Heart health expert Louis Ignarro, PhD has a tremendous amount of practical advice about how each of us can look after our hearts, so we’ve invited him to share some of his knowledge with us over the next few weeks.  If you have any questions then let us know in the comments section below and we’ll make sure to pass them on.

Hi Louis, thanks for joining us today.  It’s a pleasure and an honor to welcome you to our Herbalife offices.  We all know you as an eminent heart health expert but can you tell us a little about your background?

Louis Ignarro: Of course. I grew up in Long Beach, NY and was always active. I enjoyed swimming in the ocean and one-on-one stickball but I always had an interest in understanding how things worked and delighted in constructing and deconstructing things – if I could get them to work again then even better!

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Samantha and I are in privileged company this week – we’re looking forward to a guest post from Louis Ignarro Ph.D, Nobel Laureate*,  consultant to Herbalife and member of the Herbalife Nutrition Institute Nutrition Advisory Board, in which he’ll describe the impact of a healthy, active lifestyle on heart health.   A healthy diet is, as Dr. Ignarro says, “as good for your heart as it is for your taste buds.” 

I couldn’t have said it better.  But what I often run into with my patients is that it’s one thing to know what to eat – and why (okay, that’s two things…) – but they often get hung up figuring out how to incorporate more healthy foods into their diet.  So let’s take a good look at the key “whats”, “whys” and – more importantly – the “how tos” of a heart healthy diet.

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Whether you’re a new mother or not, I bet there is something in today’s article that will help become more fit, gain confidence or just learn a little empathy.

No matter how or why you’ve gained weight, know that it takes as long – if not longer – to lose that weight again.  Pregnancy is a special time and new mothers need to concentrate on their baby but you  may need to reprioritize if you are still blaming a spare-tire on baby weight, three years later!

Dads-to-be often gain baby weight too – if someone around you is eating more then the temptation to join in is hard to refuse. This week, I’m going to share five tips that will help you regain the figure you want.  I’m focusing on how to reclaim your pre-pregnancy body because it’s a message I relate to strongly.

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There are plenty of healthy foods that don’t get the attention they deserve.  Here are five under-appreciated foods that deserve another look.

Why are some foods popular and others aren’t?  I’m not talking about foods that taste better than others, or are more fun to eat –  I get that.  But I do wonder why certain foods are trendy, while others just aren’t eaten all that much.  It’s hard to find a restaurant in Los Angeles these days that doesn’t feature kale salad.  Not that there’s anything wrong with that – kale salad is delicious, and kale is jam-packed with nutrients.  But why is it that certain foods gain superstar status while others – equally healthy and equally delicious – get the short shrift?

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Do you ever think about cellulite?  Do you have cellulite? Cellulite is the dimple effect seen on thighs up and down the land. And if you’re thinking, “what an earth could she possibly know about having cellulite?” Let me fill you in on a little secret: I have never trained with a woman who doesn’t have it and, yes, I too am guilty of owning a little cellulite of my own!

With the warmer months fast approaching, the dread of revealing all in a bathing suit or shorts has many men and women frantically dieting and exercising in an attempt to shape up. If you read my summer countdown post, you know that getting active today means you may see some improvement in your external appearance just in time for beach season!

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Eating out doesn’t have to be a diet disaster.  Here are six tips to help you navigate a menu and ask for what you want in a restaurant.

It’s Thursday, but I’m still thinking about a ridiculous experience I had at a restaurant last weekend.  We were at a new trendy – but casual – neighborhood place for dinner. I scanned the salad offerings – dismissing the vinaigrette-dressed roasted beets (not my favorite) and the “southwest” (loaded with refried beans and cheese) – and zeroed in on the mixed baby greens with creamy buttermilk dressing.  I asked my server (“Mike, I’m happy to be taking care of you tonight”) if I could please have the mixed baby greens with the vinaigrette instead of the buttermilk dressing.  “I’ll need to check with the chef,” he told me. “Our menu clearly states, ‘no modifications’.”  Huh?  After a few minutes he came back – with attitude.  “The chef said he’ll make an exception.” Looking down his nose at me, I half expected him to add, “… just this once.”

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Getting fit today is more serious than six packs and skinny thighs. When you hear the term “fighting fit” does it bring to mind thoughts of kickboxing classes and sweaty boxing gyms?  Or, are you like me and see that it can have a far more serious meaning?

I have a saying ‘get fit from the inside out’ and to me, it means that instead of being motivated by the external rewards that we associate with fitness it’s important to exercise for internal reasons. I thought about this when my dear friend told me that her doctor insisted she start a fitness program in order to strengthen her body after a life-altering diagnosis.

