5 Crucial Things to Do if you're Exercising for Weight Loss

If you're logging miles on the treadmill and hours in cycling class in the hopes of torching more calories, that's seriously sucky news.

Here's how your body makes up for the major calories you torch at the gym: As you get used to your workouts, you might not burn more calories even if you're consistently active, says California-based trainer Mike Donavanik, C.S.C.S., “Think about your job. When you first started, there were some learning curves, it took more energy and more time, but you became more efficient,” he says. 

But that’s no reason to forgo exercise in the name of weight loss or, more importantly, fat loss. After all, you want to lose fat, not muscle. Right? One obesity study of 439 women found that those who ate healthy and exercised lost considerably more body fat than those who stuck with dieting alone.

Exercise works the same way. Your body adapts to a specific demand. So you naturally become more efficient, and use less energy [a.k.a. calories] to meet that demand." So how do you make sure every sweat session helps you burn more? Follow these five rules of exercising for weight loss.

Get FIIT:

When it comes to making sure your body never gets too comfy with your workout, you’ve got to cozy up to the FIIT principle. It stands for frequency, intensity, time, and type the four factors that determine the exact stress you put on your body during a given workout, says Donavanik. Changing up any one of them “surprises” and challenges your body in a new way. 

Remember, as long as your body is forced to adapt to progressively challenging workouts, it’s going to burn more calories during every workout. It’s when your body gets used to your current workouts that things start to plateau. “Look to change one to two of these variables every four to six weeks and you’ll keep losing weight,” he says.

And HIIT:

“High-intensity interval training is the way to go,” Donavanik says. In one 2013 study from Human Performance Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, people who performed a 20-minute HIIT workout torched 15 calories per minute about twice as many as they did during long runs. 

Plus, with HIIT workouts, you benefit from the “after burn” effect, which a steady-state cardio just won’t give you. “So instead of burning 250 calories from your 30-minute session, you can burn up to 40 percent more throughout the next day or so as your body recovers,” says Donavanik.

Follow the study’s lead: Perform all-out effort for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, and repeat until you’ve hit four minutes. Rest one minute, then repeat to complete a total of four rounds.

Prioritize Clean Eating:

“If you don’t pay attention to your diet, you can work out every day as hard as you possibly can and not lose a single pound if your calories expended are equal to your calories consumed,” says Donavanik. What’s more, eating junk can make your workouts feel more difficult, so even if you think you’re pushing yourself to the max, you’re not, he says.

And sub-max workouts, as you might have guessed, burn fewer calories. He recommends limiting added sugar and focusing on eating lean protein, healthy fats, and whole carbs from fruits, veggies, and whole grains. 

Pick Up Some Weights:

More muscle = More calories burned

After all, while a pound of fat burns only two calories per day, a pound of muscle burns six and takes up a lot less room, he says. That’s why, in a 2015 Harvard School of Public Health study of 10,500 adults, people who strength trained for 20 minutes a day gained less belly fat over a period of 12 years compared to cardio bunnies.

Don’t Forget to Fuel:

While everyone thrives on a slightly different pre-and post-workout nutrition plan, research published in Sports Medicine shows that eating carbs before you hit the gym improves your performance during HIIT and endurance workouts alike. And tougher workouts burn more calories both during and after your workout, Donavanik says.

That explains why recent research published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism found that downing coffee (or any caffeine) an hour before your workout can boost your post-workout caloric burn by 15 percent.

After your workout, Donavanik recommends eating a meal that’s about 40 percent carbs, 40 percent protein, and 20 percent fat. The combination will help your muscles recover, get your energy levels up, and have you burning more calories as your body repairs…and, yes, adapts.

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Activated Charcoal Side Effects

Do you think activated charcoal is always beneficial? Then think once again. When carbon is treated with oxygen, activated charcoal comes out as a product. It is made from several carbonaceous materials such as coal, nutshell and wood. 

