Monthly Archives: July 2014

July 25, 2014

IS EATING LATE PREVENTING YOU FROM LOSING WEIGHT?

Alarm clock on bed

In order to burn the most fat, you should go 12 hours overnight without eating.

The reasoning behind it is that during the day your muscles use some of the calories you eat for fuel, the rest is stored as glycogen.

Overnight, that glycogen is converted to glucose. Once the glycogen is gone, your liver starts burning the fat cells.

Fasting for 12 hours overnight allows your body the chance to convert the glycogen and start burning fat.

Therefore, if you usually eat your breakfast at 7:00am, try to have your dinner by 7:00pm the night before.

July 18, 2014

A STRONG CORE = A FASTER 5K

Plank

Getting that desired six-pack is not the only reason to include the plank into your exercise routine.

A strong core stabilises your hips and pelvis when you run, enabling you to go faster and further.

In a study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, runners who did six weeks of core training had significantly faster 5K times than those who didn’t.

When your core is weak, the leg muscles fatigue at a much faster rate. Your body com­pensates by engaging other muscles to pick up the slack. Eventually this can lead to muscle-tissue breakdown and an increased risk for injury.

To reap the benefits, incorporate core exercises, like planks, into your strength-training routine two to three times a week.

July 10, 2014

YOGHURT WARNING!

Sugar

Plain yogurt naturally contains about 16 grams of sugar per cup. But if you eat flavoured yogurt, you could be downing 15 or more additional grams of sugar, which is the equivalent to four extra teaspoonfuls.

Choose plain, low-fat yogurt and stir in a teaspoon of honey, maple syrup, or all-fruit spread for a hint of sweetness. Or opt for fat-free Greek yoghurt, which is lower in sugar than even regular plain yogurt but often has double the protein to keep you satisfied longer.

July 4, 2014

WHAT IS OIL PULLING?

Oil-Pulling

Oil pulling is an ancient Ayurvedic procedure that is said to boost oral and overall health by withdrawing toxins.

The procedure is pretty straightforward: take any vegetable oil, such as coconut, olive or sunflower, and vigorously swish it around your mouth for 20 minutes, then spit it out.

Don’t gargle, don’t swallow. Repeat daily. In simplified terms, by doing this, the oil purportedly cleans and detoxifies your mouth by binding with oral bacteria (hence, the “pulling” away of toxins from your mouth) that you later spit out with the oil, and the healthier mouth in turn leads to a bunch of other positive physical effects, like clearer skin, eased PMS, cleared allergies and alleviated migraines.

There are two beliefs as to why this may work: first, it’s thought that by swishing the oil like a mouthwash, it cleanses the mouth of bacteria due to its antimicrobial properties.

Secondly, once the procedure is done, the oil is thought to coat the surface of the teeth, creating a slippery barrier that prevents bacterial buildup.

Now, if you’re raising your eyebrows as to whether this silver bullet is actually real, you’re not the only one. Skeptics may think that swishing mouthwash would be the same as swishing oils, but the bacteria in our mouth is covered with a fat membrane and is attracted to the oil, so oil is far better at pulling.

Newbies may find it a bit unsettling to swish for such a long time, and may even feel gum soreness afterward. This is normal, as when toxins are aggravated – pulled out of their hiding spots – they tend to be irritant and cause discomfort just as they do inside the body when you do a detox or cleanse. The discomfort will pass after those first few days, so stick with it and it will be worth it!