Best Ways to Keep Your Resolutions

At the beginning of the year, many of us made our resolutions. By now, though, they're starting to become a bit difficult to keep. How do you hang onto those resolutions and keep moving forward? Take a look.

First, take a closer look at the resolution itself. Was it practical? Nothing leads to failure more than making a resolution that is far too difficult to achieve. If your resolution falls into that category, it might be time to adjust things a bit. Imagine, for example, your resolution was losing 100 pounds in the next four months. Something like twenty pounds is a far more realistic goal. Adjust your resolution, and you'll be more likely to stick with it.

You may also want to look at the number of resolutions you can actually handle. If you make more than you can handle, you're going to be looking at failure in a hurry. If, for example, you've resolved to lose weight, quit smoking, and spend every Saturday studying at the library, you're looking at some major life changes. It's really best to limit your resolutions so you only have to deal with one shift at a time.

Think in specific terms as well. An ambiguous resolution to lose weight is great, but one to lose ten pounds is better. It gives you a goal that you can actually work toward instead of just general terms that may prove tough to follow.  Including specific steps and goals can be very helpful here. Perhaps promising to lose two pounds a week until you hit your ten pound goal is just right. The most important thing is to find the action steps that will get you to your goal.

Finally, make certain that you realize no one is perfect. Everyone slips when it comes to those resolutions for the new year. When that happens to you, just hop back on the bandwagon the next day and start working toward your goal.

Can a Detox Eliminate Food Allergies and Sensitivities?

Countless studies have been done on detoxes and how they can improve health. We already know that detox cleanses can help with weight loss and certain health issues, but what about food allergies and sensitivities? Can a detox really eliminate those for good. Maybe, and maybe not. Let’s go over some basics about food allergies and how you can reduce or (hopefully) eliminate the symptoms.

First, let’s talk about what a food allergy even is. Of course, you already know that it’s a type of food that causes your body to react in unpleasant ways. The most common symptoms include gas and bloating, diarrhea, cramping, constipation, indigestion and heartburn. Other possible effects are headache, joint pain, acne and even more frequent colds and flu illnesses.

Ever wonder how you developed that food allergy, though? Here’s how: at some point, you ate something, and it somehow became introduced into your bloodstream. This usually happens when there’s a disruption in the “good” bacteria found in your digestive tract, which can compromise the wall and lining of the stomach. When this occurs, food particles can escape, entering the bloodstream before they’ve been fully broken down. Your body doesn’t recognize this foreign object, tags it as bad, and begins to attack. This puts your immune system into overdrive, resulting in some of the symptoms described above.

Now for the important question - how do you eliminate a food allergy? Well, there are a few different ways you can, at a minimum, reduce your symptoms. For starters, you can use a food elimination process that removes all the primary allergy-causing foods from your diet. This includes dairy, grains, alcohol, sugar, and more. With these out of the picture, your symptoms should be gone in a matter of days. Once you’re symptom-free, you can reintroduce each food/drink one at a time to see which one is the culprit. From then on, you can simply avoid that food item.

However, let’s say you’ve determined that grains are causing the problem, and a lifetime without breads sounds awful. If this is where you’re at, you need to take steps to deal with the allergy while still getting to enjoy the foods you love. A detox can definitely help with this. Spending a week or 10 days cleansing your body and eliminating toxins can give you a fresh start and help restore your body’s natural balances - including the good bacteria in your gut.

You can also boost the effects of the detox by making a few other changes to your diet. Start by consuming homemade fermented foods and drinks. Things like sauerkraut, pickles, and kimchi are all rich in probiotics, which are the key to a healthy gut. Probiotics promote healthy bacteria in your gut, and they improve digestion. Another detox booster is to consume more gelatinous foods. Bone broth and grass-fed gelatin powder can be added to your diet to aid in the healing and sealing of the mucous lining of your stomach and intestines.

So, to answer again the initial question of whether or not a detox can eliminate food allergies - maybe and maybe not. Some people may be fortunate enough to eliminate their allergies altogether, but others may have to settle for a detox to simply reduce their symptoms - which really isn’t so bad either!

The Benefits of Healthy Weight Loss—and How to Get There

The evidence is more than just anecdotal. Data from a study of the lifetime health and economic benefits of weight loss among obese persons found evidence of increased quality of life for those participants who sustained a ten-percent weight loss. The study showed that, depending on age, gender, and initial BMI, weight loss would:

1. Reduce the expected number of years of life with hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and type 2 diabetes;
2. Reduce the expected lifetime incidence of coronary heart disease and stroke;
3. Increase life expectancy by 2 to 7 months; and
4. Reduce expected lifetime medical care costs of these 5 diseases by $2200 to $5300.

So what’s the best way to lose that ten percent, or that stubborn ten pounds? Diets and lifestyle choices abound, and each book, website, television show, or exercise program can quickly and easily convince you of why it’s the best option for you. Regardless, there are certain tenets of successful weight loss which are (nearly) irrefutable. 

Know where you’re starting from. Take body measurements and weigh yourself.  Knowing this information will give you a baseline to gauge your progress.

Pick a reasonable goal. To be successful, pick a goal you feel certain you can attain within a set amount of time. One pound per week is the general rule of thumb.  

Be accountable. Share your goal with someone else, whether it’s a spouse, or a colleague; begin working with a trainer, or connect with someone with a similar goal in an online forum. They will act as an accountability partner to keep you focused and on-target. 

Eat. Find a diet that works for you. It doesn’t need to come from a current bestseller, just what works for, and feels sustainable to you. 

Move. Besides food, exercise is where potential weight-losers get hung up. Pick an activity you love, and do it. Start slow if you need to, but make a commitment and follow through by getting enough exercise on a regular basis. 

Kick-starting your weight loss efforts with a cleanse or detox can be just what you need to get motivated. With the potential to help you feel better and cleaner—not to mention losing a few pounds right off the bat—Herbal Clean products from QPretox and Simply Slender Master Cleanse to the Fixx and our Premium Detox 7-Day Complete Cleansing System, there’s something for every body.