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By Dr. Charles Herrick, Chair of Psychiatry, Nuvance Health

Newswise Summary:

Do you feel excited about making a New Years resolution on January 1 each year, but find yourself losing enthusiasm as the weeks go by only to give up entirely by late February or March? If so, youre not alone.

Research shows that as many as 50 percent of adults in the United States make New Years resolutions, but fewer than 10 percent actually keep them for more than a few months. But why?

Whether your goal is to lose weight, get more exercise, quit smoking, save money, or something else entirely, the truth is that there are some common psychology-based reasons why New Years resolutions fall flat. But before you put your goals on the shelf until next year, heres what you need to know about why we make and break New Years resolutions as well as a tips you can use to give yourself the best chance of making your resolution stick.

Why do people make New Years resolutions?

Its human nature to set goals at the start of something new, making the start of the New Year a popular time to set new goals and expectations for the year ahead.

Why do I break my New Years resolutions?

There are many reasons why people may not keep New Years resolutions, but instances of New Years resolution burnout can be narrowed down to three psychology-related issues: difficulty breaking old habits, focusing on specific outcomes, and problems with purpose.

Difficulty breaking old habits

Meeting new goals usually requires creating new habits and breaking old ones and old habits are hard to break. For example, quitting smoking will require you to eliminate smoking from your daily activities, and losing weight will require you to change your diet and exercise routine.

Our habits are ingrained and embedded in our implicit memory, which is also called our automatic memory or unconscious memory. Implicit memory uses our past experiences to help us remember things without actively thinking about them, making it easy for us to stick to similar routines and challenging for us to make changes.

Habits are also multi-faceted, meaning that many elements reinforce our habits and make them more challenging to break. For example, a smoking habit may be influenced by your lifestyle, the places you go, the people you interact with when you smoke, physical sensations associated with smoking, and other rituals. Your feelings, thoughts, and emotions related to smoking can also contribute to making the habit satisfying even before you actually smoke.

Focusing on specific outcomes

Another reason people have trouble keeping New Years resolutions is that they focus on a specific outcome, such as reaching a certain body weight. Focusing on a specific outcome can be defeating if you dont achieve your goal quickly. In most cases, it takes time to achieve a specific outcome, and many people become frustrated and eventually give up before reaching their goal.

Problems with purpose

If youre like most people, youre busy and you probably dont have a lot of time left over at the end of the day to devote to accomplishing things that arent interesting or important to you. If you dont feel connected to your resolution, it isnt meaningful to you, or you arent motivated to make the changes required to achieve your goals, you will be more likely to give up.

How can I keep my New Years resolution?

Developing a new habit as part of your New Years resolution means that you will need to consciously think about the changes you need to make, at least until the new habit becomes embedded in your implicit memory. The process of developing a new habit uses a lot of declarative, or episodic, memory and working memory and requires a lot more mental effort.

To make it easier to keep your New Years resolution, you need to take a multi-faceted approach. Here are a few tips that may help:

1: Find your purpose, but avoid focusing on a specific outcome

If you want to lose weight, for example, avoid focusing on achieving a specific weight. Instead, ask yourself why you want to lose weight and use that as the basis for your goal. Asking why will help you find your real purpose, which will help to improve your motivation. Setting a goal of achieving better health so you can have more energy for your hobbies, for example, takes the focus off of a specific outcome, such as getting to 150 pounds.

Also, its important to remember that early success will motivate you to do more, and better health and an increase in energy is an outcome you will likely be able to achieve quickly by being more active or eating a healthier diet.

By focusing on being healthier rather than achieving a specific weight, you will also be more likely to maintain your healthy habits. If you set a goal of getting to 150 pounds and achieve it, you may be more likely to eventually fall back into old habits and not sustain long-term weight loss.

2: Break your goal into components, and set realistic and achievable process goals

If your goal is to achieve better health, you need to figure out exactly what you need to change to make it happen. For example, you might identify two components that will help you achieve your goal: more exercise and a healthier diet.

Identifying the components is just the first step. You must also set realistic and achievable process goals for each component that make you feel excited and motivated. The more excited you are about your process goals, the more likely you will be to find the time to focus on achieving them. Some examples of process goals include:

These goals shouldnt require a huge sacrifice, and they shouldnt make you feel deprived. However, they should require some effort you want to feel good when you achieve them, after all.

3: Make a public commitment

Human beings are inherently social, and we want to connect with and feel accepted by others. We also want to avoid experiencing feelings of shame and embarrassment that can sometimes be associated with letting people down.

Making a public commitment to achieving your goal can help you hold yourself accountable and ultimately follow through. Many people find that their desire to avoid letting people down and thereby avoid feelings of shame and embarrassment is a powerful motivator to help them deliver on their commitment.

Examples of making a public commitment include telling family or friends about your goal, signing up for a weight loss program, or joining a fitness program with a group of co-workers.

4: Engage with likeminded people

People tend to be more successful at achieving their goals when they connect with other likeminded people. Also, we tend to model the behavior of the people we like and admire, so its important to surround yourself with people who reinforce habits that will help you achieve your goals.

Finding a group of likeminded people who you admire will help you stay motivated especially during the cold, dark months of January, February, and March, when New Years resolutions often hit the skids. Some people may find success and accountability by being part of a larger group, while others may prefer to pair up or join a smaller group. Whatever size group you choose and whether its in-person or online, engaging with others will keep you connected to your goals and make you more likely to be successful.

The bottom line: Finding your purpose, changing your focus, setting the right goals, making a public commitment, and engaging with likeminded people can help you achieve your New Years resolutions.

Dr. Charles Herrick is a board certified psychiatrist, and the chair of psychiatry at Nuvance Healths Danbury Hospital and Norwalk Hospital.

Here is the original post:
Why We Make (and Break) New Years Resolutions, and 4 Tips to Help You Achieve Your Goals - Newswise

About half of all Americans are trying to lose weight, and with the weight loss service industry being worth billions of dollars some estimates put it at over seventybillion dollars there are a lot of hucksters and well-intentioned-yet-misinformed people trying to cash in.

There are a lot, a lot, a lot of myths out there about the best way to lose weight and about nutrition in general: which macronutrients are worse (is it fat this year, or carbs?) and whether you can supercharge your liver with a detox tea. Trainer and big-time-Instagram-guy Jordan Syattsat down with us to run over the worst myths in nutrition that need to die. Lets get started.

Editors note: The content on BarBend is meant to be informative in nature, but it shouldnt take the place of advice and/or supervision from a medical professional. The opinions and articles on this site are not intended for use as diagnosis, prevention, and/or treatment of health problems. Speak with your physician if you have any concerns.

You dont need to count your calories if you want to lose weight, says Syatt. But regardless of whether or not youre counting calories, your calories always count.

No matter what, your body obeys the laws of thermodynamics and it runs on energy. Energy comes into the body by way of food and is often stored in the form of fat or carbohydrates (glycogen).

There are a lot of ways to control your calorie intake: maybe increase your fiber, increase your protein, lower your fat intake, all of these can work without an individual counting their calories. But they work because they (can) lead you to consumer fewer calories, which is what controls your waistline.

It doesnt matter if you dont look at your bank account, says Syatt. If youre spending all the money, its gonna drain.If youre putting a bunch of money in, youre going to save it up, regardless of whether or not youre tracking it. This is whats really important to remember about calories.

The composition of calories changes, of course. If youre comparing a 500-calorie salad with a 500-calorie cheeseburger, the salad probably has more fiber, vitamins, and minerals, its probably more filling, and all of this can contribute to better health and weight management. Just remember that even healthy foods contain calories.

