I’m no economics genius, so I can’t help solve the recession. But I do know that times of stress cause some folks to eat more than they need – and that means weight gain for many.

Japanese scientists studied 122 workers between the ages of 21 and 60. They found that work stress (in the form of tension, anxiety, and depression) was associated with an increase in what they called “eating to satiety” (meaning eating until they were completely full). Unfortunately, eating to satiety was also associated with weight gain.

The researchers concluded that work stress can negatively impact your eating patterns, causing you to gain weight. And in today’s stressful world, that is not good news.

So here’s what you need to do. If stress is making you eat more, make sure you keep high-calorie, energy-dense processed carbohydrates (chips, cookies, baked goods, etc.) out of your house and office. Load up on whole, natural foods – fruits, vegetables, and raw nuts. (Yes, nuts!) These foods will fill you up before you can eat too many calories, and you’ll limit your risk of gaining weight, even if you eat to satiety due to stress.

[Ed. Note: Extending your life and living out your years in tip-top health is really a matter of making simple lifestyle choices - like limiting your stress and adding whole, natural foods to your diet. For more easy-to-implement ideas about how to live longer and feel better, click here. ]

In addition to eating better, you can stay fit and burn fat by following fitness expert Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training exercise program.]

A “burpee” is a tough, advanced bodyweight exercise – strength and endurance packed into one – that you can do without any equipment. There are all sorts of variations, but my favorite is to add a push-up in the middle and a jump at the end. Here’s how to do it:

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.

• Squat down, place your hands on the floor, and thrust your feet back into push-up position.

• Do a push-up, and bring your knees back up to your chest.

• Jump up as high as you can, landing with your knees slightly bent.

• Repeat for 6-10 repetitions.

Make sure you wear proper shoes and do this on a soft surface (not concrete or pavement).

[Ed. Note: You don't need fancy equipment, hours of cardio training, or even a gym membership to build muscle and burn fat. Learn how you can get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week with fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program right here.

For more easy-to-follow advice on how to stay fit, lose weight, and eat right, sign up for ETR's FREE natural health newsletter.]

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Back when I trained clients full-time, I always wondered what possessed them to get up at 5:00 a.m. and work out. Couldn’t they at least wait till 7:00 or 8:00?

But now that I’ve grown older, and busier, it’s easy to see why. First, it gets the workout done before other people and problems can get in the way. Plus, recent research shows that you will have a better workout when you are “mentally fresh.”

In a study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, researchers put subjects through a cardio workout to exhaustion after performing one of two mental tasks. The first task was cognitively demanding. The second task simply required them to watch a documentary.

Results showed that the mentally fatiguing task significantly reduced the amount of exercise the subjects could do. They tired out much more quickly if their minds were already fatigued.

[Ed. Note: No matter when you exercise, you don't need hours of cardio to get into tip-top shape. Learn how you can get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week with Craig's Turbulence Training program right here. For more easy-to-follow advice on how to stay fit, lose weight, and eat right, sign up for ETR's FREE natural health newsletter. ]

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One of my favorite workouts to do when I’m traveling is “heavy/light” supersets. Supersets combine two movements (usually for two different body parts) back to back, without rest. This gets the heart rate up and cuts down on workout time.

A good example of the “heavy/light” technique is the workout I did today: Chest and Biceps. Since I can press much heavier dumbbells than I can curl (and this is true for everyone), I use a lighter weight for my chest movements, getting 12-20 repetitions. I follow that immediately with seated curls. I use the same dumbbells, but now their weight allows me to do only 4-6 repetitions.

This is a great way to mix up your rep schemes without hogging the dumbbells or

having to change weights mid-exercise. Give it a shot.

[Ed. Note: If you want to build more muscle in less time while you burn body fat, pick up nutrition and fitness counselor Jon Benson's book, 7 Minute Muscle. It's a complete system for dropping fat and building muscle that's guaranteed to work for you. Try it for 60 days and prove it to yourself.

For more easy-to-follow exercises you can do at home - plus dozens of strategies for getting fit and living longer - sign up for ETR's natural health newsletter.]

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If you want to lose weight, don’t bother with cardio machines. As I’ve shown in past issues of ETR, long-duration cardio exercise is not only overrated for fat loss, it just plain doesn’t work.

The best way to sculpt your body is to focus on your diet and do a short resistance training and interval training workout three times a week. That doesn’t mean you do nothing the other four days. You need to stay active with what I call “off-day exercise.”

The main goal of off-day activity is to do something enjoyable that keeps your butt off a chair for at least 30 minutes. You don’t want to exercise so hard that you impair recovery from your previous “real” workout or get sore, which could end up ruining your next “real” workout.

Be conservative. When in doubt, do less than you think you should.

Beginners and intermediates could do 30 minutes of light cardio, walking, house/yard work, or a combination of bodyweight exercises (easy ones) and light cardio. Even dancing is fine. Dog walks are good. Do a little exploring! Playing sports would probably be too much.

