Does Carb Backloading Help You Lose Weight? Science Says ...

Tracy asks:

What are your thoughts about carb backloading? Some are touting the benefits of eating carbs only in the evening.

There is some research to support the benefits of eating most of your carbs at night. But as is almost always the case, the devil is in the details!

One study involved several dozen police officers, both men and women, all of whom were overweight. During the six-month study, the subjects followed a reduced-calorie diet. They all ate the same amount of carbohydrates—about 50 percent of their daily calories. But one group ate most of their carbs at lunch and the other ate most of their carbs at dinner.

At the end of the study, those who ate their carbs in the evening felt less hungry throughout the day. They also ended up losing a bit more weight and body fat.

Can carb-backloading help you lose weight? 

It’s tempting to grab the headline here and run with it: Eat carbs at night and lose weight! But that summary, as appealing as it is, leaves out several key details.

The important thing to keep in mind here is that these subjects were eating a very low-calorie diet—just 1200 to 1500 calories a day.  As a result, they were losing weight fairly rapidly. (Something, by the way, that I do not recommend.) 

It’s tempting to grab the headline here and run with it: Eat carbs at night and lose weight! But that summary, as appealing as it is, leaves out several key details.

Although they were saving up their carbs to eat at the evening meal, they were still eating a relatively small amount: one to two cups of rice or pasta, for example. It’s also important to note that the meal plans were devoid of added sugars, snack foods, and most processed foods. Also, the starchy foods were eaten at the evening meal, not as a bedtime snack.

But, within this context, eating starchy foods in the evening appears to have reduced hunger, which probably made it a little easier to stick to this regimen.

All of the subjects in this study saw improvements in their insulin and fasting glucose levels, which you would expect to see anytime you have substantial weight loss. But the group who ate most of their carbs in the evening had slightly greater improvements.

What if you’re not dieting, though? Is there any advantage to eating all or most of your carbs in the evening? Maybe not.

Does carb-backloading improve blood sugar control?

A small trial of normal-weight men tested the effects of eating carbs early or late in the day without reducing the number of calories they ate. Not surprisingly, for those who had...

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6 Tricks to Make Your Clothes Last Longer

Wash Them Less

The easiest way to make your clothes last longer is to wash them less. Many of your clothes can be worn several times before you wash them, especially sweaters. Most items get more wear and tear from being in the washing machine than they do on your bodies! When you do throw in a load, make sure to turn knitted clothes and T-shirts with designs on them inside out when washing and drying.

Remove Dry Cleaner Bags ASAP

It’s tempting to leave freshly dry-cleaned items in the plastic bags that the clothes are returned to you in. After all, it seems like they’ll stay cleaner longer that way. But the truth is that those bags can trap perchloroethylene—a toxic solvent used in dry cleaning—in the fabric. The fix is simple: Just remove the bags and hang the clothes outside or in the garage for an hour or two before returning them to your closet. The chemical will vaporize, and you’ll breathe easier.

Don’t Button Up

When you wash button-down shirts and polos, make sure to unbutton them before tossing in the machine. The agitation can weaken the threads and increase the chance that the buttons will loosen or fall off.

Make Bras Last Longer

If you want your bras to last longer (and who doesn’t?), rotate through them rather than wear one for a few days in a row. You’ll give the elastic time to contract between each wear, and the bras will last longer. Who knew?

Watch Drying Times

Make your clothes last longer by taking your cotton and denim clothing out of the dryer 20 minutes before the cycle is about to end and letting them air dry the rest of the way. Excess dryer heat can break down the fibers in your clothes prematurely.

See also: What to Do If You’re Out of Dryer Sheets or Fabric Softener

Freeze Your Jeans

It sounds crazy, but you can save wear and tear on your jeans by cutting down on the number of times you put them through the washing machine—freeze them instead! The freezer eliminates many of the same odors and bacteria as the washing machine, so you can cut down on how often you wash your jeans, thus making the fabric last longer. Just shake off any debris, fold the jeans neatly, and put them in a plastic bag. Place in the freezer overnight, and in the morning, they’ll be ready to wear. (Of course, you’ll need to toss them into the washer for a periodic freshening up, and to remove stains.) It may sound crazy, but some people...

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Six Ways To Get All The Vitamins And Minerals You Need From Your Diet

Over the past several years, people have become more health-conscious—we exercise more, watch our diet and take care of our overall well-being. Younger people especially have been observed to be more conscious of their health-related choices.

Naturally, since healthy eating is a critical part of health consciousness, people have taken to educating themselves on how their diet affects their health.

Vitamins and minerals are essential nutrients for the development and functionality of the body. As such, it is important to take in a healthy amount of them every day. They are also referred to as micronutrients because they are only needed in small quantities by the body.

