Using Yoga to Lose Weight

By the vTeam, Kamau Austin, Publisher

When most people think of yoga they consider it to be more of a relaxation exercise than a weight loss exercise. However, if you are struggling to lose weight and have never tried yoga, you might want to give it a try because it can have some weight loss benefits. You may find that yoga is quite relaxing but can also help to promote weight loss. In fact the weight loss which results from practicing yoga may be a result of both the physical activity as well as the relaxation benefits. This article will provide information on the weight loss benefits of yoga and how yoga can help you to lose weight through its cardiovascular benefits as well as its relaxation benefits. Before you begin a yoga routine or taking supplements in an effort to lose weight you should consult your doctor.

Yoga as Cardiovascular Exercise

Some types of yoga known as power yoga or ashtanga yoga are quite rigorous and can be effective as part of an exercise routine designed to lose weight, but most types of yoga are not as beneficial for weight loss. This is because other types of yoga typically do not elevate your heart rate enough to stimulate weight loss. You will likely gain greater muscle tone and some calorie expenditure from yoga, but the results will not be as pronounced as other types of more strenuous exercise such as running or biking.

However, if you have not previously been exercising, the minimal calorie expenditure associated with a moderate yoga routine will result in some weight loss when combined with a healthy diet. This is because although yoga does not cause you to expend a lot of calories, it is still an increase in heart rate for those who have not been exercising regularly. This makes yoga an excellent starting point for those looking to shake a passive lifestyle. You will likely quickly become accustomed to the calorie expenditure though and will have to result to more strenuous forms of yoga or other types of exercise to keep your body challenged.

Yoga as a Relaxation Technique

One of the unique benefits of incorporating yoga into your exercise regime is the relaxation benefits you will gain from this type of exercise. Yoga is a more spiritual type of exercise that focuses on controlling your breathing and helping you to become more in tune with your body. This can help you to feel more relaxed which will have a twofold effect on weight loss.

Stress can result in weight gain or difficulty losing weight for a number of reasons. First of all, many women tend to overeat or make poor nutritional choices when under the influence of stress. This means you are likely to consume more calories and to eat foods with less nutritional value if you are feeling stressed. Yoga can help by offering you the opportunity to feel more relaxed and that relaxation minimizes the desire to consume foods high in calories or fat.

The other negative effect stress can have on your weight is the introduction of elevated levels of the hormone cortisol in your body. Cortisol is released in stressful situations to help your body by providing additional energy to deal with the stress. However, when stress is chronic, the body is continuously being inundated with cortisol, and as a result, the excess energy is stored as fat because your body is not able to use it all. Practicing yoga or meditation to reduce your stress level can help your weight loss efforts by reducing the amount of cortisol in your system. When this level subsides, your body will not be storing as much energy as fat on a regular basis.

Weight Loss Expectations with Yoga

While there are a many benefits that may result from incorporating yoga into your exercise regime, it is important to have realistic expectations about the weight loss you can expect from practicing yoga. Most types of yoga are quite mild when compared with other types of exercise such as running, biking and swimming. As a result, these types of activities are likely to burn more calories than yoga, and those who participate in these activities may lose weight more quickly than those who rely on yoga as their primary form of exercise. While yoga does burn some calories and helps to tone muscles, weight loss from yoga is likely to be slower than weight loss from other more intense activities.

However, yoga participants can increase the amount of weight they can lose through yoga by combining their exercise regime with metabolism boosting supplements. Meltorin is one such product that can help you to increase your metabolism. More information about Meltorin can be found at: www.Meltorin.com.

Can Green Tea Help Hypothyroid Patients Lose Weight?

By the vTeam Kamau Austin Publisher

Increasing metabolism is one of the main goals of many who suffer from hypothyroidism. This is because a slow metabolism is one of the primary symptoms of an under active thyroid and one of the unfortunate side effects of a slow metabolism is a modest weight gain as well as difficulty in losing weight. This article will take a look at the basic formula for weight loss and will also discuss how herbs such as green tea can affect weight loss. While this article will provide basic information on simple weight loss strategies and the use of green tea in a diet program, it is important for you to consult your doctor before beginning any diet or exercise program or using herbal supplements in an effort to lose weight.

The Basic Weight Loss Formula

Despite the number of fad diets followed by many, the simplest and most effective weight loss formula is to burn off more calories than you consume. However, those who suffer from hypothyroidism typically require fewer calories for life sustaining functions such as digestion, breathing and blood circulation than those who are not afflicted with hypothyroidism. Therefore the number of calories those with hypothyroidism must limit themselves to is often much lower and can compound the problem by exacerbating the fatigue which typically accompanies hypothyroidism.

However, reducing the number of calories you ingest each day is not the only way you can lose weight. You can also increase the number of calories you burn each day by increasing your activity level or your basal metabolic rate. Increasing your activity level is simple. You can increase the duration or the intensity of your workouts. For example if you have been walking 1.5 miles per day you can either start walking 2.25 miles or start running 1.5 miles. Both changes should result in an increased calorie expenditure.

Increasing your basal metabolic rate is more difficult. Your basal metabolic rate is essentially the amount of calories your body requires at rest to sustain life. This includes the function of vital organs, such as the heart, lungs, brain and the rest of the nervous system, liver, kidneys, muscles and skin. The ways to increase this amount are not as obvious but there are possibilities. For example muscle cells require more calories than fat cells. Therefore, one way to increase your basal metabolic rate is to perform exercises designed to promote muscle growth. The more muscle your body includes the more calories you will require to sustain life. Additionally, there is some indication that herbal supplements such as green tea extracts can also help to increase your metabolism. The following section will discuss the use of green tea to increase metabolism in greater detail.

