Manage Your Asthma And Get The Workout You Want

If you suffer from asthma, you know how scary it can be to exercise. It can be a challenge to differentiate between an asthma attack coming on due to shortness of breath, and the usual huffing and puffing associated with cardio. Take these tips into consideration if you do have asthma and want to work out.

• Talk to your doctor. Tell your doc what type of exercise you are thinking about, and see if he thinks that it is a good idea for you and your asthma.
• Go slow. Don’t worry about keeping up with others. Focusing on improving your workouts and conditioning on a daily basis.  Slow, steady improvement will give you the health, and quality workouts you desire.
• Get on proper medication. Check with your doctor to see if you are on a proper medication for your current needs, or ask if it’s wise to start a new exercise program on your current medication.
• Know when you should worry. If you are short of breath and your chest feels tight, most likely this is from a lack of conditioning and not your asthma. But if you start to pant, cough or wheeze, then you need to stop ASAP and use your inhaler.

You can still exercise if you have asthma. Getting yourself on track will allow you to stay fit and manage your asthma so you can breathe and be healthy.

Do you have asthma? What exercise tips can you share to help others?

Follow These Simple Tips To Improve Your Overall Health

You can improve your health just by making a few simple changes in your diet and exercise routines. Here are some easy ways for you to adopt a healthier lifestyle that are a breeze to do.

1. Switch to whole grains. Whole grains can reduce the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease.
2. Eat breakfast every day. Eating breakfast will give you the energy that you need for the rest of the day and also keep you from overeating at later meals.
3. Move it. Move your body to make yourself healthier. Moving will improve your focus, build muscle mass, keep unwanted weight off, and help you be more flexible.
4. Get a massage. Massages relax the body to help ward off stress.
5. Eat more fruits and veggies. Eating more of these healthy foods allows you to eat better during the whole day and studies have found that when you include plenty of these in your diet, you will make better food choices during the day.
6. Get at least 8 hours of sleep. No questions asked. Sleep helps to repair your body and makes you feel refreshed.
7. Drink up. Water that is. Drink at least 8 cups a day to flush toxins out of your body, help make you feel full, and give you energy.

These are all ways that you can improve your health. Adding a few of these to your daily routine may not seem to make that much of a change, but they will greatly improve your health.

Set Aside The Vegetable Oil And Reach For Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is a cholesterol free cooking oil derived from mature coconuts. Not only does it have a pleasant flavor, but coconut oil also has a nigher smoke temperature, making it a great choice when pan searing meats.

Coconut oil also has many potential health benefits, which include/may include:

• It may lower your risk of getting cardiovascular disease. (1)
• May improve cardiovasular health. (2)
• Bolstering the immune system. (3)
• Providing a boost to your thyroid. (4)
• Helping to speed up your metabolism. (5)

1 Kaunitz H, Dayrit CS. Coconut oil consumption and coronary heart disease. Philippine Journal of Internal Medicine, 1992;30:165-171

2 Prior IA, Davidson F, Salmond CE, Czochanska Z. Cholesterol, coconuts, and diet on Polynesian atolls: a natural experiment: The Pukapuka and Tokelau Island studies, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1981;34:1552-1561

3 Dr. Mary G. Enig, Ph.D., F.A.C.N. Source: Coconut: In Support of Good Health in the 21st Century

4 Baba, N 1982.Enhanced thermogenesis and diminished deposition of fat in response to overfeeding with diet containing medium-chain triglycerides, Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 35:379

Make A Public Weight Loss Or Workout Journal And Hold Yourself Accountable

It can be easy to quit when no one is watching. Most of us have mastered the art ofgiving up. How many times have you said to yourself: “I’ll start again on Monday”?

Next time you start, do it in the public eye. Make a training journal on an Internet forum, or start a public blog. Lay out your goals and ask others to hold you accountable.

You will find that by remaining transparent, and keeping a public journal, it will be easier to stay motivated and harder to quit. It can be humiliating to quit when the world is watching.

Don’t wait. Start today.

