One of the most important and significant things you can do to improve your overall health, is reduce how much sugar you consume.

This can be difficult if you eat a lot of pre-made food, since sugar is one of those sneaky ingredients that is included, even under different names, in just about everything!

Food manufacturers know that adding sugar to foods makes them taste better, and research has demonstrated that sugar is in fact addictive; this means more sales for manufacturers, but more sugar cravings for you. Not to mention that we, as humans, are actually born with a special affinity for this little devil (sugar). I bet you didn’t know that!

However, controlling and reducing your sugar intake comes with a long list of health benefits worth looking into. By eating less sugar, you are more likely to:

• Lose weight.
• Have more energy.
• Have fewer of the mood swings caused by energy highs and lows that come after eating sugar.
• Improve your ability to concentrate.
• You may be less prone to the degenerative diseases that come with aging.

HOW CAN YOU CONTROL SUGAR CRAVINGS

Here are 5 suggestions to control your sugar cravings:

1. Know what you are eating

One thing that makes it difficult to reduce the sugar in your diet is that it’s found in foods which you may not be aware of.

One example of this is low fat yogurt. You may think it’s a healthy option, but it is probably loaded with sugar or artificial sweeteners to enhance the flavor after the fat has been reduced. Instead, go for a natural yogurt, and add some extra fruit for flavoring at home, if needed.

Another example, fat free milk (or milk in general). It contains at least 12g of sugar! Sure, milk it’s good for developing healthy bones while you are growing up, but as an adult, dairy can actually be harmful and now even considered a hinder to weight loss! Instead you might opt for non-dairy alternatives, like unsweetened almond milk. It has no sugar, less calories and blends very well for that perfect soft smoothie or protein shake!

Get into the habit of checking labels to look for terms indicating a hidden sugar source. If you have a smart phone, download MyFitnessPal.com and ever food in it, or scan bar codes as you go along. Names like sweetener, syrup, or any term ending in “ose”, such as glucose, dextrose, lactose, are what you’re on the lookout for.

Definitely avoid high fructose corn syrup in particular!

2. Eat whole foods

Processed foods tend to be extremely high in sugar and salt.

So, the more you can incorporate whole, fresh foods into your diet in place of overly processed foods, the less likely you are to be eating hidden sugars.

Here is a quick list of whole foods:

• Fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables (fruit in moderation)
• Lean meats like turkey, chicken, beef, and lots of fish
• Legumes and eggs
• Nuts and seeds
• Healthy fats and oils
• Wholegrains

Foods like these help to moderate your blood sugar levels and fill you up, this means that you are less tempted to reach for sugary foods between meals, and late in the evening.

Here is a list of 100 Healthy Snacks you can print.

Remember, there’s nothing wrong with an occasional splurge. Enjoy your celebrations!

Just don’t celebrate on a regular basis . It’s the regular consumption of sugar that causes the problem. So, you don’t have to say NO forever!

3. Check your drinks

You may be pretty good at watching what you eat, but you need to check your drinks too, as many of them contain heaps of sugar.

Soft drinks are the main culprit, one can of soda contains around 10 teaspoons of sugar. Also, many commercially prepared fruit juices are just as bad. And, if you are a sweet tea of coffee drinker, that can add up to a significant amount, especially if you drink coffee from places like Starbucks, which are very sugar-heavy.

So, what is the solution?

Water — and lots of it.

I’m not saying don’t ever drink tea or coffee again, but do make sure that water is your main source of hydration.

And, think about completely cutting all other sugary drinks, like soft drinks, fruit juices, etc., from your diet. They provide empty calories, and absolutely no benefit to your body. You might look into protein shakes that are natural and contain less than 1-3 g of sugar. You can add a little fruit and they will be nutrient dense and healthier for you than a soda any day!

4. Exercise regularly (you knew this was coming, didn’t ya?)

For many people, sugar cravings are a response to low mood, but exercise has been shown to boost endorphins and serotonin levels, which gives you a natural mood-boosting effect.

This is just one reason to exercise for a few minutes everyday, as a way to help boost your mood, and therefore help you to better manage your sugar cravings.

5. Manage stress

Most of us are prone to reach for sugary foods when we’re feeling stressed.

However, getting proper rest, and finding ways to manage your stress levels, will make you better able to fight the sugar cravings when they do set in.

I hope in the light of all the celebrations we have around the year that involve sugar treats (Valentine’s Day, Easter, Halloween, Birthday’s…), it’s always good to have at least a handy awareness that we CAN control sugar intake and it’s just a matter of will power, awareness and MODERATION. Tell your sweetie to get you non-eatable flowers instead!!!

Wishing you the best!

