How to lose weight quickly

How to lose weight fast

Losing weight fast  may seem like a good idea and an aspiration of thousands of overweight people, However, losing weight quickly is not always advisable as it can be associated with health risks and may not lead to sustainable results. But, if you're looking to shed some pounds, here are a few tips for safe and effective weight loss.

Healthy Eating: 

Always remember, you are what you eat. Focus on eating a balanced diet consisting of whole foods such as fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains. Limit processed foods, sugary snacks, and high-calorie beverages. Be mindful of portion sizes and aim to eat until you're satisfied, not overly full.

Regular Exercise:

Incorporate both cardiovascular exercise and strength training into your routine. Cardiovascular activities like walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming help burn calories and improve heart health, while strength training exercises build muscle mass, which can increase metabolism and aid in fat loss. Aim to increase your heartrate to 120 beats per minute for about 20 minutes 3 times per week,

Stay Hydrated: 

Drink plenty of water throughout the day to stay hydrated and keep your metabolism functioning optimally. Sometimes thirst can be mistaken for hunger, so staying hydrated may help prevent overeating and get rid of hunger pangs.

Get Enough Sleep: 

Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night. Poor sleep and or interrupted sleep can disrupt hormones that regulate hunger and appetite, leading to weight gain. Prioritize sleep as part of your weight loss plan.

Manage Stress: 

Chronic stress can contribute to weight gain by triggering overeating or unhealthy food choices. Practice stress-reducing techniques such as deep breathing, meditation, yoga, or spending time outdoors to help manage stress levels.

Set Realistic Goals: 

Instead of focusing solely on rapid weight loss, set achievable goals that prioritize long-term health and well-being. Aim for a gradual and sustainable rate of weight loss, typically 1-2 pounds per week.

Seek Support: 

Surround yourself with a supportive network of friends, family, or a healthcare professional who can encourage and motivate you on your weight loss journey. Consider joining a weight loss group or seeking the guidance of a registered dietitian or certified personal trainer.

Remember, quick fixes or crash diets often lead to temporary results and can be harmful to your overall health. Focus on making small, sustainable changes to your lifestyle that promote healthy eating, regular exercise, and overall well-being for long-term success. If you have any underlying health conditions or concerns, consult with a healthcare professional before making significant changes to your diet or exercise routine.

Know your muscles

The human skeletal is dressed with various muscle groups and without them we would be incapable of movement - muscles are the essence of our being. We can roughly divide these muscles into upper body and lower body regions and they not gender specific.

The abdominal, pectoral, deltoid, trapezius, latissimus dorsi, erector spinae, biceps, and triceps can all be found in the upper body whereas the quadriceps, hamstrings, gastrocnemius, soleus, and gluteus muscle groups found in the lower part of the body. 

However, knowing the names of the these muscles says nothing about where in the baby they can be found. So the following should give you decent idea of where they are and what they do.

Understanding these muscle groups and how they work can help you target them more effectively during exercise and achieve your fitness goals.

Body Builder flexing muscles

Rectus Abdominis (Abdominals):
These are commonly known as the "abs" or six-pack muscles. They run down the front of your abdomen and help you bend forward, like when you do crunches or sit-ups.

Deltoid:
The deltoid muscle is located in the shoulder region. It forms the rounded contour of the shoulder and is responsible for various movements of the arm, including lifting the arm to the side, lifting the arm forward, and lifting the arm backward.

Entire Core:
The core includes multiple muscles such as the rectus abdominis, obliques, and deeper stabilizing muscles. It's like a cylinder wrapping around your midsection, providing stability and support for your spine and pelvis during movements like bending, twisting, and lifting.

Trapezius:
The trapezius muscle is located in the upper back and neck region. It is a large, triangular-shaped muscle that extends from the base of the skull down to the middle of the back and across to the shoulders. The trapezius helps to stabilize and move the shoulder blades, as well as extend and laterally flex the neck.

Lower Abdominals and Hip Flexors:
These muscles are located in the lower part of your abdomen and near your hips. They help you lift your legs and bend your hips, like when you raise your legs during leg raises or flutter kicks.

Oblique Muscles (Obliques):
These muscles are located on the sides of your abdomen, and they help you twist your torso and bend sideways, like when you do Russian twists or bicycle crunches.