It is, however, essential to note that all micronutrients are not needed in the same amounts. According to the WHO, there are three main micronutrients in need of immediate attention: vitamin A, iodine and iron. These three micronutrients are essential for the growth, development, and functionality of the human body, especially in pregnant women and children.

Vitamins and minerals are essential nutrients for the development and functionality of the body.

Although food is the primary way to obtain vitamins and minerals, supplements are a great option, too. They can be especially useful for people with specific conditions related to digestion or in case of an acute lack of micronutrients.

One major challenge with finding the right supplements is that the market is filled with placebos parading as genuine products. When buying, make sure to purchase from recognized and trusted names like Biogena USA. Popular brands are less likely to use placebos or make outrageous claims on their products.

For most people, however, food remains the main source of micronutrients. The famous 5-A-Day eating schedule has been recommended by the health professionals as a great way for people to meet up with their micronutrient requirements through their diet. Whether you’re on the 5-A-Day plan or you’re trying to meet up with your micronutrient requirements another way, there are a couple of steps you can take to maximize your diet.

Here are six ways you can get the most vitamins and minerals from your diet:

1. Shop for fresh and local food items

Because of the huge food demand, large corporations often have to harvest fruits and vegetables prematurely and allow them to ripen off the stalk. The downside to this is that the veggies and fruits do not get to absorb enough micronutrients from the plants before being harvested.

If the fruits and...

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How Functional Movement Screening Can Turn Your Weaknesses into Strengths

As I wrote in an article called Turn Your Fitness Weaknesses into Fitness Strengths, being fit can boil down to "being able to move through this world with as few limitations as possible." To achieve that goal, we often need to focus on our weakest parts rather than our strongest. The functional movement screen (FMS) is a great way to find those weaknesses.

My job as a coach is to prepare an athlete for the variety of movements they will need to be able to perform in order to participate in their chosen activity. To help with that, I often include some sort of analysis of fundamental movements in their training preparation. This screening can help determine what abilities they possess (or lack), where their strengths are, and where they may need some specific attention. This gives me a great idea of where to start building their fitness program. 

A functional movement screen (or FMS) is a test used to identify asymmetries or deficiencies in an individual’s strength, flexibility and general movement.

At its root, a functional movement screen (FMS) is a test used to identify asymmetries or deficiencies in an individual’s strength, flexibility, and general movement. The FMS aims to identify as many imbalances in mobility and stability as possible, using seven fundamental movement patterns. The seven movement patterns are designed to allow someone like me (coach, trainer, physiotherapist) to observe your performance of basic locomotor, manipulative, and stabilizing movements by placing you (the athlete) in extreme positions where your weaknesses and imbalances are most noticeable. 

Then, once these deficiencies have been identified through the FMS, we can create a program of corrective exercises to shore up those deficiencies before they can cause injury or create poor movement patterns that will be hard to unlearn.

Why correcting imbalances is important

Injuries happen for many reasons, but one of the main reasons stems from strength imbalances. Let’s say you're a runner (defined as someone who enjoys running, you don’t have to be a pro or even fast.) If you have one glute muscle that's significantly stronger than the other, that's an imbalance. It’s not uncommon to have one side of your body be stronger than the other. But ideally, we would work to minimize that. 

If you have one strong glute and one weak one, the quadricep on the weak-glute side is going to have to work harder to make up for your lazy butt. If you think about the running movement, it’s not hard to imagine how this scenario can lead to a lopsided gait and the potential for...

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Subterranean Rivers—Water Flowing Underground

Off the midwestern coast of the Philippines sits Sabang, a small tropical beach village surrounded by jungle. From Sabang, a fifteen-minute boat ride or a short hike through the mountains will take you to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park. There, nestled amongst the mangrove forests and freshwater swamps, you’ll find the entrance to one of the longest underground rivers in the world. 

More intrepid travelers can venture another 3 kilometers—with a special permit, that is. But after that, the subterranean river remains unnavigable and yet-to-be explored.

The river starts in the nearby mountains but soon appears to vanish as it shifts course to flow beneath the Earth’s surface for a total of 8.2 kilometers (or about 5 miles). An average tourist can easily explore the first 1.5 kilometers of the river and the cave system it has helped to carve out via canoe and led by a guide with a flashlight. More intrepid travelers can venture another 3 kilometers—with a special permit, that is—to see more of the impressive cave-dwelling stalagmites and stalactites up close. But after that, the subterranean river remains unnavigable and yet-to-be explored. 

