Add some hot peppers to your shopping list- recent studies show that spicy foods can help you to burn more calories.

The weight loss benefits of hot peppers have long been speculated, and now scientific research is backing it up. Hot spices increase your body temperature, meaning you burn extra calories and get a swift metabolism boost just from eating. This is because of the capsaicin contained in spicy peppers, which gives you that hot, powerful flavour.

So make your meal a little more exotic- Mexican, Thai, Indian and Chinese food do spicy quite nicely. Add that spicy taste and flavour and give your weight loss plan a little kick!

Have you ever noticed that you feel more hungry when you’re tired? Getting a good night’s sleep might just be the key element missing from your weight loss program. Recent studies have shown that there is a link between the amount of sleep we get and the hormones that impact our hunger levels. So better sleep means less cravings and more energy, helping you to stay on track with your goals. To really see results in your weight loss efforts, what you need is a good balance of healthy eating, regular exercise, and restful, re-energising sleep.  

Many of us know that uncontrollable urge to eat when we’re not actually hungry. The simple reason is that food can bring us comfort, at least in the short term. As a result, we often turn to food in response to emotions rather than hunger. In fact, studies suggest that over 75% of overeating is emotional. Whether it’s just boredom, or depression or stress, our emotions can cause us to consume large amounts of food, often impacting badly on our weight loss goals.

The occasional binge is okay, but if emotional eating is becoming a problem for you, there are a few strategies you can use to help curb your overeating habits. Identifying what triggers your eating and substituting more positive techniques to manage your emotions is a good place to start.

Keeping Good Habits

With colder temperatures approaching, the thought of salads are slowly starting to phase out. We seek great comfort from the cold through foods such as creamy pastas, stodgy roasts and casseroles, and hide under layers of clothing. However, winter does not mean we have to put on weight and undo all the hard work we have endured throughout the rest of the year. Staying healthy is still important and will give you a head start on your bikini figure, as well as feeling great with a efficient immune system, ready to fight winter colds and flues.

Get your metabolism fired up with these simple changes to your eating and exercise habits. By taking care of yourself and helping your body to function efficiently, you can burn more fat, more quickly. Here are some easy tips to remember to get your metabolism moving…  

People struggling with their weight or those considering a diet, often have a misconception about the foods that they can and cannot eat. Dieting not necessarily means giving up your favourite foods, and living on salads or soup, but rather adjusting to a healthier meal plan and making more informed decisions when picking out cooking ingredients.

Many diets will use alternatives in their recipes so their followers can still eat the foods they love. They will also use a few tricks to make the transition easier and help increase weight loss. For instance, using non-stick frying pans reduces the need for cooking oil, and steaming vegetables instead of boiling them will increase their nutritional value, thus keeping you healthier.

Swiss balls are large, durable, inflatable balls with a diameter of 35 to 85 cm (14 to 34 inches). They are usually constructed of elastic, soft PVC and known under a variety of names, such as exercise ball, gym ball, therapy ball, Pilate's ball, sports, fit or fitness ball, stability ball, yoga ball, balance or body ball, and birth ball.

Swiss balls originated in Switzerland where, as early as the 1960’s, physical therapists used the oversized toys to assist with rehabilitation. Because of their effectiveness, the idea took off and Swiss balls are now used all over the world for a number of therapies, as well as other weight loss exercises.

Core exercises should be a part of any well-rounded fitness program, and not be restricted to a few occasional sit-ups and push-ups. It pays to work those core muscles around your trunk and pelvis, and improve balance and stability.

Using a fitness or balance ball to strengthen your core muscles helps to work even your deepest muscles. Further advantages of using a gym ball for core exercises include:

Many of us often wonder how many calories we actually need to survive the day. The answer is simple, as all we need to do is calculate our Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and multiply the result by a factor that best represents our usual Physical Activity Level (PAL).

You have a choice of equations and online calculators to determine your personal BMR. One of the mathematical formulas is known as the “Harris Benedict equation,” and can be very useful in determining the number of calories you burn daily as your body attends to its simplest, automatic functions.

The perfect weight is an ideal many strive for, but not everyone is able to reach. Children, as well as adults, battle weight gain more so than ever before, because they know that being overweight can cause severe medical problems such as heart disease, stroke, high cholesterol, elevated blood pressure, diabetes and more.