Watching Your Calories and Carbs to Cut Belly Fat

The calories you take in are sure to contribute to your obesity, if you’re struggling with extra weight around the middle of your body. If you’re free-eating all day, snacking incessantly, it can be difficult to track just how much you’re consuming.

You want to begin taking in fewer calories than your body is burning so that your body begins burning fat all around your body, including your stomach area. A pound of fat is equal to 3,500 calories.

So in order to lose one pound of fat per week, you’d need to cut that over the course of a week. Shaving 500 calories a day off your diet could be the difference between getting a small drink instead of a large one when you order fast food.

Or, if your diet is already pretty tight, you might have to do a little more careful nutrition planning to find ways you can eliminate those 500 calories per day. If you want to lose 2 pounds of fat per week, you’d have to cut 1,000 calories a day.

This sounds like a lot, but many people who are struggling with a bunch of belly fat eat thousands of calories per day, so this could be as simple as cutting out snacks or making a few healthier choices.

If you want to work on it long-term, you can figure out how long you want to give yourself and calculate it from there. For example, if you want to give yourself a year to cut 25 pounds, then you’d need to cut 87,500 calories that year to achieve your goal.

That equates to cutting out about 240 calories per day. That’s not hard to do. You could go without that Snickers bar you routinely have after lunch and achieve that one goal. But it all depends on how fast and how much you want to lose.

You might also want to consider watching your carb count when it comes to losing fat around the middle. Many of these refined carbs like white breads and sugars pack on the fat in your body because they’re high in calories, too.

You don’t get the satiated feeling like you would eating a meal packed with whole grains, protein or fiber. Instead, sugary foods leave you hungry shortly after eating them, and if you’re using them for energy, it won’t last, causing a crash where you crave even more of them.

To help you lose belly fat, consider sticking to anywhere from 50-150 carbs per day. If you want to attack the fat quickly, you can even adhere to a keto diet and go for net 20 carbs daily. 

Belly Fat Is Unsightly and Embarrassing for Many

Belly fat may be a health hazard, but for many people, it’s one of the things that decimates their self-esteem, causing them to dress in oversized clothes that hide their figure.

You don’t want to have to live with a stomach that makes you embarrassed. This is a problem for people in different situations. Some people hate having to shop in plus-size stores and buy clothes they feel don’t flatter their figure.

Some hate the muffin top that a fat belly creates. You can have a flattering figure above the waist, and even toned legs, but if your belly hangs over your pants, it can make you feel uneasy and ashamed.

If people have issues when they’re fully clothes, you can imagine how they feel when they’re not. Besides intimacy issues it can create with a spouse or significant other, even going to the beach in a bikini or one piece can be traumatic.

Aside from being unsightly, belly fat can be very uncomfortable. The stuffed, bloated feeling you get when there’s just no more room for the food you’re taking in can cause cramps, acid reflux, and discomfort in other ways.

Belly fat is jokingly called a spare tire or love handles. But for many, there’s nothing more serious than their desire to get rid of this unsightly (and dangerous) accumulation of fat in their body.

There are many ways you can do this, but you have to first create the mindset that you’re going to approach this as a health condition that must be eradicated for your well-being.

You can create a plan that works best according to how much you have to lose, what’s causing your belly fat, and personal preferences on how to tackle it. For example, if you drink beer every day, you might consider eliminating those extra calories to help whittle down your waist.

Everyone’s body will respond differently to certain tactics, so don’t be afraid to try different things until something works best for you. You might even try a combination of ideas to make the pounds fall off faster. 

The Many Health Dangers of Harboring Belly Fat

There’s good fat and bad fat when it comes to the fat you have in your body. Brown fat is helpful with thermogenesis in your body, assisting you in burning calories. But it’s typically stored around your neck and shoulder area.

The fat in your midsection is what’s known as white fat (it actually appears yellow, though). This is the kind of fat that accumulates around your body, including the stomach.

