Start Exercising

Exercising is crucial to being healthy and happy. From a US government website I found an interesting paper that was published discussing the benefits of exercise on your mental health.

"Mental Health Benefits of Physical Activity


Reduced anxiety


• Best results with “aerobic exercise”
  
• Best after weeks of regular exercise
  
• Best benefits to those who are low fit to begin with
  
• Best benefits for those high in anxiety to begin with
  

Reduced depression


• Best after weeks of regular exercise
  
• Best when done several times a week
  
• Best with more vigorous exercise
  
• Best for those who are more depressed (needs more research)
  

Benefits (anxiety and depression) similar to those for other treatments

Activity associated with positive self-esteem

Activity associated with restful sleep Activity associated with ability to respond to stress"

There are numerous other studies that have similar findings. In addition, the benefits don't stop there you will see a difference in your stamina and physical appearance. If this is good and healthy and people would want to feel good and healthy why are you not doing it? If you are visiting this blog, you know why you are here. If you don't exercise already, then you should start immediately. Even with one day of exercise you will notice a difference.

So why is it hard to get motivated? Why are you struggling with it?

The answer usually is that people simply don't know how to exercise. It's not that you don't know the benefits of exercising, it's that you don't know how to approach it.

Let me give you a few pointers:

1. GOAL: Create a personal fitness goal. What do you want to look like? Do you want to bulk up or tone up? Do you want cardio or weight lifting or both? These are all personal choices that you will have to make.
2. SCHEDULE: Create a schedule, allow for at minimum 45 minutes of exercising 5-7 times a week would be optimum
3. LIST: Create a List of exercises so you have a destination in the gym
4. RECORD: Keep track of your exercises with a piece of paper with the above list
5. CONSISTENCY: Keep going to the gym.

There are hundreds of exercises you can do in the gym as well as at home. Tomorrow I will discuss a different exercises that you can do for different parts of the body that I found all over the web.

Interestingly about 5 months ago a friend approached me and showed me a great fitness routine. It works amazingly well, almost like magic. You do it entirely at home and it is perfect for anybody who wants to lose weight, feel great and perform their best in life. After all isn't that what we all want? Don't you want to show life your best performance? Why Limit yourself? This program will guide you for 90 days and it will change your life.

It has changed mine and I feel great about it. How about you?

Here is an amazing story of someone who has successfully completed it:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Check it out, rate it and see some of 7,000 YouTube testimonials. It's Called P90X:

Click Here

Yoga Healing and Meditation

For thousands of years now people have been practicing Yoga. It started and India and used to be only for the men. However, now it can be practiced today by anybody anywhere.

My entire family has been practicing it for about 3 years now and I have personally been practicing for about 2 years.

If you want to lose weight, have muscle or bone problems, arthritis, want to be more flexible, or virtually any other ailment, Yoga can help. Through meditation and the practice comes healing. I'll give a personal example, my mother had problems with her right shoulder and she would often have shooting pain. Since she started doing Yoga 3 years ago all of her pain and all of her joint problems disappeared. It seems strange, but it is true. I'll give you another example, my step-father had knee and shoulder problems 3 years ago and now they are gone. These are just a few of the miracles Yoga has performed on my family. There really is no way to explain it, you just need to try it.

Most people think it is just stretching and meditation and really not too much activity. If you are a believer of this rumor then I encourage you to try it and see for yourself. It is hard and you get sweaty. If there is a Yoga studio near you I am sure that they will offer you a free trial class for you to really see.

The benefits you reap are also amazing. There is really nothing else out there quite like it. Included in your practice you will see results:

• Weight Loss
• More Energy
• Total Body Healing
• Flexibility
• Better Coordination

In addition, you learn to control your mind because the entire duration of the class, you are meditating and using your mind. It really does a great job at integrating both mind and body. The practice has been around for almost eight thousand years. It can be practiced by anyone of any age. I have seen people from 10 years old to 84 years old practicing and what some people can do will amaze you. Yoga will also teach you to treat others with compassion. Being nice to people allows you to accept yourself and feel good about yourself and your actions.

