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Invest in Yourself With These Healthy Living Practices

November 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Dr. Stacy Irvine, D.C.and Steph A Miller -

Are you thriving or surviving? Are you living a life you love or do you feel exhausted most of the time, accompanied with an overwhelming sense that there’s just not enough time in the day?

Financial gurus tell us to, “pay yourself first” and to immediately place 10% of our income into an account for our future. They say when we invest money into a long-term plan and consistently add to it, the future dividends grow at an exponential rate.

This same premise holds true with regards to our health and well-being. When we invest small increments of time and energy over a long period of time into self-care, the returns are also exponential for health and vitality.

When investing in your health, it helps to know exactly what you need to do. The following is a list of healthy living practices that will help you increase your energy, health and happiness:

1. Nutrition. Food affects us on so many levels: body composition, mood, energy and immune response. On the cellular level, it’s true “you are what you eat”. The foods and their nutrients are the raw materials to repair and rebuild our cells. The human body reproduces over 300 billion new cells on a daily basis. That’s a lot of opportunity to replace old weak cells with stronger, more resilient ones! With the correct type and quality of nutrients, you can build a stronger and healthier body in no time.

2. Exercise. The body is made to move. In fact, without physical activity, some physiological processes fail to work at all, and others work less than optimally. For instance, the pumping action of the lymphatic system, which facilitates cellular nutrition and waste removal, is improved with physical movement.

There are 4 types of exercise that add a dimension to health and fitness:

a. Aerobic activity. This is any activity in which you sustain an elevated heart-rate and respiration for an extended period of time, typically over 20 minutes. The benefits of a cardiovascular workout include healthier heart and lungs, improved circulation, digestion, mood, energy, increased immune response and caloric burn.

b. Resistance training. Also known as strength or weight-training, many women now understand that lifting weights affects them differently than it does men. For women, their bodies will build more muscle but, unless they decide on a professional career in body building, will never achieve the mass men do. Even small changes in body composition will enhance daily metabolism, burning calories at a faster rate. `Pumping iron’ increases range of motion, muscle tone, maintains joint stability and increases muscle strength, bones, tendons and ligaments.

c. Flexibility or stretching. As one of the most under-rated forms of exercise, stretching is your best friend, especially as we age. The benefits of increasing our flexibility include alleviating stress and muscle tension; facilitates muscle recovery as well as being a conducive cool-down that maintains and increases range of motion and mobility; improves posture and reduces pain; and enhances circulation and oxygen delivery to muscles.

d. Mind-Body. Recently, this type of activity has been achieving popularity in the West. Mind-body exercises are those which require us to place our awareness in our body, posture, breathing and movements. Some examples include active forms like Tai-chi, certain types of yoga and Pilates; while restorative forms include yoga and meditation. When practicing mind-body exercises, expect to experience stress-reduction, improved circulation and energy flow, increased mindfulness and improvement in the benefits and performance in the other forms of exercise listed above.

3. Stress-Reduction Techniques. In today’s world, it is nearly impossible to avoid all stress. Actually, some levels of stress are beneficial! However, if stress is not managed properly, it can accumulate in our body and affect us on a cellular level. Eventually, if the stress is not released, it manifests in the form of physical ailments.

Besides nutrition and exercise, here are several suggestions to release your stress:

a. Eliminate unnecessary tasks, responsibilities and obligations. Learn to say no and know your limits. Much of what we do on a daily basis is unimportant to us and others.

b. Journaling. A great way to process feelings is through writing. Many people find it relieving to get their thoughts and feelings on paper and out of their heads and hearts.

c. Money-management. Financial stress is typically the number one source of tension for most of us. Taking control of our finances and tying up loose ends in money matters will help free up a lot of wasted energy.

Investing in your health is a life-long practice. When you first embark on this journey, it may be a little rough. But when you start small and focus more on consistency, these healthy living practices outlined above become second nature.