The heavier you are, the more you should focus on non-weight-bearing activities – like swimming, the elliptical trainer, and the stationary bike – until you lose a significant amount of weight.

Yoga, Pilates, and other methods of “mobility training” are acceptable off-day forms of exercise. Plus, they are highly beneficial for stress reduction.

If you insist on “machine cardio” for your off-day exercise, it’s best to do “cross-training.” That means doing a different exercise with each 30-minute workout or doing 10 minutes each of three different exercises in the same workout. This will help avoid overuse injuries, which is one of the main downfalls of cardio (along with its inefficiency).

[Ed. Note: As fitness expert Craig Ballantyne points out, you don't need to do hard-core exercise every day to see real results. Learn how you can get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week with Craig's Turbulence Training program right here.

For more easy-to-follow advice on how to stay fit, lose weight, and eat right, sign up for ETR's FREE natural health newsletter.]

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You know what you need to do in order to lose fat: Eat less and exercise more.

But that’s easier said than done, especially when you’re surrounded by friends who want to drag you to another movie or high-calorie restaurant meal when you should be working out.

Researchers from Regis University in Denver have found that “individuals with similar body fat levels will cluster together into groups, and if left unchecked, current social forces will drive these groups toward increasing obesity.”

To break the cycle, you have to hunt out people who share your weight-loss goals. And you don’t have to stick to your friends. In fact, the researchers suggest that “social networks” may be a key to halting the obesity epidemic.

Building a Facebook group that includes strangers who have already lost fat is one way to go. But I prefer to have my clients get social support from people they know through Twitter.com. You could also get involved in the ETR forums or an online weight-loss club.

The bottom line is that you need social support for fat-loss success. Start associating with positive people who share similar goals, and you’ll soon be losing all the weight you want.

[Ed. Note: It can be tough to lose weight on your own. Make sure you have plenty of support from your loved ones. Or join an online support group. You can join ETR's free SpeakOut Forum and exchange exercise techniques, healthy recipes, and motivation right here.

For an exercise routine that builds muscle and burns fat, try fitness expert Craig Ballatyne's Turbulence Training program.]

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Strengthening my arms is a big part of my strength-training routine – and it’s probably the same for you. But here’s something that may surprise you: You can burn more fat AND help your heart… just by getting your arms involved in your workouts.

Here are two ways to make your arms do double duty when you exercise:

1. Build more muscle faster by doing sets of 5 followed by sets of 15 reps. Take a heavy pair of dumbbells and curl them for 5 hard reps. Then, without rest, do a set of form-strict barbell curls using 15 reps. Repeat this cycle two to three times, tops. That’s all you need to build larger biceps.

2. When you do your cardio, lift your arms high. Swing your arms over your head, if you can. Watch what happens to your heart rate! It will soar. That’s because your heart has to work harder to get blood to flow “up.” Swing your arms up when you walk, too, and you’ll improve your cardio conditioning and fat burning at the same time.

[Ed. Note: If you want to build more muscle in less time, while you burn body fat, pick up nutrition and fitness counselor Jon Benson's book, 7 Minute Muscle. It's a complete system that's guaranteed to work for you. Try it for 60 days and prove it to yourself.

For more easy-to-follow exercises you can do at home - plus dozens of strategies for getting fit and living longer - sign up for ETR's natural health newsletter.]

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Most aspiring marathon runners are smart enough not to buy a beat-up used car for $300 and try to drive it across America non-stop. But they have no problem taking their overweight, used up, beat-up, weak bodies and trying to run 26.2 miles in under 4 hours.

Does that make any sense?

If you are overweight and running marathons, you are going to get injured. It’s not a question of “if.” It’s a question of how soon and how badly.

The reason I’m so hard on running is because too many people do it who shouldn’t do it.

What they should do instead is run less, do more resistance training, and decrease the carbohydrates in their diet.

If you are an overweight runner focused on a marathon, the most important thing you can do is lose body fat. Your diet is probably the main problem. So fix it. Running 6 miles per day while you’re “training” is not a license to eat whatever you want.

Any general strength-training program will help you improve your body composition and strengthen your muscles so that you’ll have a reduced risk of overuse injury (from long-duration running). All you need are two quick, total-body strength workouts per week, doing 1-2 sets of a couple of multi-muscle exercises. Just be careful not to do so much strength training that you get sore muscles.  

I like to see runners do stability ball leg curls, 1-leg hip extensions, step-ups, and split squats. Those are the basics to start with. Pick two exercises per workout, and do 1-2 challenging sets.

[Ed. Note: Building muscle and burning fat doesn't have to take hours of work. Fitness expert Craig Ballantyne has put together a Turbulence Training program that can help you get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week.

For simple ideas that can help you find more energy, better health, less pain, and a dramatic boost in overall vitality, sign up for ETR's free natural health newsletter.]

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Maybe you’ve been there. You lose 10 pounds in a month, only to gain it back (plus one or two more) over the next 60 days.

