RICE BRAN OIL BENEFITS FOR SKIN AND HAIR

Today, let’s look at rice bran oil benefits for skin and hair:

Being a big fan of natural skin care products, I cant help but mention wonderful benefits of rice bran oil, which is not only great for cooking and beneficial for our overall health, but it also can be efficiently used for skin careand hair care.

Rice bran oil is a well kept beauty secret of many Asian and, especially, Japanese ladies. This oil is rich in vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants. In Asian countrieswomen use rice bran oil not only for dressing up their salads, but also, they apply it directly on the skin and hair.

Rice bran oil is a natural antioxidant

Nowadays, almost all anti aging skin care products and facial creams are labeled with the word “antioxidants”, which are actually substances and vitamins that can fight free radicals, thus, preventing aging process; but the only difference, that the antioxidants in creams are packed with chemicals and preservatives, which aren’t very beneficial for the beauty of our skin. (This is one of the main reasons why I completely stopped using facial creams and started my journey of investigating natural skin care products.) Rice bran oil, on the other hand, is completely free from all unnecessary (harmful) ingredients and it can provide us only with benefits.

Rice bran oil benefits for skin: (it can be applied directly on your face, all over your body or it can be mixed with your usual skin care products)

- Rich in Vitamin E and fatty acids, rice bran oil is able to deeply penetrate into skin’s layers, nourishing it from within, making your skin very soft and velvety,

- it improves skin’s elasticity, making it appear more youthful and plump,

- it hydrates the skin and helps it to retain moisture, thus, making your skin softer and smoother,

- rice bran oil boosts skin’s natural regeneration process,

- it can help to renew and improve skin’s surface,

- rice bran oil nourishes skin cells with vitamins and antioxidants, slowing down and preventing aging process,

- it improves overall complexion and helps to even out the skin tone,

- helps to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines (also helps to prevent them),

- rice bran oil doesn’t clog pores,

- it naturally helps to protect the skin from sun damage,

-  it’s easily absorbed into the skin, so it’s not likely to increase oiliness,

- helps to brighten and, even, slightly whiten the skin,

- rice bran oil has anti-inflammatory properties and can help sooth and calm down irritated skin,

- it adds youthful glow to your skin,

- helps to protect the skin from external aggressions: such as wind, cold, polluted city environment and, as mentioned above, rice bran oil can protect the skin from harmful sun damage, working as natural sun block,

Rice bran is also very beneficial for your hair and can be used in hair masks and for scalp massage:

- it can rejuvenate dull looking hair, making your locks shinier and healthier looking,

- protects your hair from sun damage,

- normalizes oiliness of your scalp,

- rice bran oil massage can efficiently help to fight dandruff,

- it can strengthen and nourish your hair,

- rice bran oil can help prevent split ends, if you apply it regularly and make rice bran oil hair masks,

- regular use of this oil can make your hair thicker and easily manageable,

- it helps strengthen and nourish the roots of your hair…

The benefits of this natural beauty product are countless…Rice bran oil also can deliver amazing benefits, if you use it in cooking. No wonder that this oil is widely used and praised by many and is considered to be the oil of health, beauty and youth by numerous Asian women.

(Make sure your are not allergic to the ingredients of natural beauty products, before using homemade treatments.)

Have you ever used rice bran oil? Please, share your thoughts in the comment’s section below.

Stay beautiful!

Top 10 Foods for Muscle Growth

Broccoli

Broccoli is a rich source of fiber and can help in muscle growth. Rich in vitamin A, B complex and other essential minerals and nutrients, regular consumption can prove to be good for muscle growth.

Eggs

Eggs are used widely for muscle growth by body builders. Not only body builders, people who hit the gym often are also recommended to consume eggs. Eggs are great source of proteins!

Ginger

Ginger is a herb that alleviates muscle pain. Regular consumption of ginger increases your workout capacity and helps in muscle growth. Ginger can be had in food or as a salad.

Mackerel

Mackerel is flesh of a small Atlantic fish that is rich in protein and omega-3 fatty acids. Regular consumption can help a great deal with muscle growth.

