HRITHIK ROSHAN'S WORKOUTS AND DIET

HRITHIK ROSHAN'S WORKOUTS AND DIET

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

HRITHIK ROSHAN'S Fitness and BODYBUILDING SECRETS
HRITHIK ROSHAN'Sworkouts routines
HRITHIK ROSHAN'S KRRISH 3 WORKOUTS


FOR Flawless Body

You have to hand it to Hritik. He has been gifted with a body that is of a rare kind in the first place. A body that could become a putty in a trainer's hands. Add to it, the determination and resolve he
has in ample measures.

HIS Exercises

But He is not really hung-up on exercises like some other folk who are bent upon having a body like his! Surprisingly, he does not work out daily. It is rather 4 or 5 days a week. He visits the gym at The Club, a popular gym at juhu. One hour each in the morning and evening is his exercise routine. He does work-outs that have emphasis on cardio. His shooting schedules may, however, come in the way.

No Let - Up at Any Time waste

He is so particular about exercises that when he travels, he takes a set of his exercise equipment with him. He fixes the equipment anywhere to a flat surface with the help of a vacuum press and starts his routine of exercises for biceps and legs . He also takes good old dumb bells.

Diet:

My dietary restrictions are few because I work out. Yet I avoid oily and fried food. I like Chinese food and Indian food, but hate milk and cannot have any milk product, except chocolate. I am not on any special diet because my exercise routine ensures that I stay fit.

Everyday, I have a special chocolate milk shake that is full of protein and recommended by my instructor. I have a heavy breakfast because I feel that's the most important meal of the day. My afternoon meal is mostly on the sets and an evening snack is optional.

Since I work late into the night, my dinner is either on the sets or I go out with friends to restaurants. I don't drink often but when I do it is Bacardi with Coke. I have a sweet tooth and love anything that has sugar but I am very careful about overindulging.

I'm very much into exercising but I love food too. I make the best eggs in the world - fabulous Spanish omelets and very good scrambled eggs but I can't give you my recipes. I haven't really cooked for two years but when I was in school I used to get ready early and then go into the kitchen and make my eggs.

But I do monitor my food habits. It's 90 per cent your diet that works and 10 per cent what you do. I eat very little oil, butter, ghee and fatty stuff. I balance my meals out - protein and carbohydrates and fats. I drink lots of water and stay away from alcohol and cigarettes. I believe nothing is bad in moderation but things like smoking and drinking are difficult to moderate.

Advice on building muscles:

Do a lot of cardio exercises. They help build muscles and are good for the heart. Do a lot of cycling and treadmill as far as possible. This way, you will have your thighs and arms in a great shape. Do crunches for the stomach. I do about 500 a day, but even if you do 200 a day it is enough to give you a washboard stomach. Swim or go jogging if you can about two days a week, it gives your body flexibility. And do not over exercise.

Recommended diet:

As I said I do not follow any particular diet routine. But there are a few suggestions. Cut down on oily and fried food and take a lot of fruits and vegetables, which have natural fibers in them. Take about six small meals a day, instead of two large ones. Drink loads of water; say about a liter a day, since it will help flush out toxins in your body. Once a week, do a food diet. Eat only fruits and those who like milk can have two glasses of buttermilk. Take a protein shake everyday, but consult your dietician or fitness instructor before you take them.

Top 11 fitness tricks for women

Joel Harper fitness tips for women: Turn your dream body into a reality

Achieving your dream physique doesn't mean slaving for hours in the gym. According to celebrity fitness guru Joel Harper, Dr. Oz's famed fitness expert and brand fitness expert for Promax, you can get the body of your dreams by doing the following high-rep body-weight exercises and putting his celebrity trainer tips to the test.

Top 11 exercises for women

"We are all really busy and don't have a lot of time," says Harper. "I am all for maximizing your results, but in order to do that you need to be efficient and work out properly. These 10 exercises turn your dream body into a reality."
1
Lying triceps press (tones the back of your arm)

Lie on your back with your knees bent and together, feet apart (pyramid position). Hold 2-pound dumbbells above your head and bring your elbows in line with your eyes. Bend your elbows, lowering the weights to the floor right above your head, then straighten your arms. Do 100 repetitions. Do not move your elbows the entire set.

Harper's tip: When this gets easy use a 3-lb. dumbbell,, but never more weight. To make it harder increase the reps to 125.
2
Oblique kick (works arms, hips and obliques)

Come onto your left side with your legs stacked at a 90-degree angle. With your left forearm on the ground and your right hand in a fist for support on the ground, lift your body off the ground and kick your right foot out as high as you can, looking straight ahead the entire time. Come back to the starting position and repeat for 25 repetitions. Then switch sides.

Harper's tip: To make this exercise harder, take your right hand off the ground and put it on your waist. Now in the "up" position, the only thing that is touching the ground is your forearm and the side of your left foot.
3
X abs (targets
entire core)

Lie on your back and put your hands on your shoulders in an X behind your head, with your legs in butterfly position. Lift your upper body 25 repetitions using your abs. Then hold and lift your lower body 25 repetitions, tapping the sides of your feet back down. Then do both simultaneously. Keep your core engaged the entire time.
4
Butterfly taps (works abs)

Sit up tall, knees bent and pointing out to the sides, feet on the floor in front of you with soles of your feet together. Place fingertips on the floor between your legs and lean back slightly until you feel your abs engage. Raise your left foot, then lower it and immediately raise your right foot. Continue, alternating your feet for 30 seconds. Then do both feet simultaneously for 30 seconds. Sit up straight and keep abs pulled in throughout movement.
5
Climber (challenges your entire body)

Stand with feet hip-width apart and hands in front of shoulders, elbows pointing down and palms facing away from you. Raise your right arm overhead as you lift right knee toward chest. Repeat on opposite side. Continue, alternating sides, for 2 minutes.
6
Tricep cooker (works triceps, legs, and core)

Sit with your knees bent and feet on floor, hands 6 inches behind your hips and your fingers facing towards you. Lift your hips and raise your right leg straight up. Bend only your elbows, lowering your butt toward the floor. Straighten your arms and repeat 25 times, then switch legs. Do 2 sets with each leg.

Harper's tip: To make it easier, keep both feet on the floor.
7
Concentration lunges (works lower body)

With your hands on your waist, step your left foot forward. Drop your right knee down to the mat. Now check your form: Your front knee should be right over your ankle, and your back knee and shoulder are in alignment with the same hip. Keep this alignment for the entire set. Do 100 lunges, then switch sides.

Harper's tip: Pull your stomach in the entire exercise and stand up ballerina-straight.
8
Superman twist (targets butt and core)

Lie face-down with legs extended and forehead on hands, fingers interlaced. Raise legs and chest, then rotate torso to the left. Keeping legs raised, rotate to the right and repeat. (If this is too challenging, keep legs on the floor.) Each set tap your elbow on the mat. Do 100 taps.
9
Donkey kicks (strengthens entire body with emphasis on quads)

Get on all fours with your hands under shoulders and knees under hips. With slightly bent elbows and a straight line from the top of your head to your tailbone, lift your knees 1 inch off the ground and bounce them 1 inch up and down 50 repetitions. Once you are good and warm, float your feet off the ground and kick them in the air like a donkey. Do 50 repetitions.

Harper's tip: While you're performing the exercise, think "floating," not pounding back down. Imagine you are jumping on a sheet of glass and don't want to break it.
10
Stretch: Crisscross reach (stretches back and hamstrings)

Sit up tall with legs extended in front of you, left ankle crossed over right. Extend arms at shoulder height in front of you, left hand on top of right. Bend forward from hips, reaching right hand toward right toes as you lower your chin toward your chest. Focus on pressing your lower back toward your knees. Take five deep inhales, then repeat on the opposite side.
11
Wrestling circles (works abs, obliques and quads)

Lie on your back and lace your hands behind your head with your thumbs on your neck (as sensors to make sure your neck remains relaxed). While lifting your shoulders up, simultaneously lift your legs and rock using your obliques; twist for 10 repetitions clockwise, then switch directions for 10 repetitions.