If you’d like to make it easier for yourself, enlist the assistance of a qualified professional health practitioner to help you along the way. One way to do this is to join group events, like the health and fitness retreat I will be attending in April, 2010. “Retreat to Healthy Living in Barbados” is a week-long event for women looking to develop and enhance healthy living practices.

Dr. Stacy Irvine is a founder and co-owner of Totum Life Science, a boutique fitness and health care center in Toronto. Through her work as a chiropractor and strength and conditioning specialist, Dr. Irvine’s clientele ranges from beginners, just starting out on an exercise program, to elite and professional athletes, looking for advanced rehabilitation and training program strategies.

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Forget about Red Apples, Pineapples can Keep the Doctor Away Too

June 4, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Leslie Johnson -

The end of Memorial Day means one thing: the summer is here. And what better way to kick-start some fun in the sun than by consuming one of the most flavorful tropical fruits the season has to offer— pineapple. But aside from its yellow-golden center appropriately resembling the sun itself, this fruit actually provides a magnitude of health benefits that can aid in longevity. To learn how pineapple can improve your overall health, continue reading below.

Fights Sickness and Viruses. Pineapple is loaded with tons of vitamin c and antioxidants—two substances your body needs to remain healthy. These substances diligently work to fortify your immune system so that harmful toxins, better known as free radicals, don’t attack your body and result in certain illnesses such as the flu and the common cold.  While illnesses such as the common cold may not seem too life-threatening, free-radicals have also been linked to causing serious diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Thus ensuring that your body’s defenses are in tip top shape is crucial.

May Prevent/Alleviate Arthritis and Respiratory Diseases/Pain. Because pineapple is an excellent source of vitamin c, it will naturally help strengthen your bones which may help fight against rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. But because pineapple is also filled with bromelain—a substance that experts say reduces inflammation in the body—it may not only help alleviate the pain associated with arthritis (which by definition is the “inflammation of the joints”) but it may also help subside the pain with other inflammation-inducing illnesses such as bronchitis, sore throats, acute sinusitis and even asthma.

Helps Regulate Weight. Pineapple is a metabolism boosting food and like with all other foods that increase metabolic rate, pineapple can help you lose weight. This is because it takes more energy to digest pineapples. The more energy one uses to digest food the more calories he or she can burn. Thus   in-turn you will be able to replace fat with muscle more easily while working out at the gym.  To reap the most calorie-burning benefits, it’s usually best to consume pineapple about an hour or so before your planned work out.

Improves Oral Hygiene. Lastly, consuming pineapple can help you maintain kissable breath all day long. This is because pineapple contains special digestive enzymes that rid the odor that may be lingering from food in your stomach. The watery fruit also helps keep your mouth moist— a condition that is not only connected to bad breath but also gum disease and tooth decay.

Author Bio:

This guest post is contributed by Leslie Johnson, who writes about health, green living, parenting related articles at masters in health administration.

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Gabriel Hoffman discusses “Eating The Right Stuff: Superfoods & Nutrition”

May 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Gabriel Hoffman is a Certified Nutrition Consultant and Holistic Health Counselor. After graduating from Quinnipiac University, he attended the Institute for Integrative Nutrition where he received accreditation from the American Association for Drugless Practitioners. His extensive research and education in nutrition and lifestyle management has contributed to his development of an innovative approach to healthcare. This approach is called Life Medicine and combines Integrative Nutrition and individual coaching in order to help clients achieve optimal health and life goals. Gabriel uses a natural pharmacy and non invasive biofeedback technology in his practice. This innovative, holistic approach to healing represents the new paradigm for 21st century healthcare

Show  Description Most of us eat at least three times each day and we don’t give it much thought other than that we like and enjoy it or don’t like it and did not enjoy it. If we’re hungry, we may eat the first thing we can find – junk food, fast food, whatever is in the ‘fridge or the vending machine. We may count calories but we pay little attention to the overall nutrition we are getting from our food. Hippocrates, considered the father of modern medicine, said “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Gabriel Hoffman takes this seriously and, as a certified nutrition consultant and holistic health counselor he will give us tips on how we can enjoy food that also gives us the nutrients our bodies need for healthy living. He will also give us some insights  on “superfoods” and how they can benefit us. To Listen, Click Here

