Fitness Blog at Hulkonomics.com

Top 10 Diet TIps for Optijmum Health and Weight

1. Raw Power

Raw plant foods are healthy, regenerative, cleansing and energising, packed with potent compounds that gift the body in numerous ways. Raw food boosts the immune system, enhances digestion and has reputed benefits for weight loss and clear, beautiful skin. It is much more easily digested, taking half to a third of the time of cooked food and provides substantial amounts of healthy fibre, nutrients, benevolent oils, antioxidants and life-giving enzymes.

2. Know Your Fats

Hydrogenated fats and refined cooking oils contain harmful trans-fatty acids and free radical toxins that poison the body. Excess saturated animal fats are also detrimental to health and contribute to clogged arteries, heart disease, obesity and cancer. Natural cold-pressed oils such as nut, seed, olive and fish oils contain monounsaturated fats, healthy essential fatty acids, nutrients and phytochemicals that serve the body. Coconut oil is a ‘miracle oil’ that has a myriad of health benefits and actually aids weight loss! Flax seed and fish oils are super rich in essential omega-3 oils which enhance the burning of fats in the body and serve numerous important health functions.

3. Eat Your Greens

Some of the healthiest and most nutritious foods on the planet are green vegetables such as spinach, broccoli and kale, green algae (spirulina and chlorella for example) and grasses such as wheat grass and barley grass. As well as the plethora of nutrients and phytochemicals these foods contain, one key ingredient they all share is chlorophyll, a powerful cleanser and detoxifier. Chlorophyll binds to heavy metals and is excellent in helping to remove them from the body. Laboratory tests have demonstrated the ability of chlorophyll to inhibit the growth of bacteria and viruses and repair damaged tissues.

4. No sugar

We all enjoy a little sweetness in our lives, yet there’s no getting away from the negative effects of sugar. These include immune system suppression, obesity, diabetes, high cholesterol, tooth decay, premature aging, hormone imbalance, free radicals, osteoporosis, heart disease and the feeding cancer cells. Artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and saccharine are very dangerous alternatives. Try natural sugars such as dried and fresh fruit, or stevia, a healthy sugar subsitute.

5. Phytonutrients

There are literally 1000’s of active compounds in plants known as phytonutrients now recognised for their astonishing health virtues. They have been shown to play an active role in the prevention of chronic and degenerative diseases as well as lowering cholesterol, detoxifying the blood, relieving allergies and neutralising free radicals. Dr James Duke of the US Department of Agriculture states that ‘One gram of preventative phytonutrients is better than a ton of curative drugs’. Phytochemicals correspond with the colour attributes of plants, hence eating a rainbow selection of vegetables and fruits ensures a healthy and varied intake of these health promoting compounds.

6. Cut Out Refined Carbohydrates

Refined carbohydrates such as white flour and white rice are robbed of nutrient value and are high-glycemic, one step away from ingesting sugar directly. This raises insulin levels in the blood which in turn prevents the burning of fat for energy and increases the risk of obesity and diabetes. Stick to healthy whole grains which are absorbed slowly and do not lead to imbalanced sugar levels, such as brown rice, millet, spelt, oats, buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth or natural white rice such as jasmin or basmati.

7. Antioxidants Foods

Antioxidants subjugate the attack of free radicals in the body, the hazardous molecules implicated in the onset of aging and disease. Although we produce many of our own antioxidants within the body, food provides an essential source for these key players of our defence system with superfoods providing a particularly opulent supply (berries, spinach, prunes, onions, grapes and Brussel sprouts being some examples).

8. Avoid Dairy

Increased dairy consumption has been linked with numerous diseases and conditions including acne, allergies, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, Chron’s disease, and even osteoporosis. Milk also contains harmful synthetic hormones (such as BGH), drugs and pesticides. Try rice milk or nut milks as alternatives (avoid soy however as it has deleterious effects on the body with plenty of research available online regarding this).

9. An Alkaline Diet

PH balance in the body is imperative for health and resistance to disease. To achieve this it is important to ensure you include predominantly alkaline foods in your diet (60-80%) such as fresh vegetables and fruits which contain alkalising minerals like magnesium, calcium, and potassium. An acidic system (Acidosis) is associated with a wide range of health problems including stomach ulcers, arthritis, bladder and kidney conditions, diabetes, osteoporosis, fungal overgrowth, heart disease, cancer and weight gain. Foods that acidify the body include sugar, meat, dairy products, eggs, fats and most grains (except millet, quinoa and amaranth). Some of the ‘best’ acid foods include brown rice, nuts and seeds, beans and lentils, oats and fish.

10. Plenty of Superfoods!

Superfoods are the most potent, anti aging, antioxidant rich, nutrient dense, disease fighting, beautifying, immune boosting, mood enhancing foods on the planet! They include regular foods that may already feature in your diet such as broccoli and spinach, as well as more unusual ones such as bee pollen and aloe vera. There are many, all worth exploring, and once discovered you’ll not want to be without them!

MIRACLE SUPERFOODS: http://www.miracle-superfoods.com NATURAL NUTRITION GUIDE FOR DOGS AND CATS: http://www.pet-nutrition-guide.com MIRACLE MIND: http://www.miracle-mind.com

Pilates (sometimes referred to as the Pilates Method) is a system of physical fitness developed in the early part of the twentieth century by Joseph Pilates. Pilates liked to call his system ‘Contrology’ because the method is all about controlling the muscles of the body through the power of the mind.

Joseph Pilates was a keen exercise enthusiast who designed and developed over 500 specific exercises based on his belief that physical and mental health are complementary and interdependent. His exercises involve a number of calisthenic, motions that undertake total body conditioning. These exercises teach proper alignment, body centering, concentration, precision and control which results in increased flexibility, muscle tone, strength, energy and body awareness. As a direct result, greater mental clarity and improved concentration is seen.