Quick weight loss rarely produces sustainable results. That’s because the focus is on “dieting” rather than on adopting a healthier lifestyle.

Research in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has identified three “tricks” that successful losers use to maintain their weight loss.

1. Exercise Regularly. Successful losers exercise 60 minutes or more per day.

2. Eat More Low-Calorie Density Foods. Fill your plate with organic salad greens, veggies, and fruits. Skip the energy-dense breads, pastas, and unhealthy fats.

3. Count Calories. Research shows that most people tend to underestimate the number of calories they actually eat by approximately 200 per day. That equates to 10 pounds worth of extra calories per year!

Remember, when it comes to weight loss, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Slow, safe weight loss through lifestyle changes is not just healthier, it improves the odds you’ll take it off… and keep it off too.

[Ed. Note: The first step to keeping slim is eating healthful food. Nutrition expert Kelley Herring can help. With her e-book Guilt Free Desserts, you'll discover dozens of delicious and healthy recipes that you can easily make at home. Pick up your copy today.

As Kelley pointed out above, extending your life and living out your years in tip-top health is really a matter of making simple lifestyle choices. For more easy-to-implement expert advice on how to lose weight, stay healthy, and live a longer, fuller life, sign up for ETR's natural health e-newsletter.]

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The other day, while I was completing my Turbulence Training workout, I noticed that the folks sweating it out on the cardio machines were going through some interesting rituals. After watching them for a while, it was clear to me why they were doing it: They were doing too darn much cardio!

This got me thinking. And to keep you from falling into the same trap, I came up with the following ” 7 signs that you are doing too much cardio.”

#1. You have to spend 5 minutes before your workout flipping through all the magazines in the gym to find one you haven’t read before.

#2. You know the other cardio addicts on the machines (the guys you talk to every day) better than you know your own friends.

#3. You know exactly how many calories you burn per minute on every machine in the gym. (And you use that information to justify every calorie you eat.)

#4. You dread your workouts more than a trip to the dentist.

#5. The only thing you are losing is precious time – not belly fat.

#6. You go to the gym to watch your favorite television shows while doing cardio.

#7. You’re getting overuse injuries because you keep doing the same activity over and over again every day.

Listen, cardio is not the be all and end all exercise for fat loss. In fact, as I’ve written in previous ETR articles, cardio just doesn’t work.

A big part of your results are going to come from your nutrition. So focus on whole, natural foods, and avoid foods that come from a bag or a box.

Once you’ve taken care of your nutrition, look for workouts that you enjoy and that allow you to build strength, mobility, and fitness. You’ll save time, have more fun, and see a big difference in your waistline. 

[Ed. Note: If you think long, slow cardio is the best way to get fit, you've fallen victim to one of the most common myths around. Discover 5 more myths about exercise - and how to combat them - right here.

For simple ideas that can help you find more energy, better health, less pain, and a dramatic boost in overall vitality, sign up for ETR's free natural health newsletter.]

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You want the secret to fat loss? Okay, but you’re not going to like it.

It has nothing to do with green tea, acai berry juice, or the Master Cleanse. Instead, the secret to fat loss is a state of mind. And once you’re in that state of mind, you can’t fail.

Here it is: “When you accept how HARD it is to lose fat, it becomes easy.”

It’s like saving money. When you accept how much discipline it requires to save money, it becomes second nature to put aside a few dollars each month. You understand the difficulty, but do it automatically.

It’s the same with fat loss. When you accept the fact that you must plan, shop, and prepare your meals in advance… do three high-intensity workouts per week… keep yourself active the other four days of the week and keep your butt off the couch… develop rituals that help you avoid nighttime eating… take the time to set goals and plan solutions for every obstacle that might get in your way… fat loss becomes second nature to you. So much so that you couldn’t get fat if you tried!

Adopt this secret mindset and you will succeed. You’ll lose as much body fat as you want. Heck, you can apply this to any aspect of your life and you’ll experience success beyond your wildest dreams.

[Ed. Note: Making the right choices can help you lose weight. But it can also help you accomplish anything you set your mind to. Discover dozens of tools that can help you get everything you want out of life right here.

Get a head start on your 2009 weight-loss goals with fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program. Learn how you can get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week right here.]

If you’re like most people, this is the time of year when you make big promises to yourself. “I’ll lose 50 pounds.” Or “I’ll run the Boston Marathon.” Or “I’ll stop drinking diet soda.” Resolving to get fit and stay healthy is one of the best things you can do for yourself. But there will come a time when a little voice in your head will try to tell you your goal is too hard… or that you have something better to do.

Maybe your motivation is already taking a dive. If so, here’s a quick way to get your enthusiasm back. Tell yourself: “I’ll do it anyway.”

No matter what goal you are trying to talk yourself out of, these words can get you back in the game. Say them over and over again. In your head, you’ll hear…

“I do not want to work out today… but I’ll do it anyway.”

 ”I don’t want to drink water instead of Mountain Dew… but I’ll do it anyway.”

“I don’t want to do another push-up… but I’ll do it anyway.”

