What is a Pedometer?

Now, maybe some of you would wonder about what exactly is a pedometer? Actually this gadget which is a small electronic device is use to count how many steps you have walked or run throughout the day. It is also called a step counter. After it had counted your walking or running steps, it will then convert it into distance. This device is comfortable to wear and is quite simple to use, plus it won’t hinder your movements, as it can be clip to your waistband quite easily.
Generally, this device is use by race walkers, fitness trainers, individuals who desires to shed off extra fat, or simply by anyone who wants to become motivated into living a more healthy life.

Do you know that:

• Walking 10,000 steps per day can greatly improve physical health
• People who walk fewer than 5,000 steps each day are more likely to be overweight while those who take more than 9,000 steps daily are more likely to be of normal weight.
• People who used a pedometer were more likely to add about 2,000 steps to the number they walked each day before using a pedometer
• It is necessary to be physically active for at least 2½ hours a week in order to stay fit, and walking is one of the activities that can help accomplish that goal

A pedometer helps you stay fit, healthy and lead a more energetic lifestyle. So what are you waiting for? You can simply buy an Omron Digital Premium Pedometer online today via Amazon.com to get the lowest price and the best value for your money. Act now and live a healthy lifestyle!

Everyday Activities To Lose Weight!

Do you know that our everyday activities such as sleeping, watching television or even reading also contribute towards losing weight (even if only for a few calories)? Well, after surfing into various health webites/blogs, I have list down several activities that most of us do each day. Then, you can make use of the list to calculate how much you are burning fats or calories even while doing the simplest chores. But before you continue reading, one more important fact that you should know is that calories amounts listed below are only an estimation. It doesn’t take individual characteristics into account such as gender, weight, age and muscle mass.

Activities / Calories Used
1. Sleeping – 60 calories/per hr
2. Pushing a cart up and down the supermarket aisles – 243 calories/per hr
3. Eating (sitting down) - 70calories /30-min
4. Kissing – 36 calories/30-min
5. Reading/Sitting/Watching TV – 75 calories/ per hr
6. Doing computer work and some other brain work – 110 calories/ per hr
7. Folding clothes – 30calories/ 30-min
8. Taking a bath - 65calories/ 15-min
9. Driving (in moderate to heavy traffic) – 120 calories/ per hr
10. Sewing (using a sewing machine) – 80 calories/ per hr
11. House painting – 1,026 calories/ per 3 hr
12. Sexual intercourse - 108 calories/ per hr
13. Riding bicycle - 108 calories/ per hr
14. Ironing – 153 calories/ per hr
15. Walking – 130 calories/ per hr
16. Shopping (mall) – 135 calories/ per hr
17. Shopping (grocery) – 90 calories/ per hr
18. Ballroom dancing – 145 calories/ per hr
19. Dusting (house) – 80 calories/ 30-min
20. Standing in line – 100 calories / per hr
21. Stretching – 230 calories / per hr
22. Horseback Riding – 130 calories / per hr
23. Swimming (continously) – 130 calories / per hr
24. Playing skateboards – 275 calories / per hr
25. Cooking – 228 calories / per hr
26. Aerobic Dance (low impact) – 385 calories / per hr
27. Aerobic Dance (high impact) – 440 calories / per hr
28. Step Aerobic – 400 calories / 30-min
29. Professional bowling – 400 calories / 30-min
30. Playing badminton – 345 calories / per hr
31. Playing squash – 650 calories / per hr
32. Jogging (5 miles) – 600 calories / 30-min
33. Jump rope – 480 calories / per hr
34. Washing dishes – 153 calories / per hr
35. Talking (on the phone) / Reading – 72 calories / per hr
36. Washing car – 100 calories / 30-min

A Few Useful Tips before starting on a diet

Before going on a diet, there are several tips or guidelines that you should adhere to, just so that you WILL able to see visible results after doing all of that tough dieting stuffs. Listed below are some of the basic tips that you can follow before starting your diet regime:

• Drink plenty of plain water because water is essential for your diet as well as for good health. Plus, water doesn’t contain any calorie. Drink at least 8 full glass of water daily. Avoid alcoholic drink
• While shopping for food product, learn to read the food labels pasted on the product. This labels informs you about nutrition information contain in each product. Be sure to buy product which has less calories and fat.
• Try not to eat at night time or before going to sleep. But, if you’re a night time-eater, remember to eat at least 2 hours before going to sleep
• Stop eating before you feel full. Don’t continue eating just because you want to finish the leftover. Remember this saying, “Eat to live, not live to eat”
• Exercise regularly. Try to do a at least a 30-minute workout each day. Exercise combines with cutting down on fat will make you see the difference within a few months.
• Try to eat plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables and grains. Avoid fatty foods such as fast foods, frozen foods, donuts, cakes ….and the list goes on and on…
• Don’t eat meals while at the same time you are doing some other activities e.g., watching TV, reading newspaper, listening to music and etc. Take a time to enjoy your eating while doing nothing. Eat slowly and do it while sitting down, not standing, thus your attention would be more focus on a single activity.
• You can eat up to 5-6 healthy meals per day, each in a SMALLER portion, that is. Eating many meals a day can help boost your metabolism which in turn can burn more calories. Do not let your body starve
• Avoid frying your food, instead try baking, steaming, stewing, broiling or roasting. This method of cooking will help remove fat
• Don’t ever skip breakfast because that meal is the most important meal of the day. Eating breakfast is good for weight loss. Skipping breakfast will make you feel tired and hungry and tends to make you consume more food during lunch time

Does night eating makes you gain extra weight?

