Avoiding These Will Lead to Weight Loss Success
You are not alone in your journey to lose weight and knowing where to begin can be a daunting task. So here are a few things to avoid which will assist you in your journey. Avoiding them, even at the most difficult of times, will help you reach achieve diet success and reach your weight loss goals.
* DO NOT check the bathroom scales everyday!!
We’ve been told over an over again that weighing ourselves daily is never in our best interests, yet many of us can not resist stepping on that scale every morning. If you just can not bring yourself to toss the scale in the trash, you should definitely familiarize yourself with the factors that influence readings. From water retention, to glycogen storage and changes in lean body mass; daily weight fluctuations are normal. These are not indicators of success or failure.
* DO NOT let emotions drive your eating
In our first few hours in this world we begin to learn to associate food with love, nurturing and warmth. With that said, it’s not surprising why many people confuse hunger for food with their hunger for emotional fulfillment. Take a moment and think about your eating patterns. Do you eat when you are anxious, frustrated, bored, angry, sad, and lonely or even when you want to celebrate something? Often during these emotional times, eating increase and the foods that are chosen are not always in our best interest (fatty, salty, sweet and/or high in calories). Food should only be used to nourish the body, not the soul.
* DO NOT lose site of reality
Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is important for good health. But a healthy weight is not necessarily the one that is suggested based on a height/weight chart! There are many techniques for estimating a healthy weight. We recommend that you get your goal for the lowest weight you have been able to maintain for at least one year, and then set your milestones to be 10% of your current weight until goal weight is reached. This will allow you to keep all goals within reach and allow for times of celebrations as milestone are achieved.
* DO NOT skip meal
Skipping meals is like skipping out on sleep, just as your body slows down and becomes tired so does your metabolism. And when you are dieting, you really want focus on keeping your metabolism revved up. You do this by eating consistently and regularly and not skipping meals. Skipping meals also sets you up for failure at your next meal. You will be so hungry, and eat so quickly that you will eat far more then your body requires and/or really wanted.
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Menopause Symptoms And Solutions
You’ve recently noticed some changes in your physical appearance, your level of energy and/or your overall mood. Could it be that these changes are associated with menopause? If you’re a woman approaching middle age, yes, the symptoms you’re experiencing could very well be associated with menopause, even if you’re still having regular periods. You see, as you approach menopause, your hormone levels begin to decline, which will obviously result in many of the symptoms you’re currently experiencing.
Obviously, the onset of menopause affects every woman differently, and symptoms can range from being very mild and hardly noticeable, to extremely severe and uncomfortable. Common symptoms of menopause include hot flashes or night sweats, difficulty sleeping through the night, weight gain (especially around the mid-section), vaginal dryness, mood swings or depression, feelings of confusion and hair thinning on your head. You’ll not necessarily experience all symptoms associated with menopause, but it’s quite likely that you’ll notice at least some changes occurring as you approach this time in your life.
Fortunately, there are remedies available to lessen these symptoms and make life much more comfortable and even enjoyable as the menopausal years approach. If you’re like many women, there’s a strong possibility that you’ll want to do all you can to reduce the severity of your symptoms by making a few simple lifestyle changes. For instance, if you’re experiencing hot flashes, try to avoid triggers that can contribute to the frequency and/or severity of this annoying and uncomfortable symptom. Many women have reported that consuming hot or spicy foods, alcohol and caffeine can bring on hot flashes. Additionally, feeling stressed or simply putting yourself in a situation where you’ll be in a hot place can contribute to the onset of hot flashes. If you’ve noticed that this is the case for you, do what you can to avoid these triggers. If you can, try to get into a regular exercise routine, as physical activity and exercise have been shown to reduce the incidence of hot flashes.
If you find that your sleep patterns are no longer patterns at all, but instead broken and interrupted periods of restless sleep, there’s a good chance this can be blamed on your declining hormone levels as well. If you want a good night’s sleep (and who doesn’t?) it’s a good idea to get at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day. Don’t, however, do so near your bedtime. Similarly, you’ll want to avoid smoking, consuming large meals and working right before you turn in for the night. It’s recommended that you keep your bedroom dark, quiet and cool so that you’re more likely to stay asleep once you’ve gone to bed. If you should happen to wake during the night, it’s a good idea to get up and read until you’re sleepy enough to fall back to sleep.
If you’ve experienced mood swings associated with premenstrual syndrome (PMS), there’s a greater likelihood that you’re sensitive to hormone changes and will, therefore, probably notice some moodiness and memory problems as you approach and experience menopause. Staying active and getting a sufficient amount of sleep will certainly help to alleviate these symptoms. Not only has exercise been proven to reduce or eliminate several symptoms associated with menopause, but it has been my own personal savior as I began gaining weight, experiencing night sweats and becoming moody and lethargic. When I began a regular exercise routine, one which included weight bearing exercises, the overall improvement in my physical and emotional states was absolutely astonishing.
