Health and Fitness and Doing It Pain Free

When it comes to health and exercise maybe you have this image of you just munching through tons of salads, nibbling on raw carrot sticks... and generally eating fairly boring food.

If that's what you're thinking, I have some good news: Eating raw foods does NOT have to be boring. All you need is a little creativity and some special kitchen appliances to create some pretty amazing dishes. Read on...

Blender: If you're drinking whey protein shakes, you may already be using a blender. You can use this blender to make your protein shakes more interesting, such as by adding oatmeal or bananas to the shake. Or you can make fruit smoothies (for breakfast or anytime). For example, make a strawberry-banana smoothie. You can add flax, oatmeal or just about anything else to the smoothie for extra taste, texture and nutrients.

Juicer: If you recall from back in the nutrition lessons, I mentioned that you should avoid any juices that have added sugars or other ingredients. That means you should avoid most juices, because most of them are processed. And sometimes it's hard to find fresh juice.

Here's your solution: Get a juicer. Not only can you make your own fresh orange juice, grapefruit juice and other fruit juices, you can also make vegetable juices (like carrot juice) and seaweed juices. You can even combine different fruits and vegetables. For example, you can use a juicer to create carrot-orange juice or strawberry-grapefruit juice.

Food Processor: Yes, you can do everything with a set of kitchen knives that you can do with a food processor. But the thing is, you can do it much faster with the food processor. In other words, a good food processor can save you a lot of time on cooking day.

Now, obviously, if you're making just one meal, then it doesn't make sense to haul out the food processor. That's because you need to take into consideration the amount of time it takes to clean the machine when you're finished. For a small amount of food (a meal or two), any time savings you create over using a knife is lost in the time it takes to properly clean the machine.

Point is, it's a great time saver... but only if you're using it on those days when you're doing some bulk cooking. Food Dehydrator: While cooking nuts, seeds, fruits and veggies using high heat will rob the food of its beneficial enzymes and some of its nutrients, you can "cook" the food using low heat. In other words, you can dehydrate your food (preferably using a food dehydrator, since your oven probably doesn't have a low enough temperature setting).

Snack idea: You can dehydrate fruits to make fruit chips, like apple chips or banana chips. Then mix your dried fruits with nuts and seeds for a delicious, nutritious snack.

That's it for this time. Next time you'll find out what to do when you want to get more muscle...

Looking forward to talking to you again.

Have Health and Fitness Smartphone Apps

Health and exercise gurus who have weak knees for technology have reason to rejoice! These days it seems there is a smartphone app for just about everything, including personally training, dieting, and tracking medical records.

We have done the research and found the best health care apps for your iPhone, BlackBerry, or Android. These apps make exercising fun, calorie counting easier, and medical research a snap.

Workout Apps

The iPump series for iPhone is a set of five apps designed to make pilates, yoga, stretches, abs and core exercises, and cardio workouts easy. Complete with pictures and step-by-step workout directions, these apps also make it easy to track workouts.

Blackberry's iFitness app has pictures and instructions of more than 230 exercises that target different areas of the body. The app also has features for logging workouts, creating custom workouts, and setting goals.

GymTechnik for Android is an excellent app that takes users through workouts, uses checklists, keeps statistics to help with goal setting, and so much more!

Exercise Tracking and Goal Setting Apps

iPhone lovers looking for an easy way to track their workouts and set goals need look no further than Pocket Coach . This extremely robust and pleasing-to-the-eye app has daily exercises, a goal calendar, accountability reports, push notifications, and even a suggested reading section.

The Total Fitness app for the BlackBerry is the perfect way to meet exercise goals, track fitness progress with graphs, view reports, see exercise animations and instructions, and even track nutrition.

Android users should download the WorkItOut app so they can start logging workouts, scheduling routines, and see their progress.

Running Apps

LogYourRun is an app that routes runs, complete with maps and elevation. It also has the ability to upload workout information to the company's website to present running information as graphs. Users can share their running data on Facebook and Twitter and can even have updates automatically sent to Twitter while they are running. The app also features training programs, a heart rate counter, and playlist options.

For BlackBerry and Android fans, SportyPal is the king of running apps. Users of this app can view their workout on a map, set goals, share their progress on Facebook and Twitter, see their progress on graphs, and more. This feature-packed app can also be used for walking, biking, and even rollerblading.

