4 Simple Tips Women Over 50 Can Use To Combat The Munchies

Women over 50 experience a number of hormonal changes that lead to changes in metabolism. These changes may lead to weight gain, especially in the belly as well as fatigue. Women over 50 may also begin to notice that they develop a food intolerance to certain types of foods, especially wheat and dairy. These factors can lead to strong food cravings.

If you feel as if you are constantly sabotaging your diet due to uncontrollable bouts of the munchies, then use these easy tricks to stop the cravings before they strike.

4 simple tips women over 50 can use to combat the munchies

1. Eat carbs after exercise. After the age of 50 muscle mass decreases; therefore it is important for every woman over the age of 50 to workout with both resistance exercises and aerobically. However, a common pitfall of dieting along with exercise is that exercise stimulates your appetite.

This happens because exercise depletes stored carbohydrates. When carb stores are low your body boosts carb cravings to replenish them, leaving you with a hard to control case of the munchies. To combat this, allow yourself a carbohydrate after a workout. This doesn't have to be junk food, whole grain bread or whole pieces of fruit work great.

2. Identify Hidden Food Intolerances. Food intolerance may increase with age. This is different than a food allergy. An allergy will lead to the sudden onset of symptoms, such as hives, itchy throat, and possibly breathing difficulties. Food intolerance symptoms develop more slowly and are harder to identify.

If you notice that you feel bloated, gassy, and tired during the day, you may be experiencing a food intolerance to something such as dairy or wheat. Food intolerance creates an inflammatory response inside your body and this can leave you feeling unsatisfied with your diet, which can lead you to crave junk food.

Try eliminating dairy products for one week and notice if your cravings diminish. If not, eliminate wheat the next week and check again.

3. Watch out for trans fats. You have probably heard that trans fats are not good for your health, but did you also know that they stimulate cravings? Trans fats have actually been nicknamed the "addictive" additive. Have you ever eaten one chip and then found yourself gorging on the entire bag? If so, you have seen firsthand the effects of trans fat.

Check your labels, or better yet avoid boxed or bagged products, which are notorious for their trans fat content.

4. Avoid long-term low carb diets. Choosing to eat a low carb diet can work for weight loss, but stay on this diet for more than a week and you will stimulate strong food cravings. This is because your body senses the loss of its valuable energy source, carbs. When this loss is sensed the amount of the fat-burning hormone leptin plummets.

Leptin's job is to keep you from starving and when its level drops, your body tries to force you to eat by stimulating an intolerable case of the munchies. If you want to stay on a low carb diet, be smart and take one day during the week to eat a high-carb meal. This not only allows you to feel better on the diet, it also gives you a scheduled break that keeps the munchies at bay.

If you struggle with losing weight after the age of 50, then you are not alone. There is no better time to lose weight then right now, and remember that every successful weight loss story begins at the same place - setting a goal.

Colon Hydrotherapy - What Is a Colonic?

"Colon hydrotherapy is a safe, effective method of removing waste from the large intestine, without the use of drugs. By introducing filtered and temperature regulated water into the colon, the waste is softened and loosened, resulting in evacuation through natural peristalsis." Dorothy Chandler, RN and President of I-ACT

Colon hydrotherapy is a safe, clean and relaxing method of removing toxins and waste from the colon or large intestine through the gentle infusion of water. The colon is a repository of all the accumulated waste in the body. Research has shown that an unhealthy colon is the cause of some of today's most serious health conditions, including cancer, heart disease and obesity. An unhealthy person can be carrying around a few kilos of impacted toxic waste material which becomes a breeding ground for pathogens such as parasites and fungi, resulting in the rest of the body receiving a dirty blood supply.