Of course, some women will simply need to turn to other solutions to eliminate or lessen the severity of menopause symptoms. Vitamin E and some herbs have been known to reduce the incidence and severity of hot flashes. If you should choose to consider vitamins and herbs to assist with your menopausal symptoms, it’s a good idea to work closely with someone who is quite familiar with herbs and vitamins to ensure that you adjust your dosages as needed.
Hormone replacement therapy can help women who are experiencing more severe and difficult symptoms of menopause. As with many treatments, hormone therapy poses some risks, in addition to the possible benefits. It’s best to discuss the pros and cons of hormone therapy with your doctor so that you’re better able to make a well-informed decision regarding this treatment. If you should decide to use hormone therapy, try to use the lowest dose that helps you, and for the shortest period of time needed.
Remember, this can be the start of a wonderful period in your life. Treat your body well and the results will be extremely beneficial now and in the future.
Susan Megge is the founder of 40isbeautiful.com www.40isbeautiful.com, a website designed to assist mature women as they approach and experience menopause. Susan Megge started experiencing symptoms of perimenopause and menopause several years ago and researched various avenues to deal with these symptoms naturally. This led to the discovery that menopause a very manageable, and even wonderful time in a woman’s life. Susan Megge is the author of “Being Beautiful Beyond 40,” a book dedicated to helping women to be inspired, confident and beautiful as they approach menopause.
Stretching: The Most Needed and Under Utilized Component of Physical Fitness
What’s the first thing a cat does after she wakes up from one of her many naps? Right, she stretches her body. You should take lessons from her because she is still flexible and supple even though she is aging.
Keep your ankles flexible and strong and your balance improves. Keep your pelvis flexible and strong and your back pain will lessen. Flexibility plays a serious role in staying active as you age. By staying more flexible you will appear younger and you will be able to do more of the same things you did when you were younger.
The old adage about if you don’t use it you’ll lose it is very important when it comes to aging. As you age, you naturally get stiffer for many reasons; disuse is the main one, arthritis is another common complaint, and tight muscles due to inactivity. There is a decline in flexibility as you age, particularly if you are inactive, due to connective tissue changes in the muscles, ligaments, joint capsules, and tendons.
Because you walk less, you get stiffer, and being stiff causes you to move less. It’s a vicious circle. You should incorporate full body stretches into your daily routine. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you will become more flexible and supple.
Flexibility is one of the five components of being physically fit. Muscular strength and endurance (muscular fitness), cardiorespiratory fitness, flexibility and appropriate body composition (fat to lean ratio) are all components of being fit. De-stressing is another factor that is sometimes added.
Flexibility work will help you maintain joint range of motion. Make sure you do wrist and ankle circles to help with mobility.
If you are still driving, it’s very important to keep your neck moveable. If you can’t look over your shoulder to see where you are going when you are backing up—you are in big trouble.
Aging is associated with changes in the elasticity of the connective tissue and these changes result in a significant decrease in flexibility and range of motion. Although declines in flexibility and active range of motion are noted in most seniors, there is definite evidence that suggests that the decline in theses areas are due mainly from disuse, and that not all older individuals lose flexibility at the same rate.
Stretching exercises that emphasize range of motion and flexibility have been shown to increase ankle, knee and lower back flexibility.
Examples of flexibility exercises for ankles would be ankle circles along with pointing the toes away from the body and then pointing them up toward the ceiling. While most people prefer doing these exercises while sitting—I dare you to do them while standing and challenge your balance as well. If these exercises are not practiced, you’ll lose the ability to pick up your feet when you walk and you will tend to trip over them causing stumbling and ultimately falling.
To keep your knees flexible and strong, try sitting in a chair and then stand up. Do this at least ten times and then rest. Do another set if you are able. This exercise not only strengthens the knees and keeps them flexible but it also strengthens the quadriceps (front of the thigh). By keeping the quadriceps strong, you will be able to take care of yourself and remain independent.
Using an exercise ball is the best way to keep your pelvis flexible and strong. Just sitting on the ball is a challenge for most folks and doing just that is very good for you. As you become more comfortable on the ball, start moving your hips in a circle trying not to move your knees. Pretend you are in a box and make sure the ball touches each wall of the box. Be sure to change the direction of the circles and do equal amounts each direction. You’ll probably favor one direction over the other—that’s normal. By keeping your pelvis flexible and strong you will lessen the chances for back pain.
