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Category Archive: Articles

Feb 27

How to be healthy

A roller coaster - that’s what life looks like in nowadays modern societies. Trapped in the same routine many people want to know how to be healthy, while squeezing most out of life. But it’s a process of trial and error, where we chase our tails around the maypole. Simply put, trying to live healthy nowadays is such a demanding process that in a way many are compelled to even try.
 
The food we are exposed to, the same regime of unhealthy habits we are more and more acquiring over time; the way society tilts towards unhealthy behavior; the way young people perceive the whole healthy living idea as something foreign to them; the high amounts of stress accumulating over time…
 
It’s like I said, a roller coaster. A disharmony of things overlapping each other in a way that should, but somehow is not compelling to most. Is it a general lethargy? Or a more linear approach towards problem solving nowadays? Really no one knows. But the thing is that once the benefits of healthy living are felt, the whole thing is seen from a different angle, and that first step seemed worth taking.
 
Being healthy is the most important thing of all. And to achieve that a healthy lifestyle is implied. You see those people eating right, jogging, swimming, going for a hike in the weekends, and think “well, it is not for everyone”, or “how they are pulling this off?” The thing is that one can in fact live healthy while having time for everything else in the world.
 

So how to be healthy?

 

  • Eating right

     
    This is really a cornerstone of health and wellbeing. You know the one “everything you put inside will reflect on you”. That’s really so. Imagine that your body is a temple, and in that temple you allow only the good things to enter. It’s more than hard, nowadays, to restrain from all that exposure to unhealthy food, and distance ourselves from the way everyone eats. But, doing that one step at a time will in turn result in healthy eating habits, that will improve your life more than you ever thought. Eat fruits and vegetables most of all, center your main meals on protein intake, and drink lots of water. Try and avoid anything that contains chemicals of any kind, and you will be amazed of the results.

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  • Physical activity

     
    The second thing when someone asks how to be healthy is to be physically active. And here there is no excuse. We all have a lot going on; all of us claim that there is no time. But no matter how busy anyone is, taking less than an hour to make room for some exercise is crucial if we want to be healthy. Everything may go under this banner. Jogging, long walks, some stretching in the comfort of your own room… You name it, it really doesn’t matter. Everything that makes your hearth go faster will do the trick. Here is a link to “how important exercise really is” if you want to read more on the subject.

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  • More time for yourself

     
    No, this does not imply solitude, but rather spending some time just for you, organizing your life. And what to do in this time frame? Well, you name it. Breath, meditate, read some book, let your thoughts drift away… What you find most suiting, really.

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  • Rule out stress

     
    Yeah right, like you’ve never heard this before. But the thing is that many of us are presented with countless ways how to achieve this, and still doesn’t apply any. Try and do this for a change:
    Do something that will help you fight whatever stress you have even today. Go on the net and find something that helps, and instead of postponing it for tomorrow or some next day, do it today. It’s the first step that will pave the road.

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  • Positive outlook on life

     
    Things are the way you see them. And that’s really it. The way you perceive everything around you will have a huge impact upon your wellbeing. And make no mistake; this is a fundamental rule about how to be healthy. Here is a trick - go and search for people that will contribute to your positive outlook upon the world. Find them, surround yourself with them, and this will make your views upon the world even more believable and real.

 
Wanting to live healthy is one thing, but doing so is completely another. However, the first step is to want that enough, and then learn how to do it. When you ask how to be healthy the answer is really simple. Just go and learn about it, and then implement your knowledge. And then it’s easier than you think. Here is homework for you- just go and see if you can implement some of the things above for starters. Chose something that you are more likely to stick to, and then you will come to realize that living healthy is not that hard at all. Before you know you will doing all the things mentioned above, and that will answer your question about how to be healthy.

