Enriching your Fiber Diet with Green Tea

Green Tea is a great way to enrich your fiber diet. Green tea comes from an eastern Asian shrub that has leathery, green leaves with beautiful, fragrant flowers. When the leaves of this shrub are dried and cured, the result is green tea. Several scientific studies have shown that green tea helps to increase your metabolism and therefore helps to burn calories faster and more efficient. For more than 4,000 years, people in Asia have already enjoyed the flavor and health benefits of green tea, which has now become a number one choice for people in other countries. Green tea is also mentioned as beneficial when it comes to treatments that range from controlling headaches to preventing some forms of cancer.

A while ago I started experimenting with green tea. I was sick of coffee and the bitter after-taste it has. Maybe I am becoming more sensitive to the taste, but I wanted something that a) tastes smooth, b) has some caffeine in it and c) comes in different varieties so that I could drink it during summer and winter. My wife suggested green tea and that’s where I ended up. You can almost call me a green tea junkie. Through-out the day I enjoy several cups of green tea. I always try something different – especially when I see a positive effect to my fiber 35 diet. The green PowerTea was recommended to us by a friend of my wife. She is in her upper 30s and has 3 wonderful children. You would not believe that our friend has given birth to 3 kids – she has been able to manage her body weight and has the body of a 25 year old athlete (almost I’d say). Her “ secrets” are daily exercise and a fair mix of a good fiber diet and even this powertea. She left us some to try it out and after 10 days we could not believe the results. We had not changed anything in our diet or exercise and I had lost another 2 lbs.

I am sold on that stuff now. I know I am able to better keep my weight and lose some of those stubborn last pounds of belly fat (that really bothers me) now. Summer is coming up fast here and so I will be in great shape for the beach. By the way – this stuff has been mentioned on several TV shows. Check it out here.

High Fiber, but Low in Calorie Foods

Being healthy is a goal of almost everyone, and high fiber foods that are low in calories are a great way to achieve good health. A diet that is based on the intake of foods high in fiber should consider to include oatmeal or other fiber cereals to start their day. Oatmeal has a great amount of dietary fiber that will help the digestive system. This dietary fiber helps to cleanse the body quickly after food is eaten. There are a lot of other awesome cereals available at the grocery stores that meet the criteria for a high fiber, low calorie food diet. The box labels on these products will show you the exact nutricious content so that you can easily choose one that will be rich in fiber and without many calories (especially coming from sugar).

High Fiber OWL Phase The second phase of the High Fiber Diet is called Ongoing Weight Loss or OWL.

Fiber OWL Phase The second phase of the Fiber 35 diet is called Ongoing Weight Loss or OWL. After the rapid weight loss of the 2-week Induction phase, you’ll be slowing your weight loss down just a bit. You’ll add in specific carbohydrates that will make your diet a little easier and your weight loss just a bit slower. However, you will continue to lose weight at a steady even pace with ease. During the OWL phase you will boost your body’s ability to burn fats. Although I will be adding fiber slowly, you’ll still remain in the state of ketosis. You will continue to use your excess fat as fuel for your body, and the pounds and inches will continue to come off.

The OWL phase will also teach you to make better fiber choices. The recipes and rule set for OWL will increase your knowledge about wholesome food. You’ll replace the poor carbohydrate choices that you relied on in the past with new and better choices. One will also absorb how many carbohydrates you can consume and still lose weight. The process of the OWL phase is an experiment in what your specific body does with fiber. During the OWL phase, you’ll gradually increase your daily fiber intake from the 20-gram level that you used in induction. Each week you’ll try adding another 5 grams of fiber and then take note of what happens. When weight loss slows too much, you’ll know that you’ve exceeded your personal carb limit. OWL also prepares you for your permanent weight management program (called maintenance). The habits and practices that you develop during OWL will go a long way toward your long-term success. Treat this period of your diet as training for the real test – your post diet life. During the OWL phase, you’ll still be getting most of your fiber from vegetables (just as you do during Induction).