A little of it is helpful – it insulates your major organs. But when you overdo it and accumulate too much of this type of fat, problems start to appear. It becomes too much for your body to handle.

Obesity with white fat contributes to diabetes and heart disease as well as cancer and other issues such as sleep apnea. So you want to whittle down your fat deposits and keep your midsection free and clear of this burden.

When it gets out of control, it’s no longer an insulation for your organs, but something that essentially strangles them. People who struggle with belly fat include both men and women, primarily as they get older.....

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Middle age makes it harder to shed the fat around your midsection. Your genes may play a role, too. In fact, some people call a woman’s belly fat during middle age, a menopot belly – for menopausal belly fat.

You’re not resigned to live with belly fat forever, though. You have the power to control how much fat is stored around your midsection, but you have to be willing to take action to make that happen.

What you need to do is analyze your waist to see whether or not belly fat is a real problem for you. You don’t have to have washboard abs to have a healthy stomach. But if it’s bulging, it’s a sign that you need to work on this area for your health.

If you’re a woman, studies show that belly fat might pose a greater cardiovascular risk for you if you’re harboring fat deposits around the middle section of your body. Make sure that regardless of your gender and age, you take measurements and see where you stand – don’t just go by what you see in the mirror.

There are some people who consider themselves skinny who struggle with fat only around their midsection. So no one is immune to this kind of physical fitness dilemma. Some just have a proactive way of addressing it...

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Recognizing Signs of Hot and Cold Weather Illness

Severe weather can come with tons of risks and hazards, mostly in the form of conditions brought on as a result of temperature. Most of these conditions and illnesses are fairly harmless if caught early, but if you persist and don’t do anything about them, they can quickly turn severe and can bring on many dangerous health hazards.

Hot weather conditions tend to be less harmful than cold weather ones, but they still pose a very real threat if ignored. The big things you need to watch out for in the extreme heat are heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and heat rash.

The least threating one is heat rash. Essentially, when some people get too hot outside, their sweat ducts clog up and they develop an itchy rash. This isn’t particularly dangerous, and it doesn’t require medical attention.

If you develop a heat rash, simply go inside and drink some cool water. It can, however, be an indicator that it’s too hot for you to be outside, so you should avoid going back out so that you can avoid heat exhaustion.

Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are somewhat similar, with one being far more dangerous than the other. Heat stroke requires immediate medical attention to be treated, while heat exhaustion can be taken care of by going inside, cooling off, and rehydrating.

Some of the main signs of heat exhaustion include lots of sweating, a faint feeling in your head, an upset stomach, and sometimes cramps. Heat stroke, on the other hand, involves no sweating, a harsh headache, and possible loss of consciousness.

Then, there are the cold weather conditions. There are two that you need to be careful of in most cases: hypothermia and frostbite. Both are very dangerous if unattended, and both often result from lack of proper clothing.

Early hypothermia symptoms aren’t always easy to catch. One of them is shivering, which is natural in cold weather, but you might also start to slur your words, start to feel confused or tired, and experience minor lapses in your memory.

Once it gets severe, you’ll experience poor breathing, very poor decision making skills, and no shivering. It’s crucial that hypothermia symptoms are caught early on, because once it gets severe, it can easily lead to death.

Finally, there’s frostbite. Frostbite attacks the extremities of the body, most often your fingers, toes, and nose. One of the easiest signs to spot is that your skin has a weird or unusual color.

It could become much more red, or much paler, but once it starts changing colors, you know you have to cover those body parts up. Once you catch it, warm that part of your body back up. If you caught it early enough, you’ll be fine, but if you waited a long time, there could be permanent damage and possible amputation. 

What Is Okinawa Flat Belly Tonic?

There are times when, no matter how much effort you put into it, the weight is stubbornly not coming off. This happens to those, especially over the age of 30. If this resembles your situation, you may want to try a supplement to help give you a boost.

The Okinawa Flat Belly Tonic is a supplement based on a Japanese tonic. This is not a pill, but rather a liquid supplement that’s easy to consume. This tonic is said to help people curb their cravings.

