When I first heard about a diet that reported to help you lose 12lbs in 7-21 days by eating from a plastic food container, I was a little dubious to say the least. But after further investigation and seeing the results that The Lunch Box Diet provides , you’ll start to understand why it works.
 The diet has been devised with ease of use in mind and without the need to count calories, prepare silly meals or have you wandering around the super market having to pick out ingredients you’d never use in everyday life. In fact, most of the foods you’ll be used to, except, well, it’s the way you eat them. You see the secret is the box.
Simon (the personal trainer who developed the diet) has devised a clever way of bringing the proven ‘grazing’ principle that’s used by the likes of Cameron Diaz to keep her stunning hollywood body. She knows that if you eat little and often your body will always be satisfied. As Simon is right to point out, we tend to rebel when we’re hungry and so many diets force you to restrict your calories too much.
The problem with grazing generally is that it’s not all that easy, especially for those who work in an office like me, but this ‘Lunch Box’ just makes it so much easier as I can pop it in the fridge and grab it when I need to.
Yo-yo dieting is a big problem and if you’re someone that’s suffered from this for a while you’ll know that you need to create a lifestyle change for yourself, the beauty of The Lunch Box Diet is that you can pick it up at put it down when you want but after just 7 days I did start to feel a real difference not just in my weight, but I felt less bloated and my energy, WOW! Simon’s box combos keep you full, but to the point where you’ve got the perfect amount of fuel for the day and when I go to the gym I add in the genius ‘active carbs’ – ie, you eat according to your activity levels.
After 21 days and strangely I’m not bored of this so called ‘diet’, in fact to be honest with you it doesn’t feel like a diet at all. I’m eating my normal breakfast and evening meal and then I’ve been making the delicious recipes from Simon’s bonus ebooks and been using his plan to keep me on track. However, the diet is versatile in that if you don’t like one ingredient, you can just replace it with something you do like. My skin feels a lot more smooth and I’m less irritated, and no more hunger pangs when dieting, yey.
My biggest problem was my sugar cravings, but again as Simon rightly says, my blood sugar levels have been balanced, so I’ve not been reaching for the normal crisps, chocolate or savory snacks that I would devour within minutes of stepping in from the office. In fact my work colleagues have kept on asking me what’s in my box and pretty much my entire team has been starting this exciting new healthy way to eat.
On the downside, I have been finishing my box a little earlier than expected, so I’m going to add a little more and see how my weight changes. I can safely say, this has been one of the best diet’s I’ve ever tried and the Elle Magazine review was right, they said ‘it’s become a way of life’. Not only that but my energy is up and I’ve been exercising more.
Head over to The Lunch Box Diet and try it for yourself…. 
Here is a healthy salad dressing from Mike Geary, author of “Truth About Abs.” As he explains, one of the worst things you can eat is “store bought” salad dressings. “Almost all store-bought salad dressings contain fairly large amounts of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Unless you’re in a health food store, it’s almost impossible to find a salad dressing that doesn’t contain large amounts of HFCS.”
Here is your yummy, healthy alternative from Mike Geary. Give it a try and you’ll never go back.
Geary’s Healthy-Fat Blend Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Fill your salad dressing container with these approximate ratios of liquids:
- 1/3rd of container filled with balsamic vinegar
- 1/3rd of container filled with apple cider vinegar
- fill the remaining 1/3rd of container with equal parts of extra virgin olive oil and “Udo’s Choice EFA Oil Blend“
- Add just a small touch (approx 1 or 2 teaspoons) of real maple syrup
- Add a little bit of onion powder, garlic powder, and black pepper and then shake the container to mix all ingredients well.
 This homemade salad dressing mixture is delicious and healthy, and I pretty much never get tired of it!
The reason I choose to blend the extra virgin olive oil half & half with the Udo’s Choice Oil is that they make up for what each lacks… Although extra virgin olive oil is healthy and contains important antioxidants, it is mostly monounsaturated, and is low in the essential fatty acids (EFAs). The Udo’s Choice Oil is higher in unrefined polyunsaturated oils with a good healthy balance of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids.
There are several variations of the Udo’s Choice Oil, and one of them (labeled DHA 3-6-9 Blend) even contains a DHA algae oil blended into the mix along with organic flax oil, coconut oil, evening primrose oil, rice bran oil, oat germ and bran oil, and a few others.
