Showing posts with label Exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Exercise. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Why Personal Trainers Are Effective


If you’re a personal trainer or you’re managing a facility that offers personal training, it can be hard to make a case for the added expense of personal training. However, there are many ways in which the benefits of using a personal trainer can justify the additional cost. Keeping track of your personal trainers and their clients is easier if you use a gym management system.


 

One-on-One: Studies have shown that one-on-one counseling, whether with a psychologist, nutritionist, or personal trainer, is the most effective way to change behavior patterns. A personal trainer can set up an exercise program that is tailored to individual needs. Trainers are not locked into one kind of exercise (unlike a class), but can use a variety of approaches in one session. Also, if an exerciser has health problems or needs rehabilitation, a trainer can design a program that’s specific to him or her. A personal trainer can also correct mistakes in form that can cause injuries and can teach safe exercising.

Changing Attitudes: One study in the Journal of Sport Science and Medicine found that working with a personal trainer was an effective method for changing attitudes toward exercise, increasing motivation, and increasing a person’s amount of physical activity.

It makes sense, since a personal trainer can customize the exercise to an individual’s specific needs and can give the kind of encouragement required when motivation flags. They can show the exerciser what he or she is capable of and help develop exercise habits that can last a lifetime.


How to Exercise: If a person hasn’t been exercising in a while, a personal trainer can set up an exercise routine that is specific to his or her goals. For someone who has been exercising, a personal trainer can suggest cross-training options and new exercises – and can ensure the person is exercising properly. A trainer can figure out what kinds of exercise an exerciser enjoys and can tailor a program that is specific to a particular body’s needs. This maximizes the efficiency of the workout time and gets the best results.

Exercise Effectiveness: Having someone present during exercising can make a big difference in how well someone exercises and how hard they push themselves. One study in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise separated a group of men into supervised and non-supervised exercisers when doing weight training. After 12 weeks, the supervised exercisers showed significantly steeper increases in their training capacity and the amounts of weight they could lift. Increases of 26 to 30% have been reported.

Hossein Noshirvani is the Executive Vice President for Motionsoft. His long-time involvement in the fitness industry gives him vast knowledge and keen insight into running a fitness center, including how to operate your facility more efficiently using an automated gym management system.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Food for Muscle

Whether your goal is to get a six pack, get strong for a sport, or get a body like Jay Cutler’s, the key to achieving your goals remains pretty much the same: pack on some lean muscle.

Even if you’re looking to lose weight and get “ripped”, you still need to pay attention to your lean muscle mass – lose too much weight too quickly, and you’ll end up looking small, skinny, and soft, which is not the look you’re going for!

Building lean muscle is simple. All you have to do is lift heavy weights, and eat the right foods in the right quantities. A lot of people manage the lifting bit, but end up burning out because they don’t see results after a few weeks. The lack of results is usually down to bad judgement in the kitchen, rather than in the weight room. Here’s a few tips to help you get things right in the kitchen.

Eat For the Body You Want, Not the Body You Have

Before you can figure out what you need to eat, you need to decide your goals. If you want to lose weight, you’ll have to eat differently to the way you’d eat if you wanted to pack on some lean muscle mass.

Photo by: pdstahl
The first thing you need to do is figure out your current BMR (Base Metabolic Rate), and your maintenance calories (which is based on your BMR, and your usual daily activity level). Once you’ve worked that out, you can figure out how much you need to eat to achieve your goals. If you have a lot of weight to lose, start by eating around 500 calories fewer per day than your maintenance, this should lead to you losing about 1lb of weight per week, and most of that should be fat loss, rather than lean muscle loss.


If you have only a few pounds to lose, shoot for 250 calories fewer per day than your maintenance. This will lead to slower weight loss, but again, it should be mostly fat loss.

If you want to gain strength and “bulk up”, eat around 250-500 calories more than your maintenance each day, and try to eat a lot of protein.

