For the average Joe, keeping a healthy diet during quarantine presents its challenges, but theyre the same problems professional fighters face, too.

Tyler Minton, a former mixed martial artist and current nutritionist for numerous MMA fighters including Daniel Cormier and Max Holloway, is aware hes going to have to play clean-up when fighters come calling for his services at the end of the coronavirus shutdown, because fighters fall into the same sort of eating traps we all do.

I definitely think its going to be a lot harder for a lot of fighters getting back into this, Minton said in a recent interview with MMA Junkie. If they havent been really diligent with their nutrition and training as much as they can, theyre going to have a lot of issues. If everything goes the way its supposed to be, theyre going to start putting on fights really often back-to-back especially if they havent got paid in a while. Theyre going to try to jump onto every card they can.

If theyve been spending this entire time eating whatever they could and blowing up, its going to be a really difficult time for them. Again, the ones that have been focusing this time on their nutrition and fixing those limiting factors are going to benefit from it.

With so many UFC athletes picking up short-notice fights, things could become even more hectic for Minton, whose life is already hectic enough with a baby on the way. When the time comes and an athlete needs him onsite, however, Minton will return to his usual fight week responsibilities.

Im ready as soon as my fighters need it, he said. If I have a fighter that needs me there, Im going to go ahead and do it, just for the pure fact theyre following the plans and doing what they can, but the support that I can give in person is exponentially better than I can without being there.

One positive note about living in 2020 is that technology can, in many cases, supplement in-person human interaction. While hed prefer to be onsite with his fighters, Minton said remote nutrition management is something that is viable until his presence is allowed or requested.

Im not on location like I would like to be, Minton said. I obviously cant work the UFC cards. One thing I do that separates me from a lot of other people is that I dont really only have a fight week relationship with my athletes. Most of these people are hearing from me every day. At the worst, theyre hearing from me weekly.

Theyre following their plans, still. Im checking in on them and keeping them motivated. Im making sure theyre where they need to be. A lot of them are just using this as a time to grow.

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Nutritionist Tyler Minton reveals the pandemic challenges that lay ahead for fighters - MMA Junkie

Photo credit: Morgan Calkin

From Women's Health

My name is Morgan Calkin (@moslimsdown), and I am 33. Im from Louisville, Kentucky, and Im a massage therapist. After a negative experience hiking with my husband, I decided to really concentrate on my weight loss and found support and community on Instagram.

My biggest issue with my weight before started my journey was that I had an all-or-nothing approach to weight loss. I struggled with not giving up as soon as I felt hungry. I would use anything as an excuse to stop whatever diet I was doingfamily get-togethers, dinners out, or the "I was good all week!" excuse. The truth is, I just wasnt ready to change. I had tried and failed so many times that I resigned myself to just being a a big girl.

I remember telling my husband, Im always going to be a big girl, and thats never going to change, so you need to get used to it. Kind of a cringe-worthy moment when I think back on it because he never said anything about my size or weight gain. I know now that it was *my* insecurity, and the fact that I really wasnt okay with being a big girl. I wasnt comfortable in my skin at all.

I was 30, and I had gone on a hike with my husband. I had started a weight-loss journey in January. I was counting calories but not working out at all. I was feeling better and had lost 25 pounds, but I was *not* in shape. I expected the hike to be two miles, but the trail ended up being longer and a little more moderate and inclined than expected, and it ended up being over three.

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I literally kept falling, and my knees and feet hurt so badly that, at one point, my husband considered calling the park rangers to help. He was so frustrated and so was I. I felt ridiculous that I could not just get up. I dont think I had ever been more ashamed or embarrassed in my entire life. When we got home that night I could barely walk.

The next day, I really started searching on Instagram for weight loss hashtags and different accounts, trying to find women who were my same starting weight that had lost weight. This is how I found Tiffany (@myadventuretofit). At her heaviest, she was 230 pounds, and kept talking about a 21 Day Meal Plan she used that her followers could try for $20. I was unsure about spending the money, but she was looking for 10 women to follow her meal plan, share their journey, and get paid. I emailed her, and the rest was history.

For me, this was so simpleyou just dont eat anything that isnt on the list for 21 days. It is basically an elimination diet that takes all of the crap out of your diet and teaches you to add things back in slowly to see if they affect you negatively or not. I learned that not only do I have a sensitivity to gluten (its okay for me in small amounts), but I really don't digest dairy well at all. On the plan, I was finally listening to my body, eating intuitively, and not counting calories...and that was the most freeing part.

Breakfast: Four egg whites, one black bean and quinoa veggie burger, a spoonful of cottage cheese, and mustard.

