Lean-Body Secrets

Truth About Abs

In today's Lean-Body Secrets Ezine, I wanted to talk about a tasty super-food that's probably already in your cabinets, and you may not even realize it's powerful health-food status.

You would probably use more of this stuff if you knew that's it's not only a powerful antioxidant, but also helps improve your body's ability to control your blood sugar, and reduces heart disease risk!

So what is this common substance that may already be in your cabinets?

It's good old tasty cinnamon!

I've read numerous studies over the years about cinnamon and it's powerful antioxidant content. To add to the benefits, I just recently read a study that involved giving diabetic patients 1 gram (about 1/4 - 1/3 tsp) of cinnamon a day for 6 weeks.

In that time, the subjects significantly reduced their triglycerides and LDL bad cholesterol. Not only that, but they also reduced their average blood sugar levels displaying cinnamon's power in helping to improve your body's glycemic control.

And you know what that means... more steady blood sugar levels means it will be easier to lose body fat.

So don't be shy in using the cinnamon shaker in your daily meals/snacks. Keep in mind that this does NOT mean that cinnamon buns are healthy... they'll only lead you down the road to blubber-town.

Instead, here are some healthy options for including cinnamon in your diet...

1. Add cinnamon to cottage cheese with apple slices and stevia for sweetness

2. Add cinnamon to oatmeal with raisins or apple slices

3. Add cinnamon to your coffee or tea

4. Add cinnamon to protein smoothies. Try adding cinnamon to a vanilla protein smoothie...it's delicious.

5. Sprinkle cinnamon on your cold cereal or any hot cereals

6. Sprinkle on whole grain or sprouted grain toast with almond butter and raisins or fruit slices.

7. Add cinnamon and walnuts to vanilla yogurt for a unique flavor.

Alright, hope you enjoyed this quick little tip today on another super-food you can add to your arsenal. I plan to keep giving you ideas for more super-foods in the near future.

Feel free to forward this email to any friends, family, or coworkers that might enjoy these ideas.

Til next time,

Don't be lazy... be lean.

Mike Geary
Certified Nutrition Specialist
Certified Personal Trainer
Founder - Truth About Abs

Top 9 Tips to Combat Cravings

Does it seem like the smallest thing sends you spinning toward the fridge or pantry for comfort food? If so, circumvent the cycle with these 9 great tips:

By Dr. Nancy Tice
eDiets Contributor

Most people find themselves reaching for food at times when they clearly aren't hungry. Oftentimes we are not even aware of our emotions or stressors, or that we are eating in response to moods and emotions until we get in tune with our feelings.

Need a diet that'll let you eat filling, tasty foods while you lose weight? We offer 24 personalized plans, including the red-hot, carb-smart GI Diet. Visit eDiets to fill out a free diet profile.

Stress, blues, fears and guilt are a normal part of life. Chances are we can't fully rid ourselves of these unpleasant feelings, but we can learn to deal with them more effectively. Our objective reasoning can tell us that eating unhealthy foods isn't solving our stress or emotional problems. But, that line of thinking doesn't come in very handy when our brain is screaming, “Eat! Eat! I want to be calm!”

The study of food, appetite and neurotransmitters is still in its infancy as far as research goes. But many strong connections between what we eat and the effects of different foods on our mood have emerged. Serotonin, endorphins, and dopamine are three neurotransmitters in the brain that have a strong connection to the foods you eat, your cravings and your mood.

It's probably no coincidence that when you're stressed or sad you might turn to sweets, baked goods, desserts, and other sugary carbohydrates to help you out. Carbohydrate-rich foods increase brain concentrations of an amino acid called tryptophan, which is the building block for serotonin. In other words, eating carbohydrates can often lead to feelings of calmness, peace and satisfaction by enhancing the production of serotonin in the brain. Instant stress relief!

But eating sugary carbohydrates instead of complex carbohydrates can actually have a rebound effect. You might feel good immediately after eating them because they lead to an instant high and an energy boost. But, shortly after that your insulin levels and energy levels drop, which can actually cause a rebound depression (a "sugar low"). This can, in turn, stimulate more sugary carbohydrate cravings to get back to the initial sugar high.

It is a vicious cycle. And of course, eating does not really combat stress in a long-term or effective way. Chances are, if you overeat, you often feel more guilty than relaxed after the fact!

