Not all Supplements Safe
I’ve talked with many people who are adamantly against taking medication, but will take natural remedies because they believe they are safer and better for your body.
The Today Show had a very interesting segment on 12 supplements to avoid.
Take note of the “Blue Man”
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How to Increase Your Energy Naturally
It’s difficult to stay energized throughout the day. When so much is expected of you, it’s no wonder that you may be seeking various methods to keep yourself pumped up.
You might start with an innocent cup of coffee, only to realize that down the road you need several cups to get you going and then some more to keep you going throughout the day. Then, when you try to stop, you get plagued with awful headaches.
Most energy drinks are unnatural and addicting. They’re usually packed with sugar, too. When you drink them, you get that “sugar high,” only to be followed by the inevitable crash. Then you need something else to pick you up. It’s a frustrating cycle that repeats itself every day.
Your best bet is to turn to natural ways to increase your energy. By incorporating some simple strategies into your daily routine, you’ll soon notice that you’re waking up feeling refreshed and your natural energy keeps you going even on your busiest days.
Try some of the following ways to increase your energy naturally:
1. Exercise in the morning. Getting up early to exercise might sound dreadful. After all, you know how tired you feel in the morning and the idea of getting up even earlier and doing physical activity just seems downright insane. It’s true that the first few mornings will be tough, and you may even feel like giving up altogether. But force yourself to give it a try.
· Even if you go in kicking and screaming, it’s likely that within a week you’ll actually find yourself enjoying it! You’ll crave that movement in the morning and it’ll fill you with much more energy than a cup of coffee.
2. Yoga. Yoga is an all-natural energy booster that’s been around since ancient times. It’s a series of stretches and body movements that you can practice at any time of day. Even if you enter a yoga session tense and stressed, you’ll exit feeling calm, relaxed, and energized. See if you can find a local yoga class, or for a lower cost option, buy a yoga DVD.
3. Avoid crash foods. Your diet is extremely important when it comes to how you feel throughout the day. Some foods may increase your energy initially, but then they cause you to crash in the end. Anything with high sugar content will cause this roller coaster effect.
· Shoot for eating things that are known for maintaining your energy throughout the day, such as foods that are high in protein.
4. Get enough sleep. A necessary amount of sleep will be different from person to person, but most people need 6-8 hours of sound sleep for the best results. Not getting enough sleep is a huge factor in low energy levels.
5. Eat your breakfast. It’s true that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but unfortunately, it’s the most popular one to skip. You may think that if you’re not particularly hungry that it’s better to skip this meal so you can eat more calories later. However, such thoughts play havoc with both your metabolism and your energy levels.
· When you skip breakfast, it sends your body into a natural starvation mode where it consumes muscle mass to continue its normal processes. The small amount of energy you receive is at the expense of your muscles and other important functions!
· On the other hand, when you eat breakfast, you’ll feel more alert and energized and give your body the necessary fuel for the beginning of the day.
Bringing these strategies into your regular daily routine will enable you to feel more energized throughout the day. If using all of them entails too much of a lifestyle change, simply add them one by one. Sooner than you think, you’ll be enjoying the benefits of an unending source of natural energy: YOU!
Sleep Trumps Sex
So I’m willing to watch another show other than the Today Show, especially if they are talking about things that interests me.
The CBS Early Show had a segment on how many people are too tired to have sex. If you’ve been following my posts, you know I’ve been on the sleep soap box for a while. I think it’s the essential ingredient for life in addition to water of course.
Dr. Ashton reviewed some very useful sleep hygiene tips.
Notice what’s first on the list? Exercise. Spring is finally in the air, time to get moving.
I believe in the importance of sleep so much that I have a book in publication called Master Your Sleep, hopefully to be released late summer or this fall. Stay tuned.
Have You Lost Yourself as a Mommy?
Have you lost yourself as a mommy?
Do you have trouble simultaneously identifying yourself as mommy and sexy wife?
