Archive for February, 2009

Garen Arnold asked:


Though there are lots of fad diet types, majority of the fad diets, share some common characteristics. For instance, these diets are heavily promoted on TV and magazines, perhaps with a celebrity voice. Maybe you have heard of a couple of them. The basis of the diet appears to oppose information that you have heard on how to lose excess weight.

* It assures quick or doubtful results, like a weight loss of few pounds every week.

* In place of presenting scientific evidence of the diet, you are given dramatic choice of ‘before & after’weight loss pictures.

* You can eat only some degree of foods or whole diet is based only on one food as catalyst’ for the quick weight loss.

* Diet encourages you to make use of pills as weight loss help or force you to buy costly prepackaged meals.

Common Fad Diet Types

There are lots of fad diet types, offering an exclusive theory about key to flourishing weight loss.

Some common fad diets comprise of:

Controlled carb Diet: These diets maintain drastically dropping the quantity of carbohydrates in the diet that is the main key to weight loss. Some examples of this fad diet comprise of Sugar Busters, Zone, and Carbohydrate Addicts Diet.

High carb/low fat Diet: These diets are mainly the opposite of controlled carb plan that claims you will lose weight by lessening fat intake as well as increasing carbohydrates. Some example of this diet includes Good Carbohydrate Revolution or else Pritikin Principle.

Liquid Fad Diet: These diets make use of unique weight loss shakes as the meal substitute. The most famous example of this diet is a Slim Fast Weight Loss Plan.

Consequences of Fad Diets

Though following the fad diet might appear like a very good method to lose weight, all diet types have important pitfalls. For instance: Fad diets are limiting to be long-term solution to the weight loss. When you start again your usual eating habits, you will likely recover those surplus pounds. Fads diets are extremely low in calories and will make you feel weary, dizzy, and bad-tempered particularly if you are not getting sufficient protein & carbohydrates.

Few people think that experimenting with the fad diets puts person at danger of developing eating disorder like anorexia or else bulimia.

Since majority of the fad diets are not very nutritionally balanced, and this approach to the weight loss can be extremely dangerous for the young children. In actual fact, there have been some cases where parents are charged for forcing their kids to follow severe diets.

Mark G. Winston asked:


If you’re serious about building big, muscular biceps, then this is the list for you! But before I give you my Top 5 list for biceps-building success, let me explain my exercise selection criteria.

First, the exercises on this list are simple and for beginners who need a solid foundation in biceps-building fundamentals in order to achieve long-term success from their workouts. While these exercises are simple, they’re not easy. Their simplicity lies in the intuitive benefits that come from each biceps-building movement and the fact that you can do these exercises with a minimal time commitment. But getting the most from these exercises will still require careful attention to training technique and workout variety – the 2 keys to biceps-building success that are not always easy for beginning bodybuilders.

If you’re wondering whether you’re a beginning bodybuilder, here’s my general rule. You’re a beginner if you’ve been training your biceps once or twice per week for 6 months or less. You’re also a beginner if you been trying to build your biceps for more than 6 months with exercises other than those provided on my list. Why? Because if you haven’t mastered the biceps-building exercises listed in my Top 5, you’re not ready for the intermediate or advanced workout methods that you’ll eventually need to build truly Awesome Arms.

Second, to make my Top 5 list, the equipment needed for each biceps-building exercise must be universally available. That means that you can do all of these exercises with dumbbells, an EZ-curl bar and a basic workout bench which you can find in any gym or health club. You can also do these exercises at home with a very small investment in this equipment for your home gym. There’s no need for fancy machines or trendy gimmicks here.

Finally, each of my Top 5 biceps-building exercises will help you to simultaneously build mass, shape and power in your biceps, triceps and forearms. These muscle areas are directly targeted during each exercise to maximize growth and efficiency from your workouts.

Now that I’ve told you how I created my list, here are the Top 5 exercises for building the big, muscular biceps that you desire! They’re not listed in any particular order, so there’s no reason to think that one particular exercise is better than another. You must decide what works best for you through experimentation with each exercise. But rest assured that any biceps-building program that includes all of these exercises will definitely add inches, symmetry and power to your GUNS.