Have you tried keeping a public journal or training log? Did it helped you remained focused and motivated? Let us know in the comments section below.

Cultivate Your Motivation By Starting Your Day With Videos And Articles

Most of us find the motivation to start a workout or eating plan, but lose steam rather quickly. We grow overconfident and assume our motivation will last forever, but take no measures to assure that it does.

One of the best ways to keep our motivation strong is to cultivate it. The Merriam-Webster definition of cultivate is to foster the growth of. Foster means to promote the growth or development of.

To foster your motivation, try starting your day by reading a fitness or diet related article, or by watching a motivational video. By giving our lives a motivational jump start each day we are reminded of our goals and what we desire. On the other hand, the more we distance ourselves from our goals, the more likely we are to lose steam.

Let us know in the comments section if this tip has helped you sustain your motivation.

To Help With Motivation, Unchain From The Treadmill To Burn Calories

You do not need to remain chained to the treadmill or stairmaster to get results. Pick a form of exercise you enjoy. Walking the dog. Bowling. Ice skating. Dancing. Take a new class. Do Wii fit! It doesn’t matter what you do, just do something you enjoy. As long as you keep moving, your burning calories.

If you enjoy exercise, you are much more likely to remain motivated and stick with it. On the other hand, if you are forced to endure mile after mile of mindless treadmill grinding, you are far more likely to quit exercising altogether.

First and foremost exercise should be fun. Stop torturing yourself, step outside of the gym and burn some calories!

Have you lost your motivation in the past? Tell us about your experiences in the comments section below.

Set Proper Fitness Goals And Improve Your Workouts And Results

What are your current goals? Maybe you want to lose 10 pound by the start of summer. Or to build or firm up your arms so you can wear a tank top or show them off at the beach. No matter what your goals are, you need to know how to create a plan so you can achieve them.

So how do you do that? Follow these easy steps to formulate a plan and set proper short and long term goals.

• Make a plan. Have a clear idea in your head what you want to accomplish. Write the goal down on paper.
• Work on one to two goals at a time. Any more and you could compromise your other goals.
• Do not give up. If you fail, then learn from your mistakes and try again.
• Have parameters to your goal. It should not be too vague. Many use the SMART system, in which the goal is simple, measurable, attainable, realistic and time oriented.
• Tell your goals to others. This may make you more successful at achieving them.

Following these steps will allow you to work on your goals so you can make them a reality.

Reduce Your Calories By Making The Right Drink Choices

One of the hardest things for some people when they first start their weight loss journey is reducing their calories down to a point where the body will stop storing fat and start using it for energy. One of the easiest ways to reduce your daily calories is by choosing the right drinks. You’ll be amazed at how many calories are in a couple of large sodas or sweet teas, and how much of your daily calories actually come from these drinks.

Start getting used to drinking water. Water contains no calories. Always choose water when you go out to eat. If you need some flavor (and we all do) choose diet sodas. Diet sodas also have no calories and are a good choice for those looking to drop some fat. But keep in mind that diet sodas also contain caffeine and chemical flavorings, so drink them occasionally.

Improve Your Diet With This Acronym: Eat Less “CRAP”, Eat More “FOOD”

Here’s a fun tip in the form of an acronym that can help you to remember which foods to eat more of, and which foods to ignore. The acronym goes like this:

Eat less CRAP, eat more FOOD.

Eat less CRAP:

• C – Carbonated Drinks
• R – Refined Sugar
• A – Artificial Sweeteners and Artificial Colors
• P – Processed Foods

Eat more FOOD:

• F - Fruits and Vegetables
• O - Organic Lean Proteins
• O - Omega 3 Fatty Acids
• D - Drink Water

Focus On Fitness And Diet As A Lifestyle, Not A Program

We’ve all seen article headlines like this:

• 10 Weeks To Better Abs!
• 8 Week Fat Blasting Diet!
• Drop 15 Pounds In 2 Weeks!