Nutrition Tracking Apps

With the amazing, and almost unbelievable, app called FoodScanner users can actually use the camera on their iPhone to scan UPC codes on foods to get nutritional information about foods. They can also track their caloric intake, sync with the company's website for more features, and keep a list of favorite foods for quick access.

BlackBerry users can use Calorie Counter to find nutritional information on foods, keep a dietary journal, track daily activity to see burned calories, and keep track of what they are eating.

Calorie Counter for Google Android is a great app for finding nutritional values of foods by searching by food name, restaurant name, grocery store name, and even restaurant name. Like the iPhone app, this app also lets users scan UPC barcodes with the camera on their phone and find nutritional information quickly.

First Aid Apps

iPhone users can have peace of mind when they download Pocket First Aid & CPR from the American Heart Association . This app has instructions for emergency procedures, first aid checklists, and so much more.

The Complete Home First Aid Course app for the BlackBerry prepares users and trains them in how to handle poison cases, heart attacks, wounds, bites, shock, how to perform CPR, and that's just scratching the surface.

The First Aid app for Android does much the same thing and includes videos, illustrated instructions, and a place to store emergency numbers.

Medical History Apps

Imagine sitting in the doctor's office and having your medical history right your fingertips. The Family Care app for iPhone makes that possible. The app organizes medical history, immunizations, personal information like height and weight, blood pressure, allergies, prescriptions, insurance information and so much more, all by family member.

BlackBerry users can download the My Family app and keep track of virtually the same information, so their doctor's visits can go smoothly and be effective. Users can enter information including medical conditions, personal information, medications, immunizations, allergies, and more.

The motionPHR Health Record Manager is perfect for Android users looking for a way to keep their medial history, conditions, family history, immunizations, and more handy and easily accessible.

Medical Resources

The WebMD Mobile iPhone app is the ultimate go-to resource for medical issues. Users can research symptoms, cheek for possible drug interactions, and get instructions for first aid procedures.

BlackBerry users can use Medscape to research drugs and possible interactions and supplements. The app also provides medical news.

Skyscape is an excellent resource for Android fans looking for a way to find medical information. The app includes information on drugs and medicines as well as a medical calculator.

Improve Your Health and Fitness- Go Caveman!

I am going to tell you why you need to behave more like a cave man in order to stay healthier and happier. Read on cave people......

Over aeons of time, our bodies have adapted to cope with survival in a harsh environment. Although we achieved civilization thousands of years ago, our bodies have not evolved to adapt to this change. If we imagine ourselves back in the distant past we would have eaten less sugar, salt and fat in a year or more than we now eat in a week or less. We would have eaten a diet of meat and fish, mostly vegetable matter, fruit, berries, nuts, seeds and roots. We would only have drunk water, and may have sampled the splendour of honey. Foods would be rich in fibre, some protein, essential fats, vitamins and minerals, but low in sugar, salt and saturated fats. We would have been in almost constant motion; playing, working, foraging, preparing food, but rarely staying still. (I think that it is important to remind ourselves that our body is designed to be active, but that we often think of exercise as formal, vigorous, structured pursuits. It can be easy to persuade ourselves that going swimming or playing football twice a week is enough [and so we have an excuse for driving to work and to the local shops]. And although it is great to do these things, we can stay fit and healthy without a gym membership, just by doing everyday movements; walking, cleaning the house, and gardening, and yes I shall say that well-worn phrase- leaving the car at home.)

Don't think that our person from the past would have been feasting on jumbo mammoth steaks Flintstone-style all day long either. Meat may have been in scant supply for much of the time (have you ever tried to catch a rabbit?) and women and children spent a large amount of time foraging for nuts, roots, berries and vegetable matter. Everyone would have been involved in acquiring food, and all methods of obtaining food would have used large amounts of energy; you have to cover wide areas to provide enough food for a family. Even when farming became a way of life huge amounts of energy would have to be invested in producing the fruits, vegetables and animal products. Animals too would have been reared on a diet of more complex foods rather than modern high-energy processed feeds. It is thought that their meat would have been much less rich in saturated fats and so healthier for the people consuming it.

Food production would have been part of every day life, unlike today where food arrives pre-packed, smothered in cellophane, produced days, weeks or months ago in a factory hundreds of miles away, glazed with wax, identical in size and colour to its neighbour, lacking any aroma, and likely to be lacking in nutrition. Our imaginary person would have experienced real, largely unprocessed food, and a varied seasonal diet (no strawberries at Christmas for Ms Caveperson). It is likely that they would have a relationship with what they had produced. If you ever grow your own fruit and veg you will understand how exciting it is to watch things grow, then how good it feels to harvest and prepare them. People would have wasted nothing- all parts of every fruit, vegetable or animal would be used for something, almost nothing was unusable; today in the UK one third of our food is thrown away and wasted, out of every 2 bagged salads purchased today, one will go in the bin (sounds familiar?).