1. EZ Bar Preacher Curls

The EZ bar preacher curl is one of my all time favorite biceps exercises. The preacher bench is a terrific training tool as it forces the biceps to work in relative isolation from the back and shoulders. Unlike standing barbell curls which usually involve biceps-cheating torso swing, preacher curls keep your arms at an angle that forces your biceps to provide the leverage needed to lift the weight. The EZ curl bar offers both narrow-grip and wide-grip hand positions. When you use the narrow grip, your hands are in a semi-neutral position and therefore increase involvement of the brachioradialis in the curling motion. If you have no experience with preacher curls, you should probably begin with the narrow-grip position.

As you become more experienced with this exercise you should move to the wider grip as it forces supination or a “palms up” positioning of your hands. Since the biceps function primarily as a hand-supinator, the more you supinate your hands the more resistance you will place on your biceps. If you’ve got the potential to build biceps peaks, EZ bar preacher curls will certainly tap that potential.

2. Standing EZ Bar Curls

As an alternative to the EZ bar preacher curl, standing EZ bar curls with back support are a great biceps builder. When performed while standing with your back leaning slightly against a wall, standing EZ bar curls force your biceps to lift the weight without the wasteful torso swing that will cheat your biceps of the benefits of this exercise. As mentioned previously, the EZ curl bar has narrow and wide hand-grip positions. If you have no experience with EZ bar curls, you should probably begin with the narrow-grip position. With increased experience in this exercise you should use the wide-grip position to supinate your hands and increase the workload on your biceps.

3. Dumbbell Preacher Curls

The dumbbell preacher curl is another one of my favorite biceps builders. This exercise really allows you to make the mind-body connection so essential to biceps-building success. While many competitive bodybuilders use this exercise exclusively as a “shaper” during pre-contest training, the dumbbell preacher curl also works as a tremendous mass builder when used in a pyramid cycle. In fact, this exercise is the best high intensity bodybuilding movement for simultaneously adding size and shape to your biceps.

4. Concentration Curls

As the name suggests, this exercise places concentrated resistance on the biceps when performed properly. Besides building your biceps, this exercise also stresses and develops the brachialis. The brachialis is a true forearm flexor. It originates on the lower anterior surface of the humerus, ends on the anterior surface of the coronoid process of the ulna (the large bone on the inside of the forearm) and is visible on the outside of the upper arm between the biceps and the lateral head of the triceps. Development of the brachialis and biceps gives the front of your upper arms that thick, dense look that says “mess with me at your own risk!!”

5. Seated Alternating Dumbbell Curls

This exercise is one of the best biceps builders ever as long as you sit on a bench that has a back rest to prevent torso movement. Too many people do this exercise either standing or sitting on a bench without back support. In order to make sure that your biceps get the most work from this movement you must stabilize your torso so as to prevent any jerking motion. Also, remember to supinate your hands throughout each repetition to stimulate maximum growth for your biceps.

So, there you have it – my Top 5 list of biceps-building exercises for beginning bodybuilders. Try them, have fun with them, and make sure that you use safe amounts of weight and proper training technique with every exercise.

Michael Walker asked:


decided you want to exercise at home. There are hundreds of pieces of home cardio equipment available. The most popular are treadmills and exercise bikes. In deciding between the two, you should compare long-term sustainability, the effectiveness of the workouts, and safety.

Overcoming Boredom

The biggest obstacle to a home exercise routine is sticking with it. You don’t have to drive to a gym, so your home fitness equipment is more convenient. The problem is that other distractions are just as convenient at home. The key is to make your routine fun. You want to look forward to your daily workout. You have to be realistic. Playing with the heart rate monitor or watching the calorie counter go up will only be fun the first couple of times you exercise.

o Treadmill vs. Boredom

On a treadmill, you walk. Walking isn’t that fun. You can walk at different speeds, but that isn’t really much more fun. If you get a treadmill that offers an incline, that keeps it a bit more interesting. Walking uphill isn’t exactly fun, but it’s different. It presents a challenge.

You can’t really read on a treadmill because you are bouncing up and down. You can’t keep your eyes on the same sentence, and you usually end up with a headache. Basically, the only thing fun to do on a treadmill is watch television or movies. If you are really into TV or movies and are able to put your treadmill in front of a television, you can probably keep your treadmill workout from becoming too boring. Problems consist of commercials, the noise coming from the machine, and again, the bouncing.

o Exercise Bikes vs. Boredom

Exercise bikes are unique in that many of them come programmed with various biking routines. You simulate different courses that require you to sprint, pedal uphill, and perform at different levels within one workout without having to keep pressing buttons and changing everything. You can even select random programs so you don’t know what’s coming, which really keeps you on your toes. Some exercise bikes can even be plugged into televisions and video games to let you interactively pedal through visual courses.

