Weight Loss A: April 2006

Extreme Makeovers Without Weight Loss

For people who are looking to appear more physically attractive there are some good alternatives to losing excess weight. One increasingly popular method is to invest in cosmetic dentistry. This can sometimes bring about a dramatic improvement in physical attractiveness.

The before and after cosmetic dentistry smiles shown here are from The Fine Art of Dentistry and Dr. Siles websites.

Cosmetic dentistry is a booming business these days. New technologies that weren't available even a few years ago, aging baby boomers and the gorgeous white smiles we see on the tube all the time are all contributing to the rapid growth in cosmetic dental procedures.

Almost every dentist will do some sort of cosmetic dentistry these days. But there are many dentists who actively specialize in this area of dental work. These practioneers are kept very busy with the increasing demand for tooth whitening, veneers, oral laser surgery and implants. Tooth whitening has been the fastest growing segment of the cosmetic dentistry market.

Cosmetic dentistry could set you back financially as it's not covered by most dental insurance plans. But a lot of people are choosing this type of 'extreme makeover' over an expensive vacation, a new car purchase or even a high-end weight loss retreat program.

Flattering Clothes for Overweight People

Tomorrow's Ophrah show will feature tips on how to select flattering clothes to hide excess pounds. One question a lot of people have is how to hide a big butt.

According to a recent article in Marie Claire, here are the three things you should look for in jeans to give you a slimmer look.

1. Don't pick jeans that have horizontal seams on the rear.

2. Flared leg bottoms will balance bigger bottoms.

3. Trouser styles give extra room for your bottom without looking baggy.

If anyone here is watching Oprah's show tomorrow can you pass on the top tips for us?

Plus Size Sports Bras

While we're on the subject of plus sized bras, I should add that there is probably no better investment or accessory to a comfortable weight loss workout program than a good-fitting and comfortable sports bra.

The popular plus sized sports bras shown above are from the ENELL line of sports bras. They are made from NATUREXX, which consists of 90% nylon and 10% Lycra fabric.

If you are more than a few pounds overweight, these bras will make your exercise routine so much more enjoyable. For me personally, my exercise usually consists only of regular brisk walking, but a sports bra still makes a big comfort difference even if this type of exercise is not the highly bouncy kind.

Personally I prefer sports bras made of at least 90% cotton. The one shown here is a full support cotton sports bra made by Grenier. But maybe that's because I haven't tried the high-tech new material bras yet. These materials promise to wick away moisture and keep you dry during workouts. They also supply significantly more support than cotton bras can.

Jessica Alba: Her Diet and Exercise Program

Jessica Alba is one of the most interesting celebrities of 2006. What's her method of keeping fit?

She says she doesn't have a particular diet or food plan but she eats relatively lightly. Dinner is usually vegetables and chicken or fish. Lunch is a salad. Snacks are dried fruits. Breakfast can be cottage cheese and a peach or an omelet and fruit. She tries not to eat breads or sweets (other than chocolate). She tries to exercise every day for 45 minutes to one hour.

She works out on either a treadmill or an elliptical machine and she also does lunges and crunches and works on her shoulders, biceps and triceps.

How much does Jessica Alba weigh? Apparently she is 5'7" and her weight is 127 pounds. She will be 25 years old this week. She was born on April 28th 1981.

She started her acting career when she was only 13 years old. Her parents didn't have much money and she says everyone in her family was severely overweight so she started cooking her own meals when she was only twelve. Jessica Alba suffered from eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorders and panic attacks when she was a teenager. At one point she was so seriously malnourished she weighed just over 100 pounds.

Update May 2006: It looks like Jessica's eating disorder may be coming back to haunt her. Since she's appeared on the Playboy cover a couple of months ago and received the huge extra publicity for suing the magazine, she has lost a great deal of weight. Probably at least ten or fifteen pounds from her already slim 127 pound frame. She looks emancipated now; frighteningly so.

Plus Size Bras are a Big Seller

Women who wear plus sizes buy twice as many bras as their smaller sisters. The plus-size component of the bra market is the fastest growing segment.
It grew over 10 percent last year for total plus size bra sales of $1.9 billion. See more about this at Advertising Age.

Anyone who wears a larger size bra will be glad to know the bra makers are making a special effort these days to create bras that provide real comfort, moisture resistance, great fit and even fashion for bra sizes up to DDD.