Proteins, Carbohydrates and Fat
Photo by CleanseAndBlend
Proteins, carbohydrates and fat are the three “macro-nutrients” that make up your diet. The first thing you need to remember is that none of those macronutrients are the enemy. Fat doesn’t make you fat, and neither do carbs. The reason people think that carbs and fat are bad is because fat is so calorie dense, and carbohydrates are also calorie dense, and tend to not leave you feeling full for long. When you’re trying to lose weight, what matters is the number of calories you consume. Some foods are more satisfying, and therefore a better choice for someone on a calorie restricted diet, but no food is “evil”.


If you’re trying to gain strength and build muscle, then eating a lot of protein is a good idea. Chicken, turkey, tuna, and lean cuts of meat are all good choices. Snacking on nuts and cheese can also help with your protein intake. A good goal is 0.8g of protein per lb of lean body mass. If you’re struggling to reach that through food, try having a protein shake post-workout.

Don’t neglect vegetables, however. Green, leafy vegetables are a good source of nutrients, and very low in calories too. No matter what you’re training for, there’s a lot of value in a balanced diet.

This post was written by James Harper on behalf of Slimming.com who have great ideas to help you build lean muscle.

Friday, September 28, 2012

A Food Database Can Hold the Key to Weight Loss

Everyone who’s ever been overweight is familiar with the desire to find a quick fix for your weight problem. You may have tried diet pills that were advertised to help you burn fat without changing how you eat, or even tried a fad diet or two. The problem with all the hype and advertising is that there is no real quick fix to weight loss, but there is a guaranteed way to lose weight. A mobile calorie tracker can help people lose weight because it helps you to create the calorie deficit that is required in your body in order to burn fat.

The secret to weight loss really can be found in your mobile calorie counter. Your body needs to burn 3500 more calories than you ingest in order to lose 1 pound of fat. Over a week’s time that is 500 calories each day that your body needs to burn. Of course, that’s 500 more than you take in. so if your BMR is 1500 and you eat a 2000 calorie diet, even with 500 calories of exercise you are simply maintaining your weight. That’s why most people who want to lose weight have to go on a restricted calorie diet.

You can lose weight with your mobile food diary because it will tell you what your BMR is likely to be and allow you to track the calories that you eat and the calories that you burn. A BMR is the number of calories that your body burns every day just to function. So if your BMR is 1500 and you restrict your calorie intake to 1200 calories a day, you would still need to burn 200 more calories in exercise every day to lose 1 pound per week. Of course, if you eat an additional 200 calories that day because you’ve burned 200 thought exercise, you won’t be helping yourself to lose weight at all. 


Once you understand how your body loses weight, it becomes easy to use your mobile food journal to implement that weight loss plan. You can carefully track the calories that you take in every day, as well as the calories that you burn. Your diary will tell you if you have reached the required calorie deficit on any given day to reach your goals. With all the tools right at your fingertips, it’s no wonder that people who use a mobile journal lose twice as much weight as those who do not.


 Ryan Newhouse is a longtime health writer, avid cyclist and general outdoorsman. He has traveled extensively and appreciates sourcing local ingredients for healthy meals and drinks.

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Stay Healthy By Tracking What You Eat

What you eat is what you are. You’ve heard that your whole life and you know that it is true. If you eat fast food, in the largest sizes, every day, you probably are not in the best of health (or you are very young and lucky). We will get this out of the way right now; do not go on a diet. Diets trick you into thinking that you will sacrifice the things you love for the next six month or a year or whatever amount of time you choose to get into good shape and then go back to living normally. This doesn’t work for anyone. You need to change the thought of dieting to a way of thinking that changes your eating habits.




Start off by tracking what you eat. Don’t make any major changes to your diet yet. Just use your iPhone as a little notepad and type in that you ate a quarter pounder with fries and a Coke at McDonald’s for lunch. Put that you skipped breakfast but had three cups of coffee. Then write whatever you have for dinner. Do this for a few days and then look at your eating patterns. Look up some of the calorie counts on what you have been eating. Look at what that caffeine spike does to you in the morning, look up everything. Just do some research and see what you are doing to your body.

Now that you are used to tracking what you eat and you have seen what you are doing to your body, it is time to start changing things out. The biggest mistake you could possibly make is changing everything at once. Instead, change your McDonald’s lunch to something you make at home and bring to work. Make a salad, or sandwich, or a stew that has that homemade custom touch that fast food places can’t compete with. Keep tracking what you eat and after a week or so, see what a difference this one change has done for you.