Harper's tip: While you're doing this exercise, remember it's for your abs, not your neck. Engage your abs instead of just pulling up with your head. Also, keep your elbows out of your line of vision throughout.

Celebrities Fitness Tips

What smart, exercise-loving, fiber-eating woman would think she could get a better body by doing what Hollywood types do? Me -- when I know the advice comes from a sane celebrity trainer who takes wellness seriously. (I also subscribe to dancer Martha Graham's theory that "You are unique, and if that is not fulfilled, something is lost.") Here, because a Fit Girl clearly is the new It Girl, the moves to make you your very best, all vetted by our in-house FITNESS gurus.

1. Ooze Confidence
Tyra, we love you because you strut with confidence. Banks's "SO WHAT!" campaign, which encourages women to embrace their bodies -- flaws and all -- shows that even supermodels can champion the beauty of being super-real.

2. Hit the Road Penelope Cruz gets her fitness outside. "Workouts aren't just about burning calories, they're about getting in shape for the things you love," says trainer Gunnar Peterson. For more ways to get fit without having to step foot in a gym, see our outdoor workouts feature.
Get Fit Without the Gym >>


3. Be a Fit Mom
To shape up for her upcoming movie, The Kingdom, Jennifer Garner did lots and lots of lunges with shoulder presses, says trainer Valerie Waters. In real life, toddler Violet stands in for some dumbbells.

4. Get on the Ball
Jessica Simpson uses one for wall squats, says trainer Harley Pasternak, keeping the ball behind her back to maintain proper form as she sculpts her legs and butt. For more stability ball moves, check out our insider's guide.
Stability Ball Workout >>


5. Build Strong Bones and Muscles
Trainer Joe Dowdell has actress Claire Danes hoist some hefty weights during her high-intensity workouts.

6. Swing into Action
Catherine Zeta-Jones hits the links for some R&R. If she forgoes the cart and carries her own clubs, she'll burn about 261 calories an hour.

7. Two-Step
Boxer Laila Ali says doing some fancy footwork on Dancing with the Stars required the same focus and intensity she finds in the ring. We say she looks amazing.

8. Focus on Yourself
"It's important to get out of your head and into your body," says trainer Gregory Joujon-Roche, who works with Avril Lavigne. "Do whatever feels good, because that's what it's really all about."

9. Log On for Success Share the same workout advice as Jennifer Aniston, J.Lo, and dozens more celebs at podfitness.com, which offers "trainer in your ear" programs from more than 75 experts on everything from weight loss to walking.

10. Train for the Finish Line
Singer Sheryl Crow regularly cross-trains with a combo of running and cycling. In addition to regular jogs, she's prepping for a 100-mile bike ride by cranking up the resistance on a stationary bike until she can barely pedal, then bringing it back down, says trainer Greg Bahnfleth.

11. Mix Things Up
"Every day should be something a little different when it comes to your workout routine," says trainer Michael George, who has worked with Reese Witherspoon, shown here, jogging. "Otherwise, your body gets bored and you stop seeing results."

12. Band Together
Julia Roberts stays in shape with do-anywhere resistance-band exercises from trainer Kathy Kaehler, including standing on the band for double biceps curls and front and lateral shoulder raises.

13. Run for a Cause
Meredith Vieira often participates in charity run/walks that help raise funds for everything from cancer to mental health. Want to join a fun run? Check out these options.
Run or walk for charity >>


14. Nix Boredom
Kate Hudson keeps fit by mixing things up. In addition to running, she takes Sheila Kelley's S Factor (pole dancing and striptease) classes regularly -- in 6-inch heels!

15. Ride On
Madonna should wear a helmet while she rides, but even so, cycling is a great way to cross-train, burning more than 500 calories an hour at a moderate pace and sculpting the abs, legs, and butt.

16. Shake It
Nikki Blonsky, just 18, loves dancing and adored training (hard!) for her role in the movie Hairspray. She told FITNESS that at one point, she was losing weight so quickly she had to drink protein shakes to stay at her character's size.

17. Be Fluid
"Drinking before and at frequent intervals during your workouts prevents dehydration, cramps, and overheating," says Pilates expert Daniel Loigerot, who works with Naomi Watts. For more hot-weather exercise tips, see our "Love Your Summer Workout" story.

Planning to Lose Weight in the New Year? Experts Say, "Think Sleep"

Specifically, sleep loss has been shown to affect the secretion of cortisol, a hormone that regulates appetite.(3) As a result, individuals who lose sleep may continue to feel hungry despite adequate food intake. Additionally, sleep loss may interfere with the body's ability to metabolize carbohydrates and cause high blood levels of glucose, a basic sugar.(3) Excess glucose promotes the overproduction of insulin, which can promote the storage of body fat, and can also lead to insulin resistance, a critical feature of adult-onset diabetes.(4)

"Sleep loss is associated with striking alterations in hormone levels that regulate the appetite and may be a contributing factor to obesity," said Michael Thorpy, MD, director of the Sleep-Wake Disorders Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York. "Any American making a resolution to lose weight in the New Year should probably consider a parallel commitment for getting more sleep."

Weight loss is the number-one New Year's resolution in America,(5) with approximately 40% of the population promising to diet.(6) A nationwide survey found that more than 75% of women between the ages of 25 and 54 make diet resolutions each year or most years.

Unfortunately, nearly 90% of the respondents reported either occasional or no success, with almost half losing little weight or actually gaining weight instead.(5,7)

Sleep Loss Impact on Body Weight
In addition to changes in sleep quantity, reductions in sleep quality can also affect weight. For example, decreased amounts of restorative deep or slow-wave sleep have been associated with significantly reduced levels of growth hormone(1)-a protein that helps regulate the body's proportions of fat and muscle during adulthood.(8) "Sleep loss disrupts a complex and interwoven series of metabolic and hormonal processes and may be a contributing factor to obesity," said John Winkelman, MD, PhD, medical director of the Sleep Health Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital and assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "What most people do not realize is that better sleep habits may be instrumental to the success of any weight management plan."

Sleeplessness in America
Sleep loss is a common problem in America. According to the 2002 "Sleep in America" Poll sponsored by the National Sleep Foundation,(9) less than one third of adults (30%) reported getting 8 or more hours of sleep per night on weeknights. Only about half (52%) reported getting 8 or more hours of sleep per night on weekends. Although many Americans elect to forgo sleep to increase their leisure or work time, a majority also suffer from sleep disorders that interfere with both the quantity and quality of their sleep. For example, nearly three quarters (74%) reported experiencing at least one symptom of a sleep disorder a few nights per week or more. Insomnia was defined as any of the following four symptoms: difficulty falling asleep, waking a lot during the night, waking up too early and not being able to get back to sleep, and waking up feeling unrefreshed. Fifty-eight percent of respondents reported experiencing at least one symptom of insomnia at least a few nights per week.

"People who experience sleep disturbances for more than a few weeks should see their doctor," said Thorpy. "In addition to making behavioral and lifestyle modifications, there are newer prescription sleep medications that can help individuals fall asleep quickly and increase their total sleep time with minimal next-day effects."

How to Lose Weight and Keep it Off: 10 Rules to Live By

I’ve been browsing a lot of wedding message boards lately. It’s a fun pastime. You take polls. You read arguments that could only happen in America. You learn what preoccupies engaged folks. Which? Besides the usual etiquette questions and endless recaps of Bridezilla, is losing weight.

To a certain degree, this is to be expected. It’s certainly a concern of mine. (Those photos will last for-freaking-ever.) But there are a disturbing number of fad diets floating around those boards: cheap pills, single-food fasts, and bizarre old wives’ tales. Needless to day, they’re expensive and frequently harmful, and the results are usually only temporary.

Of course, when it comes to successfully losing weight (and more importantly, keeping it off), nothing is written in stone. What works for one person may not work for her twin sister. I certainly don’t know all the answers.

