Someone recently sent me an email asking “what is the carb to protein ratio in most of the medifast meals and also in the “lean and green meal” that you are supposed to eat each day?” I didn’t know the answer to this question off of the top of my head. So I set out to research it. What I found was that I was pretty much going to have to figure this out myself if I wanted a very precise answer. The company’s literature encourages a favorable ratio and the foods appear to be very specifically designed to be low in carbohydrates and high in protein. But, for those who want more specific measurements than this, I’m going to look at some of the more popular medifast meals to really determine the protein to carb ratio on these items.

The Shakes: Probably the most popular meal on this diet is the shakes. There are many different varieties of them. Some are meant to curb your appetite or to bump up your metabolism. Others are designed for diabetics or for women who are approaching menopause. Some are meant to boost heart or joint health. But, for the purposes of this article, I’m going to be focusing on the 55 shakes, since I believe these are the most popular. The Dutch chocolate flavor contains 13 grams of carbohydrates and 11 grams of protein. The ratio here is 1.18.

The Bars: There are two main types of medifast bars: the maintenance or the crunch. You are only supposed to have one of the maintenance bars each day because they are higher in carbohydrates and sugars. So, I’m going to use the crunch bars because they aren’t limited. The chocolate crunch flavor is actually the same as the 55 shakes with 13 carbs and 11 protein grams. Again, the ratio is 1.18.

The Brownies: The medifast brownies are a relatively new addition to the menu. They are extremely popular and can be served warm. These are a bit higher in carbs at 15 grams. But they also have 11 of protein. So the ratio here rises a little at 1.36. By the way, the oatmeal (apple cinnamon flavor) comes in with the exact same numbers.

The Pudding: This is a bit higher in terms of carbs, but this is also true of the proteins, so it evens out. For the banana flavor, the carbs weigh in at 15 while there are 14 grams of protein. This puts the ratio at 1.07 or about 1.1 like the bars and the shakes.

The Soups: There are many varieties of soups, but I like the chili a lot so that’s what I’m going to look at here. This has the exact same numbers as the pudding, which is 15:14, and ultimately equaling out at around 1.07.

Now, this isn’t an exhaustive list of all of the medifast foods, but it does include many of the more popular meals. And, your lean and green meal composition is probably going to slightly vary, but I suspect that there’s a reason that give you such specific lists about the recommended ounces of lean protein that you should include and how to chose low glycemic vegetables.

So, while some of the foods varied slightly, I hope this article may have shown you that most of the foods limit the carbs at around 15 while having at least 11 proteins. I’m certainly no math or diet expert, but it seems to me that the goal was to keep the ratio as close to even as is possible. And, if you’ve been checking out the nutritional labels of those grocery store diet foods, I think you’ll find that very few of them completely succeed at this in the way that these examples used here have.

If you have uterine fibroids which are causing you problems, you will no doubt be exploring all your options and eating a fibroid diet is something you may have considered. Like many women, you have probably discovered the stark fact that even if you have a surgical procedure to remove your fibroids, they are likely to regrow as the root causes are still there. Some women consider hormonal treatment, but this is really only suitable for short term use as it effectively will put you through a temporary menopause and this can cause problems in itself such as osteoporosis, skin drying and thinning, wrinkles, vaginal dryness and a dwindling sex drive.

Eating a fibroid diet will not in itself cure your fibroids. However, it is an integral component of an overall system for shrinking your fibroids and is undoubtedly a good plan for your overall well-being. To be successful, you must apply a system which eliminates each and every possible cause of fibroids, effectively making your body a “fibroid-free” environment-in other words the conditions within your body will not support fibroids.

In general, fibroids sufferers should pay great attention to what they eat and even without knowing the specifics of a fibroids diet, sticking to the principles of eating a good healthy diet will almost certainly help. We all know the advice which is given about eating a diet low in animal fats, rich in complex carbohydrates, drinking plenty of fluids and eating a minimum of 5 portions of fresh fruits and vegetables.