Another aspect of our imaginary person's relationship to food is the social aspect. People would have produced and processed the food together, celebrated harvests and abundant times, and eaten together as a family or group. Children would help the adults, and learnt how to grow and prepare food ensuring that they would be able to look after themselves as adults. Meal times may have been the only time when the extended family would be gathered together to swap the day's news, gossip and stories. This way people eat more slowly, and eat less allowing their body to feel full and satisfied. Food would have produced social bonding and been a central and essential part of social life.

Life would have been hard, and still is for many people today who have to provide their own food, and so I don't want to over-romanticise this imaginary person. However, I think that this person from the past is a useful tool for understanding what our eating and activity profile should be more like if we wish to be healthier and happier. There would have been no slouching on a sofa in front of the TV, no Chicken Dippas, micro-chips, and definitely (and thankfully) no Pringles. Our imaginary person may not even recognise these things as food.

Underneath it all we are still cave people, our bodies and brains have evolved to take nutrition from simple whole foods, we thrive on human contact and still feel the need to eat together and share food, and our bodies are healthier if we exercise consistently. We need a diet rich in whole foods, in raw foods, and home cooked foods. We should pick foods which are low in sugar, salt and saturated fat. If you are doubtful about the validity of a food, ask yourself how far-removed it is from its natural state, could you make it yourself, would it have existed a hundred years ago or more? If the answer is no then the chances are that it is not very healthy. We need to explore the excitement of foraging for food, growing it and preparing it, we need to rediscover the simple pleasures of podding peas, chopping fresh herbs, picking blackberries, and making pickles and jams.

We can support our 'tribe' by walking down to the local fruit and veg shop, and visiting the local butcher or fishmonger, by using our farmers markets, and supporting local growers. (For each £10 spent in the UK £6 goes into the pocket of Mr Tesco*; local shops are closing, and farmers are making little money due to the pressure placed upon them by supermarkets). We need to get back to the camp-fire and share family food times together, making eating a natural and loving social event where family and friends can interact and bond.

I am not suggesting that you go out and jump on a rabbit and sink your teeth into it, but try to think about the true importance of good food and exercise, and the way that we can improve our health and fitness, enrich our lives and support our community and the environment at the same time. Take a step back in time this week; walk down to the farmers market or the local shops, buy some local produce, take it home and cook it carefully for some people that you love. Unplug the TV and have a good long dinner by candlelight, taking time to talk and enjoy the food. I guarantee that you will feel healthier and happier, and Mr Tesco is hardly going to starve without you!

I hope that this gives you some food for thought,

10 Brain Health and Fitness New Year's

You have survived the 2007 shopping and eating season. Congratulations! Now it's time to shift gears and focus on 2008...whether you write down some New Year resolutions or contemplate some things that you want to let go of from last year and set intentions and goals for this year - as is a friend's tradition on the winter solstice.

To summarize the key findings of the last 20 years of neuroscience research on how to "exercise our brains", there are three things that we can strive for: novelty, variety and challenge. If we do these three things, we will build new connections in our brains, be mindful and pay attention to our environment, improve cognitive abilities such as pattern-recognition, and in general contribute to our lifelong brain health.

With these three principles of brain health in mind - novelty, variety and challenge - let me suggest a few potential New Years resolutions, perhaps some unexpected, that will help you make 2008 a year of Brain Health and Fitness:

1. 2008 Primaries and Elections: If you haven't yet done so, register to vote - active participation is good for your brain health. But, before rushing out to vote, take some time to think through the criteria you want to set up to evaluate who deserves your vote. Don't let politicians and their spin doctors set your agenda. Ask yourself, what matters most to me? What type of President do I think we need? Why? I personally find it quite intriguing that no candidate so far is resurrecting the "It is the economy, stupid" mantra, and proposing solid plans to get our economy back on track.

2. Next time out shopping: Don't let advertisers treat you as if you were Pavlov's Dog - remember the dog that was trained to salivate automatically every time a bell rang. There is a whole industry out there trying to make you buy stuff on impulse. Notice your reactions to a movie trailer or a TV ad Resist. Be the true "Decider". For bonus points, once you learn to identify and manage your own buying impulses, try explaining this to your kids...