Starting to feel a little better about yourself and your health? Now add in a little extra time for breakfast and find something healthy. You don’t need anything huge to start your day, some toast, a bagel, a few hardboiled eggs or a parfait can all do the trick. Keep tracking your daily eating habits for a while and see what things look like in a couple of weeks.


Now for the final change (which your body has probably already forced you to make); start eating lighter dinners earlier in the evening. When you sleep your metabolism slows down. You will want some food in your gut as you lay down to drift off to slumber land, but you shouldn’t be full. Give yourself time to digest a good portion of the food in your system and then crash with less for your body to work through. Now, after a couple of weeks compare the list from when you started this adventure and the list from today. Words can’t express how much better you are going to feel about the changes in your eating habits.

Candy C. is a writer for HowDoIBe.com. If you are interested in a career in wellness, take a look at this site for more information.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

10 Real Life Health Concerns

We all know about diabetes, the importance of exercise, and healthy eating. This article isn’t to point of
the obvious but to point out things that we do every day that really does affect our health and overall
our lives. These are things we might over look and even think as harmless habits but in reality it’s really
bad for us.

1. Drinking Coffee- Although having coffee every now and again is not bad for you if you’re having a coffee craving you’re addicted. Coffee in moderation's is good but if you’re finding yourself needing a cup you’re addicted to the caffeine and it can have bad affects on your health. It can increase your heart rate and blood pressure. Although coffee does have its benefits if you aren’t careful it can be the reverse.

2. Worry/Stress- Stress is a killer! It causes a lot of the “good”  things in your brain to decrease and allows the “bad” stuff to take the wheel. It can cause health issues such as anorexia, bulimia, organ damage, depression, suicide, etc. It also causes you to age much quicker. Try doing a sport you love and taking 30minutes to an hour of your busy day to De-stress.




3. Eating junk foods/artificial sweeteners – Nothing is good about replacing natural sugar with artificial sugar aka chemicals. How’s that healthy? If you eat junk food it gives you the extra calories no one needs and helps your insides become exactly what you eat...junk.

4. Not chewing your food- This is bad in several ways. Sometimes we are so hungry that we just scarf down our food without really chewing. You’re body prepares for digestion by first having your saliva breakdown your food and chewing also makes your stomach secrete bile. No chewing means you’re going to choke, have a tummy ache, and you might not see something beautiful come out next time you decide to visit “the throne”.

5. Constipation- Constant constipation means that you aren’t eating the right foods and that you might have digestive problems that can become quite serious in the future. If you suffer from constipation every now and again go to the doctor and keep track of the foods you eat. It may be an indication of something more serious.

6. Lack of sleep- Your body must recharge every night and if it doesn’t you’re headed for disaster. Your brain will begin to shut down and it can be very dangerous. You’re supposed to shut those eyes as soon as you hit your bed and feel drowsy.

7. Over counter the medicine dependency- In today’s world taking medication is the easy solution for a lot of things. It’s best to stay away from medication and try more natural remedies. If you have a headache try and eat some starchy foods, if you’re tired take a nap, etc. usually a headache means you are lacking something in your daily regime and your body is letting you know. Stress can also cause migraine and headaches. To avoid these pains De-stress everyday and be aware of what you do.


8. House work every day – Although a clean house is a good house cleaning everyday can be bad for you. It exposes you to chemicals everyday and also doesn’t keep your body up to date with the latest germs. You body fights illnesses and bacteria by recognition that’s why you get sick when you are around someone that’s sick. Their germs are different than yours and catch your body off guard. But after few days your body knows exactly what to do and is ready for a fight at anytime.




9. Cancelling plans for alone time- If you have too much alone time its actually bad for you. If you go out and socialize its actually very healthy and good for you. Research shows that having few friends and only going out from time to time is like smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Its bad for you and decreases your longevity. So go out and have fun!

10. Soft drinks and sugar – Drinking carbonated drinks erode tooth enamel and promotes kidney stones! Not only that but sugar is only good if you need quick spurt of energy but if you down candy all the time your body turns that into fat and can even become plaque stuck in your artery walls ew!