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5 Secrets for Optimal Health

March 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Teal Scott –

Modern medicine has seen a lot of changes in recent years, but there’s still too much focus on dealing with specific physical ailments rather than preventing them. Learning to utilize the intensely symbiotic relationship that exists between the mind and the body can help you to maintain a healthy life. Here are five practical ways to achieve optimal health that your doctor won’t share with you:

1. Change Your Thoughts. The role of the placebo effect has largely gone unnoticed, misunderstood and even trivialized, which is unfortunate. The mind’s effect on the body (which we call the placebo effect) could be the single most important part of the healing process. Many people believe they do not have control over their own thoughts. This is not true. Changing thoughts, like anything else, simply involves practice. The things that tend to get our attention are things we do not like about our lives, or the negative thoughts, while the things that are positive about our lives go unnoticed. Change your thinking to one of optimism and gratitude. Consciously looking for things to enjoy, appreciate and be thankful for is enough to dramatically change the energy that you are projecting into your world, as well as into your body. Learn to recognize your negative thoughts and beliefs, and then replace them with thoughts that feel good to think. Soon, you will find you have let go of the thoughts that are standing in the way of your physical and mental health.

2. Stop Paying Attention to the News. We often get so familiar with our normal routine that we do not realize we are filling ourselves full of information that is not in line with good health. Many people get out of bed and immediately tune into the news. This ensures that you will start the day off on a negative foot. News, like any other business, must find a way to sell. Shock value sells. Negativity sells. It evokes a strong reaction from the reader or watcher that ensures it will get the attention needed to stay in business. The news paints an inaccurate view of our world. We often think that it is important to pay attention to “reality” and what is going on in the world, but the extreme and negative things that are going on, are not all that exists in our world. There are also (even more so than the amount of negative things) positive things going on every day. These are the things that don’t make for good headlines. When we hear or see something negative, but can’t do anything about it, it fills us with the feeling of powerlessness and fear. It helps form an inaccurate belief that the world we live in is one which we should be afraid of. We also form the belief that we can be a victim at any moment. This way of seeing the world is incredibly detrimental to all aspects of mental and physical health.

3. Eat for Health. You are what you eat. When you are in a positive mind set, you will find that you gravitate towards foods which are a match to your overall health. When you are in a negative mind set, you will gravitate towards foods which are not a match to your overall health. It remains true that physically taking steps towards health is no match for taking mental steps towards health. However, when you are nourishing your body with healthy things, it can definitely help you to achieve mental health as well. Realize that feeding your body in a healthy way is one way of showing love to yourself. Try to have fun expanding your palette. No matter what you’ve heard, healthy food does not have to taste bad, it can even taste better than unhealthy food. Deliberately look for restaurants with healthy options on their menus. Eat whole foods, fresh vegetables and fresh fruits. Eat less processed foods, and get help to slowly overcome your attachments to sugar, alcohol, caffeine and other “junk” foods. This should not be a stressful transition to make. The stress involved in dieting often only worsens the problem instead of solves it. So, set attainable goals and make the transition from unhealthy foods to healthy foods a gradual one. In no time, you will notice a difference in your energy level and your overall health.

