When it comes to dieting so many of us find it difficult to stick to rigid rules that require exact food measurements and specific workout routines. These diets can make weight loss impossible, and more importantly make you feel as though weight loss is impossible.

{A tiny indulgence here can save your weight loss efforts in the long run.}

Until today, that is. As it turns out breaking a few of those so-called diet rules can actually help you achieve a slimmer, fitter new you!

Keep reading to find out which diet rules you should be breaking.

Rulebreaker #1 – Don’t Eat That!

It seems as though every time you log online there’s a new diet guru telling you what food or food groups you should avoid like the plague. And unlucky for us gluttons, these are usually the sweetest, tastiest treats in town.

Whether its carbs, red meat or dairy eliminating foods and food groups from our diets is easy to do…for awhile. After that it’s spaghetti or Twinkie overload until you feel guilty and return your ultra strict diet.

It’s ok to break this diet rule because eating what you enjoy—once in awhile—is the best way to stick to an overall healthy diet. If you eat lean proteins, whole grains, low fat dairy and fruits & veggies, feel free to enjoy a candy bar after a long week.

A small taste of the good stuff is a great way to avoid falling off the diet wagon altogether!

Rulebreaker #2 – Fat Free Is The Way To Be

So many dieters choose to munch on low fat or fat-free snacks with the mindset, if I eat less fat I won’t get fat. While that is sort of true, many of these so called fat free treats are chock full of calories that can lead to weight gain.

This is a diet rule it’s totally ok to break because more important than eating fat-free food is reading the nutrition labels. Pay attention to all nutrition facts, not just the fat content, to maintain weight loss for the long run.

And when you do eat fat, make sure it’s good fats like omega-3 fatty acids that your body needs to stay healthy and shed the weight.

{These are fat free foods…but what will the scale say next week?}

Rulebreaker #3 – When In Doubt, Choose Diet Soda

Diets often convince you that tricking your body will lead to weight loss, and it will; just not for very long. Sure eliminating those 200 or 300 calories per can will help you create a calorie deficit, but it will also deny your body essential nutrients necessary for successful weight loss.

So substituting diet soda for regular soda is a smart way to eliminate calories, but not if you’re not eating nutrient rich foods.

In fact a study published in 2009 found that daily diet soda consumption was linked to a higher incidence of metabolic syndrome and type-2 diabetes. So if you must drink soda, drink it infrequently and when you do…drink regular soda.

Rulebreaker #4 – No Food After 6 p.m.

In this modern society of ours, it just is not realistic to expect that you’ve eaten all meals and gotten all nutrients by this obscenely early hour. Instead of taking in the early bird special with grandma, choose your foods wisely the later you eat.

The problem that many of us have with eating into the night is the choices we make. Rather than diving head first into a family size bag of cheese curls, make a bowl of fruit salad some other healthy low calorie option. If your day doesn’t wind down until later, it simply isn’t realistic to think you should be done eating by 6.

It is ok to break this diet rule as long as you make healthy food choices. But just to be sure, make sure you’re eating enough food throughout the day to avoid making up for it just before bed.

Get more information on how to stop late night snacking HERE.

If these and other diet rule have a death-grip on you, read our Eat Stop Eat review to see how you can overcome it.

One of the most common pieces of diet advice is to “limit your salt intake,” leading many dieters out there to believe that salt makes you fat. Since so many of you have been writing in asking, does salt make you fat, we’ve decided to explore the facts behind this myth.

{Don’t let what you don’t know about salt affect your fat loss.}

Although sodium is an essential part of a healthy diet, this does not mean that loading up on salt is good for weight loss. Keep reading to find out if salt makes you fat and what you can to do eat less salt.

Salt vs. Sodium – Is There A Difference?

Yes, while salt and sodium are in the same family, there is a small difference. Sodium on its own is an element, while sodium chloride is more commonly known as table salt. When we measure the sodium in a particular food, we are measuring the amount of salt in our food.

How Much Salt Do I Need?

If you’ve ever wondered does salt makes you fat, you’ve probably also wondered how much salt is a healthy amount for your diet. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommend that most of us eat no more than 1 teaspoon (2,300 mg) of salt, while “at risk” populations should eat less, 2/3 teaspoons (1,500 mg) of salt each day.

At risk populations that should consume a lower than recommended sodium content include individuals over 51 years old, African-Americans and those who suffer from chronic kidney disease, high blood pressure and diabetes. Whether or not you fall into the at risk category, chances are you need to eat less salt.

Sources of Sodium

The most obvious source of sodium in our diets is table salt, which we use to season food during and after the cooking process. Many people have asked, if it has zero calories, why does salt make you fat.

The truth is that salt, on its own does not make you fat. However much of our salt intake comes in the form of processed, prepackaged food that has additional salt added for freshness as well as flavor. Some examples include; pasta, cheese, bacon, deli meat and canned goods.

Your best bet is to consume salt from natural resources like vegetables, meat, shellfish and dairy. Naturally occurring salt tends to be at more acceptable levels for weight loss.

So…Does Salt Make You Fat?

No, salt does not make you fat; too much salt can make you fat. So the next time you eat a stack of French fries, ask the cook to “hold the salt”!

The main reason so many people believe that salt makes you fat is that it makes you retain water, which has an annoying tendency to show up as weight gain when you step onto the scale. A high salt diet, which judging by the guidelines above we are all on, will cause more (temporary) water retention.

{This all-time favorite combination can help you retain lots of water!}

It is important to note that this type of weight gain is only temporary, and an adequate amount of water will return your normal electrolyte levels. This has the effect of keeping you balanced, hydrated and flushing out excess water.

Reduce Salt Intake

If you’re concerned that your salt content is stalling weight gain, consider some of these tips to reduce your salt intake to an acceptable lever;

• Add fresh or dried herbs to season food such as basil, rosemary, thyme, lemongrass, parsley, cilantro or oregano.
• Use citrus juice and zest for additional flavor.
• Spices like cayenne pepper are low in sodium (1mg per teaspoon) and pack quite a flavorful punch. Includes garlic, paprika, nutmeg and curry powder just to name a few.
• Homemade broth/stock can reduce sodium intake by more than 400 mg, or 20%.

If you add salt during and after cooking a meal, your salt intake could be getting too high to be safe. After reading our Eat Stop Eat review you may want to try intermittent fasting to get you back to a healthy level of salt.

It’s hard not to listen to and roll your eyes at something called the “Anything Goes Diet,” which was exactly my thinking. Then I thought, what a clever way to steer thousands (or millions) of misguided dieters to your diet plan!

{This photo kinda brings new meaning to “practice what you preach”!}

Keep reading for yet another good reason not to judge a book by its cover.

What Is The Anything Goes Diet?

The Anything Goes Diet is a new diet by fitness author John Barban. This diet is an easy to follow path to weight loss that goes against what are considered fitness truths today. John does a good job of explaining why so many current diets fail. Although we at TFLA do believe that some concessions are necessary for successful weight loss, but we’ll get to that later!

Why do most diets fail? John Says:

• Most diets assume that each and every dieter faces the same exact weight loss obstacles.
• Many popular diets have a laundry list of rules that are virtually impossible to remember, let alone follow each day.
• Popular diets will only succeed if you follow them to the letter…every single day to maintain that weight loss.
• Eliminating all of your favorite foods in favor of many you may not like is unrealistic for most dieters.

Anything Goes Diet Exercise Plan Review

One of the most interesting things we found in our review of the Anything Goes Diet is that exercise isn’t a clear part of the diet, only a recommended part for successful weight loss. He does make it clear that exercise is essential to a healthy lifestyle, but views it as purely optional.

The Anything Goes Diet gives a very clear rundown of the many benefits of cardio and resistance training for weight loss.

Anything Goes Diet Food Plan

The Anything Goes Diet throws out conventional wisdom that the number of meals you eat for weight loss matters. Anywhere from 3 to 9 meals is acceptable on the Anything Goes Diet. The focus in terms of food is variety. Eat many different healthy foods for a stress free way of losing weight.

The Anything Goes Diet emphasizes that your diet should be what is considered most responsible for fat loss, so that exercise is considered bonus fat loss. The emphasis is not on restriction but rather limitations. Don’t focus on getting rid of all chocolate in your life for example, just set limits on the types of foods you know you will overindulge in. I think this is a great way to have an Anything Goes approach to dieting!

Exercise Paradox

This section cannot be emphasized enough. Many new dieters often “compensate” when they exercise, by eating more than they would if they hadn’t exercised. The Anything Goes Diet says that these dieters use exercise to justify the extra calories, setting back their weight loss progress without realizing it.

Anything Goes Diet Products

What’s good about the Anything Goes Diet is that you’re not given a set of relaxed guidelines and then a brush off. John has a wide variety of products in addition to the Anything Goes Diet Weight Loss Manual. You can get the Anything Goes Diet Recipe Guide to help you eat for weight loss.

[With a 365-day 100% money back guarantee, you have no excuses to try the Anything Goes Diet!]

If you need to keep track of your progress (and setbacks), there’s the Success Tracker Journal to make sure you always know where you are, so you know how far you have to go. Perhaps the most useful for all of us is the Social Eating Survival Guide, which helps you navigate the choppy waters of socializing while dieting. Thinking Thin is the mindset book to have to avoid negative influences that lead to unhealthy diet choices, despite the fact that the Anything Goes Diet does not subscribe to “bad foods”.

Stay on track easily with a 60-day email coaching program. Let the Anything Goes Diet do for your body what it did for John’s.

Anything Goes Diet PROS

• Weight loss continuum helps new and returning dieters determine what areas they need to work on. Makes it “suitable for everyone”.
• Logic v. desire a very good illustration of how you can enjoy life on an Anything Goes Diet.
• Just $47 for a fully explained diet manual that’s filled with more than just workouts!
• Focus on diet first great idea for those with lots of weight to  lose. Greater chance of success by succeeding at one, then the other.
• Diet on a weekly calorie count & burn rather than daily—good advice for successful and long term weight loss!
• 365 day Money Back Guarantee!