Priscilla covers health and wellness topics for the Term-Life Insurance blog because living a healthier lifestyle helps to keep life insurance premiums lower.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Four Tricks to Alleviate Neck Pain


According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), neck pain accounts for roughly 15 percent of chronic pain in American adults. Furthermore, neck pain is believed to affect a startling 45 percent of the workforce. Depending on the severity of the pain, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and prescription painkillers are the most common forms of treatment. Unfortunately, prolonged NSAID use has been shown to cause damage to the stomach, kidneys and liver and may increase the risk of certain cancers, and painkillers can lead to addiction over time. Rather than relying on these potentially hazardous drugs, it's better to seek natural forms of relief for neck pain.



1. Take Vitamin C

Because inflammation is the most common cause of pain, you may be able to benefit from taking large
doses of vitamin C. This vitamin is present in many foods, but usually not in sufficient quantities to
reduce inflammation. Therefore, supplementation is recommended at a dose of one to 1.5 grams (1,000
to 1,500 milligrams) daily.


2. See a Chiropractor

Many people believe a chiropractor to only be a doctor who works on back problems, but they are
actually proficient in treating all of the body's bones, joints and muscles. If you're suffering from neck
pain, it could be from a dislocation, herniated disc or poor spinal alignment, and all of these are things
that a chiropractor can help you with. He or she may also recommend some stretches, exercises or
posture aids that can prevent the problem from recurring. Kirkland chiropractor can help, or you can
find a chiropractor in your area.


3. Stretching
                                                                                                                                                                         
A lot of neck pain is caused by strained or pulled muscles, both of which happen easily if the muscles re tense or tight. In some cases, the muscles or ligaments may even become torn. This is especially common if you have a stressful job or if your work requires you to keep your head bent or turned for extended periods. Take a moment here and there to stretch the muscles of your neck. You may even wish to consider massaging them to loosen them up and improve blood flow.


4. Eat Cayenne Pepper

Cayenne isn't just a delicious way to spice up your food. It's also a great way to ease neck pain! The
constituent in cayenne that makes it hot, called capsaicin, rapidly fights inflammation and improves
blood flow to the affected area. By enhancing blood flow, oxygen and essential nutrients required for
healing and muscle relaxation are able to be delivered more efficiently.

Neck pain can be difficult to deal with on a daily basis. While these remedies can help, it is important
to remember to speak with your doctor if your neck pain is severe.

Do you have any tricks or tips on how to alleviate neck pain? Please add your comments below if
you have any home remedies or treatments that have worked for you. No right or wrong answers, if it
worked for you, it might work for someone else!

Monday, September 3, 2012

Unhealthy Eating Habits Causing You to Gain Weight

According to statistics from the National Institute of Health, about 50 percent of American women and 25 percent of American men are on a diet at any given time. However, estimates also show that the average dieter will regain two-thirds of any weight they do manage to lose within five years.

Why is the weight gain turnaround so great, and how to do many men and women manage to sabotage their own success?

The answer lies in diet and nutrition. It isn’t as simple as a fast food window and overly large portion sizes, however—some eating habits can damage your weight loss efforts no matter how healthy you eat.

Here’s a look at five of the most common unhealthy eating habits that prevent you from losing weight despite your best efforts.

1. Skipping Breakfast


As with most things in life, how you start your diet in the morning can set the tone for your eating habits the rest of the day.

Whether you skip your first meal of the day because of a time crunch, or simply because you’re not hungry, you’re doing your body—and your weight loss goals—a disservice.

Skipping breakfast usually leads to increased snacking later in the day, which can easily outweigh the calories you would have eaten during breakfast, explains Milton Stokes, chief dietitian with St. Barnabas Hospital in New York City.

“People skip breakfast thinking they’re cutting calories, but by mid-morning and lunch, that person is starved,” Stokes says. “Breakfast skippers replace calories during the day with mindless nibbling, bingeing at lunch and dinner. They set themselves up for failure.”

By contrast, a government-funded study published in the American Dietetic Association found that participants who ate cereal most mornings had a 13 percent lower risk of becoming overweight when compared to their peers who skipped the first meal of the day.

