Six Minutes to Success #1

Type 2 Diabetes and Weight Loss - Why You Might Not Be Losing Weight

Struggling to see those pounds come off? Don't feel too bad. Many people go on a diet and fail to see the scale move, but this does not always mean they are not getting results. In some cases, you could very well be seeing progress, and it is just the scale is not quite indicating it.

What does this mean? Learn why you may not be getting the weight loss results you want and what you can do about it...

1. Measuring Inaccuracies. The first reason you may not be seeing the weight loss success you thought is you do not weigh yourself correctly.

First, note there can be significant bodyweight fluctuations for reasons other than actual fat loss or gain. If you are retaining extra water, for instance, that can cause the scale to move. If you had a substantial meal the night before, that food weight could also come into play.

If your workout was the hardest you have ever done, you might be inflamed, and this could mean your scale weight appears higher. There are so many reasons why you may notice the scale fluctuations beyond fat loss, so it is not always the best judge.

2. You Could Be In A Temporarily Slow Phase. One thing you must know about weight loss is it is never linear. While it would be great if every week, like clockwork, you lost one pound, that is not how the story goes.

Some weeks you may lose two and others none. It is all part of the weight loss game. So if you have gone a week or even two without losing weight, keep at it, next week you may be in for a pleasant surprise.

If you go more than four weeks without seeing any weight loss whatsoever, however, then it may be time to look at your program as perhaps this is an indication something is not working quite as well as it should.

3. You Are Gaining Muscle And Losing Fat. Most people do not possess the capability to gain muscle and burn fat at the same time as they are different processes. If you are someone who is just starting out though, you could classify yourself as a beginner, and then it is possible to achieve this.

If you gain muscle but burn fat, it is very likely your weight will stay the same. Therefore, you will not see any difference in the scale. But, if you look better than you looked before, that is all you need to concern yourself with. If this is the case, you are moving in the right direction.

Keep these tips in mind and then consider if you need assistance in the fat loss department or if you need to keep on plugging away, waiting for the results to show.

Although managing your disease can be very challenging, Type 2 diabetes is not a condition you must just live with. You can make simple changes to your daily routine and lower both your weight and your blood sugar levels. Hang in there, the longer you do it, the easier it gets.

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5 Ways to Burn Fat Fast

Whether you want to improve your overall wellbeing or want to get thin, shedding those extra pounds may not be easy for you. Apart from diets and exercises, many other factors may have an impact on your fat and weight loss. Fortunately, you can take a few steps to boost your fat burning process.

1. Go for the Strength Training

For strength training, you need to contract your muscles in order to boost your strength and build muscle mass. Typically, strength training requires you to gain muscle mass with the passage of time.

According to many research studies, strength training offers a lot of benefits as far as burning fat is concerned. With this type of exercise, you can gain fat-free mass. This can boost your body's ability to burn fat.

To get started, you can do body-weight exercises, lift weights or use gym equipment.

2. Eat a High-Protein Diet

If you add foods rich in protein to your diet, you can curb your appetite and shed those extra pounds. As a matter of fact, many studies have showed that eating more protein helps you prevent love handles.

Another study found that a higher amount of protein could help you maintain your muscle mass and reduce weight.

Once your protein consumption goes up, you may not feel as much hunger as you did before. As a result, you will begin to lose weight. You can opt for foods, such as dairy products, legumes, eggs, seafood, and meat, to name a few.

3. Get More Sleep

It's better to get more sleep for weight loss. So, it's a good idea to get to bed a bit earlier and wake up a bit later.

Many studies support the fact that weight loss can be achieved with more sleep. Another study showed that quality sleep for at least 7 hours per night could also help you shed weight.

On the other hand, lack of sleep may lead to triggered hunger hormones, obesity and increased appetite.

So, what you need to do is reduce your consumption of caffeine and stick to your sleep schedule.

4. Consume Vinegar

As far as improving health is concerned, vinegar can do a great job. Apart from its positive effects on your blood sugar levels and heart health, it can also help you trigger your weight loss processes.

In a study, researchers found that taking 1 or 2 tablespoons of vinegar on a daily basis could help you get rid of body fat over a period of 12 weeks. Moreover, this practice can reduce your appetite and boost the feelings of fullness.

The method of consumption is quite easy. You can dilute some apple cider vinegar with fresh water and consume it a couple of times each day with your routine meals.

5. Eat Healthy Fats

Although it seems weird, upping your consumption of fat can also help you keep that fat away. Fat consumption may slow down your metabolic process that can reduce your hunger and appetite.