Instead of seeking programs that provide temporary fixes, approach exercise and diet as a lifestyle. If you are only after short-term changes, and follow a short-term program, there’s a good chance that once the program is over you will resort back to your old habits. In fact, men and women who use short-term, fad approaches usually fall off the wagon and end up worse off than they started.

Seek out diet and fitness plans and programs that will fit well as a lifestyle. Set both short-term and long-term goals. Understand that once your short-term goals have been reached, the real work begins: maintaining your results.

Have you run a “quick fix” program only to have stumbled after you were done? Tell us your story in the comments section below.

3 Simple Ways To Prevent Weight Gain

Some of the best ways to prevent weight gain are the most obvious. Here are 3 common (and obvious) factors that might be hindering your ability to lose weight.

1. Liquid Calories – According to a study by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the average American drinks 37% of their daily calories. Imagine if you reduced this number by 70%; that would cut your daily calorie intake down by 400-700. Start by reducing the number of flavored coffees, fruit drinks, and sodas you drink each day.
2. Calorie Density – Think about this…800 calories of gummy worms would take you a half hour to eat. You would have to eat 6 to 7 potatoes to consume that many calories. The same goes for fruit juice: it’s easy to drink 500 calories worth of orange juice, but much harder to eat 8-9 oranges. Calorie density matters!
3. Underestimating Intake – The average individual thinks they are consuming 50% fewer calories then they actually are. This means if you think you are only eating 2000 calories, per day, there is a good chance you are eating 3000 per day. Take a week and count the calories for everything you eat. You might be surprised!

Have these tips helped you? Let us know in the comments section below.

When Arm Building, Work From Big To Small

When working your biceps and triceps, use the following rule: work from big to small. You want to work the biggest muscle group first, which is the triceps. After this you would work your biceps, and then finish with forearms. You also want to work the big compound-style movements before working the smaller isolation exercises.

Here is a sample workout that uses the big to small rule:

• Close Grip Bench Press – 3 sets x 6-8 reps. This is a big triceps exercise.
• Lying Triceps Extension – 3 sets x 10-12 reps. This is a triceps exercise using a “smaller” isolation-style movement.
• Chin Ups – 3 sets x max reps. This is a compound biceps movement.
• EZ Bar Preacher Curls - 3 sets x 10-12 reps. This is a biceps exercise using a “smaller” isolation-style movement.

Health Benefits you Might not know about Ginger

Ayurveda gives ginger the status of a virtual medicine chest, time-tested and digestion-friendly. 

Eating fresh ginger just before lunch stoke a dull appetite and fire up the digestive juice. 

It improves the absorption and assimilation of essential nutrients in the body

Ginger clears the microcirculatory channels of the body including pesky sinuses that tend to flare y  from time to time.

Even while feeling nausea,  chew on ginger preferably tossed in a little honey.

If your tummy moans and groans a lot under cramps,  munch on a ginger.

Reeling under joint pain? Ginger with its anti-inflammatory properties can bring relief.  Float some ginger essential oils in your bath to help aching muscles and joints.

Chewing ginger can help post-operation nausea

Stir up some ginger tea to get rid of throat and nose congestion.

Bedroom blues?  Try adding a gingery punch to a bowl of soup.

3 ways to use ginger :

Ginger & Herb Rice
Cook bamsti rice.  When you take the lid off the pan,  quickly stir in finely chopped garlic, ginger, green chilies and fresh cilantro leaves— the burst of flavor and fragrance will drive your senses crazy with desire.

Ginger in Your Juice
Grate some ginger root and put it in your juicer, along with carrot and apples and a little lemon juice.  Yummy and good!

Gingery Dessert
Even a smidgen of grated ginger on your vanilla panna cotta or strawberry sorbet can wake up the flavor!