It offers a sense of satiety that many supplements don’t provide. Plus, the body gets the nutrients it needs from this breakfast tonic to help keep you healthy and performing to the best of your abilities.

You simply consume the Okinawa tonic before 10 o’clock in the morning and it helps activate a fat burning hormone in your body. This can help you without adding any exercise or dietary changes, but of course if you combine all aspects of these fat burning activities, you’ll see success that much sooner.

This tonic is said to destroy fat cells by shrinking them, so they don’t contribute to unsightly pounds around your midsection. The fat-burning hormone is helps is called adiponectin, which helps clear out the toxins in your gut.

There are other things you can do to ensure you’re not burdened with a fat belly. Even getting enough sleep can affect how well your body is capable of controlling your weight.

You want to be mindful about everything you’re doing to help or hurt your physical health. It’s not just about what you put in your body or how much you move. It’s a total mental and physical approach that supports your body in its natural quest to stay fit and functional.

When it comes to achieving your health goals, nothing is more important than trimming the fat from your body. Excess fat contributes to so many health problems, mobility complications, and confidence issues.

The sooner you can chip away at it, the more you’ll begin to see that you’re freeing yourself up for the life you deserve to life. One with fewer health difficulties and an increased sense of self.

This is also a wonder baseline for you to work with that’s less confusing and intimidating than measuring your entire body and tracking all stats. Start with your belly. Focus your efforts on trimming and toning it with a multi-pronged approach that works for you.

5 Things to Avoid for A Better Night's Sleep

Sleep can be wonderful but also frustrating. If you can't get enough, it can harm every aspect of your life. Getting a full night's sleep is key to successful relationships, careers, or accomplishing all your goals and desires. To sleep better each night, it’s crucial to avoid these things at night.

Electronics or Lights

Lights and electronics such as smartphones stimulate your brain to stay awake and prevent the release of melatonin. The chemical is needed to make you feel sleepy. Research shows it is best to avoid lights and electronics at least thirty minutes before going to bed. This way, your body can produce the hormones needed to feel sleepy. Any time you run into a light source, you must reproduce these hormones and start over.

High-Fat and High-Protein Foods

Don’t eat big meals before bedtime, as well as high-fat and high-protein foods. Studies have shown these foods promote restless sleep as they are harder to digest and can cause elevated blood pressure and blood sugar. Foods such as oatmeal or whole-wheat toast are good options if you must eat. They quickly promote the release of serotonin, another hormone that makes you feel sleepy.

Exercise

When you choose to exercise is vital to your success because exercise can improve your sleep, but it can also cause insomnia if done at the wrong time. Endorphins and other chemicals that release while exercising will keep you energized throughout the day. Therefore, it's essential to be available to exercise in the morning. Regular and proper exercise throughout the week promotes longer and deeper sleep as well.

Caffeine, Alcohol, or Other Stimulants

Research shows that over time, alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine, and other stimulants or drugs can disrupt sleep patterns throughout the night and lead to worsening sleepwalking behavior or insomnia. Stimulants increase blood flow and inflammation, worsening sleep apnea symptoms and making it more difficult to breathe or get in a comfortable position.

Napping

Even if you are exhausted, when you are trying to fix your sleep patterns, if you experience problems falling asleep when you want to, you must stop and avoid all naps, at least for a while. Naps easily disrupt sleep patterns and sleep drive. Keeping a regular schedule during the day and sleeping only at night is the cure for this problem.

You may need to get advice from your doctor if you try these things and are still having issues getting to sleep. Insomnia or lack of sleep can be due to underlining illnesses or lead to one. Remember, proper sleep is one of the keys to living a successful life and shouldn't be ignored.

How Diet and Exercise Affect Your Sleep

It’s 3 A.M. again, and that marks the third restless night. Unfortunately, if this sounds familiar, you are not alone. Approximately one-third of people struggle with sleep problems, and about twenty-five percent of the American population experience insomnia. 

