Get in Shape with Ballroom Dancing

 

“Dancing with the Stars” is here again and I’m already hooked. Besides the music and star power that the show is filled with and the fact that most of the stars have not danced professionally before there is one other thing that is amazing – the professional dancers don’t have an ounce of fat anywhere on their body. Who would think that ballroom dancing can produce such a workout, but it’s actually one of the best physical fitness programs available.

 

Most people, me included, are intimidated by the gym. So why not try ballroom dancing instead and enjoy getting in shape. There are several types of dances involved with ballroom dancing, ones that involve twirls, kicks, twists, and bends. In fact, ballroom dancing gives you the opportunity to move your body in a way that you would otherwise never experience – not even in an aerobics class.

 

And most of all – it’s a lot of fun and a great way to meet people from all walks of life. You’d be amazed how many young people are taking up ballroom dancing now, too – it’s not considered old-fashioned to know how to dance those slow romantic stylish dances at the prom anymore!

 

Check your local papers or on-line and see if you get hooked too!

Getting in the groove again

It’s been a while since I wrote my last post. It’s been really busy around here but I had a really good summer and would love to say I’m ready for winter however that would not be true. My garden is just about ready – all the leaves are raked and put in bags. The grass is almost clear – clear enough that the remaining leaves won’t hurt it during the winter. My car is ready – winter tires are on and the winterizing has been done. So if I can get my garden ready for winter and my car ready for winter why can’t I get myself ready?

I’m working on it. This winter I hope to relax and enjoy the season. I’m not an outdoorsy type but a good walk always makes me feel better. Last winter I must admit I vegged but this year I’m working on my painting and writing. I find it relaxing and gratifying and given the state of the economy and all the worries surrounding us these days we all need to find a relaxing outlet. So mine is painting. I have my easel set up, my water colors ready, my brushes are just waiting to be used and I’m really looking forward to getting down to some evenings and weekends of relaxing creativity.

I just might put some of my paintings on my blog.

The best way to lose weight naturally and stay healthy

Losing weight is really a pain in the neck especially when it’s a direct order from our doctor. Then we have no choice. We’ve all heard the famous “in your condition you should lose at least 10 pounds or you’re in for major problems” speech from our favorite doc! 

 

There is no prescription he can give us either. We have to go out and find the best way to lose that dreaded 10 pounds or face the consequences. Word of mouth leads us to the famous diets: Atkins, Low Carbs, no carbs, lots of carbs and all the other kinds that are available in the great world of weight loss programs. And with all the best intentions we buy the books, follow the diets and are really happy when we actually start losing weight! 

 

So we’re obviously on the right track aren’t we? Our friends comment on our slowly reducing figure, we start feeling really good about ourselves and plan shopping trips to look for smaller sizes in clothes. All is going well, so how come at the next yearly check up the doctor is still telling us to lose weight and now its 15 pounds not 10!

 

Did we stick to our diets? Yes and no, after the weight started coming off we probably figured “hey, this is easy” and forgot that we had to keep at it. And to be honest sometimes it was just annoying giving up things we liked! The whole weight loss process starts again but now we’re older and I believe it’s harder to lose weight, and fat in particular, as we get older. The exercise circuit is great for those who like exercising but what about those who don’t like exercising?

 

 Do we give up? Heck no, the doctor is breathing down our necks ready to make us spend a fortune on pills to keep down the blood pressure, regulate the diabetes and all kinds of other things that we can get just because we’re over-weight.

 

 As we already know from our experiences there are a number of diets we can try with   short term success and we are looking for permanent success not short term any more. 

 

 Well, believe it or not there is a weight loss program that not only will get us losing weight but allows us to continue eating the food we like and more often. It’s called Strip That Fat.

 

 Strip That Fat ends the annoying cycle of dieting forever. In fact we can start experiencing great results within two weeks of starting the diet. The fantastic thing is that we don’t have to give anything up. So we continue to eat healthy, nutritious foods all the time. 

 

Within two weeks you should see the inches disappearing from our waists, we’re losing ugly fat and hopefully receiving compliments on our new toned down figures again. The neat part is that no-one will realize we’re dieting because we’re eating the same foods as usual. One year passes and we’re still on the diet, by this time we’ll have learned all the secrets about losing weight that we will ever need to know and keep the unwanted weight off. 

 

 If this sounds unbelievable it isn’t. Over 210 million people are over-weight in the United States alone today and the ages range from pre-teens to seniors. Weight problems effect old and young, rich and poor and are easily remediable by learning to eat properly.

 

For more information about the Strip That Fat program: Click Here!

