Just saying the word “diet” brings about fear and dread in most people. The idea of giving up your favorite foods, having to eat boring “health food,” and the constant need to force yourself to stay motivated all so you can have a better body leads countless people to search for ways to avoid “dieting” all together.
The reason diets are so challenging is they typically require sacrificing what you love, making changes to your typical routine, and going against every natural emotional inclination to eat whatever you can and enjoy life to the fullest.
So does that mean a person has to decide between sticking with a diet or being happy? Not at all! Continue reading →
Juicing is one of the absolute best things you can do for your health. The problem I’ve had with juicing in the past with my Champion Juicer is the inconvenience of prepping the produce and cleanup time. When I discovered the Breville BJE200xl after my friend purchased it, I rediscovered the joys of juicing.
While this juicer is not the powerhouse of some more end juicers, I’ve found it has more than adequately allowed me to juice greens, raw beets, and just about anything I can stick in the thing. Keep reading to find out if it’s the right juicer for you.
Appearance
The first thing you’ll notice about the Breville BJE200XL is its sleek and modern appearance. I really like the silver look and tone of it. While this is a small point, it’s definitely not going to be an eye-sore to keep out on the counter top at all times.
Ease Of Use
Setting up the juicer is snap. Just put a few pieces in place, and in about 20 seconds you’re ready to go.
I LOVE the wide opening on the Breville Juice Fountain. I rarely have to chop things up too much because the large opening lets you juice entire pieces of small fruit, and only larger produce requires being cut into a few smaller pieces.
The engine is very powerful and takes very little effort to push the food down into the juicer. Whereas I would sometimes have to fight with other juicers, this thing seems to just suck the food right up.
It then puts the juice into a 25oz container. That’s always more than enough room no matter how much stuff I’m juicing.
It’s got a safety that requires you to lock the pieces into place before use.
Noise
I do consider the Breville Juicer to be a bit loud. While it is quieter than some other juicers, there’s no doubt you’re going to be making some noise when it’s extracting the juice. For me this is not an issue, but I would expect it to potentially wake some people up in the house if using in the morning.
Effectiveness
The Breville juicer is not quite as effective as my Champion juicer for getting the most juice out of the produce. That being said, the pulp is pretty dry. I would rate it as a good “middle of the road” type of juicer in terms of how well it extracts juice.
It’s got a 700 water motor that runs at 14,000 RPM. The juice comes out of the food in a matter of seconds. The entire juicing process is extremely quick taking no more than a few seconds to minutes depending on how much stuff you’re juicing.
Ease Of Cleanup
This is why I would highly recommend the Breville BJE200XL. The cleanup process is so fast (about 5 minutes) that I don’t dread juicing anymore.
Some pieces are a little awkwardly shaped making getting into some nooks a bit difficult. I haven’t experienced too much difficulty though cleaning it in the sink under running water.
It includes a small brush to scrub the screen with. This is the most time consuming part of cleanup taking usually a few minutes to really get any debris out of the screen.
Cons
There are a few things I don’t care for. One is that sometimes a few small pieces of greens will shoot out the top of the tube. This makes for some additional cleanup of the counter.
Another thing is that transporting the pulp container to the sink to wash will likely drip some juice unless you keep something under it.
Finally, while cleanup is very easy, it can be a little hard to reach some places in the pulp container.
Final Thoughts
I would recommend the Breville BJE200XL to anyone looking for a good quality, affordable juicer. It’s not going to have all the bells and whistles of a higher end juicer, but it certainly gets the job done for the vast majority of anyone’s juicing needs. You can purchase it on amazon below:
The biggest challenges I hear from people when they want to lose weight and start eating better is that they either “don’t have time,” or they hate the taste of health foods and don’t know how to cook. While it’s easy for me as a fitness enthusiast who’s been doing this for years to forget about how hard it can be for someone first getting into “dieting,” I also remember how much I hated eating boring bland foods when I first started out. Fortunately, I quickly started piecing together great tasting meals that were easy to make and tasty. I even created my healthy cooking youtube channel to show off some of my favorite fat loss and muscle gain recipes.