"Every tissue is fed by the blood, which is supplied by the intestinal system. When the intestines are dirty, the blood is dirty and so are the organs and the tissues. It is the intestinal system that has to be cared for before any effective healing can take place." 
Dr. Bernard Jensen

Being toxic and struggling with health issues can make life on a daily basis very difficult, draining your energy reserves, making you tired, lethargic, irritable and fatigued, often leading to poor decision making, thus to more stress on the system and in one's life. The colonic experience does not just help to rid the body of toxins, but also to kick-start the system and bring clarity of mind, all of which are needed in today's fast-paced world. Clients report feeling younger, fitter and healthier and having a new zest for life, helping them to go forward to enjoy each day and deal with the many problems with which life presents them.

Why do we need to cleanse the colon?

Toxins are abundant in our food supply, cleaning products, water, air, prescriptions and over the counter drugs, personal care products, and especially in recreational drugs such as caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol. Once processed by the liver, a large percentage of these toxins must leave through the colon. Unfortunately, most people's colons are backed up with undigested processed fiberless foods and mucoid plaque. The average person has 3-4 kilos of fecal matter in their colon! How can we expect to feel our best while carrying around this toxic burden?

Every organ, gland and cell in the body is affected by the condition of the colon

According to James F.Balch, M.D. and Phyllis A.Balch, C.N.C. in their book, Prescription for Nutritional Healing, "Toxins accumulated over the time in the colon circulate throughout the body via the bloodstream and leads to the absorption of toxins, resulting in intoxication (poisoning) of the whole body. Symptoms of this condition can include mental confusion, depression, irritability, fatigue, gastrointestinal irregularities and even allergic reactions such as hives, eczema, sneezing and coughing and lead to more serious disorders. Colon cleansing can rid the colon of debris, and help prevent and treat a variety of health problems."

The colon is one of the primary organs of elimination in the human body. When the colon is not clean, nutrient absorption is drastically reduced, and complete elimination of waste material may not occur. When the body does not release waste material, this toxic matter can build up in the system, and negatively impact other organs. Over time, the lymph, blood, and intestines become increasingly toxic and disease may form.

Does Aloe Vera Acne Treatment Actually Work In Dealing With Acne?

If you really want to wipe acne off your skin, then it is in your best interest to keep your options open. Although the popular products are the ones that you can easily buy at your neighborhood pharmacy, the sad fact is that some of these products are not good for your skin in the long run. This is the reason why using natural and healthy options like aloe vera can be your best option in treating your annoying acne breakout problem.

You first have to be aware that acne is caused by multiple factors. There are some individuals that get acne because of hormonal imbalance. This is usually the case if you are experiencing puberty or menopause or when you are menstruating. In some other cases, it could just be as a result of oil building up on your skin which blocks your sebaceous glands. The bacteria in these glands multiply rapidly and cause your skin to become inflamed - this shows itself in form of pimples on the surface of the skin.

Aloe Vera Acne Treatment To The Rescue!

I am sure you already know how an aloe vera plant looks like. It is similar in a way to a cactus plant and it grows in so many places in the world most especially warm and sunny climates. Don't be fooled by the ordinary looking appearance of the plant - the juice inside the leaves have lots of medicinal uses. This is the reason why this plant has been used for centuries now.

The juice in aloe vera has two properties that make it very useful in dealing with your acne problem and they are:

Antibacterial - since we already know that pimples usually results because of an increase in bacteria in the sebaceous glands, it means you need to use a solution that fights the bacteria. Now this is where the juice comes in - it contains gibberellins and polysaccharides which are very effective in dealing with bacteria.

When you use the aloe vera plant juice on your skin and you combine it with a diet that helps in lowering your body's natural production of clogging oils, you would succeed in dealing with the oil and bacterial issues that cause pimples.

Astringent - If you are like most folks that have issues with pimples, then you must have bought a skin cleansing astringent from your neighborhood pharmacy previously. The bad rap about these astringents is that they are all alcohol bases and this in most cases causes you skin to dry out which even leads to more skin problems.

As for using the juice actually helps in drying out the pimples and reducing the size of your pores without causing any skin troubles for you.

How To Use Aloe Vera To Fight Acne.

