Low calorie recipes for weight loss? If you’re battling a bit of extra bulge, it’s difficult to sort reality from the sea of “conventional weight loss wisdom.”  Most weight loss information is completely incorrect, and perhaps the most prolific and proliferated bit of misinformation relates to the relationship between calories and weight. Conventional wisdom says this:  Calories in – Calories burned = FAT.  Therefore, popular myth holds, losing weight is just a matter of “burning” more calories than you consume.  You “burn” calories through the activities of daily living as well as by exercising. There’s only one problem with this equation:  it’s flat wrong.  They types of calories you consume bear far more heavily on your heaviness than the pure number of calories you take in. We know this intuitively; nobody would argue that 100 calories worth of broccoli is metabolically identical to 100 calories of jelly donut (that would be about five bites, by the way). It’s all about what you eat. The right kind of low calorie recipes There is a kernel of truth in the movement toward controlling the number of calories you consume.  You shouldn’t overeat.  Consuming large quantities per sitting can induce excess insulin, which has a host of negative side effects, not the least of which is systemic inflammation and excess fat storage. That said, the calorie quotient takes care of itself when you choose the right kinds of foods.  There simply isn’t enough stomach space to grossly overeat when you’re eating the right kinds of foods in your low calorie recipes. The right foods for your low calorie recipes What foods should you eat?  Following this simple dietary prescription will help generate the metabolic conditions necessary to consume fat for metabolic energy, rather than just blood sugars.  This will be a far more effective weight loss strategy than merely counting calories.  You won’t need to count calories, because eating the right foods will automatically generate effective low calorie recipes. Here they are (also see our post on fat burning foods and weight loss tips): Eat sufficient proteins. Contrary to popular myth, meat isn’t evil. Eat vegetables. If in doubt, eat more vegetables.  Eat the ones you love, but be sure to sample a wide variety in your diet. Eat seeds and nuts. Another completely false dietary belief is that eating fats makes you fat.  Your body is designed to consume fat for energy.  Moderation applies, of course, but nuts are completely OK. Enjoy fruit in moderation. Not fruit juice, which is all sugar and no fiber; eat raw, natural fruit. Cut down on starches. Drop breads from your diet.  Enjoy potatoes and rice in moderation. Cut out sugar. This is the most important step in regaining control of your waist line.  You can enjoy an occasional dessert (once per week or so), but you need to get sugar out of your world otherwise.  It’s the leading cause of obesity in America. There you have it.  Everything you need to create healthy low calorie recipes for sustainable good health. Health and wellness resources: Diets that work – Clean eating – Fat burning foods – Weight loss tips – How to lose belly fat – Reduce weight naturally – Quickest way to lose weight – Low calorie recipes – Lose weight in 2 weeks – Best exercise to lose weight – Tips to lose weight Business and insurance resources: Over 50 life insurance – Commercial insurance – Redundancy insurance – Building insurance – No exam life insurance – Life insurance over 50 Private medical insurance Travel resources: A2B transfers – Cancellation holidays – Vacation packages – Broadway travel – Travel insurance over 70 – Global late deals – Holiday insurance – Holiday villas – Travel insurance for pre existing medical ... Read More

What is the quickest way to lose weight safely? The quickest way to lose weight safely also happens to be the best way to keep the weight off sustainably over time.  That’s drastically different than a crash diet designed to dehydrate and deflate you, leaving you a slightly parched version of your still-fat self.  That’s not safe weight loss, and you should avoid it unless you’re an athlete under the supervision of a physician. The quickest way to lose fat is a drastically different question than just losing weight, which can be done through a number of short-term techniques.  What we’re after is a long-term clean eating plan and a method to learn how to reduce weight naturally, then keep the unwanted fat off sustainably after that.  We’ll scratch both itches here. It’s very simple, and it has very few rules.  That’s a good deal for you, because it means that you have lots of options to find healthy foods that you enjoy eating. Eat meats or other healthy protein sources.  I lost 42 pounds in 7 months, and have kept it off for over three years now, and I never discriminated against beef.  You can eat the kinds of meats you enjoy. Eat lots of vegetables. They’re delicious.  They’re good for you.  Don’t buy them in a frozen bag.  Buy them as fresh as humanly possible, and eat them fresh as well.  If you must cook them, do so sparingly, as the nutrients leach out during cooking. Eat seeds and nuts. Yes, they have fats in them.  Fat is good for you.  Eating fat doesn’t make you fat, so get that out of your head.  You’re going to be creating the metabolic conditions wherein your body burns fat for energy, so don’t be afraid of dietary fat. Enjoy some fruits. Don’t go overboard here, as modern fruits have been genetically engineered to be high in fructose, so they’re a little more sugary than we’d like.  But they’re a good source of nutrients, and you should enjoy them in moderation. Minimize starches, and avoid breads altogether. Rice and potatoes are OK in moderation.  Breads are not.  They’re high in gluten, which our digestive tracts are not evolved to handle, and they cause insulin spikes.  Bad news. No sugar. Sorry, but your sugar blast soda, orange juice, or “energy drink” have got to go, and you need to put down the jelly donut.  Sugar is the number one cause of obesity, and it’s the number one reason you’re overweight.  Step away from the chocolate cake. Nothing cosmic!  It just takes a bit of willpower at the beginning, but you’ll be surprised at how quickly you grow to love healthy foods.  Eating this way is both the quickest and safest way to lose ... Read More