Pectoral Muscles (Pectorals):
Also known as the "pecs," these muscles are located in the chest area. They help you push things away from your body and bring your arms together in front of your chest, like when you're doing push-ups or chest presses.

Latissimus Dorsi:
Commonly referred to as the "lats," the latissimus dorsi muscles are located on the sides of the back, spanning from the lower part of the spine to the upper arm. They are responsible for various movements of the shoulder joint, including pulling the arms down and towards the body, as well as rotating the arms inward.

Erector Spinae:
The erector spinae muscles are a group of muscles that run along the length of the spine in the lower back region. They are responsible for extending the spine (bending backward) and assisting in maintaining an upright posture.

Pelvic Floor Muscles:
These are a group of muscles located at the bottom of your pelvis, kind of like a hammock supporting your pelvic organs. They help control your bladder and bowel movements and also play a role in sexual function. Kegel exercises target these muscles to strengthen them.

Gastrocnemius:
This muscle is located in the calf region of the lower leg. It forms the bulk of the calf and is responsible for plantar flexion of the foot, such as pointing your toes downward.

Soleus:
Also located in the calf region of the lower leg, beneath the gastrocnemius, the soleus muscle is responsible for plantar flexion of the foot and helps maintain posture while standing.

Biceps:
These are the muscles on the front of your upper arms. They help you bend your elbows and lift objects towards your body, like when you're curling weights or lifting groceries.

Triceps:
These are the muscles on the back of your upper arms. They help you straighten your elbows and push things away from your body, like when you're pushing a door open or doing tricep dips.

Quadriceps:
These muscles are on the front of your thighs and help you straighten your knees, like when you're standing up from a seated position.

Hamstrings: 
These muscles  are on the back of your thighs and help you bend your knees and extend your hips, like when you're walking or running.

Gluteus muscles:
Are in your buttocks and help you extend and rotate your hips, like when you're standing up from a squat or climbing stairs.

Understanding the location and function of these muscles can be helpful in targeting them during exercise and maintaining overall strength and flexibility.

Stomach exercises for women

Ladies! This is my quick and easy step by step guide towards achieving your ideal body shape. Just a few reps per day is guaranteed to increase you energy levels and stamina, skin tone and mood and sex appeal.

Crunches:
Crunches primarily target the rectus abdominis muscle, which is responsible for flexing the spine. It's essential to perform crunches with proper form to avoid strain on the neck and lower back. Engage your core muscles throughout the movement and focus on lifting with your abdominal muscles rather than pulling with your neck.  Method:- Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place hands behind your head or crossed over your chest. Contract your abdominal muscles and lift your shoulders off the floor while keeping your lower back pressed into the ground. Lower back down onto mat with stomach muscle control.

Planks:
Planks are excellent for strengthening the entire core, including the deep stabilizing muscles. Maintain a straight line from your head to your heels, engaging your abdominal muscles and avoiding sagging or arching in the lower back. You can modify planks by performing them on your knees or by adding variations such as side planks for additional challenge. Method:- Start in a push-up position with your arms straight. Lower onto your forearms while keeping your body in a straight line from head to heels. Hold this position, engaging your core muscles, for as long as you can.

Leg Raises:
Leg raises target the lower abdominals and hip flexors. Keep your lower back pressed into the floor throughout the movement to prevent strain. If you find it challenging to keep your legs straight, you can bend your knees slightly or perform the exercise with one leg at a time. Method:- Lie flat on your back with legs extended. Place your hands under your glutes for support. Keeping your legs straight or slightly bent, lift them towards the ceiling until they are perpendicular to the floor. Slowly lower them back down without touching the ground and repeat.

Russian Twists:
This exercise engages the oblique muscles, which are responsible for rotation and side bending of the torso. Focus on twisting from your waist while keeping your chest lifted and your back straight. You can increase the intensity by holding a weight or a medicine ball as you twist. Method:- Sit on the floor with knees bent and feet lifted off the ground. Lean back slightly and clasp your hands together. Twist your torso to the right, bringing your hands towards the floor beside your hip. Return to center and twist to the left. Alternate sides.