So, these are 5 ways of burning fat fast and get into shape.

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7 Healthy Foods to Help You Burn Calories

You may be aware that certain foods can help boost your metabolism and cut down on your body fat. Yes, there are some fat burning foods that help create a thermogenic effect in your body which can play a pivotal role in helping you lose weight.

Weight management is very important as it impacts every aspect of your life... social, physical, and emotional. If you eat a healthy diet, you will considerably lower down your odds of suffering from various health issues including heart disease and diabetes. So, let's discuss the top 7 healthy foods that help burn that extra flab off your body.

1. Apple Cider Vinegar

This is a pantry staple that helps you burn extra fat by cutting down you sugar cravings. When you consume apple cider vinegar before having your meal, it will make you feel fuller with less food. In addition, it is also a natural method of detoxing your body and balancing pH of your stomach. Since the vinegar is highly acidic, make sure you only add a tablespoon or two into a glass of water prior to drinking.

In addition to fat loss, there are additional benefits of apple cider -

Improves PCOS symptoms.
Kills harmful bacteria and viruses.
Reduces insulin and blood sugar.
Decreases cholesterol levels.
Lowers blood pressure.
Lower fasting blood sugar.
Improves insulin sensitivity.

2. Bone Broth

Using chicken or beef bones to make soup stock can have a lot of health benefits. These types of bone broth contain lots of amino acids so it plays an important role in cutting down the fat from your body.

Following are some of the key benefits of bone broth:

Protects joints - Bone broth is a natural source of collagen, a protein found in the vertebrae of animals - in their cartilage, bones, tendons, skin, and ligaments. When we get older, our joints tend to get weak so make sure you add bone broth to your diet.
Maintains healthy skin - With the help of collagen, elastin is formed along with various other compounds within the skin. All this really helps in maintaining texture, tone, and youthfulness of the skin. Collagen is also helpful in reducing puffiness and signs of aging.
Supports healthy functioning of the immune system - Bone broth offers gut-supportive benefits which supports the healthy functioning of your immune system.

3. Chia Seeds

Originally grown in Mexico, these seeds are known for its rich nutritional value and also as a fat burning food. Consuming chia seeds will boost your energy level and your endurance. Since chia seeds has high fiber content, it keeps you fuller for a longer, thereby prevents overeating.

4. Chicken Breast

If you are looking to burn calories, then chicken breast is the perfect fat-burning food. Just three ounces of chicken gives you 37% of your body's daily recommended amount of protein. This will make your body feel energized throughout the day. The main reason chicken breast protein helps in weight loss is that it is rich in leucine. It is a well-known amino acid that keeps the muscles lean which, in turn, burns more calories.

Make sure you opt for locally grown and organic chicken that cuts out fillers and preservatives.

5. Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is known to contain key fatty acids called Medium Chain Fatty Acids. These fatty acids help to keep you full so that you eat fewer calories. These fatty acids assist your body to effectively burn around 120 calories more every single day. The best thing about coconut oil is that it helps you lose belly fat and visceral fat. These are the most rigid type of fat that also surrounds your internal organs and are the most difficult to lose.

6. Grapefruit

Not many people are aware grapefruit is one of the best fat-burning foods. The enzymes present in grapefruits help your body to break down sugar and boost your metabolism. Make sure you add a slice of grapefruit to your breakfast or squeeze some fresh grapefruit juice into your smoothie.

7. Whey Protein

You can also add whey protein to your smoothie which usually comes in a powder. Whey protein helps to cut down body fat, boosts muscle tone, and alleviate high blood sugar.

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Before You Judge Someone - WATCH THIS | by Jay Shetty

Changing the Way I Looked at Food

Recently I posted my current picture on Facebook. I received so many replies, "WOW! You look amazing. People have asked, "How did you do it?

This is my journey... Losing weight was not an easy road, but I had achieved the goal I had fought for so many years. Unlike many, I did not have a weight problem while growing up. At 18, being 5'2, I was only 115 pounds. But for some reason, I thought I was overweight. Later on in life, I realize I had a distorted body image of myself. That is another story for another time.

For right now, this is about my fight with adult obesity. By the time I was 44-years-old, I found myself tipping the scales at 250 pounds. How did I let myself get to this point? Was it from the three pregnancies I had? Or was I the victim of my own environment? Would this help anyone if I blame my weight gain on others? I could write a long list of excuses. Blame everyone. Why waste valuable energy?