Concerned about how to lose weight? Would you like to do it naturally, and without expensive diet potions, formulas, drink mixes, pills, or other methods that you’ll never stick with? Good. Because the most effective way to reduce weight safely and quickly – and keep the weight off for the long haul – is to learn how to reduce weight naturally. Let me take a moment here to qualify the phrase “lose weight.”  We’re not talking solely about reducing the number of pounds you read when you step on a scale to weigh yourself.  If you’re considerably overweight or obese, then yes, you’re going to see your weight drop as you get in shape.  But what we’re really looking to accomplish is to increase the ratio of lean body mass to total body mass by reducing your body fat percentage.  I interviewed an employee recently who, after three years on a strenuous fitness program, told me that she weighs more than she ever has in her life, but that she’s leaner than at any other time in her life.  That’s a good thing. How to reduce weight naturally So put down the fad diet book, and you can put away the blender.  Here are three tips on how to reduce weight naturally, safely, and sustainably. Stop eating processed carbohydrates. Processed carbs are basically ground up grains, which permeate our Western existence – bread, bagels, English muffins, cereals, cakes, brownies, etc.  Why?  For two reasons: first, they contain gluten, which is incompatible with human digestion and causes long-term digestive problems in a growing percentage of society.  Second, breads generate an unhealthy insulin spike that leads to excess fat storage and other problems.  See our posts on clean eating and fat burning foods for more information. Stop eating and drinking sugar. It’s in an alarming number of processed foods and drinks.  There biochemists who believe that sugar and high fructose corn syrup are responsible for the vast majority of obesity cases in the US.  Stop drinking soda, energy drinks, and the like, and avoid sugary foods, desserts, etc.  I know.  It’s going to be hard for a while.  But it’s worth it. Exercise regularly, at high intensity. I’m not suggesting that you should exercise yourself to death, but I am suggesting that you should be gasping for breath at the end of every metabolic conditioning workout you do.  Walking on a treadmill is better than sitting on your rump, but it isn’t exercise.  Get out there and move! No pampering, and no frills.  Clean up your diet, and get high intensity exercise.  It’s the best way I know how to reduce weight fast and ... Read More