10 Key Elements Of A Uterine Fibroid Diet

1. Choose organic foods where possible

2. Avoid foods which could be contaminated with environmental pollutants

3. Pay attention to portion size. Do not overload your digestive system-moderation is the key

4. Eat lean meats and cut off any visible fat. Do not eat meat from animals given hormone growth

5. Avoid dairy foods

6. Ensure that around three quarters of your food is eaten raw where appropriate

7. Avoid over-refined and over-processed foods

8. Limit your intake of grains and beans

9. Eat plenty of non-starchy vegetables. Only eat fruits if you do not have the symptoms of Candida

10. Your diet should be mainly alkaline-forming

Following these uterine fibroid diet principles will certainly help. However, you may wish to further explore your options to ensure that you are also looking at other aspects of your lifestyle and well-being which will also impact on fibroid growth. The best way to do this is to look at a tailor-made system which will finally guarantee you relief from your fibroids.

The symptoms of multiple sclerosis include changes in sensation, vision loss, and weakness. Your diet, including water affects your health. This article looks at what impact an alkaline diet can have on the symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis.

How do you know if you are acidic? You can test your urine or saliva or do an Acidity Self Test. Your diet may be causing your body to become very acidic. Our imbalanced modern diet fosters acidity. Pathogens such as harmful bacteria and viruses thrive in an acidic internal environment which can increase your symptoms and level of dis-ease. Switching to an alkaline diet can increase your energy levels and improve your overall health. This can enable you to better manage your symptoms. Here are 3 ways to improve your management of multiple sclerosis symptoms.

First, start drinking ionised, alkaline water. This is a simple yet powerful way to nourish your body back into balance. This is achieved by using quality water filters. This provides your body with what it needs without toxins. There are different types of filters available ranging from simple bench top filters to under the sink premium filters. Things to look for are filters made to your countries standards, ease of installation, lifespan of filter, and heavy double filters.

Second, switch to an alkaline diet. Nutrition is an important factor in health. The pH Miracle book by Dr Robert O. Young recommends a balanced pH 80/20 alkaline/acid diet with many raw, green vegetables. There are many other valuable resources available on how to make your body more alkaline. One of the best is a 80/20 Alkaline/ Acid Food Chart. This is an excellent guide to keep in the kitchen. You don’t have to spend time and money reading hundreds of books or searching the web for information. You can immediately start to heal your body by becoming more alkaline.

Third, stop putting toxins into your body through household and personal care products. Switch to household and personal care products that contain only natural products. For example to clean your floors at home switch from using bleach to white vinegar. For personal care products, switch from deodorants containing aluminium to an aluminium free tea-tree deodorant.

The symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis are unpleasant at the least, unbearable at worst. The pH of the food and water you intake affects your health. Implementing an alkaline diet including alkaline water can improve your overall health and make the symptoms of multiple sclerosis manageable.

Disclaimer

The information in this article is not intended to diagnose or treat any health condition but is intended to help individuals make informed decisions about natural health. This information does not substitute for treatment or advice that may have been prescribed by a physician. If you have a medical condition, you are advised to seek assistance from a trained medical professional. Products mentioned in this article have not been evaluated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

On your quest to get an hourglass figure, you may find that in spite of your hard work, you’re not getting the results you want. Annoying, isn’t it? Have you considered the effect your body type may be having on your progress? If not, you should. Your body type and shape can affect whether or not you’re getting the most out of your body transformation journey. And if you’re a mesomorph, correcting your habits may lead to drastic improvement in results.

Mesomorph women are well proportioned all over. Equipped with strong bones, broad hips and shoulders and thick thighs, mesomorph body types store fat evenly throughout their bodies. Mesomorph body types may already be blessed with curves, but some need a little help to get an hourglass figure.

As a mesomorph, your body is beautiful, thick and muscular. You’re blessed to have a well-defined upper body, and if you’re really lucky, a tight midsection. Athletic in appearance, you body responds best to weight training.

For fast, effective weight loss and strength training, you should try powerful HIIT (high intensity interval training) exercises such as kettlebells, or at-home fitness programs like INSANITY or P90X. Strength-building programs like these transform your metabolism into a fat incinerator and build lean, toned muscle that makes you look strong yet feminine.

If you’re not blessed with a juicy butt, you’ll have to do exercises specifically tailored to help you build up your gluteal muscles. Hip thrusts and butt bridges using moderate to heavy weight loads that increase regularly are the two best exercises for helping you build a bigger butt. Also, consider buying bodybuilder Pauline Nordin’s bestselling Butt Bible Workout, which contains strength and bodybuilding exercises for women like you who want a tight, round butt.

