The act of breathing is simplicity itself: Air flows into and is then expelled from the lungs. It's an automatic function of the body that keeps us alive and active. While the action of breathing is automatic most of the time, we do have control over how we do it and when we choose to exert that control. And, how we use that breath during physical activities can influence our performance in the gym.

That's mostly due to the diaphragm, the muscle that controls the act of breathing. The diaphragm is a dome-shaped muscle, located across the bottom of the thoracic cavity, which flattens as it contracts. This increases the volume inside the cavity, and pulls air in. When the diaphragm relaxes, the volume within the cavity decreases, and pushes the air out.

But your breathing changes in response to your circumstances as well, and often with very good reason. Ask yourself three questions:

•What did you do when you were huffing and puffing during your last rapid-fire workout? You likely sucked in bigger breaths to bring down your heart rate.

•How do you typically breathe when you struggle to eke out a final rep of your heaviest set? You probably hold your breath to help create more core tension during the lift.

•If you were in a fight and saw a punch to your gut coming, what would you do? You would brace for that punch by holding your breath and contracting your abdominals.

The upshot is that your body innately understands the function of breathing during physical activities and stress, and it adjusts accordingly. Learning to harness the natural power of breath means that we can improve lifts, stabilize the spine, and increase our recovery through the simple act of breathing.

Below are four drills to help you practice increasing your breath control as you learn to focus your mind, brace your spine, and wash away daily stress.

1. Anytime: Yogic Breathing

The type of breathing known in Sanskrit as "ujjayi" (ocean breath), is an active breathing pattern that is best practiced in a comfortable, seated position. It's very common in yoga classes, but it's also worth practicing at home, off the clock, and outside of the gym.

Before we learn to control our breath we have to feel it, and that's what ujjayi breathing teaches. It gives insight into how breathing works, and how you can develop the ability to slow it down or speed it up. When you learn to control it in this way, you'll be better able to use it as a tool in your training.

How To:

1.Sit up tall, with your chest wide and your shoulder relaxed.

2.Close your eyes and begin to breath in and out through your nose. Slow     the breath down and create a 4-count inhale and a 4-count exhale.

3.After you've established this rhythm, begin to constrict the back of your throat as you breathe. This will produce the slightly rumbling ocean sound that accompanies this breathing exercise.

4.Continue this for a total of 5 minutes, trying to maintain your focus, and maintain the breath.

2. Pre-Workout: Alternate-Nostril Breathing

This breathing exercise teaches you to bring your focus to each breath. It is a perfect pre-workout practice to help center your body and mind before you train.

How To:

1.Start in a comfortable seat, with your shoulders relaxed and your chest open.

2.Close your eyes, and begin to breath slowly in and out through your nose. Spend ten inhalation-exhalation cycles of breath before you move on to the next step.

3.Take your right thumb and use it to close your right nostril. Inhale slowly through your left nostril.

4.Close your left nostril with your right ring finger, and exhale through your right nostril.

5.With your right thumb, close your right nostril and inhale through the left. Then, close the left, and exhale through the right. Continue this way for up to 10 cycles of breath.

3. Intra-Workout: Brace-And-Hold Breathing

This exercise directly contributes to the strength and success of your lifts. Understanding how to pull your core muscles in toward your center to brace your spine, while still maintaining a rhythmic breath, means stronger, safer training.

How To:

1.Start standing, with your shoulders relaxed and your feet hip-width apart.

2.Draw a huge inhale through your nose, and hold your breath as you pull your ribs in and down, as if bracing for a punch in the stomach.

3.Hold this for a slow count of five, then exhale through your mouth, only releasing about 50 percent of the tension you created throughout your core.

4.Inhale deeply through your nose, hold complete tension for a slow count of five, then exhale through your mouth.

5.Cycle through four rounds of breathing in this fashion, then rest for 30 seconds.

6.After you've practiced this breathing pattern for three rounds, use it during your lifts. How? First, get set up to lift, take a big inhale through your nose, pull your belly and ribs in, execute the lift, then release the breath.