Bicycle Crunches:
Bicycle crunches work the entire abdominal area, including the obliques and the rectus abdominis. Perform the movement with control, aiming to bring your elbow as close to the opposite knee as possible while keeping your lower back on the floor. Method:- Lie on your back with hands behind your head, elbows pointing out. Lift your shoulder blades off the floor and bring your right elbow towards your left knee while straightening your right leg. Switch sides, bringing your left elbow towards your right knee in a pedaling motion.

Mountain Climbers:
Mountain climbers are a dynamic exercise that targets the core, shoulders, and legs. Maintain a plank position throughout the movement, engaging your core to stabilize your body as you alternate bringing your knees towards your chest. Method:- Begin in a plank position with hands directly under shoulders. Drive your right knee towards your chest, then quickly switch legs, bringing your left knee towards your chest while extending your right leg back. Continue alternating legs at a quick pace.

Flutter Kicks:
Flutter kicks primarily target the lower abdominals and hip flexors. Keep your lower back pressed into the floor and your core engaged throughout the exercise. You can vary the intensity by adjusting the speed and range of motion of your leg movements. Method:- Lie on your back with hands under your glutes. Lift your legs off the ground a few inches and alternately kick them up and down in a fluttering motion, engaging your core to keep your lower back pressed into the floor.

Pelvic Muscle Strength Exercises (Kegels):
Kegel exercises involve contracting and relaxing the pelvic floor muscles, which can help improve pelvic muscle strength and tone, leading to a tighter vagina. To perform Kegels, identify the pelvic floor muscles by stopping the flow of urine midstream or by imagining you are trying to hold in gas. Method:- Contract these muscles by squeezing them for 3-5 seconds, then relax for the same duration. Aim to do 10-15 repetitions, 2-3 times a day. Gradually increase the duration of the contractions as your pelvic muscles strengthen. 

Avoid holding your breath or tensing other muscles while performing Kegels. Incorporating these stomach exercises and pelvic muscle strength exercises into your regular fitness routine can help you achieve your desired body shape and improve pelvic health. Remember to combine these exercises with a balanced diet and overall fitness routine for the best results. It's also important to listen to your body and consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new exercise program, especially if you have any underlying health conditions.

FLAT ABS

How to get a flat stomach

"I want a flat stomach and even if it kills me, and I'm going get a flat stomach soon". Most women would love to have a flat stomach but 'getting a flat stomach' is really not easy considering I've tried them all. The methods of 'how to keep a flat stomach' over an extended period of time is even more difficult, so I devised my own. 

I initially heard that it's possible to get a 'flat stomach in 3 days' but after trying it on several occasions and not succeeding,  I gave up because it is impossible, seriously I've been there and done that. I've even seen adverts and heard promises of a 'flat stomach in a week' but even that is wishful thinking. However, a 'flat stomach in a month' is doable and I'm going to tell you how but I need you to bare with me. 

The first rule of a flat stomach is to get your mindset right because without that, I'm sorry to say, you've already lost the battle of the bulge. Just look at my initial statement, viz I want a flat stomach and even if it kills me, I'm going get a flat stomach soon. That's what I'm talking about. Be positive and assertive in your intentions and desires to 'get a flat stomach fast', only then is it even possible.

Flat stomach workouts

Stomach Crunches are by far the best exercises for a flat stomach and there is no need for any exercise equipment. Pull-in that stomach,  is exercise for a flat stomach that also beats most other exercises. Having said that, let me reassure you  these flat stomach exercises are very different from the crunches you have in mind, because you do them in bed in the morning before you even can even think of jumping into a shower. So here goes...

Flat stomach exercises for women and men

When you wake-up, open your bedroom windows as wide as possible, so that the morning fresh air can rush in. Remove you pillows, cast the sheet and duvet aside, get back onto your bed and lay flat on you back with your arms  straightened on either side.  Turn your attention to you stomach and pull it in as much as possible. Then interlock your fingers and place your hands on your stomach so that you can feel your stomach muscles work. Take a few deep breaths and breath out slowly and be conscious of your chest expanding making  sure with your hands that your stomach doesn't expand and pulled in at all times. 

The idea is to breath with your chest and not your stomach. Do this fore at least 3 minutes. Now lift your head and shoulders off the bed, about the pillows thickness, but leave your heels on the bed. With your hands feel your stomach muscles contracting and count to 20 then lay back onto your bed. Repeat this 20 times if you can. The flat stomach rule is, don't overdo it because as of tomorrow you need to increase them at the rate of 3 extra per day, everyday forward.