But I kinda know some of them. These ten rules have been echoed time and again by medical professionals, nutrition experts, and the media in general. They’re fairly essential to any weight control. Many have worked for me over the years. Hopefully, they’ll help you along, too.

If you have more rules to add, I'd love to read 'em. Please fire away in the comment section.

1) Seek information.
Read. Research. Watch. Absorb. Flip on your interweb button and learn about food. Get facts from experts, health professionals and reliable sources who know what they’re talking about. Gather good data and apply those numbers and strategies to your own situation. Do not let advertising make your decisions for you.

2) Ignore dumb fads.
A good rule of thumb: if it sounds like something your crazy co-worker would try, keep on walking. This includes master cleanses, herbal laxatives, TrimSpa wannabes, apple cider vinegar diets, grapefruit diets, chicken soup diets, cabbage soup diets, that godforsaken cookie diet, and their ilk. As mentioned above, these are often dangerous, pricey, and based on bum science (when they’re based on any science whatsoever).

3) “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
Of all the theories I’ve heard on healthy eating, Michael Pollan’s credo seems to be the most reasonable and potentially effective, not to mention the most conscious of the financial, environmental, and social consequences. Let’s break it down.
EAT FOOD: consume whole foods and/or products with very short ingredient lists. “Don't eat anything your great-great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food.”
NOT TOO MUCH: check your portions.
MOSTLY PLANTS: eat less meat. Increase your produce intake. Serve more whole grains.

4) Cook.
By cooking at home, you regulate portions, control ingredients, spend less money, and reduce wasteful packaging. It keeps you out of restaurants and fast food joints, where serving sizes are much larger than they were 30, 20, or even 10 years ago. So, experiment with dinner. Learn how to use a knife. Pick up How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. A few minutes in the kitchen could save you a few years of heartache down the line.

5) Get up and move.
To lose weight and keep it off, you must consistently burn more or as many calories as you ingest. This is an unassailable fact, and means some degree of daily exercise, probably for the entirety of one’s life. Use it or lose it, folks.

6) Drink water.
It’s been estimated that soda makes up 10% of all calories in the American diet. That’s practically enough for its own food group. Plus, USA Today and Yale University say: “[Soda drinkers] do not appear to compensate by reducing calories somewhere else in their diets, so they tend to pack on extra pounds.” By replacing pop with water, you’re cutting calories and hydrating your body in a healthy way.

7) Kill your TV.
According to the National Institute of Media and Family, “children who watch more than three hours of television a day are 50 per cent more likely to be obese than kids who watch fewer than two hours.” If TV is that detrimental to kids, you know it can’t have a spectacular effect on adults. Same goes for your computer and/or Playstation. That’s time you could be cooking, moving, socializing, learning, reading … you get the picture.

8) Have breakfast.
The National Weight Control Registry is a reputable organization that monitors people who have kept 30 pounds off for at least one year. (On average, it’s 66 pounds for five-plus years.) Of those successful individuals, 78% eat breakfast every single day. It prevents overeating through the rest of the day, and “may leave the subject with a better ability to perform physical activity.”

9) Remember: everything in moderation.
Are you a cold turkey kind of person? More power to you. But lots of us are baby-steppers, and when we attempt to overhaul everything at once, it results in massive burnout. So, unless it’s a medical crisis, take baby steps. Change your behaviors a little at a time. Don’t starve yourself. Work your way up to more intense exercise. You may not even notice the difference after awhile, because it’s become such a part of you.

10) Don’t diet.
Change your lifestyle. The vast majority of successful dieters gain the weight back, maybe because he very word “diet” implies a temporary modification of habit, as opposed to a lifelong adoption of behaviors. For weight loss to work, it’s gotta be for the long term.

And that’s it. Readers, what would you add to these basic tenets? What essential rules have worked for you? The comment section is open.

Hrithik Roshan Physique – His Physical Workout Routine

A look at the physical workout routine that Hrithik Roshan follows to maintain his physique

Hrithik Roshan has a fabulous upper torso and a lanky frame. His well toned body is a result of years of dedicated workouts and the right kind of diet and nutrition.

Hrithik Roshan’s Physique – How He Works Out

Hrithik Roshan’s workouts are short and intense. His 40-minute regimen, four days a week, includes 20 minutes of cardio-vascular exercises. He maintains a daily journal of his exercises and uses a Polar watch to monitor calorie count and pulse rate. He focuses on different parts of the body every day.

For biceps, triceps and shoulders, he uses dumbbells. For the chest, uses the bench press and variations of the dumbbell press. For strengthening the back he performs chin ups and rowing. For strengthening his legs he does squats, lunges, leg curls and calf exercises.

Hrithik Roshan’s Physique – What He Eats

Hrithik Roshan’s

Hrithik says that he is not too fussy about his diet as he works out regularly. However, he tries to keep away from oily and sugary foods and ensure a high protein diet. He only fills up 70% of his stomach. He starts his day with a heavy breakfast of egg whites, protein shake and fruit.

Lunch consists of two rotis and green vegetable or chicken, dal, protein shake and fruit. The actor’s dinner contains a protein shake and egg whites as well as a fruit. Hrithik recommends no more than two teaspoons of oil in a day and absolutely no refined sugar. He also recommends adequate sleep and rest.

Hrithik had to put on eight kilos for his role in Guzaarish (2010), besides having to stop exercising for two months. Post Guzaarish, he went back to concentrated exercise and a strict diet to knock off the extra kilos in just 40 days.

Hrithik Roshan Workout Schedule – A Sneak Peek

A sneak peek at the workout schedule of Hrithik Roshan

Hrithik Roshan Workout Schedule

Hrithik Roshan is considered to have one of the best toned bodies in Bollywood today. There’s a lot of sweat behind this success and it has not happened overnight.

Hrithik Roshan’s Workout – Some Details

Hrithik Roshan does not believe in extended and rigorous workouts. He works out four or five times a week. He believes that whether it losing weight or building muscle, the body does it all when people sleep, so adequate rest is the important aspect.

Hrithik works out for about 40 minutes every day, for five days a week. He includes about 20 minutes of cardio-vascular exercises like jogging and skipping. He has a special set of exercise equipment to take with him when he is travelling. The actor maintains that workouts make him feel good.

Hrithik Roshan’s Workout – His Diet

He has few dietary restrictions because of his regular workouts. However, he keeps away from oily food, preferring grilled, roasted and boiled food. He starts his day with a heavy breakfast. During a film’s shooting, he normally has lunch on the sets. If he has to work late, he even finishes his dinner on the sets or otherwise goes out with friends. He is an occasional drinker and smoker, though he tries to avoid both to the maximum extent.

When he was younger, he had a bad back problem and doctors had opined that he would never be able to dance or do any strenuous activity. With sheer will power and self help, Hrithik Roshan overcame his problem and achieved the successful position that he is at today.

Fitness secrets of Bollywood stars

These are the men who fuel the muscle-building dreams of the Indian guy. Find out the secrets of sculpting your body to perfection by using the workouts of Bollywood stars.

The original muscleman: Salman Khan
Even at a time when being a hero didn't come with the ancillary requirements of a well-built body, there was one man who was flaunting his ripped core. Who? Salman Khan, of course. The muscleman of Bollywood, who inarguably has had the most consistent best body in B-Town, realised the importance of a good physique long before the six-pack/eight-pack wave hit tinsel town.

It didn't come easy though-he worked out hard to get it with his former trainer (he trains on his own now) Manish Advilkar. Here we look at how to broaden the shoulders like Salman. "Broader shoulder instantly gives you that attractive V-shaped torso," says Advilkar.

Get shoulders like Salman Khan
Do these exercises twice a week to work all your shoulder muscles. For all exercises, do 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps with 10kg and 15kg dumbbells/weight plates.

Seated barbell press: Sit upright on a flat bench, keeping your back straight. Rest at barbell on the back of your shoulders. Press the weight up until your arms are straight but not locked. Lower the bar slowly to your shoulders and repeat.

