Change of Seasons

Nature can teach us alot about ourselves.

Depending on where you live in the world you may witness drastic changes in scenery as the earth rotates and the seasons change.  Obviously if you live on a Tropical Island or in the Antarctic you will not experience all  four seasons.  But for many, experiencing the gradual transitions of nature’s awe inspiring events from Winter to Spring and Summer to Autumn are welcome occurences.

Not only does the climate go through changes but wildlife; plants, trees and the sky all transform seasonally into distinctive and stunning panoramas before your very eyes.

Are there Seasons of your Life also?  Yes

SPRING: Like a newborn chick hatching, it is the spring of life.  

Spring is when the wide array of colorful flowers bud, and start to bloom.  Life is awakened from the cold of Winter.  New life springs forth all around us.

For humans this phase of life starts from birth to our teens, when life is new, filled with wonder and excitement.

SUMMER:  Summer is the time of fun in the sun, where the growth of spring  slows down and stabilizes.

Just as Summer temperatures start to rise, hormonal changes start affecting our bodies and our minds, this phase lasts from our teens to thirties.  These are our reproductive years.

AUTUMN:  Autumn is the turning point of life.

The air starts to cool, just as our bodies become more sensitive to temperature changes.  This is the mid point of life between our forties to sixties.   As the leaves change color and start to fall, our bodies too start changing.  It is the time of menopause, reversingthe affects of adolescence.

WINTER:  Nature becomes dormant.

As Winter approaches the sky turns cloudy gray like the hair on our heads.  The brisk cold affects our our bones like the bare limbs of the trees.  This is the time when physical beauty fades, but in its place a true sense of self, an appreciation for all of life’s precious moments emerges.  A reflection of past accomplishments and failures, of loves gained and lost.

Each season of your life has its own unique and beautiful attributes, the object is to enjoy whatever season you are in and make it the best time of your life!

Enjoy every Season for what it is, share your experiences, your knowledge, wisdom and your dreams.

Have no regrets, live life every day as if it is your last.

Look forward to the next as a welcome occurance of change and growth in the Seasons of Life.

Where You Going?

In ancient times and still today in some countries  people “walk” everywhere.

There was no public transportation to speak of prior to the 1900’s, and only the wealthy owned horses, and rode in carriages.

Today we drive everywhere.  Even those without cars have public transportation.

When we actually use our legs it is usually just to walk around our home, then out to the car, then from the car to work or school, and occasionally we walk around a store.  Problem is we are not walking enough to get our heart rate up and to burn calories, so we gain weight, and become lazy and unhealthy.

To remedy this problem a new invention was made called the “treadmill”  where you can “walk” in place.  

Kind of crazy if you think about it.  Why not just go for a stroll at a park, or go hiking or jog around the block?  Our modern lifestyles have made us too busy to exercise, and though we are busy, we are still lazy!   Sound like a paradox does it?

How many people buy exercise equipment and never use them?  Come on admit it!

Why?  It is not natural!

Wouldn’t you much rather exercise with a purpose, like play ball with your kids, play sports with friends, or walk along the beach with your sweetheart?  When others are involved it is more rewarding and enjoyable.

We have so many modern conveniences today like televisions, computers, cars, washing machines, cell phones, lawn mowers, you name it!  As nice as these all are the result of modern technology is that they can lead to a lazy and unhealthy lifestyle.  I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with these things great marvels of technology, but just that we have not realized the impact they have on our lifestyles.

I know you and I never grew up without most of these things, though our parents or grandparents know what it was like.  We can’t turn back time, and I really wouldn’t want to anyway, would you?  I know I’m not too fond of hand washing all my clothes, though I did try it when I lived in Asia (with no hot water!).

We can learn to compensate and adapt.

Cars, though very convenient,  have spoiled us by magically transporting us anywhere we want to go (as long as we have $$ for gas!).   But what about walking?  Next time you go shopping why not park a little further away from the store, instead of trying to get the closest spot?  Or instead of taking the elevator, take the stairs (unless your office is on the 20th floor, huff and puff!).

Walking is one of the most natural forms of exercise.  Best thing is it doesn’t cost money!

Walking is a gentle, low-impact exercise.  It’s safe, simple, doesn’t require practice, and the health benefits are many.

Some of the benefits of walking are:

• Lowers your blood pressure
• Reduces your risk of type 2 diabetes
• Reduces high cholesterol
• Helps manage your weight
• Reduces body fat
• Improves your mood, and mental well-being
• Increases bone density and helps prevent osteoporosis
• Helps you stay strong and fit

Don’t forget to “Warm up” and “Cool Down”   Warm up by stretching your muscles before walking.  Include the calf stretch, quadriceps stretch, and hamstring stretch.