Olive Oil

Olive oil is full of goodness. Replace your vegetable oil with olive oil and see your muscles grow in a natural way. Just sauté some vegetables in olive oil and consume as salad.

Coffee

Yes, coffee has properties to ease muscle pain which increases your workout capacity. Lots of dieticians also recommend to have coffee before workout session as it provides blast of energy.

Pineapple

This tasty fruit can be relished after your workout sessions to enhance the muscle growth.

Spirulina

Spirulina is a choice of vegetarians who want to enhance their muscles. It contains 65% protein and just 20% carbohydrates. Regular consumption of Spirulina, either in juice or capsule form, can help a lot with muscle growth.

Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower seeds are a great source of protein and can be had as a quick snack. Regular consumption of sunflower seeds, either with food or as a snack, can help a great deal with muscle growth.

Turmeric

Turmeric is a great herb that contains curcumin – a natural compound that helps in muscle growth and repair. Regular intake of turmeric in food can help a lot with muscle growth.

Top 10 Ways to Reduce Weight Naturally

Go for Blue

A bit weird it might sound, but studies have suggested that blue color acts as an appetite suppressant. Setting your dining table in blue can help cut down some intake!

Eat at Right Time

If you want to be slim (or at least want a stable body weight), you ought to have a set time for your eating. Stick to a time-table and try not to deviate. It will surely help you reduce some weight in longer run!

Consume Super-foods

Super-foods are the ones that help you lose weight naturally. Some of these include green tea, broccoli, nuts, garlic, avocado, soya, etc. Including these foods in your regular diet helps reduce body weight.

Cut Down on Glucose

To bring your weight down, you ought to cut down on your glucose intake, or more clearly saying, reduce sweet foods. Having a sweet tooth is good, but these foods harm your body and help you gain weight. So, cut down on glucose in order to lose weight naturally.

Consume Water-Rich Foods

Consuming water-rich foods on a regular basis can also help you shed some extra weight. These foods include watermelon, kiwi, salads, whole-grain foods, etc.

Never Skip Breakfast

It’s a myth that skipping breakfast will help you lose weight. Instead, you end up eating more in the later part of the day. Have light and healthy breakfast; bran, oats, fiber-rich food, and cereals would help a lot!

Divide Meals in Six

Instead of having 3 meals in one day, divide your meals into smaller, but six parts. Consume these on equal intervals. This would make you feel neither hungry nor full!

Exercise

One of the most important things to lose weight is to exercise. The more you do it, the better it would be for you. Make it a habit to exercise!

Stick to Protein-Rich Foods

Increase intake of protein-rich food in your diet. Having pulses, eggs, and other foods that are rich in protein will help you shed weight quickly.

Consume Plenty of Water

We often underestimate the goodness of water, but it helps far more than we can anticipate. Surprisingly, it also helps you in your weight loss regime. Consume around 15 glasses per day and see how wonderful you’ll feel!

10 Benefits of Green Tea

Helps Lose Weight

Green tea increases the metabolism. The polyphenol found in green tea works to intensify levels of fat oxidation and the rate at which your body turns food into calories.

Prevents Diabetes

Green tea apparently helps regulate glucose levels slowing the rise of blood sugar after eating. This can prevent high insulin spikes and resulting fat storage.

Reduces Chances of Heart Disease

Scientists think, green tea works on the lining of blood vessels, helping keep them stay relaxed and better able to withstand changes in blood pressure. It may also protect against the formation of clots, which are the primary cause of heart attacks.

Helps Prevent Esophageal Cancer

It can reduce the risk of esophageal cancer, but it is also widely thought to kill cancer cells in general without damaging the healthy tissue around them.

Reduces Cholesterol

Green tea reduces bad cholesterol in the blood and improves the ratio of good cholesterol to bad cholesterol.

Prevents Tooth Decay

Studies suggests that the chemical antioxidant “catechin” in tea can destroy bacteria and viruses that cause throat infections, dental caries and other dental conditions.

Helps Lower Blood Pressure

Regular consumption of green tea is thought to reduce the risk of high blood pressure.

