Fat Kills You

“I’d love to lose weight, but I don’t have the discipline.”

If I had to lose weight the way the diet mongers say we need to, I’d never lose an ounce. Or maybe I would, but it certainly wouldn’t stick. And then, what’s the point?

And if I had to make myself work out, well that wouldn’t be likely to happen either. The truth is - I like working out, so it isn’t a chore and it doesn’t require ‘discipline’. It does require time and prioritizing. So I’ve tried to make that as simple as possible. Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a big believer in simplicity.

If you attempt to lose weight using ‘discipline’ you are taking a risk. You are working against yourself, rather than with yourself and setting up a situation just ripe for rebellion.

Losing weight with discipline invites perfectionism and extremism. “If I don’t do this, I am weak–I have failed.”

You are trying to bully yourself into an act of submission by attacking your own character. Does that sound like a recipe for success?

You also take the risk of trying to accomplish something using an authoritative stance. Drill sergeants may be able to get their recruits to obey commands, but I’m willing to bet that most of us would prefer a more flexible, open-minded approach.

If you are involved with losing weight, you want to be comfortable in relationship to the process, not relating to it as a “should”.

Otherwise, it is akin to a loveless relationship–you are there, but you don’t want to be. You are always thinking about what you are missing.

When you talk about discipline, you are really talking about desperation. You don’t know any other road to get from point A to point B. You have been told that dieting is the only way to lose weight.

It doesn’t make sense–we can have a great work ethic and be very disciplined in other areas, but when it comes to our bodies, nothing seems quite as personal or as hard to get a handle on.

We think that if we just follow the rules . . .

But what happens when that doesn’t work?

We are right back into the same old patterns–berating and sabotaging ourselves. Is it possible that it is the diet and not us that is at fault?

Losing weight doesn’t take ‘discipline’–what it takes is connection to ourselves, especially in the act and experience of eating.

It also takes permission to be ourselves and to accept ourselves as we are. It takes becoming aware of what works for us and allowing ourselves to fail, at times, in the process.

Losing weight takes leaving the popularity contest behind and connecting to ourselves in new ways that offer personal satisfaction instead of trying to please others. When you can do that, weight loss is likely to happen–so is life.

Carol Solomon, Ph.D. is a psychologist and personal coach who specializes in helping people who want to lose weight and eliminate food and weight issues.

By going from food obsessive to charge neutral (i.e. Did I eat today?), she became dedicated to making it easy for others to step off the vicious cycle and live free of anxiety about food and weight.

She is the author of “Lose Weight Now Stay Slim Forever,” a practical “how-to” manual for learning to lose weight without dieting.

Sign up for her free email newsletter, Slim Forever at: http://lose-weight-now-stay-slim-forever.com

MSM is a wonderful supplement with a low toxicity rating that naturally occurs in the body and targets a host of issues. Some of the problems it may help with include hair, skin, nails, muscle fatigue, allergies and scar tissue trouble. I have also heard of people with cancer utilizing the supplement. Once upon a time, there was a big craze about DSMO and how it helped arthritis sufferers. It has been observed that the solvent DSMO converts to MSM when it hits the blood stream. Taking MSM may be equivalent to using DSMO but without the side effects and problems that come with utilizing an industrial grade solvent.

What Does it Do?

Some of the patents I read on MSM suggest that MSM basically supplies the body with a usable form of sulfur, which can be used to repair connective tissues, aid in joint problems and potentially energize a system that pulls allergens out of our bodies. Studies have been conducted on MSM that seem to indicate that there has been a benefit to animals with joint problems.

Scar Tissue

If you have significant scarring, MSM may help to reduce the visible scarring. It may help to give the skin the sulfur it needs to help in restructuring; it may also help in preventing scars. So if you have a burn or jagged cut, it might be helpful to take MSM during the healing process.

The sulfur is useful in the process that is used to build skin; one theory is that if there isn’t enough sulfur available the process is modified resulting in scar tissue. Hence, if you have enough sulfur, you could avoid scarring as tissue regrows, according to that theory.

The Best Part of DSMO

Remember the craze about DSMO a few years back? It was widely used for arthritis and joint problems. DSMO is a solvent and has some potential side affects. In addition, it doesn’t smell good and you have to wait for it to dry. It is an industrial grade solvent, so it is not very practical to use. Research has shown that DSMO is converted into MSM when it touches the blood stream. With MSM, you can get the benefits of DSMO without the potential side effects and problems.

Usable Form of Sulfur

How does MSM work? It provides a usable form of sulfur to the body, which is beneficial in a variety of different ways. In the case of allergies, there is a protein in your body that is used for removing allergens and free radicals and “junk” from your system. If there is not enough sulfur in your body, this great system is inhibited from working in an effective manner. Give your body a usable form of sulfur and this system becomes much more effective.

Safe for Consumption?

MSM may be safe for consumption, but I don’t know that the FDA has officially labeled it as safe for consumption as of yet. We do know that it is found naturally in foods such as coffee, tea, milk and eggs as well as green leafy vegetables. MSM does naturally occur in the body and it is not considered toxic and may be comparable to water in its toxicity.

If you are concerned about dosages of MSM, refer to the directions on the labeling and packaging that MSM comes in. I used to take 1,000 mg. two times a day, with no side affects.