Health is wealth,  add ginger to your course 

STEP 3 OF LOSING TUMMY FAT

3) Eat more healthy fats. Basically avoid saturated fats like lard, butter, animal fats. If you eat meat, be sure to remove the skin or blobs of fat before cooking or eating. Any fat that is a solid at room temperature is not good for you. Olive oil is a nice cooking vehicle if you want something fried or sautéed. Nuts, flax seeds, fish, fish oils, seeds and avocados contain healthy fats as well. This is another of those counter-intuitive facts. It seems like if we eat less fat, we’ll burn more. The truth is that our bodies need healthy fats to survive and if we don’t ingest healthy fat, our bodies will not only hold on to the fat we have, but actually may convert sugars to fats. Our brains and nervous systems not only require, but thrive on healthy fats.

STEP2 OF LOSING TUMMY FAT

2) Eat small meals or snacks regularly. Many experts recommend eating 5 meals or snacks a day instead of the traditional 3. This way you stave off hunger, you can eat smaller meals and actually have lower caloric intake without being hungry. Whenever your body feels hunger, due to our ancestral genetic code, our bodies change our metabolism to slow down and we actually store more fat. How wonderful is that to lose weight and not be hungry? Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, oatmeal … are full of fiber and low in calories – a wonderful snack every time!

Take A Daily Nap To Improve Your Energy

If you’re like most of us, a perfect night’s sleep is the exception rather than the norm.How many days per week are you able to get 8 plus hours of solid sleep? 

One of the best ways to revitalize your energy is through a daily 20-30 minutes nap. NASA performed a study and found that a 40 minute nap improved alertness by 100%. Another study on airplane pilots revealed that when tired, those who took a 25 minute nap ended up dozing off only 20% as much as if they remained sleep-deprived.

Here are some other “napping” benefits:

• Improves memory and learning
• Works to prevent burnout
• Heightens creativity
• Puts you in a better mood

How often do you takes naps and do they help? Let us know in the comments section below.

STEP 1 OF LOSING TUMMMY FAT

1) Drink lots of water. You’ll not only enjoy losing tummy fat, but you’ll have more energy, less body aches and pains, less injuries, and be less hungry. Some experts recommend 64 ounces a day. If you’re awake for 16 hours, that’s 8 ounces of water every 2 hours. When I was training for the Olympic trials in the Marathon, I used to set my running watch alarm to ring every hour. That was my reminder to drink a half glass of water. You don’t want to drink too much water and leach the minerals and nutrients out of your body by drinking a huge glass of water only when you’re super thirsty … just keep well hydrated by drinking small amounts of water regularly.

Losing Tummy Fat

Losing tummy fat seems to be the holy grail of weight loss.

Why does it just seem to stick to our middles forever … and in many cases, keep GROWING??!! The answer can be quite simple, and I believe it’s fair to say that the solution is not necessarily simple.
What I mean by that is that the simple solution to losing tummy fat is to burn more calories than we eat. Many of us know that. The content below contains the secrets, tips and ideas to make it as easy as possible for you to successfully lose belly fat. The KEY is for you to have the motivation, discipline and confidence to make changes in your life. We are here to help

100Words To Achieve World Class Fitness

This fitness gem is from Greg Glassman, the founder of CrosssFit: “World Class Fitness in 100 Words.”

Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat. Practice and train major lifts: Deadlift, clean, squat, presses, C&J, and snatch.

Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics: pull-ups, dips, rope climb, push-ups, sit-ups, presses to handstand, pirouettes, flips, splits, and holds. Bike, run, swim, row, etc, hard and fast. Five or six days per week mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow.

Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense. Regularly learn and play new sports.

What are your thoughts on the simplicity of this advice?

Avoid Unhealthy Diet Soda And Drink Water Instead

 

Even though diet soda contains zero calories, it is still not a very healthy choice. The ingredients in a typical can of diet soda includes:

• Aspartame
• Phosphoric acid
• Potassium benzoate
• Caramel color

Aspartame is arguable the most unhealthy food additive there is. It is an excitotoxin, meaning it has the potential to overstimulate and damage the brain. Phosphoric acid is a chemical that erodes tooth enamel. Potassium benzoate combines with vitamin C and sodium in the body to create benzene, which has been linked to several major health issues including aggravation of ADHD, and an amplification of asthma symptoms.