[Related: Check out our podcast with Jordan Syatt]

Yes, your body weight is a matter of energy balance. If you are in a calorie deficit you will lose weight, in a calorie surplus youll gain weight.

But quality and quantity matter here.As mentioned above, different foods have different effects on your appetite, but its also important to note that your balance of protein, carbs, and fat will affect what kind of weight you lose or gain.

If youre doing a smart workout program, youll lose more fat and retain more muscle in a deficit and gain more muscle and less fat in a surplus if youre making sure that enough of your calories come from protein usually 0.6 to 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight is recommended.(1)

Furthermore even if you hit the precise macro balanceyoure aiming for to but youre eating most of your calories from junk food and youre not eating fruits and vegetables, youll run low on important nutrients like magnesium, zinc, B-vitamins, and plenty of others. If youre low on these nutrients (or others) then performance in the gym can suffer, sleep can suffer, inflammation can increase, recovery can be impeded, focus takes a dive, immunity is compromised the list goes on. (And on.) All of these can negatively impact your physique.

Quality and quantity matter when it comes to nutrition, dont let anyone tell you otherwise. You can find room for junk food in your calories and still lose fat or gain muscle, but be mindful of your nutrients, macro and micro.

[Related: The Right Macros for Fat Loss vs Muscle Gain]

When people do keto they tend to lose weight faster, especially initially, because nearly eliminating carbohydrates causes the body to lose a lot of water weight, says Syatt. So they see very radical weight loss at the beginning, but then thats why they have a plateau almost equally as quickly a few weeks later. Because theyre not just losing water weight, they have to lose fat now.

The reality is that if youre not in a calorie deficit, you wont lose fat. Many keto proponents claim that keto causes the body to burn more fat for fuel, and while this may be true, this doesnt seem to promote more weight loss when calories are controlled, according to ameta-analysis of thirty-two trials that compared carbohydrate intake.(2)

The reality is you can do keto and see great progress, or you can not do keto and see great progress, says Syatt. As long as your calories are in check, youre going to lose fat over time.

For those who arent controlling calories, there is some evidence that keto can potentially be useful for managing hunger, which would result in weight loss. But again, thats because there are fewer calories being consumed, not because keto is anything magical in that regard. And importantly, whether or not keto works or feels good or results in fewer calories being consumed really depends on the individual.

This is a little related to keto, but irrespective of fat intake, many try to limit carbohydrates in general (bunless burgers, riceless burritos, etc.) because of a fear that carbs lead to fat gain.

Now, if youre cutting carbs and not replacing them with anything else, then youll be consuming fewer calories and thatll lead to weight loss, all else being equal. But for many people, dropping carbs means dropping fiber (perhaps the best natural appetite suppressant there is) and they can wind up eating more calories as a result.

Plus, carbs are often great sources of nutrients! Fiber, again, is great, with links not only to weight loss but also to lower risks of bowel cancer, Alzheimers disease, and more.(3)(4) But legumes, whole grains, and fruit are also jam packed with vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and antioxidants that may lower the risk of practically every disease there is. So there are plenty of reasons to limit refinedcarbs like sugar and white flour theyre not filling and very low in fiber and nutrients butits really important not to throw the baby out with the bathwater when it comes to carbohydrates.

This idea that fat makes you fat is bullshit, says Syatt. And we know it because there are many people eating very high fat diets, like the ketogenic diet, and losing fat. If fat made you fat then anyone doing keto would immediately be obese. Im not against keto, Im just forwhatever works for you.

Keto isnt inherently bad for you. Carbs arent inherently bad for you. Fat doesnt make you fat. Eating too many calories makes you fat, end of story.

There is a little caveat here: fat has more than twice the calories of protein or carbs, with nine calories per gram versus four calories per gram. So ten grams of fat will make you fatter than ten grams of chicken breast, if youre already eating over your daily calorie burn.

But that doesnt mean you should eliminate fat: it serves really essential functions like maintaining hormonal health and improving your absorption of important nutrients, like Vitamin D. If you have a diet without any fat at all, you wont last long, and if you have a diet thats deliberately, extremely low in fat, then important hormones like testosterone will take a hit.

[Related: The Best Natural Ways to Increase Testosterone]

Youre looking for a shortcut? You got it! Just grab a fat burner and your six pack will be waiting for you at the end of the bottle.

Were kidding. Thats not how they work.

Its not that fat burners are ineffective, exactly. There are some studies that have found that cayenne pepper, for instance, which is in just about every fat loss product out there, does increase the amount of calories you burn. But a lot of studies put it in the area of 5 to 10 calories, and some research shows no effect at all.(5)(6)(7)(8)

Some studies put it higher, at 50 calories, but thats still just half a tablespoon of peanut butter not actually that much in the grand scheme of things.(9)

Now for some people, that still matters a lot. Lets say youre a bodybuilder, you need to have 1,900 calories, but you just cannot have less than 2,000 calories without feeling extremely deprived. Popping a fat burner might be useful in that instance, as there are plenty of fat burners that probably burn around one to two hundred calories.

But you have to remember:

The reality is if your training isnt in check and your nutrition isnt in check and your sleep isnt in check, you have no reason to buy fat burners, says Syatt.

Do detoxes cleanse your system and wash out all the dirty toxins you have?

The reality is this: detoxes and cleanses dont do anything for you, says Syatt. Theres zero research to support it whatsoever.A very simple question to ask people trying to sell you detoxes and cleanses is which toxins are these cleaning out, specifically? Theyre always at a loss for words.

When people claim detoxes are scientifically backed, its usually because

Some studies have found that people who are hospitalized with liver issues might experience a slight improvement in some symptoms in conjunction with other treatment methods when theyre supplementing with a little milk thistle.(10) Marketers will see studies like that, conclude that milk thistle helps your liver work, your liver helps you filter waste, therefore milk thistle detoxes you. Theres no evidence for this for people with a healthy liver.

If your liver isnt functioning properly, you should see a fucking doctor! says Syatt. Not a fake a detox tea from someone selling diarrhea nonsense on Instagram. Dont trust the influencer, go to a doctor if your liver isnt working properly.

Theres no good evidence for this. Some older studies from the 1980s found that eating more protein resulted in more waste filtration from the kidneys, so they thought the kidneys were undergoing unnecessary stress.(11) But later studies found that wasnt the case for healthy kidneys, and some research has even looked specifically atathletes consuming well over a gram of protein per pound of bodyweight, and didnt find signs of kidney issues.(12)(13)(14)(15)

Sometimes, people with kidney problems are often advised to go on low protein diets, yes.(16) But people with broken legs are also advised not to run marathons. If youre healthy then evidence suggests high protein diets are fine.

[Related: Our full article on protein intake and kidney function]

Fortunately, this isnt true.

I love eating before bed, I eat a lot of food at night, and one of the easiest ways to dispel this myth is to look at all the research surrounding intermittent fasting, says Syatt. People basically save the vast majority of their calories before they go to bed, and what weve consistently found and it sounds boring and obnoxious, but its true as long as youre in a calorie deficit, youll lose fat.

Thats the reality.A calorie is a calorie at 8am and 8pm, it doesnt matter what time youre eating, it matters how much youre eating. Thats it.

If you read muscle mags in the 90s, theres a good chance you heard that eating six small meals a day boosts your metabolism and makes you burn more fat. Or conversely, that not eating frequently say, skipping breakfast causes you to gain fat.

Not true. Skipping a meal or two isnt going to slow down your metabolism or cause you to burn less fat.

A lot of people will tell you that because fasting increases the amount of growth hormone in the body, fasting helps you to build muscle. Its true that fasting has been seen to up your growth hormone, but this hormone really is more about preserving muscle it means that if you skip a meal or two, your body wont start eating all its muscle in some kind of starvation mode.(17)(18)(19) You can eat when you want. If youprefersix meals a day, thats fine. If youd rather save your calories for the end of the day, it doesnt look like itll make much of a difference.