Anything Goes Diet CONS

• Limited focus on the importance of exercise to weight loss.
• May be too relaxed for dieters for whom overeating is a major problem.

Anything Goes Diet Review – Verdict

The Anything Goes Diet offers lots of good advice for different dieters. Allowing dieters to eat anything they want while realistic, isn’t exactly a good idea. Aside from the fact that exercise is not part of the Anything Goes Diet, it is encouraged enough to keep my complaints to a minimum!

There are many pearls of wisdom I found compelling in my Anything Goes Diet review and I think plenty of dieters, particularly those looking for a relaxed form of dieting, will find John’s advice helpful. Weight loss will likely occur on the Anything Goes Diet.

Want to see how this diet stacks up to others? Read our Eat Stop Eat review to see if intermittent fasting can work for you!

Living in our modern world has as many benefits as it does disadvantages. Pills for example can help cure and ease a wide variety of physical and mental problems, but often those pills come with outrageous side effects that make you wonder, why anyone would take such a risk?

[Sometimes pills do good things, other times...not so much.]

Twinlab Ripped Fuel is one such pill. Keep reading to find out how Twinlab Ripped Fuel side effects may affect you.

What Is Twinlab Ripped Fuel?

Twinlab Ripped Fuel is a metabolic enhancer that is designed to motivate fat loss without getting rid of muscle mass. This is accomplished through a daily regimen of 2 pills taken before each meal, but no more than 6 pills per day.

Find TFLA Twinlab Ripped Fuel Review, right here!

Ripped Fuel No-No’s 

Twinlab Ripped Fuel should not be taken by any person younger than 18 years of age. Ripped Fuel is intended only for adults. By that same rationale, pregnant and nursing women are also not ideal candidates for Ripped Fuel. The amount of caffeine found in Ripped Fuel makes it harmful to infants and children.

Due to Ripped Fuel side effects, Advantra Z recommends that several other classes of individuals avoid taking Ripped Fuel capsules. People who are at risk of or being treated for the following illnesses should not get on a Twinlab© Ripped Fuel regimen: heart disease, diabetes, anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, thyroid or liver disease, strokes and anemia.

It is unknown how Ripped Fuel may react with medications used to treat these diseases, and therefore these individuals are advised against taking Twinlab Ripped Fuel.

Ripped Fuel Side Effects

Many side effects have been associated with taking Ripped Fuel. Some have been reported by Advantra Z while others have been shared by Ripped Fuel users.

Because Ripped Fuel contains a large quantity of caffeine, intended to give you an energy boost, many side effects reflect this. Insomnia, heart palpitations, nervousness and headaches are some Ripped Fuel side effects associated with high doses of caffeine. If you experience tremors, agitation, or restlessness stop taking Twinlab Ripped Fuel and contact your physician.

Nausea is yet another reported Ripped Fuel side effect, although this symptom occurs mostly during the first few weeks of a Ripped Fuel regimen. Because Twinlab Ripped Fuel contains lots of caffeine and other ingredients your body may not be used to, nausea is common in the first few days.

[Ripped Fuel side effects will be different for each user.]

Dehydration and constipation are common Ripped Fuel side effects because most weight loss supplements suck up water from the body. The stimulants found in Twinlab Ripped Fuel are meant to give your metabolism a boost, which also has the unfortunate side effect of making you lose tons of water. Whether you sweat frequently or make too many trips to the bathroom, increasing your water intake while on a pill regimen should reduce Ripped Fuel side effects.

People with fair skin may experience the most severe Ripped Fuel side effects due to the St. John’s Wort found in Ripped Fuel. Advantra Z explicitly states on their website that, “people with fair skin should not overexpose themselves to strong sunlight due to the photosynthesizing nature” of the wort.

Before You Take Ripped Fuel

Starting any new pill regimen can have both known and unknown side effects. Since you know the Twinlab Ripped Fuel side effects, we recommend that you see a physician before you even make the decision to purchase Ripped Fuel.

Although there may be weight loss benefits associated with a Ripped Fuel capsule regimen, the number of illnesses that are advised against taking Ripped Fuel concerns us. Many of these illnesses including diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease are also associated with being overweight or obese, which is why TFLA insists you get screened for these before taking Ripped Fuel.

Sometimes pills are useful in our modern world and sometimes they do more harm than good. If you’re looking for a more effective method of weight loss, read our Eat Stop Eat review on intermittent fasting. It’s cheaper than a pill, easier than food restrictions and more convenient than any diet you’ve tried before!

It’s a natural response to want to detox your body when you want to get rid of gross things inside your body like fat and sugar. But, before you decide on your next body detox diet you should ask yourself what these detox diets are doing for you.

[Plenty of people choose liquid diets and not all have the desired effects.]

Body detox diet creators claim that toxins are why you have such a hard time losing weight, but the truth is weight loss is impossible if you don’t burn more calories than you consume. If you think body detox diets are the answer to your weight loss woes, keep reading.

How Body Detox Diets Work

Body detox diets require you to consume lots of juice and water to “flush out” the toxins from your body. Typically lasting anywhere from one week to one month, body detox diets allegedly decrease the toxins your body takes in.

By undergoing a body detox diet for at least one week, proponents claim you will have more energy and improved digestion so your body absorbs the maximum amount of nutrients. It has also been claimed that body detox diets increase your metabolic rate for more successful weight loss.

Body Detox Diets

There are plenty of body detox diets on the market with the Master Cleanse, Colon Detox Diet and the Lemonade Diet being among the most popular. What these detox diets have in common is that they both require you to consume very few calories through juice or water consumption.

Of course you need to create a calorie deficit for weight loss to occur, but this kind of calorie deficit drains your body of the energy it needs to perform important functions like exercise. These diets all claim that toxins and contaminants in food contribute to illnesses and weight gain, which is true. What they fail to mention however, is that your liver and kidneys do a pretty fine job of clearing unnecessary toxins from your body.

Detox for Weight Loss?

Body detox diets may help you get rid of unwanted chemicals in your body, but paying closer attention to the foods you consume will also keep those unwanted substances out of your body. What these body detox diet proponents neglect to tell desperate dieters is that by cutting out foods that are full of crap, you minimize your chances to get sick or gain weight.

Forget how tempting these so-called toxic foods are and think about what they do to your body. Sure it’s difficult to say no to fried chicken, mac & cheese and fudge cupcakes, but the alternative is a month-long liquid starvation diet just to get back to normal. How you handle weight loss decisions like this will determine your overall success or failure in losing weight.

[The only way to guarantee weight loss is to burn more calories than you consume...through diet & exercise!]

Most dieters know and understand that a balanced diet and regular exercise are the only guaranteed ways to lose weight and keep it off. Unfortunately enticing weight loss programs like body detox diets prey on your need to lose weight NOW.

Body Detox Diets All Bad?

Not all body detox diets are bad, just the ones that push your caloric intake to dangerously low levels. The main issue with these diets is that you are required to take in very few calories over a very long period of time. The human body cannot function properly without adequate energy in the form of calories and body detox diets require dieters to consume too few calories to workout regularly.

Body detox diets mostly focus on reducing toxins in the body, with weight loss and health improvement being secondary factors. However intermittent fasting like that advocated by Brad Pilon is a safe alternative to body detox diets that help break your addiction to food as well as your need to overeat.

Read the TFLA Eat Stop Eat review to find more about intermittent fasting for weight loss.

Most people think that losing weight requires you to pretty much starve yourself. Unless you eat like its Thanksgiving everyday, nothing could be further from the truth.

[Unless you eat like this every day, you won't starve on a 2,000 calorie diet.]

Eating for weight loss means limiting caloric intake to create the calorie deficit required for weight loss. Keep reading to find out how to lose weight on a 2,000 calorie diet!

Know Your Food

Losing or maintaining weight on a 2,000 calorie diet requires you to know what you’re putting inside your body. The first thing you need to know is how many calories are in the foods you eat. If you love to grill burgers, find out how many calories are in a burger so you know how frequently they’ll be allowed on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Losing weight also requires you to actually read the nutritional labels. Most labels give information based on a 2,000 calorie diet so you can see how much salt and fat from calories you consume. Information such as this is crucial to weight loss and it’s provided on the outside of most foods. Can’t get easier than that, can it?

Pay Attention to Serving Sizes

The biggest mistake you can make on a 2,000 calorie diet is ignoring serving sizes on food labels. The money has been spent on the ink so you may as well glance at it. Adhering to serving sizes will make sure you consume no more than 2,000 calories a day. Measure your pasta—even whole grain pasta—before tossing it in the water because those calories really add up.

[Weigh your pasta to exact measurements to stick to a 2,000 calorie diet.]

You’ll notice that living on a 2,000 calorie diet isn’t as difficult as you thought once you listen to the labels. Just because it seems like it’s not enough food doesn’t mean its not. Your 2,000 calorie diet will be much easier with measuring cups & spoons and a kitchen scale. Measuring your meat before you cook it will help you save so many calories you’ll smack yourself for not doing it sooner!

Watch Out For Fat

A diet that’s high in fat will do nothing to help you stick to a 2,000 calorie diet. One gram of fat has 9 calories so paying attention to how much of your daily calories come from fat will help you cut down on calories. Reducing your fat intake will help with fat loss and overall health.

Exercise

A 2,000 calorie diet allows a normal size human enough food to keep energized throughout the day without making you sluggish. The best way to lose weight on 2,000 calories is regular exercise. Burning 3,500 calories per week will allow you to lose 1 pound a week for healthy weight loss and the only way to create that kind of deficit healthilyis to burn it off!

Whether you prefer a game of soccer or interval training or weight lifting, regular exercise is vital to weight loss. And those of you out there who consume way more than 2,000 calories currently will experience a lot of weight loss initially as your body adjusts to not overeating. After a few weeks, you too will notice an average weight loss of about 1 pound per week.

[Running...its a great excuse to hit the beach!]

How you get your exercise and how frequently you workout will determine how much weight you lose on a 2,000 calorie diet. But remember that just to lose one pound you have to lose 3,500 calories, which is an average of 500 calories per day.