My experience with MSM was one of increased energy. That is, of course, a subjective experience, but it was very real to me. Another benefit to MSM is that it is supposed to make you recover faster from working out. It might do that by getting rid of the waste products inside the muscle quicker, this allows the soreness to disappear.

Get More Information

To find out more from a truly worthy source, go to any technical library and read the patent research on MSM. There are actually several patents associated with MSM and I gained a great deal from taking the time to read them.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to diagnose or suggest treatment for any health condition. Please consult a health care professional if you have or suspect you have any health related item for proper diagnoses and treatment.

Dave Snape is a health, fitness and wellness enthusiast. His website is http://tobeinformed.com

Getting quality sleep has, for many, become an elusive goal in the modern day. We work longer hours, take less time off, and try to overcompensate by micromanaging what little free time is available to in order to enjoy all facets of our lives. More and more of us are becoming aware that we are fatigued, and this is further exaggerated by the countless advertisements and commercials that discuss the number of Americans who are not getting good sleep. Many of us wake up daily with sore muscles and stiff necks. Nothing is more tiresome than the combination of exhaustion and neck pain.

Complications caused from lack of sleep can detrimentally affect existing medical conditions such as high blood pressure. Furthermore, improper sleep can be attributed to lowering the immunity system and can cause depression and anxiety disorders in many people. Over a period of time, lack of quality sleep can turn into a serious sleep disorder, so resolving the problem is a necessity.

So are you destined to face the above complications without any form of relief? Thankfully, the answer is no. There are quite a few remedies that can help people to develop the ability to gain restful sleep. Obviously, treatment for any existing medical condition, including stiff neck treatment is necessary. An objective evaluation of one’s environment and behavior is necessary to resolve this dilemma. A healthy sleep pattern is contingent on a few basic rules that can be personalized for any individual. These are a healthy diet, exercise, and most of all, a comfortable sleeping environment.

A healthy diet and exercise program have been proven to not only reduce risks for certain medical conditions, but they are also known to reduce stress and to assist in sleep comfort. Stress is a leading contributor to many chronic health conditions as well as causing an imbalance in sleep patterns. Exercise does not have to be strenuous, a simple walk a few times a week is more than sufficient. A healthy diet also includes the reduction of caffeine and alcoholic intake, as well as reducing food consumption in the evening hours, which has been shown to prohibit some from sleeping better.

A thorough look at one’s sleeping environment is extremely important. Not only should one make sure the room they sleep in is dark and quiet, but also taking a close look at the bed and pillow is extremely important. The mattress should be of good quality and the sheets and blankets clean and comfortable. Pillows are quite important as they support the head and neck during rest. Stiff neck pain is one of the leading causes of disrupted sleep patterns, and finding the proper pillow is essential. Over the years, sleep pillows have become widely recognized as improving sleep comfort due to their design, which invites comfort and proper body, neck, and head alignment. Visco elastic or "memory foam" pillow have been recommended by doctors and chiropractors across the world. Many attribute their new-found and consistent sleep and dream patterns completely to a new sleep pillow.

While poor sleep habits and stiff neck pain are most definitely serious complications to one’s health, by taking the appropriate measures outlined above, you’ll be sleeping like you were meant to and you’ll feel fully rested in no time.

About The Author

Dr. Joseph J. Berke, M.D., Ph.D.

Discover how sleeping on The Better Sleep Pillow can change your life.

Visit: http://www.bettersleeppillow.com

Dr. Joseph J. Berke is an author and inventor dedicated to helping people get a better night rest. articles@bettersleeppillow.com

If your low carb diet is going nowhere, maybe its time to get more sleep. In a paper presented at the North American Association for the Study of Obesity, researchers found that people, who got little sleep, got fat.

Amazingly, people who averaged 6 hours a night, had obesity rates 23% higher than normal. And worse, those who slept only 2-4 hours a night were 73% more likely to be overweight. Low carb dieters and all dieters take notice. Follow your diet to the letter and get more sleep.

Lack of sleep causes you to gain body weight by activating the hypothalamus in your brain. This in tury produces chemicals that promote hunger. And no low carbohydrate or any other type of diet is going to work properly if you don’t reduce your overall intake of food below what it takes to maintain your current weight.

So the next time you’re rummaging through the refrigerator late at night, and cursing the fact that your low carb dream diet isn’t working the way that Dr. Atkins claimed, maybe your should go back to bed and sleep on it.

You’ll not only feel better, you’ll wake up with the answers to your weight loss dreams.

Shawn Low is a low carb diet enthusiast and contributing writer for http://www.healthy-low-carb.com, a great source of information on low carbohydrate diets, including Atkins, Protein Power, South Beach, plus free low carb recipes, articles and reviews.

Biological clock

Obviously you need biological clock to time and alarm the point when you need to die and when you need to age. Aging is the same death as in those one-day butterflies, but a little bit prolonged one. Not immediate kill but gradual shut down of protection mechanisms - immunological, genetical repair, and just other necessary functions of proliferation. As soon as those functions turned off - an organism starts to deteriorate and wear off.

Interesting that our organism is not a static thing. We probably replace all molecules in our body within relatively short period of time. Obviously water is replaced completely every couple months. Water is 60% of our body. Other molecules are replaced as well. Thus, human being is just some unstable chemical organisation around genetical information. Molecules swirl and disappear like crazy. DNA in cells maybe is not changed so fast, but the cells themselves change quickly in most of cases. There is no need to age just because of wearing.