Things occur every day that can cause significant changes and shifts in the brain chemicals previously mentioned. Many of these moods, emotions and biological occurrences affect our cravings for foods. Remember, the brain seeks balance. It does not want to feel stressed, blue or guilty. It immediately looks for pleasure and balance from the things that you have trained it to seek when negative emotions and stressors surface.

Oftentimes we are not even aware of our what our emotions or stressors are telling us until we make a concentrated effort to listen to our feelings instead of stuffing them.

Just as you trained your brain that eating certain foods can lead to greater feelings of calm and relaxation (albeit temporarily), you can train it to seek other sources of pleasure that also increase these mood-enhancing neurotransmitters. Unlike overeating, these alternative sources of pleasure will lead to a healthier lifestyle as well.

Generally speaking, anything that brings you personal pleasure, inspiration, or a sense of well-being without harming your health is the thing you should act on when food cravings and the drive to overeat set in. Examples of such activities include:

1. Exercise.
Yet another reason to do a workout: activity increases endorphin levels and relieves stress. You'll feel inspired and good about yourself, and you'll naturally decrease your food cravings.

2. Get a massage.
It may help relieve anxiety, depression and sleep problems.

3. Read biographies of people who inspire you.
Learn from their positive influence and behavior.

4. Use guided imagery.
Close your eyes and let yourself be whisked away to your favorite place for 10 to 15 minutes. It might be the mountains or the beach. Imagine everything you're seeing, hearing, smelling and feeling.

5. Listen to relaxing music.
Studies have shown this can decrease the production of a substance called cortisol. Cortisol can lead to carbohydrate cravings. Music can also increase relaxation, relieve stress, and provide more clarity and vigor.

6. Take a bath with aromatherapy.
Oils of citronella, eucalyptus, sage, lavender and chamomile added to a bath can relax you.

7. Laugh.
See a comedy show or engage in activities that bring humor to your life. Seek ways to have more positive emotions in your life. Finding the positive always overrides the negative.

8. Get a pet and love it.
Studies show that pets add a sense of unconditional love to our lives and can reduce blood pressure and stress.

9. Find a passion.
Maybe it's photography, art, ceramics or football. Find something that inspires you and commit to get out there and do it.

Dr. Nancy Tice is a psychiatrist with extensive experience furnishing medical information and writing articles for online services. She did her medical training at The Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. She moderates her own support group called "Rx for Success," writes articles for the eDiets newsletters, holds online meetings and answers questions in our Expert Interaction section.

20 Ways to Save Money

The Miser's Diet
By Susan Burke MS, RD, LD/N, CDE
eDiets Contributor

Some people complain that "dieting" is expensive. It can be costly if, for instance, you're going low-carb and think that you need to dine on beef and lobster. Since most of us have to watch our expenses, shopping with a budget in mind is smart. Here are 20 easy tips to pinch pennies while you're losing weight.

Dine In: Fast food is cheap, but you get what you pay for -- lots of fat and sodium, and little fresh nutrition. Invest your time in simple, home-prepared foods, and reap the rewards.

Recipe Plan: eDiets Recipe Plan is economical, but easy. You get to eat whole, fresh foods, which are cheaper, and more nutritious.

Convenience: If you are starved for time, the Combination Plan saves you time and money. Substitute any convenience items on sale for those listed in your plan. For example, if your plan says Lean Cuisine chicken, but Amy's is on sale, as long as the calories per serving are approximately equal, go for the sale item.

Bring your lunch: Allison Rains, eDiets manager of nutrition support, says that she does this every day. If you spend about $5/day, within a year you can save more than $1,250.

Need a diet that'll let you eat filling, tasty foods while you lose weight? We offer 24 personalized plans, including the red-hot, carb-smart GI Diet. Visit eDiets to fill out a free diet profile.

Buy larger sizes of some recipe items -- ones you'll use and that have a decent shelf-life. For example, don't buy a warehouse-sized bag of onions (too perishable), unless you really like onions -- or unless you're going to cook them in advance. Do buy large-sized packages of lean meat, fish or poultry: Wrap single-sized portions well and they'll last in your freezer for between one and three months.

Unit pricing: Determine what size is the most economical by reading the little tag posted below the shelved food item and compare the unit price. Sometimes the largest size isn't the cheapest.

Convenience meals: Do it your way. Double or triple your recipes and freeze the extra portions.

Snack Packs: Pam Ofstein, eDiets director of nutrition services, says she saves money by pre-packaging snack items into individual small baggies. Raisins and cubed cheese are two of her kid's favorites.