On upright exercise bikes, you run into some of the same problems as treadmills as far as reading is concerned. Recumbent bikes, however, allow your hands to be free to hold a book or magazine, video game controller, or phone. Multi-tasking during an exercise bike workout keeps it from becoming boring and allows your workout to more easily fit into a busy schedule.

Defeating boredom to successfully keep up a long-term exercise routine is much easier with an exercise bike than a treadmill.

The Calorie Factor

In a study conducted by Nordic Track, young, healthy people used various exercise machines and did cardio workouts. Although they felt they used the same intensity on all machines, they burned the most calories on treadmills and ski machines.

On average, most people burn about 750 calories per hour on a treadmill. The same people are likely to burn about 550 calories per hour on an exercise bike. So it’s a no-brainer, right? You should get a treadmill because they burn more calories.

Well, not exactly. You can’t get so caught up in which machine burns the most calories. You have to take a lot of other factors into consideration. How likely are you to sustain a treadmill routine as opposed to an exercise bike routine?

Because exercise bikes are usually more fun than treadmills, you are much more likely to stick with it long-term. This means that even though you can burn more calories on a treadmill, you are also more likely to stop using it altogether.

You might also find it difficult to use it long enough per workout session to get the full benefits. Most people find it easier to workout for 20 minutes on an exercise bike than 20 minutes on a treadmill. You have to think about that. If you are likely to only do 10 minutes on a treadmill but can easily do 20 minutes on an exercise bike, you will burn more calories per session on an exercise bike.

So just going strictly by the numbers, treadmills burn more calories. If you easily get bored or have tried and failed to stick with exercise routines in the past, you might want to consider burning less calories per hour in favor of a sustainable long-term exercise bike regimen.

Your Safety

The biggest difference between exercise bikes and treadmills is overall safety to your body.

The first case of safety is the most basic. You can fall off of a treadmill. It’s very difficult, however, to fall off of an exercise bike. In fact, you would probably have to try to fall when riding an exercise bike. While you might be thinking you’d have to be pretty clumsy to fall while walking, it happens more than you’d think. People get involved with watching television or the beat of music. One wrong step and you can seriously injure yourself. It’s also possible to spill water or sweat on the treadmill track, causing a safety hazard you might not notice until after you’ve slipped.

Another safety hazard is injury from the activity itself. A treadmill puts quite a bit of stress on your joints, especially your knees and ankles. Even if you invest in a treadmill with some degree of shock absorption, when you eventually get to a jogging or running point, you can put severe orthopedic stress on your body, even up to three times your body weight. People with existing conditions such as arthritis will find a treadmill painful at times due to this stress. Otherwise healthy individuals can sustain injury and possible long-term damage over time.

Exercise bikes put much less stress on your joints. A properly positioned exercise bike supports your weight and still allows you to receive the benefits of a higher impact cardio workout. Upright bikes can sometimes stress your back in the way you have to bend to reach the handlebars. Recumbent exercise bikes, however, can actually improve existing back pain by forcing proper posture and giving support as you exercise. On any exercise bike properly used, your knees and ankles are not stressed as they are on a treadmill.

The less you stress joints, the less likely you are to sustain an injury during your workout. You are also less likely to be sore afterwards. Most importantly, a non-workout injury doesn’t always have to halt your exercise routine on an exercise bike. If you hurt your back or neck, you will find the support of a recumbent exercise bike will keep you from having to stop your exercise regimen altogether. Let’s face it - if you have to stop, you are less likely to start again.

An Exercise Bike is Better for Your Health than a Treadmill

As you can see, both pieces of home fitness equipment have advantages. While the treadmill continues to be the most popular piece of home gym equipment, most people are more likely to faithfully use an exercise bike. This means you’re more likely to have to dust a treadmill until it gets the garage sale sticker.

gardnerwilkinson asked:


If there is one thing that is certain, it’s this: you never know when life throws you a curve ball. So, it always pays to be prepared. If you have decided to get yourself and your family quality health insurance, then, that’s good thinking on your part. All you need is some good guidance in finding the best health insurance quotes.

The good thing about health insurance quotes is automation. Technology has made it possible for you to get health insurance quotes as soon as you need them. You can get them online, offline, over the telephone or in the mail. All you need to do is log on to a website or speak to a health insurance company representative. They will trip over themselves to give you a wide variety of health insurance quotes.

