Why you should do 30 minutes of Aerobic Exercise

Aerobic exercise: What 30 minutes a day can do

Need inspiration to start a fitness program? Explore the many benefits of aerobic exercise, from increased energy and improved stamina to disease prevention. 

How your body responds to aerobic exercise

During aerobic exercise, you repeatedly move large muscles in your arms, legs and hips. You'll notice your body's responses quickly.

You'll breathe faster and more deeply. This maximizes the amount of oxygen in your blood. Your heart will beat faster, which increases blood flow to your muscles and back to your lungs. Your small blood vessels (capillaries) will widen to deliver more oxygen to your muscles and carry away waste products, such as carbon dioxide and lactic acid. Your body will even release endorphins, natural painkillers that promote an increased sense of well-being. Plus lower the levels of cortisol (responsible for fat storing!!)

What aerobic exercise does for your health

Regardless of your age, weight or athletic ability, aerobic exercise is good for you. As your body adapts to regular aerobic exercise, you'll get stronger and more efficient. Consider some of the many ways that aerobic exercise can help you feel better and enjoy life to the fullest. Regular aerobic exercise can:

 Reduce health risks. Aerobic exercise reduces the risk of many conditions, including obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, stroke and certain types of cancer. Weight-bearing aerobic exercises, such as walking, reduce the risk of osteoporosis. 

 Help you manage chronic conditions. Aerobic exercise helps lower high blood pressure, control blood sugar and relieve chronic muscle pain. If you've had a heart attack, aerobic exercise can help prevent subsequent attacks. 

 Keep excess pounds at bay. Combined with a healthy diet, aerobic exercise can help you lose weight — and keep it off. 

 Ward off viral illnesses. Aerobic exercise activates your immune system. This leaves you less susceptible to minor viral illnesses, such as colds and flu. 

 Keep your arteries clear. Aerobic exercise increases the concentration of high-density lipoprotein (HDL, or "good") cholesterol and decreases the concentration of low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or "bad") cholesterol in your blood. The potential result? Less buildup of plaques in your arteries. 

 Boost your mood. Aerobic exercise can ease the gloominess of depression and reduce the tension associated with anxiety, as well as promote relaxation. 

 Increase your stamina. Aerobic exercise may make you tired in the short term. But over the long term, you'll enjoy increased stamina and reduced fatigue. 

 Stay active and independent as you get older. Aerobic exercise keeps your muscles strong, which can help you maintain mobility as you get older. Aerobic exercise also keeps your mind sharp. Researchers say that at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise three days a week can reduce cognitive decline in older adults

Be happy -meditate

Debbie Saunders Workouts

Many children learn (either consciously or subconsciously) that happiness is difficult to achieve. They also often learn that one can only be happy when a certain set of external circumstances are met (for example the approval of a friend or parent, or having a certain toy or other item).

For many people this same mindset carries over strongly into adulthood. Many adults only experience happiness if they own the most stuff, or have the latest ipod or iphone; or eat the right food; or live in the right house; or drive the right car; and so on.

The ironic thing is that, the more we strive to acquire the things that we think will make us happy, the more elusive happiness seems to be.

And that behavior continues into adulthood, only it is our boss that we are trying to please. Or our spouse. Or our now older parents. Either way, we are still seeking happiness in the wrong place - outside of ourselves.

In reality, once we acquire the new whatever, we look straight for the next thing to buy - because the last thing didn't really bring us happiness after all. So is there an alternative? A way that we can be happier and more fulfilled without buying into modern consumerism?

If the path to happiness is not outside us, then it MUST be inside. And the good news is - that it is! And not only that, it is accessible to everyone. So what is the path to true happiness? It is finding that quiet place within where you know that you are safe, and loved, and nurtured. No matter what is happening in the external world. No matter what you have or haven't acquired.

That is where meditation comes in.

Practicing meditation is easier than you think. You don't need any special equipment, clothes or music. All you need is you. One of the simplest forms is called "mindfulness meditation'. Essentially you sit or lie comfortably with your eyes closed and listen to the sounds around you. That's all there is to it. If you notice your mind starting to wander just gently redirect it back to the present. You only need to do this for five minutes daily.

What meditation does is to beneficially change your body's chemical soup and nervous impulses. The result is that both body and mind feels more relaxed. Your thoughts slow down, increased levels of joy-promoting neurotransmitters are released, and you become happy.

So what is happiness, anyway? One definition that I like is a "state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy."

Meditation is a quick, cheap and easy way to boost your happiness level. It just takes a few minutes a day. You should try it - you'll be happy that you did!

10 Tips to Breaking Bad Eating Habits

10 Tips to Breaking Bad Eating Habits

The trick to losing or maintaining your weight isn't finding the next miracle diet; it's pinpointing your unhealthy patterns and making small, albeit smart, changes to what, and how, you eat. These quick fixes to typical mistakes should get you on the right track

1. Starving is self-defeating: The fastest way to lose a few pounds is to cut down on calories. But, eating too little can be counterproductive. Make sure you eat at least 1200 calories a day. When your caloric intake is too low, your body thinks it's starving so your metabolism slows down, to conserve calories,

2. Liquid calories count: Drinks, alcoholic or not, have lots of hidden calories. Use low-fat rather than whole milk in your coffee; and eat fruit instead of drinking fruit juices. Fruit has fiber, which fills you up and is more satisfying than juice.

3. Start the day right with breakfast: Going without breakfast leads to low blood sugar, making you more likely to binge. Go for a combo of protein and whole grains. A hard-boiled egg, whole wheat toast, and fresh fruit, or high-fiber cereal with low-fat milk and a banana.