Dumbbell lateral raise: Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and hold two medium weight dumbbells by your side. Raise the dumbbells away from the body until your arms are parallel to the ground. Pause for a second and lower the dumbbells back to the starting position and repeat till all the reps are completed.

Scaption: Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and hold a pair of dumbbells at arm's length by your sides, your palms facing each other. Raise your arms until they're parallel to the ground while keeping them at a 30-degree angle to your body. Pause, and then lower your arms back to the starting position.

Cable face pull: Attach a rope to the high pulley of a cable station and grab each end so your palms face each other. Step away till your arms are straight in front of you. Now pull the middle of the rope towards your eyes by bending your elbows, squeezing your shoulder blades together. Now, slowly straighten your arms.

The man of the moment: John Abraham
Ever since his Dostana days where he showed some (butt) cheek, John Abraham has become the butt boy of Bollywood. But given his latest bulking up phase, his arms are clearly the talk of the town. The fitness enthusiast in Abraham always makes him push the frontiers of fitness making him inarguably, the best body in B-Town currently! Here's how you can benefit from his good example.

For arms like John Abraham
For big guns like John, do this workout three days a week, advises his trainer Vinod.

Barbell curl: Stand straight and hold a barbell with an underhand grip. Let your arms hang straight down from your shoulders. Curl the barbell as high as you can in good form. Pause for a second and slowly lower the barbell and repeat. Do 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Dumbbell curl: Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms extended and palms facing your body. Keeping your back straight and chest up slowly raise both your arms till the dumbbells are next to the chest level. Pause, and then slowly return to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

Hammer curl: Sit on a fl at bench holding two dumbbell with your palms facing each other. Raise both the dumbbells until your forearms are vertical and your thumbs face the shoulder. Lower to original position and repeat. Do 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Healthy Weight - it's not a diet, it's a lifestyle!

How to Use Fruits and Vegetables to Help Manage Your Weight

Fruits and vegetables are part of a well-balanced and healthy eating plan. There are many different ways to lose or maintain a healthy weight. Using more fruits and vegetables along with whole grains and lean meats, nuts, and beans is a safe and healthy one. Helping control your weight is not the only benefit of eating more fruits and vegetables. Diets rich in fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of some types of cancer and other chronic diseases. Fruits and vegetables also provide essential vitamins and minerals, fiber, and other substances that are important for good health.

To lose weight, you must eat fewer calories than your body uses.

This doesn't necessarily mean that you have to eat less food. You can create lower-calorie versions of some of your favorite dishes by substituting low-calorie fruits and vegetables in place of higher-calorie ingredients. The water and fiber in fruits and vegetables will add volume to your dishes, so you can eat the same amount of food with fewer calories. Most fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat and calories and are filling.

Here are some simple ways to cut calories and eat fruits and vegetables throughout your day:

Breakfast: Start the Day Right

Substitute some spinach, onions, or mushrooms for one of the eggs or half of the cheese in your morning omelet. The vegetables will add volume and flavor to the dish with fewer calories than the egg or cheese.
Cut back on the amount of cereal in your bowl to make room for some cut-up bananas, peaches, or strawberries. You can still eat a full bowl, but with fewer calories.

Lighten Up Your Lunch

Substitute vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, or onions for 2 ounces of the cheese and 2 ounces of the meat in your sandwich, wrap, or burrito. The new version will fill you up with fewer calories than the original.
Add a cup of chopped vegetables, such as broccoli, carrots, beans, or red peppers, in place of 2 ounces of the meat or 1 cup of noodles in your favorite broth-based soup. The vegetables will help fill you up, so you won't miss those extra calories.

Dinner

Add in 1 cup of chopped vegetables such as broccoli, tomatoes, squash, onions, or peppers, while removing 1 cup of the rice or pasta in your favorite dish. The dish with the vegetables will be just as satisfying but have fewer calories than the same amount of the original version.
Take a good look at your dinner plate. Vegetables, fruit, and whole grains should take up the largest portion of your plate. If they do not, replace some of the meat, cheese, white pasta, or rice with legumes, steamed broccoli, asparagus, greens, or another favorite vegetable. This will reduce the total calories in your meal without reducing the amount of food you eat. BUT remember to use a normal- or small-size plate — not a platter. The total number of calories that you eat counts, even if a good proportion of them come from fruits and vegetables.

Smart Snacks

Most healthy eating plans allow for one or two small snacks a day. Choosing most fruits and vegetables will allow you to eat a snack with only 100 calories.
Instead of a high-calorie snack from a vending machine, bring some cut-up vegetables or fruit from home. One snack-sized bag of corn chips (1 ounce) has the same number of calories as a small apple, 1 cup of whole strawberries, AND 1 cup of carrots with 1/4 cup of low-calorie dip. Substitute one or two of these options for the chips, and you will have a satisfying snack with fewer calories.

Remember: Substitution is the key.

It's true that fruits and vegetables are lower in calories than many other foods, but they do contain some calories. If you start eating fruits and vegetables in addition to what you usually eat, you are adding calories and may gain weight. The key is substitution. Eat fruits and vegetables instead of some other higher-calorie food.

You are here: Home / Fitness / Light dinner – The quickest way to lose weight. Light dinner – The quickest way to lose weight.

I, for one, don’t believe in drastic steps to lose weight. Small sustainable changes to your routine can go a long way in getting the body you want without overwhelming you. Read on to see how you can get fantastic results by switching to a light dinner.



Why light dinner?

What do most of us do after dinner – watch tv and then hit the bed….. sometimes just hit the bed. We don’t undertake any kind of activity that requires the body to spend the energy obtained from our dinner. The only thing the body does is digest the food. So, whatever we eat is going to get stored in the body (as – ya, you guessed it right – FAT!) for future use. So, the heavier our dinner the more fat our body is going to store. After a heavy dinner, have you ever woken up in the morning feeling full – as if you just ate something? That’s again because of lack of utilization of the energy obtained from the previous night’s meal.





So, a sure shot way of storing less fat is by having a light dinner – preferably stuff that requires the body to spend more calories digesting it than the calories obtained from it.




What constitutes a light dinner?

The ideal dinner would comprise of salads, soups and fruits.

The salad can have lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, beet, onions, bell peppers – pretty much any vegetable you like to eat raw. Avoid meat in a dinner salad – even if it’s only chicken. The most important thing to remember is the salad dressing. There is no point sticking to salad if you are going to have a very rich dressing. Try to have salad with salt, pepper and lime juice. Or if you like vinegar, that’s great too! If all these sound too plain to you, choose dressings that are light – for instance, Italian is lighter than Ranch.

Opt for water based soups as opposed to cream or cheese based ones. Home made soups with veggies are the best. You can also buy canned soups that need very little preparation – but be sure to check the calories.

Fruits – You can have a little bit of a whole variety of fruits or choose one for each day. Berries, melons and citrus fruits are the best. The juice content in them would give you a feeling of a full stomach without the extra calories. Avoid bananas or mangoes for dinner.

If you are used to having a lot of carbs, meat or cheese for dinner, you might find it difficult to switch suddenly to a lighter meal. So you can start with a general reduction of your dinner calorie intake and then progress gradually to a salad-soup- fruit dinner.

Believe me, once you get into the routine, it wouldn’t seem like such a big deal. And soon, you would be at a point where the thought of a heavy dinner makes you uneasy :




Get the satisfaction of having eaten a full meal

As a general rule, it takes about 20 min after you have eaten enough for your brain to realize your stomach is actually full. So, unless you give those 20 min to your brain, invariably, you are going to end up eating a lot more than you really need. It’s a little impractical to eat some and then wait for 20 min and then continue eating if you don’t feel full ;-)

A more sensible way is to eat very slowly, chew the food well and preferably concentrate on your plate and not be engrossed in a book or TV.

This way you are aware of the amount of food intake and are not hurrying up to finish everything on your plate. You would be amazed to find out how satisfied you feel with a lot less food when you take the time to chew and eat slowly.

