Choosing Low Carb Foods - A Balancing Act

All foods contain some carbohydrates, which is the term which describes molecules made up of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen. The human body is designed to break carbohydrates down into sugars quickly and efficiently, and to use the sugars to fuel itself. No diet should be without a least a small amount of carbohydrates.

You may have heard claims of a miracle low carb diet which restricted its users to as much as they wanted of meats, poultry, fish and seafood, eggs, cheese, and fats, including butter and cream. But even best know of these diets allowed its users a small salad during the first two weeks of the plan, and let them gradually increase their carb intake gradually after that.

The truth is that a diet consisting of only proteins and fats will be extremely short on fiber and nutrients, and throw your system so far out of balance that you are at risk for serious cardiovascular and digestive problems. If you want to give a low carb diet a try, the best way to go about it is to stick with low carb foods which still have a full complement of nutrients.

lose The Processed Foods
Taking that approach will, of course, eliminate 99% of all processed foods from you low carbohydrate foods selections. Carbohydrates are classified either as simple, or complex carbs. Simple carbs contain sucrose, or table sugar; lactose, or milk sugar, or fructose, fruit sugar. You can get wholesome low carb foods with lactose or fructose, but foods with sucrose seldom have low carb counts, and if they are processed to boot, have almost no nutritional value. You should avoid sucrose laden food even if you are not trying to limit yourself to low carb foods.

Most diet gurus, however, know that deprivation can lead to a downfall, and allow a very small portion of a sucrose based dessert from time to time. Such small desserts are hardly more that a salute to days gone by, but they can help train dieters to enjoy dessert more intensely when it does come their way.

Limits On Low carb Dieters
Low carb foods like most meats, cheeses, and poultry are not necessarily low calorie foods, and their calorie content can be increased significantly depending on how they are prepared. Even low carb dieters should limit their intake of the protein and fat rich foods which are the basis for their daily menus.

Those low carb foods should be supplemented with large amounts of fresh low carb vegetables and fruits, which will be low-fat and low calorie. The low carb fruits and vegetables will break up the monotony of a protein heavy diet, and supply filling fiber and other essential nutrients.

Sticking to a low carb diet means learning to distinguish between high and low carb foods, and learning to balance the proportions of each so that the diet provides a full spectrum of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and fibers, without triggering the cravings which can lead to a carbohydrate binge.

Its entirely possible that the fixation on losing weight at all costs and limiting food intake to low carb foods or low calorie foods could be addressed simply by learning to recognize when our bodies are physically hungry and waiting to eat until then. But until people understand that eating, while it is certainly pleasurable, is about getting nourished and not about enjoyment, the chances of that approach producing a healthy diet are small indeed.

You can also find more info on south beach diet phase three and south beach diet success stories. Southbeachdietclub.com is a comprehensive resource to know more about South beachdiet club.

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Golf Fitness Exercises for the Amateur Golfer

With all the talk about the players on tour getting stronger and more flexible, we hear a lot about exercising for golf from television commentators and read about it in the golf publications. But what exactly are the best exercises for the amateur golfer?

A great question that has a good answer, but before we give you the answer let us provide some background so the answer makes a little more sense to you. First of all, discussing the golf swing for the time being will get us rolling.

What exactly is the golf swing? The golf swing is an athletic movement that requires using of the entire body from feet to fingertips in order to complete the swing. Realize that the golf swing is not about the club, not just about your grip, or where your head is during the swing. The golf swing is a movement that requires your entire body to move through a sequence of movements with the correct timing. To perform the athletic movement of the golf swing requires the body to begin at address, move through the actual phases of the golf swing and complete it with the follow through. In order to perform this activity with efficiency and repetitively, the body must have certain physical parameters.

These parameters, as I call them, are actual physical categories of the body that need to be developed to a certain level. These categories of the body are the platform from which the body is able to perform the athletic movement of a golf swing efficiently. The categories are probably familiar to many of you, but for the purpose of this article let us briefly run through them.

The body is required to have certain levels of flexibility, balance, endurance, strength, and power to complete a golf swing. If the body lacks in any of the above categories, then the results will be seen in the golf swing. The results are usually in the form of poor mechanics, bad shots, or poor scores on the course. So, now that we know what the connection is between the body and the swing let us address the question about the best exercises for golf.

The Best Exercises for Golf

Lets say you walk into your local health club and see all the fancy machines and aerobic machines at the facility to get you shape. What ones would choose? Would you choose running on the treadmill for 30 minutes, or would it be better to push out a couple sets of bench presses? Well, the answer to our question really lies within the connection between your swing and your body.

I will tell you that exercises meant to pump you up! or give you that six pack are not necessarily the correct exercises for your golf game. Neither is that weight training program you used back in high school. So, with those thoughts in mind what do you think the best exercises for golf are?

Right now we know, in general terms about the golf swing, what is required of the body for the golf swing and what exercises are not good for the swing. Armed with that knowledge we can decipher what the best exercises for golf are for you.

Beginning with flexibility, we know that the entire body must move through certain ranges of motion to perform an effective golf swing. And what happens if your body is not able to move through the required ranges of motion of the golf swing? The answer: the golf swing will mechanically suffer resulting in shots that are less than optimal. So part of the exercises that are good for golfers are flexibility exercises and, even more so, flexibility exercises that work the muscles used in the golf swing through the movements involved in the golf swing. So first and foremost flexibility exercises should be on the top of your list.

