1. Process flour, bran, oats, soda and butter until crumbly; add sugar, water to make a firm dough.  Knead dough on floured surface until smooth; refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 180 C/160 C fan-forced.  Grease oven trays; line with baking paper.
3. Roll dough out until about 5mm thick and cut into about 7mm rounds. 
4. Bake for 15 minutes. 

4. After you’ve completed two of the above resistance/interval days, perform one other purely interval day mixed with some LSD training (long slow distance training).  After you’ve completed your 20 minutes of interval training, add on another 30-40 minutes of purely moderate to hard LSD training.  If you’re always doing your cardio training on the bike try the x-trainer, rower or treadmill to add some variety and shock the body into shape.
5. The above examples only equate to three visits to the local gym.  
6. On the other remaining days – yes, that’s 4 days - ensure you hit at least 10,000 steps.  
7. Get the eating under control and you’re guaranteed results.
Source:  media release http://www.unsw.edu.au/news/pad/media/2007/jan/Fat_exercise.html

Your body needs cholesterol to help produce hormones in your body.   There’s 2 types of cholesterol HDL or (good) cholesterol and LDL or (bad) cholesterol.   Good cholesterol actuall helps remove cholesterol from your blood.  A good measure of hdl is 60mg/l+.   Bad cholesterol builds up in arteries leading to heart disease a good measure of this is less then 100mg/dl. 

How do I lower cholesterol?

With a healthy low fat diet low in saturated fats less then 7% of kj intake.  Also reduce trans fats (hydrogenated oils) found in packaged products (less 200 milligrams).  Aim to consume fish in your diet or take a salmon oil supplement.  Exercise every day perform weight training 2 x per/week and aim to walk at least 4 times at a brisk pace don’t stroll (shouldn’t be able to hold a long winded conversation).  If after this your cholesterol levels do not come down your doctor may propose mediactions.  
 

Should I get tested?

Everyone should get a cholesterol test at least every five years, starting in their 20s. It’s a simple blood test.

Researchers compared the effects of drinking nonfat milk, a soy protein drink, or a carbohydrate drink on building muscle and burning fat after completing weight lifting workouts.

All three groups gained muscle, but the milk drinkers got the best results, says researcher Stuart M. Phillips, PhD, associate professor of kinesiology and an exercise physiologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The study was funded by the National Dairy Council and published in the Aug. 1 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Participants weight-trained five days a week for 12 weeks, and all the participants were novices. They had not done any weight training for the past eight months. The exercises were done on standard weight training machines, which worked out all the major muscle groups, with participants increasing repetitions as they gained strength. Each session lasted about one hour.

The drinks were all vanilla-flavored, served in opaque containers, and had an identical number of calories –178 per serving.
The milk drinkers also lost more body fat.  Source WebMD

1) Eat only what is available over the counter
2) No supersizing unless offered
3) Consume every item on the menu at least once

In the end, Spurlock has a weight gain of 24 pounds and experiences harrowing visits to the doctor. The issues that are explored in “Super Size Me” beg the question, what has changed in our environment to cause this obesity problem to reach epidemic proportions? Furthermore, what is causing people to overeat as we do?
A groundbreaking study, reported in 2003 by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, found that between 1977 and 1996, portion sizes for key food groups grew markedly in the United States, not only at fast-food restaurants but also in homes and at conventional restaurants. In particular, portion sizes for salty and sugary foods, essentially, “comfort foods” experienced the most dramatic portion size increases. For example, the USDA’s recommended serving size for a cookie is half an ounce, while the average cookie sold in restaurants was found to be 700% larger.
The by-products of our affluent American society, envied by many around the world, have a definite dark side, our obesity rate, for starters. In a culture where more is better and disposable income is abundant, when it comes to eating we have developed a “more food, more conveniently and more often” attitude.
Stress: A Pre-Cursor to Obesity