Credits: photo credit to BellaEats 

Every time I want to re-set my soul, my drive, my reason to keep doing what I am doing… I watch this video. Regardless of what you do, which company you are with, or what you are trying to accomplish in this world, this video will inspire those seeking a deeper leadership purpose or trying to figure out WHY some people, or some companies seem to be more successful that others.

I highly recommend this short 18 minute introduction to Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire.

To your success!

“Muscle weighs more than fat” is probably the most commonly used phrase in the weight loss industry. Especially by those trying to encourage their “exercising” customers that the reason they may be gaining weight is because they are probably building muscle …”and muscle weighs more than fat!”. SIGH…

I am going to try to attempt to put this erroneous myth to rest here: 5 lbs of muscle weighs EXACTLY the same as 5 lbs of fat. This fact can be easily tested . Here is an illustration.

So, no, muscle does not weigh more than fat. Now, I am thinking that what MOST LIKELY people are trying to say is that “BY VOLUME” muscle weighs more than fat. In other words, if you take a shoe box and fill it up with fat mass and then take an identical shoe box and fill it up with pure muscle mass, then… the box with the muscle in it will weigh more. To look at it differently, if you take yet another shoe box and fill it up with feathers, this box will still be pretty light in comparison. And to bring this long winded point and tie it in a knot, 1 lb of feathers weighs the same as 1 lb of muscle too!

So why then are folks who exercise on a regular basis while on a diet program don’t lose weight as much as their neighbor, who isn’t exercising?

Well, first, there isn’t enough data based on that statement alone to determine the cause, but if ALL THINGS ARE EQUAL (same meal plans, same size, gender, age, metabolism, daily routine, etc…), the person who is working out is also building lean muscle mass. Muscle mass can be built from fat mass (this is great news!). So where your neighbor may have dropped 5lbs of fat as measured by the scale, YOU may have shifted 5lbs of fat mass and turned it into lean muscle… and building lean muscle SHOULD BE YOUR GOAL anyway! Or at least, that’s a nice to have. (Think of lose skin after weight loss vs nice tight skin and muscle definition)

What you might notice (or maybe sporadically), instead of the scale number going down, is that inches are being trimmed off (from your waist, thighs, hips and arms). Thus the reason it is highly recommended that you don’t just get on the scale at the beginning of any weight management program, but also measure those areas and check them weekly.

To illustrate the fat mass to muscle mass theory, here is a picture of two people (well, cartoon people), who on a scale weigh exactly the same, but look very different.

So, if you are sticking to a program and have added exercise, make sure you are measuring inches to track your progress. You may be doing better than you think. And don’t worry so much about the number on the scale! Lean muscle not only looks better than fat, but it also helps burn fat even when you are not moving! So keep it up and be patient.

So the next time you hear someone say “muscle weighs more than fat”, now you know how to gently correct the statement, for after all, they mean well and probably just forgot to add the “by volume” part .

I am sure many of you have heard of LOW carb diets, such as the Atkins diet and similar plans. As many diet fads, the Atkins diet has faced strong opposition due to it’s inevitable imbalance of a nutrient that your body actually needs, carbohydrates (among other things).

What are carbohydrates used for in your body? Aside from making energy, carbohydrates also protect your muscles. When you need energy, your body looks for glucose from carbohydrates first. If no glucose is available, because you’re on a carbohydrate-restricted diet, your body begins to pull energy out of fatty tissue. Your body’s next move is to burn its own protein tissue (muscles). If this use of proteins for energy continues long enough, you run out of fuel and die. That is dramatic, I know. But it’s how the body works. So, in a nutshell you need to include some form of carbohydrates. And as you might have guessed there are good ones and bad ones (like the ones derived from white flour).

What I would like to introduce you to, if you haven’t heard of already, is SLOW CARBS. I’ll cover some high-level details here, then include some links below for your research if you wish to pursue further.

The slow carb diet is based on eating foods with a low-glycemic index. Foods with a low GI break down glucose in your body slowly, keeping your blood sugar levels constant throughout the day. Slow carb foods help burn fat longer throughout the day (vs low carb food), and they keep you fuller longer because these items also tend to contain more protein. Your body hearts protein!

Here are the guidelines of consuming slow carbs as a meal plan:

• Start your day with protein. THat’s 30 minutes to 1 hour from when you wake up. You can get protein from eggs, lean turkey bacon, or both and a myriad of other choices. Experts, like Dr. Oz, recommend protein shakes as an alternative mainly because of the convenience and nutritional value aside from the protein that most of them contain. I personally use Visalus Vi-Shape shakes because not only do they contain a proprietary protein blend but they also have other healthy natural ingredients that will aid in fat burning. This is not just from my personal experience but from thousands of others!
• Eat as much as you want of the following foods: proteins (lean meats, poultry, fish, eggs, and cottage cheese); vegetables (except white potatoes); legumes (peas, lentils, beans, and nuts); and healthy fats (fish oil, saturated fat, olive oil and flax seed). Try spreading out your meals, and eating 4-5 smaller meals a day.