Biological clocks are necessary and there is no doubt they exist.

The theories of aging that consider death as a sequence of events caused by external causes - like oxidations and accumulation of genetical errors should anyway include the idea of Internal Biological Clock as well. Simple example is menopause in women. Somewhere at 40-55 all women undergo menopause. Unavoidable. Though there were reports of childbirth at 60 yo but considering one chance in billions, it is just a joke. Males have their equivalents too. All people after certain age change their immunological, hormonal, metabolic levels and so on. Majority of organs decrease their function . Thymus involute. Fat cells overgrow others, muscle cells degenerate etc. The same happens to all other multicellular animals and plants.

Now the real question: Is it possible to break the biological clock or at least slow down and rejuvenate?

Possible methods of rejuvenation.

1. Telomeres lengthening and other genes regulation.

Several genes that might play role in aging described recently. Telomerase encoding genes are the most discussed. In theory, if we lengthen the telomeres (these are the ends of chromosomes that are shortened with each division by very interesting mechanism), we could overcome cell tendency to lose ability for proliferation. Hence, we have “immortal cells”. Hence, immortality or at least longevity is reached - cells divide indefinitely and repair organism. Basically, to restore telomeres length we need to activate production of or to introduce into the cell an enzyme named telomerase. To reach each cell in the body we would use viral vectors or smallRNA. Working with virus production and then cell transduction I would say it is difficult, very difficult. There are too many obstacles to use them efficiently. SmallRNAs would be more promising. In any case, when you go from theory to practice problems rise exponentially. Biggest question: will it work? Immortal cell (cell which is able to divide indefinitely) does not mean immortal body. One of the outcomes would be uncontrollable cell growth and, hence, cancer. Actually scenists discuss telomeres mostly in connection with cancer. They are very cautious saying about the rejuvenation. Mass media extrapolates the findings to possibility of longevity and further rejuvenation.

My guess would be that telomeres are some of the “final cogwheels” in the Internal biological clock. It is useful to divide the clock on intracellular and whole body levels just for understanding. But in reality the levels are not separable, they continue one into another. It is easy to understand that intracellular production of any protein, any enzyme depends on transmembrane regulation. Hormones activate receptors that activate DNA transcription and protein production. Other genes that play role in cellular aging are described recently as well. I do not know how to use this method at present time

2. Hormone replacement.

When I studied in med school, several time I met mentions about hormonal side effects that cause a person to look much younger. Well known for example are: If a woman in menopause suddenly resumes menstrual cycles and looks younger than her age, we might suspect an ovarian Tumour producing excess of estrogen. If a person has thyrotoxicosis - excess of hormone thyroxine - he/she loses weight and looks much younger Persons with manic phases of bipolar disorder look younger, more energetic. Certain hormones - corticosteroids for example - might be increased or decreased in elderly. Couples that look younger were shown to have increased level of sexual relationships. Again, that supposedly should significantly change the hormonal levels.

If we give a person some of those synthetic hormones - estrogen, thyroxine - we can sometime reproduce the younger looks.

It is not the same as plastic surgery or skin creams and massages. It invigorates whole body. Skin as well. There is heavy price - recent debates are waxing and waning - if estrogen replacement increases or decreases risks of cancers (uterine, breast, ovarian etc.) Thyroxine excess takes heavy tall on cardiovascular system. Psychiatric disorders (mania for example) was linked to ceratin changes in neurotransmitter levels. Certain psycho tropic drugs change the ratios. Supposedly they can be employed for rejuvenation. Unfortunately, you would rather receive a psychosis than younger look.

On internet you can find massive information about hormones that rejuvenate you. I saw some websites that list practically any major hormone:

• estrogen
• androgens
• corticosteroids
• growth hormone
• thyroxine
• DHEA
• melatonin
• and some others as a drug that leads to rejuvenation.

The websites often have references to scientific literature. Most of the websites just sell you those hormones or offer courses of hormone therapy.

My personal opinion would be that blind replacement can cause more harm than lead to any desired rejuvenation.

Useful information that I would extract from the item is that A) Practically every hormone in the body is involved. B) Certain means of rejuvenation are actually documented. That gives hope.

I do not use hormones personally. If I would employ them, I would use them in very small quantities to mimic physiology and in special controlled conditions that I will describe below. The doses that are used in regular therapy are actually way to high compare to the natural levels of a healthy organism.

3. Antioxidant therapy.

As we discussed, in the best case antioxidants are the method for longevity, not rejuvenation. I use mega-doses of antioxidants available over the counter. I use only those that I consider safe. I have a lot of doubts they give measurable effect. Anyway I use them. Would not throw away.

4. Caloric restriction.

I use it as well. 60% of regular meal - is way to much - you would barely move your feet. I regulate it. My opinion: if you increase your activity, you can eat more. Just balance your food and motions. Though I might be wrong.

5. Hypothalamic regulation.

This is scary level. Hypothalamus is the area of your brain that sits on the base of your skull. Why do we discuss hormones above? Well, hypothalamus contains hundred of centres that regulate your metabolism and first of all, hormonal status. Studies of hypothalamus are complicated - mostly there are postmortem studies of brain sections. To perform functional study you need to use micro-neurosurgical techniques (still very rude) and try to register changes in a hundred or so cells out of several billions. Changes would include minuscule production (nano and Pico grams) of poorly defined neurotransmitters. The infinitely small quantities of those neurotransmitters are produced by only few out of hundreds cell connections and exist only several nanoseconds. In general to study this area is more difficult than to look for a needle in a haystack. If you consider that there are only few centres have appropriate expertise, you would understand why the progress is relatively slow. Even fewer labs study rejuvenation. Though there were reports that transplantation of hypothalamic tissue from younger animals to older could result in rejuvenation-like effect.