Overall, blending Udo’s Oil with extra virgin olive oil makes nearly a perfect oil blend for salad dressings with a great taste and maximum health benefits. If you can’t find Udo’s Choice Oil Blends (you can find Udo’s at almost any health food store), there are other EFA oil blends on the market…just make sure that they are COLD-processed to protect the EFAs. You should never heat an EFA oil blend!
Give this homemade super-healthy salad dressing a try! You’ll do your body a favor by avoiding the harmful additives in store-bought salad dressings.
 When nerves become compressed, you are said to have a “pinched” nerve that is causing your pain. Your spinal cord connects nerves running throughout your body to your brain. Compressed nerves cause numbness, tingling in the nerves, and sometimes a burning feeling. This causes the brain to not receive the messages from the nerves and thus pain is the result. Our pain is how our body tells us that something is not working and needs to be taken care of.
The more quickly your back pain is addressed, often the simpler the treatment to alleviate the pain. Two or more weeks of back pain requires immediate medical attention. The earlier the detection and evaluation, the simpler the treatment can be. Often it may involve nothing more than ice packs and possibly good rest. Herbs, vitamins, and other nutritional supplements can often help as well.
Some fairly effective treatments such as chiropractic services and massage therapy can be costly especially when they are not covered by insurance. Acupuncture is another effective strategy as the needles inserted into the correct areas of the body can stimulate energy points and therefore increase blood circulation to any or all areas of your body.
Exercise—we all hear how good it is for us but when you have back pain, which exercises are best? Generally one of the best is swimming as it is very low impact but stretches and works out a variety of your muscle groups. Another is walking (not running) as it is also very low impact. Before you begin any exercise regime, it is always best to check with a physician to be sure the exercise you choose is the best for your condition.
Because you spend so many hours a day sleeping, your mattress can make a huge difference in your back pain. Always use a “firm” mattress with good support. Soft mattresses allow bending of your body that causes strain on your back all while you are sleeping. Also, if you work in an office job, your desk and chair are important. You need a desk with the correct height and a chair that offers proper back support to avoid that pinched nerve and other back issues.
Surgical and pharmaceutical solutions are not always the best choice. My sister had back surgery that resulted in then having to have a hip replacement and now needs a knee replacement. One thing always seemed to lead to another issue. Pharmaceuticals are known to be sometimes addictive and simply mask the problem but cure nothing. I would personally always check out all the alternative solutions that I could find before submitting to surgery or drugs.
Although regular heavy lifting or a lot of bending over such as one does in gardening could be a cause of back pain, it is usually not the most common when it comes to pinched nerves. Rather when your body becomes out of alignment, muscle imbalance will occur causing the punched nerve. New therapies and methods that have proven to be very effective can be found at The Healthy Back Institute. You can even access a free ebook called “The 7 Day Back Pain Cure.”
Before you proceed with your online search, be certain you check out this revealing site on resolving a pinched nerve in back.
 Best Cure for Snoring You may be causing your partner to not get the sleep he or she needs to be effective the next day.
My husband snores but like many, it is not all the time. It becomes more frequent when the temperature in our bedroom is not adequate—too hot. It also increases if we have been socializing and he has more alcohol than usual. When his snoring lasts for too many days in a row, we begin to have communication difficulties. This is probably because one or both of us are too tired to react as we would otherwise.
Talking about it wasn’t productive and turning him over in the night, didn’t solve the problem anymore either. As these snoring episodes became more frequent, I began to seek some answers online. Some of the things I found were suggestions for snoring pillows, jaw supporters, nasal sprays, dietary changes from processed to more frozen and fresh foods, and exercise programs to reduce the weight that may be causing the snoring.
How do you decide which direction to go? Determining the reason for the snoring would be the first step. If it is caused by something as dangerous as “sleep apnea,” it is best to check with the physician who diagnosed that problem. If it is overweight, get to the gym. If it is intermittent as ours was, you can try some of the other options.
One of the most uncomfortable looking solutions was the chin strap although it would probably be the most effective if the problem is caused by a loose jaw. One if the best “jaw supporters” is found at My Snoring Solutions.
One of the most effective solutions we tried was the anti-snore pillow. $100 Dollars was a lot to shell out for this pillow at the beginning, but I can tell you that it really worked and was money well invested.