If you are really concerned about dealing with your pimples, then you need to make aloe vera use a part of your daily skin care routine. Just merely applying the juice on your skin a few times would not be enough to wipe away your acne breakouts.

Now that you are aware of this, you have got to buy an aloe vera plant, although you can go for the packaged aloe vera gel or aloe vera juice - it is best you go straight to the source itself (the plant).

When you get the plant, simply cut one of the leaves and use a knife to extract the sap (juice) of the leaf and put in a plastic container. All you need to do is to apply the juice to the areas where the pimples are - this should be done one hour before you go to bed and you should leave it on overnight if you want better results.

This little change to your cleansing regimen can help clear acne breakouts from your skin in a very short period of time - so I advise that you begin using aloe vera acne treatment today.

Learning How To Lose Weight Fast And Keep It Off

Everyone wants to know how to lose weight fast, humans are impatient by their very nature. If you are truly interested in losing weight and keeping it off then you need to get one thing very clear right away, there is no room for gimmicks and that is the truth. There are some people who think that by taking a special powder or drinking only a particular juice they will realize their weight loss goals. The reality is your weight gain took time and is a complex challenge so you will need to take some time to get long term, sustainable results from your weight loss goals.

The first thing you need to do when trying to lose weight fast is go and visit your doctor for a full physical. This is something most of us overlook and could end up regretting it over the long term. There has been a substantial increase in the number of people claiming to be diabetic and if you are suffering from that condition it is critical to have a doctor monitor it or you could end up regretting it.

After you have spoken with your doctor and have been given the all clear the next step in your weight loss plan is to take out the processed foods from your diet. This is something that cannot be stressed enough. The processed foods that we eat may be convenient and taste good but they are packed with empty calories that will make us feel hungry all of the time and make us more prone to gain weight.

Once you have cut the processed food out of your diet the next thing you have to do is make sure you are getting enough calories in your diet to give your body what it needs most which is enough food to function properly. There are some people who starve their body hoping it will speed up the weight loss when it actually slows your metabolic rate and when you start to eat again you will binge eat making you even fatter.

What you should do is find a partner who you can exercise with on an ongoing basis. Studies have conclusively shown that when a person exercises and eats a healthy diet they are more likely to lose weight and keep it off than those who just diet. Given these facts it is vital that you take better care of your health and follow these tips. Weight loss is a realistic goal provided you approach it with the right mindset.

Paleo Diet Basics - What You Need to Know!

Everyone is looking for the best diet for them and a diet that will help them attain and maintain a healthy body weight. One diet that has been gaining a lot of attention in the last few years is the Paleo Diet. Simply put it is eating as our prehistoric ancestors would have done. In this article I will go over the Paleo Diet basics are, what the benefits you can expect from it, and why it might be right for your life!

After the '80s and the craze of fad diets (can you say grapefruit anyone?) several better diet options emerged that were slightly more well rounded, such as the low-carb diets, but these still weren't quite in line with what we really should be eating. Seriously, does anyone think that eating bacon every day, no matter how delicious, is the ticket to losing weight and living a healthy life?

The Paleo Diet takes some from the low carb camp and the raw food craze and tempers them with a more realistic view of what our bodies have evolved to eat and digest (and I'm not talking about hot dogs.) The Paleo Diet basics are that we should be eating:

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Lean Meat
• Seafood
• Nuts and Seeds
• Healthy Fats

Essentially this means eating the things we find in nature and that if you were living off the land would find to eat today. The basic idea is that our bodies evolved eating these foods and that they are the ideal mix of proteins and starches that we should be eating now.

How Is This Different From Low Carb?

The general low-carb diets eschew eating any carbohydrates while the Paleo Diet basics include things like fresh fruits and vegetables. The Paleo Diet also doesn't include any dairy which is a big dietary problem for many people these days. Too many years of hormone laced milk has made even people who should tolerate dairy well, sensitive or even allergic to it.