But before you start looking at health insurance quotes in earnest, you need to decide what kind of health insurance you will need. Here are your options:

Group health insurance: For most people, this is probably the best kind of insurance cover available. If your employer provides you health insurance coverage, there is a huge advantage in it. For starters, you do not have to pay the premium for this. Also, the huge money power that goes into a group health insurance ensures that you get expert medical help, when you need it.

Short term health insurance: Times are tough. So, if you’re going through a transition phase in your life, for instance if you are in between jobs or just graduated from college, then a short term insurance cover is your best bet.

Private insurance quotes: You do not have to go through a tailor made group insurance policy. Some of these are of no real value anyway. Instead identify health insurance companies that offer attractive schemes and ask them for health insurance quotes. Or, you may also approach a private insurance agent. These people have contacts with several insurance providers. Typically, they will ask you for details regarding your employment and income. Then, they will be able to point out some of the best schemes for your unique situation. In this way, you will get expert advice and will also have access to competitive health insurance quotes from some of the best providers in the industry.

If you decide to bear the burden of health insurance quotes, keep in mind that health insurance cover does not come cheap. In fact, their prices have risen so high that health insurance has become unaffordable for many. To get the best value for your money, you must compare quotes for features, benefits and rates. Read the fine print. Understand the terms and conditions in detail before you make a commitment. That way, you will ensure that you get the best health insurance quote possible.

Michel Smith asked:


If you reside in Wisconsin, it is a well-built bet that you need Wisconsin health insurance. There are lots of different insurance companies and different types of plans available. Deciding on which one is best for you and your family will require some research. It may be awesome but it is paramount to finding the right policy for your particular situation.

Wisconsin health insurance plans are bought by Affordable Health Insurance Options directly, and tend to be more expensive and place more preexisting conditions upon the insured than group insurance. If you are self-employed, you have the option of purchasing individual insurance yourself or purchasing it through an association or other related group. Unless you are in excellent health, purchasing through an association or group will probably give you the best rates.

Wisconsin family health insurance plans are custom-made to include all the members of a family. The kind of family health insurance you will need depends on your family’s individual needs and you should consider a number of factors when choosing a plan. The age of your dependents will have a significant impact on selecting the right type of medical coverage for your family health insurance. The price of family health insurance will generally be greater than for any Wisconsin individual health insurance plans, simply because there aremore people to be covered by the policy.

Personal health insurance coverage varies with every plan. It is important that you compare and contrast the individual or family health insurance coverage choices very carefully. You need to find the coverage that is right for your family’s medical needs, but you also need to be able to afford the coverage that you select. That becomes the “balancing act” you face in this search. Outlined below are a few suggestions to help guide you as you attempt to steer your way through the information available for affordable California health insurance.

Most Wisconsin individual health insurance plans will present you with medical coverage for just about every type of situation. Whether it is the most basic plan or the plan with extensive options, you can find a plan that is perfect for you and our family. Of course you want to have as many options available for your health coverage as possible; however, there are times when it is just not feasible. Although an extremely basic plan offers very little, you will at least have the option to seek out medical help when you need it. And by using the internet to research affordable Wisconsin health insurance companies, you can cut down your time for this entire process. This method of finding individual or family health care plans can be made a little less overwhelming by using the internet first. This will allow you to check out the specific medical benefits that would be best for your unique situation. It’s as easy as clicking your mouse.

Once you have made it through the research part of your project, you will find that all Wisconsin health insurance companies provide a free quote process. Very often, this phone consultation will give you the necessary feel for where you would like to place your individual or family health insurance coverage.

Jordan FeRoss asked:


Having a pre-existing condition can make getting health insurance in Texas very complicated. Unfortunately, some companies will not give you insurance at all if you have a pre-existing condition. Even if you are lucky enough to get the insurance, you will get it at a much higher rate and with a higher deductible because you are considered to be high risk.

Fortunately, there is an answer for people with pre-existing conditions that need health insurance in Texas. The answer is the Texas Health Insurance Risk Pool, aka the Texas Health Pool, which provides health insurance in Texas for people who might not otherwise be able to qualify. They are a godsend for people who have a pre-existing condition.

There is, unfortunately, a downside to this type of health insurance alternative and that is that it costs twice as much as normal insurance for a couple of reasons. The first is due to the limited number of resources of this type that are available. And the second reason is that people with pre-existing conditions are otherwise uninsurable so the Texas Health Pool has a corner on this market. For people without any other viable alternative for health insurance in Texas this is the best and sometimes their only available option.