There are broadly two methods by which activated charcoal is produced, physical reactivation and chemical activation. Activated charcoal is processed in such a manner that it becomes extremely porous, soft and dark colored powder. These properties allow it to have larger area for absorption, which makes it able to bind unwanted and toxin substances in its gut. 

Activated charcoal absorbs chemicals such as chlorine from drinking water thus, filtering and cleaning tap water and converting it into a healthier drinking water. Apart from this, there are numerous other uses of activated charcoal. 

However, overdose of activated charcoal can cause poisoning or other severe problem. It can also cause constipation or intestinal obstruction. In the following lines, we have provided the side effects of activated charcoal.

Adverse Effects of Activated Charcoal:

1. When you use activated charcoal suspension, make sure to discuss its side effects with the doctor, as it may causes gastrointestinal side effects, which includes nausea, vomiting and constipation. Also, bowel obstruction, black colored stools, and perforation of the gastrointestinal tract and subsequent charcoal peritoneum is reported.
2. Activated charcoal may also cause severe allergic reactions, such as breathing problem, tightness in the chest, swelling of the face, lips, mouth or tongue, etc.
3. During laparotomy, charcoal is revealed throughout the peritoneum because of which a young female may develop a surgically acute abdomen. It has many side effects like abscess formation, persistent peritoneal charcoal deposits, small dowel resections, peritonitis, etc.
4. Multiple doses of activated charcoal may result in ileus. It may also generate a chalk-like taste in the mouth and tongue surface which can be unpalatable.
5. Activated charcoal also may have metabolic side effects when combined with sorbitol like dehydration, shock, hypernatremia (disruption of the electrolytes caused by increased levels of sodium within the blood), hypermagnesemia and electrolyte abnormalities. Multiple dose of charcoal may also result in these side effects.
6. Respiratory side effects are also caused by it, which includes empyema, bronchiolitis, adult respiratory distress syndrome, etc. Adult respiratory distress syndrome occurs because of a wrong administration of activated charcoal directly into the lungs of an adult. Empyema is basically a gathering of pus within the cavity between lungs and membranes in its surroundings. Bronchitis is a blocking of airways with granulation tissue.
7. Corneal abrasions are also one of the side effects of activated charcoal. If it comes in contact with the eyes, it may cause corneal abrasions, which mean scratches over the clear portion of the eye.
8. Activated charcoal’s excessive intake also has hematologic side effects, which include exacerbation of variegate porpyria. This condition sometimes culminates into increased lesions on skin, plasma and urine porphyrins.
9. Activated charcoal must be avoided by pregnant women, nursing women and aged.
10. Activated charcoal should never be used concomitantly with any medication or nutritional supplements.
11. So, the next time you plan to consume activated charcoal, make sure you consider its side effects, lest it causes any adverse condition.

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Zero Calorie Drinks

A party without alcohol is like a cake without icing. Plus, following a diet devoid of the inclusion of healthy sports drink is not at all worthy. But when you are on a strict diet or are restricted to even hold a glass of wine, controlling that temptation becomes a challenging task. Especially if your doctor has advised you to switch to zero calorie drinks and your wife doesn’t leave you alone for a second, lest you’ll steal a sip or two of a high calorie beverage.

With a number of zero calorie alcoholic and energy drinks launched in the market, you can proudly enjoy a tall glass of wine, without worrying about the number of calories traveling into your stomach. Find out what beverages you can consume that contain just a dash of calories, allowing you to follow your diet and maintain your figure.

Low Calorie Drinks:

Alcoholic Drinks:

For those who cannot curb their thirst to drinking a glass of alcohol at a high-end party or any private function, zero calorie alcoholic drinks are your best bet. And due to increasing weight consciousness, most people prefer these drinks over the otherwise original high-caloried alcohols. The percentage of alcohol in a drink determines the calorie content. 

As a general rule, 1 gram of alcohol contains 7 calories while 1 gram of carbohydrate or protein contains 4 calories. The fact is that no alcoholic drink is free of calories, all thanks to the minute amount of alcohol content in it. As such, a drink containing 60-70 calories is deemed to be the lowest calorie alcoholic drink. 