Wondering how to lose belly fat? For many health-conscious Americans, achieving a set of washboard abs would be akin to finding the holy grail of fitness. In my own personal health journey, my six-pack rapidly gave way to a full-sized keg in my early 20’s.  One morning, shortly after my post-pubescent metabolism had come to a screeching halt, I caught a glimpse of myself walking past the mirror enroute to the shower.  Who’s that tub of lard staring back at me?  When did this happen?  I’m a former college athlete – I’m not supposed to get fat! Many fitness “gurus” will tell you that spot-reduction is not only a possibility, but it’s a scientifically-proven reality – if you purchase their book/pills/potions/drink/exercise ball/etc.  Unfortunately, there is no pill or potion, and no easy way to focus your exercise energies, that will unveil the mystery of how to lose belly fat without addressing your comprehensive body composition.  That’s because there is no mystery:  to lose belly fat, you must lost fat all over your body.  Period. How do you do that? Here’s how I lost 42 pounds in a little over 7 months, and how I came to see my abdominal muscles again for the first time since college. 5 tips for how to lose stubborn belly fat First of all, you have to understand that you’re not “targeting” your belly.  Your body just doesn’t work that way.  You’re targeting your overall body fat percentage, and as that begins to fall by following the steps we’ll outline below, you be amazed at how quickly your belly fat comes off along with all the rest of it. Here goes. Change your diet.  I’m not telling you to “go on a diet.”  I’m telling you to change the things that you eat for the rest of your life.  That means you have to enjoy what you eat.  Yes, you are going to have to cut out some stuff you like.  You’ll miss it for a few days, and then you’ll mysteriously love the healthy foods you’re eating every day after that.  See our posts on clean eating and fat burning foods for more, but you should eat meat, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and some fruits.  Go easy on the starches.  Eat no sugar.  Period. Train your whole body.  Doing crunches will no more earn you a six-pack than doing bicep curls will.  In order to lose belly fat and finally see those abs again, you need systemic exercise.  Drop the “focused body part training” mindset.  Unless you’re a bodybuilder getting ready for Mr. Olympia, it’s not for you. Train at relatively high intensity. For some people (who are seriously overweight or recovering from surgery), walking on a treadmill is relatively high intensity.  They should keep doing it.  If you’re not in either of those two categories, you need to amp up your workout.  If you’re not gasping for breath at the end of your metabolic conditioning sessions, you’re not doing it right.  Yes, it is uncomfortable. Change your mindset about exercise. You’re not going to sweat for a few weeks, meet your weight loss goal, and then slump back in the easy chair.  Staying in shape is a lifelong commitment to yourself and your family.  That means it has to be enjoyable, sustainable, and varied enough to keep your attention.  I do Crossfit, but you might choose something else entirely. Enjoy the process! It was absolutely thrilling to watch my body undergo changes as I lost 42 pounds of flap and man-boobs, and to see my abs start to peek out again from under the belly fat.  But it was equally fun to master myself, to foster the kind of self discipline and self control to see my goals through.  And I enjoy the challenges of every workout. It’s not rocket science.  It’s not easy, either, and it takes a bit of discipline.  But you’ll love who you become, inside and ... Read More

Most weight loss tips don’t work. It’s not because they’re wrong.  It’s just because they haven’t resonated with you in a meaningful, sustainable fashion.  In order to be effective, a weight loss effort can’t be a program, diet, phase, or regimen. To lose weight and keep it off, whatever program you embark on has to be a permanent lifestyle adjustment. You have to enjoy what you’re eating, you have to enjoy the exercise you get, and you have to enjoy the results you’re seeing.  If any one of those three things isn’t going for you, you’ll never last.  You’ll quit long before you reach your goals, or – much worse – you’ll quit after you meet your goals, and return to your slovenly, pudgy ways in just a few short months.  And at the end of that little evolution, you’ll likely feel much worse about yourself than you did to begin with. Most unsuccessful weight loss tips don’t work not because they won’t help you remove weight.  You can eat any of a number of silly combinations of things, or fast for any prescribed length of time, that will help you lose weight.  Most weight loss tips don’t work because they’re miserable, and you won’t stick with them. Three years ago, I lost 42 pounds and over 70 cholesterol points. I’ll give you a few weight loss tips that DO work. Love what you do for exercise. I do functional fitness (Crossfit and Military Athlete).  You don’t have to.  But you do have to enjoy the exercise you get.  If it’s pure torture, you’ll never stick with it. Love what you eat. When I decided to quit being a fat slob, I was afraid I’d hate the stuff I forced down my gullet. I discovered that healthy food (read our post on clean eating and fat burning foods for more) was absolutely delicious.  I didn’t even have to doctor it up.  It just tastes really good.  I think you’ll find the same thing once you start eating clean. Understand that you’re changing things for the rest of your life. You’re not going on a diet, or starting a little exercise thing that you’ll endure for a few months and then “graduate” back to your normal existence.  You’re embarking on a journey that will change the way you live for all time.  Sound scary?  Ask yourself this:  is the way you have been living really all that great?  If you are fat, lazy, and out of shape, wouldn’t a change do you some good?  If you’re like two thirds of Americans, you could stand to get off  your rump, eat right, and live a much healthier life. If you’re getting on the wellness bandwagon, do so with the intent to stay there.  Most people grossly overestimate what they can do in a month, and grossly underestimate what they can do in a year.  Commit to the process, honor yourself with exercise and nutrition every day, and you’ll be amazed at what happens to your ... Read More