Before You Begin

Starting a new way of eating can be difficult, especially when you still crave food that’s bad for you. But a 2 or 3 day fast can help you break your addiction to food and give you a great chance to experience long lasting weight loss.

Don’t take my word for it, read our review of Brad Pilon’s Eat Stop Eat!

So much has been written and said about green tea that it really is difficult to separate fact from fiction. It doesn’t matter if you want to drink tea or take it in a pill form, everyone today is extolling the virtues of green tea for weight loss.

[Not all green tea is created equal…just one stick of this is 101 calories!]

Today we’ll look into the claims and ingredients in Green Tea Extreme to find out if there’s finally a green tea weight loss product that works.

What Is Green Tea Extreme?

Green Tea Extreme is a weight loss supplement that claims it can help you lose up to 25 pounds in the first month of use. This was the first red flag for me because that kind of weight loss is unhealthy and guaranteed to return and multiply, but in the interest of objectivity I kept going.

Green Tea Extreme is simply a supplement that is supposed to “speed up” weight loss.

What’s In Green Tea Extreme?

One of the most important aspects of any diet supplement is the ingredients and to my great surprise Green Tea Extreme actually lists all ingredients. Since they didn’t hide behind to so-called proprietary blend label you can be sure that this isn’t a weight loss product that will have adverse side effects.

Green Tea Extreme contains green tea extract (500mcg), guarana extract (300mcg), chromium (200 mcg), B12 (100 mcg) and citrus aurantium (200 mcg). Some of these ingredients have proven effective for aiding in weight loss, but none of them provide a magic weight loss solution.

What Is The Green Tea Extreme Regimen?

Taking Green Tea Extreme is much easier than the work required to experience successful and long-lasting weight loss. All you have to do is take 2 pills each day and wash them down with an 8 oz. glass of water.

[Just imagine the possibilities if this bottle could give you the body you've always wanted...seriously imagine.]

Although its just 2 pills a day, you will have to be on this regimen for 3 to 5 months to experience “optimal” weight loss results. At $44.90 per bottle, this money would be much better served on fresh produce!

Does Green Tea Extreme Work?

Since the makers of Green Tea Extreme don’t endorse regular exercise and a well-balanced diet, it is difficult for us at TFLA to say this supplement “works”. The amounts of green tea and guarana extract in these supplements are only enough to “aid” weight loss. On its own Green Tea Extract will do very little to help you lose weight.

Without creating a calorie deficit it won’t matter how many diet pills you take. Maybe Green Tea Extreme will help you lose weight if you work out regularly and eat a healthy diet with fiber, lean proteins and fruits & vegetables. Without diet and exercise all pills like Green Tea Extreme are doing is increasing your heart rate and calling it “increasing metabolic rate”.

Green Tea Extreme PROS

• Green tea extract has some weight loss properties
• Easy weight loss regimen
• Money back guarantee for unopened bottles

Green Tea Extreme CONS

• Alone doesn’t cause weight loss
• Lots of complaints about “money back guarantee”
• Not recommended for people with caffeine sensitivity and heart problems
• No diet or exercise program endorsed

Green Tea Extreme Side Effects

Because the main ingredients in Green Tea Extreme work to speed up your heart any pregnant or nursing women should not take it. The makers of Green Tea Extreme list possible side effects associated with this supplement , including; panic attacks, anxiety, dizziness, insomnia, nausea, rapid heart rate and restlessness. If you experience any of these stop taking this supplement and contact your physician.

Green tea is effective for a variety of health problems, but Green Tea Extreme is not effective for weight loss.

Get the real skinny on breaking your food addiction by reading our Eat Stop Eat review. Here’s a hint: it has nothing to do will diet pills!

Eating for weight loss requires a combination of things. First is creating a calorie deficit so that you can start to drop that excess weight. Next is creating healthy recipes at home that contain lean proteins, fresh fruits & vegetables and fiber.

[He was sooo friendly before you needed healthy lunch recipes, now he's like a different person!]

Those things are true for breakfast, lunch and dinner however most people struggle the most with making healthy lunch recipes during the week. Coming up with healthy lunch recipes is easier than you think and doing it this way will save you money…which you can then use to buy smaller clothes!

What You Like

The first step to creating healthy lunch recipes is thinking of the foods you favor during lunchtime. Some people prefer sandwiches while others prefer salads or microwaveable meals. Figure out what your tastes are to help you create a shopping list for your healthy lunch recipes.

I’m sure this sounds strange but most of us are so used to grabbing greasy junk for lunch that we never really sit down to think about what we’d eat if (gasp!) we actually made our own lunch. I was the same way, and it took me a few weeks to figure out what kind of luncher I was.

Where Can I Reduce?

The next question you have to ask yourself is where can I reduce calories in these healthy lunch recipes? This is really the key to eating for weight loss and creating your own healthy meals throughout the week. If you prefer sandwiches, consider foods like pesto or guacamole to replace mayonnaise. It’ll save you a ton of extra calories and teach you a little something about eating properly for weight loss.

Creating healthy lunch recipes will require you to make food substitutions for some of your higher calorie favorites. Before you get scared and run for the hills (where are those hills, exactly?) you should know that making healthy lunch recipes at home will almost always save you calories compared to hitting some fast food dive.

Leftovers Are Your Friend

Coming up with healthy lunch recipes isn’t always easy, it’s an ongoing process that we just have to get used to in order to look the way we want. However an easy way to make up for those days that you shirk your weight loss responsibilities, is to make a little extra for dinner and pack it up for tomorrow’s lunch.

[Healthy lunch recipes come in tupperware, not styrofoam containers!]

The problem for most people when it comes to weight loss is that we simply eat too much. Using leftovers to make healthy lunch recipes solves both problems at once. Cut your dinner portion size in half if you suspect it’s too big (if you suspect it, it probably is), and either eat it as is or create a tasty alternative.

HEY YOU! Dinner recipes that make great leftovers are here!

Do I Really Need That?

Another common problem for those of us trying to lose weight is having eyes bigger than our stomachs. Some of you are looking down right now thinking how impossible that seems, but lunchtime creates temptations like no other meal. This is one big reason why making your own healthy lunch recipes will make your life—and weight loss—a whole lot easier!

[Turn that Sunday dinner roast into a roast beef sandwich with fixins and you've got a healthy lunch recipe that cost you nothing!]

When you stop at your favorite burger joint you have to choose between fried burgers, chicken and fish…not really a healthy choice at all. When you just have to have fast food ask if you really need (or if your weight loss really needs it) that. Choose baked chicken or fish instead and get a small fry if you don’t say NO to the fries altogether.

Do you really need the soda just because it “comes with” the burger and fries? Water and tea are great lower calorie alternatives so your lunch doesn’t become a calorie bomb.

Sweets…Everyday?

The best thing can you do for weight loss and creating healthy lunch recipes is cut down on the number of sweets and desserts you consume during lunchtime. I know it’s hard, lunchtime is like recess for adults, where no one is barking orders at you and bossing you around so you indulge in a powdered doughnut here, and chocolate shake there and a few iced-caffeine drinks throughout the day.

These so-called treats are doing your weight loss NO favors and certainly belong nowhere near anything calling itself a healthy lunch recipe. Add a few pieces of fruit to your lunch bag so you can snack on them when you get a sugar craving. I know it doesn’t sound as awesome as cupcakes, but fruit gives your body enough sugar to fight the craving without the high calorie count.

So you see making healthy lunch recipes on your own is pretty simple. Yes it’ll require you to do more of the work than the nice people waiting to take your order, but it will save you money not to mention the inches it’ll save around your mid-section.

Sometimes you need to take a break and reset before you begin something new. That’s the premise behind Brad Pilon’s Eat Stop Eat. Find out more by reading our Eat Stop Eat review!

Fad diets do one thing really well. They come up with insane justifications for why doing this crazy thing to your body will help you lose weight. Sometimes these arguments are quite compelling and other times they are just plain laughable. We all want to lose weight and become a fitter version of ourselves, but how we accomplish that has a great deal to do with whether or not the weight comes back.

[Beyonce famously used Master Cleanse Diet to shed weight for her role in DreamGirls...]

Read what we found out about the Master Cleanse Diet before you choose yet another diet offering false hope.

What IS Master Cleanse Diet?

The Master Cleanse Diet has claimed to be many things, but at its core it is a detox and weight loss program. Put simply this “liquid diet” is supposed to cleanse the body by removing toxins from food, drugs, alcohol, coffee, tea and other hot beverages. By cleansing these toxins from your body, the Master Cleanse diet claims this will also fight food cravings.

What’s IN The Master Cleanse Diet?

Probably one of the easiest fad diet concoctions to create is the Master Cleanse Diet cocktail, which consists of 10 ounces of water combined with fresh lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne peppers. Sounds easy enough right? But exactly how can this seemingly insignificant amount of “subsistence” help you cleanse toxins and shed weight?

[Look very closely...these are your weight loss tools if you choose the Master Cleanse Diet. Pampers? Yep, those are necessary too!]

The answer to that is even simpler. By eating nothing but the so-called Master Cleanse Diet elixir, you will create a huge calorie deficit which will inevitably lead to weight loss. However, what happens when you start eating again and those “cravings” are no longer being cleansed?

How Master Cleanse Works

On the Master Cleanse Diet, dieters may drink 6 to 8 glasses of the cocktail each day. If you get a craving of some sort the diet allows a Salt Water Flush that consists of 2 teaspoons of salt and a quart of water or herbal tea with laxatives. Although the Master Cleanse Diet lasts for up to 2 weeks at a time, you are not allowed any solid foods while cleansing.

After the 14 day Master Cleanse Diet is over, food intake can resume again. Master Cleanse proponents suggest easing back into eating with foods like soup and fresh fruits & vegetables. Serious stomach issues can occur for dieters who go back to solid foods that are already difficult to digest like beef.

What’s Good About Master Cleanse Diet?

If anything can said to be “good” about this diet it is that it is super simple to follow. You can’t eat anything and you can only drink a specific set of beverages so following the Master Cleanse Diet would be fairly easy for any adult of average intelligence.