OK, maybe if youre trying to win the Mr. Olympia competition, youd rather have ten meals to keep muscle protein synthesis as consistent as possible. But for the average person, even the one with a six pack, meal timing has no real, practical benefit. A 2016 study had a great example:when comparing people trying to lose weight over a period of eight weeks, people eating every day lost as much weight as people eating everyotherday when the calories were the same.(20)

If fasting helps you control your calories better, or ifnotfasting helps you control your calories better, then do what works for you! Neither is really that superior; it comes down to individual preference.

I think its a really important thing for people to take home, says Syatt. Were not saying that fasting is better for you or worse for you, were saying that whatever you choose to do fasting, keto, Paleo, Weight Watchers, whatever it is do what you enjoy and what you can do consistently.And if someones trying to sell you something and shove one method down your throat and say everything else doesnt work, dont listen to them.Because what were trying to say is that everything works, as long as you can do it consistently and your calories are in check.

1.Rodriguez NR, et al. Position of the American Dietetic Association, Dietitians of Canada, and the American College of Sports Medicine: Nutrition and athletic performance. J Am Diet Assoc. 2009 Mar;109(3):509-27.2.Hall KD, et al. Obesity Energetics: Body Weight Regulation and the Effects of Diet Composition. Gastroenterology. 2017 May;152(7):1718-1727.e3.3.Aune D, et al. Dietary fibre, whole grains, and risk of colorectal cancer: systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies. BMJ. 2011 Nov 10;343:d6617.4.Cremonini AL, et al. Nutrients in the Prevention of Alzheimers Disease. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2019 Sep 4;2019:9874159.5.Chaiyata P, et al. Effect of chili pepper (Capsicum frutescens) ingestion on plasma glucose response and metabolic rate in Thai women. J Med Assoc Thai. 2003 Sep;86(9):854-60.6.Snitker S, et al. Effects of novel capsinoid treatment on fatness and energy metabolism in humans: possible pharmacogenetic implications. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Jan;89(1):45-50.7.Smeets AJ, et al. The acute effects of a lunch containing capsaicin on energy and substrate utilisation, hormones, and satiety. Eur J Nutr. 2009 Jun;48(4):229-34.8.Galgani JE, et al. Effect of capsinoids on energy metabolism in human subjects. Br J Nutr. 2010 Jan;103(1):38-42.9.Galgani JE, et al. Effect of dihydrocapsiate on resting metabolic rate in humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Nov;92(5):1089-93.10.Saller R, et al. An updated systematic review with meta-analysis for the clinical evidence of silymarin. Forsch Komplementmed. 2008 Feb;15(1):9-20.11. von Herrath D, et al. Glomerular filtration rate in response to an acute protein load. Blood Purif. 1988;6(4):264-8.12. Knight EL, et al. The impact of protein intake on renal function decline in women with normal renal function or mild renal insufficiency. Ann Intern Med. 2003 Mar 18;138(6):460-7.13. Beasley JM, et al. Higher biomarker-calibrated protein intake is not associated with impaired renal function in postmenopausal women. J Nutr. 2011 Aug;141(8):1502-7.14. Antonio J, et al. A High Protein Diet Has No Harmful Effects: A One-Year Crossover Study in Resistance-Trained Males. J Nutr Metab. 2016;2016:9104792.15. Poortmans JR, et al. Do regular high protein diets have potential health risks on kidney function in athletes? Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2000 Mar;10(1):28-38.16. Levey AS, et al. Effects of dietary protein restriction on the progression of advanced renal disease in the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study. Am J Kidney Dis. 1996 May;27(5):652-63.17.Moller L, et al. Impact of fasting on growth hormone signaling and action in muscle and fat. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2009 Mar;94(3):965-72.18.Vendelbo MH, et al. Exercise and fasting activate growth hormone-dependent myocellular signal transducer and activator of transcription-5b phosphorylation and insulin-like growth factor-I messenger ribonucleic acid expression in humans. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010 Sep;95(9):E64-8.19.Lanzi R, et al. Elevated insulin levels contribute to the reduced growth hormone (GH) response to GH-releasing hormone in obese subjects. Metabolism. 1999 Sep;48(9):1152-6.20.Catenacci VA, et al. A randomized pilot study comparing zero-calorie alternate-day fasting to daily caloric restriction in adults with obesity. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2016 Sep;24(9):1874-83.

Read more from the original source:
10 Nutrition Myths That Need to Die (With Jordan Syatt) - BarBend

JENNIFER Aniston is doing a 'five day fast' ahead of her reunion with her ex Brad Pitt at the SAG Awards.

The 50-year-old actress is nominated for an award and is likely to bump into her ex after they enjoyed a reunion at the Golden Globes.

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Ahead of the Screen Actors' Guild Awards, Jennifer has been spotted sipping from a bottle of hibiscus tea - which is part of a Hollywood diet plan that sees you consume just 800 calories a day.

The ProLon diet was devised by Dr Valter Longo PhD, an American biogerontologist and is designed to work on the body the same way an intermittent fast would.

Followers of the diet are sent soup packets, nut bars, seaweed crackers, herbal teas and the exact water bottle Jen is holding in these pictures, to kickstart their weight loss.

The plan costs 225 for five days and is designed to shed a few pounds quickly - or just in time for an upcoming awards show.

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Jennifer is nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series for her role on the The Morning Show while Brad is nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role for his work in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Earlier this month, it was revealed that Brad and Jennifer have been "inseparable" for months, with it all coming to a head at the Golden Globes.

On the red carpet, Brad referred to his ex as a "good friend", with fans spotting Jen cheering and beaming when he won the Best Supporting Actor gong.

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Later, they attended two after parties together, although they left separately, and Jennifer was even spotted wearing a strikingly similar ring to the $500k sparkler Brad proposed to her with in 1999.

The pair were married between 2000 and 2005, suffering a bitter split after Brad fell for Angelina Jolie while they were filming Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

He was with Angelina until 2016, with Jennifer marrying Justin Theroux in 2015 before an amicable break-up two years later.

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Following Brad's split from Ang, he and Jen have slowly grown closer, with Brad splashing out on a secret gift for the beauty's 50th birthday, and the exes spotted hugging and chatting at her celebration last year.

The rumour mill then went into overdrive last month when Brad paid a visit to Jen's home for her Christmas party.

He spent four hours at the star-studded get together and was the second from last person to leave just before 11pm.

Read more here:
Jennifer Aniston doing five day 800 calories a day fast ahead of reunion with ex Brad Pitt at SAG Awards - The Sun

captionReplacing simple starches with resistant starches can have positive health effects.sourceMatthew J Thomas/Shutterstock

Experts often recommend cutting down on starchy foods for people who are trying to lose weight or who have diabetes. But recent research has found that not all starch is created equal.

Resistant starch, for example, is a type of starch that breaks down slowly like fiber and can have positive health effects. So if you are looking to lose weight and boost your digestive health, you dont necessarily need to cut carbs altogether. Instead, consider replacing some of the more simple starches with resistant starches in your diet.

All starches are a type of carbohydrate that breaks down into a form of sugar called glucose during digestion.

Now, some starch like the kind in a pile of steaming mashed potatoes breaks down quickly. On the one hand, this gives your body a nice boost in energy, but if glucose is absorbed into your bloodstream too rapidly, too often, then over time it can cause health problems such as obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Thats where resistant starches can help. They get their name from how they resist digestion.

Resistant starch is digested in the same way as other starch, just more slowly, says Joshua Lambert, a food science professor at Penn State University.