For years I have been telling myself sure I will lose weight. I marked on the calendar Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday as the days I will work out. Each time I failed. I failed because I continued to make excuses for not having time to go to the GYM. Who will watch my children as I become selfish by taking time away from them to exercise. Even though they offered childcare for parents. I made excuses. I truth is I did not want to spend the extra funds. There was a list of excuses which filled my brain.

I found myself in so much pain. Always complaining of my snapping and popping knees. The way I barely was able to step out of bed without weeping of the aching throbbing lower back pain. I disliked going to the doctors. It was like going to the principal's office. I had to brace myself for bad news.

"Mrs. Rivera, your knees have lost all the Cartilage," the doctor said. She explained the cartilage was the spongy part between the bones, which I was informed mine had disappeared. She continued, "You will need a knee replacement, but first you need to lose weight." She treated me as if I was over 800 pounds. I'm only 250, yet here we are talking about knee surgery. I have seen some of my loved ones who too are overweight undergone knee replacement and they have not been the same. I was not about to go through that hell. No way.

Unfortunately, this did not motivate me to lose weight. I was a single mother, not happy with the way I felt and looked in the mirror. I had developed a double chin. My clothes did not seem to fit right. I barely can move around. I did not recognize the young Hispanic woman anymore.

When I took my son to an amusement park, I was very embarrassed because either the creator of the coasters made the seats to small or my backside was just bigger than I thought. I barely fit on the rides. Once I cram myself in the seats, I had the great complication of putting on the seatbelts and harness on. I usually had an operator come by and push down on the harness for it to click. The moment of takeoff I just felt this will be the moment I will die because of my weight. Still, this did not motivate me to lose weight.

I dreaded shopping for clothes. Nothing would fit right. It was like Goldie and the three bears, except even the big items, just did not fit right. I have an hourglass shape. This means, my top is small, my waist is smaller, but my hips are big. Clothes are not made for woman shape like me. I would have to get everything tailored. That is just so frustrating. Being, only 5'2, which means the regular size pants are way too long and the petite sizes are too short.

There are certain situations that may be reasons why women my age may gain weight and have a difficult time losing it. Here are a few I thought was my reasons for this difficult weight loss issue:

1. Age - Age is a huge factor why the pounds just sticks to the bones. When I was young I was able to bounce back eat whatever I wanted, but as time and gravity move in I realize that the juke that I was consuming was not my friend. Slowly without notice, the pounds moved right in and I did not evict them. It was not easy. Something inside of me had to change. What, I did not know?

2. Food - Convenience is on every corner. Leading busy lives work, school, and family, who has time to cook a well-balanced meal. If I did, I did not have control over my portions. Finally, there is the metabolism war.

3. Metabolism - When young my metabolism was working overtime even when sleeping. At some point in my life, Mrs. metabolism got lazy. I got married. A year later I was pregnant, but still young I bounced back quickly. Before my daughter turned one I was giving birth to my son. I found my metabolism had left never to return. It was what I called dormant.

Now that I knew the factors, was I going to do something about it? You might be thinking, when and why did it change? How did I get from "Man you look homely" to "Wow, you look amazing"?

In 2017, everything changed. I decided to leave my life and my job of 11 years in California. I packed up my Jeep Cherokee and headed to the East Coast. I had no job lined up, but there I was blasting Pandora wondering if I had made the right decision to relocate. I had family on the East Coast, so I did not have to worry about where to live. My life, friends, and a stable life was right in California. My weight loss journey did not start at "boy I really need to lose weight".

As I was settling myself into a new culture and new environment, I began my employment search. In the meantime, I headed right to the gym. I needed something to occupy my time and energy. Slowly I started losing weight, just by exercising. Go figure. I was excited, but I wanted to lose more.

I could see my metabolism slowly waking up from her slumber. I wanted more. I wanted to jump start my dormant metabolism. I hated hearing. "You will always have a difficult time losing weight because woman your age their metabolism is not working like it used to." Well if that is the case then let's do something about it.

The first thing I did was go to the local vitamin store GNC. The clerk was very helpful and understanding of my needs. I explained I did not want anything to raise my heart and give me the jitters. He explained what product would be great for me to use and continued to inform me that if I do not like the way the pills made me feel, I have the options to return them with no question asked. I like that deal and customer satisfaction. Sold.

I started taking the pills as recommended. The first few months I did see some weight loss, but not to my satisfaction. I needed to figure out my next steps in my weight loss journey. I did not want to purchase more pills to get the job done.