4. Find an Exercise You Love to Do. It is no secret that regular exercise plays a large role in health. You are living life in this physical body, so… use it! You do not have to be athletic to exercise and it does not have to be a source of stress for you. In fact, exercise for the sake of exercise when you don’t enjoy it is detrimental to health. No one likes to force themselves to exercise. The way to get around the stress involved with exercise is to make exercise a part of something else you love to do. If you do not yet have a particular exercise you enjoy, you can start by searching for an activity that incorporates exercise which raises your heart rate for at least 30 minutes. You may try several activities before finding the one that really fits. Any type of exercise turns from a burden into a joy when you are focusing on what you love to do. For example, people who love being in water can exercise by swimming and because they love water so much, they will look forward to the exercise they are doing. The focus involved in a game of racket ball, for example, can make players forget the amount of exercise they are actually getting. Physical exercise can also be a great way to get out and socialize in the community. Exercising with other people makes the process of exercise not only easier but more enjoyable. A lot of people are looking for other people to exercise with. If you integrate exercise into your daily routine, it will lead to a longer, healthier and more fulfilling life.

5. Put out Into the World What You Want to Get Back. Simply put, you get back what you give out. We have a tendency to expect others to change the way that they are thinking and acting without realizing that the only person we can ever change is ourselves. The interesting dichotomy is that the minute you change the way you think and act, the world outside of you will also change. Begin to experiment with this by practicing random acts of kindness. Some good examples include: writing an affirming note with a message such as “you are worthy of all this life has to give” and putting it anonymously on someone’s car windshield or opening someone’s door for them. These simple activities empower you. They help you to see that you can make a positive change in the world. You will start to feel capable and proactive. The positive way you will feel as a result of doing this will reflect out into all aspects of your body and mind. You will begin to notice very quickly that you are being treated the same way you are treating others and there is nothing quite like a supportive environment to help you achieve your optimum health.

Taking steps towards your mental and physical health, along with making your health a priority, enables you to live the fulfilling and joyful life which you deserve to live. Your life is an open canvass. Enjoy it and make a masterpiece of it. Let your physical and mental health pave the way.

Teal Scott, The Spiritual Catalyst is a contemporary spiritual guide who writes and teaches publicly about spirituality, the meaning of life, and the road to health and happiness.

See more at http://www.thespiritualcatalyst.com.

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A Balanced Diet: What Is It and How to Achieve It?

March 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Regina Cheah -

Having a balanced diet simply means eating the right type of food in the right amounts at the recommended levels in order for your body to take in the nutrients it needs for health. It is important to have one as it ensures the prevention of obesity, diabetes, some types of cancer and diseases.

According to the ‘Australian guide to healthy eating’, the number of daily servings required from each food group to meet your body’s daily nutrient needs can be roughly broken down into the following:

Carbohydrates: 6 – 9

Protein: 1 – 2

Fats: 1 Dairy: 2 – 3

Fruit: 2

Vegetables: 5

Next thing you would need to know is what constitutes 1 serving of a food group.

Carbohydrates:

• 1 slice of bread

• 1 cup of Rice or pasta or noodles

• ¾ cup of ready to eat cereal

• 1 medium bread roll

Protein:

• 70 – 90 grams of cooked lean meat/fish/poultry

• 2 small eggs or 1 large egg

• ½ cup peanuts/almonds

• 2 small lamb chops

Fat:

• 1 tsp of vegetable oil/butter/peanut butter

• 5 grams of fat in food such as cakes and pastries

Dairy

• 1 cup of yogurt/milk

• ½ cup of ice cream

• 1 slice of cheese

Fruit

• ½ cup of freshly squeezed juice

• 1 apple/orange/banana

• ½ cup of chopped fresh fruit

• ¼ cup of raisins or dried fruit.

Vegetables

• Half a cup of cooked vegetables

• One whole tomato

• 10 baby carrots

• 1 cup of salad vegetables

Now, a major problem in trying to follow this guide to ensure that your body has all the nutrients it needs to be healthy, is that a person would have to consume (for example), a minimum of 2 slices of bread, 4 cups of rice, 70 grams of cooked meat cooked in some vegetable oil, 2 cups of yogurt, 2 apples, 30 baby carrots and 4 cups of cooked vegetables per day. Though this may be easily achievable by some, for many others, especially those who live extremely busy lives or are trying to reduce their portion size and calories to lose weight , it is not. Thus, I have outlined a few recommendations and tips on how to achieve a balanced healthy diet.