The Master Cleanse Diet is cheap too, which in the age of over-priced diet products is a sigh of relief. Finally, what’s good about the Master Cleanse Diet is that it will create the necessary calorie deficit for weight loss.

What’s Bad About Master Cleanse Diet?

The list of Master Cleanse Diet negatives is slightly longer however. What’s bad about this diet is that by virtually starving yourself, chances are your weight loss will mostly be water weight and muscle…not the fat that you’ve been targeting for months. Losing fat requires a balanced diet and regular exercise, and simply drinking the weight loss Kool-Aid will shed pounds…just not how you wanted.

[Beyonce is still hot but the Master Cleanse Diet didn't help her keep it off, either!]

The most glaring problem with the Master Cleanse Diet is that our bodies already have this cool detoxifying machine, it’s called the liver. Between the hard work your liver does and regular bowel movements your body already rids itself of most harmful waste. Add in a few days of regular exercise and sweating will help remove toxins if your body truly needs it. The point is there are options like saunas and steam rooms for a quick detox.

Another weight loss problem associated with the Master Cleanse Diet is the hunger and fatigue you will certainly experience. Your body won’t get enough calories and nutrients on this diet to make it through the work day, much less a rigorous workout.

Master Cleanse Diet—Yay or Nay?

TFLA says ‘Nay’ to the Master Cleanse Diet because it requires a severe reduction in calories for a long period of time and requires no physical activity. These two factors are not necessary for successful weight loss.

The best thing you can do for your weight loss is to reduce calories where you can and get more exercise. If you really need help fighting food cravings eating lemon juice, syrup and cayenne pepper won’t help.

Getting a head start on weight loss can feel like an impossible task, but Brad Pilon’s Eat Stop Eat has information that makes it seem a little less impossible. Read our Eat Stop Eat review and find out how to really break your addiction to food…in less than 2 weeks!

Let’s not pretend that both you and I haven’t made countless promises to work harder on our abs. We have. The truth is that building abdominals that make you want to embrace you inner “Situation” is slightly more complicated than ‘do these exercises’. Slightly.

However doing ab exercises for men is a part of getting the abdominals you want. All guys want awesome abs because no girl has ever said ‘uck, get that gross six-pack outta here,’ so keep reading to find easy ab exercises for men who want girls to look at them.

[If you worked this much on your ab exercises, you'd show them off all the time too!]

First, Fat Burning

Here’s the part no one ever wants to talk about. So many of us have a six pack…underneath layers and layers of fat. Before you can focus solely on ab exercises for men you have to begin some type of fat burning exercise regimen. Only when you have significantly reduced your abdominal fat can you begin an abs-intensive exercise regimen.

Running, walking and swimming are great fat burning exercises you can do while you strengthen your abs. If you enjoy playing sports there are no shortage of fat burning activities, including basketball, racquetball, soccer and boxing. Interval training is another great way to burn fat while building muscle.

Upper Ab Exercises for Men

When it is time to focus on your abs be sure to include ab exercises for all abdominal muscles. The butterfly crunch is a simple upper ab exercise for men who need to exercise when and where they can. If you can’t always get to the gym and those fancy ab machines, you can do the butterfly crunch at home or in your office.

[She is undoubtedly a woman, but this is great butterfly crunch form!]

The basic crunch or ball crunch will also provide an effective abdominal workout, if you maintain proper form throughout.

Lower Ab Exercises for Men

Abdominal knee ups are a really good all around ab exercise, but they really give your lower abs a workout they won’t soon forget. These knee ups can be done on the floor anywhere or using a bench in your home gym. Knee ups are essential ab exercises for men who want beautiful six-pack abs.

To do knee ups:

1. Sit on the edge of a bench (or on the floor) with your hands behind your butt. Lean back until your body is in a 45 degree angle. Straighten your legs in front of you until they are almost completely straight. This is starting position for ab knee ups.
2. Flex abdominal muscles.
3. Pull knees toward chest as close as you can get and slowly bring them back to starting position.
4. Repeat 6 to 8 times per repetition.

Oblique Exercises for Men

The obliques are where many men fail in their quest to achieve six pack abs. These frequently ignored muscles are what give the six-pack abs that lean trimmed look. Don’t ignore the obliques, they are a crucial part of just about all exercises and sports and help prevent lower back injuries.

The oblique crunch is a great ab exercise for men to start with who haven’t worked out in awhile. It is pretty simple to perform and always effective.

[The oblique crunch can be done anywhere and is an absolutely necessary ab exercise for men who want to remove their shirts at the beach!]

If you find the oblique crunch too difficult you can always try the twist & crunch, cross crunch or simple twists. Incorporate at least one of these into your exercise regimen when you do abs to work those muscles and increase overall core strength.

Working abdominals effectively takes time, particularly if you still have fat to burn first. Don’t let shame or fear keep you from showcasing your hard work. As long as you’re working on burning fat and building abdominal muscles you have nothing to be ashamed of.

Just remember that a well-balanced diet with fruit and vegetables will help you get the abs you want faster. Real men don’t just do ab exercises for men; they also use the occasional fast to get their eating habits on track. Find out how intermittent fasting can help you get back on track by reading our review of Eat Stop Eat.

We all would like to shed a few pounds, and if we could only eat a better diet with smaller portions and healthier food it could totally happen…right?

[Hoodia Gordonii is a good idea if THIS is your idea of a healthy diet.]

Well that’s the claim made by Hoodia Gordonii Diet Pills. This “all-natural” appetite suppressant will make you lose weight without feeling hungry. Sounds about as good as getting six-pack abs without working out.

So, keep reading and see if the Hoodia Gordonii Diet Pill will be the cure for your weight loss blues.

Hoodia Gordonii–The Basics

Any research you do about diet pills with Hoodia Gordonii will inevitably tell the long story of the cactus-like plant from which Hoodia Gordonii is derived. It is said that many South African men eat the stems of Hoodia plants to reduce hunger during arduous hunting tasks. This is a great story, but tells nothing of the effectiveness of the Hoodia Godonii Diet Pill.

The basics of how this pill works are simple. The plant extract in Hoodia Gordonii Diet pills suppresses the appetite so you don’t feel hungry, and therefore reduces the amount of calories you consume. What Hoodia Gordonii doesn’t do, is help you create the all-important calorie deficit, without which weight loss cannot occur.

The Science Behind Hoodia Gordonii Diet Pills

When in doubt about the effectiveness of a diet pill, the answer is usually found in the studies–or lack of scientific studies. The makers of Hoodia Gordonii, Phytopharm, have anecdotal evidece taken from 18 medically obese subjects, but none of the tests have been randomized or controlled–two factors that determine the veracity of a study.

The study conducted by Phytopharm did not under go a peer review process, so the quality and truthfulness of the results cannot be evaluated. However this anecdotal evidence did indicate that the obese subjects did reduce caloric intake by 1,000 calories each day.

I’d like to know, however, if that 1,000 calories created the deficit they required for weight loss. Hmmmm….

[This little cactus-looking plant is the main ingredient in Hoodia Gordonii, but the verdict is out on effects from long-term use.]

Does Hoodia Gordonii Diet Pills Work?

Anecdotal evidence suggests that Hoodia Gordonii is effective for suppressing the appetite, but no hard science studies back up this claim.

Hoodia Gordonii Diet pill manufacturers indicate that 1,000mg of Hoodia Gordonii are required daily for effective weight loss. The pills made by Phytopharm are 500mg per capsule, but many Hoodia Gordonii Diet pills on the market contain just 100mg per capsule. That’s 10 capsules a day just to experience minimal, healthy weight loss.

Suppressing the appetite will most certainly help you consume fewer calories, but unless you’re aware of HOW MANY calories you eat each day you won’t know the “magic number” you need for weight loss.

The problem with diet pills like Hoodia Gordonii is that they never teach you how to lose weight, they simply offer you pills that allegedly do the hard work for you. Unless you’re willing to take Hoodia Gordonii until you reach your ideal body weight, the safe conclusion is that it is ineffective for long-term weight loss.

If you’re not satisfied within the first 90 days, Phytopharm offers a money back guarantee.

Hoodia Gordonii Side Effects

The creators of Hoodia Gordonii Diet pills claim the pills are organic and without any short or long-term side effects. They furter state that their appetite suppressants will not cause dependency.

All of these claims MAY be true, but since no peer-reviews have been done, we only have their word for it.

How Much Will Losing Weight Cost?

Because there are dozens of companies out there selling diet pills with hoodia gordonii, it can be difficult to determine who’s for real and who’s got their sights set on your pocketbook.

Hoodia Gordonii Diet pills made by Phytopharm claim to be organic and made from pure hoodia gordonii extract.A bottle of Hoodia Gordonii Absolute, which contains 60 capsules costs about $60 plus shipping & handling.

[If pills could solve your weight problems, the world would be perfect...]

TFLA Says About Hoodia Gordonii…

It may be tempting to give diet pills like Hoodia Gordonii a try, especially when there are no established side effects. Unfortunately these pills promise to do things that you’ve been unable to. It promises to suppress your appetite, but many obese & overweight people eat when they aren’t hungry anyway.

Don’t believe me? A 2004 study found that overeaters who are obese share similar “lack of control” traits found in drug addicts. How will an appetite suppressant supress an urge that strong?

As tempting as it is to try, you already know that nothing works for weight loss as well as a balanced diet and regular physical activity. So unless Hoodia Gordonii has a pill that cooks meals for you and encourages you to work out, it is not a diet pill you should take.

If you really want to know how to break your addiction to food, read our review of Eat Stop Eat. All problems cannot be solved in a pill bottle, as evidenced by our stellar review!

Size 0…is this really a size because I was under the impression that zero isn’t even technically a number. It’s so far from a number in fact that a Size 0 means your waist is about 23 inches–the same size as your 7-year old daughter’s waist. So, how is it that millions of silver screen starlets call zero a size yet the normal woman has to go into starvation mode to reach this coveted dress size?

[She looks soooo healthy at a Size 0 they had to edit out her protruding bones!]

That answer is simple: no one outside of Hollywood believes that 0 is the size of a woman. Size 0 Labs however has created a “rapid weight loss” pill, aptly called, Size 0 Diet Pill.