4. Post-Workout: Recovery Breathing

This final exercise seems simple in execution, but can be challenging to maintain. The ideal time to practice this is while you stretch, post-workout or at home. This exercise can be difficult because your mind will wander and your breath will change, while the goal is to stay relaxed, present, and consistent.

How To:

1.Breathe through your nose, slowly and mindfully, for at least 5 minutes. You don't have to be in a seated meditation-style posture while you do this, but if that's the only way you can concentrate, then do it. Otherwise, do it while you cool down, stretch, or even drive home from the gym.

Eating around your training is vital to your progress. Find out the best way to get the nutrients you need for the best results in the gym!

At this point, you should know that nutrition has a significant impact on your results. Abs are built in the kitchen, you are what you eat, and all the rest. "Yeah, yeah," you mutter, "I've heard it all before.”

Seriously, though: You might be wreaking utter havoc in the gym, but research indicates that what you eat before, during, and after your workout may be the difference between meeting your goals and falling short.

Here's how to harness the power of peri-workout nutrition so you can perform, recover, and grow faster than a weed.

NUTRITION BEFORE YOUR WORKOUT

CARBOHYDRATES

There are few things in the fitness world that incite more arguments and controversy than carbohydrates. Will they make you fat? Do you need them? What kind? At what times? The questions seem endless. There are varying approaches, but if you want to get the most from your workouts and train at your peak, quality fuel is critical.

Carbohydrates are your body's preferred fuel source. I'm not saying you should plow through plates of mashed potatoes and chomp candy bars all day, but you need to fuel your body so it can train at its best.

You want every gram of carbohydrate you consume to be utilized as an immediate fuel source or to restore glycogen levels—you don't want it to be stored as fat. Don't eat more carbs than you need and don't worry about spreading them evenly throughout the day. You can eat the majority of your carbs around your workout.

I like clients to have at least two meals under the belt before training. Your first two meals should include complex carbohydrates like stone-rolled oats or sweet potatoes. Your first meal will provide a couple hours for carbs to get digested and go to work, ensuring blood sugar levels are up and glycogen levels are full prior to training.

Consume your second meal roughly one hour before lifting. Don't get worked up about counting the minutes and seconds, as if five minutes will be the difference between 17- and 18-inch arms. Do the best you can, and try to time it so you can begin training without a lot of food in your gut—running to the garbage can to yak just isn't fun. Most people can benefit from 40 grams of carbs before they train.

FAST-ABSORBING PROTEIN

Research has indicated that users of whey protein prior to training will illicit better results than those using other protein sources (or none at all).

This is most likely due to the anti-catabolic and anabolic signaling effects of the branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) present in whey protein—particularly leucine. Whey has a considerably higher concentration of BCAAs than other proteins.

There are many other benefits, as well. Studies have shown that pre-workout protein intake will increase resting energy expenditure by an average of 6-6.5% for up to 48 hours. Pre-workout protein will also blunt cortisol through the day, an effect that wasn't seen in control groups that were fasted or had ingested carbs only.

Protein and amino acids also spare carbs. People often assume that when the body runs out of carbohydrate fuel, it switches to fatty acids for fuel. That process is typically too slow for high-intensity training. To provide fuel more quickly, amino acids are rapidly broken down and converted to sugar in a process known as gluconeogenesis. If those amino acids aren't in the blood supply, guess where they come from? Yep, your 18-inch biceps. For those of us who are dieting, some extra aminos in our bloodstream may help preserve our lean mass.

Now some of you heavy macro-counters may have reservations about consuming protein pre-workout, especially if you are dieting down. If that's the case, use 10-15 grams of BCAAs instead.

CREATINE MONOHYDRATE

For people with strength or hypertrophy goals, consider supplementing with creatine monohydrate. While there are many forms of creatine available, I prefer micronized creatine monohydrate because it's the most studied, solid, tried-and-true creatine on the market.