If you are the kind who doesn’t like to waste food on the plate, take small servings at a time. Only if you are still hungry, you should go for the n

Light Dinner to Lose Weight

The key to weight loss is consuming fewer calories than you burn. Putting your body in a calorie deficit triggers your fat stores to be used for energy. If you eat a low-calorie diet throughout the day, only to come home after work and binge on food, weight loss will be impossible. Choosing a light dinner can ensure that you finish your day the healthy way. This will help you rest easy and stay motivated.


Set Up For Success

If you know that you want to stick with light eating at night, obtain sufficient nutrients and calories throughout the day. If you are not eating enough during the day, you will set yourself up to be ravenous come dinnertime. This puts you out of control and makes good choices very difficult. Be sure to have breakfast and lunch every day. Depending on when you eat lunch, try to fit in a healthy afternoon snack to moderate your hunger until dinner. Eat several fruits and vegetables throughout the day to keep your energy up without consuming excess calories.


Satisfying Low-Calorie Options

"Physiology and Behavior" published a 2009 study based on the concept of low-energy-density eating. This study found that foods with a high water content were very filling because, despite low calorie amounts, people tended to consume a consistent weight of food. Prepare clear soups or salads with light dressing for dinner. Try to fill up on vegetables and stews with a high water percentage. The extra water in foods like lettuce helps you feel satisfied but does not have many calories. Choosing low-energy-dense foods is an effective strategy for preparing a light dinner.


Be Prepared

Plan your meals. After a long day, it can be tough to get home and try to come up with creative, filling, light meals. Make sure you have ingredients on hand that are fast and easy, such as frozen steamed vegetables or microwaveable brown rice. Take time on the weekends to prepare large dishes, like a pot of low-calorie soup. That way when it comes time to make dinner, you have a foolproof light meal option.


Watch Desserts

Sometimes extra calorie intake is not from dinner, but happens after dinner. Late-night snacking is a surefire way to sabotage your day. If you know you are vulnerable to this behavior, keep sweets and snacks out of the house. Come up with an alternative that fits into your calorie plan. A 2004 study in the "Journal of the American College of Nutrition" found that replacing late-night snacks with cold cereal and low-fat milk helped support weight loss in regular night-snackers. If you prefer to eat a little something extra before bed, make sure you plan for it and count it as part of your totals for the day.

What Should A Person Eat for Lunch to Lose Weight? Read more: What Should A Person Eat for Lunch to Lose Weight? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_5031213_should-eat-lunch-lose-weight.html#ixzz1lhUTWN5W

The best way to lose weight is to eat. The body needs constant nourishment in order to function at its top capacity and to burn fat more efficiently. The ideal way to do this is to eat four to six small meals a day, of which lunch is one of the most important ones. Not only is the type of food consumed important, but how you combine it and how much you eat will also have an effect on your weight loss efforts.


Calorie Count

When planning lunch, aim to keep your total calorie count between 400 and 600 calories. Women should aim for the lower end of that number, while men and those who are severely overweight should start at the higher end of the spectrum. Cutting calories too much too quickly will result in loss of lean mass (muscle) rather than fat loss. If you normally eat lunch out, try looking through online databases to figure out the caloric content of the foods you normally order.


Mixing It Up

Filling up your plate with a mix of carbohydrates and proteins will help you reduce the amount of total sugars you eat. Since most carbohydrates, including fruits, are high in sugar, you need to compensate by adding protein and fiber to the meal. Good protein choices include chicken, turkey and fish, while beef and pork fall into the group that is better avoided as much as possible. Other great sources of protein are eggs and low-fat dairy products. For fiber, stick to whole grains and darker carbs, such as picking brown rice over white and whole wheat over plain bread.


Eating Out

Choose ready-to-eat meals that are low in fat. Since lunchtime is most likely the time when you'll be eating out, make sure you pay careful attention to the items in the menu before ordering. Stay away from anything that is fried, battered or with added creams, as these are likely high not only in calories but also in fat. Instead, choose meals that are baked, grilled or steamed. Don't be afraid to ask for substitutions. If your meal comes with a side dish of French fries, ask for steamed veggies or a baked potato instead. If you're having a sandwich or wrap, skip the mayo or ask for it on the side, so you can add just a teaspoon of it. Switch to whole wheat or rye bread if possible.


Bring Your Own Lunch to Work

This is probably the best way to ensure that you will be eating a low-calorie meal with just the right balance of carbs, fats and proteins. Some easy-to-make, low-calorie lunches include a pita pocket sandwich (fill it up with anything from chicken salad to grilled veggies), wheat crackers and peanut butter, wraps made with multigrain flour tortillas and lots of veggies, a BBQ chicken sandwich and all types of salads. Even pasta salad is fine if you add lots of green (spinach works great) and some lean meat into the mix. Noodle soup can be brought over in a thermos, or you can search for ready-to-eat cups at whole food stores, where brands sold are likely to be lower in sodium and calories. If you're in a rush, bring some hummus or bean dip and some baked chips or wheat crackers.


Drinks

Be careful with liquid calories. Sodas, fruit juices and sport drinks are all high in calories and sugars and should not be consumed when trying to lose weight. Instead, choose diet sodas, seltzer or other calorie-free drinks. Tea and coffee are fine if you skip the sugar and use just a little milk. If you prefer juice, fill up a third of a glass with juice and then add water to complete. This will be enough to keep the flavor intact but reduce the sugary content considerably.

Eating Breakfast Helps Weight Loss

If you are someone who thinks skipping breakfast will help you lose weight, think again! Studies show that eating breakfast helps weight loss and is associated with better weight control -- especially a cereal breakfast.

An ongoing study of people who have maintained weight loss of at least 30 pounds for more than a year shows that eating breakfast keeps people slimmer (National Weight Control Registry). Breakfast eaters tend to eat fewer calories, less saturated fat and cholesterol and have better overall nutritional status than breakfast skippers.

A Nielsen's National Eating Trends Survey showed that women who ate cereal on a regular basis weighed about nine pounds less than those who ate cereal rarely or not at all, while men who ate breakfast weighed about six pounds less than men who didn't eat breakfast.

What is the link between eating breakfast and weight loss?

When you skip breakfast, your metabolic rate slows down and your blood sugar drops. As a result, you become hungry and have less energy. This sets you up to impulsively snack in the morning -- often on high-fat sweets -- or to eat extra servings or bigger portions at lunch or dinner.

When you eat breakfast, your body feels nourished and satisfied, making you less likely to overeat the rest of the day.

Eating breakfast every day may reduce the risk for obesity and insulin resistance syndrome -- an early sign of developing diabetes -- by as much as 35 to 50 percent, according to a study presented at a recent American Heart Association conference.

Whole-grain cereal breakfast best choice for weight loss

Breakfast choices are endless, although whole-grain cereals top the list as the best choice for weight control and improving health.

A Harvard study found that participants who ate whole-grain cereal every day were 17 percent less likely to die over the next several years from any cause, and 20 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular disease, than those who "rarely or never" ate whole-grain cereals.

Look for cereals that list whole grain or bran as their first ingredient and contain at least 2 grams of dietary fiber per serving. Bran cereal and oatmeal contain at least 7 grams per serving, or about 25 percent of the recommended daily intake.

"No time for breakfast" is no excuse

Time is at a premium for most of us. Nevertheless, it pays to make time for what may be the most important meal of the day.

Try to choose foods from at least two or more food groups. Protein foods take longer to digest and will provide sustained energy and keep you feeling full longer.

Here are quick, tasty and nutritious choices to get your day off to a good start:

Milk and whole-grain cereal
Instant oatmeal topped with raisins and milk
Whole-grain granola topped with fruit and yogurt
Peanut butter spread on whole-wheat toast or a bagel
Fruit smoothie made with yogurt
Cheese and whole-grain crackers
Do not overlook leftovers -- a slice of pizza, leftover stir-fry or a bowl of soup zapped in the microwave can be tasty and tide you over to lunch
Energy bars have exploded in popularity. Although they are convenient and may satisfy your hunger in a pinch, read the label. Even though they contain a variety of vitamins and other added nutrients, they often contain little fiber, and are loaded with as many calories as a candy bar!