The culprit? Research has many ideas, but two common factors always play some role or responsibility: diet and exercise.

Alters Metabolism

Diet and exercise and your metabolism go hand in hand. If you adopt a proper exercise routine and diet, your metabolism will stabilize, leading to a balanced weight and better sleep. However, if you don’t, you can negatively alter it leading to increased weight. Increased weight can restrict airways, cause inflammation and stress on the body, affecting the way you sleep.

Heavy on the Digestive System

Big meals right before bed that are heavy in sugar, fats, and protein will affect your sleep and lead to poor digestion. This can lead to increased blood sugar, inflammation, blood pressure, and other alignments, making it difficult to fall asleep. A well-balanced diet keeps your blood sugars and flow balances and allows oxygen to flow throughout the body easily.

 Stress and Depression

Diet can reduce or worsen symptoms of depression and anxiety that can, in turn, worsen symptoms of insomnia. Avoid foods high in sugar or fats to reduce inflammation. Inflammation is the primary factor for adverse health effects.

Shifts Your Circadian Rhythm

Research shows that changing your diet can reprogram your body’s clock or circadian rhythm. Poor sleep is often linked to obesity or metabolic diseases resulting from improper diet and exercise. Sleep deprivation also increases hormones telling you that you are hungry when you are not keeping the ugly cycle going and increasing or worsening obesity. Therefore, it’s crucial to adopt a healthy diet first when adjusting your sleep schedules. Reducing obesity is the first step to proper sleep.

Dehydration

A common yet easily overlooked culprit to lack of sleep is dehydration. An Improper diet full of sugar and salts can rid your body of needed hydration that leads to symptoms of dehydration such as irritability, fatigue, or insomnia. It dries out your mouth and nasal passages, making it difficult to get to sleep or be comfortable throughout the night. Dehydration can also lead to cramps, inflammation, and lack of oxygen.

Ask your nutritionist and doctor what exercise routine and diet plan are best for you if you suffer from sleep problems. Diet and exercise or lack thereof are likely to blame.

High Calorie Survival Food to Keep Up Your Energy in Any Conditions

You have to consume a minimal amount of calories for your body on normal days. Calories are the fuel that your body runs on. When you don’t have enough calories, not only will you lack energy, but over time, this can cause you physical harm.

When there are survival situations, such as extreme cold or hot weather events, it’s even more imperative that you have plenty of high calorie foods on hand. This is because you’re going to inevitably end up burning more calories when your survival is on the line.

For example, you might not realize it, but just the act of shivering when you’re cold burns calories. When your normal way of life is disrupted, you’re probably expending more energy because you’re having to do more physically just to stay alive.

Without enough calories, you can become lethargic. While this might not be dangerous in your normal everyday life, when faced with a survival event, lethargy can be. You won’t react to dangers as quickly and you’ll have trouble thinking and concentrating without enough high calorie food to give you energy.

It might be tempting to believe that there are no right or wrong foods to have during a time of emergency, but there is. You have to have items that aren’t going to spoil easily.
You also need food that you can grab and go in the event that you have to bug out.

That means that you’ll need a lightweight food source that’s already put together. This won’t be a bunch of heavy cans that would be a burden if you have to flee. You’ll need things like survival food kits that are in lightweight packaging.

That way, you can have them packed in a bag and just grab them and go. These types of food items are measured according to caloric need, so you get your daily recommended number of calories, but you can also find high calorie ones.

They’re also easy to prepare. Most of these foods are simply made by adding hot water. Some you can eat right out of the pack without any preparation. You’ll need foods that are designed to be eaten in the event that you don’t have a heat source that you can use.

The kinds of foods that you buy should focus on proteins, fats and carbs. Protein rich foods alone won’t pack enough calories or carbs for your survival needs. You need to stock food items such as peanut butter, nuts and dried fruits.