Let’s check out the number of calories that different alcohols contain:

Energy Drinks:

Shift to no calorie energy drinks to give yourself relief from a few pounds and see the results in a few days’ time! If you’d expected only ab machines and butt busters to help you get rid of kilos clinging to your tummy, think out-of-the-box and get a new life. Yes, the zero calorie drinks are the new technique for staying fit and fine. 

And to achieve best results, sportsmen and athletes can opt for homemade energy drinks instead of purchasing them from the market. Dilute ginger ale, coconut water, lemon juice, or tomato puree in your favorite mocktail or fruit juice drink and voila! You have a very low calorie, in fact a zero calorie, drink in hand supplying you with loads of energy and strength.

And if you are still not satisfied, then 1% skim milk is the best option to resort to. Throw in low calorie fruits to make your favorite milkshake. But what better than water be a zero-calorie drink? Keep yourself hydrated and force your body to burn down more weight. Carbonated drinks not only contain huge amounts of calories, they increase the risk of diabetes and heart diseases. 

Though low calorie soft drinks are available, isn’t it better to prepare a lemonade at home rather than taking the risk of gulping down a can of diet cola? Pick up low calorie vegetables and fat-free chicken/beef to make clear and light soups one of the best zero calorie drink ever invented by a man, indeed!

Check the labels of the drinks you pick to ensure the authenticity of the calories included in them. Rely on these zero calorie beverages and keep your weight under control. Wish you a happy and healthy life.

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Yeast Infection Remedies

Yeast infection can appear anywhere in your body, right from your nail to armpit to dentures and every other dark and moist corner you can think of. Thanks to ‘candida albicans’, even your ‘below-the-belt area’ isn’t secure against this infection. In fact, it’s said that the vagina is the dream home of yeasts, which explains why more and more women complain of inflammation and itching in their private parts as opposed to their male counterparts. 

All said and done, even men aren’t all in all immune to fungal raids and can suffer from yeast infection as well. So, what causes yeast infection? Even though a small amount of yeast exists in every human body, it’s only when they overpopulate that the annoying symptoms of this infection comes to the forefront. Ask anyone who had had yeast infection and he or she will tell you how agonizing these infection tends to be.

Sadly, yeast infection is hard to stave out and tend to recur repeatedly. Thankfully, there are tried-and-tested cures for this predicament. Apart from taking preventive measures until the yeast clears up, you can try some ‘DIY’ remedies to help your body recoup from the infection. For more on yeast infection remedies, follow the write-up below.

Remedies For Yeast Infection:

Toil With Oil! 

Anything from a jock itch to vaginal thrush can make your days a big pain. To stave off candida albicans from wreaking havoc in your mouth, nail and nether parts, try treating the affected areas to the goodness of tea tree oil. This natural antifungal seeps deep into the cell membranes and wipes out the yeasts from its roots. Rinse your mouth with a solution of tea tree oil and water and see the rashes and plaques die down within a few days.

Likewise, if you have super-itchy vaginal yeast infection, then try using a concentration of 5 drops of tea tree oil mixed with a pint of water. Douse a tampon into the concentration and insert it into your vagina. Keep it overnight and dump it the next day. Repeating this for a couple of days should minimize the burn, itch and dryness. Tea tree oil works best when used in lower concentrations and is best used externally.

Go Garlic! 

Got super-itchy and super-awful yeast infection? If yes, go garlic! Garlic is indeed nature’s best weapon against yeast infection. Loaded with the goodness of anti-fungal properties, munching on a clove of garlic would give you instant relief from itchy oral yeast infections.

However, if you find the idea of ‘garlic-breath’ distasteful, you can always peel a garlic clove, wrap it in cheesecloth and insert it directly in your vagina to do away with itchy infection. Nonetheless, make sure that you don’t tip off the head of the garlic while inserting it or else you might end up with a burning sensation down there.

Where is The Honey? 

