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Introduction

For anyone trying to lose weight, the word "carbs" is akin to blasphemy. Carb is the age-old enemy. Carbs are the evil nemesis of WeightWatchers everywhere. Carbs mean calories and weight loss requires cutting calories.

It has been the traditional belief that foods packed with carbs will cause you to pack on the pounds. Even healthy carbs like starchy vegetables and whole grains are high in carbs, so many classic diets restrict them as well. The result is that we have become to believe that carbs are bad for us. Not only do they hinder weight loss, but they are downright unhealthy.

Well, science has recently turned that belief upside down by telling us that carbs may be your best ally in the battle to lose weight. Leveraging carbs to help us lose weight is called carb cycling. it is a method whereby eating carbs can lead to weight loss rather than weight gain!

Carb cycling is done through a weekly eating plan with a few basic rules to stick to. Other than that, you have a full run of what you eat. Your meal plans can consist of all your favorite healthy foods, including carbs. You even have cheat days to indulge in your less healthy favorite foods to satisfy your cravings!

Why Is The 7-Day Plan Different?

Many of us struggle with our weight and strive to be fit and healthy. We've all experimented with different diets and eating regimens. We’ve tried diets that promised amazing weight loss, in X number of days. We've tried diets that promised we'd never feel hungry or sluggish. We’ve tried diets that you could eat everything and lose weight – only to find that "everything" meant in half spoonfuls.

We have been let down repeatedly. We either fall off the wagon and binge like crazy or get too discouraged to continue. Most, if not all traditional diets simply do not work for us.

What makes the carb cycling plan different? First, it makes a lot of sense because it addresses our metabolism rather than our stomach. After all, it’s our metabolism that burns calories and melts off those pounds.

Secondly, although it has been recently hailed as a breakthrough in the field of healthy eating and weight loss, it has been popular among athletes for decades, especially those doing high resistance training. Many of them rely on carb cycling to build lean muscle and boost their energy levels.

Thirdly, a carb recycling plan is not as restrictive as other diets. It's therefore easy to follow.

Fourthly, the plan is used only to achieve shorter-term weight-loss goals, after which you must stop. However, you can use elements of it to develop lifelong healthy eating habits to stay fit and healthy for the rest of your life.

This is a very simple guide for the layman who wants to try the 7-day carb cycling plan. We will not go into the deeper technicalities of how carb recycling works, the different hormones it triggers nor discuss complex measurements. It will explain how and why carb cycling works, and what you need to do to put together your 7-day carb cycling plan. The results will speak for themselves.

So, if you are considering giving the carb cycling plan a try, this book will help you get started.

Here, I must insert the traditional disclaimer. If you suffer from any chronic illness or are taking any sort of medication, do consult your doctor before embarking on this plan.

Chapter 1 - How Carb Cycling Works

Remember how those old railway trains used to run? Workers had to stand in front of a huge coal furnace, shoveling in huge quantities of coal. If the furnace was regularly fueled, the train would keep running at full speed. If the coal input slowed down, the train would lose speed. If the furnace was not regularly fed with coal, the train would come to a standstill.

Our body's metabolism is very similar to this process. Carbs are the main food group that "fuels" our metabolism so that it burns calories and gives us energy. Carbs are also very filling. Therefore, diets that cut out or strictly limit carb intake make us feel tired and sluggish. They also make us irritable, hungry and more likely to binge.

With the 7-day carb cycling plan, a person consumes carbs to boost metabolism. The plan causes the body to use crab-rich foods to function at the optimal peak, burning fat and building muscle. The result is weight loss with less flab. It's that simple! This is what makes carb cycling unique and revolutionary.

But there's a catch. This doesn't mean going overboard with the carbs and eat tons of them day in, day out. The catch is that you follow a 7-day plan where you eat more carbs on certain days and less or no carbs on other days. This allows your body to optimally "cycle" your carb intake so that you lose weight and build muscle mass.

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THE IMPORTANCE OF BUSINESS NETWORKING

In business, great networking is the key to generating exposure and sales. Even if your only practice with networking is trying to get a job, you will have the basics you need to understand the dynamics. All networking consists of generating contacts and then personalizing those contacts in a way that benefits both parties. In a job interview, you are contacting an employer, discussing the needs of the company, exposing your skills and potential ways you can benefit them, and then they pay to hire you, if it's a match. If you have ever gotten a job, you have done some form of networking.

It is obvious, however, that the amount of time it takes to get one job is exhaustive. Add to that the immense competition these days for fewer and fewer jobs, and you know that networking the old-fashioned way is going to put you at a disadvantage. It steals too much time and may or may not generate the results you need. That's why more and more people are hopping on the Internet to learn how to network online. The power of connecting with other people, whether they are in your city or not, is vastly improved on the World Wide Web, rather than relying on face-to-face encounters. Some of the same strategies apply, but here now, you have an opportunity to vastly increase 1) the number of contacts you can make in a set amount of time, and 2) the odds that you have what they need. Tie those two opportunities to a product or service, and you are in business online.