First, I got it out of my mind that this pill or any pill is NOT a super pill.

Second, I realized I had to change my thinking about food and exercise.

I started a food journal. I logged everything in this journal. (no cheating) The only person who would lose by cheating would be me. So, I included candy, crackers, water, coffee, EVERYTHING I thought might be too small or unimportant was logged in. I left no rock unturned.

I would weigh myself every morning and log this into the journal. At the end of each week, I would look at the journal and analysis which food needs to be removed and what needs to be added. Then, I add what exercise I should add and for how long. If I plateau, I will analysis what I would need to do once again to jump start my metabolism.

In order to focus, I wrote down my goals. This is the way I broke them down:

Start weight: 250

End weight: 150

Monthly weight loss: 10 pounds

Weekly weight

Daily Log I would write my weight and upcoming goals.

Once I did this, I started seeing results. My clothes were beginning to fit loosely. I started getting excited. My coworkers and family were noticing. Within 6 months junk foods which included - no soda and no fast food, was removed from my food pyramid. When I went out eating, I felt as if the waiters/waitress' might not like me because I was always substituting items. That was just in my mind because those I came across were sweet as apple pie. I changed my portion sizes to a baby bowl size for every meal. I drank water and regular tea versus diet soda and sweet tea.

I still ate my favorite foods especially when I might have a craving. Like cheese. I feel like I was a mouse in my past life and was unable to get the cheese I wanted then, so here I am being a glutton for cheese. The other items I just cannot remove from my system are my special creamer for coffee and the Ritz crackers I enjoy dipping in the coffee every morning. Other than that, after a while, I trained my body not to crave destructive items. Now I no longer have those juke food cravings or turn to food as a comfort.

My self-control paid off. One year later, I am now 162 pounds, size 10 in jeans, and my dress size depending on the design is either medium or large. I am not currently at my goal of 150 pounds and I do struggle every day to have self-control via the office, parties, and life but I keep in mind on my goal. I was excited to wear a bathing suit for the very first time in 22 years.

What keeps me going so I want gain the weight back? I look at past pictures of myself and remember the way I do not want to look. I remember the way my health is now compare to the past and tell myself I will never want to suffer the chronic pain I had from the past. Lastly, I love the way I look and the way my clothes fit me.

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Think Fat Loss, Not Weight Loss

Weight loss is one of the hottest topics ever. Everyone seems to be trying to lose weight nowadays. Most diet programs are about weight loss and body weight is often used as an indicator of fitness progress. But, this is an incorrect approach.

Your ultimate goal should always be to lose fat and reducing excess body fat is what you should be concerned about. Weight loss and Fat loss is NOT the same thing! Many people confuse the two terms, often believing that they mean the same, when in fact weight loss and fat loss are very different from one another. This article will help you understand how weight loss is different than fat loss and how fat loss is far superior to weight loss in almost all ways.

What Is Weight Loss?

(Weight Loss = Muscle Loss + Fat Loss + Water Loss)

Weight loss is attempting to lower your total body weight. It simply refers to a lower number on a scale.

Your body weight is composed of all the parts of your body such as muscles, fat, bones, water, organs, tissues, blood, water etc. When you lose weight, you lose a little bit of... fat, muscle and water.

You lose fat but very little and along with the fat you lose muscle and some amount of water. The higher you reduce your calorie intake, the faster you drop weight and the more muscle mass you lose.

Do know your muscle matters? Loss of muscle affects your health and your overall appearance.

When you lose weight too quickly, your body cannot maintain its muscle. Because muscle requires more calories to sustain itself, your body begins to metabolize it so that it can reserve the incoming calories for its survival. It protects it fat stores as a defense mechanism to ensure your survival in case of future famine and instead use lean tissue or muscle to provide it with calories it needs to keep its vital organs such as your brain, heart, kidneys and liver functioning. If you reach a point where you have very little fat or muscle, your body will metabolize your organs to keep your brain functioning leading to heart attack, stroke and liver and kidney failure.

As the body loses more muscle mass, the body's overall metabolic rate decreases. The metabolic rate is the rate at which the body burns calories and is partly determined by the amount of muscle you have.

So the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate; the less muscle you have, the lower your metabolic rate and fewer calories you burn. This explains why it is crucial to protect your metabolic rate and not have muscle loss.

Loss of muscle also leads to loss of tone underneath the skin leaving you soft and unshapely with no form or contour. If you lose weight too rapidly, your skin won't have time to adjust either. Also muscle is what gives you strength and loss of it means a weak body.

