How Do YOU Diet To Lose Weight? (page 3)

Maryjane

I actually kept my new year's resolution this year and am 35lbs down and counting since Jan. I don't "diet" per se, but have made a commitment to eat only foods that are packed with nutrients. I still have an empty calorie here and there, but they are few and far between. Also, keep your fiber intake up...at least 25-30 grams a day. Exercise is key too. Try to get your heart pumping for at least 30 mins /3x's a week (more is better). If you have fat to lose incorporate some weight training into your workout.

caligirl

Eat less, move more. I try to use fruits & veggies as the main part of my diet, followed by protein, then carbs.

I'm aiming for an hour a day on my treadmill as well instead of using it as a clothes hanger.

XJW4EVR

I lost close to 100 pounds back in 2000. I did that by going to the gym 5 days a week, and cutting the carbs, and high sugar drinks out of my diet.

I keep it off by consistently eating right, and excericing at least 3 times a week. Mostly with serious bike rides (hills). I still keep the carbs down, though I did backslide on the sodas. Those suckers will put weight on you fast (I learned that the hard way).

minimus

That's it! I'm going for a walk. No, pizza's not on the list.

MsMcDucket

Take half a teaspoon (one gram) of cinnamon a day.

Satanus, how do you take it? Mix it in oatmeal or what?

acadian

I don't diet to lose weight, or I'd be too skinny. My food intake consist mostly of fruits, grains, veggies and very little animal products. I graze through out the day, alittle bit of everything. I eat slow/whole foods, foods you have to prepare yourself. And eaten mostly raw. And I try to avoid foods that come out of a box/packages. I grow the majority of the foods I eat. And I don't have a tiller so I dig everything by hand, that's my excercise. Acadian

Mary

JH said: I eat lots of fast food, to maintain my weight of 138 lbs OH, and I drink lots of coke to wash it down.

Anyone else here think JH should be taken out back and stoned to death?

luna2

Absolutely, Mary! No one should be able to eat a large plate of french fries covered in cheese and gravy, wash it down with a sugary Coke and not gain any weight. That's just wrong.

Satanus

Msmcduck

I think you can get it in capsules in the us. I borrowed a friend's cap filler machine and made a bunch. Now, i mix it w food or pepsi. A small quantity of oatmeal w sugar, toast w butter and brown sugar, a bit of icecream w sugar added, baklava, etc. It's not hard to take. Here is a writeup on it:

The Health Benefits of Cinnamon

Cinnamon does not only taste good, it also contains many health benefits such as: Anti-Clotting and Anti-Microbial actions, Blood Sugar Control, it boosts Brain Function, it's Calcium and Fiber protect against Heart Disease and improve Colon Health, among other things.

Date: 08/15/05
Source: http://www.whfoods.org/

Cinnamon, ground
Although available throughout the year, the fragrant, sweet and warm taste of cinnamon is a perfect spice to use during the winter months. Cinnamon has a long history both as a spice and as a medicine. It is the brown bark of the cinnamon tree, which is available in its dried tubular form known as a quill or as ground powder. The two varieties of cinnamon, Chinese and Ceylon, have similar flavor, however the cinnamon from Ceylon is slightly sweeter, more refined and more difficult to find in local markets.

Health Benefits
Cinnamon’s unique healing abilities come from three basic types of components in the essential oils found in its bark. These oils contain active components called cinnamaldehyde, cinnamyl acetate, and cinnamyl alcohol, plus a wide range of other volatile substances.

Anti-Clotting ActionsCinnamaldehyde (also called cinnamic aldehyde) has been well-researched for its effects on blood platelets. Platelets are constituents of blood that are meant to clump together under emergency circumstances (like physical injury) as a way to stop bleeding, but under normal circumstances, they can make blood flow inadequate if they clump together too much. The cinnaldehyde in cinnamon helps prevent unwanted clumping of blood platelets. (The way it accomplishes this health-protective act is by inhibiting the release of an inflammatory fatty acid called arachidonic acid from platelet membranes and reducing the formation of an inflammatory messaging molecule called thromboxane A2.) Cinnamon's ability to lower the release of arachidonic acid from cell membranes also puts it in the category of an “anti-inflammatory” food that can be helpful in lessening inflammation.