The Paleo Diet really focuses on smaller portions of higher quality nutrients. One such difference is that it emphazises 100% grass fed meats instead of mass produced grain fed beef and hot-house chickens.

Some Benefits of This Diet Plan

A lot of people first look at the Paleo Diet as a way to lose weight. The absence of processed foods, grains, and sugars along with a focus on fresh fruits and vegetables and high quality lean meats means that shedding unwanted body fat is easier. Many people find that adhering to the Paleo Diet makes it easier to resist cheating as the foods they are eating tend make them feel more full for a longer period of time.

Beyond the weight loss benefits, there are claims of improved cardiovascular health, decreased risk of diabetes, reduced allergies, sustained energy and blood sugar levels, clearer skin, an improved ability to sleep, and a general improvement in people's moods.

Should You Go On the Paleo Diet?

If you have been fighting to lose weight, and just aren't happy with the results that you are getting with traditional weight loss methods then you should definitely give the Paleo Diet a look. There are many great resources for recipes and that is really a big help in keeping you from getting in a rut with your cooking. Getting burned out on what you are eating is one of the big reasons people quit their diets and go back to eating junk food!

How to Increase Your Pull Up Strength

Why Most People Struggle With Pull Ups

Pull Ups are one the exercises everyone knows they should be doing, but more often than not it's also one most people skip over when they're first starting to get serious with exercise.

For beginner athletes they simply don't have the strength in their back and arm muscles to lift their entire bodyweight up to a pull up bar. Intermediate gym goers actually probably have it worse because if they've neglected Pull Ups this will often reveal huge gaps in their training program.

The best way to make sure there aren't any gaps in your training is to focus on the four key points below to begin making Pull Ups a successful part of your regular strength program.

Tip #1 - Know How Your Muscles Get Stronger

Pull Ups are a compound exercise. This means you're not only engaging your back muscles, as this is commonly listed as a pure back exercise. Instead, and one of the better reasons why you should be working with them, is you're stimulating several muscle groups at once.

Simply by using Pull Ups you can create solid strength in your Biceps, Lats, Shoulders and also the Traps. Each of those muscles get fired up all at once to allow you to complete a single rep.

Now you can simply struggle through Pull Ups and power up these sets of muscles. And that's what most people believe is the only way to spark their starting strength on to a whole new level.

However, there's a much easier way that's unfortunately too often neglected. It's all about knowing which phase of an exercise movement creates stronger muscles.

The three phases of every movement are the Concentric Phase, the Transition Phase, and finally the Eccentric Phase.

The Concentric Phase is where the muscle contracts. It's here that most people believe strength gets nurtured. It's actually promoted through the latter part of the movement, the Eccentric Phase.

Tip #2 - Using the Eccentric Phase to Elevate Strength

Making the muscles stronger actually occurs when the muscle is taken out of the contracted state. Most beginners will benefit in their Pull Up progress by slowly exiting the Concentric Phase.

So, to see the furthest strength gains as quick as possible you should be spending most of your time and attention in the negative of a movement, or the Eccentric Phase.

To get started you don't even need to be strong enough to complete a Pull Up rep.

All you have to really do is grab onto a Pull Up bar and jump up so your chest is touching the bar. Most people think it's about getting the chin up to the bar. But, the correct form for the exercise is about driving the chest upwards so it makes contact with the bar.

One you've jumped up to the bar slowly lower your body down. It's important to stay in the Eccentric Phase for as long as possible. The slow and controlled descent will teach the muscle tissue how to perform under these circumstances.

Strength gains really come down to teaching your muscles to succeed. So, when working within the negative you won't want to hit absolute failure. Instead, stop when you've still got about one rep left in you.

Regularly hitting muscle failure will actually set your progress back. So, remember that you're only after fatiguing the muscles, not setting them up to fail.

Tip #3 - Stepping Up Your Pull Up Strength

The best format used to increase muscle strength, whether it's for Pull Ups or some other muscle group that needs a bit of attention, is Pyramid Training.

