Review: 90 Day Body By Vi Challenge

Most of us have at one time or another, tried an exercise program, a fad diet or even a combination of both because of different reasons. Whatever your body’s needs are, The ViSalus Sciences Body by Vi 90 Day Challenge is geared towards helping you achieve your goals. People have different needs for their bodies. Some people are clinically obese and need to lose weight. Some just want to lose a few pounds. Some want to get fit and toned and there are those who just want to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Unlike other programs, which turn out to be fad diets, Body by Vi “is based on nutrition that helps you burn fat, keep lean muscle, boosts your metabolism and helps control hunger.” Formulas and ingredients are patented and will help achieve an individual’s goals on his/her terms with guaranteed results. The program includes fitness tips and plans, nutrition guides and tracking tools that you can download from the website.

There are three kits in the Body by Vi Program:

1. Body by Vi “Balance” Kit - helps you begin your journey by providing your body with good nutritional balance
2. “Shape” Kit - will help accelerate your results in achieving a slim and trim body
3. “Transform” Kit - the ultimate power of the ViSalus product line which will help you see and feel maximum results
4. Program Guide - contains information, recipes and a journal to help you track your  success.

An online “Health Membership” is included in the kit which will give you access to different online tools you can use to help you succeed. Upon joining the challenge, you can log into the online community where you will meet other people who have participated and who are presently participating in the challenge. They will be your support group and they will help you achieve your goals.

When starting the Body by Vi 90 Day Challenge, follow these steps:

1. At the beginning of the program, take your body measurements and your “Before” Photo, upload these into your Health Membership Profile and show your results as you move towards your goal.
2. Using the ViSalus recipe database, you can enter your dietary needs and preference into the database and you get a customized meal plan. Your shopping list is then sent directly to your email or phone.
3. You can also customize your fitness plan. You can find a plan that will match what goes on in your life (i.e. your schedule, your goals). You can choose an exercise plan from available videos.
4. Track your progress. Always update your Vi-Net profile, so you can share your progress with the rest of the ViSalus community. As you go through the challenge, celebrate every little success that you have.

There are available video testimonials of different people from different walks of life who have succeeded in improving their lives through the Body by Vi Challenge. Their “Before” and “After” photos are very powerful visual aids that show the average person that anybody can do this challenge.

There are so many available health programs out there. Many have made promises from helping a person lose weight, helping others look beautiful, helping people look feel good, etc. Many are effective, some are not. But what makes Body by Vi stand out?

With Visalus Body by Vi:

• Body by Vi offers a comprehensive health program that has a simple nutritional program with menu plans and recipes that you can customize to your body’s needs.
• You get to keep track of what you eat and get to understand how your diet choices will accelerate your progress. You can also customize your exercise program according to your needs and your goals.
• You can then choose a workout program from the exercise and video programs available at ViSalus. These are simple exercises that can be done at home or at the office. Some exercise can be done outdoors or at the gym.

Perhaps, most important of all, would be the ViSalus Community. When you join the Body by Vi Challenge:

• You will join an online “Health Membership” and you will have instant access to online tools to aid you in your success.
• You will also get to meet other people who are also participating in the Challenge and people who have already finished the Challenge. The Community is always there whether you just want answers to some questions or you need to have some encouragement as you go through the program.
• You have access to many pointers from experts and regular people like you who just want to have a better life.

So, if you want to have a better, healthier life without the hassles of doing a health program that does not suit your needs, or involves fad diets and watching endless exercise videos, just make things simple.

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Calories from Protein, Carbs and Fat

Calories from Protein, Carbs and Fat

Foods that we eat contain calories from different nutrients. Pick up any packaged food item at the grocery and read the nutrition label. The nutrition facts will tell you not only how many calories the food contains but also how many calories of protein, carbohydrates and fat it has.

Do you want to know how many calories are in every gram of protein, carbohydrates and fat? Every gram of protein has 4 calories. Every gram of carbohydrates has 4, as well. And every gram of fat contains 9 calories. So if you were to eat something that has all three of them, you can look at the nutrition label and figure out how many calories each of the three is bringing in.