Anti-Microbial Activity
Cinnamon’s essential oils also qualify it as an “anti-microbial” food, and cinnamon has been studied for its ability to help stop the growth of bacteria as well as fungi, including the commonly problematic yeast Candida. In laboratory tests, growth of yeasts that were resistant to the commonly used anti-fungal medication fluconazole was often (though not always) stopped by cinnamon extracts.

Cinnamon’s antimicrobial properties are so effective that recent research demonstrates this spice can be used as an alternative to traditional food preservatives. In a study, published in the August 2003 issue of the International Journal of Food Microbiology, the addition of just a few drops of cinnamon essential oil to 100 ml (approximately 3 ounces) of carrot broth, which was then refrigerated, inhibited the growth of the foodborne pathogenic Bacillus cereus for at least 60 days. When the broth was refrigerated without the addition of cinnamon oil, the pathogenic B. cereus flourished despite the cold temperature. In addition, researchers noted that the addition of cinnamon not only acted as an effective preservative but improved the flavor of the broth.(October 1, 2003)

Blood Sugar Control
Cinnamon may significantly help people with type 2 diabetes improve their ability to respond to insulin, thus normalizing their blood sugar levels. Both test tube and animal studies have shown that compounds in cinnamon not only stimulate insulin receptors, but also inhibit an enzyme that inactivates them, thus significantly increasing cells’ ability to use glucose. Studies to confirm cinnamon’s beneficial actions in humans are currently underway with the most recent report coming from researchers from the US Agricultural Research Service, who have shown that less than half a teaspoon per day of cinnamon reduces blood sugar levels in persons with type 2 diabetes. Their study included 60 Pakistani volunteers with type 2 diabetes who were not taking insulin. Subjects were divided into six groups. For 40 days, groups 1, 2 and 3 were given 1, 3, or 6 grams per day of cinnamon while groups 4, 5 and 6 received placebo capsules. Even the lowest amount of cinnamon, 1 gram per day (approximately ¼ to ½ teaspoon), produced an approximately 20% drop in blood sugar; cholesterol and triglycerides were lowered as well. When daily cinnamon was stopped, blood sugar levels began to increase. (December 30, 2003)

Test tube, animal and human studies have all recently investigated cinnamon’s ability to improve insulin activity, and thus our cells’ ability to absorb and use glucose from the blood. On going in vitro or test tube research conducted by Richard Anderson and his colleagues at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center is providing new understanding of the mechanisms through which cinnamon enhances insulin activity. In their latest paper, published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Anderson et al. characterize the insulin-enhancing complexes in cinnamon—a collection of catechin/epicatechin oligomers that increase the body’s insulin-dependent ability to use glucose roughly 20-fold.. Some scientists had been concerned about potentially toxic effects of regularly consuming cinnamon. This new research shows that the potentially toxic compounds in cinnamon bark are found primarily in the lipid (fat) soluble fractions and are present only at very low levels in water soluble cinnamon extracts, which are the ones with the insulin-enhancing compounds. A recent animal study demonstrating cinnamon’s beneficial effects on insulin activity appeared in the December 2003 issue of Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice. In this study, when rats were given a daily dose of cinnamon (300 mg per kilogram of body weight) for a 3 week period, their skeletal muscle was able to absorb 17% more blood sugar per minute compared to that of control rats, which had not received cinnamon, an increase researchers attributed to cinnamon’s enhancement of the muscle cells’ insulin-signaling pathway. In humans with type 2 diabetes, consuming as little as 1 gram of cinnamon per day was found to reduce blood sugar, triglycerides, LDL (bad) cholesterol, and total cholesterol, in a study published in the December 2003 issue of Diabetes Care. The placebo-controlled study evaluated 60 people with type 2 diabetes (30 men and 30 women ranging in age from 44 to 58 years) who were divided into 6 groups. Groups 1, 2, and 3 were given 1, 3, or 6 grams of cinnamon daily, while groups 4, 5, and 6 received 1, 3 or 6 grams of placebo. After 40 days, all three levels of cinnamon reduced blood sugar levels by 18-29%, triglycerides 23-30%, LDL cholesterol 7-27%, and total cholesterol 12-26%, while no significant changes were seen in those groups receiving placebo. The researchers’ conclusion: including cinnamon in the diet of people with type 2 diabetes will reduce risk factors associated with diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.(January 28, 2004)