2. Eating Late at Night


Since we’ve already established that the time of day when you choose to skip meals can compromise your weight loss plan, it makes sense that the time you do choose to eat can be equally important.

One of the worst things you can do when trying to lose weight, for example, is to snack or eat dinner late at night. This is one of the most widespread bad behaviors out there, since the body tends to crave sweet things at night when you’re feeling stressed, lonely, or just bored.

However, the effects can be shocking.

“Just an added 300 calories in the evening after dinner while watching TV—when you’re not even hungry—will pack on 30 pounds in one year,” Katherine Tallmadge of the American Dietetic Association tells ABC News.

And because you’re eating at night—with less of a chance that you’ll work off these calories later in the day—these are calories that will undoubtedly add to your waistline.

3. Eating On The Go


Nearly 36 percent of young American adults report having little to no time to prepare meals. As a consequence, they tend to choose pre-packaged meals or restaurant outings to replace what they might have made at home.

Unfortunately, according to a recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, people who choose convenience meals often eat energy-dense snacks that leave them less satisfied. As a result, they eat more.

And when you’re on the run and opt for a drive-through instead of a homemade lunch, eating more is the last thing you want to do.

Furthermore, being in a hurry or being in the car takes your mind off of what you’re eating and you have less time to make beneficial choices. Once you do have your meal, you tend to eat too quickly and even overeat as you don’t have the time you need to properly pause between bites and evaluate your feelings of fullness.

If you do have problems combatting feelings of hunger, you may want to check out an appetite suppressant. You can find reviews of many popular options at WeightLossPills24.com.

4. Eating in Front of a Screen


After a long day in the office, settling down in front of the television with a bag of chips or popcorn can be an attractive option. However, when your attention is distracted, you can end up eating significantly more than you ever meant to.

“If you are going to watch TV and eat, prepare your meal fully and portion it out,” Nolan advises.



Another good idea is to portion your time—eat during one half-hour television show, instead of until you go to bed.

This is true for all forms of media. Don’t eat in front of your computer screen, e-reader, or even a traditional book. Even if you’re dining alone, a simple half-hour meal without distraction will allow you to focus on your calorie count and more easily control your portion size.

5. Using Food to Relieve Stress


Even if you’ve committed to a healthy eating plan, your emotions can get in the way. According to John Foreyt of the Baylor College of Behavioral Medicine Research Center, feeling weak, vulnerable, or overly stressed is all it takes to cause a person to slide back into their old ways.

“Everything can be going along just fine until you hit a rough patch and feelings of boredom, loneliness, depression…or any kind of stress,” Foreyt tells WebMD.

In these cases, you equate eating with comfort and before you know it, you’ve overdosed on your calorie count for the day.

Binge eating is especially dangerous to the diet because it throws the body into an irregular eating pattern, making it difficult for it to properly digest food.

Breaking These Habits


Instead of rushing to adopt new habits or to cut out bad habits from your lifestyle, try making both long- and short-term goals that are realistic and manageable. To get there, take small steps in the right direction so that you’re not overwhelmed by your new lifestyle.

“Try to gradually incorporate new habits over time, and before you know it, you will be eating more healthfully and losing weight,” advises Keri Gans of the American Dietetic Association.

Every new challenge can be daunting, but over time, you’ll see how great you feel eating in a more healthy way and you’ll want to continue making progress.

Friday, August 24, 2012

Get Fit Fast

Life is busy.  Sometimes, it’s too busy to exercise.  However, getting in a short workout is better than no workout at all.  This 20-minute interval workout is an effective tool to lose weight and relieve stress. 

An interval workout is a timed workout that combines all out exertion with short rest periods.  Intervals are four minutes in length.  Within that time, you complete eight sets. Each set consists of working hard for 20-seconds then resting for 10 seconds. During each four-minute interval, your exercise of choice remains the same, whether it's jumping jacks, squats, jumping rope, sprints or something else. Repeat that exercise for each set. Once you have completed the four-minute interval, you choose a new exercise for the next interval.

Here's a sample workout.