The Texas Health Insurance Risk Pool insurance can be used to cover doctor’s visits, hospital stays and prescription drug costs. Serious mental health problems can also be covered by this type of health insurance in Texas. The one thing that is covered by most insurance companies that is not covered by the pool is help for chemical dependency issues.

There are guidelines issued by the federal government that dictate who is eligible for this type health insurance coverage in Texas. Another requirement is that your application for health insurance with another insurance company must have been denied due to your pre-existing condition and you will have to produce documentation to prove this when you apply.

Dependents of people who are covered with health insurance in Texas by Texas Health Pool may also be eligible for this type of insurance coverage. There are also certain types of medical conditions that will automatically qualify you for coverage in the pool. You will need to provide documentation from a health insurance agency that would prove your inability to get coverage through the traditional insurance companies.

A person with a pre-existing condition needs health insurance in Texas more than anyone else and not being able to get it can be frustrating. Fortunately, there is something that can be done. Everyone needs and deserves to have proper health care for a reasonable cost. It is essential that states, like Texas, have programs like the Texas insurance pool in place to allow people with pre-existing conditions to get the quality health care they need and deserve. The implementation of the Texas Health Insurance Risk Pool is likely one of the most significant improvements in Texas, at least as far as health insurance for people with serious needs is concerned.

Mark Terry asked:


Several significant events have driven public and industry interest in personal health records. In 2004, President George W. Bush outlined a plan for the implementation of an electronic health record that could be accessed by all Americans. Although numerous companies had been in this market for several years, the announcement provided impetus for growth in this area. In 2007 and early 2008, computer giants Google and Microsoft announced their intentions to enter into this market, Google with Google Health and Microsoft with Microsoft HealthVault.

In March of 2008, laboratory industry leader Quest Diagnostics announced a partnership with Google Health to provide uploading of laboratory testing to Google’s version of a personal health record (PHR).

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services cites six positive outcomes with the implementation of widespread personal and/or electronic health records.

1. Improved healthcare quality

2. Prevention of medical errors

3. Reduction of healthcare costs

4. Increased administrative efficiencies

5. Decreased paperwork

6. Expanded access to affordable healthcare

Although there are a number of potential barriers to widespread implementation of personal health records, three are the most significant. They are:

1. Interoperability. The various systems need to be able to interact with each other and various computer systems.

2. Privacy and Security. The systems need to provide HIPAA-like compliance, but also have security measures similar to the banking industry and in compliance with a variety of industry standards.

3. Data Modification. In order for physicians to be able to act on medical information, they will need to be confident of the veracity of the medical data. This will at least partly require that they be able to determine the sources and modifications that have occurred to the information in personal health records.

Although there are a number of companies currently in the marketplace offering personal health records, they fall into four broad categories.

1. Standalones. These companies are primarily personal health record companies, such as LifeOnKey or FollowMe. In some cases these companies also specialize or have specialty subcategories, such as MiVia, which was designed for the migrant farmworker population, or LifeOnKey’s Diabetes focus or Women’s Health focus.

2. Spin-Offs of Information Technology or Software Companies. Most notable in this category are Google Health and Microsoft HealthVault.

3. Healthcare Providers. Examples of this are Partners HealthCare’s Patient Gateway and the Group Health Cooperative’s MyGroupHealth.

4. Platform Providers. In some cases, the companies are focused less on being the patient/consumer’s personal health record, than in providing the platform and/or technology for personal health records. MedCommons is an example of this. Microsoft HealthVault may also fall into this category. FollowMe also is willing to customize their product for other companies, which then provide their own branding.

There are five ways personal health record providers are generating revenue.

1. Subscriptions. Typically, standalone PHR providers charge nominal annual subscription rates ranging from about $25 to $50.

2. Advertising. Google Health and Microsoft HealthVault indicate they will generate income via advertising. It’s not yet clear how Microsoft intends to do this, but Google Health has indicated that their product itself will not contain advertising, but will have search boxes that connect to the traditional Google page, which does have targeted advertising.

3. Data mining. Although often mentioned as a possible source of revenue, few companies indicate they are currently selling non-user-identified health data to researchers or pharmaceutical companies.

4. Increased Service. Healthcare providers, in general, acknowledge that their personal health record systems are just part of the service and a happy client will remain with the system. Google Health indicates they aren’t in the healthcare business and part of their mission is to drive users to Google.

