Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle

Named after the whooping crane, which apparently makes these nostalgic berries a part of its winter feasting ritual, cranberries are a native crop to the northern regions North America. They grow in moist woodlands and bogs and are a close relative to the blueberry.

Cranberries are known to inhibit bacteria from adhering to the bladder and urinary tract, which prevents urinary and bladder infections. They are also extremely high in antioxidants, the “good guys” that help fight disease and boost immune function. Like blueberries (their cousins) these berries are of the top sources for antioxidants when measured against 100 kinds of fruits, vegetables and grains.

Commercial cranberries are produced in bogs in Massachusetts and other East Coast states, as well as Washington and Oregon. Although cranberries are not generally sprayed with insecticides, most commercial non-organic varieties are treated with growth hormones to plump them up and take the edge off of their notoriously sour notes. Thus, buy organic if you can.

Since fresh cranberries are most abundant over the holidays, stock up on them while supplies last. Buy them fresh from the produce stand and store them in the freezer for 6-12 months. Use them throughout the winter months to help immune function and ward off colds and flu.

An excellent way to get your daily dose of cranberries is by drinking the juice. Unfortunately, most commercial cranberry juice is sweetened with white sugar or high fructose corn syrup. To make your own cranberry juice concentrate at home, use this simple formula: Place 1 bag of fresh, organic cranberries and water to cover in a saucepan. Simmer for 20 minutes. Blend the cranberries in a food processor and add a bit of sweetener (organic sugar, brown rice syrup, agave nectar…) to taste. Add 12 ounces of water to 1-2 tablespoons of the concentrate. The concentrate can be frozen for up to 1 year.

RECIPE: Traditional Cranberry Orange Sauce
Yield: 6-8 side servings

You’ll never consider buying canned cranberry sauce again after trying this easy recipe for a sweet and punchy topping for potatoes, poultry or tempeh. For a nice garnish, grate a little of the orange peel and sprinkle it over the sauce just before ready to serve. The orange can also be replaced by a small handful of seasonal kumquats - thinly slice them, peel and all, and toss them into the pot.

1 orange, peeled and chopped (keep the peel)
3 whole cloves
8-12 ounce bag fresh, organic cranberries
1/2-3/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup apple juice
1 cinnamon stick
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons arrowroot powder mixed with 2 teaspoons water

Poke the whole cloves into a 2-inch piece of the orange peel. Place the peel, along with the cranberries, maple syrup, apple juice, cinnamon stick and nutmeg in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes. Stir the berries occasionally and mash them with the back of a wooden spoon until they pop.

Whisk the arrowroot with the water and slowly drizzle it into the cranberries, whisking briskly to prevent clumping. Cook another 2-3 minutes, until the sauce has thickened slightly and has a glazed look to it. Remove the orange peel and cinnamon stick. Taste, adding more maple syrup for sweetness, as desired. Serve warm.

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A calorie isn’t a nutrient, but some nutrients provide calories. Protein, carbohydrates and fat make up the calorie content on various foods. Here are some helpful stats, 1 gram of:

• Protein contains 4 calories
• Carbohydrate contains 4 calories
• Fat contains 9 calories
• alcohol contains 7 calories

The remaining nutrients such as water, minerals and vitamins do not provide calories. We must factor in all of the above to understand completely how many calories we should consume.

Keywords: Calories | What are calories

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I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving, I sure did…I did the no no and ate to much but I walked afterward trying to burn some of those calories. I am down here in Florida and let me tell you yesterday the weather was close to perfect. If you live down here you know what I am talking about. 

 
 I was reading an interesting article that says that we eat an average of 1.5 pounds of food on thanksgiving. All I could think to myself is WOW! I didn’t eat quite that much but that can’t be healthy. This time of year is when you really have to be careful…all the holidays and depending where you are at, the cold weather which makes you want to stay in by the fire place and watch a movie and drink hot coco  

 
It is quite common people to gain 10 pounds or more over the winter season, try and get up and get active…clean, go to the gym…do something! Well I will be posting some more great recipes very soon, so look out for them.   If you have any of your own that you would like to post, we are always up to try new recipes.

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 Obesity is now considered a disease–not a moral failing. According to a 1995 report from the Institute of Medicine, “obesity is a heterogeneous disease in which genetic, environmental, psychological, and other factors are involved. It occurs when energy intake exceeds the amount of energy expended over time. Only in a small minority of cases is obesity caused by such illnesses as hypothyroidism or the result of taking medications, such as steroids, that can cause weight gain.” 

Public health concerns about this disease relate to its link to numerous other diseases that can lead to premature illness or death. The report notes that overweight individuals who lose even relatively small amounts of weight are likely to:

• lower their blood pressure (and thereby the risk of heart attack and stroke)
• reduce abnormally high levels of blood glucose (associated with diabetes)
• bring blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides (associated with cardiovascular disease) down to more desirable levels
• reduce sleep apnea, or irregular breathing during sleep
• decrease the risk of osteoarthritis of the weight-bearing joints
• decrease depression
• increase self-esteem.

Of course, losing excess weight is also likely to improve appearance, which is a strong motivation for many people.

–M.L.

