5 Frequently Overlooked Foods that are Slimming

Here are five slimming foods that are often overlooked but can be beneficial for weight loss:

1. Greek Yogurt: Greek yogurt is a nutrient-dense food that is rich in protein and low in calories. It helps keep you feeling full and satisfied, reducing the chances of overeating. Choose plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt and add fresh fruits or a drizzle of honey for flavor.

2. Chia Seeds: Despite their small size, chia seeds are packed with fiber, healthy fats, and antioxidants. When consumed, they absorb liquid and expand, creating a feeling of fullness and promoting healthy digestion. Sprinkle chia seeds over yogurt, add them to smoothies, or use them as a topping for salads.

3. Green Tea: Green tea is a calorie-free beverage that contains compounds like catechins, which are known for their metabolism-boosting properties. It can increase fat oxidation and help in weight management. Substitute sugary drinks with green tea for a refreshing and slimming alternative.

4. Seaweed: Seaweed is a low-calorie food that is rich in essential minerals, vitamins, and fiber. It is also a good source of iodine, which is crucial for maintaining a healthy thyroid function. Incorporate seaweed into your diet through salads, sushi, or as a snack option.

5. Spices: Certain spices can help boost metabolism and aid in weight loss. For example, cayenne pepper contains capsaicin, which can increase calorie expenditure and reduce appetite. Cinnamon may help regulate blood sugar levels, reducing cravings for sugary foods. Incorporate these spices into your meals and enjoy their potential slimming effects.

Remember, while these foods can support weight loss efforts, it's important to consume them as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle. It's always a good idea to consult with a healthcare professional or a registered dietitian for personalized advice and guidance.

12 Steps for Becoming Healthier

Here are 12 steps to help you become healthier, including exercise and a healthy diet:

1. Set Goals: Define specific and achievable health goals. Whether it's losing weight, improving fitness, or adopting healthier habits, having clear objectives will help you stay motivated and focused.

2. Balanced Diet: Focus on consuming a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Avoid or limit processed foods, sugary snacks, and drinks high in added sugars.

3. Portion Control: Practice portion control to ensure you're not overeating. Use smaller plates and bowls, and be mindful of serving sizes to avoid consuming excess calories.

4. Hydration: Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Staying hydrated is crucial for overall health, digestion, energy levels, and maintaining proper bodily functions.

5. Regular Exercise: Incorporate regular exercise into your routine. Aim for a combination of cardiovascular exercises (e.g., running, swimming) and strength training (e.g., weightlifting, resistance training, or sports that emphasize strength like archery) to improve cardiovascular health, build strength, and burn calories.

6. Physical Activity: Find ways to be physically active throughout the day. Take walks, use stairs instead of elevators, or engage in active hobbies like gardening or dancing. This helps increase daily calorie expenditure and promotes overall health.

7. Sleep Well: Get adequate sleep each night. Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep to support your overall well-being, improve cognitive function, and aid in weight management.

8. Stress Management: Find healthy ways to manage stress, such as practicing meditation, deep breathing exercises, yoga, or engaging in hobbies that you enjoy (eg. Archery). Chronic stress can negatively impact your physical and mental health.

9. Regular Health Check-ups: Schedule regular check-ups with your healthcare provider to monitor your overall health, identify any potential issues early on, and receive guidance on maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

10. Limit Sedentary Behavior: Minimize sedentary activities like sitting for long periods. Take frequent breaks to stretch, walk, or perform light exercises throughout the day.

11. Mindful Eating: Practice mindful eating by paying attention to your body's hunger and fullness cues. Eat slowly, savor your food, and avoid distractions like screens or multitasking.

12. Seek Support: Surround yourself with a supportive network of family, friends, or a community with similar health goals. They can provide encouragement, accountability, and share experiences and tips for leading a healthier lifestyle.

Remember, making lasting changes takes time and consistency. Start small, gradually incorporate these steps into your daily life, and celebrate your progress along the way. If you have any underlying health concerns, consult with a healthcare professional for personalized advice.