I mention this level because A) hypothalamus regulates production of bunch of intermediate messengers that in turn activate hypophysis, that activate adrenal glands, ovaries, thyroid gland etc (maybe many other areas in th body) that in turn produce the hormones discussed above. (Full description you could find in a textbook of Endocrinology) B) because of complexity of hypothalamus it is a good candidate were a “supreme cogwheel” of biological clock may reside. One hint would be proximity of epiphysis - small pea-like gland that produce melatonin and regulates circadian rhythms. It would not be surprise that all that is interconnected in the hypothalamus. One of objection - what is about worms? They do not have hypothalamus as it is. But they age and die as well as humans. Explanation would be that worms also have nervous system and some other part of it may play the central role in the biological clocks. Another explanation would be that there is no such centre at all, everything happens on the lower levels.

I was interested in methods of rejuvenation since childhood. Maybe I read too many science fiction. When I was in medschool a saw some mentions of unusual phenomenon in magnetic radiation. To make story short, eventually I found a book - 400 pages of fine script. I found the book in Central Medical Library in Moscow. Even our relatively large library in Russian State Med U did not have this book. In addition I read the dissertation thesis, that were related to that book. Several Russian scientists developed relatively complicated theory, done many hundreds of experiments. Theory is a little bit complex, involves discussion of stress and adaptation syndrome. Obviously hypothalamic area also discussed. I am not big fan of that theory. But result the authors described were striking: they were able to restore menopause in rats, prolong rats life span almost twice and more important repeat it again and again. By the description from the book “rejuvenated rats” looked the same as young, but were just bigger in size. Well, you saw a lab rat, you know that older rats have rare hair, bleak eyes, are in menopause etc. Young rat, in opposite, would have bright red eyes, very sleek hair, menstruations, etc. This is no surprise - all growth of hair, production of oil by skin, production of moisture in lacrimal glands and so on are regulated by the hormones. The same is true for rats as well as for humans.

Authors described the methods that they found mostly empirically. Moreover they tested some methods on humans and described treatment of variety of diseases - asthma, gastritis, peptic ulcers, low grade skin cancers (non-melanoma) just to name few. As I understand they did not describe rejuvenation in humans. Though later there were some mentions in literature. Authors describe zones of activation, training and stress. In general the methods are difficult to apply - they require permanent control of organism condition for many months, maybe years. Control of hormonal level and control of blood work. In addition parameter would vary from individual to individual. In modern medicine it is much faster and more reliable to cut out skin cancer with knife or give powerful proton pump inhibitors for a gastric ulcer.

I realized that I used some of the methods described, even before I read that book. Since then I added some more methods for my own use. Mostly I use the methods that I feel safe and efficient. For example transplanting of hypothalamus would be out of question. It is a wacking unsafe procedure. Recently there were reports that DHEA, melatonin or other hormones could make miracles: older people feel as young. I would wait confirmation of the effects. Some authors suggest rejuvenation may be reached by individually designed cocktails of hormones. I would think that any hormone given makes more mess than regulation. Practically every hormone described have loops and pathways that prevent overproduction. If you just replace the hormones by giving the substitute, you wack the production of your own hormones those that injected as well as many others. All hormones are complexly interrelated. Individual cocktails would be better, but the doses described in literature are wacking. Again I might be wrong. Maybe everything is so simple - just get cocktail and you will jump as a newborn bunny.

Considering different information from different sources, I would propose following theory:

To rejuvenate yourself you need to recreate the hormonal and metabolic level of young organism.

This is actually very difficult to reach: your organism have all the means to produce all the necessary hormones. Levels of hormones in elderly are not so far from the levels in youth actually. The difference is several percentages, not several folds. But biological clock switch to underproduction. The idea is to cheat the biological clock and to restore the youth levels. The most difficult part is to get into the window of optimal production. You can not go too low - just wouldn’t have any effect on rejuvenation. You can not go above the optimal level - it will cause stress and even more deterioration. So approach is very individual. There is no quick effect - you can not rejuvenate from looking 50 to looking 30 overnight. You really need a lot of commitment and time. The methods which you choose are not of so great importance. Practically any action toward your body would cause changes in your metabolic and hormonal status. Physical exercise, herbs, yoga, hormones (low doses) etc - we could list thousands.

Personally I used available antioxidants, slight caloric restrictions, herbs (some of substances in herbs like ginseng, Echinacea, etc mimics hormones in their chemical structure), self-hypnosis, neurolinguistic programming (NLP), auto-training, different exercises, lactic bacteria, etc. Important is the ability to adjust the level of treatment - reduce the dose of herbs or increase dose of exercise etc.

Methods of control are of much great importance. The described methods include measurement of hormonal level and of certain fractions of cells in the blood work(that is also regulated by hormonal and metabolic reactions)

If I would have a clinic of rejuvenation therapy I would probably use many of those methods - they are objective and reproducible. But they require blood work.