• Avoid eating any white carbohydrates: white bread, white rice, white cereals. Even many whole grain breads and cereals contain high fructose corn syrup, so limit your consumption of those3

• Avoid eating too much fruit, unless you’re doing so within two hours after a workout. Your body converts fruit to fat if you eat too much of it.
• Avoid drinking milk, which easily makes your body gain fat, and avoid eating any kind of junk food or sodas. Stick with water, coffee or tea, if you can.

Sample meals on this diet might include protein shakes, eggs (or egg whites) with black beans or pinto beans (I eat them from a can and low sodium), beef with black beans and mixed veggies, tuna salad with olive oil & nuts, turkey burgers, steak with peas, or grilled chicken and white beans mixed in a green salad. Stock up on canned black beans, white beans and frozen vegetables, so you will always have them on hand. Look for low-sodium alternatives

OTHER SLOW CARB DIET RESOURCES (external):

• Tim Ferris Four Hour Body
• Slow Carb food list (.pdf)
• Slow Carb recipes

Do you ever wonder how in the world companies come up with the calorie count in their nutritional labels? How is that number calculated and what does it mean?

I was curious myself. I truly feel now that knowing where things come from, meal choices just make MORE sense! It may do the same for you (even if sometimes we CHOOSE the not so great choice anyway ).

So it’s pretty simple: your body uses what you feed it differently for different functions. Nutrient dense food will be more useful to you than nutrient empty items. Your body just cannot do anything with sugar other than turn it to fat and store it. Nice! Basically, food is composed of the following main nutrients: water, protein, fat, carbs, vitamins and minerals. Upon being digested 3 of these: protein, fat and carbs yield the ENERGY that your body needs to perform daily activities. In contrast, vitamins, mineral and water do not product energy but instead perform other tasks such as cell maintenance and repair.

If your body does not release the energy you just got from the food you ate, shortly after you ate it, then it just stores it as fat for later use. So it makes sense to note that if you are eating more fat, carbs and protein than your body will use in one day, then you will begin to gain weight. This is why we limit the calories we eat and/or exercise to help burn the extras.

Lets talk about where calories come from. So now back to the original point of this post. Calories come from fat, carbs and protein (and alcohol) in your food. Every gram of fat = 9 calories, 1 gram of carb = 4 calories and 1 gram of protein= 4 calories. Alcohol is 7 calories per gram. Alcohol, however, is not technically considered a nutrient as it does not help maintain or repair body tissues like nutrients do.

So when you are looking at a label and you see fat 4g, carbs 56 g and protein 5 g, you can easily calculate that the calorie count will be = 280 calories. But since those calories came primarily from nutrients your body can digest and turn into fuel, it wold be considered a MUCH better choice for a snack than a 280 calorie candy bar (which has zero nutrients and 100% of its calories come its sugar content).

So the next time you are deciding on what to eat, consider not JUST the calories but instead, look at the whole picture. Where do those calories come from? That is why labels must contain the break down of each nutrient.

Furthermore, and to stir the calorie pot a bit. There are also guidelines as to what % of your total calories should be from protein, fat or carbs depending on your health goals. But we thankfully don’t need to go around calculating this stuff because there is an app for that (http://www.MyFitnessPal.com).

In general, even though we want to focus on daily calories consumed for weight loss, it is important to take into account what kind of calories you are eating. 1200 calories in “bread” is not the same as 1200 calories from a variety of fresh items like a good protein shake, fruits, veggies, lean cuts and lean meat and beans.

Happy eating everyone!

I have been an employee all of my adult life, pretty much. I’ve been a team member, a customer center representative, a supervisor, a manager, a project manager, and independent designer. You name it in the corporate world, and I have been there. And with those, I have had varying degrees of enjoyment. I loved being a manager and being able to really make a difference in people’s careers; helping them find a way to pursue further education, other options, learning new skills, etc…Maybe that’s why network marketing was so appealing to me!

When I looked into my own business, specifically my web design business, it was a very different world. I had no one to really report to, other than myself. However, I kept looking for direction, a reason to do something about a deadline, some kind of an incentive. There wasn’t one coming from anyone else other than from my own intrinsic emotion to create that.

