Now don't get all excited. We don't have any magic wand solutions that will take the place of exercise and eating right. But we do have a few foods that could help you on your journey to rid yourself of excess flab. Hungry Girl's here with the scoop...
LEAN PROTEIN
To put it simply, protein takes a lot of effort for the body to break down and digest. A lot more than, say, fat. So while your body is working hard to process that protein, you're burning calories. HG tip -- eat fish! Chances are you're not getting enough of it. Not only is fish a fabulous source of lean protein, BUT many types are full of those Omega-3 fatty acids you're always hearing about. Beans are also a wonderful source of protein. And it's no secret how we feel about our friend the soybean. (Let's have a cheer for veggie patties and soy-meats!)
WHOLE GRAINS
Belly fat is not particularly cute on anyone (except maybe babies), so it's exciting news that whole grains can do a number on that stubborn flab around your midsection. One of the easiest ways to get whole grains into your diet? Oatmeal in the morning. Quaker's Simple Harvest Multigrain Hot Cereal is really good and just full of grains. Also, Kashi GoLean's Hot Cereal packs in 7 whole grains and a big 5 - 7g fiber! Mmmmm...
GRAPEFRUIT
Ever since you were a kid popping Flintstones Chewables, you've known that Vitamin C is good for you -- and that certainly hasn't changed. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant AND has been shown in studies to help burn fat. So, if you're looking for a snack, how's about a nice, juicy grapefruit? The theory is that grapefruit helps to lower insulin levels, which keeps you from being hungry all the time! We know it smacks of classic diet food, but those Ruby Reds are MIGHTY delicious! If it's too sour for you straight, sprinkle it with some no-calorie sweetener like Splenda or stevia.GREEN TEAGreen tea is EVERYWHERE. It's been classified as a "superfood" as it's been linked to reduced rates of heart disease and cancer. And now it helps us lose weight too? Green tea has been shown to raise our metabolism, which is key in our battle with the bad stuff. Researchers also suspect that substances called polyphenols combined with caffeine are responsible for its fat-burning properties. If the hot murky stuff doesn't do it for you, try HG's Green Tea Crème Swappuccino! Only 75 calories and SO GOOD!
SPICY FOODS
You know how when you eat spicy foods, you sometimes start to sweat a little (ew)? That's because it's given a little kick to your heart rate. These little kicks will result in a temporary increase in your metabolism, which will help you burn fat a little easier for a bit. A quick hit with cayenne, red pepper flakes, or whatever hot sauce you fancy should do the trick and get your blood pumping. And these spices are practically calorie-free. Yes!
LIGHT DAIRY
Hey, dairy queens! Good news! It turns out that people who eat low-fat or fat-free dairy lose MORE weight than people who don't. Sure we mentioned protein before, but it bears bringing up again since the magical combo of calcium and protein seems to work wonders. We're WAY into yogurt, so we suggest picking up some Fage Total 0% Greek Yogurt and mixing in your favorite fruits, sugar-free preserves... or whatever! Also, light string cheese is a GREAT little snack, with only around 50-60 calories and 2.5g fat a pop. Not bad for hard cheese, people. WATERExperts say it's important to drink lots of water if you're trying to burn fat Your body can't work effectively if it's dehydrated -- not only will you FEEL like you don't have any energy, but also your body really won't have what it needs to function and burn off fat. Keep that machine humming -- drink around 8 glasses of water a day!
CINNAMON
Sure this stuff tastes good -- that's why it's found in SO many things. But those chefs might not know that their sprinkling of cinnamon is helping the body process sugar more effectively and lower blood sugar levels. High blood sugar can lead to the body storing more fat, so maybe put together a little shaker of cinnamon and Splenda to sprinkle on your favorite foods! Then whip up some fat-burning cinnamon toast by using your new concoction on whole-wheat bread!
APPLES
An apple a day isn't going to keep the gym away, but it'll probably make your diet plan more effective. Word on the street is that the pectin contained in apples limits how much fat your cells can absorb. (SWEET!) Plus it's a naturally soluble fiber, which is always good. So next time you feel all snacky, grab whichever apple looks best to you (we love Fujis!).
adapted from Hungry girls
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Ideas for Ice-Breakers/Energisers
Following are some suggestions for short activities to encourage participants to move around, relax, take a break from what they are doing or get to know each other better. Some may have relevance to a topic, some may develop skills and others are designed simply to change the pace or focus of the training. Energisers and games can be particularly useful after a long presentation, or to start the first afternoon session of a workshop. As a general rule, energisers should be chosen with a sensitivity to the cultural, gender and religious norms of the group. People’s physical abilities should also considered.