The Today Show has a segment on “Mom Hair” as a symbol of losing your identity as a woman once you become a mom. Although the title is about moms and their hair, the discussion touched on deeper issues regarding what happens to us after we become mothers and how we feel about ourselves.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
I thought this segment covers a very important issue of losing sexual (romantic) interest when you become absorbed in the day to day tasks of child rearing. For some women it can be a very difficult balance. I’ve seen women who aren’t clinically depressed, but still think there is something wrong with them because they just don’t get excited about their husbands or have the desire to look attractive.
Sure it’s not good to feel this way, but there is a reason for it. Think of it this way… Just as a phone call from your Dad is not an aphrodisiac (for most), thoughts of a crying baby at your breast or poop in your fingernails isn’t going to help either.
However some women may have a mild postpartum depression that can last for a while if left unaddressed. So if you’re really dragging around and feeling horrible about yourself, it’s probably worth it to get a professional opinion.
As Seen on TV
Check this out. I was on a local television show, Focus Atlanta talking about the link between depression and exercise. So glad to be able to get the word out about how important exercise is to your mental health.
For more information about my EZYWalk system, click here.
Eating Out at Restaurants and Staying Healthy
Restaurants are notorious for sneaking in unhealthy ingredients. Some people think that the only way to remain truly healthy is to avoid eating out at most restaurants altogether. Or perhaps you can only eat at restaurants that are geared solely towards maintaining health. This simply isn’t true!
The truth is that with a little research and smart thinking, you can enjoy most restaurants from fast food joints up to four-star establishments and still maintain a balanced diet.
Here are some important tips to keep in mind as you continue to enjoy eating out:
1. Look for the light menu. Every restaurant won’t have a light menu, but a growing number of chain restaurants are promoting light alternatives without much searching. You may even find light menus up on the fast food board. You’ll soon find that light doesn’t always mean you’ll be giving up flavor.
2. Take half your dinner home. Dinner is served in larger and larger portions all the time. Sometimes your meal won’t be unhealthy, but your portion size will be. To avoid overeating, you can simply ask your waiter to serve you half the meal and box up the other half for you to eat for lunch tomorrow.
3. Go grilled. One way to eat smart is to opt for grilled instead of fried items. Fried foods have gobs of additional calories and fat. Grilled chicken or fish make great choices because they’re lean proteins as well.
4. Avoid drinking extra calories. If you’re watching those calories, don’t forget to count the calories that you drink. Drinking soda products or alcoholic beverages while you’re out can add calories quite quickly.
- Choose water as an alternative and then you’ll only need to worry about the calorie content of your meal.
5. Be salad smart. You can choose a salad as your main dish as a way to eat smart. You’ll probably find that there are bigger salads on the menu beyond the house or side salad. Many of them contain a bigger vegetable variety or meat such as chicken.
- Ask them to serve your salad dressing on the side rather than on the salad. Then the amount of dressing you put on the salad is up to you. When it comes to dressing, a little bit can go a long way. Here’s a tip: avoid the creamy dressings. That’s the fatty stuff!
6. Appetizers can make the meal. If the restaurant serves tasty appetizers, you can order an appetizer as your main dish. If that’s not enough food, you might want to order two appetizers. Many times two appetizers will still be less food than a main course selection.
7. Choose healthy sauce. Be aware of how the sauce is made in the dish of your choosing. If you’re eating Italian, for example, choose an option with a tomato-based sauce. This will provide you with a bigger benefit than a cream based alternative. This is also the case when it comes to choosing your soups; avoid the cream based ones if possible.
8. Include fruits and veggies. You know that fruits and veggies are an important part of your diet at home, so you should continue to seek them out when you’re making your selections at a restaurant. Steamed vegetables can be a great side dish, and fruits can likely be ordered in place of a dessert item.
Keep in the mind the same healthy information you use when building your home meals while you’re out. Don’t be afraid to indulge yourself from time to time, but maintain an awareness of your eating habits and portions and you can’t go wrong.
Sustaining Life Balance
Stress that comes with the daily demands of a buzzling career and a domesticated life can make the concept of “balance” a myth for many people. Everybody’s natural reaction is to get overwhelmed by both expected and unexpected eventualities.