To reduce stress on your heart and muscles, end each walking session by walking slowly for about five minutes.  Then, repeat your stretches.

You might ask, “How much time required for a walk to be beneficial health wise? Walking as an exercise should be done at a comfortable pace to ensure the muscles have sufficient oxygen available.  Like regular aerobic exercise, walking should be done three times a week for 30 minutes or more to increase levels of fitness and aerobic capacity.

Another question  you may have is,  “How fast should I walk?” You can walk at a pace that is brisk but does not prevent you from talking to a friend in a normal manner.  If you walk alone this might be a good idea to call a friend so you can “talk and walk”!

What about your children? Recent statistics show that only half of 11-16 year olds currently walk for ten minutes a day.   Yikes!  Childhood obesity is also becoming a major health concern in western countries.   TV, video games and computers,  has been a major cause of the lack of exercise, not to mention the increased fear of parents for children’s safety outdoors.   I wonder, how did we ever survive our childhood?

How do you get children to walk more? A great way is to make walking part of a fun activity, a means to an end so to speak.  If children know that a playground, a swimming pool, or an amusement of some kind awaits them at the end of a walk, they are more likely to enjoy it.  (Remember to park further away from where you want to go, that will build anticipation to get to the destination, and sneak in some exercise in the process).

Walking will take you longer to get places but the benefits of a healthier life definitely outweigh the alternative!

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For some great secrets to healthy weight loss check this out!  www.healthywomenlose.com

Inch Your Way to a More Beautiful You

As you probably know most diets don’t work and some are even dangerously unhealthy.

When you talk about loosing weight, you usually are focusing on getting thinner, right?  Like being able to comfortably fit back into your favorite pair of jeans without having to suck your tummy in and hold your breath just to zip them up.

Many people give up on diets and exercise when they don’t see a drop in their weight.   Now this may sound kind of strange but you can be thinner without actually loosing weight!

When you lose body fat, you lose inches, but not necessarily pounds. Muscle, or lean tissue takes up less space than fat so you can actually lose body fat while gaining muscle.  Your weight may stay the same, even as you lose inches.

Proper Mindset– A big mistake people make when dieting is that they focus on their current weight, they say things like “I’m trying to loose weight”, the last thing they said was “weight” so they keep seeing themselves right where they are at, and no change happens.  Instead say, “I’m getting thinner”, and you will.   It really works!

Also avoid saying things like “I will NOT eat that piece of delicious chocolate cake”, that is mental torture!  Just saying that makes you want to go out and satisfy that craving.  Don’t focus on what you “CAN’T” have,  picture in your mind what you “CAN” have.  Replace the images in your mind, and speak those things.  Instead say something like, “I am going to eat a delicious fruit salad”.  See the difference?

If you have a goal to develop a thinner, healthier body, forget the scale.

Instead; eat healthy, avoid junk food and sugar, exercise regularly, get good sleep, have your body fat measured periodically, and check how comfortably your clothes fit.

Whether your goal is to fit into your current clothes better, wear a smaller size, or increase your energy by becoming leaner, remember to pay more attention to your inches instead of focusing on those pounds!

Keep your goal in your mind, and don’t loose sight of it.

Picture yourself where you want to be and don’t focus on where you are.   Just like when driving a car, how can you ever make it to your destination if you keep opening the door and looking down at the ground where you are?

Inch your way to a more beautiful you.

Leave the scale behind, first be thin in your heart and in your mind.

The further you look ahead the faster you will get to your destination. 

For some great secrets to healthy weight loss check this out!  www.healthywomenlose.com

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Where you going?

Aging Gracefully

Remember when you couldn’t wait to turn 21 to get asked to show your ID?

After 50 the opposite is true, it hits you hard when someone asks if you qualify for a senior discount when you are not even 55 yet!  Ouch that hurts!  I say that from experience.

I’ll be the first to admit that aging sucks, but there are some great ways you can actually look and feel younger than your age, without botox or plastic surgery.

The now aging Baby Boomer generation is obsessed with youthful appearance (thanks to the Media).  Why do you think the Plastic Surgery is such a booming industry? 

But think about it, do you really want to look like Joan Rivers, whose had so much plastic surgery she looks like she’s been in a boxing ring and lost?  She can barely smile anymore!   Recently stars, like Julia Roberts are voicing their oppostion of using Botox and Plastic Surgery because of the negative impact it could have on their career, with changes of their facial expressions, and overall appearance.  Good for you Julia!  Remember the comedian Roseanne Barr?  After her plastic surgery, even though it improved her looks, people couldn’t relate to her any more, and her career took a nose dive.