3. Reading habits: If you usually read non-fiction, try something new this season. Pick up a good fiction book. Or vice versa. For bonus points, subscribe to or simply read a new magazine, perhaps one that your partner craves? It will help you understand another perspective.

4. Learn about the Brain: Pick up one of the books in the Science section in your bookstore. In the unlikely scenario that you read as many brain-related books as I do, pick up some Russian poetry book and let's discuss this instead.

5. At work: Find, or create, an intellectually and socially stimulating new job for yourself at your current workplace or a new one. Engaging work has been shown to contribute to lifelong cognitive performance. At the very least, go out of your way to make whatever job you have more stimulating: try talking to a new colleague or client everyday and learn a new thing about them. You will not remember everything, but surely more than if you don't even try.

6. Gratitude vs. the Subprime mess: With increasing coverage of economic woes, the subprime mess, recession risk, the falling dollar and a ballooning deficit, it is easy to lose perspective and become depressed. Which doesn't help anyone, much less our brains. To put things in perspective, it pays off to devote some time to keep a Gratitude Journal and simply scribble a few notes a day. For bonus points: do this while you are watching TV news and share your notes with your partner.

7. Cultivate your Critical-thinking abilities: Ask yourself, "Where is the evidence?" at least once a day - see points 1&2 above. Don't just believe this article. Even if it had been endorsed by 20 Harvard Medical School researchers and doctors, nothing substitutes your own brain in action. And the more you practice, the more you refine your judgment.

8. Participate in creating a better environment. Our planet, our families, our communities, our schools, all can benefit from our help. What project do you care enough to commit some of your time to in 2008? If you have school age kids, have you considered joining the school board?.

9. Computer-based programs: With the growing number of "brain training" products, you may be thinking of giving one a try, either for you or for a loved one. As mentioned in point number 2 above, it makes sense to do some research before making a purchase.

10. Where to start? OK, now you have read many suggestions, resolve to keep at least one of them...which one will you choose?.

Level Marketing For Health and Fitness Enthusiasts

Health and fitness enthusiast individuals, who want to earn extra income, find new friends and are truly interested in health and fitness can rely on Team Beachbody. This is a great way for you to get the body you've always wanted. The good thing is that you can also continue to earn more cash by retailing the available program DVDs and recruiting more people to enter the network. Here is some more information.

Being a Team Beachbody Member

As part of the MLM for health and fitness enthusiasts "Team Beachbody", you get a lot of benefits and advantages. As a Team Beachbody member you get a 10% discount on all purchases, personalized meal plans, access to our celebrity trainers and Beachbody experts. Members also get a chance to win up to $1,000 every day, just for working out and nutrition tips and delicious, healthy recipes.

All Team Beachbody members are assigned a personal coach to stay accountable to your workouts and message boards for advice and community support. Helpful fitness tools to get the most out of every workout and workout buddies to keep you motivated and inspired.

Members can expect to get healthier and physically fit, since you will be exposed to all the DVD programs and other manuals and items needed to effectively lose weight and get rid. You can gain rock solid muscle and be in the shape of your life in just a few weeks. Most of the workouts can also be finished in only 30 to 45 minutes a session.

Become a Coach

As a Coach of the Beachbody team, you get 25% off on all available products. You can choose to work either full-time or part-time. Start your own business and be your own boss. You can earn several hundreds or thousands of dollars each month by retailing the products at a profit and inviting others to join the network.

The program only requires a very affordable and low start up cost. You do not have to keep an inventory and can set your own schedule, earning income even while you rest. You can develop and build your own personalized web site and establish a solid reputation on the internet. You can quickly become a leader in the industry and gain the trust of thousands of affiliates and customers by using the tried and proven strategies.

You can provide more bonuses to your down line by staying on top of the trends and news. As a coach, you get a comprehensive business starter kit. This will be your first item in earning more money and expanding your network in the months to come. The business system is very easy to follow, so you can start immediately and earn residual income for good. You are also one of the few who get to receive information about the latest trends and changes in the health and fitness industry.

A Functional Formula

The good thing about joining the Team Beachbody is that you avoid most of the risks that other multi-level companies pose because the system is already proven and reliable. You can sell sought-after national brands supported by more than $100 million in advertising. You also get targeted training and support, thereby helping you understand the needs of your clients and boosting the opportunity to earn residual income. The program offers a very lucrative compensation plan, so the potential to earn is limitless. This is also one company that is really concerned about making people fitter and healthier.

