Herbal Cleanse Day 2
August 17, 2006

I actually have nothing to report! I went to capoeira last night and felt a little sluggish but no more than I would on any ordinary off day. There is no problem with the pills you have to take and no cravings either.

It’s actually freaking me out a bit. I was expecting to be very grumpy. My girlfriend is already feeling the positive effects and I think this morning we both felt great after a breakfast together.

It will be time for some new recipes soon though, because I can see us getting board. Right now suppers are pretty consistent with using this lemon chicken recipe.

1 TBSP Olive oil
2 TBSP Lemon Pepper
¼ Cup Lemmon Juice

Combine all the ingredients and slop two chicken breasts around in the mixture. Put the breasts and remaining mixture into a deep dish and stick them in the oven for 40 minutes on 375. That’s the chicken.

For a side, cut up some carrots, potatoes and onions. Just a couple of each, only one onion though. Put all the ingredients into a deep dish add in some butter, salt and pepper to taste and put it in the oven beside the chicken! It tastes really, really good!

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Cleanse Herbal day 1
Wednesday August 16 2006

Ray Burton here from http://planningdiets.com.

Last night had us going shopping to pick up all out groceries so we could start the herbal cleanse today. One thing about doing a cleanse is that your life has to change a little for 12 days. Things need to slow down and we actually like that. So my girlfriend and I sat down and went through some recipe books to see which ones we like and could use on the cleanse.

The next step after agreeing on recipes, is to write down all the ingredients to form your shopping list. Its really not bad because there are only certain ingredients you can use and they are replicated in many recipes. Kind of makes you wonder why they all taste the same doesn’t it? Just kidding, the foods are quite tasty once your taste buds adapt to real food instead of sugarcoated goodies.

So what can you eat on this cleanse? You can eat all the vegetables you want and they can be cooked or raw, your choice. You can have grains but just no flour. You can eat legumes such as beans but not too much. If a food causes gas it is because your body is having difficulties digesting it. It’s a know fact that a lot of illnesses can be traced right back to digestive problems.

This particular cleanse has some issues with fruit. Sweeter tropical fruits are not allowed because of the sugar content. Fruits like bananas, melons and pineapple for example. Other domestic fruits like apples, pears, peaches and berries are fine in moderation.

The one hard thing about doing a herbal cleanse for me as an ex bodybuilder is cutting back on the meat. The sweet stuff is not a problem because I usually tend to be low carb out of natural habit. The meat however has always been a large part of my diet. Herbal cleanses ask you to cut it back a couple of notches and add back in the veggies so the body can detoxify. It is amazing the amounts of growth hormones and antibiotics that are put into our mass produced meats. Such is the disadvantages of having such a convenient source of meat available. Some of us do not have time to hunt.

Water is very important on a cleanse, and this particular herbal cleanse recommends drinking as much as you can. This isn’t hard since milk and fruit juices are not allowed and this leaves pretty much only water left to have with your meals. As a minimum on this herbal cleanse you should drink six to eight glasses of water a day.

What is the hardest part of a herbal detox? I think the preparation is where most people run into trouble. You really have to plan in advance in order to not get sucked into grabbing a muffin or snack at the store. You have to have the groceries available and have time to wake up and make breakfast. It is hard and different than usual but what a nice change to sit down and eat breakfast with the girlfriend instead of just tagging off at the door with a quick kiss.

What was breakfast for herbal cleanse day 1? Four eggs with some diced red onion and red bell pepper. We kept the yokes in or I would be starving by the next meal. My girlfriend added some store bought salsa to her eggs and I will be making some salsa from scratch later on today.

I’ll keep you posted as we go through the cleanse. As well if you are doing my diet video tutorial series, I fully recommend doing a herbal cleanse before you start. Your results will be much, much better.

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Essential Fatty Acids and Your Health
Copyright 2006 Douglas Alp

There are many people who really do not know the benefits
of fish oils and the essential fatty acids in one's diet.
As the definition goes the word essential meaning they are
critical and necessary for good health. The essential
fatty acids (EFA) are the good fats in your diet and
provide benefits for the heart, brain and the entire body.

The essential fatty acid consists of omega 3 and omega 6.
Omega 3 is primarily found in cold water fish. Fish such
as salmon, sardines, herring, tuna and mackerel are very
good sources the pre-formed omega 3’s. Fish is a great
source of the omega 3. Eating fish is also beneficial
because fish is a great source of protein, minerals and
antioxidants.

Plant also contain omega 3. Plants such as flax seed,
canola, soybean and walnuts all are a good source for omega
3. Your body needs to convert these omega 3 fats into the
usable form but they do provide a great source to add to
the essential fatty acid derived from fish.