Let’s take for example 100 grams of bacon. It roughly contains 37 grams of protein, 2 grams of carbohydrates and 42 grams of fat. The remaining grams come from cholesterol, sodium, calcium and potassium. If we focus only on the grams from protein, carbohydrates and fat, we can calculate the calories as such:

(37 g protein x 4) + (2 g carbs x 4) + (42 g fat x 9) = 148 + 8 + 378 cals = 534 cals

Thus, 100 grams of bacon, which is just a little less than one serving, already contains 534 calories. And that number doesn’t even include the calories from grams outside of protein, carbohydrates and fat. For most people, 534 calories already make one-third or one-fourth of the daily amount of calories they need in order to maintain weight. A serving of bacon already makes one-third or one-fourth of the daily amount of calories for weight maintenance.

Calories also increase blood sugar which refers to the glucose in the bloodstream. This glucose produces the energy we need to perform our daily activities. The level of glucose should always be brought back to normal, a task that insulin from the pancreas is responsible for. People suffering from diabetes do not have enough insulin to control their glucose level. This is why it is even harder for them to manage their calorie intake.   Their diet should contain large amounts of dietary fiber. They should decrease their intake of fat and carbohydrates, too.

But diabetic or not, we all have to be mindful of what we eat. We should be aware of the amount of calories we consume per meal. Exercise should be a regular part of our schedule. Through exercise, we burn calories to maintain or lose weight.

Calories truly cannot be ignored. They are in everything we eat and they have an impact on our health and well-being. If you want to be fit and healthy, start minding your calories today. Be aware of how many calories your meals are giving you and set a goal for yourself. Start eating healthy today.

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Is Fruit Juice on the Good Side or on the Bad Side of Healthy Eating?

Recent studies have pointed to children as the largest group of juice consumers today.  And this is not surprising considering that historically, pediatricians and health experts have recommended fruit juice as a healthy source of vitamins, calcium and other nutrients.  Most recently, there were claims made that some fruit juices even contain anti-oxidants that may help to fight systemic diseases like cancer and heart disease.

Although fruit juice is often thought of as an alternative to soda and other sugary juice cocktail and sports drinks, nutritionist still do agree unanimously that fruit juice cannot replace the nutrients derived from a whole fruit.  Why is this so?

What it has …

A typical juice box in the supermarket contains only a little amount of real fruit juice and much more contains a blend of sweeteners that are high in calories and is really no healthier than a can of soda.

Some brands also contain high amounts of artificial colors and flavors and are dehydrated, rehydrated and pasteurized prior to packaging.

And what it doesn’t have …

A 100% fruit juice does not contain fiber which is the key nutrient that a piece of fruit provides. In addition to this, a fruit’s skin and pulp can also be sources of other nutrients needed by the body.

What it does to our body …

Fruit juice since it is loaded with a high sugar concentration can lead to dental problems.  It can stimulate the production of insulin in the body and limit the body’s ability to burn fat thus will lead eventually  obesity.  Or, the other side of the coin can be increasing the risk of malnutrition since it can displace other more nutritious foods from the diet. Among children, cases of flatulence and diarrhea were traced to excessive amount of sugar in the gut.

Based on these, the overall health worthiness of fruit juice, we can say is a lit bit tilted to the bad side. But this doesn’t mean that adults and children alike should stop drinking fruit juices.  The best healthy choice is to still drink and supply the body with at least 60 ounces of water each day. The key here is  learning to set limits and being wise enough to be selective in what we are drinking.

If you enjoyed this article, please take the time and take our fitness survey so we may continue to research articles of interest. Click Here to take survey

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How to Use Nutritional Labels

How to Use Nutritional Labels

Fact – you have full control of your own health.  It’s a good thing that almost all foods we buy come with nutrition labels. Of course, it’s also the age where there are more foods that are unhealthy for us, which makes the nutrition facts label on foods all the more important. Nutrition labels tell you what exactly your favorite can of soup contains, and I don’t mean the ingedients. The nutrition label is also sometimes called Nutrition Facts.