In this short report, you are going to learn how to make those contacts and create those opportunities so that they have the most impact. Let's be clear: Anyone can get on the Internet and start contacting people. How many of them get responses? How many of them have a plan for capitalizing on those interactions? How many of them know what tools and avenues they can take to explode their online exposure? What mistakes are they making that you can avoid by reading this report? That's the type of information that you will find here.

If you have been in the job market in a tight economy, you know that just sending out resumes is not the way to get someone to write you back. You have to know how to locate people interested in who you are and then have what they want in order to get a response. The Internet can facilitate these interactions, but it can also make it easier to ignore your queries, especially if they have a spammy feel to them. No one likes to be marketed in an impersonal and commercial fashion. In fact, most people are so jaded to these attempts that they quickly delete or report them as spam. That's why the very first thing you need to understand when connecting with people online is that the quality of your interaction necessitates you starting off on the right foot.

WHAT TYPES OF CONNECTIONS ARE YOU GENERATING?

The last thing anyone wants is to be caught at a party with that tedious bore who spends all his/her time talking about himself/herself and never letting you get a word in edgewise. This same offensive behavior repeats itself over and over in online marketing in some attempt to convince others that they should buy some product, when marketers still haven't even determined what their audience wants most from them. If they just took the time to find out why people are connecting, they'd have a much easier time converting the contact into a personal connection that generates a loyal follower and not just a one-time buyer.

TWO WAYS TO MAKE A CONNECTION

A connection can either be forced or it can be attracted. One way is not better than another online and you may find yourself implementing both strategies at one time or another. A forced connection is one where you are active in going to places to network, such as online forums and groups, and actively engaging participants there in order to meet more people.

The other way of attracting connections is through strategies like Search Engine Optimization and through good content. You put out something of great value, and of course, those people who find it through links you place strategically around the Web will be attracted to your offers.

In one scenario, you are going to the people; in another, they are coming back to you. In a forced connection, you will know why people are congregating to a certain spot and what they want to talk about the most. There are specific demographics to websites that you can easily find out, either through observation or through analysis with tools like www.quantcast.com.

On the other hand, when you attract people from various social networking sites, it may come as a surprise, but they may be attracted for reasons you may have never even considered. That's the hidden gold and your future path to riches. Once you find out why people are naturally attracted to you and your site, that's your niche. At first, yes, you start with a forced niche – preferably one that is largely profitable – but then you have to make it uniquely yours. How will you do that? By understanding how you generated the natural connections that flocked to your site without much effort on your part. They saw something important in you, even if you don't see it yourself. After that, it's a question of listening to what they want to talk about most and learning how to put out products and services that will help them the most.

PRACTICE THE ART OF LISTENING

The first words from an online connection should never be about sales. The potential for a long-term connection is immediately destroyed if you try to market to a person before you've even learned what he/she wants. It destroys trust and it turns people off immediately. This approach works for television commercials where your audience is a passive blob on a couch; it is a death sentence online where people are participating actively, especially on social networking sites. Take the time to listen to what people are discussing and get to know the contact before trying to actively market to him/her.

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BUILD YOUR CHARACTER

UNCONSCIOUSLY we are forming habits every moment of our lives. Some are habits of a desirable nature; some are those of a most unde-sirable nature. Some, though not so bad in themselves, are exceed-ingly bad in their cumulative effects, and cause us at times much loss, much pain and anguish, while their opposites would, on the contrary, bring as much peace and joy, as well as a continually increasing power.

Have we it within our power to determine at all times what types of habits shall take form in our lives? In other words, is habit-form-ing, character building, a matter of mere chance, or have we it within our own control? We have, entirely and absolutely. "I will be what I will to be," can be said and should be said by every human soul.

After this has been bravely and determinedly said, and not only said, but fully inwardly realized, something yet remains. Something remains to be said regarding the great law underlying habit-forming, character building; for there is a simple, natural, and thoroughly scientific method that all should know.

A method whereby old, undesirable, earth-binding habits can be broken, and new, desirable, heaven lifting habits can be acquired, a method whereby life in part or in its totality can be changed, provided one is sufficiently in earnest to know and, knowing it, to apply the law.

Thought is the force underlying all. And what do we mean by this? Simply this: Your every act - every conscious act - is preceded by a thought. Your dominating thoughts determine your dominating actions. In the realm of our own minds we have absolute control, or we should have, and if at any time we have not, then there is a method by which we can gain control, and in the realm of the mind become thorough masters. In order to get to the very foundation of the matter, let us look to this for a moment. For if thought is always parent to our acts, habits, character, life, then it is first necessary that we know fully how to control our thoughts.