Another solution I found was a nasal spray which may be all you need. It is called SnoreZip. More information can be found at http://snorzipreviewed.com.
It’s essential to first recognize the problem of your partner so as to find a good cure.
 The only two oils I use in my kitchen for cooking are Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO according to Rachel Ray) and Coconut Oil (best recommended by Dr. Joseph Mercola the founder and director of Mercola.com.
As Dr. Mercola says, “EVOO is the best for things like salad dressing as it is the bewt monounsaturated fat. Olive oil, however, is not the best for cooking as its chemical structure makes olive oil predisposed to oxidative damage especially when used with high heat. That is why coconut oil is recommended for cooking.
Dr. Mercola also notes that polyunsaturated fats such as vegetable oils (mostly soy), corn, safflower and canola are unquestionably the worst to cook with.
Why does he believe this?
Vegetables oils including canola produce extremely toxic chemicals and form trans-fats, which we all know are not healthy. Even though oils contain antioxidants, frying with them destroys the antioxidants, oxidizing the oil, and causing worse things to happen in your body than even trans-fats cause.
Not sure about you, but I detest the idea of genetically modified foods and most soy, corn, and canola oils on the market are in fact genetically modified.
We read nearly every day that we ought to be supplementing with Omega 3. That is because we, in the US at least, consume far too much omega-6 fats and too little omega-3. The ration should be somewhere in the neighborhood of 1:1 as our ancestors had in their diet. Vegetable oils today are a huge contributor to the excess of omega-6 in our diets. Researchers agree that the excess of omega-3 we consume is a contributor to the many chronic degenerative diseases we’re faced with today.
The one oil that is stable enough to stand up to the heat in cooking is coconut oil. It is a wise decision to lose the rest except for olive oil when not cooking and replace them with strictly fresh and organic coconut oil.
 What is sleep apnea and how does it affect yours and your partner’s sleep. When a person has sleep apnea, he or she will stop breathing for a few short seconds up to almost a minute. Then the person is awakened suddenly to catch his breath. It is a condition more common in males but certainly occurs in females as well. When a person is interrupted during sleep, his partner is also affected as he gasps for breath, often sits up while gasping, and then continues his loud snoring making it difficult for the partner to get back to sleep.
While it takes the partner a while to get back to sleep, the person with sleep apnea is never totally awakened and may go right back to sleep. This certainly can cause a strain and tension in the relationship for both partners.
Sleep apnea is not only annoying, it is really dangerous. When a person loses oxygen for any amount of time, there is an increased risk of stroke, heart disease and heart attacks. Interrupted sleep can also cause sleepiness the following day, which can result in auto accidents or other types of accidents on the job.
Sleep apnea should be diagnosed by an ENT (ear, nose and throat) physician. The physician may then prescribe a CPAP machine. It is a mask that the person wears while sleeping. This machine forces air through the airway keeping it from closing and blocking the person from losing oxygen. It stands for continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).
There are a number of contributors to sleep apnea. One of them is being overweight so making a sincere attempt to drop a few pounds could really help alleviate the symptoms. It is not the only cause, however, as there are people with sleep apnea who have a good Body Mass Index. Other contributors are drinking alcohol, smoking, and even stress.
Sleep apnea is not a condition that will heal on its own. Seeking the advice of a physician will not only help your sleep interruption but may save your life.
 Look at the foods you eat and avoid too much of those that cause gas. These are things such as beans and high fiber veggies that contain difficult to digest sugars. You shouldn’t give them up completely as we need that fiber—just not too much at least until your body can adjust to them. It also helps to take digestive enzymes before high fiber means to help break down these sugars. Try to work up to at least 25 grams of fiber daily by eating foods like berries for snacks and bran cereal for breakfast. Fiber prevents constipation by adding bulk and causing food to keep moving through the intestines.
Drink lots and lots of water. It is said that one ounce for each pound of body weight is a good amount but probably this depends on a person’s actual body weight. Again it is probably enough to drink about 8 eight ounce glasses a day. We are 70 to 90 percent water and when we drink water it helps to flush waste and toxins out of our body. This is an easy point to follow but one many find difficult. Start slow and build up to the appropriate amount. You’ll find that you do really like water.
