What to Drink When You Exercise

The options include sports drinks, energy drinks, and just regular water.

We all know that when we work out, it's important to stay hydrated. Something we may not be so clear on is what exactly we should drink when we exercise.

Ordinary water, of course, is the classic choice. But with store shelves everywhere full of sports drinks, energy drinks, and various flavored and fortified waters, what's an exerciser to do?

Experts say it all depends on your taste -- as well as the length and intensity of your workouts. Here's a look at how the various drinks measure up.

Flavored or Unflavored?

When I'm really thirsty, the only thing that hits the spot is good old H2O -- preferably cold. But that's just me.

Are you someone who will drink more if your drink is flavored (and there are plenty of you out there)? Then you're better off drinking whatever ends up helping you drink more when you exercise. The bottom line is hydration.

Flavored drinks is recommended when fluid replacement is needed during and after exercise to enhance palatability and promote fluid replacement.

And how do you know when fluid replacement is really needed?

Exercising 1.5 hours to three hours is long enough to warrant fluid replacement due to sweat losses. How much sweat is lost influences how much sodium and potassium are lost.

The longer you exercise and the more heavily you sweat, the greater the need for a sports drink to help replace these lost micro nutrients.

A sports drink can do many great things to increase energy levels without the complications of digesting and absorbing a meal.

Sports Drinks and Exercise

Basically, a sports drink offers your body three things it might need before, during, or after vigorous exercise:

• Hydration. People drink about 17 ounces of fluid about two hours before exercise, to promote adequate hydration and allow time for the body to excrete any excess water. During exercise, it is recommended that athletes start drinking early and at regular intervals in order to take in fluids at the rate they're losing them through sweating.
• Fuel. The carbohydrates found in sweetened sports drinks provide energy to help delay fatigue. Lab tests have shown that 6% carbohydrate (14 grams of carbohydrate per 8 ounces of water) is the optimal percentage of carbs for speeding fluid and energy back into the body.
• Electrolytes or Minerals. These are things like sodium, potassium, and chloride that athletes lose through sweat. When water goes out of the body, so do electrolytes. And when the body is losing lots of water (as during exercise), it makes sense that you need to replace electrolytes.

Lose Weight Fast: How to Do It Safely Sick of crash diets and fad diets? Follow these healthy tips.

Working on weight loss? Then you probably want results -- fast.

Let me save you some time: skip the fad diets. Their results don't last. And you have healthier options you can start on -- today! 

You can safely lose 3 or more pounds a week at home with a healthy diet and lots of exercise.

How to Lose Weight Fast

If you burn 500 more calories than you eat every day for a week, you should lose about 1-2 pounds.

If you want to lose weight faster, you'll need to eat less and exercise more.

For instance, if you take in 1,050 to 1,200 calories a day, and exercise for one hour per day, you could lose 3-5 pounds in the first week, or more if you weigh more than 250 pounds. It's very important not to cut calories any further -- that's dangerous.

Limiting salt and starches may also mean losing more weight at first -- but that's mostly fluids, not fat.

When you reduce sodium and cut starches, you reduce fluids and fluid retention, which can result in up to 5 pounds of fluid loss when you get started.

Diets for Fast Weight Loss

Eating a diet that minimizes starches, added sugars, and animal fat from meat and dairy foods is highly recommended. For rapid weight loss, focus on fruits, veggies, egg whites, soy products, skinless poultry breasts, fish, shellfish, nonfat dairy foods, and 95% lean meat.

Here are more tips:

• Eat vegetables to help you feel full.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Get tempting foods out of your home.
• Stay busy -- you don't want to eat just because you're bored.
• Eat only from a plate, while seated at a table. No grazing in front of the 'fridge.
• Don't skip meals.

Keeping a food journal -- writing down everything you eat -- can also help you stay on track.

Even if you write it down on a napkin and end up throwing it away, the act of writing it down is about being accountable to yourself and is a very effective tool for weight loss.