In the Pilates program, exercises focus on the core muscle groups that control posture. These muscles are ‘trained’ to keep the body balanced and provide proper support to the spine. Pilates places special emphasis on breath control and regulation. This helps to support the alignment of the spine, and thus strengthen the muscles of the torso.

The wonderful thing about Pilates is that you don’t have to be a professional athlete or a Ballet dancer to gain the benefits of Pilates. Everyone - even people who suffer from arthritis will benefit from this form of exercise.

Practitioners of the Pilates Method use their own bodies as weights while training. This helps to build strength and flexibility. Today, many physiotherapists use the Pilates exercises to provide assistance in acquiring movement that helps individuals go about their day-to-day activities in a normal way.

There are two ways to do Pilates. You can choose to work one-on-one with a certified instructor which could be quite expensive. Alternatively, you can participate in group mat classes, which are cheaper in comparison. Whichever way you choose, you will find that the Pilates system is a blend of the Eastern and Western techniques that aid you in building long, supple and flexible muscles that aid in body posture, movement and control.

Some of the benefits of Pilates are as follows:

- Tones down and thins the thighs

- Helps the body ‘defy’ gravity

- Improves energy levels, concentration and self awareness

- Corrects underlying flexibility imbalances

- Even people with painful physical conditions can participate and benefit from Pilates.

The basic idea behind the Pilates exercises is to re-teach the method of holding oneself so that one can reverse the damages caused through years of wrong posture, stress and tension.

Thanks to the specific exercises that work with the abdominal muscles, Pilates help people to get rid of the ever-persistent lower back ache. Pilates also helps people suffering from severe arthritis to reinforce their muscles through proper movement. Sometimes people who use repetitive gestures wear away a single set of muscles. Pilates helps to correct the imbalance by targeting and using the underused muscle groups.

Besides the body, Pilates also demands the use of another powerful resource - the mind. Thus the mind is sharpened and positive energy builds up in the mind. This is why practitioners of Pilates find the benefits truly comparable to the advantages of proper meditation.

About the Author
http://www.methodsofhealing.com

As a trainer, one of the most common things to hear about it sore elbows and knees. Often times the comments come from athletes that have been around the track a few times and not only from folks just starting to work out. Besides a traumatic injury the most frequent reasons for injuries are overtraining and overuse. How do you fix those issues? You fix them by adding variety and rest to your training program. Variety can come in a number of ways. The most obvious is exercise selection. If you have been doing only leg presses for months on end, then there is a strong probability that certain muscles are getting trained in the legs and others are falling behind. Done for a long period of time an imbalance can occur and this leads to injuries or at the very least, pain. What should be done in this case is to look at what imbalance is occurring and then pick another leg exercise which by its nature will help bring up the weak areas so you can avoid an injury. This is why some of the sports performance training and core programs are so effective. They use whole body movements and seldom create a situation where one specific muscle gets overused creating the potential for injury. Training whole body movements, while not great from a bodybuilding specialization standpoint, is fantastic for creating a functional body that does well in day-to-day life and sports. There are many other ways to add variety to your training program besides simply changing your exercises. You can change hand and grip positions as well as the angle of movement. An example of this would be bench presses. Change the grip and go a little more narrow stressing the triceps more than the chest but still stimulating the pushing muscles of the upper body. After that you could change the angle of the movement by doing the bench press on an incline bench thus stressing the upper chest and frontal shoulders a little more. The options are endless. 

After grips and angles comes variety in set and rep schemes. You can see this factor hidden in three stage programs where it is called periodization. Every 3-4 weeks the set and rep schemes required by the program will change. This does several things. First it adds variety to keep the person training feeling motivated. Second, that variety in rep ranges will stress different parts of the nervous system as well as muscle fiber types. Third the change in volume or number of sets will allow periods of progress and rest for the bodies adaptation systems so that the immune system doesn’t get depressed resulting in over training or at the very least a few days off due to a random flu.  The last two variables I will mention are tempo and rest periods. Tempo refers to the length of time for the raising, lowering and pause in the contracted as well as stretched position of the movements. Most people when they train simply move the weight up and down and that’s about all the thought put into it. However there is a lot of variety to be found in rep tempo changes. Instead of the usual two seconds up, pause at the top, two seconds down, no pause at the bottom rep, try this. Raise the weight as fast as you can in good form, no pause at the top, lower for over a 5 count and pause at the bottom for a three count. Do three or 4 sets of that for 8-10 reps and see how you feel! Rest periods are the kind of variety in a routine that can either get you stoked or broked. Bad English, but it rhymed so whatever. Most people will naturally rest between sets for between 2-3 minutes. Next time you are at the gym, wear a watch with a timer. Set the timer to beep at 45 seconds. No matter what, start your set when that beeper goes. Give it a try and learn to love variety in your training!  About The AuthorRay L Burton is the president of Buildingbodies Inc and is dedicated to helping people achieve success in all areas of thier lives. You can read more fitness information at http://www.buildingbodies.ca and read dieting and recipe information at http://recipes4diets.blogspot.com/ 

Losing weight can be tough, but there is a book on hulkonomics.com that you might want to check out if you’re trying to lose weight.  It’s called The Negative Calorie Diet, it guides you through a diet that is based on the practice of eating foods that require more calories for digestion than the total calorie count for that food, thus, negative calorie intake. Pretty interesting and effective information.

Lay flat on the floor on your back, bend your knees slightly up with your feet off the floor, and interlock hands behind your head.  Pull opposite elbow to your opposite knee then switch to other elbow and knee.  Repeat 12-18 reps for 3 sets. This is ranked as one of the most effective ab workouts today.