I’ve just come back from The Farm – an amazing detox retreat where I did my first colon cleansing, and I must say, I am hooked! This is definitely on my annual to-do list, joining the ranks of famous celebrities like the late Princess Diana, Jennifer Aniston, Madonna, Mae West, and many others who credit colonic cleansing for their radiance.
Colon cleansing involves involves repeatedly flushing the colon out with pure water or organic coffee, removing layers of accumulated toxic debris, taking physical pressure off the abdominal organs. Parasites, candida yeast and other fungal forms are cleansed out as well. This gets rid of belly fat which so often is mainly comprised of the bulk of built-up wastes rather than adipose (fat) tissue. These methods also tone and condition the bowel, getting rid of constipation. Constipation is your complexion’s worst enemy. When your colon is clogged with waste material, your body tries to eliminate toxins through the skin. Even if your skin is functioning properly, these waste materials end up deposited in the pores and tissues creating a sallow and mottled complexion. Besides clear skin, each session also leaves you refreshed and energised. In fact, I’ve been as buzzed as a 2-year-old since I got back – and all this without coffee (which I’ve kicked too after the detox)!
Keen to try it?
The Farm is having a special promo “7 Day RAIN CLEANSE Organic Weight Loss Retreat” reflecting 30% discount off the entire programme. This is a time limited offer valid until September 30, 2011 only! Book your spot now
It’s been a busy week for the aesthetics industry with two launches this week.
The first launch on Tuesday was at ION Sky for new laser machine, Clear & Brilliant Laser. Created by Solta, their new shiny baby attempts to straddle the gap between spa treatments and ablative lasers like the Fraxel (also created by Solta), for people who want all the benefits of a stronger laser without the downtime. It is designed to attract younger patients looking to take control of their ageing process. These consumers would like a more efficacious treatment than their current regimens, but as of yet they do not need the full transformative benefits of a more aggressive laser skin resurfacing procedure. Being one of the first few lucky recipients to try this treatment, I am happy to report that I am now the owner of a refreshed mien with more even skin tone and glow
The second launch was a more intimate affair for UltraShape version 3, hosted by Dr David Loh at Japanese restaurant, Sun With Moon, today. Over a casual lunch, the amicable doctor enlightened us on how his new body sculpting machine uses focused ultrasound to break up stubborn fat desposits accurately, effectively, safely and most importantly, non-invasively. Patients usually report a fat loss of five centimetres after the first treatment. According to Dr Loh, who has years of experience sculpting bodies with liposuction techniques like Vaser, this 3rd generation UltraShape works particularly well on men’s bellies.
To prove his point, we proceeded to his new clinic at Liat Towers, dedicated to UltraShape treatments, to witness the live demo of his treatment on a lucky male attendee of the event. After the 15-minute quickie session, the recipient’s tummy did indeed look flatter!
‘Tis the season to be jolly….and weight gain, with parties galore and lots of festive bingeing. You don’t have to stay at home and be a recluse in order to maintain your hard-won numbers on the weighing scale. Just follow these secrets of successful dieters and you’ll still be able to fit into your skinny jeans.
1. Eat and drink wisely
If you’ve lost weight eating nothing but lettuce and fat-free chips, this may come as a shock but the best weight-loss plan is also the one the healthiest. Most people think of weight management and healthy eating as two separate things. But when you’re managing calories, it’s more important than ever to have a good balance of foods. Fruits and vegetables, lean sources of protein, low-fat dairy and whole-grain, high-fibre foods are the elements of good nutrition and have also shown to help with satiety. You don’t have to reinvent nutrition when you’re trying to manage your weight.
If you want to cut something out, start with the obvious – empty calories. Cut out sugar and soda if you had to get rid of two foods that would sabotage any diet in the stratosphere.
2. Fill up on low calorie foods
People eat a consistent weight or volume of food each day. So you can eat the same amount of food and get fewer calories by choosing foods that are less energy-dense.
Which foods fill you up and provide you with nutrition without a lot of calories? Fruits and vegetables, which are both rich in fibre and high in water content. Fat packs nine calories a gram, water packs none. When fruits and vegetables constitute the bulk of your plate (and I don’t mean French fries), you’ll lose weight and keep it off. It’s virtually impossible to get fat eating fruits and vegetables, there are less than 100 calories in a vat of spinach!
Lean protein (fish, white-meat chicken and lean cuts of pork and red meat) will also help manage hunger. And, it’s important to reduce fat, but not too much, since fats help you absorb vitamins. A drizzle of olive oil, a “good fat”, is okay.