Along the way, network marketing came along. Now network marketing is a very similar concept to owning your own business, except for that there are OTHER people involved. Those people range from the corporate team that provides at least some guidelines to how everyone should adhere to policies in an effort to protect the brand, and also your sponsor team. Here is where most people fail to recognize what type of ‘mentality’ really takes to be in network marketing.

You see, most of us (me included for a while), have very much an “employee mentality” when we come into network marketing. We can’t help it. It’s all we’ve been faced with our whole lives. We EXPECT to be guided, trained, told what to do and followed up on. We look for incentives and encouragement from individuals “above us” so we can get motivated to make things happen. And in some cases, we plain flat out GIVE UP AND QUIT if we have no contact from our so called “upline”. Now, in all sincerity, I DO believe there needs to be some type of structure that educates new team members on how to do things. Granted. However, in network marketing YOU ARE YOU OWN BOSS. You ARE your own MOTIVATOR. You are your own INCENTIVE SYSTEM. The person who enrolled you is a person JUST LIKE YOU. They may or may not have management experience, but they do NOT have any right over YOU or YOUR BUSINESS. Nor should you assume so. Most people who join have NO CLUE how to be “leaders” and guide others. That is ok and also the reason WHY you should have a different type of mentality when coming into the business.

See, my point here is that your career in network marketing should never ever ever depend on someone else’s management style, involvement, rank or connection to you. Mentally, you should come in assuming full responsibility for training yourself, motivating yourself and PROMOTING yourself. It is THIS type of ‘mentality’ that ultimately has the most success in network marketing. Because clearly, when you rely on yourself, any help is a BONUS to your business. You won’t be let down by those who bring you in then take off. You won’t be affected by lack of management skills because you don’t need to be managed. You are an independent business owner who doesn’t “need” to be treated like an employee. That’s the ‘mentality’ that gets you ahead in this industry.

All that said, clearly, we as humans (with many of us as trainers, mentors, managers and with other skills) always come forth to offer what we can to help others succeed in the industry. We form teams, trainings, calls, incentives and build tools above and beyond those provided by the company to help people understand things better or move faster along the way. I am not saying these are to be ignored and/or taken for granted. They do help and sometimes make a difference in the teams you decide to join.

What I am saying is that if YOUR expectation and mentality is set right and not “dependent” on what others can do for YOU, but what YOU can do for yourself, that’s when you will see the light in this industry. So, stand up, stand strong, go forth and CREATE your own vision. Wait for no one to tell you what to do. Who cares if your upline doesn’t call you anymore. Find another mentor in the company if you need one. Or better yet, become a mentor yourself. That’s what it means to not have an employee mentality. It means to take responsibility for everything that happens to you without EXPECTING or even waiting for someone else to tell you what to do! Go BE your own boss. That’s why you opted not to work in the corporate world to begin with, right?

Someone with an “employee mentality” waits for someone to tell them what to do, they look for a “reason” outside themselves to perform a task, they only do what feels good and won’t do what’s not so great to advance themselves, they blame uplines for lack of communication, or blame others for their failures. STOP the employee mentality wheel and start thinking about YOUR contributions, how to advance YOUR business, how to take things by the reins, how to educate YOURSELF better, motivate YOURSELF, reward YOURSELF, and then and only then will you find all the other “extras” a bonus in your business that you will appreciate a lot more than if you were expecting them all along.

Watch Kate Buck on BraveHeartWomen.TV with Ellie Drake. She goes over what is the best up and coming career on the internet. Can you guess what it is??

Check out Kate Buck’s course here

Here is another video by Kate that aims more to the business owner who may NEED a social media expert

Check out Kate Buck’s course here

Just released today! My 3 Steps to developing your brand online so you can more easily attract people to your business! All you have to do is opt in to the form on the right here on my blog and start watching! 30 minutes of solid content you can use! Hope you like it! ENJOY! –>>

I wanted to share this marketing system that I use online that I think will be of huge value to you if you are looking to market online and you don’t already have something like this. This one is free to use and I put together a presentation to tell you more about it, show you my back office and how it works and how you can get started and have your own marketing system for free in less than 15 minutes.

BETTER WEB BUILDER

This is a fantastic video by Eric Worre about where the Network Marketing industry (MLM) models have been like and where (in his opinion) would make a more long term sustainable model in the future. Makes a lot of sense. Coincidentally these are some of the points I made on my post from yesterday (12 Success Factors in Choosing a Network Marketing Company) and it just feels AWESOME to hear someone like Eric Worre mention so many of the same points well. (I am also SUPER glad that my post was yesterday and his video posted today LOL).

We’ve been doing this from the get-go, this is the way to have a long term sustainable business…check out Eric’s video post on his blog. Enjoy!

http://networkmarketingpro.com/2011/06/09/the-next-evolution-in-mlm-nmpro-528/