10 Exercise Tricks for Losing Weight

Here are ten exercise tricks that can be helpful for losing weight:

1. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT): Incorporate HIIT workouts into your routine. These involve short bursts of intense exercise followed by brief recovery periods. HIIT helps burn calories and boosts your metabolism.

2. Compound Exercises: Focus on compound exercises that engage multiple muscle groups simultaneously, such as squats, lunges, push-ups, and burpees. These exercises maximize calorie burn and promote overall strength.

3. Strength Training: Include strength training exercises in your routine. Building lean muscle mass increases your resting metabolism, helping you burn more calories throughout the day.

4. Cardiovascular Exercises: Incorporate cardio exercises like running, cycling, swimming, or brisk walking into your routine. They elevate your heart rate, improve endurance, and aid in weight loss.

5. Circuit Training: Perform a series of exercises with little or no rest in between. This keeps your heart rate elevated, burns calories, and enhances both strength and cardiovascular fitness.

6. Active Rest Periods: During strength training sessions, use active rest periods instead of complete rest. For example, perform jumping jacks or jog in place. It helps maintain your heart rate and calorie burn.

7. Incorporate Plyometrics: Include plyometric exercises like box jumps, squat jumps, and burpees. These explosive movements engage multiple muscle groups, increase calorie expenditure, and improve overall fitness.

8. Stair Climbing: Use stairs whenever possible instead of elevators or escalators. Climbing stairs is an excellent cardiovascular exercise that tones your lower body and burns calories.

9. Increase Non-Exercise Activity: Increase your overall daily activity level by incorporating more movement into your day. Take the stairs, walk or bike for short trips, stand instead of sitting whenever feasible, and find opportunities to be active throughout the day.

10. Active Hobbies: Engage in activities that you enjoy and that require movement, such as dancing, hiking, swimming, or playing a sport. These activities are both fun and effective for weight loss.

Hot Tip: Do several of the above activities so you don't get bored doing the same thing all the time. Especially if you want to lose weight faster, you might want to divide up your day so you might be doing 15 to 30 minutes of cardio in the morning, 15 to 30 minutes of HIIT in the afternoon, and 15 to 30 minutes of strength training in the evening.

Remember, while exercise is essential for weight loss, it should be combined with a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle for optimal results. Consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new exercise program, particularly if you have any underlying health conditions.

How do Cold Showers Burn Calories?

Cold showers don't directly burn calories, obviously, but there is an indirect causal effect that leads to the burning of calories.

If you read the old blog post Cold Showers Burn Calories we go into the reasons why a little bit, but it is past time that we explain in more detail.

When exposed to cold temperatures, the body triggers thermogenesis, a process in which it generates heat to maintain its core temperature. This thermogenesis can be achieved through two main mechanisms:

Shivering

When the body experiences cold, shivering is one way it generates heat. Shivering involves rapid muscle contractions that generate heat as a byproduct. While shivering may slightly increase calorie expenditure, the overall impact on weight loss is minimal.

Brown fat activation

Cold exposure may activate a type of fat tissue called brown adipose tissue (BAT) or brown fat. Unlike white fat, which stores energy, brown fat is specialized in generating heat through a process called thermogenesis. The activation of brown fat is associated with increased energy expenditure, as it burns calories to produce heat. However, the amount of brown fat in adults is relatively small compared to other tissues, and its overall contribution to calorie burning is not yet fully understood.

The amount of fat/calories that gets burned per shower isn't a lot, although it does vary upon the size of the person, and the cumulative effect of daily cold showers over the course of a year is actually significant.

How many calories are burned?

Honestly, it varies upon the person, how cold the water is, and what methods people use to try and calculate the amount of calories burned.

Here's a conservative estimate of how many calories are burned:

The additional calories burned during a 10-minute cold shower for a 100 kg person would range approximately from 20 to 30 calories. So roughly 25 calories.

It isn't a lot, but if the person had daily showers over the course of a year then they would burn roughly 2 to 3 extra pounds of fat per year.

Over a 10 year period that could be a difference of 20 to 30 lbs.

But remember that is a conservative estimate for a person who weighs 100 kg (220 lbs).

There's also an argument that a thin person would actually burn more calories in a cold shower than an overweight person, because they have less body fat to insulate themselves from the cold. So the number of calories being burned could be inversely connected the percentage of body fat a person has.