This method puts the muscles under the right amount of effort and recovery. The process is pretty simple, but far from being easy. To get started all you have to do one rep. From here just pause for how long it took to complete the single rep.

Next, when is step two on the pyramid, add an extra rep to the previous one. So, you do two reps in a row. After this simply rest for how long it took to complete the two consecutive reps. After that you simply work your way up to being able to complete a certain target of reps in a row.

For the complete beginner, they'll probably want to strive for five Pull Ups in a row. Or for someone who can already do that many, but really wants to jack up their rep counts, a good transition starting point is to aim for 10 reps in a row.

You can decide on any number. It's pretty easy to personalize this method to fit your training goals.

Tip #4 - Two Other Pull Up Methods

There are two other training tactics that is used to help anyone get better at Pull Ups, and those are Greasing the Groove and using Resistance Bands.

What Greasing the Groove does is forces you do complete single Pull Up reps over several times during the day. You'll need a doorway pull up bar for this to work. And after that all you have to do is mount in a door you consistently walk by several time during the day.

The resistance band method teaches your muscles the full range of motion Pull Ups offer. All you have to do is hook them on your Pull Up bar and either use your knees or feet as your anchor point to take some of the weight load off your weaker muscles.

The resistance band method can be applied to the Pyramid training format, or as a standalone method.

14 Day Weight Loss Jumpstart For Women Over 50

After a woman reaches the age of 50 hormonal changes start to shift the way fat is deposited in her body. This leads to increased belly fat and can leave a woman at higher risk for health problems such as heart disease and diabetes. To get control of your weight after the age of 50 follow this 14 day weight loss jumpstart.

3 step strategy to jumpstart weight loss in women over the age of 50:

1. Start with a Booster Meal. If you have been reducing your calorie intake for a period of time it is likely that your body has decreased its supply of fat burning hormones. The key fat burning hormone in your body is Leptin and when you stick to a strict diet this hormone can decrease as much as 50% taking your fat-burning potential down with it.

To boost leptin levels you want to boost your calorie intake, and in particular your carbohydrate intake. This might sound a bit odd, but the reality is that your body needs to know that you are not heading toward starvation in order to activate secretion of fat-burning hormones. Therefore, one day of eating a high carb diet will reset your hormone level and reset your body's ability to burn fat..

Take today and eat a high carb meal and do not be afraid to eat your favorite foods, including pizza, pasta, ice cream, and baked goods.

2. Reverse Taper your carbohydrates for the rest of the week. The key to successfully jumpstarting your weight loss is to keep your fat burning hormones working for you. Reverse tapering your carb intake allows you to get the full fat burning that comes with a lower carb diet, without diminishing your fat burning hormones.

To do this you want to take the two days after your Booster Meal and eat a diet that contains no more than 50 grams of carbs. Then, beginning on day three you want to add approximately 10 to 20 carbohydrate grams per day until your second Booster Meal at the beginning of week two.

3. Exercise to boost fat burning. Exercise will make your 14 day jumpstart more effective, but only if you exercise in a way that complements your diet. The day after your Booster Meal will be your most physically demanding workout of the week. For this workout you want to use resistance exercises, which could include lifting weights, performing bodyweight exercises, or doing yoga.

After that first day your exercise focus will shift to aerobic exercise. Aim for 30 minutes of light to moderate aerobic exercise each day that remains in the week. Then repeat this schedule for week two.

This 14 day weight loss jumpstart that begins with a Booster Meal will reset your fat burning hormones and allow your body to burn fat at a higher level. By adding reverse tapering and the right exercise you will keep your fat burning high and lose weight more rapidly.

4 Tips Show Women Over 50 How To Get Rid Of A Flabby Belly

After the age of 50 a woman is likely to notice a flabby belly, even if this had never been a problem in the past. This is due to changes in the body's composition related to menopause that make it easier for the body to deposit fat in the midsection, as opposed to the hips and legs. While hormonal changes naturally come with age, you do not have to settle for a flabby belly.