Exercise relieves bloating as it helps gas move thorough the digestive system more quickly. You may find in the beginning that if you take a brisk walk, you may want to go it alone as your body rids itself of the bloating gas. Exercise also helps up keep fit and actually eat less promoting better digestion.
Milk and other dairy products give many people gas. If this is true of you, be sure to limit your amounts and slowly increase the amount you allow yourself to have. If your bloating continues, try taking lactase enzymes before eating high fat dairy products such as ice cream and cheese. Another good option is non-dairy replacements such as almond milk, rice milk or ice cream, coconut milk, or lactose free products. The lactose free products may not help that much, however, if it is the milk fat that is giving you the issue.
Try to eat more slowly. Often those who eat too fast tend to swallow air when they are eating. Talking while eating and drinking lots of soda (shouldn’t have that anyway) also can cause bloating. Be sure to eat with your mouth shut and chew thoroughly before you swallow. You’ve heard that before, I’m sure. It also helps people lose weight without doing much else in the way of a diet.
Ever wonder why restaurants provide mints when you pay your bill? If you have eaten too much or too many of the wrong things at the restaurant, you may become bloated, have gas, and generally feel bad. That is not an incentive to return, right? Well, things like peppermint can help relieve that bloating as it relaxes your digestive tract. You can even take peppermint tablets although some people have been irritated by those. Just drink mint tea with your mean and that may also help. Better yet, just eat sensibly when you’re dining out.
Some prescription drugs, antidepressants, antihistamines, and other supplements like calcium can cause constipation and therefore bloating. As your doctor what meds you are taking may cause these types of side affects.
Look for a good detox and learn all you can about them. Reduce your sugar and other junk foods as well as alcohol, coffee, and nicotine when you are trying to detox. A good detox will also help with weight loss if that is something you need to consider.
Here is a recipe that I found to be terrific:
Tropical Mango Lime Ice Cream
 by Nedah Warstler of leanKitchen.com
2 C. coconut milk (the kind in the carton, not the kind in a can)
zest and juice of one lime
1/2 scoop Prograde orange
1/2 scoop Prograde vanilla
1 cheek of a ripe mango
Blend well in a blender, and add to ice cream maker. Enjoy when done!
Serving size- about 2 one cup servings
Nutritional Information
Calories: 397
Protein: 28.3 grams
Carbohydrates: 43.2 grams
Fats: 15 grams
Get your Prograde orange and vanilla here: ProGrade Best Protein
 If you suffer with any type of pain, then back pain relief can be a pain in the butt to achieve. There are a variety of opinions on how to get relief and then you have information overload and still an aching back.
An easy solution should be out there, but……
The three factors that may cause back pain are tight muscles, weak muscles and poor joint movement. Tight muscles create pain directly by causing irritation, weak muscles cause instability which allows other muscles to tighten, and poor joint movement allows both tight muscle and weak muscle situations to develop and cause the pain to occur.
It is not always easy nor simple but the solution to back pain relief is to remove each of these situations so you can achieve long lasting relief. If you do not address the causes, your pain will either continue or you may only get short-term relief.
There is a common fault in back pain relief information, it is common to be told that all your problems come from muscle tightness only. To be told that a few stretches or exercises is all you need is completely untrue.
You will see the results of this type of information, yes the back relief statistics are very poor. Unless you view your back pain as being more than one issue, you will fail to get lasting relief or even temporary relief.
The first question is knowing where to start, is it with relaxing muscle tension or exercising? Is it best to seek help to get your joints moving better or is this possible to do yourself? When you wish to relieve back pain these are just some of the many questions people have.
When you are overwhelmed with too much information, you may not even attempt to reduce your pain yourself. Unless you know how and where to start or even the simple steps to follow, then you are likely to never start.
Back pain relief should be an easy and simple formula where you target all the causes of your pain. With the muscular cause you need to stretch to help reduce muscle tension, but there are certain ways to stretch that will help reduce tension and build strength in the muscle at the same time.
You can also get joints moving well if you know techniques to achieve this, best of all these are painless. But joint techniques are only part of an overall approach at removing back pain.
Back pain relief can be an easy process that anyone can do at home. Do remember that you will only get temporary relief if you just address the symptoms and not the cause. Also remember there are three potential causes of your back pain.
Learn more about back pain relief. Stop by The Healthy Back Institute where you can find out all about how to relieve back pain and live without pain.