There are so many plastic surgery nightmares that have ruined women’s lives more than enhanced them.  People don’t think  of the future, really would you like to have boobs like Pamela Anderson at age 80?  Yikes, that’s a scary thought!

How about all those grandmas with tatoos and piercings?

Generations before us knew how to grow old gracefully (without the aid of Botox or face lifts), we could learn a lot from them.

Let’s look at what Happens to our Skin and Hair as We Age: The effects of sun exposure, smoking, diet, and heredity become evident on our skin as we get older. Stress, gravity, and obesity also affect how well skin looks. And as we age, our skin doesn’t produce new cells as quickly as it used to. Skin gradually becomes less elastic and prone to dryness. Something similar happens to the cells that give our hair its color. Hair pigment cells become less efficient at renewing themselves, which makes our hair turn gray.

Here are some great tips on how to take care of your skin, to help you look and feel 10 years younger:

Stay out of direct sunlight when the sun’s rays are the strongest (bet. 10am -4pm). If you have to be outside, wear a hat and sunscreen or an anti aging moisturizer with SPF 15 and both UVB and UVA protection. Damage to the skin from excess or unprotected sun exposure causes wrinkles and an uneven skin tone, and worst case of all skin cancer.

Eat right and hydrate. Good nutrition helps the body repair skin. Drink lots of water to keep the skin hydrated from the inside out.

Use anti-aging products. For women over 40, anti aging creams and lotions can enhance natural beauty by rejuvenating your skin. Look for products with Pentapeptides that help prompt skin cells to produce more collagen, which is the support structure that gives skin a firmer look.

If you smoke, stop. Research shows that smoking prematurely ages your skin.

Quotes on aging from some wise and famous men:

“Age wrinkles the body. Quitting wrinkles the soul ” –Douglas MacArthur

“And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years”. — Abraham Lincoln

Here are 10 of my personal tips for Growing Old Gracefully, the More or Less of it:

Stress Less, Smoke Less, Eat Less, Complain Less, Criticize Less

Smile More, Laugh More, Exercise More, Play More, Love More

Enjoy Life to the fullest no matter what age you are because you only have one life to live!

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Judging a Book By It’s Cover

You’ve all heard the phrase 

“You Can’t Judge a Book by it’s Cover” 

But yet we all do it. 

Just think about it,  when you’re browsing in a bookstore aren’t you attracted to a book by how interesting the cover is?   They may be colorful, or have some unique picture or phrase that grabs your attention so you’ll pick it up to find out more, right?  They are designed that way, that’s marketing. 

Believe it or not it is the same with people! 

Did you know that you only have three to seven seconds upon meeting someone to make an impression on them?   In this short time, the other person will form an opinion about you that is based on your appearance, your body language, your demeanor, your mannerisms, and how you are dressed. 

That means you will be  judged before you can even open your mouth to speak!  

This is done on a subconscious/emotional level of the brain.  So there is nothing you can do about it, or can you?

As Will Rogers once said “You never get a second chance to make a first impression“

Like it or not, you need to grab people’s attention right away by your appearance. 

Though your true beauty is on the inside, your personality will take time for people to see.

“It’s beauty that captures your attention; personality which captures your heart.” ~Anonymous ~

There is only one that does not judge you by your looks, that is God.  “…for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” 1 Sam. 16:7b. 

But when dealing with people how you present yourself will determine if someone will want to be your friend, consider you for a job, or feel that you are trustworthy, and so on.

So what can you do to make a good first impression that will last?   How important is your appearance? 

Your clothes, your hair, and your mannerisms all play a part in the impression you make on others.  

Let’s start with the way you dress. 

What is the best way to dress for the meeting or occasion?  If it’s a business meeting, a job interview, or a first date even, think about  what is the appropriate attire?  Also ask yourself what other people will be wearing so you are not over or under dressed for the event. 

Wearing the correct Season of colors for your specific skin tone, eyes and hair is crucial in making the best impression and feeling confident about your appearance.

If you have confidence in yourself others will notice right away.  A polite and courteous behavior helps make a good first impression.  

How about your personal grooming?   Cleanliness is next to godliness!  Nicely styled hair, neat and clean clothes (not wrinkled like you wore them to bed the night before), and appropriately applied makeup are all important.  Oh yeah and take it easy on the perfume!  Too much can be just as offensive if not more so than none at all.

Project a positive attitude, even when you are nervousness, and remember to smile,  it’s contagious!

People will “read” you on the outside before getting to know you on the inside, so strive to be the most beautiful you can be both inside and out.

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