5. Subcontracting and licensing. MedCommons is focusing on providing their services and platform technology for other users and companies that might want to deliver personal health records. It’s not clear if Microsoft HealthVault plans to enter the market in this fashion, but many industry sources suggest it’s likely.

Ultimately, what is clear from looking at a cross-section of PHR providers is that there are a number of approaches to dealing with laboratory results depending on the nature of the PHR. Google Health has recently announced a partnership with Quest Diagnostics.

This is likely to be the first in a number of similar relationships with other laboratory corporations. The real question, one that remains unaddressed yet, is whether competing labs will create partnerships with Google Health and other PHRs or whether it will become an exclusive and competitive marketplace, where some PHRs will find their services locked out of the market.

Another potential question is whether or not a laboratory, independent or affiliated with a particular healthcare provider, is going to be able to provide data uploads to a myriad of different PHRs. Although largely a technical issue, it’s hard to see how a laboratory needing to provide results to twenty or thirty different PHRs in addition to requesting physicians and patients, is going to make laboratory medicine more efficient or cost-effective.

PHRs Gain Momentum

In his January 20, 2004, State of the Union Address, President George W. Bush outlined a plan for the implementation of an electronic health record that could be accessed by all Americans. The system was to be in place by 2015. According to the White House Web site, patient participation would be voluntarily, and “these electronic health records will be designed to share information privately and securely among and between health care providers when authorized by the patient.”

To achieve that goal, the following steps were taken:

1. Health Information Standards were adopted. Under the direction of the Department of Health and Human Services, in cooperation with other Federal agencies and the private sector, voluntary standards were to be identified and endorsed.

2. Health Care Information Technology Demonstration Project funding was increased to $100 million.

3. Federal agencies were encouraged to adopt Health Information Technology.

4. A sub-cabinet level position of National Health Information Technology Coordinator was created. This falls under the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, part of the Department of Health and Human Services.

It’s important to note that the Bush Administration’s proposal did not break new ground. Numerous companies providing personal health records (PHR), medical health records, and electronic health records or some way of storing and delivering medical information electronically were in existence for several years prior to the Bush Administration’s efforts.

The announcement of launches into the health information technology (HIT) arena by Google and Microsoft has renewed media interest in the area, and may signal a renewed velocity and vigor to the market.

Dave Tishendorf asked:


By Dave Tishendorf

Often it happens late at night, just before you crawl into bed.

You’re still feeling a little stuffed from - as usual - eating too much at dinner. You wince as you walk past the full-length mirror in your bedroom and see yourself in profile. You wince again as you look in the bathroom as you brush your teeth. That double chin you’re starting to form. Those cheeks that are starting to round themselves out. The conclusion is inescapable:

“I’m getting fat. I have GOT to lose weight.”

Of course, you’ve told yourself that a dozen times before, maybe a hundred times. But this time is going to be different, you insist, this time, in the name of all that is holy, you are going to make it work. Enough is enough!

But the question remains: What is the best diet? What is the best way to lose weight?

So over the course of the next few days or weeks you do the research. The diet and cook books pile up. You scour the Internet. You toss out all the cookies and ice cream in the house. Maybe you even buy a treadmill. You talk to friends, relatives and co-workers. “Oh, you should try X diet,” says one. “No, no, try XX diet,” says another. “Well, I lost 30 pounds in 30 days on the XXX diet,” says your chubby neighbor, failing to mention that he gained it all back and then some.

Soon you discover what thousands and thousands of Americans also have discovered: That the answer to “What is the best diet?” can be very difficult to find.

But, undaunted, you pick a diet plan and dive in.

Before too long, however, the idea of eating another salad or drinking 8 glasses of water a day has made you suicidal. Meanwhile, the treadmill is collecting dust in the corner, half hidden by the potted ficus tree.

You look in the mirror and see the same old fat face. What on earth happened?

First off, don’t blame yourself. Failure to stick with a restrictive diet plan doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. Will power wasn’t the problem. After all, statistics show that nearly 98 percent of American women and more than 60 percent of American men are on a diet for at least part of every single year. And yet Americans as a whole are getting fatter every year; obesity has reached epic proportions, bringing with it a host of diseases and medical issues.

But if diets don’t work, and obesity is unhealthy as well as unattractive, what is the answer? What is a person to do?