Warm-up for 4 minutes (walk to easy jog)




Interval 1:
20 seconds: Jumping jacks
10 seconds: Rest
Repeat 8 times

Interval 2:
20 seconds: Push-ups
10 seconds: Rest
Repeat 8 times

Interval 3:
20 seconds: Burpees
10 seconds: Rest
Repeat 8 times

Interval 4:
20 seconds: Squats
10 seconds: Rest
Repeat 8 times

In order to get the maximum effectiveness out of this, you must push yourself during the 20-second work interval each and every set trying to complete as many reps as possible for each set.  Both cardio and strength exercises can be used during the intervals.

This workout can be adjusted as your fitness and endurance increases.  This can be done a couple of different ways.  You can increase the exercise interval beyond 20 seconds.  Or, you can add more intervals and exercises.



It’s important to take time for yourself.  By taking as little as 20-minutes a day to exercise, you can lose weight, relieve stress, increase your muscular endurance as well as improve your heart health. It’s a small change you can make to improve your life.

Freelance writer Phyllis Edson provides a variety of writing services including blogs, social media posts, copy writing, ebooks and web content--- www.phyllisedson.com

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Hidden Calories

credit: sigalonhealth.soup.io
Although losing weight is very rewarding and potentially life-changing, it can be a very
frustrating process. The most common reported frustration is when you feel that you are
doing all of the right things but the weight just won’t come off. This can leave you feeling
down and useless, and could potentially lead to the end of the diet. But why does it happen?

In some, rarer cases, it is a case of the body’s metabolism catching up with the dieter and
simply refusing to lose any more weight. Ironically, the main reason this happens is that the
dieter is taking in too few calories so the solution would be to add a few more calories into
the diet to kick-start your metabolism.

For most, this isn’t the issue. For most, it is the opposite; they are taking in too many
calories. The main culprit in this tale is hidden calories. Hidden calories are the enemy of the
dieter and are the root of all the frustration and anger that you are feeling. So where are these
calories and how do you bring them out into the open?

The main perpetrators of hidden calories are the foods and drinks that you think are healthier
choices. When we start our weight-loss plan the first thing that many of us do is to look for
healthy alternatives to the snacks and drinks that we thought were making us overweight.
However, shop bought fruit smoothies are often packed full of calories. They are nutritious
and full of vitamins but they can have just as many calories as a full-fat can of fizzy pop. The
reason? All of those fruit sugars that make the smoothie so tasty! The tropical fruits often
used in smoothies, such as mango, pineapple and banana, are full of natural sugars and are
also relatively high in calories. So, although you should make sure to eat plenty of fruit,
enjoy these varieties in moderation.

Salads can be full of hidden calories too. Lettuce, tomato and cucumber are super low in
calories but the added meat, dressing, croutons, cheese and avocado that can dramatically
raise the calorie content. In fact, a salad such as a traditional Caesar with chicken, bacon,
croutons, cheese, and a creamy dressing can potentially have more calories than a burger! So
be sensible – go for vinaigrette dressings and drop some of the fattier elements such as the
cheese and bacon.

As far as food goes, one of the worst things you can eat when on a diet is pasta. Pasta can be
a healthy choice as it is virtually fat free and relatively good for you but, unfortunately for
those trying to lose weight, it is packed full of calories. Even a small serving of pasta can
have as many calories as a bucketful of couscous, for example, so avoid it when you can.

Finally, you should look at your drink choices. You may have swapped out sugar for
sweetener but you need to also consider skimmed milk in your hot beverages rather than
semi-skimmed or whole. This will save you calories with every mouthful. Also, look out for
alcohol. Although it’s hard to cut out alcohol completely, there are no low calorie alcoholic
drinks and you would be shocked at how many calories there are just in a glass of wine.

So hidden calories are everywhere but they can be beaten. You just need a little knowledge,
and maybe the help of an online calorie counter, and you can understand what’s really in
your food.

Written by Kat Kraetzer, an experienced blogger working in the health-care industry.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Ten Simple Ways To Be Happy In Life

We often feel depressed and want to be happy but we cannot see that even the smallest changes around us can make us happier. So, here are ten ways by which we can be a more happier person than before.