The other day, I was driving and I honked at somebody because I was in the middle of a left turn and the person in front of me was not moving. Immediately after that the passenger in the vehicle gave me the finger and continued to do so as long as I was next to him. For what? I was wondering why he did this for a while and it got me thinking. Why are people so mean to others in this world? What is the point? Just to stir up more anger and frustration? People must live with compassion with one another, otherwise we will destroy ourselves. That is why being nice and compassionate to others is so essential, not because it is "the right thing to do", but because it allows us to live together peacefully.

I also found a great book for an intro to a yoga program that outlines the basics click here for more details.

Yerba Mate

A great thing to drink daily is a South American drink called Yerba Mate. You can find a product link on my site.

What is so great about it? You can check out the explanation by clicking here or you can just keep reading.

It comes from the Ilex paraguariensis tree and what is harvested is the leaves. The first step to getting healthy is to start drinking this stuff. It is really a powerful and amazing drink. Also for coffee drinkers, this is a great replacement for it. It is more powerful and gives you gradual energy instead of a huge burst of energy right away. It is also loaded with vitamins and minerals that your body needs.

The mate contains caffeine and other alkaloids responsible for the energy it gives you. However, it is very different. It has potassium, magnesium and manganese in it. It is brewed in a similar fashion as coffee and it has a great taste. It tastes a bit earthy and kind of like alfalfa, but is very distinct. The only way to really understand it is to try it. A popular brand is Guayaki and on the back it claims "provides mental clarity, sustains physical energy, improves digestion, promotes balance in the body, and contains antioxidants". I have been a drinker for about two years and I would agree with all those claims. They are very true.

Traditionally it is drank from a gourd, which is a hollowed out vegetable. The gourd is filled with Yerba Mate and warm water. A filter straw, called a Bombilla, is inserted into the gourd and the liquid is drank by the server to test for consistency and quality. Typically a group of people drink from the same gourd as it is passed around. However, you share the gourd and the contents, and not the water. The gourd is emptied by the first person and then passed on to the next. The server will fill up the gourd again with warm water and the process is repeated.

Lets compare coffee to this drink:

Coffee

• Has little or no antioxidants
• Tastes great and can be mixed in items
• Provides energy that quickly peaks and makes your body crash fast
• After the crash you feel tired and drowsy
• Grown on huge plantations to feed America
• Easy to prepare
• Addictive and can cause dependency

Yerba Mate

• Loaded with nutrition
• Gives amazing stimulating energy that lasts all day
• Grown in the rain forest
• Non addictive
• No crash
• Can be mixed into many drinks without significantly effecting flavor
• Mix it in with your favorite teas
• Helps your body and mind focus
• Great for dieting; suppresses appetite
  

The bottom line:

Yerba mate can not be overlooked in your quest to live a healthy life. It is simply amazing and will change your life.

Instructions to make:

You will need:

1. Yerba Mate
2. French Press
3. Tea Pot
   
4. Honey and Soy milk (optional)
   

All these can be ordered on my site via the links on the side of the page. These are all through Amazon.com so you can get free shipping on these items.

Loose Leaf:

1. Add 2-3 tablespoons of Mate in the press
2. Add cool water to allow the fragile nutrients to soak into the water
3. Boil water and allow to cool to 170*F
   
4. To quicken this process up, put some ice cubes into the boiling water
5. Pour the water over the Loose mate
6. Allow to steep for 3-5 minutes or until dark green
7. Plunge the mixture with the French press
8. Pour into a cup and enjoy
   
9. Mix with soy milk and honey to taste to create a nice mate latte (optional)

If you are using tea bags, just do everything the same and ignore the French press.

Welcome

Hello and welcome to my Blog.

The purpose of this blog is to inform you about up-to-date medical and scientific research regarding health and psychological happiness. It will teach you how to talk to people, eat healthier, feel better, and ultimately live a happier life. This blog will show you, step by step, how I live a happy and healthy life without spending more money than you currently do on groceries and other products.

Many people are uniformed about such topics and listen to diets and other books relating to health. What you have to know is yourself and your body. You need to understand the relationship you have with your body and how to further advance it to be something healthy.

I will show you myths about medicine and then show you the truth about it. You will learn about what medicines to avoid and which to take. Supplements and anything and everything to do with health, medicine, and psychology.

I welcome you to this blog and I hope that you will understand how important it is to live in sync with the world around you.