Lunch: Baked chicken with no-salt seasoning, cup of brown rice, and a veggie of some sort.

Dinner: Ground turkey seasoned with no-salt seasoning, scoop of cottage cheese, broccoli, and a cup of brown rice pasta.

Snacks: Handful of almonds, hard-boiled egg, or a rice cake with almond butter and berries.

I really liked the structure of the Beachbody workouts and how you could choose programs based on intensity, beginner, intermediate, etc. It wasnt until I started the LIIFT 4 program that I got really into and excited about lifting heavy and seeing muscle definition and growth. These programs got me into a very motivated mindset of working out at least five days per week.

Lately, I havent been following a specific program. Theres so much amazing content on YouTube thats free and structured (which I like), so I just make sure each day that Im focusing on at least one muscle group with weights and getting my heart rate up, too.

I currently work out six days per week (sometimes seven, depending on my mood) for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Change one: I drastically lowered my salt intake. This was the biggest thing for me. I used to be swollen and bloated all the time and just thought it was normal until I lowered my sodium intake and upped my water consumption *a lot*. I notice immediately now if Ive had too much salt because my fingers, feet, and belly all bloat so much. I also now drink a gallon or more of water each day, and I noticed on my journey that the more water I drank, the more consistent my weight loss was.

Change two: I followed a workout routine. Exercise makes me happy! It literally changes my mood. Even going for a walk helps. It doesnt have to be intense, although I swear for me the more intense the workout, the better my mood after.

Change three: I eliminated foods that made me feel bad. Cutting out and keeping out the things that just dont work for my body (gluten, dairy, a lot of salt, and heavily processed foods) has made me feel so much better. When I eat whole, unprocessed foods, my body feels amazing.

I think its important to say that I am, and probably always will be, a work in progress. My goals are constantly changing. Sometimes I drift and I dont eat the greatest, or I dont drink enough water, but I *never* give up.

This journey has truly taught me that I can do hard things. It may sound so small, but I can run around with my kids, carry a 40-pack of water from Costco up the stairs, and I can walk into any store and find my size. I can do a pushup and run two miles without stopping. I am happy, not because I lost weight, but because I dont put limits on myself anymore.

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'I Cut So Much Salt From My Diet When I Started The 21 Day Fix Meal PlanAnd Ive Already Lost 80 Lbs.' - Yahoo Lifestyle

Comfort food was made for times like these. Gained a pound or two? Dont be hard on yourself; after all, theres a pandemic going on. Shamelessly sinking into a big bowl of macaroni and cheese (the boxed variety, of course) is one of the few pleasures we have left.This train of thought might sound familiar to you. The coronavirus pandemic has changed every aspect of our lives, including our eating habits. The healthy-food trend that took root in recent years is reversing, at least for the time being. Shopping habits have shifted in favor of old processed favorites like frozen pizza, toaster waffles and canned spaghetti convenience foods with long shelf lives that are designed to deliver pleasure.

No judgment here. Money is tight in many households, and busy parents are putting breakfast, lunch and dinner on the table in between video-conference meetings. And, admittedly, many convenience foods taste good on some level, and they makes us feel good (at least in the short term).

But you might want to save room for something green on your plate, if you can find it at the store. Thats because a growing body of research is showing that our food choices dont just affect our waistlines. What we eat also may affect our mood and behavior and not in the I cant believe I ate a dozen cookies in one sitting sort of way. Rather, there may be something in the food were eating (or not eating) thats influencing our state of mind.

The emerging field of nutritional psychology contends that modern Western diets have contributed to increased rates of mental illness, particularly depression. Diets that follow a Mediterranean pattern of eating or a lot of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans, fish and olive oil have been linked with lower rates of depression. A diet change of just a few weeks has been found to lift moods.

As a third of all Americans are reporting that the coronavirus pandemic has taken a toll on their mental health, we might need nutritious food more than ever.

There are many unanswered questions when it comes to how food affects mental health. But its clear that our stomachs do more than digest.

The stomach is sometimes referred to as the second brain because it is home to the little-known enteric nervous system (ENS), a subdivision of the autonomic nervous system that reigns over our gastrointestinal system. But the ENS might also play a hand in how we feel.

The brain in our gut is connected to the brain in our head through millions of nerves, namely the vagus nerve. Researchers think the trillions of bacteria that make up the gut microbiome might influence the communication that happens between our gut and brain. The food we eat shapes our microbes and their ability to produce hormones and neurotransmitters such as GABA, dopamine and serotonin. Around 95 percent of serotonin which plays a role in everything from appetite to mood is produced and stored in the gut.

Microbes that arent getting fed enough nutrient-dense foods also might trigger an inflammatory immune response, a factor that has been linked with depression.