Let’s find out if the Size 0 Diet can help you acheive a size 0 or if its another cheap promise to make a few bucks.

What Is Size 0?

Size 0 is a “scientific breakthrough” in weight loss. This ‘beauty & fat burning’ pill will allegedly help you lose weight while maintaining “shapely curves”. The Size Zero Diet consists of taking a daily regimen of pills–combined with regular diet & exercise–to help you lose weight and improve your “natural beauty”.

What Does The Size Zero Diet Pill DO?

Put simply, the Size Zero Diet Pill is a fat burning pill. Designed especially for women, the Size 0 Diet Pills feature a thermogenic formula that includes an estrogen support blend, beauty enhancement nutrients, and an appetite support blend to help you stop overeating. These pills are intended to speed up your metabolism while at the same time putting a stop to those pesky food cravings.

That’s what the Size Zero Diet Pill does, keep reading to find out HOW it does it. The clinical name for the Size Zero Diet Pill is Clenbuterol, which allegedly works by burning that unnecessary fat stored in the most unlikely of places. The fat is burned by increasing the body’s temperature (hot flashes to lose weight?), which increases the rate at which blood is pumping throughout the body…also known as your blood pressure (RED FLAG). This process is supposed to help suppress your appetite, which is how you’ll lose weight.

[This sleek Size Zero Diet Pill is all you have to do--plus a balanced diet & exercise--to get skinny! True or False?]

How Much Does The Size Zero Diet Cost?

The cost of the Size Zero Diet pill varies by seller, but on average a bottle of 100 pills costs anywhere from $35.00 up to $49.95.

What Is The Size Zero Diet Pill Regimen?

If you decide that the Size Zero Diet is for you, you will have to take 1-2 pills at least 2 times a day but no more than 3 times daily. Each dose should be taken with 16 ounces of water, a half-hour before meal time. It is recommended that when the Size Zero Diet begins, you start with 1 pill twice a day until you determine how the pills affect you.

Size Zero Diet Pill Side Effects

Like most fat burning pills on the market, the Size Zero Diet does include a few side effects. Because of the increased heart rate associated with Clenbuterol, anxiety, strokes, heart attacks and panic attacks are associated with this product. Other side effects you could experience on the Size Zero Diet pills include; insomnia, dizziness, shortness of breath, nausea, chest pain, tumors, loss of consciousness, behavioral shfits or tingling sensations. Stop taking and talk with your doctor if (or when) you experience these symptoms.

[When this is what passed for a list of ingredients, your spidey senses should tell you to STAY AWAY!!!]

You should not take this pill if you are pregnant or planning to get pregnant. If you have a family history of high blood pressure, heart disease, liver or kidney disease, renal disease, anxiety or depression it is also recommended that you stay away from the Size Zero Diet pill.

You may experience severe symptoms if you take the Size Zero Diet pill with any other supplements that contain caffeine, or any other sources of caffeine. Drug and alcohol use is forbidden with this product. If you engage in intense physicial activities in very warm weather, the makers of the Size Zero Diet pill warn against beginning a diet regimen with this product.

Ingredients

The ingredients in the Size Zero Diet pill are those commonly found in many fat burning pills. Green tea extract, Hoodi Gordonii, and taurine are all in this pill, but not in dosages that would aid weight loss. Collagen in this pill allegedly reduces body fat, along with choline, but no scientific studies have proven this. The weight loss complex has 785mg per 2 pills, which at 26 ingredients, is about 30mg of each ingredient–not enough to cause significant weight loss.

Should You Try The Size Zero Diet?

The easy answer is NO, you should not try the Size Zero Diet pill. Many of the ingredients included in these pills have very limited weight loss benefits. If you’re already enjoying regular cardio and strength training exercises, you can burn more fat and tone this way. By adding a balanced diet that is high in fiber and lean proteins, you’ll experience more weight loss than by popping a few pills.

The size Zero Diet pill plays on the worst insecurites of women by offering a completely unrealistic solution. Since the Size Zero Diet pill recommends that you use the pills in conjunction with a balanced diet and exercise, you may as well SCRAP THE PILLS and focus on doing the (proven) things effectively, ya know, diet & exercise.

Get more information on how to drop a few pounds and break your food addiction by reading our review of Eat Stop Eat. It’ll change everything you thought you knew about dieting and fasting for weight loss.

None of the ingredients found in the Size Zero Diet pill are dangerous even though there are tons of them.

Cavewoman: Dinner ready.
Caveman: What havin’?
Cavewoman: Caught water animals, gathered berries and fungus.
Caveman: Water animal again? (grumbles and storms out of cave.)
Cavewoman: (shrugs) More for me.

[There have always been consequences to criticizing the chef...just ask our ancestors!]

After reading about the Paleo diet I wondered if our pre-agricultural ancestors ever bored of their food options, and this is what I imagined common dinner conversation was like during the paleolithic era after reading about another, the Primal diet.

Keep reading to find out of the Primal Diet actually helps weight loss.

Primal Diet Basics

The primal diet is an eating program based on the book “The Primal Blueprint,” written by Mark Sisson. The primal diet promotes eating only foods that were available to our ancestors prior to the neolithic era. The basic premise behind the primal diet is that a ‘hunter and gatherer’ diet has nourished humans for much of their evolution, during most of which humans were not overweight and suffering from a myriad of health problems.

Right off the bat, there’s a serious problem with this logic, considering the body composition in the neolithic area was much more likely a result of HOW MUCH food they had available and living a very active (see: hunting, surviving) lifestyle and not food selection.

But I digress…

Primal Diet Foods

One of the most important aspects to any diet program are the foods promoted for consumption, and the primal diet promotes mostly whole foods that have not be processed. Foods that primal dieters may consume include proteins like pork, poultry, bison, beef, wild game, fish and shellfish. Vegetables are pretty much allowed in unlimited portions, particularly if they have been grown organically. Fruits are allowed in the primal diet, but only a moderate consumption is recommended and only for those fruits with the best nutritional value like berries.

[The primal diet promise: very few carbs and plenty of protein will work for weight loss...this time!]

Other proteins allowed by the primal diet includes eggs (obviously they weren’t concerned about cholesterol!) and most nuts like almonds, cashews and pecans, but peanuts are prohibited because they aren’t “tree nuts” as prescribed by the primal diet. Seeds like sunflower and pumpkin may be consumed as well, but not if they have been roasted in any oil other than those found within the seed.

Prohibited Foods

The primal diet does not allow consumption of any vegetable oils, grains, beans, sugars or processed foods of any kind. These foods have all come after the paleolithic age, when humans began experimenting with agriculture and animal husbandry.

Primal dieters argue that while grains and legumes may have nutritional value, they also contribute to other health problems like autoimmune diseases. Carbs are not completely forbidden, but on a primal diet should be reduced greatly and only derived from fruits and vegetables.

What’s Good About the Primal Diet

The primal diet is good because it encourages a greater consumption of fruits and vegetables, which are packed with vitamins and nutrients and water. Decreasing how many carbohydrates you consume is a good idea for anyone trying to lose weight, as is getting carbs from healthier food sources. A diet consisting of lean proteins and vegetables is a good start to any weight loss plan.

Concerned about carbs? No-carb recipes found here!

Another aspect of the primal diet that’s good is the focus on free range and organic products. It is a good idea to eat organic whenever it’s possible, but especially with meat products. Industrial agriculture has lead to an increased amount of hormones, antibiotics and chemicals in meat, which could also be responsible for the health problems that primal diet proponents warn about.

What’s Bad About the Primal Diet

Although the Primal Diet does not overtly advocate eating raw meat to aid weight loss, it is mentioned as an optional part of the diet. Because there is only anecdotal evidence that eating a raw meat diet is beneficial, or that it aids with weight loss, we advise against it. Many illnesses can be contracted by eating undercooked or raw meat, so if you’re considering this as part of your primal diet follow the instructions suggested by Mark Sisson here.

[The primal diet promises "boundless energy" with minimal carb intake...do you buy it?]

The other problem I have with the primal diet is that there is not a heavy focus on using regular exercise for weight loss. This is most odd when you consider that a great portion of our paleolithic ancestors’ healthfulness comes from the fact that most days were spent hunting and gathering supplies for survival. Mark Sisson does recommend increased physical activity and even a few paleo-inspired exercises, but maintains that most weight loss occurs due to diet.

Primal Diet for Weight Loss?

The primal diet will work for weight loss, if you are under your calorie consumption for the day, just like with any diet. But restricting your diet to more boring, more expensive foods could wreak havoc on the rest of the life, setting you up for the yo-yo effect.

By decreasing your intake of carbohydrates and focusing more on lean proteins and vegetables, you will very likely create the calorie deficit needed for weight loss. However without regular exercise your weight loss will be a very long process with mediocre results.

It’s not a bad idea to eat more organic foods or to reduce the amount of carbs you consume. However if you cannot afford organic foods then a diet filled with pork and beef probably isn’t a good idea as these meats often have the most chemicals in them.

If you’re struggling with weight loss you can take a few pointers from the primal diet, however adopting the primal diet for everyday use is not recommended as we already have plenty of low-carb diets out there.

If the idea of another low carb diet makes you want to stop eating altogether, read our review of Eat Stop Eat and turn that fast into a healthy way to shed a few pounds!

When it comes to weight loss pills concerns over effectiveness often takes a back seat to safety concerns. Many diet pills or supplements promise amazing weight loss results, but what they fail to tell you is that the side effects are inconvenient, harmful, and sometimes dangerous.

[Plenty of ideas start with the best of intentions...]

Weight loss supplements like Orlistat may help you keep your weight under control, but at what cost? Orlistat is a prescription diet pill given to overweight people who also suffer from diseases that include heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and even diabetes. Purportedly, Orlistat works because it prevents fat from being absorbed into your intestines. Sounds complicated, right?

Well Orlistat is more than just complicated: it has been linked to mild and serious side effects. Keep reading to find out what Orlistat side effects to expect if you choose this as a viable weight loss option.