Balance in life can be achieved and sustained. Here are a few starting points to get there:
1. Synchronized Scheduling
Families, officemates and groups of friends can help sustain balance in their life by syncing their schedules. Often, this requires little investment such as putting up a shared calendar where members can scribble their appointments, activities and needs. A group calendar adds ease and organization into group activity planning.
Attempts to synchronize schedules can teach members of a group valuable lessons on reaching compromises and give-and-take arrangements.
2. Priority Sorting
It pays to review daily routines and omit the unnecessary. People are so caught up with the thought that there’s so much to do in so little time that they fail to evaluate the activities that comprise the routine. In deciding which activity to keep or cut, asking the following screening questions should help:
• Is the activity indispensable?
• Can the activity evoke positive feelings or can it compound stress instead?
• Does the activity foster well-being?
• Who benefits from the activity: one’s self or other people?
• How does the activity relate to one’s life goals?
By sticking to their priorities, individuals can have more doable schedules that allow a healthy interplay of work duties, family obligations and recreational treats.
3. Routine and Agenda Planning
Everybody loves excitement, but having an established routine helps keep individuals from procrastinating. Routines give people a sense of direction and order in their lives. The best planned routine is one that helps individuals stay on track with their life goals.
Today, the need for routine and agenda planning is more urgent for people who work from home than for those with regular 9 to 5 jobs. Work-from-home professionals enjoy a great degree of flexibility with their schedules, but sometimes this freedom can often lead to chaotic living.
4. Vision Setting
People need more than a fixed schedule to reach their goals. They must possess the drive to want to make their dreams a reality. Vision setting is crucial in this respect. It is possible for individuals to set different visions for themselves, their career and their loved ones.
Without at least one vision to anchor their existence on, people can wander through life aimlessly and invite mishaps after mishaps. Some common visions are:
• Acquiring a new vehicle
• Authoring a piece of work
• Earning a promotion
• Getting a pay raise
• Honing a newly discovered talent or skill
• Maintaining an ideal body figure or weight
• Sticking to a set budget
• Succeeding in a business venture
• Transferring to a new home
Visions foster a can-do attitude that enable people to seek out and actually work to achieve balance in their lives.
So, is it possible to lead a well-balanced life in today’s busy world? The answer is yes. People just need to work at it.
Tis The Season to Be Tense: Five Tips for Reducing Holiday Stress
Many people don’t realize that they really are in control of many of the factors driving their stress levels, even during the holidays when these factors become magnified. The first step is to take care of yourself first, then you’ll be able to meet the demands of others.
This year, is figuring to be a particularly stressful holiday season. Between the normal challenges of the holidays, this year’s economic environment will add even more stress than usual.
As if arranging and attending parties, deciding on the perfect gifts, dealing with family obligations, holiday travel through crowded airports and roads weren’t enough, this year we are going to do it all with fewer resources and even more pressure to do more with less.
Here are some tips to help get through this year’s holiday season with minimal stress:
- Don’t over-commit to engagements – the holidays can be filled with invitations to parties, gatherings, performances, etc. There are a limited number of weekend for the season, carefully plan your outings and make sure to leave room for downtime.
- Allow yourself to depart from traditions – sometimes family traditions such as extensive decorations and huge meals can put undue pressure on you to overdo it. Start your own traditions that fit more into your current lifestyle and are manageable.
- Make alternative plans for gift-giving – The pressure to buy the perfect gift can be exhausting. Consider alternate types of gifts – such as one day of yard work or some other service. This can save money and time. Also, shop online – this can help you avoid long lines in the stores or spending your already busy weekend pushing your way through the crowds.
- Make extra attempt to eat nutritiously – You will have many opportunities to have sugary, high-fat meals which can worsen stress. Take every opportunity to fit a fruit snack into your day or add an extra vegetable to your meal.
- Carve out 20 minutes each day to sit quietly and meditate – the stress of a busy day and schedule can overload the mind and lead to mental and physical exhaustion. If you slow down and quiet your mind each day, especially at the end of your day, you can sleep better and have more energy to get you through the busy season.
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