It seems like every processed food item has a 100 calorie package version out on the market these days. I saw Doritos, Oreos, and every major chocolate bar touting 100 calories on the front side of their respective packages while standing in line at the supermarket last week. Ah… isn’t that sweet. They’re doing the portion control for me in an effort to help me eat less. Sure, I’ve got room for you guys in my shopping cart. Hop right in…

[The staple of low calorie snacking... popcorn. Put your hand-up if you can taste the difference between plain unsalted or unsweetened popcorn and styrofoam? That's why it's usually loaded with large amounts of additives!]

I thought smaller portion size was good? What gives?

When mindless eating takes over, yes absolutely, these packages are a great idea. Forcing a person to take the additional action of getting up and opening a new pack to continue snacking is powerful and works a hell of lot better then putting on the mental brakes in front of an already opened 450 gram bag of chips. But according to some research, such awareness doesn’t necessarily prevent overeating. (more…)

I spy with my little eye a place where multiple rows of farm fresh produce from sun-ripened tomatoes, fresh picked apples, nuts, dried fruit, bright colored flowers, lettuce crisp and fresh, the leanest cuts of meats, the finest fish from the sea, fresh baked goods, tangy cheeses, and tropical fruits. Answer: A big-box supermarket store. What? Seriously? Don’t be a smart-ass! Correct Answer: Your local farmer’s market.

[Look past the pumpkins and you'll see squash in all shapes and sizes. I love the vibrant colors in this photo.]

There is nothing like walking through a market during this time year because of the variety of fruits and vegetables available. One vegetable in particular that stands out from the crowd is squash because of the many different colors, sizes, and shapes in comes in. For these very same reasons though people seem to be generally confused and intimidated by the idea of bringing one home.

Today, we’ll venture outside of our vegetable comfort zone and take a closer look at how you can slice and dice squash onto your kitchen table. (more…)

Another week and a dozen more offers sitting in my email inbox for the amazing Acai Berry. I’ve put off the idea of analyzing this highly touted supplement primarily for these two reasons:

1. Anything that sounds to good to be true usually falls flat on it’s face, especially in the world of fat loss;

2. Oprah.

[A friend asked me what Acai supplement she should be using in her diet. This picture captures my reaction quite well.]

Now I enjoy most of Oprah’s segments and features but this particular episode from last year, which also included some hyped-up talk about Resveratrol, was a complete disaster.

OK, it was really Dr. Mehmet Oz who dropped the ball, but unknowingly or not, this episode contributed to a dramatic rise in Acai profit ($15 million last year, up from $500,000 per year in previous years) and junk email offers around the world.

Almost overnight, Oprah and other celebrities became walking endorsements with ad campaigns built entirely around them to be used in every corner of the internet. By filing a lawsuit earlier this month, it looks like Oprah may think twice about doing another episode about this “miracle” fat loss supplement.

With the rise of acai berry products, it’s virtually impossible to get any subjective and unbiased information on the topic because all the junk websites have risen to the top in most search engines.

What I’ll attempt to do here is save you the headache and give you an honest digestible (pardon the pun) version of the facts regarding this heavily publicized piece of fruit.

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Fat loss tip extraordinaire or some old-school reverse psychology? Don’t worry, I had the same reaction when I first discovered eating fat was necessary for losing weight.

Too often we hear confusing messages about dietary fats and what it really does to your body like:

1. Fats make you gain body fat.

2. Fats lead to heart attacks.

3. Fats are evil and should be avoided at all costs.

To put it bluntly, the three points above are FALSE .

We’ve been completely misled when it comes to fats.

Fats are essential for our body’s hormone production, skin health, absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, and even burning body fat.

Studies have been conducted to attempt to elevate cholesterol levels using high-fat diets. Most all of them have back fired terribly and in fact several studies lowered total cholesterol while raising the so-called “good” cholesterol (HDL). Imagine that?
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Happy belated Canada Day to my fellow Canucks and salutations to my friends south of the border who celebrated Independence Day. Chances are we all attended or hosted at least one BBQ or cookout this past week and why not?

It’s the summer time season and there’s nothing more enjoyable then spending time with family and friends while enjoying food over an open fire.

But it’s also crucial your preparing healthy and safe BBQ meals by keeping the grill clean, washing your hands and following other BBQ tips for an enjoyable cookout.

[How many people tried to cook a deep fried turkey this past weekend? I tried it once and never again! Haven't done a beach cookout in a long time so maybe the photo above will inspire me to do one this summer]

Unfortunately, even if we follow every healthy step in preparing our food, we can still screw up our weight loss goals by the time the food leaves the grill and enters our mouth.

How?

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Right next to the male enhancement products and the heartfelt letters from my Nigerian friends, are offers for magical weight loss supplements that claim to have the ability to evaporate my fat on contact!