It’s important to continue to eat a wide variety of vegetables, as they are good for your overall health and good for maintaining intestinal health during the Fiber35 diet. You will be able to add more portions of vegetables, and then gradually be able to add nuts, seeds and even berries. However, the main focus of the diet will still be fiber. In a way, the Induction phase is easier than any of the other phases of Atkins. The strict plan always works and always produces weight loss. As you enter the OWL phases, you’ll need to be more mindful of your carbohydrate count and keep better track of your weight. You’ll have more choice and that may lead to more temptations, which could result in a stalling of your weight loss or even weight gain. Counting fiber grams is critical in your OWL success. If you don’t count, you will end up consuming more carbohydrates than you should. However, there are many tools available that can help you with counting. There are several handy, portable books that will tell you the number of grams of carbohydrates in certain foods. Over time, you’ll know the ?carb count? for your favorite foods instantly. Counting carbs is also essential during the OWL phase because you are playing detective. You are investigating to find your specific fiber count, the amount of carbohydrate grams that you can eat daily and still lose weight. During the first week of OWL, you’ll move from 20 carbohydrate grams to 25. It is recommended that you add this in the form of more vegetables, like asparagus or cauliflower. You’ll continue at the 25-gram level for a week, and then move up to 30 grams a day.

As you increase your carbohydrate gram level, watch your weight closely. If you experience too much of a slowdown, you know you’ve gone too high. You’ll find your maximum fiber gram level when you stop losing weight at all. When this happens, you’ll know you’ve reached your limit. Once you discover your personal fiber35 count, drop down below that number if you want to continue losing weight.

Tips on finding a good personal trainer

Using a personal trainer to develop the right workout program is a great step towards success. Working with the wrong personal trainer can cause frustration and loss of motivation to work out at all. Here are some easy to follow tips to find the right personal trainer.

Check their Certifications. Some of the better- known certification programs are: National Strength and Conditioning Association, American College of Sports Medicine, American Council on Exercise, National Academy of Sports Medicine and International Sports Sciences Association. Verify that the trainer’s credentials are current. The personal trainer should also be knowledgeable about nutrition and health.

Make sure the trainer assesses your general health, medical history and training goals before you start a new workout fitness program. Without gathering this important information no fitness program will properly address your goals. Among the recommended pre-tests: physical-activity readiness questionnaire; measurements of body fat, weight, circumferences and blood pressure; plus posture analysis and muscle imbalances. Frequent updates to the gathered information should be made to measure progress and success of failure.

Avoid a one-size-fits-all philosophy of a personal trainer. Find a trainer who fits your goals. Find a trainer who understands what your goals are. If your goal is to be able to take a three-day hunting trip into the Canadian woods or compete in a body builder competition, the trainer will know how to design your training program accordingly.

I will publish more tips about how to select the best personal trainer for you in the next few days.

Update on Fiber35

Fiber35 is catching on steam in the industry. More and more personal trainers are recommending this diet to their customers. The main advantage is the healthy aspect of this diet. Since it is not about drinking some weird looking shakes or eating some “dietary bars” that taste like old shoes, people get a better understanding of what diet really means. Brenda Watson of Fiber35 has done a great job to sell the right values. We have seen her book in the Whole Foods book section at our local Whole Foods store. The book seems to be flying of the shelves.

So, if you are on the fiber35 diet you are on the right track. If you are having difficulties of following the path and therefore the lack of weight loss is bringing you down, there are many ways to fight this and to successful again. Key is not to buy the wrong kind of foods. Never go shopping when hungry. Go shopping at night when the supermarkets are more empty. Why? Bring time to read all the labels. Identify snacks that carry fiber and less fat. Snacking is good and shall be fun. It’s more fun with the right products. Buy fruits only for a 2 day supply. Why? If you don’t like those soft bananas or are disgusted by their brownish color it will create a pattern of disliking bananas over time. This can be prevented by always buying fresh.

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