Tips to a flat stomach

Come to terms with your shape and your weight and accept yourself. Admit that your  waistline isn't ideal but make a firm intention that you will do whatever it takes to loose those extra grams, pounds or kilograms - starting right now!  Repeat this declaration to yourself often until you are committed and in believe that you will follow it through. Repeat it when you see food, repeat it when you smell food. Repeat it just for the hell of it because what the mind can conceive the body will achieve. 

How to have a flat stomach is best achieved through your own consciousness. Be constantly aware of your posture. Keep you spine erect as much as possible, whilst walking, standing and sitting, especially whilst driving a car or sitting in a bus or train. Breath with your chest whilst keeping the spine erect and pull-in that stomach. Never sit with an arched back and slumped shoulders because this actually limits you air intake  and deprives you of oxygen, the oxygen needed by your 'flat lower stomach' muscles to strengthen and burn away the fat.

Diet for flat stomach

"You are what you eat"; and "Garbage in garbage out", are two adages that sums up the diet for a flat stomach. You have to constantly watch what you eat and more particularly how much you eat. No snacking between meals, stick to natural foods and steer clear of processed foods, take-out and fast foods. Steer clear of carbonated cool drinks and fizzy drinks.  Instead, drink a glass of water before a meal and one while you eat and a glass of water after you eat. This ensures that your food for flat stomach is substantially reduced. Reduce your fruit juices intake rather eat you fruit don't drink it.

FLAT BELLY

Dudes and dudettes, here's my explanation on the easiest ways to achieve a flat belly for women after childbirth, and how it differs from reducing a beer belly for men. While the basic principles of achieving a flat belly —healthy eating, regular exercise and patience  — apply to both women after childbirth and men with beer bellies, the specific approaches may vary based on individual factors such as hormonal changes, metabolism and lifestyle habits as well as due to the unique physiological changes that occur in each gender. 

However, it's important to consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new diet or exercise regimen, especially after childbirth or if you have underlying health conditions.

Flat stomach

For Women After Childbirth:

Postpartum Exercises:
Incorporate exercises that target the abdominal muscles, such as pelvic tilts, gentle crunches, planks, and pelvic floor exercises (Kegels). Start with low-impact exercises and gradually increase intensity as your body heals.

Healthy Eating:
Focus on a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains. Breastfeeding mothers should ensure they are consuming enough calories to support milk production while still making nutritious food choices.

Patience and Time:
Understand that it takes time for the body to recover after childbirth. Be patient with yourself and avoid putting pressure on achieving rapid weight loss. Allow your body the time it needs to heal and adjust.

For Men with Beer Bellies:

Healthy Diet: Reduce your intake of refined carbohydrates, sugary foods and beverages, and alcohol, which contribute to abdominal fat accumulation. Focus on eating a balanced diet that includes plenty of vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats.

Regular Exercise: Incorporate both cardiovascular exercise and strength training into your routine. Cardiovascular exercise helps burn calories and reduce overall body fat, while strength training helps build muscle mass, which can increase metabolism and aid in fat loss.

Limit Alcohol Consumption: 
Beer bellies are often associated with excessive alcohol consumption. Cut back on alcohol intake or opt for lower-calorie options to reduce the empty calories and excess sugar associated with alcohol.

Stay Consistent: 
Consistency is key to achieving and maintaining a flat belly. Make exercise and healthy eating habits a regular part of your lifestyle rather than relying on short-term fixes. Stick to your plan consistently and be patient. Achieving a flatter belly takes time and dedication, so stay committed to your healthy eating and exercise routine.

For both Men and Women:

Healthy Eating:
Focus on a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains. Avoid processed foods, sugary snacks, and excessive sodium, which can contribute to bloating and abdominal fat.

Hydration:
Drink plenty of water throughout the day to stay hydrated and help flush out toxins. Limit sugary drinks and alcohol, as they can contribute to bloating and water retention.

Portion Control:
Pay attention to portion sizes and avoid overeating. Eating smaller, more frequent meals can help keep your metabolism steady and prevent bloating.