Some benefits that have that have been scientifically
proven by the increase of omega 3 in your diet are as
follows: improved cardiovascular function, superior
circulatory function, relief from arthritis and other
inflammation problems, reduction in joint aches and pains,
improved memory and brain function, helps induce healthy
insulin levels, increases the HDL (good cholesterol)
levels in your body acting to unclog your arteries,
increased energy and improved mood.

In a study from Harvard University in testing a group of 30
people with manic depression or bi-polar disorder showed an
increase in mood by 65% using fish oil as apposed to a 19%
increase in mood testing with olive oil.

There are 3 types of omega 3’s. The forms are categorized
as EPA, (eicosapentaenoic acid), and DHA (docosahexanoic
acid) can primarily be found in cold water fish. The third
form of omega 3 is ALA(alpha-linolenic acid). ALA is
primarily found in green leafy vegetables, flax see and
flax seed oil and certain vegetable oils. ALA is converted
to EPA by the body. All three of this omega 3 forms are
important to your body function and your health.

The other essential fatty acid that the body need is the
omega 6 which can be derived from plant based oils, poultry
and eggs. The issue surrounding omega 6 is that we get
more than enough omega 6 in our diets. Since omega 3 and
omega 6 compete for the same space in our cells including
our brain, our nerve endings and for the same enzymes it is
important to have them in the correct balance. The ratio
of 4 to1 and even 2 to 1 of omega 6 to omega 3 is optimal.
Since most people are getting 10 to 20 times more omega 6
than omega 3 it is recommend for improved health to consume
more omega 3. The increase of green leafy vegetables, flax
seed or flax seed oil and the addition of cold water fish
will help to increase your omega 3 consumption and help you
get the correct balance of your essential fatty acids (EFA)
into your diet.


About the Author:

This article has been brought to you by Douglas Alp from
MyCompletelife.com. Douglas is in pursuit of the complete
life which beings with optimal health at the core and is
the foundation for a great abundant life. You can visit
his site at http://www.mycompletelife.com to find other
great resources and sign up for your free newsletter to
assist you to building a healthy and vibrant body and mind
in pursuit of your complete life.

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Cheat Days In Your Diet

Most diet strategies are based on a calorie deficit
approach. You eat les fuel than the body requires each day,
which creates an energy deficit and the body responds by
calling upon body fat as fuel. Yet adopting a severely low
calorie diet in hoes of a quick fix only sets you up for
failure.

The biggest mistake you can make is starving yourself. It
drains your energy and you cant work out so you cant change
the way you look. Drastic calorie reduction leads to a slow
down in the metabolic rate, the total calories burned in a
day and a slow metabolism is the death wish for anyone
seeking a hard body.

Research has indicated that the thyroid gland, the source of
thyroid hormones that ultimately help determine your
metabolic rate, reacts quickly to starvation diets. That is
, when you eat too few calories your body decreases it
thyroid hormone output, which decreases your metabolic rate.
Other detrimental effects of starving include an increase in
fat-storing enzymes in the body. Once enzyme called
lipoprotein lipase acts as sort of a gatekeeper, allowing
fatty acids to flow in and out of fat ells. While mild
reductions in calories cause a decrease in LPL activity,
giving fatty acids the freedom to flow out of fat cells,
overly aggressive calorie cuts actually increase LPL
activity. In concert with decreased levels of thyroid
hormone, this causes the body to cling to stored body fat.

While severe caloric reductions seem to throw a monkey
wrench into the fat loss equation, calorie surpluses or
overeating exerts another puzzling effect. Not only does
body fat increase, but overeating may cause a mild increase
in thyroid levels and an increase in anabolic hormones that
help support muscle mass such a growth hormone, testosterone
and IGF-1.

Since extended periods of dieting can slow the metabolism, a
single cheat day where you boost your carb intake 50 percent
higher than normal can avoid the decrease in your metabolism
and actually promote the release of beneficial hormones.

Learn to plan out your diet properly at planningdiets.com

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Eating For Activity

Many sports rely on short bursts of power along with
prolonged periods of activity. This complicates the eating
plan even more. Energy for the muscle work and that for the
cardio work vary, but the basis for replenishing nutrients
used up during your training and competition remains the
same. The amounts required may differ, however.

During pre and in season when both endurance and short
term train is intense, refilling of energy stores must be
facilitated. Glycogen storage in your muscles and liver
must be filled on a daily basis in order to prepare you
for the next days training. With off-season training, when
you are training less often and less intensely, you will
have greater periods between training to refill these
energy stores. Calorie requirements during this phase of
training will be significantly reduced.

