(This is Part 3 in our three-part series: How 3 Ancient Alternative Methods Can Help You Lose Weight. CLICK HERE to read Part 1, Acupuncture. CLICK HERE to read Part 2, Can Hypnosis Help You Lose Weight?)

Meditation is part of our earliest recorded history. Long ago, it was used mostly in conjunction with religious practices. Some say that meditation is the oldest form of mental, spiritual and physical health and wellness practice in existence.

The earliest known root of meditation is with the Hindus in India who used forms of meditation to discern the true nature of Brahman. Buddha reached “enlightenment” while he was meditating under a Bodhi Tree. Those that followed Buddha, however, did not believe that mediation was a way to understand a higher being but rather a way of sensing ones connection to all things. Forms of meditation are present in all major religions.

Some people just don’t like to exercise. Maybe you’re one of them? This prompts the same question over and over again: “Is it really necessary that I exercise, or can I lose weight without having to buy a gym membership and work up a sweat?” Here’s your answer…

The Role of Exercise in Weight Loss

Let’s first look at the facts.  When it comes to losing weight, getting regular physical exercise offers a number of advantages, even if “regular” is 30 minutes 3 days a week. These weight loss advantages include, but are not limited to:

One of the most envied body parts is a tummy that is flatter than a board. After all, there is something sexy and confident about someone that has a midsection that is tight and toned. And, if you’re like most people, you’ve even envisioned yourself with bikini worthy abs, strutting around the beach for the entire world to see.

Sadly, if you’re like most people, you’ve also given up the hopes of ever seeing that trim midsection become a reality. However, you can have a thinner tummy and we’ve got some ways to help you get it. Here are three things you can do that will help you create abs that others envy:

Lower Your Body Fat Percentage

It doesn’t matter how tone your muscles are in your core area, you’re not going to be able to see them if they are hidden under a layer of fat. Therefore, you’ll want to decrease your overall body fat so that your finely tuned abdominal muscles will be able to shine through.

If you’ve spent any time in the weight loss supplement aisle in the store, then you probably realize that there are about as many options available as there are ingredients that exist. It can feel very overwhelming to try to figure out which ones work and which ones are a waste of money, so we want to help make the whole process much simpler.

Here are the seven supplements you are going to want to consider taking if your primary goal is to burn fat as fast as you can:

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to get your body to burn fat and having it defy you. It’s like trying to force a young child to share their favorite toy with a sibling. It doesn’t matter how much you beg and plead, sometimes you just have to physically remove the toy from their hands to get them to let go.

The same is true with body fat. You can talk to your jiggly thighs or round tummy until you are blue in the face, but sometimes you have to do things that make your body burn the fat because it isn’t going to do it on its own. What are those things? Here are seven of them:

Have you tried to lose weight so many times that you would need more than just your fingers and toes to count them on, as well as those of every member of your family? And does each attempt eventually result in you weighing the same as, if not more than, when you first started your weight loss journey? If so, unfortunately you are not alone.

Dieting is one of the most understood lifestyles around the globe. People everywhere are watching what they eat in an attempt to lose weight and gain health. But, if that’s the case, why is it that there is an obesity epidemic that is threatening the health of people all over the world?

The answer is simple: diet. Not diet as in what food people eat (although healthy eating is obviously very important), but diet as in the process. It’s about what effect calorie restriction has on your physical body.

You Can Blame Your Slow Metabolism on Your Grandparents

We’ve all heard commercials and television experts touting the benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids.  Even the renowned Dr. Oz makes a point to highlight the many benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids on a regular basis.  But few of us are getting enough Omega 3s in our diets.  Let’s take a look at what these acids do for our diets and our health, and why we should make sure we're getting enough of them.

When it comes to diet, one of the most important things to understand is that Omega 3 fatty acids are essential to energy production.  ALA, which is the precursor to both EPA and DHA (two other Omega 3s), is a vital source of energy for the body that certainly shouldn’t be overlooked as part of your supplement regimen if you aren’t getting enough of it through things like flaxseed, algae, and fish.

Sugar, and its related derivatives corn syrup, molasses, maltose, and dextrose, is found in many of the foods consumed in our modern life. This sweet substance is common, but can it really be considered addictive? Let’s look at how we become addicted to sugar, what sugar does to our bodies and health, where it can be found, and ways to end your love affair with sugar.

Most estimates put the average consumption of sugar between 20 and 30 teaspoons a day. While at first this may not seem that bad, it is worth noting that women should be consuming a maximum of six teaspoons a day and men should be consuming no more than nine teaspoons a day.

Sugar, much like alcohol, heroin, morphine, and cocaine, releases hormones in our brain that activates our “feel good” receptors. This means that sugar meets the same criteria as other addictive substances, resulting in a compulsion to consume, a gradual tolerance to its effects caused from continued use, difficulty functioning without it, and withdrawal symptoms when consumption ends.

Stress has become one of the biggest issues being discussed by experts in the health community. As people try to do more in less time each day, their stress levels increase as well. One area that is greatly impacted by stress is weight loss. The body’s ability to burn fat and function properly is directly affected by stress-related pressure. You can become even more stressed by the results when you’re trying to lose weight.

Does Stress Cause Weight Gain?

Stress affects the way your hormones are regulated, interrupting the way your body processes fat.  It is also often accompanied by anxiety- which causes many people to over-eat and gain weight-or stop eating completely, and lose extreme amounts of weight. Unhealthy eating habits also affect the body’s metabolism, leading to weight gain.

Even people who don’t necessarily eat more food when anxious can gain weight when stress leads them to eat foods high in carbs and sugar. Lack of time often becomes another problem during stressful times. It becomes easier to choose processed foods high in fat when there isn’t enough time to cook a healthy meal.

It’s a fact revealed in the neon headlines splashed across every magazine cover in America, and a pressure that most women feel on a daily basis: you should strive to be tall, thin, and beautiful.

Entire fortunes have been made by diet companies selling all sorts of products to help you get there. There are plans such as the cookie diet and the South Beach movement, or others like grapefruit regimens and Paleo theories. The Slim Fast campaign sold itself in chocolate-flavored shakes and protein bars, while other methods like the Atkin’s Diet marketed purely based on a book and a theory that a low-carb life led to happiness.

Most people like French fries, and protein shakes never taste as good as the real sugary thing.

Of course, there’s always the good old doctor adage of daily exercise, but when you’re busy with work or kids or school, that doesn’t always seem like a feasible option either. There’s always something more to be done or cleaned, and the call of the treadmill or the nightly jog simply isn’t alluring enough to tear a woman away from the hectic pace of her life.