Trim Down Answers
Have a question about diet and nutrition, exercise and fitness, or health and vitality? Our nutrition and fitness experts are here to help! We cover everything from menopause to metabolism boosters and beyond.
Recent Answers
How to Easily Count Carbs as a Diabetic
Counting carbs helps diabetics manage their blood sugar levels better. It offers several advantages, including facilitating weight loss and improving your quality of life. This in turn can prevent or delay diabetes complications such as nephropathy, eye disease, heart problems, and more. For type 1 diabetics, carb counting helps regulate their insulin dose more accurately. Here's what you should keep in mind to easily count carbs if you're diabetic. 4 Tips for Carb Counting as a Diabetic Counting carbs means keeping track of your carb intake for all meals, including your snacks and drinks. Carbs are measured in grams, and you should be aware of the following: In a diabetes meal plan, a serving of carbs is about 15 grams. So, for example, a small baked potato with 30 grams of carbs will be counted as 2 carb servings. For packaged foods, check the nutrition label to find out the total carb grams in them.If you're diabetic, 50–60% of your daily calories should come from carbs. This is around 130–143 grams of carb in a 2000–2200 calorie meal a day. However, many experts recommend half this amount.Since carbs raise blood sugar, reducing them can help manage blood sugar levels. Adults with diabetes can aim for 45–60 grams of carbs per meal and 15–20 grams per snack.It's better not to vary the number of carbs per meal. The same amount of carbs at every meal can help keep your blood sugar levels steady. » Experiencing food cravings? Smart snacking can help diabetics Count Carbs Easily With Trim Down Club How much carbs you can eat while staying within your target blood sugar range depends on various factors such as your age, weight, activity levels, and more. With Trim Down Club, you can plan and enjoy tasty meals while losing weight and maintaining healthy blood sugar levels. To get a customized, flexible meal plan based on your needs and preferences, take the Trim Down Club’s quick diet quiz for diabetics.
Asked a month ago
Are Push-Ups an Effective Bicep Workout?
Your biceps are important upper-body muscles, as weak biceps can affect your elbows, wrists, forearms, and shoulders. Strong biceps help you perform everyday tasks such as carrying, lifting, pushing, pulling, etc. So, strengthening your biceps is great for your physical health. Push-ups are a good workout for building and strengthening your biceps, but their effectiveness will depend on the type of push-ups you're doing, the intensity of the workouts, and their duration. » Easy workout: try these exercises to activate your fat-burning hormones How to Target Your Biceps The most effective way to target your biceps during a workout is by doing close-stance push-ups. This kind of push-up helps strengthen your other upper body muscles as well, such as the chest, shoulders, and upper and middle back. How to Do a Close-Stance Push-Up To do this exercise, follow these steps: Get on the floor or a yoga mat on all fours. Place your hands on the floor, slightly wider than your shoulder.Extend your legs backward to get into a high plank position and keep your legs in a straight line with your back. If this standard push-up position isn't comfortable for you, keep your knees on the ground. Move your hands closer together, leaving just a few inches between them. Lower your body to the ground while allowing your elbows to flare out at a 45-degree angle.Push back up to your starting plank position. Repeat these steps to do as many push-ups as you can. To get the most benefits for your biceps, include close-stance push-ups in your regular workout routine such as the One and Done Workout. » Find out whether the One and Done Workout really works Get the Most Out of Your Workout With Push-Ups Although close-stance push-ups will best target your biceps, whichever type of push-up you chose to do, make sure to maintain a tight core during the workout. Try pulling your belly button toward your spine as you get into the push-up position and lower yourself down. Although you should mind your safety to prevent injury while doing push-ups, these are still effective exercises for building and strengthening your biceps. Even if you choose to stick to a daily routine, doing push-ups is sure to enrich your workout regimen. » Enhance your exercise routine with the One and Done Workout
Asked 2 months ago
Here's Why You're Only Gaining Weight in Your Stomach Area
There are many reasons why people gain belly fat. Genetics plays a major role in where you store excess body fat. While some people are lucky enough to get voluptuous figures with the fat being distributed in all the right places, others get them all in one place—the butt, hips, or worse, the belly area. Although this can negatively impact your self-esteem negatively, improving your nutritional intake, regularly exercising at the right intensity, and incorporating certain lifestyle changes can help reduce belly fat and regain your figure. » Want to lose belly fat? All you need is 30 days Common Causes of Belly Fat Accumulation of belly fat is mostly the result of lifestyle choices. The most common causes of belly fat include: Stress: Your cortisol levels rise when you're stressed, and high levels of cortisol are linked to the accumulation of abdominal fat.Sugar: Excess intake of sugar gets converted to fat and stored as visceral fat around the organs in the abdominal cavity. Medical disorders: Metabolic disorders such as diabetes that impede a fast metabolism encourage visceral fat buildup. Sedentary lifestyle: Many of us spend our whole day sitting at our desks or watching TV, which can result in developing a sedentary lifestyle. The lack of an active lifestyle contributes to belly fat accumulation.Poor sleep: Adequate sleep is vital for a healthy body. Lack of sleep and poor quality of sleep is connected to weight gain, especially in the midsection. » Struggling with stubborn belly fat? Learn why it's harder for women over 40 to lose weight How to Lose Belly Fat Some of the most effective ways to reduce excess fat around the stomach include: Boost overall activity—apart from a daily workout session like effective metabolic workoutsEliminate added sugar and sugary drinks from your dietReduce your intake of refined carbsInclude more fruits and vegetables in your dietIncrease your protein intake to boost metabolism and promote abdominal weight loss Effectively Lose Belly Fat by Making the Right Choices Although doing sit-ups can help, the only way to effectively lose belly fat is to change your dietary habits and increase your activity levels. You should reduce your stress levels and improve your sleep habits as well. As sugar is a major culprit when it comes to belly fat, cut down on your sugar intake as much as possible and avoid sugary sodas and sports drinks. Apart from increasing your protein intake, make sure to have plenty of fruits and vegetables and stay hydrated, as water can help flush out fat from the body. » Reduce belly fat with the right superfoods
Asked 2 months ago
Is It Possible to Get Arthritis in Your 20s?
