with the sometimes monotonous nature of the workout schedule. While we all realize that constant exercise is necessary to keep up our fitness at optimal levels, still we ourselves manage to find one reason or another to be non-punctual for our daily sessions. The basic reason why people – ordinary mortals and not fitness freaks – respond in this way is the lack of interest they develop over a period of time in their workout routines or exercises. If they did not find anything interesting or entertaining in the sessions or life inside the gym, they simply wouldn't bother to turn up for another couple of hours of boredom in the gym. But, group exercises are a definite solution to this attitude. After all, who on this earth doesn’t like to be in the company of others?

But, here it must be kept in mind that those exercises that can be done in a group are very much limited. Even though, new discoveries are invariably tried in various gyms, still the proven ones are the conventional group workouts only. But most of these provide – in its very nature and design – a means for boosting fitness at an overall level than limiting to any particular muscle or body part, which in fact makes it indispensable for most gymnasiums. 

 Pilates – pronounced as puh-LAH-teez – is a hybrid group exercise form, its steps borrowed heavily from other workout formats such as yoga, calisthenics, and stretching. To put it more technically, it is a non-impact, non-weight bearing workout model that helps in developing strength and overall flexibility sans any real muscle building. People who constantly practices Pilates – usually tennis sportsmen – have their muscles long, lean and strong, and sans any solid build.

Cycling uses stationary bikes for ‘riding’ the participants while the instructor mouths the necessary suggestions to do the act. Since being in a group, the participants may not feel bogged down so quickly, or they’ll be trying to outsmart their immediate neighbor in cycling as fast as possible. As mentioned earlier, it is this fun that makes group exercises a big hit.

Finally, cardio splash is an exercise form that lasts for an hour and it includes about 40 minutes of rigorous fat burning workouts, followed by 20 minutes of toning of muscles for overall body conditioning. The session concludes with a relaxing 5 minute stretching.

Belly dancing, cross interval training, mixed bag etc. are other group exercises that are beneficial. Check out your nearest gym for the exact nature of the workouts. 

But, for the real benefits of exercising with a group, the important aspect is to be punctual in all sessions. It is both exercise and fun. After all, many of you turn to group workouts to kill boredom as well, don't you?

Slim fast diet and Exercise Tips

In jargon language, when daily calorie intake surpasses that of calories expelled, the excess calorie consumption gets stored as fat deposits in different tissues of the body. This deposition of excess fat eventually leads to increase in weight. Many people choose to take over the counter diet pills to lose weight, and there are even lots of natural over the counter products that can be used to lose weight. However, there are also a few natural remedies that are known for helping with weight loss. Follow these steps to lose weight for free fast.

1. Water helps you lose weight fast for free since you rarely pay for water anywhere. When you do, it is cheap. Water flushes your system of toxins released from burned fat. Water helps purge your system. Water fills your stomach and hydrates your body so that it stops sending hunger signals. Make it your goal to drink at least 8 large glasses of water a day.

2. When people start eating fatty foods like pizzas, hamburgers, pastries or fried foods, the calorie count rises sharply. Thus, the efficacy of exercises to lose weight reduces considerably and it may take a long time before one experiences substantial weight loss. So, those in a hurry to lose weight should ensure that these unhealthy foods are not included in their weight loss diet.  A weight loss diet should be basically high in fat burning foods that contribute to drop those unwanted pounds naturally. Also, go for 5-6 meals smaller everyday, instead of 3 heavy meals. This type of diet plan helps to speed up metabolism, thereby helping to lose weight.

3. Detoxification is a way of reducing weight instantly in the modern world. Detoxification is a process which serves in cleansing the vital parts of the body like liver, digestive system, etc., from the harmful chemicals and toxins, thus aiding weight loss.

4. Fill up on beans. The beneficial side effect of consuming beans is the long-term effect they have of curbing your appetite. Besides the fact that they are good for you, beans can keep you feeling full up to four hours. Dine on a lunch of bean soup; chock full of fresh vegetables and you'll be satisfied until dinnertime. Don't add more than a pinch of sugar to your beans to alleviate gassiness.