The body has three primary methods for developing its ultimate energy source, ATP. Which method your body uses depends on the intensity of the activity. For the most intense activities—like weightlifting—the body uses creatine phosphates to produce energy.

Creatine supplementation of 2-5 grams per day will provide greater stores to call on when training, enabling you to train more intensely. In short, creatine can help you train heavier for more reps; it also draws water into the muscles, making you look "full" in appearance.

The timing on the creatine is not critical. You can use it before or after your workout, or anytime throughout the day. If you've been using creating for a while, 2-5 grams once per day will do the trick. If you just started taking creatine monohydrate, you can "load" your muscles with 20-30 grams of creatine per day for 4-5 days.

BETA ALANINE

Basically, beta alanine helps conserve muscular energy. One of the main causes of fatigue is intramuscular acidosis. When your body produces ATP using the glycolytic and phosphagen systems, the result is metabolic byproducts like excess hydrogen ions. When these hydrogen ions are not cleared fast enough, they bind with pyruvate to produce lactic acid, and elevated levels have been shown to hinder performance, coordination, and skill.

The body can use the L-carnosine to correct this imbalance. L-carnosine is formed from the amino acids L-histidine and beta-alanine. In addition to decreasing hydrogen ion production, it acts as an antioxidant. The limiting factor in carnosine production is the availability of beta-alanine. Research has demonstrated that supplementation can increase muscle carnosine content, eliciting improvements in high-intensity athletes.

This also applies to endurance athletes. The most recent research indicates that the optimal dose of beta-alanine is 4-5 grams. Ideally, the dosage should be spread throughout the day, but 800 mg should come just before a training session.

NUTRITION DURING YOUR WORKOUT

Most people don't train long enough per session to need additional fuel while they train, especially if they've hit their pre-workout nutrition needs. Depleted dieters, like people preparing for physique competition, may benefit from extra fuel. One of the primary concerns for physique athletes is muscle loss as they whittle down to mid-single-digit body-fat levels. In this state, protein turnover is increased; your body actually needs more protein in a depleted state than it does when you're trying to gain muscle.

In this scenario, branched chain amino acids are a great intra-workout supplement. The amino acids provide some protection from catabolism for those folks in drastic conditions. It probably wouldn't hurt a physique athlete to keep additional BCAAs flowing throughout the day. Increased blood amino acid levels during training may also help elevate net protein synthesis.

Athletes who have unusually long training sessions or burn up extreme amounts of energy may also need intra-workout fuel. This isn't the majority, mind you. Most people drinking Gatorade don't actually need extra fuel for their five-minute warm-up and six-machine training routine. Extra workout fuel is necessary for people who train at a high intensity for well beyond an hour.

An intra-workout cocktail for these individuals should include water, electrolytes, BCAAs (or hydrolyzed protein), and carbohydrates. There are other possibilities, but this is a solid baseline.

NUTRITION AFTER YOUR WORKOUT

PROTEIN

Protein is essential for tissue growth and repair. Since the body is continuously breaking down proteins, our diet must provide sufficient quantities. Although recommended intakes vary and depend on body size and activity, a post-workout protein is almost universally helpful to kickstart muscle repair, recovery, and growth.

Whey protein is incredibly popular because it is rich in BCAAs, digests quickly, is highly bio-available, and has a perfect Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score. While whey is excellent after a workout, recent research suggests that a combination of fast- and slow-digesting proteins—like whey and casein—may provide the ultimate post-workout protein cocktail.

Most sources agree that at least 20 grams of whey is necessary to boost muscle repair and recovery. Hydrolyzed whey protein may spike blood amino acid levels faster than regular whey, but won't provide a long-term protein source. To cover your bases, consume a shake containing 40 grams of mixed protein (whey and casein) after your workouts.

BCAAS

In cases of calorie restriction or during periods of long or intense exercise, catabolism of muscle tissue could occur when glycogen and blood sugar are not present in sufficient quantities to fuel activity. Amino acids via dietary protein become very important for any athlete. This is especially true of BCAAs (leucine, isoleucine, and valine), which studies have shown muscles prefer as a source for fuel.