The majority of nutrition studies come with a caveat. Typically, they find association, not causation, between a food and a health impact or change. There have been a couple of randomized controlled trials considered the gold standard in medical research that do point to a cause-and-effect relationship between diet quality and depression.One of the studies, published in 2019, involved a group of 76 college students who ate poorly and had moderate to severe depression. A group of students was switched to a Mediterranean-style diet for three weeks, and their symptoms of depression subsequently improved. Among this group, depression scores generally returned to the normal range, and their anxiety levels improved. But depression scores remained in the moderate to severe range for the control group those students who continued to eat a poor diet.

However, the study was met with skepticism from some scientists not associated with the work. The healthy-eating group received more support and attention from researchers, and participants were aware they were making positive changes to their diet things that could add up to feeling less depressed.

Nonetheless, the results of the study are in line with the SMILES trial from 2017, another randomized and controlled study that followed 166 depressed adults for 12 weeks. Participants who ate a Mediterranean diet experienced greater improvements to their depression than participants who were only enrolled in a support group.

Despite coping with depression, participants were able to stay motivated and follow through with diet changes, the researchers wrote in the study. And the improvements to depression symptoms were independent of factors like losing weight.

Similar results have been echoed in other studies. A 2013 meta-analysis of 22 studies found that the Mediterranean diet was linked with a lower risk of depression. Another meta-analysis published in 2017 found diets rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, fish, olive oil and low-fat dairy were associated with a lower risk of depression. The opposite was found for diets heavy in red meat, refined carbohydrates, sweets and high-fat dairy.

Although many of these studies have looked at the Mediterranean-pattern diet, the SMILES study noted that every culture has its own version of healthful eating. The take-home message is that plant-based diets that incorporate healthy sources of fats, like fish, are linked with lower rates of depression.

But many questions remain. To state the obvious, mental illnesses are complex conditions to treat, and its unclear how far diet can go in helping people feel better, especially over the long term. At the very least, it might be that a healthier diet is a helpful addition to medication and a therapy treatment plan.

Future studies will need to address how specific foods or combinations of foods help with mental illness, how much people should eat, how long the effects last, and the conditions and populations of people who are most affected by diet changes.

Until then, as we deal with the challenges of the pandemic, eating as much nutritious, whole foods as your budget and store availability allows might not be a bad idea. Youll likely feel better, and also be doing your immune system a favor.

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The Pandemic Is Making Us Depressed and Anxious. Can Healthy Food Provide Relief? - Discover Magazine

To improve health and lose weight, many people try to improve their diet by keeping track of what they eat daily. However, its not easy to remember everything you eat and drink during the day, so researchers at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh are developing a solution to help people track their food habits with high fidelity.

The device, called FitByte, a non-invasive, wearable sensing system, consists of several sensors that can be mounted on any pair of consumer eyeglasses. The technology combines the detection of sound, vibration, and movement to increase accuracy and decrease false positives. It is equipped with an infrared proximity sensor, a camera, and an accelerometer, a gyroscope, and other sets, which are in almost every device at this point, like your phones and your watches.

FitByte tracks all stages of food intake. It detects the characteristic movements associated with food eating such as chewing, swallowing, hand-to-mouth gestures using the sensors. The technology also addresses the long-standing challenge of accurately detecting drinking and the intake of soft things like ice cream.

It then triggers the small camera at the front of the glasses that capture the area around the mouth and only turns on when the model detects the user eating or drinking. To address issues of privacy, were currently processing everything offline, said Abdelkareem Bedri, an HCII doctoral student. The captured images are not shared anywhere except for the users phone.

However, currently, the user has to manually identify what types of food and drink are in the photos, but the team has plans to use artificial intelligence to automatically discern food types over time.

Our team can take sensor data and find behavior patterns. In what situations do people consume the most? Are they binge eating? Do they eat more when theyre alone or with other people? We are also working with clinicians and practitioners on the problems theyd like to address, said Mayank Goel, an assistant professor.

Overall, FitByte could help users reach their health goals by tracking behavioral patterns and gives practitioners a tool to understand the relationship between diet and disease and to monitor the efficacy of treatment.

Next, the team plans to add more non-invasive sensors that will allow the model to detect blood glucose levels and other important physiological measures. They are also creating an interface for a mobile app that could share data with users in real-time.

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FitByte that mounts on eyeglasses uses sensors to monitor your diet - Inceptive Mind

"I think working out is really important for your physical health," she said. "I think mental health is really important, but also, if you want to be healthy and while I am not the most excited to put my workout clothes on and go and do that, it is really nice, when you leave, you feel better.