We have all heard that saturated fats are BAD for you and you should stay away from them. If you want to research for yourself, you may be surprised at what you find to be true about coconut oil, which is actually about 92% saturated fat! “Whew! you say. I can’t eat that.” All saturated fats are not created equal.
If you would like to save some time researching some basic fact, keep reading below:
- Coconut oil contains about 50% lauric acid, which helps in preventing various heart problems including high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure and does not lead to increase in LDL levels (the bad cholesterol).
- Your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties.
- We all know that a healthy weight helps our overall health and coconut oil contains short and medium-chain fatty acids that help in taking off excessive weight.
- Coconut oil contains medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. Most common vegetable or seed oils, however, are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs. Long-chain triglycerides or LCTs are difficult for your body to break down and are stored as fat. MCTs, however, are easily digested and immediately burned by your liver for energy and there is no insulin spike. MCTs also boost your metabolism.
- Coconut oil helps in improving the digestive system and thus prevents various stomach and digestion related problems including irritable bowel syndrome.
There is so much more to learn about great uses for coconut oil as it is good for the hair, skin, nails, and overall health especially compared to other types of oils. For more information, you can visit http://www.oasisadvancedwellness.com/products/premier-coconut-oil.html.
The desire for back pain relief is shared by people from every walk of life. The aching and soreness that afflict this region of the body often results in severe limitations on activity and a lessened quality of life for patients with sore backs. This is true without regard to the origins of the aches and pains, as the discomfort from a nerve affliction can be almost indistinguishable from that experienced as a result of a muscle strain. In every case, suffering needs to be relieved as quickly and as effectively as possible.
The drug store
For the simplest of pains, common drugs found in a pharmacy or supermarkets are often sufficient for managing the suffering. Anti-inflammation agents are useful for alleviating the tight muscles and ligaments that often contribute to this type of condition. When these muscles are relaxed, aches and pains are often more manageable.
Gels and soothing agents
Creams and other topical solutions can also be effective for providing temporary escape from suffering. Because there is evidence that both heat and cold can have dramatic effects on sore muscles and injured tendons, there are topical agents that can create either effect. These skin applications can usually generate positive results within a few moments of application, and can provide relief for anywhere from a few minutes to several hours.
Stretching
Since so many of these aches are caused by overly stressed or tight muscles, simple stretches can provide an important outlet for the tension. Whether the patient uses yoga techniques or other stretching exercise really doesn\’t matter. The important thing is that he or she loosens the ligaments and tendons in the area. Of course, this should never be overdone, since it is always possible to cause additional trauma to the area when stretching is carried too far.
Core strength
When backs are aching, it is often because abdominal muscles are weaker than they should be. The core muscles of these two areas work together to provide support to the upper body. When either is weak, the other can sometimes suffer under the additional tress of trying to carry the entire load. Simple exercises for the abdomen can help to decrease the pressure felt by the lumbar region.
Other treatments
When these simpler therapies fail to produce results, most physicians will recommend alternatives to conventional medicine. Some will recommend a chiropractor, while others might go so far as to suggest such things as acupuncture or other unconventional therapies. Though not officially recognized by the medical community, anecdotal evidence suggests that many unconventional methodologies can provide real benefits in some cases.
Using the mind
There is a growing body of evidence that suggests that many patients can control their aches and pains through various mental exercise designed to utilize the mind\’s power to affect the body. Many patients are able to effectively reduce their suffering by consciously focusing on other areas of their bodies. This form of psychological therapy is commonly used in conjunction with other treatment options.
The bottom line is that soreness in this bodily region should be taken seriously, so that patients do not see their overall quality of life diminished as a result of aching muscles. The key for most patients is to obtain some sort of remedy as early as possible, before the problem becomes even more debilitating. When these treatment options are utilized properly, almost anyone can obtain the back pain relief he deserves.
Get inside info on techniques for back pain relief that really work now in our guide to all you need to know about safe back relief .
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Digestion and Colon Cleansing Colon cleansing improves the digestion process as well as providing other health benefits such as weightloss and removal of harmful toxins in the bowels. Weightloss is also a big factor in sleeping better.
Here are a couple of links for more information:
My Personal Recommendation for a Natural Product--HERE
Colon Cleansing--A blog with information about colon cleansing.
Colon Cleansing
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