Helps Relax

Theanine is an amino acid naturally found in tea leaves. It is this substance that is thought to provide a relaxing and tranquilizing effect and be a great benefit to tea drinkers.

Has Anti-viral and Anti-bacterial Properties

Tea catechins are strong antibacterial and antiviral agents which make them effective for treating everything from influenza to cancer. In some studies green tea has been shown to inhibit the spread of many diseases.

Improves Skin Quality

Green tea can apparently also help with wrinkles and the signs of aging, This is because of their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Both animal and human studies have demonstrated that green tea applied topically can reduce sun damage.

A Closer Look at Fast Weight Loss Diets

When it comes to weight loss diets, many people are looking for those ways to help them lose those pounds in a fast way. In fact, many products are promoted as fast ways to lose weight but they will never say anything about the results one will get once they are off those products.

It s important to realize that with a fast weight loss diet you will lose mainly water, a little bit of fat, and also muscle. But what is the most important here: you will lose your health as well, this making a fast diet a dangerous method to approach for weight loss goal. People looking for this methods will usually look for a quick fix, but things must not be approached in this manner.

There are also those fad diets where you have to focus only on a single food group, such as the carbs diet claiming to help losing many pounds over a short period of time. But again this diet fails to bring the good results when practiced for a longer period of time.

People are looking towards fast weight loss diets with a lot of consideration because they can bring them what they want: lose weight as quickly as possible. These people do not understand that these diets are only a temporary solution and not a permanent one. They let themselves tricked about the quick results without realizing that soon enough they will be back where they have been prior to approaching that diet.

For all these people, I only recommend to stop for a while and take a closer look at the consequences described above. It is no use to go for a fast weight loss diet that brings in temporary results. Instead go for the solution that keeps your body healthy by including a balanced diet (rich in nutrients) combined with exercising routine. Work out your body into losing weight gradually and healthy because this is the only way to achieve good and permanent results. Stop looking for fast methods that can only make your body weak, but rather go for solutions that improve your health and build muscles in the long run.

Weight Loss – Setting Your Goals

There are many reasons why people approach weight loss, but regardless of the reasons, you need to make sure that this process takes place in a healthy manner. It is pointless to set the goal of losing weight only for the sake of losing those extra pounds while your body system gets weaker and more vulnerable to diseases. For this reason, setting the goal for a healthy weight loss plan is the best way you can achieve the best results.

Don’t Miss: How Can Water Help with Your Weight Loss Plan?

 

Another way to help you set the goals in an appropriate manner is to be realistic and sensible. The goals that are reasonable have better chances of success than the ones that are irrational. Now let’s see how you can set the goals into achieving a weight loss in a healthy manner:

• Consider setting a goal of losing weight in a gradual way. Keep in mind that your body has got used to this new weight for some time and since the weight gain didn’t occur overnight, then you shouldn’t expect it to be lost overnight, too. So, the best goal here is to lose around 2 pounds per week.
• Consider setting a goal into changing the food you used to eat. Fattening foods are a main factor into gaining weight, so your goal should be to eliminate these ones while including as well an exercising routine in your daily program.
• Another way to set pertinent weight loss goals is to avoid those products that claim to help you lose weight faster. As mentioned above, this is not your goal, not to mention that these products can come as well with their side effects. So, make a goal in avoiding these weight loss fast-result products.
• Set as a goal your need to combine healthy and balanced diets with physical exercises. When it comes to the latter ones, you should start with easy physical activities and gradually increase their level of difficulty. As to the balanced diet, you need to set goals into eating more veggies and fruits, lean meat, more whole grains, and low fat dairy products. In this way you will eliminate junk foods and your body system will be much healthier and away from the risks of getting sick.

More Info on Weight Loss Foods

If you are looking for a healthy way to achieve your weight loss goal, then you should know that starving is not an option. I have a few friends who have managed to lose those uncomfortable extra pounds skipping meals, but later on they have confronted with serious health problems.

