Many people have difficulty losing their fat belly, nothing is more frustrating than to get your motivation up, find the perfect diet and exercise program for you and then not lose and ounce. Some people may actually have a metabolic issue that makes it virtually impossible to lose weight, but not many.

For most of us the harsh reality is that we are just not being as good as we think we are. There are a few simple things you can do that will help keep you honest in your weight loss journey.

For one thing, it’s amazingly easy to lie about what we have eaten in any given day. There have been times when I would have sworn I was good, until my spouse will remind me of that pastry I had at lunch or all the cream and sugar I put in my coffee. We do not mean to lie to ourselves, we just are so busy we do not pay attention.

To keep yourself on track, simply keep a food journal. This is a very real way to keep tabs on yourself. For the next fourteen days, write down every single thing that you eat or drink. You have to be honest and you have to write down every last bit. Even that second glass of soda at lunch and the two pats of margarine you put on your toast.

If you do this for two weeks, you will quickly be able to spot the times of the day and the areas in your diet where you always screw up. Once you pinpoint the reasons you have difficulty losing your fat belly you can make changes that will help you achieve your goals much more quickly.

The same principle can apply to when you work out. Again, it is easy to think that you are working harder than you really are. Just like the food journal, keep a workout journal so it is harder to convince yourself that you have done something you really haven’t. Not only can you track the number of times you go to the gym but you can also track how long you spent on the treadmill or rode the stationary bike. Write down how many exercises you did for your upper body, how many you did for your lower body, etc.

You can also keep track of how much weight you used for each exercise. Ideally, you should increase your weight after every few workouts. It is important to challenge yourself so you do not get bored. By changing up the weights you lift as well as the exercises you do, you will keep your body guessing. This will help you get better results in a shorter time frame.

Working all of the major muscle groups with more than one exercise is ideal. By mixing up the exercises you do for each group you are keeping your toning efforts in high gear. Another benefit is that the different exercises will target each muscle group in a slightly different way which can also decrease many of the repetitive motion types of injuries to your body.

I don’t mean to be the bearer of bad news, but usually when someone has difficulty losing their fat belly it really is more about what they are doing, or not doing, than about any metabolic issue with their body.

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There is so much conflicting information about food that it’s enough to drive anybody crazy. It seems as though every day we hear some new findings. First a food is hailed as a “miracle cure” for some ailment, then a short time later they say it may do more harm than good, then a short while after that they it could do some good…depending on the circumstances. Fat is bad for you, fat is good for you, some fats are bad and some are good. Arg! How can anybody figure out what makes a healthy eating diet? That’s a great question, and the answer is more straight forward than all of those contradictory studies may suggest.

The most important thing to remember is that everybody is unique. That means what works for one person may not work for you. In fact, what works for millions of other people may not work for you, and vice-versa. You have different DNA, different likes and dislikes, different food sensitivities, different beliefs, and the list goes on. All of these things can have an impact on what constitutes a healthy eating diet for you, specifically.

Believe it or not, you can develop your own, personalized healthy eating diet!

The first step is to track everything you eat and drink for the next two or three weeks. That means meals, snacks, beverages, and even the little nibbles you may take here and there. The goal is to get a good idea of where your current diet stands. Don’t worry, nobody else will see your food journal, so be 100% honest.

You will most likely start to notice some problem areas as you are keeping your journal. It’s important that you keep track for the entire length of time, though. Don’t try to eat healthier just because you’re writing everything down.

The next step is to step back and take and objective look at all the food you ate. Try to identify problem areas, such as what time you eat certain foods, stress, or how different items relate to one another. For example, you find that you eat a lot more junk food when you skip breakfast, or that you eat a fattier lunch on Mondays.

Whatever the case may be, these problem areas are a good place to start making changes. You don’t have to make a complete change all at once. That could be too much of a shock to your system, and the temptation to go back to your old eating habits may be too strong. So, go ahead and take smaller steps by first improving the areas that need the most improving. Once those are better, you can move on to the next, and then the next, and so on.

Switching to a healthy eating diet doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, the easier it is, the more likely you are stick with it for the long haul. That makes a lot more sense then getting on the proverbial roller coaster and going up and down for the rest of your life. Why do that? Instead, start making a few smart changes and you’ll be eating healthy before you know it.

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If you are diabetic and overweight, you need a good diabetic weight loss diet to not only control your weight but also deal with leveling off your blood sugar. Keeping your weight and blood sugar under control is imperative to reducing the likelihood you will suffer the very serious complications that are known to be associated with diabetes.

Obviously the key to losing weight is to choose healthy foods to eat. Foods that also help control insulin production and release are a plus, too. Learning to eat a balanced diet for some can be a little tricky. An important part of keeping you blood sugar levels under control is learning to balance protein, fats, and carbohydrates of every meal you eat.

Keeping carbohydrates under control is key because some carbohydrates convert almost immediately into simple sugars and cause the pancreas to dump insulin into your system to counteract the meteoric rise in blood sugar. If this is not brought under control, you will find yourself with more problems than just diabetes.

Who knows, maybe if you lose the weight you will not have to prick your finger all the time and inject all of that insulin into your body everyday. Maybe your diabetes will even disappear if you become fit and healthy.

Nutritionists and doctors have changed their thinking that all diabetics are the same and all can follow the same general diet. They can’t. A good diabetic weight loss diet today is tailored to the specific patient and promotes optimum nutrition for optimum health. Simple carbohydrates are kept to a minimum and protein that is high in Omega-3 fatty acids are encouraged. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in abundance in fish with the highest concentration found in salmon.

Diets low in fat and cholesterol and high in green leafy vegetables and high fiber foods like whole grain is very important in controlling diabetes. Fruits should only be eaten in moderation due to their high natural sugar content which can make blood sugar levels spike then fall rapidly due to insulin overload.

Blood sugar levels should be checked regularly before and after meals and before bedtime to get an accurate idea of how the food you eat affects your levels especially when trying to lose weight. Diabetes is no laughing matter and when you are trying to lose weight on top of the diabetes you need to be extra careful. Take things slowly, keep careful, accurate records of each blood sugar check and keep a food journal, too.

Get some ideas for planning your meals and snacks by going to the American Diabetes Association’s website and studying the diabetic food pyramid. You should be able to get some good information about diabetes and diet while on the site and learn to put what you learn into practice.

With Type II diabetes now in epidemic proportions in the United States because of the obesity epidemic following a good diabetic weight loss diet is as vital as the insulin you have been prescribed.

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