“DO IT” are two very powerful words. They trigger an action response rather than just a feeling. Give it a shot.

[Ed. Note: We've all experienced the "Excitement Dip": You've set an exciting goal for yourself, but now the motivation has worn off and your excitement has faded. Find out how to get a motivational push in the right direction right here.

For a jumpstart on your fitness and weight-loss goals, pick up a copy of nutrition and fitness counselor Jon Benson's book, 7 Minute Muscle. It's a complete system for dropping fat and building muscle that's guaranteed to work for you. Try it for 60 days and prove it to yourself.]

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On Sunday morning, I was reviewing my daily motivational quotes when I stumbled across this one: “Enjoy life. Treat it as an adventure. Care passionately about the outcome, but keep it in perspective. Things are seldom as bleak as they seem when they are going wrong – or as good as they seem when they are going well. Lighten up. You’ll live longer.”

I’ve translated that into a fat-loss lesson for you. Here’s what I believe…

If you hate running, don’t do it! If you hate lifting weights, find an alternative! If you’d rather be swing-dancing than tread-milling, start swing-dancing!

I find that too many people hate their workouts. They stop trying hard, see fewer results, and they quit. That’s just one of the reasons I created a fat-loss lifestyle program that requires only three short (45-minute) but intense workouts per week. And I encourage my clients to stay active with activities they enjoy the other four days of the week.

You don’t have to stress about going to the gym to do 60 minutes of cardio on a boring machine when staying at home and playing with your kids will accomplish the same thing. And you’ll remember those minutes a lot more than you will remember another hour on the dreaded cardio machine.

[Ed. Note: Enjoying what you do can not only help you lose weight, it can help you build a second income. Discover how to turn your hobbies, passions, and areas of expertise into a cash-producing business right here.

Get a head start on your 2009 weight-loss goals with fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program. Learn how you can get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week right here.]  

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Over the holidays, I re-learned a harsh truth about nutrition that can even bring down a fitness expert: “If it’s in your house, you’re going to eat it.”

Fortunately, this one gets me only around the holidays. The rest of the time, we keep chocolate and other “bad stuff” out of the house. But for many folks, this is a problem all year long.

For one reason (kids) or another (spouse), they have junk food in the house, tempting them every day. And, in fact, snacking on that junk food – often between the end of work and dinnertime – is what prevents many people from losing weight. It can even cause them to gain more weight.

So here is one solution: Get rid of the junk. Do you really, really need to have it there in the first place? Don’t be afraid to trash it. The trash is where junk food belongs.

If tossing the junk isn’t practical (i.e., if it isn’t yours to throw away), what else can you do? Create rituals for yourself that will help you avoid mindless snacking.

First, prepare raw, crunchy fruits and vegetables to snack on instead of junk food. You don’t have to quit cold turkey. But try to be a little bit better every day than you were the day before. Eventually, snacking on raw fruits and vegetables will become a habit. (This one tip should help you lose more than three pounds in a month.)

Second, brush your teeth. There’s nothing like freshly brushed teeth to keep you away from sugary snacks.

Third, keep the treats out of sight to keep them out of mind. Stash them at the back of the top cupboard where you can’t just grab and go.

These three suggestions will help you leave the holiday eating behind and get yourself back on track.

[Ed. Note: If you have a hard time reaching the goals you set for yourself, you're not alone. But ETR is here to help. Success mentor Bob Cox can help you make your dreams come true in 2009 and beyond. He'll give you weekly motivation, easy-to-follow success strategies, and - if you need it - a kick in the pants. Learn the details here.

Get a head start on your 2009 weight-loss goals with fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program. Learn how you can get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week right here.]

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You don’t need fancy machines or millions of sit-ups to get rock-hard abdominal muscles. By simply blowing out your air and crunching down as if you were compressing your chest into your pelvis while you’re on the treadmill (or just walking around the block), you can get a fantastic ab workout.

I came up with this idea a few years ago, and use it almost every day. You can work on your interval training and get that six-pack stomach at the same time. Two birds, one stone.

Here’s how to do it. While walking, blow out your air. Contract your abs and hold that contraction for two to three seconds. Then take a deep breath. Do 10 to 15 reps. That’s all there is to it!

[Ed. Note: If you want to build more muscle in less time while you burn body fat, pick up nutrition and fitness counselor Jon Benson's book, 7 Minute Muscle. It's a complete system for dropping fat and building muscle that's guaranteed to work for you. Try it for 60 days and prove it to yourself.

And for a FREE source of nutrition and fitness advice, check out ETR's natural health newsletter.]

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If you want to lose fat and build muscle, you need to plan ahead. I’m not talking about packing your lunches the night before, but planning out the next 12 weeks, meal by meal, grocery trip by grocery trip, workout by workout.

That level of planning leads to exceptional results. And it helps you avoid setbacks caused by making poor last-minute decisions that conflict with your fitness goals.

So take a few hours, right now, to put together your complete diet and exercise plan for the next three months. You might find this incredibly hard, or perhaps incredibly liberating – but each time you do it, you will get better at it.