Common Orlistat Side Effects

The most common side effect linked to Orlistat according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information is irregular bowel movements or changes in bowels. This problem occurs most often during the first few weeks of taking Orlistat, but according to the NCBI the problem could persist as long as you take Orlistat.

Other bowel-related side effects have been attributed to Orlistat due to the pill’s focus on removing unabsorbed fat through the bowels. If you have any of the following Orlistat side effects and they don’t go away after a few days, call your doctor:

• Oily spotting on underwear
• Urgent bowel movements
• Loose, oily, or fatty stools
• More frequent bowel movements
• Inability to control bowels movements
• Anal discomfort or pain
• Gas accompanied by oily spotting

[Can you believe this little pill 3 times a day causes all these side effects?!?]

Other Orlistat Side Effects

Other users of Orlistat have reported more serious side effects from taking the drug. Although some of these side effects occur infrequently, you should contact your physician immediately as these Orlistat side effects could be dangerous.

• Hives, rashes, and itching have been reported by Orlistat users. While hives and rashes could simply be an allergic reaction to an ingredient in Orlistat, combined with unusual itching it could be a sign of liver damage.
• Difficulty breathing or swallowing may occur while on an Orlistat regimen, which may be signs of an allergic reaction.
• Fatigue
• Nausea and vomiting can occur for a wide variety of reasons, although Orlistat does recommend eating a low fat content diet because Orlistat decreases fat absorption, forcing more fat to stay in your digestive tract.
• Loss of appetite
• Severe abdominal pain.
• Headaches and migraines
• Irregular menstrual cycles, including early or late cycles, and intermittent spotting.
• Jaundiced skin and/or eyes (another sign of liver damage).
• Urine darker than normal or unusually light-colored stools
• Increased risk of kidney stones, especially in patients with a history of kidney stones.

Anyone currently taking Orlistat should contact a doctor immediately if any of these Orlistat side effects persist or become worse. Many Orlistat side effects can be avoided by adhering to a low fat diet, since high fat intake (30% or more fat) causes the most embarrassing ‘oily’ side effects.

[If you don't want to choose between weight loss and dignity, stay away from Orlistat!]

While there is not enough information to state unequivocally that one possible side effect of Orlistat is liver damage, some individuals who took the drug did develop severe liver damage. Furthermore, some of the side effects of Orlistat are also symptoms of liver damage and if you notice them, stop taking Orlistat and contact a doctor immediately. (Find out why your liver is so important, here!)

If you currently take Orlistat, you should also add a multivitamin to your regimen because another side effect of Orlistat is that it prohibits your body from absorbing certain fat-soluble vitamins as well as beta carotene. Without a multivitamin you could be missing out on important vitamins and nutrients needed for successful weight loss.

Want to lose weight without the oily mess? Read our review of Eat Stop Eat and find a neater way to lose weight that actually works!

Once you’ve made the decision to start eating healthy and exercising regularly, you have to come up with a plan. Getting on the right track is a lot easier than deciding to get on that track, but doing so isn’t impossible. Before you start the latest fad diet promising to burn unwanted fat, keep reading to find the truth about the colon detox diet.

[Feeling relaxed and balanced in life is a natural byproduct of healthy weight loss, not a colon detox diet.]

The colon detox diet is supposed to rid your body (specifically your colon) of the dozens of toxins we humans consume on a daily basis. If you think you’re one of the privileged few that are toxin free, you’re not but the good news is that those so-called toxins are really just foods you probably shouldn’t be eating. Much of the food we eat on a daily basis has hormones and preservatives in them, not to mention cleaning and beauty products that contain even more chemicals, but that’s why we have kidneys and livers…right? 

But if any of that stuff was bad to the point of being toxic there would be more fat people or more dead people. And I’ll bet that using chicken as bread is more responsible for obesity than toxins!

Your Body

Your body has several organs that act as an internal filtration system. The kidneys, liver, and colon work as a team to rid the body of as many toxins as they can. Depending on your diet, however, your body may not be getting rid of substances (i.e. dairy, wheat, gluten etc…) it has trouble processing, which can lead to a myriad of health problems. The colon detox diet claims that it is the answer, but a safer option would be a 12-hour fast, or longer.

Psssst! Go here for more information on why fasting works for weight loss.

The Colon Detox Diet

The colon detox diet promises to help you eliminate some of the excess toxins your body carries around. The colon detox diet is recommended for as few as 3 days or as long as 30 days depending on your detoxification needs.Prior to the start of your colon detox diet you are required to fast for about 72 hours. Fasting for 24 to 36 hours is a better option than a colon detox, because it does something important that no detox can: break your mental addiction to food that causes you to eat even though your belly is screaming “Stop! Please, for the love of god!”

Get more information on how to properly begin your fast by reading our review of Eat Stop Eat, here!

Another claim made by colon detox diet proponents is that it rids the body of excess waste, which is something all bodies need. Regular bowel movements (yep we’re going there!) are important to weight loss and overall good health, but intermittent fasting is a better option if you have problems in that department.

The Food

The colon detox diet does recommend a list of foods you can eat that aren’t nearly as restrictive as other “diets” on the market. These foods are one of the major reasons I’m reluctant to endorse the colon detox diet. The foods recommended–fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and grains–are part of a healthy and balanced diet already. Anyone beginning a diet such as this will help rid their body of waste and lose weight, especially if that waste is what’s making it difficult to lose weight. This is a healthy eating plan disguised as a new fix to a very old problem.

Fruits and vegetables should be a major component of any food plan calling itself a diet, and the colon detox diet requires consumption of fresh or frozen fruit, as long as you eat it. Fresh vegetables are also highly recommended, particularly the so-called “detoxifying super foods” like garlic, onion, artichokes, beets, broccoli, and cauliflower. Again, the “diet” aspect of the colon detox diet is responsible for any weight loss results more than the “detox”.

[Fresh fruits and vegetables, along with other non-processed foods make up the colon detox diet.]

The colon detox diet may appeal to some because you don’t have to limit all grains. Brown rice is recommended along with other common diet foods like rice cakes and rice crackers. If you’re feeling particularly adventurous (or have a wicked carb craving), the colon detox diet allows rice pasta. The colon detox diet also recommends other healthy grains that many people shy away from like quinoa and buckwheat. Millet and amaranth can also be substituted for other grains if you don’t mind finding a health food store that sells these items.

The Drinks

Obviously you should stop drinking soda and alcohol if you’re trying to lose weight, and the colon detox diet does provide some nice beverage alternatives if you can’t survive on water. Herbal and green teas are recommended to replace that early morning cup of joe until your body has been properly detoxified, but why not reach for a tea instead of that late morning diet coke? Other drinks the colon detox diet recommends include water (8 glasses a day!), lemon water, rice milk, and vegetable juices. Fruit juices are fine too, just make sure they have not been sweetened.

Sugar should be avoided as much as possible for any weight loss efforts, unless you’re getting it naturally through fruit. Any “foods” that have sugar in them or the sneaky sugars like sucrose, corn syrup, dextrose and turbinado are forbidden by the colon detox diet, but also by pretty much every other diet as well. Sugar does nothing to help your body cleanse itself or shed fat so its no friend to any of us who need to shed a few.

[The colon detox diet requires minimizing your meat consumption, but its a good idea for weight loss since most of us eat way too much anyway!]

The colon detox diet is popular because it scares you into thinking about the dire consequences of obesity by using scary words like “toxins” and “poison”. The human body has an internal filtration system that gets rid of waste and has been doing so since man has been breathing, so if your body is having problems it’s probably the food.

Too much cheese and other dairy products has been known to impede a bowel movement or two, so has consuming too much red meat. There are plenty of reasons to take up a better diet, least of all your fat loss, but fad diets tend to have results that last about as long as their popularity.

Read our review of The Diet Solution Program to find out what foods are keeping you overweight. The more you know about food and how if affects your body, the more prepared you’ll be next time someone suggests a colon detox diet!

The body weight squat is one of the most suggested strength training exercises, and perhaps one of the most incorrectly performed of all exercises. A great way to work your hamstrings, butt, and thighs, the squat requires focus on breathing and body positioning to avoid injury and improve physical conditioning.

[Learning how to squat properly will allow you a back strong enough to carry around all this gold!]

Improperly done squats can cause injury to the back, shoulders and neck area at best. At worst, improperly done squats will make no difference in your physical appearance. The key to effective squats is making sure you do each movement correctly. If that happens you’ll feel the burn the more squats you do.

Step 1: Stance

Stand with your feet a little wider than hip width apart. Turn your toes slightly outward and make sure your shoulders are squared.  Paying attention to each of these small points with keep you balanced so you don’t fall over and crack your head.

[Body weight squats are a perfect start to learn how to squat without weights.]

Pay attention to this position as you go up and down in whatever type of squat you choose to perform. The more you do it correctly, the more your body will come to recognize the proper starting position for a squat. Learning how to squat properly, like any exercise, will help you avoid injury and enjoy a more productive workout.

Step 2:  Back Straight

Whether you are in starting position or deep into a squat, it is crucial to keep your back straight. If you lean forward too much you will run the risk of injuring your lower back muscles and joints. Leaning back too much can result in a loss of balance and possible injury. Another benefit of learning how to squat properly is that it’ll help improve your posture and reduce the risk of injuring your back during everyday activities.

[Take notice of the straight back in this split squat. THIS is your goal!]

Remember how grandma used to always yell at you to “sit up straight!”? Well do as ol’ granny used to say and pretend you have a copy of War and Peace on your head as you go down and up. Before long, keeping your back straight will become second nature when you squat, sit, run or perform any other physical activity.

Step 3: Squat

Keep steps 1 and 2 in mind as you plant your feet and lower your butt towards the ground as far as you can go without pain. If you’re just learning how to squat, remember to keep your knees lined up with your toes but never farther than your toes. Go down as far as you can for an optimal workout, but don’t push your body beyond its capabilities…yet.

[This Hindu squat lets you focus on balance, a key requirement to building strength and muscle.]