Morning Walk For Weight Loss

KNOW ABOUT WALKING

Walking stretches your mind and your soul. It is dynamic mind & body process which creates a sense of rhythm. As you listen to your own silent rhythm, the pulse of life, your own heartbeat - you become whole, a complete man - fit in Mind, Body and Soul.

Walking energizes you, awakens you and stills your mind to fully relax. With the change of mind your moods change and you experience a physical and a spiritual upliftment. As you relax, your perception change and you reach from the everyday conscious mind to your highest level of mind - the intuitive mind. Your subconscious cuts through the mental clutter, releasing latent vitality and creativity, transcending traditional linear thinking and helping you find a creative solution.

There are many ways you could possibly benefit yourselves from i.e. an exercise as simple as morning walk. In today’s irritatingly fast world, you deprive your self of the much needed oxygen that is anyways getting depleted with the time. The earliest hours in the morning would probably give you fresh oxygen and quality time to spend with the greenery and beauty around you that perhaps only writers and poets around you seem to notice.

The oxygen that you get early in the morning also gives you great amount of energy especially to your joints. The movement in your legs releases good cholesterol in your blood, opening up some of the "chakras" or channels of energy. By constantly moving your joints, you increase your blood circulation in a way that can only be completed with your daily morning walk.

Awareness walking is a walking meditation. Focusing on the rhythm of the breath and rhythm of each step, we induce a state of a deep relaxation and self awareness. Adding mind-body technique to walking, we can provide greater relaxation and stress management, and can turn a routine walk into a creative & rejuvenating experience.


WHY WALKING

Ordinarily, in today’s hectic world, its quite possible that amidst so much that’s happening around you, makes you feel that an ideal life is but a living dream (which may remain as one) and you tend to lose out on great many things that the future holds for you. A great walk in the woods while admiring nature talks to you in many ways than one. For many of us this may be one of those things for which you either need luck or perhaps the time. And most of us believe that these are never in one’s grasp.

Much of the time our bodies are sluggish and our blood never gets an airing. Oxygen is rarely allowed to surge through our veins making us feel energetic, alive and vital. But exercise can change all that. It rejuvenates and revitalizes the body's cells, releasing muscular tension and relishing our energy levels. Exercise motivates, energizes and empowers. "The easiest way to change yourself is physically". 'Physical change quick'. So kick, start your day with a morning walk. They will tone and energizes you and connect you with your inner rhythms. Walking decreases stress hormones and increases relaxation hormones (beta-endorphins) which elevate your mood and increase your sense of well being.

Walking is natural mood elevator. It helps in promoting feelings of happiness and can ease mild depression. Walking gets you going, revs up your circulation and gives you the energy to get through the day.

The human body is the ultimate exercise machine and walking is the easiest and safest way for most people to re-energizes their bodies and burn away the harmful affects of stress. In other words, to experience health, fitness and deep relaxation, walk.

Walking can be a whole philosophy of life. After all, from the moment we rise in the morning till we climb into bed at night, we are on and off our feet.



MORNING WALK AS EXERCISE

This is perhaps the most overlooked and neglected form of exercise. Because it sounds and look easy, most of us do not bother to walk, but prefer to sign up for expensive aerobic classes and spend a lot of time in a gym.

We recommend walking as exercise since it costs nothing, requires no partner and expensive gadgets, but will burn nearly the same calories as jogging does. It does not burden the body, instead if done in calm and peaceful surroundings like a park or country road, it will let off the tension in your mind and body.
Before you use walking as exercise

Make sure you do not eat an hour before going out for a walk. Digesting takes a lot of energy from the body. If you exercise right away after eating, you are going to overburden yourself. Fruits or juices are okay, since they do not tax the system as much.
Exercise alone will not make you healthy. No amount of walking or jogging will help the body if you do not eat properly or have greater affection with cigarettes and alcohol.
It does not really matter when you do it. Although we acknowledge that an early morning walk is better because the air is significantly fresher, for people who only have the afternoon to do it, it is okay.
Avoid busy roads. You need fresh air with green & clean surroundings. The aim is to relax the mind as well as exercise the body. If you are taking more carbon dioxide than oxygen, you are harming your body. So, find a nice, peaceful and green place.

How to do it

Actually, the human body is designed to walk, no one should be taught how to do it. However, for walking as exercise to give more impact, this is our recommendation

Get at least 30 minutes walk everyday. Keep your pace at 3 to 5 miles an hour.
Vary your routes so that you are not walking on flat ground.
If you cannot maintain brisk pace, this is what you should do. Alternate between a 2 minutes brisk walk with a more comfortable pace for the next 2 minutes. After that 2 minutes “rest”, pick up your pace again. If you can maintain brisk walk, do it for approximately 20 minutes. If you cannot allocate 30 minutes a day, don’t worry. The most important thing is to do it regularly. Walking as exercise will restore your peace of mind, make your blood pressure normal and control your appetite. It is better than any pills invented by mankind.


HOW WALKING AFFECTS YOUR BODY COMPONENTS

Lets learn how walking affects our body components. It affects the five components of fitness:


BODY COMPOSITION :

Walking four times a weak, 45 minutes each time, the average person can lose 18 pounds in a year with no change in diet. Walking can help you trim fat as well as tone your muscles.


CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS : Walking, at any level or speed, two or three times a weak for at least 20 minutes increases cardiovascular strength. By increasing the strength of your heart and lungs, you increase your ability not only to exercise longer and harder but also to perform everyday task without tiring.



FLEXIBILITY: As with any endurance activity, walking doesn't significantly increase your flexibility. Every activity uses certain muscles groups more than others. Therefore you don't stretch the muscles that walking uses extensively. They'll tighten, straighten and perhaps cause pains or strains. These exercises are vital for remaining free injury.


MUSCULAR ENDURANCE:

All walkers develop a moderate amount of endurance, which enables them to exercise longer before becoming exhausted. Race walker have high endurance comparable to that of marathon runners. Walking helps build your ability to do something longer without fatigue.


MUSCULAR STRENGTH:

You will gain muscular strength with walking but probably not enough for well rounded fitness. Muscles that get an extra workout in walking include the entire back of the leg, calves, hamstrings, and gluteus. You will use muscles in the back of shoulders when you swing your arms. Walking provides other physical benefits and prevents dangers associated with other types of exercise. Walking is a low-impact exercise, which puts less strain on bones and tissues.


BENEFITS OF WALKING

Walking brings significant health benefits to body and mind. Research shows that regular walking contributes much to your overall health and fitness in important ways:

Strengthens your heart
Delays or prevents major diseases or illness
Reduces blood pressure and the risk of stroke
Reduces cholesterol
Strengthens joints and bones
Helps control weight
Improves mood and self-esteem
Contributes to “brain fitness”
Gives you energy and a good night’s rest
Relieves stress and worry
Improves balance and circulation
Boosts immune system


WALKING IS THE BEST MEDICINE

It works to build fitness, slimness and cardiovascular health and helps with relaxation.


WALKING AND BACKPAIN

Taking a walk regularly is one of the best things you can do for your back. It promotes muscular development, increases circulation, and speeds up the release of endorphins which provide a natural "high".


WALKING AND OSTEOPOROSIS

As we get older there is a gradual decrease in skeletal strength. The mineral content of bones decreases and their texture becomes thinner. And because the bones are too porous and brittle, they are more likely to fracture. This condition is known as osteoporosis.

Calcium and exercise are the keys to the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Walking may help you combat it. It is the easiest and safest form of exercise for people of all ages. The studies show that a walk of just half an hour, four times a week, can help prevent osteoporosis.


WALKING AND CIGERETTE SMOKING

It has been seen that the people who are active and fit are not so likely to smoke as those people who are sedentary and less fit. Although walking does not actually stop people from smoking, the regular routine of walking can be applied as a positive habit to replace the negative habit of smoking.

