After giving birth

After giving birth my problem was  my tummy. I didn’t have big thighs or arms. I just have a big belly, and it’s so hard to tone it down. No diet can make your big tummy go away without exercise. Since I’ve got to take care of my baby, there isn’t time left for me to work out. So I have to live with what I have. I try and do sit ups when my baby is sleeping or playing on his own. I also try and do pilates (on dvd) and let my son watch me and he’d be amazed with the movements. I wish that I get to have time to go to the gym. There’s nothing better than to have a place where you can just think about working out alone.

Tips

Here are some weight loss and diet tips:

• Exercise is not enough. You must also include healthy eating habits.
• Make a list of all the benefits regular exercise provides you. Everything from feeling healthier, sleeping better, preventing depression, feeling stronger, etc. Post this list somewhere that you will easily see it everyday so that it can serve as a reminder why you should workout.
• Eat breakfast every day. People who eat breakfast consume fewer total calories during the day then those that don’t.
• Don’t waste your calories on drinks. Drink low-calorie or no calorie drinks instead (preferably water).
• Try to take at least 20 minutes to complete a meal. This is how long it takes for your brain to recognize that your stomach is full.
• Use a lot of spices and seasonings when cooking low-fat/low-calorie meals. They can make your meal taste so much better and therefore make you feel more satisfied.
• Decrease your caffeine intake. Too much caffeine can decrease the burning of stored fat.
• Consume at least 64 ounces of water per day, plus an additional 16 ounces for every hour of moderate-intensity exercise.
• Each day fill a container(s) with your daily water supply so you’ll always know how much you’ve drank and ensure you drink the required daily amount.

Healthy Recipe: Shredded Turkey & Pinto Bean Burritos

Prep Time:	20 minutes
Ready in:	40 minutes
Yield:	6 servings
Ease of Prep:	Easy

Recipe Ingredients
	1 tablespoon canola oil
	1 medium onion , halved and sliced
	2 cloves garlic , minced
	1 tablespoon ground cumin
	1 teaspoon chile powder
	1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chiles
	2 tablespoons lime juice
	4 cups shredded cooked turkey or chicken
	1 15-ounce can pinto beans , rinsed
	6 10-inch whole-wheat flour tortillas or wraps , warmed (see Tip)
	3/4 cup grated Monterey or pepper Jack cheese
	2 cups shredded green cabbage

Recipe Directions

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in garlic, cumin and chile powder and cook for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and lime juice; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the onions are very soft, 16 to 20 minutes. Stir in turkey (or chicken) and beans and continue cooking until the mixture is heated through, 3 to 5 minutes more. Divide the turkey-bean mixture among tortillas (or wraps). Top each with cheese and cabbage, roll into burritos and serve.

Prepare the filling (Step 1), cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Tip: To warm tortillas: Wrap in foil and bake at 300°F until steaming, or wrap in barely damp paper towels and microwave on High for 30 to 45 seconds.

Health Advantages: high fiber, low sat fat, high potassium, high calcium, heart healthy.

Exercise for Pregnant Women

Flying arm exercise

• Raise your arms over your head. Keep your elbows straight and the palms of your hands facing one another. Hold for at least 20 seconds.
• Lower your arms out to your side. Keep your upper back straight.
• Bring the backs of your hands together as far as possible behind your back and stretch.

Forward Sit-up

• Lie on your back with your knees bent. Slowly breathe in through your nose.
• Breathe out through partially pursed lips as you raise your head, hands pointing to your knees or placed behind your head.
• Tuck your chin toward your chest and lift your shoulders off the floor (not more than 45 degrees).

Diagonal Sit-up

• Lie on your back with your knees bent. Slowly breathe in through your nose.
• Point your right hand toward your left knee while raising your head and right shoulder. Breathe out slowly through your mouth. Keep your left knee bent slightly and your heel on the floor.

Kegels

• Squeeze the PC muscle for five seconds; relax for five seconds, then squeeze again. At first do 10, five-second squeezes, three times a day.
• Flutter exercises: Squeeze and release, then squeeze and release as quickly as you can.
• Work up to doing 100 Kegels each day.