Thus someone who weighs perhaps 50 kg (110 lbs) with only 12.5% body fat might actually be burning two or more times the amount of fat by having cold showers than someone who weighs 100 kg (and has perhaps 25% body fat or more) because they are more easily made colder due to a comparative lack of insulation. Thus people who are already thin could potentially prevent themselves from gaining weight by having cold showers regularly.

But it also means that someone who is losing weight would encounter a case of "increasing caloric burn" as they continue to shed body fat, thus seeing a gradual acceleration of weight loss over the long term.

Conclusions?

Cold Showers + Healthy Diet + Exercise = Pretty much guaranteed to lose a lot of weight quickly, and over the long term see the health benefits. The real trick in that situation is to stay motivated. Not everyone wants to have cold showers ever day, eat healthy all the time, and exercise daily.

So what you really need is cheat days:

That 1 day of the week where you allow yourself (as a treat) to have a hot shower.

A high carbs day where you're allowed to eat as much as you want.

A day of relaxation when you can just chill and don't have to exercise.

Having cheat days, combined with tracking your weight/counting calories, are just two ways to stay motivated and keep going.

5 Ways to Practice Archery after you get Archery Lessons

Let's pretend for a moment that you've already got archery lessons in Toronto. Once you've already been trained by an archery instructor / coach, what are some good ways to practice by yourself?

If you've already had lessons (I recommend 3 or more if you're planning to buy your equipment) then you should already have done the following during your lessons:

1. Learned Proper Safety Etiquette
2. Purchased Equipment that is suitable for your Needs
3. Learned How to Aim
4. Learned Proper Form
5. Practiced during your Lessons

So if you've already done all of theses things (either with me or a different instructor) what we really want to be talking is the following:

1. Small Target Practice

I recommend using small targets, something about the size of a coffee lid, so that you have to truly focus and concentrate on what you're doing in order to hit it. The smaller the target the more you have to concentrate on your form in order to hit it.

2. Setting Goals + Tracking Progress

Some archers like to establish specific goals for each practice session, whether it's improving their groupings or hitting a certain score. Keep a record of your progress to track your development over time. However this isn't for everyone. Some people prefer a more relaxed / less regimented practice session.

3. Incorporate Drills and Exercises

Include various drills in your practice routine to work on specific aspects of your shooting, such as target archery and trying to beat a certain score, field archery at various distances, or possibly more complicated things like shooting at moving targets or shooting while walking (I teach these more advanced things to my students who get 5 or more lessons).

4. Mental Focus

Over time it isn't the physical aspect of archery that becomes the tricky part. It is the mental stuff that starts to mess with the archer's head. Some archers will get into relaxation techniques, practice breathing control, and imagining/visualizing a successful shot.

I personally like reading/writing zen poetry, but that isn't for everyone. But for those people interested in such topics I recommend the following books

Zen Bow, Zen Arrow by John Stevens

Dreaming of Zen Archery by Charles Moffat

5. To Video Record or Not To Video Record

There are Pros and Cons to recording your practice sessions from different angles to review your form and identify areas for improvement. It helps if you already know proper form and you know what problem areas you need to be paying attention to.

Some people will also use the videos to compare your technique to instructional videos or to seek feedback from online archery communities, but because there are many different types of archery (including stringwalkers and facewalkers) you're more likely to get confused by the broad range of responses you will get from the community, many of whom may have only been shooting for a short period of time, so you might be getting a lot of bad advice from people. Instead I recommend only showing the video to an archery instructor who teaches the style of archery you are practicing. Otherwise the deluge of bad advice could end up making the quality of your shooting worse.

It is also possible to mentally psyche yourself out by watching the videos of yourself and mess up your mental focus.

Bonus! Join an Archery Club / Community

Socializing with other archers in person is a great way to seek advice, ask questions, and learn from their experiences to enhance your learning journey. Doing this in-person is fundamental because it allows you to better gauge the experience of the archers you are talking to and how seriously you should take their advice. Also if you join a club it gives you an excuse to practice more often and make friends within the community.