‘Fruit salad’ - this is an energiser that can also be used as a way of forming random groups. First decide on the number of groups needed, then elicit the same number of types of fruit from the group (e.g. four groups = oranges, bananas, mangoes, papaya). Allocate a fruit to each person, making sure all the fruit types are used. Arrange a circle of chairs in the middle of the room, with one less chair than the number of participants. Everyone sits, except for one person who stands in the middle. The person in the middle then calls out one of the fruits. All those with that name run to find another chair at the same time as the person in the middle. One person will be left standing in the middle again, and they then call out a fruit name - all those with that name run to find another seat. At the end, the facilitator calls out “Fruit Salad” which means that everyone has to get up and find another seat. The energiser should only last ten minutes, and after this, all the fruit types can form small groups.
‘Move to the spot’ - this energiser takes five minutes. Ask participants to spread around the room and to pick a particular ‘spot’ that is ‘theirs’. Then ask people to move around the room, doing something suggested by the facilitator, such as: “Say hello to anyone wearing red; Hop, skip or jump; Whistle or make a strange sound; Walk backwards”, and so on. When the facilitator says “Stop!”, everyone has to get back to their ‘spot’ as soon as possible. This game can be fun, and gets the energy going, if it is not done for too long - people will get bored quite quickly.
‘Ha!ha!ha!’ - this energiser is useful for changing pace or if there is tension in the group. The facilitator explains that s/he is going to make them laugh. The facilitator starts by saying “Ha!” and getting the next person to repeat this, adding another “Ha!”. Participants then repeat what their neighbour says, adding another “Ha!” each time. In this way, people are ‘made’ to laugh and very quickly everyone will be laughing. Try it out in social situation first - it does work!
‘Making rain’ - this is similar to the ‘Ha!Ha!Ha!’ energiser. Everyone sits in a circle and the facilitator starts by drumming her/his fingers on a table or chair. The next person starts to drum their fingers, then the next, until everyone is drumming their fingers. The sound is like that of heavy rain or a thunderstorm. End the exercise when everyone is ‘making rain’.
‘Animal families’ - prepare slips of paper with the names and family members of different animals (e.g. Mother Elephant, Father Elephant, Sister Elephant and Brother Elephant; Mother Lion, Father Lion...). Participants are given a slip of paper and they should go round the room looking for their ‘family’ . The facilitator then calls out “family reunion” and everyone has to quickly find their ‘family’. Noises of the animals can be made if an extra element of chaos is wanted.
‘A’s and B’s’ - this energiser can also be used to form random groups. Find an open space for this exercise. Participants should silently choose one person in the group to be their ‘A’ and one person to be their ‘B’ (there are no criteria for selecting As and Bs). Once everyone has made their choice, the Facilitator explains that people should now try to get as close to their ‘A’s” as possible and as far away from their ‘B’s’. People should be encouraged to move quickly - the only rule is that they are not allowed to touch anyone. After a few minutes, participants are asked to reverse the process (getting close to the ‘B’s’ and far away from the ‘A’s”). This exercise will make people move about in unusual ways and should generate a lot of laughter.
Knotty problem – this energiser can be used for problem solving or giving clear instructions. Ask for 2 volunteers for this exercise, and then ask them to leave the room. Then ask everyone left to stand up, and get themselves into a ‘knot’ by intertwining hands/arms, while holding others’ hands. Then, when the group is in a significant muddle, ask the 2 volunteers to come in and sort out the knot by giving instructions. They should be able to enable the group to form a circle while holding hands. This only works when the volunteers empower and encourage all participants to work it out together - otherwise they don’t generally get far!
Another option is to give (or get someone else to give) instructions to the group, i.e. “all talk to each other and work out a way to undo this knotty problem. Go ahead. Over to you. That’s it. etc.” and observe the dramatic difference - generally, knot undone within a minute or two.
Plank – this energiser is good for helping people learn names, laugh and get to know one another. Ask participants to line up in two places in the training room. Now ask them to reorder themselves alphabetically by name (or by birthday, without the year, or other) without talking to one another. The trainer then checks for accuracy.