 
 
 
 

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Feb 24

Work related stress

work related stressWhen talking about stress related problems, the first thing one assumes is their connection with the work or work environment respectively. And more or less that’s really the case. No matter whether it is only general concern or something more complex, the thing is that every problem that occurs within the work space can affect people more than for example something happening outside of work.
 
So the focus falls on work related stress. Or at least some minor changes in mood that can for sure develop more and more if passed unaddressed.
 
On one hand jobs that are considered to be more complex, important and at some extent more volatile are known to be more stressful according to studies, than jobs that are seen as more laid back and less paid. But on the other hand, the same less stressful jobs are more risky, and more often than not poorly paid.

 

Study shows that less demanding jobs can bring the same amount of work stress

 
A study published last year in the journal “Occupational and Environmental Medicine” points out that exactly these kinds of jobs are the ones that give high amounts of stress, but in a slightly different way. The risk that comes along with having such poorly paid and supported job is the same as the one of having your head spinning from the efforts you put into high paid and more complex professions. Here maybe not directly, but the job is again effecting your well-being and.

 

Make some changes

 
In order for you to cope with this problem of stress management at work, few things are recommended. The Huffington post advises more free time for yourself. Or in other words, start looking into various time management techniques.
And i agree completely with that, and may also add that spending time with your family, friends, or only your significant other may help quite a lot in relieving the stress.
 
Exercise can also come in handy, and if done on regular basis can in fact diminish your stress related problems and the excessive amounts of work stress. In general you should try and change your habits, Improve your lifestyle by diversifying it, try out things that will make you more relaxed. By doing that not only you will change your lifestyle, but rule out stress for good.
 
 
 
 
 

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Feb 22

Jogging towards a healthier lifestyle

Jogging is really just a fancy word for a form of running, consisting of slowly and steadily focusing on maintaining a similar rhythm during longer distances, with intentions on building up stamina and resistance, while also a highly effective way of burning calories and to some extent losing weight, among the whole other number of positive stuff.
 
The role of jogging in one’s quest for a healthy lifestyle along with the eternal question “How to be healthy“, was rapidly popularized during the second half of the last century, probably as a counterweight against the almost parallel increase of the obesity rates in the world’s most developed countries.
 
So, the running i.e. jogging from a second nature of the earliest humans, crucial for their survival, through the ancient world and the mythical runner Pheidippides considered as a father of the marathon, through the middle ages, to this modern time, descended to a level where people have to constantly explain the benefits of jogging as one of the simplest, natural, elementary form of exercise. Isn’t that just downright sad…
 
But the cool thing is: it’s never really too late for you to engage in this fun activity. Although with age the bone structure and the bone connecting ligaments lose their strength and flexibility, the jogging as a light exercise for maintaining the form and the fitness, is not only totally safe, but also recommended. Of course, with considerably lower intensity and duration.
 
As for the others, younger ones, there is just no excuse for you not doing it already.
Why? Well, let’s see:
 

The benefits of jogging

 

    Sheer satisfaction of doing a favor to your body.

  • It’s no secret that after long jogging, you feel satisfied, almost proud of yourself, while also keeping the positive mood, ending with a smile on your face. It’s all caused by a certain chemicals called endorphins, which can cause that cheer euphoria at the end. So, getting high while doing something truly good for you, what are you waiting for?
  • Burning a lot of calories and possibly losing weight.

  • Jogging is in fact one of the most effective way of burning the excessive calories, and it’s certainly a funny one, ok, maybe not as funny as swimming, but still, while this fact alone, also puts you on good track with losing that extra pounds in your body, to achieve this you must do just one little simple and paradoxically, herculean, task, try to keep the number of calories you burn, higher than the ones you consume. If that condition is not fulfilled, not even running for three years like Forrest Gump is going to help here.
    With that in mind, mixing jogging with short sprinting is one of the best methods possible for fat loss. This high intensity interval exercise will additionally aid you in your battle with that annoying excessive fat.
  • Building up your stamina and resistance level while also toning the muscles.

