Healthy Weight Loss
by
David "Mr. Weightless" McCormick
I am Mr. Weightless, and
though I may be a superhero, and I may be immune to heart
disease and cancer, still Mr. Weightless can catch a cold.
Being fit means that it is very rare that I get sick, but a
virus is a virus, and I caught a cold. Although I felt
miserable, there came some good of it, because I came to a
realization that will simplify how you can think about good
health and weight loss: Take the advice for the sick, even
while you're well.
Why Is This Advice for the
Ill?
All of the things we tell sick
people so that they recover more quickly are exactly the things
that we should be doing every day. Following that advice will
not only ward off disease, but also lead to greater energy and
vitality, and best of all, weight loss. How we came to ignore
these positive factors in our daily lives, I don't
know.
In our society, we have a
tendency to put off what is most healthy because we think it is
inconvenient. When we get sick and can't perform our "more
important" jobs, then we make the decision to do what is best
for the body. If we took these simple pieces of advice in our
regular routines, we would be sick fewer days. So for those who
think their work is more important than their health... if you
take care of your health first, you'll be able to work longer
and take fewer sick days, so you'll accomplish more
work!
Fluid Intake
"Drink plenty of fluids" is the
thing everybody says whenever someone says they have a cold.
Drinking water and natural fruit juices is so easy, yet most
people don't do it. There are a myriad of benefits to drinking
water all day, which you can find in my article on
Water. Drink a lot of water all day. The
improvements to your digestion, energy balance, joint health,
skin health and the function of virtually every organ will
astonish you. You will start losing weight right away when you
drink at least your quota of 8 glasses of water per day. And
there is no danger of drinking too much water, so you don't
need to keep track or count glasses, just keep drinking
it.
Natural fruit juices are also
great for you. They contain sugars to give you energy, but
won't dehydrate you like caffeine will. They also contain all
of the other vitamins and nutrients from the fruits themselves.
In the case of citrus fruits, like oranges, vitamin C comes in
high concentrations. We'll get to the vitamins in the next
section. Other juices are good for different reasons, but
remember that there is no such thing as a "bad" natural fruit
juice. Many natural juices are also fortified with calcium,
which is another excellent nutrient that will not only
strengthen your bones and prevent osteoporosis when you grow
older, but it is also related to fat loss.
No matter how good the label
looks, do not drink artificial fruit-flavoured juice, because
those only contain sugar, water and flavouring.
Vitamins and
Herbs
Many people suggest high doses of
vitamin C to cure the common cold. It is such a good nutrient,
it should be taken daily, whether you're sick or not. Vitamin
C, ascorbic acid, is known to boost the immune system, which is
why it is recommended for treatment of the common cold. But a
good immune system is always beneficial; it is better to
prevent getting a cold by having a strong immune system than to
treat it once you're sick. Vitamin C is also a most powerful
antioxident, which means that it prevents all sorts of cellular
decay and counteracts cancer-causing carcinogens. Finally,
vitamin C boosts the production of adrenaline, which will boost
your feeling of wakefulness, energy and speed your metabolism,
supporting weight loss.
Vitamin C is not the only
supplement that sick people are told to take. My mother is
particularly fond of echinacea. This is an herb that also
boosts the immune system. It has proven effective in treating
the common cold, but unlike vitamin C, it does not show a
significant effect on healthy people.
Taking a multivitamin everyday
that contains high doses of vitamin C, as well as a full
complement of other vitamins, minerals and essential nutrients
is a positive step for anyone. It is virtually impossible to
get every nutrient that you should every day unless you take a
multivitamin. For those attempting to lose body fat by reducing
their food intake, it becomes essential. Not only will you
replace the nutrients you're not getting from your restricted
diet, you're also packing in those nutrients that can speed up
your weight loss.
The best multivitamins and
nutritional supplements can be found on the
Diet Products page.
Chicken Noodle Soup and Other
Good Food
When you're sick, you may have a
friend who offers to take care of you and make you some chicken
noodle soup. There are a lot of theories about why chicken soup
may be good for you when you have a cold. Some say that it's
just the steam and hot liquid that opens up the airways; others
claim that it inhibits neutrophils, white blood cells
responsible for inflammation. My theory is simpler: chicken
noodle and chicken vegetable soups are just good food, and
should be consumed regularly. In a tasty meal, you've got
protein from the chicken, carbs from the noodles and/or
vegetables, spices and seasoning that have herbal benefits, and
the chicken fat as well. A good rule of thumb is to eat simple,
good food that has these properties.
An easier, faster way to get such
a balanced meal (more complete than even chicken soup) is to
have a meal replacement for two meals a day. These can be found
on the Products page, 500+ Healthy Chinese Recipes
Cookbook.
Sleep
The final and most important
ingredient to beating a cold is rest. Of everything discussed
in this article, it is also the element that most modern men
disregard. Even when sick, we tend to get up and do some work,
rather than concentrating on getting well. Sleep is the time
your body and mind recuperate from the day's activities.
Without sufficient sleep, your body cannot heal properly, and
your mind cannot function properly. There have been some
studies that show that sleep deprivation can lead to overeating
and obesity, due to the elevation of certain
hormones.
Sleep recommendations have varied
tremendously in all the studies done. Most people today believe
that 8 hours is the optimum duration of sleep. However, some
adults can't bring themselves to sleep longer than 6 hours, and
many will sleep for 10 if not awoken by an alarm. The need for
sleep steadily declines throughout your life. A baby can sleep
as much as 18 hours a day, but it will come at odd times until
their rhythms match their parents. So, it seems like they never
sleep because they're always crying in the middle of the night,
but they're sleeping a lot of the rest of the time. In
contrast, the elderly awake early and frequently cannot fall
asleep until very late. Some may nap frequently, but in all,
they are awake far longer than most adults.
The amount of sleep any person
needs seems to be quite individualistic. To find your perfect
sleep duration, try waking up at the same time every day for
work, but go to bed one half-hour earlier each night. You may
not feel comfortable right away, but you'll probably fall
asleep within 10 minutes. Eventually, you will find a time that
is ideal in that you will fall asleep easily and wake up
feeling really energetic. On a weekend, you can test your
theory by going to bed when you feel tired, and not set an
alarm to wake you. When you wake up, write a note of the time
you first woke up (in case you want to sleep in further). Then
it is a simple matter to figure out how long your body wants to
sleep.
Sleep is not the only component
of rest. People will actually tell you to "take it easy" to
help you recover. This is also a good idea for everyday life,
not only when you're ill. Learn to take time every day to
relax. There have been many books and studies on the benefits
of meditation. None that I know of relate meditation to weight
loss, but it is related to a reduction of stress. Lower stress
levels will reduce your risk of heart disease, and if you're an
"emotional eater", then reducing your stress through meditation
can be a big step towards weight loss.
Feeling Under the
Weather?
Until you become weightless, like
me, you'll be "under the weather" because the clouds are above
you. So, every day behave as if you're under the weather: drink
plenty of fluids, especially water and natural fruit juices;
take a multivitamin and the proven herbal health boosters; eat
natural food in good proportions; and get adequate sleep,
including meditation or some form of relaxation.
Article Originally Posted:
Healthy Weight
Loss
  About The
Author:
David "Mr. Weightless" McCormick is the
founder of Weightless Products, the best weight loss
program for men. All articles are available in full for
FREE, with no banners, no pop-ups and no registration.
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