3. Slow and steady wins the race
You can lose weight on any fad diet quickly. The problem is that the human body hasn’t evolved beyond its feast-or-famine origins: When you crash diet, the body thinks it has to store fat to survive this time of famine. The answer is a slow and steady weight loss of no more than one kilogram per week, which doesn’t send up the internal red flags that cause our metabolism to slow down.
You can also apply this concept to the pacing of your meals. First, don’t skip any. Dieters who ate breakfast reported working out more, making them more successful at shedding weight. So get into the routine of eating breakfast, lunch and dinner and two healthy snacks each and every day.
Second, don’t rush. It takes about 20 minutes for your body to register that you’ve had enough, so if you eat quickly, it’s easy to eat too much.
Hereare a more clever suggestions to fight the temptation to polish off jumbo servings:
- Buy small (25ml) plates to use at home.
- Drink out of tall, thin glasses.
- Split food portions with a friend or ask for half of your portion to be wrapped up in a doggie bag at a restaurant before it’s even brought to the table (and save it for lunch the next day).
- To avoid overeating when dining out at a restaurant, order a salad with light dressing on the side, broth-based soup or light appetiser and wait until you’ve eaten that to decide whether you want to order more.
However, if you still managed to pile on the kilos, look out for my next edition of Aesthetics & Beauty Guide, out end January 2011, where I review the latest fat-busting machines as well as the secret workout of Madonna, Kylie and Claudia Schiffer, that keeps them lean and mean, in half the time! Happy holidays!
Aesthetics & Beauty Guide (ABG) is the first aesthetics magazine from Singapore to bridge the information gap between medical professionals and the layman. In every issue, you will find detailed treatment reviews , the lowdown on the latest aesthetic treatments available and profiles of qualified medical professionals – basically, your go-to guide for all things aesthetics.
I started ReviewAntiAging.com last year in my personal pursuit to look for the best aesthetic treatments for myself. My partnership with ABG has allowed me to share my vast experience with a wider pool of women (and men!). In the name of “work”, I’ve reviewed almost 20 treatments and looking at my skin now – smooth, radiant and taut, I’m definitely a big believer that aesthetic treatments can help you get better skin and maintain your complexion for many years to come.
In this inaugural issue of ABG, you’ll get a crash course in Aesthetics 101, reviews of the latest and most effective aesthetic treatments, hear from Dr Georgia Lee as she talks about her new skincare range, get all your acne questions answered by renown dermatologist, Dr Joyce Lim, get the skinny on the newest slimming treatments to get rid of your wobbly bits, and many more health and beauty tips.
ABG is available at all major newstands and bookstores, get your copy before it’s sold out (I hear that Kino and Borders have had to replenish and copies are being stolen from doctors’ clinics)!
Today’s post is going to be different as I am not going to talk about beauty treatments. Instead, I am going to share with you another method of staying and looking young – do fun and exciting things that make you happy!
I’ve recently started gymnastics class and can feel myself growing younger after every class! Each class is a rollicking good time set in a giant playground replete with every child’s fantasy – beams, trampoline and lots of big, padded things all designed for one thing – FUN!
All thoughts and worries fly out of my head as soon as class starts as I have to concentrate 110% on the trainer’s instructions as he/she guides us through cartwheels, forward rolls, back flips, trampoline and balancing beam tricks as well as an assortment of super-intensive conditioning exercises.
I had to get over my initial fear of breaking my limbs or twisting my neck, and just go for it, trusting my body and mind to coordinate to achieve its goal. The feeling I get from pulling off a new gym stunt is nothing short of exhilarating! It’s a natural high – endorphins flood my body, my face glows and my eyes are shining. Now, who needs creme de la mer?
True, expensive creams and aesthetic treatments can help you achieve great skin. But what is great skin if your eyes are dead and you have no zest for life? So, go ahead and sign up for that cooking class, Spanish lesson or martial arts course you’ve been eyeing (next up on my agenda!). The fountain of youth is within you – you just have to find the key to unlock it!
It looks like a cross between a cocoon and a time-travel machine and is touted as the latest, most technologically-advanced weight loss machine.
The SlimLine POD is a personal spa environment capsule that incorporates heat, oxygen, vibratory massage amd LED light into a powerful system that provides a “Metabolic Solution” to complement your exercise programme to help you lose weight and keep it off.
Regular use of the SlimLine POD is said to:
- Promote weight loss
- Burn excessive calories
- Reduce cellulite
- Increase metabolic rate
- Reduce water retention
Intrigued? So am I. Watch out for my review next week
Ulthera is a revolution in the field of skin tightening treatments. It is the first ever aesthetic treatment that incorporates ultrasound imaging for the visualisation of tissue beneath the skin’s surface. Guided by the ultrasound scan of the skin’s different layers, doctors can, for the first time ever in the history of aesthetic treatments, deliver focused energy at prescribed depths within the skin. The energy enables a significant lifting of skin tissue while leaving superficial layers completely intact.
