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California Day Spas.com offers a start to a comprehensive approach to health, fitness and beauty through its various day spa listings. Our goal is to help you achieve improved appearance, well-being and self-esteem through a combination of the best treatments in health, beauty and cosmetics. Indulgence is just a click away… use our web site as a guide to lead you to the most affluent day spas throughout California.

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Putting On The Pounds

No, you didn't misread the title. Believe it or not, there are some people who are looking to put pounds on. They want, maybe even need, to gain weight. Since most people spend much of their lives figuring out ways to shed their extra pounds, the concept of underweight may be difficult to comprehend. However, if you're a part of the minority population that has tried everything they can to gain weight, you know that it can be just as difficult for underweight people to add pounds as it is for overweight people to take them off.

Who Needs To Gain Weight?
The term underweight is generally used to describe two kinds of people: those whose weight is considered below normal, but are still healthy, and those whose low weights are cause for significant health concerns. The latter group is at high risk for respiratory diseases, tuberculosis, digestive disorders and some cancers, and women are more likely to become infertile or give birth to unhealthy babies. A consultation with their physicians is recommended for these people before they embark on a program to gain weight.

Individuals in the former category may range from young football players who wish to create a stronger presence on the field to older adults living ordinary lives. These people usually have a genetic predisposition to thinness, and it is important that they keep this in mind when implementing strategies for gaining weight; they won't be able to change their physiology, but they may be able to enhance it.

Nutrition Strategies
A useful rule of thumb is that in order to gain 1 pound of body weight per week, you should consume an additional 500 calories per day above the amount you typically consume. This number varies from person to person (depending on such factors as weight and metabolism), but you get the idea: Eating more than normal is a must if you want to gain weight. Boost your calories by consistently consuming three larger-than-normal meals a day plus two or more snacks during the midmorning and mid-afternoon.

Try to eat foods that are high in calories, but remember to stay away from saturated fats such as cheese, beef, butter and bacon. It's best to stick to a high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet that you modify to include larger quantities. This also applies to your intake of protein. Many athletes seeking to gain muscle use protein powders and amino acid supplements. This isn't necessary if you eat the recommended amount of dietary protein (15 percent to 20 percent of daily calories), which is less expensive than buying supplements. To be sure that you are sensibly increasing your caloric intake, make an appointment with a registered dietitian who can help you plan your meals.

The Key
In order to ensure that the extra calories you are eating don't simply turn into gained pounds of fat, it is crucial that you make strength training your primary form of exercise. If you rely only on eating calorie-dense foods to gain weight, you will only gain fat not likely the change you are looking for. Strength training will convert the extra calories you consume into muscle growth that will enhance your appearance as well as your performance in daily activities and athletics. Working with a Personal Trainer is a good way to learn which strength-training exercises will be best for you and to make sure that you are performing them correctly.

Be Patient
Putting on weight can be a hard and often slow task, but if you consistently eat large meals and participate in strength training, the payoff should be worth both the wait and the work.

Safe Food Handling

1. Wash your hands before (and after) touching food. Sounds obvious, right? At least the "before" part. Well, maybe not. Maybe it’s a sex thing. According to research, Rinzler quotes, according to a study of Braves fans at a game in Atlanta– 46% of the guys stopped to wash, while 89% of the women washed up. Yeah, we know the line was too long for the guys to wait, while women are used to waiting in lines at rest rooms. But why wash after? Read on!

2. Wash all fruits and vegetables before you use them. Makes sense! Maybe the person picking them was one of the ones who didn't’t stop to wash

3. Read the package. Novel concept. If it says, "refrigerate after opening", guess what? Also the "use by" dates are there for a reason.

4. Handle all raw meat, fish, and poultry as though it were contaminated. Ah-ha! Here’s one reason to wash your hands after preparing food! Rinzler claims, "One of every four chickens and one of every seven turkeys that reaches our kitchens comes with enough salmonella organisms to make you sick." Beef and fish also have problems.

5. So that’s why . . . Cook foods thoroughly. Rinzler suggests doing what the pros do – getting and using a thermometer.

6. Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. According to the USDA between 40 degrees and 140 degrees is the danger zone in which microbes living on food multiply. Be particularly careful at potluck dinners or parties where people bring dishes which may not have been kept at the proper temperature.

7. Never eat anything containing raw eggs. This means forget licking the cake batter pan, eating eggs with runny yolks or making Caesar salad with unpasturized, raw eggs.

8. The worst place in the house for microbes? The sponge. Rinzler proclaims it "Filty!" But if you zap the sponge in the microwave . . . enough to dry it out . . . you’ll either melt the sponge or have one without little microbe beasties crawling through it.

9. Another culprit: the cutting board! Rinzler suggests two boards, one strictly for vegetables and breads and the other strictly for meat. If it’s a wooden board you can try zapping it in the microwave or treating it with bleach.

10. Finally, "When in doubt, throw it out!" If it’s questionable don’t waste your health tasting it, toss it!

This information and other information on this site is intended for general reference purposes only and is not intended to address specific medical conditions. This information is not a substitute for professional medical advice or a medical exam. Prior to participating in any exercise program or activity, you should seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health professional. No health information on this site should be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any medical condition.