 

 

 

 

Gardening my way to summer fitness

The first day of summer is less than three weeks away and after such a long winter I’m ready for it and with a little exercise my body will be ready for it too.

 

I’m not an exercise junky – in fact I am just the opposite. Exercising to me is really hard work. So once the winter left and spring is here I have settled into my version of exercise. It’s quite easy and everyone can do it and I get a great start on my suntan too.

 

My work-out is my garden. A little bit every day – even in the evenings after I come home from work during the week -works wonders! The great thing about my exercise regime is that I don’t need any fancy equipment I just need a garden trowel, a bucket, a shovel and earth – and a bottle of sun tan lotion and a hat for my head if it really is too hot.

 

I’m not a great gardener but I find is relaxing and have to admit that the results are really lovely. But, how does this hobby count as exercise. Well, gardening includes, amongst other things:

• walking around nurseries and gardening centers picking out the plants that will be part of my garden. I have a lot of walking going backwards and forwards from each of the flower beds when I planting the flowers
• bending and stretching when I’m planting the flowers, reaching for my tools, digging holes for the flowers
• weight-lifting – the bags of earth are really quite heavy and getting them out of the trunk of my car is quite an effort. I have bought four so far!

And all of this is really good for me and I enjoy far better than going to a gym to do exactly the same kind of things. I don’t lose too much weight but some of the winter flab gets toned down.

 

Being out in the fresh air is a wonderful feeling too even on the dull overcast days. The real bonus comes when the efforts really start to take hold and the garden starts to grow and flowers bloom. Now that makes it all worth it and what a boost to my self-esteem to look around my garden and be able to say, hey I did that!

Natural sources of Vitamin D

It’s that time of year again – spring-time. Spring is a little late this year but yesterday I heard the geese flying over – and that’s a very good sign. Also, the snow that has completely covered our front lawn in five foot drifts for the last two months has now receded enough to show the crocus’ poking their heads through the ground. I planted them close to the house so they get the warmth from the afternoon sun.

 

This brings me to the subject of my blog – the sun and its natural health benefits in the supply of vitamin D.

 

Although there have had some really sunny days this winter the sun’s strength during these months is not strong enough to give us the amount of natural vitamin D we all need.  

 

In recent years a number of studies have been made on vitamin D: how much should be taken and how often, etc. Some conclusions seem to be that more vitamin D may be better than less – and that though the sun is a great provider of natural vitamin D…it’s not enough.

 

So where else can we get natural vitamin D that we so urgently need besides from the sun – and what happens if we don’t get enough? Are there any foods that can help in supplying vitamin D naturally?

 

Which foods contain natural vitamin D?

Unfortunately, not many foods contain significant sources of natural vitamin D. Sources, after natural sunlight, include:

• dairy products – D-fortified fat-free milk;
• oily fish including salmon, tuna and sardines are also good sources,
• ready-to eat-cereals fortified with 10% of the daily value for vitamin D are also good,
• margarine, vitamin D fortified
• Vitamin D is found in the yokes of eggs, and,
• liver and beef.

Be careful of products made from milk, even though milk is vitamin D fortified it does not mean cheese and ice creams also are fortified. It’s always best to check the labeling.

 

What happens if you don’t get enough vitamin D?

One of the obvious problems was seen in the 1930s when rickets was a major health problem especially in children and older adults. Nowadays the lack of vitamin D can lead to osteomalacia, which results in muscular weakness in addition to weak bones.

 

Research also suggests that vitamin D may help maintain a healthy immune system and help regulate cell growth and be beneficial for some forms of cancer.

 

As in all cases before starting to increase your intake of vitamin D it is always best to check the requirement levels which differ depending on your age and gender. The Internet has all the information you need – just type Vitamin D into any search engine. Always make sure there is no interaction between any medications you are presently taking and vitamin D.

 

The sun is the best source of vitamin D. It is beneficial for us if we can get a maximum of ten minutes exposure without sun-screen about twice a week. However, once the ten minutes is over we have to put on the sun-screen or there will be other problems!

The numerous benefits of drinking tea

According to the British a good cuppa tea is the answer to any of life’s problems. I’ve always drunk tea. I love tea! I started drinking tea when I was young and have continued ever since. Little did I know that by following such a tea drinking tradition I was also benefiting myself with one of histories most beneficial drinks!

According to legend the first cup of tea was an accident – in China leaves dropped or flew into a cup of hot water and the rest is history. Can you imagine an industry and empire was built on such a small quirk of fate?