Your body digests these starches more slowly because of their molecular structure. Resistant starches exist naturally in foods like grains, beans, and legumes. But they can also form in foods like pasta and potatoes by cooking and then letting them cool.

For example, when you cook a starchy food like pasta, the starch molecules relax and spread further apart, making the food easier to break down and digest, which can cause a spike in blood sugar.

But just as cooking causes the starch molecules to relax, this same process reverses as the food cools, basically snapping back into place like a stretched rubber band thats been released. The starch molecules pack together more densely and become harder to break down, slowing the digestion process and maintaining more stable blood sugar levels.

If you are disappointed by the idea of having to eat cold pasta, there may be an added bonus. According to a small, preliminary experiment by the BBC team who runs Trust Me, Im A Doctor if you reheat your pasta after letting it cool, the starches become even more resistant to digestion. Another 2016 study in the journal Food Chemistry found that chilled potatoes had more resistant starch than reheated potatoes, though both had more than hot potatoes.

There are several different types of resistant starches that can show up in food:

If you are on a diet, replacing simple starches with resistant starches may help you lose weight. The slower digestion process can make you feel more full, which may curb unnecessary snacking. Moreover, when you eat resistant starch, your body wont absorb as many calories as it normally would from starchy food.

Because resistant starch can pass through your entire digestive tract without breaking down, it can reach your large intestine or colon largely intact. When this happens, the starch will ferment instead of being converted to glucose. This fermentation process provides food for the good bacteria in your intestines that help with digestion. This promotes colon health, Lambert says.

In fact, experts are in the early stages of investigating whether resistant starches could play a role in preventing colon cancer.

Though resistant starches offer some health benefits, you dont have to focus on them exclusively. For a healthy person, eating other forms of carbohydrates, such as fruit, can provide a helpful energy boost to the body.

Lambert says that while resistant starch is an important part of the diet, it is not a cure-all. Like anything else, it is important to keep it in the context of a healthy diet. Lots of extra resistant starch isnt going to make up for an unhealthy overall diet.

Original post:
What is resistant starch and why its healthier than simple starch - Business Insider

Carlo Allegri / Reuters

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, exits a hotel in New York City, Feb. 19, 2019.

It was a declaration of independence that left the royal family reeling. On January 8, Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, posted on Instagram about their plans to relinquish their positions as senior members of the British royal family, split their time between North America and the UK, and establish financial independence. The suddenness of the announcement was surprising it was reportedly released in a rush to beat a potential leak to the press, and seemed to catch Buckingham Palace unprepared but the move itself was not entirely unexpected, particularly to those whove been following the young couples saga in dealing with the (often racist and sexist) media coverage of Meghan.

While Queen Elizabeth has since said in a statement on Monday that shes entirely supportive of Prince Harry and Meghans decision, she also made clear, with unusually personal language, that she would have preferred them to remain full-time working Members of the Royal Family. Their departure is a loss to the Windsor family during a turbulent time (see: Brexit, the scandal of Prince Andrew's friendship with and defense of Jeffrey Epstein, and the Duke of Edinburghs waning health), as well as to the monarchy as an institution. After all, Harry is the second-most popular royal, after the 93-year-old Queen. Meanwhile, as the lone woman of color to ever be a senior royal in modern society, Meghan Markle has become something of a global icon herself.

And yet, while Meghan enjoys worldwide popularity, the British press has been consistently, intensely critical of her. The Megxit narrative has been an occasion to recycle a lot of the same labels and accusations it has already deployed: that she is ungrateful and selfish for breaking up the royal family.

Its worth keeping things in perspective, however. The Sussexes havent renounced the royal family on an ideological level (their website details the couples plans to continue to serve the monarchy and strengthen the Commonwealth). The move to be financially independent from the Sovereign Grant, which opens up the possibility of Harry and Meghan earning incomes in other careers, could raise questions (Might this be an option for more royal family members, particularly those far down the line in succession?). But its unlikely to have immediate, ruinous effects on an institution that has always had a knack for durability. As Peter Morgan, creator of The Crown, once described the British royals: Theyre survival organisms, like a mutating virus.

At this rate, it seems more likely that if anything is to destroy the monarchy, it will be the British royals themselves. It is a tenacious institution. But by not enforcing or understanding the need to protect Meghan from vicious, racist press coverage in a more deliberate way, they are losing her and what she had to offer: a new, modern, more progressive image to associate with the monarchy a brand that is ultimately rooted in appearances.

Meghan reacts during a visit to Canada House in London with thanks for the warm Canadian hospitality and support she had received in Canada recently, Jan. 7.

Meghan Markle has been accused of destroying her husbands life and painted as a palace-wrecker whos putting the future of the monarchy particularly postQueen Elizabeth in peril. (Granted, some of these declarations are made gleefully by anti-monarchists, wanting to burn it all down.) Shes also been called a modern-day Yoko Ono on social media, a comparison that stirs up some interesting connotations.

These tweets have primarily been made in jest, some affectionate and some less so. But other likenings have been less lighthearted, with one tweet claiming that, like Ono, Meghan is trampling on tradition, causing chaos, ruining everything and then runs and hides.

By not enforcing or understanding the need to protect Meghan from vicious, racist press coverage in a more deliberate way, the royal family is losing her and what she had to offer.

Ono is a complicated and certainly not faultless public figure, but the widespread cultural narrative around her as the woman who broke up the Beatles is clearly misguided and misogynist. As a 1994 New York Times interview with Ono established, her public reputation was one of a woman whose greatest achievement, it would seem, came from brainwashing that third husband into marrying her in the first place. He was, in the end, a god. She was, all along, the Devil. And Ono has become the namesake of a tired, untrue trope that suggests women are often a (if not the) problem, seducing and bewitching men into misfortune and bad decisions. The so-called Yoko Effect is a fallacy, not an actual phenomenon.

But there are some notable parallels between Meghan and Ono, as two women who stand accused of breaking up historic and beloved British institutions. Maybe most important to keep in mind is that the distrust and demonization they face is, at least in part, rooted in their race.

Every time we saw her, we shouted awful things, a fervent Beatles fan recalled about Ono in Philip Normans book Shout!: The Beatles in Their Generation. Yellow! Chink! Subtle things like that Once, outside Abbey Road, wed got this bunch of yellow roses to give Yoko. We handed them to her thorns first. Yoko took them and backed all the way down the stairs, thanking us. She hadnt realized they were meant to be an insult. Nor did John. He turned back and said, Well, its about time someone did something decent to her.

Meanwhile, Meghan consistently attracts racist news coverage from the British press, teeming with coded language and dog whistles. Daily Mail columnist Sarah Vine claimed the Sussexes engagement photo gave her a niggling worry, while other Daily Mail pieces have mentioned Meghans rich and exotic DNA and (inaccurately) invoked her upbringing in a gang-scarred LA neighborhood.

Even when the tabloids dont use race-baiting language, Meghan is targeted in ways that are disproportionate to the typically harsh, often absurd criticism all royal family members get. While Meghans wedding florals nearly murdered Princess Charlotte, Kate Middletons choice of the same flowers was elegant and understated. When Kate eats an avocado, its a cure for morning sickness, but when Meghan eats one? A source of human rights abuse and environmental devastation, naturally. Time and time again, Meghan has been portrayed in a villainous light.

I think what Meghan Markles experience has shown me is that when you put a woman of color into that space, which has always been abusive, there are particular issues, said British journalist and author Afua Hirsch in a BBC interview on Monday. Shes more vulnerable because shes visibly different. The level of hostility both Ono and Meghan have faced is proof of how significant it is that they are occupying spaces where they are othered, spaces not constructed for them. And yet, when theyve made efforts to change that space, or to find a more protected and sustainable role within it, they get the blame.