Those areAriel Winterswords, as reported byE Online. She has a refreshing take when it comes to fitness. It isnt about burning an insane amount of calories per workout, matched with an impossible-to-follow diet. Winter puts her focus on eating foods that she enjoysbut enjoys them in moderation. As for her goals, shes all about the curves and building muscle instead of burning it.

Throughout the article, well take a look at what she does both in and out of the gym. From her preferred exercises to cheat meals, heres what you need to know about what the Modern Family star does to stay in shape. Enjoy!

Winter has a refreshing take on dieting. She simply doesnt follow them. For the Modern Family Star, everything in moderation is the way to go, as she explained toE Online.

"I can't stick to them. It just doesn't work for me. I believe, you know, you eat everything that you want in moderation, you know, if you can, if you're not allergic, whatever. Anything you can in moderation I think it's best, that way you're not like, really wanting something you can't have.

I just want to build muscle. My body changes all of the time and I think right now, it's just, I want to build muscle."

Another refreshing take by Ariel Winter. Her overall goal is to gain muscle and not burn it. Weve seen so many Hollywood stars go on rigorous diets while burning fat. Winters approach involves building muscle instead, like her glutes, which are a big focus during her workouts.

Speaking of glute work, Ariel Winter packs her workouts with a bunch of movements that both strengthen and grow her glutes.

One favorite exercise is the side lunge, which can also be done with no weight at all. A glute kickback is another one of her preferred movements, and shell usually use an ankle weight to add a bit more resistance.

RELATED -A Timeline Of Ariel Winters Meteoric Rise, In Pictures

Yes, she does hit a lot of glute workouts. However, throughout the week, Winter is well-rounded when it comes to her workouts.

That also includes upper body movements, targeting her back and chest muscles. Weve seen Winter work her lats on the lat pulldown machine in the past; she also worked in a fly on the 'peck deck' machine.

Living the L.A. life, Winter is constantly on the go. The paparazzi tend to follow her around more times than not. During a lot of her shots, Winter is spotted with a refreshing smoothie, something that seems to be the norm in Hollywood circles.

That is a great way to add healthy vitamins to the diet. A lot of smoothies taste good, too.

When it comes to any type of diet, there must be a reward at some point. For Ariel Winter, that comes in the form of mint chocolate chip ice cream. She explained her obsession while talking to a journalist fromE Online:

"I go through stages like every three months, I pick a new favorite food and it's currently mint chocolate chip ice cream. So I have six different companies of mint chocolate chip ice cream in my freezer currently."

RELATED -14 Recent Stunning Photos From Ariel Winters Instagram

Along with building muscle, Winter gets her heart rate elevated during workouts by incorporating certain exercises. One of them is battle rope exercises - these movements work the upper body muscles but also play a big role when it comes to overall conditioning.

Shell use this exercise in a circuit, making it that much more difficult.

One of Ariels preferred movements is a Sumo deadlift, which requires a lot of lower body strength. The movement targets the glutes, hips, and hamstrings, along with the upper body.

In terms of building muscle, especially to the lower frame, this is a great movement to incorporate at least twice a week.

When Ariel hits the gym, it is business! The workouts are high intensity, meaning they feature few breaks in-between - each set is loaded with super-sets and circuits.

Typically, shell start off with her compound movement and then up the intensity with some rigorous exercises.

RELATED -15 Fun Facts About Modern Familys Ariel Winter

Weights and machines are a big part of Winters routines when she hits the gym. However, she does incorporate a lot of bodyweight exercises, both for the lower and upper body.

As previously mentioned, some of her preferred movements include the side lunge and glute kickback. These are both exercises that can be done without any weight or with just a resistance band.

Oh, yes - in order to make those serious glute gains, Winter is hitting variations of the squat on the regular.

Whether it be a regular squat, goblet squat, or even an elevated goblet squat on top of a bench, shes usually stressing out her lower body with a squat-like movement.

NEXT Heres What It Takes To Look Like Gisele Bndchen

Sources: E Online & YouTube

NextA Timeline Of Kendall Jenners Dating History

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Heres What Ariel Winter Does To Stay In Shape | TheThings - TheThings

This story was originally published 2020/03/25 8:30am PDTon Mar 25, 2020 and last updated 2020/04/30 12:56pm PDTApr 30, 2020.

Spending more time at home can mean you're less active, but it could also lead to less than healthy changes to your diet (we aren't judging). Although there's nothing wrong with treating yourself, takeout every night may be sustainable for your waistline in the long run. Because we care about your health and well-being (and you should too!), we've put together a list of apps that can help you maintain a healthy diet and even provide meal recommendations.