Once tea had been “discovered” the Chinese quickly figured out the medicinal benefits and these were in great demand before it became a popular drink. When tea arrived in Japan the Japanese took tea-drinking one step further and made it into an art-form with tea houses and tea ceremonies.

Fortunately for us the Chinese and Japanese secret did not stay a secret for long (only about 900 years or so!). According to history Europeans eventually were introduced to tea as an exotic medicinal drink by the Dutch East India Company in 1610.

Popularity of tea in Britain began about 40 years later with tea being advertised as a health beverage and that’s where my interest comes in now. The claims were and still are true – tea contains powerful antioxidants needed by our bodies to help fight the famous “free radicals” that are in the body just ready to mess things up and harm our healthy cells causing heart disease and cancer among other things.

 

Is one kind of tea better than another? The answer to this will depend on who you talk to. All true teas (those made from the tea plant) are rich sources of antioxidants. The richest is Green tea mainly because of the way it is prepared – it is the least processed of the three. It is made solely with the leaves of the tea plant that has undergone minimal oxidation during processing whereas the more popular black tea is partially dried, crushed and fermented. For more information about Green tea and its multiple benefits  Click Here! and check out the Complete Guide to Green Tea. Recently scientific and medical studies have been conducted on tea, (of any kind so long as it is from the tea plant), to find the benefits of the drink as it pertains to our health. Among some of its “medicinal” benefits tea may: lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, slow down the spread of prostrate cancer, lower risk of some skin cancers, reduce risk of hypertension, and boost the body’s defenses. 

Who would have thought that lovely cuppa that I have been drinking for most of my life actually was a good thing for me? A cup of tea nowadays is far more reasonably priced than when it first appeared in the coffee-houses of England but the natural health benefits are still worth their weight in gold!  

The internet contains many interesting sites on tea, its history and its medicinal benefits. For more information on this and lots more check out www.essortment.com or www.2basnob.com and follow the links.

So grab your favorite cup, your favorite choice of tea,  boil the kettle and sit back, relax and enjoy! 

And for those going to Britain on holidays this year, make sure you pop into a tea house for afternoon tea!

Cold season is here

No one can argue that the winter of 2007/2008 has been one long hard winter. The snow storms, the record low temperatures, followed by record high some weeks have taken a toll on every one. And to make matters worse the latest rumor is that the cold and flu season is just about beginning. Its seems to me I’ve met a lot of people with colds already and the emergency room of our local hospital was filled last week with lots of patients wearing face masks! So because I meant most of the week there with my father – not because of colds – I figured there was a good chance that I would a cold too! So far I’m still cold free, which brings me to the purpose of this blog…how can I prevent a cold when I’m surrounded by suffering souls like those in the emergency room?

 

Well, believe it or not, natural cold prevention hinges on the usual three simple steps that seem to be a common thread in all my blogs: good nutrition, regular exercise and good sleep. And, if one of these is missing there’s a good chance of infection. The main goal is to keep the immune system up and running so that at the first sign of infection it can fight it immediately.

 

Maintain a good daily diet – including soups in winter, (don’t forget chicken soup even if you think the stories you’ve heard are just stories, they aren’t), include high protein foods in your diet example eggs especially the Omega-3 kind where available – they may cost more but are worth the extra. Fruits and vegetables should be part of your diet at all times but never more so than at this time of year.

 

Sleep is very important – an eight hour uninterrupted sleep for adults and more for children. If you’re tired and run down while still trying to maintain a busy schedule at home and the office then it’s harder for your body to fight off infections.

 

Exercise is needed at anytime of the year and definitely when the cold season arrives. If you can’t get to the gym (I don’t even belong to a gym!) then be creative. The walk to the office from the bus or subway is good exercise, park your cars further away from the office, walk around the house … etc. Also, drink lots of fluids especially water.

 

What happens if you do catch a cold? Get lots of rest, take natural medicines rather than over-the-counter cold medicines (these tend to mask symptoms and can have negative side effects), and if you have lost your appetite then make sure you keep nourished by drinking juices such as fresh juices or water. And as I said above, don’t forget the chicken soup it really does help. Specific home-made natural remedies in dealing with colds can be found in Home Remedies for Better Health. For more information Click Here!

Healthy weight control

A healthy weight level is essential if we want to prevent major health problems.

Weight problems are the major cause and indication of such illnesses as heart disease, cholesterol, type II diabetes. It’s in everyone’s best interest to reduce weight if your over-weight and to maintain a sensible weight at all times.

Personally, I don’t have a problem with over-weight; my problem is more maintaining a good weight level. My weight is my main indicator for any health problems. Ten years ago, my immediate loss of weight signaled that I had a health problem. If I had not taken any notice of this signal it would have been too late to do anything about my kidney cancer. After my operation, when I was on the mend I continued (and still do) to monitor my weight for any more warning signs -  and believe me I take notice immediately!