Here let us refer to that law of the mind which is the same as is the law in Connection with the reflex nerve system of the body, the law which says that whenever one does a certain thing in a certain way it is easier to do the same thing in the same way the next time, and still easier the next, and the next, and the next, until in time it comes to pass that no effort is required, or no effort worth speaking of; but on the opposite would require the effort. The mind carries with it the power that perpetuates its own type of thought, the same as the body carries with it through the reflex nerve system the power which perpetuates and makes continually easier its own particular acts. Thus a simple effort to control one's thoughts, a simple setting about it, even if at first failure is the result, and even if for a time failure seems to be about the only result, will in time, sooner or later, bring him to the point of easy, full, and complete control.

Each one, then, can grow the power of determining, controlling his thought, the power of determining what types of thought he shall and what types he shall not entertain. For let us never part in mind with this fact, that every earnest effort along any line makes the end aimed at just a little easier for each succeeding effort, even if, as has been said, apparent failure is the result of the earlier efforts. This is a case where even failure is success, for the failure is not in the effort, and every earnest effort adds an increment of power that will eventu-ally accomplish the end aimed at. We can, then, gain the full and complete power of determining what character, what type of thoughts we entertain.

Shall we now give attention to some two or three concrete cases? Here is a man, the cashier of a large mercantile establishment, or cashier of a bank. In his morning paper he reads of a man who has become suddenly rich, has made a fortune of half a million or a million dollars in a few hours through speculation on the stock market. Perhaps he has seen an account of another man who has done practically the same thing lately. He is not quite wise enough, however, to comprehend the fact that when he reads of one or two cases of this kind he could find, were he to look into the matter care-fully, one or two hundred cases of men who have lost all they had in the same way. He thinks, however, that he will be one of the fortunate ones. He does not fully realize that there are no short cuts to wealth honestly made. He takes a part of his savings, and as is true in practi-cally all cases of this kind, he loses all that he has put in, Thinking now that he sees why he lost, and that had he more money he would be able to get back what he has lost, and perhaps make a handsome sum in addition, and make it quickly, the thought comes to him to use some of the funds he has charge of. In nine cases out of ten, if not ten cases in every ten, the results that inevitably follow this are known sufficiently well to make it unnecessary to follow him farther.

Where is the man's safety in the light of what we have been considering? Simply this: the moment the thought of using for his own purpose funds belonging to others enters his mind, if he is wise he will instantly put the thought from his mind. If he is a fool he will entertain it. In the degree in which he entertains it, it will grow upon him; it will become the absorbing thought in his mind; it will finally become master of his will power, and through rapidly succeeding steps, dishonor, shame, degradation, penitentiary, remorse will be his. It is easy for him to put the thought from his mind when it first enters; but as he entertains it, it grows into such proportions that it becomes more and more difficult for him to put it from his mind; and by and by it becomes practically impossible for him to do it. The light of the match, which but a little effort of the breath would have extin-guished at first, has imparted a flame that is raging through the entire building, and now it is almost if not quite impossible to conquer it.

Shall we notice another concrete case? A trite case, perhaps, but one in which we can see how habit is formed, and also how the same habit can be unformed. Here is a young man, he may be the son of poor parents, or he may be the son of rich parents; one in the ordi-nary ranks of life, or one of high social standing, whatever that means. He is good hearted, one of good impulses generally speaking, a good fellow. He is out with some companions, companions of the same general type. They are out for a pleasant evening, out for a good time. They are apt at times to be thoughtless, even careless. The suggestion is made by one of the company, not that they get drunk, no, not at all; but merely that they go and have something to drink together. The young man whom we first mentioned, wanting to be genial, scarcely listens to the suggestion that comes into his inner consciousness that it will be better for him not to fall in with the others in this. He does not stop long enough to realize the fact that the greatest strength and nobility of character lies always in taking a firm stand on the aide of the right, and allow himself to be influenced by nothing that will weaken this stand. He goes, therefore, with his companions to the drinking place. With the same or with other companions this is repeated now and then; and each time it is repeated his power of saying "No" is gradually decreasing. In this way he has grown a little liking for intoxicants, and takes them perhaps now and then by himself. He does not dream, or in the slightest degree realize, what way he is tending, until there comes a day when he awakens to the consciousness of the fact that he hasn’t the power nor even the impulse to resist the taste which has gradually grown into a minor form of craving for intoxicants. Thinking, however, that he will be able to stop when he is really in danger of getting into the drink habit, he goes thoughtlessly and carelessly on. We will pass over the various intervening steps and come to the time when we find him a confirmed drunkard. It is simply the same old story told a thousand or even a million times over.