Pelvic tilt

• Lie on your back with your knees bent.
• Inhale through your nose and tighten your stomach and buttock muscles.
• Flatten the small of your back against the floor and allow your pelvis to tilt upward.
• Hold for a count of five as you exhale slowly.
• Relax, repeat.

Squatting

• Move to the squatting position, knees over your toes.
• Keep your heels on the floor; feel the stretch in the back of your thighs.
• Hold for 20 to 30 seconds. Gradually increase the time to 60 to 90 seconds.
• Relax your head and arms throughout this exercise.

Calf stretch

• Lean against a wall or firm surface.
• Reach one leg out behind you, keeping your heel on the floor.
• Lean into the wall to increase the stretch of your calf.
• Hold for 20 to 30 seconds.
• Repeat with each leg.

5 Steps to prevent deaths

Prevent Skin Cancer

1. All doctors are not created equal: When researchers from Emory University School of Medicine looked at the records of more than 2,000 melanoma patients, they found that those whose growths had been diagnosed by a dermatologist were more likely to have early-stage cancer — and to survive their disease — than those who’d been diagnosed by another kind of doctor. It may be that dermatologists are more skilled at finding smaller tumors — and less likely to brush them off as “nothing.”

2. So-called harmless basal cell cancers aren’t always so harmless: True, the growths are usually easy to remove, but of the million new cases each year, about 5 to 10 percent can be resistant to treatment, recurring over and over and requiring more extensive surgery. And some basal cells can be very aggressive, damaging the skin around them and even invading bone and cartilage. That’s why if you have a suspicious growth, you should see a doctor promptly. “You want it removed before it disfigures your face,” says Kishwer Nehal, M.D., director of Mohs and dermatologic surgery at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

3. Your daily coffee fix may help you fend off skin cancer: For each cup of caffeinated java that you drink every day, there’s a 5 percent drop in your odds of developing non-melanoma skin cancer later in life, researchers recently reported. Down a couple of Starbucks’ venti coffees at 20 ounces apiece, and you may score a 30 percent drop in risk (or more — researchers didn’t ask study participants about more than six cups a day). “It’s possible coffee’s antioxidant effect helps to protect against skin cancer,” says Ernest L. Abel, Ph.D., professor of OB-GYN at Wayne State University School of Medicine. “But part of it may be that people who drink a lot of coffee tend to stay indoors more.”

4. You can see a dermatologist for wrinkles a lot faster than for mole checks: In a study from the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, researchers posing as patients called more than 800 dermatologists across the country to see how long it would take to get different kinds of appointments. The disturbing results: When “patients” asked for a Botox treatment, the typical wait was eight days. But when their request concerned a changing mole, it went up — to 26 days, on average. Doctors may argue that the current state of health insurance has driven them to sometimes favor cosmetic patients, who pay in full on the day of treatment (insurance companies can take months to reimburse with only a fraction of the fee). Still, a changing mole isn’t a trivial symptom. Make sure the receptionist knows why you need an appointment. If that doesn’t work, ask your primary-care doc to intervene or to recommend another specialist.

5. SPF is only half the story: By law, sunscreen labels must list the familiar sun protection factor, which tells you how effectively the product blocks UVB rays, the ones primarily responsible for sunburn. But there’s no rating system yet for how well a sunscreen stops UVA rays, which penetrate deeper into the base layer of the skin and can cause dangerous cell changes. The FDA has proposed a new sunscreen rule that would include label revisions for UVA. Until they’re in place, David J. Leffell, M.D., professor of dermatology and surgery at Yale School of Medicine, recommends choosing a broad-spectrum sunscreen, which offers greater UVA (as well as UVB) protection. To check if a product fits the bill, look for UVA-screening ingredients, including avobenzone (Parsol 1789) and ecamsule (Mexoryl SX). Or use zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, which are physical blocks that protect against all rays. But the FDA cautions that, no matter how broad-spectrum, sunscreen isn’t enough — you must wear sun-protective clothing, too.