For individual use there some subjective methods exist. They are described in literature as: If you are in the condition of rejuvenation you feel great energy, hunger, restlessness. Your sleep would be normalised, you are fighting regular infections much more efficiently - inflammatory reaction might be exaggerated, but they last shorter time. Your eyes would glisten as in youth. You will feel constant euphoria and need in doing something. There are some other subjective criteria. Personally, I would add: you will notice that your nails and hair grow like crazy in those conditions.

The biggest problem is how to hold in this condition of rejuvenation for a prolonged period of time. You really can not go overboard - super activation would just wack all your system. You can not go under activation - just no any useful effect. You need to get it is just right. Solution is tight, continuos control. Boy, it’s really tough in the modern stressful environment (would not describe all the junk that I had in recent years), but it is possible. Dedication is your solution. Some formulas to calculate doses of stimuli are described in the literature, but I feel it is easier to go with individual subjective feelings. Below there is an animation that contains some simple elements of NLP and might help to tune a brain a little.

Now, what did I get by using those methods? Well not much, but I hope for more. At present time I am 35 yo I do not really have good control group in my personal experiment. Sometime people asked me if I am younger than my brother (He is younger than me for several years). Maybe it is some sort of control group. When I come into a bar (can not say often, maybe once in a year with friends) waiter often asks my ID. It is funny also because I do not use alcohol. So, to drink a Coke I need to show ID, being 35 yo. Sometime people ask me are you 18 or 19 When I played water polo at Yale, undergrads told me they thought I was freshman (as I guess also 18 or 19). That time I was 33. Teenagers often start to talk to me in the way if I am another teenager. And so on.

So, in general it is really hard to measure rejuvenation. All measurements are mostly subjective. Even in well designed scientific trial you find either some description of biochemical changes (which doesn’t say you anything about rejuvenation as it is) or some subjective descriptions - “patients felt much better, felt rejuvenated and invigorate”. How much rejuvenated? How many years were reversed? It is very difficult to estimate. If I say to a person that I have MD and PhD, he says “aha”. Mentally they immediately adjust and now they say that I am probably 30. OK. Sometime they just say: you look so young.

Again 35 is not the age where you really can brag that the methods worked. I would wait couple more decades to say that there was measurable effect. Unfortunately. You do not have the right for a mistake. If a method did not work , you can not go back and change it. You already are behind for several years.

But my personal, subjective feeling is that the methods do work. I believe that it is possible by tight control maintain the level of younger organism. It just requires a lot of work.

Below there is animation that might help to tune in the desired “optimal rejuvenation condition”. Animation requires Flash file player I use that animation for myself. I doubt that it will necessarily help you. Maybe 1 out of 10. If you are not sure, don’t’ touch it. The animation contains some simple NLP information.

Animation

Basically looking at the animation couple times a week for 5 min should start the tuning process (at least I feel so). You should target at the condition when you feel inexhaustible energy, euphoria, normalized sleep, and some feelings that is hard to describe - like a fine tingling in your fingertips, subjectively it feels like a pouring energy. It is difficult to explain, but when you feel you understand it. If you do not feel anything, it means it did not work, forget it.

So to finish I would say that Rejuvenation is difficult but probably possible to reach - at least in a certain degree. A.K.2004

About The Author

Aleksandr Kavokin, MD,PhD

http://www.geocities.com/aging_rejuvenation/

http://www.geocities.com/usmle_test

aging_rejuvenation@yahoo.com

Home gym workout routines can take the hassle out of staying healthy. How often have you claimed your busy schedule as the reason you could not get to the gym? How many times have you skipped a workout you knew would make you feel better because the fatigue of traffic and the pace of a gym with trainers were too much for your work weary mind?

Well, say good bye to the excuses standing in your way because home gym workout routines are the answer for your busy schedule. The key to a successful home gym workout routine is scheduling yourself time.

Even though you are working out at home, you still need to hold yourself accountable to your own body. Setting aside a little time will make your workouts less stressful because you will already have that time framed for the activity.

Home gym workout routines can be tailored to meet your specific needs and available equipment. Try a treadmill workout routine to get yourself started and you can do that today. With a treadmill walking program you can work legs and even tone abs and arms.

You should always consult your physician before beginning any workout regimen, because they can help you tailor your routine to your health needs and abilities. Begin with moderate walking twenty minutes a day and this can go a long way to decrease your stress load, increase your energy level and tone your muscles.

The great thing about a treadmill workout routine is you can do it year round in any weather condition. A treadmill walking program can be done as you read the newspaper or make evening calls or it can be a time of complete peace and isolation. Adding small hand weights can afford upper body toning even as you walk.

Your body deserves your attention, and your schedule need not stand in the way. Try a home gym workout routine today to shake away the cob webs from your body and you’ll start seeing amazing results.

Copyright © 2005 Treadmill Info.com All Rights Reserved.

This article is supplied by http://www.treadmill-info.com where you will find valuable information, ratings, reviews, articles and buying tips before you make the investment in quality fitness equipment. For more fitness related articles go to: http://www.treadmill-info.com/articles_1.html

You’re familiar with the phrase, “there’s the rub,” meaning “there lies the difficulty”? It’s usually used to describe a stumbling block in your path or the central dilemma. But while it’s associated with Hamlet, did you know that this phrase was not coined by Shakespeare? I’ll finish this thought in a moment…

Things that are funny are almost always fun. But things that are fun are not always funny. There’s the rub. Most of us, I’ve found, confuse these two…to our unfortunate detriment.