What to Expect

As a Coach your duties will include researching more about the available programs and benefits of healthy nutrition and exercise. You can then sponsor more individuals to start your down line. You will receive income based on the total sales you and your team generate from selling the DVDs and nutritional products.

Your Health and Fitness in Your Role As a Mom

Finding time for yourself once you're a mom can present an interesting challenge, particularly if you are new to the world of motherhood. There is a substantial adjustment period to reconcile your prebaby life with your new life devoid of sleep, energy, and a shirt without spit up on it! I remember calling a friend after my son was born to find out exactly how I was supposed to fit a shower in to my day and what to do with my son while I was in said shower!
The good news is that once you make it through the initiation stage of motherhood, you figure out a routine and fall into a groove the more you get to know the ins and outs of your little one. Now that you've figured all that out, it's time to put yourself back together again.
In order to take care of your family, you must take care of yourself and your needs too. Taking care of yourself translates into taking care of your health and fitness. Here are three tips to help you make time to do just that!
Tip #1: Make It Happen: It is imperative that you make time for yourself. In order to do that you are going to have to build it into your routine and around the routine of your little one. Whether you're working out at home or at a gym, you will have to carefully calculate feeding and naptime in order to ensure that you can fit your workout in.
Tip #2: Plan Ahead: Being prepared means planning ahead. If your headed to the gym, make sure you have a copy of the gym schedule so you know what classes are offered that coincide with your window of opportunity, pack the baby bag the night before, set your alarm, and be prepared to workout on little to no sleep.
Tip #3: No Excuses: As a new mom, there are plenty of excuses to skip the workout. However, excuses won't get you to where you want or need to be which is healthy, fit, and energized. Remember, you can always catch up on your sleep when the baby naps!
Health & Success

Dieting For Health And Fitness

For many of us, dieting for health and fitness is one of the biggest, but most overlooked challenges we will face in our lifetime. That may sound like a pretty tall statement, think about it though. What shortens our lifespan? What consistently has made us sick, unhealthy and ended our lives early? Heart disease, cancer, diabetes and almost all forms of modern disease trace back to our dietary choices.
I realize that pill is a little hard to swallow, but it is true, none the less. I was visiting with a friend a while back and the conversation went something like this; Fred: " That was an excellent dinner, want some dessert"? Michelle: "Maybe, it's not good for you though". Fred: "I know, it'll shorten our lifespan, especially that chocolate mousse." Michelle: "Ya, it comes off the end though, what are you having?"
The fact is, we all want to enjoy are lives, and food is a big part of it. So, what's the trick, how do we eat to enjoy food and eat for health and fitness.
Perception and attitude are the key factors that lead us into, or away from, dieting for health and fitness. With the advent of professional advertising agencies that are very skilled at marketing "stuff " that may or may not be in our best interest to buy. We have to be very careful to make up our own minds about what tastes good and is enjoyable.
A couple of obvious examples are fast food and fad diets of all sorts. According to the commercials for fast food, they're selling the nectar of the gods to us. If you're not used to fast food and their ads, it has a completely different effect on you. I quit eating fast food years ago and I don't watch any mainstream television. I use the internet to get the "news" and I rent or buy movies if I want to watch one.
The last time I visited my sister and her family we went to a fast food place for lunch. It was kinda disgusting, the place smelled terrible and the food wasn't edible. That might seem a little extreme to you. It's true though. If you're not conditioned to that poison, it's very hard to stomach. Look at booze or tobacco products. Until you have conditioned your body to tolerate them, they will make you gag, cough and be sick. Remember the first time you tried one of those products?
Here's my point, you can buy or make food that tastes good and is good for you, or you can make or buy food that isn't. The choice is yours, don't let someone convince you a poor choice is really alright because of very clever advertising gimmicks.
The fact is, there are just as many excellent tasting, very enjoyable food choices out there as there are poor choices. For reasons I don't understand, it seems the poor choices get more advertising dollars spent on them.
You can change your perception about food to one that matches a diet for health and fitness. Challenge yourself to change your attitude to one that will make you successful in achieving your health and fitness goals.
Visualization and meditation have helped me tremendously. Take a little time daily to see yourself with the body and eating habits you desire. Post a picture that you will see often of someone with the habits and physique you are going to have. With a little determination and sustained effort you will achieve your goals quite quickly.

The ABCs of Bodybuilding, Diet and Fitness
This free report will help you discover: