3 New Year's Wellness Resolutions for 2012

Unless you believe that the world will end in 2012 because that's when the Mayan calendar ends, it might be a good idea to set some wellness goals for the New Year.

The goals might be the same ones you set for last year and the year before, and that's fine. I may have even written about these same goals in last year's blog. But they're all worth repeating because they can dramatically help with:

• weight loss
• energy
• pain-relief
• sexual performance (This could be linked with energy, but it's such a marketable bullet-point, it's hard to resist including it.)

All the benefits you'll receive from implementing these goals daily are inter-connected. A stronger immune system will give you better energy. Following the goals may result in better digestion and nutrient absorption, which in turn strengthens immunity, which leads to more energy. 

Get the picture? 

Already follow these principles? Please pass this info on. With 2 out of every 3 U.S. adults either overweight or obese, we all need to play our part in making our country healthier. 

Stop the preaching already. Get to the Goals!

1. Eat More

That's right...more, not less. It sounds counter-intuitive with 66 percent of us significantly overweight to recommend eating more. But most people don't eat enough, especially in the morning to properly fuel for the day. 

Many still skip breakfast; those that don't tend to eat unbalanced breakfasts that are loaded with carbs (read: sugar) like toast or muffins or waffles with orange juice. An unbalanced or skipped breakfast will throw you off for the rest of the day. The only way to attain steady energy for the rest of the day after an improper breakfast is eating a balanced lunch and a nap. But for those that don't have time for a nap, eating a balanced breakfast with enough calories is critical to having good, streamlined energy. 

Remember, food should neither make you hyper, nor make you crash. Eat 3-6 meals a day (Obviously, the more meals, the fewer calories per meal should be eaten), and you'll enjoy rock-steady all-day, all-night energy; no naps needed. 

2. Exercise less....

Am I on the Mayan prophecy bandwagon? Do I believe the end is near, so why bother exercising? No, but I do think the key to effective weight loss and all-day steady energy is to exercise as often as you eat: at least 3 times a day, in shorter bursts than traditional workouts. 

Good for you if you have to sit all day at work but manage to squeeze in a trip to the gym. But even if you workout for an hour at the gym, sitting for several hours at a time will result in poor blood circulation and tight muscles. 

If you're sedentary most of the day, try to do short bursts (as little as a few minutes is highly effective) of exercises that combine strength with flexibility, such as doing a push-up into downward dog. Try to perform at least one set every couple hours. 

3. Eat enough Omega 3 fatty acids and less Omega 6 fatty acids

Omega 3 fatty acids have received lots of praise from the mainstream media and nutritionists over the last decade, and for good reasons that aren't over-hyped. Indigenous cultures may not have known an Omega 3 fatty acid from a spear, but they did intuitively know what foods were rich with them. 

A very healthy dietary fat, Omega-3's may prevent Alzheimer's. They may also help lower blood pressure and triglycerides, which are processed by the liver and stored as potential energy in the form of body fat. 

(Eating too much of anything will result in the body storing triglycerides. This includes protein, which is erroneously presumed to not cause body fat storage by Atkins Diet followers.)

So frequently eat a natural source of Omega 3s (at least a few times a week), such as salmon or walnuts. Don't get fooled into eating cereals or chewing gum with fortified Omega 3's. There's actually no gum with Omega 3s but you get the picture. There's no substitute for cold oily fish and walnuts. Flax and Chia seeds and sardines are also excellent sources. A recent study's results on Omega 3 supplements showed that the pills did not improve Alzheimer's. This is a major bummer but shows that there's nothing like the real thing. If you have inflamed and achy joints, ditch all sugars from your diet and eat more whole food sources of Omega 3s. 

Just as ancient civilizations boiled animal bones into soups despite not ever hearing of the word 'calcium', old-world cultures instinctively knew which Omega 3-rich natural foods stimulated health. As advanced technologically as we are, most of us have only realized these benefits for at most 10 years. 

If you want to improve your body composition, increase energy and stay healthy, following these 3 tips could result in your breakthrough year, in which you take control of your health and prevent highly preventable trips to the doctor and paying for medications. 

Good luck and have a happy, healthy 2012.

Weight loss for diabetics

It's important for diabetics to keep their blood sugar levels even as they attempt to lose weight....

November is American Diabetes Month, and with about 8.3 percent of Americans having diabetes—and another 80 million at risk of becoming diabetic—it’s crucial for all of us, not just nutritionists and celebrity fitness trainers, to pass on some of these tips on weight loss for diabetics.

 

The overwhelming majority of diabetics have type-2 diabetes, sometimes referred to as, “The Lifestyle Disease.”

 

Poor nutrition choices and lack of exercise are almost always the culprits of diabetes. “Nutrition illiteracy,” which can be defined as lacking the knowledge that certain foods are unhealthy, as well as access to affordable healthy options, can both be factors in becoming diabetic.

 

There are currently no cures or immunity to diabetes, but it is possible to control it.

 

If you have type-2 diabetes, safe and effective weight-loss strategies include:

 

• Eating at least 3-5 smaller, balanced meals
• Drinking enough water
• Avoiding eating products with white flour and refined carbohydrates
• Including lots of fiber in the diet
• Exercising daily

 

What is a balanced meal? 
For those who are nutritionally literate, it might be obvious what constitutes a balanced meal. But for many diabetics who have gone through much of their life raised on sugary cereals, hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza, fries, Coke and other junk food, it might not be so obvious what constitutes a balanced meal.

 

Every meal you eat should be at regularly-spaced intervals. Try to go no more than three to four hours without eating. Have breakfast at 8 a.m., lunch at noon, an afternoon snack at 4 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m. Try sticking to the same eating schedule every day as this will help regulate blood sugar levels.

 

Carbohydrates, proteins and fats are the three macronutrients and all three should be eaten at every meal to maintain steady blood sugar levels.

 

The majority of carbohydrates you eat should come from vegetables (both cooked and raw). Earlier in the day, at breakfast and lunch, you can have a moderate amount of low-starch carbohydrate such as wild rice, oat bran, oatmeal and quinoa, a grainy, high-protein alternative to other blood-sugar spiking carbohydrates like white rice and pasta.

 

Try to limit your portion sizes of carbohydrates to a fist or fist and a half. Your protein choice should also be limited to about the size of your fist. Good protein choices to choose from at every meal include:

 

• Lean meat and poultry
• Fish
• Eggs
• Soybeans (don’t opt for soy meat substitutes)
• Protein powder (perfect for late-morning smoothies)

 

Dietary fats are the third component of balanced meals. Fats get a bad rap in the media. Eating fat won’t necessarily make you fat. Eating more calories than you burn and consuming too much sugar without burning them by exercising will make you fat. Natural fats help slow down blood sugar and regulate insulin, the hormone that controls blood sugar. Some nutritionists think that eating full-fat ice cream is actually better for you than fat-free because the fat prevents blood sugar spikes. The problem, of course, with eating any ice cream variety is portion control.

 

Examples of natural fat include:

 

• Olive oil
• Egg yolks
• Avocados
• Nuts and seeds
• Flaxseed oil

 

The amount of natural fat at every meal should generally be low, as in a tablespoon of olive oil on a salad or an eighth of an avocado and a handful of sunflower seeds and one egg yolk.

 

If you need to snack, it’s best to eat something that contains all 3 macronutrients, such as an apple with celery and a wee bit of peanut butter.

 

In addition to eating at least three small balanced meals throughout the day, here are some other tips for diabetics who need to lose weight:

 

• Drink at least eight, 8-oz. glasses of water per day
• Have most of your calories come from vegetables
• Melt a tablespoon of butter over your veggies and sprinkle some sea salt to make them more appetizing.
• If you eat at least 21 meals a week (three a day), allow yourself two very small ‘cheat’ snacks per week. Try to make them healthy ones like one small square of dark chocolate.
• Try to walk after every meal for at least 10 minutes. This will help regulate blood sugar.

Best Foods for Weight Loss

Website editors love articles with catchy titles such as “Top 3 Foods that Will Flatten Your Abs in 3 Weeks.”

The truth is, though, that with any one-size-fits-all approach to diet, there will be some winners and some losers because everybody has a unique biochemistry.

Even the universally well-regarded orange, high in vitamin C, could be, for one person, one of the best foods for weight loss, but for someone else, eating lots of oranges could push them out of whack.

Certainly though, there must be some foods that benefit everybody, regardless of individual biochemistry? We’re glad you asked. Here’s a partial list of some of the best foods for weight loss:

Green-Leafy Vegetables

Spinach and other leafy greens help you lose weight because they are very low in calories but very nutrient dense. Most people think that in order to lose weight, you’d have to eat a plain bowl of spinach with no dressing and other healthy, boring veggies.

But if you eat two or three salads a day and add to the healthy greens a little amount of natural protein and fat (for example: a fist-sized portion of lean turkey with a tablespoon or two of olive oil), you’ll feel full for longer and won’t be tempted to binge two hours later.

Apples

Eating just two medium-sized apples contains about 10 grams of fiber—about a third of your daily suggested intake.

Fiber, of course, helps things moving along in the digestive tract. Pectin, the soluble fiber in apples (also found in plums and oranges), aids in elimination, perfect for those who experience constipation.

Nearly an entire apple is comprised solely of water—85 percent. Apples will make you feel full longer. Make sure, however, not to eat just an apple for a snack.

Apply the leafy green salad approach. To feel full longer and avoid eating more calories, you’ll want to combine protein and fat, say a small serving size of cheese. This will help balance your blood sugar levels. If you want to lose weight, make sure to have no more than the equivalent size of four playing dices.

Flaxseed Oil

Containing the highest amount of Omega 3 essential fatty acids of any vegetable oil, flaxseed oil is a fat that can actually help you burn fat. It also helps metabolize carbohydrates and regulate insulin levels.

Make sure though that you refrigerate flaxseed oil shortly after you buy it. Containing very little saturated fat, it can quickly turn rancid. Even refrigerated, it’s best to consume a bottle within three weeks. Don’t cook with flaxseed oil. If you do, it won’t be one of the best foods for weight loss; it could be one of the worst foods for you as it will quickly oxidize and cause free radical damage.

Try pouring a squirt in a blender along with other healthy smoothie ingredients like whey protein powder. Speaking of which….

Whey Protein Powder

Milk is comprised of two proteins: casein and whey. Whey is more soluble, and thus more easily digestible. Whey protein is considered the “gold standard” of protein, as it ranks highest on the biological value scale (a measure of how absorbable a protein is), even slightly higher than an egg.

So how does this make whey one of the best foods for weight loss? Leucine, an essential amino acid only found in certain foods like whey protein can promote more lean muscle, which can lead to more fat and calorie burning.

Adding a handful of berries and a dab of flax oil to a whey protein powder shake will help manage weight by helping you feel full longer. Whey can be more effective than regular cow’s milk in promoting satiety because milk is higher in sugar than whey protein powder.

Water

The most critical and abundant component of our bodies—up to 70 percent of a human being is comprised of water—can help us lose weight.

Drinking two glasses of water before each meal can help you feel fuller quicker. You’ll end up eating less calories, perhaps shaving off more than 100 calories each meal, which is 300 calories per day and 2100 calories per week and 8400 calories per month.

There are 3500 calories in a pound. That’s over two pounds you could lose per month just by drinking water before each meal. Try drinking 10-20 minutes before a meal so you don’t dilute your digestive juices.

For other foods that promote weight loss, email nutrition consultant and weight-loss coach Judd Handler of WellnessGuru4u.com. He offers complimentary wellness consultations via Skype. 

Trying to Lose Weight? How Many Pounds per Week is Safe?

Trying to lose weight? If you're not, you probably know somebody who is.


Even if you're not in the wellness and fitness industry, you can help someone who is trying to lose weight. 


Do you know somebody who drinks soda on a regular basis? (I'm talking about non-diet soda; of course diet soda is terrible for health but that's a whole other story).


Explain to someone who drinks soda and is struggling with their weight that a typical can of soda has 150 calories. One soda per day per week equals 1050 calories (150x7). There are 3500 calories in a pound. So if your soda-drinking comrade drinks just one soda every day, that's 4200 calories in a month. 


You can see how easy it is for somebody with poor eating habits to pack on 20, 30, 50+ pounds in just a few years.


The 700 excess calories from the daily soda consumption leads to over a pound of weight gained in one month, assuming that is the actual caloric difference, i.e. calories in versus calories out.


In other words, someone with poor eating habits who doesn't exercise is most likely to gain way more than 700 calories above breaking even for the day. 


You may be surprised to know that even the most sedentary couch potato may burn 1500-2000 calories a day just by being alive. This is called the Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and measures how many calories somebody burns to support cell function. That's right: Even if you sit on the couch for literally 24 hours a day you will burn up to 2000 calories. 


People who are lean, athletic and have optimum thyroid levels can burn 2500-3000 calories per day without lifting a finger. 


So even if the most inactive person can burn up to 2000 calories a day, it's surprising that two-thirds of American adults are overweight.


But people are eating way more than they need to and not burning enough calories. It's as simple as that. 


So if you're overweight, don't despair. It's not simple to lose weight. But if you try the following, you may be surprised. But first, let's ask a question.


How much weight is is safe and effective to lose per week?

Actually, before answering that question, it's important to stuff your scale in the closet. Limit yourself to at most weighing yourself once a week. The number on the scale is not telling you how much bodyfat you're losing--it's only telling you the combined weight of your bones, skin, lean muscle mass and adipose tissue (fat).

The most self-defeating thing anybody who's trying to lose weight can do is weigh themselves on a daily basis. Within a week, somebody who is constantly weighing themselves will feel down on themselves if the scale doesn't show a lower number.

If it does show a lower number, perhaps the person is dieting and just losing water weight or worse, muscle mass (true, muscle mass is partially water).

And if the number on the scale is higher because the person is hopefully on a strength-training program, since muscle weighs more than fat, the person might experience some initial weight gain.

In my humble opinion, the best way for someone to lose weight is to eat a minimum of two green salads a day, like a spinach salad. The best thing to do is make it a nutrient-dense salad, placing some nuts (like sunflower seeds; or walnuts for heart-healthy Omega 3 Fatty Acids), a few extra veggies like shredded carrots, celery, tomato and just a pinch of dried fruit or fresh berries. Add a whole egg once a day in one of the salads for extra protein and amino acids.

A medium-size portion of light fish like Mahi-Mahi or chicken breast along with the lunch and dinner salad to feel full is good. It would be no good if you felt hungry an hour or two later and then gorged on some dessert. Speaking of which, dessert is allowed every day only if it's a tiny portion, like one small cube of dark chocolate--no more than that!

For breakfast, a small portion of grains is ok for energy throughout the day, preferably in the form of sprouted breads like Ezekial or Manna bread. Conventional cereal will only bloat your gut and make you feel like you just put on 5 pounds. Instead, opt for brown rice or quinoa cereals, which are available at health food stores.

Breakfast should be the only time of day you have a significant amount of grains. Say goodbye to frequent servings of pasta and rice for lunch and dinner. You can reward yourself every other week with a pasta dinner.

You'll soon start to feel slimmer from all the fiber you're digesting and the lack of bloating from excess grains. Consuming pasteurized milk products, even if it's organic, can cause bloating in some people (look for a future article on that soon). You can eat one link or strip of healthy bacon or sausage (meaning minimally processed with no nitrate/nitrites) even if you're trying to lose weight.

Do not deny yourself your favorite foods. But do limit your intake of grains!

Add some moderate exercise to this healthy way of eating and you'll soon start to lose bodyfat. Notice I didn't just say weight, but specifically bodyfat. You don't want to lose muscle.

Oh, almost forgot to answer the question: so how much weight is safe and effective (meaning, you're likely to keep it off) to lose per week?

I would say one to two pounds per week is safe. That's eight pounds per month and 96 pounds per year.

Some more wellness math you can coach your friends on....

Eating Smart at the Workplace

Just because you work in a corporate setting for 8-12 hours a day, doesn’t mean you have to lose the battle of the bulge.

Ideally, your schedule allows you to squeeze in at least 30 minutes a day of moderate intensity exercise like fast walking. (It doesn’t have to be 30 consecutive minutes; it can be broken up.)