What are fat burning foods? It’s a bit of a misnomer, actually.  The phrase “fat burning foods” can be more than a little misleading, so we’ll spend some time to clear up a bit of confusion. First, foods don’t burn fat.  Period.  That’s important to understand.  You can’t eat a box full of jelly doughnuts, then down some “fat burning foods,” and expect not to see the jelly doughnuts appear on your rump. But “fat burning foods” enable your body to work as designed. The reason our bodies store fat is because our bodies are designed to burn fat as fuel.  It’s a very complicated biochemical process, influenced by adjacent hormonal processes, but the truth is that burning fat is the natural state of our metabolic design.  We do it extremely efficiently, but only when our diets create the proper conditions. What causes the body to store fat rather than “burn” it for energy?  The hormonal and metabolic conditions brought on by our activity levels and nutritional choices. Which brings us to what you were probably searching for:  the list of foods that help your body burn fat rather than store it. The short list of fat burning foods. It’s very simple.  Fat burning foods are: Meat Vegetables Seeds/nuts Some fruits (limit your quantity due to sugar content) No starch No sugar I can hear the squealing now:  “But meats, some vegetables, and all seeds and nuts contain FAT!” That’s absolutely correct.  However, despite its wonderful symmetry, the statement that “eating fat makes you fat” is utterly false.  It’s just biochemically untrue. You get fat by overdosing on processed carbohydrates (breads), natural starches (potatoes), and sugar (every drink on the market other than water). If it contains “high fructose corn syrup,” don’t eat it or drink it. If it comes in a box or bag, has a food label longer than ten words, or has gobs of starch or bread in it, you should pass. So here’s how to tap into the power of “fat burning foods:”  eat meats and vegetables, seeds and nuts, some fruits, little starch, and no sugar. I said it was simple, not easy. ... Read More

Clean eating. We’ve heard the phrase before, and we all think we know what it means.  But the truth is, it means something different to each of us, depending on the nutritional paradigm to which we subscribe.  Most of us are old enough to have been conscious through the “carbo loading” 80’s, Atkins’ lost 90’s, and the “fat free” first decade of the 21st century, which means that most of us are pretty confused about what really constitutes “clean eating.” The new definition of clean eating. Here it is, in a nutshell:  eat meat and vegetables, seeds and nuts, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar. Some amplification might be in order, so here goes. Don’t eat processed crap.  If it has a food label, it probably isn’t food.  Do your shopping on the outskirts of the grocery store (if you must shop at a grocery store – a farmer’s market is infinitely better).  Buy fresh food.  With very few exceptions, if it comes in a box, you should avoid it. Don’t eat bread.  It’s processed.  If you must eat bread, do so in very sparing quantities.  I know, that flies in the face of the old USDA food pyramid.  But just because people thought it, doesn’t mean it’s true.  After all, we used to think the sun orbited the earth, and before that, we thought the earth was flat. Don’t eat sugar.  The abundance of sugar, and it’s evil twin High Fructose Corn Syrup (boo!), is the most plausible explanation for the obesity epidemic I’ve yet encountered.  I know that’s a tall order.  But I didn’t say that clean eating would be easy at first (it won’t).  Trust me though.  It’s easy after the first month. Don’t drink alcohol.  Biochemically, it’s just like sugar, with two exceptions:  first, it’s more toxic and carcinogenic. Second, it’s metabolized in the brain as well as the rest of the body, which accounts for the intoxication.  Take it from a sober alcoholic:  if the thought of abstaining from alcohol brings difficulty and resistance in your mind, you’re well on your way to having a problem anyway.  Best to knock it off now. Go organic, if possible.  Fresh is terrific, organic is better.  Why?  Because the chemicals, genetic engineering, and artificial growth hormones inherent to modern agribusiness aren’t good for you, no matter what Monsanto and the other chemical giants would have us believe.  That’s not paranoia, it’s biochemistry.  Unfortunately, it’s also politics, so you don’t hear much about it in mainstream media. Order a salad the next time you’re at the drive through.  Don’t worry about the dressing – contrary to popular belief, most fats are perfectly fine, in the quantities you’re likely to consume them. Is clean eating difficult? A little bit.  You’ll spend more for your food.  You’ll need to exercise willpower for a while. But your entire life will be ... Read More