I've included BCAAs after training for the same basic reasons I included them earlier: You can't really do any wrong—unless you decide to drink the entire container in one sitting—and you may provide a fast boost to blood amino levels. I recommend 10 grams of BCAAs after your lifting session, especially if you are in a caloric deficit.

FAST CARBS (OPTIONAL)

After a tough workout, your fuel of blood sugar and glycogen should be low. You may have even tapped into reserves to complete your training, especially if you are dieting. Most of us understand the need for protein after training, but many overlook the benefits of fast-acting carbohydrates.

From a physiological perspective, your body's first priority is correcting blood sugar balance and replenishing glycogen, not making your biceps pop. Consume fast-digesting carbohydrates in order to spare protein, replenish glycogen, spike insulin, and speed recovery. Dose recommendations differ, but to maximize recovery, ingest 50-75 grams of high-glycemic carbs after exercise.

REFERENCES

1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19997003?dopt=Abstractplus

2 https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-macro-manager-pre-post-workout-shakes.html

3 J Appl Physiol: Derave, W, ?-zdemir, MS, Harris, RS, Pottier, A, Reyngoudt, A, Koppo K, Wise, JA, & Achten E , Beta-alanine supplementation augments muscle carnosine content and attenuates fatigue during repeated isokinetic contraction bouts in trained sprinters. 2007

4 C.M. Kerksick, C.J. Rasmussen, S.L. Lancaster, B. Magu, P. Smith, C. Melton, M. Greenwood, A.L. Almada, C.P. Earnest, and R.B. Kreider, "The effects of protein and amino acid supplementation on performance and training adaptations during ten weeks of resistance training." Journal of strength and conditioning research / National Strength & Conditioning Association, 2006.

5 Ingested protein dose response of muscle and albumin protein synthesis after resistance exercise in young men. Moore, DR, Robinson, MJ, Fry, JL, et al. Exercise Metabolism Research Group, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2009, Jan;89(1):161-8. Epub 2008 Dec 3.

6 Chang T. W., Goldberg A. L. The metabolic fates of amino acids and the formation of glutamine in skeletal muscle. J. Biol. Chem. 1978;253:3685-3693

Source:Bodybuilding.com

What Are Blemishes ?

Blemishes are skin imperfections like acne-marks, pigmentation marks and dark spots.  Blemishes are usually caused by oil-clogged pores and stress.

1.Prevention is better than cure:

The best way to get rid of blemishes is to prevent the skin blemishes from occurring in the first place.Start treating acne, blackheads and whiteheads as soon as you see them appearing. Do not prick acne / pimples or try to extract black heads or white heads forcefully.

2. Honey, Lemon Juice and Turmeric Powder:

Make a paste of a little bit of honey, lemon juice and a bit of turmeric powder. Apply this paste gently over the skin blemishes daily. This is a good tip about how to remove blemishes.

3. Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is rich in alpha hydroxy acids and hence lightens dark spots and blemishes. In addition, it helps balance the skin’s pH levels, reduces excess oils and opens clogged pores.Mix one part organic apple cider vinegar and three parts water.If it seems too strong, you can increase the amount of water.Dip a cotton ball in this solution and dab it on the affected area.Leave it on for 10 to 15 minutes, and then wash it off.Use two or three times a day until the blemish fades away.

4. Aloe Vera

The succulent aloe vera gel contains polysaccharides that stimulate the growth of new skin cells and help heal scars and blemishes.Extract fresh aloe vera gel from an aloe leaf and apply it on your skin. Leave it on until it dries completely before washing it off. Repeat daily for about a month or more.You can also create a mixture of two tablespoons of aloe vera gel and one teaspoon each of lemon juice and sugar. Gently rub it on your skin, let it sit for 15 minutes and then rinse it off. Do this two or three times a week until you get rid of the blemishes.