We often don't realize the number of calories we're eating versus how many we need to sustain our weight. Thankfully, this app helps you get the right amount in by calculating the number of calories you need based on your weight and goals. This is particularly helpful considering most of us are stuck at home without moving.You do have you to record everything you're eating, but there's a vast database that makes it easy to find the right items. You can also scan barcodes to automatically add food to your diary, making the overall process a lot faster.

Lose It is an alternative that's quite similar to MyFitnessPal but offers a more intuitive interface, in my opinion. It doesn't sync with as many apps, but has a more visual interface and is easier to use. Most importantly, it lets you take a picture of your food to automatically recognize what you're eating, which takes away the painstaking logging process. The app also comes with added features such as built-in recipes and workout guides, as well as insights on your eating patterns.

If counting macros is essential to you, Runtastic Balance makes this easier, as it displays them directly in your diary, without having to access a specific page. The interface is also quite intuitive, and there's a bunch of free plans you can pick from based on your goals. If you use other Runtastic apps, you'll be able to sync your activity automatically, but it's a bit disappointing there's no option to connect to more services.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2i7ZgVvRdI&feature=youtu.be

Tracking your diet can be a complicated task if you don't know what you're supposed to eat. Thankfully, Lifesum provides complete meal plans and healthy recipes to help you create a balanced diet. It also offers a built-in calorie tracker with a sleek UI and lets you view macros and calories at a glance. Unfortunately, you'll need a paid subscription to sync with third-party services, which can be a roadblock for some.

We've been quarantined with my partner for about ten days, and every morning we're wondering what to eat for lunch and dinner. Mealime makes the overall process a breeze by offering recipes that match your goals, but also your taste. Thanks to an advanced search engine, you can filter results based on calories, allergies, ingredients, and much more. Once you've decided what you want to cook, the app automatically creates a categorized grocery list, which makes it so much easier to get what you need from the store. There's even a paid subscription that brings advanced features such as detailed nutritional information, meal plan tracking, and exclusive recipes.

Freeletics is popular for its bodyweight training app, and has more recently released a nutrition one to help you reach your goals, whether it's losing weight, maintaining your current one, or gaining mass. It comes with built-in recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so you can use them as inspiration if you're struggling to find ideas. Freeletics Nutrition also learns to adapt to your dietary requirements, and is a great option for vegetarians, vegans, or pescatarians. Some people may not appreciate the fact that Freeletics Nutrition's philosophy is not to count calorie, but that's also a good way of forgetting about numbers and focusing on results and pleasure instead. Lastly, you can also get a customized nutritional coach with a paid subscription, which can be handy if you have more specific goals.

If you'd like an app to help you start an intermittent fasting program, BodyFast is worth considering. It's relevant for both beginners and experienced fasters alike and can create a weekly personal plan for you. It features a built-in fasting tracker and timer, as well as a weight and body measurement log to follow your progress. You can also take the experience further by signing up for coach, which can help you get customized recommendations.

If you're more into ketogenic diets, you should give Senza a try. It helps you with keto-specific tracking, as well as macros, and can also handle intermittent fasting. It comes with built-in guides for beginners, keto-specific recipes, and restaurant menus, and can provide daily recommendations for you. It also has advanced features like potassium, sodium, magnesium, glucose, and ketone intakes. Lastly, instead of getting a virtual coach, you can even speak with live nutritionists for advanced support.

Yuka is slightly different than the rest of apps, as it's built to help you understand the impact of various products on your health. You can scanfood & personal care products to understand their ingredients and whether they're good for you thanks to a simple color code. If you happen to scan a product that could be harmful for you, Yuka will recommend a item product that's better for your health. Although it's not necessarily at helping you lose or maintain weight, it's a great way to better understand what's going into your body, and it can be a fun game to play while quarantined.

Noom is more complete than a simple calorie tracker. It offers a uniquepsychology-based approach to identify why you're eating and helps you build a plan to become more healthy. It's probably well-adapted to the current situation, in which most of us are just a few feet away from the kitchen, and therefore temptation. Like most apps, there's also a built-in weight and food tracker, so you'll also be able to keep on eye on your progress. If you're allowed to go out or are lucky enough to have a yard, there's also a built-in pedometer to automatically log your steps.

We need to stay home as much as possible and limit our grocery shopping. Some of these apps are great for preparing nice recipes based on what you already have at home, while others can help you identify the ingredients you need, to avoid returning to the store too often. It's also important to stay active, even if it means exercising at home. Make sure you also check out our selection of apps that can help you work out at home to start preparing your summer body, even if you're confined at home.

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The best Android apps to track nutrition, calories, and weight - Android Police