It’s easy, and dangerous, to forget the distinction; when we focus on trying to elicit laughter we can quickly get discouraged because trying to create laughter puts a lot of pressure on us. Especially when some of us are not naturally good at telling jokes or being outwardly silly. Even if we are naturally good at it, focusing on laughter is still a mistake because it causes us to prematurely focus on the outcome rather than the process of humor.

You see, laughter is a result, while fun is a process. Funny is an action, while fun is an attitude. Your light attitude is virtually unrestricted and can be had almost anywhere at anytime, while laughter has some very definite limitations. Since you can take your light attitude into any situation or circumstance, while trying to provoke laughter is sometimes inappropriate and unwelcome, is there any wonder that I am advocating fun over funny?

How to Start Taking Yourself More Lightly…Today

Here are three steps you can take right now to forget about being making people laugh and start focusing on having a light attitude:

1. Remember Your Fun. What games did you enjoy when you were 5 to 10 years old, when you were having fun naturally. Think of 10 specific examples of games you enjoyed and then ask yourself, “How many of them involved active imagination and physical movement?” I’ll bet most of the games on your list involved both.

2. Plan Your Fun. Take the list you made in Step One and update each game to a version you might be able to play currently. Can you think of an adult version of hide and seek, tag, or playing with dolls? How about trying to avoid direct eye contact with your boss when she’s looking for someone to work overtime this weekend, playing “phone tag,” or trying on clothes at the mall? But those are my ideas — see what you come up with.

3. Have Your Fun. Give yourself permission to have fun and back it up with a commitment to have 15 minutes of it each day. Why do you need a commitment? Because you are bucking years of incorrect indoctrination that it should be reserved for recreation. You want the excellence which, research shows, fun creates so well.

The lesson is simple: you want the full benefit of humor’s powerful natural medicine, so don’t confuse lightness with laughter. They are definitely not the same thing. While it might be funny to give an elephant an enema, for example, I’m sure it’s not fun! And now you don’t need to worry whether or not you can create laughter to benefit from the natural medicine of humor.

Want to take your health and success even further? Here are three more steps which will supercharge the commitment you’ve made with the first three:

1. Fill Your 15 Minutes. Maybe you can’t find 10 variations on your childhood games…here are some great suggestions that’ll help you:

Practice compassion. Compassion only requires a commitment to understand another person’s point of view. Often the practice of compassion has more to do with refraining from a negative response than with making a positive one. Compassion works because it suits our nature to understand each other and recognize our common experiences.

Anonymously do kind things. Whether it be sending an encouraging note, giving a small gift, or paying for the car behind you at the toll booth, an anonymous act of kindness involves a touch of mischievousness and appeals to your humor nature. And doing it anonymously reinforces that your act is done for pure joy, rather than recognition.

Play practical jokes. I’m not advocating victimizing anyone; a practical joke can be spontaneous, simple, and painless. For example, filling up a coworker’s desk with miniature golf pencils won’t hurt anyone. Practical joking encourages a mischievous, childlike perspective and communicates a willingness to play.

2. Expand Your Commitment. Take your 15 minutes and turn it into a commitment of 30 minutes each day. Don’t feel like your 30 minutes needs to be all at once, break your fun into “bite size” 5 or 10 minute chunks. But I can’t overstate how much your health, wellness, vitality, and success will be infused with energy when you intentionally create 30 minutes of lightness each day.

3. Have Fun All The Time. Weave it into everything you do, even if you are the only one who knows you are having it. To do this I want you to get in the habit of regularly asking yourself the most important question possible: “Am I having fun?” When the answer is “no,” do something to fix that right away! When you must persist in such an activity, you must do three things:

A. Finish the activity as quickly as possible without lingering over it.

B. Do whatever you can, mentally, to make a game out of it.

C. Compensate yourself for tolerating the situation for as long as you had to.

Ever since we started school, people in charge have been teaching us to suppress our playful nature and, thus, limit our greatest health and success. However well intentioned our authority figures were, we were incorrectly taught to equate seriousness with being responsible and successful. How fortunate we are to not only learn that we are actually more efficient, creative, and effective when we take ourselves less seriously, but also to learn exactly how to lighten up.

Shakespeare, by the way, didn’t originate the phrase “there’s the rub,” he only made it famous. In Hamlet, Hamlet considers death as a way to end life’s struggles and finally rest easily. But then he also realizes there would be a catch.

“To sleep, perchance to dream. Ay, there’s the rub; For in that sleep what dreams may come, When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause.” Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 1

Don’t fall for the trap of trying to elicit laughter. You’ll put less pressure on yourself and you’ll also feel the full measure of humor’s incredibly powerful natural medicine.

How to turbo-charge your health, success, and vitality! Clifford Kuhn, M.D., America’s Laugh Doctor, teaches people and organizations to be more healthy and successful through the use of fun and humor. A psychiatrist, and the former associate chairperson of the University of Louisville’s renowned Department of Psychiatry, Dr. Kuhn now dispenses his unique Fun Factor prescription from http://www.natural-humor-medicine.com/. On his website you will find tons of fun, free ways for you to maximize your sense of humor, and enjoy a life others will envy and admire.

Eating the right foods and exercising regularly have been the hallmark of most weight management programs for the last 50 years. We are learning more and more about how other lifestyle factors affect weight such as stress, hormones, and other emotional triggers. Now it appears we can add sleep to the growing list of lifestyle factors that affect our weight.

A recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine suggest that getting enough sleep may help with your weight loss efforts. The study found that sleep deprived volunteers (4 hours per night) had a 28% increase in a hormone called grehlin, which is an appetite stimulant. They also found an 18% decrease in leptin, a hormone that acts as an appetite suppressant, and 23% increase in overall appetite. To make matters worse the participants had an increase appetite specifically for calorie dense foods including sweets, salty and starchy foods.

Although this was a small study, which will need more follow up; it is not the first to suggest how sleep affects weight. A 1999 University of Chicago study showed that sleep loss could affect the way we metabolize carbohydrates resulting in glucose intolerance and possibly leading to increased hunger and a slowed metabolism. It is also important to note that over the past 40 years, self-reported sleep duration in the U.S. has decreased by almost 2 hours according to Karine Spiegel, PhD and colleagues from University of Chicago in Illinois and overweight and obesity have been on the rise.

More studies are needed to show that these results are reproducible and to demonstrate a cause and effect relationship. However, getting a good night sleep is good advice either way. There is no doubt about it that a lack of sleep interferes with our energy levels during the day and can cause us to skip our exercise routine because we are far too tired. How often has lack of sleep interfered with your activity level? This alone is good enough reason to add a good night’s sleep (8-9 hours) to your weight management plan.

© Meri Raffetto, 2005

Meri Raffetto is a Registered Dietitian and a recognized professional in the area of nutrition and wellness. She is the owner of Real Living Nutrition Services providing interactive online weight management programs. Sign up for her free monthly newsletter to receive nutrition tips, healthy recipes, and more at http://www.reallivingnutrition.com.

Weight loss plans come in all shapes and sizes. Some are fad diets that are too restrictive to follow more than a couple of weeks, while others are provided by professionals that make customized plans for us. All of them give us some guidelines on what we should and shouldn’t eat to ultimately reach our weight loss goals. No matter how many food plans we try, healthy or unhealthy, there are some fundamental things you must know in order to be successful in a weight loss program that, believe it or not, have nothing to do with food.

1. Readiness- Are you ready to make change in your life right now? How would you know? The reason many weight loss plans fail is because people are not truly emotionally ready for change. In order to have true lifelong weight loss you have to commit to trading your old habits in for a new, healthier lifestyle. This has more to do with readiness for change than a desire to shed pounds- there is a big difference. The good news is, as you start on the journey to change these old habits you will be amazed how much better you feel physically, psychologically, and emotionally. This is the place where the people who have experienced long term weight loss have entered and want to stay. When you are truly committed to changing your lifestyle you will achieve lifelong weight loss and so much more!

Ask yourself a few questions. Are you ready to make permanent dietary changes for you and your family? Are you ready to start exercising regularly? Are you ready to defend your new lifestyle changes to those who are undermining your efforts? Don’t fret if you aren’t completely ready to dive into change. This is the stage to keep up the learning process by reading articles and gathering information. You will know when the time is right and that will be when you answer an unequivocal "Yes!" to the above questions.

2. Developing a vision. When I ask people what their goals are for a weight loss program the answer is always, "to lose weight of course", or "to lose x amount of pounds". It is crucial to have another more, heart-felt reason to lose weight other than losing pounds and appearance. This is because when times are tough, and they will be during any change process, you will need a heart-felt or internal reason to lose the weight to keep you motivated. Losing weight for appearance is ok but it is an external reason and will not help to keep you motivated for long.

In the past my clients have chosen things like, being able to play with their kids, running a marathon, backpacking trip they have longed to go on for years, and a big motivator is often a health condition. I call this your vision. It is imperative to take a few minutes to learn what your vision is. What is important to you that you will be able to achieve with weight loss? Write this vision down and plaster it everywhere so you always see your end goal and it will always help to motivate you further when times are tough.

3. Self Talk ? is yours negative or positive? Unfortunately it’s true that we are our own worst critics and like hearing any critic it often leads us to failure because we believe the critic is right. Furthermore, we start to believe things are true that are absolutely not true. For instance, if a child is told they are a klutz from an early age they will likely always think they are a klutz. We believe what we are told repeatedly.

What do you tell yourself? One common statement I hear a lot of these days is, "I can’t eat carbohydrates because once I start I can’t stop". This is a belief that you have set up from constant defeating self-talk and once you believe it then no doubt you will act it out. However, there is no scientific reason why a person would not be able to stop eating after having a bite of carbohydrates. Your belief makes it your reality. So whenever you hear yourself say I can’t do something or any other self-defeating talk. Stop yourself and change the sentence to a positive. For example, I realize that carbs have been a challenge for me in the past but I can eat a portion and put the rest away for later. Keep working on your own positive reinforcement by being gentler with yourself and tell yourself all that you CAN do.

4. Be prepared for change. All weight loss programs require us to change a habit yet no one warns us about the process of change. The first thing to know is that the beginning of change is difficult and uncomfortable. This is because it forces us to get off autopilot and focus on our new behaviors. Luckily it takes about 21 days to make a new habit and the uncomfortable part goes away and our new habits become autopilot.