But, finding great recipes that are both good for weight loss AND taste good is always a bit of a challenge. Luckily, Dave and Karine have come in and saved the day. They’ve put together what I consider to be the absolute best cookbook and recipe guide for those interested in getting and staying fit. I really wish I had this weight loss cookbook that I’m about to share with you when I first got started.
Here are some sample recipes:
Fat Loss Cookbook Breakfast Recipe Idea – Apple Oatmeal Pancakes
Makes 1 Serving (4 to 6 small pancakes)
Ingredients
• 6 egg whites
• ½ cup oatmeal (dry)
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened apple sauce
• Pinch of cinnamon powder
• Pinch of stevia
• 1 apple, diced finely
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• Cooking spray
Directions
1. First heat a frying pan until hot and then reduce to medium temperature. After mixing together all the ingredients in a blender (except for the diced apple), spray some pam (or other cooking spray), drop by spoonful onto the pan.
2. When bubbles start to form, place evenly on pancake some of the diced apple.
3. Let them set in before flipping the pancake.
4. Makes about 4-6 pancakes depending on the size.
Nutritional Facts
(Per Serving)
Calories: 240
Protein: 28g
Carbohydrates: 32g
Fat: 0g
Weight Loss Cookbook Lunch or Dinner Recipe Idea – Quinoa Burritos
Makes 2 Servings Perfect for a snack, spread or sandwich
Ingredients
• 2 small whole wheat tortillas
• ½ cup quinoa, cooked
• 4 egg whites
• ½ avocado, cubed
• 1 cup lettuce, shredded
• ½ cup salsa
• ¼ cup red onion, diced
• ½ cup black beans
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro
Directions
1. Cook quinoa and egg whites separately. Then mix with black beans, cilantro and onion.
2. Spead half mixture equally on whole wheat tortillas.
3. Top with salsa, avocado and lettuce.
4. Wrap and enjoy!
This cookbook will not only give you just about every breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack idea you could ever need for weight loss, but it’s also filled with nutritional tips and tricks to maximize your results. The money saved from not having to eat out at fast food places and preparing your own meals is worth the price alone. Not to mention you’ll pretty much never need to waste time trying to track down recipes that not only taste great, but will help you get in shape too!
Get More Free Fat Loss Recipe Ideas
Want to try out some more weight loss recipes for free? Dave and Karine are offering this free guide so you can get even more recipes to burn fat. Right click here and save to your computer.
Ryan Lochte has just won a gold medal in the 2012 Olympics in London beating out fellow American swimmer Michael Phelps. When you look at the hardcore out of the water on-land workout routines and training style of Ryan, you can see he has put in the sweat and effort to become a world champion.
Ryan Lochte’s Workout Routine – Strongman Training
Ryan has said he’s incorporated a lot of “strongman” type training into his routine. For those not familiar with the concept, that means things like flipping tires, lifting unconventional objects like stones, and doing any number of high strength exercises that require total body strength.
Here’s a video of him training (pre-haircut):
http://youtu.be/Va3JJuXDyhc
The benefit of this strongman style training vs. typical “bodybuilding” style training is that he’s utilizing a lot more of his core in the movements. Compound exercises like deadlifts, farmer’s walks, rope swings, squats, bent over rows, and the like all require a strong core.
Since much of a swimmer’s ability comes from their core strength, this makes sense. He’s even gone as far as to be releasing a core workout routine dvd.
Another aspect of his training is more explosive movements. This means things like high jumps, throwing heavy objects, medicine ball slams, and other types of “power” movements which activate the fast twitch muscle fibers. Since a swimmer needs speed, doing explosive fast movements is critical for training the nervous system to activate a muscle quickly and generate tremendous power.
Can The Average Person Do Ryan’s Exercise Program?
I would say yes and no. The style of training Ryan does is excellent for all around athleticism and physical fitness. But keep in mind he is a world class athlete that has built up a tremendous amount of physical strength and endurance and has access to the best trainers to ensure proper form and recovery.
