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Thursday 31 December 2015

Happy New year!

So with Christmas just about over for another year all thoughts will be on making New Year's resolutions with one of the biggest thoughts on getting fitter and healthier.

Gym memberships will soar in the first few months of the new year and people will start off with good intentions. Unfortunately not many will stick beyond this as enthusiasm dwindles.

I personally have been lucky enough to motivate myself to exercise regularly and for free. Gyms are great for variety and motivation but I prefer exercise on my door step and for no cost. I vary what I do from walking, running, yoga and cycling. I also have weights at home and incorporate some weight training exercise to tone and strengthen my upper body. I exercise almost every day and it has become part of my daily routine rather than a chore.

The key to maintaining exercise long term is to find something that you enjoy so it becomes routine. Music is a big motivator for me so I often listen to some tunes whilst walking. I use my weights on an evening mostly, when watching tv. I never let the thought of exercise become an issue.

As I get older (I am now 46), for me daily exercise has to be part of my lifestyle to keep me healthy and avoid weight creeping up on me.

You will feel so much better in yourself for moving daily. You will have more energy, feel less stressed, younger, fitter, healthier and shape your body in the process. There are lots of ideas on my blog how to exercise for free and that are easy to fit in to your daily routine.

We can all make resolutions for the New Year and do them with good intentions but if you want to get fit and healthy then you need to make a change for the future.


Thursday 3 December 2015

Yoga Poses For Glowing Skin


3 Moves To Whittle Your Middle

Enough with crude crunches. Pretty is just as powerful. Refine your ab workout with elegant plank dips and a seated twist. This floor routine will whittle your waist, strengthen your back, and elongate your spine, giving you a tall, graceful look. While doing these moves (3 or 4 times a week is best), keep your abs, obliques, back, and legs contracted as you make smooth, even movements. 
Side Plank Dip

A. Lie on left side with right foot crossed over left and right hand behind head. Rest left forearm on floor perpendicular to body, elbow under shoulder. Lift hips so legs are off floor, keeping forearm on floor for support.
side plank dip

B. Slowly lower hips to 1 to 2 inches off floor. Do 10 reps. Switch sides and repeat.
side plank dip down



A. Sit on floor with legs in front, knees bent, and feet on floor. Grasp both ends of a 3- to 5-pound dumbbell and extend arms out in front of chest.
sit up with weight
PHOTOGRAPH BY HILMAR HILMAR

B. Lift left leg and, keeping arms straight, contract abs and obliques, twisting to the left and bringing dumbbell down toward floor. Return to start position, then twist to the right. Continue, alternating sides. Do 10 reps.
weighted twist



Oblique Stretch
oblique twist
PHOTOGRAPH BY HILMAR HILMAR

Sit on floor with both legs bent to the left in a comfortable position, right foot by left knee. Hold left shin with left hand, and extend right arm overhead. Look up at right hand as you gently stretch toward the left. Switch sides and repeat.



Source:prevention.com/fitness/whittle-your-middle?cid=OB-_-PVN-_-ARR

Wednesday 2 December 2015

"Forest Bathing" is a thing.

Walking or sitting in nature, aka Shinrin-yoku, started in Japan but is spreading like (dare we say it) wildfire to US wellness spas. Here's why you shouldn't wait for a trip to Sedona to try it.

It's great for your heart. A few hours in nature lowers blood pressure—and the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline.

It soothes your brain. Being in greenery decreased anxiety, depression, anger, and fatigue for adults in one study. Other research shows that kids with ADHD who spend time in natural outdoor environments have a reduction in symptoms.

It speeds recovery. People in the hospital given green views after surgery had shorter stays, took fewer painkillers, and had fewer complications than those who stared out at a cement wall.

It beefs up immunity. When you inhale fresh forest air, you breathe in phytoncides, plant chemicals that have antibacterial and antifungal qualities and increase the immune system's disease-fighting natural killer cells.

Forest bathing is good for your health











Source:prevention.com/health/health-breakthroughs-that-will-change-your-life

Smart! Don't eat at night, lose weight

The kind of fasting being popularized as "intermittent" may be all the rage as a weight loss strategy, but let's be honest, eating hardly anything 3 days per week will never be truly popular. The awesomely easy alternative: fasting while you're asleep, plus a little longer. A food break as brief as 12 hours will help you get a smaller waistline: It speeds up metabolism and lowers blood sugar and body weight, even if you don't actually cut any calories. This is based on preliminary research, but if it's true—and other ongoing research is looking to show that—you'll burn fat by just changing when you eat.

 Your easy plan: Eat 3 meals as close together as possible—say, a 9 AM breakfast, a 1 PM lunch, and a 6 PM dinner—to stretch out your nighttime fasting phase as long as possible.

Finish dinner by 7 and eat breakfast at 9 to lose weight








Source:prevention.com/health/health-breakthroughs-that-will-change-your-life
 
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