With weight loss you shrink in size and become a smaller version of yourself with a fragile frame with saggy skin.

Weight loss works in the short run to make you smaller but is temporary, almost everyone rebounds and regains the weight. This forces you to find another diet. And then another one, and another one - because eventually they'll all fail.

What Is Fat Loss?

(Fat Loss = Loss Of Stored Body Fat)

Fat loss is attempting to lower your total body fat - i.e. the percentage of your total body weight that is made up of fat.

The right approach for fat loss is to exercise smartly and eat intelligently in a way that maintains muscle and focuses on fat loss exclusively.

The muscle you have is not there forever. If you don't feed it and don't use it - you lose it. A proper plan with right combination of resistance and cardiovascular training with adequate progression and a right nutrition plan to support it can help you achieve this. Exercise only boosts the burning process but doesn't just melt the fat away on its own - if you do not create a deficit and feed the body too much - it won't touch the stored fuel reserves. On the hand if you drastically cut your calories and do not feed your muscle properly or don't exercise and use your muscle, you will lose it. Fat loss is about finding that right balance.

With fat loss you maintain the muscle and keep the metabolic rate running high. You also develop stronger connective tissue, tighter skin and stronger bones and joints. With fat loss you transform your body.

Fat loss is a lifestyle approach where you give your body what it needs without depriving and shocking it with threat of starvation. You get to see slow but permanent steady progress.

It may sound odd, but it's possible to get thinner without actually seeing a change in your weight. This happens when you lose body fat while gaining muscle. Your weight stays the same, even as you lose inches.

Lets see how this happens.

Fat tissue is very loose and not dense. It occupies a lot of space in your body. Whereas muscle is more dense and takes up less space. When you lose fat, this space is freed and you can notice inch loss. If you are following a consistent strength training program then gain in lean muscle tissue will balance out this loss of fat and weight stays the same. Since muscle takes less space than fat, you lose inches and start to look more toned, lean and shapely.

consistent strength training program then gain in lean muscle tissue will balance out this loss of fat and weight stays the same. Since muscle takes less space than fat, you lose inches and start to look more toned, lean and shapely.

Myth: "Getting fit" means "Losing weight."

Truth: Getting fit means lowering your body fat percentage!

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Healthy Living - Hunger Management While On Vacation

If you are about to set off on the vacation you have been dreaming of for some time; you may be having a few fears about how you will maintain your healthy diet protocol. With all the delicious food you are going to come across, how will you keep hunger at bay and cravings in line?

Many people worry about this when they are planning their vacation, and the good news is with a few smart and doable tips, you should have no problem keeping yourself accountable.

Here is what to know...

1. Include a Lot of Walking in Your Day. First, focus on walking throughout your day. Walking tours can last under an hour, while longer ones can take in multiple exciting sites and last much longer. Most people naturally do this on vacation since they are sightseeing anyway. The more walking you do, the more calories you will burn and the more food you can afford to eat.

Additionally, many people do find walking helps combat hunger pains as well, and they are less hungry when they are moving more during their day.

2. Permit Yourself To Have A Treat A Day. It is also a wise move to let yourself have a treat every day. Permit yourself to indulge in something you know you will enjoy. Of course, this may cause you to gain a pound or two over the holiday period, but that weight can be lost when you return home and back into your normal routine. It is a shame to remain hyper-focused on your food choices when you are on holiday and you do not get to enjoy some of the different foods available. Trying new foods is one of the great joys of traveling.

There is a difference between allowing yourself to enjoy a treat and making yourself engage in a full-out binge, gaining 10 pounds in the process. A couple of pounds are easy to lose as a rule, but ten is going to involve more effort.

3. Stay Hydrated. Staying hydrated is also essential. Being well hydrated will help you put hunger aside and make it easier to combat any food cravings. Drink water whenever possible as the calories in all the mixed drinks, sugary juices, or whatever else you are drinking, will add up.

4. Remind Yourself Of The Bigger Picture. Finally, remind yourself of the bigger picture. You are not there just for the food, but for the sights, the company and to experience the "real" destination.

Keep these tips in mind and know you can enjoy yourself on holiday; even indulging in some of the treats you usually avoid at home without gaining much weight.

Although managing Type 2 diabetes can be very challenging, it is not a condition you must just live with. Make simple changes to your daily routine - include exercise to help lower both your blood sugar levels and your weight.

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