Do the hard work in your head and the physical fat loss will be easy!

[Ed. Note: If you have a hard time reaching the goals you set for yourself, you're not alone. But ETR is here to help. Success mentor Bob Cox can help you make your dreams come true in 2009 and beyond. He'll give you weekly motivation, easy-to-follow success strategies, and - if you need it - a kick in the pants. Learn the details here.

Get a head start on your 2009 weight-loss goals with fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program. Learn how you can get fit in three 45-minute workouts a week right here.]

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So you just started – or restarted – an exercise program, and your muscles are stiff and sore. While there’s not much you can do about that now, you can prevent it from happening in the future.

Here’s the plan you should follow.

The next time you do a workout, do only one set per exercise (rather than the three sets most workouts call for) – and don’t worry, you’ll still get most of the fat-burning, muscle-building, strength-boosting benefits of a regular full workout. The week after that, add another set and do two sets per exercise. Finally, in the third week, you’ll be ready to do a full three sets of each exercise.

I also recommend increasing your vitamin C intake to 2-3 grams per day. Research shows that vitamin C reduces exercise-induced muscle damage. I personally have been experiencing less soreness after my workouts since supplementing with vitamin C (which I started doing to avoid colds).

And if you are really hurting right now? One of the best things you can do is simply keep moving and do some low-intensity exercise. Research suggests that light exercise can contribute to enhanced healing … and might even reduce your soreness.

[Ed. Note: Building muscle and burning fat doesn't have to take hours of work. Fitness expert Craig Ballantyne has put together a Turbulence Training program that can help you get fit with three 45-minute workouts a week.

For simple ideas that can help you find more energy, better health, less pain, and a dramatic boost in overall vitality, sign up for ETR's free natural health newsletter.]

There is good news for those of us who have hectic schedules and still want to exercise to lose weight. It’s even better news when it comes to combating the nation’s number one silent killer: Stress.

Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association examined short bouts of cardiovascular work as compared to longer bouts for weight loss efficacy. And no difference was found between the group that exercised for only 10 minutes, three times a day, and the group that exercised for 30 minutes in the same session.

In addition, exercise reduces stress, and multiple 10-minute sessions can reduce stress at key moments in the day. It’s easy to get in 10 minutes before work, during lunch (just walk up and down a flight of stairs for 10 minutes), and then later in the evening. Ten-minute sessions are also easier for most people to handle mentally, as boredom becomes less of a factor.

Give 10 x 3 stress-busting cardio a shot. You’ll be surprised at what it can do for your stress levels and your productivity… not to mention weight loss!

[Ed. Note: Exercising in short bursts throughout the day is a simple way to stay healthy and keep your weight under control. For more natural, easy-to-implement strategies that can help you burn fat, get fit, and stay healthy, sign up for ETR's natural health newsletter.

Getting fit doesn't have to be difficult or time-consuming. You can build muscle AND burn body fat with nutrition and fitness counselor Jon Benson's newest book, 7 Minute Muscle.]

Every day, sneaky saboteurs are trying to defeat you in the fat-loss war. Everyone – from family to friends to co-workers to restaurant owners to TV advertisers – is conspiring against you to make you eat more and exercise less.

They might not be doing it on purpose or with bad intentions, but they are happier when you are fed, full, and flat out on the couch.

So you must always know your options.

You must have Plans A, B, C, D, and E. You must be prepared to counterattack. When they say “pizza,” you say “sushi.” When they say “take-out,” you say, “I’ve already prepared my lunch.” When they say “happy hour,” you say “workout first.”

And you must surround yourself with people who are fitter and healthier than you. The power of social support and POSITIVE peer pressure will help you take your health and fitness to the next level.

[Ed. Note: Finding health-conscious people with whom you can share your weight-loss struggles, diet and exercise techniques, and encouragement can help you lose weight. For a free source of support and a community of like-minded men and women, click here.

And for a topnotch fitness program that can help you burn fat and build muscle, check out Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program right here.]

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The #1 way to stick to your diet is going to sound strange, but trust me on this one.

There’s a popular new “social networking” website: Twitter.com. At first glance, it looks as dumb as it sounds. But after spending some time on it, I realized it could help my clients stay accountable to others – and that’s key when it comes to sticking to a diet. Because if you promise others that you are going to lose weight, and you promise to report the contents of every meal, you’ll think twice about cheating on your diet.

I use Twitter to post all of my meals, snacks, and nutrition tips over the course of the day, and I encourage my clients to do the same. No one likes to disappoint other people or look bad in their eyes. So when we say we’re going to stick to a diet, AND we’re going to post every meal we eat on the Internet, it motivates us to keep working toward that goal.

It’s really simple. You just sign up for an account, and then you can post whatever you want (limited to 140 characters per post). Some folks call this micro-blogging, and most folks use Twitter for business networking – but we’re going to use it for social support.