** Well, to begin with, and this may be the most important step, you have to analyze why you want to go on a diet in the first place. If you want to lose weight because you are going to get married next June, a diet will be a temporary fix at best. Same thing if all you want to do is be able to wear that favorite pair of pants again.

And don’t go on a diet to bolster your self-esteem or to improve your chances with the opposite sex. A diet won’t get you a pay raise or a better job. It won’t pay your bills or automatically make you healthy or attractive.

Going on a diet for any of the above reasons likely will result in you going back to your previous bad habits sooner rather than later, and you ultimately will suffer the humiliation of another diet failure.

A diet is not just a stopgap measure. It must be an entire lifestyle change or it will certainly fail.

** Second, you have to understand why most diets fail. Many diets read like the assembly instructions of a complex toy - it takes a rocket scientist to figure them out. Other diets require exotic, expensive foods. Still others want you to eat certain foods, but only on certain days. And some diets are so expensive only the very rich (and famous?) can afford them.

** Third, you have to understand what a huge change most diet plans ask you to make. In essence, they are asking you to overhaul your entire life, and to do it quickly. It’s similar to asking a heroin addict to kick the habit overnight. Can’t be done. Lifelong habits are hard to break. If you have tried a number of diet plans without success, you know how difficult dieting can be. There is a psychological aspect to dieting that has very deep emotional roots. Severing your emotional ties to eating and food can be painful, and no one should underestimate what it takes to go through that process.

So … rather than a diet plan that tries to jerk you out by your roots and plop you down in the next county, what is needed are small, simple changes carried out over time. In other words, make a small change, stick with it until it becomes a new habit, then make another small change and turn it into another new habit, and so on. Soon you will have developed a new, healthy lifestyle, and the weight will start to peel away.

So, what is the best diet? It’s one that allows for some flexibility and personalization. It’s one that’s easy to follow and understand, with easily obtained and prepared food. It is attainable and maintainable.

Choose one that meets those criteria and, maybe for the first time ever, you will have a lot better chance at dieting success.

Jordan FeRoss asked:


Children in Texas seem to be more prone to visits to the doctor and getting medical treatment than any other group of people. As with adults, going to the doctor can get costly, especially if you don’t have the money to pay for it. However, there are other solutions to get health insurance in Texas for your children.

If you qualify, you can get health insurance in Texas by using the state or federal health insurance programs. This is only if you cannot afford health insurance through your employer or other groups.

One of the federal health insurance programs that are available is Medicaid. This health insurance is a federal and state program. It provides access to health care for children that can’t get any other health insurance in Texas. This health insurance coverage is free, but you have to be eligible for it. There are plenty of benefits and they offer more than health insurance plans where you would have to pay.

In order for a child (or children) to qualify for this government funded health insurance program, they must reside in the state of Texas; be a citizen of the United States or permanent resident. Even if the parent or guardian is not a citizen, but they are here legally, the child can still be eligible for this free health insurance. They should also be 19 years old or younger. There is also an income guideline that the family has to meet. If they are at or below that guideline, then the child would qualify for Medicaid. If you have a vehicle, that may be included in the evaluation of whether or not the child is eligible for Medicaid.

In the state, there is a government agency that handles eligibility requirements for children that need Medicaid health insurance in Texas. In some cases, depending on the situation, some families will automatically get assistance. In order to continue with eligibility, the families’ finances are reviewed every six months.

There is also a health insurance program for children called CHIP. CHIP stands for Children’s Health Insurance Program. It is also a federal and state health insurance program in Texas that is for those parents that make too much money for Medicaid. They also cannot pay for private health insurance coverage. Within the state of Texas, there are other insurance entities that offer this program. This insurance program has benefits that you would find in paid insurance plans.

Fees are charged according to income. There are co-payments for seeing the doctor, and for prescription services. In addition to that, if you have this health insurance in Texas, emergency services also require a co-payment. In order to keep the health insurance coverage, it has to be renewed every year. Requirements for this health insurance are very similar to the ones for Medicaid, except they base it on a scale for working parents. The state agency is responsible for letting you know whether or not you qualify for this insurance. This is good for those who can afford to pay something, but not much more like you would with private insurance from your employer.

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All exercises are not created equal. Some exercises are good, some exercises are great, and some exercises are an injury just waiting to happen. Knowing which exercises to avoid can save you many months if not years of pain and frustration.

1. Upright Rows

The Upright Row exercise is done to develop the shoulders and traps. Holding a barbell or dumbells in front of your with a close, overhand grip, you pull the weight up to your chest, keeping it close to your body, leading with your elbows.