The average person can however utilize many of the same exercises, but they must build up a certain capacity and base strength level before do workouts as hardcore as Ryan. If you’re just starting out, have only a few hours a week to workout, and want to get strong, fit, and ripped I’d suggest building the fundamentals with a book like Starting Strength which is the go-to book for the vast majority of people just getting into weight training. It teaches the proper form of the most powerful and essential exercises.
Once a person has built up a steady base of strength, they can start incorporating more strongman style training into their routine. Here’s an awesome article from T-Nation to get you started: Strongman Training.
If a person is more interested in building muscle mass, I recommend specialized strategies like those outlined in this report on maximizing muscle hypertrophy.
Ryan Lochte’s Diet Plan and Healthy Eating Style
Ryan’s success is in no doubt also related to the fact that he started changing how he eats. You may be surprised to know most athletes, even olympic athletes eat a lot of junk food. This is especially true for swimmers who burn a lot of calories during the day and it can be hard to consume enough calories without eating a bit of “junk”.
But Ryan Lochte wanted to be “the best,” so he put his effort into eating cleaner foods. While he used to eat fast food just about every day, he’s ditched that for a healthier diet.
He’s stated that some typical meals he eats are chicken breasts, eggs, oatmeal, fruit, salads, and other whole unprocessed foods. Nothing too “crazy,” just common sense stuff like we recommend here at Excuse Proof Fitness both on our healthy eating youtube channel and in our free weight loss survival guide.
What Ryan Can Teach Us
1. Hardcore training gets you hardcore results. Whether you want to be a world champion or just a bit stronger and more fit, you’ve got to put in the sweat and effort. Results don’t come without hard work. But you don’t need to spend hours and hours getting those results, high intensity work done for short periods of time often trumps spending hours doing something that isn’t very challenging.
2. Diet and exercise go hand in hand. He could have simply trained harder and would still be one of the best in the world. But he wanted to be THE best, so he put just as much focus on his diet.
3. He’s got a rock-solid mindset and will do whatever it takes to win. He trained harder and ate better than his competitors, and it paid off. Even if you’re not striving to be an Olympic caliber athlete or competing against others, why note compete against yourself to be better than you were yesterday?
If you’re looking for more mindset and motivation tips, be sure to like our facebook page and download our survival guide for diet and workout tips.
We here at Excuse Proof Fitness (Derek and Shane) LOVE our goji berries, also known as wolfberries or by their Latin name Lycium Barbarum.
Not only are they great because of their delicious taste, but they have some incredible health benefits. Goji berries are one of the most prized herbs in Chinese medicine for longevity. They are an adaptogenic “herb” which means they help balance the body’s chemistry and resilience to stress.
Now, I won’t go overboard and claim they are going to fix all of one’s health problems like some overzealous health gurus out there are saying, but a few thousand years of successful use in China for improving overall health and well-being leads me to believe there really is something to this fruit, and anyone who’s tried them on a regular basis can likely attest the same. I’ve even heard stories saying that Tibetan monks who study Chinese medicine have said if one is going to start studying any herb in Chinese medicine, study the goji berry first.
But if you’ve ever tried Goji Berries bought from a local health food store or vitamin store, you may find them to be very dry, somewhat bitter, and not particularly all that enjoyable by themselves.
I felt the same until I found what I consider to be the best Goji Berries out there, Dragon Herbs Heaven Mountain Goji Berries. I have no association with Dragon Herbs, but we as well as some other goji fanatics found them to be the best because they are:
A) Much more moist than the typical hard-as-a-rock gojis
B) Fresher
C) Come from the original source of Goji Berries in Tibet.
Best Places To Buy Goji Berries Online
Having a local Dragon Herbs here in LA makes getting access to them easy. But you can actually find them at the best price online through iHerb, one of my favorite online supplement retailers. Considering they are pretty much the same price as most other goji brands, I figure you can’t go wrong.
Note: First time iHerb customers save $5 on their first order through that link
Other Places To Purchase Goji Berries
Goji berries are popular enough that you can find them in most major health food stores like Whole Foods and supplement retailers. The price will be higher and typical gojis don’t taste that great, but if you buy in bulk or just before expiration you can find good deals and the health benefits are still there in the drier gojis.