Here's some interesting info from a comment at the Fashion-Incubator:

In 1966, the average bra size was 34B. In 1996, just 30 years later, that average has increased to 36C. This corresponds to a woman with an underbust measurement of 32" (give or take an inch either side), a high bust of 36" and a full bust of 39"....The average "mature" woman's bra size is now 38D! It is not at all unusual at all to see junior high and high school students with D, DD and F cups. And yes, they are natural, not augmented. Some of them feel cursed with their breasts, and no wonder. The "teen" bra boutiques are still under the illsuion that fashion bras stop at C cup. I see young women all the time that are wearing bras at least two sizes too small (i.e. a 38C when they should be wearing a 40D) and enduring major discomfort because they are not seeing anything youthful, pretty and supportive, in the places they like to shop.

The photo above is part of the new advertising campaign for the Olga "Christina" plus sized bra. This here is the 'Hollywood extreme cleavage bra' for plus sizes.

Celcius Drink as a Fat Burner?

There's a new cola vying for the attention of people who want to lose weight. It's called Celcius and it comes in three different flavors; cola, ginger-ale and lemon-lime. A bottle of Celcius is less than 10 calories.

The drink was developed by Elite Fx and they claim that Celsius helps people burn fat because it contains a 'thermogenic blend' which will increase your metabolism.

The packaging on the bottle has a catchy slogan "Enjoy the great taste of burning calories". The ingredients include taurine, guarana extract, green tea leaf extract, caffeine and ginger extract.

The promotional stuff from the company says that if you replaced a habit of one regular soft drink per day with a Celsius drink you could lose up to 17 pounds in one year with no change in exercise habits.

There is a good review about this new product at FoodProcessing.com but they do not comment on the weight loss claims.

Celcius is not yet widely available. You can buy it in many places in the Southern Eastern States or online at EliteFxbev.

For me personally, I'll stick to my water (with a splash of juice) as a substitute for any type of soda or pop. But I think people who are very accustomed to at least one pop drink per day would find this a refreshing and possibly relatively healthy alternative.

Update October: Celsius now has some very serious competition as Coca Cola is about to launch their own negative calorie drink; Enviga.

Tofu Noodles in your Diet?

A package of tofu noodles has shot up to the top of Amazon (gourmet food) rankings after the Hungry Girl wrote a review about this product.

This eight ounce bag of Tofu Shirataki Fettucini is a great weight loss helper. It has only 40 calories and is high in protein. The noodles are highly nutritious, have no sugar added and are easy to cook. They make an excellent pasta substitute for anyone who is diabetic.

They can be used in stir-fries, salads, soups and sauces. The food is made from the Konnyaku root and mixed together with tofu. Konnyaku is part of the very healthy yam family.

This package of noodles costs $1.99 on Amazon.

What is the Healthiest Vegetable?

The healthiest prize for all vegetables goes to swiss chard. Chard is the 'king' of all vegetables. It is also widely available, cheap and very easy to cook.

One cup of cooked chard is only 35 calories. But the wealth of nutrition you can get from this one cup is quite incredible.

Vitamin A
Typically we think of carrots when we think of foods high in Vitamin A. But one cup of cooked chard will give you 109 percent of the daily recommended intake of Vitamin A.

Vitamin C
Normally we think of citrus fruits to get our vitamin C quota. But one cup of chard will supply us with 52% of our daily needs for Vitamin C.

Dietary Fiber
Bran comes to mind when we think of meeting our daily dietary needs for fiber. But one cup of chard provides us with 15 percent of our daily needs for dietary fiber. That's about the same amount as in one heavy-duty bran muffin.

Potassium
Potassium is very important for the nerves. You'd have to eat two bananas (the highest concentrated fruit for potassium) to equal one cup of cooked chard and get 27 percent of your daily requirement for potassium.

Vitamin E
Vitamin E is very important for a healthy sex drive and anti-aging benefits. Chard is one of the few vegetables with significant Vitamin E. It provides 16 percent of our daily requirement.

Calcium
We usually think of milk when we're concerned about getting adequate calcium. But swiss chard makes a good substitute. One cup of chard has about 35% of the calcium (and only one quarter of the calories) as one cup of 2% milk.

To see more about the outstanding health benefits of chard, check out the best source of non-profit nutritional information online; the WHFoods site. They provide an impressive wealth of information about the world's healthiest foods.

The photos shown here are by rappy and Mom the Barbarian at Flickr.

Chard is part of a group of vegetables known as 'greens'. Greens include chard, kale and collard greens and these three vegetables are almost equal in their tremendous health benefits.

Forget about counting calories and see more about how eating vegetables is a great way to lose weight by actually eating more food instead of less.

Chard is also really easy to cook. See a quick recipe here.

Personal Stories about Weight Loss

There are at least a couple of hundred people who are writing about their personal weight loss efforts online. Here are some of the most authentic and interesting examples (in alphabetical order). Please let me know if you know of other sites that should be included here;