The Upright Row is one of the most harmful exercises you can expose your shoulders to. The problem with the exercise lies in the position your arms must be in in order to perform the movement. This position is called “internal rotation.” To demonstrate internal rotation, hold your arms straight out to the sides with your palms down. Now rotate your hands forward as if you were pouring out a glass of water in each. To do the upright row, the arms are bent at the elbow then internally rotated.

Internal rotation itself is not necessarily bad for your shoulders. The problem comes when you raise the arms up and add resistance in that position. Every time you raise the weight, a small tendon in your shoulder gets pinched (known as impingement) by the bones in the shoulder. This may not hurt immediately; it may not even hurt for a long, long time. The problem is the tendon will gradually become worn down and damaged. You may not even know you have a problem until one day the tendon snaps!

Instead of upright rows, stick to exercises such as dumbell presses, military presses and various raises. They are far safer for the shoulders.

2. Behind-The-Neck Pulldowns

This exercise is done to work the muscles of the back. While the exercise itself is actually effective for working the back, the problem with the exercise lies in what it can do to your shoulders.

In the previous exercise, I talked about internal rotation of the shoulders. The problem with the behind-the-neck pulldown lies in “external rotation.” Going back to the arms out to the side example, instead of pouring water forward, rotate your arms backward so that your palms are facing up. It’s basically the opposite movement to internal rotation.

To do the behind-the-neck pulldown as normally instructed, you must externally rotate your shoulders as much as possible. This is a very delicate position for your shoulders. The supporting muscles of the shoulders (known as the rotator cuff) are not in a good position to stabilize the joint and injury to those supporting muscles can result, which can lead to further injury in the connective tissue of the joint.

On top of that, since most people do not have enough shoulder flexibility to get a straight line of pull behind the neck, they must bend their neck forward to even do the movement. This can result in neck strain on top of shoulder strain.

This information also applies to the behind-the-neck pull-up exercise. The mechanics of the movement are exactly the same, the only difference being you’re pulling yourself up instead of pulling the weight down.

Stick to exercises that are in front of the body, such as front pulldowns, close-grip pulldowns and pull-ups to the front.

3. Behind-The-Neck Shoulder Presses

The Behind-The-Neck Press gives us the same shoulder issues associated with the Behind-The-Neck Pulldown. To do the movement, you must maximally externally rotate the shoulders. Again, this places the shoulders in a very vulnerable position, which can easily result in strain in the Rotator Cuff muscles.

Also, as with the pulldowns, most people simply don’t have the necessary shoulder flexibility to get a straight line on the movement - they must tilt their head forward to get the bar behind it, adding greatly to the possibility of injury.

Stick to the military press and the dumbell press for your shoulder pressing movements.

4. Stiff-Legged Deadlifts On A Bench

The Stiff-Legged Deadlift, properly done, is actually a very good movement for the hamstrings, glutes and lower back. The problem comes when, in an attempt to increase the stretch on the hamstrings, the exercise is done standing on a block or bench.

To get the most stretch on the hamstrings and to protect the lower back from injury, an arch should be maintained in the lower back during the movement. It’s extremely difficult to maintain an arch in the lower back when you are stretching down as far as you can towards the floor with a barbell pulling you down.

Without the arch, as a natural result, the spine will flex and the supporting muscles of the spine will relax. This places much of the tension of the exercise directly on the connective tissue and bones of the spinal column rather than the supporting muscles, which are stabilizing the spine. In an effort to get more stretch on the hamstrings, you instead compromise the support structures of your lower back.

5. The Sit-Up

If you enjoy having a pain-free lower back, the regular floor sit-up is a good exercise to avoid. When you do a sit-up, the mechanics of the movement and position of your body throw much of the torque of the movement onto your lower back. Your hip flexors pull directly on your spine in order to raise your torso off the floor when you do the exercise, leading to strain in the lower back area.

To top it off, the abdominal muscles (the real target of the exercise) are only worked isometrically. This means they don’t actually contract and move, they just work to hold the torso steady while the hip flexors do the pulling. This is not a very effective abdominal exercise.

You will be far better off performing direct abdominal-training movements such as crunches, ball crunches, cable crunches, etc. These exercises directly target the abs without throwing excessive tension on the lower back.

The exercises you do have a profound effect on your training and your health. Be sure to choose exercises that will help you move forward towards your goals and not set you back through injury.