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Another reason to eat protein at breakfast. Protein helps keep you full and satisfied until lunch – and a new study suggests it might even help curb snacking at night.

If you keep up with the latest in dietary advice, you can probably list a few reasons why protein is such an important nutrient.  It’s necessary, of course, to help you build and maintain your muscle mass, and it’s also known to be a much better at filling you up than either fat or carbohydrate – which is why we suggest that people aim to have a good source of protein at each meal or snack.  The idea is simply this:  high carb meals don’t stay with you, while higher protein meals can help control hunger from one meal to the next.  But here’s something else… a recent study by Heather Leidy¹ suggests that a high protein breakfast not only helps control your appetite until the next meal, it might reduce unhealthy snacking in the evening.

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There are about six weeks left before summer is here! For many people that’s a cause for celebration but others may be concerned about shedding their cold weather clothing and revealing a body that’s gained a few pounds over winter.  But, if you act now, you can start work on attaining the body you want.

Today, I’m going to share three dos and three don’ts to help you reach your body beautiful goals. Let’s start by setting some realistic expectations. With the summer months fast approaching, many people feel pressured to shift extra pounds quickly. Unfortunately, many people also then become despondent because extra weight doesn’t magically disappear as fast as they would want.  The ‘get thin quick’ frenzy is often started with great intentions, but if it isn’t accompanied by realistic goals then it doesn’t have much chance of success.

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Want to shape up for summer?  Don’t wait until the last minute!  If you start now, you’ve got six weeks or so – plenty of time to see some serious results before swimsuit season starts.

I’m nudging you now, because many people have the tendency to put this off.  As in, “I’m going on a surfing trip next week and I can’t be seen looking like this”  A crash diet to take off a couple of pounds in a week might make you slightly less self-conscious in your board shorts, but if you really want to make some headway before swimsuit season, the time to start is now. 

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Do you hate working out because you don’t like to sweat? Or are you one of the many people that use the ‘I don’t want to ruin my hair excuse’ to avoid a workout? It’s a very common problem for so many people; they hate working out because they hate to sweat.

As I’m sat here typing and trying to think of a way to persuade ‘sweat haters’ that they should still get fit, I think I’m starting to sweat because I don’t have a magic fix!

Yes, if you exercise your hair may go frizzy and your skin may get damp but this is a good thing. Sweating is just part of life.  I think my best approach is to explain why we sweat, how to make sweating more comfortable and, of course, I also have to give some skin and hair care advice because, after all, I’m female and because I love working out I often build up a good sweat.

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You know what you should be eating because you’ve heard most diet advice before – but you just can’t quite figure out how to apply that diet advice to make it part of your daily eating routine.  Here are some tips to help you put your nutrition knowledge into action.

For those of us in the US, mid-April means one thing – it’s tax time.  Many dread it, and put it off to the last minute – in large part because completing your own tax return is difficult,  it’s  complicated, and just so darned…. well, taxing.  But as tough as it may be, it’s apparently not nearly as hard as figuring out how to eat well… in an online survey¹ of more than 1,000 Americans that was released last year, 52% said that it was harder to figure out “what you should and shouldn’t eat to be healthier” than it is to figure out “how to do your own taxes.”

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Do you ever find yourself in an exercise slump?  You have great intentions to workout but, whoops, a day, then a week goes by and you have either stopped exercising or you’ve cut down too much.

Sometimes we all feel like missing a session at the gym but if we give ourselves a break from working out too often then we’re in danger of getting out of the habit of regular exercise.  I always say that some exercise is better then no exercise – and that’s still true – but a regular fitness routine will help you develop and reap all the positives of an active, healthy lifestyle!

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Most of us are familiar with standard-issue dietary guidelines. In the US, we have the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans – simple recommendations that, if they’re followed, lead us toward better food choices and a better diet overall. General guidelines like these are great, but I often suggest taking them a step further. 

Since no one knows the strengths and weaknesses of your diet better than you do, you might want to establish your own “personal” dietary guidelines.  Think of them as your individual food rules – a handful of your own “dietary do’s and don’ts” that help you maintain a healthy diet and a healthy weight.

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A fitness journal will help you improve your fitness level but you may be wondering how to get started. Take a look at a week-long excerpt from a real fitness journal and I’ll reveal what the journal tells us when we analyze the data!

Did you read my post on how to get fit and stay fit by using a fitness journal? Are you still a little unsure of what you need to do and if you have the time? If you answered yes, then check out this sample week from Hannah to help motivate you to start your journal today! I’ve added my six-week evaluation to give you an idea of how simple it can be to play detective and improve your fitness journey.

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