Even amongst underground rivers, the Puerto Princesa is unique. At its end, it flows directly into the sea, which leaves the end of the river subject to the influence of ocean tides. UNESCO has named the river a World Heritage Site and to protect it, only allows 600 people to visit per day. Such a unique habitat is also home to a unique and thriving range of flora and fauna including 800 plant species and animals like crabs, snakes, and bats that are found nowhere else on the planet. In 2017, a new species of Huntsman spider was found wedged in the cracks of the cave walls along the underground riverbanks of the Puerto Princesa. I can tell you from my experiences with surface-dwelling Huntsman spiders in Australia that they are large and move fast, but beyond scaring you out of your wits, they're relatively harmless. 

The Sistema Sac Actun, as the underground network is called using the Yucatec Mayan word for 'white cave,' stretches for 95 miles.

The Puerto Princesa was thought to be the longest underground river until 2007 when two underground rivers and cave systems...

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You Can Land that Dream Entry-level Job—Yes, Even Now

Today’s episode is a conversation with Alexa Shoen, career coach and author of the new book #ENTRYLEVELBOSS: How To Get Any Job You Want. Alexa shares her advice on how to position yourself to land your dream job in any market.

Maybe you have questions like:

• If every entry-level job requires 1-3 years of experience, how do I get the experience to get the job?
• How do I convince an employer that my degree in music/arts/basket-weaving positions me to be a great hire?
• Are companies even hiring in a recession?

Read on for actionable advice that will get you ready to get yourself hired. There's also a lot more great information in the interview, so click on the audio player above or have a listen on your favorite podcast app to get every nuance.

Let go of beliefs that limit you

It turns out, landing a job requires action. (Who knew?) And you're more likely to take action when you believe the desired outcome is actually possible. Here are just a few of the beliefs Alexa gives you permission to let go of.

Limiting belief #1: Companies don’t hire during a recession

Actually, yes they do. Even in the darkest economic moments, companies are absolutely hiring. Your job is to research the industries that are booming.

During the pandemic, for example, unemployment is high. But some industries are in high demand for skilled labor. Think healthcare, virtual communication platforms, and virtual learning providers (both for adults and kids), to name a few. Spend some time researching the industries that might offer you your next opportunity.

Alexa says:

At the beginning of your career, it's not like you can just wait to get started. And you shouldn't be waiting to get started! There are a whole bunch of companies that are hiring.

Limiting belief #2: I don’t have any valuable experience

I'll bet you do! Maybe you’re fresh out of college and you don’t have any full-time employment on your resume. But experience comes in many forms.

Have you had internships? A leadership role in a campus organization? Did you lead a group project, or spend a semester abroad navigating a different country? Have you volunteered for your church or babysat for a cousin or written for your school paper? Any of these experiences can be woven into a powerful story sure to impress.

Alexa says:

Reframe any experience you have, whether that's internships or leadership activities or volunteering at your church—any sort of tool you have in your tool belt. And say, 'Here's how this is going to be...

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6 Science-based Techniques to Help Stressed Out Kids

Wouldn't it be great if our kids could wake up each day and simply enjoy the many pleasures of childhood? Riding bikes with neighborhood friends, building LEGO castles, trying out for the school baseball team, sitting down to a plate of warm chocolate chip cookies and ice-cold milk without a care in the world?

A carefree childhood is something we wish all kids could experience. But the reality is that today's kids face a lot of stress and worry in their daily lives. Stress comes in many forms, from school drama like peer pressure and dealing with learning challenges, to family worries like divorce, financial hardships, and moving.

You can help your child by learning to recognize the signs of stress and teaching him healthy ways to deal with it. Here are six tangible tools that can help your kids stay on an even keel.

Tip #1: Keep the lines of communication open

If you notice that your child is looking more worried or stressed than usual, ask her what's on her mind. Having regular conversations can help a family work together to better understand and address any stressors children are experiencing.

Middle-school-aged kids whose parents pay attention to their behavior, structure their environment, and stay informed about their activities have fewer instances of problem behavior in adolescence.

Low levels of parental communication have been associated with poor decision making in children and teens. A study in the National Institute of Health explains that middle-school-aged kids whose parents pay attention to their behavior, structure their environment, and stay informed about their activities have fewer instances of problem behavior in adolescence.

Staying connected by talking to your kids and promoting open communication and problem-solving can help them manage their stress before it escalates to acting out.

Tip #2: Break challenges into chunks and visualize success

Dr. Michele Borba, a globally-recognized educational psychologist and parenting expert, shared some powerful advice in an article for US News, How to Help Kids 'Keep Calm and Carry On' in Uncertain Times. She spoke of how kids are more anxious now than ever. Terrorism, mass shootings, natural catastrophes, pandemics—it's a lot to take in!

Kids tell me they want ways to keep their stress in...

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