Unhealthy dieting generally leads to greater weight gain in the long run. Extensive juice fasts, extreme calorie reduction, and an overuse of diet powders and pills may lead to immediate weight loss. These results, however, are often hard to sustain on a long-term basis.

Defining Unhealthy Dieting
The definition of unhealthy dieting can vary depending on who you ask. However, experts tend to agree that an extreme reduction in caloric intake over an extensive period of time is not only unhealthy, but often results in short-lived outcomes. Certain extreme diets, for example, require that you only drink your meals for days on end. You take in a very limited number of calories and your body struggles to adjust to the new regimen.

The Impact of Unhealthy Dieting
Nausea, dizziness and headaches are common symptoms associated with extreme diets. Any time you reduce your caloric intake so drastically, you will lose weight. Your body will go to work on metabolizing your fat stores. If carried on for too long, you will probably also see a loss in muscle mass.

At the end of a three-week juice cleanse or a very low-calorie diet, for example, you will very likely see an acceleration in weight loss. The challenge, however, is that you have not implemented any habits that can be sustained on a long-term basis. You cannot survive endlessly on such limited food intake. You will have to go back to eating. What will you eat?
One of the challenges of unhealthy dieting is that it results in feelings of deprivation. Psychologically, it is very difficult to endure a lack or limit of nutritious and favorite foods on a long-term basis. Many people come off of extreme diets or long hours of starving themselves and head straight for the fridge. Binge eating is a common consequence of feeling food deprived.

Establishing Healthy Dieting Patterns
The best way to lose weight and keep it off is through a gradual adjustment of your diet and the incorporation of a regular exercise regimen. This requires a change in habits. It takes willpower to make changes, but the changes do not all have to happen overnight.
You can begin by identifying and cutting out some of the high calorie, high fat foods that are excessive in your diet. To avoid feeling deprived, you could replace each food item with a healthier alternative.

Unhealthy dieting usually leads to health issues and long-term weight gain. To lose weight and keep it off, create a diet plan for yourself that involves making healthy and gradual changes in your eating habits. You will avoid feelings of deprivation and are more likely to achieve long-term weight loss success.

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BELOW ARE TIPS FOR IMPROVING YOUR HEALTH & LOSING WEIGHT FOR A HEALTHY LIVING....


1. Everyone knows that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but still go without it. Breakfast is what gets the metabolism going and keep it going throughout the day. After sleeping all night, your body is no longer full so the best thing for it is food. Retain your focus and energy with a healthy and nutritious meal.

2. Just by eating the same foods but eating smaller portions will help you lose weight. Buy a smaller plate solely for your use and get one that you really like. It will psychologically make your meal times more enjoyable even though you will be eating less.

3. When you take a spoonful of something to taste out of the saucepan or take just a handful of peanuts out of the bowl you hardly notice what you are doing. You may be fooling your brain but you won’t be fooling your body as those extra calories add up. Make it a rule that you won’t eat anything that is not on a plate. This really makes you stop and think about what you are eating and will help you stop picking at things. You really will start to think twice about what you are about to eat and if you really need it.

4. To remove excess fat from soups, stews or sauces, drop in 3 or 4 ice cubes. The fat will congeal around them as they melt. You can then remove the fat and reheat if necessary to re-thicken.

5. Be active. The safest and most effective way to lose weight is to reduce calories and increase physical activity.

6. If you decide to follow a new celebrity diet please do not expect the same results unless you have your own personal trainer and cook like they do.

7. Aim to have a brisk 20 minute walk three or four times a week. Brisk walking will help tone legs, hips and buttocks and reduce cellulite. By increasing the heart rate with a brisk walk fat reduction will be helped also. If you are short on time after work, go for the walk in your lunch hour.

8. At times, you will not feel like exercising. If you’re just feeling a little tired or low on energy, go ahead and try to complete your routine. The workout will likely boost your energy level and your mood.

9. Park the car a little further away than you would normally. Whether this is when you are going to work or doing the shopping, just park that little bit further away and make yourself walk a little bit more. Tiny things like this can make a big difference over time.

10.Start each day with a glass of water as soon as you get up in the morning. Water helps rehydrate the body of fluids lost during the night.

11.Drink a glass of water 10 minutes before you sit down to eat. Water will naturally make you feel fuller so you don’t have to eat as much food. Quite often we confuse our feelings of hunger with that of first so have a glass of water first and see how you feel.

12.Cut down on carbonated soft drinks as these are sweetened with lots of sugar. Even though diet drinks do not contain as much sugar, they do contain other chemicals and components that are not good for your body either.