5. The Crushed Aspirin And Calamine Oil Combo

This is very effective in getting rid of localized blemishes especially those caused by pimples. However, you can use it on the entire face without any serious repercussions. The aspirin is crushed and mixed with a little calamine lotion or oil then applied on the blemishes. Leave the paste on for about fifteen minutes then rinse off. The aspirin works by reducing inflammation and pain while slowly weakening the pimple. The calamine oil promotes absorption of the aspirin and itself acts by promoting healing and reducing hyperpigmentation.

Skin Care Dos And Don’ts

-DO stay hydrated. 

-DON’T leave the house without applying sunscreen.

-DO eat healthy. A balanced diet keeps skin smooth and healthy.

-DON’T mix skin remedies. Especially when they involve potentially

                 irritating ingredients. Choose a treatment and stick to it.

-DO exercise regularly and detox to get rid of toxins that could cause

                 skin blemishing.

-DON’T pick at skin scabs and pimples. You might end up making

                 things worse by introducing germs.

-DON’T use irritating treatments on sensitive skin.

-DO seek professional advice when in doubt and when dealing with 

                 serious conditions such as eczema and acne.

-DON’T be afraid to try out new natural skin care remedies.

The Ultimate Starter Pack: A Beginner's Guide To Supplements

For anyone new to the training game, even the basics of coming up with a training split, figuring out a nutrition plan, and calculating macros can be overwhelming. The last thing you need on top of all that is the pressure of figuring out which supplements to take!

Supplements won't replace a good nutrition plan or hard work in the gym, but they can help you achieve your fitness goals faster. Just take them at their name; they're called supplements, not replacements, for a reason.

Creatine Monohydrate

Chances are you've tried to lift a heavy weight or run a sprint at some point in your life. If you did, your body was relying on stored creatine (the primary energy substrate for short-duration, high-intensity work) to get the job done.

Perhaps more than any other supplement, creatine monohydrate has had extensive research done on its ability to safely and effectively increase high-intensity performance, muscle mass, and strength.This research has shown that creatine supplementation increases stores of phosphocreatine (PCr), which is associated not just with measurable increases in performance, but with improved muscle recovery and training adaptations.

Dosing Methods

The slow approach: 3-5 grams of creatine monohydrate per day. Your muscle cells will reach full saturation after about a month.

The fast approach: 20 grams of creatine monohydrate per day for 5-7 days, then follow with a maintenance dose of 3-5 grams per day. This method is referred to as "loading creatine.”

Whey Protein

Whether your goal is to pack on muscle mass, gain strength, or enhance your physique, protein is considered one of the foundational ingredients in any nutrition program. The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) guidelines suggest a modest 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight (or about 0.4 grams per pound), but, according to research, that number is too low to support an active person.

If you do resistance training or a high level of physical activity on a regular basis, double-up on the RDA. Increasing your protein intake will not only help you put on muscle mass, but it can also help you recover faster from your workouts.

It is certainly possible to meet your protein needs through whole foods alone, but if you're struggling to finish all the food on your plate, a protein powder might be the answer. I recommend whey because of your body's ability to rapidly digest and use it.

Although total daily protein intake is important, protein quality and timing can be just as much a factor for people looking to capitalize on increasing muscle protein synthesis (MPS), which leads to muscle growth.

Leucine, a branched-chained amino acid found in sources such as whey protein, is responsible for initiating MPS. To optimize muscle growth and repair, you should aim to get about 3 grams of leucine every 3-4 hours. This translates to about 20-30 grams of protein.

You can get that amount by selecting high-quality dietary protein from sources such as dairy, eggs, animal proteins, or fish. The role of whey protein or protein-blend supplements is to provide a convenient and effective way to make sure you get all the protein you need, especially following a workout.

Dosing Method

Consume 20-30 grams of whey protein or protein blend post-workout or in between meals for muscle growth and repair.

Multivitamin

Multivitamins may not be the sexiest supplements around, and chances are they won't add pounds to your squat PR or inches to your biceps, but a good multi is helpful for maintaining overall health.