One-two-three, stamp-clap-? – Ask participants to get into pairs. Count out loud alternately 1,2,3,1,2,3 etc. Develop a rhythm, and then ask pairs to find another partner, and replace 1 with stamping your foot. Then find another partner and repeat, but also replace 2 with a clap. Find another partner and repeat, but replace 3 with any sort of gesticulation and accompanying noise that you want. Ask each pair to demonstrate their stamp-clap-? to the whole group
‘Fruit salad’ - this is an energiser that can also be used as a way of forming random groups. First decide on the number of groups needed, then elicit the same number of types of fruit from the group (e.g. four groups = oranges, bananas, mangoes, papaya). Allocate a fruit to each person, making sure all the fruit types are used. Arrange a circle of chairs in the middle of the room, with one less chair than the number of participants. Everyone sits, except for one person who stands in the middle. The person in the middle then calls out one of the fruits. All those with that name run to find another chair at the same time as the person in the middle. One person will be left standing in the middle again, and they then call out a fruit name - all those with that name run to find another seat. At the end, the facilitator calls out “Fruit Salad” which means that everyone has to get up and find another seat. The energiser should only last ten minutes, and after this, all the fruit types can form small groups.
‘Move to the spot’ - this energiser takes five minutes. Ask participants to spread around the room and to pick a particular ‘spot’ that is ‘theirs’. Then ask people to move around the room, doing something suggested by the facilitator, such as: “Say hello to anyone wearing red; Hop, skip or jump; Whistle or make a strange sound; Walk backwards”, and so on. When the facilitator says “Stop!”, everyone has to get back to their ‘spot’ as soon as possible. This game can be fun, and gets the energy going, if it is not done for too long - people will get bored quite quickly.
‘Ha!ha!ha!’ - this energiser is useful for changing pace or if there is tension in the group. The facilitator explains that s/he is going to make them laugh. The facilitator starts by saying “Ha!” and getting the next person to repeat this, adding another “Ha!”. Participants then repeat what their neighbour says, adding another “Ha!” each time. In this way, people are ‘made’ to laugh and very quickly everyone will be laughing. Try it out in social situation first - it does work!
‘Making rain’ - this is similar to the ‘Ha!Ha!Ha!’ energiser. Everyone sits in a circle and the facilitator starts by drumming her/his fingers on a table or chair. The next person starts to drum their fingers, then the next, until everyone is drumming their fingers. The sound is like that of heavy rain or a thunderstorm. End the exercise when everyone is ‘making rain’.
‘Animal families’ - prepare slips of paper with the names and family members of different animals (e.g. Mother Elephant, Father Elephant, Sister Elephant and Brother Elephant; Mother Lion, Father Lion...). Participants are given a slip of paper and they should go round the room looking for their ‘family’ . The facilitator then calls out “family reunion” and everyone has to quickly find their ‘family’. Noises of the animals can be made if an extra element of chaos is wanted.
‘A’s and B’s’ - this energiser can also be used to form random groups. Find an open space for this exercise. Participants should silently choose one person in the group to be their ‘A’ and one person to be their ‘B’ (there are no criteria for selecting As and Bs). Once everyone has made their choice, the Facilitator explains that people should now try to get as close to their ‘A’s” as possible and as far away from their ‘B’s’. People should be encouraged to move quickly - the only rule is that they are not allowed to touch anyone. After a few minutes, participants are asked to reverse the process (getting close to the ‘B’s’ and far away from the ‘A’s”). This exercise will make people move about in unusual ways and should generate a lot of laughter.
Knotty problem – this energiser can be used for problem solving or giving clear instructions. Ask for 2 volunteers for this exercise, and then ask them to leave the room. Then ask everyone left to stand up, and get themselves into a ‘knot’ by intertwining hands/arms, while holding others’ hands. Then, when the group is in a significant muddle, ask the 2 volunteers to come in and sort out the knot by giving instructions. They should be able to enable the group to form a circle while holding hands. This only works when the volunteers empower and encourage all participants to work it out together - otherwise they don’t generally get far!
Another option is to give (or get someone else to give) instructions to the group, i.e. “all talk to each other and work out a way to undo this knotty problem. Go ahead. Over to you. That’s it. etc.” and observe the dramatic difference - generally, knot undone within a minute or two.
Plank – this energiser is good for helping people learn names, laugh and get to know one another. Ask participants to line up in two places in the training room. Now ask them to reorder themselves alphabetically by name (or by birthday, without the year, or other) without talking to one another. The trainer then checks for accuracy.
One-two-three, stamp-clap-? – Ask participants to get into pairs. Count out loud alternately 1,2,3,1,2,3 etc. Develop a rhythm, and then ask pairs to find another partner, and replace 1 with stamping your foot. Then find another partner and repeat, but also replace 2 with a clap. Find another partner and repeat, but replace 3 with any sort of gesticulation and accompanying noise that you want. Ask each pair to demonstrate their stamp-clap-? to the whole group
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