Publication No. (FDA) 98-1287

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• 1-lb. well - trimmed beef top sirloin steak, 1 inch thick, cut into 2 x 1/8 - inch strips
• 1 medium seedless orange
• 1tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups red or green pepper chunks

1. Place beef strips in medium mixing bowl. set aside. Grate 1-1/2 teaspoons peel from orange. Set aside. Remove and discard peel. Cut orange into 1/4 inch slices. Cut each slice in half. Set aside. Sprinkle meat with 1 teaspoon reserved peel, the soy sauce, ginger, cayenne and garlic powder. Toss to coat.

1. Spray 12-inch nonstick skillet with nonstick vegetable cooking spray. Heat skillet over medium heat. Add meat mixture. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until meat is slightly pink, stirring frequesntly. Using slotted spoon, remove meat from sillet. Set aside.

1. Wipe skillet with paper towel, In same skillet, combine cornstarch and remaining 1/2 teaspoon peel. Blend in water. Add pepper chunks. Cook over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes, or until mixture is thickened and translucent and peppers are tender-crisp, stirring frequently. Stir in meat and orange pieces. cook 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, or until hot, stirring occasionally.

Keywords: Spicy beef with peppers and oranges

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Over the past year I have heard so much hype about Burn Fat Feed Muscle. I really just bought the e-book to see if all the talk was really true.

This is the #1 best selling book for a reason, its reputation really holds up in my eyes. Tom Venuto is the author who wrote this book and is a real genuine guy. He wrote this book because he was dedicated in finding a solution that would work for anyone. For all of you that have never heard of Tom Venuto, let me tell you a little bit about him.

He is a bodybuilder, who has some of the same similar goals as we all do. He wanted to lose weight and has succeeded. Tom has shown so many what this book is really made of. He is out to help people reach their goals of losing weight by explaining good eating habits. Gaining muscle, while losing weight is one major focus point that he continues to make throughout his book. This program teaches you all the techniques to losing weight in a healthy way. With the right exercising tips, you will be on the right track to getting in shape.

This program gives you the confidence and motivation to keep the weight off, so spend your free time like I and so many others did learning about what works just for you and your body type.

Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle

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There is alarming news that I have recently read, the center of disease control shows that almost 70% of Americans are obese or over weight! We must start to take control of this self inflicted disease.

There are to many other diseases that arn’t preventable why add to the death toll for something that we can take action on? All I am saying is we need try harder, watch what you eat, try to walk when you can. Just don’t sit there and wait until it gets out of control.

I will keep posting articles and honest reviews for diets and products that actually work so you don’t go waisting your money on fad diets that do nothing for you. If anyone has recommendations, I would love to hear them.

Tags: Weight Loss News | Weight Loss

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There have been countless studies performed on the role of protein in the muscle growth process to try and determine exactly how much protein you should consume to build muscle mass. Recently, several studies have looked at the role that dietary protein plays in helping you lose fat, and more importantly, helping you keep it off!

One thing scientists have discovered is that eating lean protein foods is important for regulating body composition because it decreases your appetite.

In a 2003 study reported in the journal, Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition And Metabolic Care (2003; 6(6): 635-638), protein was shown to be more satiating (made you feel fuller) than both carbohydrate and fat both in the short term and the long term.

Eating more lean protein foods has also been proven as an effective strategy to help you burn fat and keep it off because of something called, “dietary thermogenesis” (also known as the thermic effect of food).

In a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition in 2005 (93(2): 281-289), researchers followed a group of 113 overweight subjects after 4 weeks of a very low calorie diet, through a 6 month period of weight maintenance. The subjects were divided into a protein group or a control group. The protein group was simply given an extra 30 grams of protein per day on top of their usual diet.

The researchers found that during weight maintenance, the group with the higher protein intake was less likely to regain the lost weight, and any weight gain in the protein group was lean tissue and not fat. The results were attributed to higher thermic effect and a decrease in appetite.

Although calories will always be the bottom line when it comes to fat loss, studies such as these are confirming what bodybuilders have known for a long time: That calories are not the only factor that can influence your body composition. Your protein intake and your ratios of protein relative to carbohydrate and fat can clearly play a key role in helping you lose fat and keep the fat off.

None of this is news to bodybuilders or to anyone who is already familiar with bodybuilding-style nutrition programs such as Burn the fat feed the muscle . But it’s interesting that such positive results were achieved in studies where protein was increased so conservatively - as little as 30 additional grams of protein per day or a 20% increase above traditional protein recommendations.

Many bodybuilding-style diets (such as Burn The Fat and Body For Life) call for as much as 30%-40% of the total daily calories from protein and some competitive bodybuilders crank up the protein (temporarily) to as much as 50% before competitions.

I’m curious to see if any research is ever conducted with these more aggressive protein intakes. If so, my guess is that we will find once again, that the bodybuilders are ahead of the science when it comes to the manipulation of diet for improving body composition.

The take home lesson is simple: If you remove some carbs and put in some protein - nothing too radical; even as little as trading 30 grams per day of carbs for 30 grams of lean protein - this small change in your diet may decrease your appetite, decrease your body fat and help you keep the fat off after you lose it.

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder and author of the #1 best selling e-book, “Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle,” which teaches you how to burn fat without drugs or supplements using the little-known secrets of the world’s best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and turbo-charge your metabolism by visiting: Burn the fat feed the muscle . To get Tom’s free fitness newsletter, visit: http://www.tomvenuto.com/

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