Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Water, Water Everywhere But How Much of It Do I Drink?

Nowadays water is plentiful. If you can't get it from a faucet, fountain or a natural body of water, you can definitely buy it. But why is water necessary in the first place? It has a critical value as far as our body is concerned. Just as a 70% of the earth is comprised of water, about 60% of our bodies are also made up of water. Water is a natural detoxifier removing toxins from our bodies that could harm us or deteriorate our health if allowed to remain and build up. Water carries vitamins and nutrients through our body via the bloodstream to ensure that our muscles, tissues and organs are properly hydrated in order to maintain maximum functionality. As a result of hydration, water also allows our skin and eyes to glow and our hair to shine. Water is important in every aspect of our being, without it dehydration sets in which could lead to energy loss, organ shut down and in extreme cases, as in diseases like Cholera, death. Over the years research has provided us with so many rules about daily water consumption that it's hard to keep up. There are many factors involved that can determine your personal water intake: where you live, climate, overall health, physical activity, height, weight, age etc. So what are some general guidelines to follow for daily consumption?

 
The recommended daily fluid intake is 8 - 8oz glasses of fluid. This could be water, coffee, tea, juices, soda etc. For more specific recommendations that are tailored to you specifically, consult your physician or a Registered Dietitian/Licensed Nutritionist. Although beverages such as wine, beer and soda contain water, it's best to go to the actual source and drink the water itself, making it your beverage of choice. Water contains no calories, no fat or sugars, it's readily available and it's relatively inexpensive.  Below are good indicators to help you know if you are consuming enough beverages, more specifically water:


• You should rarely feel thirsty - a general rule is that if you're thirsty you're already feeling the effects of dehydration
• In addition, your urine should be as clear as possible. If it is a bright yellow with a strong odor, chances are that you need to consume more water. As a side note, some vitamins and medication can produce bright yellow urine, but once those items have passed through your body, the urine should also return to clear with a tint of yellow.


Here are some easy ways to keep water as a major part of your lifestyle:
• Drink a glass of water with each meal and between each meal.
• Hydrate before, during and after exercise.
• Substitute sparkling water for alcoholic drinks at social gatherings, pour it in a fun glass and garnish it to make it more festive


Monday, November 15, 2010

Tomorrow Is Another Day to Begin Anew -

“Forgiveness is the key to action and freedom...” ~ Hannah Arendt

We all know about what it means to forgive others with respect to moving forward with our lives in a positive manner. But what about forgiving ourselves? Sometime forgiveness of self is the most difficult lesson to learn and one of the hardest things to do. We've heard the phrase many times that we are often our own worst critic. We're harder on ourselves because of the expectations that we have set. If for whatever reason we don't amount to those expectations we beat ourselves up, and in many cases, this can get in the way of us meeting our ultimate goals.

When offering recommendations and tips for achieving fitness goals, an item that is consistently on my top 10 list is to "Be gentle with yourself".  If you miss a time in your workouts or if you fall off the "clean eating" wagon, that's okay, re-start your program and get back into it. The most important thing is to not bash yourself with self-deprecating thoughts like "I'm so stupid, I'm such a failure, I can never seem to do this etc…" Remember, we become our reality as our thoughts dictate our actions. So forgive yourself for falling off and say that tomorrow is a new day. Start anew. But this time around, evaluate how, where, when and why you fell off your program to begin with; learn from those experiences and move on to a better and newly improved YOU!

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

An Apple A Day Keeps the Doctor Away

You’ve heard the saying: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”. Well, throw in physical activity and sleep with that apple and you’ve got a winning combination. Although the findings are not exactly new to those in the Health and Wellness fields, it’s great to know that we remain on the right track in advising the public on the overall health benefits of fitness besides just the desired goal of “weight loss”. Time and again, research continues to show that regular exercise, rest and a proper diet strengthen the immune system and stave off illnesses such as the common cold and flu. In many cases, if illness does occur, the duration time is shortened and the symptoms are much less severe than those who don’t live a healthy lifestyle. So give your doctor a break this season by staying well. ;-)


Highlights to the most recent study:
 • The average adult can expect to catch a cold 2-4 times a year while the average child can expect to catch a cold 6 – 10 times each year.


• On November 1st, the British Journal of Sports Medicine posted results of a recent study that followed 1000 women and men from ages 18 to 85 over a 12 week period during the fall and winter of 2008. The researchers tracked the number of upper respiratory tract infections suffered by the participants as well as their physical activity, dietary habits, levels of stress and overall lifestyle.
  •  The researchers noted that those who exercised at least 5 times a week experienced colds up to 46% less than those who either didn’t exercise or worked out only once a week.
  • The researchers also tracked that for those who exercised frequently and did catch colds, the duration of their colds was actually 41% lower than those who did not exercise
  • In addition to a shorter duration, the symptoms experienced were 32% - 41% less severe than for those who were sedentary.

Check out the full article for more information on this research.

Monday, November 8, 2010

MOTIVATIONAL MONDAY - Defeat Doesn't Exist In The Minds of Winners

"We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist." ~ Queen Victoria.



When faced with challenges and new adventures, many times we focus on the "What ifs?" The problem with the “what if factor” is that it creates worries and images of defeat before we've even begun. I remember the first time I took YOGA some of the postures were a little difficult for me to get into or hold. Thoughts ran through my head like “Is someone looking at me struggle?” or “This is so difficult I’ll never be able to do this correctly.” Fortunately the instructor noticed my “discomfort” and coached me to focus on my breath only and to not focus on the external influences like what other people thought of me in the class. All of these concerns - external concerns - created a sort of worry movie in my head which kept me from performing well. When I began to shift my thinking to what success looked like in my head, my thoughts then moved to how I could take the appropriate steps to get to that level. Eventually, not only did I master the postures, but I can now teach them to others.

So think about this today, what could you achieve if the possibilities of defeat did not exist? What does success look like to you? Focus on the image of success as an end-point and move toward that. You'll soon see that the images of failure and defeat are mere illusions that will soon fade away.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Body Beautiful Playlist – Week of November 3rd, 2010

It’s PLAYLIST WEDNESDAY!  Wow, the week goes by so fast.  It’s time to lift your hands & get your praise on while getting your workout on. Having taught Gospel Aerobics I know how motivating it can be to have music that speaks to your heart & spirit. So this week we’re going Christian/Gospel. From rock to hip-hop & traditional gospel we’ve got a blend of sounds to help you praise GOD while you work it out.  Enjoy!    ;-)



Body Beautiful Playlist – Week of November 3rd, 2010

Christian / Gospel


  1. Looking For You – Kirk Franklin
  2. I Am Not Forgotten – Israel & The New Breed
  3. Back II Eden – Donald Lawrence
  4. Keys To The Kingdom – Group 1 Crew (song not on playlist.com)  listen here:   http://p.rhap.com/Tra.22856217
  5. So Amazing - Tye Tribbett & G.A.
  6. You Don’t Know – Kiki Sheard
  7. How Great Is Our GOD – Chris Tomlin
  8. Friend of GOD – Israel & The New Breed
  9. Glorious – Martha Munizzi
  10. The Presence of The Lord is Here – Byron Cage
  11. Revelation Song – Phillips, Craig & Dean
  12. And Again I Say Rejoice – Israel Houghton


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