• Try choosing high-nutrient density foods such as a sandwich that is packed with lean meat and vegetables. This will provide a higher amount of vitamins and minerals without too much calories

• Avoid foods that are high in calories but low in nutrients. These are mainly foods like candy, soft drinks and cake.

• Always serve a salad with your main meal for lunch and dinner. This will ensure you will increase your intake of vegetables.

• Swap rice/pasta/noodles for bread, 1 slice of bread is already 1 serving of carbohydrates!

• A cup of freshly squeezed juice in the morning covers your recommended daily intake of fruit

• If you have a busy lifestyle or, you’re trying to lose weight and still finding it hard to meet the daily requirements, it is also a good idea to try and take supplements. Supplements can ensure that your body will receive all the nutrients it needs if you’re unable to consume enough food for your body to extract the required vitamins and nutrients to reach optimum health.

However, please keep in mind that it is important not to replace your real fruits and vegetables with the supplements (if you choose to take them). Nothing can ever replace a healthy diet!

Good luck!

It is never too late or too hard to live a healthy lifestyle. Make the commitment and achieve that healthier lifestyle you have always wanted. Your body, mind and soul will thank you for it!

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Is it TOO HOT in YOUR Kitchen?

November 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment

On Thursday,  November 18 at noon PST Holly Clegg will join us on The Self Improvement Show. Why don’t you plan on joining us for lunch by tuning in to VoiceAmerica/World talk radio? Holly is the author of the “hot” new cookbook – Too Hot in The Kitchen: Secrets to Sizzle at Any Age. No, we aren’t going to be exchanging recipes but you certainly don’t want to miss the tips she can give you for making meals easily and quickly and having them taste yummmmmy!

More details tomorrow!

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Eat For Vitality, Radiant Health, and Your Perfect Weight!

November 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Kristin S. Alexander -

In order to lose weight and promote health you must abandon dieting and learn to eat. It’s really that simple! Sometimes we tend to think of food as the enemy and try to figure out ways we can avoid it and eat less. The answer is not to eat less, but eat more! More of the proper foods. Life giving, nourishing foods that will invigorate your body, create radiant health and boost your metabolism and well being. If you want to eat only junk foods, loaded with salt, sugar, unhealthy fats, and are just trying to figure out how to eat lesser amounts of these foods without adding healthy life giving foods, you will fail in your quest to lose weight and create a healthy body.

Food choices are loaded with emotional triggers, cravings, comfort, and are the basis of most social gatherings with family and friends. No wonder it’s such a minefield of opinions, heated discussions and denial! After all, who wants to crush cherished family traditions? Eat hardly anything at celebrations? No one! The truth is you don’t have to. Yes, you might need to make some changes in recipes to create a healthier version, but in the end it will be better and more loved. When at a celebration, or out with friends, there are plenty of delicious choices once you are armed with the information you need to detect hidden ingredients. Knowledge is power, especially with food.

There are things to keep in mind when changing your eating habits. First eat only foods you enjoy. Now you might be thinking, “I really enjoy cake, and fried chicken, and triple cheese pizza and that’s not helping me lose weight!” I understand, but what I mean is don’t force yourself into a crazy diet of celery sticks and cottage cheese when you can barely stand them. Instead approach the idea of changing your diet to focus on what you can have, not what you can’t. How about a fabulous breakfast of whole eggs, scrambled in butter with some of your favorite vegetables and couple of slices of sprouted grain toast? How about a juicy hamburger or steak for lunch or dinner? You can satisfy your pizza craving by making your own and loading it with healthy ingredients. When your focus is on eating a lot of the right kind of foods, you may just find that a big slice of cake is not so enjoyable anymore. Hard to believe I know, but real food really is the cure for cravings.

Another very important tip is this: Do not go cold turkey! Don’t try to change all of your habits in a day! Try adding one change a week. Breakfast is a great place to start because you will notice very quickly how a power packed start to the day will make you feel. Try those eggs scrambled in butter! Make sure you eat both pieces of that healthy bread and add in some lean protein like chicken or fish, or even steak. Small steps make change easier.