Cardiovascular Exercise:
Incorporate regular cardio workouts such as brisk walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming to burn calories and reduce overall body fat, including abdominal fat.

Strength Training:
Include strength training exercises targeting the abdominal muscles, such as crunches, planks, leg raises, Russian twists, and bicycle crunches. These exercises help tone and strengthen the core, leading to a tighter and flatter stomach.

Core Stability:
Focus on exercises that improve core stability, such as yoga, Pilates, and stability ball exercises. These activities engage the deeper abdominal muscles, helping to create a firmer and more defined midsection.

By following my flat belly plan and incorporating these lifestyle changes, you can work towards achieving a flatter belly (tummy) and a more toned midsection. Remember to listen to your body, stay consistent, and celebrate your progress along the way!

FLATTEN STOMACH

GET A FLATTEN STOMACH FAST

Most women would love a flatten stomach. So, those with a bit extra around the waistline often resort to corsets, girdles, step-ins, neoprene body sheaths, body contour underwear and elasticated body stockings. All of which, purely act as a crutch that only provide a temporary appearance of a flatten stomach until they take them off. Then reality kicks-in, along with gravity followed by despondency and often low self esteem. Ladies, I know its not easy, especially after the kids are born.

My advise, lets keep it real, and this also applies to the men in your lives. Yes, dudes, I'm talking to all of you too. And what's even better, there is no need for any exercise equipment. Come to terms with your shape and your weight. Accept yourself and admit that you are a bit fat around the waist and make a firm intention that you will do your utmost to loose those extra grams, pounds or kilograms- starting now!  Repeat this declaration to yourself over and over until you are committed and in believe that you will follow through.. Repeat it when you see food, repeat it when you smell food. Repeat it just for the hell of it.

Next, you have to watch what you eat and more particularly how much you eat. In order to determine how much you should eat, you will have to do the following quick exercise. But before we continue, let me reassure you that  the best exercises to flatten stomach muscles is to eat stomach flattening foods. Restated, it emphasizes the amount of food that you should eat without stretching  those muscles unduly.  So, stand up, with your arms along your sides take a deep breath and pull-in your stomach as much as you can. 

Keep it in and hold your breath until you feel your stomach muscles starting to ache then they will start to quiver. Kept it for fifteen more seconds, release and breath out. Repeat it a few times. Do this often until you become conscious of the feeling. Do this every time after you've eaten. This included drinking, coffee, tea, beverages or water. If you cant get to the quiver or are unable to do it, you've eaten too much. Be conscious of this and repeat after your next meal until you succeed regularly.

Flatten Stomach

The best way to flatten stomach is through your own consciousness. Be constantly aware of your posture. Keep you spine erect as much as possible, both standing and sitting especially whilst driving a car or sitting in a bus or train. Breath with your chest whilst keeping the spine erect and pull-in that stomach. Ladies, this will do amazing things for your bust line. Please, not the other way round. Meaning, sitting with an arched back, slumped shoulders and breathing with your stomach going in and out. 

This actually limits you air intake and deprives you of oxygen, the oxygen needed by your stomach muscles to strengthen and burn away the fat. If you do this religiously, it will get rid of, and flatten belly fat fast, or let me rather say, it  will most certainly flatten tummy fast. You will even feel better when you get more oxygen in your system, it will flatten belly fast and don't forget the exercises. It really doesn't matter whether you say, flatten belly exercises or flatten tummy exercise or flatten stomach exercise it is  all one and the same. Some say tomato and some say tomayto, some say  Belly, and some say tummy, and some even say stomach, either way the above exercise is designed to flatten belly and flatten abs fast.

FLAT STOMACH

FLAT BELLY / PAUNCH / SIX PACK ABS

Question:
I have a a fat stomach, a paunch to be exact, will abdominal crunches and ab exercises give me a flat tummy?

Answer:
Stomach crunches and ab exercises targeted at the upper body can help strengthen the muscles near your belly, but they won’t make that paunch disappear on its own. Stomach crunches and ab exercises are generally  good, because it gets the heart pumping and the flood flowing. In fact any intense cardio workout is recommended because it will causes you to gasp for breath and pant. Panting is good and beneficial because it gets you to flush your lungs with fresh air and gets the blood oxygenated. Added to this, you need to get your heart to beat at  about 120 beats per minute for at least 20 minutes. It's a  sure way to maintain good health and burn that stomach fat  and get rid of those stored calories.

