Discover Why You Can't Lose Weight

Most people begin an exercise program designed for weight loss with the intention of sticking with it. Unfortunately, the majority give up after six months, deciding they simply do not have the time to exercise regularly. There are usually two reasons behind any decision; the real reason, and the one that sounds good.

Individuals claiming, "they do not have the time" are often hiding the fact that their expectations for weight loss were not met. Simply put, they were not making the progress they were promised. On an intellectual level, most people know they "should exercise more." However, any good salesperson will tell you that we do not make decisions based on intellectual reasoning. We base them on emotion.

Most of us exercise because, at a very basic level, we want to look and feel better. We exercise because it appeals to our sense of vanity and pride. We want to look and feel good. Now if you are not used to exercising we suggest you find a way to get used to it if you plan on losing those extra pounds that just do not seem to go away. We are not saying you have to run fifteen miles a day, pound out 300 push ups in twenty minutes or even jump rope for an hour, what we are saying is do something!

If all you do every day is get in your car, drive to work, sit at a desk, eat fast food for all your meals, drive home, eat dinner and watch television until you fall asleep, we have a News Flash for you, wake up and smell the coffee! How does anyone expect weight to just start "falling off" if they are not even moving? It blows me away when I hear people complain that they "tried" this diet or that diet and it "did not work." I usually ask them "did you work?"

Listen, the truth is this, nothing good in life comes easy. If you are not willing to give up that 1 hour of television you know you watch every single night, if you are not willing to get off your butt and walk around your neighborhood a few times or go hiking for 45 minutes or even just run around with your kids for a half an hour a day, then how do you expect your body to burn enough calories to lose any weight?

There is no magic pill for you to take, there is no magic potion to drink, it is called dedication to your health and wanting it bad enough.

Did you know that there are approximately 3,555 calories in just one pound of fat?

Do you think you can sit on your couch every night while still doing what you are doing and these calories are going to burn themselves away?

Now here is the deal, when you lose weight from dieting alone, some of the weight lost comes from lean muscle tissue. In an effort to retain lean muscle while still losing weight from fat you must include leucine in your diet.

Leucine is an amino acid that helps build muscle. Research shows that leucine heads straight to muscles where it can initiate protein synthesis for muscle building. That is why a lot of Olympic and world class athletes use it.

As you diet, you consume less calories. There is one problem with this, as you lose fat you are also losing muscle mass. Even if you lose your desired amount of weight you will become flabby because your muscle has been broken down along with the fat. Leucine helps control muscle breakdown that occurs while dieting.

Leucine is one of the twenty most common essential amino acids your body needs when maintaining lean muscle mass. Leucine is the most common amino acid found in proteins and is essential for optimal growth throughout infancy, childhood and adulthood.

Leucine plays a part in maintaining muscles by equalizing synthesis and breakdown of proteins while also regulating your appetite, assisting in the growth and repair of muscle tissues and helping you regulate your blood sugar as well. You can enjoy the benefits of leucine as a natural supplement or you can find it in some foods, such as, brown rice, beans, nuts and whole wheat.

To Your Health,

Diet Health & Fitness
'Blog Squad'
DietHealthandFitness.com

P.S. Get a FREE Body Profile Analysis - Click Here now.

The Truth About Protein

The word protein means: Of first importance. After water, protein is the most abundant substance in the body.

Protein molecules, which consist of amino acids linked together, are the basic building foundation for the entire body: the bones, muscles, organs, blood, arteries, antibodies, skin, hair, nails, hormones, tissues etc.

Protein can also help lower blood pressure, it aids in weight loss, keeps cholesterol levels low, it slows artery clogging, and it decreases your chance of getting certain forms of cancer. Taking protein has also been shown to be an excellent preventative measure against aging and illness. The proper amount of high quality protein is essential for repair, growth, and healing of any and all body parts.

Virtually everyone should ingest protein daily to ensure a continuous supply of basic amino acids. Amino acids bind together in infinite combinations to become protein molecules, which are needed to repair an endless number of tissues throughout the body.

There are nine essential amino acids that the body cannot produce, they must be supplied through your diet. There are also sixteen non-essential amino acids that the body can manufacture from the nine essential amino acids. All nine essential amino acids must be present for the amino acids to bind together for protein synthesis.

Protein can be found in meat and other foods you eat. Organic red meat and wild fish, for example, are great sources of natural animal based protein. Many people supplement protein into their diet, in addition to the protein they get from the foods they eat.

If you are going to take a protein supplement (usually comes in the form of a powdered shake) make sure that it is very high quality protein. Otherwise it will be useless and could do more harm to you body than good.

Whey protein vs. Soy protein: You will find that most protein supplements found in stores and on-line are whey protein. Whey Protein Isolate is the protein extracted from whey, the liquid by-product of cheese production.

There are some concerns you should be aware of that have to do with whey protein. For one, it is not a complete source of protein, it contains fat, and it contains lactose (potential issue for those who are intolerant).

There are many concerns about the milk source the whey came from: the health of the animal it came from, animal by-products, growth hormones, disease, pesticides, fertilizers, drugs etc. Some people are also allergic to dairy products.

Soy Protein Isolate, on the other hand, is protein that is extracted from the soybean, eliminating fats and certain acids. Overall, in my opinion, soy protein is much better than whey protein as a protein supplement source because it is natural and plant based, as opposed to animal based, which raises the same concerns as the whey products that I listed above.

However, there are some concerns with Soy Protein Isolate, so if you are going to buy a soy protein supplement it needs to be of the highest quality and purity. The source of the soy beans is important.

Are the soy beans organic, or fertilized and drugged? The processing methods used to make the soy protein can also adversely affect the potency and purity of the protein. Many companies process their soy protein too much, which prevents the retention of beneficial substances. Some people are also allergic to soy.

Many companies also alcohol-wash their soy flakes during production of things like soy milk, soy cheese, tofu, soy burgers,and even their soy protein supplements. Well not only do you not want to ingest something that has been washed with alcohol, this technique causes the loss of approximately 88% of the isoflavone conent.

What are isoflavones? Isoflavones are natural plant nutrients that mimic the function of human estrogen. Soy protein isolate should be water-washed, instead of alcohol washed, this ensures isoflavone content and is a cleaner, more natural way to clean and process the soy flakes.

There are a lot of kinds of protein supplements out there, but you need to make sure that you take the most natural form of plant-based protein supplement possible. I find that non-genetically modified soy protein works best for me.

Also make sure that you get sufficient amounts of protein from your diet. Do your research, even try a couple different kinds and pick what you feel works best for you.

Either way the company you buy your protein from should be able to give you all of the ingredients, tests, trials, and research to prove to you why their protein works the best. They also should offer a money back guarantee. If they can't or don't just don't buy it because they are hiding something.

It is very unfortunate that most companies care about profit more than quality because it leaves us, the consumer, without much understanding as to what is best and with many products that are of little to no nutritional content to us. Usually the product with the best ads on the television, instead of quality, sells the most.

So don't be easily persuaded and make sure that you read all of the research, ingredients, testing, and processing methods before you buy a protein supplement.

Whether you are an athlete, body builder, or just someone trying to get healthier, the amount and quality of protein you put in your body is of vital importance to your overall health and wellness.

To Your Health,

Diet Health & Fitness
'Blog Squad'
DietHealthandFitness.com

P.S. Get a FREE Body Profile Analysis - Click Here now.