To tell you the truth, this one question was constantly playing on my mind time and again (partly because I am one of those individuals who have a tendency to munch on a snack or two at midnight ).. So, I’ve decided to do a little bit of research to unveil this significant issue. And what do you know, I finally came up with this conclusion, ‘eating at night doesn’t necessarily make you fat’ . But anyway, you have to take into consideration that this just my conclusion, your own research results may vary.

You may be wondering about why I dare to make such a statement? Well, I will share with you about what I’ve learned so far:

Why night eating makes us gain weight?
- our body metabolism is at its lowest peak at night, therefore the food we consume at night will be slowly digested, then store in the body as extra fat
- our metabolism is slowest while we are sleeping
- if we are less active at night, then we will burn fewer calories
- needless to say, we will gain extra weight if we consume a large meal with a high level of carbs intake just before to going to bed

Why night eating may not make us gain weight?
- there are other primary factors to consider such as our calorie intake and energy balance for the day. If you are caloric deficit (meaning, if your body lacks calorie for the day), you may as well lose fat while eating at night!
- fat loss is speed up if you eat less at night (meaning, we can still eat at night!) and consume your last meal at least two hours before bedtime
- if we exercise or do a little bit of training before consuming any meal at night, the food we eat is very unlikely to be converted into fat because it will be use for our body recovery process (muscle repair and growth process)
- excess calories will be stored as fat over time, regardless of whether they are taken in during the day or night

All in all, I’ve concluded that our meal timing is not important, be it in the morning, evening or night, because the only vital thing to consider in order to lose weight is to take in just enough calories which your body requires daily. If you consume more calories that your body burns in a day, well, then you will likely to gain extra weight, no matter what time you consume your food!

KUALA LUMPUR INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIR 2009 IS HERE!

Well, KLIBF 2009 is baaacckk! I’m sooo excited..I am a ardent fan of this event. I have been going to this event each year now, making this an annual event for me. I just love books…don’t you? When I am surrounded with books, I feel so ecstatic and overwhelming. I don’t know how to describe my feeling…

Anyway, this year’s lavish book fair is held at Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC, KL), like always. It’s open from 17th April - 26th April, 10 am- 9 pm everyday (including public holidays). You can visit it’s website for more information –> http://klbookfair.com/index.php/

Is there any book enthusiastic like me out there? Feel free to leave a comment. I will probably go there myself this Friday. C U There!

My Health Blog And Then Some…

Hi, welcome to my blog…my first blog, actually, because it’s high time for me to learn blogging like everyone else out there. Let me tell you a bit about this blog. Like it’s name above, I’m making this my ultimate health blog. I’m not a pro, but I like to read about anything which centers around health such as diets, exercise, medicine, vitamins, healthy food and etc…And I think it’s time for me to jot down all the useful tips and articles I’ve read and learned about our health. Let’s say I’m making this my health journal. Why not share all the good things about staying healthy, right?

But, mind you, that this not just another health blog, because I also included a few other interesting sections such as song lyrics, movies, books, techs, and etc…There’s a little bit of everything for everybody…(I hope… )

Apart from that, I’m also hoping to get feedbacks from all of you about my blog…As I’ve said earlier, this IS my first time blogging, and I’m sure would love it if someone would take their time to comment about this blog (e.g. about the content, theme, and etc… ) to make it a better blog…

Last but not least, I will treat this blog as my personal journal and I will try my hardest to make it as interesting as it can be. .. Well, enough with my intro.. READ ON AND ENJOY…!

Get to know your Body Type!

Hey, did you know that our body can be classify into 3 different physical type? Well, this is a fact and it can divided into Endomorph, Mesomorph and Ectomorph. Cool, isn’t it? Anyway, it is important for you to be aware of what your body type is because body type certainly plays an important role in choosing the right kind of diet and exercise training if you want to lose weight. Well, read the description below and decide which category are you.

Endomorph
– have a round and soft physique and much of the mass is store in the belly area
– big bones, round face, thick writs, wide hips, slow metabolism
– body fat is easily stored, thus this body type have a high number of fat cells, making fat loss even more difficult
– have a tendency to gain weight very easily and finds it hard to lose it
– the best diet for this body fat is to burn fat effectively by increasing metabolism rate and perform exercise within the target heart rate zone but for a longer period, and consume vegetables and fruits regularly

Mesomorph
– not skinny or fat; have muscular body
– have well-defined muscles, large bones, wide shoulders and small waist
– this body type is usually athletic and hard body with a low body fat percentage
- the bones and muscles of the head are prominent
- have an increased metabolism, unlike endomorphs
- have an excellent posture, mature muscle mass and gains muscle easily

Ectomorph
- have a thin and linear appearance, with light bones, slight muscle and small joints
- generally have long neck, fingers, and toes
- skins skin tends to burn easily.
- narrow shoulders, waist and hip
- low body fat and have trouble gaining weight due to very high metabolism rate
- lightly muscled and takes longer to gain muscle