How Much To Take
The health benefits of goji berries can be obtained with just an ounce or two a day. That makes a typical 8oz bag last a week. So factoring that in, you’re looking at spending a few dollars a day to get your goji fix. Not bad when you can consider them a “supplement” that far exceeds any multi-vitamin. But that being said, we realize they’re not within everyone’s budget.
If you’re looking for a good alternative adaptogenic herb that’s more budget friendly, I highly recommend the herb Ashwagandha as the Sensoril extract. It amounts to a few bucks a month and has been shown in research to have a pretty powerful effect at reducing excess cortisol, the primary stress hormone. This is due to its adaptogenic nature similar to goji berries. While they don’t offer quite the exact same health benefits, Ashwagandha is worth taking regardless as an all around general health tonic.
Note, some cortisol is necessary and the beauty of herbs like Ashwagandha is they keep things in balance without dropping hormone levels too low or raising them too much.
It doesn’t get much easier (or tastier) than this!
Getting Raw Greens To Taste Great
I have a confession… I HATE raw dark leafy greens like spinach. Despite their numerous health benefits, I had the hardest time finding a way to make greens like spinach taste good.
If I decided to cook spinach, I’d end up with a slimy nasty mess. And if I kept it raw and made a big salad, it was time consuming, boring, and something I would have to force myself to eat.
So what’s a health fanatic to do? Well, I developed a super ninja tactic that turns any leafy green like spinach into a downright delicious meal, all in about a minute. Using this technique, I’ve unlocked the secret of how to make spinach taste great and I actually look forward to chowing down on a bunch of greens.
Granted, I may just be weird for not liking spinach and perhaps you love raw greens. But either way, when you learn how to make any healthy food like spinach taste better, you’re far more likely to eat healthier on a regular basis.
But before we get to the recipe, let’s cover briefly why you should be making an effort to get a crap-ton more dark greens and spinach into your diet.
Health Benefits of Spinach and Dark Leafy Greens
Chlorophyll – Chlorophyll, the pigment that give greens their green color, is a wonder compound all in its own. Chlorophyll can increase the production and quality of red blood cells, has been associated with reduction in cancer, it prevents free radical damage (aging), detoxifies heavy metals, helps fight infection, provides magnesium, and does more than could possibly be listed here. All-in-all, eat more greens!
Cancer Protective – The abundant flavonoids in spinach have been linked to protecting against cancer. Leafy greens are some of the most powerful cancer fighting foods on the planet.
Nutrient Dense – Spinach and other leafy greens are constantly ranked as some of the most nutrient dense foods on the planet. That means you get a lot of nutrition without a lot of calories. This is particularly important for fat loss as the fiber in these greens can fill you up while the vitamins and minerals can nourish you so you don’t feel deprived even if you’re eating less calories.
Bone Strength – Spinach is one of the richest sources of vitamin K which works to keep the bones strong.
Quick and Easy Sixty Second Spinach Salad Recipe
See video above for the basic run-down of how to make the salad.
The basic recipe is as follows:
Ingredients:
6-8oz of leafy greens, spinach was used in this video
1/2 teaspoon of unrefined salt
Toppings of choice (dried fruit, berries, garlic, chopped cucumber, etc.)
Dressing of choice (coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, dried spices, salsa, etc.)
Directions:
1. Add a pinch of salt to spinach and crush down with your hands.
2. Add toppings as desired. In the video, I use salsa, dried “Italian spices,” and a little bit of curry powder.
3. Mix the wet toppings like the salsa with the spinach and enjoy!
This recipe is great not only because it improves the flavor of the spinach, but also because it condenses it down into a much smaller size making it easy to eat quickly. Now you can easily get in 8 – 16 ounces of spinach in a single sitting or all in a matter of about 5 minutes. Try to eat a regular spinach salad with a pound of spinach and see how long it takes you!