Do you know why? Because in their need to achieve weight loss they haven’t paid attention to the body needs for nutrients and as a result they have indeed lost weight, but ended up with a weak body system more vulnerable to diseases. So, if you want to lose weight you should do this in a healthy way keeping track of those foods that are nutritional but are low in calories.

As you must know by now, weight loss is achieved when the calorie intake is less than the amount of calories that your body burns. For this reason you need to turn your attention towards consuming foods that contain few calories and stay away from depositing more fat within your body system. You will find many foods that are low in calorie intake and are for this reason recommended in your weight loss diet.

Other category of foods that are recommended for your weight loss plan are the ones that contain fibers. With fiber rich foods, your body will feel full for a longer period of time so that you won’t have the urge to eat so much in order to feel saturated. This is also another reason why people put on so much weight: they eat too much, most of the times, they are tempted to eat far beyond the level of satiety simply because they love that specific dish. A rule of thumb here: always serve the amount of food that is about to reach saturation and never eat until you get saturated or over this level.

According to studies, it has been found that drinking two liters of water per day can help with your weight loss goal. This is because water can take out the wastes not letting them accumulate inside the body as fat deposits. But what if you can not drink too much water? In this case, you shouldn’t be very concerned because there are many foods that have mostly water, so you can successfully consume this to complete the necessary amount of water per day. Other foods that help with weight loss should be in the form of fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains and fish.

How to Cut Fat But Keep Taste in Your Favorite Recipes

Higher calories often force people to let go of their favorite foods however there is no need for people to let go of their favorite foods with the fear of adding extra pounds to the body instead it can be made healthy by alternating certain ingredients in these specially cooked dishes. Like a saying huge results can be acquired by taking smaller steps which when taken continuously will make it easy to handle any huge changes which can be quite disturbing at times.

First change should start with healthy shopping at the grocery store where things are to be purchased to make a healthy diet till which it has to be preserved properly making certain changes which help in preparing healthy food items.

Steps for food makeover

• Go to foods are rights think to start the concept of makeover in foods, this choice is good since they are known to be prepared again and again, also any changes which are made to the dishes that are frequently eaten it is said to have better effect on the calories being taken in on daily basis.
• First step in makeover is to have good look at the materials which are needed to see if there are any healthy alternatives available to see if there is any chance to lessen fat and calorie intake for the body adding nutritional values. Would it be sufficient to use low fat curd instead of cream or is there any possibility to exchange brown rice for white one to include more fiber in food. These substitutes should be enough to provide nearly exact taste to the dish at the same time lessening the calorie count for the body.
• Now look at the amount of these ingredients which has to be changed in order to make the dish much healthier than its original part. If there is a choice to sauté or stir fry instead of pure frying in order to lessen the fat content, certain things like using lesser sugar or salt should have great effect on the calorie intake of body.

Do not think that using low calorie ingredients will mean that it will only end up to be a recipe that has lesser calories, since there are times when these ingredients are fried instead of grilling. If there are certain low calories food like fish and veggies there are changes that they will be sauced up instead of steaming and by the time the recipe comes out it seems quite similar to any burger filled with cheese.

 

Tips for healthy dishes:

Here we are providing the ways in which fat and calories can be cut down from the dishes also making them much healthier by increased use of whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruits in them:

• Calories can be reduced and nutrition can be boosted by adding diced veggies to soups and while cooking any other type of recipes which include meat, casseroles, salads or even pasta.
• Seasoning which is used for steamed vegetables should consist of garlic, onion, spices or herbs instead of regular butter and sauces which are often chosen by many.
• Try fruits for salad instead of routine vegetable like orange, tangerine, kiwi and apples, also it is suggested to alternate iceberg lettuce with deep green colored leafy vegetables.
• Frozen vegetables have enough nutrition like those of fresh ones; also they are good due to their availability throughout the year also being less costly than those of fresh ones.
• There is no need of cream, butter and flour to add thickness to the soups instead vegetables can be put in a blender and added to the soup. There is an alternative to also prepare cream for soups with vegetables and garlic puree with milk.
• Increase the quantity of dishes if they stay good even after freezing which makes best choice for people who do not have much time to prepare food or are easily tired with things can pull up these frozen dishes instead of choosing junk food.
• There are several alternatives available some of which are given below:
  1. Ground beef can be substituted with ground chicken, turkey or ground soy.
  2. Apple sauce, prunes, carrots, mashed avocados or bananas also make best alternative for butter or margarine.
  3. Pan spray, wine, vegetable juice and broth are known to be best choice to sauté vegetables instead of butter.
  4. Reduced fat cheese is best choice when compared to cheese.
  5. Egg whites can be used in place of the eggs which are used for baking.
  6. Mayonnaise with lesser fat is known to be best choice instead of Mayonnaise.