Maintaining natural health is a personal thing. Only I can prevent health problems. I can listen, I can read, I can nod my head and agree with all kinds of advice but in the final analysis only I can do what is necessary to stay healthy. Common sense is all part of our make up and its there to use – and its free!

The main objective is to make sure that we are maintaining a sensible nutritious diet that contains all the necessary food groups in order to stay healthy. Monitoring your weight is something only you can do and it should be done at least once a week. Any changes see your doctor. If you do have to lose weight check out the Mediterranean Diet link shown in Helpful Information.

Nowadays, besides selling their products the major food companies are providing ways to stay healthy. For instance, a really interesting booklet arrived the other day in one of the magazines entitled Managing Cholesterol from Quaker which included articles on cholesterol and weight control. It also included a neat Quaker Cholesterol Challenge. For more information go to www.quakerchallenge.ca

Some say there is really no reason why anyone these days should be over-weight. There are books, clubs, piles of advice and diets readily available. The internet is also a fantastic source of information on everything including it’s all there waiting to be found. Take notes, start clubs – bottom line – be healthy!

Exercise plans for natural health

Exercise if one of the few ways you can naturally keep healthy. I for one am not an “exercise means join-the-gym” type of person. I’m not exactly a couch potato – more like a computer potato! So if you’re like me what do you do for exercise?

Be creative – that’s what you do! And make sure you keep moving!

I work in an office and do not have the luxury of getting up and walking around all the time – if I did I’d never get my work done then I’d have to work late and … etc. But I do move around as often as possible and not just to get a coffee! Meetings are held on the floor above mine so I use the stairs instead of the elevator.

During the summer the patio on the roof of our building is available for lunch and again the stairs are used to get to it. Also, I believe it is important to get moving right after lunch in order to digest my food properly and not be sleepy and lethargic for the rest of the afternoon.

At home, we have lots of stairs, stairs to the basement, stairs to the bedrooms, and stairs to even get into the house. So I can get lots of exercise just by doing the washing because the laundry room is in the basement!

I have a huge garden where there are lots of chances for exercise – there are steps to get to the garden too!

Going out on the weekend to a club can also be a kind of exercise if you do more dancing than drinking! Think about it and you’ll find that not only will you enjoy the atmosphere but it’s healthy too! Make sure it’s a smoke free club though.

My challenge to myself this year is to get out into the fresh air more – for instance, on weekends leave my car in the driveway and walk down to the shops.

I live near a lake and park – it should not be hard to take a picnic and enjoy the outdoors. A few years ago I looked after one of my nieces during the summer and we would go down to the lake and paint – it was quite an experience and lots of fun. It’s amazing how many people came to check out our “masterpieces”!

The main thing is to stop procrastinating about exercise and to start doing it. The amazing thing is that once started it can be quite addictive and lots of fun.

There are many web-sites that provide information and tips on how to take steps to improve your health naturally. If you want to see an interesting 15 minute daily exercise program go to http://jema2014.fitdaily.hop.clickbank.net/

Keep healthy by natural prevention.

Natural health is really a matter of keeping healthy by prevention. Did you know that if everyone took the steps necessary to ensure good health we would save governments (which ultimately means us tax payers) millions of dollars a year in medical costs?

 

So what steps are necessary?

 

I believe the primary steps include: maintain a healthy diet, exercise, sensible number of hours sleep and keep a positive outlook on life. The last one this is very important. You can easily achieve the first three in this list but without a positive outlook it makes the job harder.

 

And that is exactly what keeping healthy by natural means is about – it’s a job! And it’s not a nine-to-five job – (if you’re lucky enough to have a job like that nowadays). It’s a 24/7 job, and only you can do it yourself.

 

I find that I can get lots of advice and read lots of books and really be gung-ho about doing all the right things but then I don’t do anything – to paraphrase Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the wind – “I’ll worry about that tomorrow!” Not a good attitude!

 

How can I change this kind of thinking? I think it’s done by habit. It’s not easy to begin with but if I schedule things daily then after a while it becomes a normal occurrence. After all eating three meals a day becomes even more of a habit if eaten at exactly the same time each day!

 

Let’s be honest, I’m not the kind of person that likes a regimented, schedule driven life that is timed to the minute so I go slowly – yes – I still worry about things tomorrow but at least I am doing something positive about my health without the need for doctors’ prescriptions and the like.

 

Information about natural prevention can be found at www.prevention.com