Burn calories and regular exercise equals six pack abs.

If you have a paunch because you haven't exercised in a long time, or been an armchair sportsman since your sports injury or you've just been complacent and inactive, just too busy to look after yourself, a skipping rope is the way to go. Skipping is non intrusive, is it easily done, results in minor muscle soreness, no stretching required and burns stomach fat fast especially lower belly fat.  Start off with 20 jumps and moderately increase them daily, stop when you tired but try for 20 minutes but monitor your heart rate. You don't have to jump high, just high enough for the rope to scrape through under your feet. The most important aspect of the skipping rope exercise is consistency. Consistency burns overall body fat like no other method. So skip daily. The second most effective overall aspect of loosing the lower belly fat is to control your calorie intake.

FAT CONTROL

Our bodies doesn’t reduce fat just in certain areas when we exercise because fat loss is a total-body experience. Fat gain is no different, when your belt size increases so does your collar size. Having said that, when we exercise and the waistline  reduces, the neckline and upper arm and thigh girth will follow. When we achieve that six pack the rest of the body reduces in conformity. Weight management is the key to success.

EAT MODERATELY

You are what you eat, if you eat health you will be healthy. Keep white bread consumption to a minimum. Eat your fruit, don't drink it. Drink lots of water especially before a meal, it will ste up your metabolism and will prevent you from over eating  Try to stay away from take-out, eat home cooked meals. Stay away from tea and coffee, they cause free radicals especially if you take sugar.

A NOTE OF CAUTION 

Three cups of coffee or tea per day with 3 spoons of sugar each equates to 27 spoons of sugar in three days -25 teaspoons full fills a cup. Try filling a cup with sugar and count the spoon-fulls for yourself. In a month you could consume as much as 10 cups of sugar. So cut down on your sugar intake.

To have a six pack or a flat stomach in the shortest amount of time, make sure you read all the installments of this blog, especially on obesity. Religiously following this regimen of exercises and nutrition control give results never seen before. Happy slimming.

SIX PACK

FLAT STOMACH, FLAT BELLY

Weight loss and exercise, calorie consumption and metabolism,  food processing and diet plans,  eating healthy and vitamin supplementation have all taken on a different form over the "past 30 years".  Everyone seems to be a health expert, everyone is giving weight loss advice and everyone seems to have the answers. Yet obesity and overweight has climbed the ladder to become the fifth leading cause of global deaths. No less than 2.8 million adults die annually, because of obesity and overweight.  Can it be because the advice out there is tainted?

Death is morbid but a natural consequence of life. We will all eventually die but many people kill themselves or rather eat themselves to death. Yes, food is good, food is tasty and food is necessary but there are good foods and bad foods and the wrong advice followed, can lead to dire consequences. Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and responsible for approximately seven and a half million deaths annually. Ischaemic heart disease is the second leading cause of death globally. Stroke / cerebrovascular disease is the third and lower respiratory tract infections the fourth. And to reiterate, obesity and overweight is the fifth leading cause of global deaths.

Having said that, let me qualify why I had to write about these morbid things. In order to live a healthy life and naturally have a six pack and a flat stomach we only need five things but I will just cover the first four for now. The first and most important is "Fresh Air". If the average person is deprived of air for more than 7 minutes then we may as well call-in the undertakers since he or she will die of suffocation. The second vital ingredient for life is "Clean Drinking Water", considering our bodies consist of approximately 79% water.  If the average person is deprived of water for more than 15 days, dehydration can lead to kidney failure, the consequence of which is death.  The third vital ingredient for continued life is "Beauty Sleep". Sufficient sleep restores our regenerates our energy levels. If the average person is deprived of sleep for more than 11 days, psychosis sets-in with a very high possibility of  death and even though no scientific studies were done on humans, this was proven with lab animals. The fourth requirement is "Nourishing Food". It appears from the observation of hunger strikers that humans can survive without a morsel of food for 30-40 days, as long as they drink water, Thereafter severe symptoms of starvation sets-in and death can occur anywhere between 45­ to 61 days.

Mahatma Gandhi on his  21-day hunger strike.