  • There is not whole much explaining here, obviously the more you jog, the better for your stamina and body resistance, e.g. increased duration for the next jogging session.
  • Significantly lowering the triglyceride level, high blood pressure and blood sugar.

  • It’s well known that jogging has a positive effect on these conditions, in fact it’s the one of the recommended exercises for this purpose.
  • As a cardio work out.

  • Your hearth will pump more blood and oxygen, which makes you feel fresh and full with energy. Just a little fact you already probably know, also closely related to the first point I made in this list.

 
Unfortunately, nothing is perfect, (apparently :|), so you should also take a look on the few potential bad things.
 

The potential health hazards:

 

  • There are multiple recommendations against running excessively long distances, i.e. more than 40 miles, as there are high risks for an injury. Simply said, DON’T jog more than that. Try to listen to your body signals, your body knows best when you should take a break.
  • Fainting can be caused by high intensity jogging, complemented with a lack of water and oxygen. It’s really just a simple matter of passing over your body limits again.
  • Joints pain, in your knees and/or ankles, the most common form of jogging injury. Something that can be quite painful, and really common amongst joggers.

 

Fortunately, one can always take some recommended precautionary measures in order to put the risk of injuries to the minimum. Which are they? Read along.

 

Minimizing the chance of any injury:

 

  • Regular hydration, small amounts of water every 15-20 minutes. Keep in mind that too much water before or during the jogging can cause some discomfort.
  • Breathing regularly, you should try finding your rhythm and synchronize the breathing with the speed of jogging.
  • Warming exercise before and after. For beginners it’s usually best to start the jogging with some walking, gradually speeding up and maintaining the tempo to the end, with a similar gradual slowing down, and walking for a couple of minutes until the final stop.
  • Everyone with some past injuries, especially on knees and ankles, should ask for doctor’s permission, because of the ever present risk of aggravating the injury. Or maybe consider starting it slow on a treadmill, should be considerably safer. But, again, your doctor’s opinion on the matter should come first.
  • Running shoes can lessen the impact of the foot with the ground and probably save you from some injuries or pain on the long term. Especially if you’re jogging on rough terrains.

 

And that’s about it. The first couple of weeks can be the most difficult, feeling somewhat uncomfortable that period, while the brain and the body are still accustoming to the new routine. The best thing you can do is to take somebody with you, jogging with someone else is so much funnier than jogging alone. Although, there are certainly a bunch of people who prefer jogging alone, listening to music or some motivational speech on their phones or iPods… In the end, it doesn’t really matter, whatever rocks your boat.
And remember, it’s not just an opportunity for a better lifestyle, it’s an obligation towards your body, ergo yourself.

 

Have you been jogging before? How do you feel after it ?
Share your opinion with us in the comments below.
 
 
 
 
 

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Feb 20

How important exercise really is?

Now many would ask, what for? Well frankly, everything. Not only athletes and models need to work out. It’s an inevitable part of a healthy lifestyle, habits, and really a complete individual by default.

 

If you are serious about promoting your lifestyle in general, and taking it to the next level, you will not fail to realize that this is something that you should include without question. Nowadays we are presented with the picture of a person working out, jogging, doing some sports, and many people copy that without ever thinking what is behind all of that. But I guess that’s really OK. However, on the other hand the rest never try to embed this picture in their lives.

 

So it’s important for them, as well as for the first ones to understand how physical activity, especially planed, is something that we should not only incorporate in our lives, but know the benefits from it as well.

 

And there are bunch. Just read ahead and you will see how much you are missing on stuff, if you are not the fan of doing some exercise.

 

First of all we must realize something. Working out, and exercise is NOT doing some heavy bodybuilding as some may think. It doesn’t have to be boot camp hard. It is downright peculiar if you go behind these excuses. It is not true that the more complex the exercise, the more numerous are the benefits. Actually everything that makes your hearth go faster, or breaks you some sweat can go under this category. And that’s really it.