To get started, go to Twitter.com and sign up for your free account. Then you can search for people to “follow” – to see their updates. And other people can “follow” you to see your updates.

Of course, you don’t need Twitter to be accountable for sticking to your fat-loss plan. You can keep a daily food journal for your trainer, post your meals on a weight-loss message board, or simply buddy up with a friend and check in every day. But Twitter is a quick way to do it online.

[Ed. Note: Online support can be very helpful when it comes to reaching your weight-loss goals. Share your weight-loss struggles, diet and exercise techniques, and encouragement for free right here.

And for a topnotch fitness program that can help you burn fat and build muscle, check out Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program right here.] 

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I like being right. And one of the recommendations I give over and over and over again that keeps on getting reinforced by research is the need to have social support when you’re trying to lose weight.

And today, I have a study that proves social support is even MORE powerful than I previously thought.

Researchers from Connecticut, Rhode Island, Ohio, Arkansas, and Pennsylvania teamed up to see if a weight-loss program delivered to one spouse could be “taken home” and have beneficial effects for the untreated spouse as well.

Three hundred and fifty-seven diabetic participants were treated for one year. The subjects were divided into two groups. One group received standard diabetes care, while the other group received intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) help.

The spouses of the ILI group lost 4.9 pounds over the course of the study, even though they had no contact with the researchers. The spouses of participants receiving standard care lost only 0.51 pounds. In addition, more ILI spouses than standard-care spouses lost 5 percent of their bodyweight (26 percent vs. 9 percent, P<0.001).

One of the big reasons for the weight loss in the ILI spouses was that they ate significantly less fat than the standard-care spouses. And, not surprisingly, spouse weight loss was associated with participant weight loss. That means if your wife was in the study and she lost weight, you had a greater chance of losing weight as well.

[Ed. Note: Online support can be very helpful when it comes to reaching your weight-loss goals. Share your weight-loss struggles, diet and exercise techniques, and encouragement for free right here.

And if you want a topnotch fitness program that can help you burn fat and build muscle, check out Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training program right here.] 

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Elliptical machines are often the only option for people with bad knees. But if your knees are healthy, think twice before using them – for two reasons.

Reason #1. Men’s Health magazine warns, “Never trust elliptical machines.” And they quote a study which found that elliptical machines overestimated the number of calories burned in a workout by 31 percent.

Ouch.

So if your “elliptical cardio workout” burned 400 calories, the truth is you really burned closer to 300.

Reason #2. Men’s Health magazine interviewed “Biggest Loser” contestant Ed Brantley, who lost 73 pounds while on the show. Ed had this to say: “I hated the elliptical. It was too easy. I didn’t feel like I was doing anything.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself. But that’s EXACTLY why elliptical machines are so popular. They are inferior for fat loss because they fail my “human nature” test.

Put it this way…

Take 100 people and put them in a gym with 100 treadmills and 100 elliptical machines. Tell them they have to exercise for 30 minutes at a hard pace, and they can use either the treadmill or the elliptical. Guess where 90 percent of those folks will be headed?

To the elliptical!

Why? Because it is human nature to take the easy way out. That is why elliptical machines are so busy at the gym. You rarely see anyone doing intervals on a treadmill or bodyweight circuits in the corner.

So if you are stuck at a fat-loss plateau and you’ve been counting on the elliptical machine to help you, forget it. You can’t say you “worked out” if you don’t get any real work done. Stick to the bike, the treadmill, or bodyweight exercises.

[Ed. Note: If you think long, slow cardio - on an elliptical machine, no less! - is the best way to get fit, you've fallen victim to one of the most common myths around. Discover 5 more myths about exercise - and how to combat them - right here.

For simple ideas that can help you find more energy, better health, less pain, and a dramatic boost in overall vitality, sign up for ETR's free natural health newsletter.]

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When I was in college, I remember going to a party at the home of four girls. While standing around in the kitchen, I realized they had almost as much cereal as the local convenience store. When I asked them about it, they said they often ate cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, because they thought a high-carbohydrate diet would help them lose weight.

That notion was popular back in the 1990s, and, unfortunately, they had bought into it. However, every year more and more research (not to mention experience) shows it to be untrue.

In the latest study, from the journal Nutrition and Metabolism, 50 overweight adults were put into one of two groups. One group was given a moderate-carbohydrate, moderate-protein diet, and the other group was given a high-carbohydrate diet. Both groups ate 500 calories less than they needed to maintain their weight.

The moderate-carbohydrate, moderate-protein group ate 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight (approximately 112 grams of protein for a 154-pound person) and less than 170 grams of carbohydrate per day. The high-carbohydrate group ate only 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight (56 grams of protein for a 154-pound person) and less than 220 grams of carbohydrate per day.

At the end of four months, the higher-protein diet group had lost more body fat (an average of 8.7 percent) than the high-carbohydrate group (an average of 5.7 percent). The higher-protein group also had greater reductions in triglycerides (an average of 34 percent as compared to 14 percent) and greater improvements in the good HDL cholesterol (an average of 5 percent as compared to 3 percent).