There are literally hundreds of diets that work to reduce the dieter’s girth and weight.  Entire forests have been felled to publish diet books, and there are entire warehouses full of servers containing dieting information published on the internet. Then why don’t diets ever really “work?”  That is, why do most dieting episodes end with dieters restoring their body mass and fat percentage to pre-diet levels, and then some? The answer is simple.  While there are hundreds of diets that work, there is only one mindset that works to get healthy and stay healthy:  you need to commit to a sustainable, enjoyable lifestyle change, not a diet.  Diets imply sacrifice, pain, privation, and discomfort, which relegates them to a short-term role in our lives.  We dash in an all-out sprint over a few months to reach our target weight, subconsciously telling ourselves that the difficulty will end soon.  And it does – as soon as we start eating the same crap that got us fat in the first place.  If you’re looking to lose weight, you’re not looking for a diet that works.  You’re looking for a healthy lifestyle that works. A healthy lifestyle contains exercise, appropriate nutrition, and sustainability.  It must contain pleasure, enjoyment, reward, and progress in order to be sustainable.  And it must be sustainable in order to generate meaningful and lasting results. Here is the two-step process I used to change my lifestyle.  It succeeded in dramatic fashion, as I lost 42 pounds and over 70 cholesterol points in a seven-month period, and I’ve continued to improve my health over the three years since then. This is what you can do to achieve the same results. Commit to proper nutrition as a long-term lifestyle choice. I discovered that healthy food is actually delicious.  I also discovered that I could eat as much of it as I liked, and I would continue to have the body I wanted.  What constitutes “healthy food?”  It’s very simple:  eat meat and vegetables, seeds and nuts, some fruit, very little starch, and no sugar.  Period.  Done.  No fad diets, no smoothies, no supplements, no crap.  Just good food. Commit to relatively high intensity exercise. Intensity varies based on the individual, so I’m not suggesting that you try running a marathon on your first day if you’ve been busy getting fat for the past ten years.  Perform major muscle movements involving as much of your body as possible, and do that repeatedly until you’re exhausted.  An entire workout can take less than ten minutes.  Don’t believe me?  Visit www.crossfit.com.  It is the exercise program that I use exclusively.  You don’t have to use it, but I believe it to be the best way to long-term fitness for the general public. If you want long-term weight loss and health success, the answer is simple:  stop looking for diets that work, and start living a lifestyle that ... Read More

Ready to get out of town for a few days?  Not quite up for the planning hassle? Vacation Wellness™ makes easy work out of vacation planning, by giving employee members access to over 400 professionally-planned vacations packages every year, at discounts of up to 30% to 70%.  Employees just log in to their member site, choose their vacation package, click, order, and done.  No surfing between spa resort sites, travel booking engines, or sketchy “book now or else!” sites. There are plenty of other vacation packages available on the internet, but each comes with its own set of questions:  Who planned the vacation packages? What does the spa resort really look like?  When they say “all inclusive vacations,” what do they really mean? Vacation packages available through the Vacation Wellness™ Employee Benefit Program help you book your spa resort or all inclusive vacations with confidence.  Each trip is planned by a professional travel agent, whose name and email address are right on the booking page.  And all of the fine print pertaining to your vacation package is visible right up front, prior to booking.  On many Vacation Wellness™ excursions, and on all Vacation Wellness™ Luxury Vacations, an in-person host is provided at your destination to help you book spa retreats, excursions, luxury outings, sightseeing tours, and mini-trips.  No surprises and no hassles. Why would your employer offer such a program?  Because it’s good for business!  Watch a short video to see how Vacation Wellness™ improves employee quality of life while enhancing company profitability. We’ll see you on the ... Read More

It’s easy. Vacations help businesses reduce healthcare costs.  Not just a little.  A lot.  Learn more in a white paper here. Vacations help businesses keep employees happy and loyal.  Learn how vacations reduce employee turnover. But two out of three employees didn’t take all of their vacation time last year.  See a short video on how that cost businesses $532 billion last year alone. Vacation Wellness™ to the rescue. It’s a simple employee benefit that does three things: Demonstrates that businesses care about employee life balance. Provides employees access to over 400 professionally-planned vacations to 4-star and 5-star destinations every year.  Click.  Order.  No planning hassle. Saves employees up to 70% on each vacation! Easy.  Effective.  Affordable. Learn more about vacation ... Read More