Domestic animals have the luxury of stretching after they nap because they know that they are going to be fed and be taken care of. However, I was watching a juvenile moose this morning and when she got up she went right to eating. I think survival is the first thing that comes to mind in wild animals. Since you are domesticated—you should take the time to stretch and relax. Yoga and Tai Chi are just a couple of class suggestions that will help with flexibility, balance, and strength.
A good rule of thumb is to stretch the muscles that you work. When you stretch after working out you will alleviate the possibility of blood pooling in your extremities so that you avoid muscle cramping later in the day.
Nothing improves your mood more than exercise. Your body longs for movement and when you give it what it wants it will reward you for years and years!
Bonnie Murphy is a healthy lifestyle coach for mature bodies. Bonnie is certified as a group exercise instructor as well as personal fitness training through the American Council on Exercise (ACE), the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA), and the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America (AFAA). She has been in Anchorage since 1968 and has been in the fitness business 27 years. In May of 2006 she was chosen as Fitness Ambassador to Alaska by the 50-Plus Lifelong Fitness organization. Bonnie writes about fitness regularly for Alaska Wellness magazine and Alaska Women Speak, has written two e-books about exercise and aging, publishes a monthly e-newsletter, and has various fitness articles posted on the Web. Contact her at 907.229.7652 or Email: mailto:bonnie@bfitandwell.com bonnie@bfitandwell.com Visit her website: bfitandwell.com bfitandwell.com
Acne at this Age? But I’m No Longer a Teenager!
Contrary to some myths about acne, pimples are not for only teens going through puberty and hormonal upheaval.
In spite of the fact that they may the highest percentage of the population that may have to cope with unsightly pimples, acne can affect just about anyone and speaking from personal experience, if left untreated or un-prevented, acne can be just as debilitating physically and emotionally on adults as it is for teens.
Actually, adult acne may even be more devastating since there’s no excuse such
as “it’s just puberty, you will outgrow it….” I guess all the people who tried to console me as a teen, who sadly had to deal with acne till I was about 22, were wrong. They meant well, but were still wrong.
Now, adult acne plagues 25% of adult males and up to 50% of adult females, though it is often not recognized. Consequently, how to effectively control this predicament is obviously necessary.
Although, conventional treatments of acne for adults and teens are what a good deal of the population turns to, based on my experiences and dare I say common sense, what worked for me was and is a natural acne remedy.
Since treatment and control for adult acne does not differ drastically from that for teens, with drug-free healing, these simple steps could be used by anyone coping with acne problems.
1. First and foremost, I care not what some sites and product endorsers say about how diet doesn’t affect acne; you have got to make a change in your eating habits, plain and simple. You are what you eat. If you want to have clearer skin and the added bonus of improved health, of course eating right will be essential. That said: Fruits and vegetables friends. Shop more in the produce aisle and steer clear of the snack stands at the cash register. It’s worth the sacrifice and this forms the basis of an internal acne treatment right there from its root cause.
2. For external acne-care, you could learn such simple tips as facial massaging and exercises. However, (now I’m speaking from what I went through and believe me I had acne BAD…) simply washing your face with nothing but clean hands and plain cool water may perhaps be the most efficient way to clean the pores. Combined with the facial massaging and occasional steaming of the face, this will be very sufficient to clean the skin.
3. Change your pillowcases daily and make sure you have a towel exclusively for your face or you could employ the use of paper towels.
4. If you use greasy hair-products, shampoo the hair before retiring or at least use a clean do-rag to hinder the introduction of oily substances to the pillowcase and inevitably your face while asleep.
5. On that subject, try to also sleep on the right side. Besides checking against contaminations getting on the face, this is great for the heart and lungs and allows for a better and restful sleep (which co-incidentally helps with controlling acne.)
6. For males, when shaving, shave in the direction of the hair-growth (mostly downwards) and for an after-shave procedure, look into face massaging and occasional facial steaming as well.
7. For females-Avoiding the use of elaborate and inadvisable makeup regimens is advised. Besides, the clearer your skin becomes, you will see less of a need to have to spend time using make-up. It’s safe to say most guys like you ladies- you know…natural.
8. Deal with stressful situations amicably. This is another topic into itself but briefly these work: Proper diet (factor #1), proper thinking habits and exercise. For stress, allow me to mention Yoga-don’t have the space to explain why, but friends, with its sun-exercises and its derivative, Hindu push-ups, Yoga is awesome for stress-relief.
Adult Acne can be frustrating and embarrassing, but with the steps above, take it from a guy who went through it and doesn’t anymore, you definitely will be on the path towards clearer skin.
So empower yourself with the use of these tips to be free from adult acne starting today.
In Friendship,
Foras Aje is an independent health researcher and founder of