6. If you live in Fargo, ND, and always use sunscreen, your risk of melanoma can be greater than your friend’s in Miami: For years, researchers had puzzled over the fact that sunscreen users seemed more likely to develop melanoma than those who didn’t protect themselves. But now scientists from the University of California, San Diego, may have figured out why. In a recent study, they found that the unexpected connection applies mainly to people with fair complexions in northern latitudes (north of Philadelphia or Boulder). They speculate that sunscreen users in northern areas never feel the burning that would warn them to cover up or get out of the sun because their lotions do a good job of blocking UVB rays. But meanwhile, they’re being exposed to hundreds of times more cancer-causing UVA rays than they’d be able to tolerate if they weren’t using sunscreen. Bottom line: Whatever your latitude, you need to practice sun-safety measures.

7. You’re not fooling anyone with your tanning-bed habit — especially your skin: Despite what the salon receptionist may say, there’s no evidence that browning yourself in a bed is any safer than doing it at the beach. “Even though there are federal guidelines for the amount of time someone should spend in a tanning bed, we know these are not always followed,” says Michael J. Franzblau, M.D., clinical professor of dermatology (emeritus) at the University of California, San Francisco. The numbers tell the story: People who frequent tanning salons are 2.5 times more likely to develop squamous cell cancer and 1.5 times more likely to develop basal cell. If you’re still an indoor sunbather — a recent survey shows that over 15 percent of women in their 40s and 10 percent in their 50s and early 60s use tanning beds — stop now. But even if you’ve given up the habit, you could be in trouble. Exposure to tanning beds before age 35 significantly increases your risk of melanoma. Protect yourself by being vigilant about monthly self-exams and yearly derm checks.

8. Like children, skin cancers don’t always follow rules: The ABCDE rules for melanoma have been well publicized, but not all melanomas conform. One type, amelanotic melanoma, for example, has no brown or black. Another kind, nodular melanoma, is often symmetrical, with fairly regular borders and few colors, says David Polsky, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of dermatology and pathology at NYU Medical Center. And invasive melanomas can be smaller than six millimeters — the guideline in the ABCDE rules. The rule for you: Don’t dismiss an odd-looking or changing mole because it doesn’t resemble the textbook example; show it to a dermatologist.

9. If you’re dark skinned, skin cancer is far less common — and far more likely to be fatal: No one’s sure why, but among African Americans, Asians, and Hispanics, UV radiation does not play as strong a role in squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma as it does in Caucasians, says Hugh Gloster, M.D., associate professor of dermatology at the University of Cincinnati. He has found that non-Caucasians are far more likely to develop melanoma on the soles of the feet and palms of the hands than on areas that are more heavily sun-exposed like the face and chest. That and the likelihood that doctors aren’t looking for skin cancer among dark-skinned patients means the disease may be diagnosed at a later, more dangerous stage, say experts. Since UV rays do play a part in all skin cancers, and basal cell is an equal-opportunity enemy, people of all skin shades need to protect themselves in the sun.

10. You really can get skin cancer where the sun don’t shine: The same human papillomavirus (HPV) that’s responsible for cervical cancer can cause squamous cell carcinoma of the genitals. While squamous cell growths have at least a 95 percent cure rate overall, those in the genital region tend to be found later, which lowers your odds of survival, says Martin A. Weinstock, M.D., Ph.D., professor of dermatology and community health at Brown University. In a recent review of national mortality records, he found that non-melanoma skin cancers on the genitals, though much rarer than those on other parts of the body, caused about as many deaths. Women were particularly vulnerable; roughly three times as many females as males died of this cancer. Be sure to check the genital area when doing your monthly skin exam, advises Dr. Weinstock. If anything looks suspicious, show a dermatologist.

11. Your husband may not be much help around the house, but when it comes to skin cancer, he could be a lifesaver: Working with a partner significantly ups the regularity of skin exams, reports June K. Robinson, M.D., professor of clinical dermatology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. And that could make all the difference: Previous studies have found that melanoma deaths could be lowered by as much as 63 percent if people performed monthly self-exams.