Now as you know, for best results, every strong fitness program needs to be supported by an exceptional eating plan. As a mesomorph, you burn fat faster than your endomorph sisters, but burn fat slower than your ectomorph ones. Eating whatever you want is not part of your nutritional regimen.

Eat moderately and regularly, maxing your protein intake at no more than 30 to 40 percent of your caloric intake. Protein is important for helping you build muscles. A rule of thumb is to break down your diet as follows: 40 percent protein, 40 percent carbs and 20 percent fat. Stick to your diet 80 percent of the time, allowing no more than 20 percent deviance to indulge every once in a while.

Last but not least, if your mesomorph midsection is flat, but your waist is not as small as you’d want it to be, consider corset training. Waist training with a corset made to help you reduce inches in your love handles. As a result you can get a smaller waist – and get an hourglass figure that makes everyone stop and stare.

I find it very funny when a person thinks that they can’t get results from a Bodylastics workout. I’ve seen and read a few comments from people, such as… “Oh Those Resistance Bands Won’t Get Me Any Muscle Building Results, Only Free Weights or a Home Gym Will.”

These type of statements are false and misleading. It seems that these individuals have been brainwashed or are acting just like robots. They will only do what they’re told and won’t try anything new. All the hype on the Internet and on TV saying, “This home gym will give you amazing results in as little as 3 days.”

People here this and they say well, it must be true they’re saying it. They pitch it as though their product is the only way to achieve bodybuilding results. It’s a dirty shame.

The truth is, no matter how you exercise, you will get results. There are certain things that you must do though, in order to make sure that you get the proper results you want from your workouts. To achieve proper muscle growth, you must follow these key principles.

Key Elements to a Bodylastics Workout Or Any Muscle Building Program

Proper Rest:

Your muscles don’t grow while you’re working out you’re actually tearing muscle fiber. Muscle grows while you are asleep; the body releases “growth hormone”, which aids in the growth of muscle. This is why it is extremely important to get at least eight hours of sleep every night especially if you’re following an intense workout program.

Progressive Resistance:

All that this means is that each time you workout, you add a little more weight than last time. This is one of the main issues with exercises such as push-ups; backspace. In this type of body weight workout, you’re only using your own body’s weight as resistance. Consequently, the more push-ups you perform the less you are impacting the strength building and muscle building properties of your body.

High repetition bodyweight exercises are great for building muscular endurance however; they do nothing to increase muscular size or greater strength.

Proper Nutrition:

In addition to getting adequate rest, you must feed your body in order for it to grow. I love it when I see on TV, you can still diet and become muscular and lean at the same time. It’s an oxymoron.

So that’s what I was originally talking about, “Can a Bodylastics Workout Get You Results.”

It seems so silly to me that this is even discussed. The answer is, of course you can. How big you get is based on how much you workout, how many calories you consume and if you get proper rest.

You can grow muscle with resistance bands workouts just as well as free weights, Bowflex or any other home gym. In fact, there are some exercises that are done better with resistance bands; however, we will discuss that at a later date.

If you are currently using free weights, dumbbells or even the P90X workout you may want to incorporate some of the tips that you have read about in this article into your exercise routine. If you are using resistance bands, then take the ideas presented in this Bodylastics workout article and you’ll quickly see the difference in muscle size, strength and lean muscle mass.

Well, I will not keep you in suspense. The message has to do with sugar.

You may be thinking that everyone knows sugar's bad. And that does seem to be true. But not everyone stays away from it. And that's a problem, or at least a problem waiting to happen.

Not Connecting the Dots

When I was training to be a life coach, one of the instructor coaches was between 40 and 50 pounds overweight. One day she said, "I'm addicted to sugar, but I'm okay with it."

This woman clearly did not connect her addiction to sugar with either her weight or any of the health problems she had. That's what I'd call not connecting the dots.

Cravings that Never Go Away

I receive newsletters with articles on sugar cravings that "never seem to go away." The various authors present themselves as nutrition experts. As a solution, they typically recommend products – that you can buy! – that taste just like chocolate and take away the sugar cravings.

Almost, whatever these experts do with their daily food plans is not keeping food desires from returning.

Fact: Sugar cravings absolutely DO go away over time – potentially permanently – so it's a red flag for me if a nutrition 'expert' does not know how to make that happen for him / herself or for clients.