 

It’s something that everyone can do. Not a biggie there. So the excuses of the type: “That is not for me”…forget about them. The lethargic nature of some of us is just trying to lure us furthermore in that circle. You just need to start. The benefits are so overwhelming that this post is not long enough for them to fit here. However, I’ll do the best I can in order to explain some of them.

 

Exercise in lifestyle

 

First of all consider this: Physical exercise is something of a visible achievement. How come? Well, no matter what you do in order to improve your lifestyle, this is perhaps something that is visible the most. You are witnessing your own improvement, your own success just by seeing yourself exercising, and others can witness the change in your lifestyle too. That alone is maybe the most encouraging thing. Every time you have the feeling that you are moving in a straight forward direction. And it just feels great.

There is sometimes a tough line to draw- between going outside of your comfort zone and exploring some new stuff (ones that can in turn change many aspects of your life), or enjoying the familiar and never try to undertake any change whatsoever. If you are now at crossroads thinking whether or not you should investigate how exercise can add up to quality of your life in general, I will advise you to go for the first option instead of the latter, and leave things up to you from there.

 

Now about the health related benefits:

 

Here maybe I should forward you a link to a book, or resend you to Wikipedia. There is that much. But here are some of them that maybe sound more important in a way:

  • Coping with the overweight problem… We all know that all of the solutions here start and end with physical exercise. More calories are burnt, more fat is used, and muscles are toning, thus speeding the whole process.
  • Bad Cholesterol is lowering, the cardio system is having a nice exercise, and by that many hearth related conditions are less likely to occur. It is proven that only with a mild change in your exercise routine, your chances of never having hearth problems are tripled.
  • The lungs are starting to increase their capacity, bringing more oxygen into the body, your breathing is improved in general, and by that you really don’t need antioxidants, your body is taking care for all of that.
  • Hmm, what more? Oh, the immune system of course.
    Don’t let me start on this one. Tell you what, instead of going on and on about how this is affecting your immune system, I’ll try something else. Start with doing some exercise in the comfort of your own home. Or maybe go for a speed walk, or jogging. One week. That’s all it takes. Only one week, and you will see. The ones, who do some physical activity I guess, are probably nodding along now. They know what I’m talking about. Being active, actually keeps me well and healthy during flu season, and throughout the winter when the immune system is more dormant in general. The body will instantly raise its shield and you will come to appreciate the update you’ve just made to your lifestyle.

 

So if after all of this I add things like lowering the risk of osteoporosis, promoting bone health, lowering back and neck pain and many others, you probably get the picture.

 

Another thing that is also worth mentioning is improving cognitive focus. And boy, oh boy, do I like this the most. You will come to realize that with adding some exercise in your daily routine, nothing would be the same again. You will be more alert, all the time at your best. The attention to anything that surrounds you will never go down, no matter if you have to be stuck let’s say in the office for whole day. “Exercise can make you far more alert”-said Robert Brooks, PhD and co-author of “The Power of Resilience: Achieving Balance, Confidence, and Personal Strength in Your Life”. “And I’ve noticed that when I don’t exercise because I’m trying to squeeze in another half hour of writing, I don’t feel as alert.” That’s right; the physical activity actually brings your brain more focus. And what’s more important, it’s on the long run. The effects here are usually visible after just couple of days.

 

However, maybe the most important benefit that exercise has nowadays is the ability to cope with stress. And there is no better remedy for that. The perfect combination of chemical processes that happens during some activity (among which is the release of endorphin in our system), mixed with focusing on the moment and letting your worries drift away is the most powerful weapon against stress, period. Also sound sleep comes along with this one under the same category. You will never, ever have problems with falling asleep. How that sounds?

 

Oh, and the looks. We all like this one. Exercising tones your muscles, burns the fat from your body. It actually keeps you young in a way. And makes you look great. This however is achieved by being persistent and applying this on the long run. But the results are great. It’s worth the while.