Even if your schedule doesn’t allow much time for exercise, it is in fact possible to lose weight without sweating. How? Nutrition is the key.

Drink Water Every Morning!

The first thing you should do every morning is to drink pure water, one or two cups. Try to make this a habit. What this does is give your body a chance to purify and rehydrate itself.

We wake up after sleeping for several hours so we are naturally dehydrated. If you drink a cup of coffee first thing in the morning, you are dehydrating yourself even more.

By drinking water first thing in the morning, we are allowing our bodies to naturally cleanse itself. It will be the only time of day when we have that ability. Popping even healthy supplements first thing in the morning forces the liver to work and process the supplements and doesn’t allow for a natural purification.

It’s best to eat something a half-hour to a full hour after you’ve had some water.

If your hectic schedule doesn’t allow you to prepare breakfast, there are several quick fixes for breakfast.

Eat breakfast everyday; follow the 10 by 10 rule

Hopefully you understand the value of eating breakfast everyday. From a weight-loss perspective, it will help stoke your metabolism. If you skip breakfast, your metabolism will actually get slower. Not a good thing if you’re trying to keep off the pounds.

I have a rule for breakfast: 10 by 10 … or 10 grams of high-quality protein by 10 a.m. Follow this rule and your metabolism will get off to a rocket-burning start. At my local health food store, they sell packaged soft-boiled eggs, perfect for on the go people like myself.

Eating two eggs (including the yolk, where the essential amino acids and other healthy nutrients are contained) satisfies my demand for protein and natural fat.

Every meal should include the three macro-nutrients: protein, natural fats, and carbohydrates. So all I need now to complete my healthy, balanced breakfast is a carbohydrate. Eating half a green apple gives me all the carbohydrates I need to feel properly fueled for at least the next few hours.

Eat at least three balanced meals per day and natural snacks

To get the most out of your workday, you’ll want to have rock-steady energy throughout the day. The best way to achieve that is to eat at least three balanced meals per day, all of which include the three macro-nutrients discussed above.

I keep my energy steady by sometimes eating a late-morning or mid-afternoon snack to keep my blood sugar levels balanced, which is key to sustaining good energy and mental clarity.

Food is supposed to make you neither hyper nor sleepy. If you are eating a balanced meal, you will feel perfect, steady energy.

So what types of snacks can you eat? In general, a good rule of thumb to follow whether it’s a snack or a part of a meal is to ask yourself, “Was this food around 10,000 years ago?”

If the answer is “no” then it’s probably not a good snack.

Don’t let advertising fool you. There is no such thing as a healthy potato chip, even baked ones, or crackers (with the exception of rice crackers in moderation).

For snacks, you’ll want to follow the same rule as eating your major meals by combing all three macro-nutrients.

So a perfect snack could be:

· a handful of walnuts (which combines healthy natural fat and protein) with half a pear (carbs);

· cottage cheese (protein and fat) with a handful of strawberries (carbs);

· two slices of organic turkey (protein and fat) with a handful of blueberries (carbs);

· celery sticks (carbs) with almond or organic peanut butter (fat and protein);

· rice crackers (carbs) with sliced avocado (natural fat) and/or string cheese (protein and fat)

Eating carrots might seem like a healthy and smart snack, but carrots are relatively high on the glycemic index, which is a measure of how quickly your blood sugar levels rise after you’ve eaten something.

So to prevent a potential blood sugar spike, instead of eating just carrots alone, combine the carrots (a carbohydrate) with some string cheese (fat and protein) or a high-protein dip like Tahini.

Another rule of thumb to follow, which is a challenge for many corporate workers, is: Don’t go more than five hours without eating! I personally try not to go more than four hours in between meals to keep my metabolism active.

We are still wired like prehistoric cave dwellers. Our bodies are highly efficient at preserving fat. Even if we are used to eating every day, more than once a day, if we wait several hours to eat, our bodies physiological instinct to slow our metabolism down to preserve fat will kick in.

Don’t wait until you feel hunger to eat! By then, your blood sugar levels are way down and even if you eat a properly balanced meal, there’s a good chance you might feel a crash after you eat.

Try to go food shopping every Sunday to make sure you have plenty of snacks for the work week.

Select all natural snacks that will keep you properly filled throughout the day.

Minimize the amount of grains, wheat, and flour that you are currently eating. Even if something says “multi-grain” or 100% whole wheat, you will lose the battle of the bulge if you eat foods high in these types of carbohydrates, which are easily converted to simple sugars.

At health food stores, there are plenty of flour-free breads. Opt for sprouted breads, as these have living enzymes that aid in digestion.

If you follow these guidelines, you won’t need to drink as much coffee. I like to drink one cup of strong coffee in the morning to fire up my brain synapses. But I do so only after I’ve eaten breakfast.

Aside from a good cup of coffee in the morning, try to drink only water throughout the day. I guarantee that if you implement these tips into your life on a daily basis, you will feel better energetically and mentally, and you’ll look even better naked!

How to Eat Healthier When Dining Out

Eating out is generally less healthy than preparing foods at home, that is unless you're living off of Top Ramen noodles and cans of Spaghetti- O's.

Typically, restaurants use cheap vegetable cooking oils, like Canola, which when exposed to high heat, chemically denatures and can actually raise bad cholesterol levels (LDLs), but that's for a whole other topic. This is generally the biggest reason why it's unhealthy to eat out.

Another main reason is you don't know the source of the foods you're eating. Are the meats from a local source and humanely-raised and grass-fed or is it derived from mass-produced agri-business slaughterhouses that pump hormones, steroids, and antibiotics into what you're eating?

It's not a pleasant thought but it's one worth thinking about.

On an energetic level, to make sure you're eating the right foods for your Metabolic Type, there are simple ways to get good energy from food when eating out.

Most restaurants and cafes will allow you to custom order off of the menu. If you know that you do better eating higher amounts of protein and natural fat, for example, you wouldn't want to order spaghetti at an Italian restaurant even if it comes with chicken. Instead, ask the waiter if the cook can just prepare you a plate with grilled chicken and vegetables. A side salad with that would most likely leave you feeling satisfied.

If you must eat some spaghetti, just have a portion about the size of your fist.

And before the waiter is able to place on your table a bread basket before the main entrée comes out, don't give in to temptation. Instead, politely refuse the bread, which is most likely white bread that will end up bloating your gut anyway.

Pay attention to the macronutrient proportions (carbs, fats, protein) and determine what ratios you do best on. Life's too short to count calories. Eating should be a blessed experience every time, but do so knowing that you have your macronutrient ratios dialed in to achieve optimum energy after every meal.

It's never much fun to feel like you're in a coma after you eat. I personally do well on a dinner plate that's about 40% protein; 30% natural fat and the other 30% coming from mostly veggies. This isn't percentage of calories; just proportion of the whole meal.

Perhaps you'll do better on 30% protein, 20% fat and 50% carbs.... start paying attention to how you feel until you discover the best ratio for you. Then start custom ordering your meals accordingly.

The waiter and the cook might think you're a pain in the butt, but who cares? It's your wellness that's at stake.

Top 5 Ways to Get Leaner for Summer

Now that winter appears to be over, most people are thinking about summer vacation plans. And of course, summer means less clothing and and showing more skin.

So how to shed those last stubborn 10-15 pounds in time for peak beach season?

These 5 ways will help.

1. Stop eating the wrong foods!

- How do you know what the wrong foods are? When it comes to nutrition, there is no black or white. One food, say, red meat for example, may help one person get leaner, while it may actually lead to weight gain in someone else. An online questionnaire called Metabolic Typing can help you figure out which foods your body prefers to use for fuel. For those who do the advanced questionnaire, you'll get a 300-item food list telling you which foods to eat regularly and which ones to avoid. If you're interested in doing the test, contact me for some important details.

2. Exercise 3 Times Per Day!

-If you really want to boost your metabolism, you obviously need to exercise. Even if you workout for an hour every morning, try to add a brief workout at lunch and then again in the evening. Ten minutes is sufficient if you pick exercises that challenge the whole body and gets your heart rate up.