This study shows that you don’t need to make radical changes in your protein intake to get more fat loss and better blood lipid levels. Simply cut two slices of bread from your diet each day and substitute two 20-gram protein shakes.

[Ed. Note: Extending your life and living out your years in tip-top health is really a matter of making simple lifestyle choices - like cutting carbs and adding protein to your diet. For more easy-to-implement ideas about how to live longer and feel better, click here.

In addition to getting more protein, you can burn fat by following Craig's Turbulence Training exercise program.]

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 Nothing happens fast enough these days. Lights stay red too long. Pizza takes too long to get delivered. And television commercial breaks are getting longer and longer. So when researchers discovered that 10 minutes of walking done three times per day could improve your health, it’s not surprising that people demanded results in even less time.

Well, now researchers from the UK have found that shorter bouts of brisk walking reduce postprandial plasma triacylglycerol (the level of fat in your blood after you eat) and resting blood pressure in healthy young men. And this will probably work even better for out of shape folks who have a few extra years – and inches – under their belts.

The subjects did 10 3-minute bouts of fast walking in one session and one 30-minute bout of fast walking in another session, both after eating a high-fat meal. And the results were the same. The 10 short walks and the one long walk reduced post-meal triacylglerol levels by 16 percent compared to the control session (where they did no exercise after the meal). Both forms of exercise also reduced systolic blood pressure by 6-7 percent compared to the control.

So get your butt off the couch as much as possible and move it. Even short little speed-walks, when they add up, can help your heart.

[Ed. Note: Keeping yourself healthy doesn't have to be difficult or even time-consuming. Simply making healthier lifestyle choices - like taking a brisk walk after your high-protein, low-carb meal - can help you stay fit and lean. For more easy-to-implement ideas about how to live longer and feel better, click here.

Looking for exercise that is enjoyable and can help you lose weight? Try fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training exercise program.]

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Believe it or not, one of my favorite ab exercises uses one of those cheap infomercial gadgets, the “Ab Wheel.”

You can pick one up at Amazon.com or Wal-Mart for under 20 bucks, and it works your abs hard without having to do crunches.

But what about the other ab gadgets you see advertised on TV?

Researchers (from the Mayo Clinic, of all places) tested the “Ab-Slide”

(a contraption that’s similar to the Ab Wheel), and compared using it to doing ab crunches, supine double-leg thrusts (seated knee tuck-ins), and side planks.

Ten young men and 12 young women did all the exercises. And the researchers found that the Ab-Slide worked the abs the hardest. On the other hand, the seated knee tuck-ins required a lot of hip flexion, and they believed it could cause problems in people prone to low-back injury.

Personally, I’m going to stick with the Ab Wheel. As always, I’m going to keep crunches out of my program… and now I’m going to add the seated knee tuck-in to my list of ab exercises to avoid.

[Ed. Note: If you think sit-ups and crunches are the best way to get a flat stomach, you've fallen victim to one of the most common fitness myths around. Discover 5 more myths about exercise - and how to combat them - right here.

And for a free source of fitness ideas, nutrition tips, and motivation, sign up for ETR's natural health newsletter.]

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Oprah recently featured some former contestants from “The Biggest Loser.” Unfortunately, some of them had regained up to 100 pounds since they left the show.

While losing weight is hard, not enough attention is given to the equally difficult process of maintaining weight loss. And what most people don’t realize is that the method you use to lose weight helps determine how difficult weight maintenance will be.

Researchers from the City University of New York studied folks who were successful at losing at least 10 percent of their bodyweight in the past year. They were separated into three groups. Group one had lost the weight with a very-low calorie diet (VLCD). Group two had lost the weight with a commercial weight-loss program. And the third group had lost the weight using a self-directed approach.

Initially, the VLCD group had a greater average weight loss (24 percent of bodyweight) compared to the two other groups (17 percent). But the researchers found that they quickly regained the most weight. On the other hand, the folks who had lost the weight on their own – as a result of making lifestyle changes – were able to maintain their weight loss.

What can you learn here? Well, it’s like many weight-loss experts keep saying: You must make simple, easy-to-stick-to lifestyle changes if you want to lose weight and keep it off. Crash diets and excessive exercise programs might work for a while, but they won’t help you in the long run.

Start your long-term weight-loss program today by finding a form of exercise you enjoy and a diet that suits your personality, and by surrounding yourself with social support – people who are genuinely interested in seeing you succeed.

[Ed. Note: Extending your life and living out your years in tip-top health is really a matter of making simple lifestyle choices. For more easy-to-implement ideas about how to live longer and feel better, click here.

Looking for exercise that is enjoyable and can help you lose weight? Try fitness expert Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training exercise program.]

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I hate flying. Yet, I go on some extremely long flights. Los Angeles to Shanghai is one of them, and that puppy is 13+ hours.