Falling for Sneaky, Sexy Sugars

The list of these is fairly long: agave nectar, coconut sugar, maple syrup, fruit (yes, fruit), fruit juice, honey, monk fruit extracts, date paste, and more.

It would be no surprise to discover that someone who uses these sneaky sugars is addicted to them or has desires that never seems to go away completely. After all, they're sugar.

Which Brings Us to Paleo Menus

I'm on lots of lists and often receive menus for Paleo desserts and treats that use some of the above sneaky sugars. They're delicious, we're told.

My wisdom on this is simple: "Delicious" is suspicious.

And sugar is sugar. That's definitely not what anyone wants to hear, but it's true.

Fruits and Vegetables

What can I say? I wish people would stop dumping these two together. It makes them seem equally healthy, and they're not.

Fructose, the sugar in fruit, is a particularly harmful sugar. In fact, it's what makes sucrose (half fructose, half glucose) the junk we know it to be. In the science lit, all researchers seem to know this. If only the rest of us were willing to accept that!

A couple of servings of fruit a day is probably okay for most people. A serving is c cup or 1 medium fruit.

Yet some fruits may trigger an addictive reaction in some people. Self-awareness and self-honesty are key survival tools, and far better than going along with any mainstream push toward trend sugars.

I've Had to Change My Message

Several months ago, when joining a women's networking group, I made the mistake of introducing myself as a sugar addiction expert in my 30-second pitch. It led to nothing but fear. People are afraid to deal with sugar addiction, very likely because they know what happens when they go without sugar for any length of time.

But I'll end with this important message because it really matters more than ever:

• Sugar is at the heart of the obsesity epidemic. Not fat, not supersizes.
• Sugar increases appetite.
• Sugar leads to the consumption of extra fat. Many high-sugar foods contain fat. Fat also makes sugar tastes sweeter, so foods with both sugar and fat encourage overeating, and the calories can add up quickly.
• Sugar can increase blood pressure. More than salt.
• Sugar can increase serum cholesterol. More than fats.
• Sugar can raise triglycerides. More than fats.
• Sugar can lead to type 2 diabetes. Yes, it can.
• Sugar can contribute to mood swings, anxiety, depression and other mood issues.
• Sugar can interfere with optimal brain focus and work productivity.

I keep that it can be easy to quit sugar if you know how – and to get rid of cravings long-term.

Diet plans come and go, but it really says something when a plan has staying power – that means it’s working for people. The Carb Rotation Diet plan, created by Jason Hunter, falls into this category. Being a registered dietitian, Jason has the nutritional credentials to give dieters the kind of plan that works fast and effectively.

First off, he has divided the plan into two parts: one for men and one for women.

The female version is called: The Dramatic Dress Size Reduction Diet

The male version is called: Get Rid of My Gut Diet

This makes sense, because men and women tend to gain and hold weight in different parts of their body. Women mainly want to lose unwanted fat in their hips, thighs and waist, while men want to get rid of that belly fat that can blow up to huge proportions.

Because he’s educated in nutrition, Jason spends some time in his book, teaching you about staying fit and healthy for the long term. I really think this is important information that constantly needs to be repeated, since, most people experience the disappointment of losing weight, then gaining it all back. It doesn’t have to be that way if you learn how your body really works with food.

The Carb Rotation Diet involves going on a weekly meal plan that uses calorie cycling to achieve a desired weight loss. Every three days, you’ll be shifting the amount of carbs, fats and proteins that you eat. Some days you’ll be eating low carb meals, some days you’ll be eating high carb meals, and other days you’ll be eating meals with no carbs in them whatsoever.

Because there’s a whole bunch of foods you can eat that fall under each cycle, you won’t be starving for foods that fill you up. In fact, Jason believes that starving yourself to lose weight is a losing method. The body responds to starvation by holding onto calories – exactly the opposite effect you’re trying to achieve.

You should avoid any diet that has you eating like a rabbit for several days in a row (cabbage soup diet for example), because you’re going to burn out on it real fast, then you have a high possibility of returning to all your favorite fatty foods to make up for feeling hungry.

This diet is for people who can faithfully follow a detailed eating plan for 30 days, and who are ready to take their eating choices and nutritional health seriously. Calorie cycling is a proven weight loss method that works, and you can easily learn to do this at home.