However you approach a new eating plan, keep in mind you should never go hungry! Feed your body consistently throughout the day. Between meals eat healthy snack foods like whole fruits, raw nuts and crunchy vegetables. Eat a lot of healthy food and stop worrying about calories!

Kristin Alexander is a writer, web designer and Internet marketer.
Kristin@ireviewebooks.com
Visit http://www.fastwaystoloseweightguide.com for information on weight loss, and a review of “The Diet Solution” weight loss program. Be sure to get your FREE copy of the E-booklet “The Best Smoothie Recipe In The World And Why YOU Should Be Drinking It!” A great way to get all your necessary fruits and vegetables in one delicious drink.

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10 Simple Tips For Healthy Living

September 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By John R Bradstreet -

With all the emphasis on maintaining a healthy lifestyle sometimes we overlook some of the basic things that help us accomplish this. We are going to look at some of these today. Many may seem to be a matter of common sense, but if you follow these you will be on your way to healthy living.

1. Drink plenty of water. It is suggested that we consume 8-10 glasses per day. This includes water that we get from foods and other drinks that we have. A good tip is to drink a glass before eating. Sometimes we are not actually hungry but are dehydrated.

2. We all know that eating fresh fruits daily is advised. But did you know that it is best to eat them in between meals or before meals. If you eat them directly after a meal your body will store it away as unused energy.

3. You should eat a protein with each of your meals. Some excellent sources of protein would include fish, beans, meat, protein bars and shakes. Your body needs these proteins so ensure that you are getting enough of them.

4. There are some foods that are better avoided. These would include potatoes, white bread, instant oatmeal and french fries. The reason is that these are foods that that body breaks down quickly into sugar.

5. Start a regular exercise program. If you are not in the habit of exercising start out slow and work your way up to something that is more strenuous. Choose something that you enjoy doing. If you enjoy the type of exercise your chances of continuing it over the long term increases. Over time you should work your way up to 3 to 5 times a week for 30 minutes or more. You will be surprised at the extra energy it will give you and the improvement in your mood. Try to incorporate some weight training in your schedule. This is an excellent way to naturally increase your metabolism.

6. Include raw vegetables into your daily diet. Nutritionists tell us that the darker the vegetable is the richer it is in nutrients. Concentrate on the ones that are dark green, dark purple and dark orange. This will give you the most benefits.

7. You should eat smaller meals with snacks in between. Eating every two to three hours is optimal. This will help you to naturally increase your metabolism and that is essential to healthy weight control. Peanut butter on a cracker is a good example of snacks you should include. If you wait until you actually feel hungry it may be too late. This causes your body to go into a fasting state.

8. Include fatty acids into the diet. Ground up flax seed is a good source to have with foods or cereals. It also gives you fiber.

9. Eat foods that are high in fiber. These foods will help you control cholesterol levels as well as giving you the feeling of feeling fuller. Some examples of these types of foods would be whole grains, fibrous vegetables and legumes. You may also want to look at supplementation as there are some good ones out there. You would want to speak to your doctor before beginning any supplementation program.

10. Raw nuts and seeds are a good source of essential fatty acids. You should limit the. amount to about a handful. These fatty acids not only help us burn fat but also
assure that we have healthy hair, skin and nails.

These are some very simple things that can be done to improve your overall health. You will feel and look a lot better by knowing the basic ways to change or improve your lifestyle.

If you are looking for information and tips to improve your health visit our blog at Healthy Living for Life immediately. You will be on your way to a happier and healthier lifestyle.

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4 Healthy Habits We Love to Hate

March 14, 2010 By Leave a Comment
walkingBy James LeGrand -

Living a healthy lifestyle is often not as hard as we make it out to be. We all know what to do, but just can’t seem to bring ourselves to do it consistently. Instead of engaging in the activities that will ensure our health, which ensures our quality of life, we prefer to medicate or ignore. Bad habits and healthy habits have one thing in common…they are both habits, and habits can be changed, eliminated, or created. Here are the 4 Healthy Habits We Love to Hate.