Variations of The Sixty Second Salad
1. Use Kale, Romaine Lettuce, or any other dark leafy green in place of spinach.
2. Add coconut oil for enhanced fat loss.
3. Use healthy homemade sauces like greek yoghurt combined with onion soup mix for a “onion spinach dip.”
4. Get creative and add in whatever spices, flavorings, and sauces you can think of.
As a special free gift to my readers, Dave Ruel and Karine Losier has provided a free pdf ebook with 7 great fat loss cooking tricks to download including some great home-made salad dressings to use on the sixty second spinach salad. Just right-click this link or the image and save to your computer.
What Is Hypothyroidism and Do You Actually Have It?
Hypothyroidism is one of the most common reasons people give for not being able to lose fat. While it can be scoffed at as merely an “excuse” for not following a proper diet or exercise program, it is nevertheless a very real condition that is relatively common.
Hypothyroidism occurs when the thyroid doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormones. It is usually characterized by having insufficient T4 (thyroxine) and raised TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) which has increased in order to raise T4 levels. While this is a simple explanation, it is extremely insufficient to cover the wide range of thyroid problems as there are many variations of hormone imbalances that could be responsible for an under active thyroid.
Difficulty losing weight is the most notable symptom of an under performing thyroid, but some other common symptoms include constipation, sensitivity to cold and cold skin, fatigue, dry skin, brittle nails, and decreased immune function.
Home Test For Thyroid Insufficiency
A simple home test that can be done is something called the “Barnes” test. It is done by taking your temperature under the tongue first thing in the morning. 97.2-98.2 is considered normal. If you find your temperature falls below this, that may be a sign of under-active thyroid. Menstruating women should only take this test the 2nd or 3rd day after menstruation begins.
The Best Supplements To Increase Thyroid Function Naturally
Perhaps you’ve done the Barnes test or ideally gone to a Dr. and determined your thyroid function isn’t what it could be. While drugs are a potential fix, they doesn’t always address the underlying root cause of a thyroid condition.
Luckily, there are many great natural things that can be done to boost thyroid function safely, and improve health at the same time. The great thing about these supplements is that they are safe and effective for anyone to take regardless of their thyroid health.
Natural Thyroid Booster 1 – Ashwagandha
Ashwagandha is quite possibly my favorite herb to take for overall health and healthy weight loss. It is an adaptogenic herb which means it helps the body cope with stress, reduce cortisol levels (another cause of abdominal weight gain), and improve the thyroid function. It is safe, affordable, and the extract has been shown to be highly effective both in reducing cortisol levels and in subjective experiences of increased energy. Given that it helps not only the thyroid but the adrenals as well, it makes an excellent all around “must-have” tonic herb that everyone can take.
Iodine is the most important mineral for thyroid function. Without enough iodine the body cannot produce enough T3 (thyroxine) a thyroid hormone. While it’s been said in mainstream medicine that iodine deficiency is usually not a problem, the work of researchers such as Dr. David Brownstein and Dr. Guy Abraham have shown that supplementing with higher doses of iodine is not only safe, but very effective in treating many thyroid conditions.
Considering that in many Asian countries the intake of iodine rich sea vegetables is much higher than in other countries and they don’t suffer ill effect, it leads me to believe that increasing iodine can be beneficial and prudent when done through quality sea vegetables like kelp or dulse. Taking Lugol’s or Nascent iodine is another option, but one I recommend a bit more caution with as it can be too powerful for some.
Dose: 2-4 tablespoons of kelp or dulse, or 1mg iodine and work up to more a day.
NOTE: Iodine works with other minerals like zinc, magnesium and selenium. Adding in a few brazil nuts for selenium can help assist the functioning of iodine in the thyroid. Magnesium is an extremely common deficiency and I suggest taking 200-400mg a day.
What better way to improve the thyroid than to take an actual thyroid? It may sound strange, but taking glandulars (the glands of an animal) has actual been shown to improve the same gland in the body. The reasons for this could be many, but the take home point is that freeze-dried bovine thyroid could be beneficial for those needing a boost to their own thyroid function. It’s also worth noting that our ancestors would have eaten the organs and tissues of the animals they ate. This obviously goes without saying, but this supplement choice is not vegan friendly so if that’s an issue, stick with the other options as this isn’t necessary.