Lastly we have caramel color. While this chemical seems rather harmless, it features 4-methylimidazole which has been shown to increase cancer in mice.

So next time you’re thirsty, pass on the diet soda and have some water.

How much diet soda do you drink per day? Has this article convinced you to switch to water?

Trying To Lose Weight? Don’t Forget Proper Water Intake

Drinking water can help you lose weight. Most people think that only exercise and diet play a role in weight loss, but proper water intake is a requirement as well.

Water can help make you feel full, and it also works to flush out toxins from your body. You may also feel an increased desire to eat when your body is really just thirsty. So the next time hunger strikes you, make sure to gulp down a large glass of water first before hitting the kitchen.

Ice cold water is the best, because your body has to burn extra calories to digest it. And if you are currently working out, your body will sweat, so you will need to replace that water so your body can run effectively.

So how much water should you be drinking? Common wisdom says that you should drink 8 cups of water a day. This rule works for some of us, however, water intake does depend on how much you weigh, as well as what type of climate that you live in. If you live in a hot climate, you will want to drink more water. And if you exercise more, then you will need to take this into consideration as well and replace the water that you are sweating out.

You can also use the rule that you need to drink half an ounce of water for every pound that you weigh. So if you weigh 150 pounds, aim for 75 ounces of water daily. Keep in mind that you can include food in this count as well, since many foods, such as watermelon and lettuce, are full of water.

How much water do you drink per day? Let us know in the comments section below.

Control Your Eating By Learning Proper Portion Sizes

We have all been told that to lose weight we must practice proper portion control, but how many of us know what a proper portion size actually looks like? The following visual cues are easy to remember and can help you practice proper portion control.

• 3 ounces of meat is about the size of your palm or a deck of cards.
• 1 cup is about the size of a baseball.
• 1 tablespoon or ounce is about the size of your thumb.
• 1 teaspoon is about the size of your thumb tip.
• 1 tennis ball is about the size of 3/4 cup of veggies or fruit.
• 1 handful of snacks is equivalent to 1-2 ounces.
• 1/4 cup is about the size of one egg.
• 2 teaspoons are about the size of a ping pong ball.
• 1/2 cup is about the size of a computer mouse.

Increase Your Daily Protein Intake By Knowing The Amount In Common Foods

Are you eating enough protein per day? We have all heard that protein is required for muscle recovery and repair. It is also an essential part of the muscle building process. Despite these benefits, most of us are underestimating out daily protein intake.

To help you reach your daily protein goals, here are some common foods and their protein content:

• Large egg – 6 grams
• 4 oz chicken breast without skin – 26 grams
• Chobani no fat Greek yogurt, 6 oz container – 16 grams
• 1 cup 2% milk – 8 grams
• 1 piece of string cheese – 7 grams
• Tuna, 6 oz – 40 grams
• Bacon, 1 slice – 3 grams
• 1/2 cup of cottage cheese – 15 grams
• Beans, 1/2 cup cooked – 7-10 grams
• Peanut butter, 2 Tablespoons – 8 grams protein

What are some of your favorite protein foods? Let us know in the comments section below.

To Build A Better Body,Focus On One Goal At A Time

Most of us have multiple goals. 

We want to build muscle and lose fat. 

Over the long-term both of these goals are achievable. But over the short-term,if you focus on reaching too many goals at one time,you’ll likely hinder your progress on each of them.

Instead of trying to plan your diet and exeercise around multiple goals, set aside a period of time and focus on one goal at a time. Perhaps you are overweight but want to build muscle. Train hard with the weights but put your primary focus on losing fat. After you’ve lost the desired amount of fat, plan a solid muscle building diet and focus on that goal.

If you are carrying around only a little extra fat, it is probably beneficial to focus on muscle building for a while. After you have added the amount of muscle mass you desire, then strip away the fat.

Remember this mantra: the more streamlined your focus, the better your results are likely to be. Pick one goal at a time and get after it!

Did this tip help? Please let us know in the comments section below.