1. Sleep Properly




Happiness means fighting off stress and stay fresh and fit. If you are not sleeping enough you feel more fatigued, stressed hungry and much more. Sleeping make you stress free, heels your damages. More sleep means less hunger so you have a lesser weight and good looks which obviously make you happy from inside.

2. Practice mindfulness

Mindfulness is waking up, connecting with ourselves and connecting with every moment of life. It is the trending topic in western psychology as it is effectively reduced stress, increase self awareness, enhances emotional intelligence and handles negative thoughts and feelings. It means paying attention in a particular way, in the present moment and none judgmentally which is one more way to make you happier.
 
3. Stretch

As soon as you get up, throw your arms to the sky and inhale deeply. Bend down and try to touch your toes. Loosen up your body that’s been still for an entire night. Do a few jumping jacks. Move your neck around in circles. Stretch!

    Stretching makes your muscles relax and reliefs from the pain. You will feel more stronger from inner self when you stretch and bend. You will find that you understand and work with your body. Take time to listen to your body as we many times we ignore what it wants to say. It will definitely make you happy.



4. Laugh out loud

Joy is contagious and you can totally spread it. Laughing makes you relief from the stress and as I mentioned earlier makes you more happy.

5. Go Outside

Go outside into the sunlight; light deprivation is one reason that people feel tired. Research suggests that light stimulates brain chemicals that improve mood and increase motivation. If you cannot go outside daily as I can't due to busy schedules, try to go occasionally.

6. Just say no

We should learn to say NO to the things we really don't like. It's better to not doing than badly doing.
Don't force yourself to do things which you haven't interested in. Eliminate activities that aren’t necessary and that you don’t enjoy. After all, you have your own priorities and needs, just like everyone has his/her own needs. Saying no is about respecting and valuing your time and space.





7. Social around

Meet your loved ones once in a week or as it suits you. One of the most powerful ways to better your relationship with happiness is to surround yourself with people who want to make a difference. When we feel safe and supported, we don’t have to narrow in on survival tasks like responding to danger or finding our next meal. We are able to explore our world, which builds resources for times of stress and adversity.

8. Accept yourself

If acceptance feels so good, then why don’t we accept ourselves? We hate ourselves for being fat to get ourselves to diet. We judge ourselves unfavorably with the hope it will motivate us to change. Does this work? Hardly.
    Acceptance allows change. The "acceptance mode" includes everything, even my judgments. It allows me to be okay now, even before I reach my goals.

9. Befriend Failure

Do not be afraid of failure. Always remember failure is the key to success. I’m not going to say you will ever reach the point to where you will actually enjoy failure, but with each mistake you make there is always a lesson to be learned. As soon as you accept it you will be more happy.

10. Choose happiness

We always hand between the past and future and do not focus on present. Learn from your past decisions and actions and make your present beautiful. Of course, there are things in our lives that we cannot control, yet for the most part, your actions or lack of them is responsible for your present circumstances.


    There is no formula to be happy but we can be happy simply by understanding our self what makes us happy.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

How To Know A Migraine Headache



Victims of the migraine feel tender pain, generally positioned at one side of the head with nausea and sensitivity to sound and light. Some people may have visual effects like light flashes and blind spots.

According to a survey migraine headache affects about 30 million Americans in which the women are three times more than men. People cost $24 billion on the disease annually directly or indirectly. Almost sufferers cannot perform normally during migraine and some require bed rest.    
There is no proper cure for this but migraines can be handling with medication and lifestyle alteration. 

Clinical reports have listed few symptoms that help to define Migraines:

Normal to sever pain at one side but can be on both sides. 
Head pain with hurting quality
Pain get worse with physical work
Pain that disturb your daily work
Nausea and/or vomiting
Sensitivity to light and sound.

Different types of treatments for migraines and methods to prevent them: 

Pain medications:
These consist of general products such as ibuprofen and aspirin.
Preventive medications:
These include cardiovascular drugs, such as calcium-channel blockers and beta-blockers. some antidepressants, anti-seizure drugs, and Botox.
Reduce the effects of estrogen:
If you're a woman with migraines and estrogen seems to trigger or make your headaches worse, avoid or reduce these medications. These medications include human growth hormone therapy and birth control pills.
Nausea medications:
These include Reglan and Compazine.
Avoid triggers:
Avoid definite foods if they have prompted migraines in the past. Establish regular sleep patterns and meal times.
Quit smoking:
Smoking can enhance headaches or make is worse. 
Exercise regularly:  
Regular exercise reduces tension and can help avoid migraines.