The second category of exercises that would be conducive to the golf swing would have to do with balance. We hear about balance in reference to the golf swing all the time. Stay balanced through the swing; transfer your weight to maintain balance during the swing But what does balance exactly mean? balance is the ability to control your body through a specific movement pattern. The movement pattern we are discussing just happens to be the golf swing. We know the importance of balance in relation to the golf swing, so how do we train our body for better balance in the golf swing? Before we answer that question we need to know a little more about balance. balance in relation to the body has to do with the connection between your nerves and muscles. Essentially your nervous system, as a result of messages sent from your brain, tells your muscles how to move to maintain the bodys balance. The more efficient your nerves and muscles are to these messages the greater balance abilities the body develops. So balance exercises train both the nervous system and muscular system to become more efficient at this function. Summing it all up, balance is the second category of exercises that will assist your golf game.

The third category of exercises that are beneficial to golf have to do with your muscles. The golf swing requires the muscles of your body to move through a specific range of motion (flexibility) and help with your balance capacities. In order to perform these actions and others, your body needs certain levels of strength and endurance. The definition of strength is the ability of the muscles to exert force for the given athletic action (simplified definition but a good working definition for us). Endurance is the ability of your muscles to do the same activity over and over again for a specific amount of time.

First off, let us discuss strength. The golf swing has one intention of developing club head speed while maintaining balance through the swing. The muscles in your body must have enough strength in them to do both. Now, when we discuss building strength for the golf swing it is NOT the type of strength needed to bench press 250 lbs. Or squat 500! It is strength geared towards the improvement of your swing. I refer to this type of strength as golf strength. So when you get to the gym, performing strength exercises like bench press will not help your swing. Exercises that train the body in the positions and through the movements of the golf swing will help your swing.

In addition to strength, we need to develop endurance in your muscles. Think of how many swings you may take over the course of 18 holes. In order for you to be able to swing the club the same way on the 18th hole as you did on the 1st hole. Your body has to have high levels of endurance. This will allow your body to perform the golf swing without getting tired. You develop endurance similar to how you develop golf strength. Utilize exercises that train the body in the positions and through the movements of the golf swing. Lighter loads with higher repetitions will be used for these exercises. The end result will be the development of golf endurance.

The final segment of exercises beneficial to your golf swing is power training. Power training is geared towards the ability of your body to generate high levels of club head speed. Power development by the body is what allows for greater distance on your shots. Clubs help, golf balls help, but it really comes down to the piece of machinery, your body, swinging those club and hitting those golf balls. Development of power for the golf swing is very similar to the development of golf strength and endurance. It is the utilization of exercises that place your body in the positions and move you through movements similar to the golf swing.

Summary

So there you have it, the answer to the types of exercises best for the improvement of your golf swing. I think you now realize it is not one exercise, but a group of exercises that incorporate flexibility, balance, endurance, strength, and power. A combination of these exercises is what will enhance your golf swing.

Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. To learn more about Sean and his golf fitness progams go to http://www.seancochran.com

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Golf Fitness - Use Golf Fitness to Benefit Your Game

Did you ever think when you started playing golf that it could have such a profound impact on your life. Did you ever think that you would be in the gym trying to make yourself better at it? Did you ever put these together and think of how having something to show for it keeps you dedicated? I didn't until just recently, but over the past few years I have discovered that being in shape does make things quite a bit easier on the golf course and have become religious to my routine.

Flexibility, strength, muscle speed, increased cardiovascular functionality; all attributes you will develop when sticking to a proper golf fitness routine.

How will you benefit? It's no secret that the best players on the planet are like Gumby when it comes to flexibility, but under those polos, these guys are completely ripped, and have the muscle speed to go with it. A deadly combination when it comes to distance.

I've played with some guys who play baseball as their primary sport. They claim to be able to hit the ball a mile. Well, let's just say I've been able to win quite a few bucks off of these meat heads. Why? Because most baseball players are power players. They spend all their time in the gym bulking up. They don't seem to understand that being flexible and having muscle speed can generate a lot more clubhead speed that pure brute strength, not to mention make it easier to make solid contact.

My professional advice to these fellas and simply anyone looking to improve their golf game through proper fitness is, if you want to be a long bomber, if you want to be really good, really consistent, and it be effortless, here's what you need to do. Take the weight down, and the reps up. Develop flexibility and muscle speed by using an explosive golf fitness routine. Increase your upper body and hip flexibility, rotator cuff strength, shoulder turning ability, leg strength, core stability.

Hardly any of this requires really heavy weights. It simply requires sticking to high energy explosive routines. You can do most, if not all, at home.

How does all of this help? The more flexible you are, the less restricted your swing is, meaning you have less tension in your muscles, leading to more consistency. The faster your muscles can fire, the more clubhead speed you can generate. The more stable your core, the better your posture will be. The stronger your rotator cuff, the faster you'll be able to pull through with your target side, generating more clubhead speed.

One last example, Sergio Garcia, Sean O'Hair, Jonathan Byrd, all struggled before dedicating themselves to fitness. Now they're in contention week in and week out, busting long drives, hitting deadly straight irons, and being more consistent in general. And as for tiger, well he started the golf fitness revolution. I don't have to tell you what he's done.

Check out the link here for an absolutely amazing golf fitness resource. - Fitness for Golf
I write in this blog every few days which from time to time I like to include some awesome
FREE golf tips. Make sure to check that out here - View My Blog

Cody Wheeler is a PGTAA Class A master Instructor. He has been heavily involved
in the golf industry for over 15 years and is currently authoring an innovative golf
e-book complete with pictures and videos!

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