7. SPICY METABOLISM. Incorporating a variety of spices in your foods such as curry, cayenne pepper, cinnamon and certain herbs may help boost your metabolism. Spices also help with stabilizing blood sugar levels.

8. COMBINE WEIGHT TRAINING WITH YOUR CARDIO. While aerobic activity may burn a great deal of calories, especially when maintained at a high intensity, you'll achieve greater success by combining it with resistance training. This is because proper resistance training stresses all of your muscles fiber types (Type 1 and Type 2). When you stress your muscles effectively, you either maintain and strengthen your current muscle mass or you even gain some. For every pound of muscle you gain it equates to 50 extra calories you can burn per day. So remember to hit weights at least three times per week along with your cardio.

9. SLOW DOWN YOUR EATING. No one truly gets to sit down and have a nice relaxing meal nowadays, especially with our busy schedules. Learning and realizing to slow down pace at which we eat prevents compulsive overeating and assists our digestion. It takes at least 20 minutes between time you're full and when your brain actually realizes it. Slowing your eating will also allow you to enjoy your meal.

10. WATCH FOR FOOD ALLERGIES. Many people are allergic to dairy and wheat products. Being sensitive to these two food categories have been shown to cause weight gain. If you're consuming a diet high in refined foods, these sensitivities become more evident. This causes digestive problems such as bloating, stomach pain, and water retention. If you're not sure you may want to consider an allergy test.

11. GET YOUR ANTIOXIDANTS. Getting your daily dose of antioxidants from either a good multi-vitamin, a specific antioxidant supplement combination, or even a healthy combination of fruits and vegetables is important for combating toxins held in fat cells. Antioxidants such as vitamins A, C, E, polyphenols in green tea, etc. help your body reduce time that toxins stay in your system.

So there it is - 11 basic tips to help you achieve a healthier and leaner physique. It's never to late to take action. Have fun and enjoy summer!

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to medically diagnose, treat or cure any disease. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any health care program.

This plan is similar to that of people who live in Mediterranean. They also tend to eat a lot of fruit, vegetables, and legumes, more fish and less red meat. Moreover, they drink a moderate amount of wine, and rely on olive oil as their main source of dietary fat. Earlier research has suggested that followers of this diet enjoy a wide range of benefits, such as a lower risk of heart disease, cancer and memory loss.

Additional studies have shown that citrus and zinc may also cut rheumatoid arthritis risk. Citrus can be helpful because of antioxidants they contain. Findings are not conclusive, yet promising.

In study, doctors found that women getting less than 40 micrograms of beta-cryptoxanthin, a component found in citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruit were at a somewhat elevated danger of developing rheumatoid arthritis than women who consumed more than that amount.

Although thus far it has only been proven that genetics is culprit behind rheumatoid arthritis, if there have been some findings as to benefits of eating fruits and vegetables, wouldn’t it make sense for suffers to up their intake? It certainly can’t hurt… and may actually help. Now please pass broccoli with a side of grapefruit!

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to medically diagnose, treat or cure any disease. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any health care program.