 

Besides jotting down what you ate, and when, you might also want to note how you were feeling right before you ate it. Were you angry, sad, or bored? We often focus so much on foods and calories, but our emotions are a huge part of our eating habits.

 

If you see a persistent pattern in your emotional eating, please consider talking to a counselor about it. They can be a big help in finding other ways to handle your feelings.

 

Is Your Weight Loss Goal Realistic? Learn how to set (and meet) healthy goals

I once read a story about a woman who complained to her doctor about her frustration with weight loss. The woman had lost 25 pounds but was not satisfied. "I will not be happy until I lose 25 more pounds," she declared.

Her doctor then asked her a series of questions: Are you feeling better? Do you sleep better? Is it easier to climb a flight of stairs? Can you bend over and tie your shoes? Do you feel better about yourself? The patient answered "yes" to all of the questions.

Her doctor was incredulous. The 25-pound weightloss had substantially improved her health and her quality of life, yet the woman was still not satisfied.

It's not uncommon for dieters to set lofty weight loss goals for themselves. Some reach back umpteen years to their wedding day or college weights. Others fantasize about looking like a supermodel, even though their naturally large frames may make this an impossible goal.

Overweight people set a goal of losing 32% of their body mass. That's three times the amount needed to achieve better health. The truth is, it's unlikely that most dieters will be able to lose one-third of their body weight. Setting extreme goals is a setup for disappointment and failure.

You can achieve your goal weight -- as long as it is reasonable and attainable. Remember that you're on a journey to improve your life and health and gain control over your weight. It's not about perfection.

Set Mini-Goals

Instead of shooting for a size that has not been seen in your closet for 10 years, set more attainable goals. Even modest weight loss can improve your blood pressure and your cholesterol, blood sugar, and triglyceride levels. Losing as little as 10 pounds can put the zip back in your step and make you feel terrific about yourself.

To help keep you motivated toward meeting your ultimate goal, set mini-goals you can reach within a month or so. Track your progress, and reward yourself along the way for improving your eating and exercise habits.

For example, on weeks when you get to the gym five times, treat yourself to flowers, a movie, or a ball game -- whatever feels like a reward to you. This will help keep your attitude positive and remind you of the benefits of a healthier lifestyle.

Changes You Can Live With

You can lose weight on virtually any diet. But to send those extra pounds packing without a round-trip ticket, you must find healthful strategies that you can stay with forever.

The reason we call the food component of the Weight Loss Clinic program an "eating plan" is because it is not a diet. A diet is something you can go on and off of; an eating plan is for life.

Ideal Weight or Happy Weight? How much weight do you really need to lose?

Maybe you've been working on getting back to the weight you were at in high school or on your wedding day. But do you really need to go that low? Or can you weigh more than your ideal weight and still be healthy?

If you're overweight, losing just 10% of your body weight is linked to many health benefits, including lowering blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and blood sugar, and reducing your risk for heart disease. This kind of weight loss is also easier to reach and keep for the long run.

Your Weight "Set Point"

Just as your body temperature is programmed to stay around 98.6 degrees, your body weight is naturally regulated to stay within a range of 10%-20%. This weight range is known as the "set point."

A complex set of hormones, chemicals, and hunger signals help your body keep your weight within this range.

It is not just about your genes. Your eating and exercise habits can also help to determine your set point.

Overeating swamps the internal regulatory system, and, as a result, the set point increases -- which is much easier to do than it is to lower it. The body adjusts to the higher weight and "resets" the set point to defend the new weight. 

It's still possible to set your range lower. With changes in healthy eating and exercise behavior, you can lower your set point.

The 10% Solution to Weight Loss

Losing 10% of your body weight, and keeping it off for six months to a year, helps your body reset your set point.

When you lose large amounts of weight at once, you set up an internal struggle and hormones spike to make you hungrier as your body tries to defend its comfortable range.