Multivitamins are a convenient, cost-effective way to get nutrients you might not otherwise be getting from the foods you eat. Taking one a day can act as a kind of safety net to make sure you get the vitamins and minerals your body needs—especially if you have trouble including a wide variety of fruits and vegetables in your diet.

Multivitamin supplements are generally regarded as safe, although it is possible to consume too many vitamins and minerals within a short time frame. You can avoid that by choosing a multivitamin that contains the RDA of these nutrients.

Taking a multi to make sure you get all your nutrients make sense. Taking one just to increase your performance or muscle size… not so much.

Dosing Method

In most cases, take a multivitamin once per day. To maximize absorbency, take it alongside a fatty food.

Caffeine

Ah, caffeine! What can't this miracle substance do? In addition to providing the usual increase in focus and concentration, it can also have a powerful effect on your weight-training performance. That's because caffeine helps increase brain activity, making you feel more energetic and helping to delay fatigue during exercise.

Although the data supporting caffeine's role in muscular strength is incomplete, a good caffeine supplement may be a game-changer for those days you need an extra kick before crushing the weights.

Dosing Method

If you're new to caffeine, take 100 milligrams of a caffeine supplement about 30-60 minutes before your workout. If you consume caffeine regularly, you'll likely have to increase that dosage to 250-300 milligrams to notice any energy-boosting effects.

It's possible to overdose on caffeine, but this is typically caused by caffeine-containing medications, not by beverages or foods. But to be on the safe side, limit your daily consumption of all forms of caffeine to 400 milligrams or less per day.

A cleansing gel-based facial wash, suitable for everyday use to help clear and prevent blemishes, removing excess oil without overdrying the skin.

Size: 250.00ml

Price: ₹ 695

Ingredients:

Community Trade organic tea tree oil from Kenya – an ingredient renowned for its anti-bacterial benefits, an infusion perfect to help blemished skin

Tamanu Oil from Madagascar – traditionally used to promote healthy-looking skin and has fantastic skin moisturising properties

Lemon Tea Tree from Kenya – Anti-bacterial to give the products a zesty fragrance

Directions for use:

Lather Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash. Massage gently into face and neck with fingertips in an outward circular motion. Rinse using clean water.

Review:

The Face wash is green liquid and every time I use it.I get this cooling effect.I love to use this after i come from the office because the commuting makes my face all dirty and full of grime. It takes of all the dirt and oil and leaves me feeling fresh.It is an excellent face wash for summers. I have to say, it does not prevent pimples.I believe that pimples/acne can be due to various reasons and one of the reasons is clogged pores so this face wash can help in cleaning the face effectively so the chances of having pimples reduce but if it is due to other reasons for eg harmonal imbalance, it cannot help.

Pros :

1) Totally cleans up the face.

2) Does not dry up the skin.

3) Cooling sensation after washing the face is so refreshing.

4) I belive this face wash that i have been using alongwith the other products does contribute in clearing blemishes.

5) The quantity is a lot. I have been using it for past 6 months now and it will still last me another two weeks.

6) No slippery feel after using it.

7) Does almost everything that it claims removes excess oil without overdrying the skin.However,  I cannot comment on preventing blemishes although i belive it helps in clearing them.

Cons :

Err i cannot think of any con for this face wash except that one cannot expect it to prevent pimples and blemishes.

Affiliate link:

USA:http://amzn.to/2rNCSYT

India:http://amzn.to/2q870kp

Weight Loss: Insider Secrets To Staying Fuller, Longer

Losing weight may seem simple on paper: Eat less and move more. But we all know what happens when we start dropping calories. We immediately become hungrier, and in some cases even hangrier. Besides being a state we should all try to avoid (no one likes being around a hangry friend), the hungrier you are, the more likely you are to overeat, make poor food choices, and fail in your weight-loss efforts.