Certainly, no one forces us to eat more than our body needs, so what is driving this “hunger” for more? Over the last two decades, almost proportionally to the dramatic increase of food consumed and chronic disease diagnoses, the amount of stress in our society and on each of us individually has increased significantly. Stress is the term medical researcher Hans Selye, M.D., PhD, gave to the experience our bodies go through when we have to adjust or adapt to the various changes our bodies experience during the course of the day. While many of us think of stress in relationship to emotional states, many other factors can exert an equally detrimental effect on our bodies as well. When we do not get enough sleep or rest, work or exercise too much, nutritional status, have an infection, have allergies, injuries or trauma, undergo dental or surgical procedures, have emotional upsets, or deal with any aspect of reproductive function such a pregnancy, menopause, etc., our bodies must chemically and neurologically adapt in order to survive. Part of this adaptation process relies heavily on the nutrition that is available for the kidney’s adrenal glands to produce the adaptive hormones. It is often this aspect of stress that can lead to overeating, and what’s more, overeating the types of foods that cause unhealthy weight gain.
How it works
Thanks to the work of M.I.T. Professor Judith Wurtman, Ph.D. and others we now understand the significant role that a neurotransmitter or “chemical messenger” called Serotonin plays in producing our cravings for complex carbohydrates and sugars, two of the largest contributors to unhealthy weight gain. Serotonin along with other neurotransmitters, are produced by our bodies as “feel good” hormones. Under stress, we do not have enough of these hormones and we become motivated to “self-sooth” by behaviors that lead to the increase of Serotonin. Overeating of carbohydrate and fatty-rich foods or “comfort foods” such as cookies, ice cream, etc. significantly increases these hormones. Many addictions such as smoking, alcohol, and drugs are also attempts to self-sooth and increase Serotonin, but no other addictive or unhealthy behavior is as socially acceptable and as easily available as over eating. We can do it anywhere, anytime, alone or with company. It is no wonder we have such a love affair with eating.
In addition, our bodies need for certain nutrients, specifically protein, Vitamins A, C, and E, unsaturated fatty acids, cholesterol, and minerals, skyrocket when we are “adapting” under stress. Often, if we do not stop the stress cycle or do not appropriately supplement these nutrients, we can turn to overeating to satisfy the body’s demands for the fuel it needs to keep dealing with the stress we are experiencing.
For a period of time, foods that comfort, sooth or supplement can make us feel calmer until our level of Serotonin drops again or until we become more exhausted and need to feed ourselves, yet again. Then, we start the cycle all over and consume more carbohydrate and fatty rich foods until we feel better. This is the cycle of self-medication or self-soothing practiced in homes, offices, restaurants, automobiles and yes, even bathrooms across America. The long-term effect of such behaviors, apart from obesity and escalating chronic diseases, is that our nervous systems are being hyper-stimulated. Anxiety, exhaustion, depression, overeating and insomnia are just a few of the symptoms we experience when our nervous systems are working on overload.
As a result, it is no wonder that within the last year, low-carbohydrate diets have proven effective for so many people. Approximately 20% of Americans or 20 million people are currently on a low-carb diet. For many of us, our stress level is a major factor in the over consumption of carbohydrates, therefore reducing or eating normal amounts of carbohydrates is spawning weight loss. The real issue, however, is how long can we reduce are carbohydrate loading without reducing our stress levels and the behaviors that create elevated stress in the first place?
Causes of Stress