5. Radically increase your aerobic exercise. If you increase heavy weigh lifting you may actually add weight to your body. Some weight will likely be added in the form of muscle, but you want that muscle to be lean rather than bulky. Give us TV and Internet surfing for a while. Devote all of that time to exercising and increasing your physical fitness. Lean muscle mass will burn calories even when you are resting. Every weight loss program has to increase your activity

Some behavioural modifications

There have been a lot of myths about weight loss and often people confuse them with the actual facts.Eating too much will result in weight gain and many believe that weight loss is more than a calorie equation.We also confuse ourselves with many diet options that we come to know and don't know which one to trust.Here are the effective weight management everyone needs to know

Behaviour modification

1. A low fat consumption of food

2.An increase in fruit,vegetable and whole grain consumption

When we work on weight loss we have to make sure that we maintain the same strategy through out the schedule because the valuable time spent to lose those extra pounds would be of no use.Fad diets often promise quick results with a short time commitment. Long-term success requires permanent changes in behavior, diet, and activity.Without restricting the calories,weight loss is not easier to achieve so each diet has provide less calories than the body needs to maintain.One should be aware of the diet that advertises quick weight loss as faster weight loss is not the same as healthy weight loss.There needs to be a balance of fats,carbohydrates and proteins in our diet and less consumption of any one of the nutrient means more consumptions of the other two nutrients.For people who are not in jobs that do not involve intense physical energy,exercise is a must as it helps in keeping them active.

A Few Fitness Regimes

A lot of men spend hours in gym to get a well toned body.Both the workout and food are important to get the body which you carve daily.A good muscular body is definitely a confidence booster among the men.There are few things that needs to kept in mind to ensure the success of your fitness regime.There are many important tips that helps in keeping the body in good shape,let me jus brief about some tips alone.the following are tips

Adopt a right regime

It is very important to follow a pattern during the workout as per your trainer.Without the guidance of the trainer you may end of overdoing an exercise which will definitely have no use in your body.You may end up burning energy alone.A right regime alone will keep you motivated through out the week.When you feel tired don't hit the gym as are going.It will not motivate you from inside,you may end up doing for a week A right regime keeps you toned and free from small health disorders.

Be Sensitive to your body

The builds of each person is different and the same workout which suits for your may not suit you.We need to monitor how our body responds to the workouts and if you find it's not responding well it means there is something wrong with the way you are doing.When ever in doubt don't hesitate to learn and make sure don't waste time in the effort to correct something wrong.

Importance of warm up and cool down exercises

We need to dedicate atl east 5 minutes of our workout time for warm up and cool down exercises.The warm up exercises helps the body to adopt to required postures and activity and cool down exercise helps the body to adopt to post regime tasks

Stick to Goals

It is always very important to know the levels achieved and this can done with the help of pie chart or with the help of a diary which helps to know the levels that we have reached.The ability to monitor the improvements you are making makes planning an integral part of the process and helps you to successfully target time frame bound goals

Healthy Diet---->Healthy Living

There are some people who starve to loose weight rather than eating the required quantity of food.This practise may lead to a lot of problems in the future and only few are aware of it.A balanced diet is about what you eat and not how much you eat.Eating a healthy diet makes sure that you get the required amount of energy to perform all your work.When you consume quality food it may not satisfy you the same as same junk food.Although it's very difficult to avoid junk food in the current lifestyle lifestyles,we should at least minimise the intake keeping the health in mind.

The total calories that should be consumed per day is not the same for both men and women.It also depends on the type of work one is engaged in.It also depends on the body structure and activity level.People working in adverse environments need to consume a lot more calories than people who spend their most of the day before the computer monitor.In spite of a good diet some sort of physical activity is needed to keep the body and mind fresh.

To save the heart

There have been a lot of causes for heart problems in the recent times and it's mainly due to the food habits.Food habits play an important role than exercises and meditation.A plant based diet helps you in keep yourself healthy and it also lowers the risk of hypertension,diabetes and obesity.World Heart Day is celebrated on September 26th all over the world and efforts have been put to make people aware of the importance of food habits.

Instead of focusing on the food habits we look to expensive bypass,artificial heart and other solutions.A lot of people don't understand that bypass or angiloplasty treas only the symptoms and not the disease.It is important to understand that every time we include that extra spoon of ghee in our food we should keep in mind how it can leads to a building block of a problem.

It's all about loosing

Stop your imagination when you read just read out the title and by this time a lot of things would be running in your mind what this post is all about.In our day to day life we have seen obese people who would grab their attention for all wrong reasons.Obese problems may related to hormonal imbalance or not enough physical activity.There are people who are so careful about their weight even in childhood and they make sure that they maintain their weight by eating the right quantity of food.

Obese people experience frequent pain in the knees and back due to increased pressure in the back and vertebrae.Some people tend to fight obesity by having a strict control on their diet while many find extremely difficult to lose weight due to fatigueness.As a result of fatigueness,obese people do not get involved in any physical activity for a longer time.Simple tasks such as walking will also be tiring when you carry that extra weight.It's every one's duty to keep themselves fit despite change in lifestyle.

My First Post

I always had a thought of starting a blog which is fully dedicated to health and fitness and atlast today I have started it.The role of health and fitness plays an important factor in today's lifestyle as we see a lot of people slogging in gym to lose that extra pound.In this blog you can get to know about weight loss,healthy nutrition and much more.Leave your valuable comments in the posts which you find really valuable.