The latest research on cinnamon shows that by enhancing insulin signaling, cinnamon can prevent insulin resistance even in animals fed a high-fructose diet! A study published in the February 2004 issue of Hormone Metabolism Research showed that when rats fed a high-fructose diet were also given cinnamon extract, their ability to respond to and utilize glucose (blood sugar) was improved so much that it was the same as that of rats on a normal (control) diet. Cinnamon is so powerful an antioxidant that, when compared to six other antioxidant spices (anise, ginger, licorice, mint, nutmeg and vanilla) and the chemical food preservatives (BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole), BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene), and propyl gallate), cinnamon prevented oxidation more effectively than all the other spices (except mint) and the chemical antioxidants. (May 6, 2004)

Cinnamon's Scent Boosts Brain Function
Not only does consuming cinnamon improve the body’s ability to utilize blood sugar, but just smelling the wonderful odor of this sweet spice boosts brain activity! Research led by Dr. P. Zoladz and presented April 24, 2004, at the annual meeting of the Association for Chemoreception Sciences, in Sarasota, FL, found that chewing cinnamon flavored gum or just smelling cinnamon enhanced study participants’ cognitive processing. Specifically, cinnamon improved participants’ scores on tasks related to attentional processes, virtual recognition memory, working memory, and visual-motor speed while working on a computer-based program. Participants were exposed to four odorant conditions: no odor, peppermint odor, jasmine, and cinnamon, with cinnamon emerging the clear winner in producing positive effects on brain function. Encouraged by the results of these studies, researchers will be evaluating cinnamon’s potential for enhancing cognition in the elderly, individuals with test-anxiety, and possibly even patients with diseases that lead to cognitive decline. (May 9, 2004)

Calcium and Fiber Improve Colon Health and Protect Against Heart Disease
In addition to its unique essential oils, cinnamon is an excellent source of the trace mineral manganese and a very good source of dietary fiber, iron and calcium. The combination of calcium and fiber in cinnamon is important and can be helpful for the prevention of several different conditions. Both calcium and fiber can bind to bile salts and help remove them from the body. By removing bile, fiber helps to prevent the damage that certain bile salts can cause to colon cells, thereby reducing the risk of colon cancer. In addition, when bile is removed by fiber, the body must break down cholesterol in order to make new bile. This process can help to lower high cholesterol levels, which can be helpful in preventing atherosclerosis and heart disease. For sufferers of irritable bowel syndrome, the fiber in cinnamon may also provide relief from constipation or diarrhea. A Traditional Warming Remedy In addition to the active components in its essential oils and its nutrient composition, cinnamon has also been valued in energy-based medical systems, such as Traditional Chinese Medicine, for its warming qualities. In these traditions, cinnamon has been used to provide relief when faced with the onset of a cold or flu, especially when mixed in a tea with some fresh ginger.

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I have been using it for one and a half yrs without any noticeable bad side effects. It says that it thins the blood a bit, so if someone is due for an operation, it might be good to stay off it for 3 days prior.

MsMcDucket

Satanus, I don't think that I could take that much cinnamon without it burning my stomach. Just eating the candy called "Red Hots" burns my mouth and stomach.

How Do YOU Diet To Lose Weight?

The Health Benefits of Cinnamon

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