Habit #1: Drink! Water That Is

Many of the sodas and juices we drink several times a day can give us more calories than the food we eat. As an experiment, a young man eliminated the 5 – 6 sodas he drank daily from his diet, and within a month, he lost 15 pounds with no additional changes to this diet. While sodas and juices do contain some water, it contains far more sugar, syrup and chemical sweetners than what can be considered healthy. In fact, sometimes after drinking soda or juice, you are left even thirstier than before!

Water is necessary for healthy living. Our bodies are mostly water. Without enough water, we can become dehydrated which causes all sorts of problems, including headaches, loss of energy, and lack of full body function. Water doesn’t have the sweet taste of our manufactured drinks. However, it does have the distinction of being necessary for life, and for healthy living. Sugary drinks always taste good in the short term. Water is always the best choice for your health in the long term. When short term and long term goals conflict, always choose the long term. Water is your friend. Get rid of the imposters.

Habit #2: Sleep Until You Are Done

We are perpetually tired. Between stress and lack of sleep, we are falling asleep at red lights or while actively driving, we walk into walls, spill our drinks, make simple mistakes that often have big consequences, and we have close to no mental clarity. Sleep is our body’s method of rejuvenation, and allowing our minds the time it needs to organize our thoughts and memories for clarity and recall. We often think that sleeping less means we’ll get more done, but the opposite is actually true.

If you find yourself waking up tired and remaining tired all day, go to bed earlier. Record your favorite late night shows and watch them during your waking hours. Cut out some of your social networking time, internet surfing and game playing time, and your late night channel hopping. Instead, get to bed. Slow down your thinking by realizing that while in bed, you can’t do anything about the work you left at the job, the people that wronged you, or the thing you forgot to do today. Rest your mind and body. That is the only way to be fully prepared for what tomorrow will bring, and to accomplish your to do list completely. Don’t just sleep enough to function. Sleep enough to function well.

Habit #3: Move Your Body

Our ancestors had to exercise in order to eat, whether they had to hunt or grow their food. With the advent of the take out menu, many jobs that leave us sitting all day long, and mind sucking television shows, we just can’t seem to find time to exercise. If we aren’t burning more calories than we eat, we gain weight, which can lead to one of many health issues later down the line.

If you are a “go to the gym” type of person, find a way to fit it into your schedule and then stick with it. Identify a work out buddy that can help keep you motivated and have fun. If you are more of a game person, pick a sport that you love and play it several times a week. If you are a studio person, aerobics, yoga, and martial arts are all great ways to get moving. Movement is the energy of living. Lack of motion is the energy of life ending.

Habit #4: Eat to Live, Don’t Live to Eat

We all know we need to eat fresh, vibrant, nutritious foods. Yet, we settle for fake foods, or foods with so much sugar or preservatives that it no longer resembles what it was intended to be. The problem is speed, a sweet tooth, and the need to pacify.

We have become so busy in our lives that we rush, even when we don’t need to. Rather than taking the time to prepare a healthy meal and share it with our families, we buy something on the way home. If we do prepare foods at home, we microwave it, pull it out of a can, or fry it up. Instead, let’s slow down when it comes to our food. Meals with family should be about health…healthy foods, healthy family time together, and healthy conversation.

In addition to rushing, we love our sweets. Some of us are so conditioned to eat sweets that even when we know we no longer like them, we still have to have them. When you have a sweet tooth, choose yogurt or a citrus fruit. When you need a pick-me-up, choose nuts, carrot sticks, or another fruit or vegetable you enjoy. Let’s put down the candy and cakes and pick up something we’ll be proud to eat!