The first thing you should look for in the nutrition label is serving size, which usually uses a common measurement unit such as ‘cup’. It also indicates how many grams that one serving makes. Right below it can be found exactly how many servings there are in one pack (or can). Pay attention to this part of the nutrition label because if you don’t you may actually consume two servings instead of one, essentially doubling your calorie intake.

The next part to look at on a nutrition label is the amount of calories per serving. This is useful when you already know how many calories you need in a day in order to maintain, lose, or gain weight. If the nutrition label on the canned soup tells you that one serving already contains 120 calories, you can deduct that amount from your recommended daily amount of calories and see how much more calorie allowance you have for that day.

The nutrition label also tells you how much of the different types of nutrients you’re getting. This is expressed in grams or milligrams. The three main sources of these are fat, carbohydrates and protein. The nutrition facts label tells you directly how many calories come from fat. It’s important to take a look at the fat content, cholesterol and sodium because these are the nutrients you have to eat less of.

Below the number of grams per nutrient, the nutrition label also tell you how much Vitamin A, C, calcium and iron is present. These, including dietary fiber are the nutrients that you need to eat more of. The percentage in which these are expressed in shows how much it covers your recommended daily amount. When a nutrient is 5% in daily value or below, you’re getting a low amount of it. When a nutrient is 20% in daily value or above, it’s a bit high. This part of the nutrition label will help inform you if you’re getting too much fat from a product or too little dietary fiber, for example.

Reading and understanding a nutrition label is not rocket science. It just requires common sense, knowing the good stuff from the bad and making the right choices based on that. Nutrition labels – always check them out.

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If you are diabetic, in addition to the information on this website concerning diabetes, eHow has a great series of interest.  They also have a video regarding Reading Nutritional Labels for Diabetics.

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Nutrition and The 7 Rules of Healthy Eating

Health is a balanced result between exercise and proper nutrition from healthy eating. Nutrition refers to the food you take in order to nourish your body and to enable it to function properly.

Eating too much or too little of something will manifest corresponding results in the body and its functions just as eating with a balanced diet will. This is exactly why healthy eating is important. By having healthy eating practices, you choose better food options and regulate your intake amount according to what your body needs.

These seven rules can guide you into starting your healthy eating practices.

Rule 1:  Know thyself Know the state you’re in. Write down everything you ate during the day, how much of it you took and what time you took it. After 2-3 days of journaling, you’ll be able to see the foods that aren’t good for you, which ones you need to cut down on and when your hunger pangs usually come.

• Rule 2: Balancing your plate A balanced diet includes grains, fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, and other protein foods. To be in optimum health, you need to eat more grains, fruits and vegetables. Meats and protein foods have to be taken in moderation because they also contain fats. Fats are not altogether bad but they must be the smallest part of your daily intake. To help you achieve a balance, read the nutrition labels and nutrition facts on your grocery items.
• Rule 3: Moderation is Key Healthy eating requires eating with the right portion sizes. One serving of foods rich in carbohydrates such as rice or pasta is the size of half a baseball. Veggies or fruits are the size of a whole baseball to make one serving. A meat serving should appear like a deck of cards.
• Rule 4:  Understanding calories Considering the calorie content of foods is a challenge. Calories refer to the amount of energy found in what we eat. It’s easy to obsess with the calorie content of foods but difficult to follow the right amount. But to make it do-able, remember to consume the amount of calories that you can burn through your daily activities.
• Rule 5: Avoid Skipping Many dieters fail miserably because they skip meals. Skipping meals make the body and mind weak. It creates cravings that can defy the most sensible diet plans. Eat 5-6 small meals a day than two large ones.
• Rule 6: Hydrate Water adds to the feeling of fullness. At the same time, you can sustain yourself in exercise and other activities by staying hydrated.
• Rule 7: Remember to Enjoy Eating Most people eat for pleasure as well as nutrition. The key is to moderate how much you eat and how often you eat them. You can enjoy your favorite foods in moderation, as long as they are an occasional part of your overall healthy diet.

Healthy eating is all about following strict nutrition philosophy, staying awkwardly thin, or depriving yourself of foods that you love. Healthy eating is about absorbing the right foods into your body and having the energy you need and feeling great about yourself.  For more information on healthy eating, here is the link to a great article at helpguide.org. Click Here to take survey

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