Using Green Tea to Increase Your Metabolism

There is quite a bit of speculation that green tea can have an influence on metabolism and weight loss and there have even been studies to back up this speculation. One particular study of interest reported by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition seems to substantiate claims that green tea extracts can increase metabolism and result in increased fat oxidation.

If you wish to incorporate green tea into your daily diet in an attempt to control your weight, you should first consult your doctor to discuss the ramifications of this type of herbal supplementation. Of particular concern should be the high fluoride content in many green teas. This is significant because fluoride can have an adverse effect on the function of the thyroid. The positive effects should be carefully weighed against the adverse effects in helping you to decide whether or not to begin including green tea in your regular diet.

If you plan to start using green tea, you should take a few precautions. First you should invest in a high quality green tea which is likely to provide the greatest benefit. One way to do this is to visit a health food store and seek recommendations for varieties of green tea which are rich in the green tea extract. Additionally, you should start out by introducing green tea gradually. You can do this by starting out with one cup of green tea per day and slowly increasing your intake until you are consuming a cup of green tea with each meal. At this point you can evaluate the effects and determine whether you wish to continue with the green tea regimen or whether your want to incorporate additional amounts of green tea into your diet.

Incorporating Other Herbal Supplements into Your Diet

Green tea is not the only herbal supplement which can help thyroid patients lose weight. If your thyroid is not functioning properly, you might consider the use of Thyvox to assist you in your weight loss efforts. For more information about the promising supplement Thyvox surf over to : www.Thyvox.com.

Staying Motivated to Exercise with Hypothyroidism

By the vTeam, Kamau Austin Publisher

It is no secret that losing weight with hypothyroidism can be difficult but many of the weight loss struggles which affect those with hypothyroidism are actually quite common to all people who attempt to lose weight. While overcoming a sluggish metabolism and finding an ideal calorie consumption versus expenditure equation can be complicated for hypothyroidism patients, the struggle to stay motivated to exercise is quite common for all who attempt to lose weight. This is especially true if the amount of weight loss required is extensive or if, as in the case of hypothyroidism, it take a great deal of time and effort to lose the weight. If you have hypothyroidism and struggle to stay motivated to exercise, it is important to realize you are not alone and this is a quite common problem. This article will provide several useful tips for staying motivated to continue to workout and reach your weight loss goals. You will find this information useful but as with any diet and exercise program, you should consult your doctor before beginning your program or taking any supplements to assist you in your weight loss endeavor.

Set Attainable Goals

If you are suffering from hypothyroidism you are probably already aware of how much weigh you have to lose and are also probably well aware that the weight will most likely not come off easily. You can help yourself to stay motivated by setting attainable goals for both the long term and the short term. Your long term goal may be to lose a particular amount of weight but if you have a long way to go, smaller goals will help you to stay motivated. For example you can set weekly weight loss goals of 0.5-1.5 pounds. This will help you to see you are making progress. You can also set goals such as working out a number of days each week or for a duration of time each session.

Workout with a Friend

Enlisting a friend to workout with you will help to make your daily exercise sessions seem more fun and less like a chore. Additionally, a commitment to another person will make it more difficult for you to skip a workout and sabotage your goals. When selecting a workout partner, you should seek out someone who needs to lose a similar amount of weight. If possible you should also seek out a partner who is also suffering from hypothyroidism. This will help to keep you from becoming frustrated because your partner will likely lose weight at a similar rate. If you were to workout with a friend who does not have hypothyroidism she will likely lose weight more quickly which can be frustrating and demoralizing.

Cross Train to Stay Motivated

Another way to stay motivated is to cross train. Running on a treadmill everyday is excellent cardiovascular exercise but it can also become quite repetitious and boring. If you workout five days per week you may want to run on three days and try other activities such as spin classes, step classes, biking or dancing on the other two days. This will not only help to keep your workouts exciting and your mind stimulated but will also help to keep your muscles challenged.

Exercise Outdoors

If you regularly do your cardiovascular exercise indoors you are likely to get bored. One way to combat the boredom is to take your exercise sessions outdoors. Try running around your neighborhood or even driving to nearby locations do enjoy a run in a new neighborhood. Even if you were to run the same course everyday you are likely to encounter new people and other subtle differences which make the workout seem unique and less monotonous.

Invest in an MP3 Player

If you do not already have an MP3 player or some other type of portable music device, you may find they can really help to keep you motivated to workout. Most MP3 players allow you to set up multiple playlists. You can create playlists for workouts, warm ups and cool downs and for different types of exercise. Changing the music regularly will help to keep you motivated to continue your workouts. Listening to upbeat music can even help you exercise more intensely.

Purchase a Few Different Exercise Videos

Following the same exercise video day after day can become very boring and can lead you to abandon your workouts completely. Additionally, repeating the same workout over and over again is not ideal for hypothyroidism patients because after awhile it will not have the same effect of increasing metabolism. However, if you purchase a number of different workout tapes you can vary your workouts to keep your mind and your body challenged and excited about your daily workouts. Popular types of exercise videos include step aerobics, kick boxing, weight lifting and all types of dance including belly dancing, hip hop and even exotic dancing.

Stay Motivated with Supplements

The use of supplements can also help you to stay motivated by compounding the results of your diet and exercise. Incorporating supplements such as Thyvox into your diet can be more effective than diet and exercise alone. Thyvox is helpful for women suffering from hypothyroidism and can have a positive effect on their weight loss efforts. If you want to learn more about Thyvox and how it can help you, visit the following web address: www.Thyvox.com.