Signifying ‘joint inflammation,’ arthritis is a blanket term for multiple diseases that affect joints rather than a single condition. Although there are more than 100 types of arthritis, the most common ones are rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, which can cause spinal muscle spasms and even lead to immobility. Although these are mostly associated with elderly people, it's possible to get arthritis in your 20s as well. In young people, the symptoms are the same, but arthritis will have a different impact. As the pain, swelling, and inflammation reduce the range of motion, arthritis affects school, sports, and social life for young adults. What's more, focusing on pain management can affect their self-esteem, grades, and overall quality of life. However, if diagnosed at the earliest and followed by correct treatment, it's possible to manage arthritis and improve your quality of life. » How to recognize arthritis? See the early signs of rheumatoid arthritis Pain Management Although there's no cure for arthritis, even young people can improve their quality of life and relieve symptoms with these lifestyle changes: Doing low-impact exercises – Regularly doing exercises like yoga can help you lose weight and reduce the stress on your joints, as well as strengthen the muscles around the joints.Consulting a physiotherapist – A professional will be able to help you with your posture and choice of physical activity.Using hot and cold compresses – This will help relieve swelling and pain.Adhering to a healthy and balanced diet – The right diet including fatty fish, nuts, and green leafy vegetables can provide the nutrients crucial for joint healing and stimulate joint lubrication. What's more, taking supplements with vitamins A, D, E, C, and K can reduce inflammation.Avoiding inflammatory foods – Stay away from sugar, vegetable oil, fatty foods, and refined carbs.Stress management – Doing meditation, deep breathing, or even listening to soothing music can help prevent stress-related arthritis flare-ups.Taking pain relievers – Pain medication and even muscle relaxers can help control pain. Consult your doctor regarding your pain medication and supplements. » Interested in other ways to treat arthritis? Learn about systemic enzyme therapy for arthritis Manage Arthritis Even in Your 20s With the Right Help Although commonly associated with older people, arthritis affects people of all ages, including those in their 20s. The most important step is to speak to your doctor about your symptoms and get them diagnosed. After confirming the diagnosis, the right combination of treatment including supplements like Heal-n-Soothe and lifestyle changes can improve the quality of life of young people living with arthritis. » Reduce the symptoms of arthritis by avoiding the wrong foods
Asked 2 months ago
Can Arthritis Knee Pain Radiate Into the Calf?
Arthritis is characterized by chronic inflammation of joints, with the main symptoms including swelling, tenderness, pain, and stiffness. Just like arthritis can affect people in their 20s even though it's more common in older people, any joint can be affected by the disease even though it's particularly common in the knees. However, the pain doesn't stay only in the knee area—arthritis knee pain can often radiate into the calf, resulting in a wider area of pain. » Lubricated knee joints hurt less. See what foods aid knee lubrication How Arthritis Causes Calf Pain There are many types of arthritis, but osteoarthritis is the most common one. It causes stiff joints, muscle spasms, and leg cramps, and can even lead to immobility in severe cases. In osteoarthritis, the cartilage in your knee joint breaks. As this is the cushioning between the bones in the joints, they start rubbing against each other, causing swelling and inflammation. There's added strain on the muscles and tendons in the area, and the pain eventually radiates to the legs, thighs, calves, hips, buttocks, and feet. Leg cramps manifest as sharp, sudden contractions or tightening of the muscle in the calf, which can last for a few seconds to a few minutes. The typical symptoms are heaviness, numbness, or soreness in the leg muscles, which may be reduced to some extent by taking muscle relaxers. Arthritis can also cause a Baker cyst, a condition in which the knee produces too much fluid. If the cyst bursts, the fluid can leak into the calf below, resulting in reddening, swelling, and severe pain. How to Manage Calf Pain Some of the effective measures to manage arthritis-related calf pain include: Doing light calf muscle stretches for muscle strengthening and improving flexibilityTaking sufficient restDrinking plenty of water, as dehydration contributes to muscle spasms and staying hydrated helps flush the toxins outWearing comfortable shoesReducing excess weight to lessen the strain on the jointsIncorporating a nutritious diet to provide the right nutrients for joint healing and boosting collagen. » Natural arthritis remedies: see the vitamins that reduce joint pain and inflammation Reduce Knee & Calf Pain With the Right Help With arthritis, the area in or around a joint becomes inflamed and causes pain, stiffness, and swelling. If you have arthritis in your knee, the pain may radiate from the knee to the calf. Although arthritis can’t be cured, its symptoms and pain can be managed by following a healthy lifestyle, reducing excess weight, doing regular exercises, and wearing proper shoes. Managing arthritis pain will help improve your quality of life, especially if you also incorporate an effective supplement for arthritis like Heal-n-Soothe. Make sure to seek medical attention if your knee hurts, feels warm to the touch, or your skin looks red, as these may be signs of infection that require additional treatment. » Manage arthritis knee & calf pain by avoiding the wrong foods for arthritis
Asked 2 months ago
Recent Posts
Can't find what you're looking for?
Healthy Living With TDC
Stay motivated to eat right & exercise with these tips, tools, & techniques
We don't email often. Unsubscribe anytime.