How Can Water Help with Your Weight Loss Plan?

If you wonder in what way water can help with your weight loss goals, then you have come to the right place. This article will explain how you can get help through drinking water while losing those extra pounds. It is not a scientific explanation, but the lines from below are mostly narrated in a way that can be on everybody’s level of perception.

I have seen many articles written with the intention of explaining a topic to the large audience, but with too much terminology included it is hard to get to the mind of ordinary people who have no training whatsoever on that particular topic. So this article will explain plain and in simple English how you can still achieve weight loss goals by drinking water.

Now when I say ‘drinking water‘ this doesn’t mean that you should have one or two glasses of water per day, but eight glasses is the right amount. I have met people whom I haven’t seen them in a while and was surprised to find out how much weight they have put on.

In the meanwhile, I found out they do not have more than 2 glasses of water per day, while others don’t drink at all. Instead they prefer drinking beer, sodas, and others alike. When I asked them why they didn’t drink water, they said that there is no more room for it. “And besides, aren’t the other beverages made of water, too, so what’s the use of adding plain water to all these?”

Well, the thing is that our body needs plain water to drink regardless how many other beverages you drink per day. Water helps with flushing out the waste from within the body. If you fail to do this, they can accumulate inside and you can not achieve the desired weight loss if these wastes are still in there. You have to understand that you need to reach the goal of weight loss from inside out allowing as such your body to clean itself prior to having it repaired.

Another good thing to do when you want to achieve weight loss is to drink one glass of water before your meal and one glass afterwards. It is also recommended to drink between the main meals to avoid snacking. In this way, your body will be full and won’t have any urge for eating those snacks that you used to have before engaging in a weight loss program.

Top 10 Yoga Poses that Increase Metabolism

Are you looking to cope up the metabolism in your body, the best practice is performing yoga for minimum of three times a week. Yoga is a method that helps you stay away from stress, keeps you fit and healthy, increases the metabolism in your body, and keeps you active and energized.

 

The following are the top yoga poses to be performed to reduce stress and increase metabolism in your body:

1. Twisted Chair Pose

Increase in the circulation can be gained by twisting every muscle in the body, which can be seen in Twisted Chair pose, resulting in good digestion and wakes up the internal organs.

Steps to perform:

Legs and feet are kept together. Make an action as you are sitting in a chair far behind by bending your knees and sinking your hips down at a time. Palms should be placed in front of chest. Your right elbow is moved until it reaches your left knee by rotating the spine simultaneously. Chest should remain lifted all the time. You should be able to hold it for 30-45 seconds and try the same on the other side.

2. Locust Pose

Locust pose helps you increase your metabolism and boosts your energy, similar to all other poses. While elongating your spinal column and opening up your chest, your leg muscles and lower back are strengthened.

Steps to perform:

Your stomach should be touching the ground while lying on the floor with your arms alongside of your body facing your palms up. Your head, upper part of the body, legs and arms are to be lifted maintaining equal distance from the floor. Legs and arms must be kept active and you should look slightly up or forward depending on the flexibility of the body. This should be performed for 45 seconds, before releasing your arms and other parts to the floor, your head should be turned to one side. The same is repeated for three times.

3. Bow Pose

It is almost similar to the Locust pose, where the energy gets boosted up and metabolism revs up. It strengthens the back muscles and stretches the front part of your body. Your body resembles the shape of bow.