The obvious fix to hunger is, well … eating. But not all foods are created equal, and choosing the wrong ones can put the weight back on faster than you can unwrap your next Snickers bar. Some foods do a better job of filling up your stomach and signaling your brain that you're full. Others, like candy, often leave you reaching for seconds, thirds, fourths, or, hell, just finishing off the bag.

Some people recommend filling up on high-volume, low-calorie foods like soups, salads, lean proteins, vegetables, and some fruits. The problem is that skipping all of those foods that you really enjoy eating can make it hard to stick to a diet.

But fear not! There is a better way to predict which foods will make you feel fuller for longer, without piling on the calories.

The Fullness Factor

A little over 20 years ago, a group of researchers developed the Satiety Index, a list of foods ranked by how well they keep someone full over a two-hour period. The researchers developed the index by having a group of participants eat 240-calorie portions of specific foods. These individuals then rated their feelings of hunger every 15 minutes over the next two hours. The participants were allowed to snack according to levels of hunger.

The researchers found that some foods, like buttery croissants, were only half as satisfying as white bread, while potatoes were more than three times as satisfying. Surprisingly, french fries didn't score as well at all. But you probably don't need a research study to tell you potatoes are better than croissants and french fries when it comes to weight loss.

Two factors that help determine how highly a food ranks on the Satiety Index are the amount of fiber, protein, and water in the food, as well as the sheer bulk of the food. Beans and lentils, which are both packed with fiber, score well. So do high-volume foods such as potatoes, popcorn, whole wheat bread, and oatmeal.

In general, the more satisfying a food is, the less nibbling you'll do between meals. Fatty foods, even though they are calorically dense, are not always the most satisfying if you can only eat one bite.

Foods with high water content can leave you hungry because they leave your stomach relatively quickly. Filling up on soup and salad at lunch will likely leave you searching for the nearest vending machine in an hour or so. You're better off eating a lean protein (like chicken or fish), some complex carbs (like potatoes or rice), and a side of veggies for lunch. This kind of meal can keep hunger at bay for a very long time, without breaking the calorie bank.

Still not sure what foods you should be eating to keep hunger at bay? Here are five that have been shown to keep you fuller, longer.

1. Eggs

Start your day the right way with a two-egg breakfast. A study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that women who included two eggs as a part of their morning routine had greater feelings of satiety and consumed significantly less food during lunch, compared to those who noshed on a bagel.Having eaten the eggs, the women consumed far fewer calories than normal for the next 36 hours!

2. Avocados

Add some flavor to your next meal by dicing up an avocado and adding it to your lunchtime salad. Adding just half an avocado to a meal can increase your satisfaction—and make you less hangry for the next 5 hours.

3. Chili Peppers

This one might surprise you. Not only can a little spice fire up your metabolism, but capsaicin, the compound found in hot peppers that give them their kick, can also help control your appetite. A study published in the International Journal of Obesity found that adults who added a teaspoon of red pepper to their buffet-style meals ate significantly fewer calories, chose more of the lower-fat food options, and reported less feelings of hunger, compared to those than who had a placebo.

4. Oatmeal

Okay, it's not the sexiest of foods, but a nice serving of warm oatmeal in the morning can help keep you fuller, longer. Oatmeal is higher in fiber and protein than most breakfast cereals, and also contains more beta-glucan—the sugar that gives oatmeal its hydration and thickness.

A 2013 study showed that healthy people who ate 250 calories worth of oatmeal with milk had better appetite control and increased satiety, compared to those who got the same amount of calories from cereal.

5. Dark Chocolate

If you're anything like me, you crave sweets morning, noon, and night. One trick is to reach for dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate the next time a craving rolls around.

Researchers out of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark found that dark chocolate promotes satiety and lowers the desire to eat something sweet for up to five hours afterward. But wait, there's more: Dark chocolate lowers your desire to consume any form of calories for longer than milk chocolate.

While I wouldn't make chowing down on chocolate a part of your daily routine (the participants were eating 100 grams of chocolate, or roughly 500 calories), the occasional treat may help satisfy your sweet tooth and keep you feeling full!