A jar of honey can happily keep all symptoms of yeast infection at bay! You don’t have to gulp gallons of honey or insert the sticky liquid internally. Just applying it topically on the affected areas will provide you relief in no time. Wash off the honey with lukewarm water and dry the areas with an absorbent paper. Repeat this process thrice a day and bid adieu to your yet infection ad infinitum.

Yo! Yogurt:

If you are a yogurt freak, you will probably know that yogurt contains good bacteria. But, did you know that something as good as yogurt can do wonders to your nasty yeast infection? Apart from including a bowl of yogurt in your meals, you can also douse a tampon in yogurt and push it inside your vagina for relief against singeing vaginal infection. Repeat this process twice a day and see the symptoms wear out within a couple of days.

Win Over With Vinegar:

Can’t stand the awful itching anymore? If yes, switch on to apple-cider vinegar and bid adieu to the stinging burn for good. This antifungal acetic acid can be used both internally and externally. Just add a cup full of vinegar to your bathtub brimming with warm water and douse yourself in it for about 20 minutes. Dry off the area and enjoy a day of great relief.

Just like your hair and skin, even the most delicate and private parts of your body need constant care and attention. Maintaining proper hygiene, wearing comfortable clothes, using anti-bacterial soaps should save you from the risk of fungal infections.

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Why it’s so Damn Hard to Eat Healthy on Mondays

The Go Big or Eat Kale Mentality:

We probably don't need to tell you this, but going from bagels on Sunday to beets and salad on Monday is a big jump and it's not doing your weight-loss goals any favors. "Typically, the 'I’ll get back on track on Monday principle' is a dangerous one," says dietician Jaime Mass, R.D. "It indicates an all-or nothing-mentality, which can lead to unhealthy eating habits overall," she says. And, as you might have guessed, that's a path to self-destruction physically and mentally.

The Guilt Trip:

When you overdo it on unhealthy food and booze over the weekend (we've been there, ate that), you’re bound to wake up on Monday morning feeling sluggish, bloated, and probably a little bit (or a lot) guilty. In short, Monday becomes a punishment for a fun weekend, says Mass. (As if going back to work wasn’t rough enough!) "You'll also start to associate the weekend with yummy food and the weekdays with restriction," she says. And that makes it harder to enjoy the healthy stuff on Monday.

The Hangover:

Calories aside, your weekend buzz can destroy your sleep. University of Melbourne research shows that even if you fall asleep easier with alcohol (err, pass out?), you actually don’t get much real rest. Since most young adults down two-thirds of their weekly booze on Saturday and Sunday alone, according a 2016 Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology study, we’re guessing you'll be sleepy come Monday. That's when the need for high-carb, high-fat foods takes over your brain, she says.

Plus, a study published in Diabetologia found that just a few nights of poor sleep reduces the body’s insulin sensitivity and levels of growth hormone, increasing your risk for fat storage and reducing your calorie-burning muscle mass. Oye.

"Remember that you’re making an effort to lead a healthy life, not just a healthy five days."

How to Make Mondays Suck Less:

Ditch the Faturday mentality. But that doesn't mean no fun food ever. You should eat delicious food during any day of the week, says Mass. "Remember that you’re making an effort to lead a healthy life, not just a healthy five days," she says. That means ignoring the call to get takeout just because it's Saturday (unless you're actually craving it, of course).

Luckily, if you get away from the weekends = pizza, Chinese, and bagels mindset, making healthier decisions will become automatic. "Regardless of the day, ask yourself, ‘Do I really want to eat this?’ she says. Look to your hunger cues rather than the calendar.

Go with the flow. When a meal or snack doesn’t go as planned (hey, it happens), remind yourself that healthy living isn’t about one meal. It’s the average of all of your meals that determines your fat-loss success, she says.

"Move on, don’t let it get to you," says Mass. "Your splurge wasn’t bad, it just was. Your next meal or snack is an opportunity to continue on your healthy journey." 

Bonus: You won’t wake up on Monday morning feeling like death.