4. Be conscious of what you consume: You'd be amazed at the amount of calories you consume when eating mindlessly, you don't realize how much you've consumed. That doesn't mean you can't snack; just be more aware when you do eat.

5. Don't hoover your food: Bolting down your meals causes you to overeat because your brain doesn't register you're full until after you've overdone it. "Sit down, chew your food slowly, and eliminate distractions so you're concentrating on what you eat.

6. Avoid the clean-plate club: eating food we don’t want is just as wasteful as binning the excess, and will just add to our hips size. Feel free to leave food when you are full up

7. Try to control your emotional eating: Do something physical—not food-focused. That will make you feel better. You'll only feel worse if you indulge in a food free for all.

8. All food groups are good: Despite some recent diet trends, it's not a good idea to completely forego one food group. "There are different nutrients you need from each grou

9. Rehab your unhealthy rituals: Take a good look at your eating habits, and see if you can make minor improvements, Skip the cream and use skim milk in your coffee.

10. Cravings won't kill you: We all get food cravings, particularly at times of the month, but watch portion size, a small slice of cake not the whole cake! You don't have to be perfect; that will make you crazy. The key is moderation."

Stress, cortisol and other enemies of the waistline.

Stress, cortisol and other enemies of the waistline.
Cortisol is an important hormone in the body, secreted by the adrenal glands and involved in the following functions and more:

• Proper glucose metabolism

• Regulation of blood pressure

• Insulin release for blood sugar maintanence

• Immune function

• Inflammatory response

Although stress isn’t the only reason that cortisol is secreted into the bloodstream, it has been termed “the stress hormone” because it’s also secreted in higher levels during the body’s ‘fight or flight’ response to stress, and is responsible for several stress-related changes in the body. Small increases of cortisol have some positive effects:

• A quick burst of energy for survival reasons

• Heightened memory functions

• A burst of increased immunity

• Lower sensitivity to pain

While cortisol is an important and helpful part of the body’s response to stress, it’s important that the body’s relaxation response to be activated so the body’s functions can return to normal following a stressful event. Unfortunately, in our current high-stress culture, the body’s stress response is activated so often that the body doesn’t always have a chance to return to normal, resulting in a state of chronic stress.

Higher and more prolonged levels of cortisol in the bloodstream (like those associated with chronic stress) have been shown to have negative effects, such as:

• Impaired cognitive performance

• Suppressed thyroid function

• Blood sugar imbalances such as hyperglycemia

• Decreased bone density

• Decrease in muscle tissue

• Higher blood pressure

• Lowered immunity and inflammatory responses in the body, slowed wound healing, and other health consequences

• Increased abdominal fat, which is associated with a greater amount of health problems than fat deposited in other areas of the body. Some of the health problems associated with increased stomach fat are heart attacks, strokes, the development of , higher levels of “bad” cholesterol (LDL) and lower levels of “good” cholesterol (HDL), which can lead to other health problems!

To keep cortisol levels healthy and under control, the body’s relaxation response should be activated after the fight or flight response occurs. You can learn to relax your body with various stress management techniques, and you can make lifestyle changes in order to keep your body from reacting to stress in the first place.

Exercise releases one of the best stress reducing drugs available – your bodies own endorphins,

Your body cannot tell the difference between an emotional threat and a real one. So even if you are just worrying about something in the past, or maybe that might happen in the future, your body gets ready to protect itself by either running away or fighting, happily this is rarely necessary. But and this is a HUGE but, the body has got itself worked up and cannot find a way to release this tension,

Every time you exercise you are helping your body release the tension of the stress response, making it feel calmer, healthier and safer and also giving you the natural high of endorphins making you emotional clearer and more able to function well, sleep soundly and concentrate better.

7 Top tips for a Flat Tummy

Flat tummy tips –  7 top tips for a flat tummy -FAST

Evacuate!
"Most women don't want to talk about it, but you really have to set aside a specific time each day to use the bathroom," says Dr. Judith Reichman at the University of California. "If you don't, it's too easy to give in to feeling rushed, and ignore the urge to go." Once you've trained your brain to dismiss your body's signals, you set the stage for bloat-inducing constipation. Oh poo!
Masticate mindfully
Rather than scoffing down meals, make a point of chewing each bite 10 times before swallowing. "The body has to work overtime to break down food in the intestines, which can lead to major gas and indigestion," Dr. Reichman says. Plus, when you eat quickly, you're prone to swallowing air which can produce a potbelly!
Walk tall
"Straighten up," advises The Biggest Loser trainer Kim Lyons, and your figure will look better. "When your posture is good, you're automatically engaging and toning your stomach muscles." If you need to remind yourself to stand tall, she says, a few strategically placed Post-it Notes should do the trick.
Drink up!
Keep those fluids coming! "Being dehydrated causes the body to hoard water," says Lyons, which can lead you to carry up to four excess pounds around your midsection. Try for six to eight 8-oz. glasses of water or other fluids daily but avoid fizz as you'll bloat like a balloon with all that pop!
Break a sweat
Yes, I know you've heard it before but sit-ups or crunches can help fight the flab. You won't see a change immediately and you may need to build up to doing 10-15 sit-ups a day but you'll see the results eventually! Always hold your hands by your ears rather than behind your head so you don't strain your neck or back.
Cull the caffeine
A single cup of coffee raises cortisol (a hormone pumped out by the body at times of stress) levels for 12 to 14 hours. Studies show that prolonged elevated cortisol levels increase the deposit of fat in the deep belly area so replace your morning espresso with a green tea for a trimmer tum.
Avoid anxiety
When you're stressed, your mind and body can conspire to load the lard around your waist. The stress hormone cortisol, signals the body to store fat on the belly as a reserve for times of life preserving exertion but if (thankfully!) you don't suffer these events, the blubber just stays put on your belly for good.