Another implication of the Yoko Effect (or rather, Yoko Myth) is that it assigns no power, responsibility, or culpability to a man in such a relationship a fact thats pretty rich considering the level of fame, privilege, and influence held by John Lennon and Prince Harry. Even the term Megxit in itself, while quippy, puts the onus of the duke and duchesss joint decision on Meghan.

Like Lennon who was, to be clear, the sole instigator of the Beatles breakup Prince Harry has been known to be outspoken, a bit stubborn, with a rebellious streak. And based on his past comments, it doesnt seem all that likely he was strong-armed by his wife into defecting from the royal family. Hes spoken of having wanted out before, as well as his desire for a semblance of regular life. My mother took a huge part in showing me an ordinary life, the prince told Newsweek in 2017. I am determined to have a relatively normal life, and if I am lucky enough to have children, they can have one too.

The reason why Harry would want to put more distance between his family and the British press is a no-brainer. Hes always blamed the media for the death of his mother and when the paparazzi began to report on Meghan as they were dating, he was quick to call the press out for hounding her. In an unprecedented statement from Kensington Palace in 2016, he condemned the tabloids coverage as racist and sexist: Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markles safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her.

The reason why Harry would want to put more distance between his family and the British press is a no-brainer.

"I will always protect my family, and now I have a family to protect, Harry told journalist Tom Bradby when the couple was touring southern Africa in October 2019. Everything that [my mother] went through and what happened to her is incredibly real every single day. And that's not just me being paranoid that's just me not wanting a repeat of the past. And if anybody else knew what I knew be it a father, be it a husband, be it anyone you'd probably be doing exactly what I'm doing as well."

The Sussexes infant son, Archie, is no doubt a key factor in their decision to distance themselves from the monarchy and all the attention that comes with it. If they had hoped that their child would be spared from the realities of being a biracial royal, that hope was quickly quashed; days after Meghan gave birth, a BBC broadcaster likened the couples newborn to a well-dressed chimpanzee. To face racism, even as a child, is to live with a chronic, damaging stressor one that afflicts both the mind and body. If casual, constant racism and the denial of ones humanity is part and parcel of a publicly funded royal life which, based on Meghans experience so far, it seems to be then that royal life itself has become a clear threat to Harrys family.

Queen Elizabeth II sits and laughs with Meghan during a ceremony to open the new Mersey Gateway Bridge in the town of Widnes in Cheshire, England, June 14, 2018.

Since Harry and Meghan announced they were dating, the Queen has made active efforts to ensure that Meghan feels welcome and accepted in the royal family. And in the Windsors defense, its essentially a royal tradition to endure bad press, to keep calm and carry on. Plus, given the overwhelming whiteness of the monarchy, its not surprising they arent cognizant of a crucial factor in being an active ally: stepping up and speaking out (much like Harry has done through his warnings to the press, frank interviews, and pending lawsuits). Its not a matter of coddling, but a gesture of care and consideration. If you want growth and evolution that is, if the monarchy wants to modernize emotional inertia cant be an option.

Its a common phenomenon: Historically white businesses and brands claim they want to diversify, but they fail to do the work to nurture and support newcomers. You cant expect to benefit from the perks, PR, and fanfare of having a biracial princess if she isnt given the space to feel empowered, heard, and accepted. The family spends millions on palace guards and security a means to protect their physical bodies but the notion of humanity doesnt seem to be given the same weight or value. The racism Meghan has experienced is treated as benign, when in reality it chips away and infects, as evidenced by her emotional, viral interview with ITV in October.

And when royals lead pampered, sheltered lives lives that provide little experience in resisting the prejudice baked into British and Western society its not surprising they dont (at least yet) understand this. The same seems true of many others, in the media and beyond. Only the two panelists of color on last Thursdays episode of BBCs Question Time were willing to suggest that Meghans unfair treatment may be tied to the way she looks. (For the record, when the moderator asked whether anyone in the audience thought Harry and Meghan had made a bad decision, not one hand was raised.)

Meanwhile, on BBCs Newsnight that same evening, singer Jamelia who is a black woman shared that she too had been a victim of covert racism living in the UK and it pales in comparison to what Ive seen happen to Meghan Markle Its not just social media; its not. Its mainstream media; its tabloid media. In response, author and historian Robert Lacey (a white man) was skeptical: Id like to see the evidence of that. Piers Morgan is another example of someone who repeatedly squawks at black women for evidence and then balks when its offered.

Harry and Meghans decision to quit senior royal life and spend time outside of the UK is not a symbol of defeat: It is an act of self-respect and self-preservation.

On Monday, Phillip Schofield, co-host of This Morning, also requested examples of racism that Meghan has endured, to which guest Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, a black lawyer and activist, responded: It makes me question where have you been the last two years Let me explain what racism looks like from the lens of white privilege. White privilege whitewashes racist and inflammatory language as unconscious bias. It perpetuates the bigotry of intolerant white people as ignorant. It defends and protects their private views once spoken as misspeak, and then camouflages racist behavior as error of judgment.

The persistent demand for proof of racism during the Megxit news cycle has become at best exhausting and at worst triggering. I dont find it surprising that Meghan herself, who was in Canada as the Sandringham summit occurred, felt it wasnt necessary to be physically present for the talks between Prince Harry, Prince William, Prince Charles, and the Queen. Its tiring to ask that your humanity be acknowledged only for your mistreatment to be downplayed or denied, over and over again.

Its possible that Harry and Meghans decision and the dialogue its creating could help push both the monarchy and British media to evolve into something thats not just more diverse and inclusive, but more self-aware (whether it be in revisiting and reframing old myths or simply setting the tone for the future). Still, its not the responsibility of black people or other minorities to teach Racism 101 to their white peers, not through interviews and certainly not through their lives. Meghan may have married someone whose family comes with a lot of baggage, but she didnt sign up to be a case study.

Harry and Meghans decision to quit senior royal life and spend time outside of the UK is not a symbol of defeat: It is an act of self-respect and self-preservation. The move has been and will no doubt continue to be painted by critics as a selfish shirking of responsibilities, but its more of a shifting. Its not a question of whether the Sussexes are dutiful or not, but to whom.

In a 2015 essay for Elle, before becoming a duchess was even on her radar, Meghan recalled an especially formative memory: I was home in LA on a college break when my mom was called the 'N' word. We were leaving a concert and she wasn't pulling out of a parking space quickly enough for another driver. My skin rushed with heat as I looked to my mom. Her eyes welling with hateful tears, I could only breathe out a whisper of words, so hushed they were barely audible: 'It's OK, Mommy.' I was trying to temper the rage-filled air permeating our small silver Volvo.

Even then, Meghan knew that some fights just arent worth picking, not when your adversary doesnt deserve your time or energy, not when your familys well-being is at stake. As they drove out of the parking lot, Meghan sat with a simple reason for their disengagement: I shared my moms heartache, but I wanted us to be safe.

Sandi Rankaduwa is a Sri Lankan Canadian writer, comedian, and filmmaker whos written for the Believer, Rolling Stone, This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Exclaim!, and the Coast. She splits her time between Brooklyn and Halifax.

Original post:
The British Royal Family Has More To Lose Than Harry And Meghan Do - BuzzFeed News

Created for Greatist by the experts at Healthline. Read more

More gym foe than fan? Thats fine! You can lose weight without hitting the weights or even worse doing cardio.

With the new year (and new decade) upon us, you may be looking to shed a few pounds in a flash. Rest assured your resolutions are 100 percent achievable. You just need a few common-sense tips and tricks in your back pocket.