To take this a little further, wild beasts of prey like a lions or a tigers makes a kill once a week, have a hearty meal, then leave what they can't eat to other wild animals and scavengers. Wild animals only eat when they are hungry. It is only us humans who insist on three square meals per day everyday, at prescribed times, then to make matters worse we adopt pets and we feed them as many times as humans eat and what humans eat, only to see pudgy domesticated cats, dogs, and hamsters in virtually every household. No self respecting wild cat or dog or even hamster would dream of looking pudgy or fat, because instinctively they know what moderation is. In fact we can learn from them.

I am not suggesting, neither recommending starvation, even though most obese and overweight people are overeaten they are non-the-less undernourished. Many of them are constantly tired, deficient in concentration and can't wait to have their next meal. The main reason being, that the bulk of their energy is used by their digestive system to process the food in their gut,  leaving them with very little energy to function with. 

What we need to learn, is to control our food intake and only eat natural foods, avoid processed foods especially sugar and soda containing aspartame. Over the "past 30 years" cigarette smoking, car fumes, industrial processes and food processing factories have polluted the air with toxic chemicals. But  regardless of this,  we need to make a conscious effort every morning after the trees has done their magic to breath fresh air and  inhale deeply and often. We also need to make the conscious decision to drink water throughout the day  and not live on tea and coffee and soda. Our bodies need clean water to its thang. Suck on this, try doing your laundry in coffee, tea and soda without adding any water and see if your laundry comes clean. Our bodies can filter the coffee, tea and soda in order to get clean water with which to do the necessary body processes but it takes a lot of energy to do so. See for  yourself how unjust you are to your body by depriving it of water.  We also need to avoid smoking and consuming alcohol, substitute them for fruit but avoid drinking fruit juices. Eat your fruit don't drink it. For example, 2 glasses of grape juice can equate to more than a kilo of grapes which is a meal in itself. Implying that your entire weekly fructose intake is consumed in a single drink.  The same applies to a glass of apple juice which can be equivalent to 5 apples. Likewise 4 oranges to a glass of orange juice.

To come back to the top five causes of death globally. Cancer is the generic term for a group of diseases that can affect any part of the human body where mutation spread rapidly. This is referred to as metastasis and is a major cause of death. Carcinogens are chemicals that cause Cancer by causing mutations. Carcinogens are often introduced into the body through drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco and other  dietary risks. Sugar is carcinogenic, trans fats found in snack chips are carcinogenic, aspartame based sweeteners are carcinogenic,  plastic bottles made with acrylamide and or xylene are carcinogenic, ultraviolet and ionizing radiation are carcinogenic (excessive sunbathing and tanning booths). Infections from certain viruses, bacteria or parasites are also carcinogenic and ageing also makes one susceptible to Cancer.

Ischaemic heart disease is the second highest cause of death globally and characterized as a diseases that narrows the coronary arteries, reduces the flow of oxygenated blood to the heart. No fresh air in the blood, smoking, high cholesterol, overweight, obesity and  excessively eating  meat are the key causes. However Ischaemic heart disease can be controlled even reversed by using prescribed blood pressure medication, physical exercise  and a healthy diet.

Stroke / cerebrovascular disease is the third highest cause of global death. Essentially cerebrovascular disease is similar to Ischaemic heart disease but with stroke victims, it's not their heart but their brain or certain parts of the brain that is deprived of oxygenated blood resulting in disturbance of cerebral function and causing physical  disability. No fresh air in the blood, smoking, high cholesterol, overweight, obesity, excessively eating  meat and excessive levels of salt in their diet are the key causes.

Lower respiratory track infections affect the sinuses, the throat, the airways and lungs causing  a tight feeling in your chest alongside breathlessness,  wheezing, sore throat,  fever, chills and headaches. Lower respiratory infections which are caused by respiratory syncytial virus can lead to bronchiolitis, which cause inflammation of the bronchial tubes. Bronchiolitis is a self-limiting illness and normally the immune system will take care of it.

Other than lower respiratory tract infections, all the other causes of death can be attributed to factors stemming from poor diet, improper breathing and overeating resulting and especially overweight and obesity. So before we can start with, of even think of getting a flat belly with a six pack abs, we have to revisit our eating habits and our sugar intake, as well as expel all carcinogens from our diet. Six packs need fresh air and loads of physical energy to burn the fat.