Prior to the early 1970’s, the majority of family units were structured as a one wage earner household where the male worked and the female stayed at home, taking care of the house and family. Driven largely by social and socio-economic factors, all of that has changed. Now, the overwhelming majority of families include both parents working and we find ourselves on a treadmill of more work, more responsibilities, more demands and non-stop scheduling that has many of us in a state of physical and, at times, emotional exhaustion.
Added to the mix is our competitive culture, which often leads to isolation or a “them against us” thinking. Isolation of this nature causes additional “hidden” stress. A Hindu Vendata truth is that “the whole world is one family”. It is said that there is only one disease, the disease of separateness; separating oneself from the awareness that as members of the human family, we are one living organism. The drama created by a “one-up” or “one-down” dynamic, that we find in competitive societies, can lead to the exhaustion and the psychosocial behavioral issues which can contribute to overeating.
Understanding Exhaustion and its’ Effect on Obesity
The tipping point at which our bodies can no longer compensate or adapt from the stress it is under, is based in large part on the threshold of nutritional competency and the state of integrity of our nervous system. When our central nervous system, which governs every cell in our body and makes life possible, is not working efficiently, we have a decrease in bodily function and the ability to adapt to the world we live in. Chronic Fatigue Syndromes, CFS, are rampant in our culture today and growing at an alarming rate because of the over stimulation and increased demands placed on our nervous systems. Add to this inadequate nutrition and a decreased ability of our bodies to digest and absorb properly because of the stress, and we see the foundation of the epidemic of chronic diseases being currently reported.
What is so shocking for us, as Americans, is that while we live in one of the most affluent societies ever to exist on earth and have one of the most technologically advanced medical systems we are raked at approximately twenty-sixth in the world health Olympics. This is not the failure of our medical system, but in fact, the failure to live in our bodies mindfully and respectfully, taking time for rest, proper nutrition, reflection, intimacy with self and others and serving the common good of society. It is this imbalance that leads us to chronic stress, which leads to physical and, if you will, spiritual exhaustion that is producing the levels of chronic diseases and the rampant obesity we see today.
Self-Esteem and Health
We have an innate understanding of how we need to choose to live to be healthy.

Yet, adages about health i.e., “early to be, early to rise, makes a man healthy wealthy and wise”, are often ignored in place of our instant gratification or immediate comfort.

Physical labor has taken a back seat to “mind work”, and today we work harder than ever before to have the money to buy a membership to a gym or spa so we can do the physical exercise we need to be healthy and attractive. However, rarely do we actually have the time to go to the gym we pay membership fees to. Statistically, the average gym membership is used for the first 4 – 6 weeks after signing up and then falls off dramatically. Workout facilities count on this phenomenon when planning their recruitment and enrollment numbers. Likewise, diet plans and weight loss centers know that 90% or more of their customers will continue to have body weight issues, in spite of their best efforts to re-direct to a different way of eating. Why?
The Oprah Syndrome
One of the most powerful, successful people in the world, Oprah Winfrey is a brilliant example of the “super size” syndrome in our culture. With every possible service, care and expert available to her, Oprah has continued to struggle with significant weight gain and loss for many years. In 2001, a chart published in a popular magazine, documents her weight gain and loss over the previous 20 years. Even during the height of her popularity and professional success, her body weight rose to dangerously elevated levels. The reasons most of us give for not taking care of ourselves include; not having enough time to shop for or cook the right foods; not being sure what’s best for our body type; not enough money for domestic help so we can exercise, meditate or relax; stress over money and achieving success. Oprah is an individual who has more than enough money and success to eliminate all those concerns, yet in spite of that she still does not consistently maintain a proper body weight.
Driven by personal history and ambition, Oprah offers a perfect example of the potential outcome of Serotonin driven self-soothing, which invites us to ask and answer questions about self-esteem and self care. When we understand the relationship between our unconscious mind, our self-esteem and the serotonin connection, it becomes quite clear that what is at the core of our “super sizing” is not solved by the “diet of the month” or the next “how to” bestseller. Rather, an examination of our personal worldview, our ego state, our treatment and regard for nature and for others, what we value, what we believe in, how much we consume and how much we accumulate. When these aspects of self are aligned with choices that lead to moderation rather than ambition, that produce balance rather than extremes, that debunk the thinking that “more is better”, we then select the foods we innately know are healthy, even when we must choose from the fast food menu.
In a culture comprised of 5% of the world population, using 75% of the world’s resources, we have come to accept excess as a way of life and a standard to subscribe to. In the 1980’s, Robin Leach’s television show, “Life Styles of the Rich and Famous”, tainted our appetites for a standard of over consumption that has brought us to where we are today – obese and chronically diseased.
Take a Tip from the Gurus
Eastern philosophies offer us an opportunity to re-think our approach to the way we live. Quite opposite from our “in your face” attitude of self-manifestation, Eastern wisdom invites us to ponder, “how much do I really need; to do; to have; to eat; to own; to control; to be content with my life; and what is the role of gratitude in my life?” Shouldn’t having a calm, well functioning nervous system, the source of all life in the body, be a main objective for all of us instead of trying to trick the body into doing what we want with the latest diet craze or vitamin pills available?