Going all Dyson on your plate is never a good idea. Meals arent a race, so slow the heck down. Your brain cant keep up. Seriously: Eating more slowly has been shown to decrease calorie intake and make people feel full. Talk about a win-win.

So take time to chew. If youre a habitual speed-eater, counting the number of times you chew each bite can help you get into the habit of pacing your meals.

Cooking isnt just a great way to impress a date. It can also work wonders on your waistline, not to mention your wallet. In fact, people who eat in more often tend to eat healthier and eat less than those who dine out.

It makes sense: When youre the one behind the stove, youre in control of what goes on your plate. You dont have to be a top chef to whip up something tasty, and you can enjoy a restaurant meal from time to time. Just try to eat more meals at home than you do out.

While weight is more than just a number, the scale doesnt lie. Daily weigh-ins have been proven to help people lose weight and keep it off.

That being said, dont fret over daily fluctuations. Hormones, water retention, or eating too much salt can raise the number from time to time.

If youre going to weigh yourself every day, aim to do it first thing in the morning before youve eaten. Consistency is key to accurately tracking your progress.

While its fine to snack here and there, it can easily get out of hand. If youre a serial snacker, try announcing your snacks.

It may sound weird, but telling yourself or someone else youre going to have a snack will make you stop and consider the number of times you nosh every day and what youre noshing on.

Portion size isnt the only size you want to keep an eye on if youre trying to lose weight. Its worth noting that over the years, the average dinner plate has increased in size, and so has the average persons weight.

This isnt a coincidence. In fact, eating off smaller plates can trick your brain into thinking youre eating more than you actually are, which can be especially helpful with desserts and less healthy foods.

While some fad diets may have impressive results in the short term, theyre notoriously difficult and sometimes dangerous to maintain. And for what its worth, they make the least interesting conversation topics no one wants to hear about your juice cleanse.

Youre much better off applying simple (and sane) everyday changes to the way you eat for long-term success.

Protein-rich foods arent just delicious, they also have a potent effect on keeping the hangries at bay and curbing your overall appetite. Thats partly because protein affects certain key hunger and fullness hormones like GLP-1 and ghrelin.

Some research has found that eating protein in the morning can be especially helpful when it comes to managing your appetite throughout the day, so try swapping your oatmeal for eggs.

In short, fiber keeps you feeling full. And for weight loss, one type reigns supreme: viscous fiber. When it comes in contact with water, this magical stuff forms a gel that slows down stomach emptying and gives your body more time to absorb nutrients.

Viscous fiber is found in plant foods only. Try adding some more of this rock-star fiber to your diet with foods like brussels sprouts, oranges, beans, flaxseeds, and asparagus.

Not all bacteria are created equal, especially in your gut. Researchers are just beginning to understand the role of microbiota (gut bacteria) in weight and metabolism function, but some recent research links obesity with an imbalance of certain bacterial strains.

While taking a probiotic is no silver bullet for weight loss, it certainly cant hurt. Plus, probiotics can boost your overall health and immunity. You can try taking a probiotic supplement or eating fermented foods like yogurt and miso.

The three rules of real estate also apply to losing weight: location, location, location. Keeping unhealthy foods out of sight also keeps them out of your mouth.

In one study, people who lived in households that kept high calorie foods visible were more likely to weigh more than those who lived in homes where only a bowl of fruit was on display. So, clean house and hide your treats!

Adequate sleep is essential to weight loss (and for lots of other reasons!).

Failing to get your beauty rest can do a number on appetite-regulating hormones like leptin and ghrelin. Fluctuations in these hormones can make you hungry and make you crave unhealthy foods all the more reason to hit snooze.

Finding your bliss can also help you find your goal weight. Like lack of sleep, chronic stress can throw a wrench in your hormonal balance. Plus, many of us tend to cope with stress by eating comfort food thats probably not the healthiest.

Yoga, meditation, and breathing exercises are all simple and reliable ways to help keep your stress levels in check.

It goes without saying that water should be your beverage of choice even if youre not trying to lose weight. But water can work wonders on your waistline, especially if you drink some before chowing down.

Research has shown that downing two glasses of water 30 minutes before a meal can reduce hunger and overall calorie intake.

The harsh truth is that portion sizes arent what they used to be. Theyre MUCH bigger, especially in restaurants.

Putting more on your plate can lead to overeating and weight gain, but that doesnt mean you have to starve. Just be mindful and serve yourself a bit less than you would normally. You wont miss the extra calories.

As tempting as it might be to binge-watch your favorite show while going to town on your favorite meal, its best to minimize distractions while eating if youre trying to lose weight.

If youre not mindful of whats going into your mouth, youre much more likely to overeat. One study found that people consumed 10 percent more if they were distracted during their meals.

If you regularly use social media or watch TV while eating, try to go screen-free.

The link between vitamin D and weight loss isnt crystal clear, but folks in larger bodies tend to have lower levels of vitamin D in their blood. Even more interestingly, people who lose weight tend to experience an increase in vitamin D.

Some research suggests that supplementing with vitamin D can aid weight loss and fat burning. Whether you take a supplement, catch some sun, or eat vitamin D-rich foods, this vitamin comes with the added benefits of stronger bones and increased immunity.

Sugary beverages and soda are nutritionally useless and calorie-dense. These things should be the first thing to go if youre looking to lose some weight. Try replacing these drinks with water.

Odd as it may seem, some research has found that eating food off red plates can help people eat less. This color bias may be due to the fact that many warning and stop signals are red. Whatever the reason, its worth a try, especially when eating less-healthy foods.

Too often we eat with everything but our stomachs. We eat with our eyes and sometimes our emotions. As a result, we dont always stop when were satisfied but rather when were borderline exploding.

Practicing mindful eating means staying present at meals and snacks and listening to your bodys internal cues and cravings. The next time you sit down to eat, slow down and really pay attention to how you feel throughout your meal.

Shared family meals have be found to encourage healthy eating habits that influence long-term nutritional health.

That being said, there are all kinds of families, and certain familial situations are anything but healthy. With those variables in mind, eating in good company is always a good idea.

Healthy fats are your friend when youre trying to lose weight. Unsaturated fats (found in fish, nuts, avocados, and olive oil) and even some saturated fats (like those in butter and coconut) keep you feeling full longer and help you absorb certain vitamins.

That doesnt mean you should go ham on fats, but you definitely shouldnt avoid them. The only fats you should really steer clear of, whether you want to lose weight or not, are chemically processed trans fats.

Preparing your meals in advance, at least partially, can help streamline your cooking process and your waistline. Lets face it: Life and work come at you fast, and you dont always have the time or energy to shop for and cook a meal from scratch.

Instead, try to get to the grocery store once or twice a week and prepare parts of your meals in advance, like cooking several portions of rice or grilling a few pieces of chicken. That way you can grab, go, and reheat as needed.

While breaking a sweat may be great for your health, you dont necessarily need to exercise to lose a few pounds. Making simple, sustainable changes to your habits will pave the yellow brick road to success no membership fee required.

See the rest here:
22 Ways to Lose Weight Without Breaking a Sweat - Greatist

Youre on the keto diet and loving the results you see. But you cant help but wonder if you can give your weight loss even more of a boost by trying another intriguing diet regimen in tandemintermittent fasting(IF). IF is basically a weight loss plan in which you avoid eating for periods of timeon alternate days, for instance, or more popularly, through time-restricted eating, where you schedule all your your meals into a daily time windowsay, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., or carefully spread between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. (Its also sometimes known as the OMAD diet, or one meal a day.) The question is, the combination of keto and intermittent fasting safe?