Steps to perform:

Lie on your stomach stretching your arms alongside of the body, with palms facing upwards. Your ankles should be grabbed with your hands by bending the knees remaining in same position. Now lift your heels up and away from your body, keeping your legs hip-distance apart, which pulls your chest up off the floor. Shoulder blades should be kept down away from the ears all the time. You should hold this for 30-45 seconds, while releasing head should be turned to one side. Repeating this for two or three times shows best results.

4. Eagle Pose

Entire body gets energized and digestion is carried out well performing this pose. It also helps in building lean and strong muscles.

Steps to perform:

Bend your knees slightly from your standing position. Start in a standing position and bend your knees slightly. Right leg is lifted up and hooked around the standing leg at the foot and ankle behind left calf. Hips are brought down and back making a position as you are sitting in a chair. Arms are crossed at elbow position and wrists bringing them before your chest. After holding it for around 1 minute you can release it shaking the legs and continue by switching sides.

5. Crescent Lunge Pose

This position helps in stretching your hips and strengthening your legs. It also helps in the increase of the metabolism. Crescent lunge position maintains your heart beat rate.

Steps to perform:

Initiate with downward dog pose. Your right foot is stepped in between both the hands. Hips are lowered in lunge position and weight should be shifted on the ball of your back foot by lifting up the body as standing straight. Hips should remain squared all the time. Arms should be raised as to reach ceiling by keeping both the palms facing each other. Stay in the position for 1 minute and then sides are changed.

6. Bridge Pose

In this pose the chest portion is lifted up to reach the chin, by which the thyroid gland is massaged, resulting in the hormone regulation helping in maintaining the metabolism. It works with the gravity to open your chest and shoulder areas.

Steps to perform:

Keep your knees bent and flat on the floor with a feet distance apart by lying on your back. Slowly see if you can feel your heels by reaching down your fingertips.
Bring your knees a little closer if you do not feel so. Lift your hips towards the ceiling by pressing the weight on your feet by keeping your thighs parallel. Both arms are clasped with each other bringing them underneath your body. Shoulders blades are rolled towards each other and stay for 45 seconds to 60 seconds. Release by rolling back slowly and is repeated for two times.

7. Plow Pose

Plow pose helps in balancing your metabolic system and helps you for the flow of feel good hormones and endorphins throughout your body. This also helps in the good circulation of adrenal, thyroid and pituitary glands.

Steps to perform:

Bring you legs straight up in the air towards the ceiling by lying back. Arms are brought alongside your body with your palms down. Press your weight into the arms and lift your legs right over your head and try to touch the ground behind you, if it is difficult for you to do so clasp your arms as in the bridge pose for support and shoulders rolling towards each other.

8.Shoulder Stand

Shoulder stand gives great stretch to your upper back and neck. It is having similar benefits as plow pose.

Steps to perform:

Put you arms alongside your body with your palms down by lying back. Follow same procedure as plow pose by bringing your legs in the air towards ceiling over the head by pressing weight into the hands. Hands are clasped and shoulders are rolled towards each other and bringing hands to lower neck spreading your fingers wide. Now one leg at a time is lifted to the ceiling getting it as straight as possible and hold it for 1 to 3 minutes.

9. Fish Pose

The counter pose to the shoulder stand is nothing but the fish pose. It helps in stretching front of neck, causing calming effect to your body. Most of us suffer from lot of stress in our shoulders and neck.

 

Steps to perform:

Your hands along with the palms are kept beneath your hips by lying back. Elbows are bent and by pressing weight into them you should lean on them. Your back should be arched as you lift your chest up towards the ceiling. As in the bridge stand, elbows are brought towards each other dropping the head back behind your body.

10. Easy Spinal Twist

Spinal twist pose helps you in the weight loss process and take care of the digestive system of your body.

Steps to perform:

Both of your knees are brought towards your chest by lying on your back. Your left knee must be held into the chest leaving the right knee straightened onto the floor. The bent knee should be brought all over the body without changing the shape of your shoulder. To complete the twist head should be turned to look over the left shoulder. Keeping the pose for 45 seconds to 1 minute, both the knees are brought into the chest and other knee should be practiced. Lie on your back and bring both knees in toward your chest.