Until you’re able to squat all the way down, make an effort to go down just a little more with each squat. If you add squats to your regular exercise regimen, you’ll experience greater flexibility and improved squats in a few weeks. When you’ve learned to go all the way down with your back straight and in the proper stance, you’ll have learned how to squat perfectly!

Step 4: The Lift

Once you’ve lowered your backside down as far as you can go, stay there for a second or two and push your feet into the ground to lift yourself back to starting position. If you stay down longer than two seconds it’ll be incredibly hard to get back up and you risk losing your balance.

[When you get comfortable squatting, add weights to this Bulgarian split squat for maximum effectiveness!]

It’s important that you remember to push your heels into the ground to lift you up from a squat–that’s how your legs get toned. Learning how to squat is easy when you don’t have the extra weight from dumbbells or free weights. Besides, learning how to squat properly without weights improves your chances of doing it right when and if you decide to start squatting with weights.

Watch the video below to learn how to do proper prisoner squats. Focus on the movement of the body in each position and practice what you see!

Prisoner Squats (video)

Get your body on the right track with a 24-hour fast. See which fast will work for you by reading our review of Eat Stop Eat.

When it comes to quick weight loss most dieters resort to fad diets that help you lose enough weight for your big event, only to return within a week. That’s because quick weight loss isn’t meant to help with long-term weight loss plan.

[Keep reading for ways you can shed those last 5 pounds THIS WEEK!]

There are, however, solutions to your weight loss woes when you need to drop 5 pounds–quickly! We’ve come up with a few easy and healthy ways that you can shed 5 pounds in a week. Keep reading to get started on your fat loss goals.

1–Don’t Drink Your Calories

You already know that water is incredibly good for you. It’s has no calories and unlike many other zero-calorie foods, water has no additives or chemicals…. I consider that a big plus. Energy drinks, soda, juice and other popular drinks do nothing to satisfy your thirst or hunger yet they add empty calories.

[Water--the only weight loss supplement guaranteed to work!]

Replace all of your beverages with water for the next 7 days and see the results for yourself. When you cut out drinks filled with sugar you can quench your thirst without affecting your weight loss efforts.  And the increase hydration will make your body and mind function better to put you mentally in a better place to stick with your goals.

2–Hardcore Cardio

Losing 5 pounds in 7 days without starving yourself requires regular cardio exercise. The best option for fast fat loss is to choose a cardio routine that requires use of multiple muscles at the same time. This way you’re working several muscle groups at once and those muscles will keep working long after your workout is over.

So what kind of hardcore cardio would one need to shed 5 pounds in 7 days? Well boot camp workouts are an exciting and effective way to work multiple muscles. Spinning classes or cardio kickboxing are also very effective exercises for quick weight loss. Doing 30 minutes of any of these exercises will burn anywhere from 200 to 300 calories! In addition to that, you’ll be toning your arms, legs, core, and butt.

Sixty minutes of ‘hardcore’ cardio every day for the next 7 days will help you lose those pesky 5 pounds keeping you out of your favorite jeans or dress. Get more out of your cardio routine by incorporating circuit training into your workout. Short bursts of cardio combined with slower activity without a break in between gives your exercise routine maximum effectiveness.

Keep in mind that increased physical activity means you will almost certainly be hungry after an intense round of cardio. Do not eat to satisfy that hunger if your goal is weight loss. Refer to #1 for solutions to your post-workout hunger, and stick to water dense foods like  fruits and vegetables.

I find a nice fruit smoothie really quenches my post workout hunger, and if I use water for the mixer my calories are kept to a minimum but the volume of the drink can be huge to fill your stomach!

3–No Refined Grains

Ok so I said ‘no fad diets’ but here we are talking about eliminating foods. Getting rid of refined grains for the next 7 days (or altogether if you’re serious about fat loss) will help you lose 5 pounds easily. Why? According to Dr. Jana Klauer, simple carbohydrates like white rice, pasta, and bread impede weight loss because they are digested quickly, leaving you feeling hungry and more likely to OVEREAT!

Drop those last 5 pounds standing between you and happiness by replacing refined grains with vegetables for the next week. In fact, replace all grains with vegetables for the next week for successful fat loss. Complex carbs like vegetables are packed with water that helps you shed your water weight. In addition complex carbs from water get digested slower so that you feel satisfied much longer. The longer your belly feels satisfied, the less likely you are to overeat later.

4–Get More Sleep

Over the next 7 days make a plan to get an additional 30 minutes of sleep. Most of us don’t need an excuse to get more rest, yet most people don’t get enough sleep each night. Getting more rest will leave you feeling well-rested and better prepared to make smart decisions.

[An extra 30 minutes of sleep will help you in your battle against fat.]

Getting less than 8 hours of sleep will leave you feeling lethargic and unwilling to put forth the effort required to workout regularly. What’s worse is that when you feel sleep-deprived you’re more likely to look to sugar and caffeine for quick bursts of energy throughout the day. A 2006 study found that getting more sleep could be one part of the solution to the problem of obesity.

An extra 30 minutes of sleep combined with a healthy breakfast will get your day off to the right start, making sure you make healthier decisions regarding your health and weight loss.

Not to mention, the more you sleep, the less time you have for eating.  I know it sounds trivial, but if you are following these rules and eliminating another hour or two from your snacking schedule, that’s a plus in your favor.

5–Eat Less

Sure this is a no-brainer in terms of quick weight loss, but what you may not know is that there are options available to you if your biggest problem is overeating. Decreasing your caloric intake is the only way to ensure that you lose weight. Some call it a ‘calorie deficit’, but whatever you call it, call it effective.

Losing 5 pounds in 7 days requires that you eat less than you have been eating. If you’re a person who has issues with controlling the size of your food portions, start with eating your meals on a smaller plate. It’s not scientifically proven but it is effective for short-term weight loss. When you have eyes bigger than your stomach sometimes all it takes fooling your eyes into seeing more food than is actually available.

[Eating less food this week will help you achieve that short-term weight loss goal!]

Fasting is another viable option for quick weight loss. A 24-hour fast at some point in the next 7 days, or a 12-hour fast the day before a big event will force your body to do a little more work, but it will help you control your appetite in a safe way. Don’t confuse fasting with outright starving yourself for the next week–it is nowhere near being the same thing. Starving yourself will make you tired, hungry, cranky and susceptible to binge eating.

Besides, a 24-hour fast will allow your body to take a break from the busy work of digestion, to do some body maintenance that includes allowing your liver to clean your blood and keep the rest of you healthy so you look as good as you feel.

Fasting will help you learn the difference between wanting food and being hungry–an important factor in losing weight in the short or long-term.

Get more information on how to fast for weight loss the right way by reading our review Eat Stop Eat.

You can lose 5 pounds in 7 days by doing any or all of the things we’ve just talked about. Getting more sleep, drinking more water, and regular exercise are great ways to lose weight in a week or over the course of a year! Stay consistent but don’t deprive yourself of a treat now and again.

Want to tone and tighten while you lose weight this week? Read our review of Turbulence Training to make the most of the next 7 days.

Yes, being thinner will improve your sex life. This doesn’t mean you have to be ‘skinny’ to have a good time in bed–it means that losing that extra fat that’s weighing you down will make your sex life more enjoyable…and adventurous!

[Lose the fat that's weighing you down so you can have more fun in bed!]

Whether you like it kinky or plain ol’ vanilla, you can’t discount the benefits of a proper diet on your desire to have sex and your performance while you do! Improving the moves is up to you, but helping you get there…well that’s something we can help you achieve.

More Confident

Dropping even a few of those extra pounds will revive your libido, giving you a renewed desire to get frisky which honestly is half the battle. Losing 5 pounds will make you feel proud of your accomplishment and confident in your body. When we feel more confident about how we look, it makes us want to have sex more.

Simply wanting to have more sex will put your partner in the mood more frequently. It doesn’t matter if it’s the first 5 pounds you need to lose or the only 5. The confidence that comes with losing weight will put you back in the mood for lovin’!

More Adventurous

Another added benefit of losing those unnecessary pounds? Exercising and losing weight helps you maintain muscle flexibility, which is useful when you want to try different positions. Losing any amount of weight will put less strain on your muscles, allowing them to move more freely.

[Losing weight will rekindle your interest in acting out sexual fantasies. Mr. & Mrs. Smith, perhaps?]

Greater muscle flexibility means that you can now try all those pretzel-like positions in your girlfriend’s latest issue of Cosmo! If your sex life has been mundane, make it more exciting by getting more aerobic exercise. Thirty minutes of volleyball, swimming, or roller skating will help you burn as much as 400 calories!

More Stamina

In addition to making you an overall healthier person, losing weight through exercise and a healthy diet gives you more energy. Eating lean proteins along with fresh fruits and vegetables makes you feel energetic, compared to your old mid-afternoon snack of greasy foods and sugary drinks.

More energy means you have more to give in the bedroom. Having more energy is a double bonus. First, more energy means you can have sex for longer periods of time. Second, sex is aerobic exercise! Just 30 minutes of doin’ the deed burns about 150 calories and longer sex means more calories burned. Sex shouldn’t be your only exercise, but I think its awesome something as fun as sex also burns extra fat!

It’s a sex cycle that’ll spin you into the you you’ve always wanted to be!

Better Performance

Losing weight is a great cure for obesity related illnesses like high cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure. These conditions can cause physical sexual dysfunction in men and women. In men, high blood pressure and diabetes can shut down the arteries–which control the blood flow–in the penis which you kinda need for an awesome performance between the sheets.

Overweight women can experience the same problem with blockage in the blood vessels in the clitoris. Problems such as these make it difficult for men to perform well during sex and it makes it difficult for women to enjoy sex and often, difficult to climax as well. Bummer, right?

By adopting a healthy diet where you eat less and move more, you can reverse these problems that aren’t allowing you to enjoy having sex. A thinner you will have proper circulation so that all your sexy bits work as they should, and that means a more enjoyable Friday night for everyone involved!

Greater Arousal

When our bodies stray from what doctors consider a healthy body weight our hormones tend to get ‘out of whack’. Unbalanced hormones can make you feel depressed or anxious, but more importantly they affect your desire to become aroused.