For a man who likes everything “now” – for a man who is not what I’d call patient – that’s a long flight. So how do I stay sane on the flight? Very simple. Whenever the issue of time comes up, I ignore it – or I focus on living “one minute at a time.” Not one day. Not one hour. One minute.

“Can I get through one minute of flying?” I ask myself.

“Yes, I can do that.”

“Good. Then let’s focus on that one minute right now – not the other 12 hours and 59 minutes that haven’t come yet.”

This same way of thinking works great for exercise, too.

Get up in the morning. Think about exercising. When you do so, if you feel resistance, tell yourself, “Let’s just do one minute of wall chair. Can I do that?”

“Yes.”

Then ask yourself if you can do one minute of push-ups – or just one minute holding the push-up position. Or one minute of bridging. Or one minute of deep breathing.

Can you dramatically effect change in your body in one minute? The answer is: Hell, yeah!

And the good news is that when you can conquer one minute – and you enjoy that minute – you’ll want to go for a second and a third minute. And so on. Yet the desire to do more comes organically. No pushing, prodding, or flogging yourself to be motivated.

Use this method, and I assure you that you’ll be kicking butt in no time flat.

[Ed. Note: You can exercise yourself to better fitness - one minute at a time. Fitness expert Matt Furey can help you increase your strength, endurance, and flexibility without lifting weights or long-distance running. Learn more here.

For unbiased information on critical men's and women's health issues... the latest breakthroughs in alternative medicine, fitness, and nutrition... as well as motivational guidance to help you achieve your goals, sign up for ETR's natural health newsletter.]

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Once in a while, a study comes along that surprises me. For instance, I recently found one showing that cardio works for fat loss – as long as it is high-intensity cardio.

Researchers at the University of Virginia assigned 27 obese women (average age 51) to one of three groups…

1. The control group did no exercise training.

2. The second group did five days per week of low-intensity exercise (LIE). (Gotta love that acronym… truly represents the “slow cardio lie.”)

3. The third group did three days per week of high-intensity cardio exercise (HIC) plus two days per week of LIE.

Instead of exercising for a specific length of time in every session – LIE or HIC – the subjects exercised long enough to burn 400 calories. So no group burned more calories than the others, though the third group burned the 400 calories faster in their three HIC workouts each week.

And HIC kicked LIE’s butt! The study found that the subjects in the low-intensity exercise group did not lose fat. On the other hand, the subjects in the high-intensity cardio group lost a significant amount of abdominal fat.

So, once again, research has shown that…

• Exercising harder results in more fat loss in less time.
• Only hard exercise burns belly fat.
• Low-intensity cardio won’t help you lose fat.

I prefer interval training to cardio for my clients who are on a fat-loss program. But the results of this study have influenced me to make a slight change in my recommendations.

I now occasionally throw in some high-intensity cardio for my clients, usually as a 20- or 30-minute session done at a pace they can barely maintain for that length of time. They don’t like it, but it works. (Most of them prefer the interval training.)

If you are interested in trying this, you can add HIC to your program up to three times per week. Just remember to self-monitor your body for any symptoms of overuse injuries – and, as always, TRAIN SAFE.

I’ll give the last word to the University of Virginia researchers who stated, “The present data indicate that body composition changes are affected by the intensity of exercise training with HIC more effectively for reducing total abdominal fat and subcutaneous abdominal fat in obese women.”

[Ed. Note: If you think long, slow cardio is the best way to lose weight, you've fallen victim to one of the most common fitness myths around. Discover 5 more myths about exercise - and how to combat them - right here.

For simple ideas that can help you find more energy, better health, less pain, and a dramatic boost in overall vitality, sign up for ETR's free natural health newsletter.]

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Going to the gym is intimidating enough. But not knowing how much weight to use for an exercise can make you feel even more uncomfortable. If you grab a weight that’s too light, you’ll waste your time. If you grab a weight that’s too heavy, you risk injury.

In a 12-week study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, researchers found that subjects gained the most strength when using a weight that corresponded to 70 percent of their 1-repetition maximum – meaning 70 percent of the heaviest weight they could lift in the exercise.

Here’s how to figure out what that ideal weight should be…

In most cases, if you’re lifting 70 percent of the heaviest weight you could lift, you can do about 10 to 12 repetitions. So you want to use a weight that allows you to do no fewer than 10 reps and no more than 12 reps per set. For example, if you can do seated rows with 50 pounds for 20 reps, you should try using 70 pounds for 10 reps instead.

Unfortunately, the only way to identify an ideal weight is by trial and error. Start conservatively with an easy weight. Do six repetitions. If that feels too easy, increase the weight by 10 percent and try again. Do this until you find a weight that is a challenge for 10-12 reps. It should take you about three minutes to find the right weight for each exercise in your program.

[Ed. Note: Building muscle and burning fat doesn't have to take hours of work. Fitness expert Craig Ballantyne has put together a Turbulence Training program that can help you get fit in three 45-minute workouts a week.

For simple ideas that can help you find more energy, better health, less pain, and a dramatic boost in overall vitality, sign up for ETR's free natural health newsletter.]

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