Substitute: Substitute within food groups and shop economically. For example, if apples are on sale and your meal plan calls for oranges -- substitute!

The Cut and the Cook: Instead of expensive loin cuts of beef and pork, opt for a bit tougher but leaner flank steak, and prepare in a slow-cooker with some carrots, celery, onions, and a can of low-sodium, low fat broth. Save time and money, but enjoy a rich-tasting stew.

Eggs: Christine Miller, eDiets diabetes expert, reminds us that eggs are an inexpensive but nutritionally complete source of protein. Hard-boiled eggs are perfectly portable snacks.

Stock up: My grocer's circulars are my ‘bible' for meal planning. Stock up on lean protein, frozen vegetables and any cereal that's on sale, as long as it's low sugar and low fat (less than 5% of the Daily Value).

Beverages: Nicole Bengtson, registered dietitian for eDiets, uses a Brita pitcher to filter drinking water, instead of buying bottled water.

Clip coupons: For items that you use, not just because they're on sale: Look for daily favorites, like cereal, dairy, eggs, canned beans, pasta and rice.

Seasonal local fruits and vegetables are the least expensive…with the best nutrition. Avoid items shipped in from out of the country…they'll be more costly (unless the store runs a sale).

Frozen fruit: When fruit is on sale (like strawberries right now) I rinse, trim and pat dry (get all the water droplets off) a couple of quarts of tasty berries (do this with any variety) and freeze in heavy plastic freezer bags.

Condiments: Cook with less expensive canola oil and save the extra virgin olive oil to drizzle on your salad. Instead of more costly balsamic vinegar, make a super vinaigrette with wine vinegar: Whisk with dried herbs, a little canola oil and fresh lime or orange juice.

Brand disloyalty: Instead of reaching for the more expensive brand-name, buy your grocer's brand: it's less expensive and generally equal quality to the brand names.

Soda: Discontinue all sweetened drinks, including soda, teas and fruit drinks -- save lots of money, and also saves your teeth and waistline, too.

Prepare: Nutritionist Julia Cruz loves to cook, but like most, she's time-challenged. She says she buys sale-priced chicken, beef and pork in bulk and before freezing into single-serve sizes, trims all fat so that when she's ready to cook, it's a breeze. As she says,"time is money".

eDiets has great ways for you to eat healthy, lose weight and take control of your life. With our 24/7 online support, we're there whenever you need us for inspiration and support. To get started, visit eDiets and fill out a free diet profile

How to Stop Snacking

From Jillian Michaels

If you find that you're inexplicably drawn to the kitchen cupboards, or that fumbling around the fridge is your favorite after-hours activity, it's probably a result of boredom, not genuine hunger.

Here are a few ways to help get your mind (and your stomach) back on track:

• Take up a hobby. Keeping your mind and your hands busy with something you enjoy will reduce your temptation to eat because of boredom.
• Read a good book. If you find a real page-turner, you won't want to put it down just to get up and graze.
• Take a bath. Get a little aromatherapy going and sink into a steamy bath. Focus on relaxing, and don't even think about running to the kitchen before getting into bed.
• Have sex. Hey, why not? That's what I call a good distraction!

Don't Skip Meals
You might think you're saving yourself calories, but you'll always wind up hungry, so that you'll probably consume extra calories later on just to feel full. Furthermore, skipping meals can screw up your metabolism by putting it into survival mode and causing it to store energy as fat. We don't want that, so be smart about what and when you eat.

Jillian Michaels

75 to 100 calories sweet treats

Satisfying Your Sweet Tooth


Eating the South Beach Diet way means enjoying delicious foods -- even sweets! Feel free to enjoy 75 to 100 calories of approved Sweet Treats (made with sugar substitutes such as aspartame, saccharin, or Splenda) daily. Here are some foods that Dr. Agatston recommends for satisfying your sweet tooth:

• Sugar-free gelatin
• No-sugar-added Fudgsicles
• Sugar-free hard candies
• Sugar-free Popsicles
• Sugarless chewing gum
• Chocolate powder, no added sugar
• Sugar-free, caffeine-free carbonated sodas
• Sugar-free, caffeine-free drink mixes (like Crystal Lite)

One word of caution: Some sugar-free foods contain sugar alcohols, which provide sweetness and texture. These additives (look in the ingredient list for words ending in "ol," such as mannitol and sorbitol) can often have a laxative effect. Some people are more sensitive to this than others, so take note of your reaction to foods that contain sugar alcohols. The limit on Sweet Treats should help reduce any side effects.