12. Painted toes look pretty, but what lies beneath may be deadly: Melanoma of the foot can hide under and around the nails and between the toes. And because this cancer has usually spread by the time it’s diagnosed, it has a fatality rate of 50 percent. If you polish your toes, remove the color at least once a month and inspect your whole foot, including the sole. Also, don’t forget sunscreen — on the tops an

Reduce Stress

One way to have a healthy lifestyle is reducing your stress levels.

Here are ways to reduce it:

Kiss. After a long day’s work, kiss your wife/husband when you get home and you’r stress level will drop

Cuddle. same with kssing.

Lash out less. Stay calm after an argument with your Hubby.  Staying calm also help the two of you talk things out smoothly.

Drink Tea. Tea also helps reduce stress levels.

Reflect on what you value. When your frazzle level is so high you feel yourself spiraling out of control, a quick way to re-center is to remind yourself of what’s most important in your life.

Basics of Excercise

The Basics

First, you should understand the components of fitness before you get started. The following should be included in any fitness routine:

1. Cardio Endurance - How well your heart and lungs work to supply your body with oxygen during your workout.
Example: How well you’re breathing after chasing your terrified dog around the yard before stuffing him into the tub for a bath.

2. Muscular Endurance - How long you can hold a position or repeat a movement.
Example: Carrying 8 bags of groceries, plus a tired child, up 3 flights of stairs and into the kitchen without dropping them.

3. Muscular Strength - Your ability to lift the heaviest weight you can, one time.
Example: The strength required to shove your spouse over in an attempt to stifle the chainsaw-like snoring.

4. Flexibility - How limber you are.
Example: You’re ability to reach the top shelf of your bookcase for a quick dust.

5. Body Composition - the proportion of fat compared to bone and muscle. Example: Having a healthy percentage of muscle and fat in your body.

O course it all boils down to cardio exercise, resistance training, stretching, and eating a healthy diet.

Work out in the Office

Your time is tight that you cannot consider going to the gym, and when you get home from work you are busy with the kids.

Here are some exercises that you can do at work:

Standing Back Kicks

Standing with legs together and holding to the back of a chair, slowly extend right leg behind you. Hold for 3-5 counts, then lower. Repeat for three sets of ten, switch legs.

Squats

Standing shoulder width apart, abdominals tight, shoulders relaxed, and hands in front of you, lower your body into squat position. Make sure your knees do not extend past your toes and weight is in your heels. Hold for five seconds; return to standing position. Do two sets of 15 repititions.

Reverse Lunges

Standing with feet together, abdominals tight and hands on hips, step back with left leg, keeping back straight and eyes focused in front of you. Placing hands on your right thigh for support, lower your body until front knee is bent at a 90 degree angle and back knee is close to the ground (but not touching it). Make sure front knee and ankle are aligned. Hold for 5 seconds. return to starting position by pushing off the front leg. After one set of 15 repetitions, switch legs, repeat. Do a total of 2 sets on each leg.

Seated Squats

Sitting on a chair with feet flat on the floor and arms extended in front of you, tighten your abdominal and buttock muscles as you exhale and slowly rise from the chair, pulling elbows back toward body until you’re upright. Inhale as you return to siting posotion, using a slow, controlled motion gradually extending arms in front of you.Repeat.

Why People Can’t Exercise At Home

Gym’s are popular now, they have been for quite some time. People are becoming health conscious, but Gym Membership fees are increasing  by the minute, and still people still prefer their neighborhood gym to their own pads. Although fitness DVD’s have high sales, they are left in DVD racks at home gathering dust after a week of use.

Picture this: You’re at home. You decided to work out. You pop in the fitness CD in the DVD player. Halfway through the warm up, the doorbell rings. Or just when you’re breaking out a sweat, you see your comfy bed.

There are a lot of distractions when you’re at home. You’re a few steps away from your TV, computer and bed that you can’t quite focus on working out alone.

In the gym, you can really focus on exercising. You even have trainers there who motivates and pushes you to work out when they see you slowing down. You also get to see other gym goers and feel competitive with regards to the progress of your workout.

I just wish fitness centers are a lot less expensive!

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