Coleus Forskohlii contains an active compound called forskolin which has been shown to improve thyroid function and increase fat breakdown with little to no side effects. It increases thyroid hormone production as well as stimulates the release of the thyroid hormones. It is also useful for other conditions such as cramps, high blood pressure, boosting the immune system, and for improving blood flow to the brain.
10-30 mg a day.
Getting Tested For Your Unique Supplement Needs:
While I can offer general advice for addressing various deficiencies, getting objective analysis of your own needs is often the best course of action. Getting a test done to determine any potential nutritional deficiencies can help you find what you’re low in, and avoid wasting your money supplementing on things you don’t need or worse yet, getting too much of something and throwing things off-balance.
Check out http://spectracell.com and schedule a mineral analysis to find what you may need to supplement with.
Top Foods and Diet Tips For Thyroid Health
A healthy diet is one of the most critical aspects of a health body and healthy glands. Luckily, there are a few things we can do to improve the diet to boost thyroid function. These things include what we can add in, as well as things to look out for and minimize.
Natural Thyroid Booster 5 – Coconut Oil
Using coconut oil in place of vegetable oils and other fats can not only offset the negative effects of those oils, but provide its own benefits. In fact, this fat can actually help you lose fat! Well if you’ve been following the natural health movement in recent years, you’ve probably already heard about the benefits of coconut oil. If not, check this out.
Coconut oil is rich in medium-chain triglycerides which have been shown to reduce fat and improve insulin sensitivity.
Dose: 1-3 tablespoons a day.
Bonus Natural Thyroid Booster – Goji Berries
While goji berries aren’t directly a “thyroid boosting food,” their indirect benefits make them incredibly worthwhile. They’re rich in antioxidants, are associated with longevity, and are powerful adaptogenics which help bring everything back into balance. You’ll see that I’m a big believer in adaptogens as they work with the body rather than forcing it to do something like a drug does. This means over time they help correct disorders and are safe for anyone to take regardless of their specific health concerns.
Whether or not a person suffers from thyroid problems, taking more foods like goji berries can have a huge impact on overall health and well-being.
Foods To Watch Out For
Goitrogens – Goitrogens are found in foods like the cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, kale, brussels sprouts) and are best limited for those suffering from hypothyroidism. That being said, so long as these foods are cooked that will significantly reduce the level of goitrogens.
Soy – Soy also has a negative effect on thyroid function. It’s best to be reduced or eliminated.
Vegetable Oils – The oxidation caused by vegetable oils like canola, sunflower, and soybean oil can reduce tissue response to thyroid hormones.
Overcoming Weight Issues
A sound diet and exercise program are the best bets to overcoming weight issues for anyone regardless of their thyroid health. The problem however with typical recommendations to “eat less, exercise more” is that, when a person has a underactive thyroid, simply eating less won’t do. They must take the necessary steps to boost thyroid function, and engage in a diet that doesn’t cause metabolic shutdown.
You can also just follow the healthy eating and lifestyle tips found in my free survival guide which will give you a good start.
Getting Professional Help
If you’re truly worried about the health of your thyroid, please seek the professional care of an integrative physician. You can find a physician through acam.org or ICIM.
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Reader Comments: What are your favorite natural thyroid or metabolism boosters?
There’s been a bit of buzz lately though about her recent slimming down in 2012 thanks to her unique diet and exercise approach. Combine this with her sudden recent wedding engagement to Liam Hemsworth and she’s got a lot of people talking.
I wanted to take a look Miley Cyrus workout routine and diet plan as I’m always a bit curious about the approach celebrities take to getting in shape because:
A) Whether “fair” or not, celebrities and in particular female celebrities like Miley have ridiculous pressure to make sure they look good and stay in shape leading to…
B) Using their crap-tons of cash to hire the world’s best trainers and nutritionists to make sure they look good and stay in shape.