In order to improve your general health, you must find the will power to stop. Smoking causes feelings of fatigue because it impairs the delivery of oxygen to the cells of all the body's organs, destroys vitamin c in the body, impairing the immune system and increases the amount of carbon monoxide in the bloodstream, leading to heart and lung disorders and cancer.


WALKING AND BLOOD PRESSURE

Regular walking can reduce high blood pressure - hypertension - by making the heart work more efficiently and by improving the circulation. It has been shown that blood pressure can be reduced by weight loss. Regular walking combined with a low fat, high fiber-diet is an excellent form of weight control. There are other ways in which you can help yourself to reduce high blood pressure:-

Do not smoke.
Decrease your intake of alcohol and caffeine.
And make sure your diet is low in salt, sugar and fat.


WALKING AND CHOLESTEROL

Cholesterol is present not only in the blood stream but in all of the body's tissues. Most of the cholesterol in the blood stream is made in the body, but some foods which we contain cholesterol (Dietary cholesterol).

Cholesterol is transported in the blood by lipoproteins. There are two types of lipoproteins - High density (HDLs) and Low density (LDLs). HDLs are sometimes called "good" and LDLs "bad" cholesterol. The higher your HDL level the lower the risk of heart disease.

Stress can also affect your cholesterol levels. Regular walking can increase the levels of "good" cholesterol in the blood, reducing chances of a heart attack. So try to avoid stress - and relax. Go for a walk.


WALKING AND HEART

Regular walking may reduce the risk of a heart attack by half. It can help to lower the risk of coronary heart diseases as there is a link between vigorous physical exercise and a low incidence of heart failure.

Although regular, vigorous exercise can reduce the risk of developing coronary heart diseases, it cannot provide immunity. So many other factors have to be considered. And another way in which you can help yourself is by having a healthy and balanced diet.


WALKING ANG SELF CONFIDENCE

When you feel fit and healthy your self-confidence increases and you feel more able to cope with the demands mode on you. Time spent walking means time taken off from the stresses of daily life. As a result you feel less anxious. Regular exercise can increase the levels of endorphins - naturally secreted hormones - that appear to work in the brain, increasing a sense of well being. And this feeling of contentment in turn increase your Self confidence.

How to Lose 20 lbs. of Fat in 30 Days… Without Doing Any Exercise

Fat Loss via Better Science and Simplicity

It is possible to lose 20 lbs. of bodyfat in 30 days by optimizing any of three factors: exercise, diet, or drug/supplement regimen. I’ve seen the elite implementation of all three in working with professional athletes. In this post, we’ll explore what I refer to as the “slow-carb diet”.

In the last six weeks, I have cut from about 180 lbs. to 165 lbs., while adding about 10 lbs. of muscle, which means I’ve lost about 25 lbs. of fat. This is the only diet besides the rather extreme Cyclical Ketogenic Diet (CKD) that has produced veins across my abdomen, which is the last place I lose fat (damn you, Scandinavian genetics). Here are the four simple rules I followed…

Rule #1: Avoid “white” carbohydrates

Avoid any carbohydrate that is — or can be — white. The following foods are thus prohibited, except for within 1.5 hours of finishing a resistance-training workout of at least 20 minutes in length: bread, rice, cereal, potatoes, pasta, and fried food with breading. If you avoid eating anything white, you’ll be safe.

Rule #2: Eat the same few meals over and over again

The most successful dieters, regardless of whether their goal is muscle gain or fat loss, eat the same few meals over and over again. Mix and match, constructing each meal with one from each of the three following groups:

Proteins:
Egg whites with one whole egg for flavor
Chicken breast or thigh
Grass-fed organic beef
Pork

Legumes:
Lentils
Black beans
Pinto beans

Vegetables:
Spinach
Asparagus
Peas
Mixed vegetables

Eat as much as you like of the above food items. Just remember: keep it simple. Pick three or four meals and repeat them. Almost all restaurants can give you a salad or vegetables in place of french fries or potatoes. Surprisingly, I have found Mexican food, swapping out rice for vegetables, to be one of the cuisines most conducive to the “slow carb” diet.

Most people who go on “low” carbohydrate diets complain of low energy and quit, not because such diets can’t work, but because they consume insufficient calories. A 1/2 cup of rice is 300 calories, whereas a 1/2 cup of spinach is 15 calories! Vegetables are not calorically dense, so it is critical that you add legumes for caloric load.

Some athletes eat 6-8x per day to break up caloric load and avoid fat gain. I think this is ridiculously inconvenient. I eat 4x per day:

10am – breakfast
1pm – lunch
5pm – smaller second lunch
7:30-9pm – sports training
10pm – dinner
12am – glass of wine and Discovery Channel before bed

Here are some of my meals that recur again and again:

Scrambled Eggology pourable egg whites with one whole egg, black beans, and microwaved mixed vegetables

Grass-fed organic beef, pinto beans, mixed vegetables, and extra guacamole (Mexican restaurant)

Grass-fed organic beef (from Trader Joe’s), lentils, and mixed vegetables

Rule #3: Don’t drink calories

Drink massive quantities of water and as much unsweetened iced tea, tea, diet sodas, coffee (without white cream), or other no-calorie/low-calorie beverages as you like. Do not drink milk, normal soft drinks, or fruit juice. I’m a wine fanatic and have at least one glass of wine each evening, which I believe actually aids sports recovery and fat-loss. Recent research into resveratrol supports this.

Rule #4: Take one day off per week

I recommend Saturdays as your “Dieters Gone Wild” day. I am allowed to eat whatever I want on Saturdays, and I go out of my way to eat ice cream, Snickers, Take 5, and all of my other vices in excess. I make myself a little sick and don’t want to look at any of it for the rest of the week. Paradoxically, dramatically spiking caloric intake in this way once per week increases fat loss by ensuring that your metabolic rate (thyroid function, etc.) doesn’t downregulate from extended caloric restriction. That’s right: eating pure crap can help you lose fat. Welcome to Utopia.

Flipkart.com Arjun Rampal's Workout Mantras For a Sculpted Body In Ra.One

Superb villain Workout: Arjun Rampal sculpted his delicious body in Ra.One on the back of an injury. He lets us in on his workout mantras

For Ra.One, Arjun Rampal spent countless hours in the gym bulking up and chiselling his body to ridiculous perfection. But like a balloon that is happy to not be at its inflated best, Arjun says he has never liked the ‘body-builder look’.

“The minute my chest goes to 42 or 43, I feel like I would need a bra (laughs). It doesn’t feel natural,” Arjun says, adding that one must understand what kind of a body they are happy with. “I can bulk up very fast. I can lift heavy weights because, like most people, I started off with heavy workouts. That’s stayed in my muscle memory.” Pinching his denims, he says, “I feel horrible when I feel my jeans are getting tight. Work outs peace me out.”

A skinny boy in his school years, Arjun was always an athlete and used to work out during college. “I think it is easier for thinner people to build on a frame once you get lean muscle. I get bored lifting weights at the gym and it isn’t enough as your body becomes stiff. So I train in different ways such as core training, cardio with weights, playing sports such as tennis, cycling, swimming and running 10 kms once a week.”

STOP BEFORE YOU DROP

Upholding a dizzying level of fitness hasn’t been injury-free for Arjun. He winces as he recollects the excruciating pain that slipped discs brought him on two occasions. “The worst was when I was squatting, about to lift weights. And as I bent… pop… my spinal disc popped. I felt a biting bolt of current shoot through my legs,” recounts Arjun, who was then shooting for Housefull. “I took painkillers and continued shooting. The lesson here is you must listen to your body, because it can go into a spasm otherwise.”