Complex carbohydrates provide you with the energy
requirements necessary for both forms of energy production.
Since you are training intensely during pre and in season
training, additional carbohydrates are needed. And as with
any type of training, carbohydrates with a low glycemic
index are recommended before training sessions.

When you consume foods that are low on the glycemic index,
your blood sugar will be more stable for longer periods of
time. The glycemic index rates carbohydrates by how quickly
they are converted to glucose, the form of sugar found in
your blood. The lower the rating, the better they are for
sustained sugar levels in your blood.

Most of your energy for activities like swimming and tennis
comes from glycogen store and sugar in your blood. By
attempting to spare the glycogen in your muscles for those
bursts of energy, you will need to sustain your blood
sugar levels while sparing muscle glycogen stores. A drop
in blood sugar will produce fatigue no matter what mode of
training you are in. So eat plenty of complex carbohydrates.

Protein needs are elevated due to intense strength training
and lengthy endurance training. Quality protein will be
needed throughout all phases of training for complete
recuperation and additional growth.

Fat intake should be limited to unsaturated fats. No more
than ten to fifteen percent of your daily caloric intake
is recommended to be in the form of fats. The ratio of fats,
protein and carbohydrates should be 1,2,4 for endurance
strength athletes.

Although it is not uncommon to see athletes eating a candy
bar before competition, this is not a beneficial practice.
The high concentration of simple sugars found in a candy
bar and thus in your blood, causes a surge of insulin
release. As the insulin gets released in your blood, it
promotes the uptake of sugar by your cells. This will in
turn wipe out mot of your blood sugar and lead to a severe
drop in energy. So the candy bar is counter productive to
obtaining additional energy over the long run.

As you can see, deficiencies can result from inadequate
eating practices. To protect against deficiencies of any
nutritional type, eat healthily, take a multivitamin
mineral everyday and supplement your eating with quality
nutritional supplements.

Need Help Planning Your Diet?

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Recipe - Fillet of Sole - High protein foods

Protein is needed to build and repair body tissues like
muscle. All proteins are made up of amino acids. The body
needs 22 different amino acids to function properly. Nine of
these are called essential amino acids because the body
cannot make them. We must get them in the foods we eat.

A food that supplies all the amino acids in the right
amounts is a complete protein. Foods from animals are
complete proteins. Plant foods are incomplete proteins, so
they must be combined with other foods in order to get the
right amount of amino acids. A vegetarian would need to plan
carefully to meet protein needs.

Some examples of high protein foods that would be complete
proteins would be:
Milk and cheese
Eggs and meats of all kinds
Fish
Whey protein powder

Whey protein powder is very high protein but it is not
recommended that all of your meals turn into powder and
water in the form of a shake. While you may increase your
protein levels in your diet, you do not get the same
nutritional value as you would with whole foods. Whey
protein powder does not have the same nutrients as a fillet
of fish or piece of steak.

Speaking of fillets, here is a great recipe that is from the
complete, high protein foods category.

Almond Fillet Of Sole

Ingredients:
4 thin red onion slices
6 thin lemon slices
.25 cup sliced green onions
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
2 fillets sole
Dash of salt
Dash of lemon pepper paprika

Making The Goods!

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray 12x8 inch baking dish with
nonstick vegetable cooking spray.
Arrange 2 slices each of red onion and lemon in a dish.
Sprinkle with half of green onions and 1 tablespoon of
almonds.

Arrange the fillets in a single layer over onions, lemon and
almonds. Sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper and paprika. Top
with remaining red onion, lemon, green onions and almonds.

Cover dish with foil. Bake for 25 to 28 minutes or until
fish is firm and begins to flake.

One fillet of this high protein food contains:
Fat: 6 grams
Carbohydrates: 7 grams
Protein: 24 grams
And 2 grams of fiber wrapped in a 175-calorie package!

About the author: Ray L Burton is a personal trainer and
author of the book Fat To Fit and creator of the step 101 diet plan

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Recipe - Awesome Omelette

SHORT DESCRIPTION: This omelette recipe is healthy and full of vitamins. It is
good to have with fresh bread.

Ingredients

4 eggs
A few shots of hot sauce
Half a green pepper (sliced into bits)
One onion (chopped)
Oil
Two tablespoons Butter
Half cup Sliced ham (or another meat – in bits)
Half cup Cheddar cheese grated

Cooking Instructions

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl except the oil and onions. Heat a pan at a
little above medium heat and put oil in it. Add the onions and once they’re
browned add the ingredients from the bowl. When the bottom of the omelette is
cooked, flip it over and cook the other side.


RESOURCE BOX: Nahom Kidanemariam http://eduhelper.tripod.com

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