The energy triggers a healing response which makes skin more elastic and more radiant. Skin forms new and improved collagen, which gradually tightens and lifts the skin from within. Collagen and elastin fibers are the main supportive structures within the skin against gravitational effects. Forget two weeks downtime, this procedure involves absolutely no recovery time as there is no breakage of skin.
Ulthera is suitable for everyone – no matter what race and age. With over 1000 patients treated worldwide, Ultherapy (skin-tightening with Ulthera) has been shown to produce significant lifting of lax skin. In the pivotal trial, noticeable improvement occurred in nearly 9 out of 10 patients (89 percent) resulting in less hooding or skin laxity on the upper eyelid and a more open, refreshed appearance overall. Study patients noted lifting, tightening and firming in other areas of the face and neck as well, such as the cheeks and along the jawline. Results developed gradually over a 90-day period following treatment and results can last up to four years!
Find out how you can win this revolutionary treatment here:
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’ll know who Dr Georgia Lee is. She is Singapore’s undisputed anti aging queen and celebrities flock to her in droves to maintain their looks. The first doctor to break news about the latest face-lifting machine, Ulthera (on my anti aging website, ReviewAntiAging.com) as well as purchase the $250,000 dream machine, patients of this doyenne can count on her to always be on the forefront of anti aging treatments.
Besides work, Dr Lee is also a doctor who sure knows how to have a good time! Whether it is attending the most stylish party in town or hosting her own shindig, you can count on her to show up looking spectacular. Not one to shy from fashion trends, be it D&G pyjamas or Balenciaga’s Bladerunner-esque tights, she wears them all with panache.
Ok, my mind is blank this week, hence this mundane post…
Women in Singapore are obsessed about losing weight. Case in point: all the ads in the papers are from slimming centres (or bust enhancement places!). A recent survey with my readers of ReviewAntiAging.com also reveal that weight loss is a popular topic. That is why my editorial in January for ReviewAntiAging.com will be about body sculpting and fat loss. A very apt topic for now, me thinks, what with the end of the festive season and before Chinese New Year.
Here are some interesting facts about fats:
We are born with 10 billion fat cells. According to researchers from the University of California who studied about 180 infants for 15 years, this number of fat cells then grows through late childhood and early puberty after which it is pretty much set. A person at a healthy weight may have 30 to 40 billion fat cells, while an obese person can have up to 100 billion fat cells! Women generally inherit more fat cells at 35 billion compared to 26 billion in men. Fat cells increase in size, but not in number when we gain weight as adults.
It was found that the number of fat cells you have stays constant in adulthood and this number is largely determined during the teenage years. So if life seems unfair, perhaps it was something you ate in your teens!
My Body Sculpting special will feature a fat loss expert who will answer questions from readers. Questions like:
What exercises are best for weight loss?
I would like to lose 5 kilos by next month for my wedding, what are the best options?
What is the difference between liposuction and LipoSelection?
How much fat can be removed and what happens to my excess skin?
And more…
The Body Sculpting special will also feature a Vaser LipoSelection treatment review and I will need a candidate for this. If you are keen, join my Facebook Fan Page on the upper-right hand column and post “I want to try out LipoSelection” on the wall.
For more information about LipoSelection, go here:
I teach Pilates on the side and I know all women want a nice, flat tummy without any love-handles and pooch. The good news is, this can be done with just a few key exercises. The most important abdominal muscle you want to target for that is the Transverse Abdominal muscle which runs across the abdomen and performs abdominal compression.It draws the belly inward and narrows the waist, getting rid of the dreaded belly ring or belly fat. Fitness trainers refer to this muscle as the body’s “internal girdle.”
Imagine yourself wearing a girdle, that’s what the transverse abdominal muscle does to your tummy. The transverse abdominal muscle is the body’s most important core stabilizer. To do this, you need to train your abs to pull back in toward your spine during exertion.
Here’s a 5-minute exercise specifically developed for this essential skill:
- First, stand up tall, then think about drawing your belly button towards your spine.
- You are not sucking in your breath, you are using your abs to do this. Once your belly button is drawn it, it automatically activates your transverse abdominal muscle.
- Try to keep your belly button in as you breathe normally. Practice a few times until it becomes comfortable.
I use this exercise myself to keep my own tummy flat. The best part about this exercise is that you can do it anytime, everyday. I do it when I am walking, shopping and standing on escalators.
If you are impatient and want quicker results, these weight loss treatments will help you:
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