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INTRODUCTION

When you think of a brand the first thing that probably comes to mind is a brand on livestock. Branding of a product should be viewed as the same thing. When you have a successful brand, it sets your product apart from your competition. You want your brand to be able to expand your customer base and increase your market share. The larger your customer base and market share the more powerful your brand will become.

There are many factors that go into making a brand successful and there are even more that go into keeping you brand successful. By learning the basic steps, you will be able to put your brand on the best possible path to success. You will find that marketing and branding go hand in hand. A good brand will help your marketing and strong marketing will help build a strong brand. It is up to you to do your homework to ensure that you make the right decisions to help your company build a strong brand.

Your goal is to build a brand that is the recognized leader in a given category. This makes the consumer want to be aligned with your brand and will seek it out at the store. It will give them the satisfaction that they have made the correct decision for themselves and their family when they purchase your brand.

With the explosion of the Internet, now more than ever, companies have the chance to go global and increase their sales and profits. By following the steps that are outlined here, you will have the informa-tion that you need to make your brand successful and have the ability to go global both on the Internet and with a brick and mortar store.

EXPAND THE BRAND

When you have a company that has products on the market, you have to decide if you want to expand the brand or keep it at an even level. Expanding your brand can be a delicate decision because you do not want to do any harm to your brand by expanding too quickly.

Some companies decide to expand their brand quickly in order to benefit in the short term, while others look for long-term success. To look at how brand expansion can weaken your brand you only have to look at car manufacturers. At one time the big three automakers were untouchable, consumers would be proud to state they drove a Ford, Chevrolet, or Chrysler. However, as the automakers introduced more and more models, there brands were weakened. Consumers no longer stated that they drove a Ford, Chevrolet, or Chrysler; they said they drove an Escort, Cavalier, or a New Yorker. This ultimately satu-rated the market, weakened their brand, and lessened their market share allowing competition the opportunity to move in to their territory.

That is not to say that weakening your brand is a bad thing or will not allow your company to increase profits. If you are in an industry that has weak or no competition, weakening your brand through expansion will open it up to a larger market share allowing you to increase sales and make a larger profit.

On the other hand, you have to keep in mind the consumers that want to buy your product or want to be aligned with your brand. Having a brand that is everywhere and open to everyone might not be what the consumers are looking for. Think about the exclusivity of some brands like Rolex, not everyone can afford a watch of that caliber, and that is why the brand is strong with those consumers who can afford to buy the watch. Being exclusive does have its bene-fits as well as being available to the population at large.

CONTRACT THE BRAND

Having a brand that is associated with doing one or just a few things well will help you to build a strong brand. If you want to open a business, it is okay to sell just a few items or if you want to open a restaurant focus on being great with just a few dishes. Think of all the specialty stores that are out there that specialize in selling one thing or focus on a genre. Toy stores, for example, fit into this niche. Although they sell a variety of products, they are all geared to toys. Girls toys, boys toys it does not matter, when you are going into a toy store you know exactly what you are going to see and you know why you are there. This increases their brand, whether it is a well known toy store such as Toys “R” Us, or a neighborhood toy store.

The same goes for restaurants. If you want to open an Italian restaurant, do not include dishes that do not fit within the scope of your business. Focus on doing Italian dishes right and you will build a well respected brand for doing it well. There are certain rules you should follow to ensure that your brand benefits if you want to specialize or contract. First, make sure that whatever business that you want to be involved in you keep it simple and narrow. Second, you will want to keep the supply of your product full at all times.

4 ROBERT DRAKES

Third, when dealing with wholesalers, you want to strike the best possible price so you will be able to sell your product at inexpensive prices. Finally, you have to make sure that you are the best in what-ever you choose to do so that you will be the leader in the industry giving you a good brand identity.

Think of the large companies in the world that dominate in their category by focusing on one product. Coca Cola, for example, is the worldwide leader by far when it comes to selling cola drinks. Recent studies have shown that their share of the worldwide market in the neighborhood of seventy percent. Pundits should not even refer to Coca Cola and Pepsi as cola wars because there is a clear winner in the category. McDonald’s and Burger King are the same way; they are successful because they focus on making hamburgers. While they have expanded their menus to include chicken, they remained focused on being good at just a few items.

PUBLICITY IS A GOOD THING

I f you are looking to get a new brand off the ground, perhaps the best way to go about it is to generate as much publicity as you can. While advertising is another option, publicity is much better at getting a new product or brand going and unlike advertising, garnering publicity is a lot cheaper. Think about what you want your brand to stand for, if it is something that is going to be used by people that spend time outdoors or is relatable to being outdoors you can go around the country spreading the message of your new product at outdoor festivals, and country fairs. Show up at outdoor sporting events, such as the X-Games and action sports events, pass out fliers, and give free samples of your product to start creating a buzz among the consumers that you want to purchase your brand.