Follow these 4 tips to prevent or get rid of belly flab:

1. Do a Daily Calorie Swap. When you were in your teens and twenties carbohydrate calories were quickly converted in your body to energy. However, over the age of 50 your body is less efficient at turning the carbs you eat into energy, and these carbs often end up being stored as belly fat.

Therefore, you want to "eat for your age," and swap a couple of hundred carbohydrate calories for protein calories each day. For example, try having shrimp for a snack, instead of chips. Or, put a chicken breast on top of a bed of lettuce, instead of in a bun. By eating more protein and less carbs you work with your body to prevent fat storage.

2. Time Your Carb Intake. Carbohydrates are important foods that should be included in your daily diet. However, if you eat them at the wrong times they will contribute to a flabby belly. One of the best times to eat carbohydrates are in the morning when your metabolism is naturally spiked.

Another good time to consume carbs is before or after a workout. This allows the carbs you eat to be used up as energy and not stored as belly fat.

3. Cut Processed Foods. This tip alone may be enough to reduce a flabby belly. Processed food is any type of food that has been "processed," to either improve its shelf life or make it more convenient. Therefore, you can feel pretty confident that if the food item comes in a box or a bag, then it is a processed food.

The problem with processed foods is that they contain trans fats. These man-made fats are not easily handled by the digestive system and can wreak havoc on your metabolism. This makes them a problem for women trying to reduce belly fat.

4. Use Your Muscles. If muscle is not used, it is lost. Every pound of muscle on your body has the ability to burn about 50 calories a day. Therefore, if you do not work your muscles and lose 5 pounds of muscle after the age of 50, you must eat 250 calories less each day to prevent weight gain. This is why it is important to exercise and use your muscles.

Walking is good exercise, but make sure you also tax your muscles each week. Try weightlifting, yoga, bodyweight exercises or follow along with an exercise DVD.

Use these tips to get rid of a flabby belly and remember that there is no better time to create change then right now. And, all change starts with setting a clearly defined goal.

Work Your Way to a Beautiful Body

Everybody wishes to have a body that gives them confidence. The definition of a beautiful body may vary from one person to another, but despite your definition, some basic steps can make you have the body of your choice.

1. Measure yourself

Before you decide where you want to go, you have to know what you need to start your journey. Measuring your weight and heights will give you your body mass index (BMI). This is an index used to classify you as underweight, normal, overweight or obese. Knowing where you belong will help you know what you need to do to hit your target.

2. Know the problem

Get to know which part of your body you really have a problem with. This will help you in choosing those methods that will help you reach your target. If you have too much fat in your body and you want to lose it fast, you can get a liposuction, which they will remove the fat. If it's your muscles you need to build then you can take the necessary steps.

3. Work out

Exercises contribute much to having strong bodies even as we advance in age. However exercising without a plan can cause more harm than good. Once you know what you want to achieve as part of your beautiful body, choose an exercise that will help build on it. It can be for your legs, arms, chest, pelvis or even the abdomen.

4. Healthy eating

For you to have a beautiful body there are some foods that you will have to do away with even if they are your favorite foods. Do away with junk food and other fatty foodstuffs. Replace this with fruits and vegetable salads. Do not skip meals in an attempt to lose weight. Instead, you can have small healthy meals frequently. Keep off alcohol and smoking.

5. Drink a plenty of water

Water has many functions in our bodies and one of it is to keep your skin succulent and attractive. It also helps to remove wastes from our body and keep us full for a long time, reducing someone's appetite.

6. Strengthen all your muscles

People tend to be biased in the muscles they want to strengthen, but they forget others. This mostly applies to women. Having a flat tummy and strong arms or thighs with weak pelvic muscles is not good. Have even strong pelvic and even vaginal muscles by either exercising or getting a hymenoplasty surgery.

Work towards your own definition of a great body with these few tips. It does not matter what other people say, as long as you are comfortable in how you look and feel. Remember having a healthy body leads to a longer life.