13.Fruit juice contains a lot of natural sugar and so isn’t as healthy as most people think. If you are craving a glass of juice, make sure it is fresh and dilute it with water.

14.Try to get used to drinking tea and coffee black. Counteract the caffeine effects by following with a glass of water.

15.Start to drink green tea. This has been used as a medicine in China for over 4,000 years and aids the digestive system. It can help ease an overly full stomach and it has been linked to a reduction in cancer risk.

16.Cut down on alcohol. If that is too much to ask, there is evidence to suggest that a glass of red wine does have heart benefits. Avoid beer which is especially fattening. Cocktails can be very fattening depending on what they are made of. The other problem with drinking alcohol is that after a few drinks most people get the munchies and when you’re feeling a little inebriated and hungry you won’t be able to make rational decisions regarding your diet.

17.Eat more fruit and vegetables that have high water content such as tomatoes, watermelons, kiwi and grapes. These foods contain about 90 to 95% water, so you can eat a lot of these and they will fill you up without adding on the pounds.

18.Increase your fibre intake as much as you can. You can get more fibre from eating more fruits and veggies or try adding a sprinkling of oatbran to your cereal in the morning.

19.Fill up on vegetables. Try different ones that you haven’t had for a while to avoid getting bored.

20.Be careful of the calories you add to your food such as garnishes and condiments. These are usually high in fat so try to avoid them wherever possible.

21.Try to set a meal pattern to help you to control what you eat and when you eat it. It is also better to have 5 small meals a day rather than just one or two huge meals. Having a small snack in the morning and afternoon stops you getting over hungry and then wolfing down an extra large portion at dinner time.

22.If you do snack between meals, make sure they are healthy and not junk food like crisps. Try fruit and nuts for energy.

23.Raw vegetables also make great snacks. Sliced carrots, peppers and mushrooms are great because they satisfy hunger and they are packed with nutrients.

24.If you have over indulged, work off those extra calories. Go for an extra session at the gym or go for a longer walk.

25.Cut out the fried food and switch to baked. Fried foods are immersed in fat and oil which gets absorbed into the food itself and is retained even after it has been drained.


26.Don’t skip meals. You should have, at the very least, three meals a day, but preferably five small meals. This will keep you from getting hungry during the day and overeating out of starvation.

27.Keep your chocolate for a special treat. When you do buy chocolate make sure it is the best and only eat a small amount. Savour each morsel and you will enjoy them so much more.

28.Eat breakfast within an hour of waking up to give your body the jump start it needs. Don’t skip breakfast but at the same time don’t stuff yourself full of a fry up. Make it a healthy start to the day.

29.There are many diets that prohibit certain food groups but by following these you will be depriving your body of certain nutrients which could be harmful. Carbohydrates are a great source of energy so don’t totally exclude them from your diet.

30.Protein is an important part of your diet but make sure that if it is not too high in fat. Lean proteins include white meat and eggs.

31.Healthy fats are important in your diet. Cutting out fats altogether is not healthy and can make your skin incredibly dry, making you look older and less healthy.

32.Eat more white meat than red meat. White meat is not just chicken. Turkey is an excellent low fat white meat.

33.Whilst pork is a white meat, it does not assist in weight loss in any way. Pork is more difficult to digest and has a high fat content. This includes food items such as bacon, ham and sausage.

34.Cut down on your sugar intake. Even if you use artificial sweeteners, these are not particularly healthy and will only help continue your sweet cravings.

35.Try grazing five to six times a day as touched on earlier. Eating more, smaller meals each day can help curb those hunger pangs in addition to keeping your metabolism working, which will burn fat naturally.

36.Cut back on the salt. Salt can cause water retention and is one of the main causes of obesity. Do not just automatically add it to your plate. Taste the food first and try using herbs and spices for extra flavour.

37.Use non-stick frying pan spray rather than oil. Many non-stick don’t require oil at all so you can use them for dry frying.

38.Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that low fat foods are always better for you. Many of these use added chemicals or carbohydrates to make up their flavour and can actually be as high, if not higher, in calorific content than their full fat counterparts. Check the label!

39.Stay away from the quick fix cure of the crash diet. These are bad for you and do more harm than good in the long run. Whilst you may lose a few pounds in the short run, your body will have gone into starvation mode and once you start eating normally again, the weight will pile back on and may increase above what it was originally.