[Balance your hormones naturally with a healthy diet & exercise and you'll be a horny lil' devil in NO time!]

A healthy diet with regular physical activity will help you lose weight and it’ll balance out your hormones, making you feel happier and hornier! By adopting a lifestyle that will help you burn fat, you’ll want to have sex more and when the time comes for you to actually have sex…it will be easier for you to become aroused.

Arousal is the first step for a fun night of sex!

Attitude is EVERYTHING!

When you take the first step to leading a healthier life you will, without a doubt, feel better about yourself and life in general. This means that you won’t worry as much about how you look in this position or from that angle, because you are a ‘work in progress’ and you’ll be more likely to go with the flow.

Having a ‘go with the flow’ attitude in bed will allow you to relax and simply enjoy yourself. It’s a known fact that its much sexier to have a little fun in the sack than have mediocre self-conscious sex. Forget what the scale says when it’s time to get down. Studies show that about 30% of overweight people experience sexual difficulties. The good news is that means that about 70% of overweight folks are doing alright in the sex department.

That’s good news for all of us. Have a positive attitude about your weight loss progress NOW. Are you gonna wait until you reach your weight loss goal before you start enjoying sex again? I don’t think so.

More Sex

I think we can all agree that having more sex is a good thing, right? Well losing weight can help you achieve just that. You’ll want to have more sex when you have less weight on your knees and hips. You can diminish or eliminate that pain by shedding the extra fat.

When you can have sex on a whim, you’ll want to and guess what? You will!

Just imagine all the time you’ll have to actually have sex rather than make sure you’ve got your blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes or heart medication. Imagine all the sexual fantasies you can act out if you just do these things:

1. Eat smaller portions.
2. Eat lean proteins and lots of fruits and vegetables.
3. Exercise regularly.

Looking for the right solution to your weight loss problems? Read our review of Eat Stop Eat and find out the facts and benefits of fasting for weight loss.

Every season a new celebrity starlet sings the praises of the newest fad diet to hit the market, and just about every year it seems Christian Bale is bingeing or purging for his latest role. Celebrities often espouse the benefits of this or that diet plan, perpetuating some of the most bogus weight loss myths.

[Sure, 50 Cent reached his weight loss goals, but do you wanna try his methods?]

Since neither of us probably has the money for full-time weight loss experts, keep reading to find out what the celebrities aren’t telling you!

Weight Loss Myth #1: Diet Programs Work

This is probably the biggest diet myth out there. Grab your favorite diet plan–Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers or Nutrisystem–and watch the weight magically fall off! If only it were that simple.

[Celebrity Diet Plan #1: Eat whatever you want, someone will fix it tomorrow!]

The truth is that while those diet programs do help you regulate your caloric intake, they do very little to teach you how to regulate the calories you consume. I mean, these diet programs are a great place to start for successful weight loss, but can you afford to pay for that food every month for the rest of your life? Furthermore, how many of us actually believe that Jenny McCarthy or Queen Latifah actually lost all that weight on diet programs?

The other problem with these celebrity-endorsed diet programs is that they do very little, if anything, to encourage regular physical activity. Without regular physical activity and controlling your diet, successful weight loss is unlikely.

These diet programs don’t teach you what to do when you’re positively starved after a long cardio workout. These programs simply focus on making sure you eat less, which is good weight loss advice, but only partial weight loss advice.

Weight Loss Myth #2: Shortcuts Are Okay

Celebrity-centric diets like the 5 Factor Diet feed into the myths we tell ourselves about why we just can’t lose weight. These myths help to keep us overweight and constantly seeking the next big diet trend.

The truth is that shortcuts are not the way to losing weight and keeping it off. You have to make losing weight and living a healthy lifestyle a priority. Just look at it this way; you have to eat everyday anyway because your body needs it, so make the time.

Even if I concede the point that celebrities are busy, they aren’t cooking their own meals anyway so who is a diet like this trying to fool? YOU, and all those regular dieters just like you looking for a quick and easy fix to your weight loss problems. A diet like 5 Factor only works if you have someone bringing you meals fives times each day and a personal trainer shows up at your trailer during your break time. Got it?

[Call me a cynic, but I think there's another ingredient in her weight loss plan!]

Weight Loss Myth #3: Successful Weight Loss Costs A Pretty Penny

Okay, so celebrities aren’t going around telling us little people that we have to spend a million bucks to look like a million bucks, but they may as well be. One thing all celebrity quick-fix diets have in common is that most cost money to join. With diet programs you have to purchase the food, which could be a substantial cost depending on how frequently the diet encourages you to eat. Some have you eat every 3 hours, while others require you to eat 5 times a day.

Celeb personal trainers cost about what most of us earn in a month, and no amount of weight loss can work out the downside to spending your entire salary on a weight loss program.

With that unused gym membership, the still packaged ThighMaster, and converted yoga mat, haven’t you learned your lesson with expensive diet fads? It doesn’t cost a lot of money to lose weight successfully, it just requires access to the right information and the right kinds of foods.

[If this is what you consider 'good' eating, your weight loss journey has just begun.]

We at The Fat Loss Authority have provided you with information on calories in alcohol so that when you go out for a night of fun you can enjoy yourself by having the information you need to make smart decisions. We’ve shown you a wide range of healthy food recipes that are in no way restrictive to a normal person. Whether you need a quick lunch idea or a healthy meal for entertaining, there are healthy and delicious options always available to you.

These celebrity weight loss myths want you to believe that you can’t live without that greasy fast food cheeseburger that you could actually make for yourself with less money and fewer calories! And the greasy fries you love can be tossed in the oven for a low-cal snack that won’t suck up the rest of your daily calories.

We all have to be mindful that celebrities spend even more time focusing on their appearance than we mortals do. In an industry so obsessed with how you look, it is in their financial interest to try any fad promising to shed an ounce of fat. For you however, it is in your best interest to simply make gradual changes in your lifestyle. For example, no one can deny how skinny Lindsey Lohan is, but do you really want to know her weight loss secret?

Celebrity weight loss myths feed on that insecurity we all have. I mean if Cameron Diaz is worried about her body, why shouldn’t the rest of us be, right? Wrong. Unless you have a staff of individuals invested in your physical appearance, celebrity diet plans probably won’t work for you. These plans require constant supervision, and an almost laser-focus on one thing only: weight loss.

If we could all do that without worrying about sacrificing jobs and relationships, that would work. But in the real world, normal people have to answer to bosses, pick up children, talk to spouses, touch base with family members, shower, make meals and pick up dry cleaning. Celebrity diet plans work for one reason: they are catered to celebrities and the super-rich.

[Even with Oprah money, celebrity diet plans don't seem very effective. What hope is there for the rest of us?]

If you want a diet plan that actually works, read our review of The Diet Solution Program. Isabel De Los Rios has created a well-rounded diet plan suitable for the wallet of regular weight loss joe’s like us!

In a recent fat loss tip we talked about the use of intermittent fasting as a natural way for your body to burn fat. On a personal note, this strategy has become by far my most effective weight loss strategy I currently practice.

In the article, we covered just a few of the benefits of fasting including the ability to burn fat without restricting your diet to bland salads and dried-out chicken breast. The story is a simple one:

Enjoy your favorite foods without guilt or anxiety and you will lose weight.

Fasting with favorite foods can equal weight loss - just go easy on the whipped cream!

Eye brows were raised, sentences re-read, and conversations ensued. One of our readers, Al, openly questioned the whole concept:

That sounds all well and good, BUT don’t I still need to eat healthy foods to lose weight. It doesn’t make sense that I can eat pizza and hot dogs everyday, input 2 24-hour fasts, and still expect to lose weight? Am i missing something?

Here is my response to Al which I’d like to share with everyone:

<- Start of Email ->

Hi Al,

Thanks for writing.  I’ll do my best to answer your question, if you still have any questions feel free to hit me back with an email anytime.

You’re not alone for having this question and in my opinion it’s one of the biggest cognitive gaps for people trying to lose weight. Too often people equate eating healthy with losing weight, when in fact it’s not that linear of an equation.

Typically people that eat healthy happen to be more conscious of what they eat in general. Healthy eating usually leads to regular exercise and as a result people are more equipped for losing and maintaining their weight.

Let’s not forget to mention that a diet richer in fruits and veggies (fiber) leaves you more satiated and therefore consuming less calories.

However, you do NOT have to eat healthy foods to lose weight. You really don’t!

If you want your body to function ideally, to have regular bowel movements, healthy hair and skin, and the benefits go on and on and on… then YES, ABSOLUTELY please eat healthy foods – that’s why I do.

However, if you want to lose weight, then we are talking about something else entirely.

To lose weight, the #1 rule is to put your body in a caloric deficit every single day.

This means that the amount of calories that you ingest throughout the course of a day should be LESS that the amount of calories our body burns within the same period of time.

eg. Day 1:

* You eat 1800 calories.
* Between life in general and the 400 calories you burned at the gym, your body expended 2400 calories.
* End result: You are in a caloric deficit of 600 hundred calories for that day.

So with that being said, you can eat ice cream, donuts, pizza, steak dinners, mash potatoes, cinnamon hearts and chocolate cake…

BUT!

But, but, but… you still have to make sure that the calories you consume from all of these foods throughout the course of a day still leave you in a caloric deficit.

And keep in mind, if you have a CHEAT day the additional calories you consume will also have an impact on your overall caloric deficit.

So here is a perfect example:

If you go to a coffee shop, and you are trying to decide between the donut and the muffin and you are trying to lose weight, choose the donut.

Sure, you probably shouldn’t have either of these, BUT if you have to have one, 9 times out of 10 the donut will have fewer calories than the muffin.

I hope this helps.

To the future you,
Mike

<- End of Email ->

It’s through questions and discussions where learning really takes place in my opinion – we should never take anything at face value. A big thanks to our readers for continuing to share and interact here on the site and as always if you have any questions, please do not hesitate.

To learn more about weight loss with intermittent fasting, see our book review of Eat Stop Eat. Author Brad Pilon provides all the science behind the body’s natural ability to burn fat without guilting ourselves about the foods we love.