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Why is the 21 Day Fix Diet Blowing Up Online and does it Actually Work

Naturally, we had to ask the experts if it's really worth the hype, or if the 21 Day Fix is just another weight-loss gimmick. The lowdown:

How it Works:

The diet revolves around the idea that it takes 21 days to successfully create a healthy habit, and was created by National Academy of Sports Medicine certified celeb trainer Autumn Calabrese who, fun fact, is also a bikini competitor. "This diet combines portion control with regular physical activity to promote weight loss in three weeks," says Leigh Tracy, R.D., a dietitian at The Center for Endocrinology at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore. 

The Plan:

Despite the fact that controlling your portions and working out aren't exactly groundbreaking, dieters seem to be drawn in by the way the diet organizes each meal.   

As part of the program, 21 Day Fixers receive color-coded containers to measure your portions, says Ashvini Mashru, R.D., author of Small Steps to Slim. These include an 8 ounce green container for veggies, an 8 ounce purple container for fruits, a 6 ounce red container for proteins, a 5.3 ounce yellow container for carbs, two 2.7 ounce orange containers for seeds and dressings, and a Shakeology cup for shakes.

To find out how much you can eat each day, you start by calculating your specific caloric intake. Multiply your current weight by 11 and add 400 (which covers the calories burned during your daily workout.). That number is the daily calorie intake you need to maintain your weight. To find out how much you need to eat to lose weight, subtract 750.

Based on that calorie intake, the plan assigns you a daily container allowance. For example, if you're within the 1,200 to 1,499 calorie range, you're allowed three green (veggies), two purple (fruits), four red (proteins), two yellow (carbs), and one orange (seeds and dressings) per day.

The guide breaks down each container with a list of foods that you can eat, which makes it easier to create a weekly meal plan.

Along with the portioned containers and eating plan, dieters receive two workout DVDs and an exercise schedule that includes seven 30-minute workouts for each day of the week. (Sweating yet?)

Check out other diet trends throughout history:

1. Diet Trends Throughout History
2. Weight Loss Trends Throughout History

The Pros and Cons:

Though the containers eliminate the need to track your meals and the plan encourages whole foods, if you don't love prepping your meals ahead of time or expanding your grocery bill, you might struggle with the general structure. "Most of the meals are expensive or time consuming to make," she says. "And you might find the small portions of food to be too restrictive," she says. That could lead to falling off the wagon or bingeing after the 21 days are up, says Mashru.

At the same time, requiring workouts every single day for nearly a month can be super frustrating, she adds. Especially since these workouts aren’t for beginners.

Lastly, like most trendy diets, the 21 Day Fix doesn't go beyond the three weeks it was designed to fit into. Though some people might continue to watch their portions and work out on the regular, others might revert back to their previous lifestyle habits, which could lead to gaining back the weight they lost.

The Verdict:

It may not be the best course of action, says Mashru. "It's true that most people will be able to lose at least some weight on the 21 Day Fix, but for a long-term weight-loss solution, it may be better to find a program that's more flexible," she says. In other words, you'll probably find that living life by a "container diet" isn't living at all.

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Why Eating Less and Exercising More Doesn’t Always Lead to Weight Loss

You’re not eating often enough. 

Cutting cals should not equate to missing meals. Research published in the journal Metabolism found that when people skipped meals, they had elevated levels of blood sugar and a delayed insulin response, says Lisa Moskovitz, R.D., CEO of The NY Nutrition Group. This is also known as "starvation mode."

If you're waiting too long to eat in the morning or in between meals, your metabolism can slow, which encourages your body to store calories as fat instead of using them for energy, says Moskovitz.

What you can do: Eat at least every four hours throughout the day for optimal energy and appetite control. We highly recommend these 28 healthy snacks you can nosh on all day long.

You’re gaining muscle. 

The scale might be stuck because you're building up your biceps and glutes and that's a good thing. The number on the scale is less important than the breakdown of how much water, muscle, and fat are in your body, Jovanovic says. 