Change the Question
It may be time to change the questions we not only ask ourselves, but the questions we are asked as consumers. Maybe, if when making his fast food purchases, Morgan Spurlock was asked the question “super size or down size, sir?” the choices he might have made could have resulted in significant weight loss rather than weight gain, but then Spurlock would not have a movie to make, or the millions that will be realized from it.

Georgianna Donadio D.C., M.Sc., Ph.D., has conducted a private practice in Whole Person Health Care since 1976. She is the Founder and Director of The New England School of Whole Health Education, the pioneer of Whole Health Education and a provider of patient and healthcare professional education since 1977. For more information, visit www.wholehealtheducation.org or call 1-888-354-HEAL (4325).

If you want to get significant results, cut the alcohol to a very minimal amount.   But if you go out drinking make sure you consume alcohol on a full stomach and go drink for drink with water. 
 

• Cook fish in alfoil on the barbecue or oven
• Use low fat dairy products
• Use low fat ricotta cheese, instead the real fattening type
• Use natural yoghurt in dishes instead of creams
• Use a non-stick frying pan
• Brush the pan with oil instead of pouring oil into the pan
• Trim off all visible fat from meats, including skin from chicken as the skin contains 50% of the fat
• Use avocado instead of butter as a spread on sandwiches
• Use evaporated skim milk for cream based soups
• Always have frozen vegetable mixes in the freezer

The best way to visualise the understanding of cellulite is to quickly grab a pencil and paper.  Draw 3 lines - the outer line is your outer epidermis (line 1).  The line below this is called the inner dermis (line 2). 
(Line 3) Lies in the subcutaneous layer, which attaches the skin to the underlying tissues.  This layer consists of loose connective tissue and a lot of adipose (fat) tissue (this gets tested with skinfolds). 
On the other hand, the dermis consists of dense connective tissue composed mainly of collagen fibres (responsible for the mechanical strength of skin).
Picture it like this; the epidermis is like a pair of pantihose (only very small things can pass thru it) and the dermis is like fishnets.  Genetically though some people have fishnets (dermis - connective tissue) that have larger openings and some people have smaller openings.  People who display cellulite are those that have a dermis layer that is not as dense.  Add to this excess fat at the subcutaneous layer and the fat pushes through the dermis layer like playdough through a fishnet.
There’s actually two major components that create cellulite - genetics (sorry) and large deposits of fat.
Now why don’t men appear to suffer so much with cellulite?   When there are large fat stores there’s the presence and activity of the fat-promoting enzyme lipoprotein lipase.  Women tend to have a higher percent of this activity in the thighs and hips in preparation for pregnancy and lactation.  Thus, a woman who genetically has a dermis layer that is less dense is more likely to have cellulite than a man who is carrying the same ratio of lean tissue to fat %.
What is the solution? 
• Decrease the amount of body fat on your body (less fat, less playdough to be pushed through the dermis)
• Tone up with resistance training

Think about it?

If you skipped breakfast by the time you get to lunch your famished. Your body is thinking give me food and give it to me quick. Your bodys response “Finally some food. I will have store some this because I just don’t know when this guys going to feed me again”.

RESULT FAT STORAGE.

Here’s some great ways to keep your metabolism fired up:

1. Don’t starve yourself.
2. Eat 6-8 small meals evenly distributed throughout the day.
3. Never ever think of skipping breakfast, even make yourself up a quick smoothie.
4. Consume protein especially with your lunch and dinner it gives your meal its satiety as well as providing essential amino acids and vitamins.
5. Weight train or perform some resistance exercise such as squats, push-ups, pull ups etc.
6. Ensure you get adequate sleep to keep those cortisol levels down (8 hours recommended)