Factoring in celebrities often fall for worthless fad diets and programs, we’re left with
C) The fun job of sorting fact from fiction so we can get the same “secrets” celebs use to get a Hollywood body without having to spend a fortune.
Luckily, I’ve done the heavy lifting for you and will share the good, the bad, and the ugly of Miley Cyrus’ fitness regimen.
Stick around to find out:
Miley Cyrus’ workouts and exercise routines
My favorite “tricks” to get Miley Cyrus’ lean body without having to spend hours a week in exercise classes
The “controversial” diet purported to be responsible for her rapid slim down, and whether it really works
The one thing to absolutely AVOID in order to lose fat following her diet and the best alternatives
What Type Of Workouts Does Miley Do?
Miley takes Pilates classes regularly under the instruction of Mari Winsor. While traveling, she uses Mari Winsor’s workout dvds including the pilates lower body dvd and pilates abs dvd.
Pilates Videos:
Pilates is a good form of exercise for developing body awareness, improving posture, strengthening, and enhancing flexibility. It is low-impact, lower intensity, and generally very safe. Women tend to like it because they can often focus on strengthening the core and glutes, two areas almost every women wants to “shape up.”
Now here’s the kicker, Miley does these Pilates classes 6 times a week!
Now in case you’re wondering if you need to do Pilates 6 times a week to get those results, my educated answer is a resounding no.
While you can get away with doing Pilates six times a week because it is fairly low intensity, that doesn’t mean you need to in order to get similar results. Alternatively, you could add another type of training all together for similar results with less time spent exercising.
How Ordinary Women Can Get Miley Cyrus’ Results:
For those who are unable to take one-on-one Pilates classes with Mari, she’s made her dvd programs available where you can follow along.
Women tend to flock to Pilates because they use words like “tone,” “slimming,” “shaping,” and the like. While Pilates, yoga, and other similar forms of exercise are all wonderful in their own rights, my (admittedly biased) opinion is that most women should still include some higher resistance strength training.
Heavier resistance training, either on its own or in combination with Pilates, Yoga, or other forms of exercise will strengthen and “tone” a muscle much faster than low intensity exercise. This allows women to train 2-3 times a week and still get the same (or better) results.
While some women fear this will make them “bulky,” resistance training done properly will NOT result in too much muscle, but the right amount for whatever a woman desires as a woman can always tone her resistance training down according to her needs. I would argue that resistance training is the fastest way to a lean sexy body most women want.
Her Dramatic Dietary Weight Loss Diet Strategy?
Miley Cyrus has stated she follows a gluten-free and lactose free diet, and that those are the reasons she has lost weight rather than anorexia.
For those who don’t know, gluten is a type of protein found in certain grains like wheat, rye, and barley. Individual’s with Celiacs do not tolerate gluten and some people have a mild sensitivity to it. Gluten can be an irritant to the GI tract in sensitive people and it’s been purported that removing it would thus allow for a reduction in inflammation and potentially enhanced health.
Books like the G-Free Diet have popularized the gluten-free approach and many celebrities have been jumping on board. Doctors promoting more natural approaches to health like Dr. Mercola have also long encouraged the reduction or elimination of gluten and most grains.
With regards to lactose, it is a type of sugar found in milk products. Those whom don’t produce the enzyme lactase cannot properly digest it also leading to digestive disorders.
So reducing gluten and lactose seem to be prudent for those who are sensitive to them for health reasons, but does it lead to weight loss or is it recommended for everyone?
Gluten Free Diet Controversy – I CAN’T Believe This!
While this article from US Weekly explains how experts have “slammed” Miley for her gluten free diet, closer examination reveals something a little different.
What’s being said is that a gluten free diet may not be necessary for everyone, gluten free diets can actually lead to weight gain from increased nutrition uptake (a good thing), and that gluten free diets have been associated with nutritional deficiencies.
While I won’t argue with the technicality of those points, let’s look at what’s really being said.
Gluten Free Diets aren’t need for everyone: Yes, but gluten-containing diets aren’t needed for anyone. While I don’t think everyone must follow a gluten free diet for either health or fat loss, technically speaking gluten and gluten containing foods aren’t necessary for human health so a person can do just fine without them.