That's why experts recommend losing 10% by changing your eating and exercise habits, and then maintaining your new weight for a few months before trying to lose more. Your body will get the signal to lower its "set point," and you'll get used to new food choices, smaller portions, and regular exercise. 

people who lose 10% of their weight start to realize how a little weight loss impacts their health in very positive ways... They feel better, sleep better, have more energy or less joint pain, and some people are able to reduce medications.

How Much Should I Weigh?

Most people overestimate how much weight they can lose, which leads to frustration. To find your happy or healthy weight, look back on your weight history as an adult and identifying a weight you were able to maintain fairly easily.

Weight Loss & Diet Plans

Weight Loss Basics

Time to make some changes in your diet? If it's time to lose weight, get motivation here.

Deciding to Lose Weight

HOW MUCH SHOULD I WEIGH??

Struggling with extra weight and feeling frustrated? Learn about the many health benefits from losing just 10% of your body weight.

IS YOUR WEIGHT LOSS GOAL REALISTIC??

 Learn why losing weight slowly is best for long-term results. Discover how to adopt new behaviors, like eating less and exercising more, to boost weight loss.

HOW TO LOOSE WEIGHT FAST.

If you want to be the next “fastest shedder” -- and do it fast -- you have to read these rapid weight loss safety tips.

When Razor meets Laser

Big science strikes again! I, too, was skeptical when the world’s first beard trimmer equipped with a real, live laser beam to help men shave in a straight line was introduced. Sounds like a gimmick, right? And yet I walk by botched grooming jobs every day on the street. So today, after test-driving the Norelco Beard Trimmer 9100, I find myself forced to admit this futuristic groomer actually does work—and quite well.

Part of that is because the device is state-of-the-art in almost every way I can think of, with 17 preprogrammed length settings, a sharp blade that swivels to multiple angles of attack, and a water-resistant casing so you can splash with abandon.

The laser itself kind of looks exactly how you’d imagine: Press down on a spring-loaded attachment behind the blade and up pops a unit that projects an intense, thin line of red light straight onto your face. Stick to this illuminated edge as you trim, and the borders of your beard will be perfectly straight; adjust the angle slightly for symmetrical curves.

Again, who cares? Shaving in a straight line with only your own eyes to guide you isn’t akin to, say, executing a Brâncuşi sculpture—I’d give it a three on a one-to-ten scale of manual dexterity—but that’s not to say there aren’t times when my old-fashioned razor accidentally strays. Now, it would appear, I have no excuse.

6 Tips to Avoid Smudged Eye Makeup

Whether it's from sweat, humidity, tears, or just plain oily lids, eye makeup that runs and smudges throughout the day is far from flattering. Before you get completely frustrated, try these tips for applying your makeup and touching up on the go that will let you bat those lashes with confidence.

1. Start with clean skin. If your eyelids tend to get greasy as the day goes on, make sure you're starting with a clean slate. Wash your face in the morning, and make sure to pay attention to your lids, so you wash off any excess oils from the night before.

2. Apply an eye primer. After your skin is clean and moisturized (avoid putting eye cream directly on your lids), apply a primer specifically made for your eyes. Ones like eye shadow base are formulated to not only prep your lids but also help your makeup apply smoothly and stay in place.

3. Use waterproof formulas. If your eye shape or oily lids make standard eye makeup crease and smudge, then your best bet is to stick with waterproof and long-wearing options. We love the product offerings in the M.A.C. Cosmetics Pro Longwear range.

4. Set your look. Once you have your eye makeup complete, set everything. If you use creamy textures or pencils, set them with matching eye-shadow powders. And if everything you use is powder, set the look with blotting powder. If it washes out your style, you can always go back and layer on more shadow or liner to really fortify your look.

5. Keep eye-makeup remover on hand. Being prepared means you won't have to stress over stray eye makeup in the wrong places. Facial wipes are superportable swabs packed with just the right amount of eye-makeup remover, so you can clean up any smudges in a pinch.

6. Stash your makeup bag for touch-ups. Your eyeliner and eye shadow barely take up any room, which means you can drop them in your handbag (or just buy seconds) so you always have them for any necessary touch-ups.