TRAINING DAYS

His regular workouts turn into relentless five-day-a-week ironpumping affairs once he is getting ready for a role. “When I was shooting for Raajneeti, Shah Rukh told me I should also start shooting for Ra.One. Some crazy training was on its way.” Training essentially means two unforgiving hours in the gym. About 40 minutes of various cardio, 10 minutes on treadmill to warm-up and then a specific body part. “I find 12 pm as the best time to work out. During training, I do two body parts a day: chestback, back-triceps or chest-biceps so that my body doesn’t get used
to a pattern,” says Arjun.

The gruelling schedule is followed by 20 more minutes on the treadmill and 10 minutes of calming down. “I always stretch before a workout and run a lot so that my heart rate accelerates. I do my lower back exercises so that my core
and back are warmed up enough because I am scared of injuring myself again. I work out very fast. I don’t take breaks and train non-stop for 80 minutes.” When Arjun does these body parts for three days, he doesn’t lift weights on the fourth but does only core, cardio and stretching. He says, “At times, I do Tabata, a high-intensity Japanese training regimen, in which I must do 20 seconds of a specific body part with 10 seconds of rest. This must be done eight times within four minutes. Your heart rate shoots through the roof but you burn a lot of fat.”

THE MAKING OF A SUPER-VILLAIN

To carve a lethal body for Ra.One, on the back of his injury, meant he had to start very slow. “No weights, no bending… only core training. It was very tough. But in 15 days, I worked out with a vengeance and made my core really strong. Zarine Watson trained me very scientifically because she had seen the seriousness of my injury in the x-rays,” he says. Freehand training and a lot of cardio with altitude training (wearing masks that simulate the effect of exertion at high altitudes) enhanced Arjun’s stamina and metabolism. “By the end of it, I was doing close to 2500 sit ups and 40 pound dumbbells while hanging from a pull-up bar. You push your body and it all happens.”

His diet had also switched to what he has in his "training mode’. Two whole wheat toasts, a dozen egg whites and a protein shake in the morning. Dry fruits such as walnuts and cashews munched on every now and then. “I would eat five small meals, as they increase my metabolic rate. For lunch, I would include some carbs. So it would be a roti or two with dal, tandoori chicken and whole wheat bread sandwiches.”

FOOD NO BAR

There is hope for even the most hardened foodies when Arjun agrees with their mantra — eat everything. “I am a foodie and I don’t avoid anything. I know guys who have an occasional kheer or chocolate cake and fall sick. Now that is ridiculous. I don’t ever want to be in that space.”A red wine connoisseur with an aversion to aerated drinks, Arjun hails salads as ‘essential food’ and recommends eating half an avocado a day, ‘because it contains good fats and burns your stubborn fat.’

Then of course is the golden rule — wrap up your dinner by 8 pm. “Avoid carbs because after 9 pm, your system shuts down. So dining late means everything you are putting in there will stay like garbage, with no nutritional value.”

SMOKES AND SHAKES

Puffing on his fourth cigarette of the hour, Arjun admits he needs to quit his ‘terrible habit’. “I think if I wasn’t smoking I would be running for the Olympics (laughs).” After making his profession an excuse for making it difficult for him to give up, Arjun points out, “When I work out rigorously, somehow my cigarette intake reduces. I can almost feel how each drag is undoing all the good I am doing to my body.”

And does he agree with the latest ‘health supplement’ fads? “I take only whey protein shakes. I haven’t ever tried amino acids or creatine, let alone steroids. I find playing with hormones very dangerous. Each of our body types are unique and special. So when none of us look alike, why should our bodies look the same?”

Weight Loss - Overview

Obesity/overweight is a global problem on rise predicted to rise by 300% in the next 25 years.


Excessive weight is a problem that has affected millions of people around the world like a plague. Obesity and excessive weight are causing health problems to people and it is now becoming an epidemic in the entire world. Keeping our weight in check and keeping ourselves healthy is becoming more and more difficult every day.


Weight loss diets, weight loss drugs, weight loss surgeries are all over the place today. Not limited any more to the high income group, these conditions are showing a dramatic rise in incidence in low and middle-income groups as well. Projections by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2001 suggested that the number of obese Indians could rise by 300% in the next 25 years.

Obesity a key that unlocks all diseases eg: Diabetes, Hypertension, cardio-vascular diseases and many more....

Being overweight or obese poses a serious risk for developing many complications like diabetes, hypertension, heart problems, weakened bones and even cancer. It's about time we do something substantial to save our society and the coming generations from this epidemic.

The good news is that you don't have to reach your ideal weight to lower your risk of developing obesity-related medical problems. Losing even 10% of your total body weight can significantly lower your risk. Losing 10% of your total body weight is a good goal to start with. You can always continue and lose more weight once you have reached your initial goal.

So what exactly is overweight and obesity?

Overweight and obesity are both labels for ranges of weight that are greater than what is generally considered healthy for a given height. The terms also identify ranges of weight that have been shown to increase the likelihood of certain diseases and other health problems.

Assess whether the weight that you carry around is healthy or unhealthy?

Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measurement that is used to check whether a person's weight falls within the normal range or not. The normal range of BMI for women is between 20 and 25. The normal range for men is between 18.7 and 23.8. BMI higher than normal indicates being overweight. A BMI of above 30 is indicative of obesity.

When you are 10-20% in excess of your Ideal Body Weight (IBW), you are overweight. When you are 30% or more in excess of your Ideal Body Weight, you are suffering from obesity (morbidly overweight).

How to Reduce Obesity in Adults

Goals and Accountability

Step 1

Step on the scale and record your body weight in your notebook. Note the date, time and clothing you are wearing. Each week on the same day and time while wearing the same clothes, weigh yourself and record it in your notebook.

Step 2

Set a long-term, realistic weight-loss goal and write it in your notebook. Aim to lose one to two pounds of body fat each week. Note how many weeks it will take for you to lose weight if you do it slowly at a safe rate.

Step 3

Make a fitness plan. Record how many days per week you want to work out, and the times each day you plan to set aside for exercise. Do not schedule anything else during those exercise times.

Step 4

Clean out your refrigerator and cabinets. Get rid of processed, sugar-laden foods and drinks to make room for healthy, satisfying foods to reduce your body weight.

Step 5

Note any obstacles in your path to achieving a healthy body weight. This may include unsupportive family and friends, social events, medical concerns, or even your own self-doubt. Write down how you will handle these obstacles so you have a plan when they come up.

Exercise Recommendations for Obesity

Step 1

Start with low-intensity exercise every other day for 10 to 20 minutes. You can walk outside or just around your house to get your body moving and accustomed to physical activity. Gradually increase your frequency until you are moving five to seven days each week for 20 minutes.

Step 2

Start performing regular sessions of planned cardiovascular exercise five to seven days each week for 30 to 60 minutes to significantly impact body weight, according to the American College of Sports Medicine. Increase your intensity so the sessions are moderate to hard to burn more calories and see better results. Walking, swimming and cycling are effective options you can start with. They are also low impact.

Step 3

Add resistance training exercises two to three times each week on non-consecutive days. Choose one exercise for each major muscle group and do one set of eight to 12 repetitions. Your own body weight may be enough resistance for some exercises. Otherwise, use a weight machine or free weights to challenge your body.

Step 4

Record all of your physical activity and planned exercise in your notebook. Detail frequency, activity choice, exercises, duration, intensity, sets, reps and weight used. Also, note how challenging the exercise session was for you.

Dietary Changes

Step 1

Reduce your total caloric intake by 10 to 20 percent. This will help you create the caloric deficit needed for weight loss without slowing your metabolism. Write down everything you eat in your notebook.

Step 2

Consume whole grains such as whole wheat bread, brown rice, oatmeal and sweet potatoes. Read labels and watch portion sizes when serving yourself carbohydrates.

Step 3

Choose lean sources of protein. Poultry, fish, low-fat dairy, eggs, legumes and lean cuts of beef and pork are all healthy choices. Bake or grill your protein instead of frying.

Step 4

Limit saturated fats, such as butter or margarine. Instead include heart-healthy unsaturated fats such as olives, nuts, avocados and olive or nut oils.

Step 5

Include fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables over canned options. Eat a variety of produce for essential vitamins and minerals.