What you can do: "It’s important to continue eating well and working out regularly during a plateau to achieve results over time," he says. As muscle mass increases, body fat can still decrease (especially since gaining more lean muscle can rev your metabolism), says Jovanovic. Work through that dip in progress by trying new workouts, like these five strength moves perfect for weight loss, and eating more of these 12 healthy foods with serious weight loss benefits.

You're afraid of eating back the calories you burned at the gym. 

Skipping post-workout snacks is a huge mistake, says Moskovitz. “One of the most important meals or snack times of the day is right after you exercise," she says. This is especially true when it comes to intense exercise, like sprints, cycling, and weight lifting.

Since these and other high-intensity exercises break down muscle tissue, eating 10 to 20 grams of protein and carbs right after exercise helps to repair and maintain lean muscle (a kick-ass metabolism booster). Plus, fasting after a workout usually only leads to overeating later on, she says.

What you can do: Eat within 30 minutes of a hard sweat. This is prime time for your body to put those nutrients to work, repairing muscle for your next calorie-torching workout. Some optimal recovery snacks include low-fat chocolate milk, flavored Greek yogurt, cereal and milk, half of a turkey sandwich, or one scoop of protein powder blended with a banana.

You're exercising way too much. 

If you tend to be an overachiever, remember that working out too hard (especially while slashing major calories) makes it harder to lose weight. “Overtraining leads to a surge in the stress-hormone cortisol, which wreaks havoc on your metabolism, immune system, and mood," says Moskovitz. Studies show that elevated cortisol levels cause your body to break down muscle and store more body fat around your mid-section, she says. And, as we've seen with the Biggest Loser contestants, undereating can cause your metabolism to slow down over time.

What you can do: Aim to exercise for one hour, four to five days per week, says Moskovitz. Though it's ideal to consult a registered dietitian to figure out how much you need to eat to meet your goals, keep in mind that you should never dip below 1,200 calories a day.

Your stress levels are out of control. 

“You can do all the exercise and healthy home cooking you want, but the scale won't budge unless you're getting quality sleep and managing those stress levels," says Moskovitz.

What you can do: Try to get six to eight hours of sleep per night. Also, avoid stimulating activity right before bed, like working on your computer, engaging in emotionally stressful conversations, or watching TV. You might also find that working out at night makes it harder to sleep (but everyone is different). If so, adjust your schedule accordingly, says Moskovitz.

Your homones are out of whack. 

In what seems like the ultimate unfair move, body fat can produce hormones that actually make it harder to lose weight. “Fat makes hormones, like estrogen and leptin, which fuel hunger," Jovanovic says. "So the more [fat] you have, the more you’ll want to eat." 

What you can do: To regain control over your hormones, consider cutting out processed foods that contain excess sugar. These items can also lead to an uptick in the amount of leptin your fat cells produce making your hunger even more overpowering. Keep an eye on how much of the sweet stuff you're consuming. 

You have PCOS. 

Roughly 5 to 10 percent of women have polycystic ovarian syndrome, says Jovanovic. This occurs when there's a miscommunication between the pancreas and ovaries, causing the pancreas to work much harder to stabilize blood sugar. That means foods like carbs and sugars are frequently stored as fat. 

What you can do: Besides unexplained weight gain, other signs of PCOS include irregular periods and increased acne. Visit your ob-gyn to find out if you have the condition and get set up for treatment.

You have hypothyroidism. 

The thyroid gland, a butterfly-shaped organ located in the base of your neck, has a huge impact on metabolism, says Moskovitz. That's because it’s responsible for sending out the metabolism-controlling hormones T3 and T4. These hormones regulate how your body uses energy (and burns fat). “When your thyroid is underactive, your body uses less energy while you're in rest mode, leading to weight gain over time," says Moskovitz. Many patients with hypothyroidism find that they must drastically reduce calories in order to lose weight, she says.

What you can do: If you're experiencing other symptoms besides weight gain, like sensitivity to cold, constipation, brittle hair, and dry skin, talk to your doc about getting tested.

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