40.Chew your food. Try to chew each mouthful at least 8 to 12 times. Really take time to taste what you are putting into your mouth and give it chance to mix with your saliva in order to digest it properly.

41.Start cooking with olive oil. The health benefits outweigh those of normal vegetable oil and it tastes so much better. Olive oil has also been associated with a reduced risk in coronary heart disease and helps to increase the elasticity of the arterial walls which reduces the chance for heart attack and stroke.

42.Get yourself moving. You don’t have to sign up to an expensive gym membership to get exercise. Simple brisk walking is excellent for toning up legs and gently increasing your heart rate for aerobic benefits.

43.Don’t expect to see immediate results when you start to exercise. Remember it took a long time to get this out of shape so it is going to take some time to get that figure back again.

44.Don’t push yourself too much when you first start exercising or you may end up with injuries. Your bones, joints and ligaments have been in rest mode for a while and are not prepared for the force you are about to put on them. Build up slowly and steadily.

45.Check your weight when you start exercising, but don’t use it as a guide to how much you are losing. Muscle weighs heavier than fat so the pounds on the scales may not drop as quickly as you would like. Also your weight will fluctuate throughout the day dependant on your level of activity and what foods you have been eating.

46.The best way to know if you’re losing weight is by how your clothes fit. If your waistband starts to feel looser and your muffin top disappears, then you know you’re eating and exercising is doing you some good.

47.Treat yourself as you start to lose weight. Rewards are great for keeping you motivated whether you treat yourself to a new pair of running shoes, a new pair of jeans or a massage at the local spa.

48.Make sure you have at least one rest day per week when you start exercising. Your body needs a chance to rest and repair and re-charge itself.

49.Three days of 30 minute exercise each week will help you to maintain your weight. If you want to lose weight you need to increase this to at least 4 days of 30 minute exercise each week, but 5 days a week is even better.

50.Find yourself an exercise buddy. This could be a friend who wants to keep in shape or a work colleague who wants someone to partner up with after work for a walk or jog. By joining someone else you will feel responsible towards them and will be less likely to find an excuse not to exercise each day.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL NAIRALANDERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

7 Health Benefits of Eating Pineapples

Pineapples are some of the most popular tropical fruits in the world. They are sweet, juicy, and delicious. More importantly, they are very healthy and nutritious. It is no wonder many people who want to have a healthy lifestyle include these fruits in their diets. To know more about them, here are some of the many health benefits of eating pineapples.
1. Packed with Vitamins and Minerals

Pineapples are loaded with vitamins and minerals including vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus, and potassium. It is also rich in fiber and calories. On top of it all, this fruit is low in fat and cholesterol. All the nutrients it contains promote good health.
2. Prevents Cough and Colds

Since pineapples are rich in vitamin C, it can fight off viruses that cause cough and colds. Even when you are already infected with such ailment, pineapples can help you. These fruits have bromelain, which is effective in suppressing coughs and loosening mucus. Eating pineapples while taking the right medications prescribed by the doctor for your sickness can help you recover more quickly.
3. Strengthens Bones

Pineapples are also popular for their ability to build and maintain strong bones. This is because these fruits contain manganese, which is a trace mineral that your body needs to build bones and connective tissues. In fact, if you consume a cup of pineapple, you can already get 73 percent of your total body requirement for manganese.
4. Keeps Gums Healthy

People are always very concerned with their teeth that they sometimes fail to give importance to the gums, which are equally essential since they hold the teeth in place. If a person has unhealthy gums, his/her teeth would be in bad condition, and eventually will fall out. Eating pineapple will strengthen your gums that will help keep your teeth healthy and strong.
5. Lowers Risk of Macular Degeneration

Pineapples are known to prevent different kinds of ailments. One example is macular degeneration. This disease, which is the primary cause of vision loss in adults, is caused by damage to the retina. Reading, recognizing faces, and doing daily activities can become a lot more difficult because of this problem. Including pineapple in your diet can lower risk of this disease by as much as 36 percent. This is because this fruit contains beta carotene that is good for our sense of sight.
6. Alleviates Arthritis

Since these fruits have anti-inflammatory qualities, eating pineapples can greatly alleviate the pain of arthritis while at the same time improve the condition by strengthening the bones. Apart from arthritis, it can also improve other similar conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome and gout.
7. Improves Digestion

Bromelain found in pineapples work to neutralize fluids to ensure that they are not too acidic. It also helps regulate the secretions in the pancreas to aid in digestion. Apart from that, since bromelain has protein-digesting properties, it can keep the digestive track healthy.