 

And just if I haven’t convinced you so far, how about this: We see many successful people adding this to their daily routine. It’s a known fact that most of the presidents of each country have time especially dedicated to some physical activity during the day. And that’s each and every day. And if they can do it, given the schedule they have, than I guess I should say no more.

 

Try it for a week, and you will soon be addicted. You will use every chance you have to go for a quick run, or maybe some tennis session, or workout in the comfort of your own room perhaps. You will enjoy.
 
 
 
 
 

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Feb 17

The benefits of swimming

 

The swimming as an act of moving your limbs through water has been known to humanity for over 7000 years. Although the benefits of swimming used as a physical and mental exercise were discovered only couple of hundreds of years ago, when it also became a sport and the competitive swimming started to take place in Europe and soon after, in the rest of the world. Today it is a very popular sport, and also a great addition to one’s lifestyle in more than one way.

 

The health benefits of swimming

 

Swimming is probably the only exercise which is fun to do that at the same time can actually cool your body instead of heat it and works out every muscle of the human body (if one uses more diverse techniques of swimming). And the best part is that you are in fact making the best compound exercise possible without stressing your body and taking it to the limits.

 

The higher density of the water compared to the air, impose us to use more force while exhaling and inhaling, increasing the vital capacity of the lungs i.e. the maximum amount of air a person can expel from the lungs, thus highly recommended for smokers, people suffering of asthma or some similar diseases. You see, aside of the fact that you are enjoying, your body will also benefit a great deal, and will be grateful to you a lot :)

The temperature difference between our body and the water helpfully affect the thermoregulation of our body as well. The water pressure also positively affects our blood vessels, enforcing their capacity to transport blood to the heart. And it turn every muscle is constantly provided with blood and oxygen. That alone makes swimming one of the best exercises there is when it comes to muscle growth as well as a kick-ass cardio.

 

On the bigger picture, it’s great for our endurance and general fitness, and in regard to the cardio, this alongside with running is considered to be the king of cardio. And it’s actually used with great success by athletes as a rehabilitation activity after injuries as well.

With the right approach in the early years, creating a habit of swimming and overcoming the fear of water is a perfect recipe for enabling your kids a long and healthy life. Some studies even suggest that the swimmers actually tend to do better in school too…It also affects the growth and the shape of the child’s bones, making it a highly recommended and a very useful activity for the kids.

Psychological benefits of swimming

 

The psychological benefits of swimming are just as important as the other health benefits of swimming. With our lives becoming faster, more demanding than ever and more stressful, the swimming can serve as a brilliant escape capsule. Imagine you, floating in the crystal clear blue water, letting your thoughts about the world drift away while getting all the stress that’s been bothering you the whole time out of you… It sounds pretty awesome right?

 

It sounds awesome, because it is awesome. So, the next time you’re wondering what to do in order to update or improve your lifestyle, don’t forget to include swimming in your possible choices. I’ve been swimming for a while now, and can tell you for sure that it certainly act as a stress killer ;) Just by starting, like for a day or two, you will see the results yourself, and soon be addicted.

I mean have you ever asked yourself why you feel so much relived while staying for a week or two at the beach. Some studies show that just by looking at the water the stress can be reduced a great deal. So imagine you go swimming couple of times a week… Wouldn’t that do the trick?

 

And to be honest I’m really not familiar with an activity that can increase your endorphin levels so much. And that cuts stress in its root. I mean with being a strength exercise and at the same time a tremendous cardio workout it is probably the best when it comes to that. So all of you folks who never considered swimming, I bet you will start now, because as you can see it can offer you a lot of benefits, fun, and can transform your lifestyle a great deal. You must try it to know what I’m talking about. The benefits of swimming are just too much to simply be ignored in your pursuit for a healthy lifestyle.

P.S. I struggled to convince my friends some time ago, but now they are really addicted.

 
 
 
 
 

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