All of these are high in calories. You’ll want also want to buy a supply of powdered milk. Look to stock up on dried foods that are starchy and high in calories such as dried potatoes.

Have brown rice and beans on your supply list. Stock survival rations that are high in carbs and calories. Have a stack of canned meat, trail mix and candy bars, too. These foods will work whether you’re at home during an energy outage or on the go.

Leave Your Skin Alone For the Best Anti-Aging Effects!

When we say leave your skin alone, we don’t mean abandon your skin care regimen, though getting rid of some of the harsher scrubs in your collection will certainly do good for you. What we mean is that horrible temptation that many may feel to pick at blemished skin. Poking at our pimples can leave us with pockmarks and other scars that can end up being downright embarrassing and making us look far older than we actually are. So don’t do it!

If you are troubled by acne, it could do you well to speak with a dermatologist about your condition. Rather than trying to deal with it on your own with scrubs that may not work or picking at your face, you could find yourself with a skin care routine that is actually going to help you to keep your skin in the best possible condition with the technology available rather than leaving you alone with the temptation to take care of your blemishes with a little bit of tough love.

There are also other things that many people have done and will testify to when it comes to skin care to clear up the skin and prevent break outs that might tempt you to create pockmarks on your face. It can be helpful for you to drink the proper amount of water. Doing so helps to eliminate toxins and free radicals from the body rather than allowing them to pool on the skin. It is also important to make sure that you clean your skin off after you sweat. The bacteria and the other toxins in the skin will just sit on the surface and fester there, accumulating more germs and dirt there that can lead to break outs.

You might also want to get yourself tested for food intolerances and allergies that could cause you to break out. The less temptation you have to deal with your skin issues in a way that will damage your skin, the better. So start by addressing the issue at its source!

It’s better not to pick at your skin if you can help it. While it may seem difficult, and indeed, for some it can be, doing everything possible to treat your skin gently and with care will go a long way. Over time, we notice more and more things that we have done that could have been preventable, so try to avoid more damage to your skin by taking a hands-off approach and stopping the issue at the source today!

Register with the Power Company If Your Home Requires Electricity for Medical Reasons

For most people, when the electricity goes out, it’s more of an annoyance than anything else. It just means daily conveniences get interrupted. But for others, the concern is much heavier because of a medical condition they or someone in the family has.

Most power companies have a record of the addresses for people who have to medically rely on power. But this list isn’t something that’s automatically generated. You have to contact your power company to get put on this record.

Then when the power goes out due to rolling blackouts, those who are on this record will often get first priority for having their electricity stay on – or if it’s a crash, then getting their issue resolved.

Whenever there’s a power outage, workers will be directed to the area where you live.
But not just anyone can get on this record. Each electric company has a set of standards they use to determine who gets priority in restoring electricity.

Usually, first on the list are those who need power for critical care. These are people who much rely on machines in order to remain alive. If someone relies on a kidney dialysis machine at home, this is considered critical care according to electric companies.

People who are on oxygen machines or ventilators also qualify to go on the list to restore power first. Those who have a feeding pump and must have electricity to operate it also qualify for quicker power restoration.

CPAP machines are on the list but, there are some power companies that limit electric restoration for those using CPAP machines to infants and children since many of these machines do have a battery backup.

However, there can be a time limit to how long battery power can last, so it would still be worthwhile to get on the list if your electric company allows it. There are other reasons besides critical care that electric companies use to determine who gets power restored first.

Anyone whose health is negatively affected by loss of heat or loss of air conditioning because it can make their medical condition worse can also qualify to go on an electric company’s priority power restore list.

You can’t just reach out to your electric company and tell them that you need to go on the list, because unfortunately, there are some people who would take advantage of this who don’t really need the help.

So most electric companies do require proof of medical need. You would have to get the required forms from your power company and then take them to your health care provider.

These forms can vary, depending on what your company requires, but usually on the form, there will be a part for the doctor to fill out about medically essential electric powered device or adverse health reaction due to heat or cold from loss of power.