The most important thing is to make sure youre meeting your nutritional needs, says Ginger Hultin, a Seattle-based registered dietitian, spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and owner of ChampagneNutrition. That means working with a medical team. If your doctor does sign off, how exactly does an IF-keto regimen workand what are its true benefits? Lets take a closer look.

If youre not familiar with the principles of the keto diet, heres what you need to know. The ketogenic diet is very low carbcarbs are limited to 40-60 grams per day, and more than 80% of your calories come from fat, Hultin explains. Keto is a moderate protein dietits designed to force the body into a fat-burning state called ketosis. Ketosis uses an energy source called ketone bodies to fuel the brain. So your body is forced to break down fat rather than using glucose, or blood sugar, for fuel. When the glucose in your body is depleted, ketone bodies are created. Then, those ketone bodies cross your blood/brain barrier as energy for your brain and central nervous system.

Intermittent fasting is built around a more simple concept: good old-fashioned calorie restriction. Intermittent fasting can be done in a variety of ways, Hultin says. The overall foundation, though, is based on a period of extended time where you go without eatinga fast. Many people on IF do this for 12-16 hours overnight, and eat their first meal at lunch or mid-morning. Not only are calories cut back this way, but IF proponents believe that this schedule helps with digestion, too. Hultin adds. And it seems to be highly effective: a recent overview of research on intermittent fasting found that as a whole, if youre in good physical and emotional health, this kind of plan on its own wont hurt you. Indeed, almost any intermittent fasting plan is going to result in some level of weigh loss, too, according to the overviews authors.

Load up on Vitamin E when youre sick. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that helps the body fight off infection. Find it in nuts, seeds and spinach.

If you work IF into your keto plan, one big plus you may notice is that you reach ketosis faster. Why? Fasting causes your body to move its fuel reserve away from carbs and onto fats, which is, of course, the same way keto causes you to lose weight. Plus, your body burns fat for energy when you fastanother keto-friendly concept. It usually takes a couple of days for your body to start kicking into weight loss mode on keto, so conceivably, intermittent fasting could give you a leg up on dropping some pounds out of the gate.

Related: 150+ Approved Foods for the Keto Diet

It really depends on the person, says Hultin. For example, if you take certain medications, fasting may not be safe. If you have blood sugar problems or are on blood sugar lowering medications, either one of these diets could be extremely dangerous or even deadly.

Obviously, if youre pregnant, any form of weight loss diet will not be right for you. Likewise, if you have other chronic conditions, you need to abstain, period, if your doctor tells you to.

Its also key to talk to your doctor about how the specifics of keto could interact with IFif you currently take the cheat day, for instance.A study from the University of British Columbia found that the simple act of taking advantage of a cheat day while on keto could mean you consume as little as 75 grams of glucose and potentially damage your blood vessels. Sugar and high-fat, low-carb could make for a dangerous mix, first and foremost. Toss in further calorie restriction, and things could get a little complicated in terms of the specifics of your long-term health. Your best bet: have a physical to get a baseline profile of your health status before putting IF and keto together.

Related: Secrets From Dr. OzWhy Hes Fasting and Using the Clock to Slow Dementia

Here are some tips on how to get the most out of your IF-keto regimen.

Focus on meeting your caloric needs to stay healthy, stresses Hultin. You need to make sure youre getting the right amount of protein spaced throughout the period of time that you are eating on IF, because there are limits to how much protein the body can absorb and utilize at a given time. You also have to ensure that your vitamins and minerals are being met as well. Youll also need to consider how much fiber and fluids you need, and factor that in.

A new study from Johns Hopkins suggests that intermittent fasting could be part of a healthy lifestyle, but that physicians advise patients to gradually increase the duration and frequency of the fasting periods over the course of several months, instead of going cold turkey.

Restrict the hours of the day when you eat to between 7 a.m. to 3 pm, or 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Its better to fast closer to bedtime.

Combining two plans like IF and keto is often most successful when you work with a pro. People underestimate how critical having a dietitian on their team can be, Hultin says. We really know the ins and outs of keeping people safe, and meeting their needs can be a game changer. A registered dietitian or nutritionist can help you avoid eating disorder behavior, discuss your body image and relationship to food, and help you get on a balanced dietary pattern that you can stick with long termbut still helps you meet your health goals.

Try these tips to avoid the keto flu and other side effects.

Read the original here:
Intermittent Fasting & Keto: How to Intermittent Fast on the Keto Diet - Parade

Sneaking out the door without a hearty breakfast may not be such a bad idea.

Contrary to the popular belief that the morning meal is the most important of the day, new research suggests that deliberately skipping breakfast and prolonging the time between your last meal (yesterday) and first meal (today) could have a positive impact on your health.

For one, skipping breakfast extends your nighttime fast and compresses the window of opportunity to overeat, says Carolyn Williams, a James Beard award-winning dietician, who served as a consulting expert for The Mens Health Guide to Intermittent Fasting.

The Men's Health Guide to Intermittent Fasting

And dont worry about slowing your metabolism by fasting.

Skipping meals may even slightly boost your metabolism, Williams says.

Heres are five more reasons to consider bypassing breakfast tomorrow morning.

You might think that fasting would make you feel famished and trigger insatiable cravings for foods, especially carbs. But studies show thats not always the case. In fact, a study in the journal Obesity found that people who ate only during a 6-hour feeding window felt less hungry than people in a control group who were allowed to eat normally.

Simply changing when you eat can trigger weight loss. A 2018 study found that intermittent fasting can help promote weight loss even if you dont cut total daily calories from your diet. When we shorten our calorie-consumption window by skipping breakfast, we minimize the constant release of insulin and force the body to find alternate fuelslike body fatfor energy, says Williams.

Simply eating food triggers inflammation in your body, and chronic, sustained inflammation may play a role in obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Skipping breakfast gives your body a needed break from a constant onslaught of food.

When you refrain from eating in the morning, you automatically avoid potentially inflammatory foods like bacon, the refined carbohydrates found in such baked goods as bagels, muffins, and pastries, and breakfast cereals, highly processed breakfast sandwiches, and sugar-laden coffees and fruit juices.

Several human studies have shown that people who fast improve their cardiovascular health.

In one study, Germany researchers put 1422 people on an intermittent fasting diet for a year and found that those who fasted lowered both their diastolic and systolic blood pressure and reduce their resting heart rates.

Researchers believe the drop in BP may be caused by an increase in parasympathetic activity due to brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein that regulates blood pressure.

Fasting advocates say going without food allows them to stay focused and do more work.

Researchers say that may be due to the cocktail of hormones, such as testosterone and cortisol, and other biochemicals that are released when your body transitions from fed to fasted.

When that happens your body generates energy by burning fat, while arousing it with adrenaline, which increases your alertness and focus, say biochemist Trevor Kashey, Ph.D., founder of Trevor Kashey Nutrition.

And now for a caveat (you knew it was coming, didnt you?)

All of these terrific health benefits will likely disappear fast once you go back to starting your day with a Dennys Grand Slam breakfast.

But why stop intermittent fasting? Following a skip-breakfast fast is pretty easy to maintain. After all, you are asleep for most of your fast.

You can learn how to do the popular 16:8 intermittent fast in The Mens Health Guide to Intermittent Fasting, available here. It explains the science of fasting, gives you simple instructions for getting started, and supplies 46 delicious recipes, including 16 Keto-friendly meals.

See the original post:
Fasting and Breakfast - Is Eating in the Morning Good - Men's Health

13 Jan 2020

Tired of hearing the same old-school suggestions for losing weight? We feel you.

As more people are turning health-conscious nowadays, diet experts around the world are breaking the monotony and coming up with unusual and bizarre tricks to help us get slimmer.

Here is a collection of weight loss tips and tricks that might seem a bit weird, but they actually work.