Gluten Free Diets can lead to weight gain in those with Celiacs: Yes, by increasing nutritional absorption. This would be a “healthy” weight gain. Weight loss via a gluten free diet would likely be an indirect result of other things like better food choices.
Gluten Free Diets have been associated with nutritional deficiencies: Yes, but only when people substitute gluten containing foods for crappy alternatives. The nutrients found in wheat, the most common gluten containing food people eat, can easily be replaced by other foods MUCH richer in those nutrients like greens, beans and lentils, vegetables, fruits, and meat.
Is gluten free healthy?
Done properly, in my opinion (I’m not a registered dietician and am no way telling anyone how to eat) I would prefer a gluten free diet most of the time. I don’t strictly eat gluten free as most people can tolerate it well enough in small amounts, and the thing to remember is that gluten is just one of many dietary components that could or could NOT lead to health issues.
Eating gluten free doesn’t mean one has to buy all these expensive specialty gluten free products. Nor is it a free ticket to eat a bunch of crap in place of gluten.
One of the biggest mistakes people make when going gluten free is to assume “gluten free = healthy” and then going overboard with a bunch of unhealthy foods all in the name of avoiding gluten. Instead, it’s much healthier (and cheaper) to eat quality whole foods like brown rice, quinoa, beans and lentils, and or just other non-starchy foods like fiberous vegetables, fruit, and protein in place of gluten containing grains.
If you want a simple free weight loss diet guide, then check out this free fat loss e-series which lays out the basics of eating for weight loss.
Following the suggestions in my free health and fitness free survival guide would also be a good starting point.
Lactose free?
I also like a lactose reduced or free diet as lactose can cause digestive issues in many people. If you still like your dairy, try including some greek yoghurt or kefir with active cultures. Cultured dairy often has far less lactose. Cultured dairy like kefir is also an excellent source of beneficial bacteria referred to as probiotics. Probiotics have been shown to play a role in everything ranging from immune system health, skin appearance, and even weight gain or loss!
Getting Your Own Miley Cyrus “Hollywood” Body:
Pilates Videos:
Free Diet And Weight Loss Guide:
Free Fat Loss E-Series – Isabel De Los Rios lays out the basics of which foods to eat and avoid in this highly recommended series for anyone looking to learn the must know information for healthy weight loss.
Tom’s Diet and Workout Get Him Ripped For Rock of Ages
Although I’m not big on celebrities, I’ve got to give Tom Cruise some credit for not only his acting abilities, but for getting in great shape at his age. His recent Mission Impossible films and his newest movie “Rock Of Ages” (which I hear isn’t great; which is sad being a fan of 80’s rock myself), shows of a physique that makes many men half his age jealous. I guess you can say his body… “rocks of age-lessness.”
No? So that wasn’t my best. Stick around and I promise a better pun.
What’s Tom’s secret to getting such a lean ripped body?
Is it some extreme diet, hardcore exercise plans, supplements, or even drugs? (Don’t underestimate what some actors do for a role)
It seems you can’t walk into any bookstore without seeing hundreds of different books all promoting contradictory approaches to what the “best” diet is for any purpose. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all the recommendations ranging from low-carb, low-fat, vegetarian and vegan, paleo, intermittent fasting, high protein, Mediterranean, blood type, and countless other incarnations.
Almost everyone is claiming they’re right about the best way to lose fat, pack on muscle, and banish disease forever, but in the end people looking for answers just end up more confused, overwhelmed, and likely to give up all together with the massive amount of conflicting advice going around. I’ve spent literally thousands of hours digging through all sorts of conflicting advice, so I know first hand how hard it can be to make sense of it all.
And yet I can’t help but wonder, how many people need to read a frickin’ book to realize that perhaps french fries and soft drinks everyday aren’t going to get them the six pack and lean body they’ve wanted. The biggest problem may not be that people are ignorant to what they can do, but they’re just simply overwhelmed with too much information and need something simpler that they can latch onto.