Comfort foods are all around us. When we feel stressed or have a challenging day, there are those foods that we often have to have to help us unwind. Let’s make that choice a healthy one going forward. The problem is that many of our unhealthy choices make things worse. Sugar gives us the fast up and the fast crash. Fried foods and foods with a lot of preservatives can increase our blood pressure and leave us with the general feeling physically bad. Fast foods can do all of the above. From this point on, eat foods that will add quality to your life and leave the rest behind.

James LeGrand is an Author, Life Strategist, and the publisher of http://www.SpiritualIndividual.com, a free weekly newsletter that presents solutions to life’s issues through the lens of self-help, wisdom, philosophy and spirituality. He is the author of an Amazon.com best seller in Religion and Spirituality titled Evolve!, and an Expert Author with Ezine Articles.com & SelfGrowth.com. James LeGrand is also a former Radio Personality, and a Sifu in Shaolin Kungfu, which has been known for centuries as a pathway to spiritual enlightenment.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_LeGrand

Filed Under: Health Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Your Body – a Lamborghini or a clunker?

January 31, 2010 By Leave a Comment

lamborghiniBy Irene Conlan -

I apologize for not posting on Saturday. I learned first hand how poorly  I function when I don’t feel well. I had a cold or  the flu – it doesn’t matter which – fever and the whole nine yards. It was the first  time I can remember in years of going back to bed and staying there  until almost noon. When I did get up, I sat and looked at the computer. No words would come and no writing got done.

I managed to do the daily crossword puzzle but it took me twice the time.

I am reminded again how important health is. We take it for granted until something happens to impede our full functioning. A cold or flu can flatten you even if you are at a peak of health but it’s less likely to keep you down.

Good health involves using some common sense and being watchful in three major areas:

  • Nutrition
  • Sleep
  • Exercise

Good nutrition is often lost in the need for fast and easy meals  but if you want your body to stand up to attacks you have to eat balanced meals that maintain an  optimum weight and care for your immune system. If you stay away from junk food and fast food and eat fresh vegetables, fruit and adequate protein, you are way ahead.  That doesn’t mean you will never get sick, but its a great start. And when  you do get sick you will recover much faster. We all know  what good nutrition is – we chose to find short cuts that save time but not save health.  To check the adequacy of your daily diet go to http://nutrition.about.com/library/dietquiz/bldietquiz.htm

Most of us also already know about getting enough sleep and yet we burn the candle at both ends and then are surprised when we succumb to the first germs that come around.  When you continuously don’t get the amount of sleep you need, you pay for it in daytime drowsiness, trouble concentrating, irritability, increased risk of falls and accidents, and lower productivity. Sleep is also essential to the immune system. Without adequate sleep, the immune system becomes weak, and the body becomes more vulnerable to infection and disease. Sleep is also a time of rest and repair to neurons, the freeways of the nervous system that carry out both voluntary commands, like moving your arm, and involuntary commands, like breathing and digestive processes.For more info on sleep go to http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleeping.htm

Exercise is the hard one for many of us who spend our days at the computer but is is critically important to our health. Exercise is necessary for increased energy and metabolism, improved muscle tone, stress reduction, improved self esteem and better  overall health. Hopefully, while you’re exercising you are also getting some fresh air and sunshine which are also necessary for good health. For more about exercise go to http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise/HQ01676/NSECTIONGROUP=2

If you had a very expensive car – say a Lamborghini – you would put the highest quality fuel in it, would be absolutely avid about all maintenance and would drive it with great care.

However, if something happened to your Lamborghini, you can replace it. You can always buy another car, but you can’t get another body. The older I get the more aware I am of my body and its limitations and I often use that old saying, “If I had known I would get this old, I would have taken better care of myself.” We take care of our bodies like we would care for an old clunker when we should be treating it like a Lamborghini.

So give this body of yours the proper fuel, the best maintenance , and take it out on the road frequently. And to top it off, nurture it with positive thinking. You will reap the benefits for years to come.

Filed Under: Self Improvement Tagged With: , , , ,
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