There’s a lot of buzz, especially on the Internet, about all these outrageous fat loss products, especially teas that will help you lose weight: green tea with hoodia, green tea plus, wu yi green tea. You name the teas, and of course it’s going to magically help you lose weight.

[There are a ton of great pics on the web like this one that show the beauty of a green tea field. Supposedly, this is a shot from one such field near Mt. Fugi in Japan. Absolutely stunning! ]

Green Tea and Weight Loss?

Now the sexy part about green tea is that there actually is scientific evidence to show that green tea can help with weight loss.

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Would you be upset with yourself for eating a slice of birthday cake at a party?

Are you uncomfortable eating food someone else has prepared because you aren’t in control of the ingredients?

Do you beat yourself up or become depressed after a day of unhealthy eating choices?

According to Brad Pilon, nutrition expert and author, these could be signs of “Obsessive Compulsive Eating Habits” a term he has coined for going to extremes in the pursuit of a diet that’s supposed to be good for you.

In his book, Eat Stop Eat: The Radical New Approach to Nutrition That Can Burn Fat, Improve Your Health and Might Just Save Your Life, he makes the case that the quest for healthy food can become a disease in its own right, and almost as damaging as the diseases it is meant to fight.

A person with obsessive eating habits worries too much over food quality, trying endlessly to perfect his or her diet. Just trying to follow a healthful diet doesn’t make a person diagnosed with an eating disorder. Rather, it is the concept of “transferring too much of life’s meaning onto food that makes obsessive eating an eating disorder,” writes Brad Pilon.

“If you simply eat healthy food but don’t give it more of a place in your life than it’s really due, you have a good diet. But when you use food to drain away the energy from other parts of your life, you are damaging your soul.”

So why do some people get so hooked on healthy eating?

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It’s a question that was recently asked of us here at The Fat Loss Authority and a very important one to discuss.

If you remember anything from your Health Study classes in school, you’ll remember that 99.99999% (I’m exaggerating but not by much) of the calcium in your body is stored in your bones and teeth. The other 1% is primarily found in your bloodstream and helps control muscle movements, blood clotting and nerve impulses.

Simply put: if you lose calcium from your bones, your bones will be weaker.

In a 2006 study performed by various physicians in the state of New York, it was found that the calcium concentration of water varies from 1 to 135 mg/L across the USA and Canada.

Most spring waters were found to have a relatively low calcium concentration, with an average of 21.8 mg/L. Purified waters contain a negligible calcium concentration.

The big winner was mineral waters. They were generally found to contain higher calcium concentrations, an average of 208 mg/L of calcium.

Sounds impressive but how does it compare with other food sources?

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It may well go all the way back to the land of dinosaurs, but it seems that to the male of the species, an open fire and charring meat and the outdoors go together like peanut butter and jam.

With the warm weather upon us now, barbeques everywhere are heating up with roasted corn and juicy hamburgers.

Here are 11 tips to ensure you have healthy and safe BBQ meals this summer:

1. How fat is your meat? Select lean, or extra lean cuts of meat or better yet have your butcher grind a prime piece of beef or turkey for burgers. Fresh fish should be purchased no earlier then a day before eating.

2. Choose your picnic spot wisely! Everyone wants to be under a tree sheltered away from the sun, but insects think alike. Also, things drop from trees therefore, it’s better to be further away.
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We all know those guys and gals who can eat what they want, barely work out, and still manage to stay more fit and lose more weight than their friends.

Why? Because they have a fast metabolism .

The rest of us? We’re left with our own jealous thoughts while we curse our genes for not being better at burning fat. But does having a slower metabolism relegate us to a lifestyle filled with weight gain and frustration?

The answer: NO .

"Sure, you’re stuck with your metabolism to some degree ", says the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Gary R. Hunter, PhD, director of the exercise physiology lab and professor at the School of Education. "But research shows that building and maintaining lean muscle can speed it up . "

In fact, by adding lean-muscle mass (which burns about 10 to 20 times the calories per pound each day that fat does) you’re boosting your metabolism not just during exercise but all day.

How? Because it raises your resting metabolic rate (RMR), the amount of energy it takes to sustain basic bodily functions, which accounts for a whopping 60 to 70 percent of the calories you burn daily.

"Boost your RMR, and you can drop pounds and maintain a healthy weight " says Vince DelMonte, author of  Your Six Pack Quest , and contributor to Men’s Fitness Magazine. What’s more, that hike in lean muscle can help you lessen the decreasing metabolism (approximately 10 percent per decade) that comes with aging.

Sounds so simple, right?

Well get off the sidelines and try the following nutritional and exercise guidelines to kick start your metabolism and burn fat today!
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