#1

Turns out, food photography is not another useless obsession of our generation.

Believe it or not, snapping your food can actually help you in shedding some extra kilos.

Well, if you are wondering how, here's the catch- by taking pictures of every meal you are going to consume, you might think twice before indulging or overeating, thereby keeping your intake in check.

#2

Traditionally, less noise and soft lighting have been associated with better sleep quality, but a certain report by Today stated that reducing the noise and dimming lights can help in losing weight as well.

The trick behind it is to help diners focus mainly on their food. This will help you enjoy your meal better, and you may end up eating mindfully.

#3

Yes, you read it right, sniffing can result in weight loss.

According to research, sniffing tends to make people feel less hungry, thereby making them eat less and eventually aiding in weight loss.

But how? Basically it's all mind game. By sniffing food items, you can trick your brain into thinking that you are actually eating them.

Interesting, right? Don't forget to try it.

#4

This is quite a weird regime that some weight-conscious women in France follow.

They take a ribbon and tie it around their waist area, underneath their clothes, usually before going out for dinners/parties.

This helps them stay conscious of their food intake. The tightening ribbon acts as an indication that perhaps it is time to stop munching.

#5

Russians tend to grow their own vegetables and fruits, which automatically makes their food consumption healthier than those who depend mainly on junk/fast food.

Not only do they grow their eatables, they also preserve them for keeping their food healthy for as long as possible.

Also, it is more pocket-friendly and way better than buying foods loaded with chemicals/fertilizers.

Stay healthy!

Read more:
Five weird weight-loss tricks that actually work - NewsBytes

LeoPatriziGetty Images

Weight loss advice is constantly coming at youwhether you ask for it or not. You might hear about it via the latest wacky plan some influencer tweets out, a buzzy bestselling book, or your judgey sister-in-law who has been eyeballing your body at every family gathering since your brother first brought her home. There is certainly no shortage of tips on how best to slim down.

The problem is, of course, that most of them are (low-fat) baloney, and wont result in long-term, lasting weight loss. Research shows that almost half of all Americans have tried to lose weight within the last year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and many succeed. Its keeping it off thats a heck of a lot harder: A meta-analysis of 29 long-term studies showed that more than half the weight people lost had been regained at the two year mark, and by five years, folks had put 80% back on, according to a 2018 article in Medical Clinics of North America.

So Prevention asked 10 top weight loss and obesity clinicians from around the countrypeople who are up on the latest science and whose main motivation is to help their patients be healthier, if not radically sveltefor their perspectives. Heres what they would like you to know.

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1"Know your why."

People who have a good reason to lose weight are more likely to get it off and keep it off. For example, if someone wants to look great for her daughter's wedding, she is very likely to be successfulbut to regain the weight after the wedding. If a person wants to lose in order to have less knee pain or better control over their diabetes, these reasons will persist after weight loss, and support keeping the weight off permanently. Ethan Lazarus, M.D., FOMA, obesity medicine physician at Clinical Nutrition Center in Greenwood Village, CO, and president-elect of the Obesity Medicine Association

RELATED: Hey, Let's Talk About Why You Want to Lose Weight

2"You are not a number."

People always ask me, 'What should I weigh?? As if we could just program ourselves like robots! The answer depends on what you want. If thats improved health, less pain, prevention of diabetes and other diseases, theres strong evidence that quite small weight loss5-10% or sois often sufficient, even if you end up nowhere near what the ideal weight tables suggest. Many people think they need 10 times more weight lossbut once they make some small changes and lose a few pounds, they often feel so much better than they expected. Scott Kahan, M.D., M.P.H., director of the National Center for Weight and Wellness. He also serves on the faculties of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the George Washington University School of Medicine, and the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.

3"Pick a routine you can stick with."

Determine an eating routine of planned portions of plants and protein every three to four hours. Pick a routine you can stick with 80% of the time. Angela Fitch, M.D., FACP, FOMA, associate director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center and an assistant professor of medicine at the Harvard Medical School; She is also Vice President of the Obesity Medicine Association.

4"One size does not fit all."

Know yourself. One size does not fit all when it comes to a weight loss plan. Ive developed a short quiz that people can take to quickly identify which lifestyle factors have been tripping them up and getting in the way of successful weight loss, which includes questions about when you tend to eat, how much you exercise and the role food and body image plays in your life. Knowing what to focus on can make changing the way you approach weight loss feel less overwhelming. Robert Kushner, M.D., medical director of the Center for Lifestyle Medicine at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, and Professor of Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. His new book is Six Factors to Fit: Weight Loss that Works for You!.

5"Movement is everything."

The best predictor of successful weight loss maintenance is the amount of physical activity you are doing. Long-term successful weight loss maintainers are doing LOTS of physical activity...about one hour of moderate activity, 6 days a week. Donna H. Ryan, M.D., professor emeritus at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, LA. She served as associate executive director at Pennington Biomedical for 34 years where she was active in research, teaching, and administration.

6"Start before it becomes a disease."

Start working on it immediately when you begin gaining weightbuilding muscle through strength training, doing cardio, and stop eating processed foods, which we think is causing inflammation. You want to reduce inflammation by healthy eating and exercise so that the disease of obesity wont take hold In your bodyonce it becomes a disease, diet and exercise alone wont work. Caroline Apovian, M.D., professor of medicine and pediatrics in the Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Nutrition at Boston University School of Medicine. She is also director of the Center for Nutrition and Weight Management at Boston Medical Center.

7"Obesity is complicated."

I'm often asked, I dont eat that much, so why am I not losing weight? I tell patients that obesity is a complex disease and typically there is not a simple solution. It may not be the quantity of the food you eat, rather it may be the quality. In addition, it may be more related to other lifestyle factors, like sleep or stress. These may directly or indirectly influence eating behaviors and food intake. Some people are on medications that promote weight gain and impair their ability to lose weight. In the end, its important for clinical providers to understand the multitude of potential contributors in order to assist patients in treating their obesity. W. Scott Butsch, M.D., director of obesity medicine in the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.

8"A plateau is normal."

I wish everyone understood that all weight loss efforts end with a plateauno one should be disappointed or surprised if the treatment plan results in limited or no weight loss at some point. That is the natural adaptation of the body to the changes you've made. Rather than throwing in the towel and feeling resigned that your plan is not working, people can choose to work on maintaining the weight lost or modify the treatment plan if more weight loss is desired. This is especially important if your goal is to lose more than 10% of your initial weight. Jamy Ard, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention and the Department of Medicine at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. He is also co-director of the Wake Forest Baptist Health Weight Management Center.

9"Adherence is more important than speed."

The most common question I am asked by new patients is What should I expect my rate of weight loss to be? There is no right answer to this question, and there are many factors that determine the answer. The key concept is to be focused on adherence to your plan. And dont compare yourself to others. Be content with your results, whatever they are, knowing that you are doing all you can do to lose weight. Wickham Simonds, M.D., FOMA, founder of Dr. Simonds Metabolics & Weight Loss in Raleigh and Durham, NC, and a trustee of the Obesity Medicine Association

10"You need a backup plan."

The body fights back against weight lossit does this in many ways that were very productive 150+ years ago when food was scarce, but which are maladaptive today. You have to plan for this to happen and have a backup plan when it does. See an obesity medicine trained provider who can help you determine the best ways to deal with this challengethe the provider has medicines, diets and counseling, techniques and tools that you do not have access to by just reading a book or using an app. Remember, we are all a bit different so that what works for one person may not work for you. Craig Primack, M.D., president of the Obesity Medicine Association and co-founder of the Scottsdale Weight Loss Center in Scottsdale, AZ..

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What 10 Obesity Experts Wish You Knew About Weight Loss - Prevention.com