3. Green Tea

- Consuming green tea is an easy way to boost your metabolism throughout the day. It's a good alternative for coffee drinkers as its caffeine spike isn't as dramatic as coffee's; its released more slowly. If you're not a fan of drinking green tea, there are plenty of supplements that have green tea extract.

4. Eat Fat To Help Break Down Fat

-Flax seed is a healthy natural fat with many health benefits, including aiding in the metabolizing of fats. Try to buy a flax seed or oil with high lignan content. Add it to smoothies or salads or yogurt.

5. Mix it up

-If your exercise routine involves lots of walking or jogging, you need to challenge your muscles more by picking a different exercise. Far more effective than walking or running on a flat surface is hiking or doing brief sprints (with a good warmup) on an incline. You'll burn way more calories, get in better shape, and boost your metabolism.

*****Extra Tip: Make sure your hormones are balanced. A simple adrenal function lab test (which I offer) can tell you if your hormones are balanced. If not, your metabolism will definitely be negatively impacted. Highly functioning metabolism goes hand in hand with balanced hormones.

Stick to these principles and you'll likely see those last stubborn pounds melt off in time for summer.

How to Get Leaner Without Working Out

Let's face it, some people just hate working out. The concept of breaking a sweat and wasting time at the gym when they could be drinking beer intimidates the "Gymophobe."

But beer-bellied boys who are planning on getting married in the near future can take solace in the fact that it's very possible to lose weight and get slimmer without touching a single weight, with the exception, of course, of 12-ounce curls.

Most people think that the key to getting a Fabio-like washboard stomach is doing hundreds of ab crunches. That couldn't be further from the truth. Truth is if you want to get leaner around your waistline, it's all about nutrition and eating smarter.

And before you get a preconceived notion that eating smarter equates to eating nothing but raw veggies and tofu, consider that many of the foods that you enjoy can still be eaten.

With the rare exception of someone who does best on a high-carbohydrate diet, most people primarily thrive on a lean-protein rich diet with healthy fats.

If a life-long weightlifter stopped strength training for the rest of their life, it's possible through nutrition alone that the weightlifter could preserve nearly all muscle gain through proper diet.

This means avoiding anything made with flour like the plague. No bread, pasta, cookies and other baked goods. If you go out to eat at an Italian restaurant, stop the waiter from placing on your table the white bread. Order instead a lean protein like chicken breast with vegetables. Skip the spaghetti entirely if you are in a race against the wedding clock.

A good grain to eat instead of pasta is Quinoa (Kee-Nwa), a high-protein grain from South America. Most health foods sell it.

Another foodstuff to avoid is snack foods that many people erroneously still regard as a health food, such as pretzels and baked potato chips.

Pretzels have flour. Flour will expand in your intestines and bloat your gut. Baked potato chips, while they might be healthier than fried chips, are still nonetheless empty calories that will go straight to your lovehandles.

The human body was designed to digest and process proteins, natural fats, fruits, vegetables and ancient grains.

If you stick to a diet of lean proteins (chicken, turkey, tuna, salmon), natural fats (avocado, olive oil, flax oil, fish oils, butter) and carbohydrates mostly in the form of vegetables and some fruit, you will begin to get leaner.

Avoid snacking on empty calories like pretzels and chips. Instead, eat some chicken or some all-natural or organic cheese and nuts. Don't worry about eating nuts and avocado. Many people avoid nuts and avocado because they are high in fat.

But natural fats are essential for organ function and protect against diseases and contain many antioxidants. It would be wise to limit all dietary fat intake but don't be duped into thinking that all fats are bad. Certain fats like Flax Oil actually help the body metabolize fat.

The way to a flatter belly is to stick to this type of nutritional protocol. If you crave something sweet, chances are you are eating the wrong foods. Stick with three meals with a balance of a handful portion-sized lean protein (all natural chicken sausage for breakfast), carbohydrates primarily in the form of vegetables (preferably fresh and lightly cooked) and natural fat (1/4 of an avocado).

If you are hungry in between meals, have a handful of nuts. Try to avoid dried fruit as this is usually very high in sugar.

A simple rule of thumb to follow when it comes to nutrition: if the food you're considering eating wasn't around 10,000 years ago, don't eat it.

Stick to this protocol and you'll be looking leaner in no time.