Hormonal headache is a type of migraine headache that typically upset women. Because of hormonal influences, women are liable to experience migraines three times much more often than their man equivalents. Migraines are more common in pregnant women and the best treatment for this is to balance hormone in the body with female hormone replacement therapy.



Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Learning to Love Running


In high school, I always wondered if parents forced their kids to run track or be on cross country teams. I never understood why the kids would just voluntarily join something so miserable. It never occurred to me that maybe they actually enjoyed running.

I've never been much of a runner. Every time I step onto that track or onto that treadmill, I simply feel disgusted and I am already dreading what is to come. It is a love-hate relationship. I hate the running part, but I love the benefits.

I've been thinking. I am sick of running to just exercise. I want to run to actually enjoy it. I want running to become an activity that I reward myself with at the end of each week. I realize this is going to be a hard path, especially for me. I do not know what it is going to take and I do not know how long of a process it will be. But I am willing to try anything at this point.

In the past couple of days, I have been reading others blogs and stories and finding out what they love about running. I've taken what I thought would help me and combined it with other thoughts that may help you.

Do you want to become a dedicated runner? Do you want to learn to actually love running? Well then, read on..

Find Inspiration: This is an important step. How do you think I got the motivation to write this article? I had to read others blogs and testimonials. It helps a lot to see that others are going through the same thing as you and that they have overcome these struggles. It is possible to fall in love with running or just exercising in general, you just need to find the right story to inspire you.

Make it Part of Your Life: Have you ever heard the expression, “when you love something, surround yourself in it?” Do not get confused with the expression, “when you love something, set it free.” That would be the opposite of what we are going for,  here.  Anyways, running can have the same effect. If you want to create a new passion for something, you have to think about that passion at least once a day. Learning to love running is a process. You will have to actually try  and love it. At least that's what I had to do. Try reading an article on running everyday or talking about running with a friend.

Take Your Time: This step has two different meanings. First, when you're starting off with a routine, don't push yourself too hard. This will cause you to despise running, trust me. It happened to me. Second, once you're involved in a routine, make sure you are starting off each run slowly and finishing strong at the end. This will make you look forward to that pushing point at the end and you will feel more accomplished after the run.

Make it Fun: This last step is probably the most important of all. Whatever you do, whatever you take from this post, remember to make running fun.  I don't care what you have to do to make it fun. If it's dancing around, or listening to your music too loud, do it. Do whatever makes you pumped to run! Don't worry about looking silly, this is your time  to do and be whatever you want. Make it your play time.

If you're interested in running on or learning more about treadmills, check out this website: http://www.treadmillsensei.com/best-buys

Author Bio : Katy Stephens is a 19 year old college student who enjoys writing about health and wellness. She has a passion for graphic design and writing blogs.  If you'd like to see more, check out her: Google+.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Stay healthy for a lifelong

How many times have you gone on a diet for a specific event like a wedding or a reunion? It can be probably more than once. You may lose some of your pounds for your special event, but keeping them off is the true test for you.

You may shed a quick 7 to 10 pounds by fad diets, but by having soups or fruits all day long does little to help you learn how to eat balanced and healthy meals. But still if it does not work. This isn't because you're a bad person or you lack willpower - it's because dieting doesn't teach you how to eat properly.

A Winning Combination of Healthy Diet and Exercise

Only healthy eating and regular exercise can be effective for long term fat loss. For many peoples this can be life sentence. People don’t have much time for healthy eating and regular exercise because of their hectic schedules.

Taking care of your body is a lifelong investment. You can avoid many diseases because of healthy environment. You will have more energy to do those things which you enjoy the most. So, drop plan for quick weight loss and stick to healthy diet and regular exercise. With these few simple changes, you're guaranteed a lifetime of good living and staying healthy for life long.