For example: Imagine you get your dream job and it requires that you have to get up at 5:30am. Yikes! You normally get up at about 7:30 am. So, what do you think will happen that first morning when the alarm goes off at 5:30? You aren’t going to feel so great and your body is going to beg you to get back into your warm bed! This will go on for about 2-3 weeks until your body stops fighting you and realizes this is the new habit. The same thing will happen to you when you change eating and exercise habits. Just expect a little resistance and keep going! Your new healthy changes will eventually become your new habit. You just have to keep at it.

© Meri Raffetto, 2005

Meri Raffetto is a Registered Dietitian and a recognized professional in the area of nutrition and wellness. She is the owner of Real Living Nutrition Services providing interactive online weight management programs. Sign up for her free monthly nutrition newsletter at http://www.reallivingnutrition.com.

It’s week three, and you’ve already learned the importance of drinking plenty of water, and by now, are seeing and feeling the countless benefits of cardiovascular exercise, or walking. So, it’s time to turn it up a notch. Let’s add weights to our weekly program, to reshape your body, and your mind!

Weight training is one of the most important parts of your life-long exercise program. In fact, the American College of Sports Medicine now recommends weight training for every adult. The sooner you start weight training, the more muscle you’ll keep. It’s a use-it-or-lose-it phenomenon.

Weight training is also a great area in which to practice mental imagery. You can imagine your muscles getting firmer and bigger as you perform your weight training exercises. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how this simple tool will help keep you motivated, and will help yield a higher return on your exercise investment!

Keep in mind, building muscles by lifting weights does more than make you look and feel better. It speeds up your metabolism! Which is great news to anyone trying to lose weight or get fit. Lifting weights also gives you more energy, allows you to eat more food, and recaptures lost youth.

Weight training also increases bone density more than activities like swimming or even running. By stressing the major bones in the body, weight training offers tremendous protection against the thinning of bones, or osteoporosis. And, by building more muscle, you protect your joints as well. For instance, squats strengthen the knee joint by building stronger, firmer ligaments and muscles.

For a weight training program to be effective, you will need to exercise between three and five days per week. You will need to exercise each muscle group with weights, at least once a week, or preferably twice. For example…arms twice, shoulders twice, legs twice, chest twice, etc. Abdominal muscles will be exercised two to three times a week.

I know the rest of this newsletter may be a bit confusing, but to really get detailed and explain exactly how to target your particular goal with weight lifting is beyond the scope and space allocated for this Special Report, so to assure the safety and effectiveness of your workout, you may want to consider using a personal trainer at least once to help you design the proper exercise routine and sequence for your body type. A personal trainer will show you the proper way to do each and every exercise, and help you get things done effectively.

Here a few tips of how to put together a great muscle-toning, fat-burning workout:

? Each upper body muscle gets 2-3 sets, 12-14 repetitions per set. (Twice weekly, but not on consecutive days).

? Each lower body muscle gets 3-4 sets, 12-14 repetitions per set. (Twice weekly, but not on consecutive days).

? Woman should lift a weight that is approximately 60% of the absolute maximum they could handle for this number of repetitions. Men should do at least 75% of their maximum.

? Move from one muscle group to another without rest. When you have worked all the upper body muscles, take 30 seconds of rest. With lower body muscles, you will need 60 seconds of rest. This is known as a circuit. Repeat circuit 3-4 times.

? Abdominal muscles should be worked three times per week. Various crunching exercises are used to best work the abdominal muscles. Do four sets for the abdominal muscles, 20-40 repetitions per set. It is more important to focus on the intensity of the exercise than the number of repetitions or sets. You should achieve a significant “burn” in the abdominal muscles on each set. You should not feel pain, especially not in your neck or back.

? After each of your resistance training or weight-lifting workouts, you should stretch. Some stretching should always be done at the end of a weight-lifting workout because this is when you need to elongate and relax the muscles.

The following are suggestions for easy-to-perform exercises that can be used in your weight-lifting routine, you can choose 2 from each list and put your workout puzzle together with them as your foundation…

(((Upper Body)))

Chest/Shoulders: Lateral Raise, Dumbbell Shrug, Upright Row, Bench Press, Fly’s, Incline Press, Parallel Dip, Bent-Forward Cable Crossover

Back: Chin-Up, Lat Pull Down, T-Bar Row, Decline Seated Cable Row

Arms: Triceps Dip, Triceps Press-down, Overhead Triceps Press, Seated Triceps Press, Biceps Curl, Preacher Curl, Machine Preacher Curl, Cable Curl

(((Lower Body)))

Legs/Buttocks: Squats, Lunges (side-to-side and/or front-to-back), Leg Press, Leg Lifts, Leg Curls, Calf Raises

Abdominals: Abdominal Crunch, Rotary Torso, Ab Flexor Machine, Leg Lifts from Roman Chair, Leg Lifts (while flat on back), Leg Scissors (while flat on back)

Change these exercises around, trying different ones each time you exercise a muscle group. This will yield quicker results, while providing many additional benefits. Also, the exercises listed above include exercises that can easily be done at home with dumbbells or a weight bar and weights, as well as exercises that are specific to the gym.

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© 2002-2005 Wisdom Books, LLC & Christopher Guerriero WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this blurb with it: Christopher Guerriero, is the founder of the National Metabolic & Longevity Research Center and a best-selling author, speaker, and coach to millions. He is creator of the award-winning ‘Maximize Your Metabolism’ system. To learn more about this step-by-step program, and to sign up for FR*EE how-to articles and F.REE teleseminars, visit http://www.MaximizeYourMetabolism.com